MY WEAKNESS

There aren't many foods that I don't like, and I eat too many times when I'm not even hungry. I don't turn away much of anything but I really have a weakness when it comes to BREAD. I love homemade bread.....yeast rolls especially. I have tried numerous bread recipes and haven't found one that I wanted to repeat....until now. I have a bread machine (which makes it so easy to make bread) but I decided I would try this recipe after reading all the reviews. I even researched just how to 'knead' the dough so I wouldn't mess it up. It was pretty easy and the two loaves turned out better than I expected. I sliced some while it was still hot and buttered it and ....OH MY GOODNESS!!!! It even made delicious cheese toast and sandwiches. I'll be making bread for my family often. If you have a weakness for bread....try this recipe. I think you'll be pleased.

GUESS WHERE WE'VE BEEN

My husband and I made a quick trip last Thursday to Louisiana. It was Maddie's (pictured above) 4th birthday party on Saturday and Friday was "Grandparents Day" at her preschool. We were so excited that it was during one of our visits and we were able to attend. There was coffee, juice, and doughnuts for us in the gym when we arrived and then we were entertained by the children singing songs and visiting classrooms.

Although Emma (above) isn't in school yet, she certainly knew her way around and found much to play with while we saw Maddie's work. I don't think it will be very long before there will be another student in school!

This picture of Breanna was made on Saturday morning. She is growing up SO fast.

I thought you would really enjoy this picture. Maddie's class had made each grandmother a hat and each grandfather a tie. They wore these and had pictures taken with them on. We had so much fun visiting....even for a short time.

FRIED PIES

We love fried pies at our house. I don't make them often and I really don't know why other than it takes forever to cook the dried fruit. Last summer my friend and I dried apples and I have several bags in my freezer. The other day my neighbor told me that he'd love to have a fried apple pie. I came right home and started cooking those apples. This neighbor will help me do anything....if I have a project going on I am quick to ask for his help so making fried pies was no problem for me! Back to the apples....when you add the water to the dried apples they swell up and the longest part is cooking down the apples. The picture above shows them after they have been cooked down and sugar added. (I don't know why the first two pictures are turned sideways). I use canned biscuits for my dough....just roll them out flat... and they taste just as good as my mother's did. If you'll notice they are frying in her black iron skillet. I use it for so many things.

Here's the pies all ready to eat....ok...some have already been eaten. I still have some cooked apples so I believe I better fry up another batch this weekend. The pies sure don't last long around here.

One Down...Two to Go

When you have three granddaughters...you can't make just one dress. There must be three made. I cut this one out and started it last night and just finished it. I have two more to go. I wanted something the girls could wear for fall and couldn't find fabric Saturday that I just loved so I came home with the tiny black gingham. Usually I put ribbon on the bottom of the pillowcase dresses, but decided a ruffle might change it a bit. I will say ribbons are much quicker! When I bought the fabric for the ruffle I couldn't help but think of my mother. She would never have put checks and 'dots' together. Oh, times have changed! Hopefully, this doesn't look too much like Halloween so the girls can wear it in November also.

It's pretty hot in Louisiana where they live, but just in case the weather turns cool I found them each a black turtleneck. I think it looks pretty cute. Two more and they'll each have a fall dress from Gigi.

ABOUT THAT TIME AGAIN

There's something about this time of the year that makes me want to get my sewing machine and embroidery machine running. I'm so busy in late spring and summer until my projects are put on hold, but this week I have been getting antsy and wanting to get something going. We're planning on going to see the girls in a few weeks so I have several things in mind to do before then. I bought some fabric today to make Fall dresses for them, but wanted to try this new alphabet aplique to see how it would work. My granddaughters would rather wear dresses but maybe they'll wear these shirts to play. I'm thinking about adding a ruffle on the bottom of each shirt out of the fabric used on the applique. It'll depend on how quickly the dresses are made!

This is a closeup of the applique. (I didn't take time to iron the shirts....just took them right out of the bag and started working on them.) It was hard to see in the first picture. I'll be making dresses this week. You'll see pictures of them when they are finished.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

If you live in Alabama you are either an Alabama or Auburn fan. Children will ask who do you "go for"....meaning are you for Alabama or Auburn. It becomes great fund raisers at schools during the week prior to them playing each other. They will see which fans bring the most money for SGA or which fans bring the most canned goods for fixing baskets for those less fortunate, but good or bad....Alabama/Auburn football rules this state. Last week my grandson had a swim birthday party planned at our house. Our pool was finally finished so this could happen. Invitations were sent, party favors bought, cake bought, 10 pizzas were delivered, and everything was just right for the party except......the skies opened and it flooded. We were not here because my best friend's mother passed away and we were there, but my daughter said it rained (and stormed) for quite some time. They decided they would have the party the next day after church. MORE RAIN! Add some tears this time and pray that you can have another swim party one week later (with no rain). This morning I woke up and it was raining. I couldn't believe it but it stopped mid morning and the party was on! My daughter told Zack that it would just be a swim party because they had already had cake, pizza, and drinks last week. He believed her and I really think he didn't care. However, she found a friend through Facebook from our hometown who now lives out of town that makes the most beautiful cakes. She contacted her and arranged to have another birthday cake for Zack. This one was in honor of his (and our) favorite team. The picture below shows his expression when he walked in my kitchen and saw the cake. Remember he didn't think he was getting another cake.

You'll have to excuse my messy laundry room/pantry. I called him in before he went out to the pool to see the cake. By the way....the cake was DELICIOUS. I've had cakes that looked good but didn't taste good. This one was both.

One picture of a friend as he jumped from the diving board. The kids had a great time and the sun came out just in time for the party. Happy 9th birthday, Zack!

KEEPING ME BUSY

I haven't posted in quite some time....I've been trying to keep up with you by reading though....so I thought I 'd give you an idea of one of the reasons I have neglected my posting. Between working, getting my pool finished, and canning I have been so busy. You may think I'm crazy, but I really enjoy the canning and freezing of vegetables. Guess it goes back to my childhood. I watched my mother and aunts as this was such a part of their lives each year. After I married, I would have days that my sweet mother-in-law and I would can soup,peas,butterbeans, and corn. Oh, the memories. The top picture is pear preserves. My husband helped me peel these Tuesday night and I "sugared" them down good so all I had to do was cook them real good yesterday morning. We love a hot, buttered biscuit with pear preserves....so good!Tomatoes! I use canned tomatoes in so many ways during the year. Soups, spaghetti, chili, stewed.... in fact, they are so good, I could almost open a jar and eat them like that. I know that it's easy to buy tomatoes at the store, but they just don't taste the same to me.

I do enjoy the fruits of my labor. The vegetables are almost gone for this year, but we'll be able to enjoy them throughout the winter from the freezer and jars!