Hanging Around Our House, Recipes, & Paper Crafting

We spent Saturday afternoon finally hanging up some fun projects that were completed long ago.  I am so excited that they are now where they belong!

Here is a before pic of a free shelf I got at a yard sale and a fun welcoming hello I received as a gift from a friend.  I fell in love with both of them and knew they had potential to help warm up our hallway entrance!

Here is the fabulous after!  What a perfect greeting when you walk in the door.  Soon our family picture will also adorn our new shelf!  I am so happy with how this turned out!

Andy wasn't done hanging up there...he also put up the curtain tie backs in our bedroom!  Now we can enjoy the summer sunlight!

He was on a roll...so I had him put up AJ's Douglas bear rack that I painted way back when.

I love to see the quilts up in his room!

AND before Andy could put the drill and level away, 

I had him put up our fun silhouettes from Little Bit Funky!  

I am so thrilled with how these turned out!  

I find reasons to go down the hall just to look at them!

For dinner on the deck, I made homemade Triple-Citrus Mojitos from this little kit I received from a student as an end of the year gift.

Wow!  Talk about a fabulous teacher gift!

Keep reading for the recipe!

Triple-Citrus Mojitos 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1 package (.75 oz) fresh mint leaves (about 1 & 1/4 cups leaves), divided

1 orange

2 lemons, divided

2 limes, divided

1/2 cup white rum (optional)

5 cups chilled lemon-lime soda

Directions:

1.  Combine sugar and water in microwave safe bowl.  Tear six mint leaves in half and place in pitcher; set aside.  Finely chop remaining leaves and place in bowl with sugar/water.  Zest orange, one of the lemons and one of the limes; add zest to mint/sugar/water mixture.  Microwave on high 2-3 minutes or until sugar is dissolved.

2.  Slice orange, both lemons, both limes in half crosswise.  Reserve half of one lemon and half of one lime for garnish.  Juice remaining lemon and lime halves; add juices to pitcher.  Juice orange & add juice to pitcher.

3.  Pour mint mixture through strainer into pitcher; discard chopped mint and zest.  Add rum, if desired.  Carefully add soda.  Slice reserved lemon and lime; place into pitcher.  

To garnish rims of glasses, rub with lemon or lime to moisten and dip into sugar.

Andy also got out the Fry Daddy again for these fabulous Corn Fritters.  

The recipe is below.

Corn Fritters

Ingredients:

8 and 1/2 oz. can creamed corn

8 and 3/4 oz. can corn (drained)

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 tablespoon baking powder

7 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

oil for deep frying

Directions:

Combine first 5 ingredients; mix well.  Drop by tablespoons into hot oil; heat until golden.  Turn and heat other side until golden also. 

And although I do not have a picture of this one, but while we are on recipes...

here is a super fabulous yet super easy dessert I made for a crafting day at a friend's house today.  I highly recommend this one:

Chocolate-Cherry Crunch

Ingredients:

Two 14 & 1/2 oz. cans cherry pie filling

19.8 oz. pkg. fudge brownie mix (not prepared)

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 cup quick-cooking oats, uncooked

3/4 cup margarine, melted

Directions:

Pour pie filling in the bottom of an ungreased 13 by 9 inch baking pan; set aside.  Blend remaining ingredients together until coarse crumbs form; sprnkle over pie filling.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  

I just couldn't wait to bust out these new chandelier stamps and summery pattern papers I bought last week!  A kid-free crafting afternoon was just what I needed!