April's Country Life

Monday, April 30, 2012

A Huge Thank You, Weekend Wrap-up and a Treat to Share

Hello lovely new friends! I am so excited to see that the blog has reached over 750 page hits - yesterday was 50 views - the highest for one day. It may not sound like much but I value each and every one of you and I am so excited to get a page view - comments throw me over the moon! I had no idea if anyone would be interested in what I have to share or what direction this blog would take on when I started a few months ago. No offense, but I sorta started it for me - as an outlet and something to do for myself because I enjoy sharing and writing. And while I hoped others would share my interests, well, I'm just not as confident as it sometimes might appear. So I truly am enjoying the experience of getting to know more about all of you - first time visitors, regulars and fellow bloggers. I often feel like we are together in the kitchen with a cup of coffee and the aroma of homemade bread surrounding us, or strolling in the garden checking out the progress.

This is from a couple of summers ago - that's the primitive
first version of a playhouse in the background falling apart...

I'm still learning all the tricks and tools so if you see something you think is missing or would make the blog better for you - please let me know! Drop me a line at astop 78 (at) gmail (dot) com any time. I've added Linky Followers and Google Friend Connect so if you use those, please add me to your connections. I've also got Pinterest and Twitter up and running and the info isn't always the same as what is here on the blog so please follow me there if you are using those too. And again, thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing a few moments of your day with me!

Soooooo, do the rest of you start with all these grand plans of what you are going to do with the weekend only to find yourself at 10 p.m. on Sunday night trying to remember what even happened over the past two days? Please don't say its just me. :) I know I grocery shopped, did laundry, dishes, ran the vacuum, mowed the lawn... Oh yeah, there was a birthday party dinner last night... Skating lessons, a trip to Menard's for mulch...which did get spread with newspapers underneath on the bed on the north side of the driveway (which I need about 5 more bags to finish properly so another run will be in order before you get pictures...)... We stopped at Grandma's to beg for a fundraiser order - luckily its spring bulbs which is an easy sell in our family... But all of my grand plans for the projects I was going to do and show you got pushed to the side for lack of time (and energy) by the end of the day... Hoping that since most of the household is squared away I'll be able to do a few things in the evenings - I have a fairy tree I am dying to show you how to make... Did your weekend go the way you planned?

And finally...a treat to go with your coffee...

This is a fast and easy but impressive goodie you can throw together for last-minute guests or a snack for the kids or a party favor. I made it as part of family snack baskets I give for Christmas and it was a huge hit with family and coworkers. Simple, simple, simple!

You need a cookie sheet lined with foil, a box of graham crackers (plain), 6 ounces chocolate bark and 4 ounces white chocolate bark. Take your graham crackers and make a single layer on the cookie sheet all the way to the edges. Melt your chocolate bark and pour over the graham crackers. Smooth it so it is an even thickness and no graham crackers show. Melt your white chocolate bark and drizzle over the top of the chocolate. Take a butter knife and swirl carefully (to make it all pretty and stuff...). Put in the fridge to harden for about 15 minutes. Break into odd shaped pieces and put in cellophane bags or ziplock baggies. Keeps in an airtight container for about 2 weeks. Enjoy!

Thursday, April 26, 2012

For Love of Lilacs

One of the things I look forward to every spring is the glory of lilacs - they are plentiful in Michigan yards and the fragrance is something you never forget. I am blessed with a giant lilac next to my driveway and I inspect it every day once the buds form to see how the blooms will be. I'm afraid our wonky weather this spring has done some damage - my blooms are few and small this year...

By comparison - here's a peek at last year's display...

And a bouquet from last year's spring bounty - the lilac, my Ms. Kim Lilac, snowball bush, columbines, and wild geraniums.

An up-close of the Ms. Kim - I had been waiting for 4 years for her to get big enough for the rabbits to leave her tips alone so she could bloom - I was not disappointed. This year - nothing so far...

I do see some other folks have lilacs that are doing well - it seems to be those that are somewhat sheltered on the west side - so I'm curious to know how the early bloom and weather has affected the massive lilacs on Mackinaw Island. The Island hosts its Lilac Festival typically in early June at the peek of the blooms. With most of the state experiencing 80 degree temps in March, many of our plants were triggered at least a month early. Then we've had more ups and downs and most recently, our nights are back to freezing. We've also had an unusual number of high wind days which is an even bigger problem for lilacs than the cool-down.

Do you have lilacs? How are they doing this year? Comment below or share your pics with me on Twitter!

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

I Love Pickin'

I've been a picker since birth and didn't even know it until a few years ago when History Channel launched "American Pickers". We called it antiquing, garage saling, going to estate auctions, etc. Whatever you call it, when we were little and my mom took us to salvage stuff to re-purpose and refinish we thought it was a blast. If we'd been good we might even get $5 to bid on whatever we wanted.

It was a great lesson in American history, budgeting, salvage, recycling, being creative, etc. I learned about many an item's use, origin and value from an auctioneer's colorful descriptions. And what a feeling of pride to walk away with an item after out-bidding the adults and still getting a great deal or negotiating for a box full of treasures scored for a small pittance of what one item would retail for.

