More Patio Love

More photos from the Little Guy's birthday party on Sunday. The weather was very cooperative so we spent as much time outside as possible.





A good time was had by all.

Cake Decorating 101

Yes, the old man can still wield a bag of icing. In the old days, I made frosting from scratch (with shortening, powdered sugar, etc., etc.). These days, it's store-bought. But...with a flair. In the old days, the cake came OUT of the cake pan before it was frosted and decorated. These days, the cake stays IN the pan. Damn, I'm getting lazy.

Gotta love the folks at Wilton.
They make some really great tools for decorating a cake.

The "Lego Time" was a very last minute addition.
With some help from the Birthday Boy!

Next time: I'm going to back to the 'scratch' method. Store bought is not even close to homemade. Who would have thought, huh?

Just wondering

if I should skip the monthly fee on TypePad and come back to Blogger. I swear I can't make up my mind.


In the meantime, I'll pretend that I'm sitting on the patio, enjoying a perfect summer day.

Your comments are always welcome. Does anyone have an opinion?

All of my posts

are over here. Thanks for clicking.

Mother's Day Post

is over here.

Friday's Post is ...

...over here.


Mother's Day Special:

FREE SHIPPING on any item purchased from my Etsy shop. Now until midnight Sunday. Just enter the code MOM2008 in the comments section and wait for a revised invoice via PayPal.

Have a great weekend.

New Post is Over Here

Click here to get today's post.

One of these days, I'll get my blogs together and you won't have to do all this hop, skip and jump stuff.

Work with me, okay?

:-)

Orange Wednesday

Please click here to view today's post.

Yellow Tuesday

Please click here to view today's posts. Yes, there are TWO of them today. Woo Hoo!

As mentioned earlier, I'm seriously considering moving my blog to TypePad. So...rather than create duplicate posts, I'm sending you to the new place.

Enjoy.

Anyone looking for a Bernina - Model 830 Guide ?

Bernina - Model 830 Guide (going on eBay)
Originally uploaded by crafty dad

I found this at the thrift shop this week and will be putting it on eBay very soon. If you're interested, I'm giving the blogosphere first dibs.

The selling price is $6.25 (includes shipping & handling).

Leave a comment or contact me at craftydad (at) comcast (dot) net and I'll send you a PayPal invoice. [Of course I'll need your email address for that to work.]

Here's a sample page spread. Click on the image for larger version.

Here's a sample page spread. Click on the image for larger version.

Test Driving TypePad

I'm THINKING of moving my blog to TypePad. You can see what I've done so far by clicking here.

I haven't convinced myself that I really want to create a brand new blog, but I do like some of the features that come with TypePad.

Are you a TypePad blogger? Is it better? Do you like it? Love it? Your comments would be greatly appreciated.

Have a great weekend!

Had to Have It

We looked at Bernina sewing machines a few weekends ago and I could NOT justify a purchase. They are the greatest machines, duh! But...no way. Couldn't. Wouldn't.

I've been on the lookout for a nice coverstitch machine for quite a long time. I can across this great deal at my favorite online and brick-and-mortar sewing dealer. If you're looking for a great deal on name-brand items, I highly encourage you to check them out. They are on eBay (seller name = easyterms). You can find them on the web here. I've been dealing with Kevin for a long, long time. He and his team are the best. Great prices and super fast delivery. Just a great bunch of people.


So for $249.00 I got the Janome CP900, a wide elastic foot, a narrow elastic foot, a really nice extension table and a DVD showing how several accessories are used. I thought it was a really great deal. The machine is bigger than I thought (not too big, just larger than I expected). Stitch quality is perfect and it moves right along. This model has the handy free-arm option too.

If you're looking for some tips on using a coverstitch machine, you should check out all the good stuff here.

Happy and Sad

I'm happy to see things starting to green up. The forsythia bushes next to the patio are getting ready to display their annual burst of yellow. The grass is really starting to grow too -- and it won't be long and I'll be firing up the lawn mower.

Forsythia bushes.

Forsythia bushes -- up close.

Speaking of lawn mowers, we went shopping for a new one this past weekend. It seems the good people at John Deere have a great deal going. So...we decided to take the plunge and get a new one. The old one is on it's last leg (wheel). It has served us well over the past several years. This is the year that our oldest son gets to learn how to cut the grass. He says it will be fun. But...when he finds out that it's w-o-r-k, he may have another opinion. We'll see!

