Octobter's Bright Blue Weather?

From my youngest days, I have always loved autumn and one of my most favorite months is October. I think this is because of a poem my mother always recited this time of year about October's bright blue weather.

BUT, if you look at these pics I think you might have to say "October's dismal white weather". No blue skies in sight.

In the fall, this tree in our yard is my very favorite. It is always the first to put on its new autumn ball gown, and it is usually the last to shed it. The range of color is extraordinary; the leaves' palette ranges from a deep maroon to brilliant crimson to gold and palest maize.



Although the month is nearly over, and we haven’t seen a lot of October’s bright blue weather, it’s hard to fret too much. With so much color abounding, even rainy days don’t seem quite so bad.

Y Blessings,

Nanci

October Bush Bender

Last Thursday / Friday brought us quite a winter (uhhhhh...perhaps, I should say "autumn") wonderland. It doesn't have quite as nice a ring to it, but it IS a little more accurate.

It stuck around just long enough to steal some large branches from the trees, and was gone within two or three days. If it hadn't left its calling card of hundreds of broken branches in the area, you might not know it had ever stopped by for a visit.

It was amazing to see the trees and bushes bent to the ground with snow while, at the same time, my Ivy Geranium was still blooming in the hanging basket. The snow in the yard was about four or five inches deep. but as you can see in the pics the grass beneath the trees remained green and untouched. The heavy, wet snow clung to the leaves and boughs of the trees , but never reached the sheltered grass below.

Because the roadways were cluttered with large broken branches and power was lost, the schools in the area were cancelled. My kids were a little disappointed that our homeschool went on as scheduled, the only absentees were heat, water, and lights.

Pattern Sale at JoAnn Fabrics - Last Half of October 2009

Patterns are not on sale everyday, but for a few days each month JoAnn usually has certain manufacturer's sewing patterns on sale. Buy your patterns when they are on sale, and you save a bundle.

If there's a JoAnn Fabric Store near you, the pattern sale dates for the last half of October 2009 are:

Sun. - Sat., Oct. 18 - 24, 2009

McCall's Patterns 99¢ each

(MSRP $5.25 - $16.95 ea.) (Limit of 10)

No special orders -- Excludes "Easy Stitch ‘N Save”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Thurs. - Sat., Oct. 29 - 31

Vogue Patterns $3.99 each

(MSRP $8.95 - $30.00 ea.
No special orders (Limit 10)

Butterick Patterns - $1.99 each

(MSRP $6.00 - $16.95 ea.)
No special orders
(Limit of 10) Excludes "See & Sew"

Coupon - Heads Up!

If you are someone who likes to use coupons, you might be interested in checking this post on Merchant Maidens.

She gives links to some sites where you can get printable coupons.

Y Blessings,

Nanci

Pattern Sale at JoAnn Fabrics - First Half of October 2009

It's "slim pickin's" at JoAnn Fabrics this time.  It appears as if Simplicity patterns are the only ones on sale this period, but they ARE at a really GREAT PRICE -- 99¢.

FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY

OCTOBER 9 - 12 , 2009

Simplicity Patterns - 99¢ each

(MSRP $6.95 - $17.95 ea.)

(Limit of 10) No Special Orders

Excludes "It's So Easy", New Look,

Burda & Simplicity Books

Boohoooooooooo

I have been a busy little bee lately. . . sewing, sewing, sewing.  By improvising a L-shaped sewing area to accomodate my sewing machine & serger in our large family room, I am now able to enjoy my family in the evening and still get a lot a sewing projects completed.  The second benefit of this set up is that my dining room table no longer looks like this.  Now the area I set up is by no means "pretty" or "polished".  It consists of an old table resurrected from the basement and a board laid across two file cabinets that contain the kids school books.  (Sort of a locker for homeschoolers idea).
Anyway, everything has been going along GRAND until. . .

I turned the differential knob on my serger so I could gather a strip of material and promptly heard a little "snap" followed by the sound of a small piece falling down inside the serger.   Arrrrghhhhhh!     The very same serger that had been taken to the shop for another problem in the spring!  It had never been to the repair shop prior to that, and I have had it for nearly twenty years. I depend so much on it as a tool.  But far more than that is the great sentimental value it holds for me. Well, to "cut to the chase", Bill took it to the shop on Saturday morning. At least now, I know that they can still get repair parts for it.

I've decided that I'm not going to waste the two weeks or so until it is repaired.  Instead, I plan on cutting out the patterns for a lot of projects.  That way, when I get the serger back, I can get started right away sewing things.  My least favorite thing about sewing is cutting the fabric, so at least that will be all out of the way.

Y "To everything there is a season. . .
"

Nanci

Savory Flatbread Recipe

My family loves these flatbread sandwiches. We first tasted them at a restaurant, but they are on the pricey side. Our budget couldn't afford a steady diet of them at restaurant prices , so I began experimenting at home.

I found the original recipe for the flatbread here but I've really "tweaked" it to come up with my "personal recipe". There were quite a few comments on that site that the flatbread was too salty. So the first thing I did was to cut the salt WAY back. I also made the mixing process much easier by just mixing it in my food processor. I thought that the original recipe lacked flavor so here is my adjusted recipe.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes (5 minutes each side)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups White Whole Wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking power
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon pesto
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup ice water
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:

Combine first 7 ingredients in food processor and blend thoroughly together. Add ice water and olive oil. Mix in food processor until ingredients form a soft dough.

Sprinkle a piece of parchment paper with flour. Form the dough into a ball and place it in the center of the parchment paper. Dough is slightly sticky. Sprinkle dough with flour and flatten dough to a thick disc. Cut into six equal wedges.

Form wedges into balls and roll out into thin 7 inch circles.

Place into an oiled hot iron skillet. Immediately prick the surface of the dough with a fork, sprinkle generously with garlic salt, and cook for 5 minutes over low - medium flame. Turn and cook five minutes more. Watch these flat bread disks closely because they cook fast.

This flatbread can be frozen for later use if you like. I usually place a little sheet of wax paper between them before freezing to help prevent them from sticking to one another. They are great to have on hand in the freezer, and they thaw rather quickly.

The Sandwich

The filling for these sandwiches is only limited by your imagination, but I'll share our favorite just to spark your imagination.

Spread a scant amount of pesto on two flatbread discs. Sprinkle with a little Parmesan cheese. Add two slices of ham, two slices hard salami, and two slices of provolone cheese. Top with sliced tomatoes and diced onions. Sprinkle with garlic salt. Wrap in foil and bake in a 350 degree oven until it is warm throughout and cheese is melted.

Y Okay, that's all there is to it.

Now enjoy!

Nanci