February Pin It/Do It - Pins 1-5

I took the plunge on Trish's newest Pin It/Do It Challenge - but it's already Feb. 15 and I haven't posted any pins accomplished.  But I did finally get a couple things done - so it's catch-up time.

Pin #1 - Pillowcase Apron

Pinned from Betz White

This is a double-duty project.  I needed to make a half-apron for a Farmgirl Sisterhood badge, but I don't wear them.  I use the bib-style when baking, but a half-apron just doesn't cut it for flour-flingers like me.  But Betz' pillowcase apron is just what I need for clothespins.  I have tried those bags that hang from the clothesline to hold pins, but when the prairie winds begin to blow, the pins go flying.  Besides,the bag never seemed to be where I needed it when I needed it.  So I took to just leaving the pins on the line - but then they are weathered and dotted with bird-poop.  This is the perfect solution . . . an apron with a large pocket to hold pins.  I'll keep it in a laundry basket so it's handy to put on when I'm headed to the line, and easy to drop back in the basket when I'm done.

This project really did take 10 minutes, as advertised in the original pin, and cost $1.64 (plus tax).  I found pillowcases for $1 at Wal-Mart.  In my excitement over being frugal, I didn't read the fine print, which said "polyester" pillowcase.  In other words, its a slick little rascal and hard to sew.  For the ribbon ties, I chose the heaviest grosgrain ribbon I could find that coordinated with my pillow case.  Again, it's a bit too slippery and lightweight to make a good bow, but it was only 32 cents/yard.  If I were to do it again - and I might - I would be certain I had a COTTON pillowcase and would probably take the time to make a fabric tie or purchase heavier cotton braid.  Overall, a successful and useful project.

Pinned from PopSugar

Pin #2 - Iced Green Tea Lime Cooler

A simple recipe - just green tree, lime juice, sweetener and ice - but so refreshing.  I added a splash of club soda because I like the fizz.  A great alternative to soda - plus the metabolism boosting effects of green tea.

Pinned from King Arthur Flour

#3 - Baked Zucchini Sticks
Another simple recipe, but oh so delicious.  Though these are pretty low calorie to start with, I cut out a couple more by using only egg whites rather than whole eggs.  I also omitted the dip - they are so yummy on their own that dip really isn't necessary - but it would be easy to make using low-fat mayo or sour cream.

#4 - Gift Tags

Pinned from Milomade

This is not a new idea - we cut pictures out of used Christmas cards to use as tags when I was a child.  But we cut basic squares or followed the outline of the designs on the card.  I fell in love with these little jewels because of the shape and the variety of ways you could center (or not) pictures on them.  In the pin, they were cut with a die cut, which means they were basically no work at all.  Not having a die cut available, I purchased a package of similar-shaped cardstock tags at Hobby Lobby, intending to use one as a pattern and save the others for a future project.  It was harder than I anticipated to cut that shape with standard scissors and make it look precise.  I experimented with using a corner punch to make the shape on top, but it's not quite large enough.  In the end, I made a few which I will use next Christmas, but I think it would be more fun to just decorate the plain ones I bought.

Pin #5 - Georgia Peach

Pinned from Martini Recipe

1 part Peach Schnapps
1 part Coconut Rum
1 part vodka
2 parts Ginger Ale

Next time I'll leave out (or ask my friendly neighborhood bartender, Kari, to leave out) the shot of vodka.  It adds nothing but more calories and "kick' - don't need either.

Now all I need are a beach and an umbrella.

Check back for more Pin It/Do It fun - including a rolled-paper cross, more recipes, a gift card keepsake book, some "beachy" decorating and other projects made from these supplies:

Update:

Note to self:  Always read the fine print.  There is a minimum requirement of 2 hrs. work in order for the half-apron to count toward the Farmgirl Sisterhood badge.  Back to the drawing board - or Pinterest.

Happy Valentine's Day

Welcome Valentine Partiers!  

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you'll stay a bit and have a look around.  Click the "about us" tab at the top of the page to learn about me, my husband, Dave, and our life here on the 2-acre patch we call Green Acres.

Check out the "Labels" on the right to see what we usually chat about.  There's books and crafts and family and lots of random stuff.  Don't miss the links to Mary Jane's Farm and Girl Gab - another great way to meet new friends, have fun and learn a little something.

If you find things you like, I hope you'll also follow me on Twitter and Pinterest to hear and see more of the same.  Most of all, I hope you'll come back to visit again - sit down, have a cup of coffee and let me ask you Just One More Thing . . .