Nothing runs like a Deere.

I'm happy for the time we spent two weekends ago with the boys. Give them a hotel with a swimming pool and everything is well with the world. Woo Hoo! We had a great time.

2 Boys + 1 Swimming Pool = A Great Time

I'm sad when I go out to get the newspaper the other morning and find that both tires on the driver's side of my truck have been slashed. After a few choice words, I look across the street and see that the SUV in their driveway has suffered the same fate. What a bunch of crap. Later I find out that a Jeep just a few doors down the street was vandalized too. Lovely. It could have been worse, I know.

Damn! And I just bought them a few months ago!

I hope you're having a great week!

Behind the Eight Ball

Seems to be a popular place: behind the ol' eight-ball. As my blog sub-title exclaims, there is always way too much that I want to get done; and never enough time to get them done.




I spend many of my lunch hours at the thrift shop. And I usually find one or two things that can be re-purposed into something new and unique. After several shopping trips, the raw materials can really pile up. There are lots and lots of things scattered all over the craft corner. And lots and lots of ideas in my head (and some on paper too!).

Now...I just need to carve out some time. Sit down. And do it!

P.S. I found a great (simple) pillowcase pattern that I'll share with you next week. Perfect for making custom pillowcases for the kids.

Spring Break Kick-off

Saturday and Sunday was our official kickoff for Spring Break 2008. My wife is a tax accountant, so (here is the States anyhow) the few weeks leading up to April 15^th is a no-no for taking vacation time. So…we've traditionally taken the boys on a get-away weekend someplace close to home. We've found our best bang-for-the-buck is a stay at the Essenhaus Country Inn located in Middlebury, Indiana. It's in the heart of Amish country here in Northern Indiana. That means great food, lots of quaint shops and a place where you won't find 100 other people fighting for space in the swimming pool. Another plus is the fact that the Inn is only about 15 minutes from our house. Once inside the Inn, you feel like you're in the middle of a Country Living photo layout. The décor of the Inn is like no other place we've stayed. It's beautiful, and at the same time, very comfortable. You just don't want to leave. That's how comfortable it is.

Essenhaus Country Inn and Conference Center

The common area, just outside our room.

Sun room at the Inn.

Close up shot of the game table in the sun room.

Right across the parking lot from the Inn is our favorite place for breakfast – Das Dutchman Essenhaus. [This is where the great food comes in.] The breakfast buffet is the best. Belly-up to the bar get yourself a toasty-warm plate and pile on some real home-cookin'. The buffet includes scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, country sausage gravy and biscuits (yum-yum), ham, thick-cut bacon, pancakes, zucchini bread, nut bread, pumpkin bread, homemade pastries, fresh fruit and some semi-frozen concoction of orange juice and bananas. I'm sure I've forgotten about ten other things that are available, but you get the picture, right? And a great cup of coffee too. Wow! What a terrific way to start your day. Trust me: you won't want need lunch. The moral of this story is: if you go away hungry, you have serious issues.

Check-in time at the Inn was not until 3 p.m. so we decided to do some shopping. The entire downtown area is one little shop after another. Most of the shops are small houses that have been converted into retail space. They are all full of 'cute', 'quaint' and 'country' things. Also located downtown is the Davis Mercantile building. The original building burned to the ground about three (3) years ago. The new structure is a work of art. Much of it was hand-constructed by Amish craftsmen. The building is three stories tall and has several fantastic shops.

Quilt on display in the common area.

Ah, but alas! It's back to work now for the parental units. The boys will be sleeping in and watching Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies for the next few days. They're lovin' it.

Thrift Shop Finds

Here are just a few things I found at the thrift shop this week:

[Click to see enlarged photo.]

1. Lady bug needlepoint
2. Grasshopper needlepoint
3. Great looking fabric with dots, starrs and seals.
4. Fifteen spools of cotton and silk thread.
5. Green fabric - this picture doesn't do it justice
6. Eight brand new (still sealed) bottles of paint.

Catching Up a Bit ... 3-31-08

I'm behind. So what else is new? But I wanted to acknowledge a special day at the Crafty Dad house: my wife's birthday. I won't tell you that she turned forty-something, because that's just not something you do: talk about a woman's age. Okay, let's get back on track.

