Recovering an Ironing Board

This is just a sneak peek into my laundry room makeover. We're in a rented townhome nowadays, so we cannot do much to make things over, but I'm still trying to make it home. As a part of my makeover, I've been working on the laundry room and trying to spruce it up. As I've been working at it, I've been finding that the more I like the space, the more likely I'll be there, so this is an incentive to get the laundry room finished up, so I can love it.

Or so I try to tell myself and my husband.

Anyways, I recovered our ironing board as a part of the makeover, and to tell you the truth, it is ridiculously easy to do. You'll need less than one yard of fabric (for a half/sized ironing board) to do it, some cute (but thick) fabric and a staple gun.

Lay fabric flat on the ground and place ironing board over it. As you staple it in place, pull tightly to prevent wrinkles. Trim the edges of the fabric left over and staple as needs be. Then step back, ooh and ahh over your cute ironing board, and ignore the pile of clothes that need to be ironed. You deserve the break!

Crockpot Chicken Cordon Bleu

Guys, this recipe is totally my own, and I'm totally proud of it. Sure, there were other versions of this that inspired me, but this recipe is all mine. 

What you'll need:
Ham (thick slices, we had leftovers from our Sunday dinner ham that was used)
Swiss Cheese Slices
Pasta - we used Rotini
1/2 Cup - 1 Cup Milk

Chicken in a Biscuit Crackers

How you Make it:
In a crockpot, add milk and pasta. Cut pieces of ham into slices and add into the pot until it "looks pretty". I did about two cups worth. Add cheese on top and cook on high for about an hour (stir about halfway through so that the cheese and noodles don't get too hard and overcooked). 

After an hour, add a few more pieces of ham, add a final layer of cheese. Crunch up crackers into crumbs and sprinkle over the top layer of the cheese. Cook for about fifteen to thirty minutes on low (until cheese is melted and crumbs crisped. 

Serve with Veggies and enjoy! 

Music and the Spoken Word

Yesterday Bubba and I took a day date and went downtown to the Tabernacle to see Music and the Spoken word live. It was a fantastic experience and I am so thankful we were able to go and feel the spirit and see the beauty there. 

After the concert we wandered around Temple Square. We watched the film titled "Joseph Smith, the Prophet" and hiked down to Gateway afterwards for some lunch. 

In the process I destroyed my heels from the blisters and to top it off, once we got down to Gateway we ran into a VERY familiar face...

 LITTLE DUDE! 

Yep, Omie and Opa decided that while they were watching him that they'd love to take him down to Gateway to take a walk and to check out the fountain. 

Luckily, they were more than happy to help me find some new flip flops so I wasn't in agony with my heels anymore. We scored some for $2.13 and on we went to lunch.

We listened to an organ recital afterwards back at Temple Square and got a chance to meet up with my dear friend Mat, who luckily lives a few blocks away and made it just in time! We wandered the temple grounds and talked about the church. He's a convert and a very educated individual, as well as a hilarious person as well. We joked about some of the most ridiculous things (steeple surfing!), watched some more videos around the visitors centers and bid adeu. 

It was a wonderful day-date and if you have the chance to go to Temple Square, go on a Sunday. It is so peaceful, quiet, and beautiful! 

Hope you had a fabulous weekend!

Crock Pot Broccoli Beef

This is a meal so easy, Bubba did all of it, including the photo! So, I'm taking Bubba's exact words and having him basically post this (he's talking, I'm typing, that's how WE roll). 

Here's what you need:
Beef - cut into strips or cubes. We used small eye of round steaks we needed to use.
Broccoli
Oil - 1 Tsp
1/2 Cup Soy Sauce
1/3 Cup Brown Sugar

Mix everything in the crock pot except the Broccoli and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Once cooked, drain all but a little bit of the juice in the crock pot. "Like, a ladle full of juice is what you need to leave."

Add the Broccoli and then cook on high for about an hour or so. Make your rice or noodles separately, and it'll all be done at the same time!

Dinner was delicious honey, seriously good stuff! 

Guest Post: DIY Canvas Art

Meet Laura! Laura was one of my very first readers and I adore her! She's so fun to talk to and I love seeing all of her creations as she shares them - today she's sharing how she created some awesome wall art on a college students budget!

