Speeding through Life

So far I am not doing very good posting blogs :(  !!! Life keeps speeding by and suddenly you realize it has been a month! We have been working on a handful of projects outside and I am preparing for a craft fair! Don't worry pictures and stories coming.

Just had a few minutes and wanted to throw out some kid logic ...

Mr John Deere:
   "Mom I can only eat peppers is in the winter" - he loves green peppers.
   "Mom I can only eat pizza crust at night" - this was at lunch
   "Mom I can only eat cheese sandwhiches when the sun is shining" - this was on a cloudy day.

Princess Spud:
    After i told her to go feed her baby lambs, she refused. I told her that if she doesn't take care of them then she won't be able to show them at the fair. She in turn told me that it doesn't matter if I sell these babies to 4H kids she will tell Grandma and Grandma will let her show one of hers.
   Yesterday, Jake went to pick her up at preschool and she was the last one there. He asked her if the teacher was wondering where we were and she said "No, don't worry dad, mom is always the last one to pick me up. Mrs. K is use to it."

Aw the honestly!! :)

Bird Seed Cookies

Me and the kids had a great time welcoming spring into yard. The other day I saw a robin so I told the kids it was spring. Princess Spud immediately wanted to the bird seed out. So instead of a just filling the homemade bird feeder like a normal mom, I had to take the crafty route so we made bird seed cookies.

 

These are so easy and fun. I found the recipe in the book called “Crazy Kid Concoctions”.

Bird Seed Cookies

3 eggs
1 ½ cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
**I added abt 2 T of water.

Mix all of your ingredients. Roll out and cut out shapes. (We only did circles, because our cookie cutters are very small). Using a straw punch hole for a ribbon to hang. Coat with Bird Seed.

**Side note: I was making dinner while making these cookies, I was trying to COOK dinner – not burn dinner. So Princess Spud mixed the cookies, then they had to wait for me to get dinner to a spot that I could roll out the dough. By the time I got to it the dough was kind of dry. So after we cut out the cookies we dipped them in eggs and milk to make the bird seed stick better.

 

Bake for 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees.

Let them cool completely before hanging.

My husband was so excited when he walked in the door from work and was told we made cookies. Sadly he soon discovered they weren’t for him. Mr. John Deere informed him, “dad those cookies are for the birds, if you eat them you will get sick and mom will be mad”. J Also, my husband pointed out that the birds are going to have a hard time eating the seeds. In order for them to stay on the cookie they had to be pushed into the dough a little bit. So this isn’t a free buffet for the birds, they might have to work a little bit for their food. But on a good note we have seen two little birds – I think they were finches – eating away at one of the cookies.

Anyway it was a fun little bonding moment for us and the kids have to check their cookies a couple of times a day. Give it a try – just don’t do it at the same time you are trying to cook dinner. J

Yummy!!!

Tonight between me, my hubby, and Miss Daisy May, we made up a new great recipe. We loved it!! I have seen recipes like this but never printed them out, so we just started throwing stuff together that sounded good. Introducing Layered Taco Casserole. Now for the recipe …. Like I said we just started throwing things together so a recipe is kind of hard to create. Here’s my best:

Layered Taco Casserole

Ingredients:
1 lb. Hamburger, browned
1 envelope of Taco seasoning
1 envelope of Enchilada Seasoning
1 can of tomato sauce
1 can of beans – your choice, we used Chili Beans or something (I accidently bought a can when I was buying pinto beans)
1 can of corn
1 can of diced tomatoes (next time we are going to try tomatoes with green chilies)
Corn Tortillas
Sour Cream
Shredded cheddar cheese

1.       Brown meat, add taco seasoning.
2.       In a small bowl, add enchilada seasoning to tomato sauce
3.       In 9x13 pan put about 2-3 T of enchilada sauce in bottom, put a layer of tortillas on top of sauce.
4.       Layer hamburger, then beans, corn and tomatoes. Top with sour cream, and sprinkle cheese.
5.       Add another layer of tortillas, sauce, beans, corn and tomatoes. Top with another layer of tortillas.
6.       On final layer of tortillas spread sour cream to cover and sprinkle cheese.
7.       Bank at 350 degrees until done, (bubbly, hot all the way through, etc.) approx. 20ish minutes.
Eat up! It would be good with lettuce or whatever you like on a taco.

My mom was just teasing me on Sunday about how I am not afraid to make up recipes, and every once in a while I am successful! Hope you enjoy!

Guilty Pleasure #3

Sorry I have missed a few, I should be on #5, however it has been another weekend of construction!! I continued my painting quest and headed down the hall way. I only got it primed :(. We did get my new kitchen island all done! I am so excited and loving it!! Pictures to come tomorrow. (I have horrible light in the evening). So I have had a long productive weekend!

So guilty pleasure #3:

FAMILY HISTORY!!!!

I love family history! I am currently teaching a course on the NFS - which I am enjoying. Also I am helping some of my friends do theirs. Family History has been a huge passion of mine for a while. I love the search, the find, the challenge, and mostly especially I love getting know these people from our past!

Check back tomorrow for more Guilty Pleasures!! Go ahead and post yours. :) 

Guilty Pleasure #2

February 2nd brings guilty pleasure #2. The winner is:

A Freshly Made Bed!!!

