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Pin Cushions

2011-12-31T13:12:00.007-05:00

Oh, long time no blog...huh? I'm bad at this stuff, I'm going to try and blog more this new year - really. Just a short post - our latest fascination using scraps of fabric is pin cushions. Handy little things to have in the sewing room, but way more fun when they're cute and decorative too. Here's a little pouf styled one we made last week:
Fabric scraps, stuffing, some old buttons and embroidery floss is all you need to stitch these up. Would make a cute gift for someone that sews. The second crazy idea we got was to make one of these mannequin pin cushions. Found the idea at the DIY Dish - nice video tutorial there. Here's our finished pin cushion:
We need to find some old candlesticks for a couple more of these - this was what we came up with from the Dollar Tree. I think thrift stores would be a good place for some. Another really cute gift idea!

Granny Cake

2011-04-14T22:10:00.006-04:00

Thanks to Pat, a lovely elderly woman that I went to church with years ago - I've got this fantastic Granny Cake recipe. She used to bring it to every potluck dinner and bake sale and it was SO good. She's long gone now but I hope everyone shares her recipe so it lives on.

Granny Cake

1 1/2 Cups sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 Cups flour
1 20oz can crushed pineapple (in it's own juice)

Mix and pour into greased and floured 9x13 cake pan.
Sprinkle on top: 3/4 Cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup chopped walnuts.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.

10 minutes before cake is done, boil the following:

1 stick butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 can evaporated milk
1/2 cup sugar

Pour over top of cake and cool.

Free Shipping!

2010-11-26T15:37:00.005-05:00

Just an FYI...from Black Friday thru Cyber Monday - free shipping at avocado! Happy Holidays!

More projects...

2010-11-06T16:53:00.002-04:00

Not like I need any more projects, but Chelsea has been after me for a bit to try this one out. Coiled fabric bowls. Makes sense, as it uses up a bunch of fabric scraps that we have lying around. And we're all about the recycling (not to mention, I just can't throw away any fabric scraps...just in case, you know). So we picked up some cotton clothesline rope, cut up some of the fabric strips that were too large and started sewing. The most time consuming part is wrapping the fabric strips around the clothesline. Probably would be easier if you used longer strips but as we wanted to recycle our scraps we made do with what we had. And it really doesn't look bad - kind of cute in fact. I think some people will be getting these for Christmas this year. : )

Brussels Sprouts?

2010-10-20T19:43:00.003-04:00

So...just the very thought of 'brussels sprouts' kind of gives me the heebie jeebies - memories of having to try them in my childhood and the nasty taste involved. And here we were, with a bag of them from the farm with our last CSA pickup of the season. I do hate to waste anything and as I've gotten older I'm more willing to give stuff a try. As luck would have it, Chelsea got her latest issue of Cooking Light magazine in the mail and lo and behold - there was a recipe for brussels sprouts. Being that it included bacon, we figured it was worth a try - bacon makes everything good, right? And it WAS good - I actually had seconds. My mom would be so proud. : ) If you'd like to try it out - here's a link to the recipe: Brussels Sprouts Gratin Enjoy!

and...Pumpkin Roll!

2010-10-09T00:16:00.003-04:00

Keeping up with family recipes here - I'm posting this for my niece Andrea who wants to make her mom's pumpkin roll recipe. It's pretty yummy too. I can't decide whether I like this to go with Thanksgiving dinner more than pumpkin pie or not. Why not have both? :D

Pumpkin Roll

3/4 Cup sifted all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1 Cup sugar
2/3 Cup canned solid pack pumpkin
1 Cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 15x10x1 jelly roll pan. Line with wax paper. Grease and flour the wax paper. (0r be lazy and just use parchment paper and spray like I do)

Sift flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice onto a piece of wax paper. Beat eggs and sugar in large bowl until thick and fluffy; beat in pumpkin. Stir in sifted dry ingredients all at once. Pour into prepared pan - spread evenly with rubber spatula. Sprinkle with nuts.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes or until center springs back when touched lightly with fingertip. Loosen cake around edges with a knife. Invert onto clean damp towel dusted with sugar - peel off waxed paper. Roll up cake and towel. Place seam down on wire rack. Cool completely.

Cream Cheese Filling

Beat together 1 Cup 10x sugar, 1 80z package of cream cheese (softened), 6 Tablespoons butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla until smooth.

Unroll cake, spread with cream cheese filling. Re-roll cake. Refrigerate.

Zucchini Bread!

