German Glass Glitter Again, and A Recipe for You!

German Glass Glitter Project
Well, I finished my glitter glass ornaments!  I mentioned them in an earlier post, and said I'd post pictures when I was done.  I really love how they turned out.  It's certainly different than regular glitter, but it's also very unique, which makes it stand out.   I made two sets of ornaments that have a little cluster of mini pine cones at the top, and a garland with ten bulbs covered in glitter glass and adorned with artificial pine sprigs and cute little bows.  I really love the way they turned out!  They're all for sale, but I guess that if no one buys them, I can enjoy them.  Here are some pictures:

If you are interested in seeing the listings for these, please visit The Sunflower Tree on Etsy.

Who Loves Cookie Dough?
One of my favorite things to eat is cookie dough.  When I was younger, I ate it, raw eggs and all, and never gave it a second thought.  I never got sick from it, either, but food safety seems to be dicier now than it used to be, with contaminated this and that everywhere you look.  So I've adapted my favorite cookie dough to adjust it for an absence of egg, thus making raw cookie dough safe to eat as a comfort food after a long day.  I hope you love it as much as I do!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
2 TBSP butter, warmed in microwave for 15-20 seconds
1 TBSP sugar
3 TBSP brown sugar, lightly packed
3 heaping TBSP peanut butter
Splash of vanilla
1/4 C all-purpose flour
1/4-1/2 C semi-sweet chocolate chips

Soften the butter in the microwave, but do not melt it.  If you accidentally melt it, allow it to cool  for a while before continuing.  Having the butter too hot will melt your chocolate chips.  I mean, it's okay if you're into that sort of thing.  I won't judge you.  Stir in the sugars, peanut butter, and vanilla, mixing well until smooth.  Add the flour, mix well.  Add the chocolate chips.  Enjoy the deliciousness!

Christmas Decorating...It's Almost Time!
I am just so ready to do my Christmas decorating already this year.  I don't know why I want to rush through the Thanksgiving holiday.  This is truly my favorite time of the year, between fall and the beginning of winter, and I always look forward to the beauty of leaves changing and the first snowfall.  I guess that since both of those things have happened, I'm ready to start Christmas!  I've even been listening to Christmas music.  One thing that will be different this year is that we plan to decorate our shrubs out in front of our house.  With the exception of last year, I have wrapped our two porch columns in real fir garland and topped with a bright red bow, which always looks nice, but this year I persuaded my hubby to agree to outdoor lighting, and I'm just too excited.  I'll be sure to post pictures, so that you can experience the awesomeness, too!  Happy decorating!

I doubt I'll be posting again before Thanksgiving, so here's a picture of a butter turkey, and my wishes for you to have a wonderful Thanksgiving!  

"Gobble gobble gooooobbbbblle!" Translation--have a great Thanksgiving!  Eat beef, not turkey!

How Was Your Christmas?

We are back from our rounds of holiday visits, and brought back some pictures of Christmas dinner and yay, a cold.  A great way to spend my vacation week between Christmas and New Years--sick on the couch.  I could go on a tirade, but instead I'll just share some photos of Christmas dinner with you.  My mom loves to cook and entertain, and she did a great job again this year with dinner.  We had pork roast, mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn, squash, rolls, and so much more.  Drool and enjoy!

Mom's Christmas tree

Some desserts...more were added later

Lunch is served!  Yes, those are little sausages wrapped in bacon.  Yes, they were good.

Snack plates!

The Abominable Snowman, from Rudolph

Intermission during Ben-Hur--the menfolk watched while the womenfolk worked.

The rolls

Have a safe and happy New Year!

Busy--Where Did That Come From?

My husband and I have been quite busy lately.  It's been hard to keep up, and the coming days don't appear to be any less busy.  Let me tell you about our adventures lately!

Surprise!

That was the reason for heading up to Michigan to visit my sister Labor Day weekend--a surprise 30th birthday party.  We headed up the day of the party and stealthily avoided my sister all day.  When arriving at the restaurant where the party was being held, we helped decorate and waited for all of her friends to arrive, then waited for her to arrive.  She was so surprised when she walked in and saw so many of her family and friends waiting to celebrate her birthday!  What made it even more of a surprise was that it wasn't actually her birthday--it was a week ahead of time.  She was appropriately surprised, and we had fun surprising her!

Fall Is Coming...

I'm sure of it.  We had some teasingly cool temps last week, and it's beginning to trigger the color change in a few trees in the area.  I'm looking forward to getting my fall decor out--I already have the tote box down, but haven't had the time yet to get things out.  I will need to make time for decorating, because fall will have to come once I have the house set up that way!

Gotta Get Away!

