Church Chairs

I have a huge foyer and nothing ever fills up the space. For a few years I have been looking for an antique church pew. I have come across a few but nothing ever jumped out at me or they were way out of my price range.  A few months back while driving through town I saw these church chairs at a yard sale.  I had to stop.  I bought these solid oak chairs for $60. Even though they were covered in a red 70's corduroy I had to have them.



Well after alot of thought I knew that I wanted the chairs black but still wanted to see the oak grain. I chose a ebony stain. Not knowing if these had be stained with oil or water based we had to sand them down to the grain, that was NOT fun but ended up being the best idea.  At first I wanted these chairs to have a classic look so I was just looking for fabrics that were formal. I started with paisleys and tulles but nothing worked.  While at my fourth fabric store I started to leave frustrated and deflated when I came across this super fun and funky fabric.  I knew that I had to have this on my chairs.  So the end result ended up being the opposite that I had started with.

Lemon Icebox Pie

This has got to be one of the easiest pies to make for your friends and family for Spring and Summer.  Can't go wrong with lemon.  This pie has one 5 ingredients and no baking.  A few years ago I won a dessert contest and was on a local morning show to showcase this pie and how simple it really is.

http://www.11alive.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=82703858001#/Cooking+Contest+Winner/82703858001

 

 

 

Lemon Icebox Pie

 

1 package softened cream cheese

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (4 or 5 lemons)

1 tsp zest

pre-made pie crust (graham cracker)

 

 

 

 

Mix softened cream cheese until smooth, add can of sweetened mild, lemon juice and mix well.  Stir in zest and pour all ingredients into crust. Refrigerate a few hours.  Top with whipped cream and enjoy.

 

Because of the lemon this recipe is perfect for warmer weather.

 



 

 

 



GeoCaching........Great outing for family

We have always been a family who spends lots of time together. We enjoy the outdoors and finding many adventures.  I had heard about Geocaching (treasure hunting).  Caches are hidden throughtout the world and the only clues are coordinances that have been listed by others.  www.Geocaching.com is a wonderful site that lists coordinates for hidden caches throughout the world. 
Georgia offers their own Geo-Challenge.  The link for more info is: www.geocaching.com/adventures/geotours/georgiastateparks to get GPS coordinates for the cache locations by park.

This includes 43 state parks and historical sites.  This is the perfect way for my family to explore the state.  After you fill in the challenge grid you can receive coins.

 Please remember to be careful this is a picture similar to a snake that we almost stepped on.  Be very careful you are in nature.

Burlap

I am a bargain queen and I love to search the clearance bins in my local craft stores. When I came across 100' of 8" burlap for $1 I was super excited.  Now what shall I do with it?

I made a few medium sized wreaths with flowers from my craft hoarding bins.  I still had 8' of burlap left so.....

I decided to make two card holders.  I again used clearance flowers and mini clothes pins.

Creamy Chicken Burritos

 

 

 



 A few months ago I tried a dish called Crema Chicken Burritos from our local Mexican Restaurant.  Wow, it was so good I knew that I had to try it at home. It took one try and we now have a staple at our house.

1 lb chicken (cut into small strips)

 

1/2 tbl Adobe seasoning

 

package flour tortillas (burrito size)

 

small white onion

 

1 tbl butter

 

1 large container white queso dip

 

3 tbl cilantro (chopped)

 

1 tbl oil

 

 

Cut chicken into bite size pieces and add Adobe seasoning.  Set in plastic bag and refrigerate overnight.  When ready to cook; heat oil in pan until hot; pat chicken dry and add to hot pan.  Cook until sides are brown.

 



 

Remove chicken. DO NOT CLEAN PAN. Turn heat down to med and add butter and sliced onion. When onion is transparent add chicken back to pan. Cook on low for 5 minutes. Fill burrito with chicken and roll.  Add burritos to baking dish then pour entire contents of queso onto the burritos. Bake at 350* for about 10 minutes.  Serve with cilantro sprinkled on top.




Baby Decorative Canvas

I love Pinterest for so many reasons and one of those reasons is that it is a great place to stalk find things that your friends are interested in.  I have a friend who is expecting a little girl soon and I have had the hardest time finding something special for her.  Well the other day I had noticed that she had posted a a canvas quote on Pinterest. 

Wow, this might be something that she would enjoy, and I know her colors so off I went to start gathering my materials.

I used a 14x11 canvas so she could hang it in a smaller area.  I painted the canvas a light beige and decided to do pink lettering and accents.  Vinyl lettering does not stick to canvas very well so I used my vinyl cutter to cut the quote, I weeded out just the letters and used it as a stencil. If you choose to use your vinyl as a stencil on canvas DO NOT paint using strokes.  Paint gets under the vinyl this way.  To keep your paint from bleeding just dab the paint.

After everything was dry I slowly removed the vinyl.  I then hot glued pink ribbon on back for a tie hanger and on the sides of the canvas to give it a finished look.

Coffee cans...Continued

Coffee Cans turned into Classroom Box Top Containers

This is a continuation of my other post "Coffee Cans...What to do"?  Since I had a few more cans staring at me I decided to make Box Top holders for the boys' classrooms.  My school gives an ice cream party each quarter to the class who collects the most Box Tops.  Most teachers just keep them in a bag or envelope. I thought that they might appreciate something new, more sturdy, and a lot prettier.  Super easy, super cheap, and very much appreciated.