I Like Thursday # 114 ~ Small Things Make Me Smile

Happy Thursday! 

 This is my progress on my 

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

Click on this link to find the free daily blocks.

I am happy each morning to wake to this colorful stitch project.

Yesterday's "catch-up" block was the 

Block 25 Pattern ~ Giant Sunflower

I nudged the sunflower over a little and added my little Nutmeg kitty to the block.

Nutmeg has a very sunny disposition so it seemed a good place for her to appear in my cross stitch calendar.

I am waiting for today's block while I type.

I have one more daily block pattern to do and a blank space that was created when I combined two blocks.  I am still deciding what to do with that space which is under the haunted house block.

I am really hoping to have this one stitched and finished on Sunday.

On Sunday we will say goodbye to October. 

It has been an uneven month of change.

The foliage colors are not as bright as some years.

Today is another day of cool gray dampness,

although we are hoping the sun may peek through the clouds before the end of day.

My orange nasturtiums are a bright antidote to the gray.

Mr. Scrapatch brought home this tasty treat from Panera Bread

 the other night after work.

There was also Autumn Squash Soup, but that disappeared before I took a photo. 

Today I am having the cookie with my coffee.

Does anyone have a good copycat recipe for their vergetarian Autumn Squash Soup?

I have tried one I found online before but it did not have the same seasoning.

Today is a soup day ... 

... so I made Corn Chowder for lunch.

Corn Chowder

 

¼ cup olive oil

1/3  cup butter

1 cup chopped onion

½ cup chopped celery

1 and 1/2 cups diced potatoes

water to cover potatoes (1-2 cups)

½  cup flour

3 cups milk

1/2 cup vegetable broth

2 cans niblets or summer crisp corn ( 2 cups of fresh or frozen corn may be substituted)

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons dried parsley

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

(optional) dash of cayenne or paprika (may also be sprinkled on top when serving)

To prepare:

Add oil and melt margarine in pan. Add finely chopped onion and celery and cook until soft on medium heat, stirring constantly.

 

Add diced potatos and water to cover. Cover pan and turn heat to high and cook potato until soft. Turn down to simmer and check frequently so the water does not boil out and burn the veggies.

 

While potato is cooking, put  1 cup of milk and flour and one can of corn in a blender or food processor and puree.

 

Add the blended milk mixture and the other 2 cups of milk, the veggie broth, the other can of corn and the seasonings to the soup and heat on medium stirring occasionally until thick and hot.

 

Makes 6 - 8 servings. Double for a crowd in large crock pot.

It was warm and yummy!

Mr. Scrapatch will have a bowl when he comes home tonight and will probably

be taking this for lunch to work tomorrow. 

Late Addition:  The sun came out!

YAY!!!!

Linking up today with my thankful friends at 

I Like Thursday Bloggers @ Not Afraid of Color

May you have a Happy Thursday! 

Stitch Sew & Show ~ Week 42 ~ 24 Days

 

Welcome to Week 24 of Stitch Sew & Show! 

I have decided to participate in another Free Stitch Along.

This one is a sashiko skill builder ... 

24 Days of Sashiko @ Sashiko.Lab

There are also free video tutorials for 

How To Prepare Sashiko Cloth ~ Video Lessons

I started learning sashiko last year. 

My First Sashiko ~ Click Here

I found this to be a very relaxing process. 

I learned enough to design this for a

Sashiko Cherry Blossom Pincushion ~ Click Here

I would like to learn more and advance my skills and make more even stitches

and make a small sampler for a pillow or table quilt. 

This new stitch along looks like the perfect opportunity to learn with others. 

The first three days of have started with this basic grid. 

Here is my Day 2 Sashiko progress. 

The email lessons arrive in my email box very late in the day.

So I am just beginning day three.

I am also still stitching my 

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

Click on this link to find the free daily blocks.

If you are interested save these now as the pattern will likely become a complete pattern  which will be for purchase next month. 

This little block was an improv design to add ... 

... my fluffy tailed gray and white Maine Coon cat, Katniss. 

I am working on the orange and white cat block for my Nutmeg today

as well as trying to get the daily blocks caught up.

These tiny cross stitches make my eyes very tired and my vision blurry.

I am going to have to take a break from cross-stitching for awhile when my October stitch along is complete. 

It has been very cool and rainy for days here in my corner of the world. 

We have even lost internet access for the last two days,

although this should not be weather-related.

Today is another good day to stay inside and stitch.

Day 27 ~ Count Dracula

was quick to stitch. 

What are you working on this week?

Please share! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

I Like Thursday # 113 ~ Black Cat Cross Stitching

Happy Thursday! 

Linking up today with my thankful friends at 

I Like Thursday Bloggers @ Not Afraid of Color

where there are always smiles to be shared. 

I have been happily stitching on my

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

I added a little black cat to my blocks for Maestro.

