I made a cake...

 I LOVE cake. But nobody else in my family will eat it. This is a problem. Wasting a cake would be sad, so guess what happens? Last night, I was searching the web for some diet cake recipes and came across a simple recipe that called for 1 box of cake mix and 1 can of diet coke. I didn't have diet coke in the house, but I did have a bottle of carbonated water...so I gave it a try. 1 box of yellow cake mix and 1 bottle of carbonated water (10 oz) I also added 1 egg white to help hold it together...baked at 350 for 30 minutes in a 9x 13 inch pan and guess what? It was delicious! :-)  Next time, I will try strawberry cake mix & Sprite Zero...YUM!


Is it still diet food if I ate 1/2 of it for breakfast? ;-)

A cool giveaway for you to enter...

http://crawlmomma.blogspot.com/2011/04/cigar-box-creations-giveaway-open.html


CigarBoxCreations & CrawlMomma are having a pretty awesome giveaway..head on over here for you chance to enter a really cool cigar box lamp......

Our favorite banana pudding recipe....

 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
3 cups cold milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (8 ounce) container cool whip, thawed
4 bananas, sliced
1/2 (12 ounce) package vanilla wafers 

1. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in condensed milk, pudding mix, cold milk and vanilla until smooth. Fold in 1/2 of the whipped topping.
2. Line the bottom of a 9x13 inch dish with vanilla wafers. Arrange sliced bananas evenly over wafers. Spread with pudding mixture. Top with remaining whipped topping and a few crushed wafer crumbs (just for looks). Chill.

A great giveaway...

Here is a fantastic giveaway to CSN stores-just go here and follow the methods listed to enter! :)
http://shoestringmuse.blogspot.com/2011/03/let-giveaway-commence.html

Good LUCK!!

My failed attempt at making something healthy

 I wanted to make these:
www.bahrlygettingby.blogspot.com/2011/03/granola-bars.html
Don't they look yummy?

Well, I didn't have MOST of the ingredients to make them, so I just took what I did have and put it all together to sort of resemble these. They turned out pretty darn good-but not very granola bar-ish...I do have a knack for taking something healthy and turning it into something the extreme opposite.

Here is what I used:
2 1/2 cups old fashion oats
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup coconut
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cups butterfinger bars left over from Halloween that were in the freezer (stuck them in the blender with the chocolate chips to chop them up)

 Mix it all up(add more honey if it's too dry) and smash it into a 9/13 inch pan lined with waxed paper...bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Then, I sprinkled the top with chocolate chips and put a cookie sheet over it to melt them.

Once they are shiny, spread the melted chooclate out to cover the top and stick 'em in the fridge until the chocolate hardens...

Easter Crafts....Comin' right up.....

Easter is late this year...so that gives us lots of time to work on our Easter crafts....Get ready...Next week we will start working on some fabulous, really cool & all around awesome things....NEAT-O TORPEDO.....or something.


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Scrap piece of wood, leftover paint, some wire....and a marker

 Paint a scrap piece of wood with leftover paint you have Don't worry about the back-it won't show, anyway..... Let the paint dry. Drill a small hole in each side of the wood and string your wire through. Smash the wire into a ball against the wood so that it will stay in place and write away with a permanent marker (after the paint dries)....These are really cute, too, if you take a piece of sand paper and sand around the edges to remove some of the paint....

What happens when you plant jelly beans....

Here is something fun to do with the kids, husband, ex-husband neighbors, etc....

Give them a handful of jelly beans-make sure they have at least one of each of these colors (red, yellow, orange, green and blue if you have them)...Take them outside and let them plant them in the ground (make sure it's fairly close to your house). Now, let them water the "seeds".

That night, when they are not going to catch you, go outside and stick a bright colored lollipop where the jelly beans were planted

So, what happens when you plant jelly beans?

A lollipop grows, of course!

Easy Easy Easy Tuna patties...

I (sort of) made this recipe up...I found several recipes online and combined them based on what I had in my kitchen...my husband said they are good and my picky 3 year old ate them (WITH ketchup) so I thought they must be okay...

First, gather your ingredients....

You will need
2 (5 oz) cans of light tuna in water, drained
1 (6 oz) pkg stove top for chicken
1 cup finely shredded cheese (all I had was the Mexican blend, so that is what I used)
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup miracle whip or mayo
1-2 T. finely chopped onion (to your liking)
1 baby dill pickle, diced into small pieces

Mix everything up (works best if you use your hands) and stick the mixture in the fridge for about 10 minutes.
Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat to medium. Use an ice scream scoop and scoop balls of mixture into hot skillet. Flatten with the back of a spatula. (This is a little easier if you spray the spatual with a little bit of cooking spray)....Sprinkle a small (VERY SMALL) amount of cheese onto each one. Cook approx 3 minutes and flip. Sprinkle a small (VERY SMALL) amount of shredded cheese on top of the cooked patties. Cook 3 minutes or until brown. Turn over to melt the cheese on the other side....That's it! :)

My never-ending search for baby boy clothes....

