Karim's and Therese's Rosaries

I was blessed to be ask to make a wedding rosary for Karim and Therese's wedding.  Karim's sister wanted blue to be the prominent color.  Therese's rosary (top) is made with pressed blue glass flowers and natural turquoise.  I really like the contrast of the two blues.  Karim's rosary (bottom) is made from buri seeds and blue agate.  The buri seeds are a favorite of mine.  They are called poor man's ivory.  They have a smooth and wonderful feel in the hand. 

Renee & Sarah's Rosary

I have been very blessed to have so many rosary orders as of late.  These rosaries are for a mother and daughter.  I think they turned out beautiful.  The top rosary is for Sarah.  It is agate beads for the Aves and sterling silver filigree for the Pater beads.  The bottom rosary is for Renee.  She chose kyanite for the Aves and the same sterling silver for the Pater beads.  They both feel nice in the hand. 

Joan of Arc Piece

I was excited to come across this beautiful Joan of Arc necklace at my favorite antique store.  I was getting ready to leave the store when I spotted her in one of the cases.  I love the old world look of the piece.  I plan on putting it together with some aquamarine beads I have in  my stash. 

What Fun We Had, Part I

Boy, what a busy summer we have had.  We have been on so many vacations with the kids.  We started our summer camping at Donner Lake.  Next, we spent 4 days in the lovely Squaw Valley in Tahoe.  Then we spent another 4 days at Santa Cruz and finally we spent a week in Disneyland.  I am exhausted!  Santa Cruz was a blast.  We spent two days hanging out at the boardwalk and on the beach.  The weather was fantastic and the crowds were not too bad.  We were also able to go to the aquarium in Santa Cruz.  It was a nice change from the boardwalk.  Outside of the aquarium, there were all these cute bunnies hopping around.  The boys loved going on the giant dipper roller coaster and I think they rode it 20 plus times.

Squaw Valley

We have a packed summer.  Hubby and I took the boys up to Squaw Valley for a few days to get out of the heat.  I really enjoy staying at Squaw Village.  The boys can roam and have some freedom.  This time I didn't join them up at high camp.  Instead, I was able to get away and do some shopping in Truckee.  The boys had a great time ice skating and swimming at 8200 feet.   We did make it into Truckee as a family for breakfast one morning.  We ate at the Squeeze Inn.  You may have seen it on Bobby Flay's Throwdown.  The Squeeze Inn is known for its omelets.  We didn't have any of their omelets, but the food we had was fantastic and I can see why it is a favorite with the locals. 

Day at the Ballpark

We had a fun evening watching our baseball team, the Rivercats.  It was a fun night and fortunately not too hot.  The boys enjoyed watching the game and playing around on the grass. 

Book Love

My dear neighbor and friend was doing some housecleaning and asked if I would like to look over her cookbooks.  Of course I said yes howdy!  I love cookbooks and I probably have around 100 plus cookbooks in my home.  I love to get inspiration from the recipes, plus it is a good read.  Anyway, she was going through her late husbands books and wanted them to go to a good home.  I was thrilled and honored that she gave them to me.  What awesome books they are!  Not only that, but a lot of them are signed by the authors.  Her late husband ran a speciality cook store and had meet these chefs/authors.  He was good friends with Jacques Pepin and knew Julia Child.  How cool is that!  I will always treasure the books.  Now what to make first?

Camping & 4th Fun!

We had a really nice 4th of July this year.  My mom and dad are getting settled in their new apartment and they are safe and I was able to relax a little and enjoy the time with hubby and the kiddos!  We had our dear friends over as usual and had a nice time with friends, good food and fireworks!  We have already had a busy summer.  We just came back from a weekend of camping at Donner Lake.  It was a beautiful weekend and fortunately the weather was not too hot.  At first they boys had a hard time unplugging.  Then they started to explore and have fun.  I really enjoyed not having the TV on or the Xbox or computer.  It was great to just sit around the campfire and talk and play games.  Our one bit of luxury; we got up early and went to Starbucks to get the traveler coffee for everyone.  Got to have the coffee!

