27-23

What a game! My hat, if I ever wore one, would be off in salute to both teams. Amazing, exciting, nail biting, (gorgeous Bruce), heart palpitating, Ben owes me a fabulous home cooked meal, event! Makes me miss PA, my home, my youth. WOW! STEELERS!

The Last Garage Sale

Every garage sale is "the last time we'll do this". BUT! It was a very long, sometimes insane day but a successful one, and a thank you shout out to all who stopped by. How many garage sales have you attended where there is a line to check out? I only lost my patience three times yesterday, and it appears that nothing was stolen this time, so that is an improvement. Of course the one item I really wanted to sell was my white computer desk so I did not have to store it in the garage, but alas, it is still with me...and at a bargain price (wink). Kathy took a full truck load down to Goodwill on her way home and my car is loaded for another run today. I have only two bins left with Holiday collectibles for...
It is the last time we'll do this.....uh huh

Queen of Hearts is closed. I will post pics of our creations after Feb 7th.

Till then - Peace

Sneak peek Queen of Hearts

Queen of Hearts Gathering
A few of the projects:
Rosebud and peppermint heart soaps
Paper mache ornaments
Embroidered linen sachets filled with lavender
Soft pink and ivory rose petal pillow
and three more!

Registration deadline is Saturday the 24th

Hannah is back from her DC adventure and she has wonderful tales of the experience. Dozens of painting ideas came to her and she is anxious to get started on a few. That means a mess in the computer room for weeks on end but it is worth it.

The news from Portland: Ben is now the Art Director at his magazine. Mom says "Hooray"

I don't know about you, but I am still glowing from all the Inauguration festivities. I started watching at 4am, took a break from 5pm-7 and watched again from 7- bedtime. It was so much fun to see Green Valley marching by the reviewing stand playing Viva Las Vegas.

I'm looking forward to seeing so many of you this weekend at the sale. Looks like we will have great weather.

GO STEELERS!

Just a reminder about the garage sale the 24th. Previews Friday the 23rd only beginning at 6:00. Be advised this does not mean that everything will be out Friday night, some things won't arrive till Saturday morning. As most of you know, sometimes I start pulling stuff out of boxes in the garage in the "spirit of the sale". You just never know.

Hannah is enjoying the trip to Philadelphia and will leave tomorrow for DC for the Inauguration. I am thrilled that she has this opportunity. No, I have not lost my mind, these are Steeler colors, and I want to be supportive for tomorrow's game, and I am bored this evening.

I will be posting a sneak peek of Queen of Hearts later this week, so check back. There are still spots available. Deadline for registration is the 24th.

It is a very historic week coming up. Let's hold good thoughts for the country, and hope for us all.
GO STEELERS !

Queen of Hearts

Queen of Hearts Gathering

February 7, 2009

11 am-6 pm

$100.00

• This will be the first class of 2009 and what I can tell you so far is there are crowns involved and sweet, soft ivory, pale pink and supple linens, oh, and a few hearts. After all, it is Valentines Day the next weekend. As always, there are a variety of projects. Savories and sweets will nourish us and a little bubbly will lift our spirits.

• Space is limited to ten students and on a first come basis. Deposit of $50.00 will be required to reserve your space and is non-refundable. At my discretion and depending on circumstances, deposits may be applied to future Gatherings if 48 hour notice of no-show is given. 

• Come join me as we share good food, great company and create wonderful folk art. It is a day of rejuvenation. It is a day away from the job, the family, and the chores. It is a day dedicated to you and your imagination and creativity. Reconnect with friends and make new ones. 

• Upon registration you will receive a supply list if needed. Queen of Hearts will require a sewing machine. This is very simple sewing, but you must know how to operate and thread your machine. Friends can share a machine and that is encouraged to save space. 
• Call or email to register                                                                                                                                                                   
• 702-897-1303 - sstoddard3@cox.net                                                                                                                                                                    
  

You have to try these!

Ben's work commute while home

I promised a few postings back that I would begin in 09 to give you a variety of fun things to look forward to such as recipes and patterns and so even before the dawn of 09 here we go!

