I'm BLANK Because...

Today is a little "getting to know me" sesh. Since bringing Baby Davis into this world, my life has been pretty much all about him...which is a good thing, don't get me wrong! Once in a while, though, I need to take a step back and remember that I need a little me time too (that's what nap time is for, right? :)

So, I was inspired by Little Miss Momma (her blog is so great, by the way) to post a little something about me. It was actually a lot harder than I thought. I had to sit and think about ME, instead of my baby, the chores I need to get done, or the ten thousand other thoughts I have running around in my head at one time.

Here it is, folks. Me, in a little nutshell.

I'm WEIRD because...

I don't eat the outside of my food..no pizza crusts, no bread crusts, and no, not even the outside of a cookie.

I eat cereal any time of the day.
I can NOT sleep with sockies on my feet (ha..sockies is what I say now since I had a baby!)
I have hyper anxiety about some crazy murderer breaking into my house EVERY night.
I never make my bed unless company is coming over.

I am not a hugger. Unless provoked :)
I always feel bad for the sad little Christmas trees that never get chosen.
I do calf raises in my shower to get a little exercise in.
I have to have one leg out of my bed and one leg under the covers to fall asleep.
I have OCD about almost everything I do in life (I re-typed that sentence six times).
I love the Kardashians.
I have to turn a light on before I go into any room.
I have to have all my clothes in my closet be color coordinated.
I have a perma-no teeth smile when I watch TV.

I'm a BAD FRIEND because...

Sometimes I forget to call people back.
I forget birthdays.
I will forget what we talked about the last time because I just forget.
(sorry friends, but I forget a LOT)
If I'm too tired, I will usually bail on hanging out.


I'm a GOOD FRIEND because...

If you are my friend, I love you no matter what.
I try my hardest to be there if you need me. Whenever. Wherever.
I truly love seeing my friends succeed and be happy.
I will tell it like it is. No sugarcoating for me.
I love their kids like they are my own kids.

I'm SAD because...

My baby boy is growing up too fast.

My Mom might not be here as long as I want her to be (which is forever).
My goals aren't getting accomplished as fast as I had hoped for.

Some of my friends are struggling more than I know how to help them.
My house will never be as clean as I want it to be.
My wrinkles on my neck just keep getting deeper & deeper.
My little bro is gone for two years and I miss him TONS.

I'm HAPPY because...

I am truly lucky.
I had a chocolate macaroon for breakfast and I don't feel one ounce of guilt about it.
I get to wake up every morning and see my baby's face smiling back at me.
My husband loves me. To no end.

I got a screaming deal at J.Crew.com and can't wait to open that package!
I'm finally content with the stretch marks I got from pregnancy. Those babies aren't going anywhere!
I have an amazing family and family-in-law who love our Baby just as much as we do.
I can sketch & paint any time I feel like it.

I actually MADE four things I pinned on Pinterest.

I am EXCITED because...

Christmas is coming! And our tree is already up! Go me!

My little baby is getting a "human" laugh.
I get to workout today!
I have ripe avocados just waiting for me to eat them.
I made a necklace that I am in love with!
Next year is going to be just as awesome as this one has been!

So there you have it! I hope you enjoyed it. I would love you to link your blog up if you write a post about this. Or leave a comment with a "I'm BLANK because"... I love hearing about your weirdness too!


Happy BLANKing!

The Wife Pin It

Let Them Eat CAKE!

Cake. Mmm glorious cake! Ooey, gooey, melt in your mouth deliciousness! Who doesn't indulge themselves in a perfectly crumbly piece of cake every now and then? I do it all the time..probably more than I should admit (but it's totally worth it). Today is all about cake (can you tell)!


Let me just say that I have made this recipe three times in the last month. That should tell you how much I love this recipe! In honor of Thanksgiving being this week, I thought I would share this recipe for Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Cake and maybe it would replace a pie or two at your Thanksgiving dinner (it's THAT good)! I myself am not much of a pie fanatic, so any alternative to pie is a win-win for me. I am also not much of a Pumpkin-anything fan either, which is quite puzzling to me, because I am in love with this cake SO GOSH DARN MUCH! 


So make it why don'tcha..and get the pat on the backs and the "Oh. My. Gosh. This is so gooood" reactions that you know you want! 


Ok ok..no more words from me..let's make some CAKE! You'll be lucky if you have any left to serve anyone else!

Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Cake
(adapted from here)


1 box yellow cake mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
1/2 cup milk 

3.4 ounce box Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix
1/2 cup sour cream
15 ounce can pumpkin

For Cinnamon Drizzle:

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For Frosting Drizzle:

3/4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 stick butter (4 tbsp.)
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Ok lets get started! Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan very liberally (this cake will stick if you don't). 

