Valentine Treats

So here are a couple recipes I tried for a party and on actual Valentine's Day. And I'm feeling lazy so mostly I'll just link you to the recipe I followed.

First, for a party Dave and I were invited to, we were asked to bring an appetizer. Well I jumped on Pinterest to find a Valentine's appetizer and found these: Mozzarella Cheese Filled Hearts. Click HERE for the recipe.

I'm not going to show you my step by step process because I just followed the recipe I found. Some tips though: 1) roll the dough thinner because mine ended up tasting too bready because they were too thick (on the link to the recipe it suggests using pizza dough in a can so maybe that's why mine were too bready because I just used the biscuits), 2) use stronger flavored cheese because the mozzarella disappeared in the bread or maybe again that's because mine were too thick, and 3) follow how the recipe cuts up their cheese, in heart shapes. That way the cheese is in every bite. I just cut cubes so the cheese didn't fill out the whole heart. And I just used Marinara sauce in a jar (which helped them taste better since they were so bready) instead of the Pesto recipe.

On Valentine's Day morning, I got up with my husband (I usually get to sleep in longer) and made a pancake breakfast. I made regular pancake mix and split the mix into two bowls. One I dyed pink and the other purple. Then I made regular round pancakes.

Then I cut out a heart in the middle of each pancake using a cookie cutter.

Then I switched the hearts, so the pink heart goes in the purple pancake and the purple heart goes in the pink pancake. And voila.

I got the idea from Pinterest (where else?) and their pancakes were more vibrant (I think if you cook on a lower temperature for longer they don't get the brown color, but ain't nobody got time for that). Click HERE for my inspiration.

And for dinner I made Virgin Strawberry Daiquiris. They were just 'meh.' Nothing too amazing but still fun. Here's the simple recipe: blend 12 oz. Sprite, 10 frozen strawberries, and 1/2-1 cup ice cubes. Pour into fancy cups (I got them in the $1 section at Target). Garnish with whipped cream (I also added sprinkles).

I also tried a new pizza recipe. It's called Easy Pull Apart Pizza Bread. Click HERE for the recipe. And some tips: 1) lessen the olive oil. When I flipped the bread out, oil was literally dripping from the pan. 2) I had to cook mine longer by like 15 or 20 minutes because the middle wasn't cooked all the way through yet. So plan on that. Because we had to cook it longer, the outside was crispy so we couldn't really pull it apart so we just sliced it. And we used Marinara sauce to dip it in. It was yummy.  And it was easy.  I had my 3 year old slice the biscuits into quarters (she used a plastic knife and loved helping).

An X-O-rdinary Craft

Okay so here is my last Valentine's Day craft I made for this year.

I made an "XOXO" sign. Here are the supplies you need: Valentine's paper, two X and two O wood letters, Mod Podge, paint brush, cardboard box , and an x acto knife.

Grab four sheets of your cute Valentine's paper and flip it over, design side down.

Mod Podge one side of your wood letter. Flip the letter over and stick it to the back side of your paper.

 

 

Now you're ready to cut.  I used a broken down cardboard box as my work station so I wouldn't cut through my table.  Use your x acto knife to cut away the extra paper, revealing your letter.

Last, I put a coat of Mod Podge over the paper to give some shine and also to seal the paper better. You're done. That's it. Super easy and super cute! 

I "Heart" Goodies

I love all the little holidays and Valentine's Day is no exception, as you can see from the last couple of posts. And now that this is the week of the actual holiday, it's time for the goodies. And this year, a homemade card.

So first the card. You will need: fake mustaches, photo paper, card-stock, Valentine's paper, paper cutter, and two-sided tape. I bought the mustaches, card-stock, and paper from Michael's.

One day, I made all of the family put on said mustaches, so we could get an awesome picture. Before printing, I added some heart embellishments to the corners for just a little extra something, something. Then I printed the pictures out onto photo paper.  

I trimmed the pictures with my paper cutter and then used a full 8 1/2" x 11" piece of card-stock to make the whole thing more sturdy. I used double-sided tape and taped two pictures (that's how many would fit on one sheet) to the card-stock.

On my computer, I made up some notes saying, "I "mustache" you a question. Will you be our Valentine?" Then I printed and cut them out. I taped the notes to a pretty piece of Valentine's paper and then cut them out leaving a small border of the cute Valentine's paper visible. Then I taped the note next to the picture on the card-stock. Last, I trimmed the card-stock so there was a small border around the whole thing, and you've got yourself a cute homemade Valentine's Day card.

Next, are the goodies, aka M&M Cookie Bars. These are some of my favorite treats to make because they're yummy and super easy. I'm just going to give you a link to the recipe I found because that's what I follow, plus I didn't take step by step pictures for you. The only thing I have to do differently is the baking time. It always takes about 5 mins. longer with my oven.  (And sometimes I add another 1/8 of a cup of flour if it's looking too gooey before putting it in the pan.)

