31 Pins in 31 Days - Wrap-up

For my first blog focus, I decided to bring some of my "Pins" to fruition.  I hated the thought of pinning and pinning without really trying anything.  Therefore, I set my mind to it and completed 31+ Pins during the month of October.  They are documented and linked-up below for reference.... and to remind myself of what has been accomplished. :)

Day 1... Spin Photography
Day 2... Conversation Starter Jar
Day 3... Spaghetti Bread
Day 4... Crochet Infinity Shawl
Day 5... Jewelry Organizer
Day 6... Placemat Tool Belt
Day 7... Complete Breakfast Muffins
Day 8... KFC Chicken @ Home
Day 9... Wax-dipped Fall Leaves Decor
Day 10... Bleach Spray T-shirt
Day 11... Pumpkin Spice Latte
Day 12... 3-2-1 Cake
Day 13... I Corinthians 13 Wedding Decoration
Day 14... Bible Verse Alphabet Cards
Day 15... Butterfinger Fudge
Day 16... Cricut Animal-Framed
Day 17... Cream Soup Base
Day 18... Cake Mix Brownie/Blondie
Day 19... Fall Baking
Day 20... Cupcake Onesies
Day 21... Jalapeño Popper Dip
Day 22... Thankful Thumb Print Tree
Day 23... Crochet Flower
Day 24... Coffee Bean Candle
Day 25... Simple Curtain
Day 26... Letter Learning Eggs
Day 27... Crochet Basket
Day 28... Crock Pot Corn Dogs
Day 29... Baked Sharpie Mugs
Day 30... Banana Pancake Muffins
Day 31... John 3:16 Valentine Art

Whew.  Thanks to all who tagged along for the journey!  I hope you will join me next October (or sooner) and blog about something 31 days in a row. :D

31 Pins: Day 31!!!!!!!!!

It is finished. Revelation 21:6

This is part of Elli's verse of the week AND I heard it on my favorite show tonight.  How fitting!

This caught my eye a few months ago.  It is really a bulletin board, but I haven't had a need for those for over 3 years now.  And I am not really into Valentine's Day, but I do have some friends with that last name.  :)

Original Pin:

This required the use of my Cricut.  For those who are unfamiliar, this machine cuts out letters, shapes, etc. based on different cartridges you have.  Then you just peel them off of the sticky mat they are cut on.

I ended up with a massive pile of little letters. :/

After a few minutes of digging, I had it all laid out... knowing full well it probably would not turn out exactly how I wanted it to look on the board.

Normally I would use a small glue pen for letters like this, but with this many... NO!  I just grabbed the Mod Podge and a paint brush and went line by line (it dries fast).

After I had all of the letters glued on, I went over top of them (and the entire board) again with more Mod Podge to give it a more finished look.

As you can see, it is a nice, glossy finish.  

Speaking of finish... this is it!  31 days of completing pins is over!

I will try to wrap it all up and link each post in a final post tomorrow.  Thank's for coming along for the ride and encouraging me with your messages, comments, and "likes"!

The Way, the Truth, and the Life!

31 Pins: Day 30

My kids won't eat much of anything.  I saw this idea on Pinterest at the beginning of the month and thought it would be a big hit.... they love bananas, they love pancakes, and they love syrup!

Original pin:

The ingredients are simple: 1 cup of pancake mix, 2/3 c water, 2/3 cup syrup, and one banana (quartered and sliced).  It calls for mini muffins, but I just went big.

Max was waiting so patiently... sitting at the table like a big boy.

I had a little extra batter, so I threw it in a skillet to see if it would actually make a pancake. As you can see, it was not very flippable.  Still tasted good though!

They cake out of the pan very easily.  I just flipped it and loosened with a fork.  They fell right out without sticking (I sprayed with Pam ahead of time).

You can cool these, flash freeze, and throw in a ziploc for easy storage and reheating.  

Of course, the kids would not eat them. :(  Maybe they will be in the mood later or tomorrow.  And I just might need to add some chocolate chips to sweeten the deal in the future!

31 Pins: Day 29

Pinned this one a while ago and have been wanting to try it out.  The bridal party had a large serving plate to sign at my cousin's bridal shower and I believe another cousin's wife did this with her kiddos.  I was going to get some dishes/mugs at the dollar store, but ended up having just what I needed right here at home... thank goodness, because this hurricane weather is getting pretty crazy!

Original pin:

The original pin led me to an Etsy shop with some cute gifts.  I googled "baked sharpie mugs" and came up with this link for directions.

As you can see, I collect mugs and tea cups.

Found these beauties at an antique store in town for 10 cents a piece a few years back.

They look the same but have different manufacturers.  The one on the left has a bull on it. :D

I found a big mug/bowl so E could get in on the action.

