Congrats! It’s a….watermelon? {Watermelon Baby Carriage} #babyshower ideas

Kim

Last summer, I helped throw my sister a baby shower. It was so much fun, and I did a post sharing the punch recipe and the party favors. My plan was to share a bunch of other things…and per usual, life got in the way. Well, better late than never right?!

One of my favorite things was this watermelon baby carriage. I was so proud of myself for actually pulling it off! Granted, there are much more intricate ones online, but I love my creepy grapefruit baby and it’s simple watermelon carriage. It looks cute on the food table, and it can be used for a boy or girl, and with pretty much any theme!

This was our food table, with a side table to the far right (not pictured) with meatballs, and we had some candy that matched our color scheme (pink/green/white) sitting around throughout.

Since we had the shower in the summer, watermelon was in season, as well as most of the other fruits used, which was a money saver. You can use any combination of fruits you like or have available.

Watermelon Baby Carriage

1 watermelon (any size, and make it easy on yourself and get a seedless one!)
1 grapefruit, size will depend on the size of the watermelon. It’s going to become the baby’s head, so think about how much space you want it to take up. Note: You can also use an orange, if you need something smaller than a grapefruit
1 pink or blue pacifier
grapes/blueberries or other small fruit to make “eyes” and “nose”
toothpicks
assorted fruit to fill “carriage”, again the amounts will depend on the size of the watermelon.

To prepare-

Place watermelon on a flat surface (on top of newspaper or towels to catch the juice). If needed, cut a small slice of rind off the bottom to help it sit flat.
Use a marker (or visualize) a line down the middle of the watermelon horizontally. Vertically, you will draw a line that is not quite centered…at about 1/3 or a little more of the watermelon. Using a sharp knife, cut from the top vertical line, down to the center horizontal line. This is easier than it sounds…just take a look at a pic and cut accordingly. (I didn’t measure anything, and I just freehanded my lines. No perfectionism here! If your lines aren’t perfectly straight, it’s okay. If needed, you can go back and neaten/trim them up.)
After you have cut out the top quarter of the watermelon, scoop out all the fruit. I used a melon baller, so my pieces looked nice and were ready to add back into the watermelon.
Add some of the watermelon and assorted fruit to the bottom and back of the watermelon. Add whole grapefruit in center. Place fruit around grapefruit until “carriage” is full.
Use 2 pieces of fruit to make eyes – I used a grape, cut in half. Place toothpick into grapefruit, where you want the eyes to go…leave enough of the toothpick sticking out to secure the eyes in place. Do the same for the nose…I used a blueberry for this. Make a small slit in the grapefruit for the mouth. Insert pacifier.

Congrats! You have a watermelon baby. This is just a basic one, if you have creativity and artistic ability, you can get as fancy as you want. I’ve seen some with scalloped edges, a handle for the carriage, wheels, etc.

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White Chocolate Popcorn {Party Favors}

Kim

Having your guests have a little something to take home at the end of a party is a fun thing to do. I, of course, like for it to be something edible. Everyone likes food right? If they are friends with me, the answer to that is yes. Because seriously, who wants to hang out with someone who doesn’t like to eat? Don’t answer that. You people out there who just “forget to eat”…I have issues with you. I’m kidding. Sort of.

For my sister’s baby shower, I made white chocolate popcorn with pink, green, and white M&M candies.

It looked cute bagged up, and it tastes good. We placed a framed sign on the table with the favors that said ‘Ready to pop’. My cousin made it and it was very cute (it was also done in pink and green), but somehow I didn’t get a picture. That’s the downside to hosting a party, it’s hard to get as many pics!

The popcorn was tied with pink and white curling ribbon and I found little strollers, pacifiers and baby blocks at a dollar store (The Dollar Tree), so we tied those to each bag. It’s similar to the Birthday Cake Batter Popcorn party favors I did for my daughter’s 10th bday party.

White Chocolate Candy Popcorn

*The amounts are going to vary depending on how much you want to make. We made 25 favor bags, and I am guessing it was about 2 cups per bag, maybe a little more. The recipe is for one ‘batch’ and I doubled it.

