My 3 Monsters

Welcome to The Butler House Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 11 Feb 2018 03:42:00 +0000

Hi guys! If you have come here looking for My 3 Monsters, you are in the right place!! Read on...

I'm kicking off 2018 with a big new blogging adventure. I started writing My 3 Monsters back in 2008 -- a DECADE ago! -- as a way to journal and keep in touch with my family. With a little hard work and a lot of good old fashioned luck, my online journal about my kids and my hobbies has grown into a small business. I am beyond grateful for the opportunities I have had over the past ten years and the amazing people who have supported my growth.

A lot changes over the course of a decade. My three little kids -- the "monsters" who inspired this blog's name -- are not so little any more. They have grown into amazing, talented young adults who are preparing to leave the roost, so to speak. The loving moniker "monster" no longer fits them. And as I think about my personal future, I have a new vision of what I want to do and be. The day-in, day-out tasks of young motherhood, which were all-consuming ten years ago, are no longer my reality as I look at becoming an "empty-nester" with my husband in the next few years.

I earned a degree in interior design from Brigham Young University twenty-some years ago and have always longed for an opportunity to use that skill set in a more meaningful way. I've shared some things we've done around our house here on the blog and I've done some design work for local friends, but I've always wanted more.

So, what is changing? With this new name and the coming blog redesign, you will see a clearer focus on my real loves -- the things that make a house a home:

DIY Tutorials that will hopefully inspire you to put some blood, sweat and tears into your own homes like we have ours.
Room Redesigns with style boards as well as before & afters so you can see how to bring an idea into reality and add some polish to your spaces.
Food and Entertaining ideas because serving friends and family in your home is what gives it life.
I'll also be venturing into the world of E-Design Services soon, for those of you who want a little one-on-one decorating magic for your spaces at a fraction of the price of hiring an interior designer.

What's up with the new name? I was hoping someone would ask! Years ago, as a newlywed with a design degree burning a hole in my pocket, I dreamed of one day owning a home that I could turn into a real showstopper. A place to try out everything I had ever learned and every idea I had ever had. Three children, two apartments, and one rental house later, my little family finally bought our first house. A tiny 1400 square foot, 3 bedroom fixer-upper in a good, quiet neighborhood. On Butler Street.

Thirteen years later, we still live in "the Butler House" and love it -- usually. I have decorated and re-decorated every inch of space inside these walls, made a million mistakes, and am ultimately discovering what it takes to create a loving, cozy, beautiful home. This home has given me a design education at least equal to anything I learned in school. I hope to share everything the Butler House has taught me over the years. I also hope y'all will come back again and again and that you'll find this little online home as warm and welcoming as we try to make our real-life home.

How will I find you? At butlerhousedesign.com AND at my3monsters.com . Same site at both addresses.  I know this is all confusing! As I work on re-branding some of my old content and transitioning everything over from Blogger to Wordpress, I will keep the new posts coming here at my3monsters.com for the time being, but with a new name and focus. When I'm all set up in my new home, y'all will be the first to know . . . and I think you will love it! Hopefully it will be a seamless transition (*fingers crossed*) and you, my loyal readers, will notice vastly improved content and ease of navigation.

And if you ever find yourself in Arizona, feel free to stop by the Butler House and say hello. We'll probably be in the middle of a project, sweaty and in disarray, but we happily take any opportunity to grab a Coke Zero, sit down, and chat!!

Have a great day, friends!!

DECOR || Valentines Day Hot Chocolate Station

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 03:15:00 +0000

Heat things up (literally) this Valentine's Day! See how easy it is to style a festive hot chocolate station for your family and friends. Because to me, love is synonymous with whipped cream and sprinkles -- you can never have to much!

*This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to purchase something I recommend, you will not pay any extra, but I may get a little something to help keep the fun ideas coming your way. Read my complete disclosure policy here. Thanks y'all!

Hi guys! Living in Arizona for 16 years, I don’t think I have a firm grasp on what “winter” is anymore. Not like the rest of y’all do anyway. Every day I see pictures on TV and social media of people who are up to their eyeballs in snow, wrapped in parkas and boots. Gorgeous photos of Ice Castles and snow sculptures.

Part of me is a little jealous, but a bigger part of me is like, “I ate Mexican food Friday night outside on the patio of my favorite neighborhood restaurant without a jacket on. Sorry, not sorry.” That being said, I have been FREEZING all day at work for the past little while. My fingers are like ice and the poor kids flinch every time I touch them taking their temperatures. It has been winter here, too, even if it is a milder version of it. Our thin desert blood can’t handle the cold, like, at all.

I’ve been seriously craving hot chocolate ALL THE TIME lately! Since it’s almost Valentine’s Day, I decided to create a little hot chocolate station and put a spin on it, leaning toward lighter colors and fruitier flavors instead of the red, and cinnamon, and mint that is traditional around the holidays. Before I show you the end result, check out this Hot Chocolate Station Style Guide for my inspiration.

A. Ceramic Cow Creamer | B. Three Tiered Serving Tray | C. Wooden Disposable Spoons | D. Mixed Sprinkles (no longer available) -- similar here | E. Clear Glass Mugs | F.Clear Glass Jar with Metal Lid | G. Turquoise Glass Cookie Jar | H. Clear Glass Bottle with Stopper | I. Torani Raspberry Syrup | J. Hot Chocolate Printable -- free download here | K. Antiqued Gray Dresser (mine was thrifted, but this one is similar -- and cute!)| L. Whipped Cream Dispenser | M. Keurig K250 Coffee Maker in Oasis | N. Heart Shaped Marshmallows | Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate K-cups

These are some of the essentials to throw together your own Hot Chocolate Station. Obviously there are some luxury items here. The mint green Keurig machine? Hello, I’m in love. I’m not a coffee drinker so I never really paid much attention to what Keurig had going on -- that is, until I saw Swiss Miss K-cups at my local store. What. In. The. World?! Have I been living under a rock?? Now, for just a little over $100, that mint-green sweetie is pretty high up on my list of ~~wants~~ needs. I also don’t use whipped cream enough to justify the stainless steel professional whipped cream dispenser, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t love to have one. The rest of the items are all basics – things that I own and use regularly. Now, here it is in reality:

That chippy old gray dresser (that looks white in all my photos??) is my most favorite thrifting score. And it was actually free! We were dropping off some of our old stuff at Goodwill when, by chance, a good friend of mine pulled up behind us. She asked if I wanted to look at her stuff before she made her donation. I could not have had our husbands move that fabulous old thing into the back of my van fast enough! It is perfect for storing linens and serving pieces that I only use occasionally, and it serves as a pretty great home for my hot chocolate station right now.

I designed this printable (with just a touch of sass) to serve as a cute backdrop for the display. It is my nod to seasonal decorations. The only holiday I really ever decorate for is Christmas, so framing this printable is a lot for me, haha. You can download it in a couple of sizes here. I also made a coffee version, if that’s more your cuppa’ . . .tea? As always, the printables are free for your personal use.

This tiered wood serving tray was one of my Black Friday purchases a couple years back. It is so versatile I have used it for every occasion, and in every room of my house. I feel like you need a little height in your display to make it more functional and visually interesting.

Glass jars look classic for storing just about anything. I love the vintage feel -- it reminds me of Mr. Olson's store on Little House on the Prairie when I was a kid. I filled one with our favorite White Hot Chocolate mix and the other with packets of regular cocoa.

I feel like everything is prettier when you take it out of its grocery store packaging. I especially like these inexpensive syrup bottles from IKEA for holding flavored syrups to mix into your hot chocolate. Sugar-free Coconut and Raspberry are favorites around here.

These clear glass mugs are also from IKEA. I like that they are big enough to hold a good size drink, but because they are clear, they're not visually cluttery. I also have a set of white mugs that will probably end up on the hot chocolate station as well.

Toppings are always welcome here. Whipped cream? The more the better. And sprinkles? Yes, please. Marshmallows? Why not. Flavored creamer from a ceramic cow? Be still my heart.

My secret ingredients for extra-decadent hot chocolate are these Lindor truffles. Drop one into your steaming mug of cocoa and give it a stir -- you'll thank me later.

We don't currently have a working fireplace (adding one is on the slate for this year!!) and we refuse to use our heater -- I know, I know, I can hear your violins for my sob story. Now I can get through the last few "frigid" Arizona winter weeks by making myself a cup of hot chocolate to sip on as I wrap up in a blanket and blog the evening away after work.

Did I miss anything? What are your hot chocolate must-haves? Leave a comment and let me know how you'll be heating things up (literally or figuratively) this Valentine's Day!

I got your hot chocolate station covered, but if you want some expert decorating advice to pull your room, or even your whole house together, Havenly is an online interior design company who have interior designers to help. Check them out!

Have a great day, friends!

ENTERTAINING || Valentines Day Cereal Party & Free Printable Valentines

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 15 Jan 2018 23:42:00 +0000

Hey guys! It feels like I can hardly keep up these days. I just barely have time to clean up from one holiday before it’s time to start thinking about the next one! It helps that I’m SUPER excited about the next one, though. I think Valentine’s Day is so much fun. At the school where I work we call it Friendship day, which just adds to the spirit of the holiday. We could all use a little more celebration of love and friendship up in here, in my humble opinion!

This year I thought it would be AWESOME to celebrate Valentine’s Day with a Friendship Breakfast. Not your typical fancy pants breakfast -- no waffles or crepes or quiche for this shindig. I live in a house of men now, remember. This is gonna’ be a CEREAL PARTY!!! Because I’m CEREAL-sly grateful for my friends! *insert eye rolls from teenagers here*

But cereal-sly (hee hee), the one food my family asks for more than any other is cold cereal. We love it! And so do most kids, if I’m not mistaken. Like I always say, every good party starts with a fun invitation. I designed this printable invitation in a 5x7 inch size that fits two to a page or as a 3.75x 5 inch which fits four to a page if you’re planning on inviting a crowd. I invited the 10-year-olds I teach at church and they were cereal-sly (OK, enough already) excited to come!

Download the blank images here. Upload the JPG images in a photo editing program like Photoshop or on a site like PicMonkey to add your own details, or print the PDF as-is and write in the details by hand. The font I used for all my info is called Lemonade Stand. You can download it here.

For your party, set up a buffet table full of a wide variety of cereals, toppings, and milks – some sweet, some healthy (if that’s your thing).

I put my cereal in glass jars with metal scoops – mainly because that’s how we always store our cereal here, but also because it looks super cute. I also used a few galvanized buckets with scoops to accommodate more flavors. Variety is the key word here!

