Archives for August 2010

Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza with a Twist!

It’s over a hundred degrees here and very humid and has been this way now for weeks! It’s been so hot for so long that the grass is brown.   Even our neighbors who ordinarily mow every week (often twice a week….no lie!) and who have the TruGreen guys come out once a month to ensure they have the greenest lawn in the neighborhood……yes, even they have brown grass now!
Needless to say, the last thing I want to do is heat up the house by cooking.  But sometimes it’s just unavoidable. So I’ve been trying to do a lot of stove top meals, and if I do use the oven, I’m trying not to cook anything that takes over 30 minutes to bake.  So pizza is a great option!
Here’s a bacon cheeseburger pizza that I made with a slight twist that I think adults and kids will like.  My only regret was that I didn’t have enough cheese to top it off as I normaly would, but it was still quite tasty. 

Recipe for Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

Ingredients:
1 refrigerated pizza crust.
1 lb hamburger meat
several pieces of bacon, crumbled (or bacon bits)
shredded cheddar cheese
ketchup
mustard
1 small onion, chopped (optional)
1 tomato,chopped or sliced (optional)

Directions:  Brown your hamburger meat and cook bacon in a skillet on the stove. (To save time, I use precooked bacon. Or you can also use bacon bits.)  Drain the fat and set aside.  Roll out your pizza dough on a pizza pan or baking dish.  If you do any prebaking on your pizza crust, do it at this time.  In a small bowl, mix together your ketchup and mustard. (I didn’t measure it out; I just started mixing until I got the consistency and amount I needed.)  Spoon out your ketchup and mustard mixture on to crust. Next chop up your onion and tomato if using, and add all toppings to your pizza as desired. (I like to do a layer of cheese, followed by other toppings, and then another layer of cheese on top.)  Bake pizza as directed on crust package, and serve!

Linking up at these parties.
-Jerri

Whimsy Couture

Calling all you crafty domestic goddesses out there!  Whimsy Couture, a fabulous etsy shop, offers easy to use, hand written sewing patterns with step by step instructions and colored pictures.  These patterns are perfect for busy moms to whip in a short time.  And you’ll love the variety of items you can make for your child from the patterns at Whimsy Couture.
Denise is the owner of this etsy shop.  Her style is vintage inspired and whimsical.  Among the items offered in her shop are patterns for dresses, tops, pants, skirts, aprons, bloomers, capes, and more.  She even has pattern for cute appliques for your projects.

Pattern styles include everything from the peasant style, to A-line jumpers, to pillow case tops, strappy tops and items with cute ruffles.  Whimsy Couture even offers you great savings through 3 Packs.

And if you don’t have a small child in your family, you should check out Whimsy Couture’s adorable pet bed patterns for the  4-legged, furry members of your family! So cute!

Check out Whimsy Couture  on etsy and pick up your patterns for these lovely creations and more.  You can also follow Denise through her blog Whimsy Couture and follow  Whimsy Couture on Facebook.

-Jerri
If you’d like to advertise on Simply Sweet Home, please see my PR page. Ad prices start as low as $6/mo.

Curtsay Designs

I’m pleased to introduce you to Curtsay Designs, my newest sponsor and home of adorable crochet hats and gifts.
The artist behind these sweet hats is wife and mom of two boys, Lindsay.  Lindsay started her etsy shop the same way a lot of stay-at-home moms do, “I spend a lot of time taking care of my boys, and wanted to find something that I could do for myself. I started getting creative and I love it. I love to create anything that makes my life as a mom easier and lovelier.”  Curtsay Designs also allows Lindsay to “add a little girlie frill” to her boy filled life, and she’d love to share that girlie frill with you!
Curtsay Designs now features many new items:

~The Curtsay Cloche
~The Curtsay Daisy
~The Curtsay Daisy Mini
~The Fedora
~ & The Newsie

All hats at Curtsay Designs are made with 100% cotton yarn and are made to order to specifically fit your child! The hats are high quality and come in a variety of bright and beautiful colors and many are embellished with the most adorable crochet flowers!

