Roughing it

As these beautiful, busy summer days pass, I am shocked to realize how long it has been since I blogged!! The warm weather has pushed us along in our many (outdoor) home improvement projects. I am happy to say that my *new* patio and driveway are soon coming! If the weather cooperates, the patio should be poured on Saturday ☺☺☺ I have been taking plenty of before/in progress/(and soon) after photos to share with you all.

This past weekend was unseasonably cool for this time of year. Matt and I used to go camping often...but we have not been, even ONCE, since the girls were born. So, we decided to take a trip to a sweet little lake/camp ground only about 40 minutes from home. It was a nice opprotunity to get away from the stresses of home for a couple of days.

After we arrived Friday night, it became rather windy. That, combined with the slightly-not-dry-enough firewood, made firemaking a little difficult. Eventually we had enough to make something to eat.

A "cowboy meal", consisting of baked beans and brats over the open fire.



Matt's family has a tradition of making homemade potato chips when they camp. I sliced some thin-skinned potatoes very thinly and deep-fried them over the fire until they were golden brown.

I think I made about 4 or 5 plate-fulls of chips, but they never lasted long at all!

I felt a bit like a Pioneer woman as I heated water over the fire to wash dishes. (Note to self: grab paper plates next time).

I brought some Jiffy Pop along, which the girls refer to as "magic popcorn". Bella tore into it! She didn't eat much for supper that night after all of that popcorn.

Someone had carved a heart into the tree that was right in the middle of our campsite. My husband took it upon himself to Sharpie our initials into it. How romantic ;-)

Little Mr. Tiffin had an amazing time being outside with us (and sleeping in the tent with us). He is always a happy little boy, but this weekend he was just so relaxed. On Saturday evening, we decided to make the 2-mile trek around the lake. He was revved and ready to go!

This photo is sort of an optical illusion. At first, it appears that you are looking up at the sky between the trees. ACTUALLY.... I was looking down a bluff and into the water, where the clouds and blue sky were perfectly reflected by the setting sun.

It was such a nice evening. Many people were still on the lake fishing.

I didn't bring my "good camera" camping, so my picture quality isn't what I would have hoped. But I think this is a nice silhouette of Matt and the girls.

We were up by 6 a.m. on Sunday. Matt started packing up our things as I cooked a campfire breakfast of bacon, sausage, and scrambled eggs. Then we loaded everything up and went home, just in time to get ready for church and back to reality. The girls were asleep in their seats before we were too far down the road. Poor Tiffin! He always gets the headlock, but he doesn't seem to mind.

Bowl of comfort

Hey, thanks for the doll-love! I posted her over on Craftster, and everyone over there was so warm and welcoming to this former "lurker." The pattern is just so versatile... I saw someone alter the head and actually make a horse doll with it! My next doll project will, hopefully, be based on "Coraline." There are some pretty amazing adaptations of her into doll-form on Craftster! I loved the book, and can't wait to see the movie when it comes out on DVD...but not until July!

I am finally starting to feel better and get my energy back, thankfully. Yesterday was spent doing my LEAST favorite thing, which is switching the girls' summer/winter clothes out. Since they are so close in age, I have to decide what won't fit Brianna anymore and what WILL fit Bella. Then there is the putting away of old and new. I am not done yet!

My e-friend, Rebecca, shared a delicious potato soup recipe with me, which she got from her sister. I made this about a week ago on a rainy, yucky day, and it was really good! The girls asked for 2nds and 3rds!

Baked Potato Soup

-5 large baking potatoes, baked

-1/4 cup butter

-1 medium onion, chopped

-1/3 cup flour

-4 cups half-and-half

-3 cups milk

-1 tsp salt

-dash pepper

-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

-8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Peel the baked potatoes and coarsely mash with a fork. Melt butter in soup pot and add onion. Saute until tender. Add flour, stirring until smooth. Stir in potatoes, milks, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until heated through. Top each serving with shredded cheese and bacon bits. Yield: 12 cups.

(Randi's Notes: I only made a half-batch, like usual, and it was a lot of soup! I decided to mix half of the bacon and cheese directly into the soup, and it was good. If it gets too thick, just add some more milk to thin it out to your liking.)

