BBQ Turkey Quesadillas

For those nights when you have hungry, whiny family members and a handful of leftover odds and ends knocking around in the fridge: BBQ Turkey Quesadillas.

I made these the other night, thinking it would be one of those ‘whatever’ dinners—everyone eats it, no one dislikes it, but it’s just a way to clear out leftovers from the fridge. I think we were all surprised by how much we loved them.

Even Forrest, whose pickiness is absolutely maddening, ate some of his quesadilla (which doesn’t sound like a ringing endorsement unless you, too, have experienced dinnertime with a picky eater and understand that even a taste, even the ittiest bittiest 2 or 3 bites, is an enormous victory).

These quesadillas are quick to make, flavorful and delicious, and dare I say a perfect way to use up leftover turkey or chicken? Yes, I dare it.

BBQ Turkey Quesadillas
adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Café – makes 6 quesadillas

2 cups cooked turkey or chicken, shredded or cubed (leftovers are perfect!)
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup sour cream
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (or more if you really love cilantro)
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
tortillas (we like whole wheat tortillas)
additional sour cream for dipping

Combine the turkey, barbecue sauce, 1/4 cup sour cream, green onions, and cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat a skillet or griddle over medium heat. Place a tortilla in the skillet, and spread a generous scoop of the turkey mixture over half of it, then sprinkle generously with a handful each of both cheeses. Fold the empty tortilla half over filling. Cook 2-3 minutes until bottom of tortilla is crisp, then flip and cook an additional 2-3 minutes until tortilla is crisp on both sides and cheese is melted.

Serve each quesadilla with a generous scoop of sour cream for dipping.

If you like to prep things earlier, feel free to complete the first step earlier in the day and refrigerate until you’re ready to assemble the quesadillas.

December Reading Recap

Don’t tell my children (if they catch wind of my hopes and dreams, everything will be jinxed), but I’m hoping I can manage to squeeze in another book or two before the new year. I have a gift for timing library holds juuuust right so they all come pouring in within two or three days of each other, and that is exactly what happened this week. Which means if I don’t get some serious reading time in, I’ll have to pull a Sophie’s choice and pick favorites and send the rest back to the library unopened. Serious heartbreak.

Big Little Lies Despite all the praise it has received, I had extremely low expectations for this book because I was so annoyed by What Alice Forgot. To my surprise, I loved it. Lovable characters and a perfect mix of fluffy, laugh-out-loud chick lit with dark family/community secrets. And currently $3.99 for Kindle.

Necessary Lies I think the characters and execution left a little to be desired, but the plot gets 5 big stars. A small Southern town, a near-destitute family, and a young social worker’s determination to protect them from state-mandated sterilization (which sounds too insane to be true, but actually happened . . . here in America).

Station Eleven made my list of favorite reads of 2014. I think it’s tough for an author to handle a storyline that spans decades and jumps back and forth between time periods, but it was done flawlessly in this novel which follows a handful of characters both before and after a pandemic decimates civilization. It was nothing like I expected, and absolutely fantastic. The characters were wonderful, the plot was incredible, the pacing and timeline were flawless. I loved it. If it sounds like your type of book, heads up: currently $5.99 for Kindle.

The Girl With All The Gifts Such a departure from my typical ‘type,’ but I tell you, it’s not easy for a Joss Whedon fan to ignore him when he tweets effusively about loving a book, so I’ve had my eye out for this one for quite some time. I don’t want to give too much away, but I thought this was exciting and unexpected and hard to put down. I liked it a lot. (Jeff, however, is listening to the audiobook and says he may not bother finishing it.)

Night of Cake and Puppets Now, you know how I love Laini Taylor and the Daughter of Smoke & Bone trilogy, right? Lots of love. All the heart emojis. But this little novella, telling the story of Zuzana and Mik’s first date, really didn’t do much for me. I almost feel bad saying that—Laini, if you’re out there, can we still be friends? Best friends? But I should have foreseen my lack of enthusiasm for this one: I am a heartless monster, and am rarely drawn in to romance stories. It has gotten high praise from other fans. Just not this one.

So long, Harry. It was with deep regret that I reached the end of the Harry Potter series on audio. Even the books I don’t remember loving much on the first read—books 5 and 7, I’m looking at you—were so much better than I remembered. I feel so lost without them . . . what to listen to when I run and crochet and fold laundry?!

What did you read this month? Any great audiobook recommendations?

Links to all my monthly reviews from 2014:
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November

And find my favorite books of 2014 HERE.

Deep Thoughts with Forrest #8

Forrest: Do you know who is pwettier than you, Mama?
Me:
Forrest: Jasmine. She is vewwy pwettier than you.
Me:

At church, Forrest was staring at the family seated in front of us, particularly the dad holding their (totally normal looking) baby boy.
Forrest: (in a very loud stage whisper) That baby is CREEPY.
Dad in front of us overhears, of course, and turns around.
Forrest: (directed to the dad, whispered even louder than before) It’s because of his creepy face. He has a really creepy face.

Forrest talks very loudly (and yes, we’ve had his hearing checked), and I’m sorry to say I get frustrated with his constant very loud chatter.
Me: (annoyed when he shouted something right in my face) Why do you shout everything all the time?!
Forrest: Because I’m really excited about everything!

