A Pumpkin And A Princess

Giveaway Week Winners

2012-02-24T23:32:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday my friends! Did you enjoy our 1,000 followers giveaway week? Before I announce the winners I wanted to say that I appreciate you reading my blog and all of the support you've given me. I may not get a chance to reply to every comment but I read every single one and they always put a smile on my face. I feel so blessed to be able to share my passion with each and every one of you.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Now are you ready to see who the giveaway week winners are?

The Pick Your Plum winner is:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Expressions Vinyl winner:

a Rafflecopter giveaway Cutting Edge Stencils winner:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Twinery giveaway winner: a Rafflecopter giveaway

and the Earth's Best winner is:

Unknown Feb 15, 2012 10:11 PM

I like Earth's Best on facebook

cathy c

Congrats to all of the winners!

I also want to let you all know that next week I'm switching to wordpress. Which means that GFC will not work on my site. I know I know, we just spent an entire week celebrating 1,000 GFC followers only to lose all of you next week. If you follow via GFC please consider following with one of the following methods:

RSS

Twitter

Facebook

I've also added the new Linky Followers tool

and Bloglovin

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Thanks for reading! I look forward to sharing some fun new tutorials with you over the next few days. And if you're ready for a St. Patrick's Day craft, head on over to Darling Doodles where I shared an ombre four leaf clover canvas.

What I'm Loving: Paper Crafts

2012-02-23T16:31:00.000-08:00

Paper flowers to be more specific, I can't get enough of them. Last week during my regular Barnes and Noble trip I sipped on my favorite frappuccino, pulled up a chair, and skimmed through the scrapbook magazines. I was amazed at all the creative handmade cards featured. Then I started noticing all sorts of paper flowers. There were flowers on nearly every page. Maybe it's because Spring is approaching, but the flower possibilities are endless and I want to try every single technique out there! I quickly purchased my new favorite magazine and headed to the craft store for scrapbook paper. I then spent the weekend making my daughter some new wall art for her room. The entire thing is made out of paper and I can't wait to show it to you!

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In the meantime I made some yellow paper flowers to add a bit of color around the house. With low 70 degree weather and the flowers starting to bloom, it's practically Spring around here. While the flowers aren't quite ready to be picked from the garden, these little beauties will get the job done for now.

To make the paper flowers into a center piece I glued them onto a skewer. I then took a mason jar and wrapped twine around it just like I did with my spray painted jars.

I'm going to try these beauties next. Aren't they gorgeous?

Source: weddingchicks.com via Crystal on Pinterest

What are some of your favorite paper crafts? Do you use an embossing machine? I really like the texture it adds to paper crafting but I'm clueless on which is the best out there.

Thanks for stopping by! Come back tomorrow to see the winners list from our giveaway week.

Linking up to these parties, TCB, Sunday Scoop, Craftionary

Home Office Organization

2012-02-20T11:59:00.000-08:00

Today I would like to show you my home office. Unfortunately I don't have a spare room to convert into an office/craft room, forcing me to get creative with our space. We are currently in the process of making an office/craft space in our master bedroom but I have yet to find a desk that fits my needs. In the meantime I've set up a nice little office space in the kitchen that helps keep my whole family organized. This is where I read emails, blog, fill out paper work, and craft.

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To make the space colorful I have a framed fabric covered cork board that I use for notes. My son also uses this when he has a school form for me to fill out. He knows that if it's pinned I'll see it and won't misplace it, then have the teacher call me to ask if he can go on a field trip because he's the only student who hasn't turned his permission slip in. Not that that's ever happened....

This X-ACTO Spira pencil sharpener is a new addition to my office space. We usually have the small dollar sharpeners that seem to always get misplaced. This is very frustrating when my son needs to sharpen a pencil to do his homework and it's nowhere to be found. Well, the other day I printed this $3 off coupon, packed the kids up, and headed to Walmart to purchased an electric pencil sharpener. You can see more pictures on Google + but here I am shopping with my favorite 7 month old. Look at all those curls! This little boy melts my heart. :)

We now have an amazing sharpener that is both sleek and functional. The best part is that this baby is staying put, no more looking for lost sharpeners during homework time! Not only am I happy to have this sharpener for my son's homework but it's come in handy for me as well. You see I'm a list maker and note taker kind of gal. About 99% of the time you'll find handwritten notes in my kitchen, room, and car. My husband will tell ya that I get most of my craft ideas while I'm out and about. I keep a pencil and notepad in my purse at all times. I'll have to show you a picture of my random scribblings someday. I think you'll find them comical. :)

The print on the magazine holders is so simple and modern, just my style! I found the holders and tray for a dollar each. I like when I find cute and inexpensive storage containers. The dry erase calendar I found for 50 cents. Here's a little secret...I used a removable mounting square to hold the dry erase board up. That way when I need to plug in the sharpener I can just take it down, then put it back up to hide the plug.

