Lorajean's Magazine,

cookie recipe : Chocolate Dipped Orange Logs

2012-01-25T18:43:00.000-07:00

Hello, I am just re-posting the recipe I shared over on MADE in December.

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I am so excited to share one of my favorite holiday cookie recipes; Chocolate-Dipped Orange Logs! I love eating fruit in its season, It makes our Christmas time that much more special because this is the only time of year we buy oranges! :) These cookies use the peels to give them a tasty orange flavor. I don't know why it is but chocolate and orange always go together so well, and the end result is such a yummy mouth watering cookie that you will want to eat three batches! (OK maybe that's just me.)

The recipe is fairly simple, the cookie making part goes pretty fast and kind-of makes up for the time it takes to dip each one in chocolate. Another thing I love about this recipe is you can prepare and refrigerate the dough a day or two a head of time.

Chocolate Dipped Orange Logs

Ingredients:

3 ¼ cups all purpose flour
⅓ teaspoon salt
1 cup real butter, softened (none of that fake margarine stuff)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 teaspoons freshly grated orange peel ( I say fresh because once I tried to refrigerate some orange peel over night and it dried up and didn’t work at all)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 package of semi sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
Combine flour and salt then set aside
In separate bowl cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer, beat till fluffy
Beat in eggs one at a time
Beat in orange peel and vanilla
Stir in flour and salt mixture
Roll dough into 1in. balls
Roll balls into log shapes and place 1in. apart on greased cookie sheets
Bake for 16-18 min (till bottoms are golden brown)
Cool cookies on wire rack (cookies should harden as they cool)
Melt chocolate and dip each cookie in half way
Place dipped cookies on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper
Let chocolate cool and harden. ( If you are impatient like me you can put them in the freezer for a few minuets to set the chocolate faster.)
Makes about 36 cookies

There you have it! A wonderfully delicious cookie you'll want to share with your friends and neighbors! I am making theses cookies today to give out as we go caroling.

And because I can’t share treats without cute packaging, I am making origami boxes with windows to handout the cookies in. You can see my tutorial on how to make origami boxes here on my blog, and learn how to add a window in it here.

no sew applique shirt

2012-01-20T14:41:00.003-07:00

A few weeks ago I made Lizzy an shirt with a girls face on it. I really love how it turned out! I did some sewing to make the eyes nose and mouth but no sewing at all to attach it to the shirt!

It's ironed on!

Trent took the nice camera ( a Nikon D-80 if you're curious) with him today, to take photos for paintings, so the kid's digital camera will have to do for today. I actually really like how the photos look with this camera. (I did have to warm them up a bit in Photoshop though.)

I am for sure going to post about how I did it as soon as I get some quality time with the nice camera.

Chinese Birthday Party

2012-01-18T14:41:00.003-07:00

Last summer my daughter Lizzy had a Chinese themed Birthday party. For almost the entire year she had been in love with all things China. She pretty much knew that China would be the theme for her birthday 6 months ahead of time. 2011 was the year when everyone had small family birthdays and fairly simple decorations. We try to have low key parties every other year so the kids don't expect a huge circus of a bash every year, plus it gives me a needed party planning break. :)

It was super simple and really fun! I purchased the takeout boxes,the fortune cookies, and the chop sticks at the dollar store. What really made the party special was when we ate the ramen noodles in the take out boxes with chop sticks! Oh and if you don't have a birthday to plan this would be a great Chinese New Year party idea.

In love with the cowl scarf

2012-01-17T17:34:00.000-07:00

I have been on a knitting and crocheting kick these past few weeks. I have especially been in love with making cowl scarves. I made one for my sister Mer, and I also made one for my little sister. I didn't stop there either, my daughter has one and so do I! :) I have a few available on my Etsy shop right now if you want one, and If you want one in a different color just let me know and I'll be sure and make one to order just for you!

I am planning on selling patterns as well as finished products so if you knit or crochet be sure an check back soon. In fact, I just finished a new scarf I made as a knitting pattern prototype and I really like how it turned out! It is long, really stretchy, and can be worn three ways. I'll be sure and let you know when the pattern is ready and in my Little Lola's shop. For some reason you can't tell I'm 7 1/2 months pregnant in these photos and I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. hmm.

stuff in the shop

2012-01-17T11:49:00.001-07:00

I just recently added some still life prints and crocheted items to my Etsy shop Little Lolas. I plan on adding some crochet patterns as well. I am super excited because I am working on crocheted toy patterns and I can't wait to share them when they are finished!

thinking about valentines

2012-01-16T12:39:00.000-07:00

I figure now is a good time to start thinking about Valentines Day. I am not really sure what I am going to do this year though. I don't want to decorate yet but I should start thinking of what I want to do for the kid's class valentines. As many of you know we home-school, so by "class" I mean Sunday school class.