I found a huge pile of waffle pieces and crumbs right next to the kitchen sink, where I think Forrest had tried to dump his breakfast leftovers into the sink and missed.
Me: Forrest, what’s this mess?
Forrest: Oh, that? That’s all my breakfast.
Me: Yes, I can see that. Clean it up.
Forrest: Oh really? Huh. I left it there because I thought you would probably like to clean it up.
Me:
Forrest: Because of how you’re really good at cleaning. All by yourself.

After polishing off a bowl of yogurt.
Forrest: I need more yogurt!
Me: Okay, just a second . . . (finishes folding laundry)
10 minutes later
Forrest: I need yogurt!
Me: Right, hang on . . . (responds to a few emails and gets distracted by pinterest)
10 minutes later
Forrest: I need more yogurt please!
Me: Oh, ok, yes . . . (refills Darcy’s juice and gets her a snack, washes a few dishes, then finally hands Forrest a full bowl of yogurt probably 25 minutes, minimum, after his first yogurt request)
Forrest: Oh boy, thanks! That was very quickly!

Sitting next to me on the couch, he accidentally rubbed his hand against my bare leg.
Forrest: Whoa!! Those are some sharp legs!

My mom let Forrest bring home a Jasmine toy from her house, which he keeps forgetting to return to her. Every time we go to her house now, he asks if he can bring home another toy.
Me: You can’t borrow another toy from Grandma’s house until you bring back the one you already borrowed.
Forrest: (indignant) I was not borrowing a toy!!!
Me: Yes, you took the Jasmine doll, remember?
Forrest: I was not borrowing her! I was taking her and keeping her!!!

We got a Costco membership recently and now Forrest is obsessed with samples. He likes his food cut into ‘sample bites,’ and loves offering samples around the table.
Forrest: (holding out a plate full of random toys) Do you want a sample? It is hot noodles!
Me: Yum. How did you make it?
Forrest: I used sugar, and ketchup slices, and sugar, and shark nuts.

My Favorite Books of 2014

. . . in the sense that I read these books in 2014, not necessarily that they were published in 2014. I can’t stay on top of new releases—it would be like trying to sip from a fire hydrant. Slow and steady over here.

And  since 95% of my reading is on my kindle, I don’t even have a cute book photo to use here, so I’m borrowing this one from The Faithpal.

Of the 57 books I read this  year (as of today—maybe, if the stars align, I can squeeze in one or two more before the new year!), here are my favorites:

Station Eleven I just finished this last week—it hasn’t even made its way into my monthly book review post yet—but it is easily one of my top picks for the year. Art and apocalypse and humanity (in every sense of the word) and seamless leaps through time, before and after a civilization-destroying disaster . . . it was incredibly powerful, not to mention unputdownable.

Bread and Wine I gave this book its own post HERE. This ‘love letter to life around the table’ is full of gorgeous essays about food, faith, and family. A must for anyone who loves any of those things (does that cover everyone?).

The Secret Keeper My Kate Morton love burns strong—romance, history, secrets, she’s got it all. My heartbreak over finishing this one—her only remaining book I hadn’t read—was tempered by its pure awesomeness.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking This is every bit as excellent as you’ve heard it is, and then some. I gave it a full review HERE. It’s for all my fellow introverts who have ever felt out of place because they don’t seem to ‘fit’ in a loud, extroverted world.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society This was a re-read, and every bit as charming and hilarious and lovable as I remembered. I listed to the audiobook this time around, and can wholeheartedly recommend it (the narrators are fantastic!). Wonderful characters, laugh-out-loud writing, and a sweet story about love and friendship and the power of art during dark times.

Garden Spells I’ve read a few of Sarah Addison Allen’s books, and while most of them haven’t done much for me, this one was excellent.

All Joy and No Fun What does modern parenthood do to parents? How does parenting a child affect you, and your life? This upside-down parenting book was an incredible look at how parenting affects mom and dad—their lives, personalities, goals, and relationships. So interesting—the sort of book you can’t help but read aloud to whoever happens to be nearby.

Dreams of Gods and Monsters The entire Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy is extremely good. I’ll admit, the romance has crossed the line into pure cheesiness for me, but this YA fantasy throws every other YA fantasy I’ve ever read right out the window. It’s dark and enchanting and gripping. Go on and give it a try, even if you think YA fantasy isn’t really your thing (I did).

Out of My Mind I don’t read much intermediate fiction, but this sweet, wonderful, heartbreaking little novel made me wonder if I should.

The Handmaid’s Tale This is certainly not for the faint of heart—it will terrify and haunt you, but it’s incredibly powerful and I can promise you’ll never, ever forget it.

The Rosie Project After The Handmaid’s Tale, you’re going to need something light and fluffy and bubbly and pure, undiluted fun. This should fit the bill nicely—I loved it so much, I read it all in one sitting. I’m looking forward to reading the sequel.

Attachments I have a bit of a love-hate thing with ol’ Rainbow—I was very ‘meh’ about Landline, and couldn’t even make it through Eleanor & Park or Fangirl—but I sure did enjoy Attachments. A funny, lovable, and totally different romance.

