Photography & cameras

Well here it is Monday again & still no card. What the heck?! All I can say is it's track season & this is our first year -- I had no idea how much time it would take up! 

So today I just want to ask you all a question -- what kind of camera do you have?? Do you have a Point & Shoot, an SLR, or a semi?? I'm trying my hardest to learn everything I can about how to use my P&S to its fullest, but it still can't do all I want it to do. So....I'm in the market for a new one. I will never get an SLR because there is just too much to learn -- but ohhhhh someday......I have no idea if I should get a better P&S, or if I should upgrade to a semi. I would love to hear all about your camera -- what kind, & do you love it?

I've been playing around with my editing program, doing more than just cropping & brightening my images. Here are some FUN effects:

I know it's a silly photo -- but my tulips are sad looking & we have no other flowers yet, lol. It's just for playing anyway :)

Antique photo

Color engraving

Emboss

Pencil

Puzzle

Yes, I know --- I'm complaining there isn't enough time to finish a card but here I am playing with my editing program. LOL. Well I'm also watching Dancing with the Stars, & since my tv is broken in my craft area I can't watch it & craft at the same time, so I'm playing instead. Besides, my card is almost done. Really.

Thank you in advance for sharing your camera details with me!

Our day at Jelly Belly

Hi all! Happy Monday to you! I am working on a card but it's been a busy few days, & this week is not looking much better. My son has his very first track meet, then he has another on Thursday. I asked him how long the meets are, & he said "I think about 2 1/2 hours" - Ok, I've been warned :)

So I told you I would share some pictures of our day at Jelly Belly. If you love looking at people's pictures like I do, then this is the post for you! If not -- then you might want to move on to the next blog. BUT I do have a funny story to tell you at the end :)

Matthew really wanted me to take a picture of him "holding the Jelly Belly". Well as you can see we weren't even close -- & he was standing in the middle of the parking lot -- & there were cars patiently waiting -- so I took a few shots & hoped for the best. No editing program in the world is going to make it look like he's holding it, lol. 

Even though this isn't the factory where they actually make the Jelly Bellies, we did get a tour of the warehouse & they had stops where they showed various videos of the Jelly Bellies being made. Look at this cute little train we got to ride on!

LOL we had to wear these paper hats "because we are going to be around food". Ummmmm ok we were nowhere NEAR the food -- they just wanted us to look silly :)

Look at all the ginormous Jelly Bellies! Is it sad that we guessed each flavor? We are definitely Jelly Bellyholics :)

Of course, the train drops everyone off right at the door of the retail shop. No one is leaving without purchasing some Bellies!! What I really loved -- & I wish I'd taken a picture -- was the Sample Bar. They had every flavor available for taste testing -- including the very FUN flavors below --

I couldn't bring myself to try anything crazy like moldy cheese or pencil shavings -- I stuck to my favorite, Top Banana. And do you see that price? The "real" flavors were $9/lb -- the "questionable" flavors were $12/lb!!!

We had a great time & will definitely go back. See that rather large bag in Michael's hand? $26 worth of Jelly Bellies -- & I think we got off on the light side! You should have seen some of the loads people were taking out to their cars!


Now for my funny story -- if you are my Facebook friend you may be groaning since I already told the story there LOL -- on the way back home I wanted to stop at an outlet mall that I used to go to when Matthew was little. I think last time I was there was when I was pregnant with Michael, so that would have been 2002. Well I drove to where I thought the mall was --- but it wasn't there. It had been a while, maybe I had the wrong road. I headed more south, but I was almost to the Illinois border. I knew that wasn't right! So I went back north & figured I had to hit it, you could see it from the freeway. Well pretty soon I'm realizing that we are not going to the mall. I could NOT find it. I came home & called my mom, & asked her where it was (she used to go with us). She told me the road & that's exactly where I'd been. So I did a bit of Googling & found out the mall was DEMOLISHED! Not only was it gone, but they tore it down in 2005!!!! OMG I laughed soooo hard I was crying! It had been gone 7 years & I never even knew it! hahaaaaaa well in my defense -- it was about 45 minutes from my house -- & once I had 2 kids, well I guess I didn't get out much. Ohhhh that was such a moment. I swear my kids thought I was out of my skull. They kept saying "um mom -- there is NO MALL here". Ahhhhh that is my life -


Well if you're still with me, I hope you enjoyed my day at Jelly Belly & the non-mall! I will back (hopefully) in a few days with that card :)

Itty Bitty card

Happy Wednesday! Halfway through the week already, time sure does fly!! I can't believe our vacation is in less than 3 months!

