Spa Party

My sister was in town to visit earlier this week.... she made a quick stop here in Houston while on her way to Dallas for a Mary Kary conference.  It was her first trip to Houston, so we explored a little around town and she experienced life in TX.  We knew after a few days of busyness, we'd want to relax and pamper ourselves.  Since she's a Mary Kay director with so many great products in stock, we thought making food, inviting friends and having a spa party (a Mary Kay spa party) would be the perfect end to a visit!

I mailed invites and planned a party full of food, drinks and spa treatments....

As friends arrived, we lingered around the food table sharing our week's adventures and tasting new treats.

Spa Food

• Cheese platter:  petit frere, aged cheddar, Gorgonzola, wafer crackers, dried cherries, Mediterranean mix of olives, candied walnuts
• red, seedless grapes
• caramelized onion and apple tarts with Gruyere & thyme
• anchoiade with radishes, cucumbers, carrots & celery
• apricot almond shortbread bars
• sprouted grain mini brownies topped with whipped cream & raspberries

Spa Drinks

• Sangria (recipe from my all time favorite, "Bride & Groom: First & Forever Cookbook")
• white wine
• iced green tea infused with citrus
• water infused with cucumbers & mint
• coffee
• hot tea

We slowly moved into the living room with our plates and drinks to begin a night of pampering.  My sister and I set several spa supplies and lighted votive candles on various tables around the living room.

Spa Supplies

• q-tips
• cotton balls
• facial pads
• nail filers
• nail polish remover pads (so much better than using a bottle and cotton balls) 
• nail polish
• toe spacers (flavored tootsie rolls, more details below)
• towels
• mirrors
• tons of Mary Kay products

During the party we pampered our face, arms, legs, hands and feet.  We used all Mary Kay products (MK products are listed in parenthesis), but any homemade or store bought products would work for a spa party too!

Spa Treatments

• facial and eye cleanse (MK TimeWise 3-in-1 cleanser, Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover) 
• microdermabrasion (MK TimeWise Microdermabrasion)
• facial mask (MK TimeWise Moisture Renewing Gel Mask)
• facial moisturizer (MK TimeWise Age Fighting Moisturizer)
• eye soothing (MK Firming Eye Cream, Indulge Soothing Eye Gel with Calming Influence)
• lip mask & balm (MK Satin Lips)
• body lotion (MK TimeWise Body Targeted-Action Toning Lotion)
• pedicure (soaked feet in tub of warm water with MK 2-in-1 Body Wash & Shave, used MK Satin Hands to soften and scrub, MK Mint Bliss Energizing Lotion for Feet & Legs to moisturize, then finished with nail filers and polish)
• manicure (MK Satin Hands to soften, scrub & moisturize, then finished with nail filers and polish)

To make nail polish selections easier, I created a sheet with polish names, then painted a square with the actual polish color....

We used the tootsie footsies (tootsie rolls) as toe spacers while applying the nail polish (or you could just go ahead and eat them!).

Great night.... I'm relaxed and had a fun time visiting with my sister!

Later in the week, I'll make the spa invite, food labels and more available as a free download.
Update: Spa party printables

Recipe: Easy, Delicious Nachos

The husband was out of town for a few days and to welcome him back, the kids wanted to help make a special dinner.  With three little ones in the kitchen, I wanted to make something easy.  No mess.  Not much clean-up (well, as little clean-up as possible).  We excitedly agreed on nachos.  Nachos = happy kids!  And I also found out, nachos = happy husband.

These delicious nachos were so easy to make.... just a bunch of layers piled high.  And, to make it even easier, I bought all the toppings already prepared, no chopping involved! (pre-cut vegetables are packaged in a container in the produce aisle at my local grocery store, I love it!)

