Mar 29, 2012

A Thought Filled Thursday #1


Hello Thursday!
I have been waiting for this day to arrive for sometime now. I am heading to the mountains....my home away from home. I find such peace there. You can think, and breathe. Now, this could be because I go without children. Don't get me wrong, I love my kids dearly, but sometimes you need a little R&R. So a couple Mommy friends and I head to the mountains for the weekend.

This photo makes me giggle. We have a saying you know. 'What happens in the mountains, stays in the mountains'
No guarantee that there will be silliness happening....but you never know.
I am just thankful that I won't be doing it alone.
Have a great weekend everyone!

Mar 27, 2012

Tuesday Tune In: Medi

I came across Medi, while listening to Charlie Winston.
He plays drums for Charlie.
He is pretty cool too....I am a fan.
Thanks for Tuning in.
Enjoy!


Mar 25, 2012

The Best Icing Decorating Tip Ever!

I am so glad that I came across this wonderful tip.
I told my son for his birthday party I would make some Star Wars themed cookies.
Something you should know.....
I am not a baker.
I am not a decorator.
Why did I promise this...I love the kid.
We found some great cookie cutters, a great sugar cookie recipe. I was set.
Till it came to the icing part....PANIC!

I remembered coming across this great tutorial about icing. Take a look.

Talk about a mindblowing trick!
It works wonders and I will never do it the old way again.
Now I am no decorator....but I can tell ya... Clean up was a breeze!


 

Mar 23, 2012

A Little Tune for your Friday!

Welcome Weekend!
Thank goodness you have arrived.
I wanted to share a little music with you.
Enjoy!

Mar 22, 2012

Who me?

Woke up this morning to find a lovely surprise.
My blog was awarded the Liebster Blog Award by a
wonderful new friend Elaine from The Newfarmerette.
I have never been given a blog award yet. So getting one from a new friend is a wonderful surprise.
I also realize that newcomers to this blog will note how new it is. I hope to be here for awhile.


I will also come out of my blog posting coma and continue on. I have been doing stuff to get ready for my son's 10th birthday. Busy busy!

With this award comes rules. But don't worry...easy to do!
They are..
 1)Thank the person who nominated you for the award and link to them. 
2)Copy and paste the Liebster award to your own profile. 
3)Choose 5 blogs that you think are worthy of the award. (they have to be under 200 followers)
4)Link to them and leave a comment letting them know.



The 5 blogs I would like to award are:
1) 365 Days of DIY    (Cause who doesn't like a little DIY!)
2) Food in Jars  - Great recipes for preserving food.
3) Vanilla Sugar Blog - Some great recipes and photos!
4) LIVE It, SURVIVE It, CONQUER It -A friend who has been through a lot. She has tremendous spirit.
5) From An Igloo - A terrifically crafty blog!


Thanks Again Elaine!

Mar 14, 2012

Oh Wednesday... you done me wrong.




Some days....
this means more than others
....Is it Friday yet?

Mar 9, 2012

Mexican Stuffed Shells...Who Needs Tacos?

Tonight we tried Mexican Stuffed Shells.
They were fantastic!
Again a recipe that I found on Pinterest turned out to be a winner.
My kids devoured the serving I gave them and asked for more.
We will be making these again for sure.

 Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1 package taco seasoning
4 oz. cream cheese
14-16 jumbo pasta shells
1.5 cup salsa
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 cup monterey jack cheese
3 green onions
Sour cream
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a frying pan cook ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions.  Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and cool completely.  While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board/baking sheet so that they don’t stick together.
Pour salsa on bottom of 9×13 baking dish.  Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place shells in 9×13 pan open side up. Cover shells with taco sauce.  Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese, bake for 10-15 more minutes, foil removed. Serve with sour cream.

Original recipe found here.

Mar 6, 2012

My Home is a Special Place

The other day after reading a friends blog post, I started to think
about what I hope to share with others reading this blog.
I enjoy reading blogs to discover new cultures and new friends.
I love Ireland which is why I went looking for some blogs from there to read.
I feel it keeps me connected to a place that is forever in my heart.
In her post she talked about explaining why we blog.
I had said that I enjoy learning and feeling apart of more than just the little space I live in.
I had also hoped that I could help do that for others.
So when I came across this video I had to share.
For my new friend Elaine, and all those new friends I have yet to meet.
This is where I live.
This is my home.
Enjoy!

Mar 5, 2012

A Reminder for All

Everyone needs a reminder once in awhile.

Going through some old photos and came across this one.
What a lovely thing to find on a walk on a beautiful fall day.
Hope your week has started off well.

Mar 4, 2012

My Favourite DayDream

Photo found here.
What I enjoy the most about Pinterest is the inspiring photos I find. I love dreaming about finding the perfect home. A wonderful touch that will make a home more cozy and dreamy.

This cottage for instance. I can see myself living there with my family for sure.
The words cozy, relaxing, calming come to mind when I see this photo.
One day......perhaps.

What images help you to daydream?

Mar 3, 2012

Delicious & Good For You! Quinoa Burgers

Well it certainly has been a weekend of firsts!
I don't know about anyone else, but my kids are awfully picky when it comes to food.
I have to artfully find ways of getting the veggies into them.

Tonight we tried out Quinoa Burgers (click link for original recipe site). If you are unfamiliar with quinoa check out this link here.
It is called a superfood. Very high in protein, it is wonderful for vegetarians.

What I like most about this recipe is that I have practically all the ingredients on hand.
That and you can make little additions to change it up a little. We enjoyed ours with a little tzatziki on them. As you can see by the last photo...it was a hit. (even with the kidlets)!
Enjoy!
__________________________________
2 rounded cups cooked quinoa 
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
1 medium carrot, finely grated (OR 1 cup shredded zucchini, squeezed dry)
3 eggs
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 green onions, including white parts
1 /2 teaspoon Splenda or sugar
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Olive oil for frying
In a large bowl combine the cooked quinoa, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, carrot, eggs, flour, green onions, Splenda, pepper, cumin, salt, and garlic powder.
 Heat a frying pan and a couple teaspoons olive oil over medium-low heat.  Mixture will be slightly sticky, so using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, drop mixture into pan and lightly flatten to 1/2 inch thick.  Fry until golden-brown, about 4 minutes on each side.   Makes approx. 10 burgers.




Mar 1, 2012

A Little Salty, A Little Sweet

Yesterday was a quiet day at home.
We thought we would make it a try something new kinda day.
The Littles helped me make some yummy pretzel bites.
A little salty, a little sweet...what more could you ask for.
You can find the original recipe here.
All you need are:

Pretzels (small ones)
Hershey kisses
M&M's (we used peanut ones)

Heat the oven to 170 degrees.
Place the pretzels on a foil or parchment lined cookie sheet.
Top them with the kisses.
(make kissy noises optional)

Then heat in oven for about 5 min.
Then top with M&M's.
Place in freezer to harden up again.
Enjoy!



The perfect mix of sweet and salty in a small bite!