Just 3 Things | #22

I've been all over the place this week. I started making the inside of the house look more spring-like. Then, we had snow flurries and I just left the bin with the bunnies sitting on a chair and gave up. So, I'm about half-springy. I picked up the chair for our bedroom from the upholsterer. I share more about that next week. I spent a couple of afternoons running errands and taking care of farm business. I finally finished up the calculating and filed our tax return. So, it has been a week of this and that.

- What I've Been Loving -

As I was sewing up rips and repairing a few items the other day, I grew frustrated with my sewing machine. It was an inexpensive purchase and has served me well. However, the reverse button is broken and I am having to make-do with stitching, turning, stitching, turning to make a reverse stitch. There's another quirk or two when stitching that I've noticed but I don't use it all that much. I'm now asking myself if I don't sew much because I got out of the habit when I was working full time or if it is because of my sewing machine being sub-par. I did a quick search online and learned that the machine I would like to have is quite pricey. So, I'm ruminating over whether I should invest in a new machine or limp along and not sew much.

As the algorithms do, now I am seeing all sorts of sewing machine information and sewing ideas. One rabbit hole I went down as a result of this is a quilting one. Now, let me say right here that I am not a quilter at heart. I have tried it and I am not a big fan. Maybe I would enjoy it more if I did it with a sewing machine but I am not a hand-quilter. I don't make tidy little stitches that would make a quilt look pretty and I am not satisfied with how my large, gawking ones would look. So, I'm not a quilter.

What I did notice, however, is several table runners, placemats, and pot holders that I absolutely love and am probably going to give a try. I watched a couple of video tutorials about making quilted potholders. I liked some of the techniques that both of these gals showed. I probably will start with making a potholder because the ones I have are a bit sad looking. I liked that one of the videos shows using a towel as the backing. I have some towels that have sad looking edges. So, I might cut those up and use them for backing. 

I also noticed some tote bags that were beautiful but that is something that I think I would have to work up to in order to be satisfied with the outcome. I also noticed some cute pillow cases. So, family members might get pillow cases for gifts. We shall see. At any rate, I've really been loving the ideas that are popping up in my social media feeds!

- What I've Been Reading -

Someone on social media recently was touting the wonderfulness of Elin Hilderbrand's The Perfect Couple. I think it might have been because the book is the fodder for a streaming series. I also noticed that the book and another in the series of four books was offered for a low, low price as a Kindle read. So, I added them to my Kindle library. I paused because these two books were numbers two and three in the series and I wondered whether I'd be lost by not reading book one. So, I chased it down and borrowed it through my Libby App. 

I have read Hilderbrand's work before and remembered that experience as beach reads and somewhat light. Perhaps this one is similar but it is just with the subject matter that I am struggling. I was barely one-fourth in and was already exasperated with the main character and disliking her and her choices. I'm not sure if I will finish this one and am wondering if I will have the mindset to move on to the other two books in the series that I downloaded. I'm on the struggle bus here. I am not giving up, yet, but time will tell.

- What I've Been Working On -

I've been trying out some recipes that I've been saving and marking in the cookbooks I've been sorting and reading. I made a version of a Shepherd's Pie that I hadn't tried before and tried a baked spaghetti casserole. There used to be a local restaurant called HRH Dumplin's. It was what I would call a ladies luncheon sort of place. They served salads, sandwiches, and individual casseroles. Of course, they had delicious apple dumplings for dessert. I guess most women are busy working these days and don't have time to go somewhere for a luncheon because that sort of restaurant is long gone for the most part - at least around here, I think. 

As a young girl, I remember my mother baking apple dumplings and hers were much more delicious than the ones offered at any restaurant. I have thought about those sweet treats and even asked her for a recipe at one time and she couldn't find hers. This week I finally decided to dive in and give making dumplings a try. I used this recipe rather loosely. Here are some of the changes I made:

• I bought refrigerated pie crust dough for a double crust pie. I cut each round into quarters. 
• I used Granny Smith apples and peeled them and cut them into bite-sized pieces.
• I saved the peels and boiled them but will not mess with that again. Instead, I will melt the red candies with a cup of water, a stick of butter, and the cinnamon and sugars that the recipe used.

My version of Apple Dumplings

The candies makes them a beautiful red color and add some spiciness to the sauce. They really turned out pretty and were tasty as well.  I didn't think about making photos so that I could share my recipe - maybe next time I make them. I didn't even think of taking a photo at all until Mike and I had dipped ours out of the dish. So, the photo above shows off only a corner of the dish that was left. Mike absolutely loved them! He told me that he could have eaten the entire dish of eight dumplings. They tasted just like I remember the ones my mother made. So, I loved them as well. I must say that I understand why Mama didn't make them very often. They are more trouble than just making an apple pie or apple cobbler. I do think they are worth the effort, though. Working in the kitchen is always a good thing, though!

I'm in the throes of washing sheets and quilts and pillows and such. Yes, I still do some spring cleaning but this is more of a wash up to get rid of any germs that might be lingering from all of our coughing. Mike and I both spent a bit of time sleeping in the bed last night instead of sitting in chairs to sleep to prevent coughing. Plus, the weather is warming up as we go into the weekend; so, I'm hoping we are past this sickness mess and spring really is upon us. Hope your weekend is delightful!