DIY Glitter Cake Topper

I like crafty things.  Especially for events.  Being able to say, "Yeah, I made that" is pretty great.  

Take a cake topper for instance.  Yeah, the typical numbers are fun, but they can be a bit cheesy.  I wasn't about to use anything cheesy for my mom's surprise 50th.  {I planned and executed the whole thing with the help of my aunt and sister-in-law, so I can't wait to share all of the details!  That will come later though, when I have lots of free time!}

So, I decided to make my own cake topper!  I knew what I had in mind.  

{wooden numbers + glue + glitter}

Now, this wasn't my first experience with cake-topper-making.  I had made just one before.  For my wedding cake.  Yes, that's right.  I made my wedding cake topper with no prior cake-topper-making experience.  And I really like how it turned out.  

I'm not sure how well you can see them, but they are wooden birds, or "love birds" as I call them.  I found these wooden birds at Michael's for about $0.30 each.  I picked up four of them, two being extra in case I messed up.  Then, I found really pretty blue and pink craft paint from Martha Stewart's craft line.  After that, I just needed wooden skewers, a pretty stencil, and white paint.

I cut two of the wooden skewers in half to shorten them and painted the birds white.  After the white dried, I placed the stencils over the birds and painted the boy bird blue and the girl bird pink.  Once the colored paint had dried, I used my hot glue gun to glue the birds to the skewers.  And ta-da!  My wedding cake toppers were complete!  This picture might show the colors better:

Yes, breaking out the pink champagne!  

I really didn't like any of the wedding cake toppers I found online, plus they were so expensive.  I didn't want to spend money on something I wasn't even crazy about to begin with.  This project cost me between $5-$10.  Plus I love the handmade touch.  

Okay, now for the topper I made for my mom's surprise 50th birthday party.  I knew I wanted to follow the same concept as my wedding cake topper, but I couldn't find a five or zero at my local craft store.  I ended up turning to Amazon to order them, and when I received the numbers, they were a little bigger than I planned.  I used them anyway, and still like how the topper turned out.

{I know the cake looks odd, but I made it my self.  My first ever attempt at a layered cake.  And while it looks like it has "character" it at least tasted delicious!}  

:-)

I purchased craft glue (so it would dry clear) and a pack of glitter from the Dollar Tree.  Then, it got messy.  After gluing and then shaking the glitter onto the toppers, I found that glitter was going to fall off of these toppers when we put them in the cake.  So, I ran to the bottle of decoupage sealer I knew I had lying around somewhere and coated my glitter.  After it dried, I was so relieved to see that the glitter wasn't going anywhere.

Then, I used my hot glue gun to glue the numbers to halved wooden skewers, and my cake topper was complete!

And while I'm here, talking about the crafty cake topper, I may as well share that I made the cake stand as well.  I couldn't afford any of the cake stands I found and loved, so it just made sense to try and make it myself.  I had seen on Pinterest that you can glue a dollar store plate to a candle stick, so I thought I would give that a try.  It worked!

I ended up purchasing the plate and candlestick from the Dollar Tree, and my sis-in-law and I used super heavy duty glue to adhere the plate to the candlestick.  After letting it set, we were thrilled to see that it didn't budge.  (I mean, it was a $2.00 project, so if it had failed, we would have been okay with it.)  And then, when I left it at her house and she had to bring it to me later that week, it ended up getting tossed around in the back of her car and still didn't break.  At that point, we figured we were okay to use it for our cake stand :-)

Here's a closer picture of it:

I can't wait to share the rest of the surprise party!  

Happy Thursday all!  One more day til the weekend!

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What's for dinner? {Easy Chicken Enchilada Casserole}

Today is my first food blog.  Eep!  I actually enjoy cooking and baking, but I am by no means a chef or baker.  And I am a big-time "recipe follower."  But, it isn't always realistic to follow a recipe.  "That looks really good, but I'm missing two of the ingredients!"  What's a girl to do?  Improvise!  

I mainly go in my own direction in the kitchen when we are almost at the end of our grocery-rope.  Meaning, we are due for another trip to the grocery store.  I meal plan, we grocery shop, and I usually have about two weeks of "planned meals" with recipes included.  When the planned meals run out, I'm on my own for throwing stuff together.  My hubby loves the thrown together meals because they usually end up being some sort of casserole.

He even told me as we sat down to a dinner of a randomly assembled chicken and noodle casserole, "This is so good.  You could make a recipe book called 'Crap I Threw Together'".  He makes me laugh :-)

So, anyway, today I am sharing a super easy meal that I'm sure there are hundreds of variations for.  I'm going to try and add lots of disclaimers because casseroles are so versatile {which is actually one of my favorite things about them.}  This is a dish I pick up the ingredients for when I see they are on sale so I can have them on hand.  Turning the enchiladas into a casserole is a great time saver-- rolling enchiladas can be so tedious!  So, take the ingredients you have and tweak it to make it how you want it!

