Sunday, December 21, 2008

Hoot, Hoot

I am super, super, super excited to show you what I made for my daughter for Christmas. I sat down and worked like a mad woman on Friday night to get it done. I am pretty happy with how it turned out. I had seen the most adorable bag on the Little Birdie Secrets blog back in October and just knew I wanted to make my own version for my daughter. I can't wait to see her carrying it around with all her little treasures inside it. So here is the big unveil.....Ta Da!
Hoot Hoot
He even has a little clump of tail feathers on the back side. Heehee! Love him!

I had a good friend over yesterday for lunch. I love trying out new recipes when we are having guests. I had seen Rachael Ray make a super yummy Shepherd's Pie awhile back on her show, so I dug through her archives, found it and made it. Here is the recipe....

Stretch a Buck Ultimate Holiday Shepherd's Pie
  • 6 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
  • Salt
  • 2 tablespoons EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 1/2 pounds coarsely ground sirloin
  • 1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, quartered
  • 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 2 ribs celery, chopped
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 3 to 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
  • Ground black pepper
  • 9 to 10 sprigs (about 2 tablespoons) thyme leaves, removed from stems
  • 5 tablespoons butter, divided
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 4 cups beef stock, divided
  • 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tablespoons grainy Dijon mustard
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese, divided
  • 1/4 cup chives, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 2 teaspoons paprika

Preheat broiler.

Place potatoes into a medium saucepan with a dash of salt and enough cold water to submerge them completely. Place the pan over medium-high heat and bring the liquid to a bubble. Reduce heat to medium and simmer the potatoes until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the cooked potatoes and reserve them in the same pan they were cooked in.

While the potatoes are cooking, place a large, cast iron skillet over medium-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Add the ground sirloin to the pan and cook until browned, 5-6 minutes.

Add the mushrooms, carrots, onion, celery, bay leaf and garlic to the pan and season everything with some salt and pepper. Cook until the veggies are tender, 7-8 minutes, and then stir in the thyme leaves.

While the veggies are working, place a medium saucepan over medium heat and melt 3 tablespoons butter. Sprinkle the flour over the butter and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk 3 cups of the beef stock into the roux and simmer until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Whisk the Worcestershire and Dijon into the gravy. Season with salt and pepper and reserve warm.

When the veggies in the skillet are soft, add the remaining 1 cup of stock to the pan and stir to remove any bits stuck to the bottom and cook away most of that liquid. Remove the skillet from heat and stir in the peas. Stir the prepared gravy into the mixture and reserve.

Mash the cooked potatoes with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, milk, about 1 cup shredded Gruyere, chives and horseradish. Stir the egg into the mixture at the very end and stir well to fully incorporate it. Season with salt and lots of pepper.

Slather the mashed potatoes over the mixture in the skillet and top with the remaining Gruyere cheese. Place under the broiler to brown.

Garnish the shepherd's pie with paprika and serve straight from the skillet.


It was super yummy and pretty easy! I couldn't find the Gruyere cheese, so I used Monterey Jack and that worked fine. And I LOVED the horseradish in the mashed potatoes and might have to do that for Christmas. It gave it a yummy zing! I wouldn't add so much beef stock to the veggie/meat mixture next time. The stock didn't cook down like it said it would and it made it a bit soupy...but with the mashed potatoes on top, it was fine. I think you should all make this one soon.


Wednesday, December 17, 2008

A Quiet Night In

We had a fun evening spent at home this evening. I made a yummy supper consisting of White Bean Chili and Homemade Cornbread. I am attaching the recipe for the chili because it was super easy, pretty cheap, and yummy! I found it on Paula Dean's section of the Food Network site. And if you have a canister of cornmeal sitting around, then you will have the cornbread recipe on the back. I do have to say that homemade is sooooo much better than any of those pre-made boxes or packets that you can buy.

White Bean Chili
  • 1 pound dried navy beans
  • 5 cups chicken stock
  • 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 3/4 cup diced onion
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped green chiles (fresh or canned)
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
  • Pinch red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 bunch cilantro leaves, chopped
Rinse beans well, cover with cool water, and soak for 2 hours. Drain. Place beans in large pot with chicken stock and bring to a boil over high heat. In a saucepan, heat butter over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, and chiles and saute for 5 minutes. Add chile mixture to pot with beans. Add chicken, cumin, oregano, pepper, white pepper, red pepper flakes, and cilantro. Lower heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for approximately 1 1/2 hours. Serve with cornbread, if desired.
Christmas Goodies
I also spent some time working on some Christmas gifts tonight for some of my co-workers. I made a batch of homemade hot chocolate mix and put them in decorated canning jars for gift giving. I found the idea on Little Birdie Secrets. This site is chalked full of great ideas, if you need some. I check it daily! The hot chocolate is yummy too...hubby and I tested it out this evening.

Here are my goodies all ready to go for tomorrow.
Christmas Goodies
I feel great to have those finished and ready to go!

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

It's Beginning to Look Alot Like Christmas

Ahhh...finally, the creative juices are flowing! I made some Christmas cards this year to send out. Now if you didn't get a homemade Christmas card, please do not fret. I only made 20 and I had more than 20 people on my Christmas list. I wanted to make more, but that box of already made cards was so tempting. The card that I made this year was this one...
Christmas Cards
The past two years I had the full intention of making cards and sending them out, but only got a few made and ended up just giving cards to immediate family members. (Sorry again!) But I had a couple extra ones from the years past that I used also this year.

Christmas Cards

Christmas Cards
That ceramic Christmas tree behind the card is a family heirloom to me. My grandma, my mom's mother, and my great-aunt made a whole bunch of them many years ago. I am so thankful to have it. It is always displayed with pride in our home.

Tonight I got busy making some Christmas goodies to give away as gifts. I hate to even tell you how to make them because they were SOOOO easy.
Peanut Candies
Peanut Candies
1 whole bag of butterscotch chips
1/2 bag of chocolate chips
1 jar of dry roasted peanuts, salted

Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips in a double boiler (or in microwave). Once melted stir in peanuts. Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper. (I used a small ice cream scoop.) Let harden.
Peanut Candies
These are so yummy and so easy to make, such a great combination!!!!! My daughter enjoyed the taste test part of making them.
Peanut Candies
I have some fun things up my sleeve that I hope to get made for Christmas. I will post pics when I am finished.