I made The Amish Cook's Whole Wheat Batter Bread to go along with it. Following my friend Jessica's advice, I increase the amount of honey to 3 Tbsp. It is perfect everytime, and NO kneading involved!

☺☺☺

I hope everyone has a nice, relaxing long weekend! The only planned thing we have is Brianna's dance recital tomorrow afternoon. HOPEFULLY we can get some things done around our house!

Hot (digital) dog!

Etsy is an amazing place, isn't it? You never know what you might find. I was surfing around the internet one day, and came across a site that was spotlighting a really fantastic Etsy shop, Hot Digital Dog . This lady makes absolutely adorable, old-timey-looking portraits of animals. She sells prints, but will also make a custom portrait of your pet!

Later on in the day, I was posting in the forums...and as luck would have it, HotDigitalDog made a reply to one of my posts! What are the odds? We talked a bit, a convo was started, and we started scheming up a plan. She sent me the result via email last night...I think it speaks for itself:

I'm sorry, but it DOES NOT get any cuter than that, so don't even try! My idea was for Tiffin to look like a old-time newsie, and her results were even better than I could have imagined ☺ I have always thought Tiffin looks like one of my favorite Muppet characters, Emmet from the 1977 Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas:

With their similar little brimmed-hats, they could be "Brothers":

Check out HotDigitalDog and be prepared to laugh your butt off at the adorability...hey, it's a word!

☺☺☺

Have a fabulous weekend, everyone!

Beady buddies

(My little bead-boy from Variation, who just made friend with my post-Easter find from today)

A while back, I stumbled upon a new Etsy shop that I found extremely charming. Though open less than a month at the time, she was pushing 30 sales! I was impressed. Her creations are the type of unique, "why-didn't-I-think-of-that" sort of thing that all of us creators are constantly striving for.

Variation makes little bead-people out of vintage beads and findings. Almost as charming as the people themselves are the PHOTOS on her listings. I can't imagine the time she puts into them. I told her she really needs to start a side-business of selling prints of her images ☺

I LOVE this one in particular! Consequently, she purchased some of my chenille pups, and they seemed to get along very well with her own little bead-friends:

Check out Variation on Etsy and Flickr !

♥♥♥♥♥♥

In other goings-on, my husband is working diligently in painting/staining/varnishing and hanging trim for me. Can you believe that we have lived here for nearly 2 years and I have little to nothing hanging on my walls?? I can't wait for the big unveiling so that I can hang up some lovely artwork from my bloggy-friends Bunzi, Mushy, and Jenny . Can't wait for the unveil? I am sure you can scour their blogs and find the trade-details ☺ For now, I must go make some more "balls in shells" for supper!

Balls in shells

Brianna loves to sit up on the butcher block and watch me cook. Last week, I decided to make a big deal out of her cooking supper for everyone! Being 4 1/2, she looked at me nervously and said, "I think I'm going to need some help..."

My beloved Taste of Home magazine has changed it's format. Some changes (such as the ad-free magazine going more commercial) were a big difficult to adjust to. However, there are some new gems to be found in it, as well. There is now a section with a recipe targeted towards kids. The most recent issue had a delicious-sounding recipe that seemed like it would be a fun project for Brianna's first dinner-making experience:

Easy Stuffed Shells

*1 package (12 oz) jumbo pasta shells

*1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce

*36 frozen cooked Italian meatballs (1/2 oz. each), thawed

*2 cups (8 oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and rinse in cold water.

Place 1/2 cup sauce in a greased 13 x 9 inch baking dish. (We halved the recipe, since we don't need to make that much food!).
Place a meatball in each shell.

Transfer to prepared dish.

Top with remaining sauce and sprinkle with cheese.

Cover and bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly and cheese is melted.

Mmm... this recipe was fabulous!! It was a really simple cross between lasagna and ravioli. We ate it with garlic bread and salad. Since we only made half the recipe, we had a fun time counting out half the shells and meatballs. Great job, Brianna! This recipe is definitely a keeper ☺

Sincerest wishes

(My favorite vintage postcard, circa 1909)

I hope everyone had a lovely, food + family-filled weekend!

Easter blessings

Back in October, my dishwasher begame very loud while running the wash cycles. I called and found out that our 1 year warranty ran out in April...and with the holidays looming, I decided to put getting it fixed off a while. I mean, it was WORKING (for the most part), and since the warranty was expired, why pay for them to come fix it right away?

