Tuesday Tutorials Link Party {No. 25}

Hi my loves! I know, I am a few hours late, but better late than never right?? My husband and I are on the road to our ideal beach bodies and during the time I would have normally been posting this I was busy getting my butt kicked by a personal trainer! I learned today that I have 20% body fat which is pretty freakin' good for a woman in her 20's, yay me! I should have that beach bod in no time! On a side note, I think I have baby fever, erp! I would love, love, love to have myself a sweet baby girl or boy right now, but babies will have to wait another year until we are more settled in our new home and more settled financially...I don't know if you know this, but being a new homeowner is expensive! {Slight Sarcasm} In the mean time I will live vicariously through y'all with your sweet baby projects and tutorials, which is why I chose to feature three cute little child inspired tutorials!

Before you link up check out last weeks super sweet link party features! I'm sure they would all love if you stopped by and left them a comment!

{Left} Duct Tape Rose Rings from Bleak 2 Unique

{Center} Zebra Baby Boots from A Rosie Sweet Home

{Right} Owl Pillow from Folk Haven

Tuesday Tutorials Link Party {No. 25}

Welcome to the party! Link up your tutorials, cooking, crafts, sewing, DIY tips & tricks, I want to see it all! After each link party I will feature my favorite tutorials from the previous link party, so check back to see if you've been featured! I feature several posts on {The Kurtz Corner FB Page} and pin your projects to my Tuesday Tutorials Link Party Pinterest Board so make sure you become a fan/follow me on Pinterest and check it out! You can connect with me here!

Only Four {Easy} Rules

1. Please be a follower of {The Kurtz Corner}

2. Link directly to your post, not your blog

3. No Etsy Shops, giveaways or personal link parties 

4. Please grab my button or use a text hyperlink & link back to my blog 

Please follow the rules, it's only fair & good blogging etiquette :)

Party Button

<a border="0" href="http://thekurtzcorner.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa386/asmith0341/tutorials.jpg"/></a>

Please vote for The Kurtz Corner!

Show me what ya got!

Canned Carrot Bread

Everyone has that one comfort food that reminds them of home, right? Well, my Dad is one heck of a cook, so I have many! One that I remember fondly is our family canning jar breads. You can make it with pumpkin, banana, apple, cranberry and carrot. Each as equally tasty as the last!

Pin It

Canned Carrot Bread

• Wash & dry 6 pint size wide mouth canning jars; grease well, preheat oven to 325°
• Cream 2/3 cup shortening with 2 2/3 cups sugar
• Add 4 eggs & 2/3 cup water, beat well and add 2 cups shredded carrot
• Add 3 1/3 cups flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp baking soda, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 1/2 tsp cloves & 1 cup chopped pecans
• Fill jars just about 3/4 full. Bake in preheated oven for 45-55 minutes. The bread is fully cooked when an inserted knife comes out clean. When done remove one at a time from oven. Put scalded lid on and seal.

Helpful tips: If the jar is too full, cut the top off with a sharp knife before sealing. Do not screw on the lid as tight as it can go. Seal just enough so that it is slightly tight. The air needs to escape so that it will seal. You will hear a "pop" when the jar has properly sealed. After the jars have popped screw on the lid as tight as you can. You should have about 3/4 of a turn left.

Other variations: 

• 2 cups applesauce
• 1 can whole cranberry sauce
• 2 cups shredded apples
• 2 cups pumpkin
• 1 cup each - raisins & carrots - (shredded)
• 2 cups mashed banana

When serving, the bread should easily slide out of the jars. If it doesn't you didn't grease the jars well enough! Take a knife, insert it all the way to the bottom of the jar and rotate it around the edge. It should slide out in one whole piece. Slice and serve. Jars of bread should keep for several months if sealed properly. The little pop top on the jar lid should be flat and not pop when you touch it. Properly sealed jars will pop when you open it. If they don't seal, and it will happen, eat those within the next week or so or they will dry out. Enjoy!

Sunday Social - Blog Hop!

Happy Sunday everyone! Welcome to the Sunday Social Blog Hop! Come link up your blogs home page and make some new bloggy fiends! Be sure to follow the host blogs, The Kurtz Corner, The Sasse Life & An Artful Mom

How to participate:

1.  Follow your hosts (The Kurtz Corner & The Sasse Life).

2. Follow the Featured blog. (An Artful Mom)

3.  Link up your blog's home page -- not a specific link or you will be deleted!
4. Visit at least 2 other blogs and make some friends!

