Spring Blooms

Today was a nice day outside, so I ventured out this morning to take a walk and enjoy the early springtime. I was the only person in the park, and it was nice to sit on the swings and breathe the fresh air. I actually found some of the trees flowering already, and of course the daffodils and crocus flowers. So even though the sky was still gray and wintery, the blooms give me hope for warmer days! And I did have the chance to snap a few photos. :) Keep it up, spring!

Just an Update

Ok, so I haven't posted anything in forever. But honestly, I'm not really doing much to feed my creativity. I've been working a lot, and since spring in PA is really just an extension of winter so it's usually too cold to go outside, there aren't a lot of oportunities for the creative juices to start flowing. But I am alive. And I did go to a jewelry show on Sunday. Mostly, I just got some great ideas to make my own versions of the highly overpriced stuff they were selling. I bought one pendant, which I love, and will turn into a fantastic summer necklace, and I actually won a pair of earrings. And even though they are pretty ugly, I'm still happy because I never ever win anything. Now if I could just transfer that luck to something like winning the lottery, i'd be set. :)

And if you're a yarn whore like me, you should check out Spin Cycle Yarns. All of their yarn is spun using diesel-powered bicycles. It rulz.

Horny Melon!

Today's the day you've all been waiting for! Here are the pics of the Kiwano, or horned melon. (Or jelly melon if you are my husband.) This is the most fantastic fruit I have seen in a while! The brightness of the green seed pods on the inside was a surprise. And it tastes like a not exactly ripe yet banana. The internet tells me that if you eat it when it's not ripe, it tastes sort of like a cucumber/kiwi. I love it!



Also, I finally have the coffee cake recipe ready for you all! And seriously, you have to make it. Now I got the base of this recipe for www.allrecipes.com, but i made some of my own changes. And the great thing about coffee cake is that you can basically add whatever you want, and it'll taste great.


Best. Coffee Cake. Ever.

For the Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
3/4 cup milk, or as needed
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the streusel topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter
pecans or other nuts, to taste.

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan. Make the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, combine 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon (for topping). Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Crack an egg into a measuring cup and then fill add milk to make 1 cup. Stir in vanilla. Pour into crumb mixture and mix just until moistened. Spread into prepared pan. Sprinkle top with half of the streusel.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with the remaining streusel. Bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm and Enjoy!! :)

D.I.A.N.A

Just a quick update, kids, on what i've been doing this weekend! I spent most of the time playing nintendo (haha) but when not doing that, I've been working on some things for my father-in-law's website. He owns and operates a driving school called Driving in a New America, Inc (DIANA). It's named afer his daughter, Diana, who passed away in a car accident when she was a teenager. Now, he is dedicating his life to helping other teens learn safe driving techniques. He does behind the wheel and classroom training around the Butler Count, PA area. You all should definitely check out his website, www.dianaschool.com.

So far, I've combined a couple photos together to make a banner for the top of the home page. The 'sky' in this photo was taken by Kevin (my FIL), on the day that Diana died. Can you spot the angel in the clouds? The rest of it is my creation, and I have to say that I'm pretty proud of it. Even though I thought of this project over a year ago, and am just now getting around to actually putting it into action. :)



And to go with the banner, I'll have to change some of the colors and layout of the website, which I've also been working on. I really hope Kevin likes one of the options I give him!

And with that, it's monday. So I guess I should get into the shower and get myself to work at some point. ooh, also! Tim and I were grocery shopping on saturday night (oh yeah, we're that exciting), and he spotted the "Kiwano", which is an orangish-yellow horned mellon. I had to have it! So we bought one and pictures to come of it, because it's fantastic!! yay!

Spot the Faker

I just stole this link from another blogger, but click the link to take the test to see if you can tell the difference between fake and real smiles. Apparently, most people are surprisingly bad at it. I, however, scored a 17 out of 20. Cuz I Rulz. See how well you can do!!

Spot the Faker!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Tim!



Yesterday was my husband's birthday! I made him a huge breakfast yesterday morning of french toast, bacon, sausage, and *coffee cake!* The coffee cake is just fantastic, so I will post the recipe here soon. :) Then we went out to dinner at Longhorn and ate great steaks, came home, and he opened gifts and we had cake. Yum! This years birthday cake was German Chocolate, and was excellent (but not from scratch.) And ice cream that I forget the name of now. :)



So, it was a very nice happy day, which was what we needed.

And, in crafting news, I have decided to go balls out and make a quilt! I've never attempted anything like this before with the sewing machine, so I'm really hoping everything turns out. But the pattern I'm using is a simple mock log cabin, so the geometry isn't that hard. And I already have about 25 squares done! I bought some fantastic spring/gardeny fabric, and I think it's just wonderful together. I hope that by the time spring/summer rolls around, I'll actually have it done! I don't know that I'm getting any better with the sewing machine, but I tell ya, I've got that seam ripper thing down. haha! I'll post updates about it often, so wish me luck!!

We miss you, E-dawg

Well, it's been a sad week for us. Our friend Eric passed away on monday morning; he was only 29. Tim and I drove back to pittsburgh for the services. He is Tim's best friend since they were little kids, and he is such an awesome person. I liked him instantly because of his quick and subtle humor and friendly nature. He's the type of person who everyone just likes, and I honesly can't imagine anyone disliking him.

Of course he was the best man at our wedding. During his speech at the reception, his glass was shaking so badly because he hates public speaking. (that's what this picture is of. Eric's the one on the right, i case you couldn't figure it out.) And when Tim threw the garter and it landed about 2 feet away from him, Eric was the one to step up and grab it while everyone else laughed or, lets face it, juist walked away. I still laugh out loud about it today, over two years later.

We shouldn't have to say goodbye to our friends like this, especially when we are all still so young. Rest in peace, Eric. We miss you.