Saturday, November 22, 2008

Whatever You're Doing

There is a song that brings me to tears right now when I hear it on the radio. The lyrics are for me right now, in this place...(Remember to pause my playlist at the bottom of this page, if you want to see the video.)


Whatever You're Doing
Sanctus Real

It's time for healing time to move on
It's time to fix what's been broken too long
Time make right what has been wrong
It's time to find my way to where I belong
There's a wave that's crashing over me
All I can do is surrender

(Chorus)
Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos somehow there's peace
It's hard to surrender to what I can't see
but I'm giving in to something heavenly

Time for a milestone
Time to begin again
Revaluate who I really am
Am I doing everything to follow your will
or just climbing aimlessly over these hills
So show me what it is you want from me
I give everything I surrender...
To...

(Chorus)

Time to face up
Clean this old house
Time to breathe in and let everything out
That I've wanted to say for so many years
Time to to release all my held back tears

Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but I believe
You're up to something bigger than me
Larger than life something heavenly

Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but now I can see
This something bigger than me
Larger than life something heavenly
Something heavenly

It's time to face up
Clean this old house
Time breathe in and let everything out

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Look What I Got in the Mail Today




This is what was waiting for me in my mailbox today. I love it already. I discovered Mindy Smith after we lost our baby in January through her song One Moment More. The lyrics to that song were exactly how I was feeling. I listened to the My Holiday cd while cleaning up the house this afternoon and I really like it.



This is the cd that I am really hoping will appear very soon in my mailbox. I became quickly addicted to Sixpence None the Richer after meeting my hubby who is a huge music critic! When the band broke up, I was brokenhearted. To my great joy, they have reunited and this is their new cd and it is a holiday cd. I need this one! It is actually one that hubby will like too.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Missing Her

With the holidays around the corner, I am finding myself missing my mom even more. The holidays have always been a difficult time for me for the past many years. Moms just make holidays special...they have the touch that children need and that touch has been missing for many years as I watched Alzheimer's steal her away. I know it's silly, but oh how I wish we could have made a holiday meal together, gone Christmas shopping, shared holiday traditions. I heard this song today and my eyes just spilled over with tears that I wasn't prepared for. It meant so much more to me this time after losing Mom and having my own precious little girl. Hope you enjoy it. (Don't forget to pause my playlist at the bottom to hear the video.) I hope people see her in my eyes.

Monday, November 17, 2008

I'm an Ingrid

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz...

You Are an Ingrid!

mm.ingrid_.jpg


You are an Ingrid -- "I am unique"



Ingrids have sensitive feelings and are warm and perceptive.



How to Get Along with Me

  • * Give me plenty of compliments. They mean a lot to me.

  • * Be a supportive friend or partner. Help me to learn to love and value myself.

  • * Respect me for my special gifts of intuition and vision.

  • * Though I don't always want to be cheered up when I'm feeling melancholy, I sometimes like to have someone lighten me up a little.

  • * Don't tell me I'm too sensitive or that I'm overreacting!




What I Like About Being an Ingrid

  • * my ability to find meaning in life and to experience feeling at a deep level

  • * my ability to establish warm connections with people

  • * admiring what is noble, truthful, and beautiful in life

  • * my creativity, intuition, and sense of humor

  • * being unique and being seen as unique by others

  • * having aesthetic sensibilities

  • * being able to easily pick up the feelings of people around me




What's Hard About Being an Ingrid

  • * experiencing dark moods of emptiness and despair

  • * feelings of self-hatred and shame; believing I don't deserve to be loved

  • * feeling guilty when I disappoint people

  • * feeling hurt or attacked when someone misundertands me

  • * expecting too much from myself and life

  • * fearing being abandoned

  • * obsessing over resentments

  • * longing for what I don't have




Ingrids as Children Often

  • * have active imaginations: play creatively alone or organize playmates in original games

  • * are very sensitive

  • * feel that they don't fit in

  • * believe they are missing something that other people have

  • * attach themselves to idealized teachers, heroes, artists, etc.

  • * become antiauthoritarian or rebellious when criticized or not understood

  • * feel lonely or abandoned (perhaps as a result of a death or their parents' divorce)




Ingrids as Parents

  • * help their children become who they really are

  • * support their children's creativity and originality

  • * are good at helping their children get in touch with their feelings

  • * are sometimes overly critical or overly protective

  • * are usually very good with children if not too self-absorbed




Take Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz
at HelloQuizzy

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Pumpkin Art

My daughter and I made a fun fall craft together this morning.
We tore up orange paper.
Craft Time

Then we glued the orange ripped up papers onto a large white pumpkin cut out.
Craft Time

Then I traced her hand on green paper for the leaf and her foot on brown paper for the stem.
She thought it turned out pretty cute!
Craft Time

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Mom's Casserole

This is a casserole that I remember my mom making quite a bit while I was growing up. I was in need of something Mom related so I made it. I wanted to share it with you. I have no idea where the recipe came from, it just always was.

Chicken Casserole
Place following layers in a 9x13 greased casserole pan.
1st layer
8 slices of bread, moistened with broth
2nd layer
Cooked 1 pkg. noodles.
3rd layer
1 cooked chicken, shredded
(I used 4 chicken breasts.)
Sauce:
Melt 4 T. butter in skillet. Whisk in 4 T. flour. Add 2 c. milk and 2 c. broth. Salt and pepper to taste.
Pour over top of casserole. Melt some butter and mix in cracker crumbs. Sprinkle over top of casserole. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

I also added sauteed onions and garlic to give it a little extra zing. Yumm-o!

A taste of home.....I needed it.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

What I am Up To

I know, I know. I need to get back into making things like crafts and food. It's been a hard few weeks. My mom passed away on October 10. My family stayed with my parents for the 3 weeks beforehand as we knew it was coming. It has been a bittersweet time. Mom suffered from Alzheimer's Disease and was in bad shape. It was so hard to see her go on like she was. Now she is no longer suffering and that is awesome. But I do miss her. It is difficult to be at my parent's house now with her gone. It is a big change and I think we are doing well considering. So that is why you are all getting generic posts recently on this blog. I will get back up to par soon. I have some projects that I want to start working on for Christmas and such. Thanks for putting up with these silly posts.

