Estela Bernal - Can You See Me Now

I spent the evening at A Children's Place bookstore listening to Estela Bernal talk about Can You See Me Now, her Middle Grade novel which is out in stores now.

This is a story about a young girl who loses her father in a car accident and has to deal with adjusting to her loss when her mother is emotionally abandoning her too.

It was a fun evening, filled with tales of writing and words of wisdom and inspiration.

Word for Wednesday - a writer's game

Guess what the word means...

WORD FOR WEDNESDAY:

PRIMORDIAL


Do you know what it means?

Can you guess?

If you don't know, try a guess anyway...

And if you think you know the answer....

Scroll down to see if you were "write" or wrong.



Further....


FURTHER . . . .


PRIMORDIAL MEANS:

existing at or from the beginning of time; primeval.

"the primordial oceans"

DIY Croakie

I wear my reading glasses all the time...because I read a lot. So I can't be putting my glasses down while I'm doing something else. That's where the croakie comes in handy. But, most of the store-bought varieties are not very pretty. So, I decided to make my own.

I went to Joann Fabrics and bought some beads and went to work. First you need little fastenings, which you can get at any craft store, including Joann's.

 Now I have a green croakie, a purple one and even a black and blue one.

They are fun to make and very easy.

Homemade Peach Pie

It doesn't have to be beautiful to taste yummy and it will leave mouthwatering memories your kids and family will remember long after the pie is gone.

Here's how I made my pie:

Ingredients:

DOUGH:

2 1/4 cups flour
2 sticks of butter
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water

(1/4 cup extra flour for rolling out your dough).

Mix the ingredients together well and separate into two balls of dough. Then roll out two sheets on floured cutting boards (place cutting boards and dough in refrigerator to chill for 1/2 hour)

Peaches must be skinned and cut into chunks. I also rinse mine.

FILLING:

10 large ripe peaches
1 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
1 egg

Blend everything but the peaches together and then add the peaches.

 INSTRUCTIONS:

Use one sheet of dough to layer the bottom portion of your pie pan (bake at 450 for 10 minutes) then pull out of the oven and pour filling into pan. Let cool (but do not put in refrigerator-as pan could break from sudden change in temperatures), cut strips of dough and layer one way then the other across your pie pan. Use one extra strip of dough to edge the pie and bake at 350 for approximately 35-40 minutes or until crust is golden brown. If edges get too dark, cover with tin foil.

If you're careful, you can get even strips, I just cut away and don't worry about it.

I like to add an edge of dough around the circumference to give it a more finished look.

I pinch the edges to make it look finished.
Then I pop it in the oven.

My edges tend to get overly brown, so I cover them in foil.

And when I pop it out, it's ready to eat.

Sweet!

Shakespeare in the Park

This weekend at Laurelhurst Park on Sunday afternoon at 1:00, Aug 24 - As You Like It, OPSF

The Original Practice Shakespeare Festival is a fun theater group that performs in the park during the summer. 

So bring a blanket, pack a picnic, and come see a show.

It's a wonderful way to spend a day. 

Thought for Thursday

If you have trouble with grammar or, if you don't really know when to use affect versus effect, you should definitely pop over to Grammar Girl's blogsite and check her out.

She has some great tips, hints and tricks to help you remember when to use what.

So, if you want a little extra help in the writing department, bookmark her site and maybe watch a tutorial or two.

Good luck with your writing.

Making Minions

This is such an easy food craft that kids can do it.

INGREDIENTS:

WHITE (or yellow) chocolate
marshmallows
candy eyes
 Black frosting and/or molding dough
(candy sticks/lollipop sticks)
(a big cup to hold the sticks)

Optional:

fondant (in colors you want to use to decorate)

First you need to put the marshmallows on the sticks. I put them in a broad based cup to hold them while I decorate them.

You can microwave the chocolate until it is smooth and creamy. All you need is some chocolate (white or yellow), if you use white, you will need some yellow food coloring to dye your chocolate to the proper color for minions.

Then you dip your marshmallows in the chocolate and put them in the fridge to cool. Then use the left over warm chocolate to "glue" the candy eyes in place. You are nearly done.

You can decorate as much or as little as you like.

I also made a minion holder.

This came pre-packaged from the local craft store. All I was supposed to have to do was put it together.

But the instructions were in Spanish...:(

Still I tried.

But I had to ask my hubby to help and he actually ended up using his drill to make the lollipop holders larger.

Of course I had to decorate it with a little ribbon.