a pretty cool life.

From Valentine's past

2012-01-25T22:33:00.000-06:00

Pinterest certainly is able to breathe new life into old projects. Over the past few weeks, these Valentiney pages have seen a boatload of traffic.

Birdseed Valentines

Boy Valentine Shirts

Heart peanut butter blossom cookies

Homemade marshmallows

If you've been around awhile, thanks for reading! And if you're new here, enjoy!

Want to see what I'm pinning? (Besides more things to do with Nutella?) You can follow me here.

xoxo

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Superhero Sienna dress

2012-01-24T23:47:00.003-06:00

Ok, here's another flashback.

Both of my boys have birthdays in December, and this year they decided to have a superhero party. Of course, Baby Sister needed to join the fun, so I made a teeny tiny superhero dress.

I used the LBB Sienna pattern.

And a pile full of my old shirts. (The navy Superman shirt was a lucky clearance find from Target...otherwise I would have stenciled my own and the blue sleeve is from a pair of her brother's pants.)

xoxo

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Weekly Pinterest

2012-01-21T21:32:00.001-06:00

I guess it was kind of a slow pin project week this week. I'm not sure if there was a full moon, the day off of school on Monday, the snow, or what threw everyone for a loop, but the behavior out of the little humans in this house was less than desirable. Mama doesn't make much when that happens. Eh.

We did make our own microwave popcorn several times though. I gave up on microwave popcorn years ago, but making it on the stove can be a pain. (But worth it for this.) This is a great alternative and it's quick.

I also spent the last few nights working on cutting and piecing quilt tops. This one caught my eye weeks ago, and now my version of it is ready to be assembled and quilted.

Like I said, slow project week. Whatev. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

xoxo

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Teacher gifts

2012-01-18T21:47:00.000-06:00

I'm not sure why I didn't share these pics earlier. (Maybe because I was too busy eating cookies?) These are the (mostly) handmade gifts we gave to Big Brother's teachers.

A box full of things I hoped they would love because I do.

Anthro homegrown mugs.

Handmade candles in mini latte bowls.

Notecards similar to these.

The brown packet in the middle is filled with amaryllis bulbs.

And if you follow me on facebook, you remember that I madly finished the poms poms in the school parking lot right before pickup. Yay procrastination. ;)

xoxo

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Weekly Pinterest

2012-01-14T14:01:00.001-06:00

What I made this week, thanks to Pinterest.

I don't know why I never thought to use frozen Cool Whip instead of marshmallows in hot chocolate. Hearts make everything better. (My husband likes it in his coffee, too!)

I baked a ham earlier in the week, and wanted to find a way to use the bone. This soup was a great alternative to split pea.

By the middle of the week it was too snowy and cold for me to venture out to the grocery store. Making do with what I had I hand, I make slow cooker spaghetti sauce. Definitely a great alternative to a jar of store bought, but not too exciting. Next time I'll add some Italian sausage to kick it up a little. (But the meat free version will be perfect for Fridays during Lent!)

I also made a version of garlic bread to go with it. It was good, and I really liked the cheese on it. But...the original recipe called for an entire stick of butter. Uh, either that's a typo or the recipe's author is really crazy about butter, because I used less than half a stick, and I thought I was going overboard slathering it on. Try it. Maybe I'm way off.

And you all read Ashley's blog, right? Her video today was so incredibly beautiful. Grab your Kleenex. Watch it. Choose joy.

And if you'd like to follow my pins, you can find me here.

Enjoy the long weekend, friends!

xoxo

The weather outside is {going to be} frightful

2012-01-11T13:41:00.001-06:00

After a week of amazing January weather in the 50s, Chicago is due to get our first significant snowfall of the season.

Forget shovels and salt, we needed to test drive our hot chocolate recipe.

I'm not really a hot chocolate drinker, but this is awesome: drop a heaping spoonful of Nutella into 10ish oz of milk. Warm on the stove and mix. Heaven!

xoxo

Happy Sunday and a 365 catch up

2012-01-08T12:31:00.001-06:00

01.08.12

Bald is beautiful.

01.07.12

Yay for a super fun night out with friends.

01.06.12

Friday lunch.

xoxo

365

2012-01-05T22:26:00.001-06:00

01.05.12

Just enjoying the sun shining in.

xoxo

Super easy microwave caramels

2012-01-05T14:51:00.000-06:00

Bail on your New Year resolution to eat healthier and make these.

