Stand tall
02 Thursday Apr 2015
Posted Easter, encouragement
in02 Thursday Apr 2015
Posted Easter, encouragement
in29 Sunday Mar 2015
Posted All Sparkled Up, art, Easter, food
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Every year I save one colored Easter egg in the back of the egg bin in the fridge. All winter long it’s a nice reminder that spring is on the way.
Soon this egg will be replaced with a new one. Its fun seeing art in the refrigerator! I’m planning on hanging a little painting on one of those pristine white walls.
15 Thursday May 2014
Posted All Sparkled Up, crafts, Easter, home decor
in13 Tuesday May 2014
Posted Easter
in23 Wednesday Apr 2014
Posted food, recipe, Uncategorized
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Today’s lunch salad features Easter leftovers, especially the pickled eggs.
Salad Ingredients: romaine lettuce, spinach, yellow and orange bell peppers, edamame, sliced pickled eggs and pickled beets. The dressing is a tahini based Goddess Dressing from Trader Joe’s. In the glass: Pink Lemonade.
Here’s another way I enjoy pickled eggs after Easter…
I like using pickled eggs to add color to the Easter dinner table. Here they are with the salad course.
This year we had a separate salad so the pickled eggs were served simply with a garnish of parsley.
The original recipe in the old cookbook is for Pickled Beets. When I was young, my mom added hard boiled eggs to the beet solution a couple days before Easter so they would be ready to serve on Easter.
Here is the original recipe from the Relishes and Garnishes section of The New Goodhousekeeping Cookbook, published in the 60’s.
Pickled Beets (Pickled Eggs)
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 clove garlic
6 Tbsp vinegar
1/4 cup water
2 cups drained cooked or canned beets, sliced
Combine mustard, sugar, salt, cloves, and garlic.
Slowly stir in vinegar and water. When smooth, pour over beets. [..layered with 6 to 10 peeled, hardboiled eggs at this point.]
Refrigerate until well chilled. Remove garlic. [I never remove the garlic. I slice or mince it and leave it in.]
Makes six servings
The eggs are best after four days in the solution. Once some eggs have been removed, you can add another batch of hard boiled eggs but the pickling won’t be as intense because the vinegar loses some of its tang.
20 Sunday Apr 2014
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Posted by Julia Monroe | Filed under All Sparkled Up, Easter, Inspirational, photography, Scripture
19 Saturday Apr 2014
My granddaughter loves this little Easter book from my childhood. We photographed this last year.
Enjoy!
Four Little Bunnies
by Ruth Dixon
Photographs by Harry Whittier Frees
Published in 1935
Dedicated to all the little bunnies who posed for the pictures in this book. NOTE: These unusual photographs of real bunnies were made possible only by patient unfailing kindness on the part of the photographer at all times. –
Once upon a time there were four little bunnies. Their names were Fluff, Puff, Muff, and Algernon. This is the way they looked when they were all dressed up. –
They lived with Mother Bunn and Daddy Bunn. Mother Bunn taught them to play quietly. She taught them to eat all of their dinner. And she taught them never to sniff at nice spinach and carrots. Daddy Bunn taught them to look before they hopped. –
One day at breakfast Algernon licked the cocoa off his whiskers and said, “Tomorrow is Easter. I’m going out to find Mother Bunn a present!” “So am I!” cried Puff and Fluff and Muff, licking the cocoa off their whiskers. (Mother Bunn was upstairs and could not hear them.) –
“That’s a good idea!” said Daddy Bunn, who was frying himself just one more pancake. “But don’t forget to do your work before you go.” –
And Muff said, “Yes Daddy,” and hitched up Henrietta the hen to the little red cart and brought back twelve eggs from the hen house. –
Algernon said, “O.K., Daddy.” (He meant well though he did use slang.) Then he put on his old checked trousers and he got out the soap and washboard and a big tub of water. And he rubbed and scrubbed and rubbed and scrubbed and did all the family washing. –
When they were through their work the four little bunnies kissed their mother and daddy. Then they went hippity-hop down the hill from their hollow-tree home. Mother Bunn waved good-by to them from the window. –
Then Mother Bunn and Daddy Bunn put their headphones over their ears and listened to the Market Reports on the radio. (Though Mother Bunn liked the Cooking Hints better.) –
