Sunday, December 2, 2012

Senior Pictures With Caitie Bug

I had So. Much. Fun. with Caitie a couple of weeks ago. Here are a few shots from our first outing for senior pictures. There are several "finishes" on the photos to give her variety. Regardless of what was done to the pics, she is a doll.




This is one of my favorite shots!



The day turned hot and steamy with a plague of mosquitoes. 
She looks as cool as an icicle.




Stunning


Stunning again!

And now for a few out takes. The next two are self photos Caitie took in the car. And yes, the camera was upside down.




Words cannot accommodate my thoughts and emotions toward this young woman. She is amazing through and through. She has a smile that is electrifying, a crippling sense of humor, and a heart for Jesus. Yeah, she's all that.



Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or PinterestAnd I'd love to hear from you, so drop me a note via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 

Sunday, November 25, 2012

Mama My Word


My mother has a cute expression that came from her mother. It's "Well Sister, my goodness." When she says it I answer with, "Well Mama, my word."

This is a "Well Mama, my word" moment.

Yesterday my sister Mary and Mama were looking at a photo of a statue on a phone. Being the tech savy guru she is, the Mama asked, "Can you turn it around, so I can see what the back of it looks like?"

Mary almost exploded from laughing, and Mama said, completely deadpanned, "I don't think that's very nice."

Oh how we love our mama! And don't you love her too?


Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or PinterestAnd I'd love to hear from you, so drop me a note via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 

Thursday, November 1, 2012

focused on Glory (playground dedication)

week 39



Yes I realize that the once a week foG project has fallen to once a month. Both Jennifer and I have had a few issues. Let's just leave it at that.  

Our church is going through a remodel, and that includes new playgrounds for the children. Last week the children's Sunday School classes went out to write their names and scripture verses on the new playground foundations. 

The church wanted to thank God for and dedicate the new site. What better way to teach a lesson on thankfulness to our children. It will all be covered by a rubber substance, but we know it's still there.

I have many pictures of the children, but didn't want to post any without permission from parents. At one point as a class was leaving, I turned around to see our Discipleship Pastor had "sneaked" in and was writing on the concrete. I called Garrick's name and snapped his picture as he was writing Matthew 19:14. 





Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, 
for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 


Be sure to check out Jennifer's BLOG to see her foG posts too!

Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or PinterestAnd I'd love to hear from you, so drop me a note via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 




Friday, October 26, 2012

Paper Scraps Make a Window Wrap (tutorial)

This is another peek into my office make-over. I decided to keep the teal walls and bring in black, white, grays, and pinks. A large part of my design involves the use of scrap paper, so it seemed to be the natural fit for a unique window treatment.


Here's the easy-schmeasy how-to...


My window is 38" wide, so I did the math and decided I needed 18 two inch strips of paper (That equals 36" with 2" to spare for space between each piece.) I picked eight pieces of scrap paper (four pinks and four black & whites), because I wanted to repeat my patterns.



Punch holes in the center of each end of the paper. Don't skip out on measuring here, even if you're good at eyeballing it. You want the holes to be in the same spot on each piece of paper. (SHORTCUT:  Measure and punch the holes on the first strip and use it as a template to mark the other pieces.)



This step isn't exactly mandatory, but you will be happy you took the time to do it. I'm talking about grommets. They give your project a finished look, and they add strength to the paper. Unfortunately for me I had the wrong kind of grommets. Each one required 12-15 "punches" to set and took four times as long, so I decided to skip the step I said not to skip. I didn't add the grommets to the top holes, but I'll go back and do it later.



I used binder rings as curtain rings. My original plan was to use clip rings, but they were $22 and the the binder rings were $4. Don't forget, this project is an effort to get the best look for the cheapest price. (By-the-way, this is what the top holes are supposed to look like with grommets. I totally cheated in this shot, because these are the bottom holes.)



My final touch was to add a two bead drop to the end of each strip of paper. I just raided my jewelry and craft supplies and used what I had on hand.




