Friday Finds

Did you all hear that loud squeal?  Well, if you heard it then you know it was me when I went to the thrift store the other day and found something that I feel has lots and lots of potential.  Yep, I stood there and just looked at it and thought about what I could do with it and then finally I snatched it up and walked to the register.  Now that I think about it….. I forgot to look at the rest of the stuff .  Well, hopefully I didn’t miss out on anything else.  I was pretty happy just to find this and the cutting board.  So, are you ready to see the 2 items that I picked up last night?

Did you all seriously think I would pass up another cutting board?  Well, I couldn’t pass it up.  I tried and walked past it, but then my legs went in reverse and my hands reached out and grabbed it.  So, I am gonna have to re-do it and prim it up a bit.  The color isn’t bad, but I am not into shiny paint so it will have to be sanded and re-painted.  What a shame – huh?  My next item that I am going to show you is definitely far from being prim, but like I mentioned before…. it has great potential and before you know it, it will be prim perfect!

Ok, are you sitting down? 

Brace yourself……. Here it is ladies!!

Are you squealing yet?  Just seeing that picture alone gets me all excited (lol).

Who is that squealing?  Janene ~ is that you?  It must be someone close by because I hear it loud and clear.  Whoops…..hahahaha, that is me squealing me!!  I am such a silly girl.

So, are you seeing what I see?  Do you see the potential?  Let me just tell you this first…… the little shades definitely have to go!!  Next we will be painting it because you know that it wouldn’t dare be hung up in my kitchen looking like that – right?  Oh and next….. we will definitely need to add some different light bulbs.  Don’t worry, it will all work out in the end and you all will be amazed by yet another great transformation.

I am off to visit my parents one last time before they move.  We are headed to pickup Mom’s light fixtures along with a few other goodies and I will get my last shopping trip in before they move.  I can hardly wait til they get back here close to us.  What a day that will be!!

I am leaving you today with this cute little clown that we saw last night while trick-or-treating.  He was so stinkin’ cute!!  Oh wait…..it was my son.  Well, I hope you enjoy this sweet little face as much as I did yesterday.  I could have just ate him all up (lol).  Take Care everyone and enjoy your weekend.

 

Pretty cute kid – huh? 

Happy Halloween!

Gingerbread Men & Christmas Star Ornaments

My home was filled with a wonderful aroma today.  Oh – it smelled so good in here that I could have bottled the scent up and sold tons of it.  I wish you all could have been here.  I decided to make myself some gingerbread men along with a few star ornaments and they turned out real cute.  They smell great as well.  I received the recipe from my Mom’s friend Sara.  I must say that Sara is one talented gal.  She has her own shop right next to her home and her shop is always jam packed with the cutest things and the most beautiful dried herbs and flowers.  She definitely has a knack for that stuff.  Anyway, I wanted to share some pictures with all of you of my gingerbread tucks as well as my star ornaments that I made.  I thought that the gingerbread men would be awfully cute tucked into a box with some pine and I even tried it out tonight and boy oh boy – it looks cute!!

First of all – I wanted to introduce you to Sara’s blog.  You can find Sara’s blog at Sara’s Herbs and Everlasting.  She plans on sharing lots of great craft ideas and she will probably be showing you more and more of her shop.  I am sure she will even get more pictures of her shop and dried herbs up there too so be keeping an eye out for those.  If you are ever in the area then be sure to stop by and see Sara & Sam.  Sara is definitely the sweetest gal I have met.  She has been a great friend to my Mom and I know for a fact that my Mom will miss her very much!  Thank you Sara for always being such a wonderful friend to my Mom.  We love you dearly!

Well, let’s take a look at those gingerbread men – ok?  I tried a couple gingerbread women, but I decided I didn’t like them as well so you will probably one see about 4 of them.  I love the stars too.  I thought they would look great on a Christmas tree, but let’s not rush the holidays (lol).

 

Here are some pictures with the pine….. don’t they look too cute tucked in with the Christmas pine?

