Car Seat Cover W/Window

So I fell in love with a car seat cover at a boutique this summer, and thought I'd give it a try. It was a bit tricky to figure out some of the steps since I only had pictures to look at, but I'm pretty happy with the result-especially since it was my 1st time sewing vinyl.
The thing I like best about this is the window. So your baby can see out, and people can see in without opening up the cover. This is especially nice if you have a baby during flu/RSV season like I will.

Front view:

Side view:

Side view w/flap closed

I love that she made the flap so in case your baby is asleep, they can stay that way when changing environments. :)
I'm still trying to decide if I want to venture out and make a tutorial for this or not. I am in no wise savvy on proper sewing techniques or lingo. But if you'd like to know how, please let me know in a comment. Maybe once the hustle and bustle of Christmas crafting is over for me I'll type one up...

Taco Soup

Taco Soup
1 Can kidney beans (drained)
1 Can black beans (drained)
1 Can corn- drain off 1/2 the liquid (or 2 cups of frozen corn)
2 Cans petite diced tomatoes (with green chiles if you want it spicier)- sometimes I do 1 of each.
1 Lb ground beef (browned)
2 packages taco seasoning
Pour all ingredients into crock pot with 1/2 the liquid from the corn, plus another cup or so of water. (I usually put enough water in until the consistency looks good to me.) Then season with salt, pepper, chili powder, onion powder, garlic salt-whatever you'd like-to taste.
Set on high for 2-3 hours, or low for 4+.
Serve with sour cream, cheese, and tortilla chips. :)

Yum! This will be a tasty dinner as the weather gets chilly!

My 1st Car Seat Cover!

This was my first attempt at a Car Seat cover for my friend's baby. And can you believe, it ACTUALLY WORKED! I've had a lot of train wrecks lately, (that's the reason for the hiatus from this blog...) So I'm really surprised! Yay!

The print from the underside shown:

Side view
Strap detail

If you want to make your own, go here for an awesome, easy-peasy tutorial! I can't wait to make another one for my own little man on the way!!!

Ooops...

Hey all!
Sorry it's been so long. I've been on a bit of a crafting hiatus. But I'm back in the saddle again and have some pictures of new projects coming soon!

What I've Been Up To:

When I said I've been busy, here's what I've been doing:

I made this scripture bag for a girl in my ward getting baptized,

I made some burp cloths for the boutique I'm doing with my friend Raylyn on Saturday at Wheeler Farm.
Lots of binkie clips are hanging out in my sewing room:

And I made a TON of hairbows for the boutique:
Ponytail holders,
Fun girlie bows,
And these adult-sized headbands are DARLING!
That's just a smidgen of the swag!
For more of what I've been up to, check out the boutique blog @
www.bettylousbows.blogspot.com

Kenny Chesney's Favorite Key Lime Pie

I cut this recipe out of a magazine that had had an interview with (my favorite) Kenny Chesney. Not sure which one it was, but needless to say, I am not taking the credit for creating it-just eating it!

Kenny's Favorite Key Lime Pie
Serves 8
Crust: (or you can cheat and buy a pre-made on at the store)
1 1/2 C graham cracker crumbs
1/4 C sugar
5 T unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325*
In a medium bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs and sugar.
Add the butter, stir w/a fork until blended.
Transfer to a 9" deep pie pan and press crumbs into the sides, then bottom of pan. Then press again with the bottom of a measuring cup to ensure a firm crust.
Bake on center rack in oven for about 15 min. or until golden brown.
Let cool to room temperature.

Pie Filling:
4 egg yolks
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk (NOT evaporated!)
1/2 C fresh lime juice (2-3 limes)
2 t grated lime zest.
1 8 oz container whipped topping
Lime slices for garnish

1.Place the egg yolks, milk, lime juice, and lime zest in a medium bowl, and mix on high speed for about 3 minutes, or until thick.
2. Pour the filling into crust and bake for 15 min on 325* or until center is set, but still jiggles when shaken.
3. Let cool to room temperature.
4. Cover with whipped topping and lime slices to garnish.
5. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours or until well chilled.

Enjoy! It was quite a hit at the dinner I made it for! Hope it is at yours too!

p.s. To make lime zest I just grate it using a small-holed cheese grater. Nothing fancy-schmancy here!

Busy Girl!

I've been a pretty busy girl these past few weeks, I'll post pix soon of what I've been up to! :)

Yummy Breakfast Casserole

I can't take credit for this one, April Barnes of Herriman, UT came up with this delicious dish! It's definitely a family favorite, hope it becomes one in your family as well!

Breakfast Casserole
Start your oven at 400*

(Biscuit topping mix):
2 C flour
3 t baking powder
1 t salt
1/4 C shortening
-Mix well with a whisk or pastry blender

(Other ingredients):
2 C chopped ham (or bacon).
1-1 1/2 C grated cheese
2 C milk
6 Eggs
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper

In bottom of greased casserole dish place ham and cheese. In blender, combine milk, eggs, 1 1/2 cups of biscuit mixture, salt and pepper. Blend well. (I'm not sure why you use 2 C flour in the mix, but only 1 1/2 in the actual casserole. I haven't adjusted for that, so if you do, please let me know!)
Pour over ham & cheese mixture. Bake at 400* for 30 minutes, (I do mine at 400* for 45 min. because my gas oven takes a little longer), or until top is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Optional: You can add any vegetable to cheese (broccoli, zucchini, green peppers, tomato, etc...).
Enjoy!

