Cozee Kitchen: Strawberry Peanut Butter Smootie

  (I apologize for my poor picture quality, took it on my phone.)

Hello everyone I just wanted to share with you a smoothie I made today that was oh so delicious! Yesterday I had a root canal done and root canal + TMJ = bad news bears! Basically my jaw is in worst condition than my tooth that had the root canal, worst part is that they couldn't find the other canal on my tooth, so I have to have a part 2 of my root canal. Ok that was probably way too much info, but that is what led me to making smoothies.

Let's get started...

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of oatmeal (I grind mine in a food processor because I don't have a good blender)

2 Tbs. of Peanut Butter (or almond butter)

1 Tbs. of Chia Seeds

1 cup of Almond Milk (or regular milk)

2 Tbs. of Agave (or honey)

7 Large Strawberries (can be frozen)

A few ice cubes since I used fresh strawberries.

Toss everything in the blender and blend away! Hence my not so great blender I put it on the Ice Crush mode and it came out great! This makes a great breakfast smoothie or a mid afternoon snack... or simply whenever you crave a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich!

Fun Tip: I put the jar you see above in the freezer for about 2 hours since the hubby was napping and it came out like ice cream... It was really yummy!

Organizing Jewlery

Over the past few weeks I have been really into organizing our house.  I don't know if I'm in the PCS mode of trying to get things together for our big move or it's the Spring cleaning fever.  Dannielle and I must be reading each other's minds because she been organizing as well so we decided to start a Linky Party Operation Organization.  

One of my most recent projects is getting my jewelry organized.   Now that my little love bug is older she has stopped trying to pull earrings out of my ears and the fights over wanting my necklaces have stopped. I had all my jewelry shoved into a makeup bag, but now that I can wear it again I really wanted to create a home for it.  What do you think? 

Now this all cost me the low low price of nothing.  I just used what I had in the house, the frames given to me and stuff I picked up at the Airman's Attic [it's a free thrift store on base].  I picked the big frame at the Airman's Attic, painted it yellow and added the hooks to the top.  In minutes, a necklace hanger.

I also picked up this little coat hanger thingy at the Airman's Attic.  Can't beat free.  It use to be black so I spray painted it grey, hung it up and it holds all the bracelets perfectly.

To hold my earrings I used framed cork boards.  I am not such a fan of the cork look so I covered it.  I cut the cork to fit in the frame, covered it, put the back on the frame and then used pins to hold the earrings.  

The best part about the cork is that you can also use it to hang your studs.  Just push them right in there just like my black ones on the bottom right picture. 

Not to shabby for free and now that I can actually see all my jewelry I try to wear some everyday.  

Have you been organizing too?  Be sure to share your link or email us a photo!  We would love to see your ideas too.

Pillow Case and Pillow Sleepover Invitations

After throwing the Barbie party I had the pleasure of booking another right away.  I'm super excited about this one because it is a sleep over.  How I remember my first sleepover party for my 8th birthday... we played with my new Barbie's, watched It Takes Two, ate a whole bunch of junk, and hardly slept.  I can't wait to share all the fun party things I have been working on but first things first, the invitations.  I love these invites and am archiving them for when Cindy has her first sleep over.  They are real mini pillow cases and the invite is a cardstock pillow.  Can you tell the birthday girl's chosen theme?  Yup Zebra and teal.  

I only had to make a handful so it didn't take much time at all.  I wouldn't recommend these if you have to make more than 10, it could take awhile.  So you start with a folded rectangle piece for the top portion, a ribbon for the trim, and a bigger rectangle piece for the bottom.

1. Sew the ribbon onto the body of the pillow case as close to the edge as you can get it.

2. Line everything up, pin and sew the top portion of the pillow case. 

3. Once everything is attached I like to zigzag the edges.

4. Iron it flat.

Now turn the pillow case right sides together and sew down the sides and along the bottom.  You can zigzag around these edges too.  I made the party invites with a zebra border and printed it on regular card stock.  Then I cut them in the shape of a pillow.

Slip the pillow invite in the case and you are ready to party!  For more sleepover party inspiration and ideas check out Pinterest board HERE.

Happy Sunday everyone!

OPERATION ORGANIZATION: Make-up Organizer

 

We have taken on the new endeavor of organizing. For me it doesn't come as natural as I would like. People often perceive me to be an organized person. Little do they know that I am truly a pack rat. I am in desperate need of purging to say the least. You don’t believe me? I still have clothes from when I was in Junior High and I still have little non-memorable trinkets from when I was a kid. So, without further a due welcome to Operation Organization. My goal is to purge and organize (finding and storing a specific place/home for things and returning them to their place when no longer in use).

BEWARE: This series may contain some unsightful, embarrassing, and humiliating photos.

Let’s start with baby steps… Here are my make up products. I often wonder why I do not have them all in one pouch or one place, I guess I love pouches.. But we are moving on to consolidating in one container, thank you Snapware for inventing such a container. (By the way I got my container for 50% off with a Joann's coupon. Originally $12 and got it for $6!)

