Slice of Pie Cookbooks & Entertaining

Pinks on the Pin Cushion!

2012-01-27T17:59:00.001-06:00

I've had this pin cushion hat for many years. I think it is made around a piece of a big oatmeal box ... it is about that size! The baubles are 1960 vintage and I wear them frequently! I've collected things like this because my Mother's generation loved these things and wearing them makes me feel connected!

January is such a blah month, I love moving things around that remind me that spring will come, eventually! I'm linking to Pink Saturdays and Tabletop Tuesdays, so make sure you click through to visit the other posts!

Wing Wing Reruns!

2012-01-25T19:23:00.001-06:00

I'm posting a series of photographs that are three years old! When Miss Phoebe was two, she loved "wing wings"! Actually, she still loves penguins, but we had this party right after Christmas back when she couldn't say "penguin"!

I decorated the entire sunroom for the party and had goodie bags and all kinds of cute things for her to play with and take home.
The plates and glasses were plastic and
came from the Dollar Tree!

She sure has grown since these days! Look at her pictures in my side bar. Notice her with her napkin, though ... Even then, her mama was teaching her how to behave at the table! We couldn't get her to sit down on this day ... because I had
crammed too much in that room ... for her to play with!

Nothing better than snowball cookies for a penguin party! You might call them wedding cakes ... sometimes they are balls and other folks make them in the crescent shape.

I'm posting this trip down memory lane with Tablescape Thursdays and Potpourri Friday, so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts!

Check out my home page to see my snowman post, a new friendship bread recipe ... and a few other things.

Still Wintertime!

2012-01-23T18:14:00.003-06:00

As much as I wish Spring was just around the corner ... it isn't! So, I am happy to decorate with this cute snowman and all the other red and white items ... for another six weeks! I grabbed that big snowman and the round boxes at the 90% off sale at JoAnn Fabrics the other day and knew exactly what I wanted to do with them. My friend, Liz, gave me the snowman arrangement in the tall red can for Christmas ... and I knew all these things combined would be really nice. I'm having a fondue luncheon soon, and my table will be red and white, so I wanted to set the same theme in the sunroom where I plan to serve my luncheon. You'll have to wait a couple weeks to see that tablescape ... but I hope you drop back by later!

Last summer my brother and sister-in-law gave me the "Bless the Blooms" wall hanging and I decorated the sunroom using red geramiums to match it. If you missed that post, take a look

RIGHT HERE! I just keep adding geraniums to things!

I'm linking to Tabletop Tuesday, so don't forget to click through to see the other posts! Before you go, though, visit my home page to see my other posts!

This is a perfect post for Rednesday, so make sure you go see those entries, too! ... and I'm posting with the Friday Charm of the Home Party! Be sure and take a look.

Another Friendship Bread Starter Recipe!

2012-01-22T20:44:00.000-06:00

Friendship Banana Chocolate Snack Cake

In a big mixer bowl, combine:

2 cups self rising flour

1 ½ cups sugar

1 small box of sugar free instant banana pudding mix

3 heaping Tablespoons of cocoa powder

½ teaspoon salt

Add:

1 cup canola oil

½ cup milk

3 eggs

1 teaspoon of rum extract

1 cup friendship bread starter

Whip until well blended. Pour the batter into a prepared 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Sprinkle 1 cup of sliced almonds and 1 cup of chocolate chips over the top of the batter. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour. This cake isn’t too sweet and makes 24 snack cake servings.

Love this Picture

2012-01-21T13:51:00.000-06:00

I love this picture! My daughter and I were at a conference, attending a social function in a comedy club. The conference photographer wanted to take pictures, but the place was so dark, he couldn't get many! We just held the candle up ... and here's the result! Yes, we look a little bit alike, but PhD daughter is much smarter than her mama! We love working together, though. I frequently visit her classes ... she teaches Hospitality and Tourism Administration ... and I'm an 'old' expert ... The college students can't believe how much alike we are!
We have fun!

Happy New Year - Dragon Style!

2012-01-21T13:38:00.000-06:00

Hope you'll come back this week to see my Year of the Dragon tablescape! I love celebrating Chinese New Year and plan to invite
a couple dragons to a fabulous dinner!

For the Birds!

2012-01-16T17:02:00.000-06:00

It's Tabletop Tuesday time again and I'm posting with A Stroll Thru Live, so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts. I've started putting the Christmas away ... finally ... and am just moving some things around the house. The mantel setting is just a little hint at the decor I'll having on the dining room table for my next tablescape!

Hey, make sure you go to my home page to see my other posts ... and if you would like the recipe for Friendship Bread Starter ... and lots of recipes for using it ... click my "recipe" button. I'm baking once a week and giving it away! It is all about FRIENDSHIP!

Pink Saturday Lilies and Hearts!

2012-01-13T14:22:00.000-06:00

Don't you just love these beautiful lilies? Some of the university students I work with gave me these for my birthday! They smell so good ... and that special heart is from Miss Phoebe. She's learning how to use scissors and with a little patience, she can fold the paper and cut out hearts. All that special writings says "happy birthday, Gwamma"! Such talent.

I'm sharing my pink with Pink Saturdays so make sure you click through to see the other very pink posts!

But, first ... go to my home page and take a look at my other posts. I still have a couple pretty holiday tables and a video of most of my tablescapes from 2011.

Tabletop Tuesday

2012-01-09T18:20:00.001-06:00

Isn't this the most adorable miniature cedar chest? It looks almost exactly like my big one ... and right now, I have placed it on the coffee table ... just to look at! I brought it straight home from an antique store last Saturday and put it on the table. I didn't even polish it!

I have big plans for it and you'll see it in a future tablescape for a wine tasting party! For now, I'm just enjoying the cute little thing!

I'm sharing this through The Charm of Home, so make sure you click through and look at all the other posts!

Looking for Friendship Bread Recipes?

2012-01-03T22:56:00.000-06:00

If you'd like additional Friendship Bread recipes, click the "Recipes" button on the navigation bar and you'll find them!

Tablescapes from 2011!

2012-01-03T22:53:00.004-06:00

Take a look at my video slide presentation ... several of my tablescapes from 2011 are shown. If you like this, click through my YouTube button and watch some of my other videos!

I'm linking with the party at the Charm of Home and with Feathered Nest Friday Make sure you click through to see the other posts ... and thanks to our hostesses for giving us the opportunity to come together!

I'm also posting with Pink Saturdays, so make sure you click through to see the other posts. Here's one more collage of pink, before the little tree comes down. This pink is in my sewing room ... and includes a couple of my little dolls!

What do you Re-purpose?

2012-01-03T16:48:00.000-06:00

I'm just curious about the kinds of things that people find second purposes for ... especially in your households! My favorite is to reuse the big bag that my dry dog food comes in. It is foil lined and has a zipper closure ... so it makes a perfect heavy trash bag ... used best when you are going to have lots of chicken bones ... or scraps from a heavy food preparation day. It zips closed ... no bad smells!!! I have also used them as the second bag for bird feed ... ears of dried corn or bird seed. What do you save to use again ........ and don't tell me aluminum foil! leave me a comment ... and I'll eventually post the list of ideas!

Wintertime Tabletops!

2012-01-02T21:08:00.000-06:00

I didn't post much during the holiday season, but wanted to share some of my wintertime tabletops! I hate taking down Christmas decorations, so this year I decided to use some things that are "winter decor" ... that I can take down when I'm ready to! I might not be ready for a couple months!

Let's start with the hallway bathroom! Maybe you saw this cute shower curtain with matching towels at Kohl's. I thought it would look great and I topped the curtain with a thick poinsettia and pine cone garland that matched the wreath on the bathroom door.

I used snow ladies in the bathroom, all decked out in their fur coats! Black bear lives in the bathroom, but he is happy to have some wintertime friends! A corner arrangement was an easy composition and includes battery operated strands of lights.

The living room is easy to decorate for Christmas, because I have so much red in that room to begin with! A simple arrangement, which is also lighted with a strand of battery operated lights, sits on a stack of my husband's leather cigar boxes.

My husband's bronze cowboys are all over the house, but this one stands guard over a hurricane filled with red glittery ornaments and surrounded with a wreath of berries.

Daughter gave me this cute wine glass for Christmas. It says "nice" on one wide and "naughty" on the other side. It's too cute to drink out of, so I added it to one of my wine tabletops, with a flameless candle inside.

This low table is one of my favorite collection points for seasonal decor. The cluster of flameless candles sits there all the time, but I add ribbon or fabric strips to them, to flow through the seasons. I inherited the love of clocks ... all clocks ... from my father ... and love this little cluster.

Lastly, I'll show you one of my favorite pictures ... again! My husband was so fascinated by Miss Phoebe's tiny little fingers and from the first moment he held her, he began teaching her how to count her fingers! I think that must be what accountants do! As a result, she always clutched his big fingers, while he sang her to sleep. She's about a month old in this picture ... and now she's five and sings herself to sleep!

I'm posting with Tabletop Tuesday, so make sure you click through to enjoy the other posts.

Happy January!

Holly Happiness!

2012-01-02T13:00:00.001-06:00

I don't think you can set too many beautiful Christmas tables. I leave decorations up for a couple weeks into January and enjoy holiday tablescapes through the month!

Here's to Holly Happiness!

We enjoyed a dinner of homemade red sauce over tortellini and ravioli ... with cheesy garlic bread and Caesar Salad!

I could probably wrap the Statue of Liberty in my vast collection of table cloths, but when I bought this dining room table last summer, I declared that I would never use a table cloth again!

I love the tabletop!

These candle hurricanes are Home Reflections from QVC ... and the big flameless red candles are Candle Impressions. I added silk holly leaves and berries to the hurricanes.

This dinnerware is Sango White Christmas. I bought it last summer at my favorite antique store because it had actually belonged to a friend who had sold her estate and moved to Florida! The ruby red glass is Noritake and the flatware is Cambridge. The square red bowl is Pfaltzgraff. I have so much stuff ... I could set a different table every day for

the rest of my life! Someday, all my stuff will be on

the shelves of that antique store!

I made my napkin rings. I bought the faux red coral beads and I always have a bag of miscellaneous beads, so it is easy to string a napkin ring on jewelry wire.

Tables are so pretty in candle light!

Please go to my home page and check out my video of tablescapes that I posted during 2011 ... or click my YouTube button and go to my channel to look at several videos.

I'm posting with Tablescape Thursday so make sure you click through to see all the other beautiful tables.

Special thanks to our hostess!

Happy Holly Days!

Pink Poinsettias for Christmas Eve!

2011-12-29T21:42:00.000-06:00

Our Sunroom is usually decorated with red geraniums, so I just merged a little red and pink for this holiday table! The table is set for an early Christmas Eve supper while the sun is still shining on a day with 50 degree temperatures! It could just as easily have been snowing! You never know in Southern Illinois!

The dinnerware is Princess House Fantasia from the 1960s!

We are all set for homemade chicken pot pies ... something simple, after a week of over eating ... and ready for one more day of feasting~

The dinnerware is embossed with poinsettias and the center of the dinner plates is frosted. The bread and butter plate is 222 Fifth; pink pearl flatware is 15 years old ... Cambridge; glasses are Fostoria Mignon from the 1970s; place mat, napkin and napkin ring are recent purchases from the sale rack at Pier 1.

I'm sharing with Pink Saturdays! Make sure you click through to see all the other posts and Happy New Year to all my blogger friends!

2011-12-29T21:12:00.000-06:00

Check out My YouTube Channel and see some recent videos of great food and tablescapes. You'll love what you see! I've posted pictures from the Made at Home Cooking Columns I've written for the Southern Illinoisan Newspaper in 2011.

Silver Christmas Video

2011-12-28T18:48:00.000-06:00

I'm linking my video with Between Naps on the Porch! Hope you enjoy and as always, special thanks to Susan who brings us together each week to share our lovely tables! Take a look at the video, but click through to see the magazine article and additional photographs.

Wintertime Friendship Bread Starter & Recipes!

2011-12-28T12:34:00.007-06:00

I love keeping a Friendship Bread Starter going during the winter months. I know lots of folks never let their starter die and bake from the same one for years, but I start fresh every winter ... because I don't bake as much during the summer months! Here's a good recipe for the yeast sourdough starter "sponge" ... and several recipes for using it. Don't think you have to bake the same thing every week ... That's not the case at all! Enjoy!

