Well, there wasn't too much howling involved in getting the gumdrop 'dough' out of the pan today. lol  At first I thought it might not come out at all, because the mixture is very sticky.  But with some peeling and tugging it came out.  It was a little precarious for a few moments there, trying to peel it out of the pan without it sticking to me or anything else---or worse, sticking all to itself.  But pretty quickly it was laying all flabby on a bed of sugar on the cutting board.  At this point, before drying, gumdrops are really quite gross, in my opinion.  The flavor is there, but the consistency is rather too slithery for my taste! lol  They are much better after they have dried in the air for a couple weeks and gotten more chewy.  So now they are cut into cubes, dipped in sugar and air drying in the spare room---hopefully far enough away from the air freshener! That is my biggest concern with drying food like that in the open air--that they will end up tasting like Baja Breeze or Beach Cabana or Sandalwood & Vanilla---or whichever fragrance is wafting at the time.  =s 
See:

 Hopefully they will dry up nicely!


I also have some towel pics--finally!

                                    


The last 2 are my favorites, and I think that green one is my favorite of all the towels I've done!  Love it!  (See, Morado, at least you can see them here if I forget to bring them to Funtown!)

In other news, I finally ordered myself a DSLR camera!!  I've been wanting one for some time now and my dear little point-and-shoot is wearing out.  Still takes great pictures, but the body is starting to break.  So, I decided it was time to jump back into a bigger camera.  What better 40th birthday present to give myself?  I can't wait til it gets here, and then can't wait to try it out in Maine!  Only 20 days!  Yes!!

Black towels and Cinnamon gumdrops....

Day 1 of 2 days off!  I love having 2 days off together in the week.  It just gives you time to really decompress and leave work behind.  At least it does for me.  So what to do on my day 1 of 2?  I decided to dye some towels.  I know, big surprise there! lol   I did some in black because a friend has a black and white kitchen and wanted to see some in black.  Unfortunately, they did not turn out so good.  I should have used the whole bottle of dye, I think.  =(  They are a pretty color, but are more like a really dark gray---sort of off-black.  What I was looking for was a black black--a vibrant black, if that makes any sense!    I'm thinking that I should dye them again and see if that makes it any better.  I was afraid this might happen and was tempted to use extra dye when I started, but didn't.  Should have......Bummer!

One of the other things I did today was make cinnamon gumdrops---something I've been wanting to do for quite some time.  I've made gumdrops before, but that recipe used Jello, so you could only make fruit flavors.  I wanted spice gumdrops like cinnamon and clove and anise, etc.  I had found this recipe that uses unflavored gelatin as its base so you can use whatever flavor you want.  I just had never gotten around to trying it.  Today I did.  So far they are turning out.  The real test will be tommorrow when I try to get them out of the pan for drying............If you hear pans banging in frustration you'll know it did not go well! lol

I also made chocolate chip cookies  because I wanted them, and mowed the lawn because it needed it---or did I make cookies because I needed them and mowed the lawn because I wanted to........  Hmmm.......=)    Between the cookies baking and the fall candles burning and the windows open, this house was smelling gooood!  I Love Fall!!!

Saturdays off.........ah!

I love Saturdays off, especially Saturdays off at home.  I don't know why Saturday off is any different than a weekday off, but it is.  At least to me.  There is something so delicious about waking on a Saturday morning and knowing that you don't have to go Anywhere.  Today was one of those Saturdays---although I did make a trip in to work this am because I remembered last night--at 10pm mind you--that I had left my ipod there.  On top of the med cart.  Yikes!  I didn't know whether it would still be there this morning, but indeed it was, right where I left it.  I really must be more careful!  So other than that little jaunt, it was a day at home.  I did the dishes and laundry and ironing and then it was time to play...... I made four towels today--that is I stenciled 4 towels.  It doesn't sound like a lot, but it takes me a while sometimes just to figure out what color and stencil to use on a particular towel. You can't just plop any old stencil down and slap paint on it you know!  The stencil needs to "match" the paint and towel colors.  Or maybe I'm just OCD........Anyway, I accomplished 4 and I like all of them!  WooHoo!  That feels like an accomplishment to me, because I have spent time making towels before and didn't like them when I was done---such a disappointment.  But with these today, especially 2 of them, it will be ok if they don't sell, I like them that much.  =)  Sorry, I have no pictures yet, but soon hopefully.  Its been a beautiful day here.  Warm, but not too humid, with nice breezes.  I've had my windows and front door open all day.  I absolutely Love where I am living now.  Its so very peaceful and quiet here---makes it a pleasure to have the windows open. 1000x better than the apartment.  I couldn't begin to count how many times I have thanked God for this place, thanked Him I do not have to return to that apartment any more. I can't believe it's been a year since the first time I drove in this driveway, and felt I had been given a gift from God.  He is Good!

