De-Stashing

I'm cleaning out my stash of wonderful patterns. I still love all of these, but know I'll never get around to making everything and would love to send them on to someone else to make and enjoy. Please check out my Ebay listings!

The Garden in May

I hope you have had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. I knew that summer had arrived when I walked in my local Quik Trip today and saw they are once again offering their 69cent special on 32 oz fountain drinks!

The garden is a work in progress, but here's what's blooming now...

Frog statues are a favorite...

I found that the penstemon is very prolific around here and has traveled to the neighbor's garden as well.

Another sign of summer is the first black swallowtail caterpillar on the parsley. I try to plant enough parsley to share with them, but they really are big eaters!

Giveaway at Cleo and Me!

Pattern from Barbie Jo at Cleo and Me

Check out my friend Barbie Jo's blog for photos from the recent quilt market at Kansas City and enter to win one of her adorable new patterns!

I've checked out a couple of blogs about quilt market and am overwhelmed by all the talented quilters and their beautiful work. Lisa from Primitive Gatherings posted photos of her booth and wool pieces--have you seen any other photos from primitive designers who attended the show?

Mix it Up Monday!

I don't consider myself to be an adventurous cook, but these muffins sounded really intriguing. My guys loved them, but couldn't guess what the secret ingredient was. 

Chai Pistachio Muffins

Adapted from Cooking Light

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

3 vanilla chai teas bags, opened 

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, divided

1 large egg

cooking spray

1/3 cup shelled dry-roasted pistachios, chopped

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 T milk

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2.  Lightly spoon flour into measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next six ingredients in a large bowl; stir. Cut open tea bags and add tea to mix; stir again. Make a well in center of dry ingredients.

3.  Combine buttermilk, butter, vanilla and egg and stir. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until moist.

4.  Line 12 muffin tins with liners and lightly spray liners with cooking spray. Divide batter evenly among cups. Top with chopped nuts.

5.  Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes or until done. Cool on wire rack.

6.  Combine remaining 1/2 tsp vanilla with powdered sugar and milk, stirring until smooth. Drizzle evenly over muffins.

I don't care for overly sweet muffins and would usually forgo the icing, but to me these needed that little extra touch of sweetness. But then again, I might not have put quite as much brown sugar in as the recipe called for. 

Check out the other Mix it up Monday recipes and tips on Flour Me With Love!

Also linked on Foodie Friday! 

Simply Primitives Update

Another new round of offerings is online at Simply Primitives! Please drop by and see all that is new for May 15th!

I enjoyed lots of stitching time as we headed down to my inlaw's "ranch" in Texas. Sad to see how many trees they lost after last year's severe drought. They received a good rain when we were there and many of their neighbors took advantage of the wet ground to burn piles of branches and trunks from the many downed trees. DH and younger son practiced their firestarting skills and set several piles ablaze on the acreage. The piles smoldered for several days and had to be checked and consolidated every few hours.

The girls forage in the safety of their cage and usually provide several eggs every day, unless a snake finds them first.

Lots of good grazing for the cattle at this time of year.

I attended physical therapy today and can now bend my knee 90% but still feel like my knee "catches" every time I try to take a step. The therapist thought that would go away once I'm back to full mobility. Progress is so slow but at least PT isn't as painful as I feared or heard it would be.

Playing in the Dirt

It's hard to pass a garden center at this time of year! So many beautiful plants and vegetables just waiting to be taken home and planted. I also have a soft spot for garden art and can always find something unique at a wonderful local show called From the Summer's Garden held at the home of former Hallmark artist Steve Hess.

Fountain

Steve's house sits on two lots with one lot dedicated to the garden. This lot has winding trails lined with garden sculptures and Steve's whimsical stepping stones. The following photos are from his yard.

The following photos are from my humble little patch...

This year I purchased two more stepping stones for the little path through the garden at the back of the yard.

One of Steve's angels guards the whimsical shade and fairy garden.

 

Happy gardening!

Early Work Mercantile

May Greetings! The artisans of Early Work Mercantile have listed a new crop of primitive goodies including dolls, hooked mats and rugs, pillows, candles, samplers, pinkeeps, etc. I hope you'll check out the offerings if you haven't already!

When we take long car trips DH drives and I stitch away while we listen to a book on tape. Sometimes I get too engrossed and forget I'm also supposed to be navigating which made our recent trip to Michigan a little longer than it should have been.

Sold-Thank You!

Sold-Thank You!

As you can tell from my blog title, to me taking the scenic route is one of the charms of traveling. Sometimes it just means more time on the road, but sometimes it means discovering something unique and wonderful and finding a little shop or a scenic road that you'd otherwise miss. Those little discoveries tend to be the things that I'll remember the most after we return home.