The very best Margarita I’ve had in my entire life was at Topolobampo in Chicago, where Teacher and I sat within spitting distance of Rick Bayless himself.

Teacher found the official Topolo Margarita recipe online for me cuz I loves Margaritas, but it’s rather labor-intensive with all of those limes to juice, and if just one of your limes is bitter it’ll mess up the whole batch.

To simplify the recipe Teacher uses limeade with a little fresh-squeezed lime juice added, and his easy Margarita recipe is just as good as the Topolo Margarita – but quicker and easier!

Easy Margarita Recipe

Be sure to choose the best quality ingredients you can find, even if they’re more expensive – it’s well worth it!

Easy Margarita Ingredients:

• 2 cups high quality limeade
• 3 fresh limes, juiced
• Extra lime wedges, if desired
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons white (blanco) tequila
• 1/4 cup orange liqueur
• 1 to 2 cups ice

Easy Margarita Recipe – Directions

Pour limeade into glass 4 cup measuring cup. I highly recommend springing for a not-from-concentrate limeade instead of the frozen stuff.

Add the juice from 3 fresh limes, a little at a time, until it tastes good to you. Don’t even think about using bottled lime juice. Ew.

Stir the tequila into the limeade. Don’t be cheap when shopping for Tequila; look for 100% Agave and get the best you can afford.

Then add the orange liqueur. Rick Bayless recommends Gran Torres, but we can’t always find it around here. The Patron is good, but sweeter than Gran Torres.

Add salt by rubbing the rims of your glasses with a lime wedge we use the lime halves we’d already juiced, then press the rims into a saucer of Kosher or other coarse salt.

Teacher and I like a little extra heat with our Margaritas so we rim our glasses with Chipotle Salt. Simply add about 1/2 teaspoon Chipotle powder to 1/4 cup Kosher salt and mix. Use more or less Chipotle to suit your taste.

Not only yummy, but pretty too!

Shake the margarita mixture in a large shaker or giant water bottle and pour into the prepared glasses.

Sit back and enjoy. Yum!

Official Easy Margarita Recipe

• 2 cups high quality limeade
• 3 fresh limes, juiced
• Extra lime wedges, if desired
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons white (blanco) tequila
• 1/4 cup orange liqueur
• 1 to 2 cups ice

1. Combine the lime juice and limeade in a glass or plastic container.
2. Add the tequila and orange liqueur.
3. Rub the rims of your glasses with a lime wedge. Press into a dish of coarse or Chipotle salt.
4. Pour the margarita mixture into a shaker. Add the with the ice and shake until chilled.
5. Pour into the prepared glasses.

Last year I posted a tutorial showing how to make reusable sandwich and snack bags using cotton fabric and PUL (polyurethane laminate). Since I realize that not everyone has PUL readily available and it’s generally not considered food-safe, I decided to look for an alternative that would be easier for the average seamstress to get her hands on.

Enter ripstop nylon! I’d heard that ripstop nylon was somewhat waterproof, but to be honest, at first I didn’t believe it. Little Guy changed my mind when he filled one of his ripstop nylon sandwich bags with water – the only dripping came from the seams; not from the bottom where the nylon was folded.

My local Joanns offers a nice ripstop nylon in several colors, but if yours doesn’t you can purchase it from Joanns.com too.

 
Read the rest of this post »

I grew up with a sewing machine so starting and ending a seam with backstitching is second nature to me. When I got my first serger I was dumbfounded to learn that sergers don’t go backwards.

If you can’t go backward how do you keep a serged seam from unravelling?

At first I tied knots in the threads at the end of my serged seams, but that took FOREVER! Not to mention that sometimes the threads weren’t long enough to tie, sometimes I accidentally unravelled some of the seam, and sometimes the knots came loose.

There’s got to be a better way of starting and ending a serged seam!

Sew and Sew to the rescue! The nice ladies of Sew and Sew where I got my sewing machine and serger showed me the secrets of starting and ending serged seams that won’t unravel.

Read the rest of this post »

Last year I decided it was time to update the logo I’d been using for my child care business since I opened in 1998. It outdated and poor quality a scan of a stamped image and I was ready for something new.

Being a do-it-yourself kind of gal I started looking online for free graphics. After an exhausting search I finally found and fell in love with this apple:

But something kept bothering me about it. As much as I loved the connection with education an apple for Teacher and the heart in the middle, it just didn’t fit the name of my program: “Amy & Kids Co.”

When YOU look at the apple, do you think “Amy & Kids Co.”? How about “child care program”? No?

Me neither.

Since the name and logo didn’t match I briefly considered changing my program name to “Appleton Child Care.” It’s easy to remember and would be perfect for SEO, but my family shot me down.

