As High As I Can Reach

About a month back, one of my oldest friends Rachelle flew in for a quick visit.  

While browsing some downtown Littleton shops, 

(by downtown I do not mean BIG city downtown--

I mean one tiny little two block street),

we came across this absolutely adorable step stool in a boutique.

Main Street redeemed itself upon finding this one.

 I know...all of my girl friends just gasped and went "Awwww!"  

Am I right?

Now want to guess the price tag on this baby?

Try somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 bucks.

Now, if you know me at all, 

you know I don't spend that kind of money on just anything.

At least not if I can help it.

Which is when the ideas in my brain began to turn. 

We started snapping pictures.

No, we weren't suppose to. Yes, we were asked to leave.

Shame on them for trying to keep me from stealing the cutest idea alive.

Lucky for me, I had already gotten what I needed.  

Don't worry--I'll give them credit for it when my project is all done.

In the meantime, here are some other step stools that I've come across while on my search for the perfect blank canvas.

I even considered building my own. HA.  

I think we can all just laugh ourselves silly over that one.

Luckily, I found this beauty on craigslist. $15 bucks and it is mine. 

So now I have the goal of turning this...

into something similar to this....

I always have loved a good challenge!

Hoop Wall Reveal!

Mack's "hoop wall" is finished!  

We love it and think you will too.  At least we're hoping so!

To start hanging we had to remove this art work from the wall above her crib.

 A Chicago based interior design friend of ours-- Summer Thorton helped us pick out this fabric and come up with a plan of how to incorporate it into M's nursery.  We had it professionally framed and hung over her crib and we have been in love with it since.  Now we will hang it over her dresser.  In going with the hoops we tried hard to stay within the same style and colors as the fabric in this frame.  

Now on to our Pinterest project.  Here's the look we were going for--

Here's the look we got--

If you can get past the horrible camera lighting I think we did well.  

Personally, I think our cute kid made the pictures anyways.

From start to finish we paid $35 for this project.  

Notice the giddy, hiding toddler in the corner.  She loved her wall too and told us over and over and over.  And that always makes for a satisfied momma.  Thank you to my wonderful husband for all of your expert drilling and hanging skills.  

You're a stud as always.

Hoops!

This DIY was originally posted by Adriele but I fell in love with the idea when I found it posted on Pinterest.  My inspiration came from Kate's nursery.

So, yesterday I set out to get started on my own.

Here's the fabric we'll be using...

This is an incredibly simple project once you actually get past the fabric section of the craft store.  I tend to be very indecisive and could spend hours mulling over different colors and designs.  It got so bad that eventually JB and Mack left me at the store and I walked home.  That sounds mean but don't worry, we only live a block away.

Once the fabric is chosen you pop the embroider hoop over the material and cut around the edges leaving about two inches (give or take).  Then you glue the loose fabric to the inside of the hoop.

We debated on what name to use for M's wall.  We threw around some options (Mackenzie, Kenzie, Mack, Mini B, Dwarf)  We ultimately chose Mack because I was paying for this project in loose change (seriously) and didn't want to fork out the money for the "enzie".  Plus, I scored a bonus because I was able to use the "A" from the Father's Day project that Mack and I made back in June.

Here's what the hoops look like when they are finished.  Plus I think my kid is cute.

Here's a very rough idea of what this will look like tonight after we've had the chance mount it all on Mack's wall.  Check back soon for the final reveal.

Challenge complete. Sort of.

I'll make this short and sweet.  After spending hours upon hours to finish our 

"Love Lives Here" sign for the Pinterest Challenge, I'm done and not as thrilled as I had hoped.  Had you asked me yesterday afternoon I might have said it turned out great.  After 12 hours of staring at it and mentally picking it to pieces I am less than thrilled.

 I clearly went a little slap happy with the buttons.  And the pretty fabric that is suppose to be see between buttons?  I must have missed the memo. My fabric is nearly non existent. Or at least it looks that way. Obviously, my work of art didn't need to look exactly like the original idea but I understand now why I should have went a little lighter on the buttons.  The paper behind the buttons has begun to shift and wrinkle.  This is all very visible when you stand within say-- 5 feet of the frame. Or when trying to take a picture for blogging purposes.  

Needless to say, the perfectionist in me will be re-doing this project.

              

Yeah.... just not quite as cute. Sigh.  Oh well, you can't win everything.

My Little Fashionista

Everything about this I love.  The glasses, the oversized coffee mug, the tattered blue elephant.  Mostly I love that she's mine.

What's For Dinner?

What's for dinner tonight?

Okay. Just kidding.  No, we aren't actually having moose for dinner. I did think this was somewhat appropriate given the blog title though.  Moose might as well be the Colorado mascot so why not use this sign as our introduction for 

"What's For Dinner?"

When I began this blog, I had every intent of posting recipes that are near and dear to our family's tummies.  We love food.  We love to cook to food, we love to smell it and most of all we love to eat it.  We like healthy food and we like not-so-healthy food.  In an attempt to get myself moving on the (currently) non existent links that are posted in "Family Recipe Favorites" I've dedicated myself to weekly posting at least one meal of what we are eating.  I would commit to more but hey, I'm busy.

Tonight we are having (The Pioneer Woman) Ree Drummond's Barbeque Chicken Pineapple Quesadillas.  Oh yummm.  My heart skips a beat just thinking about how great these are.  I believe they would probably fall under the "not-so-healthy food" category.  I'll excuse them though because they are loaded with protein and that's healthy...right?

Below is Ree's Recipe...I wish I had thought of it first. 