Now, without further ado, I'll let Laura take over!

Hi guys! My name is Laura. I recently started my third year of nursing school. Dani asked me to guest post on the blog after we had a few email conversations about crafts and Pinterest. I found her blog on Pinterest when I was trying to find ideas to dress up my makeup brushes. I fell in love with her blog and had to email her to tell her. Not creepy at all! I hope you all like my post! :) 

Living in a college apartment and on a college student’s budget, I am very limited on ways to decorate. 

We are not allowed to paint (hello jail-cell walls). I was looking for something to liven up a bare wall in my bedroom and had a Friday afternoon with nothing to do. I ventured out to Hobby Lobby, and put myself on a $15 limit—I can do some serious damage to my debit card there. I picked up a pack of two white canvases, 16x20 inches for $7.99. I also grabbed a few bottles of acrylic paint at Wal-Mart, each for 57 cents. BIG spender, I know.

I used standard masking tape to make random lines on the canvas. The more tape you use, the more sections of color you’ll have. 

I painted each open area with the colors. I did one canvas with blue, teal, purple and gray, and a second canvas with yellow, pink and orange. Once the paint dried, I peeled the tape and hung them up.

My new wall art cost about $13 dollars and took two hours to make. I am so excited to have some color in my room; it is way less prison-y now.

I would suggest making sure the tape is pressed snug to the canvas with no wrinkles. This will help make crisp lines and prevent paint from seeping under the tape and ruining the white lines. I used tape long enough to secure to the back of the canvas and painted the sides of the canvas too, but you could stop at the edges of the front. Also, peel off the tape slowly and be sure the paint is completely dry. I didn’t let it dry enough and part of the tape peel off a bit with the tape.
 
I love how simple this project is and so versatile; you can do any pattern with the tape (zig-zags, zebra stripes, etc). You can use any color combination to match any décor. I’m thinking I’ll make another in Halloween colors for my front door and one for the boy toy with red, black and silver to start off Husker football season ☺

Growing Up and Moving On

It seems really, really corny to say that lately, things have just been wonderful. 

Any time is a good time to stage an impromptu family photo!

I don't know exactly why things have been so great, if it is just me enjoying the moments, or the simplicity of the mundane, or us keeping so busy we cannot keep things straight, but I am loving how things have been lately. Both sides of the family are getting along famously, with us and each other, school is going well, no drama at work or at home, and things are overall, just going fantastic.

While things have been this way, I've spent some time reflecting on why they haven't been this way before, or felt this way. Is it that it just hasn't felt wonderful? Is it that I didn't know what wonderful was or didn't understand it? Is it because I wasn't allowing the wonderful to happen?

It really is no secret that I've done a lot of growing up in the past year. Maybe it has something to do with growing up and becoming a better person that allows me to appreciate the way things are now.

While I wish I understood the secret as to what we did to make everything work out so well, I am embracing it, knowing that nothing lasts forever and that everything has to change. Luckily, at this point in our story, the things that are changing are for the best and I am able to appreciate it more than I would have before.

I'm so thankful I have been able to learn from the lessons God has given me and the challenges he's given our family. 

 Lately I've been focusing a lot of time and effort on things. I've been thinking a lot about life and since I have the time on my daily commutes to reflect, I've done so. The thing that keeps popping into my head, that when I actually practice rings true is this;

Everything I put effort into, I'm going to love more, appreciate more, and cherish more.

And I truly mean everything, I've put more effort into my job, my family, my marriage, my home, and I have found an appreciation for even the smallest of things, because I'm looking at EVERYTHING. I've been focused more on each thing in front of me instead of multi-tasking, and have been accomplishing so much, by focusing better.

I know this post is corny, and if I were a reader, I'd roll my eyes and scroll on past this, but if you made it this far, thank you for reading my thoughts and allowing me to get them out there. I really appreciate it and the fact that I have so many fantastic fans and readers that allow me to blog and share my family and our adventures with them. Love ya!

Pajamas

Sometimes you've just got to put on your jammies and call it an early night. 

Hope you've had a fantastic week!