BIG SCORE!!!!!!

I may have been terribly busy this summer....but I did manage to sneak into my Goodwill once or twice. And just look at these two super, HUGE scores!!! First, a gorgeous pair of Brighton loafers. I knew from far away before I even picked them up that they were nice....and expensive. They had that "look". And they were!! I paid $4.99 for them....but when I got home and looked them up on the Brighton website they retail for $195!!!!!!!!

Look how pretty the silver detail is????

Then just a few days later after dropping Cindylou off for work...my van just veered right back into the Goodwill. It just knew there was another good for for me :)....And, YEP!!! There was! A GOR.GE.EOUS pair of Sperry loafers. Black patent leather. Worn just once!!!!!!

And look how super cute they are inside.....purple with gold. I grabbed them and felt the rush of scoring again :)

See......$4.99 and in perfect shape! Of course I ran home and checked out the Sperry website and they are listed for $98. A savings of $93 for the Treatgirl. I love it for me :) Let me know about your great scores....I love success stories!

Bread and Butter Pickles

Ok. For some reason I got it in my brain to make pickles this year. I've had a dill pickle recipe from my Dad's Aunt Emily since our family reunion in 1994. Unfortunately I've been running around all week trying to find the right dill....the kind that looks like Queen Anne's Lace....so I'm going to hold off on making those until I go to Buffalo next weekend. In the meantime I made these super easy Bread and Butter pickles the other day.

You start by washing, then soaking your pickles for an hour. Then slice them up into thin slices.

I just used a package from Mrs. Wages.....the ingredients and instructions are very easy.

You pack your pickles in sterilized jars.....

Bring the brine just to a boil...then pour over the pickles to within a 1/2" of the top of the jar. Wipe the tops of the jar with a clean towel...then screw the lids on. These can be stored in the fridge for 6 months. I boiled mine for 20 minutes so they will have a shelf life of 1 year. The only change I would make would be to add thinly sliced onions to each jar. I didn't realize the recipe didn't call for them until I got home and started making a batch. Don't be afraid.....they are super easy and really delicious.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

Wowza. It's been a while....I'm so sorry life has gotten in the way of my blogging :( Craziness in May and June. I started a new little part time job, end of the school year stuff with the kiddos, Memorial Day weekend, soccer, family reunions, college reunions, etc.........You know the drill. But I've been really wanting to share these scrumptious Pink Lemonade cupcakes with you. They turned out fantastic!!! I took a bunch of them to work for my girlfriends there and they all loved them. I'm soooooo excited! Another great thing about my job is that I can bake to my heart's content and I can share everything there. It's great! I can now have just one or two...and not overdose on anything. Let me get to the nitty gritty.....I just used 1 box of Betty Crocker white cake mix. I followed the directions, but used 1/4 cup of thawed pink lemonade concentrate, 1 cup water and 1 tsp. lemon extract. 4 drops of red food coloring made them a really pretty pink. For the frosting I used my buttercream recipe....then added lemon extract and a bit more red food coloring. I got RAVE reviews!!!!! Yuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum :)

Lilly of the Valley

Lilly of the Valley are one of my favorite flowers....the are the official flower of the month of May and are sometimes referred to as May bells. My birthday is in May, so it works out perfect :) Grace Kelly carried a beautiful bouquet of them when she married in Monaco years ago.

I have transplanted my plants from my mom's house up in Buffalo before she sold it and moved to her home in Florida full time. They spread quickly and every spring I'm always asking people if they'd like to stop by and take some.

They don't last long....just a week or so, but they're soooooooooo fragrant!

I snipped a bunch to take inside and put in a pretty little cut glass vase. They make my whole kitchen cheery. I hope you all have been having a lovely spring.

Ya Gotta Love Coconut Cake

Soooooooooooo GOOD!! I was organizing my pantry a few weeks ago and came across THREE bags of coconut???! So like any good girl, I went on Pinterest to find a recipe to make with it. I found this oh-so-yummy one...an instant favorite over here.

The recipe needs Coconut Milk (Found in the Hispanic section) and Coconut Cream (Found in the mixed drink section).

Ok. So here we go......... Ingredients: 1 box Betty Crocker white cake mix (The girl who invented this said a box mix worked much better than making it from scratch) 1 1/4 cup coconut milk 1 can cream of coconut 8 oz. container of Cool Whip (This was NOT enough for the Treatgirl, and I used a BIG container) 1 cup flaked coconut (Also, not enough for the Treatgirl...I used a lot more :) Directions: 1. Prepare cake mix according to the directions on the box, substituting coconut milk for the water in the mix. Bake in a 9x13" pan. 2. While the cake is still warm, poke holes all over the cake. 3. Warm cream of coconut for 1 1/2 minutes on HIGH in the microwave and pour over the cake. Chill. 4. Frost with container of thawed Cool Whip. Sprinkle with flaked coconut. Keep refrigerated. *********OK. Once again, I REALLY, REALLY DO NOT LIKE this new BLOGGER AT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't figure out why I type my directions out all lined up to the left....and they keep turning out all in a paragraph like that?????? aaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrggggggggghhhhhh!!! ************** Oh, and I'm linking up to Jennifer Juniper's Tutorial Tuesday Linky party...Check it out......ALWAYS tons of great stuff!

Favorite Friday

Hi! Another week flew by......and every day I used my new Magic Bullet!! MY MOST favorite thing this week. I've been wanting one forever and this past weekend someone surprised me with one. It's even more fabulous than I thought. I've been using it to make my protein smoothies everyday....but it can do soooo much more! It comes with several cups, lids, gadgets and a recipe book. I can get rid of my blender, because it makes wonderful frozen drinks...and my little food processor because I can use it to chop onions and garlic too. It should be called the Miracle Magic Bullet. Do any of you have one????? Do you love it too??? Can you share any little tips or tricks? Let me know and have a terrific weekend.

Wheh! My First Afghan is Done!!

I've been working non-stop on this pretty afghan since the beginning of February. I actually started it last summer and worked on it for just a little bit before life got in the way. I got started on it again to finish it in time for a birthday present for my mom. She is a knitter too....and I've found over the years knitters tend to knit for everyone else except themselves. So I thought she would love having someone knit something for her :) I knit the large afghan....and it's really big.....I think I may knit one for me someday...but the smaller size would be plenty big enough.

I found the pattern online...and for the life of me I can't remember where????? But it's really easy....the pattern goes fast and it's not hard to remember.

All you need is 40 oz. 4 ply worsted weight yarn for a large afghan. Here are the directions: For a large afghan cast on 210 sts, for a small one cast on 144 sts. Pattern is a multiple of 11 sts. + 1. Row 1: K1, *yo, k3, k2tog, k2tog, k3, yo, k1. Repeat from * to end. Row 2: Purl Row 3: Knit Repeat rows 1-3 until desired length. I'm linking up to Hope Studios Tutorial Linky Party....Go on over and check it out.
******Okay. I am writing this post and blogger is all new and different and I don't think I like it :( When I typed the directions out for the afghan they are listed with a space in between each row....and are easy to follow. When I previewed it they are now like that and I can't figure out why???? Sorry :( Anyone else having trouble??? Do you like it??????*********