New paper shipment:)

I am sooooo excited that my new paper has arrived!!!! I have two new craft projects for this weekend and I can't wait to start. Check things out by following my link:)

Hope to see you there, and we will always have give-a-ways and great deals!

This is the latest creation, and I am VERY pleased with the results!

Here's the whole banner!

Here's the close-ups!

You can see more of Crafty Sisters stuff here

The wee little monster:P

Well, the past five days have been, ummmm, well, TERRIBLE! Babybee is miserable. She's having temper-tantrums, throwing things at me, yelling at me and ignoring all of my requests to not do these things. I am fairly certain that those demon-spawned eye teeth are to blame, and I am also fairly certain that she is going through another growth spurt. I have NEVER seen eye teeth that long or sharp! They actually scare me a little bit! I hope it passes soon, and that she is not in too much pain.

Pear upside-down cake:P

So, I had a sweet tooth tonight and decided to use my very first jar of homemade pears. I canned them all in apple juice and they are yummy! Babybee agreed too, as she gobbled some up before bed:) Then I decided they needed cake.... most things are better with cake! Here's what I did!

Heat oven to 350*

Generously grease an 8 or 9 inch square, glass cake pan. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup sugar. Line the pan with a single layer of canned (or fresh) pear slices. Prepare any white or yellow cake mix, but use pear or apple juice instead of water. I made a white cake from scratch, add added extra vanilla:) Pour the batter over the pears. Sprinkle the cake batter with 2 tbsp. sugar and a bit of cinnamon. Bake until cake is done (usually 35 minutes). Cool on a rack for about 1/2 hour and enjoy. I think it would be great with a bit of lightly sweetened whipped cream.

chocolate chip cookies

I've never been a fan of recipes, so I pretty much just wing it! I haven't made fresh cookies in a while so today was the day. It's raining and gloomy, so some fresh and gooey chocolate chip cookies were calling our names! Here's my "un"recipe.

3/4 cup melted butter/margarine
1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar (I use pure cane)
1/2 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
4 tsp. vanilla (use the real stuff... PLEASE!)

Mix together until nice and fluffy.

2 1/3 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (trust me, it's FANTASTIC)

Blend dry ingredients then add to wet. When almost completely mixed add 1 1/2 cups chips. Use what you like! My fave is 1/2 white and 1/2 dark, but today was all milk:) Drop by heaping tbsp. onto sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees.

ENJOY!

Crafty Sisters is FINALLY up and running!

My sis and I wanted to have a place to sell our hand-crafted cards, but have been so terribly pressed for time. However, I started a page on Facebook and my sister posted her cards on the Crafty Sisters blog:) Yay!!
For ease and convenience, my cards are on FB and hers are on the blog. Everything is new to us, and not terribly organized, but it's a start. So, stop on by with the links below:)

Facebook Page

and

Crafty Sisters blog page

Boy, it's hard to find the time....

Babybee is NOT cooperating with me at all;) I want to get my craft on, but she is in desperate need of my full attention, apparently. I'm gonna give it another go pretty quick here, but DaddyBee is going out soon and I won't have my handy distraction anymore! It's not so bad, she gave me 35 kisses this morning (she is in to counting right now).

Crafty Sisters Papercrafts and Goodies!

Finally got something set up!! Yay:)

Daddy's Girl

Oh, I so hate these phases. I am doing very poorly handling the fact that I am second best right now:( She doesn't want to snuggle me or hug me, just daddy. It sucks!

Counting and the Alphabet

So, it's official, my babybee is a genius:) She has been able to count to 20 all by herself for almost two weeks now, and can recognize every letter of the alphabet when asked! I don't know too many babies who can do these things at 19 months. She can also recognize any shape thrown at her (no, not literally.... I can just see myself lobbing plastic shapes at her). She knows all of her colours and can differentiate light and dark shades! These are all things that she has learned by asking. I decided long ago not to force her learning, and to just let everything come at her own pace.