So yesterday, after consistent nagging from the husband, I finally got the Sears repairman here. Immediately, he knew what was wrong: the motor/pump was going out of it. The part alone was over $300!! My heart sank. The man told me to hold on a second, he needed to go out to his van to check on something...

"The 700 Club" was on tv, and I sat down on the couch and started to pray. "God, please let there be something...ANYTHING... that he can do to fix it without such an expense. I don't want to pour money into this broken appliance, but we can't afford to go buy a new one, either."

The man came back inside and had news for me. Since our dishwasher is a Kenmore Elite series, the warranty is a bit different. On this specific model, there is a 2 year warranty on the motor/pump only! And we had TWO WEEKS left on the warranty. Isn't God amazing?!

I think sometimes we tend to forget how God works in our lives. Not just at Easter and Christmas, but every single second of every day! I try to remember to thank Him over and over again for everything he has done for me. I hope all of you will, too ☺

♥♥♥

As we prepare for the Easter celebration this weekend (and make our grocery runs), I thought I would share a recipe with you that my sister-in-law made with her kids a few years ago. The results are meringue cookies that are crispy and delicious!

Easter Tomb Cookie Recipe to be made the evening before Easter

1 cup whole pecans

1 tsp vinegar

3 egg whites

pinch salt

1 cup sugar

Ziploc baggie

Wooden spoon

Tape

Bible

*Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (this is important - don’t wait until you are half done with the recipe!)

*Place pecans in baggie and let children beat them with the wooden spoon to break into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested, He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read John 19:1-3

*Let child smell vinegar. Put 1 tsp vinegar into mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross, He was given vinegar to drink. Read John 19:28-30

*Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave us His life to give us life. Read John 10:10-11

*Sprinkle a little salt into child’s hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into a bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus’ followers, and the bitterness of our own sin. Read Luke 23:27

*Add 1 cup sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16

*Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12-15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God’s eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3

*Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus’ body was laid. Read Matthew 27:57-60

*Put cookie sheet in oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Give child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus’ tomb was sealed. Read Matthew 27:65-66

*Go to bed! Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus’ followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed.Read John 16:20 and 22

*On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice thecracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the firstEaster, Jesus’ followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty! Read Matthew 28:1-9

Bunny Pieces

The days have been getting away from me. I had hoped to have a whole gaggle of bunny-kids in the shop in time for Easter, and here we are nearly a week until E-day!

I did have enough time to get a handful of sweethearts done, and I hope to get them photographed and listed soon...hopefully by tomorrow! That should give me a couple days worth of sales that I can get them shipped out in time for Easter ♥

Today we took the girls to the big egg hunt in our town. Bella's age group (1-2) was first, of course. She got upset and just plopped down on the ground, crying. The parent's aren't supposed to help, but we were kicking eggs her way and trying to convince her to pick them up and put in her basket. She ended up with 2 pieces of candy and vouchers for TWELVE oatmeal cream pies! LOL

Brianna, on the other hand, really got into the action this year. She was very focused and excitedly picked up so many eggs! She got quite a few little candy bars, plus vouchers for a small can of root bear, 4 cartons of chocolate milk, and two bags of chips. She also had a $1 in an egg, which she bought some gum with and shared with us. What a good little girl ♥

We have so many free promotional pictures (plus a set of professional ones) of the girls with chicks, bunnies, and lambs from this year, I may end up doing a whole post dedicated to that soon!!

Sweet as pie

On Friday, Brianna and I took a little "Mommy and Me" shopping trip to run multiple errands. On the way out of Burlington, we stopped at this grocery store called "Fareway." Is this a chain or just something local? Anyway, it seems to be a fairly old store, but in a way that was refreshing! The meat counter had actual butchers (about 5 or 6 of them) in aprons and paper hats taking orders. We just don't have that around here anymore. Plus, the strawberries that were on sale had been hand-wrapped in those cute little plastic berry-baskets (as opposed to the pre-weighed clamshells at my usual grocery stores.) I walked out with 20 lbs. of chicken leg-quarters, 3.5 lbs of strawberries, and a dozen eggs....and it all cost me $12!

With the hints of Spring-like weather inspiring me, I decided to make a favorite: strawberry pie! My husband's family's recipe is so super-simple.