“That’s too cold, and not friendly at all.”

“It sounds like an institution, not a family child care.”

“It’s too boring.”

“Why do you want to change? Your name is so cute.”

They had a point. Besides, I’ve already got 10 years of marketing sunk into “Amy & Kids Co.” so I’d have to start all over if I changed the name.

Well, if the name and logo don’t match, and the name isn’t going to change, the logo has to change.

It was time to call in a professional, so I contacted my favorite graphic designer: Jeff of Snowfyre.com.

Some of the graphics Jeff has designed for me are this folded label for Zany Zebra:

My ReUse ‘Ems logo: which I’ll get rolling one of these days…

And most recently, a new logo for Valley AEYC:

I like working with Jeff because he’s super-speedy and very affordable – under $100 for custom-designed logos and templates! But the best thing about Jeff is that he’s amazingly patient. No matter how many times I say “Could you add this…” or “That’s great except…” or “I’m wondering if you could…” he answers cheerfully and never gets snippy or impatient.

Since I always ask for a bunch of revisions I was a little worried that Jeff wouldn’t want to work with me again, but he graciously agreed to design a new logo for Amy & Kids Co., and within 24 hours sent me the first sample.

Numerous emails, several weeks, and six more samples later we had a winner:

What do you think?

I can’t wait to see how it looks on the new website!

Oops, I let the cat out of the bag… Jeff’s designing a new website template for me too. I’ll let you know as soon as it’s done!

It happened at a basketball game my seventh grade year.

I don’t know about your school, but at the K-8 school I attended, Friday night basketball games were the social event of the week. All the cool kids came and hung out at the far end of the bleachers, as far away from the doors and the adults as it was humanly possible to get.

Those of us who weren’t so cool came and hung around the fringes of the cool kids, hoping to pick up some of their coolness would rub off on us.

Having recently discovered boys, I’d developed a crush on a boy who attended a different school – our cross-town rival to be exact.

This particular Friday night the cross-town rivals faced each other in my school’s gym. As I sat hunched on the bleachers about half-way up I was painfully aware of my crush sitting in the very top row of bleachers – a place reserved for the coolest of the cool.

I had about as much chance of sitting up there as an ice cube has in the Sahara Desert.

I have no idea what my adolescent brain was thinking, but I’d passed him a note: “Just who is Bobbie anyway?”

I’d heard that Bobbie was his girlfriend but I knew it couldn’t be true. I knew that he really liked ME; he just didn’t know it yet. When he figured it out he’d tell everyone that I was his girlfriend, and we’d live happily ever after. Amen.

Suddenly he was standing right in front of me. OMG, he’s right in front of me.. in front of ME! I jumped back, causing the comb in my back pocket to jam into my right cheek – ow!

My crush leaned down and put one hand on my knee. OMG, my he’s touching me… he’s touching ME!

My seventh-grade imagination had created numerous scenarios in which he declared his undying love for me. Of course, in each I was smooth, calm, collected, and incredibly cool.

In real life I felt nauseous and my heart pounded as I looked into his perfect light blue eyes, then at his perfect feathered-back blonde hair, then at the perfect booger…

Wait – a booger?

Oh yeah, a booger.

Hanging just inside his left nostril.

My crush was crushed.

Who can be in love with a guy who walks around with a booger in his nose?

My note was in his other hand… “What is this supposed to mean?” he asked.

The questions I’d wanted him to answer flew around inside my head, Is she your girlfriend? Do you like her? Do you like me?

I couldn’t take my eyes off that booger. “I don’t know.”

He looked at me for a moment, probably figuring I was a total nut case, then straightened and went back to his coolest-of-the-cool friends at the top of the bleachers.

Face burning, I stayed in my place in the middle of the bleachers. It may not have been the coolest place to sit and I may not have been the coolest of seventh graders, but at least I didn’t have a booger in my nose.

Image credit: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1124843

This is the mulch that Grandpa got.

This is the door
(with an arrow in white)
that shows how ginormous the pile was
of mulch that Grandpa got.

This is the Uncle,
so tall and strong,
that shoveled the pile
(that ginormous pile)
of mulch that Grandpa got.

This is my Teacher,
all sexy and strong,
who moved the blocks
to make a path
to line with the mulch that Grandpa got.

This is hard work
to move the blocks
that are made of cement
to make a path
to line with the mulch that Grandpa got.

These are the blocks
that leave the holes
to fill with dirt
after they’re moved
to make a path
to line with the mulch that Grandpa got.

This is the dirt
to fill in the holes
made by the blocks
that were moved by my man
to make a path
to line with the mulch that Grandpa got.