 Contents: 1.  Brushes 2. Foundation, Powder, Eye Shadows, Mascaras 3. Palettes 4. Cleansers, etc.

Highlights from the Barbie Party

I know I know, shame on me for waiting so long to post this.  Better late then never I like to say.  Well, this Barbie party was such a blast to plan and put together.  It was a surprise for the birthday girl and it was so neat to see her expression when she saw everything.  She had a good time and loved everything.  To me, that is all that matters.  

Before I jump into showing you what I have brewing for the next party, I wanted to post an overview of everything from the party, starting with the main table.

 You can see the details about the food in THIS post here.  

I set this table a little differently by ruffling the table cloth underneath.  It's simple enough to do.  I bought a plain white paper table cloth, cut a long strip out of it, added tape to the table, ruffled and pushed it up against the tape.  Then added the pink table cloth over and scalloped so you can see the ruffles underneath.  To hide where I sewed the pink table cloth I added bows.

We hung poms up around the room, balloons, and made a number seven out of paper dots I punched from different kinds of scrap book paper. 

I made these fun little stands for the main table where all the girls stand. Just a Styrofoam bottom [just like the ones I used to hold the pop corn cones], a painted pink wooden rod, some paper, and a bow for her head.  Really simple. Bins with fun kiddy stuff, Babries on the table and we even did a craft with them.  We made little tutu's for all their Barbie dolls. 

As for the birthday girls outfit I just provided the screen printed shirt and head band.  You can find the tutorial for that HERE.  Isn't she just a little cutie pie!  Such a fun girly girl party! 

And now I have to get back to prepping for my next party.  Happy Tuesday everyone! 

Happy Friday

It's been a  year since I have have written a Happy List. [Wow it's been too long].  I thought it would be fun to write one with Dannielle so who know's it might become a more regular thing. 

I'm oozing with happiness because I got my first Jo Tote.  Big sissy knew I couldn't wait until my birthday so she ordered it early for me.  It's the perfect travel bag... love the compartments, millions of pockets, cushion for my camera, color, everything about it. 

Going to gymnastics twice a week with this little munchkin always makes me so happy.  She loves it and I love watching her love it.  It's so neat to see her grow and develop week to week in class.

Seeing this father daughter relationship develop makes me so happy.  What a blessing for my little love bug to have such and amazing daddy.  She a daddy's girl through and through and seeing his eyes sparkle when he looks at her makes my heart warm.  

I am glad that we are doing this Happy List because it helps you be more conscious of the blessings in life. I am so happy that Patty introduced this to me, I am super excited! (Please excuse my poor quality photos and my lack of photos).

This past Sunday I was really touched by my Pastor's sermon on Getting to the Place of Forgiveness (Romans 12:17-21). click on the link to listen to it.  It is going to be a series that he will be diving into and I am super excited. One of the things that stuck out to me in this sermon was that Christ not only died for our sins but He also bore our sorrows and our grief. 

Having fellowship with my sisters in Christ this week was such a blessing. They help keep me grounded and we help each other get through the week day by day. I love them so much and am really happy to have them in my life. (I would've posted a picture of us if 1. we had one together and 2. if they would let me!)

Last but not least, I had the joy to make cake pops for a girl that I sometimes babysit. She was turning 5 and her request was vanilla cake pops with sprinkles and indeed that is what she got! I love love love this family and it was such a delight to make cake pops for them. Check out their site here.

 

Spontaneous

I recently realized that ever since I became a mom my spontaneity has slowly dwindled away.   Somewhere along this journey I have become this plan everything kind of a person.   It's not a bad life... schedules, lists, plans, appointments, events, activities.... Always prepared for anything and everything. 

When this weekend rolled around we were out paint shopping for my newest crafting endeavor, Spontaneity hit my husband.  I planned for a simple trip to the hardware store, grab a coffee and doughnut from our favorite cafe, and a little grocery shopping to end the day.  Then out of left field he asks if I want to go to "the big city". 

Hmmmm.....   No grocery shopping.  Only one diaper.  One juice box, two snacks, no stroller.  I was totally unprepared for a full day and reluctantly said YES! 

In a picture perfect world I would tell you that it was amazing, but lets get real.  We get to the restaurant and out of no where the little starts screaming that she has poop.  The plan to save that one diaper until our ride home, out the window.  I change her and pray she can hold filling it for a few hours.  NOPE, 2 minutes later she randomly has diarrhea!!   We look at each other with defeated smiles and murmur what should we do.  I wasn't ready to go so off to the bathroom again and this time around I saw a huge stack of diapers that I must have missed the first time around.  Those diapers saved the day and we did end up having a nice time shopping and getting dessert.  Might I add that as soon as we leave [3 diapers later and one pair of tights demolished] diarrhea stops.   

