Her "Cinderella Gown"

Well, I finally finished her dress the other day. It was laying on my sewing table just waiting for me to get the courage to put in the buttonholes. Who knew that putting buttonholes in a dress (or anything for that matter!) would be so daunting?!

I sat and stared at my sewing machine promising that if it would just help this fool, who decided it would be ok to start sewing, make buttonholes without ruining this dress, I would promise to not kill it in a few short months! So I took a deep breath and began. To read my instruction manual that is. Hey! I'm no man! I'll stop and ask for instructions if need be, although, I rarely have to because I have an impeccable sense of direction! I'm not the kind of gal to jump head first into any project without researching it till I'm sure I'm competent enough to get it right, mostly.

So after a while I finally got the courage to actually sew the button holes, and I have to say it was a lot easier than I thought! Whew!! Only one of them is too big, and where's the hurt in that?? It is just a play dress after all. So anyhow here are a few pictures of the final dress!! And modeling them is my beautiful daughter, Kathryn!!

 

 And this is not my design by the way! But I did do all the work, except pick out the fabric! That, my daughter did! 

This is the back, and those buttonholes that had me all worked up about, but turned out just beautifully for a first timer! 

And one more, just for good measure! I love this girl so much!

I truly hope that she enjoys this dress until it literally falls apart on her! I hope she wears it all the time! I have enjoyed making it more than I thought I would, and I've enjoyed helping her to shape her dreams of being a fashion designer! I think I will make some skirts for her next!

 

 

Yummy Goodness

Ok, so now that I am starting to feel better from whatever cold I had, I can finally post this bar/cookie thingy. It was so yummy! But a word of caution, this thing is not good for anyone who is dieting, diabetic, or anyone who eats something that goes directly to your hips, because I promise, that's where its going to go! 

So first we need to gather our ingredients.

1/2 C. melted butter
1 1/2 C. graham cracker crumbs
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 C. semi sweet chocolate chips
1 C. butterscotch
1 C. coconut (I used the bag from the baking isle)

I used less butterscotch and more chocolate chips, cause it's what I had on hand.

Next I mixed the butter and graham crackers together. I just mixed it together until it was like wet sand, then I pressed it into a greased 9x13 pan.

Then I poured my sweetened condensed milk on top of that.  Look at all that yummy goodness coming out of that can! Delicious!

Then I layered in my chocolate chips....

Then my butterscotch chips......

Then the coconut flakes....I love coconut. My husband doesn't, so that just means more for me! Insert super big happy face!!!

Then mash it all down into the condensed milk, put it into a 325 degree oven for 25 minutes. Oh, and I should just say that I didn't use a 9x13, cause mine was in the dishwasher, so I used an 8x8. It made for thicker cookie/bar thingies, but I would recommend the 9x13!

Once they come out let them cool for a while. I let mine sit for about an hour, so that all that goodness could harden up a bit. Now cut into pieces and enjoy! I do not recommend eating two of these at one time! I had half, and my children devoured the other one and the remainder of mine!! Again a word of caution, this could lead to a diabetic coma!




This was just what I needed on a wet weekday, where the kids where in the house all day on a sugar high! Ha! At least they enjoyed it, and I had fun making it!

On my next blog, I will be showing the dress that I finally finished for my daughter! She loves it, and calls it her princess dress! Until then, hope you all have a wonderful day!!

One of those weeks, or two, hopefully not three....

It's been a while since I posted. So I thought I would get on here and do my duty. That is totally how it feels right now.  A duty. I'm sick! Ugh! Like stuffy head, headache, I'm either too cold, or too hot. It's not good. Added to that, my youngest has an ear infection, and I didn't even know it. He came to me the other day and asked me to clean his ear out (which is unusual anyhow) but I looked and his ear canal was full of chunks and pus. Fun!! The day before that, my daughter burned her finger. Thought that was a second degree burn, but now I'm not sure. The blister that came up is all hard, almost like a callous. Any ideas on what that is?? I can only hope and pray that I start feeling better.

Oh, and I almost forgot, (Rich, don't kill me for putting this out there!), my son, my dear son, has a cussing problem. I normally wouldn't say much of anything, because I know he's doing it for attention. Especially since its just one word he says, but I wish he would of picked a different one. My three and a half year old is dropping the F-bomb. Great! Parenting award just passed us by.

Promise to post a yummy, sweet, promise to put 5 lbs on your hips instantly, cookie/bar thingy! It is oh-so-dangerous!! Till then!!!

Sweet Summer Time...In the winter...

It has been so warm outside lately. Well warmer than what it should be for February. So yesterday we bundled up the kids and turned them loose outside. But not before I made pancakes at my daughters request. She specifically asked for Mickey Mouse pancakes. Hearts I can do, because I have these cute little molds, but Mickey Mouse, hmm. I had to freehand pour pancake batter to make those. 

And I must say, they turned out exceptionally well too. What do you think??

 Then again, the trick is mostly flipping them over. I got lucky!!

So my daughter and my son got Mickey Mouse pancakes for breakfast! They both exclaimed that it was the best breakfast ever! (well at least for today anyway!)