This is the Princess,
a hard-working girl,
who shoveled the dirt
to fill in the holes
made by the blocks
that were moved by my man
to make a path
to line with the mulch that Grandpa got.

This is Little Guy,
all silly and fun,
with Jo-Bear his brother,
who is almost a teen,
and helped dig a trench
to stop the grass
from trying to grow
into the mulch that Grandpa got.

This is Z-Man,
who was happy to help,
and carried a pail
that was filled by the Uncle
who shoveled the pile
(that ginormous pile)
of mulch that Grandpa got.

Here’s Little Guy again,
who wants to help too,
and followed his brother
carrying his pail
that was filled by the Uncle
who was shoveling the pile
of mulch that Grandpa got.

This is our Peanut,
who was good as gold,
and played by herself
while we worked so hard
to move the blocks
and make a path
and carry the pails
(and wheelbarrows too)
that Uncle Jon filled
by shoveling the pile
of mulch that Grandpa got.

She’s so cute I had to put in picture of her face too.

OK, back to business…

This is the path
that we made together
while Peanut was playing
as good as gold
while we moved the blocks
and shoveled the dirt
to fill the holes
and made a path
to line with the mulch
that was shoveled by Jon
from the pile
(that ginormous pile)
of mulch that Grandpa got.

Nicole did it again – it’s all her fault!

A couple of months ago Nicole’s little sister had a baby boy, and Nicole ordered a mother’s necklace with the baby’s name and birthstone for her.

I was quietly jealous; I’ve wanted a mother’s necklace for a long time, but my children’s birthstones are a problem:

As much as I love my children and was thrilled when each of them was born, their birthstones don’t look so hot together.

It doesn’t help that I’m not a red/white/blue sort of girl; I’m more purple/blue/green sort of girl. I guess I should’ve planned out the kids’ birth months better.

Anyway, when the necklace arrived Nicole showed it to me and I instantly turned Grinch-green with envy. It was simple, and beautiful, and perfect: a small silver disc with the baby’s name hand stamped along the bottom and a blue crystal hanging above.

I want one too! Pouting.

But there’s that little red/white/blue problem. And wouldn’t six separate discs mush together into one unreadable lump?

What’s a poor mama with necklace envy to do?

Go shopping, of course!

I browsed Fireweed Impressions’ Etsy store where Nicole got her sister’s necklace and found a possible solution: a layered necklace with a large disc on the bottom, a medium disc in the middle, a small flat heart on top, and a pearl bead hanging above. Perfect!

I convo’d Fireweed Impressions and asked if they could fit all of my children’s names on a necklace like the layered heart one. Several convos later we’d come up with the perfect design. I’m not telling what it is though – you’ll have to keep reading to see it!

When I’m excited about something I have as little patience as a kid waiting for Santa. Luckily I didn’t have to wait long – even though it was a custom order coming from Canada it arrived in just over a week!

Like most of my Etsy purchases, my new necklace was prettily packaged. Opening a package is always fun, but opening a package from an Etsy seller is extra-special. Don’t believe me? Check out my package from Silver Daisy Designs!

And here it is:
Drumroll…
Ta-da! My new mother’s necklace!

Names have been blurred to protect the innocent my poor mom-stop-embarassing-us-already family.

I absolutely LOVE it and have worn it almost every day since it arrived. Not only does it have all my children’s names, Teacher’s and mine are on the top disc, and there’s no red/white/blue in sight. Perfect!

Life is good.
Family is better!

When it comes to home improvement projects I don’t have much patience and usually want things done NOW. That’s when Teacher gently reminds me that “life is a marathon; not a sprint” and that the only way to get somewhere is by taking one step at a time.

A few weeks ago we took one more step towards finishing the basement family room by finishing up the floor.

Just like last time, we started by moving all the junk from one side of the basement to the other. Since we hadn’t put everything back yet there wasn’t as much to move.

The space was so small it went really quickly – by the time I thought to grab my camera Teacher was almost done!

It’s hard to believe that when we bought the house this nook was a small kitchenette! There was a niche for a tiny stove right where Teacher is sitting, a sink in the corner, a place for a small refrigerator on the far left, and cupboards floor to ceiling in the rest of the space. When we decided to redo the basement one of the first things we did was tear out the kitchenette. Once the walls and subfloor were done Uncle Jon spent countless hours building the bookshelves for us.

Measure twice, cut once, right Hon? I love watching my sexy handyman. Mmmmmm!

The floor is done – doesn’t it look great?! Granted, it’s a small step, but life is a marathon and each step counts.

Next step: painting the rest of the bookshelves to match the built-ins, and doing the trim.

Step by step we’ll get there – I know we will!

