Simple Christmas card; Digital stamp and recycled paper

Christmas card WOB Butterfly

Yesterday morning, I made this handmade card for my daughter’s third grade teacher. Included with the card was a lovely poinsettia plant. Because my daughter had too many items to carry, I went with her into school, poinsettia plant in hand.

Her teacher loved the plant, and she really liked the card also. In fact, she liked it so much that she commented about it again, once I picked my daughter up from school. For myself, it’s not a big deal, I enjoy creating things with my hands, but I was pleased that someone genuinely appreciated the item I’d made.  Her reaction, is the same one I have when someone makes me something that’s hand made. Even if the item is simple, I’m thrilled that someone has thought enough of me to take the time to craft something with their hands.

About the card

This is an ‘environmentally friendly’ card. The card was created from leftover scrap paper I had. The original paper is recycled paper I purchased from a local store. The small circle at the top of the tree, was actually a soda can.

More on what you can do with soda cans and a die cutting machine (such as a Cuttlebug) in a later post.

Although you can’t see it, the ‘butterfly’ is actually raised above the card. So it’s not flush on the Christmas tree. To get the raised effect you can use pop dots or you can get creative like I did, and use some other material to raise your creation off the card. Since I didn’t have my homemade pop dots, I made do with some moveable eyes.

The picture is actually a coloring page. I shrunk the image, printed it on regular printing paper, and colored it with my Bic Mark It pens. To make it ‘Christmasy’ I added a Christmas tree. Which is actually a triangle I cut myself, glitter was included to bring a bit of sparkle to the card.

Photography: No frost but…

Yesterday morning, I noticed our outside world was blanketed with frost. It was breathtaking, and I paused for a few moments to soak in its beauty.

In my mind I thought about the photos I’d take after I dropped my daughter off at school. Upon my return home, I became sidetracked with a variety of household chores, and so by the time I did venture outside the frost was gone.

Autumn Clematis 1

Autumn Clematis

I did console myself by taking a picture of the Autumn Clematis you see above. This is how it looks during it’s dormant season. I actually prefer this over it’s flowering stage. It’s gorgeous! Additionally I snapped a shot of the rose you see below.

 

Rose 1 12 14 11

Rose

Mr. Bentley, our Shih Tzu, eagerly joined me on my outside adventure. While I was snapping photos, Mr. B was marking his territory on various objects throughout our yard.

Mr Bently 1 11 13 11

Mr. Bentley, sniffing out trouble

I didn’t manage to get the photos of frost, but there will be other days to capture those pictures. I still was happy with some of the pictures I managed to take.

I don’t need photos to remind me how beautiful the world where I live is, however having them makes it easier to share portions of my world with others.

 

Time to breathe; Christmas is almost here…

Nativity scene

With the flurry of activities that are associated with the upcoming holidays, I imagine there are some that might be surprised that I’m finding the time to relax — but I am.

I volunteered with the Christmas musical, Journey to the Manger, and made some really cute — but appropriate Christmas ornaments for the “Depression themed” Christmas tree for the Christmas musical. I’ll have too share pictures of what I made in a later post.

Last week was extremely busy, with the rehearsals and performances (piano recital and Christmas musical) my daughter was involved with.All those events ended this past Sunday,  and now I have time to relax.

I am helping organize the third grade Christmas party for my daughters class, however that’ll be a breeze compared to last week.

Because of my lighter schedule, I have a bit more time to get creative in the kitchen, take more pictures of the great outdoors, and of course work on a variety of crafts; crochet, sewing, jewelry making, and making cards. I’m currently working on a food recipe post, and will post that later this week.

Question: If you celebrate the holidays, what are some of the activities you’re doing?

Photo Source: Free Republic

Where has the time gone?

Christmas cookies

You know… it seems like “just the other day” when my daughter and I built that snow fort — in our front yard. That happened in January 2011, and now we’re quickly approaching the end the new year.

It’s been an eventful year, filled with the accomplishments, challenges, and a few unexpected deaths that invaded our lives, but I cannot complain.

This school year, my daughters involved in a lot more activities. She still plays piano, but know she’s involved with a choir group which meets every Wednesday (right after school). I’m still volunteering with her schools class, and now the church — and so my hands are full.

Thus far, this has been my busiest week in December . My daughter has a musical rehearsal on Saturday, later that day she has her piano recital, and Sunday is the Christmas musical.

Christmas Decorations

Our church is having a Christmas musical, and I’ve offered to make decorations for the Christmas trees. The play is set in during the depression era, and so the decorations that I’m creating are items you’d most likely see on a Christmas tree from that period — well for those who could afford a tree.

