Cooking and Clutches

I have spent a lot of my time these last couple of months on planning the Provost Elementary Spring Festival Fundraiser that is coming up the end of April. Things are coming along nicely, and it is fun to be able to collect items for the basket auction. There are some very generous businesses out there!

Despite being busy with the Festival, I've been able to find some time to work on developing my hobbies. I somehow didn't get the cooking gene that my dad and brother have, but lately I've felt like I've developed some kitchen skills. I've been cooking a lot more with fresh ingredients and making a lot more things (like sauces, rubs, and salad dressings) from scratch. There are still nights where I have no idea what to make for dinner. But this last week or so, my house has smelled SOOO good in the evenings! I haven't remembered to take pictures of all my new creations, but here are some of them (all courtesy of Our Best Bites):

homemade bread sticks . . . the boys had fun helping with this!

Chicken Tortilla Soup . . . my camera doesn't do it justice; oh yeah, the tortilla strips are homemade, too!

White Chicken Chili

I was also able to recently finish the clutches I've been working on for my sisters- and mother-in-law. (When we got together in February, I didn't have them all ready.) Definitely not perfect, but they sure were fun to create!





It's fun to branch my quilting hobby out into more of a general sewing hobby. And now I've been inspired to create my own valance for our loft. I'm in the middle of it now and should hopefully have a picture soon of the finished product! I'm hoping to be able to create drapes for both our main floor family room and the basement family room in a few months when I get to decorate them! So many ideas and projects . . . so little time!