Spring is in the Air {and a Cute Freebie is in this Post}

I'm not even going to make any excuses today. It's been nice out and we have simply been enjoying life (zoo, park, walks, bubbles, just staying in the yard all day...you know) and it's been BLISS!!

A few days ago, I had a bit of inspiration. It was brought to my attention (by my mom) that I hadn't sent my grandma any recent pictures of the boys (oops!). So I decided, not only would I send her some SUPER adorable pictures, but that I would also create a cute envelope to carry the precious cargo. I created one (the one with flowers), but I simply couldn't stop there, so one became three cutie-cute spring themed envelopes, perfect for sending note cards or some 4x6 photos. Lucky for me, I have TONS of people who are in need of some delicious photo refreshments.  

And lucky for you, I am nice enough to let you benefit from my hard work for FREE!! Enjoy. :~)

{Click to download: Chevron, Dots, Flowers}

I would really like to stuff my envelopes with something special for Easter and Spring. Which means I have been scouring pinterest for inspiration.

I think these are darling. {however, the photo quality was not great}

Or these with a Mommy and a Daddy bunny? {This site has a lot of links to really cute thumbprint drawings.}

But what I am REALLY searching for are some easy Easter photo ideas and so far it seems like I am in DESPERATE need of a big ol' lop-eared bunny. 

Does anyone have one of these they want to let me borrow? ;~)

On the Menu - WW Cabbage Rolls Recipe Mash-up

Okay, I admit it, I FAILED miserably. I promised I would be better about keeping up with the blog, heck, I even set up a SCHEDULE for my blog posts, but it would appear that I have been absent for two whole weeks! Sigh. Sorry. There really isn't any reason for my invisibility besides "life", running after our two little monsters, and actually just a little lack of creative spark. Orrrrrrr.....was it just that I wanted to keep the pictures of my ADORABLE little 2nd cousin up a little longer? I'll go with that. haha.  Now that you all forgive me, we can move on to bigger and better things. :~)

Up until yesterday (when I changed my settings) I received roughly 1-billion e-mails per day from Pinterest. The majority of said e-mails were letting me know that someone had repinned one of my pins, the resounding majority of people had pinned the following:

Weight Watchers Cabbage Rolls

 

Evidently, there are A LOT of people who really like cabbage rolls out there! Well, either that, or a lot of people looking for Weight Watchers recipes. I feel that since TONS of people are pinning this from my recipe board, I need to be honest. I am sure the original recipe is great, but not once have I made it "as is". I actually combine the WW recipe with this recipe to make my own version, which I will now divulge:

Heather's "WW/ Spark People Mash-up" Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients For the Rolls:

1 - medium head of cabbage (ten leaves for rolls)

1 lb - lean ground beef

1/2 cup - uncooked white rice

1/2 cup - water

1/4 cup - breadcrumbs

1 - medium carrot grated

1 - medium onion finely chopped

1 - clove garlic minced

1 - egg (or egg white if you choose)

salt/ pepper to taste

olive oil

Ingredients for the Sauce:

remainder of the head of cabbage shredded

16 oz - canned diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano
1 cup - water
1 - medium carrot sliced (or diced)
2 T - lemon juice
2 T - brown sugar
1 T - cornstarch
salt/ pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Remove 10 cabbage leaves from the outside of the head of cabbage. Wrap the cabbage leaves in plastic wrap or moist paper towels and microwave on high power for 2 minutes, until soft. Cut off the thickest, white portion of the spine of each leaf to make leaves pliable and easy to fold; set aside. 2. Shred the remainder of the cabbage for use in the sauce. 3. Combine beef, rice, water, bread crumbs, shredded carrot, onion, garlic, egg, salt and pepper in a large bowl; mix well. 4. Spoon about 1/4 cup of beef mixture onto the center of each leaf. Fold up bottom of leaf to cover filling, tuck in sides and then continue rolling to make loose rolls (rice will expand during cooking so it is important not to roll them too tightly). 5. Heat oil (a couple tsp) in a large stock pot over medium-high heat; add rolls and sauté until golden brown on all sides, turning frequently, about 5 minutes. 6. Add tomatoes, sliced onions, water, shredded cabbage and the sliced carrot. Cover the pan and simmer for about 1 hour or until cabbage is tender and meat is cooked. Baste and check for sticking occasionally. 7. Remove the rolls from the pan and keep warm. Mix the lemon juice, brown sugar and cornstarch together, add to the sauce and stir until thickend. 8. Serve the rolls with the sauce. 9. Enjoy! Ps - I don't know WHAT is going on with the spacing in this post and all the extra space at the bottom, but I GIVE UP! ahhhh!