Patchwork Indie Arts & Crafts Festival - Holiday Show

I love Christmas shopping. Just really love it. Do you? If so, then plan to attend one of the upcoming Patchwork Holiday Craft Shows. Preferably the one this Sunday, November 6th from 11am-5pm at Marine Stadium in Long Beach, CA. Sweet Funky Vintage will have a booth their with our fun, fresh, funky children's clothing and accessories!
Come out and support the local artists, crafters, and small business people who will be participating in the Patchwork shows. You will see beautiful, fun, and unique items - great for giving to that "hard to shop for" person on your list!

What's Cookin' Wednesday - Chicken Pan Pie

When I was growing up in the South, I was lucky enough to have lunch one summer afternoon with my Mom and my Great Aunt Edith at the New Perry Hotel in Perry, Georgia. I don't remember what I had for lunch that day, but I do remember it was delicious and it was served with a tall, icy glass of Sweet Tea (of course).
A few years after I got married, my Mom gave me a copy of the New Perry Hotel cookbook. By that time, I was married to my military husband and was in the midst of many moves around the country. I missed the South, I still do. And, flipping through the pages of that cookbook made me close my eyes and remember that lunch. I was a teenager, and probably not thrilled to be sitting at a table with my Mom and Aunt Edith.

Oh, I wish I could go back in time and tell the teenage me to sit up straight, enjoy the moment, and soak in every word that my Mom and Aunt Edith said. I am lucky to enjoy a very close relationship with my Mom, but Aunt Edith passed away before my first daughter was born. Oh, how she hoped and prayed that our prayers to have a child would be answered (they were - three times!) and I really wish she had lived to meet Georgia Grace Marie, who was named after Aunt Edith. Grace was her middle name. Really, could I saddle the child with the name Edith? ;)
So, I am rambling on, and to be honest, the memories make me a little teary-eyed, but in a good way.
That cookbook is a very special book, and in it is a recipe that is a favorite of our family (and probably many other Southern families) - Chicken Pan Pie.
It is delicious, and very, very simple.


3 heaping cups of cooked chicken
1/2 cup butter (I don't use nearly that much!)
3 hard boiled eggs

Arrange chicken in bottom of 2 quart baking dish, and cover with sliced boiled eggs. Dot with butter. Cover with sauce.

Sauce:
1 c. flour
1 c. water
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
5 cups chicken stock
pastry

In a measuring cup, I mix up the water, and the 1 cup flour, stir it really well with a fork. Throw in the salt and pepper and add it to a boiling pot of the chicken stock. Stir like crazy. It thickens right up!

Pour the sauce over the chicken and eggs. Top with pastry. I use a Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust. But, you can make your crust from scratch - it is easier than you think!
Bake at 375 until the pastry is well browned.

My girls really love this dish. Be prepared for it to be a little runny. It is delicious left-over too.


If you are ever driving through Georgia, consider taking a little detour to Perry, Georgia, and visit the New Perry Hotel for a meal. You won't regret it!


Tell me, have you ever eaten there?

Meet Jen!

Meet Jen - Jen and Allison work together to keep things running behind the scenes, they do alot of our receiving and shipping and are pretty much "girl Friday"s around here!


1. Can you tell us a little about yourself?
I am 37 years old and grew up in West Hartford, Connecticut. I am married to my high school sweetheart and we have 3 daughters aged 8, 6 and 4. I am a stay-at-home mom, but in my previous life I taught kindergarten in Connecticut and a second grade in both Texas and California. We have lived in Escondido, CA for the past ten years.

2. What do you do when you aren?t working at Sweet Funky Vintage?
When I am not working at SFV, I am either substitute teaching at my daughter's school, volunteering to teach art lessons to both of my daughter's classes, planning ideas for two Girl Scout troops, running errands or cleaning my house!

3. If you were stranded on a desert island and were allowed one luxury item, what would it be and why?
Deoderant!!!! I can't stand when I am stinky!!!!

4. Do you have any phobias?
Spiders and creepy insects

5. Who inspires you and why?
People who are good parents…people who are genuinely kind, caring and non-judgemental. People like this help me get through the tough times of parenting and remind me that there is no manual full of solutions or easy button to press!

6. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
Blink and everything would be as I wish it to be….. Blink and my house is clean, blink and dinner is ready, blink and I am young, skinny and beautiful!

7. Can you tell us one thing about yourself that would surprise people who know you?
I was a competitive figure skater since I was 6 years old. I spent almost every day after school at the skating rink and I trained about 25-30 hours a week during my summer vacations. When I was 10, I lived away from home to train in Lake Placid, NY during my summer vacation. I also spent a summer away from home training in Cape Cod, MA when I was 12. I used to miss A LOT of school to train up in Boston and go to competitions all over New England. While I was a good student and a hard working skater, I also had a devilish side…. In high school I loved to sneak the keys and take my parent's car out, sneak out at night to meet friends and even skip school to spend the day with my boyfriend (at least we ended up married!)…. Don't tell my daughters about this!

fun facts include??

