Yes Day!

Today has been a "yes day". Do you know what I'm talking about?

When you have children you have to say "no" a lot. "No we can't go to the park today, it's raining." "No, you can not eat candy right before supper." "No, do not climb that shelf!" ...etc.

Every once in awhile it's nice to be able to say yes to requests.

One of those requests today was eating lunch in the living room while watching cartoons. Such a simple thing but it made Big Sister very happy. I even got a big hug and kiss out of the deal!

Another "yes" was to make cupcakes. We have a counting book and one of the pages is counting cupcakes. Occasionally Big Sister will look at the book and when she comes to that page she asks if we can make some. Usually I say no, but today I said yes! 

So I searched my beloved Pinterest App to see what kind of cupcakes would spark my interest (and what ones we had the ingredients for) and I found this recipe for Vanilla Cupcakes!

Sprinkles make everything more fun!

Look at this frosting! So light and fluffy! I had to resist eating it by the spoonfuls!

Big Sister had fun helping me stir the ingredients and she was a great help cleaning up the beaters afterwards! ;)

Yum!

Pencil Drawing

Challenge 4 in the Creative Challenge is drawing.

I have to admit, I was not feeling inspired at all to draw this month. I usually enjoy drawing but if I'm not in the mood, I can not force myself to be creative.

I did not want to skip a month of the challenge so I decided to just do a quick 2x2" sketch. Working in such a small space inabled me to complete my drawing in under 30 minutes. 

I didn't worry about some of the details, I really just wanted to get it over with. Shame on me!

I am also not very excited about next months challenge. It is gardening/floral arrangement. I have very limited experience in this. Every house plant I've ever had has eventually met its demise! 

So if you have any tips for me, feel free to leave them in the comments below!

I do have one idea of what I want to try but I'm keeping my eyes open for anything that sparks my interest or looks super easy!

Wish me luck! 

Blueberry Apple Sauce with Spinach

Do you want a healthier version of apple sauce to feed your children (or yourself) that has no preservatives AND has some hidden veggies in it to increase their vegetable intake?! You have to try out this easy homemade crock pot recipe!

Ingredients:

- 6 medium apples, washed and cored

- 1 cup frozen blueberries

- 3 cups lightly packed spinach

- 1/4 cup water

Cut up washed and cored apples into large chunks and place in crockpot. Pour in 1/4 cup water. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours. After 2 hours of cooking time, add the spinach and blueberries. Stir to incorporate everything. Cover and cook an additional 30 mins. Turn off crockpot and let the apple mixture cool off slightly before blending it into a smooth sauce. Serve and/or store leftovers in the fridge.

 

 (Apples are cut and in the crock pot with 1/4 cup of water)

 

(Adding the spinach and blueberries)

Optional:

I have added a few kiwis into the blender for a variation to this sauce. You could always experiment further to make different flavor combinations!

My kids LOVE this stuff. When I have store bought Apple sauce in the cupboard and this homemade version in my fridge, Big Sister always picks the homemade kind! 

I find this makes a perfect consistency of sauce, but you could always add more water if your child prefers a thinner sauce.

In case you were wondering, I do not peel my apples. I want to keep as much nutrients and fibre as possible. I just make sure to wash them really good first. The longer cooking time in the crockpot softens the skin so it blends right up leaving no chunks in your sauce!

Enjoy!

DIY Skinny Jeans

I have seen a few tutorials on how to turn your jeans into skinny jeans. A friend gave me some hand-me down jeans and they fit great other than being just a tad bit short. The flare of the jeans at the shorter length made them look a little funny when I wore shoes, so I would usually just wear them with boots. I could tuck them into the boots and no one would know. Since the jeans were free, I decided to try making them into skinny jeans because I wouldn't be out any money if I screwed them up. I figured if they looked horrible, I could just keep tucking them into boots.

First I turned the jeans inside out and layed the jeans on the floor. I layed a pair of skinny jeans that I already owned on top of the jeans I wanted to convert and lined them up to the inside seem so I would only have to sew and cut on one side. I drew a line to trace the skinny jeans and pinned the two pant leg layers together.

 I then sewed a straight stitch over top the line I drew while tracing the jeans, and reinforced the line with a zig-zag/straight stitch combination. (Sorry I don't know the proper stitch name. Refer to picture.)

I turned my jeans right side out and tried them on to make sure they fit good before cutting off the extra material. I was happy with the results so went ahead and cut it off.

They aren't perfect but if you aren't looking at them really close you can't tell. Now I can wear them with my boots and with flats! Yay!

Baby Mary Jane Shoes

I got a request for some baby shoes for a baby dedication. I tried out a pattern from Whistle & Ivy. These shoes are made in the round so they work up very quickly. I went with a small flower to embellish the shoes instead of the dot included in the pattern.

These were ordered by a lady for a gift for her daughter's baby's dedication. After sending her a picture of the finished product, her daughter requested the flower be made in the same color of the shoe so it would match her baby's outfit better. The flowers are quick to make too so it was no problem to switch them out.

Many blessings to the sweet little girl wearing these on her dedication day!

Paper Flowers

Challenge 3 in the Creative Challenge I'm taking part of is paper flowers.

    

Source

I made these coffee filter peonies following this tutorial.

I love how these flowers add a fresh Spring feel to my living room. They make me happy whenever I look at them. 

Flowers are lovely but can get expensive so I love that I could make these with supplies I already had on hand and they will last forever. I'm thinking I'll have to try some more paper flower tutorials to put in other rooms of my house.

Happy spring everyone!

Roasted Cauliflower

I normally just steam cauliflower or eat it raw with dip, but I wanted to try preparing it a new way to see if my kids would eat it.

I decided to try roasting it with seasonings and the result was a success. Both kids ate it! (Little sister only has 4 teeth, so she would only eat it after I blended it up into tiny pieces.) 

                                     

Ingredients:

-1 large head of cauliflower 

-1 tsp olive oil 

-1 tsp chili powder

-1 tsp cumin

-1/2 tsp paprika

-1/4 tsp salt

Wash and cut cauliflower into bite sized florets and place in large bowl. Toss cauliflower with olive oil. 

In a small bowl, mix seasonings. Pour seasoning mixture over cauliflower and toss to coat.

Bake cauliflower on a baking sheet at 450F for 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes. Cauliflower should be tender and golden brown.

(This seasoning mixture is fairly mild. If you want a stronger flavor, increase the amount of spices you use.)

I'm going to experiment some more with different ways to make and season cauliflower. Some days it's a struggle to get the kiddos to eat their full daily vegetable serving requirements. Hopefully I can find some yummy recipes that they will love.