Marlene's Many Hats

Candle Holders Ala Dollar

2011-11-06T20:54:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been seeing a lot of these Dollar Store candle holders on Pinterest.

No real tutorial needed. I just used E-6000 and glued them together.

One suggestion.....You might want to get out a level when you are gluing them. One of mine is a bit wonky. The glue is thick and it is easy to end up with it thicker on one side than the other. You then have a slightly leaning candle holder.

Here is a terrible picture of the final product. (A photographer I am NOT!) I'm going to use mine for the Senior Adult Christmas luncheon at church and I'm using Epsom Salt as the filler. In real life it is actually very sparkly, snow like and pretty.

Not bad for a $2 investment!

Wordless Wednesday - What I've Been Up To

2011-09-28T06:22:00.000-07:00

Nifty Fifty

2011-09-27T16:23:00.001-07:00

Last Wednesday my sister turned 50! My aunt sent me a message on Facebook saying that she, my mom and my sister were going for pedicures and then out for pizza on Karen's birthday and why didn't I come and join them. (Not sure why I didn't think of that myself!). SO.....I flew to Portland Wednesday.

The Birthday Girl!

Family Feet

Ages 50-73

Hard to tell from the group shot but I went for black and white polka dot!

After our pampering, we went to Mississippi Pizza

where Karen had a lot of friends come.

Marlene, Mom, Karen

And family.

We had a great time and I flew back to Arizona on Thursday. A quick trip but it was fun and I'm glad I went.

Happy 50th birthday, Karen!

Menopause Moment....

2011-09-06T07:40:00.001-07:00

Menopause sucks!

No one really tells you how much fun this is not going to be. Mmm. Maybe I knew but never believed it could happen to me. I would never be "one of those" that ended up with a "middle age spread". Afterall, I am a lifer at Weight Watchers. Just haul my sorry self back to the meetings and get my eating under control again. Right.

Then there are the hot flashes. Or, as I prefer to call it, "my faulty thermostat". Now, I live in Arizona. Being hot is normal. The difference? I was out running errands the other day. I walked into a store that was very cool. My first reaction was that it felt so good to hit that cool air. 20 minutes later my body was still trying to actually cool off. It is a wierd feeling to be in a 70 degree room and sweating.

Probably my least favorite part of all this are the short term memory lapses...

It was 10pm.

I was tired.

Washed my face. Brushed my teeth.

Reached in my pocket to get my phone so I could plug it in for the night.

It wasn't there.

Looked in the bathroom.

Looked in my chair. (Sometimes it falls out of my pocket there.)

Checked all over the house.

It was nowhere.

Finally decided I would call myself.

Guess where it rang?

In my bra.

I'm still laughing at myself over that one. Laughter really IS the best medicine. Learning to laugh at myself is a lesson I could have used in my younger days.

Think this will never happen to you?

It can.

It will.

Get ready.

2011

It Makes Me Giggle

2011-09-01T06:39:00.000-07:00

Back in the day

When we were dating

Scott was a disc jockey

At 17 it felt pretty cool to be dating a DJ

I listened to him every day

Loved the sound of his voice

I also enjoyed calling in requests

Even ones that annoyed him

Like this

I'm not in love with this cartoon version but it will have to do. I loved listening to John Denver back in the day. Goes back to my hippie roots.

I played the song for my girls this week.

Becky was annoyed. (She is her father's child.)

Katy was inspired.

Inspired to find other annoying songs.

Like Tiny Tim's "Tiptoe Through the Tulips"

(Katy clearly got some of my DNA.)

Also played it for Scott.

He was not amused.

It still makes me giggle. :)

The End.

Pinterest.....Christmas in August

2011-08-30T08:58:00.000-07:00

Aren't these the cutest candy bars ever? I do so love to decorate chocolate! The link will take you to a free printable of the wrapper. The hat is made with a single row of stitching. Easy peasy! Click HERE to get the instructions.

Can you tell I've got Christmas on the brain? Love love love this Nativity! Love the simple lines. Ok, love the fact that even I could do painting at this level. Love it so much that I am debating making 100 of them for my Senior Adult Luncheon this year. Some of you that know me may need to slap me upside the head before I even begin making that many..... Again, HERE is the link to the instructions.

This could be listed as "Why didn't I think of that"? Epsom Salt snow? Really. Love this look. Love the white on white. Love the canning jars. Simple Simon! Here's the Link although you probably don't need one for this one!

I have a love/hate relationship with games. I "think" I don't love to play games. Shannon and Peggy ALWAYS bring games to our family get togethers. I ALWAYS complain. They "force" me to play. There is lots of laughter and in the end I have a good time. This Christmas Bingo game caught my eye. Love the fact that it is not only printable but it is formatted to 5x7 size so you can send it to your local 1 hour photo place and have a great print of it. I could probably play Bingo.....without complaining....much. Here's the link!

Ok, peeps, now you've got some of my favorite Pinterest Christmas links! Now I need to get off the computer so I can get some actual (vs. virtual) crafting done!

Hello Pinterest

2011-08-29T12:34:00.000-07:00

This is Katy.

She reads my blog.

You won't find her on my list of followers.

She does, however, remind me when I haven't posted in awhile.

It's been awhile.

Like maybe a month?

I've been distracted.

With Pinterest.

I think it might be a disease.

Pinterestitis

I've got it.

Bad.

Have you tried it yet?

It really is addictive.

In the last couple of months since I started I've pinned 802 items.

802 possibilities

for cooking

crafting

partying

etc.

I'll never get it all created.

Try it.

You'll like it.

(Evil laugh)

Click on the button

on the right side of my page.

The red one that says Pinterest.

Need an invite so you can have your own distraction?

Send me your email address.

Vacation #2 and the Striped Room

2011-08-01T09:05:00.001-07:00

The girls' idea of vacation.
(Too much sun for me.)

Give me a cup of coffee, a book and a shady place to read.

(Now THAT'S vacation!)

Katy decided she wanted to paint her room black and white. The MINUTE we got home from the resort she started unloading her room! I have to confess. I was stressed about black and white stripes on the wall but I (mostly) kept my mouth shut. It is only paint, afterall. I was pleasantly surprised at the results. Katy did an awesome job! It gives her room a more grown up (and rather chic) look! She will be spending the first 2 years of college living at home so I figure this is her "dorm at home" room. She was anxious for her dad to see her work. He is a white walls kind of guy. (Boring!) He told her that would not normally be his thing but he thought she'd "earned her stripes". Ha ha. He can be a funny guy sometimes. Great job Katy!

Headed for home....

2011-07-22T09:11:00.000-07:00

10 days away from home is a lot.

Family reunion was great.

Temperatures were great.

I loved seeing the color GREEN again.

I loved spending time with family.

Time to say good-bye.

See you next time.

I can hardly wait to get off the plane and see this face! :)

Family Reunion

2011-07-19T14:00:00.000-07:00

This weekend was the White/Hipp Family Reunion. There was a lot of food, fun and silliness! Our first event was on Friday night. We had a picnic in the park. There was a blues band playing at the park that night.

Brother and Sisters!

Mark, Marlene and Karen

Quilts were used as backdrops for everything. This is one that my late grandma made. As you can see, we can never stay serious. :)

Second event was a cookout at another park. We grilled hot dogs and hamburgers at this one.

Love this veggie idea!

Final event was an afternoon to look at family heirlooms and pictures. The day ended with a banquet and a time of sharing stories.

My mom made this quilt. We used it as a backdrop for family pictures.

We can NEVER stay serious!

My aunt was a workhorse! Fran was the main planner for this family reunion. Lots of work! Thanks Fran! :)

Uncle Ray's t-shirt pretty much sums up the weekend!

Why is it so hard???? (Rant Warning!)

2011-07-12T14:18:00.000-07:00

One year ago today I started this blog.

One would think after a year that I would have it all figured out.

I don't.

Lately all it does is make me feel guilty for not posting on a regular basis.

I keep telling myself that I will do better......next week when my schedule eases up.

Next week comes and goes and nothing changes.

I am a stay at home mom.

Doesn't that mean that I have lots of time on my hands? (I get that a lot.)

One year.

365 days.

91 posts.

Averages out to once every 4 days.

Not great.

Not terrible either.

Next year's goal?

How about once every 3 days?

(Baby steps.)

Thank you to my faithful readers!

You make me smile.

You've encouraged me.

I'll see you......in 3 days. ;-)

The End

Summer is Here

2011-07-05T19:14:00.000-07:00

Arizona dust storm. One minute the sky was fine and I was getting ready to head to the store. Before I even got out the door everything changed. And yes, I know my photography skills are sketchy sometimes but the sky was REALLY this color!

Paper Roses - Happy Birthday Grandma!

