Merry Christmas!

The cookies are baked, the tree is up, and it's time to rest and reflect on the true meaning of this season.  

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  Luke 2:11

Amen! ♥

I Like to Color

It's true--I do like to color!  I'd been reading about the new adult coloring books for some time when I found several different ones at Costco one day.  Of course I had to buy one--and one for Ann!  The apple does not fall far from the tree when it comes to coloring. :-)

A few Saturdays ago, the doorbell rang and there were Ann and Daniel.  Ann handed me a book and said, "Merry Christmas!"  It was a Christmas coloring book she'd bought as part of my Christmas and then decided I should get to enjoy it as part of the season. 

 She was right! ♥

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas!

We were forecast to get between 1-3 inches of snow last night. I awoke early this morning to the sound of the snow plow and thought they must be desperate for a little work.  When I got up, I opened our bedroom curtains to this:

It appears when all is said and done (it snowed for a few more hours) that we have about seven inches! 

See that dark spot on the lower middle left?  That's our well which normally sticks up about two feet. It has a lovely mushroom cap of snow.  :-)

What a beautiful day!!  Now if only our 4-wheeler wasn't in the shop!! Normally we have a plow attached to the front so Dan can do our driveway.  Maybe it'll be ready today?  She said hopefully. ♥

Knock Knock! It's Me!

Well, hey there!  Yes, it's me.  And it's December.  The house is all decorated and the cards are sent. I'm enjoying the season and puttering away with little projects.  And I finished a big one!

I finally quilted the big Through the Winter Woods quilt I started last winter (seen here and here) over Thanksgiving and then got the binding on over the next week.  Ann and Eric and boys were here for Thanksgiving and Ann was able to quilt a top she made years ago, so we congratulated ourselves over our accomplishments.  Two big buffalos down!

Another big yahoo took place this last weekend.  When I got my humongous Bernina 830 a few years ago, I knew it was too heavy to use with the lift in my sewing cabinet so Dan locked it into position so I could have the bed of the machine even with the cabinet top and built a box to lift it up when I wanted to embroider.  It worked, but it was a chore to lift that 45 pound machine in and out, so I often didn't. I'd put off embroidering or I'd muddle along sewing without having the machine even with the cabinet top.  Last summer I wondered if it would be possible to order just a heavy duty lift and after checking the internet, found one.  We ordered it and it's been in a box under a table in my sewing room. Until Saturday.  Can I just say I am thrilled?  It has rejuvenated my sewing mojo and I'm one happy sewer.

So, Saturday night I just had to embroider something. The new lift worked perfectly and up popped my machine, ready for the embroidery unit.  I dug out my huge jumbo hoop, found a piece of Osnaburg and began a one color Christmas wreath I've been wanting to make for several years.  I didn't even know what I would do with it, but I decided the time had come to stitch it and stitch I would.  I toyed with several colors and went with my favorite dark red.  When I was done, I decided to make it into a pillow with fabrics left from the Winter Woods quilt.  Several hours and five presser feet later, I was done.  Here's a photo of the quilt and the pillow.

Five presser feet?  Yup!  The quarter inch foot for the seams, an all purpose foot for the zigzaging the Osnaburg edges, the ruffler for the ruffle, the buttonhole foot and the button sew-on foot for the closure on the pillow back. And oh yeah--the embroidery foot for the design.  Guess that's six! ♥

Dayna Update

It's been a while since I did an update on our friend Dayna.  My readers will remember that last February our daughter Ann took her friend on a round of hospital and doctor visits one day to find, in the end, that Dayna had a brain tumor.  A stage 4 gioblastoma.  Surgery followed the very next day to save her life and she has been undergoing treatments including chemotherapy since.  

Today Dayna had another MRI (she has them every 3 months) and the wonderful news is that the tumor has shrunk 70 to 80 percent since February.  There was a 40 percent reduction shown in the August MRI with another 40 percent reduction this time.  

Dayna continues to be upbeat and was recently named National Single Mom of the Year after a friend nominated her.  Here is a snippet of what her friend shared about the trip they took to Baton Rouge for the award.

We arrived at the airport but because Dayna had needles and prescriptions with her, she had to be detained so security could make sure she was okay to travel. Throughout this, she was incredibly kind and gracious and of course, made a new friend in the security guard. 

It is hard for Dayna to sleep without help due to the cancer treatment she is taking, so instead of sleeping she drank 5 cups of horrible airplane coffee and made friends with literally everyone in the surrounding area, and continued to do so, in all three airports and two flights. She is a LIGHT wherever she goes. She can’t help but talking about Jesus and what he has done in her life to the many people God puts around her. 

We arrived in Houston, Texas and missed our flight! God went before us though, and we were immediately able to get on another flight on a very tiny plane! This time Dayna and I weren’t sitting near each other but I could hear her happy laugh periodically as she made friends and swapped stories with someone else.

I hope by including this little story you will see something of the very special person Dayna is and feel like you know her just a little bit.  Finally, here is a recent picture of her with her little princess, Maddie.