2010-10-07T20:24:00.005-04:00

As the weather is cooling off, baking seems like a good idea. And since there's still zucchini available locally I like to bake zucchini bread. Not to mention, grating up zucchini and freezing it for the winter baking. I've gone through a pile of recipes - none seemed quite right. I remembered a darker, richer tasting bread but none quite measured up. And then, after cleaning out some of Mom's old stuff in the kitchen I found it - my sister Theresa's zucchini bread recipe. THIS is the one! So I thought I'd share it so everyone can enjoy it : )

Zucchini Bread

Preheat oven to 350 degrees - Grate up enough zucchini to make 2 cups. Drain off excess water. In a large bowl beat:
3 eggs
1 Cup vegetable oil
1 Cup granulated sugar
1/2 Cup unsulphured molasses
2 teaspoons vanilla

Beat until thick and foamy. Combine in a separate bowl:
2 Cups all purpose flour
1/2 Cup whole wheat flour (or use all reg. flour)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Add to egg mixture and stir just until blended. Gently stir in zucchini, 1 Cup raisins and 1 Cup chopped walnuts. Divide batter into 2 greased and floured 5"X9" loaf pans. *I used the 3 small pans above, plus 1 reg. loaf pan*

Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (less for small loaf pans, approx. 35mins.) Cool in pans 10 minutes then remove to racks to cool completely.

1 Million Pillowcase Challenge

2010-08-10T19:01:00.005-04:00

So...I came across this 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge page online last week...and thought, hey...what a good idea! I've got a ton of fabric here - I can use some of it and do something nice for someone else. (for info, click on the link above) There are all kinds of charities that collect pillowcases for donating to hospitals, shelters, etc. I found a local charity - ConKerr - that collects pillowcases for sick children. As soon as I get my collection done, I shall be mailing my pillowcases off to them. They do have a lot of participating stores and such that will collect them - you can check to see what's in your area. And the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge website is a wealth of information - patterns, videos and ideas. I like the 'burrito' method of sewing the pillowcases - easy peasy! And finishing them with a french seam leaves no raw edges and should enable them to hold up through lots of use and washing. I started out thinking I'd make a few pillowcases...then found more material that I thought was cute and cut out a couple more...and then I went to the fabric store and hey! really cute flannel was on sale so I had to buy a few more pillowcases worth. It's sort of addicting : ) So...if you can do basic sewing, that's all it takes...think about making some pillowcases to donate to a worthy cause!

In the yard...

2010-07-18T17:40:00.005-04:00

I will be the first to admit, I have a brown thumb. I bring plants in, they look at me...and they die. So whenever I have something growing that lasts more than a month, I'm thrilled. My fig tree is above and beyond the usual for me because I've had it for a couple years now. Let me give you some background first. My grandmother had a fig tree growing outside her back door. Not something you see a lot of in Central PA. The story, as far as I was told, was that she brought this cutting of a fig tree with her when she came over from Italy as a young woman - in the early 1900's. That may or may not be totally accurate, but that fig tree was there as long as anyone remembers (and must have had more than one location). My grandmother is long gone, but my aunt still owns the property where the fig tree is still going strong. Another aunt took some cuttings and started trees for some family members. I managed to keep this thing alive in a pot in the living room for a year, and last spring I planted it out in the yard. Wonder of wonders...it didn't die. It even managed to survive over the winter and this year it is growing fantastic! And the best part of all - there are tiny figs on it!!! I don't know if anyone, anywhere has ever gotten so excited at seeing tiny figs begin to sprout. I can't wait for them to grow and ripen - there probably won't be a lot on it's first year of producing figs but we shall savor every one of them (and probably fight over them too).

Long time no blog...

2010-04-05T14:22:00.007-04:00

Ok...I do officially suck at blogging. Trying to keep up with stuff, sewing, working on a website...it gets crazy. So I'm trying to get back to it though. For your amusement today - my Easter dessert that I made. Wanted to try something new and different. A type of tiramisu, but with fruit flavors instead of coffee. Of course, the ingredients weren't going to be cheap. And it was a bit time consuming. Really, I CAN bake and cook fairly decent - but something just didn't come out quite right with this.It doesn't taste quite as bad as it looks - but it isn't great either. There were muttered comments in the kitchen saying that it looked like vomit...I sort of had to agree with them. Next Easter, I think I'm sticking to good old carrot cake - I make an awesome carrot cake, if I do say so myself : )

New Items - Tea Wallets

2009-11-26T19:25:00.003-05:00

With all these scraps of fabric here, had to find something useful to make with them. And some are such cute prints too so we came up with tea wallets! Great to carry your teabags and sugar/sweetener with you so they stay clean and nice in your purse. They'd make great gifts for your favorite tea lover too. And now through Cyber Monday, shipping is free to anywhere in the world!

Recycled, repurposed, etc...

2009-07-11T13:21:00.007-04:00

So we've been madly working to get some stuff together for The HodgePodgery - a new shop opening up in downtown Harrisburg. All kinds of ideas - just need to see what works and what doesn't. One thing is some reusable coffee sleeves - made from odds and ends of old clothing, decorator fabric samples, scraps and vintage buttons. I think they're coming out kind of interesting looking - quite a variety. Hopefully they'll sell : ) I've stopped by a couple times at the shop now - it's looking very nice - the paint colors are great - love the odds and ends of vintage pieces for display and stuff. Ok...back to the sewing machine...

More on the critter...

