Snowy Days, Home Baked Bread and Bringing Light into the House

 A Few Things On A Winter's Day

Hello friends! It's a cold, snowy day here and I am looking for all the ways I can to bring a little cheer to the indoors. Here in Asheville, we seem to be stuck in a pattern of really cold temps and we added snow and ice to the mix yesterday. The cold weather is due to be with us into the next week. I really am not a fan of the cold, or of snow, but I will admit it is very pretty to look out the windows and see the snow. One way I bolster my spirits during the winter is to look for ways to bring in light. I purchased the crystal tree you see in the above picture before Christmas thinking it would be a good "winter" decoration.

I discovered the tree changes colors going from white light to blue, green, red, purple and gold. It's quite pretty and I have been using it daily as a way to lift my spirits on these dreary, cold days.

I also changed over my ceramic tree from multi-color lights to white lights and created a little display with snow globes and a glass deer. I have since moved the ceramic tree to the bottom shelf of the side table in the living room and like it better there. It's nice to have pretty lights in several areas of the house especially in the evening.

And then, feeling like I still needed some brighter lights, I put the little three foot multi-color light tree into action again, this time fashioned as a "winter" tree with the addition of pine cone ribbon wrapped around it. I really do love multi-color lights and I was missing them after putting the Christmas decor away so I just took the tree out of its box once more. I haven't put a wrap around the bottom of the tree as yet but am keeping my eye out for something more "wintery" that I can use. I really do feel that my winter decor is different from what I used for Christmas and the extra light definitely helps to improve my mood during these long, cold nights! Winter has never been my favorite season, unfortunately. I don't like going out on potentially icy and slick roads and, since falling in October and breaking my wrist, I am doubly afraid of falling. The Mr. loves winter and the cold doesn't seem to affect him like it does me. And while he doesn't take unnecessary chances, he doesn't feel the panic I feel about driving in bad weather. Opposites attract, right?! Since I retired there is less worry about going out in bad weather although there are still times when I have to make the call about going out or staying in. 

When the snow starts to fly, I always feel like cooking and baking. Yesterday, as we were experiencing a snowstorm, I decided to bake some homemade bread. This is the result. I use bread pans that belonged to my Mom and always feel close to her when I am mixing, kneading and baking bread. She was an amazing bread maker and I can still recall the smell of the house with bread in the oven and then her cutting me a thick slice and spreading butter on it and pouring me a glass of milk to wash it all down. Our house smelled really good yesterday as this bread baked and it evoked many such happy memories. 

I'll share a little bread making secret with you that I recently discovered. You may already know this and I was just late in coming to the party, but rapid rise yeast has made all the difference with my bread baking!

I could never get my bread to rise like this before using rapid rise yeast!

And how pretty is this perfectly browned loaf of bread?! Yes, I'll admit to being proud of myself! 

I also made a big pot of vegetable bean soup and that, along with leftover crockpot steak, veggies and rice, made a lovely supper.

These winter skylines and sunsets are really beautiful. One blessing from the hurricane is that we now have a mountain view that we did not have before. Of course, that happened because so many trees were blown down during the storm. There seems to be positives and negatives to everything. Including the winter season. 

I try to bring cheer into the winter by adding colorful and bright lights and cooking hearty, filling, and warm meals that bring happy memories to mind. 

How do you style your life for Winter? Be sure to share in the comments. I love hearing from you! Stay warm!

☃☃☃☃☃☃☃☃

Until Next Time,

Debbie (This and That)

*Note: We now have much more snow than what you see in these pictures which were taken over a period of several days before yesterday's storm hit. 

The First Leaf of Fall and This and That

 A Little Bit of This and That

Hello friends!  I'm afraid this is one of those posts where I may be all over the place with what I'm sharing. It truly is a "this and that" kind of post! I spied this leaf on our back porch yesterday and have dubbed it, "the first leaf of Fall." To me, Summer has flown by and soon we will be into September. Kids are heading back to school already, although so many are now homeschooled that we still see kids in stores and restaurants all through the year. This morning I sat out on our back porch with our dog, River, and noticed how cool the morning air was. Another sign of cooler temps eventually heading our way. I know that we will still have many hot days ahead, but I must admit that I am looking forward to Fall this year. Fall, along with Spring, are my favorite seasons. The colors, the crispness of the air, the smoky smells from chimneys and leaf burning all bring a sense of excitement. Of course, Fall leads into Winter which is my least favorite season. We haven't had bad winters for quite a while so we will have to see what this coming Winter will bring. Will it be as mild as last year? Time will tell. 

