Love Bug

I love any excuse to get crafty. Stickers, stamps, glitter, paper, ribbon.... I love it all.



Therefore, I knew I had to make Miss A's valentines for her class party.



I saw the basic idea in a blog or magazine a while back and thought they would be perfect for Miss A to give her friends. But, I knew I wanted to spruce it up, so I added stickers, ribbon and polka dot paper.

Aren't they cute?

Here is the front....

And the back...

Supplies:

paint chip samples

rubber stamps

ink pad

stickers

ribbon

scrap book paper

As with any project, there is some trial and error involved. I went through about 4 ink pads before I found one that would not bleed. I finally ended up with a permanent ink pad, so if you decide to do a project like this, save time (and money) and just buy the most permanent ink pad possible.

If you have an older kid, I think these would also be cute as bookmarks.

House Tour - Kitchen

I love seeing how people live....I want to see how their house is decorated, what their curtains look like, what color Kitchen Aid mixer they have, etc. I love it when you drive by someones house and you can see inside. These little glimpses into someones life helps you know someone. Which brings me to my first ever house tour.

@allie_in_ga suggested that I start with my kitchen. The kitchen was a big selling point for me when we bought the house. I loved how open it was and how it was connected to the main living area. Plus, the double ovens, marble countertops and stone back splash did not hurt things. So, here you go - my kitchen.

I love the little windows that are on either side of the stove. And the white cabinets - perfect. Would I change anything about it? Absolutely. More counter space, more cabinets, and maybe some wall space. The eating area has a light fixture that I would not have picked out, but it will do for now. Ordering this light fixture is high on my to-do list.

Not sure what room I will do next.... stay tuned!

New Reading Material

Are you staying warm on this chilly February evening? Maybe you are one of the lucky ones that is relaxing on the beach in a nice tropical location, but here in Dallas we are in the middle of a huge ice storm. I am one of those crazy people that actually loves cold weather, but when your street is coated in inches of ice, you are basically stuck in the house all day. We get cabin fever pretty easily, so this afternoon we bundled up and went outside to play and run in the snow/ice for a little while.

(Brrr.... Momma, it is cold!)

Earlier in the day while Miss A was napping, I worked on some stuff for her upcoming birthday party and then lurked around the Internet for a while. And, just when I thought I already read all of the good design blogs and know about all of the newest magazines, I find some new stuff. And, now I am going to share that stuff with you.

High Gloss Magazine

There are about a million design magazines out there, but who says there can't be one more? High Gloss looks pretty awesome. I especially love that you can follow links directly from the digital magazine.

How About Orange

I think Sweet T Family tweeted about this today..... I love the color orange, so I had to check out the link and boy was I excited with what I found. Part decorating, part projects and ORANGE! Love it all.

One Charming Party

I have already made some Valentine's for Miss A to send her friends this year, but these printables are adorable. I might have to print these off myself and send them to my friends.

Bungalow 5

Their entire catalog makes me have visions of redecorating our entire house..... but, not is not going to happen anytime soon. So, in the meantime, I will just look and swoon.

Do you have any websites that you are loving these days? Give me some more reading material!

Hey Good Lookin.... What ya' got cookin?

Girl Scout cookie season is now upon us. Thin Mints, Tagalongs, Do Si Dos... yum!

If Thin Mints are your favorite, then you are in luck. With this recipe, you can make the chocolaty minty goodness all year long.

Miss A and I made a batch of these last night to take over to Mojito Maven's house. I am not sure how many I took over there, but I am certain we polished off ALL of them.

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1/3 cup of oil

1 box devil's food cake mix

Andes mint pieces

Mix the eggs and oil into the cake mix and then stir in the mint pieces. Sometimes you need to add an additional tb or so of oil and I usually use 3/4 of the bag of mint pieces.

Spoon onto cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 9 minutes.

When you take the cookies out of the oven, they may not look done. But, they are. Promise. If you like soft cookies, you have to not cook them any longer.

Enjoy!

What is on my phone?

I would like to think that I am not addicted to my phone. But, I am not so sure if that is the case. I can Tweet (@MrsPreppy), upload pictures to my Instagram feed (MrsPreppy), read blogs, text and email - all from the palm of my hand. Not to mention, use it to talk to people. (But, I still keep an old school paper planner.)



But, the camera is what I am really addicted to. I take pictures all the time, plus capture screen shots of things I want to remember.


Here is a sampling of the 800+ pictures that are currently on my phone.

He was about to check his email.

Reading her favorite book - Brown Bear, Brown Bear.

