Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all my blogging friends. I wish you a year filled with good health and happiness. May you stick to your resolutions, and may all your dreams come true!

Merry Christmas

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas. May the peace and joy of this holiday season richly bless you.

'Tis the Season

First off, I want to thank all of you for your comments to my last post. It was so nice to hear that you enjoy reading, no matter what I blog about! I still haven't decided if I will combine the two blogs or not, but I know that I will definitely keep blogging. So thank you all again!

It's been a crazy last few weeks around here. I've been doing lots of Christmas crafting and sewing and trying to get all of my Christmas shopping done (whew, glad that is finally finished!). 

Last week my Aunt passed away, so I traveled to New Mexico for the memorial service. She was 82 years old and it was not unexpected, but it is still never easy when a loved one passes. She is the one who inspired me to sew, as I received her sewing machine when my cousin moved her into the assisted living facility. She will be greatly missed.

This week will be spent doing my holiday baking, wrapping gifts, and doing some last-minute sewing projects.

I hope everyone is taking the time to enjoy the holiday season. It always seem to go by so fast, doesn't it? I plan to take a moment this week and sit down and read my favorite passage from the Book of Luke about Jesus' birth .... it is one of my favorites.

Blog Re-Vamp?

I am thinking about making changes to my blog ... and I may even stop blogging altogether. Since I started in February, my interests have changed, and I don't crochet near as much as I used to. I'm sure one day I will pick it back up again in earnest, but I don't know when that will be. I feel like I am doing a disservice to those of you who followed my blog for posts about crochet.

I have decided to shut down my sewing blog at the end of the year. It is not getting the traffic I thought it would, and it is time consuming trying to post on two blogs.

If you have any suggestions, comments, criticisms, whatever, please let me know.

Christmas Decorating

I am finally starting to feel better .... I'm not 100% yet, but am slowly starting to get back to normal.

We put up our Christmas tree this weekend; it is still undecorated, but at least it is up!

I'm kind of liking it just the way it is ... and I'm worried that once I put ornaments on it, the kittens will become more interested in it than they already are. So this year my tree may just stay un-decorated!

Speaking of kittens, Sammi has decided that she really likes my new tree skirt:

Here are some pics of some more of our decorations:

Cute chair covers found at Dollar Tree.

I sewed up this table topper for my dining room table.

A cute little snowman that I crocheted last Christmas.

Every family member, pets included, has a stocking.

Hope everyone has a great week and if you're under the weather, get to feeling better soon!

Still Sick

I am still not feeling much better, so I went back to Urgent Care today. Found out that I have pneumonia - no wonder I don't feel good! At least now I got some antibiotics and hopefully will be feeling better in a few days.

Turkey Leftovers?? You Need to Try this Recipe

This recipe is called Turkey Crescents and it is something we have made in our family for many years. My Mom got the recipe years and years ago - I think it was one of those Pillsbury cook-off winning recipes. It is also great with chicken too. Serve it with a tossed salad for dinner and you're done.  Everyone who tries this absolutely loves it, so be warned ... you may need to double the recipe!

Turkey Crescents

Ingredients:

• 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 3 tbsp. melted butter
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 8 oz. crescent rolls
• 2 cups cubed turkey (or chicken)
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 3/4 cup crushed croutons or bread crumbs

1. Mix the cream cheese and 2 tbsp. of the melted butter and add seasonings, turkey and milk.
2.  Use two crescent roll triangles and combine, making a small square. You should get four of these out of one crescent roll package. Put them on a baking sheet.
3. Spoon 1/2 cup of the turkey mixture in the center of each square. Bring the edges of the dough up in a twist.
4.  Brush with remaining melted butter and then sprinkle with crushed croutons.
5.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.


Hints:

- I ALWAYS use the good brand of crescent rolls (Pillsbury). They just always work out better for me.

 - Don't use lite/low fat/no fat cream cheese; it just doesn't taste as good!

-  Keep the crescent rolls nice and cold until you are ready to unroll the package and press out your squares. The warmer the dough gets, the harder it is to work with (it will stick to your kitchen counter).

-  Make sure you don't have any holes in your square after you've filled it or the filling will ooze out when it is baking.

I guarantee you that these will be a hit with your family. Mr. S.'s 16-year old nephew asks me every time I see him when I will be making them for him!! Enjoy!

What I Woke Up To This Morning

While Daddy was at work and Mamma was in a Nyquil-induced coma sleep, one of the kittens had some fun!

You are Not Going to Believe it ....

but I actually purchased this today:

That's right.... it's a CROCHET PROJECT!! Can you believe it????? I found this at Hancock Fabrics today... they had a great sale going on, plus I had a coupon for 10% off my entire purchase, so this was marked $24.99 and I got it for around $15!
I love kits like this, and they are so hard to find locally. Mr. S.'s niece is expecting a baby boy in January, so I knew I had to make her something and couldn't quite decide what I wanted to do. When I saw this, I knew it was perfect.

It comes with everything you need to make a blanket, sweater, booties and a hat .... yarn, patterns, crochet hook, even the buttons for the sweater ... for $15 you can't go wrong. They had it in shades of pink for baby girls too.

I've never attempted a sweater before, so I hope I can figure it out. The blanket looks like it will be quite easy, as will the hat and booties.  I can't wait to get started.  Now all I gotta figure out is how to work on it without the kittens seeing me... ha ha!

