a clean, well-lighted place...

I don't know about you, but I never fail to be amazed at how helpless I feel when the power goes out. I tend to swear more and get obsessed with odors. It's true. Stumbling around in the dark, trying to find the candles and matches, I stub my toes and swear like a sailor, and suddenly notice every smell. Obviously because I am deprived of visual stimulation, my other senses compensate. And not in a good way.

The cat litter box suddenly is unbearable (even though I just scooped the damn thing) and the odor of last night's rotisserie chicken dinner haunts my kitchen (even though I did the damn dishes last night).

See what a potty mouth I become when deprived of electricity?

But you, you clever thing, are wondering how on earth am I blogging about my blind and smelly ordeal if I am electrically challenged?

I am at McDonald's, basking in their lights and sounds. Coffee never tasted so good :)

I needed to indulge. Try getting two five-year-olds ready for school in complete darkness. Mikey kept sneaking around behind me, then shouting "HappyBirthday! MakeAWish!" and then blowing out the previously glowing candles. Thankfully I had laid out clothes the night before (which I rarely do so I am shocked at my ESP) so I didn't have to dig for clothes in the dark.

Now that the sun is up, I should go home and clean my perpetually messy craft room. I had planned a day of ironing new fabric and sewing new aprons (I will be at Porter's Orchard this weekend for a little festival) but since I apparently need electricity to iron and sew, I guess I will clean and organize. Maybe Mother Nature is trying to tell me something...

Oooh, but before I do that, I will do a little more playing. I went to the Country Living website this morning after being inspired by the pictures at Moxie Fab, and found the most fun thing ever! It is called, "Be the Appraiser" where you have to try to guess what antiques are worth, and once you do you get to read about the antique in question, and learn its origin... so I am a total nerd, okay? I'm cool with that... Antiques Roadshow is one of my all-time favorite shows, so I get to play I'm on that show. I'm not very good at it, but that doesn't mean it isn't fun :)

Hope you have a bright, light-filled day!

Are you a Good Witch?

NOTE** I am entering this hat into the "Crafting with the stars" contest :) Wish me luck!

How can you not love the new Halloween papers from Graphic45? Alice in Halloweenland is perfectly perfect for the projects I love to make: vintage, whimsical, and delicious colors. Adoring all things witchy, I made several of these darling little witch hats. Relying heavily on the graphic45 papers, I also used fabric, ribbon, bottlecaps, vintage buttons, odds and ends... I love to mix materials.

I sold a few at the Farmer's Market yesterday, and may put some up on Etsy. After I got home from Market, I had a bee in my bonnet to take the boys to the Family Fun Fest in Grand Blanc. I think listening to the carnival sounds and smelling popcorn all day made the festival irresistible. So after I rushed home, I changed my clothes and had Steve help me get the kiddos ready. We got a pizza on the way (my picky eaters won't even eat Carnie Food - what is that about?) and had a picnic in the park before going to the carnival. Mikey decided he was content to play at the park playground, as was Dad (he said just listening to the Tilt-A-Whirl made him nauseous), so Johnny and I took off for carnival fun.

He won a blue turtle, went through the fun house, and rode down the Gigantic Fun Slide twice by himself. I was super impressed that he did it by himself, it was super tall (I think I was more nervous than he was). And he got some free balloons from a nice lady, just because he is just that cute. He had an absolute blast, and Mikey was tickled to have Dad all to himself to help him do the monkey bars. It was a win-win for all!

The only not-so-fabulous part was that as I was getting the monkeys in the tub, I started to sneeze. And feel drippy and tickly. Sure signs of an end-of-summer cold. Bluck. I feel icky this morning, but have too much to do to be sick. So I am refusing to succumb to my desire to plop on the couch and sniff all day. I am hoping sheer will alone will heal me :)

Ooooh, and Glee starts tomorrow!

How exciting is that?

Autumny Goodness (What? It's a thing...)

It was so nice to be chilly last night.

After weeks of hot weather, I relished the need to have to snuggle under the quilt and curl my chilly toes up under my legs.  I was at the Farmer's Market yesterday, and the booths were bright with pumpkins and squash, gourds and Indian corn. I instantly wanted to find a caramel apple to eat...

