Bluebird of Happiness

I'm so glad Joy taught a class on wool applique and I'm so glad I took that class. It's so much fun to do, quick and cute! My newest creation from a larger pattern that Joy let me borrow. Should have taken pictures before I put it under glass thus the reflection. And taken in a dark basement, thus the blur.

Slowly decorating the playroom in the basement. I got that old window at an estate sale last fall.

Sunday Sayings

"The future is that time when you'll wish you'd done what you aren't doing now."

Anonymous

Texas Sheet Cake

Because of our generous neighbors and our own little garden we've been eating a lot of vegetables. Vegetables are so good for you and we do love vegetables but after awhile I just need a little fat and sugar to balance things out a bit. The mister and I NEEDED a little chocolate, OK a lot of chocolate, and this recipe definitely is chocolatey. I've been making this recipe for at least 30 years so it's been around for awhile. It's a huge hit at potlucks and family gatherings.

Texas Sheet Cake

Bring to a boil:

2 sticks butter or margarine

1 cup water

3 tbsp cocoa powder

Add to above:

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup sour cream

2 beaten eggs (add to cooled mixture)

1 tsp vanilla

Mix and pour into greased 11x17 jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with sides.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes

Frosting

Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes:

1 stick butter or margarine

6 tbsp milk

3 tbsp cocoa powder

2 tsp vanilla

Add all at once to above and stir well:

1 16 oz box powdered sugar

1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

This cake is delicious with vanilla bean ice cream on the side.

So if you're in need of a chocolate fix, I guarantee this will do it! Enjoy.

Produce and Fence Posts

Today while we were in the backyard with our rented post hole digger, our next door neighbor brought us a big bag of these,

our neighbor that lives behind us brought us this,

and somebody left these on the front porch. Aren't we lucky?

Sunday Sayings

"Use the talents that you have. The woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those who sang the best." Henry Van Dyke

We Have A Winner!

I'd like to thank all of you who entered my giveaway, became a follower, and showered Mimi's Cottage with such sweet comments. You really are the nicest people! I wish I had a hundred gift cards to give away but unfortunately there's only one. For the rest of you here's a little bouquet from my garden.

Instead of a cute vintage bowl and a bunch of little slips of paper, I used the Random.org site and they chose number 5!
And who is number 5? Why it's Kathleen Grace from Kathy's Cottage! She has a delightful blog, an adorable cottage, a fabulous etsy shop, and a cute husband who cooks! Congratulations Kathy! Email me your address and I'll get your package in the mail.

Summer Project 2010 Continues

This past week Mimi and the mister have been spending a lot of time with this lovely item.

And these... To prime and paint...

That's two coats, ladies...

Enough for a 70 foot picket fence, gate and arbor. Not really all that fun, but when it's done it's going to be so great!

Pictures from somewhere on the internet!

Don't forget to comment on this or any post until August 19th at midnight for the 400th post giveaway. See HERE

Sunday Sayings

"That gift that costs the giver the least, and is the most priceless to receive, is encouragement."

The Country Sage

Don't forget to leave a comment on one of my posts between now and Aug. 19th for a chance to win my giveaway. (Check it out HERE)

400!

It's been pretty darn hot all across the country these past few weeks and it looks like the heat's going to continue for at least a couple of weeks more. So to celebrate the end of summer, AND to commemorate Mimi Sue's Cottage 400th post AND the two year anniversary of the mimisuescottage blog, I've decided to have a little giveaway.

What better way to beat the heat than by going to a nice air conditioned movie theatre? So a $25 gift card will be part of the package. Who ever wins will also receive a $10 gift card to their choice of Sonic or Dairy Queen for a nice cool beverage. Or whatever else 10 bucks will get you.Included will be an autographed copy of this adorable book. To be read in front of a nice fan with your bare feet up and a cool drink by your side.

A little sneak peak...

And some other cute stuff like handmade tags...

A vintage, summer inspired hand painted plate...

A few summer green labels...

Some vintage lace...



And a fizzy bath salt thing you can use in your warm or tepid but definitely not hot bathtub.

There will probably be a few more things thrown in. In fact I'm sure of it. So what you need to do to have a chance to win is, comment on any post between now and August 19th. Sign up to follow then let me know and you'll get another chance to win. On August 20th I'll draw some lucky name out of a hat, (or probably a cute vintage bowl).

So THANK YOU all for visiting my blog for the past two years and for all your lovely comments and emails. For your online friendships, your inspiration, recipes, the many adorable ideas that I copy, and the sharing of your lives with all of us. It's been so much fun!

Green Bean Support

This summer we've had our big backyard project to work on so we didn't want to spend too much time or energy on a vegetable garden. But we felt like we needed to throw a few tomato plants, peppers, pumpkins, and grean beans in the ground and see what would happen. So we did.

Instead of installing posts and string for the greenbeans we found an old wooden ladder we had sitting in the garage and shoved the legs in the ground so it wouldn't tip over. That took all of two minutes. (Please ignore any weeds)

And I had this old flower cage in the shed, that got shoved into the ground too. Another two minute job.

They don't seem to mind climbing up the ladder.

Sunday Sayings

"A true friend is one who not only is willing to love us the way we are, but is able to leave us better than he found us." Marvin J Ashton

Flaming Gorge

The mister and I took a little road trip last week. We wanted to see some parts of Utah that we haven't seen before. We were not disappointed. We started out driving through a little corner of Wyoming. Montana isn't the only state that has big sky.We stopped here for a little history lesson.We saw some gorgeous scenery. Pictures just don't do it justice. Truly awe inspiring.

We saw some wildlife.

We found a great place to camp and put the boat in the water.

Some man-made wonders.

Stayed in a cute little bed and breakfast. It was originally a Baptist church.

In a little town called Vernal, Utah that had this pink dinosaur as a welcome sign. It was big, maybe three stories high.

There were pink, white, and red petunias everywhere in this town. Gorgeous!

Stopped by the Natural History Museum and saw lots of prehistoric creatures like these guys.

An amazing place to take your kids or grandkids if you're ever out here in the wild west.

We had a great time. It was way cooler up in the mountains (over 6000 feet for most of the trip) so that was a bonus.

Saw this farm stand in I think Fort Duchesne. Hey Julie, any relation?