WINNER of the Simply Klassic Blog Makeover Giveaway!!!

Thank you so much for all of your sweet comments and notes of encouragement on my latest venture into the world of blog design.

I am thrilled to announce the winner, and so excited to get to work!

The winner of the Simply Klassic Blog Design Deluxe Package Giveaway (a $60 value) is.........

Polly of Sassafras Stuff who said:

Hi Kristin! Wow, this is awesome!! I am super excited to have this chance to win a blog makeover!! I need HELP!! My style would be shabby with a modernized twist. Thank you so much!!

Congratulations Polly!!! Stop by Simply Klassic and fill out the Design Questionnaire for the deluxe package and email it to me so we can get to work on your shabby modern blog design!

Don't forget, as a thank you for entering the giveaway, I am offering 20% off to the first five ladies who request a design package within the next 30 days. There were several of you who said you've been thinking about a fresh look for the new year, so be sure act quickly to take advantage of the discount!

Thank you again, and come back and visit often,  you never know when I'll be offering another Simply Klassic prize!

I'm Doing Guest Post Double Time Today!

A couple of weeks ago, I was approached by not one, but TWO wonderful ladies, asking me to stop by their blogs for a guest post. And they are both featuring Betty Crocker Wannabe TODAY!

AND guess what? There are is a different FREE PRINTABLE offered at each one, based on the Fruit of the Spirit scripture. Now, remember to use your manners;  please don't just grab and run but thank these ladies for hosting me!

So go check them out!

Sharon @ Keen Inspirations
Beth @ The Patchwork Chronicles

Thank you ladies! Guest posting was a wonderful experience!!

I Love a Man Who Cleans

Don't you?

Don't forget to enter the BLOG MAKEOVER GIVEAWAY! Ends Friday (1/21/11) at 11:50 PST.

I Got Motivated!!!

Thank you to everyone for your sweet comments and emails about my last post. I'm feeling better, and even had a burst of motivation last night to finally get my pantry organized.

And I did!

It's not 100% where I want it to be, but it's a good solid start to getting my kitchen into an organized kitchen that will work with me instead of against me.

If you've been following for a while, you know that my home belonged to my grandparents before they died. So I basically grew up in this house. My grandmother was the kind of person who had a place for everything, and everything in it's place, even if it made no sense to anyone else.

When I moved in, I had a hard time visualizing any other way of storage and organization. Cereal was in the bottom cabinet to the right of the stove. Pasta and spices in the top cabinet to the left of the stove. Canned soup and veggies in the top right. Even my drawers were the same. But after three years of living in this house, I decided it was time to make some changes. Now, they may not seem major to anyone else, but they are huge to me.

Here's the pantry before:

And here are the other cabinets that are going to be organized. A lot of what's in them will be moving to the pantry.

I have a very large pantry, but it really wasn't set up in a way that made the best use of the space, so I moved some of the shelving around. It's so deep that it's hard to see what you really have. Perhaps the reason I have eight bags of chocolate chips, five of them half empty.

I took everything out of the pantry and the cabinets, and set it on the kitchen counters.

The cabinet is somewhat custom, as my grandfather installed it and didn't glue in or tack down any of the shelving. So it was all very easy to move around.

Here's what it looks like now:

I have a ton of Tupperware (I used to be a consultant), and I love my Modular Mates. I also used a bunch of $1 shoeboxes that were on sale at Target last week.

I still need to make labels, and I would really love to get rid of that ugly shelf paper and paint it...but I think that may be a little too ambitious for me right now. I'm just happy everything is in one place. I'm considering taking the doors off, since this is just a former laundry and it's closed off from the other rooms in the house. What do you think? Doors? or No doors?

Tomorrow I will be working on the rest of the kitchen. If I'm still motivated!

Special thanks to my bloggy buddy Gwen, who, even though she doesn't know it, inspired me to get busy with her sewing closet makeover. It's seriously awesome. I just finished Gwen's blog makeover, so stop by and check it out!

Do you want to win a FREE BLOG MAKEOVER? Enter the Blog Makeover Giveaway! Ends Friday (1/21/11) at 11:59 pm PST.

I Have Nothing to Say

And that's totally not like me. Anyone who knows me, knows I ALWAYS have something to say. 

But tonight, I am just not motivated.

I have so much to do, so much going on, and I'm not motivated to do any of it.

I think I have the January blues. (Is there such a thing?). Or maybe it's the after-Christmas blues.

