Tuesday, May 31, 2011

End of Year Gift Idea

As you know the bitty one graduated from preschool. I wanted to give her classmates and teachers a little momento of the year. I decided to do tee shirts for them.


First you will need some supplies. Plain white tee shirts from the store. I bought all the same size since the kids in her class are all about the same. You can buy iron transfers from any office supply store. Make sure that you get the right kind for the color tee shirts and for your printer! Very important!


Design your shirt on your computer. Once you are happy with it, make sure that you mirror image it! If you print off all your transfers just to find out they are ALL WRONG! It might anger you a little. Not that I did that or anything. I'm just saying....


Now lay out your shirt on an ironing board and with your iron on the highest setting, press the transfer all over the backing. I used my presser which made the job easier and faster. When it has cooled slightly, peel the backing paper off.


Ta daa!


I folded up the shirts, made a card with Syrina's picture on the front and our phone number on the back and tied it up with a bit of raffia. They were a hit!


Plus, look how cute they look!


Now for another clue! I know, I suck at clues. I am really just trying to drag this out while I get this done! Ok, something in the above picture is being replaced.

Now, I am off to work on my secret project some more!

Monday, May 30, 2011

Happy Memorial Day!

Today was a beautiful day at the farmhouse! Happy Memorial Day to everyone. To all that have served or have supported someone who has served Thank You!


Of course to my favorite Jarhead, I love you honey!

We started the holiday with, of course, food! Sorry Lynn, you will see this for the Pillsbury Challenge Cook off!


Mmmmm, sausage.... That can mean only one thing here, Biscuits and Sausage Gravy! My sister showed me how to make it and it is always a hit here! I use a whole tube of a good sausage since we like to make piggies of ourselves! Git it all brown and crumbly!


Now, don't drain off that grease! You are going to slowly add a bit of cream. You want to add it a bit at a time to make a roux.


You want it to get all thick around the sausage. Once you get to that point, start adding milk a bit at a time.


When it gets all thick and bubbly, add some more milk and let that come up to a boil. Keep on repeating til you have the amount that you want.


I used a little more than a gallon of milk for mine. Whatever isn't used, I freeze and reheat later.


Now for the little fat boy! How I do hate opening those cans. Almost as much as I dread hanging window treatments!


I usually start with 2 cans, but keep a few extra just in case. I made them in a round pan. They come up higher than on a cookie sheet.


Scramble up some eggs, throw a few biscuits on your plate and smother it in gravy! That is some good stuff there!


It was 91 and SUNNY! Perfect day for a parade! Here is a little fact for ya, Hartland has the oldest Memorial Day Parade in the State of Michigan. I am just a plethora of knowledge huh?


Some day I want to be Grand Marshall and ride in a cool old car!


Or maybe I could ride on the back of my hubby's Harley.


Or maybe I could get someone to pull me around in a wagon? I doubt that if I could get my big butt into it, I would never get out! I doubt that I would look as cute as her though.


There were LOTS of scouts!


Syrina's favorite fireman, Walter, was there too. She loves Walter! He came to her class to teach about fire safety. He is such a nice guy and an awesome role model too!


Hartland's Teacher of the Year, Mark Conway, with his daughter.


This little girl was pedaling her buns off all through the parade!


Big Boy made an appearance too! See, we did have atleast one celebrity!


These two guys caught me taking a pic of them and started posing!


We also have the world's oldest clown too! I think she was about 183 years old. Atleast I know I can still be gainfully employed in my golden years!


They rode horses....


cows....


....and tractors.


I loved this little car!


It's liscense plate was the best part though.


After the parade we went a searching for Walter so Syrina could say "hi". We didn't find him at the firehouse....


....we did find him at the park though. Then home where the kids played bocce with Dad....


....while I gathered up some vittles....


....and BBQ'd up dinner.


I love a day that starts and ends with food! BBQ Chicken, Grilled Veggies and Homemade Cole Slaw.

Now for Clue #2! Ya'll had some good guesses, but no one came close. Maybe this will help....


Any guesses?!

