Gypsy Gewelz

I wanted to let you know that Shodeo Barn is carrying some of my jewelry. The next place they will be is the Central Ks Free Fair in Abilene on August 4-9th. She has a website if you would like to check it out(http://www.shodeobarn.com/)

Crafters Resource

I ran onto this AWESOME company. It is called Specialty Bottle.  All you crafters and cookers will love this site. The best part is there is no minumum order. They have glass sauce bottles, plastic tubes for DIY lip balm, tin spice cans, and the list goes on. Anything you want to cook, craft, and create there is a container for it here at  http://www.specialtybottle.com/index.asp


If you order from here I would love to hear about the products. I will post when I order. Enjoy!

Rusty Rierson!

Well, I have a new musician you all need to check out-Rusty Rierson! He sings country & red dirt. Not only is he a great singer but he is a great person, humble, down to earth-REAL! Rusty is getting his Masters at Kansas State University and had my mom as a professor. This is how I first heard of him. I'm excited for his music video to come out soon. At the beginning of July he was headed to Nashville to record it...HOW EXCITING. To learn more about him and where he will be performing check out his website at http://rustyrierson.com/home.html

Playing on July 4th!!!

Farming

Farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil and you're a thousand miles from the corn field.
Dwight D. Eisenhower

Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are AMAZING! Best fresh out of the oven. Don't over bake.


2 sticks softened butter

3/4 Cup packed light brown sugar

1 Cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 Tablespoon pure vanilla

3 1/2 Cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

10 oz bag chocolate chips

1 bag Oreo Cookies,

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer cream butter and sugars until well combined. Add in eggs and vanilla until well combined.

2. In a separate bowl mix the flour, salt and baking soda. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with chocolate chips until just combined. Using a cookie scoop take one scoop of cookie dough and place on top of an Oreo Cookie. Take another scoop of dough and place on bottom of Oreo Cookie. Seal edges together by pressing and cupping in hand until Oreo Cookie is enclosed with dough.

  Place onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet and bake cookies 9-13 minutes or until cookies are baked to your liking. Let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Serve with a tall glass of milk, enjoy!

Green Gardening

Well here is an update to her amazing garden. As I posted these pictures I realized there is alot of Green, in the real sense.

Horseradish

Rhubarb

CORN

Korabi

I took tons of pictures, but I don't want to bore you all with them. I just can't believe how great her garden is. I'm hoping it hold up in these 104 degree days.

Fabric Banner Tutorial

I just finished making a fabric banner for my friends western/farm themed baby shower tomorrow. It seems like all of the event planning and party websites have a fabric or paper banner in the pictures. I decided to make a western one that I will reuse many times.

1. I first picked the fabric. I'm all about recycling so I decided on denim (my old pair of jeans), bandanna print, and black & white cowprint. I bought the cowprint &  bandanna print as I didn't have enough actual bandannas to use. * Prewash your fabric

You also need to think about what you are going to use to hang the banner. I used red ribbon that I have about 5 spools of. Denim strips or jute would be cute also.

2. Make a patter. I've seen triangle or scalloped banners. I went with triangle. Grabbed a piece of scratch paper and made my own pattern.

3. Trace pattern on BACK side of fabric.

4. Cut desired number. I cut 6 of each. This will depend on how long you want your banner.

5. Begin sewing them together. I measured down the ribbon about 2 feet as to allow enough to tie the end of the banner. Then I placed the ribbon on top of the fabric and began.

6. I left about 1.5 to 2 inches in between each piece. For those of you who personally know me, will know that I didn't measure. I'm more of a guesser or eyeballer. Then my mom can't believe how it came out the same. I just go with it!

7. Once they are all sewn. I left enough ribbon on the other end to tie.

And here you have it!

If you have any questions let me know.

Button-up or Button-down?

As the temperatures are in the 100s I look at many uncle and grandpa as they wear their long sleeve western shirts. They always told me that long sleeves are cooler. I'm not so sure I am 100% convinced. Both of them only wear western shirts. No t-shirts, polos, etc.... Then I started to think about the differences. Some call them button-up shirts while others call them button-down. Not sure that one or the other is correct. This again got me thinking about the history of the western shirt.

Fashion Friday it is!

