tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71047172581310077392024-03-21T21:06:48.951-07:00S and J CraftsThe Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-85825471419612848212011-11-26T13:51:00.000-08:002011-11-26T13:51:06.714-08:00Woody Birthday CakeMy son recently turned four years old! He wanted another toys story cake (last year I did one too) but this year he specifically asked for a woody cake. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS3vZrwTjmCrtX6OgTZ5TWgGJgQY7UqA7EpAisHgOy1y7gSXU_TkCIhj_Ao86mJzfNkVBGXXNFrSoHSIcitEXqc6tKkKeeStwaYi4meb3ua3vrpyYw9fMMoH9Jmmq32p2WzzpOE1G3GboR/s1600/fall+056.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS3vZrwTjmCrtX6OgTZ5TWgGJgQY7UqA7EpAisHgOy1y7gSXU_TkCIhj_Ao86mJzfNkVBGXXNFrSoHSIcitEXqc6tKkKeeStwaYi4meb3ua3vrpyYw9fMMoH9Jmmq32p2WzzpOE1G3GboR/s320/fall+056.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-65888598296738934402011-11-16T11:12:00.000-08:002011-11-16T11:12:12.818-08:00Soccer CakeI recently did a soccer cake for a friend. It is three layered chocolate cake with a nutella mousse filling covered in marshmallow fondant.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDD6lRIh0O-vLsgzc9MuJutG4V-r4Lq835kKcp4yJ9gOQIoxEFZNpJa1BVwszxf0eAYeGtJSiwzs7LdGUBiINUFvZaFQM5stMNKLDzIKrkipHDk7pNj9e1bFhdLW7oMa0STPRSllmvvox3/s1600/fall+038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDD6lRIh0O-vLsgzc9MuJutG4V-r4Lq835kKcp4yJ9gOQIoxEFZNpJa1BVwszxf0eAYeGtJSiwzs7LdGUBiINUFvZaFQM5stMNKLDzIKrkipHDk7pNj9e1bFhdLW7oMa0STPRSllmvvox3/s320/fall+038.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-18295057923472446832011-10-31T21:05:00.000-07:002011-10-31T21:05:12.666-07:00Train Costume<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I decided to let my son choose his costume this year instead of picking one for him. We asked him over the period of a week about what he wanted to be and at first he said he wanted to be his daddy, but then he decided he wanted to be a blue train and he was stuck on that idea. So we got to work!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I gathered a few diaper boxes and we started cutting and gluing parts together.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2r3m6_33jSQ/Tq9qkCGjiVI/AAAAAAAAFS8/--3Qc-Typtk/s1600/IMG_1821.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2r3m6_33jSQ/Tq9qkCGjiVI/AAAAAAAAFS8/--3Qc-Typtk/s400/IMG_1821.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then we went to Ben Franklin in search of something that we could use for the round part in the front. In their craft section they had two empty spools which usually have ribbon wrapped around them. I asked if I could have or purchase them and they gave them to me - YES! So I glued the two spools together and then glued them to the front of the train.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SRyQzOCA1TE/Tq9q8VGzypI/AAAAAAAAFTE/4BPSYB7PLag/s1600/IMG_1822.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SRyQzOCA1TE/Tq9q8VGzypI/AAAAAAAAFTE/4BPSYB7PLag/s400/IMG_1822.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SJoQbnp6m6M/Tq9rFNIvjxI/AAAAAAAAFTM/Y_SrxktesEM/s1600/IMG_1823.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SJoQbnp6m6M/Tq9rFNIvjxI/AAAAAAAAFTM/Y_SrxktesEM/s400/IMG_1823.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then I just got a piece of plain construction paper and covered the spools.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nw8P-rVHfwU/Tq9rKN5jAiI/AAAAAAAAFTU/ksGT0gAE_iU/s1600/IMG_1826.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nw8P-rVHfwU/Tq9rKN5jAiI/AAAAAAAAFTU/ksGT0gAE_iU/s400/IMG_1826.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n3cxmM33BBE/Tq9rPvSsMOI/AAAAAAAAFTc/Mk0OCt20gfE/s1600/IMG_1827.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n3cxmM33BBE/Tq9rPvSsMOI/AAAAAAAAFTc/Mk0OCt20gfE/s400/IMG_1827.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Next we were ready to paint!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dj2FY445SZ0/Tq9rUyOjKmI/AAAAAAAAFTk/8raEEdYB77w/s1600/IMG_1837.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dj2FY445SZ0/Tq9rUyOjKmI/AAAAAAAAFTk/8raEEdYB77w/s400/IMG_1837.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After the paint was dry I got some paper plates and spray painted them silver as well as a few decals for the train which I then glued securely.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And I had one happy boy!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oYJ_UztlrBc/Tq9rflTD8rI/AAAAAAAAFTs/9GVeu4zlIGc/s1600/IMG_1857.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oYJ_UztlrBc/Tq9rflTD8rI/AAAAAAAAFTs/9GVeu4zlIGc/s400/IMG_1857.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We ended up going to the hardware store and finding a metal funnel for the pipe. I also inserted a small plastic bottle underneath it, because the plan was to get some dry ice and have a real looking steam engine, but apparently our town doesn't carry dry ice! Darn! Just imagine it looking even cooler.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GE6cuBBvxPI/Tq9ruWLzH2I/AAAAAAAAFT0/wdHrN2rm-4M/s1600/IMG_1863.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GE6cuBBvxPI/Tq9ruWLzH2I/AAAAAAAAFT0/wdHrN2rm-4M/s400/IMG_1863.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We were able to stick a headlamp to the front of the train though, so at least he had a light.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vbj4SNWqqaE/Tq9r4iD8BrI/AAAAAAAAFT8/4HhfIdlXtWQ/s1600/IMG_2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vbj4SNWqqaE/Tq9r4iD8BrI/AAAAAAAAFT8/4HhfIdlXtWQ/s400/IMG_2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And the little brother was a Railroad Crossing sign! I just took a black onesie, and sewed a white "X" to the front and painted the letters on. I then cut off one of the sleeves and replaced it with a white one and then wrapped that with some red fabric. Over all these were pretty easy costumes to make and we got a lot of compliments!</div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-9157226280003961682011-10-27T22:39:00.001-07:002011-10-27T22:39:01.586-07:00The Collage Painting<div align="center">A few weeks back I was doing my Saturday ritual of hitting up all the yard sales and came across a giant canvas picture of a mountain in a big frame. The family selling it wanted $5 for it. I stood and stared at it for a long time trying to figure out if it was something I really wanted to bring into my home. I offered them $3 since I was unsure and they said, "Take it!" So I miraculously got it into my car and took it home.</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center">I took the canvas out of the frame and tried sanding the picture off since it had a lot of texture in it. This did not work as I hoped it would. Infact it barely got any of the paint off at all.</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PSwF3cWToGw/Tqo7i_LcoEI/AAAAAAAAFOw/5rlo6ejcwfk/s1600/IMG_1410.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PSwF3cWToGw/Tqo7i_LcoEI/AAAAAAAAFOw/5rlo6ejcwfk/s400/IMG_1410.