The Creative Princess

International Delight #IcedCoffee Klatch #CBias

2012-02-09T10:20:00.000-06:00

Have you tried the NEW International Delight Iced Coffee yet?

OH MY GOSH! It is SO good! Seriously....SO good!

I can not tell you how excited I was when I found out about the #IcedCoffee from International Delight. One carton costs about $4 and I can get about 8-15 servings out of one carton, depending on glass size of course. That is SO much cheaper than Starbucks! PLUS, I can pick one up at my local Walmart so that makes it even better!

A few nights ago I invited a few friends over for a Coffee Klatch, a little get together, to try the new flavors. We had SO much fun! Seriously tons of laughs.

This is my friend Natasha. She was SO excited to try the iced coffee. I will get to what she thought about all the flavors in a bit.

This is my friend Crissy. She really liked the iced coffee, vanilla was her fav (it is my fav as well). I think she said her lineup would be Vanilla, Mocha and then Original. She has two teen girls and I think they would absolutely LOVE this product.

My friend Susan was camera shy so I didn't get a pic of her. She, God bless her, is NOT a coffee drinker. In fact I would go as far to say she despises the stuff. That makes me SO sad. In fact, she hates coffee SO much that she was not going to come to the party. But, she is a good friend and came anyway. Isn't she sweet? Yep, that's why I love her.

Would you like to know what Susan thought of the iced coffee?

Are you ready for this?

She LOVED it!

Seriously! Isn't that cool? To be fair, she didn't love it at first...once we got to the Vanilla flavor...she was sold! WooHoo!!

Now, back to Natasha. Can you tell she liked it? Yeah! She even went home with a carton! HA! She is a HUGE coffee LOVER and was SO excited to find out she could just run to Walmart and pick up a carton.....or two.....or four. The original was her favorite and said "This must be what God drinks, it is Heavenly!" HAHA! She is a nut. lol She loved all of the flavors but Original was her favorite.

Natasha and me...her heart said "Party Time" and mine said "Friends 4 Ever"

As for what I thought?

As I already told you, Vanilla is my FAVORITE flavor followed closely by Original and then Mocha.

Now, having said that let me tell you that I think the Original is a GREAT base for other flavors. Use coffee syrups and mix it up! Caramel syrup added in is out of this world!

You can see more pics of my shop and party on my Google+ story, check it out!

You can find International Delight on Facebook and Twitter as well!

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All opinions are my own.

My Etsy Favs

2012-02-09T09:06:00.003-06:00

I am going to start a new feature called {My Etsy Favs}. As some of you know, this blog was born a few years ago thanks to my very own Etsy store. I made hairbows, ruffle socks, pillowcase dresses, and all kinds of cute little things for your cute little girl. In 2010 I had to shut my store down because of tendinitis in my wrist. Oh the pain was just unbearable.

While my store was open I had the chance to meet some pretty {AMAZING} artisans/crafters. While some of them moved on from Etsy I will still be featuring them because they are just that awesome. Since the closing of my store I have also found some new stores that I LOVE. I hope you enjoy this feature and find some cool things for yourself, your home, your family and your friends. I feel it is important to buy handmade and support other women.

My first featured store will be posted next week. I would love it if you would pin something from the featured store on Pinterest and share the store with your friends on Facebook and/or Twitter. Show some love for these hard working artisans!

Pinsperation

2012-02-07T08:34:00.003-06:00

This week I am going to focus on {SWEETS}, you know I LOVE them.

Up first is this {AWESOME} cake! Oh! MY! GOSH! My little brother would LOVE this.....ok, so he isn't SO little anymore but, he would still LOVE it! I think I may very well win sister of the year if i made this for him! Oh if only I had mad cake skill. My little brother seriously watched this movie at LEAST once a week growing up! Not even kidding, totally wish I was.

When I saw {THIS} cake my jaw dropped. I LOVE this cake! It is so cute! My birthday is in May, if anyone would like to make this for me....I would not refuse.

My friend pinned this {BEGGING} someone to make them for her. Shouldn't be hard to pull of! Two chocolate chip cookies, buttercream frosting and strawberries. YUM! These would be GREAT for a fun summer get together.

{SPRINKLES} Who doesn't LOVE sprinkles?!? Did you know you can color your OWN sprinkles? It is super easy also!

You guys know I have a thing for doughnuts! BUT! Did you know that Old Fashioned Sour Cream is my {FAVORITE}? They totally are! I was SO excited when I saw this!

Oh {Nutella}.....how I LOVE Nutella! Aren't these cute little Nutella Chocolate Hearts AMAZING?! Yes, I think so as well! I will be making a version soon!

I haven't decided what I am going to make first but.....those doughnuts are {REALLY} calling my name!

Turtle Pecans

2012-02-06T09:02:00.005-06:00

My Granny was an {AMAZING} candy maker. Ok, she was an amazing cook and baker and just an amazing person as well. But today, we are talking about her candy making.

I remember her making Divinity {EVERY} Christmas, that recipe will be coming soon. I don't however, remember her making Turtles. I was going through her recipes the other day and found her Turtle recipe and couldn't believe how easy it was. Another reason I decided to make the Turtles is because my husband gets a free box of pecans every Christmas from a company his work is associated with. Pretty cool right? Especially since pecans are nearly as much as gold right now.

I am going to give you my Granny's Turtle recipe in just a bit. I am also going to give you my version.

{Turtles}
Makes: 4 dozen

1 (14oz) package of square Caramels (wrappers removed)
1 1/2 Cups Pecan Halves
5 (1.5oz) Chocolate Bars (like Hershey's original bars)

Arrange groups of 3 or 4 pecan halves two inches apart on greased baking sheet. Top each group with one Caramel. Bake at 300 degrees for 7 minutes. Remove to waxed paper and flatten caramels with spatula. Top each Turtle with one chocolate square while still warm, spread when melted.

I had a hard time finding the normal caramels at my store. So, I bought the little caramel bits (the round ones). Um yeah, those did {NOT} stay on the pecans. So here is what I did.....

{Turtle Pecans}
2 Cups Pecan Halves
1 (11oz) package of Caramel Bits
1 1/2 (4.4oz) Chocolate Bars - chopped

Lay pecans in a single layer on greased baking sheet. Sprinkle caramel bits on top. Bake at 300 degrees for 7 minutes. Remove from oven and spread caramel over pecans, you might need to stir a bit then press back into a single layer. Top with chopped chocolate, allow to rest for about 3 minutes. Spread chocolate over pecans. Allow to rest for about 5 minutes then remove to waxed paper. Let sit until set, a few hours-overnight. Once set break into pieces, store in airtight container.

Recipe Review - Baked Doughnuts

2012-02-03T10:23:00.000-06:00

I have been wanting to make cake doughnuts for a LONG time, I just never had a fancy pan. Michaels was having an AMAZING deal a few weeks ago and I got it for 40% off! AWESOME! I now need to go back and get a second pan......waiting for another awesome deal first though.

I first found this recipe from Kristy over at Mommy Hates cooking, she adapted it from this recipe found on Fake Ginger. I decided to take both and combine and change a few things on each. The first thing I did was change the buttermilk/skim milk for what I had on hand which was 2% and I added 1/8 tsp cinnamon rather than 1/4. Next time I will skip the cinnamon all together. I then doubled the recipe.

I made the Vanilla Baked Doughnuts first and then added a few tablespoons to the left over batter to make chocolate. I preferred the Chocolate Baked Doughnuts over the Vanilla.

I found these to be very dense doughnuts and I don't know how to change that. For whatever reason the Chocolate version was not as dense as the Vanilla, which is weird to me since I used the exact same batter for both. Gotta love the science of baking! HA!

All in all these were good, just dense. I would make the Chocolate version again.

If you have a recipe you would like me to review, or just try, contact me and let me know! I am always on the lookout for yummy new recipes!

Potty Training

2012-02-02T12:14:00.000-06:00

Oh boy! Here we go! It is time to potty train MG.

With Mads it was easy, I went to work and hubby trained her. By day 5 we all felt comfortable about leaving the house and not having an accident. With MG, well I am just not sure we will ever get to that point.

The method we do is this:
Wake up on day one and go potty. After they potty on the toilet they get a prize and then you walk around the house, find all the diapers and throw them away. Then every 15 minutes we go potty in the toilet. Repeat for 3 days and you are done. We also night train during this time. Go potty before bed, then we wake her up and go potty before we go to bed, then wake her up when we get up to go potty again and then potty again when she wakes up.....and then you start the 15 minute routine. Also during all of this one, and only one parent is responsible for taking them to go potty. We decided that since hubs has done this before and it doesn't stress him out.....he should do it again.

I made her prize basket the other night. It is fully of treats she normally does not get, cookies, candy, fun little prizes. I also go juice boxes for her to drink as much as she wants during the day.

Sounds great right?!? Well, here we are...day 1 and she has gotten something out of the prize basket once! She has had three accidents so far. The first, she tried to potty on the toilet, didn't go, got up, washed her hands then peed in the bathroom floor. Fantastic.

Feel free to keep up with our potty training journey on my Facebook page or Twitter.

Valentines Day Pinsperation

2012-01-31T08:28:00.003-06:00

Awww...love is in the air. Valentines Day is just around the corner. Over the next few days I will be sharing with you some awesome Valentines Day gift ideas. Today though, I will be sharing some awesome Pinsperation!

To start, let's start with breakfast! My friend Kristy, over at Mommy Hates Cooking, came up with this CUTE and oh so simple Valentines Day breakfast.

Now on to the crafts and valentines!

**WARNING** do NOT rush out to your local paint store and snatch up all of their pink paint chips after you see this. I may or may not have done that over the weekend. ANYWHO! You just take a paint chip strip, use a punch and punch out hearts. Then use a hole punch at the top, tie a ribbon through and bam! Instant bookmark/valentine!

Check out these awesome valentines! They are from Beth over at It Is What It Is. I love simple ideas like this and then think 'Why didn't I think of that'.

Do you remember doing fun Valentines Day crafts in school when you were little? This one took me right down memory lane. I plan to do this with my Prims class very soon!

If you have a bit more to spend or the class is VERY small then consider these Peanut Butter and Jelly valentines from Alison at Oopsey Daisey.

Antiquing we shall go

2012-01-30T08:39:00.000-06:00

Do you go antique shopping? As long as I can remember I have been an antique shopper. The little town I grew up in has another little town near by that claims to be the "Antique Capitol of the World". Growing up the town was full of antique stores, I am not sure if it still is or not.

The little town I now live in has two antique stores. I have my favorite of the two and I can't really tell you why it is my favorite but it is. There is hardly any room to walk in the store, it is busting at the seems with just stuff. Anything you might want....you can find here.

Last week I was on a mission to find some old measuring spoons to use for a project. Luckily I took my hubby with me, he is tall..I am way short. Up on one of the tip top shelves was a basket FULL of measuring spoons! I walked right passed the basket, totally didn't see it. Hubby did though, being all tall and stuff. WooHoo! I ended up getting two sets, just $0.50 each set! Sweet! I also walked out with a pastry cutter and two cookbooks. Of course, can't go antiquing and not get a cookbook!

The books I got where 'The Art of Pennsylvania Dutch Cooking' and 'Baking in a Box, Cooking in a Can'. I can't wait to try recipes from both books! I think we will have LOTS of fun with the 'Baking in a Box' book, sounds like a fun summer time project to me.

Clementine Chicken

2012-01-27T14:16:00.001-06:00

{Clementine Chicken}
Ingredients
3-4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
2-3 Tbs Olive Oil
1 Clementine
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions
Zest one Clementine (reserve clementine)
Mix zest with 2-3 Tbs olive oil, once combined pour over chicken then season with salt and pepper (if you like)
Slice remaining clementine and place pieces over chicken
Bake for 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees

Enjoy!

Tissue Paper Flowers

2012-01-26T10:46:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago a friend asked if I could make some Tissue Paper Flowers for her little girls birthday party. I of course said yes. There are TONS and I mean TONS of tutorials online of the ins and outs of Tissue Paper Flowers. There are even videos. My head was spinning.

So, me being, well....me I decided I was just going to have to figure it out on my own and use pieces from each tutorial I looked at. That didn't work! HAHA! So, it was back to the drawing board. Here is what I came up with, this will make a medium sized flower/poof.

{Supplies Needed}
Tissue Paper
Floral Wire or Pipe-Cleaner
Scissors

{Directions}

Lay 4 pieces of tissue paper out on your work area, lengthwise. Cut right up the middle so you end up with two pieces. Place the stacks on top of each other and begin to fold. You will fold accordion style (like you are making one of those fans we used to make back in the day), with each fold being about an inch wide.

It should look like this when you are done

Using your scissors, cut each edge so it is rounded.

Now take this piece and find the middle, for me it was easier to fold it in half and make a crease. You will then take a piece of wire, at least 12 inches long, and place it around the middle and secure. Make sure the ends of the wire are off to the side of your folded piece.

Now you will begin to unfold the paper. Start on one side and unfold one piece, unfolding toward the wire. On the same side take the other end piece and unfold away from the wire, repeat on other side. It should look like this....

