Hello

It's been busy around here!  Had to make another trip to Kansas City for business and I was able to make a trip to see my granddaughter.  We were put up at the Westin, this was my view:

I bought another pen and bottle of ink, of course!

Then we went to see our granddaughter who is laughing and babbling.  She is pictured here babbling to my husband.

Here she is babbling to this thing I bought her.

And this is how she looks at me LOL.

That's OK, I know I am secretly her favorite.

My mom gave me a Christmas present early.

I am not the greatest seamstress in the world but my old machine was always giving me a problem and I was giving myself a headache comparing features of different machines and prices.  I decided on a more economical machine and honestly it sews like a dream.  It made me feel I wasn't so bad after all!  I have made a dress and blouse already no pictures yet.  Thanks mom!

Just so you know I haven't been slacking on the home front, I recently canned 20 quarts of tomato sauce.  They are hidden from the college students so they don't take off with all of them.

We recently made a trip north of us to see college student number 3 sing in the choir.  We went to eat first and she picked the place.  This is why:

Yes I tried it, I am sure we have diabetes after this. 

Our local high school did an amazing job in a production of Prometheus Bound.  My son is on the right.  It took them to the Drama Fest competition where they did a fantastic job.  I am amazed at all the lines they had to remember.

Be back soon!

Great Trip

It has taken me a while to post about our trip.  We went to Missouri and I finally got to meet my granddaughter.  As luck would have it, I will be going to Kansas City again on business and can take another side trip to see her again.  This is little Paislee.

Also went to the pen store. 

I also made a new friend.

The quilt we slept under was made in 1939 by my husbands great grandmother.  She made it a series of them for her only granddaughter I have two of them but this one is the most colorful.

This is a flour sack quilt.  Usually the men went to town to pick up the supplies needed at home but the women went specifically to pick out the feed sacks that had appealing colors and patterns. 
I worked the rummage sale for my church (no conflict of interest there LOL) and came home with this flour sack baby quilt.

Thankfully in fantastic shape!





 

Bread and Knitting

Work has been a little crazy so it has been a while since I last posted.  I have been playing around with sourdough starter and bread the last couple of weeks.  I used this book that I mentioned in my last post.

My first attempt was dense through my starter was fantastic.  I tweaked a recipe in the book and added a little my water than what was called for.  This was probably the best loaf I have made.

Baked in a covered cast iron dutch oven.  Beautiful.  The inside looks a little dense but it is actually very light.  I omitted the wheat the recipe called for and used a combination of all purpose and bread flour. Want to see the inside?

I have to say this is my best sourdough. This bread is a two day process without making the starter.

Keeping winter in mind, I knitted a pair of fingerless mitts for the pharmacy drive through.

Not too bad for a novice knitter.  This was a free pattern from tons Patons.

In July we became grandparents, so we will be traveling soon to meet our first granddaughter little Pj.

More Cookbooks?

So a while back I told myself I wouldn't buy anymore cookbooks.  Some how this came in the mail:

Yep, I see this in my future:

Then a friend bought me this!

And look at this!

I found it funny that they are called Breaking Bread and Breaking Breads.  This is why I can never be on a Paleo diet.   So instead of kicking myself for having new cookbooks, I decided I was celebrating the fact that 14,000 year old toast was found.

Another Month Gone By

It's been busy here. College students are home and I am just trying to keep track of who is working where and what camp starts and ends.  School starts for the high school child in a few short weeks and the others will be back at college.  Busy finishing things up and starting new projects.  An update on the home made vanilla extract:

Before picture:

After one month:

This will be wonderful come December.

Finished up another pair of socks:

They faded quickly in just one wash.  Luckily these were not a gift. 

My patio chairs are giving out so I made two seat bottoms.  Not too bad, I will replace them as needed:

We finally got a large amount of needed rain yesterday.  My garden is happy. 

Road Trip to the Ark

Made a surprise road trip to Arkansas to pick up wood slabs.  It was a nice trip, very hot. 

The Ash slabs will become a table once it has dried out more. 

Of course I couldn't stop at a couple of flea markets while there.

Frankoma bean pot, new condition, very cheap.

Old Hickory, never used, my husband will put an edge on it.

A liquor store having a huge sale.  Vanilla extract in the works. 

What I really went in there for.

I came home to pick tomatoes.

This is what I pick everyday usually.  My coworkers are very happy!

Red all the way through.  I had my daughter run this morning to pick up my eggs from the egg lady.

And I did not pick this up in the Ark, but she wanted to have her picture taken.

Old One Eye

Not a bad weekend, thanks for stopping by!

