An Artful Gathering

Hello!

I'm getting myself back to the daily grind.  This morning I've spend time working on my Shady Ladies Altered Art Workshops that will be held April 24-25, 2010 - you can read ALL about the great classes and fun here .  Do check it out as there is something offered for everyone that can attend.

Here is one last Christmas picture to share with you ~

Merry Christmas! 

Christmas Day

 
The presents have all been opened leaving the tree bare!  The yummy Christmas food has been eaten with only a few leftovers - a hambone to season a pot of beans with to be exact.  Also the noise of the children and their excitement - it's quiet now and I've taken the afternoon to rest and reflect on this day. 

Each and every year I cook lots of sweet loaf breads, cookies, things to nibble on.  I always have Christmas Eve at my house with a ham and various foods - no sit down meal, just eat whenever you want to.  And on Christmas morning I always have breakfast for the family - there were 12 of us this year - I'm exhausted - it seems to get harder and harder each year to get it all done BUT I wouldn't trade our traditions for anything.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Sausage Balls and Texas White Trash

What a day I've had today - thank goodness I have a lot of Christmas spirit!

The girlie girls and I made sausage balls early this afternoon - that's truly hard work - it's best to let the sausage get to room temp before you begin the mixing part!  I doctored mine up a bit even though I used HOT sausage - I sprinked on some ground cayenne red pepper and some fresh ground black pepper.  They were a bit to large but GOOD!!

Recipe:  Autumn's Grandma's Sausage Balls

3 cups Bisquick

1 # Jimmy Dean HOT sausage (or whatever brand you prefer)

1 # sharp shredded cheddar cheese

3 Tablespoons water

MIX and MIX and MIX with your hands - form into small balls  approximately the size of a cherry and bake at 400 degrees for 16 minutes.

Then this evening we made Texas White Trash and that was semi-disasterous!  I had one package of white chips (like chocolate chips but white) so had to send my husband to the grocery store for a second package.  I microwaved the two packages of chips in one or two minute increments trying to get them melted.  One of the girlie girls was my helper and she took the container out of the microwave and said, "what is this!"  In the center of the white chips was a big gob of "brown" - for a nano-second I thought, "do those chips turn chocolate brown when melted" - that thought didn't last very long at all - I had BURNED the chips!!!!!!  So lucky me, I had a package of white bark - we did the old double boiler trick and melted it and then I mixed the Texas White Trash - turned out well.

Texas White Trash

3 cups Golden Grahams (cereal)

1 cups pecan halves

1 cup dry roasted peanuts

1 cup small pretzels

12 oz package white chips (or white bark)

Mix pretzels, golden grahams, peanuts, and pecans in a large bowl.  Melt chips over double boiler and pour over the "trash".  Mix and spread onto waxed paper.  When it hardens, break apart and store in container.  This makes a small batch, can easily double the recipe. 

Tomorrow the girlie girls will help me make Mincement Bread and Gift of the Magi Bread.  We "might" squeeze in some Cranberry Bread too.  I'll tell all tomorrow night!

Merry Christmas!

Friday!

It's Friday the 19th of December - 7 more days until Christmas~  most of the gifts are wrapped now, the stockings are filled AND my grandson is coming home - we will get to see him tomorrow.  He went into the Navy in May and this will be his first visit back home.  Needless to say we are all doing the happy dance!  What a fun Christmas this will be~

Here is a free Christmas image for you:

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas!

Indeed, my house is all rosy and cozy with Christmas spirit ~  The stockings are hung with care - this year there are 12 of us and 2 of us have more than one, which calculates to 15 stockings on our NEW stocking tree.  My son built a stocking tree for me a couple of weeks ago and I can't tell you how wonderful it is!!

So far my holiday preparations have consisted of

1.  A trip to Sam's Club for some goodies - I picked up an Orange Cranberry Brunch cake there and froze it.  I tried this cake while on a retreat in the Smoky Mountains recently - if you have a Sam's go check out this yummy cake!

2.  Christmas shopping - I've got everything taken care of with the exception of one gift certificate - hubby will pick that one up.  (BIG happy sigh!)

3.  Gift Wrapping - I"m "almost" finished with that - just a few more packages that I hope to wrap today.

4. Christmas menus - all planned!  Grocery lists ready!  Hubby will do that for me too!

That's it for today - above is a Christmas image for anyone that stops by my blog.

