Creative Cousin's Coolest Kitchen Container

I have the most creative cousin who happens to be my FAVORITE cousin, but not solely for the creative reason.  She is also witty, funny, a great cook (she clings to Cajun traditional cooking), artistic, and has an eye for decor.  She hunts, fishes, gardens, and trains animals.  I have not found anything she cannot do.  Her mind is constantly churning whether it's something brewing on the stovetop or finding a way to repurpose, recycle, or reuse an item headed to the trash - or sometimes not.  That item may have been left unattended for a minute and is now hers.

Cousin D aka CCC or Crazy Cajun Cousin, is the most amazing person I know and I'm blessed with the good fortune to be related, and to be loved like her little sister.

CCC decorating for our wedding reception

So one of her recent repurposed projects that I love is her very handy "Wrap Rack."  It a common problem to find enough space for plastic zip bags, rolls of foil or plastic wrap, etc.  Cousin D, however, found the perfect solution.  She pulled an unused hanging shoe rack from the closet.  One quick glance, followed by a "Hmmmmm??" and she darted off to the kitchen and yanked Ziplock and Glad boxes from her pantry.  She slid them into the shoe slots and "voila" her storage problem was solved.  Almost.  She cut a slit in one of the shoe slots in order to retrieve the zip bags and decided that the plastic shroud was subject to ripping over time.  She dug out her trusty duct tape and reinforced the opening.  Now her plastic and foil items are handy, freeing oodles of pantry space.  The "mate" side of the shoe bag is perfect for holding the refill box.

It took me almost a year to find one of these shoe bag treasures and I grabbed it quickly when I did.  Sadly, it was the only one in stock.  But I have mine.  Not exactly matching my kitchen decor, but there are times, even with Cousin D's solutions, function ranks over beauty.

Cousin D's Wrap Rack hangs outside the pantry

I need to visit Cousin D soon and find her other creations to outfit my home and garden.

Love you my dearest Cousin.

In Honor of Donner

This is one of my favorite Christmas memories...

Back in the day, my job transferred me four states from home.  In my mid 20's, that was a big deal.  It didn't take long to miss Mom's cooking, even though the local food was great.

I asked family for recipes.  They requested copies of the other recipes in exchange.  The final result was a family cookbook, "In Honor of Donner," after Mom's hometown.  Not only recipes arrived in my mailbox, but relatives sent snippets of memories and photos.  This project rapidly became more than a collection of cards originally envisioned.

My copy is worn, the binding disintegrated years ago.  What is left of the pages hides in a 3-ring binder in sheet protectors.  My working version resides on the web.

Most of my aunts are now gone.  My daughter, nieces, nephews and numbered cousins have a direct link to these relatives they never knew. 

Merry Christmas and many blessings for 2012.