So did you think I made a teeny tiny card? lol -nope. I made a regular size card using Pink Cat Studio's Itty Bitty Betty -

Isn't she way too cute?? She's Betty Bug -- I just LOVE the Itty Bitties, I think I have *almost* all of them. I will tell you a secret -- just between us -- it took 4 tries to get this colored right! I won't go into the details but I think I finally got it right. The image is stamped on Cryogen Shimmery White & colored with Prismas & Goo Gone. Lots of Stickles for some glittery goodness. Papers are Basic Grey Nook & Pantry --  using up those older packs -- sentiment is Amuse -- I used the sketch from this week Sketch Saturday -- & VOILA -- a cheerful, springy card :)

I don't think you can see the shimmer of the paper but I think you can see the Stickles -- looks kinda like I spilled the whole jar, doesn't it? LOL I do love my bling :)

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Sketch Saturday -- sketch

Make It Monday -- anything goes

Paper Sundaes -- anything goes

**GAH** I just realized as I was posting this on SCS that I forgot to do my usual shading around the background of the image. I tell you, I'm really slipping. The other day it was the flower on the baby dragon's head, & today it's the background. **shaking head**

We had a GREAT time at Jelly Belly on Friday. I left work early & we spent about 2 hours there -- & $26! We were going to stop at the outlet mall near there afterwards -- but -- well that's a funny story that I will tell you when I post the pictures in the next day or two. Here's a preview of what we spied in the Jelly Belly store --

YUMMO! We were wondering if the toothpaste flavor was so popular that they couldn't keep up with the demand? I'll tell you more about the *interesting* flavors we were able to sample !

18 hours late -- blog candy WINNER

Ahhhh well I really DID try to pick a winner last night -- but my faithful computer just couldn't quite get there. I went to random.org -- plopped in my numbers -- clicked "get number" -- & it sat. And sat. And sat. I could have gone on vacation & been back by the time it moved. I don't know if it's my poor laptop -- which is 4 years old & has way too much stuff on it -- or my router, which I'm constantly having to restart. Either way it stinks when I HAVE SO MUCH TO DO ON THE COMPUTER!!!!

So anyway -- here is the winner of the Authentique paper:

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

15

Timestamp: 2012-04-16 19:55:57 UTC

#15 -- that is Josie0602 --  aka Tracy -- please email your address to me (milwaukeemommy at yahoo dot com) so I can get your paper to you!!


Thanks so much to all of you. My 4 year blogoversary is coming up quick & I have been collecting stuff for that for a while now -- so it will be a good one :)

Have a great week!

A Wee Bit O' Candy

**this post will stay at the top until Sunday ~~~ scroll down for newer posts**

Hi everyone & happy Monday! Did you all have a good Easter? I am STUFFED like a turkey (even though we had ham lol). So. Much. Food. The Easter Bunny spoiled my boys as usual......

Michael found his basket in the very first place he looked. I think he spied on the Bunny! I told him not to go through his basket until Matthew found his....hmmmmm......hands OFF the Peeps, Michael!

While Michael went to help Matthew find his, Elwood checked to see if the Bunny might have left anything for him in Michael's basket.......

Nothing but chocolate & Peeps in here. Darn bunny!

(actually I caught him licking a Peep, lol .....shhhhhhh)

After about 20 minutes of searching Matthew muttered "Well this is embarrassing" lol. He finally found it a few minutes later. 

Two happy customers :)

And if you've gotten this far ~~ thank you! Thank you for supporting me, & continuing to read my blog even though I don't post very often anymore. I PROMISE when I win the lottery & can quit my job, I will post every day. Until then, I squeeze in what I can. And as a "thank you" I am offering a small piece of candy  --- about the size of a Tootsie Roll, lol . This FABULOUS Authentique Gathering pad --- I just bought it last weekend but then I felt guilty because I'm really trying to use what I have. So ---- leave a comment on this post & I'll pick a name Sunday night. You can tell me about what you did for Easter, what you're doing on Spring Break, or just how much you love me :) -- this is open to anyone, anywhere & there are no "rules". You can follow me if you want, but you don't have to. You can post it on your blog, but you don't have to. You can call your best friend & tell her, but you don't have to. I will pick a name using Random.org next week Sunday at exactly 8:34 PM CST.  

Thanks so much for visiting ~~ I will see you in a few days with my Sundays with Crissy card! 

Blog candy reminder

Just a quick reminder about the pad of paper I'm giving away -- all you have to do is comment on THIS POST to be entered into the random drawing -- not many comments so far -- I guess no one wants a FREE pad of AUTHENTIQUE paper! 

