My Kind of Crafts

Shoot and Edit: Holiday Traditions Edited

2011-12-21T19:35:00.000-06:00

Not only did I participate again finally but I have my photo edited a day ahead of time! Maybe I'm getting back into the swing of things which is good considering Christmas is in a few days and there will be plenty of photo ops. I'm really behind and not sure what all I missed lately. I wanted to brighten it up a tad since Raggedy Ann was a little dark.

SOOC

Final

Adjusted levels, Pioneer Womans' Seventies at 32% and edge burn at 16%.

If you'd like to read about the tradition behind Raggedy Ann and Andy at our home you can read my entry here from Monday.

Linking to Ashley's blog. Check out the other Holiday Traditions!

Shoot and Edit: Holiday Traditions

2011-12-19T09:35:00.002-06:00

Gosh, it's been months since I've participated in this. I haven't even logged on to blogger in what seems like forever. I can't even find the time to update our family blog. Maybe that's because I haven't even taken many pictures this fall. This morning I was scrolling through my newsfeed on facebook and saw Ashley's post for this week's challenge and thought, "go take a picture and do this."

We have many traditions in our family. Some we have started with our kids and some have been passed down from generations. This picture is an example of one passed down from generations. My dad's parents might have started it on his side or maybe my great-grandparents...not too sure. Anyhow, every year Raggedy Ann and Andy come out with the Christmas tree decorations and they sit on the tree. They can move around the tree and the story is that when Santa comes they get off the tree and help him deliver the presents under the tree. Then on Christmas morning they are on the floor, too worn out to get back on the tree. Once a grandchild moves out on their own my grandparents send a small set of Raggedy Ann and Andy and then when I got married my dad sent us a traditional bigger set. It's fun a little different from other traditions.

She's obviously dark so hopefully I can brighten her up a tad.

Linked to Jill's blog.

Shoot and Edit - Fall

2011-09-27T14:00:00.001-05:00

I know that fall is coming because it officially arrives the day after my daughter's birthday. Two things I love: my sweet daughter and fall! Thankfully the temps have finally dropped a bit around here to feel a little like fall, at least at night. The night before my daughter's birthday we walked over to the park and took a few pictures. The sun was starting to set behind us. I got some neat photos with sunflare and some really cute shots of my daughter. I'm picking two that I haven't already edited.

Check out more SOOC shots of fall here.

Shoot and Edit - Back to School edited

2011-09-08T14:07:00.000-05:00

Here are my edits for this week. I thought about filling in the dead grass on the bottom picture like we learned earlier in the year but I forgot how to do it! I'm running short on time or else I would have looked it up.

Before

After

cropped & PW fresh color

Before

After

Nice & Easy & Mud Pies

For some reason the box won't appear, so to see more edits click here.

Shoot and Edit - Back to School

2011-09-05T14:11:00.002-05:00

This was a big year for us in terms of "Back to School". Our daughter started kindergarten! It's hard to believe she's growing up so fast. She started two weeks ago and our son started pre-school on Friday. He went to MDO last year at the same school but he's an official pre-schooler this year. Thank goodness he walked walk right with a wave. No tears!! Here's a SOOC of each of them on their first day.

My daughter is on the right with two of her friends.

Our 3 year old!

Shoot and Edit - Beach Edited

2011-09-01T10:39:00.000-05:00

I didn't really know what to do when I sat down to edit this photo. I tried to do a couple different things to it but nothing was sparking my interest.

SOOC

ACR

Final #1

For this one I ran Nice & Easy and then applied a texture at maybe 25-30% and then took it off his skin.

Final #2

Then I thought I'd try a Florbella action because I wasn't loving any others I tried. This is Angel.

Shoot and Edit - Ocean

2011-08-29T13:48:00.001-05:00

After a taking a break for a few weeks I decided I'd try to give this a try again! The last few weeks of summer sure got busy and my kids wanted every bit of my attention. In fact, the last entry I did I never even edited my picture. :) Now with my daughter in kindergarten and my son starting pre-school I have a few minutes here and there again. I actually haven't really even picked up my camera much lately. I did find a SOOC from our vacation back in June. This was taken at sunset in Long Beach, CA of my son playing on the shoreline. The evening didn't go as planned but things happen. :) I had taken a bunch of cute pictures earlier that day on the beach but I didn't feel like I should use one because I didn't shoot in RAW until the evening.

Shoot and Edit - Sunset

2011-08-01T21:53:00.002-05:00

I took this picture on our family vacation in June. I attempted to take sunset pictures on the beach of the kids in their coordinating outfits. The evening didn't go as planned. I won't go into details but I did get a few cute pictures.

This is a SOOC shot of the marina in Long Beach, CA.

Shoot and Edit - Laughter Edited

2011-07-29T10:08:00.001-05:00

I did a simple edit this week.

SOOC

ACR

Edited with Nice and Easy and Color Me Happy

Shoot and Edit - Laughter

2011-07-27T19:42:00.002-05:00

I was about to skip this week because I hadn't taken any pictures that captured laughter. However, I put in my memory stick and scrolled down and discovered this picture of my daughter slip 'n sliding and low and behold she's laughing! I actually really like this shot even though there's a shadow on her.

SOOC

Shoot and Edit - Summer Edited

2011-07-21T15:21:00.001-05:00

In case anyone was wondering, it's still hot here in Texas. Things haven't changed here. My little one had surgery yesterday so we're taking things easy today. He's fine but we're staying in the a/c which gives me a few minutes to edit a few pictures.

Here are my edits this week.

SOOC

BJ the cow's sweaty nose edited with PW Seventies and Edge Burn

SOOC

My daughter edited with Everyday Elements Florida

SOOC

My son and a cow edited with Coffeeshop Golden Vintage

Shoot and Edit - Summer

2011-07-18T22:07:00.001-05:00

It's been a while since I've participated in Shoot and Edit. It's actually been so long since I logged into Blogger that I didn't even recognize the new format. It's all very new and weird. I need to figure it all out. I just got back from a trip with my kids. We went down to San Antonio to visit my mom and stepdad for 8 or 9 days and I snuck in a girls trip down to the coast, too. However, I only took pictures one day when we went to their ranch! After looking through my pictures and seeing the prompt for this week I couldn't pass up this sweet cow at the ranch. I mean even the sweet cow is sweating profusely (check out her nose!). It's so hot here in Texas is disgusting! I'm so over summer.

And, because I like to post a picture of my kids. I took these on the same day. We stopped at a park on the way to the ranch and believe it or not it wasn't too hot to play.

My son just loved seeing the cows. He really wanted to feed them but he didn't. My daughter did pat one though!

Hope you are are having a cooler summer than we are!

Happy shooting and editing. :)

Shoot and Edit - Bubbles

2011-06-07T17:47:00.000-05:00

This week the theme is bubbles. As much as I'd like to stay outside long enough to play bubbles with the kids it's too hot! It's already 100 here. YUCK! I thought about trying to teach my daughter how to blow bubbles with her gum but decided she doesn't need to know that trick yet. At least not the week of her recital! So, I took a picture of water while they were on the slip n slide. It's close enough to bubbles for me. :)

We leave for vacation this weekend so I won't be able to participate for a couple weeks. I'll be busy taking lots of pictures in cooler California though!

Shoot and Edit - Looking Up Edited

2011-06-03T14:18:00.000-05:00

I just read Ashley's post but I haven't watched the videos yet. I will though! I must admit I use PW edge burn action when I'm looking for a little something extra for a photo. I love it. It's so easy to apply and adjust. I just added it quickly to my second photo here that I had edited earlier this week.

Crop, Nice & Easy, Florida, Florabella Highlight Protection & PW Edge Burn

Nice & Easy, PW Lovely & Ethereal, Highlight Protection & Edge Burn

Florabella ShiShi

Shoot and Edit - Looking Up

2011-05-31T15:33:00.000-05:00

I never got around to editing last week! It was so busy around here. My kiddos finished school, we had field day which I volunteered at and then there was the holiday with friends over for a fish fry. GO, go go. Fun times. Summer is in full swing here.

So, this week the theme for Good to Wow is "Looking Up". Here are my interpretations SOOC:

This is my daughter looking up towards the sky while the kids were slip 'n sliding away.

Here she is again with her buddy.

This time I was the one looking up. Sweet Wy's mommy was holding her up towards the sky and I got down and aimed up to take a picture of her sweet face.

Shoot and Edit - Chalk Drawings

2011-05-25T17:45:00.000-05:00

So, I know I'm really late in posting this week but I had some issues with Blogger. I have a separate account for my stationery business and it wouldn't let me log out. It's a little difficult to post on this blog when I can't log in! Anyways, here is my SOOC for chalk drawing:

On Sunday we were at a birthday party and part of the favors were chalk so first thing the kids did Monday morning while getting ready for school was go out back and draw! Perfect for the theme this week. :)

Shoot and Edit - Rain Edited

2011-05-19T19:46:00.000-05:00

This week my edits are pretty simple.

SOOC

ACR

Final

Layered with soft light at 50% then added a KK texture and removed it from the flower.

