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Archive for January 2013

Getting Clever with Coffee Filters

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

This post has moved to my new website. You can find it HERE.





{ Featured at At Home with GCH today! } 

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Personalized Valentine's Day Facebook Cover!

Monday, January 28, 2013



I have a fun surprise for you! This is the second Facebook cover photo I made for you to use (you can find the first one HERE.) I made this one just for my subscribers/followers! But wait... it gets better! I will personalize this for you (for free) and send it to you, just to thank you for being a follower. In the heart (up in the top left corner) you can choose what you'd like your cover photo to say, whether it's "Happy Valentine's Day" or the names of you and your hubby, or something else... it's up to you! Here's what you need to do:

Follow me on Facebook and share this with your friends by clicking "share" under my post about this freebie. (yep, that's it!) I will pin it to the top of the page so it's easy to find!

You get brownie points if you:  Follow me on Pinterest, Follow by Email {on the right sidebar}, Subscribe to Posts {on the right sidebar}, or Join with Google Friend Connect {on the right sidebar}.

Once you are following me on Facebook, just send me a private message on the Aprons 'n Pearls Facebook page (by clicking on "Message" at the top right) and tell me what you want your cover photo to say. I will have it personalized and sent to you within 24 hours (maybe a LOT sooner!)

This is my favorite cover photo so far. It's soooo cute! Hope you like it, too!

*** Offer expires 2/14/2013 ***

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Valentine's Day Facebook Cover Photo

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Love is in the air! Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and I have a cute new Facebook cover photo to share with you! (I will be sharing one more soon, so be sure to check back! It's really, really cute!)



My Facebook followers were the first to get this! If you want to be first in line to get new cover photos when they come out, just "like" my Facebook page! www.facebook.com/aprons.n.pearls

To use this photo... 
Open the photo by clicking on it.
Right click and click on Save Image As.
Save it to your computer. (I save mine to the desktop.)
Upload it as the cover photo on your timeline. 


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Household Binder, Part 2

Monday, January 21, 2013

This post has moved to my new website. You can find it HERE.





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Pizza Bread

Friday, January 18, 2013


Pizza bread.
Cheeseburger bread.
Pizza bread.

My oldest daughter saw the cocktail rye sitting on the counter the other night. Knowing exactly why cocktail rye would be in our house, a smile came across her face, followed simply {and appropriately} by the word, "Yum!" Later that evening, I served up a big tray of cheesebur... I mean pizza bread for supper. We said grace, and I said, "Enjoy your cheeseburger bread!" *wink wink* Well, that didn't go over very well at all. Both of my girls looked at me and said, "PIZZA bread!" You see, my mom calls it pizza bread, {as did her mother} but to me, it's more like cheeseburger bread. Can't blame a girl for trying! Some habits are just too hard to break, so PIZZA bread it is. I feel so defeated.

We love pizza bread in our family. You can serve it as an appetizer, or as a main dish. Either way, it's easy to throw together, doesn't take long to make, and can serve a big crowd. Whenever my dad had movie parties {you'll hear more about that when I blog about turning our basement into a theatre} my mom always made these, and they were always a big hit! I hope you enjoy them, too!

Ingredients: 
  • cocktail rye bread {one loaf has approx. 45 pieces}
  • ground beef {1 pound for every 15 pieces of bread}
  • ketchup {1 cup for every pound of ground beef}
  • Velveeta {8 oz. for every pound of ground beef} cut into large cubes
Directions: 
  1. Brown meat in a pan, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. Drain grease and return to pan. 
  2. Stir in ketchup, then add cheese.
  3. Mix as the cheese melts. Once melted, remove from heat. 
  4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F.) 
  5. Place bread close together on large cookie sheets. 
  6. Spoon meat onto each piece of bread. {I use the Pampered Chef small scoop for this... perfect amount and they are all uniform.}
  7. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes. The bread will be just a little crisp on the edges. 
  8. Serve hot out of the oven. 

We serve these with good ol' Bush's baked beans, done up the way my dad used to make them... with yellow mustard and brown sugar. As you're heating the beans, stir in a little mustard and brown sugar, and it really makes a difference! {No, the beans don't taste like mustard. Yes, they are delicious!} 


Usually, we make orange salad on pizza bread nights, too! Click HERE for that recipe! Scrumdiddlyumtious!


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Valentine ABC's

Thursday, January 17, 2013



I'm taking part of the "Be My Valentine" Marriage Challenge over at Women Living Well. {Be sure to check it out and join the fun!} The challenge for week one is to "look for ways to praise your husband verbally." It doesn't officially start until Monday, but it's never not the right time to love on your hubby, so I'm going to kick off the challenge by sharing the ABC's of my gorgeous Scott...


