I'll poke your eyes out

You know how sometimes you want something SO MUCH you rip right into it and then something unexpected happens?

Yea, I don't think that's what happened here. 

I'm pretty sure the Boz wanted to tear out this toy's eyes.

My terror of a puppy. 

Getting Crafty

When Mr. Gill and I moved into our new home last winter, we were not very discriminate on which room would be our bedroom.
In all honesty we just choose the room that 'seemed' to be the biggest.
So we set up our bedroom in the room that has a window that faces the entry-way of our neighbors house. There are some privacy shrubbery so they can't just peer into our windows during their comings and goings.....BUT they have a huge flood light.
A flood light they like to turn on as soon as it goes dark and it STAYS ON ALL NIGHT!
Because of this we now have the *UGLY* beige black out curtains in our room.
Very not my style but....I think I have found a solution to this issue.

No-Sew Roman Shades

This is a photo of my kitchen window (notice the pots hanging) not my bedroom.
I found this tutorial on pinterest, and knew I wanted to try it in my kitchen, mostly because I already had the tools.
This fabric is adorable and the bright cherries really work in this space.

How this works is you take a cheap-o plastic blind-ours came w/the house, remove all the slats (blinds?) from the ropes except for just a few.
The slats you keep on will be where the shade folds up when you pull the string.

Then you measure out your fabric to cover the blinds, glue your seams, glue the fabric to the slats...being careful to not glue the rope down so it can move freely.

The tutorial has step by step instructions.

I was able to complete this project for FREE! I already had the blinds, fabric and glue so all I needed was a little time and patience....


But... I'm not going to lie to you, friends.
This project is EASY but I was probably not as diligent with the measuring/cutting as I should have been....just because it's no-sew does not = lazy face.
So, next time I would be more careful how I glue down my seams to make sure they match exactly. This one has a little over hang you can see on the photo above.....and I'm not going to show you a picture of this but the bottom is not exactly even (:o) but, it works.

I am REALLY excited to try this idea in our light filled nightmare of a bedroom. I'm thinking I can use the ugly blackout curtains as the base for these roman shades w/a super cute fabric adhered on top?
I will try this as soon as the air conditioner unit finds a new home not in my window.....but that might take a while as Boise has been in a heat wave for the last couple of months.

I can't wait to make our bedroom reflect more of our style, and what a great way to do that w/out spending loads of cash.

So if you are looking for an easy and cheap way to update your windows here you go!

*Jenny G

The Library and a Burger Bun Recipe

On my 30 before 30 list I wrote that I wanted to get "good" at baking.

Well....I don't necessarily think this qualifies as being "good" at baking but seriously two of the best bread concoctions come out of my oven in the last few days.

Firstly, I made a recipe out of Peter Reinhart's artisan breads every day.

Yea, I'm the girl that checks cookbooks out of the library....so what?

Anyway this recipe for ciabatta bread is the BOMB! And pretty easy....the hardest part is thinking about it the night before you want the bread since it must chill in the fridge overnight.

If you are interested in making something other than sandwich loaf, check this book out....seriously....from your library :)

The OTHER thing I made were homemade hamburger buns!

RIGHT? Who does that?
A girl looking for an excuse to bake that's who.....but these were for real the best ever.
They really taste similar to the onion buns you get at the grocery only WAY better.

See all those yummy topping? Garlic salt, dried onions and flax seed!

I found the recipe at www.Chezus.com a neat blog I like to follow for fun cocktail ideas and stumbled across these!
I pinned it for later (of course) and the other day I had no idea what to have for dinner but we had some burgers. Homemade buns make burgers special-that's the truth.

I followed the recipe almost exactly, only altering the flour (I substituted 1 cup whole wheat) and my toppings.

Chez Us homemade buns

1 packet active-dry yeast (about 1 tablespoon) 1/2 cup warm water 1/2 cup warm whole milk 1 large egg 2 tablespoons melted butter 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon kosher salt 3 cups all-purpose flour egg wash – 1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water 1 tablespoon of each:  toasted sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried garlic, dried onion (or any seeds/toppings you like) 1 teaspoon maldon salt In the mixing bowl of your mixer, add the yeast into the warm water.  Stir.  Let it sit until dissolved.  In a separate bowl, stir the warm milk, with the egg, sugar, and salt.  Mix well.  Add the melted butter.  Stir again to mix well.  Add mixture to the yeast. Put the dough hook onto your mixer and stir the mixture well.  Add the flour, one cup at a time and mix well after each addition.  About 3 minutes.  Continue kneading at low speed for 8 minutes.  The dough will be smooth and spring back when touched.  Remove the dough from the mixer bowl, and lightly oil it.  Return the dough to the mixing bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and a couple dish towels.  Put into a warm place and let rise until doubled in bulk;  about 60 minutes. While the dough is rising combine the seeds with the onion and garlic as well as the salt.  Set aside. Lightly flour your work surface and turn the dough out onto the flour.  Lightly knead for a couple minutes with your hands.  Divide the dough into 8 pieces, they will be about 3 ounces each.  Shape each into a tight ball.  Transfer the balls to a baking sheet covered with a silpat or parchment paper.  Let them rise in a warm place (I like to slide into an over that was gently heated for a couple minutes.  Turn the heat off) and let the dough rise until they are puffy and about the size of a burger patty.  About 40 minutes. Pre-heat the oven to 375°F.  Lightly brush the tops with the egg wash.  Gently sprinkle with the seed/onion mixture.  Bake the buns for 17 minutes or until golden.  Let the buns cool to room temperature before serving.  Serve.  Eat. *Jenny G

The Krill

So we've been busy as bees around here!

I've been crafting again and I'll have something fun to show you that I copied off of Pinterest (aren't all the best things copied off Pinterest?) probably next week because-let's just be real people.
I don't post every third day.

