Mealplan Monday #39 and sewing

I found time to sew a couple of red throw pillows for the living room recently.  I had a curtain panel that I found on clearance at Target, then realized it wouldn't work.  I kept it thinking I could make something else with it, though.

Originally I planned on adding a pillow to these chairs.

I laid the curtain out to make sure it would work.  Perfect.  these are some very old pillows from a sectional we no longer own, ca. 1988.

 I used an envelope closure.  I ironed out the fabric, doubled it over for thickness,

and pinned where to sew.  Took me about 30 minutes total for two pillows, but that included hauling my machine out, threading a bobbin, and vacuuming the furniture.

Monday - Four ingredient Enchiladas, rice, salad
Tuesday - Slow cooker pot roast, masheds, broccoli/cauliflower
Wednesday - Brown Sugar Chicken, rice, carrots
Thursday - Sausage and spinach cresent pockets, salad
Friday - Ham and Cheese Party Rolls, Smokey Corn Chowder
Saturday - Dad grills
Sunday - Freezer meal
Monday - Chicken Tortilla Soup after church
Tuesday - Spiral sliced ham, green bean casserole, 5cup salad*, rolls,
and BIRTHDAY CAKE for Bubbie!
*recipe soon

  Gina

Orange clove pomander

I first made these lovelies years ago, when I was working at Laura Ashley.

I think pomanders might be an English sort of craft - not something we do a lot of here in the US.  I love how simple and fragrant they are.  And so pretty!

I started with a leftover orange from Thanksgiving, an old container of cloves, some pretty ribbon, and a nut pick (for hard-to-poke holes) I think the whole thing took about 10 minutes, as I sat at the kitchen table with Scout in the morning.

I positioned the ribbon where I wanted it on the orange and secured it with a clove, then used it as my guide to start lining up the cloves.

 I tied off the ribbon and just kept poking in the cloves; they went in pretty easily.

When I thought it was filled in enough, I stopped.  I ended up using all of the cloves I had - about 1/2 the small jar.  We had these cloves leftover from last Christmas, so they were smelly enough for decorating, not quite enough for mulled cider.

I found a nice place for it to perch on a bookshelf and left it to dry and scent the area.  Some methods I have used call for rolling it in powdered orris root.  I think that speeds the drying process. As long as it's not too humid, they should be fine without it.  It was fun to sit calmly and make a pretty Christmas craft while chatting with my son about his day.  Whatcha think?  Done any aromatic Christmas crafts lately?

Gina

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Shanty 2 Chic's Christmas Craft Linky Pasrty

Mealplan Monday #38

On Thanksgiving break, The Girl took Bubbie thrift shopping to find frames to spray paint and fill with pics for her apartment.  She chose her sorority colors and asked Scout to accompany her to get some skyline pics the day after turkey.

 The backyard was a great place to spread out and paint.

It was a big job, but she has plans for LOTS of art.

Monday - Easy Chicken Enchiladas, black beans
Tuesday - Leftover soup, garlic toast 
Wednesday - Freezer Meal
Thursday -  Cheesey Beef Stroganoff, peas
Friday - Pizza Night!
Saturday - Dad grills
Sunday - Freezer meal

She comes by her crafty side honestly.  

I can't wait to see the finished product!

Gina

Need new shades in here!

How ridiculous is this?

  

A broken shade that is resting on VHS tapes to let a little light in.  OK, both if those things are ridiculous, but at least the VHS tapes function!

Propping it is the only way to let light in the middle window in the den.  And we have lived with it like this for a couple months.  

That's the way it is with some things.  If you see them daily, they disappear.  But fix it, I will, since I am about done with Christmas shopping.  I'm thinking I would like bamboo or wicker-looking blinds to break up all the beige and cream in this room. Whatcha think?

Gina

A pre-Christmas thrifting excursion!

I took a side trip over to my favorite Salvation Army Family Store and came home with a haul.

 I spent over $20, which almost never happens.  But I got some good stuff.

 The best thing was this very old plastic sewing box, full of embroidery thread, many on wooden spools.

 At 15 cents original price, I figure they are maybe as old as I am.

I also found a basket exactly like the one I have full of pine cones at my front door - my mother admired it last time she visited, so this one goes to her.  I also found 6 glass ornaments in mint condition,

 two novels, some Christmas mugs,

 a couple of cozy big shirts for me to wear with jeans,

 and a dress shirt and sweater vest for Hubby.

 The ornaments I propped in wine glasses and used fabric paint to make monogrammed ornaments.

 I added some ribbon I already had.  

A fun way to spend some pre-Christmas down time!

Gina

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Mealplan Monday #37 and simple Christmas decorating

In keeping with my plan to keep holiday decorating simple and spend very little money on it, I fished out some faux greenery, berries, and ribbon from my stash and put it all in a hanging doodad on the front door. 

Monday - Calamity Chicken, cabbage and carrots
Tuesday - Homemade mac and cheese, salad
Wednesday - Pork chops, rice with onions and peppers, cinnamon sweet potatoes
Thursday - Mexican Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, zucchini
Friday - Scout and Dad eat quick dinner; the rest of us maybe Chinese?
Saturday - Mom p/u dinner on the way home
Sunday -  Hamburger Soup (except I'm using ground turkey), pumpkin corn muffins

 Owing to my love of pine cones, I placed a basket of them near the front door with more faux greenery.  They are the cinnamon kind and smell nice, even outdoors!

Gina

Unstuffed Pepper Casserole

This was a very easy and filling dish!  Kudos to Kraft.  I get a lot of good recipes from their website. 

Unstuffed Pepper Casserole

1 lb.  lean ground beef  (I used Italian Sausage)

2 green peppers, coarsely chopped

3 cloves  garlic, minced

2 cups cooked long-grain white rice

1 jar  (24 oz.) spaghetti sauce (I like Newman's Own)

1-1/2 cups  KRAFT Shredded Italian* Five Cheese with a TOUCH OF PHILADELPHIA, divided

Pre-heat oven to 350ºF. Brown the meat with peppers and garlic in large skillet; drain.  Stir in rice, spaghetti sauce and 3/4 cup cheese.

Spoon  into 2-qt. casserole sprayed with cooking spray; top with remaining cheese.  Bake 25 min. or until heated through.

 

I served with a salad made of spinach, mushrooms, and olives. I will  be making this one again.

Gina

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