SUPER SALADS & SEWING

Hey there everybody! How are you doing this fresh first day of the work week? I am crazy stoked… I have lots to share with you from yesterday! I am quite proud of myself. I have already fed my kitties both inside and out, watered what’s left of the garden (including my new babies), picked a few yummies that wanted to come inside, taken the kids to school, and now I am writing you before I leave for work. Cool huh?



Well folks, Freshman marching band starts this afternoon, and my kids have to be there so they can get their partner. That means the chaos, which we call marching season, is right around the corner! Each year the upperclassman get “assigned a freshman”. The older band members are to tutor and mentor the young ones if they need any help. This year we are gaining 87 freshman!! That’s the biggest number in one year in the band’s history! (I wonder how many I will be gaining around my house LMAO!) Our band is getting close to covering the field with this addition! It’s Gonna be crazy now! Anyway, they have 2 weeks of freshman band before the summer and then the whole band starts summer training the beginning of August before school. This picture was our band this past year (October) at one of the competitions hosted by Sam Houston State University. LOL I know it (the whole band) doesn’t “belong” to just me, but I have a lot of pride in them and sometimes I just blurt out “That’s MY band” LOL! They are great kids! So it will be interesting to see how the new recruits do under the pressure… and if you think there isn’t any… GUESS AGAIN! Dickinson Marching Band is NOT for the faint hearted LOL! Let’s just say, it gets pretty tough! My brother even shattered his ankle one year and STILL tried to march! Yea band and football is a big thing around here… and I have one in each! CRAZY!!



I started out the day by running to the store to get a few things I kept forgetting to buy… including my B1G1F roses at Home Depot! Aren’t they just so pretty? And they weren’t very expensive either… 9.95 each, so it was $10.78 for both, or roughly $5.39 each… not too shabby I think. They are covered in buds, so I hope to have some beautiful bushes soon!



Once I got back home, the race was on… the sewing race that is! I made a list of 10 DIFFERENT things I wanted to get done. Sadly I only accomplished 6 of the crafts off the list, but I think I did pretty cool. This was the first thing… the Grandma T-shirt purse. I saw these shirts at Wal-Mart for like $5 and there were a couple I just had to get for the sheer purpose of making bags. This was the first one… and it reminds me so much of my mother! I matched the wording color with the butterflies on this fabric and I think it turned out really well!



This is the second T-shirt I got to make a bag… yes my pride in Texas really shines through huh? LOL! The state has the map on it and the awesome cow skull. I paired this with a pretty fabric that has the Texas Flag and bluebonnets (the state Flower) on it. I purposely narrowed the bottom as I was trying to make it similar to the shape of the state. I think its pretty nifty! I am gonna have a hard time getting rid of this one! LOL!



Here is a plastic canvas box with a Casino theme. I plan on using it to make a gift basket/package filled with Casino related items. I have a matching purse with the same print too. Isn’t it awesome!? I think it will make a good basket/container for a gift package.



Ok, this is a plain black apron my son got when he worked at Subway. He no longer needs it as he doesn’t work there, so he gave it to me. I wasn’t quite sure what to do with it then I said, “I’m gonna put some pockets on it and use it as a crafting and do-it-herself apron. I won’t be losing any more tacks, nails, etc. anymore as I work around the house! LOL I thought it was a pretty good recycle idea!



Ok, now since the band kids have to have a special towel to sit on when they are at games and such, I figured so do I LOL! So, I had bought these blue towels on clearance one time and had them sitting in a box you’ve come to know as “the green crate” LOL! What to do, what to do… MUSIC NOTE SCRAPS TIME! LOL! Now I have my own special pair of band towels for competitions, games, etc! In the school color too!



Ok, so its time to stop and make dinner. Now when I was at the store they had a really good deal on crispy chicken tenders so I decided to make the Seasonal fruit and chicken salad for dinner and try it with the crispy chicken instead of the grilled chicken like normal. While it was super delish, the whole family agreed that we like it better with the grilled chicken actually. But isn’t that so pretty?



What would dinner be without a dessert? The other day when I took my mom to the store I got some clearance breads for 49 cents each. I also had a few more packages of those apple slices left too… so I made Apple Cinnamon Bread pudding. OMG let me tell you, it made the house smell absolutely marvelous! It tasted really good too LOL!



