Good Bye Thursday...Hello Valentine's Day!

 I

 YOU!

Happy Valentine's Day 

Dear-hearts!

Hearts!

Now I ask you "How perfect is this little mug?"

 I got it at Tuesday Morning a few months back. 

So very glad that they are right around the corner. 

And my husband really is! :)  ha ha

Perfect for tea! 

Oh! P.S. 

Were you wondering if I would do a silly Valentine Mani? 

The answer: Well of course!

Hearts to you!

Monday, Monday...

Oh! Hello Yellow!

Let's Face Monday Together!

Fresh-Cut Friday February

Hello there! 

I'm so glad your here!

It's time to share another more Fresh-Cut Ideas. 

I really never get tired flowers... 

Do you?

 Peach and orchid is the color theme of my arrangement.

 But my table is more pink and pale blue. I think the combo is good. 

The day I took these pictures it was very overcast. So they look like I took them late in the day 

but really it was about noon time.

 I used my April Cornell Table Clothe, Mikasa White Silk china, Mama's Pink Milk Glass plates with gold rim, mom's silver ware, Anthropology glasses and matching pitcher.

 

 You can see the detail of the gold rim a little better here.

So that is that!

You have my contribution for Fresh-Cut Friday!

I hope you will join in and share your posts with us. 

Make sure you add a link in your post back to this party. 

Feel free to add anything Floral related. 

I'll be joining:
Seasonal Sundays
How Sweet The Sound

Imparting Grace

Common Ground

The Charm of Home

French Country Cottage

A Delightsome Life

Little Makes, Movies and Updates

Hello Chickie Babies! 

I hope you are having a great week. YES?

I am happy to say that I am!

I have made some minor changes and I can see a difference in attitude already. 

On my 15 minute break at work I am now taking a walk. What a wonderful 

difference that one little change can make. 

It clears my head and I feel like I am more focused when I get back to my desk.

I'm still working on this cute little baby blanket and it is coming along nicely. 

But, like I usually do, I got inspired to make a super quick project. 

I was on Pinterest and saw a couple of cute outfits with big, chunky, gray infinity scarves. 

So ....

I had to have one!

Super quick to make, this is just 2 skeins of Vanna's Choice in Taupe. 

If you would like to make one and would like more 

of the how-toos just click here.

I started reading this... ugh! Sooooooo good. 

Can't wait to tell you more.

Check out her website for more details. 

Went and saw this Saturday afternoon with my bookclub girls... 

You just really need to go see it!
 I LOVED it!

You can watch the trailer here.

I also have my Fresh-Cut Friday post ready to go. 

Do you?

Short Rib and Barley Stew

So! I hear that a big part of the country is suffering a horrible cold spell.

I'm sorry! 

I hope you are taking care of yourselves.

I thought that I would share my recipe for Short Rib and Barley Stew that I found (here).

This is such a hearty, DELICIOUS soup.  I hope you will try it.

I have made this 3 times now and every time it is wonderful. 

I have tweaked the recipe a bit here and there to adjust it to our taste. 

Plus it calls for Marmite... what is that? Has anyone ever heard of this ingredient?

My understanding is that it is something that ads an intense salty flavor... 

Anyway, I could not find it anywhere, so I added extra Soy Sauce. 

That did the trick! 

So here it is. I hope you like it!

• 2 pounds boneless beef short ribs, cut into 1-inch chunks
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 medium carrots, split in half and sliced into 1/2-inch chunks (about 1 cup)
• 2 medium ribs celery, split in half and sliced into 1/2-inch chunks (about 1 cup)
• 1 large onion, finely diced (about 1 1/2 cups total)
• 1/2 teaspoon marmite
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 2 medium cloves garlic, grated on a microplane grater (about 2 teaspoons)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 quart low-sodium chicken broth (preferably homemade) 
• ( I use canned chicken broth and I have to add almost twice what it calls for)
• 1 (14.4) ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
• 1 cup pearl barley
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 cups loosely packed kale leaves, roughly torn

Procedures

1. Season short ribs with salt and pepper and toss in a large bowl to coat. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or large saucepan over high heat until smoking. Add the beef and cook without moving until well-browned on first side, about 5 minutes. Stir beef and continue cooking, stirring occasionally until browned all over, about 10 minutes total, reducing heat if bottom of pan begins to burn. Return meat to bowl and set aside.
   
