~"Cream of" Soups~

For quite some time now I've not purchased "cream of" soups, because some of the ingredients are ones I prefer not to use in my kitchen. I've tried several recipes for cream of mushroom soup made from scratch, but those fell lacking. So I just stopped making recipes - some of my favorite recipes - that had "cream of" soups in them.

Then last Easter, I was looking in the soup aisle for an alternative, so I could make my grandma's potato dish for our dinner. I came across a box of soup made by Pacific Organic. I bought it and...it fit the bill!

So now that I have a "cream of" soup that I'm happy using, some of my favorite recipes have made their way into my menu rotation again! That makes me happy, and Kevin too - because most of the recipes I hadn't been making were actually favorites of his.

I found this soup at my local Meijer, though I suppose it would be easier to find at a health food store. It never occurred to me to look at my health food store to see what options I might have. But I don't make it to my health food store very often, so I'm glad that Meijer is carrying these soups now!

Simple ingredient list I don't feel bad cooking with!

~(Finally) Finished Sleeping Monkeys~

I finished my Sleeping Monkeys (Ravelry link) a few weeks ago, and then they sat in my knitting bag. I was glad to get them finished but since it hasn't been cold I haven't really needed wool socks. But goodness! I should at least photograph them!

I loved knitting these. The yarn was nice to work with and the pattern with the eliminated purling worked up so quickly.

It's nice to have a new pair of socks to look forward to wearing this fall!

~Something to Think About~

Someone shared the following with me, and it has been incredibly helpful to me:

I do the things I do, and
I feel the things I feel, because
I think the things I think.

To change the way you feel, start with your thoughts. Stop yourself in your tracks when thinking wrong thoughts (of bitterness, anger, whatever your wrong thoughts might be). Confess them to the Lord.

Changing your thoughts will change your actions.

In time, changing your thoughts, along with changing your actions, will change your feelings. It won't be instantaneous, but in time, your feelings will come along!

When I am having trouble with my feelings, I try to remember this and go back to what I am thinking about. Then I can change my thoughts, which changes my actions, which eventually changes my feelings.

~Make Your Own Taco Seasoning~

Several years ago, I looked online and found a recipe for taco seasoning. I just wrote it down on a scrap of paper, so I'm not sure what site I got the recipe from.

Taco Seasoning
1 T. chili powder
2 t. onion powder
1 t. cumin
1 t. paprika
1 t. oregano
1 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt

For one pound of meat, combine these seasonings. Cook your ground beef, drain the fat, and then add the seasonings, cooking a little longer to fully season the beef. You may need to add a little water.

If you want to have this as a staple in your cabinet, rather than mixing every time, you'll want to make a bigger batch. For mine, I am using a half-pint jar. When I mixed it up this time, I didn't have the onion powder so I still need to add that. So this size container is just a little too small for this mix:

6 T. chili powder
4 T. onion powder
2 T. cumin
2 T. paprika
2 T. oregano
2 T. sugar
1 T. salt

Mix thoroughly. Use 3 T. per pound of meat, or whenever a recipe calls for one taco seasoning packet.

~Oatmeal for...lunch~

I belong to a buying club, which is very handy for getting a good price on whole foods. My last order, though, I made a mistake. It was late (I had gotten out of bed to get my order emailed by the deadline), and I grabbed an order number, an item description, and a price, all from three different items. You have to be really talented to make that kind of mistake! ;-) Instead of getting 25 pounds of regular rolled oats, I got 25 pounds of quick oats. What to do with so many oats? I rarely buy quick oats, so I was a little flummoxed by having so many at hand!

Thankfully I found some friends who desired quick oats, and I was only left with about 9 pounds. Much better! I can do this. ;-) I mixed up a quadruple batch of chocolate oatmeal to have on hand for my daughter, and I've used it several times for baking.

And I've had it twice for lunch. Hey, it works in a pinch! And I do have a lot of oatmeal on hand! :-)

~Finished Doll Afghan~

On Saturday I finished my daughter's doll afghan:

I had just enough yarn to make it a decent size. The last row of purple got cut short, can you see where I switched over to pink?

With her doll...why are dolls always unclothed?

