Halloween already?

Well yesterday I decided to create a Halloween mini album to put on Etsy. My reasoning for this is that usually by the time I decide to make a holiday themed item its to late to post it in time for someone to get it before the holiday is over. So this one I did in plenty of time :) I finished the Halloween album today & thought it was so cute that I wanted to share it with you.

This is the cover, I made those flowers :)

Pages 1 & 2 Boo with a black cat & a witch flying in the moon light

Pages 3 & 4 Trick or Treat with a frame for a picture of someone Trick or Treating, Toil & Trouble with a raven

Pages 5 & 6 Beware of Bumps in the Night, & spooktacular

Pages 7 & 8 A witch brewing something spooky, ghosts, PARTY, boo, spooky, Oct 31 (Put it in your calendar, that's Halloween)

Pages 9 & 10 Trick or Treat Beware of the Dark, Its Halloween

Back cover lots of stars :)

I bound the album with my Bind It All, which I love! One of my favorite purchases for my scrapbook station!

So what have you been working on? Do you think it is to early for a Halloween album? Let me know what you think.

Using up the Spinach

This weekend I bought spinach at Kroger because it was buy one get one, and the great thing about spinach is you can use it in your salads, & then when it starts getting to the use it or toss it stage you can throw it all in a skillet with some butter. So my spinach was getting to that use it or toss it stage yesterday, so I decided to make spinach enchiladas. No, I have never made spinach enchiladas before, but I had an idea of how it might be good :) So instead of turning to my bookshelf of cookbooks, I decided to wing it. I was very pleased with what I came up with, so I wanted to share it with you.
First I made mexican shredded chicken, which was the only thing I didn't wing, because I was chicken ;) While that was simmering I cut up one large purple onion & sauteed it with about 1/2 Tbsp of butter (when I put measurements in recipes that I create you should know they are approximate & only for your benefit because I'm really bad about not measuring while I cook, whatever looks good is how I measure). Then once the onion was slightly translucent I added my spinach & sauteed it all together.
Once the chicken was finished cooking & shredded like the recipe said, (& tasted for good measure, which let me tell you I will be using this chicken recipe for all my Mexican chicken dishes!) I added the spinach mixture to the chicken & stirred it all together. Then I added a spoonful of the chicken/spinach mixture to a corn tortilla & sprinkled about a tsp of pepper jack cheese in it. I continued until I had emptied the pot of all chicken & had filled 2 cake pans with enchiladas :) Next I folded each enchilada up & covered them with sour cream to keep them closed & sprinkled about 1/2 cup of pepper jack cheese over the top. Then I baked for 20 minutes at 350.
So If you can make since of that rambling recipe then I hope you decide to try it. They were very good! Hubby & I discussed next time they should be cooked a little longer, maybe 30 minutes, but we were so hungry we didn't want to wait any longer. We also thought they could have used more cheese, but there isn't anything that wouldn't be better with more cheese.
Let me know if you give these enchiladas a try, & if you made any changes to the recipe. When I make new recipes I usually change them a little every time I cook them until I perfect to mine & Hubby's liking :) So I will be happy to try out any changes you think of.

I Wanted To Write About Belly Dancing...

So back in May I purchased a deal on Groupon for a year membership to a dance studio for really cheap. I thought this would be a good way to get in shape & have fun in the process. They offer pole fitness classes, so I was interested in that cuz I'm a married woman ;) However I just found out this week that they only offer the pole classes at night & I need to attend a daytime class (not a good neighborhood, when I tell people where it is they tell me not to get shot) therefore, daytime class mandatory. So I decided to take belly dancing classes on Friday afternoons. I planned on coming home from my class today & telling you all about how I embarrassed my self in a belly dancing class (hubby tells me I dance like I have an ironing board tied to my back), but unfortunately I do not have any such story to share with you. I drove to my first class to find the door locked & noone there! When I called she told me that the class had been cancelled :( So next week after I brave another trip to my belly dancing class, hopefully I will have some fun stories to share with you.

#3

I have completed another thing on my summer list of craft projects :) You can see the first 2 completed crafts here, and my 3rd completed project is a Rock & Roll Baby Girl Mini Album :)

I love love love how it turned out! I finally opened up & used my Bind It All that I bought months ago & truly love the completed look that it gives :) You can see more pics in my shop, let me know what you think!
Also today I created a coupon code to celebrate the end of summer, and hopefully take our minds off this heat if only for a moment ;) Use code ENDOFSUMMER at checkout for 15% off your purchase.

Well I just have 2 more projects on my list to get done before summer is over, wish me luck!

Using up Supplies

I read this post the other day about investing in scrapbooking, and it really got me thinking about being creative with the supplies I already have. I try my hardest to find creative ways to use things I have instead of running to the store, such as I use clothes that are stained or don't fit to make my fabric flowers so I don't have to buy fabric. I have discussed before about Thrifty Scrapbooking, so I save my toilet paper tubes, boxes, & the like. And I have started saving old books that are falling apart to cut flowers out of & to use to Mod Podge (does anyone else pronounce it Modge Podge?). But I know there is more I could be doing to keep myself working from my stash instead of searching through the store for the latest & greatest. It would also help with my scrapbook storage (unstorage?) problem if I used up what I have instead of buying & storing more. Stephanie's post has really got me thinking and committing to finding new ways to use what I have. I'll let you know what other ideas I come up with, & please if you have any ideas to share with us leave them in the comments & they will be much appreciated!

In the Freezer

Well, after getting so much motivation the past couple of days to snack healthy I went grocery shopping. I bought grapes, blueberries, strawberries, & peaches. The grapes are in the freezer, and I had some for a snack today. I don't like grapes, but frozen grapes are delish! They are so much sweeter than regular grapes & have a nice texture :) The blueberries & strawberries are also in the freezer, and I will be cutting up the peaches tonight to be frozen. Then I need to make a trip to Costco for a tub of Greek yogurt, & I will be making fruit smoothies! Greek yogurt, frozen fruit, & some local honey is what I'm told will make a great smoothie.
I wanted to get a cucumber so I could soak it in white vinegar & see if it's as good as I have heard, but Walmart was out of them! I didn't realize that cucumbers were such a hot commodity! So I'll have to save that experiment for another day.
I'll let you know how it goes.

Snacking Healthier

I've said it before, & I can't promise you that I won't say it again... I need to eat healthier. I've been reading healthy snack suggestions over at Pioneer Woman (read the comments, so many great ideas!), & so many people have such great great healthy snack food ideas that it has me wondering why I haven't tried any of them! So I have written down some of the ideas that intrigued me, such as frozen smoothie popcicles, frozen grapes, & even sliced cucumbers soaked in white vinegar, & I plan on giving them a try. I will let you know how my snacks go, & would like to know if you have any favorite healthy snacks that I should try.
I really do want to start eating healthier, not just because I'm 5'2" & weigh 180 lbs :( but also because I want to be healthy & grow old with my hubby :) This is why I have chosen the South Beach Diet as my plan of action, because it's not about losing weight (that's just a beneficial side effect) it is about living a heart healthy life. So I just need to jump back on the wagon & start not just snacking healthier, but eating healthier, and a little exercise probably wouldn't hurt either... except that I think it might... hurt... a little.