Luc-kee Pooh-kee and Me

(Pronounced Lou-kee Pooh-kee)

Luc and I had some fun with Photo Booth on the Mac.




Isn't he just tooooo stink'n cute?!

WINNER of Giveaway!!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the giveaway!
I plan to have more giveaways in the near future, so stay tuned....


Without further anticipation...

My winner is Mary Ellen who said

"Found you via Pink Saturday! Nice to meet another sister in Christ though I will have to be the older sister in this case!
Became a follower of your sweet blog! "

Mary Ellen- please email me ASAP!
Violetpixi@gmail.com


Thanks again friends...

Mantle Remade

Now that summer is hitting us full force, I figured it was time to change up the "spring" decor. Here's the new freshened up mantle. I wanted to hang the frames to have a better gallery wall, but we are in the process of selling our house. My hubz didn't want me to put any more holes in the walls. :)
I went through the attic and found any photo frames that weren't being used. A few of them I left black, and a few I painted with my new favorite blue color. I left a few of them empty, and put scrapbook paper behind two.
This one is hanging because there was already a nail in the wall from a previous hanging. It seemed kind of hollow, so I used a strip of material to run through the middle. On the material, two small frames are hung. Again, we are trying to sell our house, so most of our personal pics have been put away for house showings. I didn't want to leave these little frames empty, so I found some interesting images in a magazine for them. I also really like the POP of the only red frame.


As usual, I am completely obsessed with jars, and as of late...painted jars. Simply get yourself some spray paint, and get to it spraying the inside of the jar. Let dry. BAM! You're done! There was a chipboard embellishment that I thought would work great, so I slapped that on a jar with some twine. Some small candles have been placed inside the candles for a little evening ambiance.

I saw this idea for the doilie on Crafts by Amanda. For this painted jar, I used spray adhesive. Spray the doilie, then roll the jar on top of it. Soaking the doilie in paint dyed it the bluish color.

Spicy Grilled Chicken Salad with Salsa Vinaigrette

There's just something about summer that makes me want to cook. This is sooooooomewhat unusual because my hubz actually does 98.9% of the cooking. (I take care of the baking.) However, in the summer there is so much wonderful fresh fruit and veggies everywhere that I can't help but get inspired. I also really like "light" meals, so summer is purrrrrrrrrfect!

Anyway, I finally had a chance this week to get started on some new recipes I have been dying to try. Saturday night we gave Balsamic Pasta a whirl, and it was fantastic.(I used the that comes up from the link, but I used cheese ravioli.) Afterward, I told the hubz it was my new favorite meal...he responded with, "Really? Favorite? Just like that? It surpasses every other good meal you have EVER had?" I combated with a solid, "YUP!" You should definitely try it.

Last night, we tried this recipe. We really like it, too. In fact, Mr. Critical aka...hubz...even commented, " This dressing is really good." This is monumental because he's kind of a foodie.
Ingredients

	1/2 cup(s) salsa
	1/4 cup(s) red onion(s), chopped
	2 Tbsp cilantro, fresh, chopped
	1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
	1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
	1 tsp Dijon Mustard
	1/4 tsp table salt
	1 pound(s) Chicken, breast, raw, without skin & bone, 4 (1⁄4-pound) halves
	1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning
	1 tsp olive oil
	4 cup(s) mixed greens, salad blend
	1 medium sweet red pepper(s), seeded and thinly sliced
	1 item(s) (medium) bell pepper(s), yellow variety, seeded and thinly sliced
	1 medium tomato(es), chopped
	1/2 medium avocado, peeled and chopped

Instructions

• To make the salsa vinaigrette, puree the salsa, onion, cilantro, lime juice, vinegar, mustard, and salt in a food processor or blender; set aside.
  
  
• Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with the Cajun seasoning. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until lightly browned and cooked through, about 4 minutes on each side. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board. Let stand 5 minutes, and slice into 1⁄2-inch-wide strips.
  
  
• Place the salad greens and bell peppers in a large bowl. Top with the chicken, tomato, and avocado. Serve with the vinaigrette on the side. Yields one piece of chicken per serving.

Don't Forget: Today is the last day to enter the Jewel Kade Jewelry giveaway!! There is $74.00 worth of beautifully unique jewelry ready to be sent out to a lucky winner!

Linking to:

Sew Much Ado

Red, White, & Blue - Berries...YUM!!

Yummy ANNNNNND patriotic. Awesome!

