Pumpkin Patch

We went to the pumpkin patch Saturday and it was fun! My daughter-in-law had never been to a real pumpkin patch, so it was fun to watch her as she wandered around, looking at all the stuff. And trying to pick a pumpkin! I think she changed her mind at least three times, but that's what its all about, right? We bought over 200 pounds of pumpkin by the time we were through! We couldn't even fit it all in the trunk. One of them had to go in the back seat with me and Halena. Next Saturday will be the great Hall Family pumpkin carve-off. Stay tuned for photos. For now, here are some photos of our search for the perfect pumpkin.

Part of the pumpkin patch.

Hiding in the corn stalks.

Two down, four more to go.

That's four....

The wagon is getting more and more full.

My little pumpkin girl.

Taking a little rest.

A good time was had by all, that is until we got to the scale and the register. WOW! 200 pounds of pumpkin at .26 a pound...you do the math.

Now I have a quick and easy project. I call them Spooky Spoolies. I have a whole collection of wooden thread spools and I'm finally ready to let go of a few of them. They are pretty hard to come by nowadays, so I hang on to them pretty tightly. The pictures will be pretty self-explanatory.

My little spoolie family.



Sorry its blurry. The mummy is wrapped with plumber's
 tape, or pipe tape, or whatever YOU call it.

A stick for the stem, wrapped in jute. Curly raffia and some leaves finish it off.

A green pom-pom for her nose.

The mummy and the witch have yarn hair. Wrap the yarn around two fingers about 15 or 20 times and tie it really tight. Cut the loops and trim to the length you like. Put some hot glue on the edges of the hole and stuff the middle of the yarn hair down inside. All the black lines are made with black fabric paint. Googly eyes for the mummy and you're done! The kids will love to make or receive these cute little spoolies, so make a dozen or two!

That's it for tonight. I'm so tired, I can't hold my eyes open any longer. Oh, yeah...my husband got home today, so maybe I'll sleep a little better. After all, my future awaits me. C.S. Lewis said, "The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is." Have a great Monday. Gramma G.

Friday Friends!

Friday is for Friends! And our first friend is Bev at Flamingo Toes. She has some really nice tutorials for a variety of things. One that caught my eye was this necklace. I love the look of all those rings. Go to http://www.flamingotoes.com/2011/06/loft-rings-and-pink-beads-necklace/ to see the tutorial.

Next on today's list is Tai over at taidye. I found too many projects on her blog that I would like to feature so I picked just two. The cutest little mummy necklace uses a supply that you would probably never dream of and has big googly eyes. I love love love it!!!
http://taidyeoriginal.blogspot.com/2011/10/make-mummy-necklace.html

Don't you just want one?

She also had this cute clutch purse made with on old book cover. Check it out.
http://taidyeoriginal.blogspot.com/2011/04/celebrating-100-followers-book-clutch.html

Last but least today is Lauren at All Things Homie. She has a tutorial for some killer photo coasters made with ceramic tiles and tissue paper. See how she does it at http://allthingshomie.blogspot.com/2011/10/diy-photo-coasters.html

One last thing. I got an email from my good friend Jean today with a link to YouTube. You've got to see this video. You can bet I will be trying this out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnBF6bv4Oe4&noredirect=1 .

Now its time for me to catch some ZZZZZ's. And here's something for you to think about until we meet again. Dreams really can come true if we only have the courage to pursue them. How's your pursuit going? Later, Gramma H.;

Decorating for Halloween

How do you like the new look? I decided it was time for an overhaul. I needed something bright and upbeat. I love everything red, white and blue, but finding backgrounds is hard. I don't want just any run-of-the-mill background. It has to be something that speaks to me. I know, sounds kind of half-baked, but that's me....the half-baked gramma! Anyway, I really like this design and the swirlies make me want to take action, so its all good.