A simple tension rod is all it took to get it in place. I love the outcome. I even like the movement in the paper and the way it doesn't hang perfectly. What is perfect are the horizontal lines. The strips line up well and so do the beads. Now if I could just figure out how to rid myself of the mini blinds.

Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or Pinterest. And I'd love to hear from you, so drop me a note via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 



Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Oh, the Mama


Mom: "Hey, you know that Baby Doll Goo Goo?"

Me: "Huh? Oh wait, do you mean Honey Boo Boo?"
       
Mom: "Yeah, that's her."

We started laughing and never finished the conversation.

(Side note: I've never seen the Honey Boo Boo show.)

Monday, October 22, 2012

Office Makeover Sneak Peak


I've missed the blog world. I have so much catching up to do, and there are about a ba-dozen posts I want need to read.

Here is a tiny peek into the office fix-up. Keep in mind that I am doing everything on a budget. That means that I don't always get to do things the way I would like... for now. The lamp below is a great example.

I found an adorable glass and gunmetal lamp at a local Goodwill. The lampshade was purchased at the same store. Together the price was $5.00. That definitely works for me.

What didn't work was the lamp itself. I knew this before I paid the $2.00 for it. It's a touch lamp, and I knew I could remove the sensor and reconnect the wires. It doesn't have an on-off switch, so I have to unplug it to turn it off. That's cool because I plan on putting a low wattage bulb in and leaving it on like a night light. (Please no anti-green environment hate mail over that last part.)


I didn't have any twist-on wire connectors, so I wrapped my wires in electrical tape and secured them to the bottom of the base.

Another thing that didn't work was the color of the shade. (Too bad I didn't get a picture of that.) It was a purpley-goldish hue, and that didn't fit into my black/white/gray/pink color scheme. So what do you do when you want a cheap fix? You spray paint the shade.


Looks pretty good, huh? Unfortunately It didn't look so great 
when I plugged it in. 


EPIC FAIL! That did not work. Now I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that I stink at spray painting. That's not true. (Although it may be true about spraying fabric.) There's about 3/4 of a can on that shade. That lampshade sucked the paint right out of the can. I'm not even sure I had to press the nozzle. Besides the pitiful paint marks, it still glowed golden brown. 
That meant a new plan.



I decided to wrap the shade with this adorable striped ribbon. Once it was covered I was going to belt it with a baby pink ribbon around the middle to accent its slender waistline. Cute, right? Of course it's cute. Unfortunately I didn't have enough ribbon and it was going to cost about $8.00 for more striped ribbon. That cuts into my el-cheapo plans, so onto a new idea.


Plan C was to wrap the shade in black tulle. It isn't as cute as the ribbon, but it is a good compromise for now. 


And the finished product. My original inspiration was an Audrey Hepburn style lamp, and this still fits. I'm sure I'll leave it that way for a while. (But be on the lookout for the striped ribbon in the future.)


Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or Pinterest. And I'd love to hear from you via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 



Sunday, October 14, 2012

Forgive Me, I've Missed You


Puss in Boots from DreamWorks Animation's Shrek


It has been too long since I've been on the blog.
I've been a bit neglectful due to illness and a new job.

Please do forgive me for being away,
And thanks to those who stopped by to play.

It won’t be long before I return,
With new ideas my brain doth churn.

It will be much fun to share with you,
A few fun things to create anew.

Some you may have seen but have not tried,
And maybe a few that will be a surprise.

As soon as I finish my office re-do,
I promise to log on and get back to you.

But don’t get your hopes up too high,
These are simple ideas that are easy to try.

I love you guys for your loyal support.
I promise to make my absence quite short.

Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or Pinterest. And I'd love to hear from you via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

focused on Glory (painting with clouds)

Week 38


Last night's sky. 


This morning's sky.

Thank you for the beauty Lord.



Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or Pinterest. And I'd love to hear from you via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 

Saturday, September 29, 2012

focused on Glory (Investing in Youth)

Last month I learned about a YMCA program that provides free bikes and helmets to youth. As it turns out, the program also welcomes adults.

WOO HOO!

