Guest Post by our one and only Mary Jo!

I want to Welcome Mary Jo here at Great Tastes Tuesdays! She was so awesome to be our guest this week for Invite A Guest Fridays! Her post is awesome and her project is so cute! I am loving it! For all of you out there that don't think you could every make something like this - you can. Take a chance and try to do something you have never done before! Find a pattern, material and give it a try! Thanks Mary Jo! Go check her out at www.allthisforthem.blogspot.com 

Also, don't forget to come and link up with me tonight at 8:30! I would love to have you at my Share it With Us Saturday here at Great Tastes Tuesdays!

When I saw that Project Run & Play was doing a chevron challenge, I knew I had to give it a try. My friend gave me almost two yards of this deco weight chevron fabric from Christmas and I'd been saving it for something special. I thought a jacket for my daughter would be a perfect reason to cut into it and PR&P gave me a deadline!

 I used the Abbey Jacket pattern by Shwin&Shwin. First of all, let me just say that I absolutely love Shwin&Shwin designs! They always impress me when I hold up my very stylish garment when I'm through! 

For this Chevron Jacket, however, I made a few additions to the pattern to gussy it up a bit -- pockets, piping, full lining, and a name tag. The pattern calls for a fleece outer, but I wanted to use my chevron fabric and have a spring-looking jacket, so a lining was a must. And pockets...what kid doesn't love pockets?? 

I also decided to only use fabric from my stash for this project. So I've got this rich mustard-yellow Kona cotton for the collar, sleeve bands, and button placket, but I had to go with a butter-yellow flannel for the lining. (I like the flannel, thinking the jacket will be that much warmer on early-spring, and late-fall days). 

But I didn't have enough yellow flannel for the sleeves and pockets, so I had to use a giraffe flannel print. Which, I actually quite like.

The Sharpie name-tag idea came from CailaMade. The piping I had in my stash (not sure why...I don't remember using it before, but thought I'd give it a try here. I love the look of it!). And the last detail, the idea for this pink heart on the inside of the jacket originally came from Max California. I embroidered the words using a backstitch during an episode of Elmo!

Because I'm a little weird about clothes (both bought and made), I like to make them bigger than the size my daughter currently wears (which is a 4) so that she can grow into them and therefore use them longer. I might have overdone it this time by cutting a size 6. My kid is swimming in the jacket! But you might notice that in some of my pictures, the jacket fits quite well...on my 5 1/2 year old volunteer (eh-hem).

Maybe I need to make another one?? (Update: I did! See my Embroidered Fox Jacket!)

www.allthisforthem.blogspot.com 

Anyway, my daughter will get use out of this jacket probably (hopefully?) next Fall or Spring 2014. Something to look forward to, right?

 hehehe, I love the look on her face in the last picture! She wanted to pose with that clementine, so I let her, but have no idea why she's looking so freaked out!

Anyway, I had a great time making this jacket! And I really love the look of the chevrons on an outer layer! I'm really proud of myself for getting it done in under a week and for adding some extras to the jacket to make it our own!

And I so love seeing my kids wear mommy-made garments. Makes me sooo happy! Please come visit me at All This For Them to see more of my creations!

www.allthisforthem.blogspot.com 

Rich and Chewy Chocolate Caramel Bars

Great Taste Tuesday is here and here is one of my new favorite bar recipes!

This is so delicious and the caramel just tops it off!!

Try it for yourself!!! 

This is better then almost any other bars I have tried!

(p.s. I left my camera at my aunts house and my picture is on it so be watching for pictures to come!)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups Flour

1 1/2 cups Oats

1/4 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1 1/2 cups Packed Brown Sugar

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. Butter or Margarine, melted

1 (14 oz.) bag caramels (48)

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 (12 oz.) package milk chocolate chips

Directions:

In a large bowl combine the first 6 ingredients to form a crumbly mixture. Unwrap the caramels. Melt the caramels and whipping cream in a saucepan over low heat. Sprinkle half of the crumbly mixture into a greased 9x13-inch pan. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the baked mixture and top with melted caramel mixture. Sprinkle remaining crumbly mixture on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. 

Make a day ahead or several hours to allow the caramel to to set. Makes 2 dozen bars.

Happy Birthday!

Just wanted to share my little birthday girl!

Brenli is turning one today!

I can't believe how fast the time has gone - 1 years old already!

Happy 1st Birthday Brenli!

Welcome to the Link Party! Please link up all your fun recipes, ideas, crafts and more!

6 Tips to Keep Your Eyes Healthy

Have you ever thought about your eyes and keeping them healthy?

Well I have to wear glasses and contacts so I am thinking a lot. Especially everytime I have to remove my contacts or take off my glasses. 

For any of you that do or do not have glasses here is a fun article to read. I found it and thought it was very interesting in what we can do now to keep our eyes healthy. 

6 great tips to read now! 

1. Healthy foods for your eyes

Include foods with nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids, lutein, zinc and vitamins A, C and E in your diet to keep your vision clear and ward off age-related problems such as macular degeneration and cataracts. 

The best sources of these nutrients are green, leafy vegetables such as spinach, kale, and collards, oily fishes like salmon and tuna, eggs nuts, beans, citrus fruits, carrots, sweet potatoes, cantaloupes. 

2. Take care while using computer

Many people suffer from Computer Vision Syndrome, which is a temporary condition caused by frequent and prolong use of computer. Some of the symptoms are eyestrain, headaches, blurred vision, fatigue, dry eyes, difficulty focusing at a distance, neck, back, and shoulder pain, etc. So while using your computer, ensure proper lighting conditions to avoid glare on your computer or use an anti-glare screen if needed. Drink lots of water and blink often to prevent dry eyes. Take a short break after every two hours and look away from the computer for 20 seconds every 20 minutes. Make sure that your eyes are level with the top of the monitor to allow you to look slightly down at the screen.


3. Wear sunglasses and safety goggles

To protect your peepers from UV rays wear sunglasses that block 99% of both UVA and UVB rays as these rays increase the risk for cataracts and macular degeneration.

Make sure you don safety eyewear while working with hazardous or airborne materials at work or home. 

4. Quit smoking

Studies have shown that smoking can increase the risk for macular degeneration, cataracts and optic nerve damage. 

5. Throw away old make-up

Make sure that you don’t use eye make-up that’s more than six months old. Also don’t share make-up and make-up brushes; it will increase your susceptibility to eye infections. 

6. Have regular eye check-up

Visit your eye doctor regularly to retain healthy eyesight and detection of eye problems.

http://zeenews.india.com/news/health/health-news/six-tips-to-keep-your-eyes-healthy_20785.html