I tried several new recipes Christmas Eve and these are two I have to share.
The first is so easy I cannot believe I haven't done it before and I will be making this to go on everything!
Balsamic Vinegar Reduction
1 TB ketchup
1 cup red balsamic vinegar
2 TB soy sauce
Mix and bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer until reduced to about 3/4 cup. Careful, it can scorch easily. We dipped the prime rib into the reduction sauce but next time I will drizzle onto plate and lay meat across, it is that delicious. I never thought I would prefer this to my favorite horseradish sauce but I will make this reduction for every steak and roast, from now on. Imagine on a soft roll, with thinly sliced beef.

Roasted Brussels Sprout
Preheat to 400
1 pound, very fresh sprouts
3 TB good olive oil
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

To be honest I did not measure the salt and pepper, so do it to taste if you wish.
Cut off ends of sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Toss them in a bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper. Transfer to sheet pan and roast in single layer for 35-40 minutes until crisp outside and tender inside.... they will be brown. Shake or stir pan from time to time to brown evenly. Remove from oven and sprinkle with more kosher salt and serve hot. Even a die hard brussels sprout hater will enjoy these, or maybe at least tolerate them.


Ivan hanging out waiting for dinner

Ben has been gone a day and we miss him so much. For a skinny kid he sure fills up this house when he is home. We cannot wait to hear about all of his New York adventures.

Happy New Year everyone!

12/25/08

In the words of Tiny Tim "God bless us, every one!"

Christmas

Justice and Hannah


Howie and Hannah


Hannah walking in the snow last week

Most of you have probably been hurrying and scurrying the last few days getting ready for friend and family celebrations. It's been a wee bit quiet here except for the occasional visits from friends of Ben and Hannah. I am still sick and staying close to home but that is just fine because Ben has been around quite a bit, working from his laptop. He has already repaired or set up a variety of electronic machinery here and has declared me a magnetic vortex since I seem to radiate a negative effect on anything with a plug or current. He thought it was my imagination, but right before his eyes a remote that he was using ceased to work once I walked into the room and new batteries could not save it. hmmmmmm

This week I have had several long chats with far away friends; hey Rich, Kristin and Penny, and I love that. Cards are trickling in, I miss that tradition which has all but disappeared. I love the pictures and I enjoy the newsletters, though many people think they are tacky, I say keep 'em coming, in fact send me a newsletter for every holiday. I had to laugh today when Sue's card arrived saying "I had to write cards this year cause hell really did freeze over!" My annual box of chipped ham and barbecue sauce from Isaly's arrived this evening from my cousin Cindi. It's a Pittsburgh thing. Who could wait for the sauce to heat up, we started eating it with our fingers right out of the bag. Such a treat, we love it. I'm thrilled that my kids share memories of something that I adored as a kid, that otherwise they would never get to try. You cannot purchase it anywhere but a small radius around Pittsburgh. My favorite way to enjoy was piled high on very soft Wonder Bread and ketchup - Heinz of course! Bless you girl! So although a slow, quiet week it is full of glad tidings.

As always, I will be serving my standing rib roast and yorkshire pudding tomorrow evening. This year I bought the brussels sprout on their stem so that at least once in their lifetime the kids could see how they grow. I told Ben that I can never completely stop trying to teach them new things and expanding their viewpoints. That resulted in an eye roll. More often now it is the kids who teach me, or my dashboard dictionary which just taught me it is brussels sprout not brussel sprouts. I've been saying it wrong over 50 years! I caused quite a commotion in the store as several clerks and shoppers gathered around to see what this thing was laying on the checkout counter. We are so far removed from living off the earth, maybe that is why so many do not care about environmental issues. They think brussels sprout come in square frozen boxes. Oh, how I long for a real garden of my own. C'mom economy- recover already!

Brussels sprout

I hope that all of you have a very Merry Holiday and that we all may enjoy a good New Year. We must maintain the spirit of hope we felt last month and remember that nothing truly wonderful ever comes too easily. We must have patience and we must somehow get back on track to a better, simpler life with less excess and improved human connections. We are all in this together. Stripped down to our core, we are all the same. To those dear friends of mine who need an extra prayer these days, you've got it; I love you and I carry you in my heart.

Blessings to all.

Classes, shows, and special surprises planned for 09. Old Grey Mare is ready to gallop. Yee-ha! Stop by frequently to see what is new, feel free to email me with requests for classes and if you have a great holiday story, leave me a comment so I can share. Please share this site with friends so that we are able to build a strong community of women artists and friends.

SNOW SNOW and more SNOW!