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Memorial Day Projects And A Guessing Game!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend everyone! This year, I am being "normal" and doing work around the house. I hope to get some stuff that has been sitting on the to do list done!


Mostly, I will be spending some quality time with this!


I did manage to get the 587 holes in the wall patched. I thought that I would have to touch up the paint where I patched. However, when I got up there I found that the living room really needed a second coat of paint! Oi vey!


These corner moldings needed to be installed too. It seems that my tribe cannot go by a corner without whacking the crap out of it. Ok, so I know these will get knocked up too, but atleast there won't be chunks of plaster gone! If they get too bad, they can be replaced in about 5 minutes too.


So out came these bad boys! Oh, btw, SW has paint on sale this weekend! 30% off! Woo hoo!


While I was at it, I painted the stairs too. I have to say, the stairs are still my favorite part of t he house! I'll get a better pic of them when the stairs are all done. I need suggestions for the wall going up the stairs too! Come on peeps! Give me your best ideas!


Here you can see the new color on the right and the old color. I am really liking the new color. It's Kilim Beige by Sherwin Williams.


Bitty one just finds the whole thing boring and tiring!


Now, for the guessing game! I thought we might have some fun while I am getting ready to reveal my next project! *squeal!* I hope you love it as much as I do! What the heck has it got to do with the pic above? Well, there is something in that pic that I am using in this project! Get your thinking caps on peeps!


If you need an idea for a new something to do this weekend, go see what my sister did! She tells you how to do some for yourself here. The jars are so cute! How could you hide them away in a cupboard now?! Check out that backsplash she did too! It's nice to see I wasn't the only one who got the creative genes! LOL!


I do hope that this will dry up for the BBQ on Monday. If not, I got lots to keep me busy!

What are your plans for the holiday weekend?

Thursday, May 26, 2011

The Stuff That Angels Eat!!

I swear (ok, I try not to around the kids though!) if you have never eaten homemade yogurt, you are definitely missing out! If I eat this all summer I could definitely shed some of this winter fat!

Now, how do you make this nectar of the gods?! Well it has 2 simple ingredients....


2 cups of milk and 2 tablespoons of yogurt.


For your first batch, use a store bought yogurt. You want to make sure that your store yogurt is plain or vanilla and contains live and active cultures. It should say that on the container. I used a small container.


Put your 2 cups of milk in a small saucepan and slowly bring the temp up to 180 degrees. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool to 105 degrees.


Once it is cooled, gently stir in your 2 tablespoons of yogurt.


Pour into a glass canning jar with a lid and ring. Cover with the 2 piece lid. Now for my fancy schmancy yogurt maker! You may even have one and don't even know it!


I know! Isn't that crazy?! It really works though! You want to put the thermos in the sink and gently put your jar of yogurt into it. Now fill the thermos with boiling water, put the lid on and leave it alone for 3-4 hours. I go as far as to leave mine overnight.

Remove your jar of homemade yogurt and chill. You can use this culture up to 9 times before you need to start over with a new one. Right before you run out, just reserve 2 tablespoons for a new batch!


Wait til you try this! Fresh fruit, I used blackberries, and homemade yogurt! Just put a few pieces of fruit in a glass, add some yogurt, and keep layering til the glass is full. This is the real deal and you won't go back to store bought, except for a new culture! It is so smooth and creamy. You can taste how much lighter it is than the store bought.


Or how about this for lunch? Replace the mayo in tuna salad with your yogurt. Less calories and much more flavor! My kids can tell the difference and prefer the yogurt version over the mayo one.

Need more convincing? Mix a little honey in a small bowl of yogurt, slice up some apples and you have a light snack. Perfect for summer with all the fresh fruit available.

Maybe Theresa @ 612 Riverside will even whip out her yogurt pie recipe to share! Hint hint Theresa!

Yvonne @ Stone Gable did a post on homemade popsicles. I bet they would be great with homemade yogurt. For a flavored yogurt just mix in pureed fresh fruit. For chocolate yogurt, oh yes you can make chocolate yogurt, mix in some pudding mix. I don't know how healthy it is, but yum!

What are your favorite ways to eat yogurt?