Look what I made! I came across this blog and thought it might be false advertising. Really? An apron in an hour? We'll see about that! I went to my local fabric store and picked out some really cute fabric (fyi: cute fabric=cute apron). Then I came home and, get this, made an apron in an hour! I often like to host dinner or luncheons where I am still cooking when my guests arrive. I don't want them to see me in one of my well-worn aprons...I want to look put together so I thought this would work nicely. Plus, my sister's birthday is coming up (surprise Janette!) and I wanted to make her one. This is the perfect pattern if you are a little rusty on your sewing. Enjoy...you'll be surprised at how talented you are!

1 Hour Apron

Posted in cool idea , gifts , non-food , 1 Comment

My daughter, Morgan just had her birthday. She wanted a "stay late" which meant 5 of her girlfriends met at our house at 6:00pm and stayed until 10:00 pm. Morgan is getting to be quite the party planner. (stay tuned for the surprise anniversary party she threw for her parents) She knew exactly what she wanted to do with her darling friends. We started by making individual pizzas. The girls all got to choose what they wanted on their pie...fresh basil anyone? She also wanted a drink bar. Lots of ingredients for the girls to make a specialized drink. The hit was Italian sodas. The girls loved making them and drinking them. They are so yummy! Here is a recipe for you to use at your next party or stay late. divertirsi! (enjoy!)


Icy Italian Soda

Carbonated water

¼ cup half and half

7 tablespoons flavored syrup (raspberry is our favorite)

ice

whipped cream

Measure syrup into a 20 oz cup. Add Ice.

Pour in half and half. Add carbonated water.

Stir well. Top with whipped cream if desired.

Enjoy!

I also made a (non-alcoholic) drink bar for my Christmas party. Creating drinks always seems to be everyone's favorite thing to do.



I came up with a list of recipes that my guests could use if they wanted. For my Christmas party, I made the drink recipes more holiday-ish. You can change the names of the drinks to anything that works for your party...Shirley Temple, Roy Rogers, Oscar Gold. I think you get the idea. These were my recipes.

Delicious Holiday Drinks

Raspberry Lime Rudolph

1 lime, quartered

8 oz carbonated water

1.5 oz raspberry syrup

Fill glass with ice. Squeeze each of

the lime wedges into glass and drop in.

Fill glass nearly to the top with carbonated

water, and top with raspberry syrup. Mazeltov!

Icy Italian Soda

Carbonated water

¼ cup half and half

7 tablespoons flavored syrup

ice

whipped cream

Measure syrup into a 20 oz cup. Add Ice.

Pour in half and half. Add carbonated water.

Stir well. Top with whipped cream if desired.

Enjoy!

Mrs. Claus

6 oz Sierra Mist

1 dash grenadine syrup

1 maraschino cherry

Into a tall glass, pour soda and grenadine over ice.

Add cherry and straw. Prepare to be delighted.

Cranberry Twist

12 oz cranberry juice

12 oz Sierra Mist

¼ lemon wedge

Mix cranberry juice with Sierra Mist. Pour over ice.

Squeeze lemon wedge on top and drop in glass.

Bottoms up!

North Pole Fire Bolt

1 tbs grenadine

1 tbs lime juice

12 oz Diet Coke

1 lemon wedge for garnish

Pour the grenadine and lime juice into a tall glass.

Pour in the Coke to mix. Float the lemon wedge on

top to garnish. Cheers!

Posted in beverage , cool idea , party , 0 Comments

Mom and dad on their wedding day. Don't you love the dinner jacket my dad is wearing?



For my parent's 50th anniversary (happy anniversary mom and dad) we wanted to come up with an original gift to give them that helps them remember their day. I was reminded of a very cool wedding that I went to that had a Thumbprint Tree as a guest book. The bride and groom had everyone "stamp" their tree with their thumbprint and write their name under it. Then they framed their tree and hung it in their new home. I thought that would be a perfect memento for mom and dad. Fortunately, my sister's kids are very talented artists so her son Carson drew this tree. We chose to use autumn colors for the stamps because my parents were married in November. I thought it turned out great and now they have it framed in their home.

How cute would this be for a baby shower, a baptism, birthday, wedding retirement or milestone birthday. If you don't have a talented nephew you can order it on Etsy.


In the process of stamping the tree. Notice the different fall colors and the names underneath each thumbprint. I wish I had a picture of the finished tree. Magnifique'

Posted in anniversary , cool idea , gifts , 1 Comment

My mantra each day is "I'm not Martha Stewart". I have to tell myself that because I think I wish I was. In reality she has a team of people that come up with and execute "her" ideas. I am just me with simple ideas. So, when I decided to make play dough for my son's pre-school Christmas party, I actually thought Martha would have been proud of me. It was easy to make and the kids loved it (although they all mixed the colors and ended up with an interesting brown color). Try it the next time your kids are bored. They will think you are amazing.


