oh happy day.

so this girl is one of my favoritest peeps on the planet.
this is our niece, ashleigh. <--my hubby's oldest brother's daughter.

when i became part of the family 12 years ago, she was 8 and i was 18.
we've been close since day one.
i was the cool aunt and then she grew up and now we're more like besties.

if you follow along on the ps i quilt facebook page, chances are you remember my exciting announcement that she's pregnant!!! <--and she's due on my birthday!!!

well today is ashleigh's 20th birthday.
and today is the day she {& her fella nate} got the keys to their 1st place.

uncle shane & i had all this extra stuff hanging around that we've been saving for a rainy day.
stuff that made up our first house together. <--like couches, livingroom tables, a dining room table & chairs set, extra dishes, curtains, etc.


well today ash & nate came over to get the aforementioned things and i surprised her with a quilt.
:D

she told me once upon a time that she loved my almost irish pattern.
translation = she needed one of her own.
so needless to say, she loved it.


fun fact: this quilt has been to california, texas & missouri.
my longarm quilter, darla padilla, did an amazing job on this quilt. <--she lives in cali.
the robert kaufman kona booth was home to this quilt last fall at quilt market. <--obviously that's in texas.
and the sew sweet quilt shop had a month long trunk show of my quilts this past january. <--they're located in missouri.


the color palette is a little unconventional, but i love how fun & happy it is.
side note: have yall noticed that the 80s are back with a vengeance?!?! wow.

quilt stats:
fabric = kona cotton solids for robert kaufman
size = 80 1/2" x 80 1/2"
pattern = almost irish
quilting = darla padilla


oh and because i figure someone might be interested, here's all the kona sku #'s:
white 1387
bone 1037
cream 1090
sand 1323
tan 1369
ash 1007
--
aqua 1005
azure 1009
robin egg 1514
--
cactus 199
pear 145
chartreuse 1072
--
mango 192

♥ rachel

the art of making biscuits.

if there's one thing us southerners take seriously, it's our breads.
specifically our biscuits & cornbread.
{we'll talk about cornbread another day.}

growing up, we had biscuits {or cornbread} at every meal.
no, this isn't a joke.
my daddy is a firm believer that a meal just ain't complete unless there's bread.
i sure do love that man.

i was about 10 years old the first time i flew solo on biscuit making.
and yes, i remember it quite clearly.
i can't wait to show my kids how to make biscuits from scratch.

so there's two crucial ingredients in a good biscuit: lard & fresh buttermilk.
i'd also like to add that certain flours are just known for producing good biscuits.
we were taught to always use white lily flour.

there's also two kinds of biscuits: drop biscuits & cut biscuits.
drop biscuits are made by dropping a heaping spoonful of dough directly on the pan.
i looooove drop biscuits.
they're my favorite.
but every once in a while i get the itch for cut biscuits.
*drop biscuits are pictured above.*

cut biscuits are made by kneading and rolling out the dough, then using a glass or biscuit cutter to make little circle shaped biscuits.
my mal made big ol' cathead biscuits like this.
and for the record, mal made the best biscuits in the world.
NO ONE, i repeat, NO ONE can make biscuits like hers.
*cut biscuits are pictured below.*


so, with all that being said, let's teach y'all how to make homemade biscuits!!!

here's what y'all will need:
2 cups self rising flour
1/2 cup lard {or shortening}
3/4 cup fresh buttermilk

the making part:
preheat oven to 450'
using your fingers, mix flour and shortening in a mixing bowl until a coarse meal is formed.
stir in your buttermilk just until blended.
drop dough by heaping spoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet.
bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
serve warm with fresh jam/preserves.
OR my favorite way is with some fresh honey.
ah snap. that's some goooood eatin' right there.