If you’re interested, you can check out all of my short and sweet book reviews this year by month:
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
(I’ll post my December reviews later this week)

What were your favorite reads this year?

Smells of Christmas, Old and New

A few weeks ago, my mom asked if I'd like to come rifle through her dozens of boxes of Christmas decorations to choose some things I'd like to use this year.

Free Christmas decorations? Don't have to ask me twice.

We had such a fun afternoon together, digging through her chilly old barn (while the kids whined and complained about the cold--never mind that part), uncovering newer decorations I barely recall seeing and older ones I'd almost forgotten about.

I brought home two big boxes full of sparkly new Christmas decorations--glitzy glass ornaments, rustic baskets, glittery snowmen--and a few of my childhood favorites, too, decorations I'd almost forgotten about, but seeing them again brought back so many childhood memories. And although they aren't the trendiest, most modern decorations, it just feels more like Christmas to have them in my house.

I'd be hard-pressed to recall any childhood Christmas memories that didn't include these wooden Santas. When I was really little, my mom loved craft painting, and one of my favorites of her projects was this group of Santas. They're a little worse for wear now after 20ish years of use--overzealous children have broken a star on one Santa's hat and lost the pieces the Santas on each end once held--but they were brought out religiously every Christmas. I'm so excited to have them in front of my fireplace this year.

And this Christmas countdown--just looking at it, I can almost smell the pumpkin bread my mom would make all winter, and cider simmering on the stove. I can remember arguing with my siblings over who would get to turn over a Christmas light on the tree each day as we counted down to Christmas. And no joke, Forrest asked me on the day after Halloween if we could start a Christmas countdown, so of course I couldn't leave this sitting in the barn. It made its way home with me, and Forrest is thrilled about flipping over a light each day.

I grabbed a few newer decorations too, and I nestled a Glade® Under the Mistletoe candle among them--I've mentioned in other posts that one of the highlights of each new season/holiday for me is choosing new scents to fill my home with, and Christmas is the very best time for scents. Just smelling my mom's pumpkin bread, or real, spicy apple cider, or a fresh-cut Christmas tree, is enough to bring back so many Christmas memories.

When I was a kid, we lived on a quiet, windy street in rural New York. And just up our street, two houses away from us, was a little Christmas tree farm. Every year, we'd visit our neighbors at their tree farm and spend an afternoon choosing and cutting down the perfect tree. It's one of my favorite holiday memories--bundling up in our coats and mittens, the crisp, cold air on our cheeks, the crunch of snow under our boots as we hunted down our tree, and the mingled smells of the cider our neighbors handed out to shoppers with the fresh tree scent.

Sadly, we haven't carried on the tree tradition with our kids . . . yet. We've made do with our artificial tree each year, but I hope there are fresh trees in our future. And until then, this Under the Mistletoe scent will make up for the lack of a fresh tree in our home. It's the perfect blend of that fresh pine scent and holiday berry sweetness. As soon as I smelled it, I felt like I was back at my old neighbors' tree farm. And I'm so glad I was able to bring that memory home with me.

If you need some holiday scent memory-making goodness in your house this season, check out this Cartwheel offer to save some money at Target on the Glade® Limited Edition Winter Collection! May I humbly recommend Under the Mistletoe (available exclusively at Target)? It just smells like Christmas.

What's your favorite scent of the season?

Celebrate the season with festive fragrances from Glade®. Spread holiday magic through the town with the scent of bright holly berries and fresh pine garland, featured in Target’s exclusive scent, Under the Mistletoe.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Glade®. The opinions and text are all mine.

Dare to Deck the Halls Features

Wipe those tears, my friends, Dare to DIY 2014 is over but it was beautiful while it lasted.

As always, it was a delight to peek through all the projects that joined in our Dare to Deck the Halls linkup this week at Newly Woodwards. I wanted to share a few of my favorite projects—swing by Shift Ctrl Art, Décor and the Dog, and Newly Woodwards to see their features, too!

Love these festive and fun Ho Ho Ho throw pillows, created over at Interiors by Kenz.

And this DIY Deer Mount Advent Calendar by Primitive and Proper is so unique and exciting:

Thanks so much to everyone who joined in! I love being a part of Dare to DIY, and I’m so glad to see there are so many participants who love joining in, too!

I hope you picked up some inspiration and ideas for things you can do to brighten your holiday season. See you next year, folks.

Rich and Creamy Rice Pudding

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Silk Cashewmilk. All opinions are my own.

Despite years of cooking, I have not yet figured out the amount of rice my family will eat with dinner. If you were to peek into my fridge at any given time, I can almost guarantee you’d find at least one container of leftover rice in there.

So when I read the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook recently (short + sweet review HERE), I was intrigued by her version of rice pudding in which she replaced regular milk with 3 different milks for extra richness and flavor (if I remember correctly [and I might not], she used coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk, and evaporated milk). Sounded to me like a fun twist on rice pudding, and I intended to make it, but the book came due at the library before I had a chance to try it out.

I was invited to try new Silk Cashewmilk recently, so I thought I’d take a page from Smitten Kitchen and use the cashew milk, along with canned coconut milk, to turn some of my leftover rice into rice pudding.

