(3) hand knit dishcloths for $15

i am selling 3 hand knit dishcloths / washcloths for $15.

please email me / comment if you are interested!!!!

easiest picture hanging method EVER!

thought i would take a quick minute to show you how i hung my new frames on the wall tonight..

SUPER EASY method and i cannot believe i hadnt done this in the past!

i took a roll of wrapping paper and laid it flat on the floor and then arranged the frames on it.  i then traced all the frames with a pen and poked holes in the paper where the hangers were.

then i taped the paper to the wall and made sure it was level and then nailed nails in all the holes.  then i took the paper down and hung up all the frames. 

they all turned out level, symmetrical and perfect.  

you HAVE to try this!!!! :)

how i celebrated my "golden" 28th birthday

i was inspired a couple weeks ago by another blog friend to spend my birthday week doing random acts of kindness for others. i thought it sounded like a FABULOUS idea!

i pre made a list of things that i knew i wanted to complete and left a couple open for any spur of the moment things i may have found to do.

remember, not all random acts involve monetary gifts, it is plain and simple, the ACT of KINDNESS :)

here are my 28 acts:

1. i donated 2 of my old cell phones to a battered women's shelter

2. put all the change i had in my car / purse in the charity container mcdonalds

3. wrote an encouraging note to a friend who has been through her FAIR share of hardships, but yet still continues to stay so positive. #inspirational

4. i went to red robin to get my "free birthday food item" and left the bartender a $10 tip on my free salad.

5. took a bag of clothes to goodwill

6. left a Biggby gift card and note for my mailman/mailwoman

7. left 20 pennies on "sandy" the horse at Meijer

8. paid for my sister and brother in-laws dinner out

9. took special treats to the kids at my sisters preschool

10. baked cookies for a family in the neighborhood that has amazingly nice and respectful kids

11. left a bag of microwavable popcorn on a local Redbox kiosk

12. dropped a whole bag of change into the sandbox at a local preschool for the kids to find

13. sent a thank-you note / gift card to a wonderful friend who ALWAYS has a listening ear

14. let the lady with kids checkout before me at Kroger

15. took 3 potted daisies and notes to the local nursing home and requested they went to someone who was either sick or didn't have very many visitors

16. let someone who raced up to the end of their ending lane, merge in

17. i left a 12 pack of coke on my neighbors doorstep because its his favorite

apparently this one wasnt so anonymous because when i came home later, this was taped to my door :) 

18. sent a plate full of cookies to my boyfriends co-workers

19. left a small store credit card on the mirror in one of the dressing rooms

20. baked cookies and took them to a new family in the neighborhood 

(this one was the most touching... this adorable little girl answered the door and her face lit up with excitement to see the cookies, then mom came to the door, with a smile on her face, almost crying. she explained that they just moved here, she is going through a divorce, the kids are struggling to fit in to the new school and yesterday she was almost at the end of her rope)

21. i took $1.75 of quarters and left them on the ledge at the car wash for the next person

22. took a $5 bill into my gym and told the worker to give the next 5 people to come in a free water

23. went to the dollar store and strategically placed three $1 bills in the toy section

24. made a conscious effort to hold the door for as many people as i could all week.  i noticed quite a few people that never acknowledged it and some that appreciated the gesture. 

(there was one instance that a boy didn't thank me and his mom who was a few steps behind thanked me. she then told the son that saying thank you when people do that for you is customary.  maybe i was part of him learning and next time he will!)

25. i took these coloring books, crayons and board books to the pediatric emergency room and the labor and delivery waiting room at sparrow

26. i had a coupon for a free herbal essence shampoo or conditioner that i left in the aisle at meijer and i had a $2 off your next purchase that i left at the u-scan checkout

27. i paid for the order behind me at mcdonalds

28. brought the neighbors trash cans in from the street

i truly had the best time doing this for my birthday.  it was great to spend the week doing things for other people! i will definitely be making this more of a daily/weekly thing than once a year! i encourage all of you to do the same!

-emily

  

baby fruit bowl

i threw a "gender reveal" party for my sister this weekend and wanted to do something FUN with the fruit salad, so of course, i went searching on pinterest :) i saw an idea and decided to make my own rendition of it!

supplies:

toothpicks

pacifier

fruit

**i melon balled out the watermelon after cutting it down to the shape of the bassinet.  

for the baby head, i cut a cantaloupe in half and then rounded one half out to the shape of a head.

the ears, eyes, pacifier and nose are all head down with toothpicks.**

SUPER SIMPLE and has an adorable factor of about one million :)

cowboy caviar

this recipe will NOT disappoint! it can function as a healthy dish to pass or just simply a cool summer snack

cowboy caviar recipe:

ingredients:

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

1 can black eyed peas

1 can garbanzo beans

1 can white corn

1 whole green pepper

1 whole red pepper

1 whole yellow or orange pepper

1 onion

1 bunch cilantro

2 jalapenos 

liquid:

1 cup apple cider vinegar

1 cup sugar

1/4 oil 

1 teaspoon salt

pepper to taste

drain all beans/peas/corn and combine in a large bowl.  finely chop all peppers/onions/cilantro/jalapenos and combine into large bowl with the beans. (i generally combine the seeds from 1 of the jalapenos to the bowl as well for a little extra heat) 

to make the liquid you will combine the oil, vinegar, sugar and salt to a saucepan and bring liquid to a rolling boil (stir often to make sure sugar doesn't stick to bottom of pan) once a rolling boil is reached, turn off heat and let liquid completely cool before adding it to the beans/veggies.  stir and serve with tortilla chips (i recommend the "scoops")

chocolate-kiwi-pops

i have been eating healthy and have been desperately searching for a way to get something sweet that would still be somewhat healthy....well i discovered it!

chocolate covered kiwi frozen pops

how to make them yourself:

you will need the following items (or variations of if you desire)

directions:

i cut the peel off the kiwi and then sliced them in thick slices (i got 3-4 slices from each kiwi) i put them on a paper towel to dry them off so the chocolate would stick better

after i dried off the kiwi, i then stuck each piece with one of the wooden sticks

i then melted the chocolate in a bowl in 30 second increments until it was melted completely

after chocolate is melted, i used a spoon to cover the kiwi with chocolate and then stood them up in a glass before putting them in the freezer to cool and the chocolate to harden (you could also lay them on a cookie sheet and put in freezer, but i didn't want one side of them to be flat)

finished product :)  believe me, they are EXTREMELY delicious and a quick, healthy snack!

ENJOY!

white chocolate / cake batter popcorn

please forgive me as I haven't blogged in a while :)  I promise this one is worth the wait!!!!!!!! 

I introduce to you WHITE CHOCOLATE CAKE BATTER POPCORN! I saw the idea on pinterest of course and needed to make it for myself.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of white chocolate chips

(2) 3.5 oz bags of original microwave popcorn

1/4 cup vegetable shortening

1 cup white cake mix

sprinkles  

Steps:

1. pop bags of popcorn in microwave and pour into big bowl (make sure to pick out all the un-popped kernels)

2. put the white chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl and melt the chips.  I did this in 30 second increments to prevent burning (took about a minute and a half)

3. mix the vegetable shortening into the melted chips

4. pour in the 1 cup of dry cake mix and stir till the clumps are gone 

5. dump over the popcorn and stir (I did this with my hands and it did get a little messy but you could always stir with a spoon or spatula)

6. sprinkle the sprinkles over the top 

7. let it sit for a while so the whole thing will harden

8. ENJOY!