Category Archives: Crafts

Happy St. Patrick’s Day 2017 (now that we are both Irish)!

“If you’re lucky enough to be Irish, you’re lucky enough.”

Our mantra has always been that everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. This year, we have found out that it is actually true for us. Kevin is Irish and is named for his Irish roots. Recent new family DNA testing reveals that Roy is 13 percent Irish! Erin go Bragh!

TASTY GREEN ICE CREAM

We love our new ice cream maker and have been experimenting with different flavors. In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, it’s Andes Candies Green! We made a standard vanilla ice cream, added some drops of green food coloring and 1/2 teaspoon of mint extract. Five minutes before the ice cream was done, some chopped Andes Candies were added to the mix. Fittingly green, minty, and festive!

If you have an ice cream maker, follow your directions for vanilla ice cream and add the last three ingredients listed below.

1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar
pinch salt
2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 drops green food coloring*
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract*
1/2 cup chopped Andes candies*

Source: Cuisinart ice cream maker recipe booklet

*These are ingredients we added to the recipe.

SHAMROCK DECORATION

Place a small pot of shamrocks (ours were bought at Stop and Shop for $2.99) in a holiday pot picked up at a party store. Attach chocolate gold coins around the edge using double stick tape. A rainbow wall decoration adds the perfect background for our “pot at the end of the rainbow”. This works well for a party, but for a more permanent decoration, use plastic gold coins and attach them with craft glue.

Work in Progress

We have been learning to create signs with stencils and stamps. Here is a work in progress for St. Patrick’s Day:

Some of the materials used: acrylic paints, stencils, stamps, old boards.

Here is a sign we created for St. Valentine’s Day based on a quote by Broadway’s “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda in response to the Pulse nightclub shooting.

“Love is love is love is love is love…”

A TRIO OF IRISH JOKES

What’s Irish and stays out all night? Paddy O’furniture!

How is a best friend like a 4-leaf clover? Because they are hard to find and lucky to have.

Never iron a 4-leaf clover because you don’t want to press your luck!

Source for all jokes : Jokes4us.com

THE BEARS

The bears followed the rainbow to the Pot o’ Shamrocks!

Slainte!!!

Roy and Kevin

We Are Still Thankful!!!

Leave a reply

In this mini blog, we share how to make lollipop turkeys and a fun idea for easy place card holders. (Warning – pine cones are back!)

LOLLIPOP TURKEY CRAFT:

We decided to put a Thanksgiving twist on the lollipop ghosts that are one of our Halloween staples.

You will need:

lollipops (we use Tootsie pops)
one sheet of 8 1/2″ x 11″ white card stock for each turkey
orange tissue paper
small googly eyes – any color
1 sheet yellow construction paper
scotch tape
double stick tape
markers and crayons
ball point pen
scissors

How to create:

Print out our turkey template (above) onto card stock
Color with crayons and markers
Cut out with scissors
Our turkey body is 5.5 inches from top to bottom but when printed from the blog on our printer it comes out 5 inches. Either size works fine.

Wrap pop with 4-inch circle of orange tissue paper and tape to secure. Make sure a bit of the lollipop wrapper shows to create the turkey’s waddle.
With double stick tape, add mini googly eyes and 1/4-inch yellow paper triangle for beak.
Poke hole in turkey with ballpoint pen.
Place lollipop into hole and fasten stick to back with tape.

Make it fancy! Use markers, paints, crayons, whatever your favorites are. These turkeys were made with sharpies and highlighters.

Gobbling fun!

One last thing: Carefully remove tissue paper from pop and put it back on turkey body with double stick tape, so you don’t end up with a headless turkey.

Lollipop ghosts:

Open link below for how to make the easy lollipop ghosts that were the inspiration for these turkeys.

https://funclesarts.com/2015/10/30/last-minute-mayhem/

PINE CONE PLACE CARD HOLDERS

Spray paint some flat-bottomed pine cones gold (or whatever color works in your decor). Add a themed holiday sticker to computer-generated name plates. They make great place card holders for Thanksgiving or any gathering.

The gold spray painted cones are great, look for them in future holiday posts!

We are thankful for our loved ones, our health and for you, too!

Enjoy!

