This list of key words, which is in no particular order, is to remind me of the things I need to tell you about: knitting, the swingset, the tent, yard saling, tonight's dinner, salt potatoes, The Cars, cutting shorts, butterscotch sauce, Big Lots, cast iron cookware, the scary new ladder, building a garage, strawberries, sundress, price of canning jars.


Like I'm really going to get to even half of these. Oh well, at least I have goals, right?

Post Title

→

Post URL

→

https://beat-hairstyles.blogspot.com/2004/05/this-list-of-key-words-which-is-in-no.html

Visit Trend Wallpapers And Desktop Background for Daily Updated Wedding Dresses Collection

It turns out that I will likely not have any paid work needing to be accomplished today so I have designated this as Fiber Arts Weekend. I had wanted to say it was Sewing Day, but then my knitting lesson wouldn't fit into the theme.


Yes, you read that right - I have a knitting lesson tonight! I'm very excited because I have wanted to learn to knit for a very long time. I tried reading one of those "learn to knit in 12 easy steps" books but couldn't make heads or tails of it (this could be because I am left handed - most such books are written for righties - and don't have much in the way of spacial awareness). Anyway, I've got all these dreams of whipping up sweaters and cool Harry Potter-esque scarves and cute little mittens and I'm just fidgety with anticipation. Baby steps, I know - I'll probably learn just enough to make some kind of boring thing but I promise not to get discouraged! We must crawl before we can walk before we can run. I'm not good at that kind of moderation, but it's worth keeping in mind.


I'm also planning on finishing the sun dress I started two months ago. All I have to do on that is sew the skirt to the bodice - it's already pinned - and complete the hem. This dress is not for anyone in this house - it's a 2T - but I thought it would make a good first project. When it's done I'm going to send it up to Buffalo so my niece can wear it and have my sister and mom do a critique of its wearability and my overall technique. Since I'm not a natural sewer this kind of feedback is important to improvement.


I'm also hoping to cut and pin a pair of shorts for the Boy Wonder. I bought some very cute searsucker plaids for shorts of him and really need to get going before the summer is over. He's in an awkward size right now where 3T is generally too small, but 4T falls off and I'm constantly nagging him to pull up his shorts. So I'm thinking I'll make him some slightly generous 3Ts with elastic waists. That should be enough sartorial compromise to get him through the summer.


If all goes well and I have time, I will also work on a needlepoint change purse for my aunt and a cross stitch bib for the Little Diva.


I might have some time/space/resource competition this weekend from my husband who has made his own designation for the weekend: Swing Set and Play House Design and Build. I was not surprised to learn that he has no intention of using any of the pre-fab kits or accessories available to saner parents but rather intends to do a complete custom design (except for the slide, which he has said he will purchase). When I teased him about his compunction to go to so much trouble when we could just go to and buy a very nice playset he responded that while we were out we should just buy the Boy a couple pairs of shorts while we were at it.


Touché.

Post Title

→

Post URL

→

https://beat-hairstyles.blogspot.com/2004/05/it-turns-out-that-i-will-likely-not.html

Visit Trend Wallpapers And Desktop Background for Daily Updated Wedding Dresses Collection

This is Confetti Lantana. I bought several this year because it reminds me of J. We had noticed it last year planted around her community's pool and both thought it was very pretty. Down in South Carolina, Lantana grows big and bushy with many blooms all over. Here in Virginia it stays much smaller, although I've enjoyed a lot more - and continuous - bloom than the nursery man suggested I would. I'm finding this very comforting. As if J. were watching and making sure that "our" flowers would be so nice.


I've been actively looking around for mushroom ketchup recipes and have narrowed the selection down to a few that I'll mess around with before settling on either one or a combination. In the process of Project: Ketchup I've also come across a recipe for can-able jerk sauce.