Curtsay Designs also carries several non-children’s items, including dish/bath scrubbies and cute clutch purses like the one below.

Please visit Curtsay Designs today, and pick up a cute hat for your child!  You can also follow Lindsay at her blog The Quiet Crafter.  

-Jerri
If you’d like to advertise on Simply Sweet Home, please see my PR Page for details. Prices start as low as $6/mo! 

Friday Favorites – Week 25

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Hi everyone! Welcome to week 25 of Friday Favorites.  I’m posting a little early tonight because it looks like it’s going to storm here, and our internet may be out later tonight.  Anyway, I’m pleased to report that last week we had over 50 posts linked up, the most so far!  Thanks for sharing your posts with me and helping to make my first 25 weeks a success!
One more thing before we move on to this week’s party.  I have a new sponsor; it is a pendant and jewelry shop called Rock of Ages.  I would really appreciate it if you would stop by this shop and see all the lovely creations Jeanette at Rock of Ages has to offer! Thanks!
Now onto the party.  If you’re featured this week, please take my featured button for your blog!  And if you’re new here, please join us by linking one (or more) of your favorite posts from this week! 
Rocky Road Cupcakes from AliLilly
Summer Blooms Quilled Frame from Suzy’s Artsy Craftsy Sitcom

Boy Camp Out Party from Moore Minutes
(LOTS of great ideas in this post!)
Bar Stool Makeover from Mandy’s Creative Corner

Watermelon Lemonade from Lisa’s Recipes Cards
Party time!  I look forward to seeing all the things you’ve been working on this week.  Please link your posts up below.  Don’t forget to include my button or a link back to my blog.  Thanks!

-Jerri

Milly the Pinkest Kitten Review & Giveaway

I can’t think of anything cuter than kittens, except maybe a PINK kitten!  And what could be cuter than a pink kitten? Milly the Pinkest Kitten!  Milly comes from  Aurora World Inc, the company behind the best selling international toy brand YooHoo & Friends. (You may recall the YooHoo & Friends Giveaway I had earlier this year.)
Ten perfectly pink variations feature Milly as freestanding plush, in dress up or even portable via scented toy pet carriers!

Milly Birthday Girl  is available in two styles, holding either a colorful cupcake or birthday balloon. Milly WannaBes are dressed as a princess, ballerina or fairy.  And Aurora has introduced a line of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry scented carriers. Milly Cupcake Carriers include a removable eight-inch Milly plush animal.

For this review, I received Milly Birthday Girl and a Milly Cupcake Carrier.  Here’s a picture of them:

Aren’t these just adorable?! Each plush kitty cat is very soft and furry, and they’re even a little bit sparkly. They have the cutest little faces, and just like theYooHoo & Friends line, they have the cutest little tails.
Birthday Milly wears an adroable pink dress and wears a shiny Birthday Girl Crown.  My particular Milly carries a birthday cupcake.  And she’s eight inches tall.  I think Milly is just about the cutest stuffed animal I’ve ever seen!  I know I would have been thrilled to have received one of these as a kid for my birthday, and I imagine any girly-girl would love her.  I certainly would give these as a birthday gift myself and would recommend her to any of you who are shopping for birthday gifts as well.
And Milly Cupcake Carrier is just as equally adorable.  This Milly kitten is a little bit smaller than Birthday Girl Milly.  And she comes in her own scented cupcake pet holder.  These come in 3 different scents.  They are chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry, and the scent is said to last about 6 months.
The scent of my cupcake carrier is strawberry, and it smells just lovely!  The cupcake carrier is pink, magenta, and white in color.  It’s very soft, shimmery, and features shiny carrying handles.  And the carrier is even topped off with a little red strawberry.  Milly fits in nice and snug and is cute as a button in her cupcake carrier!