Ingredients

• 8 whole Flour Tortillas-- (We use whole wheat)
• Butter Or Margarine-- (We use spray olive oil)
• 2 cups Grilled Pineapple, Sliced
• 3 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• 3 cups Monterey Jack Cheese, Grated (Or whatever cheese you like)
• 1 whole Jalapeno, Sliced (Optional)
• Cilantro (Optional)
• 3 Tablespoons Barbecue Sauce (Or more if you like)

Preparation Instructions

(To grill pineapple: cut wedges, stick on skewers, and grill over low heat. Cut into slices.)

(To pound chicken, place inside a Ziploc bag and pound with a mallet or large can to flatten to uniform thickness.)

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and Cajun spice (or cumin/cayenne, etc.) Drizzle olive oil on a grill pan and grill on both sides until done, brushing with barbecue sauce. Set aside and slice into very thin slices.

Warm griddle over medium heat and put sizzling butter or margarine in the pan. Slightly warm and toast tortillas on both sides, then remove from griddle and set aside.

To assemble, sprinkle four browned tortillas with grated Monterey Jack. Arrange chicken slices evenly over the surface. Add pineapple slices and jalapeno slices. Sprinkle on cilantro. If desired, drizzle extra barbecue sauce over the top. Add second browned tortilla on top of each one. (You'll have four complete quesadillas at this point.)

Add to oven to warm, or back to skillet to warm, until cheese is melted. Cut each quesadilla into six wedges. Serve with sour cream, pico de gallo, and lime wedges.

And there you have it.  Now go make these.  You will not regret it!  Now, I'm off to devour these myself.
*Side Note- If any of this post doesn't make sense, It's probably because the martini I'm drinking tonight is reallly strong.  The blame for this one falls on JB.

Pinterest Challenge Idea # 1

So, as I wrote a few posts back I've hopped on board  with the Pinterest challenge!  I swore I wasn't going to but I'm officially hooked.  I hesitated to get involved because as I was reminded my a friend, I've got enough going on as a full time wife to a full time grad school student & mom to a full time toddler, with a full time job and full time marathon training.  That's a lot of full. And although I couldn't agree more...if there is one thing becoming a mom has taught me it is that I am more than just a wife and mom.  I am more than my job.  I need  things in my life that still influence who I am.  And now that I actually "get" Pinterest 

(I googled it because I was so confused) I LOVE the idea behind it.  

And so, these four lovely ladies..

 Sherry, Emily, Katie and Lana issued the Pinterest Challenge.

The challenge essentially says, 

"Stop just looking at Pinterest and actually make something of what you like".

And so, I'm issuing the same challenge to myself and my friends (I'm wondering if I even have a friend out there who hasn't joined Pinterest yet).  I issue my own challenge because I love the idea but also because I love my friends and I'm to see what everyone will create.

In the interest of continuing to work on our memory wall... here's what I plan on working on for my first project.  It doesn't look complicated but I'm nonetheless very excited to try it for myself and add it to our wall.

 Love Heart

And after I finish this...I plan to go a step trickier with these adorable boots for Mack for the fall.

And so...the official issue of my challenge...

What do you love from Pinterest...and what will YOU create?

Insomnia Is A Funny Thing

Insomnia is a funny thing.  Occasionally JB wakes up around 3 am for an opening work shift and most of these occasions I find myself wide awake in bed.  So what do I do?  Well, I would like to say that I spend these awake hours pondering how I can play a role in ending world hunger or advocating peace. But instead, usually I toss and turn for an hour or so, listening for the sound of our toddler and any stirring noises she might make.  I often have mini panic attacks as I lay here, convinced that I have heard her awake and that any luck of actually going back to sleep has gone out the window.  Last time time this happened I found myself shopping for shoes at 3 am.  This morning I found myself wide awake in our dining room working on our memory wall and contemplating what I can create for the Pinterest Challenge And so, here it is 5 am... and I'm still wide awake.  I figure that since it's August now, I might as well finish post on Mack's birthday party so that I can actually move on to my next post.  


Last month we celebrated Mack's 2nd birthday with a "4th of July" themed extravaganza. In hindsight I realize that Mack would have been satisfied with eating cake for breakfast and being told that the day was all about about her.  Technically we didn't have to throw a big blowout that ensued chaos on our tiny apartment.  And we probably shouldn't have. Will I do it again next year?  Ahhh, yes....probably so. I never really learn my lesson.

In short, here's how the day went down...

Our birthday girl woke up and had her ice cream cone cake for breakfast.  

She was thrilled and loved every bit of the attention as we sang her happy  birthday.

I found the t-shirt that she is wearing on clearance at the GAP a few months ago and was thrilled because two of Mack's favorites things are cupcakes and her kitty.

Party Time

We planned for M's party to take place at a small park not too far from our apartment.  We had been forewarned by every weatherman in town that we risked being caught in a torrential downpour.  We kept this warning in the back of our minds but decided to risk it anyways.  Probably not the best idea.

Big and little guests began to arrive.

This was right about the time that we decided to switch to Plan B and direct all of our guests to their cars.  We wrangled children like nobody's business. Within 20 minutes we had a home full of people and (like the weathermen predicted) a torrential downpour.

And so, 27 amazingly good spirited guests ended up crammed into our tiny home.

We played, ate cake and loved on this little girl.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of our family and friends who made her day so incredibly special. We were beyond blessed.

From here...

 

To 3 Months...

1 Year....

To 2 years.  It's hard to believe we're here already.

We love you Mackenzie Leigh!  

Happy 2nd birthday to the little girl who keeps stealing our hearts.