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So I took some yellow interior house paint that I got at Lowes the week before for $1.50 in their "cheap paint bin" and gave it a few good coats. The texture obviously still showed through, but you couldn't see the picture. I had planned on painting a picture of some lovebirds sitting in some branches on it, but with the texture showing through, I wasn't loving the idea. Then one evening I was flipping through a Martha Stewart magazine and I kept thinking how all the pictures looked so pretty and it was too bad I couldn't just frame all the magazines pictures... and it hit me! I was going to do a collage painting!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I started cutting away at the pictures that I really loved and started organizing them onto my canvas. I already had an idea of what I wanted my picture to look like, so instead of covering the whole canvas I just modge podged (or half glue half water if you're cheap like me) the areas where I wanted my design to go.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qs4PDg5VKyM/Tqo74P3HWiI/AAAAAAAAFO4/6_rfbM8Eh-8/s1600/IMG_1785.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qs4PDg5VKyM/Tqo74P3HWiI/AAAAAAAAFO4/6_rfbM8Eh-8/s400/IMG_1785.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then I started making an outline of the design I wanted and covered the appropriate spots with paint. If you don't already have a design in mind, it would be very easy to print off a picture and just trace it onto your canvas that way.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LjpNvHDw4ro/Tqo8En1c47I/AAAAAAAAFPA/UkmK1T_BEMk/s1600/IMG_1792.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LjpNvHDw4ro/Tqo8En1c47I/AAAAAAAAFPA/UkmK1T_BEMk/s400/IMG_1792.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is what I ended up with on my first coat. I wasn't quite sure how I wanted to do the birds yet and I added a few extra squares of magazine clippings here and there to cover with paint later just to add some texture in areas where there wasn't much.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B22xcJPqOlg/Tqo8OIBxm5I/AAAAAAAAFPI/iSOsciQTju8/s1600/IMG_1797.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B22xcJPqOlg/Tqo8OIBxm5I/AAAAAAAAFPI/iSOsciQTju8/s400/IMG_1797.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And here is the final product after the second coat of paint!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fxnVkCfsgfk/Tqo8WdqZcjI/AAAAAAAAFPQ/wCUpnDQZTJ8/s1600/IMG_1843.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fxnVkCfsgfk/Tqo8WdqZcjI/AAAAAAAAFPQ/wCUpnDQZTJ8/s400/IMG_1843.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I then painted the frame that it came with because it looked really grungy.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LHil4kNdz7s/Tqo8fnstGiI/AAAAAAAAFPY/MGvbphbBIHM/s1600/IMG_1881.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LHil4kNdz7s/Tqo8fnstGiI/AAAAAAAAFPY/MGvbphbBIHM/s400/IMG_1881.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I love it! It is so pretty and was so easy to do!</div><div align="center"></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-60543942943315800652011-10-17T11:03:00.000-07:002011-10-17T11:03:16.882-07:00Halloween Cupcakes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD3eFyFagNQxEQM453Gyyapq0p_TGK14Nr5qgOjBoAqAvNYc5LfyXKHZ_uq0r6dj0no7vi87gtnr36OLYA8U8tr2M68BMgZq6_6ZvIqIDnW7lBKqsfNQWtAZDAbsdTeduPBPZc8rBXJXhY/s1600/014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD3eFyFagNQxEQM453Gyyapq0p_TGK14Nr5qgOjBoAqAvNYc5LfyXKHZ_uq0r6dj0no7vi87gtnr36OLYA8U8tr2M68BMgZq6_6ZvIqIDnW7lBKqsfNQWtAZDAbsdTeduPBPZc8rBXJXhY/s320/014.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Here are some chocolate cupcakes, filled with orange, yellow and white buttercream frosting (I wanted it to look like candy corn when you bit into it). </div>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-43802252592118405322011-09-26T21:01:00.000-07:002011-09-26T21:06:45.933-07:00Wooden Crates from Used Pallets<div align="center">We recently moved into a new house and the master bathroom is awesome... other then no cabinets to hold all my stuff! There is this one big shelf:</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XtfQldnsE3Y/ToFBLJB4MMI/AAAAAAAAFHw/9o_vdMXLacU/s1600/IMG_1473.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XtfQldnsE3Y/ToFBLJB4MMI/AAAAAAAAFHw/9o_vdMXLacU/s400/IMG_1473.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">and since there is no door on that shelf everything looks messy!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Enter the pallet:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HUHWqDbmM-Y/ToFCAnoXHrI/AAAAAAAAFH0/Dky0ekUKzE0/s1600/IMG_0835.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HUHWqDbmM-Y/ToFCAnoXHrI/AAAAAAAAFH0/Dky0ekUKzE0/s400/IMG_0835.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">My Ace Hardware gives these little babies to me FREE! They are certainly not in great shape, but I am usually able salvage some boards from it and I'm really into the "vintage" (or as my husband calls it - junky) look.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So while the kids were playing in the yard, I started hammering together some boards. The boards weren't exactly even, so I had to do some trimming.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jd12Jy2ZiIw/ToFDpQDGKMI/AAAAAAAAFH4/tZIctB7gvxs/s1600/IMG_0837.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jd12Jy2ZiIw/ToFDpQDGKMI/AAAAAAAAFH4/tZIctB7gvxs/s400/IMG_0837.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sxr3QSfqA9M/ToFDwLsIfQI/AAAAAAAAFH8/B6Hrc7W0wi8/s1600/IMG_0840.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sxr3QSfqA9M/ToFDwLsIfQI/AAAAAAAAFH8/B6Hrc7W0wi8/s400/IMG_0840.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">But I came to realize one of the best parts of this project, is it doesn't need to look that great. It's vintage, remember?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Even my son got invovled.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xsRLV2kfRso/ToFEAvTxb5I/AAAAAAAAFIA/Qj0kIB0Zybw/s1600/IMG_1401.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xsRLV2kfRso/ToFEAvTxb5I/AAAAAAAAFIA/Qj0kIB0Zybw/s400/IMG_1401.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then just slap on some clear coat wood sealer, drill some holes and attach a vintage looking rope (my husband said the rope looked like it had been dragged through manure - I really just got it at Ace Hardware for $0.59 a foot. He REALLY doesn't get this whole vintage thing.)</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Dt-wEgrHQ-8/ToFKWVtlq3I/AAAAAAAAFIM/0pFK7uvSoik/s1600/IMG_1455.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Dt-wEgrHQ-8/ToFKWVtlq3I/AAAAAAAAFIM/0pFK7uvSoik/s400/IMG_1455.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then I slipped them onto the shelf and filled them with goodies!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KJuE0HLRqmo/ToFEifdvziI/AAAAAAAAFII/8_8t3BLYKqg/s1600/IMG_1478.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KJuE0HLRqmo/ToFEifdvziI/AAAAAAAAFII/8_8t3BLYKqg/s400/IMG_1478.