Converting the Dining Room into a Play Room

{our previous owners furniture—very nice. I like a good mix of mid-century modern and traditional styles}

Call me crazy but we just do not use the dining room—more like a dining “nook”. Just because our previous owners or builder claims it is a dining space, does that mean we have to follow suit? Our kitchen is big enough for a table and 4 chairs which we eat at every night. Ok, and sometimes the living room coffee table and couch. We also have a fold away table that seats 6 so if we do decide to have the once a year Thanksgiving party we can pull it out for that purpose.

My Idea Board:

 

Grey and White Play Room by bellamiablog on Polyvore

By putting a small futon/couch we would now have a place for guests to sleep. Mia could have her own little space in the living area while adults conversed or did their thing. I hate sending Mia to her room to play. I want to be near her when I am cooking and cleaning around the house.

More Pinterest Ideas:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

{Play Room Land of Nod}

{Toy Organization}

{Guest and Play Room}

{Hanging Art Play Room}

Has anyone converted a dining room into a play space? I think we would get way more usage if we did this.

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Favorite Memorial Day Sales

 

Starting yesterday, through Monday, May 27^th, Tea Collection is offering $15 Girls Dresses, $12 Girls Leggings ( Mia has the leggings above, we love them!) and $12 Boys Tops. This is actually a great deal and if you sign up here for their email updates they will send you a 10% off code you can use on top of the sale! This will basically take care of the shipping, etc. I already bought Mia a dress and some leggings. 

I’m not sure who has an Orchard Supply Company around there area, but they are having a great sale where they pay the sales tax. I am painting a lot of furniture around the house (ie updating our old stuff) and this is a great opportunity to buy some paint and supplies! I will definitely be there this weekend!

Find Michaels coupons here. 25% off of everything, including sale. You can stack this coupon with the 50% off one regular priced item!

Ebates (no I am not getting paid to say this, but might if you sign up ) is a great way to earn cash back on any purchases you make online—think Overstock, Nordstrom’s, Macy’s, and even Amazon! I recently received a check for $200 bucks…yep! Free money for shopping for things I needed.

• How does it work?
  • Go to ebates and search the store you want to shop at {i.e. ebay, amazon, kohls, macys, etc}, it will then direct you to that website and give you a percentage cash back from the total of your purchase
  • No strings attached!
• Another incentive: Get a $10.00 gift card of your choice for joining after spending $25.00 online! 
• Referral program: refer 25 people and get $375 back! Refer more, get more! For every person you refer you get $5.00

Giggle is also having 20% off this weekend. This baby store is within walking distance of us and is a little pricey but it’s so cute for special gifts and toys!

Happy Shopping!

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Raising a Little Girl

The title of this post actually scares me because I still can’t believe it’s true. Mike and I…raising a little girl!? When someone asks me to describe my daughter lots of thoughts come to mind—beautiful, smart, sneaky, clever. She truly melts my heart. Sometimes I look at her and think I am so lucky to have her in my life. She is so captivating and I love watching her learn and explore. Today Mia is 26 months and I wanted to document some feelings I have this month.

1. Patience. People have always told me I am a patient person. This has become one of THE most important qualities I use on a daily basis with Mia. Some examples: patience when she is not holding my hand on the sidewalk, when she is banging her head on the Trader Joe’s floor. “No, Mia you cannot have another Kitty Cat Cookie!! (those are good!) Patience when she insists on going up and down the Macy’s concrete stairs—it frightens the shit out of me. Patience when she will not eat dinner, take a bath, wash her hair, put on her pjs, change her diaper, go to sleep. Ok, so the list could go on but the point is I am so grateful to Mia for showing me patience of no end…in sight.  

2. To Let Go. Some would say I am a little tightly wound. I like things to go a certain way and a routine to be followed. Mia has taught me to let.go.already! I figure as long as she eats meals and snacks, the rest can follow. For instance, I really needed to stop into Trader Joe’s to pick up fruit, dinner, and wine (for those patient moments above). We walked together and did not take the stroller. Well she would not hold my hand. I would pick her up and she would scream and thrash. I put her down after lots of this and she finally held my hand. But she didn’t want to rush to the grocery store and rush back. She wanted to explore during the walk. Touch the dirt on the ground, the bushes, the leaves and sticks, point at cars and trucks, ants, and go up and down apartment stairs where we do not live. Trader Joe’s eventually happened. A 10 minute walk took about an hour but I followed her lead that day and let go of my own agenda.

