EASTER and BOM Link

Hey All!

It's Spring, today is EASTER, and God's in His Heaven!  Thank You, Jesus, for the ultimate loving sacrifice You gave, so that we, poor sinners that we are, will one day be in Heaven with You, too!

I also wanted to share with you something that has me more excited than I have been in several years!

Kaaren at The Painted Quilt will be starting a Block of the Month quilt April 1!!!  No foolin', as she put it! :)  AND, as with all of her beautiful designs, it will be FREE!  She's named it "Happy Scrappy Spring."  Please check out all the details over at her wonderful blog.

It looks like it's a combination of patchwork, applique, and embroidery!  A little bit of everything to make me SO happy!  I love the checkerboard sashing, too!  I'm working on a counted-cross stitch coffee cup pattern right now that has a cream and brown checkered border around each cup.  So, this will be right down my alley! :) 

Kaaren states this is not technically a BOM, but should be ROM (Row of the Month).  Check out her post for more yummy details.  If I really put my mind to it, I might be able to get this done in time for Christmas!

The Painted Quilt - Happy Scrappy Spring BOM

I will post my progress, keep your fingers crossed!

 
HAPPY EASTER !!!

God Bless!

XOXO

Happy New Year!



Stationery found at A Holiday Haven


Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo

English Muffin Bread

You won't believe how super EASY this English Muffin Bread recipe is to make!  It's delicious, too!  April at Angel Foods Kitchen had posted this Monday and I made a loaf that night.  It was so simple, I couldn't believe it.  It really tastes like English muffins as well! 

I had watched Alton Brown last year on his Good Eats program on the Food Network make English muffins.  It was so involved and time consumming!  Even though I love 'em, I'm not going to go to all that trouble to make 'em!

Head on over to April's to get the recipe.  You'll enjoy them as much as we did, I'm sure! 

I just took pictures of the end result.  It took one mixing bowl, a 2 cup measuring cup, measuring spoons, and, of course, the loaf pan/dish.  Not much clean up (big PLUS!).

Sharing this with Bunny Jean's Wednesday Bunny Hop party.




Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo

Earth Wonders Photo Challenge - LANDSCAPE

This week's Earth Wonders challenge is "LANDSCAPE."







I took this photo as we were coming down the mountain from Mt Rushmore, going back toward Rapid City, South Dakota.

Check out the photos added to Earth Wonders flickr group, too!





Come back Sunday and vote for your favorite photo, ok?! :) Last week's winner was Libby H! Congratulations, Libby!!!

Take care and God Bless!

xoxo

Earth Wonders - Rain

Hi Everyone! 

Hope your day is going well!  It's still raining, which was providential for this week's Earth Wonders challenge - "Rain."  However, it's such a soft rain it's difficult to catch when photographing it.  At least, it is for me. 


Click Here to visit Ana's Wonderland

My photos really just show the results of the rain we got yesterday. We're still getting the rain today, but it's reminiscent of the Seattle rains we experienced while living there.  Not hard enough to use an umbrella, but you'll know it if you step in a puddle! :)

The night shot shows our wonderful Maple tree highlighted by our security light in back of the house.  The light just barely captures the rain as it gently falls to Earth.  I thought it would be neat to do the day shots in a light sepia tone.  The first one is between the porch steps and the boxwood to the left of the porch, then the puddle that always forms on the sidewalk in front of the house, and then the rain overflowing the gutters in back that will probably be replace next spring.

Why not join the party and add your own rain photos here.  Dear Ana has generously provided the blog hop code for us to use on our own blogs, so you can add your post either here, or on the master at Earth Wonders.  I would suggest checking out all the information on Ana's Wonderland blog, though.

I have to say a super big "thank you" to Ana, too, for allowing me to pick a favorite photo from last week's challenge! Thank You, Ana!



Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo

Harvest Moon and Jupiter Oct 14, 2011

Last Friday we had a Harvest Moon. Nothing really odd about that, right?  Well, this Harvest Moon also had a little friend in the sky - the planet Jupiter!