Buy it!  You can purchase Milly The Pinkest Kitten online at Aurora World Inc.

Connect! Aurora World on Facebook.

Win it! One Simply Sweet Home reader will win one plush Milly the Pinkest Kitten toy.

Giveaway closed. Congrats to Rachel of The Dalai Mama!

-Jerri
Disclosure: I was not paid to write this review.  For hosting this giveaway, I received two Milly the Pinkest Kitten plush toys from Aurora World.  They will also be providing the winner’s prize.  The opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Grilled Chicken Florentine (and a Giveaway!)

Did you know that  Macaroni Grill  had a new line of Frozen entrees?  They are designed to give you a delicious Italian food experience within the comfort of your own home.
Available in the freezer section of your local grocery store this summer, Macaroni Grill frozen entrées contain delicious authentic Italian flavors inspired by the Macaroni Grill Restaurant you know and love. The four new Macaroni Grill frozen entrées are perfect for quickly and conveniently recreating premium quality meals right in your own kitchen.
The new Macaroni Grill frozen entrées are made with high quality meats, colorful vegetables, distinct pasta and flavorful sauces and come in 4 delicious varieties:
-Grilled Chicken Florentine
-Spicy Italian Sausage Pomodoro
-Roasted Garlic Shrimp Scampi
-Basil Parmesan Chicken

I recently had the opportunity to try the Macaroni Grill Frozen Entree in Grilled Chicken Florentine.  I was very excited to try this because Chicken Florentine is one of my favorite pasta dishes (second only to alfredo).  Before I even opened the package, I was immediately impressed by this product because I found this was something I could make in less than 20 minutes on the stove top.  Furthermore, the only additional ingredient I would need was a little milk.

For anyone who’s ever been pressed for time or found themselves having to make dinner at the last minute (and I daresay, that’s probably all of us), you know how convenient it is to have something like this on hand!

The entree features Grilled White Meat Chicken, Spinach with Farfalle Pasta, and a Creamy Parmesan Cheese and Garlic Sauce.  Upon cooking this meal, I was very impressed by the quality of the ingredients, including the chunks of spinach (as opposed to tiny specks).  And I was very impressed by the overall flavor of this dish, especially the taste of the cream sauce.  Furthermore, my husband, who seems to be the authority on taste in our house, was very impressed by the meal, and he concluded that he’d definitely like to eat it again in the future.
Finally, the size of the entree was just perfect for the two of us. Obviously, most of my readers have children and would need food for more than two people, but I figure you can always buy more than one package if you need it. Right?  And then again, I think if you served everyone a salad and bread to go with this, you could possibly stretch it out to feed 3 or 4.
Overall I’d recommend this product to anyone who loves Italian food and is looking for a new quick and convenient meal to make at home.

Buy it! If you’d like to try Macaroni Grill’s new frozen entrees, they are now available in the freezer section of your local grocery store.  Go to Macaroni Grill at Home to print out a coupon for $1.50 off.
Connect! Follow Macaroni Grill on Twitter. Or check them out on Macaroni Grill on Facebook.
Win it!  One Simply Sweet Home reader will win a prize pack which includes one of the new Macaroni Grill Frozen Entrees, a pasta dish, and tongs. 
Giveaway Closed. Congrats to Jenn at Just Getting Started!

-Jerri

Disclosure: Information, frozen sample, prize pack and giveaway have all been provided by Macaroni Grill through  MyBlogSpark. The opinions in this post are mine.

Introducing Rock of Ages

I’m proud to introduce you to my newest sponsor, Rock of Ages,  home of beautiful and unique, one of a kind pendants, beads, and leather chokers.  
Jeanette Cotton is the artist behind these lovely pieces.  She carefully selects each stone and she’s developed a very eclectic and impressive line of pieces.
I was very intrigued by her description of the concept behind her work: “Since before the begining of all time the mother earth has been an impressive 8,000 mile rock! The pendants and stone beads I’m selling are her off-spring and through talented lapidarist eyes created into brillant pieces of art!”

