Crazy Quilting

So here it is.

The quilt I made for my nephew who should be arriving soon from Africa.

The crazy part came when I suddenly realized there was a baby shower the next weekend and I had not started on the quilt yet. My parents were in town so that helped because I was able to run to several different places to get fabrics that I thought would work. I actually bought all the materials on Saturday and had the quilt finished by about 11:45 Sunday Night. And I left the next morning for Dallas to look for houses with my husband. And I mailed the quilt from Dallas to one of the girls hosting the shower so it would be there
in time for the shower on Saturday.

Crazy.

I started out with about 12 different patterns and colors of material
all cut out in 7" squares and ended up using only about 7 of the patterns.
It is so hard to know what will actually flow together
until you get them all home.

I switched around all the pieces so many times to come up with the most pleasing pattern that I was seeing spots. I didn't want the pattern to be too uniform but I wanted it to be balanced somewhat. I seriously had a hard time with this one. So don't be critical. I did the best I could. I even got my mom and dad involved in the pattern scheme!

My sister-in-law mentioned she was going with blues and browns
as her colors so I just winged it and picked what I thought might work.

Even as I look at it now it think.....
I really should have put this one there and that one here.

I did a cute little top-stitch in brown and backed it with blue chenille.
And I purposefully did not line the squares up exactly
so it would have more of a home-made vintage feel.

Okay, so my intent was actually for them to all line up.

But I had chenille squares along with the cotton squares and
sometimes the chenille would just get too stretchy and then I
could not get them lined up for the life of me.

So I'm just going to go ahead and stick with the home-made vintage feel story.

I have this philosophy that presentation is half of the gift.
And I love to use satin ribbons when I can.
I think it really adds a lot of sweetness.

So I wrapped it up with the widest, bluest, satin ribbon I could find.

And there you have it!

Crazy Quilting!

(I hope he adores it and knows that his aunt loves him so much!)

(you can see how it looks in his adorable nursery here)

Party Pretzels

My oldest turned 7 yesterday.
And ever since my mom gave us this
Kids' Cook Book,
he has wanted to make the party pretzels found on page 204.

So at some point I had promised him that we could make them for his birthday.
Not actually thinking that his birthday would come and he would remember.

And yet he did.

He was so excited about them.
So we made them.

I have to say, they were a little messy.
We basically dipped the long straight pretzels in either melted chocolate or white chocolate.
I would recommend the candymelts that you can find at your local crafty store.

We then attempted to "dip" them in sprinkles but that didn't work out so well.
So we ended up sprinkling the sprinkles on top and that seemed to work well.
We also drizzled white chocolate on the milk chocolate dipped pretzels.

They really turned out cute and my kids tell me they are the best pretzels they have ever had.

Well I should imagine they would be.
Covered with chocolate and sugar and all.

These were fun and very party friendly.
We are actually celebrating his birthday tomorrow when daddy comes home.

And I need to some how pull a Transformer cake out of my hat.
I'll let you know how that goes!

(just to clarify, he has not seen the Transformer movie that was recently in theatres. That one was too graphic and not appropriate for young children in our opinion. He had only seen the cool toys at Wal-mart that turn from a vehicle to a robot and he just can't imagine anything cooler than that.)

Georgia Aquarium

While my parents were here, we visited the
Georgia Aquarium.
We had not been up to this point because it was pretty expensive and we really
did not know what to expect. We finally decided to go because we are a lot closer now than when we move to Texas.

So can I just tell you.... It was magnificent!
It was truly awe-inspiring.

I am so glad we went and would like to put this on everyone's must see
if you ever visit Atlanta!

The most impressive part was the six million gallon tank where the 4 whale sharks live. There were places to view the tank from all sides. There was even an acrylic tunnel we walked through and could see all the fish and sharks swimming above us.

There were several other large tanks that were also very impressive.
I could have stayed all day just sitting and watching the fish and sharks swim.
Had we not brought 3 busy kids with us.

My kids loved the touch tanks the best.
This one held sea anemones and it was a favorite of my oldest.

The beluga whales and penguins were fun to watch.

This was the shark and sting ray touch tank.

This was the horseshoe crab touch tank.




And my middle son's favorite was the starfish touch tank.
I (jokingly) asked the guy in charge of the exhibit if he got bit by a starfish.
He wasn't amused.

