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One of my favorite desserts on the Christmas cookie platter are Sweet Marie Bars.  I love these things.  They taste awesome and they are really quick and easy to make.

Last week I scoured the internet, trying to find the recipe.  But none of the recipes that I found seemed like my Mom’s.  I wasn’t sure what was missing, I just knew they weren’t right.  Well, Mom came through for me and unearthed her recipe.  And then I discovered what was missing.  Chocolate!  My mom’s recipe has some chocolate in the base, not just in the topping.

So here is my mom’s recipe, which I made this week. 

 

Sweet Marie Bars

Base:
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup peanuts
2 cups Rice Krispies cereal

Heat corn syrup, butter, brown sugar, peanut butter and chocolate chips.
Remove from heat.  Stir in nuts and cereal.
Press into a buttered 8″ square pan.

Topping:
2 tbsp smooth peanut butter
1 cup chocolate chips

Melt peanut butter and chocolate chips over low heat.
When melted, mix well and spread over base.
Refrigerate until firm.  Cut into squares or bars.

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In our family, Christmas baking is a very important tradition.  My mother is the master Christmas baker, making dozens of different kinds of cookies and squares, and of course, fruit cake.  A magically self-refilling platter of cookies makes up many of my memories of childhood Christmases.  And this platter didn’t just exist at our house.  All of my aunts did the same, so everywhere we went, from Christmas Eve to Epiphany, the platter of cookies always appeared. 

In the last few years, Mom has cut back on how many different things she makes.  She’s now down to only about 15 different types of desserts. 

Not only does Mom bake a ton, she shares.  For about 15 or 20 years now, she makes up boxes filled with Christmas baking that she brings to all her children.  My sisters have usually received the largest boxes, as they are the ones that do the entertaining. 

Alas, this year, my parents aren’t coming to visit for Christmas, so the box full of baking won’t appear.  But that’s okay, as my mother taught her daughters to bake.  I started helping with the Christmas baking when I was very little, so I think I can handle it.

I started baking last week.  I won’t be making nearly as many things as my mother does, but we will have a nice variety.  Plus, I called my sister and offered to share the baking duties, sort of like a Christmas cookie exchange.  We are each making different recipes and will give the other person half of what we make.  And she volunteered to make the peanut butter balls and the shortbread, which are the two items that take the longest, so I think I will do well in this exchange. 

Do you bake for Christmas?  What are your favorites?  I’ll share some of our family favorites with you in future posts.

 

 

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Greg and I haven’t decorated for Christmas in the past (other than lights outside) as we often aren’t home for Christmas.  Afterall, who wants to leave two cats alone at home for a week with a fully decorated Christmas tree?  That’s a recipe for disaster I think.

This year, with Greg’s daughter living with us, getting a tree and decorating became somewhat of a requirement.  So on Black Friday weekend, I was able to get a nice artificial tree at Sears, for a good price.  (Thank you Sears for having a 60% off sale, and for having nice trees, not just Charlie Brown trees like so many other stores I visited.)  And then the hunt for ornaments to decorate the tree started. 

Eventually, it all came together, and last Sunday, Christmas arrived at our house.  We put up the tree and the three of us decorated it.  Many of the ornaments are new, but Greg had a small box of ornaments that were his grandmother’s and I had some my mother gave me about 10 years ago, so we have some tradition on our tree. 

It’s not the most elegant tree, and it doesn’t have a cohesive theme, but we like it.    It’s actually quite nice to have a tree this year.  I had forgotten what it’s like to have one, and every time I see it, I smile.  I’m really glad Greg’s daughter wanted a tree.

 

And of course, we have a nativity scene too.  The nativity scene I selected is not a traditional one, but I thought it was pretty. 

  

It was actually quite difficult to find a nativity scene.  I shopped at many, many stores, and the only store that had any was Wal-Mart.  I think it’s sad that a nativity scene is so hard to find at Christmas.  Christmas is after all a Christian holiday.  And the “all Christmas radio station” that has been playing only Christmas music since November 1st but that doesn’t play a single song with any religious connotations makes me sad too.  Don’t expect to hear Silent Night or All Holy Night on Majic 100, nope, won’t happen. 

Are people really that afraid to offend people with any mention of religious stuff related to Christmas? 

And are non-Christian people actually offended by Christmas stuff that contains religious stuff?  Because somehow, I think they probably aren’t. 

 

 

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Life has been pretty crazy and busy at my end, which has left me with little time for leisure.  But it is the end of September and it is time for another SATeam blog carnival.   This month, team members are answering the question “What is on your mat/workspace?”

