Here are the Before Pictures:
 |
| C removing the Gazebo that used to hide the pool |
 |
| Our Redneck Trash Backyard (yes those are mattresses) |
 |
| The rest of the Gazebo |
 |
| The Patio with an Extra Dishwasher |
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Backyard Before
We have started work on the backyard. I am so happy that we have one. I hated that there wasn't a place for the babies to play in the Chateau. The Villa has a huge backyard by Vegas standards. Right now it looks like a White Trash Playground but again a work in progress.
Here are the Before Pictures:
Here are the Before Pictures:
Monday, January 30, 2012
Master Bedroom Before
Today I began working on the Master Bedroom Transformation. I am very excited about it. I wanted to give my readers a sneak peek on what it looks like now.
I can't wait to finish so I can post the AFTER pictures.
I can't wait to finish so I can post the AFTER pictures.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Menu Planning for Beginners
I'm happy to be here posting again. I'm even happier because Sher and her family are visiting!!!
This week I'm going to blog a little about Menu Planning and show you my Menu Board (I'm really quite proud of it.)
You may be asking yourself, Why plan a menu?
Here are some of the reasons it helps me.
I bought the black board in the AS-IS section of Ikea for $1.25, had the hubby screw on some office clips, put up some vinyl lettering, and WALLA! There you have it.
I have each day of the week labeled.. I plan my meals Monday to Sunday, so this format worked best for us. It allows me to plan 2 full weeks.
I've since revised my recipe cards so that the ingredients and the recipe are on the front, I'll post pictures once we get settled.
There you have it! I love it! I consider it a functional piece of art. What do you think?
This week I'm going to blog a little about Menu Planning and show you my Menu Board (I'm really quite proud of it.)
You may be asking yourself, Why plan a menu?
Here are some of the reasons it helps me.
- I save money
- Grocery shopping is easier
- We eat healthier
- Preparation is simpler
- The food fits my schedule
- I can cook what my family likes
- When 5 o'clock rolls around, I know what’s for dinner
I am in no way a fabulous cook. I'll admit that when my husband and I were first married, I only knew how to "cook" (and I use the term lightly) about 10 things. Most of them started out frozen. It wasn't pretty. We ate out A LOT. As you have probably figured out eating out is much more expensive than cooking at home.
Once we had the girls, Sugar and Spice, we couldn't afford to eat out every night so I had to learn to cook. I started out slowly, learning 1 recipe a week, and soon I had learned quite a few recipes that were not too difficult and that tasted good.
Here is a quick overview on
How to Plan a Menu
1. Choose a consistent time each week to plan your meals
2. Make a list of meals/recipes that you’ll be using
3. Plan your meals by assigning a recipe to each day
4. Make a shopping list using your meal plan
5. Go shopping
6. Enjoy the stress free cooking experience a meal plan provides
And now for my Menu board. I thought this little baby up after trying several other menu planners that just didn't work for my family. It was important for me to be able to have my recipes close at hand so I knew I needed something using recipe cards.
I bought the black board in the AS-IS section of Ikea for $1.25, had the hubby screw on some office clips, put up some vinyl lettering, and WALLA! There you have it.
I have each day of the week labeled.. I plan my meals Monday to Sunday, so this format worked best for us. It allows me to plan 2 full weeks.
I've since revised my recipe cards so that the ingredients and the recipe are on the front, I'll post pictures once we get settled.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
The Hall Project
I have a well Kind of a hall at the top of the stairs. It lacked some pizazz and I had some left over paint from The Chateau. I also had 2 vinyl Chandeliers I had gotten from Dali's Decals that needed a home. The Original owner of the house was a Gospel Singer (she never actually lived in the house just badly decorated it). She had 1970's mirrors placed all over the house. In the upstairs hall there was a diamond shape one. MOM HATED THE MIRRORS! She removed them from her closet in the Master Bedroom but was worried about damaging the walls in the removal of them in the hall. Well, I'm adventurous SO I removed them. Before I took them off though I started painting but wasn't smart enough to take a picture before I put brush to wall.
