Sarah's Weekend Workshop

DIY Chevron Lamp Shade

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 12:38:00 +0000

Hey howdy hey! How are all of you this morning? I am feeling fine as frog hairs split four ways.

Can you tell I am a little excited? Yeah, I am…

Last week, I wanted to go yard saling but we really didn’t have the money so I decided to stay home and try to find a fun project to work on with stuff that I already had. {Because, let’s face it – I have tons of ~~junk~~ treasures that have piled up in the shed!}

So, I decided to try and make my own chevron lamp shade with a lamp I already had.

Here is what I started with: Both the shade and the lamp I found while shopping at Goodwill. {YAY!}

I started off by cutting pieces of paper down to the size I wanted my chevron pattern to be.

I’m not gonna lie…this took me forever and a billion years to figure out {slight exaggeration, of course}

But the hardest part for me was figuring out how to get the point on the end. You know, to the “V” part?

Here is what I FINALLY figured out…

If you start taping at the bottom of your “V” instead of the top, it works SO.MUCH.BETTER. With the first piece, you can just start taping and not really worry about getting it exactly right. You will just cut off the excess once you get your other piece in place.

With the second piece, you need to line it up just right so that it makes the point you are wanting. Then, simply trim off the excess from the other piece and voila, you have your beautiful “V”!

Simple enough, right? Yeah, well it took me a good hour and a half to get it figured out and just right! I am sure that they have a good tutorial online but I was determined to figure it out myself! {I think I am finding out where my kid’s hard-headedness comes from!}

Now after a few hours we are finally ready to spray paint.

I forgot to take a picture of the spray painting process… sorry! I think it is pretty self explanatory though!

Here is the finished product… {drum roll please}

I am pretty much in love with this lamp! It makes me happy every time I go into the living room!

Have you ever tried spray painting a lamp shade? It is so much fun! Go grab a can and start spraying away!

I Live In A Sea Of White!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 15:24:00 +0000

A few months ago, we decided to take the plunge and start painting our kitchen cabinets. When we moved in, the kitchen and dining room was pretty much all brown. The cabinets were a dark wood and the walls were paneling.

I knew I wanted to lighten up the Kitchen/Dining Room with some paint…eventually. With two small kids and Dan’s super busy work schedule, it is hard to find time. You know what I mean, right?… I have tried to paint by myself and it was NOT pretty. :)

Here is what the kitchen cabinets looked like before we primed them:

And here are a few AFTER pictures. They aren’t glamorous because all we have had time to do is prime them.

Like I said, not really glamorous but definitely lightened the room up!

So yesterday was Dan’s day off and we decided to tackle priming the paneling in the Kitchen and Dining Room. I have to say that if we ever get another house, I would love to not see an inch of paneling! {Watch like the entire house will be covered in paneling…ha!}

Here is what we started with…

Since we were painting paneling, we had to fill in all the cracks with a paint brush and then go back over it with a roller. It was loads of fun! :) {I actually did enjoy it because I got to be with my hubby!}

I bet all of you are wondering what we did with our kids while we were painting… well, we put the piano in front of the doorway so they couldn’t get into the kitchen, turned on Curious George and gave them lots of toys to play with. They were good but got really bored toward the end of our painting… poor babies!

{don’t you love Judson’s princess necklace!}

Anyway, here are the after {progress} pictures

So there you have it. My kitchen is almost completely covered in white primer. I feel a little lost in all the whiteness right now. LOL!

One thing I love about undertaking big painting projects is that everything gets really clean! I was able to clean all the baseboards and walls, sweep and mop under everything {Yeah, under the fridge was DISGUSTING!}, and dust all the furniture! It was a good day! :)

For now, I am happy to have progress! My hubby was so sweet to help me and work late into the night finishing up.

Maybe next week on Dan’s day off, we can get some color on these walls!

What do you think? A lot brighter, huh? Or are you a paneling lover?

This was my week!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 15:36:00 +0000

This post is going to be just a mixture of random things that we have done this week. We have had a lot going on and I wasn’t able to complete any projects that I was wanting to. Whaaaah!

I am okay with that though. Sometimes it is just that way. I am sure all of you have had weeks like that. At least I hope you have. Otherwise I am going to feel like a failure! :)

This week, all four of us got sick! It started with Judson, then Dan & Kayla and now I have it too!

Here is my poor sick baby sleeping on the couch.

