Favorite Friday

I am on an official smoothie kick over here and they are my Friday Favorite!! My sister in law and niece have been making them religiously for years...I got Cindylou a little smoothie recipe book for her Easter basket a few years ago because since she didn't like to cook or bake, I thought maybe she could make smoothies in the kitchen?? But they didn't catch on...Until this past week. I have been making protein shakes on a regular basis....just mixing my protein dust with skim milk or unsweetened almond milk...but I decided to ramp it up a bit.

I've been putting a banana, a few berries, my FAVORITE Dannon vanilla greek yougurt and a splash or two of orange juice in the blender, and topping it off with a scoop of protein dust.




YuUUUUUUUUUUUMMMM! They really fill you up.....I'm sure there are a few more calories in there that I would rather not know about, but I'm so loving them. Do you have a smoothie recipe you can share???

Granny Squares

You may remember I had a dear friend over last fall to give me and my friend Jennifer Juniper our very own crochet lesson. Click HERE to check it out....Well, I hadn't kept up with my practicing, and I realized my intention of starting a one-a-day granny square blanket in January was not happening because I kinda forget how to make them :( I contacted Sondie and arranged a little refresher course. But since the Treatgirl can kinda get crazy and want to do everything NOW....I decided to teach myself again with a little how-to video on youTube!

So, this past Sunday while I was watching football, I was also watching the granny square video and started cranking them out. I know you probably can't fathom how happy this made me.....but it made me VERY happy! I've even timed myself and at this point it takes me exactly 30 minutes to make one square. I know I'm still a little awkward at it....so, I'm hoping to improve my time over the next few weeks. Look at my progress in just a few days....




My thinking is that I have a whole bin of left over yarn from various projects over the years, and I will just make all different random granny squares with it. Obviously some of it is different weight and texture.....but I should have plenty to make a WHOLE LOTTA squares.



So....right now I have 12 done, and it's the 25th of January. I'm gonna crank a bunch more out until I am caught up with the calendar...follow me??? Then try REALLY hard to keep up with my one square a day project. As I've been crocheting away over here I had the wild idea that I will just stash them away.....and as my nieces and nephews get engaged over the next several years I will piece one together for each of their bridal showers....what do you think??

A Snowy Morning.....

They had been predicting a big storm all afternoon on Friday....I kept looking out my windows all evening.....nothing. My 9th grader was so mad they even cancelled their ski club because they said the roads would be too bad....nothing.

But when I went to bed it started gently falling down....



It covered everything as we slept.



Making everything white and pretty.



Quiet and peaceful.



The Treatgirl needed a wonderful little snowfall. Stay cozy and warm :)

Favorite Friday

Happy Friday!!!!!! This week flew by.....my kiddos had Monday off from school, so I guess that was part of it...If you've been around here, you know every Friday I have my favorite pick of the week...and honestly, I'm surprised I've waited this long to feature Tom Selleck and one of my favorite shows....Blue Bloods! It's on Friday night at 10 p.m. on CBS. And I tune in every week to catch my favorite crush from my college days....Tom Selleck.

What a class act he is....a career spanning decades with a hunky mustache only he can pull off so well.



If you haven't seen the show, it is a New York City cop show where the whole family....grandfather, father, son's and daughter are all in law enforcement. They have Sunday dinner every week and solve a murder crime in between. I look forward to it every week.



Oh, and here he is in his red Ferrari...I tuned in every Thursday night to see my hunk...hoping his hawaiian shirt would be unbuttoned, or he'd be swimming in the surf. I haven't seen the re-runs lately....but I'm so happy I can see my hunk from college every week! Have a terrific weekend :)

Snowflakes

Happy Winter! Winter has finally made it to my neck of the woods...what a crazy season it's been??? Temps in the 50's and no snow. I truly wanted a white Christmas....but no such luck. But last week we finally had some real flakes. I love snowflakes....and I keep them around all winter...Here, let me show you...I found these big ones, hanging in my great room windows, at the Dollar Tree. I got enough to hang in all my back windows and sliding glass door in my kitchen.



This is a new treasure of mine...and SHOCKER! I got it at my Goodwill :) If you've been around here before, you know I loooooove my Goodwill. I actually got this last summer, out of season, for $3.99. Aren't the snowflakes just perfect? And the little feet on it make it seem so much more special.



Here's a better picture of it. I know when it's time to pack it away for the season I will be sad.



