Items needed:
Clear Glass Jar (we used a re-purposed fish bowl)
Stones
Potting Soil (we bought some made for Cacti)
Small house plants (we used a pink ‘moon cactus’ and a Pachyveria ‘blue pearl’)
Miniature animals/figurines (we are going to look for an owl and a deer at the $ store)

Proud of our creation

It was fairly easy, we just lined the bottom of the fish bowl with stones, then a layer of soil, then set the plants in place and scooped soil around them. Next, Olivia placed some pretty stones on the top of the soil and then we gave it all a little shower from the faucet. We used a plant mister to spray the dirt down from the glass (we made quite a mess with dirt and Olivia proclaimed that the mess was 1/2 the fun)!
We had fun creating this gift for her teacher and I am hoping we can find a couple little figurines to add, that will meet Olivia’s approval.

close-up

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

1/4 cup coconut oil (you can find it in the natural section in fred meyer – there’s even a coupon for $4 off this week)

1/4 cup baking soda

1/4 cup cornstarch

Drop or two of TTO {tea tree oil)

Drop of any other essential oil for scent (or it will mostly smell like coconut)

Mix together, then either put into a small mason jar and scoop out as needed OR line a container (i used measuring cups) with wax paper/plastic wrap, pour mixture in, let harden, remove and use as a bar!

Thank you Janet for the recipe!

“It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.”
― Mother Teresa

These little facts are a big deal- when I don’t exactly have a lot of extra time or energy to wash a bunch of dishes.  I haven’t posted in quite a while. My life has been a whirlwind of kid’s with broken arms & bad cases of croup requiring steroids.  I could really go on, but alas, you came here for the spaghetti recipe and not to hear about my crazy life. ;P So, here it is!

• 1 lb ground meat (I used deer sausage)
• 2 tablespoons instant minced onion (I used fresh diced green onion)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 8 ounces tomato sauce (I used a jar of spaghetti sauce)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons italian seasoning
• 4 ounces mushrooms (i used canned/drained)
• 3 cups tomato juice (I used a can of sloppy joe sauce mixed with water to tomato juice consistency because I didn’t have tomato juice)
• 4 ounces spaghetti, broken into pieces (I just broke in half)

Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/crock-pot-spaghetti-69302#ixzz1f7gNV8bt

Give it a try! It was a huge hit with the family and we’re having it again tonight, twice-baked-spaghetti. It’s even better the next night

I wanted to try out some of these apples in the meantime and since I’ve never made Apple Butter, I thought I should try!

Here’s the recipe that I’m using:

• 4 lbs apples, peeled and finely chopped (I was able to use about 8-9 apples before my smaller crock pot was full)
• 3 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  

  just filled crock pot

Directions:

1. Place apples in a large bowl.
2. Combine sugar, cinnamon, cloves and salt.
3. Pour over apples and mix well.
4. Place in crock pot, cover and cook on high for 1 hour.
5. Decrease heat to low; cover and cook on low for 9-11 hours or until thickened and dark brown.
6. Stir occasionally.
7. Uncover and cook on low for 1 hour longer.
8. If desired, whisk until smooth.
9. Spoon into freezer containers, leaving 1/2-inch head space.
10. Cover and freeze.

this batch made 2 medium and 1 small jar

*You’ll know the Apple But­ter is done when you pick it up on a spoon it stays nice & mounded.

During a particularly long baby-nap, I dug out a ‘project g’ (aka a gDiaper purchased used that has been well-loved and needed some new life breathed into it). So I decided to stamp it. I wanted to try this on a project g before moving onto the next level of stamping fabrics (something i have in mind for a new ‘got chocolate’ gDiaper that I’m planning to stamp for a fellow gMomma).

What you need:

Fabric paint, Painter’s tape, Acrylic Stamp set, stamping sponge (or just a painting sponge), small container (i used a tiny empty jelly jar) for paint).

Smooth out the fabric (may need to iron) and tape the item of clothing/fabric to the ironing board so that it remains smooth. For the gDiaper, I wrapped it around the ironing board end and used the diaper’s velcro to hold it tight.

Start your stamping! Use the foam brush as a stamp pad and tap paint lightly onto stamps and then find where you want the stamp on your fabric and press down with gentle pressure. Tape the edges and stamp over the tape to create a ‘believable’ look. Give fabric 10-15 minutes to dry before you remove the tape and move your fabric for additional stamping. You may wish to wash stamps in between these drying times so that the ink does not clog up on them (you can do this with just water).

Making progress! Now to the underside (front of diaper). I gave this about 20 minutes to dry before i flipped it over- although obviously when you flip it over it’s not touching anything but air so it’s not a huge deal- just make sure the stamps are dry before you start moving things around too much. You don’t want a smear after all your stamping.

Of course my shadow (home sick from school) wanted in on the crafting and so I let her stamp one of her shirts – we planned out our design and with a little help from mamma she did a fabulous job! Here’s her bear modeling the finished Autumn gDiaper!  Sorry about the iPhone photography.

good bear

bad bear

Happy Autumn!

We started by cutting out the shapes. It turned out we should have read the directions more closely because one sheet was a cut-out sheet and one sheet was a peel sheet (which wasn’t clearly specified to our defense) so we ended up having to peel what we had cut but it was just an extra step.

My little one loves to help cut out the shapes

Next we arranged the pieces that my little one chose for the ‘monster face’ and arranged them on the back of the gDiaper.

