Friday Favorites: Super Bowl Cake, Bahamas, Bulletin Board Inspiration

Happy Friday!
It's been a long short week.
The excessive amount of snow days we keep having has me wondering what day, month, and date it is too regularly!!
Let's hope it's Friday, February 9 and the last time we have a snow day!

Today, like every Friday, is a Friday Favorites kind of day!


As always, I'm linking up with Erika, Narci and Andrea. 

We're sharing our favorites from the week.

Grab their graphic and linkup with your favorites from the week, too.

Super Bowl Cake

I vowed not to watch a lick of the Super Bowl. 

I was going strong until Alex brought dinner home and forced me to watch it. 

I really didn't get into any of the commercials, and I wasn't rooting for any particular team, so my favorite part was this cake...

#GoSteelers!

Live with Kelly and Ryan from the Bahamas!!

We got an unexpected snow day on Monday, and I was even more excited when I turned on my TV for Live with Kelly and Ryan to find they were at Atlantis!

I was even more shocked that Kelly was in that dress over the weekend on Instagram, and then again for the show!

Now it has me wondering if perhaps Monday's episode was recorded from the weekend.

At this point in time I was daydreaming about being in warm, sunny weather unlike what I was seeing outside of my window!

Reading

These snow days have left me ample time to read. 

On this particular day I ran in the middle of the road before the sun rose. 

It was snowy, slippery and a beautiful sight!

I came back, showered, made myself some cocoa and sat down to read.

One book for class and another for pleasure.

Bulletin Board Inspiration

I've been finding a ton of new teachers to follow on Instagram.

I love these bulletin board ideas. 

 How cute is the paper border?!

Plants

It's that time of year...

Time to plant flowers!

On Sunday I planted my geraniums...

Four days later and they were sprouting!

The weeks have been long, oh so long recently. 

We've had one consistent week of school since before Christmas break. 

I love snow, but I'm ready for sunshine, flowers and warmer days. 

Our school year has officially gotten longer as we just added a makeup day at the end of the year. 

NO MORE SNOW!

Here's to a sunny weekend and dreaming of Spring! :)

Pots/Planters

Okay ladies, today I'm in need of your suggestions. 

I'm on the search for some new pots and planters. 

Last year we just moved into our house together, and there were plenty of things to do, so I used the same clay pots that my grandma used on her front porch when she lived here. 

I'd like to get something a little more modern and in a different color. 

Pots and planters can be super expensive.

I don't want to spend a fortune on new pots, but I want them to look nice. 

Here are a few that I've found recently that I like.

Kobo Plastic Pot Planter

Valencia Composite Pot Planter

Round Zinc Pot

I think I would like them to be black or off black. 

I plan to purchase two of them for each side of our step up to our front porch.

I was thinking of something a little bit taller, so that I can plant plants that overflow out of them.

I've been looking at Wayfair, Target and Lowe's. 

Where do you shop for your pots?

Let me know your thoughts on the three pots above. 

It's so hard to make a decision when I haven't seen the pots in person. 

I'll keep my eye out for some more throughout the week. 

I hope by Friday that I've either ordered new ones or found some at the store. 

5 Fast Facts-Gardening Indoors

Today I thought I would share with you some fast facts on starting and growing your own plants. 

Way back as an 8th grader in school I did my science fair project on which type of light would best grow marigolds. 

That started the growing your own flowers phase, and it since hasn't ceased. 

Every winter my dad and I choose which plants, flowers and vegetables, we want to grow ourselves. 

We order the seeds and plant them come February or March. 

I've come to realize that the ones we grow ourselves are nearly the best plants that I will see around. 

There are still special greenhouses that I will go to, but they aren't close to where I live, so I can't count on them for everything because my time to go is limited. 

The local greenhouses plus Walmart, Lowe's, etc. don't have the best variety or the best looking plants. 

Normally, it's workers who don't really care about the plants or know how to care about the plants taking care of them, thus they aren't super healthy when you buy them. 

If you're even the slightest bit interested in growing your own, DO IT!

So, I have 5 Fast Facts for you on HOW to do it. 

1. Order your seeds online

Burpee

Jung 

Territorial Seed Company

Try out one of the three companies above. 

They have the best selection of seeds that actually produce. 

In addition, they are usually running some sort of sale to make the seeds even more affordable. 

It's actually much more cost friendly to grow them yourself, even with all of the supplies that's needed. 

2. Purchase a light

It's easiest if you buy a light and a stand, but I would definitely advocate for a light. 

A light makes it easier for your seeds to get light, especially in the dreary winter months.

I have two different kinds of lights. 

The one below came with the stand. 

This other one we easily bought online. 

We hook it onto the shelf above it, and it works great!

3. Purchase good soil

I like to use Jiffy soil.

Don't use something that has too much fertilizer or something that's too sandy. 

4. Purchase a heat mat

A heat mat helps to speed up and promote sprouting. 

We don't have a ton of extra room in our home, so I initially thought I would put my plant stand in the basement. 

Since it's winter, the basement is super cold, so we got extra heat mats to help keep the plants at a more normal temperature. 

Fortunately, we found space in our dining room for them, but the heat mats still help. 

I notice that my seeds start sprouting A LOT sooner than it says on their packets. 

I think a lot of it has to do with the lights and the heat mats.

Box to stand

The heat mats are super easy to use. 

Just plug them in and there you have it!

5. Water your seeds from the bottom

This is a big one, and I just started catching on to it last year and this year. 

Watering your seeds from the bottom helps them from getting too much water and helps not to disturb the seeds. 

Some of the seeds aren't deep in the soil. 

Some, like petunias just sit on top of the soil. 

They can easily be swept away if you are using a spray bottle to spray them with water or if you put too much water on top of them. 

I like to leave some space towards the edges of my flats that don't have soil or seeds in them, so that I can pour water down there. 

This prevents me from having to pick up the whole flat to water it. 

I simply pour the water in and it disperses throughout the entire flat. 

Well, there you have it. 

5 fast facts about gardening indoors or at least starting your plants indoors. 

I give my plants a good three months indoors, and then I will slowly start acquainting them to the outdoors.