The best part had to be when my husband and my daughter
discovered that no one was at the stingray touch tank.
Since she was never able to touch one the first time we went by,
my husband thought this would be a great time to let her get nice and close.
After he had hoisted her up so she could reach in far
enough to touch he heard someone on a microphone say,
"Sir, this is a no touch time, please stay back from the water."
At the same time my daughter started yelling,
"I'VE GOT ONE!!! I'VE GOT ONE!!!!! "

I still laugh so hard my stomach hurts at that one!

When asked what her favorite part of the aquarium was, she said "Nemo".

Great. We pay all this money to further her education on sea creatures and she is most impressed by the person walking around in a orange plush fish outfit.

So, if you are in Atlanta, I would highly recommend putting this on your list.

It was a big hit with all of us!

Wonderful Layer Salad

This is a recipe given to me by my Aunt Patty several years ago.
It's an absolutely WONDERFUL layer salad!

This is one of the tried and true salads that I take to parties and fellowships.
I also use this salad as part of a meal if I am taking dinner to someone.
It is always a big hit and everyone always asks for the recipe.
And it is VERY EASY!

Easy and Impressive. What more do you need?

Start out by boiling about 6 eggs.

Then fry up about a pound of bacon.
Or if I am in a hurry I sometimes use already cooked bacon
pieces (not bits, pieces) (there IS a difference).
I actually like to use Turkey Bacon. I feel just a little better about it.
The BEST turkey bacon I've found to use is Oscar Mayer.
I've tried several and this is the only one to pass the test.

I usually cook this in the microwave, but when I am making it for someone else,
I like to fry it in a pan with a little canola oil.
It has a better texture and flavor and is still better for you than full fat bacon.

Take a head of romaine lettuce and tear it up into bite size pieces.
Then rinse it and run it through the salad spinner.

I LOVE my salad spinner!

Add either a bag of spinach or a bag
of spring mix salad and then mix it all together.


Next comes the green onions.
Chop up about 5 or 6 excluding the very ends, of course.

Then toss it on the salad.

Next comes the bacon.
Crumble it up and toss on top of the green onions.
(could this BE any easier)

Next is a small bag of frozen peas.
You guessed it... toss it on the bacon.
I like the petite peas but any bag of frozen peas will do.

Peel and chop up the boiled eggs.

And toss them on the peas.

The salad is topped with the dressing.

Mix together:
2 cups of Mayonnaise
1 cup Sour Cream
1 Pkg Hidden Valley Ranch

Mix it all together until it is thoroughly combined.

Then ice it on the top of the salad.
If you have any left over, it makes a nice veggie dip!

There you have it!
A new and easy wonderfully delicious favorite salad!
Hope you enjoy and let me know if you make it and what you think!

Wonderful Layer Salad
Mix together 1 head of romaine lettuce and
1 package of fresh spinach or field greens
torn into bite size pieces in bottom of salad bowl.

Layer next ingredients:
6 green onions, chopped
6 hard cooked eggs, chopped
1 small package frozen peas
1 lb cooked turkey bacon (or real bacon), crumbled

Ice dressing on top:
2 cups mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch

Thankful Thursday

This Thursday I have much to be thankful for.

1. I'm thankful for little bluebirds that let us watch them feeding their young. And who scold us when we get in their way!

2. I'm thankful for our local library. They have so many great books and great programs. We are participating in their summer reading program which has been such a motivation for my kids because it is put together so well and has great incentives.

3. I'm thankful for my gardenia bushes. They are right outside my front door and smell so wonderful!

4. I am thankful my husband is coming home tonight!

5. I am thankful for my "forever friends". You know, the friends you are really good friends with and used to see on a regular basis, but you don't see them as much because you live too far away or are in a different pattern of life now. The friends that you can be out of contact with for months and then pick right up where you left off. The friends who REALLY know you and still love you for who you are. Those are the friends I am thankful for!

6. I'm thankful for my children's perspective on life. Their continual enthusiasm in even the smallest things reminds me to enjoy life and appreciate the wonders of God's creation.

7. I am thankful that God chose to give us beautiful flowers to decorate our world. What a wonderful love gift!

7. I am thankful that all the appliances in my house are in good working order (something you take for granted until they aren't working).

