Friday, February 13, 2015

{this moment}

A single photo, capturing a moment from the week.
A special moment. A moment I want to remember.

:: Inspired by Soule Mama ::

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments, for all to find and see.

Waiting for her Dad, in the metal shop... it's a robot thing.

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Love in a Bite Sized Treat

This is the bite-sized Valentine Maria is sharing with her classmates this year. It's a teeny brownie with a festive flag pick. Festive and sweet~

Here's how they were made...

Supplies:
Mini condiment cups
Washi tape (also called paper tape)
Scissors
Cake or brownie batter

When Maria decided to make mini cupcakes for her class party, I suggested we could decorate them with little flags. Working together we made at least forty of them... fun, easy, and cute! We happened to have this washi tape in our craft stash, and toothpicks in our baking drawer. {I suggest using the toothpicks with a decorative finish on the top, so there's only one sharp end. We found ours at Mitsuwa... a terrific quantity, very reasonably priced.}

At first, aligning the tape took a few tries. The paper tape is very forgiving, and even though it holds well, it also can be pulled apart to adjust. Maria liked working with the polka dotted tapes, because they were easier to center by placing the toothpick between rows of dots.

After folding the tape over the toothpick, we trimmed the end. A pennant cut looks pretty, too. Just snip out a triangle shape from the end.

Ta-Da!

We found the condiment cups at Smart & Final. And the brownie mix is Trader Joe's Truffle Brownie mix. {Have you tried TJ's Truffle Brownies? These bite sized treats are scrumptious!} Each cup held about three teaspoons of batter... and the ones with more tended to overflow... a tasty mess!

Maria is very excited to be giving each school friend a small token of her esteem, and one for teacher, too.

{And yes, we did do a test run with cake batter. Obviously they bake quicker than a full size cake, so don't step away from the oven for too long. We love the mini-many decorating options for these wee treats.}

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Love Looks Like...



Love looks like a blossom, green leaves, a weathered stump, like a rambling garden, a bit gone to seed. A garden for the birds, where managing weeds is done by the chickens and goats, and one is delighted by whatever pops up.

Monday, February 09, 2015

Love Looks Like...

Maria and Sandy

Love looks like a place and people you can return to, and connect with, where you are welcomed with open arms and a 2102 Paradox passion!

Sunday, February 08, 2015

Love Looks Like...

Love looks like an egg in a nest.

Next Saturday is Valentine's Day. I'm looking for love in the everyday, and enjoying the small, and great, reminders, that there is love in moments, and places, in things we do and believe, in who we are. An egg in a nest, means I have chickens, and a safe place to keep them. An egg in the nest means a delicious breakfast, or a special baked treat... something to share with friends and family. An egg in the nest means the goats are considerate, and don't crush the eggs that the hens lay in their cottage. An egg in the nest is pretty, warm, a happy discovery. I love finding eggs. I love finding the connections and meaning in all that makes this moment.