Friday, July 31, 2009

Birthday Dinner

We tend to spread Birthdays out over several days here......The Man asked where I wanted to go for my 'Birthday Dinner' - meaning some restaurant of course - I said I just wanted to stay home and have spaghetti - so he spent the entire day cooking some fancy 'heirloom roasted tomato spaghetti' - he roasted the tomatoes and cooked and cooked - Scout set the pretty table - it was all delicious...
...this is some no knead bread - I'll post about that soon too...
...of course we had a cake (with candles - just not nearly enough)...
...I loved our simple little celebration so much...

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Flowers Everywhere

I just love it when FedEx brings this kind of box......and opening it up reveals not one but two bundles of flowers...I've never seen this many roses in a single vase before......I'll have to take another picture after they open up a bit......it reminds me of the old Cowsills song...

...flowers in her hair...flowers everywhere...

...and it makes me happy...

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Another Prize

This one arriving just in time for my Birthday...Raesha at My Love had another contest - for a blank notebook made from old album covers - I won this Barbara Streisand one - I absolutely love it - Thanks Raesha!!! - I'm going to use it as a sketch pad...

...the Man said 'Hmmm. I didn't know you liked Barbara Streisand' - Ha - you don't have to like her to love this notebook...

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Diagonal Ribs

I am so sorry that I neglected to post about my Diagonal Rib Socks......they were quite the 'orphan' project as I kept putting them aside to do other things...

...the pattern is available for free from Knitting Daily - and it's not that I didn't love the pattern - it was well written and quite easily memorized - it's just that I joined the Leyburn Sock KAL - so that had to be finished first - then I had to finish Bridget's afghan before school started back...

Anywhooo - they're finished and I do love them - I used Bernat's Cool Crochet - in 74040 Ebony - they'll be nice trouser socks for this winter...

Monday, July 27, 2009

Brownie Bites

Scout and I made Brownie Bites Saturday night......these are really good......McKenna from Baby Cakes says "It's really, really hard to make a good vegan brownie," and I would have to agree - I've made vegan brownies that baked up so rock hard you couldn't get them out of the pan - and I've made them that might as well have been chocolate cake...

Ingredients

* Vegetable oil spray
* 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons Bob's Red Mill gluten-free, all-purpose baking flour
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
* 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
* 1/2 cup applesauce
* 1/4 cup canola oil
* 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
* 1/2 cup dairy-free mini chocolate chips


directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325°. Spray 2 mini muffin pans with vegetable oil spray. In a bowl, whisk the baking flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and xanthan gum. In another bowl, whisk the applesauce, oil and vanilla; stir into the dry ingredients. Stir in the chocolate chips. Spoon the batter into the muffin pans, filling them three-quarters full. Bake for 15 minutes, or until set. Let the brownies cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

NOTES One Brownie 69 cal, 4 gm fat, 0.8 gm sat fat, 10 gm carb, 0.8 gm fiber.

I am going to make a couple of changes for next time (oh yes - there'll be a next time - maybe tomorrow as these won't last very long) I'm going to go with 1/3 cup of cocoa and leave out the chocolate chips (my version of chocolate chips is a lot of trouble and they're really not necessary in brownies) I'm also going to try the recipe with regular flour...

An Afternoon at the Lake

We spent the afternoon here - my chair was just up the beach on this - our favorite cove on the lake......It was warm - about 80 degrees and there was a nice breeze blowing to keep the 'skeeters' away......Scout tried out his waders......and piled up a huge fire for later......after the sunset...

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Tooth Fairy Time

Of course Scout is too old for the Tooth Fairy......but I'm not...

...now he only has one more tooth to lose before BRACES...

Friday, July 24, 2009

Thank You


Scout finally got his Thank You cards for all his birthday goodness in the mail. I'm so glad that he is able to do this all on his own now. He can make his own list and cross them off when he's done. When he was younger we would spread this out over many days because it was just too daunting for a young child to sit down and write a dozen or so thank you's all at once - so we would just write one or two a day until we got them all done...

I love his little Happy Face cards - just circles drawn with a yellow magic marker and black eyes and smile drawn with a Sharpie - the Thank You was printed from the computer at the bottom of some cardstock - two to a sheet - then we cut those in two - folded them to make two 4.25 x 5.5 cards - we would have made envelopes too but I found some leftover ones...

...So Thank You to everyone from Scout!!!

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Colour Week

RAINBOW

Today is the last day of Colour Week and I've already posted a bunch of pictures with the RAINBOW theme - I just picked out the particular colour for the day. These RAINBOW packages came yesterday from my sweet sister - I can't wait to open them......a pile of RAINBOW sweaters waiting to go to the Church basement sale...Scout's RAINBOW gumball machine......a skein of RAINBOW yarn left over from my Clapotis
...
...and another RAINBOW Birthday present from the boys...

Colour Week has been a lot of fun - Thanks to Elizabeth
for hosting!

