Taylor's Recipe Project: "Cinnamon Tortilla Yummies"

Everyone welcome my daughter, Taylor, as she guest posts today!  Her class was assigned a project requiring them to complete a recipe, document the recipe and take pictures. 

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Cinnamon Tortilla Yummies

by Chef Taylor

Ingredients

8 Flour Tortillas
1 stick Butter, melted
4 Tbl Sugar
2 tsp Cinnamon

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2.  Spread  melted butter on tortillas.

3.  Combine cinnamon and sugar in a bowl.

4.  Sprinkle mixture over tortillas.

5.  Using a pizza cutter, slice tortillas into 8 wedges each.

6.  Bake in oven 6 minutes or until crispy.

Enjoy your Cinnamon Tortilla Yummies! 

Empty Plate = Yummy Recipe

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Taylor loves being in the kitchen as much as I do!  Her recipe tastes great dipped in fruit salsa or my favorite --- used as an edible spoon for ice cream. 

Friday Night Sew-In

It's time for another Friday Night Sew-In!  Every month, the girls at Handmade by Heidi and Crafty Vegas Mom host a Friday Night Sew-In where they encourage crafters to spend the evening working on projects in progress, new projects, etc.  They even have a few giveaways each month.   It is just the motivation I need to get some more inventory ready for the Pendleton Fall Festival being held in a few weeks. 




I've had a booth at the Pendleton Farmers Market most weeks this summer in preparation for the fall festival.  It has been a ton of fun getting to sell my products and meet so many people in town.  Most weeks, I have taken both kids with me.  That has been fun... but definitely challenging! 

So.... tonight for Friday Night Sew-In I will be working on:

1. Cutting fabric for crayon rolls
2. Finishing a few luggage tags that are already cut out
3. Sewing a few Art Notebooks

Hopefully all will go as planned and I'll end the night with some more inventory to take to the Fall Festival.

Pattern Review & 2 MAJOR Clothing Redos!

Using this pattern:

Little Smarty Pants by Favorite Things

and these 2 atrocities purchased for $1 each at Goodwill:

women's size 18 pants

The UGLIEST corduroy pants I've ever seen!  Check out that massive split!

.... I created 2 cute pairs of shorts for my kiddos! 

This was my first time creating inset pockets.  Why did I wait so long???  They are so much easier than I thought they would be. 

Keep an eye out when scavenging those thrift store racks!  You'd be suprised at the things you can transform with a little creativity. 

Robot Messenger Bag

TJ had a backpack dilemma this year.  He had to have a backpack that would hold a folder, but it also had to be small enough that he could handle it.  A standard backpack is still way too big and his toddler sized backpack crushes folders.  Ideally, I would have ordered him a backpack from LL Bean, but I procrastinated.  And to be honest, I really didn't want to spend the money on top of all of the other school supplies I already had to buy. 

The solution:  a messenger bag. 

I used the toddler messenger bag pattern from the book One Yard Wonders.  I love this book so much!  I have already completed a few patterns from it and find it to be the perfect book for when I get the urge to sew and need something fast. 

One Yard Wonders

TJ wanted a robot on his bag, so this is what we came up with...

And it holds a folder perfectly! 

I used fusible web to applique the pieces and did some simple stitching around. 

A handy little pocket inside

Pattern Review: Insulated Lunch Bag (in 2 sizes!)

Lucky for me, I get to be best friends with a great new pattern designer, Becky Ann Designs.  This summer she released a great new PDF pattern for an insulated lunch bag.  Of course, once Taylor found out about it she wanted one for the new school year. 

She spent a solid half hour at the fabric shop looking for the perfect lunch box fabric.

I am thrilled to report that the pattern is simple and straight forward.  Becky does a great job at simplifying the process for beginners.  Plus, it comes in 2 sizes!  I made the large size for Taylor, so that it would accomodate her drink thermos as well as all of the food. 

And the best part?  You can make it with 2 fat quarters! 

