First Harvest From the Garden

Yesterday was our first real harvest from the garden. We had been getting a little bit of lettuce, spinach and peas before, but yesterday was the first cucumbers, squash, peppers and tomatoes.

Obviously, the produce is what we do all of the hard work for and it is so satisfying to search through the leaves and find that perfect little cucumber that will turn into that perfect little pickle.  

It makes all that time spent watering, weeding, and planting worth it.

So far the garden is producing very well. My plans for the produce this summer are to make a lot of jalapeno pickles, salsa, spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes and canned green beans.

Oh yeah, and those grape tomatoes did not survive the day yesterday. I missed the taste of garden fresh tomatoes!!

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a great day!!

What I Have Been Doing

So you may have noticed that I have taken a short break from blogging.  It was not intentional, but I needed to focus my energy on other areas of my life.

Some things have changed in my life. The biggest change is that I have quit my job as a WIC Dietitian. I am not working right now and it is a different experience for me.  I have put in a few resumes and I am really excited about the opportunity to do something new in my career.

But even though I have not been working at a job, I have been very busy.

Swimming at the lake. Cross Stitching. Working in the garden. Running with my dogs. Cooking and baking. Keeping the house clean. Life is good!

I have a few recipes and projects I am looking forward to sharing soon and I hope that you all will enjoy them!!

Thanks so much for stopping by!!

Summer Wreath with Burlap

The springtime is a perfect time for me to make a new wreath. I made one for the summer that matches my patio furniture cushions. I really love the way it turned out and most of the fabric was leftover from making the cushions!!

Want to make a similar wreath? Here is what you will need.

-Wreath form- mine was 12"

-3" Fabric Strips to cover main part of wreath

-3" fabric strips of burlap

-Straight Pins

-Flowers for embellishment

-Hot Glue Gun

-Ribbon

Start wrapping your main fabric around the form, using straight pins to hold into place.

Wrap until about 3/4 of the wreath is covered. Then wrap about 1/4 of wreath with burlap.

Using hot glue gun attach the embellishments. I used a small piece of felt to glue the flowers to.

Cut ribbon to length, tie bow, and hang!

Enjoy!!

I will be linking to some of these parties!

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

Scout's Sweet Sundays

Happy Mother's Day everyone!! I especially want to say Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful mother and mother-in-law. You are both so inspirational!

And now onto Scout's Sweet Sundays! Here are some recent projects I have found that I just love!

If you want to pin any of these please follow the links and pin from the original page! Thanks!!

Strawberry Fields Dress by Polkadots on Parade

Anyone who knows me well knows I LOVE strawberries! This dress is too cute and I love the french seams she used on the skirt!

Children's Adirondack Chair from The NY Melrose Family
This is such a fun chair for the little ones! Love the  color!

Scrapbook Paper Wall Art by White Lights On Wednesday
This is a really fun way to use scrapbook paper and looks like a pretty simple craft! So cute!

Front Porch Reveal from Design, Dining, and Diapers
These crates are such a great idea for porch decor. I am going to need to find some and add them to my porch!

Easter Dress by Bear Rabbit Bear

Little girls in white dresses always seem so angelic. Check out the modified pattern that Melanie used to create this beautiful Easter Dress!

Grab a button and show it off!

<a href="http://www.xstitchandcrafts.blogspot.com" title="Scout's Stitches Featured Button by Scout's Stitches, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7039/6810664332_75a71ce46e_m.jpg" width="140" height="140" alt="Scout's Stitches Featured Button"></a>

Have a great day everyone!!

Pad Thai for Beginners- New Food Friday

I have always been a big fan of pad thai- I love all the noodley goodness, the sauce, the sprouts and the sriracha! But buying pad thai all the time can get pretty expensive. Several months ago I found this "recipe" that is more like an in detail explanation of how to make authentic Pad Thai.

It took me almost 2 months to procure the ingredients and build up the courage to try it myself.

I followed the procedure close to what Chez Pim recommended, but there are a lot of options of ingredients listed.

What I used with mine was carrots, onions, garlic, shrimp, sprouts, rice noodles, one egg and the sauce as recommended by the recipe. 

It turned out delicious and I have made it a couple times since then!

So I dare you- give it a try! You will be glad you did!!

Thanks for stopping by!

I will be linking with some of these parties!