Political Animals

I was walking around the side of the house in the dark last night (a cat messily eating a mouse on your doorstep is a great incentive to find an alternative entrance) and I froze in place.  Something was moving stealthily through the dead leaves.  It was big...it was mean...and it sounded very, very hungry.  I whirled around, and, oh!  It was just a horse.

We've got horse farms across from us, catty-corner, and a few houses down, and they're frequently up by the fence line and therefore quite close.  It seems like they've been feeding more heavily in the fields lately, even through the night, so the fierce creature I heard was just pawing through the leaves to get to grass.  Phew!

Speaking of nighttime visitors, we still have Trey Snouty visiting quite frequently.  It's easy to see that he's been in some kind of tangle...besides the dragging leg and the shortened tail, his ears are chewed to ribbons.

We have another possum that's started coming around, too.  He's bolder, more robust, and Todd gave him a great misnomer: Snoot Gingrich.  Ha!

Besides trying to keep up with the growing crowd on the front porch, we've been frantically unloading storage units and hauling boxes around.  The barn looked full enough before...

...but is even more full now!

Thirty boxes of books and craft supplies were hauled upstairs to my office and I spent 3 full days in pajamas, digging and sorting and piling (with frequent trips to the barn for my regular work). What a job!  But it's finally done and everything (except for my paper cutters and rubber stamps, location TBD) is put away.

Fabric, stickers, felt, ink, glitter, adhesives, buttons, quilt supplies, yarn, ongoing projects, embroidery supplies, watercolors, colored pencils and paper, construction paper, embellishments, card stock...all tidily sorted, labeled, and put away. 

More work needs to be done in my office...a cabinet built for puzzles, a scary-looking gas wall heater removed, another bookcase added (opposite wall is just bookshelves!) but it feels SO much more peaceful and home-like up here. 

We also brought about 30 boxes of household goods in...baking supplies, pottery, wall art, odds and ends...so you can imagine how messy the downstairs is right now.  But it feels so good to see our things again, even though it's still incomplete (fireplace to be built, trim in dining room, curtains).

Progress!

Looking forward to getting this finished up over the next few days so that we can take a cue from Bosewichte and...

Around the Homestead

It's been a very busy long weekend around here, but I love being productive.  I started working on refinishing a work table for my model kits.

I made little topiary trees for the fireplace, inspired by something I saw recently on Pinterest.  I bought some floral cones and moss at Michael's...

I originally attached the moss with double-stick tape, which was a terrible idea.  I had to go back with my glue gun to re-affix the moss.

Some sticks from the yard, placed in terra cotta pots...and voila!

I'm pleased!

I made a rough corkboard collage of some of my favorite things, which will eventually hang somewhere in my office:

Speaking of my office, I'm currently trying to select a paint color for it.  This is something I'm absolutely terrible at doing, because I gravitate toward very light green, which always looks like toothpaste when it goes up:

So much for a sophisticated slate blue:

...and a bold, overwhelming green:

I think I've finally settled on, ironically enough, Carolina Inn Club Aqua.

Who knows what I'll decide tomorrow, though! 

I organized my messy cooking shelves...

...with the help of a Todd-built device:

I started framing some things, like these Victorian bird puzzles Todd got for me a year ago.  Better late than never! 

I did a ton of work in the yard, and I also baked all - weekend - long.  I made chocolate chip cookies (unphotographed), and orange sherbet (too strong for me, but Todd loves the bittersweet treat that uses the zest of 3 oranges):

A tender, tangy grapefruit loaf:

Lots of baguettes:

Chocolate whoopie pies...

...and boxed them up for some neighbors.

Also, I made gnocchi for the first time.  It's actually much easier than I expected it to be, although you have to plan ahead.  I baked two potatoes and mashed the innards up with an egg, salt, and flour...

Then rolled the resulting mixture into ropes, and cut them.

I boiled the little squares in salted water for a few minutes, and they were done.

They tasted a little bland to me, alone, but with a little salt and pepper, and mixed with caramelized onions and roasted asparagus...

...they made a pretty tasty meal for Todd!

The recipe is here at Smitten Kitchen.  It was quick and easy, and I was able to freeze half of it for another meal.  Success!

Hope you're having a productive week! 

Ginger-snap to it!

The freakish cold spell we've had recently has killed the open camillas and kept us inside on the weekends.  Todd has been busy with our new table saw.  He's built shelves in three closets, in the laundry room, and three series of large-scale shelf-like structures for some of his larger collectible items.  I've never thought much about closets before, but I have to admit that adding shelves (and a coat of paint) has really maximized the space.

Before (a dull yellow):

Todd adding some wire shelving to the wooden supports he'd built:

The final product:

There are also shallow shelves for DVDS going all the way up the left wall.  Amazing!

Meanwhile, since I've been doing daily to-do lists, I've discovered endless small projects.  I've done a massive clothing sort, preparing 6 garbage bags-full for Goodwill.  Found:  some moth-eaten hand-knit gloves.

 Drat!

I've tidied up my sewing machine area and threaded the bobbin, which allowed me to complete a large stack of sewing projects.  I've spring-cleaned the house.  I sorted through 20 magazines, taking articles of interest from each one...

...to be filed into my craft binders.

All kitchen baking supplies have been separated into separate plastic binders and labeled.  All candles have been separated out by type, boxed up in clear plastic shoe boxes, and labeled.  All fabric and kitchen linens have been sorted and labeled.  Holiday boxes have been sorted and organized.  I tell you, to-do lists are amazing!

I did find time to complete a puzzle...

...or two.

I've been buying fresh flowers for my favorite new Emma Bridgewater vase:

...and forcing hyacinths, which I love to do in January.

I've also been baking - a lot.  Unfortunately a corrupted memory card means that I can't show you the chocolate fudge brownies with chocolate chip cookie dough frosting and drizzled chocolate, but I did save the much healthier pumpkin gingerbread tart.  It was delicious - so much better than traditional pumpkin pie.  This recipe is a mix of several other recipes, and a lot of the measurements are "eyeballed".  Here goes!

No-Bake Pumpkin Gingerbread Tart
(heavily adapted from Ezra Pound Cake)

Filling Ingredients
1 cup pumpkin puree
8 oz reduced-fat cream cheese
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of cardamon
1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 - 3/4 cup powdered sugar

Crust Ingredients
3/4 - 1 cup gingersnap crumbs
2 - 3 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  The pie is not baked, but the crust is.

First, crush your gingersnaps.  I used one whole package of Anna's Ginger Thins, but any type would work.  Add your melted butter and mix with a fork until it holds together and can be pressed down.  Then, add the mixture to your 9" tart pan and press evenly across the bottom and around the sides.

Bake at 400 degrees for 6 - 8 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool. 

Meanwhile, toss all but the sugar into your mixer bowl and beat until smooth.  Slowly add your sugar.  When everything is combined, spoon into your cooled crust.

Smooth it all out, and refrigerate it for several hours.  You're done! 

 I think it's a lovely dessert.

 I found this clearance glass cake stand at a thrift store for $5.  A perfect excuse to use it!

I used the full 3/4 cup powdered sugar in this one, and I calculated 10 servings at 230 calories per serving.  Not bad at all, although I may have - ahem - cut rather generous portions when I served this.  Anyway, I hope you'll give it a try...it's a nice, spicy treat.

Have a great week!