Tie One On Apron Challenge-Mad About Plaid

Angry Chicken's new apron challenge ending October 1st (I know. . . I'm cutting it mighty close, but I procrastinated. . .) was to make an apron using plaid fabric. I chose an apron pattern that we found among my Grandma's things as we were moving her to a nearby nursing home. Because it is an old vintage apron pattern, I decided to go with vintage-looking fabric. The fabric is a wee bit too thin to hold its shape well so I had to pour on the spray starch to get it to hold its shape. I was glad we had spray starch because I'm ashamed to admit I don't know when was the last time I used it. I tried to use the continuous binding trick to get plaid fabric binding, but somehow I goofed and cut it on the straight. I have no idea how I did that, but was disappointed because bias cut plaid is so stinkin' cute. Ah, well. . .

I'm thinking this apron needs to be made again sometime in some fun modern fabric, but that will have to wait until my life is a wee bit less busy. Pumpkin's birthday is coming, and I'd better get on the ball quick!

Bake Sale Recipe

Fall is a time for baking isn't it??? Here is a recipe that I use often if I have to bring cookies to a bake sale or as treats at AWANA. They sell out every year at my garage sale, but that might be partly because I have cute children doing the selling for me. ☺
I use this dough as a base for a lot of different kinds of cookies, which makes it easy to whip up a variety.

Bake Sale Cookies: (or keep them all for yourself☺)

• 1 cup butter , softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 cups flour (can use some finely ground whole wheat if you prefer)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars on high speed until light and fluffy.

Add eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth and light lemon colored.

In another bowl, combine dry ingredients.

Add dry ingredients to butter/egg mixture and mix well scrapping the bowl if necessary.

Let dough rest in refrigerator for 30 min-1 hr (I usually scoop it using my cookie scoop first and then place in the refriderator because once the butter becomes hard it is difficult to use the cookie scoop) It is important to let it chill so make sure you don't that step and don't skip it. Ask me how I know. . . ☺

Take out 2 1/2 Tablespoons of dough (I scoop twice with my cookie scoop) Roll into a ball and flatten on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet.

Bake @ 300° for 10-12 minutes. Don't bake them too long! The temperature is not a typo.

Let rest on cookie sheet for a little while before removing them to a cooling rack. As they rest on the cookie sheet they bake just a little more from the heat of the pan.

Cookie options:

Chocolate Chip: Add a bag of chocolate chips or chunks
Snickerdoodles: Roll dough in cinnamon sugar (this is what is pictured on this post)
Sugar: frost with your favorite sugar cookie icing and definitely use some sprinkles

Almost anything else you can think of. . .oooo how about white chocolate chip with macadamia nuts. . .hmmm, I might have to try that idea soon.

Have fun baking and let me know if you liked the recipe.

Learning to Sew

I find so much joy in creating things for my family that I want to pass that love onto my children. Sewing is one of the skills that I think is so important to learn. Even boys can benefit from having some knowledge of sewing. Coming up with doable first projects can be difficult. My mom made a boa scarf for all of the girl grandchildren one year for Christmas It would be a perfect first project because it is really flexible and forgiving.

To make a boa scarf:

• Measure the child that is going to wear the scarf. The scarf should reach to the wrist so measure from one wrist around the back of the neck to the other wrist. (or just measure to the back of the neck and double the measurement ☺) For Princess H. the measurement was 45". This measurement will be your length.
  
• Decide the width of the scarf. We made Princess H's scarf 9"wide. That turned out to be plenty wide it would have been better to have it 6-7" wide. For a toddler like Pumpkin, I would guess 4-5" wide would be plenty.
• Cut three fleece rectangles using your length measurement and your width. (in our case it was 45" long x 9 " wide ) You can use three different colors and that is very cute (school colors maybe???) or just use one color which is what we did because that's what we had.

• Stack up the three fleece rectangles and pin the outer edges to help hold it all together and mark the center line going down the length of your scarf.

• Depending on the age of the child learning how to sew decide how much help to give. A. is 9 and had no problem sewing all by himself. Princess H. needed some help, but that might have been partly because we used our treadle machine so I helped her. Sew straight down the line you drew in the middle backstitching at the beginning and end to secure the stitching.

• Stitch again approx 1/4" on each side of the stitching already done so you have three rows of stitching altogether.

• Cut from the edge of the fleece through all three layers toward the stitching lines down the length of the scarf on both sides to make a fringe. We made cuts about 1" apart, but you don't have to measure. Don't cut through the stitching. I had to do the cutting because three layers of fleece can be a bit much for a child. 1" cuts made a chunky looking scarf. If you want the scarf to look more finely textured make the intervals between cuts smaller.