In a mixer or large bowl, pour the cake mix, eggs, oil, milk, pudding mix, sour cream, and pumpkin. Mix for about 1 minute on low speed (if you are mixing it by hand, you WILL need some muscle behind your stirring). 

Pour the mixture into your pan (you will melt when you smell the aroma of the batter..I dare you not to taste it!) and spread evenly with a spatula. 

Place butter into a microwave safe bowl and melt, about 30-40 seconds. Add brown sugar and cinnamon to bowl, mixing until combined. Drizzle mixture evenly over cake then take a knife and run it through to swirl (it doesn't have to look pretty unless you're OCD like me).

Bake cake for 30-35 minutes, until cooked through and remove. 

Melt 1/2 stick of butter and add powdered sugar and vanilla. It should be pretty runny, not thick (you can add a little milk if it gets too thick). Drizzle over warm cake then let it cool before cutting into squares. Refrigerate if not serving same day.  

The cake is served...and it's all MINE! :)

The Wife

P.S. Did you taste it yet? Mmmmmm...yummers.

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I Can Do It Myself...Wrap Bracelets!

I'm sure we have all made a friendship bracelet or two in our life. I know I have definitely made at least a dozen! I think there is something to be said about making your own jewelry. I know I always have fun making my own accessories!

I saw a bracelet similar to this at one of my favorite stores (I won't name names) and they were $40 a bracelet. Ridiculous! I think I have seen a tutorial on how to do these somewhere also, but I can't remember exactly where! I look at so much stuff on Pinterest and blogs and websites to spark my imagination and sometimes it all jumbles together!

Anyhoo, my sister and I were at the craft store last week, and I thought of this bracelet. We had ourselves a good ol' time making these! This is an AMPED UP version of those old friendship bracelets. If I had a daughter, I would totally spend an afternoon making these with her. They are pretty easy to make once you get the hang of it. I have made six bracelets so far and spent about $15 dollars on all the supplies. Pretty good deal if you ask me!

 So...without further rambling from me..here is the tutorial!

Beaded Wrap Bracelet DIY

Materials:

• Leather Cord
• Thin Twine 
• Small Beaded Necklace or Beads (they need to be attached by a string)
• Scissors

Lay out your leather cord, string of beads, and the thin twine

Begin my making a loop at the end of the leather cording

Wrap the twine around the end of the loop about six or seven times until the loop is secure

(I tucked the end of the twine under the wrapped part)

Place the beads by the loop and begin to wrap the string in between each bead

Keep wrapping...

(wrap it pretty tightly as you're going so it will stay snug)

When you come to the end of the beads, wrap it again like you did at the beginning

Tie two fairly large knots at the end and leave a space in between where the loop will go

Cut the ends off 

Wrap around your wrist and secure  the loop in the middle of the knots and you are..

DONE!

Wahoo! Another project finished! I love mine!  

I hope you try it out! 

**Also..on a side note, some of you have asked how to follow my blog so you can get updates on when I post something new. 

Option1: You can go to the sidebar of the blog and enter your email. 

Option 2: Sign up where it says "Followers" and enter your information there. You can always email me too if you have any questions! 

Option 3: Follow me on Twitter @JennaTheWife (I always list my new posts there)

The Wife

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Who Loves Holiday Decor?!

Ooh ooh, me me! I do I do! Have I mentioned I love holiday decor yet? I am especially excited this year, because I have a HOUSE to decorate! Growing up, my Mom's house was always decorated to the brim with holiday decorations. It is always so fun & festive; she has such a knack for making it feel like the Holidays are here. Being at her house will definitely put you in the holiday spirit!

So finally, I get to buy/craft/create/design for my house this season! I kind of skipped Halloween this year (save for a few measly pumpkins), purely because I wanted to focus on Thanksgiving & Christmas. So sorry, but you might be seeing a lot of posts about DIY's for the next couple of weeks. I have done a few things here and there, but I wanted to share my "I can do it myself" (who else looks at ridiculously expensive things and says that to themselves?) banner. Yes, banners are everywhere, but they are so much fun to make and to look at!

NO-SEW "GIVE THANKS" BANNER

What You Need:

1. Burlap (or any other fabric of your choosing)
2. Paint Pens (or you can use craft paint and letter stencils)
3. Jute, Twine or Ribbon (enough to hang it somewhere)
4. Glue Gun 

Step 1:
Lay out your burlap/fabric. My burlap was folded, and therefore super easy to cut into squares. You can make the squares any size you want to (you can also cut it into triangles, seen here if you prefer). I was a little tired of seeing triangle bunting banners, so I made this one with squares :)

Step 2:
After your fabric is cut, you can start writing your letters onto your fabric with the Paint Pens (I highly recommend you try these! I use them on tons of projects..and they last forEVER). You can also get pre-made Letter Stencils and sponge on the paint. I like the Paint Pens better, because I usually don't like the stencil "font." This way, I can make my own font! Start painting on your letters (make sure there is newspaper or something under your material so the ink doesn't bleed through.

