Desk Organizer!

I have been looking at a messy, messy desk for a long time... 

I decided it was time I did something about the mess... even if it was small! What I came up with is small but I am hoping it should be able to help me keep track of the bills and other important mail. 

I took two boxes... 

I cut the flaps off the smaller box and left it pretty much the same then I cut the bigger box apart and made dividers for the smaller box... I tried to make them almost like recipe cards.

(sorry forgot to rotate before I put it in and now blogger wont let it rotate)

Then I covered the smaller box with scrapbook paper that I liked, I used a natural paper with leaves in it as well as the pattern paper seen below...

When I covered it I just took some white glue and brushed it on with a paint brush and then wrapped the paper around it...

Then I wanted the sides to lay flat so I wrapped it like I would a present and glued it again with the white glue, if it wont stay down (like one of my sides wouldn't) you can use hot glue to keep it down... 

Then on the front I added a triangle of the pattern paper to the front to pretty it up some!

Then I covered the dividers with coordinating scrapbook papers by gluing the paper to the cardboard box with a glue stick.

Put it all together and I was done!

Quick easy and helpful! 

Now if only our desk was that easy to organize and put together neatly....

My First Link Up!

I have linked up to my first link party and I am so excited!

I love The Shabby Nest and have been following for a while now and I have never gotten the nerve to link to her frugal Friday! So if you are looking about the bloggy world stop on over and have a look at her frugal Friday link up! The Shabby Nest Frugal Friday!

Photo Friday

Nap time is the best time of the day! 

It's time for momma to relax and recharge for the rest of the day, it's time for momma to have a HOT cup of tea and a snack that you don't have to share! 

Happy Friday! and Happy Nap time too!

Tell the Truth Thursday!

Boys suck the life out of you... 

Being a woman who has carried both sexes I have to say Boys (or from my experience with this boy) are harder to carry! I have been feeling worse with the pregnancy than I ever was with Delaney... at least that's how I remember it... I remember being tired and moody while pregnant with Delaney but I never had much of any morning sickness, I was tired but never did I want to sleep all day everyday for a month, I had some swelling in my feet and a few cramps and such but never this much round ligament pain or just aches and pains in general... I was hungry while pregnant with Delaney but never did I want to eat and eat and eat... I could eat us out of house and home! I have been having seconds and sometimes thirds at supper for weeks now (I never eat seconds) 

I honestly think, and no there is no scientific fact behind this, that boys suck the life out of you... for nine months (ten really) they make you eat more, sleep more, ache more, gain more and all around take whatever they can get, knowing full well that at the end once they are born that you will love them no matter what, lay down your own life for them, give them everything they need and more and you will forget that they sucked the life out of you for nine months (ten really). 

I think the hardest part about having a second baby, who happens to be a boy is that you know that "it's all worth it in the end" and "it's not easy making a human being" and "your growing a baby of course its takes a lot of work" but you have nine month (ten really) to remember the last pregnancy and how different they are and how long they suck the life out of you...

In defense of boy baby's everywhere I do believe that I had this same argument while pregnant with Delaney... so really my "Truth" this Thursday is that being pregnant sucks the life out of you, but when they kick and roll in your tummy you forget, and when they are born and look at you, you forget, and when they grow and learn and temp you to have more baby's because all you can remember are those great moments when they kicked and rolled in your tummy, when they were born and looked at you and when they started to grow and learn things you forget... until your 21 weeks pregnant and you remember... 

What's your "Truth" this Thursday? Can you sympathize with me? or are you thinking about the truth about newborns, or toddlers cause I'm sure gonna be thinking that soon... lol

Quick and easy knitted gift

In need of a thoughtful or quick gift? Maybe both?

I whipped these up in about an hour or so... they are super easy if you are any good at all with your knit and purl stitches. These coffee cup cozy gifts are the perfect gift for my girlfriends (or anyone really)! 

We have a Thursday night ritual, we go out for coffee and then head back to one of our houses as a group and we watch Grey's Anatomy. Since one of the girls birthday is this week I figured that I would put together a coffee themed gift. 

She will be getting this lovely teal coffee cozy, a gift card for coffee and some yummy coffee chocolate chip cookies (recipe on Monday for Make it Monday)

Wondering how to make one of these for yourself? Well here is the easy pattern for my coffee cozy...

after much trial and error I have it all figured out...