2009-06-09T18:45:00.008-04:00

So...the little critter continues to keep me busy. We've had a couple trips to the vet - once for a check up and another to check on some intestinal issues. Some antibiotics and we seem good to go. She's getting much better on her feet - scampering around the floor when we let her loose to play - she can move pretty fast these days. Got a giant box that gives her plenty of room to play but keeps her safe since she's still so small. Going on six weeks old now. I'm proud to say she's using the litter box all on her own, but solid food isn't quite all that appealing yet. We're working on that one. She's got this tube-y toy thing to crawl in and play in and the neighbor gave her this little stuffed yellow monkey that she bats around. And my niece got her this green floppy stuffed dog when she was here visiting - she loves to curl up next to it, and even under it if she can. She frequently sticks her head underneath it and all you can see is her little backside sticking out. Hopefully in a few more weeks she'll be weaned and ready to find a good home.

Kitty Update

2009-05-19T09:50:00.004-04:00

So far the baby kitten raising is going well. She's growing and getting feisty - it's getting to be a challenge when trying to feed her. We have a battle over the bottle - she claws and gets all fussy periodically...trying to get her to calm down and nurse quietly is not that easy sometimes. Cripes. She's a bit more active now but she still sleeps quite a bit - she creeps around on the floor and she tries to nibble fingers and even faces but she doesn't really have teeth yet. Guess we'll have to come up with some kind of containment larger than the carrier - it will be soon time to set her up with a little pan of litter to get used to, and some food/milk mush so she gets the idea of eating other than just out of a bottle. Boy, is this going to get messy - just like a human infant. At least human babies don't have claws! The little critter is starting to remind me of the plant from Little Shop of Horrors...the meow version of "Feed Me"! Might have to call her Audrey 3.

Baby Mama

2009-05-06T18:30:00.004-04:00

Well, I'm a mom again it seems. Sort of. One of these goofy wild cats decided to abandon her baby kitten on my doorstep. She comes back once in a while but refuses to have anything to do with the little thing. I just didn't have the heart to leave it out there to die, mewing loudly as it was, and wandering blindly around. So I brought it in and made it a nice little nest in a cat carrier. Then I went online and scrounged up what information I could find on taking care of a tiny kitten. This one must not have been more than a day or two old. Went out and bought a bottle and kitten formula. Now keep in mind, this is a lot like having an infant again - bottle feedings every couple hours or so, cleaning it's little bottom and holding it. Criminey. It does sort of grow on you though, the funny looking little critter. It's eyes aren't open yet, hardly any ears yet either...but it's soft and fuzzy and it makes tiny little purring noises. Hopefully this fostering thing goes well and it grows up to be a cute little kitten - which will need a home since I'm already up to my backside in cats it seems. Funny, this is pretty much how I ended up with the cats I have now...uh oh!

Toaster Oven Giveaway

2009-05-02T09:21:00.003-04:00

I found this giveaway thru Twitter - it's hosted by @mommieswithcent. They're giving away the cutest toaster oven - I like having appliances that look pretty too. And snacks from Tyson too - I've got to try some of them, they sound yummy. Check it out on the the blog here - Mommies With Cents - good luck!

My lawn is taking over...

2009-04-22T10:49:00.002-04:00

The grass is growing like crazy these days. I'm certain it knew that the riding mower quit working and thought it could go run wild and free. We did manage to get the mower serviced and all but I really wanted a bagging attachment so all that long grass didn't clump up all over. Went to Home Depot and bought what I was told was the correct item. Major pain putting the thing together...only to find out it didn't fit. Aagghh! Called the store - they said I needed an adapter. Called the company that makes the mower - they said no, it's the wrong bagger entirely. Oh nuts. Took the darn thing back to the store and went to the dealer where we bought the mower. Got a different bagger. Guess what? I can't get this one to fit right either. I can't stand it - the shop said they'd see about sending someone over to help figure out why this one doesn't fit - that works for me. Gotta love the independent stores - they're very nice and helpful. I did have to end up just mowing the yard - it now looks like a field. Might have to try raking the piles of grass clippings if it doesn't rain. Hopefully we can get this yard looking a bit better than it does - I am so not the "Lawn Ranger" : ) And by the way - Happy Earth Day! Go plant something, recycle or reuse something, get some earth friendly cleaning products...or just something to help the environment today - and keep it up!

2009-04-19T22:03:00.002-04:00

Spring JavaCupcake Collaboration Giveaway!

Fantastic giveaway with some yummy prizes - go to Java Cupcake's Blog for details! I'll post more info here later - got to get the furniture moved - carpet people coming tomorrow!

New Giveaway!

2009-04-15T10:29:00.002-04:00

So...I'm participating in a giveaway with some people I've met on Twitter. No details as of yet, but keep an eye out - should be coming up by the end of the week. And for Twitter updates - follow @JavaCupcake , @OhSoSweetTreats and @frostedtreats . Wow, those all sound yummy, don't they?

Chocolate chip cookies anyone?