I have been so busy, and it has been resulting in a lot of extra stress lately.  I think I was stressing my husband out too, because he agreed to a long weekend away from home and all of the trials therein.  We booked a room at a beautiful bed and breakfast (more about that in another post) and spent two and a half days in the Indianapolis area, just relaxing and enjoying a very low-tech trip.  We got back Saturday early evening, had a living history program Sunday, and have Monday off as a rest day.  I feel much better, and a bit more clear-headed.  It was a desperately-needed trip that was a great time.  Like I said, I will have a separate post solely devoted to our trip and the b&b we stayed in.  Check back soon!

Christmas Trees

Do you remember in a recent post the Christmas trees I saw in another blog?  Well, I made them, and they turned out so cute!  Below are a few pictures and simple instructions.  I hope you give these a try...you won't be disappointed!

Start with two fabrics of your choice, a quarter of a yard of each.  Also purchase the round bases, half stars, dowel rod and paint of your choice (I got all of this at Hobby Lobby for around $7.50).

Measure and cut each fabric piece into strips about 3/4" wide.  After the strips are cut, cut each strip into lengths that get smaller--I cut them into 9", 8" & 7" lengths.  Divide each length into two equal piles.  Now you have cut enough strips for two trees!

Now, it's time for a little assembly: Cut the dowel rod into 12" lengths (you should get three out of one rod), and take a sharp knife or box cutter and make a few slices into one end of the dowel rod to create a taper.  Then, take an awl or similar tool and punch a small hole, carefully, through one part of the star. 

Insert the tapered end carefully into the hole just made in the star.  It will be snug, but that's okay--you want it that way!

Now paint--I used a copper shimmer color with fine green glitter.  Also paint the bases now, and if you want, add glitter to those as well.  Then take a power drill with a bit the size of the dowel rod and drill a hole into the base.  Insert the other end of the dowel rod into the base, and if slightly loose, spread a little wood glue around the dowel rod.  If you used glue, allow it to dry overnight.

Now, begin tying the strips onto the dowel rod, starting with the 9" strips and eventually getting down to the 7" strips at the top.  Don't worry about looks yet; you'll rearrange them once all of the strips are tied on.

Do this to both dowel rods, then rearrange the strips so that they are evenly spaced and don't have any visible gaps.  And voila, you have two finished trees, ready to be set out and enjoyed!

Hello All!

Time To Get Out Of Dodge!

There's not much to talk about right now.  I did have another Art-See-Mart on August 20, which was depressingly slow.  It took four hours to make the $10 booth fee back!  But that's just how it goes sometimes.  I'm investigating the possibility of doing a few large craft shows in the area, so hopefully I'll have more luck next time.  I have felt for a few weeks now that there is not enough time to work, do housework, and try to get TSFT up and running.  If only the days had another four or five hours!  I'm left with no time to do anything else.  Hubby and I are contemplating a long weekend trip out of town, because I think we could both use a little time away.  It would be nice to take a trip with him for a change!

Conner Prairie Farmhouse, 2009

Conner House, Conner Prairie, 2009

 The Dreaded C-Word
Now that the ninety-plus degree weather is gone, my thoughts are beginning to turn toward fall.  I'm looking forward to the beautiful days and cool nights.  The days are already noticeably shorter.  It won't be long before the trees change, and I'll be anticipating the excitement of the first snowfall, and Christmas!  Of course, the stores have begun displaying Christmas items already--I think Hobby Lobby started their Christmas section last month!  Even too early for me.  But, I am looking forward to Christmas decorating--I've dreamed about it twice now!  I found an interesting blog that has a cute idea for a Christmas decoration: Christmas trees from fabric scraps (click on the link to go to the instruction page). I came across it while searching for something else, but thought I would share it with you in case you felt crafty.  I'd love to give it a whirl!

Finished Christmas tree--Photo from All Things Heart and Home (click the link in the Interesting Sites box to the right to check out the blog--she has some great decorating ideas!)

Beans, Beans...
I finally got a decent harvest of green beans out of the garden.  I took a gallon Ziploc bag out with me and filled it up halfway, then added another good harvest to the bag that was keeping in the fridge.  We cooked them last night and still have plenty for another meal.  Finally, yay!  The garden will soon be done for the year again.  Hopefully, next year's garden will be more successful.

There has been some strange happenings lately...an earthquake along the East Coast, then the first hurricane to hit the States in three years (also along the East Coast)...it would seem as though America is under attack from nature!  But there is nothing to fear; God controls all.  Simply put your trust in Him! "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.  By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible." (Hebrews 11:1-3)  God has power that we cannot even try to understand.  So why do we fret over things we can do nothing about?