Sugar and Spice {a giveaway}

I'm so excited to be hosting my first giveaway,

and honored that Jesse

of Sugar and Spice

wants to hook you up with an amazing gift!

{great way to start the week, huh?!}

Sugar and Spice specializes

in creating one of a kind, beautifully romantic

jewelry pieces

Take a peek at some of her creations

gorgeous, right?

well, it's your lucky day
because Jesse is giving you the chance to win

to her etsy shop!

eeeeek, exciting!

Now, before you start jumping up and down,

let me tell you the 5 ways that you can enter!

{yes, I said 5!}

Please leave a separate comment for each entry you complete.

1. Mandatory: be a public follower of the Alexandra Rose blog, and leave a comment telling me that you are.

2. Visit the Sugar and Spice Shop, and come back here and leave a comment with how you would spend the $20 shop credit.

3. Become a fan of Sugar and Spice on facebook and leave a comment on her wall that you stopped by from Alexandra Rose

4. Become a fan of Alexandra Rose on facebook

5. Blog, facebook, or tweet about this giveaway and then leave a link here.

The winner will be announced on Sunday, April 24th {Easter!}

But, just in case you can't wait an entire week

{I know I couldn't}

Jesse is offering up a free shipping code

that you can start using now!

head on over to the sugar and spice shop

and enter the code

SWEETSHIP

at checkout to receive free shipping on your entire order!

Good luck and happy shopping!

Sunday Snapshots...

...a few photographs of our weekend
{have I mentioned how much I adore weekends?!}

getting every last drop of milk...

trying to be like daddy...



and a few fish-lipped naps.

Enjoy Sunday!

vote for us here:

Fabulous Finds {because it's friday}

Happy Friday!

I'm loving a really random mix of things this week

{but I suppose that's somewhat reflective of me}

Pretty sure I say this every week,

but I'm sooooo ready for spring.

Today it's pouring rain and super stormy.

I hope it's much nicer where ever you are.

Regardless, I hope you enjoy today's finds!

My Bella Baby specializes in beautiful baby products! I adore the soft minkey washies and the bella booties!

{they almost make me ready for another baby, almost}

Lollielicious Designs  has the cutest handmade felt hair accessories at amazing prices! I love the hoot hoot owl hair clip set!

belleterre offers the most luscious organic face and body products!

They use recycled packaging and donate 5% of all sales to charity!

And I adore these amazingly romantic dresses from RiverOfRomansk

Have a fab Friday!

Awkward & Awesome

Let's just get right into it this week...

there's never a shortage of crazy events around here!

Awkward:

Finding an ant in my coffee {he was certainly not invited...and yes, in case you were wondering, I drank the rest}

Having my son poop on my mom while she was trying to get him in the bath tub {why do we have so many potty issues?!}

Having a police man BANG on my front door late at night to ask if we knew whose full size semi-truck was running {yes, we do...our neighbor who plays the tuba...yep, it's his}

Awesome:

Walking through the grocery store and stopping at every life size M&M so that my son can hug them {this really was pretty precious}

getting our freshly fixed car back from the shop! {yay!}

this website, and the petite lap giraffes they have! {hubby is being a kill-joy and telling me they're fake...I'm not listening...and I want one for my birthday}

cute, right?

How was your week?!

I love hearing how awkward and awesome you were

Link up here!

Isaiah's Daddy...

Is so sweet.

This is my

{ok, who am I kidding} 

living room.

they're having 'man time'

aka - watching basketball from under the fort.

{I adore his chunky baby thighs}

I'm so thankful that Isaiah is blessed enough to have

a wonderful daddy who loves him.

Vote for us here!

Broccoli & Feta Stuffed Sweet Potatoes {a new recipe}

Today was a little off...

I'm super tired,

didn't wash my hair,

and I look like a mess.
{for reals}

But hey,

the sun was shining,

we went to the park

and I even tried a new recipe for dinner!

While I am sticking to my goal of making at least one recipe from my Moosewood cookbook,

I have not been posting them!
{Sorry!!}

This recipe was super easy,

really filling

and absolutely delicious!

{perfect for a frazzled day like today}

Here's the recipe:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes {I am a spice wuss, so I left these suckers out}
• 4 cups finely chipped broccoli
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1. In a large skillet on high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes {or not} and cook until the garlic is golden, about a minute. Add the broccoli and stir-fry for a couple of minutes. Add the water and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered until most of the water has evaporated and the broccoli is tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the salt and pepper and set aside until the sweet potatoes are baked {we were short on time, so I actually cooked my potatoes in the microwave...not exactly my favorite way, but it got the job done}.
2. When the sweet potatoes have baked, cute them in half lengthwise and scoop out the pulp, leaving a shell at least 1/4 inch think. Set the shells aside. Mash the pulp a bit and stir it into the broccoli mixture, along with the feta cheese.
3. Fill the baked sweet potato shells with stuffing, serve each separately, or push the halves together, with the stuffing showing between the two shells.

And that's it!

This was seriously soooo simple and quick!

{especially if you use the microwave}

We had asparagus and salad with ours, and it was such a yummy meal!

I hope you try it!!





Fabric Card Tutorial

I love handmade cards,

and I make them for almost every occasion,

but I found myself in a bit of a rut.

{I'm not the most crafty paper person, I can admit it}

so I decided to turn to my sewing machine for a little inspiration!

{she never lets me down!}

This is incredibly easy,

and doesn't even require a step by step tutorial,

but I had fun making this, and took lots of pictures,

so I thought I'd write one up anyway!

First things first,

gather your supplies!

You'll need scissors, a card, some scrap fabric and sewing machine
{needle and thread will totally work too!}

Next, cut your fabric into strips,
and arrange them on the card!
{seriously, this is where you can get creative...any color, pattern, design...you name it!}

And then,
{you guessed it}
you sew those bad boys down!
{I sewed a line right down the middle, but please, do whatever your heart desires!}

Now you have a super cute card with little fabric ears...and that's not really flattering...
So...

Snip them off :)

{well, unless you like them...then leave 'em}

And...TaDa!

You've created a custom card!

But...I still think it's missing a little special something...

So I added a ruffle!
{duh!}

and Voila!
The finished product!
{I forgot to take a picture once I snipped off the extra ruffle fabric, but I think you get the idea}

I promise you that whoever receives this card will
LOVE the fact that you gave them something personal,
and handmade.

So go ahead...create one, or 7...
{they're a little addicting}
you've been warned :)


happy crafting!

I kicked my husband's boo-tay...

...at mini air hockey.

That's right.

I'm basically a pro.

{want an autograph?}

And those are my super angry game faces to prove how hard core I am.

{are you scared?}

This would be my husband's attempt at a mean face...

{he could use more practice}

 I should also probably fill everyone in with a little disclaimer:

the statement "I kicked my husband's boo-tay"

really means:

I totally suck at mini air hockey and scored about 6 goals on myself and hubby won.

hands down.

Good thing I'm not a sore looser :)

Oh, and I would like to say that whoever invented mini air hockey

is a genius.