For those of you who have prayed for her, thank you! There is no end in sight to the treatments as this type of cancer is, well, considered terminal.  But!  ♥

November!

We've been on the road this month.  After returning from Bruder Bear's, we were home for a while, working on bathrooms (will it ever end?), exercising (me!), and doing fun stuff like the laundry, etc., and then we were on the road again.  Last weekend was spent in Boise and McCall, and then Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of this week we were on the road watching soccer games as our two grandsons' school competed in an end of the season soccer tournament.  They came in second and Cam was chosen one of the six top players in the league.  

As my faithful readers (thank you for sticking with me!) know, I purchased an electric pressure cooker this year. I'm part of a Facebook group for the Instant Pot (the brand I purchased) and they are a busy bunch.  All kinds of pictures pop up each day and they seem to go from topic to topic.  

There's a yogurt function on the Instant Pot and I really never intended to use it, but then pictures began to show up on FB.  Intrigued, I checked a blog site that had been featured and read through the instructions and decided I should give it a try.  Oh.My.Goodness!  Easy? Absolutely.  Delicious? Absolutely. Will I do it again? Yes!

I ended up with six pints of thick, creamy yogurt from a gallon of two percent milk.  It did take all day, but I was only actively involved for less than an hour.  

I found the very nice plastic lids (made by Ball) locally. And I have to tell you, in my current issue of Country Living, they feature a set of very similar looking lids, in a set of six, for about forty-four dollars!!  I bought my box of eight for about four dollars!!  Pretty big price difference.  

The blog site recommended draining the yogurt in something called a nut milk bag, but I just used a large mesh strainer lined with a tea towel and set it over a big stock pot.  Worked quite well.  Here's the cleaned up pieces.  I used my canning funnel to ladle the yogurt into the jars.  

I've been happily eating the yogurt for days now.  I spoon some into a dish, add a drizzle of pure maple syrup, and sprinkle on some home-made granola.  And speaking of granola, here's a link to the recipe.  This stuff is seriously easy to make and totally yummy. 

Fall has finally arrived and it feels good.  Time to cozy down, drink hot coffee and tea, and make plans for the holidays.  I stitched a few leaves to add to our seasonal decor.

Hanging on the china hutch door

Tucked under a candle with embroidered wrap

Happy November!  ♥

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

We took a little road trip down to the Bruder Bear Resort for a few days and had a most wonderful time relaxing and visiting with John and Karen.  We drove as far as McCall the first day and enjoyed a night at the Hunt Lodge and dinner at Lardo's.  Lardo's is such a funky place, but the food is always delicious.

We got up the next morning, enjoyed a yummy breakfast at the Lodge and hit the trail for Boise and parts east.  Have I ever mentioned how I hate driving on interstates?  I used to love them, but now they are so clogged with huge trucks that it's a nightmare.  It was my turn to drive, so I clenched the wheel and hit the gas pedal.  I was so thankful when we rolled into Bruder Bear's driveway!  And he was actually standing there waiting to greet us!

The views from their deck are incredible.  The water was like glass when I caught this photo.

Their house is right on the Snake River facing northeast and the weather was perfect the whole time we were there, so the deck was used every day, well into the evening. Amazing weather for the middle of October. We ate several meals out there and as usual, Karen spoiled us with her cooking.  

We loved our time with them and look forward to seeing them again soon.  Thanks, Bruder Bear!  ♥

This Is NOT a Mirage!

Yeah, yeah, I know I've been absent.  Sometimes the words are just not there, for whatever reason. Maybe just so I won't bore you!  :-)

And now, it's October and fall is here.  Love it!  The poplars are laying down a carpet of gold on the grass in the backyard, the box elders are turning their usual stunning red, and the days are blue and gold.  Here where I live, fall is our shining time.  Gorgeous!

I've decorated the house and added a few new pieces. I've need a centerpiece for the dining room table and back in August I took advantage of some coupons at JoAnn's and bought three large fall picks and one flower pick that had about five chrysanthemums on it in varying colors.  Two weeks ago I finally got brave (Who has to get brave to make a centerpiece??  Apparently I do.) and decided to see what I could do.  I had a lovely white casserole/soup tureen in the cupboard and I used it for the vase.  I simply bent the stems of the fall picks in a 45 degree angle and placed them in the dish.  Then I had Dan cut the flower pick apart (I tried, but my fingers didn't have enough umph...) and placed them among the leaves.  

I am inordinately pleased with the results!

I got a new catalog in the mail and found these cute little pilgrims who begged to be added to our home. They are a Williraye design.  Aren't they adorable?

A week or so ago Ann and I ran away from home to a neighboring town for a little fun.  In addition to Costco, we hit Pier One and I, sucker that I am for seasonal things, had to buy this mug to drink my fall morning coffee.  I love its pumpkin color, it's shape, and rustic glaze. It makes me smile each day.

Last week when I went to Ann's for my usual Thursday afternoon of watching the D-man, Ann had my birthday present waiting.  We both enjoy the Pioneer Woman's cooking show and her cookbooks, and were excited to learn she had a line of kitchen goods coming out.  Ann had been waiting for them to show up at our local Walmart and they finally did. 

