Crop, Cards, Clare and Cooker!

It was our local crop today and it was great catching up with everyone, its been a while since i was there and i only just realised how much i missed them all and enjoy our day out! I will make a real effort to make them in future! Thanks girls for a lovely day :) I managed to make 4 cards, not for anyone in particular (even though DH thought i was trying to tell him something when i brought the baby one to show him ... eek no thank you!!) lolIt was Clares birthday today too so Happy Birthday honey - was fab seeing you today and you mum is lovely! :)
My cooker broke last night! The door literally fell off its hinges! WTF!! Its less than a year old so i called up to arrange a replacement/workman to come and fix it only to be told they have no appointments for the forseeable future!
We have 4 kids and the prospect of living off hob food only for 'the forseeable future' wasnt appealing.
I came home from the crop on a mission, I lay on the kitchen floor and fixed the cooker myself - i had to unscrew the hinges and replace washers etc but its done and less palava than any workman would have made of it! lol (Still dont like the bloody thing though - its a gas oven and im only just getting to grips with gas ovens!)

Thank goodness its Friday!

Im so tired i could sleep all weekend! I have a crop to go to tomorrow though and im excited about that as it seems ages since i was last there! I will take some cardmaking things and do that - im struggling with scrapping again right now - too many yummy cardmaking stamps i think!! LOL
This is for anyone struggling through the day today...... see you tomorrow :)

Cards and Cakes!

I was a busy bee yesterday as i was dying to use the new stamps - arent they delicious!! I love all of the designs on the hearts and the fact the EK Success punch punches them out is just great and saves cutting all together! I simply placed some patterned paper onto the card and scallop punched the edge. Laid a little ribbon down, stamped some of the hearts, punched them out and raised them up with some sticky pads. The Sentiment stamp came with the hearts too! I can see me wanting LOTS more of these sets! :)

For desert last night i promised the boys Falling in Ove Chocolate Mousse Pie. It is meant to be one big pie but i did it as individual dishes, that way theres no 'his is bigger than mine' LOL Ben did the pouring....I also followed an English adaption recipe that didnt say whip the cream so mine was more runny than mousse! Heres the recipe i would follow in future....

Falling in Love Chocolate Mousse Pie

9-inch baked pastry shell
1 14-oz. can condensed milk (not evaporated)
2/3 C. water
1 (4 serving) pkg. chocolate pudding mix (not instant)
1 1-oz. square unsweetened chocolate
2 C. (1 pt.) whipping cream, stiffly whipped

In large saucepan, combine condensed milk, water and pudding mix; mix well. Add chocolate. Over medium heat, cook and stir rapidly until chocolate melts and mixture thickens. Remove from heat; beat until smooth. Cool. Chill thoroughly; stir. Fold in whipped cream. Pour into prepared pastry shell. Chill 4 hours until set.

I garnised ours with raspberries and icing sugar (the little label is from the Holiday set stamps i got yesterday too!!)

As i have the boys off school poorly today im planning on finishing The Secret Life of Bees Book while we all snuggle on the sofa :)

Yummies!!

Im a huge fan of books and can spend hours in Waterstones/Borders etc. Yesterday i went with some vouchers and stocked up on some upcoming books in a bookclub - varied titles and a few recommendations there. They were 3 for 2 and Brutal Art was £2.99 when you spent £10 - Bargain! (its not in the bookclub though just an extra treat) I already had Twilight, in fact i have the whole series of them but just havent read them yet (they are highly reviewed and i didnt want to get sucked into a trilogy etc while i had so many others im wanting to read so the rest are on my list and ready to read too!) A few of the books are only available in hardback right now so im hanging on until they are in paperback, something abot a new flexible book is part of my enjoyment (hardbacks remind me of stuffy old libraries!) LOL

I also received these yummy goodies today from Papertrey Ink - their service is perfect and the stamps are just gorgeous! Cant wait to use them! The little heart tins are just perfect too - and seeing as you can bake straight into them they will make cupcake/muffin presents :D

Mum is coming to stay so we will be crafting until the small hours no doubt :D Also a big shout out to Crafters Companion who have won an inovation award at CHA!! The purple Ultimate that i use for scoring non the less so we should see it sweeping the world soon! :)

Gift box tutorial :)

I had a couple of emails asking how i made the window gift box so i thought it best to make another and do a little tutorial :)

This fits perfectly onto a sheet of 12x12 patterned papr or cardstock. It needs to be thick card so that the sides are stable and it will retain its box shape.I now have one of the shapes that i keep as a template to save working out the measurements each time, i simply draw around that. I forgot to leave little flaps on the sides where they are glued to the front so remember to leave approx .5cm extra to reinforce the folds.Cut it out. Then score down each of the fold marks - these are easy to work out.
Punch a shape into one of the sides of your box (this isnt necessary and you can leave it as a little windowless box if you prefer) Place double sided tape (dst) on the reverse of the hole and attach either accetate or vellum.Fold all of the sides up on themselves and attach dst to the 2 small flaps and the 2 larger side reinforcements. These are then folded in and stuck down.Fill the box with the goodies you are wanting to give and then pinch the top 2 sections together. Punch 2 holes and thread with ribbon.
Attach a tag and some embellishments if required and voila its done!Not rocket science but i was pleased i worked it out - feel free to use it as you wish :)

Almost a stone!!

