Cinco de Mayo ~ Santa Fe Chicken Casserole

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

I made this recipe for my mom and sister a few weeks back for a ladies lunch and we all agree that it tasted yummy. For those that prefer a spicier meal, have the hot sauce handy on the side to shake it on.

Ingredients:

3 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts

1 can (15 oz.)black beans, rinsed

1 can (14.5 oz.) no-salt-added diced tomatoes, drained

2 green onions, sliced

1 tub (10 oz.)PHILADELPHIA Santa Fe Blend Cooking Creme, divided

4 flour tortillas (6 inch)

3/4 cup KRAFT Mexican Style Finely Shredded Four Cheese, divided

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375ºF.
2. Combine first 4 ingredients in large bowl. Add ¾ cup cooking creme; mix lightly.
3. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the chicken mixture into 9-inch pie plate; top with 1 tortilla.
4. Place one third of the remaining chicken mixture and  ¼ cup shredded cheese; top with second tortilla.
5. Place one third of the remaining chicken mixture and ¼ cup shredded cheese; top with third tortilla.
6. Place final one third of remaining chicken mixture and  ¼ cup shredded cheese; top with fourth tortilla.
7. Top with remaining cooking creme and shredded cheese; cover loosely with aluminum foil.
8. Bake 20 min. or until heated through; uncover. Bake 5 min. or until cheese is golden brown.

Have a wonder Cinco De Mayo!

Creativity Bug ~ Sue

Teacher Appreciation Gift ~ more flower pots

On Monday, I posted a little how-to on making flower pens with flower pot holders for that special teacher. Today, I am just showing you a few more of the finished pots that I have made.

Purple with Ribbon:

Orange with Ribbon:

Pink with Gems:

Orange with Gems:

Pink Twine:

Grouping of Flower Pots:

I am really having a fun time putting these together that a few will probably be sold in the craft fair that the Creativity Bugs are taking part of in June.

Happy Crafting!
Creativity Bug ~ Sue

BESTeam Weekly Feature - MysticWynd

Come check out this week's BESTeam featured site MysticWynd owned by Karen from Scottsdale, Arizona.

Embrace your spirit of fashion with jewelry and gifts for your every mood! MystcWynds handcrafted artisan necklaces, earrings, bracelets, rings, accessories, and gift items are sure to please!

Karen’s creations are designed in the hopes of igniting that special spark of uniqueness that lies within us all. Some things are elegant, some are fun, some are outlandish, some are colorful, some are calming - but the great thing is that I know there is someone out there who will recognize something that just makes them feel good about themselves! 

What I love most about Karen’s shop MysticWynd is that she knows her customers. The career woman looking for that bold and powerful jewelry ensemble. The stay at home mom looking for something fun and trendy or simple and understated for day to day, or glamorous and exotic for those occasions she gets to break away and let her hair down. Students on a limited budget or who are still exploring a variety of styles. Fashionistas who love to start new trends. Grandmoms who prefer a little bit of nostalgia. 

Pink Rose Floral Glass w Pearl Necklace - Claire

Soft pink hues warmed with antiqued brass, bronze, and golds and the gentle luminescence of Swarovski pearls make this vintage inspired necklace beautifully feminine and nostalgic.

Purple Rose Necklace w Pearl, and Glass Beads - Reverie in Indigo

A beautiful lucite rose creates the focal point of this design, graced by a string of glass faux pearls and iridescent foiled glass beads in complementary shades of indigo purple. Add in a length of antiqued brass chain and you've got a feminine and flirty look that's perfect for any occasion you want to feel extra special.

Rose Necklace in Champagne Blush w Pearl and Crystal

Light bronze Swarovski glass pearls and medium topaz bicones blend beautifully with this palest of mauves acrylic rose in this vintage inspired necklace. The antiqued brass station which the rose rests upon, as well as the antiqued brass chain and findings which complete the necklace create an old world feel in an updated design.

Faux Pearl and Crystal Bracelet in Champagne Blush

This ultra feminine bracelet features light bronze Swarovski glass pearls and medium topaz Swarovski crystals matched with the vintage inspired beauty of antiqued brass findings.

MysticWynd Gift Certificate

Not sure what to select? Problem solved! MysticWynd gift certificates are a great way to give a gift to someone when you aren't sure what to choose for them. A gift certificate will allow the recipient to make a selection of one or even several of their favorites from MysticWynd.

Your electronic gift certificate is redeemable on ANY merchandise from any of the MysticWynd family of shops - MysticWynd ( http://mysticwynd.etsy.com ), MWElegance (http://mwelegance.etsy.com ), or TheCraftersCabinet ( http://TheCraftersCabinet.etsy.com ) and may be redeemed for any item including sale items, custom orders, and even shipping and handling charges where applicable, as well as sales tax on items shipped to an AZ address.