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Colour Week - PURPLE

Although I claim PURPLE as my favorite colour, I really did know that PURPLE would be pretty scarce around hereand so it has surprised me with each colour when you focus on it you do find it - my calendar on top of my desk - with yesterdays date still displayed (today's background is blue)......still here in the office - the Man's Sundays and Seasons is brown and PURPLE this year......in Scout's room a drawing he did for the new year still hanging around......on the kitchen counter - some PURPLE grape jelly......and a pretty appliqued dish towel done by one of the ladies from Church (not me)......no PURPLE in the living room so I went downstairs to the laundry room where I knew I had hung up a PURPLE turtleneck that I wore the other day when we had wind chills in the thirties - I know it's July......a lot of my PURPLE is knitting related - these are from a baby blanket (just my standard one) and there's actually some lavender in the ball of yarn that looks white - I love the PURPLE crochet hook and the PURPLE handled scissors - I have several pairs of scissors - these have a case labeled DO NOT USE - for cloth only (I'm hoping no one will use them for paper, wire, wood, etc.)......my needle case (given to me by my sweet sister - many many years ago) has a couple of shades of PURPLE......finally I leave you with a couple of pictures from a bin in the storage room containing some leftover PURPLE costuming from Mardi Gras......all in all, I'm pretty sentimental about PURPLE - my PURPLE jeans that I had in 5th grade and my PURPLE canopy bedspread with daisies all over it - PURPLE is like a 70's colour isn't it...

Monday, July 20, 2009

Colour Week - BLUE

Once again - I was amazed at how much BLUE I was able to find just walking through the house this morning......but first of all some BLUE pool water - Scout's swimming lessons have started - He's in Level 5 and it should be quite a challenge for him - it was cool and rainy yesterday morning for the first day - and we waited until the last session hoping that it would be warm......on the side of my computer cabinet there's a neat white board and I write myself little notes (in BLUE ink) for some reason some of Scout's beads - a small piece of mica nad a puzzle piece are there beside my BLUE Earth Ball......on the Man's chair is his communion kit - I embroidered the BLUE cross on the front (it's for taking communion to shut ins and people in the hospital, etc)......I'll show you the inside because I made this kit out of a kid's lunchbox years ago when he was at seminary - First, I embroidered the cross on some black fabric - then I stitched that cloth over the design - which I think was a BLUE dragon (not sure 'though) - then I made a foam insert and cut out little divets for the implements - some olive wood Communion cups - a couple of bottles for wine - the little wafer holder and a candle - then I covered that with the black stretchy cloth - I also embroidered a little white cross on the altar cloth - not sure if you can see that very well - I was so pleased with the way it all turned out......anywhoo - In the living room I only see one BLUE item - it's an old telephone insulator - the Man picked it up on the railroad tracks near his Great Grandmother's house where we were walking way back when we were dating......but turning the corner into the kitchen and you're met with a whole cabinet full of BLUE - these dishes were Mom's - she got them at the A&P grocery and they all have images from the Revolution - they were made by Staffordshire for the Bi-Centennial - so they're from 1976 - we used them every day when I was growing up - but now they're 'collectible' - we still use them a lot - but not everyday......this is a BLUE handled lefse stick given to me the first year we lived here - after I successfully rolled some lefse with the Church Ladies to sell at the Bazaar......I could definitely be a Silk Creamer spokesperson - I love this stuff......The light is not very good this morning - that doesn't bode well for a warm swimming lesson - this is our drinking water - coming from the mountains of NC - we're pretty particular about our water - nothing quite compares......speaking of water - Jack's water bowl is BLUE - Scout made the little mat right before we got Jack - so cute......on the dining room table - Nanny's BLUE cloth I've posted about it before......on top of the piano an old lamp with BLUE flowers - we used to have two of these in the guest room - but sadly one was broken......and on top of the bench a BLUE pad - this belonged to Karen and matched her furniture at the time - the bench is all that remains of the piano that I played as a child - but it goes just fine with our piano......and finally Scout's BLUE camo swim trunks and a ND T-shirt that he'll don before we leave for swimming lessons shortly...

Colour Week - GREEN

Today's colour is GREEN...
...this is Scout's favorite colour - from where I sit I don't see a lot of GREEN...this little photo cube came from the Columbia Museum of Art's gift shop and holds several old pictures of Scout......the next little bit of GREEN that I spy is on the bookshelf - a couple of Audubon books......and an old GREEN (but still comfy) wing chair......my olive GREEN Brea Bag hangs in the hallway......several GREEN things in the living room - Scout's Hobbit book......a very old and very tattered GREEN Broadman Hymnal from my childhood church - the Man is getting ready for Church in the Park next Sunday and needed to look up some old time hymns......in the corner sits my lovely little GREEN hydrangea plant......on the kitchen counter is a pale GREEN crackle glass (I think this set came from Williams Sonoma so they're not old)......on the piano Scout's practice book - full of little GREEN monsters who teach the lessons......the little GREEN lamp that he brought back as a souvenir from a field trip......and a GREEN depression glass candlestick......on the door - an empty one of my homemade shopping bags with some GREEN leaves - I see I could have posted this one for yellow or orange - but it wasn't hanging there on those days......and a very unsightly pile of shoes by the back door (and I can't say that they are all Scout's - but these are his new GREEN camo Crocs that replaced the ones he lost on the canoe trip)......most of the GREEN right now is found outside - this picture reminds me so much of the old Windows XP Bliss
background - there are many vistas like that up here - with just open expanses of GREEN prairie and blue sky...

...the shiny grass
so lush and green
waving softly
in the wind
inviting me
down to lay and breathe it in...