Soup and Stitching

 

We have been busier than ever around here. Not much embroidery progress lately. Did start a new pre-stamped cross stitch kit, just a handful of stitches in it so far.

In the kitchen lots of soups and stews... is that kind of weather, yum! By adding a couple of andouille chicken sausages to a regular chicken soup, the flavors get bump up to whole new delicious level. Well, this brief blog update wraps up this year's blogging. Another busy month ahead!

 

Homemade and Handmade

Little by little we (older daughter and I) have hand embroidered kitchen towels with various designs. It put a smile on my face to see these few folded and stacked. Various memories tied to each one of them. Probably all of our hand stitched towels appear in previous posts if you fancy to take a look.

The cooler weather always trigger my desire for hand embroidery, and for more than one cup of coffee a day as well. The flavor of  homemade pour over coffee is the best! No fancy machines or expensive gadgets. Well, I'll take that back... since I do use the microwave to heat up my water in a glass measuring cup. I've been looking into getting a glass electric kettle. In my opinion water boiled in glass tastes much better than boiled in any type of metal. Which in turn makes the perfect cup of coffee ;-).
Until next time!

The Little Things

Last night my "sprouts" and I had a Sit-n-Stitch Evening. It's been quite some time since our last time. The hand embroidery lap quilt project is calling me, however, for some reason felt like adding some more stitches on this cute little piece I started few months ago (here). Small cross stitch sampler "Summer Splendor" by Little House Needleworks. So happy to have been able to put a few stitches in without much trouble from holding things with my hands. Red is my most favorite color, it cheers me up! I think that is why I decided to work on this particular project.

Below is a simple no bake pie, using simple ingredients. Recipe is from Publix (link at the end of this post). Very delicious! I love the mix in flavors and textures in this pie. The small one on the right is modified, using crushed GF cookies as crust, for my GF child. Easy to put together with your kids! We made this recipe this past Sunday afternoon. The only thing I will do different next time is add one more container of raspberries, yum. The girls and I are also already brainstorming on fruit and flavor variations for next time! 

I had a few rough days with this last flare. Couldn't even hold anything long enough to complete any task. On one particular day even holding the toothbrush with a light grip was painful, had to pause a few times to rest my hand. That was just the beginning of a day where it was a real struggle trying to perform everyday simple tasks. 

So thankful for a very understanding and helpful family! By last night my hands felt much better, so I was grateful to be able to stitch for a bit. Got that tiny house filled in and started the roof! Remember I'm a cross stitch newbie, so please don't snub my stitches ;-).

Autumnal sunsets are spectacular! Aren't they? They honestly take my breath away!
So many little things to be grateful for, not only for a day or two, but daily. The little things that remind me of what really matters in life, and not to take things for granted. That are a constant reminder to give my best everyday, live a life in a way that genuinely shows, not in words but in deeds, that I truly adore the Giver of it all! 

Non-affiliated link:
Publix's Chocolate Raspberry Pie Recipe

Baking, Evening Stitches, Vintage Carnation

Yesterday's weather was less cold than previous days, which was nice for a break. We headed out to do groceries, and find materials for a science project for one of my kids. Once back, did some laundry, vacuuming, and fixed a quick dinner. A free evening to do some stitching! Started again where I left on the Aunt Martha's Flower Quilt I was making for my mom. I think this is the Aster bloom.

Made quite a bit of progress while re-watching Emma. I do not get tire of it, enjoy watching all the versions, but my favorite one is the BBC 2009 TV Series, with Romola Garai as Emma and Jonny Lee Miller as Mr. Knightley. 
My 2nd favorite will have to be the 1996 movie with Kate Beckinsale as Emma and Mark Strong as Mr. Knightly.
Do you have a favorite period drama movie you don't get tire of?
I also like a few others by Jane Austen, but I prefer Emma.

Did the final stitches of the Bluework kitchen towel, will try to post a picture of it next time. 
This past Thursday was a rainy one. We stayed in and baked gluten free and egg free cookies, nut free banana muffins, and rum cake ;-). We did the semi-homemade approached by using box mixes for the cookies and rum cake. The muffins were from scratch.

Since all these pictures above were taken either on a rainy day, or in the evening, the lighting is not great... but you might be able to get the feel of how things went on my side of the woods.
Leaving you with a vintage embroidery pattern of a carnation... until next time!

