August 3, 2012

Today was house cleaning day and that always puts my world to rights.  Despite my grumbling every time I vacuum (it must be the high pitched noise that makes me crabby), I do enjoy cleaning my house - mostly because I have such a lovely house to clean:)  Anyway it is a good cap to the week and I always feel good that things are clean and orderly for another few days at least!

(Libby on squirrel watch)

We have celebrated two birthdays here in the last two weeks.  Both of my babies are now one year older; the oldest having left behind single digits forever.  We didn't have any parties this year, which I am glad of, because I don't think I would have had the energy to make it fun or have fun myself.  Months ago we gave the kids a choice of a party and no gift; a family outing somewhere; or gifts and no party.  My Favourite Boy opted for the gifts, and chose the video game Skylanders.  He's been having a blast with it and we have gone through three sets of batteries for that darn wireless portal already!

My Favourite Girl opted for an outing to Canada's Wonderland, which we took early in June.  Her birthday was yesterday, but we thought it would be much more enjoyable to take the kids out of school near the end of the year and go when the crowds were smaller and the heat index lower.
Yesterday while I made her cake she organized a little crafting party for some neighbourhood friends and made everybody loot bags with some things she found in the craft cupboard.  She had three crafts to make and then they each had a cupcake from the freezer with buttercream and sprinkles.  So in the end she did get a party too, but I didn't do any of the work and I didn't spend a dime on it!

These are the cakes I made this year for them:

Skylanders cake for My Favourite Boy.  Really I could have tried a little harder but he was super happy with it and that's all that matters:)  If you don't know the game at all the top part of the cake is supposed to be the portal that the figures are placed on.

A kitty cake for My Favourite Girl:

I forgot to take a picture before I put the curly candles on.  Have I said before how much I love sheet cakes?

These are the cards I stitched for them:

My Favourite Girl picked out her design: she's on a little critter kick lately.

I have been experimenting in the kitchen with things other than cakes too.  I made some melon custard puddings with cantaloupe melon:

...And peach crumble pie, which I haven't even tried yet!

Both of these recipes came from a previous issue of Everyday Food magazine.

I also got some stash!  I put an order in with 1-2-3 Stitch and got these in the mail the other day:

The halloween magazine is great and I can't wait to get started on some of the pieces.  Never mind  my other works in progress:)  Tonight I just want to put my feet up and stitch something that does not have a deadline to it.  No more birthday cards for at least a month!

Here is a sneak peak at my next project:

I'll keep you posted:)

July 29, 2012

Things definitely seem to be getting back to normal around here.  The other day I woke up and actually felt efficient.  I made brown sugar and super-whole grain granola.  The granola has been on my list for some time now, but it is one of those projects that when you think about making it there are just too many steps.  Once you do get your butt in gear and make it, you think, "Why didn't I do this before?  What was I complaining about?"

Same goes for the brown sugar.  I'll never pay for it in the store again.  All you do is mix one tablespoon of molasses into each cup of white sugar.  If you want darker, mix in more molasses.

The granola is super whole grain because I used spelt flakes and kamut flakes along with my oats.  It's really yummy and I'm trying to convince the kids it's so much better than Cheerios.

We have been taking advantage of the summer clearance sales and got ourselves a new "outdoor living set": a.k.a outdoor sofa and chairs.   

Best idea of the summer I think, although very b-r-o-w-n.  To match the brown deck and brown-y bricks.  I headed off to Fabricland and picked up some outdoor fabric on clearance.  For $10 I gave it a punch of colour:

... and I have enough fabric left over to make a runner for the coffee table or some place mats for the patio table (which has now moved to our "lower" deck).

Yesterday we took a lovely detour on our way to Mountain Equipment Co-op in Barrie through the lovely historic main street of Schomberg. I didn't take any snaps but it was full of of the old, brick farmhouses; tea rooms, pubs and gift shops.  Whenever we drive through communities like these I am reminded that I live in one of the most beautiful areas of Canada and feel so blessed to do so.

