Friday Favs!

Happy Friday everyone! Any fun plans for the weekend? I think we might visit the local Plum Blossom Park to see how the blooming is going. We've been a couple times in the past- the first time was just days before the March 2011 Japan Earthquake and the second was last year with Chris' parents! 

Now for my favorites from the week... 

<click photos to visit source>

Mom Lovin' Hop no.38

March?! I cannot believe that originally we were heading back to the states in 2 weeks! Now were about half way through our stay which is nice to know- that we have more time, not that we're at the half way mark.

Hope you all had a great week! Time to relax and hang with some other mamas!

Our guest co-host this week is Shay from Wonderfully Chaotic 

Shay's blog title is the perfect way to sum up just not her home but all homes filled with children, just love it. She's a mama to three and a loving step mom to one- count it, that's four children! Shay's blog is great for moms because she reviews relevant for families. If you're a homeschooling mama (or just a mom wanting to find ways to give your children extra support at home) you'll definitely want to check her out! 

Our featured mama this week is Teri from A Beautiful Little Life

Teri lives in Minnesota and is mom to two boys ages 16 and 20. She was motivated to write her blog by a quote from Holly Becker that is about a blog being a motivator to do things you'll want to share rather than a chore. Her blog helps her tackle all those 'to-do' list items. Teri's blog is filled with a large assortment of topics, something for everyone! 

Here we go! Don't forget to... 

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**read the rules, link up and socialize!

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Please, if you are new to the hop or have been here but haven't left a comment, please let us know on our own respected blogs that you are a new follower (be sure to say HOW you are following) so we can follow you back! 

Also, If you are interested in co-hosting FOR FREE shoot Hannah an email at hannahsjoyfullife (at) gmail.com to get on the list, growing your followers couldn't be easier! 

A Tour of Our Japan Apartment

I had every intention of posting photos of our place earlier but between not getting our boxes until a month after arriving (They actually were delivered before we got to Japan but the mail people messed up and didn't log it or something... which they didn't admit. Somehow made it our fault.) and deciding to get a wide angle lens and wanting to wait for that to take photos so it has officially taken me 2 months to share! 

Don't be fool, you assumed correctly- Japanese apartment are actually pretty small. Yes we are living in an apartment in Japan but we are in 'Americanized' apartments. My husband works for the Naval Shipyard and a Shipyard employee was actually a part of the design team to make sure these apartments were 'American friendly,' thus we have quite a bit of room. 

Tokyo Bay Water Bus- Hotaluna

For our first trip to Odaiba Chris really wanted to take a water bus through Tokyo bay. We had to catch the boat from Asakusa near Sky Tree. 

Sponsored- Supporting Operation Smile by Renting Books

I'm sure that someone you know was either born with a cleft lip, has a family member who was born with a cleft lip or knows someone who was born with a cleft lip- this also goes for cleft palate. The reason why I believe this is true is because it is one of the most common birth defects. We all start out with a cleft lip and palate but between the 6th and 11th week of fetal development the palates fuse together, however for some they do not. Depending on how severe of a cleft this can interfere with breathing, eating, speech, hearing and dental. 

{Real} Strawberry Buttercream

I sorta-kinda-really have a thing for cupcakes. Cupcakes are one of the perfect desserts- a perfectly shaped mini personal cake. I love experimenting with new flavors and types of what have been referred to as 'gourmet cupcakes.'

The strawberries here in Japan are just absolutely beautiful and though they are expensive it's hard to not pass them up.

I was feeling in the mood to bake some cupcakes and had some strawberries that needed to be use. I've made a cake with fresh strawberries before but since a lot of a cupcake is in the frosting I thought I'd try making some strawberry flavored frosting from fresh strawberries!



Recipe:
1 cup fresh strawberries
1 cup salted butter softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
milk (optional)

Directions: Wash strawberries then places in a blender and puree until smooth.

Transfer pureed strawberries to a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until begins to boil; string often. Cook until puree is reduced to at least half (about 20 minutes). Remove from heat and cool completely. 

Beat butter by itself for a couple minutes in the mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed. Add your powdered sugar a cup at a time on the lowest speed. Once sugar has mixed with the butter turn mixer back to medium and add the salt and pureed strawberries. Beat for a couple minutes, add a tablespoon of milk at a time if frosting is too thick. Oh, and don't forget to lick the bowl!

Mom Lovin Hop no.37!

Happy Thursday! I spent my morning with five other ladies enjoying some Starbuck, so good! Hope you've gotten to have some intentional time this week with the lovelies in your life! 

Our guest co-host this week is Jackie from Adventures in Mommyland

Jackie is a Southern gal, who has two little boys. She writes about her life and her family. Check out her new Monday Funnies series, sharing funny things she has come across in the last week. Definitely good for a laugh on your monday morning!

Our featured mama this week is Kristin from Sounds of my Pitter-Patter

Kristin's blog is super sweet! We love her heart for encouraging other moms, because that's what we are all about here at Mom-Lovin! Kristin is a mama of one little man (who has the cutest craziest spikey hair! adorable!) as well as a photographer! Check out her recent mini-series on Breastfeeding!

Here we go! Don't forget to... 

**grab out button and display it proud for other mama's to get in on this action! 

**read the rules, link up and socialize!

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Please, if you are new to the hop or have been here but haven't left a comment, please let us know on our own respected blogs that you are a new follower (be sure to say HOW you are following) so we can follow you back! 

Also, If you are interested in co-hosting FOR FREE shoot Hannah an email at hannahsjoyfullife (at) gmail.com to get on the list, growing your followers couldn't be easier! 

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