Jezebelle Sauce with Cream Cheese

We went to a friend's this past weekend for a dinner party. We were in charge of bringing an appetizer. I decided to make Jezebelle sauce, a recipe that comes from my mother in law.  It's a sweet sauce with a kick, served over cream cheese and eaten with crackers. Yum! 

One friend thought it was really weird I was taking pictures of the food.

Jezebelle Sauce

1 jar pineapple jam
1 jar apple jelly
1/2 small jar of mild horseradish
1 tbs dry mustard
dash of pepper

Pour all ingredients into a bowl. Mix well. That's it.

I put the mixture back into my jam jars for easy storage. There will be a little left over for immediate snacking :) 

I used one jar at the dinner party and I'm saving the second one for an appetizer at my baby girl's birthday party. She'll be two soon. Unbelievable.

Thanks for reading!

My Flowerbeds

When Marc and I moved to our current home five years ago, there were virtually no plants, flowers or shrubs. The few flower beds we had were filled in with river rocks.  Slowly, our outdoor space is getting greener and more beautiful.

The hostas are already getting huge.

These are my only early spring flowers. I don't even know what they are.

Here's a close-up. Their colours are gorgeous!

These are also coming in nicely.

Finally, look mom! Is this my Clematis? I thought it was dead since it didn't come in last year.

This post has made me realize I don't know the names of my perennials. I know I have a dogwood bush and some hostas... the rest? I'll have to take notes next time my mom comes for a visit!

Thanks for reading!

It's finally time for gardening!

I was starting to doubt the weather would ever warm up. It finally has, although we haven't seen much sunshine yet. I believe our weatherman stated recently "April showers bring May showers."  I don't think that's how it's supposed to go :)

Now that we have had our May long weekend, I am finally able to start gardening. 



Here's the beginning of my vegetable and herb garden.  Tada!

Some cilantro

some basil

One of my tomato plants has even started to flower!

cucumber

I have two major gardening obstacles to overcome this year. The first hurdle is the city issued outdoor water ban as they replace a water main. It will last through to the end of July. Luckily, we found a water barrel, which will be enough to water my garden. Besides, it's been raining almost constantly, so it hasn't been a problem.

The bigger obstacle? My husband's obsession with running out of storage.

Yup. Really cute. Do you see the nice rich soil under that shed? That was my vegetable garden. Thanks hon.  At least I won't need to weed it anymore.

Receiving blanket

I made my first handmade item for the shop. 

It's a mitered corner baby blanket.  It's a nice light-weight for summer since it doesn't have batting like a quilt.  The top layer is from a vintage sheet, the backing is kona cotton. It is quite large at approximately 31" x 43".

I plan on making a few more for my etsy shop and see if there is any interest. I'm also thinking of making square ones since they are practical for swaddling a baby.  I would love some feedback! What do you look for in a receiving blanket? Do you love large blankets or prefer smaller ones?

Thanks for reading!

Why is my vacuum so heavy?

But wait a minute...

There's room for two!

Lola will mount anything like it's a horse.  You should see her ride the potted tree in my living room.

Gotta know when to fold 'em..

For day 4 and 5 of the Kids Clothes Week Challenge I spent way too much time on a pair of failed shorts for Lola.  Sometimes I can be a little stubborn. Or maybe it's denial. I should have walked away long before I did. I (tried) to make my own pattern but the proportions were not right and they are way too long.

I also didn't sew the right pieces together so one leg of the shorts is bigger and longer than the other.  Nice.

Refusing to let the poor shorts die, I thought "What if I made a nice large cuff?  That might fix them!"

Umm, no. It won't.

Poor shorts. My mom must be proud. Have you ever insisted on finishing a project that just was not going to work? 

I did cut out and iron the next dress I will make for Lola. Here's hoping for success tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!

KCWC Day 3

I had a productive day and made two skirts for my baby girl. 

The first one is made with the bottom of a pair of jeans and a strip of dark blue jersey from a t-shirt.  The bonus is I can now make myself a pair of capris with the rest of the jeans.

The second comes from a vintage sheet.  The top hem was beautifully detailed and even had a bit of eyelet trim.  I simply made a tube, created a casing and inserted an elastic. Done.

What to make tomorrow?

Thanks for reading!