Click HERE for the recipe.

So now that the card and treats are done, it's presentation time. This might actually be the most fun part for me. I love making things look cute. Supplies needed are: Valentine's plates, cellophane wrap, hole punch, ribbon, and scissors. I bought the plates and cellophane wrap from Michael's.

Place your goodies on a cute plate. Roll out the cellophane to desired length. Cut it off the roll. Pull the corners of the cellophane together and tie it closed with ribbon.

Hole punch a hole in your homemade card and thread the ribbon from your goodies, through the hole and tie in a knot. Using scissors, curl the ribbon and you're ready to deliver your Valentine's Day treats.

Picture Timeline

I finally finished a wall in my bedroom. A few years ago, I bought a vinyl phrase, "For Time and All Eternity," but never put it up because we were renting apartments and I didn't want to put it up, just to take it down after a year or so and not be able to use it again. So now that we have our own house, it finally made it onto a wall. 

Now for the picture timeline. I placed it centered below the vinyl phrase.  Here are the supplies you need: pictures, paper cutter, mini clothespins, paint, brushes, fishing line, clear pushpins, measuring tape, level, pencil, and scissors.

First, I picked out and printed some pictures that represent Dave and I's life from the time we met until now. Then I trimmed them using a paper cutter.

Next, I painted some mini clothespins the colors of my bedroom: black, yellow, white, and gray.

Then, I cut off a huge section of fishing line. I then clipped my photos to the fishing line with the clothespins.

Then I used a measuring tape, level, and pencil to figure out exactly where to place the pushpins (one below and to the left of the vinyl, one on the opposite side of the first pin, and one in between those two). Once I figured that out, I tied one end of the fishing line to a pushpin and put the pin in the wall on the first mark.  Then I put the other two pins in the wall. I draped the middle of the fishing line over the middle pin and then loosely tied the end to the other side pin with extra fishing line hanging off. That way I could figure out how low or high I wanted the dips to be before completely tying it off.  Just cut the extra fishing line off.

Last, I repeated the final steps again for a second row of photos and you're done.

I think if I did it over I would print the pictures all in black and white and use bigger clothespins.  But I still like how it turned out.  Oh and use an even number of pictures on each row.  I had 13 and it made it hard finding the middle because there was a picture in the way.

Also, someday, there will be a desk below the pictures for my sewing station.  

The Craft

No, this isn't a post about a creepy movie, but another catch up of some crafts I've made lately. So without further ado...

First up, is something I've been making for the past three years. No, it hasn't taken me three years, but it's a Christmas gift that I've made each year, for the family I have that year through our rotation. So now that all of my siblings and their families have received them, I can post it. I can't believe the three times I made these T-shirt pillows, that I never took pictures of the process, just the final products. Oh well. I'll try and explain it as best I can. It's not too hard.

First, a list of supplies you will need: t-shirts for every family member, string, needles, letter stencils, fading marker (see description below), sewing machine (or access to one) and stuffing.

First, I buy everyone a shirt in one of their favorite colors. Then I buy string in another one of their favorite colors. I wash the shirts and then the prep begins. You will need your letter stencils and marker to trace. I found a marker at Michael's that fades after just a couple days and sometimes within hours. You don't want to see the marker once the pillow is done.

 

Trace the name onto the shirt. I only do one name at a time since like I mentioned, the marker fades. Then I thread a needle and start stitching the names onto the shirts. This is the most time consuming part. It is always such a relief when I finish that last name. 

Using a sewing machine, sew up the top, bottom, and ONE sleeve of the shirt. I stuff the stuffing through the open sleeve and once it's the desired thickness, I hand stitch the sleeve closed and voila, you're done with a cute T-shirt pillow.

Next up, is another Christmas gift. I made both my mom and dad wood signs.

Here's a list of supplies: wood, paint, paint brush, vinyl (or a friend who can make it for you), wall hanging hardware, eye hooks, jump rings, wood circles, fine tip permanent marker, and a drill.

I bought a 6" x 6' board from Lowe's and had a friend who has a saw, cut it into three equal sections. Sometimes Lowe's will cut for you and apparently sometimes not.  I think it depends on the worker you ask.

For my dad, I made a "Man Cave" sign. I painted it blue and had a friend cut out the vinyl for me and then I stuck the vinyl to the board. Then I put in some hardware on the back so it can be hung on the wall.