SOOC

ACR

Final

Florida Action

SOOC

ACR

Final

Mudpies

Shoot and Edit - Rain

2011-05-15T20:45:00.001-05:00

Yea! I'm finally with it this week and posting ahead of schedule! I looked up the theme last week so I could be ready to snap away, but when I saw the theme "rain/umbrella" I was a bit discouraged. We've been in such a dry spell here in Texas. But, Wednesday evening the rain came. I had no idea what to photograph though. I walked outside and saw a potted petunia sitting on the patio under the roofline and the rain was just trickling onto it. It looked so pretty so I snapped a few photos. Then my two year old saw me out back so he followed me and started playing in the rain. I took quite a few pictures of him but I couldn't get the settings right. They're mostly blurry. :( He had a ball though. My daughter thought he was nuts!

SOOC:

My 18-200mm lens was on so I started with that but then I ran in and switched to the 50mm 1.4...

I just think the picture is funny. He thought he'd be able to climb up the slide in the rain. Not so much!

See you Thursday for edits!

shoot and Edit - Mother's Day Edited

2011-05-12T14:38:00.000-05:00

I've actually always wondered about those gradient maps so thank you, Ashley, for this informative tutorial today! I think I'll definitely keep this in the hopper for days when I'm lazy or maybe in a hurry. :) I do actually like the feel they give the photos.

Cropped, Nice & Easy and 1 gradient map

Cropped, Florabella Highlight Protection, 2 Gradient Maps

Shoot and Edit - Mother's Day

2011-05-11T16:46:00.000-05:00

I hope all the mommies out there had a wonderful Mothers's Day! I had a nice day although it was busy busy. My daughter is in the choir at church. She performed in the 8:30 service so no breakfast in bed for the mommy! Then their end of the year musical was at 3:00 so there was so afternoon nap or pedicure either. But, I got to spend it with my kids and watch my sweet girl sing on stage with her friends. What blessings they are!

Here are my SOOC shots:

shoot and Edit - Growth Edited

2011-05-05T21:35:00.001-05:00

Happy Thursday to you! Today I just did a quick edit and followed Ashley's steps then added a texture and took it off the jalapeno.

SOOC

ACR

Final

Shoot and Edit - Growth

2011-05-02T20:49:00.001-05:00

The prompt actually stumped me this week. I was busy over the weekend that I didn't even pick up my camera with the exception of a few shots at my daughter's soccer game so when today rolled around I thought what am I going to snap for growth. I thought of the jalapeno pepper growing out back. It's my first time to try growing one and my husband told me over the weekend that the pepper looks good! But, today not only was it a high of like 49 degrees but it rained ALL day. 49 degrees in Dallas in May?!? I waited and waited for the rain to stop and finally around 6:30 it stopped but it was so cloudy and gloomy. Not the best for picture taking.

Here's my SOOC of my first jalapeno pepper!

shoot and Edit - Friends/Family Edited

2011-04-28T16:10:00.000-05:00

I had fun editing the pictures this week. I had cute little faces to work with so that made things easy to play around with. I'll have to try out the presets for ACR in Elements. I actually tried them a couple months ago but I couldn't get them to work. I took it as a Mac thing. :) Anytime I can't figure something out I blame it on my Mac. Ha! Anyways, as for editing I ran them all in ACR and then Nice & Easy on all. I'm still trying to figure out Florabella actions so I played around with some actions I hadn't used yet; however, since Ashley discussed selective color last week I went ahead and used that method on one picture this week. I actually used Coffeshop's action Moody Pop and then painted the color back on. Even though I don't love it I think it might work for this picture.

Florabella Swoon

Coffeeshop Moody Pop

Florabella Trixie

Florabella Shi Shi

Pioneer Woman Fresh Color

Have a great week! Be sure to pop over and check out the other great edits.

Shoot and Edit - Friends/Family

2011-04-24T17:13:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter, my friends!

The theme for the next edition of Shoot and Edit is Friends/Family. Last weekend one of my best friends and her two kiddos were visiting for the weekend. We had so much fun visiting and catching up! Just like me, she loves to take pictures and her kids are adorable so they are captured all the time. We took our other friend and newborn up to downtown McKinney and found some alleys and neat spots to take pictures of the kids and tiny baby! I haven't edited any of my pictures yet so thought I'd use this week. I couldn't pick just one though...

My SOOC for this week:

shoot and Edit - Easter Edited

2011-04-23T10:08:00.000-05:00

This week I just did a simple edit to my picture. I saw that Ashley was going to discuss selective color. It's funny, back when my daughter was a baby we hired someone to take pictures of her and he used selective color on some of the pictures. When we were at the location he mentioned it and I thought, "Oh, yeah that sounds great." But, then I printed a few and framed one but didn't really love it. I just thought it was trendy so I better do it while it was a fad! A few years ago I played around with it when I was trying to teach myself Photoshop...back when I only had one child...just a girl that didn't keep my on my toes like my two year boy!! :) Now I only have Elements and I'm really taking the time to learn everything and maybe one day I'll be allowed to upgrade to Photoshop. I have a Mac now and Photoshop was on a PC. I digress. Here is my edit of my daughter's sweet Easter's shoes that she is dying to wear tomorrow!

I hope you all have a blessed Easter!

SOOC

Edit

Nice & Easy, Florabella Swoon & Jane then added a texture (Not sure who it's by) removing it from legs and shoes

shoot and Edit - Easter

2011-04-19T11:39:00.000-05:00

This week the theme for Shoot and Edit is Easter. I've been really busy around here that I'm a day late getting my post up. I don't really even have any decorations up this year. We've had company so I've just been in the kid mind set lately. So, since my daughter and I bought her Easter shoes on Sunday I thought I'd take a quick picture of her new shoes. I thought about taking a picture of the jelly beans on the counter that have been tempting me...I gave up desserts for Lent. I'm a total sugar head!

I did however do a cute Easter activity last week with my kids. We made Resurrection Rolls. You can read what we did here.

Here's my SOOC:

Resurrection Rolls - Easter!

2011-04-19T11:31:00.000-05:00

Easter is this week! I love Easter and usually fill my kids with Eater treats, stories of Christ and traditions. However, this year I've really fallen short. I'm lagging in all things this year. But, I was at a MOMS Connection meeting last Thursday and one of my sweet mom friends mentioned resurrection rolls so I came home and googled it. I found this link and we did it right away! It really is pretty simple and you probably have all the ingredients to do it. I grabbed my Bible and we got started!

Here's what you need:
1 can of Crescent rolls
melted butter
cinnamon & sugar
Large Marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Unroll the crescent rolls. The rolls represent the cloth that Jesus was wrapped in.

Read Matthew 27:57-61
When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away. And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the grave.

1. The marshmallow represents Jesus. Give one to the children.
2. Have them dip the marshmallow into the melted butter. The butter represents the oil of embalming.
3. Now they'll roll the marshmallow in the cinnamon/sugar combination. These represent the spices used to the anoint the body.
4. Now wrap the marshmallow tightly in the roll, seal the marshmallow inside. This will represent Jesus' body being wrapped after death.
5. Place the rolls in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. The oven represents the tomb. Pretend it was three days.
6. Let the rolls cool. After the rolls have cooled let the children open their rolls (cloth). They'll discover he is no longer there! He has risen! (The marshmallow has melted and the roll has puffed up)

Read Matthew 28:5-8

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying. Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you."
And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.

You can go on to explain that he had risen from the dead, that no one had taken his body. He appeared in person to Peter, the 12 disciples, and then to more than 500 people. Rising from the dead proved he was the Messiah.

May you have a blessed Easter with your loved ones!

shoot and Edit - Faith Edited

2011-04-14T14:35:00.000-05:00

This week for my edit I decided to add a couple textures and add part of the scripture read during our wedding.

SOOC

Edit

Make a Rainbow with your Kids

2011-04-12T22:22:00.000-05:00

Have you ever wondered how to make a rainbow with your kids? Here's an easy way to make one in your kitchen! All you need is glasses, water, food dye and a spoon.

Step 1: Line up six glasses and fill every other glass about half full with water.
Step 2: In the first glass put 3 drops of red food dye and stir.
Step 3: In the third glass put 3 drops of yellow food dye and stir.
Step 4: In the fifth glass put 3 drops of blue dye and stir.
Step 5: Pour a little of the red and yellow into the second glass and you get orange.
Step six: Pour a little of the yellow and blue into the fourth glass and you'll get green.
Step seven: Pour a little of the red and blue into the sixth glass and you'll get purple.

Lastly,you can pour a little of each color into another glass and you'll get brown.

Now you've made a RAINBOW!

Now if it would just rain outside we could try and find a real rainbow. I really want to capture a rainbow on film or memory stick. ;)

Shoot and Edit - Faith

2011-04-12T16:21:00.000-05:00

This week over at Shoot and Edit or Good to Wow is Faith. The first thing that comes to mind when I think of Faith is my Bible and then crosses and church but I decided to go a little deeper. I really thought about the meaning of faith.

