Independence Day Round Up

Are you looking for some Fourth of July ideas? Well you came to the right place. I love the Fourth of July so much. Living in Texas makes it even more fantastic. People here are super patriotic which makes for a really fun fourth. Here are some things I've found that I'm loving for Independence Day.

Image Found Via Style Me Pretty

1. I would love to have a BBQ just so I could decorate like this. Big lights + Streamers = Magic
2. No round up would be complete without a great garland. This one is really cute.
3. Love these little bandana flags. OK the burger looks pretty good too.
4. I must make these strawberries. Yum!
5. These pillows combine several things I love. Silhouettes, houndstooth and typography. Amazing.
6. This is the most perfect patriotic breakfast. Looks delicious.
7. FREE Party printables! Oh how I love freebies!
8. Last but not least a adorable Americana inspired wreath. I'm kinda loving this one.

Mmmmmmm!!!!!

Sorry for the crappy iPhone photo. I was just way too excited about the dinner I just ate. Denny made crepes. Then he baked them with Swiss cheese, black forest ham and an egg. Top it off with coarse salt and pepper. Delicious. It's from the January issue of Every Day Food. We were surprised by how simple it is to make them. I always thought crepes were incredibly hard. They aren't. You can get that issue for free on the iPad and it includes videos and all kinds of extras. It's great! Anyway Make it. You will not be disappointed!

Oh and dessert wasn't half bad either. Crepes with nutella and bananas. Mmmmmm!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Simple Skirt Take Two

I'm calling this her "Polka Dot Party" skirt. I love it! I have decided that I might not ever purchase another shirt for her again. Why buy them when they are so easy to make? How easy? Easy enough that my 10 year old niece could make it. That's how easy. As you can see this time I went with the two-tiered simple skirt. It is just as easy as the single layer skirt. It didn't photograph very well but let me tell you it is pretty stinking cute. This is not the last you've seen of these skirts from me. I'm on a roll. And if you've been thinking about trying to make one these I say do it! You will love the end result.

The New Addition To The Collection

Here is this years masterpiece. There is a rainbow, some circles, there was a happy face until she thought it needed more pink, and one really wonky baby foot. He was really really squirmy so it didn't turn out like I had hoped, but oh well! That's all part of the fun. I think it is absolutely perfect!

Paperless Post

I sent my Dad an e-card for Father's Day. I'm pretty sure I was much more excited about it than he was. I wasn't expecting to not have a car all last week so I didn't get to mail anything off to him. So I sent him an e-card. And I was actually pretty excited about it. I have seen several posts on other blogs over the past month about Paperless Post. What I saw was pretty impressive. I mean really pretty and classy. So I was looking for an excuse to try it out. I know it sounds a little silly to get excited about an e-card but just look at these designs. They have so many to choose from and for all different occasions. It really is worth a look. I'm tempted to just do e-cards for the rest of the year. If I got one of these in my in box I might just do a little dance. Really.

My Favorite Tradition

I love celebrating Father's Day. Dad's work hard. They do so much and they deserve to feel special. Every year for Father's Day Miss. S has painted a special Father's Day painting for Denny. The first Father's Day she was only 9 months old so I helped out quite a bit. Each year she takes over a little more. This year she pretty much did the whole thing by herself. Well besides a little help from Mr. Z's foot (our son has some crazy feet!).

Out of any holiday tradition this is by far my favorite. S has so much fun painting with the "special" paints and she gets so excited to give Denny something she made with her own two hands. It is truly something special for everyone. Plus don't they look so cute all lined up like that? This years piece isn't in the above photo (Duh! Can't ruin the surprise!) but let me tell you she did a great job. She picked out everything from the canvas to the colors. It was so much fun!

Best Snack Ever!

Or breakfast or lunch. Pretty much whenever you want to eat it it's gonna be good. I love yogurt. So much! I mean good yogurt. Real yogurt. Not that yoplait crap they call yogurt but is basically a bag of skittles in yogurt clothing. I mean have you seen how much sugar is in that stuff? I think a lot of people make the assumption that if it's yogurt then it's automatically good for you. Not so my friends. I'm a pretty picky yogurt eater. I've experimented a little bit and I've found my three favorite yogurt brands.

First there's Fage Greek Style Yogurt. Thick creamy tart goodness. Get the plain and the add your own honey. Seriously good. Did you know that adding a tablespoon of local honey to your diet everyday can help with allergies? True story. Also this is a great healthy alternative to sour cream. Substitute it when ever you would normally use sour cream.

The second brand I like to give to Miss. S. I get her the individual cups of Stoneyfield. It's organic so you know they won't use any high fructose corn syrup to sweeten it. I've also heard that Stonyfield is the best to use as a starter for making your own yogurt. My Mom makes her own yogurt quite a bit and uses Stonyfield  as the starter. I feel good giving Miss. S Stonyfield. She likes it just as much as Go-Gurt and it is a much healthier alternative. The price is also fairly low.

The last one I just tried a week ago per my Mom's suggestion. The Greek God's Honey flavored yogurt. OK this is like a dessert. It is to die for. Toss a handful of fresh berries on the top and you're set. It is seriously a party in my mouth. I'm begging all of you to try it. It is definitely a special occasion treat (it's pretty high in calories, fats and sugars). Not an everyday snack, but so so yummy! You can feel kind of good eating though because it is made with milk, cream, pure cane sugar, honey, pectin & five live active cultures. Notice no high fructose corn syrup or anything you can not pronounce (well except the cultures).

All of these brands contain those ever so valuable live active cultures that everyone is talking about these days. They aid in digestion and boost your immune system.

So there you have my yogurt low down. Does anyone else love it as much as I do? Do you have any favorites?