Saturday, July 23, 2011

My Little Performer

My daughter put on a show for us last night...

It was so cute, she sang two of her own, made up songs.  
The first one was for her sister, and I can't remember all the lyrics, but some were something like

"When it's raining outside what do I do?
I look out my window and listen to it fall
I can't go on my trampoline, I can't play in the back yard

and I can't remember it all..
but it was quite cute.

Love her!!!

Watching her sisters show! (:

Friday, July 15, 2011

Jo's Rosemary bread

My new favorite bread recipe.

I was looking for something similar to focacia bread to make, and I found this recipe.
even while mixing the dough it smelled SO good, I could almost eat it raw....but I didn't...
Now, the recipe's instructions are to just throw it in a bread machine.....well....not only do I not have one...but I don't care for them either....I do, however, have a mixer :)...

so, I first mixed the yeast in warm water and sugar...let it sit for 5 min or so.....and then added it in with te rest of the ingredients....kneeded the dough until smooth, rolled it into a ball...greased a bowl (in olive oil) and let it sit for about half hour covered.

Pushed it down, split it into 3 'worms' and braided it....sprinkled it with olive oil and italian seasoning (if I had parmessan I would have also added that) and after it rose for about 45 min, I baked it for about 45 min at 350....

and...here's the recipe from ALL RECIPES

Ingredients

  • 1 cup water
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
  • 2 1/2 cups bread flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Directions

  1. Place ingredients in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select white bread cycle; press Start. 
 
 If you are like me, and don't have italian seasoning....then you can do what I did
little bit of oregano.....little bit parsley, Thyme, garlic powder....the more garlic the better (if you love garlic, like I do)
enjoy.....you might want to make two loaves, as I had to make one first thing again the next morning
 
 
 
 
 

Monday, July 11, 2011

Delish Sandwhich

I seriously made the tastiest sammich EVER today!!!

Ingredients are as follows:

2 pieces of bread
Cream cheese
Fresh spinach leaves
Onion
Basil
Pickled beats
Tomato slices

slice the onions and tomatos thin for yummiest results

I think if I had cucumbers I would have also added them....next time, for sure!!!


seriously...make this, it's worth it!!

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Painted rocks

I was given a ton of acrylic paints....so, I decided to let the kids go crazy.
I set them up outside, and found some rocks to paint to decorate our garden.
The kids scrubbed up the rocks, and then got to work.
Yes, it was a bit messy...and yes, I am BRAVE, lol!!!!
It really wasn't as messy as I thought it would be! 

Rock Painting

Delish Veggie Dip

what's for breakfast in my house?? why not veggies and dip...
being short on groceies isn't always so bad, I guess...no eggs, no milk, no bread....so...
pull out the mayo (or miracle whip) and make some yummy dip


Ingredients:

1/2 cup mayo
1/2 small shallot chopped fine
3 tbsp chopped green onion
1 tsp garlic, chopped fine
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp parsley

Directions:

Step 1: place all ingredients in a bowl
Step 2: mix all ingredients together
Step 3: dip veggies in dip
Step 4: chomp chomp chomp
Step 5: feel satisfied


Now that was easy..and tasty and would taste really good on potato chips...if only I had some!!



mmmm...potato chips

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Vegan(I think) chocolate chip cookies

Well as far as I know, there's no animal products in these cookies...
Though I wouldn't normaly  make them like this....lacking groceries, but wanting cookies......I figured I'd give it a go 

---------------------------------------------------------
My egg subsitute 

1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp water
1.5 tsp baking powder
mix them all together....it will foam...that's normal....let it sit for a min or two
-------------------------------------------------------

Chocolate Chip Cookies My way
makes about..15 cookies or so

  • 1-1/4 cups  flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 egg subsitute mixture
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup chocolate chips (I guess....use vegan chips....I didn't...but.....)
  • 1/4 cup shaved almonds
  • 1 squirt of molasses (I just like molasses)
so, the usual...

Step 1: mix oil and sugars
Step 2: add vanilla extract and 'egg subsitute'
Step 3: add flour, baking soda, baking powder salt.....
Step 4: add almonds and chocolate chips
Step 5: bake at 350 degrees for about 9 minutes

yummy....now you can have cookies, when you forget to put eggs and butter on your grocery list :)

picture....soon to come!!!!

