A New Attitude

I have been feeling sort of blah this past week (hence the no posting) but I'm finally over it! I think it has to do in part with my new rock star haircut! I have wanted to cut my hair short for some time now, but  just haven't had the courage until yesterday. My mom and friend both got their hair cut this week and it gave me the push I needed to make the change.

In cooking news, I made some delicious cinnamon cranberry mini muffins for our book club meeting last night. I want to try to make some meringues because there were some delicious chocolate ones available last night that I would love to be able to duplicate. I wonder if they're as hard to make as I think they are. We shall see!

I am a little obsessed with feather head pieces lately. I hope to make some to wear this weekend. They will look really cute with my new 'do! This cut is an inspiration in itself and I can't wait to make accessories to match my new style!

Spinach Bars and Molasses Crinkles

My mom and I had a Dining for Women dinner last night and we had to bring a dish. By we, I of course mean me. So I decided to try my hand at Spinach Bars...what goes best with that? Molasses Crinkles! Yes, it may be an odd combination but they were served at different times so it worked!  The spinach bars are basically a spinach quiche without the crust. Surprises of surprises it was a hit at the dinner! One woman even said she would hire me to cook for her. Possible career change? No, probably not, but it does means that my hubby won't have to cook all the time.

My mom came home while I was making the molasses crinkles and was shocked that I was still making them. They take about 10 minutes to cook. We only had 45 minutes before the dinner! She decided that we might be able to make them in time :) I couldn't seem to get a uniform size from the cookies.

I tried to make them smaller but  then the very next one would be about 2x the size! Oh well, I'll just have to cook some more to get more practice.
When I told my hubby that my food was a hit, he said he always knew I could cook with a recipe, especially when it didn't involve heating water. No risk of burning it (yes, that really happened!).

Until next time, craftily yours!

Rainy Weekend

What a rainy weekend! I was in Hartford's St. Patty's Day Parade on Saturday and it wore me out! It turned out to be a pretty do nothing weekend. I finished up a crochet project that I was working on. It's a baby sling/photo prop. I only frogged it 2 times before I got it the way I wanted! 
My plans for this week include more bread (yummy!), finishing a bag for a friend and  making more arm cosies. I am going to head for the library too. All this rain makes me want to read a good book and curl up by the fire. I just finished $64 Tomato. It was a funny read, one I highly recommend!

Carrot Soup

I have really been craving some carrot soup lately. We used to have it a friend's house during Christmas every year, but this year they changed it up with a lobster bisque. Still delicious, but not what I wanted! I mean, I still ate it of course...you can't be rude! I decided to take the plunge and make my own with the carrots we had growing in our fridge. I found a recipe online and modified it to our ingredients on hand.

Voila! Carrot soup. I think I should have followed the recipe a little more exactly because it turn out a little peppery and more like a carrot puree until I added more chicken stock!

What goes better with carrot soup than freshly made bread?! Nothing, so I made bread. It was a little underdone, but I completely blame the bread machine and not my lack of cooking skills for that one! Overall it was a nice meal, if a little peppery. Next time I'll know to a. use less pepper and b. make more bread!

An Introduction

As this is my first blog post ever, I thought it appropriate to introduce myself. My name is Jessica and I am a 27 year old wife, mother, crafter and wanna be chef. I wanted to start this blog as a way to share my creative triumphs (and horrible failures) with the world around me. I love to seek inspiration everywhere and I'm not afraid to try new things. I sometimes take on too many things and many projects get left by the wayside for the new shiny toy!

I hope my blog will focus my efforts in creativity and that you will keep me on track. I am not afraid to multitask but 10 U.F.O.s is a bit much! (For those who are curious U.F.O. = unfinished object.) My biggest inspirations are my loving and tolerant husband, and my beautiful daughter. Without them this creative life would not be nearly as fun as it is. Thank you for reading and I hope to blog another post soon!