Savory Sundays

Pin It So I've had a lot on my mind these past few days... Having a second child, my career, my almost 4 month old son, my household..... And of course my projects and recipes! And when I have this much to think about, its hard for me to sleep. I cant shut my brain off. And when I cant shut my brain off, no matter what I'm currently thinking of, my mind always eventually drifts over to two things: the two C's: Cooking and crafts.

And then I have to go do one or the other. With my dining table already covered in unfinished projects, I opted to get into the kitchen. I have been craving cinnamon rolls like a crazed person... But I just have not been in the mood to put all the effort it takes into making cinnamon rolls. Because if you're gonna eat cinnamon rolls, they have to be from scratch. Its the only way.

So to cure this craving I could only find one solution: Mini cinnamon rolls made out of crescent roll dough. It takes a wee bit of effort, so I feel like I'm actually doing something, but there's no waiting around for hours so that the dough can rise... And then rise again... Nope. With these all you do is sprinkle on a few ingredients and roll them up. Bing. Bang. Boom. I found this sweet recipe on Pinterest and its pinned on my Simply Sweet board. Here is where the recipe came from. Mine is a little different than hers. I didn't use brown sugar because I don't like how chewy it made the rolls. And I also used more milk and syrup in my icing.

How. Cute. Is that? I know. Adorable. And delicious.

So, all you gotta do is this:

What you'll need:
1 can of crescent rolls
cinnamon
sugar
1-2 tablespoons of butter

Icing:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons of maple syrup
3 tablespoons of milk

Unroll the crescents and separate into 2 sheets (4 triangles to each sheet). Pinch all the seams together, and then flip and pinch again. Roll to about 1/4 inch thickness. Brush on butter. Feel free to use as much or as little butter as you like. Sprinkle on cinnamon and sugar. Once again, use as much or as little as you like, and mix to taste. Roll up the sheet tightly and then cut into 8-10 even slices (depending on how big or small you make them).

Coat the mini muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray, and place the mini rolls into the cups. Bake for about 8-10 minutes at 350, or until golden brown on top.

Perrrrfect. While the rolls are baking, whip up the icing. Whisk the milk, syrup, and powdered sugar together. Set aside.

And yes, that's on a Christmas plate. I just finished getting rid of them. Overstock much?
So what do you think? Mouth watering? Oh yeah. Mine is. And of course, what better way to enjoy a scrumptious Sunday breakfast than to pair it with MIMOSAS!

Must have. Alas, they are gone, but at least my cinnamon roll craving has been curbed... for a bit.
Hope you enjoy, and send me pics or let me know how yours turned out if you try it!

Until next time... Pin It

Going on Two Years and the Rest of Our Lives

Pin It So the other night I was laying in bed watching a little tv before I went to sleep, and my husband walked into the room. I immediately snuggled further down into the covers and made a sleepy smacking noise. He knows hes not going to make it out of the room without having to do a few things for me first.

Honey can you turn off the bathroom light? And honey can you turn the fan on? And honey can you turn the tv off?

He does it all with a smile.

What is the point of this story? I'm married to one of the sweetest and loving men ever. He is my best friend and I am truly lucky. And I was thinking all of this while I was reminiscing over our weding photos.

And I wanted to share this with you:

This was our wedding invitation. It was designed and drawn by my husbund. He drew it and then we took it to a paper studio called Paper Planet right here in Fort Worth.

 They took the design and printed it up for us. Voila! A one of a kind wedding invitation. The WR stands for Wild Catter Ranch, which is where we had our wedding.

Aren't the little doors cute! I thought they were a nice touch. I was sooo proud of him for making something so beautiful for our wedding, and we got lots of compliments from our guests.

We also decided to do something fun for the thankyou cards that we sent out after the wedding.

Aren't those cookies awesome?! Loved them. I had a friend of mine, Rebcca Schaeffer, take these photos for us, and then I went to Kinkos and had them printed up. Super cheap!

Love it. When you create it yourself, you can put your own flare on it, and it usually ends up costing less than if you were to buy it somewhere.

And the place we got married at, Wild Catter Ranch, was absolutely amazing. We loved it. I was looking for a place that would be secluded, and kind of off set. I wanted a rustic, country chic wedding. And this place was the perfect background for it.

This place is set in the beautiful hill country out in Graham, Texas. It had goooorgeous views.

This is the pavillion where we had our outdoor reception. The hotel even had blue margaritas to serve with the delicious mexican cuisine we had for the dinner.

I LOVED these. They hung on either side of the front entrance of the hotel for the weekend event.

Picture taken by Sarah Halferty with Lightly Photography

I loved my photographer. She did an amazing job and was super creative with our shots!

Well, I hope you enjoyed reminiscing with me... Hopefully these shots inspire you to get creative for your event!

Until next time... Pin It

Lovin me some Pasta

Pin It So I've been cookin it up in all different ways. Desserts, breakfast foods, dinners, side dishes, breads... I love it all. Dont think I could pick just one. Why should I? Well, maybe because my butt and love handles love all of it too.... Le sigh.