Well, enough rambling for one day.  In fact, I think I hear my paper calling me........=)

Food!

I tried a new recipe today.  Someone had left a couple Southern Living magazines at work, so in my few minutes of down time here and there I leafed through them looking for any recipes of interest.  Now mind you I have more recipes than I could make in 2 or 3 lifetimes---even if I made one or two new ones a day 7/365.  But does that fact keep me from collecting new ones?  Nooope.  When I see recipes I like, I can always envision myself making them, so I copy them or pull them out or save them to my hard drive.  Such was the case with these SL magazines---found some recipes that I just had to have........lol  However, once in a while I do get one or two of these stashed recipes made, and in some cases have found recipes that have gone into my repertoire of "recipes to make as many times as possible".  Anyway.  By now you're thinking "I wish she would just get to the food already!"  So here it is.  The recipe I tried was Creole-Roasted Black-eyed Peas.  Very simple. Very healthy. Very yummy.

2 cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
3 Tablespoons olive oil (I just used canola because it's what I had)
1 1/2 teaspoons Creole Seasoning

Toss the black-eyed peas with the oil and seasoning (gently!). Spread onto a cookie sheet or baking pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 55-60 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Cool for 20 minutes.

Now here are my notes.  You may be wondering--like I did--what on earth Creole seasoning is.  (For those of you who have known about Creole seasoning your whole life, please forgive us Yankees!)  I found it in the seasoning aisle at Walmart.  It has garlic and several kinds of pepper, and salt--not sure what else.  I think you could substitute Cajun seasoning, as they don't seem too much different. (Correct me if I'm wrong).  Also, be careful with the baking time!  The recipe says 55-60 minutes, but I should have stopped mine earlier.  I think I baked them for about 45 minutes (its harder to count when you are doing 10 min intervals), but wish I had stopped at 35 or 40 because some of mine (maybe half) were a little burned).  I will watch more carefully next time and do my own timing.

The ones that aren't dark are very yummy---crunchy with a hint of spice, a dash of heat, and salty--but not too salty.  The texture is hard to describe--a bit grainy like a bean, but crunchy like a roasted nut.  I like them because I love beans anyway, and they are incredibly healthy for you.  Its a nice change from chips and such too.  And so simple to make!  I was thinking that you could just roast them with a little salt and add them to chex mix---or any other snack mix like that.  Oh the versatility of beans.........=P  I already have them on my grocery list so I can try them again.  I want to take some to work and see how my co-workers like them.  Heh-heh-heh.......(evil chuckle).......

Hope you enjoy!

I always have these "amazing" ideas for posting---when I can't sit down and write.  Then when I have the time, either I've lost the moment or I'm just too tired!  Tonight is one of those too tired nights.  But I did find a lovely blog post from someone else that I want to share.  I have already shared it on my FB page, so if you're friends with me there then you've seen it.  But for all you other readers out there, =) , I'll post it here.  Its from a blog called Grace For The Road and the post is here.  I wish I had read this a very long time ago.  I think there are a lot of things that would have been different in my life had I learned the truth of this post then.  In fact, it applies to all of us, single or married, I think. Because really, He should be the bottom line of All of our lives,  no matter what other human relationships we are privileged to have.

