Stirring up some love for Valentine's Day

 We spent a lot of time in the kitchen this Valentine's Day stirring up some love.  The girls and I made these little muffins for breakfast before we took our youngest to her "library class".  Then we whipped up my husband's favorite dessert (the strawberry pretzel salad below). Yum and yum!  I enjoy these care free times with the girls during the day. As you could see, we took it easy today with the books. This was hands on time : )  

Flourless Banana Oatmeal Muffins

2.5 cups of oats

2 ripe bananas

1/2 cup of honey

2 T of flax

2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup greek yogurt

optional: I threw in some chocolate chips in honor of the holiday ; ))))

Mix well and bake on 400 for about 10-12 minutes.

Then, we spent some time making good old fashioned home made Valentine cards : )  Can't beat those precious gifts.

Love...

is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 

1 Corinthians 13

Happy Valentine's Day all!

This and that: coffee sack art

I wanted to share a recent project that my husband is actually working on.  We have often seen these large burlap sacks that coffee beans are transported in and really liked them, but we never had a clue what we would do with them.  We like them for two reasons: they remind us of our travels to Central and South America and our addiction  enjoyment for coffee : ) 

Well, thanks to the creative mind of a friend (thanks TJ!), we will soon have some on display in our house.  

On a recent trip to a large discount store in our area, my husband spotted the burlap sacks and they were only 99 cents.  Woo hoo!  You can still smell the scent of the coffee beans.  He also found the near perfect frames large enough to display them for $4.99 each.

All he did was cut the sack to fit the frame.  He then placed the glass behind the sack to keep it in place and wrinkle free.  Yes, it was that easy!  We have one more that is not finished yet, so I will post an update later.  

So...we will have a nice coffee sack display for less than $20.  Thanks babe!

...and the greatest of these is LOVE.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor. 13:13

Nature's decor {this and that}

I am a lover of nature. Our Heavenly Father is the best artist! My favorite things to look at are the stars, rainbows, the moon, flowers and bodies of water.....all things natural. Aren't they amazing?!?

One day recently, I was looking out the window and spotted these little "green guys" hanging in a tree outside. I thought they would be so fun to decorate with.

They are hedgeapples and they were fun to create with.

Anyway, that's it! Just had to share.

(Another great aspect - they were free! )