2011-06-15T21:09:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had a family get together to celebrate my mother in law's 85th birthday. Mom is such a blessing to our family. We had a great time, laughing, sharing, eating tacos, candy and cake. Mom's favorite color is blue, her favorite flower is yellow roses and her favorite candy is Turtles. I used those favorites to inspire our decorations.

This was our little favor box. I found the idea for the paper roses here. They were so simple to make.

I first cut a piece of cardstock into a 4"x4" square.

The instructions say to cut your square into a circle. I found that it didn't have to be perfectly round so I just rounded the corners.

The petals look best if you cut your "round" kind of squiggly.

Starting from the outside cut your circle into a spiral, continuing to squiggle the line. (How is that for technical terminology?)

Starting from the outside roll into a tight coil.

Rolling tightly like this will help hold the shape of your flower.

Gently let the swirl/flower loosen in your hand. It is fun to watch it become a flower. :)

In the beginning I used my glue dots to hold the back down. Eventually I changed to the hot glue gun and I liked it better.

I have a die cut machine that I used to make leaves but they would be easy to cut out freeform.

Hot glue flower and leaves on to the favor box.

Again, I used a die cut machine to cut out my boxes. For this project I just cut out lids. 2 lids together were just right to hold one Turtle.

The small candy wrappers are printed on a regular address label. Very easy to design and they fit a Hershey's Nugget just right.

Happy Happy Birthday to my sweet Mother in law!

Yee Haw!

2011-06-06T22:35:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite themes is Western. The food and decorations are easy and easy is my favorite kind of party! Today I want to share a simple idea to go with that theme.

Got any old jeans????

Messed up jeans are the best. Gives this project personality.

Lay 'em out on the table. You're going to need a pair of good sewing scissors and some pinking shears.

Cut the bottom of the leg off from about the knee. I save this part to use as a gift bag. Just turn it inside out, sew the raw edges closed and turn it back. It is great for a number of things. Do you have door prizes for your party? Use these as a gift bag. They are just the right size to hold a bottle of your favorite beverage. Use raffia to tie the top shut. OR slide a vase into them and again, tie it on with raffia. Fill it with sunflowers and you have a great centerpiece for your western table.

Now take your sewing scissors and do a rough cut around the pockets.

Use your pinking shears to cut around the pocket close to the edges. You can start with the pinking shears if you like but I have found that that they are hard to use over the thicker seams.

Use these pockets to hold the silverware and napkin for your table settings.

A friend got me started collecting pockets when she loaned me hers for a Cowboy Christmas party I hosted at church. I've been collecting ever since. Picture a red check table cloth and red napkins in the pocket.

Please Pray....

2011-06-04T11:40:00.001-07:00

This is the week! Please say a prayer for Miz Ollie Faith. Her heart surgery is scheduled for Thursday. For more information click on the link in my sidebar and it will take you to her momma's blog. Thank you!

Wore Out.....

2011-06-02T10:01:00.000-07:00

Hello, my friends! Yes, I know it's been awhile! What a month we've had! Here is a photo recap of what we've been up to...

Becky's graduation from Arizona State University.

High School graduation for Katy.

500+ students on the field. Fortunately Katy was wearing red shoes so we spent our time looking for her red shoes amongst all of the blue and gold. Please forgive my photo (non)skills. I messed up the settings on my camera and almost all of them are blurry. Don't judge....lol.

This was especially hard to capture but they were throwing all sorts of blow up beach balls, a whale, a pink flamingo and atleast one rubber chicken. It was funny to see each new thing being tossed around.

The ceremony ended with a fireworks show.

We hosted a combined party for both girls graduations. Becky also celebrated her 22nd birthday on Katy's graduation night.

I found a fun idea to use in place of a relish tray on Pinterest! Unfortunately the link attached to it was broken so I can't tell you exactly where it came from. Love the idea of veggies in clear glass!

The party ended up going well. The menu was simple. We ordered bbq beef from a local restaurant. I made bbq beans and cole slaw to go with it. Added in chips, veggies, dip and grad cupcakes. I think I am much better at planning parties than hosting them. Worrying is one of my "gifts". At one point during the party, I looked out my kitchen window and the back yard was full of people, all of them visiting, all seeming to have a good time. Guess that's what it's all about. :)

In summary....

‎2 weeks, 5 visits to the airport, 1 college graduation, 1 high school graduation, 1 birthday, 1 party hosted, 1 party attended, much visiting, lots of family and friends, much joy, wore out.....

Stay tuned....I'm hoping to be back in the saddle again soon.....

Graduation

2011-05-22T06:43:00.000-07:00

Graduation.....Yes, 2 in one year!

So hard to believe you're all grown up!

From sandbox ballerina....

To high school graduate.....overnight!

Congratulations Katy!

We love you!

We're proud of you!

We look forward to seeing what the future holds. :)

There are no words....

2011-05-11T10:28:00.000-07:00

Boy Making Cards For 180,000 Troops

2011-05-09T06:32:00.004-07:00

Original story by Amy B. Wang, writer for The Arizona Republic

Ten-year-old Stephen Goodman, a fifth-grader in Surprise, Arizona, wants to send a thank you card to military personnel. Not to one platoon, or to just one division, but to every actively deployed service member in the U.S. military. Stephen said he thought of the idea while spending the summer with his grandparents in Phoenix. “My grandpa went to Vietnam and didn’t get any cards, and he felt forgotten,” he said.

Stephen started locally, creating and hand-delivering 218 Fourth of July cards for patients at the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center in Phoenix. The feedback was so thrilling and positive that Stephen started thinking: Why not send one to everyone deployed? He began paying attention to news reports. Somewhere, he gleaned the number of overseas troops to be 180,000. “I was really taken aback when he said he wanted to do one for all the troops,” said Stephen’s father, Steven Goodman. “I explained to him it was a big project, and because of what his intentions were, he would have to carry it out.”

Each thank you card is handmade, using “construction paper and scissor designs and markers and stickers and my imagination and that’s it.” according to Stephen. The entire family pitches in. So far, they’ve made about 15,000 cards. Vice President Joe Biden happened to catch Stephen’s story while traveling through Phoenix last August. Stephen got his own thank you in the mail. “It just said thank you for what I’m doing, the soldiers will appreciate it,” he remembered. The letter made Stephen’s summer. “It made me feel very excited to know that the vice president sent me something,” he said.

When all 180,000 cards are done, the Goodmans plan to take them to Luke Air Force Base where they will be delivered overseas all at once to make sure no soldier is over looked.

This month at our regular Spark a Smile card get together (Wednesday, May 11th, 5pm, at the Yang and Horsley Dental office) we will be making thank you cards to help Stephen with his project. Card supplies are pre-cut and ready for you to glue or tape together this time around. (Easy peasy!) .

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-07T08:44:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to Scott's Mom and my Mom!

Mom and I....back in the day, doing crafts at the kitchen counter. Some routines never change.

Mom and Grandma.

We miss you, Grandma.

Mom, reading her Bible out on a new tree stump "chair". She hated losing that tree. When the guys cut it down, they carved it into a spot for her to sit.

My girls. :)

Thanks for letting me be your MOM!

Happy Mother's Day!

Graduation

2011-05-06T09:56:00.001-07:00

Graduation.

Wasn't it just YESTERDAY that you looked like this?

Or this?

They said it would go by fast.

It sure did.

You always did have a lot of personality!

Congratulations!

We love you!

We couldn't be prouder!

Banana Bread

2011-04-30T22:57:00.000-07:00

The recipe I use for banana bread has been around awhile. I made it the first time in school during a home economics class. We've tried a number of other recipes over the years but this one is our favorite. A couple of years ago my mom sent me the original mimeographed recipe from high school. It obviously has drips and smears on it from years of use. Mom laminated it, drips and all, to keep it from getting any worse.

First you will need to collect your ingredients. You will need flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, eggs, butter or margarine, vanilla, milk, lemon juice and bananas. I will share the exact ingredients at the end of this post.

One of the ingredients listed is sour milk. I do this first, measuring my milk into the measuring cup and adding a few drops of lemon juice. You will also need 3 mixing bowls. One for wet ingredients, one for dry ingredients and one for mashing bananas.

The largest bowl gets the butter, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Blend them thoroughly. I used a hand mixer for this tonight because I was working on a triple batch of banana bread. Most of the time I just mix it up by hand.

Next measure out your dry ingredients. Flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. The actual recipe calls for a lot of sifting. I don't do that. I have wondered over the years if all the extra steps in this recipe were to teach us all the techniques back in high school.

Then mash your bananas in the 3rd bowl with a bit of lemon juice to keep them from browning. Normally I mash bananas with a fork but since I had the mixer out already I used it tonight. This calls for 2 bananas for each recipe. We like extra so I add an extra banana to each batch.

Now you will dump your measuring cup of sour milk into the large mixing bowl and mix it into the wet ingredients.

When you add the sour milk your batter will get kind of a lumpy look like it is separating. This is ok.