I have been reading the series over on Funky Junk Interiors about improving your blog, and I am finding it totally useful. She's calling it 31 days from blog to biz and so far, I have used something from almost all of them. If you want to partake of her wisdom, go to her blog and check it out. So far I have taken off the word verification, turned off the comment mediation, put my signature on the blog post page, linked my email to my profile, and a few other things I can't even remember right now. Oh, yeah! and how to put the link within icons at the bottom of each post! How cool is that?

Well, we hung our pumpkins and made some alien spiders to go with them. They are just handmade pom-poms with smaller commercial pom-poms for eyes with googly eyes glued to them, and long pieces of yarn for the legs. They turned out pretty cute. I kind of goofed when we made the pom-poms and we made them too long and not full enough, so they are kind of floppy-mop things, but that actually just made them cuter!

Any child will have a blast making these, both the pumpkins and spiders, but the spiders most of all. I put the biggest googly eyes I had on mine and we all love her! She was hanging from the pull-chain on the fan, but her legs kept brushing my son's head when he walked through the living room, so he moved her. Isn't he funny?

So, this is just a short post, but I will be back soon.  And in case you didn't know it, the pursuit of truth will set you free, even if you never find it!  'Night, Gramma G.

Mopey Monday

Today is a mopey Monday. My husband left Friday for Nevada (which is why the Friday Friends wound up on Saturday), my daughter-in-law and grandkids are all at school, and my son is at work. I should be enjoying the peace and quiet, but its just a little too quiet.

I saw this cute paper pumpkin on firstpalette.com and I liked it so much that I decided to make some with my granddaughter. We used different papers for ours and they turned out pretty cute. We used green curly ribbon to make the little vine tendrils and we're going to hang them on the front porch.

Its also the time of year for hot chocolate making! Every year I buy the stuff to make my own hot chocolate mix. Its one of our family traditions.

I don't buy fancy brands but I do like to use Nesquik for most of my chocolate mix because it has a lot more cocoa in it than the generic. I also use a lot more creamer than most people do. Here's my recipe:

Gramma G's Hot Chocolate

1 large and 1 small non-fat instant dry milk
1 really big powdered creamer
1 large Nesquik and 1 small generic chocolate milk mix
1 2lb. bag powdered sugar

Open 2 garbage bags (make sure they are NOT the odor killer kind) and put one inside the other. Dump all the ingredients into the bags and twist the top, trapping air inside. Now shake and tumble until well mixed. Trapping air inside the bag gives the mix room to move as you move the bag. When well-mixed, put into storage containers. It makes a lot...enough that I only have to make it twice every winter, and we are a family of six, plus I usually give some as gifts. Use 1/4 cup mix for a 8oz. mug of hot chocolate. Add marshmallows or whipped cream. YUM!!!

This big glass canister holds a little more than half of the mix.....

...and this largest Tupperware canister holds the rest!

So, okay, maybe today won't be so bad. I have the house to myself, I have plenty of hot chocolate, and I have my computer to communicate with all of you. Actually, it sounds pretty good, now I think of it. Think I'll go boil some water. While I wait, here's a thought for you. Living on earth is expensive, but it comes with a free trip around the sun every year! See ya later, Gramma G.

Friday Friends!

Friday Friends! are Saturday Friends this week. But I've got some really good links for you today. I've been doing some reading and searching and found some new-to-me sites that I really like, starting with Blue Cricket Designs. Rebecca Dulgarian does a super job and has some really cute ideas for Halloween that you need to look at, but I'm going another route. The post I really like and wanted you to see is a post called "How to break into the blogging world." I found the information to be very useful, and she has a sense of humor that comes out in her writing. Stop by and read this post and then check out the rest of her site. It's super! http://www.bluecricketdesign.net/2010/03/how-to-break-into-blogging-world.html .

Next up is Becky at Infarrantly Creative. Now hers is an awesome site! I love recycling old furniture and other stuff and her Roadkill Rescue section is full of great re-dos. She is the mother of 2 small children and we all know how time consuming kids are, but she seems to find the time to share with us her great projects. I chose not a furniture project to share with you, but a recycling project that anyone can do. Here is the link for the tutorial for making a handy bag holder for you car or tote bag or beach bag, or wherever you might need one. So cute!