Until a few weeks ago, my answer to that would have been “nothing”.  This summer was spent re-organizing the house, re-allocating spaces and doing some renovations.  So until Labour Day weekend, I didn’t even have a workspace anymore.  But I now have a new consolidated workspace and have actually been able to sit down and work on a new piece.  I’m not done yet, but even getting started felt good after a summer without any jewelry making.

This is my current work in progress.

 

It will eventually be a double stranded bracelet.  I have 4 more of those twisted black stones to add, and I’m debating about the type of clasp to use.  I’m thinking a toggle clasp will probably be my final choice, but maybe it will be a hook style clasp.  Once this baby is assembled and I’m happy with the length, I will oxidize it so that the copper has that dark, antiqued copper look.  I think the antiqued copper will really look nice with the black stones. 

This piece is definitely chunkier than most of my work, but it seemed to me that those stones were just calling out to be used in a double strand piece.  I might have to make some adjustments to the design if the piece feels to floppy once it is full length, but that is something I will only know once more of it is complete.  Many of my pieces evolve as they are being constructed.  The original idea in my head does not always (often?) match the final result. 

This bracelet is only one item on my workspace.  I actually have 3 work surfaces in my new consolidated studio.  The bracelet is on my table where I work mostly with beads and wire.  I also have an old dresser that serves as my hammering, filing, cutting area.  The third work surface is my soldering table.  At the moment, it features a very different type of project.

Paint samples!  My new space needs some colour on the walls.  I’m under pressure today to make my final colour choice as my husband will be painting my space this week while I’m away.  I’m super sensitive to paint smells (trigger migraines), so most painting in our house is done at times when I am travelling. 

I’m leaning towards the yellows, either the celestial sun or the citron ice.  Or maybe yellow with one purple wall? 

I love yellow, as it is such a sunny, cheerful colour.  I think it could be the perfect colour for a work space – inspirational and energizing.  What do you think?   

To find out about what is on the workspace of other members of the SATeam, please follow the links below to their blogs.

Bead Sophisticate

BeadSire

The FamiLee Jewels

 

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I took a vacation day today.  There is something very decadent about having a day off in the middle of the week, while everyone else heads off to work.  I need to do this more often.    

Greg’s current schedule has him working weekends, with days off in the middle of the week.  Today we were both off and could spend the day together.  These days have been rare for us the past several months.  

Today was a gorgeous, hot, sunny day, so we wanted to be outside.

The plan was to pack lunch and go spend the afternoon in a park.  We are pretty lucky here as we have so many parks to choose from.  So we slathered on the sunscreen, grabbed some hats and the cooler and headed out the door. 

What a fabulous day!  We headed out to a park that I hadn’t visited in years, found some picnic tables and had lunch.  While we were eating, I realized that (sadly) I couldn’t remember the last time the two of us had eaten lunch in a park.  Since we moved to the city (well, really the suburbs), we haven’t been doing this type of thing.  Yet we used to…  When we first met, we went to a park on the lake that was close to home pretty much every weekend and several days after work.  We spent so much time there, hanging out, playing, just having fun.  I’m not sure when we turned into suburbanites that spend so much time at home or just in the immediate area.  It was really nice to break out of the routine today.  We definitely need to do that more often. 

So today we had lunch, walked along the trails by the river and just totally enjoyed the day.  There were lots of people out enjoying the beautiful day – they were cycling, walking, swimming, and even a few were fishing. 

Even though we were in the middle of the city, there was lots of animal life around. 

As you can see, this park is very wildlife friendly. 

Grey squirrel tracks

 

Some squirrels obviously had some fun when this sidewalk was poured.  The tracks are permanent as they are embedded in the concrete.

 

And as it’s still only June, lots of animals still have babies hanging out.  I’ve always loved ducklings.  They look so soft and cute.

Aren't this mama mallard and her ducklings cute?

And these little goslings are so comical.  I’ve seen some from a distance lately as I’m on the bus on the way to work, but this was my first close up view.  They are as funny and awkward looking as I had thought.

Canada Geese and their goslings

And of course, what would a day by the river be without a Great Blue Heron sighting?  This is such a regal, majestic bird. 

Oh, and another great thing about today…  We had ice cream!  Yay for maple walnut…

 

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I love spring.  It’s a magical season when things come back to life after a long, sleepy winter.  It’s the best time to go for a walk in the woods.  There are new things to discover each day. 

Spring is subtle.  The leaves are a pale, tender shade of green.  The flowers are delicate and ephemeral.  The rain is soft and misty. 

