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You know how it goes. Sometimes it’s easier to do the work yourself than to train your kids how to do it correctly. But I recently realized that my kids are capable of so much more than I gave them credit for. When I was down and out with the stomach flu a few months ago, my oldest floored me by putting away all the clean dishes from the dishwasher. Without being asked. Or bribed. It was HUGE for me. He told me he knew it would help me out and a light bulb went off in my head. One of the reasons I had resisted putting together a chore system for them was because I didn’t want it to be about how much they could earn. I wanted it to be about how their actions could help another family member. We came up with an easy plan where they are incentivized to help out around the house, but the focus is on helping others. I created a chore list to help prompt their actions. I really love how it’s working!
You Got It Dude Free Printable Quote
If you don’t know where the catch phrase You Got it Dude came from we clearly need to talk! My extreme excitement for the start of Fuller House on Netflix led me to wanting, no, NEEDING to create and share this awesome You Got it Dude free printable quote! My family has seen the whole season and it’s exactly like I hoped it would be. I’m beyond excited that there is finally a family show, that all of us will enjoy, and watch together! Please tell me you are just as excited as I am!?
Finding Your Tribe – Blog Business + Printable
It is my favorite thing ever when Tori calls herself a blogging dinosaur. She’s this super cute blond gal, who is super business savvy and I know she just means she has been blogging a long time, but the image of a dinosaur just doesn’t fit her. Her strengths are so different from mine. Sometimes I am jealous of all the SEO and marketing knowledge she has but then I stop myself. We are all suited to certain things. And instead of spending my time wishing I could be more like Tori, I need to focus on my own strengths. The coolest part of finding your “tribe” is that they want to help you. They are willing to share their expertise and knowledge with you. Tori is there for me in a second if I need her help on something or have a question. These relationships aren’t one-sided, though. You have to bring something to the table too, but your friends will help you figure out what you are good at. They will ask you for help in certain areas that you never thought you could provide any value. They will lift you up when you are feeling down and will provide invaluable advice in all kinds of areas. And you will do the same for them. BTW, you NEED to check out all the business articles on Tori’s site. She knows what she is talking about.
If you are a blogger, and haven’t formed a community, move this to the top of your to-do list. Sometimes the relationships evolve naturally and sometimes you have to work to find them. Some of my blogging friendships (which shouldn’t be just pigeon holed as most of these relationships have grown in to full-fledged friendships with these ladies) started out with a simple email letting them know that I admire what they do and think they are doing an awesome job. Some were formed at blogging conferences. There are tons of ways to meet other bloggers. Finding your tribe won’t always be easy, but in the end it is something you will cherish.
There are so many bloggers out there and we all fall in to comparing ourselves to them from time to time. But if we can look at it in a different way, like a vast pool of potential friendships, maybe it would seem less daunting. We are all very different, but together we make beautiful music. On our own we are awesome, but together we are even better.
Do you have a “tribe”? Leave a thank you and link to their blog in the comments so we can all go say hi!
*I took this image in Palm Springs last year on our creative retreat. One of the gals, Tammy, wrote out this song lyric (Alphaville’s ‘Forever Young’) for me. She’s ridiculously talented and I consider her to be part of my tribe. Thank you, Tammy for always being there to support me and for collaborating with me on photos and with your awesome writing! I heart you!
Go check out her Letters To You site!
You can download just the lyrics here:
Just Be Cool Printable by Sarah Hearts
I’m so excited to announce that I have another printable for you today!! This phrase, “Just be cool,” is something we say a lot in my family. This is what I tell the boys when they are getting crazy. It’s what I tell them when we talk about how you should treat people. It’s like a new school way of the “do unto others…” saying. And it is also what I’ve been feeling in regards to the blog lately. You remember my goal setting post from Monday? Well, when I start to get all overwhelmed by my to-do list or the gigantic task of figuring out a new name, I tell myself, “Just be cool.” And it totally calms me down. I thought it might be something that you needed in your life right now as well. It doesn’t really mean dress better, or like cooler things than everybody else (although if that is a goal of yours, that totally works!) It just means settle down.
I’ve been trying to work with more bloggers, who I’ve met over the years. So for this one, I reached out to Sarah of Sarah Hearts. I truly admire her graphic design skills and when I asked her to create this printable from me, I basically gave her no instruction. And she sent over this FANTASTICALLY DESIGNED gorgeousness and my heart skipped a beat. It was better than I ever imagined it being! And I am so grateful for her willingness to partner with me on this. Blogging can sometimes be very individual, especially when you think in terms of being cooped up in a house hunched over a computer. So the fact that two bloggers can pair up from one sunny coast (me in Cali) to the other sunny coast, (Sarah in Florida) is so awesome.
Right now I have the Just be Cool Printable my hallway where my family can see it when we come out of our bedrooms. It’s a great reminder as we start each day and head out in to the world. And yes, that is a giant photo of my husband hanging on the wall. Thanks for asking.
And these Bougainvillea! So good. I have a tiny little patch of them in my backyard that I can see when I work at my “desk” (kitchen counter). But I think I’m going to start cutting them up and putting them in every room. I know I can’t be the only one with a thing for these hot pink flowers!
But I digress. I know the detail is hard to see in the other photos, but for serious, this print might be my favorite of all time. Sarah is my favorite. From the colors, to the overall feel of this, I’m in love. So just be cool. And go download the print.
Download the Just be Cool Printable Here!
Now go follow Sarah Hearts.
Yes, I can be bossy. :)
Printable for Coffee Lovers
Happy hump day, yo. As I get older, I’ve become really in to coffee. Not only do I look forward to my morning cup (I start thinking about it the night before!) but I also enjoy finding those places that serve really delicious coffee. I also love the community aspect of coffee. I love how you can sit and enjoy a cup with someone and use it as a way to really connect and spend time with them. I began drinking coffee, right out of college, rather by necessity when I commuted to Los Angeles for my internship. Although I was getting plenty of sleep at night, the monotonous, stop-and-go drive was enough to make me feel like I was falling asleep at the wheel. The simple act of sipping something warm, helped me to focus and drive safely. Previous to this, I had enjoyed only mochas (because who doesn’t like to drink chocolate) as a desserty treat. Fast forward to today, coffee is now part of “me time.” Sure I drink it while I take the kids to school, but I also really enjoy preparing it in the morning and knowing that I am about to start my day and will hopefully make some magic happen. So I will tell you how this coffee lover free printable came to be.
Because I am a music lover, certain song lyrics float around in my head. This one, by the Beastie Boys, had been an idea I had for New Year’s Eve cocktails. I reached out to one of my favorite graphic designers, Heather of River and Bridge, and since I waited until the last-minute to work on it, gave her very minimal details of what I was looking for. What came back, though was so much better. When I opened the file and saw more of a coffee cup type cup, my first thought was, “Heather is a genius.” For most of us, our day doesn’t get started without coffee. And I love that this feels empowering. Do you get that? I usually over think everything.
To me, this says, don’t waste any of the day. Let’s get started and tackle what awesome things lie ahead.
To me it says, let’s make a change, collectively. Not just on your own, but as a community. Let’s finish the cup and DO something.
And it is also just fun! What does it mean to you?
Download this print, frame it and remind yourself to make the most of your day. Take the day by storm and finish that cup. Sure, it sometimes takes 2 or 3 cups to get going. But use that time to plan your attack. Then tilt your head back. And finish that cup.
The song printable is set up as an 8×10 but you should be able to shrink it to fit whatever size best suits your needs. This would also make a great gift tag for a coffee lover gift!
Finish the Cup Coffee Printable
See more of Heather’s work on her site: River and Bridge
Orange Cardamom Hot Chocolate Recipe
How fun is this?! I’m part of Sandy Toes and Popsicle‘s Hot Chocolate Recipe Party blog hop. What that means is that several other bloggers are sharing their favorite hot chocolate recipes too. After you check out my post I know you are going to want to go check all of them out. My contribution is this Orange Cardamom Hot Chocolate. I’ve been wanting to try this recipe out for a while so when Jill asked if I wanted to be part of this party I said YES! I’ve been super into cardamom lately. And orange just goes really well with chocolate so I figured they would all work really well together. As with most of my recipes, I ran it by Kristin to make sure that amounts of each thing and technique sounded right. And then I set to work to try it out.
There are tons of ways to make hot chocolate and it is pretty much a personal preference. So whatever way you like it, do it that way. The orange and cardamom will work with whatever base you decide to go with. I used 1% milk because that is what we had in the house. But whole milk would make it super creamy and delicious. And Pioneer Woman likes a mix of milk and cream, and has her own version of orange flavored as well. YUM! Grab an orange, about a cup (or more) of semi-sweet chocolate and set to work finding whole cardamom pods. They aren’t everywhere but I ended up finding them at World Market of all places. Powdered would work fine too I’m sure if you can’t find the pods.
These ingredients smell amazing. The cardamom pods were not as fragrant as I thought they would be when I cracked them. Cracking them was really easy. Place them, one at a time, on the cutting board. Lay a large chef’s knife (blade aiming away from you) on top of the cardamom pod. With the heal of your hand give it a quick whack. It will split the pod without breaking it in to tiny pieces. The orange flavor is so clean and bright and totally reminds me of Christmas thanks to my mom making me candied orange peel every year while growing up.
With Kristin‘s approval, I decided to steep the orange peel (being careful not to get the white bitter part when I peeled it with a vegetable peeler) and cracked cardamom pods in the milk.
When heating milk, you need to make sure that you stir often over a medium to low flame so you don’t scald it. It doesn’t smell good when it burns. So I’ve heard…
Once the milk has come to a boil, I skimmed out the orange peel and cardamom pods and threw them away. Then I added the roughly chopped chocolate to the pan. I continued stirring until I felt like it was really melted. I’m not a chocolate expert so I really don’t know why my chocolate stayed looking speckle-y instead of being really smooth. It didn’t stop me from drinking the end result though.
And doesn’t hot chocolate taste better in a special mug? This was one of my husband’s from when he was a kid. His mom gave it to use a few years ago when she was cleaning out her cupboard. He never uses it but I certainly do.
I ladled the hot chocolate in the mug and topped it with another piece of orange peel. I also sprinkled a little bit of powdered cardamom on top to make sure that when you go in for that first sip you know what you are getting. Overall the orange and cardamom flavor was subtle but delicious. This is definitely something I will be making again!
Jill created a download for the recipe card. Download it below:
Orange Cardamom Hot Chocolate Recipe Card
It prints two to a page so be sure to share it with someone! Huge thank you to Jill for creating the party and all the printables!
Don’t forget to go check out the other amazing hot chocolate recipes (each with their own printable recipe card! Collect them all!):
Caramel hot chocolate – Alma ( fieldtripmom.com )
Nutella hot chocolate – Tee ( thatsitmommy.com )
Mexican hot chocolate – Pattie ( livingmividaloca.com )
Peanut butter hot chocolate – Linsey ( lillepunkin.com )
Coffee with hot chocolate mix added – Kara ( smallthingsarebigthings.com )
Frozen Hot Chocolate – Jamie ( mngirlinla.com )
Peppermint Hot Chocolate Floats – Caryn ( rockinmama.net )
Hot Chocolate with Marshmallow cream topping – Jill ( sandytoesandpopsicles.com )