We've been counting down (or up) the days until my mother's 100th birthday and it finally arrived! We are all so proud of her and blessed to have her in our lives.  If you would like to read more about her and why she is the best mom ever, you can look at this post or this one.  She has done so well and lived such a good and wonderful life and we wanted to celebrate it in a big way.  Doesn't she look beautiful?  

      One of my uncles always used to think of my mom as a Betty Boop figure for some reason and gave her many Betty Boop collectables.  So, we went with the Betty Boop theme and used red and black tablecloths on the tables.  She always loved to play Scrabble, so I made picture holders using Scrabble pieces and trays.  We put pictures on the tables of my mother throughout her life.  (After 100 years, there were many to choose from!) The words I used are ones that I felt represented my mom. 

     I painted the trays and little wooden doll head feet in black and red.  I used a pencil to dot the white polka dots on the feet.  
      In order to have enough letters and trays, I went to a thrift store and found an old Scrabble game for $3.00.  I also found just the letters on Amazon.  
       I used tiny clothes pins, painted them red and used E600 and hot glue to attach everything. 

      We included pictures like these:

     Those are my mom, my older brother as a baby and my dad.

     At 100 years of age, people tire quickly, so we knew that we had to have the party be short, yet fit in all of the things my mom would want.  Here is what happened:

There was delicious Italian food.
​There was a beautiful cake and outstanding cupcakes! 

She danced (to big band music) with my son and my brother. 
She took pictures with her children, grandchildren and great-grand children who were able to attend. 
Then she started falling asleep and had to go home!  She opened her gifts the next day! 

     
     Unfortunately, since her party, my mom's health has taken a turn for the worse.  She misses my dad and feels ready to leave us.  When she goes, we will miss her, but we will be so happy for all of this time that we have had her with us and so blessed to know that we will see her again one day with all of our loved ones that have gone before.  I am so thankful for the knowledge of that truth.  I'm so thankful for this last bit of fun we were able to have together. My heart is full.  

      Like me, you've probably seen a ton of variations of this tic-tac-toe game all over Pinterest.  I have always wanted to make one for my backyard because I think my grandkids will get a kick out of it.  The Spring weather that is finally happening motivated me to finally complete this project.  I am so happy with how it turned out! 

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     Here in Phoenix, you can plant and harvest all year practically, except in the extreme heat of July and August when barely anything or anyone lives.  Generally I get started on my garden in February, which is typically pushing it.  This year, or actually last year, I decided to give my garden a go in November!  I've meant to try planting in the Fall for years, but never did it.  Now, I am never going back! 

Hey everyone! Can you believe it's already March? This year is already flying by, except it does feel like it's been winter for about a year. We are having another snow storm today!

But now that it's March it means that Pi day is coming up!!! We wanted to remind you about our wonderful For the Love of Pie book that you can buy from our Etsy shop to prepare for the festivities of the day! I decided to remind you with this slab pie recipe, which is new! So make this, and buy the pie book for more pie recipes!

I made this last weekend while we were in California for Alicia's son's baptism. It was a hit!

This recipe is so straightforward and easy, and it will feed a lot of people, so it's perfect for a big party (like you know, a Pi day party?) You'll need a half sheet baking pan to bake your blueberry slab pie. Then, you just use our classic pie crust recipe for the crust, and the blueberry pie filling recipe I shared with you here. Then, top it with the crumble recipe below and bake it at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.

One tip I'd give you is don't try to transport it immediately after it comes out of the oven. That part was stressful for me.

I hope you all enjoy March 14, or Pi day, or PIE day with this great blueberry slab pie recipe. Then don't forget to click the link on our sidebar to visit our Etsy shop to buy our Pie recipe book, For the Love of Pie. You can also buy our hot cocoa bomb book because if March 14 turns out to be a cold and snowy pie day, you'll need some hot cocoa bombs to go with your pie!