Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Our Library…
Our town library is huge! I mean HUGE! It used to be a very small town library that was warm and cozy…but they knocked it down and built a humungous 21 million dollar library! I still can’t believe it cost that much money! It is a nice library, but I actually miss the old library. The new library is so massive and cold feeling. It seems like a lot of wasted space and energy!
But we go to the library a lot! River loves it there. Besides the books, one of River’s favorite things about the library is the statue outside. It is called “Sunday Morning” by sculptor J Seward Johnson. The library had it on loan for two years, but when the two years ended, the library purchased it through donations and fund raising….it was a bargain for only $65,000! I guess when the library costs $21 million, what is another $65,000!
She loves to stand on the statue plaque and pretend she is a statue..but then she starts to giggle….Quinn told her to sit by the statue and they would both pretend they were statues…that just made her giggle more!…but Quinn was good at being a statue!
In: Family Fun, Quinn, River, Uncategorized
Ode to Summer…..
Since Summer is almost over….we had to have one of our favorite meals……corn on the cob and fried tomatoes. Sometimes I serve this with some type of rice, but this time I decided to make a 5 bean salad that is served with feta cheese and hard boiled eggs. It was quite delicious…..
In: Cooking, Uncategorized
How My Life Would Be Better With a Serger….
Sew Mama Sew! is having a contest. The theme is “How My Life Would Be Better With a Serger”. This is my entry for the Sew Mama Sew! Back to School Giveaway…..
My name is Oscar Husqvarna. I’m a 12 year old sewing machine from Sweden. I’m a traditional machine, looking for a long-term committed relationship.
While I have a wonderful seamstress, I have yet to meet the serger of my dreams. My perfect serger would have 4 thread sewing, an adjustable stitch length and a can-do attitude.
I have a playful personality, but I’m a hard worker who believes in team work. I’m a reliable machine whose favorite projects are quilts and home décor.
I love the outdoors, taking romantic walks in the park, and keeping all my feet and needles well maintained.
I’m interested in looking for someone who can help me embellish knits, improve my hems, and put the finishing touches on a sexy cocktail dress.
I’m looking for a serger that I can settle down with and I dream of one day hearing the pitter- patter of little bobbins.
If you are a serger, looking for a good sewing machine to work on the rest of your projects with you, let’s get together for a simple pattern and see where it leads….
In: Uncategorized, sewing
New Dishes….
I love having dishes that don’t match. But I have a hard time finding places that sell dishes a la carte. Well, I discovered that Pier 1 Imports sells them individually……so I picked up four dishes to replace ones that have broken over the past few months….I love them!
In: Cooking, Uncategorized
Ciabatta Bread with a bread machine……
I’m into making bread…but using my bread machine. I’m trying to make all different kinds of breads. I have perfected my plain rolls and my french bread recipes.
I decided to try Ciabatta bread. The first recipe I tried is considered for beginners…..next, I will have to try the more complicated version….supposedly using sour dough or “sponge”…..I will keep you posted on the outcomes.
The recipe was incredibly easy…it did say that the dough will be incredibly sticky and runny…and it was! The bread turned out flat…I don’t know if that was due to the high humidity that day…or just my baking skills..but it was tasty..and as always, much better when eaten fresh!
Ciabatta Bread – Bread Machine Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon white sugar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 1/4 cups bread flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast
Directions
- Place ingredients into the pan of the bread machine in the order suggested by the manufacturer. Select the Dough cycle, and Start.
- Dough will be quite sticky and wet once cycle is completed, resist the temptation to add more flour. Place dough on a lightly floured board, cover with a large bowl, and let rest for 15 minutes.
- Lightly flour or use parchment lined baking sheets. Divide into 2 pieces, and form each into a 3×14 inch oval. Place loaves on prepared sheets, dimple surface, and lightly flour. Cover, and let rise in a draft free place for approximately 45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
- Dimple dough for a second time, and then place loaves in the oven, positioned on the middle rack. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. During baking, spritz loaves with water every 5 to 10 minutes for a crispier crust.
In: Bread, Uncategorized, recipe
Deep Fried Oreos…..
Well, I finally did it…my kids have been wanting to make deep fried oreos for a long time…and we finally made them! They are one of those things that you know, before you even eat them, that you are going to have a stomach ache when you are done! I made them with Oreos this time, but next time…I’ll use my favorite Oreo substitute…..Late July Organic Vanilla Bean cookies. These are one of the best cookies out there! I think they are better than Oreos and they don’t have all the artificial flavors and colors or preservatives. Oreos have so much scary stuff in them..but I caved and used them this time….to see if we had the flavor right….but next time……!!
Anyway, I looked up a bunch of recipes on the internet. Most of them said to use Bisquick, which I don’t ever use…so I just used my own buttermilk pancake recipe.