You can find the pattern in Becky's shop online:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53820593/2-sizes-insulated-lunch-bag-pattern

The pattern is only $3.50 and is delivered to your email address within 24 hours in a PDF format.  It doesn't get any easier than that!

Weekly Menu Plan

August 25 - August 31

I know a Wednesday - Tuesday plan is not conventional, but it works with the way I grocery shop and the way we plan things around here!

Wednesday

Beef Enchiladas
Chicken Enchiladas


Thursday

Beef and Broccoli
Rice
Egg Rolls

Friday

Homemade Pizza and Breadsticks
Salad

Saturday

Lunch - Leftovers
Dinner - Date Night!


Sunday

Lunch - Sub Sandwiches
Dinner - Grilled Chicken, Baked Potatoes, Veggies

Monday

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce 
Salad

Tuesday

Chicken Fajitas
Chips and Salsa
Veggie Dippers

When the kids are away, Mom will play

Let me tell you.... summer kicked my ass.  This is the reason there have been no blog posts since June.  This summer was the first summer I had the hubby on U.S. soil AND the kids at home with me.

Up until a little over 2 years ago, I worked full time.  In May of 2008, I left that job for my current job, which allows me to work around the kids' school schedules.  When I made the job switch, Mr. Mudpie was in Afghanistan.  So this is the first time I've had all 3 of them here during the summer.   Let me tell you - it was a lot harder than I thought it would be! 

But summer is over now and school is back in session!  Last week we sent Taylor back to school....

On the way to orientation, the night before school

This was the best photo I could get  :(  She was ready to go!

And then this week TJ started back....

The boy who never stands still for a picture finally decided to pose!

More on that messenger bag coming soon!

Monday was the first day since May of having the house to myself for a few hours.  It was pure bliss!  It's too bad I have to actually go to work most of the time little man is in preschool.  I could totally get used to hanging out at home every morning by myself. 

Homemade Pizza Lunchables

Over summer break I was at the grocery store with the kids when Taylor starts pointing and doing the whole "can we get those? please!? I NEED them!" routine.  The girl was pointing at the Pizza Lunchables.  Now, I admit, I ate them when I was a kid and loved them.  As an adult, I think they are nasty. I get her point... they are fun and other kids at school have them.  However, the mom in me just can't get past the ingredient list though. 


So, we stood in front of the refrigerated case for a few minutes discussing what about it she liked and wanted.  (this is normal for us, we are total foodies and discuss everything ad nauseum)  Partway through this conversation she had a lightbulb moment.  "Can you make me HOMEMADE ones?"  Now that, little girl, I am ok with. 

Homeade Pizza Lunchables

makes 10 kits

Ingredients:


Pizza Dough of your choice (homemade, pillsbury, etc)
Pizza Sauce / leftover spaghetti sauce
Shredded Cheese
Toppings of choice


Directions:


1.  Make pizza dough according to directions and roll out onto a cookie sheet in large rectangle.  Bake according according to recipe's directions or until done. 

2.  Cool crust and cut into individual servings.  The number of servings you end up with will depend on the recipe you used and the size rectangle you made.  You know your kid.... cut into squares the size that they will eat.  

3.  Assembly:

You can do this a couple of different ways.  What we like best is to use the ziploc divided containers:

I put the sauce and cheese into the smaller sections. The toppings go in the large section and then I lay the crust on top of the toppings.

You can also put everything into snack size bags or individual containers if you like.  Again, you know what works for your family when it comes to packaging and containers.  Do what makes your life easiest!

4.  Put all of your pizza kits in the freezer and pat yourself on the back!  You just put several ready-to-go lunches in the freezer. 

To serve:  thaw the night before and throw it in a lunch box.  Don't forget to pack a spoon to spread the sauce! 

RECIPE REVIEW: Chicken-Bacon Stuffed Pizza Rolls

Oh. My. Goodness. RUN to your kitchen right now to make these!  I will be making several batches of different variations for the freezer.  They are definitely OAMC worthy. 