When designing jewelry Jeanette draws on the colors in nature and paints with beads. She is not intimidated by color and shows that fearlessness in her work. She uses Tibetan silver from the Karen Hill Tribe, Bali silver, quality semi-precious stones, crystals, a variety of pearls, and beautiful handmade lamp beads.
Her eye for the obscure inspires her more unique pieces which include such rarities as dinosaur bone, mummy beads, and petrified coral, to name a few.
Jeanette has recently begun adding leather chokers to her shop. These come in beautiful custom colors and are made to size.  In the future she also hopes to add handmade earwire and other components for jewely making.
Looking through Jeanette’s shop, it’s obvious that she is a gifted artist with a real passion for her craft and a love of everything nature has to offer.  Go by Rock of Ages to see all of Jeanette’s beautiful creations!  You can also check out her other shop Painted Lady Designs. And keep up with her on her facebook page!

Sharing this post at some of these great parties!

-Jerri
If you’d like to advertise on Simply Sweet Home, please see my PR Page for details.

No-Go BlogHer Blog Hop

NoGoBlogHer

I got the memo this week that there’s a little blog conference going on this weekend called Blogher. lol.  For me, going to this conference (or any other conference) this year is just a monetary impossibility!  I was talking to my husband about it, and he said he’d make it his goal to get the money for me to go to a future conference because he knows how much I love blogging. (He’s such a sweety!) 
But even then, I don’t know for sure that I would go because I’m ulta-shy!  Ordinarily I’m shy even just being around one or two people I don’t very well (or at all), and going to a conference would definitely put me on edge! I know a lot of people are anxious or intimidated by conferences, but I’d probably have a panic attack! Seriously!  But who knows, I may get up my courage and attend one—one day. I know it would be a great experience if I would just relax!
Till then, I decided to participate in the No-Go BlogHer Blog Hop over at To Be Thode and Musings of a Marfan Mom.  Not only is it free, but it’s nothing to stress over!  And they’re giving away prizes too! 
If you’re visiting from the bloghop, welcome to my blog!  Please take a moment to sign up for my latest giveaways! (Links can be found at the top!) And if you like what you see here at Simply Sweet Home, I’d love for you to be my newest follower!
For this bloghop, we are to answer the following questions: 
1.When did you start blogging?  I started blogging in October of 2007.
2.Why did you start blogging?  I’ve always loved writing, and I thought blogging was such a great creative outlet, and a fantastic way to share ideas and find community.  When I started blogging, I was a newlywed.  I was living 6 hours away from my hometown  and had nobody to talk to (except my husband).  But I loved being a new wife, and I loved everything that went along with that (cooking, grocery shopping, decorating the house, etc.)  So I decided to start Simply Sweet Home. 
3.What is one thing you are going to do this week that is WAY cooler than going to BlogHer?  I’ll be spending this weekend with my husband. (I kinda like that guy just a little bit!) Actually he’s going out of town next week, so I’m really glad that I get to spend this time with him before his trip.  We also have a cookout with our Sunday school class tomorrow.  And of course, I get to spend time with my baby cats!
4. Share a post that you think says a lot about you or is your favorite. Here’s a few!

Thanks for stopping by!
-Jerri

Friday Favorites – Week 24

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Welcome to Friday Favorites!  And a special welcome to all this week’s new participants and to everyone who linked up for the first time last week!

Before we get to this week’s featured posts I want to remind you to sign up for my latest giveaways.  I have a CSN Store giveaway ending on Friday.  Also, there’s a delicious giveaway for Bubble Chocolate, which has less than 50 entries at this writing, and there will be 5 winners! Also, I just added a new Walmart giveaway this week!  And more great promotions to come!

Now onto the party! If you’re featured, I’d love for you to grab my Featured button for your blog!

