Updates

We are very thankful here in Tampa, that Isaac did not directly cross our path.  We got very little rain and wind.  The heavy rain bands missed us.  I was SO stressed about possible evacuation.  I need to learn to wait until it is 2 days away to get stressed.  Look at how much the path changed!!

The cat situation is about the same, to my distress.  Really wanting Gemma to come out of the bedroom.  I got Spirit Essences about a week ago.  They are promoted by Jackson Galaxy, the My Cat From Hell guy on TV.  I am trying to help Gemma be less stressed and Yoshi to chill out.  The essences take a couple of weeks to help they say.  So far- same.

I am happy I got a few new items listed to my etsy shop and I have a lot of new ideas forming in my head for fall.

I did well with myfitnesspal.com.  I weighed in this morning after one week of using it and I lost 2.6 lbs!  I did not exercise they way I had hoped.  I always have what I think is a valid excuse for why I did not do it- when in the end there is really NO valid excuse when I know it is good for me!  I did not track my calories on Sunday, and I felt constantly hungry no matter what I ate on Sunday.  But, I did still lose weight!

Since my husband is now riding his bicycle to school I thought I might ride a few miles in the evening to meet him.  Even 10 minutes is better than nothing.  But the weather here has not been good for that yesterday or today.  OH, a valid excuse!! :-)

I will continue watching my calories this week and see what happens!

Off to make dinner!

Marietta

Isaac

Under major stress at the moment.  We live in Tampa Florida.  We are in the "cone of uncertaintity".
We live in a level two evacuation zone and we get flooding on our street.  With a storm surge our house could be under water.  These are always a wait and see thing.  By Sunday we will know if we need to evacuate.  We do have some place to go.  We evacuated twice before.  But, now we have 3 cats to think of too.  My kitty does not like to be picked up, so getting her into a carrier will be a real
challenge.  You ask yourself will you lose everything you have worked for?  What do you take with you?  Pictures of course and important papers.  I know I am not to put my trust in any wordly possesions.  I must trust the Lord.

wait, weight...

In 1990 I didn't feel good, every day I have an overwhelming tiredness.  Then I started having chest congestion and wheezing.  At that time I had a 3 year old, and it was not convenient to lay down and take a nap whenever this came over me, which was really the only remedy I had found.  This went on for about a year.  I went to the doctor, got medicine, got better, finished medicine-problem returned.

I started to pay closer attention to when I had the symptoms.  It did not take me too long to realize I was having a problem with wheat.  Eat a saltine cracker and wheeze within 5 mins.  I went to an allergist for the tests and sure enough- allergic to wheat(and corn, oats, peanuts, chocolate and various others like dust, mold etc.)  There are no shots for food allergies, you must avoid the foods.
Well, wheat is a BIG challenge.  It took me a few months to give it up entirely, but when you feel that bad every time you have it, you give it up. 

I spent almost 20 years avoiding wheat.  At first there were not many wheat free things that tasted good.  Now, I did not have celiac, which is different than a wheat allergy.  I could have the gluten, just not the wheat itself.  So I found spelt as a substitute.  My mom and mother-in-law made delicious bread for me from it, and it tasted pretty close to wheat.  I learned to be SO disciplined in my eating.  I DID not cheat!  I didn't miss chocolate, I missed shredded wheat and a bowl of oatmeal-lifetime breakfast staples for me!

Five years ago I developed a problem with my ear being stuffed up.  After seeing several doctors and having surgery on my nose, there is still no definitive answer as to why I have this problem.  I decided to go to an allergist again.  I was retested and NO MORE wheat allergy.  Still allergic to oats, but none of the others.  (several new airborne ones though). This was almost two years ago now.  I did not test positive for dairy, but I do believe the dairy is the cause of the ear problem.  In starting to eat wheat, I thought I wasn't missing anything, but the more I have eaten it, the more I don't want to give it up again.  The awesome self control I once had-GONE!!   No consequences now when I eat it, feel fine.  But, I don't think it it that good for me and what is to say I won't become allergic again?

I give all of this background to talk about my weight.  I was very thin up until 10 years ago, when I developed a thyroid problem.  I had gained over 10 pounds without changing any eating habits. In
December of 06 my daughter wanted to lose weight, so I ordered a weight watchers at home kit.  Being a disciplined person with my eating, it was no problem for me to keep track of points.  In 4 months I lost 16 lbs.  My daughter wanted to go to meetings to help her, so I went and lost more weight.  At one point I had lost 27 lbs, and was at a weight I had not been since my 20's.  But really for my height and my age, I knew it was not realistic to try and weigh that little.  So I gradually added back about 7-9 lbs- perfect.  Then came wheat back into my life!  Previously there were no cakes, cookies or pies consumed.  So now I have added another 5 lbs.  Since they have changed weight watchers around so much, I don't have the correct tools any longer(always a good excuse).  My daughter told me about myfitnesspal.com and I have decided to give it a try.  It seems to work a lot like weight watchers online.  I don't have internet on my phone, but you can track that way, too.