Saturday, July 2, 2011

My Sheety Hammock + Tutorial

I have been searching everywhere for a hammock, one that doesnt cost and arm and a leg, one that doesn't have TOO big mesh holes...one that isn't a waste of money etc....
I was going to crochet one...I was going to try my hand at macrame....but both times, I gave up before I was even 1/3 done....

.so..this morning it was actually sunny outside, and all I wanted was to lay in a hammock and read or knit.

so, I grabbed two Queen sized top sheets from my closet (I never use top sheets) and made a hammock that worked!!!!

 
Our Hammock :)

Step 1:  Find 2 top sheets (I used queen sized) that you will never want to use as a sheet again!!

Step 2: Fold both in half lengthwise (make sure to get all the wrinkles out)  lay one on top of the other

Step 3: Sew edges together...it might be easiest to baste the edges together by hand first....I didn't do it, and it worked fine for me...but keeping four layers of long fabric together can sometimes be tricky..so, do as you chose

Step 4: Flip right side out! give it a few shakes...lay it out flat and make sur eyou get the wrinkles out

Step 5: Sew along both sides (top stitch) I went in about 1.5" on each side

Step 6: Fold over the top edge about 6 inches and sew 4-6 rows of straight stitch, *optional zig zag along the edge of the fabric for a more finished look*

Step 7: Do the same as step 6 for the bottom edge

Step 8: Feed a strong rope through the top and bottom edges, make sure you have lots depending on the distance of your trees, tie them securely to your trees and voilla...hammock!!

I haven't tested the weight or anything on this hammock, but, me and my kids fit comfortably in ours
if you're worried about it, add some more rows of stitching in steps 6 and 7 and/or chose a stronger thread.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

New Shirt

Oh boy, i have been slacking writing on this here blog...but I'm going to try and be more regular.  I made Alisa a shirt last night....and suprisingly it fits her PERFECT, I had no pattern, just used measurements from other shirts she has... I'm really impressed with it. Ocean told me she didn't know I could make things THAT good, ha ha ha!! having fun fabric really helps though (thanks Tanya)

If the sun shines today (even if it doesn't) I think we will try and get out in the garden, I bought a raspberry bush, and some herbs, also a fun flower called a fushia...looks alien, I like it!!

Off to make cinnamon buns for dessert tonight.

here's a picture of the cute shirt I made!

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Garden garden how do you grow

With Water and Sunshine and lots of Love, that's how!!!well, it's still pretty cold....or...it's become cold again....my poor plants :(  today wasn't so bad, and I had one of my little helpers watering plants, while the other l'il helper was at school.
on the deck here I have tomato, Stevia, Orange(what she's watering at the moment and whats LEFT of it boo hoo hoo) and apples!

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Yoga Pants tutorial(kids/toddlers)

This is a picture tutorial on how I made my daughters yoga pants (she is 2) I also made a pair for my 7 yr old!
I used a jersey knit (real stretchy) fabric for them.

1. First, find a pair of pants that fit your child, turn them inside out and lay flat over the fabric. Trace around, leaving a 1/2" seam allowance.  I added 1.5" at the bottom for hem allowance.(cut 4) As I marked in the picture(in yellow) I didn't go all the way up.  I did that because I plan on putting on an extra wide waist band.

2.This is just a picture showing my cut out pants and the original pair.

3. Once the pants are cut out, lay them beside eachother to measure the width of the waist.  These ones are 10.5" on each side.  I will cut the waist band 2" shorter then this.

 
4.
  • Waist Band  6" wide X 19" long (will be folded in half to make a 3" waist band)
  • Decorative Waist Band (optional)  each piece is 6" wide X 10.5" long
  • If you chose not to do the decorative waist band, skip to photo 7.

5. Open up the waise band and mark 3" down from the top. this is where you will place the top corner of the Decorative waist band, also, mark the center of the waist band to help place the 'other' corners of the decorative waist band.  One side should over lap the other. Pin in place.