I pulled up my doll afghan from the basement. I think I was about five when someone in my church made this for me. Maybe my mom would remember who gave it to me. I don't remember the lady's name, but it was a well-loved doll afghan!

And the doll blanket that my great-grandma made for me:

~Does God Care? (It's Only a Quarter)~

I wrote this post a few months ago, and then never hit "publish". In the hopes that it will be an encouragement to someone, I'm posting it today. Blessings!

Recently I went to Aldi for a quick shopping trip. When I pulled into the parking lot, I looked through my purse for a quarter, only to discover that I didn't have any quarters with me. (You need a quarter in order to get a cart, which is returned when you put your cart back.) I was in a hurry and cross at having the extra step of getting change inside. The thought crossed my mind that I could pray for a quarter to be in one of the carts, but just as quickly I dismissed that idea, thinking that it's "just a quarter...it doesn't really matter to God."

When I got to the carts, I did scan for quarters but there were none. So I went inside and got my change. As I was heading back outside, I saw a lady fiddling with one of the carts. She left her quarter. Since I already had my quarter from the change I'd gotten, I left it for the next person.

Through that little quarter, I heard God's voice loud and clear: I care about a quarter. I care about your little needs too.

~Journaling~

I've never been very good at keeping a journal. When I was growing up, I'd get the fantastic idea to start a journal, and then I'd journal for two or three days in a row. Several months later, I'd come back to my journal, rip the pages out that I'd journaled, and then start over again. Needless to say I don't have any journals from my teen years.

This past winter I started journaling with some pages I found online. I really enjoyed the time journaling and since it was something I printed out I didn't feel the need to do it every single day.

Since I enjoyed it so much, I started thinking about the One Line a Day journal. Since it is not only a dated journal, but a 5-year dated journal, I wondered if I would be able to keep up with it! After all, I couldn't exactly tear pages out of it! So at the beginning of this year I started a file on my computer and would type up a line for each day. Around April I decided I truly wanted a 5-year journal, so I got one (and filled in all the dates from my computer file)!

So far, so good! I keep it out on the counter, and fill it in at the end of the day. Sometimes I'll not record for a few days, but it's always pretty easy to go back and write a sentence or two. I'm looking forward to using this over the next four and a half years!

Interested in getting one for yourself? I bought mine with a gift card at Target, and they are available at most bookstores. Amazon also sells them here (affiliate link).

~Race to the Finish~

When you aren't sure if you have enough of something, say bobbin thread, do you work faster? I always do! As if sewing faster is going to make the thread last longer?

I am going through my yarn bin trying to clear out some of the yarn, and I decided to make my daughter a doll blanket. Not that her dolls need another blanket, but I thought I should have enough yarn. Plus, someone crocheted me a doll blanket when I was little, and I always liked it. :)

I'm crocheting as fast as I can to find out if I'll have enough!

~Pick a Pin: Knit Jar Cozies~

So if there's something you really need, it is a sweater for your jar:

or two:

or quite possibly, three is the magic number:

I got a little carried away with my jar cozies. ;-) But I love the way they turned out! Now I just need a Cuppow and I'll be all set!

I have had these jar cozies pinned for 36 weeks, according to my pin. I used leftover wool DK weight yarn from my ripple afghan (finished project in this post) that I made so many years ago. I've now cleared out all my wool yarn from my yarn bin. Time to tackle the cottons and acrylics! :-)

Pattern here (if you're going to pin, please pin from the original site).

~More...Dryer Balls!~

After making my three dryer balls, I really wanted a few more. The only wool yarn left in my stash was a cone of sport weight yarn I bought in November 2006, when my sister and I visited Marr Haven. I figured this yarn has been giving me guilt long enough! No more! I will use it...for dryer balls! :-)

I didn't have a wool sweater to use for the centers, but I did have a very small amount of different wool yarn for two of the centers. Turns out with the scrap yarn and the cone of yarn, I had just enough for three dryer balls:

I wound them this morning, and then ran three loads of laundry (two hot, one warm), then through the dryer, and voila! three more dryer balls. :-)

~Wool Dryer Balls~

Some friends and I got together to make some wool dryer balls. It was a fun morning together. Since the project didn't take too much thought there was lots of conversation, the topics ranging from all manner of crunchiness since we were already being so crunchy and making wool dryer balls (of course, the ultimate crunchiness I suppose, would be to line dry laundry and then we wouldn't need to have wool dryer balls, but I digress).

