Pins and Needles is Tomorrow!

Just a reminder, tomorrow's the big day!

Suzanne and Kate have done an amazing job organizing this event!

From what i hear there will be somewhere between 15 -18 different vendors,

selling everything from cute baby headbands to gorgeous handmade jewellery to delicious homemade treats.

It's going to be a crafty day, we would all love it so much if you came out to support us,

and to support the SPCA with your donations too.

Hope to see you there!

Who, Me?

I love the 'i didn't do it' look on his face.

Why do i get the feeling that i will be seeing a lot of that face in the years to come?

Blueberry Almond Sald with Creamy Poppyseed Dressing

Mmmmmmm.

OK, so i know it's not summer and blueberries are certainly not in season in Nova Scotia.

But after the taste of summer we just had with last week's heat wave, I find myself craving summery food.

So i couldn't help myself when i saw these perfectly juicy blueberries at the grocery store,

and what's more summery than a spinach salad with fresh fruit in it?!

The salad is super simple:  Spinach.  Red Onion for some bite.  Blueberries.  Toasted Almonds.
Or you can use Strawberries, raspberries, cranberries, walnuts, cashews, pecans, whatever blows your hair back.


Dressing: makes 2 - 3 servings

1/4 cup fat free mayo
2 tbsp milk
2tbsp sugar
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1 - 2 tsp poppy seeds
Salt & Pepper to taste

I simply put the ingredients together in a small mason jar and shake them up,
Using a jar makes storing leftovers easy too, just put on the lid and pop it in the fridge for lunch tomarrow!

Enjoy!



{ A Stylish Lady }

Sixteen

Sixteen Months!

Boy oh boy!

You are the outdoorsy type splashing happily through the mud puddles and roaming the yard.

You are a reader and lover of books always trying to climb into a lap with a book in hand.

You are a dancing machine with a side step that will knock 'em dead and a foot stop that is right on cue.

You are a lie-on-the-floor-till-daddy-comes-because-mommy-is-a-horrible-person screamer.

You have many many things to learn and concepts like sharing to grasp, but you'll be alright.

You have nine little teeth in your sweet little mouth.

Your favorite things are milk and your whinney the pooh snuggie.

You love car-cars and are happiest standing behind the wheel of Grampy's truck.

You are an observer more often than a participant with the other kids, except the ones that you know.

And though this may jinx it, you are finally sleeping through the night. hallelujah! 

You are joy and noise and a flurry of constant motion and i'm so happy that you're mine all mine!

Now stop growing already!!!!

Photo of the Week

Week #5

{ The Simple Things & Sunday Snapshot }

Me 'n My Mud Puddles

 Being outside is the latest and greatest thing around here.  I mean, what's not to like?!

We live in such a beautiful place, and it's amazing to be out in the sunshine following someone little around the yard all day : )

The End.

Happy Friday!

{ A Rural Journal & The Hollie Rogue }

Get Out!

 We might not have flowers here yet,

 but there's always something pretty to photograph.

The 'B' Sides v.4

It's not my fault he likes to help...

: )

What's the 'b' sides you ask?  A project dedicated to all things ridiculous, awkward, and unconventional.
An ode to the silly things i do to my poor poor child.  I hope he will forgive me one day.

Get all the stories HERE!

{ A Stylish Lady }

Green Pea Pesto

Sometimes there is definitely such a thing as too much of a good thing.

This is NOT one of those cases.

This is a case of precisely enough of every ingredient to make a great thing.

Your regular run of the mill pesto is made up mostly of basil, which can be expensive to buy, or if you've got a super green thumb and manage to grow the stuff you know that only so much grows on one little basil plant at a time.

 This version uses just enough of it to add a gorgeous herby flavour without being super bossy or over-powering, 

and without decimating your stash.  The peas add a nice sweetness, and really stretch out your basil, leaving plenty on your plant for other yummy things, like salsa, or bruschetta. mmm.

