There's been a lot of living in our living room lately

or why I have not blogged in the last week or so....... 

My mom with her 2 great grands



Jeff and I with Gavin and Elizabeth


My parents came to visit for a week.  Gavin's parents took a little vacation and he stayed with us for 4 days. 
And while they were here,  our other children and my brother came to visit everyone and join the fun.





That is John in the center, he was playing with my mom's IPad,  he thinks they are pretty nice. 



Daughter in law Bridgette and dog in law Fletch.

Bobby and my dad, his Pa. 

No, Bobby is not pinching Elizabeth's foot, she just has her eyes closed.  She is mostly wary of people she does not see daily but she went right to her Uncle Bobby even though she had not seen him since Christmas. 
Gavin usually likes everybody, even strangers,  but he would not have a thing to do with Bobby.  It was kind of funny.

Son Jimmy would of liked to be here, he graduated from law school in December and is now in prep class for the bar test.  We missed him but we all know he should be studying. 

knockoff recipe for Star$$$s Cinnamon Scones

This recipe has been posted on 2 coupon boards I read.  So Monday morning,  when I wanted something "good" for breakfast,  I decided to try it out.  Jeff and Nina were both here for breakfast, these scones are so good, there were no leftovers!

knockoff recipe for Star$$$s Cinnamon Scones
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 egg, separated
3 tablespoons honey
1/3 cup buttermilk - my dough was really dry, I will try 1/2 cup next time, and I did not have buttermilk, I just added a little vinegar to the milk
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Cut in butter until the mixture is the consistency of coarse crumbs.
In a small bowl, beat egg yolk (reserving the white) with honey and buttermilk until blended. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture, stirring lightly only until dough clings together.
Using floured hands, lightly shape dough into a flattened ball. Roll or pat out on a floured board or pastry cloth to a circle about 1/2-inch thick and 8 1/2 inches in diameter.
Using a floured knife, cut 8 or 12 equal wedges. Place themslightly apart on a greased or non-stick baking sheet. In a small bowl, beat egg white slightly to a froth.
In another bowl, blend 1 tablespoon sugar and cinnamon. Brush scones lightly with egg white, then sprinkle them with the cinnamon and sugar mixture.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm.
I added a glaze as one of the coupon boards recommended,  just mix about 2/3 cup of powdered sugar with a teaspoon or 2 of milk, just enough to make a drizzley glaze. 
Makes 8 to 12 scones.  I cut ours into 8,  cutting them into 12 would be very dainty. 



Gavin had so much fun with bubbles.  He had fun watching me blow bubbles and he  was really delighted when he could blow his own. 



Little Elizabeth looks like a princess here
but she climbs and crawls on everything
a little more like a monkey than a princess!

your vote is requested

This is my son Bobby and his wife Bridgette.  Bridgette is the singer for a band and Bobby is the band's manager/roadie/jack of all trades.  I am not a big fan of metal music but I really love Bobby and Bridgette.  Their band,  Siva Addiction, is a in a battle of the bands contest sponsored by the Fire Department Instructors Conference in Indiana. 

to vote,  just go to the link, then scroll about halfway down and vote for Siva Addiction.  You don't even have to listen to them if you don't want to or put in any information, it is very quick to vote.   The contest has a big prize,  $20,000!     It is a limit of one vote per computer. 
So,  if you want to take the time to vote,  it would make Bobby and Bridgette very happy to get your vote.

thanks!

Pyrex baked bread

My grandparent's bread recipe makes 4 little loaves that fit perfectly in my 4 little Pyrex loaf pans. 

You can still use this recipe even if you have not collected Pyrex. Just bake it in 2 regular loaf pans and it will be just as delicious.  It might not be as cute, but then everyone does not always care if their bread is cute, do they? 

we will be having some tomorrow at breakfast,  toasted with crockpot apple butter.  yum!

Crock pot apple butter

I bought 2 bags of cooking apples this fall and planned to make apple pies with them.  Then Jeff got several bags of apples from a coworkers yard and I made pies with those apples.

Those grocery store apples have been sitting in the fridge just waiting.... and they were not getting any fresher. 

So I looked up how to make crockpot apple butter to use them,  and it was very easy.  I used THIS as a guideline -  my way  used a little more than 5 pounds of apples, peeled and chopped,  2 cups sugar, 3 t cinnamon, 1/2 t cloves and a dash of salt.  It cooked on high most of the morning until the apples all broke down, I mashed them with a potato masher to help them along.  Then they cooked on low all afternoon until the juice cooked out and they thickened up. 

