This post brought to you by PHILADELPHIA cream cheese . All opinions are 100% mine.

Truthfully I'm not much of a baker, at least not in the classic sense. What I am is gutsy (or crazy), and that leads to me attempting some of the most complicated desserts I've ever seen. I can't bake cookies, but darnit if I won't bust this Peppermint Cheesecake Layer Cake out during the holiday season (originally from Southern Living magazine Dec 2011).

It involves 2 frozen cheesecakes and 3 layers of sour cream cake topped with a white chocolate cream. It has gotten rave reviews from friends (even causing one of them to declare she was out-baked!), so I wanted to share with you the recipe (HERE). For the record, I had never made any version of a cheesecake or sour cream cake before I attempted this, so if I can do it by carefully following a recipe…SO CAN YOU!

Personally I love cream cheese based desserts. Or maybe I just love cream cheese? Of course a classic cheesecake is always welcome, but I like to use cream cheese in other more subtle ways as well…you know, like layered in between 3 other cakes Subtlety never was a strength of mine now that I think of it. 

When it comes to cream cheese, Philadelphia is king. Is there any other kind? Savory or sweet, there are about a million ways to use this smooth and slightly tangy creation. Aside from just slathering it on a bagel, I mean. While the Peppermint Cheesecake Layer Cake tops my list of favorite desserts, it's definitely not the end of the list. I have also made this DE-LISH and moderately healthy version of a frozen peanut butter cup from Dashing Dish. Actually I've made it more times than I can count. Once I just froze the filling and ate it like ice cold fudge. Don't judge me. 

Even if you think you don't like cream cheese, I challenge you to try one of the recipes PHILADELPHIA cream cheese has on their website. I've had people tell me, "Oh I don't like cream cheese" and then gobble down the cream cheese laden concoction And trust me…while it can sometimes be a guilty pleasure (or just a guilty party in whole host of other badly behaved foods), there is a healthy side as well. There are low fat and fat free versions that work great on their own or combined with the original. Seriously. I do this all the time. 

Am I the only person who loves to use this unique ingredient? I've added it to scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, soups, sauces, and spread it on cinamon raisin toast The low fat variety even makes a great "cheeseball" using dip mixes. Do you have any favorite recipes? Pin your recipes or get more ideas on Philidelphia's Pinterest board. 

This post brought to you by Duck Brand®. All opinions are 100% mine.

When Duck® Brand asked me to do a holiday project with some of their seasonal tape, I have to admit I was a little scared. I've never worked too much with Duck Tape®, so I knew it would be a challenge. When I got the box of goodies, I was shocked to see all these awesome patterns and colors-seriously so cute! 

Fortunately for my scared-y self,  my partner in crime (a.k.a. Amy) offered to get a little Ducky with me. We had several project ideas, but I wanted to share this one because it combines two of my favorite things: Goodwill and my dog Millie First things first, we grabbed an assortment of belts from Goodwill (at $1/ea) with buckles/shapes we liked.

I put the belt around my dog's neck and marked where it fit her the best. Then I cut the belt off leaving a few extra holes after my mark. Let the Duck Tape® fun begin

I found the best way to cut the tape was to stick it on a cutting mat and use a utility knife. It gives a clean edge, and it's easy to measure if you need to. I already had a great start on a holiday collar with the oh-so-serendipitous red glitter belt find, so I just wanted to add a few stripes for fun.

I couldn't decide between the gold and the candy stripe, so I tested both versions out and ultimately decided on the gold and silver combo. You know I love a good metallic project. Amy chose the polka dot tape for her collar and covered the whole front with it.