 

I also made these for Cameron…… I thought that with the small amount of dough that I had left, that I would make him some fake chocolate chip cookies.  Don’t they look so real?  The hard thing was explaining to him that they weren’t real, but for decoration ONLY!

Well, alot of you have questioned me about the recipe and as much as I would like to keep it a secret…… it is only fun sharing it with my good friends to they not only get to experience the fun of making them, but you also get to smell that wonderful aroma that I was talking about.  So, here is the recipe….

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Gingerbread Men Decorations

-1/2 cup shortening

-1/2 cup brown sugar

-3/4 cup dark molasses

-1/2 cup white (Elmer’s glue)

-3/4 cup water

-2 tablespoons cinnamon

Mix ingredients together then gradually add 3 cups of flour and mix.  Add 2 more cups of flour and mix well until everything is completely mixed.  I was use a mixer, but with the last cup of flour, had to end up using my hands to really get everything mixed well.

-Cut out into shapes and bake at 275 degrees for 2 hours.

-Use whole all spice for eyes, place those on before you bake them, but be aware that you might have to really push them down into the dough to get them to stick.  If they come lose then just use a drop of Elmer’s glue to get them to stick.  It will dry clear.

**These are not edible**  Have fun!!

Another Game-Board and my 1st Attempt at Stitching

My game-board hallway  still has plenty of room, but I knew there was one particular place that needed a game-board.  So, I thought about what I could do to fill in that particular space and went to the garage to see what I could come up with.  I created something simple with what I had, but knew I wanted something that would “pop” when you looked down the hallway.  I decided to go with Antique Gold paint over black and I was real pleased with how it turned out.  I painted my board all black  and then once that was dry, I used my painters tape to make a frame around the edge of my board.  Like I said… I wanted something different.  I then painted my board the Antique Gold.  Here is what it looked like after I completed that step.  Don’t you just love my table cloth?  Yep, I use one during meals and during crafting and that way I protect my farm table from any damage that might happen during meal time or crafting time.  Let’s take a look at that game-board.

So, once that step was done, I was ready to get started.  I measured to find the middle of the board and went from there.  Here is what I decided to go with.

Now that it is done, it is now time to sand it and stain it.  Let’s get it finished and up on the wall – shall we?  Here it is after the sanding and staining was complete.

So, what do you all think?  I still have some room above the door and above that game board all the way at the end of the hallway plus I am still working on the other side as well.  So, more pics will be coming soon.

Oh, in regards to my 1st attempt at stitching….. it turned out pretty decent, but I still have alot of practice and improvement ahead of me.  This towel will be mine because I wouldn’t dare send it out to anyone, but that is ok, I will tuck into a basket or something and no one will see it unless they get right up on it (lol).  I wanted something I could use around Christmas so I decided to stitch “Peace” on my coffee/tea stained flour sack towel.  What do you all think?  I didn’t go by any pattern….. I just started stitching away.  Good thing I will get some direction from my Mom this weekend (hahaha).  Well, here it is ~ be nice ladies!

Definitely doesn’t look as good as the little towel that my dear friend Sherrie sent me, but I was trying.  I guess I need to keep trying – huh?

Today I leave you with this beauty!!  I am pretty sure that this is my obedient plant that I planted years ago and has never come up until this past week.  It amazes me, but this beauty popped out of the ground and I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what it was because it never grew and I thought I had killed it.  Years later…… here it is.  At least I think it is my obedient plant!?!  With the cold, warm, cold warm temps here in Ohio…..no wonder my flowers get confused!

Hope you all have a blessed day!

Until Next Time……..

Make-over Monday

I have really been taking advantage of the warmer weather here in Ohio.  Yesterday it was in the 60’s and today it is suppose to be just as warm.  I was beginning to think I would never see the warm weather again until next year.  Glad to see that mother nature is allowing us a few more warmer days to enjoy before we get pounded with the cold temps.