Autumn is cuddly. Warm blankets and socks, hot drinks and steaming baked goods... Not only is Autumn cuddly, it's yummy.  Lookie at all the pretties I found on Etsy:

I know Autumn isn't officially here yet, so I have yet to give up my "summery" colors and fabrics just yet. I finished this apron last week, and the lemon pie sweetness pair with pink lemonade roses are my apron tribute to summer.

Hope you have a great day!

Pumpkin bread, Glee, and the house to myself....

Ahhhh.... I have pumpkin bread in the oven, my Playlist going, and I am reading the blogs I love to follow. In the house.

Alone.

This is my first "real" day without the kiddos. Johnny had his first real day yesterday, but I went with Mikey to his first day. We were there for just about an hour, played with puzzles and playdough, and then came home. Mikey "helped" me clean my craftroom (which is fitting, seeing that he is the one that destroyed it) but it still has a way to go.  I have moved my poor craft room all over my house. It has been in the basement, the guest room, the "office"... and half the time I end up crafting in the kitchen anyway... but I need a place to store my goodies, you know?  Unfortunately, my darling boys are fascinated by all my goodies. They like to stack them. And dump them. And walk on them. And....

You get the idea.

I finally installed a hook and eye locky latchey thing on my craft door. No boys allowed. I had one of those baby door handle things over the knob to try to deter my little destructors, but they were too clever for me. They just figured how to tear that off and get in and have their way with my crafts :(  Sundays, when I am at the Farmer's Market, was their favorite day to do a little breaking and entering while Daddy watched them.  But no more! They are locked out, baby!

At least until they realize they can team up, find a chair to climb, have one spot the other, and unlatch the hook.

But until then, I think my sanctuary shall be safe. I still have some crafty corpses to dispose of, but my goal today is to get my room completely in order and get cracking on a custom order that is long overdue...

While I am celebrating my alone time, I have to admit I got teary after putting Johnny on the bus this morning. Mikey's bus comes at an ungodly 6:50am, and he grumbled at me and was basically ticked off, so there was no Hallmark moment for us this morning.  Johnny and I had to be at the bustop at 7:15am, and as we walked, Johnny looks up at me, and says, "Can we talk about Halloween, Mama?"

Of course we can! So we walk, hand in hand, talking about pumpkins and candy, costumes and carameled apples. I was fine until he got on the bus. I watched him get in the front seat. Totally fine.

Then he turns to look at me. A giant smile on his face, he puts one palm on the glass and waves with his other hand.  The bus pulls away, and I can still see that little hand and his bright blue coat.  The bus goes down our street, and I start bawling my face off.  I cried all the way home.

So now I am baking pumpkin bread (don't be too impressed - it's a mix), drinking a pot of coffee, and listenin to my playlist which is heavy on songs from the best show on television, Glee. It makes me feel better.

A pretty new look, and pancakey goodness for picky eaters...

Like my pretty new blog design? Me too! I checked out Shabby Blogs and found the purtiest new banners and backgrounds. I luuuurve that site.

I almost have a "nesting" urge right now. With my wild ones almost ready to board the bus next week, I feel this urge to become more organized, tidy, and SuperMomish. I hung up this wall organizer thing for the kitchen, and cleaned off the little white board hanging next to it. By the way - a magnetic white board in the kitchen near the door is my best thing ever! I can write myself notes, clip up permission notes... It is like a ToDo list on the wall! And because it is on the wall, it can't get buried under piles of mail, backpacks, dishes, and other goodies that seem to accumulate on my counters.

So in my nesting SuperMom mode, I thought I would share my Most Important Recipe Ever.  The boys call them "Pancakems", but I secretly call them YouDon'tEvenKnowYou'reEatingHealthyVegetablesInYourPancakems.

In the tradition of the Sneaky Chef, these pancakes have pureed veggies and other goodness in them. Excellent books, by the way. This recipe I am sharing I created after being inspired by her concept of putting healthy pureed veggies in "regular" food.  It is a "from scratch" recipe, and my boys love to help make a mess mix them up with me.  I also know that you moms and dad are craaaaazy busy out there, so I also wrote the "quick and dirty" version using pancake mix.  I make a giganto batch of these babies - pancakes reheat nicely, so I can pop a few in the microwave for a snack or breakfast the next few days.  I feel relieved wholesome that I can serve up a hot breakfast every morning - without having to drag out the griddle every time.

