cereal-ously, the possibilities are endless

Honey Nut Cheerios. Life. Frosted Flakes. You name it, my family likes it. Though cereal is not an everyday occurrence in our house, for me, it’s been a weird craving lately. All I want at 3 in the afternoon is a bowl of Nature’s Path Organic Flax Plus Pumpkin Raisin Crunch with a large handful of raw pumpkin seeds and chia seeds added to it, and then Soy milk to top it off. Yummy.

So, I got to thinking…cereal is such a favorite childhood treat/snack/meal, and it’s a favorite among adults too – so the possibilities for cereal being incorporated into other areas of our life have to be abundant {and fun}?! I was right. Here are 10 ways to use cereal…other than in your bowl.

You can throw a party, like this fabulous one at Million Dollar $mile Celebrations

You can make it your menu items…literally…just like JacOlyn Murphy.

You can make jewelry like Armelle did here.

Cereal can be a prop in an invite like this one from Mer Mag.  

It can be the most adorable favor ever. You can buy the tubes here at Lola Loves A Party on Etsy.

And just when you thought it wasn’t for grown-ups or done in a vintage manner, think again. This couple featured on Wedding Chicks had a great cereal bar.

 Off Beat and Inspired shows us how to upcycle cereal boxes for lovely gift tags.

Cereal can be edible decor on dessert too, like these adorable sunflower cupcakes by Skip to My Lou.

And, let’s not forget cereal bars. This take on cereal bars, Blueberry Pecan Cornflake Bars by Momofukufor2, looks delish.

Before you throw the cereal box away, it can be re-used in such a clever way, a gift box…and its as easy as wrapping a standard boxed gift with wrapping paper. Learn more at Spoonful.

{images via Million Dollar $mile Celebrations, Jacolyn Murphy, Armelle, Mer Mag, Lola Loves A Party, Wedding Chicks, Off Beat and Inspired, Momofukufor2 and Spoonful}

to: dad

We found some great gifts for the men in our lives, as we celebrate them on Sunday, Father’s Day. Cheers to dad! I know we have the best dad in the world, and I know my kids are blessed to have my hubby as a dad too.

Billy Jealousy Shave Cream, Nordstrom
{my husbands fave}

The Mantry
sold in one month, 3 month and 6 month subscriptions. Each Mantry includes 6 full size artisan food products delivered to your door and packed in a handmade wooden crate, along with a custom manual detailing product stories and recipes.

Corkcicle Chillsner
Corkcicle impressed us with the wine Corkcicle, and now they are pleasing the men too, the first in-bottle, drink-through beer chiller. Perfect for those hot summer days where no one wants a warm beer in hand.

Cigar of the Month Club
For $24.95 a month, plus $5 shipping, your dad will receive five hand-rolled premium cigars from the world’s top producers, along with a newsletter with tasting notes, cigar profiles and alcohol pairings. Shipments will be sent monthly, every other month or every 3 months.

Horseshoe Set, LL Bean {$69}

Brew2Go, The Product Farm
Hopefully you bought mom a Vino2Go for Mother’s Day, so now Dad can be a part of the cocktail action too with a Brew2Go.

Star Trek Wine, VinPort
If your dad is a cool Trekky like ours, he will love this bottle of wine that celebrates the series.

Men’s Santa Cruz, Crocs {$55}
my dad loves these

{image via Corkcicle, The Mantry, Cigar of the Month Club, Crocs, LL Bean, VinPort, The Product Farm}

its picnic time


June 18 is International Picnic Day. Save the date. Find a date. Or be your own date. And pack a snack.

1. Take the time to think about the space and ambiance…pick a pretty blanket, make it comfortable with pillows, find a beautiful spot, think about lighting with summer lanterns, candles or tiki torches, bring flowers in a basket, and pack an ipod player to really set the mood.

2. Use acrylic or melamine plates – there are bold and bright plates available now at Pottery Barn like these. Invest in Vino2Go’s for everyone, because they are fabulous and you will use all the time {you can buy at Fleur de Lis at 303.996.6885}. I am obsessed with this Mason Jar Cocktail Shaker from Terrain {$48} for other cocktails.

3. Don’t forget to pack a wine opener, utensils, knife, garbage bag for easy clean up, napkins and a knife. We love this idea of making Clip-On Picnic Utensils by Oh Happy Day – utensils attached to a paper bag.

