4-H and Weekly Summer Cakes

Our 13 year old daughter has been involved in local 4-H clubs for five years, and our family has greatly benefited from the cake decorating classes and projects in particular.  For the past four summers, she has baked and decorated cakes or cupcakes weekly until the youth fair occurs in August.  At that time, all the cakes are placed in an exhibition building to be admired and judged.  It has been so much fun to watch her skills increase and to taste the delicious projects.

  The cupcakes above were made for our tea party last summer, and the fresh raspberries on top were from our farm.

This beach ball cake was made during her third year of cake decorating.

This was one of her first attempts this summer at making more advanced flowers.

These Lego cupcakes were not as involved to make but turned out so cute with the confetti and Lego brick candies on top.

This cake started out as a disaster because I recommended she use cream cheese frosting, since it was a carrot cake.  Little did I know that type of frosting melts easily, and the top layer slid right off the bottom.  She had to scrape frosting and put things back together the best she could at class.  This is why there are some yellow patches in places.  Her flowers turned out quite well, however; especially considering this was only her second or third try at making roses.

Last week we got a treat with chocolate cupcakes filled with chocolate wafers and topped with pink basket-weave or pink rose frosting.  We love it when she surprises us with chocolate or peanut butter frosting in the center.

Our daughter used to make all of her cakes from scratch, but this summer we have taken some shortcuts and used boxed mixes most weeks.  Most of the frosting is homemade though.  We share below our favorite frosting and icing recipes.

My Favorites:

Peanut Butter Frosting

Beat 6 tablespoons of peanut butter until light and fluffy.  Gradually add about 2 1/4 cups of powdered sugar and beat well.  Beat in 1/4 cup of milk and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla.  Gradually beat in remaining 2 1/4 cups of powdered sugar and additional milk if needed to make the appropriate consistency.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Beat together (1) 3-ounce package of softened cream cheese, 1/4 cup softened butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until light and fluffy.  Gradually add 2 cups powdered sugar and beat until smooth.  

Our Daughter's Favorites (found in her 4-H Project Book):

Buttercream Icing (for the crumb layer)

Beat 1/2 cup of butter and 1/2 cup of Crisco.  Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla.  Gradually add 1 bag of powdered sugar, one cup at a time while beating well on medium speed.  Icing will appear dry at first.  Then add 2 tablespoons of milk and beat until light and fluffy.

Decorating Icing (to use in the decorating bags)

Beat 1 bag of powdered sugar, 3/4 cup of Crisco, 1 tablespoon of vanilla, 1 egg white, and 2 tablespoons of water (more if desired) until fluffy.

Casual Summer Attire for a Middle-aged Farm Mom

Now that I have hit my mid-forties, I find it increasingly more challenging to find clothes that fit my lifestyle, personality, and my changing body.  The past two summers, however, I have been pleased to find a number of fashion pieces that are easy to mix and match, are versatile and comfortable, and don't cling to my middle or hang like a tent.  I know that JC Penney is not the store of choice for preppies, but it just so happens that the majority of my fashion finds for this post came from there.  In the rural area where we live, our choices are limited, and when I needed something in a hurry, Penneys rarely let me down.  So far, these items have held up well through many washings and line drying in the summer sun.

.

T-shirt: St. John's Bay from JC Penney; Crop pants: J. Crew from local thrift shop; Reversible Belt: Talbot's; Leather Sandals: Land's End

Brightly colored t-shirts and cropped pants or capris take me from our farmhouse to the grocery store to a picnic at the park with our children and friends.  My only problem is finding crops that are the right length.  These are petites and are still a bit long.  Although, I bought them from a thrift store, so maybe they're not meant to be cropped at all!

Dress: Studio One from JC Penney; Sandals: Pesaro bought many years ago from ?

Even though this dress has 3/4 length sleeves, it is lightweight enough to wear in the summer.  I love the way it hangs, and it's incredibly comfortable.  I think it's versatile enough to wear to Mass or shopping or to volunteer at the children's school.  I will probably wear it into early fall with a pair of low-heeled black pumps.

Blouse with attached camisole: Liz Claiborne from JC Penney; Skinny ankle jeans: ana from JC Penney; Wedged sandals: Yuu from JC Penney

This blouse is so flowing and breezy, and it has an attached matching cami underneath.  Since it is quite loose and long, I prefer to wear it with something more fitting on my legs.  These white jeans can be worn folded up or unfolded down to the ankle.

Sleeveless blouse: Liz Claiborne from JC Penney; Crop pants: J Crew; Thong sandals: Land's End

These are the same crop pants worn with the t-shirt above, but they're a bit more dressed up with this blouse.  I can wear this to run errands or have a casual lunch with a friend or just sit at home and blog.

