Cream Cheese Lemon Bars

I made these because of three reasons.  They looked amazing on pinterest.  I had everything in the house to make them with.  We were celebrating my brother-in-laws birthday and I know that he is a fan of lemon bars.

Not a fan.  I wasn't impressed with how they went together and then I wasn't a fan of the taste.  I'll be trying another recipe for his real birthday in a few weeks.  Hopefully it will be better than this one.  One the plus side, my 8 year old loves it.  He's more than welcome to finish off the pan. :0)

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

I was able to get a Bountiful Basket last weekend and it came with blueberries.  I'm not a big fan but my husband is.  So to Pinterest I went.  I found 5-6 recipes and looking to see what I had in the house I decided to try these.  Mary Lou's Muffins.  We are BIG fans of lemon in this house so I figured I couldn't lose.

I've never made muffins with real blueberries before.  I usually just buy the mixes that say to just add water, but I'm all about trying to expand my craft of cooking.

OMG!!!  These are the best muffins that I have ever tasted!  No joke!  They just melt in your mouth and the flavor... AMAZING!

I have no idea what the lemon verbena is that the recipe called for but I had some fancy paste that my mom gave me when I was looking for lemon flavoring for the Mountain Dew Cupcakes that is used.  I really think it made the difference. 

I happen to have one more package of blueberries that I was wanting to try another new recipe with but they just might end up being in more muffins.  :0)

Inside-Out Lasanga

Here is a recipe that I use my Meat Sauce with.

You will need:

1 package (12 oz) uncooked noodles.  We usually use bow-tie but we had shells.  It was pretty good with the shells.
1 serving Meat Sauce, thawed
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1 Tablespoon Italian Seasoning
4 eggs
1 container (16 oz) cottage cheese.  I always use cottage cheese instead of ricotta when it calls for it.  You may use which ever you like.
2 cups (8 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup (2 oz) grated Parmesan cheese
1 container (8 oz) cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black peper
Dash of nutmeg.  This really makes it!  :0)



Preheat oven to 350*  Cook pasta according to package directions

Mix your meat sauce, tomato sauce and Italian seasoning.  Set aside.

Lightly beat eggs. Add cheeses, salt, pepper and nutmeg.  Mix well.

To assemble, put pasta into the bottom of a 9x13 pan.  Top with meat mixture.  Top with cheese mixture.  Bake uncovered 1 hour or until cheese is set and slightly browned.

This is a good make ahead recipe.  Just pull it out and let it come to room temp, about 30 min, then bake the same way but add 10-15 minutes.

Valentine Cupcakes

I am a sucker for cupcakes.  You can eat one and not feel like you are eating the whole cake.  But it sometimes is hard to stick to just one.

Another Pinterest recipe.  I got it here.  I used the Marshmallow frosting from here.  This frosting is just like my mom's 7 minute frosting.  So good!

I wanted to take some to our Sister's night this weekend.  Of course we got so full on all the other goodies that we had there that we forgot all about the cupcakes til we were leaving.  One of the sisters had left so I had one up for grabs.  Big mistake.  I'll be taking a bunch to her today. :0)  They were a big hit.  I will be making more when it really is Valentines day.

Valentine Nails

I love all the ideas that you can get from Pinterest lately and I wanted something for Valentine's.  I thought this one up myself and I wish they had turned out a little better than they did.

And I just have to say how much I love this nail polish.  It really is no chip and it lasts over a month.  So wonderful. :0)

Wreath Making

 I went on vacation with some amazing friends this last weekend and I took stuff to craft.  Thanks to some willing friends and some fun times, we made some really cute wreaths.

Tara and Steph.  Love these ladies!

 This the the wreath that Steph made.

 This one is mine.

 Tara didn't realize that we were making flag wreaths and wrapped her wreath in all white so she made this.

 Love her flowers!  Some are from what I found from pinterest and some are all Tara.  LOVE it.  Now I'm going to make me a spring wreath.