You just buzz it all up in your handy dandy little food processor.  Eazy peazy, lemon squeezy.

Toss with hot pasta for a super easy side dish (i like to use orzo, just 'cause),

smear it on crusty bread and top with shaved parmesan for an easy app, or even use it as a dip.

Hell, sometimes I even eat it with a spoon, but don't tell anyone.

Makes approx. 2 cups  (which is a lot - i tend to half the recipe for the two and a half of us)

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

3 tbsp parmesan cheese

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp lemon juice

1/2 cup loosely packed basil leaves, chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

Put everything except the oil into the food processor and let 'er rip.

You're supposed to slowly add the olive oil in a thin stream, but my little processor doesn't have a spot to do that,

so i just add it in two batches, buzzing well in between.

Make it as chunky or smooth as you want, and enjoy!

Photo of the Week

Week #5

{ The Simple Things & A Rural Journal }

Pins & Needles

It's only two weeks away!!!

Here's a peek at what i've been up too... just a peek though, you'll have to come see!

Everyone is working really hard on this event, and i think it's going to be amazing!
Hope to see you all there : )

--------------------------------------------------

In other news, did anyone else's house look like this last night?

O.M.G.

That Special Something...

...that exists between a boy and his Grandmother : )

{ Wonderful Wednesday }

Blueberry Face

One year ago almost to the day:

Today:

Same face, same stuff.  (Blueberries are like crack to this guy.)

What a difference a year makes!

{ Live. Love. Travel }

Give a Dog a Bone

Fortunately the Little and the Hannah Dog have been getting along these days, but it's not always the case.
I remember when the Little started walking, it was really hard on Hannah; this little person was all up in her face, in her space,
and even in her water dish!  Before she got used to the idea, she was definitely a little bit upset about the whole thing.
 So I can't help but worry sometimes, at the end of the day she is an animal...
and considering that she is roughly three times his size, can you really blame me?

However, we lucked into a free seminar this weekend about toddlers and dogs at our little library,
hosted by the highly recommended Tamara of Unleashed Pawsibilities.

We definitely learned a lot, and it's sometimes always good to have some sense scared into you too: )

Did you know that when a dog's upset it's body temp rises and it's mouth gets dry so it starts licking it's lips?
Or that they sort of purse their lips?  Or lay their ears back, pulling back the skin on their head, revealing the whites of the eyes?
Or that dogs don't actually like hugs?  WHAT?!?!  This of course does not apply to our dear Hannah Dog,
as she LOVES all my hugs and kisses and cuddles, right?

Anyways, i learned that i am NOT the amazing dog / baby coordinator that i thought i was,
but rather fail quite miserably at the whole supervision thing, and need to clean up my act.
   Despite all of my jokes, we really do take this seriously, and hope and pray that everyone behaves themselves.
It certainly is a very real issue, with very real (and scary!) consequences.
Does anyone else have difficulty with their kids and pets?

Judging by these photos, as long as Jake keeps playing with her and feeding her they seem to get along just fine!

{ And Then She Snapped }

Photo of the Week

Week #3

{ The Simple Things & A Rural Journal }

Homemade Granola Bars

A while ago I professed my love for homemade peanut butter granola.

Naturally i love granola bars too, and the Little and I daily occasionally share one for a snack.

While they might be tasty, the store bought ones are undoubtably full of bad fats and preservatives, 

and i do try to avoid packaged food for the most part, just 'cause.

So that, coupled with the fact that the nearest grocery store is 20 minutes up the road and i was under no circumstance leaving this house today (due to my sheer laziness, and the thought of hauling a 15 month old 

around in the rain is just super unappealing to me today)

I simply decided to make my own!  If only all of life's decisions were so easy...

Homemade Granola Bars

These are really easy, took only one bowl (yes!) and mere minutes to make, and baked in roughly 25 minutes.

I would have barely set foot in the store: )

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan.

