My Top 5 Blog Posts.

I know I'm not a professional blogger or even considered "good" when it comes to blogging...I'm a totally sporadic blogger who had visions and ideas of this blog that just didn't manifest how I thought they would {no biggie}.

Regardless...I still enjoy checking my "stats" once in a blue moon and am totally surprised by the amount of views and visits that this little idea of a blog has gotten.

What really makes me chuckle though is what by "stat" numbers {post views, comments, Pinned projects, etc} are considered my best/most popular posts...wouldn't you know they are all the ones that I put little to hardly any effort into, or they didn't cost hardly a handful of loose change to produce!

Here's the rundown of my top projects...

no. 5
F-U-N Addressing Cards...  If I had a dollar for each notification I receive when this little things gets "Pinned", momma would be sporting a nice new pair {or 2 or 3} of Frye boots this fall.


no. 4
Fire Cracker Hair Bows... really they were a last minute "whip up", but apparently have been a hit.


no. 3
Mod Podge Fun {Pretty Little Notebooks}... practically free to make {they are pretty cute if I do say so myself}.


no. 2
Z-Gallerie Inspired Eye Chart Artwork... seriously a few minutes on the computer.


and...

no 1.
Made Fall Fashion {Girls Boot Socks}... made from the scraps of a sweater and a few buttons on hand - they were pretty cute {maybe it's the chubby knees I love}.


A big "THANK YOU" to you who have featured, Pinned, and shared these posts!  Have a great week!

"Tip" it over! Pineapple upside-down

A friend of mine stopped over the other day and spotted a pineapple {I had just picked up at the store} sitting on the counter like this...

She inquired if we had been reading too many Amelia Bedelia books around here...

After explaining why the pineapple was upside down she stated she had "never heard of that".  So in case anyone else has never heard of this little tip, I will share.

I first heard of this "tip" years ago from a relative...

When you buy a pineapple, they're typically shelved upright {with the plant "spikey" things upright}, and all the juice settles toward the bottom of the pineapple.  So, when you get home, {before you slice your pineapple} tip it upside down for a while so the juice can flow back throughout the pineapple.

Odd tip?  Maybe.

Does it really work?  I don't know {it's just something I do}.

Easiest Muffins EVER! {Pumpkin Spice Muffins}

It's no secret that when it comes to cooking or baking I like to keep things as simple as possible.

My dear friend shared this muffin recipe with me the other day, and it is so simple and such a hit with my family that I have already made it twice in 3 days! {Plus, it has pumpkin...which is good for you.}

I'm sure it's posted a bazillion and one times on the internet, but I'm going to share it for the bazillion and second time...{because it's completely new to me and maybe just maybe someone out there is like me...they might not be the type to search for recipes, but if they "happen" upon one they may be interested}

Pumpkin Spice Muffin Recipe...

Ingredients:
1 box - Spice Cake mix
1 can - Pumpkin

Prep:
{preheat oven to 350}
{spray muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray}

To Make:
Empty contents of dry Spice Cake mix into a bowl {large enough for mixing}
**DO NOT prepare cake mix {meaning don't add eggs, oil, water, etc}

 Add the can of pumpkin

Stir the two ingredients thoroughly

**at first in stirring, you may be tempted to add a bit of water or something...DON'T! Just give it a minute of stirring and it will mix beautifully

Spoon mixture into muffin pan

Bake for 20 minutes...and done!

OPTIONAL: sprinkle with chocolate chips before baking
{Don't use milk chocolate chips like I accidentally did though - they don't bake well}

How easy is that!?  Bonus...hardly any clean up!

Happy baking!

Apples. Apples. Applesauce!

How quickly does one family consume 15 pounds of apples?

Apparently in this house it only takes approximately three days! OK...so we ate five pounds of Honey Crisp apples, made two 9x9 apple crisps, and turned nearly all the remaining into applesauce.

On Saturday we went to the apple orchard and came home tired from a day of family fun with three five pound bags of apples.

Yesterday the girls and I made homemade applesauce and the house smelled heavenly!

If you follow my blog you know I only do "simple" when it comes to the kitchen, cooking, and baking.

Looking for a simple way to make homemade applesauce?

Here's what we did...Simple Homemade Crockpot Applesauce...

