Saturday, December 31, 2011

Happy Prosperous New year!


HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!

New Year quote:  Ring out the old. Invite in the new. As we say goodbye to one year, we can look forward to the hope and possibilities of another one. 


First I want to thank all my readers and new friends! I appreciate everyone of you and your comments.  Wishing all the best new year yet!  I am looking forward to blogging to bring you more interesting, fun articles all year long.  Happy 2012!



Linking to:  Funkyjunkinteriors   Kristenscreations

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Peppermint Bark recipe

Yummy!

Nothing says holidays like peppermint bark
except this delicious recipe for:

Creamy Peppermint Bark Tart


A recipe from :
Lindsey Johnson is a stay-at-home mom who enjoys cooking, baking, photography, gardening, and writing. You can find more recipes at her blog,Cafe Johnsonia.

I discovered this and many other 
delicious recipes at Make and Take

ENJOY!



Peppermint Bark Tart
1 recipe chocolate tart dough (recipe follows)
1 recipe peppermint chocolate pudding (recipe follows)
1 recipe white chocolate whipped cream (recipe follows)
For garnish–crushed candy canes and bittersweet chocolate shavings


http://www.makeandtakes.com/creamy-peppermint-bark-tart


Happy New Year 2012


Thursday, December 22, 2011

Beautiful Christmas blogs

St Nick

Just 3 days till Christmas and I just discovered these beautiful Christmas blogs!
Be sure to visit them for a magical, whimsical Christmas decoration tour..

First on the list:
http://beautifulideas.wordpress.com/
Some pictures from her vast amount of STUNNING pictures!!
Lovely!

The next on our Christmas blog lists,
http://worthingcourt.blogspot.com/2011/12/our-whimsical-christmas-tree.html
This one has the prettiest tree topper I ever saw! With directions on how to make one.


WOW!
Look at her beautiful wreaths with DIY inspiration!


She gives instructions on how to make garlands as well.
ENJOY!

Next on the tour of blogs is:
http://www.southernsanctuary.blogspot.com/


LOOK at this gorgeous little girl's tree with a zebra tree skirt!
 NEXT.............

Next on the tour a candy can luncheon at:
http://designsbypinky.blogspot.com/2011/12/candy-cane-luncheon.html

What a great idea for a Candy cane table setting!


Hope you enjoyed our Christmas blog tour this year!

Wishing you and yours the merriest Christmas and happiest New Year!








Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Drunken Gingerbread Men Cupcakes


Drunken Gingerbread Men Cupcakes

What a great idea for a delicious and unique dessert to serve your guests on the holiday! Thanks to BlogHer :


What you'll need:
1 box of Spice Cake Mix
1 container of Vanilla Frosting
1 tsp. Ground Ginger
Gingerbread Cookies (1 for each cupcake)
Rum ( enough to replace the water in your cupcake recipe)
Chopped Candied Ginger (in small pieces) not shown.
Directions:
Prepare your cupcakes according to the box instructions, but replace the water with Rum!
Stir the ground ginger into the batter, and fill your cupcake liners...bake as usual!

  

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Christmas Tree Decorating




Photo's Courtesy of http://www.backyardlandscape.net/decorated-christmas-tree/

Decorating for  Christmas is half the fun of the holiday, the Christmas tree is always the centerpiece, followed by wreaths and garlands. Personally I think the smell of a fresh tree is best but it has it's drawbacks such as keeping it alive and fresh. Whereas the artificial trees are more convenient. 

Than deciding on a theme each year or as most people do have a more personal general theme and add new decorations each year. Having a new theme each year would be very costly. But having a more personal family tree will make it a tradition which is what Christmas is all about, isn't it?

Whatever tree, fresh or fake, wishing you and yours a blessed, Merry Christmas !!



Thursday, November 17, 2011

Transitional wreaths


Inspired wreath 



We are working on making wreaths that are transitional, "Transitional wreath" ---- Hang this beautiful wreath to transition before AND after Christmas and before Spring the flower gives a hint of the beautiful Spring to come.
Will be adding more as we complete them.

