Let's get twisted.

Sunday,

One of the coolest things, since the beginning of my blogging 

career started, happened to me.

Making connections with other bloggers, artists, crafters,

and business owners has been such a thrill 

as well as a wonderful experience.

There are so many talented and interesting people in this world,

and the power of the internet bringing those people together always amazes me.

Back in February I wrote about 

Twisted Acres Farms.

(you can check out that terrarium DIY here)

Alisha and Anson, were such wonderful people to blog about.

The fact that their air plants were absolutely to die for was really just a bonus.

Well....

Sunday at ArtRock,

an anual event put on by some crazy talented friends of mine,

I got to meet Alisha and Anson!

It is always crazy to me when peoples paths cross in such a way.

In real life,

these two are even better than in interweb world!

Alisha greeted me with the biggest sweetest smile and 

Anson's humble laugh was the kind 

that makes you feel like you've known someone for a long time.

Meeting them makes me want to meet all my blogging connections!

And to top it all off,

I brought home some more of their amazing air plants!

Here are a few quick photos for your viewing pleasure!

This guy found a nice home in one of my antique tea cups.

He fit nicely into my glass orb planter from the Target dollar section.

I have been lusting over their sea urchin planters! 

And now one is floating in my house!

Make sure you hop on over to their Etsy store for some 

beautiful plants at amazing prices!

I saw this on Pinterest

Today I am so super excited to share a story from my very first

GUEST BLOGGER!!!!

Melissa is a good old friend of mine from high school

and was also my first college roomie!

Sharing stories about our awesome families makes me laugh....

considering where our friendship began.

Any who,

She posted on the ole' FB yesterday about how

she dyed her toddler purple and I knew that I needed to know and share this story!

Gotta love a good Pinterest project gone wrong!

So with no further ado,

I am happy to introduce you to Melissa, her family, and her story!

Hi! I’m Melissa and I and part of an amazing weird, awkward, messy and fun loving family! My husband is a hard working amazing guy who sarcastic sense of humor is why I feel for the guy. My daughter Calleigh is the spitting image of her dad right down to her personality. The only thing she got from me is her nose! Thank god! Lol and then there's Jenna our pit. She is a amazing dog who I can't imagine life without!  My family extends far out from my immediate family and they all inspire me everyday:)

I dyed my child purple today! Thank you Pinterest!

Today was one of THOSE days! We were stuck inside all day waiting for the repair guy(who never came!Bastard!) And in an effort to save my sanity I was scrambling around trying to find anything to entertain my hyperactive 2yr old who acts more like a bipolar 30 year old who does not feel she needs naps anymore! I decided that I would give some of these Pinterest craft ideas a shot. I mean I've saved so many it's about time! We love to paint in this house so it was a natural pick to make our own paint. And bonus if it worked I could save some money. Recipe was simple: 1cup flour, 1 cup salt, 1 cup water and food coloring. Sounded great and if Calleigh accidentally, or in her case intentionally ate some of the paint it would be no big deal. So we got the paints made and she had a blast. Here is where the problem starts she gets paint everywhere and normally I don't care. Kids paint wipes right off, not this paint. The food coloring in it stains! BAD!  This is about the time I noticed that my child was covered neck down in purple paint and that she had left little hand prints on the walls! Needless to say after a good 45minutes of scrubbing Calleigh and the walls I was left with a purple child and purple hand prints all over the walls! So I did what any good mom would do took pictures and had a glass of wine!  Oh and the paintings we didn't keep. They were weird and flaky. Paint didn't stay on. A fail for Pinterest on the homemade paint but score for Calleigh who thinks being purple is AWESOME!!  

Oh,

Just in case you also want to dye your sweet little rugrat 

and every other surface of your house purple...

HERE is the link to this Pinterest project!

Project 52

15.  I love how much you want to be like your Daddy.

You two inspire each other and me more than you will ever know.

Joys of Parenting

Take Your Moment

Some days, you just have to take a moment....

straight "thinking man" style.

Parenting an almost 4 year old boy is tough.

Especially when he's a strong willed,

stubborn assed, shit talkin' little monkey.