Here's my SOOC this week:

I have complete trust and faith in the man I married. I know that I can always have faith in my husband and in Him. What a gracious Lord we have for providing me with such a great husband.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

2011-04-10T16:28:00.000-05:00

This week for Scavenger Hunt Sunday the items were: Motion, Waiting to Click, In Fashion, Animal's Perspective & Many.

Here we go:

Motion

My little man running from me. I used a new technique I learned from Shoot and Edit a couple week's ago to make the grass green.

Waiting to Click

I guess you could say I've been waiting two years 10 months to take this picture. Thursday night was his last night to sleep in his crib so I snuck in his room and snapped a shot after he was asleep.

In Fashion

I took pictures of a friend's three week old the other day and she was completely dressed in a beautiful smocked dress and these adorable socks. Totally fashionable baby!

Many

So many bluebonnets outside our neighborhood, finally! My mom and I took the kids this morning to take pictures. There were also so many ladybugs! If you look closely you'll see one on the stem.

Animal's perspective

Our dog often lays on the landing while we're upstairs so I laid there to snap this.

Shoot and Edit - Up Edited

2011-04-07T15:18:00.001-05:00

Once again this week the theme for Shoot and Edit is "Up". I had already decided I was going to add a little texture to the picture before I saw Ashley's post. I just finished up Kim Klassen's Skinny Mini ecourse so I've been playing with her textures some. Sometimes I like what textures can do to a photo and sometimes I think they're just - blah. I guess they (along with everything else) take lots of practice!

Here are my edits.

SOOC

ACR

Final

I actually followed the steps from one of KK's lessons for this edit. The texture I used is a KK - lifesgood.

Shoot and Edit - Up

2011-04-04T11:02:00.001-05:00

For this week's theme Up I'm using a picture I took yesterday while we were flying kites with the kids. It was a grey morning but so windy yesterday. Perfect for kite flying. Horrible for a birthday party at the park (not my child's party). The poor mom!

SOOC

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

2011-04-03T11:01:00.002-05:00

I had fun taking pictures this week for the Scavenger Hunt and editing them! I had no idea what High Key meant. I actually thought for a second I would take a picture of the hidden key above the door to the attic and then as I was sitting on a chair reading my google reader yesterday on my iphone I came across this lovely header titled "High Key?!" Thank goodness I clicked on that app yesterday and learned something new from Faith. I have been so busy lately that I rarely read my blogroll but thankfully yesterday I took a moment to do that! Not sure if my photo does High Key any justice but I gave it a shot. :)

High Key

Bedroom

My sweet daughter was watching TV on my bed yesterday.

Something Tiny

I actually took this two weeks ago in Atlanta but just got to editing it. We don't have pine cones here or at least not around my house. Those were so cute and small.

Off in the Distance

I took my little man to the RR tracks on Friday and off he went. I love the bridge in the background.

Stripes

I don't normally take pictures of myself but wasn't coming up with anything for stripes. I tried to take a picture of my camera strap but it was too close so I played around with taking a shot of myself.

For more interpretations head over to Ashley's blog:

Shoot and Edit - Green Edited

2011-04-01T15:09:00.000-05:00

I'm a day late this week. And, I was in such a hurry to get to my edits that I completely skipped ACR. Oh, well. I did think that grass tutorial was pretty neat. I did it rather fast before I did my pre-school pick-up so it's not perfect by any means but I learned a new trick for future reference and that's what matters. Thanks for sharing yet another great tutorial, Ashley!

SOOC

Edited

SOOC

Edited

SOOC

Edited

Shoot and Edit - Green

2011-03-28T10:11:00.000-05:00

This week the theme is Green. I didn't really have anything so I just tried to capture a photo of my son's dinosaurs. Blah. Then I remembered I took a picture of some plant blooming in my aunt's backyard in Atlanta two weeks ago. I think it's a neat shot!

My SOOC for this week:

Roar!!

In the midst of this post I logged on to Ashley's blog to get the button for Jill's blog and see that she's going to be talking about grass so I'm adding one more picture that I took on Friday (in jpg format). We found a baby bunny next to our back porch. It was so cute! It stayed there until Saturday afternoon when my husband scared the living daylights out of it trying to put it with its' siblings.

Homework!

2011-03-27T21:59:00.000-05:00

I signed up for a Photoshop e-course and I'm getting caught up. I thought I'd post my first assignment and see if this flickr thing works. :)

Blueberry Muffins

2011-03-27T15:30:00.001-05:00

I'm sooooo behind on any craft posting. I'm trying to get caught up...on life. Hopefully I'll get a few projects I've done around here posted soon! Here's a start. :)

My kids told me they wanted blueberries in their lunch last week. Everyday their lunches came home with blueberries untouched! So, I stopped putting them in and decided I'd bake something with blueberries instead. I did a quick search on my Big Oven app (love it) and found this yummy recipe for blueberry muffins. It was a little more involved than I was expecting but everyone enjoyed them!

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh blueberries (picked over and rinsed), divided

1 1/8 cups sugar plus 1 teaspoon

2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 oz) Unbleached all-purpose flour

2 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder

1 teaspoon Salt

2 large EGGS

1/4 cup unsalted butter - melted and slightly cooled

1/4 cup Vegetable oil

1 cup Buttermilk

1 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla extract

4 teaspoons turbinado sugar

Preparation:

Place oven rack in upper-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray standard twelve-cup muffin tin with nonstick vegetable cooking spray: set aside.

In a small saucepan set over medium heat, combine one cup of the blueberries and one teaspoon sugar and bring to a simmer. Use a spoon to smash berries and stir frequently while cooking until berries have broken down, mixture has thickened and reduces to about 1/3 to 1/4 cup. Remove pan from heat; set aside and let cool to room temperature.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Sprinkle a scant tablespoon of flour mixture over remaining cup of blueberries and toss to coat; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together remaining sugar and eggs until mixture is pale yellow, thick and fluffy. While whisking, slowly pour in melted butter and oil and mix well. Whisk in buttermilk and vanilla until completely incorporated. Using a spatula, gently fold egg mixture and remaining cup of (flour coated) blueberries into flour mixture until just incorporated. (Batter should be lumpy with some small sprays of dry flour still visible; DO NOT overmix.)

Using a portioning scoop or large spoon, distribute batter equally among prepared muffin cups (batter should fill cups and mound slightly). Place at least a teaspoon of cooled berry mixture in center of each batter-filled cup, and gently push it below surface. Use a bamboo skewer or large toothpick to gently swirl berry mixture into batter to spread concentrated berry flavor throughout muffin. Sprinkle turbinado sugar evenly over batter.

Place in oven and increase temperature to 425 degrees F. Bake muffins until tops are golden and just firm (or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean), about 17 to 19 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time for even baking. Transfer tin to a wire rack to cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Invert muffins onto wire rack, stand muffins upright, cool 5 minutes longer, and serve warm. Muffins will keep for 2 to 3 days in an airtight container.

The cooked blueberries on top

then swirled

Baked and ready to eat with bacon, of course!

Enjoy!

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

2011-03-27T14:54:00.001-05:00

This week I decided to play around with textures on some of my photos. I don't usually think to add texture and they're somewhat new to me so I thought I'd do a little practice on a few :).

DECAY

We built our house 2 1/2 years ago. My husband planted this tree about two years ago and we just discovered it has male flying ants living inside the trunk. We're hoping the pest control guys were able to kill them all and save our tree!

GROUP of 3

My daughter and I planted a strawberry plant and noticed three tiny strawberry buds growing. She's so excited and hopeful she'll be able to eat them soon.

KITCHEN

I got a new stainless steel pot and used it for the first time last night. You can sort of see me in the pot.

Things that make you go HMMMMM....

I think my 2 year old got the slinky all twisted....or was it the 5 year old?!? Who invented the slinky and why? They last for about a minute before they get twisted and then you spend more time trying to get them untwisted and once they're untwisted they're all stretched out and will never look the same. I'm just saying!

ME TIME

Nothing too fancy. I find myself sitting here a lot. My husband travels so once I get the kids to bed I sit here every night. Late. Teaching myself how to edit and editing pictures. I used to just read blog after blog. At least now I using my brain I guess. :)

Shoot and Edit - Flowers Edited

2011-03-24T14:57:00.000-05:00

My goodness, we've had a busy week here! Two trips to the pediatrician's office and three trips to the pharmacy. I didn't think I was going to get a chance to do any editing but I just had a moment so here it goes! What a great new action from Ashley! Thanks so much for putting that together. Such a time saver and nice little treat!!

Now I'm off to register my daughter for kindergarten. tear.

For more fabulous edits:

Shoot and Edit - Flowers

2011-03-21T11:18:00.000-05:00

This week's challenge is flowers. I love taking pictures of flowers. I took some last week while we were out of town but then yesterday we went to the Arboretum for Dallas Blooms. My husband loves Azaleas, I love tulips and the kids love to run around so this is the perfect time to go. I didn't really get too many close up shots but here are a few SOOC shots of flowers.

I thought this shot was neat because if you look closely you can see a little bug on the bottom right side of the tulip.