6. Fold in half (right sides together) [pin together if you'd like] and trim the edges.

7.sew the center back seam.

8.Fold in half right side out, and baste the bottom edges together.

9.Now it should look like this :)  Trim where needed if you'd like.

10. Now sew up your pants...Hopefully you know how to do this.....sew up the outside edges, sew up the inseam, and then up the center...at least that's what I do....if you have a serger, your pants will turn out MUCH nicer then mine..otherwise.I sometimes do a zig zag stich along the inside edges.

11. with right sides together, pin the waist band in place if you chose...I'm a lazy pinner, so I usually only pin at the seams(if I pin at all) I'm still trying to master sewing with knit fabrics though, so I usually need the extra help.  Sew all around, trim if needed....again, I wish I had a serger for this part..but, I just end up zig zagging as well as straight stitching.

12. Flip right side out and stitch along the waist band, you could do a fun decorative stitch, or just a straight stitch, what ever you chose.

13. VOILLA!! pretty waist band!..now all that is left is to hem up the pants, and put them on!!!

14. They Fit, They Fit!!! and have a nice comfy waist band :)
I would LOVE to see pictures from anyone who decides to use my tutorial!!

If you need ANY help, or I messed up somewhere in my descriptions, please let me know, and I'll try and help out!

If you want to make a pair for a friend and don't have any little pants to trace, let me know and I will send you approx measurements! I have pants of all sizes from nb-size 7

Enjoy :)

80's yoga pants

neaborn size I made
Candy Stripes :)

Friday, April 8, 2011

Apple seedlings

I posted previously about sprouting some apple seeds...well, two of them have been potted...and on sunny days they grow rapidly...I can't belive how fast actually.
here are some fairly recent photos of them


Yoga pants

I am awesome!!!

okay, I'm not conceited..but, these pants came out great!!! I traced a pair of Ocean's flared sweat pants..and then used some stretchy jersey knit fabric to make the pants...I played with the waist band to give it some character..I'm sure there's an easier way to do it, and I can't wait until I figure it out, lol!!

she's at school right now, so as SOON as she gets home, I'm going to make her try them on.  she's pretty skinny, and the waist band isn't as stretchy as the rest of the pants(I boo boo'd and put the jersey stretch in the wrong direction rrrr),...so I hope hope hope they fit her


Ocean's yoga pants by mom!


Well...they FIT...a bit tight, but she says they are fine..so I'll take her word for it




Sunday, April 3, 2011

Twig Vase

I found this link tonight and think it is perfect....Ocean will LOVE making this...Alisa will love to help find twigs :) and I will love the finished product...how perfect for an outside table..even inside...

anyways, for those intersted.here is the link

Twig Vase

Thursday, March 31, 2011

poor orange tree :(

Im sad. my baby, the orange tree was destroyed by my 2 year old this afternoon :( i put it in the sunshine and turned around, turned back and every leaf was torn off and it was yanked out of the dirt...I stuck it back in and watered it.....so, I hope it magically comes back to life :( poor wittle twee.

i have some before and after pictures....*sigh*

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

SNAILY

Ocean has a pet snail, she *rescued* him from our garden, and we have built him a little aquarium home..(I think he is the luckiest happiest snail in the world.  She not only takes REALLY good care of him, she has tamed him....I swear...she can pet him, and he doesnt even suck his little eyes in and hide in his shell..he sits on her microphone while she practices the keyboard. it's funny...well, she has requested a snail stuffed animal....so tonight while she lay sleeping, I got to creating..and am SO proud of myself......the ONLY thing I dont like about him, is somehow his body twisted a bit while I was sewing him....but...he stands, and is otherwise adorable!!!
so, here he be

SNAILY...The real Snaily is upside down in the jar...see him?

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Hippy Bag

My Hippy Bags are back in action :)  I'm so excited to make these again.  this time, I decided to put a zip/pocket inside.  it didn't take me too long to re-make my pattern and sew it all up..considering I'm pretty new to zipper sewing, I'm doing awesome!!!
I found the cutest little buttons at the fabric store today, they look like little hazelnuts. Have a peak
I'm selling them at My Zibbet Shop





Saturday, March 26, 2011

It's my Party and I'll Dance if I want to...