Delicious Nachos Recipe

Ingredients

• lightly salted tortilla chips, about a 14oz bag
• pico de gallo (there is usually a variety... original, black bean, corn, mango, pineapple or a combination - I like to combine the original in mild, original in medium, and one made with a mixture of black beans and corn).  For a full baking sheet piled high, I buy about 48oz.
• 1c green onions
• 2 tbsp cilantro
• 24oz cheddar cheese

  
Directions (looks long, but it's not):

• preheat oven to 400 degrees
• line baking sheet with aluminum foil
• spread tortilla chips in a thin layer covering entire baking sheet
• sprinkle thin layer of shredded cheddar cheese over chips
• spoon about 12oz of pico de gallo mixture over cheese
• sprinkle green onions over pico de gallo
• sprinkle an extra-thin layer of shredded cheddar cheese over onions
• add more chips
• add thin layer of cheese
• add more pico de gallo
• a little bit of onions
• little bit of cheese
• more chips
• more cheese
• pico de gallo
• some onions
• cheese
• chips again
• lots of cheese
• top with pico all over the top
• sprinkle with cilantro
•  place baking sheet on middle rack in oven for about 15 min, until top cheese is golden brown and cheese in middle has warmed and melted
• remove from oven

Serve immediately to hungry little ones and a happy husband!  We add guacamole on the side (I bought our guac already made too, so convenient and HEB has an awesome one that's pretty close to homemade).  No forks involved, dig in! 
 

You could also add sour cream, salsa, a squeeze of lime, chicken, beef, olives, sliced avocados or even more cheese!  Who doesn't love more cheese!  Yum!

Baby Shower & Yogurt Bar

For the past month, a couple of us have been planning a double baby shower for two friends.  On Saturday, we were able to see all the planning come together, shower the mommies with love, a few gifts, and celebrate life!

The baby shower was at my house and since the timing of the shower was between lunch and dinner, we decided to go with light, simple food..... a yogurt bar was the perfect solution!  The yogurt bar included bowls of fruit and extra yummy toppings (we also added mini quiches and a dessert table).

Yogurt Bar

• vanilla yogurt
• strawberries
• blueberries
• pineapple
• raspberries
• bananas (lightly coated with pineapple juice)
• kiwi
• chocolate syrup
• caramel syrup
• chocolate chips
• mixed nuts
• granola

One mom's baby nursery is designed with animals and the other mom adores girly colors, so we agreed to decorate for the shower using animal silhouettes and a variety of pink colors.  We spread tons of pink dots in several shades and sizes all over the yogurt bar (we used scrapbook paper and a circle craft punch to make the dots).

On the dessert table, we had chocolate covered pretzels and three cupcake flavors (I tasted them all, they were delicious!):

• Gingerbread cupcakes with caramelized mango buttercream frosting
• Nutella filled chocolate cupcakes with Nutella buttercream frosting
• Nutella filled chocolate cupcakes with Nutella buttercream frosting (gluten free)

Hanging over all that sweetness were pink, white and gold balloons.   Yarn was knotted on the end of each balloon and the opposite end of the string was taped to the ceiling.

We also added balloons in the living room, several balloons were bunched together (held by string) and hung from the ceiling light.

A banner of animal silhouettes attached to yarn with clothespins covered in washi tape was hung across the fireplace mantel (this is also where the two mommies sat while opening gifts).

There were a few things around the house to keep guests busy and talking.... on the entry table was a place to sign the baby books and address envelopes (to make it easier for the moms when writing thank you cards).

We also had a Bible verse and tree with bare branches printed on paper for each guest to stamp their thumbprint in an image of a leaf.  We used green ink for this tree (sorry no after picture) and purple ink for the other mom's tree.  This was later framed and given to the mommies.

On another table, there was a guessing game.... how many q-tips and cotton balls?

One other activity we had for the guests was to complete a prayer card for each baby.  There were slips of paper that read one of the following:

• I pray you learn to  ___________________________
• I pray you become  ___________________________
• I pray you respect  ___________________________
• I pray you love  ___________________________

The guests filled in the blank and dropped their prayer card into a jar that the mommy took home.  The baby shower was a lot of fun and I know the moms were blessed.

Before each guest said goodbye, we handed them a thank you gift bag....

