Our Wonderful News & Some Craftiness

The excitement of my daughter being pregnant brings such joy to my heart.  I almost cannot contain it!  Now the excitement has mounted with the anticipation of finding out if we are having a boy or a girl. Having heard that first heart beat early in Holly’s pregnancy was the ultimate thrill of knowing "this is real" !!  Now it’s become even more real…being able to put a persona with this baby, imagining what he or she will look like….and of course the Name they will be given!

Well the time has come and we now know…..

 A precious baby Girl!  I am totally giddy and either one would have been fine…we are just so proud of having a baby!

I have been so busy since I found out and I’m also going to be broke!  There is nothing like buying for little girls!  Pinks, ruffles, lacey, cutesy, frou-frou, and all dolled up with sweetness and charm!  I love it!

First up I made this banner for her room…

 It will probably hang from her crib. 

It involved this:

 and this

Cricut Machine Cutting 

 Painting

and Papering...

And yes I cut these circles out on my daddy’s 55+ year old scroll saw…all by myself!!  Yes I did!  Well…all but the letters, they came from Hobby Lobby! They were then hand painted, papered, and put together to form this cute, if I may say so myself, banner!  From the velvet ribbon to the pearly balls and the pink tulle that holds it all in place.  

 Next up are some of the cutest baby baprons *baby apron* I have ever seen!  They are practical and so easy to sew up in no time.  This baby will not lack of a bib!  You can find the instructions here:

*click on the photo*

Here are mine so far:

This one is made from an old quilt!  Too bad it didn't have much Pink!

I have gone crazy making these and I’m not finished yet….the really cute ones are to come…these were my practice pieces!

There’s more to come in my crafty ways, when I will show you the mobile that will hang over the baby’s bed.  It matches the bedding theme and required some more scroll saw cutting, papers, sticks, wings, and flowers…..hum mm, got you wondering huh?  I will also introduce our little one to you by her name!

And We Have A Winner.....

Thanks to all of you who entered my Gooseberry Patch Cookbook giveaway!  I so wish I could give you all a book but.....well you know how it is.  The wonderful ladies at Gooseberry Patch make these giveaways posssible because they love to share and cook!  A BIG thank you to them!

Congratulations to....**drum roll please**... Delania Owen!!  She found her way to my Alabama blog from Arkansas.  I will be mailing your book out to you with a small surprise in the morning!  Enjoy and Happy Cooking!!

Note: to those of you who may have copied the recipe for the Dark Chocolate Pecan Pie....I regretfully left out some key ingredients....so please forgive me and go back and copy it again with the corrections! So sorry if you didn't figure it out when you made it! 
My brain got ahead of my typing fingers and my fingers got ahead of my brain!!

Times A Wasting~Give-Away

There are only two more days for you to enter my cookbook give-away!  It's a fantastic Gooseberry Cookbook:

   101 Hearty Recipes!!  So hurry!

Click on over here to leave your comment and email address for a chance at winning! Good luck....

I'll be back soon with the news of our new grandbaby:

Boy or Girl?

Leave your guesses here.....

If you already know....well you must be Family! :)

 

In A Pickle

Sticky sweet and spicy pickles…Oh so yummy good.  We had so many cucumbers from our garden that I just had to make these.  It only takes 10 days to make them but it is oh so worth it!!  No cooking involved.

Nope…not at all….easy peasy!

Homemade Sweet Pickles

Here's the tried and true recipe that I use each year

Try it if you like:

Homemade Sweet Pickles

This is a no cook 10 day recipe~

Approx. 5 gallons of cucumbers, sliced

1 cup salt

3 oz. alum

1 gallon of apple cider vinegar

5 lbs sugar

Pickling spices

On your kitchen counter in a very large bowl soak the cucumbers for 3 days in the salt. Jot down the time of day and do each step at the same time each day. On the 3^rd full day rinse off the cucumbers in water three times.

Add 3 oz. alum and cover with water completely and stir. Soak for 2 days. On the 2^nd full day rinse off with water 2 times.

Add 1 gallon of apple cider vinegar and soak for 2 days.  On the 2^nd full day rinse off with water 2 times.

Add 5 lbs. sugar and pickling spices which have been bundled up in cheese cloth. Do NOT add water!  Soak for 3 days, stir each day.  Put into jars on the 3rd full day, with the spices and keep refrigerated.  This makes enough pickles that you will be willing to share with others!

