Our Baby Boom

Our family baby boom has come to an end with the arrival of Kiarah on Tuesday. That makes four new babies this year. My niece also had a baby in April so this Christmas should be wonderful, five new little people to love. My mom who is 80 cannot wait to snuggle a;ll these new little family members. I on the other hand have a whole new set of models for my hats.

Kiarah 

Danny

AJ

Jake

These are my newest loves.  I count my blessing daily, four beautiful healthy babies and mine to spoil and love.  With all this cuddling and family I have been trying to get some hats together for a show , but up until now I am just working on orders and find myself on Pinterest looking for new ideas for this bunch.  Halloween was discussed by the two older guys,

should the babies be ninja turtles, what about minions and last but not least paw patrol.  Paw Patrol has seemed to win so those hats are in the works.  Visit us on Facebook to see how things are coming along.  

  Bye for now , I am off to work on hats and #fox blankets.

They Grow So Fast

It seems like only yesterday I became a Grandma. Very exciting, and I had a good teacher......my Gram was the best.  Now #1 Grandson will soon turn 26, where does the time go. He is the Dad to two wonderful boys with another one due in a few weeks.

My third Grandchild Elizabeth gave me yet another adorable great Grandson in January.

Number 5 grandchild Christina blessed with the latest Great Grandson 

Before September  will will have one more Great  Grandson  and our first Great Granddaughter.   How exciting.

Last summer at our analysis summer birthday bash we took a group photo for my Mom in Florida who is a huge Cubs fan, this time we will have 3 new babies in it .

Here is my gang, we were only mixing one Granddaughter. 

They keep me busy and very happy, especially when I get those calls to make them something. Like a monkey hat or a kindergarten show.  CARSEN will be adorable, Ps I had to dye shorts and thirty brown and make a tail to match.

I love being a Great Gramma even more than Gramma, who knew that was possible.

I don't Do Well With Changes

For as long as I can remember I do not take change well. I realize that as life goes on things must change, but that doesn't make it any easier for me to adjust to. So much has happened since my last post I am at a loss as to where I should start.

    Probably the biggest change is last week we lost our favorite UNCLE. Uncle Eddie was , perfect. Kind, sweet and as good a guy as you will ever find. The perfect son, brother and uncle. In the past seven years since my Gram has passed away he has been with us for holidays to keep the family going. He is probably best remembered for the line of kids waiting to kiss him goodbye before he left. Some of us got in line more than once, he never minded that! I am handling this much better than I thought because he is with my Gram now and both can chat the days away. In heaven I bet he's bowling again. I will think of thunder in a whole new way from now on. The saddest part is the little ones in the family did not have nearly enough time to get to know him. He will be greatly missed at our house.
   Luckily for me I have a wonderful friend who is more like a sister, Jean for the Teapot Quilt Cottage and Garden Center in Montello. In good times and those awful times she is always there to lend a shoulder and help talk me through the tears.
    I started taking college courses online!  Will I run off and get a career? Maybe, if not I will still show the kids if Gramma can do it so can YOU.
   We are getting ready for a move.  That means packing and unpacking. I did mention I hate change and this will surely add to the stress in the house. On a good not the kids will be out of school and can help. Can help, should help!

  I have also added some new items to the shop and hopefully after catching up on orders can get a few more done.

A holiday weekend ahead with a birthday party and BBQ ( speaking of BBQ, here is a great take along salad recipe from Pioneer Woman ), two small boys 2 puppies, 3 kittens 2 dogs and a cat, it should be a piece of cake! Have a safe weekend!

Seems Like Spring

Well the ground hog here in Wisconsin says an early spring and it sure feels like it outside. The sun is shining and the snow is slowly disappearing. Is this a good thing? Probably not, in the next few months we will hear that the farmers really needed the snow for moisture and the snow related tourism will have taken a big hit. But, I LOVE it. You see, I hate cold weather, yes I did choose to move to Wisconsin but if I had my way would spend it indoors much like a black bear hibernating until spring. So all this sunshine is a treat for me. I also spend a good amount of that time indoors with a two and three year old. We need fresh air and sun as the super heros are growing restless.

