Some of my favorite recipes contain buttermilk or butter. This is one of those. Never buy prepackaged pancake mix again. This recipe makes the best buttermilk pancakes and the toppings makes them out of this world.


I would love visiting my aunt in the summer when I was a kid because this was the only time I had access to her pancakes. She gave me her recipe years ago when I had my own little kids. As my extended family has grown, I have become THAT aunt to my nieces and nephews and I love it! Whenever we have a family reunion it is a given that I will make pancakes with coconut syrup. In my own home we make them often on Saturdays when the hubs is home and we can all eat breakfast together.


Let's talk about this coconut syrup. This is a recipe from my sister-in-law. It is our absolute favorite. We don't really buy regular syrup anymore either because my kids love the coconut syrup more (which also contains buttermilk AND butter, so you know it's good).

If you eat just the pancakes and syrup, you will LOVE it! However, when it is summer and the peaches are ripe and juicy, they are a MUST topping. They add another dimension to this already delicious dish that will knock your socks off. And, don't forget the whipped cream- either canned or freshly whipped. Put all of these together and you will be in breakfast heaven!


A warm pancake (or two, or three) served with fresh whipped cream, topped with peaches, and drizzled with coconut syrup is all you need. It is DIVINE. I dare you to try it. Go all out while the peaches are in season. You won't regret it. Get the recipe below!

I've been wanting to make chalkboard placemats for months now. I finally did it. I decided that I would follow the directions from Sew 4 Home. However, I wanted to have waterproof fabric on the back instead of regular fabric so I grabbed some oil cloth. When it came time to put the placemat together, I couldn't press anything with an iron or use too many pins. I didn't want to melt my fabric and once the fabric is punctured with pins, the hole stays there.


I decided to do this thing a super basic way using bias tape.


What you'll need:

• Chalkboard cloth (found in the "utility fabric" section of your fabric store)


• Oil cloth (also a "utility fabric")


• Bias tape (extra wide, double fold bias tape- 3 yd. Plan on one package per placemat just in case)


• Jean needle (strong needle to sew your fabrics)


• Scissors


• Sewing machine (with jean needle)

What you'll do:


1) Cut one piece of chalkboard fabric and one piece of oil cloth the same size. Cut it to the size you'd like your placemat to be.


2) With wrong sides together, line up your bias tape on one edge of the chalkboard side! This is important! I found that the chalkboard fabric is quite slick and thick and doesn't grab onto the feed dogs well. So, having the oil cloth on the bottom allows for easier and nicer sewing.


3) Sew your bias tape on. See the following tutorial.

















I followed the instructions in the video almost exactly. The only change I made was that I lined up the edge of my bias tape with the edge of my fabric. The woman in the video, Amy, lines up her bias tape a little below the edge of the fabric but, don't do it! You need that space when you're using the thicker fabrics.


So, unfold your bias tape, with the thinner edge up. Sew along that first fold. I tucked in my sides like Amy did too.