Once Upon a Time...

Not too long, in a town not too far away (if you live in another country, then, well, it IS far away... very far away) we threw a baby shower for one of our friends.  The theme was like the bundle in her belly: a sweet little one.  To be more specific, it was a storybook theme.  Many people traveled from all over the land to share kind words and give sweet baby things.  With fun games and good food, a grand time was had by all. It was indeed a charming affair.

Here we have a front entrance wreath made from pages of a children's fairy tale book.

This is the table before we piled it high with goodies to munch on.

Okay, so the lighting is not great but y'all get the idea.

And here's the cake before I added the decorations.

And after... ( again, not the best lighting)

I used the "Guess How Much I Love You" book to introduce one of the games where you had to take yarn and, guessing how big her belly was, cut a piece of yarn to size.

I made these little story book signs to go with certain dishes.

Mozzarella stuffed mushrooms, mmmm!

Turkish Delight (not made by me - but the sign, I will take credit for, now THAT was hard work!)

 Sweet girl goes straight for the sweet Turkish Delight.

I made a "Treasure Island" tag for the gift table. I thought that was pretty brilliant.  Just saying.

As party favors, I made biscotti and tagged them with "The End".

The End

Busy Little Bee

I know, I know, it's been a while since I last posted an entry. I am so sorry for the delay,  the wait must have been down right agonizing...how ever did you cope? I feel so bad.  Go ahead...say it. Just say what we're both thinking: I'm a bad blogger. Bad bad blogger.

In truth, there really hasn't been much to report; other than the baby has started to crawl and clap his hands...not at the same time mind you:

Tell me that is not the cutest thing. Ever.

"We" are still doing the Forks Over Knives Experiment and I have made some real creative and tasty dishes.  Here are some of my favorites:
* Cabbage 'Unrolls' stuffed with sauteed onions, grated carrots, blended chickpeas and brown rice topped with homemdade tomato sauce...a veritable vegan victory! It is a modification on the Garbanzo Bean Loaf from the Forks Over Knives recipe book (I would use half the dry mustard and half the sauce)
* Eggplant Caviar served with stoneground crackers - heavenly!
* Walnut Sauce which can be used however you wish: over cooked kale, in wraps, as a dip...I used it over pasta: and threw some freshly chopped parsley on top.  I loved it AND the the kids ate it right up...BONUS!

*Red Bean and Quinoa Chili
*Mediterranean Chickpea Salad: (Wonderful! I modified the recipe slightly by soaking and cooking my own beans instead of using canned (remember my thing abour preservatives? They are even in most canned beans...Boo Hiss Hiss!) and by using cherry tomatoes and omitting the red pepper, cucumber and feta cheese.  I also made my own light dressing to avoid the dairy and because the natives were getting restless, I threw on some olive oil, lemon juice and red wine vinegar.  Salt and Pepper to taste.  So, bascially I changed the entire recipe. It worked.

*Polenta Pizza with tomato sauce veggies and cashew 'cheeseballs'
*Stuffed Butternut Squash with Maple-glazed apples and brussel sprouts:

* Eggplant burgers with Honey-Glazed carrots and parsnips (a new family fav!):

All vegan meals aside, what has really taken a lot of my time was preparing for my friend's baby shower, which was yesterday.  My other friend and I joined creative forces to present to our friend with as many homemade gifts as we could...call me crazy, but it was fun!

I made homemade wipes and homemade baby wipe solution.  I also made a reversible travel change pad/play mat:

 Change Pad with waterproof fabric

Play Mat with a soft corduroy fabric

My friend and I made nursing pads too and they turned out so cute and feminine and although I don't have a picture of the ones we made, I do have the image from the website where we got the idea.  We changed it slightly by sewing only one circular zigzag stitch instead of two:

                                

And now... for my favorite part: DESSERT! I made the cookies for the party favors ( I prefer the Italian term for them: bonbonniere...it just sounds cuter and better than 'party favor':  "Bonbonniere" screams unique and something high-quality, while 'party favor' just says 'Throw me away. Right now.') 

Anywho, here are the cookies:

See? Unique and high-quality, right?

And the best part is, you see the cute little duckling on the side? Pure chocolate....Yes, it is.

The cake was sooo good I actually had a piece.  Replete with dairy and refined sugar etc. I ate it and  was not ashamed, I enjoyed every morsel. Yes, I cheated but it was a conscious decision and I don't feel bad about it.  ...Out, damned spot!  Out I say!