Etsy Finds: Getting Susanna Carrillo's Look - Home Decor Edition

I just saw this blog post on Etsy and thought I would pass it along...

Story by Iheartmoustaches

Photo by design*sponge

Isn't it such a FUN room???

I am spending the day at home with my family, making a Thanksgiving dinner and probably watching it snow all afternoon...sounds like a great way to spend a Sunday.

What are you doing today? I hope it's something that you love to do.

Take good care,

Bella

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

(We love, love love this at our house and anyone who has tried it always wants the recipe!)

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground
cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup oil

1 15 oz can of pumpkin

4 eggs

Frosting:

2 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup margarine or butter,
softened

3 oz cream cheese,
softened

1 tablespoon milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

(or...do what I do, buy Cream Cheese Frosting, already made at the store; Pillsbury, Betty Crocker, Duncan Hines, etc, )

Heat oven to 350. Grease 15 x 10 pan. In large bowl, blend all cake ingredients at low speed until moistened. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed. Pour into prepared pan.



Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.



Cool.



In small bowl, combine frosting ingredients; beat until smooth. Spread over cooled cake.



Refrigerate leftovers.



Is that easy or what? Another reason why I love this recipe:) I am making some right now for Thanksgiving, yum!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!
Bella

Home Decor Medley

I have a great new (to me) website to share with all of you. It's called Home Decor Medley. I just love their tagline:

A "Medley" of Home Decor Ideas to Fuel Your Passion

Interior decorating just takes one skill: passion.

Isn't that the truth? I love that!

At Home Decor Medley, you will find everything from Holiday Decor to "How To's" to Decorating Styles and everything in between.

Home Decor Medley is the brainstorm of Giorgina Devereaux. She loves to decorate, watch HGTV and curl up with a good home decor magazine or catalog. She is a self-taught interior design expert and the best part? She takes questions!!! So ask away!!!

Giorgina just interviewed little old me on her website, she did an amazing job, she is really a talented interviewer and writer. If you'd like to learn more about me (and who doesn't? haha), then please read her interview here.

Thanks, Giorgina, you made me blush!!!

ttfn,
Bella

$10 off $25 at JCPenney

Hi!

Just a quick post here...I was on my friend, Beth's blog, Green Stew Recession Inspired Shopping and saw a GREAT coupon that she had posted, $10 off $25 at JCPenney, it expires on November 26th, so hurry! Thanks, Beth!

$10 off $25 at JCPenney Coupon

Have a great weekend!

Bella

Panic In Detroit

Yesterday, when my husband, Velo came home, he told me that his company will be closing its doors from December 12th thru January 12th. I was in shock, I think he still is as well.

He works as an electrician for a robotics company that make the auto assembly lines for the Big 3, but just last week he told me that they were doing fine and had jobs lined up for a long time to come...but out of the blue, or perhaps not, GM canceled a job with his company, so to compensate, his company had to make the tough decision to close for a month to save costs.

We have been married for 17 years and they have never closed their doors, so it just does not give me a good feeling about the future, either.

Of course I am bummed because Christmas is just around the corner, too. It's never a good time to get laid off, but it's especially hard this time of year. I feel so let down, by the head of the Big 3, the president and our government in general. It's just not a good feeling, especially when you are a parent.

Well, sorry for such a somber post, but it is what is on my mind today and probably for some time to come, so it just helps to write about it, I guess.

Take good care all...and if you have a friend in Michigan or in the automotive field, give them a call and see how they are doing, I know they would appreciate it.

Bella

Word Wreath Wednesday

I love my new wreath, it's all wispy and feathery and stuff...got it at Marshall's.



See, I couldn't call it "Wordless Wednesday", because there's word in it...

Got the cute tag on clearance at Target, there are 3 more with different words on them, I have them scattered about the house. I thought this one was appropriate for the wreath, with Thanksgiving just around the corner.

And because I want to THANK all of you for reading my blog! Isn't blogging so much fun?

ttfn,

Bella

Decorating Bloggers...Are You Monetizing Your Blogs?

