Fabulous Favorite Friday

Happy Friday everyone! I hope things are going well for you where you are. So far we are having a pretty good day here.

The sun is shining and the weather is warming up. It is really starting to feel like summer. Spring and summer are my favorite seasons. You can't help but feel chipper if the sun is shining.

Things are going well with our little bundle. I've been feeling this little guy moving around this week. It is so exciting to think we will have another little guy around the house. The holidays should be very exciting for all of us.

One of my Fabulous Favorite Friday picks is mini nilla wafers. They are so cute! How can you not love their mini shape! I thought they would be a great snack for my little guy, but of course I love them too. They are the perfect size if you want to make individual bowls of nilla pudding. Also, they fit perfectly in the item I'm featuring below.

The next Fabulous Favorite Friday pick is called the Snack Trap. I have two of these cups for my little guy and they are fabulous. They have a top that has little ridges in it and little ones are can put their hands in and take out their snack. We use ours all the time. The Snack Trap has especially come in handy during my ob appointments to keep my little guy occupied. Goldfish and the nilla wafers fit great in the snack trap, while Cheerios being a small snack seem to fall out of the cup more easily making a mess.

I purchased our Snack Traps at Babies R' Us. They come in girl and boy type colors. If you don't have a Babies R' Us in your area, you can order these through the Snack Trap website. If you know someone having a baby, I highly recommend picking up at least one of these. It is a unique gift that will come in handy and will get used a lot. http://www.snacktrap.com/Categories.bok?category=Made+For+Mom%3AThe+Snack-Trap

I hope y'all have a great weekend!

It's a.....

Bouncing Baby Boy!

We found out that the new baby on the way is a little boy. So, I will be the mama of two boys. The great thing is with this being a fall baby, I will get to reuse all of the cute clothes we have. Some of them are like brand new because I couldn't use them with my son when he was on the heart monitor because it was too hard to get the wires through the outfits.

I must admit that over the weekend I did buy one new newborn sleeper that had cranes on it from Target. It was on sale and I wanted to get one special thing for this little bundle.

So, we are very excited and making plans on getting rooms ready. Our oldest will be moved into another room and we will transition to a toddler bed. The new baby will inherit his Zanzibar nursery. It is such a sweet nursery. It is exciting to think of decorating Sawyer's room. I have no idea what we will do yet.

Now the fun begins of trying to come up with another boy's name. Wish us luck. LOL

Happy Memorial Day!

Today is not only Memorial Day, but my mom's birthday. So, we will be celebrating with her at a family picinic. And, it is my friend Paula's birthday. Happy Birthday Paula!

When I was younger, I never paid much attention to Memorial Day. But, especially since 911 my perspective has really changed on Memorial Day. It isn't just another holiday off. I think back to both of my grandfather's and how they both served our country in a number of wars. And, my brother in law is now in the National Guard serving. I'm so grateful to the members of my family and the important role they've played in protecting our freedoms. And, I remember those who are currently serving over seas and I'm grateful to them and the sacrifices they are making along with their families.

So, have a blessed Memorial Day. I hope you are enjoying it with your family and I hope you'll take time to remember the importance of this holiday.

Fabulous Favorite Friday Pick

My Fabulous Favorite Friday pick this week is a Paula Deen recipe that I made last week for our last MOPS meeting. I've made a few different Paula Deen recipes and so far I've had very good luck with them.



This is a great recipe to do when you want something that looks fancy for breakfast. I'm going to try to make it this Memorial Day weekend as a special treat for us. Of course this would be great for when you have company, a holiday, or for a brunch.

Enjoy!

