[two words pulled at "random"..1)indigo- a quiet deep twilight blue color, it is beautiful on its own but works well with others! 2) pears-ordinary,commonplace, nurturing,with a decidedly feminine shape.] Musings and findings resulting from following my bliss...I love to sketch and paint...so I have watercolors to post also!
Table runner class this week!
This is the Christmas card I drew for them this year. Of course, just as Laura was ready to send out this card, the dog ran off..... and hasn't shown up yet!!!!
I wish I had a drawing of the entire group of us here tonight. I could add a window for my son and his wife to be looking out from and another one for "us"!
We are having a wonderful evening after a busy day.
We were able to take grandaughter, Lilia, to see the Nutcracker this afternoon! It was delightful! The Fox theater was a perfect place to spend part of Christmas Eve.
I first posted this recipe in December 2006.
It is worth doing again, it is one of our family Christmas traditions.
Tasha Tudor Christmas Sugar Cookies
1 pound of (real) butter
2 eggs
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
a pinch of salt
1 T. vanilla
1 t. baking soda dissolved in 3 T. milk
Put all ingredients in a bowl and mix until a smooth dough is formed. Form into a ball, dust with flour and chill thoroughly before using.Then break into conveniently sized pieces, adding a bit more flour as needed. Roll out to a scant 1/4 " thickness...or as thin as possible. Dust with granulated sugar and nutmeg and cut into shapes. Bake until light brown in a 350 degree oven (about 12 minutes). This recipe makes 5 or 6 dozen cookies. Cookies may be made in advance and stored in an airtight container.
[The wonderful artist, Tasha Tudor, passed away on June 18th this year, but her life will not be quickly forgotten!]
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I am planning to make this dough tomorrow and have it ready to make the cookies.
Mr. Pear and son Andrew should arrive late tomorrow, followed by daughter-in-law Mary on Tuesday. As the house fills up, it will be fun to do some baking together!
I also plan to make some no-bake orange coconut balls.
ORANGE COCONUT BALLSIngredients:
12 ounces vanilla wafer cookies, crushed
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans
sifted confectioners' sugar or coconut for coating
Preparation:Combine cookie crumbs and 1 cup confectioners' sugar; blend in butter. Stir in orange juice concentrate; add vanilla and nuts. Shape mixture into balls about the size of walnuts; shake in food storage bag with sifted confectioners' sugar or coconut. Arrange orange balls in single layer on waxed paper-lined cookie sheet; store uncovered overnight in refrigerator for best flavor. Makes about 3 dozen.
I hope you have a lovely Christmas week. I'll be stopping by your blogs as time permits. [tonight I am on-line late, I'm babysitting the grandchildren and thank goodness the baby has fallen asleep. The parents are out with a party of friends in a limosine for a night on the town!]
One dream I have is to get tickets for Mr. Pear and I to take granddaughter Lilia to see the Nutcracker ballet at the Fox theater downtown. That would be fabulous!
* "magic" sewing machine image from 1890's Singer calendar !
Having to pack and work on finishing some Christmas gifts....but I will soon be with my wonderful grandchildren!
Daughter Laura is suffering from an episode of shingles....her first and hopefully last. As she has a family to care for and a business to run too, she needs some help. I am flying down like Mary Poppins....well, not exactly. But I do feel this is where I need to be now. So, some Christmas gifts may be wrapped unfinished and I know the recipients will trust me to complete them when I'm back home with my creative space and tools!
Mr. Pear will be coping here.
I won't be blogging much....chasing my grandson and caring for Laura's home for the next few weeks.
Just wondering....should I wear my 'Mary Poppins" hat????? [Photo from last winter]
I am having fun making gifts and things for myself.
A special report from the front porch.....
Celebrating the 4th with a look at an American ideal....the front (or back) porch!!
I love the nostalgia of the porch! This green cottage is located near our Art Center of the Ozarks. Wouldn't you love to sit and rock for a bit?
Porches come and go in history and location around the world. They are very popular in the South. Porches provide and informal area....shady out of the total public view but not as private as being in the house itself.
African rulers are said to have used the porch concept as a place to interact with those wanting an audience. Under the porch roof, everyone was out of the hot sun, yet not intruding on the privacy of the living quarters of the ruler.
This is my own back porch, we don't have a front porch,.......... just a big yard with a huge elm tree!
These photos were taken today. It is cool and cloudy...we've had a couple of rather rainy weeks.
I use one end of the porch for my art studio (ha! I paint "all over the place") and the other end for reading, birdwatching and peaceful meals.
[I am getting very frustrated with Blogger...I am here in a stuffy " computer room" when I could be out on that porch...so I may not blog (log computer time) as much for a while...HA!]
(I spent a long time trying to do a link to a wonderful book about porches...http://www.amazon.com/American-Porch-Informal-History-Place/dp/1592282717/ref=sr_1_1/002-4074307-0771253?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183472513&sr=8-1 this is as good as I could do...after spending an hour trying to hide all the programing, I'm giving up and posting it this way....not too cute! But the book looks great and some copies are only $0.01!)
For the Fourth of July, we will be visiting our friends in a nearby town. They have an old farm house with a wonderful front porch....I'll post photos in a day or so!
I'm off to the farmer's market now for ingredients for ratatouille! Wishing all who see this a happy, healthy Fourth of July holiday! (overseas readers, have a lovely week too!)