Today we explored something else new, and that was the Monastery at Mary Lake.  This is a beautiful piece of property that was originally owned by Sir Henry Pellatt, who was the person that built the famed Casa Loma mansion in Toronto.  If there were pictures in the dictionary under "idyllic", this would certainly be the one.  This property in King County was his summer home, and in the 1930's he sold it to the Augustinian order to build a farm school.  We did not get to see the shrine today because of an event going on, but we did walk through the forest and part of the grounds.  We actually tired Libby out!  The fieldstone house was just a bit too far off the path for me to get pictures of.  As this is private property that the owners graciously allow visitors to walk the trails, I did not want to be too forward and go tramping up to the old house!  This is the most impressive barn though:

I am hoping the weekend's energy shifts into the coming week as well.  My Favourite Girl has a birthday on Thursday and I still need to stitch a card for her and think of a cake to make.  After that I should be able to get back to some of my W.I.P's  languishing away!

Have a wonderful day:)

July 26, 2012

Pseudo-normalcy: at last!  I think I almost got my groove back:)  Summer has not gone as completely as I had planned, but I am finally enjoying it.  We have had such hot weather.  Really, really hot weather.  It has made it hard to be outside and take Libby on longer walks.  We have been puttering around the house and just taking it easy for the most part.  The kids had a full day, week long summer camp last week and that made it easier to get things back to normal.

We are still getting to know Libby and loving all the little things we discover about her.  Libby likes to eat canned pumpkin and cottage cheese.  She loves her home made stew and sneaking up onto our beds when we're not looking.  She is a very, very good dog and we are very, very grateful!

I was excited to do some sewing for her.  I gave her bed a make-over from boring denim to pink bouquets:

I have plans to cross stitch a name plate to cover the "doggy" sign on the front.  All in good time:)

I also got rid of the yucky leash she came with and made a prettier one:

I saved the hardware from the old leash and used the same heavy cotton from the bed for the strap.  Mr Crafty World was concerned the fabric leash would snap so I encased a thinner strip of polyester webbing from a dollar store leash inside.  Now it's strong, washable, prettier, and more comfortable to hold than the webbed leash she came with.  I also added a D-ring to the handle loop so I could attach the cute little pouch that holds clean-up bags.

 I used the tutorial from Loft Creations website.  You can find it and other goodies under the tutorials tab.  I have plans to make her a few toys as she rips through hers with startling speed!


A couple of weeks ago I doggy-sat a friends dog, which was kind of an adventure when you're just getting used to having a dog yourself!  Every mealtime I encountered this behind my feet:

Yesterday the kids and I went off to Ikea so I could spend some of my doggy-sitting money.  I haven't been in a very long time and was excited to find some pretty new things for my kitchen.  

I love the bowls - they're made in France.  I washed them up right away and used them for last night's dessert: Raspberry Fool:

Lastly, I'll leave you with a few photos of flowers from my garden.  A little jug of summer if you will:

Enjoy your day!

July 5, 2012

Summer vacation.   Should be nice and relaxing.  Should be.  I have been catching myself wishing it was September several times in a day lately.  I am feeling tired and slightly overwhelmed.  My mind is rushing, rushing, rushing, yet I can't seem to keep up.  I suspect a large part of this has to do with this little arrival on the last day of school:

This is Libby; our 6 year old Jack Russel mix.  We adopted her on the last day of school with relatively no planning.  Actually, no planning whatsoever.  She's lovely, and we love her to bits already.  She's so good; we can actually leave her free in the house when we step out.  She's getting more affectionate and she is pretty healthy.  However, I am finding the change in dynamic taking some getting used to.  I worry about what I need to do to keep her healthy.  I realize that any summer plans to go anywhere have now been put on hold until we can find a reliable pet-sitter.  My house is a mess.  My normal routine has been obliterated with having both kids and now a dog in the house full time.  I am craving order and  routine and accomplishment. Oh, and about one hour BY MYSELF.
 I'll get there; I just had to vent.

It hasn't all been bad.  We are having fun getting to know Libby.  She loves to go for walks and all the fresh air and exercise is good for all of us.