2009-03-16T18:54:00.002-04:00

Who could resist a warm chocolate chip cookie fresh from the oven? That's the best time to eat them, in my opinion. With a cold glass of milk. The boss however, likes them after they've sat for a day. And since he whined repeatedly about bringing him cookies - I broke down and baked a batch. Or two. He is kinda sweet in his crabby way - and he's addicted to chocolate chip cookies apparently. Had to bake plenty so that everyone at home got some, and everyone else at work got some....and the boss got his own container (as he knows he will!). And I even shared some with a new Twitter friend from Lancaster Newspapers who stopped by to pick hers up. I do enjoy baking - and it's nice to have some place to share the goodies. I'm sure we don't need to eat all these calories ourselves!

Friendly's!

2009-03-07T19:29:00.002-05:00

Went out to run errands and decided to have dinner out at Friendly's. Not a bad little place to eat - and of course, the ice cream is always good. Embarrassed my daughter by shooting my straw paper at her. What fun - she actually leaned to the side right about the time I took aim and blew the straw paper - shot it right past her onto the next table - HA! Good thing only the waitress was over there cleaning the table off. Life's too short to act like an adult, right? Mom was a blast - she kept waving and making faces at a toddler two tables away. I'm sure his parents would have preferred that he actually sit and eat his dinner. Couldn't convince Mom to sit there and quit distracting him either. Taking an 86 year old woman with Alzheimer's out is certainly an experience and a challenge.

Muffins!

2009-01-08T21:48:00.004-05:00

Ok, I've been sadly neglecting my blog here. I've really got to get busy and keep up with things better. So for your reading enjoyment - another recipe! Chelsea got an interesting little book for Christmas from her grandmother - '1 Mix, 100 Muffins'. Every kind of muffins from sweet to savory. Yum! So we tried out a recipe, actually she made them, I just ate a bunch. They were pretty tasty. Here it is:

Mini Bleu Cheese and Pear Muffins

oil or melted butter for greasing (unless using liners)
14oz/400g canned pear halves in natural juice, drained
2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
freshly ground black pepper
heaping 3/4 cup finely crumbled bleu cheese such as Stilton or Gorgonzola
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
6 Tbsp. sunflower oil or melted, cooled butter
heaping 1/4 cup walnut pieces

~Preheat the oven to 400 degrees/200C. Grease two 24-cup mini muffin pans or line with paper liners. Chop the pears into small pieces. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper to taste into a large bowl. Stir in the bleu cheese and pears.
~Lightly beat the eggs in a large pitcher or bowl, then beat in the milk and oil. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the beaten liquid ingredients. Stir gently until just combined; do not overmix.
~Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin pan. Scatter the walnuts over the tops of the muffins. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, until well risen, golden brown and firm to the touch.
~Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then serve warm.

These would be great served with a bowl of soup or stew...a wonderful cold winter meal!

and another giveaway - win Coffee Corsets!

2008-12-05T10:53:00.003-05:00

Heard about this blog giveaway thru Twitter. It's sponsored by the NC Triangle Street Team on their blog. Just click on the team name there to go to their blog and read up about it. You've got between now and December 12th to enter.

And if you haven't seen these Coffee Corsets yet, you're missing out. Go to Jenn Gee!'s shop and check them out, they're very cool. She makes the cutest coffee sleeves with a neat style to them, they lace up like a corset. And just about any color combination and fabric theme you could want. What a cool little holiday gift item. And here's your chance to win some - go and enter now!

Sweet Figments' Giveaway Ends Tonight!

2008-12-04T19:58:00.002-05:00

Oh, I've been sadly deficient in my blogging. I must remedy that. But I wanted to remind anyone and everyone that the giveaway from Sweet Figments' blog is ending tonight. Click on the photos on the right to go see what you need to do to enter the contest (blog about a shop and post the link...easy peasy!). There are 30 prizes available - isn't that wonderful? Quick...you've got a few hours left!

Kale is Good. Really.

2008-11-12T19:21:00.001-05:00

Today in our box from the farm we got all sorts of good stuff - and something a bit different - some Lacinato Kale. Otherwise known as Dinosaur Kale it says. This stuff is huge - big long dark green leaves on crunchy stems. And as usual, along with our newsletter in every box there are recipes included. I love how Spiral Path Farm sends these along each week, especially since some of this produce is stuff I've not cooked with before. And in the interest of trying new things - I'm glad there are instructions with these, so to speak. So for dinner we had Lacinato Kale Wraps. Took me a bit to chop everything up (I need a sous chef!) but it didn't really take too long and it was very easy to prepare. And very tasty too - here's the recipe - give it a try, dark leafy greens are good for you and can even taste great!

1 bunch lacinato kale, rinsed as a bunch, slice the whole bunch thin including the stems
1 T. minced garlic
1 onion, chopped
2 C. sliced carrots
1/2 lb. bacon, chopped uncooked into small pieces or 1/2 lb. sausage
1/4 C. olive oil
1/4 C. chicken broth, or potato water, or water
1 t. sale, 1/4 t. black pepper, 1/2 t. crushed red pepper (only if you like lots of heat)
6-8 of your favorite tortilla wraps (flour, cornmeal or seasoned)
1/2 C. fresh grated Asiago cheese (or other hard cheese)

Saute the onions, garlic, carrots and bacon for about 10 minutes on medium high heat. Stir often. Add the sliced kale all at once and stir often for about 10 minutes. Pour in the liquid and seasonings and cover and steam for another 10 minutes. Gently warm the tortilla wraps. Spoon about 1/2 C. kale mix into a wrap, sprinkle with cheese, wrap and enjoy.