Anyway, I have been busy.  I am not sure if you remember those candlesticks that I bought at the thrift store a looong while back, but I finally finished them.  I also re-finished an old plate and I must say that I am pleased with both.  Here are the before pictures of the candlesticks.

I wanted them to show up a little bit on my farm table so I decided to paint them barn red over black.  I also put some dark walnut stain on them after I sanded them a little bit and I must say that I was pretty pleased with the way they turned out.  What do you think?  Here is the after picture.

I put some battery operated candles in them and I love the way they look.  Wanna see them all lit up?

I also decided to make-over a plate that I had.  I loved the stars, but I have nothing in my home that is sage green.  So, after much thinking….. I decided to sand everything totally down, stencil some stars and I added a crow to the middle.  Here is the before picture.

Here is the after picture.  So, what do you think?

Here it is after I sanded it down a little bit and stained it.  Don’t you think it looks alot better?

I have been working on a few other things too, but they aren’t make-over’s so, I won’t be sharing those today.  I will probably share them tomorrow.  So, be sure to come back and see them.  Have a blessed day everyone.

Until Next Time…….

Crunchy Caramel Apple Pie Recipe

Well, if you are like me and went apple picking recently, then you have probably exhausted all recipes known to man when it comes to apples.  I decided that since I made apple crisp, apple sauce then it was time for my good ole pie.  With the apples that I had left,  I made one of my favorite apple pies.  If you haven’t tried Crunchy Caramel Apple Pie then it is a definite must try!  I included the recipe and also included a few pictures for your viewing and slobbering pleasure (lol).  If you try it out, then be sure to let me know what you think of it.  My husband loves it and like I said….it is my favorite apple pie EVER!!  Hope you enjoy it.

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Crunchy Caramel Apple Pie

Ingredients:

1 pastry crust for a deep-dish pie 9-inch (homemade or store-bought)

1/2 cup sugar

3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp salt

6 cups apples, thinly sliced peeled

1 recipe crumb topping (see below)

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

1/4 cup caramel topping

Crumb Topping

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2cup quick cooking rolled oats

1/2 cup butter

Cooking Directions

Crumb Topping

Stir together brown sugar,flour, rolled oats. Cut in 1/2 cup butter until topping is like course crumbs. Set aside.

Pie

-In a large mixing bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt.

-Add apple slices and gently toss until coated.

-Transfer apple mixture to the pie shell

-Sprinkle crumb topping over apple mixture.

-Place pie on a cookie sheet so the drippings don't drop into your oven.

-Cover edges of pie with aluminum foil. Bake in a preheated 375 oven for 25 minutes. Then remove foil and put back in for another 25 to 30 minutes without foil.

-Remove from oven. Sprinkle pie with chopped pecans then drizzle with caramel on top. Cool on a wire rack and enjoy warm or at room temperature.

Bowls, Signs and Game-boards Oh My!

The past couple days have been great here in Ohio, but the rainy weather moved in today.  I was hoping that it would hold off and not move in until later today, but when I woke up this morning, it was raining cats and dogs!  Yep, it rained all day long and to be honest with you, I don’t think it stopped at all.  It was still raining this evening when we went out.  How is the weather where you are living?  The temperatures the past couple days have been mild which allowed me to get out and do some crafting.  Oh – sometimes I feel like if I can’t craft then I am just going to bust.  Good thing I got out when I did (lol).

I bought a set of wood bowls quite a few weeks ago and decided to finish a few of them for myself.  I re-finished them in 3 of my favorite prim colors….black, yellow ochre and barn red.  I am definitely pleased with the way they turned out.  I decided to sand off the rim on the bottom of the bowls….. wow, that is alot of work especially when you have to deal with carpal tunnel.  Anyway, I would have done more, but I wasn’t able to so I just completed the three to start.  I will probably add some of these to my selling blog so if you are interested then you might wanna get them while they last.  Keep watching for those to be posted!  Here was the process……

So, what do you think?  Do you think they turned out primtastic or what?!?