First, you will need to bake yourself a single pie crust. Homemade or store-bought, it doesn't really matter. I prefer Martha Stewart's pate brisee recipe because I can whirl it up pretty easily and fast in the food processor. (How do you like my f.p? It was the Christmas present from hubby, and in the special "Martha" color of my kitchen, just for Macy's!) In a pinch, you can also use a graham cracker crust.

For the filling, you combine 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water, and 3 Tablespoons cornstarch in a saucepot. I like to make a "slurry" with the cornstarch and a little of the water and then add, which helps to decreased the lumpiness. Cook and stir over medium heat until it becomes clear, thick, and bubbly.


Remove from heat and add 1/4 cup of strawberry jello powder. Allow to cool.
( I believe this is a little bit less than one of the small boxes contains. Most of the time, I have a large box on hand that I measure from for the sole purpose of making pie. I found that you can also subsitute one small box of sugar-free jello in place of the 1/4 cup.)

Add 1 quart of sliced strawberries to the cooled sauce, then pour filling into the cooled, baked crust. Cover and refrigerate until set, then enjoy!


This recipe is always a favorite in our house. We also make a killer raspberry pie by substituting raspberries and raspberry jello! Yum yum... where's the Cool Whip?

Cupcakes by candlelight

When I go to get Brianna from preschool, I usually arrive about 10 minutes early. It is a great time to flip through a magazine or read a chapter for a few moments. If anyone is a cupcake lover, you better go grab the current issue of Martha Stewart Living before it gets replaced with the newest one! There are some really insanely-good recipes in there (and awesome decorating inspirations). I used up some ripe bananas and made these cupcakes from one of the recipes. They turned out so nice and round, and moist enough that I am not even going to bother with frosting. The candle... well, it was just a nice touch. It is "spring" scented, and lighting it made me a little happier.

I really apologize because I am just feeling super-guilty about all of the things I have been meaning to post and haven't gotten around to doing. Heck, I just now updated my anti-virus software...only 247 days after expiration! I have participated in some fun trades (which you might have read about here and here . I also won a giveaway ! That was really cool and unexpected. I will definitely speak more about those things later. And my Hong Kong eBay purchase? It was a special, rare craft book. So, let's just say I have to make a Hobby Lobby run tomorrow because PIPE CLEANERS are half off this week!! I have piles of little creations that I have been trying to photograph, for your viewing pleasure ☺

Again, I am trying to rearrange my time (and manage it a bit better) to get some stuff done and spend more quality time with the girls, puppy...AND Daddy, too. I have so much to do and so much that I want to do (ie. sew!!) that tends to get shoved to the side. Send me your prayers/good vibes/etc. to help me...because I need all the help I can get!

♥♥♥

Paula's Chicken Cacciatore

When I didn't think my life could get any nuttier, we go and throw a puppy in the mix! Don't get me wrong, it is a VERY good thing. It has been almost 13 years since Muffin died, and I forgot how nice it is to have a furry, adoring little buddy to cuddle with. Brianna's school, Bella's potty-training, home renovations, and puppy care have me so far behind at home. It is going to take me hours to get this laundry caught up! I wish there were more hours in the day because I have so many pics, etc. to share with you.

On my friend Paula's blog , she posted a really easy and delicious recipe that I would like to share with you all. It is something I had never made before but always intended to. All the ingredients were in my pantry, and it took no time to throw together.

Chicken Cacciatore

3lb chicken pieces

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

salt & pepper, to taste

28oz stewed tomatoes

28 oz tomato sauce

1/4 cup red wine (I substituted beef stock)

1/4 tsp thyme

1 bay leaf

I happened to have 1.5 lbs of chicken thighs in my freezer that needed to be used up, so I only made half a recipe. I seasoned them up with s&p and browned them in a bit of olive oil in my enameled cast iron dutch oven. While the 2nd side was browning, I did go ahead and throw the onion and garlic in so they could carmelize a little bit.

From that point on, you just throw in the rest of the ingredients and let it simmer away! Paula was so right... it smells AMAZING as it cooks.

I served it up they way she suggested, with some roasted potatoes and toasted French bread. I think it would be good on top of rice or noodles, also. There was leftover sauce after we ate all of the chicken, which I saved and tossed with some cooked shell pasta. The girls really loved that for their lunch (and so did I ☺).