Another way I stay organized, especially during tax season is by keeping folders and files. Throughout the year I keep our important tax information filed in a folder. I keep the W-2s, 1099s, blog information, receipts, and miscellaneous papers labeled. This makes it easy for me to keep track of receipts and paperwork that we will need come tax time. This is also when my note taking goes into overdrive. I'm constantly writing and erasing notes on forms. I'm going to definitely get some good use out of my new sharpener this weekend when I do our taxes.

How do you keep track of paper work, especially during tax season? If you have limited space like me, how do you stay organized?

Be sure to check out

Elmer's on twitter

X-ACTO on facebook

and here's a link to the coupon I used

$3 off X-ACTO Spira Pencil Sharpener

Linking up to these parties, TCB, Sunday Scoop, Craftionary

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias #XACTO

Cutting Edge Stencils Giveaway

2012-02-19T19:03:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, how was your weekend? We had a relaxing weekend filled with a lot of baking and crafting. I can't wait to share some new tutorials with you this week. Today I have a giveaway that I think you're going to enjoy. Do you remember my Bathroom Makeover? Are you dying to stencil a room in your house? Well one of you will win a stencil from Cutting Edge Stencils to do your own makeover! Just check out some of the beautiful stencils you can pick from:

If you're not quite ready to stencil on a large scale they have a variety of craft size stencils available too.

Cutting Edge Stencils is generously offering one A Pumpkin and a Princess reader a stencil of their choice (up to a $50 value). To enter use the Rafflecopter gadget below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway Giveaway ends on 2/23/12. One winner will be randomly selected. Winner must have a U.S. shipping address.

The Twinery Giveaway

2012-02-16T23:16:00.000-08:00

Hi friends! I hope you're enjoying all of the giveaways this week. You're going to love today's giveaway from The Twinery!

Do you love using bakers twine as much as I do? It's so much fun to craft with and the possibilities are endless. You can use it to make cards, package gifts, and so much more. Be sure to check out The Twinery Blog where you'll find tons of inspiration using bakers twine like these:

via

The Twinery is generously offering one A Pumpkin and a Princess reader their new {I Dream in Twine} sampler pack. It's 15 yards of all 18 colors. The winner is going to love this, just look at all that twine!

COLORS INCLUDED: Maraschino, Mandarin, Lemondrop, Peapod, Caribbean, Lilac, Pink Sorbet, Honeydew, Blossom, Charcoal, Cappuccino, Buttercream, Stone, Denim, Shore, Orchid, Flax, and Cantaloupe.

To enter use the Rafflecopter gadget below. If you have any questions please feel free to email me. Good luck everyone!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Creamy Chicken Florentine Recipe

2012-02-16T00:09:00.000-08:00

Thank you to Kraft Foods for offering me the opportunity to recreate a recipe with PHILADELPHIA Cooking Creme. Please click here to learn more about all the PHILADELPHIA Cooking Creme flavors and recipes.

As a busy mom of three I often rely on quick and easy meals to get me through dinner time. Between sports, homework and other mom duties, spending hours in the kitchen just isn't a possibility. So when I recently had the opportunity to try out the new PHILADELPHIA cooking creme I was impressed with how convenient it made cooking a family meal.

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I made Creamy Chicken Florentine using the Savory Garlic cooking creme. The name alone makes the meal sound appealing and it definitely did not disappoint. The creamy sauce gave it a comfort meal feel while the spinach and bell peppers made it feel light and healthy. The kids loved it and around these parts it's rare that we eat a meal everyone can agree on.

To make Creamy Chicken Florentine I used the recipe from the Kraft website, with a few adaptions. I omitted the pine nuts and added red and green bell peppers in addition to the red peppers. We served ours with a fresh baguette.

Creamy Chicken Florentine

Prep Time: 20 min. | Makes: 4 servings, 1-1/4 cups each.

What You Need

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

½ cup halved red pepper strips

1 tub (10 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Savory Garlic Cooking Creme

1 pkg. (6 oz.) baby spinach leaves

2 cups hot cooked penne pasta

2 Tbsp. toasted Italian pine nuts

Make It

Cook chicken and peppers in large nonstick skillet on medium heat 5 to 6 min. or until chicken is done.

Add cooking creme; cook and stir 3 min.

Stir in spinach and pasta; top with nuts.

Substitute

Substitute PLANTERS Slivered Almonds for the pine nuts.

Variation

Substitute uncooked deveined peeled medium shrimp for the chicken; cook and stir shrimp with peppers 2 to 3 min. or until shrimp turn pink. Add cooking creme; continue as directed.

