How to build a gnome home out of cake ...

Start with your favorite cake recipe and stack 10in rounds four high.

Insert some wooden supports so the cake doesn't later make you cry.

Find the perfect door online because this is the one item you ran out of time to make!

Place it in the perfect spot and begin to carve and shape your cake.

Here's where a nifty tool will help your inner sculptor come out to play,

so pull out your grandmothers biscuit cutter and let it save the day!

Those crescent moons that you just carved out will become the perfects roots,

as your once boring cake turns into a magickal stump with the click of your crafty boots.

                          Now onto the crumb frost, which is a crucial part, so do not skip this step!
                       For without this layer your final product would turn out to be a great big mess!

With this now done, you may walk away and leave your cake in the fridge for about an hour.

Grab a snack, take a nap, and do not start back until you've at least had time to shower!

 Ok, now you're ready to whip up the frosting that will bring to life this beautiful tree,

so take a close look at the door trim, and let the color mixing begin, until a perfect match is what you see.

The top lighter tone will be first and if smooth is what you seek, a hot knife is a happy perk.

It'll should be easy from here on in and of this you'll make quick work.

The bark layer goes wicked fast as you flick and frost in random fashion.

Remember here, that imperfect is good, even is perfectionism is your passion ;)

Oh, look almost done, now wasn't that fun, I'll just bet you'd do this again!

Now onto the forest enchanted, which will look like you planted, a fairy garden way out in the glen.

So bake up some cupcakes mini, to look like magick mushrooms from New Guinea, as you set the scene for little gnome house.

And should you have left over batter, well that simply won't matter, because dyed green and crumbled, it makes most excellent moss! 

Assemble the scene, on a brown tablecloth that's clean, and put your door firmly into place.

A few sugar flowers, can be artfully showered, to bring a smile to your birthday gnome's face.

Be sure to bring hats for the class, and I guarantee they'll have a blast, as they ooh and aah in stunned delight.

Now all of this has me thinking, about the dishes in the sink-and with that I'll wish you all a Good Night :)!!!

Raine's Awesome Science Project!

Raine has been working on a huge science project for school.  She was asked to choose an ecosystem and decided on coral reef.  She has been researching and compiling information on it for weeks on her own.  So far she's had to turn in a big report, build a PowerPoint on one of the animals living in her ecosystem and it's food chain and several other small projects.  Last night she came home with a frenzied look in her eyes and said we needed to build a diorama and it was due tomorrow!  Can you tell the procrastination apple doesn't fall far from the tree :)  I was so excited over the word "art project", that I completely let go of the fact that we could have worked on this all last week.  This kid loves to wait until crunch time to get things done.

We worked together to come up with a design, and then I let her run with it. She had to show three different ways that outside sources were disturbing the delicate balance of the worlds oldest ecosystem. She chose illegal dumping of toxic sludge/oil, trash in the oceans, and over fishing. She went out and gathered dried tree and bush parts and painted them in the vibrant colors of the ocean. The pink coral is borrowed from our maple tree, the bright green seaweedish looking piece was from on of out bushes, and and big pine needle cluster(hard to see in this picture) was made to look like a sea anemone. She use cut up recycled wrapping paper tube and tissue to make the toxic sludge barrels and "floated" styrofoam on the ocean ceiling along with some of that nasty coke can plastic for the trash portion. Last but not least was the fishing net over the whole project to represent over fishing. It came out so great and I am one proud mama!

Yum!

{this moment} ~Birthday Girl Surprise

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

Best Dinner Ever!!!!

                            Roasted Brussels sprouts with caramelized onions and turkey bacon!



{this moment}~Indoor Fairy Village

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

Just for Dad~

Captain Jean Luke Picard commanded it and it was so!  I hope you are having fun out there with your rare washingtonian snow days!

Beyond Beautiful~

She who surprises me daily with her thoughtful insights into this busy world.

She who has a way with all living things animal, human, or otherwise.

She that can can speak volumes with only her huge doe-like brown eyes.

She the very reason that I strive to be so much more than I ever feel capable of.

She is the light in this life that I am blessed enough to have helped create.

She is a friend like no other that I cherish more and more as she grows.

She is all feeling and depth and spirit that dances across this earth with magick in her soul.

She the believer that anything is possible and that all exists if only you can but imagine it.

She is beyond beauty in my eyes and will forever be my reminder of what it is to truly live.

She is my Raine and I am so very proud to be called her mother~

{this moment}

(Final Christmas Packeages Sent)

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule



My Morning Glory Muffins

My recipe adapted from Pam McKinstry's Original Morning Glory Muffins (mine's healthier)

Ingredients
11/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup all purpose wheat flour

2 tablespoons ground flax seed / flax meal
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shredded, sweetened coconut
3/4 cup raisins
1 large apple, peeled and grated
8 ounces (1 cup) crushed pineapple, drained
2 cups grated carrots
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
3 large eggs
1 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
How to make it
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.