If i lose 3lb i will hit the 1stone mark!! :D *does a little more energetic dance than i could do last month* I will upload the tutorial for the gift box tomorrow and some things that i make today but i just had to shout about my weight for now (and my size 12 trousers!!) as im so pleased my willpower is working for me instead of against for a change! LOL

Peek a boo pressie box

Its only taken me 2 days but i have managed to figure out a template for these cute little peek a boo boxes :) (i know there are other templates out there but theres nothing like the satisfaction of working them out yourself!) :)Ive filled this one with mini marshmallows and attached a tag thats been stamped with the All in the Family Stampin up stamps :)These will be ideal to hold cupcakes as gifts :D

and so it goes...

Well, i wasnt going to get weighed until the end of March but after stepping on the Wii Fit yesterday it told me my weight! LOL I have lost 8lb!! *happy dance* I still have some to go in order to be in the BMI range but im loving this Wii Fit - any games you would recommend??

Here is the layout done for my diary of this year - its entitled Fairytale? and the journalling reads...

Im sure Snow White didnt eat the apple because of a diet! This slimming is hard going, all those yummy things i cant eat. If im wanting the Happy Ever After though i will persevere!

Its raining here so im stuck indoors :(

Camomile, croissants and cute box!

Do you stock up on things when they are half price or on sale?? I am terrible for stocking up on things when they are a bargain (we havent had to buy toiletries for over 2 years as i had that big a supply!) Well, Tesco have the camomile and fruit teas at 60p!! Which is almost half of some stores so i stocked up - and doesnt it look like im running a cafe! LOL
Since Jake was a superstar this past week he was taken to Cafe Rouge (everyone else has been except him and hes been dying to go!). Needless to say one croissant and apple juice later and Jake has a new favourite hang out! :)
I made this cute little box after blog hopping and seeing one similar. It all kind of came together really easy (ginger showed me the other day how to make the fold boxes), it was a simple case of measure cut and punch :) The sentiment is from the curvy verse set from Stampin Up.

Monday monday..

You know when you start reading a book and its just not the right time? Thats what happened with me and Eat Pray Love. You may remember i said a while ago that after seeing Elizabeth Gilbert on Oprah i had to buy her book. I struggled to read it as, at the same time, i was reading A New Earth and both books needed full attention. I picked E L P back up again 4 days ago and finished it today - i love it! I cant recommend it highly enough - Elizabeth Gilbert is an inspirational woman who goes on a journey to Italy, India and Bali to Eat Pray and Love. Go check it out :)

I am off on my own journey in March. Dhanakosa is a budhist retreat in Scotland that provides weekends of yoga and meditation! A whole weekend of silence, thankful prayer and meditation - bliss! Im too excited!

No layouts to share just yet and because of the diet i havent been baking but thats all going to change tomorrow as the kids have requested chocolate cake so im making a Falling in Love Chocolate Pie!!

Playing Catchup!

I have been so busy this past week! There was the Boots sale, mum staying over all week, Ginger staying over Wednesday, Aunts birthday party, scrapbooking, sale shopping, kiddy playing and dieting!
Here are a few snapshots of the cakes and a couple of the new layouts while i get my breath and come back tomorrow with a new recipe for you all! :D

Its all about the frosting....

This is delicious and because youre not using butter icing its a lot better for you too (ok im not saying healthy but you get what i mean!) lol
INGREDIENTS

• 200 g white sugar
• 80 ml water
• 0.8 g cream of tartar
• 2 egg whites
• 5 ml vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. In a saucepan, stir together the sugar, water and cream of tartar. Cook over medium-high heat until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is bubbly.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whip the egg whites and vanilla to soft peaks. Gradually add the sugar mixture while whipping constantly until stiff peaks form, about 7 to 10 minutes. Frost the cake of your choice.

Dont skimp on the whisking or the boiling - it is well worth it and well worth waiting just that little bit longer! :) These are now ready for my aunts birthday tea along with the marshmallow mermaid pie :D

Mmmmmm!

Marshmallow Mermaid Pie - recipe at the bottom of this post! I didnt make the base, i went for a M&S own bake pastry shell....cop out i know but i have too much to do! LOLI have made this for my Aunts birthday tea tomorrow, she doesnt know im taking cake so im hoping this one (which none have had before) will go down well :) Ive also made a huge batch of cupcakes to take too which will be decorated tomorrow so unfortunately no pics right now!

