Making Progress

There are many times these days that I feel like I am thinking way too much about food.  Before my big diet change, if there were no leftovers for lunch--no problem.  I would just have some bread, cheese, and fruit or maybe do a "breakfast" meal with an egg since I ate cereal for breakfast during the week.  Now, if there are no leftovers that means I have to cook something, and most of what I can fix isn't quick.  The solution?  The Plan!

My husband's work schedule is such that I may need to fix anywhere from two to four servings in order to have lunch leftovers.  By planning which meal will provide for which lunch, I can make sure I have enough but not too much.  The specific meals are then written on the big calendar.

If some of my recipes make extra, I divide the leftovers into portions and put them in the freezer, because no matter how good "The Plan" is, things don't always go as anticipated.  Even so, since these extra leftovers are frozen, I need to allow time for thawing if I need them.

All the new vegetable recipes require some reorganizing of my recipe box.  I am going to divide out the main dishes as well according to the meat used.   My desserts will even have their own little section, too.  (Welcome back, chocolate!)

Slowly, but surely, I am getting recipes written on cards so they are easier to manage.  We can at least use part of the breakfast table now.  :-)

Thinking of You, Charlie Brown

And you as well, Mr. Willowby.

Last year we didn't put up a Christmas tree.  We weren't hosting our Christmas gathering, and frankly holidays are always a challenge for me--out of the routine, you know.  So we hung the Christmas quilts and set up the nativity, but dragging the parts for the tree from the attic just wasn't appealing.  What I missed though was the ornaments.  I searched on line for a simple metal ornament holder, but couldn't find anything that I liked or that was a price I was willing to pay. 

Now that the holidays have come around again, we decided to go with a very small 3' tree that fits quite nicely on a plant stand I have in our living room.  It only needs one strand of lights that we will leave on it when we put it away.  So we have a "little" extra Christmas cheer this year.

 Merry Christmas to all!

Dressing Up

Everything is from scratch these days, so I am on the recipe hunt.  Homemade salad dressings were not something I gave much thought to before, but with salads being a several times a week menu item, it was a subject not to be ignored.  Here is one I adapted that I very much enjoy.  My favorite way to use it is on a spinach salad topped with dried apple, dried cranberries, and sunflower seeds.  (On the spices, I use what I would call a good sprinkle, so adjust according to taste.)

Maple-mustard Dressing

1/4 cup oil
2 Tablespoons maple syrup
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon mustard
Dash of salt
Garlic powder
Onion powder

A Well-stocked "Pantry"

This past Tuesday a fellow quilter and I counted to see how many quilts we had in what I call our "quilt pantry".  When we started focusing on the UFO tubs (unfinished objects) that is what I envisioned--a well-stocked pantry of quilts ready for when the need arises.  Counting two that went to new homes on Tuesday, we had 13 quilts in the cabinet.  When I started coming (two years ago come spring), we had maybe one or two.  How I have enjoyed working with these ladies, and am so pleased to see all the creativity that has produced some very lovely quilts!

Here are some pictures a quilt done by one of our "new to quilting" ladies.  She started a new job a few weeks ago and can no longer meet with us, so I put the binding on the quilt for her.

And here is a picture of my next challenge.  One of the ladies ran across these blocks in a UFO tub, and delegated them to me to put together.  Hmmm.  I think that is a complement. 

As you can see, the blocks are all different sizes.  I think this is the general layout I will use, and now need to figure out how to fill in the spaces between the blocks.  The colors will be fun to work with, and it has the potential of being a really cute quilt.  Bring on the graft paper!