Scrapbook Heaven . . .

Off to an amazing weekend of scrapbook heaven. I am going to spend some awesome time with my sister and wonderful friends. We are going to laugh a lot, eat gourmet food, go to bed LATE and get up EARLY so we can accomplish as much as possible, but mainly we are going to relax and have a lot of fun!

What are your plans for this weekend?

Michelle's Macaroni & Cheese

My mom called this morning looking for a Macaroni and Cheese recipe. This one is EXCELLENT. I took a Martha Stewart recipe and edited it to my taste . . . simple, good, and total comfort food. Everyone I have made it for loves it, I hope you do too. Let me know what you think!

Michelle’s Macaroni & Cheese

Ingredients:

6 Tbs. butter
5-1/2 C. milk
½ C. flour
2 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. black pepper
4-1/2 C. sharp cheddar cheese (grated)
1 C. grated parmesan
1 LB. elbow macaroni

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In medium saucepan over medium heat melt 6 Tbs. butter until bubbly. Add flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute. Heat the milk in microwave until very warm. Slowly pour milk into flour/butter mixture while whisking. Continue cooking and stirring until mixture bubbles and thickens. Remove from heat. Stir in salt, pepper, 3 cups grated cheddar cheese and 1 cup parmesan cheese. Set cheese sauce aside. Cook noodles 2-3 minutes less than manufacturer’s directions. (Inside should be underdone.) Run noodles under cold water after draining. Stir into cheese sauce. Pour into a 9 x 13 pan and top with remaining cheddar cheese. Bake approximately 30 minutes or until as brown and bubbly as you like.


Have a great week!

Friends through the decades

1944 - My grandma (Mama) and Anne washing my mom and Donna's baby bottles. (Both grandma's were 25 years old.)

Years ago, my grandparents became friends with a couple who had a daughter. I remembered this picture of my grandma (the one facing the camera) and her friend Anne and got it out just the other day. The year was around 1944 and they were at the kitchen sink together washing baby bottles for Judy (my mom), and Donna (Anne's daughter and my mom's friend.) I found out just this week that this picture was taken when Anne's husband was in the Coast Guard. Anne and Donna stayed with my grandparents in California for a period of time before meeting Anne's husband in Long Beach after he came home from the war. It had been at least 6 months before he saw his baby girl for the first time.

Years later, in the 1980's Donna and her three boys (Mike, Steve and Paul), and my mom and her two girls (my sister and I) lived close enough in California where my mom and Donna were able to re-connect. Us kids were all in our early teens and we saw Donna and her boys often. My mom and Donna were so close that they considered and still do consider themselves cousins. I remember that we had a lot of fun with the boys but they ended up moving to Kansas several years later and we stayed in California.

July 15, 2009 - Michelle, Steve and my sister Robin

Just last week my sister Robin and I had the opportunity to have dinner with Steve. (Steve and I are the same age and it has been many years since we have seen him). He was in California for business so we met up with him and reminisced over the "good old days". We had a really great time and I was reminded about life, friendship and the different paths that we take that sometimes come back to cross again. I bet my grandparents never thought about the fact that the two families would still remain friends even 60+ years later. It made me wish I could pick up the phone and tell my grandmother (Mama) about our dinner but unfortunately she is no longer in her earthly home. However, I do know that one day, our paths will one day meet again and when it does, we are going to have the most amazing reunion.

Have a great week! Who is it that you have re-connected with lately, or would like to?

Kastner, Machado & Moran Family Visit

Emma (9) and Samantha (8) playing in the sand.

Bob (4) eating ribs at the BBQ restaurant.

The Moran & Machado kids going into the water.

Landon (7) enjoyed his sand play!

Samantha Machado - she looks so pretty!

Emma (9), Samantha (8), Aunt Bridget (?), Savannah (12), Landon (7) and Bob (4).

Savannah with Aunt Bridget.

Michelle (Kevin's Sis), Kevin and Aunt Bridget.

Landon, Savannah, Emma, Cousin Nathan, Nathan's friend Nick, Samantha and Bob

Me and my sweet boy Landon.

The Moran, Kastner and Machado Families!

Last Saturday we drove to Big Bear to meet up with Kevin's Aunt Bridget, Uncle Bob and their son Nathan and his friend. They live in the Bay Area so we don't get to see them as often as we would like but they stay at their friends cabin in Big Bear almost every summer so we made the 2 hour drive to see them along with Kevin's sister Michelle and her family.

