eggs

Easter is around the corner..and I have a ton of eggs to do things with.

We are going to make some homemade icecream..so we'll need a couple for that.

I finally learned how to make omelettes..so I can make some of those for breakfast every now and then..

Martha Stewart has a cool tutorial/article on making chocolate filled egg shells (they are whole egg shells with the yolk/egg white taken out and then sterilized). I really would like to make some of those..I just need to figure out how to drain the egg without breaking the shell.

I also would like to dye eggs naturally again this year. Last year was a test run..I dyed eggs in natural dyes..like blueberries, beets, cabbage, tea, 100% natural grape juice, coffee, random colorful spices, and some other things I can't recall right now. Here is a photo of last year's eggs:



I think this year I am going to use blueberries again. I really liked the color it gave off..and spices like chili powder, and some tea.

novel editing..

So I have shoved novel editing aside..I actually never even started editing my novel. The more and more I read on nanowrimo about it though, the more I want to print my proof copy. But I don't want to waste the free proof printing on something that needs major editing..

My novel has plenty of boring parts. and plenty of juicy parts. and confusing, and weird, and dramatic parts. I am sure it is all over the place..but I am still really proud of myself for writing it in a month.

I can count on one hand the number of times I got frustrated and started worrying about my novel during November. Looking back I actually thought it was pretty easy and fun to do. There is something very relaxing about sitting down in the peace and quiet and letting the words flow. Not once did I think I wasn't going to finish. I know I can go on and on about certain topics for a long time..Daniel unfortunately knows that, too. I sure can talk a lot about things I find interesting. Like the world, for instance..and you know that includes a lot of things..everything..

So my novel has a little bit of everything in it. And I am sure anyone who reads it will be thinking "WTF?" I am getting antsy now just thinking about the editing process. I think I shoved it aside for these last several months because I knew it would take me a while to edit..I'm not going to make it perfect by any means, but I want every single thought of mine about each little part to be just right. I know there are several places I meant to go back to and add more to..guess I can start with those. I just don't want to think of something later and wish I added it to a certain part in the novel.

I think I may participate again. I already have all sorts of ideas for my next story (don't worry, they are not written down or anything, just daydreaming type of stuff), and it's completely different and unrelated to my first novel. Since I know how much I am capable of writing in certain time frames, I know I'll be able to do it again..

Calvert Cliffs

On Saturday (the first day of Spring), Daniel and I went to Calvert Cliffs in MD. It was pretty cool-we didn't find very many treasures to take with us but we did see a ton of little critters. There is a 1.8 mile walk to the beach there, so during the walk we saw a lot of neat things.

Even though we didn't find much, the drive there and then the nature walk were definitely enjoyable, and made it all worth it. The weather probably also had something to do with it..it was perfect weather. Today is another perfect weather day..

letterboxing

we're gonna start letterboxing soon. YAY!

weekend plans

getting away this weekend. it'll probably just be a day trip, starting early saturday am and then coming home that night. just the 2 of us. we're both already dreaming about it!


stay tuned.

3.14159

Happy Pi Day! In honor of Pi day today (3/14), I made a homemade chicken pot pie, with made from scratch pie crust and filling. I also made some tiny little cherry filled pies. Yay for pies & pi!

No-Knead Bread

Last night I made some no-knead bread. I mixed the dough and let it rise immediately after I got home from work. Then later, I baked it. It takes about 50-60 min. to bake. It came out really really really good. I am not crazy about bread, but Daniel loves it. The recipe I used is by Jim Lahey. I had been meaning to make this no-knead bread recipe for a few years now. Ever since it was featured in the New York Times & David Lebovitz (and just about the rest of the blogosphere) blogged about it, back in 2006.



Even though he claims the bread (that he made) tastes like nothing, mine is actually really good. It takes like warm delicious bread, to me. Maybe I used a different method than he did, but mine was delicious. As soon as I took mine out of the oven last night, I placed it on my big bamboo cutting board and cut it in half. Then I cut off a piece for me and a piece for Daniel. It was really good. We had eaten dinner earlier, so it's not as if we were really hungry for anything, either. Daniel really liked it, which means it must be a great bread recipe. I put a little square of butter on my piece, and it melted all over the bread and made it even more delicious.



Here is the link to the nytimes article: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/dining/081mrex.html?_r=1&ex=1167282000&en=498bd3f6f6e9e548&ei=5070

All you need is flour, yeast, salt, and water. Basic items! And a big pot with a lid, like a dutch oven. I have a black cast iron pot with a lid; it is really heavy. I actually got it from Target back when the whole no-knead bread craze was going on..for only $20! I know they had other ones that were enameled and different colors, but I just got the plain one. Back then I wasn't sure about color schemes and thought the black one would fit in with everything. It is great..and it works just the same as a Le Creuset pot does..it just doesn't cost the same! Why spend $200 when you can spend $20? Gotta love Target.

So I am definitely keeping this recipe and making more bread with it in the future. Who needs a bread machine? A lot of blogs I follow have all sorts of other recipes for no-knead bread, so if I want to change it up and get other flavors, I can do that, too.

15?? Gotta change that this year

visited 15 states (30%)
Create your own visited map of The United States

Grandma & Grandpa

This photo is really sweet..I took a picture of this from my uncle's book "The Kagey Family."

It is dated April 4, 1943.

It was just too cool not to share. The dog in the picture was my grandma's family's dog, Tip.

stitching

Fayth stitched this years ago for Daniel's dad. We ended up with it around Christmastime; it came in a box with a bunch of Daniel's childhood stuff from his dad's place.

I think it's really neat..and we're keeping it. If we ever have any kids in the far future, this will be in their room. It's sweet..and vintage, too! I would totally buy something like this (or want it) if I saw it at a thrift store.

There are a lot of really cute vintage cross stitching patterns out there, I may make some myself. Maybe one about pyrex.............