Christmas Tree

I am ususally so excited to put up my Christmas Tree, last year it was up before Thanksgiving.  This year decorating for the holiday, I have been so distracted and busy with other things, I just have not done as much as I usually do.  But our tree is up, and I love it!

Two years ago I made some beaded letters to spell out "Noel", they were so easy, but I have struggled to know where and how to display them.  This year my brilliant daughter suggested that we put them in the tree, I know brilliant!  I love how they look!

Merry Christmas!

Abie's Room Redo

I have never considered myself a decorator, so when my daughter asked for a room makeover for her 12th birthday, I wasn't so sure.  But, 12 is a big deal, right?  So we had to do something awesome!

Now when I say room makeover don't get too excited, I am not that ambitions, we didn't paint her walls, and we worked with a lot of what she already had in her room.

Here is what we did add, new bedding, curtains, a chair, some throw pillows, and we also put together a fun cork board for the wall.

So lets start with the bedding... we looked all over the Internet, but I didn't want to spend a lot.  Now get this, we found some bedding on Pottery Barn that she loved and it was on sale, so we were excited.  Just for kicks though we checked ebay, and guess what, there it was for less, and it was local,  so no shipping.  Double score!  The red pillow sham we found at a local outlet, it was perfect!  Lastly Abie found a pillow on Etsy that she loved, so, with the help of Fabulous Jen, from tatertots and jello, we recreated the "smile" pillow.

The chair is from IKEA and I already had it somewhere else in the house, but we weren't really using it so it was perfect to put in Abies room.

Now for the drapes~ these may be my favorite thing I did.  Abies windows are so great, she has some of the best views in the house, they definitely needed some special treatment. 

So off to Target I went. they had a perfect red panel curtain that I loved and for only $7.99, and I needed two, not too bad right?  But as I was heading out of the domestics section I saw some flat sheets on clearance, they were the perfect red and only $3.89, plus with a little sewing I could use one sheet for both of the curtain panels, yay!

I am super pleased with how I hung them up!  {maybe I will do a post on it later}

Next up is the Cork board for her wall.  I picked up cork squares from Hobby Lobby and some coordinating fabric, to cover some of the squares.  Abie picked out some fun buttons and flowers to make some fun tacks.  I think that it turned out Awesome!

Now here are some photos of the room completely finished.  Notice the beautiful nightstand, it was a birthday gift to Abie from her Grandma.





That is pretty much it.  Thanks for sticking with me through this marathon post.  What do you think?  I think that it turned out Awesome, which is important, becuase Abie is so Awesome.

Happy Birthday Sweet Pea!

who knows, maybe there is a little decorator in me after all?

Why I Love Fall

There are so many reasons to love Fall

have you tried apple pie carmel apples?

find a recipe here.

Pumpkins

I usually love to grow them, but mine have not done well this year

Changing Leaves in the Mountains

and anywhere else for that matter

Two of my Favorite Birthdays are in the Fall

My Abigail and My Sweetheart

Fall Decorations You Can Make

Find this Great String Web here



Or this Turkey place card holder

You can make one too!  find out how here

Yep, Fall is the Best!

What do you LOVE about Fall?

I am linking up to Friend Makin Mondays over at
All the Weigh

Wonderful Giveaway!

I just found this new blog and I love it!

You must check out their fabulous giveaway!

Joy of Frameworks

you will be glad you did!

Happy Birthday to a Dear Friend

I am sure that if you are reading this blog, then you have definitely heard of Tatertots and Jello. 
It is the amazing creation of my dear friend
 Jen.   

Today is her birthday and I wanted to wish her

a

Fabulous

Wonderful

and

Lovely

Birthday!

True to her character she is hosting an amazing giveaway today,
head on over and check it out!
P.S. don't forget to wish her a Happy Birthday!

XOXO

true love

I have wanted to do this for a long time.

I have stood and watched as others did this without me.

I have sometimes tried to help, but ultimately went home empty handed.

But finally it was my turn, my chance to grab a piece of the glory,

And I did it!

I canned my own tomatoes!

12 beautiful shinny quarts to be exact.

and I love them!

Is that weird?

What is your favorite produce to can?

Dough, Fire and a Shake of Cinnamon n' Sugar

Friday night was the first chilly night of the year, so it was a perfect evening to have a fire in the backyard.

Everyone knows you can enjoy s'mores around a fire, but tonight we decided to do something different.

We made scones.  It was so easy, and SO delicious!