Unbelievable snow. I have two broken trees so far ( they just snapped in half) and I'm worried about two more. Hannah and her buddies are thrilled- no school tomorrow. Our cookie exchange tomorrow is in jeopardy. I haven't been out of the house since Saturday morning. (pretty sure I have pneumonia again) I've had it several times before and I'm familiar with the drill. Almost coughed up a lung on Wednesday. Now, I can't go out and feel trapped. It is so pretty out, but dangerous. Hannah just took a walk in the stuff. Very wet, and very heavy snow. Crossing my fingers that I don't have more damage during the night. I'm sure I've lost maybe 25% of plants. In the front yard pic there is what appears to be a large low bush in the rear middle of frame. That is half of a mesquite and half of my chaste tree lying on the ground on top of my broken solar lights. sigh pretty snow...pretty snow.

CA Treasures

A lovely hand made beaded tag

A cheese box cubby for the studio

An open metal urn filled with vintage tinsel and silver balls

Road Trip

Took a road trip to CA yesterday for some antiquing and came home with a few new treasures. I'll post pics later. Lovely day, though a bit cold and we skirted the rain that was hovering in the area. Ran into a great friend from San Diego. Dr Susan Stewart, who lived and taught many years here in Vegas just happened to be in the same old barn as we were! What a treat to see her and catch up.

Today was "make the dough day" for the cookie exchange I am hosting with Sue. I am posting the recipe for my Mexican Chocolate Cookies. Warning: Do not quadruple the recipe unless you want an hour long arm workout. What was I thinking? It started mixing up just fine, then I burned out the motor in my hand-held mixer, and had to revert to hand mixing. Called Hannah down for help and I believe she ate as much dough as she mixed. (It is great raw dough!) Too much dough to put into the Kitchen-Aid, so we pulled and stirred for a very long while. Finally got it all incorporated and it is now chilling. Will roll out tonight and tomorrow. Must be bad karma with cookies today. Talked to Pam earlier and she had burned the bottoms of her cookies this morning! If you are attending the exchange-wait until tomorrow to bake.

Mexican Chocolate Cookies

1 1/2 cups butter softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 eggs slightly beaten
3 cups flour
1 1/2 cups cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4-6 oz semisweet chocolate melted

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs and beat until fluffy.
Sift dry ingredients together, add to creamed mixture. Beat until well blended.
Divide dough into thirds and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill at least 1 hour
On lightly floured board roll out and cut into desired shape ( I do hearts).
Place on greased cookie sheets or use silpats like I do.
Bake in preheated 375 oven for 8-10 minutes. I do not like them crisp, but you decide.
Cool on wired racks and then drizzle with melted chocolate. I use a fork.
Approx 3 dozen cookies depending on size of cookie cutter.

Doodle wares

Some doodle wares that came home with us

Here are a few pics of items not yet sold. Email for information about availability.

Kathy can be reached at kfairchild@delta.org

Doodle and Beyond

Another Doodlebug has come and gone. It was so much fun to reconnect with some of you who visited the booth last year and Kathy and I also met some great new country collectors and artists. This year seemed to be the year of jewelry booths. They were everywhere and many vendors and shoppers were wearing their new button bracelets, earring bracelets (yes, that's correct) and carrying chinese takeout cartons full of vintage buttons. I brought home two cartons myself. None of you shall mention to me the dozen or so jars in my studio already full of.........buttons. The button lady, Karen Vornsand was super sweet and even helped me spot great buttons from trays and trays on display. She teaches her button bracelets at Bead Jungle, so check her out!

Amy Gonzalez, of Mittens showed me a wallet that she created and I cannot wait to have one of my own. She sells on etsy and here's how cool she is. She donates a portion of her profits to the NSPCA! She is having her baby boy Brooklyn this week and yesterday she was the cutest pregnant lady ever! Go Amy! mittens.etsy.com. I will have to be patient for my wallet. Baby boy Brooklyn comes first.

We were so busy in the booth that I did not have a  chance to snap pics, but I will try to post tomorrow some pics of some remaining holiday wares that are still available. Kathy has a few of the snowmen in pots, and some lovely ivory wool mittens and wrapped ball ornaments. She also has some small crafters aprons that would be perfect for gift wrapping duty. All of her items make perfect teacher, neighbor, secret santa gifts, etc and all are made by hand and with love.