Now you might notice that they are in pajamas, that is because we all have had a nasty cough we cannot seem to shake. But, even that will not stop the crime fighting team Equipped with a cape bought on Etsy from http://www.etsy.com/shop/littlemamas the smaller one also has a cape. A Batman mask from years past Halloween and cowboy boots from his Lone Ranger costume, this is not for a photo but how they look every day. We need to go out and play! We all smell like Vicks Vaporub and are watching endless videos of Lassie and the Lone Ranger over and over again. 

We have baked bread, made cinnamon rolls and later today have chosen a cherry cake to make http://www.duncanhines.com/recipes/cakes/phyllisteeter/cherry-chip-cake

All the while I am making hats, trying new patterns, ( yesterday I was frog like rip rip rip ) too much Lassie and not enough counting. 

I have a new beard pattern in the works which could make for a very nice order, and this time of year that would be great, so I do need to count and find some quiet time to not only crochet but remember to write down what I am doing. 

With kids being sent home from school with the flu, this cough and general stuffiness, I just want to fling the doors open and let the germs out! Clear my head and get busy, all that would be possible if the hubby were

 not home saying....your letting the cold in! He is clueless!

We also have a nice giveaway on our facebook page so stop by and enter. http://www.duncanhines.com/recipes/cakes/phyllisteeter/cherry-chip-cake

Visit the Etsy shop and see all the new photo prop and newborn items http://www.etsy.com/shop/GrammasGifts and have a great day enjoying your weather no matter what it is!

The Holidays Are Over

              Yes, I must say I did do the happy dance this morning as the kids returned to school.  The two little giuys are back with their Mom for her week and there was silence! It has been a hectic couple of weeks.
         Let me explain. On December 13th my Mother flew in from Florida to stay a week and be at our home for a Holiday gathering. For the first time in 6 years since my Gram passed we were all going to try and get together. This is a big undertaking since I am in Wisconsin, many relatives are in the Chicago area, I have a brother in Indiana , a sister in Ohio a couple in Tulsa etc.   I had done my prep work so the food was  a breeze, shopped early had a to do list and help from those in the house. I even fit in lunch with my good friend Jean from the Teapot Quilt Cottage in Montello.   The big day came, Saturday December 17th, ( for my Mom, there was a light dusting of snow ) my husband drove down to Watertown to pick up my Uncle and kids started to arrive. My daughter Diane and her 5 kids came the night before from Chicago to not need to leave to early or rush. You never know what the weather might bring up here. Not only all those relatives we knew and missed but after more than 35 years to be reunited with my Moms sister, who had been adopted. What a nice Christmas gift.

Mom (Dorothy)  Aunt Charlotte Mom ( Lillian ) Aunt Barb and in the front everyones favorite Uncle Eddie
My Grandfathers 5 children together in one photo.
Now, I have to say I was awful at taking photos and hope someone shares theirs with me. I was busy warming pierogi and making sure everyone was finding everything and lacked the camera on hand.

Her are two of my daughters helping with the food. The nesco behind them contains a favorite party recipe . We call it Italian Beef coming from Chicago. Something not easily found up here.  Pioneer Woman calls it drip beef and here is her link. 

Try it, it is amazing http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/02/drip-beef-two-ways/

This is Becky who is 5 and has just had her one year anniversary being diabetic. I did not bake cookies and had to make many calls to her Mom, Diane to see just what she could eat. 

This is our baby Isabella, who just turned one and is the quickest little person I know!

Here are my two favorite little men. JJ and Carsen

Elizabeth who is off on her own with boyfriend Dakota and in nursing school in Fond Lac

Mike, always ready to pose

Rosie, a big help to her Mom

Chrissy, one of the in house teens 

Sergio, who we call Jr.

