Cinnamon Rolls.

 Sorry no sewing today during nap time.  I was learning how to make cinnamon rolls from my mother in law.  It was fun and they are delicious.

 Now I have a whole shelf dedicated to cinnamon rolls.  This may not have been the greatest idea but who cares when it comes to cinnamon roll.s

Going for a hike

For starts this first picture is of my girls.  Yana loves to sit in Sarah's doll stroller and Sarah pushes her around the house.  It was just too cute to pass up a picture opportunity.

 Ok on to today's activities.  This morning after breakfast we drove to Tulsa's Oxley Nature Center and went hiking.  I didn't know if I could take a stroller so I took our child back pack for Yana.

 Here is Yana in the back pack on one of the trials.

 I realize that you can't see what she is pointed at but there is a caterpillar right there.  That plant is covered caterpillars.

 A caterpillar

 We took this picture going up the ramp to the observation building.  Isn't it pretty.

 We had just started on our hike coming out the other end of the observation building.

 This is my first attempt at a picture of Yana

Out walking around.  We walked probably less than a mile today but it was fun to be in the "woods"  There were tracks of different animals in the muddy part of the paths.  Sarah even got to feed some of the turtles and fish before we left.  It was a lot of fun and we will definitely be going back again and a again.  It is pretty and enjoyable.

They grow so fast!

 Sarah was born in 2008 in Idaho.  She is our oldest and she is such a wonderful girl.

 She loves to learn and have fun.  She loves to dance and exercise and be a goof. 

 She loves to pose for the camera.  She makes a great little model.

  I can hardly believe that she gets to start school this year.  She gets to start in the public school system in the pre k this year.  She is so excited.  Tonight we get to go get her all enrolled and go from there.  I can hardly believe it.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures.  That is every March of her life.  Man she will be 4 next month.  Time flies so fast.

Dentist's apt

I'm going to the dentist's today.  The going to the dentist part isn't scary at all.  I've spent a lot of time in the dentist's office growing up.  I also spent a lot of time in the orthodontist's office.  They pulled a lot of teeth and straightened the rest of them.  The only thing that makes me nervous is the fact that I haven't been to the dentist since before I met my husband.

I went after my mission but before I met my husband.  Things were good but after we got married we didn't have dental insurance and going to the dentist's office when a college student isn't cheap.  Part of it also was the fact that I just never made time for the dentist.  I remember having some of the nurses in the dentist's office who were so nice and kind and patient and others who just made you feel horrible because you didn't brush or floss perfectly and that you even had a need for the dentist.

That is where I'm at today.  I'm nervous because my teeth haven't been cleaned in over 5 years.  I'm sure the nurses are nice but it is still there in the back of my mind.  I've heard wonderful things about the people at this office.  I'll let you know how it goes.

Look what I did

We went to Hobby Lobby the other day and Sarah saw some pink yarn and just loved it.  She wanted me to buy it for her and so I bought it.  I don't usually buy random things like that just because my kids want it but Christmas was coming up and I thought that if I had time I could crochet her something for Christmas.

Well it didn't happen before Christmas because I didn't have time but I decided to crochet her a hat.  I found one online at Alli Crafts.  She has all sorts of free patterns there that are really cute.  I picked a hat and asked Sarah if she would like me to make it for her and she was super excited.

So I spent an hour online looking up stitches again and how to do magic rings and all sorts of stuff and then sat down and made her this really cute hat.

 She wore it all day yesterday.  She just loved it.  The flaps were easy and it was fun to learn.  It has me excited to make more.

 Isn't it cute.

I still need practice joining the rounds but it is cute and she likes it and that is all that matters.

Last night I sat down with the same pattern but for a smaller head and started making one for Yana.  I will make pom poms to attach to the top once I finish the one I'm working on. 

It is amazing what you can find online.

Well today is going to be a super busy day and it is already half over.  We started late and have lots to do.  I hope that you have a wonderful day.  I'll try to get on later and start sharing pictures of all the Christmas presents I made this year.

