Fall Shelf Decor

I love the idea of open shelving and wanted to incorporate the look somewhere in my house.  We had an empty wall in the dining room that was begging to be filled.  So I purchased a couple of unfinished shelves from Hobby Lobby, which I primed and painted white.  The next step was to fill the shelves with some of my favorite decor items that had been stored away in cabinets.

  

I love this time of year and thought it would be fun to decorate the shelves for fall.

I have a small collection of milk glass.

I love how this planter looks filled with dried magnolia leaves.

I'm a sucker for anything with beaded details.

I borrowed the boxwood wreath from my front door.

I added a few mini pumpkins.

I found this plate at West Elm.  Cute right!

FYI- I hung the shelves using my easy method.

I wanted to keep things simple and natural.  Natural objects are beautiful and inexpensive.  

My head is spinning with Christmas ideas!  

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Have you ever had one of those days where you just needed a cookie?  Last Sunday I had one of those days.  It started with my neighbor calling me to tell me that his car had been broken into.  After offering him my sincerest apologies, I walked outside to discover my car was broken into as well.  Luckily there was nothing of value to take.

Later in the day I noticed a burning smell coming from my desktop.  My husband opened the side to check things out. Long story short we had to purchase a new computer. 

It was getting late and my husband and I were in no mood to cook so we decided to grab dinner from our favorite pizza place.  After the hassle of driving downtown and paying for parking, the sign on the restaurant door said, Closed on Sundays!  My kids were hungry and I was frustrated so we settled for drive thru.  

After the stress of the day's events, I needed a distraction.  So why not bake something!  When I bake I feel less stressed.  Making a batch of homemade cookies is my favorite form of stress relief.

To be honest chocolate chip cookies aren't my favorite, but I was trying to cheer up my disappointed family.

I used a recipe I found online from allrecipes.com  The secret ingredient is cream cheese.  I love the idea of adding cream cheese to cookies!  These were a hit in my house and seemed to do the trick.  In the end I realized these weren't huge problems.  Nothing a plate of warm cookies couldn't fix!

Ingredients 

2 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 

1 teaspoon baking powder 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 

8 ounces cream cheese, softened 

1 cup granulated sugar 

1 cup packed light brown sugar 

2 large eggs 

1 & 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

1 & 1/2 cups semisweet mini-chocolate chips 

Directions 

Grease or line baking sheets.  Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.  Beat butter, cream cheese, sugar, and brown sugar until fluffy.  Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Mix in vanilla.  Gradually add flour mixture, mixing until almost combined.  Add chocolate chips, stirring until dough is thoroughly mixed.  Cover mixing bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough for a minimum of 2 hours.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets.  Bake 12-15 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned.

Recipe adapted from: allrecipes.com

I am linking this post to:

Country Living Fair Ticket Winners

Thanks again to everyone who stopped by and entered the contest.  I'm looking forward to having a great time at the fair.  Congratulations to Kisha and the The Tiny Peach!  I'll be in touch shortly to let you know how to retrieve your ticket. 

Dresser Makeover

Today I am linking up with, Jennifer, at THE PINK PAGODA for a Blue and White Bash.

I recently started updating our master bedroom.  My first project was to paint our old dresser.  Our bedroom is small, so to save space we placed our dresser inside of one of our closets. 

We've had the dresser for over 12 years and it's showing its age.  It's built well so we didn't want to get rid of it; it even held together after being dropped from a moving truck.

I debated about whether or not to paint over the wood, but I don't have any qualms about painting over an aged, beat up dresser!  

After dusting the dresser with a lint free cloth, I gave the dresser 4 coats of Behr, Starless Night-flat paint(be sure to let each coat dry in between). I didn't bother to prime or sand it.  Once everything was dry I gave it a protective finish.  Like all D-I-Y tips, this method may not work for everyone!

Switching out the hardware is one of the best ways to update old furniture.

The new, clear-acrylic knobs are courtesy of D. Lawless Hardware.  I was going for an antique look.  I love the way the new hardware compliments the dresser.

All of the accessories are unique thrift store finds.

The results are amazing!  I am always impressed by the power of paint.  I hope you are inspired to tackle a project of your own.

*A huge thank you to Derrick of D. Lawless Hardware for providing the hardware for this makeover.

Country Living Fair Ticket Giveaway

TGIF my friends!  Are you ready for the weekend?!  I'll be spending the afternoon getting my daughter and her friend ready for homecoming.  I'll be sure to share a couple of pictures on Instagram, so be sure to follow along.

