Thursday, July 7, 2011

Flip Flops: for BOYS and GIRLS

Today my daughter is having a play date with one of her best friends, who moved to Texas a couple of years ago.  Oh how we miss their family.  Fortunately, they have family here so we still get to see them on occasion!


I decided to have a few fun projects for the kids today.  This morning we made summer flip flops for the girls and a pair for Bubba Z too!  There are tons of fun tutorials out there for cute, frilly, girly flip flops using everything from ribbons, bows, jewels and more.  My internet search for boys flip flops was pretty limited.  So we got a bit creative. 

We decided to make water balloon flip flops for the girls and MONSTER flip flops for Bubba Z.  Our supplies were simple, water ballons that we tied around the straps of the sandals and googly eyes that we glued onto the straps.


So if you have a boy, get creative and they can have fun flip flops too.  How about glueing little plastic bugs, Legos, wheels off of old Matchbox cars.  Oh the possibilities!
at 11:55 AM 0 comments
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Wednesday, July 6, 2011

COW Appreciation 2011!!!

Hi everyone it is Lori from Our Forever House!  I am so, so, so excited for this Friday!  The minute I saw this annual event advertised, I IMMEDIATELY sent a message to my crafty friend Heather over at No Business Like Sew Business!  I knew it was time to get our craft on! Moooooo!

Heather & I are co-blogging today to share our afternoon fun!  Please be sure to visit each of our pages and say HI!  We would love to hear from you!

NOTE:  Heather is the awesome seamstress friend that helped me with Bubba Z's awning striped curtains!

THE BIG EVENT
This is the event that inspired today's crafting session!


Friday, July 8th, is Cow Appreciation Day 2011!
That means FREE food at Chick-Fil-A
** if you dress like a cow **
Here are the official rules!

If you are headed to Chick-Fil-A on Friday, here is the lowdown...Dress head to toe in cow attire and your entire combo meal is free. A partial costume (shirt, head gear, cow accessory, etc) gets you a free entree.

FIRST: SOME CHICK-FIL-A LOVE!!!
I cannot lie, I love FREE stuff!  And FREE Chick-Fil-A food is beyond awesome!  Yes, I will have a deluxe spicy chicken sandwich and can I get a deluxe Chick-Fil-A sandwich for Heather please!!  Combo that too as the waffle fries are amazing - especially when you dip them in the Chick-Fil-A sauce.  Mmmm! 

I will have a large Diet Dr. Pepper!  Heather will take an extra large chocolate shake too as they are "freakin' amazing"!  Don't tell anyone, but she has been known to send her husband out to get her one - and no, she wasn't even pregnant!

Oh, and if you have kids, The Chick (our affectionate name) has the best, cleanest and quietest play area EVER (it is enclosed in its own glass room)!  Ahhh, the bliss!

Okay, on to the crafting! 

MAKING COW COSTUMES! 
Here are our supplies...white t-shirts, karate pants (from the thrift store), black felt, glue and a pillow case (to make skirts for the girls)



We got the kids involved.  They helped cut out our "spots" and glued them to our shirts.



Heather and I whipped up a simple gathered skirt out of a king size pillow case by cutting it in half, sewing a casing and inserting elastic.  Very simple and ever so darling!

Wow, we look like this was some serious work!!!

THE FINAL TOUCH
Last week when I was at my favorite Chick-Fil-A store (woot-woot for the El Con store in Tucson) they were passing out cow headbands!  I, of course, picked up a dozen of them for my family and friends as I LOVE to share the FREE!  The headband is good for a free entree item - not bad!!!  If you don't have the headband, Chick-Fil-A has a free cow costume printable on their website.

I will be sending my hubby to Chick-Fil-A for a free lunch too!
He loves a bargain as much as I do!


I can't wait to debut the costumes on our model children at The Chick on Friday!  Stop back to Our Forever House AND No Business Like Sew Business Friday for the big reveal. 