Continue to unfold working back and forth between each side.

When you are all finished unfolding you will start the "fluffing" process. The top part, where the wire is, will not be seen so don't worry about fluffing toward the wire. I like to fluff down, away from the wire, because when you hang the flower that is the main part that will be seen. When you are done fluffing your flower should look like this

Super cute!

You will want to go easy as you unfold each piece, tissue paper tears easily. If a piece does tear just snip it off and continue on.

Homemade Vanilla Pudding Mix

2012-01-25T09:40:00.006-06:00

Oh Vanilla Pudding! I LOVE Vanilla Pudding! Growing up we would always have boxes of Jello Pudding Mix in the pantry, either instant or cook and serve. Now, as a child I LOVED chocolate pudding. What kid doesn't? As an adult, I now prefer vanilla.

And.......

I like it warm.

Yep, I like my pudding warm...if not a bit hot. As a kid though, I LOVED it cold. Funny how things change as you get older.

This mix is not an instant mix, you do have to stir it on the stove but, it is fast and easy. Also, just like most things using vanilla beans, the flavor gets stronger the longer you allow it to sit.

{Vanilla Pudding Mix}
adapted from CreativeHomemaking.com

3/4 Cup Dry Milk Powder
3/4 Cup Cornstarch
1 Cup Sugar
2 whole Vanilla Beans
1/2 tsp Salt

In bowl combine milk powder, cornstarch, sugar, and salt.
Split vanilla beans lengthwise then scrape out seeds (reserve spent beans).
Add seeds to dry ingredients and whisk well, You may need to use a spoon to break up the bigger chunks of seeds, they like to stick together.
Place in air-tight container.
Place spent beans in container with mix, you may have to cut to fit.

Store in a cool dry place.

{Vanilla Bean Pudding}
1/2 Cup Pudding Mix
2 Cups Milk

Combine ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
Whisk Constantly and bring mix to a boil.
Reduce heat and continue to whisk until mixture thickens (about 5 minutes)
Pour in bowls, serve warm or allow to cool.

Comforts for Baby - Review

2012-01-24T14:13:00.000-06:00

I was recently sent a box of baby essentials from Bzz Agent. Inside the box was a package of Comforts wipes and a package of sippy cups along with some product coupons.

If you did not know, Comforts for Baby is a Kroger store brand. I was hesitant at first to try the wipes, I am pretty picky about the wipes we use. Much to my surprise they were actually pretty good! I still have my favorite brand but these would for sure be a close second place.

I, unfortunately, do not have a Kroger store or one of their affiliates close to me so I could not use the coupon for a free pack of diapers. I was able to pass that coupon on to a friend who was very excited to use it. I also gave her a few of the other coupons that came in my pack and passed the rest out to other friends.

The sippy cups I was sent have been used a lot. There is just something aboout a new cup and my girls. I don't know what it is but whenever we get new cups they want to use them, and only them, for every meal. The cups are great! They have little lids attached to them, along with a spill proof valve, so it makes travel much easier and worry free.

The next time you are near Kroger be sure to look at their baby section and give Comforts for Baby a try!

Disclosure: I received a product sample, coupon, collateral or other special premium from BzzAgent. All opinions are my own.

Pinsperation

2012-01-24T08:35:00.012-06:00

Raise your hand if you LOVE Pinterest!!!!

Oh you better believe I am raising my hand, both hands, and waiving them around like a mad woman!

I started on Pinterest in May...or June...or July...Sometime last Spring/Summer. I was very hesitant at first, I didn't want one more site I was addicted to. Thanks to my dear friend Jess.....the rest they say.....is history. I was invited and signed up and ready to go. Oh my! Since then, I have made a lot of yummy, a few not so yummy, and some pretty cool things.

This week I am going to share with you some things I want to try soon. Now, if I actually get them done will be an entirely different story. HA!

First up..... These SUPER cute baskets!

Aren't they CUTE?!?! I need some more storage in my pantry and these would be great for the little odds and ends.

Next we have these Chocolate Croissants....

YUM! I had a Chocolate Croissant one morning at Walt Disney World...my goodness it was AMAZING!

Now, you know I am a pretty frugal girl. Check out this!

Homemade Body Wash! From a BAR OF SOAP! I am for sure going to try this out! I have a particular FAVORITE soap that also has a body wash....the only problem is the soap is super cheap but the body was is over $5! I refuse to pay that much!

We are getting ready to move baby girl into a big girl bed so, we are wanting to redo her room. I LOVE this idea!

Just paint the dresser and drawers then stencil something cute on! Easy and cute!

And finally......I want to do this for my kitchen wall....

You pick your colors and the initial then print and frame! That's it! SO easy!

If you are not on Pinterest yet and would like an invitation just let me know! If you are already on Pinterest follow me, then leave a comment and let me know and I will follow you back!

Happy Pinning!

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars

2012-01-23T08:55:00.000-06:00

{Please ignore the "old" chocolate look. I put them in my fridge to store, bad idea}

I first saw this recipe on Pinterest. We LOVE the Quaker Chewy Granola Bars and when I saw these tasted JUST like them I just HAD to try them.

These don't taste JUST like the ones you can buy in stores. However, they are still REALLY good and healthy. You can pick and choose what you want to add in, I chose to do the Smore's version because it is our fave. You could swap the marshmallows and chocolate out for say....Craisins and dark chocolate. Oh! That would be REALLY good! I will have to try that next time.

The original recipe says to use plain granola but, I bought a honey granola cereal (my options are pretty limited around here) and it was GREAT.

Also, when storing I placed a sheet of waxed paper between each layer. This works really well.

{S’mores Chew Granola Bars}

adapted from Back to the Cutting Board

Ingredients

1 Stick unsalted Butter

½ Cup Packed Light Brown Sugar

½ Cup Honey

4 Cups Granola

2 Cups Rice Krispies

2 Cups Mini Marshmallows

1 Cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Directions

Line a 9x13 baking dish with foil, lightly butter or spray with cooking spray. Set aside.

Combine honey and butter in saucepan over medium-high heat. Once butter starts to melt, stir in Brown Sugar

Bring mixture to a boil, lower heat and simmer until sugar dissolves. Remove pan from heat.

Add Granola and Cereal to saucepan and fold into honey mixture until evenly coated. Once coated, fold in the Marshmallows.

Spread the mixture into your pan and press firmly to even out. I like using my hands for things like this but you can use the back of a spoon or a spatula.

Sprinkle Chocolate Chips on top and gently press into place.

Allow to sit for about 30 minutes, lift out of pan and cut into bars.

Store in an airtight container.

Recipe Review - PW's Vanilla Bean Scones

2012-01-20T08:35:00.001-06:00

Ooooh Vanilla Scones. I just love Vanilla Bean Scones! Seriously drool every time I even think about them.

My love for Vanilla Bean Scones started at Starbucks a few years ago. I was scared to try to make my own because well, I had only had them from Starbucks and I did not want my love for them to be tainted by a bad recipe.

Oh! My! Gosh! Am I ever so glad I tried this recipe! It is very easy and, in great PW fashion, she walks you through all of the steps with ease. The one thing I did not do was cut the scones small enough the first time. No biggie though, this gave me a little extra scone to love. The only other thing I would do next time is make my glaze a bit thicker. I followed her recipe to a "T" but I would add a little less salt to the dough and a bit more powdered sugar to the glaze next time.

Oh! Also! The very first thing I did was scrape the vanilla beans into the cream and let it sit for a while, in the recipe PW recommends letting it sit for about 15 minutes, I let mine set about 20-25 minutes. I also added the vanilla beans to the milk for the glaze as soon as I put my first batch of scones in the oven. I put the vanilla bean milk in an air-tight container and let it sit in the fridge until I was ready to use it. This made it EXTRA vanilla-y. YUM!

You can find PW's awesome Vanilla Scone recipe here. Be sure to check it out and let me know how you like it!

I purchase my vanilla beans from IndriVanilla.

If you have a recipe you would like me to review please contact me, I would love to try some new recipes!

What a week!

2012-01-19T09:18:00.000-06:00

Ugh.

You know it's not going well when the post starts with an "Ugh".

So last week I told you all about how I killed my laptop. Yep, dead. Well.....the new one got here late Tuesday afternoon! WooHoo!! It has taken me two days to feel it out and play with some of the features.

While having the new laptop is great....the rest of my week hasn't gone so well. It has had some highlights, like getting free diapers on Saturday and donating my goodies to the Salvation Army, but there have been some lows.

Sunday we woke up and we were all sick. Yes, ALL of us. Ugh! Mads was the worse, followed by me, then hubs, then MG. MG is still kind of snotty but is better for the most part. PHEW! Hubby's head still feels like it is going to explode. I feel just crummy, snotty, congested, head hurts, throat hurts....ugh.

Then, then there is Mads.

My sweet girl really was not feeling good Sunday. Monday seemed a bit better but it really wasn't. Tuesday was even worse. Every once in a while she would just SCREAM because her ears hurt her so bad. We took her to the doctor yesterday and she has ruptured BOTH eardrums. BOTH of them! My poor sweet girl! I feel so bad for her. We got some drops, some antibiotic and some cotton balls. When we got home Dr. Mom fixed her all up and made her rest.

Last night before bed her right ear started hurting again. I looked in and I could see chunk of wax that I could get to. I scooped it out....I am not kidding you it was the size of a pea!

GROSS!

GAG!

YUCK!

After I got it out she got this look of relief on her face, poor girl. Needless to say, she felt MUCH better after that. Phew! She was so excited this morning to finally be going back to school. I haven't heard from her teacher yet so hopefully everything is going well.

So, it has been a bit of a week. I have managed to try some new recipes and can't WAIT to share them with you all! YUM!

Oh, yesterday I did have a post on Mom It Forward! Love them! Check it out, it was a lot of fun to make!

I hope you all are having an AWESOME week!

Champions for Kids: Abbott Nutrition Pack a Snack - Donation Day

2012-01-16T08:25:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, I signed up to be a part of the Champions for Kids: Abbott Nutrition Pack a Snack project. I decided my donation would go to my local Salvation Army Backpack program.

I chose this program because they provide meals for school age children that might not otherwise receive them. The children are nominated to the program by their teacher or other school staff. The teacher in charge of the Backpack program on the school level then goes one day a week and packs bags for the children. Each child is given one bag of food per week, they can either take their bag home or leave it at school in their locker.

A few weeks ago I stopped by our Salvation Army location and spoke to them about their needs and to make sure what I planned to purchase was in line with their program guidelines. I decided to purchase 25 packs (100 shakes) of the PediaSure SideKicks, in a variety of flavors. This was enough to provide each child in the program with two shakes this week.

Cart full of nutritious drinks!

When I got to the store I headed straight to the pharmacy, this is where nutritional shakes are at my location. I was surprised to find out that they did not have the children’s shakes here. The children’s shakes are located in the baby department near the formula. I was happy to see there was a great selection to choose from and the shelves were well stocked. I loaded my cart and off we went.

MG helping mommy

When we arrived to make the donation the volunteers were very excited. I think they thanked me 3 dozen times! I held back my tears, you know I am an overly emotional person, and helped them stock the shelves with the shakes.

I want to take this time to thank Abbott Nutrition (#AbottCFK), Champions for Kids and Collective Bias (#CBias) for helping change the face of hunger in our nation. I encourage all of my readers to take the steps today to help in your community. All it takes is one small donation. It could be one pack, it could be 300 packs, just do what you can. If we all join together we can end hunger in our nation for good.

If you would like to see more of my shopping and donation experience head to Google+!

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. All opinions are my own. #AbbottCFK #CBias #ChampionsForKids

Saied Music Giveaway Winner

2012-01-13T08:45:00.000-06:00

A HUGE congrats to our winner.....

Anna Marie!

I will be contacting Anna Marie in just a bit to let her know she has won. If for some reason she is unable to attended the classes I will pick another winner.

Thank you to those that entered!

HELLO...is this thing on?

2012-01-12T21:05:00.000-06:00

Hey guys! I just wanted to let you know I am still here. If you aren't keeping up with me on Facebook or Twitter then you don't know that......I killed my laptop. Yep, gone. Buh-bye. Ugh!

Don't worry! A replacement is on it's way and will be here next week! WaHoooo!!

In the mean time, my posts here will be sparse as the good ol PC is ancient....to say the least. In the time it takes me to write one post on this thing I could have had 10-20 done on my laptop. *SIGH*

On the bright side! Yes, there is one. I have been doing a lot of projects that I can't wait to show you! Maybe being without a computer isn't such a bad thing sometimes?

I wanted to also take this time to remind you that you can find me on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest! SWEET!

Oh! One more thing, the giveaway (yes, for Tulsa area peeps only...sorry guys) is still going! HURRY and enter though! I will be drawing the winner tomorrow!

GIVEAWAY - SAIED Music - CLOSED

2012-01-10T11:51:00.002-06:00

If you are from the Tulsa area, chances are you have at the very least heard of Saied Music Store. Some of you may have even stepped foot in one of their stores. I became familiar with Saied in the 5th grade.

