A Sparkling Birthday Party!

It's March Madness time!!! Not so much basketball but birthdays! See, in our family - we have birthdays on March 18, two on the 19th, 22, 23, and two on the 24th! Crazy - huh?!?!?

So, Miss Bug and I celebrated our birthdays last week! I was content NOT to celebrate but she on the other hand was SO excited all week and thrilled to death when her big day came!

See, 8 years ago I went into labor on March 21 - my birthday came and went on March 22 - and she decided to make her grand entry at 12:43 AM on March 23!! That was definitely a birthday that I will never forget!!! We always laugh that she just had to have her 'own' day!

Anyway - she had requested a SPARKLE Birthday Party this year! So, we put together sparkles, jewels, rhinestones, sequins and glitter and we had ourselves a Sparkling Birthday Party!

She had a fun party with a few friends and another one with her family and cousins! So, needless to say - we partied all weekend!!

She asked for a canopy for her bed this year. I lead her to believe that it wasn't possible since the girls have bunk beds BUT I went ahead and made her one and completely suprised her!

 Here we are crafting with friends! I'm still cleaning paint and GLITTER out of my rug!

And, her special birthday meal - PANCAKES! My kiddos get to choose their birthday meal and she loves pancakes - so we have plain, blueberry and chocolate chip! Check out these stacks!!

How to make a simple bed canopy

Do you ever get those gift requests from your kiddos that completely take you by surprise??!!

Well, my oldest daughter, Miss Bug, recently had her 8th birthday and she asked for a bed canopy! I wasn't even sure where she had gotten this idea and of course, she told me that she had seen in on TV. Since my girls have bunk beds in their room, I kind of dismissed it at first - letting her to believe that it wasn't possible.

But - the more I measured and looked into it, I decided that it could be done! This is a REALLY simple design that was fairly inexpensive and only took me a couple of hours to assemble. (It might have taken less time but I was doing this between the hours of midnight and 2:00 AM and probably wasn't thinking real clearly!)

Here's what you need:
1 small hula hoop
5 spools of ribbon (each 30 feet)
12 yards of tulle (or more if you want it really full)
1 hook to hang it from the ceiling
flowers, butterflies, etc. for decoration
no-sew fabric glue

How to make it:
1) Cover the hula hoop by wrapping ribbon around it
2) Cut the tulle in to 8-10 foot pieces (depends on your ceiling height)
3) Wrap them around hula hoop and glue
4) Glue two pieces of equal length ribbon across the top to form a cross
5) Cut your other ribbon pieces and glue them around top of hula hoop so they hang down against tulle
6) Glue flowers around the top (could also use a feather boa here for fun)
7) Clip on butterflies, glue sparkles, etc.

Check out the final product and the HAPPY girl!!

Butterscotch Brownies - 2 Maids a Baking

My mom always made these brownies for us when we were growing up. 

They are a fav around here!

Start by melting your butter. 

Add your brown sugar.

Remove from heat and stir in eggs.

Add salt and baking powder.

Mix in flour. I added 1/2 cup wheat flour and 1 cup white flour because my mom told me too!!

Last but not least add the vanilla. 

Spread in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish.

Bake and cut while still warm!

Butterscotch Brownies:
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add brown sugar and remove from heat. Stir in eggs, flour, salt, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Mix in walnuts if you like. Spread evenly in a 9 x 13 pan. Bake 25 minutes, do not over bake. Cut while warm.

Linked to:
Trick or Treat Tuesday

Mac & Cheese #3

Here we go! This is the BEST Mac & Cheese that I have made yet! Thanks to Paula Dean - she knows how to put together a super tasty batch of mac & cheese!

We had the chance to visit The Lady & Son's restaurant last year and after eating her Mac & Cheese, I knew that I just had to have it again. So, I purchased the recipe and have enjoyed it thoroughly! If you like your dairy foods - butter, milk, and cheese - then this one is for you!!!

The Lady's Cheesy Mac
4 C. cooked macaroni, drained
2 C. grated cheddar
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 C. sour cream
4 T. butter, cut into pieces
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 C. milk
Cook macaroni and drain. Place in large bowl and add cheddar. In separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and add to the macaroni. Pour into casserole dish and bake. Can top with additional cheese if desired!
Bake at 350 for 30-45 min.

Link those recipes below!!

My Carhartt Man

We husband lives in Carhartt clothes. 

We was super jealous when Carhartt gave me a new sweatshirt. Which I love and still wear all the time! 

He was beyond excited to learn that Carhartt was going to send him his very own jacket to try out!! This jacket is the Astoria Jacket.

He was like a kid at Christmas when the package arrived. He even said, "This is way too nice to wear to the farm."

While I haven't seen the jacket at the farm I have caught him wearing it a couple other times!!

Perfect for a four wheeler ride!

The lighter weight jacket came at the perfect time because the winter Carhartt's had found a new home on the coat rack with the spring like weather. I should probably wash those....

Here he is taking off the snow blade. 

Arranging his tools in the service truck! He is very picky about his tools!!

He loves that this coat is water proof and comes with a hood! Perfect for feeding the dogs in the rain!!

Do you have a man in your life who loves Carhartt's? Be sure to head over to the Real Farmwives of America blog to enter to win your own jacket!

Carhartt did provide us the jacket. The opinions are all ours and my husband is finally excited about blogging!! 

Crockpot Corned Beef and Cabbage

It is almost St. Patrick's Day and that means corned beef and cabbage and green beer! This is a fuss free way to make this traditional meal.

 

Start by pouring a can of beer over the beef.

Add your onions and spread on the mustard. Sprinkle with the seasoning packet that came with the meat.

Mix up the brown sugar and water.

Pour into crockpot.

Halfway through the cooking time (the recipe said to add the carrots at the beginning but I don't like them mushy so I waited and added them later) I added my carrots and potatoes (The recipe didn't call for potatoes but I knew my picky eater would eat them so I tossed two in). Add your cabbage.

Remove the corned beef, wrap in foil and place in a warm oven. 

Let the veggies cook for an additional 30 minutes. 

Enjoy!

Corned Beef and Cabbage:
6 carrots, cut into chunks
2 onions, chopped
2-3 lb. corned beef brisket with seasoning packet
12 oz can beer
2 Tablespoons yellow mustard
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup water
8 wedges of cabbage

Rinse corned beef under running water and pat dry with paper towels. Place in crockpot. Pour beer over brisket, spread with mustard and sprinkle with contents of seasoning mix. Add onions and carrots to crockpot. In small bowl mix brown sugar with water and pour over brisket. Cover crockpot and cook on low setting for 8-9 hours. Remove corned beef from crockpot and wrap with foil, then put into a 200 degree oven to keep warm. Add cabbage wedges to vegetables and liquid in crockpot. Cook on high for an additional 30-40 minutes or until cabbage is tender. To serve, cut corned beef across grain into thin slices. Remove vegetables from slow cooker with slotted spoon and serve with corned beef. Serve cooking juices over the food, if desired.

A trip to Paradise

Here are a couple pictures from a recent getaway to Los Cabos Mexico. We stayed at the Hilton and had a gorgeous view! You could literally be swimming in the pool and watch the whales in the ocean! We went with a group of friends who either work in agriculture or are other farmers in our community. We had a blast!! This post is proof that farmers do get off the farm every now and then!! ; )