Just an overview of one part of the Arboretum and I"m not sure what kind of trees those are but every time the wind picked up it looked like it was snowing.

My kids wouldn't sit still at all for a picture but right before we were leaving he sat down next to her and they played for a second. A sweet moment of brother sisterly love :)

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

2011-03-20T14:38:00.001-05:00

I haven't done this in a while but we just got home from a trip and for some reason I'm feeling inspired despite my exhaustion! Here are my interpretations for the week:

Chair

I finally was able to convince my husband into letting me get a set of chairs for our living room. They were delivered the day before I threw a baby shower in January! I love them!!

Camera phone

This was taken a few days ago while we were visiting my family in Atlanta. My grandmother had a heart attack the morning we were arriving. The kids weren't allowed into ICU but they finally allowed us in so here's my little guy playing with my iPhone in my grandpa's lap, showing him how it works. :)

Imperfection

We don't have pine trees like this in Dallas. They were all over Atlanta. I was trying to capture one with a sunburst. It didn't quite work out. Oh well!

Shoes

My daughter got some new shoes for spring. They are a little sparkly! (Taken with iphone)

Camera

My D40 with my favorite lens 50 mm 1.4. I also love my cute strap my friend gave me.

Shoot and Edit - Spring Edited

2011-03-10T11:20:00.001-06:00

I'll be honest I just whipped this out and did it rather quickly this week. I have a child with strep and we're leaving for Atlanta tomorrow so I haven't had much time on my hands!! I just read Ashley's blog and attempted to do this resizing thing. I had never tried those steps before. I'll have to spend a little more time after spring break. :)

SOOC

Edited

Edited and resized with the luminosity blending mode

Shoot and Edit - Spring

2011-03-07T08:15:00.000-06:00

I've been participating in the weekly Shoot and Edit on Jill's blog and Ashley's blog on my personal blog. But, I've decided that I'm going to move my Shoot and Edit posts over to this blog instead. I've really learned a lot over the course of these weekly challenges and am really enjoying it. Photoshop Elements was so intimidating to me before but now I feel like I'm really getting the hang of it.

This week the theme is spring. Over the weekend we had a cold front. It was freezing at our daughter's first soccer game of the spring season! The winds were killer. Every spring I look forward to going to Dallas Blooms at the Arboretum but I am not getting down there until the end of next week at the earliest. The tulips and azaleas are to die for! However, the pear trees are so pretty all over town when in bloom for the short period so I decided to snap one.

SOOC

For more entries:

Jill's blog link up

Kool-Aid Play dough

2011-02-09T11:04:00.002-06:00

I remember when I was a child my mom made homemade play dough for my brother and I to play with. I have no idea what recipe she used but it was a lot of fun to play with. I don't know a child that doesn't enjoy playing with play dough!

February was my month to bring play dough to my daughter's pre-school class. I'll be honest, I've never made homemade play dough before. We've always had the store bought kind so I've never gotten around to making it. Last week I had a note on her bag with a recipe. We went to the store and picked out a few flavors of Kool-Aid (which my kids have never had before!). My daughter wanted to make hot pink and she chose red for her brother. We also picked up light pink but haven't made that one. It was a lot of fun to make! However, my daughter was slightly disappointed when when "hot pink" looked exactly like her brother's red. Oh, well. Live and learn.

Recipe for Kool-Aid Play dough

2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup salt
2 packages Kool-Aid
2 cups boiling water
3 tsp oil

Mix Dry ingredients
Add oil and boiling water

Play!

**I didn't read closely and did not notice it said 1 cup of salt. I barely had enough salt to make two batches.

This play dough smells good, too. :)

Let's make Whoopie!

2011-01-27T20:58:00.002-06:00

We all know that Valentine's Day is coming up so why not turn something round into a heart?!? With a little extra time and effort you can make heart shaped whoopie cookies. They turned out really cute and the kids love them!

Here's what I did (recipe at bottom of post):

After the dough sat in the fridge overnight (because we ran out of the time the night prior) I used powered sugar to "flour" my rolling pin. I took a little out at a time and flattened it on the parchment paper then used a heart shaped cookie cutter. After I laid them all out on the sheet I dusted them with powered sugar.

After they baked and cooled I used a pastry bag to put the filling on one inside of the cookie. Make sure you have a lot so it goes to the edges when the two cookies are closed.

Press the cookies together but not all the way. You want to leave some space between the two.

Lightly press the edges into sprinkles or your choice of decoration.

Indulge!

To go along with the heart theme we had heart shaped French Toast for dinner. I only do this on nights my husband is out of town. The kids love it!

Whoopie Cookies

Cookies:
1 3/4 flour
1/2 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder (I used natural b/c I had it on hand)
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup (1 1 /2 sticks) butter, room temp
1 egg

Filling:
1 cup plu 2 TBL powdered sugar
3/4 (1 1 /2 sticks) cup butter, room temp
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
sprinkles or your choice of decoration

1. Preheat oven to 350 (do not preheat until after your dough has chilled and you are ready to actually bake!). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In medium bowl, whisk flour, cocoa and salt together.
3. In a standing mixer bowl beat sugar and butter together until light and fluffy. Add egg and mix well.
4. Add dry ingredients into butter mixture and beat until blended. Refrigerate the dough for an hour or longer.
5. Using dough, scoop 1 tablespoon of dough out and roll into smooth balls. Place the balls onto the parchment paper at least 2 inches apart.
6. Using the bottom of a flat glass, flatten each ball of dough into a 2-inch round circle.
7. Bake until they do not look wet, or for about 11 minutes.
8. Cool on tray for 5 minutes then cool completely on rack.
9. For filling: place the butter in a standing mixer bowl and beat until smooth. Add powder sugar and beat until blended well.
10. To assemble: Spread 2 heaping teaspoons of filling evenly over flat side of 1 cookie to edges. Top with another cookie.
11. Roll cookies in sprinkles or other decoration.

This recipe is adapted from the www.kidscookingco.com. We made these over Christmas there with peppermint filling and rolled in crushed peppermint.

How to change the font on your blog

2011-01-26T12:11:00.000-06:00

I always wanted to change the header font on my blog but never knew how. I love fonts but the default fonts on blogger are so boring. I discovered a new website, well new to me, http://www.junelily.com/ and she has a link to a blog with a tutorial on how to change the font. This blog http://www.kevinandamanda.com/ has such great ideas and fun fonts you can download. If you haven't checked it out yet you should. I'm not gonna lie, this was quite time consuming. I installed and it didn''t work for me so I had to redo it. I left off a word in the html jargon but alas I have a new font on my blog! Who knows maybe I'll mix it up again soon.

Happy Hump Day!

Shadow Box Display

2011-01-25T15:49:00.001-06:00

This past summer my husband and I went to Exuma, Bahamas with some friends. It is one of the prettiest islands I've ever been to. You should go if you ever get the chance. There is a sandbar we checked out while boating one day. The guys were able to bring back quite a few sand dollars. I'd never seen any this big before. I actually found one myself. It's one of the smaller ones. I knew right away that I was going to display them in our guest bathroom where I have a painting we picked up in Maui on our honeymoon. We sort of have a beach theme in there now. I went to Hobby Lobby and picked up a shadow box and matte board. I used a paper cutter here at home to cut the board down.

I chose four sand dollars to mount to the board, two smaller and two larger.

My supplies - shadow box, matte board, sand dollars & epoxy (not pictured)

Mixing the epoxy.

I laid them out how I wanted them.

Then put the glue around the edges and wiped away the messes.

Here's my shadow box hanging in the bathroom.

Just so you know there's color in there, it's hanging across from this! On the counter is a photo I took in Exuma and shells we have collected from various Caribbean islands. I'm going to enlarge another photo I took and hang it to the right of the shadow box.

Chocolate Chips + Oats = Fun Treats!

2011-01-17T21:59:00.003-06:00

Last week the kids and I decided to make cookies. It had snowed here, finally, which meant we were pretty much stuck at home since Texans don't mix snow/ice and driving. I pulled out the chocolate chips and noticed a recipe on the back for Milk Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies. I'm not going to type out the recipe but you can click on this link to find it on Nestle's website.

*I did make my own revisions to the recipe. I used 3/4 white flour and 3/4 whole wheat flour. I also mixed the egg, milk and vanilla in a bowl together before I added to the combined ingredients (not sure if that makes a difference or not). Lastly, I set aside about 1/2 of the chocolate chips. After I rolled the dough into balls I placed two to three of the chocolate chips on top of the dough balls. This gives the cookies a nice extra chocolate appearance.

Treat #1 - Cookies and milk

My daughter and I thought it would be fun to make a big cookie for daddy in the shape of a heart. Could be cute for Valentines Day!

Next time I won't make the point so close to the edge of the pan.

Treat #2 - Heart shaped GIANT cookie

Treat #3 - Ice Cream Cookie sandwich rolled in mini chocolate chips

Treat #4 - Cookies with Vanilla Ice Cream (Blue Bell, of course) drizzled with mini chocolate chips

My daughter - All done!

