60th Birthday Cupcakes

We just celebrated my handyman's 60th birthday. For his party I made some special chocolate cupcakes. The recipe was inspired by a recipe in the new Pampered Chef Desserts Cookbook coming out this spring. The cupcakes have a truffle in the center. After you back the chocolate cupcakes, take the kitchen sheers and cut an "X" in the top. Push the truffle in the center so it melts to a gooey center. I topped these with Cream Cheese Icing. I only had 12 truffles, so 12 other cupcakes didn't have a filling.

I used the shaker to sprinkle cocoa on the top of the cupcakes that had a truffle inside.

Many other versions are possible: caramel, rolo, chocolate covered espresso beans, jelly/ jam, etc...

Another Bathroom Update

Friday night was paint night! There is much more to this story... First I thought about using the FREE Gliddon paint (remember that promotion?), but when I opened both cans they were hard as a rock. Moving on to the backup plan. You guessed it, cheap mistints. I found a can of neutral paint for $6 at Walmart a few weeks ago. I figured I could use it eventually. I'm glad I had it because there is nothing worse than being ready to start a project without the right tools.

What do you think about the color? I think it's better than the gray I was planning on. This blends better with the peachy/ tan bathtub. The tub will be covered anyway... no budget for this one to be repainted now.

This Saturday was a HUGE day in the bathroom. The ceiling was finished... except for 2 tiles. Ooops, we didn't buy enough. That is one disadvantage of living 35 minutes from Home Depot. The tiles will have to wait until the next trip. The ceiling looks beautiful. Did I just say that? Never thought I would say that about a drop ceiling, but it was our only option. I'm glad we replaced instead of repaired or just changed out the tiles.

What do you think about the wainscotting? We have to caulk the seams and paint. I still need to pickout the top molding. We have the baseboard and door trim. That's the next step.

I never finished telling you about the floor. I finished that earlier this week. I finished cutting it and then grouted it. It's much easier dealing with the grout when the bathtub works. Now for cleaning out the sandy grout from the tub - next weekend's project.

Bathroom Update

I hope you are as excited as I am to get this bathroom finished. Well it's coming along. Here's a little update:

The ceiling is out... but there was even more wallpaper above the drop ceiling. We have to install a new drop ceiling because of the HVAC and plumbing above. You can see the new track along the wall being installed.

I'm keeping this tub the same neutral peach color... I'm cheap and a shower curtain will hide it - I HOPE!!

You can see the lower half of the wall that was damaged pretty badly. We decided to put wainscotting up to hide the imperfections. The picture below is where the toilet and pedastal sink will be installed.

This is the flooring I'm installing. It's the same as the other bathroom, but a different pattern. I'm installing it in a zig-zag, so the seams don't meet.

I hope to have another update once the floor, walls and ceiling are finished. Who knows what color I'll choose!

**I was at Walmart last week and found a mistint that might work. I can't pass up a gallon of good paint for $6.00.

Valentine Hoodie

What do you get a 1 year old for Valentine's Day? I had no idea either. I found a $4 white hoodie at Target and let my imagination take it from there. When I got home I got out my ribbon box to see what I could put together. This is what I came up with. A thick pink and white ribbon around the hood. A thinner ribbon with smaller polka dots and a white button to hold the ribbon together and to the jacket.

I hope you enjoyed time with someone special today!

Something to ponder...

Accept you were never in control and experience the serenity that resides...

Chicken & Asparagus (Broccoli) Risotto Skillet

This is a recipe that will be added to my monthly rotation - YUMMY and EASY!! It's a Pampered Chef Classic.

I wish I would have taken a picture, but honestly we ate it too quickly for me to run to the office to get the camera... oops! Maybe I'll post a picture the next time I make it. This picture is from another blog: http://mrsbowles.wordpress.com/

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/2 tsp salt, divided

1/4 tsp coarsely ground black pepper

1 can condensed cream of chicken soup

1/2 lb fresh asparagus spears, cut into 1 1/2-in. pieces (about 2 cups -- I substitute Broccoli)

2 cups milk

1 cup chopped onion

2 oz grated fresh Parmesan cheese (about 1/2 cup)

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1 tbsp lemon zest

2 cups uncooked instant white rice

Directions:

1.Heat oil in Skillet over medium-high heat 1-3 minutes or until shimmering. Dice chicken into 1-in. pieces. Combine chicken, 1/4 tsp of the salt and black pepper in large bowl; toss to coat. Cook chicken 4-5 minutes or until no longer pink in center. Remove chicken from Skillet; set aside.

2.Return Skillet to heat; add soup, asparagus, milk, onion, cheese, garlic, zest and remaining 1/4 tsp salt. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 3 minutes. Stir in rice and chicken. Cover; let stand 5 minutes. Yield: 6 servings

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Love... the day is coming soon!

Now that I'm married I love Valentine's Day even more. Could it be because I can count on having an amazing Valentine each year? I hope you have a wonderful Valentine in your life.

My MIL sent me a link to a very cute blog focused on Love. You can visit it to get some great ideas: http://www.loveactually-blog.blogspot.com/

There is a t-shirt that I think is pretty cute!

Another other idea I want to pass on is from a friend of a friend of a friend. It's a pretty simple and cheap idea. The hard part for me will be remembering. The idea is to begin writing love letters to your husband for a year in a journal. Then at Christmas giving the journal to them. I think you could put a spin on this - do it for a month and give it to them for a special anniversary, the day you had your first date or the day you got engaged.

There is only one happiness in life -- to love and to be loved. --George Sand