Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Entrechat for Miss A.

I knit this shrug for my granddaughter and mailed it off yesterday; I sure hope it fits! 


It is such an easy knit. I saw it on Tanna's blog; she knit one for her granddaughter and thought I had to try it for Miss A. 
 I love the detail on the back!  You would not believe how easy this pattern is to knit.  It took only two days.


The pattern gives only directions up to size 5; Miss Ava wears a size 6x-7, so I had to adjust the stitch count a bit. So, I am holding my breath until she tries it on for size.


Entrechat by Lisa Chemery 
 I used almost two skeins of Yarn Bee Hint of Silk yarn (color is Silk Pearl)

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Living Stations of the Cross

Tonight our youth group performed the fourteen "Stations of the Cross."  It was truly moving to watch 'Jesus' carry his cross and walk the road to His crucifixion. The young adults did an incredible job of taking the congregation there.

I tried to get pictures of each station, but the spotlight washed out the photos, so I am posting only the best of the worst shots. No matter, it was a beautiful event!  




4th station: Jesus meets His mother


11th station: Jesus is nailed to the cross


12th station: Jesus dies on the cross


13th station:  Jesus is taken down from the cross

Over 2,000 years later people all over the world commemorate death and celebrate the resurrection of  Jesus. His life and death had an impact on all of mankind!  

He is the Savior of the world.

Palm Sunday Dinner on Saturday Night

Last evening we had a few friends over for dinner. I made all NEW recipes! Some people think that's crazy, but I always figure what better time to try out something new. The guests have no idea how it should to taste anyway. Well, every course was a huge hit!

Sadly, I forgot to take pictures, so I am using photos from the sites where I found the recipes and I am hoping by giving credit to the owners that I won't be forced to remove them later.

We started the meal off with a wonderful soup, that one of the guests made and brought along. It was simply various sauté' vegetables in a vegetable broth, but oh so good! Then, we moved on to salad which was brimming with vegetables and a touch of cheese. Next, started the parade of new recipes, which I have listed for you below. 

Everyone was delighted!

Photo is property of Saving Room for Dessert

The chicken was so tender; the sauce just delicious. I increased the recipe by about a third and then discovered I did not have a fry pan large enough to accommodate all the chicken for the final stage of cooking. So, as I fried the pieces, I placed them in an 11 x15 baking dish; covered with foil and kept in a 195 degree oven to keep warm while I finished frying all12 pieces.  When the sauce was cooked, I poured it over the cutlets, covered the pan and increased the heat to 250 degrees. I left the dish in the oven for about a half hour, while we had soup and salad; it was perfect!  You can find the original recipe here.

Photo is property of Creme De La Crumb

These potatoes were so delicious and the easiest part of the meal; they were made in the crockpot!  
You can find the recipe right here.




Photo is the property of Dam Delicious

These carrots were awesome; not one left in the dish! My husband asked that I make  the potatoes and carrots again for Easter.

The recipe can be found here.



Photo is property of Jessica at Sprinkle Some Sugar

My mother and I each had a small portion for breakfast yesterday morning to "test" it. When my mom compliments something I have made I KNOW it is good.
The recipe for this wonderful dessert can be found here.


Photo is the property of Weight Watchers

The other dessert I decided to try was this Chocolate Walnut Cake that was published in this week's handout at Weight Watchers. I wanted to make it mainly because one of the guests lives a gluten free lifestyle and if you noticed all the recipes here are gluten free. Yes, even the chicken since the recipe says to dredge the chicken in rice flour. However, I used a gluten free all purpose flour instead. Well, I did NOT have an angel food pan and thought I would do just fine baking this recipe in a bundt pan.  WRONG! I could not get the cake out of the pan.  I knew at that moment that I was indeed a grown-up mature woman, because I did not get at all upset. I simply scooped all of the cake out into a bowl and decided that my second dessert would be a "chocolate crumble!"  When it was time for dessert I asked, "Who would like rice pudding and who would like chocolate crumble with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup?"  For those who asked for the chocolate crumble dessert, I placed a portion of the "cake" onto a syrup drizzled plate, topped it with two scoops of vanilla ice cream drizzled with more syrup and viola', a decadent dessert was had!