***************

I finished the cover for my new grandbaby’s high chair over the weekend….it turned out so so cute!!  I have to share “flat” photos with you as the high chair is in Jacksonville at Holly’s house. 

Here it is with its cute polka dotted ruffle! Love it.

I will share a photo later with it set up in her kitchen which is decorated in these colors! Speaking of colors...the color in the photos is awful.  The colors are a true red, aqua and white!  Really pretty!

This was definitely a challenge for me…I had a pattern; the old cover which I took apart and used to cut by…but I had no instructions!  Ha…I had to think and think hard about how this went together…but it all turned out great…I did not have to rip any seams!! I didn't get into a pickle with this project...Yay! 
On  another note...I will not have to make the bedding for the antique cradle as I found what I needed already made.  A flat changing table pad fits perfect for the mattress which I will add one layer of something underneath for a little more cushion.  The bumper pad I found in the minky dot fabric…it is about 18” too long so I will have to make that adjustment.  I also found sheets that fit and all of this is in the ecru color for that antique heirloom look.  It is so pretty!!

My hubby, Jackie, the proud “Pa” to be, has been busy working on redoing a rocking chair for Holly to rock the baby in. 

It is solid and I do mean solid, so heavy that I cannot pick it up. 

The "before" photo looks really bad....he has been taking the varnish off by doing some sanding so that we can paint it white.  I will then have the pleasure of making a cushion to match.  The "after" photo will come later! 

Things are coming together in our  "grand baby plans", with still lots to do before December.  We also will find out this week if it’s going to be pink or blue; girl or boy!! 

I am so excited that I am about to bust!  This will lead to the painting of the baby’s room which I will go and do sometime later in the month.  Holly has been busy trying to pick out the crib bedding that she likes.  Richard said she has a new one picked for him to see every day!  She is really believing that they will be having a girl, not that it matters at all, but just has that feeling…you know..fast heart rate...etc!  I guess we will see this week!  Either way they are ready and are so happy!  I am so ready and so happy too!

Here is a picture of the cute apron my niece got me for my birthday! 

I love it!!  Thank you Cassidy!

Oh and by the way...don’t overlook my give away in my previous post.  After you comment here, come back and click here and follow the instructions to enter before the 19^th of August!  Good luck and I hope you enjoy the pickles!

Hey All You Sweet, Chocolate, and Cheese Lovers

 

It's review time again…yep another Gooseberry Patch cookbook review of what’s cooking!  I have chosen three recipes from Gooseberry Patch’s new cookbook, 101 Hearty Recipes to share with you.

 

Orange-Peach Dump Cake

Dark Chocolate Pecan Pie

Cornmeal-Cheddar Biscuits

But before we get to these goodies…there is one peeve that I have about recipe books…one thing that really sells me over…Great Photos of the prepared dish! Yep I love that!  In this new cookbook there is just that…a photo for every dish, cookie, biscuit, cake, and casserole! I love seeing how it is supposed to look.  Sometimes that is the determining factor in whether I will prepare this dish or not!  How appetizing does the photo look? How easy…how colorful, how pretty?  This book also has a wire spiral binding that lies flat or folds back….Awesome!  Yes, I am trying to sell you on this cookbook….what’s in it for me?  Nothing other than getting to keep a copy of the book for cooking and reviewing a few recipes and giving a copy away…all compliments of Gooseberry Patch!  And remember... your recipe can be published in a Gooseberry cookbook too. Just contact them on their website with your own original recipe.

First up Orange Peach Dump Cake…easy peasy yes indeedy!
by Elizabeth Wenk from Cuyahoga Falls, OH

14 ½ oz. can peach pie filling, chop the peaches

18 oz. pkg orange cake mix

2 eggs, beaten

½ cup sour cream

Optional: vanilla ice cream

Combine all ingredients except ice cream in an ungreased 9x13 baking dish.  Mix with a fork until well blended; smooth the top with a spatula. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.  Serve topped with the ice cream if desired.  8-10 servings.

 Next: Dark Chocolate Pecan Pie
by Rita Morgan from Pueblo, CO

1 ½ cups pecan halves

1 ½ cups dark chocolate chips

1 T. all-purpose flour

½ cup butter, softened

1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
3 eggs

½ cup dark corn syrup

2 t. vanilla

¼ salt

9 inch pie crust, baked

Garnish with whipped topping

In a bowl stir together pecans, chocolate chips and flour, set aside.  In another bowl, beat butter and brown sugar until well blended.  Beat in eggs, one at the time.  Mix in corn syrup, vanilla and salt, just until blended.  Stir in pecan mixture.  Pour into baked pie crust.  Bake at 325 degrees for 55-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with just melted chocolate.  Center will set as it cools.  Cool on a wire rack. Chill until serving time. Garnish with topping.  Makes 8 servings.

