In all the hustle and bustle of being a hot pregnant mess and moving into a brand new house, I managed to take a few photos of my house before it was sold. Partially to give a long overdue blog tour, but mostly because I knew I was going to miss the heck out of it. It was my first house, after all. And it was mine, all mine.
I thought it would be cruel to not start with the craft room. After all, that post was promised to you a long time ago.
It's finally spring!! And spring means it is time to start helping my sister with my nephew's birthday party. Our little man is turning seven, and his theme of choice is sharks.
Hello, lovelies! Happy Thursday.
About Idea Box Link Party:
Idea Box is a new weekly link party for bloggers to share all of their creative posts---recipes, home decor, DIY projects, gardening tips, good advice... Whatever your creative heart desires. The link party is open from Thursday at 6am until Monday at 6am.
What I've been up to:
Make sure you check out the hostess' blogs to see what they've been up to!
Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy**new blog links!**
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Now for the party features!
The Kim Six Fix: Breakfast Bird Nests
She Saved: Sweet & Simple Vanilla Pear Smoothie
A Pretty Fix: DIY Faux Wildflower Wreath
Congratulations to our featured guests! Go ahead and grab yourself a fancy feature button. You've totally earned it!
Features are also pinned to our Idea Box board on Pinterest:
Follow Idea Box Link Party on Pinterest.
Make sure you visit the other hosts! You may be one of their features. (And don't forget--follow follow follooowww!)
Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy**new blog links!**
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Now, onto this week's party!
Simple Party Rules:
1. Please, please, pleeease follow your hosts.
2. Only link up personal content-- there are no rules about the content, as long as it's family friendly!
3. Please, please, pleeease visit at least three other links and leave comments/make new friends. It isn't a party if you link and run!!
4. Please link back to one of our blogs or grab our button below.
5. You can add up to three *new* links each week---please don't link up posts you've shared with us before.
Remember that by linking up, you are giving the hosts permission to use your images/content on our blogs and/or social media. Proper credit and links will always be given. The link up starts every Thursday at 6am EST, and closes the following Tuesday.
Party button:
Help spread the word about Idea Box on Twitter:
2. Only link up personal content-- there are no rules about the content, as long as it's family friendly!
3. Please, please, pleeease visit at least three other links and leave comments/make new friends. It isn't a party if you link and run!!
4. Please link back to one of our blogs or grab our button below.
5. You can add up to three *new* links each week---please don't link up posts you've shared with us before.
Remember that by linking up, you are giving the hosts permission to use your images/content on our blogs and/or social media. Proper credit and links will always be given. The link up starts every Thursday at 6am EST, and closes the following Tuesday.
Party button:
Help spread the word about Idea Box on Twitter:
Add your links:
Idea Box is a weekly Link Party that opens Thursdays at 6am ET and ends Mondays at 6am ET. Idea Box is hosted by:
Mila @ MilasLittleThings || Carole @ CreativeClementine || Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy || Cyndee @ MyCreativeHome
Have you ever stumbled upon a food craving that seemed like it could possibly be a bad idea, but was worth the risk? Things that involve the logic of "well I like these things separately, so they must be good mixed together" can get really, really dangerous. Luckily for me, thinking to myself that the combination of dark chocolate, chai tea, and chewy cranberries would be delicious really worked out.
I'll admit, this recipe is the product of a "use whatever is in the pantry" type of morning. I wanted granola, and I wanted it bad. I didn't care what went into it, but I had partial jars of cocoa nibs and chocolate chips and cranberries to use up. In the end, there was just enough of everything to make this batch of granola the dark, heavenly perfection it became.
There are certain things in life that are unquestionably cozy. This yummy combination of chai spices, chocolate, and chewy cranberries is definitely one of them.
Cranberry Chai Chocolate Granola
(Yield: 8 cups/12 servings)
Dry Ingredients:
- 4 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup puffed millet or quinoa
- 1 cup flaked coconut
- 1 cup chopped almonds
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
- 1/2 cup dried red lentils
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 3 tbsp flax seeds
- 2 tbsp dutch cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp cardamom
- 1/8 tsp ginger
- 1/8 tsp cloves
Wet Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
Additional Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup chopped dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup cocoa nibs
- Optional: 1/4 cup chopped candied ginger
Baking instructions:
- Preheat oven to 300F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Combine dry ingredients in a very large bowl. Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl.
- Add wet to dry, stirring until evenly coated. (This part gets messy!)
- Spread onto lined baking sheets in an even layer. Bake for ten minutes then remove from oven and stir in chocolate chips. Bake another ten minutes or until chocolate chips start melting.
- Remove from oven and stir the melted chocolate chips until the granola is coated in chocolatey goodness. Stir in cranberries and cocoa nibs (and ginger, if using). Let cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container for up to two months.
