Friday, December 24, 2010

Favorite Christmas Recipes

We have made these for year. These are a few of our favorite things:

Sausage Balls


INGREDIENTS:
1 pound ground pork sausage
2 cups biscuit baking mix
1 pound sharp Cheddar cheese
1/4 cup water (opt if too dry)


DIRECTIONS:
  1. 1Allow cheese and sausage to reach room temperature.
  2. 2Place in mixing bowl with Bisquick and blend till smooth. (I've had great success using my hand-held electric mixer to incorporate ingredients). NOTE: Mixture will be quite dry.
  3. 3Line cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Spray well with vegetable oil spray.
  4. 4Press/roll mixture into 1 inch balls by hand. Place onto cookie sheets about 1 inch apart.
  5. 5Bake in 400* oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or till golden brown.
  6. 6Drain on paper toweling.


    Orange Balls


    1 (12 oz.) pkg. vanilla wafers, crushed
    1 (6 oz.) can frozen orange juice, thawed
    1/2 c. butter
    1 (16 oz.) box powdered sugar
    1 c. chopped pecans
    7 oz. coconut (opt)

    Combine wafers, juice, butter and sugar; mix well. Blend in nuts. Shape into 1 inch balls and roll in powdered sugar or coconut.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

My prototypes are here!


My prototypes for my templates arrived yesterday.
Pretty darn cool! I can't wait to see these produced.
Hopefully these will be out by the beginning of the year thanks to Simplicity and EZ Quilting

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

My quilting and embroidery angel - Mary


I put out a plea a little over a year ago for a tester and Mary sent me an email saying she was up for the job. I warned her that I was a slave driver ;) Mary has become not only my tester but a very dear friend. I finally got to meet her this year. She flew to Houston and stayed with mom and I for 10 days. We had such a great time! She was a life saver for us. She brought a darling quilt that she made for her precious grand daughter Cookie (who thinks she is Rapunzel). I am SO grateful for Mary and her friendship.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Houston 2010

WOW!!! That is all I can say. It was incredibly awesome (with the exception of my allergic reaction that I am STILL itching from). Simplicity picked up my template and will soon be produced and sent all over the world. I'm so excited about it and have more in the works. So, for those that bought the Simply Elegant Template from me, those were limited editions. =)
I came home to a clean house that was a very nice feeling. My boys have been loving on me. I know that they are glad that I will be home for the next 2 months and then more shows. My January includes Oklahoma City QSEExpo and Road To California. Bought my airline tickets today for Cali.

I'm writing from my new laptop. I got it Monday night. It's a graphics tablet pc and completely awesome. I can draw directly on the screen. It's a Fujitsu TH700.

Hubby started his job Monday after being without for a little over a year! His job is a huge blessing but he will be gone throughout the week and home on the weekends. I'm supposed to pick him up in Dallas tomorrow night. The little guys are super excited about swimming at the hotel. lol

For those of you who haven't been to Houston before, I am including a picture of the George Brown convention center. It takes up 5 city blocks, 3 floors and too many quilters to count. We take up the WHOLE building now!

Friday, August 13, 2010

Bisquick substitute & recipes

Found at : http://creativechicksatplay.blogspot.com/2010/07/homemade-bisquick-substitute.html

Here is a recipe for homemade Bisquick®.

Our mom gave me this recipe I don't know how long ago--probably when I first got married and then I've come across it again in this really OLD (published 1978) book called "Make-a-Mix Cookery" by Karine Eliason, which I happened to find and purchase at some thrift store a couple years ago.

In the book they call it Quick Mix

8 1/2 c. All-purpose flour
1 Tbs. Baking powder
1 Tbs. Salt
2 tsp. Cream of Tartar
1 tsp. Baking soda
1 1/2 c. Instant nonfat dry milk
2 1/4 c. Vegetable shortening

In a large bowl, sift together all dry ingredients. Blend well. With pastry blender, cut in shortening until evenly distributed. Mixture will resemble cornmeal in texture. Put in a large airtight container. Label. Store in a cool, dry place. Use within 10-12 weeks. Makes about 13 cups of Quick Mix.

Note: I don't use this amount in 10-12 weeks, so I store mine in a 5 qt. ice cream bucket in the freezer so that it will last longer.

