Family Chore Calendar

Happy Saturday! So today I spent a good portion of my day cleaning my house... you know the little messes that just add up. (Especially on the weekends). One of my biggest pet peeves is starting a Sunday with a messy house! Messy = Stressy.... cute I know.

My family is wonderful. They LOVE to make mommy happy. The problem with this is, children are not going to just jump up and say "Hey, I think today I'll clean all my toys and just do everything WITHOUT mom asking." It just doesn't happen. And as far as my husband is concerned. He is amazing. He really is. He helps out SO much, but he himself has told me that he is a "guy" and needs a lot more direction, and he has specifically asked me to just tell him what I want done. That sounds like an open ticket right? Well, I HATE sounding like a naggy wife, and I just want my home to be one that is filled with happiness and peace.

Because I am a "white personality" (look it up), I tend to just do it all myself. I'm not saying I don't get frustrated, I'm just saying I just do it...

This morning, as I thought about the way my family works, I decided that I was just going to write it all out, make it easy for them to see what mommy wants. Below I am sharing with you my Family Chore Calendar I created, and maybe it can help you and your sweet family too.

Magic Chocolate Chip Cookies

When I was about 8 or 9 years old I started to learn how to make cookies, chocolate chip cookies to be specific. I had the recipe memorized by the time I was 12, and I make them on a weekly basis. I had (have) a mild addiction to the cookie dough. 

In high school, I had friends who I am pretty sure were JUST my friends so I would make them cookies **cough cough** Luke, Travis, Carston** Cough Cough**

In college I literally had a guy call me and ask me if he bought all the ingredients for me if I would make him a couple batches of these cookies, and later he and a few friends called me while I was home for my off track and asked me if I could possibly mail them some of these cookies.

After I got married, I had a friend ask me for the recipe, and a few days later she came to my house so I could SHOW her how to make the cookies, because she said "it just wasn't the same"...

A few years later, I made some cookies for one of my best friends and her awesome husband, he took a bite of one of the cookies while we were at the front door and yelled "WITCH CRAFT"...

I am not always the best cook... I don't have a cook book coming out anytime soon (although, it is something I have dreamt about)... But from day one, my husband has always bragged about my cookies. When he introduces me to people, it's basically part of my name. And at one point, before we had children, he all but made me put it on my resume/job applications...

Long story short, I cannot believe I am just NOW sharing this recipe with my readers. You are all amazing, and you totally deserve this! 

I call them Magic Chocolate Chip cookies for two reasons. One of them being, people always tell me they never taste the same when they make them... and partly because of when Matt loudly accused me of witch craft because of them, and it just kinda stuck. 

I will begin by telling you part of my "magic" is not magic at all, it's years of making the same cookie, hundreds of times I'm certain of it. 

The other part is, I tell people I make them with "love". Just a little extra care. I don't measure things out crisply, I "feel" the ingredients. That is to say, I kinda just eyeball it a little, I don't pack things tightly, and I certainly don't scrape off the top with a butter knife for a perfect measurement. 

I have always felt that the very best recipes are the ones made from the heart, not an index card. 

So do me a favor, when you make these, follow the instructions, but also... do what feels right... do what feels good! 

And for heaven sakes... eat a HEAPING spoonful of cookie dough before popping them in the oven. 

Ingredients:

1 Cup Crisco

3/4 Cup Sugar

3/4 Cup Brown Sugar

2 Large/Extra Large Eggs

1.5 Teaspoons Vanilla (**The type of vanilla you use can change the taste of your cookie)

1 Teaspoon Baking Soda

1 Teaspoon Salt

2 1/4 Cups Flour

1-2 cups chocolate chips (I usually stay on the lighter side for the chocolate chips, but this part really is up to what YOU want. If you like them chocolatey, then go for it!)

Directions:

Mix Crisco, Sugar, Brown Sugar and Eggs together. Beat until completely combined. Add The Vanilla, Baking Soda, and Salt. Beat until completely combined. (Use a rubber scraper to get the dough off the sides and keep mixing). 

Slowly Add the flower while mixing. I usually end up using between 2-2 1/4 cups. I do not always use all of it! I just like to watch for the right texture. As far as texture, you want it soft and creamy. Not runny, and not stiff. A beautiful happy medium of a nice soft and creamy dough. 

*** Pause and eat a spoonful or two of cookie dough. I know I know... salmonella. Well I was told by a very skilled chef/baker, that when you whisk the sugar and eggs at a high speed there is a chemical reaction that happens that kills the bacteria. So, I eat it completely guilt free. Thank you very much. 

Mix in the chocolate chips with a spatula or a spoon. Don't use the kitchen aid or electric whisk for this, it will just make the cookies greasy. 

Bake at 350* for 8-9 Minutes. 

