We're in the Red !!!

The weather service issued a blizzard watch for Tuesday and Wednesday. Forecasters said snowfall totals could reach up to 2 feet in some areas.  Heavy snowfall combined with high winds could create whiteout conditions, particularly on Tuesday night into Wednesday, making driving extremely dangerous in some areas. Snow drifts of 5 feet to 10 feet are possible.  "Conditions will rapidly deteriorate from north to south across the region Tuesday afternoon with travel likely becoming virtually impossible at times Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning," the weather service warned, adding that snow will be so heavy at times Tuesday night that plows will not be able to keep up. Once the storm has moved through, bitterly cold temperatures are expected to grip much of the region.

This isn't going to be very much fun ... hoping to get home tonight without any incident and then will bunker down and ride this out ... be safe everyone!

Crafty Weekend

I met with my papercrafting buddies out at Archiver's yesterday for an afternoon/evening of scrapping.  Here's one of the cards I threw together  I have an old book that I like to tear pages out of for backgrounds, and my friend Marcia started actually reading excerpts from the page on this card which had us all in fits of giggles ... I think I should make it a point to read the pages before using them ... I'm just saying ... LOL.

It's a bitter cold day here in Omaha and they are calling for 6 inches of snow starting tomorrow night into Tuesday.  I am SO not looking forward to yet another hazardous drive to and from work on snowpacked streets - just makes me want to reconsider why I live in Nebraska.  The older I get, the longer it takes me to get warm in these frigid temps ... add to that the fact that I'm getting older and I worry about slipping on the ice and breaking something as well.  I now understand why people retire to warmer climates!  But I have many more years until I can retire, so I'll just go and turn on the fireplace and grab a good book and a hot cup of tea and enjoy a day of R&R inside where it's cozy. 

PW Sliders - oh my but they're good !!

All of you who know me well, are aware of my love for The Pioneer Woman's recipes (and her blog site in general).  I have been visiting her blog since before she became famous ... before her cookbook, before her harlequin romance novel depicting how she met her husband, Marlboro Man, AND before her appearance on the food network and a thanksgiving throwdown with Bobby Flay.  She is SUCH a positive and upbeat personality and will make you laugh inspite of any sour mood you might be in.  So go give her blog a once over in by chance you've been living on Pluto the past few years and haven't yet heard of her.

With Super Bowl on the horizon, here's one of the recipes that would will definitely find on our table.  SLIDERS! (Recipe can be found here:  http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/08/mushroom-and-swiss-sliders-with-spicy-fry-sauce/].   And you MUST make the fry sauce that goes with this recipe.  It reminds Sterling of his favorite burger place in Utah growing up as a kid - no place else will you hear the term "fry sauce".  And if you want to try PW's onion string recipe, we'll I sure won't stop you - it's WONDERFUL and DELICIOUS!!

ENJOY!!!

Superbowl Sunday (Feb. 6)

In our house, we've ALWAYS had a Superbowl Sunday party, although that passed couple of years it's only been Sterling and I and the kids, but we've had as many as 80+ people over to watch the commercials ... I mean the game (grin).  I love trying new appetizer recipes and this year I think this Meatball Poppers recipe is the winner.  Although my son just sent me a recipe for homemade runzas that looks like a possible contender.

You can go here to print out the recipe for meatball poppers: 

http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/printrecipe?RecipeId=4a71e6da-7889-47ee-85cf-4f0ba328b78a

So do you and your family do anything special for Super Bowl?  Let me know what your favorite appetizer recipes are as I love trying all things new and yummy!

Is It Spring Yet?

As my papercrafting buddies know, I'm not one to "color" much with my stamps - just not something I've done a lot of nor am I very good at - I don't even one ONE Copic.  But this little guy had me grabbing some old markers I have in my stash to play with.  I just adore this little stamp I recently acquired and am having such fun with it.  I do have a bit of "white" space, but didn't want to add anything else so as not to take away from the image itself.  What would you do to improve this card?

We got another 6 inches of snow last night ... and it's only 2 degrees outside right now .... bbrr!! 

WINTER WREATH

Vicki over at This Art Makes Me Happy recently posted about some fun outdoor projects for winter.  Is this not THE MOST novel idea you've ever seen?  She used some greenery and cranberry colored flowers, covered with water in a BUNDT PAN to mold - tied with some ribbon and voila - instant wreath.  I just LOVE this idea!  And with the temps here in Nebraska in the single digits right now, what a perfect craft project!  So go and give this a try and then send me pictures of your ice creations!

 

 

To see Vicki's post go here:  http://vickichrisman.blogspot.com/2011/01/snowy-day-filled-with-projects.html)

Salmon Patties

I've been making salmon patties for my family for MANY years.  It's something quick and easy and you don't need any fancy ingredients. My version is the way my mom used to make them for us as kids.  One can of salmon (drained with bones removed), one cup crushed saltines (or you can use breadcrumbs as well), 2 eggs, 1/2 cup finely chopped onion (which I will sweat in a fry pan with a bit of oil until they are translucent), and then some Old Bay Seasoning (1 tsp.), and salt and pepper to taste. You can also add some spicey mustard (1 tbsp) for a kick. And if you have some green peppers on hand, mince about 1/2 cup and add to the mixture as well. You can also add a couple tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley, or for a twist, fresh cilantro or other favorite herb to give it a new flavor twist.  Then just combine everything with your hands and shape into small patties.  Brown in olive oil until both sides are crisp.  My kids like a white sauce with peas over the top, which is simply 2 Tablespoons of butter and flour in a kettle cooking just for a few minutes and then adding 1-1/2 cups of milk (more or less depending on how thick you like your sauce) and stirring until thickened, and then just toss in a can of peas (drained).  Any leftovers make GREAT "salmon burgers" the next day.  So next time you want something QUICK and delicious, give this simple recipe a try.

