Books and Quilts

Recipe Thursday : Tassimo- Coffee and More

2012-01-26T08:00:00.001-05:00

I read and interesting post last weekend, where the blogger had just received a new Tassimo Drink machine. I mentioned that I use my machine as a hot water source. A few readers mentioned that they had not considered doing that. In this post I am going to expand on my comments on that blog. (sorry I don't recall where I left the comments).

I buy the regular assortment of coffee disks. I do enjoy the decaf, but it's not always available where I shop. During the holidays I found a package of the Long Espresso (double shot). Son says that it has a good kick. He likes to make a coffee and then make an espresso in the same mug. Same as he would order at the coffee shop, but several dollars cheaper.

One of my favourite drinks to make is the upside down Cappuccino. I saw this on the Tassimo site and make it when I want a special looking drink. You must use a clear glass mug for this to be effective. I am using one that I bought ages ago from Princess House, and they are still in their current catalogue.

Every time I have seen a cappuccino made in a shop, the espresso is poured first into the cup, then the steamed milk and froth.

In this case steam/froth the milk first.

Now add the espresso and the magic occurs. You end up with a beautifully layered beverage.

Have you ever used the cleaning disk that came with your machine? I hope you didn't throw it out as I have heard from more than one person. Ours get very frequent use. We have a gas stove and I didn't want the kids using the stove to heat water, I had a fear of them lighting their sleeves on fire. When they wanted hot water, they used the cleaning disk. One press of the button, and it produces six ounces (3/4 cup) of hot water. It is not scalding hot as would come from the kettle. It is the perfect temperature for brewing green tea. We also make hot chocolate from powder this way. The little paper package says to add six ounces, perfect.

Those little packages of oatmeal says to add 2/3 cup, so let the water flow into a mug first and then pour some of it into the bowl of oatmeal.
This temperature also works for the cups of instant noodles. A frequent use in the winter, is warming up daughter's thermos. Since the thermos is taller than the opening height, I hold the thermos at an angle and press the button . It takes two cycles to get sufficient water. I then put the lid on the thermos and let it warm, while the heat the food in the microwave. After emptying the water from the thermos, I put the warmed food into the warmed thermos.

The final and most frequent use of the Tassimo, after making pod coffee, is making tea in my travel mug. I put my tea bag in the mug and usually have to run the water cycle twice to fill the cup. My tea is hot but not so hot that it takes hours to be cool enough to sip without burning my lips.

Next time you need a smaller amount of hot water very quickly, don't put on the kettle and wait, and wait, and wait, put in your cleaning disk and press a button.

Do you have another way your use your Tassimo, share it in the comments section.

Heartless: Book 4 The Parasol Protectorate by Gail Carriger

2012-01-25T08:00:00.001-05:00

Even at eight months pregnant, Lady Alexia Maccon is in fine form. She may be a bit slower of movement, but her wit has not been dimmed. When a clearly mad ghost appears in front of her with a warning that the Queen is in danger, she charges right into her investigation. I can just imagine the usually impeccably dressed Alexia, garbed as a cook, waddling door to door in search of clues.

Author Gail Carriger brings back a number of my favourite characters. Rogue vampire Lord Akeldama shows the reader several sides that have not been hinted at before, and I'm not going to spoil the story by giving you any clues. You'll have to read the story to believe them. Of course, the unflappable Floote, butler/secretary/librarian is always at hand and ready to deal with Alexia's requests no matter how outlandish they might be.

I loved all the twists and turns of this novel. I would never have expected the story line that developed with Lord Akeldama, and am eager for the next book, Timeless, to see what happens there. I'd love to give you a clue about the Westminster Vampire Hive, but then that would be telling secrets. You will not want to miss this change of events.

The first three books in the series I read in paper, but this time I was lucky to have the audio version. At first I was unsure of having a woman, Emily Gray, read all the male parts, but after a few chapters, I was quite comfortable with her 'masculine' voices. She did an admirable job of the gruffness of Lord Maccon's voice as well as conveying the dandy in the various drones of Lord Akeldama's hive. Paper or audio book, both versions work for me and I wouldn't hesitate to listen to further audio books ready by Ms. Gray.

Author Gail Carriger's website.

Thanks to Hachette Audio for the cover image and my review copy.

Books in this series:
(links to my reviews)
Soulless
Changeless
Blameless
Timeless - due out March 1, 2012

Needlework Tuesday - Finishes Sure Feel Good

2012-01-24T14:18:00.000-05:00

First boxers #1

Boxers # 2 & 3, for daughter. Love that plaid.

Next up was a small wall hanging for my sister. It is left over trimming from a bed size quilt (still un-quilted). The tiny top was finished but it needed a quilt design. Since it was oriental themed fabrics, I thought that an angular sashiko pattern would work. I found an image online and strace it on tissue paper. I chose different colours of marker so it would be easy to follow the thread paths ensuring fewer ends.

I pinned the tissue to the layered pieces and sewed on the lines with an almost pastel coloured variegated thread. It didn't take too long to remove the paper. I would have used the Golden Threads quilting paper, but couldn't find it where ever I have safely stored it. Will have to buy an additional role as it does work well.

Trimmed and bound it measures approximately 6 1/2 inches x 8 1/2 inches. I attached a jewelly 'oriental gate' to the front and voila, finished. It does still need a small label and I'm planning to use a chop stick through loops at the top for hanging, then into an envelope for it's trip across the country to my sister. Shhh, don't tell her, it's a surprise (she doesn't always read my blog so there is a chance of surprise).

What's up next? This small orange and black project is made from leftover 1/2 triangle squares from stitch and flip style blocks. It only measures 8 inches. Needs a border or two and when finished will be for my daughter. She loves Halloween and these colours perfectly fit the theme. Now where is the quilt that these squares originated with? Actually it is a partial top that is sitting at my mothers. She is going to add an additional border and will then return it to me for finishing.

While searching for the Golden Threads paper, I came across a bag full of 9 patch and snowball blocks. When I opened it, I also found that I had made a diagram of the project I wanted to make with them. There was also a detailed list of additional block units I would need to make to complete that design. Wow, something I can work on. It's already very scrappy, so no worry about matching any fabrics. Come back next week and I'll include some photos and the story behind the blocks.

What did you work on this past week? Did you finish something? Share a link to your post, or send a private email with photos and I'll add them next week. heatherdpear at hotmail dot com

And for Dorte who asked about a knitted book cover, yes, I am thinking about that for you. Stay tuned.

Into the Mist by Elizabeth Sinclair

2012-01-23T08:00:00.001-05:00

"Help, I need help, help me!"

It's late and there is no one out, no cars on the road and why is there blood on her hands? "Help me!!!" She spies a light and follows it. When she arrives the door opens and she is welcomed in, almost as though they had been waiting for her.

Carrie has no idea that she is in Tarrytown, New York on this cold snowy night and in fact, she doesn't even know her own name. She does know that she needs help. Fortunately for her, she has arrived at the door step of Irma, Meghan and Steve. They work with the community of 'Renaissance' to help those people who are in need of finding themselves.

Renaissance is a community that exists beyond the usual realm of time. It becomes visible to the outside world only when there is a person in need of their special services. Irma helps guide these lost souls to the gateway and Meghan and Steve act as gatekeepers.

This is the second book in the series, the first being Miracle in the Mist, though you can easily read this second book without having read the first. Author Elizabeth Sinclair has written an enjoyable though slightly predictable story. I found the first third of the book just a little to 'goody two shoes' for me. The story starts the day before Christmas eve in a picture perfect setting with four people sitting and waiting for the people in need. Too cute. I found the resolutions to some of the 'issues' to be too easy. The logic was presented, and boom, the person was over it. While we learn a lot about the issues surrounding the main characters, we don't really learn much about them as people. There wasn't much to make me want to care about them.

Into the Mist was fun to read, but it didn't leave me wanting to read more.

Getting Back on Track

2012-01-22T17:55:00.000-05:00

I wonder what Mr. Potato Head feels like when he starts to fall to pieces. Imagine your eyes won't stay on, or your mouth starts to droop at one corner. I've rather been in that quandry regarding my book reviews for quite some time now. I have been reading books and posting the occasional reveiw. There are more books that I've read and not reviewed and I don't quite know how to resolve this.

Life did toss a couple of fairly big lemons at me last year and I am still working through those issues. No excuses though, life sucks at times, yet we still have to move forward. Other parts of my life are mostly back on track and now it is time to get to the book blogging part. In the next few weeks I'll work through that back log. Should prove interesting to look back over those books with the perspective of time to mellow my responses. Will I still feel the same about all those stories? A few I do think that I want to re-read, but doubt time will permit much of that. One book was a 36 hour audio book, not a chance of re-listening.

I'm glad that my readers have stuck with me so far. Hang around a bit longer, I've been reading all sorts of genres. Perhaps one will be your favourite, or I might introduce you to a book that you didn't even know you'd been yearning to read.

This pie picture has nothing to do with my reading, I just think it's terrific and wish I could say that I made it. Nope, daughter found it online somewhere, wish I could tell you where.

Until tomorrow's review....

Weekend Cooking: When a dish just doesn't quite work....

2012-01-21T14:05:00.000-05:00

Every now and then, I try a recipe and it just doesn't quite work for me. It might turn out perfectly as described in the recipe, it browns nicely and is all bubbly. I sink my teeth into it, and swallow that first forkful and realize that something is missing. It might be everything that the recipe stated, but somehow it fails to tantalize my taste buds. I tried a new quinoa recipe this week, and that is exactly what happened.

I bought this cook book: new vegetarian cuisine for my son two or three years ago when he was going through his vegetarian phase. This is probably the second or third recipe from it that I have tried. In my opinion, it is bland recipes like this that makes people turn their noses up at vegetarian cuisine. If you happen to like non-spicy recipes, this one might work for you. The author has the following to say about this dish:

This is a real favorite of mine... The flavor of the cheese in this dish and the crumbs that top it remind me of the macaroni and cheese I enjoyed as a kid.

I didn't detect any of the cheese flavour unless I was eating the little bit sprinkled directly on the top of the dish. Since this makes a large dish, I wasn't about to toss it in the composter, I needed to find a way to make it more tasty for me. I'll give you the recipe as written and then I'll tell you how I dressed it up. I didn't take a picture of the dish as it is so 'one colour' I didn't think it would look good in a photo.

Cheesy Chick-Pea and Quinoa Bake

1 tbsp margarine
1 cup coarsely chopped zucchini
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped scallions
4 cups water
2 cups quinoa, rinsed and drained
1 cup canned chick-pears, rinsed and drained
1 cup shredded low-fat Cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup shredded low fat Swiss cheese, divided
1/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 350F. Coat a 2 quart casserole with non-stick spray.
In a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat, melt the margarine. Add the zucchini, celery and scallions; cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 4 minutes, or until tender.
Stir in the water, quinoa, chick-peas, 3/4 cup of the Cheddar and 1/4 cup of the Swiss. Spoon into the prepared casserole. Cover and bake for 45 minutes, or until the liquid has almost been absorbed.
Sprinkle with the bread crumbs and the remaining 1/4 cup Cheddar and 1/4 cup Swiss. Bake, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed and the cheese has melted.

Very easy to make, nice texture, just missing 'bite. What to do.

First I added a bit of fresh ground black pepper. Helped, but not enough. Then I turned to my standby: Sweet Chili Sauce for Chicken from Cock Brand. This sauce it sweet and spicy with bits of red chili floating freely. This stepped up the flavour of the dish and I emptied my bowl and went back for a bit more.

Still lots left. Dinner with daughter. Heated a carton of no-salt added Chicken broth from Campbells. Spooned some quinoa into a bowl, ladled in some broth and finished warming in the microwave. Great soup.

Still lots left in the casserole. Lunch the next day. Again, what to do. I spooned a cup or so into a bowl, cracked an egg and mixed it through. Into the microwave to warm and cook the egg. After cooking I added a dollop of Sweet Chili and sauce and ate. It was ok.

Still lots left. Lunch on day three.

I'm getting a bit more adventurous. A pat of butter in the small frying pan, let it melt. Spoon in about 3/4 to 1 cup of quinoa casserole. Let it fry for a few minutes on medium. I wanted a bit of a crust to form. Using the back of a spoon I made a hollow. Spooned in a layer of Roasted Tomato Chipotle Salsa and cracked an egg. Put on a lid and let the egg cook. Turned off the heat, added a slice of Havarti cheese, put the lid on so the heat would melt the cheese. Sort of slid this onto my dish and it made a wonderful lunch.

There is still a bit left in the fridge, don't know if it will get eaten in any of the above fashions, but my imagination is up to the challenge.

Do you have any favourite 'saves' for when a recipe just doesn't work with your taste buds?

For more foodie fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for her Weekend Cooking Post. You are invited to join in the culinary fun by adding a link to your recent food related post.

Needlework Tuesday - No Drip Icecream Cones

2012-01-17T12:31:00.002-05:00

My cousin and her fiance love the cones and plan to display them in their ice cream shop. Unfortunately I managed to chose flavours and styles of cones that they don't sell in their shop. I do believe they have sprinkles.

What's next? As I mentioned last week, I have a million un-finished projects that I do want to work on. I am going to put some pressure on my self and commit here to working on them.

quilt and bind small Chinese inspired wall hanging
finish plaid boxers - Completed January 20, 2012
finish banana boxers - Completed January 20, 2012
finish blue bug boxers

Be sure to check back next week to determine whether I achieve these goals. None of them will take much work, it's just a matter of me actually sitting at my sewing machine and working on them. My plan is to load a new audio book onto my ipod and listen to that while I stitch. I want to send the little wall hanging to my sister for her birthday in less than a month. Considering that Canada Post says I need up to two weeks mailing time, I don't have any time to waste.

Did you receive a BlackBerry Playbook for Christmas, Linda at living, quilting and stuff has posted instructions of how to sew the perfect cover.

Do you have plans to finish up a project that has been lingering for far too long. Share it here and I'll help encourage you along the way.

Weekend Cooking: Curried Squash and Carrot Soup

2012-01-14T11:25:00.001-05:00

I was at my parents for few days earlier this week. Shortly after I arrived, my mother showed me a soup recipe she had taken from her newspaper the previous weekend. I took this as a nudge that she and my father would like me to make it for dinner. The combination of curry, butternut squash and carrots was very appealing. Since I hadn't made a soup were you roasted the vegetables before hand, I was ready to try this.

The first photo shows the vegetables ready to go in the oven. I had to keep checking their progress to ensure that the onions didn't burn.

Curried Squash and Carrot Soup (printable version at this link)
by Jill Wilcox, columnist for the London Free Press

Serves 8-10

2 tbsp. (25 ml) vegetable oil
2 tbsp. (25 ml) melted butter
1 cooking onion, peeled and cut in quarters
4 cups (1L) peeled, cubed butternut squash
3 cups (750 ml) of carrots cut into 2- inch (5 cm) pieces
1 large clove garlic, minced
1-1/2 to 2 tsp. (7 – 10 ml) curry powder or garam masala
6 cups (1.5L) chicken or vegetable broth
plain yogurt for garnish
cilantro for garnish

1. Combine half of the vegetable oil, butter, onion, squash and carrots in a large bowl. Gently toss.

2. Place on a baking sheet and roast in a preheated 400F. oven for 30 minutes or until just starting to caramelize. (Make sure the onion does not burn).

3. Place remaining oil in a stock pot and heat over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until soft.

4. Add the curry powder and cook a further minute. Add the vegetables and broth and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.