At my school every 5th grader was given the option of joining band. I wanted SO BAD to learn to play the drums. That was not what I would pick though. I decided on the flute, my best friend was going to play the flute as well so it just seemed natural for me to also play the flute. I played until my Sophomore year of high school, that was also the year I was crowned Band Queen.

Saied Music Store came out to our school with some instruments and let us test them out to see what we liked. I decided on their basic student flute. I still have it in my attic. I also still have all the music I ever learned up there....sheets and sheets of it.

Now that I am an adult I would really like to learn to play the piano. Being so far away from their store it is hard for me to get there. Then there is the whole 'hubby's schedule' thing. I also didn't want to sit down with some boring piano teacher and play boring songs. I was SO excited when I heard about a new class they are offering!

The class is called {Musical Moments Adult Piano/Keyboard Class} and is about making music FUN in a non-competitive, gently-paced environment.

The classes are on:

Mondays at Saied Music Midtown 11:00am-12:00pm or 6:00pm-7:00pm

Tuesdays at Saied South 11:00am-12:00pm or 6:00pm-7:00pm

and are $80/month.

Giveaway is now closed!

I am SO excited about today's giveaway!

Thanks to a friend from Saied Music I am able to giveaway one SCHOLARSHIP to the 11am Tuesday class! That is a {$270 value}!

AWESOME!

How To Enter:

Mandatory: Leave a comment bellow....

Optional (extra) entries:

Like me on Facebook

Follow me on Twitter
One additional comment per day for length of giveaway

Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry.

This giveaway will run from today {Tuesday January 10, 2012} and will end at {8:00am Friday January 13, 2012}

Winner will get detailed instructions on how to claim prize, classes start Tuesday January 17th. Winner must also pay for the instruction book ($20), all other fees are covered in scholarship. I will use random.org to select winner, winner will be announced by 12:00pm Friday January 13th, 2012.

*This is not a sponsored giveaway. I was in no way compensated for this review/giveaway.

Regal Nail Salon - Review

2012-01-08T17:51:00.000-06:00

This weekend I had the opportunity to go to the Regal Nail Salon inside my local Walmart. I could choose any service I wanted, I chose to have Gel Tips put on. It has been a very, VERY long time since I have had my nails done at a salon and it showed!

My cuticles and nails get SO dry and brittle. I would like to say this only happens during the winter but, it is a year round thing. I have tried to grow my nails out for years. They just don't grow. One or two will grow then they start to split on the side. I don't know why they do that.

I was very pleased with the salon. It was very clean and well kept, the techs were very nice and knew what they were talking about. I waited about 5 minutes for my turn. The tech I got was very nice, he helped me decide on what service to get and even offered tips to help keep my cuticles from drying out so much.

I decided on the Gel Tips and look forward to going back in a few weeks to have them filled. There were plenty of magazines to pick from, they also had a TV in the back of the salon that you could watch while you were there. Being a busy mom I am so thankful services such as this are available inside Walmart. It is so much easier to stop at one store, get everything I need and also treat myself rather than stopping at 10 different places.

I have decided to take my oldest back next time and let her get her nails painted. How fun!

You can see more on my Google+ story.

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All thoughts and pictures are my own.

Guest post on Mom It Forward - Toffee Crackers

2012-01-05T08:53:00.001-06:00

As some of you know I had a recipe featured on Mom It Forward yesterday! How exciting!! I made the Toffee Crackers that have been floating around the internet for the past month.

Be sure to check out Mom It Forward and "like" them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter!

A few of you have emailed me and asked a few questions about a few things. Since some of the questions were the same I wanted to share the answers here as well in case there was anyone else wondering the same thing. I also wanted to show you some extra pics of the process.

Q1: What kind of cracker did you use?

A1: Well, I actually used two different crackers and a cereal. I wanted to see what one I preferred and if the same process would work on cereal. I used regular saltines, Ritz and Rice Chex.

I preferred the regular saltines over everything else.

I liked the Ritz but they did not enhance the flavor like the saltines did. They just kind of blended in and did not hold their own flavor.

The rice Chex were OK. I did not use very many and they tasted just a bit bland. To make the Chex work you would need to cut back how much toffee you use or use more Chex. I would also melt the chocolate chips and drizzle on top rather than melting the chocolate directly on the hot cereal/toffee next time.

Q2: Can you over boil the toffee?

A2: Yes, yes you can. And it is not pretty. Really, it only needs to boil for the 3 minutes.

Q3: This was really hard to "break" is there another way to "break" it?

A3: I like using a pizza cutter. You won't get straight lines but it does help break it up.

If you have any other questions feel free to leave a comment or contact me.

Enjoy!

Abbott Nutrition Pack a Snack - Champions for Kids

2012-01-04T10:45:00.000-06:00

I recently signed up to be part of the Abbott Nutrition Pack a Snack project. This project is so close to my heart. You have heard me talk about wanting to start awesome things in this community. You know I have a heart and passion for helping kids. You have also heard me talk about the kids around here being hungry. Oklahoma is now the 4^th hungriest state in the US. The number of Oklahomans at risk of going hungry every day is astonishing to me, 600,000 people! One in four Oklahoma children struggles with hunger. I know for my community that number is much higher. We have to do something about this!

For this campaign I will be purchasing Abbott Nutrition Snack Packs and donating them to a local charity. The charity I have chosen is my local Salvation Army Backpack program. This program provides food for children for after school and weekends. It surprises me that most people do not know that there are children that only eat at school. The only food they eat for the day is whatever is provided at school. Thank God for programs that provide food for these children. It is so important for children to have nutritious food options and am glad the Backpack Program offers this.

I am very excited to be a part of this simple service project, you can find more info and other ideas on the Champions for Kids website. During the next few weeks I hope you will join me in this mission and donate to a local organization and help change the face of hunger!

I am proud to be working as one of the millions of Champions for Kids. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. All opinions in this post are my own. #CBias #AbbottCFK

Tyson Minis Quick Dinner

2012-01-04T08:33:00.006-06:00

This week I had to opportunity, thanks to #CBias and #TysonGoodness, to get more Tyson Mini Chicken Sandwiches. I was hoping to catch a demo at the store but I had no such luck.

Bummer.

I was able to grab the Mini's though. WooHoo!!

I LOVE these little sandwiches, so do my girls. I am busy these days and sometimes I just don't have time to cook dinner. These sandwiches take just over a minute to make, seriously FAST! The other night we needed a FAST meal, we got home late from dance and I had two VERY hungry girls on my hands.

Have you ever experienced a 2 year olds tantrum? How about a 6 year olds? Yeah, so not fun! Luckily I didn't have to listen to that mess long. I paired the sandwiches up with a clementine and some sweet potato fries. The girls still prefer to dismantle the sandwich and eat just the chicken, but that is how they like them and I am not going to complain since they love these sandwiches and actually eat them.

Tyson is still offering their gift card deal on these also, which makes the sandwiches a GREAT deal. When you buy 2 boxes you get a $5 Walmart gift card! That makes them almost BOGO! You know I like that awesome deal! You can find more details about this deal here.

Want more info on these cute little sandwiches? Check out my Google+ story.

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All thoughts, opinions and pictures are my own.

Snowman Pizza Pinsperation

2012-01-03T08:56:00.000-06:00

I just found this CUTE snowman pizza last night on Pinterest.

{pic is Delia's, be sure to check out her site, lot's of cute stuff}

Isn't it CUTE?!!? Yeah, I think so too.

Christmas Eve we made a Christmas tree shaped pizza, we actually made two but one was really wonky. The girls got a big kick out of it, I won't lie....I did too.

I can't wait to try the snowman version. I just can't decide when to try it, this week or the first day it snows.

Now that I think about it, I am going to try it this week. Who knows when it will snow this year, it has been in the 60's the past few days! Saturday we hit 70! Amazing!

Biscuit Doughnuts

2012-01-02T10:08:00.000-06:00

A few ~~weeks~~ months ago I came across this AWESOME pin on Pinterest. The description got me, 'Easy Doughnuts'. OH! YEAH! I have been searching and searching for an easy, and fast, doughnut recipe.

I excitedly clicked on the link.

Only to discover I had been eating these doughnuts my entire life and were no different than the recipe I already had. That part stunk but, it reminded me I need to carry on this tradition and make them for my girls more often.

They are VERY, VERY messy though. You end up with sugar all over your table and your children will end up with sugar in seriously EVERY crevice of their body. Yes, fully clothed I found sugar in my daughters diaper. How does that happen?!?!

Regardless, these are REALLY good and SO easy.

Biscuit Doughnuts

1 Can of Biscuits

Oil

Sugar

Open can of biscuits and either stretch a hole in the middle or cut a little whole with a small bottle lid or small round cookie cutter (I have a fondant cutter I use when we want doughnut holes also).

Heat about 2-3 inches of oil in a saucepan. Place two-three pieces of dough in heated oil. Let one side brown to a light golden brown then flip.

You want to make sure your oil is not too hot or the outside of the doughnut will be brown and the inside will be raw.

Once your doughnut is a nice golden brown on both sides remove to a bowl with sugar in it. Cover doughnut with sugar and set on plate or serve immediately.

Some people I know like to add cinnamon to their sugar. I just like them with plain sugar.

Enjoy!

Kitchen Pantry Organization

2011-12-30T08:28:00.000-06:00

Yes. THAT is my pantry. Yep, totally out of control!

Where would you like me to start?

The top shelf is pretty much a catch all.

The next shelf is for all my baking stuff. Can you see that floral box in the very back? Yeah I have two of them side by side. That was my lame attempt at trying to organize the mess.

The boxes are both empty.

The next shelf I use for my taller items.

Then I have another catch all and small appliance storage.

Finally, the very bottom. It has more small appliances, my reusable shopping bags, placemats for my girls and a random Christmas box I forgot was down there that I was totally going to use. Ugh!

As you can see it needs to be organized. I got a nice Target GC for Christmas and I plan of using it for organization things. Bins, boxes, canisters, maybe a lazy susan or two...or four.

I will post a pic when I am all done and of course let you know what products I use.

Stay tuned!

Homemade Moonpies

2011-12-29T08:10:00.000-06:00

Ahhh Moonpies. Do you remember them? Of course you do! I remember the chocolate and the yellow (banana?). I also remember not liking them all that much.

My mom, well my mom LOVES moonpies. Almost as much as those weird red peanut cluster things.

Anywhoo....

I saw that you could make your OWN Moonpies a few months ago on Pinterest. As soon as I saw that I knew exactly what I was going to do.

Make them for my mom.

So this past week I did just that.

I found a few recipes on Pinterest but, decided to go with this one. It was very easy to make and I did it over two days. That was probably the best decision I made. I made the cookies on one day then the marshmallow the next. I also covered them with chocolate the same day I made the marshmallow cream.

In the recipe I used she does a double-decker. I decided to go with just a single sandwich cookie and am glad I did. These are SO rich, I can't imagine them being double-decker.

I did add a second layer of chocolate then smoothed it over the edges. You will want a tall glass of cold milk with you when you eat these. They are SO good.

Let me know if you make them and what you think.

Enjoy!

Let the sun shine!

2011-12-28T08:10:00.000-06:00

As my hubby and I were driving to his doctors appointment this morning I noticed something. Something I had never noticed before.

Houses.

Yes, houses!

We have driven down that highway hundreds, if not thousands of times. I have never EVER noticed these houses before! You may be thinking, 'well, they must be new'....nope. They are not. In fact they were rather old. The only reason I noticed them this time? The sun was shining right on them.

That got me thinking....oh boy..I know. Anyway...it got me thinking. We are like that with people also. How many people do you pass by each day? A few? A few hundred? A few thousand maybe? Do you even notice half the people you pass by? Probably not. Would you notice them if they were in the 'spotlight'? Probably.

Why is it that every day we pass by people and never notice? Do you think maybe God put them in your path for a reason? Maybe it is just to look up and smile at them, or just to say a quick hello. Maybe that is all they need to keep them going. Maybe they are having a really bad day and your smile or your quick hello were enough to lift their spirits and change the outcome of the day.

Don't wait for the sun to shine on them before you notice them...become the sun that shines on them!

Let your sun shine down on them!

Festive Baby Jars

2011-12-23T08:34:00.001-06:00

As most of you know I hosted a cookie swap this week. We had a LOT of fun and.....I did not get ONE picture of the swap or decorations set up.

Not one!

I am so sorry. I have failed you.

I did make sure to take some pics though as I was making my cute festive baby jars.

WooHoo!

Here is what you need:

Baby Food Jars -washed and dried

Ribbon

Scissors

Adhesive Squares

I wanted to cover the print on the jars

Take your ribbon and measure it around your jar leaving just a bit extra. You will then take your adhesive squares and place on each end of the ribbon.

Remove the paper backing and wrap around jar, pulling tight, then press to secure.

I wasn't happy with just the blue so I added a "Merry Christmas" ribbon as well.

And....that's it! I love that this is SO simply but adds just the right touch to my decorations. I also did the same technique to the top of some bigger jars and placed mints and ribbon candy in those.