Roy and Kevin

Pine Cones 101

Leave a reply

” You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” – Maya Angelou Source: Goodreads

For the first in our mini-blog holiday crafting series, we feature one of several pine cone entries, starting with a centerpiece made with painted pine cones. This is an easy, fun, affordable idea whether you use pine cones you find in nature or buy at your local craft store (don’t forget to use coupons!). Here is what we did. (Figured you were “pining” to know all about it!)

PREPPING THE PINE CONES

If you find your pine cones in nature, they will need a little prep to make them usable for crafting and decorating.

There are a couple of ways to prepare your pine cones. The method we used was to bake them in a pre-heated 200 degree oven for 1/2 hour, and allow them to dry for a couple of days.

For more about pine cones preparation, check out this link:

http://tipnut.com/how-to-prepare-preserve-pinecones/

PAINTING THE PINE CONES

We chose orange and black for this fall and Halloween craft.
The cones were spray painted in a well ventilated area. (Our patio fit the bill.)
A disassembled cardboard box covered with newspaper protected the concrete floor.
One side was painted, allowed to dry a half hour, before turning over and painting the other side.

Stand pine cones up in saved egg cartons to allow for thorough drying.

Bonus Craft Tip: Save your egg cartons, they work well for paint projects and for storing small items such as beads and pins.

Plan ahead – avoid the fumes!

We prefer to use spray paints outdoors. If you are planning to spray paint pine cones, or anything for Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas, do so before outdoor temperatures get too cold. For best results, spray paints should be used in 50-90 degrees Fahrenheit.

EASY AUTUMN CENTERPIECES

Once our black and orange pine cones were ready, we created these centerpieces using a glass trifle bowl and vase. Pump it up with a couple of mini-pumpkins!

Pretty and simple!

Here are a couple of different versions:

More pine cone and holiday craft mini-blogs coming soon!

Enjoy!

Roy & Kevin

‘Tis the season for holiday crafting!!!

Leave a reply

“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.” – Albert Einstein Source: Goodreads

We love making holiday crafts, but always seem to be doing them last-minute. Never will forget finishing handmade family Christmas ornaments in the car one Christmas Eve! (Sometimes having a 2-hour drive is a good thing.) This year, we are starting our holiday crafting early and thought we’d do a few “mini-blogs”, short posts featuring some of our favorite holiday craft ideas.

This week, we offer some ideas to make the crafting process easier and less expensive. Here are a few things we do to get ready:

BRAINSTORM

Write down any and all ideas you may have for holiday crafting. At this point, no thought should be discarded! The next day, re-visit your master list and factor in time and price constraints to develop your final craft plans for the season. If you are crafting with a partner, toss ideas back and forth. Very often, you’ll come up with good ideas which evolve into even better ones when two or more people are working together.

FIND INSPIRATION

Crafting ideas can come from anywhere. Check out crafting websites, borrow books and magazines from the library, watch craft segments on television, take a walk in your local park, or look at the decorations in stores and see if you can create your own versions.

HAVE A REALISTIC PLAN

Do you want to make things for every holiday that’s coming, or maybe just for one holiday? Do you have time to do what you would like to do? Keep your schedule in mind and be realistic about what you can accomplish. If you are following instructions, read them thoroughly before starting your craft.

GATHER MATERIALS

Before you start work on your creations, gather what you need in one spot and make sure you have everything you need. Check lists work great!

NATURAL MATERIALS

If your projects involve working with materials you’ve gathered in nature, do your research about how to clean them.

We have several large pine trees on our property and gathered a bunch of pine cones for this year’s first craft project. They needed to be prepared before using. The website below offers how-to’s if you are working with fresh pine cones. Check out our next mini-blog for some pine cone craft ideas that will take you from Halloween through New Year’s!

http://tipnut.com/how-to-prepare-preserve-pinecones/

COUPONS

Don’t forget that money-saving coupons for craft stores are available on-line or in your local newspaper. This time of year, the stores are battling for your craft dollar, so there are some great coupons. Take a look before you shop. We ask that you do not shop at Hobby Lobby – their corporate philosophy is not socially responsible.

HAVE FUN!!!

Remember to have fun and enjoy the process!

Enjoy

Roy & Kevin

Summer Garden!!!

1 Reply

“The most lasting and pure gladness comes to me from my garden.” – Lillie Langtry*

We have had a busy July with some extra work responsibilities. It’s nice to have the beauty of our patio garden to enjoy!

