Thursday, February 25, 2016

English Muffin Sandwich

A few nights ago, BLTs were on the dinner menu. (This working momma's go-to meal.) I decided to swap out the bread for an English muffin, and I also swapped out the lettuce for a slice of cheese. It.was.good! I'll be eating this little creation again. I thought you guys might like it, too.

Ingredients:

1 English muffin
2 pieces of cooked bacon, broken into 3 pieces
2 tomato slices
2 cheese slices of your choosing
2 teaspoons of butter
Salt and pepper to taste

What I did:

I spread 1/2 - 1 teaspoon of butter on both sides of the muffin and toasted it, thus skipping the mayo of the usual BLT. I broke each piece of bacon into 3 pieces, then added them to each side. (I ate mine open faced.) Then I added the tomato, salt and pepper, and cheese.  Yum-my...



Here is the calorie breakdown and the brands I used--in case you're curious.



Super easy and fairly low calorie! You can't go wrong. Give it a try and let me know what you think. What's your go-to meal during the week? Scroll down to the comment link and let me know. I'd love to here from you. :-)

Kathryn

Monday, February 22, 2016

Lighter, brighter topiaries...

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about my topiaries from Home Goods, and how I planned to brighten them up. Last weekend I did just that with Valspar's Cream Delight, a paint sample I had.


Here's the before shot. The bowls are dark and they blended in with the table.


I put the first coat of paint on with the brush above, and the second with a sponge. 


The sponge provided better coverage, but not so much that it took away the antiqued look I was hoping for. 


The faux moss was dark too, and it looked almost black unless the sun was shinning directly into the bowl. I changed up the look of it as well with Ashland's Reindeer Moss from Michael's. 







I'm glad I didn't let the dark bowls keep me from snatching these up. When something catches your eye, but one small thing is holding you back... before you pass it up, leave it on a shelf, or think you'll find a better one, remember, "where there's a will, there may be a DIY way."


And so ends the tiny topiary project... By the way, that's not really a table cloth.
Have a great week!

Kathryn

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

The perfect house plant...

...and by the perfect house plant, I mean after one year under my care, it's still alive. That doesn't always happen, sad to say.


I picked up a few different succulents last spring at our local nursery. Three cute, inexpensive bowls caught my eye, and the succulents were perfect for them.


The jade plant has been easy to care for. I only water it every two to three weeks. When I do water it, I don't soak it. It needs very little water.


If you love the look of real greenery in your home and in your vignettes, add jade.



Do you have a favorite house plant that's been easy to care for?

Hope you are having a great week!

Kathryn

Friday, February 12, 2016

An overdue happy update...

A few months ago I shared a personal story about my friend Shannon, our Nashville weekend, and her battle with cancer. Good news--that fight ended happily with a scan in December showing she was CANCER FREE! That's the kind of news worth repeating. I'm so happy for her and her sweet family. She has been such a good friend to me over the almost thirty-five years of our relationship, and such an encouragement and supporter of this blog project...

So lucky to know her and be a part of her journey...

As always, thankful for the gift of friendship...

Kathryn


Tuesday, February 09, 2016

Drop cloth table decor...

Over the weekend I worked on my topiary project, the one I mentioned last week. I didn't have a small paint brush, so I had to run into Lowe's and grab one. It was way too cold to paint outside, so I grabbed a small drop cloth also. I wanted to be able to paint at my kitchen table.




As I'm at the table envisioning the vignette after the topiaries are painted, I have the thought to use the 4x5 drop cloth on the table as well. I've seen lots of pins on Pinterest about using drop cloths as window panels, so I throw the one I bought in the washing machine with the next load, and Voile!

It washed and dried up great! I ironed it just a little to soften it up and smooth it out.


It not only gives a natural look to the table, but it also adds a small amount of texture.


I experimented with it in a couple of different positions.

First, I used it the way you would any table cloth...draped evenly across the table.



Next, I made three even folds to create the look of a table runner...


The last is a slanted look. Normally, no matter what the project is, I'm all, "It's gotta be symmetrical."  But I threw caution to the wind on this last look... (Remember, it's not a perfect square--4x5.)



Surprisingly, this is the one I liked the best. The plan is to have the topiaries I mentioned above finished this week and have a new look for my breakfast table soon.

OK. So, what do you guys think? A, B, or C? Straight, runner, or off center? Would you use a drop cloth like this?


The comment link below is awaiting your vote and your thoughts!
Thanks for stopping by...

Kathryn

Sunday, February 07, 2016

A Sunday thought... Certainty



In Alabama one thing is certain--the uncertainty of our weather. There is no such thing as packing up your summer things and pulling out your winter things. We never know when we might need both. Sure, we need light jackets in October at a Friday night game. But, chances are, in November, we are still showing our painted toes in flip flops and hot weather wedges. Wearing sweat shirts and boots one week, and catching some rays in the back yard the next is pretty much the norm. It's the middle of February, and I can only remember bundling up for work maybe five or six times.

Reflecting on the ever changing weather at some point last week brought this verse to my mind, and I wanted to share it today as my Sunday thought.

"The Lord is my helper, 
and I will not fear 
what man shall do unto me. 
For He is the same yesterday, 
and today, 
and forever."

Hebrews 18:6,8

I hope this certainty brings you hope this week...

Kathryn

Thursday, February 04, 2016

Topiary project sneak peak...

Not exactly the time of year for household projects, but I do have one small thing brewing. I thought I'd give you a glimpse of what I'm working on. As I told you on Friday, we traveled to our closest Home Goods a few weekends ago. I came home with these faux preserved boxwood topiaries. They were a great price, and I liked everything about them except for the color of the bowl.




I'd like them to look more like this one.



Source
I'm hoping to find the time to make that happen now that our two January weddings are in the books. You can read more about those here and here. I have a small paint sample left over from another project. I think this just may work...


My plan is to use the topiaries on my breakfast table with one of my recent thrift store finds, a footed fruit basket.





I'll let you know how they turn out.

How about you? Are you in the middle of anything at your house? I must confess, I enjoy being in the middle of something, even if it's only a little something. :-)

Kathryn

Monday, February 01, 2016

Closing out January...

It's a new month already? These months are coming and going too fast for me.

If you are new to Woodbank Lane, WELCOME! We love new readers, or if you happen to have missed a post, here's a quick recap for the first month of the new year.





Looking forward to spending February with you!

Kathryn