**My notes: It is much easier to work with the jars if they are EMPTY! HA! I didn't think about the ribbon until after I filled the jars, we made it work though. Also, for an added splash of color I spray painted the lids red. I decided not to put the lids on though because they still smelled like spray paint. EW!

These would be cute at baby showers and wedding showers as well. Oooohh and birthday parties! The possibilities are pretty much endless.

Also, I am sorry about the picture quality. I only had my phone as I was doing this and unless the lighting is perfect, the pics aren't that great.

HUGE Giveaway over at The Vintage Pearl!!

2011-12-22T09:41:00.000-06:00

You guys have heard me sing their praises before (here and here).

Well, I am here again today to tell you just how AWESOME I think The Vintage Pearl is!

As most of you know by now, I have been following TVP for a loooooong time. I remember back in the day when they were just a blog, they sold on Etsy and were just starting their website. Now look at Erin and the crew....they have a brick and mortar store! WooHoo!!

ANYWAY!

Today I am here to share with you their AWESOME giveaway!

They are giving away 5 (yes, FIVE) $100 gift certificates!!

OH! MY! GOSH!

That's AWESOME!

So head over to their blog and sign up! Let me know if you win!!

Good luck!

Tyson Mini Chicken Sandwiches #TysonGoodness #CBias

2011-12-22T08:11:00.004-06:00

As you know, because I have only mentioned 5000 times already this week.... I have been busy.

BUSY!

I swear I have not had time to hardly breath the past few weeks. I even promised myself this year I would NOT push myself to the limit. Yet, here I am. Running around like a chicken with my head cut off.

I was so excited last week when I saw that there was an opportunity to review the new Tyson Mini Chicken Sandwiches from #CBias. I hopped right on that! I knew this week was going to be extremely busy and I was really not in the mood to cook every night.

So, Tuesday night we loaded up and headed to Walmart, in the next bigger town, to get our shop on. I also needed to pick up a few last minute Christmas things.

I ended up walking right past the sandwiches 3 times! Hubby was SO excited because he found them on his very first try. He is also a foot taller than me and I guess if it isn't at my eye level, or bellow, I don't look up for it. At the Walmart we shopped at the sandwiches were near products such as Hot Pockets and Pizza Rolls. Other Tyson bagged and boxed items were not too far away though.

I personally thought the price was a bit high but, there is a special offer right now when you buy two boxes of Tyson Mini Chicken Sandwiches. You can see the full details here but, if you buy two boxes you get a $5 Walmart gift card in return! This makes the price much better in the end.

I made these last night for dinner. I spent the day cutting and pinning fabric, yes it seriously took ALL. DAY. LONG. UGH! When hubby got home at 4:30 I kind of started to freak out a bit because I had not gotten anything out for dinner. I had to be at church for class at 6:30. There wasn't enough time to make a full meal. Luckily, I remembered we had these.

I can't tell you how excited I was to see that they are microwaveable. I would like the option to cook in the oven but at the time....I needed it to be done SUPER fast. The sandwiches come two to a little pack and take just over a minute to cook. PERFECT!

I served them with a few apple slices. MG wasn't really hungry and Mads was only interested in the chicken, not the bread. Hubs really liked them and was impressed at how easy they were to prepare. I also enjoyed them. These make a GREAT quick meal, especially this week because if you are like me....you have something planned every day/night.

You can see my complete shopping experience on Google+. You can also find out more on twitter at #TysonGoodness.

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Mommy's stress release...

2011-12-21T14:21:00.000-06:00

Last night my hubby and I decided to go to Walmart and also the grocery store.

Less than a week before Christmas.

With two CrAzY girls.

What were we thinking?!?!

By the time we got home I was so stressed out I could hardly think straight. It was pretty bad. At our first stop, the grocery store, my hubby was loading the girls in the car and also loading the groceries. Some how Mads ended up flipping over her seat and landing head down between her seat and the door, with her sweet little face smashed against the door. I was dragging behind because I did a second transaction. When I got to the car I noticed Mads was crying and John was hugging her. It was awful! She wasn't bleeding and seemed fine, other than scared and sore. Poor baby looked rough with her scratched up face and already missing teeth. lol

So, on to dinner and Walmart we went.

Walmart was NUTS! NUTS I tell you!

Again, WHAT were we thinking?!?!

We got what we needed, and a ham because they had just marked them down to $1/lb! AMAZING, couldn't pass THAT up. Loaded everything in the car and came home.

All the way home all I could think about was this drink. My friend Kristy (btw, today is her birthday!!) created the recipe for it and I have tweaked it just a bit.

Any time I need a pick me up, and I have everything I need for it....I do NOT hesitate to make it. It is just sooo good and when you drink it your body literally goes "Ahhhhhh......thank you!" Perfect huh? I think so!

Mommy's Stress Relief (AKA Italian Cream Soda)

(adapted from Mommy Hates Cooking)

Clear American Strawberry Flavored Water

Vanilla Torani Syrup

Half and Half

Ice

Fill your cup, glass or jar with ice (I like it half full actually). Pour in your ingredients to your liking. I happen to like more half and half, call me weird...it's cool. I like the creaminess of more half and half. Stir and drink. There really are no measurements because you just make it how you like, if might like more of the water in it. It doesn't matter how you make it, just make it!

I think it would also be good with the Apple flavored water and Peppermint syrup! Mmmm!! The combination options are just about endless.

Enjoy!

Homemade Chocolate Syrup

2011-12-20T08:00:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I had the privilege to do a guest post for my friend Sarah.

I am really into making my own kitchen staples right now and will be sharing my favorites in the weeks ahead over at MoneySavingQueen.com! WooHoo!

This week I am featuring my Homemade Chocolate Syrup!

We seriously can not get enough of this! I usually double the recipe and depending on what all I am cooking with it, it MAY last up to a month in our house. If I don't double it MIGHT last 2 weeks. We of course use it in chocolate milk and over ice cream, but I have also been known to swirl some in my brownies before I pop the pan in the oven. Oh my! {DELISH}

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we have.

Also, if you haven't already...be sure to post on my entry for Sarah's 25 Days of a Frugal Christmas! She is featuring lots of great ideas, check them all out! I would sure love your vote though. :)

DIY Christmas Frame - Elmer's Holiday #GlueNGlitter

2011-12-19T08:51:00.003-06:00

Last week I was given the challenge from #Cbias to purchase some Elmer's and X-ACTO crafting products and make something DIY.

Seems simple enough! But when you are given free range you tend to go blank. I finally figured out what I wanted and love my cute new frame.

Here is what you need:

X-ACTO Precision Scissors

X-ACTO Templates

CraftBond Dual-tip Flexible Pen

CraftBond Foam Mounting Tape

CraftBond Adhesive Squares

CraftBond Sparkle Glue

Scrapbook Paper

Ribbon

Cardstock

The very first thing you want to do is remove the back and glass from your frame.

Next take your CraftBond Flexible Duel Tip Glue Pen and spread the glue all over your frame. Then top with scrapbook paper of your choice.

You may need to reposition the paper a few times or press the air bubbles out.

While the glue is drying cut {carefully} around the frame to remove excess paper. Now is also a great time to remove the paper that is covering the picture opening.

I cut an X so I can easily fold and glue the excess paper to make it look clean.

Next measure where you want your “belt” to go, mine was about two inches below the picture opening. Take your foam tape and apply at this point. I had JUST ENOUGH bigger ribbon to use as the belt, I believe the ribbon I used is a 1” grosgrain (it has been a few years since I bought it and honestly don’t remember the exact size). Peel the back off the foam tape and apply your ribbon. I folded my extra ribbon over the side and attached it with an adhesive square.

Now let's finish off the outside of your frame. You can paint around the edges but I like the ribbon look.

I placed 4-5 adhesive squares on each side of the frame. Start at the bottom and wrap the ribbon all the way around. Peel off the paper backing as you go. This way you will not have a visible seam.

Now it is time to make the buckle…..

I used the gift tag template to make my buckle, I just went halfway around then flipped it over and went halfway around again. For the middle (the part I cut out) I used the smallest gift tag template and did the same as the first. Using the precision scissors I cut everything out.

Now for the fun part…GLITTER! I used the CraftBond Sparkle Glue as my base and then applied glitter over it. You do not have to do this, you can just use the Sparkle Glue but I liked the extra blingy look. Allow this to dry completely then attach to frame. I used 4 adhesive squares to attach to the frame.

When I was done I sprayed 3 coats of clear acrylic sealer over the frame, allowing to dry completely after each layer.

That’s it! Easy peasy!

Isn’t it cute?!?! I may go back and add glitter to the words but for now I am done.

Now, for the rest of my notes..... If you get glue on your paper it becomes shiny after you spray your acrylic on. Also, be careful when trying to reposition the paper to get the air bubbles out, as you can see I tore my paper (upper left side). Stink! But, It is still cute. OH! The next time I am at Walmart I will get a mat because the 5x7 I thought I had...is actually a 4x6.

Also, I wanted to make sure to tell you more about the template I used for the buckle. It is AWESOME! The set I got was the 'Decorative Shapes'. I wasn't even thinking at the time but the gift tag template will also come in handy this week! HELLO!

You can find these at Walmart or here.

How would you like a chance to win the wall?!?!

Wall? What wall you are asking?

THIS wall!

One lucky reader will have the chance to win the wall of Elmer's Memory Keeping and X-ACTO products! A $250 value!

WHAT?!

Yes, you read that right. Just click on the badge below to get signed up.

This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for #ElmersHoliday #gluenglitter #collectivebias #CBias all opinions and pictures are my own.

Quick pick me up

2011-12-16T15:45:00.002-06:00

I don't know about you all but it has been a CRAZY week for me.

It seems like every day this week I have had at least three or four things to get done or do. Shopping, parties, babies, shopping, baking, shopping.......oh my!

Today was no different. I had to get some more last minute shopping done. It has been such a long week. I decided I was going to treat myself today.

MG and I on our way to shop till we drop! (notice the bags under my eyes? Told you it has been a long week)

We had to run to Walmart so I decided to stop at Murphy USA for a quick pick me up.

Check out the price of gas! It's finally starting to come down here!!

There were lot's of options, the prices were great as well! I have never tried a true energy drink and since caffeine has pretty much the opposite affect on me, I decided not go the Red Bull route. ;)

Ohh!! Starbucks! My fav!

I decided on the Vanilla Frap today, I usually get the Mocha but I have started to REALLY love the Vanilla.

I am so glad I stopped! We shopped longer than I had planned, it was nice to have the extra pep in my step.

I don't usually stop at Murphy USA, I don't know why...it is always on my way. I was surprised at the selection they have. Coke, Pepsi, plus just about any kind of candy you want. The cashier was EXTREMELY nice as well. I told her I was going to be writing this and she promised to read it so "HI!!!!"

I took a few more pics and you can see them over at Google+.

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All thoughts, opinions and ideas are my own.

Open your eyes

2011-12-16T08:50:00.000-06:00

Growing up I lived in a very, VERY small town. There was poverty but being young, I did not really notice. I then moved to the Dallas area. People there {seemed} to have all the money in the world and had no problems spending it. I know there was poverty but I did not see it, I saw the overly materialistic side.

Almost 8 years ago I moved to another rather small town in Oklahoma. I didn't want to be here. I cried a lot and prayed that God would move me from here. After a while I began to change my thinking. I started to think that God doesn't do things for no apparent reason. There is a reason for everything. I started to pray that God would open my eyes and show me why he planted me here. What is it that I am supposed to do while I am here?

It took a while, but it is God's time, not mine. I also prayed that I would find a church here that I could take my kids to and watch and help them grow spiritually. I found a church about a year and a half ago. I knew there was a reason God put me at this church. About a year ago I started working in the Girls Ministry department. Boy were my eyes opened! Just recently I started helping in the Children's Church department. Man oh man were my eyes opened even more!

For the past few months I have been able to watch and help these kids grow in Christ. It has been AMAZING. There is NOTHING that compares to seeing a child worship the Lord and ask Him into their little hearts.

I have also been able to see another side of these kids. There is a sad side. Most of the children I work with range in age from 6-13. A lot of these kids have had to grow up REALLY quickly, for one reason or another. They are faced every day with a life most grown adults I know have never faced and would crumble if they did have to live that way. Some of the kids are hungry, some are cold, some come to church so sad and depressed. But when they are there they get to be kids, they get to be warm, they are fed (in so many ways). It is heart wrenching to me knowing that when we let them go for the night they will return to being cold and hungry in just a few short hours.

A lot of people I know blame the parents. While I do as well at times, I have also seen the other side of it. I have seen the dad that works 3 jobs just to be able to put gas in his car to get from one job to another so he can try to provide for his family. This leaving the kids at home alone to take care of each other. Yes, that is terrible but, that is just reality and what happens so often you don't even know it goes on. Yes, there are some bad parents out there but there are a lot of good ones that just need a break. My eyes have been opened.

I am not going to tell you just yet what my reason is that God has opened my eyes (and heart) to because it is still in the planning process. But I know it will impact this community in a HUGE way and will be such a blessing to these kids. I am SO excited about it and am SO glad God has opened my eyes to this.