We just used frozen roll dough, thawed, a dutch oven, a bit of vegetable oil, some tongs, and a shaker of cinnamon and sugar.

I can't wait to make them again!

Sarah's Six Tomato Soup

Recipe
About a pound of tomatoes from your garden.
I used: sweet 100's, tigerellas, celebrity, cherry, ace, and beef steak.
Quarter the tomatoes and spread them out on a cookie sheet.
Drizzle with olive oil and salt generously.
I also sprinkled some fresh basil on them.
Roast in the oven at 375 for about 35 minutes. You want to see the tomatoes start to caramelize just barely.
Remove the tomatoes from the oven and when they have cooled enough, begin to blend them a bit at a time, throw in a handful of fresh basil and salt to taste. Once you have blended everything up, add about a cup of milk. ( it would probably be fabulous with cream, but I used one percent milk )
Once it is all incorporated I send the soup through a mesh strainer so it is smooth. (if you have a food mill this would work, but I don't have one)
That is it, so easy and soooo good, enjoy.

I need your imput!

A bit ago, after reading a post from Amber over at

{Silver Lining}

I was so inspired and decided to search my local Craigs List. 

 I wasn't looking for anything specific, just something interesting.  Here is what I found....

I know that it doesnt look that great, my children have told me, but it was SO cheap.  

I really think that there is a lot of potential here.  It is a great size, with wonderful lines, the fabric is just yucky.  No biggie, it just needs new fabric right?  How hard can that be?

 Now I must tell you, I have never recovered anything before, ever.  But this little love seat seemed like the perfect chance to learn how.  I knew that I would need some major help,

so I enlisted the help of Jen, from Tatertots and Jello.  

Her enthusiasm gave me the extra motivation I needed to charge ahead.

So here is my dilema,  I cannot decide what type of fabric to use!?  

Part of me, the conservative side, wants to go a very neutral route.  Safe and simple, something like this from Crate and Barrel.

 

But the other side of me is telling me to do something BOLD and fun, something that I wouldn't risk doing on a piece of furniture that cost more than the small amount of cash in my wallet. 

Something more like this from Anthropologie.

I know, I know, they are opposite ends of the spectrum.  But aren't they both Wonderful?!

The other problem is, that I don't know where in my house the finished product will go. 

{I figure that will be determined after I see how well it turns out}

What do you think?  I would LOVE your imput!

I know Halloween isnt until October, but......

My friend Jen has been dazzling me with all of her fantastic Subway Art projects, and I must say, I have been bitten by the bug.

Here are some of her fabulous projects...

{Check out her Fabulous Blog http://tatertotsandjello.com/}

As soon as I saw this great project, I knew I wanted to make a Halloween themed board.

On Friday, I headed over to Jen's to create.

We had a great time, she was so patient and helpful. We even had time to make one with my daughter.

I was pleasantly suprised, maybe I am a bit crafty after all :)

A Few of My Favorite Things

The thunder and lightening tonight remind me of one of my favorite things. It's the scene from the Sound of Music when Maria calms the children down during a thunderstorm by singing to them all about her favorite things.
Who doesn't LOVE that song? So on this stormy night, I thought that I would share a few of my favorite things with you!

I recently found these on etsy, and I think they are wonderful!

Vintage Apple Crates

(wouldn't they make a great book case?)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/52219859/vintage-antique-apple-crates


Isn't etsy the best?! Here is another favorite....

Beautiful Bird Measuring Spoons

(these absoloutely sing to me)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/50613573/bird-measuring-spoons

now on a sweeter note....

Waffles

(crispy, fluffy, love them!)

and finally something from one of my favorite blogs,

Tatertots and Jello

Subway Art

(this is made with all of their addresses, so fun!)

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2010/07/family-address-subway-art-project.html

What are some of your favorite things?

My Favorite Magazine

Are you like me? Do you love getting something fun in the mail? Most especially I love to get magazines!

We get several around our house: National Geographic, Boys Life, VeloNews, Grays Sporting Journal, Outside…(are you noticing a trend?) but my favorite magazine is always Sunset.

Whenever I ask friends if they read Sunset, they look at me like I am 75 years old, but I am quick to ask them…”have you picked one up lately?”
Sunset magazine is the best, it is full of recipes, gardening tips, and fun destinations, all accompanied with brilliant photographs.

Happily enough, today I received the newest Sunset in my mailbox. The August issue features a great article on 10 common garden items, followed by several recipes to go with each item, including, my personal fave, Tomatoes~ Check it out, I think that you will be pleasantly suprised.

