Very Veggie Frittata

(Photo by Taste of Home)

Last night I tried a new recipe.  It's actually been on my menu plan for weeks, but due to different factors (mostly using up leftovers), I hadn't gotten around to trying it.  Here's the link:  Very Veggie Frittata.

We liked this dish a lot.  I liked the fact that it only called for five eggs, and the addition of sour cream was a little different but very good.  (I used light sour cream.)

I was out of mushrooms so used diced zucchini instead, a substitution I would definitely make again.  And I don't have an ovenproof skillet, so I skipped the step of browning the frittata under the broiler, and left off the extra cheese as well.  It was just fine that way, and saved a few calories too.

We had this with home fries and fresh salsa on the side.  A very tasty meatless meal!  Maybe your family would enjoy it, too.

Goals for week beginning 7/29/2013

A cool refreshing New Hampshire river

How can July be almost over?  It hardly seems possible that tomorrow is the last day.  I had an unusually busy day yesterday and didn't get here to post.  So here, with a hopeful (or maybe wishful) attitude, I share my goals for this week:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study
*  Get a good start on Sunday School lesson 7
 *  Make 1 or 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook
*  Memorize Psalm 145:1-5
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs
*  Keep up a good water intake
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night
*  Post every day (at least through Wednesday) in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog
*  Get a lot of basic homemaking tasks done in various zones of the house
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time.
*  Weed the garden
*  Make plans for a fall getaway with my hubby
* Catch up with my Nevada daughter via a phone chat
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do


And here is how last week went:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge -- not done
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study -- DONE!
*  Finish Sunday School lesson 6 -- DONE!
 *  Make 1 or 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook -- DONE!
*  Memorize Psalm 145:1-5 -- not done
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer -- DONE!
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows  -- did okay with this
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs -- DONE!
*  Keep up a good water intake -- DONE!
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night -- still working on this; it's been after 10 most nights, just not early enough since we get up at 4:30 a.m.
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog -- DONE! for the Christmas blog, but only managed twice in this one
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog -- DONE!
*  Get a lot of basic homemaking tasks done in various zones of the house -- DONE!
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time -- not done
*  Bake some cookies for my hubby -- DONE!
* Make up some more gluten free flour and bake some gluten free muffins -- DONE!
*  Weed the garden -- not done
* Possibly spend time with my local daughter/family doing something fun -- DONE!
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do -- DONE!

So, even though I didn't accomplish all I would have liked to, I am pleased to see a lot of  DONE!s on the list.  And I am hoping for a fairly productive week this week, although yesterday was not too great and today so far is pretty much a washout.  "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."  (Philippians 4:13)

Blueberry Coconut Muffins

My dad's blueberry bushes are producing some yummy fruit right now and so I just had to make some muffins.  Thankfully the weather was cool enough for baking.  I made a batch of regular blueberry muffins for everyone else and then a batch of gluten free ones for myself.  I keep them in a covered plastic box in the freezer and heat them up one by one as needed.

This is the recipe I used: Gluten Free Fruit Muffins.  It is the tried and true recipe from King Arthur that I love.  I skip the streusel topping as it is just not necessary.  So for these I added 1 and 1/2 cups blueberries and then, on a whim, I added about 3/4 cup of flaked coconut.  The muffins turned out perfectly!  Perhaps your family would enjoy them, too.

Goals for week beginning 7/22/2013

Bee balm is in bloom now

It's Monday again and time to set some goals!  Here's what I'd like to accomplish this week:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study
*  Finish Sunday School lesson 6
 *  Make 1 or 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook
*  Memorize Psalm 145:1-5
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs
*  Keep up a good water intake
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog
*  Get a lot of basic homemaking tasks done in various zones of the house
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time.
*  Bake some cookies for my hubby
* Make up some more gluten free flour and bake some gluten free muffins
*  Weed the garden
* Possibly spend time with my local daughter/family doing something fun
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do


