an easter basket for the fur child ...

*** this post was sponsored by kroger. all opinions are 100% my own. ***

since eleanor joined the gang back in january, ms hattie our english bulldog graciously accepted her new role playing 2nd fiddle. so when kroger approached me with the challenge to create an easter basket for a loved one exclusively from items purchased at their store - i decided to spoil our pup with an easter basket of her own. after all, hattie is much more excited about goodies than our little one at this stage.




this was also a great opportunity to visit the new kroger marketplace®! along with the huge variety of the fresh food i've come to expect from my neighborhood kroger, the kroger marketplace® is a one-stop shop for everything else for your home - including home decor, linens, small appliances and more. and when it came to items for hattie's easter basket - it did not disappoint. i filled her basket with pup essentials:

- a little lamb doll (with sewn on features as a safe choice) + bunny ears from the easter selection
- a rubber ball from their amazing selection of pet toys
- a water bottle wrapped in a sock from the $1 bins (which of course is her favorite from the basket!)
- from their home goods section, i picked up a jar to fill with homemade dog treats!

... and even a little gift for me - a lint brush!

kroger has a great big natural section loaded with the gluten free products that we love as well! when we adopted hattie a year ago, we weren't entirely familiar with the bulldog breed. we knew they were super squishy, loud snoring, crazy loyal lovebugs. but we didn't realize that they are also one of the most unhealthy breeds. you can help with their allergies and breathing issues by keeping them on a gluten free diet. so yes - in this household even our dog is gluten free!

here's a super easy recipe for gluten free dog treats:

• 1 banana, mashed
• 1/4c natural peanut butter*
• 1/2c bacon, chopped
• 1 egg
• 1 3/4c gluten-free oat flour*
• 1/3 cup gluten-free oats*

* peanut butter is a good source of protein + it contains healthy fats, vitamin b, niacin and vitamin e. and oats are a great source of fiber which is especially beneficial as your dog ages. 




preheat oven to 300º F.

1. combine wet ingredients and dry ingredients (except the bacon) separately. then mix the wet with the dry ingredients. finally fold in the bacon bits. 
2. transfer the dough to wax paper. if the dough is sticky, use additional oat flour. roll the dough to a 1/4" thickness and use cookie cutters to shape each treat. transfer the the treats to a non-stick baking sheet. 
3. bake the treats for 35 minutes until golden brown. allow them to cool at room temperature before storing them for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container. 

you might not be able to tell - but the treats are hattie approved! she's pretty excited about the basket as a whole! :)



of course kroger has everything you need to fill up an easter basket for your human counterparts too! for more easter basket ideas including great DIY easter projects - check out the kroger pinterest board and their Facebook page.

may i introduce you to ...

saturday turned into family work day around the new house - so i didn't get around to blogging as promised. but we knocked so many things off the "to do" list. i'll blog more about a few of those things separately.

first let me tell you a bit about our move ...

we agreed that the seller could occupy the house until 9 days after we closed. unfortunately this pushed our move to friday, december 21st - yes 4 days before christmas. though we hired movers, we were blessed by a whole heap of friends dropping in on saturday morning before each of them went their separate way for christmas.

then it got cray! wade and i drove to his parents' that afternoon for christmas with his siblings. the next morning, we welcomed his brother and sister-in-law (and 6 kids under 11!) over for a quick house tour. wade's parents dropped by in the afternoon and we had in-town-for-christmas friends over sunday evening. by 8am on monday morning, we were back in the car and headed to christmas, part 2 w/ wade's family. from there, we drove directly to illinois for 2 days with my family. i ended up spending the 2nd day in bed w/ the flu. we packed the car and drove back to nashville on the 26th despite a snowstorm and recovering stomach adding 3hrs to our usual 6.5 hour trip.

we agreed to have the seller's repairs finished after our move bc of a quick closing & christmas and bc i was off the week between the holidays to oversee. thursday at 8am the contractor & crew arrived.*** over the next 3 days, our house was a mess of drywall, sanding, paint, caulk, plumbing, roofing, debris removal, and electrical projects ... and lots and lots of dirt + dust. the seller was awesome and had the house professionally cleaned the day before we moved in, but in the aftermath of repairs, the house was even more of a mess than it had been on day 1. now it was still in boxes and GROSS.

in the midst of all that crazy, we adopted a dog! hattie - a 4-year old english bulldog - came home to live w/ us on the thursday following christmas (yes - the day the contractor arrived!). if you follow along on instagram, i apologize. i've already become "that" dog mama. a few favorites:

poor hattie had all kinds of health problems after 6m of being passed around from foster to foster - double ear infection, impacted anal glands (def the only time you'll ever read that on my blog!), a skin rash from poor diet (hattie is gluten free like me!), allergies and the dreaded f-word ... fleas! talk about major pet ownership orientation! we're medicating and babying her back to health. i have to get over my ocd tendencies and find my loving, nurturing side. good practice for future little mundays? maybe.

my BIGGEST concern - fleas! say "flea" and i begin to itch! ick! i'm using a spritz of 5 drops lemon essential oils + 5 drops lavender oils + 1c water on her skin and her bedding in addition to her monthly flea/heartworm treatment and i sprayed the living room as a preventative w/ natural defense flea/tick spray. hopefully the essential oils will also be good for her skin. any natural suggestions to keep the fleas away? any other fun tips for new pet owners?

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*** 2 random things:
1 // i recommend seller's repairs finished before a move. there's already enough on your moving "to do" list. :-\
2 // our realtor blake campbell from village real estate went above and beyond! he was there the entire time watching over the repairs! moving in or around nashville? call him!