I get them out when they are still somewhat "dough-y" looking (You''ll see below) and I let them finish "baking" on the pan. After they have settled and are done, Then I will remove them to cool on a cooling rack. 

Enjoy!

I PROMISE you, Crisco is so much better than Butter!!!

I prefer extra large eggs, these are just regular large... no extra.. sad day. BUT, they still taste delicious.

This is how I measure things... I am certain Dave Ramsey would slap me silly for this, but this is MY kitchen.

This scooper is my best friend. Okay not really, but I have had it longer than I've been married, so that is saying something. Pampered Chef baby! I love it, and I never use anything else for cookies. **It also works nicely for mellon balling, and other things.

I know they are kinda "flat" looking. But last I checked, people have never cared what they looked like when they tasted this good.

TADA!

Thank you for stopping by. Now that I have shared one of my most treasured recipes, I would like to ask each of you wonderful people to do me a sweet treat today. If you've stopped by, share this post, or a link to any of your favorite blog posts! Pin it to Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or anything else. 

I also love to hear from my readers. Comment below and let me know how your cookies turn out!

xoxo, Kelsie 

A Simple and Beautiful Birthday

It is NO surprise to anyone I'm sure that I absolutely LOVE to do "parties". It's not the actually party itself, because quite honestly, I'm more of an introvert. I prefer small groups, and usually prefer them to be family and close friends. However, even if it was just my little family, I STILL love to decorate, bake, cook, and "throw a party".

That being said, sometimes you need to take into consideration what the party is for, who it is for, and why you are throwing it. For example, when your daughter is just a toddler, and still doesn't actually know what a "birthday" is, the idea of spending hundreds of dollars on a big party seems somewhat... silly, in my opinion.

So I decided to throw together a simple, yet beautiful little birthday BBQ for my sweet baby (not so baby anymore) girl. With just the people who she actually knows, loves, and has been there from the beginning for her. Sadly we do live far away from almost all of our family, but fortunately we have made friends here that are practically family now, and of course, the blessing we have of having my husband's parents just a few miles down the road.

My little girl is just the happiest, sweetest, vivacious little little thing. She is full of life, and brings so much happiness to all those around her. She is my little flower!

I decided to roll with that, and went with a "Flower" theme. It was low key, low budget, and exactly what she wanted. Sprinklers, Cake, Ice cream, friends, etc.

I got a few balloons from Target, and a Number 2 balloon from Party city, as well as these GORGEOUS floral napkins. I also found the most gorgeous floral wrapping paper and gift bags on clearance at target that just matched perfectly. Then I made her cake myself, and put some fresh flower I bought at Walmart for $4 on top. I also had some fun making that fun cake banner too, from some of my craft paper I already had.

It's not that I wouldn't give the world for my kids, and I do want them to have the best of everything, but all a 2 year old really wants is the cake, the love, and the fun. They don't care how much you spend, or how perfect everything turns out.

This "party" cost us under $50 for the food and decorations total, and she was in heaven, and so were we! We had the best time, with the best company celebrating our best 2 year old.

 Sorry for all the cake pictures. I just love that cake banner! :)

Paleo Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl

Ok. So my children have decided that 5:30 AM is an acceptable hour of the day to wake up. This is just not so.... regardless... They have been doing it for a couple weeks now. Despite my best efforts, hanging blankets over windows, keeping them up 2 hours past bed time, tiring them out at the park, the pool and in the backyard. Nothing seems to work, in fact, they are getting up EARLIER! 

So this morning I decided instead of laying in bed and crying like a little girl that my kids made me get up so early. I decided to get my bottom out of bed, shower... and make a hot breakfast for my stud. He is spoiled at work, and they provide shakes there so I never really feel the "need" to get out of bed and make breakfast. However, I often feel guilty about not being more present when he gets ready for work. My kids used to sleep until 8 or 8:30, and so did I. Clark would kiss me goodbye as I continued to slumber in my bed, not ready to get up for another hour or so. I did feel guilty about this often, so I guess my kids are trying to give me the head start I need. Over the last year they have gone from waking up at 8/8:30 to, 7:30, then 7, then 6:30, and so on, that brings us to this morning... a bright and early start to the day at a whopping 5:15 AM. WHAT GIVES? (If any of you have tips on how to end this trend... that would be super). 

I suppose my body is getting used to getting up in the 5 o'clock hour, because this morning I was pretty much already awake when I heard the little nugget crawl out of bed. I decided I should just get up (after I snuggled her for a few minutes... Ok... 30 minutes). So I hopped in the shower while she got some good daddy snuggles. 

I decided since I was up and basically ready, I would try being a good wife and cooking up my husband a good old fashioned hot breakfast. I didn't want to just slap some pancakes on a plate and hope it was a "good" breakfast. I wanted to give him good food that would fuel him for his day, and give him the healthy start to the day he needed. 

