A Weekend at the Oregon Coast!

That's me second from the left with my girlfriends!
Haystack Rock, Cannon Beach, Oregon

What a wonderful weekend I had last weekend at Women's Retreat at the Oregon Coast...Cannon Beach to be exact, "Haystack Rock". It was a great time of friendship, worship, prayer and of course food. The weather was unbelievable, sun every day and barely any wind on the beach! It was "Spring " weather for Oregon. Cannon Beach has a lovely little downtown, full of shops and cafes, which made for a perfect afternoon walk. We stayed at the Surfsand Hotel. It was simply beautiful. We were all definitely pampered with such upscale accommodations. There were home baked chocolate cookies available in the lobby each day along with milk of course. Turn down service with chocolate mints on our pillows. Saltwater Taffy and Tillamook Ice Cream....and a view of the ocean and the gorgeous sunset. I hope you will be able to experience the beauty that Oregon has to offer some day. It is worth the trip!

A Touch of Spring is in the Air...

THE ABOVE ITEM IS SOLD!

The sun is shinning today in Portland, Oregon and there are a few blossoms popping out here and there...yes Spring is around the corner and Easter is on it's way. Here are a few of my Spring creations that I have been working on and have for sale at my etsy shop, Come take a peek...and let me know what you think. my etsy shop

Puff Pastry Cream Puffs...yummm

What a sweet surprise it was to find these delicious homemade cream puffs waiting for me when I arrived at the beautiful vintage home of my dear friend, Peggy. She is always a very caring and loving hostess to our church community group as we meet at her and her husband's home each week, but this was truy an exceptional treat for us all to enjoy. I just had to share it here with you all...and Peggy gave me the recipe to share as well. It comes from the cookbook, "Sweet and Sugar free", an all natural fruit-sweetened dessert cookbook! Hope you will find the time to make these soon. Peggy provided us with a choice of vanilla pudding or peach sauce for the middle and of course whipped cream or cool whip on top! The sky's the limit!

Puff Pastry

1/2 cup butter 1 cup unbleached white flour 1 cup boiling water 4 eggs

In a medium-sized saucepan, combine butter and boiling water. Heat to a boil. Turn heat to low, add flour, and stir until mixture is thoroughly blended and a ball of dough forms. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat thoroughly after each addition with a fork until mixture forms a cohesive dough. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls into a oiled baking sheet about 3" apart. Shape each cream puff with a knife into a mound that points up in the center. Bake at 400 degrees for 5 mins or until top starts to brown then reduce heat to 350 and bake 25 mins longer. Yields 25 cream puffs.

Enjoy!

A Yummy Friday Afternoon...

After finishing alot of work around the house today, I decided to take a break this afternoon and bake some homemade Banana Nut Coffee Cake. Those over-ripe bananas were sitting on the kitchen counter just calling to me. (I can never let them go to waste!) Well, it was still warm when the girls got home from school and the delicious aroma welcomed them in. It's time to go pour a nice cup of coffee in my "Fiestaware" mug and sit down and enjoy a piece myself! Baking is a gift to the soul for me.

A Sweet Valentine's Day To All!

What a fun day today...a day to let the special people in your life know how much you love them and appreciate them! I made this carton of "fortune cookies" for my family. The idea came from the February issue of martha Stewart Living...so easy...it just takes felt, wire and ribbon! The fun part is filling them with a special candy and a personalized fortune. So be sure you give & get a hug or kiss from someone special in your life today...and every day! Love you...

"Roses are Pink" Chic & Shabby Little Birdie!

I just love my new little pink terry chick and I hope you do too! As you can see she is completely hand crafted out of floral terry cloth and she sits in an adorable little baby shoe perched in a large pink teacup. She is even wearing a hand beaded necklace. Very Victorian looking and perfect in a shabby pink sitting room. She is available for sale now $12.50. Visit My Store She is so "tweet"! Sorry, this item is SOLD!

St. Patrick's Day Creations and More...

Today is Friday and I have been busy this week working on some new creations that I am in love with...I hope you are too. Since I come from the Logan and O'Brien clans and I married into the McKillion Family...I would be remiss if I did not celebrate the "green" day. I created this little "Four Leaf Clover Birdie", the "Wishing for the Green Teddy" and then I made this adorable little cream colored bird sitting in a tiny shoe. I just love how they come alive in my studio as I add each little detail...my girls wander in from time to time and encourage the process. These are available for sale at my etsy store: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5585713

In fact while I was working away last night, my daughter, Grace was having fun making a button bracelet for her teacher, after she fell in love with the one she made for herself that she wore to school one day. I will share with you her finished creation soon! The creative gene definately runs in the family...

"Four Leaf Clover Birdie" and the "Wishing for the Green Teddy" are SOLD

My Personalized Birdhouses

Here are some pics of the ten inch hand painted wooden birdouses that I have for sale on Etsy http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5585713 and Ebay. I have been offering these darling birdhouses for quite some time now. I personalize each house with the recipient's name and they make really wonderful gifts! I have had the priviledge of providing them to many realtors, mortgage lenders and individuals in my area to give as "Thank You" or "Appreciation" gifts. I am told that they have recieved terrific responses from their clients, relatives and friends. They are decorated in three different designs, apple tree, white picket fence and yellow daisies....and can be shipped already wrapped up and ready to be opened!

Our Christmas Gift

My youngest daughter, Taryn (age 13) really wanted a puppy for Christmas...she would do anything, she said. Ten days before Christmas my 18 yr old daughter, Grace and I discovered little Pearl at our local pet shop. Well, needless to say, we couldn't resist...and voila!...she is now a part of our family. They kept her at the pet shop so she would be a Christmas morning surprise and we visited her nearly every day and took her on outings. We picked her up on Christmas morning and put her in a box that we had already pre-wrapped under the tree. Well of course Taryn was thrilled...and to top it off...it started to snow about 30 minutes later! What could be better...a new puppy and snow for Christmas! I must admit the first couple of weeks were a bit rough, but we would never part with her. She is unbelievably cute and smart too. I am sure we will have many adventures with her!

My Premiere Post!

I am excited about creating my new blog. I look forward to offering the beautiful and unique creations that I offer for sale on both etsy and ebay as well as sharing my enthusiasm for decorating and gift making with those that visit my site.

This afternoon, in between working on this blog...I whipped up some chocolate chocolate chip cookies for my two youngest daughters to enjoy as they returned home from school! I know how to get on their good side! And of course as always, I had to leave a large portion of the cookie dough unbaked for them to enjoy as well...no lectures on the raw eggs please...there are some areas in you life where you just have to be daring!