I actually used the bacon AND the sausage together...just sounded good to me. And the Asiago cheese is a good choice - just a bit of a tang to it and very flavorful. I ended up with the plain flour tortillas as I couldn't find the tomato ones that I really wanted to try with this. But nonetheless it was a very good meal, mostly thanks to our organic farm bounty.

Etsy Anniversary!

2008-11-12T09:36:00.000-05:00

Today is our one year Etsy Anniversary! Gee, that seems like a long time but it hasn't felt like that long. But a year has gone by and we wanted to celebrate it somehow. So from now through Sunday, we're offering FREE SHIPPING with every order. Yes, that's it...free shipping on everything. And....you also get a gift - a FREE FABRIC COASTER! What could be better than that, a celebration where you get a gift? Christmas is right around the corner...better get that shopping done soon! Need a cute pair of earrings? A reusable, eco-friendly fabric shopping bag? Perhaps a handy and attractive travel makeup bag? Come browse our shop - avocado - and get in on the freebies while they last!

Stringmealong !

2008-11-03T08:55:00.000-05:00

One of the many shops participating in the Blog A Day Giveaway is Stringmealong, an Etsy jewelry seller based in Canada. She's got a really nice selection of jewelry items including necklaces, bracelets, earrings and other items. One of my favorites are these earrings - Flight of Cher Ami. Very pretty beads and the copper sets it off nicely. I love the little birds on these - she has a number of other pieces that include bird charms, very pretty and delicate. And something else just a bit different - she has hair sticks with pretty beaded tops. If you have long hair, try fastening it up with some hair sticks, these would look really nice!

Don't forget to go to Sweet Figments and check out what you need to do to enter this contest and you could win one of 30 great prizes!

Blog a Day Giveaway!

2008-10-30T20:14:00.000-04:00

New giveaway starts tomorrow....be on the lookout for info on this! Lots of really nice items you can win....keep watch at Sweet Figments!

Coasters!

2008-10-25T10:03:00.000-04:00

I've been sitting here sewing these fabric coasters as promotional items for this show in NYC - the Holiday Handmade Cavalcade - at the Knitting Factory. These are kind of fun to make actually, and it's a useful item - much better than a boring old business card. You can sit at your computer desk, plop your cup of java on your cheery little coaster and shop online!

Anyhow - I've made a few extra ones and feel like just mailing them out to someone who'd like one and give it a good home. So the first four people that send me an email at avocadocreations@comcast.net will get a free coaster mailed to them! If you're one of the first four, I'll email you back to get your mailing address and it will show up in your mailbox PDQ!

The growing season is winding down...