I also finished a few signs and a couple new game-boards.  I was definitely pleased with the way that they turned out as well and I must admit that I now have a new favorite game-board.  So, are you ready to see what I have been working on over the past couple days?  I will be adding these to my selling blog as well so be sure to check out those coming soon.  With the holidays just around the corner….. I will be lowering my prices in case you all are interested in placing an order.  Be sure to check those out on Londonberry Primitives.  Ok, I am now ready to show you everything……here we go ladies!!

So, do you think you could guess what game-board is my favorite?  Well, if you picked the one with the saltbox and crows then you are absolutely correct!!  That is my all time favorite one…. I just love the colors and I love how it turned out.  Don’t forget you can click on the picture to make it larger.

You all have been inquiring about my parents new home.  They will be closing on the condo around the 30th of this month and will be closing on the new home sometime around Nov 18th so they should be in before Thanksgiving.  Alot to be thankful for – huh?  I will be sure to post new pics of my parents home once we get certain rooms painted and everything decorated.  I must say that they are so excited to be moving back.  My Mom and I decided today that we are going to setup a crafting area in their basement.  I was so excited…. Mom can teach me how to use her sewing machine and I can teach her how to make signs (lol).  She told me that she doesn’t want to learn about that, she just prefers me to make them for her (lol).  I guess that is ok with me.

Well, not much more is happening here.  I have been trying to help my Mom pick out light fixtures and curtains and I must say that it is lots of fun.  I am sure her home will be beautifully prim when we are all done.  Gotta love decorating a brand new home!!

Until Next Time….. Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy!!

MIA, but Good News to Share

Good Morning Ladies.  Let me first of all apologize and say that I am sorry for not posting much lately.  This past week has been such a busy week.  I spent alot of time praying!!  Of course all of the news that I am about to share is absolutely wonderful news for not only me, but quite a few people.  So, are you ready to hear the exciting news?

My parents were FINALLY able to sell their condo after 3 years on the market.  Yep, you heard me correctly…..it is SOLD!!

They sold it on Friday of last week, came into town on Saturday and just left yesterday.  There is even more exciting news to share and that news is that they found a home just 5 houses down from me.  It is a beautiful home, big enough for them and the exciting news is that it has a basement.  I know…. not everyone would get excited about a basement, but my Mom told me that I could bring stuff down to their home and store it in the basement so our house wasn’t so cluttered.  I am so excited about that!!!!  To have a non-cluttered home will just be amazing!  It will seem bigger, lots bigger (lol).  So, would you like to see their new home?  Here it is ladies……

My Mom is going to have me re-finish her kitchen cabinets.  She wants me to paint them Olde Brick Red by Olde Century.  I am sure it will look amazing!  We were both on the internet drooling over light fixtures last night.  She wants things to look real prim so I am pretty sure that she is going to go with punched tin lighting.  Do you all ever check out the lighting fixtures on Irvin’s Country Tinware?  Well, let me tell you that they have some beautiful tin lighting fixtures!!  Check out the site by clicking on the shop name up above.  I am sure you won’t leave being disappointed.  If you are like me then you will leave just wishing you had more money to decorate your home with those beautiful light fixtures.  Enjoy looking!!!!

It is suppose to be in the high 60’s today which is a SUPER NICE CHANGE from the 40’s so I am going to plan on trying to get outside and do some sanding.  I have some signs that I need to get made plus a couple game boards too.  Yep, I need to take advantage of this warmer weather while I can.  Hope you all are doing well.  My little man is calling for me so I better run for now.  Hope you all have a blessed day!

Time to Remember & Reflect

Today is a day to remember and reflect. If you or someone you know lost a child then you probably know about today being Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day!! I remember February 25, 2004 like it was yesterday. A very hard day that I sometimes wish I could just forget, but then I think that if I forget about it then I would forget the picture of our sweet baby who was growing in my right fallopian tube.  It was so strange to see my doctor keep swirling around that right tube during the ultrasound, I knew that was our baby, but I knew the picture that I was seeing on the monitor looked totally different from what it should have actually looked like. Well, after I had my ultrasound on the 22nd followed up by bloodwork and awful cramping and bleeding on the morning of the 25th, I was rushed in for emergency surgery. It was a whirlwind of emotions and uncontrollable crying. I literally don't think I stopped crying until I was fast asleep and going through my surgery. Little did I know that I was 3 months along. It was hard to grasp and so hard to go on, but I made it through.