To serve:
- Serve about 3/4 cup of granola with cold dairy or non-dairy milk.
Have you ever been happily surprised by a combination of flavours?
I hope you're all enjoying a lovely lazy Sunday! In no particular order, here is my life in links:
My hometown was featured in Dine Magazine, and it sounds delicious.
This oatmeal and orange smoothie from Bake Eat Repeat might not sound like a great idea... but trust me, it is a great idea.
This falafel recipe from Minimalist Baker is the easiest and most delicious thing I have made in awhile. Eat it with eggs, if you are into that sort of thing.
You can now get a mystery grab bag of greeting cards from Sea & Lake for $10USD, and that is pretty fantastic. Go. Now.
I scared Baby Clemington out of a nursing nap by laughing out loud at this Lip Sync battle with Melissa McCarthy.
I have been enjoying my lazy-mom-chic look a little bit more with this Nerd tank from Little Inklings Design.
I just joined SnapChat and am using it to show progress on projects I might blog about later (without being held accountable because of the 24 hour expiry). Add me: creativeclem
Have you lived anything worth linking lately?
Happy Thursday!!
About Idea Box Link Party:
Idea Box is a new weekly link party for bloggers to share all of their creative posts---recipes, home decor, DIY projects, gardening tips, good advice... Whatever your creative heart desires. The link party is open from Thursday at 6am until Monday at 6am.
What I've been up to:
Make sure you check out the hostess' blogs to see what they've been up to!
Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy**new blog links!**
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Now for the party features!
This before and after makes me want to gut my kitchen immediately and break out the white paint. Holy moly. The transformation is absolutely amazing! Hop over and check it out for yourself.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who leaves her produce long enough for it to start growing more produce. I have been meaning to look up what the heck to do with my sprouted onion, but because of this wonderful linkup the answer came to me! Yay!
With a baby approaching solid-food-stage and summer (allegedly) on the way, this quick and easy (and healthy!) ice cream recipe is perfection. I can't wait for my little guy to get this all over his face and my kitchen floor. Also in his belly, of course. :)
Congratulations to our featured guests! Go ahead and grab yourself a fancy feature button. You've totally earned it!
Features are also pinned to our Idea Box board on Pinterest:
Follow Idea Box Link Party on Pinterest.
Make sure you visit the other hosts! You may be one of their features. (And don't forget--follow follow follooowww!)
Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy**new blog links!**
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Now, onto this week's party!
Simple Party Rules:
1. Please, please, pleeease follow your hosts.
2. Only link up personal content-- there are no rules about the content, as long as it's family friendly!
3. Please, please, pleeease visit at least three other links and leave comments/make new friends. It isn't a party if you link and run!!
4. Please link back to one of our blogs or grab our button below.
5. You can add up to three *new* links each week---please don't link up posts you've shared with us before.
Remember that by linking up, you are giving the hosts permission to use your images/content on our blogs and/or social media. Proper credit and links will always be given. The link up starts every Thursday at 6am EST, and closes the following Tuesday.
Party button:
Help spread the word about Idea Box on Twitter:
2. Only link up personal content-- there are no rules about the content, as long as it's family friendly!
3. Please, please, pleeease visit at least three other links and leave comments/make new friends. It isn't a party if you link and run!!
4. Please link back to one of our blogs or grab our button below.
5. You can add up to three *new* links each week---please don't link up posts you've shared with us before.
Remember that by linking up, you are giving the hosts permission to use your images/content on our blogs and/or social media. Proper credit and links will always be given. The link up starts every Thursday at 6am EST, and closes the following Tuesday.
Party button:
Help spread the word about Idea Box on Twitter:
Add your links:
Idea Box is a weekly Link Party that opens Thursdays at 6am ET and ends Mondays at 6am ET. Idea Box is hosted by:
Mila @ MilasLittleThings || Carole @ CreativeClementine || Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy || Cyndee @ MyCreativeHome
Like cloth diapering, I made a point of easing into using cloth wipes. I read a million packages to see what the secret ingredients were in disposable wipes that made them so tempting. I tried to make a solution with what was listed on disposables. I tried just using water. I tried store bought solutions. I tried a recipe from Wellness Mama. Nothing was perfect for how our household ticks.
Because I tried a few different styles of wipe solution, I learned a few things along the way:
- Cloth wipes run out quickly. My
cheap and terrible plasticcontainer holds about 15-20 wet wipes. That's maybe two days of wipes, assuming baby isn't a poop monster those days. - Aloe vera juice smells funny. Even when it is fresh. Don't be alarmed.
- Water goes mouldy and significantly reduces the shelf life of whatever it is added to. Unless the water is boiled or distilled or the whole recipe is stored in the fridge.
- I'm far too lazy to use distilled or boiled water every time I make a batch of wipes.
- I am also far too lazy to use something that needs to be stored in the fridge.
