A busy week for me and Chicken Tips

I really really really don't like to use my blog as a platform to complain (that's why I am hardly ever on facebook).  And I really don't want to complain.  More like, explain why I am not posting everyday right now.  Which, I know, is a ridiculous expectation that I put on myself.  I get that.  And I don't like how it feels to be under (my own) pressure to crank out an awesome tutorial or awesome post  SO I am just not going to put that pressure on myself.  At least at the moment.  I have too much going on at home- with my kids and family- that require my attention.  In fact as I type this I am being badgered by my husband to review some movies that our daughter has been watching in school and says "scare" her.  This is important.  My Stella's birthday is this week, also important.  My sleep is important.  Showing you the adorable shoes that Stella and I glittered up this weekend- well, important but it can wait.  Yes?  Today, I had great plans to go shopping for birthday presents but my oldest son needed to come home from school sick just as I was halfway to the store.  Big wrench in my plans.  So I had to go tonight, flying out the door after dinner.  Not ideal.

What I did get done today was some cleaning and I cut up about 10 lbs of chicken!  I hate cutting up chicken.  It is disgusting to me.  But it is a huge time saver and money saver so I have to do it.

It took only took about 30 minutes to cut up all this chicken.  (plus about 5 min to set up and 5-10 to label bags and clean/disinfect everything).  I put about 3 pieces of chicken in a bag.  Today I got 7 bags/meals from the 10 pounds- just depends on what I plan to make.  Here's my tutorial on chicken.

 In about 30 minutes...it all looks like this!

I flatten out the bags so they defrost quicker and stack nicely in the freezer.  Ten pounds...cleaned and trimmed...cut into different size pieces...easy to pull out of the freezer...ready to cook in the coming weeks.

Spray Painted Girls Shoes

I knew I had an opportunity to try spray painting shoes when my daughter's school shoes came home looking like this.

I mean, they were now pretty ugly.  And I couldn't just "sharpie" them like I did to her black shoes.  It's too bad, too because these were her favorites.

Until NOW!

Now THESE are her favorites!

And mine, too.  I really think mama needs a pair just like this!

All I did was tape off the soles and stuff a bag inside.  I also had to tape off the velcro and the underside of the foot strap.
To be honest, I wasn't sure how to deal with all of the peeling vinyl.  I thought it would show so I wanted to peel it off a bit of the edges.  One shoe did fine with this.  But when I started to peel the second shoe...the whole thing came up!  I was freaking out at this point.  But really, it was too late to turn back now.  So I just peeled until I thought it wouldn't be that noticeable.

I used a plastic primer spray paint (because I already had it) on the unpeeled shoe.  I am not sure if it was beneficial or necessary though.  And I definitely needed two coats of the blue on both shoes.  The peeled shoe soaked up a lot of the paint after the first coat and I didn't think they were going to match in finish.  But after everything had dried, they seemed to match just fine!  I was so excited about how these turned out!  My daughter was too!

** I actually think the shoe that had the vinyl peeled off had a better result.  These shoes have been worn around the house for two days now and so they already have some minor scuffing on the blue paint.  But the peeled part was not scuffed at all.  It was a pain on my fingers to peel the shoe, but for this type of surface (fake patent leather) it seemed to be worth it.

I still have blue paint left...I am really wanting blue shoes, too.


Linking here:

It’s A Hodgpode Life ~ Fingerprints on the Fridge ~ Chic on a Shoestring Decorating ~ The Shabby Nest ~ Simple Home Life ~ Lovely Crafty Home ~ Whipperberry

{Pinned It, Did It} A Baby Bib

Oh I have had this one pinned for quite a while, just *waiting* for someone to have a baby girl so I could make it!  Then it still took me a couple more months to actually make it, wrap it, send it...OH and ask my friend to send me pictures because I forgot to take them myself!

And...Isn't she a cutie?!
In case you are wondering- this is my friend's baby!  You can already tell by those fingers how adorable she is!!!!!  The bib is still a little big, but she is only going to grow, right?  The back of it was made with a soft pink flannel.  I found both fabrics at Hobby Lobby.

Here is the original post by Jess at Craftiness Is Not Optional.  

She has a free pattern, too.

Source:  Craftiness Is Not Optional

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And, I just can't resist the chance to gush about one of my favorite blogs, too:  Craftiness is Not Optional

If you think this is cute, you need to stop by her blog.  Jess is very, very talented at sewing!  Her little girl dresses make me wish that I was a size 2T so I could fit into them!  I love every single thing that girl makes!

All I can say, is do NOT be surprised if you find me in a shirt like this one day!
I will find a way to supersize it to fit me.

Source:  Craftiness Is Not Optional

Sad Mac and happy Friday

You know when you spend all day baking all kinds of yummy cookies and then you really don't eat any because you filled up on so much dough??

Well I am kinda feeling like that tonight with my computer.

I have been working on it all afternoon and evening trying to fix a few "issues" and I just can't look at another photo on my computer tonight! In fact, I am blogging from my phone right now! I had a cute post about my past travels lined up but it's going to have to wait til next week. I just can't fuss anymore about my computer (or printer). Hopefully, Saturday we will work on our Mac and get these problems fixed. As for today, I am all headache about it! But I am still here. Just working behind the scenes and trying not to put my printer in the driveway and back over it a few hundred times!

Happy Friday, friends!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

no reply-comment@blogger means no reply to you, from me

Dear friends,

It always makes me sad when I get a great comment and then I click reply in my email and I see this: no-reply blogger@blogger.com


See, when you leave me a super awesome comment, blogger sends me an email to let  me know!  (awesome.)  Then I can read it right away. (awesome.)  But if your email address is not linked to your blogger profile then I can't email you back (not awesome.)

This is just an example...this is what i see:

I know that is not your email address.  It is not anyone's email address.  

Laura Beth from A Step in the Journey has put together a great tutorial on how to change this.

If you aren't sure if you're a no-reply blogger, then just please, please, please go and look at her tutorial and decide.  

I have a small blog.  And I do my very very best to reply to everyone who contacts me.  I just need your email.

Love, 

Kate