gluten-free homemade popsicles

 {what i did during my summer vacation}

we had a hot & humid summer, did you, too ?  so to help manage the heat I bought popsicle molds at this store and here are some of the gluten-free homemade popsicles we enjoyed during the heat...

 coconut pops from "Pops! Icy Treats for Everyone" by Krystina Castella recipe can also be found here

 chocolate Oreo pudding pops (i used gluten-free Oreos)

 leftover punch (frozen strawberry mix, lime juice & 7UP)

 chocolate kiwi popsicles

 popsicle made out of the leftover chocolate/coconut oil mixture from the chocolate kiwi popsicles

 lemon yogurt with cut up fresh raspberries

 cantaloupe from "Ice Pops: Recipes for Fresh and Flavorful Frozen Treats" by Shelly Kaldunski

more ideas:

books:
Pops! Icy Treats for Everyone by Ktystina Castella

 looks like this one uses graham cracker crumbs ?  so if you are gluten-free, then be sure to use a gluten-free substitute

 Ice Pops: Recipes for Fresh and Flavorful Frozen Treats by Shelly Kaldunski

 so frosty

 so pretty

 I really want to try dipping some in dark chocolate, then chopped nuts

 more frosty ones

and another thing I'd like to try is putting a cinnamon stick in as the popsicle stick

on the web:
check out this blog post about the "Ice Pop Joy" book
50+ Homemade Popsicle Recipes

just a few tips from my gluten-free kitchen to yours...

have a great weekend mes amies ~ see you on Monday =)

summer vacation

{what i did during my summer vacation}

:: right off the bat, I started my summer with cutting my oldest son's jeans into shorts, these pair of jeans had holes in the knee anyway (I noticed it's always the right knee that gets the hole), it's so easy 'sewing' boys a summer wardrobe isn't it ?  the leftover bottom pant legs were added to my ever growing pile of denim, I really should get around to counting how many jeans & denim pieces are in that pile AND finally decide what I'm going to do with it all...

:: my kids discovered Lucky Charms cereal for the first time, such fun colorful marshmellows :) Lucky Charms cereal is not certified gluten-free, but gluten-free enough for my oldest son & I

:: I baked smores cookies & they were a big hit

:: I tried macarons (a lovely French confection) which are fancy sandwich cookies, AND they are gluten-free thanks to almonds, for local people, you can buy them here

:: I knitted some washcloths for Knit for Japan 

:: we have been enjoying a few of Minnesota's 10,000 lakes (actually there are more than 10,000, but who's counting?) which included 4 weeks of swimming lessons, one case of swimmer's ear, & a little bit of sun burn

:: I came across this library savings calculator & it is fascinating !  how much do you save by using the library ? check it out !   our family saves $1160 per month !!!  (that's $290 per person per month), isn't that unbelievable & fabulous all at the same time !?!  and we're not even officially a homeschooling family...  we do use the library A LOT, go there twice a week, & have 70-some items checked out all the time. I check out a ton of craft books & cook books, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised by how much money we're saving.

:: I hope you have had a good summer & continue to enjoy it before it ends

hungry caterpillar

{what I did during my summer vacation}

it feels good to be back after a blog break... I'll share more tomorrow & the next couple of weeks of what I did during our summer vacation, but for today here is the result of my idea of turning these caterpillar photos into a stop motion video with my husband's help :)
I got the idea thanks to my oldest son who is really into making stop motion videos, he makes ones much much better than this one, btw...
but anyway, my children found this caterpillar at the beach & took it home. it was on my second son's arm eating a leaf & I just kept shooting away with the camera.

enjoy & see you tomorrow !

summer 11 ideas house

 {this is not my house}

welcome to a little tour of the Bachman's summer 11 ideas house ~ you can visit some previous ones: spring 10, summer 10, holiday 10, & spring 11.

first of all in the above photo, house number on wood oar... enjoy the tour !

 shutters mounted on wall in a collage

 great way to "use" a fireplace during the summer ~ so many lovely green plants

 yard sticks made into picture ledges, baking sheet leaf paintings

 have you heard of the woolly pocket? nice way to have greenery on walls

 vintage shopping cart used as pot & utensil storage

 garden fence used as wall-mounted pot rack

 wooden spoon chandelier

 skateboard theme boys bedroom, skateboards turned into shelves

 skateboards turned into night stand & lamp

 butterfly theme in girls bedroom

 decorative chairs mounted to wall

 ribbon lampshade

 headboard made of oars & paddles

 photo holder made from garden trellis, ceiling tin & magnet clothespins

 salvaged wheelbarrow turned into a mini garden

 garden hose & bundt pans turned into flowers

 clay pots turned into decorative wreaths

 shed turned into outdoor reading & writing room

 terra cotta saucers used as chargers, seed packets used as napkin/utensil holders

 beautiful flowers out in the yard...

there's so much more to see than in these photos, so i encourage you to visit it, if you can.

visit the Bachman's ideas house:
summer ideas house: May 26-June 12
ideas house summer 2011 yard sale June 24 9-7 & June 25 9-1
fall ideas house: September 15-October 9
holiday ideas house: November 10-December 18

PS i will taking another blog break during the summer.  my kids will be home from school & we are going to enjoy the sunshine.... hang out at the beach... see you at the end of the summer... happy summer !