I took this picture a little before 5 AM.  This straight out of the camera (except for a little cropping, but that was just black sky).

See the little bitty dot below the moon, near the bottom of the photo, just left of center?  THAT'S Jupiter!

In this version, I added one of Kim Klassen's textures, "autumn burst" over the moon, just for giggles and grins.  Well, isn't a harvest moon supposed to be orange??? :)

Sharing this with Bunny Jean's Bunny Hop Party.  Why not "jump to it" and join in?!


Click HERE to visit Bunny Jean!


Also sharing with Traci's Sepia Saturday at Poetry Without Words.
 



Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo

Earth Wonders - Trees

This week's subject matter at Ana's Earth Wonders Photo Challenge is "Trees." 

The other morning, just after dawn, I went outside to capture the leaves changing to their Autumn dress on our 10 1/2 year old Maple tree. 

We had planted it right after we moved into our new home.  It was just a little bitty shoot, maybe 12-18 inches tall, and the previous owner had tried unsuccessfully to eradicate it.  I dug up the poor little maple-ette from the front flower bed and transplanted it lovingly into the backyard.  Like all of God's living things, it just needed a little love, a little tender loving care!  That little shoot is now taller than our house!  It gives us shade from the southern sun in the summer, helping to keep the back bedroom cooler.  That must have been the reason for it to pop its little head up every year, refusing to die.

The morning sun was so very bright that morning!  You can see the top of the tree is so washed out from the light. 

I adjusted the contrast/brightness/vibrancy and used two of Kim Klassen's wonderful textures for the final result. The first texture is one of my favorites: Pumpkin Grunge. I used blend mode Soft Light @ 100% opacity.  The second texture is Autumn Burst, blend mode Multiply @ 50%.  I wish I had thought to remove the trash can before I took the picture, but to be honest, I really didn't see it! Only when I started playing around with the photo did it become visible to me! ;)  Guess I must have been sleepy?



Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo

{Texture Tuesday} RED eDition - Kaylee - May 11, 2011

OK, I had our grandson Garrett in yesterday's post, so I have to have our grand-daughter Kaylee in today's!  Equal time for both!

Here's a photo of Kaylee back in May this year playing baseball. This was taken at one of the many ball fields her Grandpa Doug is in charge of taking care of and getting ready for the kids to play on (among other things to keep all the parks and the Olympic-sized City Pool in tip-top shape - very much unappreciated most of the time).

It was so hot that week!  The poor kids were all sunburnt, as well as the parents.  Kaylee looks like she has a little dirt moustache, too.  Wearing her RED team shirt and RED-skinned, she's ready to catch that grounder!

Here's the photo, after adjusting the contrast/brightness/vibrancy and adding 2 layers of Kim Klassen's portrait texture.  One layer is blend mode soft light @ 100% opacity, and the other is multiply @ 75% opacity.

I'm sharing this with Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday.  Head on over and check out all the wonderful entries!



Click HERE

Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo

Fast-Action Photos of Garrett Pitching May 7, 2011

Here are some fast-action photos we took at one of our grandson Garrett's Little League game back in May.  Hubby used to pitch in high school and in the Navy.  He says Garrett is doing pretty good, for only being 9 1/2 years old at the time!

I'm sharing these priceless photos with Mary at the Little Red House: Mosaic Monday.

Take care and God Bless!


XoXoXo

Enchiladas!

I'm linking this with Bunny Jean's Bunny Hop Wednesday Party!  Give her a visit and join in.  You can post whatever you like.  The party is for newish bloggers, with less than so many followers, or have been blogging for less than a year (I think that right). 

Hop on over to Bunny's page for all the details!  She's such a sweetie!  I know she'll be glad to see you!  Oh, and she has something new!  Check out the BIG blogroll! 


Click for the Blog Hop!

I made some enchiladas the other day, and thought I'd share with you how I make them.  This is probably not a standard or traditional recipe for enchiladas, but we like them.



Enchiladas!



Some of the ingredients you'll need.  Forgot to show the canned diced tomatoes & salt.
You know what ground beef looks like! LOL!