Find find it here: http://www.infarrantlycreative.net/2011/08/wipes-container-reuse-and-a-giveaway.html .

Here's another DIY'n fool. :)  Her name is Jaime and she has three children and a love for crafty things. She has some ideas that need to be checked out and here's one of them. I love love love these adorable treat bags, and she says they will hold 3 bags of candy! She made smaller ones for birthday party giveaway bags, too. Such a good mommy...

Check out her blog and all the great ideas at:  http://thatsmyletter.blogspot.com/2011/09/t-is-for-treat.html .

Now, before I forget, I finally finished my other pumpkin, the one with the book pages, and here it is.

Here's the front.

This is the back.

I put little eyeballs on the exclamation point.

And here are the two together.

 The book I used is kind of a funny thing. I found an old copy of the The Stand by Stephen King and I thought it was totally fitting. And...as I was tearing out pages, I found a page that told all about the printing, you know, the font and font size, type of paper, etc. And guess what? It was printed on archival paper!  My pumpkin will last forever! :) I gave it a light wash of orange to add just a little color and I really like the way it turned out. Now I just wish I had a mantel or coffee table to sit them on, but they look OK on the floor by the side of the TV, so it's all good.

I hope you are all getting in the spirit of Halloween (pun intended) and making some cool projects. Let me know if you are. I would love to have some guest posts. Until next time, think about this......Happiness comes through doors you don't even know you left open. Have a good one, Gramma G.

Lapboards

How many of you just love Family Fun Magazine? I DO! There are so many great ideas in each issue! Right now they are celebrating their 20th anniversary, so they are doing some really fun things. One of those things is the Family Fun Badges. Each month, there is a new badge to earn, with ideas to help you earn them. There is a poster to display the badges on, too. Anyway, August's theme was "Hit the Road" and all the ideas were for travel games, car organizers, etc. and one of the ideas was for lapboards to use in the car for kids to color or draw on. They took a clipboard and decorated it and then glued it to a small pillow. I wanted to make them for the grandkids, but I wanted them to be washable, so I changed things up a little.

I had some heavy canvas placemats that I was planning to stamp or paint on, but they were just sitting in a box waiting for me to do something with them. I used two placemats for each lapboard. I cut a rectangle of denim from an old pair of jeans, making the rectangle about 1 1/2" bigger all the way around than the size of the clipboard. I also had some clear, heavy vinyl that I cut 3/4" wider than the clipboard, with the top cut to go around the clip on the board. I think you can see that pretty well in the pictures. I stitched the denim, right side up, to the right side of one of the placemats. I sewed a rectangle about 1 1/2" to 2" smaller than the clipboard. Then I centered the vinyl on the denim and stitched right on the edge of the vinyl. Fold the placemat out of the way so you are sewing only on the denim and vinyl. Be sure NOT to sew the top edge, or you won't be able to get the clipboard into the pocket. :)

I trimmed the denim evenly around the vinyl and clipped the edge of the denim into a fringe. When these are washed, the fringe will really even better.

I took another placemat and placed them wrong sides together and stitched around two long sides and one short side, leaving one short side open. Then it was time to decorate! Cameron didn't want to decorate his, but Hally had a blast! We used some rubber stamps and fabric paints, plus some freehand swirls and dots. Then I took an old bed pillow and cut it into thirds and it was the perfect size. I stuffed the lapboard pillows and stitched them shut.

2/3s of the bed pillow.

All that's left is for the kids to decorate the clipboards, and for Hally to decorate the top of her pillow to match the back. Now, when the pillows get dirty, we can just slide the clipboards out and throw the pillows in the wash! How handy is that?

In closing, I have a question for all of you. If Wal*Mart is lowering prices everyday, how come nothing is free yet? Until next time, Gramma G.

Wagons Ho!

We spent this weekend on a nice little project. My granddaughter, Halena, has the opportunity to get extra credit in her fifth grade class by making a covered wagon for their Oregon Trail unit. Her dad is my youngest son and a lot like me, so this became a family project.

