Pine Cone Hanging

Pretty much everything I make and end up posting here, whether it's food or crafts, I find on Pinterest, so I must give credit to that wonderful place. And here is yet another great Pinterest lead...

Since my cornstalk wreath was no longer in season - fall being over and all - I needed to spruce up the place with something new and festive, and I was still in the mood for a more earthy approach.  Luckily, at Michaels I stumbled upon some cinnamon-scented pine cones for super cheap and knew they would work perfect for something I had been planning to make: a pine cone hanging.

So here the crafting process begins:

I took my pine cones and dug through my extra ribbon stash for a few of the colors I wanted.
     

Then I warmed up my glue gun and put some glue on a ribbon strand...

...and pressed said strand onto one of the tops of a pine cone.

Some of the glue went through the ribbon and onto my fingers and it was a hot, sticky mess. But that's usually how it goes with most of my crafting projects :)

I continued on with as many ribbon strands and pine cones as I felt like. I made sure my ribbon lengths weren't all equal so there would be variation when the pine cones were hanging up.

Then I gathered up all the ribbon and organized them so my pine cones were hanging just as I wanted.

Tying the top of the ribbon strands in a knot to keep everything in place, I then made the top look sorta pretty by tucking in all the loose ends of ribbon so they weren't sticking up everywhere looking unraveled and such.

After looking at it, I decided to add a pop of Christmas color and took one of my daughter's old broken necklaces I had been saving for just this sort of occasion, and glued it into the middle of the knot.

And then I was done! I hung it over my door and we have been enjoying the cinnamon scent wafting from the pine cones throughout the day. Mmm smells like Christmas.

I'm not sure I'm a fan of the gold, silver, and white ribbon now that it's all said and done. When I look at my hanging, I keep wanting brighter ribbon to bring more of a cheery atmosphere and to really make the hanging pop, since the pine cones are pretty neutral.

Despite that, it was an easy, fun craft that cost me all of two dollars. It would have been free if I had gone and found my own pine cones, but I'm pretty sure any pine cones I would have found myself wouldn't have been as nice or smelled as good.

The original site I got the idea from used a picture frame to make hers and it's really cute, so check it out if you want more inspiration.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust Pizza

Feeling really adventurous, I decided to try the recipe on this site for a cauliflower pizza crust. Partly because I was intrigued, and partly because I had extra cauliflower. The reviews marks were positive so I had high hopes.

Because I don't have a food processor and you need riced cauliflower I had to grate my cauliflower.

I didn't like this part. It was hard and it hurt my fingers. That's why I need a food processor. Good thing I asked for one for Christmas :)

Anyway, after your cauliflower is all grated you put it in the microwave to steam it for a bit.

After it's done in the microwave, you start adding stuff to make the crust taste better and stick together.

Like cheese, beaten egg, crushed garlic (I used minced garlic), garlic salt, and oregano.

Mix it up, pour it out onto the pan and then spread it out.

I worked hard to spread it out as thin as possible because some of the reviewers said that in the thicker middle it stayed soggy and I don't like soggy pizza.

Next you cook the crust in the oven for awhile and once it's baked you pull it back out of the oven to put your desired toppings on.

Then you put it back in to broil the cheese and hopefully crispy up the crust a bit more.

And then it's done!

And you can serve up your healthy pizza!

What I noticed, even as I was serving, was that the crust really didn't get that firm where the sauce was on it and we definitely were going to have to eat it with forks because it would fall apart if we tried picking it up with our hands.

It tasted pretty good, just a little bit like cauliflower, but much better than I expected. It actually tasted a lot like cooked/burnt cheese - probably because of how much cheese you include in the actual crust mixture, and I like that flavor so I was good with it.

I didn't like the crust in the middle as much because it was too soggy. However, you can't taste the crust really because of how much sauce is there and it was just like eating the toppings by themselves with a fork.

I don't know if I would go out of my way to make this again, but if I have left over cauliflower I'm up for more experiments with this recipe. I would want to mess around with the cooking to see if I could get the crust firmer and crispier. If I'm on a major health kick and craving pizza major, I might try this again too. I'd give it three out of five stars and say for a healthy low-carb recipe it was pretty good.

If you want the full recipe check out this site.

Library Day

I've mentioned before that every Monday is library day. That means I pack up the kids and any library books or movies we have finished and walk through the Taylorsville park to the Taylorsville library close to our house. We usually arrive soon after it opens; around ten am. We return our books, choose new ones, and then take the long way around the park home for a brisk bought of exercise. Then we get to snuggle on the couch while I read the kids' new picks.

The kids love this day. They love walks and they love books and they love going places - which makes for a perfect time. I love it because I get quality exercise, some fresh air, and to pick out my favorite: new books!

However, the weather is getting cold and wet and I wasn't sure if we would be able to make it a few Mondays.  But after making a few adjustments, like waiting a bit longer for the rain to stop before leaving, or bundling up extra warm like this...

...we haven't been stopped yet! We've successfully gone each Monday morning. The weather is supposed to be even colder this coming Monday, but I'm thinking we'll still venture out. Because come rain, snow, or sunshine, you can bet that on Monday mornings you'll find us at the library. I know the librarians expect us since they always give me that familiar smile given to the regular, fellow-dedicated book lovers.

I highly recommend Library Day for everyone. It's good for the mind and the body, and I love how it helps to install a healthy love of reading and adventure in my children.

Though, I'm not so sure about Ammon's new genre of choice... :)

Spur of the Moment Crib Rail Guard

If you'll notice the teeth marks...

Imagine the front railing of the crib COMPLETELY covered in them, almost stripped of all color down to the wood. I would have a picture but I forgot to take one before they were covered.

I had to come up with something to keep my beaver from chewing his escape out of bed. Looking online, I found patterns to sew a crib rail guard. Only problem was I didn't have the material, money for the material, or time to come up with either. So I came up with my own solution.

I took two matching receiving blankets, folded them over the rail and then used the ribbon to keep the blankets tied in place.

Boom - my beaver boy was caged once again.

And I thought it looked just as cute, or even cuter, than the legitimately sewn ones.

Only problem now is, since he can't chew his way out, he just shakes the crib's railing so hard the whole crib bangs against the wall over and over again.  At night and in the morning we can hear "bang" "bang" "bang", over and over until he either falls asleep or we go and get him.

I guess if he can't chew his way out, he's going to shake the crib hard enough until it falls apart around him.

Boys are trouble!

But he's cute enough that I guess we'll keep him :)