Hungry monster pillow!

This little guy comes from here: Leslie's Art and Sew.

It's the perfect little project for a beginning sewer or someone who is rashly considering making 28 of these things for Valentine's Day! All of the seaming and stuffing was done by my little friend B. I did the cutting and put the eyes on. The "mouth" is actually a little pocket! Our version is about 4" tall and 3" wide. I love that this little guy doesn't need a hard and fast, let alone complicated pattern.

Sea Turtles

For Christmas this year, my interest in sewing simple little "softies" was kindled. Softies in the new name for stuffed animals. Go figure.

Anyway, after making up elephants, manatees, frogs, turtles, and mazes, I thought it might be fun to try a sea turtle on my own. They have flatter shells and more wing-like front feet so I thought it might actually be easier to make them.

Wrong!

I began the process by finding a good line drawing of a sea turtle online and tracing it right from my computer monitor. I then added a 1/4" seam allowance.

Prototype #1, made with muslin because I'm cheap:

His poor front feet didn't get nearly the wing shape I was going for, his head looks like a tail, his tail looks like a pimple, and the shell is puckered. My girls took the opportunity to take markers to it to make it look more festive.

So I modified the pattern to make prototype #2:

The front feet are what I want. I sewed them, turned, then added the extra lines of stitching to keep the feet flat. Then I stuffed (using a chop stick, which works very well). I added small lines of stitching to the back feet to keep those flat, too. I'm considering adding a circle of stitching to the shell to help with puckering and to keep that relatively flat, as well. Perspective in this picture make the head look nicer than it is, but it still needs some work. Crusty, I know I'm being self critical, so let me qualify all of this by saying I love how my sea turtles are evolving! The little girls love them and I can't wait to get my final pattern worked up so I can make this little guy radiantly colorful! I look at them and want to talk like the surfer turtle dudes in Finding Nemo!

Rice Cooker Lunch: chicken, brown rice, and spices

1 tsp cajun seasoning
1 1/4 cup brown rice
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp chicken bouillon
4 chicken thighs
2 1/2 cups water (if you're at my altitude, add an extra cup of water)

Throw rice, spices, and water into the rice cooker. Top with chicken thighs. I also added about three shredded radishes that were starting to wilt. It's part of my "don't waste food!" campaign. I couldn't taste the radish at all but some sort of inner voice from my childhood whispered that it was at least adding nutrition and, more important right now, it's using up food that might otherwise get tossed.

Verdict: Chicken was nothing special. The rice was tasty. I served with sliced cucumber and tomato, splashing my veggies with a a bit of balsamic and ground pepper. Hot rice and cold tomatoes in the same bite were absolutely delish.

Also, why 1 1/4 cups of rice? Because that's what I had left in the bag.  :D

Simple, filling, and nourishing. The side of veggies is very important with this meal. Steamed broccoli or a Normandy blend would work well, as would a shredded radish and sprout salad. I removed the skin since this was basically boiled.

Organization

I've been thinking about organization. Why is it that I like to organize things but I'm so terrible at keeping them organized in my own home? I've come to realize that I'm very good at the sort of organization that goes away and leaves me alone, or organizing for storage. What I need to work on here in functional organization, or a system of order that helps us to live and thrive.

Ergh.

My baby

My last baby. She just turned 4 and knows with an absolute certainty that she's cute, beautiful, and brilliant. I love it! She's into ponytails again, which I also love.

Ring out the old, ring in the new

Happy New Year! A week late. I hope it was safe and that you are now well rested.

I'm at a huge crossroads in my life right now and it seems to be appropriate that it would happen right around the new year.

I've recently completed an online certificate course in medical coding. I now have the opportunity to work, or to do more schooling of the brick and mortar variety, continue and expand on my volunteer work, or focus almost exclusively on my family, home, and church.

There are many complicating factors for every choice I make, whether it's funds or finding quality child care for my youngest. Swapping hours with a husband who's rocketing toward grad school and working a part time job is no mean feat. His options regarding working hours are limited and his homework has to get done at some point.

Anyway, there are other things I'd like to do besides those of a professional nature.

1. I teach once a month for the women's group at church.
2. Assistant scout leader for Webelos.
3. I want to read the Bible from beginning to end, instead of just studying one book at a time.
4. Continue (albeit slowly) in the Young Women's Personal Progress program. My current project for that is making preemie packets that include wee hats, blankets, and a small stuffed animal.
5. Organize my home. It isn't a dismal hole or anything but it certainly has more chaos lurking in closets than I can appreciate. How can I streamline this place so that my kids don't find chores quite so overwhelming? Sure, they need to learn to muscle past difficult circumstances but they're kids, not contractors! And who really needs all this stuff?
6. Learn how to have less waste in every area of my life. Included in this is learning how to plan meals that are welcomed as leftovers or sides later in the week, how to keep the self agreeably occupied when "bored" (haha) or, to put it better, how to recharge my batteries in a more constructive way.
7. Continue my education. Whether or not I work or attend accredited school, I've decided to go through the CERT courses.
8. Continue to take care of myself by eating well and working toward my first 10k run.

Add to this the daily joy and necessity of loving on my husband and kids, putting out dozens of life's fires, maintaining treasured friendships, and making scriptures and prayer a priority in my life. Perhaps I'll work on the various short stories floating around my head. I still want to home can food for its wonderful frugality and flavor. Maybe this whole post would sound a lot less ambitious if I had waited to write it after the Prozac kicked in (anti-anxiety meds for the win!).

So! Since I'm a woman and getting my thoughts out in words, whether spoken or typed, helps me work through problem solving scenarios, I've decided to update the blog more often than I update my Facebook status. Also, it's time to get the dust off the camera and start posting my progress mostly for my own benefit. It's back to journaling online.

