Foodie Friday - Power Smootie.

I have picky eaters at my house.  

One of my boys would eat meat at every meal if I let him. 

The other boy can stand the sight of meat.

The one thing they all agree on is fruit and veggies are "meh" at best.

I've had to learn how to cook and hide the veggies in the meal.

One thing they will drink is a smoothie that I make every morning (and sometimes lunch and sometimes dinner).  It's one way I can be assured they are getting some good stuff in them.

  The magical thing about smoothies is that you can throw just about any combination of fruit in the blender and it will taste de-lish.  For additives I will sometimes use soft tofu or greek yogurt for extra protein.

 Please consider pinning or "liking" if you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you.

Time is running out.  If you haven't entered our HUGE Christmas giveaway go HERE now!

 

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DIY Nutcrackers.

Last year West Elm was selling a modern interpretation of the traditional nutcracker.

West Elm.

West Elm Nutcrackers via Houzz.

West Elm Price:  $29. - $59.

Hmmmmm.....

 Of course, the little wheels in my mind started running thinking I could duplicated the look for less.

Don't forget the 20% off coupon for making a donation.

A coat of spray primer and gold spray paint...
 

West Elm price: $29-$59. each.
My price: less than $5.00 each.

Don't forget about our huge giveaway!
Go here to enter to win a camera, Ipad, laptop or mixer.

If you liked this project, please consider Pinning or "Liking", thanks!

 

 

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Target style that says "Merry" and "Modern".

If you've visited Target recently you've probably seen their latest line of holiday decor. 

They recently sent me some of their silver and gold merchandise to decorate with and share with you.

The Threshold Silver Wreath isn't the traditional pine needle wreath that you typically see.  It is made of leaves and pinecones then covered with a coat of silver.  A modern twist on the traditional wreath.

Can't forget the bling during the holidays.  I love that this Pinecone Candle is like a piece of art yet functional with the candle inside.  My 5 year old walked in and said, "It smells like Christmas". 

You can't have enough pillows and throws blankets around.  I will even keep these around even after Christmas has come and gone.

Like what you see? You can pick up any of these items at Target!

  

Don't forget to enter our latest All I Want For Christmas is... giveaway. 

Believe me this is one you won't want to miss!

Go here for details!

 

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The giveaway of all giveaways!

***This giveaway is closed.***

Christmas is coming a little bit EARLY this year...

...and we just KNOW you are going to be JUMPING FOR JOY when you see the eye candy we are about to show you!! Now that Black Friday is over, you are completely done with your Christmas shopping, right?

NO?!? {GASP!!!} Ok, just kidding.... we aren't either! BUT - what would you say if I told you that THIS POST is going to help you out with that l'il dilemma?

ARE YOU SITTING DOWN?!?

INTRODUCING...

BEST. GIVEAWAY. EVER!!

Yep, we realized that if WE were entering a giveaway... then we would want to be able to choose which item we wanted! AND TA-DAAHHH!!!! The idea for this giveaway was born!! Are you ready CHOOSE YOUR PRIZE??

A little more about each prize...

#1) Nikon D3100 14.2MP Digital SLR Camera

#2) iPad with Retina display Wi-Fi 16GB - Black

#3) iPad mini with Wi-Fi 16GB - Black & Slate

#4) KitchenAid Artisian Series 5-Quart Mixer {color of your choice}

#5) Inspiron 15 4G memory, 5G hard drive

SQUEAL!!

Are you jumping up and down yet? Because you should be!! We've teamed up with some of our talented blogger friends to make this Christmas magic happen! We all know how CRAZY it gets around Christmas time & we wanted to do something to lessen the stress when it comes to shopping for gifts! We're giving you the chance to win the perfect gift for that "impossible person" on your Christmas list OR the reward you can give yourself for working so hard all year! Who says you can't get yourself a Christmas present?

BUT WAIT, it gets even better!

Once the THREE winners have been selected to receive the prize of their choice, we're going to randomly draw ONE of their names and that person will also get to choose which loved one they want this this fabulous gadget shipped to...

A BRAND NEW KitchenAid Mixer shipped directly to the person of your choice!

{A HUGE thank you to Sassy Steals for providing these KitchenAid Mixers! Sassy Steals sells fashionable handmade and boutique items. Use promo code 'sassy10' for 10%off your first purchase with Sassy Steals and please sign up today to receive their exclusive offers!}

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

Time to get your "click" on & follow all of the blogs who made this giveaway possible. One word - PINTEREST!!! It's becoming a common household name & ALL of these talented bloggers have their own Pinterest boards that you should definitely be following!! Heck - who wouldn't want to be able to redecorate their house on a dime, keep the spice alive with their sweethearts, be able to "get their craft on" whenever they felt like it, eat the yummiest food on earth, AND find the best deals around town for darling crafty items?!? Yep - if you follow all of THESE peeps - you will be able to do just that!

