Chocolate Pudding Frosting

Oh-my-goodness, y'all! This frosting is RIDICULOUS!

(And by ridiculous, I mean good!)

It's so simple, and so yummy! 

Ingredients needed:

- 1 (5.9oz) box of Instant Chocolate Pudding

- 1 (16oz) container of whipped topping

- milk

1.) In a large bowl, mix pudding packet with HALF of the milk called for on the package directions. Whisk until pudding mixture is thick (about 2 minutes).

2.) Fold in 1/2 of the whipped topping.

I ended up using about 3/4 of the whipped topping. Just eyeball it....tasting it works well too!

3. Refrigerate your frosting for at least an hour. This should give you time to bake and cool your cake or cupcakes.

I whipped up my favorite chocolate cake (I'll share this recipe on a different post!) and slathered a good amount between my cake layers, then frosted the entire cake!

I must say this is, by far, not one of my prettiest cakes! It is great for a quick and yummy weeknight dessert though!

I had NO complaints on the appearance, only compliments of how absolutely wonderful it tasted!

Please make sure you keep it in the refrigerator when not serving it. With the milk and the whipped topping, this is important!

You can use any flavor pudding and I'm sure it will turn out just as amazing!

I will definitely be making this with vanilla and banana pudding! The possibilities are endless! 

Enjoy!

Footprint Reindeer Towels

Christmas time is my favorite time of year, especially with little ones! There are SO many crafts to do with them! I kept seeing these footprint reindeer on Pinterest and decided to give it a try! So, I wrangled up the nearest toddler and got to work!

I started with a couple towels and some brown acrylic paint. I later went to the store for   some felt, too.

The idea is pretty simple. I painted his foot, and then pressed it onto a piece of paper so the extra paint would come off there (and not on my towels). 

I hung them up and left them to dry over night, although it didn't take that long.

I was a little confused about what to use for the antlers, nose and mouth. I had thought about using paint, but bc he was going to give these as gifts, I wanted it to be extra cute! So I opted for felt. SO glad I did!! 

I just cut the felt to look like antlers, and cut circles for the eyes and nose.

I used plain ol' needle and thread to sew them on! I really like the contrasting colors on the antlers, but you can make yours match if you want!

These are the pieces of paper I used to put his foot on first. They were cute, so we decorated these too!

I just used glitter glue. 

Rice Filled Hand Warmers

Recently, I taught myself how to use my sewing machine (that I've had for 10+ years...sad, I know). I'm so extremely excited about it though!

So, I went straight to Pinterest and started looking for fun, easy projects. I stumbled upon these cute little hand warmers and, after making them for everyone I know, I've mastered them! So, I thought I'd share!

They're so easy to make. All you need is:

*About 2 cups of uncooked, long grain rice

*2 fabric squares (4in x 4in)

*A sewing machine

 

1. Cut your fabric to any size you want.  I chose 4in x 4in.  This is a great size to stick in your pocket and perfect for the back of your neck if you have a headache.

 

2. Place right sides together (you know, the pretty sides) and sew along 3 edges.  Once you get to the 4th side, leave a hole about an inch long.

 

3. Now it's time to turn it right side out!  Just shove and pull until you get it all through the hole you left.

 

 

4. Using a funnel, start filling with rice.  Don't put too much in or it will be bulky and the rice won't be able to move around in there.

 

HINT: I like to spread my rice on a cookie sheet covered with wax paper.  Then I add a couple drops of essential oil, mix it all up and spread back out.  When it's dry, then use it to fill your handwarmer.  Everytime you heat it up, it will smell wonderful!

 

 

 

5. After you fill it, hand sew the 1inch opening and you're done!  I like to tie them together with a ribbon if I'm giving as a gift.  Sorry about this picture quality.  I forgot to take a picture before I gave them away so I had to ask them to send me one!  Oops!

 

To heat, just put in the microwave for 15-25 seconds (or until they reach the temperature you want).  I like to also keep a couple in the freezer.  They are great for headaches!  If you do them in a fun print, they also make great "boo-boo" packs!

 

 

These were the first ones I made!  I was (and still am) so proud of these little guys!!   Please let me know how yours turn out!  If you have any questions, feel free to comment or email and ask.  I'm NO professional, but I'll be happy to try to help you out! 

 

Good luck and happy sewing!

Cheap DIY Present

I LOVE homemade gifts! They're my favorite! When someone gives me something homemade, it makes my heart smile!

 

So, when our friends told us about their upcoming wedding anniversary, I knew exactly what I was going to give them! I actually made this the weekend we were invited (which was more than a month before the party)! 

 

I went to the local thrift store for most of my supplies:

~ Ugly frame/picture ($0.95)
~ 2 used spoons of different sizes ($0.10)

 

I really wish I would have found older, more vintage looking spoons, but for $0.05 each, I'm not complaining.