Our Best Bites: Chicken-Bacon Stuffed Pizza Rolls

They are absolutely incredible! I used my own pizza dough recipe (I put italian seasoning and garlic in the dough) for these, but otherwise followed the directions exactly. Which, I have to say is rare for me. I almost always start with a recipe and then end with something completely different by the time I finish "tweaking" it.

To make these freezer-friendly, assemble as the recipe states and then freeze the dough balls on a cookie sheet.  Once frozen, transfer to a freezer bag.  They are time consuming to make, so doing several batches at once and freezing will save a whole lot of prep time when I'm ready to serve them. 

The kids have already put in requests for Ham & Pineapple, Pepperoni, Sausage, and I am thinking that a Mushroom/Onion/Muenster Cheese combo would be awesome. 

Now go make some of these pronto!  I guarantee any man in your life would enjoy some of these today, since it's Father's Day. 

Introducing.... Daringly Donna

Guess what I've been working on the past few months?

The start of this:

Awesome logo courtesy of

photographer / graphic designer extraordinaire Angel Ruff.   

Want to see what Daringly Donna is all about? 

• Check out my Facebook Page. (and "like" me while you're there!). 
• Head on over to my Etsy Shop.  I'm in the beginning stages of adding items to my shop, but more will be added every day.

You can also find my goods at the Pendleton Farmers Market, beginning Thursday, June 3rd.  I'll be there every week, so come out and visit me! 

Menu Plan Monday: May 17 - 21

Weekly Menu Plan

May 17 - May 21

Monday

Marlboro Man Sandwiches
Mixed Berry Cobbler

Tuesday

Roast Turkey
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Veggies
(I'm out of broth, so I'm roasting the turkey in the deep freezer for the bones.  The hubby and kids won't complain about a little Thanksgiving dinner in May!)

Wednesday

Clean out the fridge night 

Thursday

BBQ chicken
Rice
Creamed Corn
Dessert = cookies at the preschool
(quick and easy night --- little man is singing at his pre-school's end of the year program)

Friday

Spaghetti Dinner with a group of friends

What is your family having for dinner this week? 

A Little Scarlet O'Hara Upcycle Project

Mother's Day Gift for Maw Maw (Mr. Mudpie's step-mom)

"Maw Maw" is an avid baker.  She is known for her beautiful cakes and her mean biscuits.  BUT, I think her true specialty is the little confections she gives all of us kids every year at Christmas.  All year, I look forward to receiving the bucket of yumminess from her.  Fudge, cookies, bon-bons, and my favorite..... chocolate covered cherries.  They are to die for.  So, an apron was only fitting.  You really can't have too many aprons.... they're like kitchen towels.  You can always use more. 

She likes wearing a specific style of apron, that is very different from the type of aprons I have made before.  She likes simple - I like girly ones that accentuate "the lovelies" as Mr. Mudpie calls them.  (Did I make you blush just then?!) 

Here's where the upcycle comes in:  When I picked out a window treatment for my kitchen window, the valance I wanted came with a set of 2 panels, which I didn't need.  Becky suggested a long time ago that they would make great aprons.  Perfect! 

I cut the curtain panel down, sewed a pocket and added some double fold binding, made from stash fabric.  It was a perfect gift for her, and I think she would be proud that I made it with materials on hand. 
Before (a lonely set of curtain panels): 

After (a cute, functional apron for Maw Maw to wear while making me goodies cooking dinner): 

Like this apron?  An identical one will be appearing in my about-to-open Etsy shop very soon! 

Fun at the Firehouse

Our local fire department hosted community day today.  Everyone in town was invited to come check out the fire department, climb in the trucks and eat some hot dogs.  Oh. my. goodness.  The chili they put on those hot dogs was out of this world.  Better than any chili I have ever eaten before. 

                   

(in case you didn't know... you can click photos to view larger)

The kids got to spray the fire hose to knock down traffic cones....

They got to climb in the trucks...

And drive an antique fire truck...

And climb up the GIANT ladder!...

Then TJ decided he doesn't like heights and begged the nice fireman to "get me down right now please"...

