Paper Crafting - "Estimation Jars"

Estimation Jars

Decorated Estimation Jars

WHY I DID THIS:

I work with the Young Women at church and our group had just done the "Estimation Jars" activity for our church Harvest Festival.  As part of that, I got to help by decorating one jar and a couple of buckets.  Since I provided the buckets I got to take them home. :) [Yes, I actually had that many ice cream buckets around the house and in my garage. I love milk shakes and we tend to go through a LOT of vanilla ice cream - especially in the summer.  The buckets come in handy for so many things that I often keep a few around, but every now and then they all get recycled and we start over.]

My son's school was having a Halloween Party and I thought it would be fun to decorate the jars for the "Estimation Jar" activity AND, thanks to our activity, I had 5 beautifully decorated buckets ready to use!

See bottom of post for HOW-TO RUN AN "ESTIMATION JAR" ACTIVITY

WHAT I DID:

Sticking with the themes the girls and I came up with for the buckets, I came up with five more jars to match. (shown above)  Below are some pictures of the jars and their coordinating buckets.  I've added "How-To" pictures for a few pieces of the project.

Candy Corn Jar

Top and close up of Jar #1

Jar and bucket #1

Paper Crafted "Flowery Jar Topper" How-To:

"Flowery Jar Topper" Supplies

Flowery Topper

Use the Stampin'Up (R) punch shown to punch out 5 or more flowers of your desired color of paper. Use a bit of sponge dipped into black ink (or other color) and gently brush along the edges of each punched flower to tint. (I tinted both sides.) Fold the flower in half, then in half again three petals away from the first fold, forming an X. Flip the flower over and fold the section with four petals in half  two on each side of fold. as shown. There should now be three folds in the flower. Carefully fold it all together, folding along all folds at the same time as shown. Glue one flat side of the folded flower to the top of the jar with a glue dot.

Cute Cube Jar

Jar #2

Jar and bucket #2

"Paper Cube" Front

"Paper Cube" Back

"Paper Cube" How-To

To make this cube I used the Stampin'Up (R) punch that looks like a postage stamp, however, you could just use identically cut squares to do the same thing. Cut 6 squares and lightly tint the edges with black ink using the sponging technique.  Using an adhesive runner, apply a strip of adhesive across the back of each square of paper and carefully line each square up with the one next to it sticking them in place along a 1/2" strip of paper in the format shown. (NOTE: The 1/2" strip: Be sure to leave about 1/2" extra off one end of the 1/2" strip running along the 4 squares, and 1/2" extra on both ends along the 3 squares for finishing off the cube.)  Carefully fold the 1/2" strip of paper between each square, being sure to keep it straight.  Form the box with the four squares first, securing the tab in place with a glue dot. (A glue dot will hold better than the adhesive runner) Finish by securing the other two tabs in place with glue dots. The final tab is the most difficult. (HINT: You can use the flat side of a scissor blade to reach inside the cube to have something to press against to secure the tab.)

Star and Curly Ribbon Jar

Jar 3

Jar and bucket #3

Black and Yellow Flower Jar

Jar #4

Jar and bucket #4

Paper Crafted "Flat Flower Accent" How-To

Close up of flower

Close up of stem

To make this "Flat Flower Accent" I used a Stampin'Up (R) flower punch. For each flower: Punch 1 each of three different colors of paper. (I used black, white and yellow). With a black marker (I used a fat permanent marker) run a thin line around the edges of each petal for the top color.  With a thin black marker draw the accent line down the center of each petal. (HINT: If you curve the line just slightly, it gives the impression of the petal having some shape.)

