Pinterest Try Thursday

I'm happy to say, I have been busy with work (sewing) this week, so haven't had time to try something new from Pinterest...except food of course.

I have been trying to post more to my Weight Watchers board and I found I had posted this one twice, so I must have really wanted to try it.

I didn't have time to take pictures, so I used the one from the source of the recipe

Weight Watchers Butterfinger Dessert

http://mykitchenadventures1.blogspot.com/2012/02/butterfinger-dessert.html

There was some discussion on the blog of how many pts. I came up with 4pts.
I used a sugar free Angel food Cake which would make it even less.

The great thing about this is that Mr. SS loved it too. I try to find recipes that I can eat and that he will eat so I'm not always cooking 2 meals.

I don't have dessert often now so this was really a treat.



I finished a lampshade for a friend of mine today.
I used the same method as in the tutorial I posted here.

 The cutest little shells for her beach themed guest room.

It is sew easy, ladies. You can find great shades to cover at a thrift store. The only sewing is sewing the bias strips and you could even glue those. The instructions seem long, but that's because I didn't want to leave anything out.
Just click here and give it a try. Post your creation, come back and tell me so I can link to it.

Also, if you try anything from Pinterest and post about it, come back, tell me and I will link to your blog.
Sounds like fun to me.

In honor of my two recent giveaway wins, I am going to be having a giveaway soon. Just need to think on it.
It has been a long time and I want to do something special for my followers. So check back.



God is Good!!
Life is Good!!

Winner Again and Again and Again

I have only entered a couple of giveaways since I had my run of wins a couple of years ago.

I visit A Spoonful of Sugar often and happened to be there on a day when they were offering a $40.00 gift certificate for fabric at XOGiGi Fabrics. There were so many entries and I almost didn't enter, but as I was scrolling through some of the collections of fabric, I saw this:

Don't be Crabby in Nautical

by Robert Kaufman

I thought it would make a cute beach quilt and since Mr. SS has heard he may have a job on the Central Coast coming up, I just might need something for the beach.

Well, I couldn't have been more suprised when I was notified that I won.

I was # 765 out of 1200 entries.

Thank you girls from A Spoonful of Sugar and XO Gi Gi Fabrics

A few days before Valentines Day, I was reading Pam Kitty Morning and saw this little stack of cuteness:

Pam said to visit Holly to enter a giveway from both of them.

No doubt about it. When I saw this I knew it just had my name on it.

Then when I read what to do to be entered, I was convinced.

"Tell a wonderful Valentines story" in the comment box.

Boy did I have a story for them.

So, I told them a shortened version of  my Valentine story. If you have been hanging around My Sew Sweet Studio for a while, you might remember my story here.

Yesterday, I was on PKM's blog again and went to Holly's blog to see the teacup quilt.

You can only imagine how I screamed squealed when I saw

this;

And before I forget...

Without further ado...



The winner is...



The very sentimental...



Drum roll please...



Beverly whose hubby Dennis, gave her the same heart necklace...twice

                                                                              

It took a minute to sink in, because I had forgotten about entering.

No one has notified me yet, but I'm sure I'm the only Beverly with a Dennis  and a necklace given to me twice.  You know me by now and how I love anything PKM. and I cannot wait to receive the prize.                                                                          

                            

I'm leaving you today with the best win of all.

I spent the afternoon Sunday watching these two grandsons of mine play ball.

Cousins Cade and Jack.

Cade had 2 games and they won both.

Jack had a scrimmage and stayed with me to watch Cade's 2nd game.

Just happens to remind me of afternoons of watching their Daddys play ball.

God is Good!!

Life is Good!!

Pinterest Try Thursday

I'm a little late getting this post up, but the rain storm put my Internet out of service all day yesterday.

Today I am showing a couple of Pinterest tries that I promised a couple of weeks ago.

Even though I am 5'5", (at least I still claim that height) I have my Mom's legs and she was only 5'2'.

So, every pair of pants I buy (even if they are marked "short") have to be hemmed. Since I found this method on Pinterest, it has not been such a pain to shorten jeans.

You can go to this blog and follow very good instructions...I know...it works and is SEW EASY

http://refashionmama.wordpress.com/2011/12/17/alteration-my-new-favorite-way-to-keep-original-hem-on-jeans/

Since I have been on Weight Watchers, I have gone down two sizes in jeans and finally bought two pair in my new size to get by until summer and capri and shorts weather.

They, of course were way too long. By following Refashionmamas easy instructions, I very quickly shortened my two new pair of jeans.  I didn't cut off the extra as I liked the neat appearance even though it only shows on the inside.

You can see the original stitching on the out side on both pairs.

Heres a close up.

Pretty cool, huh? No more broken needles trying to sew through the thickness of  double flat feld jeans seams.

If you hate hemming jeans, go to Refashionmama's blog and try this.

Maybe you have noticed that I haven't mentioned too much about my progress on my Weight Watchers journey, except to share a recipe or meal when I am eating out.

I was afraid to jinx my progress and didn't want to brag until I knew I was going to stick with it.

Well, I am finally ready to share, that I have lost 30 lbs. (well, almost). I still have a long way to go and some days I struggle, but for the most part  it has been an easy journey and I know for a fact what the reason is.