We don’t go to Noodles often, but when we do I almost always get the same thing: Pesto Cavatappi. It’s a little bit of Heaven in a bowl: creamy, cheesy, noodley, basil-y, carb-filled, don’t-ask-how-many-calories divineness.

Mmmmmmm…

Pesto Cream Sauce

Irish Girl found a recipe for a pesto cream sauce that’s almost as good as Noodles’, and is say it with me… is quick and easy too!

Start with the basic pesto ingredients: fresh basil, freshly grated parmesan cheese, peeled garlic, and pine nuts which you can dry-roast in a frying pan until lightly brown and delicious, but you don’t have to.

Give the the basil, cheese, garlic and pine nuts a whirl in your food processor.

Once they’re chopped up, slowly drizzle in some extra virgin olive oil, and keep whirring to form an emulsion.

Mmmmm – doesn’t that look good?! That’s all you need to do for a basic pesto, but we’re going to kick it to the next level with some cream and butter.

By the way, if you’ve got a ton of basil you can make a ginormous batch of pesto and freeze some in ice cube trays for winter.

Heat some heavy cream and butter the real stuff; no margarine allowed over medium-low heat until warm; keep an eye on it so the cream doesn’t scorch.

Once the cream and butter are warm, add the pesto and stir to combine.

That’s all there is to making pesto cream sauce – easy as pie, isn’t it?

Irish Girl stirred the sauce into some pasta she’d cooked up while she was making the sauce, but it would also be great over chicken or salmon, with crusty bread, or just off a spoon; it really is THAT good!

Irish Girl tossed in some fresh tomatoes too – the hot pasta made them all warm and yummy but not mushy. Other great additions would be cooked chicken, and sautéed mushrooms or asparagus; don’t forget extra Parmesan cheese and freshly grated black pepper on top!

Pesto Cream Sauce – Official Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 C fresh basil
• 1 C Parmesan cheese, grated, plus extra for on top
• Heaping 1/3 C pine nuts
• 4 cloves fresh garlic, peeled
• 2/3 C extra virgin olive oil
• 1 C heavy cream
• 4 Tbsp butter

1. Place basil leaves, 1 cup Parmesan, pine nuts, and salt and pepper to taste in a food processor or blender.
2. Turn machine on to chop ingredients. Leaving machine on, slowly drizzle in olive oil and continue mixing until combined. Add additional olive oil if the mixture seems dry or pasty. Set aside.
3. Heat cream and butter over medium-low heat. When warm add pesto and stir.
4. Pour pesto cream sauce over prepared food and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

During the summer Teacher and I try to eat both lighter and healthier, so salads are a natural choice. The kids aren’t as thrilled about it, but we try to find salads with ingredients that they’ll like. College Boy calls salad “Rabbit Food” although he will eat a polite amount… then order pizza later in the evening!

This spinach pasta salad is not only healthy, but has something in it that everyone in our family will eat – always a plus!

Healthy Spinach Pasta Salad

This is a super-easy recipe: all you need is spinach, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, and pasta. You can use your own Italian dressing, or make one “from scratch” like we did.

We were cooking for all 11 of us, so you’ll probably want to cut down the amounts. Cook up a package of pasta according to the directions. I wanted to use whole grain pasta, but knew the kids wouldn’t eat it so we used organic “white” pasta instead. After draining, rinse the pasta in cold water to stop it from cooking. Drain well and place into a large bowl or 9×13 pan to mix the ingredients.

Rinse about 2 pints of tomatoes and drain. It was early in the season so we used grape tomatoes, but once they’re available I’ll use yellow pear, yellow, orange or heirloom cherry, or any other type of tomato that catches my eye at the farmer’s market. If I’m lucky I may even get enough tomatoes from our garden to use in the salad!

Cube 4 – 6 ounces of fresh mozzarella cheese and add to the pasta and tomatoes.

Mix well. You can add the spinach now, but because it’s so big and flat it never seems to mix well with the pasta and tomatoes. I prefer to lay down a bed of spinach and spoon the pasta mixture on top.

Use your favorite Italian dressing I’m partial to Paul Newman’s Tuscan Italian, or whisk together:

• 1/4 C red wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh curly or flat-leaf parsley
• 1 Tbsp fresh oregano leaves
• 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Salt and pepper to taste

Some people mix the dressing right into the salad, but we’ve learned that our picky eaters will do much better if we keep several components separate and let them put together their own salad.

Doesn’t that look yummy – and healthy?!

Like most of my favorite recipes, this one can be personalized any way you want. You could use another shape of pasta, a different cheese, substitute other veggies, add fresh herbs basil or oregano would be nice – or whatever else you like!

Happy – and healthy – eating!