German Glass glitter eggs

Using this:

I made these eggs with German Glass Glitter:

I am all about Spring. And Easter { + Easter candy}. I have 2 more colors to do for the eggs. I bought the German Glass Glitter on etsy. I heart etsy.

Glitter Glitter everywhere!

Here's what Avery and I did {made valentines for her classmates}. . .

While this was going on {nor'easter}:

A few small bling for upcoming Valentine's Day:


Hope you are enjoying being "snowed" in!

Scrapbook Page Christmas 2009

I don't profess to know much about scrapbooking, though I do love the feel of paper and fabric. I do a "birthday" and "christmas" scrapbook for Avery - 1 page for each year. Here is this year's page:

They are predicting a lot of snow this weekend. Not sure how much will really amt but my Spool class was cancelled (boo). Avery is not a fan of snow. She likes to say it but not go near it. With below freezing temps I am not sure we'll venture outside much. Waffles are on the menu for tomorrow morning compliments of Scott's waffle maker! Hoping to take a few pictures this weekend!!!

The chef is in!

Check out the nifty sign I made for Avery's Kitchen. We let her pose standing on a chair (creating new habits?) in her chef apron. Holding ofcourse her favorite items: the ladel and silver cup. I find paper and fabric particularily relaxing these days!

Close up of the sign: made using paper, stamps & ribbon.

Real life Nancy Drew

Well, 2010 has started out, um interesting. In January I've been busy being the real life Nancy Drew. In between sleuthing I've been mom, wife, behavior analyst, housekeeper, chef, driver (I'm not sure about the housekeeper part) and not necessarily in that order :( Now that my mystery has been solved and the unsub caught (yes, I watch Criminal Minds) I can distribute my time more efficiently. My ambitious toddler and 3 work contracts will keep me uber busy. I have been keeping a running tab of all the emails, phone & house calls I have to make; I haven't forgotten. The next 2 saturdays I'll be downtown at Spool (woo hoo) and my sister is babysitting Avery on Valentine's Day so we can . . . do the book keeping for our taxes (exciting huh). I realize being really busy at this moment is just a phase and it too will pass. No judgments please. Avery is busy making valentine cards for all her classmates! It is quite a process; keeps her busy and out of trouble. I'll have an Avery update this week, promise!

Quick, healthy, tasty recipe:

Pineapple-Mango Smoothie (makes 3-4 servings)
1-1.5 cups frozen mango
1-1.5 cups frozen pineapple
1/4 cup or more milk
2 containers of vanilla yogurt
drizzle of honey
a few shakes of cinnamon
Puree in blender

ps check out the backgrounds and headers from The Background Fairy. For some reason I could not get her 3 column background to upload correctly on my blog so I'll keep working on that because her backgrounds are really neat! I briefly had a header up from her site and I will plan on using them more often! My valentine's decor is from: The Cutest Blog on the Block. I could not resist!

Creative Weekend

It has been a creative theme here this weekend! Avery had a school project to complete for the month of February. We were given a green heart to decorate with photographs, drawings, etc. I made Avery a few cut outs since she loves to glue and pat the paper on. All the hearts will be displayed at the Malvern School for the month of February. Avery is such an artist! We went to Michaels yesterday and bought a few new art items for her to use in her art bin! Ofcourse she picked silver glitter to shake (I am groaning just thinking about THAT cleanup). At least we'll be busy while we are inside this chilly winter.

I was also busy working on one of my new year's resolutions. I made a layer cake. Yes, it was a box mix but I did use homemade buttercream frosting (yum). I told Scott I'd bake him a nice cake for his birthday (May); he's always dreaming about cake for a midnight snack. This was a trial run. Real one will include a homemade cake batter. I got some help from my latest Williams Sonoma purchase: Tools and Techniques. I also have to give kudos to Alicia who introduced me to the angled icing utensil. I love this item! The suggestion to bake the cake at 325 instead of 350 was also a hit! The cake is tonight's dessert following a family tradition recipe for veal parmesan. I'll post that later this week!

Kitchen Makeover!

