Pin It Button....Finally

Thursday, February 28, 2013 1 comment
Man....I am not a fan of computers, codes, typing, or reading directions.  BUT...it was time.  I FINALLY added a pinterest button to the bottom of my post...mostly b/c I do like reading 'stuff' on computers and pinterest.   I promise to slowly work on adding some new fandagled gidgets and gadgets to my blog.  I might even start editing some of my post....but don't hold your breath.  If you too just came in from watching the dinosaurs play in your backyard-here is a super simple tutorial  for adding the Pin It button to post from pocketfullofposies.  If I can do it....your dog can do it.  In other news,  IBM, Mac, Apple, and any other computer company that has or ever will exist....all your jobs are safe from me.
P.s. I DID IT!  I added media buttons too.  I don't even know who I am anymore....and I don't even remember how I did it, but I used this tutorial from beautiful dawn. I found the buttons for free here. There are a lot of super cute free buttons out there in the world, but since I may  never.  Ever.  Ever.  Change them...I went with some basic colors.
P.p.s.  I guess maybe I should start using those media buttons.  I've been working on some pinterest boards...if you count logging in twice as working on it (but really, it's my short term goal)...but I will start putting some of my theme/week post onto boards.  My friend, Jo, created a facebook page for me awhile back where I throw TV appearances up.  She knows me well b/c there would be no facebook link without her support, but I do actually post the show clips since she did all the work for me.  Next up...twitter...not sure what to do with that-but I have an account.  It got hacked, so my only tweet so far is "All those other tweets weren't me.'  I'm pretty sure my tweets will change lives.

Saint Patrick's Day: Mail a Rainbow

This year I'm mailing boxes of Skittles to all my friends under the age of 4 for Saint Patrick's Day.  It's not every day you find a rainbow in the mailbox.  I printed off labels I'll address, and the postage will just be popped onto the right hand side.  Did you know you can mail those little dollar boxes of candy?  It's a pretty popular find in the mailbox....or at least that is what I think those little friends tell me, it's sometimes hard to decipher 3 year old vocabulary.  Incidentally, this also works for friends over the age of 4, glittery stickers aren't required for that age group.  I am the fan of mailing strange shapes through the mail. 

Asian Slaw

Wednesday, February 27, 2013 1 comment
This is one of my favorite salads.  It's affordable to toss together, and just the right balance of salty and sweet.  I usually wait to toss the nuts in right before I eat it or the dressing will wash away all the salty goodness. 
So....when you need a salty sweet salad-----
Asian Slaw Salad
Ingredients:  16 oz package of shredded cabbage (coleslaw mix), 1 large bunch of green onions, sliced, 1 c. cashews, 1 c. sunflower seeds, 2 pkg of ramen chicken flavored noodles (crush into small bits and cook for one minute, don't add seasoning to salad, reserve for dressing). 
Dressing:  1/4 c. oil, 2 pkts dry chicken flavoring from ramen, 1/3 c. vinegar, 1/2 c. sugar.  Mix and poor over salad before serving. 
A lot of times I cut this in half, half serves four easily. 

Crockpot Potatoes

Tuesday, February 26, 2013 No comments
 Did you know you can 'bake' potatoes in the crockpot?  So easy and simple.  Just rinse 'em, and roll them up individually in foil.  Turn it on low for 5-6 hours, and they are ready to roll....or rather, butter and salt when you get home. 
It kind of changed my life.  It really does taste just like baked potatoes from the oven as opposed to the microwaved cheater kind.  It also is a nice trick to know in the summer when the oven is not an option because the house passes as a sauna if you even walk into the kitchen and think about turning on that furnace, and it's a pretty useful trip in the winter when I'm too tired to cook when I get home. 

Dr. Seuss Thing 1 and 2 Cotton Candy

Monday, February 25, 2013 4 comments
 Last year at work we decided to celebrate Dr. Seuss day by breaking out my cotton candy machine.  My teammate and I traveled the halls and let the teachers make blue cotton candy cones in honor of Thing 1 and 2. 
Here is one money saving tip.  We only needed about 50 cones.  We found some blue cotton candy at a restaurant supply store (this machine, which I bought at Kohl's, will also make candy from hard candies, so you could use blue candy instead), but when you buy the cones, you buy them by the hundreds, and so....I rolled construction paper instead. 
 I tapped it shut, and covered my tape....
With a tag.  These held really well, and I like the idea of being able to use more colorful paper to jazz up the cones.  I also like the price!