Nutrition Information Per Serving

390 calories, 14g total fat, 7g saturated fat, 630mg sodium, 30g carbohydrate, 34g protein

Here's a little video I made of my daughter and I cooking. She loves helping me in the kitchen. Don't be surprised if you see her with her own cooking show 20 years from now. :)

The creme was so easy to use, I can't wait to try the Creamy Pesto and Savory Lemon & Herb next. Have you used any of the PHILADELPHIA Cooking Cremes? What are some of your favorite recipes using them. I'm always looking for new recipes to try.

Thank you again to Kraft Foods for sponsoring this blog post. I was selected as one of 20 bloggers by Technorati Media and Clever Girls Collective to participate in the Kraft Foods PHILADELPHIA Cooking Creme signature recipes campaign. While I have been compensated for my time and received the product, my opinions and experiences are my own.

Linking to these parties, TCB, Sunday Scoop

Earth's Best Giveaway-Toddler Snack Sampler

2012-02-15T09:16:00.000-08:00

I couldn't have a giveaway week without including one of my favorite companies. That my friends would be Earth's Best. By now you should already know how much I love Earth's Best and how I truly believe in their products. It's what I've given my children as babies and I love everything from their baby food, to toddlers snacks, and even their diapers!

I've mentioned before how much my daughter likes the Earth's Best Pop Snax because they're so convenient on the go. Her other favorites are the Sesame Street Organic Smiley Snacks and Organic Crunchin Grahams. OK I'll admit..I like the Crunchin Grahams too. Shhh don't tell my daughter I sneak some when she's not looking.

This isn't related to the giveaway but I love printables and I just printed this Elmo's Birthday Activity from their site. My daughter and I are going to have fun coloring it after lunch. You can print your own here.

Today Earth's Best is generously offering (1) one A Pumpkin and a Princess reader an Organic Sesame Street Snack Sampler.

To enter:

Winter Beauty Tips

2012-02-14T14:50:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://www.discoverbeautywithin.com/.

As a stay at home mom my morning beauty routine usually consists of throwing my hair up in a pony tail, putting on some comfy yoga pants, and dabbling on a little makeup to cover up my dark circles. Because let's face it with a toddler and 6 month who love sleeping in our room, I'm not getting much sleep these days.

This year one of my New Year resolutions is to focus on myself more often. Like go to the spa regularly, have a daily gym session, and always have perfectly manicured nails. HA! Who am I kidding? Taking a long bath without one of the kids needing my attention is a luxury for me. But in all seriousness I've made simple resolutions like doing my hair, wearing something other than yoga pants, and taking care of my skin.

One of the problems I'm facing right now is the cold winter weather. During the winter my skin gets so dry and let's not even start on my hair. As a busy mom what I need are quick, easy, and budget friendly solutions to maintain a good beauty routine during the cold winter months.

For me this means a great moisturizer

dry shampoo (oh how I love this stuff!)

and a good nail polish

Apparently I've been living under a rock because I'm just discovering Essie. I love their nail polish. What are some of your favorites, I need more colors. :)

It's amazing how in 3 short years I went from wearing business attire and high heels to yoga pants and sweaters that may or may not have baby food splattered on. I don't want to look like I just rolled out of bed everyday and am ready for a change. So far by taking these little steps I'm starting to improve my overall look.

So tell me, what are some of your favorite winter beauty tips? Any great products I need to try?

Expressions Vinyl Giveaway

2012-02-14T00:54:00.000-08:00

Hi guys! It's day 2, are you ready for the next giveaway? I sure hope so because today's giveaway is for a $25 gift certificate to Expressions Vinyl!

I recently used the flocked t-shirt vinyl from Expressions Vinyl to make my daughter's Valentine's Day shirt. I couldn't be happier with the way it turned out. If you haven't visited their site, you should check it out because their vinyl is high quality and very reasonably priced. Plus they carry every color and type of vinyl you can think of. They sell indoor and outdoor vinyl, T-shirt vinyl, patterned, and even printable vinyl. It also comes in a variety of sizes to fit your needs.

Expressions Vinyl not only carries all sorts of vinyl choices but also the Silhouette Cameo for an amazing price! Since I never got the Silhouette for Christmas I'm ordering it from Expressions Vinyl this week. I can't wait to share all of my projects with you guys!

If you're in need of some vinyl then you'll love this giveaway because Expressions Vinyl is generously offering (1) one A Pumpkin and a Princess reader a $25 gift certificate. To enter use the Rafflecopter gadget below. If you have any questions on how to enter please email me.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

One winner will be randomly selected. Giveaway ends on 2/23/12.

Pick Your Plum Giveaway!

2012-02-13T00:39:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday my friends! First off, THANK YOU for being a reader. My blog wouldn't be what it is today without all of you. I'm so glad I get to share my passion for crafting with you guys. ehh girls? I appreciate all of your comments, emails, and pins. To say thank you I'm hosting a week full of awesome giveaways.