5. Let your friends know by posting this button. The more, the merrier!

<center><a<br /> href="http://www.thesasselife.com"><img border="0" <br /> src="http://i1126.photobucket.com/albums/l611/thesasselife/Sunday-001.jpg"></a></center>

Featured Blog:
Pam from An Artful Mom

Hi all! I'm Pam from An Artful Mom, and I'm a mish mosh composite of many things, including a wife, mom to two pretty much grown-up, terrific, kids, and a thankful child of God. I love to read, blog, and do crafty things (especially paper arts and crafts like cardmaking, calligraphy, and art journals), and I'm a preschool teacher and/or art teacher in my heart (only.) I'm also extremely obsessed with photography. I love meeting other bloggers, and blogging has been such a wonderful way to meet a huge variety of people. My blog is an eclectic composite too, so I write about home, food, crafts, pets, DIY, photography-- and a little bit of everything.  I hope you'll come by and visit often!

 Here are 5 things about me:
  
1. I have a strange propensity for falling and getting a concussion. (The most memorable of those falls was the time I was carried off in an ambulance from an ice rink with my then 7 and 10 year old kids, all the while saying, "Mom's just fine," while I was actually wondering if I was going to die!)

 2. I've become semi obsessed with our little Yorkie, since we adopted her two years ago. (She's really my daughter's dog, but somehow she figured out I'm the mom.)

 3. My favorite food is cake. Yes, cake, one of the unhealthiest foods on the planet. I don't eat it often, but when I do, it's bliss.

 4. I was on swim team in high school, and (literally) won the award for "funniest looking toes." It was deserved. (I was a really fast swimmer too, though!)

 5. My cat can talk. Well, sort of. She does respond when we talk to her (and, I'm not kidding, they are actual words!) She is the best cat, ever.

Let's get social!

Shabby Apple Giveaway Winner!

This has turned out to be one of my most successful giveaways to date! I now know you lovely ladies want to win dresses! {Smile} Thank you to everyone who participated and if you didn't win I'm sure I will have another one to giveaway soon!! So, without further adieu, the winner of the beautiful Spanish Steps Shabby Apple dress is....

Brooke Kenny from Babblings and More!!

Congrats Brooke! I will be contacting you shortly about your prize!

Don't forget to take advantage of Shabby Apples current promo, 15% off sitewide when you use the code HATTER. Click the image below to be directed to their fabulous site!

Zuppa Toscana - Olive Garden Copy Cat

Pin It

Me, I'm not a huge pasta or Italian food person. Take me to Olive Garden though and I will gorge myself on soup, salad & bread sticks! Don't even get me started on that Alfredo dipping sauce, I could eat a bucket of it! My favorite soup from Olive Garden is the Zuppa Toscana. Italian sausage, potatoes & a creamy broth...mmm, mmm, mmm, the perfect combo!

Zuppa Toscana Soup

Directions:

1. - Brown sausage and set aside
2. - Over medium heat combine chicken broth, water and stir
   - Dissolve the chicken bouillon in the broth  
3. - Place diced onions, unpeeled potatoes, and garlic in pot
4. - Cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 or 15 minutes
5. - Add sausage and bacon (I don't use bacon in mine)
6. - Salt and pepper to taste
7. - Simmer for another 10 minutes
8. - Turn to low heat
9. - Add kale and cream
10. - Heat through for another 5 minutes and serve
    - Garnish with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese
    
    
    You will be amazed at how much this recipe tastes like the Olive Garden version. To make it spicier you can sprinkle in a some crushed red pepper flakes. I do it by the bowl to taste since not everyone likes spicy. Also, I have made it with and without the chicken bouillon power both taste great. You can test both ways and figure out which you like the best. It is a very simple recipe and the leftovers are tasty, tasty! Speaking of which, there are some leftovers in the fridge calling my name, enjoy!
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Source:
    Adapted from Food.com

Tuesday Tutorials Link Party {No. 24}

Hey there lovelies! Before you link up to Tuesday Tutorials enter to win a Shabby Apple dress valued at $86.00! Already entered? You can tweet and FB daily for extra entries!



On to this weeks link party!
Last weeks link party features! Were you featured?

{Left} Dates That Changed Our Lives from Holy Craft

{Center} Nutella Fluffernutter from Hugs & Cookies

{Right} Framed Wallpaper from Pig & Paint

Tuesday Tutorials Link Party {No. 24}

Welcome to the party! Link up your tutorials, cooking, crafts, sewing, DIY tips & tricks, I want to see it all! After each link party I will feature my favorite tutorials from the previous link party, so check back to see if you've been featured! I feature several posts on {The Kurtz Corner FB Page} and pin your projects to my Tuesday Tutorials Link Party Pinterest Board so make sure you become a fan/follow me on Pinterest and check it out! You can connect with me here!

Only Four {Easy} Rules

1. Please be a follower of {The Kurtz Corner}

2. Link directly to your post, not your blog

3. No Etsy Shops, giveaways or personal link parties 

4. Please grab my button or use a text hyperlink & link back to my blog 

Please follow the rules, it's only fair & good blogging etiquette :)

Party Button

<a border="0" href="http://thekurtzcorner.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa386/asmith0341/tutorials.jpg"/></a>

Please vote for The Kurtz Corner!