So I have a great recipe to share.... A linguini sausage recipe from Weight Watchers. Its worth 9 points on the points plus program for 1 heaping cup. And let me tell you, if you're craving some carbs this is a great way to cure it. Noodles, veggies, sausage. Delicioso.

Mmmmm... So. Lets get to cookin.

You will need:
1 16 oz. package of linguini
1 lb. turkey sausage
1 large can  diced tomatoes flavored with basil, oregano, and garlic
4 stalks of clerey
1/4 cup onions
1/4 cup green bell pepper

Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a boil. Add the linguini and let cook for about 10 minutes, or until soft. Drain.

While the linguini is cooking, chop the celery, onion, and green bell pepper into desired size ( I chop mine up pretty small) and cook the sausage in a large sauce pan until brown, breaking it up while it cooks. Once the sausage is cooked, add the celery, onion, bell pepper, and can of tomatoes.

I drain some of the juice from the tomatoes, but not all because we like some of the juice to flavor the linguini.

Look at all that awesome color! My mouth is watering again... And we just ate.
Stir in all the veggies and cook for another few minutes. Just long enough for the veggies to get heated through, but still be crispy.

Once your pasta is drained and the veggies are heated through, pour the sausage mixture into the linguini and stir.

Done!

And if you're like me and like cheese...

Add a sprinkling of grated parmesan. Because, why not? Cheese makes everything better.

All right, now that you're done cooking, its time to EAT! SO, enjoy!

If you try it, lemme know how it turns out!

Unitl next time... Pin It

Happy Humpday!

Pin It Hello All! We've made it halfway through the week! Phew. Today I started thinking about Valentines day and the month of February. We have kind of a love hate relationship. I do enjoy the special day with my husband, but I also find it a tad rediculous and kind of cheesy. I mean, they commercialized feelings basically. And I feel the same way about the decorations: Cheesy. I love pink but the way its used with all that crepe paper, and candy and the faded light pink. Barf. I enjoy a little more toned down V-day decorations.

Soft pinks, black, red, but not candy apple red. And I only like to display a few decorations around the house during this month, because like I said, I think a lot of it is over-kill. I decided I was going to make three things: Cute kitchen towels, some sort of framed paper thingy majig, and a front door wreath.

I went to the craft store yesterday and stocked up. Except I couldnt find any basic plain white kitchen towels. Humph. But I WILL find them.

I hit the jackpot when I found a clearance section and everything was 66% off. *Score*

I found these for $4! Obviously I was not going to leave them like this. Uhm, no. But I loved the shape and new that they could become something quite awesome. So I scooped them up and brought them home... Now what to do with them...? I started to form an idea... And this is what I came up with.

Pink and black. I can get on board with that valentines day. This was super simple to make.

I gathered:

Mod Podge

scrap book paper

ribbon

spray paint

foam brush

wooden letters

glue gun

glue sticks

First I spray painted the entire thing black. Once that was dry, I brushed on a generous layer of mod podge. Then I lay down my square of scrap book paper and patted it down. Then I applied another layer of mod poge and smoothed out the bubbles with my fingers.

While that was drying I spray painted my wooden letters black. Once the painted letters and mod podge are dry, you can break out that trusty glue gun! I glued the letters in the middle and then snipped the ribbon to fit across the bottom and glued it on either side of the x and o.

Doneskies! Fast, easy, fool proof. Once again, gotta loooove those projects. The next thing on my radar is a wreath for the front door. Im thinking canvas, burlap, and a stencil.... See how that turns out!! And also swing by to see what else I do with the rest of those cute trays.

Send me pics to show me what you create!!

Until next time...

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Some particle board and fabric makes for some cool projects...

Pin It Its raining outside. And thundering and lightning. *Love. It.* And when its raining outside, what better is there to do than to create something? I found a tutorial and some inspiration here.

She does a great tutorial on the bench she makes. And since the hubs helped put this together... I dont have too many pictures... :(

My sister was needing a headboard and an entry way something or other to set her stuff on when she walked in. So I decided to set to work on making her something for Christmas. The headboard was easy to do, I just needed to pick out some fabric. As for the bench... Well that was going to be more difficult since I needed to find the perfect coffee table to start.

But as fate would have it... I was driving around one day and I happened to notice this huge banner across a store front that said: Resale and Thrift Shop. *Jack Pot*

I went in, carrier (and 16 pound son) on arm. I wondered the store and was feeling let down since there really wasnt any furniture I could use. Then I saw the store connected to next door so I took a peek. It was just a room full of junk piled on junk (is there any other kind?). But I immediately spotted exactly what I needed.

See? Gasp, right? It was in pretty rough condition, but was still sturdy and thats all I needed it to be. Plus the detail on the front and on the legs sold me immediately. I whipped out my trusty black spray paint in satin finish and got busy.  No sanding needed.

Once that was painted and dry, I set to work on the cushion part. All you need is particle board to match the same size as the top of the table, foam a tad longer and wider than the particle board so you dont get poked with wood (ha!), a staple gun and staples, and fabric. I used three inch thick foam on the bench and 2 inch thick foam on the headboard.

Love it.