Let's start the party with a craft supply box valued at $25 from Pick Your Plum!! You've all heard of Pick Your Plum right? Pick Your Plum is a daily deal site. Every morning {Monday-Friday} they list an amazing deal on craft supplies. You just sign up for the newsletter and wait for their email in the morning. But you have to be quick because they only sell a limited amount everyday. Once they're sold out that's it! To give you an idea of the awesome supplies they offer here are some past deals:

Pick Your Plum is generously offering (1) one A Pumpkin and a Princess reader a craft swag box valued at $25. The contents will be a surprise! I've made it super easy to enter by adding the Rafflecopter gadget below. Good luck everyone!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Please note that this giveaway is for A Pumpkin and a Princess followers only. Giveaway ends 2/23/12. Must have a U.S. shipping address.

Champions for Kids: Energizer Light Up A Life Kits

2012-02-12T21:56:00.000-08:00

Hi guys! Before we kick off our giveaway week I would like to take a few minutes to talk about an important campaign that I'm a part of. I am excited to partner with Energizer and Champions For Kids to help children in my community. If you haven't heard about Champions for Kids it's an organization that is trying to mobilize millions to help improve the lives of children in every community. Their goal is to help mobilize 20 million people by 2020.

This morning I had to remind my son to put a jacket on because it was cold outside. As I bundled my toddler up I realized just how fortunate we are to have these basic necessities. But what about all of the children in our community who can't afford warm clothes? What about other winter safety necessities?

Sometimes it's hard to explain to my children just how blessed we are to have a home, running water, food, electricity, and warm clothes. To teach my children I bring them along to the Rescue Mission when we donate food and supplies. This gives them a new point of view on just how many people out there really need help. I hope that by having my children experience this they will learn the importance of giving.

source

Did you know that over 9 million children suffer from non-fatal injuries each year, and accidents are the leading cause of death for children? Additionally, dangerous weather events cause hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries every year.

70% of power outages in the U.S. are weather related. Numerous power failures are caused by natural weather phenomena such as lightening, rain, snow, ice, wind, and even dust.

The Center of Disease Control recommends having a kit ready in preparation for any emergency that may arise. They recommend the kit include food, water, a flash light, extra batteries, medications, a first aid kit, sanitation and personal hygiene items, copies of personal documents, and other necessities.

I wish I could buy the basic necessities for every child out there. But as Mother Teresa said "If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one." What if all of us put together one kit to donate? Think of how big of an impact something so small can make if we all do this together.

Source

This week I will be shopping for my Energizer Care Kit to donate to a local shelter. I would like to include some winter necessities like a blanket, gloves, socks, and hat. Some other items I will include are flashlights, hygeine products, sanitizer, water, snacks, band aids, books, crayons and coloring books. I will post an update later this month. I also encourage each and everyone one of you to make a kit as well. Think of how many children we can help if we all make just one kit. If you do please share your experience with us. I would love to hear about it.

To learn more please visit Champions for Kids Website, Twitter, Facebook Energizer Website, Twitter, FacebookThis shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #EnergizerCFK #CBias

Valentine's Party with International Delight Iced Coffee

2012-02-12T11:35:00.000-08:00

This weekend I hosted a Valentine's and iced coffee tasting party. With Valentine's Day right around the corner this was the perfect opportunity to gather with friends and have the kids make Valentine cards. I love parties like these because it gives us parents a chance to catch up while the girls play together. The fact that there was coffee and cupcakes involved makes it even better.

Have you tried the new International Delight Iced Coffee? They come in mocha, original, and vanilla. If you like coffee shop iced coffee you'll love these!

I served the iced coffee in mason jars wrapped with lace. To make them I simply hot glued lace onto the jars. This was a small detail that changed the whole look of the setup. After the party I took the off lace, soaked the jars, and the glue slid right off.

The juice boxes for the kids were my favorite. I wrapped them in pink and white polka dot scrapbook paper, added a strip of white paper, then 1.5 inch pink hearts to finish them off.

I found these little take out boxes at Walmart and couldn't resist. They made the perfect favor box to hold mini play-doh in.

I was running short on time so I bought cupcakes instead of making them. The girls didn't seem to mind :)

For the decor I used paper lanterns and pom pom trim. Remember my love for rick rack? Well I think pom pom trim is taking over. It's so cute and you can use it for so many things. I'll be posting a tutorial on something I made with it soon.

Everyone loved the iced coffee. There wasn't a clear favorite because everyone had a different preference but I'm a big fan of the mocha. It's going to be a great alternative to my regular coffee shop trip, which I'm sure will do wonders for my wallet.

These little girls are going to be best friends. They've known each since birth and always have a blast playing together. It's parties like these that I'm going to love looking back on when they're older.

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We had a great time and the girls had so much fun. If I could I'd do it all over again next weekend!