5. Puree the soup with an immersion blender until very smooth. If the soup is too thick, add some additional broth.

6. Season with salt to taste.

7. Ladle into bowls and garnish with a dollop of yogurt and a sprig of cilantro.

Sorry the photo is sideways, I tried to write this post on my Playbook, and couldn't figure out how to rotate the photo.

Kate asked how this would turn out without pureeing it. I did it in the blender and it did leave some chunks. They didn't bother us a bit. If you were not going to puree, I would cut the chunks smaller, I left them rather large. I would definitely dice the onion and probably cook that part in the soup pot along with the garlic and only roast the squash and carrots. As for cutting the squash. I slice it into 3/4 to 1 inch rings. Lay them flat then slice off the skin. You can't do it safely as a huge vegetable. Once the peel is off, I chop it into pieces and then remove the stringy insides.

Looking for additional soup recipes, visit my earlier post, "The Great Soup Recipe Hunt", for over 25 links.

For more foodie fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for her Weekend Cooking post.

Needlework Tuesday: Doughnuts and Icecream

2012-01-10T15:37:00.000-05:00

What a whirlwind of activities these past few weeks. Amid the baking, visiting and feasting, I did manage to find a bit of time with my crochet hook and knitting needles. I was working on those lovely doughnuts. For details see my earlier post: No Calorie Doughnuts.

The winner of the contest for a couple of these beauties is : Peggy. I've sent her a private email.

This week's post is mostly visual, hope you enjoy this calorie free feast.

Boston Cream and Raspberry Jam Filled

Military or Camo (for my nephew)

Chocolate Mint (for my father)

My daughter gave me a pedestal cake dish for Christmas, so I made more doughnuts.

Chocolate Cherry (back right, for daughter)

My cousin is getting married in March and I was in need of an addition to go with her gift. Since she and her fiance own and ice cream shop, Ricky's Big Scoop in Thorald, Ontario, I had to search out patterns for ice cream cones. I found two that I liked. This crochet soft serve is from RedHeart. Pattern is called: Chocolate Pie & Ice Cream.

I used RedHeart Super Saver for the entire project. Colour 792 Sandy Print for the cone, and 316 Soft White for the ice cream. It still needs a few beads for sprinkles.

Knitted ice cream cones are totally different. Generally, I prefer to knit, but for crafts like this, crocheting seems more flexible. These are coming along well. The pattern is from I Like Lemons, her Ravelry site. her blog. In the pattern you have a choice of two styles of cones: wafer/cake cones (left) and waffle (right). You then have a choice of three types of ice cream. There is a traditional scoop with a ruffle, that's the pink one that I am working on, then there is a dipped version and finally you can knit a soft serve. I need to have these finished for the bridal shower this Sunday, so I'll have pictures of these sweet treats next week.

Pretty well, every blog I visit this year, everyone is talking about their plans for the year. I am going to keep mine modest, I want to finish stuff that I have already started. That leaves it quite wide open to interpretation and I like that flexibility. How do you approach your projects? Do you work on them continuously start to finish, or are you like me, you start with the intent of finishing, but tend to get easily distracted along the way. I have far too many projects that have gotten pushed to the side that haven't seen the light of day in months/years maybe even longer. eeks. This is why I get so excited when I actually finish something.

Make Death Wait: Heart and Stroke Society Canada

2012-01-05T11:53:00.002-05:00

I have been seeing this commercial for the past month or two and it still stops me in my path every time. What a poignant message.

I lost my 26 year old nephew to heart disease this summer and don't want to lose any of my viewers this way, especially when most of us can do something about our heart health.

Do your heart a favour and watch these commercials:

Petty Witter from the blog Pen and Paper, sends along this commercial from the BBC regarding performing CPR.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16406257

Please share these messages with the ones you love.

OmniLit - All Romance ebooks

2011-12-31T12:30:00.001-05:00

Early in December I came across a link/ad for OmniLit. They were hosting a 12 days of Christmas promotion. Each day, for the 12 days preceeding Christmas they were giving away a free romance ebook. This was an offer I couldn't ignore. I immediately signed up for their newsletter: Wildfire and got ready for the next day's offering. OmniLit carries a wide range of fiction and non-fiction ebook titles, while their All Romance carries solely romance offerings.

I have a Blackberry Playbook and was able to easily download the Adobe Acrobat version . Be sure to check the help section to determine if there is a format suitable for your ereader.

Following are reviews for two of the books I elected to download.

Catch Me If You Can by Stacey Espino

Working in a bank is a good career option, but it sure can be boring. When Christina found that her dearly departed grandmother had left her a two month vacation at a fancy rural spa, she leapt at the opportunity for a break from her humdrum existence. Unfortunately her excitement evaporated the moment she spied the so-called spa. It looked more like a run down ranch with none of the luxury she had expected. Deciding that perhaps her grandmother knew best, she accepts the offer to stay, at least for the night.

The three cowboys on the ranch are almost as mystified as is Christina. They aren't sure what to do with their guest either. Each of the four have relationship issues that they aren't equiped to deal with on their own. Can Christina help the men overcome their hurts and can they in turn help her regain her confidence.

I will admit that I was blushing as I read this story. A menage a quatre in not my usual fare when it comes to erotic stories. This was handled in a very caring and loving manner. It was plain to see the relationship develop between Christina and each of the men. This story was more about the love and romance and the threat to their relationships than it was about the physical activity. I would gladly read more by Canadian author Stacey Espino. Stacey also writes m/m fiction under the pen name Winona Wilder.

Cover image from the website of Stacey Espino.

A Little Harmless Submission by Melissa Schroeder

FBI Agent Maria Callahan has a plan to trap the mad man who is killing women associated with BDSM clubs around the United States. She will need the help of Detective Rome Casino of the Hawaii Police Department if her plan is to succeed. Rome is a member of the local BDSM club and a reknown Dom. Maria is willing to go undercover as his sub if that will lure out the killer. After setting her eyes on Rome, she knows that the job will be dangerous for more than the obvious reasons. Her heart will be at risk.

This story follows all the expected lines of a police investigation, with the addition of the physical activity between Maria and Rome. In their run down of the possible suspects, we are introduced to an colourful set of characters, several of which could be the basis for a spin off novel (this is the sixth in a series, so perhaps that is exactly what has happened in the earlier books). Now that I have read this installment, I am curious of the events that happened in earlier books. I enjoyed watching Maria and Rome's relationship develop, even though it did occur at a rather fast pace for my more old fashioned morals. Author Melissa Schroeder kept me guessing at the perpetrator of these murders, he didn't even figure in my mind for most of the story.

Cover image from the website of Melissa Schroeder.

Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey

2011-12-30T18:31:00.000-05:00

This story is set during the reign of Queen Victoria when Spiritualism and the holding of seances was most popular in England. Violet's mother, Celeste Willougby, used peoples' belief in talking to ghosts to exploit them for her financial gain.

Violet hated being forced to participate in these deceptions, but saw no way out of this lifestyle. While the two were on their way to the country estate of Lord Jasper, Violet's life changed for ever when she sited 'corpse candles' and the ghost of a girl in the window of her carriage. This she knew was the 'real' thing unlike the fraud her mother committed. Somehow Violet has to resolve the death of this ghost/girl and come to an understanding of her ability.

The descriptions of scenes and scents were so vivid that this book came alive for me. I could feel myself getting breathless as Violet ran across the fields from Lord Jasper's to the adjoining estate. The scent of lilies and lilac sprung to mind during the various seances. I could even feel and smell the aroma of the rose petals that were scattered about Jasper's estate. I couldn't see the ghosts, but I could certainly imagine them, especially when they crowded around Violet in an attempt to protect her from her mother's wrath.

Thanks to author Alyxandra Harvey for a totally enjoyable story. The character of Violet was a pleasant surprise. She is a strong young woman seeking to improve the situation she finds herself in. She carefully considers who to include in her circle of friends and from whom to ask for assistance instead of throwing herself upon another and expect that person to resolve her problems for her.

I am happy to report that Alyxandra has written a sequel to this story.

Thank-you to Penguin Canada for my review copy.

Cover image from Alyxandra's website.

Holiday Baking Party - Part 5

2011-12-26T17:03:00.000-05:00

Oatmeal Fudge Bars

America's Test Kitchen

Peanut Butter Blondies

America's Test Kitchen

Raspberry cream Cheese Brownies

America's Test Kitchen

Cranberry Pistachio Coconut Triangles

America's Test Kitchen

Nanaimo Bar Cookies

Most Magazine - link to recipe in Party part 4

Elfin Shortbread Bites

unknown recipe source - recipe in Part part 4 post

This is an image of the goodie tray I took to my friends' for Christmas Eve.

Earlier in the party I told you that I was making a cheese ball as my sister had specifically requested it. I did taste it yesterday and was pleasantly surprised that I liked it. The instructions are quite simple, but the results were very tasty. Most of it was eaten before dinner. Sorry no picture as I didn't really look like anything other than a blob of pecans.

Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup finely chopped pecans

In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Mix in confectioners' sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

Shape chilled cream cheese mixture into a ball. Wrap in plastic, and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Roll the cheese ball in finely chopped pecans before serving.

(I made a double layer of waxed paper and scooped the freshly mixed cream cheese mixture onto it. I then gathered up the edges and placed the bundle into a small bowl, about 2 cup size and placed all that in the fridge. This gave me the basic ball shape. I figured I could skip the extra refrigeration step by pre-forming the ball, and it did work out well).

Earlier Holiday Baking Party post.

Thank-you to everyone who dropped by during the party and those who visited later. I enjoyed your company and your comments.

Holiday Baking Party - Part 4

2011-12-23T22:37:00.001-05:00

Wow, what a busy day. I'm happy that I decided to share with my readers. Extra hands help lighten the load.

Finished the "Nanaimo Bar Cookies" and they turned out terrific. Even son had to get his camera and take some pictures. That is high praise as he is at college studying photography. These ones taste as good as they look. This recipe is from the magazine Most: Celebrating Women over Forty - Waterloo Region November 2011 issue. Click the link for the recipe.

Of course I had to make my favourite shortbread cookies of all times. I found this in a magazine at least a decade ago and it was love at first bite. "Elfin Shortbread Bites" are just that, they measure only 1/2 inch on a side.

Elfin Shortbread Bites

1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
2 tbsp round, coloured sprinkles

Stir together flour and sugar. Cut in butter till crumbly. Stir in sprinkles. Form into a ball and knead till smooth. The heat from your hands will help meld the ingredients together.

Roll on cookie sheet into 8 x 5 inch rectangle. Remember to wash your ruler before putting it near your cookie dough.

I start by marking every 1/2 inch on all four sides. Use a long cook's knife to cut the lines.

Separate the squares on the cookie sheet. Bake at 325 F for 12-14 minutes or until just starting to brown.

Do not skip adding the sprinkles, they really do make these into magical cookies.

While these were in the oven, I mixed up the "Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball" that my sister requested. It is sitting in the fridge chilling so that I'll be able to shape it into a ball. I'll have the recipe and photo for you tomorrow.

Additional posts from my Holiday Baking Party

I would like to invite you to enter my current contest to win some calorie free doughnuts that I have ~~made~~ ~~baked~~ crocheted. Be sure to visit this post to find out how to enter.

Holiday Baking Party - Part 3

2011-12-23T19:54:00.002-05:00

Dinner was lovely. The pork tenderloin was cooked to perfection. I diced mine up and served it over basmati rice. Then it was back to the baking.

It took two pan to bake all the cookie bases for the "Nanaimo Bar Cookies". They smell very good, but no tasting. Must wait for the custard topping and chocolate drizzle. All in the family have been warned to wait.

Back to the "Raspberry Cream Cheese Brownies". This recipe is from Holiday Cookies 2010 by America's Test Kitchen. They didn't turn out as I expected. The directions said to drop the cream cheese mixture over half of the brownie batter and then smooth it over the surface. Well, in my case, I think that my cream cheese mixture was a bit thicker than the brownie. I did try and smooth it a bit, but it just tried to sink below the brownie. Then I was to dollop the heated raspberry jam over the cheese and swirl it in. Ha, the jam liquefied and ran all over. Ok, no spreading or swirling required. Next was to top with the rest of the brownie batter. Since it was not as thick as expected, it was easy to spoon it over the surface and achieve complete coverage with no need of smoothing. This pan is in the oven now.

Hubby has made me a cup of decaf Earl Gray Tea. I'll take a bit of a break and then get on with the custard topping for the cookies.

Thanks to my party guests who have dropped by to say hello.

Earlier Holiday Baking Party posts:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 4
Part 5

Holiday Baking Party - Part 2

2011-12-23T17:19:00.002-05:00

Had to take a bit of a break and pick up daughter from school as we needed to pick up one more gift items.

The "Peanut Butter Blondies" are now chilled and they look great and taste even better. I ever so slightly undercooked them so they would be chewy instead of crisp.

"Oatmeal-Fudge Bars" are out of the over, but they need to cool for two hours before cutting. This photo was taken when I was sprinkling the topping on. There is a bit more topping than shown.

I have the cream cheese packages on the counter. One is for "Raspberry Cream Cheese Brownies" from the same magazine. My sister sent a special request and asked that I make her a Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball. I received the recipe from a Chocolate Survey panel that I am a member of. Yes, I do regular surveys concerning Chocolate. What a pleasure.

In the oven at this moment, are the pork tenderloins that my son set to marinate just after lunch. Once they come out, I'll put in the "Cranberry Pistachio Coconut Triangles. The combination of tastes cried out to me and forced me to make them. It took a while to shell the pistachios, it used almost an entire 225 gram bag (that would be about 1/2 pound). The shortbread base needs to chill before I pour the sugary, fruit and nut filled topping over it.

I think I will continue in the order I listed my recipes, making "Nanaimo Bar Cookies" next.

Tips:

Plan ahead of time to ensure you have sufficient ingredients on hand.
Put butter and eggs on the counter to warm up. (safe away from your cat or dog)
Copy favourite recipes that you use every year and put them in a binder. Much easier then flipping through dozens of cookbooks to find that particular recipe.
Line pans with foil or parchment paper for easy removal. This is handy as you will probably need to re-use the pan for another recipe.
If you live in a cold climate, you can chill items outside, just remember to cover them securely.

Additional Holiday Baking Party posts:
Part 1
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Linda has left a fun recipe in the comments section of the first part of my Holiday Baking Party. Thanks to Linda's Grandmother for this one.

Holiday Baking Party

2011-12-23T13:45:00.003-05:00

It's about time that I finally got a start on my holiday baking. I used to start a few weeks ahead of time and get the shortbread ready and stash them away. Also would make some squares that froze well, but I found that I ate too many and others in the house would find my hiding spots. It's rather a shock when you go to get out some baking for guests who are arriving in a few minutes to find the tins empty. Now I leave the baking to the last minute.

For the past ten years or so, we have spent Christmas Eve with a dear friend and her family on their farm. What a delight. Her hubby is a talented cook and he makes the most amazing version of a Quebec Tortiere (meat pie). Something to anticipate for weeks. I have been bringing a sweets tray since the year of our first invite. This year will be no different.

Since I will be spending at least several hours baking, I thought it would be fun to write posts as I go along. I had wanted to host an online Christmas Party, but that didn't happen, thus an online baking party. Leave me a comment and tell me about your holiday baking, favourite recipes and memories of tasty treats.

First up is "Peanut Butter Blondies" from the 2010 Holiday Cookies from America's Test Kitchen. I'll be using this magazine for a couple of recipes.