Terrible Twos! (at 19 months)

I am at my wits end. My always wonderful, gentle, sweet, sleep-through-the-night little girl has done a complete 180! Nothing works to calm her when she has her temper-tantrums. I've tried ignoring it, redirecting her emotions into something constructive, laughing and making light of it, and snuggling/restraining to keep her from bonking her sweet little head. *sigh* Oh what to do? Hopefully babybee grows out of it, soon, lol. I'm thankful that I know about these things, and am not getting angry or upset. I imagine that it would make it all the worse for both of us if I did. Oh, and everything has to be HER way, without exception (which usually leads to the rolling on the floor fits). It's really quite funny watching such a teeny person doing such a thing :)

I should be in bed, but.....

I keep thinking about babybee's shots on Wednesday, which are a short notice appointment given the limited times available to get them done. I wish the doctor could do them instead of heading to the health unit. I agonize over the uncomfortable feeling and general pain that it puts my little peanut in:( Yes, I cry every time, and am in NO way ashamed of it. It causes me to lose sleep and as much as I try, I cannot seem to put it on the back-burner. These are the things that keep me from a good nights sleep. Last night I was awake until the wee hours of the morning. I was so tired that I physically hurt, and yet, I could not fall asleep! I need to worry less, but now that I am a Mommy I am certain I will just keep worrying more;)

Vegetable medley pasta and sauce

1 lb. medium shell pasta
2 cans italian style stewed tomatoes
2 tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium sweet onion shopped
4 cloves garlic smashed
2 stalks celery diced
2 carrots shredded
1 medium zucchini sliced
2 cups sliced mushrooms
3 chopped bell peppers
1 palm full fresh chopped basil
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. sea salt
pepper to taste

In large skillet, over medium high heat saute olive oil, onion, garlic and celery until onions become translucent and caramelize. Add mushrooms, peppers and carrot, and cook for about 4 minutes then add tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and zucchini. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes and serve over your favorite pasta. I like shells for this because they hold the sauce perfectly:)

A fantastic cinnamon dolce latte, no fuss

Okay, so we are a HUGE coffee drinking family. Even babybee likes a taste of black coffee:) I love a good latte or a cup of sweet and creamy dark roast. DaddyBee likes everything iced, no hot drinks for him, even in winter! We were craving some Starbucks, but have been diligently tightening our pocket-books and I came up with the idea to do cinnamon dolces at home without the $10 bottle of syrup. They were super yummy!

4 shots fresh-brewed espresso
1 tbsp. dark brown sugar
sprinkle of cinnamon
2 packets splenda (or your fave sweetener)
1/2 tsp. vanilla (optional)
your milk of choice

Stir the sugar/sweeteners and cinnamon into the espresso, prepare your steamed milk with or without vanilla, (and ice for iced drinks) and mix to your liking! Remember, the trick with iced coffees is to pour the espresso over ice and stir well BEFORE adding the milk! This will ensure that there is no bitterness:)

Try pairing it with some of my cake-mix cookies. I would recommend a devil`s food mix with semi-sweet chips and pecans! Or a spice mix with butterscotch chips and almonds:)

Babybee's first haircut

Yup, did it last night after her bath. I think I did a pretty good job too:) She actually stayed pretty still and didn't complain about any of it. She is such a good girl!

On another note, she hasn't stopped talking since May long weekend! She has begun forming small sentences, usually 3 or 4 words, and surprised me by recognizing over half the alphabet and numbers 1-10!!!! I was so amazed:)She is going to be a smart little girl. She even understands sarcasm, and uses it far too often, lol:)

Easy Cake mix cookies, that won't taste "cakey" :)

This recipe yields a soft centered cookie with a crispy, delicious outside. MMMMMMMMM..... Yummy! I fudged around with a few other recipes and finally found what works the best for me.

1 box of your favorite cake mix, without pudding in the mix
1 large egg or 1 small and the yolk of another
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 cup softened butter
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Combine until thoroughly moistened. Drop by heaping teaspoons onto baking sheet and bake at 325 degrees for 8-10 minutes. You can add up to 1 1/2 cups of extras like chopped nuts, dried fruit, chocolate chips, coconut, candies, chopped candy bars. Your imagination is the limit!