YouDon'tEvenKnowYou'reEatingHealthyVegetablesInYourPancakems

3 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp salt

7 tsp baking powder

2 TB sugar

6 TB butter/margarine (melted)

2 1/2 cups milk

2 eggs

1/2 cup pureed sweet potatoes OR two packs (7ish ounces total) of baby sweet potatoes/mixed veggies ORANGE colored

Combine all the dry ingredients in a big bowl. Mix together well. Add milk and eggs, butter, and veggies and stir it all up! Scoop about 1/3 cup (use an actual 1/3 cup measuring cup - easier to pour) batter onto hot greased griddle, flip when bubbles look like they want to erupt (you can lift an edge and peek to check too), cook another minute, serve. Yields a ton of pancakes... at least 30ish, more if you make smaller pancakes.

These pancakes are super nice and fluffy :) The veggies keep them moist and give a super subtle flavor (only if you know it's there, if you know what I mean). If I have pureed sweet potatoes on hand, I use those, but lately I have been using the baby food. I suggest either straight up sweet potatoes, or a "orchard" or "farmers" blend baby food - my favorite is Orchard Blend Sweet Potato (it has apple, pear, and peach puree in addition to the sweet potato).  Just make sure it is orangeish.  Otherwise, the pancakes will be a funky color and the jig is up.

You can also use 1.5 cups white flour and 1.5 cups wheat flour if you are feeling extra virtuous - which I often don't. Feel virtuous, that is. It makes the cakes a bit flat and brownish.  However, when once-in-a-blue-moon virtuosity does happen to strike, I may use 2.5 white, .5 wheat, or some other such division of the flours.

The simplest version? Take premixed pancake mix, follow their directions, and add the baby food to it :) 

Good luck! If you try it, let me know :) And if you have any suggestions or other recipes, I would love to hear about them! I need all the help I can get to make my boys eat foods other than pizza, PB&J, and pancakes.  At least the pancakes have some veggies in them...

Flowers, some little boys, and the guilt of motherhood

A pretty glorious morning :) My little blog helpers are checking out the new laptop. Like the flowers?  One of the farmers at the market gave them to me on Sunday. Aren't they amazing? They fit perfect my old sap bucket/rusty pail and I love how they look. It is nice to have a pretty spot to blog - even if I have ten little fingers wanting to "help" me type.

Speaking of my little helpers...

The countdown begins... My little munchkin butts are heading to school next week. They have been in preschool, so this isn't like the first time they will be going to "school," but for some reason, because they are five and starting the full day thing, I am wigging just a smidge.  Mikey is headed to the full-day Autism program, and Johnny is going to the Young 5s at the elementary school. The Young 5 program is like  kindergarten, (in my day, I guess it would be the equivalent to what the school called Primary class. Since my boys were born in July, they are considered young, so Johnny was able to get a spot in this program). They were in the same building last year, but now the teachers tell me Johnny is ready to leave the special ed building and head into the land of elementary. Which is a good thing. Right?

 But now he is going to a "bigger" school, with lunch menus and lots of kids and bus stops... At his old building, I knew just about all the teachers, his class was small, I packed his little snack, the bus had like four kids on it and the bus driver would help get the boys to their seats, and Mikey was in the classroom next door... It felt homey and small.  Now they will be riding different buses, not to mention going to different buildings.  They never were in the same class - Mikey's autism is more pronounced than Johnny's - but I was comforted by the fact that they were right next to each other.  Next fall, most likely they will be in the same building. It will be a different building for both of them, but they will be together.

Mikey also has a new teacher this year. He has had the same lovely teacher for the last two years, and this year, his last at the special ed building, is with a new teacher. Luckily, I know her and she is a sweetie, but she is new to Mikey.  Mikey has a hard time with change, and I sometimes so do I. I get comfortable and like routine just like my Mikey.

And now here comes the other side of this whole back-to-school event. In some ways, while I am wigging out and feeling like my babies are getting too old, too fast, I am also soooo ready for them to be in school.  I am with these little guys pretty much every minute every day. So the idea of some alone time sounds so good - and makes me feel like a big fat mean shmuck for wanting that time. I am nervous about them being at school, excited and apprehensive, sad and at the same time guilty.

