~Rusty Treasure~

My husband was out looking for deer and elk the other day and came home with this rusty treasure! From the lettering on it we are pretty sure it is from the D&R Colorado Railroad. I love stuff like this I just wish we knew the history behind it.

Of course I had to add a bow. It is sitting on a small table in our entry way for now. Hope you like it. Happy Fall ~Hugs~ Denise

~It's Never To Hot To Bake~

Hey everyone, Hope you are all having a great August. Even though it was a scorching 101 degrees today we know that summer is coming to an end. The kids in our school district go back to school next week! Yup, Wednesday is the big day! Like other moms, I am kind of excited for them to go back and kind of sad at the same time. It will be good to get back on a schedule. Any way, since our central air cooling system is working well, (yay!) I have been heating up the oven to bake some yummy new recipes. Here is one that was posted on facebook that I had to try and I was so glad I did! Chocolate over load and so so good! Everyone in the family that tried it loved it. Here is what it looks like and the recipe. ~Enjoy~

Chocolate Poke Cake Yield: 9x13 cake Ingredients Chocolate Cake 15.25 oz box Devils Food Chocolate Cake Mix, plus ingredients listed on box 14 oz sweetened condensed milk 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips Chocolate Whipped Cream Topping 2 cups heavy whipping cream 1/2 cup powdered sugar 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp cocoa 1/2 tsp vanilla extract mini chocolate chips chocolate sauce Learn Basic Food Safety Tips Instructions 1. Bake cake according to box directions in a 9x13 cake pan. 2. Once cake comes out of the oven, poke holes all over the top of the cake. 3. Place sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. 4. Whisk chocolate and milk until smooth, microwaving more, if needed to melt the chocolate. 5. Pour chocolate mixture over the cake and spread to fill in holes. 6. Set cake aside to cool, about an hour, then refrigerate until completely cooled. 7. To make whipped topping, whip heavy cream until it begins to thicken. 8. Add powdered sugar, cocoa and vanilla extract and whip until stiff peaks form. 9. Spread whipped topping evenly over cooled cake. 10.Sprinkle mini chocolate chips over cake and drizzle with chocolate sauce. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Come back soon ~Hugs~ Denise

~Cabinet before and after~

Finally! here is the before and after!

At first I felt like the paint seemed a little too bright white and I was going to paint over it with an off white color called, "Oak Buff" but as I asked family members and friends what they thought everyone seemed to like it as it is. I antiqued it lightly and I think I will more than likely add more of the antiquing stain and wax but for now I am happy with it. For the back splash area behind the dishes I am leaving brown for now. Most of the dishes I display in this cabinet are white and they show up nicely with the brown background but I have seen a lot of refurbished cabinets with different papers and patterns behind the dishes and they look really cute. I need to make sure and keep it a color that will look good with the different dishes that I will be putting in when I change them out with the changing seasons. Any how, for now i am liking how it turned out. Thanks for stopping by! ~Hugs~ Denise

~Countdown To Christmas~

I was so excited when I saw this on Facebook today! I love the "Countdown To Christmas" movies that the Hallmark Channel has starting on October 31st! Only 90 days from today!!! So, I thought it might be a great idea to set a goal for myself to have my Christmas shopping done by that day! Wouldn't it be nice to have the shopping done and just be able to stay in and do the holiday baking, decorating, wrapping gifts and enjoy watching Hallmark Christmas Movies the whole time!?! That would be awesome! But probably not realistic. So I'm going to do the best I can and at least have a good start of the holiday shopping done by then. Hope you are as excited as I am for Hallmarks Countdown To Christmas! I can't wait to see all of your blog post's with your beautifully decorated homes for the holidays! ~Hugs~ Denise

~Cool House - Yummy Dinner~

Hello Everyone, I am happy to report that our home is finally cool! As we were getting bids on a new AC and furnace, (which by the way were shockingly high...ugggg!) after two different companies bid's had come in and then telling us the dates they would be available to install we were feeling not only hot but discouraged. We had another gentleman that owned his own heating and air company come by to give us a bid. When he looked at our old central air unit he immediately said he knew what the problem was and he left to pick up a part, came back about 40 minutes later installed the new part and we have had cool air blowing perfectly ever since! The total bill for parts and labor,.....$90!!!! We feel so blessed not to mention cool and no more sweating! The best part is we are sleeping good at night again. It is so hard to sleep when you are hot all night. Anyway, we do still need to replace our AC and furnace sometime soon, they are both 20 years old but at least for now there is no rush so we can wait for a little more convenient time. I bet you can guess who will be getting the bid for the new AC and furnace. hehehe Another great thing about having our central air working again is now that the house is cool I can heat up the oven again and actually cook and bake! Yay! Tonight for dinner I made a yummy pasta dish so I thought I would share it with you all. ~Pasta Cordon Bleu~