I found this on a blog that I read now and then and thought it was cute.

What I am doing right now....

Sitting on an uncomfortable kitchen chair at the computer that has now invaded my kitchen table! I am not bitter about this. I am not bitter. (Keep repeating until you believe it.)

Smelling a stinky dog....we are dog sitting for my in-laws who are on vacation.

Listening to a football game that I care nothing about. It's just background noise for my daughter who was having trouble going to sleep. Sometimes I think it helps to just have the tv on so she can hear something going on downstairs.

Drinking nothing right now but am going to make some hot chocolate very soon. It is cold!

Reading Your Pregnancy Week by Week.

Loving the crisp fall air and smell of leaves burning in the air.

Dreading paying all the bills that piled up while we were gone.

Eagerly anticipating the birth of our second baby!

Worrying my dad as he makes this new transition in life. He was my mom's caregiver.

Wishing that my daughter would stay like this forever.

Praying not as I often as I should be.

Grateful for friends and family who have been such a source of support and encouragement.

Sharing my personal space with a Golden Retriever who is very needy!

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Husband Meme

I found another meme on Mommie Daze. It looked too fun to resist. There’s no tagging on this one, but if you decide to join in, please leave a comment so I know.

1. He’s sitting in front of the TV: what is on the screen? anything to do with politics or the economy

2. You’re out to eat. What kind of dressing does he get on his salad? Blue Cheese

3. What is one food he doesn’t like? Sloppy Joes

4. You go out to the bar. What does he order? We don’t go to bars but does enjoy a beer or wine every so often.

5. Where did he go to high school? A few different places. He graduated from Pandora.

6. What size shoe does he wear? 10

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be? anything music related

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich? He doesn't typically like sandwiches...isn't a bread guy.

9. What would the Husband eat every day if he could? Soup

10. What is his favorite cereal? Blueberry Morning

11. What would he never wear? shorts

12. What is his favorite sports team? Ohio University

13. Who will he vote for? Well it was going to be Ron Paul...probably Bob Barr.

14. Who is his best friend? Jim

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn’t do? Keep things inside

16. How many states has he lived in? Ohio, Missouri, Texas, Oregon, Indiana

17. What is his heritage? German

18. You bake him a cake for his birthday; what kind? He isn't a cake guy...to sweet.

19. Did he play sports in high school? No

20. What could he spend hours doing? Surfing the internet for music related things or politics.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Pumkin Whoopie Pies

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Today at preschool we used paints, so of course, that means spreading newspapers down...EVERYWHERE! Ha! In the process I just happened to see this yummy recipe on one of the newspapers and had to cut it out and make it tonight! It is fall, it is pumpkin season! My daughter helped me make them. She thought they were pretty tasty.
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

2 c. brown sugar
1 c. vegetable oil
1 1/2 c. fresh pumpkin
1 t. vanilla
2 eggs
3 c. flour
1 t. salt
1/2 t. ginger
1 t. baking soda
1 1/2 t. cloves
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
1 t. baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together brown sugar, oil, pumpkin, vanilla, and eggs. Then blend in four, salt, ginger, baking soda, cloves, cinnamon and baking powder. Stir all ingredients until batter is smooth. Drop by heaping teaspoons onto lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Spread icing between two cookies and press together like a sandwich.

Icing
2 t. vanilla
4 T. flour
2 egg whites, unbeaten
2 T. milk
1 1/2 c. shortening
4 c. (1 lb.) confectioner's sugar

Stir all ingredients together until smooth.
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Monday, September 22, 2008

50th Wedding Anniverary

Making Cake
The thing that has been consuming my time is over. We celebrated my parent's 50th wedding anniversary on Saturday. Much time over the past few weeks was dedicated to cleaning and preparation. I decided I would take on the cake. I have really enjoyed making Peanut's past 2 birthday cakes so I thought I could handle it. I also did it out of honor to my mom who used to make cakes for many family celebrations. A week ago I made GOBS of drop flowers out of Royal Meringue Icing. This type of icing is best because as they dry, they become very hard and won't break. I chose to use yellow and pale blue for the colors. Yellow was our theme color for this golden anniversary and blue was the color my mom used for her maid of honor's dress.
Drop Flowers
Thursday night I spent the evening baking GOBS of cake. I made two huge sheet cakes and 2 heart cakes. I knew right away that I wanted to use the Lady Baltimore Cake recipe. A friend of mine made it for one of my baby showers and it was soooo yummy. It was almond flavoring in it and is so wonderful. I will add the recipe at the bottom. I also made Lemon Curd to use as a filling for the sheet cake and Buttercream Icing for the cakes.

On Friday we took our cakes to Gigi's and I worked all afternoon and evening decorating them. My beautiful 2 year old daugther only took one swipe out of one of them after I had finished icing it. Thankfully it was not after I had finished decorating it, so it was easy to fix.

I am happy with how they turned out. They were simple but nice. I do need to practice my writing skills with frosting. My hand gets so shaky. I had to scrape the letters off a few times.
50th Wedding Anniversary 50th Wedding Anniversary
The decorations all were perfect. I dug out my mother's wedding dress so we could put it out on display and all of their wedding cards. While digging I found a wedding book that my mom had written the name of their wedding songs in. My techie hubby scanned a GOB of pictures and found the songs to use as background music for a video. It was the hit of the party...even more than my cake!
Ha! He did a great job. The songs he used were "Because", "I Love You Truly", and "The Lord's Prayer". We needed one more song, so we chose "Love Me Tender" by Elvis, one of my mom's favorite songs.
50th Wedding Anniversary
We also had awnings set up in the yard with tables and chairs underneath for people to enjoy the gorgeous weather. We used gold paper to wrap the tables and white lights. There were also a GOB of mums sitting all over. It was so pretty. My mother-in-law made a great quilt that guests signed for my parents.
50th Wedding Anniversary
We served yummy food that my aunts and cousins helped with. There was cheesy dip with nacho chips, broccoli salad, ham salad on homemade sourdough rolls, potato casserole, cake, homemade cream cheese mints, nuts, and punch. It was all really good and we had plenty!
50th Wedding Anniversary
I am so thankful that it all went so well. It was a small party with close friends and family due to my mother's battle with Alzheimer's. My dad seemed to get more excited as it drew closer and really enjoyed himself during it all. I am so happy for that.