I love this little white one.  I took a picture so I could remember how to do it later.

Love how they all turned out and I love crafting with friends.  I think I want to make a craft night with these ladies a monthly thing. :0)

Valentine Wreath

I wanted a little bit more than just the wreath.

Not quite happy with the placement of my "word".  Glad I make these things myself. :0)

I don't have much when it comes to Valentine decorations.  But I have become a Pinterest freak and combined a few different things I saw to make this.  It took forever to cut out all that felt, and then pinning them on... what a job!  I tried 3 different ways of gluing the felt on before I gave up and spent 99 cents on pins and pinned them on.  Then I was running out so I had to move them around a lot and then I worried that my wreath was going to come apart.  I made that.

All in all, this project cost me $2.  That's right.  I paid a dollar for the foam to make the wreath and a dollar for the pins to pin the felt on with.  Pretty awesome!  Found the ideas from my new favorite blog Nap Time Crafts.  Go check it out. :0)

Dr Pepper Cupcakes

Can I just say... These are so much better than the Mt. Dew ones.  But I am not a Mt. Dew fan and I'm a big DP drinker.  So these were right up my alley. :0)

I love when I have everything I need to make recipes.  It makes it much easier to try them.  But the frosting, I didn't have everything.  Some, I didn't even know what they were.  So I mixed and matched some of my own things and I love how they turned out.  So did everyone else in my house.

They disappeared much faster than the other cupcakes and I am making more of these this week.  I just hope they last longer than 3 days.  :0)

Got the idea from Pinterest.  Where else.  Check it out here.

Menu Board

I know that I have two other posts that need to be written on and completed but I had to show you what I have been working on all morning.

Do you know how hard it is to craft with a 2 year old?  She's not even two yet and I'm ready for her to be 3.

I forget how much I love to paper craft.  We have started doing a weekly menu in our family and I can not even tell you how much I love it!  I pull all the freezer stuff I need for the week out at the beginning of the week and it is all ready for me to cook.  Just need to pick which one to make.

My husband doesn't like having a set day on what we make so I have numbered them instead.  Then we can just pick which one we want that day.

I need a few more magnets and I want to get a notepad to put on my shopping list with a clip but it's good enough to go on the board.

I will eventually get a different board for this but I like to work with what I have.

I love Pinterest.  I got this idea from here.

I also did this from Pinterest today to.  It's my visiting teaching message for the month.  Now that we don't get the Ensign and Friend anymore this will be great!

New Crafts

Thanks to my good friend Steph and her need to clean out her craft room, I have some new crafts and projects to do.  Some will be put away til next Christmas and some will get going once I'm done with all the new baby things I'm making for friends.

This she had done already and it describes me so well I had to have it!

This sign I got from my Mother for Christmas.  My brother Gerald is in the Air Force and I love this saying.  Now I just need to find a better place to put it.  I'm afraid it will fall on a head if the bookcase gets bumped.

New Years Treats

7-layer bean dip and Roasted Red Pepper cheese dip.  We were so overwhelmed with dips on New Years but it was so worth it!

I made my own re-fried beans and I could have just eaten them with a spoon!  Add to that home-made guacamole and you have me in heaven!

This Roasted Red Pepper dip is a recipe from my Sister-in-law and my husband and I will eat the whole thing ourselves.  Chips, crackers, bread, you name it, we eat it with it.  Now I'm hungry. :0)

Hero

I just had to share this.  My brother is in the Air Force and my baby got this shirt for Christmas.  LOVE IT!

A Fun Call

I got a call last Friday from my Aunt who had a friend over who loved my Kindle cover.  She asked if I would make her one.  Here is what I did.

LOVE IT!  I love this material.  You'll notice its the same material that I made my purse out of this summer.  I hope that she likes it as much as I do.  I loved that someone liked what I did and wanted one.  Most things I make no one but me likes. :0)