For toppings I chose things like fresh berries, marshmallows, chocolate chips, whipped cream, and sprinkles (of course!).

You gotta’ represent all the milk groups, as well – white, chocolate, and strawberry. Glass milk bottles and tags up the cute factor by about a million. Each guest can choose the flavor of milk they want, pour it over their creation, and then grab a straw to drink the extra. Mmmmmmm, cereal milk!

For “bowls”, I picked up some inexpensive white 32-ounce take-out boxes on Amazon for a steal and added my own labels to tie them in with the theme. (It’s A LOT cheaper than buying cutesy patterned or colored boxes. Just sayin’. I love me a bargain.)

We made up a few “recipes” in advance just in case our guests are wary of mixing and matching. I don’t think we’ll have to worry, but they make cute decorations as well. The recipe prints, round labels, and milk tags are all available in my Cereal Valentine Party Pack here. They are free for personal use only.

Easy planning. Easy set-up. Pretty inexpensive. The trifecta of a perfect party in my book!

If you’re not into throwing a friendship breakfast this year, I designed a smaller version you can print eight to a page that your kids can pass out as Valentines at school. Just tie them to a small box or bag of cereal or a cute spoon and you’re good to go! Cereal-sly adorable, amiright?!

Happy Valentine’s Day, friends!

LDS || The Price is Right -- A Fun Budgeting Activity for Activity Days

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 05 Jan 2018 07:00:00 +0000

Hi, guys! I have been working with the 8-11 year old girls in our church for the past year or so in the Activity Days program. We meet twice a month for fun activities (hence the name) that teach spiritual lessons, help the girls discover and develop their talents, and provide opportunities to serve others. I have shared some of the more elaborate activities we have planned, like our Back-to-School Flamingle, and this "Experiment Upon the Word" Science Night. Not every activity is that fancy, believe me!! Some nights we just do a small craft or play games.

Earlier this year I was in charge of planning an activity about budgeting. Yikes!! How was I going to take a topic that ~~is soooo boring~~ I am not so fond of myself, and make it fun -- and RELEVANT -- for a bunch of active tweens?! I decided to play The Price is Right to make sure they had an idea about how much common things actually cost. It was SUPER interesting!!

Send home an invitation/reminder the Sunday before the activity to get the girls excited! Download my design here and print them 4 to a page. Just use a black marker to write in the names on the price tags and the info about the activity.

I made the whole game into a PowerPoint presentation, so I could just hook my laptop up to a big TV at church and make the whole thing go really smoothly. For the first game they were shown two products and one price. They had to choose which product matched the price shown.

The answer is revealed in the next slide:

We talked a little about shopping sales and using coupons, but I tried not to overwhelm them with information.

After several rounds of that, the next game was Higher or Lower! They were shown a product and a price and had to decide if the actual price of that item was higher or lower than the price shown.

Again, the answer was revealed in the next slide:

They were actually pretty good at this one! We played this game for several rounds, and then . .

It was time for Squeeze Play!! The girls were shown an item along with several numbers. They had to decide which number needed to be removed to make the actual price of the the item.

It took some prompting to help them understand this game, but once they got it, they loved it! I used the actual retail prices I found online or from stores in our area when possible for each item as I was putting the game together. For a few of the items I had to google the average price and used that.

You can download my finished Price is Right PowerPoint here.

If you would rather make up your own game using different items and/or prices, here are some resources that may help you:

Download the Price is Right font here for free. I used it to make titles and prices on my slides.

The Price is Right Theme Song is available on YouTube. I had my tech-savvy teenager help me embed it in my presentation, but I don't remember how we did it. Sorry!

The yellow name tag template is available here. Print one for each girl on sticker paper to wear like actual contestants. Put all their names into a bowl and have your host draw one or two for each round and invite them to "Come on Down"!!

The entire Price is Right game actually only took about 30 minutes of our evening, so we also played this awesome game idea from Mormon Activity Days and called it The Game of Life in keeping with our theme for the evening. It was a more in-depth look at how to budget a salary for common living expenses and gave them some exposure to the options they might have. I would recommend pairing up one younger girl with one older girl for this game if you have enough girls in your group. If you don't have enough to make teams, plan for extra time to help the younger gals count out money and do the math. They can absolutely do it, but if you have a big group it may be helpful to have your partner on hand ready to help answer questions!

For treats, you could serve one or two of the food items they learned about in the Price is Right game or this recipe for "Millionaire Bars" from Center Cut Cook would probably also be a big hit!

The girls had a really fun time and were totally engaged THE WHOLE TIME, which is straight-up miraculous. I would absolutely do this activity again. Good Luck, friends!!

DIY || Super Easy Farmhouse Frame Tutorial -- no fancy tools required!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 28 Dec 2017 21:50:00 +0000

I've cracked the code, y'all! Make your own rustic farmhouse frames with some simple 1x3 pine and a staple gun. It's so simple you'll kick yourself for not thinking of it first!

Hi guys!! I’m back. It’s been a while. As recently as a week ago I honestly didn’t know if I would ever start blogging again. I didn’t ever plan to take a break, but here we are 8 months later, so . . . I guess I took a break. Life happens, situations change, and we all just do our best to adapt. We recently sent our daughter – our oldest and first to leave home – on an 18 month mission for our church in Tallahassee, Florida. Our second child is a senior in high school this year and will likely be leaving on his own church mission next summer. I work as a school nurse all day, err’ day. My husband and I work with the 10 and 11 year old children at church, and my house is a disaster, like all the time. I struggled for over a year to balance a full-time job, three teenage kids, my happy marriage, my faith, and the blog. Something had to give to save my sanity and the choice was obvious.

But I missed blogging. I missed it so much! I’ve continued to create things for my home. I’ll admit it has been nice to not stop and take step-by-step photos for tutorials, but still, a little bit of me always missed it. I’ve even kept a list of project ideas I wanted to share with y’all. Plus, I couldn't stand looking at those chocolate creme crepes on my home page for one more minute. So, I guess I’m back. But seriously, the turning point was when I completed one of my most recent projects and it turned out so good. Like, seriously, SO GOOD! And when I looked on Pinterest I didn’t really see anything else exactly like it, so I knew I HAD to share. It was a sign – literally and figuratively!!

I’ve been slowly updating our home to add some touches of my current obsession with quaint, modern farmhouse style, a la the iconic Joanna Gaines. I know, I know. Everyone is doing it right now. I don’t even care. I’m doing it, too, with my own little flavor added in. When I stripped and refinished my dining room furniture and hung new curtains this summer, I knew I needed new artwork to finish it off. I LOVED my old Living Christ and Family Proclamation printables, but they just weren’t quite working for me anymore.

I’m obsessed with old barn wood signs and chunky weathered wood frames. I have been wanting to try making my own for a while now, but it seemed overwhelming. I don’t own any fancy tools or have any woodworking skills. I am, however, naïve enough to think that I could “figure it out” with what I had on hand – a staple gun. And I’m happy to report that I did!! I knew I wanted something bigger and more substantial than the pictures I had hung before, so I designed new Family Proclamation and Living Christ printables in 16x20 size and bought canvases to match. (You can use any size you want, though. My example in the tutorial photos below is just a little 8x10 frame for a family portrait I drew. It will work the same way no matter what size you choose.) With just a few inexpensive materials and a simple $10 staple gun, I made my own chunky wood farmhouse framed signs and YOU CAN, TOO!!!

Easy Farmhouse Frame Tutorial

You will need:

a staple gun and staples
a framed canvas in the desired size
Mod Podge or double stick tape
1x3 pine boards (enough to cover the perimeter of your canvas plus several inches)
paint or stain
construction adhesive
printable art work (Get my 16x20 Living Christ and Family Proclamation printable here.)

Using Mod Podge or strong double stick tape, mount your printable to the canvas. Allow time to dry if you use Mod Podge. Also, if you use Mod Podge, I recommend using the matte finish as it is a little more rustic and natural looking than gloss finish.

Paint or stain your 1x3 pine boards to your desired color and allow to dry.

Cut 2 pieces of 1x3 pine board to fit the longer sides of your canvas. For my 8x10 example I cut 2 pieces, each 10” long. I used a miter saw, but I did not miter the corners. Just cut them straight. You could use a miter box and a hand saw or have your wood cut in the store when you buy it.

Attach the wood pieces to the canvas by applying a bead of construction adhesive down the side of the canvas, butting the wood right up against it, and securing with several staples in the back as shown. It won’t feel very secure at this point, but trust me!!

Place your canvas on top of a book or something solid that is just thick enough to make the back of the wood canvas frame sit flush with the 1x3 wood piece while you staple.

Next measure across the top of your picture from outside edge of the wood piece to outside edge of the opposite wood piece. (Measure more carefully than I am in the picture -- it's hard to take a picture with one hand and measure with the other!) Cut 2 pieces of 1x3 pine to this measurement. Paint or stain the cut edges of the pine board to match the rest of the frame and allow to dry.

Attach the top and bottom frame pieces in the same manner as you did the side pieces.

To firm everything up, add a couple of staples at each corner as shown above.

Allow the adhesive to dry and you’re finished!

It’s rustic with the exposed staples on the corners, but I kind of like that. It’s farmhouse-y. If the staples bother you, I think you could remove them once the adhesive has set up, but don’t quote me on that – I haven’t tried it. Now that I’ve “cracked the code” to making simple rustic farmhouse-y frames, I’m afraid my walls are going to be covered in them.

This little sign is one I made using a scrap piece of wood I had in my garage instead of a canvas. I also stenciled my design onto the wood instead of using a printable, but the framing was done in the same way as I showed you above.

Once you have it figured out, there is no end to what you can create with this technique. I already have a couple other signs in the works to share later – you’ll see!! What will you create with some 1x3’s and a staple gun??

FOOD || Chocolate Crème Crepes featuring Edwards Hershey Crème Pie

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 04 Apr 2017 07:30:00 +0000

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SameTasteNewLook #CollectiveBias

Hi guys! Can I just expound for a moment on a favorite subject of mine? Pie. If you follow me on Instagram or check out my Recipes page, you will see that I am a big fan of pie! For at least the last 20 years -- since I married my husband – we have celebrated my birthday with a delicious chocolate pie. He’s not much of a baker. I mean, he can bake, it’s just not something he enjoys as much as I do and I’m OK with that because it means he always buys me a heavenly Edwards Hershey Crème Pie. Some of our friends {and children} think it’s a little weird to have pie for your birthday instead of cake, but I never hear anyone complaining when they are scarfing down my delicious pie! I tend to think of pie as a “special occasion dessert”, reserved for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and my birthday. The truth is, Edwards pies are so simple and delicious you can eat them to celebrate most any occasion, including surviving a long, hard week of work {can I get an Amen?!}, or a simple hankering for creamy chocolate dessert!