Extending our family

It started with the idea of a single goldfish in a bowl. A $5 investment, really. Then it became a $30 aquarium. I can live with that, too, I suppose. How was I supposed to know that goldfish are really the "gateway pet"?

When we were shopping a week ago on V-Day, we decided to stop in this pet-store to look for that elusive oranda (which, despite my efforts, has already met with that golden toilet bowl in the sky). The next thing I know, we are looking at puppies. They had a tiny little brown yorkie-poo, which brought back memories of my bestest buddy from childhood. I had Muffin from age 2 to 16, and I couldn't imagine life without her. Unfortunately (or maybe FORTUNATELY, in light of the price tag), this puppy was already sold. But the seed was planted.

Matt has been talking about a dog for awhile now. I have to hand it to him, he really did do his research. A yorkie-poo seemed like a good fit for us, so I started searching for a breeder nearby. But, no one seemed to have any puppies.

Matt finally went back to work Tuesday, and called me to tell me about this dog at the home in which he was fixing a furnace. It was a morkie, which is a maltese/yorkie mix, and he thought it was cute/smart/perfect. I remembered seeing a morkie in my searches, and I ended up finding the website again. He was right outside of town! I called the number to ask about him, and they said they had to leave home by 5 pm to bring their daughter in to play basketball. THEN he asked if we would like to puppy-sit while they were at the game. Imagine...we got to test drive the puppy! To make a long story short(er), Mr. Puppy didn't leave our house that night.

(Sorry about the long back-story...now here's some pictures!)

Years ago on our way to Williamsburg to shop, I first noticed the exit sign for a town called "Tiffin." I thought it was a cute sounding name, better suited to a puppy than a town, really. Since this puppy looks so much like my dog Muffin, I decided to go with it. (Besides, the alternative, Carlisle ala "Twilight," seemed much too formal for such a cute creature!)

Every day that goes by and he gets more comfortable with us, his ornery nature starts to shine through. Even with my new lens, it is tough getting a good photo of him... he never stops moving!

The girls love him so much. Brianna will carry him around for hours (or until he finally pees on her ☺). For only weighing 2 lbs (9 weeks old), he sure can hold his own with two rowdy girls. This pic cracks me up because it looks just like me with Muffin, 25 years ago!

Lucky 13

(Matt's Senior Prom '96... the day before my 16th birthday! God, to be that skinny again...)

Today marks the 13th anniversary of when Matt and I "officially" began dating. We met in January, and when I came home from school on Valentine's Day, there was a rose and a huge Tazmanian Devil balloon waiting for me. I took him to my Valentine's Dance the following Saturday (we lived in two different towns), and we have been inseparable since!

(Here we are today, older and plumper, but still pretty happy ☺)

After 3 weeks off of work with a hurt back, he finally went back today. I plan on making his favorite supper, sweet & sour chicken. Hopefully I can also get the house in decent order, which isn't easy with the minor construction going on in my living/dining rooms. I wonder if he will like his gift...

Something fishy

A few weeks ago, I told Brianna she could get a goldfish in a bowl. I thought it would be a good first-pet for her. Like always with my husband, things got blown out of proportion, and we ended up with a full-fledged aquarium. Granted, it is only 5 gallons, but it is currently sitting in the middle of my bar.

As a result, "Goldilocks Sunshine" and "Barack Obama" became part of the family. They are actually quite entertaining to watch.

Do any of you parents remember the sometimes snide comments disguised as advice you might have received from strangers when you were a new parent? Well, that is NOTHING compared to when you off-handedly mention to a pet-store employee that you plan to put 3 goldfish in one 5 gal. tank. You would have thought I was planning a diabolical crime! Regardless, I wanted a red-capped oranda as the final member of our aquarium family. So after 2 weeks of tracking, I finally found a healthy-looking one today:

The technical term for the large, bumpy growth on their heads is a "wen", and since it is an oranda, I combined the two and named him "Wren". He is quite a bit smaller than his roommates, but he will grow. The cool thing is, the wen will also continue to grow and look like a big bumpy grapefruit coming out of his head! Am I the only one who thinks this is cool??

Taking photos of fish is hard! For some reason, I found this one amusing...split personality? ☺