The Reverso!!

So for my birthday...which hasn't come yet, Adam got me the most AMAZING curling iron ever!!! I wanted to look cute for his birthday so I went ahead and helped myself to my birthday present. He didn't hide it so I figure it was fair game. Oh my goodness...I am in love! He has since hid it...so i haven't used it again, but now I CANNOT wait until my birthday! I have used a lot of curling irons in my day and this is by far the best! Here's how it works...it get EXTREMELY hot, so you have to wear a glove when you use it. You hold it in for no longer than 15 seconds...or I guess you could burn your hair right off :) But since you don't hold it in for too long, I could do my whole head of hair in 10 minutes! And the best part...it stays in just beautifully for 3 days! Don't judge :) I know it's lame it post pictures of yourself, but here are the results, and what it looks like! Oh ya...they are originally $200, but we got it off Amazon for $40, I hope it's still that much. Get it!...you won't regret it! It's called Herstyler Reverso.

Cute Girls Clothes!

 

       

These are SUPER cute dresses Mary made! I LOVE them!! She's SO talented! You can find them here. She came up with this pattern all by herself! Very Stylish!

 

 These are bottomless sandals for babies! They are the greatest things...they never come off, and can be so fashionable! :) You can find them at the same site as above.

--Michelle--

Get Rid of the Clutter!!

So in my ward in Twin one of my really good friends was such an inspiration to me. She was the live definition of a stay at home mom, she put me to shame! She always has fresh home made bread, her kids are amazing at everything they do and so strong and smart in the church...and she has this AMAZING house and it is ALWAYS clean! She's got 6 kids and there is never anything out of place. Which made me feel even worse when then few times she came to my house...it was far from spotless...and I have 1 kid. Anyways, she spoke at enrichment one night and showed us all of her secrets...so I thought I would share with any one who needs a few pointers.

CLUTTER

1. The Problem

     * "The average American burns 55 minutes a day - roughly 12 weeks a year - looking for things they know they own but can't find." -Newsweek

     *$$$ too...have you ever had to buy something because you couldn't find the one that you have?

     *CHAOS: Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome

     *STUFF:  Something That Undermines Family Fun

     

OLD WAY: Sorting through piles and moving them from one place to another-as a result the clutter just piles up every time you buy or get something new.

NEW WAY: Meet your new best friend - The Timer!

        

--For this she was asked how to get your kids motivated to help clean, and she said the timer works every time. Once everyone is done eating everyone takes a bet on how long it will take to do the dishes, sweeping the floor and all, and then she gives them a minutes less than what they said and the work so hard and fast to beat the timer. She said they can usually get the kitchen all clean and spotless after dinner in about 6:52 minutes.

      

 --She says games are great with kids. She will even have her 3 year old help her fold laundry and he loves it! She has the head bands that has all different cards with animals on them. Each of you put one on and while you fold laundry you guess what you have on your head.

--When she sends her kids to clean their rooms when they say they are done she will ask them "Would President Monson feel comfortable sleeping your your room?"

2. Tips for Decluttering

     *You cannot organize clutter...so get rid of it!

     *The more you throw away...the cleaner the house will stay

     *Don't keep anything in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful

     *Even "free" clutter is still clutter - Don't let it in to begin with

     *Try the "5 minute room rescue"

     *Make a jar with places that need to be dejunked - pull one out to do each day

     *Set the time for specific amount of time, have three boxes on hand and go to each room when you clean them:

               --Give Away

               --Throw Away

               --Put Away

3. Keeping it That Way! - A Matter of Habit

     *Clutter attracts more clutter!

     *Clean as you go, wipe as you work, pick up as you pass by, look back as you leave

     *Never go anywhere empty handed

     *DON'T PUT IT DOWN-PUT IT AWAY

     *If you buy something, give or throw away a similar item

     *Have kids choose some things and leave under the tree for Santa to take

     *Use a kitchen file for the endless paper war

She makes a goal every so often to get rid of a certain amount of items. When we moved I was telling her how much we were getting rid of...which was a TON! And she was so proud of us and she said "this week I am trying to get rid of 200 things around the house." We probably got rid of about that much...and we haven't missed any of it.

We had a friend that told us that the have a plan they live by, when they go through their stuff, clothes would be a great one, if you haven't used it in a year...get rid of it!!

--Michelle--

Petti Rompers!

