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Need some ideas for last minute Easter treats for your celebrations this weekend? Check out these cool Easter treat ideas!

I'm a huge fan of Laura's Little Party. She makes the most original treats and throws the most gorgeous parties!

Here's a photo of some marshmallow pops she made for her Hoppy Easter Party. If you'd like to make some yourself, check out this decorated marshmallow pop tutorial I did on Spoonful.

 

I was asked by Naked Juice to share how our family stays healthy and eat lots of fruits and vegetables.

As I've mentioned a lot in my blog posts, I am a huge fan of the farmer's market, so I tend to buy a lot of our family's fruits and vegetables there. While my husband, David, and I eat a ton of vegetables, I must admit my daughter is not always a fan. :( One solution I've come up with is to buy her smoothies. That way, when she refuses to eat anything fresh and green, I know real nutrition is still getting into her body.

So when Naked Juice asked us to try the Strawberry Banana and Mighty Mango flavors, I did not have to convince my daughter to taste test. Strawberry Banana is actually her favorite flavor so she was very happy to help. We'd never tried the Mighty Mango before, and if you like mango, you will love this variety because it's got some serious mango punch.

One thing we also tried, was freezing the smoothie into ice cubes and putting a few ice cubes into a glass of sparking water. It definitely added nice fruit flavor, but was not too overpowering. It's definitely worth a try if you're looking for a little sweetness in your sparking water.

Now on to the kale chips... My husband and I LOVE these and can devour them like potato chips. If you haven't made them before you are in for a treat. (Even my daughter will eat these on occasion).

SPICY GARLIC KALE CHIPS

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch of kale
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon chili powder

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Wash the kale, and remove the stems. Tear the leaves into 2 inch pieces, and put them in a bowl. Add the olive oil, and mix until the kale is lightly coated. I like to mix with my hands, especially with curly kale so I can really make sure each piece gets a complete coating.

Spread the kale evenly on a cookie sheet that is covered with a Silpat or parchment paper. I usually cook it in two batches so the kale isn't too crowded on the pan. Sprinkle the salt and chili powder over the top. I'll taste a little piece of the raw kale to check the seasoning, and adjust as needed.

Bake for 10 minutes and then check on it. Small pieces, or pieces that are in more contact with the pan can cook more quickly. Remove any pieces that are done. They should be light, crispy, and just starting to brown around the edges. Cook for an additional couple minutes until the rest crisps up.

Hide a little extra for yourself because, I promise, these will be gone quick.

Naked Juice is worth its weight in good! There's a pound of fruit in every bottle. Naked Juice has partnered with charity Wholesome Wave to improve access to fresh produce in communities across the country. You can help by visiting www.nakedjuice.com/gooddeeds. For every coupon downloaded, 1 LB of fresh produce will go to an underserved community, up to 100,000 pounds.

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Naked Juice via Glam Media.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Naked Juice.

 

If you need free Easter party printables, check out all these amazing collections I posted on Spoonful! You'll find everything you need to decorate for Sunday!

Need a theme for your little boy's next birthday? How about Outer Space! We're giving away this adorable collection of FREE party printables designed by Valerie from Lil' Monkeys Designs. I love all the cute aliens, rockets, astronauts, and planets!

The collection includes: an invitation, cupcake toppers, tented food cards, water bottle labels, a "Happy Birthday" banner, a welcome sign, and favor tags.

DOWNLOAD THE HIGH RESOLUTION FILES FOR PRINTING HERE

• Outer space party printables
• "Happy Birthday" banner

Here's the whole collection...

And here are the individual files...

Thanks Valerie for these delightful printables!

To learn more about Valerie and see all of her designs check out her Lil' Monkey Etsy Shop and her Facebook page.

For more inspiration, check out these fantastic outer space parties on our site.

What a wide variety of parties in my top 4 this week: a Favorite Things party, a TV news themed 5th birthday, a rainbow St. Patrick's Day party, and a party to celebrate the new season of Duck Dynasty! Very cool!

I'm excited to introduce you to Molly Allen, our new baking contributor, and the woman behind CakeFYI. Here's Molly's first yummy recipe for Catch My Party. Don't these cupcakes look pretty! Take it away, Molly...