12 cups popped popcorn (1/2 cup unpopped kernels)

1 (24 oz) package of white almond bark or white chocolate chips, melted

*sea salt (optional)

desired candy or sprinkles

In a large bowl, pour the melted chocolate or almond bark over the prepared popcorn.
Stir to mix.
Spread chocolate covered popcorn out on wax paper.
*Sprinkle with sea salt if desired (this is not needed if using salted microwave popcorn. I used plain popcorn from my air popper) You can also skip the salt all together, but I like the sweet-salty combo.
Add candy to popcorn BEFORE CHOCOLATE HARDENS. Lightly press candy down onto the popcorn. (You can mix the candy in with the chocolate, but then it gets covered in white chocolate so it’s not as pretty. I like to add it on the tops, you just have to work quickly before the chocolate hardens.)
Once chocolate/bark is set, break apart and place in bags.

This simple recipe can be adapted to pretty much any party or theme. Just change up the candy used, add sprinkles, etc. I don’t recommend making it more than 24 hours in advance because the chocolate coating causes the popcorn to get soft…it’s still good however!

If looking for a good party punch, you can check out this post.

If looking for more baby shower ideas, you can check out my .

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Sparkling Pineapple-Lime Punch {and Baby Shower Beverages}

Kim

Anyone who knows me knows that my sister is having her first baby very soon *squeal* and they also know that I recently gave her a baby shower. The colors for the shower were white, pink and green. As I was perusing Pinterest for ideas, I saw this punch recipe. The vivid green caught my attention and I thought it would look good on the beverage table with the pink lemonade we were serving.

A couple of things….first, those are mint leaves! For a baby shower, I probably should have removed the leaves, or really muddled them better. It kinda looks like my ducks are swimming in some very realistic pond water. (However, it gave me the idea that this punch would be awesome at Halloween. Take out the fruit and ducks, add in some creepy frogs/eyeballs etc…perfect!)

Other than the floating mint leaves/lily pads (haha) the punch was a pretty color and the best part – it was very good! Several people commented on it (and no one said it looked like pond water – except my middle child…which comes as no surprise to me. Who said honesty is the best policy? Oh yeah, that was me. *sigh*) It reminded me a little of a mojito, and you could easily add in some rum to make an adult, non-baby-on-board, beverage!

So – pretty color, tastes great, and EASY to make – that makes it a keeper in my book!

Sparkling Pineapple-Lime Punch

1 bunch fresh mint, stems removed

2 packs Kool-Aid Lemon-Lime Flavor Unsweetened Drink Mix

2 qt. (8 cups) pineapple juice, chilled

1 (2 L) bottle of carbonated lemon-lime soda, chilled (7-Up, Sprite, etc)

1 lemon, cut lengthwise in half, then sliced crosswise (I just quartered mine…oops)

1 lime, sliced

Muddle mint with the dry Kool-Aid. This can be done in the punch bowl or in a separate bowl using anything with a flat bottom or with a wooden spoon.
Once mint and Kool Aid are muddled together, pour in the chilled pineapple juice. Stir until Kool Aid is dissolved.
Add lemon, lime and 2 L soda just before serving.

Note: I made an ice ring with about a half quart of the pineapple juice, along with some whole mint leaves. This is optional, but helps keep the punch cold without watering it down.

Recipe Source:

The green punch, aka ‘green juice’ as my sister referred to it, was served in a punch bowl I’ve had forevah. The pink lemonade, with slices of lime, was served in a glass drink dispenser that I picked up at TJ Maxx or Marshall’s relatively cheap. A tip about the the drink dispensers with the spout at the bottom – they either have to sit on the edge of the table/counter or they need to be on some type of stand. An inverted cake plate works great if your dispenser doesn’t come with a stand! We also had water bottles available…

The labels were a free printable from . We just cut them out and used packing tape to tape them on. The tape also helps keep them from ripping. If your water bottles are going to be in ice, or are cold and going to ‘sweat’, you may want to consider laminating them first. Ain’t nobody got time fo’ dat.