And here's how last week went:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge -- not done
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study -- DONE!
*  Start Sunday School lesson 6 -- DONE!
 *  Make 1 or 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook -- DONE!
*  Memorize Psalm 9:1-2 -- DONE!
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer -- DONE!
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows -- not done
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs -- DONE!
*  Keep up a good water intake-- DONE!
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night -- not done
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog -- DONE! for my Christmas blog, but only managed twice in my regular blog
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog -- DONE!
*  Get a lot of basic homemaking tasks done in various zones of the house -- not done
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time -- not done
*  Make some no-bake cookies for my hubby -- DONE!
* Take my dad to an eye appointment -- DONE!
* Possibly spend time with my local daughter/family doing something fun-- DONE! (we went to the lake on Friday)
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do -- DONE!

Win a fabulous new Gooseberry Patch book -- Stitching for the Kitchen!!

Wow!  This looks like such a fun book for one's crafting library!   It's a brand new Gooseberry Patch book with instructions and full size patterns for 30 projects, along with a sprinkling of recipes.  Head over here to enter: Stitching for the Kitchen Giveaway and you will find a free project from the book right on the blog.  The free project is an adorable little mug cozy made from fabric -- even includes a tiny pocket on the side to hold a pack of sweetener. 

Enter soon; the giveaway ends next Monday, July 23!

Goals for week beginning 7/15/2013

Another Monday rolls around.  Many of last week's goals were left undone ... and yet I was pleased with the types of things that were accomplished.  For the coming week, here are my goals:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study
*  Start Sunday School lesson 6
 *  Make 1 or 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook
*  Memorize Psalm 9:1-2
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs
*  Keep up a good water intake
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog
*  Complete homemaking goals for Zone 1, the dining area and front entry and Zone 2, the kitchen. as well as Zone 3, the bathroom
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time.
*  Make some no-bake cookies for my hubby (or regular cookies if the weather is cool enough)
* Take my dad to an eye appointment
* Possibly spend time with my local daughter/family doing something fun
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do


And here's how last week went:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge -- not done
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study -- DONE!
*  Finish Sunday School lesson 5 -- DONE!
 *  Make 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook -- DONE!
*  Memorize Psalm 9:1-2 -- memorized verse 2; now I need to put them together.
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer -- DONE!
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows -- not done
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs -- mostly worked on a UFO this week
*  Keep up a good water intake -- DONE!
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night -- not done
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog -- DONE! (although I think I only managed 3 times in my regular blog)
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog -- DONE!
*  Complete homemaking goals for Zone 1, the dining area and front entry and Zone 2, the kitchen -- got a few things done but not as much as I'd hoped.
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time -- not done
*  Make some no-bake cookies for my hubby (or regular cookies if the weather is cool enough) -- DONE!
* Talk with my faraway daughter on the phone to catch up -- DONE!
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do -- DONE!

Obviously, I'm hoping for a better week this week (especially in the areas of homemaking and that pesky back-on-track challenge!) but I am so pleased that my spiritual goals were pretty much met each day and that I was able to talk with my Nevada daughter on Saturday!

Calico Corn Salad

(Photo by Taste of Home)

I had cooked some corn on the cob Saturday night and had 5 or 6 ears left over.  I thought a corn salad might be a good use for it.  I happened to think about a corn salad my daughter had made one time when we were visiting out west, and though I didn't want to bother her for the recipe, I went looking through back issues of Taste of Home for something similar.  I found this one: Calico Corn Salad and thought it sounded a lot the one she had made.  So I tried this recipe last night.

What a great recipe it is!  I'd say it is very flexible and would turn out great no matter what substitutions were made.  One reader on the Taste of Home site said she substituted black beans for the zucchini.  I would imagine that would be excellent.  I had no zucchini or green chiles so left them out.  I don't like raw onion in salads, so left that out and added a little dried minced onion to the dressing.  I did add a little extra sweet red pepper as I had some to use up.

