Ikea Hunt

I'm on the Hunt! I have a "Most Wanted" list already created {bottom of post}, but have tried to do some Online and catalog pre-shopping research prior to our Ikea trip this weekend. Here are some of my favorite super-inexpensive finds & everything below is under $50!

And I'd love to hear your great Ikea finds/suggestions too!

MOST WANTED

• table lamp
• medium-sized mirror
• picture light
• bedside wall sconces
• oversized frames
• rug for our Master Bedroom
• art easel {toddling M}
• 4 chairs {toddling M}

My Loves

“I concluded…that all those virtuous human emotion need not be freely given. Respect is commanded or demanded. Admiration is won sometimes against the will. It is impossible to admire someone we dislike. Loyalty and trust we entice or win from others. A sense of awe or adoration for God descends upon us from realisation. Certainly all these emotions may be present in love but they are not love itself. Love is freely given. It is a matter of choice. Love is wanting what is best for the other person, even if what is best for them is not going to suit the lover. Love is totally selfless and it is an act, not an emotion. We often mistake it for emotion because it is usually contained in strong emotions. But love is not an emotion…love is creative action. It is the most creative act in the universe”.

from “Ordinary Insanity” by Emma Pierce

Within the next few days my "Love Celebrating" will be overflowing. I suppose it's fitting as Valentine's Day is quickly approaching:

Friday my firstborn turns 2 years old!

Saturday my husband is treating me on an Ikea shopping spree! We'll make a day of it too, so I'm hoping the weather will cooperate for our trip. This is only the 2nd time for me to go to an Ikea...I can hardly wait. The first time I was with Dear Friend and just not in the mood to go shopping. But this time I'm pumped!

Sunday is my sister BeeBee's birthday! I can hardly believe my "little" sister will be 26. Sheesh I'm OLD!

Monday is Valentine's Day and a time to celebrate Love. Even though my husband says it's an overcommercialized "holiday" that he's disliked since he was Toddling M's age, last night I seriously suggested starting the tradition to make it sentimental and not purchase anything---something like a nice love note would do. Ha! Apparently my darling husband must have something else in mind because he nixed that idea and said we could do "a little something." Uh-ohhh...sounds like I need to put on my Creativity Cap and come up with something more than a card! Any ideas?

Year of the Rabbit

Alright, alright, alright...

I'm not going to even pretend I know much at all about the Chinese New Year, but I can kind of claim to by virtue of my ethnicity {right?}. Ha!

Toddling M received 2 special red envelopes in the mail from Aunt BeeBee {who is Korean} and another from her Vietnamese friend.

For those billions who celebrate it...Happy New Year!

Cheesecake Parfaits

I promise this won't become just a recipe blog, but lately I've been cooking up a storm {blame it on the belly} and in honor of a sweet holiday coming up in 2 weeks {VALENTINES!}, I thought I'd share an equally sweet dessert. This is a slightly altered Kraft recipe, and it turned out wonderfully:

Cheesecake Parfait

• 1 Pkg- Cream Cheese, softened
• 1 1/2 Cups- Milk
• 1 Pkg- Instant Vanilla Pudding
• 2 Cups- Cool Whip, thawed
• 2 Cups Nilla Wafers {coarsely chopped, I tried to cut them in fourths}
• Blackberries {they were on sale, but any seasonal berries will do}

1. Beat cream cheese with your mixer until it becomes very creamy {this is kind of a mess, but you don't want chunks of cream cheese in your parfait}.
2. Beat in milk.
3. Add the dry pudding mix & mix well.
4. Add Cool Whip.
5. Layer wafers, berries, then pudding mixture into your glasses. Repeat & top with Cool Whip if desired.

Oreo Truffle Kisses- Valentine's Treat

I found a sweet treasure in Bakerella's archives!

Check out her Oreo Truffle Kisses {HERE}.

They're very easy to make too:

• 1 pkg Oreos {crushed to a fine consistency}
• 1 pkg Cream Cheese {set out to room temp}
• 1 pkg Chocolate Bark

Mix the Oreos & Cream Cheese. Form them into small balls {I ended up making 28...well that is after eating 1 little one!}. Shape them into Kisses {note: set them in the freezer if they start becoming too mushy on you-I had to do it once during this process}

They look like doo-doo piles here, but I swear they're yummy goodness!

Set your Kisses in the freezer while you melt your chocolate bark in a microwaveable bowl.



Dunk your kisses one at a time in the chocolate, use a spoon to cover the entire kiss & let them slide off back onto your cookie sheet {covered in wax paper}.

See not-so-much like doo-doo here.

Print out your Kisses' messages and cut foil pieces to cover each kiss.

Mine don't look as pretty as Bakerella's, but you get the picture!

{See Gigi...there's even some in there for you & Grandadder. We even ate them in your honor!}

These were an early Valentine's treat. We'll be working on some other things leading up to the celebration.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Some Cheese With That?

Cooking, cleaning, organizing, decorating, and overall NESTing have filled up what little bit of "Me Time" I've had lately. Of course, some of these things I enjoy more than others! But since we have to EAT, I've had a good pile recipes on hand and have also made some of my own along the way.

Here's a yummy and quick recipe for a basic

Cheesy Ham & Potato Casserole

2 Cups- Ham, cubed*

1 pkg- Southern Style Hashbrowns 32oz

1 Cups- Onion, chopped

4 Cups- Swiss Cheese, grated

Salt & Pepper to taste

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

2 Tbsp Butter, melted

1 Cups- Milk

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Grease your baking pan{s}
3. Combine ham, hashbrowns, onion, 2 C of the cheese, and salt & pepper in a large bowl {you'll need a big bowl!}
4. In a separate bowl, mix the melted soup, butter & milk. Then pour this liquid over your ham mixture & stir well.
5. Scoop the mixture into the pan{s} and top with the 2C of remaining cheese.
6. Bake for 35 minutes.
7. Eat & Enjoy!