The Mr. and I have really been enjoying the fruits of summer. The melons and blueberries have been so sweet and delicious! I miss having fresh fruits in the winter. We don't garden so our fruits have come from Sam's Club or the grocery store but we have been lucky in finding really good produce this year. 

I've enjoyed many good meals this summer. This is a delicious new salad choice that I enjoyed recently at Panera's. The salad is filled with greens, fruits and nuts and topped with chicken and a poppyseed dressing. Delicious!

And, The Mr. and I have discovered that we really like shopping at Aldi. You can really get a bang for your buck there! We found these vegetarian meatballs in the frozen foods section and they are absolutely delicious! I used them in this spaghetti and meatballs dish surrounded by broccoli. The meal was tasty and nutritious. I find that I like the frozen vegetables at Aldi better than any other I have tried at other stores. I don't get compensated by Aldi, I just like to shop there. 

In other news, I bought new sheets several weeks ago and haven't shared how pretty they are on the blog yet. I love going to bed and laying on clean, crisp sheets that are soft, comfy and pretty! Even though our mattress is queen size, I bought king size sheets to have extra sheet hanging down on each side. Anyone else besides The Mr. and me play tug of war with their sheets at night? Using king size sheets seems to have solved the problem! Plus, the longer side sheets give the illusion of having a dust ruffle on the bed.

And, finally, these three turkeys wanted to pop on the post and say "hello" to everyone! Cassie has reminded me that she hasn't been able to write a blog post in a long time. And, of course, when River and Garden heard that they had to chime in and say, "me too," so perhaps in the near future I will take my chances and hand over the blog to these three crazy furballs!! Who knows how that will go?!

Hope you all enjoyed a little bit of this and that today. Be sure to let me know in the comments. I love hearing from you!

Until Next Time,

Debbie (this and that)

Tan Striped Sweater, Easy Tasty Meals, Cat Antics and More

 A Little Bit of This and That

Hello everyone! In true "this and that" fashion, this post is going to share something for everyone including fashion, food, pets, parties and more. Hope you enjoy!

I've been working on adding some new sweaters to my closet and this one I ordered from Blair. It's called a tunic sweater as it has a longer length which I really like. I also like the cowl neck. The sleeves are a tad long but that is minor in my book and I just roll them up. It pairs well with jeans but can also be dressed up with dressier pants. I'm definitely a sweater girl and have quite a collection of sweaters that I wear all winter long. How about you? I'll provide the link for this Elisabeth Williams sweater in case you are interested in doing a little shopping. I'm not promoting items for Blair. I do enjoy items I have ordered from them, however. I also ordered this Fair Isle sweater and really like it as well. 

Since the holidays, I have been working a little harder on making sure to provide nutritious meals for The Mr. and myself. So, here are a few meals we have enjoyed. Feel free to take any ideas from here that you think you might like. And please share any ideas you have for easy, healthy meals. This was a recent breakfast. I incorporated sauteed mini tomatoes into an egg white omelet served with sliced banana and whole wheat toast. 

This salad was really delish! Mixed greens tossed with mini tomatoes and topped with a salad topper of dried cranberries and almonds. I have been making my own salad dressings using a tablespoon of either apple cider or balsamic vinegar with about two tablespoons of olive oil, onion and garlic powder. Sometimes I add a dollop of honey mustard. Whisk well and pour over your salad. So good!

And this meal turned out really well the other night. I made salmon patties using pre-packaged salmon mixed with an egg white, onion powder, garlic powder, finely minced onion and bread crumbs. I mixed all the ingredients well, formed patties and browned the patties in a skillet with a little olive oil. Then, I baked the patties at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. I served the patties on top of a garden salad with potatoes on the side. We both really enjoyed this meal.

