Celebrate

Groovy Cake

It is always nice to have a birthday cake that is a hit with teens. This year we had a groovy cake. Follow the pictogram to make your own. Decorate as desired. Cut. As you can imagine, I was barely able to get a picture before it was devoured....

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Top Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

So Moms are always hard to shop for. I know my Mom says she never needs anything. I must be truthful and admit I am not much better. Usually if I find something I need, I will get it when I find it. Otherwise the things I want/ need...

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Make Your Own Easter Basket

Spring is now officially here. This is a fun activity and an easy display to make when you have just a little time. It can be done with young children as well. First select a nice basket. I inherited this one from my mother-in-law Kay. It is perched by the...

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Outdoor lighting

Outdoor lighting can make or break alfresco dining. Whimsical illumination can take many forms from votives to fairy lights to string lights to illuminated branches. Below are some recent finds, if you are interested in a particular item, there is an embedded link in each picture below to make...

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Grapefruit Tart with Rosemary Shortbread Crust

The girls all love to bake. As soon as we settled on a day for our next brunch they got busy pouring over recipes. After an hour of searching they had found about a hundred different grapefruit recipes. The one we settled on was one from gourmandistan who in turn...

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Spring is in the Air, and on the Table

If you haven’t already guessed, I get a little out of control when it comes to decorating for special occassions. Some seasons and holidays are fairly simple to decorate. Halloween has ghosts and Jack-o-lanterns, Thanksgiving has pumpkins, Christmas has trees and wreath.  Spring has always been a bit trickier...

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Polka Dot Birthday Cake

For my youngest’s birthday I wanted a fun youthful cake. I started with a white cake. To make the cake we were in a time crunch between the Western Regional Orchestra tryouts (got a violin chair), GE party, soccer, tennis assessment, and of course the birthday party.  (Read: another...

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Orange Chocolate Truffle Cake

We made a new cake this week inspired by the gorgeous clementines in the greenhouse. We have since dubbed it the Orange Chocolate Truffle cake because that is essential what it is, a large truffle. We were looking for some good birthday cake ideas and found a beautiful groom...

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Fabulous French Toast

My family loves Sunday brunches. Below is the recipe for what my children call “Daddy’s famous French Toast” Ingredients: 8 eggs partially separated 2/3 cups milk 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1 teaspoon cinammon 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 loaf of good bread butter to grease griddle   First slice bread into 1...

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Fresh take on French Toast

My family loves French toast, everyone that is except me. Then one day my middle child said in her fabulous way “Mommy, you’ve got to try this. You’re going to love it.”  She had made new toppings for French toast. I must admit they were delicious. French toast and...

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