Happy Birthday to MEEEEE!!!

Today our plans are to enjoy the sunshine......plant our apple seeds (well, at least one is ready to be planted) maybe dig some holes and make our garden plot areas level....and then,...wash our hands, and go to the library :)

and of course at the end of the day...there has to be cake :)

update:
didnt go to the library...did some gardening instead...found a *pet snail* named "him" Snailey.....built him an aquarium....and made some mud...John came home with a cookie monster Ice cream cake...and....the world is a happier place because of it..

I also pinned and sewed my own pants today to take in the waist and seat, and I did a FABULOUS job!! im pretty impressed with my achievements lately!

kids and I spent Earth hour making Shadow puppets on the wall with flashlights....Ocean made a 'snail' lol, and it looked SO good..until Johns wolf came and ate it!

Happy Birthday....Oh my poor Alisa...didn't want her picture taken!! :P

Thursday, March 24, 2011

ZHU ZHU Stuffed

Well, I did it....kind of...I made a zhu zhu stuffy...it's late and Alisa is sleeping, but, in the morning, we shall see if she thinks it's a zhu zhu or some weird thing mommy created.  If she says 'zhu zhu' I will take a picture of it and post it on here...if she looks scared...then I will NOT post a picture, and I will attempt it again!! I don't think it turned out so bad. considering I had nothing to start with other then a zhu zhu...my body measurements are definitely not correct, but really, a few more attempts and I think I'll get it!!
now off to sew a zipper for John....hope I can get that right :P

*~*~*~*sewing sewing 1,2 ,3.....*~*~*~*

quick update: 1 hour later......

.I JUST SEWED MY FIRST ZIPPER PERFECTLY

well...I can't say my first....Ive tried sewing zippers before while making things, such as baby dresses...but always freak out and make button holes instead.... I can officially say I ROCK!!! I just replaced the zipper in John's work vest, and it worked PERFECTLY!!! can you tell by my capitalization that I am EXCITED?!   :)
okay, now off to bed to be awoken at 5:45 ugh!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Glad I started a blog...

Now I can post all the tinformation/web pages I find that not everyone I know wants to see on my facebook :)

just found out some information about microwaves.  Thankfully we BARELY ever use ours...I defintely NEVER cook meals in a microwave...use a kettle to heat up water...my babies were breastfed,so no bottles heated up in the microwave.....etc....etc....

the part of this article that got me was the 'EMF' (Electromagnetic fields)
.....EMFs can be measured with an instrument called a Gauss meter. In fact, here is what one reader has to say when he used a Gauss meter to test microwaves: Measuring with a Gauss meter, every microwave I tested leaked, and was detectable up to six feet away.......

here's the whole article
microwaves bad for your health?

Finally a sunny day!

ALL of Spring break has rained...and not just a little rain but POURING rain...not only that but the first week of Spring Break we were all sick, especially the kids. So..after having 4 days off from work, and doing absolutely NOTHING fun The sun decided to show her beualtifulness today.  Of course, I had to work...though, not until 12:00 so....Me and the kids went out for a nice walk/bike ride, it was SO nice to get out in the neighbourhood.  We tried taking the kids to the park yesterday but the wind was cold, so it didn't last long. We are going to try and go out tomorrow morning before work as well...since it's supposed to rain all weekend *again*
Then.....we're back to school.
yahoo for Spring

So nice to get outside

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

100 MILE DIET

OR.....The Vancouver Island Diet

found a great link last night...somehow stumbled upon it...thought it was crazy at first, then, really got into it!!
learned a LOT....and thought i'd share....I need to go to bed as it's after midnight...so, I will elaborate more in the near future...for now...the link

THE VANCOUVER ISLAND DIET

 March: 24th update

so....I guess I have started, in a way...I bought all my 'organic' seeds from local peeps...and have my garden 'germinating'  we got to move them outside yesterday as it was +12 degrees (celcius) WOO HOO

I wish Mangoes grew locally ha ha! or that more people attempted to grow citrus trees, so I could buy some!! If my orange tree ever grows fruit, it won't be for at least 6 more years (from what I've read)  but don't I need two trees??