Browning beef, onions, garlic, taco seasoning, salt & pepper, enchilada sauce.
I didn't add the tomatoes to this batch.

Spray baking dish with cooking oil and place on baking tray.
 This will prevent any bubble-over from messing up your oven.

 

Heat tortillas in microwave, cover until ready to use.

 

Spoon beef mixture onto a tortilla, sprinkle with cheese.

 

Roll...



roll...



fold top sides toward middle like an envelope flap and roll...

 

and your done (rolling)!  Place in the baking dish as well as possible.

 

Cover with enchilada sauce (green, in this case)...

 

then with shredded cheese and bake at 400 degrees, 23-25 minutes.



JOY'S ENCHILADAS

1 pound lean ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced, or 2 heaping tsp. jarred minced garlic
1/4 cup taco seasoning (more or less to suit your taste)
1 can diced tomatoes (optional)
1 small can green chilis (optional)
2 cans enchilada sauce, either red or green
salt and pepper to taste
8 taco sized tortillas
2 cups shredded cheese, your choice

Brown ground beef, onions, and garlic.  If there's any grease, drain.  Sprinkle taco seasoning, salt, and pepper over beef and stir in.  Add the diced tomatoes, including the liquid, and 1/2 can enchilada sauce.  Simmer about 5-8 minutes, just enough to warm it through.  Remove from heat.

Warm your tortillas in the microwave for about 3 minutes.  Once warmed, cover until ready to use.  Spoon about 2 serving spoonsful of the beef mixture onto a tortilla, add a sprinkling of cheese, and roll.  Place into a baking dish that's been sprayed with cooking oil and placed on a baking sheet.  Take remaining enchilada sauce and cover the enchiladas in the baking dish, then cover with remaining cheese. 

Bake at 400 degrees F. 23-25 minutes.  Once done, let the enchiladas rest for about 5 minutes before serving.  Enjoy!

This makes enough for a family of four, or left overs for the next day for two.

I used to add a small can of green chilis, but Hubby's tummy can't take too much spicyness anymore. 

I hope you'll try this, and enjoy!  If you do, please let me know the verdict!

Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo

Earth Wonders and Texture Tuesday Photo Challenges

I ran across a few of our old photos of when my hubby and I were dating!  These photos are 18 years old this month.  We were both a lot thinner then and Doug still had his red hair! LOL!

The pictures were taken in Brown County State Park, Brown County, Indiana.  It's just a county away, but there's really no direct route to get there from here.  We have to go up I-65 to Columbus, then take SR-46 toward Bloomington, passing through Nashville. 

Nashville is the county seat of Brown County and  the fall leaves are one of the major draws.  It's a quaint little town with lots of artists and crafters selling their wares, antiques, little specialty shops & neat local restaurants.  Brown County State Park is just west of Nashville and has lots of lookout areas to view the beautiful fall scenery!  We spent our honeymoon here, but that's another story!  G-rated, REALLY! :)

This photo isn't as vibrant as I remember the leaves being, as they are almost every year.  But with a little bit of manipulation and Kim Klassen's textures, it is.  Ana's Earth Wonders Photo Challenge was Autumn, and Kim's Texture Tuesday Challenge was to use at least  one of her textures. 



Scan of the original photo.



This is how I always remember Brown Co., Indiana



I adjusted the brightness/contrast and vibrancy to being with.  

1st texture:  Kim's Pumpkin Grunge - soft light @100% opacity

2nd texture: Kim's 1 2 3 - Multiply @ 75% opacity



Scan of the original photo.





Much prettier!

I did the same here, adjusted the brightness/contrast and vibrancy.

1st texture - Kim's Yesteryear - Multiply @ 40% opacity

2nd texture - Kim's Pumpkin Grunge @ 50% opacity

If you ever get our way, you really should try visiting Brown County State Park and Nashville.  I don't believe you'll regret it!

Linking with:

Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday

Ana's Earth Wonders Photo Challenge

Take care and God Bless!

XoXoXo