The results were the smoothest, creamiest, richest rice pudding I’ve ever made, with an awesome little hint of coconut and cashew flavor.

It’s a lightly sweet pudding, which I think makes it perfect for a warm winter breakfast or afternoon snack. If you want it to be a full-on sweet dessert, you may want to play with the amount of sugar to pump it up.

Rich and Creamy Rice Pudding
adapted from Rachael Ray, inspired by Smitten Kitchen

2 cups cooked white rice (leftover rice will do very nicely)
1 (13.5 ounce) can coconut milk (measures out to 1 3/4 cups)
1 1/4 cups Original Silk Cashewmilk
1/3 cup white sugar
generous pinch of ground cinnamon
generous pinch of salt

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the pudding has thickened.

If desired, serve sprinkled with cinnamon, toasted coconut flakes, and/or chopped cashews.

And in case you are curious what we thought of the cashew milk, I will leave it at this: the folks at Silk mailed me 2 half gallons to use for this post. We drank them so quickly that I had to go out and buy more to use for this recipe. Which we again polished off before I could use them for this post, and I had to buy even more. We drank 5—I’m not kidding, FIVE—cartons of cashew milk in the making of this post. Needless to say, we enjoy it all on its own, even when it isn’t involved in a creamy rice pudding.

Sign up for the Silk eNewsletter to get the latest news and an instant coupon, and tell them what you think of new Cashewmilk on the Silk facebook page! Be sure to check out the Silk Cashewmilk Pinterest board for more tasty ideas, swaps, and recipe inspiration.

 

 

This conversation is sponsored by Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

Merry and Bright Blocks (Dare to Deck the Halls)

Here we are at our final week of Dare to DIY 2014! This week’s theme is Dare to Deck the Halls--make sure to hop over to Newly Woodwards today to share YOUR handmade holiday décor, and visit cohosts Décor and the Dog and Shift Ctrl Art to see their projects, too!

I always start the Christmas season with all sorts of grand decorating ideas. And every year, reality sets in before I even take a single step forward, and I realize I don’t have the time or the money or the energy to make all my big dreams happen. So we generally keep things pretty simple around here for Christmas. That works fine for me.

A week or two ago, my sister Bekah and I got together to do some Christmas crafts (thankfully, it went better than our Halloween craft day). We each did a spin on a ‘merry & bright’ decoration. Bekah’s project actually came out way, way cuter than mine, but I don’t have pictures of hers, so you’re stuck with my version of merry & bright today. I’ll see if I can take some pictures of her sign to show you this week. It’s adorable.

I found these two pieces of scrap wood in my garage, and thought they’d work perfectly to recreate this pin. I wanted to include a some gold in my Christmas decorating this year, so I started by painting one block white, and spray painting the other gold.

I used my Silhouette Portrait to cut the words out of vinyl, then transferred them to my blocks to use as a template. I used the gold spray paint to fill in the word ‘merry’ on the white block, and sponged white paint over the word ‘bright’ on my gold block.

After letting them dry (probably not long enough, actually—I suffer from a serious lack of craft patience), I went over them lightly with some sandpaper to give them a vintage look. And to hide the spots where I messed up. Distressing does wonders for hiding craft oopsies.

It adds a little glitz to my shelves for Christmas. Merry and bright, indeed.

Can’t wait to see what YOU made this year to deck your halls! Hop over to Newly Woodwards and add your project to the linkup!

Christmas Tree Wall Art by NewlyWoodwards // Merry & Bright Blocks by Maybe Matilda
Christmas Trees Sign by Décor and the Dog // DIY Mini Tree by Shift Ctrl Art

Give Handmade Features + Weekly Recap

Thanks to everyone who joined the Dare to Give Handmade linkup on Monday! I picked up (stole) quite a few great ideas for Christmas gifts to make and give this year.

Two of my favorite projects—I love Cindy’s trendy, easy to make DIY Tassel Bracelet (Made 2 Style):

She has lots of other lovely jewelry tutorials on her blog as well!

And I also love this DIY 2015 Calendar—so unique and fun. Find the how-to at Inside the Fox Den:

Don’t forget to join us Monday, December 15th for our final week of Dare to DIY! The theme is Dare to Deck the Halls. Come to NewlyWoodwards to join the linkup bright and early Monday morning!

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As for us over here at Casa Brown, this week was considerably merrier and brighter than last, and thanks for the commiseration on last week’s whining.

After spending a week and a half being desperately clingy and whiny and suffering nervous breakdowns if I wasn’t touching her at all times, Darcy finally regained a little independence mid-week. And although this picture, I just realized, doesn’t actually demonstrate any independence since she is still, in fact, clinging tightly to my body, at least she’s smiling about it instead of crying and drooling in my face like last week. As I type this, she’s actually playing. On her own. On the ground. Without requiring constant interaction. It’s a Christmas miracle.

Despite the recovery—both in health and clinginess—she and Forrest still spent a lot of time on the couch this week. An actual question: you know those moms who don’t allow their kids to watch TV? In all seriousness: what do you do when your kids are sick and whiny and grouchy, if they aren’t staring zombie-like at the TV? Because in our house, grouchy sickies pretty much get a free pass for all-day media consumption. I’m not saying it’s a good way to parent . . . but I can only handle so much whining.

