Donuts, Donuts, Donuts!

For years, I have tried to make gluten-free donuts. They were either rock hard, or tasted like sawdust, with sugar on top. Well, today I finally did it!
At Walmart, they sell a gluten-free Scone Mix, by Blue Chip Group. I've had great success with making bread, and rolls with this product, but was skeptical about trying donuts.
They were delish! Notice I said "were". They are all gone now. I'm sure they went straight to my thighs, but they were oh... so...good! ( btw the kids ate a bunch too!)
First, I started by mixing up the dough, rolling it out, and cutting out the donuts with a biscuit cutter. I made the hole in the middle using a metal cake decorating tip(the non-decorative end). I them put them in the oven to proof for about 10 minutes.



Next I fried them for about 3 minutes each side, then dipped them in the glaze.



Dont they look wonderful?



The finished product...



Kate enjoying the finished product.

She's Crafty

I don't know if any of you are familiar with the Canadian craft show, She's Crafty. The girl who hosts it, Wendy, is just a hoot! It often features her and a guest crafter as they make decorative items for the home. Sometimes she is way over the top( see the pasties episode) or the time she had the he/she embroidery artist. I swear one look at the artists hands, and you could totally tell it was a guy!

I really love the show, and one night she featured this slide lampshade. I knew I had to do it. I began by hunting for an old lampshade at DI, and while cleaning out my brothers basement, found a bunch of discarded slides. Another trip to Joann's for the jump rings, and I was set. I started out by using my crop-a-dile to punch the holes in the slides. Ladies, if you don't have one of these, you must get one! They can punch a hole in anything paper, plastic, metal. It's one handy tool.

First- I used the jump rings to join vertical rows of slides.
Second- Dis-assemble the DI lampshade, and strip it down to the frame, and paint the frame black to match the existing lamp.
Third- I used more jump rings, to attach my vertical rows of slides to frame, and even more rings to attach these rows to each other.

I am so pleased with my finished product. The most expensive thing I used was the jump rings @1.99 a pkg. Cant wait to put it in the new house :)

Mother's Day

When I was younger I hated Mother's Day. Not that I hated my Mother, but I hated the idea of only one day a year to honor her. I remember being a teen, and sitting in Sacrament, dreading the talks on Motherhood. I think I have heard everything from personal testimony of Mothers, to examples Mothers of the scriptures.

Little did I understand, at the time, how important Motherhood is, and how essential a Mother is in one's life. Some of us had had our dear Mothers taken away from us, much too soon. Other Mother's may have estranged children, that will have nothing to do with them. Some Mothers, may have issues, and just simply aren't there for their children. Motherhood does not come with an manual at childbirth. We all learn through trial, and error. Case in point.

Sunday (Mother's Day) started out pretty rough. Having 9am church does not help, especially if your children got to bed an hour later than usual. Kate woke up on the wrong side of the bed, and cried, as I bathed her, and when I combed out her hair.
We sent her to get dressed , then finished her hair in a nice bun, to which we added these really cute chopsticks( she usually loves these!) We walked to church and as we sat in the pew, she started crying again. I asked her "why are you crying?" the answer was a pitiful " I don't know.." After about 30 minutes into the the meeting, she was still crying, and I had had enough. We went out in the hall, and the guilt card was played. "Kate, do you know what day it is?" "No." "Well it's Mother's Day, and you are ruining it. I said it very quietly, and she immediately stopped crying.
Now some of you are saying, Wow, Amy, you really handled that wrong! Well,it was that, or a full-on yell fest, because I was at the end of my rope.
Guess what happened? She stopped crying! She finished out the rest of the day without tears, and even helped clean the house, and made dinner once we got home.
I didn't have to lift a finger. I even got to lay in bed, and read a book, undisturbed. Derek and the kids bought me a CD of music, a DVD to watch, and fixed me a nice steak dinner.
I wonder if I will ever get the hang of this Motherhood thing....

keeping the kids busy

One thing I like about Utah is it is family oriented. There is more than one swing set in a City Park, you can take your kids to get an ice cream cone that cost 33 cents, and they even have grocery carts that will seat 4 children.

With Derek working every other week, I find myself trying to keep my children busy with activities. This last Saturday we started doing the Home Depot classes again.
I have to say the Thuesons are not builders. If there is a way to bend a nail, we can do it. I spent more time nursing sore thumbs, and pulling crooked nails from the projects! I think next time we will just get the kit, and take it home.

On sunday the kids were bored so I let them paint their projects. What a mess...