- I am way too lazy to assemble all the ingredients required for a batch of wipes each and every time wipes are needed.
I am the type to want cloth diapering and cloth wipes to be convenient as well as cheap. Something about having cake and eating it? Anyways. I wanted a solution that could sit in baby's room and not rot on me. Something almost as easy as grabbing a new package of wipes. Something that felt normal and not inconveniently homemade.
I figured, if I just tweak what we've done a little, and omit everything that goes bad and add it at the end...it shouldn't get all stinky and rotten and gross on me...right?
Right! Yay!
As I do with every recipe, I started with the original Wellness Mama ingredients and took a few liberties with it. There were things I liked about some of my experiments along the way that made it into the final round. We keep a bottle of this "concentrated" wipes solution right on the change table with a measuring cup (you can see the change station setup here). It is such a relief to finally have a recipe and a system that work for us!!
This recipe for homemade baby wipe solution is a concentrated formula, so you just add water and carry on with your day. We've been using it for the past few months and love it about as much as you can love anything that wipes up poop. Enjoy!
Cloth Baby Wipes: Concentrated Solution
Adapted from Wellness Mama
Ingredients:
- 4 oz aloe vera juice
- 2 oz distilled witch hazel
- 2 oz unscented castile soap
- 1 oz homemade baby oil*
- 5 drops vitamin e
- 5 drops tea tree oil
- 5 drops lavender essential oil
- Mix everything together in an airtight jar.
- Store for up to one month at room temperature, or up to three months in the fridge.
To use:
- Shake well. Add half an ounce of concentrate to 10oz water.
- Pour into a large, airtight container with 15-20 cloth wipes. Allow wipes to absorb liquid.
- Add more wipes to absorb remaining liquid as needed.
This recipe yields 7oz of the concentrated solution, which should be enough to refill the wipes container 14 times. That should be enough solution to wet between 200-300 wipes, which may last between 3-4 weeks. Results may vary.
What is your all time favourite homemade baby product?
Happy Thursday!
About Idea Box Link Party:
Idea Box is a weekly link party for bloggers to share all of their creative posts---recipes, home decor, DIY projects, gardening tips, good advice... Whatever your creative heart desires. The link party is open from Thursday at 6am until Monday at 6am.
What I've been up to:
Make sure you check out the hostess' blogs to see what they've been up to!
Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy**new blog links!**
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Now for the party features!
These cookies are classics for a reason--they are SOOOO GOOD. By far my favourite cookie to nom on when I participate in a cookie exchange.
So much yum happening here! Soba noodles are sort of making it into the mainstream, and that makes my tastebuds happy. Love shaved asparagus for an added wow factor here.
These little parfaits look like heaven in a jar. Such a great recipe to steal for parties and gatherings!! Lord knows I have enough teeny mason jars to feed these to my gigantic family two at a time.
Congratulations to our featured guests! Go ahead and grab yourself a fancy feature button. You've totally earned it!
Features are also pinned to our Idea Box board on Pinterest:
Follow Idea Box Link Party on Pinterest.
Make sure you visit the other hosts! You may be one of their features. (And don't forget--follow follow follooowww!)
Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy**new blog links!**
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Google+ || Bloglovin' || Facebook || Twitter || Pinterest || Instagram
Now, onto this week's party!
Simple Party Rules:
1. Please, please, pleeease follow your hosts.
2. Only link up personal content-- there are no rules about the content, as long as it's family friendly!
3. Please, please, pleeease visit at least three other links and leave comments/make new friends. It isn't a party if you link and run!!
4. Please link back to one of our blogs or grab our button below.
5. You can add up to three *new* links each week---please don't link up posts you've shared with us before.
Remember that by linking up, you are giving the hosts permission to use your images/content on our blogs and/or social media. Proper credit and links will always be given. The link up starts every Thursday at 6am EST, and closes the following Tuesday.
Party button:
Help spread the word about Idea Box on Twitter:
2. Only link up personal content-- there are no rules about the content, as long as it's family friendly!
3. Please, please, pleeease visit at least three other links and leave comments/make new friends. It isn't a party if you link and run!!
4. Please link back to one of our blogs or grab our button below.
5. You can add up to three *new* links each week---please don't link up posts you've shared with us before.
Remember that by linking up, you are giving the hosts permission to use your images/content on our blogs and/or social media. Proper credit and links will always be given. The link up starts every Thursday at 6am EST, and closes the following Tuesday.
Party button:
Help spread the word about Idea Box on Twitter:
Add your links:
Idea Box is a weekly Link Party that opens Thursdays at 6am ET and ends Mondays at 6am ET. Idea Box is hosted by:
Mila @ MilasLittleThings || Carole @ CreativeClementine || Danielle @ ASprinkleofJoy || Cyndee @ MyCreativeHome