I’m so excited to introduce you to Paige from The Creative Paige. Her blog is new but quickly becoming the place to go. I was originally drawn to her site because I believe it is visually appealing (no wonder she’s a graphic artist) but then stayed around because it is filled with so many crafts. Paige has graciously agreed to give away a very special prize to one winner, one that your family will treasure for a long time. Take it away Paige!

Hey Big D and Me readers, I’m so excited to be here today to introduce myself and to share a little giveaway!

First off, I’m Paige from The Creative Paige. I’m a graphic designer/stay-at-home mom of two adorable little boys. We are currently living in Mexico and it’s been a great adventure so far. I have, however, had a hard time keeping up my craft habits. It’s hard to find supplies here and when you do find them, they are EXPENSIVE. So, I’ve had to find new, creative ways to continue my craftiness.

I really love creating printables because I don’t have to go driving around this crazy city looking for supplies…I can do it from the comfort of my own home. I love having inspirational words around me, so I use quotes and scripture for a lot of my printables. And of course, they are always free to download! Here’s a sample of some of my favorites:

Stop by and grab a few…print them or use them as your desktop wallpaper. And keep coming back, because there will definitely be more. I’m working on some Christmas printables…but it just doesn’t seem right to focus too much on Christmas at least until after Halloween!

However, in the spirit of Christmas…

I’m giving away a custom Christmas Card design to one lucky Big D and Me reader! I love creating Christmas cards…it’s a super fun time of the year for me to see so many great family pictures and help people make something special to send to their friends and family.

One winner will receive a custom card design file with their family picture that they can take and print at any local printer.

To enter: (leave a separate comment for each entry, 4 entries max)

1. Leave a comment on this post answering the question “Do you save people’s Christmas cards? How long? Do you display them?“

2. Follow The Creative Paige on Google Friend Connect.

3. Follow Big D and Me on Google Friend Connect.

4. Follow The Creative Paige on Facebook.

One winner will be announced on Friday October 28th (you have until Thursday October 27th to enter)

Thanks Paige – I can’t wait to see the lucky winner’s design

Hurry up and enter! And remember to stop by The Creative Paige!

Sometimes events can be so built up for kids that the actual event itself can be a let down.

I was worried this was going to happen with my six year old when he went to his first college football game.

But this was not the case.

My sister Kelly is a TCU alum and flew into town for the TCU vs SMU game.

For two weeks before the game, Andrew and I would talk about going to the game. He would express some interest towards it but nothing over the top.

One day I clarified for him that only the two of us would be going to the game. His brother would be with my husband on a camping trip while I had secured a babysitter for his sister.

This new information sent his excitement level on overdrive. He was thrilled to be the only kid attending the game and to have all the focus on him.

He excitedly planned out how he was going to paint his face purple and where we would place the white letters.

Andrew slept in his newly gifted t-shirt (thanks Aunt Kelly!) and was ready to cheer on the Horn Frogs on Saturday morning. Once we arrived at the stadium parking lot, Andrew caught on to the idea of tailgating quickly. After introductions were made, he filled a plate for himself and sat down. In fact, he returned for food three times.

Here we are tailgating:

During halftime, we were standing in the walkway when an elderly man fainted right in front of us. He landed on the concrete and didn’t move. It was actually extremely scary. Paramedics came and helped him sit up – eventually. But Andrew was convinced he was dead. I tried to explain that he was fine (even if he wasn’t I was going to tell him he was) but only a much later visual sighting appeased him.

My caring son told me that if he died they should just throw the body over the football railing. Apparently, we have a ways to go in the empathy department.

Andrew enjoyed the game but thought the food was the best part. In addition to the tailgating food, he consumed dip-n-dots, a hot dog, half of my pizza, nachos, and another serving of dip-n-dots.

As if the stadium food wasn’t good enough, Andrew was thrown a chicken sandwich from the Chick-Fil-A truck while we were standing at a corner about a mile away from the stadium. He danced around and sang, “I got a free chicken sandwich!” Hold onto your stomach…he ate about half of it.

The following Monday he wrote about his weekend and illustrated it. As a parent this is one of my favorite pieces of work to come home from school. I love to see his perspective and see what was important to him about his weekend.
On the back side was his summary of the game.

Here’s the translation in case you didn’t catch that:

I went to a TCU SMU game. TCU was down 7 to 14.  At the end of the game I got a free chicken sandwich from the Chick-fil-a truck and at half time a man fainted.

Andrew feel asleep on the way home but had wonderful stories to tell his brother the next day. His favorite of them all, “I got a free chicken sandwich….and it even had a pickle!”