Whatever it is, it's sucking the inspiration right out of me.

I'm having a hard time coming up with things to blog about, like tonight when I sat down to write a blog post (about four hours ago) and this is all I've come up with.

I need inspiration.

I could share recipes, but since we're eating healthier, it's all I can do to come up with the basics. Eating healthy sucks. Ok, so it doesn't really SUCK, I know, it's fun! (did you detect the sarcasm?) But the stuff we have to eat, sometimes, sucks. I would much rather be eating the Hershey kisses we have leftover from Christmas while I sit and blog surf, than carrot sticks.

I could share some home decor, but we're preparing for a big remodel of our enclosed patio and my house is a disaster. I'm not motivated to clean it either. There are rooms and pantrys and closets that need organizing. But I don't want to.

I could share some feel good story about motherhood, but quite frankly my son testing my patience lately. He did say something funny the other day though. He told me I was like the Grumpy Old Troll from Dora the Explorer.

A friend told me I should make him answer a riddle every time he wants to go somewhere.

Did I mention I'm lacking inspiration?

What do you do when you're not motivated? Where do you get your inspiration from?

******

There is one thing I'm still very motivated about - my new blog design business! Don't forget about the blog makeover giveaway from Simply Klassic. (maybe that's where all my inspiration has gone??). Giveaway ends Friday, Jan. 21 at 11:59 pm PST.

Something NEW is HERE! (and I'm GIVING IT AWAY!)

***THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED***

I told you a few days ago that something new was coming to this blog.

Well, the surprise is finally complete, and here it is....

I started my own blog design business!

I'm so excited to get started!

When I started this blog almost a year ago, I had so much fun designing it that I wanted to do more! So I emailed my FIRL (friend in real life), Kate of Salvage Dior, and showed her a concept I had for her blog. She agreed to let me give her blog a makeover. I've done three makeovers for her, the latest just a week ago. Each time she was so excited, and I loved the simple joy a makeover could give!

One of my bloggy BFFs, Noelle of Because Nice Matters, had mentioned how she had paid a designer to design her blog and the designer had never followed through. I offered to help her out, and you can view her recently completed design here.

The wheels started turning and I thought how fun it would be to be able to work with different people designing blogs. And my new blog design business was born!

If you're interested in a new look for your blog, jump on over to Simply Klassic.

AND just for my lovely followers...a special treat!

Would you like a makeover for your blog?

Would you like a blog makeover for FREE?

I thought you might.

I am giving away a Deluxe Blogger Package to one lucky follower of Betty Crocker Wannabe.

Here's what you have to do (Please leave only ONE comment for all three) :
1. Leave me a comment on this post telling me the design style you like for your blog (scrappy, vintage, modern, etc.) AND
2. Be a follower of Betty Crocker Wannabe (and let me know you are), AND
3. Become a follower of Simply Klassic (and let me know you are).

Since I will use random.org to choose a winner, I will have to delete invalid entries (I know, I'm a big meanie!).

BUT...
For an additional entry, blog about Simply Klassic and the giveaway. Leave a separate comment on this post with a link.

Giveaway ends on Friday, January 21 at 11:59 pm PST.

The winner will be announced on Saturday morning, January 22, and also notified by email. Please make sure that your email is linked to your blogger account.

I will also be giving a discount of 20% to the first five customers who place an order (mention the giveaway).

Thank you all for being such loyal followers and friends of Betty Crocker Wannabe. I hope you will stop by Simply Klassic and let me know what you think!

Simple As It Gets Garlic Chicken

We're trying to eat healthier, and that means no butter, and no fancy sauces. This recipe is not only healthier, and tasty, it's an easy one.

Garlic Chicken
Boneless chicken breasts/thighs
Olive Oil (or just enough to coat the bottom of the pan)
Lots of minced garlic
Salt & pepper

Pour olive oil in a 9" x 15" pan. Add the garlic and spread to evenly. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees, and place the pan in the oven as it heats to warm the oil & garlic and help blend the flavors. When the temp is set, pull the pan out of the oven and dredge each chicken piece in the oil/garlic, coating both sides. Season with salt & pepper. Bake for about 25 minutes, turning halfway through, until juices run clear.

I didn't include measurements, because it's really based on your liking and needs.

This chicken was so flavorful and moist. This is a real keeper, and it would be easy to make and freeze for chicken tacos, enchiladas, soup, or anything else you can think of!