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Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Seasonal Decorating: Summer by the Sea

My husband and I had our first date in August. We spent most of our first months together driving up and down PCH, walking around Dana Point Harbor or Huntington Beach Pier.  We even said our first "I love you"s while walking around Alamitos Bay Marina. On the first anniversary of our first date I gave him a unique one-of-a-kind quilt filled with symbolism and with an ocean theme. So the beach and ocean have been very significant for us... what better way to continue celebrating our love and memories then decorate the house with an ocean theme for August and September?

Our 'sea' of pillows featuring sea, shells, sand and stripes.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Jeanine's Birthday Christmas in July Giveaway!

It's my mom's (and partner in crafting) birthday this month! As a present to all the Creative Tradition fans out there we'll be giving away a special Christmas in July set of five of our Beaded Ornament Stars in Crystal and Silver!

To enter the giveaway you will need to leave a comment on this post by Sunday, July 31st and share one of your favorite Christmas or other winter holiday memories. The winner will be announced on Monday, August 1st.

If you want to increase your chances, become a fan of the Creative Tradition Facebook page and leave a message on our Wall.

Check out all of our Christmas in July items at our online store including vintage ornaments, holiday Barbie dresses and more beaded ornaments like these beautiful colorful bells.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Mom's Blue Ribbon French Glaze Strawberry Pie

This strawberry pie is special. It's not your average grocery store or bakery pie.  It's refreshing, vibrant, and delicious.  It's my favorite desert, which says a lot growing up with a baker who makes 8 pies for Thanksgiving, never mind her cakes or cherry cream cheesecake.

For years my mother, Jeanine Bass, submitted her strawberry pie into the Orange County Fair.  Every year she won a blue ribbon and usually the best in category.   At the fair, most pies would be on display missing a small sliver that was tasted for judging.  That wasn't true of my mom's strawberry pie. They were half eaten, the judges just couldn't stop with a little taste! One year, our lives got more complicated with kids and activities so she wasn't able to submit a pie to the fair. That year no blue ribbons were awarded to the fruit pies... everyone missed her amazing strawberry pie.

One of my childhood favorite memories of my mother baking her pies was hoping that she didn't use all of the glaze. If we were good and helped her in the kitchen making the crust or stacking the berries she would give us a bowl of fresh strawberries and the left over glaze to dip them into.

Grammy's Pie Crust
Makes 1 covered pie or two single pies.

INGREDIENTS
3 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
1 cup shortening
3/4 cup warm water

Saturday, July 9, 2011

BBQ Kabobs: Chicken, Beef and Veggies

Our family loves hosting weekend barbecues with friends and family but after awhile everyone gets sick of the same old burgers, hot dogs or chicken.  A couple of years ago my mother and I decided to try something different and make shish kabobs. We found some marinade recipes online and gave them a try.  Like always, after trying the recipe for the first time I started making all kinds of changes to heighten the flavor.  Now we're going to share the perfected marinade recipe with you to enjoy at your summer BBQs!

Meat and Marinade
2 pounds cubed chicken, beef or both!
2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce