whatchabuildin

happy birthday grandma K.

 

Today would have been my Grandma's 105th birthday. She passed away 10 years ago June 20th, 1998. The photo above was the last picture I have of us together, taken in 1996. Actually there are three generations here including my mom and myself. As I write this I am fighting back tears, not really knowing how to write about this wonderful woman that so completely impacted my life in so many ways. I certainly wish right now that I was a more eloquent writer. This is the woman who taught me to finger crochet, then "regular" crochet, embroidery (making many embroidered green felt bookmarks), sewing, cooking, baking, taking time to read, and much much more.

Grandma was always there for all of us. Even when she and Grandpa moved to Evanston in the early '70s, so Grandpa could start a new job, she wrote letters and called weekly. Grandma and Grandpa visited several times a year as well. For us kids the waiting for their arrival was so painful! Waiting and waiting for their car to turn into our road and down the hill to our house.

"When are they going to be here, mom?"

"Soon, two hours to go."

"Is it almost time yet?" "Oh, wait! I see their car! They're here, they're here!"

We would all run out into the yard and wait for them to pull up in the drive. Then we would help them unload the car really fast because we knew what was coming. The packages. Yes, throughout the year Grandma would make clothes for me, my brother and sister. Beautifully made, using the latest fashion patterns. I loved all the clothes she made for me. From my favorite pullover flannel top (above) to matching Easter outfits (below) for all of us, sometimes including my mom! Year after year, for a long time! My favorite gray wool flannel pants (below), skirts, tops, and of course the annual Christmas nightgown.

I never, ever saw Grandma in anything else but dresses that she made for herself. In the pictures you see of her here, she made the dresses that she was wearing. They were usually a in a blue floral print, calico or a solid blue. Blue was her favorite color.

Above (left) was my very favorite, what I called, my smock top. With, get this, "Holly Hobby" printed fabric! Oh yes, my favorite. I loved Holly Hobby and that smock top!

Oh my, so many, many memories. I wish I could just capture them all and lock them in a box. Even to this day, right now, if I close my eyes and think back, I can still feel the velvet softness of her cheek when we hugged. If I am really still, and think really hard, I can still hear her say certain things, and I can hear her laughter. I still can smell the perfume she wore. Either Youth Dew or Chanel no5. Not just smell it, but how it smelled on her. Oh, how that lovely perfume takes me back. Warmth, security, unconditional love. The little gestures of her love. When I was in college she and Grandpa would come to visit me once a month. Gram would pack a care package in a large brown paper bag (no plastic grocery bags in the '80s). In the package were granola bars, my favorite crackers, a Harlequin Romance (she would read them and pass them on to me, I'm the other romantic in the family) and sometimes a Lazy Daisy Cake. And on really special occasions, she would bring me a bottle of Chanel no5 perfume. Mmmm.

Grandma wrote letters to me when I was away at college, and when I moved to Vermont. The older she got, the fewer letters I received. I still have those letters, but I haven't been able to read them again, yet. Someday I will. She would always end her letters by writing "Well, hush for now. Love, Gram K."

In honor of Gram, today I am going to make the Lazy Daisy cake and I am going to share the recipe with you. Many recipes of hers I still use today, and will share them down the road with you. A little bit of Grandma for us all.

Have a good day friends, and "hush for now".

Lazy Daisy Cake

350 degrees for 25-30 minutes

Grease and flour an 7" x 11" pan, set aside.

Beat:  2 eggs in medium bowl

Add and Beat:

1 cup sugar

1/4 tsp.salt

1 tsp. vanilla

Beat In:

1 T. butter, melted in a 1/2 cup boiling hot milk

Sift Together:

1 cup flour

1 tsp. baking powder

Combine all and pour into prepared pan.

Broiled Coconut Topping

3/4 cup coconut

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup shortening

2 Tbs. milk

Combine and cook, stir constantly until sugar melts. Spread on top of warm cake. Return to oven at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

still here...passing through...be back soon!

