Simple pleasures

All our local thrift stores had 50% off on Memorial Day.  I actually spent three and half hours in one store and ended up with lots of cute clothes.  One of my favorite finds was this pot for $3.  I grabbed some thyme from my herb garden and a hen and chick out out of my back yard to fill it.  

Rapunzel Birthday Cake

Less than a week before Sophia's birthday I got the phone call from my friend that she wasn't going to be able to make Sophia's birthday cake after all.  I quickly called another cake-making friend only to find out that she already had a cake due that day.  So necessity required me to make the cake myself.  I did get a little help with the fondant which I had never worked with before.  I am really happy with the results and now I think I have the confidence to attempt more complicated cakes in the future.

The Rupunzel braid was my nine year old son's idea.  It was such a tangled mess, it took me days to braid!  We used it to decorate the table and wrap around the cake.  The night before I had the idea to make a game out of it. Everyone guessed how many times it would wrap around Sophia.  The winner got a bag of m&ms.

Gardening Satisfaction and Healthy Eating

When I arrive home, my garden brings a smile to my face.  Especially with all the extra rain we have had, my flowers are looking gorgeous. But the reward I get from actually getting to eat the bounty is even better...

Fresh lettuce and strawberries from our garden 

with homemade lemon poppy seed dressing 

and shredded swiss cheese.

Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing

1/3 c. lemon juice

1/4 c. honey

2 Tbsp. finely chopped onion

1 tsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. salt

2/3 cup olive oil

2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp poppy seeds

Zucchini Noodles

I did not plant zucchini this year, but now that I have learned this awesome substitute for pasta, I am sure I will be planting some next year.  I am always on the lookout for substitutes to my favorite carbs that actually taste good.  My friend introduced me to making zucchini noodles using a spiralizer after she attended a raw cooking class.  The spiralizer is easy to use and only costs $30 on Amazon!  I have been using it like crazy.  You can steam or saute the zucchini noodles, but I have just been eating them raw.  

Click on the picture below for a great recipe for peanut zucchini noodles that taste like phad thai. So good!

I know I have been quite remiss in posting lately!  I have several projects that I have been working on and haven't had time to post.  Okay, maybe I have been spending lots of time reading, too.  I am finishing up some large projects (including a bathroom remodel) and look forward to posting lots of pictures.

Aprons

Recently I had the chance to teach my friend's two teenage daughters to sew.  We chose aprons for our first project.  I have been wanting to make myself an apron for years and never have, so I sewed along with them demonstrating step by step.  We used Simplicity pattern A2319.  I added some trim to mine around the waist and top.

Last weekend our family visited a local apple orchard and that gave me the chance to put my new apron to use...

apple sauce, apple crisp and apple pie. 

Finished New Wave Quilt

Kaliedoscopes

Here are some more kaleidoscope blocks.  I have about 15 done, and plan to do at least twice that.

I started making the kaleidoscope blocks not really knowing where I was going with this quilt.   I still don't know!  I have been experimenting with some different layouts, but so far they are all a bit to psychedelic, and to be honest, kind of painful to look at.

Patio Refresh

 I knew when we tore down our termite-infested shed, that I wanted to use the concrete slab for a fire pit area.  But I didn't get the idea to stain it to look like tile until I saw it done at a friends house.  I would have done the entire area, but I ran into a hitch when I remembered there is some leftover glue or caulk all around the edges.  So I decided to leave some areas just plain concrete.  I am happy with the affect.

My favorite part about this project is that it cost so little and only took a little over two hours!  I power washed a few days before. Using a really big ruler and pencil I laid out the design, then used 1/2 inch masking tape.  I used the sides of a large cardboard box to cover the areas to be left plain. It cost about $30 for four cans of spray paint concrete stain.  I was going to stop there, but several friends suggested that I do a sealer, so I bought that for another $30 and it took about 15 minutes to roll on.  

This is the before picture.  It was taken the day we took the old shed down.  That is the roof of the shed laying on the concrete slab.  

Gray Ruffled Newborn Dress

I made this dress in size 0-3 months for my cousin's baby shower.  She didn't want too many traditional pink sleepers, so I though this fabric would be comfortable for baby, but sophisticated enough for mommy. 

I used some of my little girl's old onesies to make the pattern.  I got a little teary-eyed pulling her tiny little clothes out of the cedar chest.   

Fairy Garden

Sophia received these fairy houses for her birthday and all the kids had fun helping me set up our new fairy garden using things we found around the house and in our yard.