This past week I was experiencing both of the aforementioned "occasions", so when I stopped at Walmart on my way home from work on Friday to stock up on groceries for the weekend, I threw a couple of Edwards pies into the cart along with the milk, eggs, and cereal on my list. I love the new design of the packaging – like a party in a box. Rest assured, they may have a new look, but you’ll get the same amazing flavor as always!

I was feeling a little creative, so with a tiny little bit of effort I transformed my favorite Edwards Hershey Crème Pieinto Chocolate Crème Crepes and blew my family away! You’ll have to deconstruct the pie, which feels like a bit of a sacrilege, but you’ll get over it when you see {and taste} the end result, trust me. Here’s how:

You’ll start by removing the whipped cream from around the top edge of the pie. I thawed my pie first, but I think it would be easier, and the cream would hold its shape better, if you removed it while it was still frozen. I used a frosting spreader and carefully lifted the whipped cream off the pie and onto a plate. Put the plate of whipped cream dollops back into the refrigerator until ready to serve.

When the pie is completely thawed according to package directions, carefully scoop all the filling out of the crust and into a mixing bowl. Try not to get any crust in the bowl. It’s OK if you get a little, so don’t stress about it!

Whip the filling with your mixer, or blend it by hand with a spoon, until it looks like fluffy, yummy chocolate mousse. Refrigerate the filling until ready to serve.

Crumble the chocolate pie crust and set aside. You will use this as a crunchy topping for your crepes.

Next you will need 8-10 crepes. My husband makes amazing crepes from scratch using this simple Basic Crepes recipe. I didn’t do it this time, but decided while eating them that it would be super-yummy if you replaced ¼ cup of flour in the crepe recipe with ½ cup of crumbled cookie crust. If you’ve never made crepes from scratch before, don’t be intimidated! It’s not at all difficult, but you could also buy refrigerated store-bought crepes if you prefer.

Fill each crepe with a couple of spoonfuls of chocolate filling and roll up. Place crepes seam-side down on a serving plate. Top with crumbled cookie crust and a few whipped cream dollops. For over-the-top decadence, drizzle some hot fudge or chocolate sauce on top and sprinkle on a few slivered almonds. {I plan to do that next time!}

These crepes were a huge hit with my boys. You could do the same thing with any of the delicious Edwards pies – I mean, how yummy would Key Lime Crepes be for an Easter dessert? Or Reese's Peanut Butter CrèmeCrepes for a night with your girlfriends? I had planned to make Turtle Crème Crepes using that second pie, but it didn't survive my teenage boys and their friends on Friday night. I can't blame them -- it really is irresistible. Use your imagination and go crazy with it next time you’re celebrating something big – or small!!

Happy Spring, y'all!!

Amy

My Jenny Craig Journey: Two Months In

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 03 Mar 2017 03:36:00 +0000

Thank you Jenny Craig for sponsoring this post. -- Get serious about losing weight with Jenny Craig!

Hi guys! I’ve been anxious to write this post today. As you know, I decided back in January to make 2017 the Year of Me – the year I finally made myself and my health a priority in my life. Apprehensively, I began my Jenny Craig journey on January 2ndand shared my reasons and motivations here with y’all. That was scary. I wasn’t sharing a fun project or something I was good at doing. I was admitting to being bad at something that’s pretty important. Like, really bad. I was afraid to say out loud that I was fat (even though I knew everyone could see it) because that made it real and then I would have to do something about it. I was afraid to start on a journey to get healthy because, what if I failed? What if I couldn’t do it? What if I was the one person in the world who wouldn’t lose weight on a reduced-calorie eating plan? After writing the first post, my anxiety kicked in because I knew I was going to eventually write this one – the “after” post.

This was my "Before". I’m so happy (and relieved, if I’m being completely honest) to be able to report that I was able to meet my goal for these past 8 weeks! I wanted to lose 20 pounds and at my last consultation I had lost 21.4!! (*Results not typical. Members following the Jenny Craig program, on average, lose 1-2 lbs. per week. I received promotional consideration.) You guys! That was huge for me!! My weight has been about the same for the past 5 years at least. If the scale changed at all it was to creep UP a pound or two, never to go DOWN. Since I started with Jenny Craig my weight has gone steadily down. Every. Single. Week. Some weeks more than others, but always down. It was thrilling. All the new pants I got at Christmas time are literally falling off me. My old waistband is now too big for my hips. For my hips, guys! For real!!

{"After" photos are coming as soon as I can get my stupid phone to send them to my computer . . . sometimes I really hate technology!!)

The very best part was when I went to my doctor about 3 weeks into the program for a check-up and he was impressed that I had been losing weight. When I went back a month later for my follow-up, he was downright floored by how much more weight I had lost*. And my lab results shocked him even more. My triglycerides, which had been “off the charts” last time were now only “slightly elevated”, without medication. Everything else was right where he wanted it to be. The proof is in the numbers, my friends! (*Results not typical. Members following the Jenny Craig program, on average, lose 1-2 lbs. per week. I received promotional consideration.)

But here's the burning question everyone asks me:

What Does a Day on Jenny Craig Really Look Like?

My biggest fear when I started Jenny Craig was that the food was going to be gross health food and I was going to be hungry, like, all the time. I have never really loved vegetables – at least not the healthy, non-starchy ones – so I convinced myself this was going to be really hard. That had been my weight loss experience in the past, anyway. This is what I thought my Jenny Craig daily meal plan was going to look like, only these meals looked waaayy yummier than I had expected:

Three small portions of healthy food punctuated by hunger and disappointment. But I was willing to sign on for that, if it really worked, so I could reboot my system and retrain my brain on portion control. Plus, I was thrilled to get cinnamon rolls. You cannot imagine my relief when I found out that THIS is what I ACTUALLY get to eat in a day:

Plus as many more healthy veggies as I want, which I actually really like now. The food wasn’t bland or gross at all. There was a huge variety of things that I already loved, like Margherita pizza, mac and cheese (Such good mac and cheese, guys!) , and hamburgers. There were also some new things I would never have tried on my own – like Butternut Squash Ravioli and lentil crisps.

Anyone who knows my former Taco Bell-loving self will probably not believe that the thing I look forward to most now is my daily spinach salad at lunch. I start with a 50/50 mix of organic Spring Greens and Spinach and then I add different things every day to “doctor” it up – mushrooms one day, mandarin orange slices and red onion another day, a handful of craisins or tomatoes and peppers. Whatever suits my mood. I truly do love it. Plus, that Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich is TO DIE FOR. No joke.

I rarely feel hungry because I am eating something every few hours all day long. These “snacks” in between my meals really help with that. In fact some days, it has been a struggle to eat all of my food. I feel a ton better now because I’m not constantly running on empty or relying on a caffeinated soda to counteract my sugar crash from the cookies I ate for breakfast. Yeah, I know…

I love having a written plan for my eating. I never realized how much I think about food. It’s like a constant inner-monologue – “What do we have in the house to eat? Ooh! I should go to the store and get more chips and cookies. What am I going to have for lunch today? Is it almost lunch time? How early is too early to eat lunch? I’ll eat something now because I might be busy when it’s lunch time at noon. How many minutes is it until noon?” Et cetera, et cetera, all day long. With my Jenny Craig menus, I know what I’m going to eat throughout the day, and when I have reached the bottom of the list, my eating day is over. My brain just works like that.

So, What's the Secret?!

The biggest key to my success has been my weekly meeting with Kristen, my consultant. Accountability is HUGE. I started feeling better almost immediately, but I didn’t stop craving bad food completely. Some days thinking about my next consultation was the only thing standing between me and a big, greasy slice of pizza. I knew I had a date with the scale every Monday after work and the scale wasn’t going to lie and cover for me if I messed up. Kristen was an awesome cheerleader and problem solver. When my husband wanted to go out for Valentine’s Day, she helped me figure out what I should order so I could stay on track with my plan. I feel much more confident to make those decisions on my own now because of the things she has taught me. In fact, we've eaten out several times in the past two months and I still lost weight without feeling deprived at all.d

Bottom line, Jenny Craig works -- and not just for weight loss, y'all. After 8 weeks I feel soooo much more confident to make healthy food choices. I know what a healthy portion size looks like. I'm no longer addicted to soda. I know what my eating triggers are -- boredom and stress -- and feel better equipped to make healthier choices going forward. I still have quite a way to go before I reach my ultimate weight loss goal, but now I have the confidence that I'll get there. I haven't been able to say that in years and it feels good.

Now I want to hear from y'all! What were your goals this year and how are they coming along? Leave me a comment so we can cheer each other on!!

Have a great day, friends!

Amy

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

FOOD || Breakfast Night with Monte Cristo Waffles

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 11 Feb 2017 16:37:00 +0000

Products for this post were provided by Krusteaz. The recipe and all opinions are my own. #Krusteaz #BreakfastNight

Hi guys! I’ve had the biggest creative block for the past month, but I am determined to break through it. All I needed was a little inspiration, which came when Krusteaz asked me to share my love of Breakfast for Dinner to celebrate National Hot Breakfast Month in February. There is nothing I love more for breakfast than Krusteaz pancakes and waffles! Years ago when I was in college I couldn’t find their chocolate chip pancake mix at any of my local grocery stores, so my mom sent some to me in a care package. I was in absolute heaven!

I grew up in a family where hot “breakfast” was our favorite dinner and I have kept that tradition of Breakfast Night alive with my own kiddos. When we first moved to Arizona, my husband used to have to work a noon-to-nine shift and I was left to do dinner all by myself with three littles under the age of four. Those nights were ALWAYS Breakfast Nights because the kids loved it and dinner wasn’t a fight! Fifteen years later it continues to be a family favorite because I can feed my two hungry teenage boys without going broke.

My ONLY issue with breakfast for dinner – and it’s a minor issue, at that – is trying to get enough protein in. (Who can resist those delicious Belgian waffles and fluffy pancakes even if there are eggs on the table?!) I think I have that problem solved with my family’s new favorite Breakfast Night dish – Monte Cristo Waffles!! It’s kind of like a waffle grilled cheese sandwich with all the flavors of a classic Monte Cristo sandwich. You guys!! I was dying!! It was SUUUUUPER delicious. The men-folk practically inhaled them.

I started by making a batch of my favorite Krusteaz Belgian Waffles. I made them a little lighter than I normally would because I’m going to crisp them up in a frying pan later and I didn’t want it to be too crusty. This pale golden color was the perfect done-ness.

