1st Wedding Anniversary {paper} ~ project 2

I recently discovered some framed anniversary gifts here which inspired me to make something similar for our newlyweds who celebrated their 

1st Wedding Anniversary 

in September.

I made several versions of these fun 

1st Anniversary Tickets

and will let 

our newlyweds 

choose their favorite.

Happy Friday!  

1st Wedding Anniversary {paper}

This month our newlyweds have been married 
"1 YEAR" 
so I wanted to make something special for their
1st Wedding Anniversary. 

Since the traditional 1st Anniversary gift is "paper" I decided to try making this cute boy and girl out of old maps after being inspired by the idea on Pinterest. I don't have a cutting machine, such as a Cricut™, so I printed silhouettes on paper, traced them onto clear plastic for exact placement on the map, traced again and then cut them out by hand using scissors and an exacto knife. Once they were cut I glued them to heavy card stock and cut them out again. I tried mounting them on different colors {white, blue, brown and black} however I think I prefer the black with this mat and frame. 

Tomorrow I will post another "1st Wedding Anniversary" gift I made. I couldn't decide which one to do so I made them both!  

PEAR Pie

September is 

Pear Pie month 

at our house!

Pear Pies have been a family favorite for the past 18 years and usually I only make them during September when the pears are ready. 

We always look forward to

Pear Pie month!

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

It's that time of year again for

 soccer secret buddy gifts 

which are given on game day.

 Yesterday's gift:

h.o.m.e.m.a.d.e

 Reese's® Peanut Butter Cup cookies!

Since they are quick and easy I made them before school so they would be fresh.

We considered packaging the cookies in an empty peanut butter jar, 

however,

in the end we decided on a cellophane bag tied with raffia which was perfect. 

lavender wand {blue}

I gave away the pink Lavender Wand I made last weekend but had enough lavender left over to make

another one in 

blue!

Happy Tuesday!

bruschetta season

There is nothing better than bruschetta topped with fresh, warm, homegrown tomatoes and basil! Now that our tomatoes are finally ripe we will definitely be enjoying this

family favorite treat quite often.

lavender wand {pink}

I noticed some new spikes blooming on our English Lavender so I cut a small bunch and made a little wand.

Such a pretty way to wrap up the tiny fragrant flowers.

school, sports, celebrations

It has been a fun week of back to school activities, soccer games, a team dinner{at our house}, a birthday party at a trendy German restaurant

{Pretzels...YUM},

a college football game {Go BEAVS!}

and

Our Anniversary!

I ♥ September! 

DIY waterfall { new water valve }

Last weekend Ron added this new valve to our waterfall

so that we can adjust the amount of water flowing over the rocks.

Adding the valve allows us to control the look and sound of our waterfall, which is really fun.  

To see more of our DIY waterfall project go
 here & here.

dried pears

Yesterday I started drying our pears.

We use a food dryer that my grandpa built  many years ago, which was handed down to me {a long time ago}. It is a "vintage" food dehydrator that still works great, even after all these years and a LOT of use.

● ● ● ●

Our way of drying fruit is simple and nutritious:

Peel and core the fruit.

Cut into thin slices.

Arrange in a single layer on the screens.

Place screens in dryer.

Remove when dry. 

{It takes several hours. The time varies depending on the type of fruit and thickness of the slices}

Package and freeze.

That's it!

Sweet & Simple.

Healthy + Sweet = the Perfect Snack!! 

{ last } First Day of School

Today was...

which means this was our 

22nd

and

very LAST 

First Day of School!!!

It's hard to believe that 22 years ago we walked our first child to school for half~day Kindergarten and today our youngest child drove off to begin her Senior year of high school.

I guess time flies when you're having fun!

So, 

 we started our morning the way we always have on the 

First Day of School   

with a special breakfast

which included

homemade cinnamon rolls!

Then, once the sack lunch was made

it was time for

First Day of School

pictures!

We're looking forward to one more year of the school schedule and traditional routines. It's sure to be a fun and busy school year!

Happy 1st Day of School!!

purple pineapple { little wallet }

Another fun
"little wallet"
to share. 

To see all the "little wallets" go here, here,
and here.

A is for Apple { squares }

It's 

Back to School 

{next week!} 

and that means apples are in season

 so it seemed like the perfect time to make some

apple squares.  

Happy September!