My #1

I can't believe it has been 14 years since Maddie came into my life.  She changed me in ways I cannot explain.  There is no doubt, I had to become a grown up really fast.

Born 6 weeks early, she thrived beyond our dreams. We brought her home on Thanksgiving...we were terrified. My mother stayed with us for months, putting her life on hold to be there for me. There is no way JP and I could have done it alone.

As you can tell, I'm feeling sentimental, sad, excited, and....unexplainable emotions. As she is starting to pull away, I want to pull her closer.

Happy Birthday Maddie!

10 Years in the Making...

I bought this ottoman about 11 years ago at an antique store in Huntington, WV. It was truly gross...old, ratty upholstery, horsehair stuffing. So I took it all apart and my sister Leslie came for a visit so that we could totally re-haul it. We did the whole shebang - sewed in springs, and everything. We covered it in a white muslin, and I looked for fabric that I loved to make a slip-cover. FINALLY, 10 years later I have finished the slipcover, and I have a completed ottoman!! Leslie will be so proud of me...

Feels Like Fall

We had a nice weekend, full of applebutter, blustery fall weather, and friends.

October 13, 2011

After a year, I have decided to ignore the random Chinese comments and power through with my blog. Yes, it's taken quite a bit of consideration, and I hope I made the right choice.

Chinese?

I'm so baffled. I keep getting comments written in Chinese. What's up, Doc?

No-Knead Bread

This is my new favorite thing - No-Knead Bread. It is so miraculous. All you have to do is put ingredients into a bowl, and wait for about 12 - 18 hours. Then you punch it down, and turn into the bread pan or dutch oven, and let rise again for another couple hours. Then bake. So easy. The only problem I foresee is being able to plan ahead for when I want warm bread, fresh out of the oven.

I've been trying to take a hike with the dog everyday. It is good for both of us to get out of the house. I took some pictures today. I just haven't been wanting to take "snow pictures", I mean, who wants to look at more snow? But I took some, nonetheless. I suppose I have a bit of spring fever. Today Libby was tracking all the deer prints we came across. She would just veer off our path and into the woods, with her nose to the snow.

Swedish Pancakes

So, way before I was born, or even conceived, my parents hosted an exchange student from Sweden. I guess maybe he was homesick or something, and mentioned that he loved Swedish pancakes. My mother's ear's of course perked up, "what is a Swedish pancake?". And so the legend begins. These were not everyday fare. We would have them for desert, maybe once a year. To start with, you need a "plet" pan, or a mini-pancake maker pan. My loving sister Rachel bought one for me years ago. (Thank you sister) The batter is basically crepe batter, very egg-y and delicious. Then you need sour cream (I often use plain yogurt because I never have sour cream), and lingonberry sauce. I NEVER have lingonberries (unless I go to IKEA), so we substitute cranberries. Once you have assembled all these ingredients, you get to stacking it up. Pancake, sour cream, berries, pancake, sour cream, berries, etc. I like to stack about 5 or 6. Then once you put your fork into it, it all falls to pieces into a gooey, delicious mess. I love it so much.

Swedish Pancakes

3 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups milk
3/4 cup flour
3 TBSP sugar
3 TBSP oil (I use canola)

Beat eggs well and add sugar, salt and flour and milk. Add oil and blend all together (I use a food processor or hand-held mixer). Get out your "Plett" pan. I use 1 TBSP batter for each cake. Make pancake ahead of time and store in fridge. Serve with cooked cranberries and unsweetened yogurt.