For my mom, I made a family birthday board. I painted her sign maroon and again had a friend cut out the vinyl. I need to get a vinyl machine. I'm trying to convince my husband. :) Anyway, I bought the eye hooks from Lowe's and the wood circles and jump rings from Michael's. After I put the vinyl on the board then I was able to figure out where the eye hooks go so they lined up with the month. I had to hammer in small holes first and then twist in the hooks.  Then I had my husband drill small holes into the top and bottom of the wood circles.  Then I wrote all of our family birthdays on the wood circles with a fine tip permanent marker (it did bleed a little so be careful) and then used the rings to connect them together and then attached the rings to the eye hooks. Again, I put some hardware on the back so it could be hung.  And you're done.  I love how it turned out.

Now, onto a couple Valentine's Day crafts. I made a dry erase "I love you because..." picture frame. This was super easy.  Here's a list of the supplies you will need: cute paper (not too busy), paper cutter, letter stickers, a frame, and a dry erase marker.

First, cut your paper down to your frame size. I had a 5" x 7" frame (I bought a cheap one from Dollar Tree).

 

Then I used some black glitter sticker letters to spell out the phrase "I love you because..."

Then I put the paper in the frame and you're done. Each day you can write on the glass, with a dry erase marker, why you love your special someone.

Last up is a canvas button sign.  The supplies you will need are: 12" x 12" canvas board (just google Michael's coupons and they usually have a 40% off one you can use), tape measure (or ruler), pencil, painter's tape, black paint, white paint (if you have to do touch ups like me), paint brush, paper, pen, hot glue gun, red felt, red buttons, scissors, and red letter stickers. 

First, I used a measuring tape and pencil to mark the board into 6 equal rows. I used painter's tape so I wouldn't have to try and paint in the lines (as you can see from the finished product, the rows are not the same width.  I tried eyeballing it at first but the lines didn't come out straight so I had to redo the black sections using the tape, but I kind of like that they are a little wider.). Then I painted every other row black. I did have to use some white paint to do some touch ups.

Then I traced and cut out a heart on some paper. I had to keep trimming it down to the size I wanted.

Then I used the paper heart and a pen to trace a heart on some red felt and cut it out.

 

 

 And then I hot glue gunned the felt to the canvas.

Next, is the tedious part. I hot glue gunned red buttons onto the felt. I originally was just going to go around and around the heart until I just had the middle to fill but then I realized I could end up with a gap so I did it in sections. Even doing it in sections, I still had some small gaps. So I made the heart more 3D and glued some buttons onto the buttons to cover the gaps.

Last, I used red glitter sticker letters to spell out, on the bottom white row, the words "ME+YOU". Ta Da!

My Craftiness

Here's a little catch up on some of the things I've made the last few months. My husband celebrated his 30th birthday this past summer. What an old fart. Anyway, for one of his decorations I made a collage of photos in the shape of his age. I just copied and printed pictures out and then taped them to some poster board that I had cut into the number 30. Super easy.

For one of his cakes, I cut out the number 30 on some paper and placed it on his cake after I frosted it. Then I poured sprinkles around it and then pulled off the paper. Voila.

 

Next up are some things I made to prepare for our second baby. My friend gave me a rocking chair that she no longer wanted and I painted it. It was a brown color with a cornucopia looking design on it. Old school. So I spray painted it black to match our bedroom décor and then bought a yellow cushion from Cost Plus World Market.

Safety first. Probably not good for an 8 month pregnant lady to get sick from paint fumes.

 

Before:

 

After:

 

I also painted letters to spell out the initials for both of my girls to hang in their room. I bought the letters at Michaels. I painted them and them modge podged them to seal the paint and add a little shine. Then I hot glue gunned some ribbon to the back of the letters.

 

 

Last is Halloween. While I was visiting my parents this summer, my mom helped me make my girls Halloween costumes. They turned out even cuter than I imagined. They were the Pacman ghosts, Pinky and Blinky. I bought white onesies and pink and red fleece. For my toddler we cut off the bottom of the onesie since she's far too big for that. Then my mom cut out the material and sewed it around the onesies. I made a pixelated cut around the bottom of the material. My mom had sticker felt that I cut out into the shapes of pixelated eyes. Then I stuck the eyes to the front of the material.

 

My husband and I were Pacman and Ms. Pacman. I had to simplify our costumes due to running out of time. Having a baby does that to you. But they still turned out great. I bought foam board, cut it out in circles, painted them to look like Pacman and Ms. Pacman and then taped some ribbon on the back so we could hang them around our necks.

 

We also decorated our door to look like a monster for Halloween night. We used streamers for hair, paper plates and red paper for eyes, and duct tape for a mouth and eyebrows.

And for dinner, what else but ghost pancakes. My husband shaped them like ghosts and then put chocolate chips in them for eyes. Yummy!

Again, thanks to Pinterest for many of the ideas seen above.