mother daughter bracelets

diy mother-daughter bracelets 

I searched online to find simple ideas on diy mother-daughter bracelets but came up finding some real corny stuff. I found tons of ¨bling¨ or charms dangling off of something looking like a tiny chandelier. 

So, since I had an idea of what I wanted and couldn't really find it online, I decided just to wing it. It ended up being an unbelievably easy and cute diy project...I thought I would share. 

Supplies needed

Hemp cording - I used bead landing hemp cording from Michael´s

Bead letters - I used bead landing gold crafting beads letters from Michael´s

Clasps - you can also just let it be a bracelet you tie on, I used a clasp kit also from Michael´s

Steps

1. Cut 3 10 inch pieces for the adult sized bracelets and 6 inches for a child´s bracelet. 

2. Braid the 3 pieces ( you can use your toe as a harness) at about 2 inches in, tie a knot as you see above. For a child´s bracelet, tie a knot about 1 inch in (all depending on the size of the child´s wrist of course). 

3. Insert your letters.

4. Tie another knot and continue to braid.

5. Check your wrist as to where you should cut your braid. Cut the braid at to where you will be applying the clasps. 

6. Apply your clasps. Instructions will be on the packaging or you can see it online. You can skip this part and have it tied onto the wrist to make it an easier task. For this, make sure you leave plenty of cord to where it will be easy to tie. 

It really turned out cute and the 3 bracelets came out costing less than $15 to make. 

I´m hoping your mom will love your thrifty and thoughtful gift as I know my mom will. 

Happy Mother´s Day!

diy mother-daughter bracelets 

simple (paleo-friendly) - paleo lemon-butter sea scallops with garlic french green beans

simple (paleo-friendly) lemon-butter sea scallops 
with garlic french green beans

My husband recently exclaimed that this was now his favorite dish. He literally licked his plate the last time I made it. No shame. No regrets.  

Tasting like a meal that would cost you at least $20 per plate in these parts of the beach cities. It´s shamefully easy to prepare and can feed 2-3 people for less than $30. WINNING!

We all know that green beans are in the ¨legume family¨ (a no-no for the Paleo diet). But I did some research before I prepared the meal and found this great explanation in the Paleo Magazine website on why green beans are actually, ¨Paleo-friendly¨. Are Green Beans Paleo?

This makes me quite happy as I love green beans so much I could have them everyday. But I have to remember, that they are only, ¨Paleo-friendly¨...not ideal for the Paleo diet. Have this dish on special occasions or twice a month as we do! 

Preparation: 10 minutes (I'm slow, it will probably take you 5 minutes)

Cook: 30 minutes

Serves 3-4 

INGREDIENTS

1 pound of Sea Scallops 

6 tablespoons of grass-fed unsalted butter (I used Keri Gold)

5 cloves of organic garlic, minced (you can use less garlic if you want, I´m preparing for a Vampire apocalypse) 

1 pound of organic French green beans 

Juice from half an organic lemon 

Sea salt 

Black pepper 

Garlic salt

METHOD

1. In a large skillet, heat 4 tablespoons of unsalted grass-fed butter on high. Place thawed green beans into the melted butter then wait about 5 minutes and mix in the minced garlic. Remember to stir the green beans every 5 minutes for the entire 30 minutes (make sure the garlic does not burn). 

2. While the green beans are sautéing, place thawed sea scallops onto a paper towel to absorb water. Pat dry with another paper towel. Once dry, season with 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt, 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper and 1/4 teaspoon of garlic salt (if you desire). Remember the Vampires. 

3. About 20 minutes into the green bean sauté (total green bean cook time is about 30 minutes), heat your other non-stick skillet with 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter on medium-high until hot. While the skillet is heating, season the green beans in the other skillet with sea salt and black pepper then lower the heat for about 10 more minutes of sautéing . (During this time, you will be cooking your scallops). 

4. Carefully place scallops into the empty hot skillet, one at a time. Make sure scallops do not touch. 

5. Cook scallops for 2-3 minutes on one side then turn over and slowly pour the lemon juice over the other side. Season the other side if you desire. Remember to turn only once.

6. Cook on the second side for 2-3 more minutes or until your scallop is fully cooked. The scallops should be a nice golden color. *Remember that cooked scallops feel firm and look creamy-white inside.

7. Taste green beans and make sure they have enough salt then remove your green beans and place on plates. 

8. Remove scallops from pan and place them on same plate as the green beans and pour a small spoon of the lemon-butter sauce over the scallops and beans (if you like). 

RAWR like a cavewoman and Enjoy! 

Did you know? 

I was curious on the differences between green beans and French green beans. Thought I would share this Wikipedia explanation.  

Green beans, also known as string bean, snap bean in the northeastern and western United States, or ejotes in Mexico, are the unripe fruit of various cultivars of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris).^[1][2] Green bean cultivars have been selected especially for the fleshiness, flavor, or sweetness of their pods.

Haricots verts, French for "green beans", also known as French beans, French green beans, French filet beans, Fine beans (British English), is a variety of green bean that is longer, thinner, crisp, and tender.^{[citation needed]} It is different from the haricot bean, which is a dry bean.

simple paleo - paleo french onion soup

simple organic (paleo-friendly) french onion soup 

I love a caveman.

And because I love this caveman...I feed him. I feed him foods from a list he gave me after he read The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. This book has transformed his eating habits and quite frankly...his lifestyle, which in turn has transformed ours. Though at first I fought with him on it (my inner Salted Carmel Mocha lover made me do it), I had to finally admit to him that I actually did feel like I had more energy and surprisingly less stress and agitation just after two weeks of cutting out caffeine, refined sugars, grains, gluten and dairy. It took a good week or so to totally get rid of the caffeine withdrawal headache but it only took about three days to stop craving so much sugar. Those who know me know that my moto is that you can eat anything...as long it's in ¨moderation¨. But, its been so hard lately to be ¨moderate¨ with Salted Carmel Mocha's, milk chocolate, butter croissants, tres leeches cake...hard. I was feeling agitated and tired...run down by 3pm. By the time my husband was home from work, I was a so exhausted and drained that I wouldn't even want to make him a nice meal. No good.

So, I've been playing with some foods to keep our Paleo diet fun and interesting. Hopefully this will be the first of many Paleo or Paleo friendly recipes I'll be sharing.

Bon Appétit!


Preparation: 20 minutes (I'm slow, it will probably take you 10 minutes)
Cook: 1 hour, 40 minutes
Serves 2-4

INGREDIENTS

3 large organic yellow onions, peeled and thinly sliced (see photo)
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of organic garlic, minced
4 cups of organic beef stock
1/4 cup of dry white wine
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon of dry thyme
sea salt and black pepper

* grated Harvarti cheese (optional...this is not Paleo)

METHOD

1. In a medium sized saucepan, sauté the onions in the olive oil on medium heat until browned, about 40-50 minutes.

2. Add the garlic and sauté for 10 more minutes

3. Add the wine, organic beef stock, bay leaves, and thyme. Simmer until the flavors are well blended, about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

4. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.

5. To serve you can use individual oven-proof soup bowls. Ladle the soup into the bowls. Cover with a little bit of cheese (not Paleo). Put into the broiler for 5-10 minutes at 350 degrees F, or until the cheese is slightly browned. Remember, Opt out cheese if you are on the Paleo diet.

RAWR like a cavewoman and Enjoy!