Love, Laura Lee

Love

2012-01-27T12:37:00.000-05:00

This morning I finished the little Valentine's give-away quilt which I hand-stitched just for one of you. It's funny. Until the last couple of days, I hadn't even settled on what exactly this was going to be. When I began, I set out to make a pillow. Later, I envisioned a tote bag and played around with that idea for a little while. In the end, I decided on a small quilt to hang on the wall. I'm just crazy about these vintage florals!

Perhaps you or someone you love would like this little wall hanging? I think it would be pretty most anywhere, but especially in any girl's room. Let me know if you would like to be entered to win it.

It measures approximately 15 X 21inches.

It has a happy flower, a pert butterfly with heart-shaped wings...

...a little friend ladybug,

and of course, a tiny heart...because I love you!

My new plan for 2012 is to try to post something once a week; but it may be less often. I hope that my posts inspire you to use your God given talents to bless those around you, starting with your own family. That is why I started this blog four and a half years ago, and that is what keeps me blogging even when I feel like I'm too busy to sit down and write.

So faith, hope, love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13

Love,

Love is in the Air (well, almost)

2012-01-22T14:04:00.001-05:00

This has been the perfect weekend to sit by the fire with a cup of tea and a quilt. Here is a little log cabin quilt I'm working on for a friend's baby girl. I fairly swoon over these colors!! Bella wants you to know that she likes them, too. She just happens to like the fire better.

Maggie has been begging to learn to sew. I was just like her when I was little. After my grandmother taught me at age six or seven how to take a needle and work on a little piece of fabric, I always had something to do when I was bored. I made dresses and costumes for my dolls, little pillows, you name it. Then later, when I was eleven, my mother taught me to cut out and sew from a pattern. At that point I began making my own clothes, which I did for many years.

Yesterday, Maggie and I decided we would start a little tote bag, with some string quilting and appliqué. She did most of the appliqué by machine, using a zig-zag stitch. She is great with the machine. I can set the speed to slow and she is very careful, as you can see by the photos below.

Then we set to work doing some embroidery. She takes her time and makes very neat stitches.

I'm not a proud mama. Truly, I'm not. Why would you suspect that?

Meanwhile, it occurred to me that if I'm going to have a Valentine give-away, I had better get going with it pronto. Deciding against something very obviously pink or red, I settled on these soft, vintage florals.

It does have a love theme, though, so we're good.

I'm not telling you what it is yet. You'll just have to wait another day or so and see for yourself. However, if you want in, go ahead and holla. I think you'll be happy with it if you win.

Love,

Cauliflower and Apple Soup with Olive Oil-Fried Bread

2012-01-20T14:33:00.001-05:00

Yeah, I know. It sounds terribly strange. Who puts cauliflower and apples together? Well, this gal does and let me tell you, she created something magical with this recipe.

I'm one of those strange people who loves cauliflower. But I'd venture to say that even if it's not your favorite vegetable, if you appreciate a steaming hot bowl of creamy soup on a cold winter day and you're even mildly adventuresome, you're going like this ridiculously simple soup. I spotted this recipe while blog hopping recently and immediately bookmarked it. I had a head of cauliflower (always super inexpensive at Aldi), an apple, a few strands of angel hair pasta, and plenty of milk. So, why not?

Given that all my children like soup, I prepare it often for lunch. This one took about 45 minutes from start to finish, only because it took a while to come to a boil and then it boiled for 20 minutes. All you do is chop the cauliflower into florets, peel and chop one apple, and bring them to a boil in a quart of milk. After that begins to boil, you throw in a few broken strands of pasta, salt, and a pinch of sugar. After it boils slowly for 20 minutes, you just blend the soup in a blender to achieve the creamy consistency. My new immersion blender, a Christmas gift from my sister-in-law, made simple (and might I add, fun ?) work of the blending part. The garnish for this was just cubes of bread, pan fried in olive oil until crispy.

It was impossible for me to even detect the taste of the apple in this recipe. I suppose it is there to somehow counter the stronger cauliflower flavor. And the pasta is only there to thicken the soup a little in the end. Honestly, this was delicious and very filling. It will be moving into our soup rotation for sure.

Have a blessed weekend!

Love,

Dutch Oven Bread

2012-01-16T10:54:00.000-05:00

While reading Posie's blog one day (her blog is the first one I check when I make my rounds), I spied a recipe for bread baked in a Dutch oven. Wanting to find another job for Clifford the Big Red Pot, I followed the link to this recipe for Easy, No-knead Crusty Bread and found this resistible loaf. I loved the idea of mixing the dough and letting it sit for 8-18 hours, with no kneading required whatsoever.

Undoubtedly the simplest bread I've ever made, it did require a little advanced planning to get the timing down. What I discovered is that if I start it the day before, late in the afternoon or after dinner, it is ready to be baked just in time for dinner the next day.

You simply stir a 1/4 teaspoon of yeast and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt into 1 1/2 cups warm water. Then you mix in 3 cups of flour to form a very soft, wet dough. That is covered with plastic wrap and left to sit in a warmish place (I put mine on top of the fridge) for a looooong time, 8 hours up to 18 hours, till it is nice a bubbly. You dump it on a flour covered counter and form a ball, then flop in onto a flour covered dish towel and let it rise for a couple hours. That is just plopped into the HOT Dutch oven and baked at 475 for 30 minutes with the lid on. The lid is removed and it bakes another 15 minutes. The moist environment inside the Dutch oven creates the perfect moist loaf with the perfect crust.

It is simply divine.

Highly, highly recommended.

Love,

Wisdom Gathered Wallhanging

2012-01-13T14:37:00.000-05:00

Last fall, I was looking for a quilt to make my lovely mother-in-law, who we call "Oma", for Christmas. Once I saw this wall hanging in this quilting book, a challenging combination of piecing and hand appliqué, I knew I had found just what I was looking for.

I could tell the center block would be simple to piece with its easy squares and triangles. The outer four triangles of applique were going to take more time with all their delicate details. I started it in October, worked on it all week at The Glass Lodge, and finally finished hand quilting it...a few days after Christmas. Maybe if I hadn't attempted two give-aways in the midst of this, I could have had it ready on time. Thankfully, I have a wonderfully understanding mother-in-law. I hope she thinks it was worth the wait.

I learned a lot about appliqué working with these tiny pieces. I now know some new helpful tricks and techniques in addition to some problems to avoid. I'm thinking I may attempt to make another one, for myself. Maybe. Perhaps. One Day. But not soon.

Oma, I love you. You are a wise and beautiful woman who has taught me so much. I still have a lot to learn. Thank you for everything.

She speaks with wisdom and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

Proverbs 31:26

Love,

Omelet in a Bag

2012-01-01T14:42:00.000-05:00

Here is a fun recipe to try if you have children who like to work in the kitchen. We made these omelets in a bag at Tom's parents' house this past week. His sister Lynn showed us how she made these with a group of friends for a Sunday brunch. Apparently, Boy Scouts have been doing this for years; we are just a little late getting the memo.

Up until now, omelets have not been my thing. I make a total mess of them trying to turn them over in the pan. The cheese spills out and starts to burn and stick to the pan. The outside gets done before the middle does, leaving half of it a goopy mess. However, I like a well made omelet and this method fits the bill perfectly. Each person makes his own, just they way he likes it, and it boils in the bag in a big pot of water.

The children liked them so much they asked if we could make them again for brunch today. I thought you might like to see how we did it.

You start by cracking two eggs into a quart-sized freezer bag.

Add in your favorite filling ingredients. We used diced ham, shredded cheese, onion, green pepper, tomatoes, and salt and pepper.

Caleb loaded up on the veggies.

Then, zip up the bag and squeeze it around to mix it all up. Yes, Caleb enjoyed this part immensely.

Lay it down on the counter and gently press all the air out. (This is an important step, allowing the bag to submerge and not float in the pot.)

Write your name on the bag with a Sharpie and drop it into a pot of boiling water for 13 minutes. That's it!!

It rolls right out of the bag perfectly...cooked all the way through and never burned! You really should try it.

This has nothing to do with omelets in a bag, but don't you just love January 1st? Really, it is no different than December 31st, but it just feels different, like a clean, fresh start, a day filled with so much promise and hope for the future! It's a day to dream and plan and resolve and ACT! It offers a great opportunity to make changes for the better and focus on what really matters. With Christ's help, we can become all that He wants us to be in the coming year.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. ~ 2 Corinthians 5:17

Wishing you a wonderfully blessed New Year!

Love,

Christmas Mini-Concert

2011-12-29T17:46:00.000-05:00

Lacy and her friends Kendall, Sami, and Adam gave us a concert one evening last week after they played all day at nursing homes in the area. If you'd like to see a little bit of that, you can find it at this link. (Click on the text to go to the link.)

Love,

Chicken and Sausage Cassoulet

2011-12-27T17:49:00.000-05:00

I found this recipe by accident. For about ten years, I've been preparing cassoulet on New Year's Day. Cassoulet (ka-soo-LAY) is a French term used to describe a hearty, stew-like casserole of meats, vegetables and white beans, simmered slowly, allowing the flavors to meld and mingle into a supremely flavorful dish. I found the original recipe in a 1996 edition of Southern Living magazine, which I have held onto ever since. My family loves it and looks forward to it every year. Being too lazy to go upstairs and locate that magazine, I decided the other day to just Google "Southern Living Cassoulet" and see if I could find it online. I never did find that recipe, but what I found instead could really give our old favorite a run for its money.

Just for the fun of it, I gave this newer Southern Living recipe a try last night. While this cassoulet is not nearly as involved as the one I've been using for a decade, it tastes every bit as delicious. Consisting of sausage, chicken, and white beans cooked in one pan, this is a simple-to-fix, casual dish. Unlike the cassoulet I usually prepare, this one has a cornbread topping poured over at the end and baked at 400 degrees. I used my new 3.5 quart Cuisenart stainless fry pan, part of a set my parents gave us for Christmas, which was the perfect size to hold this dish. So, if you are going to make this, grab your big stove top and oven-proof fryer, iron skillet, or Dutch oven. It takes almost no time to put together, but the results are super satisfying on a chilly, winter evening.

Ryan will likely hold me to making the original favorite and familiar cassoulet on New Year's. So, on Sunday I'll be roasting a chicken in the oven, frying pork chops on the stove, and cooking white beans in a big pot, before assembling everything in a huge Dutch oven and baking it for an hour and a half. I can handle that once a year. The rest of the year, I'll be going with this quick-fix version.

Start by sauteing chicken breast pieces until lightly browned.

Then add sliced sausage.

Next, stir in the beans, tomatoes, chicken broth, and thyme.

Mix up the cornbread and pour over the top. I used my own cornbread recipe, which was a little more than this cassoulet needed. So I baked about 1/3 of it in a small pan at the same time.

The cornbread rises to the top and puffs up to a golden brown.

This one called for the prettiest French country bowl in the cupboard.

Stay warm!