Nashville, Tennessee....with a side of Clarksville.

Friday, February 22, 2013 No comments
I pause....for a little bit of personal.....January 19-21st I flew up to Nashville, TN to see my pal Regan and my goddaughter, Micah.  Regan's husband was recently given orders to move (closer to me, yay!).  While he is finishing up his third tour in Afghanistan since I've know him (6 years-Regan and I have been fridnds almost 25) we decided to explore a little bit of Nashville before it becomes a place they lived once upon a time.  I flew in Saturday morning to try to work around Micah's nap, and we drove straight to the downtown area.  It was co-old, but we still managed to walk up and down Broadway.  The famous bars were opened up just enough that we could hear the artist displaying their skills via guitars and microphones.  
We ate at the Hard Rock, in honor of her uncle, a man we both adored (her godfather) who loved the restaurant and we had many a conversation about our travels and stops by Hard Rock before he moved to heaven, waiting for the rest of our stories to join his someday.  Micah is 13+ months now, and when I saw her at 10 months, she wasn't so sure about me.  This time, after a few hours she was willing to play with me, and even reached up to be held.  Mama's still #1, but I consider it a pretty big honor she warmed up so quickly because she has stranger danger.....and she got quickly the kind of danger I can offer is all fun.  Case in point, we make that girl sit through many a photo shoot....but she'll have some pretty spectacular pictures some day so she can explain to her friends she was stinking adorable.  She was a little less cooperative at some points.....note Regan holding on to the shoes she refused to be a part of....
We wanted one in the wedding dress, but we could only get her to stay still for a nanosecond by handing her the bow....
We wanted to grab a few for Father's Day....what you can't see is her absolutely refusing to sit still and probably screaming as she ripped the hat off, but we got a few cute ones in his jacket etc...
She was willing to do the pink Christmas tree on her pink, glitter car.....Do they make this in my size?
All three little wiggle worms wouldn't sit still for this one....Odie's screaming dog face says it all...
We pretty much spent the weekend taking a few pics and  hanging out in our pjs.  Micah and I played, and I learned why everything, including the toilets are child proof in about 2 minutes when I found her toys floating in the toilet, and my personal objects exiting my purse, suit case, and any drawer that would open.  
I also spent the weekend petting Regan's first baby, Sophia.  She was diagnosed with bone cancer and the news was really grim before Christmas, but she is still doing well with a slight limp.  I hugged on her and groomed any loose hair out of her with hours of petting.  I love this dog.  
...and then, we figured out the trick to photographing this little fairy.  She will wear anything, bows etc, but she won't sit still, so I took a page out of a blog I have seen and put a bunch of foam hearts on the deck.  I held her back like a race horse, dropped her on the deck and started snapping while she went to mess up the heart design.  Letting her think she is destructive is the key....
I die.
Please look at this precious child.  Her laugh steals my heart.
Phun with Photoshop.
I'm so grateful for the little moments, getting to hear her 'hi' in person....and her version of E-I-E-I-O.  She can only do the EIEI portion, but she gets super excited when you sing it and sings along.  I die.  Multiple times a day.  Reaching up to be held.  I'm blogging from heaven.  She still has an octave in her scream, which she pulls out for all occasions good and bad that neighborhood dogs respond too.  She is totally fine playing with me now, as long as Mom is nearby, and the dogs are not fans of the pinching, though the Cheerio Trail she leaves makes up for it, but these are the memories I will cherish foreva'.....and I have the pictures to prove it.  Watch out world, she's about to be within weekend driving distance!  

Spinach Dip

Thursday, February 21, 2013 No comments

I love love love this dip, and it's so easy, and so delicious.  It's so easy....I won't even wax lyrical about it, I'll just get straight to business so I can get back to eating above mentioned spinach dip. 
Instructions for making Spinach Dip:  Mix 16 oz of sour cream, one packet of ranch dressing seasion mix, a small (thawed and well drained) package of frozen spianch, 1/2 jar of drained/chopped water chestnuts (optional).  Mix well and refridgerate.  Buy a loaf of Hawaiian Bread and hallow out the innards to create a bowl.  Tear up the insides and place around the center for dipping out the spianch dip and eating. 

Good Morning Texas: Spring Wreaths

Wednesday, February 20, 2013 1 comment
I'm headed to GMT this morning to share some ideas for spring wreaths, two of my favorites actually....
I made this wreath for Earth Day-it cost me a dollar to make, and some time.  It's completely made of old newspapers-and it's the one item most people ask me to make for them.....I guess with the demo wreaths I put together in advance, somebody will be getting their wish.  Here it the full tutorial for making the flowers out of old newspapers.