This beautiful bowl was full of utensils including a wooden spoon, masher, and flat whisk.  What fun!!  I love kitchen things!

I've been machine embroidering again and did some lace this week including this bookmark:

Meanwhile, Dan has been working on our bathrooms as time allows.  Part of the plan is to redo the cabinet fronts and he's been experimenting with drawer fronts. I think we've got it figured out!

Normally I'd be watching Daniel this afternoon but he was up all night with the throw-ups so Ann is home with him.  She said he was finally starting to feel better about ten this morning.  So, here I am, doing a catch-up.  

Happy October!  ♥

End of August

Yes, friends, I'm still alive and kickin'.  I took the month off from the computer, with just occasional peeks at favorite blogs and FB.  Sometimes it's good to just disconnect and get on with other things.

We planted a small garden this year and I'm overjoyed to report that our summer squash and zucchini have produced!!  It's been years since I've been able to make such a report.  Piles of squash have appeared on my counter on almost a daily basis:

I've made numerous pans of my summer squash skillet and so far we still enjoy each mouthful.  I've made multiple bakings of zucchini bread and with each batch I can't resist breathing in the wonderful aroma of the cinnamon and nutmeg as I set them on the cooling racks.

I also stumbled on a wonderful recipe for a side dish featuring the yellow squash.  I got a catalog last week from a company called Through the Country Door.  I ordered a couple of things and got a welcoming email from them.  At the bottom was a picture of a casserole with a link.  I checked it out and decided to make it Saturday.  I can highly recommend Gunter Family Squash Casserole!  A little bit of work, but definitely worth it.  

I've been stitching in the sewing room making baby blankets for a local ministry.  I've stitched satin binding to fleece for cozy blankies and embroidered flannel to make receiving blankets for the tiny ones.  I love making baby things!  

August has been hot and our area has been thick with smoke from the many forest fires in the west. It rained a little yesterday and today is cool and the air is clear. Hopefully firefighters will be able to use this time to whip all the infernos blazing away.  A cousin lost her home and all her possessions in one fire several weeks ago.  I can't even imagine.  I come from a family of forest-fire fighters, with my dad, my brother and my husband all having spent many days on the fire lines. I am grateful that none of them do it any more.  

So, here we are at the end of August.  I turned another year older and fall is about to arrive.  ♥

Summertime, and the Livin' Is . . . Busy!

For a couple of hermits, the last few weeks have been busy and social for us.  We enjoyed the rehearsal dinner and wedding of our long-time friends' son on the 17th and 18th.  Both were in a nearby town, so some driving was involved and we even sneaked in a trip to Costco before the rehearsal dinner.  We had a great time at both events and the tablecloths were perfect on the tables Friday night.  

The following Monday was a big birthday for Dan, and Ann and Eric convinced me that we really must do a party.  I'm not good at parties, but they both helped and we did it.  Dan wasn't really looking forward to this birthday, but he really enjoyed his party and I'm glad we did it.  A good number of local friends came and we enjoyed a beautiful evening in a local park, eating and gabbing the evening away.

Today a friend from college days and her husband were in town and we thoroughly enjoyed a leisurely lunch with them a local restaurant.  Lois and I lived in the same dorm forty-five (!!!!) years ago and hadn't seen each other since just after Dan and I married, so that's over forty-three years.  I don't think the guys had ever met, or if they did, it was briefly, but they had a good time visiting, too.  

Meanwhile, things are stirring back to life here at the resort in the remodeling department,  Dan's busy season with his consulting work is winding down for a while, so we're working on bathrooms.  Several weeks ago Eric, Cam and Keat came over on a Saturday and along with Dan, they pulled out the old shower stall in the bath adjoining our bedroom. (Should I say, "our en suite?" a la HGTV?) We've debated possibilities for the new shower, and as much as I'd like to go all tile, I don't think it's worth the effort it would take to do it, so I think we'll just go with a new white (the old was harvest gold) stall and call it good.  Hey, it'll get me clean just fine.  :-)  Meanwhile, new light fixtures, shower rods, etc, have made their way into the main upstairs and downstairs baths.  Each new piece makes me smile!

Here's a picture of the gaping hole that's in our bath right now:

  

Having access to the plumbing for the tub in the main bathroom will enable Dan to do some upgrades there, too,  Our well water has worked a number on the pipes and fixtures.  

Meanwhile, the flower pots on our deck are in bloom and I just love the wonderfully bright flowers. We bought the plants at Costco last year and Dan was able to keep them alive over the winter in our sunroom.  (Truth:  if plants depended on me to live, they wouldn't.)

♥

Quilting Ponderings

My longtime readers know that I became a lover of quilts at an early age because I slept under wonderfully heavy quilts made by my paternal great-grandmothers. All hand-stitched, they tied me to a generation I never met, but often heard about.  My dad's father was killed in an automobile accident when my dad was just fifteen months old and these women had helped raise him while his mother worked as many as three jobs at a time to keep her family afloat.  