The next step is to alternate adding your bananas and flour mixture to the batter and only stirring as much as you need to. You don't want to over beat. I'm not super careful with this. I usually add 1/2 the bananas and then 1/2 the flour and repeat.

When your batter is all mixed up, pour into greased loaf pans. I fill about 2/3 full. Bake at 350 degrees until done and lightly browned.

This is the end result. Yummy!

Banana Bread

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2 cups sifted flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sour milk (add a few drops lemon juice to fresh milk to make it sour.)

1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

2 bananas

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a separate bowl mix butter, sugar, egg and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Add milk and mix.

Mash bananas well and have them ready to add to the butter sugar mixture alternating with the flour. Stir only as much as necessary.

Pour mixture into a well greased pan and bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove from pan while still warm. Bread can be frozen to be served at a future date.

Easter 2011

2011-04-29T17:43:00.000-07:00

Easter Eggs Everywhere!

Anxiously Awaiting for the Eggs to be Hidden!

Superhero Myles!

Princess Bailey

Princess Anna!

Andy's dad and brother hid his eggs in HARD places!

The teenage cousins hanging out.

Going through their Easter Eggs!

Family :)

Posing with their capes on. This wasn't so easy because it was windy and they were blowing everywhere!

It was a fun day. I always wish all of the cousins could be here.

Closer and Closer......

2011-04-28T17:02:00.000-07:00

I really don't know what to make of this owl! Scott is out in the back yard mowing the lawn and the owl is not only out there but in a lower to the ground tree! I am amazed at the pictures he's letting me get.

Another Encounter....

2011-04-28T13:18:00.000-07:00

Zoe (my little rat terrier) was barking like crazy a little while ago. I looked out the patio door and there was our owl friend again. I am surprised at how unafraid he is of us. I took my first pictures from inside the house and decided to walk outside. He just sat there watching me while I shot pictures and walked towards him.

I shared the first pictures with my neighbor and he expressed concern about the owl. He indicated that a large owl will sometime scoop up and take off with a small animal. Miz Zoe is only 15 lbs. Truth is, I hadn't expected to see the owl out during the daytime. Zoe is in the house mostly at night. I figured an owl would be sleeping during the day. Not sure if I should be concerned or not. What do you all think?

An Unusual Encounter.....

2011-04-27T07:33:00.002-07:00

You may remember I blogged in March about the owl that was hanging around our house. I was hoping he would stay around and scare away the birds that were hanging out over my clothesline. Katy has started calling him Hootie. Not only are the birds not afraid of him, I've seen the smaller birds swoop down and ruffle his feathers. Literally! I was able to get a couple of pictures of him.

I'm amazed at how big he is!

He seems to move around often but lately we've been seeing him up in the palm tree a lot.

I tried to get a close up so you can see. When taking this picture, we discovered that there were actually 2 owls up there! They are not very easy to see but I marked the picture so you could get an idea of where they were. The day we took these pictures, they were up in the palm tree watching Becky and I plant flowers. It was a wierd feeling to have those big eyes watching us. We could see his eyes from down on the ground and it is a very tall tree!

THEN.....a funny thing happened. Becky was the only one home. She heard a knocking on the patio door. She got up to investigate. This is what she saw......

Not only was he there but he stayed and allowed her to take pictures.

She said each time the flash would go off, Hootie's wings would spread.

Becky ended up covering the doggie door. She was afraid he might actually come in.

It's been interesting getting know Hootie. :)

Easter.....The Preview

2011-04-19T13:06:00.000-07:00

I love Easter! It's the one family get together that I always host. :) Every year I try and come up with some fun new ideas. Here is a preview of some of the things I have done this year.

Signs to hang all over the yard!

Easter eggs filled and loaded into color coordinated bags. Each child has a color so we can hide them according to their ages.

"Peep"er Dolls printed and ready for our 2 youngest girls. I thought it would be fun for our moms, grandmas and aunts to help cut them out while we visit. You can find these to print yourself here.

Target centerpieces put together and ready to go for the outside tables. Extra eggs waiting for me to go to the bank and get a stack of dollar bills to fill them. I love this tradition. It started when my girls were young. One suggestion.....Never send your husband to the bank to get these dollar bills. (He's better off to not know what you spend on Easter. Tee hee.)

Enough marshmallow shooters for every kid and some of the adults to have one. Instructions for these are here.

Chip clip favors for the grown ups to take home.

Jewel eggs to be filled with a little CA$H for the teenagers. They hide the eggs for the little ones for me. Kind of a bummer to get too old to hunt for eggs. I like to do something for the bigger ones too. :)

Well there you have it. Next on my list is to make my grocery list and get my house cleaned up. I'm looking forward to Sunday! How about you? What kind of fun things are you doing for Easter?

I Have a Friend.....

2011-04-02T09:21:00.000-07:00

I have a friend. (Yes it's true.)

Her name is Janelle.

She is a dentist.

Her husband is a dentist.

Her mom is a dentist.

Her (late) dad was a dentist.

They started taking care of my teeth when

Janelle was 4 or 5. (Geez, that makes me feel old!)

Janelle made an announcement recently!

I'm so excited for them!

Babies are so fun!

I found the coolest site! Robin at Soggy Bottom Baby Duds can make anything! I WISH I could sew like her! I got "inspired" when I found this adorable little Tooth Fairy pillow on Robin's Etsy Site!

I messaged Robin to see if she could make one of her (already very cute) pacifier clips and wrist rattles with one of these little teeth on them. She was so much fun to work with! I feel like I made a new friend!

I think she outdid herself!

Thanks Robin!

Best Wishes Janelle and Phil!

Graduation Tutorial - Cupcake Picks

2011-03-31T11:46:00.000-07:00

Decorated cupcakes are all the rage these days. You can find a lot of cupcake picks to purchase online, print and cut yourself. That is a fine option BUT they really are fun to make on your own! Here is a tutorial for the graduation picks I am working on.

You will need a couple of craft punches. My favorite brand is EK Success! I do a lot of projects in large quantities and I learned the hard way that not all punches hold up over the long haul. For this project I used the 2 inch scallop and 1.5 inch round punches.

I punched 2 pink scallops and 1 round polka-dot. I cut out the grad cap using my Cuttlebug. You could substitue a sticker or another round punch for the grad cap. You will also need one mini brad and a pick. The picks I used are a little larger than a toothpick. I found them in the craft section.

For this project I used double stick tape as my adhesive instead of using my sticker maker. Wanted you to see both options. I usually just do an "X" of tape on the back of the round and then stick it onto the pink scallop.

Once your polka dots are on there, turn the scallop over and double stick tape the back. I use more tape for this side. Usually 3 pieces. Also fold a piece of tape over the top of your pick and then place it on the scallop.

Line up your other scallop and sandwich the pick between the 2. Make sure it's stuck good.

Poke a miniature brad into the top of your grad cap. You can go ahead and bend out the legs of the brad on the back. This is just for decoration.

Next, cover your grad cap with double stick tape.

Stick the grad cap to the blank scallop.

I think these will be really cute at our graduation party!

Wordless Wednesday.......Zucchini

2011-03-30T06:26:00.002-07:00

Graduation Tutorial - Candy Bars

2011-03-29T08:48:00.000-07:00

This year we have a double graduation at our house! Becky graduates from Arizona State University and Katy graduates from high school. I've been working on a get together to celebrate. I thought I would share some simple tutorials on what I've been making.

This one is for a candy bar wrapper. I used the snack size Hershey bars. We are "coloring out of the lines" on design. The girls have chosen black and white and pink instead of using their school colors for this party.

Here is a picture of the front and back design.

I purchased a set of graduation dies. I use a Cuttlebug to cut out my shapes but these dies are from Sizzix. Most brands can be used with my Cuttlebug.

I used the diploma die on the candy bar because it was the perfect size. Ended up deciding to personalize my diplomas. It was a challenge to get the wording in the right place! Basically I created an outline box about the size of the die. Added text boxes to add the words. Print and cut about 20 times until you get the words in the right place. You totally don't have to add names if you don't want to but I think it adds to the project to have it personal.

This is my Cuttlebug. I love this machine! I like it because it is totally low tech and that fits with my personality! You start by laying your die face up on the cutting mat.

Add your paper on top of the die.

Top it with another cutting mat.

Crank it through the machine.

Comes out the other side perfectly cut!

In order to have the bow on my diploma pink, I ran a piece of pink paper big enough to cover the bow section of the die. It was very easy to clip away the excess and just have the bow.

Next is to wrap the candy bar. I start by taping back the flaps. This project was a lot easier when candy bars were wrapped in foil and then paper.

Next wrap your candy bar in a foil wrapper. I buy mine pre-cut from foilman.com . He sells pre-cut sheets in all different colors and specific sizes for different candy bars. They run about .05 or .06 a sheet. Basically they are made of paper backed foil like foil giftwrap. You could buy giftwrap and do it yourself but I like having them all cut out for me.

