Thursday, January 31, 2013

Get well soon!

Hey y'all!  Long time, no talk, huh?!  I feel like I have been 'out of it', since Christmas.

We had a 'little' touch of winter in the past week.  Not much.  Like 10 minutes of snow (that's how we measure in the South, by minutes, not inches) HA!, and then sleet and rain which all froze.  Nice.  Hey, at least it was on a Friday and Saturday so there wasn't much traveling going on in our house. 

 


So, honestly, we could have went sledding, but since Kevin and I felt like death, we stayed in and watched movies.  That worked for about 2 days and then Mason turned into the 'Tasmanian devil'!  We had to get him out or we were going to go nuts!





See, even the dog wanted to go back inside.  
 


Well, this has been the worst Winter in the Kranz house.  One sickness after another.  Yes, it's Mason first year in preschool, so I'm sure that has a lot to do with it, right?  Kevin and I both had the flu before Christmas and since then we've had several colds.  Mason too!  He missed an entire week of school.  It's only 3 days, but still...as soon as he gets used to going, he's out again.  In 11 years, I have never seen my husband sick.  No really!  Never.  He was so sick with the flu and last week, the stomach flu.











 
So, any who, we're on the mends yet again and hoping to get back in to the swing of things.  I mean, come on, I have projects to do, parties to plan, vacation to get ready for, and this is all before the summer!  HA!  I'm so looking forward to Spring and Summer this year. 

Monday, January 28, 2013

Interesting Fact

Hey y'all!  I have to say, I am completely floored by the number of folks who have responded to one of my posts.  

Last year in February, I shared a post about wire shelves in your pantry and closets.

Here is the post.  I'm amazed to say this tip has been viewed over 135,000 TIMES!!!  Oh my goodness!  I'm just a little (well, maybe not so little HA!) ole' Southern gal who is always looking for ways to make our home and life a bit easier. 

I will say we have added more tiles to our master closet as well.  We put our sweaters on the wire shelves and the wires were actually leaving marks on our sweaters. 



We added an extra shelf in our laundry room which is also next to the pantry.  So of course, we added the tiles here too.  I'm so glad, otherwise these extra appliances would not sit flat.  Now I don't worry about them tipping over. 


Some of your comments:

"This has got to be the best freakin' tip I've found on Pinterest yet. I bought tiles today and now my pantry's wire shelves are no longer sagging in the middle and everything is sitting up nice and straight. Pure genius!! Thanks!!"

"I am a remodeling contractor. I hate wire shelves and my clients hate them. This is a great idea!"

"What a great tip!! I'm featuring this today on my Tuesday's Tips!! Love you blog and I'm your newest follower. I can't wait to read more!" 


Thank you to those of you who have visited us and left comments.  I'm so glad we could help.  

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Playroom Progress


Hey y'all! I left you hanging on our new year changes.  We were (and still are) in the process of moving the playroom upstairs to our bonus room.  All the toys and 'stuff' is up there and organized, but it doesn't look quite like I had envisioned.  

We have had this striped rug since Mason was born. Got it from Target and I still love it!  The bright primary colors make it perfect for a playroom.  Actually, all of my decorating ideas have been made around this rug.   




It is a bit difficult when there are bigger bulgy toys.  Everything just seems to get pushed to the wall.  Well honestly, everything is normally all over the floor.  I just happened to clean it today and in order to vacuum, I had to shovel pick the toys up off the floor.  HA!

I'm not really loving this 'cube organizer', but it serves the purpose. 
 
 


Take a look at this perfect playroom!  There are built in organizer cubes.  Of course it's beautiful, but it's not realistic.  Especially for a boy.  Look around.  There are no trucks, ramps, cars, etc.  

 
 

Again, another beautiful room and I love the organizing baskets with the bench.  The baskets are great for all of the smaller things, but where are all the trucks, cars, and 'stuff'.  HA!

 
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pgKLjpxhElcKhKcA40y64vfCEw9N7vBwwf0vEQLLdCXsVxTfaf2FbZkhXlOvk5MnTBCt0yXqVv8PoYLUUm81QEmAmmBWJg1Pdqt7qTBcIQKfgKN2fn1vj41oVs4wsdpLb9ky7CtPWh8b/s1600/PlayroomBasketStorage1.jpg


In same room, she has an entertainment center that I love.  The cabinets and drawers offer more storage without everything out in sight.  Just gives the room a cleaner feeling.  I just love this room.  It's so inviting and cheerful.  Makes me want to play there too!  HA!
 
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMSX3AYf92g1i2n-VPnFjwGmuKh3VA5HqARyuSnjvK1X6Yuq89Y1uvWwzEML3vdgrlnkNfTgaSv_o2l5oQbrfmOrFSrp7rJKaEGJn-TNKL2vamSTPHbv6bEFlUDK0T9X8WZVpMbcuVs0cF/s1600/OrgaizedPlayroomReveal5.jpg
 
So back to our playroom. There are 2 nooks on each side of the stairs.  One side is the library and the other is an art station.  
 



I found these adorable frames at Hobby Lobby.  Gosh!  I love that place.  I wish they had them in lime green and red too, but I didn't see them.  The frames will definitely add some fun and color to the room. 
 