 And now for the Cornmeal-Cheddar Biscuits
by Mary Gage from Wakewood CA

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup yellow cornmeal

2 t sugar

1 T baking powder

¼ to ½ t salt

½ cup butter, softened

½ cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup milk

In a bowl combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Stir in cheese and milk just until moistened.  Drop dough by ¼ cupfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for 12-15 minutes, until lightly golden.  Makes one dozen.

I made and served these with Hamburger Stew!

In this book you will also find…Pull-Apart Bacon Bread, Frosted Cherry Drops, Lemon Snowdrop Cookies, Divine Casserole, and Texas Two-Step in a Jar!  Now doesn’t that make you want to own this book!  Well you can get it early…either by pre-ordering it at Amazon with a great discount...just click on this picture link here: 

    

Or one lucky person will win a copy in my give-away right here on this post! 

Easy RULES FOR MY GIVE AWAY…. But VERY IMPORTANT!

~Leave a comment on this post only

~IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A BLOG OF YOUR OWN….YOU MUST LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN YOUR COMMENT!  This is so I can get in touch with you if you win.  If no contact can be made with you, then I will have to draw another name.

~Comments will be taken for the drawing up until August 19^th

~The winner will be contacted and announced ASAP after Aug. 19^th

~ Keep your fingers crossed that your name will be picked

Good luck and happy cooking!

~Cora~

Note: the photos contained here are my personal property...taken by me.

Other graphics are compliments of Gooseberry Patch.

In The Heat of Summer

 I am back from a lengthy visit with my daughter Holly and hubby Richard.   We spent days elbow deep in paint….I’ll have pictures later of her freshly painted formal dining room.  We also did a little shopping and eating…a pregnant girl gets hungry quite often…haha…not me, Holly, who is going on 20 weeks!  My 13 year old niece made the trip with me and we all enjoyed the beach at St. Augustine and a wild water park on another day.  I’m getting too old for that kind of stuff and the sun is just out of my league now.  I actually got quite a bit of sun on the beach with 30 and 50 SPF sunscreens, while sitting under an umbrella!  Gosh what would have I looked like if I had not done that?  I fear a visit to the ER would have been in order!  And the spot on my left leg where I failed to get any sunscreen…well you can only imagine what it looked like…it stayed swelled for about a week!! No kidding! It is starting to peel today!

Holly picked the fabric for the new cover I will be making for their baby’s high chair…It is neither boy or girl related but will match her kitchen!  Aqua, white, and red!  

This willl be the ruffle trim around the cover!

These items of fabric were purchased from sewdeerlyloved Etsy shop!

 It is too cute…wish me luck in sewing this project!  I’ll let you know how it turns out!

My veggie garden is on a slowdown…just too HOT this time of year!  But we have enjoyed fresh white peas, tomatoes, plenty of okra which is still making, bell peppers, onions, English peas, cucumbers like crazy, and potatoes. We are planning to plant a fall crop *wow crop sounds BIG* of more English peas, rutabagas, and collards.  A little something all year to keep us fed!  I’m on my second batch of homemade pickles right now…it’s a week long process! I was also able to obtain some fresh figs from my SIL with which I eat a pile of and the rest I made into preserves!  Now this is a common thing here in the southern part of the south!  A homemade buttermilk biscuit, buttered while hot, with a fig preserve is divine!  Yep…wish I could share with you all!

Its review time again…yep another Gooseberry Patch cookbook review of what’s cooking!  I will be sharing at least 3 recipes I have hand-picked from one of their latest new books.  You will also get the chance to pre-order this book at a discount before it hits the store shelves.  There will also be a give-away in my review for one lucky winner!  So stay tuned and look for this review coming up soon!  I have one more recipe to make and then I will be ready!

I hope you all are enjoying your summer, hot as it is…I have missed being here and sharing with you…but as you know life has a way of taking us away from our hobbies and past time pleasures.  Life gives us more of the things we need at certain times, more challenges, more opportunities, more experiences, and more excitement. We must take those times and live, learn, laugh, and of course LOVE it, making memories all the while!