Here are a couple of pics from my parent's wedding on September 20, 1958.
50 Years Ago

Lady Baltimore Cake
1 3/4 c. cake flour (or regular unbleached flour)
2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
8 T. butter, softened
1 1/4 c. sugar
1/2 t. almond extract
3/4 c. milk
3 egg whites (about 1/2 c.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 2-8 inch round cake pans. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together well. Beat butter and sugar together in another bowl until fluffy. Stir almond extract into milk in another bowl. Alternately add half milk mixture then half dry mixture to the butter/sugar mixture, then once again, beating well after each addition until batter is smooth.

In a separate mixing bowl, beat egg whites until they are stiff but moist. Gently stir about a third of them into the cake batter until blended. Add the rest of egg whites and carefully fold them in.

Divide between cake pans. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes in pans, then turn out onto racks to cool completely.


"I Love You Truly"

I love you truly, truly dear,
Life with its sorrow, life with its tear
Fades into dreams when I feel you are near
For I love you truly, truly dear.

Ah! Love, 'tis something to feel your kind hand
Ah! Yes, 'tis something by your side to stand;
Gone is the sorrow, gone doubt and fear,
For you love me truly, truly dear.

What a perfect song for then and especially now for my parents.

50 Years Ago


Sunday, September 14, 2008

The Big Project

I think I have kept you in suspense long enough about what my newest "big" project is. I have been working away on it for about 10 weeks now. I wanted to keep it under wraps for a bit before I told you about it. Unfortunately it is not quite complete yet. It will most likely take me until spring to finish but it will be WELL worth the wait. Trust me. But even though it is not totally complete, I wanted to give you a little peak of what I am working on.















Surprise!!! We have known for like 8 weeks! Things are going really well. Looks like our big project will be completed around April 10, 2009.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

I am Loved

I miss my blogging time. With work starting back it just seems life is busy. The extra time I had over the summer is now filled with lesson planning and preschool administering. I have things to tell you about though. Just be patient. They will come. My family blog takes priority when I do have time to blog, so I am getting some blogging done every few weeks. Ha!

I do have to tell you that there seems to be a new man in my life who loves me dearly. :) He is only 3 but he has great taste! Last Thursday, our 2nd day of class together, one of the little boys arrived and promptly said, "Mrs. ____ , I love you!" Then today his grandmother told me that over the weekend he was playing, stopped, looked at her and said, "Grandma, I love Mrs. _____." My teaching assistant thinks he is just trying to get some brownie points with his new teacher! Haha!

And I have one little girl in my class this year that really reminds me of my own beautiful little girl. On the first day of class I was watching and thinking about the similarities. Not 10 minutes later my assistant said, "So and so sure reminds me of your daughter!" Needless to say this little girl is beautiful but I think mine is the most beautiful one in the world!

This afternoon as I was preparing for a meeting at work, I thought how blessed I am to have this job. I love it. I feel more in tune with it this year. I love my new students so much already and have only had them for 3 class sessions. I only have one crier, but she only cries for a short time! It's going to be a good year!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Love It!

I really enjoy Feist alot and discovered she was on Sesame Street! This is great! Hope you enjoy counting to 4! (Remember to go down to the bottom first to pause my playlist.)

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Frazzled

I am still here. I am so sorry that I haven't posted anything lately. I have been completely swamped. I am a preschool teacher and administrator and am in the midst of getting our school year up and running. I can not believe that it is time once again for it all to begin. Yesterday and this evening we have been having our orientation meetings, so I get to meet all the fresh faced little 3 year olds that will be in my class this year. They are so precious! I can not wait to get to know each of them. I really do count it as an honor to have this position. These are the beginnings of their long educational roads. BUTTTT there is much to prepare so I have been so busy with that. We currently only have just a few spots left in the preschool which has classes for 3, 4 and 5 year olds. It was so exciting to see the spots fill up this spring and summer. We must be doing something right! The bulletin boards are up and lesson plans are rolling. Wow! I can not do it alone though. I have a great staff who is always ready to jump in and help. They are amazing.

I am also trying desperately to help my mother-in-law as she prepares to have a booth in a VERY large festival here in our community. She is up to her neck in quilts and binding right now. I have made toddler aprons, baskets, and a few totes for her to sell. I am excited to see how it goes for her. My sister-in-law has also made some pillows and aprons for her to put in her booth too. Aprons are pretty trendy right now, so we'll see. It has been fun. I do feel bad as I have been so busy with preschool that I haven't been sewing like I had been. Rosie hasn't seen much action these past few days. (That is my sewing machine, in case you were wondering.)

And there are tomatoes....lots of tomatoes in my fridge. That means that I have to make sauce this week! Oh my! Oh dear! That will probably be my next blog....roasted tomato sauce.

I am also still working on my big secret project. This with everything else going on has made me very worn out! I hope to share this project with you really soon. Let me get into preschool gear and then hopefully soon. Preschool actually starts next Tuesday. Bring on the kiddos!

I'm thinking about showing you some of the fun things that I do for my job which I don't really think of as a job. It's fun! :) But it is a big part of my life...so we'll see.

And lastly...my hubby is a music FREAK! If you know him, you know this is an understatement. He runs the blog/label Chasing Lions. He lives, breathes, and eats music, but not all kinds. He is very particular...a music snob, some might even say. :) Due to his music blog he is ALWAYS getting cd's in the mail. He introduced me to an artist that I have really enjoyed. Her name is Jonatha Brooks. I really like her stuff and her sound. I think I am hooked. There is one song that he had me listen to in particular and it made me cry like a baby because it was about babies. I wanted to share it with you.