Friendship Bread Starter

2 Tablespoons sugar

1/3 cup warm water

2 packages active dry yeast

2 cups milk

1 cup sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

Sprinkle 2 Tablespoon sugar over the warm water; sprinkle the yeast over this and leave it alone for ten minutes. It will be doubled in size and bubbly. Mix the yeast combination with the rest of the ingredients in a glass or plastic bowl (that has a lid). Stir it with a wooden spoon and cover it loosely. Place it in a warm location and let it stand overnight.

The next morning, stir the mixture, cover it again and place it in the refrigerator. Each day, stir the “starter”, returning it to the refrigerator. On the fifth day, take out one cup of the starter to bake with, and then feed it with: 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk and ½ cup of sugar. Continue to stir it each day and on every fifth day, remove 1 cup to bake with and feed it again with the previously listed ingredients. If you don’t want to bake, give your cup of starter to a friend. For every cup you remove, you should feed the starter accordingly.

Friendship White Bread

1 envelope of active dry yeast

1½ cups warm water

3 Tablespoons canola oil

1 cup of friendship bread starter

1 ½ teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons sugar

½ teaspoon baking soda

Approximately 5 cups of flour

In a big bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water; add the starter, salt, sugar and oil.. Blend well; cover and let rise for 2 hours until double. Combine with the baking soda and half the flour; blend well and then begin to work in the remainder of the flour. On a floured board, knead for five minutes; divide in half and for into two round loaves. Score the tops of the loaves and let it rise again for 1 hour until it doubles in size. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 – 35 minutes. The bread will brown and sound hollow when tapped. For a soft crust, brush the loaf with butter or spray it with cooking spray.

Friendship Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients:

3 cups flour

2 cups friendship bread starter

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup warm water

2 eggs, beaten

To prepare the rolls:

1 stick melted butter

2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

¼ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

¼ cup raisins

Combine half the flour, starter, baking powder, baking soda, salt, warm water and eggs. Blend well to form a sticky dough. Gently fold in the remaining flour and knead for five minutes. Place in a bowl, drizzle it with oil and turn it to coat the dough, so it doesn’t stick to the bowl. Cover and let it rise for an hour, until doubled. Punch down the dough and roll it into a 10 x 20 inch rectangle.

Brush the melted butter on the dough; sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon, nuts and raisins. Roll it up; slice into 18 – 24 sections and place them in a prepared 11x15 inch baking pan. Cover with a towel and let rise again, until doubled.

Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes. While still warm, drizzle with icing made with confectioner’s sugar thinned with milk.

Apple Bread

1-1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup friendship bread starter

1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Fold in by hand:

1 cup chopped nuts
3 cups diced fresh apples

Pour into 2 well greased loaf pans. Bake at 375 degrees F 50-60 minutes.

Caramel Apple Bread

Combine these ingredients: The batter will be very stiff.
1-1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup oil
1 tsp almond extract
2 cups flour
1tsp cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 eggs
1 cup friendship bread starter

1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Fold in:
1/2 cup milk

1 cup chopped peanuts
1 cup butterscotch chips
3 cups diced fresh apples

The batter will become much more moist with the addition of the apples.

Pour into 2 well greased loaf pans. Bake at 375 degrees F 50-60 minutes.

Chocolate Brownies

In a bowl, combine and mix well:
1 cup oil
1/2 cup milk
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup friendship bread starter

In a separate bowl combine the following dry ingredients and mix well:
2 cups flour
1- 1/2 cups sugar
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 - (5.1 oz) box instant chocolate pudding
3 heaping Tablespoon of cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup pecans or walnuts

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Mix and pour into two well greased and sugared bread pans. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

Friendship Chocolate Cake

Cream together:
2/3 cup shortening
1- 2/3 cup sugar

Add:
3 eggs
1 cup of friendship bread starter
1 tsp vanilla

Beat 2 minutes on medium speed.

Combine:
2/3 cup cocoa
1-1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder

Add flour mixture to batter alternately with 3/4 cup cold water. Beat 1 minute on medium speed. Mix in by hand 1 cup chopped nuts. Pour into greased and floured 9x13 pan. Bake at 375 degrees F for 30-40 minutes.

Friendship Cookies

1 cup of friendship bread starter

2 eggs
1 Tablespoon molasses
3/4 cup butter
2 tsp vanilla

Mix well.

Sift together:
2 Cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt.

Chocolate Chip Option: Add 1 extra cup flour. Add 2 cups chocolate chips and 1 cup chopped nuts.

Oatmeal Option: Add 2 cups oatmeal, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 cup chocolate chips and 1 cup raisins.

Drop the cookies by teaspoonful on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 375 for 10 to 13 minutes.

Onion Rye Bread

1 cup of starter

1 package of active dry yeast

¼ cup minced dried onions

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons melted butter

¼ cup warm water

½ cup warm milk

2 cups rye flour

2 cups white flour

Stir the package of yeast into the warm water (180 degrees) and let it set until it bubbles. Hydrate the dried onions in the warm milk. Combine the starter, olive oil, melted butter and onion-milk combination and stir it to combine. Gently stir in the yeast and water. Stir in the rye flour and begin adding the white flour ½ cup at a time. The dough will go from being sticky to becoming dry and should be kneaded for about five minutes. Form the dough into a smooth ball. The entire mixing and kneading process can be done in a food processer or with an electric mixer and a dough hook.

Pour about ¼ cup of olive oil in a bowl and place the dough in the oil, turning it to get oil on the entire surface. Cover the bowl and place it in a warm location and let the bread rise until it is double in size. Rye bread takes a little longer to rise than white bread, so this could take as long as two hours. After it has doubled, punch the dough down, so the air releases and form the dough into two loaves. You can do this freeform on baking sheets or place the dough in oiled pans. I like to bake my rye bread in round bowls. Cover the loaves and let the dough double in size again. Bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 40-50 minutes, until the bread sounds hollow when tapped with a spoon. Remove the bread from the oven to cool. Brush it with additional oil or melted butter to soften the crust.

Silver Christmas Photo Shoot!

2011-12-27T20:20:00.001-06:00

I've posted a pretty slide show from the photo shoot done in my dining room months ago for inclusion in the Life & Style magazine, published by the Southern Illinoisan Newspaper. If you click the video, you should get a full screen view and make sure you turn on the sound button!

You can view the article online by clicking through right here! I couldn't share the photos I took until now ... giving the magazine plenty of time to circulate. However, the professional shots are much better than mine, so you will definitely want to view the actual article! If you'd like a copy of the actual magazine, don't hesitate to email me and ask for it. I'd be happy to send you one.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T11:52:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! I've been swamped in the last few months and haven't spent much time blogging for fun! Instead, I've been working on a new social media for the tourism bureau. We've chased Santa all over Carbondale, filming "Santa Sightings" to post .. and I have to say we had a blast doing that. I'll be back on the creative blog scene in the new year, but for now, enjoy this collage ... with the most important girl in my life front and center! She just turned 5 and she is more fun than a new puppy!

Pink Saturday Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T11:45:00.000-06:00

Here's one pink autumn post ... Miss Phoebe thought our Thanksgiving table should be PINK, and as many of you know ... the Johnson Brothers Majesty china pattern has plenty of pink/plum in the color palette. I'm posting with Pink Saturday, so make sure you click through to see all the other posts!

We used quilted placemats, matching napkins and the table runner is gently pieced together. The colors are soft pinks and beige tones and can be used with lots of dinnerware patterns! The pink stained glass candle holders are perfect with this color scheme. I don't do lots of fru fru on the Thanksgiving table because we enjoy having all the food on the table!

Here's a picture of the Persimmon Cornbread muffins that I made for my Pioneer Thanksgiving dinner. If you missed that post, go to my home page and check it out. These were also in one of my recent cooking columns. I've posted the recipe below the picture!

Persimmon Corn Bread

1 cup cornmeal

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

3 tablespoons orange infused olive oil

1 egg

1 ½ cups diced persimmons

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

In a large bowl, sift together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, oil, and egg. Pour into dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Stir in persimmons and thyme. Let the mixture stand for about 10 minutes until it swells. Stir it again and pour it into well-greased muffin cups or a 9-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Muffins may take a little less time to bake. Cool 10 minutes on a baking rack, before inverting the muffins or cake.

Pioneer Thanksgiving Dinner

2011-11-20T19:43:00.002-06:00

I hosted a special meeting for our Women's Club ... a Pioneer Thanksgiving Dinner. I set three tables ... all different settings ... and made a meal based on the foods that American settlers in the mid 1800s might have had. We had a great time!

Here's the dining room!

I used my Johnson Brothers Majesty ... Turkey china! Topped the dinner plates with a sunflower plate ... then placed the covered soup bowl on the very top! The soup bowls came from Crate & Barrel many years ago ... and the glassware is Fostoria.

The dining room table set for 8 ... love the long, lined up look.

The centerpiece is made of silk sunflowers and I placed the mercury pumpkins on each end for a little sparkle.

Here is the sunroom.

I only have a dozen turkey soup bowls, so I also used my chicken pot pie casseroles as soup bowls ... and mixed some blue glassware with these settings. Remember, this was a pioneer theme, so we didn't want too much fru fru on the tables!

This dinnerware is Bordallo Pinheiro. Tuesday Morning had an abundance of it this fall. The milk glass plates are a part of a big collection of mine and I added the stemmed glasses to brighten up the table.

I used this centerpiece through the fall. My husband bought me the beautiful bowl several years ago. The inside is painted with sunflowers and it came from Italy. The flameless candles ... which are about all I use these days ... are the perfect color of pale orange and I surrounded them with pinecones and tiny faux pumpkins.

This is a spare table set up in the living room.

More of the green Majolica with salad plates from my Johnson Brothers ... with Fostoria cobalt blue wine glasses.

I love the green ceramic pumpkins and the flameless lantern.

The chicken pot pie casseroles are Temptations from QVC ... had them for years! I just love the edge of the dinnerware.

Make sure you take a look at the dinner party booklet at the top of the post! The theme is real described and the menu and recipes are included. Happy Thanksgiving!

Food photos and recipes follow in another post! I'm posting with Tablescape Thursday and you can click through the icon on the right to see the other posts!

Food from the Pioneer Thanksgiving Dinner

2011-11-20T19:41:00.001-06:00

Here are some of the menu items from the

Pioneer Thanksgiving Dinner.

The recipes are in the booklet

posted in the above turning page document.

We started the evening with frosty apple cider and these sweet, cold Apple Jack cocktails! Apple Jack is probably the oldest liquor made in the United States. Read all about it in the cook booklet!

Appetizers, using foods from the era, included raw turnip sticks to dip in artisan's salt and venison sausage.

The is dressed Colby cheese, which is the closest thing to the hard cheese that pioneers might have made. Dressing the cheese simply means topping or coating it with fresh herbs and storing it ... wrapped well, so it can absorb those flavors.

This is cream of chestnut soup ... used canned chestnut puree ... and persimmon corn bread baked in muffin tins shaped like maple leaves and another shaped like acorns. The soup was served in covered bowls, but a pretty garnish would have been crisp bacon crumbles with a drizzle of a little bacon grease ... yes, bacon grease!

And here are a few loaves of rustic friendship bread, baked from a yeast starter. You can bake it in regular bread pans, but I love the unusual shapes.

Recipes are all in the booklet!

Enjoy!

Make sure you check out my recently published magazine article ... see the favicon at the top of the side bar on the right ... beautiful pictures, recipes, menus and a perfect 'how-to' host great parties. Click the picture to link back to the Southern Illinoisan Newspaper's Life and Style magazine.

Tabletop Sugared Pumpkins!

2011-10-03T20:53:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to share my cute pumpkins I've put on my coffee table. I love them! They are Valerie Parr Hill and have a little shimmering light inside each one. they look like they've been dipped in sugar!

I'm participating in Tabletop Tuesday, so make sure you

visit A Stroll Thru Life

to see all the other posts!

Visit my home page, too and take a look at my Sunflower wedding shower post. Happy October!

A Sunflower Bridal Shower!