Next, line all three punched flowers up in the order you want them stacked and punch a hole through the center with a tiny hole punch. From the back side of the stack, insert a pipe cleaner. Draw it back through the hole until there is only about 1/8' sticking through the front. Bend this little piece down across the front of the flower. Fan out the three paper flowers to fill it out as shown in the picture then bend the pipe cleaner sticking out the back down flat against the back of the flower. Once that is secure, bend the pipe cleaner on the back of the flower again about 1/8" from the hole to create the stem of the flower. Press the front and the back 1/8" pieces tightly together to hold flower in place. (may still shift a little - could use a spot of glue to secure in place before you flatten the pipe cleaner) 

Rainbow and Circles Jar

Jar #5

Jar and bucket #5

HOW-TO RUN AN "ESTIMATION JAR" ACTIVITY

This is not the end-all-be-all way to run an "Estimation Jar" activity, just one way I've found to successfully pull it off while attempting to keep the playing field even.

RULES:

1. One guess per jar per person (hand stamped at each jar)

2. Write your name and guess on the paper and put it in the slot in the bucket

3. The closest guess -higher or lower- wins. WINNER TAKES THE JAR HOME!!

Materials:

-Cut up pieces of paper - about 1"x2" works great (large enough for a person to write their name and guess on but not too big)

-A pen for each jar's station

-A small stamp and ink pad for each jar's station (When a guess is made, stamp the back of the guesser's hand.)

Have fun!!

-Jill

RECIPE - Hot Caramel Apple Cider (for a crowd)

"Hot Caramel Apple Cider (for a crowd)"

Caramel Apple Cider

A simple, yet delicious fall treat.

Hot caramel apple cider

hits the spot!

INGREDIENTS: (24 - 1 cup servings)

6 Quarts Apple Cider

20 oz. Caramel Sundae Syrup

1 tsp. Cinnamon (Saigon Cinnamon is what I use)

Whipped Cream (Spray whipped cream preferred)

DIRECTIONS:

Pour cider into a HUGE stock pot.  Add cinnamon. Stir while heating over medium high heat to diffuse the cinnamon throughout.  Add caramel and stir, mixing well.  Continue heating until desired temperature is reached.

TO SERVE:

Spray some whipped cream into the bottom of a hot beverage cup and add hot cider.

Optional:

For an added creamy experience and a pretty presentation, add a spray of whipped cream on top of the hot cider and whipped cream already in the cup and drizzle with caramel sauce.

Delicious!!

-Jill

Fun With Photography (Happy Dog)

"Happy Dog"

Kida (Kee'-da), is the first dog I have owned.  I didn't grow up with a dog, so all this dog stuff is new to me. I have enjoyed watching her grow and discovering her doggy personality. She has some great facial expressions. It is not always easy to take her picture and have it turn out well.  So, when I was able to capture these photos it felt like a personal creative triumph.

My Mini Australian Shepherd

Kida does this thing where she will sit and look at you, just staring. being very attentive, like she is waiting for a command. If you give her a command she will do it; she's a fairly obedient dog.  But, if you just talk to her, saying something that isn't a command, she tilts her head to the side and opens her mouth a bit as if she's asking, "What did you say?"  To me, she looks happy and I find it cute.

-Jill

Creativity in the Kitchen - A&W Cake

"A&W Cake"

A&W Cake

A&W Cake - basic instruction photos
(Detailed instructions below)

WHY I DID THIS:

I made this cake for fun to bring to a church picnic.

WHAT I USED:

Chocolate cake mix

Chocolate frosting

White frosting (only need a tiny bit so rather than buy and entire container I just made a little bit with powdered sugar, butter and milk)

Label from 2 liter A&W bottle

Biscuit cutters

WHAT I DID:

Bake a chocolate cake in a 9" x 13" baking pan. Cool completely.

Pieces cut with biscuit cutters.
(Shown with crumb layer - optional at this stage.)

Using biscuit cutters, cut out 4 - 3" circles and 1 - 1" circle. Cut the circles in half.  Lay the half circles flat side down on a  cookie sheet, stacking them to create the basic form of a bottle.  With a serrated knife, rough in a rounded edge on the circle at one end for the bottom of the bottle.  Rough in the shape of the tapered end and neck of the bottle into the two 3"circles at the other end blending it into the size of the 1" circle at the very end.

NOTE:  The detail shaping happens when applying the crumb layer.

Crumb Layer
(This was the trickiest part for me.)