Yummy creations

One of the treats that we made a couple of weeks ago were what you see below.  We bought Almond Bark, cheez its, orange slices, and creamy peanut butter.

 We put toothpicks in the orange slices and then dipped them in the melted almond bark.  Then we let them sit.

 We would spread the peanut butter on a cheese it and then put another cheese it on top of that.  Then dip them in the almond bark.

It was a lot of fun and they tasted wonderful.  They didn't last very long.

We got this recipe from my mother in law.  She made them a couple years ago and they were really good.

Baking days....

The last couple of days have been busy.  Josh was in Texas Monday until last night.  So every night I sewed as soon as my girls went to bed.  Tuesday I decided I wanted to try making my own candies so we went to Hobby Lobby and bought a couple molds and some chocolate.  This first picture is what I made that night.  Not too bad.  It was fun and they taste really good.

 There is peanut butter and milk chocolate.  Some solid and some mixed.  I also bought dark mint but didn't use it Tuesday night.

 Ok well this is what my table looked like last night before I went to Mutual.  I had offered to make cupcakes for the activity and I also wanted to use the new silicon molds my mother in law sent me.  So I made a lot.  I also used the rest of the chocolate while backing.  I used the dark mint as well.  The tins in the upper left have the candies in them.  They aren't full.

 This was the counter that I worked on.  It was a mess.  That's just how it was.

Here are the cupcakes that I took to Young Women's with me.  They were yummy.  I finished frosting the last one right as I needed to head out the door.  They were fun to make but man was yesterday afternoon busy.

I still need to frost the molded cupcakes but that will happen a little later today.

An Idea

Today when I was sewing I got another table runner top finished and decided that I needed to start cleaning some other stuff up.  I got the family ironing done and had an idea.  I learned how to do most of my sewing at BYU-Idaho.  I believe it was the first class I took when we made a skirt as one of our projects.  I made one during class and then another one after the class on my own.

I liked the skirt but since have gained weight and then lost and gained and lost and I'm just never at the right spot for those skirts.  They are either too big or too small.  I put them into my box of material to use on another project and had an idea to turn them into dresses for Sarah.  They would drown Yana at this point.  She can grow into them.  So I looked up how to make pillowcase skirts and I will use that idea to make these two skirts dresses for Sarah.

I will share before and after pictures once they are done.  I love coming up with new ideas.

A year on blogger!?!

Can you believe that the first post I made was a year ago on the 15th.  Now I'm trying to think of a way to celebrate this.  I have also had my Etsy store up and running for a year now.  I was thinking about celebrating this with giveaway drawing on my blog.  Here is the problem.  I have no idea how to run one.

So I am asking you.  If any of you have ever run a drawing and could give me some ideas on how to do this would be greatly appreciated.

I would like to start it this Saturday and run it for a week to celebrate.

Thanks for your help.

My first bike tour.

You may remember that back in the end of July my sister in law and I went for a 32 mile bike ride at the end of July.  We were doing a family Biggest Loser and she wasn't supposed to be running so we set a goal to ride from the family cabin to West Yellowstone but then changed it to a different location for our own safety.  It was great.  I really enjoyed it.  It had me wanting to do some bike races.

Well I have been trying to run and bike every week because I enjoy them both quite a bit.  I still hadn't ridden in any bike races or tours.  Friday I got this email from my friend who cycles a lot.  She told me about a race on Saturday (today) in the town next to ours.  She asked if I wanted to ride it with her.  It was more of a tour than a race.  Really laid back.  I said yes and that was that.

We chose to ride the 30 miler.  Last night my husband and bought some spare tubes, packed my camelbak and got things ready to go.  My alarm went off at 6 this morning.  Man I haven't had to get up that early in a long time.  My friend came to pick me up around 6:35.  We loaded my bike on her bike rack and headed to Claremore, Ok.  It isn't that far away.  We got there and entered the Dickens of a Ride road tour.  We left the finish line at 8 and went for a wonderful ride.

I was riding my husband's cross trainer.  It is what I have been riding for a while.  It has mountain bike tires on it.  So I felt a little out of place but I was there for me and to have fun with a friend.  It was a beautiful day.  The day started out a little cold but warmed up.  We rode around lakes, over bridges, and past landmarks that actually knew.