Inside the pink and white striped bag was a bird feeder (I used this tutorial, just like for the Star Wars birthday party and Easter gift).  The gift bag was sealed with a reminder to pray for the mommies and babies each time they see their hanging bird feeder.

I love baby showers... the planning and work definitely pays off when you see a mommy smile.  And of course, I also love after the shower too because leftovers surround the house and my kitchen table holds these goodies (thanks Amber!)!

If you love shopping for a party, here's a few of the shops where I found lovely supplies for this party (I am not paid to link their sites, I purchase my supplies for actual cost, I just honestly love their products and service):  Sweet Lulu, Cute Tape, Paper & Present (on Etsy).

And later this week (or next), I'll make several of the graphics I created for this baby shower available to you for free!  Keep a lookout and enjoy your week!

Egg Sandwiches

Our Easter weekend was great..... on Friday we had dinner with a sweet family, all the kids swam in the pool late into the night while we enjoyed adult conversation in an oasis of a backyard!  Our friend's backyard is absolutely beautiful and on the drive home the husband and I were dreaming of how to turn our backyard into a vacation paradise (we'll begin by mowing the lawn).  The kids swam again on Saturday (I love TX weather!), we went to an awesome church service and then ate at the kids favorite restaurant.  On Sunday, we celebrated Jesus' resurrection with new friends, ate delicious food and had yet another Easter egg hunt with the kids (they're always up for more chocolate!).

When our weekends are busy and what feels like non-stop-going, I want to make something quick and easy when Monday night dinner time rolls around.  So, tonight we had egg sandwiches..... actually, we've had these A LOT lately.  The husband and I love them, the kids love them, and the sandwiches are so, so easy to make (and super yummy!)

To get the egg sandwiches ready, I made sunny side up eggs (just like my heart-shaped eggs, no need to flip).  While the eggs were cooking, I sliced tomatoes, red onions and gathered some greens (tonight we used arugula and romaine, but I've also used kale, spinach, basil, even asparagus).

I then toasted the bread (we used flat bread/buns).  Once the bread was warm and toasted, I spread mayo, then layered lettuce, tomato, onion, and topped it with a cooked egg.  After sprinkling salt and pepper (and sometimes a little hot sauce), it was ready!

I used to top the egg sandwich with another slice of bread, but after watching my kids inhale three sandwiches (each!), I cut back and now we have open faced sandwiches- I gotta save where I can! Sometimes we'll fold the sandwich like a taco and eat, other times we just stuff it in our mouths, and sometimes we actually eat like civilized people and use a fork.

What's your favorite quick and easy meal?

Valentine's Day Party

We threw a Valentine's Day party today.... the kids (and moms!) enjoyed a morning devoted to card making, bingo playing, heart hunting and of course chocolate eating.....

Since we're homeschooling this year, I think I've made a point to go the extra mile and celebrate special events (like Valentine's Day) with lots of activity.  The kids invited a few homeschooling friends over and we created Valentine heart cards using everything from stickers and glitter to stencils and stamps to crayons and markers.  They had the freedom to use their creativity....

Of course after fueling creativity, we all need a break..... and sweet goodies are a must for Valentine's Day!  Our Valentine party menu included:

• shortbread heart cookies
• chocolate covered strawberries
• cherry almond bars
• chocolate cake pops
• grapes
• red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting
• popcorn
• pretzels
• pineapple and strawberries with strawberry yogurt
• caramelized onion and apple tarts (I also made these here, delicious!)

All the food was placed below the heart wreath on the dining room buffet and on the table....

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After all the eating, the kids played bingo (free printable here) and hunted for hearts (I hid cut-out hearts all around the house and they searched high and low to add hearts to their goodie bag).

Before our friends said good-bye, the kids handed them a gift... a heart crayon wrapped up with a gift tag "you color my world" (free printable here).

 

Great morning, great food, great friends!  And now I'm stuffed, maybe mopping the sprinkles off my floor will burn a few chocolate calories!  Oh, and if you're looking for a last minute Valentine's Day card, here's a few freebies that I made last year!