She used the classic grey on the back so we wouldn't waste the good stuff It was about this time that we both sorta got carried away. For two people who were new to the Duck Tape® world, we didn't waste any time coming up for all kinds of uses for this stuff, like:

• Use small strips around the base of utensils for a fun splash of color
• Wrap it around plain white cups for a holiday party
• Stripe a plain white tablecloth
• Cut triangles and hang on a string for outdoor bunting
• Make loops and attach to a wreath form (a la this corn husk version)

Or you could continue to get a little crazy with the dog collars and start making accessories like a rose (I used the same method as my rosette wreath) to slide on previously mentioned striped sparkle color…

Yes, that is really made of Duck Tape®. But oh no, it doesn't stop there. Amy decided to add some of the metal star details (from the original collar) on top of the Duck Tape®. Then we took her collar to the basement to punch new holes with a hammer and nail.

After I insisted she needed a slide on accessory for her collar, this is what happened…

Turns out Amy's pretty good with the Duck Tape®. A secret talent perhaps? We were feeling pretty pleased with our creations, I mean come on they are totally cute! The only thing left was to bribe the models.

What do you think? Supreme focus or torture face? I think they were annoyed that we made them wear holiday sweaters.

Deep down, I think  Millie loves her holiday collar. It looks so sweet on her, I may just force ask her to wear it this holiday season. This was my first time, but are there any Duck Tape® enthusiasts out there? Be sure to check out the Duck Tape® Facebook page for more ideas!! I think I will end up making one of those wreaths I mentioned above before Christmas  

This post brought to you by Sharpie®. All opinions are 100% mine.

When was the last time you took a look at all the new Sharpie® products? I'll admit my idea of Sharpie was stuck in the 80s, just your standard black marker. But I've been noticing a lot of projects on Pinterest lately involving some more interesting varieties….

Namely metallic….

Source- Oh, Hello Friend

And colorful!

Source- Unexpected Expectations

Sharpie is putting out all kinds of new colors now, and they come in 12 packs so you can get all your favorite colors in one place.

I picked up a few to try out myself, still a wee bit hesitant. Amy and I decided to get our hands dirty with a simple, but awesome project: The Sharpie Mug. I'm sure you've seen these around the world wide web, but hey we wanted to give it a try too. It seemed like the perfect project for a Sharpie newbie.

In an attempt to avoid mistakes, it's a good idea to try and sketch your drawing/idea with pencil on the mug.

I know it's hard to see in this picture, but trust me it was helpful in person. Purple was a fun departure from most of the mugs we'd seen.

Aren't they cute? I don't want to share too many details about the design because they are gifts, but we were really pleased with the results! It only took about 10 minutes to do both. To set the paint, bake at 350 for 30 minutes. I think I am partial to the purple, but I am also eager to try out the silver one I got as well.

Have you done any Sharpie projects? I'm thinking you could jazz up the holidays with some decorative plates/serve ware or personalization on plain glass ornaments. There are a bunch of great holiday ideas on Sharpie's Pinterest board. I'd love to hear if you try any of them!

This post brought to you by Comfort Zone® products. All opinions are 100% mine.

Some of you may know we live in a multi-cat household along with our Boxer dog Millie. Waaayy back in 2006 we decided to adopt our first cat, Lily, shortly followed 4 days later by Magic.

It didn't take long for us to think we had made a mistake! It seemed like in the 4 days Lily was our only cat, she preferred it that way. They were constantly fighting. We tried all the recommendations we could find and eventually our kitties became the best of friends. I suppose they just had to figure it out for themselves.

Fast forward to one move, one puppy acquisition and 3 years later when I became obsessed with adding an orange tabby to the mix. I looked constantly on Craigslist, at the Humane Society, and local shelters. Several months later I came across an ad on Craigslist for "Pumpkin," an orange kitten in need of re-homing.