And I’ll wrap things up with Forrozt, who wrote his name all by himself this week for the first time. After a slightly rocky start, he loves preschool, and it seems to be loving him back. I think we both regret signing up for the 2 day per week class instead of the 3 day per week class. Lesson learned for next year.

Have a great weekend, and I’ll see you Monday at Newly Woodwards!

(Im)Perfect Christmas PJ Photography 101

If you’re visiting today in hopes of finding a photography lesson on capturing the perfect Christmas pictures of your sweet children . . .

. . . you’ve obviously come to the right place.

For this sponsored post today, brought to you by Joe Boxer, I’d love to share with you our festive, yearly family tradition of giving and receiving new pajamas for Christmas . . . and totally botching the photo op.

Make sure to start out with children who are only semi-willing to participate, at best. Children who are flat-out opposed to your photography endeavors would, of course, be ideal for catastrophic photography failure.

A nice mix of attitudes, in my experience, is having one child who is focused so intently on going to visit Santa after taking pictures that he must be reassured every 3-5 seconds that yes, we are going to see Santa soon and no, we have not forgotten about going to see Santa, combined with a second child who has spent the past week or so regressing so deeply back into her completely dependent newborn clinginess that she suffers a total mental meltdown if physical contact with her mother is broken.

Also, you may think wrapped gifts will make nice props in your photos. It’s a nice thought and I applaud you for thinking creatively here, but the two possible outcomes are 1) the children become so distracted by the presents that they can hardly continue taking photos for being so desperate to find out what is inside or 2) the boxes will immediately be placed directly in front of one child’s face. Which is fine as long as the box is the thing you are most eager to capture and immortalize. I’m sure the box’s grandparents want a picture of it in front of the Christmas tree this year, too.

Maybe they just need better coaching, you say? Surely if given clearer directions, I could get a few keepers?

Good thoughts. ‘Hug your sister!’ quickly escalates into full-body tackling, followed by an adorable wrestling match and lots of angry squealing from the littlest piglet. It makes for nice photography—snap fast so you don’t miss a moment!

Forced cuddly poses yield similar, if slightly blurrier, results.

This is a good point to bring in mom and dad. Dad will be predictably grouchy about being asked to participate in family photos, and will offer only the most awkward and unconvincing of smiles. Just another small step toward family photo perfection.  At least he hasn’t resorted to trying to gouge out his own eyeball to get out of family photos, like your precious tiny munchkin.

You may, surprisingly, end up with a few decent shots if you give up on trying to force things and just let the day devolve into madness. Candids are the most true to life and memorable anyway, right?

Do you do the Christmas pajamas tradition in your house, too? I think it’s so fun. When I was a kid, getting socks for Christmas became so predictable and so weirdly funny that it turned into a major holiday tradition—both of my kids’ first gift ever from their grandparents was socks, and the socks from Grandma and Grandpa are always the first presents we open each year. So it’s been fun to carry on the sock tradition with our kids and build on it with a new pair of cute pajamas every Christmas, too.

If you love giving your kids or spouse new jammies every Christmas, you ought to check out Joe Boxer pajamas from Kmart. Huge selection (to the point that I ended up carrying around 2 or 3 pairs for each family member while I shopped, and had a hard time narrowing thing down), and they offer so many fun patterns and prints. They’d make such a fun, memorable Christmas gift and really, Christmas just isn’t complete without a new pair of pajamas.

In case you need a smile today:

 

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Joe Boxer available at Kmart.

Dare to Give Handmade Link Up and Double Pom Pom Hat Pattern

Welcome to my favorite week of Dare to DIY: Dare to Give Handmade! Today’s link up is right here at Maybe Matilda, so don’t forget to add YOUR handmade project. Make sure also to visit my cohosts, Newly Woodwards, Décor and the Dog, and Shift Ctrl Art, to see their lovely work. I wouldn’t complain about receiving a single one of their awesome gifts this Christmas.

For my handmade gift, I crocheted a darling little double pom pom hat for Darcy. Because if 1 pom pom is adorable, 2 pom poms are so cute it could kill you.

Are you dead?

I’ve been particularly loving big, chunky, thick hats for my kids this year, and I wanted to come up with something kind of silly and fun for Darcy to wear. You could, of course, use a bulky weight yarn to crochet this hat. I almost never have bulky yarn just lying around, but I always have quite a supply of worsted weight, so I crocheted this hat with 2 strands Red Heart super saver variegated yarn. The label was lost long ago, but I believe the name was Wildflower. I don’t use variegated yarns often, but that may change, considering how much I love how this hat turned out. I think this style is darling on babies and kids of any age, and would even be fun for an adult . . . with a sense of humor :-)

As with many of my crochet tutorials that I post here, this is more of a ‘guide’ than a strict pattern. It can be adapted to any size and is wildly forgiving, and I’m not including specific stitch counts because it is so easy to change to whatever size you decide to make it.

All you’ll need to know in order to size it properly for the person you’re gifting to is their head size. And since you may not have all your friends’ head measurements memorized, I’d recommend you visit THIS LINK for a hat size chart based on age.

