Mommy, take my picture!

Giddy Moment

I live for moments in Barnes and Noble, browsing while the baby naps in the stroller. *smiley sigh*

I got a coconut mocha with chocolate whipped cream...and surprisingly it made the moment even better!!!

I went with hot pink and steel grey for my nails this week. I got new nail guides for this weeks manicure in the mail yesterday...

Sun Hat

I am making a pattern from CAPs Crochet and Crafts to make myself a bucket hat for the summer. I am going to make it in royal blue Impeccable yarn by Loops and Threads. I really like Impeccable yarn...it is comparable to Vanna yarn but denser. Vanna is great for knitters, I hear. But, my knots tend to smoosh a bit when I use it. I still do sometimes if I fall in love with a color. Vanna has a really pretty pink.

Back to my sun hat! It took about two hours of frequently interrupted crochet time. The shells were very easy, but I opted to only do three rows. That made plenty of brim for me.

CAPs also had a great hat sizing tip. I rarely bring the math into my sizing. I tend to make a rectangle swatch, measure it and plan the number of stitches from that. But, I like her method too...

"Hat Sizing Tip: Measure around head just above eyebrows (keeping tape level) and divide that measurement by 3.1416. The result is the width your crown circle needs to be before continuing to Rnd 9. Example, head measures 22” around; 22 ÷ 3.1416 = 7.0028; Crown circle needs to be 7”. "


Thanks Cathy! It doesn't look like she has blogged for a bit, but I am adding her to my bloglovin' just in case. She created some really cute and functional patterns.

On my to-do list

As part of a summer linky party I am in I was nudged to think of my summer goals.

I want to go to the beach every Tuesday.
I want to go to the preschool play group I was invited to every Friday.
I want to make a quilt like the one I am in love with in so many of pics posted by SmileandWave

Make Turquoise and White Ripple Afghan
Create a pattern for a 4th of July cloche (before the 4th, hopefully LOL).
Get the stats I need to open an ebay store.
Buy an Iphone 4.
Go to LOTS of estate sales.
Make lots of Dinners and Deserts from Pinterest.
Create photo wall of pics and wordart...black frames.

At the Mall

Today we went to the mall to get some power-walking done. I hit an impressive number of steps and had gone over my daily 10K by 2 o'clock!

Here are some things I ran across that were just too cute! I always snap pics when I go to walk and not to shop. That way I don't fret too much.

I love coral and teal...I will need this color combination to show up on me in the near future!

This was so cute at Nordstrom...its a plain cotton stretch camisole with a chiffon scarf connect at the straps. I wonder if I could make something like this for myself?

  

Love this bright cheery bedding set at Macys...but mostly love the "Live Laugh Love" pillow. I see some applique in my future.         

The mall is so full of inspiration! And frozen yogurt for lunch!!!!! mmm...chocolate with coffee flavors.

                                                                                                       

Beach Snacks - Caramel Apple Empanandas

A post on Kandeeland that featured her yummy Rice Krispy treat got me thinking about how it relates to my topic of the week. Preparing for this summers "Beach Day Tuesdays". I have a few standby snacks that I buy and prepare for beach day.

My beach bag is not complete with raisins, apple juice boxes, baggies of almonds, bananas, nut butter sandwiches and the basics...but we do have one item that is unique unto me. Apple caramel empanades.

(Just in case: Empanadas are little fried pies)

They are perfect beach and pool food. Make them small, put a stick in them and pop them into a quart sized ziploc and you just grab it on your way to the beach. The pie crust on the outside keeps the sand out, the stick makes them great for dirty hands, and there is something about caramel when you are in the salty air.

Fast and Easy Caramel Apple Empanadas

crust
1 containers of refrigerator biscuits...the plain little ones work best for making little treats.

filling
3 apples peeled and chopped into 1/2" cubes
1 cup of water
2 cups of sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup raisins

frying
sugar for sprinkling
vegetable oil, lard, coconut oil...whatever oil you like to fry with.

Directions

Open the biscuits, and flatten each of them out (I do it on wax paper). Make them a nice 4" circle but the shape does not have to be perfect. The entire feel of this recipe is easy breezy.

Put one cup of water in the microwave in a small bowl and microwave it for 2 minutes. When it comes out put the raisins inside to plump them. You can add more raisins if you like. Depends on how much you like cooked raisins. When they look plump drain them and set them aside.

Bring one cup of water to boil. Add the apples and cinnamon. Boil them until soft and add more water if it starts to dry up. Drain them and set them aside with the raisins.

Bring one cup of water, 2 cups of sugar and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice to boil over medium heat until be turns caramel brown. It doesn't take long at all. You can use a candy thermometer and take it to 335 degrees, but I just eyeball it for the right color. When it does reduce heat to low (if you turn off the heat it will harden and be inconvenient to say the least)...add the apples and raisins.

side note: you can get creative here...as long as its not watery you can add virtually ANYTHING. I would love to hear what others have added!).

Start heating up 1" of oil in a frying pan.

Assemble by putting a spoonful of filling in the middle of each biscuit. With my fingers I dampen the edges with water, milk or egg. Whatever I have has always worked well. Fold over and seal. You can make hashmarks with a fork to ensure its sealed.

Toss in the oil and turn when brown. Remove when the second side is brown. Sprinkle with sugar immediately so it sticks. Let cool. Then you can put them in a baggie and refrigerate. I love them cold! They are good warm with ice cream, too.

If you are trying to be healthier...
use a whole wheat biscuit dough.
use only apples and raisins...and perhaps half the sugar.
bake them in the oven at 375 degrees until lightly browned.

But made this way they don't hold up as prettily at the beach...still VERY tasty though. :)

DIY meets repurposing

I am a sucker for a DIY project...and when I stopped using paper towels and began using old rags I jumped on the bandwagon of creating my own "paper towels" pretty quickly after seeing a post about it. Same day...same morning, actually. Thank you Cottontail Babies and Pinterest! I am not sorry. But, even though I jumped in with both feet I have been procrastinating on a HUGE step in the cloth towel transition. A wet bag. Seriously...its nasty. Soggy towels after every meal add up quickly to sit in the designated spot of the day waiting for the next mornings laundry.

I cant keep them on my DIY'd counters...the paint will peel.

I cant keep them anywhere the baby would reach them.

I cant put them in the laundry basket...gross.

But, I day after day I procrastinated about making a wet bag to hold them. I think its the zipper. As crafty as I feel, I still haven't attached a zipper. I have quite the beautiful zipper collection. But I am an elastic girl, fold over yoga waists are my friend.

So, being green is important and so is being clean. But, the most important thing of all you can contribute to the world is being nice to yourself. I don't want to make a wet bag...so I am repurposing!

My Barbie lunchbox now has a home on the microwave and a new job! 

I get to be compassionate to myself and not force myself to craft something half-heartedly and I get to look at my Barbie lunchbox everyday now!

It makes me smile. It originally housed my manual breast pump when I was working after having the Izzy. He went to the office with me...but a few times daddy wanted to keep him home with him.