Top Reads of All Time - February

Let's just pretend, yet again, that this post went up on Friday like it was supposed to!




Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Sorry for the haters out there, but I loved this series.  I got into it a little late in the game...borrowed my little brother's books whenever I was home from college.  Loved it then, love it now.  Classic.







The Anatomist's Wife by Anna Lee Huber

The first of another terrific series.  SO good.  Mysterious and historical and a little bit romantic.  J'adore.

Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury
This is such a lovely book.  I like to read at the the beginning of the summer, just to prep myself to enjoy everything about the season...and to try to do it with the wonder of a kid.








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Princess Party

My little girl  is turning four.  Sigh.  Growing up so fast!  And of course, what does a four year old little girl want?  A Princess Party!

I don't believe in elaborate birthday parties for kids.  As mentioned when I posted about my son's Lego Party, my policy is cute, fun and SIMPLE.  So that's what I aimed for with this party.  (Though I will admit that simple can be relative...this may not seem simple to everyone!)

Food

Pizza, Cupcakes and Apple Ginger Sparkler

Decorating Crowns

Simple.  Exactly what it sounds like.  The kids did this while they waited for their face painting turn.
Crowns (Michaels), Stickers, Foam Stickers and Glitter Glue (DollarTree), Monograms (cut from Stampin' Up! glitter paper using my Silhouette, Victorian font for girls, AdLib BT for boys), and some crayons

Face Painting

Man, I am no pro at face painting.  But it was good enough for the kids!  Mostly butterflies.  A couple flowers.  And then for the two boys in the mix, a frog with a bowtie and the Batman symbol.  :)
Face Painting Kit (Michael's)

Pin the Crown on the Princess

I just blew up a picture of Sleeping Beauty in Photoshop, then worked a little magic to remove her crown.  Then I printed it out in sections and pieced it together (not well, might I add...made some mistakes in proportion when I printed.  Oh well).  And printed and cut out a crown for each little munchikin to "pin" on the princess.  Just used a length of sheet (leftover from making the fabric banners for the B&H wedding) as a blindfold.

Kiss the Frog

My version was not nearly as beautiful as my inspiration, but not too bad, considering I used a box knife, packing tape, butcher paper and two Costco diaper boxes!  The lip shaped bean bags I made using pink felt and my serger, then filled with rice rather than beans.

The Missing Slipper

This game I also borrowed.  So easy.  I picked up the pair of heels (they even look like glass slippers) from a local thrift store.  Then at the party I hid one and told the kids "Oh no!  Cinderella has lost her glass slipper!  Go find it!"  Cue 9 3-4 year olds running through my basement, looking for a shoe.  :)  This was actually the favorite, they asked to play this over and over.

Favors

 Princess treat bags (DollarTree), Princess Crayons (DollarTree), Princess Stickers (Zurchers), Princess Notebooks (Zurchers), Bracelet (DollarTree), Ring (Zurchers), Wand (Zurchers), Candy bracelet (I got at Zurchers but the packaging said Oriental Trading), misc. candy.

When I put my daughter to bed that night, I asked her what her favorite part of the party was.  She ended up listing everything, and then giggling as she realized that said, "I liked all of it!"  :)  I think it was a hit.

Linking up here:

{M} Twigg Studios-Skip to My Lou-The DIY Showoff-Mad in Crafts-Marvelously Messy-Making the World Cuter-Sew Can Do- C.R.A.F.T.- Keeping It Simple-Creating My Way to Success-All Things Fee-Craft-o-Maniac-Boogieboard Cottage-I Should Be Mopping the Floor-Momnivore's Dilemma- {T} Yesterday on Tuesday-Tip Junkie-Sugar Bee Crafts-Funky Polkadot Giraffe-Hope Studios-My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia-Home Stories A2Z-Primitive and Proper {furniture only}-Elizabeth & Co.-Coastal Charm-Ladybug Blessings-Homework-New Nostalgia {W} Simply Designing-Someday Crafts-Creations by Kara -Sew Much Ado-My Girlish Whims-Savvy Southern Style-Seven Thirty Three-Polkadots on Parade-Ginger Snap Crafts-DIY by Design {Th} Cherished Bliss-The Brambleberry Cottage-Beyond the Picket Fence-A Glimpse Inside-Domestically Speaking {paint only}-A Creative Princess-My Repurposed Life {F} Today's Creative Blog-Thirty Handmade Days-Romantic Home-Remodelaholic-Shabby Nest-WhipperBerry-Finding Fabulous-Naptime Crafters-Chic on a Shoestring Budget Decorating-504 Main-French Country Cottage-Truly Lovely-Miss Mustard Seed {furniture only}-Simply Sweet Home-Craftionary-Lil' Luna-The 36th Avenue {S} Reasons to Skip the Housework-Funky Junk Interior

DIY Food Edition: Apple Ginger Sparkler

Here is another of the recipes I'll be posting from my sister-in-law's baby shower!  This is a great SUPER easy non-alcoholic party drink.