Trust me when I say if you make nothing else found on this blog, try this recipe.

I recently pinned this, which reminded me of a recipe I've had clipped out of a magazine for years.

The recipes are basically the same, mine just calls for 5 tbsp. of butter, which is about 1/3 cup. I'm sure both are equally delish.

You'll need:

5 tbsp. butter

1/2 c. light corn syrup

1/2 c. white sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

4 oz. sweetened condensed milk

Put all ingredients into a microwave safe bowl.

Microwave for 6 minutes, stirring every 2.

Spray an 8x8 glass dish with Pam, and pour mixture in.

Let cool and cut. (I cheat and put them in the fridge to cool, but if they're in there too long they get too hard to cut.)

Wrap in wax paper.

Store in a container with a lock, or you might just eat them all. ;)

xoxo

A 365 backlog

2012-01-04T14:05:00.002-06:00

January 4th and already I'm behind posting.

Better late than never, no?

01.01.12

A quick batch of homemade brownies.

01.02.12

De-Christmasing time.

'Til next year my pretty, shiny friends.

01.03.12

10 degrees outside.

Desperate for groceries, but we'll just forage for something in the freezer.

01.04.12

Baby Sister's first "solid" meal.

How did 6 months go by so fast?

xoxo

The one where I make some resolutions

2012-01-02T00:12:00.001-06:00

Okay 2012, let's do this thing.

It's the week to be talking resolutions. I usually don't, because I don't know how much they really help me. Maybe because I usually say things like "be more organized" and anything that vague is doomed from the beginning...

Anywho, here is my (not all that ambitious, but totally do-able) list for the year:

Blog, blog, blog. I love this little space and it's been neglected far too long. I can't wait for the new projects and new friends to come.

Actually follow through on my 365 project. Maybe even post them here each week? I've had good starts the past few years and then slowly dwindled in my picture taking by February or March. To be holding a book full of photos at this time next year is going to feel awesome.

Run 500 miles this year. My typical runs are usually 3-4 miles so hopefully I've got this one. And every time I run, I'll have this going through my head. ;)

So how about you?
I have a good feeling about 2012.

xoxo

2011, a very good year

2011-12-31T10:37:00.003-06:00

Our family grew bigger and so did our hearts.

I can't wait to see what 2012 has in store.

Happy New Year, friends.

xoxo

Lingering and our Christmas 2011

2011-12-29T20:46:00.000-06:00

Our Christmas weekend was wonderful and we're trying to squeeze every last ounce of our holiday out before it's completely gone.

I've said before that I don't rush into de-Christmasing.

That year was also the year that Christmas became magical. Big Brother was 2, and he was just starting to get it.

Watching Christmas through his eyes was both simple and beautiful.

Our family has grown since then, and so has the anticipation and excitement of the season grown.

I love it.

Would you like a beautifully adorned "Folk Art" sign like mine? Just have your well-intentioned pediatrician give a sheet or two of stickers to your toddler. Should work like a charm.

And a teeny, tiny peek into our weekend:

We always host Christmas Eve with my side of the family.

WAY too much food as usual.

I made these brandy slushes, which may or may not have resulted in mama having a headache opening presents the next morning.

Oops.

Silly Grandma making the boys laugh with her bow head piece.

Great Grandpa Jack, the youngest almost 90 year old you'll ever meet.

Then on Christmas day we head my in laws' house.

They take Christmas seriously. A 20 foot tree seriously.

Santa even manages to make time in his busy schedule to drop by.

Again, the wonder and the beauty of it all is heart warming.

And so, with just a few days left in the year and a smidge of Christmas vacation to go, I'm just going to sit back and enjoy.

Hope you do, too.

xoxo

December 23rd

2011-12-27T20:46:00.002-06:00

I realize this post is several days late. Just thought I'd share, if for no other reason, so next year I can refer back to what I made...

I look forward to Christmas Eve Eve every year. It's my official holiday baking day, and this year was a doozy.

16 sticks of butter doozy.

That's 4 pounds.

Four. Pounds.

Yikes.

I try not to think about it too much. :)

I made plenty of old favorites and tried a few (dangerously delicious) new for good measure.

Julie's Toffee Crack was a new addition. So good. Had to make a second batch good.

Thank you to the glorious internet for teaching me to put my iPhone in a bowl to amplify the sound. Can't get enough of the Harry Connick Pandora station.