8. I am thankful for our butterfly bush. We have been continually entertained by all the huge beautiful butterflies that it has brought by.

9. I am thankful we are all in good health.

10. I am thankful that my mom's surgery this week went smoothly and that her recovery is going well.

11. I am thankful it is summer and we can spend the day at the park building sand castles and playing in streams and picking up pine cones and chasing butterflies and swimming at the pool.

I hope you have a very Thankful Thursday!

The Adventures of Mr. Toad

I have a set of urns at my front door.
I adore them.
I searched and searched last year to find something just
perfect for my front entryway and finally found a set of these at Wal-mart.
I plant different annuals in them every season.
I'm pleased with their summer look so far.

Oh, look! What's this?
A little toad on my sweet potato vine.

Hello, Mr. Toad.

You really should be careful around here.
There are scary things in this big world.

Like this guy.
I'm pretty sure you would just be a mid-day Scooby snack for him!

And this guy, well I really don't think you will have to worry about him at all.
He's not a real hands on, hunting for critters kind of guy.

This guy might give you a run for your money, but for the most part I think you'll be okay.

HERE is where you need to RUN little toad. RUN FOR YOU LIFE!!!
She will pick you up and play with you and put you in her pocket
and you may end up in a box, or a wagon, or a dump truck
or a dollhouse in her room and NEVER BE HEARD FROM AGAIN!

But you sure are cute.
So I'll rescue you and put you back in the urn where I found you
and hope you find a good place to hide!

And I wish you much luck,
cause she is already lookin for ya!

Thanks

Thanks for the encouragement about the photos!

But I'll just tell you, I'm WAY out of my league here.

I finally figured out that the "entry fee" was for up to 4 photos so I entered the first 4 yesterday. (I really don't think the last one would have qualified) (although it would have been funny) I had to name them all so I went with these in order:

#1 Tiger Swallowtail (I know, original, it is actually the name of the butterfly, I liked the milkshake suggestions but was having a hard time working it in)

#2 Black Beauty (mom2camo, great suggestion, I also had this in my head the whole time)

#3 She Works Hard for the Honey (I'm sure that is more of a caption than a Title but once I thought of it, it just stuck and I put it anyways)

#4 Rhapsody in Orange (I just liked the orange pollen all over the butterfly which shows up better on the 8x10 and couldn't think of anything else)

See! I told you I needed help! It's hard thinking up brilliant and witty Titles! Ack! Hopefully the Titles won't make or break the picture.

Anyways, I figured out that I was apparently paying an entry fee and submitting my photos to see if they would be acceptable to be judged!

Way. Out. Of. My. League.

But a girl's got to start somewhere, and I have always loved photography,
so we'll just see what happens!

I'll let you know!

The First And Hopefully Last Snake Post

The other day the kids were playing in the front yard and I went inside to get a couple things. I stepped back out into the garage and my spidey senses kicked in.

Something wasn't right. Then I saw it.

The biggest blackest rubber snake I had ever seen.

In my garage.

Right behind our vehicle.

And at that same moment I was hit by the second thought that I had thrown out all our rubber snakes for fear that my daughter was becoming desensitized to them and might pick up the real thing.

And then I yelled.

With the door to the house still open behind me, I stood frozen and yelled my husband's full name, as loud as I could. Not once. Not twice. But three times before he was able to make it to my side. And he was just sure something terrible had happened to one of the children.

Because I never have used his full entire name in a yelling voice for the entire 11 years that we have been married. Ever. So he KNEW it was serious.

I pointed, speechless, to the snake. And then I did what any red-blooded blogger would do, and I ran back into the house, grabbed my camera with the ZOOM lens and ran out on the driveway. Far away from the snake.

Can you see him there? Curled up in my garage? This is the best shot I could get from the next yard over with my zoom lens. I'm not kidding.

My fearless hero came to the rescue.

He said the snake wasn't aggressive which made me feel a little better.

Just a teensy little bit better.

Go, snake, go!

You are not welcome in this garage!

Apparently he was a 4 1/2 foot long King Snake.
Apparently he is one of the good ones that eats the bad ones.
And he supposedly eats all the bad rodents and makes the
world a better place.

So we let him go.