Nutty Orange Coffee Cake

3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup chopped pecans 2 teaspoons orange zest 2 (12-ounce) cans refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (10 count) 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese 1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter 1 cup sifted confectioners' sugar 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar, pecans, and zest; set aside. Separate the biscuits. Place about 3/4 teaspoon cream cheese in the center of each biscuit. Fold each biscuit in half over the cheese, pressing the edges to seal. Dip the biscuits in melted butter, then dredge in the granulated sugar mixture. Place the biscuits, curved-side down, in a single layer in the hollows of a lightly greased 12-cup bundt pan, spacing them evenly (do not stack). Place any remaining biscuits around the tube, filling any gaps. Drizzle any remaining butter over the biscuits, and sprinkle with any remaining sugar mixture. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until golden brown. Immediately invert the cake onto a serving platter. Combine the confectioners' sugar and orange juice, stirring well; drizzle the glaze over the warm cake. Serve warm.


*NOTE: When Paula Deen demo'd this recipe, she said to let the cake cool a few minutes (maybe 5) that way when you do the drizzle it won't completely melt into the cake. As you can see from my pictures, I did that and my drizzle was still visible.

I hope you all have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. And let's all remember and keep in our hearts the reason why we celebrate Memorial Day.

Picinic Pup and Popsicles

Picinic Pup

We have this small picinic table on our deck for my son and as you can see, it also makes a great place to catch some rays if you are a little princess. Our boston terrier, Miss Zoe, made me laugh last week when I saw she had hopped up on the table and made herself comfortable. One thing about this pup is she can always find a way to make herself comfortable and at home. She doesn't know she is a dog. Can you tell? She looks like she is waiting for us to bring out her treats on a silver platter. LOL

Yogurt Pops

I like yogurt, but sometimes I find that it is hard to make myself take the time to eat it. I decided to start making yogurt pops since the weather is getting warmer. I'm a sucker for sweet things, especially ice cream. But, I wanted to find a better alternative for my sweet tooth. So, I went to Target and found this little popsicle container. This one is a little small, it was in the dollar spot. They do sell one that will make bigger pops. I believe I saw that on one of the ends of the aisles. I may go back and get a bigger make for myself and use this small one for my little guy. I think the small container is great for toddlers.

I bought a number of small containers of different flavors of yogurt. As you can see, 2 are missing. I had two last night. I found a creamsicle yogurt and did that one, along with peach. The creamsicle ones are awesome! I thought my little guy might like to try the peach. So, if you are looking for a way to up your dairy intake and have a healthy treat for yourself and your kids, consider yogurt pops. As Martha Stewart would say, "Yogurt pops. They're a good thing."

A Book for your Beach Bag

Hey everyone! It is hard to believe it is hump day already. May is rapidly coming to an end. Memorial Day, the official kick off to summer is next week.

One of my favorite things to do on summer vacation is to take books to read on the beach. I think it is so relaxing to be under an umbrella with a good book.

One book I've recently had the chance to read is "the bright side of disaster" by Katherine Center. I was sent an advanced copy of the book by being one of the lucky folks who was first to respond to an offer on the webside formerly known as sk*rt (now know as kirtsy, check out the button on the right).

This book is an interesting read. To be honest, it is the type of book I would have read if a friend loaned me, but I don't know if I would have picked it out if I saw it in the book store. That isn't a negative towards the book, this book is just different from the type of books I normally pick out.

Book Synopsis

This book is the story of Jenny Harris whose live in boyfriend, Dean skips out on her when he gets cold feet about marrying her and becoming a father to their unborn child. One night he goes out for cigarettes and doesn't come back. The very next day Jenny goes into labor and gives birth to their child (won't tell you the sex of the baby, I'll let you find out).

The story unfolds with Jenny finding herself as a single mother. She joins a mommies group, gets support from her family, and learns how to do everything by herself. She becomes friends with a handsome neighbor who is handy and great with the baby. A blossoming romance starts. Just when things start to heat up with the hunky neighbor, her old ball and chain Dean shows up. The story takes a turn and leaves you guessing who she will choose - hunky neighbor or dead beat Dean?

