Free

Jamie, go to these websites and you can get these for free with these codes.

www.uddercovers.com  - code:VALPAK
www.sevenslings.com - code: UT2

I got the sling.  You do have to pay shipping, but the cover is like 9.00 and the sling is 11.00.

carpet

Mom, I like the pattern on this carpet.

These are pendant lamps, they hang from the ceiling.

Lindsey this would look cute hanging from the ceiling. In the corner, by your television and fireplace

I'm seeing these pillows on Lindsey's couch.

Spring is FINALLY here and I am ready to get outside and do some spring clean up! Are you?

I've been wanting to decorate my front entrance somehow.


This is my favorite. Look at the cute spring wreath and cute ribbon on the door.

Studio5 KSL

K so I've been big into watching sudio5 ksl here are some interesting things I like that I wanted to share with you guys....

Bob Harpers (Biggest Loser) Green Drink
This can be used as a meal replacement! It is a BIG drink and could be considerred 2 servings. Women who are watching their calories can cut the supplement in half, which drops the total calories down to 289.

Bob's Green Drink (398 calories)
Add all ingredients (listed below) to a blender and blend until combined.

Supplements (218 calories) (optional)
1 TBSP Ground Flax Seed (40 calories)
1 1/2 TBSP Hemp Seed (80 calories)
1 TBSP Dulse Flakes (8 calories)
2 tsp Maca Powder (40 calories)
2 TBSP Protein Powder (50 calories)

Fruits and veggies (180 calories)
1 cup fresh kale (30 calories)
1 cup frozen spinach (30 calories)
1/2 cup blueberries (35 calories)
1/2 small banana (40 calories)
1/2 cup frozen pineapple (45 calories)
20 oz water

Nutrition info: (per recipe, one big glass)
172 calories
5 g fiber
265% vit A
192% vit C
884% vit K
125% manganese
14% iron
16% calcium
24% potassium


I also really liked this blog they posted for home decor...

http://www.oviattpratt.blogspot.com/


Ever wonder how to take that nasty gunk off our curling irons, brushes and straightners use a mixture of fabric softener and water: 1 part fabric softener and 2 parts water, Use a soft clot and mositen with this solution. I thought that was interesting! I haven't used it yet but I am planning on it!

I really like this blog on cute designer projects

http://meganhoeppner.blogspot.com/


Love you guys miss you like crazy!!!

A Pirate Birthday for Samuel

Ask Sam, if he wants Grandma to make this for him for his birthday.

Pirate Cake
Recipe Source: adapted from Betty Crocker

1 box cake mix (any flavor)
Water, canola oil and eggs called for on cake mix box
2/3 cup chocolate frosting
1 container vanilla frosting
1 chocolate-covered mint patty - eye patch
1 large marshmallow, cut in half - eye
1 blue peanut m&m or gum ball - eyeB
1 gummy life saver - earring
2 rolls strawberry Fruit by the Foot - stripes, mouth, eye patch
1 black licorice - hat
2 square-shaped candy-coated gum - teeth
Chocolate sprinkles
Tray or cardboard, covered, at least 18" x 15"
Gold coins, optional

1. Heat oven to 350 (325 for nonstick pans). Spray nonstick cooking spray on bottoms and sides of 1 (9-inch) round cake pan and 1 (8-inch) round cake pan. Grease them quite a bit, you'll be grateful later. (I used 2 - 9" round cake pans and just cut off a 1/2 an inch around the entire cake. It added an extra step but it worked okay) Make cake as directed on box, using water, oil, and eggs. Pour into pans.
2. Bake as directed on box. Allow cakes to cool completely (and I mean completely:). Carefully remove from pans, trying not to loose the bottom of the cake. At this point I strongly recommend freezing the cakes. It makes the cutting and icing steps MUCH MUCH easier. In fact I made my cakes the night before the party, put them in the freezer overnight, and finished up the next morning. I've tried to work on room temperature cakes before and it can be very frustrating.
3. While still frozen, use a serrated knife to cut the 9" cake almost in half. One half will be just a little bigger than the other. If you are like me and like as much guidance as possible, download the template here, and cut out and trace. Or just refer to image below. The smaller half of the 9" cake will be the hat and the larger half will be the body of our pirate. Cut 8" cake as directed below. However, don't discard the extra piece of cake as it says. That will become our pirates nose. Place cakes on tray as directed. Next, shape ears out of the extra pieces on the the 9" cake. Cut nose out of the extra piece of the 8" cake. Use a small amount of frosting to attach the ears and nose to the cake. Carefully cover with wrap and place in the freezer for an hour or so until firm again.

