Adding Color to the Piano
When I go to Target, I like to walk down the back side of the home decor aisles because it is on those end caps away from the high traffic areas that you can find some real deals. Not that I necessarily need any of those deals. Sometimes you just don’t know you need it until you see it. Am I right? Shopping logic is a dangerous thing. Recently, on one of those trips, I found this turquoise seeded glass vase on clearance. Come to mama! I have a weakness for all things turquoise. I didn’t have a plan for it, but there’s not always time to formulate a plan on…
Magnifying Glass Valentine’s Card – Free Printable
I’m a big fan of Valentine’s cards for kids that don’t include candy. I know, I know, I’m such a party pooper. However, I do love Valentine’s cards that include trinkets. See, I’m not a complete scrooge! This attitude works really well because at my daughter’s elementary school they do not allow us to bring in sweets for Valentine’s Day or even for birthdays. It’s a little too strict, in my opinion, but their heart is in the right place. Last month my daughter and I scoured the big ol’ world wide web looking for Valentine’s ideas. If the truth is known, I find this part of Valentine’s Day ridiculously fun.…
Parachute Man Valentine’s Cards – Free Printable
My son has recently started playing “Army” with his neighborhood friends. So when I saw some examples out there for a parachute man Valentine’s cards, I knew he’d get excited. That was an understatement! I don’t know who to credit for the original idea, but I was inspired by this example here. Of course, I had to do my own take on it! Here’s the label that I came up with: I printed the labels out on white card stock, but regular computer paper would work fine too. I designed them to fold in half over the top of the plastic baggie that holds the parachute man. I got a dozen parachute…
How I Get My Kids to Eat Fruit and Vegetables
When my daughter, my firstborn, was born I followed every “mom rule” out there. I think it’s a rite of passage for every first-time parent to go a little overboard at first. We had a spreadsheet detailing her diaper business, if you catch my drift. We earned a gold medal in overboard. So when my daughter ended up being a really well-rounded eater, I definitely thought it was due to my awesome parenting. How could it not be, right? Uh, sure. Go with that thought. Then my son came along and all of the sudden I had a child that would not try new foods. What??? Peaches? Nope. Green beans? No again. Blueberries?…
Blogilates
As I sit down to write this post, my abs are on fire. Not literally, of course, but they are burning with exertion. It’s that good kind of pain…just don’t make me laugh tomorrow. Ready to know why? (I know one of you wise guys is out there saying, “nope, not really!”) I just finished an itty-bitty, 6-minute Pilates video on YouTube. Six. Minutes. That’s all it took. You’d think it was my first time working out, but no. Now, generally speaking, I’m in pretty decent shape. I run 3 days a week and ride the bike 2 days a week. That’s not bragging, it’s just that exercise is pretty much…
Paper Rainbow Butterfly Art
An alternate title to this post could be, “How to Turn Birthday Decor Into Art.” Or, I could have titled it: “The Time I Spent 50 Gajillion Hours on a Silly Project.” Before we moved to Georgia, my daughter had a “Rainbow Butterfly” themed birthday party. There might have been unicorns in there too. It’s hard to pick just one favorite thing when you are turning six. Anyway, I had this brilliant idea to make it look like a swarm of butterflies were passing by our window. It wasn’t a hard project. It involved construction paper, tape and a butterfly hole punch. I did severely underestimate how long it would take…
My New Favorite Spice – Herbes de Provence
It’s true. I have a new favorite spice. This in no way, shape or form means that I have abandoned black pepper. No way. Black pepper is a part of me — mainly because I have consumed so much of it over the years. However, this new spice in my pantry has been the MVP of many recent dinners. Allow me to introduce you. Friends, meet Herbes de Provence. Herbes de Provence, meet friends. I first met Herbes de Provence two years ago at Friendsgiving. What is Friendsgiving? Thanksgiving with friends. It’s one of my most favorite holidays…where you celebrate with those friends that are like family. Anyway, the only spice…
Cleaning Baked Gunk off of Pans
I’m fairly certain I am using the same glass baking pans I received as a wedding gift…16 years ago. Now, that’s a quality product! Of course, they last a lot longer when you don’t use them at all for the first 10 or 11 years. Just saying. Anyway, the point of this story is that my glass bread (loaf) pans looked disgusting. I swear I cleaned them, but they had dried gunk on them that would not come off no matter how hard I tried. See? I promise I did try. I used a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, every cleaning product in my cupboard, baking soda, glass cooktop cleaner, scraping it with…
Almond and Anise Biscotti
Five or six years ago I spent the weekend with my aunt at her cabin in Eastern Oregon. While there, she offered me a slice of homemade biscotti. A vision of every coffee shop’s hard, stale, flavorless stick of biscotti wrapped in plastic flashed before my eyes. Thankfully, my manners kicked in before my gag reflex and I said in my most upbeat voice, “sure, I’d love a piece.” I cautiously took my first bite, wondering how I was going to get through an entire piece of biscotti. That, my dear friends, is when the angels started singing and every bad experience I’d had with biscotti vanished in a mouth-watering instant.…
Potting Shed, Part 2
Someone is ready for spring planting! Spoiler alert: It’s not me! Before the end of 2014, I posted about my stepmom’s new potting shed. By new, I mean they just built it, but most of the materials are salvaged or repurposed for the space. So, totally new, right? Ha! Isn’t it charming? Let’s go inside! The beam work you see on the outside of the building is carried through to the inside. I’m not the only one drooling over those beams, right? That sliding door sections off an area that will be used for storage. Fun fact! This wood door used to be the front door to our house before the home…
