Capture: The Craig Family

I cannot believe I have not showed these pictures to you guys yet!
The Craig family is an amazing family I met through our adoption program at church. About 8 months ago I started providing respite care for the family as they were fostering FOUR kiddos. Let this sink in: the girls are 1//3//5 and there is another foster thrown in there and he just turned 1. To make a long story short the Craig's felt lead to adopt the three girls (also sisters). This is in addition to their two biological kids. They are an amazing family and the perfect fit for these girls.
I was fortunate enough to capture some family photos right before the adoption was final.

















Don’t you just love the pictures of the girls running to their family? Such a perfect picture of acceptance.
Enjoy this much needed Friday Eve!

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pINTERESTING : Mason Jar Blender

Pinterest is full of tips and tricks but I feel as though the majority of them wont work as seamlessly as they are portrayed.
Last night I got home from the gym late and didn’t want a big dinner. I figured a protein smoothie would be just right. The thought of cleaning out my blender just wasn’t all that appealing, though.
You see I used to have one of those knock off magic bullets… and then it went to blender heaven.
So I improvised.

I removed the blade from the bottom of my pitcher that hooks into my blender and added it to a mason jar



Protein mix, frozen strawberries, and some low fat milk – shake it up a bit and then added it to your blender just like you would the pitcher. Blend away.



Who knew it would actually work! After I was finished all I had to do was rinse out the mason jar and call it good.
I would call this one a complete pinterest success and my smoothie was tasty to boot.
Have you tried this before? Any good protein smoothie recipes?

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Cleanse: Dandelion Tea

After my workout last night I high tailed it to a local whole foods store called Akins. They sell all sorts of herbal supplements and organic foods. I knew that would be just the place to find an assortment of teas.
If you haven't ever heard of dandelion root join the club. My mom told me about its health benefits a few days ago. I decided to look around for myself.
Turns out dandelion root aids in digestion, purifying the blood of toxins, reduces inflammation, reduces high cholesterol, improves skin clarity, and it also helps reduce your sodium build up.
If you know me you know I not only have a sweet tooth but a sodium tooth also. Salt is my homeboy.
From what I read there was really no downfall of trying this tea and with all the benefits I thought why not give it a chance.

Jillian Michaels has a detox recipe for dandelion tea but I just kind of made mine up as I went.
While at Akins I grabbed 100% Cranberry Juice and 100% Lemonade. Looking back I would have just rather used lemon juice.


Personally, I like cranberry juice but the all natural lemonade was a tad too tart. I made sure neither of the juices had added sugar, sweeteners, or sodium. We are cleansing you know.


I decided to just go ahead and make a pitchers worth and drink it cold. You could adapt this recipe to make a hot tea single serving. I followed the directions on the box 1 cup of boiling water per bag. I used 6 bags and 6 cups of boiling water.


Once the tea steeped for 15 or so minutes I poured it into my pitcher and added about 1 1/2 cups cranberry juice and 1 cup lemonade. No extra sweeteners. You could add fresh lemon juice to taste.

If you really need to sweeten it up think about adding honey or agave – no artificial sweeteners or it will completely defeat the purpose.
This will “cleanse” your body so know that you will have an increased need to pee. Sorry for being so frank but its true. I would not suggest this as a tool for permanent weight loss as you are mainly loosing water weight but it’s a great weekly drink to have to make sure you are flushing your system of toxins.
Anyone else tried this tea?

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Create: DIY Doily Magnets

There are some things in life I just cant resist – buttercream frosting, estate sales, chips and salsa, and the ever present dollar isle. Those dang dollar isles get me every.time. It’s a wonder I haven't spent my entire paycheck on notepads, thank you cards, and trinkets. For some reason everything is cuter when its $1.
When I was at Michaels over the weekend I HAD to walk down that isle of cheap goodness. Thank goodness I did or I would have missed these beauties and how in the world would I have gone on without them…

Teeny tiny ($2) doilies oh how I love thee. I love thee enough to pass up TWO sonic happy hour drinks in your place.
Lets be honest – I got them and had no idea what I would do with them. They were made for scrapbooking but since I have yet to dabble in that area they needed a new purpose. So, a new purpose I gave them.
Do you remember this drawer turned magnet board? If not, here ya go

A year later I am finally getting around to adding some magnets to the magnet board. Go figure.
The baby doilies were the perfect size to be hot glued to a small magnet and made useful.


Since there were nine in all, a few got to reside on my fridge. They are small, think the size of a quarter, but their cuteness factor is way bigger.

Artwork from a favorite little at church

In total this project took me 10 minutes with the majority of the time waiting on my hot glue gun to warm up. Since my magnets are small they hold a decent amount but aren't going to hold up a book. They are great for papers on the fridge or pictures but nothing heavier.

Anyone repurposed art supplies lately?

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Create: DIY Glitter IPhone Cover

Its like pigs are flying around here – I am actually doing a NEW DIY!!
I recently upgraded to the Iphone5 and with the upgrade got the standard 2 piece Otter Box.



The new style comes with a silicone cover for your phone and then a hard plastic piece that “clicks” into place as extra protection. Obviously, this was a little too plain for my taste.
I decided to add glitter after seeing a bunch of cute cases around but not wanting to drop the $40 bones to get one. And thus, a DIY was born
Martha Stewart decoupage glue//sealer and Martha Glitter in Green Apple = $7.00


Make sure you grab the glitter and not COARSE glitter – the extra fine stuff is really what makes it look less like a DIY and more store bought
Turns out I hate that Martha Stewart decoupage glue//sealer – the glitter pealed right off after it dried. So to our trusty ModPodge I turned!


Paint ModPodge all over your cover (I left the sides free of glue//glitter).


I added three coats of ModPodge and then glitter before sealing the cover with a last coat of ModPodge. You’ll notice in the picture the sides are glittered – I started out that way and quickly changed my mind after I noticed how easily the sides peel. Plus it looks a lot cleaner and professional with just the back glittered – or at least it does in my opinion.




Remember your ModPodge will go on white but I promise it will dry clear – no need to think you ruined the whole project when its time to seal the glitter.
I love the color I chose – lots of compliments – and its such a fun CHEAP way to add a little sparkle to your phone.




What do you think? Doesn’t it look sooo much better than that drab plain black?
I will tell you, once you seal the glitter and wipe down the stray glitter from on your phone you wont see anymore flaking. No glitter on your face//hands when you use your phone.
Let me know if you try this – I would love to see what combinations you come up with!

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