Happy Birthday To Me!

It's been a crazy day! A crazy week, actually! My son's first grade class is doing the Nutcracker (the play, not the ballet) on Friday. Today was dress rehearsal, and they did very well! I need to finish up some hats for the costumes, but it's all coming together...

And as promised, I went to random.org to pick a giveaway winner. I had 14 entries between comments here, on my Facebook fan page and Twitter. The website randomly picked #7, which is Ann! Check out her shops on Etsy... she's very talented! I linked to only one of her shops, but she has 3 others, and they can be found by clicking "read more" on her shop announcement. Congrats, Ann!

Ok, that's it for now. I have a new year's resolution already, and that is to blog at least twice a week. One post will be about what I'm up to in my shops and life in general, and the other post will be featuring some other lovely Etsians. If I don't get back here before the new year, have a Happy Christmas and a terrific new year!

It's the busiest time of the year...

I don't know about you, but I have so busy lately! Making gifts, trips to the post office, baking, and making costumes and sets for my son's 1st grade play has kept me out of trouble! Downside is there has not been much "me" time...

That changes Wednesday when my birthday rolls around again. The best gift I can give myself this year is a day of down time. :)

You are invited to celebrate my birthday with me by entering to win my giveaway:



This is a stretchy bracelet, in the European 4 in 1 chainmaille weave. It has little silicone rings matched with aluminum rings. It is very lightweight - many people who own this cuff say they don't even notice it's on.

So, how to win? Simply go to my shop at http://RedBessBonney.etsy.com, pick your favorite item and come back here to post it in the comments. Here's how you can get two extra entries. You can follow me on Twitter and RT this giveaway. Be sure to @RedBessBonney so I know to add an entry for you. You can also like Red Bess Bonney Creations on Facebook, and leave a comment for me. On December 15th, I will use random.org to pick the winner. Once your address is confirmed, I will ship the bracelet out.

Ok, so go enter! :)

Zombie Dinner!

Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures last night...

But I made the most fun dinner!

It was actually a baked ziti with cauliflower. My husband commented it looked like brains. I got to thinking that if you substitute spaghetti for the ziti, that it would be an awesome zombie meal of bloody brains and veins...

Here's the recipe:

8 - 10 oz spaghetti
1 head cauliflower, cut up
1 T olive oil
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2 T fresh shredded basil, or 2 t dried basil
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1/4 c mozzarella

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Cook the spaghetti in a large saucepan according to the package directions. After draining, return spaghetti to the saucepan.

3. Meanwhile, toss the cauliflower, oil, salt and pepper together on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast, stirring once, until golden brown and tender, about 20 minutes. Stir basil and tomatoes into cauliflower and bake 10 minutes longer.

4. Add the cauliflower mixture to the spaghetti and stir well. Put the mixture in a casserole or baking dish. Top with mozzarella. Bake until cheese browns and bubbles, about 5 minutes.

This recipe originally came from the Cook Yourself Thin website, and makes 4 servings at 310 calories each. And it's vegetarian!

Tips: Feel free to play around with seasonings - make it to your taste! Add garlic to keep away the vampires.. ;)

Off to a rough start..

School started a week ago...



My son didn't get the teacher that I thought would be the best fit for him. We tried to switch, but the principal gave us an option that was unacceptable. For now we're going to see how it goes, and document anything unusual. I'm volunteering in class this afternoon, so I can see the dynamics of the class first hand. I'm hoping all will be well, and we won't have to go to the district or transfer schools - unless, of course, hubby gets a new job elsewhere. But that's another story...

I have been taking advantage of longer school hours to create new jewelry. Money has been tight for new supply purchases, so I've been seeing what I have and going from there. So far I've made these necklaces out of vintage belt buckles, and the earrings are from my mom's button stash.

I got to go to the "World of Color" Meet-Up!!!

A couple of weeks ago, Disney announced they were doing a meet-up at California Adventure, open to the first 300 people who RSVP'd via e-mail.. I thought I'd try, but never thought I'd get in... but I did - as well as my son, who was my guest.

So last Thursday we got to Disneyland a little early. We met up with some friends at Disneyland and tried to keep cool while going on a few rides. Before we knew it, it was time to head over to the check in table. At check in they gave us wristbands and a packet that contained a photo of "World of Color" and a list of who we would be seeing - Sayre Wiseman, Steve Davison and Mary Niven - who were all involved in the creation of this fabulous show.

We had a bit of time, so after we grabbed a bite to eat, Colin (my train obsessed boy) wanted to see the new trolley tracks. He is waiting very patiently for these to open...



When it was time, we headed over to Stage 17 in the Hollywood Pictures Backlot area..



After going inside, we waited a few minutes before they opened a curtain to the stage and seating area.



What followed was a very interesting and entertaining evening, listening to stories of the show by the creators..



followed by a really great viewing spot for "World of Color"! For those of you who haven't had a chance - here's some parts of the show:







Here is the Disney Parks Blog recap of the night as well.

Here is a photo of the swag we all got, including a special apple!


I am so happy I got to experience this! I can't wait for a chance to go to the next meet-up!

Vacation Wrap Up

So when I last left my vacation adventures, we had 3 days of vacation left...

Colin loves trees. Nebraska City is the home of Arbor Day and the Arbor Day Farm Tree Adventure.

It was very nice - it had trails and a tree house.. here's some pics -











At the end of your tree adventure, you get a free tree to take home and plant. Colin and Grandma planted one..



The next day we had tickets to the Omaha Royals game at Rosenblatt Stadium. Many years ago, when I was in college, I worked at Rosenblatt as a concession stand manager. In the years following, I went to several games and knew many of the season ticket holders and ball players. It was a shock to me to find out that this is Rosenblatt's last season - they are tearing it down to make a bigger parking lot for the zoo.













The Royals lost, btw...

The next day we headed back to the Kansas City area. We ran into some flooding on the highway around Nebraska City...





In the second picture, that water is completely covering the right lane..

Once we got to Kansas City, we visited with some old friends before dropping Colin off with the grandparents so Chris and I could have a nice dinner alone. The next morning we headed home.

Our summer adventures didn't end there.. we've managed to have a bit of fun since being home - I'll share some of our fun at a later date..

I hope you've enjoyed our vacation! :)

A New Wardrobe!

I have been reading a blog called New Dress A Day for a while now. It's very inspiring because A. cash is low for new clothes and B. I hate the styles/colors/fabrics at the stores right now.

I decided to try my own makeover of a thrift store dress. Saturday the local thrift had a 40% off sale, so I got this for $4.60.



Awful, isn't it? Not flattering in the least... Even the camera was disgusted - it didn't even take a good picture!! ;)

So, after thinking about what I wanted to do with it, I decided to turn it into a tunic. I cut off some length, and those awful sleeves. After hemming, here's what it looks like now:



Much better! I love the flutter sleeves! It gives me a whole new silhouette! (of course, it would help if it wasn't laundry day, and I have on some pants that are too baggy..)

I can't wait to hit the thrift stores again... Unfortunately, the local ones here are all so pricey.. I see a trip to Ventura in my future... :)

P.S. I haven't forgotten about finishing up our vacation... I have just a couple of days to go....