What is Wrong with This Picture?

My lilac tree one month ago...

My lilac tree today.

Yuck.

O Happy Day!

I won! I won! I won! I really so rarely every win anything, and can't tell you just how happy I am to win this particular giveaway on Paulette's blog... a $60 gift certificate to csnstores.com. I had never heard of CSN before, so was curious, and spent some time looking around. I would compare them with a company like amazon.com for their variety (although they don't seem to have as much to offer), and the prices seemed to be very competitive. Want to know what I bought?

2 cast iron bread pans, which I can hardly wait to use... a coffee grinder, which has earned top ratings as a spice grinder (which is exactly what I will be using it for- I am so happy to not have to keep scrubbing my coffee grinder out when I need to grind spices, then drinking contaminated coffee the next time, because no matter how hard I scrub it, the spices never seem to wash out well)... and a little saucier that goes with the pot set that I already have, perfect for small batches of sauces, syrups, and glazes. I'll make sure that my three new toys are featured in future blog post recipes!

In other news, I'm really happy with how my new dryer balls are working. I still have static cling issues when drying anything with polyester in it, but I can't say that I'm surprised. Overall, the dry time seems to be slightly shortened, and they have held up well through several dry cycles, including a couple of batches of denim. My favorite part... the low, quiet, steady thump, thump, thump as they go round... I find the sound soothing... is that strange?

And probably your most favorite news of all... I have finished framing the final two samplers in my Birth Sampler series. Here are all four of them propped up together on my mantle.

TA DAAA!
(cue choir music)...

Friday Funny

This one made me laugh out loud...

As far as I can tell, it was originally published here.

Not One, but THREE Sneak Peeks

I figured it was high time I posted something cross-stitchy here, to make sure you keep coming back. So, I have decided to reveal a tiny little peek of my works in progress.

Being ahead of schedule, I will be releasing the final two in my birth sampler series at the same time, early in May, perhaps even by the 7th. They are both completely stitched, I just have to press them, insert photos of my sweet ancestors, and get them into their lovely antique frames.

Here is Dagmar, my Danish Great Grandma...

and here is Ida, my Illinois-born Great Grandma...

and to round out the post, here is a glimpse of June's release (stock up on GAST Uniform Blue!)...

Baking

A few days ago, I tried a new Banana Bread recipe that was low in oil and sugar, and surprisingly very yummy. My sous chefs heartily agree, and even the Daddy of the family gave his stamp of approval.

Here we are, the three of us, getting ready to mix it up (I have a confession for you- I photographed this moment, because, contrary to what you might believe about me, I don't generally let the kids in the kitchen while I am cooking. This is something that I am trying to change, because I want them to have lovely memories of spending time with me in a warm kitchen full of yummy scents, but they are still SO young, and I like to bake with speed and efficiency, and young children do not know the meaning of either of those words, which usually makes me want to pull my nose off and stamp it into the dust before thinking of sharing my sacred ground with them. There. Now you know the truth, that I am a Selfish Kitchen Hog):

The aprons were all hand-made (and not by me!) gifts... Katie's super adorable vintage inspired concoction with its perfect little tulip-shaped pockets was made by my friend Denise, who I really think should start making them to sell on etsy, don't you all agree? Jack and I received our aprons for Christmas from my sister Kim, but I'll have to show them to you later, because by now I'm sure you are wondering if I am EVER going to get around to giving you the recipe already. Well, here it is:

Surprisingly Yummy Health-Nut Banana Bread
(sorry, no photos- it disappeared way too fast)

5 very ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup honey
1/4 cup oil
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup bran
3 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly rub two loaf pans with butter or oil.

Combine bananas, honey, oil, and vanilla.
In separate bowl, combine flour, bran, soda, and salt.
Gently add dry ingredients with wet, stirring until *just* combined.
Fold in the chocolate chips, again until *just* combined- the more you stir, the denser your loaf will become, and the goal is for a nice, tender crumb.

Pour into prepared pans. Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle pulls out clean (watch out for those chocolate chips!)

I will be throwing out every other banana bread recipe in my collection now that I have found this one (it is actually my adaptation of a recipe that I found online, but which is now eluding me, so I can't include a link, sorry).

If I win the drawing over on Paulette's blog, I will be getting myself a couple of these, so that my bread can be even yummier, for everything cooked in cast iron becomes immediately better than if cooked in other bakeware, don't you agree?

Perception

I recently saw this adorable doodle by the Resident Artist, which I immediately thought was his rendition of playing outside in the sunshine with his sister.

But when I asked him to tell me about his drawing, he revealed that it is a picture of Mr. and Mrs. Incredible...

being picked up by the giant robot (known as the Omnidroid in the film)...

