Magic

Well, i finally have an appointment with an arthritis specialist...this morning in about an hour...i have been putting this off for years....but it is interfering with my quality of life...so to pass the time until i go i did this layout...playing with blending modes....fun!

credits: Paper and elements from NatashaNastDesigns_Magic

A Great Day

Yesterday was so much fun!! Josie , Papa, and me (mimi) spent the day together. We went out to breakfast and than to the Butterfly House. Than to play with the dogs!! She is such a joy!!! Did i take my good camera ... NO...i am still uncertain with all those settings so took the digital point and shoot and the battery died...that will teach me...should have taken the Nikon and shoot in auto...oh,well...got a few shots....here she is "posing" for me at breakfast...

credits: Scraplift inspiration from danielle young design blog; Paper-taylormadedesigns; stripclusters-danielle young; font-Cluff-ImkBold

Marinated Leg of Lamb

This is sooooooooooo good i can't even explain it!!!....and SIMPLE!!

1 leg of lamb, 4 to 5 pounds, boned and butterflied
1 large bottle of Italian salad dressing (you can make your own but WHY bother)

Buy your lamb already boned
Butterfly and remove all visible fat
Place lamb in large, zip lock plastic bag
add salad dressing and marinate all day or overnight in frig

Grill over charcoal or in gas grill until medium rare (i use meat thermometer - 180 degrees)

let meat rest and than slice ..... Enjoy!

I use the same method above for shishkabob....cut the lamb into chunks and marinate overnight;
skewer meat with chunks of peppers, onions, tomatoes and grill...

Vacation

Less than 3 weeks away....and off to Vermont!!! Did a challenge at Jessica's this week and here it is..!






credits: Template by Simply Sarah; Papers by MFenwick_FallFiesta; fonts-VTPortableRemington, CenturyGothic

Hot Days

i know...i am always commenting on the weather....BUT IT IS OPPRESSIVE!! the air quality is POOR...so again...i am in air conditioning and will not move from it....not even to do my homework assignment for the photography class...but i did this lo of my sweetie (pic is before that hair cut)......

credits: QP by ksharonk designs; quote-elegant word art

Another Cold Salad

for these HOT days!!! This was pretty tasty...and you can use whatever veggies you have in the frig.....

Chop-Up Salad
one of each - red, green, orange pepper
1/2 red onion
1/2 English cucumber
box of grape tomatoes
6 good size radishes
2 stalks of celery
parsley
Chop all these up into small pieces and toss with this dressing:

Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic,chopped
salt and pepper to taste
generous shakes of dried herbs - oregano, basil, dill (or fresh if you have them)
shake or wisk all together...

Another nice salad is sliced red tomatoes, sliced mozarella cheece, fresh basil and drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar over it all......mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

here is a nice blog...great designer and so generous....don't forget to say thank you if you download: http://vicki20.blogspot.com/

Unplanned HairCut

well....josie is definitely a three year old.....she was put to bed the other night and was unusually quiet...well....she found her art scissors and cut all the hair on the top of her head...all off...oh, dear...momma was NOT HAPPY...."i look like a boy now", she states....so off to the hair salon the next day and they did a great job i think....(told my daughter she would laugh about this in years to come)...so here are the before and after pictures....(last night she tore the wallpaper off in her room...i remember saying to her momma "when you grow up i hope you have two just like you"...heeeeeeeeee,heeeee)

A different Slaw....

My dh is giving me a break!!....he took the granddaughter to the zoo this morning....yeaaaa!! I love her to pieces but this morning i am trying to recover from a bit of Vertigo....(awful dizziness)...they (doctors) say it is inflamation of the labyrinth in the middle ear.....just so uncomfortable...but it could be worse...(think that was also the reason for my irritability the other day....)....I made this wonderful slaw last night...saw Rachael Ray make it on her show and i have to say it was very good and great for these hot days....so here it is:

Carrot Slaw: (my name for it)
big bag of shredded carrots (i used two small for it was all i could find..about 1 pound)
half a head of purple cabbage sliced thinly
half a red onion sliced thinly
raisins (rachael used currents)
toasted chopped hazelnuts..1/2 cup
chopped parsley

toss all of the above into this dressing:

juice from one lemon
1 tablespoon of dijon mustard
salt and pepper
1/3 cup olive oil.....drizzle in and wisk all together...

as Rachael would say: YUMMMOOOOO

Aperture

this week we are learning all about aperture....so i used my new 50mm lens (not an auto focus)and did some shoots (in the heat...yes i did go out of the house yesterday)...i believe the more i practice this and change the settings the more i will "get it" but it is going slow but that is ok i have all the time in the world to get this down....so here are my examples of open and closed aperture.......

Weather is Crazy!

BOY is it HOT!!!!! i am a cold weather person...never hear me complain about "how cold" it is ... my ancesters came from Sweden....give me cold and i'll even take snow....I am staying in airconditioning today...me and my dogs...ice tea...and no shoes!! maybe i will sneak out to take some pictures for class assignment but maybe not...there must be some thunderstorms coming for my head (ear)is bothering me...(maybe the reason for my mood today...shape up .. you could have real problems)...anyway...so this makes me happy:

credits: GrundgedUpPhotoBlock-KPertiet; paper-MoonCatcher; Words-ElegantWordArt

Holiday Weekend

Hope everyone here in USA is having a happy, healthy July 4th Holiday weekend!! My Canadian friends...a Happy Belated Birthday!! Here is a little layout i felt the need to do today!! (quess who this is...lol):credits: Alpha_Scarletheels; font-BxAntiqueScript; paper and Modified template_BoolandDesigns

I CAN Learn....

Wow....trying to wrap this brain around new information...anyone else find that as you get older this becomes more difficult...good thing i am at least trying to use it for if not i can imagine what "my state of mind" would be...Photography class started on Monday and i have read and re-read all manuels, instructions, assignments...and i think i finally "got it"... The objective of this class (6weeks online over at Jessica's) is to use your camera out of the "auto" mode...so this week it is on shutter speed with a little ISO thrown in....(don't even ask me to explain)...So i did the first assignment just moments ago before the next pop-up thunder storm hits my area (lost electricity last night for a while)...as we speak the thunder is a clapping and my dogs are a barking....well here is what i did......