Friday Finishes!!

Before leaving Tulsa last Sunday I finished a scrappy table topper that I made from the left over patches cut for a Christmas Quilt I made in 2010. It fit perfectly on my kitchen table. I love the scrappiness of it. I had made several for friends but I finished this one for ME.!!!

 

 

This is the quilt I designed in 2010 which used all those patches.

 

 

The larger linen blocks are all embroidered with primitive designs for Chrismas and Winter. I apoligize that the embroidery is hard to see due to the distance of the photo. There are 24 embroidered blocks. I hung this quilt in my foyer during the winter/holidays 2010-2011. It is very large. I just love it. Makes you want to cozy up under it by a fire doesn't it?

 

 

 

Different angle from above on the second floor looking over the railing. Recognize those patches in my table topper? I quilted the table topper free-motion with holly leaves in the center and feathers in the borders.

 

 

 

 

I am having fun learning and playing with "Miss Lizzie" my newest machine. She and I are going to be great friends this year.

 

 

 

 

Yesterday at MOA I got the rest of the Hallmark "Angel Pagent" brigade for Miss Ella. She is loving having them play and sing while she dances. I just love the joy and anticipation of that little face in everything she does!!

 

Thank you LORD for the blessings of Grandchildren!!

Happy Trails,

Mtn Mama

 

 

 

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Shopping, Snowflakes, and Homemade Pizza!!

Today we braved the weather and the crowds and went to the "Mall of America". Oh MY!! People everywhere.... but we managed to get some walking, shopping and eating done all in about two hours before Miss Ella needed to go home for her nap. As you can see her Mama carried her and we used the stroller for our purchases!! It was fun to be out among the crowds....something I had not really done before Christmas.

On the way out the door to the parking garage we had to "suit" Miss Ella up since it had begun snowing and the temps were in the low teens.

Nana just had to have a picture "for the road" with her little "Snowbunny".

The snow fell at a very light, soft pace this afternoon and by twilight the ground was covered enough to look clean again.

Our supper was HOMEMADE PIZZA. I did Pizza on the Grill in June for my blog but I am going to show you a very easy way to make pizza at home. I am at Jenny's and the kitchen is very small...no pizza stone either but we made a very good pizza with a crispy crust for dinner. I will show you how we did it!!

HOMEMADE PIZZA

On Christmas Day I made "Bucket Bread" from the Master recipe in Aritisan Bread in 5 minutes a Day. You can find that recipe in in my archives in April. I made a loaf of bread for dinner and the rest has been in the fridg. This dough only requires all-purpose flour, salt, yeast and warm water. Ingredients that are easy to find and familiar to most everyone.

Jenny had a large aluminum pizza pan so I pulled a large grapefruit size ball from the dough and dusted it with flour. Because her kitchen is so small I had no place to "roll" the dough out so I coated the pizza pan with olive oil, placed the dough in the center and began stretching it and turning it moving the dough the entire time so that it didn't get stuck to the pan. I let it rest for 5 minutes then went back and did it again until it "fit" the pan.

Now it was time to top the pizza. We had two different camps .....so 1/2 would have red sauce and the other 1/2 would have olive oil and garlic as the base.

Then we used grilled chicken, turkey peperoni, mozzarella cheese, parmesean cheese, and olive with a sprinkling of sea salt on the top.

Into a very HOT oven - 475 degrees.

We cooked this pizza for about 10 minutes will it was firm then carefully removed the pizza pan and cooked it 5 more minutes on the rack. That helped the crust to brown and get crunchy which is just the way we like our pizza.

Out of the oven and back on the pan. It was perfect. Crust was crispy and still chewy inside.

Perfectly done crust!!

Miss Ella loves the pizza and by the looks of it approves of this one!!

Really Nana....I'd rather fed myself!!! I guess the Homemade Pizza was a HIT!! A great way to end the day!!

Linking to:  http://www.stonegableblog.com/2012/12/on-menu-monday-week-of-dec-31-2012_30.html#more

P.S. I did get some stitching time in on my Santa today. I have a long way to go. Glad Christmas is 363 days away!!