So we got dressed and went out and let the kids run and play and burn off all that energy that they seem to have an endless supply of! They had a blast!

We colored and Kathryn drew a prince and princess. And they are still there! And will be until it rains. 

We ran and played and just had so much fun!

 We rode bicycles, and just chased everything there was to chase!

 We ran through the woods and found treasures!

Fresh air is so good for them both, and they love being outside. So happy that we can have a bit of summer in the middle of our winter!

So how has your weekend been so far??? Mine has been wet! It rained all day yesterday, and there are more showers expected for today! I got drenched yesterday shopping, and today I'm going to be staying inside working on a few different things. Unfortunately, cleaning will be one of them. But the last few days have just been hectic fun. I have been making a dress for Kathryn (my daughter). Dress making is a lot of work! I don't think anyone ever gives people that design clothes and sew them together enough credit! Whew!! It's coming along though. I will post a picture when it's finished. At first when I started I wasn't going to line the dress, because it was just for play, but I'm starting to think I'm going to have to put a lining in, because I want this dress to last. With this much work going into it, it needs to last! Yesterday though was for shopping. I didn't buy much of anything, but it was a girls day out for my Mom, Sister, Daughter, and me. It was fun, and exhausting! We went and registered my sister for her baby. I'm getting really excited, and its not even my baby! This is sure to be one spoiled little boy! She has the sweetest name picked out, and I have the most adorable things planned for her baby shower! Right now it is Safari themed to match her nursery, but if something cuter comes along that she likes better, we will go with that. Whatever the mom-to-be wants is what she will get.  Well I guess it's time to get up and start cleaning.

Today started off a little rough. I have trouble sleeping anyway ever since having kids, as I'm sure most Moms do. But last night I was riddled with dreams that I can't remember, and at 6:23am I woke up to the kids screaming. I jumped up and ran to their rooms to check and make sure they were ok only to find them playing with the dollhouse. I was so upset. Angry really, because I think I have asked them 100 times that if they are going to get up at an early time to please play quietly. I'm not a morning person, and being woken up this way just makes it super hard for me to get going. After getting back in bed and rolling around a bit I decided to get up. I was in such a grumpy mood that I needed some way to snap me out of it. And one way to do that is COOKIES! Yup, yummy, warm, soft, cookies! Who doesn't love cookies. So I decided to get my butt in gear and get to baking!

So I gathered my ingredients. Flour, oats, raisins, butter, sugar, vanilla, egg, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.

Then I got to work beating the butter and sugars together until they were creamy! 

Doesn't that just look like the beginning of something wonderful and magical?

Added in my egg and vanilla. 

And mixed those together to yummy goodness! My mouth is already watering! 

Add in my flour, salt, soda, and cinnamon.   

Mix those well!! And it's coming together!!

Add in my oats and raisins! Mix those in too!  And now I'm starting to get excited!

Now I'm going to take a moment to just send a thanks to whomever created this deliciousness!

Can we say DROOL??


All I need is a spoon, and a quiet corner where my kids wont find me....oh wait, I'm making these for the kids...right, yeah, we'll go with that...

Put them on your pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes.

I baked mine for eleven, and it was the longest eleven minutes ever!

Once they come out, let them cool. You're supposed to anyway. But who's going to know if you sneak one (or two) off the cooling rack?? Surely you wont tell!

Then all you have to do now is enjoy!!   Not like sneaking at all, you can actually share these with your kids, spouse, friend, or keep them all to yourself!! YUMMY!!!










So after making two dozen of these my day really did get better. I guess that's all anyone ever needs to make their day better. Warm cookies right out the oven with a glass of cold milk. Sure made me feel loads better. Oh and the kids enjoyed them too! Especially since they had never had oatmeal raisin cookies before now. So the next time you wake up grumpy and have the time, make a batch of these, super easy, and super quick!! Wonder what I'll do tomorrow???

Here I Am!

Well, I did it. I finally figured out how to make a blog. Isn't that awful?? Oh well. That's life! And my life is hectic, chaotic, and perfect! I wouldn't have it any other way! Well except for a few things anyhow. But for the most part, my life is exactly how it should be, if not the way I planned it. I am a stay at home mom, and while I love to bake, I hate the clean up afterwards! I enjoy cooking mostly, and I love creating! I had started a cookbook until my computer crashed and I lost about 50 recipes. I never re-started that. Huge regret there, and I don't have many regrets in life. But right now, I am currently trying to figure out how to sew. Kathryn, my daughter who just turned 5, wants to be a fashion designer. I know that she will probably change her mind next week, but for now, why not nourish her dream? So I had to figure out how to sew these creations together. The first few turned out laughable, but she loves them! And isn't that what it's all about anyhow?? I think so. I'm learning, and she's growing, hopefully. And in doing this for her, I found that I totally enjoy it! I didn't think I would, but I can spend hours just sitting in front of a sewing machine and make something, rip the seams and re-make it, because it didn't turn out the first 10 times! I never get bored with it. Maybe one day I will actually be good at it!