I wanted to share some of my Canada Day decorations.  You remember I made the red and white bunting; well here it is hung up.  I like it so much I haven't taken it down yet:

I also made a patch-work flag:

Here is my red and white centerpiece:  a little leggy but it looked festive enough:

Of course we had food:

Red and white candy popcorn

 Cherry Tarts

Gingerbread maple leaf cookies

Red and white dipped strawberries

Mini maple leaf crackers using left-over pie crust dough

We had neighbours over for a barbeque and lit some fireworks in our driveway.  It was a pretty fun day after all the preparations were done.  Libby didn't like the fireworks at all, and hid under the kitchen table.  Poor thing: she probably wondered what kind of new people she got that make so much noise!

June 22. 2012

It always amazes me how doing one tiny thing often evolves into a full blown project.  Somehow scrubbing my laundry sink last week turned into spontaneous laundry room make-over.  I have been wanting to do this project for ages, but it has been low on the DIY priority list.  Please excuse the pictures:  the before shots were taken after I decided to clear out the room.
I love my laundry room.  It's on the main floor; it's bright; it's large; I can take my laundry outside from here and hang it on my outdoor drying racks.  It's all good, so you can see why it ranks low on the make-over list.

There used to be a wire shelf over the washer and dryer.  Because the dryer does not have the controls on the back, stuff keeps falling down behind it.

A cupboard goes into this corner.  That's the door to the garage on the right.

I just wanted it prettier.  I'm also tired of the yellow paint.  (Can't believe I said that!)  I have also wanted bead board in there since we moved in five years ago.  I knew if I wanted bead board I would have to do it myself.  I'm a bit freaked out about using the table saw so no bead board.  Then I remembered bead board wall paper and my brain started brewing.  I guess cleaning the sink was the catalyst to get me started.  I took off to Walmart and bought two rolls of paper; then off to Home Depot for trim.  Here I am in the middle of the make-over: paper is hung; trim is on; most of the caulking has been done.

It is already much brighter, and now I'm really sure I want to change the paint colour.  I have to use left-overs from the rest of the house so my options are either cream or blue.  I think I'm going to go for blue, and in order to have enough I will have to mix the remnants of about three different cans.  Talk about custom colour!

There will be new shelves over the washer and dryer.  The bread box - which holds my cleaning rags - will get a make-over as well.  This little problem area:

  

...will be fixed.  It looks OK now, because I just cleaned it up last night.  These shoes are never in their cubbies at the same time and the kids back packs and other "stuff" are plunked on top.  It's also tippy and not very nice looking.  My plan is to make a smaller piece with two shelves and a basket drawer.  The drawer holds the kids mittens/hats/sunglasses, etc.  There will be hooks on the wall for their coats and back packs.  Mr. Crafty's shoes will go into the hall closet, which will also require a make-over.  That's the next project on the list - forget about carpet cleaning!

Unfortunately  I have to put the laundry room on hold until late next week.  It was too hot to paint this week ( like 42 degrees hot),  and I am going on a girly camping trip this weekend.  Next week is the last before school is out, and I really do need to get those carpets cleaned while I have the house to myself.  Kind of a drag, but it will be worth it.  I'll show you the pics as soon as I'm done.

Have a great weekend!

June 18, 2012

It's so hot today.  The house is dark with all the curtains closed to try to keep out the heat.  I am really trying to live without the air conditioner on, because it's only June.  I have been wandering around the house trying to think of things to do that won't involve me sweating or heating up the house.  I spent a fair bit of time on Pinterest, but I really want to do something.  I measured up my laundry room because that's the next room that will be getting a make-over.  I will be putting up some beadboard wallpaper and new shelving, and hopefully just make it prettier so it loses its status as dumping ground.  I thought about going to Walmart for the paper today, but the car is too hot!

Yesterday I puttered around the kitchen a bit and made some cleaning products.  I had to make another batch of laundry detergent; some scrubbing powder for bathroom cleaning, and a vinegar-eucalyptus fabric softener spray.

It's hard to take pictures of stuff like this, because really they are not all that interesting.  The laundry soap recipe I use is 2 cups grated  soap; 1 cup Borax; 1 cup washing soda.  The soap that I grate is home made - not by me but by another real human.  I get the plainest kind they have - no colours, fragrance or anything; just made with lye, oils and water.  My clothes come out of the machine smelling like wet clothes, not tropical waterfalls, which is how I like it.