Also, please don’t be afraid of the foundation single crochet that I use to start this hat. It isn’t difficult, and it offers SO much more stretch than the traditional starting chain, which is perfect for a project like this where we start with the brim and work our way up. Stretchy brims are definitely a good thing.

Double Pom Pom Hat

Materials:
- bulky weight yarn or 2 strands of worsted weight yarn (I can’t give much detail on how much yarn you’ll need—it will depend on the hat size you make—but for the pictured hat made for a 1-year old baby, I used almost 1 full skein of Red Heart Super Saver.)
- K hook (10 mm)
- blunt large-eye needle for sewing tails in
- optional: pom pom maker (I love this Clover set—worth every penny)

Abbreviations:
fsc = foundation single crochet
dc = double crochet
sl st = slip stitch
fpdc = front post double crochet
bpdc = back post double crochet
ch = chain

Notes:
Hat is worked from brim up. Do not turn your work at the end of each row. The finished hat will be roughly square shaped, with 2 pointed corners at the top, where you will place your pom poms. Leave a long yarn tail at the end of your work to sew the top of the hat closed.

1) Start with a row of fsc long enough to reach easily around the head of the person you’re crocheting for. Visit THIS page for average head sizes. So if you are making this hat for, say, a 9-month old baby, work fsc until your piece measures about 18 inches in length.

Sl st to join your work in a loop (make sure the loop is flat and has not twisted!).

2) Ch 2,  dc in each stitch around. Join with sl st to top of starting ch.

3) Ch 2, *fpdc in next stitch, bpdc in next stitch. Repeat from * around. Join with sl st to top of starting ch.

4) Repeat row 3, working fpdc in each fpdc of previous row and bpdc in each bpdc of previous row.

5) Ch 2, dc around in back loop only of each stitch. Join with sl st to top of starting ch.

6) Ch 2, dc around. Join with sl st to top of starting ch.

7-?) Repeat row 6 until desired hat ‘height’ is reached. Visit THIS page for hat height suggestions based on age. Add roughly 2 inches to suggested hat heights, since this style is meant to sit high on the head and fit loosely. Fasten off when desired height is reached, leaving long yarn tail.

Use ending yarn tail to stitch the top of the hat closed. Simply lay the hat flat with the seam centered in the back, and sew back and forth with the ending yarn tail to create a long, flat seam. The hat will look square. Sew in all yarn tails.

Using a pom pom maker, make 2 large pom poms. Sew pom poms to top corners of hat.

As with all patterns/tutorials from my site, feel free to make some, give some, sell some! Just please include a link back to my site as your pattern source if you decide to sell online :-)

Check out my cohosts’ awesome handmade gifts:

Pom Pom Hat by Maybe Matilda // Homemade Candy with Ombre Dyed gift bags by Shift Ctrl Art // Crochet Tote by Newly Woodwards // Stovetop Potpourri by Décor and the Dog

I can’t wait to see YOUR handmade gifts! What have you created to give as gifts this Christmas? Link your projects below! Please remember to link back to one of the Dare to DIY cohosts—Décor and the Dog, Newly Woodwards, me, and Shift Ctrl Art :-)

Dare to Entertain Features

This week has blown chunks, and I mean that in every possible sense of that tasteful phrase. Forrest and I both started out sick--we’re on the mend now, but there has still been so much whining and coughing and crying and complaining, day in and day out, all week long. And even little Miss Buttercup, who somehow escaped the death blaze of our communal germs, has been off her usual cheerful game, insisting upon being carried and held constantly. She must be in my arms or on my lap every moment of every day, and while the snuggles started out sweet, it’s beginning to grate after 5 straight days. 

I’m so tired and so frustrated, and I’ve hit that point—even if I’m the only mom who feels this way, please hide your horror and disgust and pretend you know what I’m talking about—where I wonder why, exactly, I had children, and what about this looked appealing 5 years ago when I tossed out my birth control, and where is the returns office and where can I find a copy of the refund policy?

Don’t call CPS. I’ll snap out of it sooner or later. I’ve always been inclined to a little self-indulgent melodrama.

I could go on whining for paragraphs and paragraphs more, you know I could, but I’m sure the other Dare to DIY cohosts aren’t planning on mentioning their puking children or parenting qualms or imaginary runaway plans in their posts today, so I’ll move on.

There were some lovely projects in this week’s link-up (which was hosted by Décor and the Dog)—lots of delicious-looking recipes perfect for parties, beautiful centerpieces to gather around, and more. Make sure to visit NewlyWoodwards, Shift Ctrl Art, and Décor and the Dog to see their favorite projects from the week.

Advent Calendar Tree Centerpiece from Love Your Home

Printable Thanksgiving Place Cards from The House Made Home

Treat Yo Self Printable Art from For My Love Of

Thanks to everyone who joined in! It’s always so fun to see your take on the theme, and the projects that kept you busy each week.

Speaking of themes, next week’s is Dare to Give Handmade and the link party will be RIGHT HERE at Maybe Matilda on Monday! I really hope you’ll join in with your handmade gifts . . . partly because of, you know, the joy of link parties and sharing your work and all, and partly because I am hosting and don’t want to be embarrassed if no one links up on my week to be in charge. So work on those handmade gifts this weekend and come back Monday to post them, okay?