Wrap it like a present. Pull it around the long way first and tape it down. I usually run my finger along the edge to get a crisp square edge.

Fold the ends up and tape them down as well.

I found this cool sparkly polka dot cardstock and cut pieces to go on the back of the candy bar. Use double stick tape to hold it down.

Another one of my favorite gadgets is my Xyron Sticker Maker. I put both the diploma and the bow through this little gadget and it comes out the other end with sticky on the back!

Peel off the plactic topping and then you can peel off your bow and stick it to the diploma cut out.

Then just peel and stick onto the front of your candy bar.

I know this seems like a lot of steps for one little candy bar but it's really not so bad. I usually do it in segments. (Do all the cutting, wrapping or whatever at once.) It's a great project while you're watching TV in the evening.

A Time To Plant....

2011-03-23T07:02:00.000-07:00

Senior Adult Appreciation Day

2011-03-21T06:50:00.000-07:00

My photography skills leave a lot to be desired! Here is a peek at the day yesterday.
Cute but not perfect. It's hard to 125 of anything! I think they enjoyed the cuteness. :)

Simple tables.

Some of my very able, very tired helpers!

He cooked 150 burgers in an hour!

Recap of the day: The cupcakes were a hit! They were, however VERY time consuming. I'm not sure I would do them again in this kind of quantity. I did as much as I could ahead but the brightly colored frosting really needs to wait until you are ready to put them out. If you frost them ahead and they touch each other, it looks like a mess instead of ketchup and mustard. 5 of us worked assembly line style to get them frosted and it worked well. Do you suppose "Bakerella" has staff for this kind of stuff? :)

Vacation....

2011-03-17T08:33:00.000-07:00

Happy to go on vacation.......

Always happy to come home again!

What was I thinking?????

2011-03-10T10:21:00.000-07:00

I LOVE reading blogs!

I especially love finding new ideas for crafty things!

I also enjoy planning events.

Right now I'm working on a Senior Appreciation Sunday at church. We will serve lunch to our senior adults March 20th. Sunday events are a challenge because we can't do any of the set up until Sunday School is over at 10:30. We expect to serve about 125 people around noon. This year we will cook hamburgers on the grill. A fairly easy menu with lots of prep work being done ahead.

I found the cutest idea for dessert! Bakerella made hamburger cupcakes and sugar cookie french fries! She even provides a pdf of the packaging!

So much cuteness!

What was I thinking?

125 of these?

Oh my!

Guess I better get busy.....

Baby Burp Cloths

2011-03-08T06:58:00.000-07:00

22 years ago when I had my first baby we didn't have any burp cloths. My mom was visiting at the time and purchased a dozen cloth diapers (the flat kind), folded them in thirds and stitched them down. They were the best! Soft, absorbent, bleachable, durable. They lasted through both of my girls! I recently found a tutorial (here) on "Make and Takes" for decorating burp cloths. Easy to make and so cute! I am headed to a baby shower this weekend and decided to make a set.

I purchased the diapers that are thicker in the middle.

This baby is going to be a girl so I got lots of girly ribbon.

Pin the trim onto the diapers. Stitch it down. Simple sewing at it's easiest!

I love the idea of having something pretty to use for such an icky job!

One side note: You'll notice I used satin ribbon to bind the edges of these. In the original tutorial she used bias tape. Unfortunately bias tape is not available in my town since Wal-Mart got rid of their fabric department. The satin feels wonderful but because it likes to slip and slide, I ended up stitching it on by hand.

A New Friend

2011-03-04T07:06:00.000-07:00

I enjoy using the clothesline.

Not for everything.

Mostly for sheets, towels and blue jeans.

Yes, the towels are rough.

But they are so much more absorbent!

There is a tree next to my clothesline.

Perfect to shade me in the hot AZ sun.

It has also become home to pigeons.

Lots of them.

Not a good over your laundry.

I miss using my clothesline.

Last year I read:

buy a plastic owl.

Birds are afraid of owls.

Move it around your yard to keep them away.

I never got it done.

About a month ago

an owl moved into one of our trees!

We heard his sound first.

Whoooo. Whoooo.

Only in the night.

He's outside Katy's bedroom window.

She's not thrilled.

I'm beyond excited.

The real thing!

I hope he stays!

I think I'll go to the store today.

Time to re-string the clothesline.

Might even spring for some new clothespins.

Wordless Wednesday.....Coming Soon!

2011-02-23T09:04:00.001-07:00

Marshmallow Shooters

2011-02-21T20:50:00.001-07:00

Another Easter project! I found this idea on "Make It Do" . It's called a Marshmallow Shooter and it is SO much fun. I made these last night and the girls and I "tried them out". You would not believe how far you can shoot a marshmallow with this little gadget!

Notice I forgot the T connector in this picture!

To make one shooter you will need the following:
1/2" PVC pipe. A total of 14" of it cut in:
(Two 2" pieces, Two 3" pieces and One 4" piece)
2 elbows
1 straight connector
1 T-connector
1 cap
One note: PVC connectors come 2 ways. Some are threaded and some are not. You want the plain jane and very cheap non-threaded ones. Also be sure and purchase all 1/2" product. I had to really pay attention when I was buying my stuff. It wasn't all that organized at the store.

I ended up purchasing a pvc pipe cutter. It cost me about $12 at Home Depot but seemed worth the cost because I was making a bunch of these. The project went VERY fast using these cutters!

The parts all laid out! It is so easy to put together! Just push one end into another.

The finished product! You put the marshmallow into the mouth end (left) and blow it out. Believe it or not, the marshmallow not only blew all the way through but it hit the wall on the other side of the room the first time I tried it!

Of course I couldn't make just 1! I made a total of 16 of these puppies and it only took a couple of hours including all the cutting! Total cost: $26 not counting the tool. That's less than $2 apiece.

Becky woke up with a marshmallow stuck to she and her sheets. She left this note for Katy. LOL!

I'm picturing all of my nieces and nephews having a great time with these and Zoe (the dog) enjoying chasing marshmallows. :)

How to Make a Superhero Cape

2011-02-17T18:11:00.001-07:00

I first found this idea at oohdeedoh. I am making them for our family Easter celebration. The way I do our Easter egg hunt is to assign each child an egg color. That way we can hide the eggs hard or easy depending on the age of the child. This year I am making each of them a Superhero cape to match their egg color.

You will need one t-shirt for each child.

First cut the sleeves off at an angle as shown.

Then cut open the sides of the t-shirt on each side.

Lay open the shirt.

Cut away the front of the shirt about 1/4" away from the edge.

Now you have a basic cape shape.

I used Wonder Under (Iron on adhesive) to attach my decorative shapes. I used a dessert plate to draw the circle you see and then ironed it on. Cut around the circle and peel off the backing.

Iron the circle on to the cape.

I made 5 of these capes so I juggled the t-shirt fabric left over from the front of the shirt to make the designs.

I made my neices "Princess Superheros"!

The boys got a lightning bolt and their initial.

I took one of the leftover sleeves and made a "mask" for each child.

I found all of my design shapes on the computer and printed them on cardstock. Cut them out and then traced them onto the Wonder Under. Remember if you use letters on yours to turn them over and trace them backwards. Then when you iron them on you will be right.

I'm looking forward to seeing my Superhero nieces and nephews hunting for Easter eggs in their color coordinated capes!

Spaghetti Sauce a la Marlene!

2011-02-16T18:12:00.000-07:00

About 5 years ago I was watching a local morning tv show and "Chef Dad" was sharing how to make his spaghetti sauce. I decided to try it and with a few changes we love it! Here is my version.....

The ingredients are basic and it is very easy to put together!

First I measure my seasonings into a pyrex dish. 1 Tbsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. basil flakes, 1 tsp. black pepper, 1 tsp. sugar, 1 tsp. crushed red pepper (or to taste.)

In a dutch oven measure about 2 Tbsp. olive oil and add chopped onion to taste. In this batch I used 1 and 1/2 onions because they were very large. Saute onion until tender.

This is where it gets a little wierd! Not everyone in my family likes mushrooms. I think it's not so much about the flavor but the texture. SO, I add a full 16 oz. of mushrooms to the sauce but I run them through my Salad Shooter on the grater setting. We don't usually add meat to our sauce and the mushrooms give it texture and color. So far no one has complained about them. :)

The recipe calls for 1 Tbsp. garlic salt. I use the minced garlic in the jar. Either is ok. Add it now.

Next dump in 3 28 oz. cans of tomatoes. I use 3 different kinds of tomato products:

28 oz. finely chopped tomatoes

28 oz. tomato puree

28 oz. crushed tomatoes

You can really use whatever tomatoes you like but these 3 give my sauce the texture I want.

Now dump in your seasonings.

Stir it all up, cover it and simmer for about 15 minutes. You are done!

I love the texture of this sauce! It makes enough to serve us dinner and make 3 more containers to freeze for future use.

