BABY SHOWERS ...

We have two moms- to- be in our Bible Study small group. Both of these sweet girls are having little pink people:-) Today our group hosted a joint baby shower for them .... there is just something about little pink baby clothes that makes my heart squeeze !!!!

I made each of them a self binding recieving blanket - my favorite shower gift. I love that they're thicker than the ones you buy in the store. They're quick to make too. I had everything I needed in my stash to make them (see,it does pay off to be a fabric hoarder:-)

I combined a patterned and a marbled flannel. It is so lovely and soft. I also gave them two little outfits each. I wanted a super cute way to gift everything. I searched the basket aisle but nothing made me excited, then I just happened to find the 80% clearance aisle, where I saw two little soft, cuddly duck Easter baskets .... perfect !!! Look how cute it all looked together.

We all brought a dish to share for lunch. I offered to make the shower cake ...

It was a new recipe I found - Chocolate Mint Patty Cake. It was a triple layer cake frosted with a fantastic frosting (whipping cream and white chocolate chips melted together, and then beaten until light and fluffy). This cake was sooooooo sinfully good - there was not a crumb left. I'm sure each slice had 3 days calorie allowance in it !!!!

I decorated it with royal icing flowers, little baby girls and a chocolate crib I made using two dessert shells.

Hope you're having a wonderful week ..... until next time.

HEY PESTO ...

A couple weeks back, I planted my veggie garden. I've planted some different things this year .... cauliflower, zucchini, cucumber and salad lettuce. Tomatoes and green peppers have made an appearance again too.

Last year, I also planted herbs, but they did not do well. I don't know if I had them in the wrong place, or whether the heat was just to brutal for them ... whatever the reason, they were a failure. I've planted some again this year (mint, sweet basil, parsley and oregano), and the story is an entirely different one ..... they're doing fantastically well !!!

Today, I was able to harvest my first batch of sweet basil !!! You would not believe my excitment. The result .... this absolutely scrumptious pesto. It was soooo good (even Boy Child declared it yummy) !!!

I had to bulk up my basil with some store bought leaves, as I didn't have enough from my harvest, but I remedied that by running to Lowes and buying 2 more sweet basil plants, we wont have that problem again. The recipe was one I found when I googled "pesto recipes". It was quick and easy - 10 minutes from start to finish.

I get a huge kick out of being able to feed my family from what I have grown. Garden to table in 30 minutes .. it never fails to make me smile:-)

GRATITUDE ....

A week ago today, the sky looked very different around our parts .... heavy, dark rain clouds hung in the sky. A good portion of the afternoon was spent in office basements, school locker rooms and home closets, as tornado's touched down all over North Texas. We were very lucky, as we were untouched. There are hundreds of other families who were not as lucky, and we are praying for them.

This was what I thought about this morning, as I was on my walk .... yes, unbelievable as it is, I'm still sticking to my healthier 2012 New Years resolution:-)

So, I thought I'd invite you to take a walk with me today .....

Streams meander all the way through our community, and they're alive with all sorts of animal life ... turtles, fish, birds, frogs ....

We have miles of walking and biking trails that have been built over the past few years. Wildflowers are blooming all along the trails ..... So beautiful.

This bush had lots of ladybirds on it ..... it must be tasty pickings for them.

I love this picture !!!!

Every now and again events happen, that we have no control over, but they cause us to stop, re evaluate, and become more aware of the simple things that make life happier ....... Last Tuesday was one of those days.

EASTER 2012 ...

I hope everyone had a blessed Easter, and that you got to spend time with family and friends.... Ok, and that the Easter bunny was generous too!!!!
We had a lovely day - we went to The Sunrise Service and then joined good friends of ours for a delicious Easter lunch.
As always there were Easter baskets for all. Chokkies and trinkets for the kids, and some handmade goodies too. I made these two little creations to go into my friends basket - I've mentioned before about her love for all things matroyshka, so .....

I crocheted one of these cuties to go in a swap package not so long ago - they're quick and easy to make, and I love that you can embellish them however you like. This matroyshka, is a size bigger than the one I did for the swap, but she still makes a cute ornament .... not too big.

Here is another potholder ..... I've officially named them My Cricut Potholders.

Once again the templates were cut using a Cricut cartridge (It was Paisley this time, I think).

I chose blue fabric scrap, as her favorite color is blue.

Instead of using applique to do the eyes and mouth (that would have been waaaay to fiddly), I painted them in using fabric pens. It was really easy, as I just used the template I'd cut as a stencil.

Time is certainly marching on, and I can't believe that summer is fast approaching. I've chosen what I'll be making for teacher end of year gifts, so I plan to get busy with that very soon, I've got 7 of them to get done!!! My mom arrives to visit us mid May, and I'd like for them all to be finished before then, so that we can spend time together doing all sorts of fun and exciting things:-)

Wishing y'all a lovely day.

SCRAPPY HOT PAD ....

Remember I mentioned a little while back, how I had a few ideas on how I'd like to use my Cricut, in other ways?
Well here is one of my ideas - I love the way it turned out. It was quick to make (30 mins from start to finish), and cost me nothing, as everything I used was from my scraps box.

For the front of the potholder, I cut an image from one of my cartridges (From The Nest), and used it as a shape for applique. I buttonhole stitched around it with embroidery floss to attach it.

For the back of this hot pad, I just pulled out some scraps of green fabric - I wasn't picky about the colors. As long as it was green, it worked. I sewed the strips together and then simply quilted this piece to a piece of batting and a piece of Insul Bright.
I sandwiched all of the layers together, and then drew around a pudding bowl, to get my circle. I finished the edges with a scrap piece of binding I had in my scrap box, and there it was ..... TaDah!!!
I used a piece of ribbon and some buttons to make the hanger.

I have a few more shapes already cut out, ready to make some more of these handy dandy little hot pads .... they make a quick, cute and useful gift:-)