It’s finally here! After months of soul searching, writing, and editing, I’m finally ready to launch my first e-Book: Moments that Endure are Memories that Matter.

It’s a free and a quick read. It’s also jam-packed with real life experiences as well as tried & true strategies I’ve used for years. We can each turn around what is endured in our lives by embellishing life with fun celebrations and loving memories.

• Do you ever feel the need to create and you don’t know why?
• Do you see others lives as more memorable than your own?
• Would you like some simple ways to combine your talents to save time and create beautiful memories?

I feel like if you know something, you should share it. So that’s my goal. I’m going to expose my simple strategies for making moments that matter for you, your family, and friends.

“And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”
- Abraham Lincoln

You see, to me Tip Junkie isn’t just a craft blog, it’s a way to embellish life and to help those little moments endure in our memories forever. Life is tough! My job is to add the glitter. {{wink}}

As a bonus gift in the eBook, the fabulous Amy Locurto has designed a “Girls Night Out” party pack with “Memories that Matter” photo mats just for Tip Junkies! {{squeal in delight}}

To get your copy of the free e-Book:
Moments that Endure are Memories that Matter

Simply type in your e-mail address below!

Example Tweet: Free eBook ‘Creating Moments that Matter’ over on @tipjunkie with Girls Night Out printables http://bit.ly/bhYCEb pls RT

You can also get this coordinating party favor purse over on Amy’s Blog.

Print Free File: Happy Summer Gift Tag

With the end of yet another school year drawing near, here are some cheery gift tags for schoolmates, teachers, and friends!

These would work great as:

• Cupcake toppers
• Gift tags
• Tape to a real popsicle and hand out on the last day of school

Happy summer everyone!  It’s almost here.

About the Executive Homemaker:

My name is Emily and I am so excited to be a contributor to Executive Homemaker! I live in the recreational state of Idaho with my gorgeous husband, he’s seriously a cutie, and my two kiddos. My hubby is currently in the final semester of his graduate program and I get to stay home and enjoy Buster “J” and Lady “P.”

Although my area of expertise is graphic design, I love to sew, crochet, doodle, play, and anything else that gives me a creative outlet. I have a blog of my own called The Rubber Punkin where I get to share my ideas with others and make strangers my friends. Stop by for a visit!

Blog: The Rubber Punkin

Check out these “fakesicles” Genevieve made for her daughters end of the school year preschool party.  She attached Emily’s summer tags to them for the perfect party favor and small gift.

It’s time for an adventure of a lifetime!  For my son’s 8th birthday he wanted an Indiana Jones themed party.  I had so much fun putting this together.

I couldn’t find cheap Indy hats, so I spray painted these clearanced gangster hats brown. They turned out great! Dylan approved.

Print Free File: Indiana Jones - Party Planner

I planned several fun obstacle course games.  You can print out the planner as well as the game details above.

My mom used the Diego pan and made him into Indiana Jones. She covered a paper plate in icing for the brim of his hat. Brilliant.

She also made this skull cake and used edible glitter. Even the teeth are icing. They were both so yummy!

I made everyone little satchels so they would have something handy to fill with their treasure and other goodies found along the way. It doubled as their party bag. I basically used the Placemat Purse instructions in brown felt with minor changes.

With Halloween so close, it made the decor really easy. Skulls, snakes, spiders, and creepy things.

Print Free File:Indiana Jones - Clues & Labels

Dylan read different clues for our game which instructed the kiddos to go to different stations and find the idols in the end. The Doctor’s Wife did such an amazing job with the clues – I just used those. Thanks!!

Mummy Race – Self explanatory.

Archaeological Dig – I covered a plastic bin with brown felt then put lots of fun things like candy necklaces, ring pops, gold coins, and several bags of rice for them to dig into.

Our airport hangar was outside where we did a Holy Grail Relay. I spray painted some cups and the boys filled them up from a cooler and then dumped it out and handed it to their team mate.

We skipped the 4th clue because the water grenades all popped from the sun. Drat! Next time I’ll hide them inside.

The lake was a blue plastic table cloth with a 2×4 board along the middle with water grenades all around it.

Print Free File: Indiana Jones - Food Labels (big)

Here the kids had to reach into each bowl and find the idols. Which were spray painted army men. The snake guts was jell-o, the eyeball soup was grapes in water, and the monkey brains was spaghetti noodles.

Dylan loved all the presents he received. Thanks guys!

It was such a fun party and all the boys had a blast!

You can find more Indiana Jones birthday party inspiration on these blogs:

• Kargis Family Indy Party
• Tip Junkie Indiana Jones Birthday Parties

Have a fun party just for fun or for your play group. Here’s activities for a Letter Day in the Special Day booklet. Pick any letter you want to learn about.

