A Nice Day Free Of Labor

I really do love my job. It keeps me on my toes and every day holds something challenging and different for me. So, I am never bored. But, I also really do love my days off. Hello Labor Day!! Wah-hoo! It is about 5:30pm and I am still in my pajamas! But, don't misunderstand me. I have not been completely unproductive. I cleaned out my closet today. Oh, what a task. This is a task that I have been putting off since the last time I cleaned it out which was about a year ago. I keep my house very clean, it is just my closet that I struggle with. But this time, I am determined to keep it clean and organized! Well, we will see how long that lasts but, it looks fantastic right now!!


Since I had an extra day off today, I slept in just a little. I did not sleep in too long because Ziggy woke me up chewing on the alarm clock cord (yes, I am a light sleeper). One of these days I will wake up to the aroma of fried kitty but fortunately today, I woke up to the wonderful aroma of coffee (I programed my coffee pot last night to have my coffee ready at 8:30am). I watched a bit of Rachel Ray, which inspired me to make breakfast. In my happy day off breakfast making state, I felt the need to capture it, step by step. :-)

Hacienda Nicholas Inn Blue Corn Waffles



Ingredients:


1 cup whole wheat flour




1 1/2 cups blue cornmeal (I used the cornmeal I picked up at the Santa Fe School of Cooking)




2 1/2 tablespoons white sugar




2 tablespoons baking powder





3/4 teaspoon baking soda





4 egg whites (I accidentally got a little yolk in there)





1 3/4 cups nonfat buttermilk





Now, I had a little problem. I did not have buttermilk. But, I remember my sister telling me that you can make your own butter milk. So that is what I did and here is how you do it:


It is super easy. You just need one tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to every cup of milk.


So, I poured the milk into a mason jar. Actually I used 1%milk and a bit of fat free 1/2 and 1/2





Added white vinegar





Then, you just wait 10 minutes and you have buttermilk!



Mix all your ingredients together and put on your waffle iron.






I topped the waffles with maple syrup, butter, and some berries. I also made jalapeno and sharp cheese scrambled eggs with garlic chives on top, and cooked up some turkey sausage. I wish I could eat like this every morning.





So...since I had so much fun making breakfast, I immediatley started planning dinner. Labor Day seems like a good day to grill so, that is what I did. I made Stubbs BBQ pork ribs, corn on the cob, and BBQ pinto beans.


Days off are fantastic. I wish there was one at least once a month



Next month we approach on October. There is not a national day off then (Halloween should be) but , there is a Lizzie few days off and I can't wait! ACL is just right around the corner! Eddie Vedder, here I come!

Cheers!

First In The Series

I happened across the most intriguing mystery series. I was looking at all the roving that I picked up while in Santa Fe. The roving that I picked up from Miriam's Well, she found in Colorado at a little cozy yarn store called Lambspun of Colorado. So, I started to wonder if the store had a website, googled it, and there it was! As I was navigating through this fantastic little web page, I happened across a book by Maggie Sefton called Fleece Navidad. Only a fellow knitter and spinning lover will understand how overjoyed I was to find out that there is mystery novel based around knitting!! So, naturally I googled Maggie Sefton and found her site. Then, after navigating through her site realized that it is a series! So, tomorrow after work, I am heading straight to Barnes and Noble to pick up the first in the series; Knit One, Kill Two. I am a big holiday dork so, it would be great if I could get them read in time to read Fleece Navidad around the holidays. But, I am not going to hold my breath on that one.

Cheers!

A Little Weekend Knitting And A Big Juicy Hamburger

It has been some time since I have knitted. I have been spending so much time spinning yarn that I just simply put down the sticks. I have been working on knitting socks, but that is really it. I happened to have left my WIP socks over at a friends house so, I was forced into a new knitting project! Sounds just terrible doesn't it? :-)

So, this weekend I have been trying different knitting projects for the shop. I have not posted them yet because I am still trying to get somewhat professional looking shots taken of them, I think I need to upgrade my little camera. I worked on knitting a neck warmer and also...well, I guess it is a large neck warmer but, I really need to come up with a better name than that! I will post pictures of the jumbo neck warmer later, I am still working on it. Here is the teeny neck warmer.

I also started working on Maine Morning Mitts and I can't wait to see how they turn out! It has been fun to just sit on the couch and knit!

Jeff and I went shopping today. He starts a new semester of school tomorrow and only has 2 semesters left until he graduates! So, he needed some new threads. We worked up an appetite shopping (it was tax free weekend and there were mobs of people out!). I have been craving a big juicy old fashioned homemade burger so, that is what we got. We headed over to a local favorite just about a minute from our house, Charley's Old Fashioned Hamburgers. I had the World Famous Avocado Burger. Oh, oh, oh....it was delicious! Just what I had been waiting for and it certainly hit the spot. I had a need to document my hamburger eating experience because it was that good!

Cheers!

Chalkboard Quote Of The Week

"For people allergic to wool, one's heart can only bleed"

Well I think she hit the nail on the head with that one! She must be a pretty smart lady...oh...and she has the same name I do!


Cheers!

Calaveras

I purchased some Alexander Henry Calavera fabric from Bellepepper last week. I highly recommend her! Great prices and super quick shipping. When we were in Santa Fe this past June, we kept seeing this fabric and had to have it! I have some fun things in store with this fabric. My mom and I are going to get together soon and make some tea towels so, more on that later.










But, today I was just goofing around with the fabric and made a felt ornament. I think I am going to make some more of these for my Christmas tree this year!

Today has been a very lazy day and it has been nice! It is just hard to believe that it is almost over. Back to the old grindstone tomorrow! Yesterday my friend Mel brought over some of her Ready Made magazines. I have been highly disappointed that Domino Magazine is not in print any longer so, Ready Made may be a candidate to replace Domino. So, I think I am going to curl up on the couch and peruse this magazine!


Cheers!

My Shop

I added some new things to the shop! I am going to start getting geared up for Halloween and over the next month will start to add some fallish and Halloweenie items! Oh, my favorite seasons are just right around the corner. I just need to get past this humid heat!

Happy Weekend!

Inside A Crayon Box

Spinning yarn is so relaxing and rewarding. It is especially rewarding when you spin something you really love. I have been spinning the roving I purchased from Gale's Art. It is called Crayon Box and when you spin it, it really looks like the inside of a crayon box! Click over here to see the roving in its pre-spun form. I had a lot of fun spinning this. When I was working on the 2 ply process it was cool to see the different color combinations form. When I see yarn like this I always admire it, now I have spun some! So, the big decision is, do I keep it for myself or sell it? It really is my favorite out of the yarns that I have spun but...as difficult as it is, I am going to put it in the shop. I still need to complete the finishing process but once that is done in the shop it will go! I will probably have to keep telling myself that so I actually follow through!

Oh, and I spun some of this yarn while watching Coraline! I got it on DVD this past weekend. I purchased the collectors addition which comes with a 3D version. It is cooooooooooool!!

Cheers!