To learn more about the new International Delight Iced Coffee visit:

The International Delight website

International Delight on facbeook

International Delight on twitter

My Google + story

Linking up to these parties, TCB, Sunday Scoop, Home Stories A2Z,

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. All opinions, pictures, and experiences are my own. #CBias #IcedCoffee

Marshamallow Valentine's Day Treats

2012-02-10T10:08:00.002-08:00

Hey hey! Are you excited for the weekend? Tomorrow I'm hosting a Valentine's Day party for the kids and their friends. While the kids make Valentines the parents are going to chat over coffee. I can't wait to tell you how it goes. I'll try to remember to take a lot of pictures.

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Today I want to show you another cute Valentine idea that I originally shared over at Craftionary. Of course it involves chocolate drizzled marshmallows. I think I have a slight obsession with them lately. :)

To make this Valentine's Day treat drizzle chocolate onto heart shaped marshmallows. You could make them even cuter by adding sprinkles on top or dipping half of the heart into the chocolate. Let the chocolate harden and then you're ready to wrap them up.

Packaging treats is always fun for me. It makes me happy to give someone a cute little package that is handmade. To package these treats you will need scrapbook paper, heart doilies, clear bags, a stapler, stamp, and ink.

Cut your scrapbook paper slightly smaller than the bag then stamp or write Happy Valentine's Day on the back. Place the marshmallow inside and fold a doily in half. Then staple the center of the doily. To cover the staple add a little heart cut out or sticker over it.

Now you have a super easy and cute Valentine's Day treat.

Have a great weekend! Don't forget that on Monday we kick off the 1,000 followers giveaway week. It's going to be awesome!

Linking up to these parties, TCB, Craft Envy

Valentine's day shirt and a giveaway announcement

2012-02-10T00:18:00.000-08:00

One of the best things about having a girl is making her cute clothes for every season and holiday. You could probably do that for boys too but it's just the same. Don't you think? Since the day we found out we were having a girl I knew I would be obsessed with hair bows, dresses, sparkly shoes, and all things pink and purple. Then when I bought my sewing machine it became a whole different ball game. That first week I think I made a pillow case dress every single night. After that I started making skirts, oh how I loved making her skirts. They weren't anything extraordinary but I enjoyed making them in what every color/ theme I wanted. If you've been a reader for a long time then you may remember the skirt I made my daughter for our pumpkin patch trip. Sadly, they don't fit anymore but have been repurposed as dress up clothes for her dolls. Another thing I enjoy making for my daughter are shirts, especially holiday shirts. My new favorite way of making shirts is by using t-shirt vinyl.

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To make this heart shirt I used flocked t-shirt vinyl from Expressions Vinyl. It's so incredibly easy to work with and I love the results. All you do is cut out your design and iron it on. Once it has cooled you peel off the top layer, sit back and enjoy your work. Now my daughter has something festive to wear on Valentine's Day.

Now to announce something super exciting! Because you are all awesome and I have reached 1,000 followers, I'm having a giveaway week starting Monday. Yay! Thank you so much for all of your support and for reading my blog. Never in a million years did I think my little blog with 5 family members following would grow into what it is today. Crafting is something I have always loved. It's something everyone knows for. I'm no Martha Stewart but I truly love creating, even if something simple. I'm so glad I get to share this passion with all of you. To thank you I want to host a giveaway week featuring some of my favorite companies. I'm so excited, I can't wait. :)

Thanks for stopping by, have a fabulous day my friends!
Linking up to these parties, TCB, Craft Env, Home Stories A2Z

25 Valentine's Day Ideas

2012-02-08T17:40:00.000-08:00

Can you believe Valentine's Day is next week? I've had so much fun crafting in preparation for the big day and it's kind of just crept up on me. I always feel like I have more ideas than time. Do you feel like that sometimes? Especially with pinterest around. There are so many inspiring ideas that I want to try, just not enough time in the day to do them all.

If you're looking for some Valentine's Day ideas here are a few I've shared so far:

Brownie Bites

Valentine's Day Towels

Now here are some amazing pinterest finds. These ladies have amazing talent!

Source: daysofchalkandchocolate.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: karaspartyideas.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: sprinklebakes.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: makoodle.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: bettybroccoli.tumblr.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: familyfun.go.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: marthastewart.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: artallages.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: partywishesscv.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: twopeasandtheirpod.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: kwernerdesign.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: bloomdesignsonline.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: tamiwilsonblog.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: blog.birdsparty.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: duitang.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: skiptomylou.org via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: annies-eats.net via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: cookingwiths.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Don't you just love all the creativity around blogland? All of these ideas are adorable. If I had the time I'd make every single one!
Thanks for stopping by. I'll be back tomorrow with yet another Valentine's Day idea AND an announcement :)

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Linking up to these parties and TCB

Alfredo Chicken Penne #LaRomanella Recipe

2012-02-08T01:12:00.000-08:00

It's no secret that I love Italian food. I could probably devote a whole month's worth of posts to Italian recipes. As a Smart and Final Smarties member I recently had the opportunity to create an Italian recipe using La Romanella products. La Romanella is an Italian food line at Smart and Final with a wide array of products including pasta, pesto, cheeses, and even biscotti! Today I'm going to share with you my Chicken Penne recipe, a favorite in our household.