There is a triple hit of peanut in this recipe. I didn't have any dry roasted peanuts and have skipped them. No worries, there should be ample pb taste with the peanut butter and the peanut butter chipits. These ones are now out of the oven and cooling and I have moved on to dish two. This is from the same magazine, "Oatmeal-Fudge Bars". This is a triple layer bar with oatmeal crumble on the bottom, a layer of chocolaty goodness and then more of the crumble. I have to bake the bottom part first, then let it cool for an hour before adding the chocolate layer. This means I have time to decide on recipe number 3.

Stay tuned, and I'll be back with photos in my next post.

Follow up Posts:
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Be sure to pop on over to the Kingdom of Coco to see the wonderful gingerbread men that Cheryl has created. Believe me, you haven't seen any like these ones.

For more cooking fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for her Weekend Cooking post as well as links to many other food inspired posts.

Looking for a new Series? ebook deals

2011-12-22T13:07:00.000-05:00

Tired of waiting for the next book in the series you are reading, then click on over to Sourcebooks. They are currently offering a deal on the first book in a series (ebooks only) for over 60 series. Following is information that I received:

Sourcebooks announces its most extensive eBook promotion to date! For a limited time, purchase the first book from a Sourcebooks author for only $1.99—books that are the first in a series, or the first book that Sourcebooks published by that author (and a few extra for good measure). More than 65 exceptional books ranging from young adult to adult fiction, romance, and non-fiction. For complete details, please visit our landing page devoted to this promotion: http://www.sourcebooks.com/it-all-started-when.html. The complete list of titles is listed below—Discover a great new author!
As always, please be patient if our online retail partners don’t have every single title uploaded to their discounted price points, but the promotions are set to begin on the start dates listed below. These deals are available with all major e-Book retailers!
You can always receive the latest information about our eBook deals by checking out our eBook page: http://www.sourcebooks.com/readers/browse-our-lists/ebook-specials.html.

Enjoy, and Happy Holidays!

SOURCEBOOKS eBOOK DEALS! It All Started When… First in “Series” for $1.99
Dates: 12/21/11 - 1/8/12

Complete Details: http://www.sourcebooks.com/it-all-started-when.html
Non-Fiction
1. Battle 100 by Michael Lee Lanning
2. Best Little Stories from the Civil War by C. Bryan Kelly
3. History Buff’s Guide to the Civil War by Thomas R. Flagel
4. It Was Over When... by Robert K. Elder
5. Killer Book of True Crime by Tom Philbin and Michael Philbin

Young Adult

6. Beautiful Dead Book 1: Jonas by Eden Maguire
7. Merlin’s Harp by Anne Eliot Crompton
8. Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach
Fiction

9. Child of the Northern Spring by Persia Woolley
10. The Darcys & the Bingleys by Marsha Altman
11. God is an Englishman by R.F. Delderfield
12. The Greatest Knight by Elizabeth Chadwick
13. Hawk of May by Gillian Bradshaw
14. The Highest Stakes by Emery Lee
15. The Immigrants by Howard Fast
16. The Kingmaking by Helen Hollick
17. Millie’s Fling by Jill Mansell
18. Miranda's Big Mistake by Jill Mansell
19. Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One by Sharon Lathan
20. Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife by Linda Berdoll
21. An Offer You Can’t Refuse by Jill Mansell
22. The Pemberley Chronicles by Rebecca Ann Collins
23. Perfect Timing by Jill Mansell
24. Plain Fear: Forsaken by Leanna Ellis
25. Rumor Has It by Jill Mansell
26. A Secret in Salem by Sheri Anderson
27. Skipped Parts by Tim Sandlin
28. Staying at Daisy’s by Jill Mansell
29. Take a Chance on Me by Jill Mansell
30. To Conquer Mr. Darcy by Abigail Reynolds
31. A Weekend with Mr. Darcy by Victoria Connelly
32. When Harry Hit the Hamptons by Mara Goodman-Davies
33. The World from Rough Stones by Malcolm Macdonald

Romance
34. 50 Ways to Hex Your Lover by Linda Wisdom
35. Awaken the Highland Warrior by Anita Clenney
36. Call of the Highland Moon by Kendra Leigh Castle
37. A Certain Wolfish Charm by Lydia Dare
38. Cover Me by Catherine Mann
39. Cowboy Fever by Joanne Kennedy
40. Cowboy Trouble by Joanne Kennedy
41. Demons Prefer Blondes by Sidney Ayers
42. A Duke to Die For by Amelia Grey
43. The Fire Lord’s Lover by Kathryne Kennedy
44. The Goblin King by Shona Husk
45. Heart of the Highland Wolf by Terry Spear
46. Heart of the Wolf by Terry Spear
47. The Heir by Grace Burrowes
48. The Highlander’s Sword by Amanda Forester
49. I Dream of Genies by Judi Fennell
50. In Over Her Head by Judi Fennell
51. It Happened One Bite by Lydia Dare
52. Kiss at Your Own Risk by Stephanie Rowe
53. The Legend of Michael by Lisa Renee Jones
54. Love Drunk Cowboy by Carolyn Brown
55. The Making of a Duchess by Shana Galen
56. Making Waves by Tawna Fenske
57. Merely Magic by Patricia Rice
58. The Mistress’ House by Leigh Michaels
59. One Fine Cowboy by Joanne Kennedy
60. The Return of Black Douglas by Elaine Coffman
61. Romeo, Romeo by Robin Kaye
62. SEALed with a Kiss by Mary Margret Daughtridge
63. Slave by Cheryl Brooks
64. Strange Neighbors by Ashlyn Chase
65. Taste Me by Tamara Hogan
66. Tyler by C.H. Admirand
67. What a Goddess Wants by Stephanie Julian
68. Wickedly Charming by Kristine Grayson

(I have added links to the titles that I have reviewed at this blog)

Needlework Tuesday - A Finished Present

2011-12-20T20:41:00.001-05:00

Needlework Tuesday is open to all readers looking for inspiration, encouragement or who want to share their recent needlework project. Introduce yourself in the comments and be sure to leave a link to your current post. Feel free to grab the cute little mouse for your post.

Last week I shared pictures of the Snowflake Hostess Apron, from Red Heart, that I had started for my husbands step mother. Daughter is modelling it in this photo. If I were to make it again, I would change one step. In the Bodice, row 21, it says to make 4 sc in one sc, twice in the row that falls around the bust. You can clearly see these in the photo and they look awful. Sort of like eyes. I assume it was done to make space for the 'bumps', but really, how about two crochet in each of the next three sc.

I'm sure the gift will be appreciated regardless.

For those who haven't entered already, I invite you to visit my post from last weekend, No Calorie Doughnuts, and enter the associated contest. You must leave a comment at that post to be entered.

I will have more doughnuts to show you next week. They are in various stages of ~~baking~~ ~~making~~ ~~hooking~~ . stitching. As soon as I publish this, I'll be back to figuring out how to make the yarn look like a Boston Cream Donut. Then it's on to the 'Camoflauge Glazed'.

Did you get a chance to work on any of your needlework project this past week? Be sure to leave a comment and your link and I'll add it to my post. Thanks so much for taking you time this week to visit, and remember to click the link above to find out what my contest is about, and how to enter.

Sherrie at Just Books, has continued with progress to her hexagon afghan. You definitely want to check it out.

Weekend Cooking: No Calorie Doughnuts

2011-12-17T11:24:00.001-05:00

This is the best Christmas baking I have done in years. No calories, no dishes nor pans to wash up. And they last. So why am I crocheting these little darlings. My dear nephew passed away July 4, 2011. From the time he was a little guy, he loved sprinkle doughnuts. If you wanted to surprise him, you brought one, if you wanted to divert him, you brought a doughnut, if for (insert reason here), you brought a doughnut. He also enjoyed sharing them with his siblings and young cousins when they arrived. As he got older, he didn't lose his appreciation for this bakery delight. In memory of him, I have been making these treats.

Two of these have been mailed to family in New Zealand to hang on their trees. I have one on my tree and am busy ~~stitching~~ baking up more.

The pattern is free from Red Heart yarns and if you know how to do simple crochet you can bake up a dozen as well. As for the beads, the tiny seed beads I used on the one, are just too small. I have bought a tube of larger ones, does size 3/0 mean anything, they are about 2mm in thickness.

Any reader who leaves a comment to this post, will be entered for a chance to win a sweet treat of a couple of these doughnuts. I'll close the contest some time after the 25th. International entries welcome. I'd appreciate if you become a follower, but not required. Do tell me about your favourite doughnut or sweet treat as part of your entry.

If you are set to 'no reply' be sure to leave your contact info in your comment so that I can contact you.

For more foodie fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for her Weekend Cooking post. You are invited to add your recent food related post.

Raven Black by Ann Cleeves

2011-12-15T12:29:00.000-05:00

It isn't easy being a single mother to a young child. Fran Hunter strove to do all the right things while raising her daughter Cassie on the isolated Shetland Island. Returning home from walking her to school after the Christmas Holidays, Fran spotted something unusual in a snow covered field. Why was there a splash a red in all that whiteness.

Inspector Jimmy Perez is called in to investigate the murder of Catherine Ross, a teenager and a newcomer to Shetland.

Why do the long time residents of the island immediately suspect Magnus Tait. Yes, the body was found closest to his cottage and he has a well deserved reputation of being the oddest man in the area, but does that make him a murderer.

That's all I can tell you about this story without giving away too much of the plot and the clues to deciphering 'who done it'.

I loved author Ann Cleeves descriptions of the beauty of the area as well as the remoteness. Of students from even remoter islands having to board in town so they can attend high school. Of having to take a ferry or a plane to the mainland for special events. I couldn't help but be intrigued by the people of the town. How could Fran almost be afraid of Cassie's teacher Mrs. Henry. She was a neighbour after all, and since she was teaching primary students, how mean could she be. The Isbister family kept me fascinated with every mention. The father seems to be of mythical proportions and that the sun rises and sets on him, while his son in a ne'er do well who is living off his father's flawless reputation.

I will admit that I thought I had figured out who killed Catherine, several times in fact, but was wrong each time and had no clue when it was finally revealed. Excellent, I love a book that keeps me on my mental toes. I am looking forward to reading the next books in the series The Shetland Quartet.

The Shetland Quartet:
Raven Black
White Nights
Red Bones
Blue Lightning

Map of Scottland showing the location where the events depicted in Raven Black occurred.

To learn more about the Up Helly Aa Festival, check this website.

Author Ann Cleeves sponsored a short film contest for the young people of Shetland to show the world what Shetland is like. Following is one of those films. Imagination, by Roseanne Watts. It is the modern re-telling of a Shetland folktale.

Needlework Tuesday - Yarn Eating Vacuum

2011-12-13T13:16:00.001-05:00

Needlework Tuesday is open to all readers looking for inspiration, encouragement or who want to share their recent needlework project. Introduce yourself in the comments and be sure to leave a link to your current post. Feel free to grab the cute little mouse for your post.

The Great Soup Recipe Hunt is still on. Do you have a soup recipe you want to share, or are you looking for that perfect recipe, then check out my earlier post. I"m collecting homemade soup recipes to put in a binder for my parents. Dad has been told by his doctor he can't have canned soup anymore, too much sodium. Please add a link to your favourite recipe , or send it via private email to heatherdpear at hotmail dot com.

Did you ever have that moment of panic, you have the vacuum out and it gets a bit too close to your needlework project that is laying on the carpet. What would you do if the vacuum started to eat your yarn? Oops, that happened this morning with tragic results. OK, only tragic for the yarn.

There is a surprising amount of yarn wrapped in there and I was very quick at pressing stop.

So just how long is this tangle - 17 1/3 yards. eeks. That could be just enough to require the purchase of an additional ball of yarn depending on the project. Fortunately not in my case. Further down in this post I'll show you what I am using this yarn for.

Week 12 of the Grandma Coco Papa Bear Sampler Scarf is finally finished. This final section is "Double Moss" Stitch. I've got a lot of ends to work in and then a gentle blocking to get it in shape. Should have a final photo for you next week. While you are visiting with Grandma Coco, I recommend that you browse through and check out the cookies she has been decorating. They are a work of art.

Have you been working along with me on your Dusty Snowflake Throw? I am so happy that it is finished. Still have some ends to work in, but it is already in use on the sofa. I am so in love with it. If you are looking for the pattern, it's available for free from Redheart. Remember, if you use their variegated yarn, you need 7 balls not the 5 that the pattern suggests.

Calorie free snacking. This is the project that used the vacuum food. Er, I mean the yarn that the vacuum ate. Left is the plain donut and right is the chocolate glazed variety. It still needs it's beaded sprinkles. Pattern from Redheart. When finished, each will get a gold thread loop for hanging.

So why am I making sprinkle donuts for my tree and for my family. In July my dear nephew Alex passed away at the age of 26. From the time he was quite young, he loved sprinkle donuts. This was not a passing fancy, he enjoyed them throughout his life. A trip to Tim Hortons for a coffee and donut was a regular outing. Almost every time we visited, at least one of use would go to Tim's with him. I am making these for my family and friends in memory of Alex.

Not one to rest with just one new project, I added another. This one is for my husband's step mother. It is from Redheart and is their "Snowflake Hostess Apron". I am using the Red Heart Shimmer as suggested in the pattern. Daughter said no way to the Christmas colours and choose instead this vivid blue.

Snowflake waist band.

Mesh belt.

Shows the foundation row for the skirt. I found this the hardest part of the project. Making this row was OK, but picking up the stitches from here drove me crazy.

The skirt part is done in a 'v' stitch. double crochet chain two and double crochet all in the same stitch. I blew it by not checking my tension. When I finished all the pattern repeats suggested the skirt was about 5 inches too short so I had to add a lot of rows.

This final photo shows the bib section. I am at the point where I am ready to start the straps. then it will get more of the pretty white picot edging. Pictures next week of the finished item.

One of my favourite sewing projects is to make pillowcases. You thought I was going to say boxer shorts since I have made so many for my kids. I have a pair of these made for a dear friend and her husband. He is a printer so I think they will fit right in. She's a reader of this blog, so I am expecting a comment from her.

I was shopping with mom at Fabricland on a sale day. Her Fabricland has a $3.00 table. Our goal was to find pillowcase fabric at that price point. I was thrilled to bring these two home. This set is for my bed. Hubby will bet his in his stocking.

I am curious, what kind/colour/pattern of pillowcases do you use? My daughter has a whole slew of Halloween theme ones that she uses all year round. My mother and I make lots of them for the various nieces and nephews. I don't know that the plain ones that come with the sheet sets ever make it out of the cupboard.

If you had your choice, what would be on your favourite pillowcase? I have a fiery orange flannel one that warms me up.

Remember to add your comment and link to your Needlework Tuesday post.

E-book promotions - Do you love Mr. Darcy?

2011-12-13T12:15:00.000-05:00

Today I want to pass along some e-book promotions from Sourcebook.
A Darcy for Everyone! Sourcebooks Celebrates Jane Austen’s Birthday!

From Tuesday December 13th – Friday December 30th the following eBooks will be priced at $1.99 at all online e-tailers. Whether you like Darcy as a tortured vampire, a modern day rock star, a Texas rancher or anything and everything in between! There truly is a Darcy for everyone!