Localfunforkidsfriday

Chicken Pot Pie

2011-01-13T15:42:00.001-06:00

I love chicken pot pie, especially during the winter. It's a perfect week for chicken pot pie here since it snowed and all! Another reason why I love chicken pot pie - my kids will actually eat vegetables. This is a yummy recipe that is pretty simple. You can doctor it up any way you'd like to your family's preferences.

Here's the original recipe given to me:
1 5oz can & 1 10 oz can of Hormel Breast of chicken - I always cook two breasts in the oven...none of that canned stuff in my house!
1 TBL butter
1 can cream of mushroom (98% fat free)
1 can cream of chicken (98% fat free)
1/2 cup milk
1 can green beans, drained
1 can carrots, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 cup frozen shredded potatoes (hash browns)
1 box Pillsbury All Ready Pie Crust
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Stir everything together in a pot and heat for 20-25 min. on med. heat. Stir occasionally. Spray pan (round or 11X7) with cooking spray. Put one pie crust on the bottom. Pour mixture onto crust. Put remaining crust on top of mixture. Poke with fork. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.

My favorite extra ingredient:

I've added rosemary before and tried all kinds of different spices but this is the one I like the best.

Last night I tried to be fancy and lattice the top. I found that I'm not fast enough with my lattice skills. The dough was getting too hot on the mixture before I could get all the pieces lined up.

Enjoy!

Andes Brownies

2010-12-07T19:32:00.001-06:00

Friday we had a Holiday party to attend. We had to bring a dessert or an appetizer so I opted for dessert. Little did I know that there'd be not one but two cakes from Nothing Bundt Cake there. Anyways, I threw together some simple but yummy brownies. All you need is a box of brownie mix (with the required ingredients), Andes baking chips and peppermint extract.

1. Follow the directions on the box for brownie batter.
2. Stir in 1 tsp peppermint extract.
3. Stir in a couple handfuls for the chopped mints.
4. Bake according to box.

Sprinkle a few more over the top before baking!

I was in a hurry the other night and forgot to take a picture of the finished project and I surely wasn't going to take a picture at the party! I did eat one and it was delish! I might make these and deliver them to my neighbors.

Enjoy!

Advent Calendar

2010-12-01T21:36:00.000-06:00

I started reading an Advent book with my daughter a couple years ago. Last year I decided I wanted to find a cute calendar to put trinkets and stuff in for the kids. Well, I looked online and found a cute one but waited too long and decided to wait until the next year which would be now! I searched etsy and found lots of cute ones but then realized I could make one myself. Of course I waited until the week of Thanksgiving to get started and just finished it today.

First, I bought a new mini muffin tin (because I will be using the one I already have during this time period) with my 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby.
Next, I cut out squares in four different Christmas prints.
Then I cut out smaller squares of red, green and white card stock followed by a Christmas sticker.

I started with number stickers and decided I didn't like them so back to Hobby Lobby I went to buy number stamps. Before I stamped them all I attached magnets to the top and bottom of each square. I bought the magnet roll at Hobby Lobby for $2.99.

I decided after I had already attached the magnets that I wanted to protect them so I could use them again next year. The best thing I could come up with was to cover each square with packing tape. Had I started my whole project earlier I would have taken them to Kinko's and had them laminated. But, this works.

The finished calendar!

Some daily examples are:

2 Hershey Candy Cane Kisses

2 Chocolate Kisses

Activities to do:

Make Christmas cookies

Take treats to a neighbor

Make a Christmas card for a teacher

Make a Christmas card for a friend

Do a Christmas craft

Make a handprint Santa

Listen to Christmas music

Learn the song "The Three Wise Men"

Scriptures:

Joseph would care for Mary while she was pregnant. Matthew 1:24-25

Lots of angles joined in praising God! Luke 2:13-14

The wise men again found the guiding star. Matthew 2:9-10

Merry Christmas! Happy Advent!

Watermark

2010-11-19T17:44:00.000-06:00

I just found a great tutorial on how to watermark photos in Photoshop and/or Elements here. I'm not a photographer but it was fun to stamp this cutie (a friend's daughter) with a watermark. :) If you have been trying to figure out how to watermark your pictures go read this tutorial. It's really quite simple!

20% off Photocards

2010-11-03T10:42:00.000-05:00

My stationery business, The Paper Park, is having a great promotion right now. Holiday photocards are 20% off until November 14th! Follow this link to the blog (www.thepaperpark.blogspot.com) for more details.

Happy shopping!

Painting Pumpkins

2010-10-30T09:05:00.001-05:00

I meant to post this right after we did this craft but I forgot. Oh, well. This was so easy but yet so fun! My kids loved it, especially my two year old son. I bought a couple pie pumpkins - 2 for $4. I gathered a few acrylic paints that I hand on hand. None of them were Halloween colors but my kids didn't care. I gave my daughter pink and purple and my son turquoise. I gave them each a paint tray with a sponge brush and let them paint away. This kept them busy out back for at least an hour. I was loving it. It gave my lots of practice time with my new camera lens! :)

Have a happy and safe Halloween!

After the paint dried I added a layer of Mod Podge and then my daughter added glitter to the pink and purple pumpkin but I forgot to take a picture afterwards.

Candy Corn Treats

2010-10-13T15:43:00.004-05:00

What to do with all those candy corns?!? Why not add some candy corn sweetness to your next batch of Rice Krispie Treats!

I sort of followed the recipe on the box. Here's what I did:
5 TBS butter
4 cups mini marshmallows + 1 cup jumbo sized (I ran out of mini)
5 cups Rice Krispies
2 cups candy corn

1. Melt the butter in a pan over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until melted. Remove from heat.
2. Stir in the Rice Krispies. Once they are coated well stir in the candy corn.
3. Use wax paper to press down evenly into a 9X13 pan.

Serve and indulge within a couple days!

These make great little treats to pass out to friends and neighbors. Stick them in a clear bag and tie with some Halloween ribbon and you have yourself a sweet little treat. I must say, they are quite addicting. Good thing we passed them out to the soccer team last night!!

Linking to:
Somewhat Simple
Shabby Chic Cottage
Tatertots and Jello

Halloween Frame and Decor

2010-10-11T11:17:00.003-05:00

With Halloween coming up I wanted to put out some decorations and add to what I already had without spending a lot of money. I had some unfinished frames from Ikea and scrapbook paper I didn't end up using I bought for the Boo Wreath. I decided to make a Halloween frame. I used the Mod Podge technique. Initially I thought I'd frame a picture of the kids in the their costumes from last year but I didn't have any printed. I decided it'd be easier to throw something else together than upload a picture and make a trip to Costco to get a picture! I came up with a framed bat. I think it's cute and my kids love it! Maybe next year I'll have some printed out pictures and frame one of them in the costumes.

Once I had it on the mantle I decided I needed something else to even out the space so I found another frame that wasn't being used and glued a skeleton to some scrapbook paper and came up with this guy...

Here's the finished mantle. I'm going to grab some of that webby stuff to add a little more to it.

Linking to:
Skip to my Lou
The Girl Creative
Somewhat Simple Halloween
Tatertots and Jello

Caramel Apple Sugar Cookies

2010-10-05T16:27:00.006-05:00

I just love fall. Everything about fall makes me happy. The cooler weather is a great start to bliss, but I am always excited to see what Target's Halloween candy section has in store each year. I love the different flavors of Hershey's candies. It's always fun to try and create something fun to compliment the candy. The other day I found Caramel Apple Kisses. Let me tell you that they do in fact taste just like one. Oh so sweet! Since they're so sweet I thought they'd need a cookie that wasn't overly sweet. I decided to make sugar cookies but not cut-out cookies and top them with the kisses. Y.U.M.

Since the kisses are caramel apple I thought the cookies should be red...like an apple. :) I used WIlton coloring gel.

Once the dough is ready you separate it in half, wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for two hours.

Even though I wasn't going to cut the cookies I rolled the dough out to flatten it some.

I rolled it into small balls and then rolled the balls in sugar.

Ready to bake!

As soon as the cookies have baked put the unwrapped kisses on top immediately. Let set for a minute then put the baking sheet in the fridge for about 30 minutes or else you'll have a melted chocolate mess.

Then you indulge!

My sweet taste tester approved!

Have you made anything fun with Hershey Kisses lately?

Linking to:

Today's Creative Blog

Somewhat Simple Halloween

Boo Wreath

2010-10-01T13:09:00.005-05:00

It's October and that means it's getting cooler outside AND it's time to put out pumpkins and fall decor including Halloween decorations! I do not have a fun Halloween wreath for my front door. When I saw this one made by Craftaholic Anonymous on eighteen25's blog I thought, "That is cute and I can totally make that!" Eighteen25 had different guest bloggers all throughout September posting fun Halloween ideas. You should jump over and check out all the craftiness over there.

I followed the directions on her blog. I bought my materials at Hobby Lobby. The burlap was $3.99 and I have a lot left over. I don't think I made mine as full. The letters were $2 and I spent less than a $1 for the scrapbook paper. The styrofoam wreath was $4.49 and I used the 40% off coupon. I had the Mod Podge and paint. This was a pretty inexpensive project and I think it turned out Boo-tifully!