Her little monster face arranged pre-iron

Next we ironed the gDiaper so that we would have a flat surface for the monster face.

Then according to package directions we peeled & ironed each piece for 10-20 seconds. Next we flipped the diaper over and ironed from the inside with pressure for 20-30 seconds. And VOILA!

We’ve got a monster g!

Just in time to spook ya!

BOO!

Here’s the basics:

Prepare a 9X13 pan with butter on all sides.

Cut a loaf of French bread into 3/4″ thick slices and arrange in the pan.

Liv loves to help crack eggs

Mix eggs, cream, sugar, extracts & nutmeg with a whisk and pour evenly over the bread (if you’d like you can first dip each piece first to assure an even coat <kids particularly enjoy this step>).

last egg before mixing - and the bread is ready and waiting

Sprinkle with cinnamon & brown sugar, cover pan & place in refrigerator overnight!

Ingredients:

• 5 Eggs
• 1-3/4 cups light cream (or 2%+ milk)
• 3 tablespoons sugar (you can use sugar in the raw)
• 1 teaspoon rum flavored extract (optional)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Loaf of French bread (sliced 3/4 inch thick)
• brown sugar/cinnamon to sprinkle

In the morning, heat oven to 400*F. Uncover and bake for 20-25 minutes until eggs are set and golden brown.  Serve with butter & maple syrup. Also fabulous with berries and whip cream!  There are more ways to spice this recipe up (some like with chopped pecans or sliced bananas sprinkled on top before baking). I just took mine out of the oven and it smells like heaven! Time to ENJOY!

Yummy Morning Goodness

bacon on the side

Hint: put the bacon in the oven 15 minutes before the french toast and they will both be done about the same time! Have a great weekend!

Chocolate Zucchini Bread Cupcakes

the princess and the zucchini cupcakes that she helped make

1 1/2 cups shredded raw zucchini (or there about)

1 cup whole wheat flour (plus a little flax seed for added heath points)

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (add a little extra for a darker chocolate taste)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 cup (120 ml) safflower or canola oil (use 1/4 cup oil, plus 1/4 cup apple sauce or sour cream or yogurt)

1/2 cup (100 grams) white sugar

1/2 cup (105 grams) light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Bake in prepared cupcake pan at 350 F for about 20 minutes. You can also bake in a loaf pan at 350 F for 55-60 minutes (which is what is in the oven to bring to my sister who is on bed-rest until my future niece is ready for her grand entry in a couple of weeks! YAY!

Approximate Ingredients (because you know i didn’t really measure):

1 Cup Rhubarb (diced)

1 Cup Zucchini (grated)

2 t. Vanilla

1 Cup Chopped Nuts (I used about 1/2 C Raisins instead since that’s what was in my pantry)

1 t. each of: Salt, Soda

1/2 t. Baking Powder

3 Cups Flour (I used whole wheat to lower the guilt factor)

3 Eggs (i just used 1 since we cooked the other 3 the hens gave us for breakfast – so i expect mine will be a bit more dense)

1 Cup Oil (I used 1/2 cup oil, 1/2 cup apple sauce to cut the fat down)

2 Cups Sugar

Optional Sugar-In-The-Raw for sprinkling on top

Directions:

Mix dry ingredients (except sugar, which is technically not a dry ingredient) in a mixing bowl.

Mix wet ingredients in mixer (adding fruit/veg last)

Add dry ingredients to mixer

Spread batter into two spray-prepared loaf pans (or 8X8 glass pans) sprinkle with Sugar-ITR. Bake at 325 F for 1 hour or until middle is set and toothpick comes out clean!

It turned out very delicious & went great with a cup of decaf on a cloudy summer evening.

Me @ the Jupiter on Vancouver Island (the inspiration for this recipe)

One nice thing about the rain that we’ve had is that I have hardly needed to water the vegetable garden. The rain has been plenty to keep them growing:

my summer garden collage 2011 - sorry about the spelling- apparently my scrabble games aren't helping as much as I thought ;P

So far things are doing fairly well, although the zucchini and yellow squash have not been getting very big. They are however EXTREMELY delicious.

We have been harvesting lots of heirloom snow peas (grown from seed and they are taller than me) and some zucchini and yellow squash so far. Oh and plenty of eggs from our 5 lovely ladies.

If you are looking for a tasty way to saute your veggies, here is what I’ve made the past couple of nights to serve with dinner:

Heat a T extra virgin olive oil and a T of butter in a saute/frying pan over medium/high heat.

Once melted stir and lower heat to M/Low – add veggies (cut up 1 yellow squash & 1 zucchini plus a few handfuls of snow peas)

Add a dash of garlic/salt (I used something called California seasoning)

Add a sprinkle of bacon bits

Put heat to Low, Stir and cover for 3-5 mins.

Turn off heat, stir and enjoy (return cover if you want to retain heat until ready to serve)

ENJOY!

In my haste, i forgot this update: I completed the 14 day Green Smoothie Challenge! I felt great and it helped me drop a few more pounds by replacing 1 meal/day with a green smoothie. If you haven’t tried it, I encourage you to check it out! It is 100% free with nothing besides a daily email to give you recipe ideas and encouragement. I have decided to continue making green smoothies and try to do one every other day! It’s a great way to get those often forgotten fruits and leafy green veggies.