Alison Sweeney shows off her daughter

Alison Sweeney showed off her baby daughter Megan earlier this week. Megan rides in a Graco Safeseat in Meteor with a Swaddle Designs Stroller Blanket in Fuzzy Pastel Pink with Brown Mod Circles.

how to make a fairy princess ribbon wand

We're sure lots of you out there already know how to make those curled ribbon hair bows, but we thought we'd put a princess spin on it. Perfect for a fairy party or dress up.


Fairy Princess Ribbon Wand Tutorial

What you'll need:

*5 or 6 Dowels (we used 12" dowels)
*Hand-held drill
*Wood clothespins
*Cookie sheet and oven
*Assorted ribbons
*Wire
*Extreme Glitter Paint from Plaid

Step One: Drill a small hole in one end of a 12" dowel. With the remaining dowels, use a clothespin to clip one end of ribbon to the end. Tightly wrap the ribbon around the dowel and use another clothespin pin it in place. Wrap all of your dowels with your ribbon.



Step Two: Place on a cookie sheet and bake in your oven for 20 minutes at 275 degrees.


Step Three: While your ribbons are baking, paint the dowel with the hole in it with glitter paint. We like Plaid's Folk Art Extreme Glitter. It's a transparent paint full of fine glitter that gives your project a little sugar. We painted it directly on the wood, but you could also paint your dowel with an acrylic paint and then finish it off with a layer or two of Extreme Glitter on top.


Step Four: Slowly unwrap the ribbon and cut to your desired length. Apply Fray Check or similar product to ribbon ends to prevent fraying. You can also heat set them with a heat gun or a flame (be careful not to burn yourself or start your ribbon on fire though!).



Step Five: Lay the ribbons out evenly and use a clip (I used a large salon clip from the beauty supply store) to hold them all in place. Take another thin piece of ribbon or string and tie all the pieces together. Double knot it.





Step Six: Run a piece of wire through the hole in your painted dowel. Then run the wire under and around the thin ribbon you used to hold the spirals together. Wrap the ends of the wire around the dowel so it will not move. If you want, you can also use glitter spray to spray the ribbons to make it even more dazzling.


That's it! Magical, isn't it?

Enter Us' Celeb Kid Lookalike Photo Contest

US Magazine is holding a Celeb Kid lookalike contest for a chance to win a trip to New York City and a haircut and styling session courtesy of Cozy's Cuts for Kids.

To enter, email your child's photo, along with their full name, age and the celebrity child they most resemble and why - along with their parent or guardian's full name, address and daytime phone number, to CelebKidLookalike@gmail.com. Photos must be in JPG format and at least 640x480 pixels.

For more information, check their site.

cloudy day creations giveaway winner

Thanks to everyone who entered our Cloudy Day Creations giveaway. A special thanks to Dani for offering this wonderful giveaway to our readers. The winner of 4 bows or clippies of your choice is...



Michelle of Michelle Chappell Photography

Congrats! Please contact us at littlebirdiesecrets@gmail.com so we can put you in touch with Dani for your great prize.

Sarah Jessica Parker's gifts

Here are some pictures of gifts given to Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick for their twin baby girl from Jacadi. The luxe French retailer has lots of celebrity fans including Jennifer Garner, Katie Holmes, and Britney Spears.

Gisele shops

Pregnant Gisele Bundchen was seen shopping for her baby in Los Angeles earlier today. Here she is coming out of La La Ling.

Madonna and Mercy

Madonna was spotted out for the first time with daughter Mercy this week in London. Mercy wears Baby Gap's Printed Maxi Dress.

