I Gotta Wear Shades...

I know..... We look hot. There's nothing like random silliness with your friends!

Speaking of "random"....this post is.

This is some bread I just baked for my silly friend. It's "Amish Friendship Bread". I received the starter from my Aunt Cleo on the train trip the girls & I took a week & a half ago.

OK, more randomness. My girls are starting school next week. The youngest will be in a preschool & my oldest is starting Kindergarten. Tuesday is the big day! What am I going to do with myself? Last year I totally had a back-to-school party where I put my feet up on the couch, watched soap operas, sipped tea & chilled out. It was awesome. I may have to relive that moment again. But there may be some tears added to the mix. (sniffle, sniffle....KINDERGARTEN?.....WAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!)

Look what my mom, sis & I got last week while shopping & lunching. These are handmade beaded rings. Mine is the brown one. They are really cool with a stretchy beaded band. Less than 4 bucks too!

Do you want a sneak peek into my weekend plans?.....

I'll be cleaning all weekend. Let me explain. I got my very own crafty computer a few weeks ago & so I had to rearrange my art studio to fit it AND a desk in here. I just kinda dumped stuff here & there to make room. Now I can't find ANYTHING (duh) & I'm tripping over stuff & it's just not fun & pretty anymore. I plan on coming up for air on occasion & working on my oldest daughter's upcoming birthday party. Oooh! It's gonna be so cute! I can't wait to show you all the details!

Have a super duper weekend!

Shop Blurb!

Get your very own vintage fabric pinback buttons NOW!!! U-pick any 4 for 5 bucks! That's the regular price folks. Yeppers.
(NOTE: Some fabrics are limited in supply.)

Apricot Scone Mix

Enjoy this foodie craft tutorial!


I've received these jar mixes as gifts on a few occasions & I think they are super cool. I've never made one--until now! I'll be making this craft with my MOPS group (Mothers Of PreSchoolers) in the coming months. But, Fall is approaching & I thought that it would be a great way to welcome that lovely season that I call "favorite". And this morning when I woke up to a breezy & grey outdoors, I thought it was the perfect time to grab my jar of scone mix & bake up some warm breakfast treats for the girls & I.

INGREDIENTS:

-2 CUPS all-purpose unbleached flour

-1/2 CUP vanilla sugar** (I just used regular sugar.)

-1/4 CUP nonfat dry milk powder

-2 tsp baking powder

-1 tsp dried lemon peel

-1/4 tsp salt

-1/3 CUP shortening

-1 CUP dried apricots (or blueberries, cranberries, etc.)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Stir together flour, sugar, milk, baking powder, lemon peel & salt. Cut in the shortening using a pastry cutter or fork until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Layer the dried ingredients & the apricots (or other dried fruit) into one-quart canning jar, tapping gently on counter between layers to settle before adding the next. (I just plopped my dry ingredients on the bottom & the fruit on top.) Stores at room temperature for up to six weeks, or freeze for up to six months.

**To make vanilla sugar, fill one-quart jar with sugar. Split vanilla bean in half lengthwise & add both halves to sugar. Flavor gets better after a couple of weeks, & it will keep as long as regular sugar.

I attached a circle piece of vintage fabric to the top of my jar with a rubber band. Then, to hide the band, I looped a piece of twine a few times around the top.

Print out the instructions for baking onto a gift tag. Attach it to the jar & you're done! It's ready for keeping OR gifting!

Now, to MAKE these goodies, simply dump the whole jar of stuff into a bowl...

..& add 1/4 CUP of water & 1 beaten egg.

Stir until just moistened. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface... ...& quickly knead for 12-15 strokes or until nearly smooth.
Pat to 1/2" thickness.

Cut into desired shape & place 1" apart on an ungreased baking sheet.

Brush with milk. Bake at 400 degrees F for 12-15 minutes or until golden.

Transfer to a rack to cool slightly & serve warm.

I brushed my slice with butter & quickly consumed.

I got the idea from the June 2008 issue of Crafts 'n things. Recipe courtesy of Recipe Goldmine.

For other jar mixes, visit:

-The Recipe Link

-Heart4home.net

-All Free Crafts

That's One Sexy Vacuum You've Got There Ma'am...

I've had this totally random thought in my head & thought I'd share. Hope it makes you giggle...

I hate cleaning. I don't keep it a secret. But, my hubby LOVES a clean house. A clean house makes him SOOOO happy. Whether the house is clean or dirty will affect his mood. So, needless to say, he's grumpy a lot. HAHA! Not really.

I, in skimpy lingerie, will not receive the same jubilant response from him that a clean house will. I'm guessing that a huge turn-on would be me, fully clothed, with vacuum in hand. So, when I know my hubby will be arriving home from work today, I'm going to dig my bucket of cleaning supplies out of the back of the tallest cupboard in the hall closet & get to workin'.