Above is a photo I took last year when we made cute heart shaped sugar cookies. They were super yummy!
Honestly though, I am not really feeling the love for Valentines this year. Probably because last year we had a Valentines tree and decorations up right after New Years and I started hating the holiday since it was up for so long. This year we didn't do a Valentines tree and its nice because the house feels clean and organized. :) Sorry, I don't mean to sound like I'm hating on Valentines I really love it I am just not ready to go full force filling my house with cupids and glittered hearts. I think minimalism is my Valentines motto this year. You know the 'less is more" route.

If you want to see what we have done for Valentines crafts and decorating in the past click here. :)

yummy yarn

2012-01-11T00:28:00.002-07:00

I mentioned earlier this week that my mom sent me a huge box of yarn. It really was enormous! These 2 photos show approximately one 6th of all the yarn in that package! I am so excited to get started on some projects for the baby! :) I have plans for a granny square blanket and some baby layettes. The bright colored yarns are sure to become little crocheted dolls and toys eventually. I am so excited! once I finish a few I'll be sure and share the finished projects. :)

a last second birthday party

2012-01-08T00:43:00.000-07:00

My youngest son's 2nd birthday was in the middle of December and I'm ashamed to say it totally caught me off guard this year. I knew it was coming up all month but somehow when the day before came I realized I was under prepared. With the help of my daughter we somehow managed to get a good looking party thrown together!

Lizzy was very helpful in choosing the colors of the steamers and putting them up by herslf. I made the fastest cake ever, cornflake marshmallow treats tossed into a bunt pan, & attempted to make orange frosting, but somehow it ended up being pink. It went great with the streamers so I went with it. The party hats were leftover from a party we had a few years ago.

The party decorations a cake were thrown together super fast but the thing I am most proud of is the super quick crochet doll I made of Perry the Platypus! He was instantly loved!

a simple gift

2012-01-06T14:40:00.002-07:00

I made my sister Mer a crocheted circle cowl scarf for christmas and my little sis saw it and begged me to make one for her too. She picked out the yarn she wanted and mailed it to me the other day. I made it a little different than Merrilee's (which I never did get a photo of). This one is made with a shell stitch and Merrilee's is a basic double crochet. I am mailing it off asap so be sure to check the mail in a few days little sis. :)

greatest form of flattery

2012-01-04T23:26:00.000-07:00

Today we woke up to find that the delivery man had dropped off a great big package filled with yarn from my mom and sister-in-law (it was part of a family fund-raiser). In the package of yarn were a few after-Christmas presents, including a cute little toy digital camera. Lizzy immediately seized the opportunity, and continued taking photos for at least an hour; these are a few of the photos she shot. Without any prompting or suggestions, she took some very familiar-looking photos of things in my craft room. (Interestingly, the lower quality of the images kind of makes for a neat vintage-y Polaroid-esque feel).

Getting organized

2012-01-03T16:15:00.000-07:00

My guest bedroom / craft room has just received a much needed cleaning and reorganizing. Maybe it's because I spent every night in there during the week leading up to Christmas. I practically sewed my fingers off in that room and got frustrated when I couldn't find something I really needed time after time.
I probably should have taken some before pictures to show what this room looked like. It always looks the worst when I'm in the middle of a project, and I was working on at least 5 Christmas sewing projects simultaneously, and don't get me started on how many presents I wrapped in there! The shelving unit was a mess, the floor was covered with thread, wrapping paper and a little of this and that strewn about everywhere! Now I feel at peace when I'm in there, and I can actually find and reach everything I need! :)

My craft room has moved around a-lot through the years. Lets hop in a time machine and look at all its different stages.

In 2006 it was in a little corner of the TV room

Then in 2008 when we moved the kids room upstairs I moved my craft stuff into its own room.

In 2010, when Trent was getting ready for a big show and our house was quite literally overflowing with frames and shipping boxes, I donated my craft room to storing his paintings and frames, and my craft space was back in the corner of the TV room again. But I tried to make it feel new by adding an inspiration board. This desk is still there but is now used only for homeschooling and computer time (AKA netflix).

This spring Trent built a shed to store his frames and such, so I had my craft room back! It was a big mess and was pretty much begging to get reorganized.