Christmas Baking

As a child, decorating Christmas cookies in anticipation for the upcoming holiday was something I always looked forward too. I have many fond memories of decorating cookies with my mother. The kitchen was warm, and my brother and I were able to choose a cookie cutter to cut our Christmas butter cookies. My favorite was the Christmas tree cookie cutter. My brother wasn’t as particular, and would pick any cookie cutter that was free.

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Saucy; Homemade pizza

Vegetarian pizza 1 Pardon the blur on this picture. Yesterday, I snapped a few pizza shots, before putting it on the table. Perhaps I should have tweaked it in Aperture 3.

Yesterday, was the day to satisfy my craving, and so homemade pizza(s) were on the menu.I made two; cheese and veggie with no cheese. Years ago, I stumbled upon a truly delightful cheese-less pizza. The vegetables included introduced a mild sweetness which worked wonderfully with the tangy pizza sauce. I fell in love with cheese-less pizzas, and immediately wanted to run home and try to duplicate it in my own kitchen.

Over the years, I’ve tested quite a few veggies on my cheese-less pizzas. My favorite ways to prepare them are with oven roasted vegetable; Sweet onions, oven roasted garlic, Red bell pepper, shitake mushrooms… Those vegetables work so well together, and make a pizza that’s bursting with flavor.

Pizza is normally made once per month in our household. Because I make a variety, my daughter gets to sample a lot of different pizzas, but I think her favorite is the cheese pizza. She still scarfs down the cheese-less pizzas too.

Bonding at mealtime

I’d put the pizzas in the oven about an hour before it was time to get my daughter,  so they were still hot when we arrived home from her school. Pizza smells greeted us, upon opening the house door. “Pizza!” was my daughters happy cry. She put her schoolbooks away, and quickly returned so we could eat our meal.

The kitchen is one of my places to get creative; mealtimes are a time for both of us to unplug.  She gets a break from the demands of school, and she has my full attention. She quickly filled me in on the days events at school, while she quickly demolished several pieces of both pizzas (cheese and veggie). That girl can eat! I guess she’s a lot like myself, her metabolism is high — so she can eat anything.

Colorful pizza crusts

We both like flavorful crusts, and I’ll add a variety of things (usually seasonings) to the crust. Nothing overpowering, more like a nice complement to the toppings on the pizza.

Occasionally, my daughter asks me to color the pizza crust. I’ll ‘dye’ the crusts with the appropriate colored vegetable juice. One time my daughter wanted an orange crust. I added a bit if carrot juice to the dough. Then she wanted a cranberry colored crust. I added beet juice. Green was another request, juiced greens were added. You get the picture… Although some of the ingredients might sound weird, and not too appealing at all (if you aren’t big on those vegetables) but the crusts are delicious. The flavor doesn’t overpower the pizza crust. Also, the seasonings added (to the crust) complement the pizza. )

These days, I rarely order a pizza, because my daughter is used to the freshness of our homemade pizzas, and it can be hard to find a restaurant that duplicates that.

Ok, so now my pizza craving has been satisfied but now I’m craving hummus with Creamy Dhal or a Dry Chana Masala.;)

Question: What are some foods you enjoy making?

Food cravings: A bit spicy…

Stir fry vegetables

We all experience cravings, right? The past few days my daughter has been craving dark leafy greens. Raw or cooked?  It doesn’t matter; my eight-year old daughter loves eating dark leafy greens.

I’m an early riser (usually awake by 4:00 am — today I was awake at 2:30 am). After a few hours of work, I decided to make her some homemade hash browns. What began as hash browns turned into a completely different dish. By the time, I was through I had prepared a lightly sauteed vegetable dish. It was delicious, nutritious, and simple to make.

What’s in this dish? Kale, carrots, onion, tomato, carrots, ginger, curry, and a sprinkle of sea salt all make an appearance in this dish. The kale was especially tender since I’d picked them from our garden this morning. I’m happy that dark leafy greens can be planted/harvested during the cooler months. It means that my daughter and I eat fresh greens for most of the year.

It’s interesting to see how my daughters taste buds have developed (as she’s gotten older). If I’d have prepared this a few years ago, the added ginger and curry would have been too spicy for her, but now she quite enjoys the extra kick.

Because the kale leaves were huge,  I used only about two leaves in the above dish. The rest has been set aside to include into a smoothie.

My daughters cravings for greens had been satisfied, and she went off to school happy that I’d remembered her request. I’ll eat greens anytime, but recently I’ve been craving a homemade pizza. I’m thinking about making one later today.

Question: Recently, have you had any food cravings? If so share in the comment section.