But the funniest part of the whole event was the fact that TJ is terrified of the Fire Dog.  He's never been scared of characters before, but this dog freaked him out.  Especially when he talked.  It was pretty funny.  Taylor, of course, had no fear and loves characters.  I took a picture of this, but was laughing so hard it came out blurry.  Oh well. 

It was a fun morning out!  We came home with full bellies and drenched in sweat.  Hope your Saturday was fun and a little less sweaty than ours!

Cabin Quilt: quilt top

Back in January, my mom and I went on a fabric run to find fabrics for a quilt she wanted me to make.  We ended up at Viking Sew & Quilt shop in Greenville, SC.  It's the sister shop to my local quilt shop, Heirlooms & Comforts.  We had already ordered two fabrics from Etsy, but we needed to find all of the others.  Viking did not dissapoint!  We got some great stuff, most of it on sale. 

And then it sat in a basket in my sewing space.  And sat some more.  I just could not get motivated to work on it.  It may have been the fact that we didn't really have a concrete plan in mind.  In February, I spent about an hour and ripped the focal fabric into 3 panels and bordered them all with a red print.  I also made some pinwheels with 2 of the other fabrics.  Then it all went back into the basket to sit until now.  The middle of May. 

Last night, I get the kids to bed, clear off the dining table and decide to sew SOMETHING.  I've been mass producing hair clips for the past week, so I wanted something non-girly to work on.  Out came the quilt basket.  After a few layouts, and some design consulting via Blackberry Messenger with Becky, I decided on the layout. 

So, at 9:30pm, I start cutting and sewing.  At 10:30pm I realize the darn thing is too small.  WAY to small.  So, I spend another hour playing with borders to come up with something that works.  Another hour of sewing on those borders and I finally have a quilt top.  At 12:30am, I hang it up on the wall to get a crappy-middle-of-the-night-with-my-camera-phone picture, step back and think "uh oh.  this thing is huge!"  

She wanted a throw quilt for her couch big enough for her and dad to snuggle under together.  I think this should do it! 

Unquilted Size:  55" x 78"  (a very generous sized lap quilt)

Next up:  Make the backing, baste, quilt and bind  

Hey Becky -- I see a basting party at the library in the near future! 

Saturday Fun Day

Saturday, I loaded up my two kiddos and two of their buddies for a morning of strawberry picking.  After about a dozen u-turns, getting a little bit lost, and one car-sickness emergency pit stop, we finally made it to the farm.  There was an abundance of strawberries in the field.  Red, bursting berries as far as the eye could see!  It was great!  And you'll have to just take my word on it, because we were having so much fun we didn't take a single picture.  I know, I know....

We finished up picking berries and it was only 9:30.  Hmmm.... what to do next?  We loaded up and headed for the playground before the rain hit.

After playing for a bit, we headed over to the soccer field to run off the sugar high from all of the strawberries.  The boys got tangled in the soccer net and we almost had to cut TJ out.  I have no idea how that boy gets his head stuck in so many random places! 

TJ and Evelyn decided they were going to pick flowers for the mommas.  So sweet! 

 
After all of this, we were getting seriously hungry for lunch.  And what fun day would be complete without a trip to see "the sample ladies" at Sam's???  Saturday just happened to be the Spring Tasting day, where they had about 16 sample stations set up.  We visited every single one of them.... well, except 2 that were offering energy drinks.  NO THANK YOU!  These kids need no help in that department! 

Let me tell you... all 4 kids made me proud.  They were so polite.  Every sample lady (and man) they visited, they said please, thank you, and have a nice day.  It warmed my heart.  Especially after seeing a couple brats running around and dropping food all over the floor.  grrrrr... where were there parents anyways?? 

The day continued with playdates at both of our houses, some flower pot painting, fruit kebob making and a meltdowns by both of my children.  Lets just say that I need to stock massive amounts of granola bars and take away the glitter baton when more than one elementary aged female is in the house. 

Hope your Saturday was fun-filled too!