The program takes place over three Saturday mornings. The first week we picked out our donated, refurbished bikes. We spent our time cleaning and making minor repairs to our bicycles. Any major repairs were completed by volunteers over the following week. Week two was for safety. We went over road rules and practiced riding through intersections.

I attended the class with my friend Brenda. She invited another friend named Tonya. We were the only three adults in the program without a child. The rest of the class was made up of a group of kids from Children's International. And may I tell you how much I enjoyed those kids! What a fun group with which to spend a few Saturdays.

Today was the last Saturday. We went for a short ride past the Clinton Presidential Library and onto the new pedestrian bridge. As we rode past the library we encountered a large art festival. High school art clubs from around the state were gathered, and they were drawing amazing, chalk images on the sidewalks. It was a visual delight.

We rode back to the warehouse and said our goodbyes. I am going to miss seeing "our" kids next Saturday. Then Brenda and I took our bikes to her house for storage. (I CANNOT believe I forgot to take a picture of my bicycle!) I got an amazing cruiser (circa early 80's) with a sweet wire basket on the front. It is chocolate brown, but I am going to paint it baby blue. I will post before and after photos.

Here are a few of the photos I snapped with my phone today. The old saying is that the best camera is the one you have with you, so I hope you don't mind the picture quality.

Everyone was given a helmet. All the helmets had a shape similar to what you see professional cyclists wear. All of the helmets but mine. None of the "tear drop" helmets would fit on my enormous melon, so I got stuck with the white combat variety. (I'm blaming the thick french braids I was rocking on helmet fitting day.) I looked like I was going to be shot out of a cannon.



I decided to embellish my helmet. I had plans for a more creative design, but being sick for the last two weeks left me with little motivation. The circles still look better than leaving it plain. Note the silver, glittered nickname added to the front. Fun, fun!


Brenda and me over the Arkansas river.


Our motley crew of bikers. I will miss those personalities.


Beautiful chalk art in progress.


Doesn't this make you smile?


I really liked this flaming bird.


This is Malcolm. He is one of the program volunteers. He makes sure the bikes are in good working order for each participant. He is such a delightful character. You will smile if you are in his presence.


I can't express how much fun it was to participate in this program. Not only did I get a free bike and helmet, but I got to spend time with amazing people. The Children's International sponsor said she was happy that we (the grown up girls) were in the class with her kids. She told me that she thought we were good influences and short-term mentors for the children. I was humbled by that remark. It was an honor to help with her group.

One last mention for the YMCA leaders who headed up the program. We were blessed to have God loving folks who were interested in investing in children of the metro community. They were the true role models. They showed God's love and generosity with such enthusiasm. The whole experience was a blessing.



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Tuesday, September 25, 2012

New (Blue) Adventures

I started a new position as the Children's Ministry Assistant at my church. I can tell that it is going to be an adventure. To say that this job wasn't on my radar is quite the understatement. However God knew I would land here, and He put everything in motion to make it come to fruition.

Here are a few pictures of my new office taken with my phone. I was told that I was stuck with the colors, but that's okay. I can work with that shade of blue (and the purple too).

Chalkboard paint as you walk in. That has all kinds of  fun potential. 


The door "leads" to a dead-end alley between two of the church buildings. I think the key to the deadbolt  has been lost for a long time. 


The copier is a new addition to my office. It is extremely handy and horrifically ugly. I must find a way to camouflage it.


The rocker is also new. The previous rocking chair was much larger. 


I'm not sure what I'm going to do to soften the eyesore of this wall, but I hope to come up with something. The door on that wall leads to the office next door.


Finally, the view from my desk. There is much work to be done.
Stay tuned in the weeks to come to see the office make-over. I can't wait! Now to come up with a plan or two.

Thank you for visiting creative confetti!  Please take a moment to "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook and/or follow me on Twitter or Pinterest. And I'd love to hear from you via the comment section or the email option on my profile page! 

Friday, September 21, 2012

Diane's Good Cornbread



(Guest post by Jennifer Harris at Ponderings of an Elect Exile.)

