Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Cool idea. Take a drawer out!



 Was a nightstand!


 Re-purposed Door I love this!


 You can find tins like these at Value village and Good will for almost nothing!


 Old doll house for storage. Very cool!


 Turn A Old Mirror Into A Message Board, Fun for The Whole Family!


I want this!



 




Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Yummy Recipes Just In Time For The Holidays!

 
Apple Cranberry Oatmeal Bake

Ingrediants:
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
1/3 cup natural cane sugar
3 Tbsp. ground flax seed
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon + more for sprinkling
1/2 tsp. sea salt
2 cups almond milk
1 large egg
1 1/2 Tbsp. butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 ripe bananas, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large apple, peeled, cored and chopped
3/4 cup cranberries
Maple syrup for serving (optional)

Preheat oven to 375-degrees. Generously butter the inside of an 8″x8″ baking dish. Combine oats, half the walnuts walnuts, sugar, flax seed, baking powder, cinnamon and sea salt in a medium bowl and mix well. Combine almond milk, egg, butter, and vanilla in another bowl with a whisk and mix until smooth.

Line the bottom of the baking dish with the banana slices. Scatter half of the chopped apple and cranberries over the banana. Sprinkle with the oat mixture. Drizzle the almond milk mixture evenly over the oats and fruit and shimmy the dish around until all the oats are wet. Top with the remaining fruit and walnuts and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Bake 35 – 45 minutes until puffed up, golden, and the mixture has set. Serve as is or top portions with a generous glug of maple syrup.






Caramel Apples:  Sticks, Apples, caramel! mmmm-mmmm




Twice Baked Potatoes With Walnut Streusel

Ingredients:
3 large sweet potatoes
4 tablespoons packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

for the streusel-
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar

Directions:
Prick sweet potatoes with a fork or knife and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until soft. You can also microwave the sweet potatoes on high for 13-15 minutes as well.

Once sweet potatoes are cooked, slice in half and scoop out the centers into a bowl leaving a 1/4 inch border of sweet potato with the skin. Mix in brown sugar, butter, salt and cinnamon until smooth. Using a large tipped pastry bag, pipe filling back into sweet potato shells. {Or spoon it back in.}

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients for streusel and mix together until butter starts to warm and ingredients start sticking together. Top the filled sweet potatoes with the streusel and bake 20-30 minutes. Serve warm.




Monkey Muffins

Ingredients:
Leftover Bread Dough (or Refrigerated Biscuit Dough, Cut Into Thirds)
Butter
Sugar
Ground Cinnamon
Sweetened, Condensed Milk

Preparation Instructions~
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Add 1/2 teaspoon butter to muffin tins. Sprinkle in sugar and cinnamon.
Roll dough into walnut sized balls (or cut refrigerated biscuit dough into thirds). Place three into each muffin tin.
Top with 1/2 teaspoon butter. Sprinkle on more sugar and cinnamon.
Allow dough to rise, if applicable, or just go ahead and bake for 15 minutes, or until golden and bubbly.
Remove from oven and immediately drizzle plenty of sweetened condensed milk over the top of each one. Be generous! Allow rolls to sit for a little while to absorb sweet, sticky milk.

Scoop out with a spoon and serve to hungry humans.




Evolutionary Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:
2 cups dried pasta
2 cups 2% milk
1 cup loosely packed shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dijon mustard

Directions:

In a small saucepan, add pasta and milk. Bring to simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, until pasta is soft, stirring frequently and ensuring milk does not boil.

Turn heat off, add cheese & salt & and stir to combine. Stir in the mustard a little at a time to taste. Cover and let stand for about 5 minutes, then stir again and serve. If not creamy enough, add milk a little at a time, and gently stir.

If you would like to bake it at this point, place in a baking dish and top with a generous sprinkling of cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 10 minutes until cheese has melted.

As a side dish this makes enough for 4 people with no leftovers (can easily be doubled).




California Sandwich: Avocado, tomato, sprouts and pepper jack with chive spread




Sunday, November 20, 2011

Some Shabby Chic DIY Ideas For Your Home!

I've tried these and now you can....


Heat a bowl of water and vinegar for 5 minutes in the microwave, the steam will dissolve stuck on stains. Simply wipe off. Genius!!!!



 
How To Caulk A Perfectly Straight Line!




Flour, sugar, potatoes & onion organization!



Such a smart idea!! Measuring cups and spoons inside your cabinet door.



 
Binder Clips: A perfect unexpected use



This would be pretty cool to have with all of my makeup and brushes that I have.




 Things you need:
Coconut Oil
Sugar
Mason jar
Essential Oils (optional)
Things to do:
1. Melt coconut oil. Or, if you can’t find coconut oil, use olive oil which is just as beneficial for your skin although it does have a stronger scent. The amount of oil to use depends on how big a batch you want to make.
2. Pour in enough sugar to make a paste.
3. If you like, you can enhance the treatment with an aromatherapy effect by adding a few drops of your favorite essential oil.
4. Pour the skin treatment into a clean glass jar with a secure lid.


  For marking children heights. No Need to worry if you move.



 Buy super cheap cabinet doors and make these desks



 Paint a trash can, it can also be a laundry basket or toy bin. 



 I like the molding + dark wall + white frames



At the end of cupboards in kitchen? For mail, cookbooks, recipes, notes...



Good use of a dead corner - Play room



 A little nook made out of a closet. This is my FAVORITE IDEA!!



Moss Graffiti: Put in blender: one can of cheap beer (or 1 1/2 cups buttermilk), a few handfuls of moss, one teaspoon of sugar. Paint on wall and mist daily until it grows.



 Bookshelf made out of antique apple crates. LOVE!



 Clever concrete block bench for only $30.



Nice way to organize bath time if you have more than 1 child.



You got to try this..Use sugar starch and form doilies around a balloon. Dry, prick the ballon and remove. Gorgeous!

Friday, November 11, 2011

Feathers & Wings



The newest member of my collection, Feathers & Wings has tons of glitter, and full of dramatic colors.  It been one of my most talked about paintings.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

After I took this picture I went inside and uploaded it to my computer. I then noticed the little green guy. Life is always surprising me. 

Mommy, Mommy, Mommy

When a mother wakes up in the morning her day starts out with screaming children and dirty diapers. Usually the father has already left for work and the sink is filled with last nights dishes. No one would ever know you spent five hours cleaning the house yesterday. 


As her day goes on more and more lovely things accrue. Like having her son throw his lunch all over the floor and laughing as he watches her clean it up. Being puked on, bitten, back talked and peed on. Cleaning up the same mess over and over again. Watching Elmo's World about twelve times a day and singing the ABC's until she realizes that she's talking to herself.

In the end Dad comes home and the kids turn in to beautiful, little, angles and everything seems to be perfect. At this time she turns to her hidden stash of smokes and sneaks off for ten minutes of complete silence. Dreading tomorrow and dreaming of the weekend. 


 Despite all the things a mother has to put up with. It's all worth it. They're your babies. Your their mommy and no one can do your job better then you can.