A Darcy Christmas – Carolyn Eberhart, Sharon Lathan and Amanda Grange

Darcys & the Bingleys – Marsha Altman

Darcy’s Voyage – Kara Louise

Fitzwilliam Darcy, Rock Star – Heather Lynn Rigaud

The Man Who Loved Pride and Prejudice – Abigail Reynolds

Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One – Sharon Lathan

Mr. Darcy Goes Overboard – Belinda Roberts

Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife – Linda Berdoll

Mr. Darcy, Vampyre – Amanda Grange

Pemberley Chronicles – Rebecca Ann Collins

Pemberley Ranch – Jack Caldwell

Searching for Pemberley – Mary Lydon Simonsen

Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy – Sara Angelini

Darcy and Fitzwilliam – Karen V. Wasylowski

You can find all of the titles and information here:

http://www.sourcebooks.com/readers/browse-our-lists/ebook-specials/1884-a-darcy-for-everyone.html

*********************************************************************

Also, just a reminder you can still get the FREE three chapter preview of one of our anticipated upcoming January releases Scrumptious by Amanda Usen. You can get the free preview below and you are more than welcome to post the info. Please let me know if you have any questions about this as well. Thanks!

http://www.sourcebooks.com/store/scrumptious-free-excerpt.html

http://www.amazon.com/Scrumptious-EXCERPT-Free-ebook/dp/B006CU2A0K

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/scrumptious-excerpt-amanda-usen/1107766551?ean=9781402273216&itm=1&usri=scrumptious+excerpt

The book has received great early praise from the following publications and you can read more about the story below.

“In the small but expanding niche of foodie romance, Usen’s debut rules the kitchen with lip-smacking prose and rowdy protagonists who put Iron Chef to shame...the pacing, emotion, and erotic exuberance all sparkle.”

- Publishers Weekly

“In her superbly crafted debut, Usen blends together two realistically complicated protagonists, a well-realized culinary setting (complete with mouthwatering descriptions of food), and plenty of incendiary love scenes. The resulting literary dish is a smart, sexy, simply irresistible contemporary romance.”

- Booklist

“The title perfectly summarizes the feel of this book. Both the main characters and the culinary dishes are described in such a way that readers can practically taste, see and feel every word. Usen has a way with words and it translates to a solid storyline with great sex scenes.”

- RT Book Reviews, 4 Stars

TALL, DARK & DELICIOUS

Joe Rafferty is just as mouthwatering as the food he cooks. But if he thinks he's going to waltz in and take over her kitchen, he's denser than a thick slice of chocolate ripple cheesecake. Marly has invested too much of her life in Chameleon to hand off the restaurant to someone else—especially a cocky-as-all-get-out superstar chef. But there's no denying the man knows how to light her fire. Question is: Can she have the sizzle without feeling the burn?

Thank-you to Sourcebooks for the cover image.

Needlework Tuesday - One Woman Quilt Show Part 2

2011-12-06T13:13:00.002-05:00

"Row by Row This Quilt Did Grow" September 2010. Round Robin quilt make with members of the London Friendship Quilt Guild. My mother pieced the second row of three blocks. Other participants included: Christine Racher, Ellie Elderidge, Margret Parsons, and Karen Cole.

Irish Landscape - from a class taken during the Irish Quilt Show in Ailsa Craig, Ontario in 2010. Teacher Miriam Gogarty from Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland. Finished September 2010. Prior to taking the class with Miriam, my mother had traded fabric postcards with her many times.

"By the Slice" July 2011. Made for Grandson Paul. This was presented to him on the occasion of his 10th birthday. Pattern by Bonnie Hunter, Quiltville.

During the summer of 2011, the online quilt guild that both of us belong to, hosted a mystery project. I suggested to mom, that we both make it, with the intent of giving the finished project to the other. Here's the one that mom made for me. She chose colours she knew I would love, lots of orange and made it the perfect length for my coffee table. Unfortunately, she is still waiting for the one I am piecing for her.

"Huggs" 2011. This is destined for a great nephew. It is made from the "H" block as his last name begins with that letter.

Don't you just love this panel that mom used on the back.

"Kisses" 2011 is destined for another great nephew, a cousin of the one receiving "Huggs". Back panel is the same, though in a different colour. The block used is called "Jacob's Ladder" since that is the recipient's name.

"Camelot" February 2011. Pattern idea came from a magazine, though we couldn't find that specific issue. Elaine sewed a 4 patch block, then angled the ruler and trimmed. She didn't have a name for this quilt, and decided that she would randomly pick a piece of fabric that she had set aside for her next quilt. Whatever that fabric was named, would be the name for this quilt. Turned out to be a great choice.

This is the most recent quilt that mom has completed. It is made from a jelly roll using that "Jelly Roll 1600 inch" technique. This one belongs to my father. He was very ill and mom needed something to distract her, and quilting filled the bill. The top was already pieced, but it needed a back.

My dad loves Halloween and all the wonderful orange colours that are used for decorating. Mom found this amazing panel and added a bit extra fabric and used it for the backing. This is kept in the front room where dad spends much of his time. It is at hand to pull over my legs when I am visiting.

I have run out of photos, though there are at least ten more quilts out there with mom's name on the label. I will be posting those when I am able. In the mean time, I want to tempt you with some of the dozens of fabric postcards that she has made. The ones shown in this photo are about 1/4 of the ones she has received in exchanges. Following are links to my other blog, Send a Postcard a Week, where I have posted pics of the cards she has sent to my house.

Pixies

My Mom is Terrific

Valentines Day

Not all of the cards we have received have yet been shown on my postcard blog, here are a few more that I particularly love. Hope you enjoy them as well. Thank-you so much for visiting my mom's One Woman Quilt show. Please leave a comment as I will be printing them out for her.

I have tried to give credit for pattern and block sources when they are know. I apologize to the designer of any patterns when I haven't.

Are you ready for a calorie free treat? Then pop on over to Lit and Laundry to view the cute candy ornaments that are being made.

Over at Just Books, Sherrie has made good progress on her hexagon afghan. Love the little colour surprise she has put in the middle of each block.

Recipe Thursday - The Great Soup Recipe Hunt

2011-12-01T16:02:00.001-05:00

Soup, soup, soup. I can't get enough terrific soup recipes. Almost every week for the past few months I have been making a pot of soup for my dad using the freshest ingredients. My dad eats soup at least once a day and his kidney doctor told him he's not allowed to eat anymore canned soup. Too much sodium. In September, my dad was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, a cancer of the blood. By the time he was diagnosed, his kidneys were seriously comprimised. He also has additional health issues that will benefit from comsuming less sodium.

Now that dad is feeling somewhat better, I thought it would be fun to present both of them with a binder of pre-tested soup recipes from family and friends.

Soup Tips:

Add fresh herbs just prior to serving.
When you freeze a soup with potato, the texture of the potato will become mushy. Long potatoes, which are great for mashing, will break down somewhat in soup, whereas smaller, round potatoes, which are great for boiling, will tend to retain their shape. Check the Ontario Foodland site for additional potato hints.
If you are purchasing pre-made brooth, carefully read the label. New 'no-sodium added' brooths, are available, though some have much more sodium than others. Most that I have checked contain gluten.
A stick type or immersion blender is a safe way to puree vegetables, if you use a blender, only put one cup of hot ingredients in the blender container at a time and secure the lid before starting the machine.
If your recipe calls for added salt, don't add the salt. Let each diner taste their bowl of soup and let them add salt at that time if required.

Below are links to some of the soup recipes I have posted on my blog:
Caribbean Pepper Pot Soup
Mediterranean Beef Barley Stew (it becomes soup if you put in less barley)
Leek and Potato Soup

Do you have a soup recipe that you love. Enter it below in Mr. Linky. For name, put the name of the soup, followed by your name: ie: Potato and Leek, Heather. It doesn't have to be a recent post. If you don't generally put recipes on your blog, please send me a private email at (heatherdpear at hotmail dot com) with the recipe attached. I'll leave Mr. Linky open for at least two weeks. Be sure to leave a comment as I will be printing those out and passing them along to my parents.

I will be printing out all the recipes and putting them in a binder for easy usage. In case you are wondering, the only ingredient that dad doesn't like is red and green peppers. Thank-you for your help with this project.

Cloyne Court by Dodie Katague - Enter to win a copy

2011-11-30T08:00:00.001-05:00

Derek Marston enrolled at the University of Calfornia Berkeley to get and education, he then moved into Cloyne Court Co-op to avoid a lengthy commute and because it was a cheap alternative to 'residence'. He did graduate from the university but it was the education he received at Clayne Court that helped form the adult he was becoming and the course his life would follow.
Author Dodie Katague lived at co-ed Cloyne Court during the years 1977- 1979. In his opening, he tells the reader that 75% of this memoir is based on fact and the other 25% was added "for plot purposes."

Living in a co-op is a unique experience. As Derek found out, the residents set the rules of the residence and are responsible for it's daily operations. You want your room cleaned, then you clean it. When the common areas are dirty, you'd better hope that those with that job task get it done. There are no hired cleaning staff. Members also have to learn to deal with personality, culture and political clashes. There is no hired ombudsman to adjudicate. At the same time as the co-op members are dealing with their living arrangements, they also have to attend lectures and complete their assignments and study. More pressure than living in an official residence, though with the added benefit of learning how to live with a wide variety of 'roommates'.

Right from his first day, when Derek accidentally sits in on the Sunday night women's group and ends up explaining how he pleases a woman even though he has not yet 'been with a woman', he is thrust into an endless series of new situations. Co-ed showers. Ttemptations (sex, drugs, rock and roll). Politics/social causes. Religion/cults. Sort of a trial by fire situation. There are no notes that you can read that will prepare you for every possible situation you will encounter when you first attend college/university. You have to be flexible and open to new experiences.

I lived in a student run co-op during my university years. Waterloo Co-operative Residence Inc. Reading this book was a trip down memory lane. Much of what Dodie related, fit right in with my actual experiences. Sure, there were some differences, we didn't have co-ed showers, but the relationships and the day to day functioning of the co-op was very much the same. There was that very close inter-play between the residents. Even if you weren't friends with everyone, you did become dependent on them pulling their weight and completing their tasks. More importantly, the well being of all was dependent on the group functioning as a 'family'. Just as Derek experienced, you lived with these people day in and day out and you needed to be able to deal with them or you would be miserable. Along with his other building mates, Derek found out that they all needed to be more than people living in a co-op. they had to learn how to become a community.

To be entered to win a copy of Cloyne Court:, you must leave a comment and tell me where you lived when you attended college/university and at which school. If you didn't attend, tell me something interesting about where you live now. International entries are welcome. There will be one winner. If the winner is from Canada or the United States, then he or she can select either a paper or ebook version. If the winner is international, then a coupon for a free ecopy from Smashwords.com will be provided by the author. Contest closes December 12, 2011

Thanks to author Dodie Katague and Premiere Virtual Author Book Tours for my review copy.

To learn more about Cloyne Court, visit Berkeley Heritage.

There is lots of information on the web about co-operative living, you could start at this wikipedia article about student co-ops, though it is missing information on Canada. For Canada, you can visit The Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada.

Needlework Tuesday - One Woman Quilt Show

2011-11-29T09:23:00.005-05:00

This is my mom, and she is a quilter. She is holding her "Out and About" bag designed by Brenda Miller of Among Brenda's Quilts.

Mom wasn't a quilter when I asked her to go to Paducha with me in April 2000 (?). At the shows that week she watched to paper piecing demonstrations intently, bought a few patterns and came home and set to work. It wasn't long before she mastered that technique by practicing on a whole bunch of potholders.

"Peace". This neutrals quilt was adapted from a pattern by Joan Barnett. Measures 22 x 30". This was given to her mother-in-law Sophie. When she moved to a retirement home, she gifted it to me.

In 2005 I hosted a 'no sew' block swap. I selected the pattern "Easy Flower" from Quilter's Cache. Participants were to cut the flower and leave pieces and mail them to their swap partners. Once you received all your swaps, you picked your background fabric, and started sewing. Mom chose this lovely pink for her back ground. The finished piece measures about 42" square and adorns the table in her living room.

"Hidden Garden" May 2006
Block Pattern - Rosie's Calico Cupboard
this was a challenge from the London Friendship Quilters for their 25th anniversary. You had to use 25 different fabrics and measure 25" on a side.

"Christmas Butterflies" Aug 2006
from the book Nickel Quilts by Pat Speth.

When entered in the Western Fair in London, Ontario, it received a 2nd place ribbon.

This is the quilt that I have been sleeping under when I stay at my parents. Not quite a twin size.

Most of the fabrics in this quilt were from an 'uglies' swap held at a quilt retreat. We started with 1 metre of fabric each and quickly passed them around the circle. When the music stopped, you ripped the fabric in half. When the music started, you kept one of the now half metre pieces and passed the other. Again, when the music stopped, you ripped the fabric in half, resulting in two fat quarters. Kept one and passed the other. This continued until we were down to a 5x5 inch piece. You ended up with a very mixed assortment of fabrics in a number of sizes, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, 1/32, all useable. You were allowed to add more fabrics as needed but were supposed to use as much of the swapped ones as possible.

Made for Grandson Ben. Large lap size. 2007

These wonderful safari animals belong to Grandson Sam. When mother was making this quilt, Sam saw it and asked who it was for. When he heard it didn't have an owner yet, he asked if he could have it.

This African inspired quilt belongs to Grandson Andrew (my son). It is a large lap size with wonderfully soft fleece on the back. Next photo shows a close-up of the fabrics.

"Bento Box" 2007 from the pattern with the same name designed by Tracy Brookshier. Was the result of a class taken at Reichard: The Quilter's Shop, St. Jacobs, Ontario (when it was still located in Elmira, Ontario). It was entered in the Western Fair, London, Ontario and won the 1st place ribbon and was the Reserve Champion (it would have moved onto the provincials if the overall winner had backed out).

"The Gift" September 2008. I participated in a 'no-sew' block swap and asked for Christmas fabrics. I then gave all the block kits to my mother for Christmas that year. She put them all together and this lovely quilt is the result.

Belongs to Grandson Paul. Measures less than 200 inch perimetre. Pattern source: unknown internet.

This was a President's Challenge from the London Friendship Quilters. Had to use a given fat quarter and the perimetre was to be no more than 200 inches.

Belongs to Granddaughter Shannon (my daughter). 2008 pattern unknow.

Belonged to Grandson Alex. 2009. Unfortunately Alex passed away July 4, 2011. The quilt now resides with his mother (my sister).

Belongs to Great-Niece Alyssa. 2009 Pattern by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville.

I love the embroidered labels that my mom makes.

Belongs to Great Niece Shae (Alyssa's younger sister).

Belongs to Great Niece Tessa, youngest sister of Alyssa and Shae.

The girls love it that my mom used some of the same fabrics in each of their quilts.

It doesn't show all that well in this photo, but the little girl is machine embroidered. I think she is almost as adorable as the Great Nieces.

Thanks to my cousin Tyler for the photos of his daughters quilts.
Thanks to my son Andrew for the photos of the quilts for Alex, Ben, Sam and Paul.

I have shared with you half of the quilt show. Be sure to return next week for more. Mom has been very busy in 2010 and 2011 and has lots more to share.

Part 2 of the show continues here.

Sorry I don't have the pattern names for some of the quilts. If and when I find them, I will add them to the post. I apologize to any designers I have missed.

I know that your fingers haven't been still this week. Leave a comment and let me know what you have been working on, better yet, leave a link to your current needlework post and I'll add you in.

Sherrie over at Just Books has finished her Granny Square project and started making hexagons. She has some lovely photos posted.

Recipe Thursday - Cake Flop

2011-11-24T08:00:00.003-05:00

When reading my local paper last week, I came across a recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Cake. It sounded yummy. Chocolate is tasty and pumpkin is so good for me. I figured it would be a winner.

It looks good in this 8 1/2" springform pan.

