Mountain Musings

My First Quilt

Here's a picture of my first quilt--a Log Cabin Quilt-in-a-Day pattern which I made for my mom as a gift back in the 80s. At that time we had little ones, so how I found time to make the quilt, I don't know. I do know it took a bit longer than a day!  Actually, I made two! I completed this one for my mom and finished another one for my sister--same pattern but different colors--both as surprise Christmas gifts the same year. I think the success I had with these quilts really encouraged my continued interest in quilting.

Sarah now has the original "first quilt" on a quilt rack in her room. My mom gave it to her when she downsized, and Sarah was thrilled.

Thanks to Susan over at Blackberry Creek who also posted about her first quilts and alerted me to May's Krisp-Quilt blog. May is sponsoring a giveaway for her 50th post, and you may enter by (1) commenting on her blog about the first quilt you made and/or (2) writing a post about your first quilt. This is my entry in her contest.

If you are a quilter, what pattern did you use for your first quilt?

~Deb

Homemade Italian/French Bread

Updated with recipes...

I've been enjoying experimenting with my new French bread pan. Usually, I have just put the loaves on a cookie sheet to rise, but with these specialty pans, the bread is kept contained in a long loaf shape. The tiny holes are to help with even baking and to effect a crispy crust.

The recipe for French bread I always use rises beautifully; I am still trying to understand why the loaves turn out looking a little flat once baked. I noticed there are a few recipes for Italian/French bread in my new Simply in Season cookbook, so soon I'll want to be testing them out!

~Hannah

Becoming a Woman of Wisdom--Week of Celebration

Sherrin, over on her blog A Deeper Love, is hosting a week of posts celebrating biblical womanhood, a subject she is very passionate about. She will be focusing specifically on wise womanhood and examples of how the Lord has used others to bless our lives.

I was honored when Sherrin asked if I would write a guest post. You will find it here. I wrote about a friend who has demonstrated Godly wisdom to me by her words of kindness and by her constant faith in the Lord.

"She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness." ~ Proverbs 31:26

Be sure and visit Sherrin each day this week to read the series Becoming a Woman of Wisdom and encourage her by leaving a comment. Over on her sidebar she asks that you share the area of Godly wisdom you grew in the most during the last twelve months; there's a poll for both men and women. It will be interesting to see the tally at the end of the week.

~Deb

Simply in Season

A friend recently blessed me with a gift of the Simply in Season cookbook. This cookbook is packed with "recipes and reasons to eat seasonal foods grown locally." It has 4 sections, one for each season of the year (plus an All Seasons part), that include recipes using fresh ingredients which are in their prime during that particular season. For example, in the Winter chapter, the featured list of produce is apples, beets, cabbage, carrots, citrus, parsnips, potatoes, rutabagas, sweet potatoes, and turnips.  All of the comforting and nutritious breakfasts/breads, soups, sides, main dishes, and desserts use one or more of these winter staples.

There are so many delicious-sounding recipes in the book that I would like to try. I'm tempted to pick out something to make from the Spring or Summer sections, but that would defeat the purpose of the authors, wouldn't it? :) Last night we tried a dish from the Winter pages called Bounty Rice, pictured at right. I made the Cajun version and served it from a skillet in the middle of the table. Everyone seemed to think it was good! I'm looking forward to using this cookbook frequently. (Click below for the recipe.)

~Hannah

Thank You!

Karen, over at The Sower's Corner, has presented Mountain Musings with an Integrity Award for being...hospitable in character. Thank you so much, Karen! We are honored.

If you go over to Karen's blog, you'll see some other bloggers she has suggested for the Award. Looks like there are some blogs I'm not familiar with and will need to check out!

We appreciate all you who read Mountain Musings and are always encouraged by your visits and comments. Thank you!

~Deb

The Power of Hospitality

I just received a new book in the mail today titled The Power of Hospitality (An Open Heart, Open Hand, and Open Home Will Change Your World) by Chuck and Kathie Crismier. I'm looking forward to reading it!

Here's part of the writeup on the book jacket:

"God's plan for you includes hospitality. An open heart, open hand, and open home is God's divine design to open the hearts of people everywhere it is practiced.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that we must all be "given to hospitality." Pastors and leaders must be "lovers of hospitality." And the Apostle Peter declared, "The end of all things is at hand...use hospitality...without grudging." Here is hidden power reserved by God for those who dare to practice it. The Power of Hospitality will change your life, even your family, church, city, and world if you will let it."

~Deb

Will you Join us?

Sherrin in Australia, on her blog "A Deeper Love," writes:

"When it comes to evangelism, I feel inadequate. Most Christians I speak to are the same. Well, there is one thing that we can all do fairly easily. We can pray. This week, please join with me in praying each day for a different person you know who does not know Christ. At the end of the week, we'll each have prayed for six people, and in the years ahead we may see our prayers answered."

I already have a name picked out for tomorrow. Will you join us?

~Deb

Weekend Orzo Experiment

And everyone's opinion on the orzo was...

Tom: "Interesting. Seems gushier than rice; not quite as firm." (Amazingly, took second helping.)

Deb: "I like it...could use less garlic. I added lots of pepper. I liked the roasted red pepper and spinach in it. I'd have it again." (Took second helping.)

Hannah: "I like it...could use more flavor, more herbs, more garlic. I'd have it again." (Took second helping.)

Jonathan: "Tastes like wet Rice Krispies. Tastes like peanut butter. Probably won't have it again." (Took couple of bites.)

Sarah: "Not bad. It's pretty good. I like the texture of the pasta." (Took second helping.)

We served the orzo with: chicken strips (baked in Italian dressing and generously sprinkled with Mrs. Dash's Spicy Red Pepper Seasoning); steamed carrots; whole wheat rolls; ice cream for dessert.

~Deb

Drying Lavender

The lavender plant that bloomed so nicely this summer has been decorating our bathroom all fall and winter! Seven bunches of it have been clothes-pinned to a line stretching from one wall to another over our jacuzzi while drying.

The line is actually harder to see in this picture than I thought it would be since the purple blooms are blending in with all the purple hydrangea wallpaper. But they're there, and we've endured enjoyed it for months! Here's a closeup of a few bunches on the right.

Today was the day I decided to do a thorough cleaning and gather the fragrant blooms for making potpourri bags--although I've never done that before.

Here's the box I used when I started crushing the flowers, using scissors to snip some of the lighter-weight stems, as they were very fragrant and usable, too.

As you can see, down inside the tub there are also several cockscomb heads drying on old newspapers and many tiny little black seeds abound.

After gathering all of the bunches, here's the total amount of lavender available to work with. It didn't yield a very large amount, but the wonderful aroma is delightful, and I'll look forward to enjoying a bit of my summer flower garden inside this winter!

~Deb

Looking Out My Window

It's snowing furiously right now in our part of Virginia. This is the view out our upstairs window after only a couple of hours of snow.

I can remember long years ago my dad telling me, "One day you won't be jumping up and down and happy about snow." Methinks that day has arrived.

Micah and Elizabeth are off on a residency interview in another state and have to be on the roads this evening traveling home; Jonathan has to make it home from working at the airport over a slippery, rickety, old one-lane bridge after navigating some crookety-tail roads; Tom, thankfully is working locally today and won't have far to travel but will still be "out in it."

And we three girls are here, warm and cozy, watching it snow. It makes me glad I spent time yesterday at the store stocking up on chocolate and other comfort foods...you know, the essentials for times like this.

Enjoy your day whatever the weather wherever you are!

~Deb