Guest Post: You are "sew" loved! (DIY Valentines)

Valentine's Day is coming up! And I'm excited to share the valentines we made this year. The details (including the printables!) are on a guest post over at Sweet Little Peanut--a charming blog filled with all sorts of lovely things for you mamas and your little peanuts too. You can make these "You are 'sew' loved!" valentines with your kids at home, at school, at a Valentine's party, or the like! Brooks loved sewing, or "loop-de-looping" as he would say, and I hope you and your little peanuts do too. xo  

If you want to see our Valentines from the last few years:

2011: "Blowing Kisses Your Way!"

2012: Picture Puzzle Valentine

2013: XO Heart Photo Hanging

Guest Post: Healthy Christmas Snack

It's old news that I am definitely one to take advantage of any chance I get to play with my food. ;) I've seen fruit and vegetable Christmas trees before, served at holiday parties, and they're always a big hit. But I thought, why not make a simple version that my little boy could take part in making? We did it, and as I had hoped, it was a hit--even for our little party of 2! I shared the details over on my lovely friend Lindsay's blog, here! Deer Lindsay is such a charming spot in blogland...take a look and try not to smile at the gorgeous photos of her sweet family, and her beautiful and honest words that accompany them. xo

Brooks was pretty proud. :)

Guest Post: DIY Thanksgiving Garlands

I meant to share this on the blog last month, but will do it now and hope that it may still be of use! :) I can't resist festive garlands, and this year I made a few. I'm enjoying them on our mantle, but any of these would be great on bookshelves, windows, railings, or displayed near your Thanksgiving feast next week! 

Head on over HERE to Whipperberry to see the post where I share how to make these three garlands. And have a most wonderful Thanksgiving!!

Guest Post: Infinity Scarf to Turban

The ever-gorgeous Gentri let me take up some space on her blog today! I love head wraps and turbans, and fall time is perfect for them. I was playing around with a light-weight, infinity scarf (I scored at Walmart!) and realized it can easily be turned into a turban! Multi-faceted accessory for the win! And I call it the infiniturban. Haha, I think I'm witty. ;) Check out the simple how-to over on Gentri Lee HERE.

Brown Butter White Chocolate and Cinnamon Chip Cookies

When September arrived a few weeks ago, I absolutely loved knowing my nieces, nephews, and dear little friends were starting up school again. This time of year is so nostalgic for me. It's hard to beat the thought of freshly baked cookies ready at home for our hard-working school kids, right? Brooks and Ava aren't quite there yet, but before I know it I'll be sending them off to school, and I hope they'll enjoy coming home to a sweet treat every once in a while.

I recently discovered Hershey's Cinnamon Chips (I've only been able to find them at Walmart) and wanted to try them in cookies. Brown butter anything is a winner in my book, so I looked up my favorite brown butter cookie recipe found here and adjusted the recipe a bit. They have a delicious nutty flavor, rich with the white chocolate, and the cinnamon chips add a wonderful fall flavor. I think they'd be a great after school snack, for kids and parents!

Go HERE for the recipe I shared over at WhipperBerry! :)

Plum Berry Basil Ice Cream

This post is long overdue...but I wanted to share my Plum Berry Basil Ice Cream recipe before summer is totally long gone! It's still hot where we are and ice cream is still our sweet treat of choice. :)  

A couple years ago my sister in law introduced me to the flavor combination of strawberries and basil. Sounds odd at first, but they compliment each other beautifully! And I recently found a love for a frozen treat that puts plum and basil together, so when I was assigned to make one of the flavors of homemade ice cream for a family reunion, I knew what I wanted to do! Considering that one of my husband's uncles was hesitant to try it because of the basil, but then asked for the recipe later, I'd say it was a success. You can go HERE to check out my guest post over at Whipperberry for the recipe! xo

Guest Post at WhipperBerry: DIY Polka Dot Denim

I am thrilled to send you over to my first post as a member of the new WhipperBerry Creative Team! Heather over at WhipperBerry is as sweet and fabulous as they come! I feel honored to take up space on her lovely blog.

Today I shared a tutorial involving one of my favorite patterns: polka dots. They can be fun and casual, classy and bold. I've seen polka dot pants here and there for a while now, and I love them! Recently I found a pair of white denim pants with black polka dots that I couldn't help but gush over, sadly the price tag put a stop to that train rather quickly. So I made them happen with a pair of pants I already owned! And they're my new favorite pair of jeans. :) Do you like polka dots? If so, give this a try...with pants, shorts, a skirt, or really any piece of clothing you want to take up a notch!

Go HERE to see the full tutorial. xo

A Few of My Favorite Things...Guest Post!

I sure hope everyone is loving the holiday season as much as I am!

I can't believe there are just 11 days 'til Christmas...I plan to soak up all of my favorite things before it's over! And I'm actually sharing a few of my favorite things that revolve around the Christmas season over at one of my VERY favorite blogs: Hudson's Happenings. I was so excited when Ashley asked me to share a post with her for her Countdown to Christmas! There are other lovely ladies too sharing all sorts of Christmas goodness...like the perfect holiday outfit, celebrating abroad, and there will be more coming!

