Hee hee, this is my mom and her siblings singing to their youngest sister on the celebration of her 50th birthday! They harmonize pretty darn well, dont they?! What a weekend we had!
Finally Friday Fun – An Apron Giveaway
I’ll admit it, I am addicted to aprons now. I LOVE them. I like looking at them, shopping for them, and even creating easy ones myself. Since sewing my own a few weeks back, I can’t look at a bandana anymore without seeing it stitched up as an adorable apron. I wonder if this is a sickness, and from where did I catch it?
Over at Grosgrain they are giving away an apron! It is one from the Boojiboo etsy shop, and WOW does she ever have some fantanstic aprons for sale! I like hers almost as much as I LOVE the pattern on the Pretty Ditty Apron site. So many aprons. . .so little time!
Cafe Thursday – Just Plain Fun
I don’t have a recipe to share today, although I am woking on some cookie recipes to share. For now, I will just share this video that makes me smile so much my mouth hurts, really! My favorite movie of all time, as corny as it is, is The Sound of Music. So I was so happy with this video I almost cried! Would this work in the US?
Fun New Detective Series – by Joanne Fluke
The Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder
I am still trying to decide if I liked the mystery or the included recipes best. I really appreciate the main character, Hannah Swensen, as she is a strong, independent small business owner. Hannah is not intimidating or overwhelming, and is therefore very believable as a main character from a small town. Both the strong tie to the setting, Minnesota in this case, and the relationship between Hannah and her mother had me remembering my first Stephanie Plum mystery. I haven’t tried any of the cookie recipes that were included throughout the book, but I do have plans to do so this weekend and will report back with pictures and a full review then.
For now, if you are looking for a cozy mystery to read at the beach or poolside, I would recommend this one for a quick and easy read.
Finally Friday Fun – Random Info and Links
It is a beautiful Friday morning, and I am recovering from a wine and cheese party last night (it is not what you think, my allergies had me fighting a HUGE headache after only one small glass of red wine) so I thought I would just post some links to some fun things I have been checking out around the blog world this week. But first, here is a picture from the party, my friends are so cute!
On to the links. First, I have been reading the Grosgrain Fabulous blog all week and am amazed by the ideas and giveaways there. Today is a giveaway of a beautiful dress from the Shabby Apple, check it out.
I am getting ready to make the homemade deoderant that the Angry Chicken posted about since her going pooless is going so well. Wait, backup, reverse that, poo what you ask? The Angry Chicken has also gone shampoo less (whatever did you think I meant, hee hee) and I have joined her. I have only done one washing in the baking soda mix, but my hair honestly looks better than it has in quite a while. I was really worried about not using conditioner, as I have really dry and curly hair, but what do you know, it is soft and tame and I am just happy as can be with this. And DH is going to do a happy dance when he sees the money I am saving him in costly shampoos and conditioners!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Great Blog Reading
I have been blogging on and off for a little more than a year now, and while I enjoy it, it has been hard to find direction and a purpose. I am guessing a big reason why that is true is that my life has mirrored the same for a while now. I have a feeling that is all about to change a bit. I am finding hidden passions and l am beginning to explore them and find that it is changing me.
Also, I am currently reading some great blogs that are impacting how I think and providing me some needed direction and I am getting ready even to set aside some solid goals for both life and my humble little blog. I started reading the Get Rich Slowly blog, which lead me to reading about world domination over at Chris Guillebeau’s blog and so on and on it goes. I want to read it all, and learn and grow and become something.
I encourage you today to go back to some of your favorite blogs for direction, connection, or encouragement. The winds of change are blowing here in my fractured little corner of the world. . .what will they bring?! I am not sure yet, but I am embracing the change!
Fun Party Decorations – Paper Topiaries
I am having a little French Wine & Cheese party this week, so I spent the weekend preparing my decorations. I am pretty happy with how they turned out, but have a few more to work on. I am most pleased with the paper topiaries that I made, even though my family thinks I spent a ridiculous amount of time on them. I didn’t mind, the paper cutting and folding was strangely theraputic for me.
I got the great pattern from the Hello my name is Heather website. The beautiful pattern is a free download from there. The first stage shows me trying to setup a pattern for my first globe:
The next phase shows how you begin to glue the pieces together, tricky yet rewarding!