I was hoping to finish removing the “lovely” wallpaper in our bathroom & show you a big reveal today.

But that didn’t happen…

The wallpaper in the bathroom had started to peel off so we decided to just pull it off and remove the glue later when we worked on the rest of the room. Yeah, that wasn’t such a great idea. The glue comes off in little tiny pieces and takes FOREVER to get it all off. I spent over an hour on my hands and knees and only got this much done…

I also don’t own a wallpaper scorer so the vinegar water {which is a great wallpaper remover, btw} couldn’t get through the outer layer of wallpaper to get to the glue. So, I decided to wait to do any more work until I could get one of those wallpaper scorer thingy-majigs! At least I got a little done, right?

This week, we got to play in the little splash pool with Daddy! The kids LOVED it and so did Daddy, I think!

I LOVE my kids!

We had to say goodbye to Aunt Bekah as she is working at the WILDS this summer. We are sad to say goodbye again but so happy that she gets to work at the greatest camp ever! {ok, I am a little prejudice}

My silly boy playing with his new “tool set” toy. He likes the safety glasses.

Yesterday, I went on a baking spree for Dan’s work. They are having a big sales push/customer appreciation thing and needed me to bake some things for their special day. I was going to make more than this but was feeling so poorly that I had to stop.

Last night, I just collapsed and left this mess…

Yeah, this is what I have to do today. Along with a mountain of laundry. Being sick can make you feel like you are behind on everything. Oh, well…here I go!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Braided Rope Hair Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Sat, 26 May 2012 20:18:00 +0000

Hello to everyone! So sorry that I was MIA last week. I have had a whirlwind of things happen in the past couple weeks. Nothing major of course but just normal stuff that most families deal with.

Anyhoo, I am back and excited to show you a hair-how-to! It is obvious that braids and twists are coming back into style these days. I mean, I have seen so many adorable ideas lately that I have been itching to try them out for myself.

I am trying to grow my daughter’s bangs out and I get tired of just pulling them back into a bow or bobby pin. I like to change it up and get creative!

My sister actually showed me how to do a cute little braided rope in order to pull Kayla’s hair out of her face and still look adorable! :)

I will try to explain this as clearly as I can! :) Here we go…

1. Part you hair how you normally would. {Kayla’s part is on the left}

2. Grab a piece of hair from the opposite side of the majority of your hair {Sorry if that sounds confusing. Hopefully the picture will help! In the picture the piece of hair is to the right of Kayla’s part}

3. Grab another piece of hair beside the piece you just grabbed. Take the first piece of hair and put it behind the second piece.

4. Grab a 3rd piece of hair and add it to the 1st piece. {Again, check picture if it is confusing}

5. Wrap the 2nd piece around the 1st and 3rd pieces you combined.

6. Grab another piece of hair and combine it with the 2nd piece of hair.

7. Continue to “wrap” and add more hair always to the piece behind the other.

When you are done, secure the ends with a small elastic or bobby pins. It should look something like this:

If you want, you can add a bow or just leave it like it is. You can also pull it all up or leave it down like Kayla’s here:

And that it it. Pretty easy if you can understand my instructions.

I want to say a BIG “THANK YOU” to my baby girl for letting me use her as a model! She is a sweetheart!

I have even tried this braided rope on my own hair. I really like how it turned out.

Well, that’s it for today. I would love to see pictures if you try this braided rope.

Four Years!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 11 May 2012 12:30:00 +0000

Yesterday, my husband and I celebrated our FOURTH anniversary!

I can’t believe it has been four years already! In some ways it feels like just yesterday.

In those FOUR years, we have added two sweet additions!

On September 9, 2009 @ 12:15 am we welcomed Kayla Grace into our family!

And 18 moths later, on March 2, 2011 we welcomed Judson Daniel into the family!

I can’t imagine what our lives would be like without our two little blessings.

Anyway, we had a wonderful anniversary. We weren’t able to go anywhere this year so we just sent the kids to Grampa and Gramma’s house on Wednesday night and enjoyed some time alone in our own house!

Here are some of highlights of our fun day:

Wednesday night we watched “Dial M for Murder” while drinking some Root Beer Floats.

It was so much fun to watch a movie all the way through without any interruptions from kiddos!

Since we didn’t have a lot of money, I decided to get a little creative with my gifts this year!

First, I bought 4 helium balloons and tied notes to the strings of each of them.