Show me what ya got!

Sunday Social - Blog Hop!

Welcome to the Sunday Social, hosted by The Kurtz Corner & The Sasse Life! Come link up your blogs home page and make some new bloggy friends! While your here stop by an enter my Shabby Apple dress giveaway!

How to participate:

1.  Follow your hosts (The Kurtz Corner & The Sasse Life).

2. Follow the Featured blog (The Stuff Of Success)

3.  Link up your blog's home page -- not a specific link or you will be deleted!
4. Visit at least 2 other blogs and make some friends!

5. Let your friends know by posting this button. The more, the merrier!

<center><a<br /> href="http://www.thesasselife.com"><img border="0" <br /> src="http://i1126.photobucket.com/albums/l611/thesasselife/Sunday-001.jpg"></a></center>

Featured Blog:

Athena from The Stuff Of Success

I am Athena and I am so pleased to be here at The Sasse Life! I am married to a great guy and we have three kids (he also has two older sons) and two giant breed "puppies"!  My blog is the pride and joy of my kids and I! The Stuff Of Success is dedicated to living life well, inexpensively. Our blog was developed to help prove that success is not the result of wealth. We focus on crafts, family, repurposing/recycling, cheap or free deals, with a bit of life's humor along the way. As an added bonus - every now and then my children do a "solo" project specifically for the blog. Another aspect of our blog is that my children are all adopted with special needs. As a result, many projects are adaptations or solutions to everyday difficulties that may be helpful to families with similar situations. 

Five Silly Facts:

I have a piano, two keyboards, 4 acoustic guitars, 1 acoustic/electric
guitar, 1 bass guitar, 4 amps, 1 bass amp, 1 digital drum set - AND I
CAN'T PLAY ONE OF THEM!  I used to play a little but in twenty years I
forgot it all.  But they look impressive!  If you have seen my craft
room you can easily see how this could have happened.

I published an eBook "just because" - checked it off my bucket list
(available for Kindle on Amazon if you are interested - Consumerism
Guide - Your All In One Guide to Coupons, Deals and Freebies)

I like Diet Coke but I LOVE Diet Coke from the fountains at McDonald's.
 Can someone please tell me why theirs has such a unique taste?

I was born French/Irish with a Greek First name and married into a Jewish last name AND my kids are Polish.

I am a compulsive note taker and list maker. I always have something to write down.

Let's get social!

Shabby Apple Giveaway!

Who's ready for another giveaway?! Enter to win a fabulous dress from Shabby Apple! Today I will be giving away the Spanish Steps dress from Shabby Apple, an online boutique that sells women's dresses, skirts, accessories and so much more! After entering the contest be sure to stop by their website and see all of the great things they have for sale!

Click on the image below to shop Shabby Apple's site!

Today's Giveaway!

Love this dress! 

Today's prize is valued at $86.00 and comes in sizes XS - XL

Ready to enter and win? Just follow the easy steps below! There are three mandatory entries to be eligible to win. You must follow The Kurtz Corner via GFC, you must "Like" Shabby Apple on FB and you must "Like" The Kurtz Corner on FB

You may also tweet/facebook about this giveaway daily for additional entries! The winner will be announced on February 25th and emailed. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Raspberry & Blueberry Swirl Cheesecake Cupcakes

Pin It
Everyone loves a good cheesecake right? I've never actually made a cheesecake before but I lOVE cheesecake so I thought I'd try something new. You know me, I'm a cupcake kinda girl so I made Strawberry & Blueberry Swirl Cheesecake Cupcakes! This week at work I headed up one of our fundraising events, a baking contest, to support the Save a Child'd Heart non-profit group. We raised just over $1000! We had some great entries and I am proud to say that I took 2nd place with my cheesecake cupcakes! Only missed 1st place by 3 votes, drats! At least I know my little treats were nummy!

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Cupcakes

Directions:

To begin, preheat your oven to 325˚F.  Line the cupcake pans with paper liners. In a blender, blend your graham crackers until they are crumbs. In a small bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and sugar. Fold your ingredients together with a rubber spatula until all the dry ingredients are moist. Scoop in 1 tablespoon of the mixture into the bottom of each cupcake liner. To press your crust into the liners use something small like a spice bottle. Bake for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.

To make the raspberry & blueberry sauce combine your raspberries and blueberries with you sugar (separately of course) and process until smooth. Pour your sauce through a strainer into a bowl to separate the seeds from the sauce. No one likes seeds in their sauce! Set aside.

To prepare your cheesecake filling, beat your cream cheese in an electric mixer until fluffy. Blend in your sugar followed by your salt and vanilla. Last, beat in your eggs one at a time making sure each is well blended. (really important that your cream cheese and eggs are at room temperature)

To create your cheesecakes, spoon in about 2 and 1/2 tablespoons of filling into your cups.

