Taco Salad

I was looking for something to make that would fill me up and would hopefully leave me with delicious left-overs. I had a lot of lettuce in the fridge so I decided to make the easiest taco salad. I used what I already had in my house. There are no rules to this, you can use any variety of vegetables or meat.

What You'll Need:

• ground beef (ground turkey or chicken is also a good choice)
  
• 1/2 red onion
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• taco seasoning
• lettuce
• 2 small tomatoes
• avacados
• 1 can of corn
• 1 can of black beans
• salsa
• tortilla chips
• cheese
• sour cream

Start by browning the ground beef. Chop onions and garlic and add to the meat. When the meat is brown, add taco seasoning and 1 cup of water and let simmer until there is no water. If you wish to use corn or black beans, add them to the meat at this time.

As the meat is cooking, grate the cheese and chop the lettuce, tomatoes, and avacados.

Place the amount of lettuce you want in a bowl and top with your favorite toppings, layer with meat and cheese. You now have a quick and some-what healthy meal that will last you a couple days.

Spicy Sausage-Spinach Lasagna

Due to a minor accident involving an oven fire at my house, I recently haven't been able to cook or bake in a couple weeks. Sooo my new oven is finally here and ready to start making magic. To kick off the year with my new oven I decided to make my favorite lasagna.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 1/4 pounds hot Italian turkey sausages, casings removed
• 1 can tomato sauce
• 1 15-ounce container cottage cheese
• 1 10-ounce package spinach (chopped or whole)
• 1 3/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 9 uncooked lasagna noodles
• 3 cups shredded provolone cheese (about 12 ounces)

Preparation:

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add sausage and sauté until brown. Add tomato sauce and simmer 5 minutes. 

Preheat to 375°F. Whisk cottage cheese, spinach, 1 cup Parmesan, eggs, basil, oregano and pepper in large bowl. Set aside. 

Spoon 1 cup sauce over bottom of 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Place noodles over sauce in single layer. Spread 1 cup sauce over noodles. Spoon 1 cup cottage cheese mixture over sauce. Sprinkle 1/4 cup Parmesan and 1 cup provolone over cheese mixture. Repeat layering with the noodles, 1 cup sauce, 1 cup of cheese mixture, 1/4 cup Parmesan and 1 cup provolone. Arrange the remaining noodles over cheese. Spoon 1 cup sauce over noodles. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan and 1 cup provolone over lasagna. Tightly cover with foil. 

Bake lasagna 50 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until noodles are tender and lasagna is hot and bubbly, about 25 minutes longer. 

This does take some time to make but it is super easy and you can be doing other things while it cooks (homework, laundry..). Plus it makes for delicious left overs that will last you a couple of days.

Pieces of Peace

There is an amazing website for unique shirts and I found one that had the best design. (threadless.com you need to check it out!!) But instead of buying the shirt I decided to make the design myself and use it as wall art.

What you'll need:

• old wood board
• metal brush
• spray paint
• acrylic paint
• small paint brush
• peace stencil

 How to:

1. Using the metal brush, brush away any dirt or debris on your board. Remember to go with the grain of the wood.
2. Spray paint many light coats of paint. You don't want it to have blotches or drips.
3. I just printed a peace sign of the internet to use as my stencil. I used a pencil and outlined it, you may want to cut it in peices, but I found it easy to just use it as a whole.
4. After it is stenciled, use a small paint brush and paint in the lines. My board was very grainy, so it took several coats to get it so it didn't look streaky.

I love mine. It's unique, and not just something you find at a store. You can make it simple or amp it up, the fun thing about this project is you can mix your creativitly.

Rake Jewelry Organizer

I'm still finishing some projects and trying to get settled into my new home. Here is one that I love and think every girl should have. I have always had trouble finding the right jewelry organizer and many necklaces were tangled in the process.This project is super easy, very inexpensive, and gives your room some more character. (Perfect for necklaces, rings, and braclets)

You will need:

• rake
• sandpaper
• primer spray paint
• your color choice of spray paint
• screw driver
• rope

I got my rake from my boss. He was going to throw it out because he said it was "broken" so I snatched it just in time! Once you get your rake, cut the handle to your desired length and drill a hole at the top so you can hang it later. If there are some rough spots on the handle or rake use sandpaper to smooth it out. I wanted my handle to stay the same and not be painted so I took masking tape and went around the handle a couple times. Next take your primer spray paint, in a well ventilated area, coat with a light layer and let dry (usually no more than 15 minutes). With the color paint, spray many light coats. If you spray too heavy you'll have drips down your rake.

You can find rope in many places. I got mine in a fabric store and it works just fine.
Now all you need to do is find the perfect place to hang it and you'll have a functional peice of art.

My New Home

I am off to college, and that means new spaces to decorate! Over the summer I have been doing little projects and some I have already shared with you. There are some final touches I still need to make, but I hopefully will be done soon. Keep checking in for more fun ideas!

Tie-Dye Shoes

I love wearing color and I love shoes. This project helped me with both, plus it was cheap, easy, super fun, and I ended up with an awesome result.

What you'll need:

*Tie-Dye
Some friends and I went in together and bought a tie dye kit (sharing is the ultimate way to save money on crafts)

*White tennis shoes

We bought our shoes at Target for $9.00

To Do:

The tie dye we had came in bottles and we perfect for dripping the dye onto the shoes. If you don't have bottles, use a syringe or a water dropper.
Make sure your shoes are wet, or the dye won't soak in.

Next choose which colors you want to use and just go with it. (tip: less is more.. the more dye you use, the more likely it will all blend and make a brownish color)

After you're done, leave the shoe outside or in a well aired room.

Tie-Dying isn't just for shirts anymore. You can almost dye anything you want, just be creative and see if it turns out. (shirts, shorts, headbands, shoes, sweatshirts...)
 

wear 'em with shorts or rolled up jeans and you have the perfect summer look

The Engagement

I was dreading having to take my sister and her fiance's engagement photos, and kept putting it off until they practically cornered me one night. I didn't want to be at fault if they didn't turn out how they envisioned them... BUT I ended up having a blast. They turned out wonderful and I am happy to say that I am the photographer. Here are some of my favorites.

How to make Feather Earrings

Feathers, feathers, feathers...Everywhere you go you see women with feather earrings. Here is a quick and fun way to get the look without spending a lot. This is just the basic earring, you can have a little fun with it and use other embellishments.

Things you'll need:

• beading wire
• earring loops
• needle nose pliers
• scissors
• craft feathers (one of my sisters has a parrot, so I actually used real feathers)

How-to:

• First pick out the feathers you want to use. Some craft feathers have long stems so you will need to cut it until just a tiny bit is showing.
• Next cut the wire to about 10 inches. You will need a lot and you can cut some off if it becomes too long.
• Next take the wire and make a loop on one end of it. Place it next to the top of the feather. Pinch them together and start wrapping the wire around the feather covering the stem.
• Once the wire is wrapped, you can secure the end by pinching it to the top of the feather.
• Next take one of the earring loops, and with the pliers open the ring end.
• Place the wire loop inside the ring and close using the pliers.
• Now you have made your first pair!!