We're back and flea markets

*Hey ladies! Sorry we had to go on a little hiatus but life got a little crazy, but in a good way. We are hoping now with school being out, and summer coming that we can get back to sharing some of our ideas with you again, and maybe you can share some with us too. :)


Every year over Memorial day weekend there is a flea market in the next state over. Lot's of fun. Lot's of vendors. Lot's of people, and...KETTLE KORN! We always start off with a tour of the flea market. Get a feel for what is out there. I've had in my mind for awhile that I wanted a old metal washtub. The kids had a fundraiser at school and I had bought some strawberries. Wouldn't they look so cute planted in one? Almost off the bat I saw the washtubs. I gave them a looky and then wandered to the next vender. A little while later we wandered by again and I decided now was the time to give them a real good look. They had a lot of square ones between $6 -$20. Then I spied this beauty. $18 dollars. I tried for $10 but she'd only take $15. Of course sometimes if theres love you just have to go for it. I planted the strawberries today. They do look pretty cute don't they? I love how it's different and round.

I had also spied this little wooden step ladder on the way in and I knew it would look perfect somewhere in my house. After we were all done and heading out we passed by it again. I glanced over but I didn't see it and figured someone else must have snapped up that treasure. Wait a minute...did I just see....YES! It was still there. I got this little cutie for $5 bucks. For now it's on top of my kitchen cupboards.

Now that we are back in the groove again, we hope to have some more activity on our blog. If you ever have any fun ideas, or want to share, don't be shy, leave us a comment. We'd love to have you be a guest poster.

Getting back into the groove...

I have had this picture just laying around and I love it and I adore it but I've never known quite what to do with it. I wanted to frame it but I also wanted to scrapbook it too. So...this is the end result! I got the frame at Michael's probably a year ago and used my 50% off coupon so it was only a couple of dollars! I have 2 other frames that are the same and I'm going to scrapbook them with some pictures as well. We bought new bedding the other day and our room is now black and white. I love it! I'm going to finish the other 2 frames and put them up behind our bed.

At first I wasn't sure how I wanted to scrapbook this so I just spend some time going through all of my paper. I found a bunch that had a little bit of a rustic feel to it and loved it! I love scrapbooking and putting them in frames. Its also a great gift to give someone!! Its pretty inexpensive but the time and thought you put into makes it a perfect gift!

House Rules

I just have to say how much I am loving my new little toy. I've been thinking up all sorts of fun little projects. I've kept my promise to not decorate the entire house in vinyl sayings but this is one project that I just had to do. I've seen it floating around on several different blogs and just love the idea. I thought of putting it directly on the wall but we have a bit of texture and it just didn't seem to look right so I looked around the house hoping for an idea. AH HA! My stash of old windows came to mind. PERFECT!


I tweaked it a bit and added a few of my own and this is what I came up with. I know that it is not on perfectly straight but it looks way more wavy on here than it does in person. Must be the window or something. I don't know why but I just love these rules because it's not just the usual be nice, brush your teeth, obey your parents kind of rules, it's real life rules. It's what our family is. We are loud. We do make mistakes. We do hugs and we are family.

Happy Monday!

Babysitting...

For the past year I've done babysitting off and on. For the most part I really enjoy it...but there are those days when I'm glad its the end of the day and Ella's in bed for the night. Staying home makes me appreciate the time I get to spend with my daughter and babysitting makes me think and plan for the future. At the moment I am watching 3 kids, Ella not included. I have to plan my errands around the kids, plan nap times, meal times, etc.

For the most part the kids bring their own food. Snack times can be particularly rough because everyone wants what the other one has. But then again we all know some adults that are like that too :)

Kids say the darndest things....isn't that so true? I find out some of the funniest things about the kids' parents. I love watching their little personalities and even some of their attitudes...mine own included on the attitude!

Hubby teases me saying our next car will be a minivan and I don't want one yet...although it really would come in handy on the days I have all 4 kids. But we won't mention that.

I'm not sure how many kids we'll have but with babysitting it gives me insight of how life will be with more kids. Crazy, hectic, wonderful and maybe a little hair pulling.

Does anyone else do babysitting or have a bunch of kids to juggle? How do your days go??

The Best intentions

...have a way of not working out sometimes. I really did have the best intentions of making my family room more family like, and usable again. The plan was and what I announced to my blog friends was that I would have my family room all cleaned up and looking spiffy. Here it is MARCH 1st, and I have not come through for you. I did make an attempt to clean it. I picked up dirty socks (someone who shall remain nameless threw SEVERAL pairs behind the couch!) I found new homes for roller blades and Polly pockets and folded blankets. I threw all the snow catting things in a huge pile and said "here take it! If you don't, I'm selling it on eBay."

Still though remains the messy scrapbook corner and the dreaded rarely used color copier machine. I plead forgiveness. Pretty please?

I do have a somewhat good excuse. Kinda. Hubby and I have been working on the mud room this past few weeks. Can I tell you how excited I am to have a mud room? No more pleading, crying, stomping my feet when the kids bring in their muddy shoes, and back packs get piled by the front door. Now they'll have a real place for all their things!

So of course while I was helping the hubby hang sheet rock, I was dreaming of HOW I would make this new mud room look fabulous.

(pics courtesy of BGH)

Aren't these some great mud room ideas? I've seen so many fun ideas it's hard to pick just one. My hubby just rolls his eyes and his selective hearing sets in. Forget the mud and taping part and all those million of other little things, lets get on to the decorating part!

Mmmm I can smell that all the way down the road...