After sharing so many photos of our dog, River, lately I thought I would devote this post to sharing some of what Cassie and Garden have been up to lately. As you can see in the pic, Cassie has started the new year by getting on the scales! We can all probably identify with the feeling of peeking at the number and not wanting anyone else to see it! I think you're just purrrrfect that way you are, Cassie!

Meanwhile, Garden has been devoting a lot of time to her hobby of sitting in boxes. (Photo by The Mr.) She finds that this shape of box fits her to a "T" although she enjoys other shapes as well. 

Both girls also love their perches and sit on them all the time. (I won't tell you how many perches we have throughout the house for them. Can you say spoiled cats?!) Cassie loves to jump and climb and Garden likes the perches that have hidey holes on them. Both girls like the scratching posts on the bottoms. The Mr. snapped this photo just before Garden knocked Cassie off the top of the perch. That is a "prized spot" for both of our girls. 

I had a fun time last weekend celebrating birthdays with these two lovely ladies. We all have a birthday within about a month of each other and, this year, each of us celebrated a "significant" number for our birthday. We decided to join forces and celebrate together with our other friends. What a fun night we had with good food, delicious cake, laughter, games and fellowship. As I said on Facebook, getting a year older isn't so bad when you have good friends to celebrate with! Thanks Sallyanne and Jennifer! ❤❤❤

Finally, I want to share how I have decorated the top of the radio cabinet (bookcase) in my music room using a blue theme. After Christmas it really looked bare so I added this beautiful blue quilted bowl created by my friend, Sharon. I also have a unique calendar that Sharon gave me for my birthday (it has cards that you change out for each month) and a blue tile that says, "Home is where we love, rest, dream and nest." That is certainly true of my home and, I hope it is true for you and your home as well!

This has been a busy post and I hope that you found something within it that you enjoyed, learned from or just liked looking at! Maybe even something that made you smile! That's my goal and I surely enjoy sharing a little bit of my life with you right here on the blog. Be sure to leave a comment. I love hearing from you! I leave you with a sunset seen from my kitchen door. How pretty is that?!

Until Next Time,

Debbie (This and That)

'Twas The Week Before Christmas And All Through The House

A Little Bit of Christmas This and That

I'm wearing my new Christmas apron for baking this year.

Oh my goodness, friends, how is it the week before Christmas already?! I can't believe I haven't posted since Thanksgiving. Time just seems to go ever faster and faster and life seems to be busier and busier. Am I the only one who feels this way?!

As you can see, I have been busy with baking, shopping for, wrapping and sending presents, writing Christmas Cards and, of course, musical endeavors. Christmas is especially busy for musicians! I have to show off the peanut butter cookies I baked. The recipe comes from Julie Wunder over at runninginaskirt.com. It's a super easy recipe that uses whole wheat flour rather than white flour and honey rather than sugar. The cookies are delish but I am really proud of the fact that, for the first time ever, I was able to make the fork tine marks on the cookies! I know...I'm only 65 and finally got this to work (eye roll)! I just feel so accomplished, lol!

I also made some pretty tasty Haystack Cookies. These cookies are typically made using Chinese noodles (to look like haystacks) but I decided to try making them with Cheerios instead and they got rave reviews! It's so easy to make them. You simply melt a bag of butterscotch morsels in a bowl and stir until creamy, then add approximately two cups of Cheerios and about one cup of peanuts. You can add more Cheerios/peanuts as needed. Blend it all together and drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper. The cookies harden in a few minutes and can be stored in an airtight container. It really tastes more like candy than a cookie but no matter what you call it, these are delicious! And, it's nice to have a cookie that doesn't need baking. 

I promised to share more of my decorating with you so here are a couple of pics you haven't seen. This is the little three foot tree in "my room." I used the softer ornaments on this tree and I love it so much. It sits on top of the old radio cabinet that belonged to my sister, so it is well out of the reach of our dog, River. He's done really well, though, leaving all decorations alone. 

And this is my gingerbread dish drying mat in the kitchen. It makes me smile each time I look at it. I don't have a drinks station in the kitchen so this is pretty much it for kitchen decorating this year!

