Everything Pretty Top 10 Posts of 2018

I'm pretty sure that it's only been a few weeks since I wrote my Top 10 Posts of 2017 post!  Where did 2018 go? 2018 was a quick year, but it was a good one.  Once again, I got to take my family with me to travel.  We aren't a traveling family, so it was a really big deal for us to take our mini trips.  With having dogs, cats, chickens, and goats, travel isn't easy for us. This year we got to visit Great Wolf Lodge for the first time.  We had so much fun there!  The kids got to do a lot of dry land activities, and they made a lot of memories there. We also got to go back to Kalahari , but this time we spent the night.  Two whole days of Kalahari was amazing!  We can't wait to go back. As for 2019?  I haven't really decided.  I think what I'm doing now is working fairly well.  I may go back to two posts a week just because of time restrains.  I'm not entirely sure on that yet. I do want to take a moment and thank you, my readers, for reading, c

Gingerbread House Soaps Painted With Mica

These adorable gingerbread house soaps are decorated with whipped melt and pour soap and painted mica.  You can have a lot of fun decorating these, then you can use them as soap. Each year, my daughter makes a gingerbread house.  She loves decorating cakes, cookies, and especially gingerbread houses.   I'm crafty and can make many thing, but a cake decorator I am not.  So I used soap as my medium of choice.  I found an adorable gingerbread house mold that's probably meant for cake or some other bakery item, but I used it for soap. The plain soaps were adorable on their own, but I decorated them like you would a real gingerbread house.  I think they turned out so cute!  Put these on a pedestal dish in the guest bath for an cute seasonal touch.  Gingerbread houses are generally made at Christmas, but I think they would look cute all winter long.

Intense Berry DIY Bath and Body Gift Sets Perfect for Gift Giving

This DIY bath and body gift set makes a great gift for Christmas or any time.  Includes recipes for an emulsifed whipped sugar scrub, lip balm, lotion, and soap with a natural Intense Berry scent. This year, I couldn't figure out what to give my son's therapists.  I usually make them cute travel coffee tumbler with a Starbuck's gift card because they are on the road all day between clients.  I did that last year, so I wanted something new for this year. My son has two (soon to be three) therapists that come to the home once or twice a week year round.  They both have the patience of a saint.  Thanks to their help, Caleb has made so much progress in three years.   He was almost completely nonverbal two years ago.  Now he holds a conversation with nearly anyone and only shuts down when it's time to write.  It's amazing to see how far he's come! I wanted to get them something special and something that would pamper them a little.  Something th

Gingerbread Jelly Soap Recipe

These gingerbread jelly soaps are so cute and so much fun to use!  They are made with natural essential oils for the scent.    Are you decorated for Christmas?  I am not all decorated yet.  We put the tree up a few weeks ago, but that's as far as I've gotten.  Between Caleb's ETR and IEP and all of the evaluations and my being sick, we just didn't have time. Until three years ago, I went all out and decorated the entire house.  You couldn't look anywhere without seeing a Santa Claus.  I wish I had the energy to do that again, but sometimes just had to be let go when I started homeschooling. I still wanted a little more Christmas spirit in the house, so I made these gingerbread jelly soaps.  I set them in the kitchen and in the bath to use as a hand soap.  My daughter uses them in the shower, too.  

Skinny Peppermint Mocha Recipe

How to make a skinny peppermint mocha recipe at home with fewer carbs, calories, and fat.  You don't need any special equipment to make this delicious healthier version of your favorite coffee house drink. It's been a fairly mild winter, but I'm still freezing.  I am just not meant to live in Ohio.  I should be on some tropical island where the temperature is between 68 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit all year. In the evenings, I get cold.  I cuddle with my chihuahua, Nacho, under a blanket and sip a hot drink.  I'm kind of a coffee addict, so I usually make a coffee drink. I have been all about peppermint mochas lately, so I make this skinny peppermint mocha recipe sometimes in the evening. I'm a busy mom, so I don't want to spend time making this drink when I could be spending time with my kids.  I look for recipes that don't need any special equipments or ingredients that I won't use for anything else. This skinny peppermint mocha recipe is

