Thursday, March 28, 2013

Saw It, Pinned It, Did It: Sharpie Mugs

I have seen these sharpie mugs done on Pinterest and have pinned a few ways that different people have attempted to create them. I loved this state idea so much {inspired by Stephanie over at A Beautiful Mess!} NY is for my sister who is away at school in NYC and PA is, well, is for... guess who.
 
 These were what I ended up with:

love them!

I was not nearly as pleased with the results as I had hoped, but I was still excited to give my sister her mug so that she'll be able to drink her hot tea and think of me! Also, I'm happy to share my pros and cons of attempting this Pinterest project in case anyone has been wanting to try it as well!
 
 
So, here goes:

 Step 1: Purchase yourselves some porcelain mugs. Of course I got mine from "the Pier." :)
Step 2: Gather the rest of your supplies: Sharpies and an eyeliner.
 
Step 3: Interrupt craft time with a delicious breakfast made by your wonderful boyfriend.
Step 4: Practice drawing your states! I honestly had no idea that NY state looked like that... or that NYC is literally in the worst place to put a "heart" on that whole state, haha.
 
Step 5: Use the eyeliner to pre-draw your states onto your mugs (in case you mess up, like i did).
**I wasn't a huge fan of this step and that is probably because 1- I didn't gently wipe my eyeliner off after I went over it with the sharpie like I was supposed to, and 2- because I probably should have used an actual pencil eyeliner instead.**
Step 6: Use your sharpies to draw on your states and any extra doodles you so wish.
 

Steps 7 & 8: Allow your super creative {and extremely independent} daughter to draw her own little design... and write her name all. by. herself! And just sit back in awe of how much she's grown up already and semi-freak-out when you realize she'll be FOUR years old tomorrow!!... OR if you don't have children, you can clearly skip this whole section.


Step 9: Put the mugs right on the rack of your oven and then turn your oven on to 425* and let it heat up with the mugs inside. Let them bake for 45 minutes. **Some instructions say to only let them bake at 350* for 30 minutes but I was hoping the 425* for 45 mins. would help to keep it more permanent.** Then, when they are done, let them cool down in the oven before removing them.


Results:

- I found that the colored sharpies did NOT work well at all with this project. They faded like crazy {see the above before and after pictures of Peyton's mug}. The red hearts on the other two mugs also faded to a weird pale orange color as well. I ended up going back over them with the orange sharpie (which seemed to turn more of a red-orange in the baking process). So, if you're going to do this project, I would recommend using only black!

- Peyton absolutely loves using hers for milk or water simply because she "made it all by herself". :)

- I am not sure if my baking them for longer and at a higher temperature was what affected the fading, but I would recommend starting at just 350* for 30 minutes and then if they haven't faded but aren't quite staying permanent, I would maybe try to bump up the temp. and time.

- My sister loved her mug! Even if it washes off over time, the sentiment is still there :)


 
Linking up with Katie and Stephanie!: 

 
 
 
 
 

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

what I learned from my sister


My gorgeous/fabulous/amazing/gelato-stealing sister came home from college on Friday for spring break and I think my whole family is just so friggen thrilled to have her home. She's our glue. The one that keeps us all together. True story.
 
But back to the more important "gelato-stealing" part...

 
{Insert picture of the delicious gelato I bought at the store the weekend before last and have been slowly nibbling on all week long:}
Seriously, I'd only eaten MAYBE 1/5 of that deliciousness before Friday...
 

Let me set the scene: Friday night. It's Jen's first night home. Nick, Babygirl, and I decided to all hang out at my parent's house with my Dadda and sister for the evening. Nick drove separate because I had gone straight from work to my parent's so I could see my long-lost {not really} sister. Oh, how I missed her so.

 
Well, since Nick drove separate, I told him to bring along The Hunger Games {one of my favs!}, my iPad, and my delish gelato. I just wanted to eat some gelato for myself... and possibly share some with Jenna.

 
We, in fact, had a great night. Jenna was mostly enthralled with a Finding Nemo: Build A Reef game on the iPad that she claims she was "just helping Peyton play" {y'all she was OBSESSED; that "reef" is just booming now and I don't think Peyton or I know how to take care of it, haha}. While they were focused on that Dad, Nick, and I watched the movie. Meanwhile, I totally forgot about the gelato.

 
The movie and the night ends and I continue to forget about the gelato and I make my way home. In the car I think to myself, "Oh shoot! I forgot about that yumminess in the freezer. Well, I doubt anyone is gonna touch it... I'll just get it tomorrow."
 