I decided to write him notes about some of my favorite things that have happened over the four years of our marriage! It was really fun to get creative and to remember some of our fun times together!

Then, I hid little notes all over the house! Some of them looked like this:

{Reese’s Pieces}

{Gum}

It was really fun! I enjoyed seeing his face when he found another one! :) I also wrote all over the mirror in the bathroom with a dry erase marker!

When I came home on Wednesday night, I found these beautiful roses on the counter with a sweet card!

Aren’t they beautiful?! There are 24 red and white roses. Every time I walk past them they make me smile!

On Thursday afternoon, we went on a motorcycle ride to a beautiful state park. I haven’t been on this bike that Dan has and it was really fun to ride together!

We enjoyed walking around the lake and seeing fish and beautiful, peaceful scenery!

Then in the evening we went to Maggiano’s for dinner! We have never been there before and it was really yummy and had a fun atmosphere too!

We ordered the Marco’s meal for two which came with an appetizer, two pasta dishes and one dessert. It also included two pasta dishes to take home. We have TONS of left-over food that I just threw into the freezer for later meals!

All in all it was a SUPER-FANTASTIC day and I LOVED every minute of it!

Weight Watcher’s Lemon Cake Recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Sat, 05 May 2012 17:55:00 +0000

As many of you know, I am on Weight Watchers. It is simply the BEST ~~diet~~ lifestyle EVER!!!

I have lost 10 pounds so far and have about 15 more that I want to lose!

It is such a great way to lose weight and maintain a normal lifestyle. I LOVE it!

I also am a SWEETS lover so I have been on the look out for weight watcher dessert recipes.

I saw this recipe on pinterest but it wasn’t linked to any website and the points they listed were wrong! :(

I figured out the points, made it and LOVED it!!!!!

Ingredients:

1 box of Lemon Cake Mix
20 ounces of Diet 7Up
1 Container of Light Cool Whip

Just mix the 20 ounces (2 1/2 cups) of 7UP with the cake mix. {You can just use a spoon}

Pour into a greased 9 by 13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes!

Allow the cake to cool and then top with cool whip!

It is only 4 points if you get 12 pieces and 3.5 points if you get 15 pieces.

This cake taste SO YUMMY cold. I have a hard time waiting for it to cool in the fridge but TRUST ME it is worth it!

Seriously, stop what you are doing and go make it RIGHT NOW!

Burlap Wreath Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 04 May 2012 19:21:00 +0000

I don’t know about you but sometimes I get Pinterest overload. There are SO MANY IDEAS that I feel like my head is spinning with what projects to try first.

I have seen so many adorable ideas for burlap that I knew I wanted to try to make a burlap wreath next!

Little tip:

When dealing with burlap, you are going to make a mess!

Little strings come off everywhere. Just FYI… :)

So, I’ll show you what I did with my wreath. Probably not how a professional would do it but with two little munchkins running around, I did a really quick version so they didn’t destroy my house! :0) Ha ha…

First, you need a wreath form (of any kind)

Next, wrap the wreath in burlap.

{I forgot to take a picture of cutting the first strip of burlap. You can make it as wide or narrow as you want.}

Then,

{Notice I didn’t even cut it straight! :)}

Repeat the process until you get it as full as you want!

And this is my finished product! I am IN LOVE with it. I think this is my favorite project so far!

I hung the wreath on an old window I found by someone’s trash can on the side of the road! :) I love how they both look together!

I had some extra burlap and I couldn’t let it go to waste so,

I made a table runner by hot gluing some ribbon to the edges. Simple as that!

I decided to hang the window and wreath in the Dining Room because our Dining Room is kind of bare right now. We are going to cover the paneling and add some paint and hopefully bead board … eventually!

For now, though, I am going to be happy with my home and decorate with what I have!

Here’s how the Dining Room looks now:

Yeah, I pretty much LOVE it! I can definitely see more burlap in my near future!

How about you? Have you ever played with burlap? You should try it! It is so much fun!

And we have a WINNER!!!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:36:00 +0000

I honestly wish that I could give a book to every one of you guys! I would encourage all of you to go to amazon.com and buy a copy for yourself. They are not that expensive when you buy a used copy!

Anyway, on to the WINNER!

The winner is …………………………………………………..

CHRISTINA!!!!

Congratulations, Christina!

Please contact me with your address and I will send the book to you!

Later today I will be posting about my first experience crafting with BURLAP!

Come back and check it out!