So yeah, Monday was her birthday and while I usually don't send her flowers for her special day (we mutually agreed upon that a long time ago), I thought they might brighten her day. Especially with all this crap she's been going through with the headaches, and all. And...I ordered her a cake too. White with buttercream frosting. Yum-my.

I had the bakery make the cake from the boys.



Son No. 1 made a backstitch pillow for his mom.

According to my wife, she had a very special birthday. Woo Hoo! Love ya Honey!

Too busy to make a blog entry.

Yep, it's that crazy time of the month again. Busy crunching numbers, keeping team members focused on all the fun stuff that has to get done in just a few days. It's a wacky week to say the very least.

I did score big yesterday at the thrift shop. Funny how I have time for that, huh? I'm addicted. I don't know what it is, but I can't stay away. [Much to my wife's disappointment.] I'm a sucker for a good deal. Especially when it's something that can be converted into some new crafty thing.

Pictures will be forthcoming. I promise.

In the meantime, have a great day.

Can't wait for the coreopsis to come back to life.

P.S. I've been complaining about the weather lately (it really has been rotten lately). But...the weatherman promises warmer temps and some sunshine. The trees are starting to bud so maybe, just maybe Spring is truly on the way. I can't believe all the springy-looking pics from my blogger buds in the Pacific Northwest. I'm jealous.

Looking forward to:

Late Spring - 2007
[Click the photo for a larger image]

Warm weather, green leaves, bright-colored flowers, spending time outside, enjoying the patio, cutting the grass. Feeling the sun on my face.

Yes. I am ready.




P.S. I found this great picture tool on the web to get individual photos merged into one. I'm using the trial version for a few days. It is SO easy to use. I had this grouping done in 2 minutes after I installed the program. So far, so good. Anyone else using this or another program?

Spring? I don't think so ...

With snowflakes (the size of watermelons) falling from the sky, it certainly doesn't seem like Spring here in my part of the world -- Northern Indiana. In fact, we were under a winter weather advisory from 8:00 last night 'til 4:00 this morning. It snowed and rain/snowed like nobody's business.

The Robins are back and I'm sure they feel like they made a very big mis-calculation on their return flight from the sunny South. I'm guessing it's pretty tough to find worms in the ground with all this snow. But then again, I'm not an expert in the field (no pun intended!).

Have a great weekend.



UPDATE on the wife: She does not have Temporal Arteritis. Which is good news. However, we're still trying to figure out what is causing the horrible headaches. She's going to see how the next two weeks go. Our next step is a neurologist.

Shop Update

The shop has been updated.

Happy Easter !

The tradition continues:











From all of us at the Crafty Dad house to all of you:

HAPPY EASTER !

Rewind

I promised my oldest son that I would show you the backstitch pillow he made for Cousin Colin J. So...without further adieu -- the pillow:

Lightning McQueen -- A "Krafty Kid" Creation

Speaking of my krafty kid, go check out his new blog.

For Sea Mystery

Pizza pans are "Chefmate" from Target.

The recipe:

Preheat oven to pizza crust directions.

• 1 pkg. Boboli (thin crust; 2 in a package) pizza crusts
• lightly brush crusts with olive oil
• 1 jar of Ragu Pizza Sauce (homestyle) (spooned evenly over crusts)
• lightly sprinkle oregano, basil, garlic powder, and black pepper over sauce
• add your favorite toppings (Italian sausage, pepperoni, green pepper, onion, etc.)
• 1 pkg. (2 cups) Kraft shredded mozzarella cheese (divided evenly over the two pizzas)

Bake according to pizza crust directions.

Enjoy!

Hot Dog Stew -- The Recipe

As promised, here's the recipe for Hot Dog Stew:

1 small onion finely chopped (OR 1 T. onion flakes)
1 green pepper, chopped
1 can V-8 or vegetable juice (tomato juice works in a pinch, but V-8 is best)
2 beef bouillon cubes
4 carrots, cut up like thin coins
2 t. oregano
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/4 t. black pepper
1/4 t. parsley flakes
1/4 t. celery seed
1 pkg. hot dogs, cut up like coins
1-1/2 cups frozen peas

Simmer all ingredients (except the peas) until the carrots are about five minutes from becoming tender. Then add peas and simmer until done.