I don't know if its nesting or the starting of a new year but I have spent the past weekend cleaning and organizing this room and I am determined to get my whole house organized and de-cluttered before this baby girl comes in March!

Here's to a new year full of clean organized spaces!

Featured in Molly Makes

2011-12-31T00:55:00.003-07:00

A few months a go I was asked if my crochet nesting cups could be featured in the January issue of Molly Makes magazine. It was the first I'd heard of the magazine because it is published in the UK but once I saw a little of what they were all about I was totally on board! Serious eye candy!! :) Even though its just a little blurb it is still super exciting!!

If you are interested you can subscribe to Mollie Makes through thislink:

http://www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/stitch-craft/mollie-makes-magazine-subscription/

and download the iPad version here:

http://goo.gl/qzprk

Christmas cookies

2011-12-23T16:40:00.000-07:00

I baked cookies all day yesterday and folded origami boxes all day today and here is the result.

We're planning on going caroling tonight and these are the treat boxes we're giving away. I made 13 boxes and each box has 13 goodies inside! I guess 13 is a lucky number as long as cookies are involved! I made Chocolate Peppermint Marshmallow Bark, raspberry and orange jam filled Thumbprints, and our family's favorite cookies, Chocolate Dipped Orange Logs! I am over on Dana's blog today sharing the recipe for chocolate dipped orange logs so go check it out!

wrapping inspiration

2011-12-21T14:16:00.000-07:00

I am wrapping up a storm over here and I thought I'd share some images that inspire me to get creative with my Christmas wrapping. These and many other great packaging ideas are all on my packaging, wrapping and gift boxes pintrest page.

Source: decor8blog.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: homelife.com.au via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: acreativemint.typepad.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: hegegreenall-scholtz.blogspot.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: ohhellofriendblog.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Featured on : elleadore.com

2011-12-01T12:02:00.001-07:00

I am happy to let you all know about a french online magazine called Elle Adore that featured my packaging today! I am flattered to have my packages showcased with so many other beautiful and creative ones.

If you can read french here is the link to the article on creative Christmas packaging.

To go to the other pages of the article and see the images larger, just click the button at the bottom right of the article that says "Suivant".

Made by you : Origami advent

2011-11-29T14:02:00.001-07:00

Check out the advent calendar Delia made using my origami advent tutorial. I really love how she lined everything up and framed it! :) Awesome!
Have you make something using one of my tutorials? Send me a photo or a link to your blog post where the photo is and I'd love to share it here on my blog! :) Just e-mail me.

saltdough cookie ornament in origami box

2011-11-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to post a link to my salt dough cookie ornament recipe for those who don't already know about it yet. These are sill some of my most favorite ornaments. And don't forget the origami box with a window to put them in.

origami advent calendar

2011-11-25T16:21:00.001-07:00

With December 1st coming up I thought I should re-post the advent post I did for Whatever Dee Dee wants last year. I edited it a bit so if you want to see the one I did for Dee Dee go here.

With the economy the way it is these days, I am very thankful for affordable paper crafts. I don’t want to spend my money on crafts when I need to be saving it for the holidays. With that in mind I decided to make an advent calendar from paper grocery bags. This is nice because not only is it recycled and therefore great for the environment, but it is also free. :)

Last year each box held a bit of candy, creating a yummy way to countdown to Christmas, but this year I think I'll add some scriptures to read, and activities, or acts of service to do as a family.

To make this you need:

5 paper grocery bags
number stamps
white craft paint

Here are the steps:

Cut 50 squares (6in x 6in) out of the 5 paper grocery bags
Fold 25 lids and 25 bottoms. (Here is a video I made teaching how to fold larger boxes using wallpaper, the tiny boxes in this advent arefolded the exact same way but with 6in x 6in paper.)
Stamp, stencil or hand paint the numbers
Fill with candy , scriptures, or activities and acts of service to do as a family.

I displayed my advent in a nook that has 5 little shelves, how convenient, but you can display these any way you like. You could line them up on you mantle, stack them up like a pyramid, or even hot glue them to poster board and hang them up on the wall. Happy crafting!

vintage inspired Christmas village

2011-11-25T15:50:00.001-07:00

Last year after Christmas was over I spotted this awesome vintage looking village on A feild journal and fell in love! I became obsessed with making a vintage village too. I love how they turned out. If I get around to it I'll make a pattern for you all to make a little village too! :)

my christmas mantle

2011-11-08T15:49:00.000-07:00

So we put up our Christmas trees this past weekend but I have a confession, we decorated our mantle the day after Halloween! :) :) The felt trees are from my glittered felt Christmas tree tutorial that I posted last year. I'm thinking of making more in different sizes and covering the entire mantle with them. I don't know if I really will, the silver pots and candle sticks are usually a permanent mantle decoration. What do you think?