Thoughts on Perfectionism & a GIVE-AWAY

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:59:00 +0000

Well, I am not sure how many of you already know or have noticed but I decided to change my blog a little instead of stopping all together. A few of my friends suggested just posting once or maybe twice a week instead of 5-6 times a week.

I am so excited to continue blogging! I really do enjoy it but just didn’t have the time to devote to it right now.

This is a perfect way for me to concentrate on important things and separate some blog time too! :)

Anyway, on to my convicting topic (at least it is convicting to me!)

How many of you think you are a perfectionist? Yeah, I didn’t think I was either….

Do you get so caught up in all the reasons why you can’t take the time to clean out the garage, organize your closet, lose weight, help at church, go on visitation, etc. etc. etc. that you always feel like you are never good enough?

Did you know that perfectionism is one of the main reasons that we live in chaos and clutter in our homes and in our every day life?

When looking at a HUGE, daunting task we focus on the big problem instead of focusing on what we can do RIGHT NOW!

{source}

I am the type of person who thinks that if I start a job then I HAVE to finish it. I don’t want to half heartedly clean the kitchen and leave the microwave, table and counters a mess. I want to wash and put away all the dishes, wipe off all the counters & table, clean out the fridge and microwave and sweep and mop the floors.

I am not kidding… I like to start a job and finish it all the way.

Doesn’t sound like a bad quality though does it? What is the result of this though…

I don’t start a job unless I know that I have time to finish it all the way. So, things just stay a mess and don’t get done!

Here’s what happens: I look at the kitchen and it is a mess! I mean, there are cheerios and eggs smashed all over the dining room floor, spilled water on the table and chair, banana peel on the table looking gross and black, lunch dishes on the table…counter…stove top…and sink, and the trash is over-flowing and smells somethin’ awful!

{source}

I look at the clock and I only have 15 minutes until we have to walk out the door. Since I don’t have time to finish it all, I don’t do anything. How silly is that? {I am a crazy in the head sometimes}

I could have/should have taken that valuable 15 minutes and washed all the dishes or at least gathered all the dishes from all over the kitchen and put them into the sink or swept the floor or SOMETHING!!!

The point I am trying to make is that VERY often our houses, families and lives suffer from our perfectionism. We all have busy lives and it is hard to get everything done that we want in one day…{there are only 24 hours in a day, ya know!} But take 15 minutes in a day and work on your problem areas and those days can add up over time.

Think about a baby that is just learning to walk. They walk maybe a step or two at first and then fall down. But every time they fall down and get back up, they are training and building muscles that will help them to become expert walkers.

{source}

We can be like babies too. We have to take little baby steps to getting this perfectionism under control. But, working on it little by little will help you conquer it.

Here’s is what I am trying to do: {in the area of my house} Take 15 minutes twice a week and work on “problem areas” of my house. It seems hopeless sometimes but chiseling away at the pile of clutter little by little will help it disappear eventually!

I did not come up with all of this stuff on my own. I learned a lot of it from the FLYLADY.

I cannot do an adequate job explaining everything in her book. She explains it all so well and clearly.

So, I decided to have my first GIVE AWAY!!!

I would like to give away one copy of FLYLADY’s book - “Sink Reflections” to one lucky reader!

Here’s how you can enter:

Mandatory Entries:

Follow this blog
“Like” my new facebook page

Let me know in the comments!

Extra Entry:

* Share this give away on facebook

Please leave comments separately!

The Give away will end next Thursday at midnight! I will announce a winner on Friday, May 4th!

I wish I could give a book to all of you! It is such an awesome book!

Thanks bunches to all of you lovely readers for sticking with me through this change and transition!

Love all of you crazies! :)

* Sarah *

Changing Things Up A Bit

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:14:00 +0000

Well, after talking to some helpful friends, I have decided to continue to blog but only post once a week. I will probably post on Fridays but I am not sure yet!

I am so excited to have a way to blog and keep other priorities straight too! :)

I am thinking of changing the name of my blog and making a few other changes so please hang tight while I work through all this!

You guys are amazing! Thanks for all the encouragement to continue blogging… makes me feel special!

I now need someone to pop my big head… ha ha! Just kidding! :)

I will see you guys next week!

A Sad End!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 00:52:00 +0000

I am very sad to write this post but I feel like I need to. I have only been blogging for a couple months and I have loved it but honestly it has taken a lot of time and energy. I feel like I have neglected my family and my responsibilities as a wife, mother, homemaker, youth worker at church etc.

