Beautiful!

I am so grateful to live in such a beautiful place!  Here are a couple of pics I snapped last year capturing some of the beauty around us.

New Blogs!

John and I have both started new blogs and we hope you'll check them out.

Mine is focused on food storage, cooking, gardening, etc.

John's is focused on the Animation industry (film, tv, games, apps, etc.).

We'd love it if you'd take a few minutes to check them both out.  Thanks!

Corner Bakery Cinnamon Creme Coffee Cake

I had some extra sour cream in the fridge and needed to use it, so I decided to make a knock-off recipe for Corner Bakery's Cinnamon Creme Coffee Cake. 

It turned out so yummy!

Mason Jars: A Love Affair

I love Mason jars!  I found some unique ones on Goodwill's auction site within the past year and have started using them all over my kitchen. 

So, when I saw some Mason Jar measuring cups on Cost Plus World Market's website, I wanted them! Only problem was they were sold out, so I decided to try our local store.  Thankfully, they had one set left (which is now mine).  I LOVE them!  Don't you?

AJ's Rocket Launch - Space Exploration Merit Badge

AJ has been working on the Space Exploration Merit Badge with his Boy Scout troop.  Today they launched the rockets they built.  Here are a few pictures and a video.

Why I Shouldn't Be Allowed To Use Spray Paint

THIS is why:

Believe it or not, it actually looked worse once I tried to clean up.  I had silver spray paint under my fingernails, and it looked like dirt! 

As I am not a crafty girl, I don't usually use spray paint, so you may be wondering why in the world I would have silver spray paint all over my hand. 

I found a free dresser on Freecycle and picked it up.  Here are some before pics and pictures of me cleaning it up:

My friend, Brooke, once told me that silver spray paint can make anything look great, so I decided to paint this dresser silver.  (Also, if I paint it silver, it's less likely one of my children will want to take it with them when they move out.)  Here are pics of each step.

Primer coat:

First spray paint coat:

Finished product:

Not perfect, but it's a HUGE improvement!

Yes, I know that I've failed blogging school...

Good for me there aren't any blogging schools (that I know of), huh?

I've been a bad blogger.  I'm supposed to update you with interesting tidbits and pics of my family and me, and I've failed you.  I can't promise I'll do much better, but I will post a couple of pictures today to make up for ignoring you.

I was invited to a White Elephant "Craft" Gift party.  I needed to bring something I made with my own two hands and put it in the big pot of gifts (hoping someone would want what I made).  I decided to make a "Snood."  What is a snood?  Well, I'm glad you asked.  There are a few variations, but I bought a snood from Walmart while we were in Utah (and I was freezing).  I love it!  I wear it almost every day.

See?

Many people have complimented me on my furry scarf/hat, so I decided to make one for this party.  But, I saw a cute one on someone at Disneyland, and I thought about making a Tiger one (which was only available at Disneyland Tokyo).

That got me thinking, and I decided to make a Minnie Mouse Snood!  Here are some pics of the process and final results.

I absolutely loved it, and I almost cried giving it away. But it was popular and went to a dear friend who I know will love it as much as I do!