Sweetest Angel

Every night about eight o'clock
I wind the stem of my little clock
And when I look in the crystal glass
I see a lot of faces pass
Of those I knew
And those I know
And you now coming
And you to go

Here's a word I'd like to whisper
And I'd like to have you listen

All this world is made of love
You are fresh from heaven above
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel

When I hold you by your hand
I'm in my happy promised land
When I kiss you in the dark
I'm just happy as a lark
So let me come as close as I can
And lay me down beside you

Here's a word I'd like to whisper
And I'd like to have you listen

All this world is made of love
You are fresh from heaven above
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel

So let me come as close as I can
Let me bring my scattered pages
Let me lay down here beside you
Tonight, and I will whisper

All this world is made of love
You are fresh from heaven above
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel in this world
You're the sweetest angel

And this is my sweetest angel. I love her more than I even know.
Welcome Home! Zoo Trip

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Random FYI Meme

Ok, ok...I'm still here. I haven't been making much lately. I am working on some more of those aprons like I made for Peanut's birthday. I will put up some pics when I get a batch made. I did get tagged by my "young" (that's an inside joke, sorry!) friend at Mommie Daze. So here you go. Hope this tides you over.

Rules Once Tagged:

1) Link to the person who tagged you.
2) Post the rules on your blog (copy and paste 1-6).
3) Write 6 random things about yourself (see below).
4) Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them.
5) Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6) Let the tagger (who tagged you) know when your post is up.

Random FYI:

1. I can not, I repeat can NOT go to bed until all my daughter's toys are put away nicely and my kitchen is in decent shape. If I come down in the morning and see chaos, my day starts on the wrong foot.

2. BUTTTT there is always clean laundry sitting in my dryer from a few days ago.

3. I claim to love scrapbooking, but I haven't scrapped since my daughter was a few months old. I hate getting everything out, only to have to put it away again at the end of the night (refer to #1 for reason as to why I have to put it away).

4. I really would like to have a Greyhound someday...not a bus! A dog! They are the most gentle dogs that I have ever been around.

5. I love junk mail because you get to throw it away. You don't have to send the junk mail people any money! I love that feeling of throwing it out right away!

6. I have given up watching Oprah. She was starting to get on my nerves. I actually watched her today and I didn't enjoy it.

Those I am tagging:

1. Smiling's my Favorite

2. Home School Owls

3. Back Door

4. Musings from a Happy Housewife

5. Shannon's Little Niche on the Web

6. Rader Report

So that's that for now. I am working on a brand new project. It is going to take awhile for me to complete. I hope to let you know about it or at least give you some hints in the upcoming days.

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Birthday Makings

My little girl turned 2 this week. In honor of her birthday and my new addiction to sewing, I made her some things for her special day. The first was a scrappy quilt to go on a baby doll bed that belonged to my mom when she was a little girl. The bed had been made by my great uncle for her. I remember playing with the same bed when I was a little girl. It was an ugly brown color and in desperate need of a new paint job. I painted it a pretty pale blue and made a quilt to go on the top of it. I also dug out my own baby doll, Suzie to give to my daughter. Here are some pics of the bed, doll, and Peanut with them.
Baby Bed Happy 2nd Birthday!
I also made her very own apron. I found a great tutorial online. It was so easy. The only thing I did was add a pocket and a bow. I really wish I had put ric-rac around the pocket but Peanut was sick when I made it so I couldn't get to the craft store and I needed to get it done. Next time!
Apron
And for her cake I made a cute cow cake. I got the directions from the Family Fun website. I love, love, love that magazine. I need a subscription to it! Thankfully I can get free ideas off the site. Peanut is really into farm things so that is why she got a cow cake! She really liked it. The only candy that I used was Whoppers. The directions called for alot more, but I just used colored frosting instead.
Happy 2nd Birthday!

I really enjoy making cakes, but am glad that I only do it like once a year. Heehee. Here is a picture of the cakes I made for Peanut's 1st birthday.
B-day Party
I am so glad that I am able to make things for my little girl. Homemade things have that extra special feeling to them. I am so grateful to my mama-in-law for getting me going on the sewing. I really didn't think I had it in me. She's pretty cool, that mama-in-law! I love her lots.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Wow!

I was reading a friend's blog just now and stumbled on this youtube video he found on another blog. Very powerful! Cardboard Testimonies

Saturday, July 19, 2008

Zucchini: Blessing or Curse

Yesterday Peanut and I spent the day at Grandpa Gigi's house. (That is my dad.) He had been wanting his back room re-wallpapered. My aunt, his sister helped me. On Wednesday we picked out the wallpaper and I stripped 3/4 of the old wallpaper off the walls. She hung most of the wallpaper and I helped. We also painted the ceiling for him and I painted the 2 doorways. It looked so different and so nice. Needless to say, I am exhausted today. BUT there was work to be done. As much as I longed for a nap during Peanut's naptime, I didn't. Before we left last night, we went to the garden to find that it had been overtaken by zucchinis! Now I love zucchini so it is fine with me. My dad kept asking, "What are you going to do with all of this?" Eat it, of course! He can never figure out why I love to plant zucchini....I love it!

I love to chop it up and saute it in a little butter and seasoning. Yumm-o! I also love zucchini bread. Gigi's favorite way is to bread it in flour and milk and fry in olive oil. We had a sampling of this for supper yesterday. This summer I am going to make Zucchini Relish. I had this once and oh my, it was to die for!















My trunk is full of zucchini...so during naptime, I took the 4 largest ones and went to work. By large, I mean HUGE, ENOURMOUS! I took the skins off and seeded them. Then I used my box grater and shredded them. The 4 large zucchinis yielded 14 cups of shredded zucchini. I used 2 cups to make zucchini muffins and froze the other 12 cups in quantities of 2 cups each. (Notice the coffee in the background. It kept me going!)















I am going to give you the recipe that I used for my muffins and I might add that the salt is important. I got in a hurry and was worried that I wouldn't have enough cinnamon so with my mind on the cinnamon, I forgot to add the salt. They are not bad, but I can tell. Shhhh...don't tell.



