Like most dishes with tomato sauce in them, this is best the next day.

I'm sure it's high in sodium, but you should try this stuff. It's really tasty. And my kids love it. And that's a wonderful thing!

Enjoy.

The Luck of the Irish

Happy St. Patty's Day !

Irish or not, it's a good reason to celebrate. Especially since it's Monday and we all know how Mondays can be. Two quick questions for you:

1. Are you wearing green? Cuz if you're not, you get pinched. Lordy...do you remember that one from elementary school? [Funny thing is, I'm 46 and still wore green today. I guess old habits are hard to break!]

2. Are you having Corned Beef and Cabbage, or Irish Stew for dinner tonite? [We're having Hot Dog Stew, in case you care.]

I just KNOW you want the recipe for Hot Dog Stew. So...I'll get it all together and make that a post for later in the week. The suspense is killing you, isn't it? Seriously folks, Hot Dog Stew is tasty, easy to make and my boys love it. Three very, very good things.

BTW: If you Google "Hot Dog Stew" you won't find the version that I have. HA! You'll have to wait. And you'll be glad you did. I'll give you a hint: you'll need a large can of V-8 juice.

Okay...enough for now.

My wife says 'thank you' for all your kindness. She is doing better each day and should get her lab results tomorrow. Hopefully, it's something that can be handled with a prescription. Oh...how cool that would be!


P.S. I made a trip to the thrift shop today (please don't tell my wife). I found some really great fabric. In fact....I bought 17 yards of floral print fabric (no kidding) for $7.95 (no kidding (again)).

A Weekend for Recuperation

It will be two days of rest and recuperation for my wife. She has been having horrible headaches for the past several (I mean several) weeks. We thought it was probably a chronic sinus infection since the entire world seems to be suffering from such malady lately.

She went to the family doctor and had a CT scan of her sinuses and was referred to an Ear, Nose, Throat specialist. Turns out her sinuses are fine. However...in addition to the CT scan the family doctor also had some blood work done. Come to find out her sedimentation rate was a bit out of whack. The doctor said it was possible that she was suffering from a rare disorder called Temporal Arteritis. The ears, nose and throat guy told my wife that it was nothing to mess with. Left untreated in can cause blindness or can even be fatal. Dr. Isaacson highly recommended that she have a temporal artery biopsy the next day. So she called me at work and gave me the news. The unexpected news.

We spent yesterday morning in the outpatient surgery department. The surgery took about 45 minutes and I took her home a couple hours later. I stayed with her and did what I could to make her feel better. She has a 2-1/2 inch long incision just inside her hairline next to her ear. And suffice it to say, it hurts. Every time she opens her mouth. It hurts. The pain medicine helps, but it will be a few days before she's back to normal.

So...this will be a quiet weekend. And frankly, I'm perfectly fine with that.

ADDED: We're supposed to get the lab results no later than next Tuesday. If she has this Temporal Arteritis thing, then she'll probably have to take a steroid like Prednisone. We'll see how things go.

Colin J's Birthday Tote

My cousin's son turned 4 last weekend. And he's infatuated with the Disney Cars movie and Lightning McQueen. So...why not capitalize on that and make something, right? Right!

So...thanks for JCasa's tutorial, I whipped this up:

The pocket is a big larger than the tutorial calls for, but ... I wanted to get as much of the print on the front of the bag. Plus, it gives Colin more room for 'stuff'. And kids always have a lot of stuff.

ABOVE: A shot of the inside of the bag.

Yep: "I AM SPEED". Happy Birthday CJ.

Son #1 Makes Principal's Honor Roll

Warning: Proud parents ahead. [And another food photo!!]

Woo Hoo! Kiddo #1 made the high honor roll for the second trimester:

Pre-Algebra: B
Band: A
Honors Language Arts: A
Art: A
Science: A
Honors Social Studies: A

Way to go dude!

Sausage on 1/2 (for Kiddo #2); Sausage, Green Pepper and Onion on the other 1/2.

In honor of his achievement, we had pizza from Michael's Italian Restaurant (our favorite -- thin crust with tangy sauce. Love. It.)

Pitiful

It's been too long since I've posted an entry.

