{ Salty and Sweet Valentine's Treat }

I needed a quick treat to bring to the Valentine's Party that the playgroup that I run was having this morning. I whipped up this cute treat in about 30 minutes time.

You will need:  small pretzels, chocolate chips for melting- I prefer the large size for making candy, some sort of sprinkles, a tablespoon of vegetable oil.

First, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave. Melting chocolate is a simple, easy skill that when done right, is awesome for so many recipes and treats. I place the chips in a glass bowl and add the vegetable oil to them. Than, I melt the chips in the microwave at 15 second intervals, stirring each time. This is the key to not burning the chips. If you just place the chocolate in a bowl and set the microwave for a minute or so, you risk burning the chips. I melt them for 15 seconds, stir, place back in the microwave and melt for 15 more seconds, stir, and repeat until the chocolate is fully melted.

 Than, using two forks, gently dip the pretzels in the chocolate and flip to cover.

Place on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. When you have dipped about 8 or so, take a break and sprinkle the sprinkes onto the chocolate covered pretzels.

Than continue dipping the pretzels and repeat the sprinkles until all the chocolate is gone. Allow the chocolate to dry.

Enjoy!!

My kids love these and devoured the leftovers from the party.

(excuse the blurry picture, I was in a bit of a hurry.)

{ joy in the little moments }

I cut my son's hair. 

You know its time for your son to have a haircut when he has not one,
but 2 cowlicks in his hair. Yikes!

Yes, it is bright red, and yes, he gets it from me (everyone asked me where the color come from)

even though my hair is much darker now.

Okay, now that you know that, sonny boy needed a haircut desperately so I set up everything in the bathroom the other evening and got to work cutting the overgrown mess on top of his head

while daddy took care of his 3 sisters downstairs.

He is in Kindergarten this year. Full-day Kindergarten. So when he gets home from school its pretty much getting changed into play clothes, snack, homework, playtime and doing his chore which usually is emptying the dishwasher, dinner, cleanup, pjs, teeth  brushed, story, prayers, and sleep.

As you can see, there really isn't much time during the week for much else. 

The schedule is pretty full of just those things. My kids have an early bedtime because their school bus comes so early every morning- 6:45 am!

As we got settled in, old sheet pinned around his neck to keep the hairs off of him as best I could, I realized we hadn't had a chat in a while. 

"How's it going?", I asked him.

And so we talked. 

About school

About friends.

About home.

It was so good to have that time without any distractions.

He's my only son and he growing up so fast and I am so 

grateful for that 30 minutes I had to cut his hair.

And I realized that if I was having his hair cut at a barber, I might miss out

 on this precious moment together with him.

{ framed jewelry art }

So I've kind of been on a "frame" kick recently as I've been decorating my master bedroom.
One of my favorite DIY things was my recreation of something I saw on the Pottery Barn website.

Jewelry Frames

Pottery Barns versions were priced around $30 each and were sold by them last year. 

I took one look and decided that they looked simple enough to make myself.

I bought frames from a local ReStore. (ReStores sell used appliances, furniture, kitchen cabinets, light fixtures, and so much more at reduced prices. The money goes to Habitat for Humanity.)

The total cost for the 4 frames was $2.00.
They were missing the glass and backs which I didn't mind because I planned on discarding those anyways. Because I planned on spray painting them, the color of the frame wasn't important.
I just looked for shapes I liked.

I first spray painted them with Rustoleum base coast spray paint in White and than spray painted them in 2 more coats of Rustoleum Heirloom White.

Than I used hooks with screws at the end and I screwed them into the top of the frame. These are to hang the necklaces on.

 Lastly, I attached Command picture hangers- the frames are very lightweight
without the glass or backings so I felt this was the easiest way to hang them.

Here you can see how they look on the wall.
I love how the wall paint shows through which makes them blend in more against the wall.
I have alot of necklaces so this was a practical yet pretty way to display them.

{ this little light of mine }

Remember my post about my Shades of Grey bedroom redo? Well, I promised to explain where the lamps came from.

Here it is. While exploring one of my favorite blogs one day, I found this lamp redo and fell in love. (320 Sycamore is one of my favorite blogs that I follow. I have found so many great ideas. Check it out when you have a chance.)

Basically, all you need for a great lamp or set of lamps is a lamp with great shape or form. Thrift stores and garage sales are full of brass lamps that are a bit dated. But all it takes is a can or 2 of spray paint and those dated lamps have a new modern look. I have seen lamps like these at stores like Home Goods for $50 and up. 

My lamps before look looked very similar to the lamp below. I purchased my set from Craigslist for $20 for the pair and the spray paint was $2 a can. I used primer first and than a gray shade for the base. The lamp shades I got for $2 each from a garage sale. Total cost- $14 a lamp. And I love them.

Source: 320sycamoreblog.com via lady on Pinterest

And here is the finished product.

