In Case of Emergency

Have you  really ever thought about what would happen if something happened? I do. I try to keep those thoughts out of my head but as a mother and wife, I always wonder.

Here is a good tip that most of you may already use but if you don't, it could really come in handy.

Most phones are equipped for "emergency numbers" But here is what I did.

If you are ever in an accident or pass out, etc..The first thing anyone will do is grab your cell phone and go straight to your contacts.

I added a contact called "Emergency #s". You can add an "A" in front of it if you want it to be at the top of the list but I'm pretty sure either way would work.

In my emergency numbers, I edited my number types by simply clicking on the word "home, cell, work, etc" and scrolled down to "custom" and changed the name of them and listed them in the order that can be called if the case need be.

I hope no one ever has to click on the emergency numbers but its good to have them with you.
Also, its a good idea not to lay your phone in your lap or seat in case of an accident, they can be thrown around and hard to find.

Tawashi

What is a Tawashi? Other than just a new word I recently learned, A Twashi is a Japanese name for a wash cloth or sponge.

Ive been crocheting some dish cloths and looking for new patterns to use when I came across these cute little washy things. Ta Da! Project!

Here is one I made for myself. I made this one special for dishes because while one side is cotton, the other is made of a more abrasive acrylic for more scrubbing power.

Works great!!! There are so many uses for these little scrubbers.

The spiral ones I made are 100% cotton and they can be used on anything. Even a baby face. You can use them on non-stick pans, counter tops, waxing a car, shoe shine, face washing, dusting, etc.....The possibilities are endless with these cute little things. And the best thing is, once they get dirty, just toss them in the washer and dryer and re-use.

 

They will last for years and save me some money on those throw away icky sponges I usually buy.

 

You want one? Can't Crochet? I just might have some of these in my Etsy shop.!

 

Ive shared this on:

twiggstudios sunday-show-off-linky-party 

clever-chicks-blog-hop

creatively-tuesday at therusticpig

made-by-me at jaqsstudio

the-creative-homeacre-hop

Sweater Mittens

I had this sweater hanging in my closet for months now that I was tired of and, well, truthfully, I had outgrown just a little. I thought about ways I could get some use out of it without giving it to the goodwill.

I thought about making some boot cuffs with the arms of it like the money saving queen did shown HERE , but I thought the sweater would be too thick and my boots are too tight on my legs as it is.

While blog hopping yesterday I came across a really neat Idea at organized31.

I tried making Mittens from the sleeves. I even made a hat from cutting off and sewing up the sweater's hood.

First I cut the sleeves off the sweater making sure the already finished cuff would be my mitten cuffs.

 

Then I slid them on my hands, stretched my thumbs out and cut around my fingers leaving enough room for a seam.

 

Then I sewed them, trimmed them, and sewed them again until they fit. Needless to say, I am in no way a seamstress. I'm lucky to have threaded my machine correctly. Still not sure, but it sewed so I guess it was right and didn't even have to call Mom.

They turned out funny looking but you get the idea. Maybe the next time I do this, I can make them better. I would love to have a chunky pair of mittens.

I've shared this at:

under-100-linky-party at beyondthepicketfence

friday-link-party at craftionary

twiggstudios sunday-show-off-linky-party

Buffalo Chicken Taquitos

When I think about cream cheese, hot sauce and spices, my tongue tickles. I love all three things and when they are put together, you have Buffalo chicken sauce.

After a nice afternoon walk with my husband, I decided to make dinner. I have been wanting to try making this hot cheesy dish. I mean, after all, he does the cooking all week so I let him rest and had my way in the kitchen.

Buffalo Chicken Taquitos is what I'm talking about!

 

Follow along and I'll show you how I did it.

 

First, go ahead and preheat your oven to 425 degrees

I had to cook my chicken. I suppose you could boil it, bake it or even buy it in a can. I cooked mine up with some butter. Just something about can chicken that doesn't interest me.