Not mine, Avery's! This is the pie cupboard my poppop made for my mom. It's on it's 3rd generation and it needed some TLC after being rescued from our {my sisters and I} playroom.

Before:

Before:

Before {Jen's John Hancock}:

After:

After:

Avery LOVES her kitchen stuff. Plus all the neat stuff she got for Xmas. We just set it up and brought her into the room Christmas Morning. She went straight for the silver pots. Come on over to our house, Avery's cooking!

Makeover Process: wash, sand, kilz, 2 coats of tiffany blue, 1 coat of shiny sealant. New knobs.

Christmas Amoeba's

I thought we'd try to get a nice picture for our Christmas Card by making cookies with Avery. It did not go so well. Julia Child, I think not. Avery was upset with the dough. Did not want to touch it nor the cookie cutters. Not even the sprinkles. She did however want to sample the outcomes x3. That said, when they came out of the oven they looked more like Christmas Amoeba's than anything. Tis the season for amoebas!

ps we are still working on that Christmas pic!

Christmas Craft 2009

Looking for a way to do an easy Christmas craft and save a little bit of holiday money? I took a yd of muslin @ $1.75/yd; washed, ironed, and tore it into approx 1.5in strips (the tearing part was rather fun). I then stamped my own holiday greeting w/ a variety of ink. The result: my own handmade and rather inexpensive holiday ribbon. I'll have to show some pretty packages when I actually wrap them. Wait, I need to shop first . . .

Strawberry Buttermilk Gelato

I made this summer treat last week and we've been enjoying it ever since! Avery especially enjoys it!

2 cups water
2 cups sugar
5 cups quartered strawberries (4pts)
2 cups low-fat buttermilk

Combine sugar and water in large saucepan. Bring to a boil, stir until sugar dissolves. Pour into large bowl, cool completely. Place strawberries in food processor/blender & process until smooth. Add strawberry puree & buttermilk to sugar syrup, combine. Pour strawberry mixture into freezer can of an icecream freezer. Note the final step I altered since I do not have that item. Instead I put it in a freezer safe container. It dishes out more like sorbet than gelato.

Chive Risotto Cakes

I'm all about making meals that we all can eat now so I am not serving up several meals a night. We also said goodbye to the high chair and hello to the booster seat. Avery loves sitting with us! This also means we had to rearrange a few things in our home - but more on that later! Avery absolutely loved these chive risotto cakes by Ina Garten. You can find it in Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics cookbook or on several foodie bloggers like Erin from Erin Cooks. Erin's pictures are so much nicer looking than mine. Once you go Panko you'll never want to go back :) Enjoy!!!

Balsamic Chicken

Avery pointed when this chicken dish appeared on Giada, okay, she perked up, but none the less, I had all the ingredients on hand with a few variations: I've started buying boneless, skinless, chicken thighs at Whole Foods. They are tasty and a little bit better for your wallet. I like how they cook really nice at a higher temp too. Very moist. I skipped the sesame seeds and parsley but everything else was the same. Excellent choice for the whole family. It was a great leftover too! Note: I did a 400 oven setting for 25min since it was boneless.

HeidiStitch on Etsy

If you haven't already noticed, Avery is sportin some pretty cute hats! They are made compliments of the very talented Heidi at HeidiStitch. You can view and bookmark her site @ HeidiStitch on Etsy. We also have a very cool pair of seersucker clam diggers that I am hoping to get a picture of this weekend. Stop on over and visit her shop and feel free to convo her as well!

Thanks again Heidi xoxo

Full & Sweet!

Here is a recipe for homemade rice pudding from my friend Sarah. It's fabulous! Just made it last week. The whole family loved it! Well Scott loved it too much since one day it was there, the next it wasn't. But Avery esp loved the small bowls she got :) Enjoy the pics! I think I would love to be a food photographer!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup basmati rice
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy whipping cream (or omit and use an additional cup whole milk, if you want to cut fat content)
1/2 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean
1 stick cinnamon
Preparation:
Bring 1 1/2 cups water, rice, and salt to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover. Simmer until water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Add milk, cream, and sugar. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean and cinnamon stick. Increase heat to medium; cook uncovered until rice is tender and mixture thickens slightly to a soft, creamy texture, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes.
Remove pudding from heat and discard vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. Divide pudding evenly among small bowls. Serve warm or press plastic wrap directly onto surface of each pudding and chill thoroughly. Keep refrigerated.