The quilts were worn when I was little, and by the time I was grown they were worn out and gone. But that's why they had been made--to be used.  I was somewhat of a romantic growing up and I viewed things from the past through rose-colored glasses, not realizing at the time that the making of the quilts came from thrift and many evening hours of plying the needle.  These ladies did not own even a treadle sewing machine although both were accomplished sewers.  At any rate, I wanted to make quilts.  It was a way of tying myself to these women who were a part of me.  

And so, about thirty years ago I finally began to really quilt. I'd made a pillow or two, tried a cushion for a rocking chair, but they were mostly sad affairs, done without proper fabric or batting.  Now I lived in a town with a quilt shop and I made a friend of a real live quilter.  I subscribed to quilting magazines and slowly became more adept.  Even though I taught school most of the intervening years, quilting was a refuge from the stress and work that teaching is.  

And now, here I am.  Retired. With time and a roomful of sewing machines including a quilting machine.  How blessed I am!  Whatever would those great-grandmothers have thought of such a room as mine?  I think they would have marveled and wanted to try everything!  I think they would have sparkled and laughed as they tried rotary cutting, cheered over the many rulers available, and thrilled over the sewing machines that had self threaders! And the quilting machine?  Unimaginable.

And so, as I finished my little table runner, I communed with Sarah Jane and Carrie as I turned the binding to the back and hand stitched it down.  That process they would have known well.  

Here's to you, Little Mama (short and stout) and Big Mama (tall and spare)!  ♥

Potatoes

Huh?  Potatoes?  

Well, anyone in my family can tell you that I love potatoes.  In fact, one of my mottos is that I never met a potato I didn't like.  I'm even briefly mentioned in an old video of a dinner my brother's family was having when he speared a baby red one from the serving bowl, said, "This one's for you, sister," and popped it into his mouth.  Yeah, I'm famous like that.  :-)

Recently I was cruising the produce department at one of our local supermarkets and spied a small bag of potatoes.  Intrigued, I looked more closely and discovered this:

The potatoes are grown and packaged by The Little Potato Company.  They have several bags to choose from and I chose the Terrific Trio which has tiny red, yellow and blue potatoes.  Yup, blue ones.  I've always loved the tiny reds, so I just had to buy the bag and see what was up.  Well, I'll tell you:  much yummy-ness! Boiled, with just butter and a sprinkling of dried basil, and I was in heaven.  And Dan loves them, too!

Here's a peek inside the bag which holds three pounds:

The family that started this company is Dutch and in Europe they're called creamer potatoes.  You can buy bags of just the red or yellow, but those blue ones make me smile.  And yes, they taste just like the other ones.  

Potatoes get a bad rap nutritionally, but really, they are quite good for us.  It's all the stuff we do to them that add the fat and calories.  Here's the nutritional stats from the bag:

See, look at all the potassium and fiber. And carbs are just eight percent. My poor potatoes get a bad rap!  ♥

There Is Life in the Sewing Room!

Yes, dear readers, there has been activity of late in my sewing room.  I am working on the last of the Laundry Basket Quilts (Edyta Sitar's designs) Trio tablerunners. (Click here to see the pattern and here to see pictures of the first two.)

This one has the same one hundred fifty-six pieces in the border, but thankfully the center is just a cut of a border fabric.  

All the sections are ready now to be joined to the center piece.  I just have to cut it and then stitch the sections on.  If I get myself jolted into action today I could have it done in an hour or so.  

There was also much action last Thursday when long-time friend and former neighbor, Cyndie, joined me and we spent the afternoon making ten big round tablecloths for her son's wedding rehearsal dinner this week.  Cyndie used my serger to stitch fabric sections together; I pressed, folded, and using a newspaper template we made, cut the rounded edge which Cyndie then hemmed, again using the serger.  We had quite the assembly line going, along with much fun jabbering.  We finished in under four hours and were quite pleased with ourselves.  :-)

Cyndie insisted on a picture of me stitching, so I did do one hem.  Some of the completed tableclothes are seen heaped on my not yet quilted Through the Winter Woods quilt.  

Well, that runner isn't going to finish itself, so I think I'll take myself downstairs and see if I can get some work done on it.  ♥

Bloggy Woes, Bears, and Little Boys

I logged onto my blog last night and was dismayed to see my background had gone missing.  I checked back several times and, yup, still missing.  I tried going the the website of The Cutest Blog on the Block, which was my source, but it was inaccessible.  I feared it had gone out of business.

When I checked this morning, I still had a stark white background so I tried another google search and found they had a page on Facebook.  There I discovered that the site seemed to be alive and well (a post by the owner the day before) and several messages by others who had also lost their backgrounds. A later check showed that the owner had been unaware her website was down and a message that her techs were working on the problem.  Since you can see that my background is back, you know they were successful!  Yay!  