Hi Blogging Friends,

I haven't posted in almost a week, where did the time go? My husband took last week off of work and painted our kitchen, hooray! I hope to post pics this week, it looks great, I'm so glad it's done! He also COOKED, almost everyday...so it was like *I* got a vacation, too!

It was nice to have him home and to have delicious home-cooked meals (that I didn't have to cook!)....ah!!! But now, back to reality today...I'll have to put my chef's hat back on tonight and whip up something tasty for my family, wish me luck ;)

I wanted to talk about 'monetizing' your blogs today...you know, making money ;) I notice that many of the Decorating Blogs do not have any monetizing going on...so, I just wanted to talk a little bit about things I have found out along the way...I am by no means an expert on any of this, but I know with the economy the way it is, everyone is looking to make some extra money here and there and since you have a blog, you have an awesome tool already to get you going!

Here are some of the companies that I work with:

• Google Adsense
  
  



• Project Wonderful
  
  



• Logical Media (those Betty Crocker, Fruit Roll-Up, Pillsbury, etc ads)
  
  





• Amazon.com Associates



• Chitika
  
  

Another popular one is BlogHer Ads, however, there is usually a waiting list, I have been on it for quite some time, I hope they contact me soon! (Update: I have been approved for BlogHer Ads and am quite happy to be working with them!)

Now, I am not getting rich by any means, but to me, it's 'free money', so why not tap into it? I love blogging anyway, so why not make some passive income doing it, I say!

Now...to make the most bang for your buck, you need visitors and readers to come to your blog, right? Many of you have a regular group of what I call 'blogging friends', (because that is what you are to me), that visit your blog on a regular basis. But how do you attract more people to your blog? Here are a few things to try:

• Twitter - If you are a blogger who is serious about expanding your blog, you *have* to be on twitter, it's that plain and simple. It is such a great way to network with other bloggers and let others know about your wonderful blog. When you sign up, make sure to Follow Me .
  
  






• Entrecard - This is another way to market your blog and meet other bloggers. Make sure to add me as a favorite, too.
  

• Hold giveaways, take advantage of the quarterly Bloggy Carnivals.

You can also read an article that I wrote at eHow.com, "How to Have a Giveaway on Your Blog."

So, there are a few things to take a look at. If you have any questions, please post them and I will answer them (if I can) right here in the comments, so make sure to subscribe to them if you are interested in learning more.

I would also love to hear what you do to market your blog. Like I said, I am still learning, so let's learn and earn together!

If this topic of monetizing your blog is popular, I will have more posts like this in the future.

Thanks, Friends! And I hope you all have a great week!

ttfn,

Veteran's Day Tribute & Deals

Happy Veteran's Day to all of my Veteran readers! Make sure to scroll all the way down for the info on Applebee's Restaurant!!!

Here are some nice deals going on today:

Michaels 50% off one item, November 11th-15th.

50% off any one regular priced item at Michaels craft stores. Coupon valid November 11th to November 15th, 2008. Limit one coupon per customer per day. See coupon for more details.

Michaels 50 % Off Coupon

IKEA: JOKKMOKK table + 4 chairs for $59 on Tuesday Nov. 11, 2008.

Ikea "Seize the day" Sale

Everyday with Rachael Ray (my dh's girlfriend, lol) - 10 issues/yr $2.16 per year (new or renewal)- A magazine for smart entertaining, delicious food and spur of the moment travel. In every issue you'll find 30-minute meals, Rachael's Diary, small party gatherings for special occasions, stolen weekends, Real Cooks Networks, Every Day Menu Planner, the No Recipe Zone & much more!

Everyday with Rachael Ray Deal

Yankee Candle Veteran's Day Sale

Tarts & Samps 12 for $18

Who doesn't like get free things in the mail?

Various Free Samples from Walmart

And last but not least, Applebee's Veterans Day Special for Veterans!

Veterans and active duty with proof of United States military service will be able to go to one of the participating Applebee's and select one complimentary entrée from a selection of delicious favorites: a savory House Sirloin, hearty Riblet Basket, zesty Fiesta Lime Chicken®, a juicy Quesadilla Burger or fresh Oriental Chicken Salad. All the traditional sides are included.

