Baker's Review Wednesday 3: Fudge Brownies

Sorry about no Baker's Review Wednesday last week . . . . I was just busy and we were getting meals and snacks since mom had her baby . . . we still are (thanks all you wonderful people who brought us meals . . . they were all DELICIOUS!!!).

Monday night I made these delicious fudge brownies.  I was planning on making cookie brownie bars, but we didn't have much of either butter or margarine, so I couldn't make the cookie dough part:(  Oh, well, I'll have to make them another time.

So no pictures of the whole process this time, just the recipe and pictures of the brownies:)  (Did you know scrapbook paper makes good backgrounds for taking pictures?).

These brownies are the best brownies ever . . . definitely better than out of a box, and these are the ones I make when I want brownies!  So here goes:

FUDGE BROWNIES

3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened

2 2/3 cup sugar

5 eggs

1 1/3 cup flour

3/4 cup baking cocoa

2/3 tsp. salt

1 1/3 tsp. vanilla

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs.  Combine flour, cocoa, and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well.  Stir in vanilla.  Spread into greased 9"x13" baking pan.  Bake at 325 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes or until brownies test done.

So these are simple to make and once they're out of the oven and have cooled down a bit, you got yourself some delicious brownies!!

*Note: Recipe originally for 15x10x1 inch pan, we made the measurments of ingredients fit for a 9x13 pan.  Recipe from my aunt Nancy Gilkerson.*

So go and whip up a batch of these yummy brownies!

Have a wonderful rest of the week!

This post is brought to you by:

  . . . this one little darling I know!!!!

Skirt to Dress Redo for Bronwyn

I found a skirt in my closet, sitting on the floor . . . Tara didn't wear it and it didn't fit me anymore.  I was the one who got it one time long ago . . . So I took it and decided I was going to make a dress for Bronwyn out of it.

First I was practicing, trying to make a top, using other dress tops as patterns, but seeing as I've never sewed any tops before, I didn't really know how they were made . . . so then mom helped me find a pattern to use for the top and I made another practice one to see if it would fit right . . .it did, so then I made the top.

For the skirt, I cut off the elastic waistband, and then gathered the skirt at the top to fit the size of the top; I sewed those together to get a dress . . .but the dress needed something else, so I took a piece of the eyelet fabric I used on the top and made a ruffled sash thing at the waist and sewed it on.  Under the ruffled sash was the drawstring from the skirt, so I could have a tie in the back of the dress.

I photographed Bronwyn this morning in the dress I made her.  It was pretty fun . . . sorry for all the shadows and not very great quality photos . . . anyways, this is going to end up being her Easter dress because Mom didn't end up getting her one this year and I was planning on making this dress, so we decided it could be her Easter dress:)

Hope you are all having a wonderful day because it's so beautiful . . . blue sky, warm  . . .

Just a Quick Update

Hi everyone ~

This is just a short little post for you everyone who reads my blog . . . yes, I'm still around, but no, I have not posted very often lately:(  I'll try to get posts on here more often . . . even I myself hate it when I wait around more than 3 days . . . I'd like to post at least every two days, but obviously that isn't always going to happen:)

Sooooo . . . I have been crafting lately . . . making clothes!!!  I have found out that sewing clothes can be pretty fun, even though I still have TONS to learn about making clothes, but I'm getting there.  So I do have a couple projects to show you guys, but I just need to get them on my models (the people they're for; Bronwyn & Morgan) and take some pictures.  So hopefully tomorrow I'll get the pictures of Bronwyn at least and post them . . . and I should be able to take them outside in beautiful weather . . .it's supposed to be 70 degrees . . . totally exciting!!!!!

So I hope everyone has had an awesome week . . . now instead of starting on another craft project, I should do some homework, as I skipped a couple days this week (the main thing I need to make - up is geometry, which I really don't feel like doing . . .   :(  . . . )  So I guess I also need to write a couple papers for P.E. if I want to get my points for the two days I missed.  And I need to work on a big project for English about Mary, Queen of Scots.  So who wants to do my homework for me???  Just kidding, I better do it:)

So for real now I better pop out the homework and start working on it instead of blogging and reading other blogs and crafting:(

Have a wonderful weekend!

p.s. Just because I know we need a picture on this post and so we can see something cute . . .



Brotherly Love . . . Walker & Hunter peering at Morgan  



More Pictures of Morgan Elaine

Just because she's so cute . . . and wide-eyed . . . and precious!



(I wore these clothes when I was a baby and they're still so cute!)

But now instead of gazing at this little girl (well, pictures of her anyways) I need to go put laundry going, empty the dishwasher, fill it, clean the kitchen, babysit the 3 littles (except Morgan) . . . and the list goes on . . .

Have an awesome day!

We Welcome with Joy: Morgan Elaine + A Few Other Things!

I feel so blessed to have so many wondeful siblings and even more blessed to have another one now . . . especially since it's a girl!

Morgan Elaine Kulla was born on Sunday, April 17th, 2011, at 1:05 P.M!!!!!



Morgan & Mom on Monday, the 18th.

She is so wonderful and her hair is soo AMAZING!!!  She has lots of hair, and it's a blond color.  Here's a picture where you can see her hair pretty good, also taken on Monday.

And here's some more of Morgan, and her with other people, because she's cute!

Her coming home from the hospital outfit.



Wearing long john's that were from Aunty Clara a long time ago.



Forrest, Dad, Walker, & Morgan this morning.