And so, on to the bears and little boys.  Sunday we entertained our three local grandsons while their parents attended a wedding in Coeur d'Alene.  Cameron tuned right in to the Women's World Cup Soccer tournament, Keaton kept busy with Papa in the shop, and Daniel and I watched a little Curious George, played in the pea gravel and checked out the garden.  While I was in the kitchen cooking dinner, a laughing Daniel called me into the living room and presented me with this scene, of which he was quite proud:

"Look at the bears!" he giggled.  And don't you know they're still like that--it will be a while before this grammy will be able to right them.  ♥

A Memorable Breakfast

As mentioned in a recent post, breakfast is one of my favorite meals to cook.  Yesterday was Tuesday, Choose Day, and since I don't exercise that day (I'm a MWF girl), I decided it was time for eggs Benedict.  Mmmm.

They were every bit as delicious as I anticipated and worth every moment of the clean-up.  As I washed the pans and utensils, I realized I was taking a trip down memory lane and each stop led to people I loved.

The egg poaching pan was purchased in Boise on a trip to visit our son Matt and family.  The whole idea of being able to fix eggs Benedict at home was inspired by my sister-in-law, Karen. The cute little whisk and spatula were part of my Christmas presents from Ann and her family several years ago and were picked out by Daniel when he was just two.  

How can I go wrong with a delicious meal and happy memories?  ♥

Another Tiny Book Review

One of my favorite books is The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  I have my own copy, a gift from Matt and Ann for Christmas many years ago.  Ann had the whole series growing up and I used to read through them every few years.  I also have a book of essays Mrs. Wilder wrote in the early part of the last century and I enjoy reading them.

Recently, there was an article in the paper about a new book called Pioneer Girl that piqued my interest.  It seems that Laura Ingalls Wilder hand wrote the history of her early life with that title, mostly for her daughter, but also possibly for publication.  Under that title and in that form, it never reached publication, but those penciled lines in tablet after tablet became the seed for her series of Little House books.

Pamela Smith Hill had previously done a biography of Mrs. Wilder and had access to the Pioneer Girl manuscript.  Now she has taken that manuscript, added many pictures and researched people, places and local newspapers, to create a large tome that is fascinating reading.  It is not cheap and so I decided against purchasing it, instead requesting it through our local library.  I found I was on a long list and despaired of getting it before next winter, but fortunately I got it much sooner.  

I enjoyed many hours of reading and looking at the accompanying photos.  Ms. Hill has done an extraordinary job of filling in blanks through use of newspapers, the census, and other historical records. There are literally hundreds of footnotes, which some people complained about in reviews, but they are easily ignored if a reader chooses.  I chose to read them.  :-)

If you too, love history, or simply love the Little House books, I can heartily recommend Pioneer Girl for a good (if long!) read.  ♥

Weekend

We had a lovely weekend.  Perfect weather and time with family.  We had the little man yesterday afternoon while Eric, Cameron and Keaton did some white water rafting and Ann helped with a wedding.  Papa and I had fun!  When Cameron, Keaton and their cousin Ryan were little, they all loved to play on a pathway down the east side of our house.  The path is covered with tiny pea gravel and is perfect for making roads and shoveling into buckets.  They spent hours there over a number of summers.  Yesterday, Daniel discovered the same fun and spent hours running up and down it with trucks and then filling the same buckets.  Don't you just know it made this grammy smile?  

Later in the afternoon we took D back to his house so he could play in his little pool, and after Ann came home we spent the rest of the day enjoying her shady back yard, visiting, and then eating pizza followed by key lime pie for an early Father's Day treat for Dan.  Our last treat of the day was watching CarTunes featuring Mater the tow truck "Tow Mater" from the Cars movie (and giggling away at subtle humorous phrases thrown in to keep grownups amused).  It's D's favorite.  ♥

A Little Shine

We ordered running boards for the new 4Runner last week and they came on Tuesday.  Dan went right to work installing them and they look terrific!

They're just the touch of shine it needed.  Now I have to get used to using them after just jumping up and in for over a week.  ♥

Potato Salad

I love me some potato salad. Always have.  I don't make it often because if it's in the frig I have a hard time not grabbing a spoon and having "a little taste." Often. And of course, making potato salad can be labor intensive.  Boiling eggs, cooling said eggs, and then peeling and chopping them.  And then there's the potatoes themselves:  washing, peeling, cutting into chunks, boiling, cooling and then dicing them.  And making the dressing. . .  

I'm still loving my Instant Pot and was thrilled to note a recipe for potato salad on one of my favorite sites, Pressure Cooking Today (link on sidebar).  I checked it out and was amazed to see that the potatoes and eggs are cooked together in the Instant Pot!  Could this possibly work?  I am pleased to report that it does, indeed.  And works in wondrous ways!  I made the potato salad I took to my parents over Mother's Day weekend using the recipe, and I would say it was the best potato salad I've ever made.  

Cooking the potatoes for salad takes careful attention or the potatoes overcook and you end up with mashed potato salad.  Using the Instant Pot and dicing the potatoes before cooking produces perfectly cooked potatoes.  Truly!  And the eggs?  You nested them down in the potatoes and they cook to perfection and better yet, peel to perfection!  It's all like magic!  I made another salad last week and it was just as perfect.  

So, if you have an Instant Pot, or even a stovetop pressure cooker, give this recipe a try.  I'm sorry I have no picture because . . . we ate all the salad!  :-)  But there's one if you go to the recipe.  ♥

Now Appearing on the Breakfast Table...