* Pinterest Board if interested*

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Pimento Cheese “Caviar of the South”

Kim

First, let me clear up a dilemma…the pimento vs pimiento dilemma. Why different spellings? Is it like doughnuts vs donuts?! These are question I ponder. Well, worry no more. You can spell it either way, it means the same thing, the variation in spelling has to do with the country of origin (and, you know, if you really want to know more…Google is your friend). Pimento/pimiento is a cherry pepper that can be mild or spicy depending on the variety. The ones I buy in the jar from the grocery store are pretty mild.

If you are from the South, you probably are very familiar with pimento cheese. It’s kind of a Southern staple found at picnics, potlucks, baby showers…you name it. Little pimento cheese sandwiches on white bread cut into little triangles or shapes…a tradition 🙂 They are also delicious. However, my favorite way to eat pimiento cheese?

On crackers, topped with pickled jalapenos! Yummm! It’s also good, as I’ve mentioned before, on top of a burger…

Or, you can make a grilled cheese with it. Now, there are a couple of different ways to make pimiento/pimento cheese. The easiest method…

Pimiento Cheese

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (or you can mix sharp and mild)
1 jar of pimientos (I use the large jar, but if you are not a huge fan, you may want to use the small jar)
light mayo – enough to bind it all together. I never measure this, and the quantity will vary based on which jar of pimientos you use, if you use the juice of the pimientos (I do) and personal preference.

Add cheese to a medium size mixing bowl. Dump in the entire jar of pimientos (juice and all). Mix well. Add enough mayo to bind it all together. Add salt and pepper to taste. I like lots of pepper!

This is how I have made mine for years…until recently. I recently made Bobby’s version. If you are thinking Bobby who? Well, Bobby DEEN of course! Paula’s beloved son. Regardless of your feelings towards Paula and her ‘I said a bad word 20 years ago that used to be socially acceptable, however ugly it is, and now it’s not for a certain segment of the population but okay for others’ drama; the woman can cook. Albeit not the healthiest of meals, but she has a lot of recipes that are pretty awesome. Her son Bobby has come along and often times will ‘healthify’ some of his mama’s recipes, or make his own. Anyway, this is my version of which I originally found through .

Bobby’s Pimento Cheese

6-ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 cups grated sharp cheddar
2 cups grated Monterey Jack
1/4 cup light mayonnaise (or too taste)
1 large jar pimentos, undrained
Salt, Cracked black pepper, Onion Powder – too taste

Mix cream cheese with a mixer until smooth and creamy.
Stir in both cheeses, and entire jar of pimentos (juice and all).
Mix well (I do this by hand, but you can use a mixer if you want a smoother/creamier spread).
Stir in enough mayo to reach desired consistency – you may want a little more or less than I use. Cheese mixture will thicken up a little the next day.
Add a little salt, plenty of pepper and a little onion powder to reach desired taste.

Serve with crackers, veggie sticks or as a sandwich filling.

Are you a pimento cheese fan?

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Fun! New American Greetings eCards! {#sponsored}

Kim

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of for . All opinions are 100% mine.

I’m one of those people who loves to give cards, but never remembers to buy them. We give gifts all the time with no card attached, and then I’m like “oh man, I forgot the card! (again!)” Or I pick out this great card to send to someone…and weeks later I find it sitting somewhere because I forgot to mail it. Soooo, eCards are perfect for me! American Greetings now has eCards AND video eCards and I have had the most fun choosing cards. The best part is, I don’t have to remember to buy stamps, get them in the mailbox, etc. Just a click of a button and I can let friends and family know that I am thinking of them. or !

I made a video eCard for my little boy who is turning 6 next week. The cool part is that you can customize the video to include specific things relevant to the recipient. The above picture shows how you customize – you can add the person’s name or something like “son/daughter/etc”, the sender’s name (I just put ‘mama’, b/c that’s what my baby calls me. #Southernism); their favorite food; and age or something like “over the hill/another year older/etc”. It’s fun to look through the options, and more fun to hear the customized options in the video. I can’t wait for my little man to see it, I think he will really get a kick out of it!

