Slip Extender Giveaway!

We have a new line of Modest Slip Extenders in our Etsy Shop!  Come on over and check them out!  If you would like to win one- we are having a giveaway going on over at Sugar Bee Crafts!  So head on over there and enter to WIN!

Product Review: GroVia Diapers

I recently received a Newborn Diaper from GroVia Cloth Diapers to review.  I was really excited because the cloth diapers that I use are pocket diapers which requires prep-work like stuffing an insert into the diaper.  The diaper that GroVia sent me is an All-In-One diaper which requires NO stuffing!

 This is the diaper I choose- Newborn AIO Cloth Diaper in the Cloud color.

 Here is my little girl modeling her GroVia diaper.  

The thing I like the most about this diaper is the style and design.  The diaper is SUPER trim- it is WAY trimmer than my pocket diapers.  I also like how it goes BELOW my daughters belly button.  That is crucial in a newborn diaper because of the umbilical cord.  It even has snaps on the front of the diaper to make it go even lower if you need it to.

The materials the diaper is made of are extremely SOFT, so nice for your newborns skin.  The insert is made of 55% Hemp, 45% Cotton topped with 100% Polyester Microfleece which is extremely trim yet very absorbent. 

This is the perfect diaper for husband or grandparents who are new to cloth diapering.  You just snap the diaper onto your newborn and you are good to go.  It is extremely easy and there is NO stuffing, NO pins and NO covers needed!

I have used this diaper for about one month now and so far it has held up VERY well.  It looks NEW!  I have not had one stain which is very important to me in a diaper!  The durability of it seems to be great!

 This is my first child that I have used cloth diapers for.  I have been completely shocked about how well cloth diapers hold in messes!  It seems like with my other two children I was constantly cleaning up HUGE blowouts and going through Spray-N-Wash constantly.  Since I have have been cloth diapering I have really only had one blow out.  I LOVE how well they hold everything in!  It is 100% better than disposable diapers!  This GroVia AIO diaper is no different.  It holds everything in very well and I do not have to worry about those HUGE messes everywhere!

 I really surprised myself when I started cloth diapering.  I started doing it because I was completely tired of constantly having to buy disposables.  I am SO happy that I did!  I LOVE it!  If any of you have any questions for me about cloth diapering, just let me know and I will try to answer them.  

If you are looking for Newborn Diapers- GroVia Cloth Diapers are a great option!  

My little girl LOVES them!

Spooky Ghosts

A few weeks ago, our family made a few spooky ghosts to put on our front porch.  It didn't take very much time and was really easy.  Everyone loved this project!  My 1 and 3 year old even got involved, with the help of Dad. 

Materials:

Cheesecloth

Liquid Starch

Items to form the ghosts, we used plastic cups and foil

Put the liquid starch in a bowl.  Drench the cheesecloth in the liquid starch and wring out.  Form the cheesecloth into desired shape and let dry.  

We did this in the evening and the kids were so excited to run outside and see their ghosts all dried and ready to spook a few people.

Just a note: if the ghosts get wet, they will lose their shape.  A few of our ghosts got hit by a rainstorm and "melted" if you will. :)

Winn Family Benefit Auction

Come on over and check out this Benefit Auction for the Winn Family in Bend, Oregon.  

  The father died in a car crash, you can see the story HERE.     The auction ends this Sunday.  If you do not want to bid on anything you can also make a donation on the Facebook Page.   The auction in located in the photo album called Auction Oct 5 - 14, 2012.   We donated one of our 14 inch fall burlap wreaths.  Come on over and bid at this auction to help this wonderful family out!  

Try to Keep Up: Rosemary Pork Rub

For today's guest post, we have Leslie from Try to Keep Up.   She will be sharing a wonderful recipe: Rosemary Pork Rub.  But first, let's get to know Leslie...

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Hello Babblings & More readers.  I'm Leslie from Try To Keep Up! and I'm so excited to be guest blogging here at Babblings & More.

I'm a Dance Teacher/Choreographer by trade with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance (I'm fancy huh?), but I've always been a crafty gal. Over at Try to Keep Up! you'll find a whole smorgasbord of stuff - holiday crafts, home renos & DIYs, photos of my latest trip but what I'm infamous for is my homestyle recipes.  I love to cook and experiment with new recipes.  

I've only been blogging seriously for about 2 years - mostly because my sister Jill started a blog  (Envirocraftiness) and I couldn't let her have all the attention.  You can find and/ or follow me on my blog, Facebook, and Pinterest!  What can I say, I get around?

I do hope you'll stop by and have a peak at some of my misadventures in cooking & crafting!

 I feel like I'm always trying to keep up, hence the title of my blog, Try To Keep Up!.  Today I wanted to share with you a really great pork recipe that's guaranteed to change your mind about what pork is capable of!  This is a fabulous go-to dinner and is a simple way to impress your guests.

I buy my pork loin at Costco.  It comes 4 tenderloins to a package and they're pretty much ready to go.  If your pork is frozen make sure to thaw it overnight in the fridge or if you're like me, and never decide what to have for dinner the night before, take it out in the morning and let it defrost on the counter!  Clean up and remove any silver skin you don't want.  Keeping some fat is always good for two reasons 1). Fat is flavour and  2).  Fat is moist.  Keeping some fat on any cut of meat will help it retain moisture!  

It's your choice whether you keep the tenderloin whole (which I usually do) or you can cut the tenderloin into medallions-this is nice if you're having guests and want to appear fancy.  This will also speed up your cooking time, since medallions are smaller.

Pre-heat your oven to 400 F.

Combine 2 tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp salt, fresh cracked pepper, and fresh or dried rosemary.  This time I had fresh rosemary in the fridge so I used it.  It's just as good with dried rosemary (I buy mine from Trader Joe's!)  Also if you don't have onion or garlic powder use onion salt or garlic salt.  Just make sure to omit the salt from the original recipe.

Next drizzle your tenderloin with olive oil. 

I made some rosemary infused olive oil a few days ago so I used that.

Then you want to rub your seasoning into the meat. Yes, touch that cold, raw piece of meat and massage in the herby goodness. (OK that just got a little weird, but you know what I mean.)

Bake the pork for as long as necessary.  Mine was still pretty frozen so I ended up baking it for about 35-40 minutes. 

And I know what a lot of you are thinking... "Leslie your pork sure looks pink.  Aren't you supposed to cook pork well?"  Well, I'm here to tell you that's a bit of a myth, an old wives tale if you will.  If you (in my opinion) over cook your pork so it is grey throughout you will end up with a tough, dry piece of meat that no one wants to eat.  

Cook until it's slightly pink in the centre (mine looks really pink but that's just the picture) and let it rest out of the oven 5-10 minutes before serving.  Like Anthony Bourdain says "Always rest your meat"  Whether it's steak or pork let the meat rest - it keeps on cooking even though it's not in the oven.  

I served the pork with glazed carrots.  It is really versatile and will work with just about anything.  Green beans, broccoli,  spinach....oh and any grain.  We had a late dinner - I didn't think it was a great idea to have carbs after 8pm.

I promise you this is a great, fail safe dinner that's quick, easy and scrumptious.  

I hope you enjoyed this recipe and if you did, stop by Try to Keep Up the next time you're searching for a quick and easy meal.  I've got my favourite macaroni casserole, chicken , fish, an awesome zucchini casserole, and so much more.

And before I go, just another big shout out to the lovely ladies at Babblings & More for having me guest post today!  It's been a blast-thank you thank you thank you!

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Thank you Leslie! My mouth is seriously watering!  I love pork!

Thank you so much for sharing with us!