Thomas the Train

My grandson ADORES Thomas the Train and they had a train expo at the Qwest Center this past weekend. Jonas is wearing the red shirt.  At dinner Jonas told me all about going to see Thomas the Train, but that Percy wasn't there (evidently Percy is one of the MANY other train characters in the Thomas the Train line). He and his parents spent a couple of hours going through all the train exhibits.  Jonas was in choo choo heaven!

Happy Birthday Luckie!

My brother-in-law, Luckie, turned 60 this past weekend and I just wanted to dedicate a post to him to celebrate this special day.  Luckie is a fabulous professional photographer, so usually he is the one behind the camera. But this pic of him and my sister, Gloria, taken a few years ago at a friend's home, really captures his lighthearted spirit.  He LOVES to tell a good joke, share a funny story, and is one of the most positive people I know.  He's a "my glass is half full" kind of guy.  He drops whatever he is doing at the drop of a hat if someone calls and asks for his help.  His love of family is infectious and makes me proud to know him and have him in our family. Happy Birthday, Luckie - we love you!

SSD Sktech #58 (snow day card #4)

Here's my take on this sketch from Skipping Stones Design (you can find them here:  http://skippingstonesdesign.com/

Snow Day Card #3

Queen Kat Designs has a monthly card challenge and here's my entry based on their sketch.  I don't have any of their stamps yet, as this is a new company that I just recently found. But you can check out their designs and stamps here:  http://qkd.blogspot.com/

Snow Day Card #2

I just discovered a new blog here:  http://woodwareusa-clearstamps.blogspot.com/.  They have a challenge going on where you have to use a heart in your card creation.  Here I've freehand cut a heart and then used some papers and ribbon from the Bo Bunny CRUSH paper line - isn't that lace beautiful?!!  Then just added the bling and stamped on the corner of the heart and voila.

Snow Day Card #1

Well, here's the first card of the day ... funny how sometimes I sit down with an idea and what I end up with is totally different.  I pulled out two pieces of paper that went together and it just evolved into this little card.  The stamp is Tim Holtz as well as the tissue ribbon at the bottom.  The papers are just some I've had in my stash for a while, and the sentiment is from Papertrey.



Oh, the weather outside is frightful ...

Every year I save a few vacation days just for days like this!  When the radio went off this morning and I was listening to all the school/business closings, and all the numerous accidents and road closings, I decided it was a good day NOT to venture out into the treacherous weather.  When you get to be my age you come to realize that when your day's pay isn't enough to cover your auto deductible and chances are very good that someone will be sliding into you, best to make an executive decision to stay home and out of harm's way.  Here's a pic of what it looks like from our front porch. While we only have about 5 inches so far, it is supposed to continue snowing all day and we'll end up with about 10 inches before the storm subsides.  So ... I plan on spending the day in my craft room to see what I can come up with.  I also put a roast in the crockpot for dinner so that'll be filling up the house with some fabulous aromas as well.

Door Wreath

My daughter-in-law, Chrysty, makes the MOST beautiful wreaths.  Here's her latest creation!

Time to Book It Danno !!

Okay, since my own original ideas are few and far between, when I happen upon something original and ADORABLE, I like to share.  Take a look at this idea using paper mache books and clock parts by Hobby Lobby. 

I found this fabulous project on the Jillibean Soup blog here: 

http://jillibeansoup.typepad.com/my_weblog/2011/01/proje.html






How cute would this be using kitchen papers for a kitchen clock, or masculine/sports papers as a special gift for your favorite guy's "man cave", or baby papers for that one of a kind baby gift?  RUN THIS THIS and let me know what you would do with this project idea!

Milk Men

Have any of you discovered Bakerella.com yet?  This little lady is the QUEEN of cake balls - you really need to check out her blog at:  http://www.bakerella.com/milk-men/

These little guys were inspired by some that Amy Atlas made on the Today Show after being inspired by Celebrations at Home who was inspired by these from Better Homes and Gardens.




You just need:


small milk glasses (or recycled coffee bottles)

powdered doughnut holes

straws

milk, of course

To decorate, use chocolate jimmies to press into the doughnuts for the eyes and mouth. The noses are orange coated sunflower seeds pressed into the dougnut and attached with a tiny bit of frosting.

She also coordinated their felt scarves with the same color striped straws. And to finish them off, she glued a few small buttons right on the glass.

My Crafty Sister

I adore this card that my sister, Gloria, created this weekend ... isn't it just STUNNING?!! Creativity definitely runs in this family!  It's hard to tell from this pic, but the butterfly and flowers are paper pieced to give it a 3D effect.