New Look

I got bored with my other template, so trying this one. I wanted to do a holiday one, but only managed to get it on my other blog, not this one.

If this one doesn't grow on me, maybe I'll try again. I really hate Blogger's new templates!

The Creative Gene ....

must run in my family. I had planned to make these cute turkey shirts with my great nephews over Thanksgiving. However, since I've been sick, I never got the chance.  :(

 So my two sisters made them up for me, and look how cute they turned out:

They are for these 2 adorable boys:

I think they did a great job! I wanted to make one for our other great-nephew, Kael, but that didn't happen either. I will definitely do one for him next year (I promise, Nana!). Here is a recent photo of him:

I have lost my voice now, but I think I am slowly starting to feel better. Thanks for all your kind words and well wishes!

Today Mr. S. and I celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary. It hardly seems like it has been that long; I am so blessed and happy to have him as my husband and best friend. He makes me laugh, he makes me cry, and sometimes he makes me crazy, but he is always there for me no matter what. I love you more every day, my goofy, wonderful husband!

Happy Thanksgiving

It's a very non-traditional Thanksgiving for me this year. We usually spend it with my family, but since I'm sick, we can't go over there this year (my Father can't risk getting an infection). So it is a quiet day for me and Mr. S.  He's at the grocery store right now buying whatever he can find to make for dinner! I'm so thankful to have such a wonderful husband!

I wish you and your family a very happy and blessed Thanksgiving Day.

Sick :(

I hate being sick... especially around the holidays. But here I am, with stuffy nose, sore throat... the works. Doc says it is a viral infection that will have to run its course.

All I have done the last 2 days is sleep pretty much non-stop. I'm hoping that by tomorrow I will start to feel human again.

Random Act of Culture

http://www.creativeminorityreport.com/2010/11/awesome-pop-up-hallelujah-chorus-at.html

 "Shoppers at the Macy's in Philadelphia were surprised when over 600 choristers who were there mingling with regular shoppers suddenly burst into Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. It's pretty awesome. Part of the 1000 Random Acts of Culture!" project!

Beautiful Hawaii

What a Great Vacation

Hawaii was absolutely awesome! We had a fantastic time and can't wait to go back again. I'll post photos throughout this week so that you can see just some of the beautiful things we saw.

Today it's back to the real world .... laundry, bill paying and grocery shopping.

Here's a photo I took of myself on the beach:

Ahhh to be back on the beach again!

Leavin' on a Jet Plane

That's right... Mr. S. and I are taking a much-needed vacation. We will be spending a week here:

HAWAII here we come!

Mr. S. plans on bringing his laptop, so I'll try to post pictures if I can.

Happy Halloween

Here's hoping that a safe and Happy Halloween is had by all!

Easy Halloween Decorating

I made these the other day and thought I would share the project, as it is fast, easy and cheap to do!

If you've got old jars and some tissue paper, you can make these. The only other things you'll need are green paint, a glue stick and some Mod Podge, all found at any craft store.

For the black Trick or Treat ones, I simply cut out the tissue paper to fit around my jar and glued it on with a glue stick. I then added 2 layers of glossy Mod Podge on top and that was it.

For the pumpkin, I cut out small strips of the orange tissue paper. Working in small sections, I added Mod Podge to the outside of the jar, then laid down a piece of the tissue paper. Continue mod podging and adding strips until you've gone all the way around the jar (overlap each piece a little too, it gives it a nicer look I think). While that is drying, cut out the pieces for the face ... I actually found these on line and just printed them and cut them out. Once your jar is dry, use your glue stick to add the eyes, nose and mouth. I then painted the rim of the jar with some green paint - I did several layers. After the paint dried, I added a layer or two of Mod Podge and was finished!  Add some tealights (or in my case, fake tealights from the dollar store) and you have an easy Halloween decoration that can be used inside or out. Mine are on my dining room table, but I think I will put them outside on Halloween night.

By the way, I found the cute Trick or Treat tissue paper at my local Hallmark store. Happy Halloween Decorating!

Oh What Fun

I had such a great time at my craft show yesterday - sales were good, and I met a lot of great people. I think I will have some future sewing jobs as a result of it too, so it was a pretty successful day.

Here are some photos of my table:

 That's my sister in the first photo, she helped me out by cashiering for me.

The dryer vent pumpkins were a huge hit, as were the little denim purses. Some things (fabric baskets & crayon rolls) did not sell as well as I thought they would .... go figure!
If anyone is interested in purchasing something, send me an e-mail (azbelle3@yahoo.com) or just leave a comment and I will get in touch with you.

All in all, it was a great experience, and I will definitely do it again. Thanks for all of your positive thoughts and well wishes ... it was much appreciated.  :)

It's Finally Here

Yay, Friday is here! Hope everyone had a good week.

The casserole last night turned out pretty good.... I wouldn't say it's the best thing I ever made, but it was good. I forgot to take a picture of it, sorry about that ... guess I was too hungry to think about picture taking.. LOL!

I have been waiting and working towards this weekend for some time now. Why, you ask? Well, it is my very first craft show! If you follow my sewing blog, you know I have been sewing my fingers to the bone making all kinds of items to sell at a local craft show on Sunday. Here are some photos of a few of the things I have made:

I have zippered pouches, fabric baskets, crayon rolls, little girl purses, and tote bags, among other things!

Keep your fingers crossed and wish me luck on a successful show! I'll post photos next week and let you know how it went. Have a great weekend :)