4. Food should be easy to transport and eat – pack sandwiches, fruit salads, kabobs, salad, pasta salad, etc.
 Spring Orzo Pasta Salad with Asparagus and Artichokes, Food for My Family
Cheesecake in a Jar, I am Baker
my all-time favorite because it brings me back to my days in Italy Brie, Baguette, Grapes and Salami
Sliced watermelon

Our Picnic Necessities
LL Bean Horseshoe Set {$69}
Kate Space Picnic Blanket, Kate Spade
Picnic Basket Tote, Swoozies {$28.95}
Mason Jars for food, candles, flowers and drinks {found at Amazon}

{images via Everything Fab, We Heart It, RoveristaFood for My Family, I am Baker, Kate Spade, Oh Happy Day, Catch my Party, Swoozies and LL Bean}

beer birthday cake


My hubby turned 30 recently…and I must say, he’s hotter and more amazing than ever. He seems to get better with age…good for me! He had a wonderful dinner celebration with friends and family at his favorite steakhouse, received most of the things on his list and the ultimate gift for us to enjoy is a trip together {maybe Nashville or Cali wine country} without the kiddos to celebrate our 30th birthdays. {Now I just have to get over my fear of flying…working on it but it’s not going so well as the flight is not yet booked}.

Being a DIYer, I wanted to create something fun for him from the kiddos and me that included some of his favorite things and the number 30. The end result was a beer, sparkling water and ice cream cake, topped off with cigar candles.

Ingredients
12 Stella Cans of Beer
4 Guinness Cans of Beer
7 glasses of Pellegrino Sparkling Water
1 Dreyers Cookies and Cream Ice Cream
2 spotify gift cards
1 pair of designer glasses
3 cigars
= 30 gifts

And, to make it more special, the kids and I listed all the reasons why we love daddy/Tommy, and the kids wrote special notes too.

How To
Enlist adorable and priceless help from your kiddos

Write love notes/reasons why we love you notes on small pieces of paper, punch a hole in the corner of each one and use twine to attach to each beer/gift on your ‘cake’


Find the spot where you want to display your cake because once you make/layer it’s really hard to move {i did have to hide it for a little bit in a big box, so if you need to do that, just make sure each layer is on a separate base}.
Place the beer, or bottom layer of your cake in the shape you want – I created a circle with each beer next to each other.
Find a cake pan or strong base for your second/middle layer. I used a small metal cake pan base {the kind where the side can be removed}.
Add your second layer, which in my case was bottled water. Because my hubby likes the bottles, I used 2 cans of the Pellegrino Sparkling Water on the inside of the circle so top layer {half-gallon of ice cream} would fit snugly in between the bottles.


I used a hot glue gun to securely place the bottles exactly where I wanted them to be, with the base of each bottle ‘hanging’ of the edge of the cake pan {the hot glue was easily removed from the cake pan post celebration}.
Empty the ice cream half-gallon in another frozen-friendly container or buy 2 and eat one before you make the ‘cake’ so the ice cream doesn’t melt.
Use a knife to slit 3 x’s on the lid of the gallon ice cream container to tightly fit the cigars.
Add the cigars.

Wrap each cake layer with thick burlap or rope

Place other gifts, such as gift cards, glasses, etc around the cake
Get your vocal cords ready to sing ‘happy birthday’ to your loved one

{images via Tutto Bella}

its a beautiful day in the neighborhood

When you were young, did you watch Mr. Rodgers? I did, so I can just hear these lyrics over and over in my head...it’s a beautiful day in a neighborhood, a beautiful day for a neighbor.

My friend and her family just moved into the neighborhood…I’m thrilled and so our my kids. As we all know, moving is so stressful and the last thing we want to do is cook a meal while surrounded by boxes and overwhelmed with exhaustion. With the help of Jenna at Fleur de Lis, my homemade spaghetti sauce and peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies, and a trip to the grocery store, I made a lovely basket to take to my neighbor to welcome her to the neighborhood.

If you have a new neighbor, take the time to welcome them with Fleur de Lis welcome to the neighborhood labels. Yay for you because Jenna is offering them for FREE. Download here.  It doesn’t even have to be gourmet – just a simple meal accompanied with cute printables. A lovely “Martha” touch. 🙂

For my basket, I included:
homemade pasta sauce in large Mason jar
noodles
parmesan cheese
salad {along with an avocado, carrots, etc for salad}
salad dressing
cookies

Be sure to follow Jenna on Facebook to get dibs on more free printables in the future and follow our inspiration boards on Pinterest too.

{images via Tutto Bella}