Elisabeth Hasselbeck Launches NFL Maternity Line

Eisabeth Hasselbeck of the View showed off Reebok’s new maternity NFL line for a photoshoot earlier this week. Look for it to launch during the fall 2010 football season.

easy apple dip

I love apples. I also love something sweet to dip them in. A few years ago when I tasted this apple dip at my mother-in-law's house, I was in love. I asked her for the recipe and I was in awe of how easy it was. I have been making it for my family ever since and they all love it. It is perfect for anytime of year, but I especially love it in the summer and fall when we are doing lots of BBQs. Make sure you have lots of apples on hand when you make this dip, because they will fly out of the bowl!

Easy Apple Dip

1 (8oz) package of cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Beat together until smooth and creamy.

See....I told you it was easy! Enjoy!

Michael Jackson dead at age 50

Obviously we don't post stuff like this, but it is so sad that I had to post about it. Michael Jackson is dead :( He was not that much older than my mother. Three children are without a father tonight and the world is without the King of Pop.

Thriller was the first song I ever remember liking as a child. Even today, I have it in my car. Such a loss to the world of music. We will miss you, Michael. Rest in peace.

Cam Gigandet shops with his family

Twilight star Cam Gigandet was spotted with his family in Santa Monica yesterday. Cam pushes a Bugaboo Cameleon and a Peg Perego Primo Viaggio, which carries a babg from baby store Jenny Bec's.

Max wears Splendid

Christina and Max were spotted leaving the Color Me Mine Pottery Studio in Los Angeles on Sunday. Max wears a shirt from Splendid Littles.

Jennifer Meyer's sling

Tobey Maguire and wife Jennifer Meyer were spotted on Sunday with their two kids at Real Food Daily in Beverly Hills. Jennifer carries her new son in a Serena and Lily Peacock Market Sling.

easy ruffle skirts for summer

Can’t help it. This sunny weather makes me want to sew skirts and sweetie loves to wear them. Unfortunately, she doesn’t like to pose for pictures so a little M&M bribe was in order. I am in love with this free Oliver + S tutorial. It is so easy to follow and really quick to whip up. I decided to make it a bit more frou frou by adding some fun ruffles.

Basic Ruffle Instructions
Before adding the elastic waist to the skirt, I marked the skirt in 1 ½ inch intervals to help me see where to sew on my ruffles. I then took a contrasting fabric and cut them into 1 ½ inch pieces, selvage to selvage (about 44 inches). You need about two of these pieces per ruffle tier on your skirt. I then used my serger to finish the edges of my ruffles so they won’t fray. If you like the frayed look you may want to skip this step. If you don't have a serger, you can either zig zag or overcast stitch your ruffle pieces with your sewing machine.

Next, using my sewing machine and some tweezers, I scrunched up the ruffles as I sewed them down to the skirt using my marked lines. (This keeps your fingers out from under the needle!) Once the ruffles were on, I added the elastic. I made this skirt a little big for my girl because I want her to be able to wear it longer than a month—kids grow so fast!


Inspired by this tutorial from Pink Picket Fence, I decided to make a similar skirt using tulle. I cut my tulle pieces a little wider and I layered them for a fuller look. Again, I just scrunched up the tulle as I went. I love how full this skirt is. Either of these skirts would be super cool for bigger girls and adults, too!

Bloom Alma Crib

The new Alma Crib from Bloom has arrived. The folding wooden crib became available nationwide at giggle stores & giggle.com today exclusively. Get it in green or white.

Boys And Girls School Uniforms Are Here | Sophias Childrens Clothing Store

Shop for Boys & Girls School Uniforms At Sophias Style Childrens Clothing Store

We at Sophias Style Childrens Clothing Store have a big announcement! We now carry boys and girls school uniforms. We have just what you need to start stocking up and gearing up for back to school. Not only do we now carry school uniform basics such as pants, shirts and jumpers we are now carrying a wide selection of backpacks.

Check out Sophias Style Childrens Clothing Store for all of your back to school shopping. We're here to help get you through this busy time of year.

party poppers tutorial - 4th of july fun!

