1st Blogiversary! Amazed and Confused

Wow it is incredible to think that it has been ONE YEAR since I began blogging! (Ok technically it's tomorrow.)

I never thought that my little blog would be where it is today. And I never thought I'd enjoy blogging as much as I do either!

Blogging has become this amazing journey of discovering my desire to write and share my thoughts with others, connect with people across the country (and world!) and learn more about myself in the process. It has inspired me to cook more, grow more, create more, adventure more, and overall live a better life.

Gracious, how did I even get here?

A drive to share my experiences with others and YOU.

The main thing that makes blogging incredible is YOU. My beautiful, sweet and smart readers! Ok and you fellas are handsome, caring and intelligent ;-) Can't leave out the guys!

Blogging would be pointless if it weren't for the readers. Whether you're simply looking for a delicious and healthy recipe or you're a die-hard blog reader or a blogger yourself, you're so important.

So to kick off my 1st blogiversary week, I want to say THANK YOU to my lovely readers and now, I want to learn a little more about you!

For fun I'll post my answers down below the poll! I look forward to reading your responses and I'll work on making fun graphs (did I just call graphs "fun"?) later in the week!

• I am in my 20s (25 to be precise).
• I am a lady.
• I am a veterinary receptionist.
• I rent a townhouse.
• I live in Virginia, USA.
• In my spare time I do all of the above except sing (I try, but fail) and shop.
• My life would not be complete without my spouse and my pets mostly.
• My least favorite social media site is a a 6-way tie. I like Facebook and that's about it.  Ok Pinterest is super addicting too.

Speaking of Facebook, have you "liked" my Facebook page yet? If not you can click HERE to do so!

You can also follow me on Pinterest HERE.

No question today, just fill out the poll if you have a moment, please and thank you!

Till next time,
Catherine

Pinterest fail: "Quick" Refried Beans (from dry beans)

Ok I'm going to go ahead and start by saying...don't do this. Don't do what I did. Don't believe everything you read on the internet. 

I found this recipe for "quick" refried beans and thought I had happened upon some great secret. I read through a bunch of reviews, some good and some bad, and went along with it. I had a thought in the back of my mind that said, "I think this is too good to be true." I should have listened to that voice. 

Ingredients:

• 1lb dry beans (I used pinto)
• 1 Tablespoon salt
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 6+ cups water...add more as needed
• 1 can of tomato paste (what?!)

Directions:

Grind your beans in a wheat grinder. 

Or blender. Or both. 

Mix all of your ingredients together in a large pot. 

Taste test for about an hour while trying to convince yourself it will get better.

"Hey...the ingredients list on store-bought refried beans includes tomato paste! I'll add a can of tomato paste." Whatever you do, don't do that.

Once you've given up on it getting any tastier, or less crunchy, go ahead and dump it all into the trash can. You gave it your best, champ. Good game.

Le sigh.

Live and learn. Or live safely and learn from bloggers who tried the too-good-to-be-true stuff first. 

Anyone have a GOOD recipe for refried beans from dried beans? I promise I'll take the time to soak them.

Till next time,

Catherine

Happily Ever Crafter - Now on Bloglovin'!

Happily Ever Crafter is now officially on bloglovin'! 

I'm not sure what took me so long to join but I'm here now! Bloglovin' is such a great site to organize all the blogs that you follow and find new ones. There is even a button that says "Similar blogs" when you're looking at one blog so you can easily find new ones that are right up your ally!

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So click HERE to follow me on bloglovin'! 

If you haven't joined it yet, you definitely should if you're a blog reader like me. Also because Google Reader will be gone very soon. It even shows you which blog posts you have read and which ones still need to be read. It's awesome! I can't wait to find some awesome new blogs to read! Any suggestions? 

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And while I'm here I thought I'd remind you all that I've also got a Facebook page for my blog. Don't forget to head over there and LIKE my page! I don't post 100 times a day so don't worry, I won't be blowing up your news feed. I love to interact with my readers and share my latest blog posts with you all and Facebook is just the place for it.