This week, for our 80th blog post, we feature a quick shrimp & vegetable recipe, stencilled signs, a garden update, and, of course, the bears!

EASY SHRIMP AND RICE

This dish is a perfect weeknight meal. It’s quick, easy and delicious. An added bonus on a hot summer night – no oven required.

INGREDIENTS:

Two cups of instant brown rice, cooked according to package directions
1 lb of 41-50 shrimp, peeled and deveined with tails off
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 lb frozen mixed pepper strips
1/2 lb frozen broccoli and cauliflower mix
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste)
Two tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 rib of celery, chopped
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup frozen peas

HOW TO PREPARE:

Saute onion, mushrooms and celery in one tablespoon of oil until tender.
Remove and place in a Dutch oven.
Cook frozen peppers and broccoli/cauliflower mixture in microwave for 5 minutes and add to Dutch oven.
Toss shrimp with garlic powder and red pepper flakes.
Saute shrimp over medium heat in second tablespoon of olive oil until just pink.
Add shrimp to vegetables.
Stir in cooked rice.
Add frozen peas and soy sauce.
Stir, cover and cook on medium low heat for 5 minutes.
Serve and enjoy!

Make your own combination, add water chestnuts, bean sprouts, cooked carrots or whatever you like!

TRYING SOMETHING NEW: PAINTED SIGNS

Inspirational or humorous stencilled signs are very popular decorating items for home or garden, but can be very expensive. Why not try making your own?

A found piece of aged wood, and some inexpensive stencils, foam stippler brushes and acrylic paints from Michael’s (look for coupons!) made this project easy. Our stencil set had a full alphabet, punctuation marks and a leaf pattern, which went well with our, “Lets Grow”, message.

A couple of tips:

If your stencils come with directions, read them. (Maybe we will next time!)
Don’t rush. Do a letter at a time and allow it to dry. Acrylic paint dries quickly, so this crucial step will not take too long.
Sand paper and accent paint can help correct smudged letters.

We love how this sign came out and it has a special place in our garden. Which leads us to:

GARDEN UPDATE

“The Earth laughs in flowers.” Ralph Waldo Emerson*

We got this beautiful bird house, expertly painted by Roy’s soon-to-be five-year old great-niece, Kinsley, with the assistance from grandma, Lyn. Kinsley has a great eye for color combinations. After seeing photos of our garden, she knew where the bird house needed to go. It color-coodinates perfectly with our pot-full of pink and white petunias! (Thanks Kinsley and Lyn!)

This is a fun craft for any age. The unpainted birdhouses are available at craft stores. (This one came from Michael’s.) Acrylic paints do the trick. They dry fast and hold up pretty well outside. As an added bonus when working with kids, they wash off easily with soap and water.

Add embellishments to make your bird house festive; customize for different themes and holidays!

The Plants:

The warm summer weather has been a boon for our garden. The pepper plants, especially, are responding to the hot, humid weather. The flowers also are thriving – as long as we remember to water at least once a day!

GUEST GARDEN PHOTOS

We visited Kevin’s brother, Warren and sister-in-law, Sharon, this past weekend. They have a beautiful assortment of flowers. Here are a few pictures:

Kevin was pleased to see that they have a tiger lily plant, which they grew from a clipping taken from Kevin & Warren’s childhood home In Meriden, CT.

A second recent addition to our garden landscape and a nice surprise from this visit was Roy’s belated birthday gift, a trio of beautifully blown glass solar garden lights. (Thank you Sharon & Warren!)

FOOD ART

Light on the red onion.

JOKE OF THE WEEK:

How well is your garden going to grow? Only thyme will tell! Source: Nestinstyle.wordpress.com

THE BEARS

The bears are admiring our new “Let’s Grow” sign (featured image).

Enjoy & stay cool!

Roy & Kevin

*Quote source-brainyquote.com

Help the Earth? Yes We CAN!!!

1 Reply

“Conservation is a state of harmony between men and land.” – Aldo Leopold, author and conservationist

Today, April 22nd, marks the 46th anniversary of Earth Day, reminding us of the importance of taking care of our home, the Earth!

This week, we offer our new recipe for three-bean vegetable chili, a craft using tin cans, recycling tips, a garden update and, of course, the bears!

THREE-BEAN VEGETABLE CHILI

For health reasons and to reduce our carbon footprint, we have been having more meat-free meals. Here is a recipe for a delicious, satisfying chili that fits the bill.