Ingredients:

La Romanella Penne Pasta

3/4 cup La Romanella Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1 garlic clove (minced)
1 chopped tomato

dash of salt and pepper
chicken

This is the BEST pasta I've ever had hands down. The best part is it's only $1.69 for a bag of organic penne. I also picked up a bag of La Romanella farfalle that I can't wait to try. You can check out my shopping experience on Google +.

To make Chicken Penne cook your pasta according to the package (about 10-12 minutes). In the meantime cook chicken breast and any vegetables you would like to serve with your dish.
To make the Alfredo sauce melt butter in a saucepan, once completely melted add the heavy cream and minced garlic. Whisk in the parmesan cheese, dash of salt and pepper, then simmer for 8-10 minutes, stirring often.
Remove from heat and stir in the parsley and mozzarella cheese. Toss Alfredo sauce with your pasta, add grilled chicken, then sprinkle chopped tomatoes on top. We like to serve ours with steamed broccoli and a fresh baguette.

Starting today if you purchase La Romanella products from Smart and Final head on over to www.smartandfinal.com/LaRomanella2012 to enter the code on your reciept. By doing so you will be entered to win some of these amazing prizes:
First Prize: a weekend trip to one of the most luxurious Italian inspired resorts in Las Vegas
Additonal prizes:
(8) $100 SmartCash cards
(8) La Romanella gift baskets worth over $50
Pretty awesome prizes right?

As a Smart and Final Smarties member I'm also entered into their blogger recipe contest and would LOVE it if you voted for my Chicken Penne recipe. You can vote by going to the Smart and Final website. By voting you are automatically entered to win one of the (8) $50 SmartCash cards being given away. Thank you so much for all of your support!

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Linking up these parties, TCB, Home Stories A2Z
This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for #collectivebias #CBias

Super Bowl Party

2012-02-07T01:20:00.000-08:00

Hi friends! Did you watch the Super Bowl? How about that half time show. Madonna was pretty much amazing don't you think? Like I mentioned last week we had a small Super Bowl party and I can't to show you the details I added.

First off I should say that I wasn't a big sports fan growing up. I still probably couldn't name a football player if you asked. Unless you count David Beckham. Oh wait, that's a different kind of football. :)

But our family is really into sports and I'm starting to find interest in them too. There's something exciting about getting together with friends and family to watch a championship game. All the yummy food doesn't hurt either.

For the party my mother in law made some delicious french dips and I was in charge of drinks and snacks. I brought coke for the adults and juice boxes for the kids.

I also bought some Orville Redenbacher's popcorn and placed them in cupcake liners. They made great individual snacks.

The kids loved the juice boxes covered with scrapbook paper. They were so incredibly easy to make too. All I did was cut the paper long enough to cover the juice box then taped it on.

Pretty easy way to spruce up a plain juice box isn't it? You can do this with any party theme too.

Overall I'd say this party was a success. A lot of yelling and definitely a lot of eating.

Thanks for stopping by!

You can view my Google + story here.
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This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias #PepsivsCoke. All pictures and opinions are my own.

Love Canvas

2012-02-03T16:16:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday my friends! Are you excited for the weekend? I've been busy planning two parties, a Super Bowl party and Valentine's Day party next Saturday. Do you enjoy planning parties? I'll admit they can be hectic and sometimes stressful. But it's always fun getting together with family and friends.

With all the planning going on I haven't had much time to finish my Valentine's decor. My Valentine's Day Garland has been pretty lonely the past few weeks. So last night I made a fun little canvas to add to our decor. The best part about this is that everything is completely removable. That way I can reuse the canvas if I want to.

To make this I took a strip of houndstooth glitter paper and a corner rounder punch. To adhere the strip I used glue dots. I then hot glued the ruffled ribbon onto the paper. The hearts were cut out using my Cricut in two different sizes and hot glued onto the ribbon. To finish it off I cut out the word love out of vinyl.

I LOVE everything about this canvas!

Houndstooth

Glitter

Pink

Ruffles

Hearts

It's cute, simple, and girly..just my style!

If you follow me on Twitter then you may have seen the mess I made making this. Someone please tell me I'm not the only one with a kitchen counter like this?

Have a great weekend my friends! I'll be back Monday with a Super Bowl party recap.

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10 Super Bowl Party Ideas

2012-02-02T16:57:00.000-08:00

Are you ready for the big game this weekend? We're having a Super Bowl party and I'm trying to think of party decor and recipes to make. Of course that means I've been on pinterest all day. But that isn't any different from most days :). I put together a Super Bowl party roundup in case you're in need of inspiration too.