~Pasta Cordon Bleu~ 1 pound Penne Pasta 1 Cup Chicken Breast cooked and cubed (I sometimes use a can of chicken) 1 Cup Ham cut up (I use ham that you use on sandwiches) 1 1/2 Cups Milk 8oz Cream Cheese 2 Tbsp. diced minced Onions 2 Cups shredded Swiss Cheese Salt Pepper 1 Cup Planko Crumbs 1/2 Cup Butter Cook pasta, drain and return to pot add in chicken and ham, toss. Preheat broiler In a saucepan combine milk, cream cheese and onion heat over low-medium heat. Cook stirring frequently until smooth about 5 minutes. Stir into pasta mixture and stir in Swiss Cheese season with salt and pepper. Transfer to baking dish and top with the Planko crumbs and pour melted butter over crumbs. Broil until brown, about 4 minutes. This recipe is easy and doesn't take too long to make. Best of all my family really liked it! Hope you are all enjoying your summer! I'll see you soon, Thanks for stopping by, ~Hugs~ Denise

Winter in June...

I know you are all probably thinking,..."Why is she posting a snowy winter picture In JUNE?" The truth is our central air unit went completely out and so we have no cool air right now! Ugggg*! It is so hot! I have been keeping the blinds and curtains closed as much as possible trying to keep the warm, (or rather HOT) air out. Windows are open in hopes of getting a little breeze blowing through and every fan we own is on full speed! We got our first bid on a new unit today which includes a new furnace...scary! But our home is 20 years old next month and so everything is due to be replaced. Any way, more bids will be coming in tomorrow and then hopefully SOON we will be getting the old AC and furnace replaced and I can stop sweating! I thought maybe by posting a snowy, winter picture I would feel a little cooler. Sorry to say it didn't work. But it is still a beautiful picture so I hope you enjoy it!

Thanks for stopping by! ~Hugs~ Denise picture found on brightboldbeautiful.com

Hi everyone, Years ago I bought a hutch/china cabinet with the intention of painting it one day. Well, that day never came. I guess I just felt a little nervous about painting it even though I love the look of painted wood I realize not everyone does. I have been looking at before and after pictures on the internet of of similar wood items and now I am excited to FINALLY paint my hutch! Here are a few pictures of before and after painted items.

And here is a picture of the cabinet I am hoping to make-over! (This is a really old picture.)

Now I am excited to get started but I am getting ready to leave on a Pioneer Trek with our Church for a few days so when I get back I really want to get started on this project! I re-done a buffet and I am very happy with how it turned out. You can see the before and after of my buffet in an older post October 12 2010. Take a look! I would love to know your opinion on painting wood items. Please feel free to share your thoughts on this in the comments. See you soon, and thanks for stopping by! ~Hugs~ Denise

Lately I have been feeling like there is something that is just not feeling right in my homes decor. So the other day I started picking out some pictures on the internet of kitchens that appealed to me and the thing I discovered when looking at the pictures that I liked was that they all have a French Country Style and they all have COLOR! Red, Yellow and Green to be more specific. So I guess the thing I need to do is to somehow start incorporating these colors into my home. Here are some pictures of three of the kitchens that caught my eye.

The French Country Style seems so happy and yet cozy at the same time. Hopefully I will soon be adding some fun changes to my decor and then I will share the pictures with you all. Thanks for stopping by. ~Hugs~ Denise

~Fall Soup Tureens~

I love soup tureens! In fact, I collect them but I have never seen any like this acorn soup tureen and soup bowls. I would love to buy these or some similar. If any of you know where I can purchase them please let me know. I am really loving the cooler temperatures of fall and have been making more homemade soups, (our favorite comfort food.) I love this time of year and hope you are loving fall as well. ~Hugs~ Denise

I have some old ice skates that I have been trying to decide how to decorate them for the winter/Christmas season. Here is just one idea I like.

Happy Fall

Happy Fall everyone. Sorry I am such a terrible blogger. I can't believe it has been since Valentines since I have blogged anything. I wanted to wish you all a happy fall before it is over. Fall seems to come and go so fast. I love this time of year with all of the beautiful warm colors and the crisp cool temperatures. I know Halloween is this week and for all of you that like Halloween I want to wish you a happy one. For me, I am happy when it is over, (sorry) not my favorite holiday but I Love fall and Thanksgiving! Thanks for being so patient with me and my not so good blogging skills. I love looking at your blogs! You all inspire me. Have a great fall! Hugs Denise

~Valentine Tree~

So I have really been missing the Christmas trees since I took them down. I keep telling hubby the house seems bare and sad now. Definitely ready for a make-over to brighten things up just waiting for spring, better weather, more money, etc. etc. etc....anyway in the mean time I decided to put one tree back up. Don't panic, it's just a small one. Since I don't have a lot of decorations for Valentines Day I decided to make a few fabric hearts and decorate the tree with them. This was a quick and fun project and I think it turned out cute. I love having the lights plugged in at night. I'm thinking I may keep this tree up all year and change the decorations for each holiday or season.