 
Ha.
That friggen sister of mine ATE.THE.WHOLE.THING!
She ate every last bit within less than 12 hours of her being home.

 
This was our conversation the next day:
{She had just explained to me that her feeble excuse was "You left it here, un-pro-tected!!"}
Twilight reference. New Moon. Go watch it NOW! Though, the books are better. Fo sho.




*Lesson learned: Your sister will always,
ALWAYS eat your gelato.*


She's lucky I love her.
The end.
 
 
 

Monday, March 25, 2013

c'mon spring!

"Snow, snow go away
come again another day
No! Just go away...
& you are not welcome back!"
{Until next winter, anyways.}
 
 
But seriously, it's supposed to be SPRING for crying out loud! I am so tired of the weatherman telling us:
 
 
"Oh haaaay, we're gonna have about 5-6 / 10-12 / whatever-range-they-decide-sounds-good inches of that fluffy white stuff falling from the sky tonight/tomorrow/but-really-never."
 
 
Only to be continuously disappointed {errrrvry time, folks!} with the actual happenings. At least we got some snow this time that started out as actual snow and then gradually turned into just freezing rain, rather than just being miserable slush from the get-go.
 
 
source
  
IF WE MUST KEEP HAVING THESE YUCKY SNOW STORMS - I repeat "IF" - I would seriously love it if we could just have one {just one} big, HUGE, 3-ft-deep blanket of snow show up in the middle of the night one night and therefore make everyone take one wonderful, amazing, let's have hot chocolate {with marshmallows, of course!} after sledding all day kind of snow days. And then be done with it all and finally move on to spring?
 
 
Please? Is that too much to ask for, Mama Nature? This chickadee is t.i.r.e.d. of slush. It's either one big storm, or full-blown spring. Take your pick and stick with it!
 
 

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Saw It, Pinned It, Did it: Bubble Up Pizza!

This past Saturday was one of those days where I had to work for the better part of the afternoon/evening after a semi-stressful morning and I was just not feeling it... nope, not.at.all. Granted, I do love my part-time job {well, I love my full-time job too, but that's a moo (yes, moo) point} but sometimes it would be really nice to have the weekends off.

Anyways, I was just so tired after my shift at the Pier and then... well, then I had to book it right on over to Wallyworld to meet Nick & babygirl for grocery shopping. (OH JOY, GROCERY SHOPPING! not.) Our poor fridge was so empty that morning though, it wasn't even funny. So, this trip was needed for sure, but grocery shopping is just never on my "Oh yeah, can't wait to do that!" list. Plus, I was huuuungry!

Isn't that a cardinal rule, to not go grocery shopping while hungry?? {unless you want to take the whole store's inventory home with you of course?} Well, I. Broke. That. Rule... yikes. Luckily, I was not alone in my shopping venture, otherwise I don't think I could have been held responsible for the grocery hull that would have been...

The trip was long, yet the grocery list was short. It's amazing that, no matter what our list says, we always end up with things we didn't expect to get. Luckily, earlier that day I wrote down some ingredients for recipes that I had pinned. One of which being....

Bubble Up Pizza  
click HERE for original recipe link
 
 
After our long grocery store trip {and my seemingly long shift at work} this quick and easy recipe was just what our night needed! It was so simple and super yummy!
 
Here's what you'll need:
cooking spray // 2 (12 oz) cans golden layer buttermilk biscuits // 1 (15 oz) jar of pizza sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese // your favorite pizza toppings
 
 **Now, I cut my recipe in half. Peyton had already eaten dinner that night, so it was just me & Nick who would be responsible for consuming whatever was created. We hardly ever eat our leftovers (seriously, they get shoved to the back of the fridge and don't return for a very long time). So, I only used about half of one of the jars of pizza sauce (should have used the whole jar), 1 of the cans of biscuits... but plenty of cheese.**
 

Directions:

  • Preheat your oven to 375* and grease a 9x13 baking dish, then set aside
  • Next, try not to pass out from being scared to death by the biscuit can...

  • Seriously, it gets me every time. Can't they create a much less scary way to package these?!

    • Cut your biscuits into smaller chunks (I did about 6 chunks per biscuit).
    • Put your biscuit pieces into a bowl along with your pizza sauce.
    • You (or your little helper) can then stir the contents of the bowl to get the biscuits all nice and coated with the pizza sauce.
     