4. Reserve 2 teaspoons chocolate frosting. Mix 2/3 cup of vanilla frosting with reserved chocolate frosting. This tints the frosting slightly and will be used as the "skin" color for head, ears and nose. The chocolate frosting will be used for the hat. The vanilla frosting will be used for the body of the pirate. Quickly but carefully crumb coat your pirate. Adding a crumb coat layer to your cake makes frosting SO much easier. All you do is add a quick first layer of frosting to the firm cakes in the appropriate color. It doesn't need to be perfect, crumbs will show through here or there, but it allows you to do really nice and smooth top layer later on. Cover and put the cakes back in the freezer until firm again.
5. When ready, remove from freezer, smoothly ice your final layer of frosting on your cake and get ready to decorate. Add mint patty for the eye-patch, marshmallow slice and blue m&m for the eye, and gummy life-saver for the earring. Cut fruit by the foot into shapes for the shirt stripes, mouth, and strap for the eye patch and place on cake. Cut licorice to fit hat. Add gum for the teeth and chocolate sprinkles for the whiskers. Store loosely covered at room temperature. Enjoy!

We need to go here

Valentine Pizza

Make a special Valentine’s Day dinner at home for your kids (or your sweetie). Add some heart shaped pepperonis to a store bought or homemade pizza. It’s so easy. Just buy sliced pepperoni, cut heart shapes out with a small cookie cutter, and add to the pizza before cooking. This is would be a sweet addition to any Valentine’s Party as well.

Valentine Gumball Necklace

We all know that diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but how about gumballs this year? A new take on the candy necklace, this easy gumball craft is sure to get you some hugs and kisses. You can give these to the sweet girls in your life or hand them out at a Valentine’s Party.
1. Using a metal skewer, pierce one side of the gumball. Hold the top of the gumball steady as you guide the skewer (see photo). This will prevent the skewer from slipping off the slick surface of the gumball.

2. Flip the gumball over and pierce another hole directly opposite to the first hole. If you try to poke a hole straight through both sides at once, the gumball will crack.

3. The hardest part is stringing the ribbon. Use a large needle to thread the ribbon through the gumballs. Thinner ribbon is easier to string. Tie a knot between each gumball as you string it.

Tip: Look for bags of single colored gumballs at your local party supply store.

here are the wall ideas

I like the letter E on the wall, you could put a M for Martinez

I also like when they add plates.  A collage of pictures, plates, frames, letters would be cute.

Make these cake stands.

Thought I better contribute to this blog, since I'm the Sue here.

How cute are these bags. You can print these on your printer, or you could always print the label onto sticker paper (found at office supply stores) and apply it to the bag. Here is where you can download the file. Fill with cookies, muffins, a handmade card, or whatever it is that your special someone will enjoy. XOXO!!!

Freezer recipes

K so I've been doing some homework I found these recipes, I haven't tried them but if you guys get to it before I do let me know what ones I should for sure try...

Short Sharp Chops

Freezing instructions: Combine pork and marinade in a large heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag, and place in freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw in refrigerator; cook as directed.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 chops)

Ingredients
8 (2-ounce) boned center-cut loin pork chops (1/4 inch thick)
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup thawed orange juice concentrate, undiluted
1/4 cup chopped green onions
2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon olive oil

Preparation
Trim fat from pork. Combine soy sauce and the next 5 ingredients (soy sauce through garlic) in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add pork to bag; seal and marinate in refrigerator 1 hour, turning bag occasionally. Remove pork from bag; discard marinade.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chops; sauté 3 minutes on each side.