Hello friends! I am still here! I will be back on track soon, very soon. My mom has been visiting here for the last 3 1/2 weeks - all the way from Idaho - and time really just flew by! We also celebrated the birthday of a very special little one - who just turned three! So between planning and executing that special event and Mom and I sewing, baking, fabric shopping and just catching up, well we ran out of time! Tomorrow she leaves. It is always a sad day when she goes, thank goodness for email and blogs, right?

Thanks for all your comments sprinkled throughout the past few weeks. I really, really appreciate your positive thoughts. I will be back in a few days with lots of goodies to share with you.

Smiles till then!

spring housekeeping

Yes, it is that time of year. The snow is slowly melting, the air smells sweet with spring renewal and the days are - finally - longer. I long to open the windows and clean the cobwebs from corners and start fresh, start new.

I started this blog about 5 months ago not really knowing what I was doing, I just knew I wanted to have a blog. Well, it was (and still is) a huge learning curve for me. With the little time I do have, I started out really basic, just getting information on here and moving on to other things. Spring is almost here and I always like to start each new season with a purpose, a mission if you will. So my mission this spring is to spruce up this blog, a new banner, nicer looking sidebars, more interesting things to look at and be inspired by, and even a shop update.

So, stay tuned in the next couple weeks and see what spring brings!

Have a good week friends!

some card art

Hello! These are a few cards that I painted recently. One for a friend whose dog died, and the other was given to my sweetie for Valentines Day. I really should paint more. I really like to paint. Note to self: paint more!

Click on these and they will pop up bigger.

friday night is pizza night

Friday night is pizza night around here! One of our family traditions we started years ago. Gathered in the kitchen, we discuss our plans for the weekend while I start a batch of homemade pizza dough. Oh, wait! Back up. First I pour myself a glass of wine, then I start the pizza dough. Better. Yes, much better.

Ok. So, pizza night around here has turned into quite an event now that I have a little helper. He loves pizza dough. Not just the eewy gooey-ness of it, but he actually eats it. Raw. I know, I know. Yuck-o! 

Anyway, pizza night with an almost three year old is well, yes exciting and fun! This is how it we do it.

The recipe that I use is from the Martha Stewart's "Comfort Food" cookbook. You can find a similar one on her website, here. The main thing I do differently is that I just make it up in a bowl by hand and not in the food processor. Saves washing the food processor, and lugging it out of it's place in the bottom cabinet, way in back. I also just let it rise once for 30 minutes, not twice.

So, as I am making up the dough along comes Colin...

"Mommy I want to help too! Get my apron, pease (please) I want to tir (stir), I want to tir! Pease, pease mommy...mommy can I pat it up? Pat it up mommy! Should I tir it now? Can I pease? I want to pat it too, pat it up mama, mommy whasdat? Is that your grape juice? Can I have grape juice too? Oooh, Mommy das ticky (sticky), das ticky mama. Can I cut too? Mama what are you doing? Whasdat?..." he says with demanding excitement.

Yes, that was one continuous dialog from Colin. In between I interjected a few "Yes, honey", "no, not yet, not yet. Wait. Wait. Wait honey, ok now you can do it. Wait. OK. Now you can. OK." **sip** "No, that is wine. It is adult grape juice. No, but can have some of your grape juice."

Phew!! Are you exhausted yet? Were not done yet! So tonight we made our basic cheese, spinach and sauce pizza.

The easy way to wilt spinach is to put a bunch in a bowl with a tablespoon of water and put it in the microwave for a minute on high. But if you get weirded out sometimes like I do about putting things in the microwave, you can just steam it for about a minute on the stovetop.

So after I pat the dough into the pan, put the sauce, spinach, and oregano on, Colin's job is to put the cheese on. And, what a good job he does! We stick that baby (the pizza, not the child) in the oven for 22 minutes, exactly. Yes. Then sip a little more wine and wait for pizza goodness.

Notes:  We used sharp cheddar for this recipe. The Greek Oregano was harvested from my garden last summer, it is so nice to have this time of year! I highly recommend having an oregano plant in your yard or garden. One plant dried and harvested will last all winter.

