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Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Hallowe'en!

BOO :)

yes - we made it. bronchitis threw a wrench in the plans - but the neighbors stepped up and our 4th annual Eastwood Estates :: Corbin Palms Halloween Parade went off without a hitch.

and I managed to sneak out and snap a quick (and blurry) pic of my favourite witch and angel/devil before heading back home to watch this and this, with a glass of wine and some (good) chocolate while they cover the neighbourhood with their posse.

Happy Hallowe'en!

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

finally cooler!

and this

Broccoli-Basil Mac and Cheese
via 101 Cookbooks

was as good as we thought it would be!



i did use the delicata and it was delicious! we didn't have any brocolli - so used a handful of kale. and the tomatoes i had on hand.

Monday, October 24, 2011

break.

Good morning

this week looks to be a crazy one. the countdown to halloween is on. and work is picking up.

i may check back in with a crafty project - if i get my act together - but if not, see you next week - in costume please ;)

happy monday.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Pierce College :: Parade of Breeds

k and my youtube debut ;)



we really do love having this amazing facility so close to home.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

good stuff :: and some questions...

the challenge has me finding all sorts of goodies as i clean through boxes stored long ago.

d's mom gave me a stash of quilt bits and bobs when she last moved. i'd forgotten about them. i think they would date back to the 40s and have been done by d's great grandmother on his grandfather's side. but need to confirm. (they were alongside this piece - looked at so very long ago!)

i should know more - but wonder where this one is in the process of becoming a quilt. i love the colors and think it will end up at the cottage or on one of the girls' beds.

::1::

::1::

can you see how the back is tied off with yarn? is this the last step - or is there something more to do here?

this one obviously needs to have a backing and be quilted.

::2::

::2::

the jewel tones are great. e has her eye on this one. any ideas (local?) where i could get it quilted?

*****
so the 21 days of the aforementioned challenge have officially passed - i am still on 18 - though have done a bit of 19 inadvertently and likewise need to return to 15. i gave myself a pass on a few days that were just too busy. feeling good about it over all.

::

I have discovered forgotten fabrics (and books and clothing and...) as I cleaned out my closet as part of this challenge.



I thought about making this thrifted bit - a map of denmark - into a big pillow, (I think it was likely originally for a table top) but I fear it's too big. (It measures 35 inches square.)

napkins?

placemats?

any other ideas?

Miss Moxie apparently likes it. Perhaps a dog bed?

Friday, October 21, 2011

the secret world of Arrietty

love all things studio ghibli and The Borrowers in this house.

so looking forward to this:



set for US release February 2012

Monday, October 17, 2011

Broccoli-Basil Mac and Cheese

I wish it would cool off so I could try this! I am thinking of using my Delicata for it... and not peeling it.

Broccoli-Basil Mac and Cheese
via 101 Cookbooks

1 small winter squash, peeled, seeded and cut into tiny chunks
olive oil
1 bunch of basil, stems removed
2 slices good brown bread, stale or dried out in the oven
1/2 a small head of broccoli (100 g / 3.5 oz), roughly chopped
4 tablespoons creme fraiche or sour cream
~ 1 3/4 cups / 3.5 oz / 100 g grated white cheddar cheese
~ 1 3/4 cups / 3.5 oz / 100 g grated gruyere cheese
a large handful of (yellow) cherry tomatoes
3 cups / 300 g dried (whole wheat) macaroni elbows

Preheat your oven to 400F / 200C with a rack in the middle. Put a large pot of water on to boil.

Place the squash on a large baking sheet, drizzle with a bit of olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until golden.

In the meantime, pulse half the basil, all of the bread, the broccoli and a lug of olive oil in a food processor until you've got a fine crumb. It'll be a bit damp - that's o.k. Transfer to a small bowl and give the processor a rinse.

In a separate bowl, combine the creme fraiche and grated cheeses.

Place the cherry tomatoes in the food processor with the remaining basil. Pulse a couple times to break things up, then add to the creme fraiche mixture and stir well.

Boil the pasta in well-salted water for a bit less time than the package suggests - you want it ever so slightly undercooked. Drain, reserving a big cup of the hot pasta water for later use. Return the hot pasta to the pan and add the cheese mixture to it. Add the squash and give it a good stir. Add pasta water to thin the sauce to the consistency of cream. It can be a bit runny as the pasta will soak it up in the oven.

Transfer everything to a large baking dish or casserole. Sprinkle the green breadcrumbs evenly across the top and bake for 20 -25 minutes or until the topping is crunchy. Remove from the oven, and wait 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 8 - 10.

Adapted from Hungry? The innocent recipe book for filling your family with good stuff by Anna Jones, Vanessa Hattersley, and innocent
Prep time: 35 min - Cook time: 25 min

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Acquacotta :: Tuscan Vegetable Soup

A friend made this for us over the weekend and I can't get it out of my head! So good. (And so much that is found in our CSA box!)

