Quick Valentine Craft

This craft came from Martha Stewart...


So easy and you probably have the paper already!
Heart template can be found here.

Children's Song Book

I made 2 books for my son today.

The first one is a combination Quiet Book & Song Book...

The cover page just has his name on it with velcro letters that he can take off and put back on.

I only have 2 songs in this book so far... I'll add to it later.
I altered clipart that I found, laminated everything and stuck some velcro on it.

The other song in the book is a song that he is learning in Primary this month.
(This is a great flip chart for the song as well)

The next book that I made is just for songs that he will be
learning throughout the year in Primary.I found the pages here and here.
Then I shrunk them in Photoshop so they would fit two on a page.
Laminated them, cut them and bound them with ribbon.
So easy!

Super Easy Scarf

I'm posting this one for my Crafty Mom...

She bought this blanket from IKEA.
It has a cute decorative edge and was only $3.49.

Cut the blanket length wise into about 5-6 inch strips.
Then cut a slit into one side of it like this:

Then you can put it around your neck and slide one end through the slit and voila! a fun scarf!
She was able to get several scarfs out of the $3.49 blanket...
no sewing involved!

Love it!
So creative Mom!

My Crafty Frames!

Tada they are done!

Here is the grouping I finally decided on, hung up on my wall. I am so not good at mathmatics and trying to get this perfectly straight. (that's my moms job, but we just moved away from her so I had to do this on my own) So I just measured the middle three over the center of our bed and the rest I just went for it and hoped it would look ok when I took a step back to look at it. It's not perfect but I am pleased.

My 2 year old thinks it all looks straight, so I am going with her opinion!! Here's the whole wall with my sconces (bought on clearance years ago from Michaels) and my IKEA candles with a newly tied ribbon around it to tie in the accent color- green.
I think I LOVE it!

Chocolate covered caramel pretzels

These are easy and yummy to make. I made them for Christmas but they can be adjusted to any holiday.

You'll need:

pretzel rods

melting chocolate

caramel

sprinkles

I use that brick of caramel you can find at most baking supply stores. Wet your hands and take a piece and roll it into a 'snake' then wrap it around the pretzel rod like shown.

Melt your chocolate (in microwave or on the stove) and dip your pretzel. I also use a spoon to help cover the entire pretzel.
Lay on some foil or waxed paper and add your sprinkles, let dry

I actually went and bought the pretzel bags and tied them with a ribbon to give to some friends.

Enjoy!

It really is a tasty treat.

Crafty frames... hopefully

I have had the same things hanging over my bed for the past 5 years, so I think it's time for a change. With this beautiful stack of black and white papers (given to me by my mom) and these $7.00 worth of frames I picked up at DI, I really hope it turns out.

(The image in my head is so pretty!) Look for another post hopefully by Friday.... keep your fingers crossed

Sneaky treats!

I have a son who is a super picky eater. The only vegtable he will eat is raw carrots. I found this recipe from the book Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfield -
knowing that he likes Chocolate - I decided to give it a try.
It was a HUGE success!!

Chocolate Fondue

1 T. trans-fat-free margarine spread (I just used butter)

1/2 c. Avacado Puree

1/4 c. Carrot Puree

1 c. confectioners' sugar

1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 t. pure vanilla extract

Sliced fruits, whole berries, or cherries for dipping

Melt the margarine over low heat in a medium saucepan. Add the avacado and carrot purees, sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla, and whisk well until smooth. Serve warm, with fruit.

**A trick I learned while experimenting with sneaky nutrition is that for things like "carrot puree" I just use a jar of carrot baby food - it saves a lot of time.

Baby shower invite idea

I received this cute baby shower inviation today in the mail.

It says:

Willow is about to POP!

So POP on over and help her get ready to welcome her new baby boy!

Just blow up this balloon, use the pin to POP it,

and find your invitation inside!

I thought it was a really fun idea. My boys were really excited to blow up the balloon and pop it to find the inviation.

Latest project- COMPLETE!

So I finished it sooner than I thought and I really like it! Although my camera had a hard time capturing it right. I just painted it black but I took 3 pictures and one turned out brown looking, the next turned out grey and the final one turned out light black!

the drawers are painted black to unlike the picture that look like they are grey. I had to go buy 2 more knobs since I forgot there was 4 for the top 2 drawers. So for about $25.00 I have a new entertainment center, where I was looking online for a new one I wanted and was going to spend $200!!! I just need to drill a hole in the back for all the electronic wires.
I bought these door knobs probably 7+ years ago and finally found a good place to use them. (we are a Disney family so I am way excited to finally have them out of the junk drawer)

P.S. If I ever fall ownership to a power saw I would love to cut out the inside of the doors and staple fabric up instead--- well also if I ever decide on a color scheme for my living room. I can dream about that one!

