every little thing

It's going around....

Yep, can you tell by the look on my face?  I caught Christmas Fever from Max, on Christmas day, in fact.   But it's not all that bad, really.  I'm feeling better, the week has still been fun, and I'm so grateful to have Mike and Max home to bring me pretzels and ginger ale, and I'm glad my shops are closed so I can just give into it a little, and enjoy the lounging in my pj's, and the watching movies, and the re-reading of crappy books.   Not so bad at all, really.  (Except this lousy virus is so strange, it's making me fell very *ahem* defective typewriter-ish.  Ladies, you know what I mean.)  Not to alarm everyone....that is not the case.  Just feels like it.  Blegh.  I can't even enjoy my fancy, new Christmas present yet.  I'll show it off  later, when I can stomach more than a few bites of plain popcorn.  My good friend bought me a delicious blondie the size of my fist tonight, and I could barely nibble on the corner.  It was pretty much the saddest moment of my life, such a travesty.

I hope everyone is having a fabulous Holidays, and I wish you all a very merry New Year!  Thank you for all the lovely Holiday wishes and comments!  I hope to get back to everyone soon!

See y'all in 2008! 

Christmas Explosion

   

We were very late getting our decorations up this year, and since I  finally got caught  up with my work-stuff, I promised Max a "Christmas Explosion" this week, full of decorating, baking, shopping and all sorts of festive excitement.  And it started out on the right track, until Max was blindsided by an "explosion" of a different sort, as in a yucky stomach virus.  It struck the morning of his Preschool Christmas recital, of course, and long story short- he did NOT yack in the middle of the show.  Thank goodness, poor little guy!  He did however, puke all over the back of my mom's car on the way home, and then in various places around the house for the rest of the day.  Truly a pitiful site, he was convinced that Christmas was ruined and he laid like a slug on the  couch all day.  Mike says it's a case of Christmas Fever, an ailment he came down with the week before Christmas, every year from age 5 to 14.  So, we've got that to look forward too, eh?  The kid seems to be doing better today, he's keeping his goldfish crackers down so far.

 

I like the night-time pictures better.  My mom bought the mica houses for me for my birthday.  They are big and I love how they look on the  mantle, eventhough I had planned to put them under the tree.  She found  them at TJMax, of all places, and I think they were only $7 a piece!   She also made that silver wreath, too.  It's the perfect spot for it, I think.  I made the stockings several years ago from an old, tattered quilt my Great Grandmother made. 

 

I love our crooked, skinny tree!  Mike says I don't put enough lights on it, but I don't like to overdo it.  Plus, the thrifting was good this year, so our tree is almost entirely vintage ornaments.  Max has a smaller, fake tree in his room with colored lights and all of the crazy, kid ornaments.  He loves having his own tree.

I think I'll go check on the kiddo, and maybe make some cookies.  I hope everyone has a calm, peaceful weekend before Christmas!  (That's what I'm shooting for.)

An Early Christmas Present

It is really about time that I post the recipe for these refrigerator rolls.  Several people have asked me, and it is such an easy and satisfying treat with a sweet, southern touch.   This is my Grandmother's recipe, and she owned and ran a small catering company for many years, so she really knows her stuff.  These rolls are absolutely heaven when stuffed with salty, country ham.  (Splurge on the good stuff at the deli, go for the  Red Eye or the Smithfield country ham, sliced medium thin.  You won't regret it.)  This recipe makes about 50, 2 - 1/2" biscuits, for which you would need about 1 pound of ham.  There is also a variation where you can turn these into cinnamon rolls, but I need to get the  specifics from Nanny on that one, as I've never made them that way before.   

-Refrigerator Rolls-

You will need:

2 packets of yeast

1 cup luke warm water

1 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup of white sugar

1 tablespoon of salt

1 cup of boiling water

2 eggs, well beaten

6-1/2 cups of unbleached, all purpose flour

Directions

Stir together:  2 packets of Yeast and 1 cup luke warm water.  *Put aside for 15 minutes. 

While the yeast mixture is resting, cream together in the biggest bowl you have:

1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter at room temperature

3/4 cup of white sugar

1 tablespoon salt

*Pour 1 cup of boiling water over butter mixture and let sit until room temperature.  (Don't rush it.  Make sure it cools down, if it's too hot, you will kill the yeast when you add it in later.)