This is where I’d post a sneak peek of my ‘give handmade’ project if I had one. I haven’t started. But I have an idea. I’ll get there.

Peace out, and happy weekend folks. May your days be germ- and whine-free, and may your parenting (where applicable) be blissful and unregretful.

Big Awesome YA Novel Bundle Giveaway (R.C. Hancock and Janette Rallison)

If you love to read—or if you love someone who loves to read—this one’s for you.

I have a big, awesome, reader-riffic giveaway today, and the timing couldn’t be better. Whether you want to keep all this YA goodness to yourself and spend your Christmas break snuggled up with a pile of books, or wrap them up and give the perfect gift to a bookworm friend . . . it’s going to be a very merry Christmas, either way.

My brother-in-law Ryan is the author of An Uncommon Blue, a brand new young adult fantasy novel coming out December 9th (it is currently available for pre-order).

About the book:

In Télesphore, the glowing color of a person’s palm determines their place in society, and touching hands with another mixes those colors permanently. For the first sixteen years of his life, rugby star Bruno Nazaire hasn’t had any trouble keeping his hands to himself. But when a Green boy sneaks into Blue Campus to get Bruno’s autograph and is attacked by a guard, Bruno falls into defense mode. And kills the guard. Whether or not the slaying was accidental, the rule of law has not been challenged in fifty years and the Steward is determined to make an example of Bruno.

That is, if he can catch him.

An Uncommon Blue is exciting, it’s creative, it’s fast-paced, it’s original, it’ll keep you on your toes . . . and I have 4 lovely copies to pass along to you, all signed by the author (well, make that 3--I’m keeping one for myself). Learn more about Ryan and Blue at his website, and be sure to like his facebook page to keep up with his writing news.

And to up the ante, I’ve also got 4 more young adult novels to add to the mix.

I received a few of Janette Rallison’s books for Christmas one year when I was in high school, and was so excited to meet her in person when she gave a guest lecture in one of my English classes at BYU. I’m already familiar with her ‘good clean fun’ romantic comedy novels, and I’m looking forward to reading her fantasy novels, written under the pen name CJ Hill. Ryan mentioned becoming friends with her in his local writers’ group, so when she heard I’d be giving away his new book, she let me have 4 of her books to give away along with it—all signed. We’ve got:

Slayers:  Dragons exist. They’re ferocious. And, in this novel from C. J. Hill, they’re smart: before they were killed off by slayer-knights, they rendered a select group of eggs dormant so their offspring would survive. Only a handful of people know about this, let alone believe it—these “Slayers” are descended from the original knights and must work together to stop the eggs from hatching. They will fight; they will fall in love. But will they survive?

Erasing Time: When twins Sheridan and Taylor wake up 400 years in the future, they find a changed world: domed cities, no animals, and a language that's so different, it barely sounds like English. And the worst news: They can't go back home. The twenty-fifth-century government transported the girls to their city hoping to find a famous scientist to help perfect a devastating new weapon. The same government has implanted tracking devices in the citizens, limiting and examining everything they do. Taylor and Sheridan have to find a way out of the city before the government discovers their secrets.

Just One Wish: Seventeen-year-old Annika Truman will do anything to fulfill her little brother's only wish before his frightening cancer surgery. The trouble is, he wants a certain superstar actor to pay him a visit. Annika has only a few days to drive to California and convince the celebrity to come home with her. On a seemingly impossible adventure that includes paparazzi, bows and arrows, and one enormous snake, Annika learns a few lessons about family, love, and having her own wishes granted.

How to Take the Ex out of Ex-Boyfriend: Boyfriends are supposed to be loyal, caring, and handsome. Giovanna’s boyfriend, Jesse, has perfected the last two. But when her twin brother, Dante, runs for student body president, Jesse doesn’t support Dante, choosing to campaign for his opponent instead. Shouldn’t the fact that Jesse is Giovanna’s boyfriend count for something? So Giovanna dumps Jesse and becomes Dante’s campaign manager. But as the political debates heat up, Giovanna begins to regret breaking up with Jesse, and realizes that maybe her decision wasn’t the political strategy she should have used.

Learn more about Janette and her books at her website!

I’m so excited for you guys to experience these fun, engaging, creative authors for yourself, and get your hands on their work! One lucky winner will receive the big awesome 5 book YA bundle—An Uncommon Blue plus 4 Janette Rallison titles (all signed)!

Two additional winners will each win one signed copy of An Uncommon Blue!

Enter using the Rafflecopter below! Giveaway open to US only—I apologize, international friends! Blame the dang expensive post office, not me.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

3 Holiday Party Outfits + Jockey® Slimmers Giveaway!

‘Tis the season for Christmas cookies and cinnamon rolls and big turkey dinners and daily hot chocolate and unexpected treats dropped off by neighbors. ‘Tis also the season for Christmas parties and family photos and wanting to look awesome. Kind of hard to enjoy both sides of that coin, eh? For this sponsored post today, I want to share how Jockey® Slimmers shapewear helps me look and feel my best for all the fun events coming up, even during this season of sweet, delicious, irresistible excess.

