Inspirations by D: January 2011

A Moment of Reflection

My Soul finds rest in God alone;

my salvation comes from him.

He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress,

I will never be shaken.

Psalm 62: 1-2

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Cupcakes Y'all

Hello friends! Today I wanted to share with you a nifty find on the Internet.

I am happy to inform you that there is a site where you can create your very own
"KEEP CALM" sign. Yes you read right, if you visit Keep Calm-o-Matic,
you will be able to generate your very own KEEP CALM message
and find out the story behind this poster.
The best part of it is, that it's free, so have fun creating your own.

Now for my cupcake find.
Below are some of the cupcakes that I purchased at a local shop.

As you may or may not know, I have been living in our new home for three months and I have not had the opportunity to set out and explore this little town much, but as my husband & I were driving home the other day, we decided to take a different route. On our way home, I spotted a Cupcake Bakery.

I went into Cupcakes Y'all that is the name of the shop. After looking at the colorful, scrumptious and fluffy cupcakes, I ordered a variety pack to take home to my family.

My son had the rich Peanut Butter cupcake and it was rich, fluffy and so delicious!
I had the "Key Lime" cupcake, I wasn't even aware there was such a thing, but it was
"oh so very good" Mr. M had the "Cream Cheese Pound Cake Cupcake",
I believe that's their signature cupcake and he absolutely loved it.
These cupcakes are amazing, I love that they are always fresh.

(Key lime Cupcake)

Cupcakes Y'all has a variety of cupcake flavors everyday. They are not limited to just cupcakes, but offer many other items as well such as ice cream, lunches, soups, gooey bars, frappes, smoothies, two layer cakes and much more.

While I looked around, I noticed that they host Birthday parties for children and provide cute little aprons that read "Cupcakes Y'all for the kids to wear as well as a baker's hat. The kids have loads of fun while they decorate cupcakes and play games. The shop also caters other events.

If you are ever in Enterprise, treat yourself to a delightful lunch and tasty cupcake and ice-cream, they are fresh everyday. You will love it!

Below are some cute items I found online for the cupcake lover in you!

I love this 13 Count Cupcake Stand

This is a great Mini Dessert Stand to have for a special occasion such as
birthdays, baby shower, graduations, and tea party etc...

For our vegan friends...

This is a sweet and sassy guide to baking your favorite treat without using any animal products. It contains over 50 recipes for cupcakes and frosting-some innovative, some classics-with beautiful color photographs. It is highly rated, you may want to check it out!
Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule

Enjoy!

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Beautiful Push Pins a Sneak Peek...

Here is a sneak peek at what's coming to

Inspirations by D shop at Etsy.

Beautiful decorative Push Pins for your cork board:-)

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Snow Photos

I am missing the snow! I'm in the South, no snow here! But it does get really cold at times. I have posted pictures of beautiful snow scenes taken by random photographers, (I don't know their names) but they are so magical that I wish to jump right into these lovely scenes!

I hope that you enjoy them as much as I have.

Etsy "Love"

Here are some lovely Etsy finds...

Happy Tuesday everyone! Hope you enjoy these lovely items.

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How to Make Body Butter

We are all well aware that during the winter months our skin begs for moisture.
The question is whether we should reach for a soothing lotion or a body butter.

There is a difference between body lotion and a body butter.
The body lotion contains water, it goes on smoothly, absorbs quickly and leaves
no greasy residue. The body butter on the other hand has no water, so it's rich in moisture,
keeps the skin saturated and hydrates better.

My skin gets really dry during the winter. In order to keep it moisturized,
I decided to make my own body butter rather than keep spending more on
commercial body butters or lotions.

This is a great choice in order for you to customize it to meet your own skin's needs.
What better way to save on lotions and at the same time treat your skin with love,
than making it yourself.

I have tried a few recipes, and so far this is my favorite. I have sensitive skin,
so I used the simplest ingredients for my body butter. You can adjust it to meet
your own needs or customize it with your own pure fragrance and oils.

This is what I used:

Glass container or container of your choice
Microwavable safe dish
Double boiler
Cuisinart Handheld/Stand Mixer
10 oz.100% Organic Shea Butter, (do not use lotion)
6 oz. Organic Coconut Oil
2 tsp Corn Starch(optional) used to minimize grease
One drop of Jason Natural Cosmetics Pure Beauty Vitamin E Oil or one Vitamin E
15 drops of Lavender Pure Essential Oil, it revitalizes the skin. You may use any high quality pure essential oil you like.

*This will yield several containers for you to save or hand out as gifts.

*Note: The links provided are where you may purchase the ingredients.

Instructions:

1. Melt the Shea butter & coconut oil in microwave safe dish or double boiler, make sure not to over heat. You will know it's over heated if it boils or gets granulated.
2. Add the vitamin E oil. Stir it until it is well blended. Remove from heat.
3. Add corn starch (optional) prevents it from getting too greasy.
4. Place mixture in the freezer for about 5-10 minutes or over a bowl full of ice to cool,
but don't let it get too hard.
5. Add the essential oils, blend well.
6. Use hand or stand mixer to blend the butter until it thickens a bit, about 5-10 minutes.

7. You may need to repeat steps 4 before you start seeing the mix thicken to your consistency preference.
8. Once you reach the thickness of your preference, transfer the mix to a glass jar or container of your choice while still soft with a spatula.

Hope that you enjoy making your own body butter.

Winter Trees and Birds

Observing bare trees in the winter affords a great opportunity to see trees in a way we might not see them during other seasons when they're full of leaves.

Take your child/children out to explore the wonders of nature during the winter months and take note of:

Tree shapes. Look at all those branches! Are the trees in your area shaped the same, or are there a variety of different types, shapes and forms?
How bare trees dress the horizon. Look at the sky through their bare branches.
Hold a scavenger hunt for nests. Now with branches baring all, nests in trees pop out in all sorts of places.

Here is what we found.

We get lots and lots of beautiful Cardinals, especially in our yard.

Hope you enjoy your winter walk as you view all the types of trees, birds and nests in your area.