This is a definite keeper recipe and I'm planning to make the salad again for a church potluck this Sunday!

Summer squash/potato saute

Photo by Taste of Home

Last night I was looking for some sort of easy, stovetop potato side dish recipe to go along with leftover grilled chicken and hot dogs and a marinated vegetable salad.  I happened to remember this recipe which I had copied out of a magazine years ago: Summer Squash and Potato Saute.  (I have a couple of books filled with recipes like this.  I have tried many of the recipes but not all of them.)  This particular recipe was one I had never tried.

I didn't have any yellow summer squash on hand, but I did have zucchini, so used that instead.  I also didn't have red potatoes, but had some small russet potatoes so I used those, but I did peel them.  I do think the dish would be very pretty with the red potatoes and using both the green and yellow squash.

This was such an easy, quick side dish.  I'll be making this again.  Maybe your family would enjoy it, too!

Goals for week beginning 7/8/2013

Blooming in the wildflower garden

How do the Mondays roll around so fast?  It was an odd weekend (but a good one) with Mr. T off on Thursday for July 4, then back to work on Friday.  Saturday was filled with busyness for both of us and Sunday was our annual church cookout; lots of fun.  And now here it is Monday again!  My goals for the week:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study
*  Finish Sunday School lesson 5
 *  Make 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook
*  Memorize Psalm 9:1-2
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs
*  Keep up a good water intake
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog
*  Complete homemaking goals for Zone 1, the dining area and front entry and Zone 2, the kitchen
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time.
*  Make some no-bake cookies for my hubby (or regular cookies if the weather is cool enough)
* Talk with my faraway daughter on the phone to catch up
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do


And here's how last week went:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge -- not done
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study -- DONE!
*  Work on Sunday School lesson 5 -- DONE!
 *  Make 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook -- DONE!
*  Memorize Psalm 9:1-2 -- not done
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer -- DONE!
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows -- not done, though I did get some aerobic workouts in on stairs
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs -- worked mostly on UFOs this week -- an embroidered winter scene, to be specific
*  Keep up a good water intake -- DONE!
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night -- not done
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog -- DONE!
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog -- DONE!
*  Complete homemaking goals for Zone 1, the dining area and front entry -- not completed, although I did get a  lot accomplished in this zone
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time -- not done
*  Make some no-bake cookies for my hubby (or regular cookies if the weather is cool enough) -- DONE!
* Help a friend move to a new place -- DONE!
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do -- DONE!

Strawberry book-page banners

After making heart-themed book page buntings
 
fromthis tutorial, I went on to make flower-themed ones

and decided I would design some strawberry themed buntings/banners for my dining room.  As time goes on I want to make some with a patriotic theme and some with autumn leaves.

Today, though,  I want to share the strawberry book page banners I made for my dining room windows.  These were so easy and fun to make.  One could use any theme at all.  I chose strawberries because I collect them and my kitchen and dining area have a strawberry theme.  I didn't take step by step photos but am going to try and present this as a tutorial of sorts.  Just adapt according to whatever theme you choose.

Some supplies you may need

1.  First, make a template for the individual banners.  You could use pennant-shaped triangles, half circles, ovals, or whatever you like.  I used rectangular ones with a v-shaped cutout at the bottom.  Draw or trace the shape you choose onto heavy cardboard and cut it out.

2.  Find an old book  to use for the banners.  I chose an old cookbook (from the California Fruit Growers) for this one.  Decide about how many individual banners you need to make by holding one up to your window and deciding how many would look good according to the width of your window.  (My dining room window needs about seven for each garland and my kitchen window looks best with five.)  Select the desired amount of book pages for each window.  Then trace around your template on each page** and cut the individual banners out.

3.  This step may be unnecessary, but I like to measure and draw a line across the top of each banner, a half inch down from the top.  Then I fold on this line, creasing it carefully.  This half-inch of paper will form the "casing" by which you'll thread your banners on the twine later to hang them.