JUST THINK OF THE AMAZING THINGS ALL OF THESE BLOGGERS PIN EVERY DAY!!! Sheesh, inspiration overload... at it's best!!

There are just TWO {2} steps to enter the giveaway...

#1) Click on each image {or name} below to follow each fabulous blogger on Pinterest!

The Dating Divas {Strengthening Your Marriage}	Remodelaholics {Home Decor and More}	Somewhat Simple {Crafts and More}	Six Sisters' Stuff {Delicious Recipes}	HowDoesShe {Crafts and More}
4 Men 1 Lady {Home Decor and More}	Lil' Luna {Crafts and More}	Our Best Bites {Delicious Recipes}	Crafting Chicks {Crafts and More}	Ucreate {Crafts and More}
Not Just A Housewife {Home Decor and More}	Craftaholics Anonymous {Crafts and More}	Décor Chick {Home Decor and More}	Pick Your Plum {Get It Before Your Neighbor}

#2) And THEN, fill out the form below. Voila, you're done!!

When you put in your info - make sure you only enter ONCE because this form is shared on all of the participating sites.

Good Luck!!!

AND THE WINNERS ARE…..

….drumroll, please….

*Lisa Tanner {Entry #8366} – ipad

*Nicole Stanescu {Entry #1638} – mixer

*Mimi Speyerer {Entry #1081} – mini ipad

And last of all – the LUCKY winner who gets to CHOOSE who the”FRIEND MIXER” goes to is…

Nicole Stanescu!!!!

*This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Pinterest. We hereby release Pinterest of any liability. The sponsors will ship all prizes within 7 days of the end of the giveaway. Giveaway starts Tuesday, November 27th at midnight pm PST and ends Monday, December 3rd at midnight PST. Once the giveaway ends, winners will be chosen using Random.org and contacted within 24 hours by email. This post will be updated with winners' names once we've heard back from them. Winners will need to respond within 48 hours to claim their prize or another winner will be chosen. Open to U.S. residents only.

 

 

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The truth about striped walls.

I wasn't aware I'd cause such an uproar when I shared that I was painting over the Birch Tree Stencil wall (Cutting Edge Stencils) over the weekend.  My husband wasn't pleased either.  I'll share what I did with the wall later this week.

I too love the birch trees and couldn't fully do away with them.  

My plan was to stencil over the striped wall going down my stairs instead.

You may remember this project I did over the 4th of July...

Tons of Frog Tape turned in to this...

Photo by Michelle Rasmussen of Wondertime Photography.

 I tried really hard to like it but it just wasn't me.
Painting over stripes proved to be much more work than I could ever imagine.

I'm no stranger to striped walls:

What I've learned is that you had better make for dang sure you'll want to keep the stripes long term.

When you paint stripes you produce a raised edge of paint.  

If you do a lot of coats, the more pronounced your edge will be.  

I tried a new brand of paint which ended up to not be that quality.  Consequently, I had to use more coats to get good coverage.  As a result I was left with a sharp edge.  So the moral of the story...use a good quality paint (and Frog Tape).

The only way to get rid of that edge is either sand the heck out of it or apply a thin set coat of drywall mud over the entire wall. 

I sanded and sanded and sanded for HOURS.

I made a huge mess of dust everywhere (this pic is after the 4th clean up).

(Make sure to where a mask or ventilator.  

Be extra careful about sanding paint that may be lead based paint which has terrible health effects).

I finally thought I had sanded it all down.

But I didn't.  

I'm convinced that the only way the sanding option works is if you completely sand the paint off the wall.

It took 4 coats of primer to make those stripes disappear.

Unfortunately, I can still see evidence of the stripes.  The color is gone but the surface shows that a stripe was once there.  After I stenciled it was less noticeable but if I ever decide do something different with the wall (which I'm prone to do) I'm sure I'll need the wall to be skim coated with mud.

I originally opted to go black for a dramatic effect but it was too dramatic.

So I primed and painted AGAIN and went for gray.

The Mr. and the boys went to a grandma sleepover which allowed me to work well in to the night.

Finally done at 1:23am, doing the one-armed, self portrait.

  Next up...that banister.

 

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