Love,

Merry Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T13:43:00.000-05:00

When I was a little girl, Christmas Eve was my favorite day of the year. I never counted down to Christmas Day; I always counted down to Christmas Eve. It came sooner, and besides, we were one of those strange families who opened their presents on Christmas Eve. It was a tradition from my father's side of the family and I have a feeling it originated because his mother, whom we called Mama Mary, couldn't stand the wait till Christmas morning. Who knows? Anyway, the next morning, Santa came, per tradition.

Tom and I instituted the same tradition when we got married, opening our presents from friends and extended family on Christmas Eve. We never taught our children that Santa was real, but we pretended he left gifts under the tree for them on Christmas morning. They always knew who the gifts were really from. Now, don't get me wrong. I don't think you're a bad person, or not Christian, or anything like that if you taught or teach your children that Santa is real. That's a personal decision parents have to make. We just chose to tell our children he was pretend, like Micky Mouse, or some other character. Jesus is real. He lives. Santa Claus does not. We don't have an aversion to the character of Santa, or think he represents Satan with the letters jumbled up. Nope, he's just the make-believe, fat guy in the big red suit. Our children still enjoy Christmas morning immensely.

So, tonight, after we attend the candlelight Christmas service at church, we will gather as a family once again, all seven of our children, two married-in-loves, and our grandbaby. We'll be coming home to a delicious meal of Swiss chicken in the crock pot followed by this S'Mores Cheesecake. It will be our big Christmas meal this year because tomorrow Abby, Jonathan and Kyle will fly to Branson, MO to visit Jonathan's family for a week.

We'll gather around our living room tree, read the Christmas story from Luke chapter 2, then slowly, slowly take turns opening each gift one at a time, starting with the youngest child. It promises to be a very interesting night, as Caleb and Kyle both celebrate their very first Christmases. The excitement today is heavy and almost palpable.

I thought I'd show you the quilt I finally managed to hang in the stairwell. More accurately, I should say, "Tom managed to hang..." I'm so happy with how it turned out.

Have a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I pray you will enjoy all the warm family times, give and receive lots of hugs, make treasured memories, and especially delight in celebrating the birth of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ, who came that we might truly live.

Merry Christmas!

Love,

Bye Bye Blue

2011-12-17T10:21:00.000-05:00

Good morning!

The sun is not shining outside, but it was shining on my plate this morning. Here is my sunny side up egg on the Christmas china I found for nearly nothing at the Salvation Army a few years ago. I'd wanted Christmas china forever but refused to spend an arm and leg on something that would only be used for a few days a year. This set of plates, cups, saucers, creamer, and salt and pepper shakers made my heart go pitter patter when I spotted them. They're cheap; I won't even lie. But I love them and that's all that matters.

Tom is busy finishing up the painting in the stairwell. A few years ago I went a ~~little~~ lot crazy with paint colors. I liked the blue for, oh, about 30 minutes. I waited a few years to change it because it is so difficult to paint all the way up to the second floor ceiling from the stairs and I didn't have the heart to ask him to repaint again so soon. On Thursday, Lacy and I started painting the foyer. Yesterday Ryan came to help me paint the hall upstairs. And last night Tom started on the stairwell. It looks lighter and brighter and I'm a much happier person now. I also repainted over the candy pink in the powder room. So, if you ever saw it and liked it, I'm sorry. If you hated it, you'll be happy to know that it is a much more relaxing color now. If you didn't care one way or the other, oh well.

My project this morning is to mount some photos to put on the wall in the powder room. I figure it this way; if someone is using that tiny room, I basically have a captive audience. So why not allow them the privilege of gazing at photos of my adorable children while they...you know...um...

...yeah.

Then it's on to baking. Lots of baking. I love baking!!!

I have 893,478,544,523 things I want to do today. How about you? Are you ready for Christmas?

Love,

Cocoa Afternoon

2011-12-12T17:45:00.001-05:00

It's a creative kind of afternoon.

Candy canes and flowers and...

...popcorn...dunked in hot cocoa. Only Caleb would think of doing this. He's such a boy.

Speaking of Caleb. He finally has a stocking on the mantle. Finished that this afternoon. These are some of the homespun fabrics I used in his room.

On to finishing another little project I started last week. This is going to be a pocket advent calendar. Each little pocket will hold a tiny ornament to go on that tree up there to the right of Caleb's stocking. Yep, we're already twelve days behind. Pathetic, huh?

Only thirteen days till Christmas.

Yikes.

Love,

Quilted Ottoman

2011-12-09T18:05:00.000-05:00

This ottoman has needed a slipcover for some time now. After searching online for one that suited me and finding nothing at all I liked, I decided to quilt one instead.

I like it. Colorful, patchy, and fun. It's so me.

Oh, and Bella says to tell you it's so her, too.

Love,

Hot Cranberry Cider

2011-12-04T12:12:00.000-05:00

Good Morning! Come on in! Today I'm home from church with a slightly sick little boy. So, he's helping me with some Christmas decorating and generally talking my ears off in the process.

First up is my favorite snowman trio, dancing and singing "Let it Snow!"

We can always wish, can't we?

Next is "Oh, By Golly", the scrappy-happy Christmas quilt I made a couple years ago.

Simmering on the stove top is a pot full of Hot Cranberry Cider. It tastes so delicious and makes the house smell all Christmasy. It is a family favorite; we typically start making this over Thanksgiving weekend and continue all through the month of December. Wanna know how to stir this up? Here is my quick easy method. You'll need:

Hot Cranberry Christmas Cider

1 can frozen apple juice
1 can frozen cranberry juice
4 juice cans full of warm water
one orange
2 (or so) cinnamon sticks
10 (or so) whole cloves

Dump the frozen juices into your pot and add just two cans of water for each can, instead of the suggested amount on the can. Leaving the juices more concentrated eliminates the need for added sugar. (Of course, if you want to make more volume, you can dilute it with more water and add additional sugar. But this is the way I do it). Cut a couple slices off the orange and throw them in the pot. Then, juice the rest of the orange and pour the juice into the pot. Toss in your cinnamon sticks and whole cloves. Let this simmer on the stove or in a crock pot until warm. It can simmer all day if you like. Strain each cup through a tea strainer before serving.

Incidentally, this brand spankin' new Dutch oven is from Aldi, my favorite grocery. It's HEAVY cast iron, enamel coated in cherry red. The price was right ($30), so hey, why not? I am seeing a lot of soup and stew in its future....

Juice the orange.

I allowed the eager six year old a couple quick stirs before I shooed

him out of the kitchen with his sick self.

The color is gorgeous and the tangy, spicy, sweet flavor is perfect.

Fly back over to my nest real soon! I'm going to share a great chicken recipe next.

Love,

Ode to Joy

2011-11-29T11:26:00.001-05:00

There once was a girl with a pen,

Who wanted a cute next-of-kin.

She spied this cool bloke

And (this is no joke)

The contest determined to win.

Thank you to all six creative ladies who churned out poems in an effort to win this little snowman wall hanging. All of them were very well-written; Tom had a difficult decision to make. I heard him laugh out loud a few times. Then he became very quiet. He took his job very seriously and spent a lot of time making his choice. We had fun with this and hope you did, too!

In the end Tom chose Joy's poem, a rollicking limerick which was successful in producing a hearty chuckle. So, now I'll share it with you...

There once was a woman named Temple

Who thought sewing was really quite simple,

She made something pretty,

We wrote her a ditty,

And all of us smiled with a dimple.

When the chilly and blustery winds blew,

Crafty Laura knew just what to do,

An old dress and two bows,

And three socks without toes,

Soon became a quilt shiny and new.

While others would ski, skate and sled,

Thrifty Laura would make her own bread,

Then out of the blue,

She'd whip up a stew,

So her family was warm and well-fed.

When the snow piled higher and higher,

Laura's brood would be warm by the fire,

At her feet would be Bella,

By her side her fine fella,

What more could her sweet heart desire?

So remember this lesson, my dear,

Winter isn't the worst time of year,

Come to Laura's-it's nice!

While you scrape off the ice,

She'll quilt you some new winter gear.

Great job, Joy! Once I get the binding on, I'll have your quilt in the mail to you. I hope this chilly fellow will warm your heart and home for many winters to come.

Love,

So, You Want to Wait Till Tomorrow, Do You??

2011-11-24T12:29:00.000-05:00

Just teasing!!

Our sweet little red bird has an announcement to make. This little birdie is all decked out in his best velvet finery to make such an auspicious declaration.

He will use his strongest, most vigorous and robust voice to tell you that....

...this morning, Maggie drew a winner for the quilt!

Look who it is!!

Cheri Wheelon!!

You told me you wouldn't give up until you won a piece of Laura Lee stitchery.

And now you have!! How about I bring it to you at church on Sunday?

I hope you enjoy displaying it in your home for many Christmases to come!

And guess who won the little embroidered red bird ornament? My sweet mama did! Grandmama suggested the name "Robusto" for the cardinal on the quilt, and Tom chose her name. You probably think he was trying to make points with the mother-in-law, but he had no idea who submitted which name. I promise!

Have a beautiful Thanksgiving Day and a great holiday weekend!

Love,

But As Long As You Love Me So....

2011-11-22T16:30:00.001-05:00

Sometimes I get these crazy notions, and I should probably just let them pass instead of acting on them. Like yesterday--as I was working on this wall hanging, from parts and pieces of the original Christmas give-away quilt that I didn't end up using--I got the ridiculous idea to offer it as another give-away, this time as a contest. So I threw it out there on Facebook to see if there were any takers and got a fairly decent response. Several folks thought my suggestion of writing a poem or short story was a good one, so I'm going with it.

Here are the guidelines.

Write a short original poem or story-- humorous, serious, whatever you want--with a winter theme.
If it's a poem, it needs to be 8 lines at least.
Send it to me by email or as a message on Facebook. Don't post it to my wall.
You may submit one or two entries.
Try your best not to reveal your identity in your poem or story.
Deadline is next Monday, November 28th, by 6PM.

I'll post the winner on Tuesday, November 29th. The winner gets this little wall hanging of a snowman.

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

Love,

Let Heaven and Nature Sing!

2011-11-19T17:22:00.002-05:00

This quilt took quite a circuitous route from my original plan of simple, patchy table runner with holly border to vintage Christmas card-inspired wall hanging. As I prepared the holly leaves and berries, I kept seeing in my mind's eye antique greeting cards with frames of holly surrounding snowy winter scenes. That sent me on a goose chase researching vintage Christmas cards--the scenes, the borders, the lettering, etc.

I knew exactly what kind of winter scene I wanted. It had to include a snow-covered cottage and pine trees, a winding lane, and singing birds. More than that, it needed to show all of nature celebrating the Savior's birth. As I worked with the blue sky fabric, I kept seeing the word "Joy" in the swirls. And it fit. The heavens and nature are both singing praises in this quilt!

Joy to the World!

Do you see where I faintly stitched "Joy" around the sky?

