yOuR liTtLe BiRdiE

Friday's Foot Fetish: Air Tali

2013-05-24T09:55:00.000-05:00

I recently splurged on a pair of Air Tali by Cole Haan. As an event planner, when I am on site I can be on my feet for 12 plus hours. I have my fair share of Dansko and Allergra shoes, but nothing cute and practical. So, with a sale and a coupon I bought my first pair. Girls, I am sold!

The leather is so soft and the cushion in plentiful. The heel is just enough and the toe opening is perfect. The sales person had on a black pair that she said she wears daily in retail and has had them for 6 years. They still looked brand new.

I am thrilled with my purchase. The shoes will be great for years to come!

Check out all the colors of Air Tali by Cole Haan here.

Chicken Lasagna Cups

2013-05-21T07:18:00.000-05:00

In an effort to be healthier, I have tried to introduce more vegetables at dinner. I'll be honest, I don't like most veggies, but these.... these veggies I can eat!

The lasagna cups are layered with wonton skins and then filled with chicken and cheese packed with the broccoli, zucchini and carrots to get your veggies in.

I had never bought wonton cups before... that was an adventure. They weren't in the Asian section, they couldn't be found with biscuits and weren't in the freezer aisle. Finally, I found them in produce with the tofu. Look there first :)

Just before going in the oven... don't they look delicious?

Voila- Chicken Lasagna Cups!

The recipe can be found at Emily Bites. I just boiled a chicken breast, shredded it and added it into the cheese and veggie mixture.

From Glass to Mercury Glass in 5 Minutes

2013-05-16T18:54:00.000-05:00

I pinned a mercury glass tutorial months ago and then went on a 2 month "I am spending too much time and money at Hobby Lobby" hiatus. Well today, I went in, bought what I needed and in less than 5 minutes I had this amazing vintage mercury glass vase. Let me show you how!

Here are your supplies- a spray bottled filled with equal parts water and white vinegar, looking glass spray paint and an object to paint. This vase was $4.50 half off. You could use the glass from a picture inside a frame, a mason jar, candlesticks, an old brass lamp, most anything!

Gather all your supplies and be ready- this goes quick. First put a couple of light coats of looking glass spray on the glass object. Don't worry about the inside or super even coverage. I have had some drip marks and they worked out just fine! I did spray the upper inside since it turns outward and would show.

Then you spray the container with your vinegar and water mixture and wait one minute.

Finally, using a paper towel (dry) just start dabbing the vinegar mixture off the vase. It will dull the shiny in places and literally pull the shiny off in others.

My insides were all kinds of a mess from spraying the upper inside portion, but this project is so forgiving that it didn't affect the final project at all.

Here is my finished vase, from glass to mercury glass in under five minutes!

I love the vintage feel it has and no one would ever guess it is a spray paint trick. I can think of so many things I want to paint just looking around my house. This would be beautiful to give as a gift with fresh flowers.

What a wonderful pin to have stumbled across!

Cute Summer Playdate Invite

2013-05-13T20:52:00.000-05:00

Summer makes me nervous.... Abby is so used to a busy fun schedule with lots of interaction that I am always afraid boredom will hit us really quickly!

She has made lots of friends at preschool this year and every one of them signed up to be in class together next year. So, I know these families will be friends of ours for another year.

On the last day of school, Abby is giving out these tags with a bouncy ball in a little 3"x 4" clear bag I bought in the cake decorating section at Hobby Lobby. The tag is made the perfect size to staple on the front of the bag. I am hoping a few Moms feel like I do and call me to set up a play date!

You can easily make these with any summer graphics or just a fun font on colored paper. I think they are precious and will help us fill our summer with fun!

Friday's Foot Fetish- Tory Burch Thora Sandals

2013-05-10T08:10:00.000-05:00

I love sandals- in Texas, we can wear them about 10 months out of the year. Honestly, we could wear them year round, but eventually you want to pretend it is winter and wear a tall boot.

