Tuesday, April 30, 2013

...Le Marquis...Vegan Chocolate Spongecake...

...I made a Vegan Chocolate Spongecake à la Julia Child...all of the particulars are over at The Vegan Version...

...it was delicious...

~Have a lovely day!

Monday, April 29, 2013

...Mission Trip Preparedness Training...

...Our Sr. High Youth Group divided into two groups and went out to help some of our parishioners complete some projects around their houses...

...this helped the parishioner...but it also helped our youth to become more prepared to serve on the upcoming Mission Trip with A.S.P...
...our group got a 'Prep for Painting Project'...so they gathered their tools and got their assignments...
...some of us brushed the loose paint from the concrete foundation...
...while others fixed a wobbly railing...
...and still others scraped and sanded the wooden surfaces getting everything ready for a fresh coat of paint...

...They did a great job!...Bless their giving hearts!

~Wishing you a lovely start to your week!

Saturday, April 27, 2013

...Our Little Dogwood...

...do y'all remember a year or so ago...when we planted this little tree...
...we were so worried about him over the winter...in a couple of our heavy snows he was completely bent over under the weight of it...and we were afraid that it had damaged the tree...

...so we were thrilled to see new growth this spring...
...dogwood blooms are so pretty...

~Have a lovely day!

Thursday, April 25, 2013

...Vegan Gingerbread Latte...

...Oh my!...
...This is so good!...and perfect for a lazy Saturday morning...
...just mix a cup of brewed coffee (the Man drinks his black so I was making a pot anyway...but I think this would be a good use for leftover coffee too) with 2 cups of Vegan milk...I used almond milk...but I'm sure you can use whatever vegan milk you prefer....
...gather some gingerbread-y spices...
...if you don't have these adorable measuring spoons just pinch up some spice between your fingers to get the small amount you'll need...
...choose your sweetner...I used Sorghum Molasses and about 1/16 teaspoon of Stevia...
...mix it all up in a pot...and heat through...
...it gets so nice and frothy...you'll think you're at a fancy-dan coffee shop...
...serve with a couple of vegan gingerbread cookies for a delicious treat...

Vegan Gingerbread Latte

1 cup brewed coffee
2 cups Almond Milk
1/4 teaspoon ginger powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/16 teaspoon ground clove
1/16 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon molasses
Sweetener to taste

Put everything in a pot. Whisk until ingredients are well combined. Heat until warm or hot...

~Have a lovely weekend!

...Super Simple Slip On Booties...FREE PATTERN

Super Simple Slip On Booties

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

medium sized adult slipper about 10 inches long along bottom of slipper

MATERIALS:

two strands of any worsted weight yarn…this is one strand of hot pink Caron Simply Soft (watermelon) and one strand of Sugar and Cream Cotton in Red

Recommended needle size:

1 set US #13

GAUGE:

about 15 stitches per 4 inches

PATTERN STITCH:

Stockinette Stitch:
Row 1: knit
Row 2: purl

DIRECTIONS:

SOLE: cast on 50 stitches

knit in stockinette stitch for 7 rows – this will be a knit row – turn and knit again…this will reverse the 'bumpy' side of the stockinette stitch pattern for the upper…and leave the 'smooth' side of the stockinette stitch under foot.

UPPER: Begin decreasing one stitch at beginning and end of each row as follows:
Row 1: Knit 2, knit 2 together, knit to last 3 stitches and slip one, knit one, pass slipped stitch over.
Row 2: Purl 2, purl 2 together, purl to last 3 stitches and slip one, purl one, pass slipped stitch over.
Repeat these 2 row 3 times (34 sts. remain).

Then decrease every other row 3 times as follows:

Row 1: Knit 2, knit 2 together, knit to last 3 stitches and slip one, knit one, pass slipped stitch over.
Row 2: Purl. (28 sts. Remain).
CUFF: work in Garter Stitch for 6 rows (three ridges) cast of in knit stitch on row 7.
FINISHING:

Fold the bootie with right sides together.
...and stitch closed along toe and center front.
...turn right side out...cuff up...
...or cuff down...

...I hope you like the pattern...let me know if you knit a pair of booties...I'd love to see it...

~Have a lovely day.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

...Triplet Slippers...

...I was going to post this as a W.I.P. Wednesday...

...back in FEBRUARY!!!...

...but I had saved the post because I intended to write up a little pattern for the boots at the bottom...

...and I definitely am going to do that...maybe tomorrow...HA!

...y'all know that Scout's girlfriend is a triplet...so fun...and so rare...and they are so different...that I didn't want to make three identical sets of slippers for them...so I used the same colours...but three different patterns...
...the first pair I made are exactly like the Non-Felted slippers that I made on the way to and from Wisp for our ski trip...
...and the second pair is a pattern that I've already published...my Super Simple Stockinette Slippers...
...and the third pair are the new pattern...I did take some notes...I just need to find the tote that held that project and type them up...
...I think I'll call it Super Simple Slip On Booties...pattern coming tomorrow...

~Have a lovely day!

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

...Exploring West Virginia...Adena Burial Mound Interpretive center...

...the Adena Culture were known as the Mound builders...
...and at the Interpretive Center there were lots of artifacts...and you actually got to touch them...amazing...

...holding a scraper...
...and that's Scout holding a 'used' war club...they also had a ceremonial one...
...a 'nutting' stone...used for grinding grains in a 'nutting' cup...show you that in a min...

...it's so worn from use that you can see the thumb and finger imprints...
...a hammer...
...and some of their amazing trading beads...these are made from rabbit bones...
...and these although they look like some sort of glass or pottery are really stones that someone hollowed out...talk about a lot of work...
...more trading beads...also not pottery...
...clovis points...
...a rare piece of Adena pottery...
...a spearhead...dated at 6000 years old...amazing...
...a plumb bob...looks a lot like modern plumb bobs doesn't it...

...as she handed us this piece to hold...she told us that when the item was donated one of the curators dropped it and chipped it...so we're handling it with lots of care...
...a gorget...strapped around the neck to prevent injury in battle...
...a small nutting stone...also known as a cupstone...
...and a larger one...our guide says was found just like this with the stones placed just so in a cave...
...sewing tools...
...another nutting stone...
...buffalo fur...
...some information about the mound...
...some more tools including a fire hardened wooden needle...
...an old photo of the mound...with trees...also showing the indentation paths made by people walking up and down...
...a large nutting stone with multiple impressions...
...a stone mortar...a couple of pottery bowls and a two sided wedding cup...all Cherokee in origin...
...an old photograph of the disrespected mound at the turn of the 20th century...used as a horse racing arena...that's the judges stand on top and the race took place around the base...
...a close-up of the wedding cup...our guide said that they put vinegar in one side and sugar in the other to symbolize the bitter and sweet nature of marriage...
...a wooden comb...
...a closeup of the nutting stone...
...the information behind the nutting stone...I left it large so you can read it...
...a pottery box...
...a pine needle basket...there's a photo of the Man's grandmother making pine needle baskets here...so that was really interesting...
...a small basket coated in pitch used as a dipper...
...a model of the mound...and a couple of other local mounds...one of the information signs we read said that there used to be over 50 mounds in the area...but they were all plowed or leveled...only three remain...
...a cutaway of the Criel Mound...
...the enclosure...
...excavating the mound...how they did it...
...the excavator...Cyrus Thomas...

...Thanks for joining us for the tour...our tour guide was awesome...Scout thought she reminded him of Grandma...

~Have a lovely day!