Wreaths add a beautiful touch not only to your front door, welcoming friends, family and guests but can also be used on mantels,  living room walls, etc.  Be inspired!
Watch our Etsy store for more wreaths!

Linking to bloghop

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Unique Christmas decor inspiration


“The best Christmas of all is the presence of a happy family all wrapped up with one another.”


Don't forget to decorate your monitor for Christmas!

Or what about a USB XMAS TREE with multicolor lights!


Have A Charlie Brown Xmas


Give a wood candy little christmas gift!

For your Christmas mantels here are some HGTV ideas!





Hope this helped with some Christmas unique decorations for home and office! Have the happiest holiday season ever!!
Linking to: Kristenscreations


Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Making the kid's table fun

Tree of thanks 

Thank-You Tree

Remind the kids that the holiday is about more than food and football with this pretty paper tree from Frog Prince Paperie. Guests can write down what they’re grateful for on a paper leaf and tie it on a branch with ribbon. By the end of the evening, the kids’ table centerpiece will be emboldened with fall colors and personal touches. 

Read more: Thanksgiving Decorations for Kids Table - Kids Crafts for Thanksgiving - Country Living 


Just had to share this adorable idea for the kid's holiday table . Great DIY craft project! JUST $5.00 ..Please add your comments and ideas. 

Friday, October 28, 2011

Coupon Clipping – The Smartphone Way



There’s a new secret to saving money without clipping coupons. Your Smartphone will replace scissors and coupons. Not only will you save on groceries but on almost everything you buy. What is the secret to saving money on groceries, electronics or manicures?
The secret is using apps, the apps are for Android and iPhones. They are:

For example  Shopkick,  makes shopping and saving a game. Using GPS, it shows nearby stores with exclusive deals. Users get points just by walking in, checking into a specific section, or even scanning particular products. If you get enough points, you can get a gift card.



With the Coupon Sherpa app, we loaded almost a dozen digital coupons from the app onto our Kroger card in a matter of seconds.
Check into each of the apps and please come back and let us know how much you saved!

Linking to :Bloghop







Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Tweeting Seat - What is it?

@tweetingseat

A tweeting seat or bench

the person who came up with this idea describes it as :

"TweetingSeat is an interactive park bench which is designed to explore the potential for connecting digital and physical communities. The bench logs its usage by uploading images of its users and environment to a live Twitter feed, allowing people to interact with it both in person and virtually."

A video :
Tweeting Seat: An Interactive Park Bench That Tweets http://www.e-junkie.info/2011/05/tweeting-seat-interactive-park-bench.html via @ejunkie

"An interactive park bench that tweets". 

What do you think of this idea ? 



Sunday, October 23, 2011

Beautiful Citrus Centerpiece

Great for Holiday dinners!

Fruitfully Fabulous

Warm up your holiday table with a scentsational centerpiece -
 dress pillar candles with dried oranges, lemons, and limes.
Thinly slice the citrus fruits about 1/8-inch thick. Place a wire cooling rack 
on a cookie sheet, and then arrange the sliced oranges, lemons, and limes 
on the rack. Put the cookie sheet and rack in an oven preheated 
to 250 degrees for approximately two hours, or until all 
moisture is removed.
Tip: If you find that your slices have not dried in 2 hours, you can also 
turn off the oven and leave the fruit in overnight.
Using a glue gun, connect the citrus slices to each other, forming a 
band around the base of each candle. Do not glue them to the candle.
 Once your candles are decorated, cluster them in the center of your 
Thanksgiving table and weave berried branches throughout to create 
a cohesive centerpiece.
Thanks to GoodHousekeeping  magazine for this beautiful idea!




Monday, September 26, 2011

Fall Book Pumpkin

What's a "book pumpkin"?  A unique and adorable tutorial by CraftberryBush who suggests we "Fall in love with fall" by making this book pumpkin.



