Yo Yo Necklace

Just finished making this Yo Yo necklace that will soon be for sale in my Etsy shop. Working on some other fun things, but just wanted to give a little preview of what's to come.

DIY Hooded Towel

Follow the simple instructions below to make a hooded towel from a bath towel and a hand towel.

You will need one towel and one hand towel, however you will only use half of the hand towel. So you could make two hooded towels if you buy a second towel.

Find the center of the hand towel and cut it in half.

Next center the cut hand towel with the larger towel.

Pin it into place and sew along the edge.

Fold the towel in half so that the side that will eventually be the inside of the hooded towel is facing out.

Pin the top of the hand towel and sew along the edge.

Turn the towel right side out and you are done. I plan on making Hudson and Max matching towels, so I think I will go back and add their names to the towels or their initials. I've been wanting to make Hudson one of these for a while. I first saw the idea when my friend Fallon made one. Hudson loves bundling up to keep warm after his bath or swimming, but most of his bath towels are so small. I love that this hooded towel is big enough to cover all of him.

Organizing with Baskets

Basil Bottle Basket $30.00 at adelineadeline.com

Brooks Hoxton Wire Basket $160.00 at adelineadeline.com

Basil Forte Memories Basket $22.50 at adelineadeline.com

Small Wire Mesh Pot $9.00 at hausinterior.com

Wire Gathering Basket $26.00 at hausunterior.com

Farmers Market Epergne Basket $75.00 at Sundancecatalog.com

Wood Handled Wire Basket $45.00 at sundancecatalog.com

Wire Baskets set of 3 $95.00 at sundancecatalog.com

The April issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine featured some of these baskets and some clever uses for them around the house. You can use them to hold cleaning supplies in the laundry room, mail in an entryway, flowers, kitchen pantry items, craft or office supplies, and anything else you need a place for. I love cute containers and baskets to hold simple things. It makes your space not only more organized, but fun to look at!

Mango Margaritas

In honor of Cinco de Mayo today I am posting a recipe for Mango Margaritas. The recipe originally came from Martha Stewart for peach margaritas, but we substituted mango for the frozen peaches. You could use fresh or frozen mango. My friend Amy and I LOVE to make them and love drinking them even more. We like to rim our glasses with sugar and garnish with a lime wedge. You can also find a recipe for Strawberry Margaritas here and Watermelon Mint Margaritas here.

Ingredients:

• 1 package (16 ounces) frozen sliced mango
• 3/4 cup tequila
• 1/4 cup triple sec
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from 3 limes)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup ice cubes

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine frozen sliced peaches, tequila, triple sec, fresh lime juice, sugar, and ice cubes. Puree until smooth (stop blender and stir if necessary) and serve immediately.
   

Free Nursing Cover and Sling

Get a free nursing cover at Udder Covers, all you have to do is enter the promo code "Mother" and just pay the shipping costs. Shop here. You can also get a free baby sling from Seven Slings here by entering the same promo code. All you pay for is the shipping. Happy Mother's Day!

Pie Pops

When I saw this idea over at Bakerella I was anxious to try it. I love the idea of putting food on a stick, somehow it just makes it more fun and really cute. These are really easy to make and you can use your favorite pie filling, even one from a can to make it really simple. I made a pie filling that originally comes from a Pillsbury recipe that you can find here. However I cut the recipe down so there isn't as much filling, but I still had some extra leftover. You can find the filling recipe I used below.

 Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, and prepare your pie filling.

 I used the box of pre-made Pillsbury pie crust. Roll the pie crust out on a floured surface and use a cookie cutter to cut out your desired shape. I was able to make 19 pie pops from both 9 inch pie crusts that come in the box. However you will have scraps that you can roll back out to cut out more circles if you want to make more then that.

Place the circles on a cookie sheet leaving room for the sticks and gently press the sticks (find them in the baking isle of a craft store) into the dough.

Now spoon about 1 Tablespoon or less of the pie filling onto the center of the circles.

Take another circle and place it on top of the other and press the edges down using an extra stick. Now brush the tops of the pie pops with egg whites and place in the oven for about 12 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool.

Pie Filling:
(Mix all of the ingredient together in a large bowl)

• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup corn syrup
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup walnuts
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
•  Oats and Honey granola bars (1 pack, 2 bars)
• 2 tablespoons oats
• 3 tablespoons mini chocolate chips

 

Cinco De Mayo

Cinco De Mayo free printables by TomKat Studio here.