Source: bakerella.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: andeverythingsweet.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: blogs.babble.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: products.berries.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: ohbabyshowerdecor.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: fastfood.ocregister.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: spaceshipsandlaserbeams.com via Crystal on Pinterest

The football party food Bubbly Nature Creations made is just too cute! My kids would love mini football pizzas.

I'm definitely going to reuse the football banner I recently shared.

These football cupcakes were a big hit at our last football party I'm considering making them again.

Do you have any great party ideas to share? I'd love to hear them!

Thanks for stopping by! I'll be back tomorrow with another Valentine's Day idea.

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Brownie Bites

2012-02-01T01:03:00.000-08:00

Hello, my name is Crystal and I'm a chocoholic. I can't go a day without eating chocolate. It's a problem I'm not willing to fix right now. You see, if I went through an intervention then I couldn't bake cute little brownies with strawberry marshmallows on top. Let's not forget the white chocolate drizzle either. This Valentine's Day treat is too cute to not make. So I'll gladly continue my chocolate addiction just to share with you cute little treats like these :)

I don't know what it is about Valentine's day that makes me want to see hearts everywhere. It's not enough that my toddler wants to stamp hearts on paper everyday, we have to cut our food into hearts too. It reminds me of my childhood. My mother always tried to make every holiday fun and I'm trying to recreate those memories with my own children. And you know what? My children enjoy it and that makes me happy.

So while my oldest was in school the other day, my toddler and I baked these adorable heart filled brownie bites. We filled a mini muffin pan 2/3 of the way with brownie mix and baked them for about 13-15 minutes. As soon as I removed them from the oven we pressed strawberry marshmallows into each one. The heat of the brownie slightly melts the bottom of the marshmallows, keeping it in place. They needed a little something and this is where the white chocolate drizzle came in.

These brownie bites are cute, festive, and totally delicious!

They even make a cute Valentine to give to a friend.

Thanks for stopping by, hope you're having a great week!

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Earth's Best Giveaway

2012-01-31T16:26:00.000-08:00

And the winner is.....

Chuck & Angela Feb 2, 2012 02:42 PM

Crystal! It's almost time to try potty training Abby again! I have the jar, next is to decorate it and buy some goodies!

Hi everyone! Sorry for the lack of posts the last few days. My computer has been out of commission but I'm finally back and with an Earth's Best giveaway!
Today let's talk about potty training. Do you have a toddler in the midst of potty training? Has it been a smooth process or a complete mess? (no pun intended hehe)
Last summer we began potty training our daughter. Initially it was going great and we even used a Potty Treats Jar.

Then the baby was born and potty training kind of came to a halt. Life became so busy once the baby was here that we kept saying "next week we'll start" but next would come and go and potty training was the least of our worries. Our problem was we used the diapers when it was convenient and undies when we were at home. This totally confused her. I'm not an expert but my advice is if your child is ready just take the plunge and go for it. Going back and forth between undies and pull ups/diapers was just confusing for my daughter. We finally decided to get serious and said no more pulls up during the day starting Monday. Monday came and boy was it a long day. My daughter had 6 accidents! The next day she had 4. I started to question whether she was ready but we decided to keep trying for a few more days. By the end of the week she only had only 1 accident. The next week she didn't have any. One night at the end of week two she fell asleep without a pull up on. I was curious to see how she would do overnight without one. To be honest I was expecting a 2am wake up call to clean sheets and give a bath. I was completely surprised that she didn't have an accident. From that point on she's only had two accidents overnight. I can't even tell you how great it is not having two kids in diapers.
So tell me, do you have any great potty training tips to share? Were you one of the lucky ones that had a smooth potty training experience or did it take months to potty train? I'd love to hear YOUR story!

How many of you are currently potty training or going to start soon? If you are then you'll like this giveaway! Earth's Best is generously offering one of my readers Earth's Best Chlorine-Free Washable Wipes and Potty Training Pants.

To enter:

Simply leave a comment

For extra entries:

Like Earth's Best on facebook

Follow a pumpkin and a princess on twitter

Follow a pumpkin and a princess on facebook

That's 4 chances to win. Please leave a comment for each entry. Giveaway will end on 2/4/12. Winner will be selected randomly. Open to U.S. residents only.

Volcano Tutorial #gluenglitter

2012-01-28T22:01:00.000-08:00

Growing up I was always a hands on learner. I excelled in subjects that allowed me to work with materials and create projects. Growing seeds in Dixie cups to learn about the plant systems? Yes, please! Math? Eh not so much. Perhaps one of my favorite subjects was science. I remember learning about rocks and building a solar system. To this day there's something exciting about learning about rock formations, climate changes, and natural hazards. I now see this fascination in my son. It's his favorite subject in school. Anything science related, the boy loves. Whether it's looking at slides in his microscope, collecting rocks to examine, or reading science facts from library books. So when he needed to make a volcano for a science project he couldn't wait to get started. Secretly I think I was more excited than he was to build the volcano :)

The first thing we considered was what type of volcano we wanted to make. There are several options to choose from; salt dough, plaster, a poster board cone, and play dough.

