Happy Valentine!

Decided that the winter snowman hanging had to come down this week. Sick of snow, even though KC hasn't had but about 6 inches altogether. Or, maybe just sick of winter. In any case, that left a big blank wall to fill. So got some red felt, pink fleece, pink felt, scraps of Valentine-y fabric, bits of trim, and some pretty red glass beads--Voila! Instant hanging--no, correct that, took much longer than an instant, but it was a fun one day project. What slowed me down was Violet, who wanted to first climb UP the red hanger before it got hung (on my cutting table of course), then attacked the metallic thread, which for some reason really appealed to kitty, oh, and the beads, don't forget the rattly box of beads, way more fun there. Finally gave up on Violet and lured her out to the screened porch to watch birdies. So Happy Valentine from me and Violet!

Home Improvements

Back in the Fall, we had our sunroom reroofed, because of previous hail damage, and because our skylights were leaking. Apparently all skylights leak eventually, as did ours. So a new roof was put on, and we had these skylight holes left. Hubby put up insulation in the holes, and I thought about what to do to cover them, aside from just a normal piece of plywood. First I considered painting night skies on the plywood, but then thought, oh wait a minute, that would darken the room just by two black holes, can't have that! We use the sunroom as our exercise room and want as much light as possible. Then I thought about painting blue sky with white puffy clouds. Went to Joanne's to get winter fleece, and found exactly the fleece I needed, blue sky with white puffy clouds. So I upholstered each piece of plywood, and hubby installed them, with a tiny bit of assistance from me, yesterday and today. Looks pretty good for short and easy mural work! Now when we exercise, we have a blue sky all the time.

Beading again!

It's the start of a New Year, so thought I would bead up a couple of new things. One I have shipped down to Mom in southwest MO, the other I have kept for myself.

Found some beautiful dichroic handblown glass beads at Zingz Art Glass Shop in Blue Springs, in shades of red. So I went through my collection, thinking, purple would be good, but instead chanced on some pink rose quartz, in different sizes, varying from chunky to 3 mm round, so I put together a length she can pop over her head, or use the clasp.

Then, daughter's new mom-in-law gifted me with this really neat cat bead, when we were out in CA for the wedding. I had some bird head beads from a Peruvian necklace I used to wear, but which broke years ago, and which I had set back for a rainy/snowy day. Voila! I was also gifted with carved bone beads at the same time, so tucked those in between, and came up with a whimsical necklace, throwing in some coral spikes to repeat the bird bead spikes.

Now Mom and I both have new jewelry to face the New Year!

Christmas at our house

We downsized this year. Found the very last prelit tree at a Walmart super center at the end of the holiday season last year, for one buck! So of course bought it and stuffed it in the minivan. Stuck it up in the attic, and now that we have Violet the Invincible Kitten, I am so glad we got it. When we first put it up, she was attacking all the lower branches, which was basically ok, because the bottom round of lights is out for some weird reason, haven't quite figured out why yet. So I just left ornaments off the bottom, because they dangle, and you don't dangle something in front of Violet, unless you want it gone. I became a minimalist decorator too, leaving off half of what I would normally put on a tree, thinking ahead, aha! less to put back on the tree every day, right? After Violet redoes HER tree. She finally left it mostly alone, after one spray from the water bottle. Occasionally an ornament would "fall" off the tree, and I would have to put it back on. I even got her a Christmas Despereaux ornament, which she promptly bit the tail off, and which I just wound around his poor little arm. I told her it was hers alone, and she accepted that, ignoring the rest. For awhile. Anyway, when the packages got put under the tree, for about two days, she thought, "For me??? Why, how sweet?" and got cuddly with several, meaning some had more tape on them than usual at the end. But that was ok with the family. They understood a kitten and her needs. So this is my story of how our Christmas tree survived Violet. Luckily, she never brought it down, not even once. Now that it is back in the attic, I hope she is not planning her next Christmas strategy. Only time will tell.

Book Pages

Well, what can I say, except that it has been a busy Fall, and now a busy Winter. But reading keeps me sane. So here is one special book I recommend...
"The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. I discovered this purely by accident on the Costco book table, and snatched it up, because I love historical fiction, particularly on the War years. This story is told by letters, an interesting approach. I first thought, oh, this is annoying, but after the first letter, I was grabbed and couldn't let go. I had no idea how badly the Channel Islands suffered during WWII. I thought, ok, so they are British, but they were occupied by the Germans, and had to suffer extreme privation and death at the hands of their occupiers. Even though they suffer greatly, they deal with it with their heads held high, and figure out amusing and clever ways to outwit the Nazis. There are tragedies in this tale, but the human spirit wins out. If you want a heart-warming story that stays with you past the end, this is the book for you!

Apple Bread in a Can

Every fall when I work up apples, I dig up an old recipe that is tried and true, and makes for delicious eating--Apple Bread made in coffee cans. So here is the recipe---

4 cups peeled, chopped apples
1 cup chopped nuts (I have used pecans or English walnuts)
2 cups sugar

Combine apples, nuts and sugar and mix well. Let stand for 1 hour, stirring frequently. DO NOT DRAIN.

3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup melted butter (2 sticks)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs, slightly beaten

Combine flour, soda, salt and spices in a large bowl. Add the apple mixture, stirring well. Stir in butter, vanilla and eggs.

Take two one-pound coffee cans and tie a 2 inch aluminum foil collar around the tops of each. I fold the aluminum foil over into a double thickness to make the collar stronger. I spray the insides of the cans with Baker's Joy (baking spray with flour). Spoon the batter carefully into each can, and set the cans on a baking sheet. I have learned that the butter seeps out of the cans during baking, so that protects your oven from spills.

Bake at 325 degrees for one hour and 15 minutes. Check for doneness with a long cake tester! Remove from oven, let cool upright for 10 minutes on cooling rack. Carefully remove the bread from the cans (I gently ease them out sideways) and continue to let cool, this time bread on its side, on the cooling rack. If you want to freeze it, wrap a loaf with saran wrap, then slide it into a freezer ziploc. This bread freezes well for later use. OR you can slice into round slices and dollop with your favorite ice cream. This makes two fabulous apple loaves!

Apple Time

This is a really good apple year in MO! The apple trees had lots of rain, good weather for growing, not too hot a summer, and now a perfect fall. So we drove on up to Waverly to the orchards and brought back some Jonathans, and Jonagolds. I make a quick and easy dessert for us at night, which is kind of fun to make too. It's my own version of Fried Apples.

You need a heavy pan--I use my omelet pan. Melt two tablespoons of butter in it, add two teaspoons of cinnamon, and two tablespoons of sugar, stir well, until all melted, then add in 2 thinly sliced/cored/peeled apples, stir until the apples are tender. This usually takes 5-8 minutes. Then pour the apples and sauce into two deep dessert bowls, throw on top some vanilla frozen yogurt, and enjoy!