This book was a fun, easy read. I will definitley lend it to friends. I enjoyed the different personality dynamics of the various characters and to see Jenny's character develop over her first year of motherhood. The one criticism I have is that Jenny's friend Meredith is in a good portion of the beginning of the book and then drops off the face of the earth to appear at the end. I would like to have seen that character's transition in the story a little better, but it isn't an earth shattering event that ruins the book. I still would recommend this as a summer read.

I hope to have some other book and magazine reviews in the upcoming weeks. If any of you have any great books that you'd like to review, I'd love to have you as a guest reviewer here on the Chic Crafty Chic blog. I'm all about finding great summer reads. Please email me if you are interested.

Fabulous Favorite Friday

Hello everyone. I hope you are having a happy Friday where you are. Today was a fun day. My MOPS (Mother's of Preschoolers) group met today for our last time before we break for the summer. I am really going to miss those twice monthly meetings. It has been great getting to know some of the ladies in the group.

Today we had a fun game day where they did MommyFear Factor challenges. They had things like put all the kiddie videos with the right case, diaper and cloth a baby doll, make a pb&j with one hand (I won that one) and matching pictures of cartoon characters with phrases from the movie they appeared in, and matching pairs of socks together and putting them in a laundry basket. The winner of all of those challenges had to participate in a final challenge where they put a bowl in front of us which had 4 or 5 gummy worms in some chocolate pudding. You had to fish out and eat the worms with no hands.

Y'all, I hate chocolate pudding so the thought of having to get the worms out was yucky. But, my good friend Shari stepped in and held my hair (the one day I don't put it in a pony tail) and I went to town. Don't y'all know that I got those worms out as quick as I could and I won! It was so funny. They crowned me Miss Fear Factor Mom of 2008. LOL I got a lovely pink tiara and a dozen awesome smelling pink roses. Oh, and those of us who had won the challenges got cute prize baskets. Mine was a collander with bread sticks, pasta, pasta sauce and parmesan cheese. The prize baskets were so cute. The ladies who put it all together did a fabulous job. I wanted to give y'all a lot of detail so if you are in a MOPS group and are looking for something fun to do, you can borrow this idea .

My Fabulous Favorite Friday pick is Stoneyfield YoMommy yogurt. They also make YoBaby yogurt which is how I found out about YoMommy because I was buying it for my son. I'm really not a big fan of milk, so to eat yogurt everyday has helped me with getting in my dairy.

I also buy Stoneyfield's organic milk. I started that when I was pregant with Sawyer. I persoanlly don't taste any difference in organic milk and other milk so switching was not a big deal to me at all. One interesting note is that the expiration on the organic milk lasts longer than on other milk. Go figure. One of my neighbor's said she has noticed that too.

So, if you've never tried the YoMommy give it a try.

Have a great weekend. Next week I'll have a Paula Deen recipe review so be sure to check back.

Big news in our Chic and Crafty World

Breaking News....

Well, I'm happy to finally be able to spill the beans. The reason I haven't been doing any Deceptively Delicious recipe reviews in a while is....I'm pregnant! I haven't felt like trying many new recipes due to morning sickness, but fortunatley it seems that is passing.

Because our son was born at 25 weeks and was 1 pound 12 ounces, I'm considered a high risk pregnancy. Last week I went into the hospital and had a procedure called a cerclage done. That is where they put a stitch in your cervix (not fun). They can't say 100% sure if I have an incompetent cervix, but doing this procedure was the best course of action to hopefully help prevent preterm labor.

I have been told I have to rest 3 hours a day and I've tried to be good. I've been told worst case scenario I could end up on bed rest by 20-25 weeks. We are hoping that won't be the case. I also will have to start giving myself progesterone shots once a week. I have always had a hard time with shots, so having to give them to myself just stinks. But, we will get through it. The specialist is watching me like a hawk and we are praying this little person will stay in as long as he can.

Our little bundle is due November 11th and we are going to find out what we are having. I will probably be able to find out in the next month. And yes, I'll post when I find out. For grins and giggles, I've got a poll at the top. You can vote and tell me what you think I'm having.