Andy did the cutting, but Hally had to do the measuring and sanding, I made
the cover out of muslin.

We added some goodies for the trip.

All buttoned up and ready to go.

I made these clothespin dolls for my kids when they were
young, and these two were perfect for the trek, don't you think?

Her teacher really likes it and I'm pretty sure she will get the extra credit. And she had a good time making it, and that's what really counts. It was some quality time for father and daughter.

Well, its time for me to go to bed. Tomorrow is my day at the Family History Center. Got to find those ancestors! Let me leave you with this saying my daughter-in-law found on a Facebook page somewhere.......you haven't really lived until you've done something for someone who can never pay you back. Have a good one. Gramma G.

Friday Friends!

Hey there, friends! Its Friday Friends! and I know I'm late. My husband is doing great, but now I have a horrible cold. I can't seem to shake the junk in my lungs. But...I have some good ones for you today, starting with The Frugal Family Fun Blog.  The blog is written by Valerie, a mother of 2 girls and now a stay-at-home mom. I found a cute little lunch bag and when I clicked on the link, I also found the neatest sandwich wrapper that unfolds to become a placemat. I need to make some of these for my family.  And she used recycled cereal box liner bags! Go on over and check it out.  http://www.frugalfamilyfunblog.com/2009/08/diy-reusable-2-in-1-sandwich-wrap-and.html 

Picture this in denim for boys...cute, huh?

Next on the list is The Paperseed. It comes from Emily, who is the mother of 1 little girl and lives in Portland, Oregon. She has a tutorial for the cutest little jewelry organizer. It's covered with scrapbook paper and has hooks for hanging your necklaces.  It is very versatile, too, because it can be made to fit whatever size space you have. Check out the tutorial here:   http://thepaperseed.com/?p=4863 .

I love, love, love this paper!

A Sonoma Garden is filled with ideas for urban (and otherwise) homesteading, from chickens to fresh foods. She has a lot of really good information and some really beautiful photography! What caught my eye, though, was the lotions potions. She has recipes for making homemade lotion, deodorant, chap stick and much more. You can find posts titles that range from "the birds and the bees" to "good bugs." Peaked your interest yet? Go to http://asonomagarden.wordpress.com/2009/02/26/how-to-make-handmade-handlotion-w-label-download/ and see what I mean.

And last for today but definitely NOT least, is HowDoesShe? I subscribe to their feed and get to look at their fabulous ideas every week.The bloggers are moms who want to help us all the answer the question "How does she do that?" They are Shelly, who is a mom of 3, Missy, who has four children, and Alison, who also has four. When you go to their site you'll see a navigation bar right under the banner. Click on the Make It tab and then on 2x4s, where you will find some awesome crafts all made from....you guessed it, 2x4s! I made the chore chart for multiple kids for my grandchildren and it turned out so cute! Be sure you check out the whole website, because they have some really great ideas. http://www.howdoesshe.com/

So that's the line-up for this week. I hope you will go and check them all out. I think you will like what you find. Until next time, remember....the truly happy person is the one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.  I hope that's you. Love to all, Gramma G.

Home again

Before the surgery. Don't you just love
the leg wear? I just couldn't pass it up

Well, my husband's surgery went well and we're home again. They took out a the left side of his thyroid and a node the size of a golf ball! He is really sore inside and out, but he's doing okay. While he was in surgery and while he was sleeping afterwards, I worked on a pumpkin project to share with you. I had already sewn them at home and just did the main part of the project at the hospital. I finished them after we got home again.

Sewing up all the tubes.

This year they are made from two pairs of little girls' leggings. I forgot to take a picture before I cut them up, but they were really cute. The one pair had a little piece of black trim with little pumpkin buttons on it at the bottom outside of the leg. A little rusching on the sides of the trim. Really darling, and I decided to use that as a decorative element on the pumpkins. You'll see it later.

I have made these pumpkins every year for about 15 years now, usually from plain orange T-shirt ribbing, but ribbing is getting harder and harder to find, so now I use whatever is close at hand. And I like the fact that I'm recycling, too!