At the last minute I made some organic soaps and some fresh balsam linen bags and they were snapped up! Of course, our best customers, Jan and Wendy were first in the booth and carried home quite a few Halloween pieces from my personal collection. They were hard to part with, but it helps to know they will be appreciated. We love our BC girls! Merci, to all of you who purchased our creations. It is wonderful to be appreciated. If you see anything in the pics you would like to purchase, send me an email and it will be arranged.

Another great gal to check out is Maria Hedrick, a fab quilter who teaches at Quiltique, and she has a booth at Goat Feathers in Boulder City. Many years ago, Maria took some of the earliest classes that I taught here at home, and she has far surpassed this teacher in quilting. Yay Maria!

To those new friends I met, welcome to old grey mare. Please consider joining me for a Gathering class someday, or custom order a class for you and at least five-ten other friends. Check out the older posts to get an idea of how the Gatherings work. Some of you asked how to get back issues of "polished". While supplies last, you can email bschwartz@reviewjournal.com. Please tell her I sent you.

I will try to post pics this week and then I'll post again after Christmas. Till then, I have many dozens of cookies to bake, Christmas decorations to finish, CD gifts to burn, and my Christmas cards are still not done. Ben and Hannah will get my undivided attention starting the 19th. Ben has promised to "tweek" my Blog, so who knows what you'll see coming in the New Year.

We love company at this house, especially during the Holidays, so call ahead and then stop on by!

I wish you all a safe and very Merry Holiday. Several of my dear friends will be having Christmas without loved ones this year. Several families are struggling with issues of the current economy, and some have health related problems. A few are very sad. My love goes out to all of you and please know I hold you close in my heart. May blessings come to all of you.

I wish you well.

Suzan

Late nights

It is 2am and I am still up doing this and that. Spent a good bit of today pricing and completing items for Doodlebug. Next week it is a full on blitz to make enough to fill up our booth. Kathy has finished some adorable woolen mittens and these snowmen in polka dot pots. We would love to see you Saturday the 6th in Boulder City. Tomorrow I will finish up getting Thanksgiving food stuffs at the market, and do some early vegetable chopping.

I still cannot grasp that it is almost December, and we are finishing up another year. That always brings to mind that Hannah will be off to college in less than a year and that sends me into nervous nellie mode and a wee bit of depression. sigh.

I am very thankful for so many things this year and I am grateful for such good friends. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you who stop by here at oldgreymare, and special good thoughts to Lori.

Someone suggested I should mention that I also do decorating and organizing as well as the folk art. You cannot believe how quickly I can whip a closet, garage or room into shape. A couple of Gathering gals have used my services and can share their stories with you if you are interested.

That's about it until after Doodle. I hope to work on some special projects for my home over the Christmas Holiday. If I get anything completed I'll post a pic. If anyone is interested in another finish it night, let me know. So many projects, so little energy to get them done!

Peace.

More Holiday

A few more photos

Christmas is slowly appearing at Old Grey Mare. Most of the smaller trees are completed, there are maybe two more to go. Next come the three larger ones and the wreaths and the staircase garland. I will be helping Sue do her Holiday decorating right after Thanksgiving, so I needed to get mine done a little earlier than usual. Feel free to stop by, and if you give me enough notice, I may be able to blend up some "cheer".

I am currently getting some folk art ready for Doodlebug the 6th of December in Boulder City. If you would like a preview because you can't make it up there, come on by. I have quite a bit of Halloween, mostly collectibles, some retired (Nicole Sayre and the like) that I am also selling. Doodlebug is such a tradition and will get your holiday spirit off to a great start. Plan to attend. I will warn you. The locals hit our booth before we even get unpacked to find the one of a kinds.

Several of you have asked where to find the magazine "polished" that I contribute to monthly. You can call or email to request a subscription or a recent copy. Ask and I will send you the info. The November issue features my home. That was surreal, seeing it in print, but fun too!

There are no new scheduled Gatherings. BLISS did not have enough registered students so it was canceled. If, however you have 6-10 friends who want a girls day out, get in touch with me and we'll plan and schedule one specifically geared for your interests and group.

Finish it Night was fun and delicious! Kudos to Pam for her basil & tomato pasta salad and to Paula for her yummy banana creme cake. We also had old fashioned mac and cheese ( you know, like they used to do with a white sauce) and spicy wine pot roast. We did not complete any projects but we made progress, ate well, and shared recent tales of our lives.

Happy Thanksgiving and grace to you and yours.