Uncle Eddie admiring Beckys red bird hat

Aunt Barb

cousin Natalie

daughter Diane with Bella

Tommy the quiet funny guy

cousins, husband, boyfriends and kids. It was wonderful to catch up! This was the best gift of the year!

Our 5 generation photo

back row: my daughter Patrice, me, Big Joe my grandson who is holding little Joe and I have Carsen

Everyone had a good time and it just did not seem long enough to chat. Hopefully we can do this again next year and with more notice those relatives who could not make it can find their way here! 

So, with all that behind us and some quiet I did get a little work done and added a few new items to the Etsy shop, here is a preview

they can all be found at 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/GrammasGifts?ref=si_shop

Beaming From Ear to Ear

  This has been a very busy week in our household. We are in the final days up to Elizabeth's graduation. I find it so hard to believe that she can be ready to be off for college already. Not, because she doesn't act like she is but because it seems to have gone by so fast.

Here she is just starting off at Kindergarten Graduation.  It feels like yesterday!

Wednesday night at senior awards night . She received close to $35,000.00 in scholarship money. We are so proud of her! 

So with all this beaming and boasting I still have to find something cute for the party. I cam up with this cupcake idea

http://www.flickr.com/photos/littlecakesformyhappy/with/3581664050/  So cute and in her school colors they will be perfect. Thank goodness for all those talented people in my computer LOL. I am working on invitations using her kindergarten picture, and running out of time. So much to do so few hours.
            I have really been bad about taking photos and listing to Etsy this week. With getting the yard and house ready and the school events it seems the timer just flies by.

Here is a sock monkey from the diaper set on the new doll my sister made for me to use as a model. Our little guy has gotten too big to be able to show off the cute baby hats. So I am off to get some yard work done before the next batch or rain and hopefully get my computer work done this evening in the peace and quiet while the big kids are at work. Wish me luck!

Blessings

  I have been married for 39 years and have 5 grown kids, who except for the littlest were always happy and healthy. After a couple years of doctors and therapy even the little came out with flying colors. We were doing ok, not rich but healthy and what I though was pretty happy. Then came along grandkids, each one a gift and also very healthy. My first Great grandson came into this world very early and had us all terrified that he would not make it. But, with so many prayers and faith, he too was healthy and growing strong. Still feeling very blessed as I hear of so many families with bigger troubles that mine. Our little Carsen was due and during the pregnancy we were told he would have Down's Syndrome so I prepared for this, prayed and asked for the strength to help him in whatever way I could. He came into the world screaming and PERFECT. God heard our prayers again. Then just last fall one of the littlest granddaughters was diagnosed with diabetes, a big blow for us all. But, with prayers and alot of work on her Moms part she is doing pretty good. So are we still blessed? Yes, we have troubles like everyone else. Money doesnt seem to ever go far enough, gas prices, utilities, the cost of groceries. All a stresser on family finances which seem to be tighter every day. But, even with my Myastenia Gravis ....we are so very blessed. I have 2 , yes 2 Moms who are in good health in their 70's , a wonderful uncle who is closing in on 80, the kids and spouses, grandkids and great grandkids. Some days it seems like an abundance. I have recently started to read The Secret and part of it says to stop each day to be grateful for what you do have. So, I sat down and put alll the I don't have aside and thought......WOW I am really blessed and I thank God evey day for giving me such a beautiful family. Not perfect, but very close.....that is of course a Grandma speaking !\

So, I will stop now for some much needed cuddle time with our little reader Carsen. No, he doesn't really wear glasses those have no lenses but he thinks he looks like Grampa . Have a great weekend!