Ingredients:

two tablespoons olive oil
one cup onion, chopped
one cup yellow squash, diced
one cup frozen corn
one lb. bag mixed pepper strips
one 16 oz. can vegetarian refried beans
two 15.5 oz. cans each of black beans, cannellini beans, red kidney beans, rinsed
one 28 oz. can diced tomatoes
one tablespoon tomato paste
one cup medium salsa
one 4.5 oz. can chopped green chilis
two tablespoons (or to taste – careful very spicy!) chipolte in adobo sauce, pureed. (Hint: puree a 7 oz. can in the food processor and freeze the excess for future use.)
two cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried cumin
two cups water

To make:

Saute onions and squash in olive oil for 2 minutes.
Stir in minced garlic.
Add corn and pepper strips and cook until they are defrosted and warm.
Stir in refried beans and heat until incorporated with other vegetables.
Add the remaining ingredients.
Salt to taste. (Canned items may have a lot of salt, so use caution. You can always add more later.)
Simmer for 20 minutes.
Serve with guacamole, sour cream, chips and your favorite toppings.

Here is an interesting post about the impact of beef on the environment:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/21/beef-environmental-impact_n_5599370.html

SAVE YOUR CANS!

The chili recipe above uses a lot of canned items, and the cans should be recycled. As another option, why not make the cute tin can man, woman or robot (featured photo above)? Place him or her in the garden for whimsical decor. Over time, it will rust beautifully and add even more charm to the patio! (If that’s possible!)

We used:

One 16 oz. can for the head
One 28 oz. can for the body
Eight 6 oz. cans for the legs and arms (two for each limb)

You will also need:

wire
drill
wire cutters
silver duct tape

To make:

Remove labels from cans, clean and wash.
Drill holes at the areas where you want to attach pieces together.
Attach limbs and head to body with wire, twist to secure in place.

We used some colorful magnets for our face and buttons, but you could use screws, hardware, paints, stickers or whatever will show your creation’s personality! Use silver duct tape to cover wires and sharp edges on cans.

We have just started to work with this idea, so look for updated tin can creations in future blogs.

Warning! Will Robinson! Danger!!! This is not a toy! This is a decorative item we plan on using in our garden. The wires and can pieces are sharp. Use caution when assembling and displaying your creation. As with all of our projects, do this at your own risk!!!

A COUPLE OF INFORMATIVE, EDUCATIONAL EARTH-FRIENDLY LINKS:

Here’s one from the EPA about recycling and ecology:

https://www.epa.gov/earthday

Here is last years post with some good ideas and links:

https://funclesarts.com/2015/04/19/the-earth-is-in-bloom/

GARDEN UPDATE

Still a little early to plant our flowers and vegetables. Today was a beautiful summer-like day, so we brought some of our houseplants outside to soak up the sun and meet our tin can creation.

Repurposing is very earth-friendly, and the garden is a great place to make that happen. Here are photos of the toolbox we adapted into a planter, and the desks (no longer house-worthy) we used as garden tables.

Flash back to repurposing:

FOOD ART

Don’t cry, the flowers will be back soon!

(Shopping day is tomorrow, so onions are this weeks star!)

JOKE OF THE WEEK

Why are recycle bins optimistic? Because they are full of “cans”!

Source: amomwithalessonplan.com

THE BEARS

Inspired by this week’s craft, the bears wanted to get in on the act!

However, they found it more comfortable resting on the Earth map pillow!

(Earth map pillow was made from a recycled fabric remnant years ago!)

Enjoy!

Roy & Kevin

Academy Awards 2016!!!

1 Reply

We love the Academy Awards and like to have a nice meal and dessert while watching the show. For this year’s awards celebration, we chose to highlight walnuts and strawberries throughout our meal. Hope you enjoy this unique brie cheese appetizer, our salad entrée, and strawberry shortcake ice cream cake. Also offered are an easy Academy Award banner idea, a plant update and, of course, the bears!

