Pumpkin Bran Muffins

I found this recipe on the Rogers website. They are good! Give them a try. You can right click, open and save all the recipes on my blog to your computer. I am printing them out in 4x6 picture format and making cookbooks with them. Mini photo albums from the dollar store are perfect to put these pictures in and cook with as they are easy to wipe off spills because of the plastic covering.

Turning "50" Gift Idea

I love doing survival kits for gifts, but I also like giving encourge"mints" gift jars.

I bought a jar at the dollar store. I searched the internet for some encouraging quotes on getting older.

Here are some quotes I found:

Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.
-- Mark Twain

It’s not your 50th birthday. It’s your 29th anniversary of your 21st birthday.

Life is change. Growth is optional.

Choose wisely.

Only as high as I reach can I grow, only as far as I seek can I go, only as deep as I look can I see, only as much as I dream can I be.  -Karen Ravn

Aging only happens to people who lose their lust for getting better and disconnect from their natural base of curiosity. -Robin Sharma

You are younger today than you ever will be again. Make use of it for the sake of tomorrow. -Anon

Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards.
-- Soren Kierkegaard

I printed these quotes and a few others out on card stock, cut them out, and stapled a lifesavers mint to each quote. 

I put them in the jar with the rest of the mints and then tied some twine around the lid.

One Card, Three Different Flower Styles

I saw the idea for this card on a blog a while ago and saved the image, but I don't know who to give the credit to, sorry. I wanted to use up some older paper, and I wanted to try different flowers on each card so I could try a couple tutorials I had bookmarked.

The first flower from a tutorial is a circle punch flower. I used this tutorial
http://cbyar.blogspot.com/2010/02/circle-punch-flower-tutorial.html
as the start of my flower, but I added another petal and curled up the circles a bit.

The second tutorial I did was a scallop punch flower tutorial
http://scrapbookgirl.typepad.com/paper_scissors_and_superh/2010/03/make-your-own-spring.html
I used a sheer ribbon so it is a little hard to see in the picture the different dimensions this flower has.

The third flower was a flower from my scrapbook supplies with a fancy button glued in the middle. I am not going to buy flowers again as there are so many different tutorials out there to make them, but it is always good to use up supplies already purchased.

How to Make a Homemade Keeper Trophy

For the last 26 years, I have sponsored an award for our local 4-H Winter Fair. The reason it started is because I won the award one year, but I didn't get a trophy. I was complaining about not getting anything for my achievement, so my mom suggested that I sponsor the award, so the kids who win the award in the future can get a trophy. I must have liked the idea as that is what I did. I purchased an annual award plaque, and then I purchased a keeper trophy every year. After a while, I discontinued supplying a keeper trophy because of the cost of them.  I found a more frugal and creative way to supply a keeper trophy.

Supplies:

 Frame

   Picture size insert

1. Find a frame that looks trophy like. The one pictured above is perfect. It is free standing, glass and has a silver frame inside the glass. I found it at a dollar store. One year I splurged and paid $10 as I couldn't find a frame I was satisfied with at a $ store. I have found this same frame for the last few years.

2. Make an insert for the frame. Put on the insert the title of the award and the year. Embellish as desired. If you know how to, make the file a JPEG format, transfer it to a jump drive and print it out at a photo developer. I have sent my pictures online before but I have not been happy with some of the results. The insert can be printed at home on picture paper or card stock.

3. Put insert in place. Polish if necessary.

The award I sponsor is different this year as the annual trophy I donated in the past is now full. My siblings and I are sponsoring a new annual award in memory of our dad, who had a passion for 4-H. For the keeper trophy this year, I embellished the insert with a picture of my dad with his first 4-H project.  I chose the colors of the insert to go with the annual award - black and silver.
For less than $2, I made a fabulous keeper trophy. If only I made the annual award that cost us $250+. Maybe next time.

"Make Each Day Your Masterpiece" Scrapbook Page

My daughter has a gift. She is a talented artist. I find it difficult to scrapbook pages displaying her art, as I want to do them justice. I found this quote "Make Each Day Your Masterpiece" and the pages fell into place.

