Valentine Tree and Week

Wow. What a week. For those who don't know, I teach 5th grade. We have a big writing assessment test coming up February 1st, so we have had jam pack days of writing, writing, writing! I love teaching and teaching writing, but there is a lot of pressure on the students AND the teachers. We have been working toward this all year, however, this is the last big push. The thought of, "How can I help them be their best?" hasn't left my mind in weeks. It's exhausting! I am glad the weekend is here, and I can enjoy my loves for the next two days before beginning again.

Oh! And here is my pretty little Valentine Tree. It is simple, fun, and makes me happy. :)

Dimensional Magic is My New Friend

Ok, so I have kind of become obsessed with Mod Podge's Dimensional Magic, and I have only used it for a few things! I still have a plethora of ideas! Love it. Love it. Love it. Today I am going to show you how I used it to turn old bottle caps into cool little magnets!
I really like to try to recycle as much stuff into crafts as I can, so I always keep wine corks and bottle caps. You never know when you will use them. This is a perfect example. For this project I used some buttons, bottle caps, D. Magic, hot glue, and button magnets. Best of all, these are super cute AND super simple.
1. Find something to go in the bottle cap. The possibilities are practically endless. I have used buttons, beads, pictures (those were really FUN!), scrapbook paper, stickers.... today I am using an apple button and a red gingham button.
2. Glue your button (or whatever) to the bottle cap. I used regular Mod Podge when I used scrapbook paper, but for this button I used hot glue. Press the button into the bottle cap.

3. Squeeze the liquid Dimensional Magic at an angle and fill the bottle cap. Try to be careful not to get bubbles. Caps must sit for a while to dry. I usually let mine sit overnight just to be safe.

4. Last, hot glue a button magnet onto the back.

I used these bottle caps to make these bookmarks at Christmas, and I made the other magnets below. Erin has used it to make charms out of scrabble tiles, which are really fun. I have to find some old wooden scrabble tiles, so I can make some, too! OH! I also used them on my New Year's Day gifts, here.

Colorful Valentine's

Aren't these just the cutest? I love the color! We have had a week (AN ENTIRE WEEK!) off of school/work because of snow. I thought this would be a great time to go ahead and get Cash's valentines ready since there was a little more time than usual. I debated for a while on what kind to make, and I knew I wanted him to take something that wasn't candy. However, we settled on this recycled crayon idea since we already had everything needed, and couldn't exactly get out to the store because of the snow and ice. Plus- Cash and I made these this past Easter to give to the kids at church, and he loved them. Check the tutorial here.

Valentine and St. Patrick's Day Charms

Jewel Kade has released these beautiful new Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day charms! Please contact me if you are interested.... Violetpixi@gmail.com or check out our JK website....JewelKade.com/TracyCrosby.

**ALSO, any purchases made through me between now and Jan.21st receives 15% off!! **

XOXO

Here is my Valentine wall. I needed to make things kind of festive around here. It's always so blahhhhh after taking down Christmas decor.

Classic Chicken Casserole

Now, I know that everyone out there already has a chicken casserole recipe. However, you don't have this one. :) It's the best one I have ever tried, and I always ALWAYS get rave reviews when it is served. It's in NO way dietetic, but it's definitely one of those yummy comfort foods that can get you through these cold winter nights. One of my dear old friends from college, Jonathan, gave me the recipe years ago. I think it might have been his moms...

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
4 cans of cream soup * I usually use 2 mushroom & 2 chicken.*
2 cups of chicken broth
16 oz of sour cream
2 sticks of melted butter
2 cups of instant rice
1 onion, chopped
olive oil
1 box of Ritz crackers

How To:
1. Cut up chicken into pieces. Cook in skillet with chopped onion and a drizzle or so of olive oil. You can add salt and pepper, or Tony's seasoning at this point if you'd like.

2. In a large bowl, mix cream soup, rice, broth, & sour cream.

3. Shred chicken in food processor, and add to bowl with soup mixture.

4. In a second bowl, crush two rows of Ritz crackers, and add melted butter.

5. In 9x13 casserole dish, add 1 layer of crushed crackers, then the chicken/soup mixture, followed by remaining crushed crackers.

6. Bake 30 minutes on 350 degrees.

** Sometimes to cut back on calories I use low fat soups and sour cream. Also, I usually use two smaller casserole dishes, and freeze one for a later date. This is a great dish to make if you are taking a meal to friends or family (After birth of baby, or death in family, etc.) In this case, I send one dish over, and keep one dish for my family. It's plenty for two families.**

"Painting" the snow

It's been snowing here since last night, and we have accumulated more snow than we've had in years! Of course, school was canceled! YAY! So we headed outside for some serious cold snow playtime. I remembered how Erin from A Bird and A Bean used spray bottles to paint the snow. I made my husband run inside, and whip up a bottle for Cash to use. He LOVED IT!! I do wish I would have remembered to look for some easier to use squirt bottles when I was at the Dollar Tree the other day, but that'll have to wait for next time. (To be fair, my mom reminded me to "paint" when we spoke on the phone.)
Super easy: water, food coloring, squirt bottle. DONE.
Squirt and color the snow to your heart's content!

A worn out bunch of Crosby boys!