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It does look a little rough, but I like it. And it cost me next to nothing! If anything, they'll get me by until I can come up with something else.</div><div align="center"></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-32337564364626171912011-09-10T22:59:00.000-07:002011-09-10T23:03:03.295-07:00Succulent Wreath<div align="center">My grandma is probably one of the hardest people to find presents for, so I start thinking of ideas for her Christmas present way in advance! I was flipping through a magazine and saw these succulent wreaths going for $100+ and thought that is perfect! She lives in Las Vegas, so it's the perfect climate for succulents and it is just so pretty! The price however, was not so much in my budget so this is what I came up with!</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center">Here's my how to - What you'll need:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">*<strong>Wire Wreath Frame</strong> - You could pick any size. I chose a 12" frame that was $2.99 in my local craft store. You could probably find one cheaper at a place like Joanns or Michaels.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">*<strong>Spagmum Moss</strong> - $4.99 for a package at Lowes and comes with enough to make two 12" wreaths.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">* <strong>Fishing line or floral floss</strong>. (I just used fishing line because it's what I had in my garage)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">*<strong>Succulent clippings</strong> - start scavenging! I found quite a bit of my clippings from my friends and relatives yards! The owner of my local nursery also gave me some clippings at a discounted price since I didn't need the whole plant, and then I also found a few on clearance at Lowes for a total of $1.95.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">*<strong><em>Optional</em></strong>: Bobby Pins or Floral Pins (I used floral pins that were $1.99 for a pack, which was more then enough at my local craft store.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">*<strong><em>Optional</em></strong>: root growth hormone. You could use this if you want, but everyone I talked to said it wasn't necessary.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">What you do:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">First you'll need to collect your succulent clippings. Put them in a box or bag and wait a few days until the ends of the clippings become dry. If you want you could try ommitting this step. Several people told me that you don't even need to wait for them to dry. I only waited one day.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wZml0-tm1eo/TmxIdaHYlkI/AAAAAAAAFGo/jViuwr1u5yk/s1600/IMG_1367.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wZml0-tm1eo/TmxIdaHYlkI/AAAAAAAAFGo/jViuwr1u5yk/s400/IMG_1367.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4EFJsCuaF_s/TmxIozbMCyI/AAAAAAAAFGs/7NXkDUXSuw8/s1600/IMG_1368.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4EFJsCuaF_s/TmxIozbMCyI/AAAAAAAAFGs/7NXkDUXSuw8/s400/IMG_1368.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Next soak your moss in a bowl of water for about 5 minutes until it is thouroughly wet. Then get your wire frame wreath and start stuffing it with the wet moss from the back side. Wrap fishing line or floral floss to around the moss just to secure it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5W5rIo3chU4/TmxIExZzuUI/AAAAAAAAFGg/LpQbB5sgqjo/s1600/IMG_1380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5W5rIo3chU4/TmxIExZzuUI/AAAAAAAAFGg/LpQbB5sgqjo/s400/IMG_1380.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nsr0z7_-iPM/TmxIQ1QpVFI/AAAAAAAAFGk/i1J-qa4GXDY/s1600/IMG_1379.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nsr0z7_-iPM/TmxIQ1QpVFI/AAAAAAAAFGk/i1J-qa4GXDY/s400/IMG_1379.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">You can see that the front part of the wreath is still showing through. You now want to go back over this with more moss and secure it with more line. Once you're done you won't be able to see the wire frame or fishing line for that matter.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then start arranging your succulents! I used a pen to make little holes in the moss before I stuck my succulent clipping in.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6kbtf1TaK1M/TmxI1svrQgI/AAAAAAAAFGw/UZgs67HxJnU/s1600/IMG_1370.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6kbtf1TaK1M/TmxI1svrQgI/AAAAAAAAFGw/UZgs67HxJnU/s400/IMG_1370.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">You really can't go wrong with how you arrange it!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Usvomc4i9EM/TmxJAcDmH_I/AAAAAAAAFG0/D5on1RSygOI/s1600/IMG_1373.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Usvomc4i9EM/TmxJAcDmH_I/AAAAAAAAFG0/D5on1RSygOI/s400/IMG_1373.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">If you are planning on hanging your wreath immediately, then you'll want to secure your clippings with the bobby pins or floral pins. If you have patience, you'll need to let your wreath lay flat for 3-6 months so that the succulents can root into the moss. I secured all my succulents, because I want to enjoy the wreath before I have to give it away.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-83jzSfzndno/TmxJMZ0PAJI/AAAAAAAAFG4/agTGP3xfStU/s1600/IMG_1375.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-83jzSfzndno/TmxJMZ0PAJI/AAAAAAAAFG4/agTGP3xfStU/s400/IMG_1375.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Once you are done, find the perfect place inside or outside to hang it!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qUfJ5DGFsnA/TmxH2_GfRaI/AAAAAAAAFGc/IRFvvME8-5o/s1600/IMG_1378.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qUfJ5DGFsnA/TmxH2_GfRaI/AAAAAAAAFGc/IRFvvME8-5o/s400/IMG_1378.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Isn't that neat?! This is a real living wreath. All you have to do is spritz it with water and it will continue to grow! Also make sure that you let your succulents get some sun every once in awhile, they'll appreciate that. I think this would even make a great center piece on a table. Just throw a big white candle in the middle of it or something!</div><div align="center"></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-37924038413789987642011-07-07T16:34:00.000-07:002011-07-07T16:34:15.142-07:00I recently made a birthday cake for my friends son (he is also Adrianne's close friend). His birthday party was a Cars 2 theme. The cake was a chocolate cake from scratch with a strawberry filling covered in butter cream and marshmallow fondant. I asked what my friend wanted on the outside of the cake and she suggested putting mater on top and we are so glad she did since mater was the star of the show! <br />
<br />