And this is the little party table I put together for the handbell players tonight. Just a little celebration to thank them for all of their hard work all year long! We participated in our church's Christmas Concert the first Sunday of December and they rang beautifully! Our concert had organ, choir, handbells and brass all performing. 

And one of my goals for Christmas this year, was to sew some Christmasy pillowcases for our bed and I am happy to report that I accomplished my goal! They are just a fun little "something" that makes me smile when I come to bed at night. The fabric has candy canes and candy cane hearts with holly mixed in against a navy blue background. 

And, finally, can you guess????

River turned one year old on December 15th! And, of course, we had to give him a party! He didn't love the party hat too much.

But, he loves his birthday cupcake with a removable lid for hiding treats inside. All in all, I think he had a very good birthday! It has been five months since we adopted him and he has grown a lot. He is learning every day and we continue to work with his training. 

So, that's a little bit of this and that from my corner of the world. How about you? What are you doing to keep busy this month? And I hope that each of you enjoys a blessed Christmas. I hope to post before Christmas but should life get too busy, let me wish each of a very, very Merry Christmas!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

 

Checking In With My Readers

A Little Bit Of This And That 

Hi friends! Wow, it's been awhile since my last post. I just didn't have anything of interest to share, but I hope today's post takes care of that. It's a little bit of this and that for you today. A little decor, a little fashion and a little food! Hope you enjoy. 

Yesterday, The Mr. played a 4th of July concert at a local retirement community and I went with him. I noticed right away the lovely table vignettes that were on display throughout the clubhouse and I decided to snap some photos and share them on the blog. I can't take any credit for these lovely vignettes because they were done by other people. How cute is this wooden tray with a jaunty hat, pretty flower box and a delightful flower? So cute!

And this vignette is one I may try to emulate. I really like the stones in the glass vases. 

And with this lovely photo in the background, the vases really fit in with the whole nature theme. Such a great idea to put all of this together!

But, this may be my favorite of all the vignettes. The cheerfulness of the yellows with the blues is just so bright and summery! 

And the clock hanging above adds just the right final touch to the display!

Speaking of displays, I want to share this piece of furniture with you that I brought back from my trip to WV. I grew up with this piece and after my oldest sister passed, I decided I wanted this to put in "my room." The cabinet was originally part of an old fashioned radio from long ago. My father removed the radio (long before I came along) and turned it into this lovely cabinet. Growing up, this was used as a bookcase and then, later, as a display for quilts and then to store sheets. It has been used for many things over the years and I am so happy to be the current "keeper" of this piece. I haven't decided yet how I want to use the shelf. I may use it for books but then again I may opt for something else to display inside it. The filigree is so pretty and the glass and knobs are original (as far as I know). Just wanted to share it with my readers!

This is the corner of my room now, with the arrangement of everything. Radio cases used to be really ornate weren't they?!

This past Sunday I delivered the message at our church and prior to that I spent some time "shopping my closet" for something to wear. This dress was really bright, especially with the pink jacket.

This dress was pretty and a little longer in length, but I was concerned I would feel too warm with the long sleeves. 

This ended up being "the choice." Long skirt and short sleeved top for comfort in the heat. I know The Lord doesn't care about what we wear to church, and I know that what I said in the message was much more important than my clothes, but I wanted to feel confident getting up in front of people. I was speaking because our pastor of 16 years retired and our new pastor doesn't start until this coming Sunday, and the retiring pastor asked me if I would preach for this "in-between" Sunday. I wonder if the new pastor will be shopping her closet like I did trying to make a "good choice" for her first Sunday? Feeling confident in what we wear is so important in my opinion. What do you think about that?

And, you know I have to share some good food with you! This was a delicious meal I ate recently at Cracker Barrel. This is what I call an, "Aunt Beulah Special." Pinto beans, slaw, potato casserole and greens with a touch of vinegar. So good and very similar to the meals my Aunt Beulah used to prepare for my family and I when we would visit her in Gilmer Station, WV. She always had brown beans waiting on the stove and added fried potatoes and homemade biscuits to the meal. That was some fine eating, my friends, and I always think of her when I have this meal. 

