"Better Than Those Other" Granola Bars

For the past week I've been trying to find a good granola bar recipe.  There are a bunch of veeeery yummy recipes out there.

But I wanted one that didn't have butter, salt, condensed milk or other not-so-healthy things.  I also wanted one that had ingredients that my girls and I like, was quick to throw together, and that actually stuck together.

So here is my recipe for granola bars.

 

Better Granola Bars

1/2 cup peanut butter

2/3 cup honey

2 cups oats

1/4 cup almonds

1/2 cup peanuts

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Microwave the peanut butter and honey for 30-40 seconds and mix well.  Pour in the rest of the ingredients and mix well.  Press into an 8x8 foil lined pan.  Refrigerate until cool.  Flip out of pan and

cut to desired size.

 Most recipes I saw said to melt things on the stove, but this is much faster and you don't have to heat it so much that the chocolate chips melt.  Of course if you like the chocolate more dispersed just heat the peanut butter and honey a little longer.

To make this healthier you can use organic peanut butter, dark chocolate chips, local honey, and peanuts that you shell yourself.  It makes me feel better at least. :)
You could also add non-sweetened coconut or other nuts.

I store mine in the fridge in a sealed tupperware container.  It seems like the warmer they get the more likely they are to fall apart or be super sticky.

After giving one to my 4 year old she said, "These are better than those other ones."  I thought she meant they were better than the ones I had been experimenting with, but she said they were better than the ones in the packages....hence the name "Better Granola Bars."   Yea for homemade! 

Hope you enjoy!

DIY Decor = Canvas + Doily + Spray Paint

One room in my house that has never been decorated is my master bedroom.  Isn't that sad?  I've made bedding and decorations for about every room in the house, but never for our master bedroom.  So after 10 years of marriage, I thought it's time.

I'll have to wait for the big before and after reveal of the whole room (mainly because it's not done), but for now, here are some decorations I've put together.

I had bought doilies from a garage sale a couple years ago and had these canvases on hand.  I laid them out how I would want them and then Mod Podged them on.

I made my own Mod Podge, and so glad I did for this project because it took quite a bit.

 

Want to make your own Mod Podge?

Mix 1 part Elmer's glue 2 parts water.  Put it all in a jar and shake well.  That simple.  It comes out a lot thinner than real Mod Podge, so I was skeptical, but it turned out working great.

I brushed on the Mod Podge and stuck down the doilies.  Then I started brushing on the Mod Podge on top of the doilies, but resorted to dumping it on because I wanted them covered well and it was taking too long...a little impatient, yes.

I had to let them dry outside in the sun for awhile.  After they dried I spray painted them and let that dry well.  It took a lot of spraying because of all of the little spaces in the doilies.

I really love how they turned out.

And because spray paint makes all things look better, I had these stick decorations (I don't really know what to call them) but didn't like them in my kitchen anymore.

Now they are my bedroom decoration.

 

Can't wait to finish this room.  Working on the duvet cover and pillows now.

I should mention I have material for 2 other rooms in my house as well.  Hopefully in the next few months they will actually all be done.

Lots of before and after pictures to come!

Such A Lie!

I am always seeing this pin or article or idea that your house can be clean by only cleaning 15-20 minutes a day.  All I have to say...such a lie!

Ok, I get the idea.  Do a chore a day and the deep cleaning stays looking good with about 20 minutes a day invested.  I actually totally agree with this concept.  But what about the other million things you have to keep cleaned?  Just trying to be realistic.

I can't tell you how many times I've sat down and made a list for my weekly chores...dozens, I tell ya.  I did it again today, but this time I'm actually going to stick to it (hopefully).

Here is what my list looks like:

Sunday -  NOTHING (start the week off easy) :)

Monday - Bathrooms (all but floors)

Tuesday - Vacuum whole house

Wednesday - Mop whole house

Thursday - Big Laundry Day

Friday - Dust, Windows if needed

Saturday - Organize (pantry, closets, garage, kids crafts etc.)

All Week (because face it, these don't go away with once a week kind of a deal) - Dishes, Pick up, Sweep, Laundry, Trash, Water Plants, Spot Vacuum, Spot Mop

I do have 4 kids and a husband, so maybe my house takes more to maintain, but hoping it is possible to keep up better if I'm organized.  I'm also getting ready to start assigning chores for my little ones (age appropriate of course).  I think as they get older my chore list with start to shorten. :)

I'm going to try making lists for getting organized with eating healthy also.  I like my lists.

iCarly Cupcakes

Let me first say I know absolutely nothing about iCarly.

So when I was asked to make cupcakes for a little girl iCarly birthday party, I was stumped.  Google came to the rescue.

I searched and saw something about spaghetti tacos and gummy bears.  I ran this by the mom and she said her daughter loved it...I guess it does have something to do with the show or Carly, yea.

This is what I came up with.  The purple and white icing was upon request.

