Pre school graduation

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That's my baby boy holding the flag at his preschool graduation.  These years have gone by so fast. We have been  so blessed to have him at a wonderful preschool where he has grown so much! Congratulations Carson!!

Patriotic Board

I wanted something patriotic on my mantel.  Yesterday I came up with this idea.  All I did was bought a scrap board at Home Depot yesterday (I paid .51) Then I bought some scrapbook paper that I like. Then I cut the pieces in quarters. You can cut them any size you like.

 Then I just laid them out on the board how I like them. Then started using Modge Podge to glue them down on the board.

 Then after they are all glued on the board, cover the top with Modge Podge.  Sometimes the paper wrinkles a little.  I use my finger and smooth it out. Some of the wrinkles I leave because it gives it character. Then just let dry over night.
Here is my finished project.

Lost?!?!?!?!

Does anyone else watch this show?  When it first started I loved it, but over the years it has taken in toll on me.  I am so "lost" and was going to stop watching it.  I then realized I had to many hours of my life I had invested in it to quit.  I am hoping tonight will answer many questions and I will feel at peace about the way it ends.  (Go ahead and laugh). So if anyone calls my house from 9-11:30 I will not answer. I have had my caffeine fix so I am good to go. Enjoy the show.
 
I have to say I cried last night during this show.  I wasn't thrilled with the way everything ended, but at least we have closure.

Blackberry and strawberry Cobbler

I found this new recipe for Blackberry Cobbler.  The problem was I only had 2 cups of blackberry's and it calls for 3 so I used a cup of strawberries.  Here is the recipe hope you all enjoy it as much as my family. As you can tell my family got to it before I took the picture.

 3 Cups of Blackberries or ( 2 cups blackberries 1 cup strawberries)
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 cup cold water
1 Tbsp. butter
 Biscuit Topping:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup cold butter
1/2 cup 2% milk
Whipped topping or vanilla ice bream, optional

In a large saucepan, combine the blackberries, sugar and cinnamon.  Cook and stir until mizture comes to a boil. Combine the cornstarch and water until smooth: stir into fruit mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Pour into greased 8 Inch square baking dish. Dot with butter.
For topping, in a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in milk just until moistened. Drop by tablespoons onto hot berry mixture.
Bake uncovered, at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until filling is bubbly and topping is golden brown. Serve warm with whipped topping or ice cream.

Blog

So excited I have my burp cloths up on the Oopsey Daisy page today. Just click here to see. This is a great blog and she always post some really good ideas.

Wonderful Bread!

No Knead French Bread
From Artisian Bread in 5 Minutes a Day via The Ivory Hut

3 cups of lukewarm water
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt

6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Grab a very large mixing bowl, or a large container that you can cover. In it, mix the water, yeast, and salt. You don’t have to heat up the water to a precise optimal temperature for the yeast. I’ve even used just regular tap water, and it’s worked well for me. Just let that sit together for a while (you don’t have to wait for the yeast to dissolve completely), then dump the flour all at once and stir with a wooden spoon. You don’t need to knead this, and you’re not looking to make it come together into a dough ball. You just want everything mixed well, with no streaks of flour left, and you’re done.

Leave it in your container, covered (but not airtight, or it’ll pop), for a few hours. When it has risen and then deflated a bit, your dough is done. It’s ready to be used or stored in the refrigerator.

To bake the bread, just grab a chunk of dough, about the size of a grapefruit. Dust your hands with flour to help prevent sticking, and gently pull the sides of the dough toward the bottom, rotating the dough, until you get a roundish shape with a smooth surface. It should only take you about a minute or less to do this. The dough won’t be entirely in the bottom, where it may look bunched up, but don’t worry about it.

Put it on a cutting board that’s been dusted with cornmeal to prevent sticking, and let it rest for at least 40 minutes. No need to cover it. If the dough has been refrigerated, it helps to let it rest a little more, until it’s no longer chilled.

Twenty minutes before you are ready to bake, put a cast iron skillet (or a pizza stone) in the middle rack of your oven, and put a broiler pan (I used a cookie sheet) in the bottom rack. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Dust some flour on the top of your loaf, and slash the top, about 1/4-inch deep.

