HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!!

So, just because you can make a fancy cake, doesn't mean that you have too!  We are busy installing laminate flooring and in the midst of this, it was my husband's birthday!  Sophia was desperate to decorate a cake for him so I bought the good ol' stand by...McCain Deep and Delicious!  I think it's super cute, and Sophia was elated that she didn't have to wait for the cake to bake in the oven!  Win, Win!

Gabrielle's Blueberry Muffins

Heat or no heat, it's time to bake some muffins!  Sophia has a friend coming over to spend the day with us and no child can resist warm blueberry muffins!  Not to mention, I bought a 1.5 L basket of blueberries on Sunday and it's dwindling quickly.  These muffins can be made with the store bought large blueberries, but nothing compares to wild northern blueberries!  If you don't have the time or ambition to pick blueberries in this heat, you can always stop by the side of the road and pay through the nose for a basket...which is what I did!

 

Gabrielle's Blueberry Muffin Recipe

1/4 Cup Softened Butter

1/3 Cup Sugar

1 Egg

1 Cup Sour Cream

 1 1/2 Cup Flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder 

1/2 tsp salt

1 Cup Blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cream together butter and sugar until pale.  Add egg and sour cream and mix until just blended. 
2. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
4. Add 1 Cup + a handful more if you like.  Gently mix in the blueberries.  The batter is stiff and if you mix it too hard you'll squish the blueberries. 
5. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full and bake at 400 for 20 minutes.  Perfection! 

Make 1 Dozen Muffins 

I haven't been adding much to my blog for the past few weeks but we've been busy having some summertime fun!  

Our big plans for the summer are to rip up our carpet and put in some new flooring.  I also found a chair that I would like to refinish...these projects will be showcased on the blog!  

I was also planning to put up a recipe or two but it has been REALLY hot here up North.  About 30 degrees...but it will feel like 40 degree Celsius = 104 degree Fahrenheit with the humidity!...to hot to turn the oven on. 

Until we get into some real projects, here are a few of the fun things we've been doing to keep cool and enjoy the warm weather!  

Rock Painting!

Calgary Stampede Neighborhood Breakfast

(not my neighborhood but we were lucky enough to be invited!)

 

Fun with Friends

French River Trading Post

Camp with Friends

I am one lucky gal!

Daisy Chain

How to Make a Daisy Chain

Who needs diamonds and pearls when you have a field full of daisies? 

What you need:

~ A field full of daisies (look for flowers that have thick stems and   are healthy and open)
~ Fingernails

• Pick a bunch of daisies; the amount of daisies depends on the fullness and size of the chain you want to make.

•  Make a slit near the bottom of the daisy; don’t go all the way down! Make the slit just a bit bigger than the width of the daisy stem. The closer the slit is to the flower, the fuller your chain will be.

•  Thread the stem of another daisy through the slit.  Repeat with all your daisies

•  To finish, make a slightly bigger slit in the last daisy in your chain and thread the first daisy head through the slit.

Mom- 1 / Bad Day- 0

Here's one, and it all starts with glitter...my nemesis!  Sophia LOVES it; however, she seemed to be getting a little frustrated by it as well yesterday.  She was explaining to me that she wanted glitter that didn't make a "horrible mess" like the glitter glue that she was trying to decorate the vertical surface of a box with.  Of course with the amount of glitter glue she applies, it was dripping down the box and would have taken three days to dry. 
She wanted a different kind of glitter and despite her best efforts, I just couldn't figure out what she was talking about.  After going back and forth for ten minutes, she sighed and said "Mommy, you're being really hard on me!" 
"I am?" I replied. 
"Yes, it's just really frustrating when you don't know what I'm talking about!" 
"Well, I'm sorry sweetie" I replied. 
"Well I know that you're sorry but you have to know what I'm talking about!" 
Ahhh...this went on for a very long time until I finally figured out that she was talking about the Crayola Colour Wonder Glitter Paint Pen that she had used at her grand mamans over the May long weekend! 
Although I'm also not a huge fan of the Colour Wonder, I promised her that we would go on Monday (today) to get one.  We drove all the way out to the north end of town, a 30 minute drive in the sweltering heat.  Oh, we decided to try using my husbands Toyota Tercel instead of the van for the summer to save money on gas...two door and no AC, I'll keep you posted on how long this lasts.  Anyway, her and I drove all the way out there, found the Colour Wonder, it was on sale!!  I also got a minimal amount of groceries while I was there and proceeded to the self check out.  I scanned all my items and "placed my items directly in the bag" and clicked pay, got my total and I reached into my purse only then to discover that my wallet wasn't in my purse....
So, it was a long and disappointing drive home for both of us followed by a solo trip to a store in the south end, where I live to get the Colour Wonder Glitter Pen and oh ya, I took the van!

