January's Swap Teaser....

I mailed my January Swap Item out to my Swap Partner yesterday! I can't tell you what it is just yet! But I really liked the way it turned out & I think I will make me some! Here's a teaser ....

Look what I got!!!

I had to come show off what I got in this month's swap.  I had an awesome partner Anna of Chickens in the Basement !  She made an ornament to represent each member of my family.  They are the most adorable things I ever saw and here they are perched in my tiny tree:

And look at the lovely glass jar of buttons she sent me (I love buttons!):

And this is the cutest notecard and ephemera that was in the package as well:

Anna was a great partner and a talented lady.  Whomever is her next parter will be one lucky crafter!!! This was a great way to kick off the swap and has me revved up for the next round!!

Courtney Short-Prudhomme

The Cajun Hillbilly Housewife

January's Activity - Ornament for the Birds

Not only is this month's activity for the birds..pun intended!!.. but it is also a way for me to use something that would've ended up in the garbage.. you see I purchased a box of popcorn balls for our Halloween celebration here at home.. not only were they not very good, but there were waaaay too many.  They are individually packaged by the way.  So they have been in my pantry forgotten.  I got to thinking about what I would do for this month's activity and it reminded me about those poor, stale popcorn balls in my pantry.. so I decided to upcycle those popcorn balls into bird food!! I tied yarn around them and hung them in the trees in the backyard.  It's cold here, and I haven't seen too many birds, but I hope to see them soon pecking away at these treats.  I still have several more that I will tie up and hang around all the trees in the yard - and high enough that my goofy outside dog won't eat them instead ;-)

Courtney Prudhomme

The Cajun Hillbilly Housewife

sweet birdie treats

I teach arts and crafts at my daughter's elementry school every Wednesday. Today I got the entire class to make pinecone birdfeeders and orange slices to hang on the trees around the school. (blogged about it HERE) The kids had a ton of fun, and the birds will have full bellies!

HAPPY BIRDIES...

We have some happy little birds around our garden at the moment:-)

I made them their treats yesterday from a recipe I found on the internet. Peanut butter, cornmeal, bird seed and craisins all mixed together and spread over a hardened bagel......yum!!!! I'm waiting patiently until I can snap a picture of a little bird eating off it!!!

My RAC is also done - hopefully it will arrive at its recpient today. Now I just have to practice my "It wasn't me face:-)" I loved doing that one so much, I've decided that I want to try and do it once a month if I can.

My January swap parcel is being packed up today, and will be on its way soon.

Have a happy day everyone:-)

Homemade Suet.

I help the birds by making homemade suet and the birds really seem to enjoy it.
And I love watching them fight over it. I thought I'd share the recipe for my suet with you.

Suet for the Birds

1 cup of crunchy peanut butter
1 cup of lard(shortening)
2 cups of old fashioned oats
2 cups of cornmeal
1 cup of flour
1/3 cup of sugar

Melt peanut butter and lard together. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into square freezer containers until about 1 1/2 inch thick. Refrgerate until completely cooled. Remove form container and put in suet holder.

The birds will really go after this. We've had red headed wood peckers, downy wood peckers, a tit mouse and lots of starlings and sparrows and even nuthatches at our suet feeders so far.

birdie tweets!

We made some tweets for the birds......they are so HAPPY to have them:

we made some orange slices......


and birdseed ornies!

our little friends have been happily pecking away at this unexpected tweet!