Being a mom is complicated.

To market, to market...

No, I am not going to buy a fat pig, but headed to the market I am indeed :)

I have a hard time sleeping the night before market. I am paranoid I will sleep too late (not that my little alarm clock Johnny would let that happen) but I usually have one last apron that needs a pocket, or a box I need to remember to put in the van, or business cards I need to remember to trim and pack, and I need to remember to fill my big ole water jug and put that in the van, too...

So I have been up since about 4am. But I finished that apron, squeezed that box in the back seat next to the antique high chair, and got my set of business cards ready. I still need to put my water in the van, but I want it to be extra chilly, so I will let it stay in the refrigerator as long as possible. It is supposed to be in the 90s today.

Yuck.

Have I ever mentioned I don't do well in the heat? Bluhck. We have had about zero rain the last few weeks, and with the ungodly heat, our yard looks like dry, shredded wheat. But as I will be outdoors today, I would rather not have any rain today.

Fickle, aren't I?

I am taking my camera today, and I hope to be able to show you the apron I had to finish for today. It is limeish green plaid with cranberry trim, and the reverse is cranberry toile. Sounds kind of funky, but I hope once you see it, you think it is as darling as I do! Any excuse to used toile...

I mentioned my antique high chair earlier, and I need to take some pictures of this crazy chair for you. It is a convertible high chair/potty seat/toy-riding-thing. One of the other vendors has been wanting to see it, and I managed to squeeze it in the van. It is one of my favorite estate sale finds, and makes a pretty cute display piece.

Well, the sun seems to be about up, so I am off! Wish me luck, and hope you have a great Sunday!

Aprons, shoes, and liberation!

Are you ready to do the happy dance with me? Are you sure? Ok then - stand up, kick off those shoes, and do a little dance because yours truly has Internet at home again! Yay me! Don't get me wrong - heading to the library with two five-year-old boys in tow is horrifying superfun when trying to check one's email (let alone do something like work on a blog) when all they want to do is play hide-and-seek among the stacks, "help" the librarians by running behind the circulation desk, and rearranging all the books on the carts... what usually happens is we pick out some books, I chase them around the video collection, and I gaze wistfully at the computers, wondering what is happening in BlogLand. 

On the rare occasions I sneak (Snuck? Sneaked? Snookened?) out of the house alone by bribing my husband to watch the kiddos explaining I need to get some work done so I don't go insane, I would head to the library, solo, to plop in front of the computer. But there is a time limit, and I don't get to be in my jammies, and they don't allow drinks in the lab...

I don't know about you, but blogging and wasting time on the computer isn't the same if you can't have your comfies on and a snack and drink nearby. So. Happy and liberated, I am in my comfies, drinking a big ole fat cup of coffee, so happy to be talking to you again! Speaking of snacks...

This "cake" is a confection of paper and ribbon. Each "slice" is a box, perfect for gifties and such. Plus it is just plain cute.

My sporadic posts of late have hinted at my activities at the Farmers' Market. I honestly adore working the market. The other vendors are so sweet, the market goers are so nice and friendly, and there is just this sense of camaraderie and fresh yummy goodness in the air. My newest obsession is aprons, and it is so intriguing to talk to my new market friends about fabric and cooking, quilting and traditions...  I have been also making some cards and other little pretties to sell.  Among them are these little shoes. I had seen these little paper shoes from a template by Ellen Hutson. I tweaked and played, changed and altered, and here are a few of my versions of this little shoe.

Here is "Dolly" all dressed up in this vintage inspired apron.  It has a little quote printed on the pocket, and the skirt just kills me! I love mixing fabric...

I keep playing with apron patterns and styles.  The more I sew, the more I learn, and I have made a few patterns of my own. Talking to other women at the market has been so helpful - getting their input on lengths,and pocket preferences, and color combos...

I have about 6 different apron styles that I am currently working with. I need to start some "fall" color influenced aprons. School is starting soon (gasp!) and soon apple picking and pumpkin carving will be the activities of choice. I am picturing oatmeal colored aprons, with skirts of scarlet and muted greens and deep pumpkin orange...