I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful 4th of July and I would just love to hear what has been happening in your life lately. Leave a comment and tell me. I enjoy hearing from you!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

How To Style A Blue Polo Dress

 Blue Polo Dress and What's Been Happening

Hi Everyone!  Time sure has a way of passing quickly and I can't believe it has been so long since my last post! So, I thought I would share a little fashion with you along with tidbits of life over the last several days. 

You know, I have become a fan of Blair clothing over the last few years and when I saw this retro style Polo dress in blue, I decided to order it online. I really like this style of dress and thought you might be interested in how it can be styled. 

I wore the dress to do some church work the other day and felt like it would look good with a belt to give it some more definition around my waist. My solid black belt seemed to do the trick.

This longer white cardigan provided some nice contrast to the blue color and also gave some additional warmth since we continue to have cooler May days. I have always thought that blue and white look really good together. I keep reading about making sure that a sweater or jacket is 2/3 the length of the dress or skirt you are wearing and this cardigan seems to fulfill that rule. 

I first became acquainted with Blair clothing years ago when I saw some of the clothing my mother-in-law was wearing. She had closets-full of Blair. I looked at her catalogs and saw items that I thought were cute for someone my age. Fast forward several years and I bought a few items on Poshmark that were Blair and really enjoyed wearing and decided to buy an item from the actual online site. Over the years I have pretty much narrowed down my size for Blair items and have been happy with what I have purchased online. If you decide to order from this company I can give you a few suggestions that helped me. First off, read the size charts carefully and measure yourself to make sure. Reading the reviews about items can also help to see if sizing is true to size or runs small or large. Also, when you go online to browse on their site you will most likely be offered either a low shipping cost for your first purchase or there will be a code you can use to reduce shipping costs. It is worth it to wait until you can pay the least amount for shipping. I also recommend ordering one or two items only to start with until you are certain about your sizing. Blair does charge shipping to return items and that can be costly. Once you order online from them you will receive catalogs from them every other month or so but I enjoy browsing to see what they offer. They offer clearance items frequently and that is a good way to try items at a lower cost. This company occasionally changes where the clothing is manufactured and that sometimes results in reviews being mixed about quality or sizing but, as I mentioned, I have been 90% happy with what I have ordered either from the direct online site or Blair clothing from Poshmark. I'm not being compensated by Blair for sharing this dress with you. I just like their clothing!

In other news about what's been happening lately, my husband's Mother celebrated her 90th birthday last week and we enjoyed this delicious cake as part of her celebration!

It's hard to know what to buy for someone who is 90 years old! Her room in assisted living is filled with plants and flowers that have been sent to her so we decided she might enjoy a dish garden of succulents. Something a bit different. 

Other family members came to visit over the weekend and we took them up into the mountains toward Mt. Mitchell State Park to enjoy the scenery. It was a beautiful day to do this!

I believe The Mr. snapped this photo from on top of Mt. Mitchell. I wish you could smell the fresh clean scent of these pines. It was wonderful! The rain held off until we were driving back to our house so we didn't get wet. 

I snapped this photo of a bud on an Ohio Buckeye tree that we saw on the drive back. I had not seen a bud opening quite like this one before. 

And just look at this yummy pizza!  I have been lucky enough to eat at "My Father's Pizza" in Black Mountain, NC twice in the last month and a half. On the day this picture was taken, The Mr. and I drove there to lunch and look around the shops. Today, my dear friend, Sharon, and I were able to walk around Lake Tomahawk and then eat on the outside pation of the restaurant. 

The Mr. and I have been going to this restaurant for many, many years and always enjoy the pizza there. Today was no exception!

I'll close this post today with the bears that frequent our backyard. We have had many visits this Spring, almost everyday. Sometimes it's a mama and her yearlings or her itty bitty babies and sometimes it's a lone bear passing through. 

Photo by William Ross

And sometimes it's a baby bear wanting to know if Cassie and Garden want to come out to play! (They always decline!)

Hope your week is going well. I would love to hear from you in the comments!

Until Next Time,

Debbie (Stylin' Life and Enjoyin' This and That)