*Wash, Peel, Core, and Slice apples
  {we used 11 apples and it nearly filled 3/4 of the crockpot}

*Throw the apples in the crockpot...

*Add a small amount of water {about 1/4 of a cup}

*Sprinkle with cinnamon...

*Turn crockpot on low and let cook until desired consistency is reached {be sure to stir occasionally}

Sweeten if desired...

And...what you get is a small container of applesauce...it's so much better than any store bought though!

How easy is that?  For me the hardest part was washing the crockpot afterwards {hehe..}.

Easy Peazy Cakes! Birthday Cake Round-up

This past weekend my son turned one {so bittersweet}.

I discovered a frosted cake donut works awesome in place of a cake for the birthday kiddo.

It was much easier for him to pick up {less crumbly}.

We threw him a little party with the family...nothing over the top...{like I did once upon a time with our first child...I may have some explaining to do someday}.

What I did do is have three different cakes for this fine little boy {OK, for his guests}.  Yes, three!  All homemade, nothing store bought.  This may be a shocker {for those of you not familiar, I am not a girl of the "kitchen"}, I actually made two of the three cakes!

They were soooo good, and soooo easy!

My grandma made and brought a chocolate cake {bless her heart...I have to have chocolate at a birthday party}...by far the easiest cake for me since I didn't have to make it.

The best {and by best I mean first completely consumed} was a homemade ice cream cake.  I have made these before by crushing oreos, and layering in a pan with ice cream, fudge and so forth {not a fan because the oreos get so messy}.  This version though, I could do over and over again!  I just saw it on a blog the other night {and even commented on it}, but cannot find it again for the life of me...my good friend said she's seen it all over Pinterest also.

This is the one and only picture I was able to get before it was all gone!  It was a hit!

Here's what I did for mine...

Ingredients:
2 boxes of 12 count ice cream sandwiches - we used chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches
1 large container of cool whip
1 bag of Heath bar crumbles/pieces {found near the baking chips}

To Make:
Use a 9x13 pan {I used a glass baking dish}
Unwrap and line bottom of pan with ice cream sandwiches {covering bottom - I had to cut some in half}
Cover sandwiches with a layer of cool whip {like frosting a cake}
Unwrap and add another layer of ice cream sandwiches
Cover with another lay of cool whip
Top with Heath bar crumbles

Cover and keep in freezer until ready to serve.

This one was a hit with the hubby...Pineapple Angel Food Cake...Using only 2 ingredients!!!

Now that is my kind of baking!  I saw this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Sew Many Ways, at almost midnight on Friday night and decided I had to make it for the party.  

If I keep finding recipes and simple ideas like these, there could be hope for me in the kitchen yet!

Don't forget my giveaway that ends this evening...

Have a great Monday!

oh happy day {agave iced mocha}!!!

I have a total weakness for mochas. Hot or cold I love them both. However, I know they are NOT good for my waist line or my wallet.


So...I have been searching, making, and trying {for a while} several recipes that I've found online. Some were "ehhhh", some were "mmmm", and a couple were "oh my goodness! Awesome!". Unfortunately the ones that were awesome had a lot of sugar, cream, and chocolate syrup {of course they tasted awesome}.


I don't buy/keep cream on hand. I don't want to use heavy amounts of caramel or chocolate syrup. And, I didn't want to be loading sugar into my mocha {I know many claim that agave is no better, but I personally prefer it to white sugar}. So my mission was to create a "healthier" {less unhealthy} option.


This is what I came up with...


Directions/Recipe for Iced Mocha {it's so simple I'm not even sure one could call it a recipe}:


Ingredients:
*coffee ice cubes (pour coffee into ice cube tray and freeze)
*almond milk (or any milk)
*natural unsweetened Hershey's cocoa
*agave nectar


To make:
{I use a bullet type blender and have found adding the ingredients in this order mixes best}
1. fill cup half way with coffee ice cubes (about 7 or 8 cubes)
2. add milk to top of coffee cubes
3. add 1.5 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa
4. add not quite 1/2 tablespoon of agave nectar (I totally eye ball it)
5. cover and blend until all ice cubes are blended (add milk as needed if too thick)
6. add a straw and enjoy!

     

      


I'm sure this would be heavenly topped with whipped cream and a drizzle of ooey gooey chocolate or caramel sauce - but the goal is to keep it on the less unhealthy side.