THINGS ARE JUST A LITTLE OFF

Did you ever have one of those days where, plans change and then the whole days seems to go astray?  Well, that is how my day has gone. After being under the weather yesterday, a bit of a stomach flu bug I think. I went to bed early to get alot of rest and looking forward to a trip to Madison for yarn. Now, that doesn't sound like such a big deal....but Going to Madison early means a quick stop at Lazy Janes for a croissant and some Almond Vanilla coffee.  My favorite treat. In fact that could make a bad day turn good all by itself.  Well, like life...plans change and we are not to go today. Coffee at home and no almond croissant or scone form Lazy Janes.  The day is sinking fast. Add to that the teens are on summer break and they will somehow find a way to disrupt my day.

The morning coffee was good but just not right, toast instead of croissant.  This day must get better.
I am working to get items finished for orders and upcoming shows as well as my Etsy shop. People are not cooperating, they must not know my plan for the day, or do and just don't care.  I feel myself slowly slipping downhill. Not good.  Projects coming along slowly and constant chatter.  They should be in school!

Now with housework done and projects started. I am trying to make some cute hang tags for the hats and sweaters. ... another surprise......the two little guys are back. Days early, so much for major production happening here today. That's ok,  we will watch Franklin the Turtle and play Mr. Potato Head instead. It won't be long before these two are big and no longer need or want to spend quality time with Gramma.

At nap time to pacify my need for a croissant I went online and found this recipe and in the morning before my day can get off track will make these.

Almond Croissants


Adapted from Chocolate and Zucchini
•4 large day old croissants
•2-3 tablespoons flaked almonds
•1 tablespoon icing sugar
For syrup
•1/2 cup water
•1 tablespoon caster or superfine sugar
•1.5 tablespoons light rum (optional)
For almond filling
•1/2 cup sugar
•2/3 cup ground almond meal
•a pinch of salt
.50g (1/2 stick) unsalted room temperature butter, diced (take it out the night before if you need to or blitz it in the microwave on very low for a very short time if you need to)
•1 egg

Note:You can make the syrup and the crème d’amandes up to a day in advance: transfer into separate airtight containers, and refrigerate.

1. Prepare the syrup: combine water, sugar and the rum (if using) in a saucepan. Bring to a slow boil over medium heat, and simmer for a minute, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat, transfer into a shallow soup plate, and let cool completely.
2. Prepare the almond filling by combining 1/2 cup sugar, the almond meal and the salt in a bowl and mix until combined. Add the butter, and mix again until well mixed. Add in the eggs one by one, and mix until creamy.
3. Preheat the oven to 180° C (350° F) and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Dip a croissant into the syrup, coating both sides and the ends well – the croissant should be quite moist. Slice horizontally like you would for a sandwich (I sliced the back as that seemed easiest), and place on the cookie sheet. Spread the inside with about two tablespoons almond filling, and place the top back on. Spread the top with another tablespoon of almond filling, and sprinkle with sliced almonds. Repeat with the remaining croissants and filling.

5. Put into the oven to bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the almond cream is set and golden. Transfer onto a cooling rack, dust with confectioner’s sugar, and serve, slightly warm or at room temperature. They will keep for a day. If you can resist them!

http://www.notquitenigella.com/2011/03/27/slothful-sundays-almond-croissants/

This is one of the few projects finished and tagged today... hopefully more to come.

Fat Tuesday Fast Approaching

   I woke up this morning thinking of my Gram.  It happens often and usually she clears up a question I have been poindering or seems to calm the craziness around me. But, today I woke thinking  of Pączki Day. I had to smile, in her later years she did love her bakery. I think it is engrained in us. My biggest dream is to open a bakery, oh would those Grammas be proud of me then! My Great Grandmother was raised near Warsaw, Poland in what was then  Prussia, and came to this country in 1912. Her German family worked on a large farm and sent her and a brother Otto to America for safety. She was never to see any of them again. I think becasue of this she held old traditions and family very tightly and made us #1 always.  My Grandmother followed right behind.  We were her family treasure and what she left behind was in our hearts and memories, not the bank. . Of the many customs and traditions she brought with her was Paczki Day.  Now if my Gram was still here, I would need to stop at the bakery today to have some Paczki there for her morning coffee. That sounds wonderful, but no longer living in the Chicago area, we have no good bakery near us and I may just need to bake today so I can share this with my grandkids in the morning. Is it life changing if I don't? No, but these little things somehow, someday may bring a smile to their faces on a cold grey March day.