Gently frost the entire structure with a crumb layer.  Carefully remove any excess crumbs and frosting to obtain the desired shape of the bottom, the taper and the neck of the bottle.

Crumb Layer:  The crumb layer is made by thinning a little bit of the chocolate frosting with a very small amount of milk.  Should be the consistency of thin pancake batter.  Gently spread the thin frosting all over the surface of the cake.  It will pick up crumbs, getting the crumbs stuck in the frosting.  Once it is set the crumbs will remain trapped in the "crumb layer" and keep them from getting in your decorative frosting.

Frosted

Once set, frost the entire cake with the chocolate frosting.

TIP: To get the smooth look you can use a hot knife (a knife dipped in hot water then quickly dried.  you might want to play around with it. I've found that sometimes it works better if the knife is hot, but still a little damp.) and gently smooth over the surface of the frosting.

Frosted bottle cap
(The chocolate frosting looks shiny due to condensation.
It was a hot day and the cake had been kept in the fridge.)

Frost the "bottle cap" with the white frosting.  Use a toothpick to make the detailed grooves on the "cap".

Cake side by side with the real thing.

Remove the label from the 2 liter bottle - wash and dry it.  Cut it to fit over the cake. Apply while frosting is still moist.

Done!!

-Jill

Hiking - Maple Trail, Forest Park (Photos)

Natural beauty in God's creations can be found all over the world.  Here is another place I've seen with my own eyes...and thoroughly enjoyed!

I am not a big hiking enthusiast, but I am learning to love it.

Every time I'm out I see wondrous things that make me smile.  In addition, I get to spend time with my family and create amazing memories.

Maple Trail

My husband, son and I went hiking last week when my husband had the day off for the holiday.  We hiked the Maple Trail in Portland's Forest Park.  It was absolutely beautiful!

Ferns in the sun's rays

The forest was filled with fall colors and a bounty of greenery from not only conifers, but deciduous trees that had yet to turn.

Forest Stream

There were so many things that caught my eye, my husband and son began to become impatient with my frequent stopping to snap a picture.

Tall Trees along the Maple Trail

There are so many amazing things to see in nature no matter where you are in the world.

God's beauty is everywhere. It makes me want to see more!

-Jill

Creativity in the Kitchen - "Secret Ingredient Jar"

WHY I DID THIS:

My son enjoys spending time in the kitchen with mom, mostly making cookies, brownies and candies. When he was old enough to help with cooking dinner we came up with the "Secret Ingredient Jar" in an effort to try to get him more excited about helping with meal preparation.  Now, he is old enough to have a night that he fixes dinner for the family.  Maybe on those nights he will decide to pull out the "Secret Ingredient Jar".

WHAT WE DID:
We simply made a list of ingredients we typically have on hand that could be incorporated into a main or side dish, printed them out, cut them up and put them in a jar.  On "Secret Ingredient" night we draw an ingredient from the jar and use it in the meal.  It is that simple.  It is a fun thing to do if you like to be creative in the kitchen.  You never know, you might discover someone's new favorite dish.

Materials:

Wide mouth canning jar - pint sized

          (A small jar with a lid will suffice, but a wide mouth jar makes it easy to reach inside)

Wide mouth lid

Wide mouth ring

A circle of fabric 2-3 inches larger in diameter than the opening of your jar

Paper

-Jill

"This Week's Menu" - (Keeping Me Organized)

"This Week's Menu" -for on the Fridge

(details below)

WHY I DID THIS:

BOTTOM LINE: Consistently having an organized dinner plan is a weakness I desire to turn into a strength.

I sincerely dislike having to decide what's for dinner every day.  Trying to come up with something at the last minute that sounds good never works out very well and makes me dread the hours approaching the dinner hour.

BACKGROUND: OUT OF SIGHT - OUT OF MIND (at least for me):

I had tried a variety of things to decrease my afternoon stress over dinner but had not been very successful in following through for any length of time.  They all seemed to have the same problem;"Out of sight, out of mind," which didn't work for me.  I decided I needed to have the dinner plan "in my face" first thing in the morning so I would know my plan and do something about it. Maybe then my afternoons just before the dinner hour might be less stressful.