Letter Day Activity:

* Puppet show about shapes?
* Draw on a Mirror with Dry-Erase markers
* Make and try on paper hats
* Frozen Juice Lids w/ letters on them
* Make bracelets or collars for stuffed animals out of pipe cleaners and jingle bells
* Make a pillow pile to jump on (put letter on pillow)
* Index Card book
* Make your Sidewalk a World of its own!
* Magnetic Letters

A: Apple
B: Ball
C: Cold
D: Dog
E: Exciting
F: Fishing
G: Golf
H: Hide & Seek
I: Ice
J: Jumping
K: Kite
L: Lollypop
M: Mouth
N: Nice
O: Opposite
P: Pie
Q: Quiet
R: Run
S: Slide
T: Tie
U: Umbrella
V: Violet
W: Water
X: Xylophone
Y: Yes
Z: Zebra

Print Free File: Letter Day

Print Free File: Transformer Agenda

Make a Transformer birthday party invitation

Gathering Game:  Play w/ Transformers
__:15:  Transformer Hide ‘n Seek
__:25:  Hunt for the Matrix
__:45:  Transformer Bingo
__:55:  Open Presents  (Have box to put presents in & trash sack)
__:15:  Cake & Ice-cream (B-day song)
__:25:  Watch the G rated Transformers movie
__:00:  Gift Bags (to parents), Clean-up

Party Games

Print Free File: Transformer Hide 'n Seek Cards

Transformers Hide and Seek:

Again keep the same arm bands unless the children want to switch sides. Before the party hide 4 Transformer Cards per kid. The game has Autobots and Decepticons cards. Each team will search for their own cards” and receive a small prize or treat at the end.

Use these Autobot and Decepticon transformer cards for a fun game of hide ‘n seek.

Print Free File: Transformer Party Clues - Example, Transformer Party Clues - Blank

Search for the Lost Matrix

Clue 1: Starscream was seen collecting energy crystals to make energon cubes on hockey mountain.   (“gusher” gummy jewels will be hidden by the air hockey table).

Clue 2: The Decepticons were seen chasing Minicons who are now hiding in the desert (In the rock box I’ll hide a Minicon for each child to find).

Clue 3:You’ve been infected with cosmic rust come to base to get treatment (they’ll have a juice box & snack break.)

Clue 4: Some Autoboots have surrounded the Decepticons. Find out where they have hidden the matrix. (I’ll have the boys play Transformers Memory then give afterwards give them the “matrix” candy rings.)

Transformer Memory:  Print out Transformer Memory

Food Ideas:

Red (Autobot) versus Purple (Decepticon).  Have one half of the food table with red food and the other half with purple.
Make Energon cubes (blue jello jiggers)
Red & Purple Cool aid
Rice crispy treats (w/ food coloring)
Crunch berry cereal (separate the colors into bowls
Pop Tarts also come in both colors

Party Bags: Transformer Bingo, small bag of M&M’s, Minicons

Theme: Jedi Training Academy

Invitation

Agenda

Gathering Game:  Star Wars Lego

4:30   Jedi Training Course
4:50   Light Saber Training
5:00 Destroy the Death Star
5:10 Sharp Shooting the Storm Trooper
5:20 Final Exam (Bingo)
5:30 Open Presents
(Have box to put presents in & trash sack)
5:40 Food, Cake, & Ice-cream (B-day song)
5:50 Star Wars Lego X-box
6:25  Gift Bags (to parents) & Clean-up

Print Free File: Star Wars Birthday Agenda

Star Wars Birthday To Do List:

Laminate Bingo Cards
Wrap stairs w./ pictures
Order Balloons
Star Wars Music
Hang the Star Troopers
Make Tunnel
Order cup cakes
Put up the Tetherball
Make Present Box

To Buy:

Large & small Non-helium balloons
(red, black, yellow, blue)
Black & Yellow cardstock
White Cardstock
2 red, 1 black table clothes,
Green fabric (tunnel)
Fabric for Tunic
Gold cord for tunic
File Folders, “May the force be with you.”
Sidewalk chalk
M&M’s
Crunchberries
Chex cereral
Ice cream cones
Straight pretzels
White chocolate
Food coloring
Red & green Hawaiian punch
Sprite
Clear plastic gloves
Vanilla ice cream
Green & red straws
Aluminum foil
Star wars paper plates & napkins
candles

Star Wars Games:

Jedi Training Course:
Walk over lava – wood blocks over red table cloth.
Stomp on the Dark Side – walk up the stairs that have Darth Vader, Emperor, Storm Trooper, etc on them.
“Dagoha” tunnel – green material shreds hanging down from the top of a long cardboard box.
Cones to run around.
Pick star wars chess piece out of basket.
Limbo poll

Light Saber Training:
Separate boys in two teams, according to chess piece they grabbed.
1 Group drop balloons from balcony, other try to keep them off ground.
Destroy the Death Star:
Draw three death stars in chalk on  driveway.
Separate boys into 3 groups.
Stand at boundary line & try to erase the other teams death stars by throwing water balloons
Sharp Shooting the Storm Troopers
Have boys take turns trying to shoot the storm troopers hanging from balcony. With dart guns

Final Exam:
Star Wars Bingo – Use M&M’s as markers