I have been praying about it some and I feel like, for now, I should stop blogging and focus on my relationship with my Lord, my husband, my kids and also the teenagers I work with at church.

I am very sad about this but I think I need to focus more on what is eternal.

Thank you for all your wonderful support and kind comments. I might decide to start blogging again when I have a little more time and my kids are a little older.

I will definitely still enjoy reading all of your lovely blogs!

I hope you all understand.

What Are We Wearing This Easter?

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 21:00:00 +0000

The true meaning of Easter has nothing to do with nice clothes but it is fun to dress my kids up for this special day!

I found a tutorial for little boys ties on pinterest and decided to give it a try for Judson.

{I can’t make him bows or dresses so I had to find something! :)}

Little Boy Tie Tutorial by Sharing the Wealth

Judson likes it! On Easter, I think we will chose a different shirt though!

{Don’t you just love his crazy hair?}

I decided to combine a flower hair clip (I already had) and a korker bow to make a special bow for her for Easter.

Here is what they both looked like before I put them together.

You can find my tutorial of how to make the Korker Bows HERE.

I know what you are thinking – “Why would you cover up that pretty flower and the sparkly jewels?” Well, the jewels take on a pink tint and her dress does not have pink in it at all so… you get the picture! :)

Anyway, just hot glue the Korker Bow to the top of the flower and voila…

Kayla really liked it so that is all that matters to me! :)

I found her Easter dress at Goodwill almost a year ago and have been saving it! I am so excited for her to wear it on Sunday!

So, my kids will be cute on Sunday.

As for their mommy, well that’s another story! :)

Any of you have special Easter outfits?

A Few Of My Favorite Easter Crafts and Ideas

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 10:35:00 +0000

Since Easter is this Sunday, I thought I would show you some of my favorite ideas that I have seen on the wonderful world wide web. {say that 10 times fast – ha!}

Easter is one of my favorite “holidays” Not for the candy, Easter egg hunts, new dresses & wonderful Easter dinner but because that is the day that my LORD rose from the dead on the 3rd day! I cannot help but LOVE this holiday and remember what he has done for me!

Here are a few of my favorites:

Paper Plate Tombs

{This blog has TONS of Christ-centered Easter crafts!}

Beyond the Bunny – 12 Easter Traditions that Celebrate Jesus

“Resurrection” Eggs (Adapted for Toddlers and Preschoolers)

“Crown of Thorns” snack

Benjamin’s Box

This is probably my favorite Easter book EVER!!!! My momma would read this to us on Easter morning and every year, I would be crying by the end! It is such a beautiful story and really makes Easter come alive for children (and adults!)

I am sure there are lots more wonderful ideas out there! Just thought I would show you a few!

I hope you have a Christ-centered Easter this year!

30 Free Activities To Do With Your Children

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 22:22:00 +0000

As many of you know, I have two small children only 18 months apart. I love them both so much that sometimes I think my little mommy heart will burst.

I want my kids to remember that their mommy loved them so much that she was willing to sacrifice her time and energy to “play” with them. I want them to have memories like I have with my parents!

Some people think that memories = money but that isn’t always true! I remember PLENTY of fun memories with my parents that didn’t cost money at all!

I have come up with a list of 30 free activities that can be LOADS of fun for you and your children.

Read a book
Have a tea party
Take a walk
Swing outside
Watch a movie
Help mommy bake something
Play a game
Color
Have a picnic in the back yard
Make a card for someone
Do a puzzle
Play with play dough
Play doctor
Blow bubbles
Play dress up
Check out books from the library
Have a puppet show
Read a book outside
Play hide and seek
Wash windows with mommy
Draw on the mirror with dry erase marker
Draw on the driveway with sidewalk chalk
Play “red light, green light”
Learn a new song
Play with bubble wrap
Play “I Spy”
Dance to music like a ballerina
Play with dried beans
“Play” school
Play “follow the leader”

Now go out and make some memories with your kids!

My FAVORITE Hair Product

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 13:33:00 +0000

My hair is naturally curly & fine/thin. If I don’t put hair products in my hair, I am doomed to have a poodle head!

Maybe I should have said that my hair is naturally frizzy! :) My hair is also VERY thin. I have found that mousse (I use Herbal Essences) takes care of the frizzies but I could not find anything to help with the fine/thin part!