 Isn't he equally cute and disturbing looking? I re-named him Malcolm and began the process of introducing him to all of the other beasts. It was rough going at first. But now another 3 years later things are mostly Quiet on the Western Front. But Malcolm still has a few tricks up his sleeve…

He and Magic are indoor/outdoor…it just suits their personalities (Lily's more of a homebody). They aren't the only cats on the block though, which makes for interesting dynamics. Magic is pretty low key, she sits on the porch railing and frolicks in the woods behind the house. Malcolm, however, spends most of his time leaving paw prints on all the neighborhood cars, especially right after a wash. And occasionally there's a hissing stand-off with reluctant gal-pal Georgia that lives a few doors down. So when Comfort Zone® with Feliway® offered to send me some product to try, I was thrilled to give it a go, hoping to get more of this:

and less neighborhood menace. Don't get me wrong, he's a funny and mostly very sweet cat…but there is room for improvement. He gets along great with all of our animals for the most part, although it is very apparent that he is the dominant cat. He probably considers himself equal rank with our pup Millie, which is why they get along the best of all. 

Comfort Zone® with Feliway® for cats diffuser works by releasing a continuous odorless vapor that mimics the soothing effect of feline facial pheromone. It's great for multi-cat households to help them all feel more relaxed. Comfort Zone® products are 95% effective at reducing scratching and urine marking in cats.

It's been a little over a month since we plugged in the diffuser, and I can honestly say that I think it has made a difference. We do have 3 cats, but I was mainly interested in how it would affect my little stinker, Malcolm. He seems more mello overall, and there have been less "run-ins" with other neighborhood cats. He is even snuggling up to me a bit more than he used to. I've noticed that the amount of time he spends annoying his kitty siblings has decreased as well. I think it's worth it to continue with the full 90 days that they recommend to get the full effect. If you're having some trouble with your multi-cat household and have ruled out any medical issues with your vet, it's worth giving it a go for sure. 

Comfort Zone® with Feliway® for cats is available in a spray or diffuser, and can be found in most pet stores. Be sure to check out their Facebook page for more information.

This post brought to you by Glade Fall Collection. All opinions are 100% mine.

It's no secret that I love fall, so when Glade® offered to send me one of their candles from the new fall collection…well it didn't take much for me to say "HECK YES!"

I love spice-smelling candles, so I was super excited to try the Autumn Harvest scent I received in the mail

The first thing I did was stick it up to my nose. Yeah, I'm that person that stands in the candle aisle smelling every scent. I'm pretty picky- I know that the result from burning a candle in a room is not quite the same as shoving your face in the cold wax, but if I'm not digging the smell right away I don't buy it. A lot of candles smell too sweet, or just too strong. So I was a liiiiiiitle bit hesitant about how this test would go. 

Mmmm. Pleasantly surprised. It's soft, but a little spicy. Smokey, woodsy, and mello- just like the label says. I really liked it right off the bat. And believe me, I've smelled a lot of "fall" candles. What else was there to do but fire her up?

I probably burned it for about 7 hours, and it really filled the whole downstairs with a hint of fall. But the best part was that when I blew it out, I noticed that it had hardly burned through any wax! I'm excited to see how long it lasts. 

Autumn Harvest isn't the only scent either, I think I'll try the Maple Pumpkin or the Apple Cinnamon next. If you're in the market for a new candle to burn all season long, definitely check out the Glade Fall Collection. Right now Walmart is offering a coupon for $1.50 off two of the products! 

This post brought to you by Nectresse™ Sweetener. All opinions are 100% mine.

If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you probably know I don't usually post about food. Ha. But, I do occasionally post healthy recipes that my family likes. I even have a recipe page in the menu with links to some of my favs.

I have talked before about how I mainly cook low fat and vegetable based meals because that's what works best for my metabolism and our budget. Fortunately my husband eats pretty much anything I put in front of him I love taking regular recipes and swapping out ingredients to make them more healthy. It's actually a sick little game I play…like how much can I cut back before it starts to taste like cardboard? You'd be surprised, actually! While I'll admit to a few cardboard incidents over the years- I certainly wouldn't blog about them- so read on without fear, my friends!

I have a few go-to ingredients that almost always find their way into my experiments: fat free and low fat dairy products, Egg Beaters, Smart Balance light, and sugar substitutes. So when Splenda offered to send me their newest product, I jumped at the chance to try it and share the results with you. 

