Candle By Night

I knew I would forget to get these pictures up. ;-) But here they are. Better late than never. Sweet E actually wanted a blue cake this year. I couldn't believe it! So, since she wanted blue I decided to give her a blue skirt for her outfit this year as well. Last year I did a flower on the front of her shirt. With the blue print I decided to go with a silhouette of Sunbonnet Sue and then the #5 is on the back. This skirt gave me a hard time. Well, the pattern wasn't too bad. It was my serger that tested my patience. Thanks to having difficulty with my serger I spent almost 2 hours longer on the skirt than needed. At least I finished it and she loves it. :-) It has just the right amount of twirl. Sweet E wanted a strawberry cake with chocolate icing. No complaints here. I love ganache! Yes, my decorating skills are lacking but I love creating a cake for my child's birthday. To save money, instead of buying a special doll pan to make the skirt, I made the skirt out of crispi...

My sister's wedding is coming up real quick! Everyone had their clothes for the special day except for me. Sweet E has her flower girl dress, Special K has a beautiful dress, and the boys (hubby too) have their suits. So I was starting to feel left out. ;-) My Mom took pity on me and went shopping with the girls and me. Sweet E was so patient with Mama. We found princess shoes for her first thing. Finding clothes for me took a LOT longer. So after lunch we let Sweet E enjoy some time in the play area. COSI had a shuttle, planets, and meteor for the children to play on. She had a lot of fun and so did Special K. Special K was more interested with the straw in Grandma's drink. ;-D I will say that I found a pair of shoes that I LOVE! I haven't bought myself pretty shoes for a long time. And my skirt is flowy (is that even a word) and very long. I love it too. The top...I am not so sure about, but my Mom liked it a lot and I trust her judgment more than mine. LOL I also wanted...

My little girl is growing up so incredibly fast! She is such a blessing to have around and it is an honor and a privilege to be her Mama. So, I just wanted to say Happy 5th Birthday Sweetheart ! (Photos....top to bottom-> 1 week, 6 months, 1 year, 13 months, 2, 3, 4, and 5 years)

I had the privilege to see my sister this past week. Granted it was only for a couple of days but at least I got to see her. :-) I picked her up late from the airport on Thursday and she got to surprise the children on Friday morning. They had no idea she was staying the night in our home. We miss her so much already. Here are a few pictures of our day with my Sissy. :-D Gotta love it! And here are some odds and ends type picture. The children thought is was great fun to throw their Aunt's money in the fountain (not mine though! LOL) And you know I just have to show some more of Special K. She is just too sweet!

Wednesday through Friday were wonderfully warm days. The children loved being outside, but they also brought the outside inside with them. As you can see here Sweet E had a wonderful time outside. She said she was making mud soup. And look at all the pretty flowers we found. :-) And to my surprise I found a bee along with them. I even caught the bee on video.

By: Kari Chapin Retail: $14.95 From the Publisher: Turn your craft into a successful business! Even the most expert crafters may find it challenging to market and sell their wares, but with Kari Chapin you have an experienced guide at your side. Learn to determine your cost of goods, set prices, identify the competition, and understand the ins and outs of wholesale and retail sales. Explore the various sales venues available, including independent craft fairs, Web sites such as Etsy, and traditional stores, and learn to maximize your visibility and sales in each one. Want to start your own Web site? Chapin shows you how to style and prop your crafts for photography and explains how the most popular Web marketplaces operate. You’ll find everything you need to turn your talent into profits. My Thoughts: Unfortunately I only received the book a couple of days ago. So without sufficient time to read the book I don't have an in depth review for you all. As I skimmed...

Price: $30-$50. Put out by: Exergen Corporation What is one of the first things to do when your child is sick? Take their temperature. Although with small children it can be very difficult. Forget taking a temperature orally when the children are little. There is no way they keep it in their mouth. And forget a rectal reading....NOT doing that. LOL :-D So I was so excited to have this opportunity to review the Exergen Temporal Scanner Thermometer . :-) My children absolutely love it and I do too! Here is a link to their FAQ's page . There is so much great info on their site, but I will just say again how much I like this product. Each thermometer is tested six times for accuracy before it's ever shipped out. I feel better knowing that the thermometer is withing +0.2 degree F. You can't get that orally or in the ear. You just lightly scan the forehead and that's it! It's great because I can take the children's temperature while they are sleeping and they ha...

Sweet E is on the left (6 months old) and bottom middle (1 week old). Special K is on the right (4 months) and top middle (1 week old).

I don't know why, but I have always had a hard time making Beloved's favorite cookie. The oatmeal raisin cookie. They would always spread out and not look good at all. (Although they would still get eaten. :-D ) Now that hubby is eating gluten free I figured it was about time to give the gluten free version a try. Here is the link to the recipe I used. Although I didn't use baking raisins (just regular ol' raisins for us.) and I used 1 c. sorghum flour, 1/4 c. tapioca starch and 1/4 c. of coconut flour. Yes we use butter in this house. Keep the margarine away! :-D I don't know what happened. I guess I got so focused on making the cookies I forgot to take anymore pictures until the finished product came out of the oven. ;-) Not only did they look pretty good, but they tasted wonderful too! I am so excited to have a good gluten free oatmeal raisin cookie for Beloved. I hope to make some the next couple of days to put into the freezer so I can add a cookie to his lun...