Your Amateur Photographer

I take a lot of pictures.  Pretty much because I have three little children that I just adore.  So naturally, I think I have to have a picture of them with their cute hat on.  When they have cake smeared on their face.  When they're sitting on the potty chair.  When they're having a bath in the sink.  When they're smiling.  When they're crying.  When they use diaper rash cream for hair gel.  But I was surprised when a girl asked me if I would take her senior pictures for her.  I mean, I've never attempted such a thing, nor do I have the equipment that goes along with such endeavors.  But we ran around yesterday afternoon in the freezing cold and wind with my little digital Canon Powershot (I didn't even know that's what it was, I had to look on my camera!) and after I did a little finagling with color and such in Photosuite, here is a sampling of the results.

Hey, Hubby, maybe a new business?  JUST KIDDING!!!  DON'T PUNCH ME!! 

Wood scraps

See these?  They are scraps.  Leftovers from some beams that are holding up our pergola.  They were on their way to the burn pile when my mom and I halted the junk load and salvaged them.  They might make good.... signs?  Something? Stash 'em in the barn.  We just might want them someday.  And I did.  So here's what some of them have turned in to. 

Ceiling Appeal

Give your ceiling the illusion of being tiered with paint and chair rail! Please ignore my ginormous plant in the corner.  It's hibernating over there for the winter until it can resume it's spot outside on the patio. (Click HERE to see the pictured dining set before and after which was found on the side of the road!)

Who says your ceiling has to be white and boring?  Well okay, so most of mine are.  Mostly because I'm not brave enough to take that step of painting on the ceiling - it seems so... permanent, a step over the edge, something your grandma's generation would have never done (and that alone should make you tremble)...  But about a year ago, my dining room got a complete makeover and today I'm going to share my favorite part of that makeover - the ceiling! Maybe someday I'll get super brave and do something to some of the other extremely boring ceilings in my house.  Until then, here's one idea for your ceiling.  Please share a picture with me if you have any fun ceiling ideas!

I look like WHO?!!!!!

We have this very large book that is a compilation of Disney stories.  My sweet little Tobin always used to say things like "That looks like you, Mommy" when he'd see a picture of one of the blond Disney princesses.  (Hey, I know I don't look like that, but blond and blond, ya know....)  He always got my "awww, you're so sweet" reaction regardless if I really look like Sleeping Beauty or not.  So not long ago, my 2 year old, Ty, is looking through this large book (a very rare incident indeed -Ty sitting still with a book?!) and I hear him repeating over and over (very emphatically, I might add) "That's Mommy!!  That's Mommy!!"  He's so excited about it, I decide I'd better go respond.  I start to give my "awwww" response, when I see what I think might be a snicker on my sweet hubby's face.  I look down at who my little boy is perceiving to be my twin and it's........ TARZAN!!!!!  Bubble is burst.   All I can figure out is, it's gotta be the muscles!!  Or the spear I threaten my kids with??  Er, just kidding....

Hoosier top before and after

Hooray for Hoosiers!  And Hooray for my friend Marie who buys random things as much as I do, and then decided she doesn't need them and passes them on to me!!  I believe this is a the top to a hoosier cabinet.  Oh if only I had the bottom half too!  But alas, I don't.  Nor do I have room for the whole shabang.  I was almost tempted to keep this green, it was such a charming, cheerful color!  But Marie had already started painting it and the green slightly clashed with the rest of my dining room, so to white it went. 

Oh how I love those oh-so-cool little sliding doors at the bottom which will hide more of my junk!  I wish I could find some glass for that door on the left to match.  I know, I know, I'm sure I could at Lowes or insert-name-of-your-favorite-materials store.  But I like things either free, or for the quarters jingling in my pocket.... :)  Haven't you caught on by now that I'm all about thrift?  THANKS, MARIE!  I LOVE IT!!!

Mom's sunflower painting

Of course, when we break out the paints, the boys have to paint too.  And of course, Ty dumps his paint on the floor.

90% off at hobby lobby.  It's been sitting in a storage trunk since I bought it 2 years ago.  So since it matches nothing in my house, My mom decides to give it a makeover.

It still matches nothing in my house.  haha.  But I think she did a pretty swell job!  Thanks, Mom!

afternoon walk = beer bottle arrangements

Before I begin, please note that I am not a consumer of beer!  Ugh.

The weather has been phenomenal here in western Michigan the last couple of days.  My mom and I took advantage of this warmth and sun and wrapped Tori up in her adorable little puppy jacket and strawberry hat and put her in the stroller.  I always put a plastic bag in the stroller for picking up pop cans.  Here in Michigan, the bottle refund is 10 cents!  Woo hoo!  But not only did Mom and I find a good amount of pop/beer cans/bottles on our walks the last couple of days (ice cream money, yo), but we found a whole crop of hedge apples!  How cool is that?  They sell for at least a buck a piece in the grocery store!  Also, some really neat "weeds" that we made some cool decor with using bottles that didn't have labels.  (No refund money for label-less bottles!)  We had so much stuff we ended up carrying the baby cuz it was easier to stash all our stuff in her stroller!  Check it out:

Some of the ditch discoveries!