First things first.  Here's what you'll need:

• 5 chicken tenders (We buy the big bag from Costco, which I love because they are small, cook fast, and the bag lasts us for awhile. Had they been chicken breasts, I probably would've used 2 good sized breasts.)
• 12 small corn tortillas (I used white ones- they were on sale.)
• Veggies of your choice (I used half of a bell pepper and about a 1/2 cup of chopped onion, but even if you have no fresh veggies on hand, the casserole will still turn out yummy.)
• Green enchilada sauce (I buy a big can of this whenever it's on sale.  You only need about half of the big can, or one small can, so I ended up freezing what I had left over.)  
• A small can of diced green chiles
• 8 oz cream cheese
• About a cup of cheddar cheese (I had pepper jack too, so I did half and half)
• Foil for covering the casserole in the oven

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 casserole dish.  Chop any veggies you're using while your chicken is defrosting.

Now cook the chicken in a large skillet until there is no more pink.  I sprinkled my tenders with a little bit of salt and pepper.  

These Costco chicken tenders cook so fast!  And they are much more practical when cooking for just two people.  

Now layer 6 of the tortillas on the bottom of the greased casserole dish.  They should fit nicely with barely any bottom of the dish showing.  I'm not sure how the bigger tortillas would work in this case- I'm sure they could be made to fit. These white corn ones I purchased at Safeway were very inexpensive and came with a lot of tortillas.  

Next, shred the cooked chicken and place it back in the pan.  (I shred using two forks and pulling the chicken apart.  It's my least favorite part of the enchilada-making process.)  Then, put the shredded chicken back into skillet.  Like this:

 Then, add your veggies, chiles, and cream cheese.  Like this:

Mix these ingredients on medium heat until combined, like this:

Now you're ready to spread the mixture onto your tortillas in the prepared baking dish.  Make sure to spread it evenly, all the way to the sides.

Next, layer the remaining 6 tortillas on top of the chicken mixture.

Top with the enchilada sauce.

Once the sauce is poured, cover the casserole with foil and put it in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until heated through.  

Then, top with cheese.  {yum}  Place back in the oven for another five minutes until the cheese is melted.  (No foil needed for this part)

Then, remove from the oven and serve it up!  

 If you're feeling fiesta-y, have a margarita with this dinner, like we did.  Enjoy!  

Don't be afraid to make it up as you go!  I don't measure anything when I make this, I just use what I have and run with it :-)

I'd love to hear any other variations of enchilada casseroles!

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Date night: Tennis!

I saw an adorable idea on Pinterest {where most adorable ideas are found these days...} where you recreate your first date.  The first date my hubby and I shared was playing tennis together- so it was really easy to recreate.  We packed up our tennis gear, some water and hit the courts!

Now, even if tennis wasn't your first date, I still recommend it for a date night.  It's fun {even if you're not good at it like me} and it's active!  Fun and exercise in the same sentence?  Count me in.  



The necessities:

All you need are two tennis rackets, a few tennis balls {or one if you don't mind running/ chasing them more frequently} and water.

Wear tennis shoes and some cute workout attire, and you're all set for a tennis date night!


Go ahead and spice up the game, too.  My hubby played tennis in high school, and I didn't, so we don't usually play by all of the rules.  Just have fun with it.  Maybe a friendly wager- winner gets to pick a movie or a dessert for after the game.  Loser does the dishes. You get the idea :-)


We went to local tennis courts right as the sun was setting, which really provided a great "date" atmosphere.  Plus, since it was August, going as the sun was setting helped us beat the heat.  Now that it's September, the weather is going to be cooling off, and I'm really excited to get back to the courts for another tennis date night!

Oh, you know... just dancing on the tennis court as the sun goes down.  Even though I'm not all that great at tennis, I still manage to have fun when we play :-)

I'd love to hear any other active date night ideas, if anyone has any to share!

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Happy Labor Day!

I love long weekends.

But who doesn't?

Labor Day weekend really seems to signify the end of summer.  Now that it is September, fall is just around the corner.  I've been soaking up every last bit of summer this weekend, and enjoying being able to relax.  With a bonfire (complete with s'mores of course), coffee date, BBQ, dinner and drinks on the deck, sparklers, and sunshine-- it's been a great few days off.  

I love dining out on our deck this time of year because the weather is so perfect.  It's not too hot, and we get to watch the sunset.  Last night we BBQ'd up some homemade burgers, and I made corn on the cob.  Add some hard ciders (yum) and we had a delicious and simple end-of-summer meal on the deck.  

To make the dinner even better, I put up some Christmas lights to create a nice "atmosphere."  I love the way lights look good even when they are draped haphazardly.  

   

We also had tons of sparklers left over from the 4th of July, so I thought, why not?  I adore sparklers.  It's the little things in life, right?

Happy Labor day to all!