Apparently, I don't think like a little boy.

Dryer Balls and Coal Hoppers

A few years ago I picked up some spiky plastic dryer balls because my slightly ageing dryer was taking longer to dry my clothes (winter in Oregon is usually very wet, making it impossible to line-dry clothing), and I had read that they would shorten the dry time while also reducing static. I used them until they broke apart, but never truly felt that they had helped in any way. At some point during that time, I began to see home-made dryer balls fashioned from wool yarn or felted wool on etsy and other places around the www.

Being the DIY girl that I am, I added wool dryer balls to my list of things to make. But it seemed that they were always made with wool yarn, of which I had none on hand, and I certainly didn't want to drive all the way to the city and spend lots of money on wool yarn just to throw it in the dryer. I really wanted an alternative way that would allow me to use materials on hand. Enter the Resweater blog and method of making dryer balls from old felted wool sweaters. The perfect solution for using up the stack of moth-eaten wool sweaters that I just couldn't bear to part with because I knew they would be good for SOMETHING! I had already made a pair of mittens, a winter hat for Little Miss, and a pair of slippers from them, but still had more wooly goodness leftover.

So, on Saturday, I set to work and used up most of three pre-felted wool sweaters to make these:

They turned out really, really big, but the kids loved playing with them for the brief time before this mean Mama made them throw them in the dryer, but I think they will work really well because of their larger size. I'll let you know... today is laundry day!

In the meantime, Father and Son had disappeared out to the shop. It was a rainy Saturday morning, perfect for doing little indoor projects. About the time I put my finishing stitches in dryer ball number 3, they came to the house with this:

If you have been reading this blog for awhile, you will know that my Boy, now 4 years old, has been Thomas obsessed since he was 18 months old. That very first set that I bought for him was with much hesitation on my part, not sure that the money investment for a bit of plastic was worth it, but that set might as well have been gold, for he has been playing with it almost non-stop ever since. And of course, his set has continued to grow with each passing Birthday and Christmas celebration. And our wonderfully consumer-driven society continues to produce and market more, more, more. Check out the pages of Take Along Thomas items available on amazon. This Coal Loader Playset has been the most recent object of desire and the inspiration for his new home-made version.

If you do it just right, you can drop a barrel down through the funnel and...

it lands right in the coal car!

Something tells me he likes the made-with-love-by-Daddy-with-my-help-from-scrap-wood version better than if we had just paid money for colorful plastic.

Green Growing Things

Just a little peek at our up and coming Summer pantry... I can hardly wait!

Broccoli:

Spinach:

Artichoke:

Asparagus, Borage, Pumpkins, Tomatoes, and a few others:

Pansies (they are edible, although I'll probably just eat them with my eyes):

Dandelions (yes... dandelions... stay tuned for the results of my experiment):

Pears (this is the first year with so many blooms- celebrate with me!):

Apples:


We are more than ever determined to learn how to become self-sustaining with most, if not all of our foodstuffs. I'm not crazy about the idea of milking my own cow or goat and making cheese, and we will never be able to grow our own wheat here, but as far as veggies and fruit, and even meat go, I'm ready!

Free Chart for Earth Day

I have never considered myself to be an environmentalist, mentally reserving that term for those passionate activists who chain themselves to logging equipment and live for years at a time in old growth trees.

But, I have always carried a deep and abiding respect for this amazing planet that God created for us to inhabit. We were given a task in the very beginning of creation, to be caretakers of the Land and the Creatures that live in in. And we, along with those that represent us, have been failing miserably the last few generations.

I have steered clear of anything other than lighthearted inspirational posts on this blog, but find myself convicted to instead share more of the deeper issues that I am pondering on and trying to live out. Don't worry... this blog will still remain mostly unchanged, but will begin to dig deeper here and there, as I am convicted in my own heart.

My first assignment to myself is to get you, my blog readers to think about the way that you live and impact the world around you. And since I know that most of you are fellow stitchers, what better way than a free sampler chart? Or in this case, TWO free sampler charts?! The first, inspired by my love for my children, and strong desire for them to live healthy and long lives:

How I see it in color:

The second, inspired by my love for the great outdoors...

Seen in color:

Left click on the charts for an enlarged version, then right click and save to your computer.

As always, feel free to use whatever colors you desire, and use them in whatever way you wish... and I would be very grateful if you gave credit to me if you post photos or links anywhere online, or offer your finished goods up for sale. And I would really, really like to see photos of your finished work as well.

"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.

I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and that as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no "brief candle" to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations."

-George Bernard Shaw

Dance!

with all of the joy in your heart...

and by all means, don't forget to wear your favorite fashion combo!