100 follower giveaway! (closed)

Looking for Tasty Tuesday? go HERE
YEAH!!!!! 100+ followers! A Big thanks to everyone who is with me on this blogging journey. I've loved it so far and am excited to see what happens in the future. To say thank you I'm giving away TWO fabulous cookbooks. This first is:

Mexican (Cooks Collection) by Marlena Spieler 

The second book is:

Friday Night Bites...

So how can you win?

1. be a follower of this blog

2. Have this blog linked up on your blog sidebar

3. Share about this giveaway on your blog

SO, three chances to win! For each one leave a comment with which one of those options you fulfilled and ALSO which book you would like. There will be TWO winners, one for each book! Please leave your e-mail in the comment so I can contact you. Good luck! This giveaway will be open for a week.

Make your own PITAS and Tasty Tuesday Party

One of my favorite meals EVER!

Make Your Own Pitas

I always go for the whole wheat pitas, then all make all sorts of yummy things to put inside. I will admit, some of this food came from a box :o) I buy the falafel and humus mixes in a box and make them up.  Other great stuffing... chicken, olives, feta cheese, and lots of veggies! I also made some tzaziki from scratch. Here's the recipe:

1 tub of 0 fat greek yogurt

2 cups shredded cucumbers (squeeze to get the water out)

2 tbs minced garlic

a squeeze of lemon juice

You can add more or less to your liking. I LOVE this spread on my pita!

ON to the features for this week... Sorry I wasn't able to get around a comment on everyones post, there were SO many great ideas. I'm staying at my in-laws this week and didn't have access to Firefox. (anyone figured out how to post comments on Explorer???)

Ok! Let's start off with some

Sweet Tea - Tadka Pasta

with

Potato Salad - girlichef and Turkey Clubs - Easy to be Gluten Free

Finish off the meal with

Chocolate Coconut Cupcakes- Mom On a Mission

If you were featured grab a button from the sidebar. Can't wait to see you all back next week.

My Creative Cooking Space and Tasty Tuesday Party

 Just wanted to make you feel good about your kitchens today. Here's a peak at mine....its nice, but TINY! We live in a small apartment in Hong Kong and our kitchen is small too. Although, the place we lived before this was even smaller (when the oven door was open you couldn't get out of the room) it had a 2x2 counter space (in the whole kitchen!). I do love our place now, but sometimes get envious of larger places to spread out when creating... Notice something strange in here as well? Scroll down to see if you are correct.

Yep, There is a washing machine in the kitchen! Its very common here, anywhere else as well? I've put and arrow in the picture below.

 

 

Ok, now onto the features from last weeks party. Thanks SO much for linking up, in our third week we had over 50 links!!! yeah!

I tried to create my dream meal here withe the features:

Sausage Zucchini Pasta- The Cake Dish

Soft Sourdough Bread- girlchef

Scalloped Potatoes-Will Cook for Smiles

Mini Carrot Cake Cupcakes-Lady Behind the Curtain

Go check them out, and grab a button if you were featured!

 

Scrapping

 

My final project this week before we leave for the summer (heading back to the US to visit family for 6 weeks!) was to update the little ones scrapbook. For my two boys I am making a SIMPLE memory book that I will give them one day. I am doing one page per month for the first year of life, 4 pages for the second, and hoping to only have 2 for each year after that. I was a bit behind and made months 4-8 for the little guy. The pictures aren't great, but I like how the pages turned out. Keeping it simple is my scrap-booking theme!

Fathers Day Collage

Fathers Day is just a few days away! Need a quick and easy gift idea? I made this one last year, which I never posted. But, it sits on my husbands desk at work. I just cut the letters out of cardboard.

Now we have TWO boys, so this year again, dad is getting the same gift, but an updated version! I love it, becuase each year I can do an update, so easy! I did acutally buy letters this year, and I like the way they look. I just use Picasa for my edtiting and collages...FREE! Pick out a frame and you are finished!

"Authentic" Fried Rice & Tasty Tuesday Link Party

Yeah! Thanks to everyone who linked up last week. SO many delicious recipes and fabulous pictures! I think I was able to get around and comment on everyones...although I've been having lots of trouble with commenting (anyone else????) The only way I can seem to comment is browsing through firefox.. this is a new problem and not something I am loving recently! Anyway....on to this weeks recipe and party.

Authentic Fried Rice

I'm calling it this because I was taught this by my dear Chinese friend Grace. (one of the benefits of living in Hong Kong!)

1. Start with OLD rice. I never knew this until my cooking lesson. I guess the best is day old rice. You want it a bit dried out. Although if I forget I just make it earlier in the day and let it sit out for a couple of hours to dry, nice... I use brown rice with barley and millet as the base for all my rice recipes. The millet and barley probably make up 1/4 of the mix. 

 

2. Choose your veggies. I use string mushrooms, some leftover broccoli, zucchini, onion, and some frozen veggies for convenience. You can also add tofu, bean curd (the firm kind), and ANY of your favorite vegetables!

 

3. Meat? I don't usually add meat, but I was trying to make it a meal. You can use beef or chicken. I cooked my beef in a little soy sauce (light)

 

You will need olive oil and soy sauce.

 4. Get your vegetables frying in a large pan (wok) with olive oil. Start with those that will take the most time and add the softer veggies as you go. The goal is to have them all soft cooked at the same time. You can add a bit of water if needed to simmer, but not too much.

 

5. Cook up a few eggs. I used three here. They look a bit brown because I fried them in the beef fat and soy sauce pan, yum!