Looks scrumptious in this mini bundt shape.

Even looks great on the plate ready for eating. Too bad it didn't cook properly. Even though the tester came out clean, the middle of the cake was totally undercooked. The recipe said it needed 46 - 60 minutes, I left it in for 70 minutes. On top of that, it just isn't tasty. It does not taste chocolatey nor does it taste like any other particular flavour. It's blah. What a disappointment. I was all set to take a big hunk of cake to my dad tomorrow. He's undergoing chemo every week and I felt it would be a nice pick-me-up. No such luck. I'll have to bake for him while I'm at his place.

Next week I will be doing a special Recipe Thursday post. Along with the cancer, dad has heart issues and now kidney troubles. The doctors have told him no more canned soups. Dad likes soup every day. I have been taking them homemade soup every week, but I do feel they are ready for the challenge of cooking together and making soup. Turns out that they are in need of recipes. Next week's post will be about soup. I'll be putting up a Mr. Linky and asking that my readers add link(s) to their soup recipe posts. It doesn't have to be a new post, but it does have to be soup. So, check back next Thursday and leave a link and a comment. I'll print out all the recipes and comments and put them in a binder for my parents. For those who don't write food posts in their blog, but have a recipe they would like to share, email it to me directly at heatherdpear at hotmail dot com. (you know what to do to change it to a real email address). Thank-you.

For additional foodie fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for her Weekend Cooking post. Included are links to a variety of food related posts including: recipes, cookbook reviews, book and movie reviews and other food topics.

Needlework Tuesday - Progress on All Fronts

2011-11-22T12:44:00.000-05:00

I know that you are all curious to see how stitch 11 turned out. From Cheryl's photo it was hard to tell what this stitch should look like (blame my bifocals). It took me two repeats of the pattern to understand what was happening. I love this stitch. It's fairly easy to do, though more of that knitting in the second stitch and then knitting in the first, but I am sure getting the hand of it now. I am showing the eight pattern repeats, but it's too short, so I am going to do at least two more repeats and then knit my seperator rows.

Pattern Stitch 12 is now up. So pop on over to visit with Grandma Coco and she'll share the pattern with you.

Lots of work on my snowflake afghan. I am now on the final row of filler motifs (bottom right corner) and then seven more full motifs to hook. Then the whole thing gets a white round of single crochets. Hope to show you the finished project next post.

Yesterday I was determined to work on the border for my 'Convergence' quilt. I had a strip about 4 1/2 x 20 inches of the main fabric as well as a handful of 2 inch squares.

I added two blue/green fabric to the mix and started playing.

A narrow border was first added as I wanted to bring out the red/brown tones. We have a lot of oak in our house and this made it look as though it belonged hanging here. Playtime, lots of measuring, sewing, un-sewing, re-pressing. Dinner was a bit late, but the last stitches were in before hubby came home.

Quilting is yet to be done, though I do have a good idea of what I want to do. Mostly, I want to emphasis the sun rays. I think I will use the shiny gold poly embroidery thread for that and some other cotton for the rest. Now to find a piece of fabric for backing and away I go. Hubby and I both feel that this will be a good quilt for his office. He hasn't had one hanging there for over year, so time to shake things up and re-decorate.

How did you do on your projects last week? Did you finish something, or did you push aside the old and start something new?

Take Your Child to a Bookstore Day - December 3, 2011

2011-11-22T10:52:00.000-05:00

This morning while reading today's issue of ShelfAwareness I learned about Take Your Child to a Bookstore Day. It's happening December 3, 2011. There are lots of shops in the United States who are already onboard with special activities, and a few in Canada. I'll be contacting my local independent to ensure they are aware of the 'celebration'. Check the link and see what activities your store has planned.

For information about ShelfAwareness, scroll down my left side bar till you come to their button.

Receipe Thursday - For the Love of Sweet Potatoes

2011-11-17T08:00:00.004-05:00

The sweet potatoes I usually buy are about one pound. This slugger weighs in just under four pounds. I couldn't resist sharing some photos with you. That's my daughter hamming it up. I'll be taking this vegetable to my college living son. It should feed him for a few days.

From the comments, seems I should be telling you that this beauty of a potato came from my local mass market grocery store.

For more foodie fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for Weekend Cooking. You are further invited to add a link to your recent food related post.

Not Ready for Winter - /Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-16T17:43:00.000-05:00

I took this photo last winter along the Conestogo River.

I am not ready for this to return, but it does look peaceful.

Needlework Tuesday - Those Flying Fingers

2011-11-15T14:45:00.000-05:00

Over at The Kingdom of Coco, Grandma Coco has put up stitch pattern number 11. It looks like the most challenging so far. To the left is stitch 9, Farrow Rib. Very simple to stitch, a two row repeat, though when taking the photo I noticed that I did make a mistake, right near the centre of the picture. Oh well, can't go back and correct that one.

I have started pattern 10, Star Stitch. At first it seemed a bit daunting with a 'purl 3 together' in every wrong side row, but those actually are going very well. It's a four row repeat and I need to do nine in total. Looks like I have three completed at this point.

I had a hard time putting down my snowflakes. I'm almost finished row four. Yippee. Two more after that, well, I do have to stitch the filler motifs as well, but they go rather quickly. Good thing I bought seven skeins of the multi coloured yarn. I just started the second ball of white, but am almost through with the fourth ball of the multi.

What are you up to this week? Anyone making ornaments? I did some crochet ones many years ago and haven't attempted any since. I would love to see photos of your stitched ornaments.

Blameless by Gail Carriger

2011-11-12T14:32:00.000-05:00

Lady Alexia Maccon should have been at home with her husband Conall celebrating her pregnancy; instead she is traipsing across Europe with her ever unflappable butler Floote and with her female inventor friend Genevieve Lefoux. It seems that Lord Maccon, as well as the rest of knowledgeable society, believe that an essentially dead werewolf couldn't sire legitimate offspring. Yet, for some unknown reason this pregnancy is not being celebrated amoung the supernaturals of London. Sorry, I don't feel that I can say more without getting into some serious plot activities.

This third installment of the Parasol Protectorate series has brought back some of my favourite characters. Of course, Alexia is in more than fine form. She is peeved at her husband, yet misses him at every turn, even though she is not prepared to admit such to anyone. For much of the book, it is Lord Akeldama absence that keeps me guessing. He is such a staunch supporter of Alexia, yet when he is needed most, he is nowhere to be found. And finally there is Floote, butler/secretary/librarian. He worked with/for Alexia's father for years and he is there for her. He has depths that this story just starts to touch on.

I loved this book. I poured through it and found myself near the end long before I was ready. There was so much build up of events, that I found the final resolution a bit too quick. I had expected Lord Maccon to play more of a role in the final events. Even though I wanted more, the solution to the 'events' was quite in fitting with the characters involved. I am now looking forward to listening to the audiobook version of Heartless, the forth novel in this series.

For those who have read this book, in the future I will not be looking at ladybugswith the same indifference.

This is the third book in the Parasol Protectorate series.

1 Soulless

2 Changeless

4 Heartless

Needlework Tuesday - Missing Time

2011-11-09T12:43:00.001-05:00

Needlework Tuesday is open to all readers looking for inspiration, encouragement or who want to share their recent needlework project. Introduce yourself in the comments and be sure to leave a link to your current post. Feel free to grab the cute little mouse for your post.

I don't know what happened to yesterday. It just sort of evaporated, one minute I was doing some cleaning and the next I knew it was dinner time and a friend was expected. Poof, gone. Fortunately I am here today to get caught up.

New books are always a welcome addition to my craft library. I was out with my mother and spied this magazine. It is filled with colourful patterns that all stray from the usual. They were all new to me, though my sister had looked at it and she said that many had been previously published in other magazines. Seeing as I don't generally purchase crochet magazines, I didn't have any of them. My mother bought this copy for me. There are at least six contained within it that I want to start on right away.

I made good progress on my snowflake afghan. I added the row of six filler motifs one evening. This week I have been working on adding the second row of seven main motifs. Now that I have mostly memorized the pattern it is moving along quickly.

I didn't get a chance to work on my Papa Bear Sampler scarf that is being hosted by Grandma Coco. She have the tenth stitch pattern up now. Be sure to visit with her and check out this interesting stitch. Next week I hope to have both stitches nine and ten to share.

Back to the Ricky Tims style Convergence quilt. I started this a few weeks back if you are looking for details. The sun is stitched down, but it was missing something. I had some thin gold cording on hand, so couched it down in eight 'sun rays'. As you can notice in this photo, they don't show up very well. Daughter suggested that I needed more of them.

i added eight more 'sun rays' and now they show much better. When I add the echo quilting I think they will jump right out. First I need to come up with a border....

Closeup of the 'sun rays'. I couched them with a long, narrow zig zag. I pulled the thread ends to the back and tied them off.

I was out shopping yesterday and happened across this fabric on the clearance rack. I couldn't leave it there, 3 metres of it followed me home. Aurora Borealis by Carol Bryer Fallert from Benartex.

I have no idea what I will do with this, but I had to have it. Do you find yourself purchasing craft supplies even though you have no immediate plans for their use????

Linda, at living, quilting and stuff, has posted an update on her lovely shawl as well as a few good stories about customer service.

Japanese Maple Trees that just won't Quit

2011-11-06T08:00:00.000-05:00

We are having glorious fall weather here in South Western Ontario. I have been spending a few days each week with my parents. Over the past years my dad has done much work in his back yard turning the whole area into gardens. It is fenced on all sides and this seems to be keeping the air slightly warmer. His Japanese Maple trees are still covered in leaves. The colours are gorgeous. These pictures were taken a week ago, so this particular tree is now all yellow and red, but still very lovely.

This one is the largest and is still totally red and not dropping it's leaves.

This green tree has been transplanted once or twice, so is a bit behind the others. It will catch up eventually as it is very healthy.

I may not know the different varieties of these trees, but they are wonderful to have in the yard to enjoy.

Steampunk Haiku Challenge

2011-11-05T20:01:00.001-04:00

Rikki at Rikki's Teleidoscope is hosting a steampunk themed haiku challenge. It's voting time. Please click and visit. There are some very cool poems to be read. Then vote for your favourite. It would be nice if you liked mine most and wanted to vote for #1, but please feel free to vote for which ever you enjoy most.

Needlework Tuesday - So Many Irons in the Fire

2011-11-01T12:47:00.002-04:00

Week 8 is now stitched. This pattern is called Honeycomb Cable Stitch. I haven't tried this one previously but will be using it again. Turned out very good and only had to reverse stitch a few times. For pattern 9 we'll be doing another new to me stitch, Farrow Rib. Be sure to visit The Kingdom of Coco for the instructions.

Last week I showed you the apple cozy that I crocheted for my daughter. When shopping with my sister I came across some nice looking plastic fruit. They are now snug and warm for the winter. It was fun to sit watching a tv show and be creative. Hmm, now to shop for a few more fruits.... (sorry, patterns not available).

A bit more progress on my Snowflake throw. Five motifs attached in a row. Visit Red Heart for video instruction on how to attach the motifs as you go along. Video 3 is now up.

Last week I showed you the quilt top that I had started on using a technique shown by Ricky Times in his book Convergence Quilts. It was a little blah and needed something to spice it up. Since there was a sun motif in the original print, I felt that the sun needed to rise once again. I found a sun online and traced it onto a double layer of a washable plastic like material. I used 'embossed cold water soluble topping form for embroidery' from Marathon threads Canada. Then I selected a variety of embroidery threads and started having fun. First picture shows one colour stitched.

All stitched and rinsed, now to let it dry.

At this point I suggest you move the pieces to a clear piece of plastic and arrange it as it will be on the finished project. The clear plastic will allow you to move it around on the quilt top and find the best position. I have shown it here on white paper so you can see the pieces better.

Pieces are now stitched down with additional thread. I did n't want to sew it on the fabric in the first place as the embroidery tends to pull up the fabric a bit and I didn't want that happening. Hope to be back in the next few weeks with more progress.

Plans for next week are for a one woman quilt show. While I was at my mother's last week, I asked her to pull out some of her projects so I could take photos. You are definitely in for a treat when I get this online show ready. Fingers crossed that it will be next Tuesday.

What have you been up to this past week. Are you starting a new project? Add a comment with a link to your recent post.

Rikki, over at Rikki's Teleidoscope has some pretty flowers that she has crocheted. She is also looking for information about making hairpin lace. Visit and leave her a comment if you have tried this crochet technique.

Sherrie over at Just Books is keeping focused. Her granny square project is moving along nicely.

Halloween Postcard Book

2011-10-28T08:00:00.001-04:00

I recently purchased a copy of this 'book'. Actually, it is 30 postcards printed on a card stock and bound together in a book format. I love these cards. I immediately tore them all out and sorted through them deciding to whom I would be mailing them. Several are going out right away and the rest will go as the mood strikes me, I'm not hung up on them having to go out before the stated holiday. The book is from Darling & Company, also known as the Laughing Elephant. They have additional postcard books for a number of holidays.

ISBN 13 978-1-883211-78-3

I am posting some of the cards on my other blog: Send a Postcard a Week

Halloween Ebook Deals from Sourcebooks

2011-10-26T21:47:00.000-04:00

I received a message today from Sourcebooks that listed the ebooks they are offering as a Halloween special.

Check with your chosen vendor or directly at the Sourcebooks site for purchase information. Please note that they might not be available at all vendors.

Halloween Spotlight: Plain Fear Forsaken for $2.99!

(10/25/2011 – 11/03/2011)

Plain Fear Forsaken by Leanna Ellis

Hannah Schmidt pines for Jacob, the boy who saved her life when she drowned, bringing her back from the brink of death by breathing life into her. But Jacob is gone, buried. Levi Fisher loves Hannah. But he knows how much Hannah loved his brother Jacob. He also knows the troubling event that took Jacob out of their lives…. So when a stranger named Akiva comes into their community, carrying with him a dark secret, their love and beliefs will be put to the test. And Hannah must choose between light and dark, between the love she vowed to carry with her and a new possibility of love---a decision that will decide the fate of her soul.

Vampires, Werewolves, and Witches, Oh My! Paranormal Romance for $0.99!

(10/28/2011 – 11/03/2011)

Wicked by Any Other Name by Linda Wisdom

Stasi Romanov uses just a little witch magic in her lingerie shop, running a brisk side business in love charms. A disgruntled customer threatening to sue over a failed love spell brings Trevor Barnes to town. Trevor's the best attorney around, and he just happens to be a wizard. Everyone knows that witches and wizards make a volatile combination—sure enough, the sparks fly and almost everyone's getting singed. Add to that Cupid playing a practical joke, a lunar eclipse that nearly precipitates a witch hunt, and some very mysterious goings on at the magical lake, and the feisty witch and gorgeous wizard have more than simply a possible lawsuit on their hands. Can they overcome their objections and settle out of court—and in the bedroom?

Kiss at Your Own Risk by Stephanie Rowe

Trinity Harpswell is a cursed Black Widow--death and mayhem are all part of the job description. If she can manage to go just one more week without accidentally killing someone, she’ll break this killer curse and put her Black Widow days behind her. When sexy Blaine Underhill III shows up at her door and asks for her help rescuing his friend from the clutches of Death’s evil grandma, Trinity gets pulled into a daring high stakes adventure. As Blaine and Trinity join forces to take down a series of underworld assassins, they may just learn that love is the deadliest game of all.