We have had this couch for years and it's in great condition, so I just couldn't get rid of it.  I will be adding some bright fun pillows.  I haven't found 'the one' yet!  
 

I also got this art work at Hobby Lobby.  The colors were perfect for the room and of course we all need rules, right?


Our playroom definitely lacks cheer and comfort.  Don't you think?  Don't get me wrong, I like our playroom and I'm grateful that we have the space to play.  

Here's what I'm thinking.  One (well, two) of the other problems in the room is the bookshelf and the desk with chairs are stained a natural color.  Most of the playrooms that I have seen have the furniture painted.  I really don't want to paint the furniture since they are both all wood and I'm afraid I'll ruin them.  The desk and chairs were mine growing up, so I definitely don't want to take that chance.

So for now, I need to paint maybe one accent wall, pillows for the couch, hang up the frames, hang a valance over the window, and organize the bookshelf a bit more with some baskets.  I was also thinking of some letters and/or numbers on the wall. 

What do you think?  I would love to hear your input.  Please feel free to leave a comment.  

Friday, January 18, 2013

Show Us Your Life ~ Favorite Soup Recipe

Hey y'all!  We are starting off this COLD weekend with our favorite soup recipe.  Couldn't be a better time, right?!  Well, unless you live where it's warm, and if so, I don't want hear it!  HA!

One of my husband's favorite soups is Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana.  So, for his birthday this year, I found a copycat recipe here. 

There were several versions online, but I really liked this blog. She gave step by step instructions with wonderful pictures.  Here are the ingredients you will need: 

1 lb Italian Sausage (spicy if you prefer more heat)
5-7 slices of bacon
5 medium russet potatoes
2 c kale, chopped
1 c heavy whipping cream
1 qt water
2 cans of chicken broth
1/2 large onion
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
Salt and pepper 




Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Soup Recipe


For cooking instructions, please click on her link above. 

Here are the Friday topics for the next few months at Kelly's Korner: I have a * next to the topics I'll discuss. Be sure to link up to your favorites too!

*January 18 - Favorite Soup recipes

January 25 - Adoption

February 1 - SINGLES DAY

*February 8 - DIY projects

*February 15 - Organization tips/ideas

*February 22 - Fav kid/family picture ideas

*March 1 - A day in the life

March 8 - Show us your grandkids/nieces/nephews

*March 15 - Favorite Vacation spots

*March 22 - Favorite Pinterest Ideas

*March 29 - Date Ideas

*April 5 - Favorite Kid books

*April 12 - Best workout/health tips

*April 19 - Favorite crafts for kids

April 26 - College girls/early 20's connection day

May 4 - Moms of teens

May 11 - Tips for Finding Jobs

May 18 - Kid clothing swap day

May 25 - Show us what you make/sell

Thanks so much for visiting!  I hope you have a great weekend!

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Missing

I was wondering how long it would take Mason to figure this out. 






If he is ever missing, I know where I'll look first.  Little monkey...He's so silly!

Sunday, January 06, 2013

New Year, New Changes

 Hey y'all!  Happy New Year!  I can't believe it's actually 6 days in to the new year already. 

We stayed home New Year's Eve.  Just chilled out.  Ya know.  After the hustle of the Holidays, we just wanted to relax.  

We had a couple of appetizers. Yummy!  I think I could have appetizer night at least one night per week.  

A Mexican velveeta cheese dip.  So good, but not good for you!

I got this recipe from my Aunt.  We didn't add the sausage and it turned out great!

1 lb ground beef 

1 lb Jimmy Dean HOT sausage

1 lb package Mexican Velveeta--mild  cut into cubes for easier melting

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 large jar of Pace Picante' Sauce--mild



Brown the beef and sausage together and drain.  Add Picante', soup and Velveeta and cook until the cheese is melted and blended together well! 



And, of course, it's not appetizer night without spinach artichoke dip.  YUMM-O.  

  • 1 package (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
  • 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, soften
  • 3/4 cup Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise
  • 1-1/2 cups Monterey Jack cheese (about 6 oz.)
  • 1 package Knorr® Vegetable recipe mix
  • 1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
  • 1 can (240 ml) water chestnuts, drained and chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 
 I did not add water chestnuts and I used an Italian cheese blend. 

You can find the complete recipe here.





Kevin and Mason played outside and built a bonfire.

 


 


Over the Holiday weekend, we did a lot of odds and ends around the house.  Including, giving the dog a bath.






We played games on our new Xbox.  This picture cracks me up.


We also moved the playroom and office around.  The playroom is now the office.




And the bonus room is now the playroom.  
 

These pictures are for those of you who think our house is always in perfect condition.  

See.... it's a mess.

 


We added more shelves to the master closet and a lower bar to hang our pants.  

 



The extra shelves have given us so much more storage space.  Now we don't have to move our clothes each season.  
 


We always kept our seasonal clothes in containers and switched them out each season.  Way too much work.  And we really didn't have the storage space for the containers.  

I really like the extra touch by staining the anchors and rod.  Definitely looks a bit more custom. 




Do you store your seasonal clothes or keep them in your closet?

So that's about it for now.  I'll post our finished pictures as soon as we are finished.  HA!  That is actually funny because we are never finished.