I was being followed.......

As I was out gardening in my backyard yesterday, everywhere I looked, this little guy was there (sorry for the bad picture quality, all I had on me was my cell phone).  He landed here on my little gardening bench. 

My Favorite Finds #13 - 1st Holiday of the Summer

The official 1st holiday of the Summer is just a few weeks away......time to plant the tomatoes, dust off the picnic table and fire up the grill!  We grill and/or barbecue just about every weekend during the summer.  We love our hamburgers, brats, ribs, chicken and steaks.  We also love to grill fresh vegetables in our special grilling pan.  This is also the time for get-togethers, picnics and potlucks with family and friends.  My daughter tasted the following dish at an office potluck and told me how delicious it was.  I made it for a Christmas party (though it's a bit more expensive to make in the winter due to the price of the grapes) and it was a big hit!  My daughter made it for our Mother's Day Brunch yesterday, and again, everyone just loved it!  Try it for your next potluck and you, too, will get many compliments and requests for the recipe!

Grape Salad

Ingredients:
1 cup cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract (to taste)
4 lbs. of grapes (2 lbs green & 2 lbs red or your choice)
3 tablespoons pecans, chopped
3 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions:
Mix together first 4 ingredients. Stir into grapes. Mix together pecans and brown sugar and sprinkle on top of grapes.  Chill. 

Mother's Day Gift Ideas - The Kind That Doesn't Collect Dust!

I asked for some ideas in the Etsy forums for Mother's Day gifts that could be given to those moms that don't need anymore "stuff".  I have a mom that has way too much "stuff" (actually, she could be on one of those hoarder shows, but that's something I will not talk about here).  There are also moms that live in small apartments, assisted living or nursing homes, retired and travelling in an RV, etc., that just don't need more "stuff".  One year, I purchased a shepherd's hook, birdfeeder and a bag of birdseed.  My husband and I went to her home without telling her and set it up in her front yard.  She got a big kick out of it and all she had to do was fill it back up with the birdseed.  And by setting it up for her, we knew it wouldn't get stored away and lost in her home full of  "stuff".

My fellow Estians came up with some great ideas!  Some of them are still "stuff", but they are the types of gifts that would get used and not sit around, collecting dust.  Here are some of them:


eggagogo suggested houseplants!  "Everyone gives flowers but they don't last for very long. A small plant in a nice pot is lovely. AND even if you live far away, a lot of florists have live-plant options, too.  Dinner out, or a fancy dessert or other food presented nicely" is another "non-stuff" idea!


tasteslikepurple stated "I made giant caramel & chocolate covered apples last year. Each apple had a different combo of chocolate and goodies like drizzled white chocolate, chopped almonds, mini chips, etc."  She has also given her mom ergonomic gardening tools. 


swanmountainsoaps suggests handmade soap..."soap is perfect for people who don't need more stuff. It gets used up and then it's gone. And, everybody needs soap!"


hearttohearts came up with this very nice idea....."what about like a gift card to a nice restaurant. Or to the movies."


Wrapt's short and sweet idea was "a bird bath to go with the bird feeder?"  Love it!


designedwithglass came up with this good idea "There are a lot of ***** of the month products like:
fruit, desert, flowers, wine....etc."  Stuff that gets used up is always a good gift idea!
 
sticktoyourknittin came up with some really good ideas!  "For one of my parents' wedding anniversaries, my siblings and I went in together and got them tickets for an outdoor concert and then put together a basket of goodies for them to take to the concert...wine, crackers and cheese, cookies, etc.  Another year, I think for Christmas, my brother and sister-in-law put in a tiled patio for my parents as a gift.  Offering to do something like yard work, cleaning the house, cooking dinner, is always good. My mom also likes it when I give her a day of time together, doing whatever she wants."

LonesomeRoadStudio  suggested this and it would be fun for everyone in the family!  "How about a gift certificate to take her out to a lunch at her choice of restaurant on her choice of date, with you and/or family?"

pinupchick's response:  "I second Lonesome's idea. She's probably lonely living on her own and would love a day out. Maybe take her to a movie too? Don't go shopping obviously (haha), but a walk around a park or something might be nice."

erasistible came up with these wonderful ideas:  "Restaurant gift certificates, movie rental. I used to give my mom phone cards with minutes to call long distance."

CamillaWall suggested this gift idea (we all could use this one!).....    http://www.etsy.com/listing/31887921/microwave-heat-cold-pack-corn-bag-neck

bottlehood recommended this one, which I really love, since I love gardening!  "my favorite gifts are always for the garden... so i'd offer wild flower seeds. i threw some poppy seeds around the property five years ago, and as i write today, there are 100s times more poppy plants blooming bright orange all over the place. it's breathtaking, along with the pride of madera purple blue spikes, varieties of lavender blooms, citrus and stone fruit trees flowering..."

Thanks to all my fellow Etsians for contributing these awesome gift ideas!  Take a few minutes and check out their shops!  I bet you will be able to find some great gift ideas there, too!

An Etsy Treasury

Over at Etsy, they have a feature where you can pick out your favorite finds and put them into a collection to share with others.  I came up with this collection that was inspired by our trip to Montana. 

Most of the artisans in my treasury are from Montana as well.  Enjoy!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4bd075738dea8eef3bc077cf

Grandson Quip of the Week

"Grandma, are you just going to stand there and keep taking pictures of me or are you going to help me find more Easter eggs?"

Our Montana Vacation

My husband and I enjoyed our week out west a few weeks ago.  We saw the beautiful mountains, rivers and wildlife of western Montana (Glacier National Park, Kalispell, White Fish, Hungry Horse, Coram).  We discovered huckleberry everything (pie, jam, syrup, etc.).  We truly fell in love with this part of the country! 

 

As we were pulled over on a frontage road next to a river, scanning the mountains for wildlife with our binoculars, we witnessed several times how they walk their dogs around here........

The dog was barking the whole time!  It was hilarious!  Dog walking Montana-style!  No leash, either!  And, if you are wondering where the "walker" is.....he's following the dog in the pick-up truck!