I'd really love for you to go check it out my guest post here :) And while you're there...if you want to put an extra big smile on your face, just take a peak at Ashley's sweet life with her beautiful son and handsome husband, you won't regret it :)

PS - Isn't that banner at the top of my post cute!? Ashley created it :) She is one talented chica!

Awkward + Awesome + Smoothie

The beautiful Sydney at The Daybook is hi-larious (especially now that she has funny preggo stories) and I love when she shares her awkward and awesome moments from her week. Today I thought I'd jot mine down too :)

I try to look at the cup half full (emphasis on try) so these awkward-and-awesome's are paired together...

Awkard: Seeing I've reached the bottom of my glass that, just 2 seconds ago, was full of delicious smoothie...and sipping with all my might, yet nothing comes up the straw.

Awesome: Getting invited by Megan over at Second Floor Living to share the recipe of my favorite drink as of late! :) Which just so happens to be the smoothie previously mentioned (and the one in the picture). It's my Very Berry Tropical Smoothie. Go here to see how I make it!!! And while you're there check out her blog...she lives in South Africa (super awesome, right?) and she's got a stellar bucket list. Go. Now. :)

Awkward: On Wednesday I was asked by one of the 12 year-old girls in Young Women's (the youth group I serve with), "Ouch, what happened to your neck??" I answered, "Uuuuuh, oh! It was, um, a burn from my curling iron." Good thing she believed me, eh? ;)

Awesome: It was my 3 year anniversary the day before... ;)

Awkward: Still not having the kitchen finished! Oh the details...it's taking for-ev-er.

Awesome: The fact that it is happening!!! All good things to those who wait :)

Double-awesome: I still don't have a ton of dishes to wash. oh. yes.

Awkward: Getting a weird look from the cashier at Smith's (local grocery store) when I showed her an empty little pastry baggy and told her to add one donut to my purchase...I'm a hungry shopper, okay?

Awesome: That maple bar, that I devoured while grocery shopping, was delish. :)

Awkward: Watching Biggest Loser and wondering, "Where the heck is Rulon???"

Awesome: Watching Biggest Loser and seeing Olivia take it all! She looked AMAZING and so happy :)

Awkward: Not having dinner ready for Adam when he gets home... (the limited choices of sandwiches, salad, and easy mac get really old after a while)

Awesome: Being surprised by super-hubs-Adam when he brought home delicious Chinese take-out!

Awkward: Pulling on the starter-cable-thingy on the lawn mower at least 1,265,529 times before it actually starts.

Awesome: Soaking up a little sun and listening to some good tunes on my ipod while I mowed our front lawn yesterday. I love the sight and smell of a freshly mowed front yard :) and I also love getting a thank-you spank from the hubs.

Awkward: Feeling like I was about to pass out while working out yesterday. yowza.

Awesome: Getting told by the trainer that my form in kick boxing is great :) First time with actual gloves and a bag...loved it!

Awesome: There are just 3 more days 'til Sunday...favorite day of the week :)

Blooming Canvas Art...guest post!

A couple weeks ago I was asked by a sweet friend, and blogger extraordinaire, to do a guest post over at her place...I about fell off my chair from excitement when I read her email. (I kid you not;)

Amy, over at The Idea Room, is constantly sharing wonderful ideas revolving around crafts, decor, home improvement, recipes, and gift ideas! She had a fun and oh-so busy last couple of weeks (Spring Break vaca with her family, then attended Creative Estates) so I was more than happy [honored really] to relieve her load a bit and provide the post over there today. I had a few ideas...some of which I'm still working on...but this is what I decided to share :) This is just a sneak peak...I'd love it if you'd GO HERE to check out my spring time craft :) It was easy, and you can take it in so many directions...let me know what you think! :)

PS - Here are just a few FANTASTIC projects and recipes of Amy's...enjoy!

kissing balls and moss letters

stellar DIY headboard and bedframe

chalk board purse

felt finger puppets

(I want to make these for Brooks, when he's a big older and won't eat them;)

rainbow pancakes

cinnamon swirl pancakes

pumpkin waffles and cinnamon syrup

(okay, can you tell I love breakfast:)

sea glass candy

pssst! i'm over here...

My beautiful friend Rachel has this fun series going on called "Typical Tuesdays" and today I shared our oh-so typical Tuesday :) Go check it out HERE!

And stay a while to check out the rest of Rachel's blog while you're at it! It is because of all her sweet posts of daily life as a [stellar] mother to her 2 adorable girls, and how she's head over heels for her awesome husband, that inspired me to do better at recording our little family's happenings. Plus, she totally makes me want to learn to sew!! (seriously, that girl has some mad skill of revamping some sweet thrift finds...Exhibit A).

Rachel is pretty much as good as it gets :)

PS - When you go to the post you'll see I did my hair in milkmaid braids!! It was a fun-hair-day to say the least. Thanks to Rach!! She'll tell you how here :)