French Mint Pies

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I'm going to start out this post with a disclaimer.  This recipe involves raw eggs.  If you don't care, or can get your hands on fresh eggs (which is what prompted me making these delicious morsels) read on.  If you can't get over the raw egg thing, I understand, BUT you are missing out ;).

These have always been a family favorite and we had them a fair bunch growing up, but since there have been more and more problems with eggs, and we didn't have access to chickens, we get them less and less.  When I ended up with 18 fresh eggs at swim lessons last week, I immediately knew I was going to go home and whip some up.

So, for a super easy, perfect summer treat (and it's def summer here, we made it to 110 today and it felt like it), I give you French Mint Pies.

Our newest model

Introducing our newest model….

My little man was born June 1st and doing great!  Weighed in a 7 pounds 10 ounces and was 19 inches long, a full 2 pounds 10 ounces bigger then my daughter.  It is awesome having a full size baby!  I can’t wait to find boy projects to create and share with everyone.  My daughter is a very big help so I am sure she’ll help with some projects for him. 

I did finish his quilt and love how it turned out.  I haven’t got a picture of him with the quilt but here is a picture of the finished product! I almost want to just hang it on the wall to look at because I know how much time and energy went into it but would be sad if he didn’t use it and love it. 

Two Big Projects!

I know I have been MIA for a while, but I have been very busy working on two big projects.  The one project just hit the half way mark!  I am now officially 20 weeks pregnant.  If you are like me, you will understand why I haven't gotten any projects done.  The first trimester really kills my motivation.  I am so sick and so tired that I literally do nothing, and now that I have a toddler, I learned how hard it is to be pregnant with your second child.  Way harder then the first :)  Oh, well.  I hit the second trimester and now I am working diligently to finish unfinished projects and start new ones that will be necessary to bring home my new baby Girl!

But on to the second project I have been spending all my time on...

My little boy just turned 2 years old and I wanted to do something awesome for his birthday present.  I have noticed that every time we visit one of my sisters houses, he goes directly to their little girls play kitchens and never leaves.  It is time for him to have his own kitchen!

Apple Pie Waffles

My kids have been obsessed with waffles lately, asking for nothing else each morning.  I have been trying to get creative, making different flavors, and adding things to our waffles each day to mix it up a bit.  Some days prove to be successfull, others, not so much.  Today, was lucky for me, a success!  Here’s our take on Apple Pie Waffles. Hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

Flower Pillow Part 2

It has definitely been a crazy couple of months.  Work hasn’t been good and I have been tirelessly looking for something new, but to no avail.  My dream is to move to never ending summer in Phoenix, but the job market doesn’t seem to be cooperating.  

During my breaks of looking for a new job, I have been trying to finish up my half started projects and I think I’ve done a pretty good job.  My two nephews finally got their Monster Albums (I have now made six of these quiet books, I found the pattern on youcanmakethis.com and love it after I made a few alterations of course), my youngest niece got an adorable lady bug pillow for her birthday and I finished a really cute portfolio for my oldest niece’s birthday (I’ll be posting that one soon).  I have also finally finished my flower pillow, you were probably starting to wonder if I ever would, don’t worry, you aren’t alone.

Here are the final steps and the final product.  I LOVE it!

My First Quilt

I have become COMPLETELY obsessed with quilting lately.  I can't get enough of it.  I want to learn everything, do everything, make everything.  It's probably sad and I shouldn't admit to it, but there it is.  So, I figured, why not participate in the Blogger's quilt festival.  I have a few quilts in progress right now, but nothing that's ready for this, so I had to go back to one that was already done, and why not make my inaugural addition to the quilt festival my very first quilt.  The quilt that started it all.

When I'm learning a new skill, I'm not smart enough to start easy with solid instructions, I just kind of go at it, with things that are probably WAY over my head (my mom can attest to this), and quilting was no exception.  I got an idea in my head, kind of had some instruction on appliquéing from Jenni, and went for it.  I found a picture I liked online and duplicated it.  I have no idea where that picture came from or where it is now, so I can't reference it.

This quilt was started about 4 months prior to my daughter (my oldest, now 7) being born, and promtply finished shortly after her 2nd birthday.  I really had no idea was I was getting myself into.  Everything is hand appliqued, with 3D wings, and then hand quilting in place.  It is so imperfect, and her poor face isn't done yet (still haven't decided exactly how to finish that), but I love every aspect of the quilt.  Every ounce of my creative energy went into it and figuring out how to piece it together and get it to work.  I would never do a quilt in this same way, but I learned to much from this first quilt.  Also, my daughter loves it, and really, that's all that matters.

How to pick a Watermelon

As summertime is upon us (we'll some of us, it might be snowing in Utah again this week), it seems the question on every ones mind is "How do I pick the perfect watermelon?".

Well, I might not have all the answers, but Jenni was told a tip a couple years ago that seems to work better than any others I've heard.  You want to find the watermelon with the smallest circle on the side opposite the stem.

This part.

When I cut into the watermelon, it was the perfect red inside and sweet and delicious.

One of my children ate 1/4 the watermelon all by himself.  I do not recommend allowing 4 year olds to do this for dinner however, it was way too close to bedtime (resulting in 4 bathroom trips later before 10pm).  But really, I can't blame him for eating so much.

If you try out this method, I'd love to hear if you have the same success with it I have.