I put the apple butter in 1/2 jars - it made 7- and then put them in the fridge.  They will get eaten pretty fast here.  The recipe talks about freezing it and I am sure it could be canned. 

and you sure don't need scented candles or potpourri when apple butter is cooking,  it smells wonderful!

"new" Pyrex

Growing collections are so fun!  I've been using and collecting vintage Pyrex for awhile and my family knows it is what I like.  This holiday season expanded my Pyrex collection - so much that I moved it to a new home.

Jeff found this set at our local antique mall, on Black Friday weekend and everything was 20% off!    I used them Christmas for the Strawberry Pretzel salad, deviled eggs and corn casserole

Jimmy gave me this set for Christmas - little loaf pans bake bread so nice and the covered dish is perfect for small casseroles and leftovers.




My brother found this set of classic mixing bowls in New Boston, TX and surprised me with them on my birthday.   If you ever watch I Love Lucy,  you will see this set on the shelves of  her TV kitchen. 




Most of my Pyrex in this bigger cabinet - a few pieces are in the fridge -but I think there is still room for even a few more pieces..... this used to be the cabinet that held the baking supplies and I moved them to a smaller cabinet - see that little blue bowl on the bottom right, in that stack?  That was my first piece of vintage Pyrex.  Actually it is Jeff's.  We lived in his grandparents farmhouse for 18 months.  That little blue bowl was there, under the kitchen sink catching the water from a drippy pipe.  After Jeff fixed that leak, I washed and kept that bowl.  Jeff liked to eat his cereal and ice cream from that bowl.  All our children refer to it as "Dad's blue bowl"     So,  Jeff really started this collection!



these Pyrex bowls are on top of some of the cabinets



The new baking cabinet - the baking things actually fit better and seem more organized in this smaller cabinet




My collection is not just for dust catching - I use multiple pieces of it everyday and I am always on the look out for more.

Happy New Year!



hmm.. what is this thing on my head? 


The grown-ups had blackeyed peas with rice and cabbage for their traditional New Years day lunch,  I just had a bottle and got to wear these stars. 

Happy 2011 everyone!

a few Christmas day pictures

My mom and brother have been asking for Christmas photos,  but I just did not take very many that day.  it was pretty quiet in the morning, then not quiet at all in the afternoon and evening.  But here are the few pictures that I did take.   Jeff took a few movies and he will make a disc for family later

Christmas morning,  Jeff reading his Kindle

Jimmy texting

Later Christmas Afternoon - Elizabeth in her holiday tu-tu opening her first purse

little dog Fletch trying some silly sunglasses with Bridgette

Nina modeling her Christmas jammies with houseshoes to match.  She said they were all very comfy. 

Christmas Menu
cinnamon rolls for breakfast
snacks for lunch
supper - Jeff smoked a prime rib
also rolls, baked potatoes,  a big salad, deviled eggs, corn casserole
desserts for the day- chocolate sheet cake and cherry pie and cinnamon rolls

Jefferson thought like me......

"It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing. "


Thomas Jefferson

3rd president of US (1743 - 1826)

the stockings were hung by the chimney with care....

The pie, cake and rolls are baked, the salads are chilling in the fridge,  the potatoes are baking in a crockpot and the prime rib is smoking outside.

Jeff is reading his Kindle, 

Jimmy is texting

and soon, 

Bobby, Bridgette, John, Nina and Elizabeth will here for celebrating.

Merry Christmas to you all!

Rhonda

Luke 2:1-14

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register.
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." (KJV)

Vanilla

Looks like a lot of alcohol, doesn't it?  well, don't worry, I can explain.

Do you do much baking and have your priced vanilla lately?  Then you know how expensive it is. 

I knew Nina had made some vanilla a while back and wondered if she had any to spare.  She did not have a whole lot of vanilla made up, but she did have 1/4 pound of whole vanilla beans.
 And she gave them to me!  of course she knows there will plenty of vanilla that I will share when I get this batch made. 



 So,  Jeff helped me pick out some vodka and rum at the liquor store.  He even split all the vanilla beans and bottled them all up. 
In 6 months,  we will have lots of vanilla! 

