Grandparents, Easter, and A Recipe...

This past week was a whirl of activity as we prepared for Grandparents Day. One of the things I love about homeschooling through our former private school's Independent Studies group is the special events we still are able to participate in. And this year, I was asked if I would be willing to host a hospitality table with coffee and treats for the grands attending. For those of you who know me well, you know that I adore baking (more then eating), throwing a party of any kind, crafting, and sharing it all with others. So, this was a perfect opportunity to do just that.

Emily helped me make some flower filled vase table center pieces. We used leftover Easter grass to cover the stems of the faux flowers.

I also made some candle centerpieces from thirty cent plates and goblets I purchased at the thrift store and glued together with my handy dandy E6000 craft glue. That, along with a little left over ivy from a previous project, a little curling ribbon, some Dollar Tree candles, and some clearance netting from Wal-mart rounded out the project. Wouldn't these be adorable for a wedding?

 And of course there were the treats. Iced oatmeal cookies, brownies, scotchies, and iced sugar cookies. Not to mention my homemade chalkboard sign. Chalkboard paint works beautifully on the glass in picture frames.

 

 

After all the schooling, crafting, and baking of the week, it was nice to relax over the weekend. Well, after the grocery shopping and laundry. And since this week we are on spring break, I just might get some writing in before starting on my preparations for Easter.

And speaking of Easter, what would a book review at this time of year be without some great Easter book recommendations? One of my all time favorite Easter books is the Parabel of the Lily. Young Maggie loves getting gifts. but when her father gives her a flower bulb, she is very disappointed. That all changes when she goes outside on Easter Day and finds a beautiful Lily. The story of the true meaning of Easter shines through in this beautifully illustrated tale.

Another great Easter book is The Story of Easter by Patricia A. Pingry. This book  is the Biblical story of Easter written for small children to understand and is as wonderful as all her other books such as The Story of Christmas which Emily read aloud every Christmas for several years.

Finally, I am fond of The Jelly Beans and The Big Dance. At first I thought it would be a book about Easter with jelly beans being so prominent in the title, but it was actually a lovely book about friendship. To be more precise, it was a book about totally different individuals who felt that they will be unlikely to be friends until they discovered something they had in common. You guessed it, they all loved jelly beans.

And lest I forget, the recipe here is the recipe for my iced oatmeal cookies which are a delicious addition to any cookie repertoire.

Iced Oatmeal Cookies:

2 cups old fashioned rolled oats (not quick cook)
2 cups unbleached flour
1 TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup salted butter softened
1 cup brown sugar packed
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

Glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar
3 TBS milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Put oats in food processor and pulse until coarse. Mix oats, flour, baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars until smooth. Add eggs one at a time and finally vanilla. Mix in dry ingredients. Roll dough into two tablespoon size balls and place about two inches apart. This will be about six on a tray. Bake one tray at a time for ten minutes. Cool for five minutes before removing to a cooling rack. When completely cool, mix glaze and place a spoonful on the cookie. Spread with your finger and place back on rack to dry for at least two hours before placing in an airtight container.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. Be sure to drop by and join the Literacy Musings Monday Blog Hop that I joined as well where you will find other great blogs, or my personal website, Fun With Aileen, where you will find more on reading, writing, and my very own early grade Fern Valley chapter book series and my Quack and Daisy picture book series. I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.