I am now blogging over here:  http://www.littlepearstudio.blogspot.com/.

I would really love it if you would join me over there and move your bookmarks. 

Thanks!

Crochet Blanket

I saw this blanket on a favorite blog and I thought it was too cute not to try.  She just revealed her finished blanket today. I just started mine this week but already I have several rows done.  I love the randomness of the stripes.  I can do whatever stitch or pattern I feel like doing.  I really likes these colors.  I see this blanket being used in our bedroom draped over my favorite chair.

It's Fall

I'm not sure why I haven't been on this blog in such a long time.  I've been super busy with the usual Fall activities and have lots of things I could show you.  I have finished several knitting/crochet projects and there's been lots of cooking and decorating going one around her.  I will get those posted soon I think.But here's a quick lineup of things on my mind:

*Texas Rangers!  Love me some baseball and we are enjoying watching our team in the playoffs again this year.  We even had tickets for last Sunday's game against Detroit in the AL Series but it got rained out and rescheduled for Monday afternoon when we were both working.   The wonderful friends who were taking us took their kids instead so it worked out fine but we were bummed to miss attending a playoff game. 

*Pinterest -  I am still addicted to this site! I love seeing what ideas other people are coming up with.  And I finally made myself a "Completed Board" where I can store all the pins that I have tried with notes about how it worked out.  This is great for all the recipes I pin. 

*Crochet/Knitting - I always find it fascinating that just when I think I'm burned out with these two things I have a renewed interest and start some new project and work on it feverishly.  I have a great Winter sweater on my knitting needles.  And I just finished myself a new Winter scarf in pinks and greens.  And last night I started a new crochet throw for our living room.  

*My health - I found a new doctor who is doing wonders for me with my Neuropathy and helping me to manage it without the harsh medications other doctors have suggested.  But wouldn't you know it, just when I get all of that in line, I somehow have torn the meniscus in my knee so I'm in a knee brace for a couple of weeks hoping to avoid surgery.  Getting old is not for the faint hearted!

*Kids - Cullen has just started another session of hockey lessons.  His love for hockey has continued longer than anyone expected.  He and Greg went to the season opener Dallas Stars game last weekend which he loved.  Madison is taking an extremely heavy load at school this year as a Sophomore.  She's studying all the time!

That's about it.  Happy Fall!

Shrimp Ceviche

I made Shrimp Ceviche today.  So yummy on a hot summer evening!  Here's my version of a recipe I had found in an old mexican cookbook.

1 1/2  lbs of fresh deveined medium shrmip, chopped into chunks
1/2 cup of fresh squeezed lime juice
1/2 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 red onion, finely diced
1 cup of chopped seeded Roma tomatoes
1 serrano chili, seeded and finely diced
2 teaspoons of sea salt
Dash of ground oregano
Dash of Tabasco Sauce
2 Tbsp. Cilantro

In a non-reactive casserole dish, either Pyrex or ceramic, mix the shrimp,  onion, tomatoes, chili, salt, Tabasco, and oregano. Cover with lime and lemon juice. Let sit covered in the refrigerato for 4-5 hours, stirring hourly,  making sure more of the shrimp gets exposed to the juices.


Serve with avacado if desired.  We eat it with tortilla chips like a dip.

Rangers Party Invitation

I forgot to show ya'll the awesome invitation I ordered from a great seller on Etsy for Cullen's Birthday party.  This is the top 3/4 of the invitation.  It was designed to look like a real baseball game ticket. My address and RSVP info were below the "Basham Ballpark" with a bar code.  It looked just like a real TX Rangers ticket and everyone loved them!  I got the digital file from the Esty seller and just printed them at Costco. 
I got so many comments on them after they arrived in everyones mailbox!

This Moment

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

8th Birthday Party

We had an amazing time at Cullen's 8th Birthday party this past weekend!  The theme was Texas Rangers baseball.  I tried to have all the usual baseball park food:  hot dogs, cracker jacks, peanuts, sunflower seeds, Baby Ruth bars,  twizzlers.  The highlight of the "concession stand" was the popcorn and snow cone machines. 
For goodie bags I had clear bags with the following:  Texas Rangers twisty straw, Big League Chew bubble gum, baseball nerf thrower, candy, baseball stickers, and a little soft baseball. 
For entertainment/games I had a catcher shaped ball throw, dart throw and the Rangers pinata. 
I had a Rangers autograph dog that everyone signed as a keepsake for Cullen. 
Everyone had a great time and we are so happy with how everything turned out.  Cullen had a great time and got tons of new Legos and amazingly, a signed Josh Hamilton baseball from a friend of ours. 

What I am Reading

I was so excited to get this new book in the mail today.  I have been following Amanda's blog for several years and have used so many of her recipes and patterns for my family.  I envy her deliberate, slow paced life she has with her family.
I can't wait to find some quiet time to sit down and read through this book and try the many craft/food ideas inside.

I love using handmade knitted washclothes.   And sometimes I need to make a new batch and delegate the old ones to the car wash rag pile.  I think this time I went a little overboard!  This is my stack of new ones which all need their yarn tails woven in.  Anybody need a new knitted washcloth?

A Good Days Work

I love having a whole Saturday with nowhere to go so I can putter around the house doing this and that and getting lots of projects done.  This was one of those weekends.  
I have an abundance of tomatoes so one thing I wanted to do was get some tomato sauce made and in the freezer.  I loosely use this recipe from SouleMama as a starting point.  Having homemade tomato sauce is such a great thing in the winter when good tomatoes are few and far between.  We used some of the sauce for make-your-own pizza night yesterday and it was perfect. 

I also made crock pot apple butter.  I LOVE apple butter on biscuits.  When I found apples for sale at a steal at the grocery I bought tons of them and made my apple butter.  I found this recipe several years ago and have used it over and over.  So simple:  12 cups of peeled, cored and chopped apples, 5 cups of sugar, 2 teas. cinammon, 2 teas. cloves or nutmeg.  Put it all in the crock pot and cook on low for 6 hours.  Remove lid and cook another hour.  You can keep it a little chunky by just putting it in jars at this point but I use my stick mixer to puree it and make it truly the consistancy of butter.