• After you have cut the fringe on both sides hold up one end and shake so the it gets nice and fluffy.

There you have it! If you have any questions about this project feel free to ask. Have fun sewing!

Pajama Party

It's that time of year again. . .the nights are getting cooler and the kids all need something to keep them warm and cozy as they sleep. Sew Mama Sew is hosting a Pajama Party for the month of September and I finally got on the ball to get some pj's made for my girls. Nothing like procrastination and a mug of hot apple cider to get the job done.☺

As you know, I love to go to garage sales. I found some vintage sheets/pillowcases just a couple of weeks ago for 25¢ each. Love that. The hems on the sheets were really cute with contrasting/coordinating fabric and crocheted trim. I used an old pj pattern for the pants that I had on hand and they came together really easy. I loved not having to hem them. I got them both a little bit too long, but they are growing so fast right now that's probably a good thing. By Spring I will be glad I made them as long as I did.

For the tops we went to Target and bought a couple of long sleeved white t-shirts and then I appliqued cut out flowers for Pumpkin and two hearts for Princess. I'm pleased with how they turned out. The boys are feeling a little left out, so I found more sheets that weekend that are a little more boyish. Hopefully I'll get some pants whipped up for them too.

There's still a couple days left in September if you want to join in the party. Just hit the button on the right sidebar and it will take you right to Sew Mama Sew where you can get all the details. Can't wait to see all the ideas and creativity that you put into your handmade pajamas.

Rainbows...in the kitchen

When I was a child every year during the month of August we traveled to Northern Minnesota, just a few miles from Canada, to visit my grandpa and grandma. After the heat that we had left in Kansas, Minnesota seemed fresh and crisp. The perfect place for magical vacations. We never did anything overly exciting there. They had a tire swing in a tree perfect for swinging, deep ditches that would fill up with water that was perfect for wading, a large lawn that they allowed us to ride their riding lawnmower all over (just for fun), and of course many lakes to fish. But one of my favorite memories was my grandma's kitchen.

Grandma's kitchen always smelled of freshly brewed coffee and there were always handmade buttermilk doughnuts available to munch. And if that wasn't magical enough in the mind of a young child, she also had hung in a kitchen window a prism. Early in the morning the rainbows would dance and play reminding us each morning of God's love and giving a bright hope for the promising new day.

It was so special to me that I hung a prism in my own home. I can't have it in the kitchen because the sun wouldn't hit the prism until the afternoon, so I have hung it in the living room to spread its morning cheer to my own family and to remind me of warm memories of my grandma. My own kiddos spin the prism and try to catch a rainbow.

Special memories are a gift and this is one way I can see the fingerprints of God in my life. He used my grandma's simple kitchen and the prism in her window to remind us that

"This is the day that the LORD hath made.
Let us rejoice and be glad in it."

Look around and see where YOU can see God's fingerprints today and then post it on PamperingBeki's blog where she hosts Fingerprint Friday every week.

Treasure in the Rough

Words cannot even describe how ugly this shelf was. It was a puky color of green smeared with brown and completely filthy. I found it at a garage sale for $3. The shelf is so ugly, but I liked the shape and it seemed perfect for my growing record collection that seems to have started all on its own.

Sometimes collections are like that you know. No planning necessary. They just grow and all of a sudden you realize you have a collection so that when you see more you have to commit and buy them. Anyway, this shelf had a small compartment on top that would be perfect for small children records with the read-along books and the larger shelf at the bottom looked like the larger Nat King Cole and Glenn Miller records that I like would fit if they leaned just a bit.

Hmmm . . . decisions, decisions . . . should I bring home this absolutely hideous piece of furniture??? Well, the lady running the sale noticed my indecision and came over and said she would be happy to sell it for a dollar. She absolutely did not want it coming back into the house with her (and who could blame her?) So I bought it. I had to, it was only a dollar. You understand, don't you???

I painted it the same color as our entry way (or Welcome room as Princess H. calls it). And look! There is still lots of room for more records. I'll have to try and find some more. ☺

A New Toy

I love to go to garage sales because you never know what you are going to find. This weekend, I hit the jackpot.

I have a soft spot for old machines. In another life, I was a history teacher. The history of other people and times always appeals to me. For example, we live in an old house and I like the history of our house . It's fun to think of other people living there, who they might have been, what they might have done, the crazy home repairs they made. . .but I digress. Its history gives our house character and we love that.

Old sewing machines are just built so strong and made to last. The machine I found is approx 60 years old and it is still faithfully chugging along. The best part is that it doesn't need electricity. Yep, this baby is a treadle. So fun to use. I'm hoping to use it to teach my kids to sew, but I can't wait to play on it too. I might have to learn how to quilt. It only has a straight stitch although you can buy an attachment for zigzagging. I usually just sew clothes because making a quilt seems so intimidating. Any easy patterns you can recommend?