When mixture has cooled, add in: 2 beaten eggs and yeast mixture.  Mix well.

Add in: 6- 1/2 cups of flour.  Mix well, really well.  Cover the bowl with a double layer of plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator.  Leave it overnight, or up to 2 days. 

When you are ready to bake your rolls:  preheat your oven to 400 deg.  Remove mix from fridge (dough should have risen and about doubled in size) and roll out on a well floured surface.  Roll to abaout 1/2 inch thick, and cut your rolls (hear shaped cutters look nice too!)  Don't over work the dough.  Place rolls on lightly greased baking sheet (Pam works better than butter.  Silpats are awesome, if you have them. )  You can place them close together, for pull-apart rolls, or leave some space between to keep them separate...it really doesn't matter.  Let them rise, covered with a cloth, in a warm place for 1-1/2 to 2 hours.  Brush the tops with melted butter or a whisked egg.  Bake in oven for about 15 minutes, be sure to rotate the pans for even browning.   And watch 'em, cause they bake up quick and are easy to burn! 

That's just about it! It may seem like a lot of trouble, but they really go together quickly, you don't have to knead the dough, and since the first rise is done in the fridge, that second rise just flies by.  Also, since the dough is so cold, it's really quite easy to work with and roll out.    Please let me know if you have any questions, and if you try the recipe, I'd love to hear how they turn out!

Happy Baking!!!

   

Peppermint Poppies and a Holiday Meltdown

At 10:43 pm last night, I was seconds away from complete mental breakdown.  So close to finishing up my packaging  for the  season, and everything was going wrong.  There  were three separate landslides: a fabric avalanche, a shipping box avalanche, and I accidentally tipped over a miniature container and 144 plastic pumpkins went flying through the air (almost as if it were snowing.  Snowing point-ended cupcake toppers, that is.)  I had just finished the last strawberry scented sachet set, and the whole house smelled like the eraser section at Sanrio.  (Which may sound fun at first, but after a while, that  candy-strawberry smell makes me just really nauseous.)   It was not a pretty sight, people.  I did the only thing I could think of:  I stopped everything I was doing and made cupcake liner flowers, from the how-to by Miss Martha.  I didn't have a reason, or a purpose for making them.  It only took 15 minutes, but somehow it grounded me.  I was able to relax, regroup and return to my work.   I was saved from crafting....by crafting.  You figure that one out.      

And the Runt goes to......

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

15

Timestamp: 2007-12-14 01:01:36 UT

Lucky commenter numero 15, who just happens to be Amber from One Shabby Chick!!!  Yay, congratulations!  I hope you love him and he is not too much trouble for you!  Thank you so much, everyone, for all of the cute comments.  Wow, there are lot's of soy milk-drinkers out there!   This was really too fun, I do love me a good giveaway!   

I just remembered that today is also a special day, because it is my *official* One Year Anniversary for opening my shop on Etsy.   I have lots and lots of feelings about this, but I won't annoy you with them.  (My new favorite mantra, borrowed from Sir Tom Petty:  "Don't bore us, get to the chorus!")    The point of it all?  I'm just glad I didn't give up.  The first year is the hardest, right?  It's all down hill from here.

Right?

Runt

Here they are, the fresh batch of sweater creatures , all fluffed up, big-eye and button-eared!    These little bits of sweetness feature vintage seam binding collars with tag,  and a  little jingle bell.  (This makes them easier to find when they are hopping around the house.)  You can see  them all now over in the Studio.  Well, all except this tiny fellow:

The runt of the litter, there always is one.  We named  him Peanut  (for obvious reasons) but he actually has a severe peanut allergy.  And he's lactose intolerant.  And he has an acute, irrational fear of mittens.  Basically, he is a  special-needs creature , and is  far too delicate to be listed over in the  shop.  He needs a home immediately, with loving people who are willing to take of him, feed him soy milk, and play Pearl Jam albums  for him (his current favorite band, and only thing that will calm  him down for a nap.)  If you are up for the challenge, please leave a note in the comments and I will choose a random winner this Thursday!  Just make sure that you leave an email link so I can get in touch with you if you are the lucky winner. (Everyone is welcome to join in!  International, family, friends, etc.)    That's right, this is a  giveaway! (And far overdue, too.) ***I'll be doing the drawing later tonight, around 8pm, so keep the comments coming!~

Good luck, and happy Tuesday!

This is for the ladies....