I get the heebeegeebees just saying that.
But I'm sure it was the right thing to do.
And honestly, there is no way that guy is going to sneak up on you.
He is just too big!

And that was the day I vowed to never garden again.

Epcot Center - The Topiaries

My favorite thing about Epcot Center were the topiaries!
I have always loved topiaries and if I had the time and energy,
I would have some type of animal shaped topiary in my yard.
I'll put that on my list for Dallas.
ha.

This was her favorite.
Tinkerbell.
And she also declared that from that day forward she
would only be responding to the name "Tinkerbell".
Good luck with that.

In the Tinkerbell Garden they had these cute little fairy
houses nestled throughout. They were so cute and
came complete with little tables and cups and everything a little fairy might need.




Peter Pan can fly.
The boy in red can leap small buildings in a single bound.
I think they would be a good wrestling match-up.

Captain Hook.
The details were amazing.



The crocodile!
There was even a "tick-tock" sound coming from inside the croc.
They really paid attention to every detail.



And my favorite.
Snow White and the 7 dwarfs.
I guess I like her the most because I can identify with
little grumpy, happy and sleepy people following her
around everywhere she goes.

We also rode just about every ride at Epcot and really enjoyed them. I think our favorites were Soarin and Test Trac. If we had to do it over we would have gotten the FAST PASS for Soarin and went and ate lunch instead of waiting in line for an hour. We DID get a FAST PASS for Test Trac and it was SO GREAT to show back up at our assigned time and walk right in.

The boys liked the Nemo ride but it was a little scary for our 3 year old. They all LOVED the interactive Turtle Talk time with Crush. The other thing we liked about Epcot for kids were the passports. They have "Kidspots" in each area and in each land where they can make something to attach to their passport. It really kept my kids engaged and looking forward to the next thing.

We had a great time at Epcot and almost enjoyed it more than the Magic Kingdom. It wasn't as "magical" but didn't seem as chaotic and there were more "inside" attractions which was nice because it was so hot.

And that concludes our trip to Disney World!

Happy Birthday Mrs. Troop or Why Mrs. Troop Rocks

Mrs. Troop rocks because its her birthday.
And everyone rocks on their birthday.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she has
been married to the same man for 13 years.
That rocks.
I've only made it 11 years so far myself!
Ha!


Mrs. Troop rocks because she has 8 kids.
That seriously rocks.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she is an awesome cook.
I mean like Martha caliber.
Seriously.
I've personally had her cooking on several
occasions and she knows
what she is doing in the kitchen.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she is well read.
I do not have many friends who are avid readers.
All the women in my life who I look up to and have considered to be
my mentors have been readers. And Mrs. Troop is a reader.
And my hero.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she can sew.
With patterns.
And make fancy stitches.
She totally rocks


Mrs. Troop rocks because she is generous.
The first time I met her was at a double baby shower
for me and another girl in Sunday School.
She didn't even know me and still brought me a gift!
She is always taking meals to friends and relatives with new babies.
She is always able to find a moment to chat and
impart an encouraging word. And she is always happy to share her
wisdom in child raising and training.
She is generous with what she has,
what she makes and what she knows.
That rocks!


Mrs. Troop rocks because she sticks with her convictions.
And she is who she says she is.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she can host a get
together IN HER HOME for 120 something relatives
and NOT BREAK A SWEAT.
That rocks.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she has been my faithful friend
even though I moved half-way across the country and have
spent half my time in Georgia on the brink of Insanity.
And she is still my friend.
That rocks.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she is funny and witty.
And she appreciates my humor which is marginal at best.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she has left a comment on
EVERY SINGLE POST I have ever written.
Go look and see for yourself.
That really rocks.
Who can beat a devoted friend who loves you enough
to leave a comment on every post?
THAT is true friend love.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she loves our Savior
with all her heart and is passionate about serving Him.
Her heart's desire in the midst of the chaos is to continually
grow closer to Him and encourage others to do the same.


Mrs. Troop rocks because she encourages me to run faster towards
the prize and work harder towards the goal.
She encouarges me to be a better mom and a better wife.
And she accepts me for who I am.
That rocks.

Happy Birthday Dear Friend!

YOU ROCK!

(go on over to Mrs. Troop and leave her a Happy Birthday comment or two or three)
(even if you don't know her)
(it would totally make her day)