The first thing Fluff and Puff did was to hurry down the hill, hippity-hippity-hippity-hop. And the first thing Muff and Algernon did was to ride down hill on a scooter. The kitten next door went, too, but hopped off by her favorite tree. (She climbed up that.) –
At the foot of the hill, Puff and Fluff and Muff and Algernon met their friend White Rabbit, standing in his doorway. “Bless my whiskers!” cried White Rabbit. “You are just the bunnies I am searching for. Will you look after my babies this afternoon?” –
The four little bunnies stood still. “It’s a good deed!” whispered Fluff and Puff and Muff. “And we can find Mother an Easter present later.” “O.K.,” said Algernon, and he said it very loud indeed. “Thank you,” said White Rabbit. And he went over to the hammock to take a nap. –
So Fluff took care of Millie and Tillie Rabbit. She let them swing in their swing — high-and-low and high-and-low. –
And Muff and Algernon took care of Teenie and Weenie Rabbit. They took them out for a ride in their gocart. –
And then fed them some nice spinach soup. White Rabbit woke up. He thanked the four little bunnies again for helping with the children. “You’re welcome,” said the bunnies. And they started down the path. –
Pretty soon they came to Big Bunny who was tied to a post. “Please rescue me!” said Big Bunny. “Some naughty boy tied me up, so I can’t get away.” “I will!” said Fluff and Puff and Muff. And they gnawed the rope that tied him. “O.K.!” said Algernon. And he gnawed the rope. –
Thank you,” said Big Bunny when they had gnawed the rope loose. “I am the Easter Rabbit. Come to my house and you may help make Easter eggs.” “Goody! Goody! Goody!” said Puff and Fluff and Muff. “O.K.!” said Algernon. Two rabbits hopped by, carrying eggs in a basket. All the bunnies followed them. –
At the Easter Rabbit’s house they all put on work clothes. Then Fluff poured colors on the hard-boiled eggs — blue and green and red and yellow and pink. “It’s fun!” cried Fluff. –
Then Muff helped another rabbit squirt chocolate icing on the white eggs. “It’s lots and lots of fun!” cried Muff. –
Then Algernon squeezed white icing on chocolate eggs and made pretty pictures on them, too. “O.K.,” said Algernon. –
Then all the bunnies helped pack up the Easter eggs into wagons to take to children everywhere. They all worked hard. –
The Easter Rabbit gave the four little bunnies all the eggs they made. Then they piled these into airplanes. “Let’s – – ” began Puff. “Take them home – -” said Fluff. “To Mother!” said Muff. “O.K,” said Algernon. –
Algernon made more eggs than the others. He made a candy rabbit, too. My, he was glad to take them all home! –
When the bunnies got home there was Daddy Bunn giving Mother Bunn an Easter bouquet. So they gave their present. Mother Bunn kissed them all. “What dear, thoughtful little bunnies!” she cried. “I hope you will always be as good as you have been today!” “We’ll try!” said Puff, Fluff, and Muff. “O.K!” said Algernon. (And that meant he would try, too.) –
Posted by Julia Monroe | Filed under books, family, Favorite Childhood Books, grandkids, Uncategorized
24 Sunday Mar 2013
Posted All Sparkled Up, crafts, Easter, family, home decor, miniature
inTags
1960's, 1960's crafts, 1968, crafts, decorated eggs, DIY, Easter, Easter Egg Tree, egg tree, eggs
My mom was going to throw out the decorated Easter Eggs she made in 1968. They were dusty, damaged and bug-eaten. Then she considered giving them to someone to salvage any useable trims. Of course I wanted them, cracked shells and all! They cleaned up beautifully.
Egg tree eggs, made in 1968 by my mom. My sisters and I made some of these eggs, but not the prettiest.
At first glance, these seem like really simple eggs compared to the lavish rubber-stamped, lace-trimmed, glittered eggs made today. What makes these eggs so remarkable was the creativity with such limited supplies. My mom had very little to work with. She used poster paint, nail polish and a couple jars of my brother’s model car paints to paint the eggs. There was no shiny spray-on acrylic finish back then so she used clear nail polish to make them shiny. She purchased the gold paper trim from a mail order catalog from Lee Wards, a huge craft store in another state. There was no internet from which to buy craft supplies. There were no big Walmart craft aisles, Michael’s or craft stores. The only place for craft supplies was the local 5 & Dime store and even there, craft supplies were extremely limited.