The sterling silver necklace in these photos is from Silpada, and the Citizen watch was a gift from my husband from years ago.

Favorite Summer Salads

This time of year is perfect for salads with so many fresh vegetables coming from our gardens or local farmers.  Although my children are not big salad eaters, my husband and I love them.  Below are some of our favorite salad recipes that I tend to only make in the summer.

Pasta Salad

This is my favorite Pasta Salad recipe.  Cook 2 pounds of pasta al dente.  Drain, then toss with enough Italian salad dressing to coat it.  Chill in refrigerator several hours.  Slice 1-2 sweet peppers, several carrots, 2 green onions, and a can of artichoke hearts, drained and quartered.  Add these to the chilled pasta.  Finally, add 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon of dried basil, 1 teaspoon of pepper, and about half the bottle of Italian salad dressing and toss gently.  Serve chilled.  This makes a big bowl of salad that is perfect for a picnic or patio cookout---plenty to share with friends and family.

Creamy Potato Salad

Out of all the Potato Salad recipes I have tried, this is definitely my favorite.  Pare and cook 6 medium potatoes (Yukon gold or red are especially good) in boiling water for about 20-25 minutes. You want them tender but not mushy.  Drain well and put in bowl.  Add 1 cup sliced celery, 1/2 cup of chopped onion, and 1/3 cup chopped sweet pickle.  If I have some on hand, I also add several strips of cooked, crumbled bacon at this time.  Combine 1 1/4 cups of whipped salad dressing, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 2 teaspoons of celery seed, 2 teaspoons vinegar, 2 teaspoons prepared mustard, and 2 teaspoons of salt (I sometimes add more of this.)  Add this mixture to the potatoes and other vegetables.  Toss lightly to coat.  Carefully fold in 2 hard-boiled eggs that have been coarsely chopped.  Cover and chill thoroughly.  If we're having a lot of people over, I double this recipe.

Ranch Dressing

For regular tossed salads, I like to use the following Ranch Dressing recipe given to me by a good friend.  To make the dry mix: combine 2 tablespoons salt, 2 teaspoons parsley flakes, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, and 1 teaspoon pepper.  Keep in an airtight container and shake or mix well before using.  When you are ready to make the dressing, add 1 tablespoon of the mix with 1 cup of whipped salad dressing or mayonnaise and 1 cup of sour cream or plain yogurt. Chill.  I add no MSG to this, and it tastes fantastic.

This post is making me hungry.  I just happen to have some pasta salad left in the refrigerator, so  I think I'll go have a bite.

Summer Evenings at Our Preppy Mountain Farm

It's taken me almost 2 months to get enough evening pictures for a post because of all of the thunderstorms and soaking rains we've been having this summer.  I've left out a few things, but this is a typical smattering of summer evenings on our mountain farm.

Hanging out in the back yard with family and friends.

Our farm friends like to hang with us in the evenings too.

The adults of the house (and guests) having a glass of wine on the front porch.

Roasting marshmallows around a campfire.  Our fancy firepits have come and gone, but this one made with rocks (built by our children) has survived.

Of course, you can't have a campfire without roasting marshmallows, and you can't roast marshmallows without making S'mores.

Then, of course, you can't make S'mores without eating them.  Rarely do we stop at one.

Games of frisbee usually played by the boys.

Probably best of all are the sparklers and fireworks.

At least, our children would say so.

We're about halfway through our summer break, and I'm wishing it never had to end.

It's a Lego Party!

Our 9 year old son is having a birthday this coming week and loves Legos more than any other toy.  Actually, so does his 10 year old brother, but he didn't want me to throw him a Lego party back in May when it was his birthday.  There are so many cool things you can do with Legos, so I was excited to prepare for this party for school-aged boys.

Part of the fun of preparing for this party was that our son got to help with the preparations.  He built the Lego structures to hold the plasticware and the napkins, which were then set on the food table.

One of the activities was guessing how many Legos were in the Mason jar.  I rummaged through the large Lego bin the day before and tried to find a variety of sizes, shapes, and colors and then refused to give any hints as to how many there were.  The prize was a bag of Skittles because I was trying to find something inexpensive that still had Lego primary colors.  It ended up that the birthday boy had the closest guess.

The Lego slime was a huge hit, and everyone got a ziplock bag of their own.

The only ingredients I used were 2 bottles of Elmer's blue glitter glue and half a cup of liquid laundry starch.  The starch was added 1 tablespoon at a time until it was the desired consistency.