Cooked Play Dough (I doubled the recipe for each color)
*Ashli B.

1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
1 cup water (add food coloring to the water before you add it to mixture)
1 Tbs. oil
1 Tbs. cream of tartar or alum

In a saucepan, mix all ingredients. Cook over medium heat until mixture starts to leave the sides of the pan. Knead at least 5 times or until play dough consistency. Keep in airtight container.
Printable recipe

Posted in activity , cool idea , non-food , party , 0 Comments

The countdown to Halloween is on. Just two more days and kids will be trick-or-treating at your door. Before my kids go out I usually do a quick dinner of soup and salad so they can have something nutritious before overdosing on sugar. This year I'm making some really cool beverages for the little goblins. Try them...your kids will be SO impressed!

Your kids will wonder how you got a "ghost" in their glass. Perfect for breakfast on Halloween morning.
You'll need some chocolate syrup (add a little black food coloring if you have it on hand), a paintbrush, milk and a clean glass. Lay the glass flat with the opening facing you. Paint the eyes and mouth on the inside of the glass. Pour milk in the glass and serve immediately.




This next drink would be great at dinner.
Isn't this cool? It looks like blood dripping down a glass. It is really easy to make and very impressive.

You'll need corn syrup, red food coloring and a clean glass. Mix the food coloring with the corn syrup. Dip the edge of the glass in the mixture and tap of the excess. Then turn the glass upright and wa - la. Let set for a while and fill glass with any beverage.

Posted in beverage , cool idea , Halloween , 0 Comments

Ta dah! A darling birthday wreath. My kids love to put this on the door when it's their birthday. I learned how to make this from a wonderful woman named Carleen Tanner. It only takes about an hour to an hour and a half to make. This one is being sent to my sister (if she's nice).

Take two balloons and secure them with a floral pin. Bunch the balloons close together so they look like this:

Pin the balloons all the way around the wreath. Then to add a little pizazz, add some curling ribbon.

Curl about a yard of each color of ribbon and pin with a floral pin. How cute is that?!

You could do all pink or blue for a baby shower, all white for a bridal shower etc. etc. the possibilities are endless. Get creating!

Posted in balloon , birthday , cool idea , wreath , 0 Comments

Guess what I can make with a straw wreath,
about 300 twelve-inch balloons,
colorful curling ribbon,
and about 150 floral pins?
You'll find out soon!

Posted in balloon , birthday , cool idea , wreath , 0 Comments

This year I am hosting my annual Sister's Retreat. When it is my turn to plan the SR weekend I try to have a variety of things for us gals to do. I don't exactly live in a (ahem) metropolitan area so it will only take an afternoon to shop at our one and only mall. I thought to throw in a little excitement, we'll make a craft. I went to a jewelry show years ago and the hostess was displaying her wares on a frame like this. I thought I would see If I could make one. It is so easy to do and a craft you won't feel ashamed to hang in your bedroom. All you need is a cheap frame. I got this one at Wally's but I have also seen them at the dollar store for...a buck! You also need some screen (like to fix a screen door) also at Wally's, a staple gun or glue gun and some masking tape; oh and you need some earrings to hang.

Remove the back from the frame. Notice the mat left around the edge...this is good to keep on so you can staple the wire to the mat.



Place a cut piece of screen on the back of the frame opening. Staple the screen to the mat. Use plenty of staples to keep the screen in place. Then use Masking Tape to tape the screen down. That's it! Now put it on an easel or hang it on some pretty gold nails in your closet.

Posted in cool idea , craft , gift , jewelry , non-food , 1 Comment

Halloween is just around the corner. I love using my apothecary jars to decorate for holidays. For Halloween I just filled each jar with different orange, black and white candy (the black and orange gumballs are from Orson Gygi )and tied matching ribbons on top. I thought it turned out pretty well. Apothecary jars are inexpensive and you can find them at craft stores as well as Walmart and dollar stores. (I got the spider at Pottery Barn) Have fun decorating!

Posted in apothecary jars , candy , cool idea , decor , holiday , 0 Comments

I know the first day of school has come and gone but I wanted to post this for you all to keep under your hat to use later. I put a little poster on my kids beds when they get home from their first day of school but you can do it when your child achieves a milestone, gets good grades, makes the football team or just because. You can use ANY candy to make a sentiment for your precious angel. Be creative and have fun!

Posted in candy , cool idea , poster , 0 Comments