Blab 'n Gab

Hubby and I are going to celebrate our first year of marriage in a couple weeks! He is very traditional and wanted to give gifts made of paper for our first year together. We will be on our cruise to the Bahamas when we exchange gifts so I wasn’t sure what I should get him that I can get on the ship and in our luggage. I thought about tickets to a play or show, but we had been looking at them together so that ruined the surprise. I then came across this great idea at http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/1st-anniversary-diy-map-gift-tutorial#axzz2RrDFqGHE   I had seen the framing of maps before, but I never thought of writing on the frames or cutting them into different shapes! I went to Michael’s and found a set of 4 square picture frames for about $14. Then I just googled our special locations and printed them off on a color printer. Finally, I searched for different clip art shapes that I liked and printed them off. The hard part was making sure they were all the same size. I j

I stumbled across this really cute idea to create a crossword puzzle for the hubby to figure out. You can make all of the clues related to your life together. Your first date, where you first kissed, where he proposed. So fun! You can generate a crossword puzzle online here . There was another idea to make a word search for your hubby.The words could be to ask him out on a date for later that evening. After he finds all the words he has to unscramble them into the sentence. Such a creative and romantic idea! I found a word search generator too here . Even another idea would be to create a matching game with pictures of the two of you. This would be great for long distance relationships and there's an online generator available here . Now I just need to think of clues.... :)

I stumbled across some great crock pot recipes and wanted to post them before I lost them all! I cant take credit, but these are publicly published so it shouldnt be a problem! All recipes should be divided into 2 freezer bags. Sausage and Peppers 6 Italian Sausages (or chicken sausage) 2 green peppers 1 red pepper 1 large onion 4 cloves garlic, minced (if using store bought minced garlic.. 1/2 tsp= 1 clove) 2 cans Italian diced tomatoes 2 Tbs Italian seasoning Add drizzle of Olive oil, cook on low 6 hours. Serve over hot noodles or fresh French bread. Teriyaki Chicken medium-large bag carrots onion flakes 2 large cans pineapple (undrained) 4 garlic cloves, minced 4 chicken breasts 1 cup teriyaki sauce Add add'l 1/4 cup sauce to crock pot. Cook on low 6-7 hours. Serve over hot rice. Savory Chicken 4-6 chicken breasts 2 cans stewed tomatoes 4 Tbs white wine (or extra broth) onion flakes 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 cup chicken

Yesterday was the hubbys birthday and I knew I had to make it special!  His day started with breakfast in bed of an egg muffin (we're on a diet so I couldn't go too overboard)! Then when he got up he had a surprise: 24 balloons for 24 years and a man bouquet! The man bouquet was a cool idea I found on pinterest. You arrange a bunch of manly things to look like a bouquet. I added lottery tickets, mini bottles, hot sauce, his favorite crackers and little debbies, a dart gun, and beef jerky. I thought about adding cigars but didn't have time. He loved it and thought it was awesome. The balloons were much more difficult to pull off since I had to find a time I wasn't with him to go get them blown up. Then trying to get 24 balloons home in your car is pretty difficult! They were stored in our upstairs closet for a few days so a couple were a little deflated the day of his birthday. Later that day I took him to get a massage. Although, ladies, always have a woman do your ma