Sam's Week

i am having trouble typing with my kitten laying in my lap. but, he gets to lay here since he was run over by the car last week. i was not driving. and, he was almost put out of his misery, but as john went outside to take care of it, sam wrapped his paws around john's leg and he couldn't do it. sam gets to live inside now, and he tries out all the cat worthy spots. here are some of the places i found him. the last pic is taken a minute ago by my laptops camera, so you can see he is laying on my arm, therefore, no caps tonight.

Chip Chocolate Chewys

11 years ago today I want into labor; twice. With the holidays and trying to conserve resources and money I am baking the treats for their class with what is in the cabinet. Have you ever had to buy birthday treats for 2 classes from the grocery store? Highway Robbery! I pulled out an old favorite from Grandma Slusher; Chip Chocolate Chewys. YUMMY. My kitchen smells so good and it is just heartbreaking that no one is home to lick the spoon. Here is the recipe. Tres Simple. (redneck french)
Chip Chocolate Cheweys
2/3 cups shortning
2 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup pecans
2 cups flower
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
7 oz chocolate chips (I might have poured those a little heavy)
mix together and spread in a pan and bake for 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Grandma always baked them in a pan and cut them in squares and I can't imagine them any other way!

John, Dumpling

Thanksgiving went amazingly smooth. I was ready early with food cooked and even time to dust and straighten the family picture. I am thankful for a quiet evening. Look at all the pre-teens and teen girls in my life! When my mother told me; "Paybacks are Hell" is this what she meant? And then to put the icing on the payback cake I am married to a man that can eat 3 helpings and then have multiple sittings with apple dumplings without gaining an ounce. I am also thankful for the spirited Red Head that sings her own compositions while standing on my favorite antiques. I wouldn't have life any other way. Thank you

The Timer Just Dinged on the Pie

I am in a perfect spot. Thanksgiving is Tomorrow. I just pulled the most beautiful pumpkin pie from the oven and wrapped up creamy mashed potatoes and the sweet potatoes are cooking. I have extra pumpkin puree from the pumpkins the kids and I went and picked from Rigney Farms today and it is about to be stored in 1 cup servings in the freezer. I will volunteer for pumpkin pie for Christmas this year! I am having a cocktail and blogging and my house is fairly clean. My Handsome husband is sleeping on the couch, which means he isn't trying to make all my food better and change my recipes and I feel like Queen of My World. Ahhh, sometimes I win.

Ok, Black Friday and Cyber Monday Weekend; KC Etsy is promoting our stores and each other this year and let me recommend you visit these amazing artists in the link. Buying handmade and vintage is very selfish! Yes you are giving a gift, but you are making yourself feel so good when doing it. Don't lie to yourself, you may see the sparkle in their eye and the huge smile on their face when they receive that one of a kind gift, but really it is how it made you feel to support our local economy, local artists, environmentally friendly artists and you probably recycled in there somewhere. So, give handmade and get warm fuzzy's! Click on our link for more info and a list of participating shops. http://kcetsy.blogspot.com/2009/11/huge-black-fridaycyber-monday-kcetsy.html

I will be having free shipping on Gourds and marked down prices on Vintage Serving and Entertaining Pieces. Please get lost in their amazing shops and stop by mine also. We all appreciate your time.

Quote of the Day

"Audrie, the point of you unloading the dishwasher is... that I'm not unloading it." So says the 14 yr old to the 9 yr old. The day before Thanksgiving and I'm down to 2 kids, from 6 (the rest are at the "Others" houses) We are doing a little cleaning and organizing. I am doing some shipping of etsy sales and we went out to the Rigney Farms and filled the back of the truck with pie pumpkins, so I am about to make pumpkin puree. Here's the link to the recipe I am going to follow. I love the Pioneer Woman and her pictures are as much fun as her comments. http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/10/make-your-own-pumpkin-puree/

I'm having a Black Friday Sale and Cyber Monday at my Etsy shop and will fill you in after I get the pumpkin started. I have a plan on multi tasking everything to get ready for tomorrow, sorta....

Holiday Gourd Ornaments

I am posting the ornaments that I have been selling at craft fairs on my etsy site today. I also have some larger Holiday lamps and medium snowmen going up. This weather has my sinus's wreaking havoc on me so I will do my best to get them all online, but... I have a beautiful new snowman style that should be done this afternoon that has a light up nose and a hand painted nativity. I am excited. Here are a few of today pictures. Notice the white hat on the snowman lamp. It is done on a knitting loom made for flowers. My mom and I picked it up at JoAnne's this weekend and I am very excited. It is so easy and these hats pop out in about 10 minutes. So Fun!

Countdown to Christmas: KC Etsy Team's Great Giveaway! WEEK THIRTEEN: Win a MY DAGGERED HEART necklace from Silver Trove Designs!

Kansas City Etsy Street Team: Countdown to Christmas: KC Etsy Team's Great Giveaway! WEEK THIRTEEN: Win a MY DAGGERED HEART necklace from Silver Trove Designs!
Click on the link and Sign up to win this gorgeous necklace and check out the other talented artists on the kcetsy team!

Just a quick blog to show you what I found this weekend after a show in Oregon, MO. The biggest gourds I've ever seen where there. This is the big one I brought home to dry, sitting in my favorite chair. I am also on a push to post vintage serving pieces so we can all Entertain Vintage Style. Retro=Recycle and I think every little thing we do can help out. The picture is a Mod, Atomic themed vintage candy dish. That's all for now, I have gourds drying.