These pictures are almost the end result. I still needed to brush away some of the powder sugar on top (it helps the fondant not stick to the counter when rolling it out)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizPonPirqdliNxI_cEGhAu9V-hOtOC3K1Oloj-Cc4ap3lCFAcSo7ZBzZ5mPvncINs3W0WcTPw6FD1AWDFTXOUa2GmNe9UMNBJAipyjdII-GUPLycB78LojN0YlWGcf7LtCX_39hyphenhyphenepdYY4/s1600/Spring%252C+summer+2011+174.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizPonPirqdliNxI_cEGhAu9V-hOtOC3K1Oloj-Cc4ap3lCFAcSo7ZBzZ5mPvncINs3W0WcTPw6FD1AWDFTXOUa2GmNe9UMNBJAipyjdII-GUPLycB78LojN0YlWGcf7LtCX_39hyphenhyphenepdYY4/s320/Spring%252C+summer+2011+174.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The world on the back of the cake.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuECeZIT69e0FOLCD9IDzDbgZvZUD93q4uaagDJ51TV_Nu1NgCW3hJNlUpOVkDc_BUi1zd4GXb6N1aWPCGFaB-tszLBbLaR9NZVJp00g0hzFRXgNOYJ-ba70xIXKievWtxoFsUQEzQrNB4/s1600/Spring%252C+summer+2011+173.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuECeZIT69e0FOLCD9IDzDbgZvZUD93q4uaagDJ51TV_Nu1NgCW3hJNlUpOVkDc_BUi1zd4GXb6N1aWPCGFaB-tszLBbLaR9NZVJp00g0hzFRXgNOYJ-ba70xIXKievWtxoFsUQEzQrNB4/s320/Spring%252C+summer+2011+173.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The cars 2 logo on the front<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiubCEEh8cADOIFF5LhHD7xrqb0vsIJ14I9aZELYLbNm4ph-LDQySLWBurPWd1fgQNmfX2jvTYBiIo1qXSMBBzGdl84VqL31YBj7o6eXyODPdE1y-VPUbciH_7KoNQrA61B-1Z20uFYil5C/s1600/Spring%252C+summer+2011+172.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiubCEEh8cADOIFF5LhHD7xrqb0vsIJ14I9aZELYLbNm4ph-LDQySLWBurPWd1fgQNmfX2jvTYBiIo1qXSMBBzGdl84VqL31YBj7o6eXyODPdE1y-VPUbciH_7KoNQrA61B-1Z20uFYil5C/s320/Spring%252C+summer+2011+172.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-43873579682192481452011-07-07T16:27:00.000-07:002011-07-07T16:27:42.308-07:00Breakfast Monte CristosFavfamilyrecipes.com is one of my favorite websites for cooking ideas. Awhile ago I came across this recipe on her website and I knew Peter would love it (I am not an egg fan). They are easy to make and Peter loved it.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbhbmx49sxAe4omstY6FHhZDa-spNuR_XXJ5BmS6kGuDQsPcEmgSodFgS9NT5v0YWe27tVLf47-L73ogLRIRQentNukTWo8IDe_YUNBsWtXLi8DL6HmXxS7aV7tVOMSTi-ePk4Ok24VUkH/s1600/Spring%252C+summer+2011+008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbhbmx49sxAe4omstY6FHhZDa-spNuR_XXJ5BmS6kGuDQsPcEmgSodFgS9NT5v0YWe27tVLf47-L73ogLRIRQentNukTWo8IDe_YUNBsWtXLi8DL6HmXxS7aV7tVOMSTi-ePk4Ok24VUkH/s400/Spring%252C+summer+2011+008.jpg" /></a></div><br />
*Makes 2 sandwiches<br />
<br />
2 eggs<br />
1/4 c. maple syrup<br />
1/4 c. milk<br />
1/4 tsp. vanilla<br />
4 slices of bread (thick, whole-wheat bread works great)<br />
cream cheese<br />
2-3 slices deli black forest ham<br />
2 eggs, fried (middles poked and spread out so the eggs lay flat)<br />
2 slices Swiss cheese<br />
powdered sugar<br />
Raspberry Jam (or any jam you like)<br />
<br />
Mix eggs, maple syrup, milk, and vanilla together with a fork and pour in a shallow dish. Spread a good amount of cream cheese on each slice of ham (if you have a large slice of ham you may want to fold it over). Add the cream cheese-covered ham, a fried egg, and a slice of Swiss cheese to one slice of bread and top with another slice of bread making a sandwich. Dip each sandwich in the egg mixture and turn over so the the entire outside of the sandwich is coated in the egg mixture. Cook on a griddle or in a frying pan (as if you were making French toast). Carefully flip the sandwich when the first side becomes nice and brown (again, like French toast). When both sides of the sandwich are brown and slightly crispy, remove from heat and sprinkle each sandwich with powdered sugar. Cut into halves or fourths and serve with raspberry jam.The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-83938094140405002962011-07-07T16:25:00.000-07:002011-07-07T16:25:22.318-07:00Lemon Burst Cookie recipeAwhile ago my husband told me that he was craving lemon cookies. I had no idea what he was talking about since all I have ever had are lemon bars. So, I looked up a recipe and decided to try it out and I must say that they are amazing. I would say they are now probably one of my favorite cookies and they are very easy to make!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAnECKi4nnoV9ycflE_aW6ecp0OAjYX968UwFotABnLpYUfyk4JLKCil1qlstxHEuq9Uq7jawLPyCjtX_err_1Fu95AtjWvaJ4qTsgbqzkhtPZ_DTLu0BZ5YSrVGVJVZZGvXSCZIBlSoBo/s1600/Spring%252C+summer+2011+002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAnECKi4nnoV9ycflE_aW6ecp0OAjYX968UwFotABnLpYUfyk4JLKCil1qlstxHEuq9Uq7jawLPyCjtX_err_1Fu95AtjWvaJ4qTsgbqzkhtPZ_DTLu0BZ5YSrVGVJVZZGvXSCZIBlSoBo/s320/Spring%252C+summer+2011+002.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><strong>Lemon Burst Cookies</strong><br />
Yield:<br />
1 (18.25-ounce) package lemon cake mix<br />
2 eggs<br />
1/3 cup vegetable oil<br />
Zest of 2 lemons<br />
2 Tablespoons lemon juice<br />
½ teaspoon lemon extract<br />
1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar<br />
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.<br />
2. Pour cake mix into a large bowl. Stir in eggs, oil, lemon zest, lemon juice and lemon extract until well blended.<br />
3. Place confectioner’s sugar in a bowl.<br />
4. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of dough into balls and roll in confectioner’s sugar until lightly coated and place on baking sheet.<br />
5. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Cool for 2-3 minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.<br />
<br />
I got this recipe from <a href="http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2009/10/12/lemon-burst-cookies/">HERE</a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-30350237959059800932011-02-22T18:58:00.000-08:002011-02-22T19:02:36.826-08:00Diet Pepsi Cake<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbQt8WVpa5BRaW8CtOI3OdvEicZBZYpgIDWd4u09yZgXpMxHZFkB0PMgazFjPBw7AkAAkGRUMDgSwfU-Kx_K0Q6dqnedsjXZt0aMoJaipQN6gwZNt6tIpHdBj6ZkCb2xjwnrq7bLtTMcuW/s1600/185893_1588613922629_1454258698_31208451_5219706_n.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 298px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5576714292599750466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbQt8WVpa5BRaW8CtOI3OdvEicZBZYpgIDWd4u09yZgXpMxHZFkB0PMgazFjPBw7AkAAkGRUMDgSwfU-Kx_K0Q6dqnedsjXZt0aMoJaipQN6gwZNt6tIpHdBj6ZkCb2xjwnrq7bLtTMcuW/s400/185893_1588613922629_1454258698_31208451_5219706_n.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGd5p3TLTx0OwWnUy2_DHH32BXezRa2zYXi_85dFH-FTHzlf34gR9i6IpGBjchuhQtT5CfadPuTQlJxS12cYOPwh0Ui0WhBJCfOB1E8Rn51tOH8c43WSe6djc4lRfVS_7khM_voThY5Ex2/s1600/009.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5576714290420176146" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGd5p3TLTx0OwWnUy2_DHH32BXezRa2zYXi_85dFH-FTHzlf34gR9i6IpGBjchuhQtT5CfadPuTQlJxS12cYOPwh0Ui0WhBJCfOB1E8Rn51tOH8c43WSe6djc4lRfVS_7khM_voThY5Ex2/s400/009.JPG" /></a><br /><br />I made this cake for my husbands co-worker's Birthday. She LOVES drinking diet coke. I always see one on her desk when I visit the office, so we knew this would be a great theme for her cake. This is my first cake that I have ever carved. It is one white cake, cut in half and then stacked on top of eachother and filled with strawberry filling.The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-89937598806276123642011-02-22T18:54:00.000-08:002011-02-22T18:58:28.240-08:00Chili Relleno<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg78ZP-ZEcvAPmlQ0UAzgFD0IkJw7O-O8PNvKhdI7N93D2fA6kRenwWTWddlKmRUqYPILsLZvJFbTtP5emE6harCTpjPfCo-Q0Ub61QbPOSUQ5-PVMNBFZHtmBZVJ6boOhiugdDoZB6nOAj/s1600/005.