The first western shirts were of the pull over design with laces or buttons running about a third of the way down the shirt. They were home spun and made of lightweight cotton materials in the warmer climate regions of the southwest. These shirts were usually white or off-white in color and very rarely came with a collar attached. Many of the shirts had an option to attach a collar when the need arose.

Of course the southwest wasn't the only place with cowboys and western shirts. In regions such as Colorado and Montana, cowboys were faced with harsh winters that required heavier and warmer materials for their shirts than their southwestern counterparts. In these regions, wool was the material of choice. The colors of the shirts also ran much darker in these parts and also unlike the southwestern shirts, these came with a roll over collar.

The more widely recognizable western shirt is a characterized by a stylized yoke in front and in back. It is generally constructed of denim or heavy fabric  with long sleeves. Those were often seen  with elaborately decorated piping, embroidered roses and a contrasting yoke. In the 1950s these were frequently worn by movie cowboys like Roy Rogers

The shirts and styles vary today. Popular brands like Wrangler, Roper, and Cinch are what many country men wear. Stripes and plaids are more common yet the yoke is still prominent in many shirts. Every once in awhile you see a cowboy wearing the vintage or retro shirt like that above.  

Talent

When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, " I used everything you gave me." -Erma Bombeck

Gardening

Sunday evening my family went to over to a friends house. I was absolutely amazed by her garden. As long as I can remember we have always had a garden, we usually plant the "normal" items; cukes, tomatoes, onions, and squash. Well, this friend of ours goes ALL OUT!

I actually ate this after I pulled it up. It doesn't get any fresher than that!

Pepper is almost as big as the plant.

Jalepeno Popper Dip

I went to a good friends birthday and open house this Saturday and got the recipe for this  AMAZING dip that I had. It was a crowd favorite. Its quick and easy to make too!

Ingredients

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
• 2 ounces canned diced jalapeno peppers, drained
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Stir together cream cheese and mayonnaise in a large bowl until smooth. Stir in green chiles and jalapeno peppers. Pour mixture into a microwave safe serving dish, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
2. Microwave on High until hot, about 3 minutes.

Footnotes

• Baked Variation
• If you would like to brown the cheese, bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for about 30 minutes.

Planting Seeds

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap

but by the seeds you plants. "

Robert Louis Stevenson

Let Freedom Ring

I want to wish each and everyone of you a safe and fun 4th of July!

The Original Rodeo

Ranch Rodeos!

 Ranch Rodeo is an event that was re-created a number of years ago to return to the roots of rodeo when the first event was established in 1882. The event widely hailed as the first rodeo was held in North Platte, Nebraska and was produced by William F. Cody (Buffalo Bill). Buffalo Bill incorporated trick riding and a number of other entertaining additions to the rodeo.

The competition was about the ranches and who could be awarded the prize of being the best ranch in the rodeo. Ranch-versus-ranch contests gradually sprang up, and events were created that simulated what the ranch cowboys did for work each day on the ranch.

These rodeos were a gathering of ranch families and became a social function that was not only a competition but a time of visiting with each other and sharing their lives. As time went on rodeo evolved and became a showcase of each individual cowboy rather than the team concept or ranch-verses ranch competitions that were originally held. Modern day Ranch Rodeo is a return to those times of sharing and friendly competition.

To learn a little more visit: www.wrca.org

The events will vary from rodeo to rodeo, a few are: Ranch Bronc Riding, Wild Cow Milking, Team Doctoring, Team Sorting, and Team Branding.

Last night I went and watched A and his team compete. My best friend and grandpa went along.I also got to see my good friend that I made the burp clothes for.  It was a blast. The rodeo its self is fun to watch and the people I was with made it even better.

Team Sorting

A gettin ready

The chute opens

No sure who this is, but thought it was a good action pic

My T-Shirt. It has all of the ranches that are competing along with their brands. You could choose the shirt color and the screen printing color as well. Made right in front of you.-what a great idea.

My mom was jealous when I told her about this so after the wedding tonight we might try to make part of tonight's performance!

Burp Cloths-Fashionable!

Well here it is....Fashion Friday. I never thought I would be posting about baby items. However, I've been invited to several baby showers so I'm making some fashionable burp cloths.

A completed Western set of 3