They have eCards and video eCards for many different occasions. Since my sister is expecting her first baby (and I finally get to be an Aunt! I’m so excited!) I had to check out their baby cards. These immediately caught my eye…

Are they not the cutest?! I’m really hoping my sister and her hubby find out the sex AND decide to share it (at least with me) because I want to buy every baby item I see 🙂 Of course, first and foremost we want a healthy baby, and the baby has to cooperate on ultrasound and there are no guarantees that will happen. Anywho, I could write an entire blog post about babies, so let’s focus!

Not only can you email the cards you want to send, you can chose to send it direct to mobile OR Facebook! I really like the Facebook option. Here is a little more info –
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To have this convenience and awesomeness at your fingertips, all you have to do is become a member. The membership options are:

Monthly – $3.99/month
Yearly – $19.99/year
2 year membership – $29.99 *Best Deal*

The video eCards are included with membership, and also included in the FREE 7-Day Trial Membership if you just want to try it out before committing.

So what about you? Are you a card person? Am I the only one that can be found sobbing in the card isle, or pick out cards just to leave them sitting on the counter?!

Southern Iced Fruit Tea

Kim

For

Southern Iced Fruit Tea

from

2 family-size iced tea bags
6 cups boiling water
1 cinnamon stick
1 can (48 ounces) pineapple juice
1 can (12 ounces) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 can (12 ounces) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
optional: fruit slices and/or mint, for garnish (I omitted)

Bring water just to a boil, remove from heat, then add tea bags and the cinnamon stick.
Steep for at least 15 minutes (longer for stronger tea).
After steeping, remove tea bags and cinnamon stick. Pour tea in a large pitcher (I used a sun tea pitcher).
Stir in the thawed orange juice and lemonade. Stir until blended.
Add the pineapple juice, stir well.
Refrigerate until fully chilled, and stir before serving (the juice tends to settle, so you will need to stir every so often,)

I think you could add in some rum for a delish grown up beverage too!

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Yay! This recipe was featured at !

Makin’ it Mo’Betta

Chocolate Candy Cake

Kim

I gave a little overview of my middle child’s 10th birthday last week, with a pic of her Pinterest inspired over-the-top cake. I mean a cake surrounded in Kit Kat candy bars and covered with M&M’s…every kids dream right?! (and me being the chocoholic that I am was secretly super excited to have an excuse to make it!) Her friends were quite impressed, and deemed me the best baker ever. hahaha, candy will win them over every time!

However, the outside wasn’t the only yummy part of this cake. The inside was also delicious. It was chocolate cake and chocolate icing…per Miss Two’s request. The inside was moist and chocolate-y and the icing was the new Cool Whip frosting, which was light and the perfect match for this cake.

This cake is adapted from this one. I’ve been making it for years, but usually make it as a bundt cake. Since I wanted this cake to be a layer cake, I changed the recipe a little to have a cake that was a little less dense and heavy. The result was ‘fluffier’, but not dry.

Chocolate Layer Cake

1 package devil’s food cake mix (without pudding in the mix)
1 small box instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup plain non-fat yogurt (or sour cream)
1/2 cup canola oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup warm coffee
1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, yogurt, oil, beaten eggs and coffee.
Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into two greased and floured cake pans. (or pan of choice!)
Bake for suggested time on back of cake mix box, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Allow cake to cool in pan for about 20 minutes, then invert onto cooling rack to cool completely before icing.

To assemble “Kit Kat” cake – frost cake as desired, then place full size Kit Kat bars all around the outside of the cake. My cake used 3 “king size” Kit Kats plus one “regular size”. I just broke the bars into singles (but I think leaving them as double sticks would be better) and stick them to the frosting on the cake.
Once the cake is covered all around the sides with Kit Kat bars, you can cover the top in whatever you like. We used pretzel M&M’s and mini M&M’s. You could make this cake match whatever theme you are using, or Holiday, based on the color candy you use on top. It makes for such a cool presentation. I added ribbon around the cake, b/c that is what I had seen on Pinterest. I thought maybe the ribbon was needed to keep the Kit Kats from falling off, but we didn’t have any issue with that (it might happen if the frosting started to melt however).