See how chatty I am? I have missed you dearly, honestly and completely! Now I am going to refill my cup and get some reading done :) I am dying to know what the rest of you have been up to!

Have a lovely day,

So I have been sewing like a madwoman, and have some super fun aprons that I need to share. If you would like to see them in person, you need to head to Grand Blanc, where I am a vendor at the local Farmer's Market! Each Sunday from 10-3, you can find me and my pretties under the shade of my little white canopy, aprons waving in the breeze... I am also featuring handmade recipe cards, little paper shoes, and other whimsical goodies. Since I am at the library, I haven't figured out how to upload my photos - but I hope to be able to soon.  Here is a link to information to the GB Farmer's Market. It is absolutely wonderful. I remember years ago when it was just starting, and there were a handful of produce stands. Now it has expanded tremendously, and each Sunday feels like a hometown festival. It really is lovely :) Hope to see you downtown!

hellllooooo!

Seriously... where the heck have I been? I'll tell you:
In the depths of despair.

Internetless, with a craft studio upended, that's where. I have resorted to the library (after paying some seriously hefty late fines for books long since returned or lost) to use the computer.

I feel like a sugar addict suddenly allowed into the sweets shoppe.  Where to begin? My hands are giddy with typing.

I have been rearranging my house (that's a shocker, I know), playing with my wild children, trying to craft, and cursing the hot humidity of Michigan summers. Luckily I have the new "Glee" CD so I can belt out some tunes as I try to reorganize my house, whip up some aprons, and try to find elusive scraps of paper.  Somehow singing "Bad Romance" ala Glee cast makes me feel like I can do anything...

The addict must leave, however. I am limited in time on this borrowed computer (how I miss the days of pajama-clad me sitting in my chair, a hot beverage by my side as I rambled to BlogLand) but I shall be back! I have missed you all dearly, and I need to do some serious reading on my next visit to see just what exactly the rest of you have been up to!

Ignore the Dust...

In my effort to procrastinate doing the laundry, I am fiddling with my blog. Playing with graphics, adjusting widths.... Irritating I know, but I realllly don't want to do the laundry. Or do the dishes. Or scoop the cat litter.

So be prepared for a prettier blog, coming soon to a computer near you :)

Apronology

So I am pretty sure that aprons are the funnest thing ever! My inner "English teacher" cringes, but the sentiment is true. I have been sewing up a storm, which is funny because when I initially purchased my sewing machine, it was to stitch on paper, not fabric. Now I find myself making hems, adding ruffles, and making linings! Who knew?


I think my latest apron looks kind of "scrapbooky" even though I am working with fabric, and not paper. Piecing fabric is a lot like paper piecing. I love digging through my stash to find bits of green toile for trees, sprigged ivy fabric for rolling hills... Of course, this now means I will go broke buying not only scrapbook paper but fabric too :( New obsessions can get pricey... I also like to check out the antique shops and estate sales to find lovely bits of embroidery, handmade lace - now that Spring is here, I can't wait for auction season! Yay!

I have a few pretties listed on Etsy, and have had some nice emails suggesting I submit some of my aprons to Apronology. Have you seen this fabulous publication? Somerset has a magazine for just about every creative obsession out there :)

Me? A maniac?

I must be, because I decided to, once again, reorganize my entire craft room. And I couldn't just do that, mind you. I decided to not only reorganize it, but also move it back to the second floor from the basement. You may recall that just last August, I moved my space from the second floor guest room to the basement. I had this notion that if I worked in the basement, my children would happily play in the "family" area. I had dreams of my serenely scrapping at my table, the boys happily playing with their toys. I could cut and paint, chit chat with them while they put together puzzles, played dinosaur, sang nursery rhymes and practiced their ABC's...

What really happens is that the plastic dinosaurs liked to knock down my stacked bottles of paint, the only ABC's I saw were my chipboard letters scattered all over the floor, and the only puzzle was why on earth did I think I could leave all of my supplies out on shelves and my two darling terrors would leave them alone?

Silly woman.

So the daunting task began. I decided to revert the basement to a family room, completely kid-friendly. I realized that it was unreasonable for me to get mad at them for touching my pretty things when my pretty things were out, about, and soooo attractive to curious hands. And let's be honest - I wanted to be able to say, "Go play in the basement" and feel safe to let them do so. I wanted them to be able to go play in their area, alone if even for three minutes, without hearing a crash, or worse, hearing nothing in those three minutes, and investigating to see that they were dancing on my craft table and covered in ink.