2011-10-01T12:30:00.001-05:00

I got the ducks and geese out for a recent bridal shower my daughter and I had for one of her former students! Really, the bride was more than a student. She was one of those young people that we adopted to be a special part of our family! So, we crowded around one big table and enjoyed a luncheon ... then let her open her gifts ... then we gabbed for hours!

Pumpkin in Green!

2011-09-14T19:34:00.000-05:00

Here's a cute tablescape I did for autumn ... actually, I set this table every fall! These pictures are from a workshop I taught ... so yes, one in particular looks like a college classroom!

I particularly love the color of the green pumpkin/squash. It is considerably different than what we are used to seeing .. .although I usually buy a couple green pumpkins ... that are technically squash ... I think! I'm linking with Tablescape Thursday so make sure you click through to see the other tablescapes.

Pink is for Autumn

2011-09-09T17:50:00.000-05:00

I'm posting this combination of pink china with autumn decor ... I used it some time ago as a teaching opportunity to demonstrate the use of atypical colors in autumn decor and tablescapes! I'm linking to Pink Saturday, so make sure you click through to visit the other posts. I want to be sure you visit my home page to see my September 11th post, too ... Have a safe weekend.

September 11th

2011-09-07T19:26:00.003-05:00

I just posted this the other day, but given the importance of this day, I thought it appropriate to post it with Sunday Favorites and Seasonal Sundays. This certainly is an important day.

Original Post:

I have spent a lifetime planning ways to share history and culture with people in ways that are easy to comprehend and understand ... from children to elderly adults. We raised our daughter ... and now want to influence our grand daughter's interests ... by teaching those lessons around the dinner table ... often times in association with the theme or the menu of the meal. What does all that mean? Well, how do you teach the lesson of 9/11 in a way that little children might understand, without frightening them?

Did you know that September 11, 2001 was not the first time America was invaded on September 11th? You might want to read my cooking column from today's Southern Illinoisan Newspaper to find the answer to that question. Go to Made at Home to read more and find some great recipes.

I'll give you a hint ... the Battle of Brandywine fought during the American Revolution ... and this table is a celebration of the freedoms we need to be remembering on 9/11 as we teach the lessons of that tragedy ... and commemorate the loss we experienced that day. It's a tablescape ... it's a special menu you'll find in the link above ... and it is a teaching opportunity that you might want to ponder.

This tablescape begins with replica Betsy Ross flags ... so use this as a time to talk about Betsy ... you'll find lots of information on this Betsy Ross site.

The china I've used is Noritake and the pattern is called Pioneer Bay ... and I can't think of anything better to use when celebrating the freedoms that our pioneer colonists fought for.

I love the rustic look of the placemat/chargers ... and the stars bandannas make perfect napkins.

The placemats came from Pier1, the red leaf dish is Depression Glass, the blue goblet is Indiana Glass and the red wine glass is Viking in the Georgian pattern.

Look more closely at the pattern on the china. The primitive buildings are so neat! I use this china often ... for any table that needs to be patriotic! The color palette for accessorizing it goes from patriotic blue to ambers and browns.

Here's the centerpiece ... pretty simple, just a jar filled with grapevine balls and battery operated lights. Check QVC, if you like the lights ... they are on a timer, so once you tuck them down inside something, you don't have to worry about digging them back out!

I'm participating in Tablescape Thursday so make sure you click through to visit the other posts! Be sure to visit the link at the top of this post to see my column about September 11th ... and visit my home page if you haven't visited my site lately. I have some neat posts! Celebrate Freedom!

Wine on the Tabletop for Tuesday!

2011-09-05T14:34:00.000-05:00

Oh, I have wine racks all over the house! You've seen them in lots of posts. We love wine and because we have been so involved in our local wine trail, we keep lots of local wine around. We also enjoy wines from all around the world, so you can find just about anything on my racks. I wanted to show you a couple things on this little rack ... because they are cute. I'm posting with Tabletop Tuesday, so make sure you click through to visit the other posts!

I've had this little wine table for years, and I originally bought it because the tray top comes off. I've moved in through several rooms and right now it is just tucked in the living room ... primarily to hold two things: the cute wine bottle flameless candle (from QVC) and the hand print wine bottle on the right. One of my friends gave me the bottle of wine with the imprint of the wine maker's hand on it ... for my 50th birthday! I've never opened it. The candle is fabulous ... I love real candles, but with two big dogs and a 4 year old ... flameless is a good thing! I added the stained glass bauble.

Hope you enjoyed! Make sure you visit my home page to see my other posts! Happy September!

Pumpkin Party!

2011-09-03T19:15:00.001-05:00

I'm posting with Sunday Favorites at Happy to Design, so make sure you click through to see the other posts! I'm not necessarily ready for Halloween, but I sure am ready for cooler temperatures. Summer 2011 in Southern Illinois has been pretty hot! So, here's to cooler temperatures in September!
Be sure you visit my home page so you can see all my other posts!

Original Post from October, 2010:

Happy Halloween - Welcome to Dinner!

Welcome to my Halloween Girlfriends' Dinner Party! The girls are coming for homemade lasagna ... witchy style. The first thing they'll see when they arrive will be Miss Phoebe's decorating job on the front porch!

If they linger on the porch ... they'll meet even more pumpkins!

In the living room, they'll meet the Button Boys ...

In the bathroom, they'll meet my two witch sisters ... who needed a little boost in their self esteem!

Happy Pumpkin Party! We're not done celebrating Halloween, so check back for Tablescape Thursday to see the last party in a month-long series! Make sure you scroll down my page to see all my Halloween posts! Special thanks to our party hostess ... you can click through her button on the left to see all the other posts.

Thrifty Tablescape in Blue

2011-09-02T14:51:00.002-05:00

It may be hard to imagine, but I found a set of Mikasa Garden Club dinnerware ... service for 12 ... at one of my favorite resale shops! I used it at a recent girlfriends' salad supper at my house, so I thought it would be perfect to show off with Thrifty Tablescapes, so make sure you click through to see all the other posts! First, check out my home page and take a look at my other posts! Have a great weekend!

I used reproduction Depression Glass Manhattan salad plates that I picked up at a flea market years ago; Depression bubble bread and butter plates in blue that came from a yard sale ... and some of my collection of Cape Cod Depression Glassware. I've been collecting the Cape Cod for years ... a few pieces at a time from antique stores or ebay ... but one day I walked into the Goodwill and saw a couple dozen pieces of it. Of course, I bought it all!

I always print a menu, so my guests know what to expect ... After I fell in love with the Mikasa, I looked for serving pieces on ebay and happily found the soup tureen and coffee pot with creamer and sugar ... and candle sticks.

Our appetizer was sweet potato hummus with pita bread, but I dressed up our opening cocktails with shrimp on skewers! How cute is that? It's like drinking a shrimp cocktail ... use Clamato juice in your Bloody Mary and add a little horseradish to the drink with your other spices. The Cape Cod parfait glasses are the perfect size for a Bloody Mary!

Pink Saturday in my Autumn Decor

2011-09-02T14:31:00.001-05:00

Hello Gang! I've started doing a little Autumn decorating and since I have a new crimson sofa and chair, I decided that the typical orange and green color scheme in typical fall pieces wouldn't work. I happily found this beautiful wreath and candle ring that had some deep Autumn pinks in it and it works perfectly!

I'm linking with Pink Saturdays, so make sure you click through to see all the other posts ... but first, go to my home page and look at the things I have posted. Have a great weekend!

It's State Fair Time!

2011-08-26T17:28:00.003-05:00

In Illinois we have two state fairs ... one in our capitol Springfield and a second one in Southern Illinois called the DuQuoin Stere Fair. This year, my daughter Nicole and I attended the Springfield State Fair to accept an award from State Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka. She recognized folks who have worked in agritourism and our culinary destination project was a winner! It's hard to take a serious picture with Ms. Topinka ... she's a blast and we all love her for her efforts ... and her sense of humor! Just look at our picture in the sidebar! We'll attend the DuQuoin State Fair, too ... for several events including a Willie Nelson concert!

Here's a cute tablescape I set to celebrate state fair time! The whole table theme focused on a set of place mats and a table runner that I have used for 15 years! I get them out at least once a year! Look closely at these cuties .. all the elements of a perfect fair!

I wanted the centerpiece to pick up the colors in the placemats ... especially the cluster of balloons, so pink was a must! I surrounded the silk flower basket with other key elements of the fair ... the animals ... and the only blue ribbon I've ever won at the state fair! It was for a centerpiece that had a ceramic pig in it! My sister made me the cut out pig with her basket of apples .. .several years ago .. .but she finds her way to many tablescapes!

My dinnerware ... and especially the napkin .. mimic the fair foods ... pink cotton candy and lemon shake-ups! I don't eat cotton candy anymore, but still have at least one shake-up ... then I'm on a sugar high for three days! The dinnerware is Home Trends from JCPenny.

Now for the stars of the tablescape ... and of the state fairs in the Midwest ... Watkins, the extracts and seasonings folks ... and now they sell all kinds of cosmetic products, too! I have a collection of Watkins Kids plates ... and they are adorable. You'll see more of them this year at Halloween time .. but for now, take a look at these sweet little salad/dessert plates. They were made in 1991 ... and I love to use them!

I'm linking with:

Pink Saturdays

Seasonal Sundays

Tablescape Thursday
End of Summer Party

Make sure you click through to see all the other posts ... and if you'd like to see the dinner we had on this tablescape, click my homepage and visit my other posts!

Steak and Potatoes!

2011-08-26T17:28:00.002-05:00

One of our favorite meals includes a big thick sirloin steak marinated in one of a few combinations of flavors, then grilled and sliced thinly, served with a great sauce! The men in my life think you can't have steak without potatoes ... and then there's the bread ... must have bread ... and we all love Caesar Salad and Roasted Broccoli! Add a steaming cup of coffee and biscotti to dip and swirl, and we are happy folks!

This meal had a little Spanish flavor. The marinade for the meat was 1/2 cup each of red wine, olive oil and water ... with a Tablespoon of fresh lime juice, a little garlic and fresh cilantro. Mix it all together and let the steak soak in it for 4 hours at room temperature, turning it frequently. Grill it your way! I also made a sauce by reducing the marinade to about half and adding approximately a cup of chipotle BBQ sauce and a cup of beef stock ... and simmered mushrooms in it.

I made the au'gratin potatoes with cream and Chihuahua cheese and rolled the pull apart bread chunks in chopped fresh cilantro and chives.

All from Junkin'!

2011-08-25T18:15:00.000-05:00

I posted this a couple months ago for Pink Saturday, but wanted to post it again for Thrifty Things Friday because I've managed to buy 6 of these adorable strawberry bowls ... thrifting! They actually are the center piece to a Lazy Susan style crudite tray ... but I keep finding the bowls without the rest of the pieces. They are perfect to start a meal with ... a neat covered salad. Everything else in that stack came from junk stores, too!

Vacation Dance Contest

2011-08-25T18:09:00.000-05:00

We enjoyed a vacation in the Wisconsin Dells ... at the Kalahari Waterpark Resort! What a place! The first night, as we started to have dinner ... the restaurant hosted a dance contest! Miss Phoebe and this other little girl in purple ... rushed to the dance floor. Then the kids all went to the stage and learned a dance routine to "Wooly Bully"! Now, you have to be a grandmother to even remember the song "Wooly Bully" ... but the kids didn't care ... they had a great time and they all won a lei!

Peach Banana Bread

2011-08-22T10:50:00.001-05:00

I'd be fibbing if I told you I had a couple peaches getting soft in the crisper ... they don't last that long at my house! However, just like using up dark ripe bananas, this recipe is a good way to use some peaches that are softening ...

I'm joining On the Menu Monday so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts. Thanks to our hostess at Stone Gable.

Peach Banana Bread

Mix together 2 cups flour, 1 ½ cups sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon powdered ginger and ½ teaspoon salt.

Whisk together 2 eggs and 1/3 cup canola oil. Gently blend the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Don't over mix.

Stir in 2 mashed ripe bananas and 2 peaches, peeled and chopped.

Bake in 2 prepared bread pans for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. You can top the bread with chopped nuts and/or cinnamon and sugar before baking. Cool about 15 minutes before inverting from the bread pans.

Bless our Blooms!

