Showing posts with label Home Sweet Home. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Home Sweet Home. Show all posts

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Happy Easter!

The oldest Christian holiday is here: Easter! Calling it "Jesus' Ressurection Day" would be far more appropriate for expressing what it truly means, but it seems our kid & chocolate loving self is heavily drawn to the commercialized Easter as "the world" usually celebrates it: Welcoming Spring with a hint of Paganism (even though unknown to many) and yummy, colorful candy and chocolates - maybe adding the Easter Sunday Church visit, and most definitely dressing up to look very pretty on all those family pictures, right? Let's see the beauty in all of this, enjoy it and blame all the genius Marketing gurus who help make all those Easter eggs so irresistible to us all, little ones and big ones!

Here, a few pictures of our Easter morning before the kids got up!
Happy Easter!

How are YOU spending Easter Sunday this year?

These bunnies are so adorable...


These are Brazilian Easter Eggs! Tons of chocolate, for sure!

 Decorating the house with a few colorful pieces catches our attention and brightens up any room! The kids love it!

...give plants a little accent!

And last but not least, our Easter Tree entirely decorated by the kids!

Have a wonderful Sunday! Most of all, remember to share LOVE!

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Creating our Family Movie Library

When my sister and I were little, growing up in Rio de Janeiro we had one favorite movie we kept watching over and over again: "The Sound of Music". It was a Family Favorite. We had a copy on VHS in English - I must have been around 6 years old, and I wouldn't start learning English for another 5 years from then. Somehow, though, we "understood" the whole thing, loved the music and the characters. We played my sister was Gretl and I was Liesl!

Now it's my turn to create Family Favorites with our kids! They are still very young (3 and 5), however, it's a marvelous thing to be able to sit together and watch a movie; a movie we love....over and over! And right now we sort of have to watch it over and over because the movie is often interrupted by the girls who all of a sudden decide it's time to play with dolls, it's time for a snack or it's not time to stay seated quietly and watch a movie at all! It's the age thing...

Here is our list, so far, of Family favorites which are becoming a staple in our home:

  • The Sound of Music
  • Mamma Mia!
  • Mr. Popper's Penguins
  • High School Musical 1,2 and 3
  • Enchanted
  • Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
  • Annie
  • All of the Beethoven movies (the dog!)
  • All Shrek movies
  • Tangled (Rapunzel)
  • Camp Rock 1 and 2
  • Princess Diaries 1 and 2
  • Tinkerbell (all 3 movies)
  • The Smurfs


Do you watch movies at home? Does your family have a few favorites?
I wonder which of these will really stay with us, especially with the children, and which of these will be talked about when they grow older. It's so interesting to see how many "new" things we start learning from a movie as we grow. Of course I did not understand everything in The Sound of Music when I was a child as I do today. A child's innocence is truly precious and nowadays I treasure how a movie "grew" with me. Oh, and let's not forget about books! I will leave that for another post!

Creating wonderful memories is certainly part of a great life!

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sweet Surprise!

I took one of our dogs, Bo, to the Vet last week. While waiting in the reception area for our turn, I was browsing through a People magazine. I think it was one of the February 2013 editions. By coincidence, I opened the magazine on a "great ideas" recipe page, a sweet surprise. There it was: These pretty, pink hearts made of pie crust! I immediately fell in love, looked over the recipe quickly and decided I wanted it! I took a picture of it with my cell phone and made it into a weekend project to make with the kids! The recipe is from Catherine McCord, cookbook author and food blogger.

The small, crusty and flaky tarts have a sweet & tart taste and just melt in your mouth! Great for when guests come over for coffee & tea, or to give as a gift (great hostess gift)! Or, just as we did here today, eat them up while playing! The girls loved it, and let me tell you, my 5 year old is a very picky eater!...

Well, we didn't have a large heart-shaped cookie cutter, just small ones, so I used a wine glass to cut out rounds. It worked just as well. There are no artificial colors in this recipe, which I love! The bright pink color is truly achieved with delicious raspberries! Here is a photo and the recipe follows:



RECIPE FOR RASPBERRY TARTS:

Equipment you will need:

  • large, heart-shaped or round cookie cutter
  • A cookie sheet
  • parchment paper
  • strainer / sieve
  • spoons and whisk
  • measuring cups & spoons
  • fork, toothpick
  • 2 small bowls
  • a bit of flower 

Ingredients you will need:

  • 1/2 cup plus 10-12 fresh or defrosted frozen raspberries
  • 1/4 cup whipped cream cheese
  • 1 tbsp. Agave Nectar (I used light, not amber) - recipe says you can also use honey
  • 1 pkg. (14oz.) refrigerated pie crust
  • 1 tbsp. water
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. In a bowl mash together, 1/2 cup raspberries, cream cheese and agave/honey until mixed well.
  3. Unroll pie crust (2 rounds) on a very lightly flowered surface and cut out 20 shapes with your large cookie cutter.
  4. Top 10 shapes with 2 tsps. of the raspberry mixture, leaving a 1/4 inch border.
  5. Lightly brush border with some water.
  6. Cover these 10 shapes with remaining 10 shapes.
  7. Using a fork, gently press down on edges to seal.
  8. With a toohpick, poke about 3 holes in each tart.
  9. Place tarts on parchment-lined baking sheet.
  10. Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool completely. 
  11. Meanwhile, place the 10 remaining raspberries in a strainer set over a bowl. Press down on raspberries to release the juice. Whisk in water and powdered sugar until icing is very smooth.
  12. Spread on completely cooled tarts.
  13. Icing will set and be glossy on tarts. 

