basil pesto, mozzarella, tomato panini.

these are andrew's 3 favorite things. i think he could live off them. whenever i make caprese salad, caprese bites, and now these delicious sandwiches, i'm guaranteed to hear about it all day long. we had them for lunch today and i can't tell you how many times he's asked when we can have them again. tomorrow, my love. tomorrow.

creative idea #12: Basil Pesto, Mozzarella, Tomato Panini
idea sparked by:http://foodgawker.com 
part 1: 

• pesto-

• ingredients:

1. 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
2. 2 cloves garlic
3. 1/4 cup pine nuts 
4. 2/3 cup EVOO
5. Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• directions

1. combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor until coarsely chopped. 
2. add oil and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

part 2:

• panini-
• ingredients
1. pesto
2. crusty french loaf, cut into 8 slices {we had different bread on hand}
3. tomatoes {we had grape on hand, but large tomatoes would work great too!}
4. fresh mozzarella
5. EVOO for brushing
• directions:
1. spread pesto over all slices {i only used half the amount of pesto in the pics because we didn't have enough basil. next time we're going all the way.}

      2. slice tomatoes and mozzarella. arrange on bread.

3. Place on george forman, panini press, or in a pan with a heavy pan on top to weigh bread down.

        4. brush top with EVOO. squish.

        

        5. eat this wonderful sandwich and leave your husband asking when you can have this goodness again.

Basil Pesto, Mozzarella, Tomato Panini

pesto:

• 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup pine nuts 
• 2/3 cup EVOO
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• directions

1. combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor until coarsely chopped. 
2. add oil and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

4 paninis:

• pesto
• crusty french loaf, cut into 8 slices 
• tomatoes 
• fresh mozzarella
• EVOO for brushing
• directions:
1. spread pesto over all slices {i only used half the amount of pesto in the pics because we didn't have enough basil. next time we're going all the way.}
2. slice tomatoes and mozzarella. arrange on bread.
3. Place on george forman, panini press, or in a pan with a heavy pan on top to weigh bread down.
4. brush top with EVOO. squish.
5. eat.

love and happy husbands,

amber.

cake stands.

this isn't a very exciting post, in my opinion. this project is so easy it's silly, but i love it so much i can't help but post it. 

i've seen these tutorials here and there on pinterest and am blow away by how quick and cheap it is to make a one-of-a-kind cake stand {that are way better than store bought ones}

creative idea #11: diy cake stand
idea sparked by: www.centsationalgirl.com

tools:

•  plate {one per stand. i chose plastic because this was for a kid party. i found it for a quarter at goodwill}
• glass or candle stick {one per stand. also, check goodwill - i got these for $2ish}
• hot glue gun
• drop cloth
• spray paint
• something to cover top of plate when in use {spray paint is not food safe, but there are so many cute things you could do to coordinate with your theme. i chose doilies for emery's girly party, but check out the pics at the end of the post for more ideas!}

directions:

• clean surface of plate and glass/candle stick, let dry.
• measure center of plate, on back side {this isn't my perfectionist self coming out, you really need to do this. i didn't and ended up with a few lopsided cakes stands that looked...interesting.}
• hot glue candle stick or glass to middle of back side of plate

• lay trash bag flat and arrange cake stand to be painted

• follow painting, dry time, recoating directions of paint can

• before displaying food, make sure to spruce it up and keep it food safe by placing something decorative on the plate.

i chose a doily.

martha stewart draped ribbon over hers...

pinterest user Jennifer Pappadouplos used scrapbook paper.

i thought ombre or multicolored layers of tissue paper would look fabulous! Or a bandana, vintage scarf, etc. the possibilities are endless! what are your ideas??

love and easy decor,
amber.

polka dot garland.

well, let's have a little recap on my week, shall we? 

1. i lost my phone {still haven't found it}, 
2. our computer filled completely up and i had no room to upload or edit pics {hence the failed attempt at birthday week on the blog}, 
3. i celebrated my first mother's day and emery's first birthday {which went absolutely perfect, other than the insane wind. i couldn't use 80% of my decorations, therefore i have no elaborate party pics to post like i had planned. that's what i get for hosting an outdoor party. oh and it was freezing cold.}
4. my aunt is in town for 2 weeks from california. 

at least my list is half good. to add to the positive side, i'm typing all this from our new computer. glory hallelujah! 

so, let's pretend like it's only a day or two from the last post and i'm prepping for a party that's going to go smoothly...

creative idea #9: polka dot garland.
idea sparked by:http://hiphiphoorayblog.com

Tools:

• circle hole punch(es) {i did 3 different sizes}
• paper {i chose stiff scrapbook paper. not sure how well regular paper would work on a sewing machine...}
• sewing machine
• thread
• scissors
• glue
• unwrapped roll of paper towels {optional}

Directions:

• punch circles

• feed into sewing machine 
• i've seen garlands with a fun thread that adds a pop of color, or one that blends in {i love both ways!}
• i've also seen garlands where the circles are fed through  perfectly centered and ones where they're off centered to give a quirky fun look. 
• other garlands have the circles touching, others have spaces of thread in between. get creative!