For those of you who could use some back ground on this festive day read on.....

In English, the common pronunciations /pɔ̃tʃki/ or /pɑntʃki/^[1] imitate the Polish pronunciation, but some speakers pronounce the word /puntʃki/

Pączki Day In Poland, pączki are eaten especially on Fat Thursday (the last Thursday before Lent). Many Polish Americans celebrate Pączki Day on Fat Tuesday (the day before Ash Wednesday). Traditionally, the reason for making pączki was to use up all the lard, sugar, eggs and fruit in the house, because they were forbidden to be consumed due to Catholic fasting practices during Lent.


In the large Polish community of Chicago, and other large cities across the Midwest, Pączki Day is celebrated annually by immigrants and locals alike. In Buffalo, Toledo, Cleveland, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Milwaukee, South Bend, and Windsor, Pączki Day is more commonly celebrated on Fat Tuesday instead of Fat Thursday. Chicago celebrates the festival on both Fat Thursday and Fat Tuesday, due to its sizable Polish population.

In Hamtramck, Michigan, an enclave of Detroit, there is an annual Pączki Day (Shrove Tuesday) Parade which has gained a devoted following. In the Greater Cleveland area, it is wide spread through out the region, that many bakeries have people that will wait in lines for pączki on Pączki Day.[citation needed] The Pączki Day celebrations in some areas are even larger than many celebrations for St. Patrick's Day.[citation needed] In some areas Pączki Day is celebrated with pączki-eating contests. The eating contest in Evanston, Illinois, started in 2010. Hamtramck contest started in 2001. Both are held on weekends closest to Fat Tuesday.

RECIPE>>>>>>>>>
DOUGH. Dissolve 2 cakes crushed yeast in 1 c. lukewarm milk, sift in 1 c. flour, add 1 T. sugar, mix, cover, and let stand in warm place to rise.


Beat 8 egg yolks with 2/3 c. powdered sugar and 2 T. vanilla sugar until fluffy. Sift 21/2 c. flour into bowl, add sponge, egg mixture, and 2 T. grain alcohol or 3 T. rum, and knead well until dough is smooth and glossy. Gradually add 1 stick melted lukewarm butter and continue kneading dough until it no longer clings to hands and bowl and air blisters appear.

Cover with cloth and let rise in warm place until doubled. Punch dough down and let it rise again. Transfer dough to floured board, sprinkle top with flour, and roll out about 1/2" inch thick. With glass or biscuit-cutter, cut into rounds. Arrange on floured board and proceed in either of the following ways:

SMALL PACZKI. Place a spoonful of fruit filling (rose-hip preserves, cherry preserves, or other thick jam) off center on each round. Raise edges of dough and pinch together over filling, then roll between palms snowball fashion to form balls. Let rise in warm place until doubled.

LARGE PACZKI. Place a spoonful of fruit filling as above on only 1/2 dough rounds, cover each with another round, pinch edges together, and roll between palms to form a ball. Let rise until doubled in warm, draft-free place. Heat 11/2-2 lbs. lard in deep pan so paczki can float freely during frying. It is hot enough when a small piece of dough dropped into hot fat immediately floats up.

Fry paczki under cover without crowding several minutes until nicely browned on bottom, then turn over and fry uncovered on other side another 3 minutes or so. Note: If using electric fryer, set temp. at 360-375 degrees. If frying in stove-top pan and fat begins to burn, add several slices of peeled raw potato which will both lower the temperature and absorb the burnt flavor. Paczki may also be fried in oil, but lard produces the tastiest results. If you are cutting down on animal fats, you can compromise by using a lard and oil combination.