**to make cut biscuits, follow the same recipe, but instead of dropping the dough by heaping spoonfuls, roll out the dough and cut out circles using a glass or biscuit cutter.**

so, step away from canned biscuits and make them homemade.
they're SO worth the extra few minutes.
promise.

hope y'all enjoy.

xo, rachel

year of the babies.

today's agenda was planning out a baby quilt. for my cousin.
the baby shower is in two weeks. in georgia.
and yall see how far i've gotten. lol.

to give myself some credit, i have decided to make a baby impromptu quilt.
i'm pretty stoked about it!!!

fabric = bungle jungle by tim and beck for moda

fyi: be prepared to see alot of baby quilts this year.
2 pregnant cousins. 1 pregnant niece. and a partridge in a pear tree.
happy year of the babies.
:)

♥ rachel

will work for landscaping.

so true story . . .
i'm outside, minding my own business, when my neighbor starts chatting me up.
like a good neighbor, state farm is there i'm just shooting the breeze.
"how was yall's trip to florida?"
"when are yall getting the camper ready?"
"yadda yadda neighborly talk yadda."

then my neighbor was like, "hey, we have this ipod dock and we need a travel bag for it. but diane {his wife} wants it to have a little padding in it. would you know how to do something like that? i mean, i can pay you. or trade off some landscaping."
before the word landscaping fully exited his mouth, i blurted out "of course i can!!!"

note: my neighbor owns his own landscaping business. his yard looks amazing. all year long.
to put it into perspective, his lawn is beauty and my lawn is the beast.
;)

yep.
so now i'm making an ipod dock just so i can get my neighbor's professional touch somewhere in my yard.
i think i got the better end of the bargain, personally.

for those inquiring minds:
fabric = meet me at sunset for dear stella

♥ rachel

a sudden urge.

well i've suddenly decided that i need fun pillows for our bed.
and for the livingroom.
and for the kid's rooms.
and maybe for outdoor seating.
dear hubby: i know you aren't aware of this decidion just yet, but remember you love me.

i've also decided on which fabrics to start with.
i have a delish idea for a body pillow. <--which might turn into a new tutorial!!!
but i'm in need of smaller pillow ideas.

you would think that with the amount of pillows i have fav'd on flickr, this wouldn't be a problem.
so apparently i'm stubborn. <--who?!?! me?!?! stubborn?!?! no!!! *wink*

yall feel free to feed my stubborness & tell me YOUR favorite pillow.
link to the pattern {or your pics} if possible.
and i promise i'll try not to become even more indecisive about pillow making.

oh and because i know someone will ask . . .
fabrics = new pure elements & oval elements by art gallery fabrics.

ps - i read every single comment on my things that make you go hmmm post.
i know i said it on facebook, but i'll say it again . . .
i really do have the best readers a girl could ask for.
thanks for all the super sweet comments/emails.
i love yall more than i love fresh peaches. <--and that's ALOT!!! :D

♥ rachel

leprechaun snack mix.

what y'all will need:
4 cups lucky charms cereal
4 cups corn pops cereal
1 medium bag {12.60 oz} m&m's of your choice <--plain, peanut, peanut butter, dark chocolate or pretzel.

the making part:
have your handy dandy kiddo helpers mix all the above ingredients in a big bowl.
serve immediately or place in snack size ziploc bags to share with friends/classmates.

we break it down like this:
lucky charms so we're extra lucky.
corn pops for our pot o' gold.
and chocolate because leprechauns LOVE chocolate.

rumor has it that if you leave this yummy snack out, those rambunctious leprechauns will be good little leprechauns all day long.
;)

hope y'all enjoy.

xo, rachel

things that make you go hmmm.

i've been in a funk.
:(

i've written this post several different times trying to find the right way to say what i want to say.
alas, i still haven't figured it out. <--i blame my indecisiveness.

here's the most basic, striped down version:
i loved having my sister here.
it was amazing.
what wasn't amazing was her leaving.
that and receiving an email that someone thought it was utterly ridiculous that my siblings & i haven't seen each other in 15 years.

maybe i read the email in a wrongful tone.
maybe i read it exactly how it was meant.
either way, it ate me alive.

it was hard enough to put something that personal out there for yall.
just to have someone turn around and say, "it's not that hard to purchase a plane ticket."
ugh.

frankly the thought of blogging disgusted me.
and i hate that.
i just want to move forward and push it out of my mind.
i'm really hoping this blog post will be the kickstart i need.

with that being said, i'd like to say goodbye to my bloggy funk.
a yummy kid friendly st patty's recipe will be posted tomorrow :)

♥ rachel