Zucchini Muffins
3 eggs
2 c. sugar
1 c. vegetable oil
3 t. vanilla
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
1 t. SALT
3 t. cinnamon
2 1/2 c. flour
2 c. shredded zucchini
1 c. chopped pecans (I didn't use these.)
Beat eggs, add sugar, oil and vanilla. Beat until creamy. Combine soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; mix well and add to creamed mixture. Fold in flour, zucchini, and pecans. Stir just until combined. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Makes 2 dozen.

We also have added blueberries to our freezer of produce. The freezer is getting full and there is still lots to come in the garden! Yeah for summer!

Now off to see the relatives. My hubby's family is visiting this week. All the cousins are here. Peanut will be in Heaven!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Solitude

Hubby just took Peanut and walked to the library in order to find more Bob Dylan music for himself and to let Peanut pick out new books. I am....ALONE...in my house!!!!! This has not happened in ages! I adore my daughter but I have at least 45 minutes to myself then it's a whirl of bath and bedtime activities. What should I do? I could sew, read, drink coffee (hot coffee mind you), clean (NOT!), just sit and be, blog (yes, I am doing that...that was my first plan of attack for my solitude)...WAIT...I KNOW......I CAN GO TO THE BATHROOM.......BY MYSELF!!!!! Bye...I'm off to peace and quiet in my bathroom.

Yumm-o

I do not watch Rachael Ray all that often but when I do I seem to learn something new. She has taught me the importance of using EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), how to make a basic roux, how to get that blasted papery skin off the garlic clove, and speaking of garlic, the utter importance of using fresh garlic and not something out of a can. She has also taught me the fun phrase, "Yumm-o!" I find lots of easy recipes on her website and found this one yesterday. I made if for supper but was had a nice surprise of being taken out for supper by my hubby's parents, so we ate the yummy meal today. Here is the recipe and it was super easy!

Broken Florentine Lasagna Bake
4 T. butter
4 T. flour
3 c. milk
Salt and pepper
Nutmeg, to taste
1 1/2 c. parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated and divided
2 T. EVOO
1 garlic clove, cracked
1 bunch green chard, stems removed and roughly chopped
2 lb. spinach, stems removed and roughly chopped
1 box no-boil lasagna

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Place a medium pot over medium heat and melt the butter. Sprinkle the flour over the melted butter and cook for about a minute. Slowly whisk the milk into the butter-flour mixture and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Let it thicken a couple of minutes then stir in about a cup of the Parmigiano. Set the sauce aside. (I didn't have nutmeg so I skipped that.)

Place a large, cast iron skillet over medium-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Toss in the cracked clove of garlic and cook for a minute or two to release its aroma and flavor. Add in the chard and wilt it down, about 2 minutes, then wilt in the spinach a few handfuls at a time. Season the greens with salt and pepper. (I couldn't find green chard so I used collards and they worked fine. Rachael says you can mix up the greens.)

Break the pasta sheets into large pieces. Toss them into the skillet and give them a good stir to incorporate them with the greens. Pour the sauce into the skillet, stirring again to evenly incorporate everything. Smooth the top down and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmigiano Reggiano over top of the lasagna. (I don't have a large cast iron skillet, so I wilted the greens in a big frying pan, then mixed everything together in a 9x13 casserole dish.)

Cover the skillet with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil from the pan and let it finish uncovered for about 15 more minutes to brown the cheese.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Hate

Hate is a strong, strong word. We have been taught all of our lives not to hate, but there is something that I hate. I loathe. I despise. I detest. It is something that crept into my family and robbed me of something very, very precious about 12 years ago. Alzheimer's disease stole my mother from me. She is in the very final stage of this war. There have been so many battles along the way and Alzheimer's has won each and every one of them but it is not the champion. My mom has fought with bravery against this beast. I hate Alzheimer's. I hate the way it allows worry to creep into my mind about my own life, about my daughter's life. I hate the way it stole the life from my mother's eyes and from her body. I hate the way it stole her voice from her. I hate the way it stole all of her abilities to do the very things I take for granted everyday.

She continues to wage war against this disease but it will have the victory in the here and now. My one and only peace is found in the FACT that it will not have the victory in what happens after she takes her final breath. She will be whole. She will know who she is. She will know her family stood beside her till the end. She will know the love that her husband of 50 years (this September) showed her in the final years of her life. She will KNOW! She will see her son who went before her so many years ago and she will hold the precious grandchild that escaped from my own womb this past January. She will KNOW them! Most importantly she will see her Jesus and she will KNOW his plan for this. She will KNOW why she waged war with this disease and be at peace with his plan for her life.

It literally breaks my heart into pieces when I really look at her and see her. She doesn't look like my mother. Her body is just a shell now housing her till she is called home. We are all amazed at how long she continues to fight. When I was pregnant with my daughter over 2 years ago, we didn't think she was going to make it to her birth, but she did. Then we felt like she held on for her first grandchild. Now 2 years have passed and she is still hanging on. Part of me hopes that she can hang on to this September when she and my dad will celebrate 50 years of marriage. A marriage that has been filled with much heart ache...being told you could not have a child, adopting a son only to lose him to leukemia at the age of 13, never fully recovering emotionally from this loss, being diagnosed with something as horrifying as Alzheimers. It has also been filled with joy...having a daughter that you were told you could not have, adopting a son and having so much joy and life filled into 13 years, being able to live your vows of in sickness and in health for others to see.

I don't know why the Lord hasn't taken her home yet. I have been at the point where I am ready for him to take her. She is not here anymore. She is not able to participate in life anymore. I have many regrets about my mom. When she was figuring out that something was wrong, I was busy with college, being engaged, getting married, being married. Those years were a flurry of being busy. I didn't realize the enormity of the situation that was going on with my mom. She never shared with me but I knew something wasn't right. I wish so much that I could go back and just be there with her, hold her hand and tell her how much I love her. I hope she knows that even now. I hope she knows that her baby girl loves her so much and misses her even more.

How often I will the phone to ring and for it to be her to ask me how my day is. How often I want to call her and cry to her about the heartache that I am feeling over this or that. How often I long to see her with my daughter playing. How often I just want to go out for lunch with her. How I just want to see her smile. None of these things are meant to be. There is a plan. It is a plan bigger than mine. Sometimes I wonder about this plan though when I see how Alzheimers has victimized my mother. It is faith that takes over and I have to trust and KNOW that He is in control even now, even when I talk to my mother and there is no sign of her knowing me, no life in her eyes, no voice left in her mouth. There is a plan. I trust that. I have to.