I had such a great time stitching this wall hanging for one of you. If you'd like to have it, just leave a comment, send me an email, or let me know on Facebook. I'll enter you into the drawing which will be on Thanksgiving day.

Do you recognize the bluebird? That's Piccolo, from my Christmas give-away quilt two years ago, returning for an encore visit on this quilt. You could call him my signature blue bird! His friend red bird needs a name, too. Suggest a name for the red bird and I'll enter you to win a handmade Christmas ornament. Whichever name Tom chooses will be the winner of the ornament.

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Let Earth receive her King;

Let every heart prepare Him room

And Heaven and nature sing,

And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing!

Love,

I Let Kyle Chews a Winner

2011-11-18T15:09:00.001-05:00

Gifty Taggy Cube and all the entries.

My eager assistant Kyle is ready to go.

He brings it in closer for a good look.

First one to the mouth!

Are you sure that's the one, Kyle?

Is that the one you chews?

Well, who did you chews?

Diane!

It really was your name before he chowed down on it!

Hope little Miss Hallie likes it! She's going to need to do a little growing before she'll find it very interesting, no doubt. Soon she'll be chewing her very own taggy cube like a pro!

As always, I wished everyone could win. Incidentally, I'd be happy to create a taggy cube for a baby in your life. I can do them in gender-neutral colors or specifically for a boy or girl. Soft pastels, primary colors, whatever you can dream up... $5 Just let me know if you're interested.

Love,

Taggy Cube (or who needs Baby Einstein?)

2011-11-14T21:00:00.001-05:00

The other day I said I'd show you the toy I made for Kyle. So, here it is-- a little taggy cube, made from inspiration I found at this site. Camille's blog is a treat for the eyes and is full of quilty motivation. She chose to quilt her squares before she sewed them together to form the cube. I didn't. I just used six 5" squares from one of my favorite fabric lines--Pampered Pooch by Moda--stitched together as is.

The whole idea is that babies love tags, thus the tags of various textures sewn into every seam. For Kyle's I used satin ribbon, ric rac, grosgrain ribbon, elastic, velcro, and velvet ribbon. And true to form, Kyle took to it like a duck to water. Have I told you he's a fast learner?

I had so much fun making this that I grabbed up another set of squares, cut some more ribbons and ric rac, and started another one. Is there a baby in your life who might enjoy a cute little taggy cube made from my favorite vintage children's prints? If so, leave a comment and I'll enter you in a drawing to win the second one.

Love,

Lazy Day

2011-11-12T14:49:00.004-05:00

It's a crisp, chilly day here. The temperature outside, barely nosing above 60 degrees, is doing its best to convince us that it really is Fall. While Tom and Lacy are hard at work nailing down a new roof on a house across town, the rest of us are just enjoying a lazy day at the homestead. I figured this was as good a time as any to update my poor, neglected blog.

The children are outside on the deck engaged in crafty pursuits. Holly and Maggie are busy making patterns with perler beads and ironing them to make cool designs. Maggie's wavy hair is a result of the French braids she wore to the daddy/daughter dinner last night. Cute, huh?

Meanwhile, Caleb is busy coloring. Incidentally, he's wearing three shirts. Earlier he had on four. It's not exactly clear to me why he thinks multiple shirts are better than one shirt and one jacket. Not sure what's up with the charm bracelet, either.

Moving on...

Personally, I just think it's great to have a whole day at home with nothing at all that has to be done. I'd have a hard time thinking of anything much better than being home with a sewing project I'm excited about and a whole day to work on it. So, I'm occupying my time messing about with the Christmas quilt give-away. This one has morphed into something completely different than I originally planned. I keep tweaking it here and there, adding and deleting elements, my hands trying frantically to keep up with my ADD brain. But it's coming along nicely and is possibly my favorite so far. When it's completed this week I'll be sure to let you know. Then, I'll draw a name for the winner on Thanksgiving Day, per tradition. Holla if you want in.

Other than that, there are several other sewing projects I want to show you in the next few days. I made the cutest toy for Kyle this morning on a whim--saw it on a blog and had to make one. Super fun and easy to sew-- he's gonna love it. I'll definitely snap a few photos of him when he sees it and will likely make another to give away. Then there's the Christmas gift I've been hand stitching pretty steadily for the past few weeks. Oh, my goodness. I love it so much. Well, as much as I can love something that can't love me back. And recipes--got some photos chillin' in the iPhoto, ready to become blog posts as well.

I hope you're enjoying your Saturday as much as we are.

Stay warm!

Love,

'Tis the Season

2011-10-11T17:41:00.000-04:00

I love days like this. It's rainy and cloudy outside, so we're stuck in the house on this cold, cold wet day. Truthfully, it's only wet, not cold. We actually finished school before lunch, which is always the plan but rarely happens. That freed us all up for an abundance of creativity all afternoon. A rosemary/garlic roasted chicken is bubbling away in one crock pot, while green beans are simmering in another. On the counter, a couple loaves of John's Easy Yeast Bread are rising. The aromas wafting over from the kitchen are heavenly.

Meanwhile, from the sewing and crafting room, formerly known as the dining room, can be heard much buzzing and whirring of the sewing machine mixed with Christmas carols playing softly in the background. Christmas carols, you ask? Yes! Abby and I are both working on Christmas projects. I can't tell you how happy I am that my girl has been bitten by the sewing bug. This is the child who grew up playing at my feet while I sewed and smocked a hundred dresses but who never showed any interest whatsoever in learning to sew herself. So over the summer, deciding she indeed enjoys the art of putting fabric together in imaginative ways, she learned to smock and completed the smocking for Kyle's first Christmas photo outfit. She now has another fun project in the works and is planning to offer her first give-away on her blog soon! Be sure to bookmark her blog and keep your eye open for her give-away.

I'm also working on my Christmas give-away. I challenged myself to construct this one completely from fabric I already have in my stash. (You'd realize that's not a very impressive challenge if you saw my stash.) The design finally gelled in my head last night. This one is going to be in all traditional Christmas colors and motifs. I will have dozens of hours for stitching during our fall mountain get-away to Blue Ridge in a couple weeks.

It's patchy; it's scrappy; it's appliqued; it's fun.
I love it already. And I hope that you will, too.

Love,

Bloom Where You Are Planted

2011-10-07T14:24:00.000-04:00

I finished the little quilt last evening just in time to take it to Kristina this weekend. It is my prayer that she truly will "bloom" here in her new home with her family.

The duffle bags are packed for Boot Camp. I have some stitching loaded in the car, ready for the four-hour drive. I'm starting my Christmas give-away, which will incorporate some English paper piecing, as well.

Remember: although you can not always choose your circumstances, you can bloom right where God has you today.

Have a blessed weekend, friends!

Love,

English Paper Piecing

2011-10-03T11:54:00.000-04:00

The days seem to be moving at quite a clip this fall. October could possibly be the busiest month for us in a long time. We have an exciting family reunion with Tom's parents and siblings on tap this weekend in Dahlonega, up in the north Georgia mountains. I promise you won't want to miss the photos from our Boot Camp weekend. We are deep into costume, skit, and game preparation for that.

The end of the month we're taking the family to Blue Ridge, also in the north Georgia mountains, for a week-long get-away. The countdown has begun! Twenty-one days till The Glass Lodge! Hot tub, here I come.

Meanwhile, the girls and I have completed eight great weeks of school since early August. This is our ninth week and we're using it as a reading and creativity week. We planning to pile the books, some projects, a big blanket, and lunch in the van and head to Hopeland Gardens in a little while to drink in the beauty of this crisp, autumn day under the sweeping live oaks.

Here is the project I'm taking. This is a little something I'm making for a sweet someone special who joined our family by adoption about the same time as Caleb came home. Tom's sister Beth and her husband Jack adopted their beautiful daughter Kristina from Ukraine in April. This small wall hanging is going to be for her room.

The little flowers are made from an old classic quilt block pattern called Grandma's Flower Garden. I decided to just appliqué three small versions of the block for the flowers and stitch some embroidery on it as well. Maybe you'd be interested in seeing how English paper piecing is done?

First you trace the shapes on freezer paper. The paper has a regular side and a waxy side.

When the waxy side is placed on the wrong side of the fabric and pressed
down with a hot iron, it sticks to the fabric!
It peels right off later without leaving a trace of residue.

You then trim with scissors around the shapes,
leaving about 3/16 of an inch seam allowance.

Next, you baste the seam allowance over the paper, stitching right through the paper.

These basting threads will be removed later.

You sew a couple of these together with a whip stitch along the edge.

And it looks like this when you flip it over.

I have a whole stack of these shapes ready to take to Hopelands with me this afternoon. It will be a glorious day, stitching in the garden while the children run as free as little lambs in the fresh air. I hope you will find a few minutes or a few hours to spend outside today enjoying God's glorious creation.

I'll be sure to post a picture when I get this finished in the next couple of days.

Love,

Monday Morning Musings

2011-09-19T09:53:00.000-04:00

We have a very busy week according to my day planner.

****

Tonya has a lucky streak going. She won the granola!

****

We love these muffins.

****

Praying your week is a smile-bringer!

Love,

Here's The Scoop

2011-09-16T22:57:00.002-04:00

I've had quite a few people request instructions for how I make my granola. My version has sort of evolved over the years. I use a base of old-fashioned oats, add every raw nut and seed I can get my hands on, then finish it off after baking with a boat load of dried fruit. The amounts truly are flexible and you can substitute what you like or have on hand and leave out what you don't, whatever strikes your fancy. This crunchy goodness is so delicious with a little milk or sprinkled over yogurt.

This "recipe" makes a whole lot, so adjust down if you don't need very much. Just warning you. I give about half a batch away each time, so I like to make a lot. I promise you can't mess this up unless you just bake it too long and it burns or something. I'm going to tell you exactly how I did my last batch, so listen carefully, hear?? The ingredients are all in bold italics because I'm too ~~lazy~~ tired to type them all again at the end.

Into my big, ol' roasting pan I dumped a whole box of raw oatmeal. (I buy the hearty old-fashioned variety, not the wimpy quick cooking flakes.) To this I added 1 cup each of pecans, cashews, sunflower seeds, chopped almonds, walnuts, and pumpkin seeds. I would have added sesame seeds if I had them. I used a cup measure just to simplify writing these instructions. I can assure you I never measure the seeds or fruit.

OK, this part is really important, so listen up. I use extra virgin coconut oil and honey. This is what makes the granola taste so great. I buy the coconut oil from Amazon because that is where I can get the best price. As you can see I don't play games when I order coconut oil. I get the big 54 ounce tubs of this stuff. It's great. It has the most delicious flavor! I highly recommend it. For sweetener, I use honey. I use grocery store honey rather than local raw honey for this only because it is going to be heated for a while in the oven anyway.

Yes, that is honey dripping all over my counter while I stopped to take a photo. That 1 cup measure is half filled with coconut oil and half filled with honey. I dumped that over the seeds and oats in the pan.

