Favorite Things Friday

Here are a few of my favorite things that caught my eyes this week!

This Menu planner in a pantry... in fact the whole house is gorgeous

and dude this table is amazing

After looking at this round up of recipes I think that I'm ready to jump on the spiraling bandwagon.

 

I love EVERYTHING about this home!

 

A few weeks ago I purchased a world Map from Staples and I've been thinking about framing it and hanging somewhere in my house. This is a great tutorial

 

Hubby is on a "mancation" this weekend so I will be having a girls night tonight with one of my besties. You better believe that there is a cheese platter in my near future.  

Washington State Rental

I LOVE the place that we rent in Washington State! It is three bedrooms/two bathrooms and just fits our family perfectly! Plus it is a SUPER colorful little condo! In fact this place holds a special spot in my heart as it was where Hunter took his first steps!

Here is a little tour...

KITCHEN

MASTER BEDROOM

Has a master bath with a steam shower

EMMA'S ROOM

Opens to the living room and I love the doors on the track!

there are two twin beds in here

LIVING ROOM

Which is open to the kitchen and dining area

DINING AREA 

Birds... just not my thing

BOY'S ROOM  

So this condo was actually for sale and I had received an e-mail about it a month before our trip. I thought that there was never any way that Matt would go for buying a vacation rental in Washington state... WRONG! By the end of the week he was ready to inquire... Sadly it is already under contract... Fingers crossed that the next owner also rents it out.

Thrifted Thursday: Traveling with Kids

Recently I had my kiddos out with me in Washington State (Matt was there too).. and I wanted to limit the number of bags that we took with us but there is only one issue... kids need a lot of STUFF!

The clothing I managed to get all in one bag. YES clothes for all 5 of us and for a week!

But there are other things needed when you are in a second floor condo that has NOTHING for kids. What is a girl to do??? HELLO hit up a few thrift stores the day that you get into town!

I was lucky enough to stop in one of them on their half off day!!! Baby gate for $3... CHECK

 

Little booster seat for Gibson... $2

 

 

Puzzles and toys at 25 cents each! WHAT! I was worried that all of the puzzle pieces wouldn't be in the box but it was totally worth the risk at 25 cents... and guess what... all there! I was SUPER tempted to bring the puzzle back with us but just didn't have the room.

 

All of these foam building blocks $5... a splurge but kids loved them and I was also tempted to bring them home.

 

Books and DVDs a various costs (nothing over $2) The place we stayed didn't have tv but does have a DVD player.

On the morning of my last day I donated everything back to the local thrift store! EASY!

I'll be back later today with photos of your condo! I HEART it!

DIY Wall clock from the Kiddos

For Father's Day this year I decided that I wanted the kids to make something for their Daddy! After some pinteresting I settled on a clock and we put our own spin on it. I love the outcome

 

First we started with just a plain wood round face for the clock:

And a clock Movement

Next I had the kiddos Paint all over the plain old face

Added the hardware to the face

and picked out some photos from my instagram account and had them printed from Prinstagram. 

And made the clock... I cut the photos into small circles and attached them with modPodge

 

Love the result 

 

 

Linked on:

 

Home Stories A to Z

Fresh Every Day--- Sunday Pot Roast

Last night I made a super yummy dish as a part of my weekly meal plan where I'm only cooking out of Fresh Every Day. I love a good pot roast on a Sunday night and my parents even came over for dinner.

Full disclosure this was the best pot roast that I have ever made.


 INGREDIENTS:

• 3 lb beef chuck roast
• 2 T Olive Oil
• 1 Large Onion, peeled and cut into 8 wedges 
• 6 Carrots, Cut into 2-inch pieces
• 6 Fresh Thyme Sprigs
• 6 Fresh Rosemary Sprigs 
• 1 C Dry Red wine
• 4-6 C Beef Broth
• 1 pound Fingerling Potatoes 

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 325

Season Roast with salt and pepper on all sides

Heat oil in large dutch oven. Add the roast and brown on each side (about 2-3 mins per side). Transfer roast to plate and set aside 

Add onion, carrots, and herbs to the pot that the roast was cooked in. Cook, stirring often, until onions are soft.

Add Roast back into pan

Add the wine and enough broth to almost cover the roast.

Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover with the lid and place in the oven to roast for 2 hrs 30 minutes.

Add in the potatoes and cook for another 40-60 minutes. 

p.s--- Cooking purple potatoes makes me feel fancy...

Transfer to a dish and serve! YUMMY YUMMY...

I also made some surprisingly delish smashed peas...

And awesome roasted pears!!!

Meal Plan Monday:Fresh Every Day

In an effort to get back to the roots of this blog I've decided to start sharing recipes more often and that I would share what I'm cooking for my family of 5.

So... every Monday (of the ones I'm in town) I'm going to share our meal plan for the week and a majority of the recipes that I cook will come from one cookbook. This will give me a chance to try new dishes and new cookbooks each week. The goal is going to be too cook at least three new recipes each week...

This week I'm going to cook from FRESH EVERY DAY: More Great Recipes from Foster's Market. 

Sunday:

• Mom's Pot Roast (p.218)
• Smashed Green Beans (p.119)
• Maple Vanilla Roasted Pears (p.239)

 Monday:

•  Pan-seared Salmon with Butter Beans, tomatoes and Corn (p.186)
•  Roasted Peach Halves with Crumb Topping (p.240)

Tuesday:

•  Left Overs

Wednesday:

• Tequila Lime Skirt Steak w/ Grilled Scallions (p.162)
• Guacamole
• Grilled Corn
  

Thursday:

• Herb Marinated Grilled Chicken Breasts (p. 136) 
• Grilled Pineapple Salsa (p.196)
• Lemon Roasted Asparagus (p.115)

Friday:

•  Pizza Night
  

Saturday:

• Roasted Halibut with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Butternut Squash (p.182)
• Steamed Cabbage with Rosemary (p.116)

I'll be back this afternoon to share photos of our dinner from last night! It was sooo yummy!