When everyone was done with their dessert I shared the cake story and showed them the crumbled mess; we all had a chuckled, but agreed it was still a delicious treat.

An artist friend once told me that there are no mistakes; only opportunities to be creative; such wonderful advice.

Monday, March 23, 2015

Linen Stitch Scarf

You might remember that I had several projects going at once during the snowy days of February-March, and one of them was this scarf.



I really enjoyed learning and knitting the "linen stitch." I think it would be a great stitch for a warm, cozy blanket, but it would take forever using worsted weight yarn!


The pattern is worked lengthwise and  instructed to CO 449 stitches, or the number of stitches for desired length.  I couldn't even bare the thought of one row being 449 stitches and also thought that would be ridiculously long. So, I CO 225 stitches and am very glad that I did!


To give you an idea of the length I hung the scarf over a door in my kitchen. Can you imagine the scarf twice that length!? Really; you'd have to be a giant to wear a scarf double the length!


I can't say enough about the pattern though, knitting it creates a piece that looks like a piece of linen fabric.  It is a very simple two row repeat. I found the pattern on Ravelry.

I am not sure if this will be a scarf I keep (I really love it), or if it will be a gift later down the line. I know someone in my knitting group whom would just adore it, and if by chance I get her name for our exchange gift, I will happily give it to her.



Saturday, March 21, 2015

Mikayla's Voice Wheels of Friendship Project

I am on the board of a nonprofit, Mikayla's Voice, which works with children of all abilities through inclusive practices in schools and the community. The children we work with have been blessed with an appreciation for children with disabilities and along the way have developed great friendships. 

Today I decided to share with you a post that I published on Mikayla's Voice blog. If you like what you read here, maybe you will take the time to visit the pages of our website.

*********************************************************************************


The Wheels of Friendship inclusive painting program has given children of various abilities the opportunity to create amazing artwork. Most recently, Mikayla and Kim worked with students at the Easton Area Middle School.
IMG_7816
"Many Snowflakes, All Unique"
IMG_7820 - Version 2
"Many Colors, On One Tree."
 
IMG_1082
What a pleasure to have worked with fifth and sixth graders: Alex, Adam and their friends from Easton Area Middle School!
The boys are shown in the picture above with Skills USA students from the Bethlehem Vocational-Technical School.  The BAVTS building trades students build the frames and wrap the canvases for all the painting created through the Wheels of Friendship program.
IMG_1087
                          Alex stands proudly with his family in front of the painting he and his classmates created,
"Many Colors, On One Tree."
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"Many Snowflakes, All Unique" hangs prominently behind Adam and his family.
The paintings and their titles  epitomize the meaning of inclusion!
IMG_1080
Mikayla poses with her mom, Kim (left)
and Colleen Mooney-McGee, the manager of community and government affairs at
Crayola, and students from BAVTS.
IMG_9625
Thank you to the Easton Area Family YMCA for hosting the display of painting
for Mikayla's Voice and the students of Easton Area Middle School.


The grant for this program is funded by Crayola.
  

Friday, March 6, 2015

Snow Days' Projects

While some people choose to clean closets and do other household chores when stuck inside because of snow, I tend to get crafty.  It might be a carry over behavior from my teaching days, when my philosophy was that snow days were gifts from God, not to be wasted on 'work!'




So crafting I've been a doing!



I have been using up scraps and learning how to knit the linen stitch, which I love.


Daughter received the first leg warmer,which she said fits fine,
 so knitting the second leg warmer is now in progress.


Finally, a friend asked for a fillet crochet, which I haven't done in years, but like riding a bike,  once I put the crochet hook in my hand the rhyme just happened and viola! 
When the piece is blocked, matted and framed it will even be more impressive.