A slightly different version of Bisquick® substitute called Master Mix found HERE.

One more HERE. There are apparently a number of different versions out there online. You can find the one that works best for you.

Here is a family recipe we use for an easy bacon and cheese quiche that uses Bisquick®. I'm sure it is based off of this recipe from Bisquick®. You can easily substitute the bacon for browned sausage, or cooked ham chunks. It is one of my kids' favs.

Copyright by Leslie & Emily

Thursday, August 12, 2010

More Soldier's Quilts

We boxed up more quilts today to send to Fort Hood for injured soldiers. We now have sent 71 finished quilts. We still have 13 or more tops yet to be quilted.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Photograph computer tricks

I LOVE what my daughter Briana did with this picture of herself!

Clouds in the sky


We had brief storms move through today. I caught a few pics of the clouds which were interesting.

These photos were taken yesterday evening. I love the way the sun rays peek out from the cloud. The sunset was awesome just about an hour or so after that.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

LaJolla area. We stopped when we saw this place and got out to walk around. The temperature was only about 64 this day...in the middle of July!! It was incredible. We walked down to the lifeguard station to take care of mother nature. When we rounded the north side of the building we were pleasantly surprised at what we saw:These markers are erected in memory of members of the Armed Forces of the United States whose remains have not been recovered or identified or were buried at sea.


What a tranquil place. We were so humbled by the number of markers here at this beautiful resting place by those that made the ultimate sacrifice.

Hooray for Hollywood

Woo Hoo! My husband was able to go with me this time to Long Beach Quilt Show. We had a car full of people: Dianne and Brandy from http://www.diannespringerdesigns.com/, myself and my husband and my niece. Driving into Palm Springs was SO hot. Gosh, I thought Arizona and Texas are hot.

Palm Springs made it seem mild. We drove into Burbank the next day and dropped Dianne and Brandy off at their cousin's house. It was time to head to San Diego to deliver Victoria to her dad's house....but let's go through Hollywood first.

ooo, here I am at Judy Garland's star. What was this pose about?!

Michael at Groucho Marx's star:Victoria w/ Sandra Bullock's star.Oh we had a great time! Michael loved it as he had never been. We were there on the day of the premier of Salt! and got to see the paparazzi preparing at least 3 hours prior ready to snap away pics of Angelina Jolie. We could stay for the excitement but Victoria was anxious to see her brothers and lil' sister so after snapping some pictures of our own we hit the road. Take a peek at some of our snapshots.


Sunday, June 6, 2010

I have been remiss at posting

Wow, what a crazy last few months. I have put so many miles on my poor little trailblazer. I'm SO grateful to have good friends that like to drive the majority of the mileage. =) From Chicago we went to Paducah which was fantabulous! We were in the new "bubble" and loved it. Can't wait til next year. Left there, went to Choice Fabrics and got some fantastic deals on fabric...stopping at a wonderful winery along the way. Sure wish I could have wine shipped to me here in Texas. =( Oh well, I can have it shipped to Dianne's house in Louisiana. Just have to hope they don't drink it. ;) Was home for a few days and then we were off to Salt Lake City Utah (i WANT TO MOVE THERE!!) for the HMQS show. It was an okay show, just need to plan better next year and have it in conjunction with another show. We spent Mother's Day there and it was awesome! Saw the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the flowers were unbelievable! (Pictures later)

Brandy (Dianne's daughter) hadn't been through I-70 in Colorado so we took a long way home. We made it up Vail Pass (BARELY!). Visions of a trip I made in high school with my parents kept flashing through my mind had me nervous. LOL (we had a trailer that the wheel bearings froze up and were stuck up there for several hours until we could get it to Denver where our vacation was extended).

Anyway, on our way home down the mountain we stopped in a little town called Georgetown at a winery. When we came out a blizzard had started (in MAY!). We made it down the mountain before it got bad. It's a good thing. I heard that Fort Collins ended up getting 10 inches of snow! (which is very unusual in May)

We made it home and had a few days to get ready for Minneapolis. Boy, packing product and a full booth display in 2 suitcases and keep them under 50 pounds each is a challenge. but I did it and had a great show!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Chicago!!!


