You are my SUNSHINE :)

This is my {current} inspiration room for our bedroom:

source (pinterest)
Pinterest - Melicipes Bedrooms Board

I love the framed art on the left night stand.  If you can't see it, its the words to the song "You are my sunshine."

Since we were snowed in this past weekend, I decided to make something similar to it for our bedroom but with supplies I already had:

Dark gray paint samples

Frame (from Michaels - originally bought for the kitchen)

I had some left-over matting paper that I taped together (hey, whatever works!) to use as backing

Tissue paper

I found the You are my Sunshine print on pinterest (of course) (go here if you want to download your own).

Here it is! I love it!!

Whole Chicken Crock Pot Recipe

This was my first time cooking a whole chicken on my own.  I always thought of cooking a whole chicken as intimidating (maybe it was because of the giblets and other things..), but it turns out it is really easy!  

I cooked the chicken in the crock pot, and then roasted it in the oven for 30 mins.  

Ingredients

1 whole chicken

Chicken seasoning 

1 onion (I used a shallot)

2 tbsp minced garlic

Directions

1.  Dice onion and place on the bottom of the crock pot. 

2.  Take giblets out from inside the chicken and place chicken on top on onions in crock pot. 

3.  Cook on low 3 1/2- 4 1/2 hours. 

~

4.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

5.  Take chicken out of crock pot and place in a baking pan. 

6.  Add vegetables - I added baby carrots and fingerlings potatoes. 

7.  Pour liquid from the crock pot over vegetables and chicken.  

8.  Place in over and bake for ~30 mins or until chicken is golden brown and juices run clear. 

Blueberry Muffins

Due to a recent trip to Costco, we had an unusually large supply of blueberries in the house.  To make sure they didn't go to waste, I decided to try a new recipe for blueberry muffins.  I found this recipe on pinterest. I like it because you use applesauce (in place of oil/butter) and whole wheat flour AND they taste great!

RECIPE
Makes 18 muffins

Ingredients 
3/4 cup whole milk
1 egg
1/2 cup homemade applesauce
1 tsp homemade vanilla extract

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

1 generous cup fresh blueberries

                                                              homemade vanilla extract

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2.  Line muffin pan with cupcake liners or spray the muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray. 

3.  In a small bowl, whisk milk, egg, applesauce, vanilla extract.

 

4. In a medium sized bowl, mix flours, sugars, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.

5. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.

6.  Pour wet ingredients into well.

7.  Stir with a spoon until flour/sugar mixture is moist.

8.  Add blueberries. 

9.  Gently fold blueberries into muffin batter. 

10.  Spoon batter into muffin cups.  (I made 18 muffins with this recipe.)

11.  Bake for 18-20 minutes and remove from oven.

12.  Let muffins cool on wire rack. 

Enjoy!