Art-A-Whirl, 2013

Yes, again, I've been MIA.  

I have a good reason this time, though.  This year, I'll be participating in Art-a-Whirl 2013 at the Waterbury Building in NE MPLS. 

"Presented by the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association (NEMAA), Art-A-Whirl is the largest open studio tour in the country. It’s a great opportunity to tour private artist studios and galleries, connect with the artists, and purchase original artwork. Art-A-Whirl takes place annually in Northeast Minneapolis, the third weekend of May. This event is free and open to the public. "

All of my Eli & Ellie inventory will be selling there, as well as a few new items such as Minnesota onsies, cards, totes and bibs. Other E&E inventory will include pin cushions, bonnets, rice warmers, scarves and flower pins.

Our building will have an opening reception on Friday.  Throughout the weekend, there will be a beer truck, food truck and bands playing inside and outside of our building. Who doesn't love that?

Come down and enjoy! 

 

 

AMDRO, from BZZAngent

Recently I began participating over at Bzz Agent.  I am absolutely in love with Bzz Agent, and being able to try new products (for FREE might I add.) 

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Bzz Agent picked me to be a part of the AMDRO Power Flex Pest and Weed control campaign.  I am thrilled to try all 4 of the cartridges (interior pest, exterior pest, lawn safe weed killer, and weed and grass killer.) 

Why am I so excited about this one?  We own a home that was built in 1906.  Therefore, we are susceptible to all sorts of pests, and the previous owner of this home did not in any way take care of the lawn and landscaping.  We have a lot of messes to clean up, which can be incredibly overwhelming.  I'm excited to see if AMDRO Power Flex can help us clean things up even quicker and easier. 

I will be updating with photos to show progress of areas around our house.  Currently we are dealing with major centipede & spider issues in our unfinished basement.  (Eeeek!)  As well as ants in our main story.  We struggle with weeds basically everywhere, you know, besides the area in our back yard where the previous owner dumped dirt on top of his cement driveway instead of removing it.  Sigh.... 

Anyway, here are a few areas that I am concerned about.  I can't bring myself to take photos of the bugs downstairs.  Just a little to gross for me...

This is everything that was sent to me in the mail (FREE!!) From Bzz Agent!  So excited! 

Thanks AMDRO & BZZ Agent!! Can't wait to update you guys on the results!  

Recipe Monday

{Bruschetta Chicken & Greens}

Ingredients: 

Chicken

2-3 boneless chicken breasts

1 T. olive oil

1T balsamic vinegar 

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. fresh ground pepper 

Bruschetta 

2 medium tomatoes, diced

1/2 a medium white or red onion diced

1T balsamic vinegar 

s&p to taste 

4-5 leaves of fresh basil, cut into small pieces 

Also...

fresh greens or lettuce

Cheese of your choice (I used diced provolone) 

And I used a little bit of cut up cooked bacon (because you know, we can't have it be TOO healthy.) ;)

I would have topped with diced avocado as well, but ours went bad fast. 

Directions: 

Marinade chicken breasts in olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper for as long as you can.  I usually put them in a bag with marinade frozen over night and throughout the next day.  If they are already thawed, marinade for a few hours. 

Cook chicken in oven, grill or in pan on stove. 

Lay chicken on a bed of greens with cheese and other toppings.  Top chicken with bruschetta (let some of the juice from Bruschetta drip onto your salad as dressing.)   

Enjoy!

Menu Monday: 

M- Chicken Lo Mein, wontons

T- Santa Fe Chicken Sandwiches, chips & guac

W- Baked Ravioli, roasted zucchini and rolls

Th- Beef and rice, glazed carrots, crescents

F- Baked tacos

S- Nachos

Su- Family night (eating out or ordering in)

Baking: cake batter cookies with chocolate chips

 

 

WIWW

What

I

Wore
Wednesday

Here we are... my first WIWW in months!  

I've been challenging myself to dig deep into my closet and find new outfits with the clothes that I already have.  It's been really fun as it's starting to warm up here in Minnesota. 

