Last Call!

Don't mean to bug you all but I just wanted to remind you that I do have some medium (200x100) ads left so if you're interested send me an email at: amberupbeat[at]aol[dot]com by Friday night with your button/ad. I'll send out a mass email to all that have already signed up or did an ad swap with info!

Okay back to finding interesting ramen noodles recipes!

Beautiful Bouquet

Our garden is coming in well even though I do not like this one giant plant that was here before we were but Dustin does. He picked me some flowers from the plants we salvaged for the kitchen table. They are just a beautiful array or summer colors! What are your favorite flowers?

Summer To-Do List

Lately I've been feeling my ideas/projects are unorganized so I'm going back to old habits (my purse use to be full of list I'd make in class) and creating my summer to-do list! There are a lot of things I want to do or get done Summer 2012 ranging from minor to major :)

Giveaway at Vanagon Champion!

Just wanted to inform you all about this awesome giveaway over at Vanagon Champion :)

Go over to her blog to see how to enter and be a part of the Summer Self-Love!!

(commenting here does not enter you into giveaway)

Sponsor Update!

Since I posted about doing free sponsors a little differently for next month I have a few updates to share:

• There are only 2 large ads (200 x 200) left for next month
• Plenty of medium ads (200 x 100) available
• If you did a button swap with me recently and still want to advertise I'll have a medium ad (200 x 100) space available just send me an updated size or I can size it for you if you'd like just email me: amberupbeat[at]aol[dot]com :)

Still working on a sponsor page with information about sizes and what not. I think I might wait and see how the following month does so I can plan this out accordingly. 

Today has been really good I don't know what it is about getting a great bargain (be it clothing, vintage, or anything) it just makes the day a whole lot better.

If anyone has any question leave a comment or send me an email!

Recipes | Homemade Pickles

One thing I love about summer time is my grandpa's garden and making the home made pickles from the cucumbers. He would make some the traditional way in the mason jars but a couple he'd just cut up in vinegar with onions. It's really quick and simple snack that goes great with sandwiches.

What You'll Need:

• Cucumbers
• Distilled White Vinegar
• Yellow Onion
• Container or bowl
• Plastic Wrap (if container doesn't have lid)

1. Rinse off cucumbers; peel and cut into either slices or spears which ever you prefer.
2. You'll only need about half of that onion; peel and chop.
3. Put cucumbers and onions in container/bowl and pour vinegar till everything is covered.
4. Wrap and put in refrigerator for a few hours then they're ready to eat. 

Obsession Wednesday

This Obsession Wednesday is a bit tricky because all I've been thinking about is waffles and I've already did a post months ago about pancakes and their very much the same thing.  I'm kind of at a loss so I'll leave you with this food porn (not really porn but excessive exposure of delicious food)

*source*

Sponsor In July! It's Free :)

A few months back I started offering free sponsoring and after thinking over it for a while I wanted to do it in a more organized way that offered different bloggers a chance to showcase their blog and be able to do a monthly round up of those blogs. I also thought it'd be an easier way to communicate with sponsors that wanted to do a guest post or giveaways. Since this is my first asking for sponsors I may change it up the next following month but lets see how this goes:

Large Ad

Offering 4 Each Month

Buttons will rotate with other large ads on each page refresh

Optional: Giveaway and/or Guest Post

Will be featured in the Sponsor Spotlight Post with other large ads

Medium Ad

 Offering 12 Each Month

Buttons will rotate with other medium ads on each page refresh

Optional: Guest Post and/or Sponsor Spotlight Post with other medium ads

Things may change a bit (i.e adding different sizes and more ads) in future months since this will be my first month offering free ads this way I want to keep it simple. As per usual first come first serve; please feel free to email me at: amberupbeat[at]aol[dot]com.

Happy Father's Day

Just wanted to say Happy Father's Day to my Dad, all my grandpa's, friends and family! I hope everyone has a wonderful day :)

Guest Post with Hannah Beth from Of The Great Perhaps

Buy less, make more.

I challenge myself to stay creative not by frequenting Michael's or Joann Fabrics (although with those 40% off coupons it's a struggle!), but by using the materials I already have in new ways. New craft supplies, clothing, shoes: they're all tempting, and always will be tempting. But what's better than feeling like you've created something completely unique from your own inspiration? I've found this pleasure by simplifying my wardrobe, my possessions, and using up the materials in my craft hoard instead of endlessly adding to them.

Get rid of all that old junk you don't need.

We've all seen pictures on Pinterest or Tumblr of "organized chaos," or cute little knick knacks neatly arranged on shelves. How adorable, right? Personally those kinds of accessories build up the most in my house and are the hardest to get rid of because they're just too cute! Once my shelves and bureaus lose their organization, the chaos becomes ugly and overwhelming. By getting rid of unecessary little things, I find myself paying more attention to the important stuff: books, jewelry, and craft supplies that I now pick up & use more often.

Turn the TV off!

Background noise is distracting! And who wants their ears filled with commercials anyway? Play some music, or enjoy the silence. It gives you time to think, relax, breathe. Constant noise is in no way a life necessity.

Stop trying to multitask.