I have seen a few of these petti rompers and I am OBSESSED! I seriously think they are THE cutest little girls outfit! So I've been searching pinterest forever trying to find a turorial...and I finally did and made one this weekend. And yes...I'm obsessed with it! Brynlee wore it to church yesterday and we got so many comments on it. There is a guy here who is in the fashion industry and he was so impressed, he said he had never seen a baby dress like that before, he said it looked like a baby designer dress! I was so happy. I just couldn't stop looking at Brynlee's outfit all day. And the best part is...it was SO easy to make! I just did it into a dress instead of a little pant outfit, and I threw on some leggins and loved it! I found the tutorial here. And then I just made a little bow that we made at Mary's with feathers. And for the head band I just cut up 3 pieces of fabric and braided them.

--Michelle--

New Favorite Treat!

When I went to Heather's she introduced me to this delicious little treat! You just do:

1/2 cup cut up strawberries

1/2 cup cut up bananas

1/4 coconut milk

1 little packet of Truvia sugar (or you could do a tsp of normal sugar)

I'm pretty sure it's only like 120 calories. It is seriously so yummy...and healthy too! Try it! You'll love it too! :)

--Michelle--

Caller ID

I am a huge mystery book reader.  That is by far my favorite type of book to read.  So I have a couple of recommendations, and they are both by a high school friend of mine... Rachelle J. Christensen.

Wrong Number is her first published book



Caller ID is her 3rd!  They are both very good and suspensful books.  I own both if you want to borrow one, or both.  (Her other book is a non-fiction book about dealing with miscarriages)

Rachel  :)

Crockpot Lasagna

The other day Austin was eating some leftover crockpot lasgna while John and Meagan were over.  He commented on how it was the BEST lasagna I have ever made.  Mind you, I am a terrible, and I do mean terrible, lasagna maker.  But this one turned out really good, and it was so easy and really quick. 

I got the recipe from this website... crockpot365.blogspot.com

Enjoy!

The Ingredients:

--box of regular lasagna noodles

--jar of pasta sauce

--cottage or ricotta cheese

--package of shredded Mozzerella cheese

--mushrooms (optional)

--meat (optional)-- I happened to use 1 pound of hamburger meat.

--spices you use normally when you brown ground meat (I use salt and pepper)

--1/4 cup water

The Directions:

--brown meat with chosen spices in large skillet

--pour in entire jar of pasta sauce (save jar, don't rinse or throw away!)

--simmer on low for a few minutes

--put a ladle-full of sauce mixture into the bottom of your crockpot.

--top with a layer of dried lasagna noodles. You'll have to break them to fit, and little pieces will fly all over the place.

--smear cottage cheese on top of lasagna noodles
--layer mushrooms cottage cheese
--add a handful of the shredded cheese
--ladle on some more of the meat sauce
--top with more dry noodles and repeat layers until crock is to desired capacity.

--put the 1/4 cup of water into your empty pasta jar and shake. Pour tomatoey juice over the whole pile of food.

--cover and cook on low for 8 hours, high for 4.
--Check noodles an hour before serving, and push the top ones down into the liquid if they are getting too hard or are curling up


This lady added a lot of veggies that I did not.  My kids eat vegtables good enough that I do not need to hide them in food.  But more power to you if want to hide them in this.  I think she had spinach and chopped up other veggies.  :)

Rachel   :)

Mel's Bridal Shower

Brooklyn

Ok girls, here is a post from our visit to Mary's when we first got to meet adorable little Brooklyn.  She is such a doll!!!  Thanks Mary for letting us come and hang out for a while!  

 

 Mary wanted to teach us how to make the CUTE, CUTE flowers she made Brooklyn.  Now all our girls match.    We had such a fun time together.  Next time we just need Stacy!!  We missed you.

Now please know, these pictures are not edited yet, so don't judge.  I just wanted you to get a little sneak peak.  It was so, so much fun to take these pictures.  Thanks Mary and Michelle, oh wait, thanks Brynlee and Brooklyn.  You were such well behaved little girls.