2008-10-23T20:03:00.000-04:00

We're getting down there on the fresh produce growing season. There are still four or five weeks left though on our deliveries of organic goodies. But some things are going to be gone for the winter and I'm sure we'll miss them. We've been up to our backside in fresh tomatoes - and it's been wonderful. But I'm kind of burnt out on them now. When the middle of winter is here, I shall probably crave a fresh, right off the vine tomato. But as of now we're trying to find new and different ways to use up the ones we've had. This tomato tart recipe came with our newsletter from Spiral Path - they've had some really good recipes every week.
~~~~~~~~~~
One 9 inch pie crust - whatever is your favorite
4-6 medium tomatoes cut into 1/2 inch slices
6-8 oz. of Gruyere cheese, cut into thin slices
1 T. fresh minced basil (or 1 t. dried)
1 t. fresh minced oregano (or 1/4 t. dried)
3 T. or more freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt, pepper to taste

Cut tomato slices in halves, place on paper towels to drain. Allow tomatoes to drain for about 45 minutes on paper towels, occasionally blot. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake pie crust and let cool. Top cooled crust with cheese slices, then arrange tomatoes on top, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with herbs and Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Bake until cheese is bubbly, about 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool a few minutes before cutting into wedges.

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I made this a bit larger, using a 9X13 inch cake pan, then cut into squares. It turned out nicely - something a bit different with the tomatoes. And getting some good Gruyere cheese was a good excuse to run over to Wegmans to shop - I love their cheese department. Especially when they're handing out samples!

And just for fun, here's a lovely little bag for your makeup, eyeglasses and contacts, or whatever....in a lovely cheese print fabric!

Eyes!

2008-10-11T09:17:00.000-04:00

So we went off to PennDOT for the youngest child to get his learner's permit. And lo and behold, after all the worrying about passing the exam...he didn't get that far because he didn't pass the eye exam. What the heck? Mind you, he passed the school eye exam just a few weeks ago. So we went right off to an eye doctor (time is of the essence here when you have a teenage boy who wants his learner's permit YESTERDAY) and had an exam done. Turns out he is nearsighted - and needs glasses to drive. The doctor couldn't believe that he didn't notice before that his distance vision was off. Off we went again to the eyeglass place to pick out glasses. Which was interesting - as he'd never worn them before. But we found a pair that looked good, waited an hour and then picked them up. And for the next hour or two, he was amazed at how everything looked through the new pair of glasses. Told me he never realized that his vision was crap - he thought things were supposed to look that way until it was actually corrected. And now is finally seeing everything like it should have been. Amazing, huh? So - the moral of my story here is even though you think your children can see fine, perhaps an eye exam once in a while is a good idea just in case - so they don't have to wait until the Department of Transportation tells them their eyesight sucks!

Autumn is here!

2008-09-26T21:22:00.000-04:00

I love this time of the year - the weather cools down, the leaves change color, and the pumpkins and squash arrive at the produce stand up the road. I've always liked being able to walk up the road and get fresh veggies and fruit when it's in season. Yesterday I felt the need for some squash soup. I really like this stuff - everyone else seems to like it too, leftovers disappear out of the fridge quickly so you have to move fast if you want any. The recipe uses butternut squash, which is a bit difficult to cut and peel so I usually score the outside, put it on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for an hour or two - until it's soft and cooked through. Then I let it cool for a bit and scrape out the inside of the squash to use in the soup (or whatever else you need it for). Here's the recipe - thanks to my sister for this one:

Corn and Squash Soup

12 Bacon strips, diced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 celery rib, chopped (I usually skip this because I usually don't have celery)

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 can (14 1/2 oz.) chicken broth

6 cups mashed, cooked butternut squash

2 cans (8 3/4 oz. each) cream-style corn

2 cups half-and-half cream

1 tablespoon minced, fresh parsley (I use the dried)

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Sour cream (optional)

In a large saucepan, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels; drain, reserving 2 tablespoons drippings. In the drippings, sauté onion and celery until tender. Stir in flour until blended. Gradually stir in broth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Reduce heat to medium. Stir in the squash, corn, cream, parsley, salt, pepper and bacon. Cook and stir until heated through. Garnish with sour cream if desired. Yield: 8 servings (2 1/2 quarts).

My Sewing Machine Dilemma

2008-09-14T10:37:00.000-04:00

So for six months I've had the BabyLock Quest machine. I really thought that this would be a wonderful machine. I had issues with the bobbin case right off the bat, and then assorted other minor aggravations along the way. All in all, I didn't much like the darn machine the more I used it. I started looking around and researching machines (again!) to see what my options were. The nice thing about it was that I could take it back to the dealer and trade up for a different machine and get 100% of my purchase price toward the new machine. After much discussion with other sewing machine owners and reading of all sorts of reviews online - and having to haul my machine into the shop a couple times for more aggravations - I decided to just go for it and traded it in for a BabyLock Espire. When I used this one at the store, it was SO much better than mine that I was instantly in love with it. But I did try out a number of features and checked it out just to make sure this was really it. I've had a couple of tension issues, most likely due to user error - I'm still getting used to the thing and still have to figure out what all it does. But I'm really liking it so far. I love the automatic threader, great for the old eyes.....and the thread cutter thing is pretty cool too. I can touch the screen and bring up all kinds of menus of stitches, information about what each is for - even little mini tutorials on how to do many things like flat felled seams, smocking, etc. I'm so glad I finally decided to get this machine instead....now I can get back to my regularly scheduled sewing.

