Breakfast Nook Evolution

Even thought I don't blog every week anymore, I still putter around the house doing all sorts of "fixer upper" stuff... it runs in my blood! I can't not look at a room and see all the possibilities. Ever since we've moved in things have been evolving and ever changing, slowly, which is the nature of things when it's not your full time job. My latest "puttering" has been our dining room. I knew from the day we moved in it was incomplete... And now, I just have ONE little project (which I'm excited, but nervous about) left to make and it will be done. I have always had a pretty good idea of how I wanted this space to look, and I am so thrilled with how it is going!


This is what it looked like when we put an offer on the house....

This is what it looked like 24 hours after getting the keys put in my hand:

This is what it looked like after moving in:

Side by side shot:

First picture is what it looked like after we re-did the floors:
Second picture is again what it looked like when we put an offer on the house:

This is what the Breakfast nook looks like RIGHT NOW (Okay... this is what it looked like at 11AM Today):

START TO FINISH:

I am a sucker for before and after pictures! <3 Thought I'd share!

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!