Photo Crazy DIY

Hi. My name is Nicole, and I'm a Photoholic.

I decorate my house, largely, in photos and frankly I get tired of switching photos in and out of frames to keep them current. So, in an effort to save myself time and finally get photos up that have been impatiently waiting to be displayed I came up with this photo line and I am in LOVE! This sucker will be taking many forms in almost every room of my house! I plan on getting different kinds of drawer pulls and clothespins and coordinating them with the different rooms in the house. This would also be a great way to display children's art work!

I started with the wall in the hallway between the bedrooms as there isn't really any creativity going on in this hallway and it was easy to do something simple here. The whole project cost me probably $5 because I have a bunch of screws, clothespins, and wire left over! You will need:
- drawer knobs
- picture wire, thread, or ribbon (I used picture wire)
- double threaded screws like the ones pictured below (need to make sure it's the same size as the hole in your drawer knob)
- little clothespins
- photos

I first marked where I wanted the knobs to go and then drilled holes for the anchors. I used wall anchors because I was putting them into drywall. If you aren't you can just screw them directly in to the wall. After the anchors were installed I put the flat edge of the double threaded screw into my knob and then screwed the knob into the wall. I tied the picture wire around the knob and wrapped the extra around until it could not be seen. I plan on doing this project in my kid's rooms and using thread instead and leaving a little extra thread hanging down but in this case I didn't want any showing. Then I repeated the step on the opposite side and made sure the wire was pulled tight so the weight of the pictures wouldn't pull it down too much. I clipped on the pictures and voila - fast, cheap, and easy DIY picture line that will help me rotate pictures out in a pinch!

This was one of the easiest and fastest DIY projects I've done and I hope you find it helpful! Now, off to edit some more photos...

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Homemade Granola & Mommy's Dream Parfaits

Good Morning World!

I am in a very good mood this morning because I started this morning off with my first of many, mommy's dream parfait!  Why is it a dream?  Because it's healthy, fast, and incredibly easy!  I made these yesterday with my little helper and when I was looking for the granola and realized we were out I figured I would just make my own!  Well, chalk that up as a double-win for me cause they both turned out AMAZING!  I eat most of my breakfasts in the car on the way to drop M off at school so this is the perfect breakfast for me to just grab and walk out the door with.  Extra bonus - it fits very neatly into my cupholder when I'm finished!!  Yes, I'm a nerd and these little things just make me so happy nowadays.  I wanted to share this recipe with all of you and I hope, Mommy, or not, that it makes your life and your mornings easier and healthier!  I also, just realized, I'm one of those explanation people that drive me crazy...oh goodness!!!!!!

ENJOY!

E "helping" Mommy by eating all of the leftover yogurt that wouldn't fit in to the jar!  YUMMY!

Healthy Homemade Granola

• 2 Cups Regular Rolled Oats
• 1 Cup Coarsley Chopped Nuts of Choice
• ½ Cup Shelled Sunflower Seeds
• ¼ Cup Steel Cut Oats
• ½ Cup Honey
• 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil (Heated Slightly to Liquid Form)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 Cup Dried Fruit (optional)

1. Coat a large baking dish (I used a Pyrex 9x12x2).  In a bowl combine oats, nuts, sunflower seeds, steel cut oats, and cinnamon.  In another bowl combine liquid coconut oil, honey, and vanilla extract.  Stir liquid mixture into oat mixture and then spread evenly in the prepared pan.  Bake at 300 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until light brown.  Stir mixture after 20 minutes.
2. Remove granola from oven and spread on a large piece of foil to cool.  Add dried fruit if desired.  Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week or store in freezer bags and freeze for up to 2 months).

*This recipe is incredibly flexible in terms of ingredients and the nutrition info will vary based on what you choose to use.  The nutrition facts below are based on my choices and note that the sodium values are because I used salted mixed nuts.

Calories 58, Fat 3g, Sodium 19.7mg, Carbs 9.2g, Fiber 1.2g, Sugar 2.2g, Protein 1.5g

Granola right out of the oven before I added raisins and cranberries

To make parfaits you will need:

• Yogurt of choice (I prefer greek for the thickness and extra protein)
• Fruit cut into bite-sized pieces
• Granola
• Clean, Sterilized Pint-Sized Mason Jars

1. Add fruit to bottom of mason jar.
2. Top with yogurt, making sure to leave at least an inch of room at the top.
3. Top with two tablespoons granola.
4. Seal and put in to fridge for a quick, healthy, grab-and-go snack!