So, I have been in search of something that could help with lift! {I LOVE big hair. It is a weakness of mine really! :)}

I have tried MANY different kinds of hair products in search for something to help me and my disaster hair. (HA!)

I am happy to say that I have finally found it!!!

Meet the Aquage Uplifting Foam…

My awesome hair stylist was the first to introduce it to me! She used it in my hair and I LOVED how it turned out.

Then, I found a blog called The Small Things Blog with some awesome hair tutorials! She used aquage and so I decided I HAD to get some and try it out.

I had a hard time finding it at first. I tried Sally’s and ULTA and couldn’t find it. So, I decided to ask my awesome “Hair Lady” {as I have affectionately called her since I was like 8 years old} where I could find it. She happened to have some in her salon and I grabbed it up! Yay! I was so excited!

I tired it out right away and fell-in-love!!!! Here’s the only picture I have: {I hate taking pictures of myself!}

Later that week, my little sister wanted me to help her get ready for her special date with her boyfriend.

I decided to use the aquage in her hair and see how well it would work.

Now, I have to say - my sister’s hair is COMPLETELY different than mine! She has SO.MUCH.HAIR. And it is as thick as horse hair!{love you, Bek!}

Any-hoo, her hair turned out GREAT!!!!! I loved it and so did she and her boyfriend! {Triple score!!}

Front/top

Back

Side

{Isn’t she adorable?! I just love her to pieces!}

All that to say, this stuff is amazing! Whether your hair is fine or super thick, Aquage will do the trick!

Hey, I rhymed! Maybe Aquage will hire me to do their commercials and give me free aquage for life or something…

…yeah, not gonna hold my breath!

How To Deal With Whiny Children

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 03:43:00 +0000

My son, Judson is ONE and has turned into an I-wanna-be-held-all-the-time child!

I LOVE that he wants to cuddle and I know my little baby is growing up so fast but… honestly, I have to DO some things that require two hands.

(At times, I think some of my tasks require three hands… )

Last night, all he would do was follow me around and cry with his little baby hands held up to me.

It is SO adorable and so very hard to resist but I had to tackle the pile (and I do mean PILE) of dishes that had taken over my kitchen!

How does that happen so quickly is what I wanna know?! One day, all the dishes are washed and the next day, they are all piled up again. At times, I wish I were Mary Poppins and could just snap my fingers and the house would be clean!

Anyway, back to the cute baby hands…

I was looking down at his pitiful face when I decided to do something that you probably will never see in Parents Magazine! :) Ready for it?…

I decided to put him IN the sink, while I washed dishes.

He had SO much fun and so did I!   I love my little sweet heart and we had fun getting totally wet together!

So, my suggestion when dealing with a fussy child … just let them be involved. All they want is to be with you and “help” with what you are doing!

Is it always easy?                                                                   NO WAY, JOSE!!!!
Does it take longer?                                                                UMMM, YEAH!!!!

BUT, do you get to enjoy special memories forever?                  TOTALLY!!!

My baby boy won’t always fit in the kitchen sink or want to be held by mommy or even want to follow me around!

Cherish the moments!

True Happiness

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 12:38:00 +0000

It seems that everyone in the whole world is seeking true happiness! We can find that happiness in Christ Jesus!

I am choosing to focus on this song today!

This is one of my favorite patch the pirate songs.

I am sure we will have a day filled to the brim with happiness if we get our focus off of ourselves and open our eyes to the needs of others around us!

Best Shish Kabobs EVER!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 21:01:00 +0000

Has anyone ever tried this AMAZING marinade?

The other day, we had a fun BBQ with my brother & sis-in-law and made some shish kabobs!

I marinated some beef tips over night and then my sweet hubby made ‘em awesome!

Don’t they look delectable?!!!

You should seriously try this marinade! It is so slap-yo-momma good!
{Not that I would EVER slap my mother! :)}

Reality Check!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 15:46:00 +0000

Ok, so a few people (not hoards or anything!) have asked how I get crafts done with two little ones around! Well, I am going to be brutally honest here… {I am a little nervous and embarrassed}

On days that I get crafts done or work on anything DIY, my house cleaning is normally neglected.

There, I said it…Whew, that was painful! :)

I wish I could be awesome like some people and keep my house clean and do crafts, baking etc.

I am just NOT good at multitasking. I get focused on one thing and I kind of tune out everything else!