The Wolf Next Door by Lydia Dare

Rogue, Rake…Werewolf. Years ago on a full moon, Lord William Westfield gave way to his inner beast and nearly ruined young Prisca Hawthorne. Knowing he can never trust himself in the arms of the woman he loves, he throws himself into a debauched lifestyle. When Westfield discovers he has a rival for Prisca's love, he decides if she's going to marry a Lycan it damn well better be him. But time is running out as Prisca's other suitor takes an instant and potentially fatal dislike to Westfield.

Merely Magic by Patricia Rice

The daughter of one of the strongest magical lineages, Ninian Malcom Siddons is a powerful witch. Determined to only use her magic for good, she lives a simple, solitary life as a healer in her village, where she meets Drogo… Lord Drogo Ives believes only logic and science can explain the wonders of the universe and doesn’t believe the local folklore about Malcolm witches and Ives men, until he meets Ninian.

Heart of the Wolf by Terry Spear

Devlyn is a beta male werewolf in a pack of grays, Bella is the female red werewolf he rescued as a pup. When the pack’s alpha male tries to rape her, she flees and lives as a lone werewolf until Devlyn comes to bring her back to the pack. The two get embroiled in danger when a local red werewolf goes on a killing spree. While fleeing the murderer and the police, and keeping their whereabouts hidden from the vengeful alpha male of their pack, they find that their love is deep and their mutual attraction irresistible, but Bella knows that if she mates with Devlyn, he’ll have to fight the wicked alpha male, and it’s a fight to the death . .

Strange Neighbors by Ashlyn Chase

When all-star pitcher and shape-shifter Jason Falco buys a small apartment building, he sees it not only as an investment but as a place to escape the demands of major league baseball. That is, until he meets his tenants— a sarcastic unemployed crime-fighter vampire; a wereraven with a morbid sense of humor; a super-friendly salesman werewolf; and two witches with an owl who work as phone sex actresses. Not to mention a beautiful, all-too-human nurse. But with all the hooting, howling, and hollering going on, how's an all-American shapeshifter supposed to sweep a girl off her feet?

Emma and the Vampires by Jane Austen and Wayne Josephson

In this hilarious retelling of Jane Austen’s Emma, screenwriter Wayne Josephson casts Mr. Knightley as one of the most handsome and noble of the gentlemen village vampires. Blithely unaware of their presence, Emma, who imagines she has a special gift for matchmaking, attempts to arrange the affairs her social circle with delightfully disastrous results. But when her dear friend Harriet Smith declares her love for Mr. Knightley, Emma realizes she’s the one who wants to stay up all night with him. Fortunately, Mr. Knightley has been hiding a secret deep within his unbeating heart—his (literally) undying love for her… A brilliant mash-up of Jane Austen and the undead.

The Wild Sight by Loucinda McGary

Haunted by visions of Druid priests and Celtic warriors, Donovan O’Shea left home in Northern Ireland and immigrated to America. With his father ill, he returns to help sell the family property and pub, and now, to his dismay, the “sight” has returned. He inherited the talent from his long-lost mother, who told him to keep it a secret, and he has. He is soon involved in the archaeological excavation on his family’s land and meets American Rylie Powell. Her father walked out on the family when she was a toddler, and she now believes that Donovan’s father is also hers. Donovan knows in his heart this cannot be true as the attraction between them is palpable. In between checking out DNA tests and family histories, the two become involved with murders past and present stemming from the Troubles, a quest that requires Donovan’s gift. Northern Ireland’s violent past combined with supernatural elements add an intriguing twist to this modern love story.

Needlework Tuesday - Crochet with a Sense of Humor

2011-10-25T15:29:00.000-04:00

Ever get that urge to make something impractical but fun. That mood struck this week. I just had to make an apple cozy. Several months ago, Tracy at Pen and Paper sent me a link to a new magazine in the UK. It was featuring a pattern for an apple cozy. I thought it was very cool at the time, but didn't get around to making one. I did sign up for their email list. When the most recent posting arrived, it again featured the pattern as National Apple Day in the UK was on October 21. The first one I made out a too thick wool and I am in search of a giant apple that will fit. This time I made it with a thinner cotton and a much smaller hook 3.5mm. Perfect. The pattern was posted by The Guardian newspaper. This pattern says to use double crochet, but I used single crochet. My sister tells me that the terminology is a bit different between our countries. Check out the really cool pumpkin apple cozys. Should you decide to make this project, beware, it might lead you to think of making jackets for your other fruits.

Last week I showed you the yarn that I purchased for my snowflake afghan. I just love how these colours are looking. I made up the first motif while visiting with my parents. My mother was curious how it went together. How long before I get her picking up the hook again???

Yes, I did make this project one before. To see how the motif goes together visit this earlier post. Are you interested in making this afgahn, visit the Red Heart blog to download the pattern and to watch the instructional videos. They clearly show how to make this comfy blankie.

Son's stocking is now finished. Love the adaptation to make this cable. Very manly. I pictured it with the measuring tape this time so you could get a better idea of the size. I should be able to fit lots of loot, I mean goodies, in this. Pattern not available.

It was a challenge this week to make the seventh stitch pattern for Grandma Coco's Papa Bear Sampler Scarf . I think it was mostly that my needles are dark and the yarn was dark. It didn't help that I was trying to knit in the evening without insufficient lighting. This pattern is called Twisted Texture. It involved knitting in the second stitch on the needle and then going back to knitting on the first one. Not really a difficult thing in itself, but I did have some trouble with splitting my yarn or inserting the needle point in the wrong spot. It was worth the extra effort. Looks better than in this photo. Cheryl now has up the instructions for week 8.

Not one to shy away from a challenge, I have been browsing thought Ricky Tims' Convergence Quilts. It's my mother's book and she has been planning to make at least one of the projects. We're planning to make the "Original Haarmonic Convergence" quilt together. In the mean time, I had to give the basic technique a try.

Using this scap fabric. It's cotton with a water resistance coating (came from a friend). I trimmed it to about 36 inches square. Note the diagonal light and dark areas.

Next cut it into 2 inch strips.

Offset the strips by 1 inch. And sew them together.

All sewn together and all seams pressed to one side. Now rotate 90 degrees and repeat process, only this time you offset by a complete unit (2 inches) so you can match all those millions of seams.

This is my new fabric in the original orientation. NOte that there still is that light and dark diagonals. I have now removed all those extra bits from the edge and will use them in a border. I do think to make it more interesting I will have to applique something on the top.Or possibly a thread art image of a radiant sun.

This is the fabric I purchased last evening from the guest at my local guild meeting. It was dyed by Jane of Dye-Versions. This piece measures about 37 x 53 inches. I think it will be perfect for when mom and I do our project together.

What have you been working on this week.

Sherrie, from Just Books. has started on a new afghan, I guess we are all planning to be warm and cuddly this winter.

Weekend Cooking - Melon and Bean Salad

2011-10-22T08:00:00.001-04:00

I have been staying with my parents three or four days a week lately as my father is rather ill. I try and make them a few tasty dishes each visit. While there last week, my mother requested the recipe for a salad I had make for Thanksgiving a few weeks earlier. Canadian Thanksgiving is celebrated in October.

This one is totally yummy and could be served as the main dish of a lunch with the addition of some whole grain toast.

It is from the 1986 edition of Smart Cooking: Quick and Tasty Recipes for Healthy Living by Anne Lindsay. There is a newer edition of this book that should be widely available.

Melon and Bean Salad

1 cantaloupe or honeydew melon
1 can (19 oz/540 ml) red or white kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
2 green onions (including tops)
1 small red pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Cut melon in half, scoop out seeds. Remove rind and cut melon into pieces. You should have at least 2 cups of melon. Add kidney beans. Cut onions and red pepper into thin strips about 1 to 1 1/2 inches long. Add Onion, peppers, garlic and parsley to melon-kidney bean mixture; toss to mix.

Whisk together lemon juice and oil; pour over salad. Add salt and pepper to taste; toss to mix. Cover and refrigerate until serving time. may be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

I used a small red onion instead of the green onion. I didn't add the parsley as my kids don't like that green stuff in their food.

For more foodie fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for her Weekend Cooking feature.

Adrenaline by Jeff Abbott

2011-10-20T08:00:00.001-04:00

Parkour is a sport where the runner uses fast, efficient movements, and makes spur of the moment decisions to negotiate a route. CIA agent Sam Capra has to use all these skills to find and try to save his pregnant wife Lucy. She was abducted prior to a deadly explosion at their offices in London, England. Sam is the only one to believe that Lucy is an innocent victim.

I listened to the audio book version of this novel and was captivated from the first minutes. The book is full with a wonderful assortment of characters. Where does Mila come from all of a sudden and for whom does she work. I loathed Piet from the moment he was introduced, yet I couldn't have imagined a more effective bad guy. Even the minor characters, such as the bar managers are more than I expected. Along with these cast, is a story with totally unexpected twists. Each time I thought that a big reveal, or a resolution was going to be unveiled, the story just dug in deeper. As with the parkour running, this story also covered a lot of physical ground: London, a hidden CIA prison, the United States, Holland and a few more sites. Author Jeff Abbott made me feel as though I was in each of those locations along with Sam. I was ducking and weaving with him as he tried to avoid capture on the freighter.

I enjoyed this book so much that several times I found myself sitting in my car in my darkened garage listening for a 'few more minutes'.

From Hachette Audio. Read by Kevin T. Collins - unabridged.

Thanks to Hachette Book Group for the use of the cover image and for my review disks.

Peter Nimble and his Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier

2011-10-19T08:00:00.000-04:00

From the time he was a tiny baby, Peter Nimble has had to fend for himself. He found a stray cat from which to nurse and when he was a few months old he learned to steal to feed and clothe himself. This may sound impossible, but then you don't know Peter like I have gotten to know him. He is a most capable ten year old boy. Even though he is blind, he is the greatest thief in all the lands. He can open any lock, sneak into any building and steal food from your own dish.

One day he is faced with a most challenging situation. He is asked, as a favour, if he would guard a carriage secured with the most cunning assortment of locks. Being true to his nature, Peter can't help but pick all the locks and steal the most wonderful of treasures. When he tries to use this treasure he becomes ensnared in a magic he has never even imagined possible. This is the start of an adventure that will take Peter to the ends of the earth and places far beyond.

From the very first pages, reading about an infant who found his own wet nurse/cat, I loved this book. If life had let me, I would have read it in one sitting, which I suspect many children will try to do. Should you be wise enough to choose to purchase this book for your child, be sure to remove it from him or her at bed time, or remove the bulbs from their lights as they will not be able to put it down. When your child tells you of the Vanished Kingdom, don't say it doesn't exist, as it might have been magically added to your atlas when you weren't looking.

Peter is such an unlikely hero. He was abandoned at birth, blinded by ravens and left to fend on his own as an infant. Not really hero stuff. But he is good at what he does, thieving. Somehow, with all these strikes against him, he is a most lovable character. Not the kind that makes you want to cuddle and hug him, but the kind that you want to sit down and have a serious discussion with, treat him like and equal.

This story has all the makings of a wonderful adventure: unlikely hero, fumbling sidekick, children in need of a hero and magic, and it delivers many times over. Once the action begins, it doesn't stop. You and your child will enjoy it right to the final word. This is a debut novel by author Jonathan Auxier.

Recommended ages 8-12

Thanks to Penguin Books for my review copy.

This is my 11th novel for the 5th Canadian Book Challenge, which is hosted by John at The Book Mine Set. You are invited to join in the fun. Read 13 books by Canadian authors, ones for each province and territory, between July 1, 2011 and July 1, 2012.

Needlework Tuesday - Holiday Projects

2011-10-18T12:26:00.003-04:00

Last week I told you that I was going to knit some stocking for my children. This is daughters. Oops, I ran out of wool with a lot further to go. No chance of buying more, so I had a choice to make, and no, I wasn't going to rip it out and start again. I consulted with daughter, and she agreed to a design modification. I would take the cuff off and use that wool to finish the foot and then use a contrasting colour for the toe and new cuff.

I was at my parents again for a few days last week, but forgot to take the double pointed needles for the toe and couldn't find any at the local department store. Drat, knitting put on hold. When I got home on Saturday evening, I searched out the required size and set to work. I added the diamond motif to the top the of the foot. I think the brown sets the gold off very nicely. Measures 9 inches across the top and 20 inches from toe to cuff. Pattern not available.

Using the same basic instructions, I have started a stocking for son. Since I already know I won't have enough wool in the light brown, I am using the dark brown for the cuff and toe. I tried to use a different cable pattern from the book, but the instructions were not for the cable shown in the photo so I had to change it on the fly. I think this one looks quite masculine. A few more inches and I'll be ready to turn the heel.

While watching television with my parents, I was able to get pattern six knit on my scarf. This is called Chequer Board with the old fashioned spelling but with a modern appeal. Cheryl, over at The Kingdom of Coco, now has the seventh stitch pattern up for the Papa Bear Sampler Scarf. We're over half way there. Yippee.

While I was staying with my parents, mom and I took the opportunity to visit one of her favourite quilt shops. The Marsh Store, located in Coldstream, is a short drive north-west of London, Ontario. I had no specific project in mind, so was open to all that was on display.

I was intrigued by this panel. It measures the full width of the fabric by 18 inches and they are seven prints in the panel. I bought the rest of the bolt, which was three panels. I am going to mix in a few additional fabrics and set to work. Guess I need to choose a pattern.

I have been cutting strips for my first jelly roll quilt. Since I am in need of more variety, I bought this package. It has 2 each of 8 different fabrics. I am going to use them in the "Jelly Roll Quilt" that starts with 40 2 1/2 inch strips. Check out this video. The duplicates I'll trade with mom.

I also bought a number of clearance 1/2 metre pieces. No specific project, I just liked the colours and patterns.

Should you find yourself in this area of Ontario, be sure to drop into The Marsh Store and say Hello to Shirley.

How did you all do on your projects this past week? Any one else working on stockings?

Be sure to visit over at Lit and Laundry and check out the cool Halloween Embroidery. Not quite a stocking, but then again, who needs a stocking when a pumpkin basket will work.

Gone by Lisa McMann

2011-10-18T11:54:00.000-04:00

Janie is now finished high school and has some major decisions to make. Continue as she has, dreaming other peoples dreams which destroy her body, leave Cabel and live in isolation, and what about her mother. To help them both unwind from their work with the police, Cabel takes her to visit with his brother for a week. In the middle of the week, Carrie calls and leaves frantic messages for Janie that result in the two rushing back home to sort out whatever is happening.

First, I want to say that I enjoyed the whole series. I liked the reader Ellen Grafton and would listen to more of her work. She made the characters come alive. Particularly liked her no-nonsense voicing of Captain Komisky, my favourite character in the series. What I didn't like as much is that Janie is so certain that it is Cabel or no one. That this is her one relationship and that if she cuts ties with him, she'll be alone for the rest of her life. Though, that does seem to be a very teen way of thinking.

Sure, it's pretty far fetched that you can enter other people's dreams, but imagine the possibilities.... The whole series was fun to listen to and I would recommend it to teens and parents of teens as it does a good job of looking at some of the issues and decisions facing young adults.

I listened to the unabridged version from Brilliance Audio, 4 hours 43 minutes. Read by Ellen Grafton.

Earlier titles in the Wake Series by Lisa McMann:
Wake
Fade

Also reviewed by Sara at Along for the Ride.

Thanks to Brilliance Audio for the use of the cover image.

Weekend Cooking - Fluffy Salad

2011-10-15T08:00:00.001-04:00

I don't know how it started, but I have always referred to this dish as "Fluffy Salad". It's not a salad in the traditional sense, and perhaps it really should be a dessert. Which ever way you decide to classify it, I still will eat it when ever I get a chance.