Crowning Glory!

This cozy crown is a quick knit.  I was tired of all of those cheap hard plastic crowns that seemed to last through only a few rounds of dress up.  This crown is so comfy, it can be worn all day long.
You'll find the free pattern at This Cosy Life, another great blog full of pattern's to purchase and a few freebies too!

Child's Play Crown

Supplies*1 skein worsted weight yarn. You only need about a hundred yds (probably not even that much) this would be a great project to use some of that gorgeous handspun you’ve been hoarding. Just DO NOT use cotton. No elasticity. Stretches but won’t bounce back. I like to use Paton’s Classic Wool.
*16” circular needle, size US 7 (4.5mm)
*Tapestry needle
AbbreviationsK2tog-Knit two stitches together (This is a right slanting decrease)
SSK-Slip two stitches knit wise onto the right needle, replace them onto the left needle and knit them together (This is a left slanting decrease)

Begin knitting the brim.
Cast on 84 stitches. Being careful not to twist, join and begin knitting in the round. Knit in stockinet (knit every row) for approximately 1”.
*Purl 1 row.
Knit 1 row.*
Repeat ** once more.

Begin Points.
Row 1:SSK, k 10 stitches, K2tog
Row 2: Turn work and knit across 12 stitches
Turn work and repeat rows 1 and 2 until 4 stitches remain, decreasing 2 stitches every right side row.
Next row SSK, K2tog
Turn and knit last 2 stitches together. Break yarn and weave in tail.
Repeat for 5 more points, attaching the yarn at the beginning row of each.
***Tip*** When I attach my yarn at the beginning of a new point I like to carry it along with my yarn, knitting it into either the first or third row. Cuts down on having to weave in too many tails.

Weave in all ends and enjoy!

I attached little crochet flowers to some of my crowns and they looked super.  This is a pattern for a basic flower and a video tutorial staring...moi!

5-Petal Flower Pattern

Materials:
Any size hook (depending on what size flower you want)
Any weight yarn

Rnd 1: Make a magic ring  .
Rnd 2: Ch 2 (counts as first dc), work 9dc in ring, join to top of ch w/sl st -- 10 dcs.
Rnd 3: **Ch 2, work 3dc in next st, ch 2 sl st in next st** five times. Fasten off.

magic ring

Happy Canada Day!

Cheater, Cheater

I haven't posted in a little while, it was a busy week!  Things are quickly wrapping up at Sophia's school and she had her first end of the year summer concert.  It was a pleasure to be there for her debut in front of an audience and she was a pro...  OK, so she picked her nose on stage, lifted her hand as if to ask a question during the performance, excitedly waved at us and then adjusted her undies on the way off the stage.  Isn't that what everyone looks forward to with the JK class?  I'm just glad that she didn't freeze on the spot and that she was so comfortable in front of so many people!
This is the last week of school for both Sophia and my husband and then...let the good times roll!  Between the three of us, I'm not sure who is the most excited!?

So, because I haven't had much free time, I thought I'd post a cheater and share my favourite pattern site, ravelry.com.

I have lost a lot of hours browsing this site full of inspiration and so many free and inexpensive patterns!  Love, love, love it!  Happy knitting (or crocheting)!

Father's Day Cookies

The quickest way to a man's heart is through his tummy....well the quickest way to my husband's heart is through Sophia so this is a double whammy!   We had a friend over this morning and they created these yummy Father's Day Treats.  I think they did a great job!