   
2. Return pan to medium-high heat and add carrots, celery, and onion. Cook, stirring frequently until vegetables begin to brown, about 4 minutes total. Add marmite, soy sace, garlic, and tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
   
   
3. Add broth and scrape up browned bits from bottom of pan with wooden spoon. Add tomatoes, barley, and bay leaves. Return beef to pot. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce to lowest possible heat and place cover on pot, leaving lid slightly ajar. Cook, stirring occasionally until beef is completely tender and barley is cooked through, about 2 hours. Stir in kale leaves and cook, stirring constantly until wilted, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or for best flavor, chill and refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 5 days.

Do You Ever.... SOAR?

Hey! 

Let me ask you... 

Because I have certainly been spending my 

time lately asking myself...

 Do you ever look in the mirror and find yourself where you least expected to be?

 You look back at your life and ask:

"What was I supposed to accomplish?"

"What was it that I expected anyway?"

Or are you like me and try to ignore those hard, self-pointed questions? 

Questions, that frankly, most of the time, the only answer I have is  "I dunno!"

 I personally feel a little stuck. 

Like my clock is broken, but time is still ticking away. 

I know that there is still something that I haven't figured out yet. 

What is it that would make me soar?

 What makes you soar?

Because I think God wants us to SOAR.

All's Quiet ....

Hello My Friends!
I hope you are all having a wonderful new year.

It is busy here but not the kind of busy that is worth reporting on. 

Here's the run down.

Finished the Book Thief ... 

Oh my gosh! 

Loved it!!!

Saw the movie too.... loved it, but not as much.

Currently reading Orphan Train ...

 Almost finished, and I will be sad when I'm done! 

I have really enjoyed it.

 * * * * * *

Finished Project...

I am pretty tickled with how this little baby blanket turned out.

I finished it in December.

I finally got to have lunch with my friend and pass this along for her sweet baby boy.

I think it was appreciated.

I hope so anyway.   :)

* * * * * *

On hold for now...

The blue gingham afghan is on hold for now. I'm still working on it but I decided to 

stop for now so that I can work on another little baby blanket. 

I'm still looking forward to seeing the squares come together. 

* * * * * *

What I am currently working on is a baby blanket for 

my friend's daughter. 

She is going to be having a little boy as well. 

This is her bedding... cute! huh? 

I love doing baby blankets. Mostly because they move along

pretty quickly, but also the colors are usually very fun.

I'll keep you posted! 

If you ever want any of the dtails on my crochet projects, you can 

find them by clicking on my Raverly button.

ALSO: Working on planning a wedding for sweet daughter.

What about you? 

Are staying busy?

Fresh Cut Friday January 2014

Well, hello my lovelies! 

That was the first time this year that I have typed 2014. :) 

That makes the new year official, for me anyway. 

Welcome to the first Fresh-Cut Friday of 2014. 

It's going to be a great year! 

Let's get started shall we? 

 I know that I mentioned in the December's FCF that I really love evergreens and roses, but 

just to prove it, I'm going to share it again. 

Pairing the light pink with the dark, green, feathery evergreens makes an undeniable 

winter bouquet. 

These are the same evergreens that I used for the December's arrangement!
That means that they lasted for 4 weeks! I finally gave then up the day after Christmas. 

These fresh cut beauties are a bonus from my good friend Susie. 

She brought them the night of our book club Christmas party. 

How gorgeous are those?!

Ok! Now I have to see what you are sharing! I can't wait.


Remember: Please provide a link back to this post and make sure you visit each other.

I'll be joining:

Imparting Grace

My Romantic Home

Common Ground

The Charm of Home

French Country Cottage

A Delightsome Life