Since my Dad passed away, I have not been taking care of myself the way I should and have decided it is time to start eating healthier and exercising!  I want to try and regain some of the self-discipline I once had!  My goal is 5 lbs before October 4, when I go to Michigan to visit my Mom!

Wish me luck!!

Marietta

Monday

I had a good weekend creatively.  I decided to make some polka dot scarves and a shabby chic peter pan collar.   These are popular on Ruche, Modcloth etc. 

I was also very happy that my kitty decided to come out of the bedroom and be my helper in the sewing room for a little while!

The cat scene is not great between Yoshi and Gemma.  He wants to chase her when she comes out.  Therefore, she does not want to come out.  He and Abby are such sweet kitties, I hope that there can be some harmony amongst them soon!

My husband is a teacher and he officially went back to school today.  He sold his car last week and is now riding his bicycle to school full time now.  Not sure how that is going to work out with the daily Florida rains, but we will see.

I have just been in a down mood, that I can't seem to work out of these past couple of weeks.

The loss of my Dad seems to be weighing heavy on me, even though it was 9 months ago.

We are enjoying having our daughter living at home again, even though I don't see that much of her!

My boss is away this week and part of next week, so no patients in the office this week and I don't have to be on my feet all day, so I should be less tired and hoping to get in some exercise this week.  Maybe that will help my mental state!  :-)   ( if there is help)

Marietta

Fall colors

I had so much fun upcycling this sweater over the past couple of weeks.

The sweater started out life as a teal pull over sweater.  It has now become a cardigan embellished with lace, roses and buttons.  In a lovely color.  I am calling it victorian rose.  And little did I know that this color is going to be popular for fall, according to Pantone, who are color predictors.
Pantone is calling it Rose smoke or Mesa.

I first cut the sweater up the middle and cut off part of the sleeves.  I then put it into a water/bleach mixture( I rarely measure) and let it sit until I had removed most of the color.  I then redyed with Rit dye. I LOVE RIT dye.  I have used it since I was a teenager- with buckets in the back yard!

I am never sure of what the end result will be, but am almost always pleased with it!  The redying was with tan with a hint of pink mixed in.  For the laces it was a more concentrated color.

I knew I wanted to use several different laces, overlapped at the bottom. 

I then decided to dye some onasburg fabric.  It takes the dye really well.
I used that to make into 2 roses for the bottom front of the sweater.

Then the neckline.  I was so fortunate to find in my button collection, buttons that matched perfectly. 
I added these all around the neckline.

                      I flipped the top edges over.  Sewed lace on the triangles.  I added some applique trim    I already had.  I gave the trim a quick dip in the dye mixture.

                          Used a piece of lace and onasburg to make a simple tie clossure  I wasn't sure how fancy to make the sleeves, I decided on lace and onasburg again.   Knotted  together and and sewn on the slightly ruched sleeve edge.

Start out with an idea- but be willing to adapt as you go.

Some ideas don't work well or look right.

Use your creativity to come up with something else!

Marietta

THANK YOU !

I want to say a huge THANK YOU to Jen Bewerse for making the wonderful changes to my blog!
She has made is so pretty and very me! 

Go visit her over at Insideways

Jen is talented in so many ways! And my daughter's best friend :-)

Recipes

My mother and mother-in-law are wonderful cooks.  Women growing up in the 40's and 50's aspired to be good cooks.  Most women of this time did not work outside the home.  The home and children were  their job.  I have worked all but 2 years of my daughter's life.  I never aspired to be a good cook.  Cooking was another job to be done when I got home from my paying job.

We had not had cable in about 20 years, but 4 years ago we decided to  have it again.  So I have been inspired by a lot of cooking programs!  I have also learned to like a lot more foods and be more adventuresome in what I will try.  My husband is NOT a picky eater and will eat whatever I want to make.

We grew up in the mid-west.  Meat and potatoes. Of course one of my favorite meals is roast beef with mashed potatoes/gravy and biscuits.  That does not get made too often at my house!  We are trying to eat healthier, less red meat, etc.  Since our daughter is a vegetarian now, we eat a lot more fish. Since she has moved home we are trying to eat more vegetables, too!  I tried brusssel sprouts for only the second time in my life and they were pretty good.

I have a box full of recipes from my mother, mother -in-law, other family and friends.  My mother is known for her cookie baking and she is happy to share her recipes for these.  I have decided to include these recipes from my box a couple of times a month.

Let's not allow cooking to become a lost art- and do our mothers proud!

side note- when I got married I did not know how to cook and received at least 5 or 6 cookbooks from my husband's side of the family- guess they felt sorry for him! :-) 

Happy cooking !