Linking to the eighteen25 Linky party, Just a Girl & Skip to my Lou.

Candied Marshmallows

2010-09-20T10:30:00.003-05:00

Yesterday we celebrated my daughter's 5th birthday. One of the items I put in the favor bags was candied marshmallows made into lollipops. I saw these in a candy shop and thought they'd be pretty easy to make. In fact, I didn't even do a trial, I just whipped them up on Friday! Here's what you need to make them: Jet puffed marshmallows (go for the real stuff, not store brand), Wilton candy melts, sprinkles or decorating sugar, lollipop sticks, small clear bags, ribbon and wax paper.

1. Push the lollipop sticks all the way into the marshmallows and lay on wax paper.
2. Melt the wafers in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments, stirring between until melted.
3. Dip each marshmallow into the melted candy and then smooth the edges (I used a knife).
4. Immediately dip into your choice of decoration.
5. Lay on wax paper.
6. Once they are completely dry you can put the clear bag over the marshmallow and tie ribbon.

Easy, cute and yummy!

Linking to:

Social Media Revolution

2010-09-06T19:22:00.000-05:00

Interesting video. Hadn't really given much thought to social media taking over as much as it has. Seems like it will be here a while...at least according to this...

Chocolate Cupcakes with Buttercream Icing

2010-09-06T14:07:00.005-05:00

One of my favorite things to do is bake. Everyone that knows me knows this about me. I always bring the baked goods to any type of event. However, when it comes to my kids' parties I always order a cake from a professional cake lady. My daughter will be 5 (sigh) in a couple weeks. I had this idea that I'd teach myself how to make a fantastic professional looking cupcake for her super fun birthday party. She could really care less what the cupcakes look like. I on the other hand do! I have been watching different techniques on "how to frost a cupcake"on you tube. The first one I watched was from a bakery in Seattle. Mine didn't turn out nearly as pretty as the ones at the bakery. Then I came across a video by Jenny Steffens. She has a video on making the perfect cupcake and how to decorate them. I followed her recipe for the cake but for the icing I found a recipe for Sprinkles Buttercream icing and it's really good so I used it!

I sifted the powered sugar so there wouldn't be any lumps.

I added some blue coloring but it looks green.

Not bad for my first try.

This is the best one out of 24 though. :) I think I should have cut a little more off the tip of the bag.

They are delicious!

Recipe for Sprinkles Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

1 cup butter, softened

3 1/2 cups powered sugar

1 tsp milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp salt

1. In a bowl, combine butter, sugar and salt. Beat until blended.

2. Add milk and vanilla and beat for an additional 3-5 minutes or until smooth and creamy.

Pork Canitas Tacos

2010-09-04T12:39:00.001-05:00

This recipe is too yummy to not pass along. My sweet friend (who just started a new home blog) shared this over the summer and I finally got around to making it the other night. This is so easy to make. All you need is a crock pot and the ingredients! I must say that since I'm a stay-at-home mom it was torture smelling this cook all day. As soon as the hubs came through the door we were all ready to eat.

Recipe:

1 1/2 lb pork shoulder (Boston Butt), cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

1 teaspoon salt

2 tsp black pepper

2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 large onion, cut into 4 pieces

2 garlic cloves

1 avocado - sliced

Fresh cilantro

Corn tortillas

Limes

**Toss pork in bowl of slow cooker with salt, pepper, oregano and cumin. Place onion pieces and garlic cloves on top of pork. Cover and cook on low setting for 6 hrs or until meat is very tender and fallling apart.

Discard onion and garlic pieces.

Using fingers, shred pork.

Serve pork, wrapped in warm tortillas, top with avocado slices, cilantro and tomatillo salsa.

Use lime wedges to garnish!

*I didn't cut the meat up, I left it all one piece when I placed it in the crock pot.

After I put all the spices on the meat I thought it looked strange because there wasn't any liquid in the crock pot so I reread the instructions but that's what it says. I kept checking throughout the day and I noticed the bowl was filling with liquid as it cooked! The meat was so tender. It makes great leftovers as well. What a nice change from your regular hamburger taco meat.

All dressed and ready to cook! (I forgot to buy an onion so I used minced onion)

Delicious!

Extra delicious with corn tortillas but I forgot to take a pic as we were eating too quickly!!

Enjoy :)

Cotton Candy

2010-08-20T16:46:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago we had a circus theme week. One of the crafts we did was make cotton candy (non-edible). My daughter had a friend over and they both enjoyed this easy craft!

We started the day off with a clown coloring sheet.

Rolling up the handle of the cotton candy also works as a telescope. :)

Spreading out some cotton.

Glue cotton balls onto the paper along with the handle.

Practice handwriting by writing "Cotton Candy"

Ta da

To finish up the craft I served real cotton candy (found at Kroger).

Terra Cotta to Coasters

2010-08-11T19:57:00.003-05:00

Somewhere in bloggy world a few months ago I saw a post about terra cotta saucers turned into coasters. Brilliant. I've been looking for a set of coasters for ages that will match my decor and will catch the perspiration. In other words, I hate a coaster that the perspiration from my glass just drips off the sides. Well, this my friends is the answer. I envisioned them with scrapbook paper of a map but after weeks of looking for map paper I gave up. I settled on some fall paper. I figured that this easy project would be fun to do again so I can re-create some new ones for each season. I was also thinking some cute Christmas paper might be cute as little teacher gifts in just a few short months.

First, I painted the outside of the saucers brown with acrylic paint. I painted two coats.

After the paint dried I Mod Podged the scrapbook paper onto the saucer and used a plastic card to get out the bubbles. After a few minutes passed I coated the whole thing with Mod Podge. After they sat for a few minutes I put one more coat of Mod Podge.

I cut out some felt (will try to be more exact next time!) and hot glued it to the bottom. There is probably a better adhesive but that's what I had at home today.

Nice set of four coasters

Much nicer than the newest catalog I've been using as my coaster!

Now if the temp would just drop about 20 degrees it would begin to feel like fall is near. ;)

Pizza Bites

2010-08-11T19:00:00.001-05:00

Every kid loves pizza. Here's an easy and quick dinner your kids will surely enjoy. What's even better is I hid broccoli in these yummy pizza bites and not one of the four kids that ate them for dinner noticed!

I used reduced fat Crescent rolls. Unrolled them and cut them into rectangles. Smeared some pureed broccoli on first, layered mini pepperonis, sprinkled some cheddar cheese then brought all four corners together and rolled into a ball. Once I had them all in a greased cake pan I brushed melted garlic butter on top and baked for 12-15 min at the temp on the pkg (don't remember at the moment).

I served them with a side of warmed pizza sauce and Ranch dressing. They were pretty good and I will definitely make them again.

Enjoy!

Library tote

2010-08-04T14:33:00.001-05:00

Here's an easy tote bag for your little ones to use at the library for all those fun books they are checking out.

We picked up the canvas totes and fabric paint at Hobby Lobby. The bags were $3 (I think) and the paint was $.99 each. I let each kid choose two colors. We used cookie cutters to makes designs on the bags. My daughter thought this was so much fun and loves her new bag!

Lemon Blueberry Bread

2010-08-02T11:46:00.005-05:00

Two of my favorite things: lemons & blueberries!

I bought the big container of blueberries at Costco and they weren't getting eaten as fast as they should so rather than letting them go bad I found a delicious recipe to bake. You can make two loaves or one bunt cake. I chose to make the bunt cake because it looks prettier. :)

Lemon Blueberry Cake Recipe

1 cup butter (1/2 pound), softened
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons lemon peel, grated fine
4 large eggs
2 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
1 teaspoons baking powder powder
1 cup milk
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray two 9 x 5 inch loaf pans, a bunt pan or 5 mini pans with vegetable spray.

Combine flour and baking powder in a separate bowl and set aside.

Using a high-speed mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, sugar, salt and lemon peel until creamy and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape bowl often.

Add eggs, beating well. Scrape again. Add flour mixture, beating and scraping.

Take bowl off mixer and pour in the milk. Fold all ingredients with a spatula until mixed well. Gently mix in blueberries. Pour into prepared pan(s).

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes, until tops are lightly browned and knife comes out clean.

Meanwhile, start making the lemon syrup. Keep syrup warm. It can be reheated later.

Cool at least 5 minutes in the pan(s). Prick the cakes all over with a fork or skewer.

Lemon Syrup Recipe:

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

Directions for Lemon Syrup

Combine sugar and lemon juice in small saucepan and cook over medium heat just until it comes to a boil, being careful not to burn.
The sugar needs to be completely dissolved. Remove from heat.
Keep syrup warm until cakes are ready to be brushed and soaked.
Reheat syrup if necessary. It is important to pour hot syrup over the cakes, otherwise it won't get into all the nooks and crannies.

Pour and brush equal amounts of lemon syrup over the tops of the tea cakes making sure that you get all surfaces coated. Let some drip down into the bottom of the pans.
Leave the cakes in the pans if they are decorative and disposable, or carefully pop them back out immediately otherwise they will stick.
Let cool on wire racks completely before wrapping.
These cakes freeze well. Enjoy!
Yields 2 large loaves.

