Vevuzela?

Have you watched any of the World Cup?  Until this week, I never knew what a vuvuzela was!  When blown by thousands of people at once, they sound like an angry bee hive - a constant, relentless drone -  continuously through the game.  I find it amazing that the players can focus on their game.  I read that they are banned from Wimbledon and that they are linked to hearing loss.  Good grief!

I was joking with my nephew who is on his high school's varsity soccer team - I have a small cowbell that I bring to the games.  I told him I was going to get a vuvuzela instead!  He just rolled his eyes and mumbled something about his 'crazy aunt'!

Warm Weather Dinners ~ Greek Salad

When it's hot and humid out, the last thing I want to do is turn on the oven or stovetop!  Whenever we grill chicken, I always throw some extra on the grill for later in the week.  A greek salad topped with chicken was my latest creation this week.  Below is the recipe - but I'm not even sure I should call it a recipe.  It's so easy and can be done with any type of salad or meat you have in the fridge. 

Grilled Chicken:  We always marinate ours in low-fat italian dressing.  I like to use Ken's Italian w/Aged Romano dressing.  Boneless and skiness chicken breasts or tenders are what we grill.

Salad:  I tossed together romaine lettuce, grape tomatoes, sliced red onion, crumbled lite feta cheese and pitted kalamata olives.  For the dressing I used Kraft's Greek Vinegrette and also drizzled some extra-virgin olive oil on top.

This was the perfect 'cool' meal.  My husband is not a big salad eater, but the chicken on top satisfied him along with some crusty ciabatta bread.

Custom Wedding Jewelry

I recently had the pleasure of creating an earring and necklace set for a bride-to-be.  I'm so flattered knowing that someone's wearing my jewelry on one the most special day's of her life!  I love this design - simple and elegant! 

Etsy Finds ~ Early Bird Cafe

I recently came across Early Bird Cafe, an Etsy shop owned by Mary Hanks. One of my fellow Cleveland Handmade team members recommended her items (thanks zJayne!). I like to start my morning out with either oatmeal or granola topped yogurt. Mary's granola is fantastic - filled with lots of goodies and so good on top of yogurt. I caught my husband eating some right out of the bag - and he rarely eats granola. This is some of the best granola I've had!

I also ordered a sampling of her energy bars - chewy and sweet with dried fruits and nuts.  Yum!  A great snack for work or to take along for our morning hikes. Mary included a sample of her whole wheat lemon biscott.  Again, another winner.  She has a variety of flavors in her shop and I have my eye on her chocolate biscotti.  Wouldn't that be perfect with a cup of tea or coffee?

So be sure to check out Mary's shop on Etsy for homecooked goodies.  And while you're at it, also check out zJayne's shop, featuring recyled products.

Topsy Turvey Tomato

My garden is coming along nicely.  We've had good amounts of rain, which really soaks the ground.  It's so much better than having to water!  This year I planted a good variety of plants, from the usual "Big Boy" and Romas, to some interesting heirloom varieties. 

My husband bought the Topsy Turvey Tomato planter last weekend.  He bragged and bragged as he planted his tomato, insisting that his sole plant would produce more than my entire garden.  Well, 4 days later it was dead.  Wilted and pathetic looking.  Of course I tried to be supportive, encouraging him to try again since it was early in the season.  So this weekend we're off to get him a new plant. 

New Pictures

I feel like I'm always struggling with getting the perfect picture of my jewelry.  I've always wanted to take pictures of the jewelry on (except earrings) and tried to do this myself - ha ha!  I won't show you some of those pictures!  Do you know how hard it is to take a picture of your wrist? 

So I enlisted my hubby for help, who laughed when I told him to take a picture, but not to worry about getting my face in it!  Here's a few that I like.... any thoughts or feedback are appreciated!  The other pics in my listings are close-ups of the item, so I thought having these a little further away would be good.

June Birthstone ~ Pearls

Lucky June babies have the pearl as a birthstone!  Pearls are one of my favorite pieces of jewelry to wear.    I still remember my mom letting me wear her good strand of pearls for my first high school dance - I felt so special!  I used to wear them only when getting dressed up, but now I love how they look with casual outfits, especially khaki and denim.

Happy Birthday to anyone with a birthday this month  ♥