Fluffy Salad

1 cup miniature marshmallows (I use the coloured ones as they look prettier)

1 cup sweetened coconut

1 cup crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup mandarin orange pieces, drained

1 cup cottage cheese, the creamy type not the dry one

1 cup sour cream, or thawed cool whip

Mix all six ingredients together and chill for a while before serving. Best if used that day or the next. It's up to you whether you use 'lite' or low fat versions of the cottage cheese and the sour cream. It will still taste good either way. Some versions I have eaten use canned fruit cocktail (drained) in place of the orange pieces.

I am curious whether you have a fun dish that you include in your family celebration dinners?

For more food related fun, be sure to visit Beth Fish Reads for Weekend Cooking.

Thanksgiving Visit to the Farm

2011-10-14T08:00:00.001-04:00

My family visited with my friend at her farm, Stone Meadow Farm, on Thanksgiving Sunday. Hope you enjoy the following photos.

Tamworth piglets. These are a Heritage breed.

The duck on the extreme right is an Indian Runner Duck. These ducks are hilarious to watch. My friend has quite a few and they usually walk around in a tight flock.

Silky Chicken

their feathers don't knit together, so they look fluffy.

These two wild turkeys have escaped the oven this weekend, though the male, on the right, could be on the menu this weekend. The female turkey was injured badly a few weeks back and lost a lot of feathers. My friend rescued both the bird and her feathers. She gave me the feathers for a project I am working on. The bird is doing well.

If you would like to learn more about Stone Meadow Farm, please visit their blog. It hasn't been updated lately, but there are some lovely photos and stories.

Lord and Lady Spy by Shana Galen

2011-10-13T08:00:00.000-04:00

Napoleon Bonaparte has been exiled and the war is over. England is recalling her spies and sending them home. Not all those newly un-employed spies are happy about this change of fortunes. The Saint doesn't want to go back to her mundane wifely duties. She much prefers the sophisticated, stylish woman of the world she is when on a case. Well, life can't be all that bad at home, if only her husband weren't such a bore.

Agent Wolfe would like nothing better to be at home in his wife's arms, if only she would open them to him or even talk to him. He'd much rather be in Europe chasing down England's enemies.

You can tell where this is going. Agent Saint and Agent Wolfe, un-known to each other, are actually Lord Adrian and Lady Sophia Smythe. I totally enjoyed the scene where the two agents meet for the first time. It reminded me of the movie Mr. & Mrs. Smith, only in this case, both spies work for the same agency. They are both proud of the work they have done and are not ready to let go of their careers. I could visualize them during the scene when they are comparing their scars, the number of times they were shot and various dangerous cases.

I found it amusing that with a total change of clothing, hair style and demeanor, that Sophia could transform herself to another women that her family wouldn't recognize. Her husband and sister-in-law expected her to be that dowdy, mousy woman she had portrayed for years and they found it hard to recognize her outside of that 'costume'. People see what they expect.

Two supporting characters that I particularly enjoyed are Agent Blue, who knows both of the Symthes, and their butler Wallace. Wallace is the epitome of the perfect butler, nothing phases him, he maintains his composure no matter the unusual doings of his employers. I'd love to see him in a future book should Ms. Galen write a follow up to Lord and Lady Spy.

Spy book - Romance novel, it doesn't matter, I found this a refreshing scenario. Unlike many romances, right from the beginning they both admitted to themselves that they were attracted to the other. Like many romances, mis-communications or lack of communications led to the estrangement of the two. It was fun to follow the story and find how they would resolve their difficulties. I would definitely read further works by Shana Galen.

Author Shana Galen's website

Thanks to Sourcebooks for my review copy. At the time of writing this review, the ebook is on a special for $2.99 at a variety of retailers.

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow

2011-10-12T13:48:00.000-04:00

It was going to be fun solving the next clue in Harajuku Fun Madness. Marcus, known online as w1n5t0n(Winston), met up with his friends in the San Francisco neighbourhood called the Tenderloin. They were zeroing in on the game location when a series of blasts shook the area. While pushing their way through the crowd at the subway station, Darryl, one of the friends, is stabbed. They go back to the surface to seek help. When Marcus finally manages to flag down a passing vehicle, that's when his troubles really begin.

The Department of Homeland Security mobilizes instantly after the explosions. This can't be a bad thing, as they were set up to protect American interests, and what could be more American than it's citizens. Marcus quickly learns that at least some of their employees can be very vindictive, even towards those very Americans.

Much of this story unfolds through the use of technology. Yes, there are laptops and cell phones, after all, it is the rare teenager that is caught without his or her accessories. It was the use of the hacked Xbox Universal and Paranoid Linux that really got 'things' moving. I totally enjoyed the discussions of cryptography and personal and public keys. I had previously heard of key signing parties in business (persons flying in from around the globe to sign) but not for private correspondence. Now if I could just find me a fashionable Faraday pouch I'd be set, or is that secure.

My favourite scene in the book had to be the vamp mob. I can imagine the frenzy of a rush hour crowd being caught up with a thousand or more teens dressed as vampires yelling "bite, bite, bite, bite, bite."

My overall take on this book: America all started out playing a cooperative game, the objective being a country where all could live safely, freely and be happy. After the attack on the the bridge, the DHS became an aggressor. Each time DHS's control slipped, they cheated at the game and changed the rules. The only way the citizens could achieve their objective was to play the game with a different approach. No longer could they play to win, but they had to play to thwart this new opponent so he couldn't win. The average citizen had to play the game such that they could make the cheaters rules work against them.

I listened to the unabridged audio version of this book. It was read by Kirby Heyborne. 11 hours 54 minutes. From Listening Library at Random House. After finishing listening, I ordered two hardbound copies, one for my bookshelf and one to lend. I then listened to the complete audio book for a second time.

Be sure to check out author Cory Doctorow's site for information on his other works.

Needlework Tuesday:Starting a Stocking

2011-10-11T11:30:00.001-04:00

Last night I finished my fifth stitch for Grandma Coco's Papa Bear Sampler Scarf. The stitch is called Basket Rib 1. This was a new one to me, but very straight forward. Lots of 'slip stitch purl ways' which isn't difficult by any means. Due to the slipped stitches, this is a slightly more firm knit. Pattern six is up now for those following along.

Since I am in a knitting frame of mind, I thought it was about time to get started on a Christmas Stocking for my daughter. I have been finding it rather embarrassing that my kids have store bought stockings. This year it must change. I found a skein of Briggs and Little Heritage weight in gold. Am going to knit it in 5.5mm needles and use a sock stitch pattern called Diamonds and Lace from Knitting circles around Socks. The stocking pattern itself is from a kit I bought way back. Unfortunately it doesn't have a publisher or company name on it. Since I haven't started, I don't have any photos.

Finished two more pair of boxers. Obviously these are for daughter. Son wouldn't be caught in the same room with these beauties. They are the same size, but the camera angle makes them different. Three more pairs to go in this batch.

As you can imagine, I need a new project just as much as I need a new hole in my head. Red Heart Yarn has started their latest Crochet-Along today. They are hooking that wonderful snow flake afghan that I made for my niece last year. I hooked hers in the colour suggested in the pattern, though for myself, I am making mine a touch more colourful. If you decide to make this project, I recommend purchasing more than the suggested 5 balls of variegated. I used at least 6 balls and might even have started into the 7th. I sent these corrections to Red Heart, but they chose not to make note of them.

Tami at Just One More Thing... is joining with me this week and also working on a stocking. Be sure to drop by and encourage her. I'm not big on doing cross stitch as I am so slow, so I will be eagerly watching her progress.

Sherrie over at Just Books is working on her ripple stitch afghan. Love the use of the variegated yarn.

I made my first stocking when I was in a girls group at my church. I think I might have been ten. It still make an appearance each year, though it is small and barely anything fits in it. Mrs. Claus managed to find items that would fit in it every year. I'll have to search it out and share it here. It is starting to show it's age, and has lost some beads. Perhaps this is the year to fix it up a bit. Have you made stocking for the holidays? Leave a comment and let me know.

First Nations Friday: The Bootlegger Blues: A Play by Drew Hayden Taylor

2011-10-07T08:00:00.050-04:00

If you have picked up a copy of this play, then get ready to laugh.

Martha followed the advice of a fellow committee member regarding the the amount of beverages to order for the church fundraiser. Now she is stuck with 143 cases of beer she can't return. What is a teetotaling woman to do. Sell them, as in bootleg. There's a small catch or two, her son is home from police college, and her daughter and son- in-law work for the band council.

This play had me laughing out loud from beginning to end. I loved every minute. While the play was written to be set on any reserve in Canada, I think it could also be adapted to many small communities. I would love to see a performance of this work. I haven't read a play in ~~years~~ decades and now I am wondering why. More than likely it was the over studying of them that I did when in high school. Fortunately author Drew Hayden Taylor has several more that I am looking forward to reading. For a complete list, be sure to visit Drew's site (click on his name in the previous line).

Reading at the Eden Mills Writers Festival 2010

Additional works by this author:

Motorcyles and Sweetgrass
Furious Observations of a Blue-Eyed Ojibway: Funny You Don't Look Like One ~~Two~~ Three
Me Sexy (haven't yet read)

Recipe Thursday: French Toast Muffins

2011-10-06T17:16:00.000-04:00

I was ready to try something totally different. In the Fall 2011 issue of Inspired: For the Love of Good Food, I came across a recipe for French Toast Muffins. Inspired is the food magazine of Sobeys grocery stores. These were easy to make and the flavour will change depending on the bread you select.

I decreased the amount of vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon and added 2 extra teaspoons of milk to compensate. I went to the extra expense of real maple syrup as it's a flavour that you can't get anywhere else. I used frozen blueberries since that's what I had on hand.

French Toast Muffins

3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
10 slices whole grain bread, cubed
1 cup frozen mixed berries
2 tbsp pure maple syrup

1. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon until well combined. Add cubed bread and toss gently until the egg mixture is absorbed. Add berries and toss gently to combine.

2. Divide muffin mixture evenly into a greased muffin tin and drizzle with maple syrup. Bake in the centre of a preheated 375 F over for 25 minutes.

You can eat these immediately or leave them to cool, wrap individually and store in the freezer. To reheat, remove wrap and place in microwave on defrost for 1 minute. If desired, drizzle with a bit more syrup before serving. For a printable version of this recipe visit Inspire.ca.

For more recipes and food fun, come back on Saturday and click the link to Weekend Cooking which is hosted by Beth Fish Reads.

Needlework Tuesday - A Virtual Road Trip

2011-10-04T15:08:00.001-04:00

Yesterday there was a special treasure awaiting me when I went to my mailbox. Norman and his blankie, or more formally, Norman's Blankie by Cheryl Coville, was hiding in there. Cheryl, also known as Grandma Coco, has written and illustrated this wonderful picture book. It tells the story of a quilt that Norman was given as an infant. As he grows and gets older, so does his quilt. In fact his quilt gets rather frayed on the edges, but his mommy knows how to deal with that.

Cheryl has donated the use of her book to Fun with Books, an organization in the counties of Leeds and Grenville (eastern Ontario) that distributes books to children in need of reading material, free of charge. Over the seventeen years of their operations, they have delivered over a half a million books.

For further information and images from this story, be sure to visit with Cheryl at her blog The Kingdom of Coco. She also tells you how you can order your own copy of Norman's Blankie.

During my virtual stroll this week, I stopped in at The Knit Cafe. They have an amazing window display that you really shouldn't miss. They are featuring a wonderful and ecclectic display of knit owls overseen by a knit skeleton.

Now back to The Kingdom of Coco. For the past few weeks I have been telling you about the wonderful sampler scarf that Cheryl is working on. I made a concerted effort this week to get caught up, and yes, I did it.

Week 2

Waffle Stitch - this went quite well, no tricks required.

Week 3

Broken Rib Diagonal Stitch. This was a new one to me. It knit up nicely, though it took me a full repeat to get the hang of it.

Week 4

Plain Diamond - I have done a variation of this one before and rather like the effect.

The final photo shows where I am at now with the first four stitch panels complete. All ready for stitch 5.

I am curious, did you do any virtual strolling to any sort of needlework shop this week? There must be more shops out there with wonderfully decorated windows. Be sure to add the links in the comments along with a link to your post.

Over at Rikki's Teleidoscope, Rikki has combined crochet and beading to make beautiful flower necklaces.

Gallows View by Peter Robinson

2011-09-29T08:00:00.001-04:00

Last summer, I heard Peter Robinson read from his then new book Bad Boy. After he finished reading I knew that I had to search out his first Inspector Banks book. Luckily I was able to download the audio version from my library.

When Alan moved his family to Eastvale, in Yorkshire, he thought he would find the quiet life as compared to his previous post in London. For a while it did work that way. But as Chief Inspector he became involved in all the illegal going ons in town. At first it was a case of break and enter at a few seniors houses. Next, there were several reports of peeping toms. Banks had just arranged to work with Psychologist Jenny Fuller when was informed of a dead woman, possibly the result of another break and enter. Life was no longer seeming so peaceful in Eastvale.

I was taken in by this audio book almost from the first minutes. I didn't want to press stop. In fact, I listened to the whole book twice over and found it just as gripping the second time.

I thought that with such a busy and complicated job, Banks would keep his home life simple, and perhaps he had been doing that. That is, until he met Jenny. There is something about her that he finds highly attractive and it's not just a physical thing. He loves his wife Sandra and would never hurt her but....

With Jenny's help, he sets out to discover whether these cases could possibly be related and what type of person or persons could be committing them. Banks is a very by the books kind of police, he dots his i's and crosses his t's, and when something doesn't make sense he digs further. This is the type of story that a reader can really dig into. Lots of details to ponder. Not only do we get to follow Alan while he tries to sort out the cases, we get involved in his personal life. He is becoming distracted by his interest in Jenny and I was left wondering if he would be able to keep that on a professional level. I thought that the end of this book was perfect. Great combination of diligent police work and of course a wee bit of luck mixed in . I will definitely be reading more by Peter Robinson.

This unabridged audio book by Tantor Audio was read by Mark Honan. 8 hours 45 minutes. Mr. Honan did a wonderful job of reading. He brought the characters to life for me. He was able to convincingly portray teenagers as well as seniors as well as male and female.

Thanks to Tantor Audio for the use of the cover image.

This is my 8th books for the 5th Canadian Reading Challenge hosted by John at The Book Mine Set. All readers are invited to join. Read 13 books by Canadian authors between July 1, 2011 and July 1, 2012. One book for each province and territory.

No Proper Lady by Isabel Cooper

2011-09-28T12:59:00.000-04:00

Joan's world is very ill and it's going to take more, much more, than a few simple spells and incantations to heal it. It's going to take sending her back two hundred years to 1888 to effect the changes needed.

While wandering in the woods near his estate, Simon Grenville happens upon the long neglected standing stones he vaguely remembers from his youth. As he approaches, he can feel an unearthly power building, radiating from the stones. Moments later, Joan appears in the circle, poised for battle.

As it turns out, these two have a common adversary and they determine that they will work together to vanquish him.

This does pose certain challenges. Joan comes from a broken, live by the skin of your teeth society. She is essentially unaware of Victorian propriety and customs. While she is a most proficient assassin, she hasn't the slightest idea of how to approach her target. It was interesting to see how different present day society and mannerisms are from 1888. Clothing, manners, forms of speech, so much for Joan to learn for that she can fit in. I felt that author Isabel Cooper did a good job at portraying the differences in women's positions in the two time periods. She didn't imply that one was right and the other wrong, just that they were different.