Sugary mixture - yum!

Ready to bake

Delish!

Enjoy!

Is that a hamburger?

2010-07-26T15:41:00.002-05:00

Ahhhh, I've taken a bloggy break but I'm back. We had a couple vacations in July. One was adult only in Exuma, Bahamas with friends (awesome!!) and then the kids and I went to San Antonio to visit family and friends for a week. Last week I spent the week on a project (a post will follow soon, once completed).

While working away last week my daughter was in camp and my son was ever the patient helper. One afternoon my daughter asked for a snack and said no to everything I offered. I looked one more time and came up with something I've never tried before. All you need is Nilla wafers and some frosting.

She looked at it and said, "Is that a hamburger?" She took one bite and was in heaven! Finally, something made her happy. But, of course it would...it was full of sugar. She loved it and didn't even ask for seconds. My son loved it too.

It's so simple but even the simplest of things make me happy sometimes. Just thought I'd share a little easy snack. :)

Starry Marshmallows

2010-06-23T14:51:00.001-05:00

Need a fun snack idea for the kids for 4th of July? How about Starry Fruit Kabobs! I saw these marshmallows at Wal-Mart and knew I could come up with something cute to do with them. All you need is some fresh cut up fruit, skewers and marshmallows.

Load up your skewers starting with a marshmallow, then piece of fruit, marshmallow...

Eat away!

Be warned, some kiddos might just eat the marshmallows and then tell you they're finished!

Happy 4th of July!!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

2010-06-21T15:21:00.002-05:00

Have you ever made a batch of chocolate chip cookies and wondered what you are going to do with all those cookies? Eat them. I know, right?!? Well, how about jazzing them up a bit. With a little vanilla ice cream and mini chocolate chips you can make ice cream sandwiches! Chocolate chip cookies are my husband's favorite cookie so we decided this would be his Father's Day treat. While the little guy napped yesterday my daughter and I got to work. She is quite the helper! We made the recipe straight off the package of Nestle's semi-sweet choc chips, minus the nuts. This was the best batch of cookies. I'm not sure if it was the 1/4 wheat flour I substituted or the amount of time spent creaming the butter but they turned out delicious. I'm so glad I put half of the batter in the freezer. The kids can eat that batch while my husband and I are on vacation next week!

Two cookies, ice cream and mini chocolate chips...

Sprinkle the chips around the edge of the ice cream for that extra added touch. :)

If the whole thing is just too much well then take it apart and eat it that way. And, make a mess while you're at it!

Father's Day Gift

2010-06-18T14:10:00.001-05:00

I just whipped up a little something for the hubs for Father's Day. It's a cute bookmark with the kids photos sewn on. I got the idea from Martha Stewart. I bet you have everything needed in your craft closet and who doesn't have a picture of the kids somewhere in the house?!?

Supplies needed:

Grosgrain ribbon

Thread

Needle

Scissors

Photo

"Stop Fraying" for the edges of ribbon

Now when daddy is on the airplane every week he'll see his munchkins! The kids helped pick out a new book to go along with the bookmark also.

Strawberry Banana Milkshakes

2010-06-16T21:38:00.000-05:00

This week we're learning about fruits and vegetables. We started off the week talking about vegetables. My daughter painted a vegetable garden and we strolled through the produce department and picked out something new to try. Today we switched gears and talked about fruit. My kids love to eat fruit. I wanted to make something fun with fruit today and since the little guy got his 2 yr shots I thought milkshakes would definitely cheer him up! I gave them three fruit choices and they chose to make strawberry banana milkshakes which sounded delicious to me. Did I mention it was 102 degrees here in Dallas today and it's not even officially summer yet. Ugh!

What you need:

1 pint Vanilla ice cream

1/4 cup milk

1 cup fruit

1/4 tsp vanilla

Blend all the ingredients until smooth.

Enjoy!

Turkey Bacon Muffins

2010-06-15T15:24:00.002-05:00

My friend is hosting a give-away on her blog, Edible Nutrition, so I decided to participate. All you have to do is make a recipe using turkey bacon and send her a review with a picture. I made the recipe posted on her blog that Denise Austin makes for her family from the Kraft website.

Recipe:
Ingredients

12 slices OSCAR MAYER Turkey Bacon, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1-1/4 cups flour

1 cup quick-cooking oats

2 tsp. CALUMET Baking Powder

1/2 cup fat-free milk

1/3 cup honey

1/4 cup canola oil

2 large egg whites

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Mix bacon, flour, oats and baking powder in large bowl. Add remaining ingredients; stir just until moistened. (Batter will be lumpy.)

SPOON batter into paper-lined muffin pan or muffin pan sprayed with cooking spray, filling each cup 2/3 full.

BAKE 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks. Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate or freeze any leftover muffins.

Enjoy!

Linking to:
Today's Creative Blog

Paper Plate Fish

2010-06-11T14:54:00.001-05:00

This week we're talking about the ocean. I was able to squeeze in one craft with the kiddos. It was so easy but they LOVED it. Even my two year old sat at the table and made his own. Before we began the craft I read the book, Limu The Blue Turtle.

You need a paper plate, pencil, scissors, glue, google eye and glitter or whatever you'd like to use for scales.

First, draw a triangle on one side of the plate. Cut out the triangle.

Next, glue the point of the triangle onto the opposite side of the underside of the plate. This is the fish tail.

Use the glue and glitter or decorations to put scales on your fish.

Last, add the goggly eye.

What we're doing this summer

2010-06-11T14:36:00.002-05:00

Summer has officially started at our house. I knew I needed a game plan for my four year old daughter so that she is not a.) bored or b.) in front of the TV all day. Thanks to the blog world I've found some ideas for our home.

Weekly Theme Calendar
On Clean Mama's blog I saw this idea. I came up with something similar. I have a theme for each week and planned some things for the month of June. I'll plan July and August closer to those months.

I will say that introducing something like this with a few crafts and activities the same week I'm teaching and my kids are attending VBS was probably not the best idea! Not only are we exhausted when we get home but there's just not much time to do much when the little guy wakes from his nap. However, the VBS theme was "High Seas" so I thought "Ocean" might go well with that. :)

BINGO!

Along with a few other bloggy mommy's we are playing BINGO this summer. We started it this week and it's been a lot of fun. My daughter seems to enjoy it so far. She keeps asking what else she can do. I plan on changing out some of the squares each week. I first saw the idea on From the Fence Post which takes you to Stacy Julian's blog where you can find the printables and make your own. It's so easy! I changed the rules and prizes to fit for my daughter.

Bored Box

I also wanted to have something to pull from when she's bored. I made a "Bored Box" from an old shoe box using scrapbook paper and Mod Podge. First, we made a list together of fun things she'd like to do over the course of the summer. Some of the things on our list are:

Go to the library

Go to the Arboretum

Play in sprinkler

Make ice cream

Make a book

Make cookies

Go to Farmer's Market

Go to ball park (this one threw me for a total loop!)

"camp out" reading

Make S'mores

Sidewalk chalk

Make a necklace

Computer time

Paint nails

Plant flowers

Have a sleep over

Invite a friend over

Go swimming at Grandma & Pop Pop's

The box hasn't been needed yet thanks to VBS. I'm sure it'll come in handy very soon!

Linking to:

Train party

2010-06-02T21:23:00.001-05:00

For my son's 2nd birthday we decided to do it at a local play area with a Caboose available to rent for parties. I stuck with a train theme and used primary colors for the decorations. This was a great location for us since it's already hot here in Texas and the caboose was nice and cold inside.

I had a craft set up inside for the kids to do when they needed a break from the heat. My little guy was already crafting before the party started. This told me that I picked a good craft! The craft was foam visors with foam stickers to decorate (all purchased at Michael's). The kids all enjoyed doing the craft and even wore the visors while playing in the play houses outside!

This is a really bad picture but for lunch I made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and used a train cookie cutter to cut them out. I served them with a bag of Cheez-its and a juice box. I meant to take a picture of a plate set up but we were moving around too quickly and I forgot.

As soon as everyone finished lunch we cleared off the table again and gathered the kids back up for cupcakes! These were made by Cupcake Sally. I love the candy detail she adds to the top. Such a nice little detail and touch of color.

Birthday boy!

Rather than buying typical favor toys that usually end up in the trash I opted for a non-tradtional, non-train theme favor. I saw some cute water bottles and thought that would be a great favor. What kid in Texas doesn't need a water bottle in the summer?? I mean not only is it HOT and we all go through lots of water but in my family we're trying to be greener by not buying water bottles. My daughter added fun-size bags of M&Ms to the water bottles. I also made Oreo lollipops using red candy to stick with the primary color scheme and then topped them off with sprinkles. To complete the favors I used primary colored bags and made little train tags tied to the bags that said, "Thanks for coming to my party."

We had a great day celebrating with friends and family!

Linking to:

Just a Girl

Somewhat Simple

Blog Award

2010-05-29T14:51:00.000-05:00

I received my first Blogger Award!
Joy at Mommas kinda crafty nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award.