I have seen a lot of sweet potato dishes lately, and It just sounded super good this morning. So I decided to whip up a Paleo Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl for him. And, then I ate some as well... and decided that I needed to share this dish with all the world, because it instantly became my favorite breakfast... of ever. 

Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl

Ingredients:

• 1 Medium-Large Sweet Potato
• 1 Apple
• Bacon (5-6 slices)
• 3-4 Handfuls of Kale
• Cinnamon 
• Water

Directions:

Chop the sweet potatoes into small cubes, and place in a skillet on high heat with just enough water to prevent the sweet potato from sticking/burning to the pan (about 2-3 TBS)

Add the 1 apple, also chopped into small cubes, mix into the sweet potatoes.

Toss in some chopped Kale (About 3-4 handfuls)

Add another splash of water and mix well.

Place a lid over the pan and let "steam" for a few minutes.

Remove lid and mix again. Now add some chopped bacon (5-6 slices chopped into bite sized pieces)

Sprinkle some cinnamon over the mixture and stir well, I added about 1 TBS.

Stir well making sure the Bacon gets cooked.

Put the lid back on and let simmer again, stirring occasionally until the kale begins to turn crispy and the sweet potato begins to brown. 

I know these directions aren't exactly Martha Stewart worthy, but I am telling you right now, this is too good not to share! I'm like 110% sure we will be having it for breakfast again tomorrow!

Enjoy!

Date Night Makeup with Taylor

Hey lovelies! I am so excited for this post today! My GORGEOUS friend Taylor from Blonde and Ambitious has a smokin' makeup tutorial for us. I know I for one am pretty excited about trying this look out for myself. Maybe I will have to post a picture of my efforts! But for now, read on and enjoy the wonderful talents of the ever so beautiful Taylor!

Hello! Most of you don't know me, but my name is Taylor Mobley. I am the face behind the Blonde and Ambitious blog and love it! I am 21, just got married and a senior in college. I know Kelsie from my home town in Indiana (and I have watched her sweet babies a time or two...I love those girls!!!) and she has graciously allowed me to guest post on her blog today!

I am excited to show you guys this look I put together. It is perfect for date night (and we all know we don't have nearly enough nights where we get to dress up and feel smokin'). I'm going to take you step by step so you can recreate it for yourselves!

---

Date Night Makeup

I'm going to start with my basic base for makeup which you can find here and focus on the eyes and lips for this look (the links for all of these items can also be found in my everyday makeup post)! Those are the most important parts, anyways.

List of products you'll need to start with:

Naked2 Basics Palette

Naked 3 Palette

Naked 2 Palette

Maybelline's Eye Studio Master Precise Ink Pen Eyeliner

Better Than Sex Waterproof Mascara

Too Faced Melted Lipsticks in Peony and Violet

You're going to start with Urban Decay's base shadow in "Stark" found in the Naked2 Basics palette (if you don't have this palette, any eye shadow the same shade as your skin works perfectly!)

Next you will go in with "Cover" from the Naked2 Basics palette. Taking this fluffy blending brush (or similar) take a small amount of shadow and place it in the crease of your eye. Also take a second smaller brush and place the shadow beneath your eye.

After that, you'll take "Factory" from the Naked3 palette. Taking the tiny end of the fluffy blending brush, place a tiny amount of shadow into the crease of your eye and blend out.

Highlighter comes next! Take the NYC shadow dust in Champagne I talk about in my everyday makeup post and place it in the corner of your eyes and right underneath your brow bone. This will open up your eyes and make you look wide awake!

Eyeliner is our next step. Take the ink pen liner and draw a think line from the bottom of your eye to the desired liner length. Then take the pen and drag it in towards the center of your eye. Then draw a thin line from the inner corner of your eye to match the line in the center. Then, take "Blackout" from the Naked 2 palette and with the small end of the fluffy brush, dip the tip in the eyeshadow and then drag it from the outer corner of your eye (touching the eyeliner) to the middle of your crease. Then, you know the drill, blend blend blend!

Finally, add Better Than Sex mascara (three coats on top, one coat on the bottom), NYX jumbo eye pencil in "Milk" on your water line and VOILA! You are SO ready for date night. 

Here is my "before and after” :

Don't forget your lipstick!! I mixed Too Faced's Melted Liquid Lipsticks in Peony and Violet to create this poppy pink!! I highly recommend mixing your lipsticks together to get a custom shade (especially if you don't have a shade to match your outfit exactly).

---

So what did you guys think? Is this a look you will recreate on your next date night? I sure hope so! I know I will! I am so happy to have had this opportunity to post on Kelsie's blog...and to share this look with you. :) Be sure to follow me on instagram (@blondeandambitiousblog), like my blog on Facebook (link to my Facebook page), and find my pins on pinterest (link to my blonde and ambitious pinterest board). :)