My Sweetest Things

Friday after work I made a stop at the Dollar Store. Just to see to look around. Yeah right. I looked around plenty and spent plenty of dollars! I found lots of goodies and my creative juices were at a peak. I found a candle stick and a round glass container that I liked. I put them together and came out with a simple one of a kind candy dish. Take a look!

Sweet!

Candle stick holder and glass container.

I picked up this Heirloom White spray paint at Hobby Lobby which is conveniently next door to Dollar Tree.

Players in the spray painting game.

I painted one and decided to keep the other one the Oil Rub Bronze color for different decor needs. I bought this 9001 multi strength adhesive at Hobby Lobby  and I was not sure if it would work or not but I gave it a go.

It did not go so well. It started to eat the paint and was a little to drippy for this project.

Luckily I had picked this up at Wal-Mart after my Dollar Tree trip. My “buy it just in case”  worked out. This E-6000 Industrial Strength Adhesive worked great! The label says Amazing and it is! I let it dry for a couple of hours and it dries clear.

I am happy with results and it holds up very well. I’ve tipped it upside down and rinsed it with cool water. It held up to the test! I am using the white one now as an Easter candy dish but there are so many other things it can be used for which makes it even better.  I found other great Dollar Store finds that I will share so come back for another visit soon!

It’s all good ~ Donna

Long gone are the days when the outside of my refrigerator was filled with my boy’s artwork. These days I keep it pretty simple with a few magnets from trips we have taken and a few family photos on the side all neatly arranged in magnetic frames. Every once in awhile there is an important note I want to keep in sight as those who know me, know all too well that I am very good about keeping important documents, I just don’t always remember where I put them! I am working on my organization and in a moments notice I can now find those “Mom you need to sign this for school” papers. For those notes I want in my face, I place on the refrigerator since I know they will only be there a short time. While the notes are not attractive, these decorative magnets sure are.

This is what I used to whip up some decorative magnets. Most of these items I had on hand because I am addicted to JoAnn’s craft store and stock up on items all the time.

Take your favorite decorative paper and use the flat glass marble as a guide for the size of your cut. You can use craft paper, magazines, old calendars, just about anything that inspires you.

Brush the Mod Podge on the back of the marble.

Place your paper with the decorative side down on top of the marble and let dry for a few minutes. It dries pretty quickly and when you flip the piece over and the Mod Podge turns from white to clear, you know it’s good to go.

Hot glue a magnet on the back. You want to make sure the magnets you buy are large and thick enough to hold up the papers when you place the magnet on top. I used super strong ceramic magnets .75 in and they work just fine.

I hot glued a scrapbook tag to this one. This was my son’s future. A Smokey Mountain getaway!

It’s all good, and for my son, it’s really good! ~ Donna

I visit my friend Wendy’s blog daily. She shares so many wonderful tantalizing recipes! She posted a recipe for Sausage Roasted Vegetable Penne that sounded scrumptious. She adapted the recipe from Melissa d’Arabian on Food Network.  I  made a few changes to the original recipe to fit the ingredients I had on hand. The original recipe calls for Penne Pasta and I had Gnocchi so I used that instead. I only recently started buying Gnocchi after I tried a Trader’s Joe’s version of it. Gnocchi is a potato dumpling. It is made from potatoes that have been boiled  and pushed through a potato ricer. Once the potatoes are processed, flour and salt are added to make a dough.  To cook the Gnocchi simply drop into gently boiling water. When it floats to the top it is done. Real simple quick process. I am a Gnocchi fan.

Ingredients I used for this recipe. Wendy’s version can be found here.

1 sweet onion, cut into wedges

1 medium zucchini, sliced in 1/2 lengthwise

1 red bell pepper, cheeks removed and sliced into strips

1/2 pound button mushrooms, stemmed

2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Roma Tomatoes – Sliced into thick strips  (I would have liked to use grape tomatoes but they were $4.99 for a small container!)

1 package Sweet Italian Sausage

1 bag Gnocchi Pasta

1/4 cup white wine

Parmesan Cheese for Garnish

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Cut the onions, mushrooms and zucchini and place in a bowl. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil. Toss to coat and sprinkle salt and pepper to taste. Arrange on baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes so they start to  caramelize. (You want them to brown deeply.) Start getting your tomatoes ready by slicing them if you are using Roma or if you are using grape then toss them into a bowl with the remaining olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. When your 15 minutes timer is beeping at you, take out the veggies that are cooking, flip them over and add the tomatoes. Cook all veggies together for another 15 minutes.

Cook the sausage. Love that sweet sausage. Start boiling your water for the pasta/Gnocchi.

Pour yourself a glass of white wine. Proceed to drink. Turn up the heat on the sausage and deglaze with white wine. Sip your wine as you stir the meat.

Hello Gnocchi!

When the veggies are ready, set them to the side to cool for a bit. Chop them up to get ready to meet the sausage.

Add the veggies to the sausage, add your pasta and mix together. Add your freshly grated Parmesan on top and you are ready to eat!