Sundays with Crissy - color combo

Hi everyone! Friday the 13th -- eeeek --- I'm pretty sure I shouldn't risk going to work today. It would be much safer to hang out at home :)

So today is my day to post over at Sundays with Crissy. The theme this month is Favorite Color Combo. You've GOT to be kidding! I can only pick one?? Well I'll tell you what I did -- seriously, I listed 5 different combos --- & did "eeny meeny miney mo" LOL. I asked my boys to pick one of the 5 combos & they just rolled their eyes, so I had to do it! And pink & green won! Not just any green though -- it MUST be some shade of olive green :)

Is this not the cutest lil dragon you have ever seen?? This is Baby Dragon & I've used this cutie quite a few times, it makes a very unique, very CUTE baby card! But I have to tell you what I did --- or didn't do, as is the case. I had the cutest eensy weensy pink flower -- I mean this flower is TINY, & I added an even teenier rhinestone in the middle. I set it right by my image so I wouldn't forget to put it on her head. And I JUST NOW realized as I'm uploading my pictures, that after spending so much time fussing with my card I FORGOT to add the flower. I am so sad, that flower MADE the whole card! But it is late & this post is due in just a few hours so I must get over it & move on. I will HAVE to remember to add it before I list the card for sale though **sniffle**

Ok so if that's the worst thing that happened to me today, I've had a pretty good day, right? LOL Anyway, I decided to use a bunch of scraps for this card so I picked a few different Basic Grey pads & found some lonely strips, put them all together & what do you know, they made a pretty good background! 

I kept the rest pretty simple -- since the TEENY FLOWER was supposed to MAKE the whole card, sigh. ok, get over it, Michelle!

I did sparkle up her nuk -- & see her little pink nails? LOL --- well you know I DO have boys, I gotta spruce up my girlie images :)

Be sure to check out the rest of the gang's projects at Sundays with Crissy & heck, post a card while you're there!  

I am also entering this card into the following challenges:

Bunny Zoe's Crafts -- Ribbon/Twine

Make It Monday -- Always Anything Goes

Tomorrow is the last day of my kids Spring Break, so I'm leaving work a bit early & we're heading to Kenosha to visit the Jelly Belly Store! It's not the actual factory, but we do get a tour of the warehouse & some fun samples! I've never been there so I'm really looking forward to it. Of course, I'll be posting pics :)

**don't forget to comment on THIS POST for a chance at some paper I bought for myself, but decided I really didn't need, so I'm giving away**

+++EDIT +++

OK ---- you knew I was going to do it --- I was NOT going to sleep until I got a photo of Baby with her flower, lol --- see, isn't this SO much cuter? 

Ahhhhhh now I can sleep......

A slice of apple heaven

Hello everyone! I told you I would share the recipe for the yummy dessert I made for Easter so here it is!! 

I've always shied away from any apple dessert because the thought of PEELING a ton of apples just gave me the shivers. But....I found this FANTASTIC peeler on Amazon ..... Best. Invention. EVER!! 

It only peels, it doesn't core or slice, & I am good with that. I don't mind the cutting part at all. If you'd like one for your very own, click HERE. 

It's extra cool because it's clear so the kids might like helping you peel all those apples :)

I peeled 14 apples in less than 5 minutes. It doesn't matter if they aren't perfectly round -- the blade moves with the apple. 

I love how in one fell swoop you get this.......(you can see Michael was MORE THAN THRILLED to help me get a picture of this, lol. He thinks I'm nuts)

So here is the recipe. It's not one of my usual easy peasy recipes -- you'll have to work a bit for this one. My grandma used to make it all the time but she's not able to anymore. Everyone else who's made it, has made it ONCE, lol. 

SLAB APPLE CAKE

3 c. flour

1/2 tsp. salt

3 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1 c. soft shortening

2 egg yolks

8 tbsp. water

Apple filling*

Powdered glaze**

Mix dry ingredients until well blended. Cut shortening into flour mixture. In separate bowl, mix egg yolks and water. Add to flour mixture. Mix well until dough forms a ball. Separate into two balls. Roll out 1 ball to cover jelly roll pan. Place on pan for bottom crust.

*APPLE FILLING:

14-16 med. tart apples

2 tbsp. flour

1 1/2 to 2 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

2 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. lemon juice

Cut, pare, quarter and core apples. Cut into uniform slices, arrange on bottom crust. Blend flour with sugar, sprinkle apples with flour and sugar mixture and cinnamon. Dot with butter and lemon juice. Roll out second dough for top crust and place over the fruit. Pinch edges together. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Cool and frost with powdered sugar glaze.