Murphy's

I'm back. I told you I would be. No hubby to steal my computer time. Ha! In my blog break, I scrubbed my cabinet fronts with Murphy's Oil and water. I hate the smell of Murphy's Oil. I don't know why because it is synonymous to the smell of clean. Or is it synonymous with the dying of brain cells from the chemicals in those products. Have any of you tried the green cleaning products? What do you think? What do you like? I've been wanting to try out the Clorox line of Greenworks. I just haven't run out of what I am already using and I do NOT waste cleaning products. I use up every bit of it. I turn the bottle upside down and then shake some water in it to get it ALL! That's so fun when the toothpaste is running out. I'm so joking! I don't do that with the toothpaste but I do squeeze the dickens out of it.

Now onto sewing. The reason I bring up Murphy's and sewing....it does come together, really. My parents had this old shelf that sat in their bathroom for as long as I can remember. It stored towels and different items. My dad took it out to the shed a few years back to make more room in their tiny bathroom. Yesterday, I stole it from them! I asked first! Ha! I needed somewhere to put my sewing things. Sewing has taken over my dining room. This shelf is perfect. It sits just inside my laundry room and can house my sewing things neatly in cute baskets and such. But after having spent a few years in the shed it needed a good scrubbing down with the Murphy's. Now it is clean and in place. Yeah for me! Now I need to make it cute with doilies and such. Here is a picture for now of what it looks like. And yes, that is the litter box there. Sorry!



















As for sewing....I have been have a heyday with those fabric baskets from Pink Penguin's blog. They are so fun to make! It is so fun to pick out the different fabrics to put together. I love vintage fabric so many of mine are made out of the vintage stuff. I have made some others too. I can usually whip one out in an hour after I have everything cut out. I try to cut extra when I'm cutting so I have some ready to go when I don't have time to cut. Aren't they so cute?















I have also been working on a new tote style. It isn't finished so I don't have a picture yet. I'll try to finish it and get a picture up soon. My sewing machine was giving me fits on Friday so I haven't been back at it since. I hope it was just the day and I'm not going to start having problems with it. That would make me sad!

My latest project will involve handmade things for my daughter's 2 year old birthday. I'm excited, but it's a secret, so shhhh...don't tell!

Patience?

I'm still here. This is the life of a woman whose family owns a laptop and whose hubby needs it all the time to record, mix and build new websites. I made him promise that I could have it all to myself one day this weekend while he is away at work. So now Peanut is asleep and I am blogging! Oh, the therapy that I need from blogging. It really is in a way therapy to me. I have always been an avid journaler. There is just something about getting all the stuff inside out. Those of you who know me well, will know that I am not a great verbal communicator. I am much more apt to sit with my journal and write my thoughts than to tell them to someone. It's in my blood on BOTH sides! Eeeks!

Back to therapy...let's just say that if they were passing out Mommy of the Day awards, I would not be getting one today. I hate it when my patience is running thin and I feel cranky. It seems to always happen when Daddy is gone at work or doing music. Go figure. I tried to be patient, I really did but it is HARD to try when it's just not there. I even took her outside!!!! That always works...but she must have felt my vibe because it didn't. I tried to weed the jungle that is growing in our flowerbeds and all she wanted was for me to hold her. So, I gave up and we came in. I don't know why I am so impatient today.

Speaking of my flowerbeds...why is that the weeds can grow enormous with just a few drops of rain but the flowers need torrents of rain to look nice. I hate weeding....I hate it so much that I often wonder why I bother with flowerbeds. That's easy...because I love flowers. It is definitely a love/hate relationship. Here are some of the beauties that are blooming right now out back

I adore DAISIESSSSSS! Did you know that? One of my favorite movies is You've Got Mail and I love the line that Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) says about them, "Don't you think Daisies are the friendliest flower?" They are! They're so happy. How can you look at a daisy and not smile. I wish they were easy to grow. I seem to have problems growing them. They are doing better this year. But the stupid bugs gravitate to them and eat the pretty petals right off! GRRRR.

I also love Lily of the Valley. What a beautiful scent! Let's see...tulips are my FAVORITE spring flower! I have them in a row along the ugly chain link fence by our driveway. In the spring the chainlink fence is even pretty. Ha!
































Friday, July 4, 2008

In the Army Now

I was just checking my facebook account and found this new pic of my bff. She is in Texas for Army basic training. She has had quite a lot happen to her while there....cellulitis in both legs, bitten on the face by a red ant, blisters from army boots, and I just found out she broke something in her tail bone! I got to talk to her on Monday night after she returned from 10 days in the field for training. She had just taken her first shower since they had gone out to the field. She said it was cold water but one of the best showers in her life! She survived the gas chamber with a gas mask and without too! I am completely amazed by her. And I am totally stealing this picture from her.

Right now she is spending a 3 day weekend with her hubby and two beautiful children who drove 20 hours to see her! I am praying that their time together will go ever so slow!

Here is my buddy a Second Lieutenant, she is the one one the right...the other girl is someone she has befriended while in training. Hope she doesn't mind her pic on my blog.

Monday, June 30, 2008

$4.43

My mother-in-law took my daughter and I to visit her daughter's family for a few days. We got home at 2 AM on Sunday morning. Needless to say I wasn't worth much on Sunday. So for supper I decided to order a pizza for Peanut and I as Daddy was at work. I hated to do spend the money but we need groceries and I didn't have a car to get out and do that with. So...pizza. I did however have a coupon for Papa John's. I ordered a large pan pizza with the works so we would have leftovers for lunch on Monday for us. Always thinking ahead! I also ordered a 2 Liter of Diet Coke for my survival needs.
The guy then said my total was $4.43.
I was like, "What?"
"The 2 liter is $2.43 and we add $2.00 for delivery charge."
I was like, "What about the pizza?"
"Your total is $4.43."

Now the guy was pretty cocky about his total and a little ticked that I was questioning his math skills, so I let it go and decided to work it out with the delivery person.

