Mountain Musings

Meet-Up in Real Life...Fun!

This is Spring Break Week for my sister...so Hannah and I decided to make a trip down to South Carolina to spend a few days with her and help celebrate her birthday this weekend.

She always has fun things planned for us to do while we're visiting....and this time I thought up a fun adventure...for me and with someone I'd never met!

An online friend of mine, Susan, moved to the Greenville area from Canada about a year ago. We've known each other for at least 15 years and met by reading and commenting on each other's blogs.

When Hannah and I planned our trip, I remembered Susan had moved to this area, and I contacted her about having lunch together and the possibility of meeting in person for the very first time.

She agreed, and we both started getting excited! The Bleu Porch and Kitchen was our lunch selection of choice, located in Greer, South Carolina. It was our first time there, and we would definitely recommend this restaurant for anyone local in the area.

I love old houses made into small quaint little lunch spots!

As we arrived, we enjoyed all the interesting decor on the front porch.

And as we waited the 50 minutes for a table (it was a popular place!), we enjoyed getting acquainted and looking around. The Bleu Porch provided a very enjoyable atmosphere for their customers:

This cabinet full of antiques was right beside our table, so it was interesting to check out all the items they had on display:
This is my lunch selection: Chicken Salad on a Croissant and Broccoli Salad. Susan's Monte Cristo sandwich likewise looked delicious!

This was such an enjoyable day, and I loved finding out more about Susan and her family!  I'm sooo glad I took the chance to meet an old friend. Thank you, Susan!

~Deb

 

Doughnut Cupcakes

Having a grandmother with the maiden name of O'Connor, and a sister who is a big holiday celebrator (but no longer lives here to make her festive desserts), I couldn't pass up the chance to make some green-tinted treats today for the family.

Adapting this recipe for Doughnut Muffins, I colored the batter green and added some green glaze dipped and drizzled on top.

Sprinkles and chocolate chunks completed the cake-doughnut style muffin. This bird is ready to try one - and for springtime!

~Hannah

Sunflowers Growing on My Deck in March!

Yesterday (Saturday) our area of the Valley received 4 inches of that lovely white stuff! Noooo, please...but maybe this will be winter's final fling! 

The higher 65 degree temps this coming week will be a welcome change...so much so that I've already placed my annual mulch order in anticipation of sprucing up the yard. Sounds like work to me!

But even now....take a look...there are sunflowers growing on my deck in March!

 

I've finally gotten back into my sewing room this past week, and I'm loving creating again!! I made the Scrappy Sunflowers pattern by Lella Boutique...and my able helpers held it up for a photo.

So with the leftover yellows I decided to use them for a table runner. This one is small enough that I can quilt it myself, so I will do that and bind it this week, and it will be ready for gift giving.

 

Last month, the February Scrappy Hearts Sew-Along by Emily Dennis was what renewed my interest in sewing again. I loved making all the pink hearts during Valentine's month. This one is also ready for the quilter to work her magic with her long-arm machine.

And last but not least....I found a quilt top hiding away in my sewing room that I made in 2015! Whaaat?

The label was already made and dated. This is one I made virtually with my friend Chris 7 years ago!!! Hers was quilted and already in use on her guest room bed when I stayed overnight a few years ago.

Mine got lost in the shuffle! But, now that it's found, it's ready to go to the quilter this week, too.

This is called a Row by Row quilt...what's your favorite row?  My favorites are the tulips, apples, and mugs!

So those are my sewing room adventures for February / March. I have a long wish-list of quilts I need to make, and I'm deciding which to start on next.

~Deb

Valentine's Week cooking

It's about time for a recipe post! If you've followed our blog for awhile, you know that when February rolls around, there might be a special cooking week with lots of new dishes happening. Valentine's week was my (Hannah's) chance to plan, shop for and make our supper meals for the family and give Mom a complete break.

Follow along for photos and links of what I chose to make! Various ethnicities were featured on each night. Everyone seemed to think the new recipes tried were a success, to varying degrees of likeability.

Monday's meal on Valentine's Day was Asian-inspired and full of red berries:

Strawberry Balsamic Chicken Meatballs over Rice

Strawberry Cucumber Salad and Roasted Broccoli

Strawberry Limeade (idea from a favorite past meal of Sarah's)

Raspberry Velvet Tart

Tuesday's meal featured a Cajun main dish:

Blackened Tilapia

Asparagus and Salad

Baked Cinnamon Sweet Potatoes (Granny's specialty)

Wednesday's meal was Italian-themed, and everyone here thought it was tasty to definitely make again sometime.

Beef and Pasta Soup

Seeded Focaccia

Thursday we had leftovers, and Friday we enjoyed the following:

Chicken Fajita Pasta

Apple Cinnamon Whoopie Pies (at Jonathan's request)

The pasta could be topped with lettuce, tomato, and/or avocado:

On Saturday, my final night, I decided to try out the new pizza peel and pizza stone given to me for my birthday.

While I forgot to get a photo of the finished baked pizza, I'm sure you can imagine what it looked like. There was a learning curve to handling the peel and stone, but the delicious crusty results were worth the effort.

Hope you enjoyed this tour for your tastebuds!

~Hannah