• when you have the garland the length you want it, snip the thread and use a small smear of glue to keep the thread from coming out of the paper. 
• when the glue dried, i chose to tape one end to the roll of paper towels, and wind it around to keep it from tangling.

just a few projects left to go...

{UPDATE} - my friend kim tweaked this idea and made it into a sports theme! check out the blog post here!

love and birthday cake,

amber.

birthday prep - paper pinwheels.

my friend and i were talking the other day and she said there are 2 types of families in the world - the type that doesn't make a big deal out of birthdays and the type that does. 

i do believe we are the type that does. 

since we've been married we have never had a birthday, we've had a birthweek. we love to get together with family, have date days, eat good food, and celebrate. now we are crazy excited to do this for a baby. we've never decorated or thrown ourselves a party before, but we're sure as heck gonna do it for our kids. so, here begins her birthday week {actually, a few days early}. welcome to the birthday factory!

creative idea # 9: paper pinwheels
idea sparked by: there are tons of tutorials online, but i haven't found one that i've read and immediately understood how to make these things. {maybe i'm just reading the wrong ones...} this is my attempt to make a tutorial that at least i would understand :-) 

tools:

• 2 sheets of paper {i used computer paper. obviously the size you choose will effect the size of the pinwheel. i've also made mini ones out of book pages before}
• tape {both regular and double sided}
• string, yarn, or something else to tie with
• scissors
• hot glue gun {optional}
• circle punch in different color {optional}

directions:

• lay  papers end to end and tape together

• fold accordion style, end to end. {i'm confessing to you now that i am a recovering perfectionist. a few years ago i would have meticulously measured one inch increments along the length of the papers, folded them perfectly even, and, had i messed up, would have thrown it away and started all over. i cannot tell you how great it is to not be like that anymore. like i said though, i'm still recovering. instead of measuring perfectly, i fold the paper slightly smaller than the previous fold because when you press it down, it will become the same width as the last fold. see pic below}

 

• a few years ago i would have also busted out my ruler and measured the exact middle of my accordian fold so i would know where precisely to put my string. i clearly needed a life. this time around, i got smart and folded it all in half so i would know where the middle was.

• tie string in fold

• use double stick tape to stick the sides together

 

• if you want to hide the yarn, or simply help coordinated these further with your theme, hot glue a circle to the middle.

tada! crazy easy.

stay tuned for more birthday fun...

love and confetti, 

amber

painting with baby + postcard puzzle.

today emery and i wanted to make a present to send in the mail. there are only so many ways an 11 month old can get crafty. we combined 2 ideas and made a fun postcard puzzle for far away family!

creative idea #8: painting with baby + postcard puzzle
ideas sparked by: www.momtastic.com & www.ohhappyday.com



Tools: 

• poster board {we cut ours in half}
• 1 ziplock bag {we used gallon size}
• paint
• blue tape
• scissors
• ruler

Directions:

• squirt paint randomly on poster board
• cut the zipper and 2 sides off ziplock bag so that when you open it it's one long sheet {i cut mine into two for this and wish i hadn't. emery found it fast and wanted to open it}
• tape bag over paint with blue tape
• let baby go to town! i showed emery how to pat it, she crawled on it, walked on it, etc. After she was done we peeled off the tape and added some painted baby foot prints to fill in the empty spots.

• Let dry
• You can stop here, obviously, but we kept going. I filled in some fun doodles so that it could be a puzzle. Then i cut the poster board in half and then cut each half into 4 postcard sized pieces.
• I flipped them all over and wrote a small message that started at the bottom of the first postcard and went all the way down to the last postcard {it was only one line on each card. when the puzzle is put together, they'll be able to read the message}

can't wait for them to get their mail!

what other activities are good for babies? i'm always looking for ideas...

love and artwork,
amber.

clipboard/chalkboard menu planner.

i'm pretty excited about this post because there's a little bitty chance this idea is actually original. don't quote me on it, but i haven't come across it anywhere else {yet}.

i've been searching for months for the perfect solution to my weekly meal planning. i've found tons of great ideas, but none of them have been quite right for us. 

this all started awhile back when andrew asked me to start posting a list of every meal we were going to eat for the week somewhere in the kitchen where he could see it. He loves knowing what my plan is so he's less tempted to suggest eating out. I searched and searched and searched online to see how other people manage their meal planning. Each idea had at least one con for our family...

style #1 - the pre-made card system. 