Sift or whisk together the sugar, flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt into a large bowl.

Add the coconut, raisins, apple, pineapple, carrots and nuts, and stir to combine.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs with the oil and vanilla.

Pour into the bowl with the dry ingredients and blend well.

Spoon the batter into muffin tins lined with muffin cups, filling each to the brim.

Bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Cool muffins in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to finish cooling.

Note

May also be made in a loaf pan for a coffee cake loaf.

They freeze extremely well.

O Christmas Tree

This year we were lucky enough to be given a beautiful 7 foot tall tree by some wonderful friends, which was much more extravagant than we had originally been thinking of getting.  It took up the space by the window so beautifully and has to have been one the the best trees we've ever had! 

Raine has really been into christmas this year and as I was pretty sure this is the last year that she will still believe in the big guy, I really wanted to make it a special one. Needless to say, Santa must have heard her wishes because he really went all out!  There were presents galore, stockings stuffed to the brim, and magick in every corner of the house. 

Even the fairies stopped by to leave my darling girl a special gift and oh was it wrapped pretty!

 The cats got into the festive spirit,

and the chickens followed suit.

All was merry and bright,

and the warmth of a gifted fireplace added toasty light.

It was a completely wonderful and busy holiday season and we are all happy and exhausted and ready for the slow shift into the sleepy winter months to come. I hope that all of you had an equally lovely holiday and happy new year!

Laundry Robot

I asked Raine today if she would please match and fold the socks out of the clean clothes basket.  A few minutes went by and in walks this funny looking character...

She then informs me in a monotone robot voice, " I am a laundry robot and I don't fold laundry!"  This kid watches way too much sci fi! LOL

{this moment}~Believe

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

From the Kitchen~

(Homemade gifts for a few that have done so much for me this year)
Also just a little frugal tip on Christmas gift baskets:  A few years ago I got fed up with both the cost and wastefulness of bottom of the basket filler.  You know the kind, the shredded bits of paper/raffia that comes in a myriad of colors and costs about five dollars at a craft store per tiny bag.  Well, I still wanted my baskets to look beautiful, but I didn't want to spend 5 dollars per basket on something that gets thrown out and adds nothing to the overall gift.  Solution you ask?  Christmas tree!  Yep, that's right!  Just snip a few pretty sprigs from the overgrown bottom of your Christmas tree and lay them in your basket!  It creates a wonderfully fragrant and festive look, costs you nothing and you can;t get more biodegradable than that!  I promise the lucky recipients will be charmed and you couldn't ask for a more frugal and stylish way to make them your own.

(My famous Orange Cranberry Walnut Cake)

(Raine's Teacher Gift)

(From the Chickens)

(Goodies to Go)

Rainebow the Red-Nosed Reindeer

(A silly little something found in her stocking, and yes it blinks)

Christmas Eve Fruit Wreath

Well I am sure I am not the only mom this week that was cringing at all the goodies being consumed by my little one.  In fact I will totally admit that at the end there, while Raine wasn't looking, I started throwing some of those said goodies into gift baskets set to leave the house to go to other families and holiday homes!  As Christmas eve rolled around and I was in full on baking mode trying to finish those last couple homemade gifts before the big day, Raine popped in the kitchen and asked what she could have to snack on while she watched a Christmas movie before bed.  I could easily have given her any number of treats lying around and though this magickal time right before the big guy comes certainly called for something that would light up her eyes,  I so didn't want the last thing she ate that night to be filled with sugar and who knows what else. 

So thinking quickly, I grabbed for the two oranges I had just zested and started to slice.  Before I knew it this simple fruit had been formed into a Christmas eve wreath of sorts and with a few on hand raspberries and blueberries to round it out and fancy it up, I was ready to present her with a healthy masterpiece of mama made proportions.  It was devoured with glee and any visions of sugar plums that may have been on her mind the moment before evaporated when she caught site of this colorful creation.  I think that this may become a new tradition that both mother and child can enjoy!

The Archer~

One of the items under the tree this year from Santa was a big girls u-curve bow and arrow set. It was completely unexpected by it's receiver and has already gotten lots of action.  See girl and here bow below...

(See, she's already a pro)

I braved the windchill to take a little video of here in action, so with out further ado...

Christmas Dinner~

Per Raine's request this year we had a lovely meal of rotisserie lemon and thyme Cornish game hen with steamed green beans and scrumptious roasted sweet potatoes and onions tossed in olive oil, brown sugar, cinnamon, and thyme.  It was to die for and we will definitely be putting these cut little birds back on the menu again!

