Guest post from Miss Information

Today, I'm participating in the Grow.Swap.Share.  I'm posting over at Miss Information about how to make paper doily pom poms.  I'd like to welcome Kelley from Miss Information

Hi everyone my name is Kelley and I am Miss Information. First I want to take a moment to than Jos for letting me invade her corner of the world. We are doing a blog swap brought to you by Julie at My Favorite Finds and Carrie at White Lights on Wednesday. Please go visit these great blogs.

Miss Information is where I share recipes, crafts, and family. I also share information on ADHD and Sensory Integration Disorder. I live in the USA in Georgia with my hubby and 2 boys Garrett 8, and Matthew 3. I hope you will stop by and visit and see some of the other things I've cooked and created.

I was wanting to make an end of year treat for my sons's class at school. So the boys and I set out to make suckers with jolly ranchers. The boys loved them and they were a total hit with his friends.

You will need:

• candies
• sucker sticks
• non stick foil
• a cookie sheet

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.
Then take one of the best inventions EVER Reynold Non-Stick Foil and line a cookie sheet. The boys helped me unwrap the candy and we laid them out in a square, you can do other shapes as well.

You will want to make sure when you put them on the pan you alternate them 

so that you have room for your sucker sticks.

Put them in the oven for 5 minutes, when you pull them out you immediately lay the sucker stick into the melted goo and twist it to cover it in candy

Now you can see why you need to alternate and leave room. These are so easy and fun for the kids to help with they can do most of the steps. they turn out beautiful and look like stained glass windows

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Who do Mothers see about a sick day or 4?

Did you miss me?

I missed you.

I have been in and out of hospital (twice), spent a lot of time in Drs waiting rooms, getting an ultrasound, getting an x-ray, injection in my tummy & had more blood taken from me than I knew I had.

All of this for a sore leg. Not just any sore leg. Sometimes the pain has been so bad that I lay on the lounge crying like a baby. No one seems to know what is causing it. I know that I do not have DVT {deep vein thrombosis}, I do not have a broken bone, I do not have shin splints, I do not have a tumour, I do have very pretty bones {????} & I do know that the pain is not as bad now but at 5:34am {like clockwork} I will wake up & cry for an hour. I know that every couple of hours, the pain will return & I am back to where I started. I now have to wait till Thursday for the blood test results to maybe shed some light on what is going on. I kind of feel as though I am going a little crazy.

Do you know what I mean?

Crazy because you KNOW there is something wrong but no one can figure it out.

1 emergency room Dr & 2 registrar’s

2 G.P.’s

But still no answer. Everyone just keeps telling me to take painkillers. One thing I don’t like is painkillers. They knock me out cold. When Mr P is away, that is the last thing that I need. I am the only adult in the house & I need to be alert.

As a Mother, we all know this, there is no sick days. No time to just lay down & recover. Mr P came home for the weekend just so I could sleep. The pain would come in waves that were so powerful that I had to sleep to have energy to deal with the next one. Now he has gone back to work {the truck} & I am having to drag myself off the lounge & get back to the land of the living. I really have my fingers crossed that I wake up with the alarm clock tomorrow & not the pain that has consumed me since last Wednesday.

I have so many exciting things to do for the blog this week & I have been so excited to share them with you all. I am giving myself one more day off & I have lined up a special guest blogger for tomorrow.

I am taking part in the

  I will be sharing a blog post on how to make these

Paper doily pom poms.

I made these using the dyed paper doilies the other week.

So hopefully after one more day of rest, I will be able to get cracking on some special projects that I have lined up.

Vanilla and Lemonade cake

I am telling you that this cake is just as delicious as it looks!

It is a Vanilla & Lemonade cake with white chocolate drizzled on top. Am I making you hungry? Thought so! This cake is so moist, so amazing & cooked in under 10 minutes in the microwave!

If you saw the Chocolate & lemonade cake that I did a few weeks back, this is very similar. I just tweaked a couple of things & came up with this cake!

I am really enjoying cooking cakes in the microwave. {gasp} Yes, I said it, I like to cook cakes in the microwave! They are so quick, easy & who doesn’t like that!

For this cake you will need

1 packet of vanilla cake mix

1 packet of vanilla instant pudding mix

1 cup of lemonade

1/3 cup of olive oil

2 eggs.

