IGP Aprons!

Thank you to Cynthia, Melisa, Julie, Kristel and Katrina who showed up for our IGP night! We had a lot of fun. Cynthia brought scrumptious treats and we had all sorts of aprons being made. They turned out really cute. I hope you ladies all got a good nights sleep!
  
   

To the First 5 People that Read This Post........

Thanks Krista Lou for a great idea! I love knowing when I am a winner! I don't even know if I have 5 people who read my blog, but here it goes. The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2- What I create will be just for you.
3- It'll be done this year.
4- You have no clue what it's going to be.

The catch is that you must re-post this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!!!

I don't actually care if you post this on your blog or not. I just thought it was a fun and cute idea. So leave a comment!

Fun giveaway...

Randi of Fresh Squeezed Fabrics and Melanie of The Fabric Shopper are hosting a giveaway! Head on over to The Fabric Shopper to learn more!

Success!

The first brownie batch I made I used unsweetened baking chocolate and they were good, but not that GOOD. Last night I made another batch using dark semi-sweet chips and was worried because I had melted the chips and then it hardened in the batter before I could get it into the pan. Again, the brownies are good. After school today, my kids ate 2 brownies each which I was surprised about because they are not super sweet. I am making strides getting spinach and carrots into little, growing bodies.

 

I also made this on Saturday. The kids (husband included) loved it. Spinach and tofu are the two ingredients no one in my house would even think about eating separately. I did end up adding some ice cream in the end, but hey, at least those little bodies are getting some greens. I'll do this again.
 

Would you eat this?

Thanks to my friend Sierra I was reminded that I have a book to help me get veggies into little bodies. I bought this book about a year ago and didn't do anything with it because we were in an apartment at the time and I didn't have my food processor and a lot of other kitchen tools. So, I broke it out and did some pureeing yesterday. Here is what I started with:
 
I had to steam most of the veggies and then puree them in the food processor. This was really, really easy.
  
Derek sat like a little angel the whole time, eating "healthy" things like this:
 
Here is the end result.
 
What am I going to do with this you ask? Well, last night for dinner I made Mac & Cheese with white beans in it. Mason actually ate it. Today, I made brownies with spinach and carrots in them. They are still in the oven, so I'll have to leave you in suspense until later. I am eager to see how Mason likes the brownies after school today. Yeah for veggies!

This-n-That

Sadie's quilt top has begun the quilting process. Here it is pinned and I already have it on Velma being quilted. Hopefully in the next couple of days I'll have it done. Since this is my first time quilting a quilt on the machine I am being a little cautious.
 
In my quest to eat healthier, I made some of our favorite muffins today. This is Bob's Red Mill recipe called Bran Flax muffins. My MIL gave me this recipe and I love it because it hides veggies really well. Mason, my older son, who is the pickiest eater I know, will eat them. Try them out. See what you think.
 

The power of the Holy Ghost

Today I had a personal revelation. Eating healthier has been on my mind lately and as a Latter-Day Saint, following the Word of Wisdom more closely is becoming more important to me. I have been doing some research and came across a blog created specifically on this topic (see the Section 89 button on the left). After reading some of the articles on the blog I have been feeling overwhelmed in where to start and where to find recipes my kids will actually eat. It isn't like we don't eat healthy now, we do for the most part. I just know we can do better. So, this morning as I was driving to an appointment and thinking about this a thought came into my head; "Katie if you ask Heavenly Father for help, he will show you where to find these recipes and learn about foods". It was like I was clunked on the head with a hammer. That Holy Ghost is amazing. And just after that thought, I found myself singing one of our church primary songs. The amazing thing about this to me is that I didn't even think about singing this song and also didn't start singing this song from the beginning. All of a sudden I found myself humming the last part of the first verse and going right into the second verse which goes like this:

Pray, he is there;
Speak, he is listening.
You are his child;
His love now surrounds you.
He hears your prayer;
He loves the children.
Of such is the kingdom,
the kingdom of Heaven.

I know Heavenly Father is mindful and aware of each and every one of us. I am thankful for the gift of the Holy Ghost to help me in my times of finding understanding and I am thankful to be able to pray to my Heavenly Father.

In my quest for better food, I am going to plant my raised bed garden this spring. It will be very small since I don't have a lot of direct sunlight with all the trees around my house. My master gardener friend, Melisa, offered to help me do this. Now it doesn't feel quite so overwhelming.