So many of my friends (and random people at Target) own this basic sandal from Tory Burch. It comes in every imaginable color- from orange to black patent to these metallics, my personal favorites!

What do you think- do you like the Pewter or the Gold?

More Mothers' Day Recommendations

2013-05-06T08:03:00.000-05:00

I thought I would share some of my favorite online finds that just might solve the what do I get for Mom on Mother's Day. Granted, most of these won't arrive in time for Sunday, but a sweet card and a picture of what is coming should do! I would love any of these things from Marcus and Abby Lu.

For the Southern Momma who loves a good monogram and burlap- from Number Four Eleven

For the Sporty Momma or the Soccer Mom- from Kate Spade

for the Baker in your house who is always taking a meal to someone- from All About Blanks

for the High Tech Mom who uses her iPad to organize her life- from Southern Belle Boutique on etsy

for the Sentimental Mom who likes to show off her cute kids on any given occasion- from Pickture That

for the fashion forward Momma who loves her Kendra Scott.... this would be me! :)

for the crafty Mom (or Grandma!) who likes to sew, cross stitch, quilt or just create- from MerriWeatherCouncil on etsy

for the Doggie Mom who thinks her furry friend is her child- from The Vintage Pearl

Happy Shopping for Mom!

Friday's Foot Fetish: Tommy Hilfiger sandals

2013-05-03T07:18:00.000-05:00

Did you know Tommy Hilfiger makes sandals? He makes some mighty cute ones!

I love the black and saddle combination and the texture on the black!

Laila on Zappos

These are the cutest jelly sandals and they come in navy and turquoise, too! Perfect for the pool!

Tangelo on Zappos

I recently bought a pair of longer jeans which are perfect for my favorite wedge sandals and have been looking for a black or navy pair. I think the blue and green with this pair are cute and unique!

Adalinay on Zappos

Happy Shoe Shopping!

May Desktop

2013-05-01T05:30:00.000-05:00

Happy Month of May!

I love this month.... summer is about to start, I am traveling for work and fun and my husband has a big birthday at the end of the month! I hope you have lots to look forward to this month as well.

Cottage Charm from Sweet Shoppe Designs

Inexpensive Jewelry Ideas for Mother's Day

2013-04-29T16:23:00.000-05:00

This sweet thing made me a Momma over four year ago. Isn't she precious? She loves a good accessory, just like her Momma. So today, I am sharing a few amazing new finds from Sam Moon.

I went in Sam Moon recently after not having been there in years. I always think of them as a purse store and I stopped collecting purses a few years ago. But I was recently at an event and loved the speakers necklace and about DIED when she told me Sam Moon. So, I ventured in there today and came home with 1 scarf, 3 earrings, 3 necklaces and I only spent $40. These would all make great Mother's Day gifts on a budget!

I am a huge Kendra Scott earring fan right now, so I love how all of these replicate earrings of hers. I had such a hard time deciding. There are so many great colors and shapes to be had.

This is the necklace I loved at my recent MOPS meeting. She paired it with white pants, a nude sweater, a peach and mint IKAT shell and nude sandals. Love the nude/peach color and the size of the stones.

Then, I decided to buy both of these. I wore the pink one to lunch recently with two friends who are jewelry designers and they both complimented me on it. Pretty amazing- I had to tell them SAM MOON! It feels like the Sears commercial where the lady is hesitant to admit shopping at Sears even when her friends compliment her outfit.

If you live outside of a Sam Moon store, you can visit their website. Just know, it doesn't always have the same selection as the store.

Happy Mother's Day Shopping!

Friday's Foot Fetish- Green Leather

2013-04-26T07:58:00.000-05:00

I just love these- do I really need green sandals? NO!

Do I really want green sandals? YES!

In case you "need" them too, they are Franco Sarto Gia found here.