It was a good ride.  I started out strong and at mile 14 we stopped at a rest stop.  It was very much needed.  There were so many ups and downs.  I didn't know that there were so many hills in Oklahoma.  It was beautiful but every hill took more and more out of me.  The race turned out to be about 35 miles long making it the longest ride I have ever ridden.  About 8 miles from the the end my knees started to ache.  By the end my legs hurt quite a bit.  When we finished I just walked around, took some Ibuprofen and ate some food.  After about 20 minutes my leg were fine.  It was a great ride.

I'm a little tired still but other than that it has been a great day.  It has me wanting to train better and possibly get a road tires.

I'll keep you posted on my training.

Pumpkin pie was a success!!

The other day I mentioned that I was making pumpkin pie from scratch and that I would share pictures with you later.  Sorry it has taken so long.  It has been one of those weeks where I feel like I am doing so much but nothing is getting done.

 This is a picture of the pumpkin and the tools that I used.  I tried the sawing motion it recommended on the internet and it didn't work.  I tried to stick the knife straight in and then push down.  That didn't work.  I almost couldn't get the knife back out.  So I went out and got my husbands rubber mallet and that worked.  I got the knife back in a sawing motions for about 1/4" and then used the hammer to hit one side and then the other in order to work it all the way through.  Not the safest way but affective.

This is what it looked like after I had spooned out the insides.

 

 You can microwave them but I don't have any glass bowls that have lids so I chose to steam them.  It takes about as long as the microwave.  I steamed them for about 30 minutes.

My steam pan isn't that big but it held half of the pumpkin at at time.

 So here is a cooked half of pumpkin.  I then cut it into 3 slices and used a spoon to spoon the pumpkin out of the shell.  Really easy.  It practically fell out just needed a little prompting.

After all was said and done I made a pumpkin pie.  One pumpkin made one pie for us.  It was perfect.  The pie was SSOOO yummy.  I think I'll do another pumpkin next week for cookies or just to freeze.  It took quite a bit of time so I didn't want to do all 4 in one day.  I should have because then they would all be done but I figured they were fine on my window sill.

I love learning new things.  This was a lot of fun.  It makes me want to get a pressure cooker.

Pumpkin pie

Normally I make pumpkin pie every year from scratch...starting with a can of pumpkin.  I add all the other ingredients but I have never done if from a true scratch.  A friend of mine was telling me that she buys the sugar/pie pumpkins and makes her pies from scratch.  She said it wasn't that hard and that she could teach me how to do it. 

I'm game.  Of course.  I love learning new things and right now I'm really big into learning new skills for the kitchen.  I also think it would be a great way to help add things to our food storage.

So I bought 4 pie pumpkins and we were just waiting for a good time to get together so she could teach me how to do it.  Well our schedules kept clashing and last night my husband asked if we could have pumpkin pie for Family Home Evening tonight.

I was going to ask my friend if she had time to show me today but she is sick so with text message help and instructions on the internet I am giving it a try today.  I have started and I have taken some pictures.  I'll post again on it after everything is said and done.  I am so excited!

A birthday party success

Well the party was a success.  We ended up having it at some friends house.  I started the cake on Thursday and finished it this morning at my friends house. 

Yesterday was my husband's flex day so I had to get creative.  I did all the icing after the first layer in my sewing room.  He was told his presents were in there so he wasn't allowed in.  Which his presents are in there so I wasn't lying.

Thursday afternoon I bought a pan for the job and came home and made three cake mixes to fill it to the 2/3rds area.  It took a long time to cook but it did the job.  However,  The butter that I spread everywhere in the pan was not enough.  The middle bottom part was stuck in the pan and the only option was to tear the cake.  I was wanting to tort it...although I wasn't sure how with it being so big.  So I didn't tort it.  I was actually really frustrated.  Well I got it all set up and cut the top of the cake off.

This is what I cut off the top.  A lot!