Apple Ginger Sparkler
adapted from Martha Stewart

2 2 L bottles of club soda
2 apple juice concentrates (frozen section)
1 1/2 C ginger syrup

Let the apple concentrate thaw, then mix all three ingredients together.  Makes a little over a gallon and a half.

DIY Household Tip: Cleaning Grout, OxiClean vs. Woolite

So here's that gross story I promised a week or two ago.  I accidently discovered that the grout in my kitchen and dining IS NOT DARK BROWN.  It's actually a light creamy beige!  Disgusting, no?!  And in our three years of living here, I've had two crawling babies all over that floor!!!!

Clearly something had to be done.  So based on things I'd seen on Pinterest in the past (but never pinned!), I decided to give Woolite and OxiClean a whirl.  Here's my thoughts:

Woolite:
Pros
Convenient and Easy to Use
Cons
Stinks
Requires a lot of hard scrubbing still

OxiClean:
Pros
Really effective
Requires less scrubbing
Cons
Messy
Leaves a white residue

My overall winner, hands down, was OxiClean.  I thought it got my tile and grout much cleaner with less effort.  I ended up doing my entire floor with it, even over the areas I'd already done with the Woolite.

Here's my method:
You need gloves, a bucket, something to stir with, OxiClean, a scrub brush, an old toothbrush, old towels, a mop (not a steam mop), and the hottest water you can get from your faucet.

Step One: Run the water in your sink until it reaches its hottest point.  Meanwhile, put a scoop of OxiClean into your bucket.

(Why yes that is my lens cap in my hand....)

Then cover the OxiClean with about an inch to an inch and a half of hot water.  STIR AND STIR AND STIR until it is mostly dissolved (that grainy sound you hear as you stir will be gone).

Step Two:  If you haven't already, put your gloves on.  Then slowly pour out the water/OxiClean mixture over your tile (about a 4-5 foot square area), and smooth it around with your gloved hands, making sure to spread it evenly (and not too thin, hence the 4-5 foot square area).

Step Three:  Let it sit for 30 minutes.

Step Four:  Fill your bucket with clean hot water.  Come back to your OxiClean spot with your gloves, bucket, old toothbrush and scrub brush.  Start scrubbing!  My experience was (with this much gross dirt!) that it almost flaked off as I scrubbed.  (I also scrubbed every inch of my tile because it is textured and dirt had settled into the crevices.)  Rinse your brushes out in the clean hot water as needed, and replace that water as needed as well.  Once you've scrubbed it all up, wipe up all that dirty water residue with the old towels.

Before

After

Step Five:  Fill your bucket with clean hot water again.  Get your (hopefully) clean mop, and mop that area with the clean hot water.  (I did try a steam mop first, and it didn't work well at all.)  This will hopefully remove most of the white residue the OxiClean leaves behind.

Step Six: Dry with an old towel.

Step Seven: Move to another 4-5 foot square area.  Repeat and repeat until your floor is clean.

One last dirty patch

Step Eight: Just for good measure, to make sure that white residue is gone, I did another all over hot water mop job, and then followed it up with the towel dry.

And now my floor is gloriously clean!!!!  It was A LOT of work, but definitely worth it.

