Day 25 - green

This dino's green right? My little guy LOVES to ride around the house on this thing, and I think it's adorable too!

Day 24 - inside your bathroom cabinet

This is under the sink. Ugly, right? The left side is supposed to be mine and the right side is supposed to be my man's, but, as you can see, I've sorta taken over both sides. On the left you'll see the jumbled cords to my hair dryer, curling iron, straightener, wave iron, and who knows what else. In the middle is my lonely bottle of developer used for hair dye (I am a license cosmetologist, mmmmmkay?) and on the right is some cotton balls, my retainer in a case (that I still wear once a month - my dad IS a dentist after all...) and some lovely feminine products in the basket. Bet you wanted to know all that didn't ya?!

Day 23 - your shoes

YEP, I wore these today. We went on a mini vay cay (vacation, ya'll) to Mt. Shasta to play in the snow, so what better time to whip out the rain boots? Plus, they make me happy. :)

Day 22 - where you work

Since I'm a stay-at-home mom, our house is pretty much where I work. (Don't go judging - this is just a rental, and if you've read any of my previous posts, you are fully aware that this house was built for someone who loves wood paneling, shag carpet, and terrible wallpaper...not me.)

Day 21 - a fave photo of you

This is not necessarily my FAVE photo of myself, but I do LOVE the mustache. :)

Day 20 - handwriting

My handwriting...on my (not yet finished) grocery list...and the yeast is to make some homemade bread (in case you wondered) because I recently read an article that freaked me out about what's in the bread sold in stores...yeah, no.

Day 19 - something you hate to do

LAUNDRY...well, not the actual loading and cleaning and washing and drying part - it's the folding and putting away part that I hate! But what can ya do?

Day 18 - drink

After some outside playtime with the little guy, I got to relax indoors with my new US Weekly and a Rockstar and a water...oh the excitement!

Day 17 - time



Here is our lovely Jimi Hendrix wall clock...I'm not a fan of this decor, can you tell? Nothing wrong with Hendrix, but, I'd rather not decorate the house with music memorabilia...it was a gift, so I'll have to put up with it for now! (Right? What does one do when you receive a gift for your home that you don't happen to like...? Must you display it?)

Day 16 - something new

Here are a few somethings...picked them up while grocery shopping, of course. Some candles & a cheap frame for a DIY project (which I'll post later!).

Day 15 - phone



Here is our home phone. Interesting, right? I couldn't think of anything else to take a picture of that looked cool and could be considered a "phone"...lol.

Day 14 - heart



Here is the V-day breakfast I made for my Valentine - a banana berry smoothie, heart shaped bacon, and a heart shaped eggs in a basket (or eggs in a hole, whichever you prefer).

Day 13 - blue

This was an early Valentine's Day gift from my mom - a peacock blanket. I <3 anything and everything peacock, and now I can (literally) wrap myself up in it!! :)

Rainy day craft (or i-just-wanna-make-something craft)

So, I love my crafts. They don't always turn out the way I'd hope/expect, but sometimes, they do. I'm pretty sure I saw this online somewhere (or I just want an excuse for why I'm crafting with toilet paper rolls...). ANYHOO...this one is pretty self-explanatory. I'm sure there are all kinds of things you can do with the cardboard from the inside of a roll of toilet paper, but this is what I did with it...

HOOTIE-HOO! (I'm an owl, I hope you can tell.)

There ya have it! A (practically) free craft that is quick, easy, and fun. Maybe you won't be winning any crafting awards (is there such a thing?) with this, but hey, it's a great thing to do with your kids, right?!

Day 12 - inside your closet

Don't stare too long - you might see something that you shouldn't! I have to admit, my closet is mostly full of shoes and purses...my clothes usually end up shoved into a drawer in my dresser. (Organization is not my strong suit...obv!) But at least there are, like, 3 blouses on hangers, right? Do I get a LITTLE credit?

Day 11 - makes you happy

What makes me happy? My son, first and foremost! Here he is with his dog, Gypsy. They were standing on the couch & looking out the window waiting for Dada to get home! Makes me melt <3

Day 10 - self portrait

Eh...not the greatest pic, but hey, it's me! I took this while sitting on the floor doing my makeup. YUP!

Day 9 - front door

Gorgeous, right? It's ok, I don't think so either. See, we're living in a rented house that is stuck in the 60s or 70s. Notice the wood paneling on the wall? Oh, and that thing on the floor? That's to hide the hideous BROWN SHAG CARPETING...and the scratch pad for the cats hanging from the doorknob. WELP...there's our very lovely front door. FINGERS CROSSED, by the end of this year, we'll be back in SoCal living in an updated house. :) Till then, our eyes will all suffer as I post pictures of our humble abode...

Day 8 - sun

This is SORT OF the sun...went grocery shopping and the sky was beautiful, but the sun decided to hide. Took this pic with my old school cell phone. Oh yeah! :)

Day 7 - button

Here's more than just a few buttons...grabbed these out of my craft supplies. Buttons are GREAT to keep on hand for spontaneous crafting impulses. :)

Day 6 - dinner

Seriously, this was my dinner tonight. A little full from pigging out on our leftovers from our Super Bowl party, so I had a handful of these along with some slices of brie cheese (yum!). I found these at the grocery store a few days ago and hadn't tried them yet. But, let me tell you, they are DELISH!

See, I really did eat them for dinner. Straight from the bag to my hand to my mouth. They are so cute and tasty, how could you not?

Got company? Quick & easy recipe!