Next I added 2 teaspoons of vanilla and five twists of the sea salt grinder. Yes, I counted the twists just for you, friends. (Use just a few shakes of the shaker if you don't use a grinder.)

OK, I popped that in a slow oven...around 300 degrees...for 15 minutes. I set the timer so I wouldn't forget it. I stirred it when the timer went off and did that again about three times. (Truth be told, I turned the oven off after the first stir, put the sweater on the dog, and went for a walk. I stirred it when I got back home, turned the oven back on, and baked it another 15 minutes or so.) I shoot for 45 minutes to an hour in the oven. I don't like it too toasted or brown.

Next comes the fruit.

Here are the fruits that went in this batch: 1 cup of each of dried apricots, raisins, dried cranberries, chopped dates, and coconut. I put those in after the baking is done. Scissors work great for cutting up the apricots, by the way.

Stir it up and put into tightly sealed containers.

Hey, I tell you what. If you read this far, you deserve a treat. Leave a comment here or on Facebook and I'll enter you to win a big ol' bag of my famous granola. Here is how I'm going to do it, though. Just put "Yum!" for your comment if you want me to enter your name. That's all. Don't write anything else if you want to be entered. I want to see how many people read to the end.

"Yum!"

Got it??

~~I'll draw a name on Sunday night.~~ Yay, Tonya!! You win again!

Good night my dear, sweet, crunchy bloggity friends.

Love,

Soft Pretzels

2011-09-13T10:01:00.000-04:00

I'll never forget the first time I tasted a soft pretzel. It was when I was about 10 years old, at the mall in Dayton, Ohio, at a little store front called Hot Sam. Goodness, was it delicious! I was an instant fan. Since then I've occasionally treated myself and the children to an Aunt Annie's soft pretzel at the mall near us, though doing so can really take a bite out of my wallet.

It's been a while since I made soft pretzels from scratch. The first time I made them, Ryan was little and he loved to help me in the kitchen. After that, he would beg me to make these.

Well, now I have another kitchen helper and we pretty much find something fun to create after school each day. Yesterday we mixed up this super simple recipe for pretzel dough, killed time for an hour or so, then rolled and baked them. Wow. I can't even begin to tell you how delicious they were. You're just going to have to try them yourself.

First, you mix water, yeast, and a little sugar in a small bowl.

When that gets all foamy, you add it to the flour and other ingredients.
Mix well.

You put your trusty kitchen helper on kneading that all till smooth.

Then cover and let rise till double.

After the dough has risen, mix 1/2 cup baking soda with 4 cups hot water.

Divide dough into 12 balls.
Roll each into a rope and twist into a pretzel shape.

Dunk in the soda water.

Sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake at 450 for 8 minutes.

Ours turned out rather like pretzel buns because we didn't get our ropes long enough. Still, they were fabulous. We brushed them with melted butter, but next time I think I'll dunk them so they're even more buttery. I like mine dipped in mustard, because that's the way I ate my very first one, oh so many years ago. This time, I saved half and sprinkled it with cinnamon sugar. Delicious!

Have a beautiful day!

Love,

Sound Bites

2011-09-11T16:04:00.001-04:00

When we arrived in China, the first thing our guide told us was this: "I have spoken to the orphanage director about your boy. She told me he is very talkative and very active."

Can't say we weren't forewarned.

Yes, Caleb likes to talk. And not only does he love to talk, he loves to make noise, boy sounds, if you will. Airplane sounds. Truck sounds. Gun sounds. Animal sounds. Oh, and he sings and carries a really great tune. On any given morning, I am awakened by one of the aforementioned sounds or a lively little tune, belted forth with great enthusiasm.

We've never struggled to communicate with Caleb. Most people would assume that the inability to communicate is the most difficult part of adopting an older child. In most cases, I would agree. Holly was also five years old when she came home. We worked painfully to communicate with our shy, quiet little girl for many months. Not with Caleb. Even when he was speaking only Chinese, he managed to make his needs known and to understand our directives and explanations. He never became frustrated or melted down. Charades became an animated game we played, as we threw in a little Chinese for his benefit and he attempted a little English to help us along.

Now he's made the switch to English. Oh, it's broken English for sure. He leaves out little words like am, is, are, was, and were. He's holding on to a couple of Chinese words, mostly because Maggie enjoys using them. We have some great conversations. Often they revolve around a discussion of bad guys vs. good guys. But that is a whole other post.

Enjoy a few sound bites from a day with Caleb.

*********

"Maggie happy now Caleb here. Maggie sad Caleb not here. Now Maggie happy!!"

He's convinced Maggie suffered a pitiful, gloomy existence before he came home. He has no idea that she played happily by herself or with Holly in her former life.

"I get bigger. I drive car. I drive fast. Mama car slow. I bu like it slow. I like it fast car!!"

I see it as my duty to warn you that you have a little less than ten years before you need to get off the road.

"Mama, paylay me? I wan paylay you."

He would like me to stop what I'm doing and play. After all, I wanted a little boy!

"I bu like it agagators. I bu like it crocodiles. I bu like it lions. I bu like it all bad guys. I bu like it snakes...."

He just looks like a tough guy. It's all an act. If I needed to hide something, I could put it in a room, shut the door, and tell him there was a bad guy in there. Not that I would actually do that, mind you.

"I like it Jonfun. He fun guy."

Pretty much self-explanatory.

"Ky-O seepy? Ky-O seepy all time. I bu like it Ky-O seepy."

He loves Kyle, but hates it when Kyle naps at our house because then he has to be quiet.

"Mama, I hungry. I like it boonana. OK I have boonana?"

Seriously, how could I resist this face?

We "like it" Caleb.

Love,

And the Winner is....

2011-09-02T11:27:00.000-04:00

I get so excited when it gets close to time for drawing a winner in my give-aways. I can't ever decide..."Should I draw early in the day? Or, should I wait until later in case someone wants to enter who hasn't seen the give-away post?"

Then I want to make the drawing as fair as possible. I've used names on paper before. I've also used a random number generator. Both should be really fair, right? Something about a random number generator just seems less fair to me. I mean, let's say there are thirty entries. Why does it seem as though number one and number thirty have a lot less chance of being drawn than one of the numbers in the middle? I don't know. That's just the way my brain works.

So I made up little paper entries for each person. There were a total of 26 entries this time. As I wrote each name, I couldn't help thinking happy thoughts about that person winning...."Joy is home on furlough! I could save by shipping to Florida and not China. I hope she wins!" "Leann is a new bride. This is her first fall in her own home. I hope she wins!" "Ellen faithfully enters every drawing and hasn't won yet. She and I go way back to our first babies. Hope she wins!" "Diane smiles and keeps plugging on through adversity. She should win." "Tonya ministers with her family in Botswana. It would be fun to ship her something from the States. I'd love to see her win."

Bottom line, I wish everyone who entered could win. Maybe I should just cut it it up into 26 little pieces and give each of you a scrap!

So here we go.

Names into the basket....

...lovely assistant pauses her reading to reach in and draw a name....

Tonya, you win!!

I had no idea when I wrote that yesterday that her name would actually be drawn this morning! I've known Tonya for quite a while. Before she moved, we used to be neighbors and attended the same church. She is also an adoptive mom and has nearly as many young 'uns as I do. So this little piece of stitchery will be warming her table in Botswana with a little South Carolina love, and I couldn't be happier!

Gosh, I wonder what time it is in Botswana anyway....

Here is a link to Tonya and Scott's blog. You can go check out what their family is doing in Botswana to share the love of Christ with the people there.

Shipes on Mission

Have a fabulous holiday weekend. Be sure to share it with someone you love!

Love,

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

2011-08-31T00:02:00.001-04:00

Still stitching like crazy on the quilty give-away. I know. I said it would be done by now. It should still be done by Friday. What happened was that I decided to do more quilting on it, which is a prerogative with quilting; you get to decide how much or how little you do. I started out thinking I would do less. I ended up doing more. So, this afternoon I sat outside enjoying incredibly mild temperatures, stitching, while my mind wandered to all things fall.

Meanwhile, I thought I'd share this recipe with you. If you have a few minutes to putter in the kitchen, try this from-scratch cake that you can mix in one bowl in a hurry. If I can mix it up in less than ten minutes with a couple of eager assistants and a crazy dog under foot, while simultaneously taking photographs, surely you can beat my time.

Mayonnaise replaces the egg and the oil in this moist, chocolaty favorite. The flavorful brown sugar frosting is the perfect topping. Oh, man. We loved this. It's really a good thing I gave most of it away.

Flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and baking soda go in the bowl first.

Next in goes the water and mayonnaise and vanilla.

Mix until smooth. You can use a mixer, but you don't have to.

Mine's dead, so I mix my hand.

Pour into greased pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

After the cake cools, start the frosting.

Place butter and brown sugar into the the pan and heat until bubbly.

Add milk and powdered sugar.

Beat until smooth.

Frost the cooled cake.

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons baking cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup water
1 cup (regular not low-fat) mayonnaise
1 teaspoon vanilla

Brown Sugar Frosting:

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1-3/4 cups sifted powdered sugar

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa and baking soda. Add water, mayonnaise and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Pour into a greased 9" square or 11"X 7" baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool completely. For frosting, melt butter in a saucepan. Stir in brown sugar; cook and stir until bubbly. Remove from heat and stir in milk. Gradually add powdered sugar; beat by hand until frosting is of spreading consistency. Immediately frost cake. Yields 9-12 servings.

Love,

Getting There

2011-08-28T22:00:00.001-04:00

Several hours in an easy chair-- Little League World Series baseball droning in the background (yay California, USA!)--and this fall give-away table runner is nearing completion. I should be able to finish the quilting tomorrow while the girls do school. I like to have something to keep my fingers busy while they read, do sums, or recite verses.

I'm slightly behind the eight ball on this; I forgot to pack it along when I went to visit my folks in NC last week. Just imagine all the stitching I could have completed during my dad's history stories! I think I can still have it finished in the next day or two. The edges will be trimmed up nicely and bound in a lovely light turquoise print. The plan is to draw a name for this on Friday, so holla if you want in.

Love,

Peanut Butter and Bees

2011-08-26T15:29:00.000-04:00

The surest, fastest way for me to take a quick trip back to my childhood is to make a peanut butter and honey sandwich for lunch. Since sandwiches aren't high on my list of favorite foods, I don't eat them very often. When I do, you can bet this is what it will be. My sweet mama fixed more of these for me than any other kind of sandwich when I was growing up.

Caleb calls honey "bees." It's the cutest thing. When offered jelly for his bread yesterday, he said no, he wanted "bees." So bees it is, and bees it will likely remain, as the adorable sayings of our children routinely become part of our family tradition.

Homemade bread, natural peanut butter, and bees straight from a local bee keeper. The sweetest things in life are often the simplest.

Enjoy your weekend!

