September books and crafts

It's time for more kids crafts and books for September...

Sunflower craft with paper plates 

The flower is from a paper plate and the middle is made from seeds. 

After painting the white paper plate yellow, let dry. Then cut with scissors around edges to make petals.  Then add glue to center and add sunflower seeds for a sensory feel. Add stem with a green painted paper towel roll.

Diy Mother's day gifts

Happy Friday ! 

It's all about book lovers for Mothers day gifts... 

Book vase 

You can make this with a old book from the thrift store or library sale. 

Then find middle and cut three  pages in half. Bend over and glue in place.  And add flowers for a fun vase. 

Bookmark and tag

A great way to add something special to a gift. Add a homemade tag or bookmark to the gift. Using scrapbook paper,stickers and book paper scraps.

In honor of Have a Coke day

Made with metal bottle caps, scrapbook paper images and white glue. Let dry. Add too paper clip with E7000.

Monday Cozy Mystery.

Monday Cozy Mystery..... 

Her past has come back to haunt her and now she’s accused of murder.
When disgraced soap opera queen, Sam Jones, comes face to face with her former co-star, Bradley Bass, he threatens to destroy the quiet, simple life she’s built in Heywood.
As he spread lies about her Hollywood life and the folks of Heywood believe him, Sam’s life begins to crumble… until Bradley Bass is found dead.
No one had a reason to want the man gone, except for Sam. Will she be able to find the real killer before she’s accused of a crime she didn’t commit?

Enjoy book 9 of this small town contemporary cozy mystery series!

Heywood Herbalist Cozy Mysteries (9 book series)

Enjoy this humorous, small town, midlife cozy mystery series by USA Today best selling author Carly Winter…

Disgraced soap opera star, Samantha Rathbone, wants to live a quite life of anonymity as Sam Jones in the small town of Heywood, Arizona.

Murder, mayhem and mischief have other plans.

What’s in this series?

-Small town cozy mystery

-Contemporary cozy mystery

-A woman who is forced to start her life over

-Murder, murder, murder!

-A cranky black cat named Catnip

-Quirky characters

-A theme of second chances

To handle too much fresh oregano,

Culinary Uses

• Pesto: Blend fresh oregano with walnuts, garlic, parsley, and Parmesan cheese to make a flavorful pesto. This is delicious on pasta, grilled foods, or chicken. 
• Infused Oil: Steep fresh oregano leaves in olive oil for a few weeks to create a flavorful oil that can be used in salad dressings or for cooking. 
• Other Dishes: Add fresh oregano to Greek salads, tomato sauces, or incorporate it into pizzas and other Italian dishes. 

Other Options

• Tea: You can make a simple tea from fresh oregano leaves. 
• Infused Vinegar: Steep oregano in vinegar to make your own flavored vinegar for use in dressings. 

Children library book

Truffle Day

 

A sleuthing chocolatier is the only thing standing between an eccentric seaside town and the deadly plot to destroy it in this cozy culinary mystery for fans of Joanne Fluke

When Charity Penn receives a letter saying she won a trip to Camellia Beach, South Carolina complete with free cooking lessons at the town’s seaside chocolate shop, The Chocolate Box, she’s immediately skeptical. She never entered any contest. Her former prep school friend offers to look into the phony prize—only to end up drowned in a vat of chocolate.

Struck with guilt, Penn heads to the southern beach town to investigate why he was killed. But as wary as she is of the locals, she finds herself lured into their eccentric vibe, letting her defenses melt away and even learning the art of crafting delicious chocolates. That is, until delight turns bittersweet as she steps straight into the midst of a deadly plot to destroy the seaside town. Now, only Penn’s quick thinking and a mysterious cask of rare chocolate can save the town she’s learning to love.

Rich and decadent, Asking for Truffle, the first in a new cozy series by Dorothy St. James, is sure to be a delectable read for fans of JoAnna Carl and Joanne Fluke.

My Pick : 

This book had me hooked from page one. I so loved the characters, the food/chocolate descriptions , recipes. I also learned a lot about chocolate and the making of it! The twisty mystery was fantastic! I loved the end so much and can’t wait to read the next book!!!

My recipe : 

4oz cream cheese ( room temperature) 

 2 tblp butter ( room temperature) 

3 tblp  powder sugar

1/2 tblp  instant coffee 

3 oz chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients together other than chocolate.  Roll in balls and let harden in fridge while melting chocolate.  Dip each in chocolate and let set. 

Hello Tuesday

 Welcome to my Home this Tuesday   It's afternoon tea time! 

February in Louisiana looks like warmer weather and more rain. I heard the birds this morning and some sprout in the garden .   Another month till Spring.   Depending on Phil. We will wait and see  

What's on today menu 

Frozen ravioli baked in crockpot! 

Using store bought ravioli. This could not easier. 

• bag frozen ravioli
• 1 jar pasta sauce
• 2 c cheese for top 

Spray crockpot. Add a layer of pasta sauce. Add raviola(frozen) . Top with cheese. Cook low about 3 to 4 hours. 

Leaves me time to read.

Dante has come to the small coastal town of Te Kohe, New Zealand, for a fresh start in life. But he doesn't want to open a BnB, or save a charming bookshop, or start a romance with a single mother in need of rescuing.

He just wants to forget about his past career (which involved a lot of dead bodies) and have everyone leave him the heck alone. Unfortunately for Dante, life has other plans..

 

Book pick: 

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Mysteries aren't usually my choice of read, but something about the summary appealed to me . Probably the humor in it. Either way, I'm glad I did read this. It's a longer novel (at least for me), but the characters are interesting, engaging, and not the typical neighbors in a small town, in some cases. Dante, the retired assassin, is a very quiet and compartmentalized man, but he's also intriguing and I enjoyed learning more about him. Charlie and Eleanor, the other two main characters, are also both interesting and not typical at all. Honestly, I'm dying to learn more about the other denizens of the town, as I think they hold an interesting number of secrets as well.

The mystery itself was both interesting and full of good twists and turns. I think it wrapped up to a satisfying conclusion. Honestly, I can't wait to read the next book in the series when it comes out.

Library Love in February 

 Make sure you stop at your local library this month. 

We celebrate black history month, loving our library and reading . 

We offer a meeting place, clubs ,events and after school help with homework. 

Why Afternoon tea / coffee@2pm 

This started with my grandparents  An afternoon break to catch up and chat about what's going on . When the weather is good it's outside on the patio or at the kitchen table like today. 

Making tea: 

Use spring water heated to a temperature of 195 degrees Fahrenheit to brew pu-erh tea. Use 1 teaspoon for every 8 ounces of water and steep the leaves for 2 to 4 minutes. In traditional brewing methods, the leaves are rinsed once or twice with hot water. To do this, simply place the loose leaves in a tea infuser. Add the strainer to a cup and pour hot water over the leaves. Swirl around and then discard the water before brewing tea as normal.

My Project : 

 

My Gran and Mom collected China of all kinds and I  pick up pieces too. And combine them with dollar store finds.