2011-08-19T18:19:00.001-05:00

This cute summertime decor began with a gift from my brother and sister-in-law ... this cute wall hanging that is a window frame with chicken wire in place of the glass! I loved the red geraniums ... and we all love our 'blooms' and our 'grand-blooms' ... so the sentiment was so sweet! I decided to hang it on the brick wall of my sunroom.

Then, I got this cute 'sit' sign in the mail from my sister ... on her birthday ... she sent me a gift! She bought it for my front porch after seeing my new red cushions. If you missed that post click here to see it! So, the sign found its way to the back porch sunroom!

I love the pots of geraniums ... and have it hanging over the liquor cabinet.

It was easy to find lots of things in the house to move to the sunroom ... and red gingham checked ribbon around the candles was a must!

A candle jar filled with faux apples and an apple scented candle loves it place beside the red tool box filled with more silk geraniums.

...and didn't you know I'd have red geranium dinnerware to complete the scene? The dinnerware is Metlox pottery, made in California ... probably from the late 70s. The square bowls are Pfaltzgraff and the linens are Tina Vasi from Dillards.

Who wouldn't love the adorable coffee and tea pots? The shapes are so unique and the geraniums are so detailed!

Hope you enjoyed one of what will be among the last bright summertime tablescapes! It's almost time for pumpkins and fall foliage!

I'm linking with a couple parties so make sure you click through to see the other posts. Hope you enjoyed ... and hope you visit my home page to see my other posts! Miss Phoebe has a new blue bike and the pictures are, of course, adorable!

Click through to:

Seasonal Sundays

Tabletop Tuesday

Tablescape Thursday

Phoebe Got Her First Bicycle!

2011-08-13T21:14:00.000-05:00

My grandbaby, Phoebe, got her first bicycle today and we sure did have lots of fun! Here she is with her mama trying to keep up with her ... and keep her out of the mud that the city sewer workers left behind a couple weeks ago!

Now, it is important to know that this first bike had to be blue ... her favorite color! Her Grandpa said it had to be a Schwinn ... and I said it had to have a bell, tassels and a basket ... although they put these cute little satchels on them these days! A trip to to the toy store ... and we found the bike that met all the criteria! It is called "Rosebud" ... and look at the cute flower shaped pedals!

We found a blue helmet ... that she calls a "helmote" ... with the Princesses on it ... and flashing lights, too! I got knee pads and elbow pads, which she'll probably never wear again ... but the "racing gloves" were a big hit! So, while her daddy put some extra air in the tires, she got all dressed and appeared in full regalia! She got on it and tested it a little ... then they moved to the sidewalk in front of their house ... where she will only be allowed to ride with a parent! As her daddy brought her back downhill, she had to stop ... get off ... and pet the neighbor's dog that was being walked! We couldn't believe that ... although I don't know why ... she is a dog lover! How do you like those striped leggings? Everything must match, you know!

Another memory made! Hope you enjoyed sharing this little event with us!

Heart of the Home Chickens & Roosters!

2011-08-08T13:00:00.002-05:00

It is time for a party! I'm happy to be participating in the Heart of the Home Party at Note Songs. Make sure you click through to visit the other posts and say a big thank you to our hostess! The heart of our home has always been the kitchen table and the little shelves that hang above it! I've recently switched some furniture around, but it doesn't change anything! It is still the table in the kitchen where everything happens ... including parties with chickens and roosters ... oh, and always a pig or two!

This cute chicken/rooster tablescape began with a woven place mat ... that also depicted grapes! We're all about local wines, so it is an important part of my decor ... always! Then came a burgundy round mat on top of that cutie. Then a beautiful over-sized plate that has a raised design on it. I added little baked potato baskets that I have had for 35 years! It used to be popular to serve your baked potato, wrapped in foil, placed in those little baskets. Sometimes I still do that!

I used these cute rectangular plates as side salad plates; the square appetizer plates as bread and butter plates ... and everybody always loves my Cambridge flatware flaunting those proud roosters!

I loved the mugs that came with this dinnerware ... which was a summer discounted batch from Old Time Pottery. I used the pitcher for a bit of a centerpiece ... used purple and amber glasses with this setting ... and enjoyed a meal of baked chicken breasts, spinach salad, homemade rolls with herb butter ... and a baked potato! Cockadoodle doo!

Lemon Blueberry Quick Bread

2011-08-06T20:00:00.000-05:00

Hey! I'm reposting my recipe for Lemon Blueberry Quick Bread from last Thanksgiving ... I used dried blueberries, but cranberries, raisins, ... any dried fruit would work fine. I'm linking to Sunday Favorites so don't forget to click through to see all the other partiers! Thanks to our hostess!

Original Post: November, 2010

I baked this cute loaf of bread to snack on the day after thanksgiving ... when we have Turkey Ala King! I adjusted the recipe on the package of the Nordicware Turkey pan and have included it in this post. I used blueberries that I dried last summer instead of dried cranberries, too! Yummy!

I've linked to the Holiday Treat Party, so click thru the icon on the left to see the rest of the posts. Thanks to our hostess!

Lemon Blueberry Quick Bread

1/3 cup butter flavor shortening
¼ cup whipped cream cheese
¾ cup sugar
2 eggs
3 T lemon juice
2 drops lemon oil extract
1 ¼ cups flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup dried blueberries

Whip the shortening, cream cheese, sugar, eggs, lemon juice and extract until creamy. Sift the flour together with the baking powder and salt and add this alternately with the milk and continue whipping until well blended. Fold in the blueberries and bake at 350 degrees for 40 – 50 minutes until a pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes before inverting the bread.

Salmon Pink Roses!

2011-08-03T17:10:00.001-05:00

Happy you stopped by to see my pretty salmon pink tablescape! It all began with a TJMaxx purchasse of place mats that were thrift shop priced! I just happened to have some pretty roses that matched the place mats ... so the fashioning began!

This beautiful green dinnerware was chosen by my husband! He first saw it in an antique store and the color, of course, took us back to the 1970s. He said, "buy it." I didn't do it, though! Then I found some more at a real junk store ... the kind where you leave and wash your hands! From then on ... I bought it every time I saw it and finally acquired enough to use for our Autumn Open Houses!

It is Kings Crown, made by Indiana Glass, and it comes in 4 different colors.

The centerpiece is composed of 3 fish bowls from a yard sale ... filled with clear glass marbles to hold the roses and the silk greenery that also came from a yard sale!

I use marbles instead of oasis for faux or real floral arrangements. They hold everything in place beautifully and can be reused. Using colored marbles in clear vases allows you to change colors easily.

I used some of the branches of greenery to make napkin rings. The faux pear in the sherbet dish represents a part of the menu for this meal, which I'll share at the end of my post!

Doesn't it always look beautiful in the light of candles? Who can pass up the opportunity to share that? This meal was a luncheon, so the room wasn't this dark, but it was still pretty the night before!

The great cheese board embellished with the grapes came from GoodWill for $2. Can you imagine? I have another one similar that I paid $40 for.

The menu for this meal followed an orchard theme ... lots of fruit. The orchards in Southern Illinois and Southeast Missouri have wonderful pears, peaches, berries and apples. You might have noticed the bottles of wine ... one of them was local strawberry dessert wine and the other was that cheap Boone's Farm Watermelon Wine! We make an incredible sangria, with the Boone's Farm ... that we chock full of fresh melon balls and we make it even better by adding plenty of Midori, a melon liqueur.

Blueberry Spritzer Appetizer Drink

Watermelon Sangria

Poached Pears in Cinnamon Pear Wine

Chicken Salad with Peaches & Pecans

on a Bed of Fresh Greens

Apple and Cheddar Quiche

I'm participating in

Tablescape Thursday

Thrifty Things Friday

Thrifty Tablescape Saturday

and

Pink Saturday

Make sure you click through to find all the other posts and leave a thank you message for all the hostesses!

Pink Castle for Pink Saturday!

2011-07-28T20:05:00.003-05:00

When we celebrated the April wedding of the Royals ... Phoebe enjoyed a new gift! I found this great castle ... in perfect condition ... at GoodWill. Then, I got online and found all kinds of royal "Peoples" ... a princess wedding, complete with a carriage and a horse ... thrones ... a wedding cake and gifts!
Phoebe's favorite color is not pink ... it is blue!
Thank goodness part of the castle was blue!

I'm participating in Pink Saturday so make sure you click through to see the rest of the posts! Special thanks to our hostess for giving us a reason to keep pink in our lives!

Foyer Table Spiffed Up a Little!

2011-07-25T17:05:00.000-05:00

I've been doing a little shopping through the house and changing some of my decor ... thought you my enjoy my cute little bears from Pigeon Forge ... from the Old Mill Pottery. The little wooden church was made by my daddy ... when my 1st grade Sunday School class didn't have an offering box for us to drop or change in ... my daddy made a cute little church. It stayed with the church for years and one time I found it just stashed in the back of a craft closet, so I swiped it! God will probably get me for that someday!

Our foyer table has been with us for 30 years and the wine bottle/glass holder was a gift from my husband 20 years ago ... so was the beautiful blue and white jar. It's held numerous silk flower arrangements through the years! The dust has been with me all summer!

I'm linking to Tabletop Tuesday so make sure you click through to visit the other posts.

You might also want to visit Ginger, also known as Savannah Granny so see her post about our recent meeting. Blog friends for life! You'll enjoy the post.

My Babies are Waiting for Company!

2011-07-24T21:18:00.001-05:00

A Pizza Party is about to happen and the boys are patiently waiting for company! Jimmy Mutt is guarding the new red sofa ... and Junior is sitting on his favorite shag rug! The family finally arrived, followed by the pizza delivery guy!

Tablescape Thursday - Anticipation!

2011-07-24T12:20:00.000-05:00

I originally posted this in March 2011 and it is one of the most visited posts I've ever done! So, I'm re-running it with Sunday Favorites! Make sure you click through to see all the other neat posts and special thanks to our hostess!

Original Post:
I'm so glad that March arrived because my favorite little museum shop has opened for the season! I visited over the weekend and bought some cuties that I'll post for the cloche party ... but for TT, I'm posting something I bought the last day they were open in December! I spent less than $100 and bought a set of Noritake Anticipation ... 8 place settings with some extra pieces ... and it is almost embarrassing that I paid so little for this china that looks like it has never been used.

I'm partying with Tablescape Thursday, so make sure you visit Susan at Between Naps on the Porch to see all the other party posts! Special thanks to Susan for giving us this neat opportunity! I'm also posting with the St. Patrick's Party at a Holiday Haven so make sure you click through the favicon on the right.

When I first saw this china, I thought of a hundred different ways to set the table. It screams 'baby shower' and 'springtime'! For this table, I couldn't decide if I wanted to feature Easter ... or St. Patrick's Day (since the china was made in Ireland) so I did a little of both! Hope you enjoy ... and always take the time to visit my home page so you can see all my other posts! I have a neat Federated Women's Club post this week.

Isn't this pattern, called Anticipation, delicate? Yes, Noritake originally was made (1904) in Japan, but their more usable dinnerware is made in Ireland. Unlike the beautiful bone china, their Versatone china and their Keltcraft earthenware are made in Ireland. This dinnerware is freezer, microwave and oven proof ... and dishwasher safe.

I set this on my little round table in the sunroom, so it is cluttered and crowded ... just the way I love it.

Look at the border of the pattern ... pretty delicate. The stemware is Mikasa and you know I cannot set a table without using some Depression Glass, so I used a Princess green bread and butter plate on top of the Anticipation plate ... for no reason other than color! I love the shape of the cup and the salt and pepper.

The centerpiece for this table is created in a two-piece punch bowl ... probably ca. 1920s or 30s. It is pressed glass, and the spooner and the small nappy are similar patterns. I just love old pressed glass ... and I never care if anything matches ... you already know that about me!

I bought this cute little piece at the museum shop ... and it is probably from the 1950s or 60s. It is all plastic ... with turning wheels! I've had to hide it from Miss Phoebe ... or it will go in the doll house!

Here's a little touch of Ireland ... the figurines are Lefton ... and on almost every table I set ... I hide a pig in plain sight! Hope you've enjoyed my tablescape ... Just can't wait for spring to really get here! It was 52 degrees today in Southern Illinois ... but it could snow tomorrow! That's the way the weather is in my neck of the woods!