HONEY AND WALNUT BAKED BRIE

We found this great recipe for brie in puff pastry on-line. It’s unique because the brie is sliced sandwich-style and the walnut/honey mixture fills what becomes the ultimate cheese sandwich. Hmm . . . we hear Brie is a favorite for this year’s Academy Awards. Oh wait! That’s Brie Larson, favored to win Best Actress for her performance in “The Room”. Good luck to all of this year’s nominees.

http://www.puffpastry.com/recipe/50003/honey-and-walnut-baked-brie

WINNING SALAD

Champagne vinaigrette coats this delicious salad which combines strawberries, walnuts, cherry tomatoes, goat cheese, and Dole Spring Mix Salad. Check out our crispy chicken or shrimp recipes in the links below to make this salad a great entrée!

https://funclesarts.com/2015/08/17/mystery-solved-fun/

https://funclesarts.com/2016/02/06/super-weekend/

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE ICE CREAM CAKE

What you need:

1.5-qt strawberry ice cream
shortbread cookies (we used Pepperidge Farm 5.5 oz.)
toasted walnuts, ground
1/2 tub of whipped topping
5 ounces strawberry jelly (we prefer Polaner All Fruit)
sliced strawberries (fresh or frozen)

How to prepare:

Spray loaf pan with cooking spray.
Line pan with parchment paper or wax paper, overhanging the pan on all sides.
Put a layer of ice cream in bottom of pan.
Add a layer of sliced strawberries on top of ice cream.
Add a layer of cookies; 6 cookies work well for first layer.
Repeat with second layer of ice cream, sliced strawberries and cookies. Use cookie pieces to fill in if necessary.
Wrap up and freeze overnight.

Invert ice cream cake onto platter. If cake will not release, place pan in warm water for a few minutes.

Mix whipped topping with strawberry jelly.
Frost cake with topping mixture.
Sprinkle with crushed nuts.
Decorate cake with strawberries.
Re-freeze.
Enjoy!

This ice cream cake idea has limitless possibilities! Combine your favorite wafer cookie, ice cream and fruit for an easy, delicious dessert. Our next mashup might be chocolate wafer cookies, coffee ice cream and bananas! What other combinations would work?

NAPKIN BANNER

We made a banner out of these fun movie-themed napkins found at Party City. Simply string a ribbon or wire between two points and place the napkins over them. These napkins could serve multiple purposes. They can be used as place cards for a sit down dinner or to identify food options at a buffet. Just use white chalk to fill in details on the napkins.

DON’T FORGET TO VOTE!

There have been a lot of unbelievable, shocking, comical and jaw-dropping “performances” this year. But enough about the presidential elections! The Oscars honor the best in moviemaking.

Here is a printable ballot for this year’s Academy Awards. Print out enough ballots for your party and have everyone vote for their favorites. Offer a prize for the person with the most correct choices. Maybe a bottle of champagne?

http://www.ibtimes.com/oscars-2016-printable-ballot-watching-88th-academy-awards-home-2323593

More fun stuff!

For more ideas, check out last year’s blog at:

https://funclesarts.com/2015/02/21/oscar-oscar-oscar/

PLANT UPDATE

Our amaryllis plant has really grown and grown. A fun project for the winter months, we highly recommend planting this remarkable bulb. They are available at garden centers or online.

FOOD ART

These strawberries have been photo-brightened to look their best, just in time for the Oscars!

THE BEARS

The bears featured at the top of the blog are dressed up and ready for the Red Carpet!

Enjoy!

Roy & Kevin

Warming Up for St. Valentine’s Day

1 Reply

The northeast is bracing for bitter cold weather. Our hope is that you all find warmth with family and friends this St. Valentine’s Day weekend. Plus, it’s a great excuse to eat some chocolate! This week, we share our take on some delicious chocolate truffles, some ideas for using last week’s woven heart baskets, a plant update, and of course, the bears!

EASY TRUFFLES

Ingredients:

one 8 oz. package light cream cheese, softened
three cups confectioners sugar, sifted
three cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
cocoa powder, chopped walnuts, coconut, dried fruit sprinkles

How to make:

Beat the cream cheese until smooth.
Gradually beat in confectioners sugar.
Stir in melted chocolate and vanilla.
Refrigerate 1 hour.
Form into one inch balls.
Roll in toppings of your choice.

Varieties for truffles are almost endless. Chocolate and orange go great together, so replace the vanilla with same amount of orange juice and 1/2 teaspoon of orange zest. We also stuffed truffles with dried fruit – tastes like a decadent “Chunky Bar”.

WOVEN PAPER HEARTS

Last week, we introduced this easy paper craft. Here are a couple of ways we used these hearts for St. Valentine’s Day this year.