30 fresh, summertime recipes - Photos - Sunset.com

What is your favorite magazine?

German Chocolate Frosting

i could eat this by the spoonful

In a medium saucepan slightly beat an egg, stir in one 5 ounce can of evaporated milk (2/3 cup), 2/3 cup sugar, and 1/4 cup butter. Cook and stir over medium heat about 12 minutes or till thickened and bubbly. Remove from the heat; stir in 1 2/3 cups flaked coconut and 2/3 cup chopped pecans (the fresher the better). Cool the frosting thoroughly before frosting with it.

Chocolate Cupcake Recipe

Simple, Easy, Delicious!

3/4 cup butter softened
1 2/3 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups flour
2/3 cups cocoa
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/3 cups water

Heat oven to 350, prepare your cupcake tin
In large mixer bowl, combine butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla, beat on high for 3 minutes.
In separate bowl, whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and baking powder together. Alternately add water and dry ingredients to the butter mixture until combined. Fill the cupcakes, it should make about 36. Bake about 30 minutes.


Enjoy!

How Many People Can Say This?

I have a folder in my photos on the computer titled,
“food I love”

(Ha, anyone who knows me well wouldn’t find that too surprising)

The folder is full of pictures of food I have made, or want to make, or even just a great something that I wanted to remember.
It is not uncommon for my family to have to wait a bit to eat while I snap a few pictures.

So here is a little peek into my “food I love” folder…..

German Chocolate Cupcakes
I made these for my father in law’s birthday a couple of weeks ago. I know that he loves German Chocolate so I can use it as an excuse to make them; they are one of MY favorites too!

Bear Lake, How do I love you? Let me count the ways.....

1. the amazing Blue of your water
2. the inifinite shells i find on your beach

3. the trip to Cafe Sabor for lunch on the way up

and last but not least

4. the sun kissed smiles on the faces of my family!

We had an extra day this holiday weekend and so we got up this morning and headed north to Bear Lake!

Bear Lake is one of our favorite places. No it wasn't super hot out and yes the wind blew just about the entire time, but we had a FANTASTIC day! Sitting on the beach, hitting baseballs into the water, snorkeling, and simply playing, we had a great time.

Coming soon...pics and a run down of my first fourth of july bbq~

Awesome Giveaway!

Check out my friend Jen's blog.
She is having an awesome giveaway!

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/

Downtown Farmers Market
Last Saturday was the first market of the season, and it was so much fun. The market is in Pioneer Park and runs from 8am to 1pm. Immediately walking into the market you can smell so many different things. It was crowded, but not too crowded. We wandered down all of the different aisles trying to take everything in. It was wonderful! Where else on earth can you find such an offering of fresh produce, great food, art, plants, and unique jewelry.
One of our first stops was not officially a market booth, but it used to be. Across on the street to the north of Pioneer park is a small waffle place named “Bruge’s Waffles and Frites”.

It is so authentic, you walk in and the staff were all speaking French to each other. We took a moment to look over the simple menu…..Waffles, vanilla or cinnamon, then you can add a topping if you would like. All sorts of toppings, from chocolate sauce, to bananas, ice cream to crème fraiche. I knew immediately that I wanted raspberries and crème fraiche. All of our waffles were delicious! Needless to say, it kicked off a Waffletastic weekend at our house.

One of my favorite things is my yard! I love all of my trees and plants, especially the plants in my garden. Finally after what we thought was the end of all of the snow and frost we put our garden in (little did we know that mother nature still had some snow in mind!)
We went to Western Gardens and gathered up all of the tomatoes I had my eye on, a zucchini, some pumpkin and cucumber seeds. I also grabbed a basil, oregano, cilantro, and rosemary.
As a family we planned out the boxes and carefully designated each spot for each plant.
I wanted to try different types of tomatoes so we did 6 different kinds of tomatoes.
Sweet 100’s, Early girls, Romas, Celebrity’s and Tigerellas. (there is one more but I forgot) I also planted black beauty zucchini and space saver cucumbers.
I personally think that the entire reason to have a garden is for the tomatoes. Think about it….salsa all summer, delicious pasta sauce, eating one right off the vine. Oh tomatoes is there anything that you can’t do?

Welcome to Alpine Poppy, I am super excited to be starting this blog. It has been in my mind for a long time and it feels really great to be finally up and going. I have so many things that I am looking forward to sharing with all of you, and spring is the perfect time of year to be getting started.