Dog Bones

One of my “signature” gifts this year was a dog bone toy for all of my dog owning friends. I made several of these this last Sunday, and actually came away with a pretty good sewing machine accident. I feel lucky because this was my first. I was sewing away on these bones, and my sewing machine “thumped.” I realized quickly that it was my finger.  The needle didn’t go through my bone or anything, it just torn a good piece of my finger nail off.  Makes for a great story.  In the end, the dog bones were well received. I’ll have to come up with a new pattern for next year.

Baby Shower Gift

We had a little baby shower for my friend and colleague last week. This is her third baby, and it’s a girl! She put sometime between the second & third and said she just didn’t keep a lot, so we threw her a shower over lunch. I wanted to get her something she really needed and something a little crafty. I ended up with a set of bottles & these adorable bibs.  The bib pattern is so easy & is free from Chickpea Studio. Thanks Elizabeth for giving me such a great idea.

Cookie Mix in a Bag

This is another project I assembled on Sunday. I put this gift together in less than 15 minutes. I bought chocolate chip morsels and assembled all of the dry ingredients from the recipe on the back of the bag. I layered these in a cellophane bag. I then typed up the instructions & printed on good quality card stock.  After cutting the recipe out and attaching to the bag, I dropped into a super cute, inexpensive felt bucket/bag I found at Target.  I have the perfect person in mind for this gift!

Busy Sunday

I had a busy, busy day today. I decided to make about 65 of these little surprise cookies. I know I have blogged about these before, but I just can’t say enough great things about them. They are relatively easy, and they are scrumptious. I’m sending some to work with my husband tomorrow, I’m taking some to work, and I have packaged the rest up for neighbors. I had to triple the recipe to get this much return, but it was totally worth it. These are perfect for a chocolate lover too! I’ll tell you about the other things I did today later.

Chocolate Cups filled with Mousse

These little snacks were a great hit at my party last week. No I didn’t serve balloons either. Here is what I did do – I blew up ballons about the size of a golf ball. Then I dipped the ballons in melted chocolate. I just got the semi-sweet morsals & melted them in the microwave. I put the dipped balloons in the refrigerator for a few minutes to let them set. Then I removed from the fridge and carefully burst each balloon. The balloons peeled right out and I was left with a perfect little chocolate cup. I found a super, super easy chocolate mousse recipe here. I piped the mousse into the cups & served. They were really pretty. I got too busy and forgot to take a picture, but I’ll make some more soon. Also you could top each cup with some crushed peppermints or raspberries. That would give it a very professional look, I think.

Party Favors!

So my girls only holiday party went off without a hitch. Well, except for the fact that I had ordered a new coffee table that was supposed to arrive between 2 & 6 the day of the party. You guessed it, it arrived at 5:30. Luckily, I warned the delivery men about the party & they were in and out in a flash. I had 17 ladies, and we had a grand time. As my guests left, I handed them a small party favor. I have a picture of these waiting on my stairwell below. I bought all of my supplies the day after Thanksgiving, so I got some great bargains. In these little bags were a tealight & holder and a Christmas scented mini-diffuser. I topped off each bag with a cute ornament. I sure hope my guests enjoyed. I had fun putting them together.  As the party was a gift exchange, I did end up with a really cute gift myself. It’s a pillow that says, “Dear Santa, I can explain.” I love it!

BBQ Turkey Pizza

So, what did I do with my turkey leftovers? Well, I made BBQ Turkey Pizzas. Here is how I did it.

Chop turkey up into small pieces. Sprinkle over a flour tortilla. Drizzle the bbq sauce of your choice over the turkey. Top with mozzarella cheese. Slide directly into your oven, not on a baking sheet, for 5-10 minutes at 450 degrees. It’s a great quick dinner.

Sew Mama Sew Handmade Holidays

Sew Mama Sew has posted a list of handmade holiday projects. There are so many to choose from that you could definitely find something here for everyone on your list. I’m still going through the list. I’ll let you know what I decide on!

http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/?p=653

The No Thanksgiving leftovers blues….

We traveled on Thanksgiving Day doing all of the family Thanksgiving festivities. We returned home, and on Friday we got up to nothing to eat in the house. Oh how I longed for cold turkey leftovers or a slice of pumpkin pie. Nothing. My solution - a mini-version of Thanksgiving dinner. I got a small boneless turkey breast that only took 1.5 hours to bake. Then I made a few sides – stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy, pumpkin pie, etc.  Dinner was great, but I am really looking forward to the leftovers….