Free Cinco De Mayo Banner by Cakes likes a Party here.

Spinach and Asparagus Pasta Salad

This is an easy recipe for a pasta salad that can me added to and easily altered. You can even just use whatever veggies you have on hand and toss it together.

Ingredients:

• Bow tie pasta
• Asparagus, blanched
• Fresh raw spinach
• Toasted pine nuts
• Favorite vinaigrette recipe
• Salt and Pepper

Bring a large pot of water to boil, add the asparagus for only about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the boiling water using tongs and place in a bowl of water with ice to stop them from cooking. Next add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Cook the pine nuts over medium heat until toasted. Strain the pasta and let it cool off a bit. Cut the asparagus into small bite size pieces and toss all of the ingredients together in a large bowl. Top with toasted pine nuts. This would also be really great topped with sliced grilled chicken breasts.

Cake Pops

Cake Pops with Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

 

Make your favorite white cake recipe and cookie dough recipe (without eggs). Roll the cookie dough into small balls. Spoon about 1 Tablespoon or less of the cake batter into each hole of the Babycake cake pop maker once it is preheated. Then take the small balls of cookie dough and press them down into the batter. Close the lid and wait about 5 minutes while they cook.

 After about five minutes they should be done, however the tops will be lighter in color then the bottoms of the cake balls. Remove them from the cake pop maker using the prongs that are included, and let them cool.

 Once they have cooled dip the sticks into some of the melted chocolate (I used Almond Bark, you can find it in the baking isle at most grocery stores) and stick into the center of each cake ball. Next place them into the freezer for about 10 to 15 minutes to let them set. This helps them from falling off the stick when covering with the chocolate.

 Once they are covered with the chocolate place them in the holding tray (also included with the cake pop maker) to dry. They can be stored at room temperature in an air tight container for about 3 days.

Using the Babycakes cake pop maker machine makes the cake pops a little different then how cake pops are typically made. You do not mix frosting into the cake. This makes they cake pops not as sweet and more light and fluffy then dense. They turned out pretty good, I am going to experiment some more with different recipes to use for the batter.

Hudson's Birthday Parties

 Hudson's 1st Birthday Party

Old Fashioned Birthday Party Theme

More pictures and details here.
Pictures by ELHicks Photography

 Hudson's 2nd Birthday Party

Robot Party Theme

More pictures and details here, here, here, and here.
Pictures by Sessionnine Photography

Hudson's 3rd Birthday Party

Superhero Party Theme

More pictures and details here.
Pictures by Melissa Young Photography

I put together a photo board from Hudson's Superhero party that we just had for him and decided to go back and create one for each of his birthday parties. Such fun memories. You can click on the links to find more details about each party.

Activities with the Kids

If you're looking for something fun and different to do this week with your kids, and you live in the Phoenix area, here are a few ideas. For more ideas you can subscribe to the Active Mom's Magazine here.

Monday, May 2nd:

Mommy and Me Class at As You Wish Pottery

Ages 2-5 years old

9am to 10am

Cost: $20, includes pottery

Find locations here

Tuesday, May 3rd:

Free Trial Class at Great Play of Chandler

Classes here, call to reserve a class time

480-726-7529

Wednesday, May 4th:

Bikes, Bounce, and Boogie

at Tumbleweed Recreation Center in Chandler

9am to 11am

Ages 5 and under with an adult

Cost: $4 per child

More info here under Infant & Preschool Spring Activities

OR

The Lunch Bunch

USA Gymnastics in Gilbert

12 to 2pm

Cost: $5 per child for groups with 6 or more kids (potty trained)

Gather your friends and eat your lunch at a reserved table while the kids play

or go out to lunch while the kids play.

Call to reserve: 480-926-1480

Thursday, May 5th:

Bounce Jungle

 Open Bounce: 9am-11am, 12pm-2pm, or 3pm to 5pm

2301 E. Yeager Drive
Chandler, AZ 85286
(480) 883-8891

(photo from wechoosethislife.com)

Friday, May 6th:

Movie in the Park: Toy Story 3

Kiwanis Park at 7pm

6111 S. All America Way
Tempe, AZ 85283
(480) 350-5201