Put all the ingredients into a bowl & mix with a spatula until combined.

Pour into a microwave safe silicon cake ring.

Place on top of an upturned microwave safe plate in the centre of your microwave & cook on high for 7-9 minutes.

{times may vary according to different microwaves. Mine took 9 minutes}

Allow to cook in the cake ring on a cooling rack.

When cool, turn out on to a plate & drizzle 100g of melted white chocolate on top.

Easy & oh so yummy!!!

Sprocket cushions, I am in love! Free pattern and tutorial

I am in love!

I am in love with how easy it is to make these sprocket cushions!

FREE PATTERN & TUTORIAL FROM CLUCK CLUCK SEW

{click above link}

I was first inspired to make this cushion when I saw this fabulous one.

from Mahlimoo, Me & Three

Amy said it was easy {and addictive!} and she was right! I already have plans for more!

It took around 1 hour from start to finish. It took less time to make this than what it did for the girls to make these…

Georgia made the cupcakes & Kiara made the cake!

And I made this….

The girls want a sprocket cushion each & I have to say that these would be awesome in any room of the house. I am going to fill the loungeroom with them. They are so squishy & soft!  I think I may even make some to keep in the car for long trips or when you need something to sit on at the park or watching the kids sport.

I am in love with sprocket cushions!


Linking up here

What a weekend! Hot rods, rides, fireworks and lots of family fun!

We really like to make the most of our weekends. With Mr P away so much, the family time is really important to maintain a close knit family. This weekend was as jam packed as we could make it!

We went to a yearly event, Rockin Rodz. We love going & the girls have a blast, Mr P gets to look at cars {I do too!} & we get to do it together!

{a couple of crazies playing dress ups in the photo booth!}

{I don’t know what I like more, the awesome colours or the cars?}

{$2 rides so there was no stopping Georgia!}

{listening to some classic rock ‘n’ roll}

Do you like to jam pack your weekends?

Guess who’s cooking! Redcliffe Style

Today on the blog, I am super excited to have the fabulous Rachel from Redcliffe Style cooking for us!

Rachel is one of my blogger friends. She is super stylish, super awesome & she writes a fantastic blog. I love how she can make a super healthy recipe so yummy!

Don’t believe me…see for yourself!

Take it away Rachel!

The easiest, tastiest and healthiest soup. This is so good it has even made it onto husband's list of favourites, and he was raised on a cattle station. This takes me 5 minutes prep, 10min cooking, then leave simmering for 45 mins while stirring occasionally.

Vegetable and lentil Soup

Ingredients

Vegetables anything and everything, whatever you have in the fridge.

This time I used...

3 carrots

2 zucchinis

2 celery stalks

1 Leak

1 (massive) potato

1 onion

1 clove of garlic

Plus...

Vegetable stock 2/3 cups

1 can of tomatoes

2 cups of red lentils

fresh basil

fresh parsley

olive oil

salt

pepper

parmesan

plus water if you need to reduce the thickness

Heat up the olive oil and then fry the finely chop the onion and garlic (and leek if you are using it)...

chop up any other vegetables and add them to the onion and garlic...

Stir and after a few minutes, add the can of tomatoes and stock... 

then add two cups of rinsed lentils...

bubble, bubble, bubble...

Put a lid on and leave...but watch and stir occasionally for approximately 45 minutes. Then add a generous handful of basil. I also threw in some parsley just because I had it.

Season to taste with salt and pepper

Garnish with parmesan and maybe add a slice of chewy bread and a glass of red.

 

PS: This is a thick and hearty soup. On the second day I often serve it over mash potatoes and with a steak for the meat eaters.

Don’t forget to stop by Rachel’s blog

Redcliffe Style

and check out her super cool blog!

Guess who’s cooking? Stay at home Mum!

Today I am kicking off a new feature

The very first guest is the fabulous Jody from

Stay At Home Mum

She is sharing one of the most popular recipes form her blog

Tim Tam Balls

If you have not heard of Stay at Home Mum, then make sure you go & check out this fabulous blog! There is some fantastic hints & tips on how to be a Stay At Home Mum while managing to survive & thrive on one wage.

