No more Kitchen Cabinets

Every now and then I get these hairbrained ideas. Half of the time they don't turn out like I wanted, but this one I'm really happy with.

I saw a post recently on one of my favorite blogs (Emily A. Clark) about her kitchen cabinet makeover. She is an interior designer with FIVE kids (um, can we say super mom?!?!) and I just LOVE her style and ideas. I have been trying to figure out what to do with this broken kitchen cabinet door of ours since we moved into our house almost 2 years ago and loved her idea. You see, we got a great deal on our house because it was a foreclosure. And while this house had nothing on some of the nasty foreclosures I had seen before, it did have a few "imperfections". One of those being the cabinet in the kitchen that looked like someone had gotten mad and punched it and left a big crack running from top to bottom.

I thought about just replacing the cabinet, but I wasn't sure how much that would cost. So I thought maybe we could cut out the middle and insert some glass. But that sounded like a big job and I wasn't sure if it would work. On Emily's project here she took off her cabinet doors and then painted the back of her cabinets. But my cabinets are the mass produced, factory made, pick out at the home improvement store and slap them on the walls kind of cabinets so there is "fake wood" (aka plastic) on the back and paint wouldn't stick. So I had the idea to use my vinyl I use for my Kitty Kate products in a different way!

I cut out 4 pieces of removeable vinyl and adhered them to the back of the cabinets. Sounds simple right? Not exactly! It took me a good hour and a half to get it all cut and applied and I had a few bumps along the way but once I got going the easier it got.

Here is what they looked like once I took the cabinet doors off (Sorry I didn't get a before shot of how it all originally looked. I ALWAYS take a before picture and somehow it slipped my mind this time). So I took the doors off, found all of my pretty, color coordinated dishes and things and decided where I wanted them on the shelves.



After cutting the vinyl, applying it, and re-staging everything this is what I got and I LOVE IT! Looks totally different and cost me nothing but some vinyl I already had!



Ever heard of Crowdtap???

Awhile back a friend of mine had posted something on Facebook about this thing called Crowdtap. She said she had received a free sample of Old Navy jeans to "try out". Well, as soon as I heard FREE I knew I had to check it out!

According to their site, Crowdtap is a website where you can "get rewarded for ideating and promoting with leading brands, entertainment properties, non-profits and startups." By simply completing some quick and easy questions you earn points that you can redeem for lots of different things such as amazon gift cards or donate them to charity.

So I signed up and have been participating for while now. Last month I got chosen for a special "tester" promotion from Woolite. I received 10 sample of Woolite Extra Dark Care in the mail and was asked to try some and share some with my friends.



I tried it the other day on my dark clothes. It claims to keep your dark clothes lasting and looking like new longer. I think its hard to tell after just a few times whether or not its doing its job but I will keep trying it to see if I can tell a real difference!

If you'd like to join Crowdtap and see what you can earn and see what samples you can try, click this link Crowdtap

Mean Green Smoothie

I have to admit, I'm a little addicted to this thing I call my "Mean Green Smoothie." I even have my 2 and 5 year old daughters wanting it. I have this smoothie nearly every morning for breakfast and not only is it healthy, but its filling and delicious!
I am less than a year shy of my 30th birthday and on my birthday this year I made a vow that I was going to go into my 30's in the best shape and healthiest I have ever been. So I signed up for a 1/2 marathon in January of 2013 (running has become another passion of mine) and I'm making wiser choices when it comes to what goes into my body. Now don't get me wrong, I still have my splurges (like the gourmet red velvet cupcake I had for dessert for tonight. But I split it with my 2 daughters so it was only 1/3 of a cupcake instead the usual whole cupcake. Again.....not depriving myself, but making smarter choices)

So here it is:

 

I know it doesn't look real appealing, but trust me it taste better than it looks! And here is what's in it:

I put in the blender:

• a small handful of frozen chopped spinach
• A large spoonful of greek yogurt
• A large handful of frozen mixed fruit (I recommend the kind with mango, pineapple, strawberries and peaches)
• 1 banana
• Then I fill up the blender with orange juice until it reaches about 1/2 - 3/4 of the way up the fruit/spinach mixture
• Fill with water until it reaches the top of the mixture
• Add about 3-5 ice cubes

And that's it! And here are some of the health benefits:

• Spinach is healthiest foods available! You can't really taste it in the smoothie, but it provides lots of Vitamins K and A, cancer fighting antioxidants, and improves brain function and protects again aging (according to livestrong.com)
• Greek yogurt is a great source of protein and calcium and less sugar than regular yogurt. Protein fills you up and keeps you fuller longer.
• And then of course the fruit is full of vitamins and nutrients

So I encourage you to try it. You never know.....you might like it!