Sugar Cookie Recipe

1/2 Cup Butter (room temp)

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 Egg yolk (slightly beaten)

1/2 tsp Vanilla

2 Cups Flour

1 1/2 tsp Baking powder

1/4 tsp Salt

3 Tbsp Milk

1. Preheat oven to 375º
2. Cream butter and sugar together until pale.
3. Add egg yolk and vanilla and mix until just combined. 
4. Sift all dry ingredients together.
5. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture, alternating with milk.
6. Shape into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled (at least 3 hours)
7. Roll out dough to 1/4" thick and cut out shapes.

Place shapes on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until just golden brown around the edges.  Let cookies cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

Decorating

 To decorate the cookies I use the Wilton's Royal Icing Recipe which calls for Meringue Powder instead of using egg whites.  It can be purchased at Michaels or the Bulk Barn.  For a small batch of cookies I would only make half the recipe (with plenty left over) and follow the instructions to thin the icing so that it's easier to spread.

You can easily colour this icing with Food Colour Gel and put it in piping bags and make fancy decorations but when I make cookies with Sophia (4 years old) she just spreads the icing onto the cookies and then cakes them with sprinkles.  Lots of fun!

Enjoy!!

 

Groovy Man!

 

  A couple years ago I tried my hand at a little tie-dye...it turned into a bit of an obsession.  Here's the thing, I'm not exactly a tie-dye wearing kind of gal so my options have been a bit limited.  It's a good thing that kids in tie-dye are about the cutest thing around!
  I lucked out and found this YouTube tutorial on my first search.  I found it very helpful, it's a bit long winded but worth watching.
  I also learned a few things about the different dyes that can be used.  Again, I lucked out the first time and bought a kit from Michaels with a Procion MX type of dye.  The Tulip, Rit™and Tintex™ dyes are fine but they require very hot water for the dye to bond with the fiber and also need longer soaking time.
  So, just head to Michael's and buy the Jaquard Funky Groovy Tie-Dye Kit.  I think it's about $15 and it says it will dye up to 5 T-shirts but I was able to dye 7 kids T's between size 2T and 8.

Peace, love and happy dyeing.

   1.  I suggest you pick up the kit from Michaels and then go on the hunt for some t-shirt sales.  I hit Old Navy and was able to pick up several white t-shirts at a great price.  You can also use any old white t-shirt that you might already have that's looking a bit old
 
   2.  Follow the directions on your package, I suggest you wash your new t-shirts first but it will still work if you skip that step.

   3.  Dampen your t-shirts and decide what type of pattern you want.  I opt for "The Swirl" because I think it's the grooviest.

   4.  Lay your t-shirt out flat and stick a fork where you want the centre of your swirl to be and start turning the fork.  The shirt will start to spiral around he fork.  Help it out along the way to keep it in a spiral.

   5.  Secure the rubber bands (provided in the kit) around the shirt to keep it in the spiral disc.

   6.   Follow the instructions to use the Soda Ash and mix thoroughly.  Soak your t-shirt discs in the    solution for at least 20 minutes to ensure that it soaks all the way through the fabric.

     7.  Collect some old bags (without holes) and line them with a few sheets of paper towel to absorb the excess dye.  This is where you will place each t-shirt disc to dye.

Please excuse the peeling deck...another summer project

   8.  If you get a kit, it comes with pre-measured amounts of dye and all you have to do is add the water...just tap water.  Easy-peasy.

   9.  Put on your gloves and your ready to go!  I started with the blue first and applied it on the first side in a wedge about a third of the t-shirt.

  

  10.  Next I did yellow in another third of the shirt, overlapping the blue a little bit, this will give you the green colour.

  11.  Last is the Fuchsia on the last third of the shirt overlapping the yellow (for orange) as well as overlapping the blue (for purple).

  12.  Turn the t-shirt discs over and repeat the steps on the other side.  Some of the dye will have soaked through making it easier to follow the pattern.

   13.  Place the shirts in Zip-Lock bags or remove the paper towel and wrap them up in the plastic bags.  Let the shirts sit like that for at least 12 hours, 24 hours is best.

 

   14.  After 24 hours, rinse shirts out under running water (in the bath) and carefully snip the rubber bands.  Rinse until the water runs clear.  

   15.  Wash the shirts together with regular liquid laundry detergent on the warm cycle.  You can put them in the dryer or hang to dry.

That's it!  You're DONE!