Trying to get some things checked off my 'to do' list so I can sit down and post something of substance. And with a photo too.

Stay tuned.

Wordless Wednesday

Sky - on the way to Auburn 12-1-07
Originally uploaded by crafty dad

Sky - on the way to Auburn (Indiana)12-1-07

Not bad for a photo taken from inside the mini-van as we made our way to Auburn.



EDITED: Yes, I realize it's still Tuesday. But...give me some literary license on this one and let's just call it "Wordless Wednesday", okay? Okay.

Nothin' says lovin'

Homemade pizza
Originally uploaded by crafty dad

...like somethin' from the oven.

Yummy. Yummy. Homemade pizzas on Sunday. Thanks Honey! You make the best-est pizzas in the universe.

Happy Tuesday

Another day, another drastic change in the weather here in Northern Indiana. I was pushing the snow blower at 5:00 this morning. Hope I didn't wake you! I'm sure there was at least six or seven inches of the white stuff on the ground. Yes, yes, it's 'pretty', but pretty don't get it. You know? It's a mess to drive in and … well, it's the end of February and it's time for ugly, dirty, muddy landscapes sunshine and warmer temps. This flaky stuff has to go!

On a brighter note: I know that I heard two Robins singing this morning. I couldn't actually see them, but I know they were out there. They have that unique chirp. You know the one? Next time I'll take my camera with me and capture them digitally.

Hope you're having a good day.

Now..go make something!

 

Chocolate banana bread

Chocolate banana bread
Originally uploaded by crafty dad

After seeing Jennifer's muffins, I had to check out the recipe and make some for myself. And...come to find out, my family doesn't really care for chocolate banana bread, so it WAS all for me. And I totally enjoyed it. You should make some of this stuff too!

Sick of Being Sick!

This flu epidemic in nasty isn't it? It seems everyone has been bitten by the ol' bug. And it's a bite that keeps on biting.

The whole month of February has been nothing but a time of germ passing at our house. We've all had just about enough of it, thank you very much.

Craft time has been almost nil due to other things [trying to get well, trying to stay ahead of projects at work (ha! good one!)].

Best wishes for a fun, crafty and HEALTHY weekend.

Vacation Day!

Yes! A vacation day. A day sans work. I {heart} vacation days. Especially the kind where I get to spend the entire day with my boys! Woo Hoo....

The boys have a 4-day weekend (President's Day Recess) so I took today off to spend some quality time with them. We went to lunch (Chinese food at New York Buffet). In case you don't know, I'm all about quantity and (quality too ) when it comes to Chinese food. There were tons of choices but we stuck with the basics:

• Chicken and broccoli
• Egg drop soup
• Terriyaki chicken (a/k/a 'chicken on a stick')
• Black pepper chicken
• Steamed rice
• Mei fun
• Lo mein

It was all very good and we all three ate for about $15.00. Not bad.

This afternoon we're going to do some house cleaning and homework. That will make mama happy. And when mama's happy, everyone is happy. :-)

Early this morning I started making a tote bag out of re-purposed fabric. I found a Vera Wang pillowcase at the Thrift Shop this week. We'll see how it turns out. If I get my house chores done in time, I'll make a trip to the Craft Corner and work on it. Stay tuned.

Hey: have a great weekend.

Now...go make something!

Craft Corner Update

As promised, here are some new pictures of the Craft Corner.

I'm not finished, but I've made MAJOR progress since the last photo I shared with you. Here's one of the sewing machines in his new 'home':

Shelves were installed on 2-2-08. I'm pretty much done with getting the pegboard permanently fastened, then the trim goes up. Then...we're 95% complete!

The Cub Scout Pinewood Derby is next Saturday. So..the Little Guy and I have been busy making his car. You can see some of our supplies on the left-hand side of this photo. We're keeping our fingers crossed on this one. I enjoy working with fiber media; however, derby cars are not my forte'. But we're getting there.

I was going to drill holes in the Formica(R) counter-tops, but changed my mind and did a much easier thing: I drilled holes in the pegboard and then fished the electric cords up, in between, the 2x4's. It works great and really doesn't look bad at all.

Thanks to my dad and my wife, this long-awaited area is coming to life. It's great to have a space dedicated to my hobby time.

Nasty Weather

Winter, winter,
why such sting?