Step 3: 
After you have drawn your letters, lay each letter out in the order it should go (aka G-I-V-E-T-H-A-N-K-S) and turn them over onto the backside. Cut your jute/twine into the length you desire (I always use excess just in case).

Step 4:
Cut your jute/twine into the length you desire (I always use excess just in case). Place the twine under the top edge of the fabric. Run the glue stick along the edge of the twine and fold the top of the fabric over it and press to secure. Keep going on all the letters until you are done!

Step 5:
Hang and take pleasure in the fact that you made it! Ha!

Happy Decorating!

The Wife Pin It

Cold Days+Crockpot Chicken Taco Chili=Happiness!

There is nothing like waking up refreshed and ready to go for the day, only to walk out your door into...the cold weather! That's when I turn around, walk back in my house and get out my crockpot!


This recipe is SO easy and SO delicious (and that's what I'm all about)! I love eating yummy warm food on cold cold days...and since it isn't getting any warmer outside, now is the  perfect time to make this. The Hub asked for seconds and thirds, so I know it was gooood!


Crockpot Chicken Taco Chili
(adapted from here)

• 3-4 Boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts (thawed)
• 1 16-oz can black beans
• 1 8-oz can tomato sauce
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 10 oz package frozen corn kernels (or canned)
• 1/2 can fresh salsa
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• 1 tbsp. cumin

Optional (but SO WORTH IT): 

• 1 tbsp. chili powder (makes it pretty spicy)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
• Sour Cream
• Shredded Jack Cheese
• Crumbled tortilla chips

Directions: 

Combine all ingredients together in the crockpot/slowcooker (except for Chicken & optional ingredients).

Place chicken on top of mixture and cover with lid. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. 30 minutes before you are ready to eat it, shred the chicken in the pot and re-cover. 

**Top with cilantro (if you want to), sour cream, shredded cheese, and chips.

Mmmm...it warms my soul just thinking about eating this again!

On a side note, my little fam drove up the canyon last weekend to see the beautiful colors of the leaves. Uh...we waited a little too long and the leaves were pretty much gone, but we still had fun! 

Have a great weekend!

The Wife

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DOWN WITH BLANK WALLS!

We moved into our house about seven months ago, and I am just getting around to filling up my walls with pictures, shelves, & art. Blank walls are my nemesis. It is so hard to design a large wall! Grrrr!


However, when I came across this on Pinterest I thought, YAY! Something I can fill ONE of my blank walls with. I knew it would be time consuming and a little tedious, but I was up for the challenge. I read the directions, gathered up the supplies, and took a deep breath....

The dreaded blank wall...

Step 1: I printed out the stencil template from jonesdesigncompany (love her) and traced it on to a piece of heavy card stock and cut it out. Then, I started tracing the stencil onto the wall (this took the longest) while The Babe was taking his nap. Two days later (about three hours of tracing total), I was done. **They suggested using a ruler and a level to make sure it was even, but I just eyeballed it..good thing I was confident, eh?


Step 2: Got out my really thin paintbrush I had stashed away in my art kit. **If you need to buy one, they are about $4-$8 depending on what quality you want. I suggest if you are going to try this, you spend a little more and get a high quality brush. Don't SKIMP on a cheap brush, you will regret it! You don't want any stray hairs messing up your lines. For paint, I just used some white latex paint I had leftover from a previous project. I initially bought some gold metallic paint from Martha Stewart that I thought would be gorgeous, and was dying to do it on this wall, but alas it didn't show up on my tan wall (I have another project in mind for it though, don't worry).


When I got all my supplies ready, I got to work painting. It was scary just going gung-ho painting on my wall when I really had no idea what I was doing. After about ten minutes, though I really got the hang of it and found it to be really relaxing! I always forget how much I love painting until I do it again.


It doesn't have to be perfect, cause hey nobody is perfect! However, I did take a step back once and a while to make sure it was looking good/straight. In total, it took me about three naptimes (aka three hours) to finish it.

Midway through..

Step 3: Keep going, and going and going...you will love it when it's done I promise! Paint slowly, keep your hand close to the wall as you paint, and you will get much straighter lines.


Step 4: Take a look! It's done! I love, love it. There are lots of imperfections and mistakes, but you can't really tell unless you are me! I love it so much, I just might do another stencil on another wall!

I might go back and trace a double line like she did originally, but for now, I am happy with it!


If you try it, let me know, I would love to see your finished wall! Happy Stenciling!


The Wife Pin It