While my chicken cooked, I made the Buffalo sauce. Which consist of  2 Tbs. butter, 1tsp Mrs. Dash, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp Cajun seasoning, and 4oz. cream cheese.
Once those items are melted and creamed together, throw in 1/3 cup of Louisiana hot sauce, 1/3 cup milk, and simmer for 3 or 4 minutes.

While the sauce simmered, I chopped up my chicken and returned it to my (nonstick) pan.
If your using a skillet, you can just chop away right in the pan. I just didn't want to ruin mine like I have so many others.

Once you have it chopped up, add the sauce and mix it up. On a greased cookie sheet, place a couple spoons full into soft taco tortillas , sprinkle Mozzarella cheese on it and roll it up tight.
I cut mine in half so it would look like more but that was not necessary. It made plenty! Enough for a party lets say.

Now bake for 15 or 20 minutes, turning them over half way through.

 

I added some Edamame, and called it a meal! They were delicious!

 

These are great dipped in blue cheese or ranch dressing.

"I'm thinking this would be a hit at a Superbowl party".

 

I found this recipe HERE.  They just left out the Cajun seasoning.  

 

I've shared this on:

Mealtime Monday at couponingncooking

make-it-yourself-monday at anoriginalbelle

creatively-tuesday at therusticpig

kitchen-fun-and-crafty-friday-link

Thirty Years Ago

Thirty years ago I was a teenager. I was just thinking about how things have changed over the years and when you get to thinking about it, Its crazy. I tell my twenty one year old daughter some of these things and she laughs. But I bet in just her few years, she could come up with a list too. Life comes at you fast. Here is a look back.

Then: Atari and Arcades
Now: Xbox

Then: Kids built go carts
Now: They build computers

Then: Phones had cords
Now: You talk into a speaker on rear view mirror while both hands are driving a car.

Then: We waited on Dad to get home and ate dinner together at the table.
Now: Parents chase kids around the room and feed them as they run and play.

Then: There were smoking areas in middle and high schools.
Now: Smoking is not allowed even in public places.

Then: Pets stayed outside and roamed the neighborhood
Now: Pets are kept in crates and dressed like babies when taken out.

Then: We were scared of our teachers and parents.
Now: Parents and teachers are scared of the kids.

Then: We only heard one language and would stare at someone speaking a foreign language.
Now: We have to know Spanish to get a job or communicate.

Then: Flash Dance and Miss America.
Now: Dance Moms and Honey Boo Boo.


Then: Manual typewriters. Whats a computer?
Now: Hand held computers. Whats a typewriter?

Then: Bikes and Big Wheels.
Now: Nitendos and Ipads.

Then: A high school diploma got you any job.
Now: You have to have more than a college degree.

Then: We could say Pollock jokes and blonde jokes.
Now:  Its called racist

Then: Brass knuckles and pocket knives
Now: Assault riffles and Bombs.

Then: Gilligan's Island.
Now: Jersey Shores.

I could go on but you get what I'm saying. Things change so fast with technology and human capabilities. I'm excited yet scared of what the next 10 years will bring us.

"Just hang on, throw your hands up and enjoy the ride".

Can you remember some things that have changed from the good ole days?

Little Cup Cozy

Face it, everyone has ugly coffee cups that mean nothing. They usually will have some sort of advertising or ridiculous saying on them.

Here is a simple solution that will warm you up and add cuteness to a cup.

A cup cozy.

I sat down the other night and crocheted three of these little things after my daughter mentioned wanting one. I did one for practice, one for my daughter and one for my shop.

Here is my favorite one..

 

"Owl" cup cozy

I may make more because they were alot of fun and pretty easy.

These will work perfect on a cold day with a warm cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate.