These are only a few of the wonderful pieces of jewelry available. Please check out the rest of this beautiful collection at MysticWynd Etsy Shop and also take the time to view the MysticWynd blog.

The Creativity Bugs love the opportunity to promote other artisans including the fellow Estians but especially the BESTeam group. These friendly, talented, and very hardworking individuals work together to promote their shops and help others with marketing, advertising, and tips and tricks for running an online business. If you are a seller on Etsy, have a blog, and either FB or twitter, then you might be interested in joinging the BESTeam. You can find information about the team, as well as apply for membership HERE!

Happy Shopping!

Creativity Bug ~ Sue

Teacher Appreciation Gift ~ Candy Bouquet

Here is another great gift idea to give to your favorite teacher. I showed this about 2 years ago on the blog, but decided to revisit the idea.

Supplies:

paper flowers (punched or cut from large flower die)
straws
small lollipop (such as Dum Dums)
floral tape
glass vase
jelly beans

Step One: Take two paper flowers and punch a hole in the center

Step Two:  Insert lollipop throw hole in flowers

Step Three: Insert straw over lollipop stem

Step Four:  Wrap floral tape from the base of the flower all the way down the straw. Arrange paper flower shaping petals.

Your flower is now complete!

Step Five:  Fill a glass vase with jelly beans and arrange with lollipop flowers. Add additional arrangement materials to personalize.

Your candy bouquet is now complete and is ready for gift giving. Here are 2 arrangements that I made using different flower dies and lollipops.

Hope you enjoyed this project. I would love to see pictures if you decided to try to make a bouquet too, so post links in the comment section!
Creativity Bug ~ Sue

Tea Party Themed Tag Swap ~ Group #6

Here are the tags that I made for the Artsy Addicts “tea party” themed tag swap for group number 6. It was my first time making tags for a swap, so I hope everyone enjoys them.

The tags are now in the mail on their way to Karla and I can't wait to see what tags arrive in the mail from other swappers.

Creativity Bug ~ Sue

Teacher Appreciation Gift

The week of May 2 through May 6 is Teacher Appreciation week.

In honor of all the wonderful men and women that take care of our children every day by nurturing them, educating them, and allowing them to grow mentally and creatively, I say "THANK YOU!".

You can say "thank you" too by showing them a little appreciation this week, which is why I am demonstrating how to make a flower pot pen holder that is both easy and inexpensive (using Dollar Store finds) to create.

Supplies:

twine
flower pot
Bic pen
flower bundle
floral tape
bag of dried beans
glue gun with glue
ribbon (optional)
paint (optional)
gems (optional)

Step One: Cut the flower tops off of the flower bundle leaving a bit of stem. Remove the bottom cap from the Bic pen.

Step Two: Fill the open bottom of the Bic pen with a generous squeeze of glue from a glue gun and press (firmly) flower top into opening. Set in a tall empty glass to dry.

Step Three: Wrap the pen body from top to bottom and then back up to top with floral tape.

Now your flower is complete!

Step Four:  Using glue gun, slowly add glue around top of flower pot and begin to wrap with twine. Continue to do this until entire pot in covered.

Step Five (Optional): If you want to dress up your pot more, you can paint the twine and pot using spray paint or acrylic paint. You can also add ribbon around the base or glue on sparkle gems.

Step Six:  Fill the flower pot with dried beans just shy of the top.

Now your pot is complete!

Step Seven: Stick the flower pen directly in the center of the flower pot.

Have your child make a handmade card to present to the teacher along with the gift.

Hope you enjoyed this project! If I have time, I will make a few flower pot variations and post later.
Creativity Bug ~ Sue

Featured Freebies for the Week of May 2nd

Good Morning and Happy Monday to everyone!

I wanted to address a question that was posed to me before I give you the links to this week's freebies. The question was "why don't you just post the freebies and downloads instead of sending us to another person's blog to retrieve the freebie?". The answer is simply this "many of the freebie images and digital stamps are owned/copyrighted by the originator. Some have special rules or guidelines concerning the use or distribution of freebies. Therefore, by sending you directly to the website or blog, you are automatically placed on the originator's site and can follow their guidelines".

Now that the question and answer are out of the way, attached are a few digital stamps, images, and printables that we found on blogs, websites, or sent to us from friends:

The Stamping Boutique shares a digital stamp of Cynthia the Tooth Fairy

Beary Wishes features Bunny Smiles a digital stamp

Sliekje Stamps has another cat with kittens digital stamp along with a get well digital stamp and an adorable star fairy

The Crafty Pad Designs shares a bunch of cupcake digital freebies

MayBrit's Hobby blog shares a cute bear with playful puppy digital image

MelonHeadz shares a yummy pie digital image

That's all for this week! Have a great Monday!
Creativity Bug ~ Sue