Spring is fresh and full of promise.  It teases us with hints of things to come.  It’s a beautiful, magical season.  Aren’t you glad it has arrived?

apple blossoms in a pretty pink

 

this tree was loaded in blossoms

 

and where you find flowers, you also find bees!

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We had the most glorious sunset here this evening!  It took me a while to figure out what camera settings to use to try to capture the beauty of this sunset, so I didn’t get it at its peak, but I think you will get the idea.  The camera doesn’t capture the intensity and fieriness of it as well as the human eye can, but I think it’s still pretty special.

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Today is my 40th birthday.  It’s funny, but it doesn’t feel at all like I thought it would…

Forty always seemed like such a big, intimidating number. 

A couple of years ago, when Greg’s 40th birthday was approaching, I had a small freak-out/meltdown.  If he was going to be 40, I knew I wasn’t far behind and I didn’t feel ready for us to be 40.  I think that I felt that by the time one turned forty one’s whole life was set.  It felt like it would mean we were old…  And I still didn’t quite feel like an adult, so I certainly wasn’t ready to be old.   

Today I feel differently about forty.  I know that just because things are a certain way today doesn’t mean they will be that way tomorrow.  We aren’t locked into where we are now for our whole lives.  There have been many changes of direction in my life so far, and there will likely be more in my future.  When something works for me, I go for it.  When it’s not working for me anymore, I make changes.  I’m not stuck in life now any more than I have ever been.  I still have lots of choices and lots of options.

So forty doesn’t feel bad at all (well, other than my older sisters reminding me that I’m now FORTY, the big 4-0).   

I’m happy.  Life is good.  I see good things all around me.  I like my life.  It’s not perfect, but life isn’t perfect.  In the past few years, I’ve finally learnt to stop trying to achieve perfect.  I’ve learnt when “good enough” really is good enough. 

I like my life and I like who I am.  And that’s a pretty good thing. 

So hello forty.  I’m ready for you.

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The topic for this month’s SATeam blog carnival is:  Tell us about colour in your work. 

I love colour!  Colour sometimes reflects my mood, and at other times colour affects my mood.  One of the things that I love most about designing jewelry is the ability to play with colour.  My materials provide me with a full colour palette and I can go in any direction with it.

I love colourful colours much more than neutrals.  And I’m naturally drawn to cool colours, so blue, green and purple make frequent appearances in my work. 

Lapis lazuli and sterling silver necklace

 

Raspberry Blue Necklace - Fossil stones and sterling silver

 

Colourful polymer clay and sterling silver bracelet

 

But selling jewelry has allowed me to dabble with other colours, colours that I don’t usually wear myself, such as orange, brown, and grey. 

Carnelian and sterling silver earrings

At first using these other colours was a challenge.  I started using them because I knew I needed to showcase a wider variety of colours, but now I also find myself drawn to stones that are in more neutral colours, but that have beautiful, interesting patterns.  They are stones with character and personality. 

Zebra jasper and copper necklace

One thing I do know, no matter what I choose – warm or cool, bright or neutral - colour will always be a part of my work.  Colour lifts the mood, adds life, catches the eye. 

So what’s your story with colour?

To read more about colour and to find out what role it plays in the work of other SATeam members, please follow the links below to their blogs.

Island Girl

Bead Sophisticate

J3 Jewelry

BeadSire

The FamiLee Jewels

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As you know, I’ve been getting ready for my upcoming spring shows.  I’ve been creating many new pieces lately, and many of them are light and airy, with clean, simple lines. 

All my new creations will be available at the jewelry shows I am participating in next weekend and Mother’s Day weekend, but I thought I’d take a moment to offer you a little glimpse of some of my newest work.

I’ve been working a lot with copper lately.  I love the rich warm tones of copper, both in its natural state and as the oxidized version.

Golden Heart - Small Copper and Crystal Heart Necklace

 

Copper Hexagon Earrings with Fire Polished Glass

 

Red Creek Jasper and Antiqued Copper Necklace

 

Silver does remain my first love, and despite the rising cost of this precious metal, I continue to use sterling and fine silver in my work.

Sterling Silver Bracelet with Lampwork Glass and Freshwater Pearls

 

Isn’t this stone gorgeous?  I’m in love with this amazing purple colour, plus it has wonderful silvery feather-like shimmer.   

Sterling Silver Wire Wrapped Charoite Pendant

 

This is another great stone.  I love the character the zoisite (the green parts) add to the ruby.  Each one of these stones in different, with its own personality.

Ruby in Zoisite Sterling Silver Wire Wrapped Pendant

 

I think this piece demonstrates that simple doesn’t mean boring…

Sterling Silver Necklace – Trinity