Creative Juices Decor

My mom was the best at making up party games – not sure how she did it because we didn’t have the internet back then! Seriously,  how do you do ANYTHING without the internet?     Maybe you just had to be an EXTRA super mom and make a trip out to the library or something.  Man, I am glad I have the internet so I can be in my PJ’s with a cup of tea looking for party games.  But thanks mom for always having fun games at my birthday even before the internet came to be.  :-) Most of these games I found off a Fun and Games site. First game: The CHOCOLATE game: Ahhh…..Love.  How could you not like a game called the chocolate game?  Adults would like this one too. What you’ll need: One dice. Some items of clothing which can be quickly put on like a hat, gloves or oven gloves, scarf, etc. Bar of chocolate on a plate (leave the wrapper on), knife and fork. [HINT: If you don't want to see your bar of chocolate finishe...

One of the very first blogs I subscribed to was Rhoda from Southern Hospitality .  You can tell she just likes to have fun and enjoys life.  She comes up with the best design ideas and is a big time thrifty shopper!  (my kind of gal) Here is her wall with a bunch of collected thrifty items! This picture below from Pottery Barn is lots of fun with the black and white on top of a light robins egg blue wall.  Also the three dimensional bird nest adds just a spark of texture to the wall.  Love it! For those looking at the pictures saying,  I could never figure out how to put all my stuff together and make it look “right” Sarah from Thrifty Décor Chick (also one of my first blog subscriptions!) did a great post on How to Decorate Your mantle .  It will really help with understanding how to accomplish that “designer” look when you add framed prints to your wall or mantle. Personally I ADORE doing a plate collage on my walls.  It is visual...

 This was so yummy so I decided to blog about it right away.  Once again this is  QUICK and EASY  but incredibly healthy and filling. Blueberry Chia Pudding: (I made this up - aren't you proud of me!) 1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk (you could experiment with other milk, but I LOVE coconut milk) 1/4 cup water (or regular milk) 1/4 c chia seeds Stevia or agave to taste  (I used about 1/8 tsp liquid stevia, if using agave I'd use around 1Tbsp) 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 c Blueberries (fresh or frozen) Stir all ingredients together.  (see, easy) Refrigerate 60 minutes or till thickens (it wont hurt it to even stay overnight and you could eat it for breakfast!)  You can stir half way through just so all the seeds get mixed in.  Have fun experimenting with the amount of seeds also. You could serve with some real whip cream if you like – it would look pretty and be a great addition to the flavor. Serves 2. I know some of you (like my won...

Blog posts like this make me happy.   I can finally show people who might actually think it’s entertaining to see my thrift store finds!  Unfortunately my husband doesn’t get such a thrill out of seeing his garage fill up with all my amazing treasures. But I know you guys will LOVE it! And that’s why I love blogging! This beauty is a thick mounted canvas art piece (about 30”x24”.)  Drum roll……. 10 BUCKAROONIES It is so pretty!  I would love it more if it was on a painted wall to pick up those amazing moss greens or terra cotta orange colors.  I might give this to my brother who just bought a house.  He has a brick fireplace where those colors would just pop!  These cuties (which I thought were sea shells until I brought them home and realized they were lettuce dishes!) were…. Drum roll……….. $1.00 a piece I liked them better as sea shells and had planned to put them in a seascape mantel setting but it’s OK.  I love lett...

I LOVE pumpkin any time of the year so here is a DELICIOUS recipe for all you healthy eaters out there!   Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting. 1 large egg 2 Tbsp. milk ¼ c apple butter (or 1/4 ripe banana) 1 Tbsp. melted coconut oil Chia gel stevia mix (1/3 cup warm water with 1 tbsp. chia seeds with ½ tsp. pure powdered stevia – mix and let sit at least 15 min) 1/2 tsp. maple flavoring or 1 tbsp. maple syrup 3 dates chopped fine. 1 cup cooked pumpkin or squash. ¾ c coconut flour mix (see note, can use regular flour) ¾ c almond meal (just finely ground almonds) 1 ½ tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. cinnamon ¼ tsp. nutmeg ¼ tsp. salt Preheat oven to 350. Oil 8” shallow square pan. Lightly beat the egg and milk. (set aside) Beat the melted oil in a lg mixing bowl with the apple butter, chia stevia mix, maple flavoring and dates. Stir in beaten egg. Gently mix in the pumpkin. Sift the flours, baking powder, spices, and salt together. Fold in the dry ingr...