Linking up here:

{M} Twigg Studios-Skip to My Lou-The DIY Showoff-Mad in Crafts-Marvelously Messy-Making the World Cuter-Sew Can Do- C.R.A.F.T.- Keeping It Simple-Creating My Way to Success-All Things Fee-Craft-o-Maniac-Boogieboard Cottage-I Should Be Mopping the Floor-Momnivore's Dilemma- {T} Yesterday on Tuesday-Tip Junkie-Sugar Bee Crafts-Funky Polkadot Giraffe-Hope Studios-My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia-Home Stories A2Z-Primitive and Proper {furniture only}-Elizabeth & Co.-Coastal Charm-Ladybug Blessings-Homework-New Nostalgia {W} Simply Designing-Someday Crafts-Creations by Kara -Sew Much Ado-My Girlish Whims-Savvy Southern Style-Seven Thirty Three-Polkadots on Parade-Ginger Snap Crafts-DIY by Design {Th} Cherished Bliss-The Brambleberry Cottage-Beyond the Picket Fence-A Glimpse Inside-Domestically Speaking {paint only}-A Creative Princess-My Repurposed Life {F} Today's Creative Blog-Thirty Handmade Days-Romantic Home-Remodelaholic-Shabby Nest-Lovely Crafty Home-WhipperBerry-At the Picket Fence-Finding Fabulous-delicate CONSTRUCTION-Naptime Crafters-Chic on a Shoestring Budget Decorating-Fingerprints on the Fridge-504 Main-French Country Cottage-Truly Lovely-Miss Mustard Seed {furniture only}-Simply Sweet Home-Craftionary-One Artsy Mama-Lil' Luna-The 36th Avenue {S} Reasons to Skip the Housework-Funky Junk Interior

DIY Food Edition: Crepe Bites

Okay, ladies and gents, here's the first of the recipes I promised from the baby shower I threw.  More coming!

Crepe Bites

Crepes
1 C flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 C milk
1 egg
1 Tbsp melted butter

Fruit
Blackberries
Strawberries, hulled and halved
Kiwi, skin removed, quartered and then halved

Nutella

Bamboo skewers, cut in half (I used my Cutco kitchen shears)

Mix together the ingredients for the crepes.  Warm a pan to medium heat and lightly grease it, then put in about a 1/4 cup, moving the pan around to evenly coat.  Cook for about 30 to 45 seconds on medium heat, until you can see that the edges are cooked, then flip and cook for another 30 to 35 seconds.

While crepes are still warm, use a silicone spatula to spread the Nutella over the crepe in an even layer.  Not too thick, or it will ooze out, but not so thin that you won't be able to taste it!  Then roll them up and slice into 1 to 1 1/2 inch sections.

Take your skewers and slide the pointy end through a piece of kiwi, then a piece of crepe, a blackberry, another piece of crepe and then finish it off with a strawberry half.  And there you have it!  A delicious elegant deconstructed crepe.  Enjoy!

Linking up here:

{M} Twigg Studios-Skip to My Lou-The DIY Showoff-Mad in Crafts-Marvelously Messy-Making the World Cuter-Sew Can Do- C.R.A.F.T.- Keeping It Simple-Creating My Way to Success-All Things Fee-Craft-o-Maniac-Boogieboard Cottage-Between Naps on the Porch-I Should Be Mopping the Floor-Momnivore's Dilemma-The Girl Creative {T} Yesterday on Tuesday-Tip Junkie-Sugar Bee Crafts-Funky Polkadot Giraffe-Hope Studios-My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia-Home Stories A2Z-Primitive and Proper {furniture only}-Elizabeth & Co.-Coastal Charm-Ladybug Blessings-Homework-New Nostalgia {W} Simply Designing-Someday Crafts-Creations by Kara -Sew Much Ado-My Girlish Whims-Savvy Southern Style-Seven Thirty Three-Polkadots on Parade-Ginger Snap Crafts-DIY by Design {Th} Cherished Bliss-The Brambleberry Cottage-Beyond the Picket Fence-A Glimpse Inside-Domestically Speaking {paint only}-A Creative Princess-My Repurposed Life {F} Today's Creative Blog-Thirty Handmade Days-Romantic Home-Remodelaholic-Shabby Nest-Lovely Crafty Home-WhipperBerry-At the Picket Fence-Finding Fabulous-delicate CONSTRUCTION-Naptime Crafters-Chic on a Shoestring Budget Decorating-Fingerprints on the Fridge-504 Main-French Country Cottage-Truly Lovely-Miss Mustard Seed {furniture only}-Simply Sweet Home-Craftionary-One Artsy Mama-Lil' Luna-The 36th Avenue {S} Reasons to Skip the Housework-Funky Junk Interior

This Week's Reads 2/21

This was supposed to go up yesterday....oh well!  Let's just pretend the date on the post is actually the date it went up, shall we?
Another busy week, so I only read one book.