Here's the recipe recap:

Spaghetti Sauce a la Marlene!

28 oz. finely chopped tomato
28 oz. tomato puree
28 oz. crushed tomato
1 Tbsp. salt
1 Tbsp. garlic salt (or minced garlic)
1/2 tsp. basil flakes
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp. olive oil (I never measure this, just eyeball it. It's for sauteeing your onions.)
1 large (16oz) package of mushrooms
1 1/2 large onions, chopped

In a dutch oven saute onions in olive oil until tender. Grate mushrooms directly into the onions and saute some more. Add minced garlic and mix. Dump in your tomatoes and seasonings and stir. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.

About the red pepper: The original recipe called for 1 Tablespoon of red pepper flakes. We did that and could hardly stand to eat it! It was SO hot! (And we like hot food!) In our sauce I add 1 tsp. You might want to start with 1/2 tsp. instead if you're not sure about the heat. It really adds a nice bite without being really hot in my opinion.

You can add other veggies to this sauce as well. Sometimes I will grate a zucchini into it. It's a great way to hide veggies from your kids.

One year....

2011-02-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

One year ago.

It was our Spark a Smile

card making get together.

No one showed up but Janelle and I.

We still made cards and chatted.

Her dad called her a couple of times.

Just checking on her.

Janelle and I talked about the fact that her dad and her husband were going hunting early the next morning.

They had a great time.

The next afternoon I got a call.

There was a terrible accident.

Their truck was hit by a train.

I couldn't believe it.

It had to be a mistake.

Her dad was killed instantly.

Her husband was thrown from the truck.

He survived.

It was a long recovery.

It's hard to believe it's been a year. I feel priviledged to have been there when Janelle got those last calls. I still have a hard time believing Dr. Gene is gone. Tomorrow friends and family will get together to remember. And to celebrate getting through this first year. We miss you Dr. Gene.

Hugs are Awesome!

2011-01-22T11:37:00.000-07:00

Jenn from Living a Changed Life shared the following video this week on her blog. I have to say, like her, I am not usually into forwards. I was surprised at my emotional response to this. Hope you all enjoy it. I thought it was awesome.

Wordless Wednesday - Dining Room Crafting Area

2011-01-19T10:09:00.000-07:00

Working Ahead....

2011-01-15T09:41:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to work ahead on some of my projects. The last several years I have had some kind of hand made "goodie" to give out to my senior adult ladies at church on Mother's Day. I came across this idea on the "Organize and Decorate Everything" blog. I love that it is simple to make, inexpensive and useful! I started out using a stamp set that I already owned. Individual letters, one at a time was taking too long.

SO! I used a coupon at Michael's and purchased a set of clear alphabet stamps.

With these stamps you can use an acrylic base and create a whole word. Makes the stamping go much faster. I used (the recommended) Staz-On ink pad. It is designed to be used on non-porous surfaces that you usually couldn't stamp on because the ink wouldn't dry. I'm not sure it was necessary on wooden clothespins.

At my local grocery store they had clothespins that were bamboo. In retrospect, I think they would have been an excellent choice for this project and the Staz-On would have worked well on bamboo.

I had a hard time keeping the ink from soaking in and having a smeary look. As I worked, I discovered that a light touch with the stamp was the key. You want to push the stamp hard enough to get a good imprint but not stay long enough to put too much ink on the clothespin.

Of course I can never do small quantities of anything. :-) I made 100 sets of 6 clothespins. It really didn't take all that long using the new letter stamps. A couple of evenings at the kitchen table.

Here is my finished product. You can see they are not perfect. :) However, I think they will be a fun to hand out on Mother's Day.

The Gift of Memories

2011-01-07T07:18:00.000-07:00

Recently I shared with you about the loss of our friends, George and Florence Webb. George was the Pastor that married us in 1978. In 1979 our church celebrated the Webb's anniversary with a hand made quilt. Each of the families at church embroidered a quilt block with their name on it. Because they didn't have children, George's nephew asked if we would like to inherit this quilt. We were thrilled! So many memories! I believe my grandma had a part in the actual putting together and/or quilting. She had just retired and was doing a lot of quilting at the time.

This block is my husband's parents and youngest brother.

This is my aunt and her 2 children.

This is grandma's block and I love the fact that it is her handwriting!

This is us! Young, just married, before children and oh so in love!

The quilt is huge! It is a generous king size! We are so excited to have this special gift. Lots of memories come back as we read all the names from our past......

A Gift From the Heart

2011-01-06T15:33:00.000-07:00

This year for Christmas, my mom made a quilt for each of the girls. Mom is a pretty amazing seamstress! I think the quilts are.....you guessed it......AWESOME! :-) Just thought I'd share a few pictures.

Katy's Quilt

Love the multi-color stitching on Katy's cowgirl quilt!

I think it looks great in Katy's room with the pink wall and black sofa.

Becky's Quilt

High heels seemed like a perfect choice for Becky's quilt! Miz Becky is a little "height challenged" and she wears high heels a lot. I am always amazed that she can walk in those things!

I did NOT inherit the quilting gene. My girls can't even sew a button or hem a pair of pants. LOL. Makes us especially appreciative of these quilts. I think mom did an AWESOME job!

Thankful

2011-01-04T09:53:00.000-07:00

I was thinking about how long it's been since I've written on here and came across this post I had started before Thanksgiving and never used. Decided "thankfulness" should be a year round event so here you go. I am so thankfull for my girls. They bring a lot of JOY to our home. I can't imagine life without the spark they add.

Who ARE these old people and how did they get that way? I am thankful for the man that has loved me all these years!(My mother in law, my girls and my mom.)

Thankful for family!

(Marlene, Mark, Karen)
Thankful for my brother and sister.

Thankful for friends.
Alice, on the left, has been my neighbor for more than 25 years!

Kathi, on the right, is a friend. Kathi and I sit together every Sunday in church. Someone asks almost every week if we are sisters! It always makes us laugh. We do look a lot alike. We also have the same hairdresser. :-)

I'm thankful that my brother works for the airlines which allows me to travel to my mom's house every year and play in her craft room!

I'm thankful for my friend, Janelle, who got me started card making this year. This was an especially difficult year for her. I think the crafting was therapudic for both of us!

Thankful for my friend, Marilyn! Lunches out, shopping trips, hair appointments, decorating advice, etc. Friends since before I had children, wrinkles or a middle age spread!

If you are reading this, I am thankful for YOU! Blogging is a new challenge for me this year. I am thankful for your comments, imput and help along the way!

Wishing you a happy 2011!

Friendship is Awesome!

2010-12-23T09:36:00.001-07:00

100 Awesome Things!

2010-12-21T09:34:00.000-07:00

Over at Jeanette's blog I found this video and the idea behind is simply awesome.

My friend Paula shared the link for this blog. I LOVE this idea! I am going to do a whole year of awesome. That's just 2 things a week to help me focus on what is awesome in my life! I am making it my project for 2011.

I joined in this project for next year! Check it out and spread the word!

Senior Christmas Luncheon 2010

2010-12-17T08:10:00.000-07:00

Decorations

Food

Visiting

Helpers :-)

Entertainment-Jo the Storyteller

Clean up

2010-12-14T09:47:00.000-07:00

I was "reminded" last night by my daughter Katy that it has been a LONG time since I've done a new blog post. This from the child that isn't even a "follower" of my blog. LOL. SO I thought I would post some pictures of what has been keeping me busy lately.

36 goodie bags ready to be handed out at the children's department Christmas party.

100 bags filled and ready to hand out to all the children at the Christmas Eve service at church.

60 Christmas cards. Hand made. Addressed. Almost ready to mail. I'm especially grateful for a husband that doesn't mind writing a fun family "letter". From time to time that journalism degree he has comes in handy at home!

"Treats" to hand out at the family get together this weekend. We don't really exchange gifts per se but I love to send a little something fun (and not too expensive) home with each family and each kiddo. These are probably my favorite things to shop for. I guess you could say they are a fancy party favor.

So you see.....lots of detail work filling my time this month. (And yes, I am occasionally bogged down by the quantities!)

Next event? The senior adult luncheon this Thursday. More pictures to come then!

Worth it All.....

2010-12-04T13:04:00.000-07:00

Remember the Teddy Bears??? The party I made them for was last night. I was at my sister in law's wedding last night but got the following Facebook message today:

"Ian liked the bear you made. He says it has a green ribbon bow on with a heart on its body. He named it Beary because it is a bear. He says it does not talk because it is not real. It is a toy. All your hard work made one very happy Ian. Thank you!"

Nothing better than making a child happy! :-)

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

2010-11-30T22:05:00.000-07:00

A Sweet Celebration

2010-11-29T06:30:00.008-07:00

The Messy Details

The Bride Arrives!

Our backyard is transformed.

Simple centerpieces.

Coconut Creme Brulee!

