Ottoman Outta an Ole' Tire

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Summer is here and the projects are coming full bore!!!!  And here is the first one of summer.  With the little guy home with me, I had to come up with ones that he could help me with and that he would be excited about.  I also am making sure that his little hands can get in on the action too.

No matter the age, all "men" love their power tools.

And now that Big A has a J.O.B. little A needed something to occupy all those lonely hours with mom.


So our first project was making this ottoman from a tire that I persuaded Big O Tires to let me have.  I saw this idea on pinterest and since I was planning on creating a secret garden patio and I thought this would be a great addition...that was if I could manage to do this right.


The picture were all so easy to understand, the only thing is that they lead to thinking that all you need is a few hot glue sticks and some rope.  Nope!!!  I think about 40 glue sticks and it took about 5-6 spools of rope.  I guess it all depends on the size of your tire.  But nevertheless, it was well worth it. 


I did all I could with this little thing, but ended up buying a
bigger one with a lot more glue.  I started with 30 stick and
bought an additional 40 more.



Had to flip it over once it got wired gluing upside down.
It made it a whole lot easier and quicker.



Since this is just going to be sitting on top of gravel I opted
out of putting on legs. But you can, just add them to the circle
before you attach it to the bottom of the tire.

To make this weatherproof, I still have to cover it in polyurethane and for an added special touch our family monogram....just looking for the perfect font.

There she is!!! Now I just have to make three more just like her. 

I hope you are inspired to add a little joy to your world. Thanks for stoppin' by.

UPDATE:  Here is the ottoman with our monogram!!!  Don't cha' just love it!!!

Simple Blackberry-Raspberry Sorbet

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Guess what I had for breakfast this morning?!?  Sorbet!!!  It's good for you right?  At least I think  my version is.  Love knowing what is in my food and no preservatives.

Simple is as simple does....or something like that.  This is so easy and I can only think of the myriad of combos I can make with this simple recipe.  I see, Pineapple-Cantaloupe coming soon, after all I have some on my counter and all I have to do is freeze it...YAY bring on summer.

Blackberry-Raspberry Sorbet

• 1 bag of frozen blackberries
• 1bag of frozen raspberries
• 1/2 Cup of blueberry agave nectar (more or less to your taste, so make sure you taste along the way and you can use honey or another flavor or agave)

1.  Allow berries to thaw just a little....like about 10 minutes in a bowl on the counter.
2.  Add berries to the blender a cup at a time. Blend until smooth. (If you have one of those blenders that have the stick stirrer thing, this would be super helpful.)
3.  When berries are all blended add nectar while the blender is on.
4.   Pour into a plastic container, cover and freeze. 4 hours for a nice soft serve or overnight for firmer.  (If you do it overnight allow it to sit out for about 5 minutes before you scoop it up.)

This recipe filled up a quart sized plastic container.

Thanks for comin' over.

Browned Butter & Sage Sauce

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I will from now on through forever make this as one of my signature family dinner eats!!! 

One day last week I got the inch to make homemade pasta and I wanted to have a clear sauce on it instead of the traditional tomato base. Also, the week before I went to the garden shop and bought a lot of herbs.  I have been wanting to do more cooking with FRESH herbs and with some I had never tried before.

Fortunately for me, I had just watched an episode on some channel about brown butter and sage. The lady was in some euphoric state that I had to try this myself.... I GET IT!!! This was so yummy and I will continue to fry sage leaves and have them in my garden if not for any other reason, but this one and that will do for me.

Brown Butter & Sage Sauce

• 1 stick of salted butter
• 1 handful of fresh sage (about a cup)

1.  Wash sage to remove any dirt.
2.  Melt butter in pan on High heat. Swirl it around until it is a med brown color. This should happen fairly quick...5 minutes once butter is all melted.
3.  Add Sage leaves and watch them crisp up....30 sec to 1 minute. Remove and drizzle over cooked pasta and toss to coat the noodles. Serve immediately.

Note: Add some chicken or shrimp to this and WOW!!!  What a meal that everyone will love and enjoy.

Bon Appetite!