Growing up, my mom always loved to tell me about her “ripple theory”. Throw a pebble in a pond and it may not seem like much. But the impact creates ripples, and those ripples really travel. My mom is wise. I believed her then and I still do today. So of course I was thrilled…
Halloween Parade, Candy Haul & Post Mortem Projections
Another year – another fun night of Trick or Treating. This year the candy was exceptionally plentiful in my community. After two years of more sober candy gifting (cheaper candy, few full size bars) I take it as a sign of the economy improving. As far as I am concerned, it’s as much a leading…
Vanilla Nutella Cupcakes: Gluten Free!
Don’t you love those recipes that allow you to take a box of plain ol cake mix, and turn it into so much more? This could not be easier! Ingredients: Vanilla Cake Mix & extra ingredients to prepare mix Nutella Vanilla Extra Egg Start with the box of your favorite cake mix. Since I am…
Sock Toy Tutorial: Lost Baby Sock & Bootie Monsters
Yesterday I posted this picture of some cute handmade toys for Wordless Wednesday. Today I’m sharing how to make them. It’s really very easy! All you need is some felt, an old baby bootie and a loner sock. If you have children, and a washing maching, odds are you have most of this stuff in…
Cooking with Cabernet Flour: Blackmarket Bakery
This past week I was treated to a Top Chef-like experience when I joined my foodie friend Marla from Family Fresh Cooking for a private cooking class at Blackmarket Bakery in Irvine California. Our class gave us the chance to experiment with Cabernet Flour, making both sweet and savory dishes. Blackmarket is an award winning…
Laundry Room Makeover: The Reveal!
I took too long to share this. I really did. It’s just that I spend so much time in this tiny room and usually it’s up to my eyeballs in dirty socks and jeans and soaking stained tees (ie: not with a camera in hand). Our laundry room is comically small for the size of…
Gluten Free Breakfast Bars? You Bet!
I was inspired to whip up a batch of wheat free breakfast bars today after reading the breakfast bar post by my pal Joya over at JoyaBaby. My recipe follows some of the same path as hers, but without wheat flour. I have substituted a gluten free baking mix and almond meal for flour. Obviously…
How To Make Tinker Bell’s House from The Great Fairy Rescue
Did you believe in Fairies when you were little? Fairy fever has swept over us in the USA. Tinker Bell, a long beloved supporting character in the Disney pantheon is enjoying her time in the spotlight. The third Tinker Bell movie in the series is Tinker Bell and The Great Fairy Rescue. It’s a film…
80’s Birthday Party Ideas & Presents
If you are going to have an awesome 80’s birthday party, I suggest you have some awesome crafty blogger friends like my pals Carrie from This Mama Makes Stuff and Kelly from Just Spotted OC and According to Kelly. You may not recognize them here in their “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun/Papa Don’t Preach” get…
6 Yrs Old: What He’s Into Now…
Happy 6th Birthday Boyfluential! It’s been quite a year. You’ve grown and grown till I thought I’d have to raise the roof to keep you in the house. You’ve learned all kinds of things, made new friends, and challenged me to think and see the world in brand new ways. You’re always a source of…