I have had my eyes opened, I see God everyday in theses kids eyes and hearts. It is amazing and I am so grateful that I was chosen to help.

My eyes are open, are yours?

Crepes.....the totally EASY way

2011-12-15T08:48:00.000-06:00

Wanna know something?

I LOVE crepes! LOVE them!

The very first time I had crepes was at Disneyland back in 1991, or '92. They were of course strawberry crepes. Mmmmmmm!!

I have some pretty amazing friends and last year when one of my friends found out how much I LOVE Crepes, she taught me how to make them at home! I about fell over at how easy it was! Now, this isn't the {REAL} way to make them......it is the easy way! You only need two ingredients!

Are you ready??

{Crepes}

1 Cup Complete Pancake Mix (the kind you only add milk or water to)

Water or Milk (you need enough to make the mixture very thin)

Place pancake mix in bowl stir in enough water or milk until mixture is thin.

Heat skillet, use just a bit of butter or cooking spray so batter does not stick. Add just enough mix to make a thin layer covering your entire skillet. It will not take these long to cook as they are very thin, after they are a light golden brown flip and cook the other side. Remove to plate and add fillings of your choice.

My favorite filling is Nutella and Strawberries. Add fillings then roll or fold and top with a bit of powdered sugar and/or Cool Whip.

Welcome Home!

2011-12-14T08:32:00.006-06:00

A few days ago I had the privilege to take my sweet friend Mrs. A to the airport to pick up her hubby. Mr. A came home on leave and got here just in time to be here for the birth of their first baby. So sweet!

If you are ever lucky enough to be at the airport when a soldier comes home, it will be an event you will NEVER forget. The range of emotions is crazy, you are very proud, very happy and you cry.

At one point I asked Mrs. A if she was going to cry and she said she was too excited to cry. WHATEVER! I told her I would be crying enough for the both of us then. HA! Mr. A was one of the last ones off the plane so Mrs. A and I were able to watch all of the other homecomings.

They were all sweet in their own way but other than Mr. and Mrs. A's it had to be the soldier that was the first off the plane. Waiting on him was his wife and little boy. The little boy couldn't have been over two, he was so cute and ALL boy.

The moment he looked up and saw his dad is a moment I know I will never forget. I even cry now just thinking about it. It was truly one of the sweetest events I have ever witnessed. When the little boy looked up and realized it was his dad he took off running. The dad knelt down and scooped the little guy up in his arms. There was not a dry eye in the waiting area....not even Mrs. A's were dry.

One happy little family.

After what seemed like FOREVER Mr. A FINALLY made his appearance. It was awesome! Beautiful. Sweet. Unforgettable.

Welcome home Mr. A

Mr. and Mrs. A (and of course sweet Baby A)

We are so glad you are home Mr. A. Thank you for your service!

Oh and at this moment, as I type this (which as you are reading this will have been last night) Mr. and Mrs. A are at the hospital waiting on the arrival of sweet Baby A. I will keep you all updated and if allowed, I may even sneak a pic or two on here for you.

I am hosting my first Cookie Swap!

2011-12-13T08:20:00.001-06:00

Yes! The lady that makes cookies that look like this.......

I am SO excited! I have been busy looking around Pinterest trying to find the perfect recipe and looking at all the AMAZING ideas, to hopefully help me figure out exactly what I want to do.

Here we are....less than a week away.....I have NO idea what I am going to make yet! AAAAAAHHHH!!!!

Per my "rules" {I use that term lightly as I have been bending them for the swap} I have to make 6 dozen cookies.

6 DOZEN!

As I told one of the girls the other day "Just be glad I changed it to 6, it was 9 dozen."

Oh my!

What was I thinking?

One thing I have decided? I must host another Cookie Swap because there are just to many ideas and not enough time to make everything.

Have you ever been to or hosted a cookie swap? What is your go to cookie to take or what would you take if you were going to a swap?

Our Adventure at Build-a-Bear Workshop

2011-12-12T08:54:00.005-06:00

This weekend my family and I took a mini vacation to Branson, Mo. We had SO much fun! I just adore Branson, there is SO much to do there and they seriously have something for everyone.

While we were there we shopped, went to Dixie Stampede {for the first time}, shopped, walked around Old Downtown Branson, shopped, went to my hubbies company Christmas party and....did I mention.....we shopped? We had a really good time.

We were able to visit one of our favorite stores while we were there.....Build-a-Bear Workshop.

A special! You know this made ME happy! We also had a coupon...of course!

This is ALWAYS the hardest part! Picking out what we are going to make.

Time to stuff!

Warm up the heart......

Bath time!!

All done!

Thanks for coming along on our journey! You can see more pics on my google+ album.

Top 10 Frugal Christmas Gifts

2011-12-09T06:43:00.001-06:00

I can not tell you how hard it was for me to narrow this list down to my top 10! There are just SO many great ideas out there and sooooo many YUMMY recipes for stuff in jars. But, I did it! WooHoo!

{Top 10 Frugal Christmas Gifts}

Baby Doll Diapers – These are just darling! They are also SUPER easy to make.

S’mores cake in a jar – from How Sweet it Is. Now, doesn’t that look UH-MAZING?!?! I knoooooow!!! I haven’t made this….yet….but plan to soon. I will TRY to refrain from eating the lot since they will be for gifts.

Homemade Heating Pad – This is a great universal gifts. Everyone has aches and pains. Plus, you can use these to warm up little kids beds (just be sure to remove them before placing the child in bed).

Hot Chocolate Truffles – OH! MY! WORD! I think this is a BRILLIANT idea! You just take one of these babies and plop it (carefully) into a cup of warm/hot milk, stir and voila….instant hot chocolate! YUM!

Ruffle Flower Scarf – This is just beautiful! Any girl, of any age, would LOVE this!

Scrapbook Style Cookbook – Ok. I must confess. I am a lover of cookbooks. Of all sorts, sizes, etc. I love giving (and receiving) family recipes. I LOVE this idea of using simple recipe cards, scrapbook paper, mod podge and binder rings. I mean really, it is easy and CUTE!

Family Birthday Calendar – This idea rocks my socks! I have a HUGE family, seriously….outside of the Duggers….HUGE! It is soooo hard to remember everyone’s birthdays {especially if they aren’t on facebook}. All you need is a board, some glue, a few hooks and some charms (or small round pieces of paper). Oh and paint. You could also pick up a pre-made “Family” or “Birthdays” sign at pretty much any craft store/fair.

BBQ Rub – I had to include something semi-manly. I say semi-manly because honestly, I would actually like this gift as well. You just mix a few spices, put it in a jar, tie it with manly ribbon and you are set! Easy peasy!

Fire Starter – I am IN LOVE with those cute baskets full of pinecones and sticks that you find this time of year at stores such as Target. I however do NOT like their price tag. This is SO easy to make! You just bundle some dried herbs and small pinecones in a sheet of newspaper and tie the ends with raffia or twine. Put the bundle underneath the logs in your fireplace, with paper ends sticking out then light the newspaper ends. I also like this version but, a bit more work is involved. Also, don’t forget the matches!!

Ornament – Isn’t this pretty? I love the fact they they used something so special to fill it. You could also use a birth announcement, lyrics to a song that the person loves, coupons….really the options are limitless.

Cinnamon Roll Cake

2011-12-08T10:06:00.009-06:00

Doesn't that look AMAZING?

Please refrain from licking your computer screen!

I first saw this recipe on Pinterest from Cookin' Up North who found it at Life as a Lofthouse, who found it at who knows where. It really doesn't matter to me where they found it from. The only thing that matters is I found it and it is yummy to my tummy!

This is my new go to when asked to bring dessert somewhere. The cake is moist and buttery with a gentle swirl of cinnamon and sugar and butter, blanketed with a beautiful layer of ever so yummy vanilla glaze.

I recently made it for a bake sale.....I could have sold it by the pan full rather than piece by piece. I could have charged $30 per pan, instead of $1.50/slice. You know what? I think I would have sold 40 pans full!

Christmas is coming up, if you are tired of taking the same 'ol, same 'ol {and I won't be going to the same party} may I suggest taking this? This would also make a yummy breakfast, served warm of course.

Now, to the best part...the recipe...

{Cinnamon Roll Cake}

Cake:

3 Cups Flour

1/4 tsp Salt

1 Cup Sugar

4 tsp. Baking Powder

1 1/2 Cups Milk

2 Eggs

2 tsp. Vanilla

1/2 Cup Butter (melted)

Topping:

1 Cup Butter (softened)

1 Cup Brown Sugar

2 Tbsp. Flour

1 Tbsp. Cinnamon

Mix all cake ingredients together, except for butter. Once mixture is mixed slowly stir in melted butter. Pour mix into a greased 9x13 pan.

For Topping: Mix all ingredients together until well blended. Drop by the spoonful over the batter. Swirl topping mix into the cake with a knife (note, don’t over swirl). Bake at 350 for 28-32 min. (note, I have to cook mine for closer to an hour).

(this is why you do not over swirl, it looks like a mess)

Glaze:

2 Cups Powdered Sugar (I like to sift mine)

5 Tbsp Milk

1 tsp Vanilla (I use 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1/2 tsp maple extract last time and it was REALLY good)

Mix ingredients together and drizzle over cake while it is still warm.

Yes, it does look awful but, it tastes AMAZING!

Enjoy!

I was on the NEWS!

2011-12-07T09:08:00.000-06:00

Yes, you read that right. I.....was on.....THE......NEWS! Exciting right? I KNOW!

If you live within 60 miles of me, or are one of my close friends you already know this.

For those of you that missed it here is the deal......

I friends Sarah {also known as Money Saving Queen} was a busy, BUSY lady a few weeks ago during Black Friday....or Thursday as it turned out. She asked her readers to send in their BF deals so she could feature them on the news! Well, I had an AMAZING deal so I was ALL over that!

What was my deal, you ask?

It was this BEAUTIFUL necklace from The Vintage Pearl (TVP).

I absolutly LOVE it!

I only paid $4 for it!!

Now, let me explain how I got this deal.

As I mentioned Monday, it is all about working the deal! TVP has put a few gift certificate deals on Groupon, this is where I started. Back in August (I think) TVP teamed up with Groupon and put an AMAZING deal up! For just $15 you could purchase a $30 gift certificate! That's AWESOME!

Ok, I know I said I only paid $4 and that just doesn't make since, especially when I said I purchased a $15 Groupon. Well, here is how it went down!

When your friends sign up with Groupon you get a $10 credit! I had enough credit to purchase the TVP certificate for.....FREE!

I knew TVP would have some specials coming up so I sat and waited and waited and waited. Then BAM! They announced they would be open on Black Friday and if you were able to get there before a certain time you got so much off your total.

AWESOME!

I was able to get there before the deal ended. HOWEVER, I was not able to get the full BF special because I was using a Groupon. STINK! I was a little bummed but got over it because I really love TVP and I really love this necklace. The girl that checked me out still offered a 10% discount though, I gladly accepted.

So there you have it! That is how I was able to snag my beautiful $38 TVP necklace for just $4! AWESOME!

Oh, and you can find the video of the news segment here.

Top 5 Frugal Christmas Gifts for Neighbors and Friends

2011-12-06T09:49:00.004-06:00

I kind of stress out this time of year because I belong to a few different groups and have what seems like 30 dozen different Christmas parties to go to......or host. Then I think of all the gifts I have to get and oh my!

Head starts spinning!

It's not pretty.

This year, thanks to Pinterest I am totally not stressing as to what to make. Here are my top 5 gifts for friends and/or neighbors.

1) Cookie Dough - I think this is a great idea! If you are like me, this time of year is crazy and your house seems like a cookie factory at times. Why not pass this on to a busy friend or neighbor so it is one less recipe they have to worry about. All they have to do is slice and bake. Plus, they will have a new recipe for next time.

2) Etched Hot Cocoa Jar - It is REALLY cold here today and this sounds wonderful! I love how they personalized the jar with the initial of the family's last name.

3) Ice Cream Sundae Kit - How FUN! LOVE this idea! Be sure to include some Homemade Chocolate Syrup.

4) Snowman Kit - Wouldn't this be PERFECT for a family with young kids?

5) Mini Cinnamon Rolls - YUM! A BIG box of these left on your neighbors porch on Christmas Eve would be AWESOME! It's a snack and breakfast all rolled into one amazingly AWESOME yummy treat!

What are some of your favorite frugal gifts to give to friends and/or neighbors?

Top 5 Frugal Christmas gifts for Teachers and a request....

2011-12-05T13:39:00.001-06:00

Last year I made my daughters teacher a pair of cute dish gloves, pie-in-a-jar and homemade candied pecans. She LOVED it.

This year I plan on doing something totally different. I am not going to give it away.....just in case a certain teacher I know may be reading this. But just know, it IS included in my Top 5.

TCP's Top 5 Frugal Teacher Gifts

1) Breakfast in a Box - I love, love, LOVE this idea! Teachers work hard day in and day out. When they get home, most of them, have kids of their own to take care of. They are tired, they are stressed, they need a break! Being a busy mom I know I would LOVE to receive this gift so I can imagine my teacher friends would love it just as much. Who wouldn't want to have a meal taken care of? It's one less thing to stress about!