4.  Now get ready to embellish the individual banners.  In my case, I wanted to use strawberries.  I searched online for a strawberry template without much success.  I ended up using a picture in a coloring book, then tracing a strawberry and hull separately on red dotted scrapbooking paper and green card stock.  I cut 2-inch squares of light green dotted scrapbooking paper and glued them diamond-wise on the book page banners.  Then I centered a strawberry on most of them, glued it on and then glued the hull at the top of the strawberry.  On the other squares, I used white buttons with yellow beads glued to the centers for strawberry blossoms, and added green rickrack for stems.

5.  Almost done!  Now you are going to thread the banners onto baker's twine, ribbon, jute, rickrack or whatever you choose to make the garlands.  I used red and white baker's twine.  Cut a piece longer than you think you'll need for the width of your window.  Then slide each banner in place with the twine in the fold of that folded-down edge you made previously, and staple the free end of that edge to the back of the banner, trying not to catch the twine in your staple.  You want the banners to be able to slide freely along the twine so you can get them at the proper distance from one another. 

A closer look at this process

Now make a loop at each end  of your twine so you can slide the loop over a tack or pushpin at either side of the top of your window frame.

6.  Hang up your book page garlands. 
 
All done!  They are beautiful!

** As I mentioned in my post about the flower-themed buntings, be sure the book you choose would be appropriate for any visitors to your home to read.  People will read them as they admire your banners, so choose carefully.  The cookbook pages worked perfectly for this fruit-themed trim.

A Glorious Fourth to you!

Mr. T and I would like to wish all of my readers and friends a very glorious Fourth of July!

It is very, very hot and sticky here today.  Our day has been different so far and spent more in serving than in celebrating ... but we are thankful for the opportunities God gives us to do both!  We didn't get to any parades ... in fact, we avoided one in a town where we were helping a friend move into a downtown apartment!  Prior to that we did grocery shopping for my dad and ourselves; after the move -- our friend treated us to ice cream! -- we went back to my dad's where Mr. T installed his window air conditioner.  After lunch, Mr. T mowed our lawn while I did some cooking for the evening meal for my dad.

This evening we're invited to a Fourth of July gathering at the home of friends, with fireworks to follow.

Happy Fourth of July to you!!!

Christmas in July

vintage ad from my personal collection

Yes, as difficult as it is to believe this, we are halfway to Christmas!  Again this year I am trying to post every day, or nearly every day, on my Christmas blog during July.  There will be recipes, memories, crafts, stocking stuffers, devotional thoughts, resources and more for your Christmas inspiration.  If you are interested, head on over to Mrs. T's Christmas Kitchen and check out the posts.  You might also find a link or two in the sidebar for other bloggers who are doing Christmas in July.  Enjoy!

Sweet pea stripes ~ two dishcloths

Yes, this is a petunia.  In the Bordeaux variety, it's part of a hanging plant I got for Mother's Day.  I realize it's not a sweet pea or anything close to it.  But the color sort of goes.

This spring, while browsing the yarn aisle in Wal Mart, I came upon a color of the self-striping Peaches & Creme yarn I'd not seen before -- Sweet Pea Stripes.  I decided to try it out on a dishcloth.  So I crocheted a favorite pattern for a seed stitch dishcloth. 

seed stitch dishcloth

It came out cute, so I decided to try the same yarn in a different pattern, just for fun.  I used this one: another favorite dishcloth pattern.

Another favorite dishcloth

It was interesting to see how the two very different patterns came out.  Still in stripes, but very different.



I just picked up another ball of the self-striping yarn, only in patriotic colors.  A good project for July!