A Healthy Discovery
I've recently seen on different news segments that Pomegranate juice is supposed to be really healthy for you. So, last week I decided to buy a bottle and give it a try. It reminds me of a sweeter version of cranberry juice. I have to say that when my sweet tooth starts up, just having a small glass of this juice helps.

I wanted to show y'all the bottle I bought. I bought this at Wal Mart. They sell this brand. I bought this on the juice aisle. BTW, if you think you don't want to try it by itself, I did see where you could get the pomegranate blended with another juice flavor. That might be great for a smoothy or something. There is another brand of pomegranate juice called POM. They sell that in the produce section with the chilled fruit.

This juice isn't cheap. There are 32 ounces in my bottle and that set me back about $3. But, its like I always tell my husband it costs to eat/drink healthy.

I hope y'all are having a great week.

When life hands you lemons...

Make lemon muffins! A friend of mine shared this recipe a few weeks ago and I had a chance to make them. They were pretty easy and taste great. I really love that lemony taste and the lemon rind on top makes them look so pretty.

I hope you all are having a great Monday. Unfortunately, it has been chilly and rainy here the last few days. I'm ready for 70 degree weather and sunshine.

Be sure to check in this week. There will definitley be more posts and surprise this week.

Lemon Muffins--makes 2.5 dozen minis
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
3/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
1 T. grated lemon rind ( I didn't have any, so I left it out)
3/4 c. sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 (8 oz.) container lemon yogurt ( I only had strawberry, so I used that!)
6 T. butter or margarine, melted
1 T. fresh lemon juice ( I used bottled juice)
Glaze: 1/4 c. sugar, 1/3 c. fresh lemon juice, 2 t. grated lemon rind (still didn't have any!) Cook all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, just until sugar dissolves.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture.
Stir together egg and next three ingredients until blended.
Add to dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened. Spoon into lightly greased mini muffin pans, filling 3/4 full.
Bake at 400* for 10 to 12 mintues or until lightly browned. Cool in pans 5 minutes. Prepare glaze. Spoon glaze over warm muffins. Remove from pans, and cool completely.
Note: to make ahead, place unglazed baked muffins in ziploc bags, and freeze up to one month. Thaw; reheat if desired

Farm Chic

Happy Friday everyone! I don't know where this week has gone. We've had a lot going on which I'll have to post about next week. I've missed posting!

I finally got some plants planted this week. We are trying to grow a few tomato plants. I got one roma and then 4 others I think are called something like beefy boy. They looked yummy on the tag. LOL

I also planted some red petunias for the deck because I found in the past that we have a sweet little humming bird who loves to feed from them. So, I got those ready.

For my Fabulous Favorite Friday pick, I'm featuring a company I just discovered. I have to admit I don't own any of these necklaces, but I thought they were such a cool find. What a great Mother's Day gift these would make, or just any every day gift for anyone. With graduations coming up soon, this would also be a unique gift for a graduate. They have different styles, but these were my two favorite I saw on the website. The website is called Farm Chicks. I love that name! So cute! If you are interested, here is a link to their website. http://www.thefarmchicks.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/jewelry.html

I hope all of you have a great weekend! I'll check in next week.

Brrr Cha Cha Food

Happy Friday everyone! The sun is shining and we've finally gotten rid of some of thte rainy weather. This week has flown by. There has been so much too do and not enough time to do it all. But, how is that different from any other week. LOL

My Fabulous Favorite Friday picks this week are Tostittos Creamy Spinach Dip and the Tostitos Chips with a Hint of Lime. Unfortunatley I couldn't find a picture of it online, and I'm feeling too lazy to take a picture of my jar with the digital camera. This is a great dip that really fills you up quickly. I also love them with these lime chips. All the flavors work together great. As they'd say on the Iron Chef, "The flavors are popping in my mouth." There descriptions are always so funny on that show.

Well, that's about all for this edition of Fabulous Favorite Friday. I hope to get some posts in next week, but it is going to be a busy one. Have a fabulous weekend!