"Talent", "Beautiful", "Gift" and "Skill" header is made with stickers and rub ons.

"Just A Note" Card

It is very convenient to have an all purpose card on hand. This can be very versatile because it could be used for a thinking of you card, thank you card, a reminder card, etc., etc.
Here is one I made out of scraps...

Peachy Bran Muffin Recipe

I am still in back to school mode at my house. My old grab and go breakfast/snack menu is getting, well, OLD! I have been searching for healthy muffins recipes that taste good. I have tried several muffin recipes this month. This Peachy Bran Muffin recipe from Rogers passed the "try"al test and will go into my "make again" menu list.

Honey Sweetened Applesauce

I am all for attempting to eat healthier, but I love my sweet stuff. I have a sweet tooth that is picky when it comes to healthy alternatives. I saw this idea for applesauce and thought that it was a worthy "try"al. Honey is good for you, but what would it do to applesauce? I'm telling you, I am never making applesauce with sugar again. I find it tastes way better than applesauce sweetened with sugar.  I recommend you try it. Here's the recipe....

Slick Chick Scrapbook Page

I have pretty much finished my 2009 album, I haven't printed any 2010 pictures yet, so I thought I would check out some pictures that were not yet scrapbooked from years past. This picture was a perfect candidate to use the "Create a Critter" Cricut cartridge that I was borrowing from my aunt. All the chicks are from "Create a Critter". For the blue, I inked up some white paper with a dark blue ink pad and dabbed it on the paper until I got the color I wanted. The numbers are from a DYMO font that I downloaded for free, and the lettering is cut from the cricut.

Dressing up a Gift Bag

For this week's craft I dressed up a gift bag with a spiral flower. I made a spiral flower before and loved how easy it was to make. For this flower, I stamped white paper with my Heritage Farms Spanish Script background stamp. After I drew the spiral and cut along the lines, I inked the edges with red ink. I then rolled the paper as usual. Here is a link to a tutorial on how to make spiral flowers http://pinkpaislee.com/2010/04/technique-tuesday-spiral-paper-flower/

I tied some sheer ribbon on the bag handle and then hot glued the flower to the knot.

"Sending You a Hug" Thinking of You Card

I saw the cutest sentiment on a card that I wanted to try. I saw it on the "My Paper Creations" blog by Niki Estes. http://nikiestes.typepad.com/

Here is my try at it....

Peanut Butter Granola Bars

I found this recipe on the Martha Stewart website. The recipe called for natural peanut butter, but my regular Kraft peanut butter did just fine. I did have a hard time getting the bars off the parchment paper and they were very crumbly, but they were delicious.

Incredible Oatmeal Cookies

This is not a new recipe for me, but I haven't made them in a while. These are very good. I did add a bit of flax to them this time. Definitely worth making.

Craft: Goody Bag Tag

I am going to try something new with my craft post this week. I have never posted the clip art I have made so this is definitely a "try"al for me. I made some Christmas tags that I found on a blog that I frequent often.
Check it out here
http://michellewooderson.blogspot.com/2009/12/gift-sack-tags.html

Along with Christmas tags I made every day tags as well.

I like that I can use up scraps of paper with these tags.
Here are the clip art files. Right click - open image in new window -  print page.

From

Back to School Granola Bar Recipe

It is back to school time so I thought some school snacks would be a good thing to try to make. I found this recipe in a honey cook book.  They were a little hard to get out of the pan so next time I will line the pan with parchment paper. I found these to be absolutely delicious and a way healthier snack then the store bought granola bars.

Inspiring Card

I wanted to make something with the "Create a Critter" Cricut cartridge my Aunt lent me. I wanted to make something with the adorable sun, so here it is.

I have always loved the quote "The future is as bright as your faith" and that is the theme I worked around. This card is bigger than the usual cards I make. It is made out of a full 8 1/2 x 11"sheet, folded in half. I usually make two cards out of an 8 1/2 x11. 

Twenty Two Scrapbook Page

This layout was inspired by a scrapbook page I found in the book "We Dare You: Scrapbook Challenges for Real Life". I loved the simpleness of it. The letters are cut out with the Cricut.