Finally Finished the Basement!!!

And here it is... View as you enter the basement from upstairs.

View from corner looking towards the stairs that lead upstairs. We bought a couch and a loveseat, and we have a chair coming next week to go against the wall where the picture was taken.

View from the tv room to the bar area. Where the card table is in this picture will be a bar that Brian is building himself (and is taking up my garage space-first I couldn't get into the garage for a year because of the sheet rock, now a bar is taking my space!). As you can see in this picture, the ceiling is stained bead board. To the left of the card table is a door to a storage area for now. In the future if we decide to put a bathroom downstairs, it will be there.

View from corner near where the bar will go. I still need to paint the door to the outside (the previous owners' dogs made a mess of that door). The door to the right of the picture is to my main storage area. Lots of room including all the room under the stairs going up.

Now for comparison, the before pictures:

(Note: We completed the framing ourselves, so these aren't true before pictures. When we moved in, the basement was completely empty, with cement walls-some half walls, some whole, and the insulation. But you can get the idea.)

This is looking at the door to the outside.

Looking toward the stairs that go upstairs (Luke was checking it out too).

View of the bar area from the tv room.

What a difference, huh? My only complaint? Brian decided to only put one vent down there...it is freezing! Good thing I got a Snuggie (or 2) for Christmas!

Bridal Shower Invitations

I am planning my sister's bridal shower in Texas for this spring. She decided on a "kitchen" theme. I received an invitation to a kitchen shower last summer for my friend Kate. The invitation was an apron and in the "pocket" was the shower information. I tried my hand at making these for the shower invites.

Here is how they turned out. I am very pleased with the outcome. A picture of the invitation with the shower information in the pocket.

The invitation without the information.

And Joey helped out a lot when I was adding the ribbon. One lucky initee will be getting an invitation with really stiff ribbon, as Joey had it all in her mouth!

Buffalo Chicken Dip-Healthified

I made this dip for the KU/KState game party we had. It got rave reviews! Yum!

Buffalo Chicken Dip-Healthified

1 package (8 oz) fat-free cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup fat-free ranch dressing
1/3 cup buffalo wing sauce
2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast (I used a large can-I think it is more moist and shreds easily)
1 cup shredded reduced-fat Colby-Monterey Jack cheese blend
Whole grain crackers or celery sticks for dipping-I also used tortilla chips

Heat oven to 350°F. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in dressing, buffalo wing sauce and water until blended. Stir in chicken and cheese. Spread in ungreased 1-quart baking dish or 9-inch pie plate; cover with foil.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Stir. Serve hot with crackers, chips, or celery sticks.

Thanks Betty Crocker!

Cherries Jubilee

This recipe is another one I took to Bunco. My family made this when I was growing up.

Cherries Jubilee

1 can of cherry pie filling
1 can of pineapple chunks
1/2 bag of mini marshmallows (about)

Mix all together and refrigerate.

Cookie Freeze Dessert

So, I jotted down this recipe (on a post-it) when I saw it online somewhere. So, I don't have a real name for it, so I will call it Cookie Freeze Dessert.

1 bag of Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies (I used the chewy version)
1 tub of Cool Whip
milk
hot fudge

Soak cookies in milk, just until slightly soggy to the touch, but still workable. Lay cookies on the bottom of 8x8' glass dish (I used a smaller 6x8" dish and I think it was perfect size). Once you have one layer of cookies on the bottom, add a layer of CoolWhip. Repeat: another layer of milk soaked cookies and Cool Whip. Crush a couple of cookies on top of 2nd Cool Whip layer and drizzle hot fudge on top. Freeze for about 24 hours.

Baby Blanket

I made this patchwork blanket for our friends who adopted a baby. Josie's nursery is pink, yellow, green and chocolate brown.

Hot Dog Cake

I first made this cake for Bunco, the second time was for a Labor Day Party for work.I took a store bought pound cake and cut out the middle part, just large enough for two Twinkies to fit. I then rounded the sides of the cake to make it look more bun-like. Insert the two Twinkies end to end inside the cake. Mix frosting (enough to cover the Twinkies) to make an orangish/brown color. I sliced the cut out section of the pound cake to make french fries, sprinkled them with black colored sugar and squeezed red frosting on them to look like ketchup. I drizzled the red and yellow frosting on the frosted Twinkies for mustard and ketchup. This is a quick make if you use the store bought pound cake.