Here is one of the new layouts ive been working on :)Thanks for all the recommendations for The Secret Life of Bees, i started it last night and i love it so far!

Marshmallow Mermaid Pie

9 graham crackers
1/2 C. sweetened, flaked coconut, toasted
5 Tbs. butter or margarine, melted
34 lg. marshmallows (8 oz.)
1/2 C. whole milk
1 1/2 C. heavy or whipping cream
1 oz. unsweetened chocolate, grated

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine coconut and graham crackers in food processor until coarse crumbs form.
2. Combine crumbs and butter with fork. Press to bottom and side of 9-inch pie plate. Bake 10 minutes and cool on wire rack.
3. Heat marshmallows and milk in 3-qt. saucepan over low heat until smooth, stirring constantly. Remove saucepan from heat. Cool completely (30 minutes.)
4. In large bowl with mixer at medium speed, beat cream until stiff peaks form. Fold marshmallow mixture into whipped cream with grated chocolate. Spoon filling into cooled crust. Refrigerate pie at least 3 hours or overnight.
5. Top with mini marshmallows, maraschino cherries and rainbow sprinkles.

Serves 8.

Birthday Boy!!

Its my hubbys birthday today.....( love you honey!!)
We took him into our favourite hangout.....Cafe Rouge. Its where me and Ethan go for coffee and chats - putting the kiddy world to rights over a basket of pastries and 2 cups of tea :) Anyways, we had breakfast there this morning with dh and wandered around for a little while (too cold to stay for too long and Ethan just wanted to find the busker so he could give him his pennies - how adorable is he!)
This afternoon i have made a batch of cupcakes and a huge chocolate cake for dh's birthday tea - they seriously think they can skip lasagne and go for the overdose of chocolate first! LOL
I started reading Out of the Blue by Belinda Jones but cant get into it - i did pick up Marshmallows for Breakfast and The Secret Life of Bees from the charity shops, has anyone read those and what did you think? Or if you have read Out of the Blue - should i stick with it??

Sorry i have only just gotten round to picking someone for the rak set at New Year :D

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

2

Timestamp: 2009-01-08 20:01:35 UTC

Yayy, Sue can you send me your addy please and i will get a goodies bag on its way to you :)

Stay away rain!

We got a little wet this morning as we went for our daily walk! 2 and a half mile round trip to the shops and it started raining half way home! pah! Picked up some goodies from the charity shops (glass cake stand and a couple of books) and got todays fruit and veg from the supermarket, wish we had a local farm i could buy fresh from!
3rd day of detox has gone well and i have brown bread etc in for tomorrow so i can have some toast for breakfast etc :)
Yesterdays layout..... not sure on what to do for todays as im so tired (i know its the not eating properly thats knocking me out!) - will give it a think and work on something once the kids are in bed :D

What was that i said about 21 days??

Erm im thinking i might switch to a 3 day detox and then just extreme healthy eating for the rest of the month. Then eek things (like cranberry and white chocolate cookies yumm!) back into my eating as treats. There has been so much stuff published and talked about lately about how much damage and unnecessary detoxs are that it kinda made me feel as though maybe 21 days was a little excessive.....3 days sounds better, that way im still doing it but i dont feel so guilty! LOL
I am still however cutting out meat, caffine and alcohol for the 21 days. - im now onto day 5 of no caffine and besides a headache again last night i feel so much better and i dont wake up with that yack taste anymore!
Alcohol - well i dont drink much anyways so thats not a problem.
Meat - now heres the deal...we are a meat eating family, always have been probably always will be . We like stews and broths, casseroles and sunday dinners. I think 21 days of no meat will maybe make me think a little more on using free range and organic animal products as its mainly the ethics that bother me if that makes sense.
OK Enough waffling.
I thought i would give Julian Graves another go after the poisonous pinenut disaster and went in today with plans of buying a couple of bags of nuts etc and i wander out with 7, yes SEVEN bags of various fruits and nuts later (had to buy more storage too!!) A lot of them were half price in the sale so well worth stocking up on when they have long dates! :) Bargain shopping too - this set of drawer will hold all my baking trays, moulds etc in the kitchen and it was only £19.99 in the sale! :DCurrently reading Shopaholic and Baby - so cool, so funny, so Becky!! Anyone who likes chick-lit has to read the shopaholic series of books.

Detox Day 1...

So far so good, about 15 hot camomile/fruit/mix teas during today and a bowl of fruit for lunch.... salad for tea and more water/tea later and thats almost day 1 complete! Me and little one even walked to the local shops which we are going to do each day for exercise. Im sure that if im out and about buying fresh stuff each day i will be more inclined to stick to it :)

Here is yesterdays layout - i cant share todays as it includes the before pics of my diet - not a pretty site and thats fully clothed!! LOL