LOVE a banner!

Personalized candy.

Lots of visiting!

LOTS of presents!

"You made HOW MANY hair accessories?
58 to be exact!

Sweet messages.

Sweet friendship!

Amazing Grace

2010-11-17T06:01:00.004-07:00

Katy Goes to Washington! Part 2

2010-11-16T05:16:00.006-07:00

Katy is home from Washington! Just thought I'd share a couple of her pictures. She talked about how cool it was to see these things in person. Kind of fun to be this close to the White house and be able to peek (even from a distance) into the windows.

She loved the Lincoln Memorial! Pretty impressive up close!

Katy's Facebook page says "Who knew trees could be so colorful"! Only from an Arizona girl!

I'm glad she had a great time!

Katy Goes to Washington!

2010-11-11T14:55:00.006-07:00

Katy left this morning at 3am for Washington DC with her DECA group. This is the first picture to come through from her cell phone. It is exciting for me to think of her actually being there!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-11-10T01:11:00.000-07:00

Mixed Emotions...

2010-11-09T06:12:00.004-07:00

I'm feeling an odd mix of emotions today. Yesterday we attended the funeral of our good friend and former Pastor, George Webb. I am feeling sad at the loss but thankful for all he meant to us. I met he and his wife, Florence when I was about 14. I was visiting my grandparents in Holbrook, Arizona. Florence was my Sunday School teacher that summer.

(George, our friend Bill, Florence)

After graduation from high school, I ended up moving to Holbrook. I didn't exactly plan to stay there (It is a very small town!) but found a job and ultimately met and married my husband. George performed the ceremony.

Over the years, we maintained a close friendship with George and Florence. They were with us for all of the important events in our life.

Florence passed away about a year ago. I think George has been ready to go ever since. Their life was a 68 year love story. I'm hoping for the same.

I miss you, my friends.

(But I'm happy you're together again.)

Love you!

Friendship and Crafting.....

2010-11-07T06:47:00.006-07:00

Yesterday I was in a bit of a funk! Right now I am juggling creative stuff for 3 events. A little stressful but I can manage the busy work. My problem was trying to come up with the right design for one of the favors I am working on. I just couldn't seem to make it come together. Ended up with a big mess of paper and cut outs on the kitchen counter and no real inspiration.

I plopped down in my chair and pulled up Facebook to take a little break and re-group. My card making buddie, Janelle, happened to be on at the time and we started chatting about the project. Her comment to me was "let's talk it through". So we did. Our talking led to her designing a piece of the project. (She is a wiz on Photoshop!) Once that piece was done, the project came together in a hurry! I headed out to Michaels to purchase the supplies and had all the parts all cut out by the end of the evening (A lot of cutting.....200 for this event!)

I was re-energized with the help of a friend! SO, I just wanted to say THANK-YOU Janelle! You really Sparked a Smile today!

(And here's the final product!)

Wordless Wednesday

2010-11-03T07:30:00.002-07:00

Costumes....Through the Years

2010-10-29T13:02:00.007-07:00

Becky
Becky, Anna and Bailey

Bailey and Katy

Poor Andy! If you're a boy cousin in this family, it is pretty much guaranteed that the girls will dress you in a tutu and take your picture at some point!

Even at Christmas the cousins of all ages play dress up!

Becky, Beth, Ryan and Katy-Bop

Exercise

2010-10-27T12:18:00.005-07:00

It's been a long time since I've exercised. Today I started riding my bike again. My friend, Marilyn, brought her bike over and we rode together.

Lots of cobwebs and dust on my bike. How does a stay at home mom clean a bike?

With a vacuum cleaner of course. (You didn't think I was going to touch all those spider webs, did you?

Finished the job with Endust and a rag. My neighbor (and die hard biker) would have died laughing if he could have seen me vacuuming my bike.

We rode. We visited. It wasn't so bad. Why is it so hard to make myself exercise when it is so good for me?

Katy

2010-10-25T08:24:00.012-07:00

Katy is the baby of the family. When she was born, I became a stay at home mom. Learning to be a SAHM was a big adjustment. I had been in the work force for 16 years. To get me out a bit, I began to do some volunteer work at church. Katy was my helper.

She was such a cutie pie!

I love this picture of her in the sand box in her tutu. :)

She is heavily involved in DECA at school. This year she is the president!

Don't be fooled though. She can be a wild thing!

She loves to take fun and crazy photos!

This is her friend, Kelli. They drive matching cars!

She adds a lot of joy to our family. :-)

Friendships That Endure....

2010-10-23T07:03:00.004-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about friendship lately. Friendship that lasts a lifetime is rare and to be cherished. Becky (my oldest daughter) met Caitlin in the church nursery. They "met" in the baby room. They've been on my mind lately because Caitlin is getting married soon and I've been helping Becky (her maid of honor) plan a wedding shower for her.

While they have had some similarities in their lives (we attend the same church), they have also had differences (Caitlin was homeschooled and Becky went to public school). Their personalities are very different but complimentary.

Currently they are both seniors in college. Caitlin in California and Becky in Arizona. Of course, Becky's first "road trip" was to California to visit Caitlin.

So far, this "forever" friendship has been going for 21+ years. I expect it will last.

I'm looking forward to the next chapter.....

Spark a Smile Turns One!

2010-10-18T06:28:00.004-07:00

A year ago I began attending a monthly card making group. We call ourselves "Spark a Smile". The cards we make are donated to a number of organizations. This month we celebrated with a birthday party! We had carrot cake. :-)
We also made birthday cards to donate. It was our biggest turn out ever and a lot of fun.

Carrot Cake

2010-10-14T14:25:00.004-07:00

Carrot cake is a favorite family recipe. I'm not a big cake eater but IF I'm going to have cake, this is the one I want! The ingredients are amazingly simple for how yummy it is!

You need to grate your carrots. I have a Salad Shooter that I use for this. Love that little machine! It's small so it's easy to store and the parts go in the dishwasher!

Mix up a whole lotta eggs, sugar and oil to make it REALLY fattening!

Use the beater and mix them until they look creamy.

Stir in the dry ingredients: Flour, Baking Soda, Cinnamon and Salt.

Fold in the carrots. Now is where I have to confess that I got kind of flaky about my picture taking at this point. No pictures of putting them in the muffin tins and no pictures of the final product.

I love these muffin papers. Found them at the grocery store. There are a number of designs and they are lined with foil so they the cupcake papers still look pretty after you bake them. Anotherwords, the cake doesn't soak through when baking.

Cream cheese frosting....Mmmm.....SO yummy and so few ingredients! Butter, Cream Cheese, Powdered Sugar and Vanilla. Just mix it all up!

Again....sorry about not having any pictures of the final product! Here's the recipe:

Carrot Cake

2 cups of sugar

1-1/2 cups oil

4 eggs

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

3 cups raw shredded carrots

1/2 cup nuts (optional-I don't usually add these)

Beat sugar and oil; add eggs, cream well. Add flour soda, salt, cinnamon. Fold in carrots and nuts. Pour in a greased and floured pan and bake around 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Do test to see if it is done.

Frosting:

1-8oz. package cream cheese (room temperature)

1 stick margarine or butter (room temperature)

1 box powdered sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

Enjoy!

Poor Bears.....

2010-10-14T14:15:00.004-07:00

Well Miss Becky heard mom was baking carrot cake yesterday and came home from college for a few hours......

The bears were in her way.......

Just thought I'd share..... :-)

The Bears.....In Pictures

2010-10-12T16:10:00.009-07:00

The End

(Finally!)

Tell the Truth Thursday.....Gross Food

2010-10-06T18:06:00.004-07:00

What's the grossest food you've ever eaten? For me that is EASY! Spaghetti-O's! When we were kids, my little brother Mark used to eat a lot of these. He'd open a can after school and eat the whole thing. He knew I hated even the smell of Spaghetti-Os.

Mark used to love to tickle me till I was on the floor and then hold down my arms and legs and breathe Spaghetti-Os breath in my face.

I wonder how anyone can eat them. They smell like throw up!

We still laugh about those days. A couple years ago Mark sent me a Spaghetti O Christmas ornament. Makes me laugh every time I hang it on the tree.

Wordless Wednesday.....Progress

2010-10-05T22:31:00.001-07:00

Grandma's "Spanish" Rice

2010-09-28T21:11:00.012-07:00

My grandma was a country gal. The last 5 years of her life she lived in a nursing home. I lived about an hour away but drove up once a week to spend the day with her. One of the things I loved to do was cook for her. I tried to make the foods that I knew she loved and missed. I learned to keep a can of bacon grease in the fridge. Added it to everything. :-) Grandma's Spanish Rice was one of my favorites. Probably not very Spanish but delicious just the same!
I have a bunch of these pictures where grandma is getting ready to stick her tongue out at me. She always made me laugh.