Epicurious | March 2001
by Faith Heller Willinger
Yield: Makes 2 servings

1 large red onion or 1 leek, roughly chopped
1 1/2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 pound Swiss chard, cleaned and torn in half, or 1/2 oz. porcini mushrooms, soaked and drained
Half of a peperoncino or any hot red pepper, fresh or dried
1/2 cup tomato pulp (seeded, juiced, and chopped if fresh or drained and diced if canned)
3 cups simmering water
sea salt
2 eggs (preferably organic)
2 slices rustic, country-style bread, lightly toasted
1 teaspoon chopped parsley
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Tuscan pecorino cheese

Place the toasted bread in two soup bowls.
Place the onion and celery in a 3-quart, heavy-bottomed, nonreactive pot. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and stir to coat. Cook over a medium-low heat, or until the onion is translucent but not brown. Add Swiss chard (or porcinis, if using) and stir briefly to wilt. Add hot pepper, tomatoes, and simmering water. Season lightly with salt and cook over a low heat (barely a simmer) for 20 minutes, until vegetables are very soft.
As vegetables are cooking, bring about an inch of water and a half teaspoon of salt to a boil in a deep skillet. At the end of the vegetables' cooking time, turn the skillet heat down to a gentle simmer. Add the parsley to the soup.
Break the eggs into a small bowl, one at a time, and slide them into the simmering water. Cook for about 3 minutes, until the whites are set, but the yellow is still runny. When done, use a large slotted spoon to place one egg on each toast slice in bowls. Ladle broth and vegetables over each egg and top with a generous sprinkling of the cheese.

::

::

today my dear neighbor melba took d and i up to the house her late husband willis built by hand some 60 years ago. he would always tell me the story of how he married melba for her '53 chevy, and she would tell me how she married him for this house.

::

::

they kept the tiny house in the hills as an income property after they moved to the valley to raise their family.

it is an amazing tiny treehouse of a house. nestled beneath a most wonderful california sycamore and balanced on a steep hillside. it is a wonder to think of willis grading this property, placing the retaining walls, then building, without any power tools, this gem. the details are lovely. rocks in the cement pathway. shoeracks in the closet. redbrick echoing around the yard. it is a work of art by a man who found a way to express himself in everything he did.

how we all should be.

::

on valentine's day 1954 he poured a walkway. a perfect eternal valentine.


inspired in so many ways.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

::

i am feeling a little like we have taken on more than we can chew this fall. we've added another activity (riding) to our repertoire and it is stretching us thin. or more likely, me thin. (hello once a week blogging! i will blame some of that on my camera loss as well. need to remedy that asap.)

i need to make some choices. or perhaps just ride it out (forgive the pun) until soccer season ends (which takes up two days / a week, but is over in another month) and see what happens... k has the most on her plate. but her personality thrives on activity & change. (she has two different teachers this year - one in the a.m. & one in the p.m. and absolutely loves it & is doing so well - where i worried it might be a problem!) girls are happy. that is my guide. the only time i see it perhaps wearing on them is when they don't get enough sleep! (i am so grateful for the strict 8:30 bedtime we have managed to keep going! i know they need it.)

they are both horse crazy. and i love the confidence, responsibility & independence that comes with horsemanship. so we will see.

Em & Sapi

Monday, October 10, 2011

right now

zinnias

we are recouping from a weekend that included:

a sleepover party (a late birthday celebration for Em with her two besties) that involved a make-your-own-taco bar, hp 6 and 7.1, and deep conversation around the periodic table and the mechanics of a catapult. (not what I expected when I heard them chattering at 6 a.m.)

a return to riding lessons and new riding boots (that K wore all weekend long).

missing my camera. (still sitting in the box to be sent off! must do this week!)

a school garden workday (always brings me joy).

a job application submitted (and fingers crossed).

feeling productive with my wunderlist and pomodoro.

much debate and a good start on halloween costumes. (hooray for reconnecting with my sewing machine!)

keeping up with the challenge (feels very good).

dinner and a movie with bubbie and the "little girl cousins club". (there are two generations that make up the 10 girl cousins in d's family - one that ranges from 19 - 25: "the big girls" and the other that ranges 7 - 11: "the little girls")

enjoying the changes in the garden.

pumpkin

(reveling in fall.)

happy monday!

Thursday, October 06, 2011

momfilter

thrilled to have been invited to have this pic up over at momfilter today.

low sizergh walk

i love this photo of k. i think in 80% of my pictures of her she is flying somewhere. this was an absolutely perfect day in the english countryside. i will never forget it.

and i love momfilter! the venture of former founding editors of cookie magazine, Pilar Guzman and Yolanda Edwards. (since launching momfilter, they have been named Editor-in-Chief and Editor-at-Large at MSL!)

the website is a great resource for all things kid and family.

(my favourite - the "that mom" series.)

happy (happy!) wednesday :)

Saturday, October 01, 2011

a challenge



via the petite gourmand (and tweaked for jumilla)

21 DAY ORGANIZING CHALLENGE

Join the Challenge (at any time)
Day 1 - junk Drawer & cutlery drawer
Day 2 - craft supplies & kids' art work
Day 3 - kitchen cabinets
Day 4 - linen Closet
Day 5 - office closet (fabric!)
Day 6 - dresser drawers
Day 7 - the pantry
Day 8 - coat closet
Day 9 - toy organization
Day 10 - laundry room
Day 11 - the Freezer
Day 12 - spice cabinet- remember to replace anything older than one year
Day 13 - medicine cabinet
Day 14 - under bathroom sinks
Day 15 - home office- edit magazines & books
Day 16 - the Fridge
Day 17 - the Mail
Day 18 - keepsakes
Day 19 - master closet
Day 20 - photos
Day 21 - You pick!