Cheers,

Kayla

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Day Date: Take a Hike

I married an outdoorsy guy, and let's be honest...  I'm kind of a girly-girl.  My favorite color is pink, vanilla lattes brighten my day, and I prefer to vacation places where there is a hotel involved.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy camping as much as the next girl.  As long as it's in small doses.

That being said, I've never done the whole, hiking/ camping thing.  My hubby has, and goes almost every summer with his dad.  He has been saying for the longest time that he wants to get me up in the mountains so I can see just how beautiful it is for myself.  After a lot of apprehension [mosquitos? bears?  NO showers??] we compromised on a day hike.

And I enjoyed it.  

I really did.  And here's why:

• My hubby planned the whole thing.  This was really awesome, since I'm usually the planner of our outings.  It was really sweet to see how excited he was to plan this date for us and share something he really enjoys with  me.  
• The scenery.  There was a lot to see, and it was a beautiful hike.  I was the photographer of the hike, and I had such a good time capturing bits of nature.  
• The exercise.  Hiking is such an awesome workout!  You don't get bored because there are things to see all around.  I think my hubby was a little unsure about how I would do hiking for hours straight, and I think he was pleasantly surprised to find that I am a highly motivated hiker.  We only had to stop for water breaks a few times, and kept a steady pace the whole way to the lake.  

So, here's all it takes to have an awesome day date by going for a hike!

Plan it

Luckily, I had someone that did this for me.  [I wouldn't know the first thing about planning a day hike!]  Look online for different options.  Usually the Trails Associations are good at showing the features of the hike, and how many miles it is round-trip.  

At the trail head, ready to go!

We chose the Eightmile Lake trail, which was about six and half miles round-trip.   Make sure you purchase any necessary day-passes.  Once the hike plans are all squared away, make a list of what you'll need to take with you.  My husband carried our day pack, and I toted our large camera.  Each person can carry a pack, or, if you're like some of the people we came across on the trail, just bring water bottles.  (I would only recommend this for a shorter hike.)  

In our pack we took:  sandwiches for lunch, trail mix, a water bottle for each of us, ibuprofen, a light sweatshirt for each of us, a survival knife, bug spray, sun screen, maps, hand sanitizer, and a travel water purifier.  [We brought toilet paper too, but our hike was short enough that I never had to use it... thank goodness.]

Note:  We hiked in August, on a hot Saturday, but when we reached the top, the sun was hidden behind clouds and I was SO thankful we brought light sweatshirts! 

Pack a lunch

When we got to the lake, we searched for a good spot to have our lunch.  It's almost like a little [very simple] picnic!  

Keep it simple {lunch with a view}

Take a camera

It doesn't have to be a big fancy heavy camera... just something to capture the beauty all around.  Here are some snapshots from our hike:  

That little critter who found himself the best sun bathing rock in the mountains was probably the highlight of the hike for me.  

Make the hike your own!

Whether it's blasting music on your iPhone and dancing up the trail, bringing a swim suit and daring to jump into the freezing lake, or bringing up a mini bottle of champagne and toasting to life- make the hike your own!  What did we do?  Only the most cliche thing I could think of... we carved our initials into a tree!  I hope to go back in a couple years and find it again!

For those of you who are as apprehensive as I was, there were no bears OR mosquitoes.  Just nature in all its glory. So set aside a day and do it!  Take a hike!

Happy Labor Day Weekend all!  

:-)

  

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It's a Coug Thing

Go Cougs! 

Best graduation cake ever. 

Butch!

The Coug- open to close {classic Pullman}

Storming the field after a win!

Poster board + glue + LOTS of glitter all from the Dollar Tree

{Glitter got everywhere but it was so worth it}

One more day til the weekend!

Yay! 

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July Favorites

Wow.  I can't believe that July is almost over.  What a busy month it has been!  With the 4th of July, visiting family, my mom's surprise 50th birthday party, girls nights, and boating trips- I've hardly had a second to breathe!  (...let alone blog!)  So, in honor of the fabulous month this July has been, I'm going to share some of my favorite snapshots I took here and there on my phone.

I looove the fourth of July.  This year we had a big family picnic by the river.  I was so excited to see Josh Wilson live, during his free concert in the park.  The day was finished with a superb firework show.

 [Proud to be an American!]

On July 6th I hosted a surprise 50th birthday party for my beautiful mother.  It was a blast!  I will have a [very large] blog post on all of the planning and details in the future!  I can't wait to share!

Boating on the lake has been one of my favorite memories of the summertime.  So much fun.

I saw this perfectly shaped heart cloud while I was saying my "goodbyes" and "I'll miss yous" to a best friend who was on her way to grad school in Missouri.  

The hubby and I were missing Jamaica, and couldn't resist buying this "Jamaican Me Happy."  It was a nice treat to have on our deck!

Another perfect day of boating on Lake Chelan. 

Fresh blooms.  [Always a nice pick me up.]

Looking back on these makes me very excited for August.  Cheers to another month of sweet, sweet summer!

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