So. I moved every single bookcase, shelf, table, container back upstairs. Again. More details, and maybe some photos, to come soon. I have about 15 minutes until my Lil Stinkers get off the bus, and I want to get some organizing done...

Once Upon an Apron... and Banana Bread

In my latest obsession with apron making, I combined my love for old quilts, vintage finds, and paper piecing...

When I scrapbook, I adore making little vignettes; houses on rolling hills, elaborate trees on lush landscapes... you get the idea. I also love the look of primitive samplers and quilts. I had made this sampler a few months ago


(and sold it to a dear and darling customer!) and have been itching to make another. Until then, however, I decided to try to make a little landscape art. But this time, I used all fabric, and instead of paper, my canvas was an apron.


I used some fabulous fabric I got at an estate sale. I think it is floursacking - it is so thick and supple! A combination of new fabrics and vintage lace were the rest of my materials, and a tiny little old button was the perfect doorknob :) After much deliberation, I decided to list it on Etsy. I thought about keeping it, but now that it is up for sale, it gives me an excuse to make another!

As for the banana bread...

This weekend, I had the grand idea to make some banana bread. The recipe is my Great Grandma Tessie's recipe, for "Fruit Loaf", and whenever I make it, I usually double it. Well, I had quite a few bananas, and whenever I do make this yummy bread, my dear friend Kelly begs for some - with chocolate chips, of course :) So what do I do? In my ambition, I multiplied the recipe by six. Twelve cups of flour, six cups of bananas, a dozen eggs...

My mixing bowl overfloweth....

It all turned out in the end (my arms got quite the workout. Mixing that much batter is way more taxing than a rowing machine, my friend) and I even had enough for six loaves and six muffins :)

Kelly will be happy :)

Springing Forward...

I feel as if I have been in hibernation - and in some regards, I have. I have missed Blogland! My plate seemed to get so full that I had to crawl into my cave and catch up. Nothing horrible or earth shattering - just one little thing piled up upon another little thing, until my plate became a heaping platter and I had to take a break. Of course, now that I feel like I have caught my breath, I lose an hour to daylight savings time. Blasted Spring Forward, anyway. I miss that hour! I feel like I am cheated of that sixty minutes not just today, but for at least two weeks... my body and soul fight this change like no other...

But I am back! During my hiatus, I fixed my wonky stove, discovered how fun cooking can actually be, and have been teaching myself to sew with fabric and not just stitch on paper! I also painted my kitchen.

I have been a busy girl.

It is funny how one thing leads to another. I ordered the part to fix my stove, and when it came, I wanted it fixed right then and there. Instead of waiting for the hub to get home, I pulled the stove out (how does it get so dirty back there? And that plug? HUGE!), found some tools, and fixed it myself. After cleaning behind the stove, I realized how much I hated the white walls in my kitchen, and how dingy they looked. So I loaded the twins in the van, went to the hardware store, and bought pretty robin's-egg-faded-blue paint and brushes.

I painted until 1am.

Now that I had a nice clean kitchen and a functional stove, I looked around and decided I hated how grubby my kitchen chairs looked...

The next thing I know, I am hauling out the sewing machine and stitching chair covers. I had these really cool old coin bags, and I thought they would make nifty "shabby chic" covers if I split the seams, stitched on some ties... and then decided a tablecloth would be nice. Something with a bit of blue...

Because my kitchen was now so pretty, I decided I should spend more time there, so I started digging out my old recipe collections. Nerd that I am, I have been collecting recipes since I was about twelve years old. Notice I said collected them. Never really used them until now.

I have been cooking up a storm!

And when I was cooking, I found myself wiping my hands on my shirt (I can never find a towel when I need it) and pretty much destroying my clothes. What I needed, I said to myself, was an apron.

I didn't own an apron.So I decided to make one. And have found a new passion that has now consumed me. Apron making! I have so many fabulous fabrics and vintage linens, I have been making aprons all week! I have a few listed on Etsy, and have a few started that I hope to finish this week... Ah, the joy of a new obsession... and it all started because of my wonky stove.