When Lauren from West Furniture Revival commented on my post regarding the fun $10.00 craigslist toy chest I did I had to ask her if I could show my readers the chest SHE did.  It is just so fantastic and I love the inspiration she gives us for all those piece of junk items at the thrift store! My Quote for the day: Thrift is poetic because it is creative; waste is unpoetic because it is waste. -G.K. Chesterton Enjoy!!! I FOUND THIS OLD WHITE WICKER TRUNK AT THE TRIFT STORE FOR 6.99 AND I GOT 25% OFF.  SO I FIGURED IT WAS A DEAL EVEN THOUGH I WAS HESITANT ABOUT THE WICKER. I HAVE NEVER WORKED WITH WICKER AND THOUGHT NO MATTER WHAT I DID THAT THIS WOULD STILL HAVE A BORING LOOK. I SANDED DOWN THE HARDWARE AND PAINTED IT WITH OIL RUBBED BRONZE SPRAY PAINT. BEFORE...         AND THE AFTER...     IT WAS A LEARN AS YOU GO PROCESS AND IT THINK IT WORKS... Thank you La...

This post was inspired from my Healthy Food on a Budget post.   Some people wanted to know what all the hubbub was about using coconut oil.  I completely understand!  I remember going over to my friends house and seeing her little jar of coconut oil and thinking now why would I spend 3 times the amount on THAT oil instead of the other oils??   So began my coconut oil research………I’m not going to go into depth about everything you can do with coconut oil, but YES, when I’m not cooking with it, I have used it as a toothpaste, a deodorant, and as a fantastic body moisturizer!     I’m sure it sounds strange to a newbie, but this stuff is amazing! Coconut 101 – Why? 1.) The main reason I use coconut oil is for it’s nutritious properties.  It is full of all the good fats , which isn't suppose to make me fat!   My friend just sent me this fantastic article How to Lose Weight Fast with Coconut Oil . 2.) It can withstand a...

So I grew up in the grey, rainy area of Seattle .  Of course, having lived no where else I really didn’t think Seattle was grey and rainy.  It was just Seattle. I liked it .    (Bing free photo images)   A Seattle bridge I traveled on often.   Next I moved to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and realized that blue skies were actually possible and in fact, they were the norm!  In the winter it was VERY cold but at least it still had a wonderful blue sky. I liked Coeur d'Alene .  When I went home to visit my family who still lived in Seattle I always felt WET and grey.  To me, Seattle had now become rainy and dreary…..ALL the time.  Picture just out my back door! Here’s the kicker…….. Next was a move to San Marcos, California – and that is where I was forever changed.  Why didn’t someone warn me how amazing it is over there?  Not only was it never grey, but it was warm all the time !  Every morning I woke up to ...

OK, it's the New Year blog friends and now everyone will be on a health food kick.  (At least for a month - right!)  There are some of us who refuse to make New Years resolutions but I actually like making them. Why?  Because I feel if I aim for the moon I might miss, but at least I'll land among the stars, and that is good enough for me :-) My food goals: Eat more vegetables (as in for lunch and dinner every time!) Experiment in Gluten Free and Sugar Free cooking . (my favorite site highlighted) Try new dinner recipes - get a good collection going.  (when will I stop collecting and start making!) So here's to eating more vegetables (I didn't say RAW - I need a good healthy sauce on mine!) Sweet and Salty Mushroom Sauce:    (I may have just lost half my readers!) Wash and cut mushrooms 1 tbsp butter (or coconut oil) 1 tbsp soy sauce 1-2 tsp agave or maple syrup Sauté till tender (Trust me, you'll be ple...

I'll just lay it out on the line (or the w.w.w)  I’m cheap. :-) But in saying that, I will not let my frugality effect how I feed my family.  For myself, health and food choices play a very important role as a wife and mother.  I still have a long way to go.  I still buy the wrong kind of bread for my kids (they refuse to eat my sprouted grain version!) but my motto is “ baby steps to better health ” .  And I’m just fine with that. Here is some of my “secrets” for buying health food on a budget.    Coconut Oil: I did a LOT of researching on this one.(in fact, so much research that I may do a whole post about it!)  My final verdict was an internet site Soaperschoice .  Extra Virgin Organic Coconut Oil.   It comes in bulk but after pouring it into individual glass jars it equaled just under 10 bucks for a 32 oz jar.  Half the price at my local store or other internet prices.  UPDATE:  Here ...

Not sure you have to have a scientific kid to love these - just a kid who loves sugar .  (as in ALL children!) Rock candy is very fun and pretty but I have to warn you this project may take a day or two to fully crystallize.  Actually I should have titled this ROCK candy - A Character Builder.  :-) Nevertheless this the THIRD time my kids have requested to make these so I guess the wait wasn't a detriment.  Doing this during a school break is a great time to do it so the kids can look at the progress throughout the day. Ingredients: 2 c water 4 c sugar (some people have found better luck using more sugar - up to 6 cups) 1 tsp flavoring extract   Food coloring Glass jar Skewers   Preparation: 1.) Prepare your materials: wash glass jar with hot water to clean it.  I used a shish ka bob skewer and broke it in half - but you can always order real lollipop sticks online. 2.) Wet y...