It's easy to become overwhelmed when you feel like the only way to get things done is to attack everything at once. Alternatively, by listing and prioritizing tasks you can get one completely done. Now move on to the next thing with that sense of accomplishment!

Take a minute to pause & enjoy the activities that fill your day.

Look out the window. Close your eyes for 10, 30, 60 seconds. Photograph the beautiful meal you just made before it gets devoured. Laugh at bad weather. It's only life, after all, and the little things we fill our lives with on a daily basis shouldn't go by unappreciated. Simple may seem plain or boring, but for me it's a lovely way to live.

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Thanks so much Hannah Beth for these very helpful tips! I definitely need to start (or in some cases stop) doing a few of these things, especially multitasking, I do that way too much! Again a great post and all of you should follow her wonderful blog at http://ofthegreatperhaps.blogspot.com/ :)

 If anyone is interested in doing a guest post anytime this month feel free to email me (click on the contact tab) I'll be offering this and more next month for any sponsor!

Recipes | Lemon Shrimp Bake

This recipe is perfect for a party or for salads and it is quick and easy! The best thing is you can flavor it up how ever you like it :)

What You'll Need:

• 3 Lemons (two for slices and one for juice)
• Raw Shrimp (detailed or with tail according to your preference)
• Stick of butter (cut into pieces)
• Seasoning of choice (I gave oregano a try on this one)
• Aluminum foil
• Baking pan

What to do:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line baking pan with aluminum foil.
2. Slice up two lemons and put on pan along with raw shrimp and butter (cut into pieces.)
3. Squirt with lemon juice and season all over.
4. Place in the oven for 10-15 minutes.
5. Enjoy!

Calling All Sponsors

So I thought it over and though I'm still going to offer my sponsorship for free I'm thinking of asking for sponsors monthly. This way I can do a page featuring the sponsors of the month and more. I'll post later in the month asking for July sponsors. Anyway what I'm calling all sponsors right now is for anyone that would love to guest post some time this month. Feel free to email me at amberupbeat[at]aol[dot]com if you're interested.

Recipes | Lemon Pepper Salmon

Can't you tell I love peas?

Like many of you I love Pinterest and it's infinite amount of recipe pins so of course I couldn't resist trying out this easy salmon recipe. I wanted to test out this recipe on my day off to see how "easy" it really was and I have to say it was right on!

What you'll need:

Directions:

1. Thaw out your salmon; I bought them individually wrapped so they're easy to toss a few in a bowl on the bottom shelf of the fridge to thaw out while you're at work or during the day.
2. While you're prepping preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
3. Slice a couple of lemon "wheels" (if you like lemon with your fish cut few wedges for later.)
4. On sheet of aluminum foil place enough lemon slices to cover the bottom of the salmon (it only took five.)
5. Place a few pieces of butter on top of the salmon.
6. Sprinkle pepper on top plus any other seasonings of choice.
7. Create a pocket with the aluminum foil by pulling two sides together, fold over, then close the sides in with the center fold.
8. Bake for 25 minutes until salmon flacks easily with a fork (internal temperature should be 145 F; place thermometer in the thickest part of salmon when checking)

It tasted great and clean up (including prep) was a breeze because everything was contained in the aluminum foil pocket. Next time though I might use a bit more pepper and another spice to give it additional flavor. Overall it's an easy tasty dinner perfect for two that you won't break a sweat over! 

New New Design

I finally figured out what I was looking for and decided to change out the design again. I really missed the old layout so it'll be staying longer than the former. I still have to fix some minor things with codes but I'll work on that tomorrow. After working on this design all day I am rather tired and heading to bed!

Former Design:

New Design:

I really need to take an updated picture of myself, not that I look completely different but still. I really can't wait for my hair to finally even out after cutting it short. I loved it but couldn't maintain keeping it short so I'm growing it back out. Anyway hope you guys like this design too and I promise to layoff changing it again for at 6 months or something. Goodnight!

So Indecisive

I can be so indecisive some times (or actually most of the time) there is always those things that bug me because I can't make up my mind on what I want. From changing up the blog design again (I miss having post in the middle) to getting a second job. I have all this energy to finally change it then I get too many ideas and they turn into one massive snowball (bad reference for the summer) sandball and I get caught up in it! I'm not stressed but it's just an annoyance to say the least. Also did I mention I'm stubborn? That might account to 40% of my indecisiveness because if I can do it then why not! Oh well...today has been kind of a bust. I went to the antique show but things didn't start off right (the coffee place I was going to grab breakfast was shut down) I started my first roundbut there wasn't much there and with my head hurting from the lack of food I decided I should  go inside and get a bite to eat. As soon as I sat down to eat it started pouring down rain. By the time it stopped raining outside  most of the booths were covered with plastic or had everything crammed into the pop-up tents. I just decided to go home because I wasn't having any luck. I'm still debating about going again tomorrow morning since they're calling for sunny skies. If I do decide to go again I'll remember to take pictures of this place; it's huge! Well one positive thing about today is I have the day off. I'm trying to talk Dustin into getting a bite to eat somewhere so we don't have to dirty up dishes.