Monday, March 21, 2011

CRAYONS..... made into....CRAYONS

Thank you KLEVER KRAFTS for posting your crayon Tutorial...though I didn't have any tinfoil, thankfully I had a non-stick pan, and it worked out fine!!

I want to find some star shaped pans, or other fun shapes for next time..

The kids were a huge help, and it sure helped to break the boredom of this rainy day...

It's funny I always tell the kids NOT to peel their crayons, and now I'm telling them TO peel them

almost ready for the oven

they turned out awesome!!!

EarthQuake: Being prepared

With everything going on lately in the world I can't say I'm not freaking out a bit. I do live on an island in the "ring of fire"  So, rather then sit here and procrastinate, I finally went out yesterday and got *most* of our earthquake/disaster kit together.
They say to have enough water, food and supplies to last at least 72 hours.

I got
  • 1 large flat of water/juice boxes/apple juice (large)
  • a bunch of canned items (things that don't require adding water) such as chef boyardee, chunky soup, corn, salmon, canned fruit...and I'm sure there's more that Im missing(there was a lot of cans)
  • Dry food, such as granola bars, crackers, cookies, family pack of cereal, goldfish crackers-I bought all pre-packaged ones, incase the box gets wet
  • Candy, and lollipops (i'll have scared kids)
  • Nuts/peanut butter
  • ketchup
I plan on grabbing some pepperoni, and beef jerky also

For items other then food, I grabbed

  • Toilet paper (stuck 2 rolls each in large ziplock baggies)
  • paper towel
  • Can opener
  • Bandaids/polysporin, hydrocortizone cream (sp?)
  • scissors
  • tylenol and advil (kids and adults/gravol/benadryl/sunscrean
  • Flashlight/extra batteries
  • garbage/ziplock/grocery bags
  • Sharpie marker
  • candles
Still plan on grabbing some things like a tarp, matches/lighter, tape, and hats and mitts/ extra socks, toothbrushes/toothpaste..and some more things for our first aid kit...and some water purification tabs

I fit all of this in a medium/large sized tote  I could carry it myself if I had to...

some things Ive also learned the past few days are 'you can use your hot water tank as a source of water, if you still have running water, fill up your tub....

and it's a good thing I have SOME skills...I could build a fire if I had to :)

I labelled my earthquake kit, and I plan on moving it near the front door somewhere where it's not in the way, but should be easy to access if we have to.

Ocean knows what to do if an earthquake strikes, kind of haard to get Alisa to understand...

I feel LOADS better knowing I have my kit together.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

CHOCOLATE CAKE

Gramps' birthday today..so me and the girl are off to bake a cake...I try and make all things from scratch, but..I think I got.....3 hours of sleep last night, I am terribly lazy, and therefor...Betty Crocker is making our cake..I'll just make sure it doesnt burn in the oven..Added touch is making our icing..I'll be sure to add the water and butter to the mix though, ha ha....

At least I'll have some farm fresh eggs in the cake!

That makes it THAT much better, doesn't it?!

it got a lot messier

Happy Birthday Gramps....those are balloons lol

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Egg Carton Gardening

Today, the kids and I are going to 'plant indoors' I've been saving up my cardboard egg cartons for the past 3-6 months.
By the time the seeds sprout we KNOW there will be no more chance of frost. and I'll hopefully have all the gardning tools I need to plant them outdoors.

This is our first time having a yard that we are able to do whatever we want so we plan on taking full advantage of it.

We don't have ALL our seeds yet, but we started with Zuccini, pumpkin, water melon, cucumber, beans, carrots, bell peppers, corn, Indian corn..I think that's it..

We are going to also plant some tomatoes, beats, radish, strawberries, raspberries, onions, peas, kale, spinach, garlic, potatoes...and whatever else we cant think of :) 

here's a great link
http://www.parentsconnect.com/do/good_to_grow.jhtml

putting dirt into the egg cartons

Both kids working hard

Almost ready for seeds

Had to put me in at least ONE of the pictures

Time for seeds (cucumber)

Alisa's seeds (zuccini)

Putting dirt over the seeds

Our Garden