I love parties and I love celebrating. We often buy those little party poppers to add to the festive mood. They're fun, but I sometimes get bored with the little confetti or tissue paper crowns that come out of them (and sick of cleaning them up!). So, I decided to make my own. This way I can put my own prizes in the middle and make them really fun. These party "crackers" are traditionally used at Christmas and New Year's, but they would be really fun for a Fourth of July barbecue or as a birthday party favor!

Party Poppers Tutorial

What you'll need:

*Toilet paper/paper towel roll

*Cracker Snaps--I bought mine at my local Packaging Specialties store. (They have locations in Seattle and Redmond WA, and Portland, OR.) You can find them online at some packaging/party supply sites, like Olde English Crackers. They're about $4.25 for 25 crackers.

*Tissue paper

*Ribbon*Cardstock

*Tape or glue

*Goodies to go inside the tube (candy, money, small toys, etc.)

1. Fill your tube with all the goodies. You can choose to put a small piece of tape over the openings to prevent them from falling out. I didn’t, but then I had to be really careful when finishing the party poppers.

2. Cut your tissue paper to your desired size.

3. Wrap the roll in tissue paper. Place the cracker snap on the outside of the roll after you wrap it in tissue paper. After some experimenting I found that the cracker snaps better if it is between the tissue paper and your card stock.

4. Cut your card stock to your desired length and attach to the outside of your roll. Glue or tape shut so it stays on.

5. Tie the ends of your roll off with coordinating ribbon. I used pinking shears to finish off my tissue paper edges, but this is not necessary.

6. Throw a fun party so you can use them! Get creative. This would be such a fun way to tell others you are getting married or you are expecting. I stuffed mine with dollar bills. My oldest daughter would like this much more than little toys or candy (meee tooo!).

Madonna loves Skip Hop

Madonna and son David were spotted arriving in London over the weekend. Madonna carriers a Skip Hop Dog Zoo Pack.

cloudy day creations giveaway

Here's another fun giveaway for you this week! Dani Cloud is the creator of Cloudy Day Creations, selling sweet hair clips and totally darling diaper cakes. She lives near us in Western Washington, so Mrs. Cloud really knows the meaning of "cloudy day!" It's a good thing her creations are so sunny. Here are a few samples. . .





Dani says she truly enjoys what she does and loves the things she makes. All of her bows and clippies are mounted on a double pronged clip. Each one has a non-slip grip to ensure that it will stay put in the finest baby hair. Buyers can request their items to be out on a french clip at no additional cost, which is perfect for thicker hair. For the bows and clippies that have crystals on them, she uses real Swarovski crystals. And all of her ribbons are heat sealed so they will not fray. Her diaper cakes really speak for themselves. She only uses name brand items to ensure they are good quality. They are a perfectly unique gift that any expecting mom would love!


Cloudy Day is bringing us some sunshine with a giveaway for 4 bows or clippies of the winner's choice. Just check out her blog and leave us a comment with your favorite item. Entries must be received by Saturday, June 27 at 11:59pm PDT. Good luck!

Milla & Ever

Milla Jovovich was spotted with daughter Ever in Coldwater Canyon Park earlier today. Ever wears Baby Gap's Striped Crochet Tank Dress in Navy Stripe and See Kai Run's Dorothy Shoes.

New stroller for Satyana

Alyson Hannigan and her husband Alexis Denisof took their daughter Satyana out earlier today in Bretwood. Satyana this time rides in a Bugaboo Cameleon.

Ashby Grace's Birthday Party

Lots of Celebrity babies gathered last Saturday at the Los Angeles home of Access Hollywood host Nancy O’Dell and her husband Keith Zubchevich, to celebrate the second birthday of their daughter Ashby Grace.

All of the kids received the Skip Hop Dog Zoo Pack filled with goodies as one of their favors. In attendance were Denise Richards with daughters Sam and Lola, Marissa Jaret Winokur with son Zev and Ali Landry with Daughter Estella Ines.

Photos by Gina Lee