Pink Saturday Depression Glass

2011-07-22T15:44:00.000-05:00

I'm participating in Pink Saturday and I'm actually reposting some photos from last Summer! Hope you don't mind ... they are pretty and pink!

Here's a little bit of my collection of Depression Glass ... and my collection of doll sized wicker furniture! I love to use it as centerpieces. Hope you enjoy! Happy Pink Saturday and as always, thanks to our hostess!

Hope you'll take time to visit my home page and see my other posts.

Everyday Dishes

2011-07-20T11:46:00.002-05:00

I'm in the mood for cooler evenings with a pot of coffee! Southern Illinois' heat indexes are preventing me from doing that, though ... so I'm just pretending. I've set a cute everyday table with the dishes I use all the time. This isn't an advertisement for QVC's Temptations kitchenware ... but if you have it, you know why I love it ... and if you don't have it ... you might want to try it! I have the dinnerware in brown ... and I've bought zillions of serving pieces and special things. I have everything from individual casseroles to a vertical chicken roasting pan. this stuff is freezer, oven, microwave ... and kid proof! It comes sparkling clean in the dishwasher, too!

So, we'll start with my make believe coffee in the evening centerpiece. I've recently repositioned my kitchen table and I'm enjoying creating little vignettes on the end of the table .. instead of the typical centerpiece!
I'm linking with Tablescape Thursday ... Let's Do Brunch and Tabletop Tuesday so make sure you click through to the parties and the other posts! Special thanks to our hostesses!

Take a look at this cute place setting! Tablescapers will recognize that cute Dollar Tree glass! Those are kid proof, too! The colors on it are perfect with this dinnerware ... and I love the sentiment on the glass ... It's all about family gatherings! The place mat and napkin are a Walmart find! Nothing expensive here ... just friendly and inviting. Perfect for any meal ... including brunch!

I love the brown and white check on the edge of the coffee themed place mat.

Take a look at the cute shapes on these things! Sponge painting is a very old ... probably considered primitive ... technique. Don't you love the scalloped edge of the salad bowl? Then the dessert or salad plates have a similar ruffled edge! The chips and dip dish .. .with the nesting hen ... is one of my favorite pieces ... and the salt pig has a special place in my kitchen!

Here's a closer look at those special edges ... and a special old man in the picture! That's my daddy. This picture was taken on Father's Day the year he was 88. He jumped on one of my brother's horses before anybody could stop him. We didn't think he needed to be riding at that age ... but nothing ever stopped him! He'd worked with horses ... and loved horses ... his entire life and he was as comfortable on that spotted horse as he would have been in the lounge chair in his TV Room.

This is a quick little coffee niche creation ... a coffee scented candle dropped down in a hurricane on top of coffee beans ... cinnamon scented potpourri in a big jar ... and a cute little pitcher that my daddy gave me one time. I was his baby child and he loved to have 'treats' in his pocket for me ... when he was in his 80s and I was in my 50s ... this was still a favorite thing of his ... to have a treat for me when his visited my house!

What's more beautiful than a gleaming candle in the darkness. What a great scent is coming from this pretty thing! Hope you enjoyed ... and hope you'll visit my home page to see my other posts!

Here's a great brunch recipe!

Eggs and Avocados

Place half an avocado in an individual casserole dish. Place a poached egg in the center. Top with a drizzle of bottled enchilada sauce and a healthy sprinkle of shredded Jack cheese. Place under the broiler for a couple minutes, until the cheese melts and bubbles. Serve immediately with a side of fresh fruit, a yummy corn muffin and a mug of good coffee!

Summer Cloche Party on the Porch!

2011-07-18T16:41:00.000-05:00

I'm excited to participate in this week's Summer Cloche Party at a Stroll Thru Life! Make sure you click through to see all the other posts ... and special thanks to our hostess.

I'm excited because I'm finally unveiling a little re-do of my front porch ... since I have a couple of cute cage cloches! I'm featuring lots of things that I've acquired while 'junking' as my dad always called it! Hope you enjoy! You'll notice that I'm ready for Autumn! It's been pretty hot lately and a few days of cooler temperatures would be welcomed ... but it's wishful thinking!

I splurged on new cushions for everything and I love the deep red background of the fabric. The flowers are creamy beige and soft yellow mums and geraniums and look nice with my gold shutters. I also finally found the dining chairs that I've been looking for ... for a couple years. I bought the table without chairs, because I didn't like the ones that were featured with it! Pier 1 had the perfect chairs this season!

This gorgeous wrought iron cage on a stand is one of my collectible store finds. I brought it home and put it on the porch. It didn't need any repairs or a paint job. Miss Phoebe thinks we should keep our rabbits in it!

This cute basket and the cage are from GoodWill! The basket is outdoor wicker with a plastic lined bottom. It is perfectly outdoor proof.

These cute chairs all came from GoodWill ... except the pottie chair! Aren't they cute? The three bears would be pretty comfortable!

I always have pigs on display someplace! I bought this chair with intentions of painting it ... but I liked the original paint job ... so didn't touch it. I've filled the little doll cradle with ferns ... and the cradle came from GoodWill, too!

So, here's the porch, complete with a couple cage cloches! It's been too hot to spend much time on the front porch ... but Autumn will come!

Pink Saturday Pearls and A Pink Belle

2011-07-15T20:28:00.001-05:00

Today, I went on a girls' outing to a neighboring state ... to an antique mall we love and I specifically shopped for Pink Saturday! I'm linking with the party, so don't forget to click through to see the other posts! I set up this cute vignette on the end of my kitchen table! I'll enjoy looking at it for awhile.

The figurine is what first caught my eye. I loved the layers of ruffles on her dress! Then I found the cute trinket box ... and then I found the Johnson Brothers creamer in that beautiful soft pink color. If they'd had a whole set of those dishes ... I would have hauled them home!

Now ... the gorgeous big pink pearls in the lower left of the collage did not come from the antique mall. I've had a live-in jeweler for 35 years! My husband ... as a hobby ... has always worked with jewelry. He's strung .. and individually knotted ... pearls for me in every color. These pink ones are my favorite!

Happy Pink Saturday! If you haven't seen my new dining room furniture, go to my home page and take a look at my other posts! Don't we love our blogging friends?!!!

Lime Shrimp!

2011-07-14T16:13:00.001-05:00

It's Celebrity Chef party time and I'm joining in with Lynn and Earl! Make sure you click through to visit all the other posts! This quick and easy recipe was inspired by one of Bobby Flay's many grilled shrimp recipes ... lots of lime juice! I quick fry them in good olive oil like I do Shrimp Scampi ... and sure don't have any problems enjoying them! They are great with a little rice or pasta ... or just by themselves.

Lime Lemon Grass Shrimp

Peel and de-vein 8 extra large shrimp (16 count) and dry them off a little. Prepare a marinade by mixing the juice of one fresh lime, grated zest of the lime, 1/2 teaspoon each of minced lemon grass, minced garlic and minced ginger. (I buy those in the produce section in plastic tubes.) Toss the shrimp in the marinade and let it sit for 20 minutes. Drizzle a little lemon infused olive oil into a hot skillet and immediately throw the shrimp in. Saute them quickly, turning just once and pour the remaining marinade over them. Turn the heat off, but add a few slices of fresh lime and let the shrimp stand for a couple of minutes. They'll absorb all the juices and warming the lime slices allows them to release a great flavor. Serve them warm as an appetizer ... on top of a fresh garden salad ... with pasta tossed in olive oil or with rice. It's quick, easy and really good.

A Little Bathroom Freshening!

2011-07-11T13:41:00.001-05:00

Just wanted you to see how I freshened up my little bathroom! You've seen it before and you'll recognize the autumn leaves wallpaper ... which I love, love, love! A little soft yellow makes it look like summer!

There's room in the hallway bath for a little round table, which is fun to decorate. I just added a few silk flowers in the yellow tone with some things I took from other places in the house! Mr. Big Bear is holding up a stack of vintage books ... and I added a few ceramic birds to the vanity top and to a little shelf. I switched out the shower curtain to stripes with a butter yellow background ... and everything seems fresh! I do have a honeysuckle jar candle in the room, but also enjoy battery operated candles clustered on the little table. I didn't spend much money, but got a fresh look!

You might want to go to my home page and check out my new dining room, too .. . more soft yellow tones in my tablescape!

I'm linking to Tabletop Tuesday so make sure you you click through to visit all the other posts. Thanks to our gracious hostess!

Cookies with Fresh Herbs!

2011-07-09T20:00:00.001-05:00

If you're looking for some fatastic cookies that use fresh herbs in the ingredients ... check out my recent Made at Home Cooking Column! These are easy to make ... and very good!

I'm posting with Sunday Favorites so make sure you click through and visit the other posts. Visit my home page, too, and take a look at my new dining room furniture!

Something Pink!

2011-07-08T20:19:00.000-05:00

Just put a little pink in the dining room ... on the mantel ... make sure you scroll down and look at my new dining room furniture! I'm linking with Pink Saturday , so make sure you click through to see the other party posts!

New Dining Room Furniture

2011-07-08T20:12:00.002-05:00

I'm excited to post one of my most recent purchases ... a new dining room set ... Drexel Heritage ... table and chairs and a great china cabinet. I didn't need a new china cabinet, but it was a beautiful complete set and I didn't resist. My good friend George has an antique and collectible shop and he always has fabulous furniture. My sister-in-law and I sat at the table for 30 minutes before I decided to buy it ... then George said, "Did you see the matching china cabinet?" Well, the moment I saw it ... I bought it all. You gals that love Country French will love this furniture. Take a look, then scroll down to see the rest of my tablescape!

I think I'll never cover this beautiful table top!

I'm enjoying adding pale yellow and blues to the dining room.

It's always been all about the colors of Autumn.

The dinnerware on this tablescape is from a flea market! It's Depression Glass .. .called Waterford Waffle ... but not Waterford crystal. It was made to compete with Waterford ... so the middle class could afford something like crystal! The Fostoria stemmed glasses have been in my collection for 20 years! The other part of this table that was a great thrifty find ... the napkin rings. They are probably 1950's ... yellow rhinestones. I love them.

I'm linking to Tabletop Tuesday and Tablescape Thursday so make sure you click through to the parties to visit the other posts! As always, special thanks to the hostess of each party!

Brunch on the 4th of July!

2011-07-04T20:48:00.048-05:00

Here are a few pictures of my recent brunch ... on July 4th! I've included one of the recipes, just in case you don't have a really good French toast casserole recipe! This one is so, so good!

I love these napkin rings ... they look like big spiral fireworks and work well on a July 4th tablescape! Blue Willow china, red Cambridge flatware and Depression Glass Cape Cod stemmed cocktail glasses for the melon balls ... made a cute setting.

In my circle of friends, hostess gifts of baskets of garden produce are very popular! I've posted the French Toast Casserole at the bottom ... scroll down!

Miss Phoebe had a little trouble staying awake after eating a big brunch! She loves sausage and I put it in the egg bake, so we had to kind of pick it out for her ... so she knew she had enough!

French Toast Casserole

Mix 12 eggs and 2 cups of half and half together. Blend in a teaspoon of almond extract, 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon and 1/2 cup of honey. Tear a big loaf of French bread into big chunks and place them in a prepared 13x9 inch casserole dish. Pour the milk/eggs over the bread. At this point, you can cover and refrigerate this overnight ... but making it a couple hours ahead works just as well. When ready to bake this, cut an 8-ounce block of cream cheese and a half stick of butter into chunks and tuck them into the casserole. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover the casserole and drop teaspoons of your favorite jelly or jam into the casserole. Bake for another 30 minutes until the top browns. Serve it warm. You can serve warm syrup with it ... but it never really needs it!

I'm linking with Tablescape Thursday and Let's Do Brunch so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts! As always, special thanks to our hostesses.

F is for Fettuccini Alfredo!

2011-05-27T20:44:00.000-05:00

F is for Fettuccine Alfredo - Fettuccine tossed with butter, heavy cream, and grated cheese.

History: In 1908, Alfredo di Lelio, a small restaurateur and chef, living above his small Rome restaurant with his pregnant wife, created Fettuccine Alfredo to tempt the palate of his pregnant wife who had lost her appetite and was becoming weaker. Alfredo decided that he would invent a dish that his wife could not resist. His wife loved it and legend says she cleaned her plate and a short time later, Alfredo II was born to the music of customers downstairs in the restaurant, all crying for his new irresistible dish.