We need a little Christmas

2011-11-07T18:14:00.001-07:00

We put our Christmas trees up this weekend! :) (Yes you read that right.) We are strong believers in making Christmas last as long as possible! Why not make the spirit of joy and giving last longer than one month a year. :) We all need a little Christmas sometimes.

Christmas Sale in my etsy shop

2011-11-03T17:54:00.001-06:00

Last year I listed this awesome snowman in my etsy shop but I listed him too close to Christmas and he didn't sell. Now he is back up and on sale for $100!! So head on over the my Etsy shop and snatch him up!!

Haunted house

2011-10-31T16:24:00.000-06:00

On Sunday night we realized that our house is haunted!! ;) We even have photographic proof take a look.

I was trying to snap photos of the kids with their jack-o-lanterns and the settings on the camera were wrong (the exposure was super long). The first photo I took looked was blurry and when Everett walked into the shot he looked like a white ghostly blur. I shot more and realized I could make the kids look more like ghosts if I got out the tripod. I had the kids walk around slowly and then stay in one spot at the end of a long exposure. We were having so much fun that even Trent joined in with the candelabra to see what that did. The bottom photo with light shooting out of Lizzy's chest is the result. Spooky and awesome right? Hope you all have a slightly spooky but super safe Halloween tonight! :) Happy haunting!

knight costume

2011-10-31T15:57:00.000-06:00

I finished the knight costume and I have to say it turned out awesome!! Alex loves it! I cut the tunic out of fleece and did a freezer paper stencil of a similar dragon to the one they have in the Narnia movies. I used masking tape as a stencil for the gold border. As you already know I crocheted the "chain-mail" hood & you can find the pattern I made right here. Later I crocheted tubes so he could have chain-mail on his arms also. After seeing this tutorial, I made craft foam armor for his arms, legs, and shoulders. I used silver spray paint but probably would use regular craft paint next time because the spray paint rubs off easily. He absolutely loves it, can you tell? :)

fairy costume

2011-10-29T11:29:00.001-06:00

Here is the finished fairy costume I made for Lizzy. I am so happy with how it came together and so is she!! Her request was that it was a "wow" costume. Last year she said everyone said wow to her brothers fully lit robot costume and never noticed the owl standing next to him, and I am sad to say she was right. Even a hand made adorable owl doesn't get the "wow" when there's an awesome robot with blinking lights. So, as you can see, I went all out for her costume trying to make sure it was a "wow" costume. I think the entire outfit as a whole comes together and creates the wow but if I had to choose the piece that adds the finishing touch it has to be the felt flower crown / head piece. It has glitter all over each flower and adds a goddess feel to the entire costume. the dresses is just a simple chiffon rectangle with a hole in the top and sides for her head and arms. The head hole was cut extra big and has elastic in it to gather is together and give it a Grecian feel. It would still look like a bag if it weren't for the long ribbons that tie on the wings, they criss cross over her chest gathering the dress in and making it look more finished and pretty. She wears a leotard and tights under the dress for modestly since chiffon is sheer, but the costume is made to be able to wear a long sleeve top and leggings underneath to keep her warm. I made gloves so that on Halloween night she wouldn't freeze her little fairy fingers off. They're just dollar bin gloves from Joe-Annes. I cut out leaf shapes from felt and glittered them, then simply hot glued them onto the wrist to make a bracelet effect. the wings I made after seeing this how to video on you tube. I loved the idea of burning holes into the nylons to make the wings seem more fragile and petite. After I shaped the wigs and put on the base coat of pink and green paint, I had my Trent help me with the hole burning and painting the brown vein accents. Thanks honey! :) I then finished the look by glittering and gluing jewels all over the place.

When it was done she wore it to a fall festival trick or treat at the gardeners market and got tons of audible "wows", I think my job here is done!

announcment

2011-10-27T12:26:00.000-06:00

We went to the doctor this Tuesday and found out that we're having a girl!! We are all so excited, even the boys wanted a girl! Immediately after leaving the doctors we all went to the thrift store to celebrate! I had given almost all my girl clothes away during my last pregnancy when I found out I was having another boy. I am not regretting giving them away because most of them were not that awesome any way. I kept all the best ones, but that wasn't very much. I have to say the pink dress is my most fave! I bought it a month ago hoping I was having a girl. I figured if I had a boy I would turn it into doll clothes or give it as a gift. All the other outfits I bought at the thrift store Tuesday. The pink bonnet is something I crocheted for Lizzy when she was a baby and I am still in love with the colors and design. I'll have to throw a pattern together sometime. It is super easy to make. I found all the quilt fabrics at thrift stores throughout the past year. I went through all the fabrics and put together a girly collection. The color pallet kind of evolved and I really like how it turned out. :) I am so excited to be having a girl! I have so many ideas for sewing and crocheting her clothes! I'll be sure and share them as they come to be. Take care!

