Wallbanging Good Orange Cake. Seriously.

Okay. Here it is. Just in time for Holiday Parties - THE cake recipe of all cake recipes.

Well. . . at least in our house. Was my requested Birthday cake at eight years old. . . and nine. . . and 10. . . and. . . It was the one that arranged the furniture in mine and Hubster's first house (yeah - it may have been our muscle that moved the furniture, but it was the cake that helped us decide where it should go. Or, more aptly, that the furniture all looked good right where we left it with the couch in the center of the room). It's the one I took to a certain board Christmas party, accepted compliments on the 'moist orange cake' and enjoyed the little-more-than-usual relaxed and party-like atmostphere.

We make sure to *always* have the ingredients on hand (which isn't too hard) and it's a great go-to for a quick, easy, make-ahead cake. So are you ready for this???

Buttoning Up Last Minute Ornaments

Got Buttons?!?! You know I do!!! Every shade of every color and nearly every size from teeny-tiny buttons for baby garments to big ol' over-sized 1960's coat buttons.

My Wish for you: An OKAY kind of Holiday

As we're all completely immersed in the Holiday Season once again, there's something that's being weighing on me that I feel compelled to share. Life ain't a Hallmark movie, folks. And quit beating yourself up trying to make your holiday decorations, celebrations, and gifts meet that unrealistic bar. Additionally - It's Okay!!! A crooked little Peanuts tree is okay! A frozen turkey dinner is okay! Using gift bags (and no bows) or newspaper (and no bows) to wrap presents is okay! As long as there is love, joy, and an appreciation of those around you - It's All OKAY!

That's a Great Set of Pipes!

I needed. . . no wanted. . . .a new display set for my jewelry when I set up at Art Shows. Not that there was necessarily anything wrong with what I had - I just felt like I could do better. Always watching and looking for ideas, I came across something I thought was The Best Thing ever!!!

I thought about it. . . stewed over it. . . sketched out my thoughts and dimensions. . . Then finally talked to Hubster about my idea and he thought it was smashing! And that was the end of it. Or so I thought.

We were out of town on a middle-of-the-week weekend excursion (Empty Nesting is AwEsOmE, BTW) and he said we needed to go to a specific home improvement store. Thinking he was shopping for that elusive chain saw that's been on his list all summer, I knew I could wander around and find other neat-o stuff to look at.  When, SURPRISE! He directed me to the plumbing department and we proceeded to pick out parts for my idea. Considering I was ill-prepared and did not have my drawings and measurements with me - I did push my brain, did a lot of envisioning and ended up with all the parts needed (barring one floor flange, black stain, screws, and liver of sulphur).

Back to Buttons

Button, button, who's got the button?

Most of us have memories of playing with a relative's box or tin of buttons. Sorting them by size. By color. By how much we liked them. I used to play with my Great-Grandma Clara's buttons. She kept them in a round tin (I wonder where that tin went. . . and the buffet it was kept in?). There weren't that many - but definitely enough to keep me occupied while she was busy at her sewing machine. Some of the buttons were shiny mother of pearl, some were clear glass (some of those were large enough to pretend they were bowls for my Barbie's dining room table), a few were wood, several had rhinestones, and more were plastic in every shade and color you can imagine.