Happy 4th of July

Wishing everyone a safe and happy 4th of July!

June Re-Cap

I have been fortunate to be very busy making rosaries.  As school came to a close I was able to make quite a few teacher gifts. I also made this wedding rosary set.  The rosary at the top is for the groom and made with blue tiger eye.  The brides rosary is made with pearl and Czech crystals.  The other rosaries were requests for teachers gifts.  They all turned out nice.  I was happy I was able to make them. 

Hope and a sandwich!

These days have been difficult as my parents transition to their new living arrangements.  I have been overcome with sadness and guilt as I try do what is best for them.  They are adjusting and I have noticed that they are enjoying some of the activities.  Best of all they are getting the care they so desperately needed.  Three good meals, medicines being managed and help with all the daily living activities.  I feel more at ease knowing that they are safe and being well cared for.  I have prayed and prayed as I have been on this journey with them.  So today I feel hopeful for the first time in quite awhile. 

I promised you a sandwich and here it is.  I made this a while back and have been meaning to post about it.  It is a grilled chicken and red pepper jam panini.  Boy was it delish!  I used my handy dandy grill pan and grilled a flatten chicken breast that I seasoned with salt and pepper and oregano.  Then I placed the chicken breast on foccacia bread that I brushed with oil and added a slice of fontina cheese on top of the chicken.  I then topped if off with some Earth and Vine roasted red  bell pepper and ancho chili jam.    I grilled the sandwich in my panini press and voila a fantastic sandwich! 

Tasty Blog

I haven't been able to do much lately or even check out my usual favorite blogs, but I did come across this new blog called the Noble Pig.  Her stuff looks tasty.  I found her on Under a Blue Moons blog.  Give it a look see!

Life

Life is complicated!  I know it's an understatement.  This past week I had a very hard decision to make.  My father fell three times in the past week and ended up going to emergency Friday night.  He did not break anything thankfully but, he has since been hospitalized due to his advanced Parkinson's. Yesterday I signed papers that will move both my parents into assisted living.  It was one of the hardest decisions I've  had to make, but I think it is the only right decision I could have made.  I have written about my mom's battle with cancer, my dad has his own battle with Parkinson's disease.  What a nasty disease.  It essential robs you of everything.  My dad was such a lively soul.  He loved racing motorbikes, woodworking and making incredible stained glass windows.  He also loved fly fishing and tied some of the best flies.  As a young girl all my friends where playing with Barbies and I was learning to tie flies with my dad.  It is a good memory.  He can't fish anymore, or woodwork, or work with stained glass.  His facial expression is usually blank, but on occasion you can make him laugh.  I am mourning the man his used to be and trying to help the man he is today. It is such a tough place to be.  I pray a lot!

A recipe ! Wild Blackberry Cobbler

This is so yummy!  One of the great things about spring besides the nice weather is the bounty of fruits and vegetables that start to make there appearance.  I found these lovely blackberries at our local store.  I was thrilled to be able to make my aunts blackberry cobbler recipe.  I my aunt got this recipe from this neat old cookbook, simply called The Western Cookbook.  What I really loved about the book was that the cover was wooden and  wood burned with the title and a picture of a cowboy.  Too cute!.

Wild Blackberry Cobbler

3 cups wild blackberries
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
Butter
1 egg, well beaten
1/3 cup milk
3 Tablespoons melted butter
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Combine the berries, 3/4 cup of sugar and lemon juice and mix well.  Pour into a well greased baking dish and dot with butter and cover with the following batter:  Beat the egg and gradually add the remaining sugar; stir in the melted butter and milk and add the dry ingredients which have been sifted together.  Beat thoroughly.  Bake in a 375 F degree oven for 30 minutes.  Serve hot with plain or whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.