Delicious Chicken and Pineapple Skewers

2013-04-24T07:53:00.000-05:00

I am super excited that we booked a family vacation for this fall- a Disney cruise! So many parts of the trip are exciting including swimming with dolphins in the Bahamas. Checking that off the bucket list this fall. And then I realized the dread of pictures... in a swimsuit... on Facebook. Isn't that always the worst!

So, for the next 6 months my husband and I are focusing on our weight and keeping the goal of a picture in our swimsuit that doesn't make us cringe! To that end, look for some Weight Watchers and general healthy recipes in the next few months and a few less bundt cakes :)

The part of Spring that I love the most is cooking on the grill! My husband grilling meat while I prepare our sides and Abby playing in the backyard. It is dinnertime perfection in my book! Speaking of perfection, these chicken and pineapple skewers are amazingly tasty to be so simple. We ate them all up and declared them a new regular in our dinnertime rotation.

Along with chicken breast chunks and fresh pineapple, you make your own BBQ sauce for basting and dipping that is so tasty! The recipe is from celebrity chef Tyler Florence and can be found here.

We served ours with roasted carrots from the farmers market. They were remarkably tastier that the grocery store carrots. It was a super light and perfect springtime dinner!

Cinnamon Roll Bundt Cake

2013-04-21T18:30:00.000-05:00

I love bundt cake- it is pressure free. No need to be perfectly iced or evenly round and flat. Provided you have a good pan and your cake will come out easily when flipped, you are in business!

I recently discovered Shay at Mix and Match Mama and she took a basic bundt cake recipe and has made over 60 varieties of the cake. We recently took her Cinnamon Roll bundt cake to dinner with friends. And, when it was gone, we all wept.

Just kidding, but it was really good.

Visit Shay's blog for the basic recipe and the Cinnamon Roll version. I'd love to try Pistachio or Chocolate Caramel Macaroon next. Delish!

Creamy Garlic Pasta

2013-04-18T15:03:00.000-05:00

We had this yummy pasta as a side dish and it stole the show! We both wanted more of this instead of the main dish. I highly recommend it. Oh, and it is even better the second day when everything has really settled into the noodles.

The recipe from The Cheese Pusher can be found here.

Creating Free iPhone Wallpaper from Pinterest

2013-04-15T14:57:00.000-05:00

I love having a picture of my family on my iPhone lock screen, but I hate having a picture as my home screen. Inevitably, the best part of the picture is covered by icons or folders and it just ends up looking silly.

I was playing around on Pinterest while killing time before preschool pick up and found an easy way to make a cute wallpaper using Pinterest.

First, click on a pin you would like as your wallpaper. Take a picture of your screen by hitting the power button and home button at the same time. The picture would look like the left one below. But, you don't want all that top and bottom junk on your home screen. You want the clean image on the right.

Next, open your photos icon where you look at past pictures taken. Click on the Pinterest photo you just took and zoom into it using your fingers on the screen. (I assume you know this... start with fingers together touching the screen and spread them further apart). Then, take another picture with your power button and home button pushed simultaneously.

Your picture would now look like the one on the right and you can select to save it as your home screen, lock screen or both as your would a photo you took of your family. This happens with the box and right facing arrow after the picture is taken.

Zoe Pearn is one of my favorite digital scrapbookers and she pins beautiful things that make great wallpapers! Happy Pinning and Wallpapering! :)

Friday's Foot Fetish: Michael Kors Sandals

2013-04-12T07:33:00.000-05:00

I haven't done a Friday's Foot Fetish post in a long time! Then, I saw these super cute jelly sandals from Michael Kors and had to share!

I want them in green! They also come in black, brown, white, and pink. They are totally waterproof so they would be super stylish at the pool. I love a t-strap sandal and own my fair share of them.

Michael Kors MK Plate jelly at Zappos

If you'd like a dressier version, I happen to own these in gold and brown. I have had the gold ones forever and wear them so often, I invested in the saddle brown pair earlier this year. They are soft, well made and have lasted really well. Plus they come in 7 different colors including ORANGE!