    • Next, add 1 cup of the mozzarella to the bowl and stir everything again.
    She really is the best little helper! :)

     
    ** Here is where I would suggest adding some of your pizza toppings to your mixture**
    (I forgot to get pepperoni at the store... it wasn't on the list and it wasn't in my line of sight, therefore they weren't even remotely on my radar.)
     
    • Once everything is all mixed together, scoop/pour/move the mixture evenly to your pre-greased baking dish!
    • Lastly, top with the remaining Mozzarella cheese (and maybe a few more handfuls, for good measure) and whatever toppings your heart stomach desires.
     
    • Pop it in the oven and bake for 30 minutes!
    • Enjoy!
    •  

      Thoughts:
      - Make sure you check on it throughout the cooking time so you don't overcook it otherwise it could get a little rubbery.
      -This is a great recipe to make with your children, because they can help stir and scoop 'til their little hearts are content.
      -You can add whatever ingredients you would like... maybe next time I'll try to make a Hawaiian pizza inspired one!
      -If you're going to make the full recipe (with both cans of biscuits) I would suggest using a fairly deep baking dish.
      -This recipe was so simple and easy to make, especially after a long & exhausting day.


      Linking up today with the beautiful Katie & Stephanie: 




       

    Sunday, March 17, 2013

    Happy St. Patty's Day!

     
    We had a yummy fruit rainbow breakfast! With a pot of corn pops gold at the end :)
    Also, accompanied by makeshift-green v8.
     
    Now, it's off to the world of retail I go...
    Have a great "Shamrock Day" {as Peyton calls it}!!
     
     

    Friday, March 8, 2013

    one adorable puppy dog & one anxious momma


    Rory, waiting on Nick to come home from work yesterday.
    She is just too darn cute.


    In other news, my babygirl has been at the beach with her Daddy since last Sunday {I haven't seen her since last Saturday night} and she is FINALLY! coming home tomorrow. I can't wait <-- that's an understatement. I have been lucky enough to talk to her on the phone nearly every day, but every single conversation has ended with me sobbing because I miss her oh-so-much.

    The waterworks start just about every time I hear her little voice say: "I miss-ed you, Momma... So much." From there I break down and say: "Oh babydoll, I miss you too... so much." {To which she promptly responds with: "MOM! I'm not a doll!"} And then my sad tears turn to happy tears. After a little laughter and some more talking we hang up, and it's back to the sad tears again.

    It's safe to say that our daily lives have been so incredibly boring without her here...

    I'm looking forward to having my baby back!


     Have a great weekend everyone!


    

    Monday, March 4, 2013

    I did it!

    I did it! I finally took the plunge and created my own blog. {Insert applause here!}

    I can't remember how I originally got started looking at blogs [although, I think Instagram may have had a hand in that] but over the course of the past few months my "reading list" on my phone has grown and grown, and grown with links to numerous blogs created by some pretty awesome ladies.

    I thought to myself: "Self, you really should start your own blog! Even if no one else reads it, at least you'll have a place to jot down thoughts and to document your life with words and pictures and be able to look back one day and remember those things with much more ease."

    You see, I have a TERRIBLE memory. Incidentally, I don't think it's totally ridiculous for me to say that I think I'm going to end up with Alzheimer's one day. I'm being completely serious here. No joke. I am so forgetful and I feel like it has only gotten worse with age {because being 22 is so old, right?}. Anyways, I figured that being able to document our life here on this new little space of mine would be a great way for not only me, but Peyton as well to be able to reflect on our journey together. 

    I had a few hurdles in getting started. For instance:
    1. What in the world do I title it?!
    2. Will I even have the time to keep up with it?
    3. What would I have to talk about?

    Well, I figured out the solution to all of those concerns. {I think.}
    1. Guess How Much I Love You was always a favorite childhood story of mine and thinking of it always elicits happy memories of my parents reading me and my sister bedtime stories and tucking us into our beds. Additionally, "I love you to the moon and back" {a similar phrase to the last line of said book} is something Peyton and I say to each other all of the time. My mom, sister, and I even got matching tattoos last year based on the phrase! 


    So, to sum up point nĂºmero uno: the title basically reflects my love for my family.
    2. No, I probably won't have much time to keep up with this! BUT I'm sure gonna try. I know this isn't going to be an everyday thing, but it'll be here for me to record the little things and the big things if I so chose.
    3. My life is not super exciting. I don't go skydiving every weekend or live some fast-paced New York lifestyle (that would be my sister instead :P). But it is my life. And one day I will be I'm already so happy that I've started this blog to share our life journey!

    Whew! What an incredibly long first post. I am just so excited to have finally joined the blogosphere! :)