Cooking...its one of those things that we do just about every night. I tend to get in a rut and do the same sort of things every week so my husbands new goal for me...I mean my new goal is to do a new recipe once a week. I really am planning on sticking with it but for today I wanted to share one of my favorite recipes that I make regularly and one that I grew up with at home. Lasagna and an easy recipe too!

1/2 lb ground beef
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 cup water
1 tsp. salt
1/2 pkg lasagna noodles
15 oz ricotta cheese
12 oz mozzarella cheese

Brown beef and drain. Add sauce, water and the salt and bring to a boil.

Layer
hot sauce
uncooked noodles
ricotta cheese
mozzarella cheese
Repeat and end with sauce.

Cover with foil and bake at 375 for one hour. Let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes, sprinkle on the parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Makes great for left over lunches as well and my hubby is always glad for something easy and yummy he can heat up quick while at work!

Growing up my mom always made with cottage cheese instead of ricotta cheese so if you'd like to try something different and go with cottage cheese just substitute for 1 cup of cottage cheese. :)

So what are some of your favorite recipes??

Hope everyone has a great weekend and check back Monday for something new from Val!

I got a new toy!

I know I'm probably 5 year too late but I finally got on the bandwagon and picked up one of those fancy die cutting machines. I'm hoping that it will get me back into scrap booking again which has fallen to the wayside this past year. I also love the idea that I can cut vinyl with it. I have seen so many cute projects with the vinyl being used. I did have to promise hubby on a stack of scriptures that I promise not to decorate the entire house with vinyl sayings and crafts. I promised him only half. :) After much research I came up with this one. The Silhouette SD.

The great thing about it is, no cartridges to buy. I can hook it up to my computer and print anything to it! Love that idea!

I also have been chompin at the bit for the garage sale season to start. Since it is still February I've had to do with the thrift stores. I found this huge round plate at a thrift store the other day in a very ugly shade of yellow gold. (sorry no before pictures. I really do need to get better at that!)

I got my trusty spray paint out in an glossy ivory color and gave it several coats. It came with it's own easel but it seemed flimsy so I shopped the house until I found another one.

Then I got to play with my new toy and came up with this.

I love it! . I have been having a hard time trying to fill the space above them since Christmas is over, and this is perfect for above my cabinets!

I gotta go play with my new toy now but check back on Friday for another great post from Alycia!

The Olympics

I am a huge fan of the Olympics! I love when its that time again and we get to enjoy them! Its something that we enjoy doing as a family too and its always a good conversation topic with others. I'm always so intrigued by these athletes and the talents that they have. Its amazing to me how the snowboarders can catch so much air and land it, the downhill skiers can ski so fast and how the skaters can can be that coordinated while on skates! With that said I may envy their talent but not all of the pressure they have on themselves to perform well. Not to mention this only comes around every 4 years!

One of my favorite events to watch is the Men's Speed Skating. I may have a little crush on Apollo Anton Ohno...just don't tell my hubby that. :)

I want to know. Have you been watching the Olympics? What are your favorite events to watch??

What's for Dinner?

One of my New Years Resolutions was to try a new recipe once a week. It's actually been a lot of fun and has shown my family that that there is more than just meat and potatoes. Some of them have been disasters, but some have actually become family favorites. Last night I tried a recipe from Sandra Lee's semi-homemade cookbook, which honestly, is how I cook a lot of the time. I'd love to prepare some of those yummy but complicated meals but I just don't have the patience or time to do it most days, so this works for me.

Last night I made Italian Baked Pork Chops. They actually turned out pretty good if I do say so myself and most of my family gave them the thumbs up as well. (Tyler's Pork Chop remained naked and free of any weird toppings) Here is the recipe. It's pretty easy to make and doesn't take long to cook either. Sorry, I didn't take any pics. Next time I adventure into the kitchen I will try and remember. Enjoy!

Italian Baked Pork Chops -Sandra Lee cookbook

1 TBSP Dijon Mustard
1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp italian seasoning
4 pork center loin chops
salt and pepper
1/2 cup shredded parmesean cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with kitchen parchment. (I only had foil) set aside.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together mustard, oil,and italian seasoning. Season pork chops with salt and pepper, then brush both sides of the chops with mustard mixture. Press parmesean cheese into both sides of chops.

3. Place chops on prepared baking sheet. Bake 10 minutes or until just cooked through.

The family actually liked these so it went into the thumbs up pile. Yay! We have a winner.

Put that on the list

A few years back while on a girls trip in Seattle I bought these books. At that time I wasn't a huge reader and if the first page hadn't gripped me then I would usually put it back on the book shelf. I know what your thinking...uh hello....at least give it a chapter or two! I love to read but always had a hard time knowing what books to either buy or check out at the library. Also I never really gave the books a chance. I would read a few pages, space out and then think of something else I'd rather be doing. Fast forward a few years and I am now a huge reading addict! I also love reading in the bathtub until I'm a prune and my husband is wondering if I've drowned! Sophie Kinsella books are hilarious. Depending on the book it may take a few chapters for you to really get into it but then you'll be hooked! At the moment I'm reading The Undomestic Goddess. I am always on the search for a good book nowadays and I want to know what your reading! And NO magazines don't count! :)

A few of my other favorites I've read or reread lately (yes I enjoy rereading but depends on the book).

Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks
Can You Keep A Secret by Sophie Kinsella
Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella
The Twilight Saga (reread all of the books for the 4th time...yes I realize I am obsessed!)

I have my list of books I've read and also want to read but at the moment it grew legs and has escaped from me!

So what's on your list?