I had quite a few scraps of yarn from various projects, so my balls are uncoordinated:

 

Mine went through two wash loads (one hot and one cold), and then through the dryer. I like the way they turned out, and I'm using them this morning as I do laundry. So far, so good! :) I read that you can use from 3-6 balls in the dryer, so I'm thinking of making a few more.

 

If you're unfamiliar with dryer balls, their purpose is thus:

:::to separate the laundry as it tumbles to help it dry faster, preventing the laundry from bunching up

:::to prevent static so laundry softener is not necessary and

:::if they are wool, to absorb some of the moisture from the laundry, speeding up the drying time

 



Project notes: we had a wool sweater which was felted, and we started our balls with a  folded strip of the sweater, so we wouldn't need quite so much yarn. Then we just wrapped and wrapped and wrapped...after that we stuck the balls in nylon knee highs, separating them from one another by either a knot or tying it off with yarn. The nylons accomplish two things: they help the balls hold their shape through the wash and they prevent lint from clogging your drains. Also, it is important to note that 100% wool yarn that has not been treated for washing is necessary (the yarn will be labeled "washable" or "superwash" if it has been treated).


 

Unrelated: here you can see a glimpse of my flower bed. Everything but the petunias are perennials. I'm excited to see the Asiatic lilies bloom. I have three and this year two of them have reproduced. I'm not sure when to split them, but I assume it would be after they bloom. I'll have to look into that.

~Pick a Pin: Wheat Tortillas~

I recently decided that I need to start utilizing my Pinterest boards a little more. I have actually made a lot of the recipes I've pinned, but I want to get to the sewing and crafting pins too! So I'm going to go through and pick some of my pins, and feature them here.

First up: wheat tortillas. The recipe is here. I was looking for something for lunch and decided on these. They were really good! And easy. Time-consuming, perhaps...but the taste is so much better than purchased tortillas, and there are not 32 ingredients in them. Just four.

This is where my picture should go:

But alas, after I ate lunch, and did a few things outside, I came back to photograph the remaining tortillas, they were gone. My husband enjoyed them too. ;-)

I filled them with beans which I had made previously, salsa I canned last year, and some shredded cheese. It was quite gratifying to know that I had made everything except for the cheese. I don't think I'll be making cheddar cheese any time soon! But I will be making these tortillas again!

Stay tuned for more Pinterest projects! I'm looking forward to some crafting, sewing, and cooking!

~Grape Jelly~

The last time my daughter went grocery shopping with me, she pointed to some grape jelly and asked what it was. I realized she's never had grape jelly! So I found some that was sugar free, and bought it for her. She loves it! She's eaten most of the jar in less than two weeks, so I figured I should make some of my own.

If you're looking for a quick canning project, here you go! I used Welch's 100% grape juice, a box of no-sugar pectin, and that's it! Of course, it isn't as sweet as regular jelly, but for our house it's perfect! I let my daughter help as much as possible, so she is quite proud of our jelly! Since I knew she would want to sample the jelly sooner rather than later, I left one of the jars unsealed and stored it in the fridge.

While I would love to source fresh Concord grapes and cook and strain the juice myself, I have to admit this is much easier! Now I can start my 2013 canning record. :-D

~Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies~

Do you ever have one of those days that chocolate just seems necessary? Today is one of those days for me!

I decided to make a batch of my favorite cookies, but I changed them up this time and they came out delicious! Who knew you could improve a Mrs. Field's cookie recipe? :-)

Preheat oven to 350*.

Cream together:
1/2 cup soft coconut oil (or butter)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla

Sift together, then add to creamed mixture:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt

Stir in:
1/2 cup shredded coconut (I used unsweetened)
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Drop or form cookies and place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. I like to make bigger cookies, so mine usually take about 15 minutes.

~Mango Ginger Jam~

I came across this preserves recipe and instantly wanted to try it out! Thankfully, ataulfo mangoes went on sale shortly after I found the recipe, so I was able to give it a go.