Free pattern: Crochet knight hood

2011-10-26T23:40:00.000-06:00

As promised I am giving the instructions on how to crochet the knight hood / hat I posted about last week. (he was so proud of his dog picture and having him hold it was the only way he would pose for a photo :) he said "it looks just like a real dog!")

Yarn: Red heart worsted 4

Hook: USK 10.5 / 6.5mm

Here is a key for all the abbreviations I use.

dc = double crochet

ch = chain

sl st = slip stitch

rep = repeat

sk = skip

beg = beginning

rnd = round

Ch 4, join with a sl st to form a ring.

Rnd 1: ch 2 for first dc, 12 dc in ring, sl st to top of beg ch.

(13 stitches counting the ch 2.)

Rnd 2: ch 2 for first dc, 2 dc into every dc, sl st to top of beg ch.

Rnd 3: ch 2 for first dc, 3 dc into every other dc, sl st to top of beg ch.

Rnd 4: ch 2 for first dc, dc in 1 dc, *2 dc in 1 dc, dc in next 2 dc, rep from *, sl st to top of beg ch.

Rnd 5: ch 2 for first dc, dc in each dc, sl st to top of beg ch.

Repeat rnd 5 nine more times (or till edge of hat reaches eyebrows)

(Now you are going to make the face opening by only stitching the back and sides.)

Row A: ch 2 for first dc, dc in each dc for 35 stitches, (flip work around to start next row on top of the stitches you just finished).

Repeat row A five more times back and forth with 36 stitches each row counting the ch2.

At the end of the 5th row don't ch2 and flip work around. Ch 18 & sl st to top of beg ch to begin stitching in rounds again and create the collar.

Collar rnd 1: ch 2 for first dc, dc in each dc and all 18 ch st, sl st to top of beg ch.

Collar rnd 3: repeat collar rnd 1

Collar rnd 4: repeat collar rnd 1

Collar rnd 5: repeat collar rnd 1

Collar rnd 6: ch 2 for first dc, dc in 1 dc, *2 dc in 1 dc, dc in next 2 dc, rep from *, sl st to top of beg ch.

Repeat rnd 6 three more times, fasten off and thread extra yarn into the hat.

You're done!

Let me know if you have any questions. :) I'll be posting the full finished costumes soon!

halloween decorations

2011-10-21T13:02:00.001-06:00

This year it was really hard to get our decorations to look like a pretty display instead of an ugly junk collection. I re-arranged all our figurines and things a million times and couldn't figure it out. Finally I remembered how one of my favorite local boutiques arranged their Halloween displays. By color! When I tried it on our stuff our home transformed! It no-longer looked like a junk shop, It looked cute and intentional. I have to say that the black paper spikes I added to the mantle added that final touch. I got that idea from All Sorts. I remembered seeing and loving her Halloween mantle years ago. My Halloween letters were inspired by her as well I think.

making costumes

2011-10-20T17:29:00.003-06:00

I have been having more fun making costumes this year than any other year for sure! My oldest son is being a knight and my daughter is being a flower fairy. When my son said he wanted to be a knight I knew right a way that I wanted crochet some chain-mail armor. The pattern I made is simple and if I don't procrastinate I'll post the pattern here on my blog before Halloween. When my daughter said she wanted to be a fairy I was super excited! I LOVE fairies! She showed me this fairy from our fairy book illustrated by Cicely Mary Barker and I was smitten! I changed the leaf hat to a flower wreath / crown because I knew it would be fun to make it out of glittered felt flowers. I used my flower tutorial as well as some other tutorials like this one, and this one, and i made up some new little ones for more variety.
There is so much more to the two costumes than the head pieces but I'll share it all after I'm finished with everything.

Last years costumes

2011-10-05T11:19:00.003-06:00

I just realized that I never posted pictures of the costumes I made for the kids last year. It was probably because I finally finished them on Halloween day. There was a robot with real lights, a pretty little owl and baby robin hood. I cant wait to get working on this years costumes. If only they would make up their minds. :)

What costumes are you making this year?