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5576713089591670914" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg78ZP-ZEcvAPmlQ0UAzgFD0IkJw7O-O8PNvKhdI7N93D2fA6kRenwWTWddlKmRUqYPILsLZvJFbTtP5emE6harCTpjPfCo-Q0Ub61QbPOSUQ5-PVMNBFZHtmBZVJ6boOhiugdDoZB6nOAj/s400/005.JPG" /></a><br /><div></div><br />For Valentines day this year I made my husband Chili Relleno and fried rice. He LOVES anything spicy and always loves eating this at restuarants. So, I thought I would give it a try and they were easier than expected and tasted great! Next time I would like to find a recipe with sauce that covers the chili and I am going to use a white cheese instead of cheddar.<br /><br /><br />Ingredients<br />12 Anaheim chile peppers, charred and peeled<br />1 pound Cheddar cheese, cut into strips<br />1 cup milk<br />1 cup all-purpose flour<br />1 egg, beaten<br />1 teaspoon baking powder<br />1 teaspoon baking soda<br />1 teaspoon salt<br />1 teaspoon canola oil<br />1/2 cup all-purpose flour for coating<br /><br />Directions<br />1.Remove seeds and membranes from peppers. Stuff each pepper with a strip of cheese.<br />2.In a small bowl combine milk, the 1 cup flour, egg, baking powder, baking soda, salt and canola oil; mix well to make a batter.<br />3.Pour enough oil in heavy frying pan to reach 1 inch in depth and heat over medium-high heat. Roll each pepper in the remaining flour and dip in the batter. Fry until lightly browned on both sides.The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-34771005323695758342011-02-22T18:48:00.000-08:002011-02-22T18:54:30.441-08:00Card Ideas: Birthday and Thank You<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2C84z4A0rQBNn0bUSv2sevzorv_Ki5HPLFO8-9bHTuRTT0Bj0PJK4Jjt-S-YejwVmMCrB0cB1EXxe0RDpwWk0MR-JLZq1ccuI1OKPwsNTubdwcurINkDkuh4TGU_Tf96N6cBTucO0AZFE/s1600/001.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5576712433827549010" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2C84z4A0rQBNn0bUSv2sevzorv_Ki5HPLFO8-9bHTuRTT0Bj0PJK4Jjt-S-YejwVmMCrB0cB1EXxe0RDpwWk0MR-JLZq1ccuI1OKPwsNTubdwcurINkDkuh4TGU_Tf96N6cBTucO0AZFE/s400/001.JPG" /></a>I love making my own cards for people. I do not own any of the new machines that people use, I always just use glue, paper and scissors. So, they are not perfect but I love making them. The one on the left is a birthday card and the one on the right is a Thank you card.The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-31680571415320201312011-02-04T10:49:00.000-08:002011-02-04T10:54:22.521-08:00Traveling cake<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeOZmw83L4IMpMalP1iBVACcYRNXXInNHAMpP8v0pEg8tDblPgptZ-Rqm4d3ra-uPVbUKAbyF04lRkltM17Vdda49KlgSkDvpXRFWaXx0oj8O7W2EbVEnfnfiPKexasiA-iqdllJ4TvQn/s1600/011.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569909131305068178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeOZmw83L4IMpMalP1iBVACcYRNXXInNHAMpP8v0pEg8tDblPgptZ-Rqm4d3ra-uPVbUKAbyF04lRkltM17Vdda49KlgSkDvpXRFWaXx0oj8O7W2EbVEnfnfiPKexasiA-iqdllJ4TvQn/s400/011.JPG" /></a><br /><div>I made this cake for my husband's co-worker's birthday. She loves to travel, so my husband helped me think of a theme, and this is what we decided on. It is a butter cake with cream cheese almond filling and covered in fondant. This was my second time making a 3d person.</div>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-69507791532519058552011-01-12T15:16:00.000-08:002011-02-05T15:31:28.539-08:00Bath time cakeMy youngest son just turned one years old. His favorite thing to do is take abath so I made a bath themed cake. It is a white cake with buttercream frosting and the duck is made of fondant.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4RLU9zxZKGWfwWQgGgpKRDz__5ax6zjI2V2iN8ie_B9HUZVSAq6EZp_pg5KKSgJZmK4ULjjghvbqHYXHt9F7Bi2N3700MjqOPGqPRAZsqGZKxDPpdXZIu5oT0E1AWNcrJZfeudobssSs/s1600/043.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561442852820978450" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4RLU9zxZKGWfwWQgGgpKRDz__5ax6zjI2V2iN8ie_B9HUZVSAq6EZp_pg5KKSgJZmK4ULjjghvbqHYXHt9F7Bi2N3700MjqOPGqPRAZsqGZKxDPpdXZIu5oT0E1AWNcrJZfeudobssSs/s400/043.JPG" /></a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-43614978377912993972011-01-12T14:49:00.000-08:002011-02-05T15:31:59.877-08:00Super Hero Capes!For Christmas I decided to make my two older kids some super hero capes. They love the show super why and in the past whenever they wanted to be a superhero I would put a towel around them and secure with a pony tail holder. So, I decided they finally needed real ones. These are so easy to make. I found a tutorial on this <a href="http://pukingpastilles.com/?p=57">link</a> . I made both of these capes within thirty minutes and they cost $1.20 since most of the fabric I used for from old projects. I used cotton for the bulk of the cape and felt for the design on the back.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUyjtrp2rcn3FyPtGVwizfCM9_ke6mhk4WSqIkRjG1wo_TqzbXKc3M8XqErYR3dPZbPCqe5AEHOp1TVQF42qHaH3cqfi4r-G6_09_RpXKJypBiDVRXQsvG8Vhg977k9AHhSNik8U8Y7pN7/s1600/020.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561438457890157954" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUyjtrp2rcn3FyPtGVwizfCM9_ke6mhk4WSqIkRjG1wo_TqzbXKc3M8XqErYR3dPZbPCqe5AEHOp1TVQF42qHaH3cqfi4r-G6_09_RpXKJypBiDVRXQsvG8Vhg977k9AHhSNik8U8Y7pN7/s400/020.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh78hlI17aTu26qxAJP3OMqK-woovQiSanJZiWtHc0DbNwAe2U6bXWaHWM3apbsM8FFUO2WYfUxGoLAlg83fbhSXQbj-ym73sgv4wp8bY6sdRXZr71jSVHl9I0y_xXyGYrnftPU0eWD3AEg/s1600/009.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561438442474315138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh78hlI17aTu26qxAJP3OMqK-woovQiSanJZiWtHc0DbNwAe2U6bXWaHWM3apbsM8FFUO2WYfUxGoLAlg83fbhSXQbj-ym73sgv4wp8bY6sdRXZr71jSVHl9I0y_xXyGYrnftPU0eWD3AEg/s400/009.JPG" /></a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-23907440096371100362010-11-26T18:25:00.000-08:002011-02-05T15:32:39.073-08:00Toy Story 3 cakeI made this cake for my sons third birthday. He loves toy story so I tried to incorporate his favorite characters:)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU2MUroyxXuCDR55hmB-9X4Cso2Ffdz9gJEmV8Laop28WsO7uQSBGGZ2HvW4Ngt28seJewbNgF-_BhD9maUfb3Ng0IL0Gjzhs5uGpDGBTXHSHWW0AwIrv2LRmAbdww4aO_4mgyQqEZsGtU/s1600/IMG_3492.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544051508098187042" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU2MUroyxXuCDR55hmB-9X4Cso2Ffdz9gJEmV8Laop28WsO7uQSBGGZ2HvW4Ngt28seJewbNgF-_BhD9maUfb3Ng0IL0Gjzhs5uGpDGBTXHSHWW0AwIrv2LRmAbdww4aO_4mgyQqEZsGtU/s400/IMG_3492.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicN5axZ2c8tlDA1vXEX8QEnK1INTpPntUNrIlyJx_Jp9mhQd_3Kb_GMuIHqP68QZmTew4qYkvsQ1E7MiYzTOrOr2i-06M_zatrKW6ChLiIQm00fqjosmAo8UnLYaYnn_u0FKuYkZ5Tuolm/s1600/IMG_3483.