THE PLAN:

First, I created a Dinner Calendar on my phone.  I set the time for "dinner" for just after I normally wake up in the morning - without a reminder.  (I could only imagine how much more I would dislike dinner time if a reminder of it woke me up every morning.)  However, because it was the first thing on my calendar every day, it showed up on my phone at bed time and I saw it as I was plugging my phone in to recharge for the night. The first time I saw it I thought, "I'm heading to bed and I have to think about tomorrow's dinner!!"  I'll admit, I was annoyed.  But, I have found that it has actually worked out well for me.  It is a reminder of what I need to do the next day to prepare (like get out the frozen chicken breasts to defrost) without having to drop everything right then and there in order to accommodate the dinner plan.  Instead, I could plan how to prepare for dinner on my time schedule.

Just having a reminder on my phone was helpful but it wasn't quite enough.  I like things digital, but am finding I still like to see some things in print, like my dinner calendar.  So, I thought maybe having something on my freezer door might help keep me on task and if it were something I enjoyed looking at that would be even better.  I searched Pinterest for some ideas of what others had done and found many fabulous ideas.  In the end, I used a combination of ideas to make it work for me.  (See pictures and details below.)

HELPFUL HINTS:
RULE THE DINNER - DON'T LET IT RULE YOU!

1. Set a time to make the weekly plan - put it on the calendar - follow through and make the plan.

2. Know what is on your calendar for the week and plan your meals accordingly.

3. Set a day and time to do your grocery shopping - then do it.

4. Leftovers not eaten before the next shopping trip should be disposed of or possibly frozen for another time.  This is another area where I struggle, but I'm going to take it one thing at a time.
Suggestion: If possible, clean out the fridge the night before garbage day.

WHAT I CREATED: (Materials: paper, permanent adhesive, sticky strip and magnets; Tools: ruler, Stampin' Up Paper Punches - 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, 1 1/5" flower punch, paper cutter or scissors)

THIS WEEK'S MENU

Magnet for each day of the week.

The cards are 4"x4" square (black card stock), 2.5" square (white standard printer paper).

THIS WEEK'S MENU BOXES

UNUSED and USED Boxes.  My goal is to have enough meal ideas for an entire month (or more). 

I have one that says, "OUT" and one that says, "LEFTOVERS".  Both stay in the UNUSED box if not on the fridge.  Three magnets on the back of each box seems to be strong enough to keep them on the fridge without a problem even if they are full.

TEMPLATE for the Card Box

The entire template fits perfectly on an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper.

Fold the tall piece with the "mistake" line on it toward the inside of the box.

FINAL STEP:

I haven't done the final step on my menu cards yet, but here is my thought.  Ideally, on the back of each meal card would be the recipe, or at least the ingredients needed for the dish.  Reasoning: Once you pick your menu for the week, your grocery list would practically be made for you.  You'd just have to write it down or type it in.  The idea of not having to think about what I need for each meal every time I make it appeals to me.  I am hoping that a little extra effort up front will help save me time and keep things simple in the long run.

SO FAR, SO GOOD:

I've been giving this plan a try (minus the ingredients on the back) for more than a month.  I'm spending less time stressing about dinner, and less money and time at the grocery store.  I'd say...so far, so good.  We'll see how long I can keep it up.

-Jill

Places I've Been - (Photos)

Waterfall Pictures

Earlier this year, Bret, Nicholas and I went on a "driving hike" to check out some of the waterfalls along the Columbia River Gorge.  It was a great adventure with many beautiful sites.  Here are some pics from our trip.

Bridle Veil Falls

Columbia River Gorge from View Spot

Pool at Horsetail Falls

Horsetail Falls

Jill's Music

Jill's Music - Debut Piano Solo CD Released February 2013

One of my creative outlets is composing and arranging music.  My debut piano solo CD, "Moments", was released in February 2013.  Here is a link to my music website where you can hear songs and samples of songs I've written. http://jillboss.com/songs

-Jill