Count Down to Christmas

I made this cute count down calendar a couple of years ago. The quilt is just a panel that I quilted and put 24 buttons on the tree. The ornaments are fused to felt and then cut out. Then add a string for hanging. It all came as a kit. The button placements were all marked and there was even a guide for which ornament goes where. We don't follow the placement guide though. Parker picks out an ornament each morning and I put it where ever he wants.

This type of calendar is a MUST if you have child in your house during December. When the question arises, "how long until Christmas?", just point to the calendar and tell then to count the buttons without ornaments. It is also a good daily math exercise, one they are motivated to do and don't realize they are doing.

Telescope

Parker's big prize for popcorn sales - the reason he sold so much - was this telescope. You can see the moons around Jupiter with it!

Doesn't my new camera take great night shots! I'm really impressed. There were no outside lights on at our house. Of course Tony got frustrated with me because the flash was interfering with his vision as he was trying to line up the telescope to view Jupiter.

Christmas Quilt

This is Parker's latest quilt. He titled it "Christmas." We made the background about six weeks ago. The week before Thanksgiving he cut out the applique and fused it on his background. Yesterday I did a blank stitch in black around the applique and then finished it using the pillowcase technique. It is now hanging in our dining room and will probably go to school on Friday for Show and Tell.

Cub Scout Christmas Party

Parker's Cub Scout Pack had their Christmas Party this evening. Badges and awards earned were handed out. Parker got some things for his belt for archery and BB gun shooting done at camp this past summer. He also got his popcorn prizes - a telescope; an adventure pack which contains a flashlight, compass, multi-tool and binoculars; and a second marshmallow shooter. In addition, he got a $100 gift card to Wal-mart for being the high seller, selling $1115.00 worth of popcorn! That is a lot of money for a 7 year old! Tony and I were so surprised. We had not been told that he was the high seller. I hope I can convince him to wait until after Christmas before spending his gift card. It will be interesting to see what he buys.

Favorite Ornament - one only a Mother could love

Parker made this ornament when he was 4, one of his first sewing projects. He had been insisting that he wanted to sew and I had been putting him off. One day I caved and told him to pick out some fabric from my scrap bag and I threaded a needle for him. This is the result. He was done in about 10 minutes once the thread got so knotted that he couldn't continue. The hanger is made from a large loop of the knotted up thread. He was so proud though. I asked him to "tell me about what you've made" (a trick learned from his kindergarten teacher - how to comment on an unidentifiable art piece without hurting the child's feelings). He proudly held it up and told me it was an ornament and it was for me. I love it! I have many nice ornaments but this one is very special and will always have a prominent spot on my tree.

Mt. Blanca Chicken Soup

Okay Alison - this one is for you.

At a playgroup lunch a few years ago the hostess made chicken chili. The recipe she used is from Better Homes and Garden. Here is the recipe, called Wasatch Mountain Chili. Well, it was really good and we all asked for the recipe. A couple of weeks later I made it. My family thought it was okay but they didn't like the lime. They didn't know it had lime in it and couldn't really describe what they didn't like about it, but the next time I made it I left out the lime and they said it was much better. I've been making it for a while now and the recipe has evolved to more of a chicken soup rather than a chili. Here is my version which I have called Mt. Blanca Chicken Soup:

1 whole roasted chicken from the grocery store
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cans of hominy, drained
2 cans of great northern beans, drained and rinsed
2 cans of chicken broth
black pepper to taste (about 1/2 tsp.)
dried herbs, about 1/2 tsp. (I use Mural of Flavor from Penzey spices, but Italian spices would work or just some basil. Fresh herbs are also good but I usually make this in the winter and don't have any fresh.)

Cut the chicken off the bone and then into bite size pieces. Put everything in the crock pot and top it off with water if your crock pot isn't full. Let cook all day. Sometimes I add diced carrots, celery or some mixed vegetables (canned or frozen are fine). What I usually do is buy two or three chickens when they go on sale. Cut them up and freeze them. Then buy all the stuff so I can just pull the chicken out of the freezer in the morning and defrost it in the microwave. Dump everything in the crock pot and sew all day.

A Home-Made Phaser

Look what Parker and his dad made tonight before dinner! A replica of the original Star Trek series phaser. They have been watching the original series a little a time each night after Parker reads to my husband. He's been wanting a phaser to play with, but you can't buy one like the original any where around here! So they found an image on the internet and made this in about an hour before dinner tonight. I'm pretty impressed! Parker does great sound effects for it too.