Julie's Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe!!!!  I call it Julie's because that is who I got the recipe from, I really don't know it's official name, sorry! 

As you can see in the picture below I'm using the wonderful recipe holder that my husband made me... LOVE IT!

Anyhow... It was my mom's last day at the nursing home, she had been there for 3 1/2 months and the nurses and aides where just so nice I wanted to bake them some cookies to say "Thank you." And I thought I'd share the recipe with all of you as well...

Julie's Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 Cup Shortening (I use butter flavored Crisco sticks)

1 Cup sugar

1/2 Cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

2 1/2 Cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream shortening and sugars in the mixer, then add eggs & vanilla.  In a separate bowl combine the dry ingredients, then add them to the sugar mixture and stir in chocolate chips.  If you let it sit for a few minutes it's easier to just roll it in balls in your hands, no need to use spoons, and you have perfect circles too.  You could try putting it in your fridge for a little too, although I just let it sit on the counter for about 15 minutes.  Or I just dig in and the first set I do are a little sticky on my hands, and the second set aren't so sticky.

Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes.  and you know the rest... put on a cooling rack to cool... 

Enjoy!

Julie's Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe!!!!  I call it Julie's because that is who I got the recipe from, I really don't know it's official name, sorry! 

As you can see in the picture below I'm using the wonderful recipe holder that my husband made me... LOVE IT!

Anyhow... It was my mom's last day at the nursing home, she had been there for 3 1/2 months and the nurses and aides where just so nice I wanted to bake them some cookies to say "Thank you." And I thought I'd share the recipe with all of you as well...

Julie's Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 Cup Shortening (I use butter flavored Crisco sticks)

1 Cup sugar

1/2 Cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

2 1/2 Cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream shortening and sugars in the mixer, then add eggs & vanilla.  In a separate bowl combine the dry ingredients, then add them to the sugar mixture and stir in chocolate chips.  If you let it sit for a few minutes it's easier to just roll it in balls in your hands, no need to use spoons, and you have perfect circles too.  You could try putting it in your fridge for a little too, although I just let it sit on the counter for about 15 minutes.  Or I just dig in and the first set I do are a little sticky on my hands, and the second set aren't so sticky.

Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes.  and you know the rest... put on a cooling rack to cool... 

Enjoy!

How to Clean Your Crock Pot

I had a smaller crock pot and the inside didn't come out.  It started to be a real pain to wash.  So for Christmas the other year I got a new one where the inside came out.  One thing I didn't really pay attention too, is that it is bigger.  Some of the things I cook in it are too small for it and I burn things to the edges.  Well, then I did BBQ chicken in it and I really burnt stuff to the edges!  I scrubbed it, I soaked it in boiling hot water with dish soap for days, and so much more and it was not coming off.  Then I read online to use baking soda and vinegar... AMAZING!!!!

I poured a little vinegar over the spots, sprinkled baking soda in and made a paste with it that I stuck right over the spots.  Let it sit over night and in the morning I poured a little more vinegar on it and ... it was a miracle... the hard as rock stuff was peeling off!!!!!!!  I couldn't believe it!!!!!!!  I actually did the baking soda and vinegar one more night because mine was really bad and it's basically back to new!!!  Awesome!!!!  So easy and it works like magic!!!!!

How to Clean Burnt on Food in Your Crock Pot

I had a smaller crock pot and the inside didn't come out.  It started to be a real pain to wash.  So for Christmas the other year I got a new one where the inside came out.  One thing I didn't really pay attention too, is that it is bigger.  Some of the things I cook in it are too small for it and I burn things to the edges.  Well, then I did BBQ chicken in it and I really burnt stuff to the edges!  I scrubbed it, I soaked it in boiling hot water with dish soap for days, and so much more and it was not coming off.  Then I read online to use baking soda and vinegar... AMAZING!!!!

I poured a little vinegar over the spots, sprinkled baking soda in and made a paste with it that I stuck right over the spots.  Let it sit over night and in the morning I poured a little more vinegar on it and ... it was a miracle... the hard as rock stuff was peeling off!!!!!!!  I couldn't believe it!!!!!!!  I actually did the baking soda and vinegar one more night because mine was really bad and it's basically back to new!!!  Awesome!!!!  So easy and it works like magic!!!!!

Brown Baby Shoes with Colored Dots

I love this pair of shoes I made for my little Princess!!!

 However I think next time I will put the ribbon, going the direction of the bow and the bow going the direction of the ribbon.

 I used the pattern for the pleated Mary Jane baby shoes, but I didn't pleat them because of adding the ribbon and bow.  So I just used the pattern for the inside for the top piece as well.  Click here to go to the tutorial for the Pleated Mary Jane Baby Shoes.

I like the seam on the side of the shoe instead of the back of the shoe.  I like to cover that seam with the strap, see the picture above.  What do you think?  Do you like the strap to cover the seam on the side?  Or would you prefer the seam in the back and the strap tucked in, so you don't see it on the side of the shoe?