6. When the veggies are ready, add the rice and egg cooking it all until warm. Add soy sauce over the whole thing as you are cooking for flavor. Also a bit of sea salt is a great addition. 

Here's mine without the meat (I just put that on top of each portion)

 

Okay, enough about me... onto YOU! Here are my favorites from last week (although it was HARD to choose!)

Blackberry Bars- Brandys Baking

Mocha Cooler - The Gunny Sack 

honey citrus balsamic vinaigrette- She is Organizing the Chaos

Please grab a button if you were featured!

Last one, I promise!

Just in case you aren't totally tired of my overall posts... Here's one more... The last! I made the final outfit for the cousins on my side of the family. My niece is the oldest, so I used the same top, but added a skirt. I really love how it turned out. Of course I don't know if it will fit... I had the measurements, but I'm not that great of a seamstress. LAST YEAR when I tried to make clothes for all the cousins, we had to cut the romper I made for my nephew to get him inside! We were able to take a picture without seeing the cut, but he was never able to wear the romper... hoping for better luck this year.

Posted to:

Motivate me Monday

We Did it Wednesday

FREE overall pattern!

***disclaimer***someone recently (and not nicely!) commented on the quality of the included pattern. I just want to say that it is a FREE pattern, so I didn't spend hours making it professional. Its the one I used and I am sharing it with all of you.... its not perfect and if anyone would like to make constructive comments after using it I would love to make changes. Thanks for looking!

 

I’m so excited to share my first tutorial with pattern! The best part; its completely FREE. (for personal use only) Please let me know if you have any questions or comments after sewing your own overalls! This pattern is two sizes, around a 2T and 3T. These instructions are intended for those of you who are already sewers. Let’s get started!
Another option for pattern: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B0Yg62KzRPG9Zjk0MWUwOGQtMjA1OS00NGQ2LTg4MDAtYWFjYThiM2ZkMGY0&hl=en_US
Overall Pattern

1. Print out and tape the pattern pieces. Match the symbols for the pieces that cover multiple pages. Find a fabric for the overalls and a colorful thinner material for the lining. I used a light canvas type for the outside and a normal cotton print for the lining. You should have the following pieces:
1. Front pants
2. Back pants
3. Front pant Pockets
4. Back lining
5. Back pockets and front top pockets
6. Waistband (no pattern, just measure waist, divide in ½, then add 3 inches. Cut 2 ½ inches tall)
7. Top bib
8. Top bib lining
9. Two straps (I used the waistband dimensions for each strap on mine.
10. Four buttons.

  

2. Pin and sew front seam of pant bottom. I finished all seams with a zig zag and topstitch after)

 

3. Pin front pant pockets (right sides together), sew, fold back and topstitch.
4. Sew pocket inside seams. Pin top waist to pockets to keep in place.

 

5. Sew bib top, turn, topstitch. Finish bottom edge.
6. turn under the top bib pocket to finish the edge. Center and sew to top.
7. sew waistband, turn and topstitch. **clip corners before turning**

 

8. take back lining. Sew back center seam. Finish the bottom edge.
9. Sew back center seam of main bibs. Finish edge.
10. Sew lining to back (right sides together), turn, topstitch.

11. Hem pockets and sew to back butt area.
12. Sew straps around, turn and topstitch. Can use two of the same fabric, or one side with lining fabric if desired.
13. Sew straps to back top. ( I just stitched them together, nothing fancy)

14. Sew the front shorts to the back shorts on the sides, then the crotch seam.

15.  sew waistband to short front bottoms, then add the bib top.

16.  find 4 buttons. Two for sides and two for top. Mark and sew buttonholes. Sew on buttons.

17.  try on your intended child and hem the bottom.

YOU DID IT! I would love to hear feedback on this pattern and instructions. Thanks!!
Linked to:

http://www.bluecricketdesign.net/
http://733blog.blogspot.com/
http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/2011/06/market-yourself-monday-pattern-re-mix.html
http://sewmuchado.blogspot.com/2011/06/we-did-it-wednesday.html
http://www.somewhatsimple.com/2011/06/blog-link-party-and-giveaway-from-say-it-on-the-wall.html
http://firefliesandjellybeans.blogspot.com/
http://nightowlcrafting.blogspot.com/
So You Think You're Crafty
http://iamalongfortheride.blogspot.com/2011/06/saturday-is-crafty-day-43.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2Falongfortheride+%28along+for+the+ride%29

  

Healthy Popsicles & Tasty Tuesday Link Party

 

My son will eat pretty much anything if I put it in Popsicle form!  

Here are a few of my healthy tip:

Start with a yogurt base, it melts slower!

Use plain yogurt, the fruit makes it plenty sweet.

Add veg puree: sweet potato and carrot are the easiest to hide. I've put in spinach though and there were no objections.

Put a banana in it, add sweetness and hides any veg you put in.

Add lots of fruit and a little fruit juice to the above ingredients, blend, freeze and serve! 

YUM!!!

Here are a few favorites from last weeks linky party. If you are featured here grab a button from the sidebar.
Cheesecake factory copy-Bizzy B Bakes
Graduation Cupcakes - Domestic Charm
Avacado Sandwiches - Stitch 2 Buttercups
Overnight Blueberry French Toast - Chef in Training

 

Now onto this weeks link up! Can't wait to see what you have made!

Please link back to this blog in some way on your post. Thanks.

Baby Bibs

 

I made these lined bibs for my 8 mth old... they have a pocket on the bottom to catch food... so far they are working great. I made one with the plastic lining on top and the other with it on the bottom...Let the eating begin! (or go on as it has been) :o)