Memorial day : Stars

It's  a Memorial day  crafts with Stars ...

 

I found this flag cup in my collection.  And made this small arrangement with flowers, star picks and red and white stripe ribbon.  

The stars I cut with a Big Shot  Sizexx Star die cut.

The red, white and blue floral is from Dollar tree.

My ribbon is from my Christmas decorations box.

And this a bottle with stars

I cut these Stars from cardstock and covered in a patriotic scrapbook paper. Glued on wooden skewers and place with ribbon in the bottle.

The blue painted bottle is wrapped in red print scrapbook paper and star. 

Mason Jar Candles

 

Mason Jar Candles

• Sand
• Small American Flags
• Small Candles
• Americana Decou Page
• Sponge Brush
• Glue dots

Directions

1. Be sure that the Mason jar is clean on the outside.
2. Paint a layer of Decou Page onto the outside of the jar, about the same size as the American Flag.
3. Place the American flag onto the wet decou page and press it until it sticks.
4. To hold the corners down, place a glue dot on each corner and stick it to the glass.
5. The glue dots are very strong and will hold the corners down.
6. Pour the sand into the mason jar, about ¼ of the way up the jar.
7. Place the candle inside the jar.

DEVIL'S FOOD SHEET CAKE

 DEVIL'S FOOD SHEET CAKE

• 1 1.2 C water
• 2 C sugar
• 3/4 C butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 C AP flour
• 1/2 C baking coca 
• 2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• Frosting of your choice

1. In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil. Remove from the heat. Stir in sugar and butter until butter is melted. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add to butter mixture and mix thoroughly.
2. Pour into a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.

1. Happy Devis Food cake day and this recipe is a family favorite for  Birthday! 

Grilled Shrimp with Tropical Fruit Salad

 

It's Shrimp season in Louisiana! And I made this on the grill last night ....

Marinade

• 1/3cup olive oil
• 2to 3 tablespoons jerk seasoning (dry)
• 2teaspoons honey
• 2tablespoons soy sauce
• 2cloves garlic, finely chopped (1 teaspoon)
• 1/8teaspoon salt
• 1/8teaspoon pepper
• 24uncooked large shrimp (1 1/2 lb), peeled (with tail shells left on), deveined

Fruit Salad

• 1medium pineapple with rind and green top
• 1medium papaya, peeled, seeded and cut into 3/4-inch cubes (1 1/2 cups)
• 1ripe medium mango, seed removed, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes (1/2 cup)
• 1/4cup coarsely chopped cashews, if desired
• 4teaspoons flaked coconut, if desired

1

In shallow glass or plastic dish or in resealable food-storage bag, combine marinade ingredients. Add shrimp; stir or shake to coat. Cover dish or seal bag; refrigerate for at least 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

2

Meanwhile, Cut 1/2-inch slice off bottom of pineapple, cut into quarters lengthwise, cutting through green top. Using small sharp knife, remove fruit without piercing through rind, leaving 1/2-inch-thick shell. Turn shells upside down on paper towel-lined pan to drain. Trim cores from pineapple quarters; cut fruit into 3/4-inch cubes. In large bowl toss pineapple, papaya and mango.

3

Heat gas or charcoal grill. Remove shrimp from marinade; reserve marinade. Place shrimp in grill basket (grill “wok”).

4

Place grill basket on grill over medium heat. Cover grill; cook 6 to 8 minutes, brushing several times with marinade and turning once, until shrimp are pink. Discard any remaining marinade.

5

On 4 individual serving plates, arrange pineapple shells. Top with mixed fruit and shrimp. Garnish with cashews and coconut.

Tip you can make your fruit salad with any fruit your family enjoys  . No cashews use peanut.

Star FAMILYfeature 5/18/26

 

Welcome to week#3 of the May 2026 "You're the Star" Blog Hop!

Before we continue onto the Linky party I wanted to share this post from my blog:

check out my post : bottle cap flowers for your garden.

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WELCOME to FAMILY feature week of the
May 2026 "You're the STAR" blog hop!
Meet your hosts 

This week is FAMILY feature week
Swing by the hosts' blogs:

Michelle @ Moms Are Frugal

Lisa @ At Home With Lisa

Kris @ Kris and Larry . com

Angie @ God's Growing Garden

Colleen @ Butterfly in the Attic

Bev @ Eclectic Red Barn is taking a break for 2 months (April & May)

This is a month long Linky party featuring YOU!

