More chicken (AKA fish), please!

In our house we do not eat much fish.  When I Googled how much fish we should be consuming in a week we fell terribly short.  Most web sites shared that we should be eating at least two servings of fish a week.  Our household is lucky to eat two fish meals in a month.  I guess I need to find more recipes like the one I am going to share with you today. I love this recipe because it takes less time to prepare it than it does to eat it (now that's what I'm talking about)!  The first time we tried this recipe my six year old was asking for more "chicken".  We did correct him....eventually about the variety of meat he was eating but why spoil it right away when he was eating it so well!  

Broiled Parmesan Tilapia

Ingredients 

·          

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup butter, softened

·          

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

·          

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

·          

1/4 teaspoon dried basil

·          

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

·          

1/8 teaspoon onion powder

·          

1/8 teaspoon celery salt

·          

2 pounds tilapia fillets (we like to buy ours from Costco, they have great thick Tilapia Loins)

Directions

1.    Preheat your oven's broiler on high. Grease a broiling pan or line pan with aluminum foil.

2.    In a small bowl, mix together the Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise and lemon juice. Season with dried basil, pepper, onion powder and celery salt. Mix well and set aside.

3.    Arrange fillets in a single layer on the prepared pan. Broil a few inches from the heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the fillets over and broil for a couple more minutes. Remove the fillets from the oven and cover them with the Parmesan cheese mixture on the top side. Broil for 2 more minutes or until the topping is browned and fish flakes easily with a fork. Be careful not to overcook the fish.

It’s a 15 minute meal!  Only seven minutes of cooking, the rest is prep work.  We pair it with broccoli, applesauce, and dinner rolls, yum.  It doesn't taste fishy at all. What are some quick meals that are a crowd pleaser in your house? 

Lava Lamp: With a Scientist

I suggested to my daughter we do a science experiment.  

So, of course to my daughter that meant getting dressed up in proper attire.

Goggles.

Face Mask.

Gloves.

You don't need any of those for this experiment, but she thought she was pretty much awesome.

What you do need is:

Vegetable Oil (the cheapest you can find)

Alka Seltzer (we went through about 6 of the tablets before we lost interest)

Water

Food coloring 

Tall container to pour everything in

First, add the food coloring to the water.

Next, pour the oil in the tall vase.

Pour the colored water in.  

Watch it swirl around, and make pretty bubbles.

After the oil and water separate, break the Alka Seltzer tablets in two and drop them in one piece at a time.

Ta-Da!  Bubbles.  Lots of bubbles.

No pictures I have found online (thus far) really do this experiment justice.  That may be why it has taken me so long to do get around to doing it.

Have you tried this with your kiddos before?

Blogs to Love

I really love blogs.  I like finding my favorites and I look forward to reading them every day or a few times a week.  I was a huge fan of YHL and was heartbroken when they decided to call it quits.  On the other hand, because I wasn't checking their site every day, I found a few new blogs to love.  Blogs are a great source of inspiration and information!

I thought I'd share my top ten favorites with you today and why they make my list.

#10)  The one that is written by someone I know in real life.  Plus she has a great sense of humor in her writing.  And her instagram recaps are my favorites.

Sarah @ Flying Kites

#9)  The one that I go to for beautiful free printables.  I love the gift tags.

Emily @ Jones Design Company

#8)  The one I go to when I want happy color inspiration.  And if anyone wants to sign up to try to go to craft weekend with me, let me know!

Meg @ Whatever

#7)  The one that has great sewing tutorials and patterns.  Her video tutorials are great.

Dana @ Made

#6)  The one that has great party planning ideas.  A collaborative blog that I use as a search engine when throwing a party.

Oh Happy Day

#5)  The one I look at when I want to wish upon a star and transform my home.  Her 'Nugget Series'--love.

Mandi @ Vintage Revivals

#4)  The one I read when I want to contemplate.  Her book A Million Little Ways is so good, too.

Emily @ Chatting at the Sky

#3)  The one that I go to for a no fail recipe.  This one is obvious.  And if you need a good cook book, she has three and one on the way.

Ree @ The Pioneer Woman

#2)  The one that is stupid fun when it comes to movies and tv.  This lady is too much fun.

Kendra @ The Sugar Box

#1)  The one I love to read because it is about the love of books.  Need a book suggestion for yourself, for your child, for a gift...check out the lists on here.

Anne @ Modern Mrs. Darcy

What blogs do you love to read or go to for inspiration?...other than MamasTogether, of course :)

Please share!

The Makings of an Anniversary Party

For about a month I have been planning a 25th wedding Anniversary party for my Aunt and Uncle. At first I was overwhelmed with details but after some simplification everything came together.  Here are a few things we did to make this party simple but special. Maybe these tips can help you someday in planning a party.

1.  Delegate.  I could not do this by myself.  Family is so wonderful and extremely helpful! I had cousins involved in making punch and contributing food such as vegetable and fruit trays.  One of my cousins even volunteered to make meatballs and cheesy potatoes, score!  My mom also contributed greatly with cherry pies(my Uncle's favorite) and providing a large picture frame with mat that we used for guests to sign instead of a sign in book because then they can hang it up on the wall later. My husband was even involved in making signs for me.  I am blessed beyond measure!

2.  Use things you have on hand.  I used many picture frames from home to display photos.  We had pretty cake stands to display smaller photos on different levels.  A picture frame that I used for my Christmas art was transformed into a hanger to display multiple pictures.  I just took white poster board for the backing and duct taped twine on the edges.  I covered the duct tape with scrap ribbon that happened to match the damask print from the invitations (invites were purchased at Walmart and were actually just stationary we printed the party details on).   Next I spray painted some clothespins black to hang the photos on the twine.