Now, I'd walk many miles for the promise of a good piece of jerked chicken or fish so this bears looking into. How cool would it be to have a few half pint jars of jerk sauce on hand and not be required to go through a lengthy preparation process whenever you wanted it or, worse, spend lots more money buying a prepared sauce or going out? My plan is to make a single batch sometime this week and see how well we like it. If all goes well, the full recipe makes several pints so that should be enough for a year or more.


First, though, I must make more pickled carrots. We're down to two jars and our dill has some heads I want to use so that it doesn't bolt so quickly. The carrots will be short work, though, and should leave some time for experimentation on the ketchup and/or jerk later this week. I'm really looking forward to it - I love being in the kitchen trying something new.


Finally, my husband did the unthinkable last night. He went out to buy some ice cream and came home with a half gallon, some sprinkles, whipped cream and...chocolate sauce. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Well, I wouldn't have actually cried, since it's not that big a deal, but you know what I mean. I was unpacking the bag, saw the chocolate and walked over to the canning cupboard. Calmly opening the door, I asked him if he remembered a couple weeks ago when I made several pints of chocolate sauce. He looked utterly blank for a moment and then slightly sheepish. As I say, though, not a big deal. What's the worst thing, here? That we now have more chocolate in the house?

Post Title

→

Post URL

→

https://beat-hairstyles.blogspot.com/2004/05/this-is-confetti-lantana.html

Visit Trend Wallpapers And Desktop Background for Daily Updated Wedding Dresses Collection

Around the world in a bowl of rice... or, Is my blog burning?




So I committed to this blog cooking thing, formally known as Is My Blog Burning? The theme this go 'round is Around the World in a Bowl of Rice. The idea was, as I understood it, to make a rice dish that either is from or references your ancestry and then post the recipe and a picture of said dish. Easy enough. And then somewhere around, oh say, Friday I remembered that my people - who hailed from all over the globe - weren't really rice eaters. Oh, sure, there are a couple dishes picked up from here and there and many of the cuisines I have not yet fully explored, but there was no obvious choice.


So I ended up with a chicken and rice dish that incorporated and referenced elements from many different cuisines. I also cribbed some procedural elements from a recipe recently posted by Smallhands. The picture will come along shortly - it's currently resident on the camera, which my husband has with him at the moment.




With all of this in mind, I present to you:




Global Chicken and Rice




1) Season four bone-in split chicken breasts generously with salt and pepper on both sides. In a Dutch oven, brown the breasts in 4 tablespoons olive oil, making sure that both sides are a nice golden color. Remove from pan.


2) Cook in the hot oil three or four diced shallots and three or four minced garlic cloves until the onions are translucent. Add a half a cup of diced carrot, stir, and continue cooking for five minutes.


3) Stir into the pot a cup of long grain white rice. Add a cup and a half of water and a half a cup of dry white wine. Bring to a boil, add the chicken breasts back into the pan and cover. Cook until the rice is nearly done.


4) When the rice is just about cooked, stir in a cup of green peas (fresh or frozen) and replace the cover on the pan to cook until the rice is done.


5) Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside. Stir 1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese into the rice along with 3 tablespoons finely chopped basil. Let sit for a few minutes.


6) Pour rice into a large bowl or platter. Top with chicken. Sprinkle with black pepper, paprika, and chopped parsley. Very lightly sprinkle with the juice from a fresh lemon.


7) Serve with steamed broccoli which has been sprinkled with a few drops of sesame oil.


So there you have it. When I was typing it all out I realized that it all sounds a bit much...to much going on and too many flavors. Trust me, though, they all work well together and it's a nice dish for a simple family meal - which is how we ate it. The leftover rice was consumed for this morning's breakfast and it was even better after a night's rest.


Now, I'm off to see what everyone else has done. If you're interested, you can start at Chez Pim. Join me, won't you?

Post Title

→

Post URL

→

https://beat-hairstyles.blogspot.com/2004/05/around-world-in-bowl-of-rice.html

Visit Trend Wallpapers And Desktop Background for Daily Updated Wedding Dresses Collection