Friday, February 26, 2010

Cream of Fresh Asparagus Soup

It's asparagus season again and today I made some great soup. If you're like me, asparagus does not rank in your top 10 vegetables, but I promise this is so good. You have to try it.

First off, if you don't use asparagus much check out Martha Stewart's tips here.
One of the best tips to get rid of the tough woody bottom section is just to bend it and let it snap where it naturally does. Throw out the bottoms, keep the tops.

Anyway, here's the recipe:

Cream of Fresh Asparagus Soup
prep time: 15 minutes
cook time: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS
1 lb fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cups water
2 tsp chicken bouillon
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
1 pinch ground black pepper
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp fresh lemon juice

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large saucepan, combine asparagus, chopped onion, and 1/2 -3/4 cup water (with about 1/2 tsp bouillon ). Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until asparagus is tender (10-12 minutes). Process the mixture in a blender to puree the vegetables. Set aside.
2. In the same saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Stir in the flour and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Whisk in the remaining water and bouillon (adding slowly) and increase the heat to medium. Stir constantly until the mixture boils. Stir in asparagus puree and milk.
3. Put the sour cream in a small bowl, and stir in a ladleful of hot soup (if you don't do this the sour cream will clump in your soup). Add the sour cream mixture and the lemon juice to the soup. Stir while heating the soup to serving temperature, but don't allow to boil. Serve immediately.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Washcloth Mitts

Since I only made one bath towel with each of the hand towels, I had 3 half hand towels left over. I trimmed them down a little, folded them in half and sewed two of the open sides together (leaving the nicely finished side as the opening. The result: these washcloth mitts that the girls can use in the tub.

Happy Washing!

Monday, February 15, 2010

Monogrammed Hooded Towels

I had great plans for these towels/hand towels I got for $2.00 a piece after Thanksgiving. I was going to make  "monster" towels and they were going to be cute, but week after week I kept putting it off. Finally, I couldn't stand having the unfinished project in the corner anymore so I sewed the towels together using this tutorial, ironed on the girls initials with wonder under and extra fabric I had, and stitched around them. 

They aren't monsters, but they're cute and they are finished and that's all that matters.
(And if we don't use a "K" name for our new baby, I'll send the "K" towel to whoever does).


Sweetheart's Week 2010

This year, our theme for Sweetheart's Week was
Our Family is Built on Love
and all the quotes and activities had to do with construction and building.
Each day I gave the girls and Brigham a "block" with a personal note written on one side and a quote/activity on the other. By the end of the week, we had "built" a big heart on our wall.
You can check out the things we did here:
*I need to take a clearer picture because there were some really great poems, songs, and thoughts about building, construction, and creation*

It was fun to focus on doing things together and improving the world (or just our immediate surroundings). I love Sweetheart's Week and am grateful for the 3 (almost 4) sweethearts in my life.

Some more pictures:

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Rx for Valentine's Day

Here are Lucy and Charlotte's 2010 Valentine friend treats.

prescription bottle: 5 cents a piece (our WalMart said they'd give you 10 for free)
paper: $1.25 for all 25 bottles
candy: $4.00 for all 25 bottles
=
26 cents a piece...not bad.

I just printed the note on regular paper and then pasted it onto some Valentine's paper.

What's inside:
giant  Valentine Smarties.
*You would want to be careful so that your children know that things found in medicine bottles usually aren't candy!

Friday, February 5, 2010

Valentine decoder cookies

I saw these Valentine's cookies and thought I'd try a few. I used my own recipe and a small spoonful of crushed clear red candies. I also sprinkled mine with some red decorating sugar before I baked them. 
I think they turned out pretty cute 
(even if you could basically read the hidden message without the magical decoding cookie).

Monday, February 1, 2010

Cowboy Chaps

Last week when I was visiting my mom, we made a couple pairs of these cowboy chaps. My mom had made some for my brothers when they were younger, so we used the old pair as a pattern. They were really easy to make (but they were a little bit time consuming). All you need is 1 yard of medium weight vinyl (This will make 2 pairs: size 3-4), two snaps, and old belt buckle, 1/2 of a leather shoe lace and thread. I figured we made each pair for under 5 dollars. Not bad. Aren't they cute? I haven't had anyone model them yet, because I may be using them for a birthday. 
I also added a little fringe to the back of mine:

Valentine's Day Pillowcases

These are nothing to brag about but I'd thought I'd post them anyway. I made these Sweetheart's Week Pillowcases as a fun holiday reminder for the girls. Lucy cannot wait to put hers on her pillow.