*for the Ham, I actually buy a 16oz pkg of off-brand deli ham & cut it up. It's cheaper than buying a block of the ham.

The Brooklyn Home Co

Two days ago {I know I'm behind...just catching up on some of my recorded shows}, the Nate Berkus Show's "House Proud" segment featured a home in Brooklyn designed by a couple with The Brooklyn Home Company.

It's absolutely AH-MAZING!

The Caleo couple does a beautiful job of harmoniously combining both very stark white modernism with warm reclaimed pieces throughout their interiors. Color me impressed!

Check out the beautiful art installation above the original fireplace mantel. Or how about that refurbished daybed. *drooling*

And then look how these sleek Panton chairs look with the reclaimed wood table. {would love to see that loft}

Here's the glorious reclaimed shelving; although I don't think I could keep mine that organized in-use. And you can't tell much from this photo, but they made their own island countertop to incorporate a knife holder nesting in the wood.

The bathroom door is a barn door-very chic!

At first glance, I imagine well-seasoned travelers designed this space with hints of natural global pieces, but not anything overwhelming {bed, antlers, mirror}.

And then the L-shaped seating here is really 2 twin-sized beds with 2 tree sections as coffee tables.

This space is incredible- hope you enjoy!

All photos from {HERE}, but more from their portfolio can be found {HERE}.

'Cue Cups Recipe

I made these yummy-licious Barbecue Cups last night for dinner. But how can you go wrong with a recipe that involves crescent rolls, barbecue, and cheddar cheese? These would be great for Game Day or a Super Bowl Party.

Makes 8 Barbecue Cups {this large preggers lady was more-than-full after 3, so probably 1-2 per person is plenty!}

• 1 lb Ground Beef
• 1 Tbsp Minced Onion
• 2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
• 1/2 C BBQ Sauce
• 1 Pkg Crescent Rolls
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. Brown the ground beef & drain fat.
3. Add the onion, BBQ sauce & sugar to the beef.
4. Roll each crescent triangle into a ball & then press each ball it into a muffin tin cup to form a crust.
5. Fill each cup with the beef mixture & top with cheese.
6. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

A hearty helping of meat!

The Scrumptious 'Cue Cups!

One Month From Today

...Toddling M will turn TWO YEARS OLD

Ahhh, I can hardly believe it! In the meantime, I've been mapping out a plan of action which includes research {aka browsing dozens of party blogs}, list-making, and designing a party board to get this party started. We'll have a lower-key celebration this year than last, but it certainly doesn't mean any less thought and planning will go into everything! I've designed the invitations already and have "pre-booked" the Cookie Queen for party favors, but really other than planning on paper, I haven't actually done much else to actually get things together.

I have plans for several homemade crafts and decor. {some of which include dusting off the old sewing machine and also using my new laminator HERE} I better start actually completing my list now.

See Ya Real Soon!

{if you have a little one who watches Mickey, you might get that reference...sheesh, I'm one of THOSE Mommies now!}

Preppy Art

I have to admit I've been intimidated to tackle even the simplest of art. But today when Mason went down for his nap, I went for it!

My Mom, the "artiste extradordinaire" always sketches out her ideas and even determines patterns and her color palette on paper first. Smart woman!

I taped off parts of my design and then mixed my colors. I'm proud to share that I made an exact match to the blue in the bathroom. I wanted to replicate the paint color for a cohesive look.

I chose to go with 3 colors total since the design was simple and I wanted an elementary-feel to the art. Here's an in-progress view...

And now here they are on the walls... {our Skip Hop whale spout cover was the inspiration for my first canvas}

Et Voila!

I like how when the door is open, you can see both canvases with the mirror. I have some ideas with changing out the shower curtain and towels, but the look works for now and I'm fairly pleased with the $8 change {oh yeah, the 2 canvases are in a value pack for $8 at Hobby Lobby...it's the regular price for the 2!}

Shades of Grey

Leave it to Overstock to tempt me with their lovely grey rugs! Our Master Bedroom has a mostly white duvet cover with a grey and beige abstract cherry blossom print. The room is just screaming to be repainted in steel grey and begs for a cream upholstered headboard...I've been trying to convince Scott of this for the past 3 months, but the dark wall color scares him. I may have to surprise him one day to prove him wrong {joking...well kind of}.

But any of these rugs would be lovely in our future grey room:

Martha Stewart Terrazza Grey $110

Jullian $152

Jullian Grey Shag $156

Hand-tufted World Classic Bluish Grey $165

Andorra Blue $117

Naked to Clothed

These barren windows have driven me crazy the past 3 months. I'd bookmarked this easy peasy curtain tutorial {HERE} from Life to the "T" over a year ago and So Monday I finally decided to do something about it.
Look Mom...no sewing!

Thankfully I've had a huge roll of burlap leftover from my sunroom redo {HERE}
I needed 4 panels x 8'. I kept the rustic look going and didn't sew the edges of the curtains, but I did at least iron the burlap and folded then ironed down a 1" hem at the top and bottom of each panel.
Then I ironed the hems down using Stitch Witchery...

And I used simple "O" ring clips and hung the panels. But followed Life to the T's advice and used clothespins to "train" the curtain shape overnight.

Et Voila!

I know the room needs many more things and much more work to warm things up, but baby steps are getting us there!

Happy 2011!

Wishing You a Happy New Year!!!

Hope yours is off to a great start. I anticipate many great things in store for this new year!The above adorable cookies were made by the talented Cookie Queen of Alabama. Make sure to check out her Facebook page {HERE}