This is what I cam up with last week...

Linking up to The Pleated Poppy
(Sorry dear, the button code won't work today for some reason?)

Shirt- Target, 75% off for $3.50 

Maroon Skinnies- Marshalls for $8 

Shoes- Minnetonkas, birthday gift from my sister-in-law. 

{Photo from my friend Kaitlin}

How cute is my daughter?!

This is probably one of the few times you'll 

get a peak at a photo of her.  

Jacket- Old navy 

Scarf- Minneapolis Farmers Market, Mothers day gift from my husband

Gray t-shirt- Target

Jeans- American Eagle (very, very old...so old that I have no idea what style they are.) 

Shoes- Target 

{Can you see that my 1 year old is attached at my hip?} 
Denim shirt- Marshall's 
Skirt- Given to me by my friend Tess
Belt- Forever 21
Shoes- Minnetonkas given to me by my sister in law. 



Have a good rest of the week!

Recipe Monday

{Chicken Lo Mein}

I've been having some mad cravings, like, pregnant woman cravings for Chicken Lo Mein.(Fear not, I am one out of almost all of my friends that is not pregnant.)   
One of my favorite things to do is order in Chinese with my husband on date nights.  Since we are on a tight budget, I decided to find an affordable recipe to feed my craving rather than spend a bunch of our entertainment funds on take out.  

Lo and behold, I found an amazing recipe!  My kids even asked for seconds (you'd never guess a 3 and 1 year old would love lo mein!)We loved it so much that I'm planning on making it again this week!  

I serve it along with homemade wontons. (cream cheese inside wonton wrappers, lightly salted and quickly fried in canola oil) 

{Go HERE to see the recipe} 

Menu Monday: 
Monday: Fajitas, guac and chips
Tuesday: Bruschetta chicken, cheesy potatoes, salad

Wednesday: Taco salads
Thursday: Grilled chicken salads bread sticks
Friday:  Chicken & rice, broccoli & rolls
Saturday L: Tomato soup and grilled cheese
Saturday D: Spaghetti and meatballs, salads and breadsticks

Sunday L:Family lunch after church (we usually get the $10 meal deal at McDonalds- 20 chicken nuggets, 2 large fries and 2 sodas.)

Sunday D: BLT's & chips    

Recipe Monday

{Potato Soup}

We made this for dinner on a rainy, cold Minnesota spring day.  It was perfect!  Even my girls asked for seconds. 

I had a recipe at one point, but lost it.  I searched for one similar, but just couldn't find one.  So, I took a chance and made one up on my own.  

It turned out so good that I had to post it ahead of time. 

This is how I did it...

{Ingredients} 

 4-5 large potatoes, peeled and cubed 

1 cooking onion, chopped 

3-4 garlic cloves, minced 

5. cups of chicken broth (or prepare bullion ahead) 

3T butter 

1 cup of milk

1 cup of cream (or 3T of cream cheese if you don't have cream) 

S&P to taste 

Garnish:

chopped cooked bacon, green onions chopped, cheddar cheese

{directions} 

Melt your butter in a stock pot, add onions and garlic and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.  Add chicken broth and potatoes and cook until potatoes are soft (about 30 minutes)lower the heat and add the cream and milk.  Mash your potatoes, or continue to cook for a few minutes, then puree.  

Serve hot and garnish with bacon, green onions and cheddar.  

Enjoy!

Tutorial Tuesday

{Barbie Clothes} 

After making some jersey skirts for both of my girls, my oldest daughter asked me if I would make some clothes for her Barbies.  I thought to myself, "That can't be hard or time consuming."  I was totally right, and I had a lot of fun with it.  

After making a few of my own patterns for Barbie, and only a few turning out mildly successful, I turned to Pinterest (ahh, pinterest) for some inspiration.  I came across this awesome blog that has a bunch of great Barbie clothing tutorials.  

Here are a few photos of the 

finished clothes that I made. 

See how I made the dress HERE 

at Craftiness is Not Optional.