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

The kitchen is all warm, a bit moist feeling and that sage smell permeates the whole house - our 20 pound turkey is cooking!  Everything has been cooked with the exception of the dressing and sweet potatoes that await their turn in the oven.  Butter beans, turnip greens, green bean casserole, rutabaga, a veggie tray, cranberry sauce, and cranberry mousse, along with yummy rolls and iced tea will also grace our table~  Oh my, don't forget the gravy!  For dessert we will have pumpkin pies, apricot nut bread and a chocolate cake - good food, good friends, and FAMILY.  We eat at 2:30pm this year and if you're in the neighborhood, do stop by!

 
 

Thanksgiving Recipe

Here is a great quick and easy Thanksgiving recipe:

Pumpkin Parfait - 4 servings

1 small package pumpkin jellow pudding

2 cups whipping cream

Whip together, chill, and serve

You can't get any easier than that!

Time Spent at the Smoky Mountain Art Retreat

I just realized I'd never written anything about my time in the Smoky Mountains of NC.  I went there to teach a book class, Gypsy Lore.  This is a book that I created several years ago and still on occasion present it to a group.  We stayed in a most elegant "cabin" LODGE is a better description - in Maggie Valley, NC.  Our meals were heavenly and friendship abounded. 

I presented the book, gave some instructions and handed out kits and let the bookmaking creative process begin.   We had a glorious long weekend with a couple of my friends showing up on Friday only.  The ladies outdid themselves and I got rave reviews for holding a class and allowing the students to be as creative as they dared to be.  They thoroughly enjoyed me encouraging them to surpass what I had originally created.  In fact their artwork was so good that I'm going to do "another" Gypsy Lore book to showcase what I'm now capable of creating artwise.

On Saturday I visited Random Arts, a fantastic little altered art store nestled up in the mountains in Saluda, NC.  I chatted with owner Jane and she snapped some pics of our group - what an adventure to get to shop in her store!

Lastly, I want to saw the whole of North Carolina was beautiful with the leaves in all their glorious color.  I've traveled from Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusettes on down the coastline to Florida.  And I have to say that North Carolina reigns supreme when it comes to the magnificent color of their trees!  I'm so lucky to have been able to see this wonderful fall scenery and to be back "home" with my siblings and their families.

My Latest Art Endeavor

I've been working on some pages for a Cabinet Card Christmas Book and have finished them.  They were to have a santa hat on them and represent a song.  Mine is Little Drummer Boy ~

On Being Thankful

This morning I began an exercise wellness program.  I have been suffering from sciatica for several months and being treated with physical therapy.  I joined their wellness program and this morning was my first "exercising on my own".  I was very very pleased with myself - I did exercises for the sciatica problems, and then used the recumbent bicycle for 12 minutes - my pitiful little records stands at 16 minutes, but I have not ridden it in over 3 weeks so I was pleased.  I then used the treadmill which was a first time experience also - 10 minutes and 10 CALORIES burned - lol.  Actually I'm not making light of that, I'm extremely pleased with it.  I'll be back bright and early Monday morning for more wellness exercise!

After I finished the exercises, and before the post office opened, I went to my favorite breakfast place, Cafe Cappucino for an omelet and coffee.  This morning was dreary, rainy - one of those "white" days that usually gives me a headache.  I sat in the restaurant looking out a huge window, John Denver's Rocky Mountain High was playing and my coffee was good and the tree I was looking at was a lovely shade of green with tiny red berries all over it.  The rain had made those berries look like little jewels.  I was content, happy, and began to think of all the things I'm so thankful for.  It was a quiet reflective time for me - it actually has shaped the rest of my day.  I've been very quiet and reflective all day.  Life is good!

I've just finished a Christmas Cabinet Card Book swap and will be binding those tomorrow and they should all be ready for mailing on Monday.  I've also completed Tall Skinny Book pages for my online group.  I'm in a 25 Days of Christmas Swap and the gifties are arriving daily!  I'm getting ready to sit down and make something for a Lottery I'm in - theme Thankful.

Here is a free image I'm sharing with all of you - enjoy!!  I'll sign off for now -