Into the halloween spirit!

2011-09-19T17:28:00.002-06:00

I have to tell you all the secret I have been keeping... I'm pregnant!! I am about three months along now and we're so happy! This is one of the reasons I have not been blogging much. I just feel so blah! (The other reason being that I am now homeschooling two kids instead of one and it takes most of my time up.) I have to say that Halloween has me crafting again though!! Trent and I just finished painting the two vintage inspired pumpkin treat buckets last night! We really love how they turned out!! September is totally a Halloween month for us! Wanna see our Halloweens past? Take a look here, here, and here!

what a day

2011-08-05T14:07:00.000-06:00

It's my birthday today and I couldn't ask for more than this to make the day perfect!

Pirate Party {annual family reunion}

2011-07-18T18:18:00.344-06:00

As many of you know, my family goes all out when it comes to parties. Every July 4th we have a family reunion. This years was a pirate theme. It was fantastical! Everyone dressed up in pirate garb and we did various pirate things such as: having a pirate sing-a-long, painting tattoos, cannon wars, swimming, photo booth and much more. Before the day of the party many of us went to see the Real Pirates Exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, where we got to touch the only real pirate treasure discovered in U.S. waters, and learn about really real pirates. It got people in the mood for the party. I though it was interesting when we learned that many became pirates to have freedom from slavery or dictatorship. We all feel so blessed to be living in the land of the free where we can have the freedom to worship God as we please, and where we are able to enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, free from oppression or fear! (In other words, we have no need to become real pirates at this time, but it's fun to pretend)! :)

For the party my parents transformed their patio deck into a ships' deck. The jolly roger was hoisted up on the mast and the below deck area was designated for the grand kids to play as the ships' cook, making all kinds of fun creations with Grandma's collection of food toys.

In the Muppet Treasure Island movie (a family favorite) a silly half-whit character (played by Fozzie the Bear) refers to the ocean as the big blue wet thing. Therefore we thought it both hilarious and appropriate to put a sign by the pool that said "big blue wet thing". Swimming and playing on the slip 'n' slide are always things we look forward to when visiting grandma and grandpas house!

My Brother and Sister-in-law set up an awesome pirate trading post. They brought a collection of inexpensive or thrifted pirate-y treasures for the kids to take by trading rocks and other found objects. This was a huge hit with the kids. They were so enamored with the fact that they could really keep the fantastical treasures they traded for. So fun!

There was a pirate ship water table for the youngest buccaneers to play at (which they loved), and each grandchild received a bucket of booty to take home. Our inflatable pirate dummy joined in all the fun and his pirate-y presence was just what the party needed. Probably the best thing of all was that my dad built working cannons from black PVC and fire extinguishers! The extinguishers created realistic looking smoke as they propelled Styrofoam balls all the way across the the yard! We had such fun battling it out in cannon wars!

Dead Man's Tree was so much fun. Branches were cut and cleared out under a huge pine tree creating a magical hollow where the kids played with pirate action figures. I remember crawling under that tree as a little girl pretending it was my secret hiding place. It was really great seeing my kids play under there, too-- pure magic! Now that it is trimmed and cleared out, adults can go in and even stand up! From the outside you would never guess there was so much room.

Dinner was served at a long table under three white tents. Pirate lanterns and seashells decorated the table, and candelabras were hung under each tent. We had a yummy variety of toppings to put on our hot dogs. I never thought peaches would be good on a hot dog but I was surprised to find that, combined with the right toppings, it was my favorite. It was delicious!

For dessert we ate red white and blue dipped strawberries. I loved these! Just looking a the pictures makes my mouth water. (My friend, Liberty, created an amazingly fun pirate cake--complete with chocolate cake ship with sails, and swedish fish swimming in the "ocean", but I neglected to get a good picture of it).

I took it upon myself to make sure everyone was tattooed. It was really a fun little quest of sorts. I went around with a paint brush and a bottle of black craft paint and asked if anyone needed a tattoo. My brother-in-law Jon got really into it and came back more than once for more tattoos.

I manned the photo booth where people dressed as pirates to pose for the camera. Many of us just wore the costumes we came in and that made it even better! Everyone got really creative. Some came in hand-sewn, cute matching outfits and others came in thrift store finds that looked super authentic. The photo booth was pretty popular and by the end of the day my feet hurt from standing behind the camera almost the whole time.

Then Jon (my brother in law who happens to be a superb actor) took all the kids on a treasure hunt! He spoke like a pirate and was in character the entire time...it was pretty hilarious! I didn't get any photos of it because it was at the point where my feet hurt and I didn't want to stand any more.

