Pinterest Tried and True: A Pinch of This and a Dash of That….

By Sharon Marie


What do you think of when you think of DINNER?

Lavish dishes that took all day to make?

Families gathered together around the table, talking about their days and laughing happily?

McDonalds?

In my house dinner is none of the above. With my husband working graveyard shift, and 3 kids that need help with homework, a very busy two year old and a teenage son in football, dinner is often quickly thrown together and eaten in a hurry. It seems that something always gets spilled and there is something that someone doesn't like.

But alas the “Leave it to Beaver” images of what a family dinner should be are always in the back of my mind.

Now I can cook, and I love to cook. I’m not a chef by any means but every meal I make I make with love and good intentions. 99% of those turn out great, the other 1% turn into take out nights. I can follow a recipe, but really hate those that call for items or utensils that I have to look up on Google to find out what the heck they are.

In an effort to make more meals to bring my family together and avoid the “I don’t like this “and the “we had this last week” drama I have turned to Pinterest for recipes and ideas for new meals that DO NOT take forever to prepare, and DO NOT cost an arm and a leg to make but ARE yummy and ARE made from items I already have (or can easily find at the grocery store).

While searching these three jumped out at me: Roasted Parmesan Green Beans Corn Casserole Crispy Ritz Cracker & Cheese Chicken

I was happy to find that most of the ingredients I already had in my home and only need a few things from the market.

All three of these dishes were super easy to prepare and smelled heavenly while they were baking. But the real test was yet to come, the taste test. I dished up my families plates and sat there waiting for the verdict.

Smiles began to form and the cheers of “these are awesome” “great job Mom” filled the room!!! All of them cleaned their plates and even went back for seconds. Yessss! Mom success!!!

Although my dishes didn't look exactly like the ones on Pinterest, each and every item tasted great and really hit the spot. My family has even asked for this dinner again, and we have had the green bean dish 4 other times since.

Warning: These green beans are to die for!!! You may find yourself sneaking them as you cook. They may even become your favorite snack.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/177751516516270668/

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/177751516516270658/

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/177751516516270665/

Pinterest Tried & True: Chicken Wire Ghosts

By Sharon Marie

Photo from Pinterst

I love to decorate my house, for any occasion, but I’m not a huge fan of witches, or the color orange so Halloween was always a challenge. So what does one do when you are at a loss for ideas?? Pinterest of course!!!!

I loved these Chicken Wire Ghost dresses!!!

I set out to my local hardware store with my list of materials in hand. I was able to find everything I needed accept the glow in the dark spray paint. After countless stores I finally found it on Amazon.

Now if you have ever worked with Chicken Wire you know that it is very sharp when cut. Word to the wise… wear leather gloves and long sleeves!!!

I quickly found that this was really a two-person job and enlisted the help of my cousin.

It proved to be more difficult than we had planned, but were able to figure out the easiest way to work with the wire. We used two small bowls to help form the bust of the dress, formed the skirt and cut small pieces of chicken wire into scraggly tattered pieces attaching them with a thin-gauged wire. Hours later (yes we are a bit OCD) we were happy with out ghostly dresses.

We sprayed the creations with the Glow in the dark paint. And set them out in the yard. We impatiently waited for night to fall, only to be very disappointed. The dresses were not visible at all unless you were standing right next to them. We didn’t expect a super bright glow but this was pathetic.

The next morning I brought in the dresses and sprayed them with a plan white paint, let that dry and sprayed it with glow in the dark paint again. Once in the yard I waited for nightfall. Much Better!!!

My ghosts!

They didn’t Glow like a glow stick but they were visible enough to see from the street. They gave a ghostly presence in the yard. You could see them but not vividly, kind of like smoke out of the corner of your eye. PERFECT!!!!

The next morning I decide to give them even more of a spooky essence and hung them from the tree in my front yard. They swayed ever so slightly in the breeze, just the effect I was looking for!!!

My ghosts!

Here’s a list of the materials you’ll need:
Chicken wire
thin gauged wire
wire cutters
white spray paint
glow in the dark spray paint
leather gloves
pliers (for twisting the wire together)
drop clothe for painting

You can find a similar tutorial at Wacky Archives here.

This year, I’m making these two to add to the collection! Stay tuned!!

Image from Pinterest

Image from Besotted Blog