Fun stuff.

Reupholstering Chairs

It was my first time reupholstering.  Success!

My hubby took all of the chair cushions off and kindly put them back on, so I definitely had some help. 

My fabric was pretty thick so the corners on the chairs took the longest to get just right.  Of course, I think about every project I do takes twice (if not 3 times) as long as I think it will.  It just sounds pretty simple...take cushions off, staple fabric on, put cushions back on.

It really was simple, don't get me wrong.  It just took some patience as well.

I am so happy we did this.  Before they were an off-white microfiber.  I love microfiber because of how well it cleans up...for awhile that is.  After it has been cleaned so many times and has some wear on it, it no longer cleans up to look like new.  It just looks dirty all the time, especially such a light color.

Here's the before and after.

I would highly recommend reupholstering.  Much cheaper than a new dining room set.

1 Hour Last Minute Gifts

I don't know why I haven't thought to make these for more people for Christmas, so this may be on the list for everyone next year.

This is one of those other last minute Christmas gifts I did yesterday.

My girls are constantly snatching my rice bag.  I thought I should just go ahead and make them their own.

I made all of them 1 larger bag and then 2 little hand size bags.  They'll probably end up being more like fun bean bags to throw around.

However, if you were making them for adults, you can heat any of these up and use them as heating pads for your back or use the little ones for hand warmers when you're going out in the cold.

I even thought it would make a great gift for hunters...just make sure the fabric is camo or something instead of the flowers and monkeys.  Everyone likes hand warmers, right?

To make all of these, it literally took exactly an hour.  Perfect for a quick last minute gift.

Jewelry Box Redo

 I always seem to be working on something last minute for Christmas.  This year it was a couple of things.

First off, this (not so) pretty little jewelry box.  

 

Found at Goodwill for $4.99...which was actually more than I wanted to spend, but was the only jewelry box in 2 thrift stores.

I think it turned out pretty much as I imagined. 

It's for my oldest daughter and all of the fabric on it will be used in her quilt for her bed.  I'm all about the matching stuff.  

I Mod Podged the fabric on the drawers and replaced the glass with a doubled layer of cardstock covered in material.

Can't wait for her to open it Christmas morning. :)

I Can Crochet (well, kinda)!

I have never crocheted a single thing in my life.  But I might just be a crocheter now.  Just what i need...more projects that I want to do.

I saw this rug that someone had made...yes, on Pinterest, and figured I could surely do it too.

Then I saw she was crocheting it...

I'll tell you, it almost made me not even look at how to do it, but I decided to press on.  It really is very simple and very repetitive.  Shoot, you use a crochet hook the size of a baseball bat so it can't be too difficult.  Ok, not that big, but you get my point.

I've always wanted a rug in my baby's room for some reason.  So I happened to have some old sheets that will match my navy and white theme in my soon to be baby boy's room.

I bought a plastic crochet hook, the 11mm, which is one step away from the largest I saw at Joanne's.

I ended up using all of 2 sheets (queen size).

In the tutorial she suggests cutting your sheet a few inches and then just tearing your sheets in strips, which I did with my white one, but my navy sheet would.not.tear.

I ended up using my rotary cutter.  The strips don't have to be exact so I didn't even use my ruler.  I actually think this was faster and easier in the end.  Then your strips are also already folded up and you don't have to wind them up in a ball.  It seemed to go quickly even when you have to attach the strips together.

 I wanted a round rug instead of an oval (like in the tutorial) so I didn't really know how often to make a chain stitch. 

I just put one in here and there when I felt like I was really having to reach to get to the next loop.  Does my rug lay perfectly flat?  Nope.  Does it still look fine to me?  Yes.  For my first time to make a rug and crochet, I'm pretty happy with it.

I guess my daughter's are too since now I have a request for one in each of their rooms.  This really would be pretty in zebra print and pink.

This is where I learned how to do this rug...http://www.sugarbeecrafts.com/2010/02/rag-rug-tutorial.html.   She has a video that shows you just how to do it.  Really helpful.

Sticky Bun Breakfast Ring

Now that EVERYONE is addicted to Pinterest...I have to share some more fun things I've actually done since pinning crafty ideas.  I got the rainbow rice from someone on there too.

I made this great Sticky Bun Breakfast Ring the other morning.  So simple and the family loved it.

Here's the recipe I started with:

2 tubes (10 count each - I even used the generic brand) refrigerator buttermilk biscuits

3 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted

1/2 C. syrup

1/3 C. packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 C. chopped pecans, opt.

Spray a bunt pan with non-stick spray. Combine the melted butter and syrup in a small bowl and set aside. In another bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, and nuts (if desired).

Place about half of the syrup mixture in the bottom of the pan.  Sprinkle half of the brown sugar mixture on top.

