Paper Wreath

I just finished making a wreath, and I LOVE how it turned out.

I basically followed the tutorial you will find HERE, but I used a 12" wreath form, since that's what I had on hand.

For my embellishment, I freehanded cutting out a flower in 2 sizes from a felted sweater that used to be my daughters. I didn't like the way it fit her, but I liked the texture and color, so I felted it and put it away in my fabric drawer. I knew eventually I would find a great craft for it!

I used 6 sheets of 12"x12" scrapbooking paper, but I ended up with about 70 extra loops. You just cut the paper into 1"x4" strips, hot glue them in half, and hot glue them around the wreath form. The tutorial I linked is fabulous!

The only change I made to it was adding a 1" wide strip of paper around the center of the wreath, because you could see my ugly green foam wreath form, and it didn't look too cute.

So there you have it! I love my new wreath!

Praying the Psalms

Okay, I've done terrible on blogging my Psalm prayers.
I apologize. I've been praying them, but some days they are very personal, and other days I just have a hard time finding the time to sit down and write a blog, with my wild 2 year old, and my whiny 1 year old.
And I guess part of it comes from the fact that I'm getting no feedback about it-- is anyone even reading these posts? Because if no one is, then I won't feel guilty for just reading and praying the Psalms, but not blogging them!

Old Navy, I LOVE YOU!

For those of you new to my blog, I've written about Crowdtap here, 

and the Old Navy Style Council sample share I was chosen for here.

I was so excited to take my sister, Julie, with me for our sample share. We each got to pick out a swim suit for FREE!!! thanks to the Old Navy Style Council and Crowdtap!

We got our husbands to watch the kids and had a girls' day out, which was such a blessing! I love my kids, but they have been a bit rotten lately, and I really needed the day off. Julie and I had a blast! I swear, the people working at Old Navy probably wondered what was going on, we were laughing so hard in the dressing room. We were trying to get into some of the smaller sizes of Control Max swimsuits, and it was taking both of us and some crazy motion to make it happen-- but, dang! they really did some super controlling! Plus they were pretty cute!

Unfortunately, I didn't get very good pictures. I meant to take my camera, but since our Old Navy is an hour away, I was stuck with just my old school camera phone, since my newer phone is dead. 

We tried on all different colors and styles, and finally found a couple of cute suits. 

What I really wanted was this swim suit in black or grey, but they only had it in sizes x-small (do people who fit extra small even need control max?), small, and x-large.

 

What I ended up getting was this other Control Max swimsuit:

My sister picked out a wild but cute bikini:

I even found a super cute shirt that I had to add to my wardrobe.

It was super fun. My only complaint would be that the selection was pretty picked over by the time the coupons arrived, and that the coupons arrived with less than 10 days until they expired. But as my parents always taught me, beggars can't be choosers! 

Thanks, Old Navy and Crowdtap for the opportunity!!!

And if any of you are interesting in getting chosen for some awesome opportunities like this one, or like the McCormick Grill Mates party my husband won, join me on Crowdtap! Just click on the icon below, and you can sign up in only maybe a minute using facebook:

June 18th: Psalm 18

Lord, I love You! You are my rock and my fortress! You deliver me! You are my everything, and I thank You for giving me salvation.
You are worthy of all praise, Father, and I thank You for listening to my prayers. Even when I feel overwhelmed by everything that's going on in my life, I know that I can trust in You to deliver me.
You hear me when I am distressed- when everything seems to be going wrong in my life. On the days when both kids are crying, I'm feeling stressed and tired, and I can't seem to get anything done, You are there for me!
Father, help me to keep Your ways, and to do the things You desire.  You save those that are humble, so please, Lord, don't let me get full of myself. Keep my lamp burning-- turn my darkness to light!
You are perfect, Lord, and Your ways are flawless. You protect all who take refuge in You.  I find my strength and protection in You alone.
I praise You, oh Lord! You are amazing! You are my rock and my fortress!
Amen.

This Week's Menu: June 18-24

I was totally planning to share my monthly menu, but then I got invited to be part of a freezer meal group, and that kind of screwed up my month last month. I say that in the greatest way-- it was awesome!- but it caused me to seriously stray from my menu.
So I'm just sharing this week, instead of the whole month.

Monday: Grilled Chicken Salad. Made with romaine lettuce, grilled chicken breasts, sliced tomato and cucumber, and ranch dressing

Tuesday: Black Bean Pesto

Wednesday: Cilantro Lime Chicken

Thursday: Dr. Pepper Beef

Friday: Shredded beef enchiladas using the leftover roast

Saturday: Homemade pepperoni pizza

Sunday: Leftovers

Black Bean Pesto

This might sound really weird, or even gross to some of you. This was a meal I was served by a vegetarian that I used to babysit for. It looked gross, but my parents taught us to ALWAYS eat whatever we are served. And it turns out, it was really good. This is actually one of my favorite foods.

1 1/2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Large Onion
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1 3/4 Cups Black Beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 Cups vegetable broth (I use chicken broth instead)
1 Cup Peas, fresh or frozen
2-3 Tbsp. Pesto (I usually use quite a lot of pesto, but I really love the flavor of basil)
salt and pepper to taste
Linguini, cooked according to the package
Sliced green or red peppers
Mozzarella Cheese

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, add onion and saute for 3 minutes. Add garlic and saute 1 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place beans and broth in food processor (or blender) and puree until smooth. Poor into skillet with onions and garlic.
Heat over medium-low, adding peas, pesto, salt and pepper, and cook 7 minutes, stirring often until mixture thickens slightly.
Serve over noodles, and garnish with peppers and mozzarella cheese.

Shredded Beef Enchiladas

3-5 lb Beef Roast
1 Tbsp. Oil
1 Large Onion, chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. Chili Powder
1 can Tomato Sauce
1/3 Cups Water
6-10 Flour tortillas
2 Cups Grated Cheddar, divided

Cook Roast in crock pot for 6-8 hours. Shred the beef with a fork.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat oil in a pan, and saute onion and garlic. Add the chili powder, tomato sauce, and 1/3 Cup water.
Add the cooked shredded beef and 1 1/2 cups cheese.
Fill each tortilla with the mixture, making sure to leave enough mixture to spread a little over the top. Put each rolled and filled tortilla in a casserole dish (size depends on how big of a roast you used). Cover with the extra sauce, and remaining cheese.
Cover and bake for 30 minutes.