Butter one side of a waffle and put it buttered side down in a hot frying pan on medium heat.

Construct your sandwich by layering Swiss cheese, deli turkey, and deli ham to your heart’s content. Finish off with a final layer of Swiss cheese.

Add another waffle and butter the top. When the bottom of your sandwich gets nice and golden and crispy and the cheese starts to melt, flip it over and let the other side cook. I found that my outside got crispy before the center of the sandwich was as warm as I like it. (I put a lot of filling in that bad boy!) No problem – just pop it in the microwave for about a minute and the cheese gets all warm and gooey. If you’re worried about losing the crispness in the microwave, you could construct your sandwich, heat it up first, and then add the butter and grill it in the pan. I didn’t find it was a problem.

Give it a nice, heavy dusting of powdered sugar and it’s ready to serve. You can serve it sandwich-style with a side of jam or berry syrup for dipping. My boys really liked it that way, which is more like a traditional Monte Cristo.

My husband (and I!) preferred to drizzle the berry syrup over the top and eat it with a fork. I cannot begin to explain how delicious it was. I have a feeling these Monte Cristo Waffles will be making a regular appearance at Breakfast Night now.

Monte Cristo Waffles

(makes 3 large sandwiches)

6 Krusteaz Belgian Waffles (mix batter according to package directions)
18 slices Swiss cheese
9 oz. thin sliced deli-turkey, divided in thirds
9 oz. thin sliced deli ham, divided in thirds
Butter
Powdered sugar
Jam or Berry syrup

Butter one side of each waffle. Place one waffle buttered-side-down in a hot frying pan over medium heat. Layer 3 slices Swiss cheese, deli turkey, deli ham, and 3 more slices of Swiss cheese. Top with another waffle buttered-side up. When bottom gets golden brown and crispy, flip sandwich over. Continue to cook until bottom is golden and crispy and remove from pan. If center of sandwich filling is not warm enough, microwave on HIGH for approx.. 1 minute. Repeat the grilling process with the remainder of ingredients to make two more sandwiches. Dust with powdered sugar. Serve while hot with jam or berry syrup.

Happy Breakfast Night, y’all!

Amy

ENTERTAINING || Super Snack Showdown Football Party

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 13 Jan 2017 10:00:00 +0000

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #TheNewFanFavorites #CollectiveBias

Hi guys! Tis the season for football, amiright?! Do y’all have football-crazed family members getting super excited as the season draws to a close, whether their team is still “in it” or not? Does every conversation in your house seen to turn into a debate about player stats and team records? Are you finding your normally cozy and quiet family room turn into a man cave every Sunday afternoon? Please say it’s not just me! We usually end up going to watch the Big Game at a friend’s house, but I know my husband has always wanted to take a turn hosting to party at our house. Secretly, so have I. Today I’m sharing some delicious dips and dippers to make your Big Game party a Super Snack Showdown.

Sweet vs. Spicy. Hot vs. Cool. Savory vs. Sweet. Which one will be the MVP of the buffet table? It’s time to find out! I’m a sucker for a good dip, so this buffet table is like my dream come true. Four of my absolute favorite dips along with all the yummiest dippers – ,Snyder’s of Hanover® Pretzels, Snack Factory® Pretzel Crips®, Late July® Tortilla Chips, and a variety of crunchy Cape Cod® and Kettle Brand® Potato Chips.

Bonus: a sweet nutty Pop Secret® Popcorn treat with Emerald® Nuts to top it all off! I’ll share all my recipes below. You could ask your guests to bring their favorite football snacking food or dippers as well for even more variety.

This was the “Before” photo. My guys would have been fine if we had just left it at that, but they were OK with me decorating as long as it was not “too cute” or “over the top” – their words. I feel like we found a happy medium with this stadium-inspired spread. I found an artificial turf rug online for about $10 and decided it would make the perfect table cover.

Then I added a couple of risers made from 1x6 pine boards and molding pieces to give the feeling of bleachers. This gave me some different levels for food display and made it all look a little more interesting!

To really define the area, I hung a sheet of black butcher paper on the wall behind the table and drew a football play diagram on it in chalk. I wanted to add some color so I chose bright primary colors and made tissue paper tassels to hang along the wall as well. They look a little bit like pom-poms which is a fun touch. You could use your favorite team’s colors or even the colors of the two opposing teams on opposite sides of the table.

Instead of plates, I decided to use cardboard take-out boxes as trays. I simply cut off the top flaps since we did not need them to close. They reminded me of the way food is packaged in a stadium. I figured our guests could fill up their tray with chips and dips, grab a bottle of rootbeer and take it with them back to the living room to eat.

Since no one wants to be away from the game for too long, I pre-portioned all the dippers into small bags and cups to make them easy to grab-and-go. The dips are easily spooned into small cups and placed into the trays along with the dippers.

I also placed a tray of extra dippers on the coffee table so guests could refill without getting up. You know how annoying it is when you need just one more pretzel to finish your dip. Problem solved!

I used the pennants I shared yesterday to label the dips. Just tape the pennant flag to a straw or bamboo skewer and pop it right into the bowl. I tried to have a good variety of hot and cold, meat and veggie, etc. – SPICY Chorizo Queso, SWEET Salsa Verde, HOT Parmesan Artichoke Dip, and COOL Shrimp Dip. I was hoping there would be something everyone would enjoy! You could even throw in a veggie tray with some dill dip. My guys tend to like the “heartier” choices.

I also felt like we needed a sweet treat for dessert, so I made a batch of toffee popcorn, drizzled with melted white chocolate and sprinkled with Cocoa Roast Almonds, which look like tiny little footballs. My oldest son could not get enough of it!!

I wanted a wide variety of yummy, high-quality dippers for my dips. I found them all at my local grocery store – some in the “natural” section and some in the snack aisle.

All you have left to do is make the food, so let’s get cookin’, Good Lookin’!

___________________________________________________

Nutty Toffee Popcorn

3 bags Pop Secret Home Style popcorn, popped

1/2 C. butter

1/2 C. light corn syrup

1 C. brown sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1 bag white chocolate chips

1 bag Emerald Cocoa Roast Almonds

1. Pop the popcorn and remove all unpopped kernels. Place in a large bowl. Heat butter, corn syrup, and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.

2. Stir mixture constantly until boiling.

3. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. This will make the mixture "frothy" and help it to coat the popcorn more easily.

4. Pour hot toffee mixture over popcorn and stir to coat evenly. Spread popcorn onto two baking sheets and bake at 250 degrees for 20 minutes, stirring midway. Remove from oven and spread out on parchment paper to cool.

5. Melt white chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave. Drizzle half of the white chocolate over popcorn. Sprinkle almonds on top of popcorn and white chocolate, then drizzle again with remaining melted white chocolate. Allow to cool until white chocolate hardens again. Break into small clumps and serve.

___________________________________________________

Sweet Salsa Verde

1 large can tomatillos (approx. 16 small tomatillos) drained

1 jalapeno, diced

1/2 bunch cilantro

1/2 C. sugar

1. Combine all ingredients in a food processor.

2. Blend until smooth and serve with corn tortilla chips.

________________________________

Hot Parmesan Artichoke Dip

Follow the dip version of the recipe here.

________________________________

Cool Shrimp Dip

My mom's classic recipe is here.

__________________________________________

Spicy Chorizo Queso

1 lb. loaf of good soft melting cheese, cubed
1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1/2 lb. chorizo

In a microwavable bowl, combine cubed cheese and tomatoes with green chiles. Microwave on HIGH in 45 second increments, stirring in between, until cheese is melted. Place in a small crock pot on warm setting to keep warm.

Cook chorizo in a frying pan until cooked through. Stir into melted cheese and tomato mixture and serve for a spicy twist on the classic queso.

______________________________________

Do you usually host the big party or do you watch at a friend's house? Either way, these recipes are sure to be crowd-pleasers no mater what the final score of the game is.

Enjoy the end of the football season, friends!!

Amy

Vintage Style Pennant Flags with free SVG Cut File

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 13 Jan 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Hi guys! Today I wanted to share a really simple and fun craft idea with y’all. This seems to be the season of football. All the Christmas trees and candy canes of last month have been replaced with Astroturf and team mascots. I created a fun paper pennant pattern you could use to make a vintage-style sporty bunting or buffet labels for your next football or sports themed party.

I bought a bunch of cardstock and patterned papers in a variety of bright colors. You could use your favorite team colors or the colors of the opposing teams if you are making it for a Super Bowl party.

I used my Silhouette to cut the pieces out to save some time, but you could cut them by hand if you don’t have a cutting machine. Glue the decorative paper pieces on top of the solid cardstock pieces to form each individual pennant.

Use a white gel pen or Sharpie to write anything you want onto the flag. I chose to attach my flags to paper straws with tape to use as buffet markers – you’ll see how I used them in a fun post later this week! Here’s a sneak peek:

You could also attach them to a string to make a bunting and hang it up.

Download the pdf pattern here to cut pennants by hand.

Download the SVG cut file for the background piece here. Download the SVG cut file for the top piece here. Download and cut both files to create flags.

Have fun celebrating your team this season, friends!

Amy

#ad How to WIN on Game Day with Tyson® Chicken

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 12 Jan 2017 10:00:00 +0000

This post is written by me on behalf of Tyson Foods, Inc. All opinions are entirely my own. This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #PlayoffPicks #CollectiveBias

Be the "Hostess with the Mostest" when you serve these delicious Garlic Parmesan and Sweet & Spicy Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips at your Playoff party! You can sit and enjoy the game instead of slaving in the kitchen, and no one needs to know how easy they were to make.

Hi guys! With the holidays now behind us and a brand new year stretching out ahead, it's time to start thinking about what to serve your friends and family while they watch the Big Game this year! I've got you covered with a couple of SUPER simple recipes for THE MOST delicious Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips on the planet. Seriously, these Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips taste so good your friends will wonder where you ordered them from! The best part is, you can set the whole spread up ahead of time, which means you can actually sit and enjoy the game, too.

I'll admit, I'm a little bit picky when it comes to football party food. I love the chicken wing joints offer, but I prefer Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips because they're easier, and wayyy less messy, to eat. That's why I have come up with a way to recreate my favorite wing flavors at home! I picked up a couple of bags of Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips (3.5 lbs) and a bag of Tyson® Boneless Wyngz (3 lbs) Honey BBQ flavor last time I was at Sam's Club so I would have enough delicious chicken to feed an army of hungry football fans. Visit Ibotta to earn yourself a little cash as well. Winning!!