(photo credit: Courtesy of Country Living)

(photo credit: Courtesy of Country Living)

(photo credit: Courtesy of Country Living)

The 2013 Country Living Fair in Atlanta, will take place Oct. 25-27 at Stone Mountain Park.  The Fair is expected to draw more than 20,000 visitors from across the country and I have two (2) three-day Fair passes to give away.   

The Country Living Fair in Atlanta will give attendees the chance to enjoy the Country Living lifestyle in a fun, festival atmosphere with cooking, crafting, and other DIY demonstrations, as well as fantastic local and artisanal food. In addition, guests will have access to a unique shopping experience featuring more than 200 vendors offering antiques, gifts, home décor, jewelry and more.

Country Living Editor-in-Chief Sarah Gray Miller and many of the magazine's editors and contributors will be on-site to bring the pages of the magazine to life. Special guests scheduled to attend the Atlanta Country Living Fair and participate in book signings, demonstrations and panel discussions include:


· Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, of Cooking Channel’s “The Fabulous Beekman Boys”;

· Cari Cucksey, estate sale expert and host of HGTV’s “Cash & Cari”;

· Carrie Morey, owner of Callie’s Charleston Biscuits and author of “Callie’s Biscuits and Southern Traditions”;

· Elizabeth Demos, author of “Vintage Wedding Style.”


Attendees will be able to engage with Country Living through several social media initiatives at the Country Living Fair, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+ and Pinterest.  The Country Living Fair hashtag for all platforms is #clfair.

*If you live in the Atlanta area or plan on visiting and would like to attend the fair let me know in the comment section and I'll randomly choose two winners.  Be sure to include your email address.  Contest will end Tuesday, Oct. 15th and I'll be back to announce the winners Wednesday morning.  

Good luck to everyone and I'm excited to meet the lucky winners at the fair!

Campbell’s Wisest Kid Campaign

It seems as though kids can be the world's biggest food critics. Pizza must be cheesy, juice is a go-to drink, and broccoli should be thrown out the window!  After a while, you get lost in confusion because you have no idea what to make them for dinner.  Thankfully, Campbell’s Wisest Kid in the Whole World is the greatest expert on what makes kids happy because it's made just for them.

For more than 144 years, Campbell Soup Company has been making meals fun and delicious.  Through their recipe destination www.campbellskitchen.com, Campbell’s gives you a creative and different ways to satisfy your family with recipes like Cheddar Penne with Sausage & Peppers and Chicken & Bean Chili.  It's easy to find a recipe to make each day of the week without breaking the bank (or the stove).  The meals you'll create will be delicious and it's guaranteed your children will be licking their plates clean!  What makes this campaign so fun is that, by using their widget, you can share the "wise" things kids say with your family and friends. 

My family loves to eat soup, and since autumn is here, it's a warm meal on colder days.  We love the classic tomato soup and grilled cheese for dinner!  My family and I will sit down to dinner and have conversations about school, family, and friends.  Dinnertime is a great bonding time for us, and hearing how mature my children have become is always gratifying.  Sometimes you don't realize how old they've gotten until they start talking about middle school lockers or going to college!  Setting out time just to talk is a really great way for us, and other families, to connect and strengthen our family bond.

The recipe I created was a twist on the classic tomato soup and grilled cheese combo.  Adding 2 ounces of cream cheese to a can of tomato soup made it creamier and even more delicious.  Cutting grilled cheese into bite size pieces makes dinner a lot more fun.  My son loved it and seemed to have a problem when his sister wanted him to share with her, ha!

Ingredients-Grilled Cheese Bites

2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature 

4 slices bread 

4 slices sharp cheddar cheese

Directions

Heat a pan over medium heat.  Butter one side of each slice of bread.  Place bread in the pan, buttered side down.  Cover each slice of bread with cheese and top with remaining slices of bread, buttered side up.  Cook until golden brown, about 2-4 minutes.  Flip and cook until bread is crisp and the cheese is melted; about 2-4 minutes.  Cut each sandwich into 8 bite-size pieces.

Ingredients-Tomato Soup Dip

1 can Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup

2 ounces cream cheese

Directions

Pour soup in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring often.  Once soup is heated through, about 3-5 minutes, add cream cheese and combine with a whisk.  Remove from heat and divide into smaller bowls and serve with grilled cheese bites.  

   

"Tomato soup is healthy and it tastes good too!"- Caleb, Age 12

“How is a kid in your life like the Wisest Kid in the Whole World?”