For some strange reason, my favorite meal to fix is breakfast!  And this from someone who definitely isn't a morning person.  Poached eggs and hashbrowns, waffles and bacon, egg on toast, scones, coffee cake, and muffins.  The list goes on and on.  Of course I don't make these things every morning due to time constraints, but when I do have the time, I enjoy whipping up something tasty.  I even do eggs Benedict, thanks to my sister-in-law, Karen.  She makes them every time we visit and I love them and have copied her. Yum!

I had some overripe bananas a few weeks ago, but not enough for banana bread, so I tried some banana muffins for the first time.  They turned out well, so yesterday when I had more bananas, I made another batch.  

It's just a basic muffin recipe with the addition of bananas and chopped pecans.  And speaking of chopped pecans, I absolutely love this knife:

Its flat bottom and non-pointy tip make it easy to chop whole nuts in a flash.  The Pioneer Woman uses one often on her show and I was intrigued, so I ordered one from Williams-Sonoma when they had a tempting pre-Christmas sale.  It also works beautifully for thinly slicing both cooked and raw meats because its blade is very thin.  

Let's hear it for breakfast--the most important meal of the day!  ♥

Another Dayna Update

I'm late in writing this, but I do want to share the latest news about our friend, Dayna. She recently had another MRI and the results were amazing as you will see from what she wrote: 

Some very good news today during chemotherapy as we went over the scan results. Shrinkage of the tumor in two places and no growth in others, along with necrosis (cell death) in the center of the tumor!! A Grade IV glioblastoma can double in size every 2-4 weeks, so this is quite amazing. On a scale of 1-10 the doc said these results are an 8. We'll TAKE it.

And then a few days later this amazing woman wrote this:

In light of my recent (incredible) scan results, I often hear people rejoice with me and say that God is good. It is almost an instinctive response, I think, especially for people of faith. It is an answer to prayers, a reflection of both His goodness and my family's perseverance throughout treatment and so many unknowns.

Yes, indeed, God is very good.

I have had a sentiment echoing in my heart this week that I would like to share. God is good, and He has always been and will always be good. If the tumor in my brain had grown, He would still be sovereign and in control. He would still be good! If cancer takes my life tomorrow, God's goodness is unchanging. No matter the results of scans, or tests, or trials in life, our response should be that YES! HE IS GOOD! A resounding truth that honors His plan and our trust in Him.

No matter the circumstance, yes, God is good.

It is natural to praise God when outcomes are favorable, when they reflect our desires and deepest hopes. I appreciate and value every comment that 'God is good,' because I share that belief and conviction! How the tears filled my eyes when the results from my MRI were read to me on Monday. What an incredible thing to hear after a few months of treatment, five days a week, with no assurance that progress was being made. If the results had been different, however, would our reaction be the same? Would we still praise Him for being good? Would we still worship?

I believe that my God heals. That He works miracles. I have been a beneficiary of some incredible miracles in my life, miracles of rescue and redemption and yes, of physical healing as well. It was one such miracle of rescue that led me back to walking with God, after years of disobedience.

The truth of the matter, however, is that not everyone is healed. All of us, every single one of us, is 'terminal.' We all have an expiration date on our lives here on earth. I may not be healed of cancer in my lifetime. Or, He may choose to heal me! (That would be incredibly in accordance with MY plan, in case God wants some input.) Both outcomes would mean that He is good. That He has always been good. That His plans are not my plans, and His ways are not my ways.

We can't see the biggest picture of all, the one where all of our lives are threads in a tapestry, and are interwoven and connected in ways that only the Creator could see. Every slight change brings about a different ending. God is good. He will always be good, regardless of what tomorrow brings. His plan is FOR us. His grace is for us… and my heart is for Him.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend. With love and immense gratitude!

Dayna

This dear girl is an amazing gift to us all and continues to awe me with her attitude. I know many of my readers join me in praying for her and her little Maddie. ♥

The Wheels on the Car Go 'Round and 'Round

The wheels on our wonderful '04 Ford Explorer have gone 'round and 'round for almost eleven years. I can't believe we've had it so long--longer as our main vehicle than any other we've owned (Dan has had pickups that we had longer).  We've been toying with looking for a new "car" for a year or so and had pretty much decided that if we bought, it would be a Toyota 4Runner because we've been so pleased with Dan's Tundra since we bought it two years ago.  

Last Thursday Dan had a meeting in Coeur d'Alene and I went along because I needed a fun day. Bear Paw Quilting is just around the corner from where he had the meeting so I knew I could very enjoyably spend hours there.  And the Toyota dealership was just across the street!  Do you see where this is heading?

Yes, I have new wheels.  A gorgeous white 4Runner with all kinds of fun bells and whistles!

It drives like a dream.  I'm reading the manuals every day and hope to be up to speed on everything in a year or so!  The built-in GPS helped get me out of Coeur d'Alene alive (Ann and Eric are buying the Explorer so Dan drove himself home).  The salesman synced my cell phone with the car's system and all I have to do is push a button and say, "Call... ."  Amazing!!  Eric synced my iPod and between that and XM radio I'll never want for tunes.