I dealt with years of infertility after our loss and finally in January 2007, we were blessed with our little boy Cameron. God has richly blessed us and I couldn't be happier to have such a special little boy to share our lives with. He is a miracle and I must say that I am so happy that IVF worked for us! I don't really know why things happen, but after doing some major soul searching, I have come to realize that things happen for a reason and we just need to trust in God. I was always the type of person to take the wheel and try to control certain things in my life, but as I was going through IVF, I realized that I just need to give it all to God and let him take the reigns and when I did that, things fell into place and we were blessed with wonderful news!! We were pregnant and after so many years, we were so ready to hear those special words.

So, on this day, I will take a moment to light a candle at 7:00 pm in remembrance of our child that we lost and the many other men and women that lost their children as well. Can you imagine what Heaven looks like with all of those precious children dancing around? Wow, I bet that is a beautiful sight!!  Please take a moment to remember all of these precious children that left the world way too soon.

God has you in his keeping.  I have you in my heart!!

Not Much Happening

Where in the world have I been?  Well, if you must know… I have been right here in my home with not much to do and definitely not a whole lot to report.  The cold weather is just not for me and the rain is for the birds!!  There is snow in our forecast for Saturday and I think to myself “Where is the Fall weather?”  I have been thinking alot lately about this winter.  What in the world am I going to do with myself when I can’t get outside and work on my prim goodies that I so enjoy working on?  I told my hubby that I was going to stock up on wood and make some signs and I was even going to try to start stitching.  I love the little towel that Sherrie sent me so I was going to try my hand at it and see if I couldn’t try to make some cute little towels myself.  I guess we will see.  Anyway, I was down and out with a migraine today and Shawn stayed home with me.  It was nice being able to sleep and rest while he took care of Cameron.  I think around 4 pm my migraine started to disappear a bit and I was feeling much better.  It is strange because I never use to get migraines until after Cameron was born and now I have them about once a month or every other month.  Ughhh, I hate it when I get them.

Yesterday evening I decided to work on a few things here and there.  I have been meaning to hang up all of my game boards and I finally got to it plus I hung up my towel rack.  I am just not totally sold on the way that my towel rack looks so if you all have any suggestions that would be great.  I wish I could put a bowl or something up there, but it is not meant for anything except towels.  So, what do you all think of it?  It seems to be missing something, but I just can’t figure it out.

Here are my game boards that I hung up in my hallway.  I still have a few more to make and I also have a sign that says “Game Boards” so I still need to make it and get it up on the wall.  Yep, I am always working on something or at least thinking about something (lol).

Here are a few more pics of tweaking that I have done here and there.  I think I am pretty happy with the way my family room turned out.  What do you think?  Do you think it looks ok?

This is some tweaking I did in my kitchen a little while back.  I love how it turned out.  I just wanted to clear off my countertops a little bit here and there and that helped me accomplish that goal.

Anyway, that is pretty much all that I have done lately.  I did go to the thrift store a couple days ago and found three ladder back chairs.  Totally fell in love with them especially for $9.00, but the cane seating was in AWFUL shape.  It looked like the previous owners had cats and the cats must have used the cane seating as a scratching post so I left them there and was quite upset that I had no idea how to re-cane them.  Ughhh, what a disappointment! 

I leave you with this tonight…. we went to the pumpkin patch over the weekend and I bought a couple things for myself, but my favorite thing was this gourd that I found.  I am going to try to dry it when Fall is over and hopefully it will turn out for next year.  I guess we will see.  Can you imagine how great it would look dried and in my Fall decorations?  Wish me luck ladies!