Memorial Day

Product Downsizing

I wonder how many people notice when things are downsized yet still command the same price.  Maybe on purchases that you do not make every week or even every month.  Where I shop they do not sell cooking Sherry so I go somewhere else and buy a few bottles at a time.  Since I use the same brand for a couple of things I think my next purchases will be made at a liquor store at a better quality.

My older bottle is 16 FL. OZ., while the one on the right is 13.1 FL.OZ.  I know that product downsizing is nothing new but it is still disappointing just the same.  I would rather pay more for a better quality than to be downsized at the same price.

Relish

While on the way back from the weekly food shopping trip my husband asked me when was the last time I canned relish.  It had been a while due to the decrease in garden size most relishes are made with cheap ingredients.  My neighbors behind us have a huge garden and they are done picking in June regardless of what continues to grow so we are able to glean from them.  People at church, the local farmers market and a man who comes to my work with flats of fruits and vegetable should be able to see us through also until we increase the garden again.  

Zucchini Relish (two days) 6pts

10 cups peeled and finely chopped small zucchini

6 - 8 bell peppers seeded and finely chopped

4 large onions or 6 small finely chopped

1/2 cup salt

2 1/2 cups white vinegar

4 cups white sugar

2 T cornstarch

1 t ground nutmeg

1 t turmeric

2 t celery seed

1/2 t ground black pepper

Put all your chopped vegetables in a stainless steel bowl or a crockery bowl.  Cover with salt and place a weighted plate on top to keep them in the brine.  Let sit overnight.

Rinse in cold water and squeeze out excess liquid by hand.  Mix your cornstarch and seasonings and add to the white vinegar in a large pot.  Heat until boiling and once the sugar has dissolved add vegetables and simmer for 30 minutes.

Pour into clean, hot, sterilized jars and process for 10 minutes in water bath canner (185F). Complete seals.

Tomatoes

I am always excited when the tomatoes start coming.  That is when the real work starts, stink bugs will follow soon after.  Our garden is a lot smaller than in years past but we plan to extend it more next year.  We had lost one of our beds due to a tree, then had to take the tree down anyway.

Growing Great Garlic

I received this the other day, other people curl up with an epic novel:

I have never tried to grow garlic before though it is something I have always wanted to do.  I hope to take this on in the winter. 

It had me at the Preface:

Wonderful Day in the Neighborhood

Finishing Up Projects and New Links

Rainy cold weekend here in the south not much to do except finish up some things that have been laying around.  We actually had snow here this winter. First was socks, of course!

Very colorful, this pair is for me. 😄 

I know they all look the same just different colors, I use a basic pattern and really just need them to be functional.

There has been a two ingredient bagel recipe floating around the Internet so I figured I would give it a shot.

I used the recipe from Mess for Less.  I just used self rising flour and they are not over done, the color is from using an egg yolk wash instead of an egg white wash.  They are a little tangy from the yogurt and are less calories so win/win!  I baked for half an hour because I made them higher rather than wider, easier to cut.

For one of my more geekier hobbies, I spray painted an old cardboard display for an ink stand.   My boss owns a few businesses, one of which is a boutique store, with trendy clothing and items.  So on the rare occasion I have to work in the boutique, to keep my skin from crawling I try to see if there is something I can apply to my life.  It helps the time pass.  I took this from the discard pile.

Ink stand!  Not as it is,  just a few coats of spray paint.

With ink:

Not too bad. 

Also, I wanted to share a couple of links to where I have been hanging out.  You should check out

A Woodsman's Remedies, and Go Apocalypse great content, hope to see you there!

New Holster

Not the greatest picture, but it is well made by a retired Seabee.  I am very happy!

Far Reaching Manipulation

Originally seen on American Grouch.

Slave to the Lender

I have grown children.  My youngest is still at home while two are away at college and the oldest two are on their own.  My college children are receiving advice on how to build their credit.  Have a cell phone plan, take out a credit card and carry a balance, take out a student loan, trade in your car, and so on.   From people their own age I expect it.  From other parents I do not.  If you want to give advice to my children I suggest you open your finances to them also.  Tell them how much debt you have, what you actually own.  How much your stuff cost you.  Inform them about the institutions you have to work to pay because they OWN you.   How long you will have to continue working because you cannot afford not work.  Please let them know how satisfying it is.  Paint the whole picture or shut up.

That being said, I have smart kids that thankfully talk to us about these things for the most part.  They have had jobs, paid their car insurance and cell phone bills since high school but it is easy to be lured into the instant satisfaction society.

End of rant.