Cooper's Room!

In our bedroom there is a small cubby.  I have debated over several ideas for said cubby.  I thought about turning it into a quaint reading nook, or an elegant vanity space; however, I just couldnt decide.  What the cubby usually turns into is a space to heap laundry and next thing you know the room is looking like an episode of Hoarders. (If you missed the dramatics of my Craft Space looking like a Hoarders Episode, go check it out.) 

As the debating continued, Cooper had decided to steal an old pillow, curl up on it and call it his space; thus, it was.  As I said before my goal in the next few posts is to create some happiness for Mr. Cooper. :) So with the help of hubby (ALWAYS, because my ability to run power tools is scary.) we built him an ADORABLE bed, decorated the little cubby and made him a room!

Guys, Cooper was so excited it was ridiculous! We carried that bed up, and before it even had a bed on it he was laying in it, washing himself, sleeping, drooling...he...LOVED it! I call that a pet-parent WIN!

*Cue the evil laughter!*

Now, I don't know how many of you are crazy like me, but if you love your dog more than you should and want to build him or her a bed, this post is for you, because I am providing a step by step!

                           

Welp, the new bed and room was a HIT! I have a couple other crafts up my sleeve. I'm not sure if he will enjoy those as much, but I will. :) So, if you enjoy reading about me spoiling the crap out of my dog, stay tuned. There's more to come!

 I need to come up with some ideas for making his kennel more enjoyable...or perhaps building him some sort of doggy play pen that he may enjoy being in while we're gone? I haven't quite put together enough ideas to put this one in place. Anyone have ideas?

P.S. I Should add a HUGE thank you to the neighboors for allowing us to use their power tools and materials on a regular basis! :D

Homemade Dog Treats- Operation Make Cooper Happy

Recently, Mr. Cooper, our beloved beagle has been acting out.  Over the summer we had allowed him to be out of his kennel for short periods of time while we were gone.  Our goal was to eventually leave him out of his kennel permanently. That way, Cooper could enjoy the his life from the comfort of his little blue chair and we didn't have dog-parent guilt about having him caged.

Oh, but our goals were in vain. VAIN I tell you, because since the school year has started Cooper has been a HOLY TERROR! His separation anxiety has sky-rocketed and he has just been the HOLIEST OF ALL HOLY TERRORS!  If we leave him out of his kennel, he gets into the trash, eats anything that is on the coffee table, takes the cushions off the couches and spreads them across the room.  If we kennel him, he pees in his kennel.  Not only does he pee IN the kennel he pees OUT of the kennel. He lifts his leg in order to make it outside and inside the kennel; thus, creating the BIGGEST mess possible for hubby and I to clean up!  He also ate an entire box of Oreos.  I'm not sure what I was more upset about, the mess that was all over the house or the fact that he ate ALL of the cookies. EVERY. LAST. ONE!



What?! Me's not Holy Terror! Me WUVS youu!

One night, NO JOKE, Cooper squatted on the carpet and started peeing.  I could HEAR the stream hitting the carpet.  I sat up and started yelling "NO COOPER NOOOOO!!" This is normally enough to startle him and make him realize he's doing something wrong, but OH NO. Not that night. Do you know what he did?! He looked me DEAD IN THE EYE and continued to pee on my carpet!! OH. NO. HE. DIDN'T.

HE. WENT. THERE. I could have killed him. I smacked his behind (you know because dogs totally understand that? I'm a horrible dog parent.) and clipped him outside where he stayed until hubby and I resolved the carpet. -sigh-

I won't EVEN get into his most disgusting stunt that left hubby and me feeding him hydrogen peroxide to ensure he vomitted. LORD HAVE MERCY!

Needless to say, Cooper has shown us in EVERY way possible that he is NOT adjusting to the new schedule and he does not enjoy his Mom and Dad being gone for such long periods.

How dare we got to work and make money to buy him food!! (Ungrateful little brat.)

Now, after all of that complaining...I will say I kind of feel bad for the little man.  Here we were spending all of our time with him over the summer, taking him on trips to see the family, staying home and cuddling with him during the week and then *BOOM* we leave him. ALLLLL ALOONNEEE!