I think this is the best reunion party we have had so far! We all got really into it and had a great time! I can't wait 'til next year!

Celebrating: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2

2011-07-15T14:50:00.000-06:00

I you have read my blog for more than six months you'll know that my family is obsessed with Harry Potter. I threw my daughter a Harry Potter birthday and made her doll Harry Potter accessories and clothes. Today part two of the 7th movie came out and we are celebrating! The kids are dressed up and we have Harry Potter themed snacks like, licorice wands and gummy frogs ( I couldn't find chocolate ones). Hope all you Wizards and Muggles have a magical day!

Pirate party preview

2011-07-10T23:54:00.000-06:00

I just wanted to give you a little peek at our family reunion pirate party.
There were cannon wars, a photo booth, yummy food, burried treasure, and lots of fun fun fun! Be sure and come back, there are many more pictures to come!

Another quilt top finished! { and a pattern of sorts }

2011-06-30T16:18:00.002-06:00

Remember the bunting slash pendant quilt from these other posts? Well I finished piecing it! I am so happy with how it turned out!!

I chose a primary color theme and decided to do a mix of traditional and modern fabrics. I love that it is simple and each fabric is showcased by the white surrounding it.

Let me tell you a little about it in case you want to make one too.

Each triangle measures 5x8x8 in.
There are 96 colored triangles and 102 white muslin triangles.
Sew the 8 inch sides of the triangles together alternating between colored and white.
Make 6 sections (or strips) of 17 white triangles and 16 colored ones.
Each triangle section/strip begins and ends with a white triangle.
The 5 strips of muslin between the triangle sections are 9 in. x 70in.
The top and bottom strips of white muslin are 4.5 in. x 70in.

I'll be sure to share the finished product all bound and quilted! :)

I honestly can't believe I made a quilt by myself!! I always said that of all the crafts, quilting was the one I would never be able to do. But I figured it out pretty good I think. It really turned out better than I thought, I figured all the tips would get sewn into the seams but somehow they didn't!

I also remember saying once that quilting was a stupid craft because you take perfectly good pieces of fabric and cut them up just so you can put them back together again. Well, people change and I take it all back! Quilting ROCKS!!!!!! :) And I hope to keep making more and more!

On a completely different note, we found a baby robin that fell out of its nest today.

I heard it crying while I was outside taking photos of the quilt. It's so adorable an tiny! We fed it half a worm and them put it back in the nest. It seems the parents had no problem with us handling it and are taking care of it again. :)

Road trip preparations

2011-06-25T16:46:00.001-06:00

We have a road trip to plan and I am so glad we are feeling better. Thank you all for the well wishes and kind words sent our way. You are all so sweet! :)

Last year I brought my sewing bag and did some hand sewing in the car. It was such a good distraction to have during an 8 hour trip. I was surprised that I didn't even get car sick.

I will for sure bring something to work on this time. Maybe I 'll cross stitch a pillow or crochet something.

Bringing some roses from the garden helped the car smell great! (I know it's totally random to bring flowers but I didn't want them to bloom and die while we were gone so I brought them along! )

Every July 4th my family gets together for a reunion of sorts. We usually have a themed party to make things that much more fun! (Click here, here and here, to see the different themes from past reunions.)This years theme is Pirates. Awesome right? I am so excited! Take a look at my pirate pin board to see some great inspirations and ideas.

I made a list of what I need to get ready before we go.

Cross stitch stuff

              -Floss
              -Needles
              -Fabric
              -Embroidery hoop

Crochet stuff

              -Hooks
              -Yarn
              -Scissors

Pirate stuff

-Jolly roger flag
              -Pirate dummy (As requested by my mom, I'm excited to find out what he's for.)
              -Pirate dress ups
              -Pirate photo booth back drop

Trent is at Art on the Lawn all day today, I miss him. the goal is that he will return with less paintings and more money! :) Lizzy went with him to sell her paintings too. I hope she has a good experience! Ever since she made 10 bucks selling deflated balloons in front of the house a few weeks ago she has been obsessed with money making ideas. I hope this one goes just as well for her.
Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!

Feeling a little tike this...