The recipe said to freeze the cookies for three hours ahead of time….so we did that. Then you heated up the oil (I used about a cup of oil in a small sauce pan) and started dipping the battered cookies into the hot oil…..I did this part..since hot oil is always a bit scary!
Nothing like frying up some cookies! Each one had to cook for about a minute on each side. They instantly looked delicious and disgusting all at the same time! My kids were so excited..they wanted to instantly start eating them……but of course, I wouldn’t let them!
After we were done frying them all up, to add even more disgusting-ness..you sprinkled them with powdered sugar! Needless to say, my kids loved them! Though we aren’t sure how they are going to taste the next day…I wasn’t sure how to store them..in an air tight container or leave them out…..I’ll keep you posted on how the left overs are….
I cut this recipe in half. It made about 25 cookies.
Favorite Buttermilk Pancakes
2 ½ cups Flour
4 Tbsp Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
2 Eggs, beaten
2 2/3 cups Buttermilk
2 Tbsp Oil
Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl. Combine the wet ingredients in a bowl and stir well. Combine bowls together and stir, but do not over-mix.
In: Cooking, Family Fun, Quinn, Tuesday, Uncategorized, recipe
Etsy shop update……
Summer is in full swing…..and things have been a bit crazy…so I haven’t been able to post regularly this week…..but next week I’ll be back to normal posting…(hopefully!)….
I have been sewing a bit and I updated my Etsy shop with some new training pants and underwear! Check it out!
In: Etsy shop, Uncategorized
Upcycling……
I’ve spent this past week taking all of Tuesday’s old clothes, that don’t fit her any longer and upcycling them into clothes for River. I found this adorable pattern at MADE. Dana’s blog is incredible! It is filled with all kinds of great things…I especially love her patterns…and this one was free! It turned out so cute. I made it from an old tshirt.
The image on it is from Geninne’s Art Blog…..awhile back she had a free image download and I have been wanting to use it on something. I thought this seemed the perfect thing! The image is simply elegant!
The next dress I made was also from an old tshirt…I found the idea for this design at Happy Together….I loved the little flowers and they were so simple to make!
This dress was also easy and quick to make….and River loves it (please ignore the cracker goo on River’s face)!
I love taking something and creating it into something else! I also liked the ruffles idea from the Happy Together site and used them for the shirt….(this shirt was originally going to be a dress..but it ended up being too short). This shirt was mailed to me from an organization and I knew I would never wear it. It had a large logo on the left hand corner, so I had to cut that out. I made the sleeves a little puffy to add some feminine detail! What things have you upcycled recently?
********And don’t forget to enter my latest giveaway*********
I’m giving away a $25.00 gift certificate to my Etsy shop!!!
In: Creations, River, Uncategorized, sewing, upcycling
Craft Hope….Project 8: Gulf Coast Oil Spill…..
Craft Hope’s latest project is to work with “The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies, the Audubon Nature Institute, and the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge to assist them in their efforts in caring for and cleaning oiled marine mammals, mostly dolphins, other marine mammals, birds, and sea turtles. Dolphins are naturally curious and have been swimming toward the oil plumes to investigate… and that curiosity gets them in a lot of trouble against the oil slick.”
This is the easiest project Craft Hope has done..it is simple..anyone can do it…..you can get your kids involved…you can do it in ten minutes…yet, it will make a great difference!
All they are asking for is cloths or rags, made from cotton, sizes 10 x 10 inches or 14 x 27 inches…..that’s it..simple..nothing fancy…get a towel, cut it up and send it off! If you want to knit..then knit them….if you want to sew them…then sew them…..It is that easy!
Check out the Craft Hope website to get more information! The mailman just took my package away…it’s heading for Florida! Every little bit counts!
********And don’t forget to enter my latest giveaway*********
I’m giving away a $25.00 gift certificate to my Etsy shop!!!
In: Craft Hope, Giveaways, Uncategorized
I’ve got to do a giveaway….
Okay..I’ve never done a real giveaway..a giveaway of my own Etsy products…I’ve been part of a giveaway…but now it is my turn to do a giveaway…..so in honor of summer coming, here it is:
Catchick6 Creations First Giveaway!
I will be giving away a $25.00 gift certificate to my Etsy Shop!
Required entry: Check out my Etsy Shop and in the comment section of my blog, tell me what your favorite item is.
Extra entries:
- Like Catchick6 Creations on Facebook.
- Follow Catchick6 on Twitter.
- Tweet about this giveaway and give me the permalink (1x per day).
- Blog about this giveaway and give me the link.
- Follow my blog through Google Friend connect.
- Make a purchase from my Etsy shop and you get 10 extra entries!
Giveaway ends June 25, 2010 at 11pm EDT.
I’ve never hosted a giveaway before, so have some patience with me……!!
In: Etsy shop, Facebook, Giveaways, Uncategorized