This is definitely a “special occasion” cake, with all that candy on top makes quite an impression on kids and adults alike!

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Wordless Wednesday – Black & White Baby Shower

Kim

My cousin’s baby shower!

Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Curd

Kim

I made these cupcakes for my sister’s birthday and they were the BOMB. The lemon curd absolutely made them. That is some good stuff. I had never tried it before but recently ordered it, along with some other goodies, from . I’m in love.

These were super easy to make because I went for the quick and dirty version. Boxed lemon cake mix, lemon icing, and prepared lemon curd. Obviously, making everything from scratch would make it that much better.

I made the cake mix according to directions on the box, except I added the zest of one lemon. Once the cupcakes were done, I used a melon ball scoop, and scooped out some of the cupcake (which I ate), and added a dollop of lemon curd. We topped the cupcakes with canned lemon icing (I say we b/c my 11 y/o helped with the icing, in case you were checking out the first pic and wondering. Not that my frosting skills are all that.) The icing is the thing I would change for next time. I wasn’t a huge fan of the artificial lemon flavor of the canned icing, but I was worried the homemade icing would melt so quickly in the heat, and I was traveling with them. Other than that, they were awesome! My mother declared them divine…and that is saying something as my mom is more of a chocoholic than I am! I know, it’s not even possible, right?!

I am thinking about making these again soon, and instead of frosting, just add some cool whipped topping and fresh blueberries. Lemon and blueberry is always a winning combo. I could even make these “skinny” cupcakes by just adding a can of diet lemon/lime soda to the box of mix. If you haven’t tried this…it works! I posted it here if interested. So…..maybe I’m just gonna go now and make these before I attack the lemon curd with a spoon!

And if you are craving a salty snack….go enter my giveaway HERE.

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White Chocolate, Cranberry & Pistachio Cookies

Kim

Preschool ended this week for Mr. Three and we wanted to give a little something to his teachers. He really loved his teacher and classmates…it is so sweet! As always, when thinking of a little gift, food comes to mind. I’ve especially been on a cookie kick recently. (Why can’t I get on a lunges kick, or jump rope kick…why’s it always food?!)

had a perfect guess to my little sneak peak photo yesterday!

White Chocolate, Cranberry & Pistachio Cookies

adapted from my Tropical Trail Mix Cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) softened butter or margarine *I used Smart Balance 50/50
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1-1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup chopped pistachios *I used a 1/2 c. pistachios and 1/2 c. almonds b/c that’s what I had on hand

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a bowl, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy; add egg. Combine flour and baking soda; blend into creamed mixture. Stir in chips, fruit and nuts. Drop rounded tablespoonsful of dough (1-1/2 inch balls), about 2 inches apart, on silicone mat lined or greased cookie sheet. Bake 13-15 minutes. Cool 2-3 minutes on cookie sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool. Store in tightly covered container. Makes about 32 cookies*
*Depends on the size of your cookies and how much dough you eat!

We took the cookies and put them in little tins that I picked up from Target (in the dollar bins). If you are thinking this looks familiar, it’s because it is….I did almost the same thing for Teacher Appreciation last year, except I made Tropical Trail Mix Cookies. Yum.

This cute little printable came from , and I just pasted it onto some decorative paper.

I wrote a little note on the back and my son signed his name all by himself!

I thought these cookies were really good. (Because you know I had to try them several times before I gave them away. Obviously.) I’m not a huge fan of white chocolate, but it pairs very well with the cranberries and pistachios/almonds. Definitely a combo I’ll be making again!

Don’t forget to go enter my Rafflecopter GIVEAWAY for 2 mega boxes of Cheerios!

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