{i can't find the 
original poster of this. 
none of the pinterest 
links lead to original pages}

• how it works: these types of meal planners consist of 20 or so cards that have permanent meals on them that you hang on a calendar indicating the day you're going to make it.
• why i didnt like this one: andrew and i love to cook. we rarely repeat meals because we're constantly trying new things. there's no way we could only cycle through the same 20 recipes, we'd go crazy. if we were to make a card for every recipe we've made and liked, we'd go broke on scrapbook paper. and i'd go crazy having so many pieces of paper to store. and the idea of putting it all together seemed like too much work. {need any more reasons?}
• who this works great for: people who don't love being in the kitchen, people who have recipes that they love to repeat, busy families, etc.

style #2 - printable menu planners

{designfinch.com}

• how it works: chose a template that works best for you, print them off weekly, and fill in with the weeks meals
• why i didn't like this one: first, i couldn't find a template i liked. most of them were just for dinner - i needed one for all 3 meals and a section for snacks for the week. I finally ended up making my own basic spread sheet in excel with what little computer skills i have. it worked great until my new printer ran out of ink for the first time and i found out it cost $50+ for a new cartridge. I would like as few reasons as possible to have to pay that again anytime soon.
• who this works great for: people who are wanting to plan just dinner. people who don't mind shelling out the cash for ink.

style #3 - the wipe off board menu

{familycorner.blogspot.com}

• how it works: fill a frame with scrapbook paper, add stickers to spell out the days of the week, and use wipe off markers to fill in the menu.
• why i didn't like this one: for the record, this was my favorite of the ones that weren't right for us. it saved me money and the recipes weren't limited. However, i wanted something that was a little more helpful - my recipes were in a pile on the kitchen table, taking up space.
• who this is good for: people who have a great plan on storing their recipes for the week :-)

style #4 - my ah-ha moment - 

creative idea # 7: the clipboard/chalkboard menu planner.

tools: 

• clipboard
• chalkboard paint {here's how you make it}
• a different color paint or sticker letters
• paint brush
• blue tape

directions:

• paint a clipboard {front and back} with chalkboard paint. 
• Paint or use sticker letters to make your desired template ON THE BACK of the clipboard. 

• Use the front of the clipboard to hold the recipes for the week. 
• Hang up! {we chose to hang it inside a cabinet door to remove visual clutter}

side notes: 

• i plan on buying these because writing in small spaces with regular chalk is ridiculously hard. 
• when cooking, i finally discovered my favorite new trick - i use a magnet to hold my recipe on the range above the stove. I used to constantly search for my recipe while cooking because i would move it around to all the diff spots i was working. i love keeping it on the range because i always know where it is and i can read the next steps while i'm stirring!

how do you organize your weekly menu??

love and chalkboard paint,
amber.

tree branch jewelry holder.

good thing i'm not one of those bloggers that maps out her blogging goals for the next year, planning to post on a regular basis about predetermined topics, cause i'd get an F. 


this blog is strictly about what i'm already doing. i will never make up a project just to do a blog post. my daily projects lately have consisted of packing, moving, deep cleaning, unpacking, and rearranging. not blog worthy, therefore, no posts in the last 3 months. {i'm pretty sure the 5 people that maybe read this blog don't care at all anyways.} but, along the way there have been a few projects...unfortunately in my rush to get them done, i didn't take step by step photos, but here are the end results and the tutorial :-D

{yes, i know, 
this thing is a beast.}

creative idea # 6: tree branch jewelry holder
idea sparked by: PrettyHandyGirl
     {first, let me just start all this by saying, go look at this girl's tutorial, please. I will never ever tell you my version is cooler than her's. ever. in my need for speed to complete all the projects i've had since we moved, i was looking for something quicker than the amazing quality job she did on her's. if you're looking for a quick fix, aren't super handy, and/or have already written a thousand page honey-do list for your husband, try out my quick version}

tools:

• sticks {with as many branches as you can find. we found huge ones in our new yard from our neighbor's trimmed tree. (i kinda wish we had to go hunt in the woods for them though. free date night!) i cut them to size and trimmed the branches shorter to make the jewelry more easily accessible}
• super glue
• flower pot
• river rocks {$1 at the dollar store}
• chip clip

directions:

• arrange the sticks in your hand like you would hold a flower bouquet. make sure they're pointing in different directions to make it more visually appealing.
• still keeping them in place, set them in your flower pot and fill pot half way with river rocks. let go. {yes, they are going to move, but i wanted them to be in the general area they would be in the end so i wouldn't have to poke them into the rocks over and over before deciding where they should go.}
• the way you tackle this next step will depend on how thick your sticks are at the base. Mine were thick, so i chose 2 of them, super glued them together right above the rocks, and used the chip clip to hold them together. An hour or so later i came back and glued the next one on and clipped it together again. If your sticks are thinner, you could maybe do them all at once. {just  be careful not to glue the chip clip to the branches. no, this didn't almost happen to me...}
• after the glue is dried, remove the clip and fill the pot the rest of the way with the rocks. 
• hang jewelry. be happy. maybe blog about it. enjoy the fact that your jewelry is no longer tangled and completely taking up the entire top of your dresser. {i did all of the above.}

love and tree branches, 

amber.