A few years ago, a bunch of us girls were hanging out (actually...I don't really remember what we were doing or celebrating, but whatev!) and one of my friends brought a new dip she'd made. In a word? HEAVEN. Another word? ADDICTING. Good thing she made a double batch, because I pretty much planted my hungry little self (ok, hungry large self) in front of the dip and pita chips and went at it! It is THAT good. So, as a Super Bowl gift to you (does anyone give gifts for the Super Bowl? Well, they should) I am sharing this recipe. I had to beg, plead, bribe, and cry for this recipe, which finally landed in my email inbox one fine day. Was I excited! I've made this for all kinds of gatherings, and it is always a hit. (My advice: keep all the ingredients on hand always, in case you are ever surprised with some visitors and want to impress! The only ingredient that is fresh is the cilantro, which I usually always have in the fridge anyway...and keep those almonds in the freezer - they will last forever.)

More Addicting Than Crack Dip (<-- I named it, just for fun) :)

3 roasted red peppers (I buy the kind in a jar)
1 cup cilantro
1 1/2 cups blanched almonds, roughly chopped
1 T tomato paste
1 T red wine vinegar
2 t minced garlic

Toss everything into a food processor or blender until as chunky as you'd like. (We like it chunky!) Put into the fridge to let it chill out for a bit, then you're ready to serve it! It goes great with pita chips, but I've started serving it with raw veggies too. Hope you enjoy it!! (And make a double batch - you'll be happy you did!)

Once the little guy wakes up from his nap, I'm going to make a few batches of this, and I'll post a picture. (Don't want the food processor to wake him up!)

Although I'm not a football fan, I wouldn't feel like a proper American if I didn't partake in the Super Bowl festivities today. We are having some family over to celebrate and watch the game - any bets on who will win? I'm just excited for the commercials! :)

*UPDATE:  Here is a pic I took of the dip that I made tonight for our Super Bowl shindig - I didn't have enough almonds to make a double batch, and boy am I sorry!! Everyone loved it (as promised) and it was the first thing to run out. I know you will love it too! If not, you have no heart. (Just kidding. But really, you probably have no heart if you don't like it.)

Sorry for the awful picture, and I know it doesn't look too appealing, but TRUST ME! YUM-O-LICIOUS!!

Day 5 - 10am

Ok, so this is 10:05am, but close enough. Just got back from grabbing some groceries for our Super Bowl shindig, stopped at Starbucks which is a treat! At 10am I was checking email, blogging, and enjoying some COFFEE!

Day 4 - a stranger

Ok, maybe I took a little liberty on this one. I have to admit, we stayed around our house all day, and I encountered no strangers (other than the wild animal kind). See if you can find the "stranger" in this picture. :)

Day 3 - hands



I <3 everything about this little guy's hands - even the dirt under his fingernails from our outdoor adventure this morning!

CRAFT TIME! Got 5 minutes and $13?

If you don't know by now, I love me some crafts. (Ok, a lot of crafts.) What makes a craft idea even BETTER is when it's inexpensive, and can be completed fairly easily/quickly. (The quick crafts I like to call "nap hour crafts" because I can squeeze them in when the little guy is napping! Muahaha...naughty mommy...she should be doing laundry or scrubbing the toilets or something useful like that...) ANYHOO, I found this idea a little while ago online, but I didn't save the link or the picture of it. Since it's pretty easy to do, I managed to find all the supplies needed between Walmart and the dollar store.
May I present to you...THE CUTEST DRY ERASE BOARD EVER!

What you'll need:
A collage frame, like the one I found at Walmart (find one with as many openings as you will need - for me, I needed 8) - $10
Scrapbook paper (or any pretty paper will do - even cards will work!) - on sale 4/$1 (I needed 8, so $2 total)
scissors - free, unless you don't have them already...
dry erase markers (found these at the dollar store - oh yeah!) - $1

As I'm sure you can figure out from the picture, all you gotta do is pick which paper you'd like in which spot, cut it to fit in the frame, place it inside, and voila! Instant (adorable) dry erase board. I decided to use mine as a sort of schedule for our week - whether it be to write down our dinner menus on, or to write any activities that we have planned, doctor's appointments, whatev. Don't forget to hang it where the whole family can see it!

Other ideas:
- You could create a chore board to write down each family members' chores
- You could create a weekly menu
- Use as a sort of Post-it note and write down things to remember throughout the day/week
- Write a daily quote, something that inspires you or makes you smile!
- Use to keep track of workouts or as a food journal (Hey, since everyone can see it, it will help to keep you accountable!)

The options are endless! It is super easy to do, pretty inexpensive, it's functional, and best of all, CUTE! :)

Day 2 - words



Second book of The Hunger Games trilogy - these are my FAVORITE words right now. If you haven't read these books, get on it! I may (or may not) be ignoring the laundry just so I can read...is that just awful? :)

Day 1 - your view today

Today was unseasonably warm, so the little guy & I headed outside. I took this pic while standing in our front yard - the mountains are part of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest.

February photo journal

Happy February everyone! Can't believe the first month of 2012 is already over. *sigh* Time just seems to go by so fast these days. This morning as I was browsing the internet, I came across this really neat idea - it's a picture-a-day photo journal for the month of February. The goal is to take 1 picture every day for the entire month. What are you supposed to take a picture of? Well, whatever it says next to the # of the day that it is... for example, today, February 1, is "your view today". Make sense? Simple, right? And I've always liked the idea of taking a picture every day for a certain length of time - it's like a picture story of your month! So, I'm going to try it! (Hopefully it works better than my 1 month to an organize home project...it was a nice idea, right?!) I'll be posting the pictures I take each day, and feel free to share yours too! I'd love to see them. :)

A few of these scare me just a little...say, #4, 10, 12, 19, 21, and 24?