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 270px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544052273880686882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicN5axZ2c8tlDA1vXEX8QEnK1INTpPntUNrIlyJx_Jp9mhQd_3Kb_GMuIHqP68QZmTew4qYkvsQ1E7MiYzTOrOr2i-06M_zatrKW6ChLiIQm00fqjosmAo8UnLYaYnn_u0FKuYkZ5Tuolm/s400/IMG_3483.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtBkSSvkw9U8xtoYRqo1gfi6SwY4umet8pvGp6I1EHIU4cDQJGJ7TfrjDxanoe-vPkBhgl3BCzRCdtFKrN5p1h7f3UDI44elnjcZ5xx53254o_ndp9EjVE4Ocqw1Fozv7QNdhIymf02Gc/s1600/IMG_3489.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544051503949154978" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtBkSSvkw9U8xtoYRqo1gfi6SwY4umet8pvGp6I1EHIU4cDQJGJ7TfrjDxanoe-vPkBhgl3BCzRCdtFKrN5p1h7f3UDI44elnjcZ5xx53254o_ndp9EjVE4Ocqw1Fozv7QNdhIymf02Gc/s400/IMG_3489.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg60SLuELRBP2X_5beXa12HCFKDWB5CZqTlpQrhEpzvQeRPMHahzCpdYitRzIRXDcQtuVkJPYdoWHq7Kz8lK4b_-VJ7wAlkO7Pz7png1MI16bPrRyCKEGmWRo7XqNVHHeqNQs7oSWqrfN5K/s1600/IMG_3483.JPG"></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDIMp-qujLcCnkZMJFpHii0oBN33K-hqXRGWivJHij-qA9qwWFTZZ_0bPSO4o_DTcjw4c0wnnNKcPXJ1tXv8YSyMmGsPlYQBlyfQfftGd9hJOB1Ukb4FsTJMLp2h1podbYEhVNkyoPnVB7/s1600/IMG_3488.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544051498075622530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDIMp-qujLcCnkZMJFpHii0oBN33K-hqXRGWivJHij-qA9qwWFTZZ_0bPSO4o_DTcjw4c0wnnNKcPXJ1tXv8YSyMmGsPlYQBlyfQfftGd9hJOB1Ukb4FsTJMLp2h1podbYEhVNkyoPnVB7/s400/IMG_3488.JPG" /></a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-43241776750491056792010-11-19T12:23:00.000-08:002010-11-19T23:07:45.094-08:00Hooded Towels<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I've been working on Christmas presents and my gifts to my neices and nephews are hooded towels. They are super cute and very easy to put together.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I tried to get my son to model his cousin's towel, but he wouldn't stand up... I guess he's used to the routine of when you're wrapped in a towel its time to lay down so we can put on the diaper. :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYNvkjjGI/AAAAAAAAEQs/VUK_SLuH5K8/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYNvkjjGI/AAAAAAAAEQs/VUK_SLuH5K8/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1156.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">What you'll need:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">1 bath towel</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">1 hand towel</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">sewing machine</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">pins</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I got my towels off of Walmart.com. They had packs of two towels, two hand towels, and two washclothes for $10. Later I also found some towels off of Kohls.com when they were having a sale and got 2 towels for $2.50 each. Then I just added 1 matching hand towel to my order. (FYI: Towels will be $1.97 each at Walmart on Black Friday!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">What to do:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">First you are going to take your hand towel and cut it in half. (One hand towel will make two hoods.)</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYWAhg_BI/AAAAAAAAEQw/Rk1LRu1mdn0/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1138.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYWAhg_BI/AAAAAAAAEQw/Rk1LRu1mdn0/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1138.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I have a fancy embroidery machine, so I added some stabilizer where I was going to embroider the name of the child I was making the towel for. If you don't have an embroidery machine, you could always get some no-pill felt or some other sort of fabric and make a design on it (IE: Flower, Rubber Ducky, etc.)</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYdgWx8PI/AAAAAAAAEQ0/46ArA0SJjUk/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1141.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYdgWx8PI/AAAAAAAAEQ0/46ArA0SJjUk/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1141.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then I stitched out the name.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYlJSe0YI/AAAAAAAAEQ4/YU6xsqiASHo/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1142.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObYlJSe0YI/AAAAAAAAEQ4/YU6xsqiASHo/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1142.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Once you are done adding a name or decal, turn the hand towel wrong side out and pin the raw edges together.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObY2ZT4NfI/AAAAAAAAEQ8/0-Y2_LmX7AA/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1146.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObY2ZT4NfI/AAAAAAAAEQ8/0-Y2_LmX7AA/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1146.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then sew the raw edges together.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObY8vXfWfI/AAAAAAAAERA/fxZ0uzzfQ5g/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1147.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObY8vXfWfI/AAAAAAAAERA/fxZ0uzzfQ5g/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1147.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Next stitch a curved line to make more of a hood shape or else, as my husband said, your towel will look like a klu klux klan hood.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZEHFlUOI/AAAAAAAAERE/D6N80IVZLaM/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZEHFlUOI/AAAAAAAAERE/D6N80IVZLaM/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1149.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZLbsoYiI/AAAAAAAAERI/P0DLkHxWhPw/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1150.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZLbsoYiI/AAAAAAAAERI/P0DLkHxWhPw/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1150.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then cut the excess fabric above the curved stitch.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZRSUiVGI/AAAAAAAAERM/9iABhVUTcyA/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1151.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" ox="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZRSUiVGI/AAAAAAAAERM/9iABhVUTcyA/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1151.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Turn your hood right side out and you've got your hood!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZXkNxZ1I/AAAAAAAAERQ/zN_TBZzUq1I/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1153.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZXkNxZ1I/AAAAAAAAERQ/zN_TBZzUq1I/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1153.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Next center your hood to the bath towel and pin.