Utility Towels: 3rd, 4th, 5th, & 6th In Progress

We finished a few more utility towels over the past few days!
The one above was the one I was working on, this one below was the one I commissioned from my daughter last year... finally done.

This one below was the 2nd towel I commissioned from daughter just a couple of weeks ago. She's learning to be more business like and got it done in few days. At the moment she's working on one for herself. We might be adding a few hand embroidered towels to my shop this coming autumn, we'll see. It all depends on how much spare time she'll have while homeschooling, etc. .

I'm currently working on the 6th utility towel, this time in bluework. The pattern is the one I mentioned at the end of the previous post. Was trying to make some progress while watching news on the current conditions of Texas' hurricane Harvey aftermath. Hoping that all those affected are able to cope and find comfort. 

Being from a tropical island I'm very well acquainted and familiar with having to endure thru a few tropical storms and all the devastation that they leave behind. However, with much hard work and a positive attitude it is possible to make it thru.

I'm still in the midst of medical appointments. Still praying things are well, and if not, then to have the power beyond normal (that comes from above - 2 Corinthians 4:7) to endure! 
May all of you be doing well! Till next time!

Stitching Has Resume

Made myself sit and stitch a bit with my littles. Younger one is into embroidery at the moment,... now able to sit for longer periods of time and focus on stitching.

This time of the year is the time where I need to make my medical round to be sure things are going well. So many appointments, it can be a bit (or a lot) stressful at times. Even though I've been in remission for 8 years, sometimes after fighting a life threatening illness, there's a lingering anxiety that pops up mostly when not feeling well (without being able to pinpoint why), or when check ups are due. Sometimes I can say: "it must be the fibromyalgia", but sometimes it is hard to tell. Praying and hoping for everything to be ok! Really need to meditate a bit more on Matthew 6:34.

So while dreaming for these next few weeks to fly, I'm keeping myself busy. Back to my needle and thread for therapy. Also: homeschooling will resume shortly, considering to commit to an increase in volunteer work for the month of September, hoping to try new recipes at least twice a month, weekly baking during the Fall season, start entertaining friends again after the remodeling/construction work is completed in a couple of weeks, finding a new nature trail for some nice autumnal walks, etc. . 

I have the goal of increasing protein consumption to see if it helps with sugar cravings ;-). It must be simple in order to keep it up. So here is a quick tuna salad; low sodium tuna in water, sweet yellow corn, grape tomatoes, avocado, sprinkled with a bit of salt and olive oil. If I'm very hungry then I add a side of brown rice.

Hopefully the next blog update will be about another finished towel, or two! I have a new vintage pattern that I can't wait to stitch! Want a peek? Leaving a link below ;-).

Non-affiliated link:
A Vintage reprint of Aunt Martha's no. 3959,
Delightful Blue Bird Motifs. All the reprints come without 
the envelope, just so you know.

In The Kitchen and Outings

Pasta salads are a great summer meal or side dish. I made one this past weekend to carry in our lunch bags each day to our 3 day convention. I used GF pasta because one of my kids has a life threatening allergy to wheat. Kept it really simple: cooked pasta, poached chicken breasts diced, grape tomatoes, peeled and seeded cucumber diced, and semi-homemade Italian dressing. It kept well for 3 days in the very cold fridge. (PS: cute rooster embroidery is a Stitcher's Revolution pattern from Colonial Patterns, I blogged about it here.)

Another simple lunch or dinner is cod fish "stew" with root vegetables/tubers , a tropical dish ;-). You could practically use any other "meaty" fish. This was one of our staple dishes growing up. The tubers were peeled, roughly chopped and then boiled in salty water (with a bit of butter if desire) until thoroughly cook.  I usually steam the cod sprinkled with some of our favorite seasonings and olive oil. Once most of its own juice/liquid evaporates, I add a bit of tomato sauce, then the sliced/diced/chopped: red bell pepper, green pepper, yellow onion, and cabbage, a bit more seasoning to taste. Serve over white rice or root vegetables. Voila! Time to eat!

Do you like infused water? I do! From the skin of the cucumber, mixed with couple lemon slices, we had infused water.... very refreshing! 

Since my day was already being spent in the kitchen, I preset the oven and whip up bananas muffins. Sometimes I bake it in the loaf pan, but mostly in baking cups, much easier to handle for my little ones hands, plus she can serve herself.
I'm such a messy baker... LOL. 
A bit lazy too... I do not pre-measure ingredients. I measure, pour, and mix as I go. Do you pre-measure ingredients? 

On a side note, Jenny of Elefantz is an Australian stitchery designer (remember the pincushion I stitched from one of her designs here?) well, she recently started to share weekly recipes accompanied with easy stitcheries free on her blog. I started to collect them and will start trying them out this Fall! How kind, a nice treat indeed!

We are starting to have a few nice days here and there... with that autumnal feel that I love! The sunlight is already changing and that only signals Fall is in the air. As a mom with small kids, living with a chronic illness, we are not able to do as much as other families are able to do with their kids during summer break,... but I'm thankful for what I can still do with them. Still able to go out and about on good days and enjoy their laughter and squeals of joy. In turn they are very empathetic and understanding when mommy is not able to do as much. There have been a few outings: playgrounds, faith strengthening meetings, a couple of trips to the pool, shopping to replace outgrown clothing items, volunteer work, to the market, and more recently to our 3 day convention. All time well spent!

Now after all the activity my body is on strike, but hopefully not for long. So now, perhaps I can have some force down time and stitch a bit. Hmmm... what will be my next project?

Stay tune ;-)! May your August be a happy one! Till later!