We had such a great time and enjoyed every minute. We had lunch and spent some time at the cabin and then we drove down to Big Bear Lake before heading off to have dinner at a delicious BBQ restaurant that sits right by the lake. We said out goodbyes after that and headed home.

We left feeling a little sad that it had to end, but so happy knowing that we have family such as them. We will truly miss seeing them again until next time.

Who is it that you miss?

Fuzzy Cuzzies

We are off to pick up the "fuzzy cuzzies" and then we are going to see the FREE movie (Inkheart) at the theatre and have a fun day and then a sleepover tonight! Woohoo! Mattison can't come and we are going to miss him though! :(

Winner! Winner! (And Birthday Wishes Too!)

I used Random.org and came up with a winner for the "beachy" necklace. Here it is . . .

List Randomizer

There were 10 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

Cyndy Leslie
Glenda
Greta
Debbie
Karen Pendleton
Kris
Michelle Machado
dogmom
Bunny Chic Boutique
Terri A.

Timestamp: 2009-07-10 21:16:49 UTC

Cyndy Leslie is the winner and said . . .

Cyndy Leslie wants to be at Bolsa Chica State Beach digging in the sand for what have to be the largest and prettiest shells I have ever seen at a Southern California beach! I would love to spend every day of summer there!! Of course the kids would have to be with me - they have been converted to beach bums!!

Cyndy, please email me with the chain length that you would like and I will get the necklace in the mail to you right away!


Also, I want to say happy birthday to my beautiful, wonderful sister, Robin! I love you with all of my heart! xox.

Love,

Two More Days Until the Friday Giveaway!

Just two more days to win the beachy-ocean pendant. Don't forget to leave me a comment on Monday's post (below), and tell me where you would like to be this summer. For me, I think I would like to spend part of my summer at the beach, and part of it in the mountains. Actually anywhere it is cool would be heaven for sure!

I will be drawing a winner this Friday, July 10th!

New Summer Jewelry! Finally!

BEACHY OCEAN PENDANT

The summer is heating up around here so I was in the mood to create some beach-themed jewelry. Meander over to my website and take a peek.

My blog looks so much better now that it has been redone. It just feels more like me. :) Leave me a message and tell me where you want to be this summer. I am having a drawing this Friday, July 10th and you can win something "beachy". (I will post a picture later.)

Have a great week! Stay cool, it was 103 degrees here today!

Note: I posted the pendant today (Tuesday). It is a lampwork pendant - sort of an ocean-beachy theme. The findings are sterling and it hangs from a steel ball chain necklace.

Productive - Feels Good!

Ahhh, today was a very productive day. I love those days. I added a few things to my blog and then I decided I would work on a few pieces of jewelry. A few pieces turned into a few more pieces and before long, I had a nice little stash of beachy-summer related jewelry. (Above is a little preview). If all goes well, I hope to add it to my website tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow will be as productive as it was today. I can only hope. ;)

Happy 4th of July!

Have a wonderful and safe 4th of July! I hope you are doing something fun today!

New Bloggy!

Happy July 1st! I can hardly believe it! How do you like the new look? I have some pictures to change and add, and a few things to do but it sure is better than the plain blue I had. You can have Jennisa can make you a blog too. You might want to get on her waiting list now because she sure is busy, but worth the wait! Her button is to the right, just scroll down a bit and you can click onto her website.

Since 4th of July is almost here, I thought I would add a recipe for you. I hope you like it. If you make it, let me know what you think. It is my grandma's recipe and truthfully, I have never tasted a better cheesecake.



Mama Sandidge's Cheese Pie

Crust:

6 whole graham crackers crushed, add ½ C. sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, ¼ C. melted butter. Mix and shape all ingredients into a deep pie plate.

Filling:

Smooth 12 ounces Philadelphia cream cheese, add ½ C sugar, and 2 eggs. (I use my mixer to cream until smooth.) Pour into pie shell. Bake 20 minutes at 375 degrees. Cool about 1 hour, and then add:

Top Filling:

1 pint (2 cups) sour cream, 3 Tbs. sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla. Mix and spread on top of the filling. Bake at 375 degrees for 7 minutes. ( It may seem underdone but it won’t be.) Chill in fridge and enjoy!

Note: You may need up to ½ C. of melted butter. Add butter until crust handles and shapes well.


If I don't blog before then, have a wonderful (and safe) July 4th!