Little Tip- When you go to a garage sale, thrift store, or regular store, keep your eyes open for items that have great form. Even if they are a color you don't like or are a metal like brass, they can be spraypainted to give you a custom look. You can spraypaint metal, plastic, wood, glass, and other surfaces.

{Framed Clippie Art}

One of my favorite things to do recently is repurpose old frames bought for very little at garage sales or thrift stores into useful things around the house. I will be posting some blog posts in the next few days with some of the creations I have made using ideas from Pinterest and favorite stores like Pottery Barn.  I have 3 little girls with beautiful hair and with that comes lots of hairclips and the need to store them somewhere. What I used in the past was a hairclip holder I made that was a wooden butterfly I painted and attached ribbons to that the clips attached to. It worked for a while but I felt it looked to cluttered on the wall and I wanted to make something more "finished" to keep the hairclips in order. So after using inspiration from Pinterest, this is what I came up with.

I used a picture frame from a cool thrift store I discovered while on vacation this summer- cost: $1.00, a can of pink spray paint (that I used to cover the lamp as well), fabric from my fabric stash, and various ribbon pieces I had in the house. Total cost- about $3.00. 

I took the frame apart, discarded the glass, and spray painted the wood a bright pink color to make it pop on the wall. I than glued fabric to the back of the picture frame with my glue gun and glued different types and colors of ribbon to the back of it, being sure to not actually glue the ribbon on to the front of the fabric (or the clippies wouldn't be able to clip- make sense?). I than put the frame back together and hung it on the wall. This took me less than an hour to complete. My plan is to make one more of these in a smaller size to hang next to it. 

I prefer this look alot because it turns the hairclips into useful art on the wall. 

What do you think?

Oh, in case you're wondering, some of the clips I made myself, some I purchased from various stores, and the orange flower clip and leopard ribbon one are from my friend's shop Heather's Feathers. Please check out her shop because she does such fabulous work, has great customer service, and makes custom orders as well.

{ Comfort in a Bowl }

Well after months of almost "autumnish" weather, the bitter cold of January has finally appeared. Last night I had to remind hubby to put salt down because of icing on the driveway and sidewalk. Winter has officially come to NJ. My favorite thing to make for my family when the chill of winter is here is soup.  We have many favorites here: Beef Stew, Broccoli Soup, French Onion Soup, Spinach Gruyere, and a new favorite Potato Kale and Sausage Soup.  Most of my favorite recipes are from the The Pioneer Woman's website. Her website is full of great ideas, recipes, stories and photography tips but I primarily go there for the recipes. I especially recommend checking out her site if you are new to cooking because she has many step by step photographs of a meal being prepared that show you exactly what to do as you are making a recipe. 

I serve soups frequently in our home- prepared from scratch and I often have the children included in the process so they can see how it is made. I think it makes them more likely to try something new if they can feel like the helped create it.

Our favorite recipe from her site is her Cauliflower Soup recipe. This soup is seriously one of the most delicious soups I have ever had. It is the perfect combination of taste, texture and is very simple to make. And my children love it!  I love to serve this with homemade bread or rolls but any kind of bread or crackers will do. My kids love to add goldfish to soup.  If you've never made soup before, now is a perfect time to start.  Enjoy!

putting the cauliflower in the pot

cooking away

the finished product (I often use my stick blender to blend the soup up a tiny bit if the cauliflower is too chunky)

adding goldfish crackers seems to be a favorite ;)

yum!

even the picky 3-year old likes it

The Pioneer Woman's Cauliflower Soup Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 stick Butter, Divided
• ½ whole Onion, Finely Diced
• 1 whole Carrot Finely Diced
• 1 stalk Celery, Finely Diced
• 1 whole (to 2 Whole) Cauliflower Heads (roughly Chopped)
• 2 Tablespoons Fresh Or Dried Parsley (chopped)
• 2 quarts Low-sodium Chicken Broth Or Stock
• 6 Tablespoons All-purpose Flour
• 2 cups Whole Milk
• 1 cup Half-and-half
• 2 teaspoons To 4 Teaspoons Salt, To Taste
• 1 cup (heaping) Sour Cream, Room Temperature

Preparation Instructions

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, melt 4 tablespoons butter. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes, or until it starts to turn brown.
Add the carrots and celery and cook an additional couple of minutes. Add cauliflower and parsley and stir to combine.
Cover and cook over very low heat for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, pour in chicken stock or broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer.
In a medium saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons butter. Mix the flour with the milk and whisk to combine. Add flour-milk mixture slowly to the butter, whisking constantly.
Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup half-and-half. Add mixture to the simmering soup. Allow to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Check seasoning and add more salt or pepper if necessary.
Just before serving, place the sour cream in a serving bowl or soup tureen. Add two to three ladles of hot soup into the tureen and stir to combine with the sour cream. Pour in remaining soup and stir.
Serve immediately.

{ quote of the week }

"Peace begins with a Smile". Mother Teresa