If you're not visiting as part of the Valentine's Party, welcome also, and you might want to stop by A Rural Journal and Two Bears Farm and meet our lovely hostesses - as well as the rest of the partiers.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Where in the World Are You Reading?

Last month, the ladies who host Where in the World Are You Reading? asked about my "unusual" reading spots.  For February, they want to know where I get comfy to read.  That's an easy one.  Ninety percent of my reading gets done right here:

It has everything I need - good lighting, a pillow for my aching back, a place to rest my feet, a spot to sit my coffee, and a cord to charge the Nook, and it isn't TOO comfy.  It doesn't recline and it's not conducive to slouching, so I'm less likely to doze instead of read.  Not to say that never happens, but less than when I try to read in bed or on the couch.

The chair and it's mate belonged to my grandparents in the 1960's and early 70's, and to my in-laws from then till 2012, when they came to live with us, so it has a sentimental, nostalgic comfort that makes it my favorite spot in the world for reading.

Mini Reviews

A quick look at what I've been reading lately, with an excerpt from the publisher's synopsis (in black) and my thoughts (in purple).

The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans 

In the wake of personal tragedy, Christine and Paul meet on a humanitarian mission in Peru. They must confront their deepest fears and learn to trust and love again.

Above average love story.  Particularly enjoyed the detail of life in the Peruvian jungle.  

Sharp Objects by Jillian Flynn

Camille’s assignment from the newspaper where she works takes her reluctantly back to her hometown to cover the murders of two preteen girls.  As Camille works to uncover the truth about these violent crimes, she finds herself identifying with the young victims—a bit too strongly. 

Every bit as disturbing and unsettling as Gone Girl.  Won't quite mess you up for life, but it will sure stick with you.

An Angel for Christmas by Heather Graham 

Christmas has never brought out the best in the MacDougal family.  In the midst of a sibling shouting match, a stranger appears. He could be a criminal, a madman, or something far more unexpected. The MacDougals take a leap of faith, but when another stranger arrives, they don't know which of them to believe. One of these men can't be trusted. And one is about to bring Christmas into their hearts.

Not as fast-paced as it could be, but I love the slightly un-resolved ending.  A twist on the typical feel-good Christmas story. 

Live by Night by Dennis Lahane  

The '20s are roaring, liquor is flowing, bullets are flying, and one man sets out to make his mark on the world.  Joe Coughlin has graduated from a childhood of petty theft to a career in the pay of the city's most fearsome mobsters.  Joe's climb up the ladder of organized crime takes him from Jazz Age Boston to Tampa's Latin Quarter to the streets of Cuba. 

Not up to what I expect from Lehane.  Ho-hum plot moves agonizingly slow at times.  2 stars for story, bonus star because he's usually one of my favorite authors.

Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich

Stephanie, Ranger, Morelli, Lula and all the cast of crazies . . . yada yada yada.  Decent story, no progress.

Silent Night by Deanna Rayborne 

Lady Julia and Brisbane hope for a quiet, intimate Christmas together.  Amongst the celebrations, a mystery stirs. There are missing jewels, new faces at the Abbey, and a prowling ghost that brings back unwelcome memories. 

Novella that I really didn't care for but I'm blaming myself.  The story was more about the characters, with whom you need to be familiar, than the mystery.  Poor choice of places to jump into a series.

The Boddy in the Snowbank by Jenna Bennett  

A short story based around the classic game of Clue.  Published on
Smashwords.

It had complete sentences and paragraphs and stuff.

The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout

Why has the brilliant sleuth, Nero Wolfe, taken a case for $4.30?  And  why were his last two clients murdered? Archie Goodwin goes undercover as a mortician to find out. And Wolfe ponders the cryptic clues: a gray Cadillac, a mysterious woman, a pair of earrings -- shaped like spiders and dipped in gold.

Classic.  Best sleuth ever written. 

Poseidon's Arrow by Clive Cussler

An attack submarine capable of incredible underwater speeds. Nothing else in any other nation’s naval arsenal even comes close. One problem: A key element of the prototype is missing—and the man who developed it is dead.  It is up to NUMA director Dirk Pitt and his team to go on a desperate international chase to find the truth, from Washington to Mexico, Idaho to Panama. What they discover at the end of it is a much, much greater threat than even they imagined.