Let us follow the Wise Men:

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the king, behold magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the East and have come to worship HIM! Matthew 2:1-2

The journey continues.... may we all seek HIM daily!!

Happy Trails,

Mtn Mama

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Thirteen Goals in 2013

As we all start the week between Christmas and New Year's thinking of resolutions and "things to get done" in the new year I too am musing over these issues. The events of the past year have dramatically rearranged my life and I want to move forward in 2013 in a positive way. I am still grieveing and those "waves of grief" sometimes get the best of me but knowing each day holds a new beginning and that God is holding me directly in his arms gives me the courage to get up and move on. Jeffrey had been my husband for 31 1/2 years and a friend/boyfriend for 5 years before that. His loss is a large hole in my life that I am determine to fill by reaching out to others, volunteering and just doing what I do best.....cooking, sewing and enjoying all the people in my life. I have been so blessed with GREAT friends to help me through this very difficult time. I too want to give back to all of them as well as others.

 

I started blogging in March 2010 after Jeffrey's first Bone Marrow Transplant but did not keep it up. Mainly because Jeffrey had a few setbacks and I was totally consumed in that. Last spring in April I decided to return again to my blog. Jeffrey had to have another Bone Marrow Transplant last Dec at Baylor in Dallas. The blog was a way for me to reach out to others while I was caring for him. I continued to blog while Jeffrey experienced many major setbacks and complications in the spring of 2012. I would blog by his bedside. It helped me to feel connected even though I didn't have many followers and very few comments. It was my online journal along with his CaringBridge site. In August Jeffrey lost his battle to cancer and went home to be with his Father in Heaven.

 

I want this blog to be an outreach of me.....cooking, quilting,decorating, crafting, my love for The Lord and my faith, and anything else that makes me me. I hope you will join as a follower this year to let me know you are out there and walking this journey with me. I also would LOVE to have comments. One of the adjustments is that I have a lot of "alone" time now without much conversation. Having your comments help fill that gap as well as I just love to make new friends and share with others on their life journey. We are all on this earth to help one another.

 

So let's get started:

Thirteen Goals for 2013

1. To have 100 followers on my blog

2. To have at least one comment on each blog post

3. To blog at least 3 times a week and make it through a the whole year - 2013.

4. Complete my "Holy Toledo" quilt and machine quilt it in Jan

5. Renew my knowledge of English Hand Smocking and make Miss Ella some smocked clothes

6. Follow Judy L on Patchwork Times in her Comfort and Joy project. (I have already ordered the pattern)

7. Join Denise Russart in Stitchin with JustQuiltin and Strictly for the Birds. ( I've never quilted birds)

8. Back to Square One Mystery Quilt with Judy L (My first medallion quilt)

9. Practice, practice, practice freemotion quilting on my new Tin Lizzie 18 sitdown machine

10. Get back to more machine embroidery with my Viking Designer SE. At least one project a month.

11. Utilize my "LARGE" cookbook collection in a fun, unique way.....more to come on that!

12. Finish all the UFO's and kit projects I have accumulated over the last 25 years....or donate them to

someone who will.

13. Pray, explore and decide if a quilt ministry is where God is leading me.

May ALL I do be done for Honor and Glory to God. May I fulfill His purpose for me on this earth as I follow where He leads Me.

And all the saints said.....AMEN!!!!

 

OK... no time like the present to get going on those goals.....

Today I started on #12 by unearthing a Santa Cross Stitch project that is dated 1993. So it has been in the drawer for 20 years!!! I haven't done anything large in cross stitch in over 10 years but I am determined to start and finish this project this year.

 

 

I LOVE this Santa!!! When I opened the kit it had FIVE Hanks of floss. A total of 62 colors!! Wow!!

My first job was to seperate each hank. I put each color on a spool lableled with it's name. These are the 13 colors in Hank I. I put all the spools from each hank in seperate baggies. Each labeled with the Hank # on it.