2) 12 Days of Christmas - This is such a CUTE idea! You can give this as one lump gift or allow your child to take one gift per day for 12 days. Either way it is sure to put a smile on your teachers face.

3) Creative Words Artwork - I think this is a wonderful idea! It is very meaningful and I promise the teacher will treasure it forever. Especially knowing that the kids came up with the words themselves.

4) Handy Bag - Teachers take home thousands of papers each month. Why not have something cute to tote them around in? Plus this is just super easy to make, all you have to do is know how to cut and iron. Plus you can fill it with all kinds of little goodies for them to enjoy while they are on break.

5) Necklace - Now this isn't so frugal, but depending on how you work it....it could be. The Vintage Pearl often offers awesome Groupon deals. Plus you can find coupons for them in magazines such as Martha Stewart, Parents, etc. I was recently able to get a beautiful necklace from TVP for just $4 by working some deals. So, it is totally possible to make this frugal.

What are some of your favorite gifts to give teachers?

Now, for my request. As some of you know I have been lucky enough to be picked as a finalist for the Money Saving Queen 25 Days of Frugal Christmas Gifts. I would really appreciate your vote as well. It is simple, just go to this post and post a comment. You do not need to sign in, you can post anonymously but you do have to answer a simple math problem (you may have to do this twice before it goes through) so they know you are not a computer. I would be forever grateful.

DIY Christmas Wreath

2011-12-03T16:40:00.001-06:00

I stumbled on the original tutorial for this on Pinterest. You can find it here.

This is a VERY easy wreath to make and the cost....totally...1000%....FREE!

Here is what you will need:

1 wire hanger

About 3 plastic dry cleaning bags*

Pliers

Ribbon (optional)

That's it! I had ALL of these things lying around.

The first thing you will want to do is take the hanger and shape it with the pliers, into a circle. It is ok if it isn't a perfect circle, the bags will conceal it.

Next, take your bags and fold them width wise a few times, the open end should remain at one end and the top should remain at the other. What I did was just keep folding until I got a long slender fold. Then I just cut my strips every few inches.

You will be left with a ton of loops. Now, take the loops and cut both ends. Then fold each piece in half and cut again. Then fold each piece in half one more time and cut again. You should be left with 5-6" strips.

The original tutorial has you just tie the strips on the hanger, I was not liking the look of this at first so I did a basic slip knot.

Push the knots tight as you work your way around.

That's it!

If you would like to, you can add a bow or some other adornment.

*As far as the bags, you could also use plastic sacks, like those you would get while shopping.

Enjoy!

Twitter Party!

2011-12-02T15:40:00.001-06:00

Last night I attended my first Twitter Party!

Ok, I have attended a few before but usually they make my head spin and I don't even participate. So, I am counting last nights event as my first Twitter Party!

It was hosted by Mom It Forward, which as I am learning today is an AWESOME site for moms! It was also hosted by Hershey's Kisses. The event was a Girls Night Out (#GNO) about holiday baking. You know I am ALL about baking! I learned a LOT last night and even though I didn't win any of the goodies it was still a lot of fun. I even made some new friends.

Be sure to follow MomItForward and HersheysKisses on Twitter, while you are there follow me TheCreatvPrncss.

I hear they will be hosting another #GNO next Thursday at 7:00pm (central time). I plan to be there and hope to see you there as well!

Happy National Pie Day!

2011-12-01T14:52:00.000-06:00

I wanted to wish you all a VERY Happy National Pie Day!

To celebrate....why not make some pie today?

Check out my Pie-in-a-Jar tutorial from last Christmas here.

Earlier this year I was honored to be asked to make a few dozen for my cousins wedding. She used them in her dessert bar! What a great idea!

These also make GREAT gifts!

Happy Pie Day!

Toys R Us 50% off TODAY!!

2011-11-30T08:27:00.001-06:00

Today ONLY select items at Toys R Us are 50% off!

You can see the ad here.

Some of the best deals I found are:

All LeapFrog B2GO FREE!

50% off All Zhu Zhu Puppies

BOGO Sony DVDs

BOGO Crayola Color Wonder or Explosion

Hot Wheels 2 Pack $1.29

50% off Any Nintendo 3DS Game

I hope you are able to snag some of these awesome deals!!

Master Baking Mix Recipe

2011-11-29T15:18:00.002-06:00

Hey guys!! Long time no see! I won't get into the where have you been's right now....I have other news right now!

I did a guest post on Money Saving Queen today! WooHoo!!

Sarah has an AWESOME series on Frugal Living, you should really check it out! She will be doing some amazing Frugal Gift ideas soon!

Anyway....onto my guest post!

My guest post for her today is my Master Baking Mix recipe! AWESOME! Check it out!

I have completely stopped using Bisquick, and all other pre-mixed baking mixes, and just use this. You may have to adjust your recipe just a bit but it still works the same. Also, if using this from the freezer and not using as soon as you make it, be sure to allow mix to come to room temperature before mixing with wet ingredients. If you don't have time to allow to warm up it will still work but the texture and end result will be a bit off.

Happy Baking!

One of my FAVS is on sale!

2011-09-12T13:10:00.001-05:00

My friend Sarah's book is on sale!!! If you have been waiting to purchase this book, NOW is the time

First Family Vacation - Third Day in Parks - Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique

2011-08-30T08:57:00.000-05:00

Once I saw your little girl could become a Princess I was SO reserving a spot for Mads.

At Walt Disney World there are two locations available for you to do this. One is at Downtown Disney and the other is inside MK at the Castle. We were booked at the Castle.

After a quick refresh and nap from our busy morning we were back at MK waiting patiently for our turn to turn our little girl into our little princess. She was SO excited!

When you walk in you tell them your child's name and what package you will be getting. Then you pick out all of your options according to your package.

We were getting the Castle package which includes everything, hair, makeup, costume, shoes, crown, nails, pictures and more.

After all info is received you get to escort your little girl over to an area to pick out her shoes, dress, etc. Once she has it all picked out you let your Fairy Godmother in Training know and she sets everything up. Once she gets everything just right she will then escort you back to the dressing room where she says some Fairy Godmother stuff then FLINGS the curtain open to reveal EVERYTHING! It was so cute and I got so caught up with it I even gasped! HA!

The shoes were stacked but one of the girls messed them up before I could get a pic

Once everything is on and double checked that it all fits you are then escorted to another Fairy Godmother in Training to complete your makeover.

It is at this point your daughter will pick out what hair she wants. Mine, of course, wanted the exact one I did NOT want her to get. Ugh! This being her thing I kept my mouth shut and let her get it. I did interrupt and ask her to do a color close to her real hair color and not rusty tomato red! She also gets a VERY generous dusting of Pixie Dust (do NOT say glitter, it is NOT glitter while you are in the presence of a Fairy Godmother in Training).

MG had to get in on the action as well.....

Once everything is JUST RIGHT it is time for the BIG reveal!

It was priceless! She was SO excited to see herself. It was pretty stinking cute!

Once you have your reveal, you check out then go to the building next door and get your pictures taken (if this is included in your package). The photographer we got was kind of odd but he was decent. You will get one 6x8 (or something like that, it was a weird size and not an 8x10) and also 4 4x6 shots. Your favorite shots will be your big pic then you pick two other shots for each set of the 4x6's.

The final results.....

Isn't she CUTE?!?!?!

Oh my goodness she loved it SO much!

MG would not leave her sisters wand alone so she ended up getting one for herself....

Then it was off to ride another ride while we waited for dinner.

*My Notes*

Make your reservations EARLY! As soon as your book your trip, book a spot at BBB if you even THINK you will want to do this for your little girl. You can always cancel later. While we were waiting on our turn we saw about 10 people come in asking to get in.....they were booked solid.....those people weren't very happy.

I had heard to try to get your spot booked at the DTD location and not the Castle. They said the Castle location is very small and not near the selection as the DTD location. While the Castle location is small I wasn't cramped at all. Plus, they keep one of each dress, shoe, purse, wand, gloves, etc in the front and all the sizes and extras are stored in the back, we had no issue with it not being stocked.

Since we have done the Castle package for Mads, we will NOT being doing it again for her. OH! MY! WORD! It was EXPENSIVE! But, it was worth it.

When we go back and it is MG's turn we will probably try to get a morning appointment so she can be special all day and not just a few hours.

First Family Vacation - Day 3 in Parks - Magic Kingdom - Part 1

2011-08-29T15:42:00.000-05:00

Oh Magic Kingdom (MK). When most people think of Walt Disney World it is Magic Kingdom that comes to mind first. It is after all where all the cool people hang out!

If you are there before the park opens you get to see a cute little skit that welcomes you to the park. The train pulls into the station and the conductor gets off the train and welcomes you to the park and introduces the characters. Then they all break out in song and dance. Totally cute!

After the performance is over there is a mad RUSH into the park. Seriously, if you don't want to get ran over just stay back a little bit.

Once we were in the park we headed straight to Main Street Bakery. We had reservations for Kona Cafe but I just could not stomach walking back in the Poly after the night we had at Ohana a few nights before. So we canceled and just ate in the park. Not the best way to spend our dining plan credits but it is what it is.

Hubs had an omelet (I think, it was about I month ago so my memory is a bit shady), the girls shared a cinnamon roll and I had a chocolate croissant (which I thought would be warm, it was cold, but still delish).

Once we were done we walked out on Main Street and ran right into a street performance! It was pretty cute.

Then we were off to the rides! With a pit stop to take a pic in front of the castle first, of course.

Our first ride was Dumbo......of course!

We waited about 5 min, the wait was over 45 the next time we walked by! Eeek!

From the ride we saw the new expansion. They are building Beast's Castle, from Beauty and the Beast! SO excited about that! It is set to open next fall (2012). There will be a new restaurant there as well called 'Be our Guest' or something like that and will resemble the dining hall from Beast's Castle in the movie. I am SO excited about this!!!

After Dumbo it was on to more rides. We timed them all just about perfectly and never waited more than 10 minutes, most of them never more than 5. We timed Small World so perfectly that we just happened to get a boat to ourselves! Sweet!

MG LOVED those silly "ducks" as she called them. Every time she saw them she would YELL "DUCKS!"

We managed to get in 6 rides and one show before lunch. I do recommend seeing the Presidential History show, or whatever it is called. It is the one that has all the presidents and shows the history of the presidency.

You will walk out in awe of how far we are from what the founding fathers had in mind when they put their plan in place. Not a good awe either. Anywho.....

After that it was time for lunch.

Lunch today was at the Crystal Palace and featured the characters from Winnie the Pooh. I was hot and tired and food was OK at best. The wait staff here was not that great (again, theme here) but the characters were ok. We probably would not go back, we aren't big Pooh fans to begin with.

After lunch we headed back to our room for a quick rest and to grab things for our BIG plans that evening.

First Family Vacation - Day 2 in Parks - Epcot Part 2

2011-08-24T15:32:00.002-05:00

You can find Epcot part 1 here

After breakfast we headed back to the front of the park to try to ride some rides and see some fun stuff up there. We started with a stop at the Baby Care Center to change out of costumes and get ready for the rest of our day, then we were off again.

We made our way to the Nemo attraction, it is really cool! You ride the Nemo ride, which consists of sitting in a shell and slowly moving along a conveyor belt with a long screen in front of you for the entire ride. It was nice, relaxing and air conditioned. At the end you hop off the ride and are in an aquarium! Totally cool! We saw dolphins, sharks, sting rays, sea turtles and TONS of other fish. Oh and manatees! It was really neat. We also did Turtle Talk with Crush. It is SO funny and the kids LOVE it!

Nemo ended up being our only ride at Epcot. It was PACKED and we didn't really know what we were doing, there were just sooooo many people. We did find the Coke place that has pop from around the world, that was interesting and at times nasty. lol You will have to go and let me know what you think about all of the soda's.

After that we just walked around waiting on our lunch reservation. We strolled around Canada, England and France. In England we stopped by Winnie the Pooh's house to check on him. He was out visiting with Christopher Robin at the time we were there so we did not get to see him but Madison had fun looking at some of his things.

While in Jolly Ol England we found some red phone booths! They even have working phones in them! PAYPHONES! When was the last time you saw a payphone? Or used one?

Here is Madison talking to our aunt

You can also call the phone booths! Totally fun to sit on a bench near by and freak people out by telling them you like their blue shirt! HAHA!

The #'s are....

Right Booth: 407-827-9861

Left Booth: 407-827-9862

Center Booth: 407-827-9863

I sent a text to my aunt and told her to call the number and promised her Mads would pick up. Mads was pretty confused at first. lol It was fun to talk to her and I reassured her they did NOT smell near as bad as the ones in the for real England.

After we were done in England we were off to France. My mom and aunts weren't the only ones to visit Paris this year! We even saw the Eiffel Tower!

We also saw MG's FAVORITE cat...Marie from The Aristocats. Oh how she loves her! Every time she saw her she would SHOUT "Ristie Cats! Ristie Cats!!"

