Ribbons and Bows...

After a very chaotic Christmas Holiday (yes, I know it's April, but I'm still recovering), I decided that I needed a way to organize all of my wrapping supplies which are quite abundant during that time of year. I am in charge every year of purchasing all of the grandchildren gifts from the amazing  Pegasus which results in approximately 50 gifts, 10 rolls of wrapping paper, a minimum of 3 rolls of tape, multiple pairs of lost scissors, and a very frazzled me. So I came up with this.....

Well actually I borrowed the plans from this website, with only a few modifications. The hubs did all the physical stuff and I painted. I just love having a place to organize all my wrapping stuff. And it sits so nicely in my crafting corner of Adam's office which I stole borrowed...

I store all of my fabrics, scrap book supplies, computer stuff, paints, office supplies, my bag full of gift bags (yes, I save them), and any other general crafting stuff! What ya think?

Meet Max!

I made it home with our new puppy!! He did fantastic, even on the airplane. Never even made a peep. He already sleeps through the night in his kennel and hasn't had a single accident yet. We feel really lucky to have such a good pup, especially since we got him so unexpectedly. So cue the gratuitous puppy pics. Feel free to skip this post if you're able to resist this adorable face. Meet Max everybody...

I Love my chew toy!!! 

How can you resist that face?!?!

I've already learned that the bed is my favorite snuggling spot!!

I especially like to bury my face under the covers and sleep like a human.

And here he is playing with his rope. He LOOOOOVES it..

Our New Addition...

Look who is coming home with us this coming weekend....

He's a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel that my grandfather surprised me with. He got her from a friend of his who is a breeder. You can see her website here. I'm going to pick him up on Friday!! Name still undecided...got any ideas?? Here's one more look...

Here's hoping Macy doesn't try to eat him :) It's definitely gonna be an adjustment for our little queeny...

 

What's For Dinner?

As a newlywed wife coming straight off a ramen noodle and cereal diet in college, the task of preparing dinner for my food-lovin husband was more than a little scary for me. Add that fear on top of my OCD personality and we were left with quite a dilemma. My solution? A menu board. A way for me to stay organize, grocery shop efficiently, and please the hubby's belly. I knew that I needed a plan for the week, I wanted Adam's input on the meals, and I needed a way to stay organized with all the details of meal planning such as remembering to pull out the frozen chicken to de-thaw while I'm still in my 5am coma,  and actually turning on the crock-pot once you have placed items in it, etc.  (Holy run-on sentence!! ) 
Here's what I came up with...

I designed this little baby using binder clips, an old canvas (flipped over), some ribbon, card stock, and some index cards. All things I had lying around the house, which is a major plus. It sits on our kitchen counter, where I can glance at it every day before I leave for work.

We choose our meals on Sunday out of my recipe books, I write the meal down on strips of index cards and attach them to the day of the week, I then pull the recipes from by cookbooks and place them in the "Recipe" folder to be easily accessible during the week while I'm brewing up our supper.

So far this system has saved me lots of headaches and helped me to feel quite productive in the kitchen. It also gives Adam a lot of input, since he does have to eat the crap food delights I prepare. Though we don't always stick perfectly to the menu, I always know what ingredients I have on hand and can cook on the weekend if we happened to skip it during the week. I am going to start posting some of my favorite recipes soon, but to keep you satisfied, here are a list of websites I frequent to gather recipe inspiration from...

The Pioneer Woman

Tasty Kitchen

Big Girls, Small Kitchen

Picky Palate

Cheap, Healthy, Good

So do you keep meals organized somehow? Bon Apetit! Enjoy!!

A Little Face Lift...

For 10 months now, I have been looking at this eye sore...

 And a close up...

Isn't she pretty? I think NOT! The hubs and I finally decided to give our front flower bed a major overhaul. Through lots of potting soil, mulch, and a few hours at our local nursery, we ended up with a lovely and welcoming entrance to casa Kizziah. See for yourself...

I must confess I did very little of the work. I mostly just bossed him around supervised the project, while Adam did all of the manual labor. I'm so lucky, right? We decided to go with Aztec grass along the front, Japanese dwarf mock orange bushes staggered in the middle, and finally Red ties along the back. I love all the contrasting colors and how it frames the front of the house without covering up the front windows and seating area. I also love that all of these plants are year-round bloomers and don't need to be re-planted every year or covered in the winter. Major plus for this girl with absolutely no green thumb! A close up shot....

So there you have it...some brand new landscaping. Here's to hoping I'll be a little more diligent about blog posting in March!!

You Tube Tuesday: Take Twelve

So, yeah, it's technically Wednesday, but I was lazy busy yesterday and forgot to post this A.MAZING video. My favorite and oh-so-talented little sis found this precious girl on the internet and I just had to share it with you all. She is not only super talented, but also super adorable! Hope you enjoy Maria's cover of Lady Gaga's "Born this Way." I personally think she does it better than Gaga!

Love Day...

First of all, have you missed me? We have been without internet for about a week and a half...ugh!! For the record, I hate all internet companies! It seems no matter which state I am, they are all awful. With that being said, I'm back to blogging! Yay! I know you are all jumping for joy!! :) 

So with my minor blip in internet service I couldn't even post pictures from my most dreaded favorite Holiday, Valentine's Day. I actually really don't enjoy the holiday. Not because I have been scarred by any horrible past experience, I guess I'm just a hopeless romantic and would much rather get a lovely gift on the random 3rd Wednesday of the month than on a set "expected" day. Does that make since? Anyway, boy does my hubby know me well. Here's a look at my D-day V-day present...

A candy bouquet!! So much better than roses!! I'm a lucky woman!

Macy was feeling the love too...

Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day or S.A.D. day (single's awareness day) as my student's so lovingly refer to it...