It's beginning to look a little like Christmas here

Fresh green wreath made by my brother,  I think this is the 4th year he has made a Christmas one for me.  He has also made Thanksgiving and Easter wreaths.   

close up of a little bird on the wreath

green tree with lots of birds and mostly red ornaments

and a white tree - it looks better in person

Nativity set

the butler gets a Santa hat this time of year.
Theo is usually a good sport but he draws the line at wearing hats or sweaters for that matter

the cutest Christmas decoration at our house is Gavin, he is holding a Santa doll my mom made about 50 years ago. 

Save your fork, there's pie

We do like pie at this house. but even we did not eat both of these pies on the same day.  I made a cherry pie for Thanksgiving and the Pilgrim Pie the next week.    Both of these pies are so good  so I want to share them with you all. 

To make a cherry pie in the fall in Oklahoma, you need a frozen bag of tart cherries.  They sell sweet cherries too but they won't give your pie that tangy sweet and sour taste.   I found mine at IGA for $3.65 for a 20 ounce bag.

Aren't the frozen cherries pretty?  So nice and red!

In a saucepan, combine a bag of  cherries, 1 cup sugar and 3 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch. Let sit for about 10 minutes.

Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring almost constantly.

Lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes or until the juices thicken and become translucent.

 Remove from heat and stir in the 1 tablespoon butter and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract.

Mix thoroughly and let cool.   Then pour into unbaked pie shell.  Top with a top crust. 

Bake in the preheated 375 oven for 45 to 55 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.  It will bubble alot so you might want to put something under the pie to catch any drips.

This  is Pilgrim Pie. I first made this easy and low-cost pie when we had 4 hungry children to feed.  It is kind of like pecan pie but with coconut and oatmeal instead of the nuts. 

If you click on the recipe, it will enlarge it.  You can see where I penciled in the increased amounts needed to make 3 and 4 pies from this recipe - I don't remember why I made so many but back then,  I seemed to always be cooking for a group at church or teenagers. 

It really is a good pie  and very easy.  I prefer to eat whole oats and you can use them in this recipe, but I think quick oats are the best to use for this recipe. 

Sewing for Baby Elizabeth

Above are 3 little outfits for Elizabeth.  2 pair of the pants are made from flannel scraps, the last pair started out as a pair of sleep pants that were too small for Nina.  

 Little baby pants sew up very quickly and use very little fabric.

The tops are just a pack of $6 onesies.  I decorated all 3 with rick rack, and used some of the pants scraps on 2 of them. 

Of course Elizabeth needed some Thanksgiving outfits.
I decorated this little onesie with a turkey made from some fall themed fabric scraps.  I sort of copied a design from another blog, then used HeatNBond to iron the pieces to the shirt, then machine stitched around them for a little more stability. 

Nina did this shirt.  She used brown Rit dye to change the white onesie.  She made the slice of pie from my scraps.  The "cutie pie" embroidery was done by some home-ec students practicing with a sewing machine that does monograming. 

Bobby's altered hoodie

This is my son, Bobby, the very helpful floor tiler.  He will try to do just about anything.  Right now, his wife is the singer for a hard rock band and they are doing lots of concerts and shows, not my first choice but their dream is to  make it big some day and maybe they will.....

Anyway, he grew up watching me sew and trying to do just about anything.  He showed me some very expensive rock-type clothing made by a company called Road Bone - I tried to link to them but their sites seem to be for friends only. They sell alter jeans, jackets and hoodies for $200+ 

Their clothes are regular clothing items that they just alter, by dying, adding patches from old jeans or leather clothing or fabric,  some ripping and fraying. 
I showed Bobby and Bridgette how it seemed to be made. They got a few fabric scraps and rubber stamps from me. 

Here is Bobby modeling his first original jacket, it started out as a plain black sweatshirt hoodie. 



a sleeve - he made the sleeve more fitted by taking in the inside seam, cutting off the knit cuff.  The design is made using a star stencil and spray bleach.



back of hoodie
he sewed stars and strips fabric inside the hood

front side - he added some brocade fabric and pockets from old jeans. 
very simple sewing - see the frayed edges?  that is how the expensive items at Road Bone are done too.



this is the bottom front. Bobby sewed on a jeans pocket but he left the top part unsewn so it still works like a pocket. 



If you have some young adults needing gifts,  you might want to be like Bobby and try making some altered clothing.