Many a weekend was spent scrounging around old barns, attics, and basements looking for that piece for a collection. An old piece of harness stiff with the dried sweat from a draft horse who worked the fields day after day. I'd spend rainy days in the barn talking to my horse and bringing that piece of farming history back to life with layer after layer of neatsfoot oil. The long neglected nearly black bronze horse clock that didn't seem to run - brought back to glory with a little tinkering and lots of rubbing - earning a prize spot on my shelf. The old rusty metal steam trunk that smelled musty and was missing all the essential inner dividers - sanded, painted a shiny black and stenciled with my name to become the tack trunk that accompanied me to college and still sits in my barn holding my best leathers. My mom and I also spent many quality hours refinishing items together and we like to revisit our adventures in finding and restoring it.

My taste in items evolved from the horse-obsessed to the household and entertaining essentials - enameled pots, carnival glass dishes, oriental dragonware tea sets, antique paintings with ornate frames, Wilton cheese platters, end tables, and on and on. We would plan trips to spend the day wandering a strip like US-12 through the Irish Hills of Michigan - well known for its antique stores but also packed with unique little stops and garden centers and such.

I tried to get my husband to go many times in our early years together only to be met with eye-rolling - if only I had known the term pickin'.

Paint Your Own Pottery

The over-sized mug I made for keeping at work.
This side is the Disney Fairies "Home Tree".

One of the crafty places we love to go is a lovely "paint your own pottery" studio. They have everything from small pieces that could be used for cabinet handles to vases, flower pots, serving platters, light switch covers, simple tiles, and on and on. Their stock changes frequently and they also get lots of fun seasonal items like Christmas decorations and Halloween candy dishes.

Different studios may be more familiar with certain techniques or have slightly different supplies on hand, ours includes mosaic and scrapbooking supplies. The atmosphere is relaxing, creative and kid-friendly. Pieces are ready to paint and every supply you could need is on hand. 'Piece of Mine' allows you to bring in food and drinks which makes it nice to spend a rainy afternoon with the kids and a pizza or take advantage of their two Friday's a month that are open until midnight to meet with the girls and share a bottle of wine. A small studio fee covers as much time as you want to spend on as many pieces as you can start that day. You are welcome to come back and work on them again at a later date. Once your piece is completed, it is glazed and kiln-fired by the staff and ready to be picked up in about a week.

A slow Monday...

Pork chops turned out great last night - little bit of spice without being hot and juicy with a crispy coat. Turned some leftover rye and sourdough into homemade croutons. Took our time getting around this morning and went to a nice leisurely breakfast with my parents, two of my brothers and some family friends to see my brother back off to MN before finally dragging my feet in to work. Its very windy again here today and was yesterday - the wind is getting old around here but at least the sun is shining. Hoping for a relaxing evening with some nice comforting spaghetti and lots of snuggles with the kids.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Something 'bout a Sunday

Stayed up way to late last night hosting an impromptu bonfire for family and friends. Everyone gathered to see my brother who is in for a visit from Minnesota. I'd love to claim pulling out a major hostess spread but after a week with our big convention at work I had nothing left. Gotta love the Taco Bell 12 for $10 - sometimes its just about doing what's easy.

Today we are in recovery. Got a scoop of Zingerman's goat cheese topped with a 1/2 cup canned spaghetti sauce heating in the little cast iron skillet in the oven. That will get served with some cracked wheat crackers.

Also in the oven is a sheet full of pork chops coated in the new Kraft Chili Lime breadcrumbs and cheese mix. Looking good so far!

Saturday, April 21, 2012

20 Things About Me

1. My favorite color is blue.

2. I went to a one-room schoolhouse until 5th grade.

3. I had a virus that caused premature labor and my daughter was born 5 weeks early.

4. I am very short.

5. I used to have hair past my waist.

6. I have an essay in the sesquicentennial time capsule in Lansing, MI.

Spinach Dip Turned Casserole

This is one of those meals that is the direct result of trying to use up things before they go bad. Many of these come about on Friday night after we have exhausted the supply of planned meals and I'm trying to clean the fridge ahead of Saturday morning's grocery shopping trip.

I love spinach dip but rarely do we use more than half the container before it has seen its better days. I just so happened to have some diced ham on hand a decided so make a sort of scalloped potato out of whatever I could find.

Faux Crab Cakes (Tuna Cakes)

I strongly desire crabcakes but developed and allergy to shellfish in my early 20's. I tried imitation crab meat a time or two but found it to be pretty tasteless and even some imitation crab meat still has some shellfish juices, etc. in it. I stumbled across a show one day several years ago where they were using tuna to make crabcakes - I love tuna but don't have a lot of ways of cooking it and the hubster is not real crazy about it. So I have experimented over the years and came up with this zesty little tunacake that even my kids and husband consume without a mumble of complaint. And if you have a budding young chef it is a great one for the kids to help with.

I just love this little vintage bowl - it came from my dad's
grandmother - I'm told she used it as a fruit bowl but its the
perfect size for so many tasks that I use it a lot.

Fun New Links for Kids

Sharing with you today a list full of fun links for kids! Games, math, typing skills, internet safety, science experiments, art - all kinds of good stuff to keep them busy and make learning fun.

An experiment we did for a 3rd grade science project - how much salt does it take to float an egg to the top. The Princess added one tablespoon of salt to the water at a time and marked with a sharpie how deep the water was and where the bottom of the egg was after each tablespoon of salt was added. On a poster board she made a graph and taped a baggie full of the amount of salt we needed to float the egg to the top. She taped the dried empty cup showing the measurements to the poster board as well and wrote her question, theory and hypothesis on the board. It was an A+ earner. :)