Michael Kors MK Plate Thong at Zappos

Happy Shoe Shopping!

Round Top Finds

2013-04-10T08:25:00.000-05:00

My girlfriend Andrea and I spent Saturday afternoon exploring the fields of Warrenton and Round Top hoping to find a few special things... a vintage ladder to hold quilts, two large scones to hold a shelf in her daughter's room, and turquoise Tupperware glasses like Uncle Si uses for his sweet tea. We didn't find any of those things, but we did find some real winners!

First of all, we had our obligatory Royer's Pie at Zapp Hall. Last time we were here, they only had large pies and we dug in. Luckily, this time, they had mini pies. I enjoyed a Tollhouse chocolate chip cookie pie. Delicious!

Pardon my red skin... the clouds were deceiving and I got a sunburn!

Andrea declared her cherry pie the best ever. I am not a cherry pie fan, but it did look good and the cherries were so sweet and dark.

Zapp Hall area is a really fun place with eclectic booths, live music and lots of tables under the trees. We loved taking a little break here to people watch and enjoy the cool breeze and live music.

Speaking of people watching, the fashion of Round Top is top notch. We saw grown women in tutus with printed leggings and running shoes, Mexican dresses with fringe all around them, people way overdressed to walk 5 miles in the dirt fields, and a lot of people with gypsy-like hairpieces. Apparently wrapping a ribbon around your head with a giant flower is popular again?

I bought two items for my house that I just love. Look at the new little pillow for my guest bed. Who wouldn't want to be loved like biscuits and gravy? So sweet and fun!

Finally, one of my favorite vendors added butterflies to their painted tin collection. I loved the colors in this one and bought it for my daughter's room. She also has a large flower made of tin from Texas Trash and Treasures. They always have such cute stuff!

If you are ever in the Austin area the first weekend of April or October, be sure to visit Round Top. Just bring cash and your favorite tutu :)

Guest Room Updates

2013-04-08T05:08:00.000-05:00

I have always loved a good check. This grey checkered quilt was recently discovered at Target and after thinking about how I would use it for a few days, I bought it. It was under $70 and is great quality. It is soft and already feel worn in. So, I played around in this room during rest time and came up with a room I really love!

I am very blessed to have a Mother and Sister that quilt and a MIL with a long line of quilters in her family. I had previously had a quilt from my husband's grandmother on the bed. The new quilt at the foot of the bed was a gift to my MIL from her Aunt Mable. I love this quilt. It is just so me- I love all the bright colors and the details. My MIL told me that Mable had more money that her own mother and was able to buy fabric for her quilts rather than use leftover scraps from other projects or clothing. So, her quilts were always much thicker. It is a great quilt!

The only thing I bought was the grey checkered quilt. I dug out from under the guest bed (while moving it) my collection or throw pillows and just played around until something worked. Luckily, I had lots of red stored under there since I moved red out of my living room recently.

I added the bee print that once resided in Abby's bathroom since it had a little of the green and blue in it. I have loved that print for many years!

Since there is so much green in the quilt from Mable, I added a green lamp from my office and a frame I had tucked away. I want a mercury glass lamp for my office and hope to try the new spray paint method I have seen online.

I also added the red canvas of Matthew 6:11 to the long wall in the room. It was on clearance at Hobby Lobby and I had a gift certificate from a sweet friend. I originally wanted it in my kitchen, but it is much bigger than the space I had in mind. I do like it in here.

I am going to Round Top for the my central Texas antique show this weekend and I am specifically looking for an old wooden ladder to lean against the wall and hold all of my extra quilts. Fingers crossed I find it!

For reference, here is a picture of the room before the updates were made.

