LaLa becomes a hat...

Isn't LalaLoopsy just stinkin' cute? I sure think so and so does Strawberina. So much so that she wanted an outfit to look like a LaLa doll. So I decided to start with a hat. what a cute way to look like LaLa. So, tonight I finished the hat. It's crocheted and I used embroidery floss for the hair color (divided down to 2 strands for the hat and 4 strands for the curls) and perle cotton for the flesh-tone. Of course, I had no black buttons so I had to make do with some black felt. it worked. Strawberina is VERY happy with her new hat. Next, I'll work on an outfit to go with her new hat. ....uh, I know the picture's not the greatest, but I'm tired and I only had my phone close to take the picture. When I get the outfit done I'll grab the camera and get a much better picture. but in the meantime, here ya go, a look-see at her new hat:

Like I said, just Stinkin' cute!

LawdyLawdy I LOVE to bake.......said the...um....Rubenesque woman...

Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars | The Girl Who Ate Everything

ok, this is sooooo much a 'Keeper" recipe. Can't wait to make it for 'OtherHalf'. I didn't use the coconut for this first trial run (the 'AroundtheCorner Gang' don't like coconut and I have to give the pan to them so I don't eat the entire thing myself!)...LOL

Plans for next batch:
a. Use coconut
b. Use a bag of Ghiradelli dark chocolate instead of Nestle's
c. Don't tell the kids and squirrel it away in the freezer to eat a piece at a time All....By....My....Self....
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

so, now that you've read this, click the link...drool....then go bake.....

Oh Pinterest, what are you doing to me?

so, here I am posting again...LOL. pull yourselves back up off the floor and shut your mouth-You know who you BadGurlz are! LOLOL.....Luv ya anyway....I can already hear the comments coming...

I've been down here visiting my Other Half and house sitting. It has been glorious being in "our own place" for the time being. 1 more week to go then I'm off the Convention and he gets a week to himself in the house (sitting around scratching himself and doing things that men do when wifey isn't around to keep a lid on it I suppose-he'd kill me if he read this! LOL)

Much to his happiness I've been cooking and baking to my hearts content. Pinterest has been a BAD influence on his healthy living. Although he's sure been smiling alot. So let's see, what have I experimented with....Mostly baking but a few other items as well.

Here's three of the things I've tried:

First there is the Almost Home-made Salsa.
We're on our third batch in just 2 weeks so I guess it's a keeper. I call it almost Home-made because it uses a can of diced tomatoes and a can of Original Rotel as the base with other fresh ingredients added in. He tried some salsa from Trader Joe's that a friend gave us yesterday and told me I really needed to make a new batch of "That Good One You Make Now". LOL. so, here's a link to the Good Salsa.

Then I made some really good Sour Cream N Bacon Crock Pot Chicken. Check out the yummy pic when you hit that link. Unfortunately I had a brain-fart moment when I bought the chicken. It looked like chicken breast in the package-honest....How the heck I missed the tiny writing on the bottom I"ll never know but it was Leg/thigh pieces.....dang. so I skinned it and used it anyway. I think being bone-in pieces it created way too much broth so the "gravy" was extra loose, but the chicken fell off the bone and since Other Half likes dark meat he had no problem with it. Oh, the other thing I didn't do was cook the bacon first. I just followed her directions. I've decided that next time I am going to crisp the bacon and crumble it into the "gravy" that gets dumped into the pot over the meat. It was very tasty so I will make it again, but this time I'll be really sure I  read the chicken label better and get some breasteses. Besides, crock pot cooking is great in this heat! no stinkin' hot kitchen!

and Today.....ah today......I made these:

Holey crap we died and went to Heaven....I'm in Heaven...and my heart beats so that I can hardly speak......sorry, segued into Fred Astair....
Anyway, these Girl Scout Samoa-like Cookie Bars are A-Frikkin-Mazing....I made two minor changes. I omitted the egg in the crust-without the egg it's a sturdier shortbread. And I used Cream instead of the milk with the caramel. I used Kraft Caramels. I didn't dip them, but used a knife and just spread the chocolate on the bottoms then I put the last of the chocolate in a sammich bag and snipped the corner to squirt the little chocolate lines on top. Other Half was eating the "mistakes" (the ones that fell apart as I cut them) before I could even put the chocolate on. He said they were good just like that> but I tell you, as soon as I added the chocolate he couldn't keep his hands off...4 cookies later he was begging me to put them away....LOL. They were a bit fiddly to make, but it seems these fiddly ones are almost always some of the best.

So that's what's new.
I miss my kids really bad.
I miss Jackass Joey really bad.
I miss my friends really bad.
I'll keep baking my blues away..........

Where did it go?

time, that is....Life has kept me busy. It actually got in the way. I guess I'm not one of those great bloggers that seems to be able to keep up with posting and life. Big changes are happening for me. Hubby lost a job and landed a new one....across country. We're in the middle of that so it explains alot doesn't it? The thought of leaving the kids/grandkids and family is almost unbearable. It's taken quite a while to come to grips with that idea. I've finally made my peace with it and just keep reminding myself that I'll just have to fly out and see them whenever it gets to be too much. ....and then there's my wonderful friends...sigh....and doll club....and....and....and....you get the idea.

So, I've been crocheting. All my sewing is packed away in storage...talk about withdrawals...so crochet it is. I don't use patterns so all my work is OOAK.....Here's some eye candy for you:

Little Miss Liberty

Peach Delight

Little Victorian Darling

snail and hooty owl

This little darling is Strawberina. I just love crocheting for her. The outfits have been selling as fast as I can make them...which is a good thing. (do you know how frikkin expensive it is to move across country?!!) and then I decided she needed some little pets so I made her a snail and a hooty owl. I think she may need some more pets.

Amelia Thimble

oh, then I made an outfit for a little doll called Amelia Thimble. Holey crap NEVER again...that doll is so whonky and I was so afraid I would break her.  She's 4inches.

ok. that's it for now...this has actually been good for me so I'll try to remember to do this more often. Later Gators.....

Impression Challenge

Another Challenge!

An online sewing group I belong to is doing a challenge this month. Choose a picture from the Impressionist era of a little girl/boy and reproduce the outfit/look. I loved this idea. I chose a painting by Mary Cassatt-Sarah in a Green Bonnet.

It's a darling painting of a little girl. I added a challenge to myself to work from within my stash-no buying anything. I dug around and found the perfect piece of Salmon colored silk velvet, some ivory color lace, a preformed bonnet, some dupioni silk and some green ribbon. Overall, I'm happy with the final outcome.

I may redo the collar. that's the only thing that irks me right now. the perfectionist in me keeps my eye comparing the collars. but, it's got the overall feel of the painting so I'll leave it go for now. this is the full dress

Love on a Plate

I find hearts in all kinds of places. yes the steak really came out of the pkg just like this, well, it was raw so I broiled it, but hey, you get the drift..... This was last night's dinner.....yummmm. I'll just call this Love on a Plate:
'Nuff said.......

Challenge Done!!

Well, this went better than I thought. I ended up using size 12 perle cotton and a size 11 steel hook with great success. At first I thought the size 12 perle might be too big and that I'd be diving through my stash for my size 80 tatting cotton, but it worked nice. I don't think it looks too bulky on them. I even managed tiny 'diapers' for their bottoms.

No booties this time. no way. not on those microscopic feet! LOL. The little long dresses came out wonderful and I'm very pleased with the lacey bonnets. So, here's the twins all warm and snuggly.