Lay the fabric on the ground, then lay the particle board in the middle, and the foam on top of that. Pull the fabric up on one long side and staple it to the back of the particle board. Then fold up a short side and staple it. Next do the other long side followed by the last short side. Trim the excess fabric on the back. Kind of like wrapping a present... That you can sit on.

The last step would be to screw the particle board onto the coffee table from the underside. I used a handy tool called the Hubster.

I sat on the bench to hold the cushion down while he layed on the floor drilling from underneath. We put six screws in total. Two on each end and two in the middle.

It turned out sooo great and I was so excited with how simple it really was.

The same goes for that gorgeous headboard.

I know the pictures of the headboard arent the best, but like I said, the hubster did it. I was super in love with this fabric. Its black with a flat paisley design. I picked it based on the colors and theme she wanted, with purple and black. Im also making a shelf to go above it once that is attached to the wall, but that is still in the works :).

To make the headboard, use the same method as wrapping the bench cushion. And ps, when you go to the craft store and hardware store to get your supplies, make sure you have your measurements in hand. That should be obvious but, apparently not to me. I had to go back. Twice.

*Anyway*

Here are some pictures of the headboard sitting on her bed. Excuse the poor pictures...

Once we actually attach it to the wall it will hang a few inches above the bed. And once the shelf is made it will sit right above the headboard... I will post about that once its underway.

Ta-Dah! Easy and simple ways to repurpose furniture and to add to existing furniture to make it look more grand.

 If you try this, send me pics so I can see what you do!

Until next time..... :) Pin It

Obsessed with Canvas

Pin It Its a Saturday night and Im sitting here sipping on left over champagne from brunch with my sister this mornimg. Grandma has offered to come over and babysit tonight so the hubs and I can go out for the night. I have a little free time.... So here I am. And I must tell you, I love canvases. I will mod podge ANYTHING to a canvas. Its so super easy and quick, and you pretty much cant mess it up. Thats my specialty. Easy, quick, fool proof. Of course, I am referring to my projects...

With this particular project, I got a size canvas that I couldn't print a picture in the same size because of the resolution, hence the painted sides. But I love the way it turned out. You could also put scrap book paper on the sides if you're feeling frisky.

You'll notice that in some places I dripped/smeared some mod podge... But it doesnt matter. Once its all dried, you wont see it. See? Fool proof.

Here the mod podge is wet. It looks milky when wet but will dry clear. You can add as many coats as you want to achieve the look you want.

I do two or three coats, letting each one dry in between,  to get a little more texture and vintage feel. Once the mod podge is dry, you can paint the edges of the picture and the canvas. I mixed black and metalic gold together for the black and white picture, and brown and metalic gold for the color picture. Use the foam brush to apply the paint to the canvas and picture edges. It will take a few coats to cover the canvas so that no white is showing through.

Dip the edge of the brush in the paint and then dot some of the extra paint off on the paper plate so that you dont get too much on the picture. Go around the edges of the picture brushing the paint onto it to make a thin or thick border... Whatever you choose.

Here is another one I did of one of our wedding photos. Its just a tad amazing... :)

I did a thin border on each side, but brought it out in the corners. For the color on this one, I mixed brown, black and metallic gold. I also used a paper towel to do the edges for this one, which added more paint texture. And the great thing about the mod podge, is that if you messed up on the paint, you could just use a damp paper towel to wipe it away and redo it. *Genius*

These also make great gifts. I did the two of my son for the Grandparents for Christmas. I will probably end up doing a whole gallery of these since I love them so much.... A wall of photo canvases... Of all different sizes... Yep. Thats gonna happen.

Well, its about that time to start dinner... Garlic pasta and cheesy garlic bread... Expect that post some time later this week!

Send me pics if you try this project!

Until next time...

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Its a new year

Pin It Its a new year! Hope everyone had a great holiday season and a wonderful new year. We were super busy with wrapping presents, shopping, baking goodies and traveling. But of course... not too busy for crafts... Tehe. What have you guys been up to? Make anything cool?

I got one present that I was extreeemely excited about... A Cricut Imagine! Sqeal! The hubs is a rockstar. I havent made anything yet with it... Still gotta figure it out. But Im super excited!!

Here are some things I did over the holiday break:

 

Wrapping and baking! The two pictures of food above are of Cracker Candy, and Peppermint Bark. The cracker candy is amazing! It is made out of saltine crackers! I never thought a saltine could taste so delicious! Easy to make and yummy - my key ingredients!

Cracker Candy Recipe:
2 sticks of butter (not margarine)
1 cup of brown sugar
40 saltines
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line cookie sheet with foil and spray with a nonstick cooking spray. Neatly arrange crackers to fill pan.
Melt butter and brown sugar and boil for 3 minutes. Pour over crackers and spread evenly. Place cookie sheet in oven and bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and pour chocolate chips over the crackers evenly. Wait about 3 minutes (they will melt) and then spread over crackers with back of spoon. Sprinkle chopped nuts evenly over crackers and tap in with back of spoon.

Enjoy! They are sooo yummy! My family gobbled them up in no time flat.
I hope you guys enjoy this recipe. Let me know if you make it, and how it turned out! Pin It