In a large bowl simply mix together:

2 cups Rolled Oats

3/4 cup Brown Sugar

1/2  cup Bran / Wheat Germ - or you could just add more flour

1 cup Flour - I used half whole wheat

3/4 tsp Cinnamon

3/4 tsp Salt

Now add in your fun stuff, which should equal about a cup:

Chocolate chips, raisins, dried cranberries or blueberries, coconut, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, peanuts....etc!

I just took a one cup measure and added raisins, coconut and sunflower seeds until it overflowed a bit.

Make a well in the centre and add in:

1/4 cup Oil (add this first, it will help everything else slide right out of your measuring cup)

1/4 cup Honey

1/2 cup (or more!) Peanut Butter
2 tsp. Vanilla

& One Egg, lightly beaten.

Mix 'er all up with a wooden spoon / your hands and pat it into your prepared pan.

Chuck it in the oven and bake for 25 - 30 minutes, until the bars begin to turn golden at the edges.

Remember - your oven is your own beast!  Mine runs hot, and I left the bars in for 25 minutes which made them crunchy, which is just the way i like 'em.  If you want chewier bars pull them out sooner rather than later!

Cool for only 5 minutes, then cut into your bars while still warm. (they'll be too hard to cut if you let them cool).

Enjoy and Happy Friday!!!!

 { Recipe adapted from HERE }

{ Be Different, Act Normal & Six Sisters Stuff }

Wordless Wednesday

The Making of Man Land

I mentioned last week that the guys were pouring the concrete slab in the basement,

an achievement that Dr. Nails has been super excited about for a really really really long time.

I guess hanging out in a gravel pit just ain't all that it's cracked up to be : )

(though of course i haven't a single pic of what the gravel pit used to look like, let's just say it wasn't pretty)

As you can see, the smallest man loves it already, and I'm pretty sure the big man does too : )

At long last, Man Land lives!

The Weekend

There was the discovery of pomegranates, and now there will be a flurry of delicious little red seeds 

adorning the food on our table.  This makes me happy.

There was thrifting and dollarama, two of my favorite ways to shop!

 Crappy chinese food that, despite it's crappiness, was still delicious. Does that happen to anyone else? 

There was new snow outside and new cement in the basement for playing (more on these later)!

And much crafting for the upcoming fair, and for specialized one-of-a-kind birthday presents.

 Then there was some mega fun at said birthday party, where the Little was enthralled 

with the big kids, and learned how to squeal from someone small.

Today?  Today we recover.  Laundry and extra cups of coffee and quiet.  Naps on the couch 

and the warm sound of a good old fashioned radio on in the kitchen.  Hmm, maybe something comfy and cozy on the stove...

And plenty of watching the snow fall in big beautiful flakes, hoping the sun doesn't come out

 and melt away our winter wonderland....

How was your weekend?

{ And Then She Snapped & The Creative Exchange }

Photo of the Week

Week #2

{ The Simple Things & A Rural Journal }

Artsy is NOT Fartsy v11

Bursting!

So I mentioned that I had a few projects on the go.
Well, it's one thing having them on the go, but finishing them is an entirely different thing.
That's where this craft fair i am participating in gets scary!  Eeek!
I should really stop talking to you guys and get to work : )

Anyways, I actually accomplished something for a change, and finished a project!
Inspired (as usual) by Pinterest where i found this super fun twig wreath, I set myself to work.

All i did was cut out a circle of cardboard, wrapped it in twine and glue gunned some sticks i found in our yard.
It was so ridiculously easy, and for one who is used to 'easy' projects taking weeks to finish,
this totally blew my mind.  I did it during nap time.  I know right?  Un-bee-leev-able : )

Originally it was destined for my front door, which hasn't been itself since i took down the Christmas decorations.
But when it was done it was way too wide, and definately too fragile for our scathing winter winds.
And besides, i had just the spot that has been crying out for some lovin':

I guess I'll just have to make another (stronger) one for my lonely front door : )

Happy March!!!