Friday Favorites

Blue skies, sunshine, and it's currently 40 degrees outside! My desire to wear a sundress is almost overriding my common sense. After a long winter this is much needed whisper of spring. I can't think of a better way to start off the weekend. Hope your day is lovely!

Here are this week's favorites

I've wanted my very own plant collection since I was a little girl watching my Grandmother water her plants by the dining room window. Something about the giant ferns and large green leaves makes a room feel so much more like home. Since this guy was on the reduced rack of Lowe's for a whopping $1 I decided it was time that I start my own. Here's to hopefully proving I have a green thumb!

An entire week of subbing half days at school....can it get any better then that? 

And yes I do carry around an old fashioned planner, they are my favorite.

Can we just stop for a moment and appreciate the deliciousness of a red potato? 

I'm seeing this recipe in my future for sure!

Happy Friday!

Green Smoothie

I enjoy smoothies and I was particularly intrigued when green smoothies became popular. I soon discovered that I loved them too. They are perfect for breakfast (or any other meal), and I also like them after a hard workout. Not only do they taste good, they start your day off with some healthy ingredients. Through a little trial and error I have created my own delicious version. The best part of this smoothie is that anything goes...have fun experimenting on your own or just enjoy mine!

Green Smoothie

1 cup kale (or spinach)

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup almond milk

1 banana

3 frozen strawberries

Due to having a small blender, I mix the banana, kale, and milk first. 

This allows the kale to blend better, and keeps it from making the smoothie gritty. 

Blend away!

 Add the yogurt and strawberries and you are good to go!

So yummy!

Enjoy!

Friday Favorites

Ahh Friday! One my favorite days of the week. It always brings a sense of excitement as the workweek ends and the weekend begins. This weekend I plan on watching the Olympics, catching up on some reading, and finishing some fun projects to share on here. Maybe I'll even convince my husband to do a little shopping with me :).

 Here are my favorites for the week! 

Sunshine and blue skies make winter so much prettier!

Mornings are always better with muffins and coffee!

My new favorite color, perfect for accessories.

Finally spent my gift certificate at an adorable quilt shop in town. 

Aren't these patterns so pretty? I just couldn't resist. Now I just need to find a project. 

What would you make?

Friday Favorites

When one lives in upstate New York in January, the lack of sun can really get to a person. Combined with ridiculously cold temperatures this year, it has been easy to fall into the trap of focusing on the negative aspects of life. Looking to get out of that trap I decided to shake off the doldrums and take a moment each week to focus on my favorite parts of life, and what I am enjoying at the moment. Not only does it make me thankful for what I have, but reminds me to take a step back and enjoy the simple things...

Here are my favorites from this week!

Green smoothie after a workout, so delicious! Definitely one of my favorite breakfast foods as well. Recipe coming soon!

My reading selection for the week. So far so good.

My bathroom rug that I made out of an old bed sheet. Who knew strips of material could crochet so well! Reminds me of one of my favorite children's books.

So what are some of your favorites this week?

Stick a pin in it!

I have recently embarked on doing more projects with my sewing machine. I've always wanted to be able to sew well, and since practice makes perfect, a variety of projects have now infiltrated my craft table.

With this new found hobby, came the need for fun accessories. One in particular was a pincushion. In the past I would keep needles in a container, which proved to be easy storage, but not effective for use. As a result I decided to make a place for my needles to reside that was easy to use and looked nice on my sewing table. I really liked the final result and it has worked very well as I continue to stitch on! Here's how to make your own!

Materials
Picture frame (make sure it has a back with a stand)
Hot glue
Stainless steel scrubbing pad
Material

I was originally going to use stuffing as filling for this project, but then I read that if you use a stainless steel pad it will keep your needles sharp. Figured it couldn't hurt, and I had one on hand. Perfect!

Begin by taking the glass out of your picture frame, and cut a piece of material that will cover the back of your frame with several inches to spare.

Stretch and pull your scrubbing pad until covers at least 3/4 of the backing of your frame.

Place the pad on the cover and wrap your material over the top. Glue the edges down, making sure it is all firm and secure.

 Slide the cover into the frame and stand it up. 

 Push in your pins and you are ready to go!

Happy sewing!

The Best Banana Bread

I'll admit I'm a bit of a carb fan...I mean how could you not be? It comes in so many delicious forms! One of my favorite recipes to make is banana bread. There are so many ways to create it, I am pretty sure I've never made it the same way. However, after much trial and error, I think I've finally found my favorite
way to create this classic recipe. Now it's your turn to try it!

Banana Bread

4 ripe bananas
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
2 cups flour

Mix the melted butter in with the bananas. Add the sugar, egg, vanilla and spices. Add the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Pour mixture into a bread pan and bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

Eat and enjoy!

            

                       

Stamping Away: Wrapping Edition Year Two

Wrapping presents is always one of my favorite parts of the holidays. However, I'm now finding that making the wrapping paper is just as fun. Last year I embarked on homemade wrapping paper using leftover newspaper here. This year I took a different route when a package I ordered showed up with yards of brown paper inside. As soon as I saw it, I knew that I had to use it in some way for Christmas.

Using the old fashioned potato stamp and a toilet paper roll I spent a few hours stamping away. My husband was a little surprised when he came home to sheets of paper drying around our living room :). Though the finished result was nowhere near perfect, I loved how the presents came out!