Can you tell it was HOT?

After we saw Marie it was FINALLY time for lunch.

Lunch was in Canada at Le Cellier.

OH!

MY!

GOSH!

Hubs and I both ordered the NY Strip Steak....it was AMAZING!

Seriously!

I am from Oklahoma, spent some time in Texas, I have had a few thousand steaks in my life. You could say I am an expert steak taster.

The steak was so tender you could just about cut it with your fork. The taste was unlike anything I have ever tasted in my life. It was seriously THAT good! Hubs agreed and even said "I would come back to Disney just to eat here again." WOW! If he is willing to go on vacation again you know it had to be pretty spectacular. ;-)

Oh! I almost forgot! I had the cheese soup while there as well, the one I tried to copy a few months ago. It was good and I definitely want to try to make it again. I still think the bacon needs to be crispier. The bread that accompanies your appetizer is really good as well.

For dessert I had the Maple Creme Brulee. It was amazing as well, I could have ate three more dishes of it. I must find that recipe as well. Hubs had the Chocolate Whiskey Cake. He liked it, I liked my choice better though.

After lunch it was more walking. It was REALLY hot by then, our tummies were full and that just did not make a good combination. We managed to walk all the way around World Showcase....I seriously thought I was going to die, but we made it.

We had planned to come back to Epcot after we took a little break but that just did not happen. We cancelled our reservations at Tepan Edo and just stayed in. Mads and I ended up going to the quick service restaurant in our resort for dinner.

Did I mention it was HOT? That was the day Oklahoma was breaking all sorts of records and got up to 117 so I shouldn't really complain about the 96 degrees we were dealing with. But, when you are on concrete and the sun is beating down on you it is still REALLY hot.

We decided that day when we come back it will be in December, when it is cool! lol

Frist Family Vacation - 2nd Day in Parks - Epcot Part 1

2011-08-23T15:43:00.001-05:00

I am going to do Epcot in a two part series. Yes, there is THAT much info! Plus there are TONS of pics and I don't want to drown you in all of them at once.

We started our morning with early reservations at Akershus in the Norway pavilion at Epcot.

Oh! My! Word!

Let's just say, I could pack up right now and move to Norway! I LOVED the old Scandinavian style buildings.

We were the second family to enter the restaurant that morning and what a BEAUTIFUL restaurant it is!

You are greeted outside by some cast members then you are shown to an area where.....Belle (yes, THE Belle from Beauty and the Beast) is. If my mom would have been with us I can promise you she would have been crying at the moment she turned her head and saw her. She kind of likes Belle.

As for my girls, they were in Princess Heaven!

After you meet Belle and get your picture taken with her, you are escorted to your table.

The service here was great, the best we had during our entire trip I think.

Akershus is a buffet and also a family style meal. The buffet offers muffins, bagels and other pastries along with fresh fruit, cheese and fish. At the table you are brought your hot items that include, eggs, breakfast potatoes, sausage and I think there was one other thing but I can't remember what that is right now. Everything (except the fish, totally not a fish person) was great!

While you are eating, other princesses come out to greet you. Cinderella was by far MG's favorite, Cinderella even gave her a HUGE hug and kissed her on the forehead. It was so stinking cute! Ariel was of course Mads favorite, she has loved Ariel since she was two.

Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty)

Waiting on more princesses

lol MG looks like she is keeping her eye on Mads. Mads better not get too close to Cinderella!

One last hug and kiss

She was so silly

After the Princesses have made their rounds they parade all the kids through the restaurant then I guess read a story, we didn't stay for that part. We had things to do!

We would DEFINITELY go back to eat here!

*Note*

This was the best Princess experience between this restaurant and the castle.

First Family Vacation.....First Day in the Parks....Hollywood Studios and Ohana

2011-08-22T21:04:00.000-05:00

After our first night at WDW it was time to wake up bright and early and get our day started at Hollywood Studios. Everyone was up and at 'em....well, with the exception of one...

She was kind of crabby and didn't want to get up.

Once everyone was up, dressed, out the door and on the bus we were headed to Disney's Hollywood Studios. We had reservations at Hollywood and Vine for breakfast with some pretty important people. We walked up to the gates and waited with everyone else, then I noticed two workers off to the side with a list so me being me, nosey, went to talk to them about our reservations and how to get in to get to the restaurant. They asked me a few questions and in a matter of seconds we were through the gates....leaving everyone in our dust. They had to wait until the park actually opened. HA!

Since we had early reservations we were allowed in the park before anyone else, which makes for great photo ops! You don't have to worry about a million other people in your pictures.

Breakfast included June and Leo from the Little Einsteins, Handy Many and Special Agent Oso.
Oso was by FAR MG's favorite, Mads was pretty happy with all of them. They have a fun little skit and let the kids come up to dance, MG wanted nothing to do with it and Mads was unsure but went anyway and ended up not liking it. She has become a bit shy for some reason. The food was pretty good and we would go back again.

After breakfast we hit the road and saw The Little Mermaid show, Muppet's 3D and walked around looking at everything and of course visiting with more characters.

I have no idea what this is.

We also ran into Phineas and Ferb. That was fun! They do a cute little skit while you are waiting in line.

Waiting to see P&F

Dancing in line

What's up? lol

After all that fun it was time for lunch. We had lunch at 50's Prime Time Cafe. It was PACKED! The food was good, the waitress was terrible (very slow service, MG actually ended up falling asleep waiting for our food). It is a really cute restaurant and I like their theme. We would go back but probably wouldn't be our first choice, just because it was soooooo busy.

Mads liked it. It reminded me of my Grandma and Grandpa's kitchen growing up.

After lunch we went back to the hotel. We were just tired and hot and just done. We planned on going back later in the day but that just did not happen.

Once we got back to the hotel we were spent. We all laid down and we all fell asleep.

For dinner we had reservations at Ohaha. I had heard a lot of REALLY great things about this restaurant.

We were 5, maybe 10 min, late.

They made us wait 2 HOURS to get us back in!

2 HOURS!

I know, you would have left and gone somewhere else.

I would have also, if I hadn't heard such great things about the place.

The service here was also lacking (theme here? Yep, pretty much), the food was good for the most part. I did NOT like the bread everyone raves about but I LOVED the bread pudding. I had no idea I liked bread pudding so much. It was REALLY good. The steak was good and so was pretty much everything else. I also did not enjoy the weird noodles they had.

Where we sat you could see the castle, it was beautiful.

We would go back and next time make sure we are not late for our reservation! lol

I think all of us fell asleep on the bus back to the resort. It was a long, hot day.

First Family Vacation - Our First Night on Property

2011-08-21T13:02:00.002-05:00

After we checked into the hotel, Disney's Coronado Springs, we unpacked, freshened up and made our way to Down Town Disney (DTD).

Because we stayed on property we were able to take complete advantage of Disney Transportation, that includes buses, boats and monorail.

The resort we stayed at does not share a bus with any other resort, like some of them do, so we never waited more than 5 minutes for a bus. It was great!

So on our way to DTD I was trying to get everything organized and placed my nice sandals on the seat beside me to better organize our backpack. One of the girls distracted me, imagine, and I completely forgot about my sandals.

I would never see them again. Ugh!

We made a quick run through the World of Disney, the largest Disney store, to find the girls new dresses for dinner. Once we had dresses in bag and bag in hand we made our way to our reservation for the evening, 1900 Park Fare inside the Grand Floridian.

Our wait was perfect as it gave us time to get the girls changed and for me to get spruced up again. Also, as you are waiting you are ushered in to take a pic in front of a mural of the French countryside with the castle in the back. We were next in line when they called us to be seated, which was perfect because we really did not want the pic.

As we were seated the characters were just finishing up one of their rounds. It was not long before they were all back out again. The caracters we saw were Prince Charming, the ugly but very entertaining step-sisters and Lady Tremain (Cinderella's step-mother) and of course Cinderella. Our favorites were the step-sisters and Lady Tremain.

Once of the sisters saw that Prince Charming had already been to our table and asked Mads "Well, did he tell you he was supposed to marry me instead of my sister? He was!" lol It was SO funny!

Lady Tremain was by FAR our favorite though! It was hysterical! MG LOVED her, I mean did not want her to LOVED her! If you know MG you know this just doesn't happen with anyone and you pretty much have to be family for her to act this way with you. Wonder you Lady Tremain reminded her of? Oh well. ;-)

As she approached our table she looked down at Madison with disgust in her face and asked "So, do you share your chores or do you do your own?" HA! Then she saw the girls had flowers and said "Oh, I see you have props. I guess we better use them." Then she posed the girls with their flowers. It was so funny!

MG waiting for the next character

FINALLY they announced Cinderella and Mads was in heaven!

The food here was the worst we had at the park and will not go back to eat. If we go back it will be solely for the characters.

Oh and the desserts. The desserts were GREAT! They were tiny so you did not feel bad at all for eating....say three of them...not that I did that. Ok, I did. They were good! Oh! They also had Strawberry Soup, it was really good as well. Other than dessert and the soup, the food was just OK at best.

My favorite!

The Grand Floridian offers all 3 kinds of Disney Transportation to and from their property. So, After dinner we took the monorail to Epcot and took the bus from Epcot back to our resort.

It was AWESOME! From the monorail we were able to see the castle at night, for the first time. It was BEAUTIFUL! We were also able to see the fireworks at Epcot. It was AWESOME! It totally got us in the Disney Spirit!

First Family Vacation Day 1 and 2.............Disney Bound

2011-08-20T18:48:00.000-05:00

SO! I knew I was excited about getting the show on the road but had no idea my hubby also shared my excitement. My plan was to leave around 3am.

I could not sleep and since hubby was coming off a week of overnights he was up and ready to go........at 1:30am!!!!

After a quick stop for gas we were officially on the road by 2am!

I of course could not sleep because the moment I had been waiting for months to happen was FINALLY here. I was not, however, expecting my 6 year old to wake up and stay awake until 5am! Did I mention she was VERY chatty AND whiny? She finally gave in and we (my oldest and I) were able to get an hour of sleep.

Did I mention I had been up since 5am Saturday morning? Yeah.

We made one stop to potty, a stop to get gas, a stop to get breakfast and then stopped once more to get gas. We made pretty good time.

And, after two more naps for my 6 yr old, we were all pretty happy campers.

We got to our hotel for the night just before 3pm. Let's just say we will not be staying there again. Kind of scary.

Day Two

We ended up leaving around 2am again. This time the baby was awake and stayed awake for about an hour.

The night before, in our scary hotel, we decided on what highway we were going to take.

Or so I thought.

Apparently I decided on one highway and the hubs decided on another.

Since I was in charge of navigation we went down my highway.

Oh! My! Word!

Have you ever been down an old country road at 3am, in the dark, the darkest dark you have ever seen times 20?

Well, this highway was not much different than that. It was paved, but other than that it really did not differ much from an old country road at 3am.

This was the first time I saw the BIG drippy trees of the south. Really not a good time to see them, when it is the darkest dark you have ever seen times 20.

I didn't sleep for the next few hours. I kept looking out the window making sure nothing was going to come through those vine and ivy wrapped drippy trees!

Then.

Just before sunrise.

As we were making our way down that NEVER ENDING dark road it stopped.

Sitting there in front of us was the most beautiful little town I had ever seen.

It had old plantation homes, old historic homes, HUGE drippy trees, statues in the middle of every main intersection (4 of them) and it had lights.

It was AMAZING!

I later found out that it is actually the same little town they used in the movie 'Sweet Home Alabama'.

If you EVER drive to Disney World, or Florida, or Alabama, make sure to take a trip to Eufaula, Alabama. You won't regret it. Sure the road getting there is a bit scary but, getting there is half the fun....right?

After stopping for breakfast just over the Georgia line and of course more gas we were on our way again.

Two more stops and a few cookies later, we were in Orlando! YAY!

We had to make a stop at a local outlet mall because I forgot the girls dresses for dinner that night, and a stop at CVS, and we were on our way to check in!

Welcome to Walt Disney World!

Great Groupon Deals Today!

2011-07-27T11:23:00.000-05:00

Today on Groupon you can get Two Regular Quiznos Subs or Salads for only $6!!!!

Yes, you saw that right!

SIX DOLLARS!!

WOW!

I just snagged mine, get yours now before they are gone!

It's the simple things.....

2011-07-24T01:11:00.000-05:00

This week we ate EVERY meal at our dining room table.

Together.

As a family.

It has been GREAT!

In one week my oldest has helped us cook our meals and even started unloading the dishwasher on her own (except for the knives, it will still be a while before she can handle those on her own).

She set the table tonight for the first time by herself.

Tonight, my youngest blessed our meal with the sweetest prayer. Granted, none of us could understand her but I know God could and I know he was smiling down on her. She was SO proud of herself. It was seriously the cutest thing in the world!

I love my sweet little family and look forward to many, many more meals around our little dining room table.

Because of our kitchen remodel it had been months since the last time we ate at our little table. So glad to have it back and to be sitting around it again.

Strawberry Bread....

2011-07-22T16:21:00.001-05:00

Don't you love it when all things seem to just fall into place and you feel like this is what you are supposed to be doing?

