Hearts in Service

It's Sew Crafty Friday again. Shereen over at Waiting For Him hosts this each week. I finished Emily's apron and you can see pictures of it under Saturday, February 23rd's post. This week I've been working on a baby quilt. This is the first quilt I've ever made and I'm so pleased at how it's turning out. I love the colors and it will be so cute when it's done. Closeup The dark purple will be the border and the back. I have 8 rows done so far and it goes really quick so I'm hoping to get most of it done by next week.

I was sewing in my bedroom when I heard all this racket on the hill behind the house. Noisy visitors. The male stayed at the top of the hill to scope things out. He must of decided he didn't like the sound of the camera or some noise I was making. He started making noise and immediately all the females left and went up into the woods. They'll be back!

First of all if you are on a diet, do NOT make this meal. It is definitely not diet-friendly. However, my children love it and I decided to sacrifice just this once ;-). First, you need cornmeal and Old Bay Seasoning. Mix them together on a plate. Now beat together 3-4 eggs. Dip the fish (I used tilapia) in the egg and then in the cornmeal. Refrigerate for at least 20 minutes. We did inner city work for 10 years and it was there that we were introduced to plantains by our Latino friends. Again, there are many ways to make plantains and this is probably not the healthiest. Slice the skin of the plantain. Peel. Slice. Now you are ready to fry everything up. Fry both the plantains and the fish (not at the same time) for about 3-5 minutes until they are golden brown. Remove from the oil (I used canola) and drain on paper towels. Add salt. Nathan made a salad. This offsets all of the grease being consumed! Serve with the salad. Yummy! Today, I'm back to eating salads and lean me...

Mondays normally tend to be a difficult day to get back into the swing of things, especially for those in the pastorate. Yesterday was especially hard. We were gone from early morning until late at night on Sunday and I was wiped out yesterday. So I gave the children a day off from school. I figured it wouldn't hurt them and I definitely need the time off. Besides, I woke up looking like this and I felt even worse! So this is what they did instead: Then after lunch they did this: And this: If you look closely, you can see her tongue hanging out all the way down the hill. LOL! Today we are back to our normal school schedule.

Well, the snow got me motivated yesterday and I finished the apron. I made a serious mistake on the 2nd pocket so that's why there is only one. Oh well, I'll do better next time!

Lines Written After a Snow-Storm by Clement Clarke Moore Come children dear, and look around; Behold how soft and light The silent snow had glad the ground In robes of purest white. The trees seem deck'd by fairy hand, Nor need their native green; And every breeze appears to stand, All hush'd, to view the scene. You wonder how the snows were made That dance upon the air, As if from purer worlds they stray'd, So lightly and so fair. Perhaps they are the summer flowers In northern stars that bloom, Wafted away from icy bowers To cheer our winter's gloom. Perhaps they're feathers of a race Of birds that live away, In some cold dreary wintry place, Far from the sun's warm ray. And clouds, perhaps, are downy beds On which the winds repose; Who, when they rouse their slumb'ring heads, Shake down the feath'ry snows. But see, my darlings, while we stay And gaze with fond delight, The fairy scene soon fades away, And mocks our raptur'd sight. And let this fl...

Shereen at Waiting for Him hosts this each week. I've been busy working Emily's apron this week. What a nightmare! I thought it would be a simple little pattern but I have to line everything with 1/4" binding. I don't know if you've ever worked with this but it's not easy to keep it in place and sew it at the same time. I still have to do the pockets and the hem and of course, you guessed it, everything is finished with the binding! Here is an afghan I'm working on. The first picture is the pattern in the book. I'm doing it in ecru and light purple. So far I have 9 squares done. It's going to take awhile to do this but I thought I'd show you what I'm working on now.

I make this every now and then and it's so delicious that I thought I'd share it. I double this recipe for our family. Spicy Crockpot Pork Chops 4 pork chops 3 Tbsp. oil salt & pepper to taste 1 tsp. garlic powder 1 onion, sliced 1 green pepper, cut in strips 1 8-oz. cans tomato sauce 4 Tbsp. brown sugar 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar 1 1/2 tsp. salt 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce 1. Sprinkle the chops with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Brown on both sides in oil in a skillet. Drain and transfer to slow cooker. 2. Mix remaining ingredients together in a bowl and pour over the chops. 3. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Serve over rice.

Dan & I went walking again yesterday. It wasn't raining but boy was it windy! I worked on getting some closeups. Most of these things were over a fence and about 15 feet or more away so they are not as clear as they could be. We always talk about winter being so gray and drab but I managed to see quite a few colors. It's amazing what you can see when you take the time to look. There were greens Same picture; only closer. Reds & Purples Blues White Foam Black & White Chickadee Black, Brown & White Woodpecker Orange See, it's all a matter of perspective.