We tried different colors and metallics.  The gold and silver were pretty dull, but the bronze worked nicely.

 I was having trouble deciding what to write or draw, and Josh suggested making one for coffee and one for tea.  I did not like the idea at first (this is normal), but then it started to make sense.  Normally, I pour myself a nice, big mug of coffee in the morning.  But, by the time I get to the second half it is freezing cold.  I thought, if I use a smaller cup and let the coffee sit on the warmer while I drink that, then I can have another small cup (that is HOT) when I am ready!  {They say you should not reheat coffee for whatever reason.} 

I baked them in the oven while we were making supper.  Those are asparagus on the top rack (drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with kosher salt).

You can see the big mug below on the bottom rack.  I figured, why not save some energy??

The site I found mentioned that using the dishwasher was out because the marker did not seem to hold up in there.  So, I will be hand washing.  And if it comes off, I can just redo it and add more.

31 Pins: Day 28

Do you know what happens when you take 26 lbs. of deer meat to the butcher shop to be made into hot dogs?  You get 52 POUNDS of HOT DOGS back! 

Don't get me wrong, we love hot dogs and that is one of the few meat items the kids will eat.  But hot dogs on buns is going to get boring.  I did some searching for casseroles and dishes with hot dogs as one of the ingredients.  

Original pin:

This is corn bread with hot dogs in it.  And cheese.  So, if you like corn dogs, you will definitely like this.  And if you like crock pot meals, then you will be excited to know I turned it into a crock pot recipe and it worked!

Mix up some corn bread batter according to the directions on the canister/bag.  I did not do the fresh veggies as directed, but threw in some minced onion and celery seed (and the pepper).  Cut/slice hot dogs and fry in butter.  Put hot dogs and cheese into corn bread mixture.  Spray crock pot with Pam.  Pour in batter.  Top with more cheese.  Set on high for about 3 hours.  Watch it if you can, because it was a little toasty by the time we got back from church.  

It was yummy!

31 Pins: Day 27

3-D!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is official, I have moved up in the crochet world and am very excited!  No, literally, I crocheted up!

Original pins:

I liked the look of the baskets on the left, but it led to a site where I had to pay for a pattern.  With millions of websites at my fingertips, I decided to go searching.  I found the pattern in the link below... which just happens to be the same site the pin on the right came from.  Go figure!

http://crochetincolor.blogspot.com/2012/02/chunky-crocheted-basket-pattern.html

The results:

I worked on this for 3-4 hours total, but I am still learning (and not using the right size needle/yarn), so it could go faster.

It isn't perfect, but it is functional. :)

Bad lighting, but this is closer to the actual color.

I finished the last row by doing a slip stitch all the way around except at the handles.  I did as many single crochets as I could fit by wrapping the yarn around the previous row.

I can't wait to see what I crochet next!

31 Pins: Day 26

Now THIS is a good use for plastic eggs!

Original pin:

Elli is really into letters right now.  She is picking them out left and right.  "Mom, that's a C!  I learned that letter!"  Brings a smile to my face to know that my efforts are paying off. :D

This pin is simple, yet versatile.

Even the little ones can get involved! (with supervision, of course... these do pose a choking hazard, so be careful!)

I matched up the egg tops and bottoms (some match in color, some don't for a bit more difficulty).  The site suggested stickers, but I just went with Sharpie.  Write the capital letter on top (the bigger part) and the lower case letter on the bottom.  

Separate and let the learning continue!

Also, you could place a small treat (m&m or sticker) inside of each egg.  Tell the child to find the Dd egg.  If he/she picks the right one the first time, they get the treat!  If not, save for next time.  Also, eggs can be hidden around the house.  With multiple kids, you can keep score of  who can find AND identify the most.  Or, forget the competition... kids love hunting eggs. :)

31 Pins: Day 25

2.5 years late, but done!

Josh finished the attic a couple of years back.  The only thing he asked of me was to make curtains.  I was busy with babies and working, so that got put on the back burner.  In the winter of this year, we made a trip to Surplus City and found some fabric.  It had just been sitting in my crafting supplies since then.  I did some (actual) pinning (of fabric) about a month ago, but that was it!  I had no idea what style of draperies I wanted to do and did not have a rod or anything.  I Pinned (pinterest) a few ideas on my "Nesting?" board the other night hoping for some inspiration.  Something must have sunk in, because I chose the cheapest rod at Walmart and it all came together.

Original Pin:

As you can see, there is not much room for mounting outside of the window frame.  So, the rod mounted inside the frame was perfect!

It is just a rectangle with hems, nothing exciting.

Drawn.

Now I just need something nifty to set on the sill.  I think I might have a ceramic bull or two lying around........