My favorite wing flavors are Garlic Parmesan, Sweet & Spicy (a sweeter version of traditional Buffalo wings) and Honey BBQ. Since Tyson® Honey BBQ flavored Boneless Wyngz are already perfection, there was no need to reinvent the wheel there -- just heat and serve! I came up with the perfect way to add Garlic Parmesan and Sweet & Spicy flavors to the Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips by dipping them in delicious glazes after they come out of the oven.

They are the perfect centerpiece for a fun football food buffet all decked out in your favorite team colors. Our favorite team barely made the playoffs this year, but we didn't hesitate to show our spirit and cheer them on in style!!

Start with a simple backdrop. I didn't have a neutral enough area in my dining room so I just hung loosely draped white plastic table cloths on the wall to define the serving area. Then I added a few paper lanterns and tissue paper pom-poms in a mix of fun patterns and colors. (Party hack: I used paper napkins to create the solid blue and the polka dot pom-poms!) In case anyone was confused about what we wanted the result of the game to be (ha, ha), I added gold mylar balloons spelling out WIN.

A green plastic tablecloth on the table mimics the green of the football field turf. To carry on the stadium theme for my party table, I built a few simple risers out of 1x6 pine boards and molding pieces. They're barely noticeable on the table, but they make the display so much more interesting to look at and give you the feeling of bleachers. I picked up a variety of vintage style glass soda bottles in our team colors for guests to drink. You can find lots of paper straws and bags in different colors and patterns at any party supply store. I cut down the tops of some blue lunch bags, making them the perfect size to hold single servings of chips. The black and white referee-stripe cups are great for holding queso or salsa for dipping. We also offered some spicy ranch pretzels in little polka dot paper bags. Buttered popcorn would also be fun in small bags. Serve a variety of yummy snacks and your guests will be thrilled.

Place the stars of your snack table -- the Tyson® chicken-- in galvanized metal containers lined with leaf lettuce, add a couple veggie trays and dips, and you're all set! Just make the chicken strips right before guests arrive so they'll be piping hot and you can enjoy some of the snacks (and the great company) without being tied to the kitchen all night.

Garlic Parmesan Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips

Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips (3.5 lbs)

1 stick butter (1/2 cup)

1 Tbsp. garlic powder

1 Tbsp. chopped parsley

Parmesan Cheese (the powder variety in the can)

Cook chicken strips according to package directions. While chicken is cooking, melt butter in a small sauce pan. Add garlic powder and parsley, stirring until combined.

Dip each chicken strip in the warm garlic butter and place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle a generous amount of Parmesan cheese on both side of each chicken strip. Transfer to serving tray and serve while warm.

Sweet and Spicy Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips

Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips (3.5 lbs)

1/3 C. of your favorite hot sauce

1 1/2 C. brown sugar

1 Tbsp. water

Heat hot sauce, brown sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat for several minutes until sugar is completely dissolved. Place in refrigerator to cool. You want the sauce to be nice and cool so it thickens up a bit and really clings to the chicken strips. While sauce is cooling, cook chicken strips according to package instructions.

Dip each chicken strip into the cooled sauce and place on a baking sheet. Transfer to serving container when ready to serve. Serve warm.

Delicious Dipping Sauce

1 C. mayonnaise

1 C. milk

1/2 envelope of Ranch dressing mix

1/2 envelope of Italian Dressing mix

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk together until smooth. Allow to set up in the refrigerator for several minutes before serving. It will be very runny until it sets.

This dipping sauce is fantastic with all three flavors of chicken and makes an awesome dip for veggies, as well.

Make your Game Day party a win with these delicious recipes and easy decor ideas next time your team hits the field! What's your favorite game day snack? Share it in the comments!

Printable Hand Lettered Memory Calendar

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 11 Jan 2017 22:59:00 +0000

Hi guys! I love January because I can justify getting new planners and calendars. There is something about a fresh slate that feels so satisfying! I decided to try something a little different this year, in addition to my dry-erase family calendar and my regular planner. Every year I sit down in December to write our family Christmas letter and my mind instantly goes blank. I can’t seem to remember ANYTHING that happened in the previous eleven months. Please tell me I’m not the only one…

This year I created a memory calendar that looks more like a list than anything else. I plan to hang it on our fridge or by our desk so it is handy all the time and I can write down cool things that happen each month – awards the kids get in school, fun little family outings, and simple memories that make me smile. Then, in December, I can pull it out and have a wealth of ideas to add to our letter. I can also tuck it in the back of my journal and have all those beautiful memories preserved forever.

This year my personal goal is to become more aware of the blessings in my life. I will also print a copy of this memory calendar just for myself so I can record all the little blessings that come daily – those tender mercies from my Heavenly Father that he gives to bring us joy and help us along the way. I feel like if we are more aware of those things, and try harder to recognize and record them, they will come more and more frequently.

This memory calendar is designed to be printed on 8 ½ x 11 cardstock – two months to a page. Download the printable file here. Simply cut each page in half lengthwise and clip them together with a pretty binder clip. It is seriously the easiest project EVER!

Happy New Year, friends!

Amy

2017: The Year of ME

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 05:26:00 +0000

Thank you Jenny Craig for sponsoring this post. -- Get serious about losing weight with Jenny Craig!

Hi guys! Today I’m going to TOTALLY switch gears on y’all and get a little personal for a minute. Do you mind? I feel like most of us over-indulged in sweet treats and rich foods over the holidays. The general concensus I’m seeing among my online pals is that we are all paying now for slacking off in December. You can see from my past several posts that we were no different around here.

If I’m being honest, my slacking off started long before the holidays. I have THE WORST sweet tooth, and I’m completely addicted to soda. Like, a 44 ounce a day (minimum) habit. I need the caffeine and sugar to prop me up through my busy days. I work a full-time day job as an elementary school health assistant and then I come home and try to channel all my creative energy into this blog, all while making sure my little family is cared for, feels loved, and doesn’t drown in clutter and dirty laundry. I sleep about 5 hours a night. That doesn’t leave me with much time – or energy – for healthy cooking and working out. We end up grabbing burgers or tacos at the drive-thru more often than I would like to admit. What’s worse is that I actually LIKE fast food. It’s not something I “suffer through”, wishing I could have something better. I actually, legitimately enjoy it. Add to that my love of baking and we’ve got a real problem. You guys, it’s ugly. Seriously.

I haven’t always been this way. I mean, I have always loved fast food, soda, and cookies, BUT – believe it or not – I ran a half marathon about ten years ago. The training got me in the best shape of my adult life. I reached a point where my body craved water instead of soda. I didn’t even think it could do that! I would get up at 5:00 a.m. to get my run in before the family got up and then I had boundless energy for the rest of the day. It was awesome. My race was the first weekend in December. Having successfully completed my training, I decided to take a break “just for the holidays”. And here I sit a decade later.

I could just never get going again. Since then I have struggled with anxiety and depression, my husband has been laid off twice, and I have started working full-time instead of being a stay-home mom. The puzzle pieces of my life have been scattered and I just haven’t been able to make everything fit back together again. In that time I have put on over 60 pounds. I can’t even believe that – it seems like such a huge number, but gaining about 6 pounds a year didn’t seem so bad as it was happening.

I finally decided that 2017 was going to MY year. I’m going to make that damn puzzle fit together – in a new and beautiful way – even if it kills me!! When I was given the opportunity to try Jenny Craig and share my results and thoughts with y’all, I jumped at the chance. Healthy eating is just something that I am bad at. I don’t know why. I don’t feel like I’m stupid, but I can’t seem to apply the Food Pyramid to my daily life. Not only do I not know WHAT to eat, my portion sizes are way out of whack. When something tastes good, I want more. And more. Until I feel terrible and full.

The most appealing thing about Jenny Craig to me was one-on-one weekly consultations. At Jenny Craig, personal support is the cornerstone of what they have been doing for 30 years. Every member is paired with a consultant who provides them with one-on-one support to identify their challenges and goals, and helps them to create unique weekly meal and activity plans. Each week, my consultant will work with me on my menu, discuss any challenges from the previous week and determine a plan for the week ahead. Plus, she will keep track of my success with weekly weigh-ins and teach me how to self-monitor. I need someone who knows this stuff to sit down with me and spell it out in micro-detail. Tell me what to eat and when to eat it. Because of my anxiety, I hate making decisions and I kinda’ like being told what to do, so this totally works for me until I become more confident in my food choices.

I was nervous going to the center for the first time. I mean, I judge myself pretty harshly for letting my weight get to this point, so I just assume everyone else does, too. My consultant, Kristin, was so nice and super knowledgeable. I left rearing to go, with a trunk full of healthy meals.

Can we just talk about the meals for a minute here. I was afraid they were going to be gross frozen meals that tasted like cardboard. And I was afraid I was going to be hungry, like all the time, because they looked pretty small. I was so wrong! While you do cook most of the food in the microwave, it tastes like I made it fresh. They are actually a little yummier than the things I typically cook for my family. Here’s what I got to eat for lunch on Day 2 this week:

A loaded baked potato – with cheese and bacon! – and a huge garden salad. I wasn’t hungry after eating that plate full of food, but if I had been, there is a whole list of Fresh and Free Additions I can eat as much of as I want to fill up. Plus, there are snacks built into the eating plan so a few hours later I got to eat this delicious Greek yogurt and banana treat:

Our morning schedule is a little bit hectic so I love that there are grab-and-go options I can throw in my purse and take with me to stay on track.

I only really felt hungry the first day, but my body has adapted surprisingly quickly to eating small portions throughout the day instead of grazing all day and bingeing at night. I have had a mild headache in the afternoons, but that is probably just the caffeine and sugar withdrawal rearing its ugly head. Today, on Day 4, it hasn’t been an issue at all. Eating healthier has also motivated me to go walking every evening. We have been going to the park and walking as a family, which is awesome!

I’m excited to see how this journey will go. It is brand new for me and I am excited about “rebooting” my system. Kristin told me that Jenny Craig members can expect to lose an average of 1-2 pounds per week, which is a healthy range of weight loss. I promise not to get all spammy, but I will post updates as I go on my Instagram account with all my other projects, if you’re interested in following along.

What are your goals for the new year? We're going to rock 2017, friends!

Amy

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Egg Nog Bread Pudding with Buttered Rum Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 16 Dec 2016 10:30:00 +0000

This post was sponsored by Nellie’s Eggs. All opinions are mine alone.

This recipe for Egg Nog Bread Pudding with Buttered Rum Sauce is sure to be a hit at your winter celebrations!