To make her Spanish rice, you start by dumping a wad of bacon fat in a pan. Cut up an onion or 2 and carmelize them in the bacon grease. If ya got bacon, by all means fry it up and add it back into the rice!

Dump in some green chiles on top of the onions.

Add a large can of chopped tomatoes.

Add your rice. I like Success Rice that is in a boiling bag. It is easy to make and always comes out right.

Mix it all up and season it. I use Morton Nature's Season. Salt and pepper would work fine. Grandma always put hers in a baking dish and topped it with cheese. Yum-O!

Salsa Ole!

2010-09-28T20:09:00.020-07:00

Salsa is a family favorite at our house. I learned how to make it from my friend Barbara about 30 years ago. We were 2 young couples. About once a week we got together for tacos. Barbara always made homemade salsa to with them. The recipe is especially sentimental for me now because Barbara died of cancer a couple of years ago.

Salsa can be made lots of different ways. You can trade out ingredients to suit your taste. I like using canned tomatoes because it is easy but you could substitute fresh tomatoes and you would get pico de gallo. Start by collecting your ingredients. (I'll have a list at the end.)

I thinly sliced 2 bunches of green onion. Seeded and finely chopped 1 jalapeno. I added chopped green chile. We have a store that roasts fresh green chiles so that is what I use but you could dump in a can of chopped green chiles instead.

Dump in your choice of tomatoes. I use crushed tomatoes because the work is done. I also like to add a smaller can of petite diced tomatoes for texture. We like a chunky salsa.

Oh boy! I am not fond of seeing myself on here! My daughter was my photographer. Here I am working with cilantro. I just roll it up tight and slice very thinly. I used about 2/3 of a bunch but start with less and see what you like. Not everyone likes cilantro.

Add in the cilantro.

Time for seasoning. I like Morton Nature's Seasons. I tend to be generous with the seasoninngs.

Garlic powder. (Or crushed in the jar or fresh.)

Hot pepper flakes are a way to easily add more heat. Be careful if you add them because they get hotter as the salsa sits.

I usually start with about 1/2 tsp. in the palm of my hand.

Mix it all up
Voila!

Find someone to sample it and check the seasonings. :-)

Enjoy!

My batch includes:

1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

1 14 oz. can petite diced tomatoes

2 bunches of green onion, finely sliced

1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped

1 4 oz. can chopped green chiles

2/3 bunch of cilantro, finely chopped

Morton Nature's Season to taste

Garlic powder to taste

Hot pepper flakes to taste (1/2 tsp. give or take)

A Special Gift...

2010-09-19T14:33:00.002-07:00

Yesterday at our family get-together I got a special gift! It came from my sweet little niece Anna. (Also known as Anna Banana) When Anna was born, I made her a blanket. It was a simple tied quilt. Balerina fabric on each side, satin trim around the edge. Anna is in 1st grade now. She wrote me a note and drew a picture on the back. :-)

Anna also gave me this very cool heart shaped spoon!

I LOVE presents!

Famous Dave's Baked Wilbur Beans

2010-09-18T19:22:00.012-07:00

My husband enjoys eating at Famous Daves. He went out on the internet and brought me home this recipe for Famous Daves Baked Wilbur Beans.
As you can see, the recipe came on this torn piece of paper. (I will print the recipe at the end of this post.)

This week I was preparing them for a family get-together. I did some pre-chopping so they would be easy to throw together. The bags contain chopped onion, sausage, jalapeno and bacon.

First I cooked the bacon. Love the smell of bacon cooking! When it's crispy, remove from grease and remove most of the grease from the pan.

Add onions, bell pepper & jalapeno and saute. The recipe said to cook the sausage on the grill and chop but I did it backwards and had it pre-chopped so when the onion mixture was about done, I added the sausage to it and sauteed a little more.

Dump in the cans of beans, the bbq sauce and add back in the bacon. Mmm mmm good. Now I ended up adding in a little brown sugar too. Recipe didn't call for that but I kind of like my beans sweet.

Famous Dave's Baked Wilbur Beans

Ingredients

8 oz. thick hickory smoked bacon

1 beef strip steak

1 teaspoon Famous Dave's steak seasoning

8 oz. smoked link sausage

2 tablespoons bacon drippings
1 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup chopped green pepper

1 tablespoon diced jalapeno

1 (28 ounce) cans Bush's Baked Beans

1 (20 ounce) bottle Famous Dave's Barbecue Sauce

Directions

Fry bacon in a skillet until crisp, drain, reserving 2 tablespoons of the drippings. Crumble bacon. Sprinkle steak with seasoning. Grill over high heat until medium, cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Grill sausage until nicely done. Slice the sausage lengthwise into halves then slice into quarters then cut quarters into cubes. Saute onions, green pepper and jalapeno in reserved bacon drippings in a skillet until tender. Stir in bacon, steak, sausage, beans and bbq sauce. Simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring sccasionally. The flavor is enhanced if stored covered in the fridge for 8-10 hours and reheated just before serving.

Teddy Bear Counts

2010-09-16T06:36:00.010-07:00

19 bears waiting to be sewn.

24 bears, sewn, curves clipped, turned inside out, stuffed.

(With Marilyn's help!)

6 of those 24 have the opening hand stiched shut.

5 completed. Still. :-(

Crafting for a Family Get-Together

2010-09-15T15:08:00.015-07:00

This weekend we are having a family get-together. My niece from Virginia is coming out with her husband and children for a few days. Her husband has a conference here. I enjoy doing something "crafty" for these get-togethers. I decided to make "sour cream" shape containers with candy and decorated water bottles this time.

Yesterday I was coughing my head off so I sent Katy to Michaels for some scrapbook paper for this project.

Here are the general directions for making these containers. This is a VERY forgiving project. You can adjust the size if you like. Also, if you make a mistake along the way, (and I did on atleast one!) you can still make it look ok.

You can do these without the crimping but it really does add to the look of the project.

Kind of fun how a little paper and tape can add to a party!

It's Been Awhile....

2010-09-13T07:44:00.003-07:00

Just checking in. I know it's been awhile.

Today I am headed over to my friend Marilyn's house. Last Tuesday Marilyn had surgery on her foot. 5 months ago she had surgery on both hands. Healing hands make it extra difficult to manage the crutches that she is using right now.

Marilyn has volunteered to help me stuff Teddy bears. Yee haw! I am tired of working on Teddy bears and Marilyn is looking for something to kill time besides TV and reading. I am grateful for her help! My husband calls this a win win situation. :-)

I will try and take pictures of her/us working. However she is as bad as I am about picture taking at this age..... We're not as cute as we used to be. We are, however, just as much fun!

Project Teddy Bear

2010-09-07T08:18:00.005-07:00

At church I am a behind the scenes person. I am naturally kind of quiet, preferring to help plan & create, set up for an event.....and then disappear! This project is for a preschool fellowship in the fall. It will be a pajama party. No sleepovers, just everyone in their pjs. I am working on 50 Teddy Bears to use as a favor for the event. I did a similar project when my girls were young.

15 years ago I drew on the Teddy bear faces and stitching lines by hand using a permanent marker. I am happy to have a new and easier technique this time. Did you know you can print on fabric in your computer? I am SO excited about this way of doing it!

The process is simple! You will need freezer paper.

1. Cut a piece of freezer paper to 8 1/2 x 11 inches.

2. Iron the piece of freezer paper, shiny side down onto the back of your fabric.

3. Now cut your fabric around the paper.

4. Run it through your printer. Easy peasy!

The paper peels right off when you are done. I did leave it on for cutting because the stiff fabric was easier to cut on.

I was concerned that it wouldn't be colorfast. I had several reject bears so I washed one of them. (Takes me several "trys" to get one looking right, with the lines in all the right places.) It came through the wash fine. The only thing that washed out was the red. Now this bear only has black and red so if you're going to print lots of colors on a project and you want it to be washable I would probably make a tester.

The bears are simple. I think they will be a fun hand out!

And the Winner is.....

2010-09-06T23:30:00.003-07:00

Ok friends, don't get too excited. I'm not really giving anything away. Just wanted to let you all know that (with your help) I have chosen a blog button! #2 is the winner! Easiest to read for sure!

Thank you Katy for designing for me!

Thank you to The Redhead Riter for understanding that oh so confusing html stuff and turning it into a cute little button you can grab!

Now y'all go grab my button and give me some free advertising. Ha ha.

Imput please!

2010-09-03T15:21:00.002-07:00

My daughter, Katy is helping me design a button for my blog. Ok, she is doing all the work, not just helping me. I'll tell you that because I know she'll read this and have something to say about it if I take the credit. :) Anyway I need your help choosing. She has designed 4 buttons. Leave me a comment and let me know which ones you like the best.

#1 - Hatboxes/photo

#2 - Hatboxes/drawing

#3 Old Fashioned hat lady photo

#4 Old Fashioned hat lady drawing

Thanks for your imput!!!