There will be 4 different features each week and 4 different feature categories.  Just to be clear - this is NOT a themed party - you may link up ANY family-friendly blog posts any day of each month. 

The "theme" occurs in our weekly features:

WEEK#3 FAMILY - parenting, fitness, health, finances & inspirational (this can include anything about children like: education ideas for children, also self help, beauty etc -  anything family friendly)

(These features were chosen from the April 2026 "You're the STAR" blog hop)

Wiggly Wonders with Our Littles by Our Grand Lives

My Family Easter Celebration by Debbie-Dabble Blog

Plans in the Making by Road Gypsies

Homemade Face Wash & Your Skin Type by Carol on the Lake

If you've been featured then please grab a STAR button below:

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All Hosts/CoHosts will post this blog hop on every Monday of each week.

Please link up your family friendly blog posts below!

It wouldn't be a linky party with YOU!

(IMPORTANT NOTE: by linking up you understand that you might be featured next month and if so, we will use some of your photos from your post - rest assured - we will always link back to your lovely blog.  We might also share your fantastic posts on social media.  Also, you may link up as many family-friendly posts as you like & YES - other blog hops &/or giveaways are welcome {giveaways and blog hops will NOT be featured though}  Thank You & ENJOY! )

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DIY bottle cap flowers

 

7 metal bottle caps per flower
1 wooden  per flower
paints (outdoor approved)
paint brushes
newspaper

Mod Podge
hot glue gun

Learning how to make bottle cap flowers is incredibly simple! For this easy garden craft, arrange the bottle caps as shown above.  You will need 1 bottle cap in the center and 6 around the outer ring.  Place them upside down on a piece of newspaper, Hot glue all the bottle caps together.  Do this gently so they don't all separate before the glue is dried.  You may want to do this twice to make sure it is very sturdy.

Hot glue the skewer to the back of the metal flower. let cool .Flip over your flower and paint as desired.  I chose white for the center and pastels for the outer ring. I added a few polka dots for a touch of whimsy.  You could leave these unpainted if you want a more 'natural' look to your garden art! You will need 2 to 3 coats of paint to completely hide the bottle cap.

Black Cherry Betrayal : Book Reviews

 

Black Cherry Betrayal: A cozy murder mystery packed with twists (Claire's Candles Cozy Mystery Book 2)

A FUN BRITISH VILLAGE COZY MYSTERY PACKED WITH TWISTS AND TURNS!

"I felt like I stepped into the quaint village with friends!" - Amazon Reviewer

THERE'S A BODY IN THE ATTIC...

Claire Harris is excited to get the keys to her candle shop finally. A foul smell coming from the attic, however, turns her excitement into a living nightmare. There, she finds the body of Jane Brindle, the owner of the tearoom, which had stood in the heart of the village for decades. Jane’s eventual retirement at eighty after years of fruitlessly hounding her daughter, Em, to take over the tearoom sent her to the south of France, or so everyone assumed. Jane never left Northash, but nobody is admitting to knowing what happened to her. Accusations fly everywhere, with many fingers pointing at free-spirited Em, and even some at Claire for daring to change the status quo. How did Jane end up dead in the locked attic after having supposedly left the village for a new life under the sun four months previously? How is Jane’s impossibly wealthy 102-year-old mother, Opal, involved? Someone close to Jane killed her, but can Claire find out who before her candle shop dreams crumble around her?

THE DETECTIVE Claire Harris, daughter of a retired detective inspector, runs her dream candle shop in a quaint British village. Surrounded by gossiping villagers, tight-knit friends, and loyal family, Claire, in her mid-thirties, can't help sleuthing when strange things happen on her doorstep...

Book 2 in the Claire's Candles Cozy Mystery series! Can be read as a standalone but will be enjoyed better as part of the series. A light, cozy mystery with a candle-loving British amateur female sleuth, in a small village setting with quirky characters. Written in British English. No cliffhanger, swearing, gore or graphic scenes! Contains mild peril.

Book Review 

The beginning was a little slow, but once the intricacies of the mystery came into play then it became a whole other ball game. The layers to this mystery was great and kept me on toes. After a while I needed to know what was going to happen next, so I kept on trucking through. Despite the fact I guessed who it was by the middle, it was still interesting as the puzzle pieces came together. There were just so many connections that I didn’t see coming, but they totally made sense. It became this really satisfying ending by book’s end as the past and present came together and completed the picture. I loved that.