Here is what it looked like:
After I finished painting and pulled off the mirrors I was left with a big white diamond.
But I still had plenty of my old friend from the Chateau:
Here is what it looked like:
 |
| You can see the top of the diamond painted White to disguise it. |
 |
| Yeah it was ugly |
After I finished painting and pulled off the mirrors I was left with a big white diamond.
 |
| I had to putty the holes left by the construction adhesive |
 |
| You can pick this up at Home Depot for under $10 |
 |
| Can you see the diamond now? |
 |
| Finished |
 |
| Well Finished as soon as I replace that light! |
Monday, January 23, 2012
Butterscotch Breakfast Bundt Cake
I try not to let the kiddos have sweets on a regular basis. However, for special occasions Like Daddy's Birthday I make this breakfast treat. It's pretty good and I thought I'd share it with you.
You will need the following:
Bundt pan
Cook and Serve Butterscotch Pudding
Brown Sugar
1 cube butter or margerine
18 frozen dinner rools
Cooking Spray
 |
| Gather all your ingrediants |
Bundt pan
Cook and Serve Butterscotch Pudding
Brown Sugar
1 cube butter or margerine
18 frozen dinner rools
Cooking Spray
 |
| Spray your pan with cooking spray |
 |
| Add 18 frozen dinner rolls |
 |
| 1/2 cup brown sugar |
 |
| Coat Dinner rolls with Brown Sugar |
 |
| Make sure you get Cook and Serve NOT INSTANT |
 |
| Add Pudding mix |
 |
| 1 Cube of Butter Microwave to melt (Make sure in BPA free Cup) |
 |
| Equals 1/2 cup melted butter |
 |
| Add butter to mixture |
 |
| Cover and Raise Overnight |
 |
| Rolls after raising Bake 350 degrees for 25 - 30 mintues (Ovens will vary) |
 |
| Done Baking |
 |
| Place serving Dish on top and Flip |
 |
| Pull Apart Eat ENJOY! |
Friday, January 20, 2012
TIME OUT! (My first post!)
As you read in the "About Me" post I have a 3 year old. Overall she really is a great kid. She is genuinely sweet and helpful. However, even good kids have bad days.
When my oldest, we'll call her "Spice", was a toddler we quickly learned that she had a mind of her own. She loved emptying drawers, dumping out laundry baskets, and causing all sorts of havoc. At about 18 months we realized that it was getting a little out of hand and she was no longer listening.
That's when we started TIME OUT.
What a lifesaver! Since then it has worked miracles! It may not work for every child, but it works great for Spice.
Once we found out how great time out was working, I wanted to make a special time out chair, so we had some consistency.
That's when I created this little beauty...
Supplies:
- a step stool or small chair (I got mine at Michaels for about $4)
-paint choice of your color (I chose red because I wanted it to be kind of like a STOP sign. To me time out is less about punishment, and more about removing the child from the situation so they can regroup and calm down)
-vinyl lettering or a contrasting paint for the words
-Clear coat spray (I learned this the hard way when I discovered little red scuffs on my walls and floor)
Directions:
1. Paint your stool/chair. Allow to dry completely.
2. Apply or paint "TIME OUT"
3. Spray one or two clear coats on to protect your work. Allow to dry completely.
4. Stand back and admire your work!
When my oldest, we'll call her "Spice", was a toddler we quickly learned that she had a mind of her own. She loved emptying drawers, dumping out laundry baskets, and causing all sorts of havoc. At about 18 months we realized that it was getting a little out of hand and she was no longer listening.
That's when we started TIME OUT.
What a lifesaver! Since then it has worked miracles! It may not work for every child, but it works great for Spice.
Once we found out how great time out was working, I wanted to make a special time out chair, so we had some consistency.
That's when I created this little beauty...
And it was super easy!