We loved these over here!! They were super easy to do, and are truly yummy! I hope you and your family can enjoy them too!

Monday, March 11, 2013

Pure, Essential, Therapeutic and Kind!

Our sense of smell does wonderful things to us...From creating a cozy-yummy atmosphere in your home when the smell of a delicious home-cooked meal emerges from the kitchen, to your favorite perfume that inspires you to feel powerful at work or sensual at night...From the warm smell our little babies have to clean sheets or the fresh flowers in the park...You get the idea! What would we do if we weren't able to use our sense of smell to create a better life?

I have long been a fan of this amazing Aromatherapy company called "Aura Cacia". Aura Cacia was founded in 1981 and uses nothing but pure essential oils of high quality combined with a strong belief for ethical environmental sustainability, giving back, no animal testing and minimal animal by-products (just beeswax).

In a nutshell, Aromatherapy is the healing through the use of essential oils extracted from plants. Essential oils exist in leaves, blossoms, roots and seeds of plants. Usually, these oils are massaged on the skin or scalp or inhaled. Different oils are used for different purposes, and a combination of oils can be even more effective. Some can promote relaxation, while others help reduce inflammation or energize you and make you happier. Some make a small place become more welcoming and others help purify the air. From my understanding the key is to realize that essential oils are not the same as synthetic fragrances, which will not have the same effect. High quality essential oils will usually cost you more, however, they last for a long time. If you'd like to learn more about Aromatherapy, follow this link here.

These small spray bottles in the 2 photos I took are some of the Aura Cacia essential oils I have and use at home. I love them all, and it's impossible to choose a favorite one, as each serves a different purpose. If you read the labels, you'll understand what I mean.


I find they have worked well on my pets, as well. I spray (with "Chill Pill") the area they sleep in a bit before we all go to bed, and not only does it smell very pleasant, but it seems to calm them down. I do the same in our room and it works well for us and the kids.


At the office, I find myself using "Pep Talk" a lot, as it motivates and inspires me to focus on positive thinking.  You see, our sense of smell can be healing! And here a great travel tip: "First Response" purifies the surrounding air/area. It can be used in hotel rooms, meeting rooms, cars, rental cars and can even be used to purify your hands, and anything you touch, like a telephone, door knobs, remote controls! Isn't this great? I use it in my car all the time. Once a week, my 4 dogs "bombard" my car, and I often have a little mess from the kids in the back seat. This essential oil mist comes in very handy all the time!

Do something good for yourself and others and positively impact your surroundings. This is just an example... I have long believed and used Aromatherapy. It's wonderfully healing. Everything always smells so great!

Last but not least, there is something I love even more about Aura Cacia! It has a "Giving back" program, where they give 1% of their sales back to organic farmers around the world in order to help them build their small communities. You can find out more about the company and its giving back program by clicking here.

Oh, by the way...Aura Cacia products can be bought online through their web site, and at other retail stores. I bought mine at my local "Vitamin Shoppe"! It makes for great gifts!...

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Make it special...

This weekend, make sure you make it special!

Make coffee time special and play with your senses. Have coffee outside in your garden, on the porch or by the lake. If it's cold, have coffee by the fire and play soft music. Sit on the floor with your pets or look at old family pictures. If the kids are around, have coffee while you color or while you watch a great family movie.

Make it special.
Start noticing more and more how each minute counts. Don't rush.

This is here at the house. My Brazilian Melitta "extra forte" coffee truly smells delicious! Did you notice the detail on the coffee mug? 


And if you don't like coffee, no problem...enjoy a great cup of tea! This reminds me...oh, how I'd love to enjoy a delicious Afternoon Tea one of these days again!

Happy Saturday morning and a beautiful weekend to all!

Monday, March 4, 2013

Love your Home!

 I am no interior designer, but here are two simple ideas to make your house homier, and ...so easy to do! These are pictures from my house taken by me.

The first two pictures show a nice, simple accent to an extra bathroom you may have at home. These flowers are artificial, however, they have a very nice feel to them and look rich and silky! Take good care of them, and you can reuse them over the years in different rooms! They bring color and warmth to any small room! There are so many places where you can buy these inexpensive decorations for your home or office. I suggest looking at Target, Joann's, Pier 1 Imports, Macy's, Kohl's, Williams Sonoma or Bed Bath & Beyond. Many options for many budgets!





Another idea I had a few years ago was to create a decorative wall with pictures instead of paintings. It makes for a very personal touch to any space. It's art work filled with love, really! You can choose similar frames or very different, colorful ones. That is a matter of personal taste. You can hang them up symmetrically like I did, sort of creating a square with rectangular frames. I have another wall with the kids' pictures. This one is of our beloved pets (still a few missing on there!)!

I love art created by others an appreciate it very much. But this idea brings LOVE into your home!

Most pictures tell a story you can forever remember. There is nothing like creating long lasting memories that put a smile on your face! One note: Choose pictures taken from up close, so that you can easily recognize who's on it from far away.

Happy Monday, and have a fantastic week!