Crocheted Ballerina Slippers

I had to make my sweet Anna a pair of ballet slippers.  Every girl needs a pair!  What I like about these slippers is I can change the ribbon to suit the outfit.

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A Healthier Meatloaf

So, I've continued on this path to healthier eating. We're hooked on pastured eggs, organic fruits and vegetables, and now we're working on finding the best meat solutions.

The latest thing I've experimented with is grass fed, pastured beef.  This is a meatloaf I made with it.  I snuck a ton of vegies in it (of course you could add more). It was really good!

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Summer Printables

Yes, I know summer is half over, I try not to think about it!  In case you haven't updated your picture frame, here is a great list of summer time subway art printables!  Enjoy and tell them that Our Seven Dwarfs sent you!

From LadyCrafter14

From Simple Crafter

From Wonderful Joy Ahead

From Blooming Homestead

From Just the 3 of us

From Vintage Marigold

From Laura Winslow Photography

From Remarkable Home

Enjoy the rest of your summer!

A Great Thing-An Ice Shaver!

Many years ago, I bought this beautiful contraption from Pampered Chef. The bad news is Pampered Chef doesn't sell them anymore. The good news is there are MANY available on ebay and other sites. If you don't have one... get one!

Here's the beauty!

Here's a batch of watermelon lemonade I mixed up.  I used the blender to blend fresh watermelon chunks with lemonade concentrate and water (to taste). Pampered Chef included these great little containers to make your ice.

Here's the watermelon lemonade ice block.  I stick it in the shaver...

I shave into the bowl...

...and my girls have a delicious, healthy treat when it's 100 degrees outside. It's perfect!

There are MANY recipes you can create!

Here's my version of a Frappacino. I took weak decaf coffee, mixed it with some milk, and some of my husband's french vanilla coffee creamer and yum!

Seriously, the options are endless: chocolate or strawberry milk, a carton of yogurt, any beverage.  My ice shaver is certainly a GREAT THING! If you can't track down a Pampered Chef one, maybe you can try one from WalMart or Bed, Bath, and Beyond. They are great during these warm months!

Inner Hooker Giveaway Winners!

We want to thank Scotti of Inner Hooker Crochet Patterns for partnering with our Great Things and giving away three patterns to three of our followers!

If you aren't one of the lucky winners, you will want to visit Inner Hooker to purchase some great patterns.  Make sure to check out the Buy More Save More section to save yourself some money!

Thank you to all who entered to win!  We welcome our new followers and thank all our loyal followers for making our blog part of your day!

On to our winners. . .

Winner 1:

 101. Blessedbabs said...

Yes, I like OSD on fb...(actually LOVE :))

JULY 16, 2011 1:24 PM 

(Thanks BlessedBabs for the love!)


Winner 2:

74. erinll said...

I get your e-mail updates (and love them)

JULY 14, 2011 4:09 PM 

(Thanks Erinll for your love as well!)




Winner #3:

11. annemarie said...

I have been a long time email subscriber.

JULY 11, 2011 9:33 AM 

(Thanks Annemarie for getting our emails for a long time!  We love it.)


We couldn't be happier with the kind comments and love that all our entries shared.  Thanks for making us feel good!

All our lovely winners have 48 hours to contact us to claim their prize.  Please email us at oursevendwarfs@gmail.com if you won!

Have a great rest of the weekend and stay cool!

Baby Strawberry Slippers

After making my Strawberry Slippers, I realized my sweet Anna deserved a pair as well.  She had a super cute dress with strawberries on it and I knew the slippers would be precious with it.

The slipper pattern I used for these is from Little Birdie Secrets.  The flower pattern is from Sarahndipities.  I stopped after the second row for the small flower.  Both are great patterns.

Here is my sweet Anna in her strawberry dress.  I also made her a pretty flower for her hair as well.  You can see the flower better in the second picture.

I plan to have my flower clips and slippers in my Etsy shop when it opens soon. Be on the lookout!  I am taking the big leap and giving it a try.  Wish me luck!

Shrimp and Grits-A Delicious Recipe

I was a part of my friend Mandy's beautiful wedding last November.  As an appetizer, she had shrimp and grits. Well, I got one bite and was rushed off to have pictures made. The grits were scrumptious. I couldn't wait to get back for my serving.  Unfortunately, everyone else thought they were delicious too. They were all gone by the time we got done with pictures!

Needless to say, I've been craving these shrimp and grits ever since. I've ordered them at restaurants a couple of times and they were just not the delicious ones served at Mandy's wedding.  I've looked and looked at various recipes for them and none sounded just right.  So, I took parts of various recipes, added my own twist, and came up with a fabulous dish.

....and here are my Shrimp and Grits!

Ingredients:

The Creamy Grits:

2 cups of water

1 3/4 cups of chicken broth

3/4 cups 2% milk

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup grits

1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese

1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese

2 Tablespoons Butter

1/2 Teaspoon Hot Sauce

1/4 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper

The Shrimp:

1 large Portobella Mushroom Cap, cut up in small pieces

4 small colored peppers (red, yellow, green, orange) or 1 red bell pepper, chopped

2 links of andoullie sausage cut up in small chunks

2-3 green onions, sliced

1 1b. large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/4 Teaspoon Black Pepper

Salt

1/2 cup of chicken broth

1/4 teaspoon hot sauce

The Topping:

6 slices of crispy bacon (reserve bacon grease)

Directions:

First, make the bacon.  Remove bacon from pan and dry on a paper towel.  Leave pan with drippings for later.

Then, begin making creamy grits. Put first four ingredients in a medium saucepan with a tight fitting lid. Bring to a boil.  Whisk in grits and salt.  Reduce the heat to low.  Let grits cook while preparing the shrimp.

Next, begin making the shrimp. Use the pan with the bacon grease.  You only need about 2 TBSP of grease.  Remove any extra. If you're a little short, no worries. The vegetables will provide additional cooking liquid.  Add the mushrooms to the grease, on medium heat, first. Then add peppers, and sausage. After these have cooked for a few minutes, add the green onions. Sprinkle the salt and pepper over the shrimp. Add them to the mixture and sautee them until they are a light pink.  Add the chicken stock and hot sauce. Turn the heat on simmer.

Now it's time to finish the grits.  Add the cheddar and parmesan cheeses, stir well. Stir in the butter and black pepper. Scoop the grits into a bowl.  Add the shrimp mixture on top. Crumble a piece of bacon over the bowl of shrimp and grits.

Voila! You are done.  This is for sure a 30 minute recipe (from start to finish). It will easily serve 6 adults. I hope you find this to be a wonderful addition to your recipes. I know I do.



Zucchini Bread

During the summer months, zucchini is plentiful.  Sweet Zucchini Bread is one of my favorite things to make.  Our church secretary, Kathy, is so kind to send a huge zucchini home with my husband.  It is perfect for making breads.  That is exactly what I used it for this week.  I wanted to share this delicious recipe with you as well.  I hope you enjoy it!

Zucchini Bread

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

1 cup oil

2 teas vanilla

2 cups all purpose flour

1 teas soda

1 teas baking powder

1 teas salt

3 teas cinnamon

2 cups peeled shredded zucchini (seeds removed)

Chopped pecans-or another nut (optional)

Cream sugar, eggs, oil and vanilla. Mix dry ingredients, and add all to cream mixture and beat.  Add grated zucchini and beat.  Stir in nuts. Pour into two regular loaf pans, greased and floured.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.  Check with toothpick for doneness. This is a moist bread and can be frozen too.   Enjoy!