Well, Dianne Springer, her daughter Brandy and I have been here in Chicago since Monday evening. Today was the first day of International Quilt Spring Festival. This is the last year in Chicago. Next year will be in Cincinnati, Ohio. I think the show started off great. Thank goodness for Brandy giving me a potty break!! When I returned to my booth I found her carrying on a conversation with a very energetic, cute woman. she said, "No, we weren't talking about your designs." LOL She was very complimentary on my designs. Then she introduced herself as Mother Superior. Yes, it was Heather Purcell, owner of Superior Threads. She got some of my designs and I got some of her threads. I am SO excited about trying the metallics. If you ever get to meet Heather Purcell, do so. She is an absolute doll and a joy to be around.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Super Easy Cherry Cheescake


This is one of my all time favorites and SO easy to make!!

Ingredients

1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (21 ounce) can cherry pie filling
Directions

Place softened cream cheese in a mixing bowl; add condensed milk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Pour mixture into the pie crust. Chill for 5 hours. DO NOT FREEZE!!!
Pour cherry pie filling on top of pie. Serve.

Monday, March 22, 2010

It's a wrap!

Have you seen what you can do with clothesline and 3/4" strips of fabric?? My great friend Dianne Springer from www.QuiltInACup.com taught us how to make these fun little bowls. We met up with 2 other women....Barbara and Patty...for a mini retreat and to see the Dallas Quilt show. I actually got some things accomplished and didn't spend the whole weekend just a gabbing away. ;) Although my bowl isn't very big it makes the PERFECT business card holder. I just LOVE it!!

Watch my site for adding the cording, variegated threads, and the books to learn how to do this.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Win a Free Janome Machine


These girls are so incredibly clever and cute! I sure wish that my sister had the same interest. ho hum. =)



Thursday, March 4, 2010

Beautiful Day

"It's a Beautiful Day"... Wow, to think that it snowed day before yesterday and today was shorts weather.....70 degrees!! Thank you Lord for the beautiful weather. Michael didn't get the call for the second interview today. =( We know that God has something better in store for us. If only we knew what it was. lol Michael has been busy though, stitching out designs to put things together for a trunk show. He's getting good at applique. I can't wait to put the whole quilt together.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

SNOW!

The kids were SO excited to be out of school today because of the snow.
So, how does a quilter measure snow??

Michael and I both went out with the boys and helped them make a snowman. We haven't done that in years. I'm so glad that we joined them.
As they were rolling the snow to make a ball, look what was hiding under the snow:

Now, want to see what truly makes this a Texas snow??

I love snow!! One thing I know is when it snows I won't see any rattlesnakes! woo hoo

Monday, February 22, 2010

New York Beauty

I have always wanted to make a New York beauty block. I think they are SEW intriguing. however I am not good at achieving picture perfect points or doing curved piecing. the traditional way of paper piecing is too tedious for me. I'm too impatient. So, I have developed a way to do it in the embroidery hoop!! I can't wait to do a quilt with these!!!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Life is so busy. Goes by so quickly and the kids grow up so fast. Got an email form my daughter this week. She was 15 when I sent her to live with her dad. Seems like she was just here. She said she's about to be 18. I know that but it didn't hit me until she said that. Where did my little girl go? She's all grown up now. I miss her so much but glad to know that she is doing well in school. She's so artistic and talented. She sent me pictures of some of her drawing and sewing projects she did in school recently. She's really getting interested in Interior Design. She also like graphic Design and Fashion Design (which she's really good at). I do know that she wants to go to design school when she graduates in another year. I'm anxious to see what she becomes.

Talk about growing up, my baby is about to be 7. I can't believe it! he's not a baby anymore. He's so cute missing one front tooth. I'll have to take a picture if I can tear him away from the games long enough. I think I can. He's been snuggling with me lately which I just eat up. He fell asleep in my arms recently. That was the first time in several years that he had done that. I cherish moments like that.

Speaking of snuggling. My 19 year old came up today and just wanted to lay by me on the bed. He still likes mom to snuggle with him. It's very sweet and innocent. He went tonight to a Christian Comedy show with my mom. I thought that was really cute. What 19 year old do you know that will hang out with his grandma??


Tuesday, January 12, 2010