Are these some handsome  dudes, or what?  And check out Max's new do.  His hair had gotten so loooong  and I tried to trim it myself (which ended in utter disaster.)   So, I took the child to SuperCuts and they totally buzzed him!  He went from sister golden hair  to Lieutenant Dan with two  swipes of  clippers!  I miss his curls, but I have to admit that I'm digging the new look, except it makes him look much older and taller.  :(

Oh, and by the by, the tissue cozies and Holiday Cards are in the Studio  now.  Sweater Creatures  arrive tomorrow, and I'm doing the giveaway then too!

Time Management

....is not my strong point.  Plus, I totally missed the window of good light for picture taking.  The update just isn't gonna fly today, but I  do have 10 creatures, 15 tissue cozies, 5 cards sets (and a partridge in a pear tree.)  I'll get them up on the website this weekend.  I swear. 

Why doesn't it feel like Friday today?  Is it just  me?

Here are some awesomely goofy on line Christmas games to distract you from my lameness.

North Pole Dancing   

Shake The Globe

Don't shoot Your Eye Out

Playin' Hookie

The Williamsburg Pottery  is one of the  strangest places I've ever seen.  It's hard to even describe it.  Basically, it's a giant place where you can buy almost anything.  Craft supplies, cheese, art prints, oriental rugs, live plants, kitchen ware, plastic sea creatures and just about anything else you could imagine (and of course pottery, and lots of it too!)   If you've been there, then you know how crazy it is.  We always go this time every year.  I can't say we actually purchase very much, but it's still an adventure.

 

   

It's a great place to take pictures, too.  It's been around for ages, the entire area is huge and sprawling, with several gigantic, warehouse buildings and outdoor areas with zillions of terracotta pots in every size you could imagine.  The buildings are old and dingy and the whole place has the charm of a vacant lot.  You just gotta go and see it for yourself.  I did snag some interesting, craft things to play around with, and I'll have more on that later.

Also, if you are out that way, and you have younger kiddies, you should stop by the Yankee candle Company.   I know what you're thinking, "A candle store?!?!  Why the heck would my kid want to go there?"  But  really, this place is pretty cool.

It's like they hired a Disney engineer to design it.  In the main entry there is a huge, vaulted ceiling with a realistic sky-ceiling. 

The rooms are elaborately decorated for Christmas, with lots of miniature scenes and trains that wind their way throughout the entire place on suspended tracks.  In one area, it "snows" every fifteen minutes or so.  (Sort of  strange, disappearing foam that falls from the ceiling, but it's really fun!)  Santa is there too, and you can take pics with him in his sleigh, and there is a cutsie, animatronic show in the main area too.  Cute stuff.  You should check it out if you're in Williamsburg.

(That's Max and my Mom.)   Boy, was yesterday fun!  Just what I needed.

strawberry fields FOREVER

...and ever, and ever with no end in site.  {Stop being so dramatic!}  Ok, so I have actually made a sizable dent in the berry orders, after a weekend flurry and a 4am all-nighter yesterday. 

After I tie that piece of jute and wrap them in tissue,  it's a pretty darn good feeling. 

There are still pints to go before I sleep, but I am now in the position to take a DAY OFF tomorrow and head up to Williamsburg with my mum and the Maxter for some serious Holiday shopping, browsing, playing, eating, frolicking, etc.  So excited!   And despite my better sense, I still really want to do that final, small Studio update with the creatures and such.  That is set for Friday the 7th.

Starting to decorate around the house now, and it was so cold and blustery today.  Almost convinced me that it really is December.

Norfolk Floral, which never fails to amaze me, has a huge  refrigerated  room of live wreaths and garlands.  I bought this boxwood wreath there, and I just love it.  It doesn't even need a bow.  I also adored  the juniper wreaths too, and the prices were pretty reasonable, the quality is excellent.  I even splurged on a few flowers for the dining table, too.

The colors are very, "Spring", no?  Oh well, I was just so drawn to them.  Besides, it's my house and I can do whatever I want.  So there.

Ooop.  Never too busy for a bit of thrifting!

 

It was a really good haul too, this is just a smattering of the goods.  Most will go to the Emporium, but not till 2008.  I'm keeping the gingham shakers though.  Maybe. 

Do check back in later this week, as the adorable runt of the creature litter will be part of a blog giveaway I have planned!  I'm so overdo for a giveaway.  Be there.