So...I've decided I'm launching "Operation Make Cooper Happy!".  The next few posts will be dedicated to Cooper and trying to make him feel a little better about the new schedule. Because everyone knows spoiling your children, human or canine, is the best way to make them happy and healthy children. Heh! I really hope we are better human-parents than dog-parents.

Alright, onto Operation Make Cooper Happy! The mission? Cooper Cookies.

Here's the Step-by-step

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cooper loved these! They are simple to whip up.
Enjoy!

30 Minute Italian SausageTortellini Soup

The weather was kinda gloomy and yucky yesterday; however, in retrospect it is NOTHING compared to the weather today.  Nevertheless I started brainstorming for a yummy comfort-type food that I could cook up for the hubby and me.  I started looking up recipes for chili, lasanga and tortellini soups.  I wanted something that we've never had before. I just love a new recipe!  Almost as much as I love Stefan & Damon Salvatore off of the Vampire Diaries...I really can't choose between the two *DROLL*, but that's a different story entirely. 

All of the recipes that I found looked yummy, but it just wasn't what I was looking for.  I wanted something a little cheesy, something with some meat, something with a few veggies, something that was filling but not as heavy as chili, and something that was easy to put together.  Needless to say, this soup had to meet a LOT of expectations! So, I used my resources and...I MADE IT UP! (That seems to be what I'm good at.)

I call my creation 30 Minute Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup.  YUM! (What along name for a soup, right?) But I had to let you know it only takes 30 minutes. Well worth it. Mmm. Mmm. Mmm.  I packed the left overs for lunch today and enjoyed it two days in a row. I love when that happens!

So, you want to make a steaming bowl for your hubby?  Or maybe you want to make a steaming bowl for yourself?...I shouldn't assume you want to share with your hubby. ;)

Below Is the step-by-step. :D

6Cups Chicken Broth
1/2 lb Italian Sausage
1 Can Fire Roasted Tomatoes
1tsp Dried Parsley
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 Onion
2 Cloves Garlic, Minced
2 Carrots peeled and diced
16 oz Tortellini

 

 

 

 

Trust me on this one. Just make it.  This recipe is hubby tested and hubby approved. ;)  (And he is quite picky, so if he passes it...it's an A+!!)

Enjoy!

DIY Hand Sanitizing Lotion

Colder weather is slowly but SURELY approaching.  This means as I go into the elementary school to substitute I run the risk of touching pencils, on which lives an immeasurable amount of germs.  I mean, SERIOUSLY last week I watched a little girl pick her scab, eat it, and then continue to suck the blood out of her cut. (*BARF!!*) Lord, I know I did some nasty things as a child (we've all tasted a booger, who hasnt?! If you tell me you haven't you're a LIAR!) but scabs never seemed appetizing to me, and drinking blood is for really good, but extrememly cheesey vampire novels. Maybe that childn needs an iron pill. Bleck!

Now that you know what I'm up against, you understand the need for the sanitation!  But, who wants the feeling of dry nasty hands after using hand sanitizer...NOT ME! As I was working with a teacher last week I noticed that she had a lotion that was a 2-in-1.  It was hand sanitizer AND LOTION! It literally blew my mind.  So I started thinking..rather than buying yet ANOTHER thing of lotion (because the amount of lotion I own would lead you to believe I have sister wives), why not try to make it myself?

Cue DIY Hand Sanitizing Lotion.



Ok, Let's not judge this poor label job. It looks a lot better than when it started. :)

 It's Simple...You literally need

Lotion (that smells YUMMY)
Rubbing Alcohol
An Empty Container

As you apply the lotion you smell alcohol, but alcohol is fast evaporating and once it has evaporated it leaves no scent, so what you are left with is the original scent of your lotion. This statement is husband approved. I made him smell my hands to check for alcohol scent. :)

Now I am armed with something that will both sanitize my hands and keep them moisturized. And Ya'll I'm not playing...elementary school is NASTY. I'm convinced it's the original breeding ground for every disease there ever was.

So please, go forth make your own hand sanitizing lotion and be happy.

