Crocheted Hearts

I've been trying to figure out these little hearts for days now. On one of my favorite blogs, Yvonne posted the pattern for these delicate little things. I tried to follow it but it's just not clicking yet. I'm not very experienced at crocheting so I have to do it several times before I really get it.

Some are too round and some are too bumpy. I'll play around with it some more so I get the perfect little set.

Yvonne strung together different colored hearts and hung them from the ceiling. They were so cute! ...and such an easy thing to carry along for those extra 15 minutes you can steal from.

Porch Swing and Flowers

AH....the porch swing. So many ideas wrapped up in one little picture - lazy days, salads, smiles, easy times, talking, waving to people as they walk by.

Our family loves the porch swing! We have three porches and they all offer their own quaintness. This one is perfect because it's on the cool side of the house in the summer and gets the perfect breeze all day long. We wave to passers-by and sip lemonade and talk when we are out on the porch. Things magically slow down and I love it!

In the evenings, we turn on the porch light and fan. It glows like it is it's own room and radiates well-being.


These are my favorite little flowers with the most amazing smell. These are Lily of the Valley. They only bloom once a year, so time stops for me when I can appreciate these delicate beauties.

I picked one the other day and rolled the little bell between my fingers to get the most scent. Absolutely wonderful!

So much fragrance in just a centimeter of beauty.

The purple Phlox is also an early bloomer, blooming once a year as well. It's so pretty to see the gorgeous flowers peeking out and then showcased right by the porch.

Referencing Cupcakes

Calling everyone for cupcakes!

Ok, well, I haven't made them yet, but I often fall in love with the IDEA of making them. I know, I know, who has time to make Martha Stewart Cupcakes? Not sure any of us do, but I like that I could. Don't forget, I'm a real person just like you and sometimes I don't even have time to take my coffee cup off the top of my car and drive wondering what that thump was on the trunk. So let yourself dream and put someone in front of you and try a new recipe, take it to a friend for good tidings, and love that you MADE time!

Now, Martha's gotten a lot of flack over the years and that's ok but we still have to believe in all the creators she "selects" to identfy as Martha Stewart.

I bought this book a couple of days ago and shared with the office to get other women's opinions. The consensus was that it's a keeper; good ideas, not expensive, can play each cupcake up or down (cute or beautiful). My cupcakes look great in my head but the final product doesn't always match to which I say "that's ok!"

A quick look at other ideas...

It's a good reference book and worth the money. I bought it at http://www.amazon.com/ for about $15. That comes to .09 cents a recipe and about a haypenny per cupcake!

Secret Messages

Who doesn't love the idea of secret messages? I got this wonderful idea from my dear friend, Hannah. She does this with her lovey bug and I thought it was such a great idea, I decided to do it with my kids.




Each of the kids got a blank book in their Easter baskets and since then we have been writing notes to each other. Sometimes we sneak it into school bags or purses and sometimes it gets tossed in the front seat of the car just as they are going to school.

I love that these little ideas are chronicling our everyday lives and positive thoughts to each other. Each of their personalities shine through these pages!

Sheep Farm

The kids and I went to a sheep farm this weekend. It was pretty rainy outside but we got a small glimpse of some of the hard work out there!

The sheep are getting separated in this large corral.



There are all ages of sheep here. The lambs are born dark and get lighter as the mature. Some of these sheep have already been sheared and some are still fluffy.

Here's a tiny lamb. She is sooo cute.


She needs to be tagged so they can match up mom to baby and keep good records on their health and growth. We saw two bottle-fed lambs where one mother died during birth but they were able to save the baby. This little one is wriggling around but don't worry, it only feels like getting your ears pierced. It's so fast, and then it's over; and just like anyone, mom came running up when she heard little lamb say "what's going on?"

Surprise! ...it's a puppy.

Who wouldn't love this cutie puppy? It was discovered yesterday at the ranch. We have had dogs dropped off in the country for years by people who don't know what to do with them. I've always thought that was a cruel thing to do. At least at the pound they have a chance to survive, but out in the country they are left to fend for themselves and often die of starvation or become prey.

So, here's the fam to the rescue. The kids decided to name her Bethany. My daughter read a school story and just loved the name.
Here's our cat, Kimmie, sizing up the new addition.
So, we have a keeper. She's cute and good natured so far. The kids can't wait to take her back to the remodel house and make her their own. I think she will work out great!

The Antique Couch

I bought this couch a while back and decided that it had great bones but needed to be recovered. LOTS of work but well worth it. I took off the fabric and pulled out all the staples. Then sanded down the wood and painted. I wanted to use milk paint and I did a layer of black under a layer of green.