-(what you spend most of your time doing)
I spend most of my time planning, organizing and worrying that I have forgotten something!
-Ferocious reader, when it includes ________.
Inspiring advice, fantastic organizing suggestions or celebrity gossip;)

-________ makes her weak in the knees.
Anticipation of the next Twilight movie

Sunday Words of Wisdom

The future depends on what we do in the present. - Mahatma Gandhi

Favorite Things Friday - Halloween Sweets and Treats

The Sweet Funky Vintage girls have been snacking on Halloween candy for a few days (okay, weeks) now. Which has made me start thinking about yummy halloween treats. I usually throw a Halloween party, since my Olivia's birthday is the week before Halloween. But, this year, we decided to take her to Disneyland for her birthday instead. The Disneyland trip wont happen for a couple of months yet, so I am starting to feel sentimental for our Halloween party tradition.
I love making fun party food, so I thought I would share some of my favorite ideas with you. Some I have tried, and some I would like to try!
Owl cupcakes - these cupcakes were on the One Charming Party blog. We did them for Georgia's class party last year and they were A-dorable!

The blog post is part of a series they shared of an entire Halloween class party - excellent ideas!

These Owl Smores were shared on the Living Locurto blog. We made these last year for Olivia's party - totally cute.

I haven't made these Witch Hat Cookies yet, but how easy are they? Keebler fudge stripe cookes turned upside down with Hershey's kisses stuck on with orange icing. Maybe I'll make a batch up, just for research sake, you know?!

And, these Strawberry Ghosts! Don't they make you want to giggle?!
Mummy Dogs are always a hit - and so easy! These are shared by Our Best Bites.

Our Best Bites also shared these Nutty Ghosts!

Meet Allison!

Recently, we were fortunate enough to add Allison to our Sweet Funky Vintage crew! She keeps things running smoothly and does a lot of order receiving and shipping of our customer orders.

1. Can you tell us a little about yourself? I have been married for 8 years to an amazing man who still gives me butterflies. I am the lucky mom to Reagan, who is 5, and Sam who is 2. I was a teacher for 8 years, but recently took a leave of absence to be home with my kids. Being home is a lot harder than working, but I love every second of it!


2. What do you do when you aren’t working at Sweet Funky Vintage? I'm walking the Breast Cancer 3 Day (my 6th time!) so training for that takes up a lot of time! I love to spend time with my husband, as we don't get that much time together due to his crazy work schedule. I volunteer in Reagan's class as well as teach a class of 2 and 3 year olds at church. My son, Sam, get weekly therapy, so that takes up a lot of my time as well!


3. If you were stranded on a desert island and were allowed one luxury item, what would it be and why? My iPad...I could keep connected, read, play....as long as I could get 3G out there!!!

4. Do you have any phobias? I'm deathly afraid of spiders and snakes.....please, don't even show me a picture...


5. Who inspires you and why? My dad inspires me....he was a single father of 3 for many years, worked his hardest to make us comfortable, encouraged and pushed me when I needed it, and is still my biggest fan. He's honestly the best!!!

6. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why? Hmmmmm.....so many......perhaps I'd time travel....in the past and to the future!

7. Can you tell us one thing about yourself that would surprise people who know you? Really, do people want to know the answer to this? ;o) Actually...I didn't plan on going to college, I wanted to get out of high school, go to beauty school, and move on with my life. A friend in high school, and my dad, encouraged me to do otherwise. I am the first and only woman in my entire family with a college degree, and the third person from my entire family who has a college degree. So glad I listened to those smart people!

fun facts include……
-(fact about your family)~
I met my husband when we were 16....we dated for about three seconds, but he told his mom that he'd marry me some day....ten years later, we were married!
Neither one of my kids had names until we were pulling into the hospital parking lot...Sam, my 2 year old son, got his name when he was born. They were both early, so we just weren't ready! My 5 year old daughter, Reagan....yes, she's named after the president. Sam got his name from his dad (who's name is Shannon), but his nickname is Sam. Due to the fact that when he was little, he used to run around yelling "Sam I am!!"

-(what you spend most of your time doing)
Ummm...is that "free time?" When I do have that, I love to read, and peruse The Pioneer Woman's website!

-Ferocious reader, when it includes books about Asian culture (such as Snow Flower and the Secret Fan) and books with Kings and Queens...love Philippa Gregory!)


Red wine and chocolate makes her weak in the knees....if I said my man, that would be way too cheesy!!!

What's Cookin' Wednesday - Garlic Spaghetti Cups

You may have seen this on other blogs. I know that I have seen it several places. But, in case you haven't, I am going to share it with you here.
It is so incredibly tasty, pretty easy, and the kids LOVE it!

Flaky Garlic Toasted Spaghetti Cups

Garlic Toast Cups

1 refrigerated pie dough (NOT the frozen pie crusts)
1/4 cup olive oil for brushing
1/2 tsp garlic salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rollout pie dough and cut into 5 inch rounds - you will have to roll out dough scraps to finish up and get 6 circles. Lightly brush each side of the dough rounds with olive oil and sprinkle on garlic salt. Turn a muffin tin upside down and spray it with nonstick cooking spray. Carefully press one circle onto each of the upturned muffin cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. Remove from oven and let cool on cooling rack.

Spaghetti

2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1 lb lean ground beef
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp garlic salt
26 oz of favorite pasta sauce (homemade or store bought)



Place oil into a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, saute onion and bell pepper until slightly softened, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in beef, salt, pepper, and garlic salt. Cook until browned and crumbled. Stir in past sauce and reduce heat to low to simmer sauce.


Cook spaghetti noodles according to package instructions.

To assemble - place a toasted up on your plate and use tongs to place a small amount of noodles into the bottom of the crusts. Top with heaping spoonful of pasta sauce. Top with freshly grated Parmesan and basil leaves if desired.