2011-06-21T00:41:00.001-06:00

Source: thebottomoftheironingbasket.blogspot.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

I'll be taking a break from blogging since were (me included) not feeling too good at our house these days. :( hopefully we'll be feeling better soon.

quilt top

2011-06-14T23:51:00.000-06:00

I finished my very first quilt top! My amazing quilting sister helped me a lot! Thanks Annie Carie! It's a little lap quilt made from long pre-cut fabric she bought for me as a birthday gift. I can't remember the name of the fabric line but I know it is sold at Jo-Ann's. :)

I really love the color scheme. I actually just bought similar colored ginghams and dots at the thrift store. Maybe another quilt? :)
Were having a rough time over here with my husband busy getting ready for an art competition and baby boy being sick. He finally kept solid food down right before bed. Curse that church nursery class! He has only been in nursery for three weeks and he got hit with those nasty germs pretty hard! :( We'll pull through. I'm confident the worst is over.

Hope you all have a happy week full of happiness and health.

striped baby tunic

2011-06-13T16:30:00.001-06:00

I am a little late for Dana's boy clothes week, but I still wanted to share the little striped tunic I made for my youngest. I made up the pattern as I went but it 's basically this ,and this combined.
I used and old orange t-shirt and a blue (super faded) baby blanket I had saved for making kids clothes.

Dreaming of a pretty kids room.

2011-06-09T18:28:00.002-06:00

I am re-doing the kid's room. We never really finished painting it and it is looking sad. I go in there and can't stand the randomness of it all. First of all, the beds don't match and its really bugging me. Don't get me wrong I love mismatched and eclectic style but in their room it's not eclectic, it hideous. If I get brave enough I'll snap a picture of how it looks now and show it to you. That probably won't happen till I get you an after picture to help relieve the shock :)

I have here a collection of Pins I saved on my "Home" Pin board. To see all the other pins on that board just click here, If you want to see all my pins boards go here.

How do I want the room to look?

Do I want flowery wallpaper?

Source: liddleshop.blogspot.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: retrovilla.dk via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: babyspace.net.au via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: houseofbliss.blogspot.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Or...

do I want clean white walls with colorful accents?

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Source: kec-contentedme.blogspot.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: mila-loveology.blogspot.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Lorajean on Pinterest

I realize that these two styles are not much alike, but I really like both of them.

I love the romantic feeling of floral walls and antique beds. So pretty and soothing.

I also like the simple white because you can hang up almost anything on the wall and it doesn't look bad. Also it gives room for a bright and cheery hand sewn quilt!

This is a boys room too so flowers will have to wait.

The poor boy had to live in a pink room for years (we finally painted it a pale green) we don't want to traumatize him.

Maybe the flowered wallpaper will show up in a new craft room, or possible when Lizzy gets her own room. I couldn't help swooning at all the wallpapered rooms so I decided to share them with you any way.

What is your style? Are you a flower lover or a white purist?

Hope this Post finds you all well! Have a great week everyone!

Hair cut

2011-06-07T13:47:00.001-06:00

I chopped off my hair a few weeks ago and wanted to share the before and afters. :) My hair was getting so long that I always wore it in a pony tale except at church. So that is why I included a "before in reality" photo. because I wasn't going from " long lovely locks" to "no more hair". I was in reality, going from "permanently pulled back" to "How cute, she does her hair now!" :) I really Like how it turned out! It takes practically no shampoo, and I can go to bed with it wet and I don't drown in a wet pillow since it drys so fast! It was perfect timing for summer too! :) I love it!

irises and lilacs

2011-06-03T16:06:00.001-06:00

Our irises are blooming like crazy right now! We went out of town for Memorial Day weekend with quite a few blossoms and today they are ten fold! :) Most of our irises are white and yellow but later we will have some deep purple ones (that are already budding)! :) I cut a bunch of them today for another bouquet. Our first bouquet from last week finally died. They are so fragrant!! I love having irises in our kitchen.

I really love how these lone white irises look in the window. So pretty.

Our lilacs are blooming as well. I Love lilacs!!!

Growing up we had a 40 foot hedge of lilacs; when it bloomed the whole front yard smelled wonderful. So the smell brings me back home and I feel like a kid again, running around barefoot playing with my dolls and drawing fairies.

The smell of lilacs also means the end of school to me, since they bloom in June, and even though our kids don't go to public school it still makes me excited! I guess its the idea of summer being just around the corner. Either way the smell of lilacs is one of The Best Smells!! (The best smell being new baby smell.)

Hope you have a fragrant weekend as well! :)

2011-06-01T16:56:00.000-06:00

I sewed this pant suit for my daughter last week. i love it! I made it up based on some awesome kids clothes I have seen around the web. I took the photos before I ironed it so forgive the crease in the waistband. Eventually I will post a little more on what the pattern pieces looked like so you can try and make one too if you want. :)