Ketogenic salad - Green Bean Salad with Blue Cheese, Bacon, and Pecans

.Here is a great salad that will compliment Sunday's dinner well. Hope you have a great weekend and enjoy the holiday!

Green Bean Salad with Blue Cheese, Bacon, and Pecans 4 servings

Prep time: 5 min Cook time: 25 min Total time: 30 min

Ingredients • ½ pound of green beans • 5 pieces of bacon • 3.5 oz. crumbled blue cheese • ¼ cup pecans • Black pepper (to taste)

Directions 1. Rinse the beans and cut off the ends. 2. Set a pot of water to boil. Add green beans to boiling water and boil for 2 minutes. 3. Rinse the beans with cold water or put them in a bowl with ice cubes to cool down. 4. Drain the beans and place them in a serving bowl. 5. Chop the bacon and set aside. 6. Meanwhile, heat up a frying pan on medium heat. 7. Add the bacon and fry until crisp. 8. Place the bacon on some paper towels on a plate to drain excess fat. 9. Heat up a dry non-stick pan on medium heat and roast the pecans quickly (make sure they don’t burn). 10. Mix the green beans and bacon in the bowl and sprinkle with the cheese; serve. Enjoy!

bean salad

Home project

.What do you do with a room that has 3 doors, a window, a staircase and is too small for any furniture? You turn it into a library! Here is my latest home project.

Before - walls filled with wholes and old paint. The room didn't have a purpose.

library before

Added four layers of ultra pure white...

paint

library before

After. A new closet, plenty of space for books and a new light in the window for extra light for piano playing.

library after

library after

library after

Stellibell home project

.Can't let the week pass by without a home project. This week's project was to paint the legs on this bench which I built a couple of years ago. I painted them white (they used to be brown) to go with the rest of the colors in the dining room. Which are...you guessed it! White! My favorite color.

There is nothing better for the soul then a little home project!

paint project

bench

Bench 1

Stellibell inspiration - house décor

I get tired with house décor pretty quickly and one of my favorite things to do is to update our house. Since it can get expensive to constantly make updates, I’ve picked neutral colors (white is my favorite) and then when I get bored I switch out pillows and candles. Accessories are like jewelry for a room and they are easy and inexpensive to switch out. This update from blue to orange cost only $30. Before - blue pillows and candles.

living room

living room

living room

Now - orange pillows and candles. I love the pop of color. Our dog Ludde loves the new pillows as much as I do.

living room

living room

Feng Shui makeover - foyer

When we talk about health we talk a lot about food and exercise, but what about our surroundings? How much does our home affect our stress levels? I've never tried Feng Shui, so I've decided to try it and see if I will see a change. Hopefully I don't have to re-organize the whole house... :)

Our homes are an accumulation of the energy of the things, people and animals in them. Since we spend so much time in our homes, the way they interact with our energy field is considered to have a powerful influence on our lives affecting our relationships, careers, prosperity and health. Creating a home that supports, inspires and nurtures us is considered equivalent to creating a balanced, healthy and happy life.

I’ve decided to take a stab at the foyer first. I'm going to do this Feng Shui makeover on a budget, so I'm just re-arranging furniture and not buying anything new for my home.

This is what I've found out in my research:

• Making changes to the foyer will immediately result in a change in well-being and success, since that's where the energy enters and moves out negative energy. • We know how important first impressions are. Think of the foyer as the first impression when someone comes in to your house. What does the artwork and furniture say about you? Do you have the clothes organized or are they thrown on a chair? • To allow the flow of Chi through your home, make sure your entry is welcoming; clean and bright, unobstructed and joyful. An entry that is dark, restrictive and cluttered is oppressive and depressing, which will stop the Chi. • Think about creating breaks to stop the chi before it rushes into the home. You can do this by creating a beautiful area that allows us to pause and reflect, lifting our chi and inspiring us as we enter. • A wall mirror at the entry way is a great way to welcome in the chi. Just make sure it is not placed directly across from the front door or it will send the chi right back out.

Before pictures - messy shoes, dirty rug.

Feng Shui foyer

Dark hallway

Feng Shui foyer

Messy clothes making the hallway dark and uninviting.

Feng Shui foyer

After pictures - I've cleaned up the clothes, removed the bags and switched out the chair to a white chair to make the foyer lighter.

Feng Shui foyer

I rolled up the curtain higher to let in more light

Feng Shui foyer

A wall mirror at the entry way to welcome in the chi

Feng Shui foyer

I added pretty things (a plant and shells for natural materials) to create a beautiful area that allows us to pause and reflect

Feng Shui foyer

I will let you know if I see and feel any difference after this Feng Shui makeover. Which room should I pick next? I would love to hear your suggestions and Feng Shui advice - molander@stellibell.com.

Be Swedish

In Sweden (and in my house) we all remove our shoes before entering the house. In the quest of creating a natural and healthy home this is an important step. By removing your shoes you are preventing outdoors contaminants such as pesticides from coming indoors, not to mention saving you time from constantly cleaning. Don’t be afraid to ask your visitors to remove their shoes. They will appreciate you shared a new customs that they can start using as well. Creative ideas for shoes storage from Pinterest:

Shoe storage

Source

Shoe storage

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