Decorative Banner

Displayed “clothesline style” with photos and cards, attached to twine with painted clothes pins, they add great dimension to a holiday banner. We used a variety of different papers to make the hearts for a fun display.

Gifts

The woven hearts were mass-mailed to great-nieces and great-nephews filled with stickers, candy, hair clips and toy cars. We placed the filled hearts in treat bags secured with painted clothes pins adorned with heart stickers.

Here is the link for how to create these paper baskets.

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/Heartbasket.shtml

For more St. Valentine’s Day ideas, check out last year’s post:

https://funclesarts.com/2015/02/13/happy-st-valentines-day/

PLANT UPDATE

Our Amaryllis is growing like crazy, and now requires a stake for support. A saleswoman at a big-box store gave us a great, money-saving idea on what to use for stakes. She suggested we buy marshmallow s’mores sticks, which cost 19 cents for a package of four. These wooden sticks are 31 inches long, easy to cut and they work great for a light-weight stalk! Helpful tip!

FOOD ART

Last week’s tomato. Tomatoes are sometimes called love apples! Great for St. Valentine’s Day!

THE BEARS

The bears show their “light side” by playing with a strand of heart-shaped lights!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

“In dreams and in love, there are no impossibilities!” – Janos Arany

Enjoy!

Roy and Kevin

Super Weekend!

1 Reply

It just doesn’t seem right that the Patriots are not in Super Bowl 50. Still, it’s a great event, and we will be tuning in for Lady Gaga’s national anthem, the game (go Broncos), the commercials and Cold Play’s halftime show.

Food is always a great part of Super Bowl Sunday, and in this week’s blog, we share our Crispy Baked Shrimp, served with our Amped-up Coleslaw.

We also feature this week’s Amaryllis report, our indoor/outdoor garden update and, of course, the bears!!!

CRISPY OVEN-BAKED SHRIMP

This tasty, oven-baked shrimp looks and tastes fried, but has a lot less fat and calories. Easy!

Delicious as a sandwich, too!

Ingredients;

1 lb. bag large, raw, deveined shrimp, 31- 40 ct.
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup Panko bread crumbs, separated – 3/4 cup and 1/4 cup
1 egg beaten
1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash Garlic Herb Mix
1/2 teaspoon chili powder

How to prepare:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Defrost shrimp, peel and remove tail.
Pat shrimp dry and place in bowl.
Mix flour, chili powder and Mrs. Dash.
Coat shrimp thoroughly with dry mix.
Add beaten egg to shrimp mixture and toss.
Add 3/4 cup bread crumbs to the bowl and toss to cover shrimp completely.
Place coated shrimp on parchment-lined sheet tray.
Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup crumbs over shrimp.
Bake 10 minutes.
Flip with spatula.
Bake 5 more minutes.
Serve and enjoy!

Hearty Coleslaw

This coleslaw is delicious. The broccoli slaw adds crunch and fiber.

Ingredients:

1/2 of a 12 oz. bag of Dole’s Classic Coleslaw
1/2 of a 14 oz. bag broccoli coleslaw (we use Mann’s)
1 cup of light mayonnaise
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon grainy Dijon mustard

How to prepare:

Mix the 2 coleslaw blends together.
Combine mayo, mustard and lemon juice.
Toss dressing with slaws and chill.

Great with the crispy baked shrimp!

ST. VALENTINE’S DAY IS COMING!!!

Woven Paper Heart Baskets

Roy learned these woven paper heart baskets from the PBS show “ZOOM!” Here is a link with details on how to make these baskets:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/Heartbasket.shtml

Check next week to see how we decorate and fill these charming hearts for St. Valentine’s Day.

PATIO & PLANT UPDATE

The bears ventured out onto the patio during today’s snow storm to clear off a sign!

Good thing they were able to warm up afterwards.

Weekly Amaryllis Report

The Amaryllis we received as a gift is thriving!!! It travels with the light throughout the day – early morning light on our office printer; mid-day light on the office counter and sunset in the apartment. Amazing growth in one week! Thanks Chris and Bernard!

This is where we started:

Here is this week’s growth! (Feed me Seymore!!!)

FOOD ART

The Bears

The bears have packed up their PATS gear and said goodbye and thanks for a great year! Now, they are focussing their energy on the UCONN Huskies! (The bears are always so um … subtle… with their decorations! (Yeah it’s the bears who do that!) GO HUSKIES!!!