I already had some paint, stickers and a piece of scrapbook paper at home.

 

1.) After taking the glass and picture out of the frame, I gave it a light sanding. Then, painted it. It took about 3 coats before it was the way I wanted.

 

2.) Then I cut the paper to fit inside, put my stickers on and closed it up!

 

3.) Now, the spoon part was a bit tricky. I tried 2 different kinds of glue before one worked. I tried Super Glue and Gorilla Epoxy glue and neither of them worked....the spoons fell right off! I ended up using Liquid Nails.

 

And...the finished product! I love it (and so did they!)!! I have some younger friends that are going to be celebrating a wedding anniversary soon and I thought about making one with forks! You know, "Forking since...."!  Haha...I didn't think that would be appropriate for this couple though!

DIY Sharpie Mug

I know you've all seen them....the Sharpie Mug pins on Pinterest. There are so many variations and some of them are beautiful!

 

I wanted to try it out so I started doing a little research. I found out that you shouldn't use just any old Sharpie. It has to be an oil based paint marker. So, off to Hobby Lobby I went. They have tons of them, any color you could ever want!  I decided to just grab 2....you never know how these things will turn out and I didn't want to have an entire package of markers left if it was a Pinterest fail!

After buying markers, I needed a mug.  I kept reading that most people get theirs at the dollar store. So, that's where I went. I was pleasantly surprised to find quite a few options! With my marker color choices in mind, I went with a fat, white mug. I also picked up a pack of scrap booking stickers!

 

 

Everything you will need:
~ mug
~ oil based Sharpie paint markers
~ stickers

 

 

1. As soon as I got home, I washed my mug and dried it completely.

 

2. I put my stickers on and began to color with the markers. (Hint: the markers are a little tricky! Make sure you open it, push down the tip, recap and then shake well!)

 

3. Once I had it just right, I let it dry for about 10 minutes and peeled off the stickers. It didn't look the way I had hoped so I colored some more until I loved it!

 

4. I put it in the COLD oven and then turned it on. 350 degrees for 30 mins. Please don't put it into a preheated oven. It's very important that the mug heats up AND cools off with the oven!

Once it was completely cool, I took it out. I've washed it by hand and in the dishwasher. No change yet!

 

I tested it in the dishwasher and the microwave and nothing has destroyed it yet! Yay!

 

 

I LOVE it! I've made another trip for more markers and mugs! The possibilities are endless! I can't wait until the holidays so I can give these to family and friends!

Cracker Bark

Woo hoo!  This is my first post on the new blog and I'm so excited about it!  I previously had a great little blog that started out strong, but then I neglected it...sad, sad, sad!

This one, however, will be filled with posts about all of the fun things I have found on Pinterest and have tried to recreate! This wonderful little recipe is not from Pinterest, but came from a wonderful friend.  She gave it to me and I have been whipping it up for years now!

THIS....is the best Christmas/holiday/anytime creation in the world! I have requests for it ALL year long!  I make it for birthday presents for a few people because they just can't wait until Christmas to get some!  It sounds a little weird, but let me tell you....its AMAZING!!  I'm not sure of the "proper" name, but around here, we simply call it Cracker Bark!

Most of the ingredients needed are probably in your pantry right now:

*1.5 sleeves of saltine crackers
*1 stick of butter (the real stuff!)
*1 cup Brown sugar (I use dark, but have used light and it tastes the same)
*Chocolate chips (about 1/2 cup)
*Peanut Butter chips (about 1/2 cup)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

1.) Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and give it a good spray with your favorite non-stick spray.  Then place your crackers in a single layer, making sure there are no empty spaces. 

 

 

 

2.) Place butter and brown sugar in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat.  Stir while the butter melts and bring to a rolling boil. 

 

 

 

3.) Once the mixture starts to boil, pour over your crackers, being careful to cover each one.  The crackers will spread out a little and that's OK.  I always push mine back together a little with a knife.  Put the pan in the oven and bake for 5 minutes.  The toffee will be very bubbly so be extremely careful when taking it out of the oven.

 

 

 

4.)Let the cracker/toffee sit for one minute and then sprinkle the chocolate and peanut butter chips on top.  Once they start to melt, spread with an offset spatula. (**While the chocolate is still "sticky" you can put crushed crackers, crushed candy or sprinkle of any kind on top.  I usually sprinkle some crackers crumbs, but didn't in this picture.)

 

5.) Cover and put in the refrigerator for about an hour (mine NEVER last that long!).  Then, break, yes...break, into pieces of your choosing and enjoy!  I always keep this in the fridge and its good for at least 5 days (that's what I've been told, but I wouldn't know!).

 

 

I hope you enjoy this as much as we do!  If you try it, please let me know how it turned out!