Since I wasn't canning it, I didn't follow the recipe exactly. I didn't let it sit overnight with the lime rinds, so even though it has lime juice in it, the finished product doesn't have much of a lime flavor. But that's ok - I like it the way it is! I ended up with a pint, since my six mangoes yielded only 2 cups of cut fruit.

When I first tried it, I wasn't sure if I even liked it! Then one morning I put spooned it into some yogurt...and...wow! I was hooked! It reminded me of the ginger yogurt I used to get at one of our favorite Indian restaurants in California (though that yogurt didn't have fruit in it).

Since I didn't can it, I guess this doesn't count as the kick-off to my 2013 season for canning, eh? I'm looking forward to cherries which should be in season relatively soon. I have a few cherry recipes to try this year!

~Gardening~

This year we decided to have our garden here at our house. The drought last summer (but mostly the decision to not water!) killed off most of our grass anyhow! Plus having our garden in our yard will be way more convenient!

Our garden so far:

 



I must say that my husband has done about 99.9% of the work so far. I planted a 3-foot row of radishes and a 1 1/2 foot row of peas the other night.

Kevin also read up on how to start seeds, and has started almost all the plants we will be planting this summer:

They're doing pretty well! The trick is to have florescent lights hanging over the plants, and have the bulbs almost touching the plants. The bulbs aren't hot, and if the light is right there, the plants won't bolt and get too big before planting season. This project is one which my daughter got involved in. She got to plant almost all the seeds! She enjoyed the treks down to the basement to "check on the plants".

While I am not too involved at this point of the process, I most assuredly will be involved with the picking and canning part!

We will be growing quite a bit this year!
corn
zucchini
peas (sugar)
radishes
lettuce
carrots
cucumber (pickling and salad)
beans (wax and green)
tomatoes (three varieties for canning plus a cherry variety)
tomatillos
assorted herbs

and I'm probably leaving some things out! We have grand plans this year! :)

~Apron Dress~

Last week I sewed one of my daughter's dresses. I finished it Saturday, and she wanted to wear it. It was cold outside, but why not? We need our spring to get more springy! 

 

I like the way it turned out. It was simple enough. Bias tape application is never my favorite, but I always seem drawn to things with bias tape on them, so I just soldier through.

I made a size 4 in a size 5 length, Butterick B5019. It's a little big, but at the rate my daughter is growing she'll probably outgrow it by the end of the summer! :)

~Spring Fabric~

I have had this pile of yummy spring fabric sitting on my sewing table for a few weeks now! I am so anxious to sew!

The bottom fabric is a piece from IKEA. It has Huge Flowers all over it. My friend that I was with talked me into getting it since I was on the fence about it. I got it with the tentative plans to make a skirt for myself. I warned her that I would blame her if I look ridiculous. ;-)

The other fabrics are for my daughter, to be turned into three spring dresses. The white fabric on top is actually two king size pillowcases. I plan on making a nightie for my daughter out of one of them, and dip dying it with an ombre effect.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was sick for about two weeks. I'd be clutching my coffee or tea, my ear throbbing in pain, and stare at that fabric wishing I could sew. Does that paint a pathetic enough picture? Haha...I was really sick! I am so glad to be well now! Now that I'm caught up on housework, I feel like I finally have the green light to sew! After taking the above picture, I cut an apron dress out of the pink plaid fabric.

~Pinterest Fail~

Have you seen the pin that links to cleaning vinegar? You take the peel from four oranges and put it in a Mason jar (what else, it's Pinterest, right? LOL) and cover the rinds with white vinegar. Two weeks later you have "awesome cleaning vinegar".

I tried it, and failed.

 

 

I can't blame Pinterest, really. I stuck the rinds in there and forgot about them, for longer than 2 weeks, I'm sure! Then my daughter was sick for about a week, then I was sick for two weeks, and...the vinegar got quite scuzzy.

 

I dumped the contents outside, and I must admit that the vinegar didn't smell bad. But it didn't look like something I wanted to clean with either. Maybe next time I try this I'll keep the pickling time to the recommended two weeks. ;-)