Today,

the boy got kicked out of swim lessons.

It's still unclear if that meant for the day or for forever.

Either way I am certain that we are not going back.

I won't go into all the nitty gritty details,

the point was this....

My son was dismissed from the lesson.

He threw the temper tantrum of all tantrums.

I freaked out.

I dragged him to the car kicking and screaming....

he was the one doing the kicking.

He kicked.

I screamed.

He kicked.

I screamed.

Once we were all seat belted into opposite corners of the car.

The grown up in me kicked in,

and realized that unless we took a moment, we were getting no where.

I insisted that we have a serious 

time out.

We both closed our eyes.

Then took a series of deep breaths and squeezed on some pressure points.

Once we both calmed down it completely dawned on me.

My child was not in the wrong.

He interpreted her instructions a certain way based on the criticism 

that she had given to the other students in his lesson.

She was the one who really freaked out by yanking him out of the pool.

Like I said, I am not going to go into all of it.

The moral is that grown ups need time outs too.

Our heads can get so clouded with all the chaos that 

sometimes we neglect to see the obvious situation.

So from that point on today,

I have been remembering to stop.

Take some time for just me.

Clear my head.

Re-acess the situation.

Take some really deep inhales

and some really really big exhales.

Get rid of that nasty energy,

and move on.

So, moms and dads of like minded 4 year olds,

 take your moment.

p.s. I am loving my newly re-fashioned hat!

Wardrobe Re-fashion

When I first bought this hat years ago,

I was an awful shade of blue.

Not quite navy, not quite royal,

but somewhere in between.

It had a brown ribbon to cap off the dull factor.

Despite how I grew to feel about it,

I did really love it when I first purchased it.

As you can guess it sat in my closet for far too long,

until one day I had had enough.

I ripped off that ribbon, and grabbed a can of black spray paint 

and when to town.

What and improvement.

Now it was the perfect blue/black,

and fit great (which is a big deal when you have an enormous cranium).

Even though I wore it all the time now,

I still felt like it was missing something.

Then one day a few weeks ago,

I decided to get to crafting to finalize this 

year long wardrobe re-fashion.

Here's what you'll need:

hat

fabric scissors

a stip of fabric 

(about 4 inches wide,

 and long enough to wrap around the hat with some over lap.)

pins

hot glue/gun

Step 1:

Fold over hem and pin in place.

Repeat on other side.

I left my band a bit over 2 inches wide.

Once it is pinned, press flat.

Step 2:

I started in the opposite side of where I wanted to

have to two ends over lap.

Apply a stip of glue,

and press down the middle of the strip of fabric. 

Work you way around,

one side at a time glueing a little bit as you go.

When you get around to the ends leave about

2 inches unglued.

Step 3:

At this point you should be left with about 2 inches of fabric on each end.

Twist and manipulate the fabric until it looks the way you want it.

I looked at a fedora that I love and tried to copy that twist closure. 

Glue that into place and then double check to make sure the rest of the band is 

securely glued into place.

Let it dry fully before enjoying this little beauty.

Coffee Talks

"B is for....

Big ass Bubbles

and 

Beautiful Beams!"

- Erin

"Okay, now what?" - Jess

My Pinterest Closet:

Tangerine & Turquoise

What I wore:

dress - Calvin Klein

necklace - vintage

shoes - vintage

belt - up-cycled

#housewifeproblems : Stinky Yoga Mats

Does your downward dog stink? No like literally smell bad?

Maybe I can help.

How often do you clean your yoga mat? 

I used to try all sorts of methods to clean my mat.

I soaked it in the tub with lysol.

I scrubbed it with clorox wipes.

I've even sprayed it down with a hose and let it dry in the sun.

However, non of these methods ever really seemed to do the trick,

or my mat would be soaked for days.

So, I finally asked my perfectly holistic yoga instructor 

what she did to keep her mat clean and stank free.

And this is what she told me.....

Stinky Yoga Mat Spray:

You will need an empty spray bottle (preferably one with a finer mist), 

witch hazel, and tea tree oil.

