Which book has made an impact on you?

I'm an avid reader and I read a wide range of literature, everything from bodice busting romance to philosophy. I love them all! Unless I just need some serious mental downtime (cue trashy romances here!), I prefer books that make me think. I don't want to figure out the ending by the time I reach the middle of chapter 1.

I thought it might be fun to share with each other a book that has really left an impact on ourselves. I'm always looking for something inspirational to read and hearing your titles might give me some potential summer reading ideas. :D

Once upon a time (just about 15 yrs ago!!), a relatively green horn Spanish teacher went to a professional development workshop in which the presenter provided a table of appropriate literature for our perusal during break. He also didn't mind if we borrowed one of his books over night as long as we sign it out and brought it back the next day. I picked up The Nibble Theory and the Kernel of Power. Little did she know how it would change her view of human relations!

It took me all of an hour tops to read this book from cover to cover. It's illustrated like a kid's comic book but the message screams loud and clear. We are all circles, some of us want to be Bigger Circles and how we go about doing just that determines who and what we are in this Life.

Here I am now, no longer the green horn, definitely influenced by this book. I think about my actions and how they would impact others as well as myself. (Yes, this book fed right into my Buddhist beliefs!) I was talking to my principal just the other day about this book. It has become so important to me that I bought my own copy so that I could reread it whenever I found myself being pulled apart by the machinations of coworkers who don't play nice. It has helped me keep centered and maintain a clear mind in the midst of all of their drama.


So now it's your turn to share a book! :)

Banoffee Pie...YUM!

This weekend is the first in almost a month in which I haven't been buried in paperwork. I've been able to play in the kitchen most of the day while doing the normal weekend chores. It has been exhilarating! I threw the windows open, made a pot roast in the crock pot and made a pie for tonight's dessert. A banoffee pie!

I learned about this pie from a good friends who lives in Canada. It was created in England, the home of uber rich desserts. I'd seen it on Pinterest and said to myself "It just can't be this simple." Well, it is!

Banoffee pie has basically 3 ingredients, a can of sweetened condensed milk, 3 ripe bananas and a ready to use graham cracker crust.I accidentally grabbed the mega huge size pie crust and fortunately, I had an extra can of condensed milk in my pantry to compensate.

There are several ways of creating the toffee. I chose to do the double boiler method which is quicker but requires a bit more attention to keep it from scorching. The 2 cans took almost 2 hours of babysitting but the result was worth it. :)   Also, make sure you cool the toffee completely before continuing!

I browned the graham cracker crust according to the instructions on the container, and spread a thin layer of the toffee on the bottom of the crust. I sliced the bananas and topped it with the remaining toffee. Pop it in the fridge to set. I added some Readi Whip and chopped pecans to my serving and my son drizzled his with just a touch of chocolate sauce. Either way, this is just an amazing, simple dessert!

In hind sight, I think I'm going to try the slow cooker method for the toffee. You just throw the entire cans of condensed milk (sans paper wrapper) into a crock pot filled with water to cover the cans. Allow to cook covered overnight on low. Then, allow it to cool throughout the day and in the afternoon/evening, throw the pie together which is maybe 5 minutes. I also think now that I should have cooked my toffee just a bit longer to have the pie set better.

This pie is going on the "Easy to make for a covered dish!" rotation!

For a Fellow Geek Pt 2

The other item that I made for my friend in our language geek swap is a stenciled t-shirt. I've never tried to do a human figure in stenciling before so this was  a challenge! I've always thought that realistic (i.e. not cartoonish) faces and hands are the hardest to portray in any art/craft medium. I took extra pains to make sure that Grammar Lady's eyes looked right. :)

For a Fellow Language Geek

I agreed to do a small language geek swap with one of my mod sisters on Craftster. We are both grammarians. She's an English teacher and I'm a Spanish teacher. This was one fun swap!

Here's the first item that I made for her. A Knock Knock joke hoop! LOL I went through lots of grammar jokes to find this perfect one.

The words are stitched in 2 strand split stitch. The flowers and leaves are lazy daisy and the flower centers French knots.

There's a second part of the language geek swap that I'll post later this week. :D

Here's the link to the other part of her package!

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For a Hope Chest and a Lesson Learned

As usual, I've been involved in a craft swap but this particular swap hit a personal note with me. I crafted some items to go in a young lady's hope chest. (For those of you who may not know, a hope chest is a basically a collection of household items normally stored in a nice chest for eventually setting up your home. Hence it is called a hope chest.) My swap partner had just started her collection and I jumped at the opportunity to make her some goodies. The first items were the tawashi that I posted earlier. The other items were sewn hanging dish cloths. Using this tutorial, I was able to make these two towels in under an hour.

The most important thing that came out of this swap was that I reconsidered what was once my own hope chest. Both of my grandmothers had gifted me hand made items when I was young (as early as 12 or 13) to put in my box for my future. I didn't give my collection any thought until the day came when my college sweetheart asked me to marry him. Well, the elation set in and my mind was set on continuing to fill that chest with all kinds of items. Time passed and an unfortunate break up occurred. In a fit of emotional fury, I threw them all away just like He threw our relationship away.

Yeah, not my brightest moment.

Now, I look back at the items that my grandmas had made and it makes me sad. I was too young to understand that the true value of those items. I would give anything to have them back but that is not possible. What I have instead is a lesson learned. The Hope in that chest was for me, not that marriage. It was for my happiness and memories. It made me smile to think that I was able to share a bit of hope (using the correct definition) with someone else.

Comfy Wristlets!

I've been trying to push my abilities in crochet a bit lately. I made a set of wrist warmers for a gal in the Birthday swap on Craftster. This particular pattern from Marlo's Crochet Corner has inset thumb pieces which were fun to figure out. :)

I used a variegated blue yarn that I had on hand and I think I used maybe just over half of the skein in making them. I love the way the variegated color created blocks in the wristlets.

This is a quick and easy gift that anyone with just above basic crochet skills (like me!) can make. I'm keeping this pattern pinned for future use.

Two Years TODAY GIVEAWAY!

WOW! It's hard for me to believe that I've been blogging for two years! *insert silly, happy grin here!*

I started this site to basically catalog my creations, not thinking about other possibilities. Now, it's so much more to me. I love sharing my tutorials and latest stitching obsessions with you all.

To celebrate, I've decided to have a Giveaway! I had extra supplies to make another zippered pouch so here's the prize!

To enter, all you need to do is reply and give me a suggestion as to what else I can do with my site. More tutorials? More recipes? More of my silly rambling? Pictures of random ghost cows? (<--There's a very crazy, late night story there that I will share soon but I have to get a copy of the photo from my brother in law first. LOL!)

On Sunday at 6 pm EST, I will use the random number generator to pick a winner. This contest is NOT limited to the U.S. I love my international followers just the same!

Also, I have another Giveaway in the works for next weekend so make sure you check in again in the next couple of days. :D