Mmmmm...Memorial Day

It was a Memorial Day Feast!  Jon and his friend Eric created a BBQ buffet inspired by the Summer Wegmans Menu magazine.  The highlight was three types of sliders:  cracked pepper, jalapeno cheddar and crumbled bacon with regular rolls or glazed donuts.  Followed by a dessert of grilled bananas and ice cream.  Thanks for all the hard work, boys!

And here's one more pic of our weekend with Auntie Cortney all the way from Hillsborough, NC.  Thanks for the visit and hope you liked the Thai peanut mussels from Ale House!

Ring Around the Wreath

Living wreaths are so beautiful, but look tricky to make and even more expensive to buy.  Because my sister Cortney is visiting, I decided two crafty heads and four crafty hands might be able to handle the project!

We started by gathering supplies from Michael's, a local Amish greenhouse and Lowe's.  We came home with: one bag of moss, two wreath frames, two packs of coated floral wire, two pots of hens and chicks, two wooly thymes, two ogon sedums, two angel tear plants and two packs of different sedums.  The total cost was thirty dollars.  Which is already a deal considering a real wreath frame is about twenty five dollars.

The first step was to create a base with the moss.  I wet the moss so it was easier to place in the frame.  Cortney placed the wire pieces around the base to eventually attach the second frame at the end.  Then I layered on some moist soil in the center of the moss and place the second frame over the base materials.  I started placing the plants with extra moss around the wreath, working the roots into the soil and moss.  Finally, Cortney tie wrapped the moss-soil-moss-plant sandwich all together.  And the final result is beautiful!

Thanks for the help, Cort!  And Emberlie was so happy to get to spend time with her auntie. 

Spun, Plied, Washed and Dried

For my first Mothers' Day, I got the totally portable, totally fun HitchHiker spinning wheel from The Merlin Tree.  Learning to spin was a lot like riding a bike - once you figure out the rhythm its pretty straightforward after that.  To practice, I bought some beautiful Lincoln Longwool locks a sheep named Claire at Knox Fiber Farm in Buffalo, New York.  Thank ewe, Claire! You have to hand card the locks as you go, but the colors are worth it.  

This is my first hank of yarn with the HitchHiker!  Spun, plied, washed and dried!  It is pretty uneven in places, but I was excited to just give it a whirl.  There is a great tutorial at Knitting Review describing the steps to finishing your yarn.  Because is was such a small amount, I used the Andean bracelet method for plying. 

Eat Your Heart Out, Chobani!

A 32 ounce container of Chobani yogurt cost $4.99.  Thanks to my handy neighbor Greg, I have just learned that I can make about 30 ounces of Greek style yogurt for the cost of a half gallon of milk (about $1.79).  And it tastes better than Chobani.  All you need is a half gallon and milk and a little yogurt to start:

1.       Slowly heat half gallon of milk to 180 degrees – do not let the milk burn.

2.       Once the milk is 180 degrees pour it into a glass container and let cool to 105-110 degrees

3.       Mix the 2 tablespoons of plain yogurt and 2 tablespoons of milk – to thin out the yogurt.

4.       Stir in the yogurt/milk mixture into the cooled milk.

5.       Cover the pot or glass container.

6.       Heat your oven for 2 minutes just to get it warm.

7.       Wrap a dish towel around your pot or glass container and put it in the oven.

8.       Leave the light on to help maintain warmth in the oven.

9.   I leave it in the oven for up to 12 hours.

10.   Once out it’s yogurt!  Just drain for about 3 hours in fridge using a colander and cheese cloth.  

So easy, delicious and money saving!  Thanks Greg.  And Emberlie says, "I like eating bird legs better than yogurt".