Supplies:
- a step stool or small chair (I got mine at Michaels for about $4)
-paint choice of your color (I chose red because I wanted it to be kind of like a STOP sign. To me time out is less about punishment, and more about removing the child from the situation so they can regroup and calm down)
-vinyl lettering or a contrasting paint for the words
-Clear coat spray (I learned this the hard way when I discovered little red scuffs on my walls and floor)
Directions:
1. Paint your stool/chair. Allow to dry completely.
2. Apply or paint "TIME OUT"
3. Spray one or two clear coats on to protect your work. Allow to dry completely.
4. Stand back and admire your work!
Well I look forward to posting more in the future! Check back it next week for my take on a Menu board.
Meet Brenda
Our New weekly blogger:
Hi! My name is Brenda. I'm lucky enough to be Sher's sister-in-law. A few days ago we were emailing back and forth and I was telling her that I would love a creative outlet to share some of my ideas, but I just didn't feel like I had enough ideas to do an entire blog. She was nice enough to offer me a guest blogger spot and I jumped on it! I'm so excited to share my ideas with all of her readers!
Let me tell you a little about me. I'm a 27 year old mother of 2 little girls, a 3 year old and an almost 6 month old. I've been married to my high school sweetie for over 7 years (the time really flies!). Before I had my oldest daughter, I graduated from Cal State Long Beach with my Bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies and my teaching credential, and I substitute taught in elementary school.
After I had my daughter and became a stay-at-home mom I found that I needed something to keep my brain from going to mush. Since then I've been working on learning everything I can to make my house a home including cooking, decorating, cleaning, sewing, being a better mommy and wife, and everything else that falls into the job description of a mom.
We are moving to a new home in about 2 weeks, which should provide me with a lot of opporunities and inspiration for my guest posting gig. :)
Hi! My name is Brenda. I'm lucky enough to be Sher's sister-in-law. A few days ago we were emailing back and forth and I was telling her that I would love a creative outlet to share some of my ideas, but I just didn't feel like I had enough ideas to do an entire blog. She was nice enough to offer me a guest blogger spot and I jumped on it! I'm so excited to share my ideas with all of her readers!
Let me tell you a little about me. I'm a 27 year old mother of 2 little girls, a 3 year old and an almost 6 month old. I've been married to my high school sweetie for over 7 years (the time really flies!). Before I had my oldest daughter, I graduated from Cal State Long Beach with my Bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies and my teaching credential, and I substitute taught in elementary school.
After I had my daughter and became a stay-at-home mom I found that I needed something to keep my brain from going to mush. Since then I've been working on learning everything I can to make my house a home including cooking, decorating, cleaning, sewing, being a better mommy and wife, and everything else that falls into the job description of a mom.
We are moving to a new home in about 2 weeks, which should provide me with a lot of opporunities and inspiration for my guest posting gig. :)
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Beautiful Headboards You'll Never Find In Any Furniture Store
If ever there was a room in your home that should be a true reflection of your personal style, it has to be the bedroom. Your bedroom is your haven, your escape from whatever craziness this ole world has chosen to throw your way that day.
When designing or decorating your bedroom, your bed...being the largest piece in the room, is going to have a huge impact on the overall look. Often the bed is the focal point in a room due to its sheer size.
So, since beds are often focal points whether we like it or not...play it up and make it beautiful and dramatic with a fabulous headboard. Forget those old boring furniture stores...shop salvage yards and antique shops for unique one of a kind pieces that are headboards in disguise. Here are some beautiful beds to get your creative thoughts flowing...
When designing or decorating your bedroom, your bed...being the largest piece in the room, is going to have a huge impact on the overall look. Often the bed is the focal point in a room due to its sheer size.
So, since beds are often focal points whether we like it or not...play it up and make it beautiful and dramatic with a fabulous headboard. Forget those old boring furniture stores...shop salvage yards and antique shops for unique one of a kind pieces that are headboards in disguise. Here are some beautiful beds to get your creative thoughts flowing...
. |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