Ok, so after dinner I was slowing down dramatically. So I was just really piddling with the scraps in the crate and I managed to make 10 cell phone pouches. BUT I ran out of snaps, so they aren’t all totally complete… I still need snaps for 3 of them and the store I need to get them at was closed for the day so they have to wait. But 7 are completed and 3 almost done. That was some pretty spiffy productive piddling huh? LOL!



And finally… the piece de resistance! The LOTTO TICKET BAG IS COMPLETED! OMG this is so freakin’ cool! I ran into a few bumps and snags along the way, but let me tell ya, this is the most awesome thing I have ever made I think! Not only did I recycle, its just freaking super-de-duper! And expensive LOL! The bag is made out of $54 worth of losing lotto tickets and then material, thread, etc. But I don’t care… I think its awesome!!!!!!! I probably won’t be making another one for a long time (that’s a lot of money for a bag) unless I put out an ad for people to save their losing tickets for me across the county! So that makes this purse truly unique as well! Ain’t that just the shiznizzle??!!!

So now you see my exciting day of sewing marathon… whatcha think? I think I rocked it out… especially the lotto bag. But all my stuff is super cool I think. And that’s what makes it so fun. So let’s get you into another great craft… especially if I have managed to inspire you! Now I told you I was gonna bring you some patio/garden crafts, etc. And yesterday I showed you a cute bird bath with terra cotta pots and told you how I love them so LOL. Well guess what… I have another neat little terra cotta craft for you!



Craft Idea of the Day: Clay Pot Wind Chimes

Materials:

3 to 4 clay pots in different sizes.
Jute (you can also use macrame twine)
3/4” to 1” wooden bead.
Paints of your choice.

Directions:

It is best if you paint your pots first. You can free hand a design or use stencils. There are a lot of decals on the market that you can also use. Any craft store will have decals in all different designs. Swans and ducks look really nice on chimes.

Cut about a yard of jute. Put one end of the jute into the wood bead. Tie a knot and pull the ball down to the bead. Tie another knot about 1 ½’ up from your bead. I usually put a washer on top of the knot because the knot will shrink in time and your pot will slip past the knot.

Put your smallest clay pot on next. You will have to judge where to put your next pot. It should hang over the smallest pot by about ½”. Keep working up the line with your pots getting bigger. After you have your last clay pot on tie a loop to hang it with. If you have extra jute at this point just cut it off.

You now have a clay pot wind chime that you can hang anywhere. These wind chimes are very easy to make and make great gifts.

Now, we have been having such fun with themed food weeks, I figured I would bring you another. So far, I've brought you casseroles, soups, pizzas, and grilling. Now I want to go to something else that sparks excitement in some and dread or fear in others… SALAD. This week is SUPER SALAD WEEK! Now salads don’t just have to be green lettuce with raw veggies, etc. You have many different kinds of salads… pasta salads, meat salads, veggie salads, fruit salads, etc. So this week is a sneak peek at salads unique! LOL! I’m not posting the salad I had for dinner last night again because I posted it on March 27th, so go check it out there! LOL I am, however, going to bring you the first salad, which also has a bit of grilling… the perfect cross-over recipe to start another fantastic theme!



Grilled Pepper Steak Salad

Ingredients

2 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, divided
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound lean skirt steak or flank steak
8 cups packed torn romaine lettuce or mixed salad greens
1 large tomato, seeded, chopped
1 ripe avocado, peeled, seeded, diced
1 1/4 cups Sargento® Shredded Reduced Sodium Mild Cheddar Cheese, divided
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion (optional)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice or white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons pureed chipotle chlies in adobo sauce (optional)

Directions

Rub 2 teaspoons garlic and pepper over steak. Grill over medium-hot heat on a covered grill 3 to 5 minutes per side for medium doneness depending on thickness of steak. Transfer steak to a carving board; tent with foil and let stand 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine lettuce, tomato, avocado, 1 cup cheese and red onion in a large bowl. Combine oil, lemon juice and remaining garlic in a small bowl; mix well. For a spicier dressing, add chipotle chilies. Add mixture to bowl; toss with lettuce mixture. Transfer to four serving plates.

Carve steak crosswise into thin slices; arrange over salads. Top with remaining cheese.

Okie dokie gang, it’s that time again. Time for me to get off here and get dressed and ease on down the road. I’ve had a blast this morning sharing my day off crafting photos and everything else with you today. I hope you can meet me back here tomorrow, because you never know what I’m gonna have in store for you! So until then… HUGS!