Goals for week beginning July 1

Image courtesy Vintage Holiday Crafts.com

A new week as well as a new month!  Here are my goals for the week:
*  Begin a new Back on Track challenge
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study
*  Work on Sunday School lesson 5
 *  Make 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook
*  Memorize Psalm 9:1-2
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs
*  Keep up a good water intake
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night
*  Post every day in my Christmas blog and at least four times in my regular blog
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog
*  Complete homemaking goals for Zone 1, the dining area and front entry
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time.
*  Make some no-bake cookies for my hubby (or regular cookies if the weather is cool enough)
* Help a friend move to a new place
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do

And here's how last week went:
*  Continue with Back on Track challenge -- pretty much derailed in at least two of the areas
*  Spend time in 2 Samuel Bible study -- DONE!
*  Finish Sunday School lesson 4 -- DONE!
 *  Make 2 pages for "What Do I Know About My God"?  notebook -- DONE!
*  Memorize Psalm 9:1-2 -- still need to work on verse 2
*  Read 2 chapters in A Woman's Call to Prayer -- DONE!
*  Exercise or go for walks as often as time allows -- not done
*  Keep up with crafting goals for birthdays, Christmas, and finishing UFOs -- DONE!
*  Keep up a good water intake -- DONE!
*  Get to bed by 9:30 or 10 pm each night -- not done
*  Post once or twice in my Christmas blog and at least five times in my regular blog -- DONE!
* Continue planning Christmas in July posts for my Christmas blog -- DONE!
*  Complete homemaking goals for Zone 5, the living room, including decluttering -- not completed
*  Begin the large project of reorganizing the many piles, stacks, notebooks and containers full of recipes I've collected over time -- not started
*  Make some no-bake cookies for my hubby -- DONE!
* Spend time with extended family this weekend -- DONE!
*  Make a daily time schedule for the things I need to do  -- DONE!

That's a good amount of things DONE! but there are many that were not, so I'm hoping for an even more productive week this week.

July goals

A vintage ad from my collection

June certainly went by in a blur!  I didn't do too well with all of the goals I set for the month, so there are some repeats in my July list.  Here it is:
JULY GOALS
* Continue reading through the book of Psalms, journaling as I go.
* Continue reading A Woman's Call to Prayer
* Memorize at least 4 Bible verses.
* Continue study of 2 Samuel
* Exercise at least 15 times; walk as often as possible
* Go berry picking if possible
* Get to bed by 9:30 pm each night.
* Limit sugar.
* Drink enough water each day.
* Keep up with Kelly's missions in homemaking zones of the week.
* Spend several hours updating my A-store.
* Write at least 4 encouraging notes to friends and family.
* Post every day in my Christmas blog and several times weekly
* Finish some UFO craft projects
* Declutter several closets, cabinets, etc.
* Work on crafts for gifts or sale
* Complete a back-on-track challenge


And here's how June went:
JUNE GOALS
* Continue reading through the book of Psalms, journaling as I go -- DONE!
* Continue reading  A Woman's Call to Prayer -- DONE!
* Memorize at least 4 Bible verses -- DONE!
* Continue study of 2 Samuel -- DONE!
* Exercise at least 15 times; walk as often as possible -- managed to exercise about a third of this time
* Get to bed by 9:30 pm each night -- not done
* Limit sugar -- not done as much as I'd have liked to
* Drink enough water each day  -- DONE!
* Keep up with Kelly's missions in homemaking zones of the week -- did fairly well with this.
* Spend several hours updating my A-store -- not done
* Write at least 4 encouraging notes to friends and family  -- DONE!
* Post often in both of my blogs -- probably not daily, but more often than weekly  -- DONE! in my regular blog but not the Christmas one.
* Finish some UFO craft projects for the home -- finished one of these
* Finish writing down my memories for faraway grandchildren -- DONE!
* Declutter several closets -- DONE!  (they were cabinets, but I'm counting them!)
* Work on crafts for gifts or sale -- DONE!
* Complete a back-on-track challenge -- not done.


I'm hoping for a productive July and will be re-starting the back-on-track challenge!  And I am planning a daily "Christmas in July" feature for my Christmas blog, so you might want to check in there throughout the month as you have opportunity!