Linky and Recipes from Your Little Birdie Facebook Friends

2013-04-04T05:11:00.000-05:00

The other night was my dreaded pre-grocery store night where I have to decide what we are going to eat for the next two weeks? Decisions had to be made and I was needing ideas. I shared a plea on Your Little Birdie's Facebook page asking for recipes and Jessica and Sarah gave me two good ones!

Big Easy Shrimp from Food.com

I will be honest, I don't like shrimp unless it is fried. So, I went out on a limb with this one. My husband took the first bite, declared it to be good and "really shrimpy" and I opted for cereal for dinner. He thought this tasted fabulous, so if you like seafood or specifically shrimp, make this! We served it over rice and it made the whole house smell wonderful. Lots of different flavors in here. Marcus' only recommendation for next time, "more bacon please"

Sarah at Life with Leahy sent me to her site where I found a recipe from Semi-Homemade Mom for Crockpot Tortellini Lasagna.

This was super easy and very tasty. With a meat sauce filled with ricotta cheese and fresh spinach, you have color, texture and lots of flavor in the sauce that the frozen cheese tortellini cooks in. It made a big batch of leftovers which I love!

Add your favorite recipe here.... we all need help the night before the grocery store!

April Desktop

2013-04-01T06:21:00.000-05:00

Happy April!

Come back on Thursday morning for a linky party. Share you favorite recipe with everyone!

Homemade Laminate Floor Cleaner

2013-03-29T04:05:00.000-05:00

I have a little secret to tell you- my beautiful hardwood floors have looked like this in my formal dining room for 3 months. I have tried everything and they just haven't gotten better. When we had a puppy (for 3 months or so) he liked this room the best. It was his own personal restroom and I cleaned these floors more than twice a day. And, that led to build up. And, since I can't put water on them I just left them all streaky and sticky and hoped a plan would come to me.

Well, the no entertaining time has come to an end and I have girls coming over and they can't walk in this room on my streaky floors. Pinterest to the rescue! I searched around and found a homemade floor cleaner that didn't require a trip to the store.

After one good mopping with my Swifter on dry and my new floor cleaner in a spray bottle, I am in business with nice floors again!

Here are the ingredients, along with water. Super easy. Items you likely have on hand. Super inexpensive. Smells great.

I whipped up a little label for my old Oxyclean spray bottle and included the recipe for future reference.

Hooray for Pinterest success and thanks for Beckman stories for the recipe!

Peeps on a Stick Printable and a Lil Rant

2013-03-27T06:51:00.000-05:00

Have you seen the cute idea to put Easter peeps on a stick and share them? I saw this idea on Pinterest and pinned it knowing it would be an easy and inexpensive little treat Abby could share with her friends at school and church.

I used 2 peeps per stick (found in the cake decorating aisle at Hobby Lobby) and tied them inside a small treat bag (same aisle) with scrap ribbon. Very inexpensive craft and Abby helped me by handing me the items as I needed them. She loves any craft or cooking time that lets her sit on the kitchen island!

I also made a little set of tags with my digital scrapbook software. They are 2" x 3.5", so perfect for tying onto each stick. I made an extra set without "abby lu" on them. Feel free to download and print them.

I am not usually one to rant. I don't like to speak ill of others. I don't leave mean comments on blogs. But, I want to say something that may be a little controversial here.... I hate all the articles and blog posts coming out right now that we need to take the holidays down a notch. Or, that Pinterest is evil. I think just the opposite and here is why.

I like making treats for my daughter and her friends and the holidays provide the perfect venue for that. I want to spend time with my daughter doing things, not just playing in her dollhouse or watching TV together. I want her to learn to make things, but more importantly to make things for others. I want her to feel the joy of giving, not just receiving. I want her to be creative, to get dirty, and to start and finish a project. These are life lessons in the form of sugary treats in a bag.

I don't want other Moms to feel bad when they receive these treats. I don't feel pressure when my friends make green milk for their kids on March 17th or share the cutest party favors. I think, that is fun or I wish I had thought to do that. It is okay. I can't do it all. I can make the choice to do what I can.

