Gripper Socks...TBD

Here I thought this blog would just be for me to post the things I've tried from Pinterest...I didn't think that I would be posting something new on my own!

One of Dexter's favorite games to play with me when I get home from work is "Chase each other around the kitchen island." There is only one problem with this...

Dexter doesn't have many shoes yet, and won't keep them on anyway. Tonight I said to my mom..."There's got to be SOMETHING that I can put on the bottom of his socks to make some of those non-slip socks..." Since I have the smartest mom in the world...she immediately had a solution. "Do you have any fabric paint?" Why yes, yes I do! We had some left over from decorating our Christmas stockings this year! So I went to the basement to hunt...

Needed:

socks (I used 3 pair we already had)

fabric paint (again, already had)

Prescription bottles (Ok these aren't a need...they are just what I used to put the socks on to paint them)

I'm pretty sure there's really no additional explanation needed :-) Here's my finished product:

They're still drying so I'm not quite sure how well they work so success is still TBD...but in theory they should be good! I'll try to update tomorrow.

Finally posting

So I've been putting off posting all of the things I've tried so that I can do nice, thorough posts. I was hoping to get to it this weekend. Now that it's almost 9:30 pm Sunday night and another week has gone by with nothing getting posted...I'm going to just get the basics posted then I can add to them as I get time. We'll see how this works!

Cake Batter Rice Crispy Treats and cookies

I got the original recipe from this post on pinterest, and made some changes, as usual.
Funfetti Rice Crispy Treats
My ingredients:
3 TBSP butter
10.5 oz. mini marshmallows
6 cups puffed brown rice
1/3 cup Pillsbury Funfetti cake mix

Directions:

Melt butter on low in a heavy duty sauce pan.
Add marshmallows, stirring until almost melted.
Add cake mix a bit at a time to ensure it mixes well.
Stir in puffed rice until well blended.
Press into baking dish, sprinkle with sprinkles if desired.
Wait at least 30 minutes to cut, using a knife sprayed with cooking spray.


Yields about 18 (2"x 3") servings, at 105 calories per serving.

These don't taste like regular rice crispy treats. The taste improves as they sit longer, so don't eat any while still warm! Of course you can use regular rice crispies instead of puffed brown rice, but my version is a little healthier and less processed.

And with the rest of the cake mix, I did as suggested in the original pin, with one minor change.

Funfetti Cake Mix Cookies

The remaining cake mix from above recipe
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs

Mix all ingredients until well blended.
Roll into 1" balls and place on cookie sheet about 2" apart
Bake on 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Tops should be cracked, and sides golden when finished. Let cool for about a minute before moving to cooling rack.

Yields about 28 cookies at 109 calories per cookie.

These are very tasty, with a nice soft texture!

Thanks for reading,

Andrea

Spaghetti Bread-Success!

I tried this recipe several weeks ago, with a minor change, and it was fabulous!
I then totally changed up to filling, and that is what I'd like to share with you today!

Spinach fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken baked into french bread:

Alfredo Sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup butter
Italian Seasoning
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cups finely grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups precooked chicken, diced
1/2 cup precooked bacon-crumbled (if desired)

Directions:

Melt butter in pan on low, being careful not to burn it.
Add Italian seasoning to taste, a dash or 2 worked for me.
When butter is melted, add cream and continue to heat on low, stirring frequently until bubbling. Slowly whisk in Parmesan cheese, whisking constantly until fully melted. Add Chicken and bacon if desired. It seems thin, but works well once added to pasta. Hold back one cup of sauce for pouring over slices when serving.

Add to precooked spinach fettuccine, tossing until evenly coated.

Spread filling over unrolled bread, braiding as directed in post above.

Bake 350 degrees for 25 minutes, slice and serve. Spoon reserve sauce over slices if desired.


The sauce and pasta makes enough for 2 loaves or one loaf and one meal of just noodles and sauce. It doesn't reheat well, as the sauce separates.

Waffled Cinnamon Rolls -- Success!

I was attracted to this pin for obvious reason. Cinnamon rolls cooked in a couple of minutes? Uhm...ok! Amazingly, I had a can of cinnamon rolls in my fridge and I own a bazillion waffle irons, but I still didn't make them until about a month after I pinned it. I'm not sure why it took me so long to get to it the first time, but I've made them multiple times and everyone loves them! Very easy, obviously yummy...it's a success in my book!
I don't have a photo of my own yet, but I will post it here when I do :-)

Pin: http://pinterest.com/pin/128704501820548317/
Original post: http://ahensnest.com/2011/09/waffled-cinnamon-rolls-recipe.html

Upcycle a diaper box into baby room (or other) storage

Hi, I'm Andrea, and I'm a Pinterest Addict!

Thank you, Coleen, for inviting me to share my upcycled diaper box with you and your readers!

I own a small business which sells tutus and hair accessories called Head2Toes Lace&Bows. As I expand my business, I have collected a lot of supplies, but don't have much storage space. 2 things I do have a lot of are diaper boxes and fabric, so I decided to put the boxes to good use as storage space, and here is how I did it:

Supplies:
1 box (on hand)
1 yard of fabric (on hand~left over from decorating baby's room)
hot glue gun and about 6 sticks of glue (on hand)
Total cost: $0.00


1. Cut the flaps off of the top of a diaper box, and use the flaps to reenforce the bottom of the box.

2. Place box on fabric so that there is enough on all sides to cover the box sides, with the bottom of the box in the center. If you plan on using the same fabric as the box liner, like I did, then double the fabric.

3. Trace around the bottom of the box. I used a giant sharpie. Then, turn the box onto one side, being careful not to shift the box while doing so:4. Cut a bit to the outside of your lines so that the sides can overlap. Be sure to mark where the handles are if you want to include them in your box. I think on my next one I will make fabric handles after the box is completed, instead of having cut-outs. When you're finished cutting, this is what you'll have:5. Begin gluing. Turn the box upside down and put glue on two corners of the bottom short sides of the box. Carefully place the fabric on so that it is centered and laying smoothly over the bottom of the box.
Then, pull the fabric back and glue around the edges a little at a time. Hot glue dries very quickly, so that is why I use this method. I do about 4-6 inch lines on either side, then smooth the fabric into place, and continue to do this until the bottom is secured.

Move on to the sides, using the same method of gluing a little at a time. I did the small sides next, lining up the handles first, then gluing and smoothing around the edges of the bigger sides a few inches at a time

When you get to the big sides, first fold the extra fabric in and glue making a nice edge. Then, glue this seam onto the overlapped fabric from the short sides. Don't glue any of your fabric to the inside until after adding a liner, if you choose to add one.

6. To add the liner, glue the corners of the inside of the bottom of the box. Be sure to line the fabric up and smooth the center before pressing into the corner glue. Again, start with the short sides, and glue from bottom to top, smoothing as you go. When you get to the long sides, fold excess inside before gluing to the overlap from the short sides. The inside doesn't require as much glue, or as much precision as the outside, unless you plan to display the box. Since I would be using mine for supplies, I just wanted to make sure it was secure. Next, cut the excess from the liner right at the top of the box, being careful not to cut the outside layer of fabric:


7. Glue the remaining fabric from the outside of the box over the liner, trimming any excess. The final product of my labors looked like this:
I cut out the handles on the outside to make it easy to carry, but covered them on the inside, mostly because I was having a hard time how to make it look pretty. Also, because it would keep things stacked to the top from falling out the handle area.

I'm sure there are a lot of different ways this could be done, but this was pretty easy, and only took about 45 minutes total.

Thanks for reading!
Andrea