I love the feel of the bed sheets all straight, stretched and centered. Along with the other blankets all smooth. Puffed pillows and the sweet smell of laundry soap. That is heavenly!!! I could just lay there for hours (okay I have 3 kids all under 4 - the though of laying anywhere for hours is heavenly!)

I love this bed and bedroom...

However, it is a beautiful vacation rental somewhere in Georgia. But it does look very inviting!!

See you tomorrow for Guilty Pleasure #3. 

Guilty Pleasure

In light of the Valentine Season I was thinking about all of the things I love. Of course I love my kids, my husband, and all of my family. If I started listing that kind of stuff I would have a years worth. So I decided to go more to the silly side and think of all the things in life that are my guilty pleasures or little everyday overlooked blessings. :) So here goes:

Guilty Pleasure #1: Pants fresh out of the Dryer!
I love the feel of Levi's pulled straight from the dryer. You know when they are still so hot that if a rivet or your zipper hits bare skin it makes you catch your breath. Give it a try - especially on a cold day - You will love it!! Just think you eliminate that couple of hours of stiff, uncomfortable pants and your whole lower half feels just a bit warmer all day long!!

What is one of your guilty pleasures? I'd love to hear from you.

Happy Birthday to ME!

So this weekend was my birthday and I helped my dear husband out by getting myself a few things!!! (I love shopping for myself!) First of all I got myself a Cricut! Okay its not new but new to me! A girl in the area upgraded to a Cricut Expression so she was getting rid of her little one. I jumped on that deal!

Second, I got a new living room, at least it feels new. I gave my living room a face lift - new painted ceilings and walls, new shelves, and trim. (**Disclaimer** True be known I live in a old trailer house/mobile home/single-wide/tin tent/etc. Its home and really I love it. We bought it when we got married thinking in a few years we would upgrade and purchase a 'real' house, however, life got in the way of that plan. Luckily we were in a position that when my grandparents needed some extra help we were able to move our humble home to their farm to help them out.) Now you know what I am working with, here is what it looked like - beautiful 1970's wood paneling:

Now here is the finished (or mostly finished) I haven't hung the shelves.

(I really hate that lamp - it is soon leaving!!)

My next problem redecorating. I just can't figure where to hang things so for now the walls stand empty.:(

4H - Winter Projects

So I am an avid 4H leader. I know 4H is supposed to be a summer project but I love it so much that we do it all year round at our house. My little girl is 4 1/2 and she calls herself a little 4H kid. (Legal 4H age is 8 - we have a ways to go:) - we're just getting a head start) We are just finishing up Cake Decorating. There are 8 nine and ten year old girls. Last 4H year we did a few projects and had a blast. So we all got back together and its only January and we have already done 2 projects. The first one was Wooden Blocks. The girls did 2 projects. I have a picture of one of them.

These little snowman were so much fun! They are a great kids project. (My 3 year old made some for his Primary Teachers). A tutorial will soon be coming. :)

The latest project is Cake Decorating. The 1st year requirements are way fun - decorate 2 cakes and 12 cupcakes using edible decorations. These girls are so creative!! I had to basic patterns for them to follow for the cakes, then they just went crazy on the cupcakes. While we were working one of the mom's said "This is true cupcake wars!" We had frosting everywhere - on the floor, smashed into shoes, smeared on faces and in hair, all over the table - get the idea? We had a blast. The girls then had to do a 'dummy' cake for their final project. I will have pictures soon. The frosting was setting up so I didn't transport them. I am getting them tomorrow. So be on the look out for pictures!!!

Scapy Scrapbooking

How many of you are scrapbooking on a budget? I like, many of you, don't have a ton of extra money to spend on crafting supplies non the less scrapbooking. I have figured out a few ways to save myself some $$, but still make fun pages and preserve memories. I would like to devote this section "Scrapy Scrapbooking" to sharing ideas and hearing from you on your ideas.

My first money saving tip is STAMPS! I love stamps. Actually you can spend a fortune on stamps if you go crazy. But play your cards right and you can accumulate a small versatile collection. I like to get a new set occasionally from Michaels when they have a great sale. But I always look for ones that can be used from multiple things. Like finding ones that have letters and numbers, upper and lower case. Most importantly I find styles that are me, its a waste of money to buy anything that is the latest and greatest if you aren't going to use it. Michaels usually has a bin of $1 card stamps. They are small but can add a ton of fun to a page. I always watch The Dollar Tree, they have the darnedest things there. Here is the page I did this morning using card stamps from Michaels and a stencil.

** Keep in mind I haven't actually journaled anything yet - so technically the page isn't finished. But you get the idea.

What are some ideas that you have had? Can't wait to hear from you.

Amanda

I Made It!!

  Whew! I am finally here. I have been thinking about starting my own blog for about a year now. I think I am finally ready! :)
   I made a stack of things for Christmas this past year that I can't wait to show off. I love Christmas for that reason - two months straight of crafting. The added bonus - A DEADLINE! (yes, I am one of those that have boxes of started projects that will likely never get done).
   Also my New Years Resolutions might have a fighting chance if I am writing about them and occasionally checking back to them. Okay truth be known I don't actually have any resolutions as of yet. Hey what can I say I have spent all of the past two months crafting and trying to make that deadline. :) I'll definitely let you know as soon as I figure out what they are.
   Anyway, lets pause while I pat myself on the back and give myself a gold star for already getting one of my "To Do's" checked off!