So, in attempt to be honest with you all, I will show you what my house ~~sometimes~~ looks like when I work on crafts…

{Why is it that my kids need to play doctor with their stuffed animals in the bathroom?!!!}

{Gasp! My sink isn’t shiny!}

{Somehow, he ALWAYS looses his pants! :) Silly boy!}

So, there you have my messy house! I did not want to create the idea that I am a perfect mother, housewife or blah blah blah… you fill in the rest of the blanks!

You MAY NOT use these photos against me and you may not visit me right now unless you call and give me about 30 minutes to run around like a maniac cleaning everything up!

Just kidding…kind of… ;)

Hope you aren’t all scarred for life!

Encouraging Your Children To Have Devotions!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 21:55:00 +0000

My daughter is two years old and I want to instill in her a love for the Bible and praying to her BIG God!

My parents always taught us the importance of devotions and I want to pass that on to my children.

Obviously, I don’t ask her to sit down for horribly long periods of time and listen to me read. I think it is important to make this idea of devotions age appropriate.

We LOVE this Bible story book!

It is filled with very short stories and one picture per page! It also has a few questions about the story at the end!

I saw an idea on pinterest to make a Prayer Jar for children! It was such a neat idea and I wanted to try it with Kayla!

Here is what we used to make ours:

First, I wrote the names of missionary families and family members that we wanted her to pray for!

Then, I let Kayla color each one the color she wanted {I helped her color a few}.

After we were finished coloring, I glued little jewels on the ends just to make them fun! :)

Don’t they look all purdy?

I sprayed painted a little glass vase I found at Wal Mart and tied a ribbon around it like so…

When we have devotions with Kayla each morning, She gets to choose 3 prayer sticks out and we pray for them!

I love that the jar matches her room and curtains too!

I LOVE that she gets so excited to have her devotions each morning!!!

It is the most important thing we can do each day, isn’t it?!

Healthy Chocolate Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 16:51:00 +0000

Since joining weight watchers a month ago, I have been on the look out for “healthy” desserts.

I CAN NOT survive without my chocolate! :)

A friend of mine told me about this cupcake recipe with only a chocolate cake mix and a can of pumpkin!

I must admit, I was a little skeptical at first but decided to try them anyway!

OH.MY.GOODNESS.

They are SO yummy and only 2 points for a whole cupcake {if you get 18 out of the batter}

All you do it mix the two ingredients together with a mixer for about 2 minutes.

Then, cook your cupcakes for 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees!

Voila!

It is hard to stop with just ONE! {I lack in self-discipline! I am working on it though!}

Even my two little stinkers enjoy these healthy treats!

{Notice the chocolate all over his mouth!}

So, stop what you are doing right now and make some of these delish cupcakes!

Ribbon Flower Tutorial–Just in Time for Spring!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 21:44:00 +0000

One of my favorite new crafts are these ribbon flowers!

Here are the items you will need to get the creative juices flowing:

About 12 inches of ribbon {I used 7/8 inch grosgrain ribbon}
Needle and thread
Buttons
Hot glue gun and glue sticks {excuse my dirty glue gun!}

Step One: Run your needle and thread through the top of your ribbon. Make sure you knot the end of your thread!

Step Two: Once, you have completed step one, cinch up the ribbon at the end of the thread {as tight as you can}. Be sure to knot the end so that it doesn’t all come out! :)

It should look like this:

Step Three: Flip the flower over and run a bead of hot glue along the “right side” of the ribbon to glue together the two loose pieces.

Allow the glue to dry. When that is finished, it should look like this:

Step Four: Turn flower right side up and glue on your button.

Now, pat yourself on the back… you’re done! :)

You can make these little cuties into hair clips for your little girl,

{It looks so “springy” doesn’t it?}

Or, you could make a garland for your Spring Mantel

{If you’d like to know how to make the scripture art canvas (subway style) you see, check out Laine’s how to on her lovely blog!}

What do you think? Easy, right?!

Feel free to ask me any questions you might have! :)

I’d love to hear some of your favorite crafts!

Crock Pot Chicken Fajitas

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 21:34:00 +0000

Tonight for dinner, we are having one of my favorites meals – Chicken Fajitas

This has to be the easiest meal E-V-E-R!

I like to cook a bunch of chicken at one time that way I can freeze the leftovers and have a quick meal ready in a pinch!

Here’s the breakdown:

Just throw some chicken in the crock pot. {I didn’t even thaw mine all the way!}

Then, add your spices {You can use taco seasoning, white chicken chili seasoning, fajita seasoning or your own seasonings.} I just used what I had on hand!