Enjoy!!!

Roy and Kevin

Positively 2016!!!

2 Replies

Happy New Year! In the northeast, the new year brings cold weather. Our white bean chicken chili will positively warm you on a cold winter’s night. We also offer a couple of upbeat craft projects, our garden update, and of course, the bears, who share their New Year’s resolutions!

WHITE BEAN CHICKEN CHILI

We were surprised when we looked back at our previous 64 blogs and saw that we hadn’t shared one of our favorite recipes, white bean chicken chili. It’s a healthy, warming comfort food, perfect for a cold winter night!

This chili is easy to make and delicious.

Ingredients:

One teaspoon olive oil
One lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
Three 15.5 oz. cans cannellini beans, rinsed
One 16 oz. can fat-free refried beans
One 32 oz. carton low sodium chicken broth
One small onion, chopped
One 4 oz. can chopped green chilis
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon Mrs. Dash garlic herb mix
One teaspoon cumin

How to prepare:

Chop chicken breast into 3/4 inch pieces.
Warm olive oil over medium heat in a 5-quart Dutch oven.
Saute onion in olive oil until soft.
Sprinkle chicken with chili powder and add to Dutch oven.
Cook chicken until lightly brown, about 3 minutes.
Add cannellini beans, refried beans, chilis and cumin to pot.
Stir to break up refried beans.
Cover mixture with chicken broth.
Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
Simmer 20 minutes or until thickened.
Serve with tortilla chips, guacamole, olives (Kevin’s favorite), green onions, salsa, sour cream or any of your favorite toppings.

Adjust seasonings to make it more hot or mild according to your own taste!

COLLAGE

The new year is a hopeful time and one way to maintain that feeling is to surround yourself with positive messages. We combined two uplifting thoughts into one inspirational piece of art.

We cut out letters from old magazines and newspaper inserts, choosing contrasting sizes, colors and fonts. If you can’t find all the letters you need for your project, use stickers or print letters from the computer. Once all of our letters were gathered, they were attached to a piece of specialty scrapbook paper cut to fit the size of the frame. Gift wrap or construction paper also could be used as a background. Total cost for our framed project was about $6.00! This easy and effective type of collage has many applications. It’s a fun project for kids and adults alike. We’d love to see your positive messages for 2016!

SPEAKING OF POSITIVE MESSAGES

People appreciate being remembered. We make a point of mailing birthday, anniversary and holiday cards to family and friends throughout the year. To make this easier, one thing we do at the beginning of the year is to note special occasions on a wall calendar that hangs in our living room. It’s an easy way to keep track of card-worthy events throughout the year. Who doesn’t like to be thought of with a card? We recently received a touching, handwritten thank you note from Kevin’s 5-year old great-niece, and it made our day. Positivity bounces back and forth!

PATIO UPDATE

We removed the decorative holiday items this week, but left the greenery and lit tomato cages. The greenery will be removed when it starts to dry out. Hoping the tomato cages will be glowing on the patio all winter.

Sign for the Patio

While we were designing the “Create Peace” collage, we came upon a beat up old door from a long-discarded cabinet. A quick paint job and fun message adds a bit of whimsy! Let’s grow!

Hitchcock’s view from our patio:

Is Tippi Hendren in town? (Rizzolty rozzolty now now now) This photo from our patio reminds us of Hitchcock’s classic movie, “The Birds”.

FOOD ART

THE BEARS

The bears are doing pretty well with their resolutions!

Enjoy!

Roy & Kevin

	roydrewartsetc on Thanksgiving post number one!…
	roydrewartsetc on New Holiday Blog Project!
	roydrewartsetc on Happy, Bunny-Filled, Colorful…
	roydrewartsetc on Happy St. Patrick’s…
	roydrewartsetc on St. Patrick’s Day 2…

Funclesarts

Because creativity can be simple, affordable, and it makes life more fun!

Category Archives: Crafts

Happy St. Patrick’s Day 2017 (now that we are both Irish)!

We Are Still Thankful!!!

Pine Cones 101

‘Tis the season for holiday crafting!!!

Summer Garden!!!

Help the Earth? Yes We CAN!!!

Academy Awards 2016!!!

Warming Up for St. Valentine’s Day

Super Weekend!

Positively 2016!!!