Rules for receiving the award are:

1. Thank the person who gave me the award
2. Share 7 things about myself
3. Pass the award on to 15 (sorry...didn't get to that many) fabulous bloggers
4. Contact the bloggers I have picked and let them know about their award!

Thank you so much, Joy!

Here it goes...
1. I am originally from California but have lived most my life in the great state of Texas!

2. I am afraid of heights. Really afraid.

3. I'd much rather be vacationing on a beach than anywhere else.

4. Pizza might be my favorite food. Or anything sweet and cakey or brownies.

5. Although I love the great state of Texas I hate the summer heat.

6. I love planning and throwing parties.

7. I want to be a photographer when I grow up.

I am passing this award to:

Wendy @ Edible Nutrition

Lesli @ All Things Mom

Britney @ My Saving Grace

Strawberry-Orange Cream Pops

2010-05-27T14:24:00.002-05:00

It's getting, I mean, it IS hot outside! I have a feeling it's going to be a long hot summer filled with nasty humidity here in north Texas. Yuck! I found a recipe for Strawberry-Orange Cream Pops that looked delicious. I was going to wait until after my daughter finished pre-school but decided we'd go ahead and make them this week. We'll make them again for sure! They are quite easy and you can play around with the ingredients and add different fruits to your liking (or whatever you may have on hand).

Ingredients:

1 container (8 oz) strawberry flavored yogurt

3/4 cup orange juice

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups froze strawberries

1 packet sugar substitute

6 (7 oz) paper cups - or whatever you have!

6 wooden sticks

1 popsicle is 1 WW pt.

I used a 6 oz container of Yoplait Light.

If you or your kiddos are anxious drink one as a smoothie!

Frozen and ready to eat!

Yummy!!

Perfect summer treat!

Linking to:

Somewhat Simple

Pantry Make-over

2010-05-26T18:04:00.001-05:00

Has your pantry ever gotten out of control? Mine sure did!

{Before}

I knew it was time for some organization to happen in here! I went on a hunt for some sturdy plastic canisters and settled on round canisters (I wanted square) at Home Goods. I cleaned everything out of the pantry and threw some things away. Then I filled up my new clean canisters and neatly put things back in the pantry.

{After}

After all the shelves were nice and organized I printed off these super cute labels off Carina's Nirvana. I cut them using my rotary paper trimmer (thanks, Dad!) and attached them using photo corners. I even used one of the blank labels for "oats". I loved them way my pantry looks now. I could really go overboard and buy more canisters but I think my husband wouldn't appreciate the cost! :)

How exciting!!

2010-05-20T13:37:00.000-05:00

This is a first for me. Today I was featured on a blog. I can't believe it. I clicked on my dashboard and I saw my chore chart pop up and a blurb about it. On The Creative Crate there's a nice little feature linking back to my posting. Click here to see her post. So exciting! I guess I better put my creative cap back on and start thinking of something next. :) Now I have a cute button on the left side bar that says "I was featured". Oh, the little things that excite me these days!!

Happy Thursday!

Chore Chart!

2010-05-15T14:59:00.006-05:00

I've been looking online for months and months for a chore chart for my 4 year old. I tried one that you create online and they click the things they do daily but that was too much work{for me :)}and I didn't like the idea of her being on the computer every day. I'd see some online but think they were too basic, or I'd find one I'd like but it didn't have quite what I needed for our home. I finally came up with my own idea!

I made this chore chart with:
clip board - wooden $1.99 at Target
scrapbook paper
Mod Podge
Paper Cutter
Scissors
clothes pins
Chores printed on paper
sponge brush

Every morning the clothespins start on the right side. After she does each chore she moves a clothes pin over to the left side next to the chore completed. I have a calendar where I put a sticker on every day she completes her chores and then she gets a dollar every week. She's very excited about this.

Next time I'll print the chores on cardstock rather than printer paper.

Linked up to: The Idea Room link party

Painted Pot

2010-05-13T08:52:00.001-05:00

After looking at this special plant grow and grow in its container for years I've finally decided to take the plunge and move it to a bigger pot. You see this plant is very special to me because one of my students gave it to me my first year teaching during Teacher Appreciation week. I had a very "tough" class, mainly the boys, and this boy (Ben) was one of the sweetest, kindest boys there could be. I remember him walking into my classroom with a big smile and red cheeks from embarrassment and he handed me the plant, all the while his mom was standing at the door grinning. I have not wanted to make the move to a new pot because I'm afraid I'll kill it! It's been through a move and no longer sits in a window in my old kitchen but on the island in my new kitchen. I stopped teaching when I had my daughter 4 1/2 years ago. This plant is 7 years old. I love it.

I decided I wanted a pot that went with my kitchen, of course. I wanted one with black and cream. I bought a terra cotta pot, black and buttercream acrylic paint and a stencil. This project was actually quite simple and didn't take too long at all. The paint dries really fast. The longest part was painting the stencil. Since I was painting cream over black I painted two coats. I probably could have used three but I have two kids screaming to play so I stopped at two. :) I'm not the best painter but I'm not looking for perfection. After the paint dried I sprayed the pot with a clear coat for protection.

Before

I turned the pot upside down to paint

I traced the stencil with a pencil then painted.

Finished!

New pot with plant!

(sorry it's dark)

Blueberry Ripple Coffee Cake

2010-05-08T09:43:00.003-05:00

I haven't been feeling well lately so I haven't been doing much around here. I do have a few ideas so stay tuned. I hope to get creative in the next week or so!

My girlfriends and I are going away for the day and night. And by away I mean downtown. :) I'm so excited despite how yucky I feel. To celebrate Mother's Day tomorrow morning with some of my best friends I made this delicious Blueberry Ripple Coffee Cake. I can't wait to have some tomorrow morning with a mimosa and then come home and kiss my babies!!

Recipe:

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup flour
1 1/3 TBL cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 1/4 cup blueberries - I use the whole frozen bag which is approx 2 cups
1 box white cake mix

Mix brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt & butter in a medium bowl. Set aside. Prepare cake mix according to directions. Sprinkle 1/2 of sugar mixture and 1/2 of pecans over bottom of greased 13X9 pan. Spread cake batter evenly over sugar mixture. Sprinkle berries and remaining sugar mixture and pecans over cake batter. Using a knife fold berries and sugar mixture into cake batter for ripple effect.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until done.

I like the pecans fine so I grind them in the mini processor.

Sugar and butter - YUM!

First layer

Second layer

Ready for the ripple effect

Rippled!

I hope you all have a wonderful Mother's Day!!

Picnik

2010-05-05T21:20:00.000-05:00

Have you been to the website picnik? It's a fun photo editing site. You can use it for free or upgrade for a small fee. I use the free stuff. I made the collage for the header of the my blog (and my personal blog) on picnik's site. It's so easy. You can do all kinds of fun stuff with your pictures, including changing to black and white, sepia, adding stickers, text, etc. Go on over and give it a whirl.

Mom*tog giveaway

2010-05-05T15:35:00.000-05:00

If you shoot a dSLR camera this is a great giveaway for a book to help you learn how to shoot in manual.

Coffee Ground Fossils

2010-04-21T16:54:00.001-05:00

One thing I try to teach my children about is the earth and how we can protect it. I talk about Earth Day and what it means every year but also throughout the year I try to make sure they are learning about recycling and little things they can do to help out and be "green". My daughter received Fancy Nancy: Every Day is Earth Day in her easter basket. I wanted to do a project using things around the house for Earth Day. Here's an easy fossil project that not only teaches about Reusing but you can also teach about fossils...we got into a great dinosaur discussion.

Ingredients:

1 cup coffee grounds

1/2 cup cold coffee

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt

In a mixing bowl, mix together the ingredients until mixed well.

On wax paper, flatten into small discs then use something round to cut a circle. I used my metal measuring cup.

Use something small to press into discs to make impressions, like cookie cutters or play-doh cutters.

After they sit overnight the fossils lighten up and the impressions are more visible.

Happy Earth Day!

Red Velvet Cake Balls

2010-04-21T10:58:00.000-05:00

I'm not really a Red Velvet Cake fan, but oh my, these are delicious! This is my first attempt at cake balls. You can find lots of fun ideas on Bakerella's site.

They are really quite simple to make. All you need is one box of cake mix (with the required ingredients), tub of frosting & bag of candy melts, such as Wilton which can be purchased in cake decorating section at craft store.

First, make a cake mix according to package. Let cool. Then crumble to pieces in a mixing bowl. I use a potato masher to do the crumbling.

Then add in one tub of frosting. Mix well. I used Butter Cream but will use cream cheese next time. Butter Cream works just fine and tastes great but I want to compare since Bakerella's site says to use cream cheese.

Once it's mixed well roll into balls and place on a wax lined cookie sheet. Place in the fridge for a few hours or in the freezer for at least 30 minutes until firm.

Once the cake balls are firm melt the chocolate in the 30 second increments. Use a spoon to roll the balls in the chocolate and place on the lined sheet to dry. They dry pretty fast.

Enjoy!