Aaargh! A Pirate Party

Ahoy Mateys! This morning my oldest son was reminiscing about his 6th birthday party. It made me smile that he still thinks of it! So, here's a handful of snapshots from his pirate themed party. I hope 'ye enjoy!

Arrgh! Welcome to the party!

Enter at ye own risk!

First stop...Buccaneer Outfitters

Getting our little Pirates suited up for their adventure!

Filling up their tummies before the big battle and treasure hunt!

It rained that morning so the first half of the party was moved to the basement.  The black team gets their 'cannon balls' ready for battle!

We found the treasure maps!! Woo-hoo!

The rain finally cleared up, so our treasure hunt went on as planned outside. 

Searching for gold coins!

We found our treasures!!! Now onto some goodies to eat!

Daddy with two of his little pirates after the party!  Yo-ho-ho-ho!  

Making it Your Own: Minecraft Room Makeover

For our son's 10th Birthday he asked for a Minecraft-themed room. So, while we were stationed in Pensacola this summer my parents graciously offered to roll up their sleeves and help update his room within our budget. They make a great team! What a labor of love! Here's a look at how it turned out.

The showstopper of the room is the wall mural that my Mom and her friend, Debbie, created. They started with a Minecraft decal and painted the rest.

The fantastic finished product:

A cozy space...

Love the hand-painted creeper lamps and framed poster...

Looking good!  Even a real Minecraft treasure chest...

My Mom found a guy online who makes these unique wall mounts for Minecraft toy torches. Another huge hit!

Mission accomplished with a VERY happy birthday boy!

Thank you for sharing your talents with us, Mom and Dad!

Today I'm linking up with Remodel-aholic's Beautiful Room Makeovers.  Thanks for stopping by!

Falling into Fall: Transition Outfit

Every year about this time I find myself struggling to slowly transition my outfits from summer to fall. By the time Labor Day hits I'm ready to put away the bright colors, sundresses, and shorts and bring on fall's rich colors, skinny jeans and riding boots. But, the weather doesn't cooperate with my plan--it's still summer after all! I still struggle, but here's an outfit I wore last week that seemed to work with the warmer temps and had a bit of a fall vibe:

I found this light-weight plaid top at Charlotte Russe a couple of weeks ago and thought it would be a great transition piece. What are some ways you transition your wardrobe to fall when the heat is still on outside?

Today I'm linking up with What I Wore ,  Whatcha Wearing Wednesday, and Style Elixir.  Thanks for stopping by!

Halloween Past

As Halloween approaches and my kiddos are already planning what they want to be this year, I thought I'd take a look back at some of my favorite memories and costumes from years past.

Halloween 2010 was very special because we had just moved into our new home in my hometown and were starting a new and exciting chapter in our lives.  The costumes were so fitting for each of our kiddos at that time!

Halloween 2013 we were on a Caribbean Cruise celebrating my Mom's 60th birthday.  We spent the day in breathtaking Belize and then trick-or-treated around the cruise ship that night.  It was absolutely priceless!

Halloween 2013 by day...

Beautiful Belize

Halloween 2013 by night on the cruise ship!  Arrrggghhh, Mateys!

Another fun blast from the past is this adorable kitten in 2007.  I miss those chubby cheeks!

 

Four years later, just as sweet as a fairy!

Halloween 2008 is a unique memory.  We were stationed in Daegu, South Korea where my husband was flying the F-15K in a Korean fighter squadron.     

Fast forward to Trunk-or-Treat 2012 with a little more grown up fighter pilot.  It's his dream to fly jets like his Daddy one day!

This snapshot of our youngest and his cousin from Halloween 2012 makes me smile, too.  Nothing cuter than these rootin' tootin' cowboys. Double trouble!

This image from Halloween 2014 makes me chuckle!  My boys were really into the Mario Brothers and my free-spirited little lady used her creative juices to put together her own costume.  They had a great time celebrating with their Ninja Turtle cousins last year!

My favorite aspect of Halloween overall is the chance to connect with neighbors and even make new friends!

Here's to more fun memories in 2015!

I'm linking up today with Friday Favorites.  Thanks for stopping by!

Aldi Eats: Pad Thai Style Pasta

Last week I made this Pad Thai Style Pasta recipe straight from Aldi's website. I really liked how it turned out! My husband, who is a Thai food fan, enjoyed it too. We had no left overs, which is also a good sign. Technically this post should be titled "almost" Aldi Eats, since I didn't use all of their ingredients. I needed to use up what I had on hand in the pantry and fridge. Honestly, the dish probably would have been BETTER using their shrimp, as I had small, pre-cooked frozen shrimp. The recipe calls for their medium easy peel raw shrimp--which I've used before from Aldi and they are delicious! I still wanted to share this recipe, though, because it was a winner in my book and since it's on their website you should have no problem finding the ingredients. One other quick note, I'm learning that the earlier in the day you shop at Aldi the better! By the time I stopped by the store they had sold out of their green onions. Lesson learned.

I didn't have to buy much for this recipe since I already had the following on hand: shrimp, cabbage, soy sauce, chili sauce, minced garlic, brown sugar, lime juice, sriracha sauce, eggs, and red pepper. Here's what I picked up for just over $9. If I had needed the shrimp, it would have cost an additional $6.

 The meal came together in 30 minutes...

Go Aldi's Test Kitchen!  We approve! :)

Aldi Eats: Turkey Tenderloin with Roasted Red Potatoes and Asparagus

This was an easy meal to whip up on a weeknight. I used Aldi's Turkey Tenderloins, with roasted red potatoes and asparagus. Here's what I bought to make it happen (I didn't use the garlic... I had butter and the seasoning on hand.):

Total spent about $12.

I baked the turkey and red potatoes in separate pans at the same time  in a 325 degree oven for about 50 minutes.  After the turkey was done, I turned the oven up to 425 and cooked the potatoes and asparagus for about 10-15 minutes.  For the red potatoes, I quartered them and added a couple quartered onions, butter, olive oil, salt and pepper.  

The longer you cook these babies the better!  They taste great!  For the asparagus I just trim them down and drizzle them with olive oil and salt and pepper.  

The final product- a good, hearty, weeknight meal for my family of five with leftovers, for $12!

Making It Your Own: Kitchen Update

Today I'll share how we updated our kitchen to make it more of a warm, inviting space--the heart of the the home--on a budget. We bought our 15-year-old home about five years ago. Since then, we've continued to tweak things throughout the inside and outside of our home to make it our own.

Here's what the kitchen looked like when we bought our house. Notice no refrigerator, and the outdated appliances and lighting (that fluorescent light had to go!). We had just bought the house and didn't have a lot of money to completely change the kitchen, so we were thankful it had good bones. We loved the layout, hardwood flooring, white cabinets, and back splash. So, with a little tweaking- we made it our own.

Our first line of business was to update the counter tops since there was a large burn mark near the stove top. We chose one of the cheapest granite styles we could find--and I really liked how it paired with the white cabinets. While we were at it, we updated the sink and faucet.

Next up: adding more contrast to our white-on-white kitchen. We sold the white appliances on Craigslist and bought stainless steel replacements at a local appliance store where you can purchase products with minor cosmetic damages for a great price.

Finally, we tweaked the lighting. Great lighting is one of my favorite ways to create a cozy space. We bought the supplies and found a great electrician on Craigslist to install three small recessed lights, under cabinet lights, two pendants, and updated the existing fixtures. I really love how the kitchen turned out!

What are some ways that you've made your kitchen space your own?

I'm linking up today with the Shine Blog Hop, Thursday Favorite Things, and Fall into Fall Party. Thanks for stopping by!