His restaurant, II Vero Alfredo, and the dish bearing his name became world famous in 1927 when Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, American movie stars on their honeymoon, ate at his restaurant and were impressed with the dish. They presented him with a gold fork and spoon in honor of his creation. From then on, he was famous for preparing it in the dining room of his restaurant before his guests, mixing it with a gold-plated spoon and fork.

I borrowed this story from an online culinary dictionary! I've read other versions of the story ... one of which revealed that green peas were added to give Alfredo's wife even more strength. However ... and whatever ... it is yummy stuff!

I'm visiting with Alphabet Thursday, so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts! Thanks Jenny ... for being such a wonderful hostess and tempting our brains each week!

Happy Birthday Pink Saturday!

2011-05-27T18:39:00.000-05:00

I'm celebrating Happy 3rd Birthday with Pink Saturday! Make sure you click through to visit all the other party posts.

I'm having a strawberry party! This big covered strawberry bowl was made by California's Belmar Pottery ... 1950s-1960s. I have several of them and use them as covered soup bowls ... or salad bowls. Isn't it cool?

For this place setting ... for a salad luncheon ... I used a pink Depression Glass 10 inch platter that has handles as the base; a 1950s milk glass salad plate with a lace edge; then the strawberry shaped bowl. The glass ... Fostoria Mignon and Milk Glass Della Robbia ( I think) ... and green faux pearl handles on the flatware. A great big pink silk mum makes a great napkin ring ... and a small Depression Glass relish tray serves well as a bread and butter plate ... but I'm actually serving dipping oils with focaccia, so the depth of the 3-part relish tray is perfect. I pick up those little relish dishes at flea markets for a couple dollars ... so I have several. I love using dishes for purposes other than what they are originally for!

This centerpiecee is actually from Hobby Lobby ... came all in one piece! The floral ring was already glued to the hurricane. The candle is also from HL ... matched perfectly. The tablecloth is from 2 seasons ago ... Bed, Bath and Beyond.

Sunday Favorites - Farmers' Market Table

2011-05-21T22:00:00.000-05:00

Here's a Sunday Favorites post from a couple years ago! Make sure you click through to Happy to Design so you can visit all the other posts! Special thanks to our hostess!

Original Post: 9-30-09

Here's one of the tables I set for my tablescaping and party planning workshop that I taught at a recent women's conference! I though it would be great for TT. As always, special thanks to Susan at Between Naps ... for hosting our event! Click through to jump to all the other links to see the great tables!

Pink Saturday Baby Shower!

2011-05-20T18:07:00.000-05:00

I host a charity baby shower every year to benefit an adoption agency we appreciate ... and Miss Phoebe was just a toddler when we had this polka dot party! Can't believe how much she's grown!

Pink polka dot clothing! Pink polka dot watering cans filled with tulips, mums and ivy! Polka dot dishes! Who wouldn't have fun at a party like this? We all did ... and the gifts

for the adoptive babies were really nice!

Here's a kiss for all of our Pink Saturday blogging friends! Make sure you click through to see all the other posts!

Mama's Potato Salad!

2011-05-20T10:55:00.001-05:00

Memorial Day is Just around the Corner!

Memorial Day Weekend is the time that we begin entertaining outside! All the patriotic stuff comes out of storage and a red, white and blue summer begins! This year, I'll be unveiling my newest cookbook in early June and it will be all about having simple, enjoyable summers

... filled with friends, family and good food!

My mother made the best potato salad in the world! Fortunately, my daughter and I have mastered her approach to this yummy batch of potatoes slathered in a perfect sweet and savory dressing! Every family has their own recipe, but here's ours!

Boil 2 pounds of red skinned potatoes; cool them; peel them and slice them in thick pieces. Boil 3 eggs; cool them; peel them and slice. Slice a 1/2 cup of celery and another 1/2 cup of sweet onions. Combine all these ingredients with

1 cup of mayonnaise (we use Miracle Whip)
1/4 cup sweet pickle relish
2 Tablespoons juice from sweet pickles
2 Tablespoons mustard
1 Tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 cup fresh dill weed, chopped

The dressing ingredients are easily adjusted, if you like your potato salad a little more - or less moist.

Peachy Brunch Salad

2011-05-18T20:53:00.000-05:00

I'm participating in Let's Do Brunch! so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts! The recipes are really wonderful. Special thanks to our hostess!

This is one of the salads that I'm featuring in my new summertime cookbook. It will be available soon, but I'm going to share this very easy recipe!

Peach & Tomato Salad

This composed salad couldn’t be much easier to make! In Southern Illinois, peaches come into season at the same time that there is a huge abundance of fresh tomatoes! Combining the two in a colorful salad just seems natural. The dressing is simple, too! Mix ¼ cup of white balsamic vinegar with ¼ cup of grapeseed oil and blend well. Add a sprinkle of sugar, a dash of salt and a grind of peppercorns!

Compose the salad of wedges of tomatoes and peaches with tender buds of your favorite lettuce variety. You can also just place them on a bed of lettuce … or use no lettuce at all! Add a few wedges of a nutty flavored medium texture cheese like Gruyere and drizzle lightly with the dressing. Beautiful, flavorful and easy!

Tablescape Thursday - Italian Family Dinner

2011-05-18T20:52:00.001-05:00

I'm participating in Tablescape Thursday, so make sure you click through to visit the other posts. Special thanks to Susan for hosting one of our favorite parties!

This tablescape was done for one of the first newspaper cooking columns I wrote! I love it so much, I recently decided I needed to set it again. First, though, I'm going to share the photos with you!

I love using these big pasta bowls ... from Italy. Placing boxes of tubes of tomato paste and anchovy paste ... with dry pasta and big bulbs of garlic ... makes a cute tablescape!

E is for Etouffe

2011-05-18T20:52:00.000-05:00

etouffee (ay-too-fay) - The term literally means, "smothered." It is a cooking method of cooking something smothered in a blanket of chopped vegetables over a low flame in a tightly covered pan. Crawfish and shrimp etoufees are delicious New Orleans specialties.

My batch of Duck Etouffee is actually made with the carcass of a duck. There's always plenty of meat left on the bones for one more recipe! Isn't it pretty served in my Johnson Brothers Brookshire china?

I'm linking to Alphabet Thursday!
Make sure you drop by Jenny's place to visit all the other posts!
Isn't this fun?

Tablescape Thursday - Pink Pumpkins

2011-05-15T10:52:00.001-05:00

Original Post from 10/28/09:

I'm posting pictures of my weekend blast! I tablescaped for the cure ... at an American Cancer Society event. I won the red ribbon and my friends in the Women's Club won the blue ribbon! What a fantastic job they did with their 50's theme ... look at the details. The centerpiece had to have a shoe in it ... and the pink shoe telephone was a big hit! One of the girls made the napkins, scanned the fabric and reporoduced it on pink ties for the men to wear .. and on the place cards. Enjoy!

Today, I'm participating in Sunday Favorites so don't forget to click through to see the other posts! Special thanks to our hostess for taking he time to let us play together!

I chose to post this little project ... a tablescape I created for a fundraiser ... because I want to always remind all my blogging friends to remember to do their self-exams ... and get all your annual check-ups with your doctors. Early detection saves lives.

D is for Dandelion Greens!

2011-05-13T20:07:00.000-05:00

It's Alphabet Thursday time and I want to introduce any newcomers to Dandelion Greens! Make sure you click through to see all the other posts, too!

Maybe you dislike dandelions. Most people do. They clutter your lawn with unwanted splotches of bright yellow! I love them. Why? I'm not too particular about what grows in my lawn and I love to watch children blow the seeds all over!

Dandelion comes from the French dent de lion, which means "tooth of the lion", referring to the sharp tooth-like leaves. In other folk cultures, the term piss-a-bed is commonly used ... to represent the diuretic effect the roots have! The plants have been around forever, and have been used in folk medicines just as long ... mainly to treat urinary tract infections.

Dandelions ... the roots, flowers and the greens ... have been used in many culinary ways. Dandelion coffee, tea, wine ... are all wonderful! At our house, we throw an occasional handful of greens in fresh salads or with wilted salads. The sharp peppery taste is a complement to other greens. They are great to toss into those late spring soups ... or under fried or poached eggs for springtime brunch. A handful wilted with a little balsamic vinegar are perfect atop a bleu cheese burger or a provel burger like this one! The sharp distinct taste of the greens is great with the mild provel cheese.

Helpful hints ...

don't pick dandelion greens from a lawn that has been chemically treated ... not a good idea
Clean them well ... could still have a little bird doo doo on them!
The smaller they are the more tender they are
If they are large, stew them in a simmering water, then drain them well ... finish them by sauteing in olive oil with chopped onion, minced garlic ... and dry red pepper.

Celebrity Chef Party!

2011-05-13T19:49:00.001-05:00

I'm participating in the Celebrity Chef party at Happier than a Pig in Mud! Make sure you click through to see all the other posts.

I like Paula Deen ... love the boys ... love the fact hat she includes her family in her television shows ... like her most because she cooks like normal people cook. When her show first came on the air, my (retired) husband was glued to it! We love Savannah, so all her references to the area helped us relive some wonderful vacations! I'd come home from work and Big Daddy would tell me all about he show and share the recipes he thought I'd like. It was probably three months before I ever got to see one of the shows myself!

Because we love pickled okra, Big Daddy insisted that I make these for a dinner party appetizer. They couldn't be simpler ... and we make them frequently ... because even people who don't like okra, like these!
Some of our restaurant management students made hundreds of these for a wine tasting event. 600 people gobbled them up!

Paula's Pickled Okra Appetizers

Trim the crusts from white sandwich bread slices. Use a small cutting board or the back of a skillet and press the air out of each piece of bread. Spread cream cheese on the bread and roll up a spear of pickled okra in each piece. Cut on the diagonal to reveal the inside of the okra ... sprinkle with parsley.

I use onion/chive sour cream ... spreadable ... and I sprinkle cayenne pepper or chipotle pepper on them. These are fabulous!

Thanks Paula Deen!

Thanks, Lynn (and Earl) for hosting this great party!

Love those TV chefs!

Pink Saturday Tea Cookies!

2011-05-13T18:44:00.001-05:00

Here's a little cookies and tea tablescape that I used recently for my newspaper cooking column. I'd used my British Castles china for a dinner party ... so I thought I'd use it one more time before I put it away! I'm linking to Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound, so make sure you click through to visit the other posts!

If you'd like the recipes, here's a link to my cooking column Made at Home Tea Cookies in the Southern Illinoisan Newspaper! Make sure you go to my home page to see some of my other posts! I have lots of PINK roses! Happy Pink Saturday!

Roses and Pansies!

2011-05-10T15:00:00.000-05:00

I'm participating in the garden party at The Little Round Table! Make sure you click through to visit the other posts. I have an eclectic rose bed that runs along one side of my front yard ... along the picket fence. I have a couple old climbing roses ... one 'witchy rose' ... and I've been planting Knock Out roses in the past couple of years. We've had tree damage in the last two years, changing the amount of sun in various places in the yard, so I've had better luck with my roses. When you live in a house for four decades, the size of the trees eventually changes garden spaces! Oh, yes ... I have blackberries in the rose bed. They are perfectly friendly ... and produce well!

Mr. Lincoln is deep, bright red!

This one is a Knock Out ... and the color is 'Lipstick' ... looks just like the shade my mother wore!

One of my old climbing roses ... Miss Phoebe picked all the yellow roses the other day ... so none to show!

Cotton Candy pink ... in another Knock Out!

Blush Pink ... in another Knock Out!

I love the iron trellises!

The blackberries are just beginning to bloom.

Love pansies ... don't have great success with them ... because it gets hot early in Southern Illinois summers!

This Mock Orange is 50 years old ... I have to keep it cut back or it would take over the whole yard!

I clip my Clematis ... and use them in arrangements. This year they are blooming a little early ... so they'll look great with the Mock Orange ... and will smell so good!