That reminds me: I'm thoroughly confused about what a walking foot does. All quilters seem to say that if you are going to quilt a walking foot is helpful. What does it do? Do I really need one?

How nifty is that???

I so want one of these! This baby mixes up the stuff in your kitchen aid mixer while keeping the bowl clean! I know. . .completely amazing isn't it? No more stopping to scrape the bowl and getting cookie dough all over your fingers in the process which of course you have to lick off causing you to then have to go wash your hands again before continuing to mix up the dough. What a time saver! It's definitely going on my Christmas list- but I might have to come up with another reason to eat some of the dough☺

Muffins-they're not bad

I am not a natural hostess. I over think things waaaay to much. I always wish my house was a little neater or that we had time to fix up our house a little better before anyone comes over. My hubby just came over and chuckled at me while reading over my shoulder. That probably means I'm even worse than I'm admitting. I shooed him away. ☺ The funny thing is that I am not a perfectionist by any stretch of the imagination. I'm okay with throwing my shoes into the closet and shutting the door. I guess I just want others to think I am a little neater than I really am. Throw in the fact that I am a homeschooling mom with more on her plate than she can handle at times and the fact that I just plain don't like cleaning much and I'm a hospitality disaster.

Well this week we are hosting my parents-in-law. Needless to say, I panicked. Our normal leftovers at lunchtime that I throw together after homeschooling probably wasn't going to cut it- you know what I mean??? I didn't have time to bake a lot ahead or assemble casseroles so when I stumbled on the idea of making mixes I hoped it would work out. I really like my family to eat homemade as much as possible so I know what's in the stuff they are eating. Here is the recipe for the muffins we had this morning.

I combined flour, sugar, butter and salt. Set aside the amount it calls for to sprinkle on the top and then added the rest of the dry ingredients (I didn't add cinnamon) to the flour mixture. Bagged it up: crumbs were in a small bag thrown in with rest of the ingredients into a larger bag and put it in the freezer until needed. Pulled it out last night so the butter wouldn't be crazy hard and added the eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, and mixed frozen berries to it this morning. I made regular sized muffins instead of the jumbo and got approx. 30 surprisingly light muffins. I think you could throw in almost anything you like to have in a muffin.

My mother-in-law said" Mmm -yeah they're pretty good." That, my friends, is praise indeed.

Kansas State Fair

The Kansas State Fair always seems like such a magical place to me. It's the only time of year that buying a pink cowboy hat to wear seems completely reasonable. We get to pet and make friends with all sorts of animals.

We eat ridiculously unhealthy food and love every moment. Its magical to watch the salt-water taffy being made and its the only place that a person would believe that a corn dog is actually a banquet on a stick. We forgot to try a fried snickers bar, but had plenty of cotton candy, taffy, corn dogs, nachos, kettle corn . . .

The kids love the rides. We have to ride the poky little train every year and it was their first year to try a fairly tame roller coaster.

Yep, over all it was a good day and we can't wait to go back next year.
What is your favorite part of the fair????

Free fabric???? Sign me up!

The Fabric Shopper is having a fabric giveaway that ends September 20. Have fun signing up and I hope I-oops! I mean you win☺

Have a great day. We are going to the state fair. Hopefully I will have with lots of pics to share.

Loving

I sent the girls up to clean their room because their grandparents are coming tomorrow. When I went up to check on them I found this:

Not a lot of cleaning going on, but there was a whole lot of loving. ☺

Hiding

We have been having so much rain this week that the munchkins were going a little crazy. Yesterday afternoon everything got quiet for a little bit. Now every mom knows that this means that everyone is probably getting into trouble. So I went and peeked in the living room. They had brought all of their pillows and blankets from their bedrooms and were making hiding places for themselves. H. was hiding under the coffee table in her "tent" and A. had done the same with the piano bench.

Super P. didn't have to be quite as inventive because for his 5th birthday I had made a tee pee for his gift. The tee pee is wonderful because it is easily put up or taken down and put into a corner out of the way. It is a SewBaby pattern, which I bought online, but have recently seen them at JoAnn's. (great way to use those 40% coupons because they are never on sale) If you make one though be careful of which way the design on the fabric is going. I ran into trouble because the design I chose went lengthwise while the triangles cut to make the tee pee go from selvage to selvage (60" wide fabric) Uff Da! (sorry-Norwegian heritage coming out ) I had to do some quick thinking and make a trip to the fabric store to get some solid fabric . I had to alternate the two fabrics which actually got a lot more cute. What does Bob Ross always say? "There are no mistakes only happy accidents." ☺ The pattern also calls for ties to keep the door open. Super P. didn't know how to tie yet and I didn't want to have to do it for him. I modified the pattern and put in grommets and ties with velco. The tie goes around the flap of the door through the grommet and gets velcroed to itself to form a loop.