WHO KNOWS, THE MOMMAS JUST MAY BE WEARING A MOO MOO COSTUME TOO!!!
What would you do for FREE food???
at 9:59 PM 1 comments
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Tuesday, July 5, 2011

The Perfect Little Desk: Part 2


You may remember last month when I found this perfect little desk and chair for $10 each at Goodwill to put in this awkward inset in our living room. 

Before                                      After

My wonderful husband got the computer hooked up a few weeks ago - not without a few hiccups.  A different computer and few trips to the store for the right wireless connector and we have Internet!  I still have not allowed the kids to play as I also want to get a timer so we don't have too many arguments when it comes to taking turns!

Today I decided to add some artwork above the computer to brighten up this dark little corner.


I used a fat quarter I picked up a few weeks ago at JoAnns and stapled it over a canvas that I had originally painted with polka-dots for my daughters room in our old house.  The mirror was this cute little molded plastic mirror I found at Goodwill for $1.99 a while back.  It was originally a bronze-gold tone.  I pulled out the bright white spray paint, cleaned up the mirror and hung it on top of the canvas with a piece of pale blue satin ribbon.
at 9:02 PM 2 comments
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Monday, July 4, 2011

Happy 4th of July!


Our yummy breakfast!

"Red" Blueberry Pancakes with Whipped Cream, Strawberries & Blueberries!

Happy 4th of July everyone!

** I know they were more pink than red but it was the thought that counted!
at 8:46 AM 0 comments
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Mini-Cupcake Shooters

Happy 4th of July my fellow Americans!  What a fun time of year.  I can't wait to see some fireworks tonight - although I don't think I would be disappointed if they were RAINED out!  With the drought as bad as it is in Arizona right now and the heat absolutely scorching, a nice rain shower would beat fireworks everyday of the year!

To celebrate the 4th I decided to try making some cake push-ups.  Ever since I saw this fun twist on a party treat from My Cake School on Tip Junkie, I had to order some of the push-ups.  Of course, I had to wait until JB Prince got them back in stock.  I split the order with my friend Heather over at No Business Like Sew Business.  We both are very excited to try a variety of treats using these fun, reusable push-up containers.


Aren't they just so fun on the dessert table.  Here is what I did...

Baked up some mini-cupcakes without liners.

Assembled my push-ups and punched the stems into a 1" thick piece of Styrofoam lined with foil. 
This worked fine although they wobbled every which way.  I need to come up with a push-up holder - ah, I am feeling a DIY project coming on!  Watch out!

I cut my cupcakes in half.  I then placed a dollop of frosting in the bottom of the cup, followed by the bottom of the cupcake, frosting, top of cupcake, frosting and finally, sprinkles.


They were a big hit with kids and adults alike!

We had just got out of the pool, that is why the kids are wearing their pool ponchos.

I can't wait to try more fun treats in these great push-pop containers!

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at 5:00 AM 10 comments
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Saturday, July 2, 2011

It's Hot!: {Root Beer ICEE Floats}

Yep, it is hot again. I know, broken record - 110 today in Tucson and I heard it hit 118 in Phoenix - scorcher!  But today, no more cooking in the car, today we decided to cool off!  To celebrate Independence Day (and our baby's birthday which was yesterday) we had a pool party and BBQ with some awesome friends.  We topped off the night with a fun, all-American treat - the root beer float - with a "It's Hot! Hot! Hot! Summer Series" twist!


My daughter loves root beer (as do I) and on a hot day, what is better than an ice cold glass of root beer with a scoop of ice cream.  A while back I came across a fun post for a DIY Coke ICEE at Bake at 350 and just knew I had to give this a try.


So I pulled out the ice cream machine and 4 cans of root beer, poured them in and 20 minutes later we had very tasty root beer ICEEs.  Mmmmm.

*** Must use full sugar soda for this as the diet soda will not get slushy.  I tried, it simply froze to the edge of the tub and almost burnt out my motor!