I think I became spoiled when my daughter was a baby. I could walk into any store and find something extremely cute for her to wear. She had more clothes than any one child should...then along came my son. And boy, things just are not the same (LOL)...What is it with baby boy clothing? The manufacturer can take something so cute and turn it into something awful by adding a patch across the front that says "I am a professional gymnast". No, you are not. You are baby.

I have compiled a list of actual things I have seen on baby boy clothing (this is my top 10 in no particular order)

Keep in mind, I am talking BABY here-under 6 months old....

1. Mommy's little monkey ninja...
2. Professional gymnast
3. Race Car driver
4. I will save you in my fire truck
5. I only cry when Republicans/Democrats hold me (Okay, I admit-I laughed at this one-but it's still tacky)
6. I love running
7. Rockstar in a band
8. I fly banana airlines
9. I'm too sexy for my diaper
10. I play in the dirt

Don't throw that away....

These are a few things that most people probably toss in the trash. Empty baby food jars, toilet paper rolls & baby formula cans....However, they are great for childrens' projects. I save these in a small Rubbermaid container in the laundry room and when I have enough, we make something fabulous with them! Start saving these items now, I will update soon with a list of great projects that these can be used for.....

Rainbow cupcakes-And a good lesson in mixing colors

We made rainbow cupcakes-they turned our pretty good for the first attempt at them. Not only are these really, really cute-they are also a great lesson in what colors to mix together to make other colors.

We used this recipe:
http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/taste-a-rainbow-cupcakes-842128/

These would be great for Easter-just use less coloring than called for to make a pastel rainbow!

Leprechaun Poop

My daughter and I made leprechaun poop! She is at the age when anything and everything related to poop is hilarious, so we made enough to share with our family and friends.

To do this easy, fun project grab a huge bag of M&M's and pick out the green and brown ones. This is a great time to practice sorting and counting with the kids. Then, type up this little poem:
   
Leprechaun Poop
I spied a little leprechaun
Outside upon the lawn.
I hurried out to catch him
for I knew he'd soon be gone.
I tiptoed very quietly
Sprang toward him with a swoop.
He shook his fist and disappeared,
All but this pile of poop!

Put several M&M's in a little clear bag, attach the poem and tie with a ribbon.
Kids and grown ups both with love them! :)

Super Super Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

Super easy and really yummy...
1 cup sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg slightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients and mix well....Roll into 1 inch balls and place on ungreased baking sheet. Using a fork, press down into the dough to form a criss cross design into the top of each cookie.. Bake for approx 10 minutes at 325 degrees.

Simple as that and no flour...

An easy hair bow tutorial PART 2

Alright...now you are ready to finish the bow. Tie a knot around the middle of your bow using embroidery thread. Flip the bow over-it should look better on this side.....If not, use the other side :-)

With another piece of ribbon, tie a knot...this will be the center of your bow.

Wrap the knotted ribbon around the bow so that the knot is in the front. Using a hot glue gun, glue the knotted ribbon to the back of the bow and add your clip....

Easy Peasy....

An easy hair bow tutorial (Hope it makes sense)!

You CAN do this-it isn't hard...This is a super easy boutique style hairbow-nothing fancy but really cute.

Step #1:

Get a piece of ribbon about 23 inches long (I like BIG bows-you can use a smaller piece) and heat seal the ends with a lighter-you don't need to buy the expensive heat seal stuff. A lighter works great.

Step #2:

Fold the ribbon in half and press down in the middle to create a crease (this is so you will know where the middle is.) You can also mark the crease with a pencil-you won't be able to see it when the bow is finished. Once you have your ribbon folded and creased, unfold it and make a figure 8 by bringing each end towards the middle (this is the same way an awareness ribbon is done). You don't need to fold the ribbon-just bring it around and to the middle. It should look like the picture above.

Step #3:

Okay, once you have your figure 8,you are going to repeat this by bringing the middle of both sides of your 8 to the middle again. It should look like the picture above. This is the back of your bow...now take a deep breath....

Lowe's Build & Grow workshops-FREE

Every other Saturday, Lowe's has a FREE Build & Grow workshop for kids.

This Saturday, they can go and build a racecar to take home.
They will be given a free apron on their first trip, and receive a patch for each project that they complete.
The recommended age range is 1st-5th grade, however my 3 year old daughter has never had a problem attending.