Drip three drops of your raspberry and blueberry sauce on top of your cheesecakes. Drag a toothpick through the top of your cheesecakes to create a marbled effect.

Bake your cupcakes for 22 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Once your cupcakes are at room temperature place your trays in the fridge and chill for 2 to 3 hours before serving. You can also freeze these and save them for later. If frozen allow 30 minute to an hour to defrost before serving. Enjoy.

Source:

Adapted from Annie's Eats

Sunday Social - Blog Hop!

Welcome to the Sunday Social! Come link up the home page of your blog and make some new blogging friends!!

How to participate:

1.  Follow your hosts (The Kurtz Corner & The Sasse Life) via Google Friend Connect.

2. Follow the Featured blog. (And I Thought I Loved You Then)

2.  Link up your blog's home page -- not a specific link or you will be deleted!
3. Visit at least 2 other blogs and make some friends!
4. Let your friends know by posting this button. The more, the merrier!

<center><a<br /> href="http://www.thesasselife.com"><img border="0" <br /> src="http://i1126.photobucket.com/albums/l611/thesasselife/Sunday-001.jpg"></a></center>
The winner of the $10 credit to House129 is...
Sharisse.


Featured Blog:
Kalyn from I Thought I Loved You Then

I am 27 years old, I have been married for almost 3 years and have a 1 year old daughter named Eliza. I was born and raised in Michigan but I am ready for a change out of the snow! I am a stay at home mom and I started blogging as a way to remember all of the things Eliza does, and a creative outlet for my crafts. I love to dance, sing, craft, take photos, and be with my family. I started my wreath business after everyone loved the wreaths I would make for my home. I now sell them on etsy and they are also in a boutique in a city near me.

5 Silly Facts:

1. I can't frown, and yes I try and practice. My husband thinks it is the funniest thing in the world. I guess that just shows how happy I am!!
2. I can walk on the tips of my toes like in Titanic, I could do it before her though!
3. I cloth diaper...hey some people think that is silly!
4. I want to have 4 little girls...maybe that is more crazy then silly.
5. I can't get enough of the Real Housewives! I think being from a small town makes me in awe that people are actually like that.

Make sure to stop by Kalyn's shop, Hangin Around.  She has a special treat for you all! For 2012, she is giving a 12% discount for her amazing wreaths.  Just type in "SundaySocial" to get your discount.  

Let's get social!

Glitter Kicks

Pin It
If you haven't had enough of my Glitter Heels HERE & HERE then you are in luck because today I have for you Glitter Kicks!

Yes, those are Ed Hardy...No, I haven't worn them since High School! They were popular at one point, key word, WERE. And yes, I have held on to them since High School. I am somewhat of a pack rat when it comes to clothes and shoes but guess what, I still fit in my High School clothes so HA! After years of hiding in the closet I figured it was time to give them a face-lift. I've had this tutorial in my back pocket since October so I figured it was time to share it!

Just like my Glitter Heels tutorial all you need is Mod Podge, Martha Stewart Fine Powder Glitter, A paper plate and a paintbrush. Mix equal parts of glitter and Mod Podge and paint a thin layer onto your shoes. Allow your first layer to dry for a few minutes, not fully dry, and then paint on a second thin layer. When finished sprinkle on your dry glitter. Cover your entire shoe and let sit. After it has dried for about half an hour tap off any excess glitter and touch up any bare spots. It's that easy! Your shoes will shed some glitter but not enough to make a difference and if it does you can always touch it up! Now go enjoy those glitter kicks and let yourself {SHINE}

Linking up HERE ♥

Tuesday Tutorials Link Party {No. 23}

Last weeks link party features! Were you featured?

{Left} Fudge Filled Hearts from Lady Behind the Curtain

{Center} Heart Shirt Re-Do from Tousled Day

{Right} Key To My Heart Valentines Art from Shaken Together

Tuesday Tutorials Link Party {No. 23}

Link up your tutorials, cooking, crafts, sewing, DIY tips & tricks, I want to see it all! After each link party I will feature my favorite tutorials from the previous link party, so check back to see if you've been featured! I feature several posts on {The Kurtz Corner FB Page} so make sure you become a fan and check it out!

Only Four {Easy} Rules

1. Please be a follower of {The Kurtz Corner}

2. Link directly to your post, not your blog

3. No Etsy Shops, giveaways or personal link parties 

4. Please grab my button or use a text hyperlink & link back to my blog 

Please follow the rules, it's only fair & good blogging etiquette :)

Party Button

<a border="0" href="http://thekurtzcorner.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa386/asmith0341/tutorials.jpg"/></a>

Please vote for The Kurtz Corner!