This next wreath is made out of little flower pots...SUPER simple....here is  that tutorial.  live versions of the tutorials coming soon.  I'll post them on facebook later.

















Skillet Blueberry Muffin Pancakes

Tuesday, February 19, 2013 No comments
 I recently ran across this recipe in the newspaper.  Uh.....yum!  Seriously, a fun find.  I had some frozen blueberries left over from the summer (it called for fresh blueberries, but it was great with my lil' frozen guys).  This was a great mix of muffin taste in pancake form.  I can't describe it, unless 'yum' paints the picture.  I'm definitely adding this to my breakfast go to file. 
Ingredients: 
2 c. flour, 1/2 c. sugar, 1 T. baking powder, 3 t. cinnamon (divided use), 1/2 t. salt, 1 c. milk, 1 egg, 2 T veg oil, 1 t. vanilla, 1 c. blueberries (fresh or frozen worked for me), 2 T. brown sugar
Instructions: 
Mix flour, sugar, b. powder, 1 t. cinnamon, salt.
In a separate bowl whisk milk, egg, oil, and vanilla.  Add the liquid to the dry. 
Mix and add blueberries. 
In another bowl mix brown sugar and remaining 2 t. of cinnamon. 
Heat a skillet over med.  Coat with cooking spray, reduce to low.  Ladle in batter (1/4 to 1/3 cup for each).  Sprinkle the top with topping mix. 
Cover and cook for 6-8 minutes (should have risen and be brown on the bottom).  Flip and cook another 2-4 minutes.  Serves 4. 

Thumbprint Guest Sight In

Monday, February 18, 2013 No comments
 OK, so...I totally crashed a wedding-true story.  I'm my defense, they were setting up for the wedding this past fall at the Arboretum while I was touring the grounds with my weekend guest.  I had my camera out already, and I thought this was a neat idea.  The theme for the wedding included a lot of bark/wood furniture they had rented to place around the grounds along with some pretty stunning arrangments.  The idea is that the guest are going to place their tumbprints on this painted canvas.
 I thought this was such a cute idea,and would be really fun for a wedding, or a nature/owl/woodland themed baby shower (on my to do list for someday soon). 
So.....since I was nosey, I had to share my fun find...definately worth the price of the admission! 

A Menagerie of Mickey Baby Gift

Friday, February 15, 2013 No comments
 I blogged about the 12 months of Mickey onsie stickers I made a few weeks ago for my friend Maurine that loves A)  Taking pictures and B)  Everything Disney.  These are a few of the other goodies that went into her baby box....a little pair of Mickey shoes (which launched this whole little gift box b/c I knew they were perfect for her upcoming bundle of boy). 
 I also found this hat via Etsy.

L.O.V.E Letters

Thursday, February 14, 2013 No comments
I didn't do much 'crafting' for this little post, but I had the good fortunate to run across these letters, and I have a big space on top of my entertainment center that this fits nicely on....
I've loved old metal letters for a long time now, but it's hard to choose a letter to love most.  I found this letter set at a nearby antique mall and I could not pass go, I could not collect 200 dollars without purchasing these.  You are looking at the backside of the first three, but it's fun to see the different colors, and there are still rods that held their neon strips that went behind whatever plastic colors hung around.  The e has the front/clear glass and the neon back is missing.  Anyway....it's funky and fun, and totally me.....it's almost too much they are so big, but.....I could not would not leave them at the store.

Frosted Doily Candy Jars

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 No comments
 Here is a super fast and easy idea for packaging up some Valentine's Candy.  I was on Good Morning, Texas and I brought some projects to share using the doily.  I'm sure this has been done before, but here is my idea for a little something....old love (frosted spray) meet new love (doily).  I took an old gravy jar and covered the lid with scrapbook paper and mod podge using this tutorial (so easy-transform any jar). I used a quick spray of adhesive spray to temporarily stick the doily to the glass.  It pulls on and off if you don't love your initial placement.  Once you are done spraying you jar, it peels off again.  I did put the glossier side down just to make it an even easier peel without any little piece of paper that needed to be cleaned off.
 One it was 'stuck' I took my frosting spray and gave it a coat (I stuck my hand in the bag and held it so I wouldn't frost my nails).
 It dried in about three seconds, and now it's ready for some candy.....which would be a great gift for a friend if I could prevent myself from eating the contents.