And finally, my two large topiaries
They turned out really well, and they will match my theme perfectly, as I am going with the french flag colors. Since I already had most of the scrapbooking paper already, and I had the cute little flower pots too, my cost was very little for these beauties.
Finally Friday Fun – A New Apron For Me
Well, it isn’t as pretty as I had hoped, but it isn’t as ugly as I feared either. I have only been wanting a pretty new apron for about a year now, but each time I have gone to buy one I have felt like the money could really be better used elsewhere so I haven’t ordered one yet. I am glad I waited though.
I ordered some new goodies from Mary Jane’s Farm a couple of weeks ago and one of the items that I ordered was a copy of her 9th issue, the Artists in Aprons Magazine. In that issue she gave instructions for making an apron out of hankies. Well, my DH has never worn hankies that I am aware of, but I have a ton of bandanas lying around the house due to our frequent motorcycle rides and I thought they may just work. And they would have, but a trip to JoAnn Fabric for some supplies for DD had me looking at new bandanas and since they were cheap, I decided to buy a couple of new ones for my apron project. I think in total, with ribbon, bandanas, and new sewing needles I spent under $10 for my apron. Now in my mind, that is a deal, as most of the aprons online that I was looking at were at least $30 or $40!
Two things I will change about this apron when I make my next one (yes, now I need one in every color and seasonal design). First, the bandanas that I purchased were large, I didn’t note the size, but they are not hankie size and so my apron is too big. So secondly, if I use this size in the future, I will not include the side flaps that the pattern calls for.
She sure isn’t sell worthy, but this new apron that I made with my own two hands makes me smile every time I look at it. And while DD is sure it is a fire hazard, I will be careful and wear my apron with great pride. I can do it!
Cafe Thursday – New Use for Old Nemesis
I was wondering at the beauty of a sunny morning on my way to church last Sunday when I looked 
out my window and noticed a field full of dandelions. I’ll admit, I am not a dandelion fan. I, like every other girl I know, used to love them and fashioned many a wreath, garland and bouquet for my mom way back when, but have since moved on to more refined beauties such as roses. However, I did start wondering as I drove why God would create such a strange thing, I mean, dandelions must have a purpose, right?
Imagine my glee upon finding this article today in The Salt Lake Tribune, written by one of my new favorite people on the web, MaryJane Butters. In case you can’t get to the article, just use the search box and type in her name, it is a great article about how we can use dandelions in salads and how to even use the roots to make coffee. MaryJane is honestly quite amazing, and I just love her tutorials, recipes, and overall great advice on all things organic. It also helps that MaryJane is quite the homemaker and has some great ideas for how to reuse things and how to create less waste in our homes. She actually has this Mid-Western City Girl longing for a farm of her own! Wow, did I say that out loud?
Anyway, I am not sure I will be roasting or brewing up a cup of dandelion coffee anytime soon, but the next time I see some of my old nemesis around the yard, I may just consider havesting them for my daily salad.
Avoiding My Blog – Try Another Instead
I’ll admit it. . I have been avoiding my blog. The past couple of weeks I have been searching for craft ideas and free patterns online, which has taken me to a ton of amazing blogs. In fact, there are so many amazing blogs out there that it has completely discouraged me from blogging. There are some great sites out there with great craft tips, fantastic recipes and beautiful home decorating and I am getting a ton of ideas on things I want to do and try. So, while I am busy working on my projects so I can post pictures here and maybe encourage others to get to crafting, I thought I would share a couple of blogs that just have me so mesmerized that I can’t stop reading them.
My new favoritest blog has to be the Sugar Pie Farmhouse. You will notice first of course how beautifully designed her site is. I mean it is cute enough to eat. Then there are her links to great products with lots of preatty pictures, and then as if that weren’t enough she has amazing pictures of her home and its decor. The absolute topping on it all is the music though. Now generally I am annoyed when people add music to their sites. I usually have my own music playing while I am working and I don’t like to be bothered with other people’s music, but hers is just so fitting for her site. It has me wanting to square dance each time I visit! This woman is quite amazing and downright fantastic. . .I keep thinking if I hang out there long enough maybe just a little of her awesomeness will wear off on me. Aunt Ruthie I salute you. . .and strive to be just a tiny bit like you.