Even though snow (in large amounts) can be a nuisance at times, overall I find it soothing and peaceful. However, enough is enough and now it is time for SPRING!

My Mom's Special Meatloaf

Lately, I have been finding myself making some of my mom's favorite recipes.




Last night, I made a meatloaf recipe that she often made for us while I was growing up.

It is really very easy to make and oh so delicious! My husband grinned when I put it on the table saying, "I remember this!"  My mom grinned too, and I was pleased when she said it past the test of time.


To make it you simply mix ground beef, pork and veal with egg, milk and Italian seasoned bread crumbs as you would for any meatloaf. Instead of shaping it into a loaf, you roll it out to about a half inch thickness, sprinkle with Italian seasoning and Parmesan cheese, slice up two hard boiled egg over top and roll jellyroll fashion. Place into a 13x9 pan and douse with catsup (my mom didn't do this, but my husband likes it so I added it). Bake until golden, 45-60 minutes in a 350 degree oven. 

Yummy good!

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Random Act of Kindness Week 4


For some, happiness is playing cards, but not so for me. Playing cards was never my thing. I can remember watching my brother and sister playing cards as a kid and just not being at interested in the activity. Well, my soon-to-be 97 year old mother likes to play cards.


It might not seem like much of an act of kindness, but it was.....


We have been in the house for two and a half days because of snow and ice. My mom usually goes to a senior social group where she is amongst those whom enjoy the activity, and who enjoy trying to beat my mom at her favorite card game, "King in the Corner." Around 11:00 this morning, I went into her room and said, "If you want to play a game of cards, I will play with you."  She smiled and immediately got her cards and shuffler.  We played for an hour and surprisingly I won three rounds. While we were playing, my sister phoned to ask my mom what she was doing on this snowy day.  When my mom told her we were playing cards, my sister chuckled and said, "My sister is playing cards, no wonder it is snowing!"  Everyone knows it is my least favorite activity.  

In all honesty, I enjoyed it today, and when we were done, my mom said, "That was nice."

Tomorrow Betsy will have links on her site to many RAK that people have done this week. You might want to stop by her blog and check them out, they are very inspirational and motivating to do nice things for others. Imagine how incredibly peaceful our world would be if we were all just a bit kinder to one another.  It has to start somewhere, so as the song goes,"Let it begin with me!"




Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Baked Chicken with Spinach and Artichokes

It is snowing and sleeting here in the Northeast, but it is warm and cozy at our house.

The birds are feasting on some good seed and ...





...we are feasting on another new and delicious main dish.


Easy, quick and delicious! 



The recipe is from Diethood.com and guess what?  I did not modify the recipe this time; perfect just as it is!  If you'd like to try it, you can grab the recipe here.

Last week I made Pam's Baked Pork Chops with Apples and Cabbage, as well as, her Ground Beef with Egg Noodle dish, however, I did not remember to take pictures of these dishes. They were both very good!

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Just So....Good!

It has been a long and cold winter!  The evenings have been such that I just enjoy staying home curled up with a book or my knitting in front of a cozy fire. However, last evening my husband persuaded me to put on an extra sweater (literally), and go out with him to the Steel Stacks (Art Quest)  and hear two of his guitar buddies perform.

I am so glad I accepted his invitation; we had a great time listening to Mickey and Jon as they performed so many great songs.

Just So


Jon Fields and Mickey Freeman are lifelong musicians who retired from their day jobs to pursue a dream of being starving musicians. So far the money isn’t good enough to support starvation. Thus they have fallen back on their pensions and working wives while delivering a wide range of classic and contemporary rock covers with tight harmonies and intricate guitar play.
They are available to play at parties, and they also donate performances to many charity functions
If you are interesting in seeing Mickey and Jon perform visit their website or Facebook page to find out where they are scheduled to play.   I know you will enjoy their music as much as my husband and I did.

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