After I hung the snowflakes in my big windows, the window above my sink seemed lonely. I found these felt snowflakes with glitter on them at A.C. Moore craft store up in Buffalo when I was home for a quick weekend visit the first weekend in December.



Three pretty snowflakes in my vase of winter greens on the mantle.



And a favorite, sparkly snowflake on my snowman tree I leave up all winter.



A Sparkling Snow Yankee Candle in a silver snowflake candle holder gives a cozy glow.




A trio of little candles....



And look at the snowflake tree topper....



...it sets off my tree just nicely :)



And even snowflakes on the sliding glass doors in the family room downstairs. You see...the Treatgirl is still a Buffalo girl at heart and will always love the snow. Stay cozy!

Favorite Friday

Happy Friday!! Looks like we're FINALLY going to get some snow here.....the craziest winter EVER! Barely a dusting and it's mid-January. Anyhoo....on to my fav thing this week. Actually, these Hawaiian Sweet dinner rolls have been a favorite of mine forever....I can't stop at just one. So I very rarely buy them...but this week I made a big pot of wedding soup and didn't have much time to make dinner rolls from scratch, so when I was at the store I grabbed TWO packages of these favorite little buns of mine. WHAT was I thinking????? I guess it has been so long since I've had them I knew I needed a bunch :) They are just perfect....a hint of sweetness and SUPER soft! I ate a whole row with my bowl of soup yesterday for lunch. YUUUUUMMM....have you tried them? And do you love them too???

One Last Christmas Treat....

First of all, let me apologize for the crummy quality of this picture :( It is a super dreary day here! This darling little Santa it the very last thing I wanted to do during the holidays. Just a little treat for me....I picked this tiny little cross stitch kit up in those $1 bins at the checkout line in Michaels months ago...but I only started him the week of Christmas when I was finished with all of my holiday stuff for everyone else. I haven't done any cross stitch since my days as a flight attendant...so it's been a while. But I just couldn't resist this cute little Santa. He will certainly make me happy when I find him again next Christmas :)

My Sentiments Exactly!!!!!

Just saw this on Pinterest....I'm gonna print it out, frame it and keep it right next to Minnie....my pink KitchenAid mixer :) Happy cupcakes to you!

Baby Booties

These are just the cutest little booties EVER....and they whip up super faaaast....finished in just a few hours. I may do up another pair or two to just have on hand for that next little baby...I knit these for Cubby's teacher. We are having a surprise baby shower for her next week and I thought they would be the perfect little treat for a winter baby.

Here's the supplies you will need:

1 skein Bernat Softee Baby Yarn, white
Size 5 knitting needles, or size needed to obtain gauge

GAUGE:24 sts and 32 rows = 4" in stocking st.

Directions:

Cast on 33 sts. Work 10 rows in (K1.P1) ribbing.

Next row: (RS). (Eyelets). K1.*yo. K2tog. Rep from* to end of row.

Next row: Purl.

Divide for instep: Next row: K22. Turn. Leave rem sts unworked.

Next row: P11. Turn. Leave rem sts unworked.

Work 12 rows even across center 11 sts for instep. Break yarn.

With RS facing, rejoin yarn to last st on right-handed needle. Pick up and knit 7 sts down right side of instep.

K11 across instep. Pick up and knit 7 sts down left side of instep. K11 from left-hand needle. 47 sts.

Knit 11 rows (garter stitch)

Shape heel and toe:

Row 1: (RS). K2. K2tog. Knit to center. 5 sts. K2tog. K1. K2tog. Knit to last 4 sts. K2tog. K2.

Row 2: Knit. Rep last 2 rows once more, then Row 1 once. 35 sts rem.

Cast off loosely knitwise(WS)

Finishing: Sew back and sole seam. Using 3 strands of yarn, make a braided length of cord and thread through the eyelet row, having ends meet at center.

Favorite Friday

Happy New Year!! I can't believe the holidays are here and gone....They were wonderful, but I was truly wishing for a bit of snow. But that wasn't the case here. We only just got our first bit this past week. It wasn't a lot...but enough to make it look more like winter....and enough for me to wear my new mittens. These are my favorite thing this week....I got them over Thanksgiving when we were away in Deep Creek, Maryland. You may know the Treatgirl has probably knit well over a hundred pair of mittens in her lifetime...why buy these? Well,they are by Woolrich and have a cozy polar fleece lining...and I just love the snowflake motif on them too....that's why :) It just seems so crazy to not have had to wear mittens until JANUARY this year??! I'm sure we will make up for lost time....Many blessings to you this New Year. Happy 2012!