Zoe's birthday pinata

Again, I love a theme. This was a straighforward shape to make. Zoe helped me paint it. You can't see really well, but there is glitter all over, too.

Zoe's birthday party invites

Zoe is having a tea party birthday so I try to stick to the theme at any cost. These invites I decorated, but she decorated a couple too. We tried to do it together. There is a little pocket in the back that helps the "lid" slide in and out. I love how these turned out.

I am so annoyed but everytime I downloaded this photo, it changed it to a verticle format. You get the idea.

nesting dolls

When Mom came to visit she brought some nesting dolls with her. Lydia became obsessed and carried them everywhere with her, calling them her "puppets". Shortly after I found this pattern online that I purchased and made. I decided to put our families faces on them instead of the same face on all of them. Lydia loves them, but they are the kind of toy that are fun to take apart but difficult to put back together, so they are always apart.

necklace with handmade bead

I have had this bead for awhile. Made and given to me by a friend. I wish you could see the details of this bead. There is glitter, and stripey leaves and multicolored flowers. Amazing.
The necklace I made as a quickie for a birthday, but am quite pleased by how it turned out. The colors worked really well together.

Cards

None of the paper is handmade (by me). I just threw together some cards for some birthdays and thank you's. Here are a few.

Peach syrup

My first attempt at peach syrup. It wasn't peachy enough.
Recipe for Peach Syrup
1.Take all the peels, pits, bruised parts, anything that will be discarded after prepping peaches for canning, pies, freezing.
2. Put in a large saucepan.
3.Cover with water.
4. Boil until the essence of peach has been transferred from the peaches to the water.
5. Drain liquid from chunks. Discard chunks.
6. Measure liquid. Add equal parts sugar to liquid. 1:1
7. Boil until sugar is dissolved.
It is pretty runny. You could find a way to thicken it up.
I had problems with #4. I didn't boil it long enough. I boiled mine for an hour maybe. If you want it really peachy I would try longer.

Peach Pies

These are peach pies, and although they are lovely they were not delicious. I don't love peach pies. I think peaches should be used fresh, but I had so many and I love to make a pie. It is one thing I feel confident saying I do well. Maybe because it is the something that is recongnized by my family and talked about.
My favorite pies to make (that do taste good) are cherry and rhubarb. Yum.