I have always thought since it was my own fault, I needed to diet that I needed to do it by my self. I

didn't feel me and my weight problem would be important enough to ask for help. Sometime last October, I heard or read something in a bible study "Breaking Free" by Beth Moore, that made me think THIS time, I needed to ask God's help...and I did. Everyday, I start and end my day with prayer and praise for His help.

Okay...so a recipe, that is a regular on our table now.

It is a Weight Watchers recipe and the nutritional information along with the recipe is on the link I am giving you. Mr. SS and my family love it and I have shared it with friends that cook it often now, not for it's Weight Watchers qualities, but because it is nutritious and tastes so dang yummy.

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/02/crock-pot-santa-fe-chicken-425-pts.html

I put 4 chicken breasts and Rotelle (doesn't Rotelle just make everything taste better) in the crockpot.

Warning Rotelle can be a little spicey. I use the mild...but use the original or Hot at your own risk.

Check the link for the amounts of spices and add a chopped onion, chicken broth, corn and black beans.

I love Cilantro, so I'm always generous with that. You can adjust according to your taste.

Don't you just love crock pot meals. Just throw it all together in the morning and it smells so good in the house all day.

I served it over white or brown rice the first night and then we love the left overs made into burritos.

Last week, I had a couple portions in zip locks in the freezer and I threw it into the WW Tortilla soup recipe I gave you a while ago.

One last thing...today was Bernina club at Strawberry Patches. It's always such a fun morning seeing old friends and getting inspired by all the projects others have been working on. Today each of us had one of these on the table.

and we got to do a make and take tissue holder.

She also served the cutest little canning jars with Cheesecake in them.

and linked her post to my Pinterest Try Thursday  today.

We all felt so pampered.

So be sure to visit Notes from the Patch and see her Pinterest tries.

(Her pictures are much better than mine)

Don't forget to come here and tell me if you have tried something from Pinterest and posted about it so I can link to you.

God is Good!!

Life is Good!!

Happy Valentines Day and Pinterest Try Thursday

Oh my!! Where Have I been? It's been almost 2 weeks since I posted. I think that is the longest I have ever gone without a post. Life just gets in the way sometimes. Been having some fun and doing some not so fun but necessary things too. 

Superbowl weekend found us in Sacramento for a Gymnastics competition for 6 yr. old Jack and a much needed visit with my cousin and brother-in-law. I know...those of you who read me regularly know that Superbowl Sunday is the Parks Family Holiday. However this year we were split up so we could go to Jacks meet.  It was worth it though. Jack earned his first medal getting a "superior" on rings.

Mr. SS and I drove up on Friday to have some time with my cousin before my son Brandon and his wife and kids came on Saturday.

My cousin Judy asked to take us to dinner for Mr. SS's birthday. She asked what his favorite food was.

That's easy..."Ribs", I said.

She right away said she had the perfect place to take us. It was a place called Ludy's in Woodland not too far away from Sacramento.

It was a cute historic town that I would like to visit sometime during the day.

Mr. SS enjoyed his plate of ribs and they brought him his own bib. Isn't that so funny.

Being still on Weight Watchers, I had the BBQ Chicken Salad.

As soon as we sat down, I knew I had to get a picture of the curtains. It was the perfect country western decor with red and white checked tableclothes, a country western group singing and

these cute curtans with horses. They were hanging on branches with horseshoes for corbels and rope rings.

I just loved the whole place...perfect place to celebrate Mr. SS's birthday.

This is a little zip bag I made Judy to match the bag I made here last fall.

When we got home, I had to run to Target to get some candy for my Valentines decorations.

Look what I  found. They were on clearance and look like reproductions of refrigerator jars.

 I love the colors...aqua, red and yellow...perfect for my little blue trailer.

And the red one was perfect for some Valentine Candy.

Now to my Pinterest Try. I'm sure if you have been on Pinterest lately you have seen these.

They are a variation of Peanut Butter Blossoms using Dove Chocolate hearts.

I made some cookies for Mr.SS

and some in my miniature cupcake pan and took them down today for the grands that live in my front yard.

I saved the best for last. With inspiration from Suzanne @ Notes From the Patch and Amy @ Nana Company (Click their names for tutorials) I came up with this bib for my Emmy

I had to draw it myself because both of theirs were too small for my big girl.

I had a stripped piece left from my mug rug so inspiration came from that too.

Pam Kitty Love fabric made it Sew Sweet for my Emmy Lou.

She will be 3 in March and I don't know how much longer she will wear a bib.  What will I do??

I am really behind on visiting all your blogs...well I have visited, just haven't been having time to comment, but I promise before my next post I will get caught up with all of you.

This post seems kind of disjointed, but wanted to get so many things in. I will be back to normal(whatever that is) soon, I hope.

PS

I just had to add this to my Valentines Day post.

Look what I woke up to on my bar this morning.

Mr. SS, who usually goes to bed before me, stayed up until I was snuggled in bed reading my book and wrote this, knowing I would be up first this morning to make his coffee.

Happy Valentines Day

God is Good!!

Life is Good!!