Mouse Stitchery and Cravings

Started this cute mousey couple of days ago while resting up a bit from a very sore and painful upper back muscles & neck. A good friend of mine and spiritual sister is also stitching from this same pattern (Aunt Martha's no.3820). In fact she was the one who motivated me to work on mine, she's doing hers on tea towels. Even though we do not live close by, we keep updating each other on our embroidery progress thru modern technology ;-). So bless to have a stitching friend! 
I'm stitching mine on my lap quilt project, may have to post my progress. As usual I have a few embroidery and english paper piecing projects going at once. Hoping to make considerable progress this summer on some of them, will definitely post updates as I work on them.

Now changing subject... the other day I had this intense desire for a burger, it had to taste as I was imagine it, LOL.   We jumped in the car to the nearest grocery store and grab ingredients, as soon as we got back I got busy in the kitchen.

Mmmmm, it was good! Just as I imagined it was going to taste. My choice of burger is a simple kind, with basic toppings, and this time with whole grain bread. Normally cheese-burgers don't get my attention, unless we are talking about a mushroom & swiss cheese burger ;-), but most of the time a simple well made burger is all it takes to take care of the cravings. Well, that's all for now, till next time! PS: Now I'm craving for another one!

Non-affiliated links;
Pattern "Mice Tea Towels" no.3820 from Colonial Patterns.

Baking and Vintage Embroidery

My younger kid is on the mend, and I think the older one is catching the nasty cold.... again. There are so many different kinds of cold viruses out there that can make you sick back to back or with very little break in between, totally what has happened in our household. What's a mom to do to remain calm and carry on while nursing sick kiddos, keeping things clean, and in between cooking pots of chicken soup? My to go activities are: baking, stitching while listening to upbuilding mp3s or broadcasts, cat naps, reading, and browsing online for handicraft ideas, patterns, or new dinner/dessert recipes.

FRENCH GRANDMOTHER'S LEMON YOGURT CAKE

Found this recipe above by The Cafe Sucre Farine (on Pinterest). So easy, mixed by hand! Made a few modifications, and gave it a go. Really good with hot tea! Modifications: used whole milk vanilla yogurt, reduced granulated sugar to 3/4 cup, substituted one whole egg for 3 tbsp. egg whites. Baked in 12 cupcake cups for 23 minutes, and omitted the icing.

There are so many cute vintage embroidery patterns out there! Here are some I've been keeping on my "To Stitch" list for future embroidery projects. Above is one of my favorites! I'm actually saving a lightly cracked porcelain tea pot in order to use it for displaying a potted plant. Will like to stitch this pattern on a tea towel... for the teapot will use a cobalt blue, not sure yet about the flower plant (look like begonias?).  
These in public domain, out of print, vintage patterns below were kindly shared by Maria on Flickr, if you would like to stitch one or all, please visit her Flickr to get the patterns. The link below the picture should take you there.

Shared by Maria on Flickr

Days Of the Week (DOW) embroidery patterns were very popular...  there are lots of them out there! These seem to be very appropriate, the chores/activities remind me of vegetable and flower gardens that are currently being planned in areas like here, were winter will be making an exit in few weeks (hopefully!).
Will you be stitching one of these patterns above? Oh please share if you do! Will love to see it! Enjoy!
Off I go to heat up yesterday's left overs for dinner, and to snack on some tea and cake ;-). Till later!

A Bit of Autumn

Not much happening around here, besides caring for sick little ones while keeping a tight schedule, so I’m posting two oldies but goodies ;-). Above and below are previous projects in autumnal colors. Pictures were taken in our previous home. Oh, I guess a little bit of news is that before my older one got sick, she baked two Gluten Free Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cakes back to back. The second half of the 2nd cake is what is left in the fridge. I do not eat it, but they enjoy it.

I want to start an English Paper Piecing project in Fall colors, (with some of the floral fabrics below) hoping to make my mind up soon. Fabrics below are from Sew Stitching Happy on Etsy, just in case you were wondering ;-).

My next blog update most likely will be towards the end of the month. Thanks for stopping by! Be well! Until 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!

Comforts

There are many things that can bring comfort, and they take many forms for each of us. 

This past week I fixed a childhood comforting breakfast as a treat.

Mom used to make for us, sometimes, cornmeal porridge by combining and heating up: whole milk, water, salt, sugar, and cinnamon stick (or ground cinnamon) into a saucepan, then added cornmeal and cooked until thickened and creamy. More like dessert than breakfast! Yum! In fact all our hot breakfast cereals where made in a similar way, be it oatmeal, cream of wheat, cream of rice, etc. Even cornstarch! Switching regular cow milk for coconut definitely takes it to the next dessert-licious level! 

Volunteer work also brings me comfort, and hopefully to the recipients too! Definitely there is "more happiness in giving than there is in receiving". Hoping some invitees can make it, we are so looking forward to our yearly convention. Every year gets better and better! Spiritually upbuilding and encouraging!