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I recently turned my personal Pinterest page into a joint personal/blog Pinterest page. I pin all kinds of cool things from home decorating/organizational ideas, recipes, gardening tips, DIY crafts, funny and cute pictures, and more. Be sure to FOLLOW me on Pinterest! 

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And let's not forget good ol' fashioned e-mail! You can contact me with questions or comments or if you just want to chat at CatherinePageWood@gmail.com. You can also enter your e-mail address in the box on the right side of the page to subscribe to Happily Ever Crafter!

Thank you all for your love and support! 

How do you keep up with Happily Ever Crafter using social media? What other forms of social media (Twitter, Google+, Instagram, etc) would you like to see Happily Ever Crafter use? 

Till next time,

Catherine

10,000 Pageviews!

I have just reached 10,000 pageviews on my little corner of the internet!!!

It's so hard to believe! Who, me? Really??

I want to say THANK YOU to each and every one of you who is reading my blog! Whether you are a faithful reader each day (even through my mindless posts), or are someone just passing through, I appreciate every reader! Six months ago I never would have thought that my little blog, my words, my thoughts, my discoveries would have been viewed 10,000 times! It's incredible!

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Now I know, 10,000 pageviews really isn't all that many when you compare it to blogs that get that many pageviews in a day, but for little ol' me...it's a big deal!

Just two months into my blog, I celebrated 1,000 pageviews and only 4 months after that, I'm celebrating 10,000!

So again, THANK YOU for your love and support. It means the world to me!!

I'll also pose the same question as I did at the end of the 1,000 pageview celebration.

What kind of things do you like to read about? Personal posts, recipes, crafts, Pinterest failures? Please comment and let me know what you'd like to see more of and what you'd like to see less of! Also, would you rather watch a tutorial video of a recipe/DIY project or scroll through pictures/text?

Till next time,

Catherine

Good Friday Traditions

I have never grown up following any traditions for Good Friday but we went to church on Easter and searched for our Easter baskets when we got home. We also would get together with family but nothing really other than that.

My boss, who is Catholic, mentioned that they don't eat meat on Good Friday. I've also heard that Catholics fast on Friday. I'm not sure of any other traditions, though.

I found a really cool recipe on Pinterest called Resurrection Rolls on the blog Kitchen Kneads. You basically cover a marshmallow with a roll and when you bake it, the marshmallow melts. The entire recipe explains the story of Christ's death and resurrection. I'd love to do this for my niece and nephew! What a cool (and yummy) visual for children, and even adults too! I think that would be a fun tradition to start!

Do you have any Good Friday traditions that you celebrate with your family? How do you share the Easter story with little ones? 

Till next time,
Catherine

Pinterest Failure-Elmer's Glue As a Blackhead Remover

Ok so I'm sure most of you have seen this graphic online either on Reddit or Pinterest or somewhere else.

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Well it looks like it's tried and true...it MUST work!

Not.

I was so excited when I saw that picture because I figured, here they tested it and showed picture by picture. I thought it had to be worth a try. What do I have to lose...a few minutes with glue on my nose and potentially some blackheads? Can't hurt.

Let me tell you...it doesn't work. Let me rephrase that...it didn't work for me! I'll spare you any awkward and up close nose shots but my nose didn't look different at all when I was done. I can understand the concept behind it but it definitely didn't do a thing for me.

So, Mr. Reddit Character...moral of the store is still the same, but not everything is as it appears!

What's your best blackhead removing secret? Is it an expensive product or homemade remedy?

Till next time,
Catherine

Pinterest Fail: Magic Eraser in the Toilet

You may have seen on Pinterest, the claim that Mr. Clean's Magic Erasers can eliminate toilet bowl rings. The claim is simple and sounds too good to be true! Well, for me, it was. Supposedly all you have to do is cut a small piece off of a Magic Eraser and drop it into the toilet. Leave it overnight and in the morning, your toilet bowl rings and stains will be gone! Just like that...magic!

Not for our toilets! I tried both and it did nothing!

Now don't get me wrong, Magic Erasers are great! I love using them for all sorts of cleaning. If they came attached to a stick then they'd be great for cleaning toilets but simply leaving it in a toilet overnight doesn't do the trick.