Hi guys! Where do y’all stand in the great egg nog debate? Love it? Hate it? Is it a texture thing? I’m just curious. Egg nog is EVERYWHERE this time of year and I’m not mad at it. I love the flavor, but it can be a little thick for me, so I prefer to bake with it. In the past we have tried Egg Nog Cream Pie, Egg Nog Cheesecake, and Egg Nog French Toast. This year I wanted to see if I could pull off a yummy Egg Nog Bread Pudding. Boy, howdy, did I ever! Now, I realize I’m walking a thin line here because one of the few things more loved/loathed than egg nog is bread pudding. Again, it’s the texture. This version is light on the soggy, and heavy on the yum.

You will need a couple loaves of challah bread. You could use French bread, but I really think the challah makes it – plus it sounds like you’re saying Holla’ every time you say it and I love that joke like the big, old nerd that I am.... You will also need half & half, egg nog, sugar, eggs, nutmeg, salt, and vanilla extract. The key to this recipe, I think, is to use really good bread and really good eggs.

I highly recommend these free range eggs from Nellie’s. Nellie’s has been in business since the late 1800’s, sustainably sourcing eggs from small family farms. They were the country’s first Certified Humane Free Range Egg Producer. I’ll admit, in the past I have just bought whatever eggs were the cheapest – until I cracked into one of these eggs. They were thick and had beautifully colored yolks– The difference from my regular runny old eggs was obvious.

Begin by cutting your challah into approx. 1-inch cubes and placing it in a large bowl. {Actually, a larger bowl than this one – I ended up using two bowls this size.

In a separate bowl mix half & half, egg nog, eggs, sugar, nutmeg, salt, and vanilla extract. Blend together with a whisk.

Pour the liquid over the bread cubes and toss to coat. Allow to sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours so the bread really soaks up all the yummy liquid. 30 minutes would probably suffice, but I had to take my son to a doctor’s appointment so ours soaked for about 2 hours and it was soooooo gooooood. The longer you let it sit, the more it will break down the bread and give you a creamier texture.

Spoon the mixture into individual ramekins or into a 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes {45-50 if you use the 9 x 13 pan). Make sure the center is set and the top is golden brown. If the top starts to get too brown, cover with foil for the remaining baking time.

When they come out of the oven they will be all puffed up and delicious. It will shrink a little as it cools. At this point you could serve it with a dollop of whipped cream and call it a day, but I made a quick Buttered Rum Sauce {recipe below} to drizzle over the top, which took it to a whole ‘notha level! The rum flavor in this sauce is mild, but if you aren’t a fan you could swap the rum extract for vanilla extract.

Drizzle the hot buttery rum sauce over the hot bowl of bread pudding. NOW you may add whipped cream (or not) and call it day!

That right there is the stuff winter dreams are made of.

Egg Nog Bread Pudding with Buttered Rum Sauce

2 loaves challah bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 C. egg nog
1 C. half & half
5 eggs
2/3 C. sugar
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
pinch of salt
whipped cream for garnish

For Sauce:
½ C. butter
½ C. sugar
½ C. brown sugar
½ C. egg nog
½ tsp. rum extract

Place cubed brad in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl combine egg nog, half & half, eggs, sugar, nutmeg, vanilla, and salt. Whisk to combine. Pour liquid mixture over the cubed bread and stir to combine. Allow to sit in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Several hours is better!

When you are ready to bake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spoon the bread mixture into individual ramekins or into a 9 x 13 baking dish. I filled about (12) 7-ounce ramekins. Place ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 35-40 minutes, (45-50 if using a 9 x 13 pan) until center is set and top is golden brown. If the top begins to get too brown, tent with foil for the remainder of baking time. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

While the bread pudding is baking, prepare sauce: Heat butter, sugars, and egg nog in a sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Allow to boil several minutes until it begins to thicken. Remove from heat and stir in rum extract.

Drizzle warm sauce over warm bread pudding and a dollop of whipped cream. Serve immediately.

Enjoy this warm winter treat for dessert or breakfast -- I don't judge! My family has requested it for Christmas morning breakfast this year.

Happy Holiday Baking, friends!

Amy

Mini Quiche with RITZ Crackers Crust

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 13 Dec 2016 09:00:00 +0000

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HolidayRITZ #CollectiveBias

Hi guys! Are y'all as excited as I am? Christmas is right around the corner, along with my favorite meal of the year -- Christmas Eve dinner! In my mind, Christmas Eve and crackers go hand in hand and here's why: When I was growing up, my mom believed cooking a big, fancy meal two days in a row was not much of a holiday for her, so we had our big meal on Christmas Day and she served crackers and cheese on Christmas Eve. It was perfect because we were always so excited we could hardly eat anyway. This is a tradition that my husband and I have carried on in our own family. Over the years we have expanded the menu a little bit from the traditional summer sausage and cheese tray to include other delicious finger foods, including Mini Quiches with RITZ Crackers Crust.

These mini quiches are made by baking a delicious green chile and pepper jack cheese egg dish, then using a small cookie cutter to cut perfectly sized individual pieces once it has cooled and set up a bit. RITZ Crackers make a perfect "crust" and add a yummy, buttery crunch. The best part? Everything you need for this casual dinner can be purchased at Walmart while you are out picking up your last-minute stocking stuffers! Click on the image below to save on your purchase.

Mini Quiche with RITZ Crackers Crust

1 C. shredded cheddar cheese

1 C. shredded pepper jack cheese

2 T. flour

4 eggs, slightly beaten

1 C. milk

1 small can green chiles

pinch of salt and pepper

non-stick cooking spray

RITZ Crackers

chives (for garnish)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toss shredded cheeses with flour in mixing bowl to coat. Add eggs, milk, green chiles, salt and pepper to bowl and stir to combine. Prepare a 9x13 baking dish by spraying well with non-stick cooking spray. Pour the egg mixture into the prepared dish.

Bake for approx. 30 minutes, or until top is golden and middle is firm and not runny. Remove from oven and allow to cool until it has set and feels firm. Use a small round cookie cutter (approx. same size as cracker) to cut out individual pieces of egg, or cut into small squares using a knife. Carefully remove each piece from the pan using a small spatula and place on top of crackers. Garnish with chives and serve while warm.

For our family Christmas Eve dinner I set out a tray with a selection of sliced cheeses -- swiss, sharp cheddar, colby jack, havarti -- and provide a fun variety of other cracker toppers to round out the meal. These are a few of our favorites:

--Ham Salad. This Herby Ham Salad is my go-to recipe because it is packed with flavor, but you could use your favorite ham or chicken salad recipe. I like to place a small piece of green leaf lettuce underneath the salad so the cracker stays nice and crisp and doesn't get soggy. {Plus, it looks pretty, right?!}

-- Salami Roll. Use thin sliced salami from the deli and 8 oz. of softened cream cheese. Lay the salami slices out, overlapping edges, to form an approx. 11 x 14 inch rectangle. Carefully spread softened cream cheese to form an even layer on top of salami. Beginning on one long end, carefully roll salami and cream cheese to form a log. Wrap the log in plastic wrap and refrigerate several hours or over night before cutting into thin slices.

-- Cheese Ribbon Slices. This recipe has been a BIG hit with everyone who has tried it. The original recipe calls for nuts, but since my husband doesn't really care for nuts, I omit them and add a few extra dried cranberries. These cheese ribbon slices look super impressive. No one will believe how easy they actually are.

-- Cheese Ball. Homemade or store bought -- whatever your family likes. I usually pick up a green onion cheese ball from our local store's deli and it is always one of the first things gone!

-- Pepper Jelly. Just a little smidge of sweet and spicy pepper jelly, plain or with cream cheese, makes a super yummy addition.

--Shrimp with Chili Sauce. Like the pepper jelly, serve it alone or with a small schmear of cream cheese, and it's delicious on top of crackers!

Every year I over-prepare and we have more food than 5 people could possibly eat. (What can I say, we like to have a wide variety!) Wouldn't it be fun to host a "Jingle Mingle" on Christmas Eve and invite friends who don't have family in town to come hang out for a bit and share your crackers and cheese dinner?

To make your Jingle Mingle extra special, display finger foods and crackers on tiered trays to resemble Christmas Trees. My tiered display stands were made from white dishes and candlesticks I picked up at the thrift store. Set up several small snack tables with different food options around the room instead of one central buffet table to encourage mingling and snacking. This one on my coffee table is perfect for friends to get cozy on the couch and chat while having plenty of yumminess within reach.

You can even use your empty cracker boxes to make cute 3-dimensional stars like this one to accent your tiered trays. I'm all about using EVERYTHING I've got on hand!!

To Make a 3-Dimensional Cardboard Star:

Step 1: Find a star that you can trace onto and cut out from your cardboard boxes. I made a bunch of these 3D stars out of scrapbook paper years ago, so I just traced one of those. If you don't have a star to trace, you could draw your own template by following this tutorial I wrote here.

Step 2: Use a ball point pen to score your cardboard by drawing a line from each star point to the inverted point directly opposite it using a straight edge. (I used one of the discarded cracker box edges!) Fold along each scored line.

Step 3: Push the creases outward on each star tip and inward at the inverted points to create the three dimensional effect.

Step 4: Spray paint gold (or any other color that matches your decor) and use hot glue to attach a bamboo skewer to the back. If you want your star to be double sided, simply make two in the same manner and hot glue them together around the edges with the bamboo skewer sandwiched in between.

This dinner could not be simpler to put together. Just set up a few cute food stations with crackers, cheese, and finger foods, turn on some festive music, and bring on the guests for a fun and relaxing Christmas Eve get-together! I even created printable invitations for y'all to use to invite all your friends and family -- one for a Christmas themed Jingle Mingle and one for New Year's Eve Party!

Download the image you like here, upload it in PicMonkey or another photo-editing program you like to add your party details in the blank spaces, and have them printed as 5x7 photos.

For more delicious recipe ideas, be sure to visit the #HolidayRITZ page. What are your favorite finger foods and cracker toppers? I would love for you to share your ideas in the comments. Happy holidays, friends!

Amy

A Christ-Centered Twelve Days of Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 11 Dec 2016 11:00:00 +0000

Hi guys! Can you believe Christmas will be here so soon?! Holiday preparations are in full swing and everywhere you look there are gifts to buy and things to do. We started decorating our home for Christmas in mid November – for a few reasons. One, as a blogger, I needed to photograph some Christmas projects ahead of time to have them ready to share with y’all. I also wanted to be able to take my time and make it an enjoyable process rather than rushing through and feeling stressed and guilty about it. Mostly though, I wanted all the “work” of Christmas to be done before December hit, so that I could slow things waaaay down and enjoy some much-needed quiet family time this month.