Wendy you are so right! This dish is a winner! Thanks for sharing and friends hop on over to see Wendy at Kiss That Frog. That girl  has  got it going on in her kitchen!

It’s all good ~ Donna

Taco Salad is one of my favorite go to quick dinner recipes. The spicy meat, crunch of the chips, and fresh veggies is a tasty meal. In the past I have picked up packaged taco seasoning for convenience. Turns out convenient sometimes is not so healthy. I came across a homemade taco seasoning recipe from Annie’s Eats. Simple ingredients and just a few minutes of my time and we had homemade taco seasoning!

This a package of the quick seasoning mix I used to pick up. Some of those ingredients I hadn’t heard of and we had been eating that mess.

These are the ingredients to make your own homemade taco seasoning.

4 tablespoons Chili Powder – (My Dad says Gebhardt is the best so he sends it to me from Texas since I can’t find it here in Georgia.)

3 tablespoons Ground Cumin

3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon Paprika

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons Onion Powder

1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1/4 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Mix all the ingredients  together to blend.

You get this pretty color mix that smells so good!

To prepare taco meat I cooked 1 pound lean ground beef, added 2 heaping tablespoons of the spice mix and one cup of water. I cooked until most of the liquid was gone.

For this taco salad I added a can of corn and black beans rinsed and drained. I served up with Tostada chips, avacado, lettuce, tomato, cilantro and topped with cheese.

So fresh and tasty. I love the flavor of this seasoning mix and no more store bought for us! Thanks to Annie for sharing the recipe and stop by her site. She has many wonderful other recipes to share!

It’s all good ~ Donna

On one of our recent Sam’s Club runs I stopped by the book section like I always do. They have such a great selection of books at terrific prices. Most of my teenage vampire novels have come from there! Yes, I read teenage vampire novels. You know you love Twilight! Team Edward! Anyhoo, back to the book section….I came across the book Cook This Not That!. This is one of the best little cookbook guides I have ever purchased! It lists dinners that you would find out at restaurants and it breaks down the price and calories you would be eating if you ordered the listed menu items. I was really not that surprised at how many calories are consumed eating out. Have you seen the Red Lobster commercial where they dip that lobster in that vat of butter? So good but yet so bad. We have tried many recipes in Cook This Not That and have not been disappointed yet!

In this book you will find many great recipes covering  ethnic dishes, appetizers, vegetarian dishes, breakfasts, desserts and beverages.

On the bottom of the page you will see the  calorie difference between the restaurant version and the home cooked version as well as the price difference of cooking at home.

For the Thai Lettuce Wraps you will need

12 oz flank, skirt or sirloin steak

Salt and Pepper to Taste

1 tbsp hot sauce

2 tbsp fish sauce – This smelled so bad but tasted really good when cooked!

Juice of one lime

1/2 red onion sliced

1 jalapeno pepper – I left this out

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 carrot grated – I thinly sliced baby carrots because that’s all I had.

1 head Bibb lettuce, leaves separated

Heat the grill or pan over high heat for at least 5 minutes. Season the steak with salt and pepper and toss onto grill/pan. Cook for 4 minutes on each side until it’s firm but yielding to the touch. Let rest for 5 minutes.

Combine the hot sauce, fish sauce and juice of one lime in a small saucepan over low heat.

Slice the steak thinly and drizzle half the sauce over it. Use the lettuce leaves like tortillas and fill with the steak, carrots, onion, and cilantro. Drizzle a bit more sauce on top and add just a squeeze of lime juice.

These were so delicious! We did not have any other sides as this meal was all in one!

If you are out shopping at Sam’s Club look for this book. It was $10.00 and so worth it. I also saw it at Target for $18 but I’m sure most book stores will carry it and there’s always Amazon where it’s currently selling for $13.47. I hope you enjoy it as much as we have!

It’s all good ~ Donna

There are so many wonderful, fun, creative blogs I follow and one of them is In Sock Monkey Slippers. Meredith has a lovely space that she shares yummy recipes including homemade baby food.  She has a beautiful daughter named Mia and you will also find beautiful photos of her husband’s family ranch in Texas! My sweet Texas. A few weeks ago she posted on Texas Independence Day. The post was full of Texas History which was an informative fun fact read. I was born and raised in Texas and I didn’t know some of those facts! At the end of the post she had a giveaway! To enter all I had to do was list one Texas fact. My first thought was James Avery Jewelers. My favorite! I shared how James Avery started in Kerrville, Texas and when I was young we would drive up there with my grandmother. All the entries for the giveaway were thrown into a hat and Mia drew my name! See here for the winners post.

Last week my sweet prize came in the mail and it was a Yahoo moment!

This awesome book! Perfect for BBQ lovers like our family!

The book written by John DeMers is a travelogue of the 14,783 miles he drove around the Texas highways to eat in 119 BBQ joints. What a great adventure! I would LOVE that job! As you can see it covers all regions of Texas.

In each region you will find the list of BBQ joints he ate at with the history, and descriptions of the food served. All the contact information is listed for those who want to venture out themselves.