* Again, nutrition information will vary based on choice of ingredients.
Calories 190, Fat 3.3g, Sodium 83.4mg, Carbs 31.8g, Fiber 3.8g, Sugars 25.5g, Protein 16.3g

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Servin' Up Some Love

I am in LOVE with pinterest!  It is one of the most positive forms of social media that I have ever seen!  It inspires me all the time and I love when I can try things out that I've seen on there.  My sister very lovingly offered to host a Thirty-One Spring premiere party for me and we joined up with Stella & Dot for an early February brunch complete with Strawberry mimosas and Hot Chocolate.  I thouroughly enjoyed making these sweet treats to complement any hot chocolate buffett!

To make the spoons you need:

Plastic spoons
Sprinkles
Candy Melts in your color of choice

These were the easiest thing in the world to make.  Melt the chocolate in a bowl in 30 second intervals until it's all melted together.  I then just used a clean spoon to scoop the melted candy up and put a little bit in to the plastic spoon.  I then tapped the bottom on a cookie sheet and once it was flattened sprinkled on some candy decorations.  Then I let it harden on the cookie sheet and wrapped it in plastic and a twist tie - easy as PIE!!  These are great little gifts and party favors and can just be eaten or stirred in to hot chocolate - YUM!!

To make the marshmallows you need:

Marshmallows
Lollipop Sticks
Candy Melts
Sprinkles

Again, these are extremely easy, melt the candies as described above and then I used a spoon to drizzle the candy coating on the top of the marshmallow and tapped the side of the stick with my finger until it was flattened on the top and dripping down the sides of the marshmallow - sprinkle on your candy deocrations while it's still warm and stand it up somewhere til it hardens (florest foam would be great for this!)

I am very excited to share these with everyone at the party and am looking forward to my next pinterest inspired craft!

Carrot Apple Protein Muffins

I've been working for some time now on trying to incorporate fruits, vegetables and proteins into foods so that I know my kids are getting the right nutrients.  M won't eat anything but canned green beans and that's even been slowing down recently.  I also love the idea of having ready made snacks that I can just grab as I'm running out the door that will have a lot of nutritional value and a good blend of fat, protein, and carbs.  I've come up with some great adaptations of pancake recipes that have pumpkin and a fruit in them but was looking for something in the muffin category and I think I finally found a winner!!  I adapted this recipe from this website and just changed some of the ingredients because I wanted the muffin to have protein and be a clean recipe (only natural ingredients).

Servings: 12 muffins

Nutritional Info per serving:
Calories 94.2
Total Fat 2.6 g
Sodium 123.5 mg
Total Carbohydrate 13.6 g
Dietary Fiber 2.2 g
Sugars 3.9 g
Protein 3.9 g

WW Points Plus Value = 2

Ingredients:

• 1 Tablespoon canola oil
• 1/2 cup shredded carrots
• 2 steamed and mashed apples
• 1/2 cup organic apple cider
• 2 heaping Tablespoons of natural, unsweetened applesauce
• 1 Tablespoon of agave nectar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup organic whole wheat pastry flour (I use Bob's Red Mill)
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I use Beverly International Ultimate Muscle Protein)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 and spray a muffin tin with non-stick baking spray or insert liners in to pan.
• In a bowl, combine oil, carrots, apples, cider, applesauce, agave, and eggs . Mix well. Add flour, protein, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix until it forms into batter. It's relatively thin and the muffins don't rise a lot so you can fill the muffin liners or pan a little more than 2/3 full.

Agave nectar is a great substitute for white sugar!  Don't let it intimidate you just make sure you add less than you would if it were white sugar as it's MUCH sweeter!

• Bake 13-15 minutes. A toothpick inserted in to the center will come out clean when they are ready!
• Let cool on a wire rack.  I honestly feel like these muffins are better at room temperature but try them both ways and see what you like!

DELISH!

• Eat, Enjoy, and know you've provided your body and your families with a clean and healthy snack!

Now THIS is a big boy bite!!  SCRUMPTIOUS dessert Mommy!

E LOVES these muffins!!  Shhhhhh - don't tell her they are healthy!

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