 NECTRESSE™Sweetener is the only 100% natural, no calorie sweetener made from fruit- monk fruit to be exact. It comes in on-the-go packets and a bulk canister-perfect for baking!

I was anxious to try it, so I started by putting a packet in some unsweet iced tea. I typically use Splenda, so I'm used to the taste of sweeteners, but this was more sugar like than others I've tried! A simple test, yes, but I think some of you who haven't liked the taste of other substitutes out there should give this one a try. For anyone who uses sweeteners now, it would be easy to switch to this all natural version!

So it passed the beverage test, but I wanted to use it in another way in a recipe. Cruising Pinterest earlier in the week, I stumbled on these pumpkin spice latte pancakes (le sigh) and had planned to make them for my good friend Amy's birthday breakfast. Perfect!

It was pretty easy to use the packets for this recipe because the box says that one packet is equal to the sweetness of two teaspoons of sugar. Now that's not an actual equivalent measurement swap, just a taste equivalency. While it's not "cup for cup" so to speak, I like the flexibility of adjusting the sweetness to my tastes. If you want to bake with it regularly, I would suggest getting the bulk cannister and experimenting with your favorite recipes. 

I swapped out the 2 tsp of sugar (I doubled the recipe) for 1 packet of Nectresse.

The rest of the recipe I followed as written, and by the time I starting flipping pancakes the house was smelling just like fall. LOVE!

The birthday girl gave them two thumbs up!

I'm sure I'll try more recipes with Nectresse in the future, but this was a good start I think Nectresse will be a staple in my pantry!

And, apparently I'm not the only one who thinks so. When I found out Lisa Ling was speaking out in favor of Nectresse, I was pleasantly surprised. As a reporter and journalist, she seems like the type of person that wouldn't endorse something she didn't truly believe in. I felt like she could be trusted, you know? You can watch her video testimonial below.

If you use sweeteners now, or are looking to cut back on your sugar intake, I highly recommend Nectresse. But don't take my word for it, see for yourself!  Follow the link to get your FREE sample of NECTRESSE™Sweetener. 

To my new workspace came in the form of a $0.50 unfinished ceramic figurine I stumbled upon while trolling Goodwill.

I hardly ever find Boxer themed items on the cheap, despite the fact that I see the live dog version all around town. So I obviously had to snatch this up to pay homage to my own sweet baby.

See the resemblance? Of course I could paint it in a high gloss white and call it done, but I decided to pick another color just for fun. I chose this winter gray gloss spray paint at Home Depot.

Awwww. I heart it. Now I can keep a mini Millie in my office. Without plans for a couch up there, I doubt the real deal will be joining me much.

This post brought to you by Whitney Farms. All opinions are 100% mine.

I don't know about you all, but we've had a crazy Spring so far with such late frosts that I am JUST NOW getting my seedlings in the ground for my garden. Maybe on paper it doesn't seem late, but I think last year I had everything started by April 1. Well I guess it turned out to be a fortuitous delay because I was able to take advantage of Whitney Farms® offer to have me try some of their organic plant food!

I was super stoked to get two bags in the mail, one for tomato and veggies and one marked "all purpose." I decided to start with the All Purpose because I have flowers, herbs, veggies, and shrubs in my garden. But really I'm sure either variety would work great. Especially if you're just the watering sort, you'd be surprised at the difference fertilizer makes!

The bag gives directions for LARGE areas, so I followed the directions except I scaled it down quite a bit. I decided to add just a few pellets to each hole as I planted, and to sprinkle the soil around existing plants. Here in NC, we have what I'd like to call "Carolina-The-Death-Of-Most-Plants-Clay." Usually I dig a hole, fill it up a little bit with garden soil, and kind of mix it into the ground. Then I put the plant in and backfill. 