Ive shared this at:
made-by-me-62-linky-party at jaqsstudio
lil-luna-link-party
nifty-thrifty-tuesday at coastalcharm
wednesdays-adorned-from-above-blog-hop
blog-stalking-thursday at thecraftyblogstalker.
kitchen-fun-and-crafty-friday at kitchenfunwithmy3sons
Clever Chicks Blog Hop
crochetboulevard
anything-blue-friday at thededicatedhouse

Elmo Party

This weekend I attended a birthday party for my grand niece. She turned two. Her party was Elmo themed. This was perfect for her since shes at that age where its all Dora and Sesame Street.
Her party was held at an old school auditorium which was great for all the little party goers to run around and scream. Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time.

Can you find the birthday girl?

Her party was complete with a four foot Elmo balloon that followed everyone around, a real live Dorthy fish,

Elmo and friends cupcakes from Yi Ya's Sweeties and veggie trays made by the Mom (my niece).

 

and of course lots of presents. Including the big surprise, A Schwinn tricycle from her Nona and Pop Pop.

 

The party favors for each guest were made up of gold fish and crayons with tags that read "Elmo loves his goldfish and crayons too. Now here's both just for you. Love........."

 

She was just a little ball of fun.

Happy Birthday Brinklin!


Ive shared this on:
creatively-tuesday at therusticpig.com

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all of my readers! Hope you can put behind 2012 and make 2013 a better year for you and everyone around you.

I start each new year off with a traditional family dinner with collard greens, black eye peas, pork, mashed potatoes and crock pot macaroni & cheese. My husband worked hard to fix the greens and meat while I did the rest. If you know me, you know i'm all about the sweets so I made two fruit cobblers. For the first time, I made a chocolate pecan cobbler! Read on, I posted the recipe at the end.

Ever wonder what this lucky meal means? Here is a little run down....

 

Pork: Usually consumed in Italy and the United States, where thanks to its rich fat content, it signifies wealth and prosperity.

Collard Greens: Their green leaves look like folded money, and are thus symbolic of economic fortune and believed the more you eat the more wealth you will have.

 

Black Eye Peas: Symbol of money. Their small, seed like appearance resembles coins that swell when cooked so they are consumed with financial rewards in mind.

Now the mashed potatoes and macaroni & cheese are just thrown in the mix for good eatin'. That's how we do it in the South.

 

My husband cooked the collard greens outside. We do eight bundles.

If you have ever cooked collard greens, you'd know why.

Then he grilled some BBQ Pork loins on the grill.

 I cut up ten pounds of potatoes.

Here is the black eye peas, mac n cheese, and potatoes cooking.

I always do a half and half cobbler. This was the cobbler before I cooked it.

I never got a picture of  "after". That's how fast it got gone.

 

 

Before we began to eat, my sweet daddy had a short family devotion.

He left his paper here so now Ill share it with all of you.

 

 

Then everyone found a place at the tables and dug in.

 

It's hard to get everyone in one picture but we had fifteen!

This is where my front living room turns into a dinning room.

 

 

OK now for my favorite part. Chocolate Pecan Cobbler.

 

 

This is the first time I made it and thought I'd give it a try. It turned out wonderful and I will probably have to add this to the menu every year from now on. I was lucky to snatch a piece for this photo. It was gone in no time.

 

CHOCOLATE PECAN COBBLER.

 

Melt 2 sticks butter and pour into 9x13 dish.

 

In bowl mix:

1 1/4 cup sugar 

1 1/2 cup self rising flour

1 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup milk

Pour the batter mix into the melted butter ( Do not stir)

 

In separate bowl mix:

1 cup sugar

6 Tbls cocoa powder

2 cups chopped or half pecans (optional)

Pour on top.(Do not stir)

 

Then pour two cups boiling water into it (Do not stir)

 

Bake 350 for 30-45 minutes or until nice and brown.

Serve warm with ice cream or whip cream.

Printable Recipe

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

 

Ive shared this on:

adornedfromabove

full-plate-thursday at mizhelenscountrycottage

kitchen-fun-and-crafty-friday at kitchenfunwithmy3sons

Mealtime Monday at couponingncooking

creatively-tuesday at the rustic pig (featured)