After twenty minutes of preheating, it’s time to bake. (You can put the bread in after 20 minutes, even if your oven hasn’t reached 450 degrees yet.) Slide the loaf onto the baking stone, and then quickly pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler pan. Then quickly shut the oven door to keep the steam inside.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until you get a nice brown crust. Remove and let cool completely, if you can wait that long.

Barnes and Noble coupons

Thru 5/24, Barnes and Noble is offering up this new coupon here valid for a FREE Frappuccino with the purchase of one!! There are also a few other coupons available here too, including 30% off various book coupons + more!

Cake pops

I love the blog Bakerella. She has a wonderful recipes for cake pops. I have been wanting to try them for a while so today I broke down and made them.  Now mine are very plain when looking at her things.  I just used a strawberry cake mix and cream cheese frosting to make these.  I am taking these to a baby shower so here's hoping they go over well.

Tile necklaces

I have been behind on blogging this week.  I have been playing around making necklaces. I love making jewelry.  Here is what I have created this week.

 

Happy Mother's Day!

                                Here is a picture of my Mom in Disney World with Mickey.

I wanted to take time on my blog and thank for being such a wonderful mother. I was blessed to have such a great mom who always has taken care of me. I know there were times in my life she probably wanted to choke me, but I am thankful she always believed in me and prayed for me. I truly have a Proverbs 31 Mother. I love you!

Mother's Day Presents

I wanted to do something unique for Mother's day.  I went to Target and bought 2 different pocketbooks.  Then I made flowers for each one to make them original. 
Here are the directions for the flowers.

 I cut out 5 different sizes of flowers on material.  I started at 5 1/2 inches and went down an inch for each one. I cut them out and stacked them largest to smallest.  Then I sewed them all together and covered a button and attached it to them. I hot glued a pin on the back so they could attach to the fabric of the pocketbook. Here  is the finished product.

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

1 Box yellow cake mix with pudding in the mix
1- 3.9 ounce box chocolate pudding mix
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup water
4 large eggs
8 ounces sour cream
1 cup chocolate chips 
1 cup sifted powdered sugar


Combine 1st 3 ingredients using wire whisk.  Add oil and next three ingredients, beating until smooth. Stir in Chocolate chips. Pour batter into greased and floured bunt pan. Bake 350 for 1 hour. Cool cake 10 minutes and sprinkle with powered sugar.


This cake is so easy to make. It is one that I know will always turn out good!

Starbucks Frappuccino

Between May 7 and May 16, enjoy a half-price Frappuccino^® blended beverage at participating Starbucks in the afternoon – 3 to 5 p.m., to be exact

Contest at pink studios

For by blogging friends this sounds like a wonderful giveaway check her out here
I entered to win Carrie’s entire store at @pinkinkstudios.com valued at over $1,300!  www.facebook.com/PinkInkStudios for further details!

Paper covered star

This star was really and afterthought.  I had made the family rules canvas that I had seen so much on lots of blogs.


 I had a lot of paper left over so I decided to modge podge it on to a metal star I had.

All I did to this is cut the scrapbook paper into all shapes and sizes.  Then I started to glue them with the modge podge all over the star.  I then after I had it fixed the way I wanted I used the modge podge and spread it all over with a brush. Then just let dry.

Summer reading at Barnes and Noble

*Click here to print off the Passport of Summer Reading.
*Read any 8 books this summer and record them in this Passport (Be sure to document the location you visit in each book).
*Bring your completed Passport to a Barnes & Noble store between May 25 and September 7, 2010.
*Choose your FREE reading adventure from the book list featured on the back of your Passport. Your name will be automatically entered in
the sweepstakes for a chance to win a complete set of signed The 39 Clues books.
*Please note that this offer has a limit of 1 free book per school-age child (Grades 1-6)

My contest win

Just wanted to share my contest win from the The Tidy Nest. Ilisa has some great projects there, so go check her out.  Thanks to her for my great pendant! I will be wearing it often.