Now, let me introduce you to 'witchy rose'. This rose bush is 25 years old ... and in all those years it has only bloomed on significant occasions. It is a Queen Victoria rose ... and is a climbing rose. All it ever really did was climb. Nothing my gardener and I did would make it bloom ... except when my favorite aunt died ... when my brother died ... when my daughter got married ... when my mother died ... when baby Phoebe arrived ... and when my father died. In 2009, I got mad at it and tried to chop it down and cover it with our new front porch. Guess what? It still found its way through the narrow slats between the wooden planks of the porch. This is a 2010 bloom. It stretched three branches up through the porch floor and made one rose. I've decided she's stronger than I am ... so I'll just let her do her thing!

... whatever and whenever!

C is for Coconut Cake!

2011-05-04T19:43:00.000-05:00

C is for coconut ... and coconut cake is Big Daddy's favorite! My husband has two favorite cakes and this is the number one! I make it a couple times a year to celebrate our anniversary and during the Christmas holidays ... from fresh coconut, using the milk and grating the coconut! It actually requires 2 coconuts to get enough fresh coconut to put between the 4 layers and all over the cake!

It is one of those cakes that gets better if it sits a couple days ... but it seldom does at our house! I'm linking with Alphabet Thursday, so make sure you click through to see all the other posts!

Royal Wedding Supper Tea Party!

2011-05-03T20:23:00.002-05:00

Last week's Royal Wedding was cause for celebration at my house! I was a big follower of Princess Diana because I thought she brought a little reality to the British Monarch ... so you know I had to follow the lives of her sons. I hosted a little supper tea party, complete with a 5-course meal that I adapted from past royal wedding meals.

A table for six, set in the dining room.

The first thing guests saw was the engagement picture of

Prince William and Catherine.

The centerpiece was a silk floral arrangement that picked up the colors of the tablecloth ... all sitting on a vintage hand-crocheted table cloth bunched up in the center of the table. Surrounding the flowers were framed pictures of past Royal weddings ... Prince William's ancestors back to Queen Victoria! I also included a portrait of Henry VIII and Anne Boelyn ... just for fun!

The menu featured items from past Royal Wedding reception breakfast menus. Normally, the weddings were held in later morning, with a meal ... called breakfast ... in early afternoon. Cumberland Sauce dates to Queen Victoria's wedding reception ... the late Queen Mother had grilled scallions at her reception ... The Queen Mother and Diana had strawberries and cream for dessert.

I used my Johnson Brothers Old Britain Castles ... and yes, that's one of the Christmas Tree plates. Don't forget that Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, introduced England to the (German) Christmas Tree! I added some pink Depression Glass, including my cream soup bowls ... and my Fostoria Mignon stemmed glasses. The flatware is Oneida Evening Star silverplate. I have actual 'afternoon spoons' in that pattern ... that are intended for afternoon, tea ... so I chose it for this meal.

The favors were coasters imprinted with the wedding date, the picture and names of the bride and groom ... and the Windsor coat of arms. Each guest also received a tiny can of English tea! If you missed my other Royal Wedding post with all the vintage photographs, visit my home page. I'm linking with Tablescape Thursday and Pink Saturday so make sure you click t

hrough to visit the other posts!

Shrimp Enchiladas

2011-04-30T10:59:00.005-05:00

You probably have most of the ingredients for this great meal ... in your cupboard. I use canned ingredients in this dish, so make sure you add a great fresh green salad to your menu. It makes a yummy, filling meal. Perfect for Cinco de Mayo!

Debbie’s Shrimp Enchiladas

8 big flour tortillas
8 ounces cream cheese
8-12 ounces of Mexican white cheese
1 pound precooked peeled and deveined shrimp
½ stick butter
1 sweet onion
1 sweet red pepper
1 15-ounce can zesty tomato sauce
1 can tomato soup
1 can of chopped tomatoes with chili peppers
1 packet taco seasoning mix

Sauce:
Sauté one chopped sweet onion and 1 sweet red pepper chopped … in ½ stick of butter. Reserve about half the vegetables for the filling and to the other vegetables … add 1 can zesty tomato sauce, 1 can tomato soup and 1 can of chopped tomatoes with chili peppers. Stir in a packet of taco mix and simmer about 8 minutes until the flavors meld. No other seasoning is necessary.

Filling:
Mix the onion and peppers reserved from the sauce ingredients … with the cream cheese and shrimp. Crumble half the Mexican white cheese into the filling, reserving the other half for the top. Then divide it between the tortillas … and roll them up.
Pour a little of the sauce in the baking pan … place the enchiladas on top of the sauce and pour a little more sauce on top. Top with remaining Mexican cheese; sprinkle with a little chopped fresh cilantro; cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes.

Serve with additional sauce, chopped peppers, sour cream … and shredded cheese, if desired. Don't hesitate to substitute other seafood ... or a combination of shrimp, scallops, lobster and crabmeat! These enchiladas are rich and filling, so add a crisp green salad and a great frosty drink ... and you have a meal! Serves 6 - 8.

I'm linking with Friday's Recipe Exchange, so make sure you click through to visit the other posts!

Royal Wedding Time!

2011-04-29T19:46:00.007-05:00

Here's a little teaser! A little pink for Pink Saturday! Next week I'll be posting all the pictures from my Royal Wedding Supper Tea party, but this week ... just a little tease! Make sure you click through to see all the other pink posts ... but first, take a look at my Royal Wedding post, updated with a couple wedding pictures from today. Enjoy ... and make sure you come back next week for a full display of my royal tablescape!

It's Royal Wedding Time! I have always enjoyed studying the British Royals and my two favorites are Queen Victoria ... because she had spunk ... and Princess Diana ... because she had spunk! I doubt that those two women would ever have agreed on anything ... but they were both driven by what they thought was right ... "right" was probably not defined in the same ways!

The marriage of Prince William and Catherine will be an exciting time and I'm having a supper tea party to commemorate the occasion. You'll have to check my site next weekend to see pictures of my tablescape! Did you know that Queen Elizabeth is hosting the wedding reception and is only serving appetizers and sparkling lemonade, wine and champagne? Typically, royal wedding receptions have included elaborate multi-course meals ... but not this time. Why? Maybe the menu is a reflection of the economic times all over the world. Maybe the Queen is sensitive to the notion that being extravagant might not be appropriate. We shouldn't be surprised by that. Then Princess Elizabeth was married in 1947, just two years after the end of World War II. Great Britain was still using clothing rations and Princess Elizabeth was given 200 extra clothing coupons to use to buy her trousseau. The coupons had been donated by young women all over Great Britain. Queen Elizabeth understands austerity.

Did you know that Queen Victoria started the tradition of wearing white as a wedding gown? Until that time, the color blue symbolized chastity and purity ... but she wore what she wanted to wear and dressed her attendants in white gowns that she had designed herself! Her bouquet included orange blossoms and myrtle, which she had grown in her garden. She married Prince (Consort) Albert in 1840. No expense was spared for their wedding (reception) breakfast was served in early afternoon and
the menu was ten courses including Ballotine of Duck with Cumberland Sauce.

Here's the wedding portrait of Victoria and Albert's son, the future King Edward VII and the Princess Alexandra of Denmark. The Edwardian era was a time of abundance and high fashion ... a time when the upper class splurged on everything! Edward and Alexandra's marriage was the first Royal wedding to be photographed!

Their son, the future King George V, married Princess Victoria Mary of Teck in 1893. The Princess was supposed to have married George's older brother who died six weeks after the original engagement was announced. Growing closer through their grieving, George and Mary fell in love.

The 1923 wedding of next in line to the Crown was the first to be recorded on film The future King George VI (Queen Elizabeth's father) married Lady Elizabeth Bowes Lyon ... never expecting to be King. Their traditional afternoon wedding breakfast included an elaborate menu of items named after Royals ... like fancy lamb chops named after Prince Albert! This is a common practice! Here they are in the official family wedding portrait ... with the King and Queen on the right.

Here's then Princess Elizabeth on her 1947 wedding day ... doing the official balcony wave! We've grown so accustomed to seeing these sites on the balcony! Elizabeth's trousseau might have been 'subsidized' because of the times, but her wedding seemed to lack nothing! Her 500 pound wedding cake was 9 feet tall! Her bouquet included a sprig of myrtle from the bush grown for Queen Victoria's wedding bouquet over a hundred years earlier.

Finally ... here's Princess Diana. I think Lady Di shared a sense of normalcy with the British Monarchy, but I'm not sure they wanted it! She was a beautiful bride ... and a true humanitarian. I think she was a great mom ... and had a magnificent influence on the two young Princes. I suspect the future of Great Britain will tell the story we don't yet know. Prince William seems to have a level head ... accepting his duties ... and respecting all people.

So here he is! The great-great-great-great grandson of Queen Victoria ... the ruler who did things her way! It is hard not to remember those early pictures right after he was born! What a cutie ... Now he's about to enter that next chapter of life. I expect to see the streets lined with thousands of onlookers ... flags waiving. I cannot wait to see Catherine walk down the aisle. I'm
not admitting that I am a Royal-watcher ... but I certainly enjoyed watching this young man's mother. She was true to herself ... and I want him to be just like her ... and just like Queen Victoria! 'Spunk' is the word ... do it your way!

And here they are ... the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge ... the future King and Queen of England!

Thrift to Treasures!

2011-04-28T21:40:00.000-05:00

All the items for this little vignette ... except my strands of pearls .. came from thrifting! Don't you love it when you find good deals? I'm linking to Thrifty Things Friday so make sure you click through to visit the other posts.

You might want to view my Royal Wedding post too ... so go to my home page to find it. It's filled with vintage pictures of weddings back to Queen Victoria!

B is for Bee and That's Me!

2011-04-27T16:49:00.000-05:00

My mother named me Deborah after the Biblical character who was a judge and strong warrior. The family never called me Deborah, though ... always Debbie ... or a variety of nicknames. The name Deborah means 'bee' in Hebrew.

Deborah had her own palm tree! She sat under the tree and listened to the issues brought to her by her people and judged a fair outcome. She and her general, Barak, lead the defeat of the Canaanite armies, who had oppressed the Israelites for twenty years. She is a heroine.

Napoleon used a bee as an important symbol in his armory. It is considered a symbol of immortality and resurrection and was chosen to link the new French dynasty to the very origins of France. Golden bees were discovered in 1653 in Tournai in the tomb of Childeric I, founder in 457 of the Merovingian. Bees are considered the oldest emblem of the sovereigns of France.

Bees symbolize diligence. Who could argue with that? They represent the organized hierarchy of living. Bees and bee hives are often used in architecture, most notably in Mormon temples. If you want to read more about that, visit The Trumpet Stone

At our house, bees are all about having fun and if you watch my future posts, you'll see pictures from an upcoming "Bee Tea" that I'm having for Miss Phoebe. We'll set our party on the front porch, but we're waiting for dry skies! We've been experiencing rain, thunder storms and tornadoes for a few weeks, now. Can't wait for sunny skies!

I'm participating in Alphabet Thursday so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts!

B is for Bee ... and for Blogging! Don't we love having all this fun?

Thanks, Jenny for hosting our Alphabet parties!

HAPPY EASTER 2011!

2011-04-24T21:43:00.008-05:00

Here's a little slide show of our carrot Easter table! Hope you enjoy it ... I'm posting with Tabletop Tuesday, the Open House Party and Tablescape Thursday so make sure you click through to visit the parties! You might also be inerested in my Royal Wedding post of weddings past, so visit my home page and check it out. I have great old pictures starting with Queen Victoria to Princess Di.
You might also want to check out my daughter's new site at Summer in Southern Illinois. She has a fabulous recipe for turkey breast ... and lots of other neat things.

Eggs with Legs

2011-04-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

She was awakened by a boom of thunder. Rain was pouring in her open bedroom window. Her mind was swirling from the nightmare that repeated itself time and time again in her restless slumber. She had spent Good Friday cooking for Saturday's family reunion. Her assignment was to make deviled eggs that she prefers to call 'angeled' during the Easter season. Angeled eggs for 75 people is more than one egg-hater should be assigned. The eggs were walking in her nightmare. They all had legs, some had faces, but most were headless. They were walking in circles, lost and looking for a place to hide from the big silver pot of boiling water. They screamed and ran hopelessly from the cook. She opened the refrigerator to retrieve more eggs and screamed at the sight of Satan in blue velvet. The thunder boomed and she was awake ... saved from Satan.

I've linked to Jenny's Saturday Centus so make sure you click through to see the other posts! She challenged us to write 100 words about this guy!