Lay the biscuits on the bottom of the pan, overlapping edges (closely together) to form a ring. 
Top with remaining syrup and sugar mixtures.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Now, the things I did differently.
I used 3 tubes of the biscuits because 2 just didn't seem to fill up the ring very much.  Not thinking, I should of increased the other ingredients, but didn't.
Next time I will double the syrup and sugar mixtures.  I will also pour the syrup mixture in every so often as I lay in my biscuits to get it good and in there.  I also didn't have pecans on hand, but will absolutely use them next time.
Lastly, this took 25 minutes to cook instead of 15.

It was really great this first go around, but next time they'll be even better since I've tried them out.

This is where I got the original recipe...http://all-things-delicious.blogspot.com/2011/03/sticky-bun-breakfast-ring.html.
Enjoy!

*Update: A friend tried doubling the syrup and sugar mixtures and said she ended up with it pouring into the floor.  Guess it was a little TOO much (so sorry!).  So instead of completely doubling those mixtures, just use about 1 1/2 times the recipe if using 3 cans of biscuits.  Which actually makes sense, right? 

Rainbow Rice

This week I'm trying to be more fun, I guess you could say.  I realized that I don't play and craft with my girls as much as I would like.  I'm being a stay-at-home mom, but have really been more of a run errands and try to get things done mom.

Ever feel that way?

So I'm going to try to balance it out and enjoy these early years with my kids while they're not at school all day.  And for the one that IS at school all day, try to do some fun & creative things when she's home.

I found this fun idea to do with rice on Pinterest...I know I'm not the only addict out there.

All you need is rice, food coloring and rubbing alcohol.  I didn't end up using nearly as much food coloring as what I read to use.  I would just add more if you want the color richer.

I used about 1/2 TBS of food coloring (at the very most 1 TBS) mixed with 3 TBS of alcohol and dumped it in 4 cups of rice inside of a ziplock bag.

I used what liquid food coloring I had and made green and yellow.  I had some of the gel food coloring and it worked fine, but I think it takes more to make the color as vibrant.

The girls liked helping mix it up in the bags.

 After it's all colored you spread it out on a cookie sheet and let it sit in the sun.  It doesn't take long for it to dry.

I dumped ours in some plastic containers, knowing full well it would never stay there, however.  

 

She asked if she could mix the colors...like she wouldn't have done it anyways.

So I swept off the porch really good so that we could recollect the rice and play again later.

 It made for a great flower garden, or place to bury Barbies, whichever you prefer.

My girls love playing in the sand, and this is somewhat of a substitute.

*Oh, and why on earth do I have all of that rice?  My mom brought it to me because it was old and was starting to get bugs in it.  I didn't have to buy the rice, so it made an even more fun activity.  And we only found one bug the whole time. :)

Here's the link I got the idea from.

http://shareandremember.blogspot.com/2011/06/rainbow-rice-garden-sensory-play.html

Crafty Gift Ideas

My sweet friend is getting married this Saturday so she got to be my guinea pig for some crafts I've been wanting to make.

I'm in such a mood to decorate for Fall & Christmas, I figured she should be too.

I took 3 wooden blocks and Mod Podged scrapbook paper on them and cut out the letters on my Cricut to Mod Podge on top of that.  Really quick and simple...why haven't I made one for myself?!

Pumpkin with painted monogram.

Clear Christmas ornament with painted monogram.

What is supposed to happen is the wedding invitation is supposed to get cut in strips and placed inside...I just didn't have the invite yet.

I think this would be a cute keepsake for a wedding or a baby or whatever occasion you want to be sentimental about.

I ABSOLUTELY CAN NOT WAIT to decorate for Christmas.  It hurts.  I will FOR SURE be decorating for Fall on Friday though.  Maybe that will hold me out until after Thanksgiving.  I'm also thinking about wearing jeans, long sleeve shirt, boots etc. on Friday in honor of Fall, even if it's 100 degrees.  I'm so ready.

Happy Crafting!

Girls Shrug

My 1st grader can't wear tank tops/spaghetti strap tops to school so I knew this was the perfect excuse to make some little shrugs for her to give us more options for tops this year.

Ok, so I've only done one so far, but I love how it turned out.

I took this old tee that had some weird spots on it

and turned it into this.

Pretty simple. I cut the bottom off according to how long I wanted it on her and cut a slit right up the middle of what was left.

Then I used another old white shirt and made ruffles about 1 1/2" wide.  I would have used the part I cut from the tee, but it wasn't quite enough.

I pinned it around the edge of the shirt where I cut it and sewed it on. Voila! Done. In less than an hour. And next time it should take even less time.

I also grabbed an elastic headband and sewed a leftover ruffle to it.  Next time I won't do such a long ruffle, but I still like how it turned out too.

I love t-shirt material (or any other non-raveling material) because you don't have to hem it and it still looks great.

I want to make so many now. Some long sleeved ones for winter, ones with contrasting ruffles, some with flowers on them...just have to go dig up some other stained (or not stained) little shirts now.