I took the Aida cloth and serged around the edges with my serger to prevent fraying. This project may take me a long time to finish so I want it to be secure from wear and tear.

I got out my magnetic board of years ago to help me keep track of my stitching.

Even though the graph was enormous I was very pleased to see that the characters were LARGE enough for me to see without a magnifying glass.....just my bifocals!!!

Such a pretty guy!!! Can't wait for him to show up on my wall at Christmas 2013!

 

This little snowbunny and I got out of the house today even though it was 6 degrees. We enjoyed a Target run but were sure glad to get home where it was warm and cozy!!

I look forward to meeting all my new blogging friends in 2013 on Pots, Pans, Pins and Prayers!!

Happy Trails,

Mtn Mama

 

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Christmas Evening 2012

It has been a day of playing with Miss Ella, naps, and lots of reading and surfing the net while I cough and blow my nose. UGH!!! I haven't had a cold this bad in two years. I haven't left the house since we got here Sunday at noon. That's okay because it was -1 degree out there this morning. Staying inside seemed like the right thing to do!!

Miss Ella Lillian and I had lots of fun playing with Christmas toys. She is learning to walk behind the puppy dog Auntie Kristy got her. It won't be long now till she goes solo!

 

This is a view of the turkey breast just before we took it out of the crockpot.

 

Sliced and ready for Christmas dinner. I also made the "bucket bread". It was delicious with our turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and salad. Pumpkin pie still to come for dessert......with Cool Whip of course!!! After Miss Ella's bedtime we have a couple of movies to end our day.

I have been surfing the web today and found several projects that I will be joining in 2013.

 

http://justquiltin.wordpress.com/stitchin-with-justquiltin-2013/

 

http://justquiltin.wordpress.com/strictly-for-the-birds-2013-free-patterns/

 

These are two I found today on the JustQuiltin with Denise Russart website. The links are listed below the buttons. Both are going to be really great. If you get a chance hop over and check them out before they start so you can join too.

May you feel the peace and hope that was brought to earth that Silent Night in Bethlehem. Take time to ponder as Mary did all the wonders of that very special event.

Happy Trails,

Mt Mama

 

 

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Merry Christmas 2012!!

Merry Christmas from my House to Yours!!

It is a joyous day! The day of our Lord's birth. Let's all remember the reason for the season! This is a picture of my front door courtesy of Mary Ann Persinger. I just love it!! She is a talented artist and photographer and friend. We will be working together in the new year on our first cookbook together. Stay tuned!! I can't wait to do this....it has been a long time in coming!!

At 10 1/2 months Miss Ella loves the wrapping more than the presents.

Lots of presents, wrapping paper, and finally the gift emerges......puppets.

So much happening....Christmas is a wonderful day!!

For our Christmas dinner we are going easy since we are all still sick with colds. I make this year round and my family loves it. It is great for special occasion dinners as well as a Wednesday night supper. Your family will think you are a rock start when you make this and no one has to know how easy it is to make!!

Easy Crockpot Turkey Breast

1 2-3 pound boneless turkey breast. You can find these in the freezer section at Sam's and Aldi's. Leave the netting on the bird. Thaw in refrigerator the night before cooking.

Herbs de Provence

Salt

Pepper

Season the turkey breast with ample amounts of Herbs de Provence, salt and pepper. Rub the seasoning into the meat as best as you can with the netting on the bird.

Place the turkey breast in the crock pot and cover with 1 can of chicken broth.

Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours which I prefer or you can cook on high 3-4 hours. The Herbs de Provence make your house smell heavenly as well as they make the turkey breast yummy!!

When done remove the turkey to a cutting board and cover with foil. Let rest 20 minutes before cutting. Remove the netting, discard and slice the turkey, serve!!! Feeds 6 people or 4 with enough for sandwiches the next day.

I will try to remember to take a pix of the turkey on the platter before it hits the table at Christmas dinner. I will be back then!!

May God richly bless you on this the day Jesus was BORN!!

Merry Christmas,

Mtn Mama

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