I love getting ideas from Pinterest. I love sharing ideas. I think it is wonderful to support others who come up with something cute or helpful by repinning their findings. I enjoy dreaming about a new home, a pretty outfit, a perfectly iced cake. I don't feel pressure to have all those things. I know I will never master folding a fitted sheet no matter how many times I pin a tutorial.

I hope we can use things like Pinterest and treats shared among kids to get new ideas and be encouraged and not use them to make ourselves feel inferior. The world will do that for us in so many places, don't let Pinterest do it, too.

Chile Colorado Burritos

2013-03-25T06:40:00.000-05:00

I tried another Pinterest recipe last week and boy was it good! I took one bite and told my husband, you are going to really like this! The burrito is stuffed with tender stew meat cooked in the crockpot all day in enchilada sauce and then stuffed with beans and cheese. Delish!

Get the recipe from Food Pusher here and make it for dinner! You won't be disappointed.

No Sew Peep Bunny Garland

2013-03-21T20:33:00.000-05:00

I hosted a handful of friends Tuesday night for craft night! I always love having a few girls over with good cake and glue guns! We had fun making no sew peep bunny garland. It is super simple and we all could have finished in about 2 hours.... if we weren't talking so much!

Aren't my little bunnies cute?

Each girl brought 8.5x11 felt sheets, coordinating ribbon and a brown or black marker. I had extra scissors and glue guns on hand for the fun.

Using the bunny pattern found here, trace your bunny onto the felt sheets. We were able to get 6 per sheet. Cut them out with scissors or pinking shears. Then, using a dark marker add three dots to represent eyes and a nose just like candy peeps have.

Using hot glue, string your bunnies onto ribbon by their ears. Hang your garland and enjoy!

If you'd like to get all fancy, your can sew and stuff your peeps like Dana did here. Super cute!

Morning Glory Muffins

2013-03-20T20:31:00.000-05:00

Abby loves to bake. My 4 year old knows where we keep all the baking supplies- she knows the difference between baking soda and baking powder, loves to open the salt spout and knows vegetable oil and olive oil are different. We have lots of fun baking with each other.

She wanted to bake together one afternoon and I dug around and had what we needed to make Morning Glory Muffins that I had seen on Big Mama's blog. We made them and ate them up! These are a great muffin for sneaking in some healthy stuff. They held up well and we have all packed them for breakfast this past week. Plus, I learned that Starbuck's sells these, too!

Morning Glory Muffins from The Big Mama Blog

Mix together:

1 1/4 cup sugar

2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 tbs. cinnamon

2 tsp.baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

Add:

1/2 cup coconut

3/4 cup raisins

1 large apple peeled and grated

2 cup grated carrots

1/2 cup chopped nuts

Stir to combine

In a separate bowl mix together:

3 large eggs

1 cup veg oil

2 tsp. vanilla

Mix dry ingredients into egg mixture.

Spoon into muffin cups and bake 30-35 minutes at 350 degrees.

Our changes: We sprinkled additional cinnamon and coarse sugar on top to give a little extra flavor and crunch. I hate a soggy muffin- crunch is good :)

Top Five Green Finds

2013-03-17T06:31:00.000-05:00

I love the color kelly green and now mint green and chartreuse are becoming so popular that you should not get pinched today! There is lots of green to be had. Here are my top five favorites...

Nine West flats from Zappos

Leather Tote from Banana Republic (30% off through Sunday with code BRTHANKS)

Kendra Scott tassle necklace in Green Onyx

Cute ruched swimsuit from J Crew in mint green

Mint green rubber watch from Anthropologie (I own and love this watch!)

And a bonus green favorite, Peach Green Tea Lemonade is back at Starbucks for Spring. Don't miss out- with dried peaches inside and a hint of ginger, it is the best!

Happy St. Patty's Day!