Happy Fall Ya'll

Since moving to the south, I've had an obsession with the word "ya'll".  I just love it and it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  It reminds me of southern hospitality and big dinners slathered in butter cooked by Paula Deen. Mmm. Mmm. Mmm.

Because I have this obsession, I love this sign...probably more than I should.  It's just adorable.

 

It's so adorable in fact, that I decided to show you how to make one of your own! :D

Things To Gather:
Scrap Wood
Twine
Paint
Small Paint Brushes for Lettering
Eye Hooks to Attach the boards together
Sand Paper or Sander
Wood Glue to attach pumpkin

 

You can see in this picture that we have attached the sign using eye hooks and twine. Drill a pilot hole and then screw the eye hook into the hole. Tie the twine to the eye hook and put a small amount of hot glue on the knot to hold it.


The pumpkin was cut from a piece of plywood. :) You just free hand a pumpkin and then wood glue the pieces on the board.

Fall is approaching quickly! What better way to celebrate then to put this cute sign on your door.

Enjoy!

DIY Shimmer Lotion

I was talking to my sister this morning, ok, fine, I'll be honest. I was talking to her this afternoon, because I didn't wake up until almost 11am.

Firstly, 11 is still in the AM so, I'm not that lazy.  Secondly, it's the weekend...and well. That's it. It's the weekend. You should also know that I went to sleep at 10:30pm on a Friday and now Hubby is napping on the couch, even though we went to bed early and woke up SUPER LATE. (Hubby and I are getting OLD.)

Moving on. Lord, I get off track a lot. She was talking to me about shimmering body oil and how awesome it was and how she smelled so good today. Because I am 10 hours away and can't possibly smell her from this distance (if I could that would be INTENSE), so I will have to take her word on it. 

However, that got my brain turning...

I started thinking I want glittery stuff to put all over my body!

(Yes. All. Over. My. Body.) *clears throat*

Anyway, I'm not about to find some glittery lotion in this town so I decided to figure out how to make my own.

AWESOME!

So, here we go. :D

This is what I used.

 

.

And this is how you do it! :D (As I was typing that I was signing that Montell Jordan Song in my head...) Hello 90's Kid! "la la la la la la la la...This is how we do it...It's Friday Night..."  "This is how we do it.." Still singing.

 Oooo. Swirly.

Lid of a mason jar decorated with scrapbook paper. CUTE!

 

 

I was just reading this and realized how ADD it is. LOVE IT!

 

So now, I have my shimmery lotion for FREE. I had everything I needed here and I didn't have to drive to the ends of the earth to find the closest Victorias Secret or Bath and Body Works. BOOM!

Taco Pizza

School is in full swing! That means that there are sick teachers who provide me with a job! :D Yay for making money!

That being said, this is a post that has been in the making for almost a week now.

Yeah, SHUN ME!

Last weekend Hubby and I sat down to make a menu for the week. The weather here in Virginia has been AMAZING the past two weeks and we really wanted to do some grilling and wanted to try out some new recipes.

We kinda split up the days so that one person wasn't cooking all week long. I am now working; thus, I crack the whip and make the husband pull his weight around here. (I'm joking...kind of.)

Anyway, Monday was my day to cook and originally I had picked something generic like spaghetti but then I was all...

WHY DON'T WE HAVE SOMETHING NEW AND EXCITING FOR DINNER?!

And then, THIS was born!

DE-FREAKING-LICIOUS! Mmm Hmm. 

Taco Pizza Ladies and Gents.  This takes two of my most favorite things, mixes them all together and puts them in mah belly! YUM.

This is what you're going to need:

1 package Pizza Dough mixed according to box
1 can Refried Beans
1lb Ground Beef
Taco Seasoning
Cheddar Cheese
Tomatoes
Olives
Sour Cream
Lettuce
Salsa

(This is what I used. You know what you like on your tacos...so use whatever your favorite things are.)

 

You may need to heat up your refried beans to make them easier to spread.

 

And there you have it! :) Crack the whip, make your husband do half of the cooking and when it's your time to cook...pick something super easy ans super delicious.  That's how I roll. ;)