in between

...holiday open houses. i had one last weekend at the store my wares are at. i have another one next saturday. so i have been spending all my time here.

here are a few things that i have created for the open houses.

in the mean while...emma has to get glasses. these are the ones that she chose.
she should get them after thanksgiving.

she is a little excited.

any who...i will hopefully get to all of your blogs.

tonight.

i miss checking out every ones crafting creations.

tomorrow i am taking miss emma and a friend to disney on ice.

the princess stories.

should be fun.

have a wonderful weekend.

God bless

a thank you and a redone lamp shade

first of all, i want to say thank you to all those thoughts and prayers sent our way. it was a rough week. However, I thank God, that He gave my uncle strength in the form of family and friends. He told me at the funeral that God doesn't give us any more than we can handle. Just a deep faith.

This is the first time that i am joining kimba at a soft place to land for her diy tuesday.

i am a little nervous...hopefully i do this right.

i found this lamp shade last summer. at the time i didn't know where i was going to use it. but i loved the shape.

i started out by taking all the fabric and trim off. i then spray painted the frame with black paint...

i found a grain sack that i bought several months ago....

i love the texture and color of grain sacks...

anyway, i just cut the grain sack in half lengthwise and sewed the pieces together to make a long narrow piece. i wrapped the grain sack around the form and used clothes pins to hold it. then i took pins and started to pin pleats where ever there was a wire.

sew all the pleats....

i was going to cut off the top...the extra fabric. but when i started to stitch the cover on, i loved the way it fell over to form a little flounce. be sure to sew on some ribbons or such to tie the cover shut.

luckily for me, my hubby still had some overheard lighting that you plug in. just slipped my light shade on, and hang. i had some chandelier crystals that i hung from the bottom. i still plan on using some vintage millinery and lace to dress up the bottom.

thanks for coming and be sure to check out all the other diy projects.

God bless

alissa

i wasn't going to post this, but my uncle, and my cousins needs all the prayers they can get. he lost his wife earlier this week unexpectedly. she was only 53. we are all in shock. i will be gone the rest of the week to spend time with my family. God bless.

meet, jasmine the pumpkin

we got together with my parents monday to participate in the annual pumpkin carving nite. it started when emma was 3 years old.

we have a 3 year boxer, so when emma saw the stencil for a jack-o-lantern that looked like jasmine, of course that was the one she wanted. you can get it here, along with other dog breeds. i believe you have to sign up to join in order to get the stencils. it was pretty fun, but it took a bit longer to do. the scraping took some time to figure out the best way to do.

it is turning out to be a pretty wet day today. may be a good time to bake some bread.

english muffin bread.

the recipe will come later.

did i mention it is a easy recipe?

yep.

my kind.

hope this finds everyone well and healthy.

God bless

alissa

a little glimpse

a photo of God's handiwork that i saw this week. this is the sunrise we had yesterday.

i am linking up to studio JRU 'a glimpse'. be sure to pop on over to see what others have seen as a glimpse of God's splendor.

in the mood...

for Christmas! i know, i know...it isn't even halloween yet. but we have had two snow storms the last 2 weeks. there are some years we don't have snow for Christmas.

emma enjoyed playing outside for a few minutes. as you can see here...

that is her version of a Popsicle.

apparently she wasn't cold enough!

a few weeks ago, i was invited to a Christian womens dinner to show off my items and speak for a Little bit. it is in december, so i thought i would make some winter and Christmas items to show.

and since i was in the mood for Christmas, here is what i got done today...there are a few little bling items i would like to add later.

the picture is out of an old book that i had found at an antique store. the edges were burnt a little, but it didn't affect the pictures. the canvas is 16x20 inches.

i have an eight foot table to fill so i better get busy...i am trying not to procrastinate.

hope this finds everyone well

alissa

buckets of rain makes for yummy dishes

it has been pretty cold, rainy, and foggy today.

snow is going to start tonight.

3-5 inches.

we went for a motorcycle ride sunday.

it was 72.

anyway, i love to cook when it starts to get cool outside...just warms my heart to warm up my family with some of their favorites.

i have two favs to share tonight.

i am going to start with dessert.

and it is easy, peasy.

only 3 ingredients.

this was adapted from a camping recipe meant to be made in a dutch oven, over a campfire and covered in coals.

see.

isn't it cozy already?

ok

first take a stick off butter and grease the bottom and sides of a

8x8 pan.

next, take a 21 oz can of your favorite fruit pie filling.

here, i used apple because that was the request of our daughter.

however blueberry is the best...

sprinkle a small box of jiffy white cake mix over the fruit.

then cut the stick of butter and put on top of the cake mix.

bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.

let cool slightly before dishing.

then add ice cream..of course.

it is easy to double to make a 9x13. we use two different types of fruit pie filling...just put one on each half and use a regular size of white cake mix.

yummy!

the next is creamy white chili

this has become my family's favorite soup

1 lb boneless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces

1 medium onion

1-1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon canola oil

2 cans (15.5 oz each) great northern beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth

2 cans (4 oz each) chopped green chilies

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cup sour cream

1/2 heavy whipping cream

~in a large saucepan, saute the chicken, onion, and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. add the beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. bring to a boil. reduce heat; simmer uncovered, for 30 minutes.

~remove from heat ; stir in sour cream and cream

~enjoy!

i hope this finds everyone warm and safe. this is part of Southern Hospitality's recipe party. be sure to check everyone's good stuff.

thank you to everyone for the well wishes. emma is doing much better. not sure what she had, some 24 hr. thing.

God bless

alissa