My latest project

I have seen so many blogs with people finding great deals at Good Will or yard sales. So before we moved I passed by a yard sale and saw this beauty out of the corner of my eye, and I thought to myself if it's still there when I get back I'm gonna get it. Well as you can see it was and I got it for $15.00. It was a changing table but my Uncle cut off the top for me (you can see the lighter outline on top of where the boards were)

And it was also missing a leg in the back, so he created one for me.
(thanks so much)

Since Christmas is over I can get working on this- hopefully I will be posting the finished product soon. It's on my porch waiting to be sanded and painted. It's not going to be perfect but I will have a new entertainment center for only $15.00 (+ a few bucks for spray paint)

Homemade Kitchen Playset

My son loves to play with the toy kitchen set every time we walk through IKEA.
But let's face it, he's not going to play with it enough to justify the cost of actually buying him one. So I made him one today.

I took an old moving box and taped it up. Covered it with white butcher paper (doesn't have to be covered with anything... it is pretend after all)
I drew 2 stove burners and 2 knobs on one side of it.


On another side, I drew an oven door, with a knob and a window.
(with yellow for the lighted window...
to which my 3 year old says, "Mom, I can't see through your window"
... pretend dear, pretend)

I flipped the box over one more time and cut out a rectangle to place a small pan into. This is his pretend sink.

He loves it! And it was made in about 30 minutes.

I'm sure it won't last long... but sure beats forking over the cash during the holidays for a toy that he'll ignore in a day or two. ;)

IKEA recall solution

If you had IKEA Roman Shades hanging in your house (like I did), you were probably very sad to see this recall.

I love my Roman Shades. So, I created a solution for them.

First, I removed all of the dangerous strings and ropes from the shade. (so it was just a big piece of fabric hanging from my window) Then, I stitched several loops of ribbon to the back of the shades. I put 2 on each side of mine. The top 2 loops are shorter than the bottom 2. So it will hang more like a Roman Shade is suppose to. Then I attached buttons on the front side to make it look nice.

Next I screwed 2 hooks into the wall. Now the loops can hang up on the hooks. It isn't quite as easy to use as a true Roman Shade... but I didn't have to buy a new window treatment!

Halloween costume

We never do family themed Halloween costumes. In fact, we usually just dress the boys up. But this year my 3 year old wanted to be a pirate. So bought him a costume from Old Navy.
It is darling. He loves it and wants to wear it everywhere.
Then he wanted Daddy to be a pirate too... and it just spiraled from there.

So what to do for the 9 month old??

Yes, he's my little treasure map!

With brown pants - he's good to go!
Love easy costumes.

Now the task of making my pirate costume less skanky... I bought it at Target, but have to make some serious alterations. Hopefully I'll post pictures of the finished product soon.

Baby crafts!

Here are the remaining baby crafts...

A car seat cover.
Love, love, LOVE mine... so I had to make one for my sister in-law.
The BEST feature is that it opens in the front. That way you can peak on your sleeping darling, without giving them a big gust of cold air.
And during flu season, having a car seat cover is a MUST - keep those babies protected.

This isn't a very good picture... but it's a Pee Pee Tepee!
I've never used one, but have wished that I had several times. ;)
Those baby boys sure do like to spray.

I also made some burp cloths... but apparently never took a picture of them.

Love baby crafts!

a yummy fall dinner

Tonight we had a really yummy fall dinner....soup and muffins! I would highly recommend both!

Mimi's Cafe Corn Chowder:
(This is what I order every time I go to Mimi's)

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup butter(1/2 a stick)
• 6 tablespoons chopped onion
• 3/4 cup diced celery
• 2 1/2 cups hot water
• 2 cups cubed potatoes (1/2 inch pieces)
• 3 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 dash white pepper, or black
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 quart half and half cream

Directions

1. Melt butter in large saucepan. Once melted add celery and onion and saute for 5 minutes (not til brown, just til soft).
2. Add water, potatoes, corn, sugar, salt and pepper, making sure water covers everything, adding more if not covered completely. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, usually about 30 minutes.
3. Whisk flour into 1 cup of the half and half and then stir into soup.
4. Add remaining half and half and simmer until soup is thickened to a creamy consistency (usually about 15 minutes).
5. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper if wanted. If the chowder is too thick, add some milk, if it is too thin, simmer for 5-10 minutes more.