Affectionate
Brave {and Best friend}
Christian
Dreamer {and Dreamy!)
Easy to dance with
Faithful
Generous
Handsome
Inspired
Jokester
great Kisser
Love of my life
Mushy
Noble-minded
Observant
Prayerful
Quirky
Romantic
Smart
Thoughtful
Unabashed
army Veteran
Warm
eXtraordinary neck massager!
Youthful
Zany

If he sounds pretty fantastic, it's because he is. God has blessed me in a big way!

What do you love about YOUR hubby? I'd love to hear! 

Join the challenge! Click on the picture to go to Women Living Well!

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Household Binder, Part 1

Wednesday, January 16, 2013


This post has moved to my new website. You can find it HERE.





Featured at:
Somewhat Simple
{I blogged about my binder this week over at At Home with GCH!}
Linked with...
Somewhat SimpleChic on a Shoestring DecoratingWise-Woman-Builds No Ordinary Blog HopPIN MEmeSixSistersStuff.comOr so she saysWhipperberry     Mother's Niche   polkadotpretties.com



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Grace - My Word for 2013

Thursday, January 3, 2013



Happy New Year! I hope you had a blessed Christmas and wonderful New Year's celebration! I took a few weeks off to focus on my family and home, and to prepare for Christmas, and am now looking forward to what 2013 will bring!

I don't make New Year's resolutions anymore. Statistics show that most resolutions that are made don't see the light of day once February rolls around. So instead, like many others, I have a word. My word for 2013 is grace. 

Have you ever really thought about the word grace, and all it means? I've been studying the word, its definitions, and what grace means to me. Looking at my list of goals for the year, grace seems to be the word to represent all I've set out to do. It's a beautiful word - just look at some of its synonyms... 
  • praise
  • poise
  • thanksgiving
  • kindness
  • charm
  • service
  • honor
  • balance
  • favor
  • goodwill
  • bloom 
  • consideration
  • class
  • dignity
  • beauty
  • loveliness
  • generosity
  • polish
What an awesome list of words! I can apply these words to every single one of my goals, from getting healthy, to being the best wife, mother, and homemaker I can be, to my walk with Christ, to how I live my life. 

Most importantly, grace is a gift, and even though it is Jesus who was the birthday boy, WE are the ones who receive the gifts. How amazing is that?!

For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— not from works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

What is YOUR word for 2013?


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Old-Fashioned Chocolate Fudge



There is nothing like summer on Mackinac Island. The no cars rule (you get around by bicycle or horse!), the beautiful Victorian homes, the Grand Hotel’s porch, the lilacs, the quaint downtown, and the FUDGE. Ryba’s Fudge Shop has made me a fudge snob. There is nothing in the world like it, and believe me… I’ve tasted a lot of fudge from a lot of places and have tested several recipes, looking for something that comes close, and this recipe comes the closest! Some of my taste testers have even said it’s the best fudge they’ve had, and it sure went over well at Christmastime... every last piece of it disappeared! I'll be making more of this soon for our second family Christmas party. (Yes, I know it's January.) Whether you want to make this as a special treat for your family, or for an upcoming gathering, it's sure to be appreciated and gone in a hurry. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
  • 4 ounces baker’s unsweetened chocolate
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3 1/4 Tblsp light corn syrup
  • 4 cups baker’s ultrafine sugar
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 3 1/2 Tblsp salted butter, melted

Directions:
  1. In a medium saucepan, heat the milk and chocolate on low until melted, stirring occasionally.
  2. Add salt, corn sugar, and syrup to the saucepan, and gradually increase heat until boiling while stirring constantly.
  3. Once it reaches a boil, stop stirring, and allow to boil until it reaches 234 degrees F on a digital/candy thermometer.
  4. As soon as it reaches 234 degrees, remove the saucepan from the burner, then add in the vanilla and melted butter. Do not stir.
  5. Allow to cool in the pan to 110-115 degrees.
  6. Butter an 8″ cake pan. Bottom and sides.
  7. When fudge reaches  the correct temperature, stir for 14-18 minutes with a wooden spoon. It will become thick and lose its glossiness.
  8. Pour fudge into cake pan and smooth top.
  9. Allow to cool in the refrigerator. Once fudge is completely cooled, cut into small squares.

Linked with:
Pamela's Heavenly TreatsNo Ordinary Blog Hop Addicted to Recipes Button, Page buttonSweet and Savoury Sunday

My fudge was featured at:
Sweet and Savoury Sunday
Everyday Mom's Meals
Pamela's Heavenly Treats

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