Win Win Situation

I've said it before (i think) and I'll say it again.. If I win you win!  I was lucky enough to win (2) giveaways recently.  And everytime I win I get so excited and it just makes my day.  It doesnt have to be some big grand prize either.  It doesnt matter to me.  So If I havent (but I think i have) said it before from now on If I win then so will someone else.  I'll have a giveaway on my blog everytime I win something.  I think its only fair to make someone elses day as great as mine.  Kind of like a pay it forward idea.  So look for a giveaway in the next couple days.  Hopefully I'll have it posted by Saturday.  

Yesterday was the latest giveaway that I won.. I won a set of 24 customized Cupcake flags from Laurenmakes through Kimberlys cupcake carnival going on this week on her blog Attempting Creative.   Be sure to stop by and visit them both, you wont be disappointed.  Arent those flags the cutest things?  They would be great for baby and bridal showers, anniversaries or anything you could think of.   There's another giveaway going on for some of the cutest cards and matching gift tags. You can click here to enter.  

(photo from LaurenMakes )


A few weeks ago I was so lucky to win the Mary Kay giveaway at Jennifers blog, All things Pink and Crafty .  That was also a really great prize,, Sunscreen, lip balm, self tanning lotion and after sun gel.  These will come in handy these next few weeks of this very hot summer we are having. 

( photo from All things Pink and Crafty )




So be watching for my next giveaway and until tomorrow ~  Have a good one!  

Cupcake Carnival.. yum!

I havent been baking much lately but when I came across this blog today, Attempting Creative  and saw the Cupcake carnival going on I thought I'd post some of the cupcake cakes i've done in the past.   Cupcake cakes are so easy, they dont use as much icing, you dont have to worry about icing the sides and instead of cutting the cake you just pull off a cupcake and pass 'em out...Easy! 

This was for my nieces little boy Austin,, my great nephew.. he loved it. 

A cup a cup a cup

**Edited for correction:  although we do love that movie and they do talk about making an easy cobbler recipe,, looking through my cookbook tonight I realized that I actually got this recipe from Shellie@Allthingssouthern.com   .. oops! 

I love that my daughters enjoy watching some of the older movies as much as I do. One of our favorites is Steel Magnolias. And we love the part where she's talking about making a cobbler,, with a cup of this, a cup of that ..etc... Well we adapted/adopted it to our liking and now its our Easy Peach Cobbler recipe,, And it is one of our most favorite desserts, right after Strawberry cheesecake of course.  All you need is a cup of milk, a cup of flour, a cup of sugar, a stick of butter and a can of peaches.  I usually make it in a casserole dish but I used one of my cast iron skillets this time and it turned out great. 

I think we have a theme going..

In the little town that we live close to if you drive down the main part of town there are several little flea market type buildings that just beg you to stop and look around.  And i've wanted to for a while now.  This past weekend Jeff and Tyler were gone fishing so me, Mel and my mama decided it was the perfect time to go.  Turns out it was soooo HOT that we only stopped at two.. but at the 2nd one we stopped at Mel found this really cute little yellow bench sitting outside.  Its very sturdy and has a piece for the seat too.  And it was only $5.   Mel is our future photographer showing lots of promise.  She takes great pictures. (not these pics,, these were taken with cell phone so not so good)  She immediately saw this as being used a photo prop.  She got to work on it as soon as we got home.  I cant wait to see what she decides to do with it.   Looking at this picture of her sanding you'd think she was right handed but she's a lefty.  She always played softball like a righty too. 

Bright and early Sunday morning me, Teena and my mama were in the garden.  I'm talking like 6am.  We picked peas, cucumbers, squash, peppers and tomatoes.  I wished I had taken pictures of all of it.   When I got home Jef and  I cooked some fresh peas, fried green tomatoes, sauteed squash with bell pepper and mexican cornbread muffins.  Oh my goodness and I was no good the rest of the day but it was soooo delicious.  

Summertime Goodness.. Yum! 

Until next time . . .  Y'all have a good one! 

Big wooden spools

When I was younger we used to play on these big wooden spools that cable comes on.  And I've always loved and wanted one for some reason.  I just know they would make a unique coffee table, or an extra seat with a cushiony cushion on it, or a table for plants or a game table.. or just about anything you can dream of.  So I text my husband today and told him that one of the guys at work had one on the forklift headed to the trash bin and I rescued it...

