april 5

 

 

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Turtle-Bars

 

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour - - divided

 

1 1/2 cups quick oats

 

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

 

1/2 teaspoon salt

 

3/4 cup butter or margarine melted

 

1 (6 ounce) package semi-sweet chocolate pieces

 

1/2 cup chopped pecans

 

1 (12 ounce) jar caramel ice cream topping

 

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, oats, brown sugar and salt.

 

Add butter, mixing until crumbly, reserve 3/4 cup mixture for topping. Press remaining mixture onto bottom of greased 13x9 inch baking dish.

 

Bake in preheated oven 375º 10 minutes.

 

Sprinkle chocolate and nuts over partially baked oat base. Combine caramel topping and remaining 1/4 cup flour; Drizzle over chocolate and nuts.

 

Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture over caramel mixture.

 

Continue baking for an additional 20 minutes.

 

Cool thoroughly: chill to set chocolate.

 

Cut into bars.

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On the first day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
A partridge in a pear tree.

On the second day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the third day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the fourth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the fifth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the sixth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the seventh day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the eighth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the ninth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the tenth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the eleventh day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Eleven pipers piping,
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Twelve drummers drumming,
Eleven pipers piping,
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree!

 

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http://familycrafts.about.com/od/wreaths/ss/ribbonwreath.htm

How to Make a Wreath Out of Ribbon

Before you start any project it is easiest to gather together all of the supplies. For this homemade wreath you will need:

• Styrofoam Wreath - Mine is 10-inches across

• 45 Yards of Ribbon - I used 5 yards of 9 different ribbons. You can use more or less ribbon depending on how full you want your wreath to be and what size styrofoam wreath you buy.

• Straight Pins - I used about 360 pins

• Ruler - not pictured

• Scissors

Now we can begin... We will now cut up the ribbon...

Start out by cutting your ribbon into pieces about 4 1/2-inches long. I used about 360 pieces of ribbon for my 10-inch styrofoam wreath. I had 9 different ribbons I wanted to use so I cut 40 pieces from each ribbon. You can use more or less ribbon depending on how full you want the wreath to look.

The next step is to make the ribbon loops...

Form each piece of ribbon into a loop shape as shown in the picture. The ends should overlap about a 1/4" - 1/2". This does not have to be precise, just estimate each one. If your ribbon has a front and back side, make sure the front side is facing out. Poke a straight pin centered through the ribbon to hold the ends together. Start at the inside of the ribbon so the pointed end is on the outside of your ribbon loop.

Now I will show you how to attach the ribbon to the styrofoam wreath...

Now, you can attach your ribbon loops to the styrofoam wreath by simply poking the pins into the styrofoam, pushing them in all of the way. I found it was easier to work with one color of ribbon at a time so I could get them evenly spread out around the wreath. If you prefer you can completely fill in an area of the wreath as you go.

Once you get the hang of this, you can fill in the rest of your wreath...

You will want to place the ribbon loops close enough together so you cannot see any of the styrofoam between them. Continue poking pinned ribbon pieces into your wreath until it is full.

Now you are almost done, you just need a couple of finishing touches...

Once you have all of the ribbon loops in place, you can embellish your wreath if you like. You can use buttons, rhinestones, beads, or anything else you have on hand. I decided to leave mine simple and plain, although I am looking for a larger brown ribbon so I can add a bow to my wreath.

To hang my wreath, I simply put a nail in the wall and pushed the wreath onto the nail. If you like, you can attach another loop of ribbon to the back of the wreath and use it for hanging. Make sure you secure the ribbon and pin in place using a strong glue!

 

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Billie C.