Pumpkin Crumb Muffins:
(by my sister in law, Camie)

• 1 2/3 C. flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
• 1 C. Libby's solid pack pumpkin
• 1/4 C. undiluted evaporated milk
• 1/3 C. shortening
• 1 C. packed light brown sugar
• 1 egg

Combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and allspice in large bowl. In small bowl combine pumpkin and evaporated milk. Cream shortening and sugar in large mixer bowl. Add egg, beat until fluffy. Alternately add flour and pumpkin mixtures to shortening mixture; beat well after each addition. Fill muffin tins (greased) or paper lined cups 3/4 full. Sprinkle Streusel topping over muffins.

Streusel Topping:
Combine 2 Tbs. flour, 2 Tbs. granulated sugar and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon in a small bowl. Cut in 1 Tbs. butter until mixture is crumbly.

Bake in preheated 350 oven for 35-40 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Baby Crafts

I've been a sewing maniac these days. I am not very good at it... but I'm addicted. Here are a few things that I've recently created.

Stroller blanket

Super easy. Sew 2 pieces of fabric, right sides together, with some ribbon sticking out about 1/3 of the way down (so the blanket can fold over onto the baby's lap)... leave an opening so you can pull the blanket right side out. Turn it right side out. Sew up that opening. Sew velcro onto your ribbon... and DONE!

Here is my 8 month old modeling it for me. ;)

Bottle/Sippy Cup strap

For the tutorial, go HERE.
I would use light colored ribbon next time. (or dark thread, dark velcro, and dark shelf material)
But I used what I had this time, and it works great.

We are getting ready for a trip to Disneyland... can you tell?

p.s. I have several other baby related sewing projects to show you. But they are for my cute sister in-law and her baby shower isn't until next week. So you'll have to wait, because I don't want to ruin the surprise. ;)

Spooky Tree

I have seen many of these "spooky trees" lately and thought I would try making my own. It was so much fun being creative again, and thanks to Hobble Creek Canyon for providing these twisted and creepy looking branches. Here's my finished tree. After I found a pot to put the branches in, I put some big rocks in the bottom to stabilize it then added dried black beans on top to hold the branches in place. I spray painted the branches black then added some silver spray glitter on top of that.
I found these wooden signs at Roberts crafts that were not painted (they cost $.54!!) So I picked up some Halloween "thickers" because I knew I couldn't paint the words on as cute as these letters looked.

I took some ribbon and just tied them on to random places and added some dollar store spiders (they were rings that I just cut the ring off and glued them straight to the branches)

I also found these skulls at the dollar store too. And a cute ribbon to your pot and you are done!

Pasta with Pumpkin and Sausage

This is a Rachael Ray recipe. You can find it HERE.
It's yummy, easy and very Autumn.
I substituted the White Wine with Chicken Broth and 1 tablespoon of vinegar.
Next time I think I will use noodles with more texture... maybe Fusilli, Radiatore or Rotini.

Zucchini Turkey wraps

1 lb ground turkey (optional ground turkey)
salt and pepper
1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
4 cups grated zucchini
salt and pepper
2/3 cup salsa
1 t. prepared yellow mustard
1/2 t. dried basil
1 c. cooked brown rice
1-2 cups grated cheddar cheese
tortilla chips, tortillas, lettuce leaves, etc.

Brown the meat and season it with some salt and pepper. Put the cooked meat aside and let any fat drain off.
Add oil into frying pan and let heat up on medium high heat. Add onions & garlic let cook for 1 minute. Add celery, & carrots and let these cook for a few minutes until they start to get tender. Add grated zucchini and season vegetables with some salt and pepper. Continue cooking the vegetables until they are soft and tender.
Add the salsa, mustard, and dried basil into the saucepan and mix together. Add the browned meat and brown rice and heat through. Top with cheese.

Can be made into tacos, nachos, or wrapped in lettuce leaves. Yummy and healthy too!

* The first time I made this I chopped the veggies really small with a hand chopper and put the salsa in the food processor so there was no chunks of food that the picky eaters in the family would see. It worked and everyone ate it!



** Another great idea for Fall is to put your dish inside a hollowed out pumpkin... Find a pumpkin with a flat side so it wont wobble around the table. Cut the pumpkin in half long ways above the stem and then I lined the inside of the pumpkin with waxed paper. I was trying to look for a tall oblong shaped pumpkin but this one had the perfect flat side to it.

Pumpkin Black Bean Chili

- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 medium sweet yellow pepper, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 2 cans (15 ounces *each*) black beans, rinsed and drained
- 2-1/2 cups cubed cooked turkey
- 1 can (15 ounces) solid-pack pumpkin
- 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
- 2 teaspoons chili powder - 1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions: In a large skillet, saute the onion, yellow pepper and garlic in oil until tender. Transfer to a 5-qt. slow cooker; stir in the remaining ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or until heated through.

* Yield: *10 servings
Submitted by Wendy