Where oh where,
oh where is Spring?


I'm pretty much tired of the crappy weather here. Looking forward to a 'stay-at-home' weekend.

Etsy Shop - More New Items

More items have been added to the shop.

Stop on over.

And have a G R E A T weekend.

...go make something!

Etsy Shop

I've added a few new items to the shop. There are several other projects in various stages of completion. They'll be added soon.

Craft Corner Update

We are making some serious progress. Here are the two electric outlets I've been talking about. Funny how we take utilities for granted, isn't it? Oh well. I'm a very happy crafter. A big shout out to my wife for coming home early to let the electrician in. Al, you did a fine, fine job!

This is a 'before' picture of the craft corner. The 'after' pics will be posted soon. Dad and I worked several hours on Sunday and got the project WELL on it's way. I now have counter tops installed and the pegboard is 80% complete.



Here's a photo my little guy took. Ah....electricity. It's a good thing.

Getting all High Tech and Stuff

Man oh man! There are so many programs out there to make our lives easier. I've come across two in the last few days that I wanted to mention:


SnagIt



You can capture part or all of a screen of information. Including images. An example is shown above. You can purchase the program for about $40.00 or...do like I did and get a 30-day trial version. It's very easy to use.


TimeLeft



This little gem gives you all sorts of clocks, timers, etc.


In craft news, the electrician is coming over tonite to give us a quote on some electrical outlets for the craft corner. Hopefully, he's less expensive than the company I called earlier in the week. They wanted $85.00/hour + materials.

Keeping my fingers crossed.

Updated at 7:39 p.m. See post below for update on the electrician's quote.

Google Docs and the Craft Corner Update

Okay. So...here's my first blog post using the Google document feature. Pretty cool stuff. I'm trying to think of how I can best use this tool.

I'll get back with you.

In other news, my dad came over yesterday and helped me get started on the 'craft corner' in our basement. I took some photos but haven't uploaded them yet. But...let me tell you, we made some GOOD progress. My wife and I moved tons of stuff out of the corner so we'd have room to work. [We installed new kitchen counter tops a couple years ago and we kept the old ones (for this project)].

After we moved all the stuff/junk out of the way, I laid out the counter tops on the floor to get an idea of what it would look when we are finished. It is going to be perfect. It's an L-shaped configuration that will give us a great surface to work on. We will be able to sew, stamp, sort through old photographs, etc., etc., It is going to be great.

I'm calling an electrician to see how much it will cost to have a couple lines brought in to the area. It's not that much distance from the breaker box to the corner, so hopefully it won't cost an arm and a leg. I'll keep you posted.

Have a great day!


UPDATE (01.17.08): The electrician gave me a very favorable quote on the work I want to have done. He'll be over tomorrow afternoon to install the new electric lines. Woo. Hoo. I am a happy camper!

Dad and his Stocking Cap

Dad and his stocking cap 2007
Originally uploaded by crafty dad

Yes! Another finished item for 2007.

I finished my dad's stocking cap in time to give it to him for Christmas. It was a close call, but it was done and in the gift bag several hours before he opened it on Christmas Day.

Towel and Tote Bag for Kelsey

Towel and Tote Bag for Kelsey
Originally uploaded by crafty dad

Here' are two gifts I made for my cousin who is on the swim team. She wanted a hooded towel and a tote bag in her school colors.

I've made lots of hooded towels before, but this was my very first lined tote bag. It turned out really nice.

Is it just me, or does Christmas seem like it was several weeks ago? Where does time go?

Lazy Schmazy

One of my New Year's resolutions was going to be "post an entry to your blog every day". Ha! You can see that hasn't happened.

But...it's early in the year and perhaps I can make good on my promise yet.

I still have tons of Christmas pics in the camera and need to get them to the PC so I can have some visual aids. (What's a post without a picture, right?)

Okay, back to work. Have a great weekend! ~Do something crafty.

Oh...I almost forgot! My wife and I went to Menard's a few days ago and bought all the lumber I need to get my corner of the basement set up for a craft spot. My dad is going to help me install some walls, counter tops and the like. I'm excited! We are in the process of sorting through LOTS of stuff in the basement (job #1). Once we're through all that, we'll be stirring up some sawdust. I'll be sure to take before and after shots. This should be good!