I've been on a massive baking spree lately.  I think that yesterday was my 20th batch of chocolate chip cookies in less than 5 weeks, not to mention a whole host of other warm, yummy goodness during that time. I'm not typically such a baking fiend, but we were recently surprised with a new oven (and two new mixers!) after almost two years without an oven, so we've gone a bit baking crazy around here. :) 


When we found out we were getting a new oven, the kids (and my husband) began making a list of what they wanted to bake first.  Other than the aforementioned chocolate chip cookies, the list included banana bread, muffins, brownies, Dad's homemade pizza, baked potatoes, frozen pizza, lasagna, and biscuits (for biscuits and gravy).  Some of those things we'd figured out other ways to cook...in the microwave, crockpot, or toaster oven...but in pretty much every instance, they just weren't quite as good.  Other things...like Dad's pizza...we'd just had to give up on entirely.


While I was excited about all the things on their list, the thing I was most excited about was cornbread.  I'm a southern girl.  I love my cornbread.  Cooked in bacon grease, preferably in an iron skillet (although I made some seriously yummy cornbread in a glass pie plate for years when I didn't have cast iron), and smothered in butter.  Yum. 


When Tauna asked me a while back to guest post on her blog a while back, I said, "Sure!"  Then I asked what she'd like me to post about.  "How about a craft or recipe post?" was her reply.  


Now...I love crafting, and I've taught scrapbooking, paper arts, and other craft classes off and on for years.  But I haven't posted anything remotely crafty on my blog in...well, in a very long while.  As much as I would like to say otherwise, this hasn't been a very crafty season of life for me.  So the thought of a craft post at this point made me shudder a bit. :)  (Especially when Tauna's been doing such fantabulous crafty tutorials lately! ;-))


So...okay, a recipe.  The only problem there is...I have very few "original" recipes, and those I have aren't really "recipes"; they are more like "how-to-make-this narratives" (case in point: this post on Saloon Beef and Billy's Ridiculously Easy Crock Pot Mac-and-Cheese).  


Then I thought...aha!  I have been wanting to start a series on my blog of "vintage recipes"...recipes from family and friends along with the stories behind them.  I could share my grandmother's lemon chess pie recipe, which is one of my favorite desserts in the whole world, and second only to cornbread on my personal list of "what to bake next".  


I could breathe easy...I had the perfect plan.  Perfect, that is, until I discovered that Granny Kitty's recipe box was nowhere to be found.  ACKK.  I have turned the house upside down looking for it, and I have the other recipe box that has always, since I was first married, been right next to it...but no avocado green metal index card file decorated many years ago by my grandmother with orange and yellow Contac paper flowers.  :-(


So...on to plan C. D? Z?  I'd lost count, and I was beginning to fret a bit.  


And then a friend said, "What about that 'Good Cornbread' recipe?"  


I have such brilliant friends. :)


I actually blogged on the "Good Cornbread" recipe a few years back, but I had been thinking recently that I needed to do an updated post.  Finally, "Plan Final" for the guest post. :)


A little background on this recipe.  My Granny Marks made the world's best cornbread (along with the world's best fried chicken, the world's best dressing, and the world's best scrambled eggs.)  The scrambled eggs I can pretty much duplicate, but the rest are, I'm afraid, lost forever.  I'm not sure what happened to her recipe box, but unlike Granny Kitty's, which I know is here, and which I'm sure I'll find as soon as the lightbulb goes off about the "safe place" I put it :), I never had Granny Marks's, so there's little hope of ever finding it. 


Many years ago, though, a friend of my mom's gave her a recipe for "Good Cornbread".  I still have the original recipe card, in our friend's beautiful handwriting, with her personal notes on the recipe.  I really wanted to take a picture of the recipe card for this post...but, alas, it is in that same missing green recipe box. :-(  Fortunately, though, after temporarily losing track of it a few years ago, I got the recipe from our friend again via Facebook and posted it on my blog so we wouldn't lose it ever again. :)  And now it's going to be on Tauna's blog for double-backup!