Peppermint Matcha Green Tea Whipped Sugar Scrub Recipe

This peppermint matcha green tea sugar scrub is full of antioxidants and smells wonderful. Red and green are the colors of the season.   I prefer to use natural ingredients to dye my DIY bath and body products, and what better way to get green than with matcha green tea? Since I'm all about peppermint lately, I mixed things up with this matcha green tea sugar scrub and added some peppermint.  I figure peppermint is red and matcha is green, so this is really a Christmas sugar scrub. I made this an emulsified whipped sugar scrub, so it's a more luxurious than other sugar scrubs.  Whipping it makes is really light and fluffy.   I also added an emulsifier, so this scrub turns into a lotion when you use it.  Combine this with the ingredients that I used, and this is a great sugar scrub for dry skin.   PEPPERMINT MATCHA GREEN TEA WHIPPED SUGAR SCRUB RECIPE ORGANIC SUGAR  I prefer using sugar in my body scrubs because it's gentler on your skin tha

15 Cute Stocking Stuffers For Her Under $10

She will love these cute stocking stuffers for her.  They are all under $10, and they are all adorable.   I am having so much fun putting together gift guides for you this year.  This one is probably one that you want to send to your kids or husband if they need gift ideas.  I was thinking of women who like cute things (like I do!), but this list of stocking stuffers would also be great for teens.  My tween would even like most of the things on this list.

40 DIY Bath and Body Handmade Gift Ideas

 DIY bath and body handmade gift ideas to make and give to friends, coworkers, and family.   I love making DIY bath and body handmade gifts for friends and family.  Each year, I pick two or three different things to make, and I made large batches of them to gift. The recipients seem to love getting my DIY bath and body gifts.  I used to gift them to my kids' teachers each year because I could make them inexpensively, yet they were really fun gifts.   I mean, who doesn't want to get the gift of pampering?  I got bath salts, now I need to take time to relax, right?

Peppermint Mocha Salt Scrub Recipe

This peppermint mocha salt scrub recipe would make a great DIY Christmas gift for friends.  It's easy to make and smells amazing.   This year, I have quite a few extra people on my Christmas list.  These aren't people that I'm close to, but I want to acknowledge them and thank them for their volunteer work this year. I'm making several different handmade gifts for them, giving one set to each group.  I have some ladies that have been wonderful volunteering their time with a children's group through a nonprofit that I'm involved with, so I wanted to make them this peppermint mocha salt scrub recipe. This body scrub recipe would also make a great teacher gift.  When my kids were in public school, each year I had 10 to 14 teacher gifts to make each year.  It got expensive, so I would look for things to make like this scrub. Now my kids are homeschooled, so I only have to buy gifts for my son's therapists.  I guess I should get myself something as a

Gift Guide for the Snarky Mom: 21 Funny Gifts for Her

Here are 21 gifts for the snarky mom.  This Christmas gift guide for moms is sure to make her laugh on Christmas and every day. I may not come across like it, but I'm extremely sarcastic and snarky.  I also have a super dry sense of humor that most people don't get. I think that life shouldn't be taken too seriously, and I love things that make me smile or make me laugh when I use them.  Given the choice between a plain notebook or one with a funny saying, I'll gladly pay more for the funny one. Each year, I try to support small businesses and especially handmade businesses when I do my Christmas shopping.  I've been selling on Etsy for 10 years now, and I still get a big smile every time my phones goes Cha-Ching!  I want to make someone else smile and support a small business. So I searched Etsy looking for funny gifts for her, a gift guide for the snarky mom (or any woman).  Etsy is full of amazing items, but I had to narrow it down.  Here are my 21 p