Popcorn, Pumpkin, & Pie~

A Chickens Thanksgiving

Lemon pie anyone?

Why yes, thank you!

How about a little pumpkin?

Of course!

And last but not least, popcorn chicken!

Gotcha didn't I!

What's for Lunch Wednesdays: Week 9 - Thanksgiving Edition Belated

Today we went turkey with a twist!  To get into the spirit I wanted to send Raine in with a lunch that gave a nod to the famous meal that what was going to hit tables across america the very next day. 

The main course is a sweet and savory turkey burger stuffed with onion, apple, heart of celery, and some simple spices.  I made the mix up the night before so all the ingrediants could really "get to know" each other.  After a quick bake in the oven the morning of, I put this masterpeice of goodness on a whole grain sandwich thin, romaine lettuce, and topped it with a quickly whipped up cranberry mayonaise.  I am going to pause here in remembrance for a second.  I also packed myself this very lunch and well it definitely derserves a minute of worship....Ok, now on to the sides!  A fast garlicky tomato and corn salad and two mini lemon apple blueberry pie bites make it perfection and barely took a second to put together.  Finish it with a hot cup of marmallowy cocoa and she was in heaven.  Her mama definitely made this a day to stand out.

All Hallows Eve~Part 1

Happy Halloween everyone and boy was it ever this year!  For the last month and a half or so it has been all Halloween, all the time for us around here and though it has been a wild ride, we are not sorry to see it go!  In a word we are both exhausted and looking forward to the shift that this lovely season provides as we all begin that magickal slow down towards winters stillness. 

I decided early on, to take on the Annual Halloween Bash at Raine's school this year and have been planning, shopping, emailing, talking, baking, flyer producing, and setting up for what seems like forever!  It went pretty well, with about 250 people showing up that night.  The kids all dressed in costumes got to trick or treat to each classroom door and them report to the gym/cafeteria for games, contests and prizes.  They all seemed to have a blast and I will definitely be doing this again next year with just a few modifications.  One of the main events this year was a giant indoor leaf pit (awesome right?).  It was supposed to be set up on a 12x25 ft heavy duty tarp that covered gym mats and be surrounded by hay bails and decor to "keep" the leaves in.  Well, we ran into a huge problem while setting up the night before, when we were informed last minute (grrr), that there was a kid in the school with a severe hay allergy and that the hay had to go!  Now I would not have minded this so very much if I had not sent out several flyers, and preapproved it through the principal several times during the weeks prior! An allergy however is still an allergy, so we scrambled to call the hay man back to pick them all up pronto and then proceeded to sweep, vacuum, and mop every hay dust particle from the place late into the evening.  The day of we ended up just piling the leaves into a corner of the gym and letting the kids go wild.  Yes, there were leaves everywhere and it was quite a cleanup, but the kids a blast and that's all that matters. 

Another idea I was crazy excited about was my harvest bowling alley! I lined three lanes with cornstalks, used festive colored 2 liter soda bottles for pins, and had a harvest basket filled with pumpkins and gourds at the start of each lane for the kids to bowl with. It came together great and looked fantastic! The kids loved it and seemed to be having a ball, as a side note though, I think we will switch out the real pumpkins and gourds next year for fake ones because they started to break apart midway through. Gym balls were brought in as a back up to save the day and the kids played well into the night.

A few of the other things we offered that night were...

Mummy Wrap

1.Pin the nose on the Pumpkin (middle)

2.Helium Balloon Ghosts, Goblins, and Jack o Lanterns (right), the kids got to pick the color balloon they wanted and then sit down on the floor with it between their legs and use a sharpie to draw a spooky face on it.  This was neat because not only was it an activity, but they got to take their balloons home at the end of the night.

3. Professional Face Painting (left), we have a lovely teacher at the school that volunteers to do this for certain events.  She is also a professional clown.

4. Cake Walk (Will do a separate post for this!)

5. Witches Brew (Above).  We filled this giant cauldron with apple cider and a little green food coloring and dropped in 25lbs of dry ice.  The kids faces at a smoking punch were absolutely priceless! Action shots to follow at a later time.

(My lovely little bride of Frankenstein)

Fun and festive music and a costume contest rounded out the night and after an impressive clean up by all we were off to fall happy and exhausted into our beds!



{this moment}

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

What's for Lunch Wednesday: Week 8

Chef Salad with a Twist

Today I went for simple and healthy with a sweet finish.  This is just a prettily displayed chef salad with ham roses, cheese leaves, and lots of fresh vegetables.  Raine is a big salad lover so these usually go over really well and are so fast to put together.  A bit of ranch to dip, some grapes and a tangerine pull it all together and make a filling, colorful and healthy lunch for my girl.  Oh and a little homemade caramel popcorn to end on a sweet note never hurt anyone!