The vinegar fabric softener is something I read about yesterday.  You squirt 10-15 sprays on the wet clothes in your dryer before drying.  There is no residual smell once the clothes are dry, and yes, I think they are just a bit softer than when I don't use any at all.  All you do is mix 2 cups of white vinegar with three teaspoons of eucalyptus oil and decant into a squirt bottle.  Shake it up before squirting of course.

I use baking soda to clean my tubs and sinks.  This time I mixed it with a couple of tablespoons of dried, ground up balsam fir needles.  It smells like Christmas!  After Christmas I filled two boxes with balsam branches cut from my friend's tree once they threw it out.  They have been drying in the basement ever since.  Last week I pulled the needles off all the branches in one box and am storing them in a plastic container.  I was really hoping that by this time I could just shake the branches and the needles would fall off, much like Charlie Brown's Christmas tree.  No such luck: I have to do it all by hand.  Perhaps going through the second box would be a good job for today:)

These are the last peonies from my garden.  What a perfect pink!  I think it would be a nice colour for my laundry room:)

June 6, 2012

I had to show you the state of my kitchen at the moment.  I am hosting a coffee morning tomorrow for some of the women in the neighbourhood and of course today has been spent making preparations.  I am making a cranberry coffee cake, German brownies and lavender cookies.  The brownies and cookies are experiments; I got the recipe off the internet.  I know I really shouldn't try out new recipes on people unless I have tried them out first, but that just takes a lot of the fun out of experimenting doesn't it?  If all else fails, coffee cake and coffee will be just fine I'm sure.  I did make sure to make the coffee cake extra big, just in case:)  I will not be serving up portions of stuffed humpback whale you see in the foreground - ingeniously named "Humpy".  My Favourite Boy is always leaving things around as evidence he has been there.  It used to drive me nuts, but now I love to find little lego creations on the staircase (or in my plant pots) or stuffed animals in all the wrong places and poses around the house.  One day there will be no little things of his to pick up and I know I will be really sad.
For the first time in five years we managed to make our way to the street sale.  Once a year, for one day only there is a market for quite a distance on Yonge Street.  We almost saw the whole thing; we had to cut our visit short because we were expecting a playdate in the afternoon.  I had a really good time, and the kids enjoyed going to all the booths that offered free stuff.  I remember being a kid and going to the yearly trade show: all those pens and notepads and balloons and shiny brochures were really something to talk about at school.  Now they've had their turn at it and did not complain that we didn't buy anything because they did not come home empty-handed.  Because we got there early, and had the best part of the day weather-wise, they didn't have to stand in line long to go through the bouncy obstacle course or pony rides.
I guess I shouldn't say we came home empty handed: the library was having a fabulous book sale and we all got books.  Those free bags people were handing out came in really handy to lug them home.  This is what I'll be reading this summer - and it only cost me two dollars!

I was able to get some sewing in over the weekend as well.  I finished off 'Rose Cottage': a freebie by Le Chalet des Perelles.  I just love her work.

I used my own hand-dyed threads for this one.  I will either turn this one into a box top or a wall hanging on a hoop I think.

I made three crayon caddies for kids.  I have been wanting to try these for a while.  They turned out OK, but I need to tweek the pattern just a bit I think.

They each hold eight crayons and a small notepad.  They close with an elastic looping over a button sewn on the back side.  It was fun to use up some of my juvenile fabrics since I don't really sew with them any more. (sniff!)  Two of them are going to be given to some little people coming over with their mom tomorrow.

I also got it in my head that we need to have a party for Canada Day next month.  Usually I only decide this a few days before, but this year by gosh is going to be different!  I got out most of my red and white fabric and made some bunting to hang under our 'urban gazebo' canopy.

I can't show it all to you, but you get the idea!  I had to add that bandana fabric in there to pay homage to my western heritage:)
I bought the flowers for my centre piece yesterday (white and red and white striped petunias that will go in a red, wooden toolbox); hopefully I can keep them from going leggy until July 1.  I also have ideas for a wreath for the door and possibly a table runner.

Add those plans to my plans to re-do the raised planters on the side of the house, refinish the TV stand, shampoo the carpets and couches, seal the tile floors - all before June 28 mind you - and I will continue to be one busy girl.  If you don't hear from me for a while you'll know what I'm doing:)

Thanks for stopping by!