He said  " Oh no you didnt"
I said  " Oh yes I did" 

Stay tuned for what it becomes.. I have several ideas floating around in my head ... or rather fighting for some space in my head with all the other crap up there.  Any ideas?  I'd love to hear them, leave me a comment. 

The bench is finished!

Linking up with the Shanty2Chic sisters  ....

 

Once upon a time we had a railing around our back porch.  And then we dog sit for our daughter a few weeks ago.  I put the dog on the porch for a while, didnt even latch the gate, and she knocked the gate completely off the hinges.. I guess she didnt want to be put on the porch.  Well then!  A few days later we decide to just take the whole railing down, Tyler took it down.  The boards were a grayish/blueish color and old and worn out already.  Jeff piled the wood up with plans to burn it.  I had another idea in mind.  I had just seen a bench that Gail at My repurposed Life made for her daughter and I knew I could use some of the scraps to do something similar.  Believe me mine doesnt compare to hers.  She does some amazing repurposing of all kinds of found items.  

 I  used one of the 2x4 and cut into two equal pieces (40 inches long i think) and two pieces for the end that measured 14 inches.  I removed what seemed like a billion little nails from the slats and cut them into 18 in long pieces.  I wasnt real sure about how to  make sure the thing was square but Jeff checked it for me after I screwed it together and it was only off by 1/8 of an inch,, that sounded good to me.  Experience carpenters everywhere are fainting as they read this.. ha ha.   I'm sure this explanation of my bench is just clear as mud so here are a few pictures to help visualize.. 

Made a box first and then used a little board ( 2x2? maybe) in the center for support. 
BEFORE

Cutting the small boards for the seat. 

Spacing to get somewhat of an even arrangement.. there are small gaps but I think its just adds character.  I used the nail gun to put these on. 

All the small boards are on and ready for a little bit of sanding.  Pay no attention to the pile of trash in the background. 

Tyler helping his mama with the sanding.  He said it was one of the best things I've worked on  and was impressed that I actually finished something. 

I used some 4x4's for the legs that my brother had given me. Thanks Robert.  They were going to be used to make big candle sticks to sit in front of the fire place but I never got  around to it.  And the dresser that the bench is sitting on is another unfinished project.. kind of stuck on what to do next.  But it'll come to me one day. 

Screwing in some more reinforcement.. dont want a wobbly bench. 

And here she is .. ain't she purty?   And she's very sturdy. 

AFTER

If you look closely in these pics you can see several unfinished projects. (dont look closely, ha )

Mothers Day recap.. (a little late)

Yeah, i know its almost Fathers day and I'm just now posting about Mothers Day.. just got the pictures downloaded of that and some other things,, so i'm a little late but I still wanted to put them on here. 

Melanie and Justin going to his senior prom.. Mel had wanted a camo dress for a long time.. and she found one, not my choice but of course she was beautiful!

We started out the day having breakfast with Jeff's mama.  For some reason I didnt get any pictures, I guess it was too early.  I consider myself lucky because I get along very well with my mother-n-law.  I know alot of people that dont.  Jeff and I are very blessed to have wonderful, supportive, loving and all around great Mothers. 

For my mama we had a dinner at mama&daddy's house.  My neice kinda put it all together and everybody just brought their favorite dish instead of a planned menu. 

My babies,, the wonderful reason I get to be called Mama.  They had to hold Tyler for the picture. 

Me and my beautiful mama.  The one who I can always count on, no matter what.  I never knew exactly how or why she did things until I had kids of my own.  And now I know.  Its because we are special enough to be called  mamas.  One of the greatest blessings God gives us. 

Cricket(my neice), me, Teena(sister), Stephanie(sister) and  Susan(sis in law). All the mothers at the dinner other than mama, who was taking the picture.  We had a great time and delicious food.  I cant say enough how much I enjoy family get togethers.  I hope beyond all hope that as all the kids get older and begin their own familys we can still stay close.  

And thats it for the recap,, hopefully tomorrow I will be posting pictures of the bench I made all(mostly) by myself.  Gotta try and get the pictures downloaded.  Until then.. goodnight!