Love,

Pesto Pasta Salad (or The Salad That Stole the Show)

2011-08-25T21:56:00.001-04:00

Trying to come up with food that is child friendly and still interesting for adults can be a problem when you're planning a birthday party menu. Last week when Abby and I were deciding what to prepare for Maggie's party, I remembered this pasta salad that my friend Diane told me about. She promised that it was well received whenever she served it.

Let's just say that excluding the cake, it was the biggest hit on the table. The children and the adults alike just inhaled this stuff. I heard exclamations such as, "My child is so picky! I can't believe she is eating that!!" And I had several requests for the recipe.

I've had my share of pasta salad. Some are good; others are so-so. Some are downright bland. This one is the best I've had. The pesto makes it unusual. Super simple to assemble, it's easy to make ahead and store in the refrigerator until party time. It consists of six ingredients: pasta, mozzarella cheese, cherry tomatoes, black olives, pepperonis, and pesto. That's it. Diane uses bow tie pasta; I used shells, in keeping with the beachy theme.

I wanted to buy the tiny little pepperonis because they were, you know, cute. However, Abby squelched that suggestion in a hurry. "Mom, they're twice the price per ounce as the regular pepperonis." I trained her right. So I opted to cut the pepperonis into quarters which only took about 2 minutes. If you want to go vegetarian, omit the pepperonis. Incidentally, Diane often serves this at dinners for international students, many of whom do not eat pork. So, she substitutes turkey pepperonis.

Unquestionably, the leftovers are just as delicious. We took what was left to the beach the following day and shared with Brad and Hannah. If we weren't the loving, considerate, unselfish family that we are, we'd have been knocking each other out for the last morsel.

Pesto Pasta Salad

1 lb bow tie or shell pasta, cooked and drained
1/2 lb mozzarella cheese, cubed
1 lb cherry tomatoes, cut in halves
1 can black olives, drained and cut in halves
1/2 of a package of pepperonis, cut in quarters
1- 8 oz. jar pesto

Mix all together in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for several hours.

********

This recipe will be on the short list for lunch around here. Served with fruit on the side, it really can be a meal all by itself.

Love,

Mermaids and Pirates

2011-08-20T23:36:00.000-04:00

We celebrated Maggie's eighth birthday with a pool party on Friday night.

Every fun party calls for fun food.

Sparkly undersea critters fashioned by Holly and Maggie helped to depict the ocean theme.

Around 4PM the sky was threatening rain. By party time, blue skies prevailed.

Speaking of blue...blue punch with fish in the ice cubes.

Happy smiles....

More happy smiles.

Still more happy smiles.

Pool time.

Pops establishing the rules...

Not really sure what all that was about, but it's obvious why Caleb calls him Jonfun.

Little pool for little people.

These minnows got eaten by the shark.

Happy Birthday Cake by Tracey Thorpe

Happy Birthday Girl with Happy Birthday Cake

Time out for Kyle cuteness.

Opening gifts...she's more excited than she's letting on.

Art stuff. Always a hit with Maggie.

Time out for tippy-toe adorableness.

Truly, she is the gift!

Making fun memories creates a great, big splash!

Love,

Chocolate Chip Cake

2011-08-18T20:06:00.001-04:00

Thanks so much for the comments about the table runner. I really appreciate them. The hemstitching is complete and I'm ready to "sandwich" the top, batting, and backing tonight after dinner. So far, so good. I'm still on schedule to have it quilted by hand and ready to give-away by September first. If you've said you want in the drawing, you can be sure I've made a note of it.

Now I think it's high time that I posted the recipe for a yummy, yummy cake. It's really a wonder that it isn't the first recipe I ever blogged. My friend Sharon passed this one along to me over 20 years ago, and I honestly think this is one of the best cakes I've ever had in my life. It's a little bit like pound cake, but even better. Typically, I'm an icing person. This cake has no icing, just a crumb topping, and that is all it needs.

Chocolate Chip Cake is my go-to when I need to take a dessert somewhere. Or when we're having company. Or when I'm just craving it. It's made from scratch, but it's a cinch to put together. It's one of those cakes that gets better the longer it sits. Great the first day, but possibly even more delicious the next day or the day after that.

For this one-bowl cake, you won't even need your mixer. Just grab a wooden spoon and get a good upper arm workout instead.

Into a big mixing bowl go the flour, sugar, brown sugar, and butter.

With a pastry cutter, mix that all up until crumbly.

Scoop out 1/2 cup of the mixture and reserve for topping.

Assemble the rest of the players.

Add eggs and vanilla....

....then the buttermilk and mix well!

Now comes the exciting part. Add the chocolate chips and nuts!

Load up the prepared Bundt pan. If you live dangerously, like I do,

stick your finger in there and taste that delicious batter while no one is looking.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until golden brown and completely done.

Let cool for 15 minutes before inverting on your cake plate.
Top with reserved crumb mixture.

Chocolate Chip Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar

Mix together with a paster cutter till crumbly.

To above add:

1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 oz. chocolate chips
1 cup nuts
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix well. Pour into greased and floured Bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until done. Sprinkle with reserved crumbs.

Oh, honey! Try this one soon. I guarantee you'll like it!

Love,

New Blog Design

2011-08-16T09:33:00.000-04:00

Last night I played around with some different blog designs in order to improve the look and the function of this blog. For now I've settled on this layout and color combination. Let me know what you think!

Love,

Looking Forward to Fall

2011-08-14T16:24:00.002-04:00

As the carefree days of summer begin to wane and school books beckon our attention, the dreams of cooler weather, bright azure skies, and frosty nights begin to fill my thoughts. It's difficult to believe that Fall is nearly upon us. Fall--that break from the sweltering summer temperatures when the need for a long-sleeved shirt or light sweater reminds us that we will soon be visited by winter's unforgiving cold. Fall--the last hurrah from nature's paintbox before the earth settles down for a long winter's sleep. Fall--when the trees and flowers parade their scarlet and golden splendor as a testimony to God's limitless creativity.

Today I picked up this table topper to work on after setting it aside for over six months. I started it for our table last fall and then shelved it when life got busy with preparations and sewing for Kyle and Caleb's rooms. Honestly, I had totally forgotten about it until today when I starting thinking about Fall stitching. I found it tucked away in a stack of unfinished projects, lacking only a little hemstitching and the final quilting.

This little piece of stitchery is one that I believe captures the mood of the Fall season. The center consists of small squares in rich autumnal hues, a mixture of lights and darks. Each end sports chunky flowers, leaves, and berries hemstitched in matching tones. I'm planning to complete it this week. Then I plan to give it away to one of you. Truth be told, I'd love to keep it, but I want to have a Fall give-away and I don't have enough time to start something else. I need to commence the Christmas stitching!!

I'm aware that Fall doesn't officially begin until September 23rd. However, my plan is to draw a name on September 1st. That at least gets us in the correct month, right? If you'd like to be in the drawing, all you have to do is say so!

(I can assure you that Bella is not dreaming of cooler weather.)

Back to stitching!

Love,

Barbecue Chicken Skewers

2011-08-10T13:32:00.001-04:00

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At our home, we all love chicken cooked on the grill. This recipe for barbecue chicken skewers has quickly become our preferred method for grilling chicken. It calls for boneless, skinless chicken thighs which are half the price of B/S chicken breasts and so much more tasty in my opinion. The sauce is simple to mix up on the stove with ketchup, soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, freshly grated ginger, lime juice and lime zest. The lime and fresh ginger add a distinctive though subtle flavor to the sauce, so grab a lime and a piece of ginger root at the grocery if you intend to make this recipe. These cook up so juicy and tender, you're not going to believe it.

It takes a few minutes to load the pre-soaked wood skewers with chicken, but it doesn't take these long to cook once on the grill. These mouthwatering skewers were ideal served with baked potatoes, a fresh broccoli salad, and corn on the cob. Why don't you dream up your best-loved side-dishes and plan your next cook-out?

Start the sauce on the stove.

Juice the limes. I doubled the recipe, as usual.

The micro-plane makes quick work of lime zesting.

Cut each thigh in thirds.

Pour the sauce over and let them marinade in the fridge for a while.

Load up the skewers.

"That one's mine, right? Thought so!"

A perfect dinner is just minutes away!

Barbecue Chicken Skewers

12 boneless skinless chicken thighs
12 wood skewers

Sauce (double this if you want additional sauce for dipping):

1/3 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 lime juiced and zested
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
2 tablespoons brown sugar

(Soak the skewers in water for at least 30 minutes to prevent them from burning.)

Place all the ingredients for the sauce in a small pan. Bring to a boil then simmer for a couple minutes. Allow to cool.

Cut each thigh into three pieces. Place in a bowl. Pour the sauce over the chicken and allow to marinade for at least 30 minutes...longer is better.

Thread the chicken onto the skewers.

Grill until done.

Happy Grilling!

Love,

I Loved You First!

2011-08-07T07:26:00.001-04:00

(First published in August, 2007)

Lacy and I have a little "thing" going. She, being a very affectionate daughter, often throws her arms around me and says, "Oooo, I love you, Mommy!" Lately this has been happening with increased frequency and I finally told her, "You never give me the chance to be first to say, 'I love you.'" So, not wanting to be outdone, the next time she sneaked up behind me, threw her arms around me and said, "I love you," I responded, "Yes, but I loved you FIRST!"

And it's true. I did love her first. Long before she even knew she needed a mommy, I loved her. When we began gathering the mounds of adoption paperwork, I loved her. When all I had was a tiny, postage stamp-sized photo, I loved her. Reading about her from the smallest scrap of information, I loved her. A tiny baby, thousands of miles away in a Chinese orphanage, doing nothing on her own to deserve my love, and yet I loved her. I loved her first.

That is the way it is with God's love for us. We have done nothing to deserve His love. And yet, in His mercy and grace, while we were still sinners, He loved us first.

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person-though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die-but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:6-9

I am so thankful that she loves me. I'm in awe of God's kindness in allowing me to experience her love. Twelve years ago tomorrow, I watched her daddy board a plane bound for China, to bring home the baby I loved so much.

Happy Adoption Day, Lacy.

I loved you first!

Love,
Mom

No-Bake Friday

2011-08-05T15:59:00.001-04:00

While the temperatures are blazing away like an oven outside, we're staying in and keepng cool on this Friday in August, our last before I officially start school with Holly and Maggie on Monday. Normally I would not start this early in August. I mean, the public and private schools don't even open their doors for a couple more weeks. It's just that we took so much time off in the spring after Caleb came home. We need to start back before these girls forget what a math problem looks like.

So maybe you're wondering what everyone does around here on a lazy Friday. OK, probably not. (But hey, I do have a few people who tell me they stalk my blog and are really disappointed when I haven't posted anything new. Hi, Hannah!)

Maggie got out the watercolor pencils and did a little creative painting. You dip the pencils in water and then draw on watercolor-weight paper. Here's my little leftie concentrating on her masterpiece. She's really into sunset scenes right now.