Well, the delivery person came and said, "Your total is $4.43."
I explained that I definitely owed more.
She said, "I would have to call them and he told you it was $4.43, so this is your lucky day!"
Ch-Ching!!!!! I felt really bad, but I had tried to work it out with 2 different people. The first didn't get what I was saying and the second didn't want to deal with it!

About 5 minutes later cocky guy called and asked if the delivery person was still there. Well, as a matter of fact, no she is not! I forgot to ask her in for some pizza and diet coke! Where are my manners? He wanted to know how much I paid and I said to him, "$4.43! I tried to explain it to you but you didn't get it and she said that's what you told me so that is what I owed." He wasn't too cocky at this point!
This was my good deal of the weekend! Cheap pizza and pop!
Lesson: Always recheck your math!

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Comments

I left a comment on Pink Penguin's blog about making her fabric basket. Today I visited her site and viewed her comments to find she had responded to mine. Now I think she is very talented so I don't take her kind words lightly. This is what she said:
"Daisy Path-
I went to see your baskets! Oh my! are you sure you got your sewing machine just recently?! You're talented! Your baskets are awesome! When I started sewing for the first time, the only thing I could do was to make very simple coasters. It took me 2 hours to make a coaster!"

Wow! She also left a comment on my blog:
"I like your little fabric basket! I like how you used fabric that is vintage-ish so that the result is kinda retro- I love it! And thanks for your kind words on my tutorial;) I might make another tutorial just like this fabric basket..;)"

Now I appreciate everyone's kind words but here is someone who doesn't know me from Adam. You all know me so I expect kind words from you. Ha! Thank you to everyone for your encouragement in my sewing venture. It has been fun.

5 Things

I was tagged by a friend....

What are five things on your to-do list for today?
1. Survive (got home really late from a trip last night and my daughter was up at 7am)
2. Nap
3. Eat
4. Watch movie
5. Read blogs
What are five snacks you enjoy?
1. Potato chips and french onion dip
2. Hawaiian bread and spinach dip
3. Popcorn
4. Fresh Peaches
5. Guacamole and chips
What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?
1. Pay off bills
2. Travel
3. Buy gifts for family
4. Get my own computer
5. Buy organic
What are five of your bad habits?
1. Interrupting
2. Spending too much time in blog world
3. Shedding (I lose hair all over)
4. Worrying about things
5. Holding things in
What are five places you have lived?
1. Sorry
2. I
3. Don't
4. Give
5. Out
What are five jobs you’ve had?
1. Preschool Administrator
2. Preschool Teacher
3. Cashier
4. Waitress
5. Finanical Administrator's Assistant

What five people do you want to tag?
1. Karen
2. Colleen
3. Chris
4. Julie
5. Krista

One Word

I am a sucker, I tell you. This One-Word meme is from a friend that I meant in college. Her blog is at Mommie Daze. Now she referred to me in one of her posts as her "old friend". Hmm....old? Ha! I know what she meant. I just wanted to raz her.

1. Where is your cell phone? floor

2. Your significant other? Honey

3. Your hair? clipped

4. Your mother? mimi

5. Your father? gigi

6. Your favorite thing? daughter

7. Your dream last night? none

8 Your favorite drink? coffee

9. Your dream/goal? skinny

10. The room you’re in? Living

11. Your hobby? sewing

12. Your fear? snakes

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? home

14. What you’re not? loud

15. Muffins? blueberry

16. One of your wish list items? camera

17. Where you grew up? Indiana

18. The last thing you did? blogs

19. What are you wearing? pj’s

20. Favorite Gadget? Laptop

21. Your pets? cat

22. Your computer? apple

23. Your mood? tired

24. Missing someone? Shannon

25. Your car? dead

26. Something you’re not wearing? socks

27. Favorite store? Target

28. Like someone? daughter

29. Your favorite color? brown

30. When was the last time you laughed? morning

31. Last time you cried? Tuesday

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Fabric Basket




I'm in Heaven. This is the cutest little thing EVER. I am so proud of my little project that I made during Peanut's nap today. It took me a little longer than naptime but Daddy's home and he let me finish. I did things like make box corners and bias tape for this one. Wow! I didn't have a clue but the awesome tutorial that I followed was wonderful. I think I want to crank out a bunch of these. They are perfect for gifts and baby nurseries and such. So, so, so, so cute and really not too hard. You can find the tutorial here at the Pink Penguin blog.

I have had so many of you comment about having sewing machines but not sewing. Pull that puppy out, dust it off and try. I sewed in high school for home economics class. Then around 2001 my mother-in-law helped me start a quilt for our bed but I never finished. Her mom actually finished it up for me, then mama-in-law quilted it. So it was kind of nice....all of our hands worked on it. But I haven't sewed since! And now I look forward to making things. It may be the newness of it all but there is something so rewarding about making something with your own hands.

I know a great teacher if any of you want one! She is my personal sewing trainer! Ha!

Blast from the Past















This morning my daughter discovered Mama's books. I have a stack of books from my growing up days in the back of her toy cabinet. She has never gone through them until now. She had them all spread out around her and we spent some time reading through them. Half of the stack are my Little Golden Books. Oh, the memories came flooding back of when I was little and looking through them. The pictures are so beautiful in some of them. I had to share a couple with you! There are many more but these are some of my favorites.

































Now onto bags! I tried to make a bag last night using some bamboo handles. I don't know....the handles and my sewing machine did not get along well. It was really difficult to keep the handles in place and sew. And even more exceedingly difficult to do the second handle because the first handle wouldn't fit in the space between the needle and the machine. I think I am going to have finish it by hand but am going to the mama-in-law for advice. Ha! It was late and I was tired so I'm not sure that I am all too happy with the turn out of this one. We'll see. Maybe it will grow on me. This is from the same pattern as the first bag I made....Simplicity Pattern #5151.

I checked a neat book out from the library about making quilted bags. There is the cutest patchwork tote with handles in it. It is all embellished with ric-rac and buttons. I want to try to make that one too. I need to see if my kind mama-in-law will let me go through her bits and pieces of fabric to find some pieces that go well together. We'll see.