If you want to jazz up your bottle you will also need some decorative tape and a sharpie.

Step 1:

If you are up-cycling a bottle your first step is going to be to clean it out 

with hot soapy water.

If you are going to make it pretty,

wrap that sucker in your favorite decorative tape.

I used packaging tape, but you could also use duct tape or even washi tape.

Step 2:

So I have to admit here that I didn't really use any measurements.

I filled my bottle half way with witch hazel...

Then I added about a tablespoon of tea tree oil.

Step 3:

Give that bottle a little swirl and shake and label it.

Spray the solution all over your mat and give it a really good wipe down.

I was shocked by how much came off of my mat, so I actually did it twice.

The beauty of it all....

My mat dried instantly!

So I am throwing this in my yoga back to use after every class from now on!

Enjoy!

What's Cooking?

Chicken and Apple Sausage with Purple Cabbage Slaw

Yum Yum Fuchsia Yum!

Last night for dinner we had one of my current favorite meals....

and it has nothing to do with the fact that I match the plate!

This tasty slaw is perfect for these increasingly hotter days!

It's tangy tart dressing goes perfectly with these sweet and savory sausages.

Here's what you will need:

1 pkg Al Fresco Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage

1/2 head of purple cabbage, thinly sliced

4-5 radishes, thinly sliced

1/4 lime juice

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp sugar

Salt & Pepper to taste

Step 1:

In a medium bowl, whisk together lime juice, olive oil, and sugar.

Add the sliced cabbage and radishes and toss until evenly coated.

Cover and place in fridge for up to a day to marinate.

Step 2:

Slice sausages and half.

Although they are pre-cooked I like to cook them a bit longer

 in a frying pan or on the grill to really pull out some of that smokey flavor. 

Step 3: 

Plate and serve.

The hubs likes his slaw and sausages separate,

but I love mine all mixed up.

I cut the sausages into 1/2 inch bites and toss together with my slaw,

letting it absorb some of the dressing.

yum yum yum

Enjoy!

100 Calorie Happiness!

I was so excited to get my very first Klout Perk in the mail!

Yummy and Happy mail day!!!

As I am sure that you are well aware of now,

we have been on a bit of a health kick around these parts! 

And as a result I have cut out most "snacks".

No more chips and crackers have been way limited.

But with these delicious 100 calorie snack packs,

I can drop the guilt and pick up some seriously yummy Nacho Cheese flavor!

And if that wasn't enough of a reason to indulge a little,

each pack also contains 3g of fiber and 9 essential vitamins and minerals.

I expected to feel like I was eating flavored air puffs, but these 

snack bites are dense and filling and full of flavor!

They are the perfect little car snack!

The Nacho Cheese was my favorite,

the Sour Cream and Onion was a close second though....

However I will be using my coupon to try the Cinnamon Spice flavor!!!

If you have yet to sign up for Klout what are you waiting for?

Add me as one of your influencers! 

Get all kinds of goodies just for being you!

Just a quick disclaimer:

I was given a free product sample because I'm a Klout influencer.

I am under no obligation to receive the sample or talk about this company.

I get no additional benefits for talking about Slim Fast or the Snack Bites.

Project 52

So this day has finally come! 

You are so independent and exceptionally smart.

But when it came to taking care of business...

Well, let's just say that I officially don't have to come

"wipe your butt hole" anymore!

Wipe your own butt hole!

I saw this on Pinterest: DIY Vintage Tee

So, I saw this tutorial for making a new t-shirt feel 

as super soft and cozy as a sweet vintage shirt,

and knew that I had to try it. 

Here is what I started with!

I love love love this shirt except for a fatal flaw...

the cotton was so thick and stiff and the neckline chokes me out.

I knew it was the perfect shirt to DIY!

I gathered all my ingredients.

Made my brine and soaked for 3 days.

Just like the tutorial said.

And do you know what happened after waiting patiently for three days

and washing?

NOTHING!

I thought that maybe I didn't use enough salt in the brine.

So I tried it again.

This time I used a full cup of salt.

Soaked for 4 days, washed and ....

NOTHING!

