To new things and old favorites

Anyone who knows me or at least has been out to eat with me knows that I am one picky eater. I order the same foods, I make the same foods, tried and true through and through! But due to Bryce's International Day project I branched out to my Aunt for some help. Bryce chose Greece for his country and I just so happened to have an Uncle that was from Greece. Unfortunately he has passed, but my Aunt was the next best thing. She had oodles of information for us and some great recipes for us to try. The one we went with is called "Koulourakia" or Easter cookies. I was thoroughly amazed at how good they really were. I mean, granted, they're not chocolate chip. But I really liked them!! If you ever feel like a little something different, I would definitely recommend these little treasures.

Koulourakia (Easter Cookies) 5 dozen

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

6 eggs

1/2 cup milk

4 tsp baking powder

8 cups flour

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp allspice

2 tbsp anise

Topping

2 egg yolks (I omitted this)

sesame seeds (I omitted this)

powdered sugar

Cream butter add sugar - mix. Add eggs, milk, vanilla and anise. Combine flower, baking powder, cinnamon and allspice. Mix well. Kneed dough and add additional flour until no longer sticky. Roll into 1 inch balls. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. When cool roll in powdered sugar. If using the egg and seeds: baste cookies with yolk then roll in sesame seeds finish by sprinkling with powdered sugar.

Now with the something new comes tried and true. I have to include my all time favorite recipe - Seven Layer Bars.

Seven Layer Bars

1/4 cup Butter (melted)

1 cup Graham Cracker Crumbs

1 cup Coconut

1 15oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk

1 6oz package Chocolate Chips

1 6oz package Butterscotch Chips

1 cup chopped pecans

Layer in order listed in a 9x13 pan. Press ingredients together. Bake at 350' for 30 minutes.

One word...YUMMY!!

What we've been up to

My goodness time flies when you're having fun! I have been trying desperately to get caught up on orders and to prepare for the Queen Bee Market at the Snap Conference. In the mean time my little ones have been busy as well.

Bryce played in a little Basketball league and he did amazing. He still is a little shy and that equates to a lot of running around. I can't wait until he realizes that he is one amazing young man and takes the bulls by the horn to go after that ball!! Each year he gets closer and closer to that goal :)

A few years ago I dabbled in making these onesies for friends who were expecting. I was asked by my BFF's mom to make one for her friend and I was excited to do it. Took me a few tries to remember how I did it, but I thought it turned out super cute :) I was happy to see that I still had some sewing skills!

I can't believe that one year has passed and Bryce now has his Wolf. Cub scouts has done amazing things for him and I am so thankful for such an amazing program!!

Jayna and Bryce had their first piano recitals and I can't even explain how proud of them I am!! They did an awesome job and I was completely devastated to find out that my camera didn't record Bryce :(

Good thing we'll have another one in a couple of months!!!

The girls had to get to dance right after so they were dressed a little differently than everyone else, but I thought that added to the character of their pieces ;)

And that's a little snippet of what we've been up to.

Well 2 weeks in..how are you doing? I'm down 4.5 lbs :) got to love the beginning of a diet. I know from here on out it's going to be pretty slow, but it helps to have the encouragement of those first few pounds gone. My workout is going fairly well though I still struggle with some of the core exercises.

One that is particularly hard is what my trainer calls the Modified V Sit-up. I hold a 15lb weight and struggle to get to 25 reps. I can feel it not only in my core but my shoulders/arms as well. I made a little video to explain it best, but please be kind seeing it was 5:30 in the morning ;)

WIWW

It seems like forever since I posted a WIWW. December usually looms chaotic at best and if it doesn't involve yarn it falls to the wayside. It is by far the busiest month of the year for me as I'm sure a lot of you can sympathize. Well I'm still digging myself out of December, but I found a couple of days where I actually remembered to take a picture :)

Random day: Errands

cardi - old navy

t-shirt - shade

jeans - gap

scarf/shoes - maurice's

These are my favorite part...clearance for $6.00 at Maurice's. I love them!!

Random day 2: boutique

t-shirt - banana republic

cardi - old navy

jeans - big star

flats - soda

scarf - pleated poppy

Here's to a new year and hopefully a lot more WIWW posts!!

Monday Discoveries

Great Finds To Start Your Week

Monday, Monday it’s almost time, don't be late!

The dash is on to decorate!

Among other things.

Sorry but my rhyming skills are only good for two lines, lol
If Mondays are not usually your favorite day,
I thought I'd make them a little brighter.
Each Monday I post a great new find.
With the help of Etsy and my new addiction Pinterest, of course.

This Monday it’s....The momAgenda Family Planner

 

 

This little calendar has literally changed my life!! I use the calendar on my iphone religiously and I also have a month calendar on my fridge, but there isn't enough space in the boxes to write down all the info for every event. So how does that help out the rest of my family...it doesn't! Now I can fill in one week at a time with all the necessary info and every member in my family (the ones that read, that it) know exactly where they need to be and how long. Who's picking them up and what they need to bring/wear. It fits right on my fridge above the water/ice dispenser so that I can still keep my monthly calendar on the right side. Is was definitely the best $17.00 I've spent in a long time!! Here's the details from their site:

 

The unique momAgenda, week-at-a-view format in a handy magnetic pad

Undated so it's totally flexible

Featuring space for mom and up to four children each day

50 sheets per pad

Size: 9" x 12"

but if I were you I would just head over to momAgenda and take a look :)

Monday Discoveries

Great Finds To Start Your Week

Monday, Monday it’s almost time, don't be late!

The dash is on to decorate!

Among other things.

Sorry but my rhyming skills are only good for two lines, lol
If Mondays are not usually your favorite day,
I thought I'd make them a little brighter.
Each Monday I post a great new find.
With the help of Etsy and my new addiction Pinterest, of course.

This Monday it’s....

 

 

I found this challenge from Home Storage Solutions 101 on Pinterest and it immediately peeked my interest. When I looked at the details I knew it was something I could handle. I have completed week 1 of cleaning off the kitchen cabinets and sink.

 

The first challenge was to keep the sink/counter clean (basically clearing the dishes) at least twice a day. It was super easy til the weekend hit of course, lol. Week 2 is Kitchen Drawers & Kitchen Cabinet Organization. Luckily I have all week for this one...baby steps, baby steps!