Oh and I believe I said this before... I can make them so you don't see the seam in the inside of the shoe, but it's just an extra step.  And you don't see it when it's on the baby's foot, so I don't bother doing it.

Pink and White Ruffle Baby Shoes

I tried a ruffle pair of shoes... I think they turned out okay.  And I like the elastic strap I put on these too.

Purple Pleated Mary Jane's

Mackenzie out grew all the other shoe's I made her.  My mom's doing better and so I don't go visit her as much as I used to.  I was going every other day, and that was a minimum of 3 hours out of my day, normally 4-5 hours, because it was an hour drive one way.  I just didn't have time to do any crafts, and could barely keep up with my house work.  So it sure felt good to sit down and sew something for my daughter again!  It's been since October when my mom had her stroke that I sat down and made a pair of shoes for Mackenzie, or anything really for my own child.  The things I made were for other people.

So here they are... I put the grippy stuff on the bottom this time.  She loves to feel the grippy stuff and it helps her when she's standing.  I think by the time she's walking she won't fit into these any more.  This is the fabric that I used for Polly's nursing cover.  I really like fabric that has lots of colors in it.

I can make shoes so you don't see the seams in them, but that's an extra step or 2 that I find isn't needed.  Really, the baby doesn't care that it's there and you don't see it when the baby's foot is in the shoe.

Dave's Candy Card/Poster

I thought I was going to be creative and cute this year, but I think Dave beat me on that one this year.  But it's still cute, just not as good as Dave's.

I made him a candy card/poster this year, here it is...

It says...

Hey Hot Tamale,

I don't think a pet KitKat, a trip to the Symphony or seeing the Milkyway would be enough for you my Dove.

You are NOT an Air Head, Dum Dum or Nerd, but a Smartie!

You deserve a 100 Grand for going the Extra mile!  But it slipped through my Butterfingers.

So instead I hope you enjoy eating up this card with Mounds of Almond Joy!  I hope it doesn't make you Rolo-ver and get sick.  If so we won't Snicker at you because we love you to Pieces!

Love your,

Sweetart and 3 Muskateers

Hugs and Kisses

My Valentine Heart Attack

Polly had wanted to heart attack her parents for Valentine's Day this year, so I'm assuming that's why Dave decided to do it to me.  So I woke up to this beautifully decorated kitchen filled with lots of love!!!  Dave did a great job!!  There were so many sweet notes everywhere!!!

Tanner had been up and downstairs before me.  So he came upstairs while I was still getting ready and said "mom, all the hearts in the kitchen are making me so dizzy!"  It sure was cute!  I did have a hunch that he was up to something because he had been pestering me to go to bed.  And Saturday night I had noticed he cut more hearts, but only the ones I had cut were in the pile for his parents.

Anyway, it was still so sweet and I loved it!!!!!!!!!!!!

The boys colored and wrote on some hearts to.  So they are standing near or pointing to some of their hearts.

Dave didn't want me posting the pics on facebook because he said he did it for me, because he loves me and not to prove his love for me to the world.  So I'm not posting it on facebook, it's on the blog.  I want it to be in the book at the end of the year and it's nice to share fun and creative ideas with others.

Poor guy said he was up until 1 in the morning working on this!!  He did such a great job!!

I love you honey!!!!!!!  Thank you so much for my heart attack!!!

Tiddly Winks With Buttons

When I was bagging up the Project Valentine rings and earrings, Tanner asked to play with some of the extra buttons, and he started flipping them like the game Tiddly Winks.  Then he asked for the empty box from the bags and started shooting them in.  I was so impressed that he thought of that on his own!  Tanner isn't one that plays well by himself, he likes Jayden there to tell him what to do.  So for him to think of that all on his own, was awesome!!!  Way to go Tanner!

Of course when Jayden came home they played together and for a few days after that too!

Project Valentine

At church I am now in charge of Activity Days for girls ages 8-11.  I found a really cute blog where they had made these earrings for Project Valentine last year and I really wanted to do them this year.  

Project Valentine makes Valentine gift bags and hands them out to individuals undergoing cancer treatment in the Denver metro area.  The earrings the other girls had made, on the blog I was looking at, had used heart buttons.  I love buttons!  So I was super excited, but I couldn't find small enough heart buttons, so we used the gem stone hearts and glued them on buttons.  I also decided to make some rings.  What if the girl doesn't have their ears pierced?  A ring would work great.

We made 100 rings and 24 pairs of earrings.  The girls each got to take home either a ring or a pair of earrings and the rest I shipped out to Project Valentine.  I linked to their site if you'd like to check them out.

Here are only half of them.  The other lady took home half to re-adjust the backs (because the glue wasn't totally dried, we had to lay them out at home and push some of them back to center and what not.) and we had to put them in individual bags, we forgot to bring them with us.  So I only took pictures of half of the rings and earrings...

I believe the girls had a great time making them!  I think they turned out pretty cute!!!  There were some great color combos!  The other half were really cute too!  I wish I had taken a picture of them also.

In order to keep the backs of the rings from sliding, I set them on a hand towel upside down, it seemed to hold them up really well...