3. New Experiences. Having a child is like opening a whole new world. Your old life is just not the same. The new world consists of children’s museums, new books, new Google questions--why is my 25 month old still waking at night? How many words should a 25 month old be saying?? parks, library story times, New definitions of a good/fun Friday and Saturday night. New friends (mommy friends). My world has changed..for the better. I actually enjoy planning activities I know Mia loves. When Mia is happy, I am in a happy place too! I am thankful we live in Los Angeles that offers so much for kids. We are planning a trip to the zoo soon, the flower fields in OC, Disneyland (can you believe we haven't been yet?) and Legoland. Phew. I am already exhausted, but it’s all for the kiddo and I hope she reads this one day and thinks, “wow Mom took me to some pretty cool places! I had a fun childhood.”

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How to Bake and Create a Minnie Mouse Cake for a Birthday

I recently made this cake for a friend’s daughter’s 2nd Birthday. Her daughter loves Minnie Mouse so when she told me the theme, I was really excited to create a very girly cake!

This cake was a labor of love and took me about three days. If I have one tip it’s to start early as possible. I had never baked a theme cake before. I used Pinterest for inspiration and put my own spin on elements.

I am just an average home baker. I taught myself how to build this cake by watching lots of YouTube videos (listed below). There is so much information on the internet you really don’t need to pay for classes. Although I would love to take some if I find/make the time.

Supplies and Source List

• Best Black Fondant
• Best Tasting White Fondant
• Pink flat sprinkles
• Wilton tip for the “pearls” around the cake
• pastry bag (here)
• 2 9 inch round cakes cooled
• 2 6 inch round cakes cooled
• Parchment paper
• Small fondant rolling pin (here)
• toothpicks
• large circle cookie cutter (for large minnie ears)
• small circle cookie cutters (for the polka dots and small minnie heads)
• 4 cake dowels or Boba tea straws
• Rotating Cake stand—this is a must! (here)
• cake boards (I used cardboard cut to size)
• Large offset spatula (here)
• Fondant smoother (here)
• Viva paper towels
• Large cake stand for display

Sweetapolita Vanilla Cake Recipe

Gale Gand Best Buttercream Icing

Video showing how to ice and smooth cakes: This is where the Viva paper towel comes into play!

Video on how to stack the cakes (this woman helped me A LOT) I also used Boba tea straws instead of the wooden dowels she uses.

Mini Minnie Mouse heads:

I didn’t take many pictures along the way, but started with creating these mini Minnie mouse heads two days before. I rolled some black fondant and cut them out using small circle cookie cutters. I fused them together with my fingers. For the small bow I used white fondant and with a toothpick cut two small triangles and rolled a tiny ball. I used my toothpick to cut little dents into the bow, making a wrinkled effect. I stuck them on with a little bit of butter cream or royal icing.

Large Minnie Bow and Minnie Ears:

I used large circle cookie cutters to cut the rolled black fondant for the Minnie ears topper. I rolled it pretty thick. I inserted toothpicks into the Minnie ears and attached them to the cake. I let the bow and large Minnie Mouse ears dry overnight to harden—two nights would be best. For the bow, I used the video below as a guide and stuck pink dot sprinkles onto the bow using royal icing (or buttercream) as a glue. The bow stood on top of the cake on its own (I made sure to dry it upright).

How to make the Minnie Mouse large bow

Charging for this cake: Full Disclosure.

This was the first time someone paid me to create a cake for them. I am just starting out and I thought $2 per slice was fair. There was a 30 people estimate, so I was paid a total of $60. Did I make a profit on this cake? Probably not, but the amount I learned just by doing was invaluable. This cake bought from a well known bakery would have cost close to $200. I hope to continue to grow in my little cake venture (and cost per slice :))

Hope you enjoyed this hodgepodge of a tutorial. Maybe I will venture out into creating my own video next time…maybe!

