Harvest Time!

Ha, Ha! Did you read the title and think I would be sharing pictures of all the autumn bounty I gathered from my garden - the garden I spent so much time and money on? Well, let's just say I learned more than I actually harvested! So I am channeling all my "store-up for the winter" energy into COOKIES! Why not? I have been baking, then freezing the dough-balls until firm, and then sealing them up in the Food Saver. Whenever we want a dozen fresh baked cookies - ZIP, ZAP-They're done! I have plenty of room for a batch of peanutbutter, a batch of oatmeal, a batch of chocolate-ginger....

This week I have been stitching "Mercy Me" by Notforgotten Farm. It is cute and fun and A LOT OF BROWN!

MommyLawyer and I have decided to sell up and just grow a corn maze for our future livelihood! 15 dollars a person!!! Thank goodness we went with a Girl Scout Troop and got a whole dollar off per person! Whew! We actually had a lot of fun! What an exercise in Group Dynamics!

Hope you all are having lots of Harvest-Time Fun!

Honey or Cheese?

The bread's ready! Come on over! The big decision is whether to eat it with a drizzle of honey or a slice of cheese. Of course, I will eat it both ways, but which to start with?
Here is my current favorite recipe. It is adapted from one of the Nitty Gritty breadmachine books.

1 1/4 c water
2 Tbs veg oil
3 Tbs molasses
1 tsp salt
1 Tbs demerara sugar
1 tsp sesame seeds
1 tsp light flax seeds
1 tsp dark flax seeds
1 heaping Tbs steel-cut oats
1 heaping Tbs wheat germ
1 heaping Tbs oat bran
3 Tbs rolled oats
1 cup King Arthur White-Wheat Flour
2 cups bread flour


****Sorry!~ I forgot to write 2 teaspoons of yeast!!******

I put this in the machine on the dough cycle; it is pretty sticky. Then I take it out and put it into 2 8x4 pans, or I would have if I could have found the other 8x4! I baked it once in a 9x5 and it was not attractive! ! baked it at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. This will be the perfect snack before we head to the corn maze on this cool, bright autumn day!

Just a few stitches

This has been a busy week. We are always busy, but this week surprised even me! I do not think I have stitched since Monday! But I do have these two lovelies to share. I started and finished "Mr. Darcy" Sun/Mon, and I finally finished up "Earth Sampler." I have not been staying with my rotation, although I really believe it works and have already enjoyed quite a bit of fruit! I enjoy stitching seasonal designs during that season, not for the coming season. So I think I will stitch with the rotation for Jan- Sept, and then take the last 3 or 4 months of the year to stitch seasonal designs at will. I make my own stitching rules, right? ;) Now hurry over to Tanya The Sampler Girl's blog or online shop to buy some of her lovely patterns for just 5$!

A finish, a start , and some cuteness

I finished Phebe Tree a couple of minutes ago! Hurray! I stitched my own name and the year in the cartouche - but not my age!

A few days ago I made a start on The Shepherdess from The Scarlet Letter. I bought it on Ebay. Yes, I know I whine a lot about one-over-one stitching, but stitching a picture is much better than stitching words!

Here are some pictures of the girls: Nutmeg and the kitties, and Buttercup and the playdoh. They took about 30 pictures of their playdoh landscapes!

I have been cooking up a storm the past few days. I added a new blog in my favorites sidebar - The English Kitchen - WOW! I have made three of the recipes, and printed out many more to try. The Apple, Blackberry, and Cheese Torte is phenomenal!

Tomorrow we will start a fresh week - I hope we have some more of this wonderful sunshine. I have come to realize that I am solar-powered!

Beginner's Luck has Vanished

I made a few pinkeeps and thought, "Wow, I can do this! I bet I could even stretch and lace my own stuff before going to the framer's!" Well, I am over that sentiment now. I made two more pinkeeps this weekend, but I am not feeling so smug. In fact, I have tried stretching a finished cross stitch, and it is not going so well. But here are the two newest pinkeeps. I just do not have the patience to measure, nor do I have the skill to eyeball. Nevertheless, my little basket of Autumn pinkeeps is filling up! (puckered though the little darlings may be!)