My Loving Vigil Keeping by Carla Kelly

This was a really emotional book for me.  And captivating.  Which is why I found myself at 5 o' clock in the morning sitting in my family, the world dark outside, sobbing my heart out.  (I suppose I should explain that I have insomnia issues and never sleep through the night...and I typically get up to have a snack, so I started reading at around 3 AM....)  Anyway, this is a good book.  It is set in a mining camp in central Utah in late 1899 and early 1900.  The tragic part of the story is that on May 1st 1900, that mining camp experienced what the worst disaster to that point in history: somewhere between 200 and 246 men and boys were killed.  The novel covers the months leading up to the mine disaster and a couple days immediately following.  I got attached to these characters, and then many of them died, leaving behind wives and children.  But what's more of course, is that this really happened.  So tragic.  But such a good read.

It is a LDS novel, but the cultural references aren't so many that it would be hard to understand if you aren't a Mormon.

Definitely worth reading.

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This Week's Reads 2/14

Happy V-day, everyone!  Any great plans?  We went out last night to a restaurant from my Urbanspoon wishlist (Pago...I had the artisan cheese plate and the lamb sweetbreads...there are no words.....you should go if you're local) and tonight I'm makin' my husband some down-home NON fancy food.  :)  Ribs with okra and asparagus.  He'll love it.
Anyway, hope your V-day (or Singles Awareness Day) is lovely!
Confession:  I hardly read this week.  I spent most of my free time digiscrappin', which I'll post next week.  So I have only one book to share.


The Orchard by Krista Lynne Jensen

I was in the mood for a little romance, so I picked this off the shelf at the library.  I was a little disappointed when a few pages in, I discovered it was Austen fan fiction, a modern retelling of Persuasion.  I mean, don't get me wrong, I enjoy Austen fan fiction.  Well, GOOD Austen fan fiction.  It's just this time around I didn't really want to read a story that I already know the entire plot and outcome!  :)

That being said, it was a good one.  Worth reading if you need something light!




Amazon Affiliate links, just FYI, folks!

This Week's Reads 2/7

Where did my week go?!  We've been in recovery mode from a busy busy weekend of having family in town...trying to restore order from shambles in my house and get back to actually cooking dinner!  My best reading time (nap time!) has been occupied by, well, a nap!  :)



Seed No Evil by Kate Collins
Finished up the Flower Shop mystery series...well, at least all that my library has!  The latest, Throw in the Trowel was published literally just a few days ago.  I may have to break down and buy the book brand new....
Anyway, I enjoyed this one because (spoiler alert) our beloved heroine Abby married the man of her dreams.  And I love that the series doesn't end here!  I think that would be the instinct of many authors, to wind things up with a wedding.  But life goes on!  :)





How to Be a Hepburn in a Hilton World by Jordan Christy

This has been an interesting read.  It's been different than I expected.  I (a 31 year old stay at home momma of three little ones) am not the target audience (I'm thinking high school and college age girls).  Also, it is, in the author's words, a guidebook.  I'd call it more self-help.  :)  I do love most of the advice she gives; however, her characterization of "Stupid Girls" rubs me the wrong way.  I mean, don't misunderstand me, I'm not excusing the actions of those "Stupid Girls," but that's just it.  I'd rather refer to them as "Girls Who Do Stupid Things."  The author is pretty harsh in her descriptions of these girls.  They are people too.  People who are doing incredibly stupid things and who no one should want to emulate, but people nonetheless.  Anyway, let me step off my soapbox now.
The book is full of pop culture references that are already dated (published in 2009), but it's easy to do a little find and replace in your head of the examples given with those that are more current...there's always someone doing something stupid in a highly publicized way!
Overall, I enjoyed it.  If my lucky number comes up on Paperback Swap, I'll get myself a copy...to save for my girls to read when they're older.




And last but not least, I have to give a shout-out on a special deal happening right now for Nooks and Kindles.  The authors of a 7 book box set of CLEAN romances are selling it for NINETY-NINE cents right now, in an attempt to make it on the romance best seller list and get some recognition for clean romance instead of the typical bodice busting novels at the top of the list.  I fully support this endeavor.  :)  You can find them here for the Kindle and here for the Nook.

P.S....I just found out I won a giveaway for book two of one of my ALL TIME favorite series!  I've blogged both number one and two in recent months, but let me just say again.  If you haven't read The Anatomist's Wife and Mortal Arts by Anna Lee Huber, YOU SHOULD!!!!