Have you heard of any other great deals? I'd love to hear about them!

ttfn,
Bella

What More Do We Really Need?

"I had everything, I just didn't know it."

My mom, August, 2004, a few days after my 25 year old brother with autism, was struck and killed by a car.

I always try to remember this when I am feeling down about something, it kind of puts it all into perspective, don't you think?

Meet My Husband, Velo!!!

What's a Velo you ask? That's my sweet husband!

I've tried researching his name in the past and all I come up with is this:

"Hungarian (Vélo): nickname for a thoughtful or intelligent person, from a derivative of vélni ‘to think’."

So, if that really is the origin of his name, it seems to fit pretty well!

He doesn't have a middle name, no one in his family does, it's just not something that they do...so it took them a little getting used to the fact that our sons both have middle names.

He was born and raised in Macedonia, when it was still part of Yugoslavia.

He lived in a 2 bedroom duplex, with outdoor plumbing...can you imagine? (I can't, because I'm a real girly-girl!)


His family moved to Austria when he was 14 and they lived there for 2 years.






When he was 16, he came to the United States of America (Detroit, MI) and here he will stay. He is more proud of being an American than most Americans that I know, but I won't go off on that little tangent now, just wanted to throw that in there because it is definitely a big part of who he is.

He had to learn English on his own...again, can you imagine? I can't. I took Spanish in college and although I got an "A" my first semester, I dropped out of it in the next semester because I just could not keep up with it.

He put himself through electrical school, by working odd jobs, mostly in bakeries.


This is where he works now, I have no idea what he does, can you figure it out and get back to me, please?

Actually, he's an electrician at a robotics company. They build the factory assembly lines for the automotive corporations. They build them, then disassemble them, then ship them. Once at their new plant, many times he will go with the new line and train the new workers on how to use their station.

Since this is the automotive industry and we are in Metro Detroit, we are asked all of the time about his job security. For right now, so far, so good. But really for anyone in this part of the country, we have no idea what the future holds...

So, that's all about Velo, but I never told you how I fit into the picture. I'll keep it short and sweet: We met in 1990, married in 1991 and are living happily ever after with our 2 sons, ages 13 & 4 (who he adores!!!). xoxo

Want to tell everyone about your husband? Head over to Living Locurto's Meet My Husband Party and join in on the fun!!!

TTFN,

Bella
PS: You know that since he is an electrician, he never does anything electrical around the house;) I still love him anyways!!!

And The 3 Winners Are...

Wow, 471 entries in my Chex Mix Bars Basket of Indulgence giveaway!!! You guys rock!!!

Randomizer picked these 3 numbers: 77, 131 & 328

#77 was Renee Aka Mekhismom from Cutie Booty Cakes blog! Have you ever been to her blog? She makes the cutest Baby Shower/Baby Gift 'cakes'...so, so cute, go check them out!!!

#131 was tutugirl

and

#328 was lia

Congratulations, Ladies! I will be contacting you all shortly! Please get back to me asap with your name & mailing address so you can receive your gift basket right away!

Thanks again everyone, I love holding these giveaways and plan to have more in the future, so make sure to bookmark my site or subscribe to my newsletter, so you won't miss out!

If you would like to try a free sample of Chex Mix Turtle Bar, just click on the free sample offer on the right side of my blog, yum!!!

Did you vote? Hope so! And if you did, there are lots of nice freebies available today, such as coffee from Starbucks, a donut from Krispy Kreme, ice cream from Ben & Jerry's and Chick Fill-A is also having a promotion...just check out their websites for more details.

ttfn,

Bella

PS: It's my birthday!!! And since I'm a political junkie, it really is the perfect day, isn't it? ;)

PPS: Please join Diane at A Picture is Worth 1,000 Words for Trash to Treasure Tuesday!!! How fun!!!

Another Incentive To VOTE

On Tuesday, November 4th, after you vote...stop into Starbucks and tell them that you voted...and you will get a free Tall coffee!

More info here: Free Coffee at Starbucks on Election Day

Have you heard of other Election Day promotions? Please share, thanks!

Bella

PS: One more day left to enter to win the Chex/Spa Gift Basket!!! There will be 3 winners, good luck!!!