Fresh gigantic organic berries .... especially blueberries, I could eat a pint of these berries in no time. These were from a couple of months ago, end of spring beginning of summer. Delicious! A healthy comfort, indeed! 

Comforting and heartwarming to see that my husband took the wedding anniversary piece I embroidered for him to be framed. Meaning he will be hanging it in his new office once is completed.  

So yes so many things can bring or give comfort in a variety of ways! 

PS: Haven't finished the towel yet, have been taking an unexpected break from stitching this month. Perhaps August will put me back on needlework mode,... perhaps. Till later!

Beer Bread and Morning Glory

Brief update. Not much progress on my 3rd towel.
Browsing vintage patterns for future projects.

Planning to bake the Beer Bread (page 167) from Susan Branch's revised Heart Of The Home... Notes From A Vineyard Kitchen. It looks so easy to make, hopefully it'll taste good!

Leaving you with a simple, but lovely Morning Glory pattern for your stitching enjoyment! ;-) Part of a sheet in my collection of vintage embroidery transfers. 
Till later!

A Housewarming Gift (Part 2)

This terrible cold virus got me good this time 😷. Being sick in a new home, having to miss spiritually upbuilding meetings and activities with friends, got me feeling a bit down and nostalgic. Short errand yesterday to nearby store to get a couple of groceries/produce and back home.

To cheer myself up a bit, decided to switch the decorative towels in the kitchen today. Put down the tea I was about to make for myself (chai latte is my favorite treat) and took a picture of these two towels since I've previously mentioned about gradually posting them here. Of these two, the orange one is now hanging on my oven door with the yellow one I posted on Part 1.

The green went back in its package and put away with the others, for another day. Orange and yellow are happy colors (at least I think so) so those are the ones that made it out today :-).  
Now, to the close ups...

How pretty! The needleworker that embroidered this towel did a lovely job! Lovely color combo too! This towel was ironed by the seller, since of course, she launders the vintage linens before turning them into decorative towels... this is why the stitches look a bit squished, but still lovely and delicate. Stitches used: stem, lazy daisy (aka: detached chain stitch), french knots, and straight stitch.
  
Same stitches used on this orange one, another beautiful and dainty design! And that crochet edge, gorgeous! I'm feeling a bit motivated to finish my utility embroidered towel ;-), the one with the Baking Poodle on it. Haven't been able to pick up my needle these past few days despite having to take it easy. Looking down to my stitching with a runny nose,... eh, I don't think so. 

Not sure if I'll be able to pop back in for another blog post on Sunday, but if I do hopefully I'll have the utility towel done by then.  So looking forward to feeling like my good old self again. Perhaps I'm on the mend, my nose behaved while typing this post...LOL. Let you go now, hoping you all have a lovely weekend!

(I ended up having to reheat my water to make my tea 😊☕. )

Until later!

Baking Poodle (2nd Towel Update)

Guess what? Yes! Finally was able to do a bit of stitching!
The circumstances weren't the best, but by doing some embroidery I ended up turning a lemon into lemonade ;-). Below is the progress made so far. I modified the original pattern to fit my needs.

An injured lower back meant down time, so out my stitching came! Spent a couple of days housebound treating it.... it was so painful to walk, bend, reach, trying to sit and get up, etc. 
Much better now, thankfully! With lots of TLC, alternating between: heat pad, muscle ointment, medication, massage, and gentle movements. I'm almost back to normal! Here are a few other pictures of the progress (in regression).

Above, stitching at night with the help of clip-on-light. I was so close to be done that didn't want to stop, but my back was telling me it was enough. I'm afraid it may not be completed soon now that I'm better... you know, trying to catch up with everything that couldn't be done with an injured back. So close to be done!

At the time I had a taste for a piece of Lemon Poppy Seed cake with raspberries for garnish.. yummy!  If I bake it I'll probably eat half of it in a day or two (embarrassingly true). I never used to like the lemon homemade icing that I made, until I found a recipe online that called for butter in addition to the regular ingredients, and heating it in the microwave for (30 seconds? can't recall at this moment). It tastes great! No after taste of powder sugar... which I totally dislike. 

Stitching these french knots I hold the hoop upside down in order to be closer to that area for ease of stitching. I certainly do not bake wearing a pearl necklace ;-)... but it does gives the look of glamorous homemaking ... LOL. When seeing printed vintage advertising, it makes me wonder if ladies in the 40's did wear make up and high heels while doing chores. Do you know? 
Well, I let you go now ;-). Hoping next week will be a great one for all of you! Oh! Just in case you will like to stitch this Baking Poodle, I'm leaving it here for you ;-). Enjoy!!!