Fall to Gratitude

This is sincerely my favorite time of the year! It was hard for me to come to that conclusion for a very long time, just because there are so many things I love about each season. But the fall holds a very special place in my heart. Because of this, I wanted to share our house of fall with you.
*important note: If you find yourself bored, just drag your mouse to the upper right hand side of the screen and click on the red box with the "x" in it! ;)

            This shot is from the corner of our lot looking up our street. Isn't it irresistable with all it's bursting fall colors and splendor?!

This is our big oak tree in front of our house. It's amazing how all those leaves look so dense and harmless way up there, yet leave such a spectacular blanket pile on the lawn each day.

 One of the many leaf piles on our street. The children sure don't have a hard time finding a pile to jump into! They are in abundance on our block.

 This is as festive as our door gets after Halloween. Just enough to make me feel like I've done my part.
               (Hey-llo, would someone clean the lense please? Sure doesn't make for great pictures! *pft*)

This is my favorite Turkey of all in all his handmade, cloth and wirey goodness.

{No, unfortunately I didn't make him...}

 Our oh so bea-u-tiful mantel. I love this leaf vine...

 Not to mention those oh-so elegant pumpkins a friend of mine made and gave me. Aren't they gorgeous?!

I just couldn't resist this adorable squirrel from Fred Meyer this fall and Bath and Body works acorn candle from last year.

 Owls seem to be my weakness this year, so we found this wise guy to add to our collection. the kids like him too... you can tell by the crumbs of PB&J I didn't notice when taking these shots.

          {Thanks kids! *wink*}

 When I saw this printable on Pinterest, I had to copy it since I knew I had the perfect frame just waiting for it. It plays off my beautiful copper and gold pumpkins the kiddos helped me paint last year. Love them!

 But what I like most of all, is this cornacopia our five year old made in preschool.

{The corn is my personal favorite! So, what's your favorite thing about fall? Is it your favorite season too?

 I SO want to KNOW!!

XoXo,

Earring Bling

So it's been a sad while since I have actually posted anything. Life has gotten the best of me, as you might imagine with seven children. But here I am to share with you a tutorial request I promised a friend back in....ummmm....September (E-hem). So, with now further ado I present to you, my specialty, a tutorial on jewelry making, just in time for that perfect gift for the Holidays!

                                    To begin, make sure you have these supplies in reach:

flat jaw pliers

rounded nose pliers

side cutting tool

head pins

ear wires

desired beads

To begin making these earrings you will take your headpin, which looks like this:

and string on desired beads:

hold pin right above last bead, and using your rounded nose pliers, make a 90 degree bend: 

now hold the pin from the bend, and bend the wire over the top of the pliers so that it looks like this:

                             it should now have what I call a "neck" to hold onto. This is the "base":

you will then hold the wire at the top of the bend and wrap it around the bottom of the plier to create an open loop that looks like this:

                                 This loop is formed to hold the ear wire. Slide the wire on:

Now to the fun part. Hold the earwire at the base and the top of the pin loop where they connect, as shown in the phot below:

Hold here securely with one set of pliers. I typically use the flat jaw pliers for this for a more secure grip. Pictured here is my crimp tool since my flat jaws weren't in reach (which is why step the supply check list is important...haha!) and wrap with your rounded pliers around the "neck" that you created in steps one and two:

                                                                               like this:
                                                                  (huh?! can you see that? great photo!)

                                                                            wrap 3 times.

                                                   when you are done, it will look like this: 

If your wire is too long, clip it as close as you can to the edge with side cutters, and round in rough edge with rounded pliers so that no raw edge of the wire is remaining.

                                                            and here they are finished!

                                                               whatcha ya think?

I love turquois. It's so beautiful, and honestly goes with almost anything, looks great on everyone, is in fashion right now, and is a great way to add a little color to an otherwise very neutral and possibly drab outfit.

Let me know if any of these steps were too hard to understand. It's definately a lot harder to describe than to do. Pictures are invaluable for this. If you make any jewelry using this tutorial, I'd love for you to share with me!
                                                                         HUGS,

3 Ninjas, a Butterfly and a Recipe!

Several years ago I found this recipe in a Taste of Home's Quick Cooking magazine. I made it for the first time around 10 years ago on Halloween and it just stuck as a family favorite tradition. As soon as it's served, it doesn't last long in this house! So, I'm excited to share the goodness with you this year:

Pumpkin Pie Pudding 

1 can 15 oz. solid-pack pumpkin

1 can 12 oz. evaporated milk

3/4 C. sugar

1/2 C. biscuit/baking (pancake mix works well)

2 eggs, beaten

2 Tbs. butter or margarine, melted
2-1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

2 tsp. vanilla extract

(I've added 1/4-1/2 tsp. cloves and 1 tsp. cinammon for extra spicy goodness...yumm!)

whipped topping when serving

in a large bowl combine all ing. except the whipped topping, and transfer to a slow cooker coated with cooking spray (don NOT forget this!). Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or unti thermometer reads 160 degrees. Serve in bowls with whipped topping if desired. Yield: 6-8 servings. Enjoy!

{Sincere Yum!}

Hope your Halloween was a good as ours...

Practicing Ninja moves in EXCEEDINGLY messy house

Cute Husband passing out candy with Ninja #3

 

Family (save two eldest) at "trunk or treat"

{Hey! None of those Ninjas are wearing their masks...}

Butterfly trying to reach the doorbell while trick-or-treating

Kitty-Cat happy to be home eating candy

Sugar crash.

Oh! And, don't eat too much sugar or you may just...

Lose a tooth.