Sewing, sewing....

2008-09-05T14:28:00.000-04:00

I've been hiding out here in my little corner of the house, me and my sewing machine....trying to get stuff made. Got a wild hair and signed up for a craft show on September 20th. Then figured out I'd better get busy and make enough stuff so it doesn't look too sparse. Which means my sewing room is starting to look like a disaster area. I'm focusing on shopping/grocery bags first - this is what I've gotten done in the last two days. I loved the print here with the bottles and jars of olives, oil and vinegars - wish I would have gotten more of it. I think it's a perfect print for a grocery bag. The green, white and lavender circular print is neat too - it kind of reminds me of sand dollars. And then one of my personal favorites - this print by Michael Miller called 'Lettuce Entertain You'. Aren't these vegetables fun?? This would be a great conversation piece at the grocery store. Almost as good as the bag of mine that has bras and underwear print fabric. !! Hopefully these and the rest will find new homes at the craft show - whatever doesn't I can always list in the Ets y shop.

Random Kitchen Goodies

2008-09-01T14:06:00.000-04:00

Happy Labor Day to everyone in the U.S. that is celebrating...or working (it bites to have to work on a holiday). Nothing very exciting here but cleaning, cooking, sewing..and all that jazz. I thought that I would share some fun stuff I've acquired lately for my kitchen collection. First off is one of my bright new switch and outlet covers I bought from rathina on Etsy. She kindly made me an entire set for my kitchen. Pardon the ugly beige walls - I plan on painting sometime in the next couple weeks or so - it desperately needs some brightening up. I love the vegetable print though - it's cute and bright and really adds some fun to the kitchen walls.

And here is a really interesting hot pad that I bought from zemphira, also on Etsy. It's like a little miniature work of art! I love this hot pad - it's too pretty to use even, I have it hanging up so it can be seen by everyone. She has some other neat things like art quilts - very beautifully done.

Then there's my latest fascination - melamine! I know, this stuff has been around for ages - but I have recently developed a fondness for these plastic spatter patterned items. I saw a bowl in Fishs Eddy in NYC once, but they were gone when I went back later some time for one. So I cruised Ebay and found some neat vintage bowls. And one day I hit the jackpot - a set of melamine trays! Oh, do these remind me of my school cafeteria days...collecting lunch on a divided plastic tray...with the little slot for silverware, food stuffs and of course the little square carton of milk. And they are the most beautiful shade of green - my favorite - with a fantastic pattern of many colors. I love these trays! I like to get them out for picnics and such...and hey, at least your food stays separate so your potato salad doesn't touch your hamburger - what anarchy that would cause! These have got to be on the top of my 'fabulous finds' list for this year - may everyone find some little gem that makes you happy.

Furry Critter Heating Pads

2008-08-11T13:19:00.000-04:00

So....my niece is a veterinary technician at a clinic. She asked me about making some microwaveable heating pads for them to use with the dogs and cats. So I scrounged through my fabric scraps and came up with some assorted sized heating pads. I used some flannel fabric that I had, and filled the bags with wheat berries. I thought maybe someone else might want to make some of these and maybe donate to your local vet clinic so I decided to come up with a simple tutorial on making these.
First of all, get yourself some sturdy material - I decided on flannel, and I have some odds and ends here to use. Decide on a size and add about an inch to your measurement for a seam allowance. Here is my fabric, cut in a 15 inch square - I cut on a fold on one side, you could use two separate pieces also.
Put the right sides together and stitch three sides of your heating pad, leaving one end open. If you cut on the fold, you'll only have to stitch up two sides. Here is what you'll have so far: Turn right side out and press. Then you will want to take the open end, fold over the edge approximately 1/2 inch and press to the inside. You don't want to forget this part! Next we're going to sew 'channels' on this so that the wheat berries will stay distributed across the pad somewhat, instead of being one large lump in the corner. Lay the pad flat and measure where you want your channels to be - I went with 2 inches on this - as it was 14 inches wide it worked out well. I pinned the open end, placing each pin at the 2 inch interval. I also placed a pin at the opposite end at two inch intervals so that I could keep track of where I wanted to sew. You can mark this however you want - chalk, pins or some other removable method since it's on the right side of the fabric. I just love my little pincushion - it's an emery cushion, from Dottyral on Etsy. It gets a workout!
Now you're going to sew from one end to the other, using the pins as a guide, or whatever other method you used to mark your fabric with. It's not that hard to keep the lines relatively straight once you get started. And anyhow, it doesn't have to be perfect - it will still work if it's a bit crooked! And here it is, ready to fill - see why you wanted to press in that edge now? It's all ready to stitch up as soon as you get it filled.

Now get out your wheat berries, or rice...you can use either, and your funnel(makes way less of a mess) and carefully fill each section about 2/3 full. You can lay it down and distribute the berries to see how full it is and adjust accordingly, just be careful not to spill everything out! Now all that's left to do is to stitch up the end, just be careful not to spill out the contents - make sure you are stitching both sides. I always backstitch beginning and end to make sure it is secure. And here is your finished heating pad - along with my quality control officer Icarus, checking to make sure it's acceptable :)

Salsa Anyone?

2008-07-08T13:18:00.001-04:00

