Big Boy Room Progress

We will eventually be moving Amery into the current guest room, and while grandma was in town we she made some progress on the decor.  This room has needed some curtains since we moved in six years ago.  None of our guests complained so it just got put off.  A couple of weeks go we picked up a pair of these Lightcatcher Curtains at Tuesday Morning for $19.99 per panel (it may have even been $14.99, I can't remember).  Off-white wasn't my first choice, but they didn't have a ton of solid colors to choose from.  In the end I really liked them, and they block out a TON of light when closed.

Next we searched and searched for some Hawaiian fabric to make a valance to match his PBK Island Surf Bedding (he has this quilt with this navy/red reversible comforter):

I don't plan on changing the wall color in the room which is currently that green color you see in the quilt.  So in the end, we decided a plain navy valance was the best we could do.  A quick search on the Hancock Fabrics website lead me to this awesome ribbon.  A little bit of Witch Stitchery, a hot iron, and a towel over top of the ribbon (turns out those white flowers are plastic!) and we had a valance:

A couple of tiebacks tied the valance and the off-white curtains together:

It was tough to get a good photo in low light, and the canopy bed in the way doesn't help things much, but I think it looks pretty darn good:



Adding the hibiscus ribbon allowed us to tie it in with flowers/leaves in the surf bedding while still keeping it masculine.  When we move him into this room I plan on taking off the door to the walk-in closet and replacing it with a curtain.  Right now the door swings into the room and takes up precious wall space on the only wall that can really "hold" the bed.  Since I have a bunch of hibiscus ribbon leftover, I'm thinking a navy blue curtain with red ribbon accents at the top and bottom or maybe along the long edge.

Siblings

Amery's first photo with his new little brother or sister:

First Trimester? Done and Done.

That part's so boring anyway.  We thought we'd just let you straight in on the second. 

Baby #2 is 12w1d and will be here around November 6th, so get your oooohs and aaaahs ready.

Haircut!

What a difference a few snips makes:

Wordless Wednesday

Creamy Pesto Pasta Salad

I've been making this salad since college when it was first discovered on the back of a Knorr Creamy Pesto Pasta Sauce Mix packet. My college roommate, Christine, who follows this blog but despite my pathetic pleading refuses to acknowledge any other social media, will most definitely remember this recipe with fondness. Being able to make something in college that tastes halfway decent is an easy way to impress just about anyone else in college.

Every time I make this salad I am immediately asked for the recipe. It's so simple and easy, I'm almost ashamed to post it because now everyone will know I spent exactly 10 minutes putting it together for their book club/picnic/BBQ/party. After making it for the book club ladies last week, I promised I would blog about it the next time I made it so it would be pin-able on Pinterest.

If you want to skip right to the recipe, scroll down to the bottom of this post.


Here's the stuff you're gonna need.


While your noodles are boiling, wash and cut the tomatoes in half. The original recipe calls for 1 pint of cherry tomatoes, but I always use grape tomatoes because I like the smaller size. I also use half the amount of tomatoes than the original recipe called for, so if you like a lot of tomatoes, use twice as many as I tell you below in my version.


In a big bowl, mix up sauce mix, vinegar, mayo, and milk. One thing about the pasta sauce mix - it has to be the Knorr Creamy Pesto Sauce Mix. The non-creamy Knorr pesto sauce mix will not taste the same. I found this out the hard way.


When the pasta is done, rinse it with cool water until it's at least room temperature.


Mix the pasta, tomatoes, and mozzarella together with the sauce. The original recipe says you can either use shredded mozzarella or cubed. I like shredded myself, and I always buy the larger shreds rather than the "fancy" shreds.


Get it alllll mixed up, but don't go crazy or the tomato seeds will spew out all over the rest of it.


Serve and enjoy.

Creamy Pesto Pasta Salad

1 (1.2 oz) pkg Knorr Creamy Pesto Pasta Sauce Mix
3/4 cup regular or light mayonnaise
1/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 pint grape tomatoes -- halved
8 ounces pasta twists or rotelle (about 4 c), cooked and rinsed and drained
1 cup (4 oz) shredded mozzarella

In large bowl, stir pasta sauce mix, mayo, milk, and vinegar until blended. Add tomatoes, pasta and cheese; toss to coat. Cover; chill to blend flavors.

Bluebonnets 2012

Finally, we got a picture in the bluebonnets this year. For the non-Texans, it is a tradition down here to take your kid, plop him or her down in a field of bluebonnets, hope they don't sit on a fire ant mound, and snap a picture before they run away. We slacked off last year (see two-and-a-half-year photo to the left), and I really haven't had the time to drive around and find some, so I was very happy to see a great patch of bluebonnets at the farm where our church holds its annual Easter sunrise service.

I have only one problem with this picture - he looks so old! There is no way I would think this kid is only three-and-a-half if you showed me this picture and I didn't know him. ::sniff::