Apple Dumplings

Remember those Gravensteins?

Well, I used some yesterday to make
old fashioned

Apple Dumplings 

and they were delicious!!

YUM!!!
I make apple dumplings the same way my Grandma use to make them,
with lots of sugar, butter, cinnamon and
TLC. 

changing gears

Our schedule is beginning to show signs of the gradual switch back to the school routine which always happens around the middle of August with the official start of school sports practice,

 quickly followed by

school registration, school supply shopping, haircuts, doctor and dentist appointments...

...which can only mean one thing....

...it's

Back to School 

time!

It's hard to believe Summer is almost over 

and 

fall is just around the corner. 

Apple Season Begins

with 

Gravensteins 

and they are ready! 

My parents have a Gravenstein apple tree and each year they share a portion of their crop with us. These are the apples I received last weekend and they are ready to be made into something delicious! 

Free Summer Concerts

Last night we joined our friends at the

local, weekly, free 

Concert in the Park

where we

listened to music, indulged in a picnic potluck, celebrated a birthday 

and

enjoyed a beautiful sunset!
A great way to spend a warm August evening. 

Bridal Shower fun & games

A

Crown 

for the 

Bride to Be!

A Bridal Shower seemed like the perfect occasion for a crown so I decided to make this one out of chicken wire since it fit our theme so well. 

The apron and tablerunner were gifts for the Bride. I used the blue fabric, which has a bird motif,  in both projects. The floral fabric was also used as a tablecloth for the beverage table and the plaid as a tablerunner on the main table. 

We made a "daisy pen" for each guest to use for our games that required writing and as a party favor. The stem on the Bride's pen was wrapped in white ribbon with a bow tied under the flower. 

For another game we played, each guest needed a "Ring Pop". To make them extra special we wrapped each one in a white box with a yellow ribbon and set one at each place setting at the table. The brides "ring pop" was placed in an actual ring box that was blue.

Since our table was so long I decided we needed more than one flower arrangement so I arranged the flowers in mismatched jars and vases and placed several on the table. For the centerpiece I placed cut lemons in the water which tied in with our theme. I also made an arrangement for the dessert table and a small one that fit in the coffee drink crate.

To make the Bride~to~Be banner resemble daisy's I cut the middle circles from the yellow gingham paper I used on the invitations, white for the outer edge and I printed letters for the center. The Bride banner was made with coordinating card stock.

And, as a finishing touch, Lemon Drops.

A fun shower for an extra special

Bride~to~Be!!! 

Kitchen Bridal Shower

Last weekend we hosted a Kitchen Bridal Shower and held it outdoors 

under the shade of our apple tree.    

It was the perfect setting for our party. 

The colors were yellow, tiffany blue and brown to match the wedding colors. Our outdoor, country theme included yellow and white gingham, daisy's, which I also used on the invitations, Queen Anne's Lace, birds and lemons.

I made an apron for the Bride to Be which was tied to the front of her chair...

....hung a small banner on the back....

....and tied yellow balloons to the top. 

I baked yellow sugar cookies and set one on each plate. 

The heart shaped cookie was for the Bride to Be!

"Something Old, Something New"

The gift table was covered with my grandmothers tablecloth for something old at the shower and the gifts of course were something new.

"Something Borrowed"

Below is a tablerunner I made as a keepsake for the Bride. I designed the center using elements from the invitation and borrowed a verse from a cross stitch that my parents received at their wedding. We had the guests sign it with a permanent brown pen. 

Each guest was asked to bring a recipe which was placed in the recipe box when they arrived.

"Something Blue" 

We served chilled assorted coffee drinks with blue straws 

in an old farm crate....

....lemonade with heart shaped iced cubes, iced tea and water.

The lemon theme was continued on the dessert table with homemade lemon meringue pie, lemon bars, individual raspberry cheesecakes, blueberry poppyseed cake, fruit salad and a bowl of lemon drops.

The Bride to Be banner was made with computer paper, yellow gingham paper which was also used on the invitation, and printed letters. The photo banner is a collection of pictures taken during the years the bride and groom~to~be have been dating. The color was edited to "sepia" to match our brown color and old, country theme. The pictures were hung with clothes pins on twine.

I will share more Bridal Shower details tomorrow!