**POWDERED SUGAR GLAZE:

2 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. soft butter

4 tsp. warm water

Now let me share with you my little glitches & some tips:


First, you'll notice there is no pan size. I wanted to surprise my mom with this dessert, as it's her favorite & I'm sure she thought she'd never ever have it again, lol. So I didn't want to tell her I was making it -- meaning I couldn't ask her or my grandma any questions. So I used my largest jelly roll pan, which is I think 11x17. I remember my grandma saying something about always making extra dough because it was never quite enough. So -- using this pan, I made another 1/2 batch of dough. I'm guessing if I'd used a slightly smaller jelly roll pan, the amount of dough the recipe makes would be enough, but then I would use less apples. Even with a batch & half, I felt like I was really stretching the dough. 


For the top sheet of dough, you will not be able to just roll it out & set it on top. I pieced mine together with about 5 or 6 pieces. Which is ok, because openings on the top layer of crust is a must. It's like a pie -- steam needs to escape. 


Lastly, you MUST MUST MUST pinch the two layers of dough together. You can NOT randomly pinch here & there, you MUST pinch all the way around. Do you know what will happen otherwise? All the sugar & cinnamon will ooze out, making a huge, HARD WHEN IT COOLS, mess. Ask me how I know. Let's just say I had to figure out a way to get this very large sheet cake from one pan to another, for the sake of presentation. Nobody would have touched it if they'd seen what was oozing all around it. 

It turned out really well. I was nervous to try it but the minute that first bite  hit my mouth I remembered exactly what I love about this dessert. And yes, a nice size piece WAS missing when I brought it to my mom's for Easter. I had to taste-test it before letting anyone else eat it, lol.

I would love to know if you try this dessert. It looks like a cake but it tastes like a pie. It's delicious AND it freezes well. If you have any left to freeze :)

****  Click HERE to check out my blog candy post ****

Diaries

I thought I would share something I saw on Facebook --- I had seen it a while ago but it makes me laugh every time I read it :)





Yep, that's about right :)

I'm working on a couple of things right now -- ADD at its best. I've started my card for this month's Sundays with Crissy challenge (click on the link to go see what's been shared so far), & another card just because, & of course being Easter weekend we are getting ready for the Easter Bunny's visit -- we are going to my mom's tomorrow & I am making a dessert I haven't made before, but one my grandma used to make a LOT. It's my mom's very favorite in the whole world. I will share that recipe with you in the next few days. And it's so nice out today, which makes me want to get some stuff done outside. My kids are on Spring Break -- which makes me MISS being an at home mom. I am grateful I work part time, but it's still not the same. Ah well, I'm sure we'll squeeze in some fun :)  What are your plans for Spring Break??? 

You are my sunshine

Happy Monday! I know what you're thinking! "What the heck?? It hasn't even been a week since she last posted!" What can I say -- I had a burst of energy & a bit of free time! 

I really wanted to play along with the Sketch Saturday peeps this week & I've also been dying to ink up a Penny Black stamp. Any PB stamp would do, it had been way too long since I've visited my adorable critters! 

This cutie is called Kickin' --- ahhh that's what I'd like to be doing right now! And I'm pretty sure my lemonade (or is that a cherry limeade perhaps) would have a lil shot of somethin' in it :)  The sentiment is from Amuse - I just love their sentiments!

The image was stamped onto Cryogen Shimmery White paper & colored with Copics. I added a bit of clear glaze to his beverage for a bit of shine. The papers are Basic Grey Sultry -- remember that collection? I've really been digging into the paper archives lately! Use what you have, right? I also used SU's Pink Passion since it was pretty much the same exact pink, & for the first time ever -- Early Espresso! I just received my first Stampin Up order in about 2 years. I hadn't even heard of half the colors! I like Espresso -- a nice deep rich brown. Now that I've found it, they will surely retire it. 

I sponged the tips of the pink flowers with Pink Passion & spritzed them with Glimmer Mist for some shimmer -- I was hoping to capture that with my extraordinary photography, but I don't quite think I got it. Perhaps if you click on the picture? 

Besides Sketch Saturday, I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Penny Black Saturday  -- Sing-A-Long ("You Are My Sunshine" -- yes it's a song!)

The Pixie Cottage -- Cuddly Critters

Make It Monday -- Anything Goes

Hope you all have a super week! I'm about to watch ma MAN do his THANG on DWTS -- nice way to end a Monday :)