Sunny D Music

   Sunny D is running its "Drink Up and Download" promotion again!  I love this.  You enter 10 codes from participating Sunny D bottles each week for a chance to win between 1-100 songs.  They have a really great selection of songs, really new ones too!  I just got Selena Gomez' "Love You Like a Love Song" for example. 
  You are able to enter codes once a week.  I have found the best deal is buying the 6-packs from Walmart.  My local Walmarts have them priced at $2.00 for a 6-pack.  Each bottle has two different codes one it, one on each side of the bottle, so for $2.00 you are able to get 1 1/2 weeks worth of codes.  I participated in the program for 6 weeks last year and the lowest amount I ever won was 5 songs.  I won 20 songs one week!  You can't buy songs anywhere for that cheap!  So, these are not completely free, but pretty close!  Some of your local stores may have 'buy one, get one free' programs too that would make this even cheaper.  There was also a coupon for $0.55 off when you buy 2 Sunny D's ($0.55/2 Sunny Delight Products 01/08/2012 SS Insert (exp 03/31/2012)).  This could help get you started!  Enjoy the music www.sunnyd.com.

~Stacy~

 

Cherry Chocolate Pie/Chocolate Cheesecake

This is as good as any cheesecake I have had from The Cheesecake Factory!  I LOVE IT!  Yummy!

I will give you the link if you would like to watch the video, or try any more of their recipes.  The link is. . . www.v.gd/BZrysh.  This is the ACH Food Company, INC.  You may recognize some of their products, Karo Syrup, Argo Baking Powder/ Cornstarch, Fleischmann's Yeast.

Anyhow, the recipe is as follows:

6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup Karo Light Corn Syrup
2 eggs
1/3 Whipping Cream
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1- 9 inch graham cracker crust
1 can Cherry Pie Filling (I have used strawberry and just plain whipping cream, still great!)

Melt- Chocolate in small saucepan over very low heat, stirring until completely smooth.  Set aside.

Beat- cream cheese in large bowl with electric mixer until creamy, then beat in melted chocolate.  Gradually add corn syrup, beating until well blended.  Add eggs one at a time, beating just until blended.  Mix in cream and vanilla extract; pour into pie crust.

Bake- in preheated 325°  oven for 40 to 45 minutes until center is almost set.  Cool on wire rack.  Cover and refridgerate for at least 3 hours.  Top with cherry pie filling; slice and serve.

Prep Time: 20 min--  Bake Time: 40-45 minutes--  Chill Time: 3 Hours-- Makes: 10 servings

Another Great Series of Books to Read!

This is second series in the Percy Jackson books.  They are called "The Heroes of Olympus".  There will be five of these books as well.  So far, only two are out :(   The first book, "The Lost Hero," is about Jason, Leo, and Piper.  Three new heroes we will learn about.  Percy is mentioned, but only the fact that he is missing.  He has been missing as long as Jason has been present and Jason can't remember anything before that period of time.  They have a great mission to save Piper's Father, who has been kidnapped and another very important person, who has also been kidnapped.

"The Son of Neptune" is back to Percy who finds himself also in a different place, other than camp half-blood, with a whole new group of friends.  He, Hazel, and Frank will also be placed on a new quest to kill the impossible, release a monster, to save camp all in a short period of time.  Hopefully all of this will restore Percy's memory and old live.

These were both wonderful books! Loved every minute of them. I could hardly put them down. Now, I have to wait until this fall when "The Mark of Athena" will be released.





I have not read this one yet, but there is also "The Demigod Diaries" available.  It is a book of several short stories of the various demigods, such as Luke Castellan, Percy, and Leo Valdez.  Sounds like it could be fun too!

Book Four is Scheduled to be released Fall of 2013! (No name announced)

Book Five is Scheduled to be released Fall of 2014! (No name announced)

~Stacy~

Boys Ties

For Christmas my sister in law made these darling ties for her boys.  I wanted so badly to learn how, so I looked up on Pinterest, and this is what I found...

 They are so easy!!!  I was able to finish all of these in 2 hours, and that included taking 3 phone calls, helping 2 people, and taking caring of my sons needs.  I thought that was pretty good.  I think they are so CUTE!!!

Pinsperations!

I LOVE pinterest! Greatest thing ever! Of course there are a lot of Valentine Day ideas floating around out there, but for those of you who have not been converted yet...I thought I'd share some of my fav's that I've found!

You can find this here

You can find the tutorial for "the husband gift" here

And here are just some yummy cute treats you can make...

Easy Peasy..

Love crepes found here

You can make some lovely hot cocoa

Lots of food hearts shaped ideas found here

Aren't those just the funnest cupcakes!? LOVE them!

And if you have kids and want to come up with cute saying for the valentines in class you can find them here

And I just think this is AWESOME! "The Game of Love" You can find how to do it here

Hope this gives you a couple ideas if you are stumped!

Happy Valentines Day!!

--MIchelle--