How cute is this?

And look at this!!

This lady at Craftberry Bush is AMAZING! She is an inspiration to all crafters, a true artist. She suggests :

"How about a little white pumpkin with the kiddies?  Simply take some white paper and fold in half.  Staple the centre to form a little booklet and have your child cut the 'pages'.  Glue a little stick and there you go.  These would also make lovely place cards or you can make a streamer, so many craftberries...."


Linking to BusyMom
Stalking at this blog hop Formulamom

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Healthier Chicken fried steak recipe


A Southern Favorite! 
Thanks to Prevention.com

It's essential to pound the meat and allow it to soak in buttermilk before cooking it. That way, even a lean cut of meat like top round will still be tender like fattier cuts traditionally used in this dish.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients1 pound trimmed top round steak, preferably grass fed
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
3/4 cup all-natural whole wheat panko-style bread crumbs
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 pinches ground red pepper
Olive oil spray (propellant free)

InstructionsPlace the steak on a clean, flat work surface. Using the toothed side of a meat mallet, pound it on both sides, until it is 1/4" thick. Cut it into 4 equal pieces. Place the pieces in a medium plastic bag and pour the buttermilk over them. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Place 2 sheets of waxed paper or parchment paper on a clean, flat work surface.

Add the panko to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a chopping blade. Process until they are fine crumbs. Spoon the bread crumbs onto a plate.

In a small bowl, mix the garlic powder, black pepper, paprika, turmeric, salt, and red pepper.

Remove 1 steak from the buttermilk and let any excess drip off. Over a sheet of waxed paper, sprinkle both sides of the steak evenly with about one-quarter of the spice mixture. Immediately transfer the steak to the crumbs. Coat both sides. Then place the breaded steak on the second sheet of waxed paper. Repeat with the remaining steaks, placing them side by side so they don't touch on the paper. Mist the tops of both sides of the steaks with spray and sprinkle with additional pepper to taste.

Place a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, mist it with spray. Cook the steaks for 1 to 3 minutes per side, or until the breading is crisp on the outside and the insides are cooked to desired doneness (be careful not to overcook the steaks--if you do, the breading will become soggy and fall off the steaks). Lightly mist the finished steaks with spray and serve immediately.

Per serving: 166 calories, 27 g protein, 11 g carbohydrates (1 g sugar), 4 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 51 mg cholesterol, 2 g fiber, 159 mg sodium

Adapted from The Biggest Loser Flavors of the World Cookbook by Chef Devin Alexander and The Biggest Loser Experts and Cast with Melissa Roberson. Copyright © 2011 by Universal Studios Licensing LLLP, The Biggest Loser?, and NBC Studios, Inc., and Reveille LLC. Reprinted by permission of Rodale, Inc., Emmaus, PA 18098.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Fall Pumpkin Pie Time




Double Layer Pumpkin Pie Recipe

4 oz Philly Cream Cheese [softened]
1 tbls Milk
1 tbls Sugar
1 1/2 cups CoolWhip [thawed]
1 Graham cracker pie crust [prepared]
1 cup Milk [cold]
1 cn (16oz) pumpkin
2 pk Vanilla flavored Jell-o Pudding & Pie filling
4 tsps Pumpkin pie spice

1) Mix the cream cheese, 1 tb milk, and the sugar in a large bowl with
a wire whisk `til smooth, then gently stir in the whipped topping and « of
the pumpkin pie spice. Spread on the bottom of the prepared pie crust...

2) Pour 1 c cold milk into a bowl and add the pumpkin, pudding mixes,
and the remainder of the spices beating with wire whisk `til well mixed (it
will be thick). Then spread over the cream cheese layer in the prepared pie
crust...

3) Refrigerate for at least 4 hrs. `til set then garnish with
additional whipped topping before serving...

Pie Recipes: Double Layer Pumpkin Pie
......



LOVE pumpkin pies AND cheese cakes!!


Linking to bloghops