Ok, now contain yourself. I know how much you all loved the Cookies & cream truffles (now known as Oreo balls), so here is Tim Tam Balls

Here goes,

• 2 packets of Tim Tams-I used two flavours -White and Dark Rum and Raisin
• 250 grams Philly Cream Cheese, softened
• Shredded coconut

In a blender (I have also used mortar and pestle) blend Tim Tams (one flavour only) then add 1/2 tub Philly for each packet of biscuits and mix together. Roll into balls then roll in coconut
Can be served straight away or popped in fridge to harden slightly

Recipe Tips and Hints:

• Tim Tam Balls can be frozen.  Layer in baking paper and seal in an air tight container for up to four weeks.
• Other flavours that work include Dark Choc Mint, White Chocolate with dried cranberries and crushed pistachios, Turkish Delight (use the Turkish Delight flavoured Tim Tams).

For more budget friendly recipes, hints & tips…… head on over to Stay At Home Mum.

Read more http://www.stayathomemum.net.au/recipes/biscuits-clices/tim-tam-balls/

Screen printing

For Christmas last year, Mr P brought me a screen printing kit. How did he know that would be the perfect gift for me? Well, I did take him shopping for it! It has been on my to do list for a long time. The last time that I screen printed was in high school & I loved it! I have been dreaming of doing it again ever since.

I now have!

I don’t know why it took me nearly half a year to open the box. I think maybe my fear of failure stopped me. I didn’t want anything to go wrong. So I chose a basic design that was not only easy to print but also easy to design & draw.

Yay! I did it!

Now, it is not perfect but I love it!

It was so easy & now I am hooked again!

I am going to make a cushion cover out of this print.

I have so many more designs that I am itching to try & next week I think will be screen printing week! I will remember to put more paint on the screen for my next attempt.  I can already see a line of printed shopping bags hanging on my bag rack by the front door!

Linking up here

Lets go fly a kite!

On Sunday, we went to the annual Redcliffe Kite Festival. We go to this fabulous event every year.

The super sized kites are amazing!

The girls {and myself!} love the food!

The rides are the girls favourite thing to do!

I have some exciting things in store for my blog & all of the fabulous followers of this blog. The photo’s in this post have been digitally scrapbooked using My Memories Suite Digital scrapbook software. It is a fabulous program that can be found HERE. I have been lucky enough to have been given a special code that is just for my blog readers so that you can receive $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store - $20 value!

The code that you use is

                          STMMMS53960

It really is a fantastic program & you download it straight to your computer so no waiting for it to be posted!

Later this week I will show you a little more on what you can do with this fabulous program & will even be giving one lucky reader the chance to win this scrapbooking software!

That is right!

You could have the chance to win this awesome prize!

If you are anything like me, you have a million & one photo’s on your computer, phone, camera, memory card & on countless USB sticks. Here is you chance to be able to get those pics looking fantastic & ready view. You can share them via email, on your digital photo frame, screensaver, print them to make your own photo book, view them on your iPod, make a movie to send to family & friend’s….the list is endless!

Pan fried fish with aioli and a simple salad with herb dressing

My last recipe in the Gourmet Garden blog off/ cook off is a very fast & easy to make dinner.

Pan fried fish with aioli & a simple salad with herb dressing.

To start with, you need to make the aioli.

You will need

1 teaspoon of Gourmet Garden Garlic

2 egg yolks

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon of Dijon Mustard

2/3 cup of olive oil

In a food processor, blend garlic, egg yolks, lemon juice & Dijon mustard to form a paste.

Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while the motor is running.

Put it in the fridge while you make the rest of the dinner.

Make a simple salad using whatever is in your fridge. I used lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, carrot & Dutch Gouda cheese.

Make a simple dressing using

1/3 cup of olive oil

1 teaspoon of Gourmet garden Basil

I teaspoon of Gourmet Garden Coriander

1/2 teaspoon of Gourmet Garden Thyme

Mix well.

Pour it over the salad & coat all the ingredients with the dressing.

Then comes the fish.

I used Dory for this recipe.

In a container, coat the fish fillet with plain flour.

Cook in a pan on a medium to high heat with a little flavoured butter & olive oil.

Cook for 1 minute on each side.

Serve on a plate with the salad & aioli.