Morgan this morning. . . such a darling picture of her!

Morgan & me at the hospital - I went with Dad when he went to pick mom up.

Then last night I had to make a burp cloth especially for Morgan.  I had already been thinking about making one if Mom had a girl when I found some really cute flannel fabric in a bin of fabric Mom has.  For the back I used white chenille.  It's definitely not perfect by any means, but I still think it's pretty cute:)

Today, I took some pictures of this flower I got from Brian & Rosa's wedding reception for helping serve food.  (Rosa is my cousin's oldest daughter.)  It was a very pretty flower . . . I made sure to get a pink one because I love pink!!  :)

So since before last night, my crafty life has pretty much  been a blank slate:(  I should hopefully start doing some more crafts again soon, in between school work, holding Morgan (because I want to!), cleaning, exercising, and doing whatever else I need or want to do! 

I hope everyone has had a wonderful week so far!  I have half days today and the rest of this week, so I'm happy!  Have an awesome day . . . it's pretty beautiful outside!



Modestifying: Part 1

I got this skirt from my Aunt Marti (Thanks, Marti!).  She got a bunch of skirts from Old Navy that were really cheap and she gave me a couple.  I loved them, but they were too short!

For this navy blue skirt, which I really liked the style and color of, I just added a strip of black fabric to the bottom.  Well, first I made it smaller, since it was a size large:)

I really like it though, and it's nice to know I can make a skirt modest even if you have to buy a shorter skirt!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Turtleneck Sweater Redo

Does everyone else out there have some sort of clothes or shoes or something that they just do not wear for one reason or another?  Well, I do.  I've had this turtleneck sweater hanging in my closet for like forever, and I just don't wear it - I don't really do the turtleneck style, I guess.  Before, I've thought about trying to redo it, but then I was like, "What if it doesn't turn out?"

Well, I finally got over that last Saturday and started cutting.  Who cares if it doesn't turn out since I wasn't going to wear it the way it was anyways, right?!?  So Saturday evening I cut the shirt in half all the way up, measuring and trying to keep it even as I went.  (Sorry guys, no before pictures - just imagine a turtleneck sweater.)  That was how far I got that night.

So there it sat, waiting for me to do SOMETHING to it.  Tuesday, I decided I REALLY should finish the crazy thing and see if it would turn out.  So I cut off the turtleneck.  Then I cut around the collar, making it into a normal looking sweater thingy.  I was thinking about just turning all the edges under and sewing it, but then I noticed the fabric from the turtleneck.  It ended up being the *perfect* amount!  I cut up the turtleneck into four even stips.  I sewed them together, end to end.  Then I folded and ironed the whole long strip in half, pinned it onto the sweater, and started sewing.  After I sewed it on and ironed it down, I top stitched it, too.

And there was my free, lovely sweater!  It is kind of exciting to get something new from some old thing sitting in your closet.  Now I'm excited to do some more redo's, since this one actually turned out!  Yay!!!

Would anyone like a tutorial for a turtleneck sweater to this type of sweater thing?

Hope everyone had a wonderful day! 

Baker's Review Wednesday 2: Toffee

I realized today that I haven't been posting very much lately . . . oops:(  Don't like when I do that!!!  But then I remembered that I needed to bake something today, too, so I started looking through recipe books, and I thought of this simple and delicious toffee recipe.  I really like it, and everyone else seems to, too:)

So here's the recipe in picture/writing format.  I'll give you a recipe like I do my others at the bottom of the post;)

So first you line your pan with foil and lay out 24 saltine crackers.  I had a picture of that but accidentally deleted it, so here's a picture of after I took it out of the pan (way later), just so you can see the layout of the crackers.

Next put the butter and brown sugar in a kettle.

Turn the heat on and mix the sugar and butter up.

Once the sugar and butter mixture is boiling, boil for 3 minutes.

Pour mixture over crackers.

Bake at 400 degrees for 5-7 minutes or until bubbly.

Sprinkle with chocolate chips and let it sit there so the chocolate can melt.

Once chocolate has a chance to melt, spread out and sprinkle with almonds.

Refrigerate until chocolate is hardened.  Take the foil off the toffee.

Break up into pieces.

Enjoy!!!!!

So my review on this recipe . . .my thoughts?!?!:

I love this recipe.  It's so simple, easy, and delicious.  It's a quick treat and everyone will love it . . . well, I think they will anyways!  So everyone should try this wonderful recipe for toffee.

By the way, it's optional to put the almonds on top.  If we have them, we put them on top.  If we make it on impulse, and we don't have them . . . well, oh well!

Toffee:

24 saltine crackers

2 sticks butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips

optional sliced almonds

Line 9x13 pan with foil.  Place saltine crackers on bottom.  Melt together butter and brown sugar; boil for 3 minutes.  Pour butter and brown sugar mixture over crackers.  Bake at 400 degrees for 5-7 minutes, or until bubbly.  Cover with chocolate chips; let melt and then spread out.  Sprinkle almonds on top.

(This recipe is from my aunt, Darla ~ Thanks for the wonderful recipe!)

So what do you guys think?  Do you like me doing the picture tutorial recipe and the plain 'ol word one, or do you just like the word recipe . . . no picture tutorial???  Either way is fine with me . . . let me know what you'd like to see.  Also, is there any certain types of recipes you'd like to see?  I'd love to hear from everyone!

Hope everyone has a wonderful day . . .I have something fun I made to show you soon!

*Linking up to linky parties on my side bar.*