Have a great day everyone and thanks for stopping by:) ~Hugs~ Denise

Happy New Year!!! I hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to the new year!! We had a great Christmas season filled with family and friends. Spending time together as a family has been the best and I must admit I was a little sad to send the kids back to school today. I have been putting away the Christmas decorations and the house looks a little bare now. I'm thinking a shopping trip is in order:) Any way, I wanted to share a picture of the quilt that I made this year for my sweet daughter in law Kaylee:

Here she is Christmas morning after opening her quilt. (I think she likes it!)

I'm now ready to start some new projects. Like always I have a list of home improvements that I want to do as well as sewing and craft projects. 2013 promises to be another busy year! I'm excited to get started! I want to wish all of my blogging friends a very HAPPY NEW YEAR! I will be visiting your blogs often. You always inspire me and for that I say THANK YOU! See you all soon, ~Hugs~ Denise

~Christmas Table~

A quick peek of our table ready for Christmas! Well Almost ready,...I will hopefully be adding to it so stay tuned:)

~Great Room Christmas Tree~

Here are pictures of our Christmas tree in our great room. I love having a tree in here because we spend more time in here than any other room in our house. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that the kitchen is a part of this room. We Fowdens do love to eat!

My Christmas dishes in my china cabinet:

Have a great weekend!

~Kitchen Greetings~

Merry Christmas from my kitchen to yours! Soon this kitchen will be filled with lots of yummy treats and yummy smells! I will try and find time during this busy holiday season to share some of our favorite recipes. Hope you are enjoying this special season as much as we are! See you soon! ~Hugs~ Denise

~ Before & After~

Hi Everyone, I just stopped by to post a quick before & after photo for you. (I think we all love seeing before & afters) Hope you like it. I'm off to buy ingredients for some hor dourves I am making for a party for tomorrow. See you soon. Before:

After:

Reminder;....You can click on any picture to see it larger!

~So Cute~

How Cute Is She?!? Isn't this the cutest doll? My sweet, sweet Mother gave her to me the other day and I just love her. I think she looks darling on her little scooter in front of our Christmas tree! I'm still a little girl at heart:) Have a great weekend everyone! Thanks for stopping by ~Hugs~

~A peek of our downstairs tree~

Hi Everyone,
 The decorating is continuing on here at Our Little Acorn Cottage!
Today I thought I would share some pictures of our Christmas Tree in our basement.
 I guess you could call the theme in our downstairs family room "Rustic."
We do have a bit of a wildlife theme going on which suits my family quite well.

 I used burlap fabric again this year but I tried something new, I ran strips of burlap around the tree and puffed it out in places like you would if you were using mesh. (Oh, by the way, you can buy mesh that looks like burlap now and I think it would look great and be easier to work with then the fabric.)

My husband and our 5 boys all LOVE the outdoors. They all LOVE to hunt and my Hubby Kent has a side job as a Hunting Guide. So here are a few pictures of our family room tree. Hope you like them.

I also made our family Christmas stockings with wildlife animals appliqued on them.

Even though our older sons, Dustin, Garrett and Chase have all moved out of our home, we hang their stockings along with one for Garretts sweet wife Kaylee at our house and Jolly Old Santa fills them every year:)

Well I hope you have enjoyed this peek at our family room tree and stockings!
 Santa usually delivers our families gifts under this tree and we love sitting down here next to a warm fire burning in our wood burning stove drinking hot apple cider and opening gifts!
(Also, for me, it's nice to have the mess downstairs and that way the upstairs rooms stay somewhat intact.)

 Thanks for stopping by and I will post pictures of my other trees soon.

~Hugs~
Denise

~Decorating in Progress~

Hi Everyone,
 Well the holiday decorating is going on here in full force!
I now have three trees up and decorated. YAY!
 There is still a lot to do but everything seems to be coming together.

I took a break from decorating today to put together some "Teacher Appreciation Treats" for our teachers in Primary and our Scout Leaders. I will be giving them to them tomorrow at Church.

They are containers full of Swedish Fish, (who doesn't love Swedish Fish?...yummy.)
 The card stock fish on the top reads;  You are o"fish"ally the best!
I think our teachers will like them.

 Not everything is turning out the way I had hoped, I have one problem that I am not sure how to fix.
After decorating our Christmas tree in our formal living room I stood back and looked at it and I was very satisfied,   (this is the first year that I added in brown and left off the white ornaments that I normally use)

Like I was saying, I WAS satisfied until,...I took a picture of it that night with the lights on.
 I didn't notice until I looked at the picture that one section of lights toward the top of the tree were OUT!
This is a pre-lit tree and I have no idea how to change out that small section of lights.
 I thought I may be able to sneek in a small stran of lights and plug them in and nobody would know but this is a rotating tree and therefor the cord would get tangled and pull out of the wall.

If any of you have a solution to my problem I would love to hear it!
 The other thing I haven't yet decided on is how to decorate the top of the tree.
Still a work in progress.

Oh, One more thing, do you remember these?

 Well they now look like this:

I love taking things I already have and changing them for each holiday.
 It's not only fun but an inexpensive way to decorate.

 I have more to show you so check back and have a wonderful Thanksgiving this week!
~Hugs~
Denise