One thing I wanted to find was a vintage suitcase for a card basket, a cute idea I saw on pinterest.  Are suitcases not so popular anymore because when I looked at Hobby Lobby they used to have many... I found none?  I decided this was not something I had to have.  Instead, I used our black fruit basket from our kitchen counter.  I cut out  letters from silver poster board to spell "Cards" (it was cheaper than card stock from the scrapbook section) and attached the letters to the basket with white clothespins.  Pretty simple card basket.  

3. Go simple on Decor.  Once again I sort of delegated a few things here.  My sister in law, Mom, and I bought a few tissue paper poms to hang along with a couple of teal floral poms.  The colors for the party were teal, black, and silver (because a 25th anniversary is a silver anniversary).  My mom had many ball canning jars so we re-purposed those by spray painting 10 of them silver to use as floral vases on the tables.  Butchers craft paper covered the tables.  Teal burlap ribbon ran down the middle of each table then a very thin piece of silver ribbon on top of that.   Each table had one silver ball jar in the middle holding carnations which are my Aunt's favorite flower.  There were 3 carnations in each jar some white ones that were tipped with teal and some called vintage carnations, these may just be a new favorite of mine.

Dollar General had very affordable plates/napkins and I even found the damask black and white pattern.  We mixed it up with half teal and half damask print.  I didn't photograph the plates but here is an idea of the print from the cake photo.

If you are planning a party anytime soon hopefully these tips can help.  Party planning is fun! I always love to look at pinterest for ideas.  Where do you get your party planning inspiration?  A book/magazine/computer??  We'd love to hear your ideas.   

This Week

Today I have several random bits to share with you, so let's get started.

We have had sick kiddos in the house for days (though, it kind of feels like years).

If you have a child young enough that he can't blow his own nose, you need this product.  I will be the first to admit, the concept sounds disgusting.  After using it, I can honestly say nothing went in my mouth, and it was way more effective than a bulb sucker.  Seriously, it is worth the $15.  A congested 1 year old is nothing to mess with.   

Next up, is a yummy smoothie.  I love smoothies, but I usually stick with my tried and true methods, and rarely venture out to try different recipes.  This one is full of flavor, and pretty healthy.  I would also mention that if you would like a creamier smoothie, blend the oats first so they have a more powder-like consistency.

I love puppets for early childhood development.  Sometimes toddlers and preschoolers have a hard time conveying what they need and puppets are a great way to help them use their words.  Puppets are great for role playing the proper way to do things, telling secrets, and are all around pretty fun.  I found these adorable puppets on Pinterest and there is a free pattern (score!).

And finally, something for the mamas.
I have recently become mildly obsessed with shawls.  I know, old lady much?  But these are super cute, and perfect for this spring like weather we are experiencing.  I have made two already, and I may make more.  The pattern is easy peasy.  I love that a chart is included as well, because it is much easier for me to read the picture than the crazy crochet jargon in word form.

What have you found this week that you love?  We would love to hear about any great products or projects.  Leave us a comment :)

Boy Room Redo

Do you remember back in October when I talked about making beds out of pallets?  Well.  I sanded down two of the eight pallets that I needed to make the two beds and then....well then I quit.  Because hello.  That's a lot of work.

I wasn't sure what I would do, but I knew that the bed making business was not something I was going to be a part of anytime soon.  know thyself.  not just a clever saying.

Fast forward a couple of months....well, five to be exact....and I was talking to my friend, Rachel (the same friend who gave me the pallets), about the failed pallet beds and how I just would probably end up buying bunk beds from Ikea.  And she said, "Oh.  I didn't know you were wanting bunk beds.  We're selling ours.  Along with a tall dresser.  And a desk."

And I said, "Get out of town!"  

Ok not really.  But I was super excited because not only was I getting the beds I wanted for a great price but I was really wanting to get a tall dresser for the boys' room, too.  Patience, people.  It really pays off.

So for the past few weeks I've been slowly painting the bunk beds and the dresser a nice blue (Valspar's Indigo Cloth from Lowes to be precise).  And then on Sunday we had a crazy snowstorm blow in and we ended up being home all day.  So I ran to Lowes and had them color match Benjamin Moore's Coventry Gray and I painted the boys' room, too.

I'm now starting to see actual progress which I love.

Here is what their room looked like before:

And here is what it looks like now:

Next on the list is to paint the ceiling, take down the ceiling fan and put up a fun light, find or make some pulls for the dresser, figure out something for the closet doors (because the bi-fold doors have to go), and find some fun vintage star wars or super hero posters.

Slowly but surely the room is changing and I'm loving it.  Have you done and major changes in your home recently?

Extending the Life of Kids' Clothing

 

I pulled my daughter's jeans out of the dryer the other day and noticed one of the knees had worn clear through and the other was close to doing the same.  She had worn them last season and I had purchased them in a garage sale so they have had lots of use, but I figured I could try and make them last through the winter or until she grew another inch or so.  I saw a few ideas on pinterest on creating fun knee patches so I thought I would give a try.

 

 

Before: Not long before both knees were worn through.

 

I took out some scrap fabric that I had that had some colors in it that I knew my daughter wore frequently and some heat n bond ultrahold.  

 

Next, I took my template, which in this case was a heart and cut it out of the fabric.

 

Finally, I used the heat n bond on the back of the heart, and ironed it to her jeans for the finished look.  I also took a pink thread and stitched around the heart to help it last longer, but it isn't pictured. I'm hoping it will make the patches stay on longer.  I sewed that part by hand.

 

My daughter was pretty excited to see she had hearts on her knees.  Looks like they were a winner in her eyes and will still get worn.  :)

 

What fun ways do you try and get more life out of your kids' clothing?