This recipe is from a dear friend I met at Hillsdale College in Michigan, Ellen Williams.

I have made these muffins many times through the years and they are always a hit and easy to make!

PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY MUFFINS

2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. white sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 c. peanut butter (creamy works best)
3/4 c. milk
2 eggs
preserves or jelly or jam

preheat oven to 400.

Combine flour sugar, baking powder & salt in a mixing bowl.
Cut in peanut butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives, until it resembles course crumbs.
Add milk and eggs all at once.
Stir until flour is moistened.
Place 2 tablespoons of batter into greased muffin cups or papers.
Place 1 teaspoon jelly of choice on top of battter.
Add 1 heaping tablespoon more of batter on top of the jelly.

makes 12.    Bake   14-16 mins.

                                          
                                          
       

This is a pastry blender.

Any time you want to make something with coarse crumbs

this is the tool to use! 

An absolute must for pie crust.

All mixed together.

Even if you use papers you should use cooking spray in the bottoms.

I used more than a teaspoon of the raspberry jelly, I think!

These are oven ready. 

Try to cover over the jelly, or a lot will run out.

Because it sneaks out any way!

Ready to eat!

So yummy!

P.S.  In this batch I substituted agave nectar for the sugar.

Experiment with your favorite sweeteners!

Another Vignette

Another vignette that I have created in my home is a top our antique Chifforobe.  The chifforobe is a piece of furniture that substitutes for a closet.  Ours is made of tiger oak.  As a child it held my games, puzzles and art supplies.  We removed the door and use it as our entertainment center.

My husband and I really enjoy the Christmas tree lights every year.  We are sad when we take them down.  This year I decided I would make a year around arrangement on top of the chifforobe.  The only tricky part was there is a "hump" in the center.

I got inspiration from Romantic Homes magazine.  I looked for things I already had and I went to work.

My original idea was to use a tree branch spray painted white and lightly glittered to reflect light.  Once I brought it in the house to use, it just did not give the look I wanted.  (Part of the problem is there are no good trees in Florida for this!).  I went to Michael's and looked around for a substitution.  I found some beaded weeping willow like branches and some pink pussy willows.  I did lay the branch down as my base then added these willows in to that.  I used a very large picture frame already painted and crackled in the colors I was using as my backdrop.

The birdcage was to be the focal point- I added the little chandelier as an after thought.  I hung the chandelier from the air vent.  I did purchase 4 or 5 more hydrangeas and added these into the birdcage.

The hydrangeas in the front were put into a flat back sconce.  I had an empty spot behind the hydrangeas, so I started looking around the house and saw my favorite birdhouse (painted with a tea theme )and put this on a small hat box to raise it up.

I tend to think more is better, so I used several pieces of grapevine and ivy as fill in.  And what makes everything look more lovely?  Tulle!  Again, something I already had on hand.  I put this around the birdcage and around the willows.  I started with white lights, but decided it needed some color, so I added purple.(party stores carry colored lights year around).

The one thing I would do differently is to start with the lights first and then add in the other items, so the cords would be less obvious.  But when I dust I can change this!

We turn the lights on every night and the vignette looks so sweet by day, too.

Use things you never tire of looking at! 

Give it a try!

Marietta

Vignette

They can be called tableau, vignette, tablescape-whatever name you want to give them you can make a lovely arrangement from every day items you already have.  Put them on a shelf, table or in a cupboard.

Pick a color theme.  Scour your home for things with that color.  Even things with only a small bit of that color will look wonderful when the items are all placed together.

Create a layered look by putting your treasures at different heights.  Use fabric or scrapbook paper as your base.  Edge shelves with lace, ribbon or flowers.  Use things you love!

I created this pink shelfscape by starting with pink polka dot fabric as my base, then adding in a couple of doilies.  I looked for things to vary the height.  I turned a polka dot tea cup over and placed a small glass plate and faux cake on top (these faux cakes are so fun to make and there are many tutorials on the internet).  I intertwined a pink rose garland and placed it randomly on top of the fabric.

I enjoy a higher item on one end-so I chose a wire teapot candle holder as my "vase."  I draped a hankerchief out of the top and put in pink hydrangeas.  The pinky-peach lady vase has a broken finger-but she was only $14 at a flea market in Michigan.  I love these lady heads but can't justify the prices they are asking for the good ones.

I pulled her more peachy color in by placing buttons in the glass basket and adding the teacup in the center(also a candle holder).  The tiny tea cup in the front is from my own childhood tea set.  Hanging from the pegs below I added a metal pail (Target has these year round in the bargain bins), two hand crocheted pot holders and a vintage purse.  The purse held my embroidery floss when I was a little girl.

Don't be afraid - just start!  Move things around-up and down- until you have the look you are delighted with!  It should make you smile.  Mine does!

Have fun!

Marietta