It can be easy this time of year to get wrapped up in, well, wrapping . . . and putting up pretty decorations, and hosting get-togethers and all the other wonderful things about the holidays. I’m as guilty as anybody! This year I really want to try and simplify my holiday and keep our Christmas focused on Christ. I LOVE that Christmas is on a Sunday this year. That always seems to add a little extra “spiritual oomph” to an already wonderful holiday. Today I’m sharing some things we are doing as a family that will {hopefully} help us keep our holiday Christ-centered.

The Living Christ

A couple years ago our family worked together to memorize The Living Christ during the holiday season. It was a really fun experience, and one I would recommend if you haven’t tried it. It’s long, but it’s really not that hard to memorize, especially if you work on it together. Even if you have memorized it in the past, a little refresher probably wouldn’t hurt. I know we need one! The very last line, “God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son”, really resonates with me. I designed some Christmas tree ornaments with that message for our monthly women’s meeting at church that year. I still love the memories of that special Christmas, and the beautiful message of The Living Christ, every time I see it.

To make your own Living Christ ornaments, download my freeprintable images and follow this awesome tutorial at Fyne's Designs.

The Twelve Days of Christ

I love all the Twelve Days of Christmas ideas you see all over the internet this time of year. This year we are going to do our own little countdown and study some of the Names of Christ as a family in the days leading up to Christmas. I designed eight of these Names of Christ study cards for Easter this year, but I thought they were equally appropriate for the Christmas season as well. I’m adding 4 brand new cards to the set so you’ll have one for each of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

Each card has a hand-lettered word art design on one side that you could frame or hang with ribbon on your Christmas tree, but the back side is where the magic lives. It is chock-full of scripture references and quotes to enhance your understanding, as well as related articles for further study.

All you have to do is download the files here, print them double-sided onto cardstock and cut them out to make a set for each family member. I laminated mine so I could carry them to church every Sunday and have them at the ready for quick reference. These cards would also make a great stocking stuffer for your Seminary student or missionary!

I hope these simple suggestions give you some ideas about how you can make this Christmas a special, Christ-centered holiday for your family. Merry Christmas, friends!

Amy

Printable Wrapping Paper Sheets and Tags

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 12:00:00 +0000

Hi guys! Every year I like to pick a theme for wrapping my Christmas gifts – a single pattern of paper or a couple of coordinates in a cohesive color scheme -- something unique so our presents look pretty and coordinated under the tree. {I have a teeny tiny bit of OCD and anxiety, just in case you couldn’t tell. It’s OK, I embrace it.} This year I decided to try something I have never done before – designing my own gift wrap. It has been a fun little project and I am excited to share it with y’all!

We decided on a black and white theme for our Christmas decorating this year so I designed a couple of hand-lettered, chalk art inspired designs to begin with and then added a coordinating graphic pattern. For a little contrast and interest, I added the novelty Happy Holidays print. Here are all four coordinating designs:

Then, just because it was fun and I was on a roll, I designed some coordinating printable gift boxes as well!

I wanted to share my designs with you guys to thank you for visiting my little ole’ blog all year! For wrapping smaller gifts, you can download and print my free gift wrap sheets. I had them printed on 11x17 paper at Staples, which worked beautifully for wrapping books, dvd’s and other small-ish gifts.

The gift boxes will be available on Lolly Jane soon. Head over there to download the files and print onto 11x17 cardstock. {I'll add the direct link here as soon as they are available.}

If you really, really like the designs and you have larger gifts to wrap, you can purchase full 6-foot rolls of the Reindeer Names and Alpine Trees gift wrap from Spoonflower. It’s a little pricey, I’m not gonna’ lie, but it is the nicest giftwrap I have ever worked with. It folds and creases like buttah and doesn’t tear on sharp box corners!

I also found this cute plaid paper in the Target Dollar Spot that coordinates perfectly and has a much friendlier price tag of $1:

In fact, any black and white patterned paper would coordinate nicely! I’m adding a variety of red and white or black and white striped ribbons and twines to decorate my packages.

I also found a six pack of small bottle-brush trees in the Target Dollar Spot which I am using instead of bows on these red car gift boxes. Super cute, right?!

There is a set of coordinating hand-lettered gift tags, as well.

All the printable wrapping sheets and tags can be downloaded here for your personal use.

Happy, happy holidays, friends!

Amy

Licorice Caramel Coal Gift Idea

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 08 Dec 2016 11:00:00 +0000

Hi guys! Today I'm sharing another fun holiday gift idea on I Heart Naptime for Jamielyn's Crazy Christmas event. Don't mind me -- I'm just fan-girling over here for a minute. I've been a long-time follower of Jamielyn's amazing projects and recipes and it is such an honor to be invited! If you're looking for a treat that is a little bit different and kinda' snarky for your friends with a sense of humor, this is your gift idea!

Caramel popcorn balls with a hint of licorice flavoring that look just like coal? Yes, please!! I used to always tease my kids that Santa was going to bring them coal for Christmas if they weren't on their best behavior. If the coal was this delicious they might not have minded at all!

Head over to I Heart Naptime to score the delicious recipe and the free printable tags that go with it.

Have a great day, friends!!
Amy

Top 5 Tips for Hosting a Simple Holiday Cookie Decorating Party with Krusteaz

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 11:00:00 +0000

This post was sponsored by Krusteaz Cookie Mixes. All opinions are 100% my own.

Hi guys!! One of my favorite things about the holiday season is making {and eating} Christmas cookies. I swear, I could eat a whole batch of frosted sugar cookies all by myself and not even feel bad about it. Not to mention the snowballs, and peanut blossoms, and snickerdoodles, and chocolate crinkles. I have a crazy sweet tooth this time of year!! Every year I want to make batches of all my favorite cookies, but I do not need to eat that many cookies. Also, baking them all from scratch?! Ain’t nobody got time for that! But I’ll let y’all in on my little secret -- Krusteaz cookie mixes are THE BOMB! Cookie baking was so easy this year we decided to throw the world’s easiest Cookie Decorating party to celebrate and I'm sharing my Top 5 Tips for hosting a simple cookie decorating party!

1. The cookies don't have to be made from scratch. For reals.

Seriously, you guys. Krusteaz cookies are suuuuper easy and waaaayyyy yummy! All I had to do was add butter and eggs to the mixes and blend it all up in a stand mixer. The dough wasn’t too sticky, so rolling it out was a dream and the cut cookies held their shape really well while baking. I hate it when sugar cookies spread so you almost can’t tell what shape they’re supposed to be. These did not do that, which is awesome.

I tried my hand at cutting sweater shapes out without a cookie cutter. I just used a small knife and shaped them how I wanted. They’re not perfect, but they looked really cute decorated. I was even able to roll out and cut the shortbread into Christmas tree shapes and they baked up beautifully, too!

2. Start your Cookie Party planning with a great invitation.

People are 10,000 times more likely to come to your party if the invitation is cute. I'm pretty sure I read that somewhere . . . Download my free printable invitation here. Open the file in PicMonkey, Photoshop, or any photo editing program you like and add all the details. If you’re not comfortable with all that, just print the blank version and write in the info by hand.

3. The frosting can come from a can. Seriously. No one cares as long as you have lots of it.

I used a store-bought cream cheese frosting to simplify things, but you could get fancy with it and make your own from scratch. {You, me, and Sweet Brown know how I feel about that.} We had the frosting in small cups with knives for spreading and in bags with piping tips for decorating and detail work.

4. When in doubt, use festive paper party cups.

I also provided a fun assortment of sprinkles and food-safe markers. These cute paper cups from the party section of my store worked perfectly to hold the sprinkles, giving us easier access to the good stuff. Give each of your guests a paper plate or piece of parchment paper to work on and get to decoratin’!

We had some really clever and creative cookie decorators! Personally, I’m loving the ugly sweater cookies with the candy Christmas shapes on them. I also like the way the star-shaped cookie got turned into a snowflake. We had a blast sharing our creations and trying to one-up each other in the creativity and skill departments!

5. Get rid of 'em.

The cookies, not the guests. Finish off your cookie party by serving cold milk and letting everyone dig into the cookies they just decorated. The most important aspect of this party, for me, was to get the tempting cookies out of my home after I had enjoyed just a few. If this is your goal as well, make sure to have some plates or small boxes on hand to send each of your guests home with their own stash of cookies.

We all thought the Krusteaz cookies tasted pretty much like homemade. If you don’t tell them, your guests will probably be none the wiser. So, there you have it. Don’t let the idea of hosting a cookie decorating party overwhelm you. Just buy the right products, invite a bunch of fun people over, and have a no-stress holiday get-together!

Happy Holidays, friends!
Amy

DIY Donut Stacker for HAPPY Holidays

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 25 Nov 2016 11:00:00 +0000

Happy Black Friday, guys! Have you recovered from your turkey coma yesterday yet? I am rearin' to go today because . . . you guys . . . IT'S FINALLY OK TO BE EXCITED ABOUT CHRISTMAS!! We can finally listen to Christmas music and bake and decorate without fear of judgement. I mean, that wasn't really stopping me -- I've had my tree up for a couple of weeks already, but now I don't have to apologize for it. One of my favorite things about this time of year is the HAPPY Holidays series over at Tatertots and Jello. Honestly, as a crafter, it's one of the best parts of the holiday season. Where else can you get so much brilliant holiday baking and crafting inspiration?! I have to pinch myself every single year when I get invited to participate!!

This year I'm sharing a fun way to serve one of my favorite winter treats -- donuts and hot cocoa. Sure, you could lay your donuts out in boxes or pile them on plates, but why would you want to when, instead, you could wow all your family and friends by building this DIY Donut Stacker?! It's like a whole'notha level of post-caroling coolness.

Because it's Black Friday and I'm all about the bargains, I'm also sharing a free printable that works perfectly as a back drop for your holiday dessert table. Head over to Tatertots and Jello to download your free printable and get all the details to make your own DIY Donut Stacker!

Happy Holidays, friends!

Amy

Hand-lettered Holiday Treat Bags

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 22 Nov 2016 13:49:00 +0000

Hi guys! I'm super excited to be sharing some hand-lettered holiday treat bags today on Lolly Jane. Have you ever wondered how to create your own cool, custom bags? It's easier than you might think -- so easy, in fact, that you don't need to wait for a special occasion to make them. These treat bags will add a little extra-special oomph to your next family holiday movie night!