Lacy, my high schooler, opted to start her schoolwork this past Monday. She's pretty much independent with her work, so it's her prerogative when she wants to start. Studying American literature, she is listening to an audio of Benjamin Franklin's autobiography, whilst reading along on her Kindle. Gotta love school in the 21st Century. Bella had her cast removed on Tuesday and is putting a little weight on her foot again. We're so happy that the seven weeks in a full leg cast are over.

Caleb loves to look at books. He loves to talk to them. He loves to talk to you about them. And he loves you to read them to him. He's a bibliophile if there ever was one. Here he is with an all-time favorite from my childhood, Barney Beagle.

Holly is right at home in the kitchen. I got the idea to bake cookies today before I realized were were out of...horrors...flour. You have to be pretty creative to come up with a cookie that doesn't require flour, but, alas, that is what I get paid to do...be creative. Remember that old stove top recipe your grandma made with oatmeal, peanut butter, and chocolate? Yep. That recipe saved the day. Holly put these together in no time flat, and cleaned up all the mess, naturally.

Thought I'd show you the littles' favorite play spot these days. I come into the living room and find all sorts of toys stashed behind the chair in the corner. Today it was blocks and cars and a few stuffed animals thrown in for good measure. Some days there are about six blankets draped at odd angles creating a fort where much drama and acting out of life and death stories takes place. It takes every ounce of will power on Holly's part to not clean up the toys when Maggie and Caleb are finished playing. They come in and out several times a day, playing for an hour or more each time. We hardly use the living room anyway, so why not let them at least keep the floor dusted with their little bottoms?

Works for me!

Cookies are ready now!

After I munch down a couple of these, I plan to haul out the school books and take a look-see at what we have in store for Monday. I'm actually very excited to start back. We've done some reading over the summer, but we have a whole pile of wonderful books just waiting for us, plus a great math program, and the most fabulous phonics and spelling out there.

There is no place I'd rather be than at home with these treasures God has blessed us with.

Enjoy your weekend!

Love,

Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Tortilla Chips

2011-07-22T17:29:00.000-04:00

There are several variations of fruit salsa floating around these days. Here is Laura Lee's using apples, peaches, a clementine, and strawberries. Peaches are at their peak right now and strawberries are still abundant, so I loaded up with those. I'm sure any combination of diced fruit would work really well. It's then glazed with apple jelly mixed with brown sugar. T'was the perfect snack this afternoon for four little fishies when they returned from swimming at the neighbor's pool.

Fruit Salsa

1 peach, diced
2 tart apples, diced
10 or so strawberries, diced (about 1 cup)
1 clementine or orange, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons apple jelly

For the cinnamon tortilla chips I sprayed 6 tortillas with Pam and then sprinkled them liberally with sugar and cinnamon before cutting them into wedges. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Just watch them and don't let them get too brown like I did my first batch....

Love,

Pesto Tomato Pizza

2011-07-19T10:00:00.015-04:00

In the summertime we start craving these sandwiches made from French bread, pesto, tomato, and slices of mozzarella cheese. Sometimes, however, you just have to be a little creative in the kitchen. I was out of French bread, but I knew I could mix up some pizza dough in a hurry.

Normally I would make my own fresh pesto using basil I grew in my herb garden. The fresh basil just explodes with flavor. Why was I too lazy to stick a basil plant in the dirt a couple months ago? I'm paying for that now. Happily, I discovered store-bought pesto actually worked really well. I was a little surprised at the intensity of the flavor. The fact that it had big chunks of garlic didn't hurt, for sure.

Four of us pretty much killed this at lunch yesterday. There were two slices left, so technically, it could feed five of us if it had to. This made a very generous 15" pizza.

Mix up a batch of pizza dough.

I park mine, covered, on the table outside for an hour or so.

Have I told you how much I love this gadget?

It makes quick work of rolling pizza dough.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees then bake the crust for about five minutes.

Top the pre-baked crust with about half of an 8 ounce jar of pesto,

or preferably, use homemade pesto.

Slice about three very ripe Roma tomatoes. Romas are denser and have less water content than most tomatoes. Any tomato will do, but you'll want to lay the slices on paper towels to remove some moisture first if you don't use Romas.

Top all that with about 1/2 pound of sliced mozzarella cheese.

Yes, you can use grated mozzarella, but sliced has a better flavor in my opinion,

and looks more, you know....

Italian.

I just realized I wrote "about a half a jar", "about three tomatoes", "about 1/2 pound of sliced mozzarella." That's the beauty of this type of recipe; you don't have to be exact for it to be delicious!

Now bake it an additional 10 minutes or so. Just keep your eye on it. Honestly, your nose will let you know when it's ready. It will be about the time you're ready to yank the door off the oven anyway.

Mangiare felice!

Love,

Caramel Rolls

2011-07-16T10:48:00.000-04:00

These gooey caramel rolls will fill your home with a heavenly aroma! I don't bake these very often because they are somewhat involved, but when I'm in the mood for one, nothing else quite hits the spot! I make a double batch of these for our big family. There are plenty to share with friends, too, that way. Normally I put pecans on all of them, but this time I left half of them pecan-less for our non-nut-loving guests. These are amazing warm out of the oven, but they reheat nicely the next day as well. If you have a lazy day to mess about in the kitchen a while, these rolls will be a big hit with your family. Share the love!

Start by heating the butter, milk, salt and sugar till warm.

Add some of the flour and the egg to the butter mixture.

Now stir in the rest of the flour to make a soft dough.

Form a ball and transfer it to a lightly greased bowl.
Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for a couple hours.

Toward the end of the dough rising time, start mixing up the caramel ingredients:
butter, brown sugar, corn syrup.

Heat slowly until mixed well then pour
in bottom of your baking pan.

After a couple hours, your dough should look like this.

My favorite part--punching the dough!

Roll out the dough and spread with the melted butter.

Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon over the dough.
Roll up jelly roll style.

Use thread or floss to cut the rolls. Slide the thread under the rolls and bring
the ends across the top and cross over, pulling to cut the dough.

Lay the rolls in the pan atop the caramel.
Let them rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes.

Bake to lightly golden, about 20 minutes.

Turn rolls out onto serving platter.

Basic Roll Dough

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 heaping teaspoon yeast
2/3 cups milk
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt

In mixing bowl combine 1 cup of the flour and the yeast. Heat milk, sugar, butter, and salt until just warm, stirring constantly until butter melts. Add to dry mixture; add egg. Beat by hand 3 minutes. Stir in remaining flour to make a soft dough. Form into a ball and place into a lightly greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise till double, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Punch down dough.

Caramel Rolls

1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Roll out dough into a 12X8" rectangle and spread with melted butter. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll up jelly roll style, starting with long end. Cut into 12 rolls.

In a saucepan mix 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 tablespoon light corn syrup. Heat slowly. Pour into an 8X8" baking pan. Place rolls over caramel mixture in pan. Cover and let rise until double, 30-45 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees about 20 minutes. Cool for a couple minutes then invert onto serving plate. Makes 12 rolls.

Have a warm and delicious Saturday!

Love,

Frozen Happy

2011-07-13T20:08:00.000-04:00

Pink lemonade popsicles make a very, very hot day bearable!

Love,

Blackberry Roll

2011-07-11T09:31:00.022-04:00

When our older children were small, we lived in a neighborhood that had a long walking path winding around the border of the property. Countless blackberry bushes grew along that path, so on summer evenings we had a picking frenzy for a week or two. Reaching through those thorny briars trying to avoid getting scratched was challenging but fun, knowing the pay-off was piles of perfectly plump, sweet fruit for eating by the handful or making into a pie. The children loved this adventure and looked forward to it every year.

One of my favorite recipes for a summertime treat is this blackberry roll. It's simple to roll out the dough, pile it with sugar-covered blackberries, roll it jelly-roll style, drizzle with butter and bake. We top it off with whipped cream, naturally.

Blackberry Roll

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
dash salt
1/2 cup butter
1 to 1 1/4 cups milk
3 to 3 1/2 cups blackberries
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon flour
3 tablespoons melted butter or more

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Grease a long shallow baking pan. Sift flour, baking powder, 2 tablespoons sugar, and salt together in mixing bowl. Cut in butter until mixture is mealy looking. Stir in enough milk to make a soft dough. (Use fork.)

Roll out dough on floured board into a 12X16 inch rectangle about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Wash and drain berries and mix with 1 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon flour. Spread berries over rectangle of dough and roll up as compactly as possible.

Seal ends of roll, press together with tines of fork. Now place it in greased baking pan, brush top with melted butter. Bake for 10 minutes at 450 degrees then reduce oven to 350 degrees and continue baking for about 45 minutes longer, until crust is brown.

To serve, cut roll in thick slices, serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Serves 8.

Love,

Happy Morning

2011-07-08T09:15:00.001-04:00

Love,

Stacked Sweet Corn Bean and Beef Casserole

2011-07-07T16:34:00.001-04:00

I love it when a plan comes together. Only this time, the plan didn't exactly come together. You see, I bought all the ingredients to make this amazing-sounding stacked tortilla dish. The original recipe, straight from Better Homes and Gardens magazine, recommended using a spring form pan to layer the 9" tortillas and filling into, which would serve to hold it all together during assembly and baking. The vision I had was of popping away the sides of the pan after baking, resulting in a gorgeous presentation fit for a blog post.

Problem was, my tortillas were too small. They were closer to 7" diameter and so they were completely lost in the spring form pan. Oh well. No biggie. I just substituted an oval casserole and tore the tortillas to fit. The end result was the same. This casserole was delicious and all my little (and big) people wanted second helpings. I'll be making it again very soon.

This was my first time trying chorizo sausage. I asked Abby if I could substitute some other sausage, say Italian, and she practically laughed at the suggestion. It appears that chorizo is a staple in Mexican food and can't be substituted without sacrificing authentic flavor. I'm glad I listened to her. It's spicy, but not terribly hot. Not going to burn your mouth out or anything like that. Mixing the beef with the chorizo is perfect.

This recipe isn't one I'd place in the super quick and easy category, but it's a great one to try if you have a few extra minutes. It really doesn't take that long to put together and it tastes so fresh. I loved the addition of the corn right off the cob. It takes a minute to cut it off the cob, but the extra couple minutes are worth it. I would have used a yellow pepper if I could have gotten my mitts on one. I was at Aldi, and they had green peppers, so I made do. Just know that yellow pepper would have been prettier!

I suggest you try this if your family likes Mexican food. Just be sure to buy the right size tortillas, hear?

Brown the beef and chorizo.

Here is the chorizo you're looking for.
This came from Aldi, but all the groceries carry it.
You'll need to squeeze it out of its casing.

Work that corn.

Throw in the drained beans.

Saute' the onions, peppers, and garlic in another pan.

Add the salsa, corn, and spices.

Layer two tortillas.

Layer meat/beans and some cheese.

Another tortilla.

Layer another tortilla, then the veggies, and more cheese.