Alphet Thursday - A is for Aluminum

2011-04-21T18:39:00.001-05:00

A is for aluminum-inum-inum! Aluminum is a word that my dad never could say! It just wouldn't come out of his mouth in four syllables filled with Ms and Ns! We blamed it on his teeth ... those were the same teeth that wouldn't eat peas! There were a few other words he pretended not to be able to say ... then there were a few four-letter words that the Southern Baptist Deacon had no problem spewing out occasionally! The word 'aluminum' always got a few laughs!

I don't remember a time without aluminum foil, but I sure remember my mom and aunts talking about how wonderful it was when it hit the market ... even though it was a little expensive for most of the housewives in their circle of friends ... they bought it. It really did help keep foods fresh, and those frugal cooks would do anything to keep from wasting money in the kitchen. So, what did they do? They saved it after they used it. They'd wipe off any crumbs of food and fold it up and put it in a special kitchen drawer! Our landfills are probably filled with stacks of perfectly folded squares of aluminum foil!

Reynolds Wrap is the brand I remember most. I don't think the quilted Kaiser Foil ever made it to Southern Illinois!

It didn't take the food manufacturers long to figure out ways of using foil to package other food items. Remember the foil pouch/bags inside cereal boxes? I don't think those were used too long ... probably made the cereal too expensive. One of my girlfriend's mom saved those things, too!

A TV dinner was never served at our house! We'd see them advertised on television and ask for them and Daddy would quickly start telling us about the food he ate while serving in the military! I was an adult before I had a TV dinner ... and that was only because my bachelor husband still had some in the freezer when I married him! As a youngster, though, there was something sophistocated looking about that aluminum sectional plate! There were days when Mother was busy all afternoon at church meetings ... but she always prepared her supper/dinner meal in advance and had it in the oven waiting to serve it at the appropriate hour!

Don't you love this ad? Who has kitchen cabinets that organized? That mom in the cute pink blouse doesn't know 'living' out of packages until she goes to four soccer games and two dance lessons in one week!

Do you remember the 'foil Christmas'? A foil tree ... and shiny foil wrapping paper? Our trees always came from the woods, but my Aunt Evelyn had one of those trees ... and wrapped all her packages in shiny foil paper one year! She had two kids ... there were five at our house and we were lucky if Santa Claus used any paper at all!

I never knew much about cigarettes as a kid ... and I don't remember 'Spud' cigarettes at all! I just know they tasted better and they were fresher, though ... because they, too, were wrapped in aluminum-inumm-inum foil!

I'm posting with Alphabet Thursday! so make sure you click through to see all the other participants! Thanks to Jenny for hosting this great linky party. She keeps us 'thinkin'!

Penny Pinching Party - A Little More Easter!

2011-04-19T17:05:00.001-05:00

I'm participating in the Penny Pinching Party! and Thrifty Things Friday. Make sure you click through to visit all the other posts. I always do a little holiday decor outside ... and this little vignette is on the back deck. With exception of the bird nest and eggs ... everything else came from Goodwill. I have a whole two bucks in all of it! If it gets wet ... oh, well ... no great loss! Miss Phoebe enjoys finding little things like this sitting around, so that makes me do even more. If she drops it and it breaks ... no problem! Thanks for stopping by ... hope you visit my home page to see my other posts. Happy Easter Week!

Outdoor Wednesday - Herbs

2011-04-19T17:05:00.000-05:00

I'm participating in the Outdoor Wednesday linky party this week, so make sure you click through to visit the other posts!

I've decided to plant my "little pot garden" a little differently this year. I usually plant my herbs in window boxes, but an inland hurricane a couple years ago blew down one of our big trees, so the sun hits those window boxes longer now ... and they dry out more than my herbs like. So, I'm planting in small pots ... so I can move them around to find the right amount of sunshine ... and so I can take them inside for winter. I might be able to keep them growing in the sunroom ... although I'm not too good at that! I might be calling "help" in January when they begin to die on me!

I think the red pots look great on the baker's rack that I use on the back deck. I've had the metal signs for years and the older they get, the more I like them. The rabbits are filled with citronella candles ... found them at TJMaxx. Enjoy Easter Week! The rabbits just keep appearing at our house!

Tabletop Tuesday - Rabbits!

2011-04-18T19:29:00.000-05:00

Oh, I just had to put out more rabbits! Isn't this couple beautiful? He looks like he is in love ... don't you think? I'm partying with Tabletop Tuesday, so make sure you click through to visit Marty and all the other participants! What fun we have ... Thanks Marty for hosting!

The vase in this picture was a gift from Big Daddy! When he bought me flowers the first time ... he started the tradition of always buying a beautiful vase, too ... not just flowers in the typical FTD vase ... but something special! This is one of those special vases that first arrived filled with beautiful spring flowers!

Hope your Easter plans are shaping up with lots of goodies! We're gearing up for Sunday Dinner ... and I've bought giant plastic Easter eggs to 'hide' for Miss Phoebe. She'll do here real traditions at home ... but that rabbit always seems to leave something at our house, too!

Celebrity Chef!

2011-04-15T10:24:00.000-05:00

I'm so sorry ... I've been really busy in the past couple weeks ... but I wanted to participate in celebrating the Pioneer Woman! Thanks, Lynn for hosting this neat party. Make sure you click through to Happier than a Pig in Mud to visit all the other posts! I seldom prepare a recipe without making changes! I'm one of those cooks! This carrot noodle recipe is an adjusted recipe from the Pioneer Woman! She has a ground beef noodle casserole recipe posted online ... and I adjusted it ... removing the beef and using carrots ... and adjusting the other portions! You can find my recipe in my recent Made at Home cooking column in the Southern Illinoisan Newspaper. Click "related stories - carrot recipes" to find the recipe.

I'm off to work ... we have so much going on this week ... a couple conferences in town ... The university chancellor's inauguration ... a heritage sign unveiling ... "Agriculture Days" on campus ... the circus is in town ... and I'm tired just thinking about it! When it rains tourism ... it pours! Enjoy the party!

Alphabet Soup and the Campbell's Kids

2011-04-13T14:40:00.000-05:00

I love the Campbell's Kids and I have a collection of them ... someplace! Thinking of our alphabet soup posts ... made me pull out my files on the Kids.

I'm participating in Alphabet Thursday, so make sure you click through to visit Jenny's place and all the other posts!

If you want to know the history of the Campbell's Soup Kids ... visit Doll Kind. You'll read about the doll artist who married the advertising man ... the rest is history!

Happy Alphabet Thursday!

Z is for Zither!

2011-04-06T18:43:00.031-05:00

Z is for Zither!

This picture is of my Grandfather Schuster's family. He is identified by the turquoise arrow and his mother by the red arrow. His parents, Fredrich and Louisa Marie Petri Schuster married in 1883 in St. Clair County, Illinois. This picture is of their adult family of ten children and a couple of their grandchildren. (Sorry the picture is poor quality.)

This is my Great Grandmother Louisa's zither that was in my grandparents' attic my entire childhood. My Grandfather kept it because it had originally belonged to his Grandmother Catherine Elizabeth Schmiersahl Petri. When I was a child, he would let me strum the strings ... but it could never be tuned because it was so old! It had been well-loved and frequently played by these two women. During my lifetime, it has always looked like this! I have displayed it in my home for 35 years, since my grandparents died. My Great Grandmother was born in 1861, so I suspect that this instrument dates to 1820.

This zither was made in Germany ... and zithers remain the National Instrument of Germany!

My old zither has been the inspiration of many dinner parties ... and the conversation over wine! It instilled an interest in playing guitar in me ... can't say that I ever mastered that, though!

I've embedded a video of a man playing a zither like mine ... I don't know him, but he's good! Turn up your volumn and enjoy! I've linked with Alphabet Thursday so make sure you click through to enjoy the other posts ... but watch my video first! Thanks to our hostess, Jenny ... and to this wonderful musician!

We love our Maple Hutch!

2011-04-04T19:58:00.000-05:00

I'm delighted o join the Heart of the Home Party at Notesongs! Make sure you click through to visit the other posts. You've seen these pictures lately, in other posts ... but I thought I'd tell you the story of my little maple hutch! It was made in 1947 by Ethan Allen Furniture. It belonged to my husband's aunt and uncle who were transferred from our little town in Southern Illinois to Anaheim, California in the 1960s. They couldn't take all their lovely furniture ... and although my husband was a bachelor at the time ... he accepted the gift of the hutch! When I married him, it was filled with "man stuff" and made a nice decoration in his "not used very much" kitchen!

Needless to say, that changed quickly! Thank goodness it has wheels, because it has been in every room of the house ... the kitchen ... the dining room ... a maple bedroom ... the living room ... the sewing room ... and right now it is in the sunroom! ... and yes, in one of our houses, I placed it in a wide hallway just outside a bathroom door and used it to hold girly bathroom stuff!

We love our versatile little maple hutch! Thank you Uncle Doug and Aunt Helen!

Y is for Yill

2011-03-30T18:52:00.001-05:00

Yill is a dark Scottish ale ...

Railbender Ale is a Scottish style beer made by the Erie Brewing Company in Pennsylvania!

McEwan's is actually made by Scottish & Newcastle in the UK!

I love them both ... to drink and to use in braising beef and making stews. They add incredible flavor!

I'm linking to Alphabet Thursday, so make sure you visit Jenny to enjoy all the other posts!

Happy Alphabet Thursday!

Pigs for Tabletop Tuesday!

2011-03-28T19:21:00.000-05:00

I'm participating in Marty's Tabletop Party, so make sure you click through to visit all the other posts! Special thanks to our hostess ... for her many efforts to help us entertain ourselves!

I set little things around for Miss Phoebe to discover when she visits. She loves Gwamma's pigs, so I decided to put a few out for her! I'll decorate just about any empty spot ... and yes, these are sitting on a stack of baskets beside the dryer! Why not?

...and look how pretty my quince bush is ... It is supposed to snow this week ... one more time!

Easter Inspiration for Friday

2011-03-24T19:42:00.000-05:00

Make sure you visit http://www.atthepicketfence.com/ to see all the Inspiration Fridays posts. You'll be surprised what you find. I've posted a few pictures from last year's Easter table ... to help get us in the mood to get the bunnies out! Miss Phoebe has grown so much since that picture was taken. She had just found all the eggs I'd hidden in the front yard ... and that Easter rabbit left her a paper dollar in each one! Last year she saved all her money ... this year, she knows it spends! Happy Friday! I'm so glad this work week is over.

X is for Xylograph!

2011-03-23T20:44:00.000-05:00

X is for Xylograph – an artistic print made from an engraving on wood. Many of us learned how to do this in high school art class and we printed pictures that were simplistic. I remember that we weren’t actually using wood … soap I think … and I carved a very folksy looking flower. One of my friends managed to carve an eye and another friend carved the outline of a cat. The carving is dipped into paint or ink, then stamped on canvas or paper.

Those were easy to do, but can you imagine carving this into wood? I’ve know some incredible artists who did great carvings, but nothing this detailed.

Then others were printed and colored or painted … like this one.

These prints are both from the 19th century and were found in the online museum of the Habsburgs, the ruling dynasty of Austria. Visit english.habsburger.net to learn more about them. To read even more interesting things, like the fact that the House of Habsburg married into so many other royal families in Europe that they eventually ruled over a broad region … and they split the family between the Austrian Habsburgs and the Spanish Habsburgs. The Spanish side of the House liked itself so much that it eventually eliminated its bloodline through inbreeding! Check outhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Habsburgs for the whole story!

I'm linking with Alphabet Thursday, so make sure you go visit Jenny to see all the other posts! Happy Alphabet Thursday!

Apricots Set the Mood for Spring!

2011-03-21T21:22:00.000-05:00

I knew it was spring, when our apricot tree bloomed Sunday! How beautiful!

It put me in the mood to change the looks of my little maple hutch! I pulled out my Mikasa Day Dreams ... that I bought a couple weeks ago from my friend, George ... at his antique shop! George has everything imaginable in his shop ... and has owned shops from Southern Illinois to Kansas City! I had looked at this dinnerware for a year ... and finally decided I had to have it!

I'm happy to post with the Tabletop Tuesday linky party!

Make sure you visit Marty and enjoy the other posts!