The name of Diane's recipe is a bit deceptive.  It should be called "super-duper-good cornbread"  or "amazingly wonderful cornbread" or something else with lots of superlatives.  It's the best cornbread I've ever had next to my grandmother's (well, and my dad's jalapeno cornbread, but that's a totally different ball of wax. :))


Start out with an 8-inch pan.  For years, I made this cornbread in an 8-inch glass pie plate.  It turned out perfectly every time.  Now that I have cast iron again, I've been making it in my 9-inch cast iron skillet, because that's the smallest I have.  It works; the cornbread just isn't as deep, and you have to watch your cooking time a bit more closely.  One of these days I'm going to figure out how to convert the recipe to use my 10 inch skillet and make the deeper cornbread.  

I love my cast iron skillets.  They were gifted to me by a couple of friends, so they have a sentimental attachment for me...plus, they remind me of my grandmother. :) They came to me with that old, worn, almost silky seasoned surface that makes cooking in them a delight. Not sure why this one looks almost rusty in the photos...weird lighting in my kitchen, I guess.


Next, you need some bacon grease.  Because I don't want to have to cook bacon every time I bake cornbread, I keep bacon grease in this little vintage jar in the fridge.  Isn't it cute?  My friend Jodie found these several years ago after we'd had a discussion about storing bacon grease.   (And no, there's no bacon grease there...I took this photo back when she first gave me the jar. :))

PSA re. using glass to store bacon grease:  Always be sure to let your bacon grease cool a bit before transferring to the jar.  Thanks to my friend Jerri Sue for sharing this warning when I first posted about my jar...she learned this the hard way when she ended up in the ER getting stitches because her jar exploded. :-( 

Now...back to the bacon grease.   Add a "hunk" to your skillet, put the skillet in the oven, turn the oven on to 450, and heat till grease is smoking.  (I know...some of you are asking how much a "hunk" is.  You may have to experiment a bit to decide what works best for you.  I'm guessing my "hunk" is about 3 T.? More or less. ;-)  You don't want to skimp here, trust me.) 



While waiting for bacon grease to melt/smoke, begin gathering and mixing other ingredients.  The original recipe says to sift the dry ingredients together.  Diane's notes said she never sifts, and neither do I. :)  Toss a cup of cornmeal, 1/2 tsp. of salt, 1/2 tsp. of baking soda, and 1 tbsp. sugar together in a medium-large bowl.  


In another bowl, beat one egg and mix with one cup buttermilk.  Add to dry ingredients just before putting in oven, or mixture will rise in the bowl.  


When grease is smoking, pour cornbread batter in skillet.  Bacon grease will come up over the edges of the batter and look a bit funky.  This is good.  It makes that delectable crispy-crunchy-yummy crust that other cornbreads envy. :)



Bake for 20 minutes at 450.  (Watch closely if you are using a larger skillet...it will bake faster because it's not as thick.)  




Grab a piece for yourself quick before your family inhales the rest. :)   If you are lucky enough to have leftovers, they are great warmed with butter and a bit of maple syrup or honey for breakfast.  Yummm. 




Diane's "Good Cornbread"

1 c. cornmeal
1/2 t. soda
1/2 t. salt
1 T. sugar
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk

Sift dry ingredients together. (She doesn't, and neither do I :)). Beat one egg and mix with buttermilk. Add to dry
ingredients just before putting in oven, as they will rise in the bowl if prepared too far in
advance.  Add a hunk of bacon grease to the pan, place in oven and heat oven to 450.  Keep pan in oven until grease is smoking. Add batter and bake about 20 minutes. Makes an 8 inch round skillet of cornbread.


Huge thanks to Tauna for letting me guest post here at creative confetti!  Tauna has been one of my dearest bffs for over half a lifetime.  I remember being so excited when she first started her blog...from her Haiti Journals to her photo tours of downtown Nashville to her crafty tutorials to her pics of her beautiful family...and everything in between...creative confetti is one of my very favorite blogs ever. :)   


I'm thrilled to be posting here today, and would love to "meet" you, her readers, in the comments.   Tell me about your favorite family recipe, or the food you most craved but couldn't for whatever reason have at some point in your life.  I'd love to hear all about it! 


 
 
Jennifer Harris 

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