Adding the Whitney Farms plant food was easy:

Here's a shot of the hole with some garden soil. I just dropped in a few pellets (probably about 5-6). 

Then in goes the plant (creeping jenny in this case) and more garden soil.

It's just as easy as that! I followed the same steps for planting all my veggie seedlings down the side of my house. Here's a look:

Squash and zucchini:

I know it's not very impressive now since everything is tiny (except my insane parsley and thyme which weathered our mild winter), but believe me- it will grow! Whitney Farms has put over 25 years into the development of these all natural foods, so you can be sure that your plants are growing beautifully without worrying about any chemical additives sometimes found in other lawn and garden products. The pellet form makes it easy to apply, so you have no excuse not to have beautiful and productive plants!

Here's the best part though: Whitney Farms is offering YOU a $3 coupon to try any of their plant foods or organic soil. Click HERE to sign up and print it. 

So how many of you have started your garden? Are you trying any new plants/veggies this year?

This post brought to you by Leviton. All opinions are 100% mine.

Ok admit it, I know some of you have spray painted (or even brush painted!) your wall plates. I may or may not have been guilty of the same crime. 

What else is there to do when that almond light switch sticks out like a sore thumb? Sometimes you have an oddly place outlet that you just want to disappear. Or maybe you want to add some punch to a room without turning a photo of your kid’s face into a custom wall plate. 

Renu by Leviton is a new line of products designed to make switches, outlets, GFCIs, dimmers, and sleek, screw-less wall plates match the interior of your home- whether you want them to blend in or stand out. 

Renu® is easy to change and available in 20 paint colors- so you’re sure to find a perfect match for your home. And with the screw-less, snap on system, you can change the color as often as you like-no tools needed!

Since our home was brand new, I was lucky enough to get uniform white (albeit boring) outlet covers-which I’ve slowly been upgrading over the years we’ve been in the house. Some of them I’ve changed to match structural elements, like the craftsman style plate in my bathroom and the tile plates on my kitchen backsplash. 

But most of the wall plate options out there are limited to just simple 2 outlet set up, and sometimes you need something more…errr…extensive.  Fortunately, Renu® has options for those too. And I have just the spot. 

In our home, right as you walk in the door there is a giant bank of light switches. It has bothered me from day one, so why haven’t I done something about it?

Well, attractive 4 gang (that’s 4 switches on one plate) wall plates are hard to find. But it’s really about time I address this, I mean the poor plate has been painted about 100 times (oh yes, perk of going to a screwless system…easy removal for wall painting!)

Perusing Leviton’s offerings, I found a stylish option with no problem- now all I need to do is decide on a color.

Wood Smoke?

Or maybe Pebble Gray?

I think either of those colors would look great on my wall for a sort of tone-on-tone effect. But there are also some fun color offerings like this Rich Navy.

And if you’re in need of a 1 or 2 gang switch (way more common than my jumbo control panel), they also offer a stainless steel finish for those sizes. 

Would you like to learn more about Renu® products? The folks at Leviton are hosting three twitter parties to talk about their Renu® line:

Thursday, April 26th9pm EST

Wednesday, May 2nd9pm EST- Leviton is offering 2 sets of Broadway tickets as a grand prize for the twitter party on Wednesday night! Join in on the fun and see if you’ll win!

Just follow @Leviton and #Renu, and at the times above get involved in the conversation. You could win some Home Depot gift cards! Don’t forget to check out Leviton on Facebook- they share great information about energy savings (and they post giveaways too!)

And the winner is

………..

………..

…………

Amy from This DIY Life! Rafflecopter picked the winner. Thank you to everyone who entered! And thank you to Megan for this generous giveaway!

I also wanted to share with you that D’Arcy from Thirty-One is offering 10% off all orders through March 25th! This is a discount through D’Arcy only, it’s not a company wide offer- so be sure to check out her store to get the best deal! In order to get the discount, contact D’Arcy through phone or email (on her site) so she can give you the 10% off.