We chose to make a salt dough volcano.

To make your own you will need:

6 cups of flour

2 cups of salt

2 cups of water

4 tbsp of oil

To make your volcano erupt you will need:

1/2 cup of warm water

3 tbsp of dish soap

1/2 cup of vinegar

1/4 c baking soda

Red food coloring (optional)

The first thing I did was create a base for the volcano. I used a cardboard box and an X-ACTO knife to make a rectangular base.

In a large bowl mix the flour and salt together. Add 1 cup of water and 2 tbsp of oil. Mix together then add the remaining cup of water and 2 tbsp of oil. Glue a jar or bottle onto your base and begin forming the dough onto it. Keep adding layers until you get the size and shape you desire. Let your volcano dry (can take 3-5 days to dry completely). Once dried paint your volcano.

Using a funnel pour the baking soda into the bottle, then add your dish soap. Add a few drops of red food coloring to your water and pour it into the bottle. Now for the fun part...slowly add your vinegar in and watch your volcano erupt!

For the display we used an Elmer's Tri-Fold Display Board, an Elmer's X-TREME Glue Stick, pictures found online, and letters cut out using my cricut.

I recommend using the X-TREME glue sticks when gluing onto display boards. This was our first time using it and I'm impressed with how well the glue holds up.

Just for fun here's a picture of us shopping for supplies. The boy usually loathes shopping, but we had a blast this particular day :)

You can view the rest of our shopping experience on Google +.

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This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias #gluenglitter

Valentine's Day Towels

2012-01-26T16:45:00.000-08:00

If there's one thing that I can't do it's walk past the dollar section at Target without stopping. There's always something new I just have to see. So when I recently came across these rick rack towels I knew I had to get them. They were cute to begin with but a little embellishing turned them into adorable Valentine's Day towels.

These were so incredibly easy to make. All I did was sew on some ruffled jersey knit fabric and applique a heart on each one.

Instead of running to the store for light pink thread to match the heart, I just used no-sew heat n bond. I've had pretty good luck with it on shirts so I'm hoping it holds up well.

Pretty easy transformation isn't it? These towels are so girly and I'm totally loving the rick rack. Not sure why the ruffles look red but they're actually hot pink.

Thanks for stopping by! I'll be back tomorrow with a Valentine's Day treat.
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Chore Ideas and an Earth's Best Giveaway

2012-01-23T14:46:00.000-08:00

The Winner is....

Our Delightful Home Jan 24, 2012 06:32 AM

I would love to WIN!

~Mrs. Delightful
Congrats! I've emailed you :)

Do you assign chores for your children? Now that my children are getting to an age where they can help out I've struggled with finding the appropriate chores for each child and how often they should be responsible for them. To make the process easier I've started with small chores for my toddler. The biggest issue for us is having her pick up her toys. She'll walk into a room and within minutes toys are scattered everywhere. Which leads to me spending most of my day cleaning up after her. Now that the baby is nearly crawling, having toys all over the floor has become an issue. So we recently sat down with her to discuss the importance of cleaning up after ourselves and how small objects can be harmful to the baby. She's done pretty well the last few days and has only had to be reminded a few times. I'm thinking a chore chart will be helpful for all of us. Here are some ideas I found on pinterest..

Source: whateverdeedeewants.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: controllingmychaos.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Now for the fun part...Earth's Best if generously offering one of you a box of Earth's Best Organic Snacks & a Sesame Street Meals Sampler.

To enter:

Football Party #CBias

2012-01-23T00:19:00.000-08:00

Did you watch the playoffs yesterday? We had a little playoff viewing party and it was a blast! Yesterday was also my father in laws birthday so we had a great time celebrating, watching the games, and hanging out with family.

My mother in law made an amazing dinner but early in the afternoon we snacked on appetizers and chocolate cupcakes.

Just for fun I made a football pennant banner and added a few other embellishments to our setup.

Aren't these football cupcakes the cutest? I found the idea on pinterest. They're not nearly as pretty but they sure were tasty :)

And what's a football party without guacamole? I used the same guacamole recipe I shared a few weeks ago.

Most of our party food and drinks came from our local Walgreens. You can view my shopping experience on Google +.

So how about those games? Weren't they exciting? The 49ers vs Giants game was especially fun to watch. You would think living a couple of hours from San Francisco I'd root for the 49ers but our whole family wanted the Giants to win. Luckily they scored a field goal in overtime and they're headed to the Super Bowl.

How was your weekend? Are you excited for Super Bowl?

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This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. All opinions are my own.

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