Hello there!

I decided to take a break from blogging for a while (as you can see, hehehe!).
It turned into something that I didn't enjoy anymore.
I feel refreshed and ready to start over!
I will be posting regularly, so check back often!
Here are a few things that made me smile today...

(photo credits: LOVE, traffic light)

Happy Valentine's weekend, and make sure to tell someone you love them!

Dreaming...

For almost a year now I have been dreaming of this bedding from Anthropologie. Oh how I wish it was mine. The price tag is a {small} $440 :) I think for now I will have to keep dreaming!!

Thrifty Treasures!!

I have been browsing the thrift stores for some good deals. Here are a few items I got...

This red chair has to be the BEST deal I have ever heard of. Are you ready for it??? I paid $3.99 for it! That's right!!! Three dollars and ninety-nine cents!! I was so happy!!It needs a real good cleaning, and eventually I will have it reupholstered!

My next find is this Chandeliere. I paid .99 for it! It is currently being transformed into a beauty! I can't wait for it to be finished!

And last but not least is this stool. Chris found it in a dumpster, I think, so that makes it free!

I have already finished painting and upholstering it, but I don't have a picture of it finished. That will happen later this week when I post pictures of my Craft Table!
Until then, have a great day!

Moms are Special!

I know this is SuPeR late, but it is better late than never right!?!

Chris and I just wanted to let our Mom's know how much we love them and appreciate all that they have done for us over the years. I don't think that moms ever get enough credit for all the things they do for their children. We love you guys so much and hope that you know that.

One of my all time favorite things is to receive flowers! (Someday I will have a garden for a backyard) So for Mother's Day I made our moms Strawberry Jam and these super cute cards!! (I can say that they are cute even though I made them right?!) We also got them some BeAuTiFuL flowers that smelt so good!

Even though I am not technically a mom yet, I am preparing for the future!! So for Mother's Day Chris got me this SUPER cool bike!!!

I love it so much and have ridden it almost every night since I got it!

I hope all of you that are moms had a special day!

Strawberry Feilds

I wish I had fields of Strawberries! ~sigh~ I bought this little plant this year hoping that it would produce lots of yummy strawberries for me. Boy was I wrong... I got these three strawberries and that. was. it. I was so sad. There were lots and lots of blooms, 37 to be exact. But the heat came and killed them all. Dang heat. I so badly want to live somewhere where I can have a garden.

Home grown strawberries seem so much sweeter to me than the ones bought at the store. Have you noticed that, or is it just me?

I did however make homemade Strawberry Jam! Oh it turned out SO well! I LoVe homemade jam!! It is one of my favorite things! (Thanks to my friend Heidi who helped me make it all)

I will tell you more about the jam later...

Do you have a garden? What kinds of things do you grow? Do you have any tips for me? Please share!!!

Mmm Mmm Good!!

My name is Taina... and I'm a Chocoholic!

I mad THE most delicious cupcakes! You do have to LOVE chocolate to like these!

Here is the recipe...

1c. sugar

3/4c. cocoa

1c. milk

1 beaten egg

Mix the above ingredients in a soucepan. Stir and cook until it boils, then set aside.

3/4c. butter

2 eggs(unbeaten)

1c. sugar

Cream together the butter and sugar, then add eggs and mix well.

Add chocolate mixture. (it will be hot)

2c. flour

1/2c. milk

1tsp. baking soda

1tsp. vanilla

1/2tsp. salt

Mix dry ingrediants together. Measure milk into a cup and add vanilla. Add about half of the dry ingredients:mix then add milk mixture and mix. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix until blended. Put into cupcake tins about 2/3 full. (I use a icecream scoop to do this) Bake at 350 for 18 minutes. Let cool before frosting.

Frosting:

3/4c. cocoa

1/8tsp. salt

5 Tbsp. butter

5 Tbsp. milk

3c. powdered sugar

1tsp. vanilla

Melt cocoa and butter together in a saucepan. In a mixing bowl, combine powdered sugar, salt milk, vanilla and chocolate mixture. Beat until smooth. (I like to use a lot of frosting, so I doubled the recipe) Fill a heavy duty ziplock bag (freezer one should work) with the frosting. Cut one of the bottom corners off and squeeze out the frosting into a swirl. (if you use a regular ziplock bag it will start oozing and make a huge mess...believe me!)

Wahlah! You have yummy and delicious Chocolate Cupcakes!

This recipe was found in The Fat Sisters Cookbook. Go get one for yourself!

Four Weeks???

Holy Cow... I CAN NOT believe that it has been an entire month since I last posted. Here are a couple of reasons why:

1. I don't have the internet at home. It totally stinks. I'm pretty sure that if I had the internet at home I would blog mutiple times a week, but for now it is speratic.

2. I was waiting for my dang Craft Table to be finished. Chris has been super busy with work lately (No compalints from me! At least he has a job right?). So it has been a "spare time" project. Which is fine, I just want it done already!

3. I have so many things to blog about it's kind of overwhelming. It is going to take me hours to catch up. But it will get done!

Come back later this week (I know it's Wednesday, but there are still a few days left in the week!) and you can see what I have been working on...

Have a Wonderful Wednesday!!

Project of the Week: Headboard

Last Monday I showed you my {unfinished} headboard.

Here is what it looks like now...

I LOVE it SOOOO much!! I can't believe it took me this long to finish it! I still need to decorate, so pay no attention to the blank walls! I will give you a little run through of how I finished the headboard.

First: I painted it "Antique White"

I really loved the way it looked at this stage and was kind of sad to continue.

{but I knew it would look soooo much better if I did}

Second: I gave it a light sanding {this is a very important step}

Third: I painted it black. {I forgot to take a picture}

Fourth: I sanded all the edges by hand, and then I sanded the rest with an electric sander

I don't have the best camera, so these pictures don't really do it justice.

This weeks project...

A Craft Table!

Chris decided that he was tired of seeing all my scrapbook stuff everywhere he turned! {I can't help it, I'm addicted} So he told me to find something I liked and he would make it for me!

{picture from Pottery Barn}

The only difference will be that my table will be painted "Antique White", and Chris wants to add some extra moulding! I am super excited! I am in one of those moods where I want to get organized, and I know this will help do the trick!

On an side note, Chris said that he is willing to make any these things {or anything you have a picture of} for you! Just contact me for any specifics and pricing!

What are you working on this week??

Very Vintage Easter Swap!

I was so excited to participate in this Swap! Here are the things that I made for my partner Lindsey...

I left this frame open so she could put a picture or favorite quote behind it.

{I lOvEd this so much that I had to make one for myself!!}

Spring Banner

I filled this aDoRaBlE basket with her favorite candies!

This is the finished product!


Here is what I received...

It was so much fun opening every little thing!

Here is all the loot!

My favorite things were these magnets..

..and these Bird Cards!

Thank you so much Lindsey!

Tags

I am participating in a Tag Swap {we make a tag every month}. These are my April tags! I lOvE them all so much, it was hard for me to part with them, but what am I going to do with {FIVE} "April" tags?? I hope my partners liked them!! I got some great ones from my partners, but totally forgot to take pictures!!

Happy April!