Ready to see my sewing projects and kids and cooking again??? Thanks for bearing with me. And, my wonderful Crusty Cupcake, thank you so much for faithfully commenting on my sporadic blog posts! Squishy hugs for you, fine woman!

Cottage cheese, bowties, and onions

Yes, all of those go in the same recipe. Years ago, when I still lived in California, my friend M told me about a recipe that I just didn't understand at the time. What in the world could onions do for cottage cheese???

It turns out that there is more that one website with more than one recipe for this questionable cuisine.

Behold:

Ingredients

1 1lb. box of bow tie pasta
1 medium onion
1 stick butter
1 16oz. container of cottage cheese.
salt and pepper to taste

Chop onion and saute with half a stick of butter. Cook until tender on low heat, then increase heat to medium-high just until onion turns gold. When onion is done, turn off heat and add remaining butter.
Boil pasta according to manufacturers directions.
Mix onions, pasta and cottage cheese in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.


Now... I'll be trying this soon and let you know how it goes. Has anyone else ever heard of such a thing??

M, if you're reading this, big hug!!

Fajitas II, from the family cookbook

Chicken Fajitas II

I’ve fiddled with my fajitas a bit (don’t give me that look, Echo!). It’s more complicated but still quite tasty.

Serves my family of 6

1 cup of rice, uncooked
salt, to taste
6 chicken thighs, boneless skinless
3 T. Grill Mates Sweet and Smoky rub with cinnamon and chipotle
1-2 T butter
1 large onion, rough chopped
2 large bell peppers, one each red and green, seeded and rough chopped
1 can of mushroom bits and pieces, very well drained
4-6 roasted roma tomato halves, chopped
condiments as desired, sour cream, cheese, salsa, lime juice, olives, fresh tomatoes, avocado, hot sauce
6-8 6” Tortillas (I like wheat)
More butter, salt, and (optional) fresh cilantro

Echo, don’t be intimidated by this wall of text. It’s a simple recipe, really; I’m just overly verbose. Start your rice. Salt the rice water until it tastes like ocean water. Use a rice cooker. I love those things. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add in the chicken thighs (frozen or thawed, doesn’t matter) and sprinkle the rub over the meat. Cover and cook until the bottoms are cooked. Flip the meat and schmear it around in the spices. Cover and cook until the other side is cooked. Remove to a cutting board and take pan off of heat. It doesn’t matter if it’s cooked through yet. Chop the meat into rough pieces and return to pan, and return pan to heat. If the meat is cooked through, add a splash of water and stir the meat into the caramelized spices. If it isn’t cooked through, it’ll sweat enough on its own to be fine. Either way, get all the tasty stuff off the bottom of the pan, make sure the chicken is cooked through, and put it into a bowl. Use your best judgement about how much oil is still in the pan. If it’s too dry, add the butter before adding the onion, peppers, and mushrooms. Cook until the onions are tender (yes, I prefer tender fajita veggies) and the mushrooms are turning color. Add in the roasted tomatoes and heat through. Remove to another bowl. Heat tortillas on a hot skillet or electric griddle. Toss your cooked rice with small chunks of butter, a pinch or two of salt, and the (optional) cilantro. My fav way to assemble mine is to forgo the tortilla. Small bed of rice, sprinkled with lime juice. Top with a small sprinkling of cheese, a scoop of veggies, a scoop of chicken, a sprinkling of lime juice, and a dab of sour cream. If I have avocados, it doesn’t matter where they are as long as they end up in my belly.

Pie in a jar, rusk, and potato pancakes

I am getting rid of a bit of paper clutter, so I'm posting these recipes so I can recycle the paper they're on.

Pie-in-a-jar
From Sister Cox

Cherry Pie Filling
2 - 12 oz bags of frozen cherries
1/3-1/2 cup flour
1/2-3/4 cup sugar
1 T lemon juice
1/4 tsp vanilla (or almond extract)
pinch of salt

Mix together, folding dry ingredients into cherries until combined.

Pie crust
8 oz cream cheese
8 oz butter
2 cups flour
Mix together in an electric mixer until soft dough forms.

Pie in a jar:
Roll out dough to approximately 1/8th inch thick. Cut a 6" round of dough and gently press it into a 4oz canning jar. Fill jar with your choice of pie filling. Cut a small circle of dough to fit the top of the pie jar. Fold the bottom crust down over the top to form an edge. Bake at 425° for 20-25 mins.


Potato Pancakes

Apparently Mormon pioneers made this dish during their time in Nauvoo.

4 large potatoes
3 eggs, beaten until light
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Peel, wash, and grate the potatoes. Add the eggs and seasoning to potatoes. Use no baking powder or flour. Fry in hot drippings (ham, bacon, or sausage). Have pan very hot as for hotcakes.


Rusk

Make cornmeal bread according to your favorite recipe. After it has cooled, allow to dry fro several days then bake slowly in a warmed oven until it is thoroughly dry and slightly browned. Grate it on a coarse grater or crumble with a rolling pin. It can be eaten with cream and sugar, or with hot milk and honey poured over it. This makes a tasty, quick mush. (Recipe used the they Nahum Curtis family at Nauvoo.)

Twinkling stars

Princess: Mom, what does twinkle mean?

Me: It's like light flashing off of something, little lights.

Pebbles: There's a song about twinkle!

Tag: Yeah, stars are other galaxies.

Me: Well, suns and stuff.

Princess: So what does tinkle mean, then?

Me: It means to pee.

Princess: Oooooh, so that's why people laugh at school when they say tinkle...

Tag: Tinkle, tinkle little star! [8 year old boy laugh]

Me: I don't know that stars tinkle. They're more of a gas thing. [crickets]

This was all discussed over our family home evening dessert. Yum!