Our spontaneous outing did affirm my desire to be prepared, but it also showed me that it will be okay even if I'm not.  Things will work out.  Being a little spontaneous here and there can be fun, it doesn't always have to be stressful.  Not every outing or event or day has to be planned hour by hour.   

And guess what, on Monday we had yet another spontaneous day.  Hubby randomly got the day off, we planned to walk around the city and somehow ended up at the lake, and even though we dressed inappropriately [me in my wedges and Cindy in her dress] we had a blast.  Guess that little bit of spontaneity is still in me. 

From the Cozee Kitchen: Corn Tortillas

Recently my hubby and I had a Carne Asada (mexican bbq). I thought I'd switch it up this time and make some homemade corn tortillas. The hubby was quite excited since it was also his first time, so it was a ton of fun making them together. Most of all it is unbelievably easy!

Ingredients:

- 2 c. of Maseca Flour (corn flour)

- 1 1/4 c. of Water

- 1/4 tsp. of Salt

- 1/4 tsp of Chili Powder (just for a little kick, and totally optional)

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl.
2. Stir with a spoon. Dough should have a consistency where it doesn't stick to your hands, if it does just add a tad bit more flour.
3. Roll into balls (sorry I didn't have any pictures or the tortilla balls, you can kind of see it in the background of picture #4) then grab a tortilla press (Be sure to put saran wrap or wax paper in between the 2 metal plates on the press.)
4. Then press!
5. Presto! Cook tortillas on a pan or cast iron skillet on medium heat. Cook for about a minute then flip for 30-40 more seconds.

Super duper easy and anyone can do it! This would be a fun little activity to do with your friends, hubby, or kids!

Water Beads and Beans

My daughter will be the first to tell you that sometimes the best toys aren't really toys.  She loves playing with rocks, dirt, anything and everything in the craft corner.... and yup water beads and beans.   Endless fun and minimal cost.  

Just a note that these are small items that can be swallowed so be sure to watch your kiddos when they play with these. 

Now I don't let her play with water beads all that often because they can be kind of a pain for me but they are fascinating.  I ordered mine from amazon about a year ago for $4 including shipping and got more than I could ever need.  You can find them HERE.  They aren't toxic or anything so if your little one decides to eat one it's no big deal but of course not recommended.  They come in little plastic baggies like this and are super tiny.

So you place them in water and wait... and wait... and wait.  Before you know it they will be fully grown.  I know she will love seeing this process when she is a little older.  It's really neat, but yup takes time.

Once they are filled with the water they turn into these squishy little beads that have a little bounce and are just fun to play with.  I give her some plates, cups, spoons and she just loves scooping and dropping them.  We both get a kick out of it.  Now when you are done you just lay them out in the sun and they shrink back to size.  Granted it took days for mine which is why I don't necessarily enjoy playing with these all the time but next time.  I'm going to see if a blow dryer will speed up the shrinking process.

As for the beans... she loves and has always loved playing with beans.  She plays with beans [and macaroni too] at least three times a week no joke!   I let her use a tin can, plastic containers, spoons, scoops and for more than 30 minutes she is happy scooping and pouring.  And of course only on her little quilt.  When she lays her quilt out on the floor I know she will then as for beans.   

The picture on the left is actually her first time playing with beans when she was about 18 months old and the one on the right is more recent.

Now I have her sit on a blanket because it makes clean up really easy.  I have her get up and I push all the beans to the middle and scoop them back in their jar. 

Two of her favorite things to play with [okay and I have fun playing too].

Tutorial: Barbie Screen Print T-Shirt and Headband

Before I start the tutorial I wanted to officially welcome Dannielle as a writer on Make it Cozee.  I am so excited to see what she will share with all of us over this coming year.  You can read more about her on the side bar [just look to the right].  Yup I updated my bio too.  God willing I have time, there will be lots of housekeeping done on the blog.  

Now onto this shirt.  I saw this idea on Pinterest of course and no kidding it was super easy to do and it came out really cute!  I would make this shirt again just for my little one because it is darling.

It's easy peasy,  print out the barbie silhouette [printable HERE] to the size you want it.  Just a tip, save ink and print it in gray.  Trace the image onto your freezer paper.  Use your Xacto knife and carefully cut out the image.  Iron the piece with the silhouette cut out, not the actual silhouette onto the shirt [shiny side of the freezer paper down].  Get your fabric paint and start painting the open space.  Be sure to let it dry before you peel the paper off. 

Once it is dry remember to heat seal the image or it will wash off in the washing machine.  Instead of an iron you can also just throw it in the dryer for a few minutes. 

Sew on a bow and TADA a cute little party shirt!  And here is the birthday girl wearing it.

I also got to make her this cute little headband.  To make it, just combine the two bows from THIS tutorial and hot glue it to a headband. 

If you want more detailed instructions on how to do this, check out THIS tutorial.  Stay tuned I have all the pictures from the party to share next time!  Until then, Happy Tuesday everyone.