Making My Own Sunshine

With all these gloomy late-winter days,

 I've resorted to making my own sunshine.

Homemade orange marmalade.

Peach

Galette

and

French Toast

Miss Posy made the galette pretty much all by herself.

I just sliced up the peaches.

Blueberry

Pie

Galette

Buckle

Happy Things.....

The view out my kitchen window, now that the old barn is gone.

Jars of ruby~red crab~apple jelly.

Big pots of soup, simmering away on the stove.

A fire screen for our fireplace. 

(~Now I can relax about keeping the little ones from getting burned on the stove! And I think it really adds an elegant touch to the area as well. I love it.)

Napping little people, snuggled up under quilts.

Boys who love to read.

Girls who "work together" to press leaves between sheets of wax paper

(~something I have fond memories of doing as a child),

......and then use them to decorate up the dining room table for their mother.

So very pretty!

Blueberry Pie.....

Homemade Egg Noodles....

I've been making them pretty often lately. 

Mmmmmm. 

Good Things....

Doings....

Where Has the Summer Gone???!

So much had happened this past month, I don't even know where to begin!!!

We got new siding and windows put on the house! That means I can open the windows in every room now! Heaven!!!!! And the weather has been absolutely glorious, so I have been doing just that! (No matter that they all still need to be trimmed out on the inside.....I'll get around to posting pictures one of these days...)

I made two blueberry pies within a week of each other. Couldn't help myself....the blueberries were only 99cents a pint!!!! (I froze a bunch too!)  I decided blueberry pie is my favorite pie ever.

We are finally getting tomatoes! Tons of them! We are in heaven!

Oh......I also made a strawberry-rhubarb pie. It is my Knight's favorite.....and was also very tasty. 

We  have been getting lots of green peppers! ~I caught my Knight eating one like an apple the other day. He is planning to even put out more pepper plants next year.

In early August, we spent two lovely weeks out in Wyoming with my Knight's wonderful family. And one of the things we did was play a little baseball. Such happy times! It is always so hard to leave!

On the long drive out I finished up that quilt I posted about a while back. Can you see the ant crawling across the top? That is Nancy. I embroidered her there for my dad........who used to lay on my bed and tell me stories about her (and her friend Sally the housefly) when I was little. He made them all up himself of course, and I loved them! So now he has been telling them to the grandchildren.....and I thought "hiding" Nancy somewhere on my quilt would be just perfect. ( I have to make one for Sally next!;)

We are back at school........I am teaching three this year, so things are much much busier. That is why you may very well not hear quite as much from me as formerly. So don't worry, all is well, just very very busy! Hope you all enjoy these last few weeks of summer! I, for one, am very ready for autumn to begin!

An Accomplishment.....

It may sound crazy (as I told my Knight yesterday evening), but I have decided to start viewing a sink full of dirty dishes and a messy kitchen as an accomplishment.

Yep.

Why not?

It is tangible proof that I have provided three home cooked meals for my family

(~as well as various snacks in between).

That is an accomplishment, right? ;)

Banana Cream Pie

My first attempt with homemade vanilla pudding.

I topped it off with heavy whipping cream.

Utterly spectacular.

Make Doughnuts With Left-over Mashed Potatoes!

I'm serious!

They are very tasty!

 Your children will wrinkle up their noses at you incredulously when you tell them what you used to make them.......but you will know that deep down inside they are thinking you are the most amazing mother in the whole world;) And shortly after dinner every single doughnut will have vanished, in spite of your cherished secret hope that you might be able to have just one (...or maybe two;) left-over to enjoy with your coffee the next morning. Oh well. You really didn't need them, right? ;)

Ready?

You will need:

2 eggs;

1 cup of granulated sugar;

2 cups of cold mashed potatoes;

(~It is okay if they have salt, pepper, and butter in them.......mine even had a bit of horseradish, but no one noticed;)

3/4 cup of buttermilk;

2 Tbs. of melted butter;

1 tsp. vanilla (or almond) extract;

4 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour;

4 tsp. baking powder;

1 tsp. baking soda;

1 tsp. salt;

2 tsp. ground nutmeg;

1/8 tsp. ground ginger;

oil for frying;

(~I used canola.)

additional sugar for coating them, if desired.

(~I mixed some cinnamon in with mine.)

In a large bowl, combine eggs and sugar. Add potatoes, buttermilk, butter, and vanilla. Mix well. In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and ginger. Add to egg mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for one to two hours.

On a lightly floured surface roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut out doughnuts with a doughnut cutter, or cut into half-inch slices. Heat several inches of oil, in a large pan, to around 375 degrees F. Fry doughnuts for two minutes on each side or till golden-brown. Drain on paper towels. When cooled, roll in sugar if desired.

Enjoy!