Wreaths

Here are a couple wreath ideas to get you in the mood for decorating, who knows, you might even find a new crafting project!

I found this one at A Pretty Cool Life.  This idea is so cute and colorful and it looks farily easy to make too.

Here is a classic burlap wreath I found at Craftaholics Anonymous. She has a tutorial on how to make those red flower accents! I love it!

I absolutely love this wreath from Eddie Ross. He has a wonderful tutorial on how to make this, seems very simple.

Here is another easy wreath you can create with cardboard and ribbon. Found it at The DIY Show Off.

If you have found any great wreaths or have pictures of your own, please send me pictures, I would love to post them.

Sugar-Free Cinnamon Rolls

I have a confession to make… I love sweet deserts!! Cheesecake, monkey bread, apple pie…man I making myself hungry. Although these things are not too hard to make, I have a small problem, I get migraines from sugar. I know, I know, sad story but a girl can’t get rid of all sweets.  So I have been on a quest to make those yummy desserts that I love, and make them sugar free (typically sweetened with Splenda). Now when I say sugar free it usually means ‘low sugar’, because of natural sugar, but its low enough not to give me a migraine and enough sweetness to put a lid on my sweet tooth. Here is a quick way to make sugar free cinnamon rolls. If you don’t have a problem with sugar, feel free to substitute the Splenda with regular sugar.

INGREDIENTS

4oz  Cream cheese, softened

*Instructions for making sugar-free powdered sugar:

Put 3/4 cup of Splenda Granular and 2 tablespoons cornstarch in a blender and blend until it is a very fine powder

DIRECTIONS

Ranch Chicken Flatbread Wrap

If you are looking for a quick and easy meal this is something you have to try.  Not only was it easy but they were delicious!

These are the ingredients you will need for this meal:

Cooked Chicken pieces (I used leftover chicken from a whole chicken I had cooked last weekend)

Bacon (Just a couple of pieces to add a little more flavor and crunch)

Diced tomatoes (all I had were grape tomatoes so I just quartered them)

Lettuce

Cheese

Ranch dressing

Flatbread

Begin by pre-heating the oven to 375. Place the flatbread on a cookie sheet. Place in oven for 5-7 minutes, till warm and soft.

Cook bacon, crumble, then set aside.

Chop chicken up in to strips or cubes. Warm it up (I warmed mine up in the microwave)

Now time for to assemble!

Put a generous amount of ranch dressing on the (warm, soft) flatbread, then layer with chicken, bacon, cheese, lettuce and tomatoes.

Fold in half like a taco, and enjoy! Like I said this meal was so simple and delicious. I will definitely be making it again.

Free Christmas Photo Cards

Fujifilm is offering 50 free 4X8 photo cards, if you use the coupon code freebies4mom-1109. This is an exclusive offer given to Freebies 4 Mom! Check out her article, she gives great tips on designing a great card. I haven’t done it yet, but that is the plan for tonight. The coupon expires on November 30, so don’t delay for too long.

Got to love Goodwill!

Here are a few items that I picked up at Goodwill this past week.  I will add links to these items when I have completed their transformation.  I’m excited about the potential these items have. We will just see if the ideas I have in my head, comes out when I start working on them.  Have you had any great thrift store finds lately? Email them to me and I would love to post them.

I want something pretty simple where it could be added to most decorating styles. Seeing how it turns out I might try to do a resell on this item so I can buy some new projects. But then again, my hubby and I will only be in this furnished apartment for 6 more months…we will need lighting. I guess I will see how attached it get to this lamp. I am thinking about painting the base black and recovering that “beautiful” lamp shade with white fabric. I also might add a black ribbon around the top to add an extra element of classiness. I found a similar idea on this blog, check it out and let me know what you think.

I bought this frame with a specific purpose in mind.  I bought a huge collage frame from Wal-Mart, soon after our wedding.  I filled it with pictures of us dating and our wedding day.  When I finally finished I hung it up on hooks (I hung it by the frame because the cardboard cutout was too small – Yes I know what you are thinking…cheap frame…bad idea) and the next morning collage was laying in pieces on the floor.  So this is where this new, sturdy wood (not plastic) frame comes in, except that it is 1 inch too small. But, no need to worry, this small inconvenience will not get me down, I will (somehow) make it work. Stayed tuned…

Just a Girl

This blog is on my ‘Check Everyday List’. She has some great project that don’t seem too time consuming.  Here are a few that I have found and have added to things I want to make.  Check out her site for some great ideas.

She had this great idea for new neighbors.  Instead of making them just a plate of cookies, take the extra step and make them feel really welcome. Click here for the full article.

This looks so simple to accomplish and I have been needing something to go in our bathroom. This will be perfect! To make your own work collage, go to this site. Its so simple and comes out great. To see the rest of Just a Girl’s project, click here.

“What’s for dinner?”

Getting married for me was quite an adjustment. I went from school atmosphere where meals are provided and I live in a 1 room dorm to being a wife who now buys the food, prepares the meals and ‘tries’ to keep our apartment clean. I have been very blessed to have a great hubby who is very helpful around the house, but 5 months later, I still have not mastered the art of preparing meals.  Our conversations on the way home from work, usually consist of:

Me: Do you have anything in particular that you would like to eat tonight for dinner? (I’m learning that men…well at least my man, usually doesn’t ‘feel’ like a certain kind of food…he just wants food!)

Hubby: No, whatever is fine.

Me (thinking): hmmm…let’s see…I’m tired…what would be easy to make…

So there I stand in front of our refrigerator and pantry hoping a delicious meal will suddenly appear. I have come to the conclusion that this is just wasting time and with a little pre-planning, meals could go a lot smoother and food would not be wasted.  Being 45 minutes from the nearest grocery store has already made me plan a little bit but not what it could be.  So I’m going to try something new.  I think by planning out meals for each day, I will be able to think through a ‘nutritious’ or at least ‘tasty with vegetables’ meals.  Hopefully this will help me to take certain meats out of the freezer before I go to work, so I don’t have to wait for it to defrost. To give myself some accountability, I will be posting my weekly menu.  I will also be linking recipes to new meals I am trying.

Please let me know if you have any suggestions to make this process easier, or if you have any great meal ideas.

Monday: Chicken Ranch Flat bread Wraps, salad

Tuesday: Breakfast for Dinner. Eggs, Bacon, Hash browns

Wednesday: Our school (where we work) is having a required meeting tonight, dinner is provided!!

Thursday: Crunchy Italian Chicken, Green beans, Stuffing, Chicken gravy

Friday: Lemon Pepper Fish, Corn, Mashed Potatoes

Redbox code

Here is the newest Redbox code I have found, thanks to this blog. For this code you have to use your Discover card, so if you don’t have one, I’m sorry and I will keep searching for more.

Code: KJXMT3

Giveaway!!

I just found this new website and they are having a great giveaway, a $25 gift card to Potterybarn!! Check it out…today might be your day!

Coffee Stencil’s

I just found this website, and I think it is one of the coolest things I have seen in a long time. This website sells stencils to design the top of your Latte or Cappuccino.  The stencil allows you to sift chocolate powder, cinnamon, or cocoa over the stencil and leave behind a cool design or saying.

I worked at a coffee shop all through college and I always loved making the finished product look different then the average cup of coffee. As I looked through their products, I thought… maybe I could make one of those and save myself the $10.  I haven’t made one yet, but I will definitely let you know if a homemade version will work.

A few of their designs: