Cucumber Salad

I made pickles today, and wouldn't you know I ran out of jars before I ran out of cucumbers!  Easy fix, I decided to make this cucumber salad to accompany our dinner tonight.  It is a very simple, fresh summer dish.

Gather Your Ingredients:

• 2 medium cucumbers, sliced
• 1 medium to large tomato, chopped
• 1 very small red onion or half of a medium, thinly sliced
• 1/4 to 1/2c. Italian Dressing, I like to mix up the Good Seasons brand
• Salt and Pepper to taste

There is one step after you have prepped the ingredients ... mix them together.  I don't think it can get any more simple than that!  Use just enough dressing to evenly coat all of the veggies, salt and pepper if desired.  Refrigerate for a couple of hours.  If you want, you can top it with some fresh parsley just before serving.

Back 2 School Is Almost Here!

August is here, that means that it's almost time for the kids to go back to school.  It's a little bittersweet for me, really.  I LOVE having my kids home for the summer and being able to spend time with them, but it can be exhausting keeping them entertained.

We have already hit the school supply aisles and purchased the items on their class lists, sigh ...  Why must it be so expensive?  Those back to school sales are vital in this household, and I make sure to buy extra while it's on sale!

Today I have some fun back to school printables to share with you!  Yay!  I love free printables!  The first one is a sheet of lunch box notes.  Cute little notes that you can cut apart, write a message and tuck in their lunch box.  You should be able to click the thumbnail to enlarge it then right click on the image to save it.

The second printable I have found to be a necessity!  Doesn't it feel like you are constantly sending money to school for something?  Lunch money, fundraisers, handbooks, field trips, year books etc.  The list goes on ...  I am always nervous about the money getting to the appropriate place or person.  This form makes it easy to clearly indicate the who, what, where and why of sending money to school.  Just cut it apart, fill it in and attach to the money.

I also made an alternate to the letter in the form of a size 10 envelope.

DIY Kitchen Art

As I posted in a previous entry, I have a new home to decorate!  I really enjoy crafting and doing DIY projects.  I guess I'm too picky and want to do things MY way.  I was trying to decide on a few pieces to hang in my kitchen.  UTENSILS!  Utensils belong in a kitchen!  So, how do I decorate with utensils?  Google usually solves all of those random questions like this one.  So, inspired by a quick Google Images search, I created this for my kitchen wall.

Want to make one yourself?  Here's how!

You Will Need:

• Metal Flatware - I got mine at Wal-Mart ... $0.94 for 4 piece sets
• Photo Frames - I wanted simple ones, so these are $2 frames that I painted white.  Use whatever you like.
• A background image - This can be scrapbook paper or an image that you print.
• Tape Runner or glue stick
• Strong adhesive such as E6000
• Spray Paint

Start by removing the glass and inserts from your frame.  Spray paint your frame (if desired) and flatware in the color of your choice.

While that is drying, measure and trim your image to fit the frame.  Glue it down to the backing part of the frame.  I placed mine under a heavy stack of printer paper to make sure that it would completely stick down.

After the paint is dry, arrange the flatware on your background.  I chose to do groupings of 3 per frame.  I once read that when it comes to design, odd numbers tend to be more appealing to the eye.  Once you are happy with the layout, put some E6000 on the parts of the flatware that touches the background.  Gently press down to make sure that you have good contact.

After the glue dries, place your arrangement into the frame.  You may find that it is not a tight fit with out the glass.  To remedy this, I bent the little prongs inward until I had a tight hold.  Alternately, you way want to add a shim by placing a piece of cardboard behind the backing before pressing the prongs into place.

Change it up by using different types of frames or utensils.  Arrange the utensils differently.  Use a different type of background.  My initial idea was to insert chicken wire and tie the utensils on with raffia or burlap threads.  Make it your own and make it fit your decor.