Well, what do you know...they did come out with a toilet scrubber Magic Eraser!

For anyone who has pinned this pin, go ahead and un-pin it! Unfortunately it doesn't work. But now that I've found out it doesn't work, you won't have to waste your Magic Erasers!

What's your favorite way to use Magic Erasers?

Till next time,
Catherine


      

Pinterest Fail: Veggie Turkey Tray

Just thought I'd share with you all a little Pinterest fail that I attempted on Thanksgiving. It was sort of spur of the moment as I was arranging the veggies that I spent all night cutting. I thought, "Oh I'll try and make it look like a turkey like I've seen on Pinterest! That will be cute!"

I had seen this one first and thought it would be cute to try! 

Or this one...

This one is great too!

Even this little one is cute!

This is what mine looked like. Yikes. 

Pinterest. Fail.

Such a simple task yet...not quite so easy. 

Do you like to make your veggie trays fancy or just functional? Have you ever dressed up a veggie tray to look like something else?

Till next time,

Catherine

More Saturday Adventures

Today I am thankful for my family. I have a crazy family. Everyone does but mine is of course, crazy in their own way. But despite the craziness, we love each other and will always be there for one another. We have been through some tough times and I know that there are tougher things in our future but we stick by one another and help each other through these times. That's what makes us family. I'm talking about my immediate family, my in-laws, my extended family, and extended in-laws. I love them all so much. I couldn't ask for anything better. 

I failed to mention the other interesting stop we made on Saturday after Bargain Mart! We stopped at this place in downtown Lynchburg called Fred's $12 and More Store. The outside of the building just has "Fred's" painted on the window. It seemed ultra sketchy to me, bu who was I to fear with my husband on my arm? He had briefly told me about it before, saying a coworker described it as "Pinterest heaven" despite being crazy sketchy. First thing we see sitting outside the doors is a big, old deep fryer on wheels! Well, now who doesn't need a deep fryer larger than your kitchen stove? And think of the transportability with those wheels! We could have french fries and funnel cake on the back porch if we want!

We knew it was going to be good!

We head inside and there is stuff EVERYWHERE. Furniture galore. I mean, literally, there was a pathway and that's it. A narrow pathway through the first floor. There was so much stuff you could never see it all! Then we met Fred. Fred is a middle aged African American man who is a Christian and is just as nice as can be. He's a little odd but he's the kind of person who becomes friends with every person he meets! We talked with him for a bit and got some information about the store. There are 5 floors and a basement! Five entire floors PLUS a basement! All kinds of furniture and random other stuff. Fred has got everything from California king sized mattresses, to wingback chairs, to school desks, to old sewing machines, to pallets, to bicycles and even a couple of these bad boys...

Ohhh yes. I could go on and on...Fred's got everything! I kept seeing so many Pinterest pins in my head ads we searched floor after floor. As I said in my last post, my goal was to find a highboy and a long dresser. I figured as long we like the basic shape, it's in decent condition, and it doesn't smell, we can always paint and replace hardware. Unfortunately, dressers were the one thing Fred didn't have a lot of. But that's alright...we'll find them one day! 

In the meantime I keep thinking about this pallet garden idea: 

I had been wondering where I could get just one pallet and now I know! Fred's! I want to do a little pallet garden like this next year because it would be able to fit on our little patio. I think with some  landscape fabric stapled to the bottom it would work really well! My husband and I also want to build a modified trellis/arbor type of thing where we can have vine-like plants grow up but also hang some ferns or pretty flowers in hanging pots from the sides. That's a total different project, though! Getting ahead of myself here! But those are projects we'd like to get done in the early spring. 

As far as Fred's...it was quite an adventure. It's such an old building and it was dimly lit everywhere and you could never reach walls on any side of the rooms because there was just so much stuff! I personally wouldn't go alone but I'm sure we'll head back there sometime when we get an itch for a big project! 

What's your favorite hole-in-the-wall place to go? Is the sketchiness worth it? 

Till next time,

Catherine