Linking up with these parties:

Jennifer Rizzo

House of Rose Blog

Stone Gable

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Quinoa Salad with Garbanzo Beans, Cucumber, and Mint

This was served during my daughter’s playschool potluck last week. It was so delicious and as a bonus my 2-year-old loved it. Score! I had to have the recipe. The mother who made this emailed it to everyone in the class. We have been addicted ever since.

I bought all of the ingredients at my local Trader Joes. If you don’t have one around you, I'm sure any grocery store would have them in stock. Please enjoy and feel free to tweak any of the ingredients. This really is a fool-proof salad!

Salad Ingredients:

• 4 cups of cooked quinoa (1 cup dry makes 4 cups cooked)
• chopped dried cranberries
• sliced cucumbers (I use the Persian type)
• cherry tomatoes (halved or quartered depending on your preference)
• roasted & salted pumpkin seeds (sunflower seeds would work too)
• 1 can of garbanzo beans
• chopped mint
• chopped cilantro
• chopped green onions

Mix everything together in a large bowl. Now for the dressing….

Dressing Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon of fresh garlic cloves (minced)
• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup of olive oil
• pinch of sugar
• salt & pepper to taste

In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, garlic, vinegar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. While whisking, slowly add the olive oil until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Pour desired amount on Quinoa salad. I also like to squirt a little lemon for extra flavor at the end.

Thanks Mandy for featuring this recipe at House of Rose!

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Mia 25 Months

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Review: Graco FastAction Fold Click Connect Jogging Stroller

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Graco. All thoughts and opinions are my own, I am so thrilled to have this opportunity to receive a complimentary FastAction™ Fold Click Connect™ Jogger from Graco.

Last week,  Mia and I attended a sponsored Graco event held at a local Los Angeles park. What a great way to meet other blogger moms and talk about a very important topic: strollers. There are so many out there it’s overwhelming. When I was pregnant with Mia, I spent hours online trying to find one that does it all. Mia is now 2 years old and we have four strollers and yes we use ALL of them. They all have different uses. I am happy to say that after using the Graco FastAction Fold Click Connect stroller for a month it comes very close to my all-in-one stroller dream! My husband loves to run and has been wanting a jogging stroller forever, well needless to say, we both love it!

Some of my favorite features include the padded, multi-position reclining seat—this is great for us since we nap on-the-go some days. It comes with a child’s tray with 2 cup holders (one for water and one for milk?) and the snack tray completely removes for easy cleaning. The parent’s tray comes with a 2-way smartphone holder, covered storage and 2 deep cup holders. Let’s not forget my personal favorite—the extra large storage basket!

The Graco FastAction Fold Click Connect Jogger is being marketed as "the ultimate crossover stroller, combining all the comfort and convenience features of a traditional stroller (FastAction Fold and Click Connect Technology) with performance and maneuverability of an all-terrain jogger."

Some key features of this stroller's performance as an all-terrain jogger include a lockable front wheel, larger air-filled rubber tires and a hideaway hand strap for use when taking the stroller for a run.

Since the stroller is so light, I love that I can fold it using only one hand. I simply had to lightly pull on the strap hidden beneath the seat and in one second the stroller folds easily in half with it's own kickstand for self-standing.

{Mia enjoying the snack spread!}

{Wonderful presentation from our host, Wendy Wise at Whimsy and Wise.}

{all the Graco moms together}

If you follow the hash tag #GracoJogger on both Twitter and Instagram, you'll find pictures and news from the events held all across the country! Interested in learning more about the Graco FastAction Fold Click Connect Jogger? Check out the official Graco website here. This stroller is available for purchase at the following retailers: Amazon, Babies R Us and Buy Buy Baby. The jogger retails for $179.99 and the jogger/car seat travel system retails for $299.99. This jogger is compatible with any car seat that has the Click Connect Technology.

Graco’s NEW jogger is the ultimate crossover stroller, combining all the comfort and convenience features of a traditional stroller (FastAction Fold and Click Connect Technology) with performance and maneuverability of an all-terrain jogger.As an added bonus, Graco’s innovative one-second, one-hand FastAction™ fold automatically locks & is self-standing. This post is sponsored by Graco.

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