Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

I'm always on that quest to find recipes with hidden veggies for my family to eat.  This recipe from Bethenny has been on my list for awhile, and I finally had time to try it.  Mac & cheese is a staple in our house and I know it's always going to be a hit, so why not add some extra veggies inside?

Adapted from Bethenny

Ingredients:
• 12 oz. pasta shells
• 1 c. milk
• 3/4 c. Parmesan cheese
• 1 c. reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 c. frozen butternut squash, thawed (It took me forever to find this and I finally got some at Target in the freezer section)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 c. breadcrumbs

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Boil pasta according to directions on the box.
3. In a small pot, combine milk, cheese and squash over medium heat until melted.  Add salt, mustard, pepper, and Worcestershire.
4. Drain the pasta when it's done.  Add the cheese sauce and mix.
5. Spray a 9" x 13" baking pan with cooking spray and pour the pasta in.
6.  Top with breadcrumbs and bake for about 20 minute or until the top starts to get golden brown.

Really good and a big hit with my family!

Easy Baby Hair Bow Hanging Closet Storage

Baby girl might have a few too many hair bows & headbands, but really, you can never have enough, right? She needs one to match every outfit and occasion!  Finally, I found the perfect solution to hold everything!  This closet organizer is double-sided so it actually holds twice as much as what I have here. 

I love that it fits perfectly in her closet so it doesn't take up a bunch of space in her room.

Brilliant! I'm so happy to have some organizing done for the new year!

Best of the Best: Top Recipes of 2014

Wow, I'm flattered! 

All Free Slow Cooker Recipes named my crock pot orange chicken one of its top recipes of 2014!  

This recipe goes way back to when I first started blogging years ago, and somehow, it caught on right when Pinterest took off.  Since then, it's gotten more hits than I could have ever imagined on my little old blog.  It's really an awesome recipe and one of my absolute favorite from the last several years.  You must try it out if you haven't yet!

DIY Sew Toddler Stuffed Christmas Tree and Ornaments

This was definitely a labor of love project!  2 years later, I finally have something I can show off.  I believe I started this right after Connor's first Christmas when I had the great idea that he could decorate his own child-proof tree the next year.

I started out with some fleece and made my famous stuffed tree, but a giant version that was much bigger than the normal 10-12" one.

The star was the hardest part.  I had to find a way to get it to stay on and be child-friendly.  Using a party hat and a star cut out as my inspiration, I created a felt version that fit on the tree.

It took a few attempts to get it to work, but I figured it out eventually.


I used a blanket stitch around the outside edge of the star.




The ornaments were the hard part, but I wanted to go all out with these.  I did some sketches of the ideas I had, so I would be able to plan the designs.


Seriously, these must have taken months to finish, but the end result was adorable.  Each one has little buttons and hand-stitching on it.

To get the ornaments to stay on the tree, I added big buttons to each tree branch.

At some point, I finally finished this thing and put it in the basement with the other holiday things.  I got busy and forgot about it until the other day when I found it!  Connor is the perfect age for it now and I'm so happy I have it for him!

He loved decorating it!