So here's the rundown of the cookie jars we gifted, with a whole bunch of links:

Toffee Crack from Julie

Peppermint bark (self-explanatory, I think)

Gingerbread cookies from Martha (which I've shared before)

No bake Nutella bars (also shared before)

Snickerdoodles (totally used the store bought mix)

Sugar cookies from Williams Sonoma

Peanut butter kisses (I use smooth peanut butter, though)

Chocolate chip cookies (straight off the bag, but without nuts)

Butter cookies, from a recipe I found somewhere online, pre-Pinterest:

You'll need:

1 c. softened butter

1/2 c. sugar

2 c. flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tbsp. milk

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix butter and sugar.

Add flour, salt, and baking powder.

Add vanilla and milk.

Mix until dough forms into a ball.

Roll out and decorate. (Dough is really easy to work with, so roll out again and again!)

Bake for 10-ish minutes.

xoxo

Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T23:07:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderfully full day and are gearing up for another tomorrow. This is a beautiful read for the day.

xoxo

Homemade peanut butter dog biscuits

2011-12-21T21:39:00.001-06:00

I confessed on facebook that I very nearly let my husband eat a gingerbread man dog biscuit I made as Christmas gifts for some of our furry friends.

So after lots of giggling about if I should have let him (I didn't!), someone asked if I'd share the recipe.

Here you go:

2 3/4 c. whole wheat flour
2 3/4 c. white flour
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. sea salt
1 c. peanut butter
3 eggs
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1-ish c. water

Combine flours, sugar, and salt in mixing bowl.

Add eggs and peanut butter. Mix to incorporate.

Add in oil.

Add enough water to make dough smooth and workable.

Cover and set aside for a half hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Roll out dough and cut into bars or use festive cookie cutters.

Bake 40-ish minutes, until biscuits are brown and fairly hard.

Gift to your favorite dog.

Or your husband.

Totally your call. :)

xoxo

I had to try it.

2011-12-19T20:53:00.002-06:00

Twinkly Christmas lights.

Hearts.

I'm powerless against them.

Shot using my most favorite lens and a piece of junk mail to create this.

xoxo

Happy Sunday

2011-12-18T19:52:00.002-06:00

We had our first real snow of the season yesterday.

Not much, maybe an inch.

But to two little boys who nearly forgot what snow was like over the past 8 months, it might as well have been a blizzard.

Snowballs were thrown, angels were made, and little tongues caught snowflakes.

Perfect to get us in the Christmas spirit this week.

xoxo

Pom pom and pine cone Christmas trees

2011-12-16T21:51:00.001-06:00

I needed something quick and simple to keep little hands busy while I was making dinner the other night (hence the less than stellar lighting).

Pom poms dipped in Elmer's glue stuck onto pine cones.

Perfect.

(You could probably even add a little ribbon to the top and make them into ornaments...)

xoxo

Christmasing

2011-12-14T16:13:00.001-06:00

Need some Christmas-y smells to accompany your tree? This is the perfect way to do it.

You'll need:

3 tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp ground cloves
1 tbsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground ginger
3-4 cups water

Bring all ingredients to a boil and then simmer.

Instant Christmas smells to enjoy!

xoxo

Copycat Christmas decor

2011-12-13T15:47:00.001-06:00

I love this photo in Matthew Mead's latest issue.

A perfect way to display some of my beloved vintage ornaments on a dresser in our dining room.

Hi.

Scout, our elfin friend.

xoxo

Happy Sunday

2011-12-11T15:35:00.001-06:00

I've heard that the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear. :)

xoxo

Collecting

2011-12-08T15:18:00.002-06:00

Thanks to eBay, a few new friends joined our happy little collection today.

xoxo

Happy Sunday

2011-12-04T22:05:00.000-06:00

McDonald's ice cream.

Sprinkles.

Can't beat it.

xoxo

Gingerbread house 2011

2011-12-03T22:14:00.001-06:00

Now that we've fully recovered from our sugar high, I can share this year's gingerbread house.

And if you follow along on facebook, you already know that more candy went in tummies than anywhere else, but that's okay.

I will proudly take credit for encouraging the candy cane hearts.

Adorable.

To see some of our other gingerbread creations over the years, look here, here, here, or here. (I guess I didn't post one last year??)

xoxo