Of course, they are MUCH better with a couple of scoops of ice cream inside.  I especially loved this treat as my favorite part of a root beer float is when you get the icy root beer crystals around the ice cream.  Starting with the root beer ICEE base brought back the memory of those yummy, creamy crystals.

Some fun variations to try would be...

* Brown Cow, which is essentially a root beer float using chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla. 

*  Add some whipped cream on top for some extra flair.

*  Add a shot or two of root beer schnapps to the ICEE mix could be fun for a "grown-ups" party!

*  Try other sodas.  I am thinking orange soda with vanilla ice cream would be like a dreamsicle.  Dr. Pepper and cherry ice cream sounds yummy too!  Oh, the possibilities.

Hope you are finding a fun way to keep cool this holiday weekend. 


Happy 4th of July everyone!

Linked up to...
at 9:02 PM 10 comments
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Friday, July 1, 2011

It's Hot!: {Making S'mores}


According to the Official Tucson Visitor website, my lovely city boasts an average of 350 sunny days per year and generally averages 100+ degrees each day during the months of June and July!  This year is right on target, maybe even a touch warmer than average!  That being said, it is yet ANOTHER hot and sunny day here in Arizona.


While yesterday's cookies were somewhat extreme, I know for a fact it can be accomplished in cooler temperatures.  Back in my past life I did marketing for shopping malls and we had an event where a vendor proved the effectiveness of sunshades by trying to bake cookies in 2 cars - one with a shade and one without - the one without was successful.  This event was in Sioux Falls, SD and it was just an average summer day likely in the 80s.  It may have taken longer, but it was successful. 

Today we made s'mores using the heat of the car.  If you have ever accidentally left a candy bar on the seat of your car on a warm, sunny day - you know this works.  Chocolate can easily become soup.

We assembled our s'mores by taking 2 squares of graham cracker, a marshmallow and a square of chocolate.

I started by placing a marshmallow on, however I felt it was a bit tall. 

So I cut it in half which offered much better coverage and a more manageable s'more.

We then wrapped our treats loosely in a piece of tin foil.  The tin foil created an oven effect as well as helping to keep the gooey mess contained.


We placed the treats on a tray in the front seat of the car while we went to story time at our favorite used bookstore.  (If you ever visit Tucson, you MUST visit Bookman's Used Book Store - it is by far the BEST used book store in the USA - ask anyone who has ever lived here!  Nothing compares!)

We opened up our treats and snacked away!  Yummy!  Just make sure you have some wet-wipes as they are very messy.




Here's my insight...

*  These were very tasty however nothing compares to the lightly toasted marshmallow's from a bonfire.  There is definitely a missing element of toastiness that makes a s'more a s'more.  The marshmallows, while soft, were not as gooey as I like them.  That being said, it is a fun treat no matter how you put it.

*  Next time I want to try these with some of the flavored marshmallows.  I have some fun chocolate and vanilla swirl marshmallow which I think would be a fun touch.  The new flat stacker's marshmallows (flat squares that fit perfectly on a square graham cracker) would be great for this project.


*  I also would like to try these using a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup in place of the chocolate candy bar.  Mmmmm, how I love me a Reese's!

*  If you eat these on the go as we did, bring a big box of wet wipes as they are quite messy.

*  While ours sat in the car for over an hour, they really only need about 15 minutes to reach a proper melt on the chocolate. 

*  A car parked in the sun on any 75-80 degree plus day would be more than adequate for this project.  Just make sure that your tin-foil pouch is in direct sunlight as well.


I believe this is the end of our "projects in the car" as I am fresh out of unique ideas.  I was hoping to do a shrinky dink type project however the car was not warm enough for that one. 

Stop back this weekend as I have a few more {non-car related} entries in the It's Hot! Hot! Hot! Summer Series.
at 2:05 PM 2 comments
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