Barbecue Pulled Chicken

8 servings
Active Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 5 1/2 hours

Ingredients
1 8-ounce can reduced-sodium tomato sauce
1 4-ounce can chopped green chiles, drained
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon sweet or smoked paprika
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground chipotle chile
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced

Preparation
Stir tomato sauce, chiles, vinegar, honey, paprika, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, ground chipotle and salt in a 6-quart slow cooker until smooth. Add chicken, onion and garlic; stir to combine.
Put the lid on and cook on low until the chicken can be pulled apart, about 5 hours.
Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and shred with a fork. Return the chicken to the sauce, stir well and serve.

Tips & Notes
Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month.


Chipotle-Marinated Pork Tenderloin

2 servings
Active Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 1/2 hours (including 1 hour marinating time)

Ingredients
1 canned chipotle chile in adobo plus 1 teaspoon adobo sauce, (see Ingredient Note)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
8 ounces pork tenderloin, (see Kitchen Tip), trimmed of fat

Preparation
Combine chipotle and sauce, garlic, orange juice, lime juice, vinegar, oregano, cumin, salt and pepper in a blender or mini food processor; blend or process until the chipotle is chopped and the mixture is relatively smooth. Pour into a sealable plastic bag, add pork and seal, squeezing out any excess air from the bag. Turn to coat with the marinade. Refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.
Preheat grill to high or heat a large indoor grill pan over high heat. Remove the pork from the marinade (discard marinade). Grill the pork, turning occasionally, until an instant-read thermometer inserted diagonally into the center of the meat registers 145° F, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

Tips & Notes
Make Ahead Tip: Marinate the pork in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours.
Ingredient Note: Chipotle chiles in adobo sauce are smoked jalapenos packed in a flavorful sauce. Find them with Mexican foods in large supermarkets.
Kitchen Tip: One pork tenderloin typically weighs about 1 pound, enough for 4 servings. You can marinate a whole pound in the same amount of marinade used to marinate the 8 ounces in this recipe and have enough cooked tenderloin for 2 dinners (for 2 people). Or freeze half for up to 3 months.


Kahlua Pig by Cassie
3Lb. Pork butt/shoulder roast
1 1/2 TBS Sea Salt
1 TBS Liquid Smoke

Pierce pork all over with a fork. Rub in salt and then liquid smoke. Place in freezer bag.
To serve thaw in fridge overnight and cook 6-8 hours in crock pot on low turn once during cooking.
Remove from slow cooker and shred, adding drippings as needed to moisten. Serve with rice.
Also most like to add cabbage at the end to cook and have with the pork


Slow Cooker Swiss Steak by Ann Road Meal Swappers

[Ingredients]
1 lb Baby carrots
1 1/2 lbs Swiss Steak, cut into serving size pieces
1 package Onion soup mix
8 oz Tomato sauce
1/2 cup Water

[Instruction]
Put carrots in bottom of slow cooker. Place meat on top of carrots. Mix together soup, tomato sauce and water. Pour over meat. Cook 8-10 hours on low heat. If frozen, increase cooking time, or thaw before cooking.


Cafe Rio shredded pork

Buy:
3-4 pounds pork roast
Cook in crockpot for SIX HOURS on low or until it shreds. Cover roast half with water. (Or 2 hours on high and then 4 hours on low)

Then add
1 8 oz. bottle taco sauce
1 T cumin
1 c. brown sugar
1 can Coke or Dr. Pepper
Add to shredded pork and cook an ADDITIONAL 3 HOURS.

This is going to be fun!

I love this idea mom had! Thanks for sharing those decoration tips for valentines lindz I needed some for sure! I got blogging around and found this coolest blog about healthy cooking, I loved her ideas. I really want to find some freezer recipes so I can prepare a bunch while I am out of school. Any ideas?

http://blog.superhealthykids.com/healthy-recipe-index/

Hey you guys!

You kids like our new website?  Now we can do this.  Do you girls have Valentine decor?  I don't really.  I thought these would be fun to make…. 

This garland is made of felt circles

This would be fun for a Valentines meal

Sam could help me with these