Two things crossed off? YEAH BABY!

Alright folks! We are only a little bit into this and I have TWO that's right TWO items completely crossed off of my list! First off...Three recipes (Yes that is how you spell that word...odd) to make and have my family try. My first was the out of the box pasta pie. YUM! And thanks to my mom's birthday party...we got two more!! My sister and I made bacon wrapped smokies. OMG. Super easy, but I have never made them before so it counts!! Get some cocktail wieners, wrap them in some raw bacon, throw em on a pan, sprinkle some brown sugar, and bake at 350 for about 20. These were definitely the hit of the night! The next thing we made was my Mom's cake. From scratch ladies and gentlemen...mno boxing it here! Although it tasted like it was from a box if I do say so myself. And it looked so pretty too! =)

Fun isn't it?? This was a lemon cake with homemade buttercream frosting. With a little food coloring, and a lot of patience, we were able to make it just the right shade of lavender! If you want a great lemon cake recipe, go on to http://www.marthastewart.com/ and type in "Ruffle Tower Cake" into the recipe finder. It will show you the recipe for the cake, and for the frosting.

And next on the list....The DIY arbor my mom and I wanted for the backyard. I did it!! Well....with a looot of my dad's help. The thing is this could have been something I did on my own and gotten done, however it would have fallen over with the first slight breeze. I love my dad, cuz he never wants to do anything half way. I think this project could be a 100-110 dollar project, but with him involved (haha) it ended up being about 150. Which I am actually glad for, I probably would've chosen the cheapest wood there and then all the bugs would have eaten it alive! And screws...scrap metal? Sure why not? Lol...no. My dads choice were "Not just any old screws." So with his amazing help, a beautiful arbor was made.. The wood before it was stained... After it was stained...

I'm a serious stainer...

And I was planning on showing step by step, but I kinda forgot to take picture of that, so...basically cut the wood so you can make three "ladders, and then put them together...hahah and VIOLA!!

A beautiful arbor for your backyard!! Seriously guys...ANYONE could do this. So fun, so easy, and so pretty! It feels SO good to have two items off of my list!!