I was surprised to learn that this is a debut novel. There was enough depth to Joan and Simon that I felt comfortable with them and that I could almost anticipate their interaction. I liked Simon's few friends that were introduced and am happy to hear that Isabel is working on a follow-up No Honest Woman. Eleanor makes for an interesting young woman. She develops a substantial backbone through her involvements with Joan. I wonder if it was there before? How much was influenced by her brother's actions. Hope to learn more of her in the next book.

I enjoyed this book. Very entertaining. I had to keep reading to find out how the romance could proceed in light of their serious quest and the societal restrictions.

Thank-you to Sourcebooks for my review copy.

Needlework Tuesday - Hooks and Sticks

2011-09-27T10:42:00.001-04:00

I have finished the first week and have changed colours for week two. I did make a wee mistake when casting on. I had one stitch too many. Instead of ripping them off and starting again, I waited till I was in row one of the pattern and knit together the last two stiches before the edging. No one will ever know. I also added an extra four rows with the new colour.

Cheryl recommended using 5mm needles. I chose to use 4.5mm. I bought these cool Harmony wood needles from Knit Pick way back in December but haven't had a chance to use them. I couldn't wait any longer. Love the purple wire. There is a streak in the needle that is the same colour as my darker yarn and I did find that a bit confusing, thinking that I had a snag.

Two weeks ago, Rikki featured a cool little basket that she crocheted.

I loved it and had to make one. I had a ball of unlabelled cotton sitting upstairs, so I grabbed a hook and set to it. I had the little one done that evening and made the larger one the next day. I gave them to daughter to coral some of her scattered nail polish and such. Thanks Rikki.

What have you been up to this week? Did you also make some of these little baskets, I'd love to see pictures.

My friend Linda, at living, quilting and stuff, has started a new shawl and is using a rich colour of purple. Am looking forward to how the striping will appear. I met Linda several years ago at a quilting retreat and have stayed in touch, though I don't get to visit with her near often enough.

Sherrie at Just Books has started a new pineapple doily. Lovely colour, maize, perfect for autumn.

Rikki at Rikki's Teleidoscope has included instructions for how to crochet with wire.

Over at Lit and Laundry, Beth shares a few of the projects that she has been working away at.

Word on the Street 2011 - Kitchener

2011-09-26T09:13:00.001-04:00

Yesterday daughter and I went to Victoria Park in downtown Kitchener, Ontario for The Word on the Street. This was much larger than last year and I much preferred the set up. This year, the booths were arranged in a large square with all the booths on the inside and we walked around the outside edge, rather than a main street arrangment as last year. We didn't stop for any readings as the authors we were interested in, we had heard last week at the Eden Mills Writer's Festival. Several of the booths features some of the same authors and publishers that I spoke with last week along Publisher's Way at the same Festival.

We did do very well with our book buying. In total we spent $20.00 for the following:

Used books from The Literacy Group of Waterloo Region. I bought these books with my father in mind.

All four by James Axler, from his Death Hands series.

Neutron Solstice
Pony Soldiers
Dectra Chain
Watersleep

Next we stopped at the booth set up by Chapters. My books as were marked down to $1.00.

Daemon by Daniel Suarez
The Amalgamation Polka by Stephen Wright
Clear: A Transparent Novel by Nicola Barker (had to buy this as the cover image insisted)
Very Valentine: A Novel by Adriana Trigiani (several bloggers that I follow rave about Adriana's books, and I had intended to read something by her)

These are daughter's selections from Chapters. Four cost $1.00 and Vlad cost $5.99 .

Vlad: The Last Confession by C.C. Humphreys
Victorine by Maude Hutchins
Demon Chick by Marilyn Kaye
Indigara by Tanith Lee
Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange

Kitchener Public Library was selling books that had been removed from circulation. For myself:
Dancing Feathers by Christel Kleitsch & Paul Stephens
The Generals by Simon Scarrow (for my father)
The Machine's Child by Kage Baker

These are daughter's selections from the library:

Above Ground : A Jack Taggart Mystery by Don Easton
A different Kind of Heat by Antonio Pagliarulo
Chosen by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast
Reincarnation by Suzanne Weyn

Did you visit one of the venues for The Word on the Street ? Which one, what did you think, which authors did you hear read?
Please leave a comment or a link to your post.

Report from Vancouver location:

Author Pam Withers post these comments at Tundra's blog, Talking with Tundra.

Eden Mills Writer's Festival 2011 - A Stroll Down Publisher's Way

2011-09-24T21:30:00.001-04:00

There aren't many times when I get to talk with dozens of authors in the course of a few hours. Publisher's Way at the Eden Mills Writer's Festival is one of them. In between author readings, I headed here and talked with the widest assortment of authors and independent publishers. I wish I had a massive book budget as I could have filled several bags with future reads.

The following are all the booths I stopped at, there were more, but time was limited so I did have to skip a few. If I missed your favourite, please add details in the comments including a link to their site. These are posted in the order that I visited with them.

David Beasley

Mr. Beasley is the author of over thirty fiction and non-fiction works. He has also collected the works of Major John Richardson 1796-1852, and republished many of them.

He has a very informative section about self-publishing that I found fascinating, much of the information being new to me.

Jessica Ingold

While a student at the University of Guelph, in the Media Studies Program, Jessica has somehow managed to write and publish three works of fiction. I guess it shouldn't be surprising, as she says that she has been writing stories from the time she learned her first letters.

Poetry London

This group was founded in 2004 to draw attention to the poets of the London area. They also feature guest poets from other locations. Prior to each reading, which is held at the Landon Branch Library, the is a one hour poetry workshop led by Fanshawe College Professor Michelle Doege.

Josh Martin

Josh is a writer and public speaker. He says that his writing "tends to revolve around the topics of making the most out of life, work-life balance and simple living." He has two non-fiction works available at this time.

Donna McCaw

Donna has written a book that provides all sorts of information on planning for your retirement, including: finances, health, timing, relationships and how to adjust to yourself as a retiree.

Rene Meshake

Aaniin.

Mr. Meshake is an artist and write. He currently has three children's book and it working on more. He is also available for classroom readings and workshops. Pictured is his wife Joan Meshake.

Demeter Press

Demeter Press is the publishing arm of the Motherhood Initiative for Research & Community Involvement. I had an interesting, though unfortunately brief, discussion about mothers and blogging. title: Mothering and Blogging: the Radical Act of the Mommy Blog. They offer numerous other publications as well as The Journal of the Motherhood Initiative for Research and Community Involvement.

The Book Band

Established in 2003, The Book Band represents a number of small presses and strives to promote the works of their authors.

Canadians in Support of Afghan Women

"Canadians in Support of Afghan Women or C.S.A.W. is a volunteer Canadian solidarity group of women committed to making women's rights and protection under the law a priority in Afghanistan. To this end, CSAW raises awareness in Canada regarding gender discrimination in Afghanistan by supporting the empowerment of Afghan women and children through their education, employment and skill development." They had a wide variety of items for sale to support their fund raising efforts.

Frances Tyrrell

Frances is an incredible artist whose work has appears in publications such as Sears Canada catalogue, Carlton Cards Canada and many others. She has also illustrated a number of children's books. I could spend hours lost gazing into her illustrations. That is Frances at the left side of the photo.

Peace and Cotton

Jeremy had the coolest t-shirt designs. He will custom design and print from one to a huge number of shirts and ship internationally. He also represents Jenny Panda. Jeremy is at the right side of the photo.

Jenny Panda

Jenny is an artist and writer. She is the author of several children's books and one of poetry.

Erin Dunham

In January, Erin released her debut novel, The Art of Dying. She is currently working on her next book, tentatively titled, The Year of the Dog.

Be sure to click through to her site and read her biography. It is the best one that I have read in ages. Eric is seated at the right side of the photo.

In Our Words

I had so much fun visiting with Sherry, Peta-Gaye, and Saskia (seated left to right). All three are published by In Our Words.

Sherry Isaac

Sherry has recently published storyteller, a book of short stories. In 2009, she won the Alice Munro Short Story Award.

Peta-Gaye Nash

She is the author of a book of short stories titled: I too Can Hear the Drums. Peta-Gaye is currently working on her first full length novel.

Saskia Maddock

Saskia is the author of two books of poetry: her first, life unmasked, and her newest, Swimming to the Surface. She is Chair of the Oakville Chapter of the Canadian Federation of Poets.

Biblioasis

Biblioasis is a literary press, publishing poetry, fiction and non-fiction works in beautifully crafted editions.

The New Quarterly

"The New Quarterly is a magazine of Canadian fiction, poetry, and conversation, primarily about the writer’s craft. Our mandate is to nurture emerging writers by publishing and promoting their work alongside that of well-established writers we admire, and to provide an editorial context in which both can be read. We try to balance serious consideration of matters literary with playfulness and invention. The tone is generally celebratory."

Wye Write

Wye Write is a group of eight women, of differing ages and varied backgrounds, though they all live near the Wye River in Simcoe County.. They get together to write and critique each others works. They have published two collections of short stories.

Manhattans Music Club:
Mash Mondays

The first Monday of each month, you are invited to an evening of interviews and performances. The interviewees come from all sorts of fields, broadcasting, writing, academia, research etc., though they will also entertain you with their musical skills.

Dakotaroo

Author Krista Breen has loved horses for as long as she can remember. When taking a break from writing she can be found teaching in the arena at the Sunrise Therapeutic Riding and Learning Centre .

Publishing one Dakotaroo story a year, the Appaloosa is now on his sixth adventure since 2004 and has more yet to come. Krista told me that she uses a technique called 'torn construction artwork' to create the cover images.

I hope you have enjoyed my stroll and visits with all these wonderful people. If you decide to visit their sites, please leave them a comment.

Eden Mills Writer's Festival: Parade of Authors

2011-09-22T19:55:00.000-04:00

Sunday was a wonderful day for the 23rd Eden Mills Writer's Festival. Daughter and I were quite excited to be attending. Me, because I was looking forward personally meeting authors at the signing table, and daughter, she was going to be introducing author Richard Scrimger.

James Bartleman

I'm sure I knew that James Bartleman had been Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, what I didn't know was that he is an author. His first novel, though not his first book, As Long as the Rivers Flow, was published this year. The wording of the title is taken from the treaties that were signed many years ago with the Native Peoples. IE: The land would be given to them for as long as the rivers flow.

This book deals with the devastating and lingering impacts of the abuses of the Residential Schools. In this book, he says that he is trying to personalize what is going on at the Northern reserves, the epidemic of suicides.

There is a podcast of a conversation between himself and Shelagh Rogers of the CBC that he highly recommends.

Jill Murray

What's a writer to do when she'll be attending a big festival and hasn't the slightest idea what to wear? She asks her Twitter followers. Well, that explains why Jill is sporting a very cool Batman outfit. Like Batman, her main character from Rhythm and Blues, Alya, is trying to find her true identity. Jill says that sometimes you have to try on several before you find the right one.

Jill then read a selection from her book. Alya has just heard that she has an audition and she is agrees to attend. Moments later she is wondering what she has gotten herself into. This self talk leads to a fantastic description of what he parents are like. She didn't want to tell her parents about the audition and has sworn her brother to secrecy, so I am expecting horrid overbearing parents, but I find that I have been totally misled.

I thought it was cool that Jill read from her ipad instead of from a copy of her book.

Scott Chantler

Today was the first time that the Festival had hosted a cartoonist. This makes it a challenge to do a traditional reading. First Scott set the scene for us, the writing scene that is. He told us that a comic book starts with a written script. Since it is very time consuming to draw the images, you don't want to do any more of those than you have to. Instead, he writes a panel by panel script with details of setting, people and props, and then the dialogue. Only after this is agreed upon with an editor/publisher does Scott do his drawings. Within about 3 panels of the reading, I didn't even notice that this was any different from the usual type of reading. Great success.

Two Generals is based on his grandfather's second world war diary. Scott also brought one of his prize possessions, his grandfather's helmet from the war.

Natale Ghent

Interesting fact brought to our attention by the young person who introduced her: Natale studied Landscape Architecture a the University of Guelph. She also has a long standing interest in magic and was described as " A magician with words."

Not only a magician with words but with pen and ink, as in drawing. Ever since reading Kurt Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions, she has wanted to include her own drawings in a book.

Natale read to us from her book Gravity Brings Me Down. She choose a selection where her female lead character, Sioux Smith, has to go in to the boys bathroom to remove from graffiti. Things don't go as planned. The scene then dissolves into hilarity when a plain pair of enormous white briefs enter. Nope, can't clarify that statement, you have to read the book to find out how they fit in.

Rene Meshake

I have been waiting all year to hear Rene. Last year at the Festival I spoke with his wife Joan for quite a while, but didn't get a chance to hear him read.

This year he read from his newest book The Copper Axe. Rene is a survivor of the residential school system. During his years at school his culture, language and family were denied him. Like many, he had no idea that the Anishinaabe has a history of copper use, though he did wonder why his grandmother always told him stories of a metal axe.

Rene continues to encourage his cousins in the north to stay in school and to follow on their oral traditions of story telling and to use the skills that they have learned in the social medias to write books. He has combined his paintings and Photo Shop to colourfully illustrate the story of The Copper Axe.

Adwoa Badoe

I hate to admit it, but I was still talking with Rene while Adwoa started reading. Daughter was there talking pictures and insisted that I include her here.

Adwoa read from her latest book, Between Sisters, which is set in her home country of Ghana. Daughter says this would be an awesome book to read.

Tish Cohen

When I attend an author reading, the one thing I expect most, is to hear the author read and preferably from his or her latest book. Tish took the podium and did exactly that; she opened her copy of Switch and read.

After hearing the opening pages, I now want to read more about Andrea Birch and find out about her thirty seven foster siblings.

Richard Scrimger

My daughter had the privilege of introducing Richard. She took her task seriously, even writing to him and asking a variety of questions to get material. She sure did learn more about him that you would usually learn about an author. In case you are wondering, sour cream and bacon potato chips, and the licorice should be black.

Prior to reading from his latest book, Me & Death, Richard had a few comments for the audience. How to make a book attractive to a young reader: you have to find an interesting character and get him/her in trouble as soon as possible. In this case, he made his character, Jim, a schmuck, not a nice guy. He also offered advice to budding authors: that book you've been working on and editing for the past 8 years, put it away and let it rest, time to grown and get on with your next book. Use that first book as a learning experience.

It didn't take long for Richard to have the audience rolling with laughter. Not only is the book interesting, but he is such a high energy person that you couldn't help but get excited as well.

When asked how he got his hair into such a cool style, he said "Neglect."

Next week is Banned Book Week. If you are looking for a great book to read and to kick the week off, the pick up Me & Death, it has been banned from some Catholic School Boards in Alberta, Canada due to the inclusion of a talking penis in one line of the story.

My daughter and Richard after he has signed her book. Notice that daughter is wearing the same colours as those featured on the cover of the book.

Guy Gavriel Kay

Mr. Kay was the last author reading that I attended at the Festival. I haven't read any of his works, but I did borrow one from my sister's shelf and he graciously signed it for her. Won't she be surprised.

In his introduction, he told us he had been described as "writes history with a quarter turn to the fantastic." This has made me curious. I will definitely have to peak into one of his books and find out why my sister raves about his work.

He read from his latest book, Under Heaven.

Thanks for joining me for my visit to the Eden Mills Writer's Festival. On Saturday I plan to write about 'Publishers Way', an assortment of the authors and publishers who set up shop for the day along the main street of Eden Mills.