There you go! This is how our pizza night goes. Good pizza, good family time. Yes, always good family times!

morning time

Our weekday mornings are quite busy before we head to work and school, but we always make time for a good breakfast. One of our favorites is fast, yummy and healthy oatmeal with peanut butter and maple syrup. Add a glass of orange juice and you have a wholesome easy breakfast to help start your day right.

This is my recipe for the oatmeal:

3/4 c. whole oats (not instant)

1 1/2 c. water

Place water and oats in large bowl together. Cook on stove top or in the microwave, following box directions. When done cooking stir in one large dollop (a healthy tablespoon) of peanut butter and drizzle maple syrup on top. I love the "B grade" maple syrup on my oatmeal. It is becoming more common these days and should be easy to find.

There you go! Have a great day!

++ yes, that is an icecube in Colin's oatmeal! He likes to cool his down that way!

snow day : craft day

Today we are home from school and work because of the ice and snowstorm we had last night. So, stuck inside all day, we decided to make art. We went to the recycle bin and pulled out a few of the hundreds of magazines that arrive at our house weekly. (I swear, even though I am on that "take me off your #%@*&^@!!! list" I am still on somebody's list!) Anyway, back in the recycle bin we pull out magazines and some cardboard.

I dig out my scissors and glue and we get down to business. I do the cutting and Colin does the gluing and positioning of the shapes I cut out.

"More shapes mama more shapes pease mama so I can glue them and put them dere and you can cut more for me and I will put dem down on the brown paper."

Oh, the sweetness of my babe having fun making art and talking in run-on sentences. *sigh*

Seeing Red, Everyday : 15

This is my wonderful Emile Henry dutch oven and the best (and easiest) bread I have ever made. Baked in the dutch oven! Yum! Following is the recipe for the bread. The original recipe was taken from Apartment Therapy Kitchen. There you will find other tasty recipes worthy of testing. This is one recipe that is a MUST to try. I can't believe how easy it is and soooo good! Seriously. I have been trying different recipes over the years for a crusty yet chewy bread and this is it. And it is so easy. I know. I said that already. It's just that, well it is. Really. Easy.

No-Knead Bread
makes 1 loaf

3 cups bread flour
3/4 teaspoon regular yeast (not instant)
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups water

Mix all the ingredients in the morning before you go to work. This should take about 3 minutes and leave you with a thick, slightly goopy dough. Cover with a towel or some plastic wrap and leave it in the warmest spot in your kitchen. It should get a 6 to 8-hour rise.

When you come home from work lightly mist a counter or baking sheet with spray oil and turn dough out on it. Shape it roughly into a ball, mist with oil again, and cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Let proof for about an hour, or however long you have.

Heat the oven to 450°F. Put a Dutch oven in the oven to heat. When the dough has doubled in size, put it in the pan. You may have to pour it, pry it off the baking sheet, or just roll it in - the dough is very wet. Don't worry if it looks a mess. Cover the pot with a lid and bake for 30 minutes. Remove lid and bake for another 15 minutes to let it brown.

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And... one more photo of the red goodness around me. I can't resist. This is the last day of my "Seeing Red, Everyday" project. Oh red, I love you so!

The red tea towel is from Heather over at Skinny Laminx. Heather Moore is a wonderful illustrator and artist. The design on the tea towel is called "spoons". Go check out her amazing work. I was impressed, I know you'll be.

Seeing Red, Everyday : 14

Some of my Emile Henry stoneware. This is from the Couleur Collection, that (unfortunately) last fall the company decided to discontinue this line **sniff**. It is replaced with a more muted tone of red. I don't think it is as pretty as the rich red of my set. Then again, I am partial!

Seeing Red, Everyday : 13

My shower curtain in the downstairs bathroom. Yes, it is very colorful! I call it cheerful, but some visitors have said, "oh wow, it is...different". To each his own!

I made these when we first moved in five years ago. The shower curtain is actually two tablecloths I ordered from Crate and Barrel with Marimekko Unikko fabric that I just love. I cut them to size, sewed up the seams, and used a grommet maker from work to put the grommets in. Easy.