stuff

So...I just discovered that blogger hasn't sent me any comments posted in the last week. I'm sorry if y'all thought I was ignoring you yet again. I'll try to get them answered with the old fashioned copy and paste method, assuming I have your email...

I'm hosting a Pampered Chef party on Facebook. I'm really late in posting this so let me know ASAP if you want to join in on fb...orders are due tomorrow night but credit cards won't be charged until Monday. If you just want to order something and not play the games or check out the awesome fiesta recipes and tips you can head straight to https://www.pamperedchef.com/party/sarahballinger0513. Thanks for looking!

And for some "color" - this morning I stitched the last black and grey hexies for Mr Serious!! Woohoo!!! Tomorrow is both Feline Friday and HeLP for Hexie-aholics so look for an overall update. Maybe Z will cooperate for a group photo?! Only time will tell...

FYI - one of the missing comments asked me to post the original photo for Mr Serious. The original photo and all the status photos are listed on THIS page.

It's been one of those weeks...

Between tending to a sick kitty...

... and cleaning and cooking for a dinner party for 15 at my house last night there hasn't been much sewing going on here at Casa Grande.

I'm afraid the best I can show you is a little tatting. This is the start of Renulek's Spring 2017 doily. A new round is posted every week or so with #5 posted yesterday. I'm about to finish round 2.

The party is now over and I have exciting news to share tomorrow for HeLP so I expect to catch up on the doily soon.

Sick kitty is not going to be so easy...keep us in your prayers!

Tea Tuesday!

Hey y'all - did you go link up for Friday's linky parties yet?
There are prizes but you have to be in it to win it!!

So what's a tea party with out tea foods? I asked each person coming to my party to bring* something tea related and told them to think scones and clotted cream, finger sandwiches or sweets. For anyone that needed I ideas I sent them to my board on the Evil Website.

As is usual, we had way too much food!  I think you'll be able to click on this picture if you want.

I  was worried there wouldn't be enough food so I made:
     chocochip** buttermilk scones (the best scone recipe I've found so far!)
     clotted cream
     roast beef on rye sandwiches
     petit fours with purple ganache and dark choco drizzle.
     I had to empty the drizzle container so I also made choco abstracts to decorate the table.
     I also put out nut and fruit cups. Don't use frozen fruit - I'm just saying.
   
Oh goodness I almost forgot to tell you what I used the hexie silicone mold for - I made purple hexie sugar cubes!!! Bad Sarah for not taking pictures - Come back tomorrow and I'll add one to this post.

Michele brought Chocolates from Sweet Sarah's (a local ice cream/tea/lunch/choco hotspot!)

Nadine made carrot cake bites.

Kim made shortbread thumbprint cookies with homemade cherry jam!

Cathy made pumpkin bread and cranberry sandwiches

Claudia and Gretchen made ham salad and egg salad sandwiches cut with my hexie cookie cutter and pineapple cookies.

We had 4 kinds of tea along with the sugar cubes, milk, honey and lemon slices.

Luckily Mom gave me an antique lemon server for my birthday!

So, now I've made myself hungry all over again! I can't wait to have another tea party!
What's your fav tea party recipe?


*Before you think *I'm* evil to ask people to bring food to my own party; the last time I had a tea party and made everything myself, my friends said next time that they would each love to bring something. This gave me the time to have fun with what I made and look forward to other people's tastes as well.

** Blogger wanted to spell check chocochip but the only option it gave was chocoholic which is pretty much the same thing!

Tea for Two + Two

This past Sunday I finally got to host my tea party. It's been in the works for quite a while, after I started going through the Tea Time magazine at the library. I spent months collecting recipes and ideas. I had decided to have the party the Sunday before my birthday, not as a birthday party but I needed to pick a date (I hate making decisions) and that gave me enough time to pick who would attend and plan the menu and decorations. Of course, then I got bronchitis days before my birthday and was not energetic enough to cook or clean. Moving the party then meant that our party of 6 became 4 due to busy schedules which was too bad because I had picked the guest list from different circles of friends, making sure that everyone knew at least one other person. We certainly had fun tho and the girls want another tea party.

Tea parties typically have three courses: Scone, Savory and Sweet. My menu was: Apple Cider Scones, Toasted Smoked Gouda and Baby Swiss on Raisin Bread with apple slices, Triple Decker Ham Salad Stackers, Cucumber Sandwiches, Cumin Cream Cheese Crudites, Pear Puff Pastries, Martha Washington petite fours, Lavender Tea Cookies, homemade fudge and truffles. We voted for our favorite Savory dishes and the stackers and cheese/apple sandwiches tied.

Here's the table set with the first 2 courses: Scones and Savory. You can see the tea selections at the far end of the table but I now realize that my tea pot isn't on the table. It's an elephant that pours from his trunk!

Check out the giftie bags made with mouse-in-a-teacup fabric stuffed with tea bags, lemongrass hand soap and chocolates.

Wow - didn't realize this photo was so out of focus. Work with me here but this is part of the chocolates, the petite fours, puff pastries and lavender tea cookies. I guess I need to tell you that I am obsessed with petite fours, begged Santa to bring me an antique petite four server (he pulled through!!!) and then they were such a PITA to make ice that I may never make them again. Will have to work on the technique because Meghan threatened to make this my signature dish requested for all occasions. In the background is the card that Tyler drew for me. I have a great tan in the picture, no hair, no glasses and a purple belly. Ohh to be 5 again!

And here are the girls having fun. Kim was sniffing the (locally grown) chocolate mint tea bag before steeping it in her cup. From left to right is Kim, Erin and Meghan. Can't wait for the next tea party!

Etiquette lesson of the day: large dinner napkins remained folded in half with the fold towards your tummy in case you need to tuck something into the napkin for later disposal.

Vocab word of the day: doppelganger. I've never heard the ghostly part of this definition, just used it as someone who looks a lot like another person. As in my ex married my doppelganger...true story.

We had some other quote of the day but I can't remember. Hopefully one of the girls will post a comment if she remembers.

Surprise!

This past weekend my brother, SIL and I threw a surprise 40th Anniversary Party for my parents at the Castile Firehall. I think the biggest surprise was for the three of us 'cuz Mom and Dad didn't figure it out!

We had about 30 guests, excellent beef on weck and a cake decorated by my SIL, Kristie, to replicate the original. Kristie and I took turns sneaking into their house and office while Mom and Dad were on vacation to make copies from the wedding album and slide carousel and get the Christmas address list.


It was a fun evening for all, we FINALLY surprised Mom and Dad and the fire hall is finally clean. How long do you think that will last?