Ok well after it that I made the frosting and thinned it out like I was taught and I put the first layer of frosting on.  I originally planned on turning it green but forgot so it was white.

After it was safe in my sewing room I decided to start on the trees so they could set up over night as well.

I used sugar cones for the tops and big pretzels for the trunk.  The white stuff is the icing.

While I was letting the first layer set up I made another recipe of icing for the second layer.  I knew that once my husband was home I wouldn't be able to make it for later that night.  So I made it and moved all my utensils into my sewing room so later I could ice the cake a second time...this time in blue.  I figured it would be an island.

I did this while Josh was mowing the yard.  Then I let it sit over night to set up completely.  Then Thursday while Josh was working in the garage I told him that he couldn't come in the house because I needed the table to lay out something I was working on.  The table in my sewing room wasn't big enough.

I used the glittery gel stuff to draw in my river.  Then I went to work on the grass.

 It took a while.  My arm kept getting tired and I would take a few seconds to brake.

I put grass along the bottom to continue the effect.

Then this morning I used the blue sparkle gel to write on the river.

I was going to make icing and do it.  I was going to make it brown but honestly I got lazy.  This was quick and easy.  I'm glad I did because I would have run out of time.

Another friend who works with Josh went tool shopping with Josh at 10 and then at noon then went to the shooting range.  I waited 20 minutes to make sure they weren't coming back and then I started getting everything ready to go.  I had to thaw the hamburger patties, grab the buns, condiments, cheese, tomatoes, plates, cups, napkins, cake, icing, trees, swim suits, towels, pop, ice cream and utensils.  I took them all over to our friends house.  While there I finished the trees and put them in the cake.  She helped me figure out the placing which was great because I wasn't sure where to put them.  I also bought to little deer to place on the cake and some numbered candles.

Those are three of the five trees on the cake.  They were fun.  They took a little bit of time to do and getting them to stand up straight was a bit hard so most of them were leaning which was fine because trees lean.

Making the cake was so much fun.  It turned out great.  After it was all set up I brought the girls home so Yana could nap for a few.  I forgot to mention that earlier in the day our friends had called my husband if he could come over around 2 to help move a piano.  He said later that he thought I was planning something but when he came home to drop off the guns (I told him I was going to the store).  The house was the same so he figured I wasn't up to anything. 

He had called and told me he was on his way - earlier than I expected - so I told him I was already on the way out the door to the store so I would see him after he moved the piano.  So I called my other friends and they piled into their car and followed me over there.  We parked a block away and they climbed into my car and we drove to our friends and into their garage so Josh wouldn't see our car.  Everyone arrived earlier than I had planned which turned out great.  We had been at the house for just a few minutes when Josh got there.  They brought him in the front door while we were all standing in the kitchen by the cake waiting for him.  It took him a second to realize what was going on but it was awesome.  He loved it.  He liked the cake, the wonderful company and the fun.

It was a lot of fun.  We ate our hamburgers, baked beans, chips and salad and then went swimming with the kids for a bit.  Then we came in and cut up the cake.  It has been a busy day.

My girls are bathed and ready for bed and my husband is at the Priesthood meeting.  I hope that you all had a wonderful day.  See ya on Monday.

Class # 3 - Cupcakes

CUPCAKES

Today was my third class and it was a lot of fun.  Today was so busy at the same time.

I was making the last batch of frosting as I was walking the kids out the door.  I made a batch of cupcakes and while they were cooling I started making the frosting.  Then I ordered pizza. lol.

I had to separate the icing and make 4 different colors.  One was thin and the rest medium consistency.

In class we learned how to use several more tips and how to make several more flowers.

I decorated 7 in class and then ate one so the other 6 would fit back into the pan.  :)

At home I set up shop on the floor and decorated the rest of them.  There are a few more not shown here but I didn't want to get everything back out again.

I have so much frosting in my fridge that I'm going to have to make something else just to use it up before it goes bad.

 The one on the right and the one on the left are shaggy mums.

I had so much fun.  I am planning to take the second class next month and possible the tall cakes class in October.  I'm so glad that I found this class.

I hope that you are all having a great start to your day.