Then, chop up some onions and peppers. Fry them up until they blacken a bit!

Once they look like you want, pour them on top of the chicken in the crock pot.

Cook on LOW for 3 to 5 hours. Just make sure your chicken is done but don’t kill it!

It will probably take about 5 hours if your chicken is frozen but only 3-4 if it is thawed!

You can shred the chicken or cut it into strips – whatever you want!

I am pretty sure that heaven is going to smell like my house does right now! I am DYING to eat dinner.

I would love to hear what your favorite meal is!

Some of my favorite “pins” from pinterest!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 20:37:00 +0000

I thought I would share a few of my favorite “pins” from pinterest. If you haven’t heard of pinterest, you must find out!

You can learn more about it from Renee’s post over at Living Laughing and Loving!

I must warn you though – it is ADDICTING!

You can find SO many neat DIY ideas, recipes, decorating, cleaning, helpful hints and much MUCH more!

Any-hoo, here are a few of my favorites:

{you can click on the image to go to the original site}

1. Cake tins and candle sticks! How cute is that?!

2. Candy jars from pickle jars and candle sticks! I made these and they are so easy and fun!

3. Ruffly Felt Wreath. I made a red one of these and although I think it might have taken half my life to complete, I LOVE how it turned out.

4. Writing on Jars with a glue gun and then painting the jar!

5. Shredding chicken with your mixer {also a yummy bbq sandwich recipe}

6. Coffee filter wreath. I LOVE this!

7. Double sided fabric head bands. I want to make these SO bad!

8. Rose Ring. My sister-in-law made me one of these for Christmas and I LOVE it!

9. Rice bag feet warmer. Also great if you have an achey back or neck!

10. Gina’s Skinny Taste. She has awesome recipes and she also tells you the weight watcher points!

There are so many more that I could post but I think I will stop there!

Feel free to follow me on pinterest! I have a “follow me on pinterest” button at the top of the page!

* Sarah *

Monthly Cleaning Routine–Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hefner) — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 19:27:00 +0000

Well, we have made our rounds in the house this week.

I hope you have enjoyed learning with me this week. I know I have learned a lot while planning all these schedules out.

The last room we have is the Kitchen & Dining Room

According to the Flylady, this is the most important room in the house! All our family and home life revolves around the kitchen.

Here are some tips for the kitchen adapted from flylady’s book:

Keep your sink empty and shiny. You can check my post here to read more!
Make friends with your crock pot again. This is a helpful appliance that can help you feel like someone else is doing all the cooking.
Every time you start to cook, begin with hot soapy water in your sink and an empty dishwasher.
Wear an apron if you have one. This give you a place to wipe your hands and keep your clothes clean.
Keep a dishrag handy at all times for wiping up spills. Also, if you spill something on the floor, get it up immediately so it will not become a worse dried-on mess.
Delegate to your family setting the table and teach them how. Use your best dishes on occasion and make your meals festive.

{Kayla loves to help me set the table. She set this table all by herself.}

Another thing the FLYLADY says,

“It sounds like a lot to do but after you get the worst part done, {decluttering and just starting} keeping your kitchen clean is not very hard, and besides, having a clean, functional kitchen blesses your family with fine meals, interesting conversation and training for when they have families of their own.”

So here is how I split up my kitchen chores:

Week One:

Sweep and Mop
Wipe fridge clean and clean out leftovers
Clean out microwave
Straighten 1/4 of the cabinets and drawers
Wipe off 1/2 cabinet fronts

Week Two:

Sweep and Mop
Wipe fridge clean and clean out leftovers
Wash canisters and knick knacks
Straighten 1/4 of the cabinets and drawers
Wipe off 1/2 cabinet fronts

Week Three:

Sweep and Mop
Wipe fridge clean and clean out leftovers
Clean light and trash can
Straighten 1/4 of the cabinets and drawers
Wash windows

Week Four:

Sweep and Mop
Wipe fridge clean and clean out leftovers
Clean stove/oven
Straighten 1/4 of the cabinets and drawers
Clean under sink
Dust baseboards, window sills and piano

This is what helps me and I am still learning to incorporate it into my life. I hope that this will help others like it has helped me!

I would love to hear what you come up with or already have installed that helps you stay on top of your house cleaning!

Happy Cleaning!

* Sarah *