Before & After.....A Work in Progress

2010-08-27T13:30:00.004-07:00

Before.....

During

After

Still a work in progress. I have a hard time drawing the line between clutter reduction and not enough decorations in the room. A decorator I am NOT!

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?

2010-08-25T21:05:00.004-07:00

This weeks "Tell The Truth Thursday", hosted by the Redheaded Riter, is about Crayons. What color would I be?

This is an easy question for me because of a gift my girls got when they were very young.

My sister, Karen is a food broker. She is a "middle man" between the grocery stores and the companies that make the products. When the girls were young, she was a representative for the Crayola Company. That made her an especially fun auntie when it came to gift giving!

One year the girls each got a really cool wooden box with a blue crayon in it.

This crayon was personalized!

"You're My True Blue Hero"

"Katy Barber"

"From Auntie Karen"

This is a loooooooong story to tell you why I would chose to be a True Blue Crayon! :-)

Dear Blog: I'm sorry I've been ignoring you......

2010-08-24T22:07:00.002-07:00

Dear Blog:

I'm sorry I've been ignoring you this week. It's been very busy around here. So far this week I have cleaned out the shed, washed my new car by hand, designed and created 35 invitations for the preschool department at church, created, designed and put together 400 matchbook mint wrappers and now I am painting the livingroom. Well, I haven't actually been painting. I have been assisting Katy while she painted. Tomorrow is haircut, shopping, lunch day so you will have to wait again. I promise when I get the house back together I will try and do a better job of keeping up with you.

Love, Marlene

Shopping with a friend....

2010-08-21T07:00:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago a friend and I went into the city. We spent the day at a big consignment/antique store. My only "find" for the day wasn't an antique at all. This little book case was only $14. It is in perfect shape and matches some bigger ones that we already have. I thought I would use it as an end table by our sofa and get some extra video storage at the same time for our family room. Turned out the bookcase was too high and the backing showed above the arm of the couch. I decided instead to add it to the end of an already existing video bookcase. I was surprised when I realized that it not only was it oak but the color and style were exact!

I think the finished product is pretty good and you can't beat the price.

These are a few of my favorite things.....

2010-08-20T07:30:00.000-07:00

I love to shop! I loved to shop even as a child. Don't get me wrong. Growning up we didn't have a lot of money to spend. Didn't cost anything to look! My mom used to do her grocery shopping at a store called Fedmart. Fedmart was kind of like Wal-Mart in that it carried a large variety of goods. I would hang out in the shoe department while mom was buying groceries. I tried on all of the shoes I wished for!

In my younger years, I bought a LOT of shoes. In fact, for about 20 years I bought a LOT of shoes! These days I am careful to only buy shoes that make my feet feel good.

I live in a smaller town. Until recently we didn't have much name brand shopping. I am really enjoying all of our new stores. Almost NO reason now to have to fight the traffic in the big city!

Love Kohl's. Love all their discount coupons! Hate the fact that you have to use a Kohl's charge card to get them!

Target is SO much fun! Home of disposable decorating! Also have you checked out their grocery section? They don't have everything but what they do have is usually cheaper than the grocery store.

Ross is my favorite for clothing. They have a nice section for "not so petite anymore" moms. I have lots of $5.99 tops from there!

Ahhhh Marshalls! Great for purses and unique, nicer, but still cheap housewares!

It used to be a 30 minute trip to do a Michales run. I don't need it every day but when I do, it sure is nice to have it here.

August 19, 1978

2010-08-19T07:36:00.001-07:00

I'm Turning Into a Yoyo!

2010-08-18T07:15:00.007-07:00

Yesterday I spent most of the day making yoyos! Why, you ask? Ok, you didn't ask but I'm going to tell you anyway. ;-)

My daughter, Becky is the maid of honor at her best friend's wedding. We are planning a shower for her. The bride has an Etsy shop where she sells headbands, hair clips, ear rings, etc. made out of yoyo "posies". We thought it would be fun to create an assortment of these hair accessories in the shower colors to use as favors.

Shower is going to be "Shabby Chic" so lots of muted greens and pinks. The bride LOVES green. I think you can tell which posies I like best! I made lots of green pokadot with pink striped ones! Now I need to find a deal on headbands. :-)

Playing catch up in the church library!

2010-08-10T14:56:00.004-07:00

I am the church librarian. I love to read so it is a perfect volunteer job for me! It means I get first pick of the books as they come in! I love to order new books....I do, however have a hard time keeping up with processing them! Do you know that there are 19 steps to processing a book once you get it? Today I spent 5 hours and worked my way through one of those tall stacks of books. My goal is to spend a few hours every morning until I get them finished.

I love our library. I think we are really blessed to have it! It is L shaped and used to be 3 very small Sunday School rooms. They were mostly being used for storage because of their small size. A re-model was done and the rooms were connected. My desk is in the corner and these 2 pictures look out both directions from my desk. A senior adult ladies class meets in there on Sunday.

Just thought I'd share a little about where I volunteer. :-)

"Vacation"

2010-08-08T16:44:00.006-07:00

About a week ago, we had a mini vacation. Actually my husband was conferencing and the girls and I tagged along. He has this same conference every year at the same resort so we have memories at all stages of life at this resort. I've had morning sickness, babies, preschoolers, school age kids and now "kids" that are nearly grown ups!

This is the view looking out my room. I enjoy taking my coffee and a book out on this patio and reading while the girls sleep in.

When they finally get up, we head out to the pool. I find a shady spot for some more reading and they usually swim and lay out in the sun. I know they will be pleased that I posted a picture of them with no makeup, not smiling and in their swimsuits. LOL!

We tried ordering lunch out by the pool one year.....it's just too stinkin' hot to enjoy it out there!

When lunch time rolls around, we get dressed and head out to eat and shop. These days there are no school supplies or back packs to buy. Kind of sad for this old mom! We did manage to spend plenty of money on new clothes!

This "little guy" was walking across our path on the way to the room the last night! While I know tarantulas are not dangerous, they sure are scary looking! Picture is a little blurry because by the time Katy (the only one brave enough to go back) went back to take it, the little guy was trying to escape over the wall.

I love this vacation. Laid back. No schedule. No long drive. Instead of spending money to travel somewhere, I say "yes" to some extra clothes shopping. Fun for them. Fun for me. :-)

Bragging Rights.....

2010-08-03T10:12:00.006-07:00

I am a reluctant sports fan! Only this year have I really started to pay attention to the games. Why? Because my daughter is an intern for the AZ Diamondbacks this year. The truth is, I really don't watch the games for the games.....I watch them to see if I can get a peek at my intern! Here is a short clip of the "Legends" race. Am I watching the Legends guys? Nope! I'm watching the girl in the red polo in the background in the bull pen. That's my girl! :-)

http://www.foxsportsarizona.com/pages/video?PID=yzXsSmvtc7WKpjFPCwfFvLva_HNAkdCN (Fox sports seems to have taken the link away....sorry about that!)

It's Raining, It's Pouring!

2010-08-01T22:53:00.005-07:00

I LOVE a good rain storm! Especially in the summer when it is so hot!

This little storm made about a 10 degree difference in our temperature!

After about 30 minutes the street was running up to the top of the curb!

Looking forward to August. Hot hot weather and afternoon thunderstorms.

Tic Toc Collecting Clocks

2010-07-27T10:30:00.007-07:00

I LOVE clocks! I don't know how it got started or why but clocks catch my eye everywhere. Mostly I like them a little off beat and quirky.

This is one of my favorites. I found it at Target. They had it in the Back to School College stuff several years ago and I waited and waited for it to go on clearance. It never did. They just moved it to the regular aisle. It was $89 which was a little steep for something I really didn't "need" so I let it go.....sort of. Actually I walked down that aisle every time I went in the store, hoping for a deal good enough to make me buy it. About 2 years after I first saw (fell in love with) it, I got a $100 check for working at a conference. I knew just what I wanted to spend it on! :-)

This is a station clock. Reminds me of riding the train to grandma's house in my younger years. I first found one at a furniture store and didn't buy it. Of course I couldn't stop thinking about it. (I might be a little obsessive about clocks right now?) When we went back to the store it was gone! :-( For my 50th birthday, my husband tracked one down and bought it for me!

This was my grandpa's clock. After graduation from high school I came to Arizona to visit my grandparents and never left. (Met my hubby there!) Grandpa worked shift work. He used to come home after a midnight shift, sit and dunk a piece of bread into a glass of milk for a snack, and then he would wind this clock before headed to bed. He wanted me to have it when he was gone. This is a memory clock for me.

How's this for quirky? Unusual clocks always catch my eye. This one just came from Kohl's. I waited to buy it till it was on sale for 50% off and I had a coupon to boot!

Sometimes I wonder where the attraction to clocks came from. Do I need any more? Need? I think not! Will I buy any more? Probably. "Time" to go.....