Because c'mon, aren't you in the mood to "get your jingle on" by watching Elf curled up on the couch with your kiddos and some hot popcorn?! I also designed some gift bag toppers that would be great to package neighbor and teacher gifts, or any small gift under your tree this holiday season.

Either way, you can make Christmas extra special by sprinkling on a little hand-lettered goodness this year. Head over to Lolly Jane to read more and download the files, and invite your friends to join you!

Happy Holidays, friends!

Amy

Free Floral Thanksgiving Party Printable Set

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 10 Nov 2016 05:18:00 +0000

Hi guys! Can I just tell you how excited I am for Thanksgiving in a few weeks?! It's like the grand kick-off to the holiday season. Plus, I love time with family and big, fancy meals, so Thanksgiving is no-brainer on my favorites list. {It doesn't hurt that we get a few days off from school and work, too. Just sayin'.) Today I'm sharing a bunch of printables designed to make hosting a beautiful Thanksgiving party a no-brainer as well.

You guys, I'm a planner. The first step is admitting you have a problem, right? I like to have every little detail squared away well in advance -- especially when it's my turn to host an event like Thanksgiving dinner. I'm also a very visual thinker, so a couple of weeks before the big day I pull out all my serving dishes to make sure I have enough of everything, and see how it is all going to coordinate. {And to make sure the gravy boats didn't disappear since last year. Ain't nobody got time for hunting down gravy boats on Thanksgiving Day!} I gather all my cloth napkins and get them pressed an folded. I decide which sets of dishes to use and settle on a color scheme.

This year I decided on a non-traditional turquoise, navy, green and gold set up. I also wanted to add a little faux bois wood grain in the mix. I designed this set of printables around that theme and I am IN LOVE with it. Like, seriously, I would marry it if it would have me. In LOVE! Let me show you all the goodies in this set:

Every great celebration starts with a pretty invitation. I had these 5x7 flat cards printed on cardstock at Staples. All you have to do is cut them out, add the info, and pop them into envelopes.

I created a Give Thanks Banner that coordinates with the set to use as part of your decor. I put mine up on my chickenwire frame and have some small tags and mini clothespins nearby so guests can write things they are thankful for and clip them to the board.

Next you need some cute place cards to help tie your table into the theme. I designed a couple of different versions for y'all. {I like having options!!} The first is the simple floral and striped ribbon tent card, shown above. But if you want to get a little more tricky with it,

. . . I designed this napkin wrapper place card as well. Depending on how you fold your napkin, you can place the silverware inside the napkin {awesome for buffet style serving situations} or place it beside the plate for a more traditional, formal look. Also, I just now decided to go with gold chargers instead of burlap. See? It pays to plan ahead.

Oh, folks! I also found these eco-friendly plates made from palm leaves online. They look like wood, but they're disposable. They're a super-cool option if you are serving a big crowd and want a nicer-than-paper throw-away option. I'm thinking they might be perfect for the dessert and pie buffet after dinner is cleaned up.

If you are serving your food buffet-style, you can use these tent cards to label the dishes. I always like to know what something is before I put it on my plate. Thanksgiving plate real estate is valuable y'all, so I want to make sure I have room for all the things I love!

Finally, send your guests home with a lil' sum'n sum'n for later! Box up leftovers in these cool take-out boxes so all your guests can have a midnight snack. Make them extra special by printing these cute labels onto full-sheet mailing labels and cutting them out to make your own custom sticker labels.

Download all the files to print for your personal use here.

I hope your holiday season is full of beauty and joy, and that you are surrounded by those you love! What we all need right now is to focus on our blessings and move forward into the future with peace and respect for one another. Happy Thanksgiving, friends!!

"Candy Bomb" Caramel Apples

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 25 Oct 2016 03:37:00 +0000

Hi, guys!! I have a pressing concern on my mind today. A question for the ages -- Why do we only eat caramel apples in the fall?! They’re so yummy. The perfect balance of sweet and tart, healthy and …. not healthy. I always forget HOW MUCH I like them until September/October rolls around and I start seeing them all over the craft and food blogosphere and simply MUST have one. You guys, they’re delicious with a capital D. Especially when you roll ‘em in white chocolate and the equivalent of a chopped up full-size candy bar. {Maybe that’s why they are a once-a-year indulgence!} Need a great way to use up your leftover Halloween candy next week? I got you. Make a few of these “Candy Bomb” caramel apples.

The trend this year is caramel apple slices. Those are cute and all, but you’ll need a full apple to hold the quantity of sweet, tasty goodness I’m talkin’ about here. I used Honeycrisp apples because they’re my absolute favorite and I prefer a sweeter apple, but if you like it a little more tart grab a pretty green Granny Smith. I started with small-ish apples because we’re going to add several layers of good stuff to these bad boys.

Insert a stick into the top of your apple. I wanted a more rustic look, so instead of popsicle sticks I grabbed some thin tree branches from my back yard, scrubbed them clean and microwaved on High for about 2 minutes to dry them out. Using a Swiss Army knife, whittle the tips into points so they go in the apple without a fight.

To prepare for dipping, roughly chop your candy bars. I used one full-size bar for each apple. If you are using fun-size bars you will need 3-4 per apple, I’m guessing. Place the candy into small bowls and set aside for later.

Next, follow the melting directions on the back of the bag of Caramel bits. I like to use the bits {found on the baking aisle next to the chocolate chips} so I don’t have to unwrap a million individual caramels. Last, melt a bag of white chocolate chips in a separate microwave-safe bowl and get ready to make some magic happen.

Lay out a sheet of wax paper to rest apples on in between dips. Give each apple a good dunk in the warm melted caramel, shaking off the excess, and set on the wax paper to set up a little bit. Because I wanted mine extra gooey, I went for a second dip of caramel before adding toppings. You could skip the double-dip, but I highly recommend it!

Your next layer will either be white chocolate or candy depending on how you want your finished apple to look. For a few of mine, I dipped the whole apple into white chocolate then sprinkled the candy evenly over the top and around the sides. Finish it off with a light drizzle of more white chocolate or caramel – or both. The Twix apple shown above was done this way.

For the others, I sprinkled the candy directly over the warm, sticky caramel. Sprinkled is probably too gentle of a word for this process – I dumped on as much candy bar as I could get each apple to hold, pressing it gently into the caramel so it would really stick. That’s why we call ‘em “Candy Bomb caramel apples, after all. Finish them off with a heavy-handed drizzle of the white chocolate.

Once each apple is dipped, dumped, and drizzled to your heart’s content, allow them to set up on the wax paper. The caramel and white chocolate set up pretty quickly, so you won’t have to wait too long, I promise. We tried Snickers, Butterfinger, Heath, and Twix on our apples and they were each my favorite!! My boys may have even called me “The BEST mom EVER” while scarfing down their apples.

If you can manage to keep them away from your teenagers, they would make awesome fall treats for your besties. Just tie a little bow around the stick and place on a cute paper plate and become “The BEST neighbor/friend EVER”.

Do you have a favorite treat or indulgence that you save for a particular season? If you try these and you might have a new one!

Happy Halloween, friends!

Amy

No-Sew Trick or Treat Bag on Lolly Jane

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 22 Oct 2016 20:17:00 +0000

Hi guys! Halloween is just around the corner, and I'm super excited. I may have mentioned (*once or twice*) that I LOVE Halloween. Do you have your costumes all ready to go? How about bags for trick or treating? I got you covered on that front!!

I found these adorable shopping tote bags while I was grocery shopping a few weeks ago and I immediately knew they were destined to hold so much more than groceries!! Those black and white polka dots are just too stinkin' cute. In a matter of minutes you can create super-cute NO-SEW trick or treat bags for all your kiddos! I'm sharing the simple tutorial over at Lolly Jane so you can make your own.

P.S. Did you know you can print on fabric with your little old ink jet printer at home?! It's EASY and opens up a whole new world of crafting fun for you. Get all the deets along with the trick or treat bag tutorial!

Poe-Inspired Raven Halloween Decor

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 05:12:00 +0000

Hi guys! Happy fall, FINALLY. I am thrilled that October is finally here. I lu-uh-uhhhhve Halloween. Have I mentioned that before? Like, only every year, I know. I'm an October baby, so Halloween always felt like a second birthday for me. I prefer cute Halloween decor to creepy, gory, yucky. I'm also obsessed with black, white and gold for Halloween decor this year, so I wanted to create something new along those lines.

This little Poe-inspired felt raven fit the bill perfectly! I just love the way he looks perched on my coffee table next to my vintage-looking spell books and my gilded mini pumpkins. You may have noticed this cute little raven tucked in on one of the shelves of my Witch's Bakery for Trunk-or-Treat last week, too. You can easily create this little guy in under an hour, even if you aren't much of a sew-er. It's beginner-level easy!

I used a blanket stitch to hand sew all the edges, but you could whipstitch it or sew it however you are most comfortable. Don't worry about your stitches being perfect. If you use black thread on black felt, you can barely even see them at all. I think you could probably even use fabric glue or hot glue if you are really opposed to sewing!

I'm just going to share some very basic steps here to give you an idea of how this project is made. The pattern download has a very detailed set of step-by-step instructions with photos that you can follow.

You will need:

Printable pattern and instructions
1 piece of black felt (approx. 9 x 12 inches)
coordinating thread and needle
fiber-fill stuffing
2 small black buttons
Twill tape (approx. 5/8 inch wide by 6 inches long)
small alphabet stamps and ink pad or fine tip black marker
candlestick
hot glue
scissors

Begin by cutting the pattern pieces out of your felt sheet. Next you'll stitch the head piece to the body pieces using a blanket stitch. Then you'll attach the belly piece to one side of the body in the same way. (I promise, there are more detailed instructions in the pattern that make this all make sense!)

Stitch the body pieces together around the end of the tail, leaving a part of the belly open for stuffing. Fill your bird with fiber-fill stuffing, using a pencil or other pointed object to get it down into the beak and tail. Once the bird is stuffed as much as you like, stitch the opening closed and attach the wing and tail feathers.

To finish up, use small alphabet stamps or a black marker to add a message to the twill tape that will be in the bird's mouth. I chose the Poe-inspired "nevermore". Be sure to stamp your message a little off center of the length of twill tape or part of it will be hidden by the bird's beak. Feed the ribbon through the slits in the beak shown on the pattern. Paint and distress your candlestick, if desired, then use hot glue to perch the raven right on top of it.

I'm kinda' in love with the way this little guy turned out! He'll be the perfect addition to my Halloween decor. I might even make a couple more on candlesticks of different lengths to create a little vignette on the top of my piano, too.

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