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZeFGwyLI/AAAAAAAAERU/BkdILPY_9rk/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1154.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ox="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZeFGwyLI/AAAAAAAAERU/BkdILPY_9rk/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1154.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Stitch the hood to the towel. I used a zig sag stitch.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And you have your hooded towel!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZfDdtBQI/AAAAAAAAERY/x0QOSc43SzY/s1600/Brodie+Bear+5+1160.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" ox="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TObZfDdtBQI/AAAAAAAAERY/x0QOSc43SzY/s400/Brodie+Bear+5+1160.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I packaged these in gift baskets along with the washcloths, some bath toys, and bubble bath soaps!</div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-51743718759495518242010-11-01T14:10:00.000-07:002010-11-01T14:29:30.933-07:00Halloween bagsI was walking through Michaels awhile ago and saw these cute tote bags hanging up for $2 each. I thought they would make a great trick or treat bag and let my kids pick out the colors they wanted. I then let them decide what they would like me to put on the bag. For my oldest I drew a pumpkin face, my middle child a ghost and my baby a spider. I had a hard time picking out my babies tote. I was debating between a mummy, frankenstein, the words boo with ghosts, a spider and a skull. I eventually chose the spider. I made these out of freezer paper and fabric paint. I did something similar<a href="http://sandjcrafts.blogspot.com/search/label/Baby">here</a> and you can use the same directions from there to do these as well.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQvFltlvPVaKfWLA9QSZT2LJXTyc1j8R9bnL2XeAxpMjjN9sWGiNxbhw-kTTf5Gi6N_3j-_F5wtsRfx066NuRBN9PqN-uL-VwHXdCGsoI_hhazpotKjQ90nKzZx8laq38jGxue1yljhvmh/s1600/027.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQvFltlvPVaKfWLA9QSZT2LJXTyc1j8R9bnL2XeAxpMjjN9sWGiNxbhw-kTTf5Gi6N_3j-_F5wtsRfx066NuRBN9PqN-uL-VwHXdCGsoI_hhazpotKjQ90nKzZx8laq38jGxue1yljhvmh/s400/027.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534691804515711202" /></a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-23011166653562770712010-10-26T10:31:00.000-07:002010-10-26T10:31:25.954-07:00Gnome and Mushrooms<div align="center">Need a last minute Halloween costume? This is what we did last year and it was very easy to put together!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMcELovykYI/AAAAAAAAEMo/dyHBFL-0PrM/s1600/Brodie+Bear+1601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" nx="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMcELovykYI/AAAAAAAAEMo/dyHBFL-0PrM/s400/Brodie+Bear+1601.jpg" width="300" /></a></div></div><div align="center">For the Gnome Hat, just get a piece of white construction paper and cut a circle. Then cut a piece of red felt into the same size circle and with a hot glue gun, glue the felt to the construction paper. Cut a triangle out of the circle so it looks like this:</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZd5NEL8oI/AAAAAAAAEMY/T3Oyko1v-aU/s1600/gnome+hat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nx="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZd5NEL8oI/AAAAAAAAEMY/T3Oyko1v-aU/s320/gnome+hat.jpg" width="283" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then form the piece into a cone and glue the seams together. Your gnome hat will look like this:</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZbui_jO2I/AAAAAAAAEMI/eNu-NYQwhu0/s1600/IMG_0114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nx="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZbui_jO2I/AAAAAAAAEMI/eNu-NYQwhu0/s320/IMG_0114.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then to complete the costume get a white beard and stuff a pillow under a Gnome looking shirt. Add a belt and some boots and your costume is complete!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">For the Mushroom hat cut another circle out of construction paper and of red felt. Glue the felt to the construction paper, then cut a smaller triangle out of the circle so it looks like this:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZeqbyNPxI/AAAAAAAAEMc/ejLVBSSKoiI/s1600/mushroom+hat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nx="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZeqbyNPxI/AAAAAAAAEMc/ejLVBSSKoiI/s320/mushroom+hat.jpg" width="283" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Cut out white felt circles and hot glue them to the hat. Then hot glue the seams together. Your hat will now look like this:</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZbzKJ3ihI/AAAAAAAAEMM/w9YTZLI90lI/s1600/IMG_0115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nx="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZbzKJ3ihI/AAAAAAAAEMM/w9YTZLI90lI/s320/IMG_0115.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then get a headband and hot glue it to the bottom of the hat.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZb2r2gsZI/AAAAAAAAEMQ/DZOb8qKCd44/s1600/IMG_0116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nx="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZb2r2gsZI/AAAAAAAAEMQ/DZOb8qKCd44/s320/IMG_0116.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZb46EIDvI/AAAAAAAAEMU/7sH5Ub5aqNg/s1600/IMG_0117.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" nx="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMZb46EIDvI/AAAAAAAAEMU/7sH5Ub5aqNg/s320/IMG_0117.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">For the mushroom cap, just make or buy a red beanie and hot glue white felt circles to it. To complete the outfit, wear a white shirt and pants for the stem.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMcQRdx9vDI/AAAAAAAAEMs/vNaf7Jsjl1g/s1600/Brodie+Bear+1578.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" nx="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_L6uhXyvPo7o/TMcQRdx9vDI/AAAAAAAAEMs/vNaf7Jsjl1g/s400/Brodie+Bear+1578.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-44819057939712862592010-10-25T10:13:00.000-07:002010-10-25T10:18:38.589-07:00Star Wars CakeI made this cake recently for a combined birthday party for my husband and a friend. They use to watch it as kids and our friend still loves Star Wars. It is red velvet cake with a cream cheese filling, covered in buttercream with fondant accents.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVP06FvXc2UCUQc2yUFBqjO_rkAUKcqcWsNPwZe6AfgmvCpj9qQJni-i-1ieEywUN2DgmTRLVN_3WJHlA0FiTxY62dfes6S9pjACwAaTONetuqhqOFW2euUtaFmlPLugmOS92gsylu_mY/s1600/007.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVP06FvXc2UCUQc2yUFBqjO_rkAUKcqcWsNPwZe6AfgmvCpj9qQJni-i-1ieEywUN2DgmTRLVN_3WJHlA0FiTxY62dfes6S9pjACwAaTONetuqhqOFW2euUtaFmlPLugmOS92gsylu_mY/s400/007.