Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival

I am packing my bags for a weekend at the 39th Maryland Sheep and Wool festival with hubby.  I have had this on my list to go and see what this festival is all about.  I am excited to just be going.  Will fly into Baltimore, Maryland and go from there.  No plans except to go to the festival.  I have expectations of lots of sheep, lots of wool and lots of people who love sheep and wool.  Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival

More to come when pics can tell the story about this festival.

Girl's Weekend Aprons

It is girl's weekend coming up this week and the plans are coming together at last.  It was fun to think of what would be fun for Dtr, 2 Dtr-in-laws and myself while hopefully learning something. I chose cooking  and as cooking is one of those things I'm not really good at, but can do enough not to starve, this put me looking for cooking classes.  I checked all the usual places and it was not easy to find just something fun.  There are several places that on Saturday do the learn to use a knife class  or knifing skills.  Now I'm not brave enough to think I would come out of the class and not end up in the emergency room getting stitches or worse....Sur La Table won the day with a class on tarts and Central Market won the evening with appetizers.  I am so looking forward to this fun day and cooking with my wonderful girls.

It was time to think of goodie bags.  I got a really great deal @ www.stitchsteals.com on these super bags.  They are just perfect. Tote bag with another bag that has items for scrap booking.  I am filling with aprons I made...So much fun.  Pattern:K103 Ellie mae designs for Kwik SEW   only one did I do hand pleating, all the others I used the machine ruffler...Soooo much easier!  But over all, they were fun to make and I love how they turned out.

I am adding lots of other goodies to the bags so our girl's cooking weekend will be remembered.
 Bon Appetite

EASTER TRADITIONS

Families have traditions and Easter is a time where traditions are part of what I grew up with.  I grew up with a mother that loved to cook and was a Martha Stewart of her day especially at holiday time.  She would decorate, cook and bring the family together for celebrations.  Easter brought the infamous lamb cake.  The lamb cake mold would come down from the cabinet and be made ready to receive the pound cake mix mother would make from scratch.  The cream cheese icing and coconut were in the ready to decorate the lamb.  Eyes were either raisins, chocolate chips, M&Ms, red hots or whatever was in the cabinet that would work.  Mom passed this last year and the lamb mold passed to me.  It was put in the cabinet and I had not thought of it.  Easter coming I made my list of ToDos and the lamb cake comes to mind.  Who would make the lamb cake?  I know nothing of making cakes let alone one in a mold but it was now mine to keep the tradition of Easter...so, thank goodness for internet.  Yes, there is lots of information about the lamb cake mold, especially the antique cast iron mold from the 50s.  Wow, just think something in my family that long and here I am, the holder of the tradition.  Me, really? Me?  I gave it a try my way.  Boxed pound cake mix, canned icing, coconut colored with green sugar used on christmas cookies (that's a whole other story) and lots of prayer.  The results?  The bare lamb and the iced cake.  The cake enjoyed by all and so the tradition lives on.  It was a really good Easter, Praise God.

Almost scary..very alien

Very cute, Perfect

PLAY BALL...IT'S A WIN

I LOVE BASEBALL.  I love the Texas Rangers and it is baseball season again.  The hopes run high that the elusive World Series will finally come to the Ball Park in Arlington and our Texas team can have a parade.  Last year I was taking a class on Cotton Theory™ Quilting ( ref=dp_image_z_0 )  and had some Texas Ranger material that was going nowhere fast I had gotten  free when a women in my guild brought it to give it away (so we raffled it). I was the lucky winner of the material.  When I looked for material to take to the Cotton Theory class I saw it and thought it would work with this quilt as you go method; red logos on one side and blue logos on the other.....very reversible.  I did not love it as a quilt because the material was very stiff and not good to use for cover, but it it a great wall hanging.  

Red Texas Ranger Logo

Blue Texas Ranger Logo

And opening day brings the Rangers their first win of 162 games.  One down, 161 games to go.