Then we added a bunch of little Lego pieces, including Lego people heads and hair and helmets.  I have to admit, it was pretty awesome, and I was the first one to get my hands in there to squish it around.  For more tips on how to make this, go to http://lemonlimeadventures.com/simple-lego-slime/

The food was colorful, but definitely not all healthy.  We had the favorites of our son: pizza rolls, Doritos, fruit and vegetables, and cupcakes.  There was also soda, which I concede to on birthdays.

We placed the carrots, strawberries, canteloupe, and maraschino cherries on my serving tray (handmade by my father) in the shapes of LEGO.  I'd like to say I came up with this idea on my own, but I actually saw it on Pinterest first.

My son requested strawberry cupcakes with white frosting, which was easy to accommodate.  My 13 year old daughter frosted them and added the Lego brick candy and confetti.  She considered stuffing them with more Lego candy, but I decided they would be too crunchy and just kept them on top instead.

The Birthday Boy was being rather stubborn and didn't want me to post any pictures of him on my blog.

We finished off snacking with these Wonka ice cream novelties.  The Poppin' Pops were a hit with the little boys. 

Out of curiosity, I had to try them.  Once you hit the center of each color, they really do pop and crackle in your mouth and throat---which is a rather bizarre feeling, but definitely interesting.

Party favors were little Lego mini figures.  I had no idea what HALO was because we don't play that here, but the boys thought the Lego figures were cool.  The Littlest Pet Shop packets were for the girls.  Our younger boys helped pick these out when we went to Target because they knew what their classmates were into.

This party was so much fun to prepare for and participate in!  The only thing we would do differently is have it a different month of the year because this poor guy always seems to have a birthday party when most of his friends are on vacation or are otherwise disposed. Those of us present, however, had a great time, and for the first Saturday in weeks, the weather was beautiful!

Sprucing Up Outdoor Furniture: Summer Project #2

One of the projects on our to-do list this summer was to treat and paint our outdoor furniture.  For the wood pieces, I used Thompson's WaterSeal wood protector in clear.  The metal furniture got several cans of Rust-Oleum spray paint or Krylon Fusion spray paint.  We also used the Rust-Oleum Specialty Plastic on the resin chairs (not pictured here.)

First up was my brand new picnic table which I have wanted for years.  This one was purchased unfinished from Home Depot for me for Mother's Day this May.

I had help from my six year old adding the second coat of sealant several weeks after I applied the first one.  We have had so much rain here this summer that finding a day with no storms forecasted was a real challenge.

I'm not sure I'm satisfied with this.  The wood looks much darker than when it was unsealed, and it is starting to look like there are dark mildew patches on it even though I can see the rainwater bead up on the surface.  I may paint it a hunter green color to match the doors on our farmhouse.

Next, we tackled this small metal table on our front porch.  I couldn't find a way to easily remove the glass top, so I covered it in newspaper and tape.  We then used just one coat of the Rust-Oleum spray paint in a satin hunter green.  The clothespin flower pot and impatiens were a handmade Mother's Day gift from my 10 year old son.

I am very pleased with how this turned out, and it matches our front door.

I received this large unfinished porch swing years ago for a Mother's Day gift, and I never sealed it.

So both my daughters used the Thompson's Water Seal to protect it from any further weathering.

I purchased a pair of outdoor pillows on clearance from our local Kmart, and I bring them inside when we aren't using them to prevent the cats from taking them for their own beds.

This metal table and chairs belonged to my husband when we met, so I don't even know how old they are.  They're still in great shape but were beginning to rust, plus there were spots on the table where our older girls had spilled nail polish and Wite-Out many years ago.

With the help of my 13 year old daughter, we sprayed 2 coats of paint on the table and chairs.  Unfortunately, we ran out of paint and couldn't find an exact duplicate at the local hardware store.

We ended up having to cover all of it with a final coat of the Krylon Fusion in black satin.  I am very pleased with the results, and we realized that we love to spray paint!

I found the umbrella at Ollie's Bargain Outlet, and it has withstood our numerous storms this summer.

At our cabin, we discovered two resin chairs, but they had gray mildew stains that would not come out with bleach.

We started out using the rest of the can of hunter green spray paint, but we didn't have enough to even cover one chair thoroughly.  I definitely underestimate the amount of paint needed.

When I returned to the store to buy more, they were sold out of all colors of spray paint except dark brown and black.  The cabin has a dark brown wood exterior, and I would have preferred a color that would stand out a bit, but both chairs were only partially painted and we are expecting company this weekend, so I settled for the brown. This spray paint is made to fuse with plastic in one coat.  Hopefully, it will hold up well.  My teen daughter and her friend painted them for me yesterday, and I think they look pretty good; although, I may change the color again later.