Yard Sale Loot!

Last week my dad was visiting us from Canada.  We celebrated his birthday with a traditional "DUNCAN" cake.  That's DUNCAN  not "Duncan Hines"!  It's the old family birthday cake...you know...the one my ansestors were making when they came over from the old country....at least that is how the story goes.  Dad is 83 now and still drives by himself   for 3 days to visit us!  And he trudges around yard sales with me! AND look what we found!

It's an incomplete set of "kitchen" bone china!  For $5!!  Here's a close-up of the cream and sugar set:

It's not Royal Doulton...but we thought it was pretty!  It was the end of the day and we were given a box and told to "fill 'er up" for 5 bucks!  I thought maybe I'd find some treasures for my birthday box at school...but we got lots of things I couldn't pass up!  Including the above china.  Score!! 

This week being graduation for our seniors, I made an apron for a friend's daughter.  She picked (well her mum picked) the fabrics.  Here I am modelling it!  Not sure why I thought staring off into space would make a charming shot...and I must find a better spot than the end of the hall to take pics!

Vintage Brooch Swap

I participated in the Swap for all Seasons Vintage Brooch Swap for Mother's Day.  Look at what I got from the very talented Jan in Texas!  Here is her lovely hand-made card to me, along with my beautifully wrapped parcel.  That is a SECOND vintage brooch on the ribbon!

This is what was inside that pretty package.  The photo does not do justice to the beautiful cross-stitch and beding on the needleroll that Jan made for me.  The brooch is mother-of-pearl with my initial on it in gold.  Beautiful!

I was just blown away by Jan's beautiful gift to me! 

Happy May Day!

Well I am excited to show off my "new" spring skirt...I got all excited about tea-parties and what-not after the Royal Wedding.  So this ugly, old stretchy skirt...

turned into this!!

Here is a close-up of all the ruffly layers!  I'd seen lots of "little-girl" skirts done like this (ruffles added to an existing skirt) so thought I'd have one too.  I had to make a belt to cover up the ugly green elastic waist band!

And here I am, looking all ready to have my Royal Wedding tea party!  Ok.  I usually don't leave the china cake plate lying around in the hall...I just thought I needed a "prop"..teehee!!

Soup and Sneak-Peeks!

Last week at school some of us did a soup-exchange.  We each made seven quarts of soup, then swapped them!  This is my Meatball Minestrone.

Meatball Minestrone Soup
(this makes 7 quarts)

2 large tins tomatoes (I used diced)

2 tins black beans

1 pkg. frozen corn

1 cup chopped onions

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup chopped mixd peppers (can use some jalepenos if you like spicy, otherwisde just juse green, yellow and red)

1 large box chicken stock (4 cups)

1 pkg. frozen meatballs

salt, pepper, and Italian seasonings to taste, several splashes of  Worchestershire sauce 

cook for several hrs.  Put in quart jars at this point...leave room at top if you plan to freeze them.  ADD 1/2 cup of tiny pasta when you heat it up....don't let the pasta get soggy.  I wouldn't re-freeze with the pasta in it!

And, here is a sneak-peek of my apron for Shawnee's Spring Fling Apron Swap.

He has little yellow spindly legs that are hard to see, and a little yellow beak.  They show up much better in real life!  (I didn't have orange).  And how about this little tuck-in critter!!

sneaky-peaky!!

Well, my Easter Basket swap partner should have received her parcel today if the US postal services are running correctly!  So I thought it would be safe to post a sneak-peak of the basket I made for Paula!  I really liked how the buttons on the side turned out...they are good old "shrinky-dink"...the same stuff my girls spent one entire summer at the cottage making "Betty and Veronica" figures with!

Easter Basket with Shrinky-Dink Bunny buttons

and here are some of the tuck-ins I sent her!

Easter-y decor!

Look who lives at my house now!  He flew off my knitting needles last night, and now is happily residing in a basket with the bunny that Debbie made for me!

Knitted lamb

My hubby says he looks like a sock monkey!

Swap pacels!



My mug and mug-rug from Denise



It was an exciting Friday for me...not one...but  two fabulous swap parcels arrived for me!  First I opened up my Easter Mug Rug parcel...from Aunt Pitty Pat's swap.  This was crafted by Denise.   Here is my lovely Easter mug-rug...and she didn't even know my favorite color is pink!



Mug-rug and all the goodies

Denise did a super job; she tucked in all sorts of treats, some sand-dollars and a shell from beaches near where she lives, a really cherry polka-dot mug, with a little daisy tea-bag tray, and of course the mug-rug.  It has a little napkin inserted into a holder on the side!  I can't decide if I'll risk taking it to school (and having some poor child inadvertently spill my coffee on it!) or just enjoy it at home.

Next I got to open my Easter Basket Swap parcel!  I felt a little badly getting to open mine up, as I have still to mail mine tomorrow.  But it is all boxed up and ready for the post at least!  So this fabulous "basket" came from Debbie, and here is what all she sent me.



Easter Basket from Debbie

She used the garden hat as a basket!  Very clever!  Inside was this adorable "chocolate" nbunny...he has a sparkly pink "W" charm on his bow, socks, an Easter kitchen towel, the cutest little owl tags ever, (I actually snooped on her blog...and knew she has made them...tee-hee!!), some sewing machine tags...also really cute and so well made, jelly beans, and cream-filled eggs galore!  What a wonderful Easter Basket!  Here is a closer look at the bunny:

Chocolate Easter Bunny made by Debbie

He is just so cute!  And now a photo of me modelling the hat!  I just love wearing hats in the summer, and Debbie didn't even know!

I'm having a "deer in the headlights" moment!