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I just love the following verse. It’s been awhile since I’ve made any more verse printables, and the principle of this verse is something that we, as a family, have been talking about lately, so I decided to make it into a printable. Plus, I’ve been wanting to tell you about the “Family Improvement Game”, and it just ties in so well … Openness in family communication is just soooo important. And by openness, I don’t mean just-say-the-first-thing-that-comes-into-your-head-who-cares-if-it-is-kind-or-right … I don’t think that is what this verse is talking about, and is directly opposite of being “quick to hear, slow … Read more

For this week’s “Seek the things above” post, I want to pose some questions which I hope will be thought provoking. Why do you believe what you believe? Is it because it is what you’ve always heard? What your culture commonly believes? What your parents taught you? What your preacher, priest or pastor told you? How do you know what they told you is true? Does the Bible tell us we’ll just get a feeling about it – or does the Bible teach us to study his Word to know his will? What about the Bereans? When the apostle Paul … Read more

So, last week I tried to post some clues to see if anyone could guess what the next weekly challenge would be … buuuuut apparently I’m pretty bad at clues, haha! But the hack-challenge ends this week and next week is the start of the new challenge … so instead we’ll just skip to the announcement. 🙂 It’s one that was suggested by one of you when I asked for challenge ideas a while back – and I’m very excited about it! It’s a DIY blog redesign series! Basically, as a graphic designer I will be demonstrating how to do … Read more

Well, a little while back, I asked you all what are your favorite road trip games, and mentioned an upcoming vlog about it … so here it is! (If you’re reading this in a reader or email, and can’t see the video above, just click here) By the way, after the little ending segment, there’s a bonus clip of us playing one of the road trip games. Keep in mind … the emphasis of that game is more on cacophony than being on key. 😉 Leave your thoughts and comments below – I always get excited when I get a … Read more

I’m taking a little different approach with this week’s hack challenge … instead of one more-involved project, I wanted to give several different upcycling decor ideas that are so simple, there’s no assembly required! 1 – Repurpose clear glass vases to store layers of colorful scarves: 2 – Use vintage insulators as unique book ends: 3 – Use a whisk to hold recipe cards: 4 – Repurpose an old tv stand as a book shelf: 5 – Use a vintage skirt hanger as a unique method of “framing”: Do you have any no-assembly-required upcycling ideas to share? Post them in … Read more

I’ll be upfront – I’m not a vegetarian. But once spring and summer come around, I am craving fresh fruits and veggies, and frankly, meat can take a back seat then sometimes! Not to mention the fact that meat is more expensive and often more time consuming to cook. So sometimes I feel like making a meatless meal, and I wanted to share an easy vegetarian recipe I came up with recently: cilantro and lime black bean tacos. Nothing ground breaking, but it is easy, healthy and delicious! Vegetarian Tacos: For the filling (instead of meat): – About 3 cups … Read more

Time for week six of the adventure-a-week challenge! This time was a little different because there wasn’t just one set aside time for the adventure, but instead it was spread out over several days. The goal? Find and photograph all the colors of the rainbow in springtime plants for this Spring photography challenge! Right now is a perfect time around here for this – all the flowers are blooming and the weather is just lovely. I actually had been planning on something different for this week, but when I saw all the colors popping up and blooming, I knew we … Read more

These are a simple little roll-up I came up with – they’re not overly sweet. They would make a nice mini-pastry for a special breakfast. Or serve with coffee for a subtly sweet dessert. Take care not to burn the walnuts – they don’t need very long in the pan at all. 1 Pie Crust 1 Tablespoon Butter 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar Scant 1/8 cup very finely chopped walnuts ¼ cup Raspberry Jam or Preserves (not jelly) ¼ cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips 1- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2- Roll out pie crust on a cutting board. Spread jam evenly … Read more

I just love chocolate and bananas – it is such a great combination! This is something I came up with this summer – a quick and easy treat using (what else?) chocolate and bananas.  Just make sure you use the shell hardening chocolate syrup … that kind that hardens when you pour it over ice cream.  It wouldn’t work with just regular chocolate syrup. Hope you enjoy! My little girl loved these – its a great kitchen project to do with little ones because it is so easy. 🙂 What are some of your favorite quick and easy snacks? Let … Read more

Small plates and unusual flavors of soda I don’t make appetizers very often.  I don’t know, it just seems like a lot of work for something “extra” before a meal.  Sure, I love to eat them, but in cooking, I’d rather make a big pot of curry, or a wok full of stir fry.  I like my food big and bold! But sometimes for a more formal dinner, or if you’re serving a lot of people, small bites can be a good way to go. Its easier to be able to serve a lot of different dishes and have enough … Read more