Looks like we have a winner for the half bath wallpaper.

This is how Miss A likes to ride the cart now.

I had to give my parents cat a haircut. So sad looking.

Champagne.

My ugly Christmas sweater.

Spoiled Jake.

Instead of tearing out magazine clippings (only to then lose them) I have started taking pics of products I want to remember.

Miss A being a big helper.

One step closer...

... to becoming Martha.

Actually, she might be a little too up tight for my taste, but she sure knows how to do lots of things. And I know how to do a lot of things... and I can now add more thing to that list.

SEWING

Growing up, I constantly saw my mom creating masterpieces. She is an excellent seamstress, as it my grandmother. If it were not for these ladies, my house would not have any curtains, nursery bedding or cute outfits for Miss A. I have always wanted to learn how to sew and yesterday I had my first lesson.

Miss A and I packed up our stuff and headed over to my friends house for the day.... the little girls played while the big girls were busy sewing.

The first task was to figure out how to use my machine. I inherited this machine from my mom and it has just been sitting in a closet for months.

After we got everything setup, it was time to get to work.

After a couple of missteps, I had completed my first project - a drawstring bag!

I was so excited about it that I came home and made another one.

And this morning I made a trip to the fabric store to get more fabric - my house is going to be full of drawstring bags while I am learning the ropes. (This fabric is for a project for Miss A's birthday party)

Now that I have added this new little skill to my arsenal, I have decided I want to transform our office into my craft room. More to come on that project!

Last night when I showed my handiwork to Mr. he responded with "you made that all by yourself? Like, from a piece of flat fabric?" Yes, I made it all by myself from a piece of flat fabric.

Hey Good Lookin.... What ya' got cookin

Tonight for dinner we had one of the best soups I have ever made - chicken tortilla soup. It was better than any restaurant, plus we have enough leftovers for dinner tomorrow. Seriously - it was soo good that I don't mind eating it two days in a row.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

2 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 chipotle chile en adobo, minced
1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

2 tsp kosher salt

6 cups chicken broth

1 cup corn (fresh or frozen and thawed)

1 ripe tomato, chopped

2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1/2 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (about 2 limes)

tortilla chips, crushed

cheddar cheese

avocado

1. Heat the oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. All the onion, garlic, chipotle, chili powder, cumin, coriander, and salt and cook until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth, bring to a boil, reduce the heat slightly, and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add the corn and cook for 5 minutes more.

2. Pull the pan from the heat and stir in the tomato, chicken, cilantro, and lime juice.

3. Serve on top of crushed chips and garnish with cheddar cheese, avocado and lime wedge.

4. Go back for seconds.

This and That

Good Friday to all of you! I don't have a recipe or a crafty project today.... just a little bit of this and a little bit of that.

1. Have I have mentioned my obsession with mascara? I love the black, gooey stuff.... I want my lashes long, thick and luxurious. And I love to try to brands. Ulta had a sale on Lorac mascara last week, so I picked up a tube of visual effects in black. So far, I love it! I always use a lash primer and when paired with this Lorac mascara, my lashes are fab. If you ever see it on sale, pick up a tube.

2. Miss A loves to color in the bath tub.... it makes bath time fun and creative. We have some wonderful bath crayons by Crayola... they wash off easily and don't leave any markings on your tub. BUT - the Alex star bath crayons are horrible. Santa gave her this star crayon in her stocking and it is awful. It leaves bright, waxy marks on your tub and has to be scrubbed with bleach to come off. And even after the bleach, you can still see streaks. And, it leaves marks on your skin. Miss A drew on my leg and I had purple and green stripes on my skin for the rest of the night. So, save your money and DON'T buy this product. Stick with the Crayola TaDoodles- they are great.

3. Miss A's 2nd birthday is going to be hear before I realize it, which means it is time for me to get my party planning rear in gear! I think we are going to have a girly farm theme party, with a color scheme of pink, red and turquoise. I have picked up some great $1 items from the Target Dollar Spot, but I still need lots of other stuff for her party. Games, food, decor - pass along your ideas!

4. Did you watch Grey's last night? Based on a twitter (@MrsPreppy) conversation last night, I am confident that I am in the minority with this next statement.... I am excited about a McBaby! This Lexie/Mark/Callie/Arizona love square storyline is definitely going to be interesting and the coming weeks should make for some good episodes. And like I said last night, I am strong enough in my love for Grey's Anatomy that I can handle the heat of being in the minority. ha!

5. I still have some things life in the Blog Sale SALE - All items are $5 + shipping.

Have a nice weekend!