Some of these eggs are missing pearls, some have bent trim, some have cracked shells. But when they are hung on the tree, they are all beautiful together.
1968 Decorated Egg – My mom painted this egg with a jar of my brother’s model car paint. The plastic hollow sequin “gems” on each side were precious and I was in awe of them.
1968 Decorated Egg – I love the spring green color of this egg. I have a couple plastic flowers like those used on this egg so I will restore it before putting it away at the end of the season.
1968 Decorated Egg – A pink sequin butterfly flutters over a pink fabric rose. My mom didn’t have much gold paper trim so she cut it apart and used pieces sparingly.
1968 Decorate Egg – The Bunny Basket Egg. This was one of the few eggs I made for the tree. Even though the bright colors didn’t fit in with my mom’s elegant color scheme, she graciously added it to the family tree. That’s true Mother’s love.
1968 Decorated Egg – The back of the pink rose egg, with a very design of pink rick rack and gold paper trim.
1968 Decorated Egg – my favorite: The elegant M Egg. I don’t know where my mom got the embroidered M trim. M was for our last name – Musser.
1968 Decorated Egg – The Lily Egg. I love how this egg has one side white, the other green. This egg was so shattered on the top that I had to flip it over and reattach the wire on the bottom so it could hang. The little plastic lilies were just tucked inside so they were easy to turn right side up.
The only non-1968 eggs on the tree are the Peter Rabbit Eggs, purchased from Pottery Barn Kids several years ago. My mom used to read Peter Rabbit to my sisters, brother and I so I was thrilled to find eggs featuring illustrations from Peter Rabbit. Here Mrs Rabbit is fastening the brass buttons on Peter Rabbit’s blue jacket.
Even though these eggs have missing beads and cracked shells, they are still so precious. When I look at them, I am reminded of simpler times, days of ingenuity, days crafting with my sisters, days of being read to by a mother that loved us. This little egg tree serves to remind me that it doesn’t take a studio of amazing craft supplies to make something all sparkled up, it just takes an eye for beauty and a determination to make do with what you have.
19 Tuesday Mar 2013
Posted All Sparkled Up, beading, crafts, Easter, flowers, gardening, home decor, miniature, sparkling, tutorial
inTags
All Sparkled Up, crafts, Easter, Easter decoration, Easter Egg Tree, egg tree, miniature, miniature eggs, miniature flowers, miniature plants
Last year I posted about the Hanging Plant Easter Egg Tree I made. It’s time to get it out again. Adding the drops of dew was my favorite part.
After I finished each miniature plant, with it’s tiny leaves and petals, I hung it on the tree. Though pretty, the plant didn’t seem fully alive it was all sparkled up with spring rain or drops of dew.
For each drop, I used tweezers to dab a single crystal seed bead in tacky glue and attach it where it should go, hanging from the tip of a leaf or puddled in the folds of a petal.
The tree was from Pottery Barn a couple years ago. The hanging egg baskets were cut from small plastic eggs. The miniature plants were made by cutting up full-size artificial flowers and leaves. Some of the hanging vines were made by gluing hand-cut leaves to artificial plant stems. Click on photos to see the full size images if you wish.
If you want to add realistic drops to an artificial plant, remember how real water acts. It flows down hill. So it will puddle at the bottom of a flower center, or hang from the lower tip of a petal or leaf.
Miniature Blue Flowers. The fluffy white balls were actually stamens cut from the center of a full-size artificial flower.
Miniature Roses. To make a rose, I took one petal from a 1″ artificial rose, folded it in half and glued and rolled it up into a cone shape. The pointed tip of the cone was cut off and stuck down inside the top part of the cone to make center of the rose. Some cone tips are also used as the buds.
Placing the tiny bead droplets on the plants was a very contemplative task, like yoga or painting, with each moment crystallized and beautiful. No it was not tedious, it was restorative and full of light. All sparkled up.
“And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.” Isaiah 58:11
18 Monday Mar 2013
About the size of a penny, they sprang from a package of Paperclay last year. I have no idea where they are now but fortunately I photographed them before they hopped away.