Chewy Ginger Cookies

Does anyone else love the cookbooks that are collections of recipes from a church, business, or organization? Aren't they the best? They're always chock full of treasures that quickly become family favourites.

The recipe I have to share with you today is from one such cookbook. It's from the cookbook that my high school put out back when I was still in school... way back when. :)

My mom bought me a copy of the cookbook at the time to have for when I "grew up & moved out". 

When my husband & I got married & set up house, I was suddenly plunged into the duties of cook & baker. My mom had taught me some, but I learned mostly from experience.

In that first year of marriage, I tried so many new recipes - searching for our own family favourites. This recipe was one of those & has been a favourite ever since. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

DIY Pennant Gift Bag

Today I'm showing you an easy way to dress up a plain gift bag.

Pennants/bunting/banners are all the rage right now & this is such a simple little project you can do in such a short time.

Here's what you need:

Insta Friday #5

Another week has come & gone. Wow! This week felt so short. 

Probably because the kids didn't have school on Monday or Tuesday.

While they were off, I got a few hours to do some crafty things, one of which I'll be posting later today. 

Stay tuned. :)

Even though we're still in the freezer temperature-wise, the kids enjoyed some snow time on their days off...

Beef & Barley Soup

I'm sure looking forward to spring. Are you with me? From some of the photos I've been seeing, there are those of you who are seeing sprouts of green in your gardens & are feeling the sun on your faces. We are sure seeing the sun here in Saskatchewan, but our gardens are still buried under 2 feet of snow. No tulips will be seen for awhile...

For the time being, we are hunkering down, staying warm, & trying not to envy the people who are holidaying or living in warmer climates. My parents are in Mexico right now... sigh. (I choose to be happy, I choose to be happy.)

Anyway, how was your long weekend? Ours was good. My husband is now in his last week of school. Soon he'll be a journeyman plumber! (I'm so proud!) He did a lot of studying on the weekend, so the kids & I hung out together, but we went swimming as a family on Saturday. On Monday afternoon, I fired up my iTunes podcast library (my fav thing to do while I'm cooking or baking is listen to preaching podcasts. I learn a lot & am encouraged in the process) as well as the oven. I made a chocolate cake, chewy ginger cookies, biscuits, & a big pot of this yummy Beef & Barley Soup...

Only one change. I used venison this time. It's delicious with either kind of meat. After it simmers together for an hour & a half, you can't even taste the difference.

Insta Friday #4

Another week has come & gone. I fell off the posting wagon this week a bit. Sorry about that. We have a long weekend this weekend & I'm planning some creative time with some projects to share with you this coming week.

This week, my family took a little trip down memory lane & I posted a few favourite photos from a couple of our past Mexico trips.

And because we couldn't be in Mexico, I lifted my spirits by doing one of my other favourite things... some baking! :) Raspberry muffins with vanilla glaze were a yummy weekend treat.