What better way to celebrate Easter and spring than with these easy-to-make Spring Vanilla-Mint Cupcakes  with a hint of mint in the vanilla batter. Then swirl your cupcakes with light mint icing, and finish them off with Pearl White Sugar Sprinkles for an extra decorative touch.

SPRING VANILLA-MINT CUPCAKES

Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Cup Butter, softened
• 1 1/4 Cup Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 Teaspoon Pure Mint Extract
• 1 1/4 Cups Flour
• 1 3/4 Teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
• 3/4 Cup Milk

 

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, and then add the vanilla extract and mint extract and mix well.

Add a third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until incorporated.

Add half of the milk and mix well.

Add another third of the flour, mix, and then add the remaining milk.

Add the remaining flour and continue beating until well mixed.

Using a measuring cup, pour batter into a lined or greased cupcake pan.

Bake for 16-18 minutes until golden. Set aside to cool before icing.

MINT ICING RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Cup Butter, softened
• 2 1/2-3 Cups Powdered Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 Teaspoon Pure Mint Extract
• 1 Tablespoon Milk
• 2 Drops Green Food Coloring

 

Beat the butter and a 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar.

Add the vanilla and mint extracts and milk and continue beating.

Continue to add powdered sugar until you reach your desired consistency.

Add green food coloring and beat until color is well incorporated.

Once cooled, top cupcakes with Mint Icing. Top with pearl sprinkles.

Enjoy at your upcoming Easter celebration or just because... they're that good!

Thanks, Molly. Can't wait to share more of your deliciousness with our readers!

We live in a mid-century modern house which has dictated many of the style choices we have made. While we really like modern designs, we don't want our house to look stark and cold. Therefore, we have accented it with interesting patterns and colors to make it feel more warm and inviting.

I was asked by Target to share some of my favorite ideas for combining patterns, colors, and textures. So here goes!

One way I like to create something interesting is to combine hard with soft. I recommend playing with the juxtaposition of warm, soft items (like pillows and throws) with stark metal and glass furniture and accents.

Another way to create something unique is to combine masculine and feminine in your decor. A soft bed next to a leather smoking chair bring an interesting contrast to a room.  Or adding a big floral rug under a sleek piece of dark furniture can create the same effect.

My favorite way to change up a room is to use decorative pillows. It's a quick and inexpensive way to add pops of color to otherwise neutral furniture. I usually stick to one color family, like the oranges I chose here, and play with patterns. I like mixing big patterns with small patterns and throwing in some solid textured pillows to bring in more interesting visuals without creating chaos. :) And I like to pile them on to really create an effect!

And finally, one of my favorite patterns these days is ikat. To me, ikat always feels fresh and colorful, with a little touch of boho.  I found lots of cool ikat patterns at Target, and because the patterns can be bold, I paired them with solid color pieces to create balance.

I hope you enjoyed reading how I approach texture and color. What's great is that all these ideas can easily be applied to party styling as well, and everything I highlighted can be purchased at Target!

It’s Time for Springtime.

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Target via Glam Media.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Target.

 

I love fresh flowers! Having them in my house makes me sooooo happy! And now that all the spring flowers are blooming, I thought I'd make a pretty vase so I can have a great  way to display them (like the tulips that are exploding around me). The vase was so simple to do, it took about 15 minutes, and I love how it turns out!

SUPPLIES:

• Glass vase
• Rubber bands
• Spray paint -- I used frosted and glitter
• Newspaper

Place rubber bands around the glass vase.

Stuff with newspaper so you don't get the spray paint inside the vase.

Spray with the frosted paint first (I did 3 coats, waiting 10 minutes between coats),. Then add a light spray of glitter. To finish add another coat of frosted paint. The frost really comes out when the paint dries.

Let dry overnight. Remove rubber bands. Scrape off any extra paint that might have gotten under the rubber bands. Here's Lainey after I took the rubber bands off, super excited about the new vase.

I put in some gorgeous tulips and look how pretty!

I made this plastic Easter egg garland as a decoration for my Arts & Crafts Easter table. It was so easy to make! To see the whole tutorial, check out my post on Spoonful!