Dave and I read this together.  He ranked it a 3 on the scale of all Cussler's books.  I've only read one other, so couldn't really judge.  Plot was good, quick pace, unique story.  But I couldn't get past the narrative changing perspective mid-paragraph.  One sentence calls the hero, Dirk Pitt, by name (as in "Dirk ran up the gangplank." - only, you know, better than that) The next sentence of the same paragraph refers to "he" ("He grabbed the binoculars.") But "he" isn't Dirk - it's a totally different guy on a totally different ship.  Very disconcerting - not to mention confusing.  So it gets 2 stars from me.

Mud, Mystery Monsters and Pythagorean Theorem

You ever hear those pitchmen on TV spouting "It costs 30% less!"  But they never specify "less than what?"  Maybe Dave and I are too nit-picky, but those vague claims drive us nuts.  So maybe I should have questioned further when Dave suggested that, since it was a bright, sunny 52 degrees here this afternoon, I take my walk outside instead of on the treadmill.  "Walk in the field, it's not as muddy."  Didn't dawn on me to question, "Not as muddy as what?  Mt. Ararat two days after the flood?"

So Gabby, the Big Red Idiot Dog, and I went blithely on our way, tromping through a little snow left in the ditch to get to the alfalfa field.  The first few steps should have made me question this choice, but "maybe it will be better a bit further from the ditch."  And sure enough, we got to where there was adequate ground cover and it wasn't bad, so off we went at a light jog.  Well, I was doing a light jog, Gab was running full tilt.  We alternated jogging and walking to the corner half a mile west of the house and turned south.  Footing remained "not as muddy" (as what? The Red Sea a moment after Moses put his arm down?) and chugged on for another half-mile.  By then the "bright, sunny 52 degree" air was causing my ears to ache and my nose to run (Why do I never think to take a Kleenex on a walk?) so I opted for the most direct route home, which would be across the open field.  

Two issues with that plan.  #1 -Terraces.  More specifically, the valleys between terraces, which were still filled with snow, and/or the downhill side of terraces.  This route took us through some corn stalks.  Who knew you could skate down a muddy terrace on corn husks? Well, you can.  And issue #2 - the mystery creatures.

This is where I was walking - flat (except terraces), brown, boring this time of year.  Closest trees are 1/4 mile or more away, closest water is about 1/2 mile.  So what animal digs a large burrow - 15-18" across, large enough for a Springer Spaniel to crawl in unless her owner goes balistic and screams in pitches even the dogs can't hear . . . I'm guessing -- in the middle of this open, relatively flat alfalfa field?  Whatever animal it is, I'm a little wigged out about the possibility of meeting him a half-mile from home with no protection but an unpredictable Big Red Idiot Dog.  

In spite of the Okefenokee Swamp and hairy-toothed mystery monsters (name that movie), we returned safely, if somewhat soggily, from our walk - much to the detriment of my newly mopped kitchen floor. 

If you have a clue what animal lives in that habitat, let me know.  The only thing we can come up with that matches the size would be badger.  But would they burrow out in the open like that?  And if so, am I or the dogs in danger of getting badger nipped? Is there a badger specialist reading this blog?

And for the math enthusiasts among you, by walking 1/2 mile west and 1/2 mile south, then traveling diagonally across the field to form a right triangle, Pythagoras and his therorem tell us that Gab and I walked a total of 1.7071067811865476 miles.  Cause that's just the type of randomness I think you want to know. And yes, I was attempting to do that math in my head while I walked. *nerd alert*

Big Game Readathon: Mini Challenge #1

For this challenge, take a look at the books you plan on reading today.  Which do you predict will come out as the winner and why? 

This is a tough question!  There are only two books on my list at this point.  IF I finish one of them, I have shelves and shelves to pick  from, but no idea what's next.  So my Reading Super Bowl will be between Bliss and Lullaby.  Let's look at how they match up.

                                                 Bliss                                                 Lullaby
Main Characters:        4 young siblings                   Spenser and his client - a 14 yr. old girl  
Pages:                         146                                       310
Genre:                         Magical mystery (cozy)       Mystery - Private Investigator
Strength:                     Magic, comedy                    Familiar characters - unique dialogue style

While Bliss has the advantage of brevity and lightness of storyline, Ace Atkins is doing an excellent job of continuing Parker's clipped writing style, which makes those 310 pages fly by.  Lullaby has the advantage of a big-name author and familiar cast.  This is going to be a close match between two good reads, but I'm giving the slight advantage to Bliss, based on the quirky factor.  Gotta root for a book that's out of the ordinary.