Cast on 36 stitches 

knit 1x1 ribbing (one knit and one purl) for about 3 inches or 4 for a larger cozy.

bind off leaving a long tail, thread the tail through a needle to sew a seam up the side. 

Weave in the remainder of the tail. And your done! 

These coffee cozys are a great gift and they are getting much more popular as the general public are getting more and more GREEN. They save you from getting a "double cup" or using the cardboard cup holders, you can find them almost anywhere... but they will run you about 8-15 bucks, or more but making these from yarn I bought at the dollarstore coat about 15 cents. 

So what do you think? Easy, thoughtful and inexpensive... 

Do you have any easy knitting patterns? Have you made any frugal birthday gifts lately? I'd love to see and even try some new projects so leave them in the comments and maybe I will give it a try!

Birthday cake fun!

I've been planning Delaney's Birthday... again yes it's not until august but as I will have a newborn a week or so before that I am planning ahead and getting everything done early... as I am planning I have been looking back at some of the other fun Birthday cakes I've made.

Most of the time when we have a small birthday at home I make the traditional round 2 layer "Happy Birthday" cake! But when it comes to milestone birthdays, cakes for friends or Delaney's birthday party I do what I can to make it super special. I thought I'd share some of the fun cakes I've made in the past while I brainstorm her cake for this year!

Last year Robyn turned 30! Yup the big 3-0! and to celebrate we had a few friends over for a few drinks and cake... a very fun very yummy cake! The top and bottom bun were vanilla cake and the burger its self was a large round brownie! YUP it was YUMMY!

Then for my best friends Birthday her fiance first requested the world... a globe in fact but when she figured it out we started working on something new and I made her this stack of books and an apple (with a little worm on it) as she is a teacher and avid reader!

Delaney's first Birthday didn't really have a theme... I guess it was really a "It's My First Birthday" theme... so her cake was a big #1 and of course a smash cake so she could get messy and enjoy the cake!

Then for her 2nd birthday we had a Playhouse Disney themed party and I decide that I would make a toodles birthday cake for her (the character on Mickey Mouse Club House that brings them all the tools they need for the days task) 

This year we are having a Strawberry Shortcake Party! I am planning on making something a little less time consuming and lets face it easier.... having a C-Section a week before her birthday is likely going to take quite a bit out of me. I am also planning and making all of the invitations and decorations as well as most of the food, although the food may require the assistance of some family and friends I am hoping to get lots of the other things done in the next few months so that the party flows together and I don't have to do much work once the baby gets here!

Do you make fun birthday cakes? DO you have any fun traditions that you do at home or make sure you make for your family? Leave them in the comments and you may just inspire me to try it out too!

Make it Monday!

Do you ever take the coupon/recipe cards that are in the isles at the supermarkets? I usually don't take them unless I know I will use them, and sometimes if I think maybe I might... Who am I kidding I take them all the time and end up throwing away more coupons than I ever use or if it's a recipe I end up never using it and it just gets filed away with maybe someday I will try this...

That was the case with these cookie bars up until a few weeks ago... when I figured hey I'll give it a good old college try... and THEY ARE A SUCCESS! 

Robyn is still working his old job(the new one hasn't started yet, but fingers crossed it will be soon!) so I sent some to work with him hoping to gauge how good these cookies are and they are defiantly a winner! Men don't lie about cookies... lol

So here they are Peanut Butter and Chocolate Oatmeal Cookie Bars! 

2 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup butter (softened)

1 egg

1 tbsp vanilla 

2 cups each Flour and quick cooking oats

1/2 tsp each baking powder and baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/4 cups peanut butter chips

3/4 cups semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar, add egg and vanilla, mix well then add oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt beat on low until well mixed (I used a wooden spoon when it got to hard to handle with my mixer....) then add your Pb butter chips and chocolate chips! 

Press dough into a rimmed cookie sheet (11x7) that is prepared with butter and flour (I line my cookie sheet with tin foil so it just flips right out) cool completely in pan then flip out on a large cutting board or your counter and and slice into bars. 

The recipe says that for a special occasion drizzle melted Pb butter chips and chocolate chips over the top of the bars before you cut them but I tried making them both ways and I much prefer them with the drizzle... without the drizzle just tastes like something is missing!

I hope you enjoy these yummy bars and maybe I've inspired you to pull out some of your "maybe someday" recipes.... If you have one you've tried recently or if you have one your not brave enough to try just yet... let me know in the comments and maybe I will try it for you...