We'll be adding running boards in the next few weeks, but until then I'm pleased to report that my hours at the fitness center have paid off and I can jump up and in with no problem.

I loved, loved, loved my Explorer and there was a small fear in me that no other car would fit me like it did.  I'm thrilled to report this one seems to.  ♥

A Tiny Little Book Review

I love history and in my college days, I was actually a history major for a year and a half.  Until I realized there was nothing I could do with a history major.  Ah well...

Recently when I was at daughter Ann's house, I noticed a library book on an end table.  A book on the Romanov family of Russia.  The story of the last Tsar and his family has always intrigued me, possibly because my great grandmother on my mom's side was Russian. Apparently Ann had an interest, too.

A few days later Ann mentioned the book and offered to loan it to me when she was finished with it. I accepted her offer and read it with great interest.  Turns out it's written for a young adult audience, but it is well-researched and very readable.  There are pictures and interspersed among the chapters are diary entries or remembrances by Russian peasants of the same era. It's fascinating reading if you, too, are interested in history and this time period. 

A Busy Month

Well hello there!  Apparently I've been in another non-wordy mood, but I'm going to attempt to do a little catching up.

It's been a family month as we've attended several events featuring family members.  Our littlest one, Daniel, graduated from his first year of preschool May 13 and we were entertained by a musical about the solar system.  Such a roomful of cuties!  And here's our little man:

Daniel's Preschool Graduation

We are so thankful we can attend so many events our grandchildren are a part of.  Cameron and Keaton's school put on a musical in which Keaton took part, and a Readers' Theater in which Cameron took part. We enjoyed both!

On Saturday of Mother's Day weekend we drove to my parents' house to celebrate Dad's 92nd birthday (which had been that Monday) and Mother's Day with them. Bruder Bear was up and it was such a fun day of visiting and eating.  I made a poor man's cake and a potato salad and Bruder Bear grilled pork chops.  We made a good team!  

Last weekend was spent attending the wedding of Bruder Bear's younger daughter, Kirsten.  We drove Mom and Dad over and had a great time at the rehearsal dinner Friday night at Kirsten's house in the Tri-Cities and then on Saturday afternoon drove to a beautiful winery outside of Walla Walla where we watched and as Kirsten and Tim were married.  Such a special time with family!

Eric, Keaton, Ann, Daniel and Cameron

Kirsten and Tim with Mom and Dad

The newlyweds!

My niece Jennifer and her family were up from Texas for the wedding and on Monday she and her two little boys drove to my parent's house to spend a few days (her husband, Greg, had had to fly back to work on Sunday). Wednesday was spent here and it gave Ann and me a little more time to become acquainted with baby James and for Grant and Daniel to get to play.  

Grant and Daniel decorate the driveway

Ann and James

Jennifer and James

So blessed to spend time with family!  ♥

Scones

There used to be a little hole-in-the-wall breakfast and lunch spot here in town, and Dan and I loved to go there on Saturday mornings to have breakfast.  The lady who owned the place was also the cook/baker and we loved her scones, especially her lemon poppy seed ones. Mmmm...

But as things go, running a one-woman hole-in-the-wall restaurant is a sure way to make a person tired, very tired, and eventually the owner called it quits, took an eight-hour-a-day job, and found rest. We were left scone-less.  Then a bakery opened in town and they featured scones, usually good ones, but the owner played around with the ingredients and one never knew what the day's offering would be. Some were not so tasty.  Eventually this bakery went out of business for the same reason the restaurant did: the owner wanted a life and some sleep.  Scone-less.  Again.

Meanwhile our daughter had been given a recipe for scones.  By me.  The counselor at our school was a gifted baker and often brought treats to share with those of us in the trenches.  One day she brought in some killer scones and I was able to get her recipe. Except when we made them, they tasted not so good.  I finally realized the counselor was an instinctive baker and she made changes that seemed so natural to her that she didn't even realize she'd made them.

I wrote the recipe off, but daughter Ann (also a scone lover) was determined to see if she could come up with something that worked.  After weeks of tinkering, she did it.  Her new recipe made delicious scones and I made them frequently for a while and then they drifted off my radar.  

This morning I had a hankering for scones and had some extra time before breakfast while Dan was off doing an early morning hand-off of a forestry project he'd been working on.

Scones are biscuit-like in that the butter is cut into the dry ingredients before the liquid is added.  This process has never been something I've enjoyed; in fact, I'd say it sometimes keeps me from making biscuits and scones. But somewhere, maybe from the Pioneer Woman, I saw a terrific idea:  use a cheese grater to grate the butter! So I tried it this morning and it worked like a charm; it literally cuts the work time in half! I see more, many more, scones in our future.

We make drop scones rather than making a circle and cutting wedges.  It's much easier and I confess to liking the process of breaking off a craggy chunk and popping it in my mouth.  They are pretty good sized because the rack pictured above is 12 x 18" and twelve just fit on it. (We'd already eaten three when I snapped the photo.)