Anywho, another fun thing we've been working hard on are the plans we have for our Labor Day Weekend!

PS-did you know Labor Day Weekend 2012 is in less than a month!

We are hosting a backyard concert!!


Oh yes we are!

Mr. Gill has formed a band called Michael Gill & The Krill and they are going to play in our backyard.

I know, it seems kind of silly but we are super excited about it for lots of reasons but I'll just list a couple here for you.
1. Mr. Gill has to practice his own songs, making him more comfortable with his stuff.
2. He's invited some of his friends (and family) to be in the band with him, making it exponentially MORE awesome.
3. Its a great reason to have a party and this girl likes parties! Especially parties that bring people together that won't often get together. Mr. Gill's parents are moving to Idaho in like a day and this is the perfect situation for them to get acquainted with our friends and neighbors.
4. Our good friends have also formed a band named Chase, The Fox and they will be opening up the show! How great is that?

This is the *poster* I made for the event. When I say poster really I mean a photo that I added text to....because I have a VERY limited understanding of Photoshop. 

What are YOUR plans for Labor Day Weekend?

*Jenny G

Sunday Breakfast

So Mr. Gill and I usually try to take some time to have a nice breakfast on Sundays for a couple of reasons.
1. Usually Saturdays are busy and having a slow morning doesn't work out well
2. Church is in the evenings for us so we are able to chill out in the am.

This morning we had whole wheat biscuits and eggs w/Mr. Gill's fancy sauce.

The biscuits came together SUPER quick and made a bunch so we have plenty for the quick mornings during the week.

The recipe comes from The Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook my mom gave me when I moved out, which I have referenced many times in the years I've been cooking for myself!

Biscuits Supreme

2 c flour (we used whole wheat but it calls for all-purpose)
4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar (we omitted)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c shortening
2/3 c milk

Pre-heat oven to 450* and stir together all dry ingredients. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center and add in milk. Stir until dough just comes together and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently for 10-12 strokes. Roll to a 1/2 inch thickness and cut w/biscuit cutter (or the top of a drinking glass).

Bake on un-greased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes.

Makes 10-12 biscuits.

Top w/homemade jam or a creamy bechamel sauce and fried egg.
Pour yourself some coffee and enjoy w/your favorite person!

*Jenny G

A whole stick of butter

You may or may not have noticed but I am a terribly inconsistent person. 

There are a few things I do regularly. 

Sleep. I've got that one down.

Eat. I really enjoy that one. 

But blogging.....apparently not. 

Sorry :/

But...you're HERE.....

Reading anyway even if I don't post daily.....or weekly....sometimes I even go a month. 

:/ 

There have been a few fun things that have happened in since our last chat. 

1. My little sister Laura came to visit! 

We had a stupid awesome time floating the Boise River, having her lead me through Nike Trainer and not being able to walk the rest of the day, and marathon out of nowhere shopping spree. 

Sidenote: Laura is probably my favoritest person to go shopping with because she's honest and has a HIGH sense of fashion and most of all she can talk me into trying things on I love but would have NEVER picked out for myself.

2. The day after my sister left to go home to Michigan, my sister in law went into labor and had her first child! I was there for the birth and it was awesome.....and slightly terrifying....but mostly incredible. 

I've never seen a human come out of a human before.....and I thought I knew what to expect, but I was literally in awe of what I saw.....absolutely incredible. 

Last thing I have to say about this is-Men are wimps. I can't imagine a dude doing anything like that.

3. The Boz and I have been spending quite a bit of time together!

Believe me, he's still a puppy-but he's been mellowing out quite a bit. 

We've been exercising him more, and I think the high heat here in Boise is making him in general more tired.

He's a pretty happy dog, and even though he ate a WHOLE STICK OF BUTTER that I set out to make cookies with today-I still love him.

Hopefully next time we sit down to talk I'll have a recipe up for you!

Have a good weekend!

*Jenny G

Easy as Pie

Baking a pie.

Sounds easy right?

Well. 

Maybe. 

ok-here's the story. I was given a bunch of rhubarb recently and I though-GOODNESS! I'll make a couple of strawberry rhubarb pies, one for Mr. Gill (his favorite) and one for our neighbor....since we're still new to the neighborhood and have yet to bribe people to like us. 

But things got complicated for several reasons.

1. I froze the rhubarb.

apparently rhubarb doesn't really like to be frozen, as a stalk that is-it was kinda mushy and gross....which made it hard to cut through.......so-don't freeze rhubarb.

Maybe it would survive better if you pre-chopped then freeze? I dunno. 

2. I tried a new pie crust recipe that boasted making enough for several pies.....when attempting to give away a pie just DON'T try something new. 

The crust was um.....kinda not good.....i'm not going to even tell you what recipe I tried because-well-it was edible but we've all had not so great crust so why share sometime less than awesome right? 

3. I didn't have a pie plate!

I've lent it out and forgot about it until I'm all strawberry rhubarbed up and have (not-so-awesome) pie crust coming out of my ears.

So I being my inventive self used a cake pan from the dollar store that I don't actually bake cakes in because-well......bakeware from the dollar store just doesn't really cut it does it?

so I made only one, and Mr. Gill ate it. 

and our neighbors still think we're slightly shady since we haven't yet had a pie.

The inside of the pie was pretty awesome. I used this recipe from Deb over at Smitten Kitchen!

I'm sure if you have a pie plate AND use her recipe for crust or any other tried and tested crust recipe it would be a wonderful pie to share for the 4th of July! What is more American than Strawberry Rhubarb Pie? 

Well...

Apple Pie 

but those aren't quite in season yet-but berries are so head over to Deb's blog and try this recipe out.

*Jenny G