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Bars from Gramma’s Cookin
Retro Kitchen Towels from Adventures of One Crazy Lady
Cherry Limeades from Eating Simply

Margherita Pizza from Family, Stamping, and FOOD

I can’t wait to see your latest posts! Link up below! Please link up to your actual blog post, not your blog, and don’t forget to include a link back to Simply Sweet Home so others can come by for the party!

CoverGirl Smoky Eye Look Review & Giveaway

I guess you could say that I’ve always been a “CoverGirl.” Since I was old enough to wear makeup I’ve always used CoverGirl products.  Over the years I’ve tried out their various liquid foundations, pressed powders, and eye makeups.  And I’m always excited to see the new products they roll out.

Recently I was given the opportunity to try out CoverGirl’s new Smoky Eye Look kits.  These kits are designed to help you create the that smoky eye look you see on all the models and actresses out there. (You know that look that appears so glamorous on hot superstars, but if you tried it, you’d look like you just lost a fist fight? Yes, that look!)

The kits come in three varieties:  Natural Look, Glamorous Look, and Bold Look.

And each kit makes it easy to create the smoky eye look with 3 products: SmokyShadowBlast, LineExact Liquid Liner Pen, and LashBlast Volume Mascara.

For the purposes of this review I received all three Smoky Eye Look Kits, along with a makeup artist chair, bag, mirror, and tips from makeup artist Molly Stern. Of the three kits, my favorite is the Natural Look.  This kit comes with the SmokyShadow Blast in Bronze Fire, LashBlast Mascara in Brown, and LineExact Liquid Liner in Brown.

When I try new makeup, I judge it based on 4 different aspects The first is how the makeup looks on me.  I was very pleased in this area.  The makeup looked very nice, with bold yet very clean, natural lines.  It looked very glamorous without being overdone, and I felt very confident wearing it.

The second I look at is how easy the makeup is to apply.  In the past I’ve had issues with eye liner not going on as easy as I would like, so I was very happy at how easy the LineExact Liquid Liner was to apply and how quickly it dried after application. Also, this was my first time to use an eye shadow that wasn’t in pressed or loose powder form, and I found myself very surprised at how easy it was to apply as well.  As for the LashBlast Volume Mascara, I was actually using this type of mascara prior to receiving these kits for review, and I’ve always been happy with its easy application.
The third thing I look at is the one I always seem to have the most trouble with. My third area is how well the makeup holds up; that is, whether it’s going to smear or rub off, and how good it’s going to look after several hours of wear. I was (and still am) very excited about how well this makeup holds up.  With most eye shadows, the look seems to rub off or fade after a while, but several hours after application I can still see the SmokyShadowBlast eye shadow very well.  And of all the things I like about the products I received, my favorite thing is how well the LineExact Liquid Liner holds up.  I’ve had so much trouble with other liners smearing and makeup having to be fixed or reapplied.  But I have not had the problem with this eye liner. In fact, I wore it to a picnic the other day in very humid, 100 degree weather, and the makeup held up perfectly! I was so happy to look in the mirror when I got home and not find racoon eyes!
Finally, being on a budget I always have to consider the price of products. And I’m happy to report that these kits sell for just $16.50 in Wal-Mart stores and at Walmart.com.  For three great products, that price is unbeatable!

I’m so happy I had this opportunity to find this fabulous looking makeup that I can be confident wearing throughout the day! If you’re out doing some back to school shopping with the kids you should pick up your own CoverGirl Smoky Eye kit!

To help you try this makeup for yourself, MyBlogSpark has given me one $20 Walmart giftcard to give away to one Simply Sweet Home reader.
Giveaway Closed. Congrats to Doreen of Treasured Reviews!

-Jerri

Disclosure: To host this giveaway, I was given all three CoverGirl Smoky Eye Kits, along with a makeup artist chair, mirror, makeup bag, and tips from Molly Stern.  All products and the Walmart giftcard being given away as a prize were provided by MyBlogSpark. All the opinions expressed here are mine.