I'm feeling a little giddy.  Know why?  Paint.  No, not the sniffing kind, I promise! lol  Just plain--and yet not so plain--ol' acrylic paint.  Specifically, Martha Stewart craft paint.  After all the trouble I've had with the nice-to-use, but thinner paint I had been mostly using, I decided that maybe I should go with the thicker, though not as nice-to-use, Martha Stewart paint.  So I started looking through the list, pondering which colors I should order.  It turned into a bit of a list since there are 80 wonderful colors with lovely names like Lake Fog and Sea Glass and Heliotrope and Adobo........you get the idea.  I had decided that I would go with a few at a time........but then.......then.......when I went to the Plaid website today, what should I behold, but a beautiful banner declaring all MS products to be 30% off!!  It was put there just for me---like a sign.  I Needed to buy lots of colors---being 30% off and all.....  So buy lots of colors I did.  I won't tell you how many because then you would truely believe I was crazy and send little men (or perhaps big ones) after me to collect me.  I will tell you that I did Not buy all 80.  There are some colors that seem quite light and I'm not sure if the color would be distinguishable from white on a colored towel.  Those I didn't get (did I really need to tell you that?) lol  I already have a few colors, so obviously didn't need those ones.  So I got a lot of the colors in between---with Free Shipping!  WooHoo!  Seriously, I did debate just getting the amount I had started out to get, but when I added the sale code, the paint actually came up cheaper than 30%.  I knew I would want to get the rest of the colors on my list eventually anyway and even with the $10 off code that Plaid seems to offer frequently, this was still a better deal.  And when I added up what I would save using this sale vs paying full price, I was a gonner.  So I'm feeling a little giddy because soon there will be a box at my door full of bright, delicious colors like Wild Blueberry and Love Bird and Poodle Skirt and Scottish Highlands........What?  You are thinking I need a life?  Well, indeed I might, but until I find one I'll just keep on feeling giddy about paint.  =)

I've been feeling a bit discouraged over this whole towel-stenciling thing.  Not that I want to quit making towels, but discouraged with the paint I've been using.  It seems like it just doesn't stand out on the darker towels like I want it to.  After several days of drying the design does stand out better, but still the colors are very muted.  I like them, but have been wondering whether customers will.  This brand of paint works fine on white or the lighter colored towels, just not as nice on the dark.  There is another paint that is thicker--more made for fabric, but it is more expensive (though not extremely so) and not as nice to work with as the brand I used on these towels.  I may have to use it though, especially on the darker towels, in order to get the designs to stand out brighter.  *sigh*  Its always something isn't it?  But tonight I feel a little better because I did 2 towels and they both turned out Great!  I love them both.  Hopefully I can get this stencil/paint thing down so I can really churn out some great towels and get this shop opened before I'm 90! lol

The weather has been gorgeous here.  The temperature is finally sane and the air is clear.  Finally I can open the windows again!  The mornings have been in the low 50s, which feels deliciously cool after the humid oppressive heat.  I'm so glad. I have been waiting for this!  Not only is it more comfortable, but this also means the grass will not grow quite so speedily, so more time for other things.  Yay!  Living out here in the country means that open windows are a pleasure.  Its completely quiet except for the birds and crickets and the occasional plane or car going by.  And the smell of the air......heavenly.  Makes me want to take great lungfuls (is that a word?) of it.  I love how it makes the house smell too--all fresh, instead of the cooped-up, dead air smell.  =)  Mmmmm.......

Today I wanted to make cards.  Could have mowed, could have stenciled towels, could have done a mile-long list of things.  But I wanted to make cards.  I have had very little time to sit at my "card table" (lol) and create.  So today I decided I was going to forget everything else and just make cards.  And I did pretty well......after I cleaned the house....and did laundry......and washed dishes....  Its always something isn't it? lol  But at least after I got those things done I felt less guilty about leaving other things undone for card-making.  It felt so good too, sitting there stamping and cutting and glueing paper.  Amazing what a little paper will do for the spirit.  =)  If only I could get several more years off work! lol

In other news I ordered more dye colors the other day.  There was a sale......with free shipping.......What's a girl to do? lol  I am slowly but surely getting towels stenciled so I can open up my Etsy shop.  Not enough hours in a day!  But one day I will get there.

Later!