Gee, everything seems to come back to food. But food is so good...and we're having so much fun with our farm goodies. This time I got the wild hair idea of making salsa. Mind you, I've never made salsa before in my life. But we've bought this fresh salsa from a store in Lancaster that is just fantastic, and I thought 'hey, I can make this stuff...it can't be that hard'. I have this little cilantro plant that I'm trying to grow, or keep from dying...whichever. And then in our box of produce from the CSA we got heirloom tomatoes, onions, garlic and a fresh bunch of cilantro. It was a sign - I definitely needed to make salsa. The stuff we bought from the store had cilantro and extra garlic - the other ingredients were simple so I figured it was worth a try. Chopped up a fresh organic onion, fresh organic garlic, fresh organic heirloom tomatoes and fresh organic cilantro. Added some salt to it and there it is - homemade fresh organic salsa! It tastes better after it sits for a while to let the flavors mix together. I did learn that a little cilantro goes a long way. And you should always watch where your fingers are as you're chopping it - thankfully, I still have the top of my thumb although it does hurt. Ow. Next time maybe I'll throw a dash of lime juice in it just for fun. A big bag of tortilla chips and we're good to go!

Raspberries!

2008-06-30T13:26:00.000-04:00

On Saturday, Chelsea and I went berry picking at Spiral Path Farm. This is the CSA farm where all our organic goodies come from each week. It was a bit of a drive (like an hour and a half!) but we really wanted to see the farm though. We got up at the crack of dawn and drove forever it seems to way out in the middle of nowhere. Very pretty countryside way out there - and the farm is beautiful. We scrounged around the black raspberry bushes but they were already sort of picked over by the time we got there. We did manage to get some though. Picked up a few extra vegetable goodies, had some mint tea and grape juice...and some really awesome raspberry dessert stuff - yum!

Washed up our rasberries - decided that what we really needed was a pie. Everyone needs raspberry pie, don't they?? : ) Mixed up some crust, then the berries and stuff....and here we have a fresh baked black raspberry pie!

Wow, this was really good......hit the spot. I must tell you though, after the heat, bugs, scratchy bushes and all....I'm much more willing to pay the price at the grocery store for berries!

Birthday time again...!

2008-06-25T22:10:00.000-04:00

Ok...it's that time again. Mom's birthday...but what to get an 86 year old woman with dementia? (same thing as last year, who's to know?) Ok...I know that sounds bad...but hey, I know there are plenty of you caregivers of elderly people with Alzheimers who will understand. I think the weird sense of humor keeps us a bit saner. But I digress....back to the issue at hand. After much back and forth about what options there were, we decided that a swing to put out in the yard out front might be a good idea. Mom seemed to like the one my aunt has, and we figured it might get her outside to sit and enjoy the fresh air once in a while. And then on a trip to Wegmans, we saw this swing set and thought "Aha!"...this is perfect.

Unfortunately, what we got to bring home was this lovely picture of a swing on a freakin' huge cardboard box.

What fun...this thing weighed a ton and was awkward as all get out. Pry the thing open and, wow.....what a fun bunch of metal bars, fabric stuffs and a whole raft of hardware. At this point I am wondering why this seemed like a good idea in the first place. Wouldn't a nice sweater or some earrings have been a wiser choice??

But hey, it's here now...make the best of it. I can follow directions and put stuff together. The parts are sort of large, heavy and a bit difficult to wrangle around but after a day and a half, much swearing and dropping of tools...we have progress:

Not bad, huh? It was finally starting to look like a swing. A bit more aggravation, going back to tighten up all the bolts (because Mom falling on her butt in the front yard with swing parts all around her was not what I had in mind for her birthday and I'm sure she wouldn't have been thrilled either) and we finally had us a swing. Now for convenience sake, and to keep it a surprise, I was putting it together out back - we then had to carry/drag the thing out front. Another bit of mad fun. But it all worked out in the end, and Mom seemed to like it, except for the part about perhaps we should put it here, there, and everywhere else but where it was. Mission accomplished - Mom's birthday gift looked good and next time I'm going to pay someone else to put crappola like this together. :)

Organic Veggies!

2008-06-02T19:28:00.000-04:00

Well...welcome to my first ever post on a blog. I have absolutely no clue as to what I'm doing here - read at your own risk!

I'd like to share with anyone that is interested, our newfound fascination with organic vegetables. We decided that to do our part to stimulate the economy, we'd spend our government money on a share in a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). For more info on CSA's check out this link: http://www.localharvest.org/csa/rg/csa /

We bought a share in a local farm, not too far off - they deliver to drop off spots in the area and we get to go pick up our bounty each week. Fresh veggies, fruits, herbs.....whatever is in season at the time. What fun! And we get to try new and different stuff we've never had before.

A few days ago we picked up our first box. A little strange at first, driving up to a stranger's house and creeping into their garage to haul off a box full of goodies. Boy, were we excited...imagine getting all worked up over

some vegetables and stuff?? We came home and checked out our fresh, organic goodies - here's what we got:

Carrots, spring onions, redleaf lettuce, basil, potatoes, baby spinach, swiss chard, radishes and frissee(a type of lettuce).

What fun - everything was fresh and tasty. We had a couple of awesome salads and the carrots were crunchy and sweet. The farm so nicely provides a newsletter in the box, which includes some recipes also. As we were sort of new to swiss chard I decided to make the swiss chard and potato recipe that they included. If you'd like to try it too, here you go:

1 bunch of red or green swiss chard, chopped fine

1 large onion chopped

4 garlic cloves minced

1-2 red or green peppers diced (left these out, peppers and I don't mix!)

1/2 lb. bacon minced before cooking

3 Cups sliced boiled potatoes

2 Cups shredded cheddar cheese

Heat 2T olive oil in a large skillet. Add bacon, onion, garlic and red pepper. Stir until veggies are cooked through. Then add chopped swiss chard, stir until it wilts, then cover pan and let steam for another 5 minutes. Butter a 9 X 13 inch pan and cover bottom with half the chard mixture. Then layer with half of the potatoes and half the cheese. Top with the rest of the swiss chard mixture, rest of the potatoes and the rest of the cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

<---This is our dish of swiss chard and potatoes - it was very good! Can't wait until the next box of farm fresh organic edibles....mmmm!