Finish with a tortilla on top and wrap the whole

thing in foil to seal before baking.

Stacked Sweet Corn, Bean, and Beef Casserole

2 ears fresh corn
8 oz. ground beef
7 oz. uncooked chorizo sausage
1 15oz can pinto beans rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion-chopped
1 large yellow sweet pepper-chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup chunky salsa
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 8-9" flour tortillas
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese

chopped tomatoes and cilantro and sour cream for garnishes

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut corn from cob. Grease 9 " spring form pan.

Cook beef and chorizo-- drain. Add beans.

In another skillet heat oil. Add onion, pepper, and garlic. Cook 10 minutes. Add corn, salsa, chili powder, cumin, and cayenne. Cook 5 minutes.

Place two tortillas in greased pan. Top with meat. Reserve 1/4 cup cheese. Divide remaining 1 1/4 cups cheese in half. Sprinkle one half on meat. Add another tortilla, veggies, and other half of cheese. Add final tortilla. Cover loosely with foil.

Bake 10 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with 1/4 cup of cheese.

Bake 10 minutes more. Let stand 10 minutes. Remove sides from pan.

Top with sour cream, tomatoes, and cilantro, if desired.

Six servings.

If you want to see a good photo of what this was supposed to look like click here... Someone obviously read the ingredient list more closely that I did.

Love,

Simple Happies

2011-06-17T21:31:00.001-04:00

I'm surrounded by simple happies in my life and I'd like to share a few of them with you from time to time. My definition of a happy? Just a little something that makes me smile! And no, it isn't always food, though I admit that sometimes it is!

Needing a quick plate of cookies to take to a friend the other day, I reached for this shortbread recipe. Nothing is quicker, simpler, and more delicious in my book than this old family favorite.

Love,

Ni Hao, Y'all!

2011-06-09T19:36:00.000-04:00

I should probably update about Caleb more often, at least to post more photos, if nothing else. The trouble is, I'm not sure how many people want to read: "He's doing great!" "He's happy all the time!" "He doesn't know the meaning of the word 'bored'." "His smile lights up the room."

Caleb isn't speaking as much English as I expected he would, considering he is so verbal and he's been here for nearly two months. Typically, when children cease to hear their first language, it starts to shut down in their mind and they begin to switch to the second language. Caleb hasn't ceased hearing Chinese, however, and therein lies the problem. You see, Caleb talks to himself. A lot. He loves to pretend with his stuffed animals or plastic zoo animals, play-acting elaborate conversations between the animals in quite enthusiastic voices. If he isn't talking with them, he is singing with them.

It's comical to hear him throw in an English phrase here and there. Last night, he had a whole drama going on with stuffed animals lined up on the back of the couch. Amidst the string of Chinese voices, I heard the exclamation, "Oh no! A snake!!" I nearly cracked up.

He mixes the Chinese and the English indiscriminately. Just a few minutes ago he was carrying around a little bird, going up to everything he saw-- books, chairs, Bella-- and asking, "Ni shi my mother?" (Are you my mother?) He'd look at me, expecting the standard response, "No, I'm not your mother. I'm a ______." It's a favorite game we play, and his favorite book to have read to him.

Incidentally, he loves mother-baby, or mother-father-baby animal sets. I noticed that very early, while we were still in China. Anytime he'd see a family of animals he'd excitedly point it out to us...."mama, baba, haizi!" I don't try to psychoanalyze that behavior; I just think it is precious. One of his favorite stuffed animals is a mother kangaroo with the joey in her pouch.

In other areas, he is making great strides. He loves the swings and will stay outside on them when the weather allows. He wanted so badly to learn how to pump on the swing like Maggie does. That skill can be observed, and taught to some degree, but only mastered once the motions are put together with the pushes and pulls at exactly the right places. He worked on it for days, awkwardly and with much effort. We smiled and encouraged, knowing the skill would soon click and be his possession forever. One day he stayed at it for hours, when finally late in the afternoon, he yelled, "Mama!!! Kan Kan!!!! (look! look!)" There he was, big as day, his feet nearly touching the tree tops, swinging like a champ.

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of taking Caleb and the girls to Folly Beach, SC for three glorious days spent with some friends. Caleb took one look at the ocean and said, "Oh no!!!!" A look of disbelief came over him when we explained that we were going swimming in that ocean. He informed us, in words and gestures that, no, he would not be swimming in that great, big ocean.

Caleb came to us afraid of the water, having never seen a pool or the ocean in his first five years. We understood his hesitancy, but insisted that, yes, he would be going in that ocean. He very diplomatically tried to talk us out of it, but we held firm. And in no time, he was jumping waves with the best of them and asking for a boogie board to ride on like the big kids.

Now he loves the swimming pool as well and has cast off the cumbersome water wings and floating rings he no longer needs. He has come so far in such a short period of time.

Mealtime and bedtime continue to go very well. He has his favorite foods, naturally, but he'll eat whatever I serve without putting up a fuss. He cleans his plate, knowing that is the only way he's going to get any dessert. He hates to stop for the night and surrender to sleep, but he knows the routine: supper, bath, a short, quiet playtime, then nighty-night. He's out cold in just a few minutes.

And tomorrow will begin just as enthusiastically as today, with Caleb all dressed for the day and wearing a huge smile when he greets me in the morning.

So, there you have it. It is going great. He is happy all the time. He isn't ever bored. And he does light up the room.

No exaggeration. No rose-tinted glasses. Just the facts.

We are so blessed.

Love,

Lovin' Lemonade!

2011-06-07T17:56:00.002-04:00

There is nothing quite as satisfying as fresh lemonade on a hot, summer day. Holly and I mixed up a batch of this to take to the pool this afternoon. And as we were mixing it, we were thinking of you!

Here is the recipe we used:

Peel four lemons with a potato peeler.

Squeeze those four lemons.

Place the peelings in a large bowl with one cup of sugar.

Pour five cups of boiling water over.

Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature and strain out the peelings.

Stir in the juice of the four lemons.

Serve well chilled.

I believe I'll sit outside on the deck

and enjoy the last glass

before anyone finds me out here.

Or... maybe not!

Love,

Chicken Artichoke Pasta

2011-05-23T07:22:00.002-04:00

True to form, I made my recipe-blogging comeback a few days ago by posting something sweet-- namely the Carolina Coffee Cake. Now, for anyone wanting a simply delicious, mouth-watering main dish, I share this Chicken Artichoke Pasta.

I think marinated artichoke hearts are truly delectable. Honestly, I could eat a whole jar of them myself--

That is, I could if I were able keep my children out of them while I attempted to do so. That would only happen if I sneaked off to a closet somewhere quietly, which I'd never pull off. For real. We're seriously addicted. I put them in salads, usually. But they are great in many dishes. I buy them at Aldi and they aren't terribly expensive there. Wow, I could take a significant rabbit trail right here...

Do you love Aldi? Oh my goodness. I love that store for so many reasons. OK, I'll just chase this rabbit for a minute. First of all, they have top quality food. Their prices are the lowest in town. I can park nearly at the door. I waste absolutely NO steps, which for me is a major plus. I would rather clean toilets than go grocery shopping. So for me, easy in/easy out is paramount.

There is a slight learning curve involved in shopping at Aldi. When they moved to my town a couple years ago, I did a little research and learned a lot about shopping there. You need to know what they carry and what they don't. Basically they have studied the market and stock the several thousand items most shoppers buy, typically only one type of each product, mostly carrying their own label. They search the world over to find the best products and the lowest prices and pass the savings on to you. You get to bag your own groceries, and you have to pay with cash or a debit card. No coupons, so don't worry about getting caught behind the Coupon Queen with her fist full of magazine clippings. The fact that you "rent" the cart for 25 cents means that the carts are returned to the store and Aldi isn't paying attendants to retrieve them. Neither are the carts being destroyed by the elements or banging into cars in the parking lot. All these reasons, and the very small real estate foot print, add up to big savings for the shopper.

Oh, and if you ever don't like something you have bought there, which has happened to me about twice, you just return it and they give you a refund and replace the product with something similar. A 200% guarantee. Works for me.

Sorry...back to the topic at hand. My family loves this casserole, which bakes up quickly in a 400 degree oven in just 30 minutes. I'm not going to pull any punches...this baby is loaded with fat and calories...lots of cheese, cream soup, and sour cream. So you're going to probably want to pair it with a massive salad, like I do. Just have a heaping pile of greens and a small portion of this casserole if you're watching your waistline. Not digging in for seconds will be a real challenge, I'm just warning you.

I substituted elbows for the bow ties because I roll with what I have in my pantry. Undoubtedly, the bow ties would make a better presentation, so I'd use those if I were preparing this dish for company. Served with a spinach salad and bread sticks, I had some very happy diners at my table!

Chicken Artichoke Pasta

3 cups cooked diced chicken
1 jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained, cut up
1 teaspoon minced dried onions
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1/4 teaspoon marjoram
1 (10 1/4 oz.) can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 sour cream
1 13oz. can evaporated milk (or whole milk)
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 12oz. package bow tie pasta, cooked
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup parmesan cheese

Mix all ingredients reserving 1/2 cup parmesan cheese and 1 cup cheddar cheese. Place in a greased 9X13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle parmesan and cheddar cheese over the top. Bake 30 minutes at 400 degrees or until hot and bubbly. Garnish with paprika and parsley if desired. Makes 8-10 servings.

Love,

Carolina Coffee Cake

2011-05-20T11:02:00.003-04:00

I woke up this morning craving coffee cake, so I grabbed the recipe for one I had been meaning to try for a few months. This fun-to-make coffee cake comes from my sister-in-law, Beth. I admit that the name Carolina struck my fancy. Anything with the word Carolina in it has to be good. The children and I had a great time mixing this up for breakfast.

Start by creaming the butter and sugar.

My mixer is kaput, so I just went at this by hand with a wooden spoon. Great upper arm workout.

Mix in a couple eggs. These are fresh from my friend Kim's chickens.

That part makes me smile every time.

Next in goes the milk. This milk is fresh from my friend Kim's cow.
Still smiling...

Stir in self-rising flour and 1/3 cup chopped nuts.

Spread into a greased and floured 10" iron skillet. Now you can start putting together the topping. Oops, minor set back. I discovered I was out of brown sugar.

Not a problem, really. Did you know you can make your own brown sugar in a pinch by blending some white sugar with a few teaspoons of molasses?

OK, now we can mix up the topping....butter, flour, cinnamon, and brown sugar.

Sprinkle that all over the top. Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes.

Put your bowl lickers to work while you clean up.

Bowl licker #1 still in her jammies, complete with bed-head.
Bowl licker #2, all dressed and ready to get the most out of this day.

All done!

Carolina Coffee Cake

1/3 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1 3/4 cup self rising flour
1/3 cup chopped nuts

Topping:

3/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and milk. Stir well. Stir in flour and nuts. Spread batter in 10" greased, floured iron skillet. Mix up topping in a separate bowl. Sprinkle over the top of the cake batter.

Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes. Cool a little before cutting.

We enjoyed eating outside while the birds warbled wake-up melodies. There's nothing as lovely as an al fresco breakfast on a warm, spring morning.

Have a beautiful weekend!

Love,

Boy Time

2011-05-10T19:31:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow will be four weeks since we came home from China with our new son. While I've occasionally updated my Facebook friends during that time, I haven't yet posted an update to my blog. For that I apologize.

When I look back over the last four weeks I just stand amazed at God's mercy and grace. Everything that should have been difficult hasn't been. The greatest challenge has been the language barrier. Not that we haven't become champion players at charades; we have. While he is beginning to use some English words, for the most part, Caleb still tries to speak to us in Chinese. And to the best of our ability we attempt to understand what he is saying. Thanks to Google Translate and their amazing program which will speak Chinese words to him, we've been able to communicate some rather difficult concepts.

For instance, last weekend was Brad and Hannah's wedding. In the days preceding the wedding, it occurred to us that we had better give Caleb a heads-up about what was going to happen. So we typed in things like "wedding", "many people", "much food", "share your toys", etc. He would listen intently and nod knowingly. When all the strangers started arriving, he seemed to take it all in stride. He is an extrovert; he loves people and activity, so he was right in his element all weekend.

Which brings me to the next point. Caleb is unbelievably resilient. Emotionally, he is very stable. Not once in the six weeks we have been with him has he dissolved into tears or thrown a temper tantrum. That is not to say he hasn't been frustrated, for most certainly he has been from time to time. He just deals very well with stress. He has cried on a couple of occasions where he has hurt himself--falling from the swing, or something like that, but never out of anger. In fact, I can honestly say I have never seen him get angry.

One night after we did some Google translating, he did get tears in his eyes. We believe he was just sad from all the changes and from missing everything familiar to him. It happened once in the four weeks he's been home.

He is getting along with the other children very well. Maggie is, of course, his near-constant companion and they are doing so well together. For my little prissy girl, playing hard with a very active little brother is a major change. She plays cars and trucks and trains, runs around outside, swings, digs in the sandbox, you name it. Sometimes she wants some time alone, understandably. At those times, she goes into her room and closes the door for a while. Caleb understands that it's her down time and he leaves her alone, for the most part.

Most afternoons Caleb will come to me, pointing and gesturing.... "Ni, wo." (you, me) Then he points up a few times. What he wants is for me to come upstairs to his room with him. He will play by himself, but he prefers for someone to be with him. So I usually take my book or magazine or Kindle and make my way up the stairs behind an excited little boy. He fluffs his pillow and clears away a few bears to make a place for me on his bed. After I lie down, he carefully tucks me in with his blanket, props a bear by my head, and generally makes sure I'm surrounded with comfort before he commences his play.

I love this routine. Today he played a while, then he came over to me, grinned the biggest grin, retucked my blanket, and planted a huge kiss on my cheek.

My heart melted.

For the 920,448th time in six weeks.

Love,

Are We Having Fun Yet?

2011-04-11T09:26:00.000-04:00

Hello from beautiful Guangzhou! We've already been here for three days and it's so hard to believe that we only have one full day left in China. We arrived in GZ on Friday evening and were greeted by warm, balmy weather. The island has a tropical feel, there are flowers everywhere, and it's a welcome change from the cooler weather in Beijing. We're staying at the lovely White Swan hotel on Shamian Island. Staying here is a highlight of the trip for several reasons, one of the best being the fabulous breakfast buffet. It's the buffet to end all buffets. I won't bore you with all the details, but I'm having to try really hard not to make a complete pig of myself in the mornings.

Saturday morning started early with our visa medical exam. Caleb did great and handled everything in stride the way he typically does. No tears or fears from him. He's such a trooper.

Red Car was there, of course, like a good friend.

Vision test. He did fine.

We came back to the room afterward and this Going Home Barbie was waiting for him. I know, hilarious, huh? The White Swan has traditionally given these to all the children who are adopted while they are staying here. He was tickled....pink.

We let him take her out of the box and he investigated her thoroughly.

And he took her as we walked all around the island. See her little Chinese baby?

This little girl was very interested in his Barbie, too.

Adorableness.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Sunday morning we took a trip over to Yuntai Garden. The colors were spectacular. It's very difficult to describe the beauty of a garden and just as difficult to capture it in photos. If you click on the pictures to enlarge them, the color will be so much better.

Here we are with our guide, Helen, in brown, and our new friends Sarah and Jim Marion. You can't see her here, but their new daughter, Lila, is just a precious little peanut. She just turned two last month. We're having the greatest time with them. Jim's an Air Force pilot and they are currently stationed in New Mexico. Lila has three older siblings waiting not so patiently at home to meet her.

Jim and Lila.

More flowers....

Double adorableness...

I honestly don't know who keeps hijacking my blog

and posting pictures of cute kids.

So sorry.

Anyhoo...

We had our consulate appointment this morning and thankfully that went down just as expected. There was some concern that the consulate might have to postpone the appointment if the government had to shut down. I don't even want to think about what a pain it would have been to stay here waiting on the government to get it's act together. So, praise God that is over with and Caleb will have his Chinese passport stamped with a US visa by tomorrow afternoon. We will then be finished with everything we have to do before we can leave.

We have a very early wake up call on Wednesday morning and a killer day of flights and layovers ahead of us. But I won't think about that right now. For now we are going to just enjoy our last day here, do some power shopping, eat once more at Lucy's grill, and have fun with our new friends.

I thought some of my family might appreciate this photo of Tom from lunch today. We ate there. Way up there. No, not KFC, higher up. Yes! Papa John's. And it was delicious!

Love,

There Are No Orphans of God

2011-04-10T02:15:00.000-04:00

I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. ~ John 14:18

One Week Down, One Week to Go!

2011-04-06T06:37:00.000-04:00

Ni Hao yet again from Beijing! We're enjoying our last few days in in this huge city of over 13 million. Only two more to go until we fly south to Guangzhou to finish up the American side of the adoption paperwork. Tuesday was the annual "Tomb Sweeping" holiday in China. Most everyone had the day off and the traffic was heavy getting into and out of the city. So we opted to stay close to the hotel during the day and just walk to a local park for a few hours of exploring on our own. We noticed a few people decided to ride their bikes to the park!

Jingshan Park was bustling with activity as people strolled the tree-lined sidewalks or found corners here and there to engage in various recreational pursuits. We had the greatest time. It probably took us 20 minutes to walk there and we stayed for nearly two hours.

Tuesday night we attended an acrobatic show, a first for us. It was extremely well done! I couldn't take photos, though.

Wednesday we took a rickshaw ride to the Hutong District of Beijing. We were able to view a 350+ year old traditional four-wing home with the central courtyard. People are still living in these homes today, and the government is doing a lot of restoration and preservation in the area.

We rode on a little further and ate lunch with a local family, right in their home! That has to be one of my favorite experiences from all my trips to China. The food was delicious, much less saucy and not as highly seasoned as much that we've had. They brought their adorable, chubby baby boy out to say hello. My camera batteries had died right before we got there, and we had no spares with us. Sad, sad, sad that I didn't get to capture those memories.

Speaking of food. I hit a wall with the Chinese food about day three or four. I love Chinese food and I love to try new things. It just gets very difficult after a few days. The past few days, however, I've really started enjoying it again, actually looking forward to each meal. So much for the Two-Week China Weight Loss Program. I'm probably going to gain a few at the rate I'm going.

We picked up some batteries at a tiny shop on our way to visit the ancient drum tower. This is the way the official time was kept for many years. The drum towers and the bell towers were situated around the walls of the ancient city.

We climbed ridiculously steep steps to reach the tower and arrived just as the hourly re-enactment was about to begin. Seriously, take a look at the photo of the steps. I couldn't even look up while I walked or I would have never climbed them.

Last night, for a change, Sylvia ordered Pizza Hut to be delivered to our room for dinner. There were three very happy campers in room 934 of the Wangfujing Grand Hotel! Pepperoni pizza and bread sticks with a surprise package of chicken nuggets. (The Chinese versions of our American favorites usually have a twist!)

Caleb seemed at least remotely familiar with pizza and wolfed down his fair share, alternately dunking every bite in garlic sauce then pizza sauce and then garlic sauce again. We haven't found anything he won't eat. Thus his description--"not picky about food"--has proved to be dead-on correct.

Today we visited the Beijing Zoo for a few hours. I had heard the exhibits were old run down and the animals were not properly kept. We just didn't find that to be the case at all. A few of the exhibits could have used some sprucing up, but really we thought the zoo was lovely.

Caleb had a one track mind through the zoo- Da Xiang! Elephant!! All the other animals paled in comparison for him until we finally found his favorite one! And outside the elephant exhibit was a whole herd of stone elephants perfect for little boys to climb!

When in ~~Rome~~ China...

We bought him a cob of corn to gnaw on as we walked. That seemed to be the snack of choice for most people we saw, far more popular than cotton candy or popcorn.

More animals, more adorableness.

Caleb is still adjusting very well. He has the happiest disposition of any little boy I know. Just as I had hoped and prayed, he has an adventuresome spirit and loves to try new things. He is a little mischievious and continues to "tease' us to see what he can get away with. He tends to get wound up when he gets tired, instead of slowing down. Then he gets giggly and silly and more impulsive in his behavior. But for the most part, he is doing really well. I'll be so happy when we can really communicate with each other. That just isn't going to happen, unfortunately, until we leave China and he ceases to hear Chinese and we no longer have a guide we can depend on to translate. As difficult as it will be for a while, I'm ready for it.

We learned today that Caleb was in foster care for almost his entire life--Feb 2006-Feb 2011. He was raised by one family, who had three grown biological children and three foster children. Caleb was the youngest of the foster children, with two six-year-old foster sisters. At least he is familiar with playing with girls! What a blessing! And he is used to being the youngest child. Also a blessing! Had he been the oldest of several foster children, he might have a harder time adjusting to being the youngest.

He told someone yesterday that he has "two mamas." And I suppose he does. I owe a lot to the the kind lady and gentleman who took him in and provided a home for him for the past five years. They did a good job with him and obviously loved him. But he would have always been considered an orphan and would never have had the opportunities that a biological child would have. He would always be a second-class citizen here. An orphan with a visible physical difference (regardless of how minor or correctable) = two big strikes. In America his opportunities will be limited only by his dreams.

Shhh! Don't tell Caleb, but this evening we are taking him to McDonald's! At home, it would be my last choice for a fast-food meal, but since we are quite limited in our selection of American restaurants, we're going to to take what we can get. Sylvia tells us that parents often take their children to McDonald's as a very special treat, for making good grades or doing something else noteworthy. Somehow, Caleb has had McDonald's before, we are told. It should only set us back about 100 dollars! Chinese dollars, that is, or about $16 American dollars.

I'll stop here, before I lose you, too.

Love,