By this point I was ready to throw the towel in on this one,

and then the oh so lovely

Jess Youngsman, of the Doe or the Deer,

posted THIS on Instagram.

It was like it was sent to me by the DIY gods....

a sign to not give up on this project until my 

favorite band shirt was properly aged!

So I followed her directions of 

a sea salt and baking soda scrub

followed by a watered down bleach bath.

I stretched the heck out of the neck and arm holes,

washed on hot,

and the result....

welp, I was closer to my desired results.

I was left with one problem.

That claustrophobic feeling of being strangled by my neck line.

I could only think of one solution....

Out came the scissors.

I marked where I wanted the neck line to fall 

and where the straps would need to be to properly cover my bra straps.

And then...Snip Snip Snip.

Voila!

Perfectly aged.

Perfectly fit.

And I even got a little daring 

with the back and really plunged it out!

You should absolutely try this DIY, but skip all that bologna about brining your shirt.

Here are some tunes for your crafting pleasure!

Coffee Talks

"My Momma knows; Surprise gardenia delivery!" - Jess

"Dedicated to another one of my Ladybirds! 

Thank you Tanil for leaving this in my fridge!" - Erin

My Pinterest Closet

So I have these awesome french terry cloth navy striped shorts.

For a while I thought they would never fit me again.

Well...they do, and that makes me very happy.

But I always have a hard time styling them.

Not to day my friend! 

I found this inspiration on Pinterest, and here is how I wore it:

(source)

What I wore:

shrit - Old Navy

shorts - Urban Outfitters

shoes - Target

bag - thrifted

Thankful Thursday

I do believe that since we have all spent the week glued to CNN, 

that the above quote is really truly enough said.

Be Grateful & Inspire

Discover your backyard...

Yesterday's Geocaching adventure was one for the books!

We started our day off exploring the Loggerhead Marinelife Center 

and checking out all of the rescued sea turtles.

If you are in the South Florida Area and you have not been here....you must go!

After kicking around there for a while we were off the Geocache.

I told you we were obsessed!

The boy loves it so much, he actually has asked to do it everyday since we started.

Yesterday was a hot spring day, yet perfect for a beach and dunes hike.

It always blows my mind that some of this natural area and scenic views really do exist

in our very own backyard.

So, we set out on foot from the Loggerhead Marinelife Center,

north up A1A.

When we got closer to our first cache we dipped into the canopy of sea grapes.

The sticks and leaves where pilled deep on the ground,

and with every step can a lot of cracks and crunches,

which the boy found hilarious....

I was just waiting for someone to step on a snake.

This is the "Shut up mom! And stop worrying about snakes" look that they gave me!

We found that well hidden container buried in a rotten log,

and when I looked up from the adventure,

this is what I saw.

What a magnificent view.

From there we headed due west.

I couldn't stop laughing about us emerging from the over grown sea grapes

 for long enough to cross A1A, and crawl through an over grown hole

in the scrub forrest...

Into the deep wilderness. ha.

We were blessed with a few minutes of hiking up hill in the shade...

but from there on out it was full sun,

and very hot.

This is the part where I have to tell you what a trooper my kid it.

There were many points of the trip that I thought:

"This is it.  He's going to break down because of all of the walking and the heat!"

But that boy of mine held strong and never complained.

It's so awesome to me that he's that into our new family adventures.

So up the trail we went.

When we reached the top of the hill 

we found a great little place for an impromptu picnic. 

None of us could eat fast enough, 

we all wanted to continue!

So, Onward.

Our last cache gave us a little more trouble.

But that's what makes the discovery so much sweeter.

We hiked about a quarter of a mile in the wrong direction 

before we realized that it was happening...

my fault since I was holding the map and the compass.

But it's hard to be upset about the extra walking when you get to see beautiful sights like these.

After lots of walking and searching we finally decided that we needed to trek down a

very overgrown path (which my legs were not happy about).

This was another one of those 'scared mom' moments...

but the view...

oh man that view! 

Do you geocache?

Or are you like me as of a week ago saying:

"What the heck is Geocaching?"

You can learn all about it here!