elliemoon

THE LITTLE PRINCESS'S SACK FOR LITTLE PRINCESSES

bella has become a bit of a girly girl over the course of the last few months. actually thats an understatement. she is seldom without her fancy shoes, a dress of some kind and a random assortment of jewelry. this, after a five month stint of refusing to get out of her pajamas! (now, that i can relate to). other family members have picked up on the vibe and have gifted her all kinds of princess gear. i believe my mom can be held responsible for her collection of tiny princess figurines, which are very easily misplaced. they are temporarily living in an oversized canvas bag that i lent to bella. trying to think of a better solution, i remembered having seen instructions for drawstring bags in this book::

i went with the smallest size and it came together really quick::

lots of pink (her favorite color of course). i think she will be pleased. and i have to admit, even i tend to get upset when pocahontas goes missing. problem solved.

PAIN IN THE BUTTONHOLE

the crafting for bella's birthday is fully underway. i started working this pattern over the weekend. i've had it since last summer and have been wanting to try making one of these cute little dresses for a while. my friend kate pumps them out in her sleep and her youngest is usually sporting one. super cute::

and look, the bloomers are done! if only i had figured out sooner how simple bloomers are. little lu lived in them last summer. but they were all simple solid colors to match whatever baby dress they came with. this year i'll have to sew her up a few stylish ones from my fabric stash::

yes, as it turned out i could use that fabric, seeing as fabric can be folded the other way as well and thus, be more than wide enough to cut the pattern piece from (thanks for pointing that out willie). luckily neither of those fabrics were directional. i was powering through the construction and finished the dresses! last step? the buttonhole::

i have never used the buttonhole attachment on my machine. i figured out how to set it up and had all my bases covered and......nothing. the fabric wouldn't feed. i watched youtube videos, i read suggestions online, i ransacked the house looking for my manual, and finally, i admitted defeat. i will take it to sewing this week and hope that it is not broken.

A SURE-FIRE SOLUTION

here's how you get two boys motivated to do some yard work:: take advantage of open burning season and start a bonfire. you will never find them more attentive. add a pair of old loppers to the mix and you'll be amazed how much gets accomplished::

bella, in her fancy shoes and dress, which based on her determination, may even end up being beach attire this summer, helped round up some pine cones to use in the smoker this season. 

we will be getting a new shipment of bees on april 30th. yes, we lost our entire hive. i didn't have the heart to devote an entire post to it. towards the end of february we had two mild days and the girls were buzzing in and out and very active. we celebrated and i was so relieved they had made it after a horrible summer and a bitter winter. during the next warm spell in march i went in to feed them and found the hive had perished. so sad. a little less than half of my winter feeding was still in there! my bee mentor lost more than a couple hives this way. no explanation, the hives had honey stores and seemed to be doing well. immediately after those mild days in february we had a string of 10 degree days. maybe they broke cluster too early? maybe something happened to the queen? regardless, we are moving on and hoping for a more bee-friendly summer this year!

on a lighter note, some of our old friends have returned....and they brought this guy::

that tuft of hair on his chest is called a beard (thank you wikipedia) but that thing above his beak? i'm not sure what that is but i've never seen one quite so elaborate. it has a full head of hair. its more than a bit unnerving. adds character though, thats for sure!

 

AVOCADOS, THE SEQUEL

lets make quacamole, why not? i told you we were going to. this recipe will last in the fridge for more than a few days. the lime juice (and careful covering) will keep it from going brown on you. start by cutting the avos. just slice both ways with a knife and scoop out into a bowl like so::

yes, those are some large chunks you've got there (if you don't mind me saying) but after all the tossing and mixing it will be nice and creamy with just the right amount of tender bites of avocado. now, on to the real chopping. wait a minute, squeeze in your lime juice and toss so you can be sure to keep this beautiful green and yellow::

okay, the chopping (and minimal grating). here we go::

the recipe::

5 avocados

2 and 1/2 limes juiced (or rather, the juice of 2 and 1/2 limes)

1 large tomato chopped

1/4 cup diced onion

1/4 of a clove of garlic, grated (that small amount in the pic is all i added)

1-2 jalapenos finely minced (seeds, membrane and all)

handful of cilantro chopped

salt and pepper and a splash of olive oil

 cut up the avocados (as previously discussed) and add the lime juice. you can also use lemon juice! just taste as you go (with whatever citrus decision you make) to be sure the amount is to your liking. any of these measurements can be toyed with according to what you prefer. where was i? oh yes, now chop the tomato, the onion, grate the garlic and mince the peppers and dump it all in. chop and add the cilantro. you can go a little heavy on the salt, but easy on the pepper and just a splash or so of olive oil. the pepper and olive oil are really added for good measure. you have to put pepper in everything right? thats what i was told. 

mmmm. now you should be considering quesadilla's, or something to that effect. tortilla chips will work in a pinch! when storing, don't forget to smooth the surface and press some plastic wrap right down on the top and straight out to the edges so no air gets in. margarita's anyone?

 

WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU AVOCADOS

it was a tough winter for guacamole this year. we had a very bad run with avocados. i'd buy a bunch and they would either never soften, or would wind up being stringy and brown when sliced open. somewhere in early march everything changed. and i'm back to buying 4-5 at a time. normally the first batch will be just at perfect softness when i go and grab the next. sometimes, if we skip burrito night or there's not a lot of chips and salsa going on, they land in the fridge and pile up. which is precisely what i discovered yesterday. 10 super ripe avos, up for anything. first and foremost, a sushi interlude::

we had only one pack of nori, rice (i made one and a half servings), japanese mayonnaise and wasabi (and some sesame seeds for big b's inside out avo rolls) and we were both stuffed in the end. kai, o and bella had two rolls each as well. so simple and so good.

on monday i was forced to clean out our entire pantry and in doing so found some squeezable gold. this wasabi used to be easy to find. but now, not so much (on cape cod anyway). sushi purists might cringe, but if you're looking for a kick that will make your knees buckle, look no further::

there is nothing more disappointing (when it comes to sushi) than wasabi that doesn't pack a punch. i've got to find a new supplier for this stuff. tomorrow, the guac recipe!

 

GETTING WARMER, FIGURATIVELY.....

i've made my way back to the sewing machine. well, i got my pattern pieces traced anyway and rediscovered this fabric that was purchased long, long ago::

unfortunately it won't be working for the dress i had in mind. the 4T pattern piece is a bit too big to fit the width of the fabric. i will now be forced to shop around for more (sarcasm). meanwhile i'll use this stuff to make the smaller size for little lu and maybe i'll even have enough of the orange floral left over to work the alternate dress pattern i have for bella. and tonight is sewing class. i'm hoping to make some headway on the quilt. if i can pull it all together this weekend i'll be happy. her party is the following weekend and i need some time for cake prep. her requests range from a butterfly cake, to a robot like o's. and yesterday she told me she wanted a cake shaped like a giant pretzel or a princess. you know, either or! 

 

GETTING WARMER, LITERALLY.....

the biting cold has lifted for the time being. it appears there may actually be an end in sight. who would have thought?! the brush pile was established yesterday and if next weekend is a little less blustery we'll start burning::

out with the brown, in with the green::

circling, circling::

i'm going to jump the gun and say "spring has sprung". and yes, if it snows again next week you can blame it on me.