So, if you are using leggings, the side seams are already sewn. Just cut the legs into lengths that are about 3 inches taller than you want your pumpkins to be. Or if you want smaller pumpkins, like the baby ones, you can cut off the seam and cut them to the size you want. I like to make some tall and thin and some short and fat. All different sizes. You really can't go too wrong. Sew up your seams if you need to.

The bottom of the legs on the little pair with the black trim and pumpkin buttons.
One pumpkin will be taller and one shorter.

Next, take a large needle with heavy button and carpet thread and sew a running stitch around one end of the tube. Pull the ends of the thread up really tight, making sure that the edges of the fabric are not tucked down inside. Wrap the thread around the gathering a few times and tie a good square knot. Cut your threads long. This makes them less likely to come untied. If you use the bottom of the legs, like I did for the ones with the trim, you just run your needle through the hem. Go in on one side of the seam and out on the other side. Pull the threads up tight and tie and good tight square knot.

Turn the tube right side out and stuff it full but soft.  After you stuff it, pull up the top and scrunch it in and wrap the thread around it 2 or 3 times and tie it tight. Cut the threads even with the top of the fabric. This makes them long enough to glue into the stem so they don't show and don't come untied.

All tied up and ready to go. Sorry its a little blurry. I was using my phone camera, which takes
really good pictures if you can stand still. :)

Making pumpkins at the hospital while hubby sleeps.

Next, you need to decide if you are making plain pumpkins or if you are giving them faces. The faces are soft-sculptured. You need a fairly long, large needle and heavy thread. Following the diagram below, put the needle down through the top of the pumpkin and out at the outside end of an eyebrow, leaving a 2" or 3" tail sticking out the top. Pinch what will be the eyebrow and stitch under it back and forth to the edge of the nose. Stitch an exaggerated nose shape and then stitch the other eyebrow. Go back up to the top and out by the stem. Pull the thread up after each eyebrow and the nose so it draws the fabric up to form the features. You make the nose exaggerated so that when you pull it up it isn't too small. Stick yhourniddle into the pumpkin and "grab" a little stuffing and pull it into the nose. Now take your needle back into the pumpkin and out at the edge of the mouth. Make a running stitch down and around and back up, making an oversize mouth shape, then back out the top. Pull the thread up to form the upper lip. You can go back and stitch a lower lip in the same way you did the eyebrows, but I don't think its necessary on the pumpkins. It kind of gives them a cute face without it. Tie the two ends together at the top in a good square knot and clip the threads the length of the top.

Make a pretty good-sized pinch for the eyebrows.

Be sure to exaggerate the mouth.

When you have the face all finished and tied off, its time to cover the stem. You can do this with felt, raffia or jute, as you can see in the following pics. I'll bet you could use torn fabric strips, too. Anyway, cover the stem, being sure to catch and cover all your thread ends. Cut some leaves from felt or fabric and glue them at the base of the stem, glue on some eyes, and there you have it! A cute little pumpkin! I have also made them life-size when I could find the ribbing. They look really cute sitting around the house with their little faces smiling at everyone. 

All different sizes and types. Aren't they cute? The one in the front left is the legging leg bottom, trim and buttons and all.

If you don't want faces on them, take a piece of jute about 2 ft. long and wrap one end around the stem (before covering) and then wrap it down around the pumpkin and back up to the stem. Pull it tight and wrap around the stem again. Repeat this two more times until the pumpkin is divided into six parts, The last time, after you wrap around the stem, tie the two ends together in a square knot and cut the ends off even with the top, then finish the pumpkin the same way.

Well, I think my recycled leggings turned out pretty cute. I hope you will make some of your own out of whatever you can find. And don't be shy......make lots! Give them away! Put one on top of a loaf of pumpkin bread and take it to your neighbors. Just have fun.

I got this little thing in an email from a friend the other day, and it goes like this: Women are angels, and when someone breaks our wing we simply continue to fly...usually on a broomstick. We're flexible like that. Until tomorrow, Gramma G.