One of the results of humbling ourselves and digging trash out of the leaves and picking dried weeds. :)

Artist in Training

I finished another canvas painting today.  I think I'm the most geeked about this one!  It's still not completely satisfactory for my mom's (my instructor's) liking, but I think she'd have me shading until two in the morning.  And I'm ready to wrestle with some little munchkins.  I have to do this while I'm still able to take them down, right?!  This will be for sale at my booth at the WESTERN craft show on Saturday!

Holla for a dolla - End Table! woot!

I got this for a dollar.  Wait a minute, there were two identical ones and I think I got them both for a dollar.  SCORE!

And they turned into this. :) Just pullin' out some old before and afters for you today since I'm sleepy and would rather go to bed than update you on what's all going on around here lately.  That and the fact that there's a dead mouse in my wall and I can't breath down downstairs any longer!

Canvas Paintings in the browns

A friend of mine has been slowly clearing her house of accumulated stuff she no longer wants.  I have been oh-so-happy to be on the receiving end of much of this "stuff"!!!  Oh how I love it when I get a phone call that starts out something like this, "Kammy, I was cleaning and I have some stuff you might be interested in....".  Anyways, the latest that I have inherited are some previously painted canvases.  You know  I'm into upcycling!  Oh yeah!  So here are the new paintings.  Lucky for me, my artist mother is here to give me lots of tips.  "Mom, check out my painting!!!!"  "Ohhhhh it's not done yet.  You need lots more shading on that flower... and the middle could use some lighter touches, and you forgot to dot your "i"!!"   I'm going like crazy to get stuff done for a HUMONGO craft show I will have a booth at next Saturday.  If you are in the Jackson County area, be sure to stop in - it will be well worth your time with around 90 craft vendors there!  Start your Christmas shopping!!!  It's at the Western High School on Dearing Road. 

The McDonald's Lesson for Naughty Kids

So I wasn't a very nice mom today.  I say this with a slightly evil grin.  My little baby had her seven month check up today.  Well, it was supposed to be 6 month, but we kind of lost track of time.  It tends to happen 'round here!  The kids did great, especially Tori who smiled through the whole doctor visit excluding about 10 seconds when she had to get those ouchy shots.  So I decided while we were in town we should stop at Wal Mart.  As we pull in the parking lot, I review with the boys our rules for being out in public.  Tobin recites them with no problem.  1. Stay with Mommy.  2.  No fighting.  3.  No being loud.  4.No hiding in the clothing racks.  Okay, good to go.  Let's just say rule number 2 got severely broken.  Like they took a machete to it, and then an ax and hacked it into a thousand pieces!  They both knew a good swat on the rear end was awaiting them when they got home.  It was lunch time and my stomach was really growling.  In my head I entertained the thought of the dollar menu at the McDonald's across the street.  No, those kids didn't deserve McDonald's today.  But I haven't been a bad girl!  That does it, this will be a good lesson for them.  I told them I was going to take them to Micky D's for a treat today, but they had been disobedient and wouldn't be able to eat there.  However, I was still going to.  Tobin looked shocked.  "Well what are WE gonna do?!"  "You'll have to watch me eat, I guess".  (Now before you think I'm using food deprivation as a discipline tactic, note that I gave them peanut butter and jelly when we got home.)  I wasn't about to haul my sleepy baby and the 2 boys into the restaurant so I went through the drive through.  The whole time, my 2 year old is crying because he wants McDonald's.  My four year old keeps reminding him "Ty, we were disobedient, and fighting over the cart and coupons, that's why we don't get to." I order my McChicken and a water while Ty keeps repeating "want some, want some".  I ask, "Ty, why is it that you don't get any?"  Tobin starts up with his well rehearsed answer, but I stop him and say I want to hear it from Ty.  But all Ty can get out is a voice cracking "because, because, because...."   He is quite heartbroken while I enjoy my McDonald's in front of them.  We'll see how they are during our next trip to Wal Mart!  Hmmmm.

Cheesy turkey baked burritos

Cheesy Turkey Baked Burritos

 3 1/2 cups cooked, chopped turkey

1/4 cup sour cream

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 packet taco seasoning

I had leftover turkey to use, but you can use chicken. 

stir all ingredients in a large bowl, then roll up mixture in tortillas.

I like to butter the tops of my tortillas, but you can skip these unnecessary calories!

sprinkle with cheddar cheese and cover with tinfoil.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  Serve on a silver platter. :)

Kam's Baby Kards

inside reads:

         Life will never be so precious,  Love will never be so real.