Weekends and Water

Last day of my 4-day weekend.  I wanted to spend the day crafting, but its nearly Noon and I haven't really started.  Oy!  But I have been doodling around in my Silhouette Studio program and Store.  I love having a subscription there!  I get $150 of downloads for $16/month.  Pretty good return I'd say!  Anyway.  The weekend has been nice.  Not as much fun as I wanted it to be, but it has still been nice to have the time off from work.  4 days gives you a much better chance to really unwind and leave work behind than just 1!  I spent more time behind the mower than I did at crafting, unfortunately, but hopefully soon that will change, once cooler weather comes.  It was 55 degrees this morning!  Its clear and sunny and even now at Noon its only 75.  I have windows and doors open and the air smells SO good.  My living room windows, however, are not open right now.  I had a run-in with some sort of large bees that wanted to congregate in the one window.  I took the spray to them and now its a bee graveyard.  Made rather a mess in the windowsill and on the window, but at least the bees are not harmful anymore!  One of these days I'll have to clean the window and vaccuum everything up, but not today.  In the meantime I'll just open other windows! lol

I've been thinking about water lately.  Yes, I know, I need a life! lol  But for some reason I've been noticing--and thinking about--how much we use every day.  Have you ever thought about that?  I mean, one batch of dyed towels probably uses more water than some third-world communities use in days!  Now I'm not trying to go all world-eco and start campaigning for people to start using only 3 cups of water a day or anything. lol  Not at all.  We have water available to us here in this country and its a wonderful commodity--a gift for us to use. Not to waste, mind you, but to use to make our lives better.  And doesn't it make our lives better?  Think about everything you do each day that involves water---from your coffee in the morning to that long hot bubble bath at night.  Our lives revolve around water.  Its an amazing thing that we really take for granted---though we don't mean to.  We just don't know life without it.  Its like the air we breathe--always there and in good supply.  I don't know why I've been thinking about this lately.  Maybe its just another way of counting my blessings, thinking about all the things I can do because I have a ready supply of good water.  Or maybe I just need a life....=)

Done with the work week and I am gladder than glad!  (Can you tell I'm feeling in a Dr Seuss word mood? lol)  It was definitely one of those weeks.  The work days weren't the most chaotic, but I just struggled with them on a personal level.  Some days work is just harder than others---harder to face, harder to deal with, harder to get through.  At one point (ok, maybe more than one) I didn't know how on earth I was going to make it.  Ever been there?  But, not being the kind of person who just calls in to work on a whim, I managed to get there and get back home again.  Whew.  I'm glad its over and am hoping that next week will be better.  In the meantime I am going to enjoy my four---yes 4--day weekend!!  WooHoo!  I'm going shopping and gonna do some crafting and yes, the lawn has got to be mowed and the house needs cleaned.  But even the work won't bother me too much, because I still get the best part of every day off---not having to wake to an alarm at 4am.  That fact alone makes me want to dance with glee!  Night all!

Day 2 done.  Ooh what a day!  I do hope that 3 and 4 are Not like this one.  If they are, I will be frazzled for sure! lol  The good news though is that I got some new work shoes!  Finally!  I have been needing some for a while now.  Maybe a month or so ago I ordered a couple pair, but they didn't work and I just let it be for a while.  So by now I Really need new ones.   My feet and legs ache terribly before the day is even over with the ones I have.  So I finally got on the ball and ordered 2 to try.  I was hoping that at least one pair would work, but had decided that if both felt good I would keep both.  Bird in the hand and all that.  Well, they came today and guess what?  Both of them fit and feel great!  I am so thankful!  So tomorrow I'll be stepping out in my new sneaks.  =)  On top of this excitement we are having a birthday lunch at work.  How will I ever be able to take it all in? lol  Here's hoping for a good day!

Day One of a 4-day stretch done.........yeehaw.  lol!  BUT.  At the end of my 4-day stretch of work comes..............A 4-DAY WEEKEND!!!!  WooHoo! 

Ok, enough crowing.  =)  But I had to post something since its been 3 days.  So there you have it. lol  Hope you all are enjoying a lovely Labor Day with something roasting over a fire or on a grill, with S'mores or brownies or marshmallows or something yummy for dessert!  (I'm having tuna salad and green beans.......don't you feel sorry for me? j/k )  Ok, I'm off to start winding down for bed.  Later!