I know full well that I’m not fooling a single solitary soul when I occasionally play style blogger, but bear with me. If nothing else, posts like this at least help me to play around in my closet and figure out how to work with what I’ve got.

We have a few Christmas parties and dinners coming up, and I wanted to see what I could put together from my current wardrobe that would work for different types of gatherings—something a little dressier, something in the middle, and a casual get-together. And I’m really excited about my new Jockey® Slimmers that are helping me feel way more confident—I’ve been avoiding wearing some of these items because I’ve always found something to complain about (lumps here, bulges there), and I’m so glad I can finally enjoy them.

Let’s start with the dressier end of the spectrum, then I’ll wax eloquent on the topic of shapewear. I bought this dress after we had our most recent family pictures taken in the spring—I wore it for those pictures in navy, and loved it so much that I went back and bought the same style in ivory. (And pardon the modeling—I try. I fail. I keep trying anyway.)

Dress: Downeast // Tights: We Love Colors (c/0) // Heels: Thrifted // Necklace: Walmart

I was so excited to get this dress—but then I didn’t wear it for nearly 6 months, first because Darcy was nursing and it isn’t exactly a nursing-friendly dress, and then because we were headed into cooler weather and I wasn’t sure how to wear a white dress in the winter. But with black tights, heels, and necklace, I think it is deepened up enough for Christmas parties, and I’m glad I can finally wear this dress I’ve waited half a year for.

(Let’s ignore the fact that those heels, which I thought were such a steal when I thrifted them brand-new, are so wildly painful that even hobbling from the camera back to my spot against the wall was enough to get me swearing.)

Now, about this next one: I’m not joking when I tell you I’ve worn this exact outfit to church for 3 weeks in a row now. I’m going to go ahead and say that it would work swimmingly for a holiday party that is maybe a tad dressier than jeans-and-a-sweater, but not so fancy that you need to get out the ankle-breaker heels.

Dress: Ross // Boots: Sole Society (c/o) // Cowl: made by me

I got this sweater dress on sale recently for $9.99, and immediately questioned my shopping wisdom once I got home and tried it on. This silhouette is never one I’m comfortable with. The shape doesn’t hide much, and I was not blessed with flat stomach genes (nor was I blessed with the willpower to make daily crunches a priority). So I just make sure I’ve got some shapewear on hand, and no one’s the wiser. I pair this dress with a cowl (the same one I made for my crochet along a few years ago!), and a pair of moto boots. It’s so comfortable and cozy, but still dressed up a bit for parties or a dinner out.

I’ve almost always reserved my shapewear for dresses, but I discovered that my Jockey® Slimmers camisole was just what I needed to make this tunic top wearable. I’ve actually had it for a few months, but haven’t worn it yet because the material is rather clingy. Everything, from the outline of my bra to the cookies I had for lunch yesterday, is perfectly displayed through the fabric. The shapewear camisole was perfect for keeping things tight, as well as smoothing out any lines from showing through the top. Which means I can now wear it for a more casual holiday get-together with friends, along with black jeggings and boots.

Top: Annie Jean Apparel (now closed—I’m so sad!) // Jeggings: Bella Ella Boutique
Boots: Fashion Corner // Necklace: Walmart

And I have to show you the best part of the top . . .

Gold sequin elbow patches!!!

I’m glad to have a few Christmas party outfits ready to go, and I’m especially excited about my new Jockey® Slimmers that helped me love these outfits way more than I have in the past—I’ve always found something to complain about when wearing these various items before (lumps and bumps, you know how it is), and while I’ve shared my love for shapewear before, the Slimmers bring my love to new heights. And I totally know how ‘sponsored’ that sounds, but I’m being dead honest. They are absolutely my new favorites, and I’ve worn them over and over in the few weeks I’ve had them so far. I wear shapewear fairly regularly, and while I may like how I look in it, I’ve never liked how it felt to wear it until now.

Whatever magical material they use to make Jockey® Slimmers is so soft and feels absolutely fantastic to wear (some shapewear I’ve worn before is so stiff and scratchy that I’m conscious of how it rubs and scratches against my skin for every.single.second), but my favorite feature is that it keeps thing firm and tight without making me feel like I’m being slowly strangled. Or squeezed to death by a python. Or being clamped ever tighter in a vice. You get the picture. Some shapewear I’ve worn in the past is so absurdly firm, so crazy tight that it’s almost impossible to even get into, much less wear for an entire day (while still trying to get a full breath of air in). I don’t know how they’ve done it, but they’ve finally made shapewear that is truly comfortable to wear. I suspect witchcraft. I’m fine with it.

If you are in the market for a little firming help this Christmas—and really, who among us isn’t? even the thinnest, most fit ladies I know have certain clothing styles they feel uncomfortable wearing because they’re self-conscious about some part of their bodies—I hope you’ll enter to win a Jockey® Slimmers shapewear prize pack to help you feel totally confident and gorgeous and sexy in whatever you wear! Enter with the Rafflecopter below--the giveaway will be open from December 1 – December 11, and 10 winners will be selected to receive one prize pack from Jockey® (ARV $45).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Jockey® Slimmers.