What a gift, What a blessing, What a miracle…

Congratulations on your new baby

Mailed off an order of handmade baby cards last week.  Baby cards are my el favorito to make.  I don't know if it's because new life is more exciting to celebrate than turning 30?  Yes, that's probably why.  I think I'd rather shoot myself in the foot than turn 30 in a few months.  I can hear my sister-in-law now.  "I'm another year older, and it just gets better and better!"  Wow, she sure knows how to make me feel guilty!  Life is wonderful and God has blessed me me above and beyond.  But I sure like my 20's!  Goodness,  I sure loved being 16, too!  Wasn't that the best age ever? I think I just may be in the minority on that one....  Back to the cards, maybe it's the fun little baby feet punch-out I have fun using.  At any rate, if you'd like to order cards at just $1.10 each plus $2.50 for shipping, shoot me an email at kamskards@gmail.com with the occasion (birthday, baby, get well, etc), quantity, and your address.

A few Kammy Kitchen Tips

STOP.  Don't throw that 'empty' jar of PB in the trash.  Put it in the microwave for a few seconds and all that yumminess stuck on the sides will melt down into an easy-to-pour little puddle.  Actually, you might be surprised at the amount of peanut butter clinging to the jar!  Can you tell we eat alot of peanut butter in our house?  That would be a 5 lb jar you're lookin' at.  We keep on hand 5 pounds of creamy, and five pounds of crunchy at all times.  Now my hubby would put this in the microwave and then pour it over his ice cream.  He eats even more ice cream than peanut butter.  How much?  You probably wouldn't believe it if I told you, so I won't.

Now I know this has been listed as one of my thrifty thoughts in a previous blog, but it's just such an awesome tip that I can't write kitchen tips without mentioning this one.  SHOWER CAPS! INSTEAD OF ANNOYING PLASTIC WRAP!  The dollar tree sells them - 8 caps for a dollar.  Oh they are wonderful.  Or, collect them when you stay at hotels.... :)

Broken blender?  Or just need a large liquid measuring cup?  My friend's blender was busted and I rescued this from the garbage.  A standard size jar lid fit on the bottom perfectly and now I have a large liquid measuring cup - perfect for when you want to make a double batch of chocolate chip oatmeal muffins.

Use the edge of stickers for labeling things to go in the freezer.  When I finish a page of stickers, or these address labels, I stick them in my kitchen drawer and when I brown up extra meat, or freeze leftovers, I have a quick label handy.  Who says it has to look pretty?  CHEEEEEEAP, I know!!!

Ever eat chinese?  Save those chopsticks for leveling off dry ingredients.

Goodwill storage bench B/A

Before

After.  The blue paint really does match the fabric, though it doesn't look like it so much, here.  Hey, would I lie to you?

The thing with redoing furniture is you always have lots of stuff to choose from if you get tired of what's in your house!  I found the bench in Goodwill for $15.  About 5 times more than I like to pay for furniture!  But I haven't come across very many of these, so I snatched it up.  The bottom of the drawer needed a little reinforcement, but otherwise it was in great shape.  I recovered the seat, painted it white and blue, and the boys used it for a reading seat and toy storage.  Until one day the boys got a workbench and it was in the perfect spot....  so to Craigslist it went.  Made a nice little profit on it, too!  Always a plus!

Meet Monique

Many of my blog posts begin "I was at a garage sale...."  This one will be no exception.  I was at a garage sale when I saw her.  Actually my brother's next door neighbor's garage sale to be exact. He had  a headless, top half of a female mannequin.  Of course, I had to buy it. I mean, you know there's going to be a day when you say to yourself "man, I sure wish I had a mannequin right now." She has been hiding out in my closet for about 2 years.  She also likes to spook everyone out who looks in my closet.  I figure they probably shouldn't be looking in my closet anyway!  The time has come to get her dressed up.  Yes, she is now hanging in my hallway upstairs, on the wall.  Monique looks quite classy hanging there, in my opinion.  I'm going through my clothes and trying to detach my emotions from each clothing item to see if I can sell the garments that are hanging in my closet simply because "I just might wear them someday...."  So since Monique's figure is much more flattering than mine, she gets the duty of modeling.  And she does a swell job, don't you think?  One of these days I'm sure my hubby will make me take her down from her place of prominence and put the mother/sons photo collage back on the wall.

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins

Oatmeal Muffins

- change this recipe easily to accompany what you have on hand! (*see below)

Mix together:
1 cup buttermilk (I use milk, buttermilk makes them fluffier though)
1/3 cup oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg

Add and stir until just moistened:
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup flour (white or whole wheat)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
chocolate chips - however many you want!  I sprinkle a few on top of each muffin, instead of mixing in the batter.

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.  Makes 12 muffins.

*SUBSTITUTIONS:  Can lessen the oil and use applesauce or yogurt.  Sprinkle raisins, nuts, or chocolate chips on top.  Also, if I have ground flaxseed, I usually add a heaping spoonful of that to the batter, or sprinkle it on top with my chocolate chips. Another add in - peanut butter.  Have not tried this one, but sounds good.  If you try it, let me know how it turns out!

I am a choco-holic in every sense of the word.  Breakfast, lunch, supper, and in between.  So my muffins have to have chocolate chips!! :) I made a double batch this morning.  I Throw most of them in the freezer, then when I'm hungry, I pull one out, nuke it, and I got myself a fairly healthy snack!