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532033573251858162" /></a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-54168635000139947042010-10-14T21:35:00.000-07:002010-10-14T22:07:15.022-07:00Pumpkin Jars<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSukUrgiNuQko8I5HqLFvPo9jUF3uQMGphNj9n-6FQc0xQ8qnoa7niypP5EvRLaov7J6fJPF5yfrF6viwF5SD3PXoUAk0xYq0g-p5m1i6tDCsUNdwR7c5Yv4kVSrXjFwhfHK3D_XGmreKs/s1600/IMGP8077.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSukUrgiNuQko8I5HqLFvPo9jUF3uQMGphNj9n-6FQc0xQ8qnoa7niypP5EvRLaov7J6fJPF5yfrF6viwF5SD3PXoUAk0xYq0g-p5m1i6tDCsUNdwR7c5Yv4kVSrXjFwhfHK3D_XGmreKs/s400/IMGP8077.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528127019336558162" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I love making crafts with my kids. Last year we did the wood pumpkins found<a href="http://sandjcrafts.blogspot.com/search/label/Halloween">here</a> and this years I decided to make pumpkins out of glass jars. I found this idea in the latest Taste of Home magazine and knew my kids would love them. It is a very easy craft to do. First cut your tissue paper into strips. Next paint mod podge (or some other kind of glue) over a glass jar and place the strips vertical before the mod podge drys. Continue to do this until the jar is covered. Once it is dry cut out different face shapes for the pumpkins out of black construction paper and glue to place the pieces on the jars. Decorate with ribbon. My kids loved doing this and I thought they did a great job. My middle child who is 2 needed a little help but my oldest who is 4 could do almost all of it alone.The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-30595195827894878182010-09-30T10:16:00.000-07:002010-09-30T10:21:00.622-07:00Camping cakeI recently made this cake for my husbands co-worker's birthday. He loves to go hiking and camping and after looking at some pictures from cakecentral.com for inspiration I made the cake. It is a yellow cake with strawberry filling and covered in fondant.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH1qqeQsyA1ZFRcJ_VoPRq7jcq0sREOliGxZzno0A-LOuBrcOonvCOn_RGLkkiUWcu1gHTQ01FO4wmiw5_8LtjdOu0L2jjTqVzwJa3S1CQFyuu8Yxta61Zud6A_xZZQIXMMBz1fPr4IRFr/s1600/001.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH1qqeQsyA1ZFRcJ_VoPRq7jcq0sREOliGxZzno0A-LOuBrcOonvCOn_RGLkkiUWcu1gHTQ01FO4wmiw5_8LtjdOu0L2jjTqVzwJa3S1CQFyuu8Yxta61Zud6A_xZZQIXMMBz1fPr4IRFr/s400/001.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522757031969071426" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdFrXEY6Ws35ttOc8m20PwyIH6FU-GrJlO3KpqxZgLGPeYaPK_OSWRnn-QAvtSzUXx-rFvqLC1pVaOgql2SXz1OKoAtFt6oEU-bk-2Ud-sSX7OtIoBToloZcPBAdZ_8u8UUK5RPQPAjhT8/s1600/005.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdFrXEY6Ws35ttOc8m20PwyIH6FU-GrJlO3KpqxZgLGPeYaPK_OSWRnn-QAvtSzUXx-rFvqLC1pVaOgql2SXz1OKoAtFt6oEU-bk-2Ud-sSX7OtIoBToloZcPBAdZ_8u8UUK5RPQPAjhT8/s400/005.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522757019710152818" /></a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-10112163483328878502010-09-11T23:06:00.000-07:002010-09-11T23:16:01.554-07:00Wedding cakeHere is my first wedding cake. I made this as a gift for my brother. I forgot my camera at home, so these are from my phone but will post some better photos in the future. The entire cake is yellow cake and on the bottom layer it is filled with homemade strawberry jam and the top two layers are filled with chocolate ganache. It is then covered in fondant and the gerber daises are also made of fondant.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjgF1Czp5fcwZlcTh3nMAhJYDCykk1mANh17HU-v5Fs78aNrG-phI4NZ7HyztcgIpLNDFttpzmcPPvPtyocgAxBW-_VStYhqhCkx4_iuliIrdDj2y5O5sd5iMX31z6CsogVbZsfsPcWNey/s1600/019.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjgF1Czp5fcwZlcTh3nMAhJYDCykk1mANh17HU-v5Fs78aNrG-phI4NZ7HyztcgIpLNDFttpzmcPPvPtyocgAxBW-_VStYhqhCkx4_iuliIrdDj2y5O5sd5iMX31z6CsogVbZsfsPcWNey/s400/019.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515904829927299746" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihBTcDZ-M10hf-u-VVLzDiu5UWcijxS9tCYWE8Nqncdl47wFKWSVycOjGWRz7w2OjKBE-l6BCCbRtj1FFuVJTvcmSsWZ_v8EkB8YngRdJWPBhZL5pBH2d7AME5RSX7Rstc9PPIRIYLr5H1/s1600/014.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihBTcDZ-M10hf-u-VVLzDiu5UWcijxS9tCYWE8Nqncdl47wFKWSVycOjGWRz7w2OjKBE-l6BCCbRtj1FFuVJTvcmSsWZ_v8EkB8YngRdJWPBhZL5pBH2d7AME5RSX7Rstc9PPIRIYLr5H1/s400/014.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515904820715804802" /></a>The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104717258131007739.post-49358904922618776822010-09-06T08:16:00.000-07:002011-02-05T15:33:13.840-08:00Homemade jam and canned peachesMy in-laws recently brought me a lot of peaches, so I had to think of different things to do with them. For the first batch of peaches they brought me I made baby food and a peach pie for my mother in-laws birthday. I got the recipe from <a href="http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Golden-Peach-Pie">here</a>. Whenever I make fruit pies I love to look for recipes with almond extract in it and I loved how this pie turned out.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt2DIBd3eJMvZ_BqNCKdQ3-yfr4TMvrm4NeuPbhpHsrsx_95QaPFb0vf009nIcqxOM1QPzRadjFQ5nnJfqiw-7VshZPyyj75m8kcGNqNyYWAaEGP98isoXTXfuy0hHeO_vDGwzHqJMLHx_/s1600/051.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513820349970949986" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt2DIBd3eJMvZ_BqNCKdQ3-yfr4TMvrm4NeuPbhpHsrsx_95QaPFb0vf009nIcqxOM1QPzRadjFQ5nnJfqiw-7VshZPyyj75m8kcGNqNyYWAaEGP98isoXTXfuy0hHeO_vDGwzHqJMLHx_/s400/051.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />For the second batch of peaches I decided to make homemade jam for my very first time. I have been wanting to do it for quite sometime and just decided to go for it. It was easier than I thought. I just followed the directions in the sur-gel box. Since the first time I made jam was relatively easy I decided to make some strawberry jam for the filling of my brothers wedding cake.<br /><br />With the last batch of peaches they brought me I decided to can the peaches. I followed the directions from this blog <a href="http://littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com/2010/08/how-to-can-peaches.html">here</a>.<br /><br />(there should have been more jam but I gave away quite a few jars before I took the picture)<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpqdhUfL3EGUJu0qzlaxgxVfM5P-wQW1iqaSLN5uQOh6uVU1Esm74OUjV_JGwL0bXSYgUv4I480_3myhWYgNswd4GMix6m6QtiqUT2YX-pjM7Lu1PW71d77M7LTKhtktnJ0ocR_yxfGHkS/s1600/014.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513820360550821282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpqdhUfL3EGUJu0qzlaxgxVfM5P-wQW1iqaSLN5uQOh6uVU1Esm74OUjV_JGwL0bXSYgUv4I480_3myhWYgNswd4GMix6m6QtiqUT2YX-pjM7Lu1PW71d77M7LTKhtktnJ0ocR_yxfGHkS/s400/014.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I love figuring out things to make with different produce. A few months ago when my in-laws brought me bags of cherries I made a pie, a cobbler and a crisp and stil had some too spare! The next thing I hope to attempt to make is to can pizza sauce!The Leonardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04102173858903220201noreply@blogger.com1