Mini Tarts For The Working Martha

Oh my goodness, I am almost embarrased to post this recipe because it's kind of Sandra-Lee-esque, BUT it was so yummy and so darn easy that I have to share it with my little working Marthas out there! I took a recipe that I found online and skipped half the steps to create this super easy recipe. No baking working ladies haha!! These fresh creamy tarts look so pretty and taste just as sweet!

Ingredients:Ready made mini gram cracker crusts. I used 6 mini ones from Betty Crocker1 package 8 ounce cream cheese2 cups of berries (whatever is on sale at the grocery store haha!)1/3 cup granulated sugar2/4 cup heavy whipping cream1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions: In small bowl, beat cream cheese, 1/3 cup sugar and the vanilla with electric mixer on low speed until smooth. Next beat in the heavy cream on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Spread evenly into the mini pie crusts. Arrange your berries on top, this is the fun part! Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving or make a day ahead and store covered in refrigerator until you are ready to be Martha!!

A Decorating Tip

How many times have you been in a store and seen a home decor item such as a pillow and purchased it only to bring it home and realize that it doesn't quite match the colors that are already in your room? Shoot this can be so annoying when you are tryng to decorate a room using multiple fabrics and you want everything to blend nicely. Unless you are purchasing your entire living room from page 4 of Potterybarn where everything is pre-matched for you, you are going to run into this problem. If only I had a piece of the couch and chair fabric to tote along... but who has the fabric if you buy something pre-upholstered? 

To solve the issue I went to the paint store and browsed the blues and greens, looking for swatches that matched my upholstered furniture. "This looks like my blue, no wait I think it's more like this...eek!!" I had to bring home several swatches to make sure at least one of them matched up to my blue and green striped living room. In my pile of paint swatches I was thrilled to find a blue strip and a green strip that matched the tones of my fabric perfectly! Woo hoo!!  I marked the colors on the swatch and now I keep these swatches in my wallet at all times so if I see something in a store that I love, I can easily check if it matches my color scheme! I recently just brought the swatches to the fabric store to buy matching solid fabric to make curtains for the room! Thank goodness I had my swatches in my purse or I would have been way off in choosing my fabric!

The best part about using paint swatches is that they give you lighter and darker versions of your shade of color. I hope my decorating tip helps!

Happy July 4th!

The Easiest Diaper Cake

What could be sweeter than a diaper cake for a mom to be? Traditional diaper cakes are made using dozens of pins to hold the diapers in place, as if these moms don't have enough to do! Here is an easy way to create a beautiful and easy to disassemble diaper cake for that special mom to be!

 1) This may seem redundant but find out what diapers the mom to be prefers. Some ladies are picky these days so better to just ask!


2) Fold the diapers in half (do not roll them) and sandwich them together into a large circle around a clear plastic cup using your hands to hold the circle in place. I think it's easiest to build my circle on my lap. If you have an extra set of hands around for help that would be wonderful too!

3) Using masking tape to place a stripe or two of tape around the large circle. If enough diapers are packed into the circle it should stay in place! Place a pretty ribbon over the tape to conceal it. Secure the ribbon with clear tape where it meets its end.

4) Place the large circle of diapers on a flat surface and begin repeating the process to create a slightly smaller circles of diapers as you move up the cake.

5) There is no need to attach each circle together. That will happen at the end. You can create as many layers of diapers as you wish but make sure the circles get smaller as you go up.

6) Once all of your circle of diapers are sitting on top of one another, place the whole cake on top of two long ribbons (about 3 inches wide) in a cross shape.

7) Bring the ribbons up along the sides of the diaper cake and tie very tightly at the top. Use the excess ribbon to tie a pretty bow at the top of your cake.

8) Decorate your diaper cake as you wish! Perhaps try using faux flowers, other ribbons, tule or large buttons!

9) Your cake should be easy to transport and even easier to disassemble! What mom to be wouldn't love to receive the easiest diaper cake!