Ann said I could share the recipe, so here it is:

Scones

1 1/2 cups white flour

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 tsp baking soda

Mix above together until butter is chopped up fine

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1 cup buttermilk (or 1 T vinegar with milk to
 equal 1 cup)

1 cup dried fruit or berries

1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract

Stir above into flour and butter mixture.  Mix until all dry ingredients are incorporated. Drop onto greased baking sheet (18 x 13" half sheet pan is perfect) making 12 mounds.  Sprinkle with coarse sugar.  Bake at 400 for about 17 minutes.  Remove to cooling rack, let cool for a few minutes and enjoy! 

Interestingly, I ran into the hole-in-the-wall lady at the grocery store recently, mentioned her scones and she said she'd send me her recipe.  She did, but it had two tablespoons of baking powder and a teaspoon of salt which I knew would be bad news in the sodium department.  Ann's recipe has a very small amount in comparison. WIN!  ♥

Blink, Blink

Blink twice and it's the end of April.  How quickly this year is flying by!  And as I always say, I wouldn't mind so much if I wasn't getting old at the same rate. {Smile}

It's been an unbelievably gorgeous spring here at the resort.  Our area doesn't often get a nice spring so those of us who live here are truly enjoying this one.  The greens!  The flowers!  Some years the leaves don't even emerge until June, so having all this luscious color is amazing.  

I am loving our front yard.  Hard to remember that last year at this time it looked like a crater-pocked pile of dirt after Dan and grandsons Cameron and Keaton removed the horribly over-grown shrubs and we pondered what to do next.  Every time I drive up I marvel over the change.

We haven't put the flower pots out yet but we probably could.  Usually we're waiting to be certain the freezing temperatures (or even snow!) are behind us.  Hmm, that reminds me that I could bring up the rocking chair that we have out there in the summer.  I'll do that today!  It needs a sanding and paint or stain dreadfully.  Maybe we could do that this weekend, but still, for now, I can sure set it out there.

We are just puttering away here these days.  Nothing much going on, but that's not a bad thing.  I'm continuing to have fun in the kitchen and I'm so thankful to have such wonderful tools with which to work.  We took my parents to Spokane last Friday as Mom had an appointment with an eye specialist. Afterwards we stopped at Trader Joe's and did a little shopping.  I discovered a new chip that's tasty and low in sodium:

I made some hummus the other day using a recipe in the King Arthur Flour magazine Sift and it's a great combination with the chips.  I love hummus but I've never made my own before.  My food processor made quick work of the process and I'll definitely do it again. Most of the recipes I'd seen before usually called for some ingredients not found in my cupboards but this one did not.  

Well, I'd better get a move on.  It's almost lunch time and then I'll be off to watch the little D-man for the afternoon.  They were gone over the weekend and had company last Thursday, so it's been almost two weeks since I've seen him and the rest of the family.  I can hardly wait!  (Love his rosy cheeks and tousled hair when he wakes from his nap.)  I'll see Cameron and Keaton, too, as they get home from school while I'm still there.   ♥

Yum!

At the risk of boring my faithful readers, I have to share my latest kitchen triumph.  Yes, triumph! When I received my stovetop pressure cooker some years ago, on the advice of my cyber friend CJ, I purchased Pressure Perfect by Lorna Sass.  I used her book to guide me in my first attempts to use the cooker, and I've continued to rely on it whenever I have a question or need a reliable recipe.  

I was intrigued to note, early on, that she had a dessert section including a recipe for cheesecake. Yup, cheesecake.  I recently tried her rice pudding recipe with great success, but still hesitated to try the cheesecake. (Here is where I probably should mention that never in my life had I actually made a real cheesecake although I love them.)  

Enter my new Instant Pot.  Less stress because it controls everything, so I could concentrate on just making the cheesecake itself.  I was inspired, too, by a recipe on a blog site called Pressure Cooking Today that was a take-off on the Sass recipe and used the electric pressure cooker.  Each time I went to the store, I purchased something I would need to make one: cream cheese, lemons, graham crackers (didn't want to be too hasty in acquiring the ingredients!).  

Last night Dan was at a meeting, so I had the evening to myself.  I had anticipated that I might be brave enough to try, so I took the cream cheese out to warm up before dinner.  After Dan left, I read over the instructions one more time and began.  Truthfully, the hardest part was making the graham cracker crumbs! (Note to self:  buy the box of crumbs next time--can we say crumbs all over the counter?)  

Sass's recipe was straight forward and the only change I made was to add three minutes to the cooking time because electric pc's don't get quite as high a pressure as stovetops do.  And also because we are at an altitude that requires a little additional time.  

The result?  Here it is out of the cooker:

In order to fit in the cooker, a smaller 7" springform pan is needed.  I ordered this one from good ol' Amazon and it's so cute!  The length of foil to the side is for placing under the pan to lower it into and more importantly out of the pot (no burned knuckles!) and is part of Sass's instructions.

I refrigerated the cheese cake overnight after it cooled down and just took it out and removed the sides a little bit ago:

It looks like a real cheesecake!  More importantly, it tastes like one!  In a word:  Yum!  ♥