Register here to attend these workshops:
www.lowes.com/buildandgrow

Have I got a DEAL for you...

If you haven't heard of Groupon, you are missing out on some fantastic deals!
Groupon is a company that negotiates offers with other companies to save you BIG BUCKS on things...the last deal I bought from them was a $20 Barnes & Noble giftcard for only $10. What a deal!

To get in on these offers, sign up here and select your city-or the city closest to you. Be sure to sign up for their daily e-mails, too. Simple as that :)

Sign up here and start saving now!

http://www.groupon.com/r/uu20759654

A FREE mudbath (No spa needed)

It has been so cold here that my poor kids and I have been stuck in the house quite a bit. However, this past weekend was 70 degrees and gorgeous!

B spent the night with my parents (aka Becky & Dude) and here is the result of that trip-a spa style mud-bath for FREE! Plus, she brought home some fabulous memories that will last her a lifetime.

I guess the point of this post is this-I am adamant about 2 things-the incredible benefits of reading to your kids every day (and supplying them with an abundance of books) and spending time outside whenever possible. Both of which are cheaper than video games and they reap much greater benefits from them. So next time the weather is nice, spend some time outdoors soaking up the Vitamin D :)

LUNCH!

I am on a mission to lose the 3 tons of baby weight that I am currently carrying around...So I made a healthy lunch to cancel out the 2 frosted sugar cookies that I might have had for breakfast this morning.

Here is a super easy, healthy and pretty good chicken recipe.

1 pkg boneless, skinless chicken breasts (thawed)
1 bottle fat free Italian salad dressing

Pour the dressing into a glass bowl and put the chicken on top. Let this sit in the refrigerator for 1 hour, turn over and marinate the other side for about an hour. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Place the chicken in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. Turn the chicken over and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes or until done.

Moisturizing bath salts....

I love to take hot baths to relax (when the kids will let me). I don't know if you have ever taken the time to read the ingredients on store bought bath salts but they are not easy to pronounce and I have NO idea what they even are!

Here is a great recipe for simple, all natural, moisturizing bath salts that everyone will love!

First, find some pretty little jars with lids-WalMart and Big Lots will usually have them but they are a little pricey. If you hunt the thrift stores you can usually find some there that will work just fine.Baby food jars are also a great size for little gifts. In a pinch, you can even use plastic disposable bowls with lids and just snazz them up with some pretty ribbon.
If you are using pre-owned jars,  be sure to sanitize them by boiling for a few seconds. You will also need some scrap pieces of fabric and some ribbon to decorate the jars. Searching the remnant bin at the fabric store is a great way to get inexpensive fabric pieces for the jars. Hobby Lobby puts their ribbon on 1/2 price about every other week-so don't pay full price for the ribbon.

For the salts, you will need the following:
Epsom salt and/or pure sea salt
Pure glycerin -found at a health food store or market
Pure essential oil -also found at a health food store or market (this is very important-make sure you buy 100% pure essential oil, not the fragrance oils at the discount stores-they are not safe for skin contact)
Baking soda
Food coloring (optional)

In a glass bowl, measure out 2 cups of your salts, 2 T. baking soda and 2 T. glycerin and mix well. This doesn't have to be exact. Add a few drops of essential oils and mix. This is a matter of preference, you can add 3 drops of oil or 30-depending on how strongly you want the salts to be scented. Add a few drops of food coloring to match the scent (example would be red and yellow coloring to mandarin orange scented salts).
Put the finished salts in the jars and cut out a circle of fabric larger than the jar lid (an easy way to get a perfect circle is to turn a bowl upside down and trace around it). Put the fabric over the lid and secure it with the ring. If you are using a baby food jar, there isn't a ring so you can just add the fabric by placing over the lid, securing with a rubber band and adding ribbon over the rubber band.

If you can snag a few of the plastic ice cream scoops from the ice cream shop, these look really cute placed under the ribbon on the jars for a little bath salt scoop.

Attach instructions to the ribbon to add a few scoopfuls to a warm bath & relax.

Hello, Hello~

HELLLLLOOOOOO~

My name is Tracy~I am a 30 something stay at home mom of 2. My youngest is just a few months old and my daughter is 3 going on 17.

It takes a lot to keep her entertained and she loves giving things to family and friends. Unfortunately, her mother isn't very handy in the sewing department...oh, who am I kidding....I can't even thread a sewing machine. I am starting this blog to share our easy homemade crafts and simple recipes with everyone.

We love making them and giving them as gifts to family and friends and hope that you will, too!

Everything that I will post will involve little or no sewing (and if a little sewing is required, it can be handstitched).

I would love to hear your comments, suggestions, etc...

~Enjoy~