Reversible Cloth Headbands

I know this may sound naive, but this was my 1st attempt using interfacing. Up until about a year ago, I barely sewed anything at all, so this was a big step for me! I have to say, it was a tiny bit of a challenge at first, but I won the battle! Here's the result:

This was a relatively easy project, and I like the result. If you want to give it a go, look here for the tutorial. These are a gift to my cousin, but I like them so much, I may have to just make some for myself!

Anna Panda

I made this cute little pink panda for my daughter's Easter basket.
She LOVES pandas right now, so I just had to make her one.

Go here if you'd like to make one too!

Spring Has Sprung!

At least it has inside my house...

My cousin Katie inspired this one, and my friend Lindsay and I made them together. I thought they turned out pretty cute, what do you think?

So Cute!

I went to a boutique today and fell in love with these. I would love to make a mother's necklace out of them after I have more than one child. It just seems silly to me to walk around with a pendant with just an "M" on it when my name starts with "A." I figured it would warrant too much explanation...
Anyway, take a look! So cute!

FABULOUS Oatmeal Choc Chip Cookies!

This is the perfect recipe to cheer up a very stressed husband. Mine loves these cookies, and I love to bake them, so we both win! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
Recipe makes 3-5 dozen. Depending on how much cookie dough you eat while you're making them, and how big your cookies are.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 C shortening (I use butter flavor-it tastes the best. Oh, and using regular butter is ok too, but your cookies will come out flatter.)

1 1/2 C sugar

3/4 C brown sugar

3 eggs

3 t vanilla

A pinch of nutmeg (this, to me, makes the recipe)
3 1/4 C flour
1 1/2 t baking soda
1 1/2 t salt
1 1/2 C oats (your preference)
1 package semi-sweet choc chips

1. Preheat oven to 350*. If you have a gas range set it to 370*. Grease your cookie sheets.
2. In a big bowl, cream together the ingredients in red until smooth. This gives you a nice batter to start with. Then add Flour, baking soda, and salt. Beat until mixed thoroughly. Then add oats and chocolate chips. Stir with a rubber spatula to mix in.
3. Spoon onto greased cookie sheets.
4. Bake for 8-10 minutes (at 350*) or 11-12 min. (at 370*)
5. Let cool on cookie sheet for 5-10 minutes, then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Tip: Clean as you go! Have hot soapy water ready and toss the tools in as you're done with them. I can have my whole mess cleaned up before the first batch is done! Then you can sit and enjoy the fruits of your labor when they're done, instead of slaving over a sink of messy baked-on dishes!
p.s. It helps to clean the cookie sheets while they're still warm.

Bienvenido!

  Hey all!
This is just a little blog I started to keep track of the crafts and recipes I love to make and share! I am no expert, and would love to learn more about crafting and cooking. This is just a record of my journey...

Tea Towel Bag

Over at Make it and Love it, I found this fabulous Tea Towel Bag tutorial.
I decided to make one for my best friend Raylyn's birthday. If you want to make one for yourself, go here and here. It was super easy, even for me, and I don't sew extremely well. I did however, have a hard time finding cute Tea Towels, so I used cloth napkins I found on clearance at Target.

P.S.

A Tea Towel is a towel that you dry your dishes with. They are flat and cotton and woven instead of terry cloth like a regular towel. They are somewhat thin (thinner than a bath towel) and come in lots of colors and patterns. But usually pretty basic looking. I have seen a variety of projects using tea towels so they are often found in the craft sections of stores but if not, they will be near the kitchen stuff (like hot pads and kitchen decor and such).

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

I made this the other day with some too ripe bananas. Oh. My. Heavenly! It is divine! I just have to share!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
1 1/4 C Sugar
1/2 C butter or margarine softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 C mashed bananas (~3medium,VERY ripe)
1/2 C buttermilk (or put 1/2 c milk with 1/2 T lemon juice and let sit for 5 min., then use)
1 C choc chips (or more if you want!)
1 t vanilla
A pinch of nutmeg
2 1/2 C flour
1 t baking soda
1 t salt
1 C chopped nuts (optional)

1.Set oven to 350* (move oven racks down so top of loaf pan is in the middle of the oven.) Grease bottoms only of pan(s). Makes two 8.5x4.5x2.5 pans, or one 9x5x3.

2.Cream sugar & butter in a bowl together. Stir in bananas, buttermilk vanilla & nutmeg.Beat until smooth, then add flour, baking soda, and salt just until moistened. Stir in choc chips & nuts if desired.

3.Bake 8" loaves about an hour, 9" loaves about 1 hr 15 min. or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool 10 min on baking rack.

4.Loosen sides of loaves; remove from pans and place top side up on wire racks to cool for 2 hours before slicing. Wrap tightly and store at room temp for 4 days, or in the fridge for 10.
Enjoy!

Nutrition info:
1 slice: 70 calories, 2g fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 95mg sodium, 12g carbohydrates, 1g protein
(this is w/out the chocolate chips! I added those separately on a whim and the cookbook didn't call for them.) You'll have to do some adding of your own if you want to know... I think ignorance is bliss on this one, but knock yourself out!