Thanks Sarah!!!!!!!!

Also for this coming week, in case you don't see many more posts . . . my daughter is turning 1!!! And I am busy busy busy!! So I thought I'd do my life in numbers:

Birthday parties: 1

Research proposals to decide on: 1

Min in the shower: 5 (per day?)

Appts w/ various people: 9

Trips to the gym (God willing?): 2

Shopping trips for said bday party: 5+

Entertaining Avery: 12 (minus the potential 2 hr nap)

Gray hairs other people will give me before I turn 33: 50+ (Shannon will not be pleased)

Days til I lose my insanity if I have to schedule one more thing in my planner: 6

Hours of smiling when I celebrate my daughter's healthy & happy first year: countless!

Summer herbs

2009 summer herbs are here! 2 planters w/ parsley, chives, lemon balm, oregano, tarragon, thyme, mint & rosemary. 3 separate pots with sage, lavender & basil. So excited here! Remember for your herb garden; lots of direct sun is essential and water once a day; maybe twice in extreme heat! Next up to plant tomatoes, & my new try out this summer: mesclun & arugula!

Wholesome Pancakes

Wholesome, healthy pancakes for the whole family; including the little one! This recipe came from my culinary friend Sarah. I'm sure she'll send more recipes my way :)

Sarah's Pancakes:
Sift together:
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 teaspoon salt
Mix together:
1 1/4 cups milk or buttermilk
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
~Combine wet and dry mixtures (if it seems too thick, add milk) and drop by 1/4 or 1/2 cups onto a hot griddle.


Sarah's Tip: Make sure to have your oven at 250 degrees with a cookie sheet inside so that you can lift pancakes off the griddle and keep them warm inside while you finish making them.

Thanks SBP!!!
PS I added tiny diced apples and some cinnamon to mine for Avery. The apples got very soft but if you were concerned you could easily grate the apple into the batter. I love the oven tip! We all had a nice family meal!

PPS Another pancake tip: I heat the griddle up ahead of time on medium. I spritz some water on to check if it's hot enough. Before I flip I make sure there are lots of little bubbles on the top!

Happy Flipping!

Easter Decor

In trying something new for Easter decor this year and lifting my spirits for Spring, I tried out this idea from Nester: Fabric Garland. It was very therapeutic to rip the fabric though Avery did not care for the sound! The vibrant colors make me think of rebirth & renewal!

Our life in numbers . . .

Classes I took today: 2
Minutes I spent chasing the balls from the ball popper: 60
Times I picked up the shape sorter shapes: 5
Time we read Goodnight Gorilla: 3
Minutes I spent in the shower: 5
Minutes I spent drying my hair: 0
Minutes I spent reading: 10
Minutes Avery spent in the jumperoo: 20
Number of Advil liqui gels I took: 2
Time Avery woke up: 6:17AM
Hours on the job: 24
Kisses I gave Avery: Too many to count!

A new Spring item:

I've been coveting some chicks for Spring. I found these on etsy by Urban Paisley! Aren't they cute!! Makes me think Spring is really here despite the morning chill!

Heidi's Hat

This gorgeous hat was made by Heidi, a very talented seemstress in my mom's group. I picked out the fabric and she designed it. Oh and with my leftover fabric ~ she designed a dress ~ how cool is that? I'll keep you posted when her business is fully up & running!

Homemade Baby Applesauce

Homemade baby applesauce. Directions: steam 3 macintosh apples for 25-30min at medium heat. Pot has water filled 1/2 the height of the apples. Lid stays on. Put apples in colander in sink. Skin should peel right off ~ apples will be hot. Slice apples in half and put half in food mill at a time. 3 apples fills 8 cubes. For fuller cubes use 4 apples. I sprinkle cinnamon and mix when apples are still warm. When babies are older and for an adult treat when apples are still hot mix in red cinnamon heart candies. Enjoy!!