I'm off to polish up the vacuum now. I think I might even dab some lemon scented Pledge behind my ears...

Hankies & Aprons & Ties...Oh My!!!

I meant to show ya SOME of the goodies I got while thriftin with my granny on my recent train trip. The first thing I found was this amazingly cute & 70's little suitcase. I actually packed all my sweet finds into this bag on the trip home.

I also purchased 2 ties & then granny gave me a bunch of grampy's old ties. I'm not even sure he knows there gone. It's granny's fault. I blame her.


This sweet sheet will look adorable on my wee ones bed--as I love mixing all styles of vintage floral sheets.

Not thrifted, but equally as exciting, were all these hankies granny gave me. I took pics of my favorite patterns. I should've ironed them. Wrinkly shcminkly.

This was one of the coolest finds I got. It's an unopened package of puzzle invitations from 1969. You write the information about your party on the puzzle, separate the pieces, toss the bits in the envelope & mail it! This will be in the shop later this week.

A couple gingham aprons were also plundered & they'll be dolled up with my usual vintage fabric cupcakes & tossed lovingly in the shop pretty soon. I also found a couple lengths of vintage fabric. I'll be using them to....

...make these adorable 1" pinback buttons! I have loads already made & samples for trade ready to send to some of my Eastern Washington Etsy Street Team members. They'll also be the freebies (with every order) at WhiMSy love for the month of September. I'll be packaging & selling sets of 4 as well!

I also stocked up on vintage forks for my fork easels as Christmas is approaching. Oh, speaking of Christmas, I've NEVER done a show in my life, but I recently applied to do a really popular show around here called The Badger Bazaar. It's at an elementary school & I was told by a fellow Etsian that she does very well there every year. I should hear after August 30 if I'm accepted or not. I'm keeping my crafty fingers crossed. (And I'm also panicking at the thought of "What if I DO get accepted?" I have nothing extra made besides what's in the shop. I'm gonna be craftin' til the cows come home. What does that mean anyway?)

This is me. Sorta.

Create your own at faceyourmanga.com !!

Have a happy Saturday!!

Return of the Train Chik

Hello my blog fans!! I'm back! The train trip was a success. The girls were hardy little travelers. They looked so cute with their backpacks & rolling rainbow luggage! Although, this photo is one of the few that shows them in FULL gear. Half the time they pooped out & the mommy had to haul THEIR stuff. Not fun.

Our layover going & coming was in Portland. The train station is really nice!

On one portion of the trip we were seated in business class, which made me nervous because it was VERY quiet. And the girls were, um, well...NOT quiet. We were seated by a nice lady & her daughter (who put my wee ones to shame). The little girl would cuddle with her mom in the seat & read stories--while her mother paused to ask questions about the story along the way, then, they played checkers together while sharing a deli sandwich, & lastly--the little girl was KNITTING!!! All the while my girls were crawling around on the floor, barking like dogs, picking their boogers & scraping frosting from cookies with their teeth.
It was nice to have a few days away & visit family. It was relaxing & mellow.

My grandparents took the girls & I to a place called Cabela's. I had never heard of it, but apparently it is this huge outfitter that sells hunting, fishing & outdoor gear. Well, inside this store there is a gi-normous display of taxidermy animals of all kinds & an aquarium also. The girls loved looking at the animals. But it was weird at the same time.

Here's a sea lion. This thing was so huge!
And one of my MOST FAVORITE of all time events on my trip was getting to meet my Etsy BFF Beck (a.k.a. Little Daisy Chains). She brought us gifties of Little Daisy Chains jewelry & Pez candy! Sweet-o-rific!! I was so excited to meet her, yet nervous. We were practically the last ones to get from the train to the station because I had a wee one in my posession who had a little difficulty with the long walk, not to mention her pants kept falling down. When I saw Beck I squealed inside & ran & gave her a hug. It was so weird & wonderful & awkward & awesome all at the same time!! I wasn't sure I'd recognize her, even though I've seen pictures of her before--but I knew right away who it was when I saw her. She was the one looking at me with a giant grin on her face, hand waving wildly in excitement. You have to read her blog post to see her viewpoint. It made me smile & giggle.

I enjoyed my time away, but it's always nice to come home isn't it?? It was my last "Hurrah!" with the girls before school starts.

On the way back we got a little sleeper room for fun (& sanity)! The girls had a blast!

My granny took me thrifting while I was visiting & I scored some really neato stuff! I'll share tomorrow. But for now, I've got lots of craftin' to do for upcoming projects. Time to get busy!