Sometimes I wish I could find a hiding place too. This week has been crazy busy and I would like nothing better to hide away (with a good book, of course). Sigh, maybe next week ☺

Rain

We've got a beautiful rainy day. What kind of a day are you having???

Party Time

Because Princess H's birthday was on a Wednesday, we waited until this weekend to have the official birthday party. We held our breath hoping that we could have the party in a local park so the kids could play meanwhile frantically cleaning house because it had rained that morning and looked like it could rain again at any minute. Finally, the sun peeked out and I stopped cleaning. (So yes, my house still needs to be cleaned. . . ) There was a football game going on in the park also so we had a band we didn't even have to pay for and a cannon that was very loud and made the kiddos a little worried until we explained that it was fired when the local team had scored a touchdown.
It always amazes me how quickly our children make friends. All children on the playground quickly became friends even though they had never met before. I was a super shy child and still fight that tendency now so how my children have become so confident I will never know. They taught all the kids to go the wrong way up the slide, they decided to name one of the slides the roller coaster slide and soon all the children were referring to it that way, they played tag and dug sand castles (with a moat, of course; I'm pretty sure that was A's idea) in the nearby sand volleyball court. Children are so special aren't they??? They have none of the hang-ups that adults have. They don't seem to worry about what others will think of them. I wish I knew how I could keep them just like this-confident that everyone will love them because of who they are.

Poncho and Hat

This is one of the birthday gifts that I have been working on for Princess H. and am finally able to show it to you. Princess knew that I was making a poncho for her birthday because she went with me to pick out the fleece. She was very specific. She wanted purple fleece that was soft on both sides. Well, yes Ma'am. She saw this fabric and completely fell in love. She is learning to love fabric as much as I do. When she would find scraps of this fleece lying around, she would ask if she could keep them because they felt so soft. I used an old pattern that I have that is no longer available for the poncho, but I modified it slightly so that it could be buttoned up the front. Princess does not like static in her hair and if you pull fleece over your head in the dry, cool months of fall and winter she would inevitably get the dreaded static. It is roomy enough to still slip over her head if she wants, but if she wants to avoid static it can be unbuttoned.
The hat was an afterthought. I was browsing around and stumbled on Grand Revival's website where they offer this hat pattern for free. (the link is located in her right side bar) Well, who can argue with free??? She doesn't really give instructions on how to put it together so I had to kind of guess at times.
Not really related to this post, but I also love the free ball pattern on Grand Revival as well. So if you go to her site make sure you check that one out. All four of my kiddos have their own ball and they love racing around the house throwing them at each other. The balls are soft so no one gets hurt. Well. . . maybe I should say no one usually gets hurt.

Birthday Time!!!

Princess H. is 7 today. I have such mixed feelings about her turning 7. Being 7 definitely means she is officially a big girl and there is no hiding it. That makes me sad. But oh, I am so proud of her and the beautiful girl she is becoming. She is riding her bike without training wheels which is an amazing feat. She is learning to be brave when she gets hurt and although the tears do sometimes come she presses on. She is an emotional girl which can be exhausting in trying to parent her, but her emotions also keep her soft and tender on the inside ready to help a hurting brother or sister, ready to sympathize and loving to hug.

Her coming birthday brought with it a flurry of last minute crafting of special gifts to make her birthday memorable. It is important to hubby and I that our children learn to give what they can and not rely on Daddy and Mommy to buy the gifts they give. Usually, they color special pictures or cards, but sometimes we think up something fun that they can make. Super P and I decided

to make Princess H. some homemade play dough for her birthday as a gift from him and Pumpkin. Princess H. has been asking for play dough for quite a while and I never got around to making it. We came up with the idea to add glitter to the play dough to make it a wee bit more fun/messy for Mama. They have been happily playing play dough this morning.

Do you recognize this dress? Yep, its the play dress -just as she requested☺

Here is the recipe for play dough if you want to make it for your own special little ones:

✿✿Play Dough✿✿
1 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups flour
1 TBSP. alum
2 TBSP. vegetable oil
1/2 cup salt
Food Coloring/Glitter

Mix dry ingredients together. Add water and knead until soft and pliable. At first you might panic thinking you did something wrong, but hang in there and keep kneading and it will become just right. Knead in any coloring/glitter that you want. Store in a ziplock bag. It will keep probably a week or two. Of course, you would not want little ones to eat the play dough, so keep it out of reach of kiddos that would do that. Enjoy!!!