The book also has many recipes we are looking forward to trying!

My favorite BBQ side. Potato Salad!

Desserts!

Thanks Meredith and Mia for the terrific giveaway. We will certainly be cooking up some tasty meals and look forward to stopping by some of the BBQ joints on our next visit back home.

It’s all good~Donna

You say tomato, I say tomato, you eat potato and I eat potato,tomato, tomato, potato, potato…Time to plant those tomato seeds! Last year I used the Jiffy seed starter kit and had a fabulous crop of tomatoes. I purchased the same kit this year and decided to try planting cucumbers as well. We have a large yard but we also have so many trees so there is not a lot of direct sunlight. We container garden out on the back deck with great results. I planted the seeds indoors and in 6 weeks they will be ready for the outdoors and warm sunshine.

I picked up the kit and seeds at our local Lowe’s. We eat lots of tomatoes so I like to have a variety of them. Have you had experience container gardening? I would love to try other veggies but I am not sure what else I could plant in containers?

I am so looking forward to seeing these beauties again in this year’s crop!

It’s all good ~ Donna

I started blogging back in late August as a creative outlet and a way for my family to catch a glimpse of the everyday things I do in life. With the majority of my family living in Texas it’s a great way to share my world here in Georgia. My blogging experience has been so wonderful. More than I expected! I have come across so many strong, creative, lovely people. All of who I would have never known about without the power of the internet. This has been a blessing. Two of my favorite blogger friends are Wendy aka Kiss that frog and Adele aka DillypooChatter. Both of these lovelies are from Texas so of course I hold them in the highest regards! They both stop by my little space in the world and leave sweet comments that make me smile and that’s a great thing!

Wendy’s sister Erin sent her a Sunshine Blog Award which of course she deserved! Wendy posts regularly and shares awesome recipes with great photos that make you want to try them all to get a bite! She shares sweet stories of her husband and beautiful daughter. I check her blog daily to catch up with her. Wendy is so kind and she passed the blog award onto me! So unexpected and such a nice treat!

To pay this forward I pass this along to DillyPoo! She makes me giggle with her witty take on life.  I enjoy reading of her life adventures with her man who she refers to as   “The Professor”. Stop by both of these beautiful ladies blogs for a visit. You will be glad you did!

Wendy and Adele, thanks so much for the support and kind words. We all must meet one day on one of my trips home to Texas for a grand girl’s gathering. Whataburger anyone??

It’s all good ~ Donna

Saturday was a beautiful day here in Duluth, Georgia. Blue Skies and warm weather were most welcomed! We grabbed the Frisbee Golf set, put the dog on his leash, grabbed the camera and headed out for a walk to the park. Bunten Road Park is right across the street from our neighborhood. The park has tennis, baseball, soccer fields and there is a lovely walking path. The recreation center offers many classes and camps for children. It’s really nice having it so close by and we appreciate it.  We had a sweet time enjoying the sunshine and it was a well deserved break.

My husband, turning cartwheels for me. Love this guy!

It’s all good ~ Donna

Whataburger. This Texas girl knows all about Whataburger. This hamburger chain opened its first location in the 1950’s in Corpus Christi, Texas. It is a legend in Texas! Growing up in San Antonio, this was our burger joint. No McDonald’s for us. We would drive up to the orange and white building with the Big W and pull into the car port. Those burgers with mustard, diced onions and yummy buns so big (cause everything is bigger in Texas) were a tasty treat. Their fries are perfection and their “fancy ketchup”, well I could eat it with a spoon!

A few weeks ago I heard rumors of a Whataburger coming to our area in Duluth, Georgia. I was so happy to hear that. Thrilled! I googled for news about it and came across an article in  the local paper stating sure enough they were opening a location very near our house! My son called to tell me it was opening down the street from his house. Yippee! I got a text from my son’s roommate. “Whataburger is Open!” Yahoo!!

I made plans with my son to meet him at our new Whataburger and with my mouth watering I make the drive. I pulled into the parking lot and DON’T see the orange and white building. I think to myself, “well maybe they changed the design for this location”. I turned the corner and see this………

WHAT??? Salad, Wings, Seafood??? This is NOT my Whataburger!!! So disappointed! Total name rip off! See how they changed it up just a bit? That dash and the exclamation point make all the difference. Bah!

Since we were there in all our disappointment, we decided to give this place a try. They  sell Salads, Wings, Fried Rice and an assortment of Seafood Sandwiches. In our Whataburger Mode we ordered this…..

This is their What-A-Burger! Tasty but again NOT the same. The patties are really thick and the crinkly fries tasted like Ore-Ida. No fancy ketchup in sight. It was a good burger but not good enough to make it my hamburger joint.

I love Fancy Ketchup so much I take photos of it. (My Texas trip last year)

If they could build a Bill Miller’s here. A REAL Bill Miller’s then all would be good again.

I miss you Texas and all my favorite restaurants. And for all of you  lucky to be near a Whataburger….send fancy ketchup my way please.

It’s all good~ Donna