I'm letting my secret out by saying that I wanted to recover it with a quilt. I got this quilt on an excellent sale from Pottery Barn. I bought the King Size so I would have ample fabric to work with. I actually wound up getting a lot of yardage for the price! I used the old pieces as my pattern for the new pieces, cut them out, and started stapling.

I made sure the lines were straight as I pulled the fabric (mostly because it was so hard to get those staples out and I didn't want to do that again).

I put the braiding all the way around to give it that finished look. I love the way it turned out and I really love the variations in patterns!



I have the matching duvet of the butterfly/oriental piece that I'm going to make curtains out of for the remodeled house...can't wait to see that!

Strawberry Freezer Jam

This weekend we decided to make some jam, freezer jam. We had a recipe from, none other than, America Girl. Kit Kittridge has a cookbook with a great little recipe for jam.

The difference in freezer jam and regular canned jam is that the freezer jam cannot be stored on a shelf. It has to be put in the freezer or consumed within about 3 weeks.



There is a key to canning properly and that is measurement. All of your measurements have to be exact or else your jam will not set properly. We used a scale and measured the 20 oz. of strawberries the recipe required.


Mashed the strawberries up with a potato masher....

....let the sugar and strawberries set for 10 minues, then added the fresh lemon juice and liquid pectin (you can buy at the grocery store). Stir for 3 minutes and pour into containers.

And there you have it! Beautifull jars of jam. What is the difference between jam and jelly, you ask? Jelly has the fruit strained out where jam has fruit chunks left in it. We, as a family, love the fruit chunks so we always make jam. And everyone I know that cans food always asks for the jar back when the recipient is done, that way you can swap out an empty jar for a full one and save money.

Creative Play

Don't forget the value of Creative Play. My daughter and I played "Bookstore" together where I was the customer and she was the clerk. I loved hearing what she had to say about selling me certain books and how wonderful they were.

Who couldn't play with this little antique register? My son painted it the original red to make it brand new looking! It has a bell that rings when you open it and we decided to use real money. ....just sliding in a good math lesson on correct change.

Hair Bows

Hair bows! Yes, my daughter and I made hair bows. We were trying to be resourceful and using material we already had. We bought clips and bands and went to sewing. She was so great at coordinating the flower with a yo-yo and button.

Some of the fabric is left over from a quilt. I loved the antique look of these and paired with antique buttons, they turned out perfect.

I had some scrap Amy Butler fabric that worked beautifully. I knew I saved those little pieces for something!

Splendidly Spring

Every blog I've looked at in the last few days has had beautiful pictures of spring blooms. It's impossible to go by and not notice the amazing flowers out for everyone's pleasure.
Just playing around with the photos...


This is the dogwood in full bloom in front of our little house. The porch is inviting me to sit on the swing and love the spring!

These are crabapple blooms on the side of the house. It feels like you are under a warm spray of bright snow...

Same photo as the top in sepia, but the real thing.

Another view of the dogwood, but with the seasonally retired chimney in the background.

Smoke City and Strawberry Shortcake

Over the holiday weekend, my husband, Ken, went to a place called Smoke City. It's that dreamland that men go into when they open the lid of a hot smoker just waiting to be filled with meat. His eyes glaze over and he gets a smile on his face. Nothing could come between him and the grill. Four slabs of ribs and three rubs from scratch. The word delicious only does a fraction of justice! Thanks, babe!

Then we move on to celebrate his sister, Sammy, my sister-in-law. She is a wonderful aspect in my life and was the next best step to an amazing dinner. She gave me these flowers several years ago and I just keep picking them every spring, precious!

Sammy made this awesome Strawberry Shortcake Cake from the pro...The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond. I love Sammy's idea of the strawberries on top! It's so you, Sammy!

The link is under my Recipe tab and she said it was easy to make and a definite show stopper. (we all love that)

Even getting cut apart, it's a beauty. Love it!!!

Knitted Dress

I'm back! After being out for a recovery period, I'm glad to say that things are getting back to normal. While I was recovering, I was able to work on my daughters knitted dress. She was wonderful in picking out the style she wanted. I love seeing those eyes light up when she finds the dress she loves. We chose the yarn together at L & B Yarn where they walked us through the store and gave us some pointers. Then it was off to knitting...

The pattern called for 5 hanks of yarn but I think I need one more to finish up.
The sweet design she picked was a lattice on top and stockinette stitch for the skirt. The pattern is called Crumpets from http://www.ravelry.com/.


It's coming along nicely. We have about 3 more inches to knit and then it's elasctic and straps.

The elastic will bunch the lattice together to make a smocked look.

This is the view from the knitters eyes. My husband and I counted how many hours for the skirt (you may not want to know that) and counted how many stitches. Right now the skirt is at about 26,264 stitches. This is something you've got to love...and I do!!!