A few months ago I found some CUTE Paula Deen loaf pan liners at Michaels, on clearance! I got 2 packs (20 liners in each) for like $0.10! I have been saving them for the perfect recipe.

The other day my friend Kristy, over at MommyHatesCooking, posted one of her aunts recipes the other day. It was for Strawberry Bread! YUM!

It just so happened that Aldi was having a rocking sale on strawberries. Let's just say I got about a dozen pints!

Yes, I DO have a lot of plans for them!

The first plan was to make the Strawberry Bread. Do you now see how everything just fell into place?

I don't have the cute loaf pans that the liners were meant for though. So, I just used my 9x13 pan and put 3 liners in it.

I left them in the oven a bit too long but they still taste GREAT!

Homemade Chocolate Syrup

2011-07-16T21:35:00.000-05:00

Hey all! Just popping on to share a quick recipe I just made. We ran out of Hershey's Chocolate Syrup yesterday and I did NOT want to leave my house today.

Seriously! It was like 300 degrees outside! WHY would I want to willingly get out in that?

Luckily I had just enough of everything to make my own!

I first saw how to make my own chocolate syrup on Food Network, thank you very much Alton Brown! But, never did make it. As I was fumbling around on Pinterest the other day I found another recipe. It is actually the same recipe from a Better Homes and Garden cookbook. SCORE!

Ingredients

1 cup water

1/2 cup coco powder

2 cups sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1/4 tsp vanilla

Pour the water in a saucepan {I used a medium saucepan} and add the cocoa powder, heat over medium/high. Stir to dissolve. Once dissolved pour in the sugar. Again, stir to dissolve. Once mixture comes to a boil, allow to boil for 3 minutes. After mixture has boiled for 3 minutes add the salt and vanilla and stir a bit. Allow to cool. Once cool, place in a jar or old chocolate syrup bottle and store in fridge. This will last several months in the fridge.

See! Not as hard as you thought it would be is it?

When using in chocolate milk just experiment, it really doesn't take much. But then again, I don't like my chocolate milk overly chocolaty.

Ok, this is the finished product....

I know...it is SUCH an AWESOME picture isn't it?

HA!

It looks like the jars of oil (as in crude or black/gold) that my grandpa used to keep around. He is/was an oil man.

37 DAYS!!!!

2011-06-24T11:37:00.000-05:00

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

Did you hear that?

I SAID...

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

We have reached the part in the countdown that we are now down to WEEKS and not MONTHS!

OH! MY! GOSH! I am SO excited!!!!

37 DAYS until we are Disney bound!

We have also reached the part in the countdown that I start to freak out because I still have SOOOO much to do!

The girls both need some new shorts and shoes. John and I need new shoes, I need a few pieces of clothing that aren't jeans.

I need to get my binder organized with all of our reservation paperwork, coupons, etc.

I need to start {and finish} autograph books for the girls.

I need to start {and finish} shirts and maybe a dress or two for the girls.

I need to make our packing list and go shopping to get the little things that I was waiting until the last minute to get.

We have reached the last minute point!

Let the stressing BEGIN!

37 DAYS!!!!!

GREAT Deal!!!

2011-06-22T10:13:00.000-05:00

I have an exclusive deal for you today!

How exciting!

Grab this AWESOME Groupon for only $25!!

HURRY! This won't last long!

Homemade Challenge - Week 3 Review

2011-06-20T10:20:00.000-05:00

How did you do this week?

I was a MAJOR slacker! lol Since I made so much bread during week 2 we were still good for week 3.

Let's see, my SIL and her family came into town last week so we ate out the first night. My hubby worked evenings ALL last week so it was just the girls and I. We did end up eating out a few nights this week, we just do when it is the three of us. I don't feel like cooking a massive meal when hubby isn't home. Plus it was HOT last week and that mean my kitchen will reach 5000 degrees when I use my oven and that just isn't cool.

I do plan on making some breadsticks for a dinner my Prims Class is hosting this week. If you are in our area come and support us! It is totally FREE! We are accepting donations though, the girls would like to have t-shirts with the Prims Club logo on them.

Good luck with week 4! Can you believe it has been a month already? I know! Me neither!

Homemade Challenge - Week 2 Review

2011-06-17T11:12:00.000-05:00

Yes, I know we are WELL into week 3 and it is in fact almost over.

Yes, I do know I have been a {BIG} slacker this week.

However, {LAST} week, I was not and was really busy.

I made the cinnamon rolls I had frozen from week one and even used those to take to an event.

I made 2 more loafs of bread.

I also made homemade pizza bites (that recipe will be here soon).

Everything turned out great! I will be reworking that cinnamon roll recipe though, WAY too sweet for me!

How was week 2 for you?

Le Cellier - Chedder Cheese Soup Recipe Review

2011-06-08T22:29:00.000-05:00

I first talked about this soup here.

I have to admit, was not real eager to try this soup. I can not stand the taste of beer. PERIOD! It doesn't take much in a recipe for me to be able to taste it. With that being said, the soup wasn't bad. I would try it with ginger ale next time though.

Before I tell you what I thought of the soup I need to be fair and tell you about some changes I made to the recipe.

First, the recipe tells you to cook the bacon just to render out the fats, not to make crispy. I did not render out enough of the fats and in fact next time, I would cook the bacon until it IS crispy. I don't like limp bacon, I like my bacon extra crispy.

Second, I TOTALLY forgot to cook down the onions and celery before adding the flour! Ummmm......ooops!

So my bacon was limp and my veggies were crispy! HAHA!

Next, I am not on a budget to be able to purchase "Aged White Cheddar" so good ol Yellow Sharp Cheddar it was!

I did NOT add one tablespoon salt! Oh my word! That is a TON of salt! Especially when your cheese is salty and half the other ingredients have a ton of sodium in them. I added one TEASPOON and I thought that was too much, I also don't add salt to anything I cook (most of the time, there are some exceptions) so next time I think I will cut it down to 1/2tsp.

I also thought there was far too much pepper.

SO! After all of that.....my review.....

This is a REALLY good soup! My very picky 5 year old LOVED it, my husband LOVED it, I didn't LOVE it so much. I think after I make the adjustments I want to make I will LOVE it also.

I can't wait to try the real thing!

Homemade Challenge Week 1 Review

2011-06-07T18:42:00.000-05:00

So, I started my challenge yesterday. We finally ran out of what bread we had. I decided to make the PW Cinnamon Rolls that I talked about here and also my Flitter Dough.

Let me tell you! When PW says to use a medium saucepan, she really means a BIG one that you make a lot of spaghetti sauce or chili in. Seriously! You will need a big one if you don't halve the recipe. I was able to make 50 cinnamon rolls and one loaf of bread out of the Cinnamon Roll dough!

OH! MY! GOSH!

FIFTY Cinnamon Rolls! FIFTY! AND a loaf of bread!

Goodness!

Needless to say, those babies were covered and placed in the freezer for later and I baked the bread today. YUMMMMMEEEEEEEE!!!!

And the flitters? Well I actually made those to make the bread out of. I decided to use it ALL for flitters instead. YUM!

So....what did you make during week 1?

Happy Monday!

2011-06-06T12:58:00.000-05:00

Mads rose from Daddy

Well, here we are again. Another Monday. When I worked I always hated Monday. It meant I had to take my precious little girl back to daycare and make the long drive to the Real Estate office. Then I would make the long drive home, rush to get dinner done, rush to spend an ounce of time with my baby, rush to get to bed. I loved the weekends that I had all day, every Saturday and Sunday, to spend with my little family. When Monday came around again it would mean back to the grind and back to not much time being spent with my girl.

Now that I don't work, it is just another day. Especially during the summer. Nothing really special about it, I will eventually get up and clean something. Probably the kitchen......again. Then the dining room.

We had a pretty busy weekend. It was the Mads recital. She did a great job, got a bit frustrated during her first dance because girls kept jumping in front of her, but she did her best and that is all that matters.

She just loves to sing and dance. Her days during the summer are spent dancing around the house and making up songs. Some of them are pretty good, others well....um....then there are others. ;-)

This years recital was a bit boring to us. I am guessing this is how it will be for the years to come until it is her last one. Last year was her very first recital and we had all the excitement of it being the first. But, just as much as she loves to dance, I love to watch her. She is really very good.

After the recital we went for the traditional ice cream. That was an event. MG wanted nothing but chocolate milk but we got her ice cream anyway, she did not know that. As we were walking out of Braum's she realized every one but her was holding ice cream. SO! What else does a two year old do? She threw a fit and threw her milk on the ground. Thank goodness no one was in range of the giant splash! Oh my!

One last pic! This is the result of a VERY long day and trying to eat ice cream in a dark car. :-)

Happy Monday! I hope you have a great one and I hope you had a fantastic weekend!

I have been challenged

2011-06-01T12:48:00.000-05:00

Pic by winnond editing by me.

So, in case you forgot we are going to Disney in August!!!

WooHoo!

As a matter of fact we have exactly.....60 DAYS until we ARRIVE at WDW!!

Can I get another

WOOOOHOOOO!!!

So, since we are officially in CRUNCH TIME my hubby has issued me a challenge.

UGH!

It's ok, I think I can handle this challenge.

Because of my MAD creative couponing skills we have a pretty decent stockpile (please note I did say stockpile, not hoardpile). With the exception of fresh meat, fresh veggies, fresh fruit and milk we are set! Oh and except for bread (I will get to that in a bit though).

So, for things like bread, biscuits, cinnamon rolls, pizza crust, etc that I might not have in my stockpile I have been challenged to make. Good thing I ~~like~~ LOVE to bake!

Yes, I have been challenged to make things from *GASP*......... scratch! This should be fun! I am a decent baker, did you know I once baked dessert and breads for a local restaurant? I did! LOVED it to. Kitchen was a constant mess though. lol Not mess like yucky dirty you have bugs, mess like there was flour every where.

So, from TODAY until we depart for Disney.....in 60 DAYS....I will be making lots of things from scratch. WooHoo!!

Just in case you want to know what is first on my list, I have decided to make The Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls! YUUUUUM! I figure I can match a batch or two of these up and freeze until we are ready to eat them.

So, who wants to join me in this 2 month challenge??

I did it all myself!!

2011-05-31T10:02:00.000-05:00

Liking the new look as much as I am?

Want to know how I did it all?

Well, ok then....here we go....

First, I went to a Blogging Bootcamp hosted by Money Saving Queen and CC Miller.

They told me all of their secrets, well as many as they could get out in those three hours, and I came home and started going to the sites they talked about.

First, lets start with MakinCuteBlogs she has a TON of tutorials.

Seriously, a TON!

I also like TheCutestBlogontheBlock and of course google.

If there was ever a question about something I didn't fully understand I just googled it.

For a cute (simple) yet snazzy background I just discovered PatternCooler.com

Now, before today I would have had a complete page full of sites I LOVE with those cute backgrounds. However, PatternCooler has ALL of them beat! Yes, ALL of them!

I discovered PatternCooler thanks to google, it was on like page 5 I think, so worth the wait!

Why do I like PC? WELL! You pick the background pattern you like. You then pick the color combo YOU want, then you pick the size of patter YOU want. You can even adjust the fade of the pattern........ and the best part.....it is SOOOO easy!

And the VERY best part??

TOTALLY FREE! Yep, 10000% free! WooHoo!!

Now, if you want to add cute fonts and signatures and post dividers I suggest you check out Kevin and Amanda!

Talk about put you on a cute font overload! Oh my!

Have fun with your blog my friends! Make it your own! Do what YOU like!

I think I am FINALLY happy with mine....for now.

Now, this is the free way to go about doing a blog makeover. There are PLENTY of sites out there that will design the entire thing for you and will even install it! WOW!

May I recommend Laura J Designs? She is pretty cool! You can even find some freebies on her site! Sweet!

welcome back!

2011-05-30T14:22:00.000-05:00

(photo found at freephotos.net)

Welcome to the NEW blog! I hope you enjoy all of the changes, most are little changes that you may not even notice but I sure do.

There are a few more to come, again little changes.

There are still a few things under construction but will be up and running soon.

Enjoy!

SWEET Deal!!

2011-05-11T16:20:00.000-05:00

TANGA is offering

Taste of Home Magazine for the low price of just.....

$3.99!!!!

HURRY!!!

This won't last long!

Just enter code: TASTE at checkout.

Happy Shopping!

Lookie...Lookie!!!

2011-05-11T09:28:00.001-05:00

Soooooo......... we have a wedding coming up this Saturday in my family and I have been a busy chicky!

The couple will be having a dessert bar at the reception (umm HELLO! My kind of party!) and I get a part in making some goodies! WooHoo!!!!

Soooo....what am I making? Well, thank ya for asking!

I am making THESE!!!

YUMMMM!!!!

Yes! That is my FAMOUS Pie-in-a-Jar!!

And aren't THESE just adorable?

Those cute little dough pillows will be placed on top of the pies just before the lid goes on the jar.

Don't worry, I will get a few pics of the rest of the bar for you.

You're welcome! ;-)