Transfer fried paczki to absorbent paper and set aside to cool. When cool, dust generously with powdered sugar, glaze or icing.


EXQUISITE OLD WARSAW PACZKI. This is an old recipe modified for those who prefer granulated, active dry yeast to a the more traditional compressed fresh yeast.

Beat 12 egg yolks with 1. t. salt at high speed until thick and lemony. Dissolve 2 packets of dry yeast in 1/4 c. 110-degree water. Separately, cream 1/3 c. room-temp. butter with 1/2 c. granulated sugar until fluffy, and beat into yeast mixture. Scald 1 c. whipping cream and cool to lukewarm.

Gradually add 2 c. flour and the cream, plus 3 T. French brandy, beating constantly. Then add 2 more c. flour and finally the yolk mixture. Knead well until air blisters appear. Cover with cloth and let stand in warm place until doubled. Punch down and let rise again. Roll out on floured board, sprinkling top of dough with a little flour, about 3/4 inch thick.

Cut into 2 inch rounds and top half of them with spoonful fruit filling. Cover with remaining rounds, pinch edges together with seal. (Note: If dough is dry, moisten edges with water before pinching together.) Place paczki on floured board, cover with cloth, and let raise until doubled. Fry as above, drain on absorbent paper, and when cool, dust with vanilla sugar or cover with glaze, preferably containing some grated orange ring.

OLD POLISH UNFILLED PACZKI. Add a pinch of saffron to 2 T. 190-proof grain alcohol and let stand several hours. In bowl, sift 1 c. flour and scald it 1 c. boiling milk, mixing with wooden spoon until smooth and lump-free. Set aside to cook. Meanwhile, mix 1 stick room-temp. butter, 1/3 c. honey, and 1 cake yeast. Stir in 21/2 c. flour, add 1 pinch salt, knead until smooth, cover with cloth, and allow to rise in warm place. When it has doubled, work in 1 T. rum, the strained saffron-flavored alcohol, and 1 T. finely chopped candied orange rind. Knead again briefly and set aside to rise once more.

Tear off walnut-sized pieces of dough and roll between floured palms into balls. Arrange on floured board, cover with cloth, and allow to rise until doubled. Fry in hot fat, drain in absorbent paper, and, when cool, dust with powered sugar or glaze as above

recipe thanks to http://www.polamjournal.com/Library/Holidays/paczki/paczki.html

Life gives us lemons

For the most part I think I am a very nice person.  I help others, am active in my community, love my family and then out of the blue someone comes and sucks the fun right out of everything.

At our little group meeeting yesterday I was told I said something which was very untrue, from there came a few ugly emails and now I could spit nails.

As I sit back and go over events in my mind I see I should have gotten away from all this buzz months ago and did'nt ....silly me

I have eaten 2 candy bars, chocolate, they did'nt help, I am on the fourth cup of coffee and that has only made me have to take more breaks.

Why are people so two faced, by this time in my life I thought all that would be a thing of the past. not so! In business, sometimes people are not what they seem. It is a shame because how much nicer would it be and easier to just take everyone at face value.
What have I learned..
listen to your gut
get everything in writing
share nothing
no one does anything nice for no reason

Funny but I have taught the kids just the opposite.

This incident has really got me bummed and I wish I could find a way to just push it out of my mind instead of steaming over all the trash talk. I will go back and paint another window and try to push all this aside before I go home to those two adorable lieele guys who are now my permanent house guests!

Black & White Wednesdays

This is my first week following Lisa's Black & White Wednesdays and I can hardly wait to check out all the other blogs

Here is my photo....if titled it would be CHEESE ! This is my Great Grandson JJ and he is a ham. It is amazing to me as I watch him, exactly how much he is like his Dad. And just like dad he is a grammas boy.  Secretly I would'nt have it any other way. JJ is also my cupcake buddy, we bake and he always comes running when he hears the mixer.