Seriously, just LOOK at these things....God Bless America!

Of course, the most fabulous part of this whole "Red, White, and Blue...I love you, " thing is that (well yes!) it's super easy. (That's starting to become my motto.)

*Purchase the white chocolate of your choice. I went with a bag of
Ghirardelli.
*Purchase strawberries
*Purchase sprinkles
*Melt chocolate according to package's directions
* Dip clean strawberries into chocolate, leaving a little red of the berry left at the top.
* Before you lay the covered berry onto wax or freezer paper, sprinkle the bottom with blue sprinkles.
* Let dry

By the end of it, I just poured the sprinkles into a ramekin and dipped the covered berry into it.

There you have it.
Summer.
Patriotism.
Chocolate.
What more could you ask for?

DON'T FORGET: YOU CAN STILL ENTER MY JEWEL KADE GIVEAWAY!! THERE IS STILL TIME!
You could win a Pearl Drop necklace (worth $34) , AND a Golden Key charm (worth $40) !! These are beautiful pieces of Jewel Kade Jewelry!!

Linking with:

Raising Memories
Crafty Geordi
Skip to My Lou
Sumo's Sweet Stuff
The House in the Roses
Sew Can Do

Father's Day for the Hubz

DON'T FORGET: If you haven't entered my giveaway...THERE IS STILL TIME! You still have four more days, but don't wait. Enter now!

Since the hubz was around when I made my step-dad and grandfather their gifts,
I didn't want his gift to be the exact same. However, I knew he would LLLLLLOOOVEEEE some yummy trail mix..especially if it was made to his specifications. :) "The Croz Recipe:Ultimate Trail Mix," or something like that. Ok, so I made THE ULTIMATE TRAIL MIX, and put it in Crystal Light containers...(will get to that in a sec)...And then I needed a container to fit them in. Luckily, Luc just got some new shoes, so his tiny shoe box was the perfect size. I covered it in paper, and glued on this Subway Art from A Proffittable Life It was printed 5x7 size, but I cut it in half. One size on front of box and one on back. Worked perfect!
I told you guys that these Crystal light containers came in handy! These are a great size to grab and take on the go...out the door or onto the couch! I found these super cute printable ties at It's Always a Party at the Parkers. I am going to hang the Tie Banner, too, but didn't want the hubz to see it before tomorrow. ;)

Thank goodness for all you lovely ladies who provide free printables! Made life easy for me today! :)

Hope everyone has a wonderful day tomorrow celebrating all those fabulous fathers out there!

Much love to our own Poppa Ken and Grandpere Crosby.

- Tracy

OH!! I almost forgot!!
Andre's ULTIMATE TRAIL MIX recipe:
1 can of Cashews
1 can of mixed nuts
1 BIG bag of Peanut M & M's
3 boxes (movie boxes) of Rasinettes
1 med. bag of Banana chips

I know this isn't exact, but I highly doubt it matters...:)

Linking to:

I {heart} Naptime
Under the Table and Dreaming
Petite Hermine

Six Pack of Sweets: Father's Day

DON'T FORGET: If you haven't entered my giveaway...there's still time!!

This past week the family went on a week vacation to my parent's house on the coast of North Carolina. Since we would be here the week before Father's Day, I thought I would go ahead and bring Poppa Ken his gift.
I saw these cute six packs floating around blog land last year, and wanted to try it out. Turns out...really easy...and I think it turned out pretty darn cute!
I kept a six pack of hard lemonade bottles and the container they come in. I peeled of the labels pretty easily, only having to use a little GOO GONE on a few tough spots. The new Father's Day labels were made just using Word, nothing fancy. I used a little spray adhesive (Elmer's) to attach labels to bottles. After priming the tops of the bottle caps, I sprayed them with black paint. There was a text to my mom to find out my step-dad's favorite snacks...then I filled the bottles up with the said snacks, and topped them off with the newly shinned up bottle caps.
(I kind of forgot to take pic's until AFTER my step-dad had gotten a hold of the snacks...that's why the bottles don't look super full.) :)
To cover the 6 pack container, just use some scrapbook paper or card stock. Measure the sides, cut, and again, use the spray adhesive.


The Six Pack of Sweets was topped off with a chocolate bar treat, thanks to The Idea Room printable.

Hope you all are thinking (and posting! ) of fantastic ways to show your hubz, pop, or friends
Happy Father's Day!