 The kitties have been most helpful.

I will looking to add my other two kitties, Nutmeg and Katniss,

 somewhere on this cross stitch.

I have not been getting much sewing done.

That is okay. My sewing machine will be waiting for me.

While I have been stitching, I am thinking about

 what I would like to make for Christmas this year.

This week was time to sign up for my favorite blog hop of the year, the

Virtual Cookie Exchange 2021 @ Just Let Me Quilt

I have not been participating in many blog hops this year.

This is one I do not want to miss.

It always makes my spirits bright.

I hope you are having a bright and Happy Thursday!

Stitch Sew & Show ~ Week 41 ~ Still Slow Stitching

 Stitch Sew & Show ~ Week 41

Is it Wednesday already?

I have been sitting and slowly stitching.

Today I carried my stitching with me for my annual physical 

and a visit to the bloodwork lab. 

I am well, it is just the routine stuff.

Here is my progress on my 

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

This photo was taken a day or so ago.

I am not catching up very fast. 

I will continue my slow stitching and see what I decide after Halloween

if I have not completed this sampler.

I am enjoying the stitching and the lovely group of stitchers.

What Are you working on this week?

Please share! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Stitching Weekend ~ Day 2

 

Stitchy Weekend ~ Part 2

This weekend I have been able to stitch the daily block and one of the blocks that I need to complete to catch up with the daily posts for the 

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

I am really enjoying this stitch along.

Today's block was this 

Ghastly ~ Day 17

I decided to add black cross stitch eyes to the ghost

and add a few stars to the sky to add some sparkle to the blank space.

Today I also stitched the 

Boo ~ Day 9

where I decided not to extend the witch's broom.

I made colorful letters as I  had decided to stitch the white ghosty next to it's "Boo" and did not want two white motifs next to each other.

Looking forward to tomorrow's block!

Linking up with 

Slow Stitching Sunday @ Kathy's Quilts

where there is always beautiful inspiration in the links. 

Stitching Weekend ~ Day 1

Stitchy Weekend ~ Part 1

I am still playing catch up with the 

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

First I added one of the blocks that I needed do to catch up.

It is this Block 16 ~ Brew

Then I decided I could not resist stitching Saturday's Block,

Block 16 ~ Witch

next to her brew.

Magic Happened!

The bubbles floated over to the witch and the spoon jumped into her hand. 

There is so much cute creativity in these little cross stitch motifs from the designer,

 Sandra Workman @ Pine Needles

 that they bring out my own creative spark when I am stitching.

Sandra has left kind words on my calendar grid change on

 #pineneedlesstitchalong on Instagram

Thank You, Sandra @pineneedlesutah

Looking forward to another happy day of stitching! 

A Good Day To Sit and Stitch

 

After a day or two on more thinking than stitching on my 

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

I added the block that says "WHO ..." which was designed to look like this:

Pine Needles SAL Block 13

In the original layout this block would appear to the right of the owl,

but because I changed the layout and added the Block 12 Owl in

a different spot with the wreath already on the right, I have to improvise.

I also had to frog a few leaf stitches out on my tree and extend it to the left.

Well, maybe I did not "have to" but I wanted to play.

I am happy with the design change and how this is working up. 

Now I am figuring where to put the rest of the blocks

 that I need to add to catch up. 

Tomorrow there will be a new block.

I am hoping this will be a good weekend for sitting and stitching.

What are your plans?

May you and yours have a happy weekend!

I Like Thursday # 112 ~ Mail Call

 It has been a fun week for mail call ... for email and real mail.

This is my favorite new fabric! 

This is 

Bookish by Sharon Holland for Art Gallery

I really like this fabric collection.

There are a lot of fun ideas for this fabric in the Look Book.

There is also a

 Fabric Book Covers Video Tutorial by Sharon Holland

that looks like sun, but I am not sure what I want to make 

with these beautiful fabrics. 

I do love books.  

This is my favorite "new to me" book that arrived in the mail.

Since I am enjoying cross stitching at the moment I have been perusing cross stitch books online and this one really caught my eye.

Cross Stitch Mini Motifs Flowers by Susan Bates

I found my copy at Thrift Books for under $12.00.

I will not pay much more that for a used book.

This one was in almost new condition. 

It has large bright charts on thick glossy paper.

I will buy more of her books if I can find them inexpensively enough.

This is my favorite new Quilt Along find that arrived by email.

All info here: #mfaQAL @ Broadcloth Studio

This is all part of a new exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston

I am actually thinking of maybe using my Bookish fabric for this QAL.

I should not be thinking of starting another sew or stitch along

but this one may be hard to resist.

I am hoping to plan a field trip to Boston to see this quilt exhibit. 

It is rare for quilting to be featured at a major art museum.

I actually had these little flags fly there as part of a 

"To Boston With Love" Flag Exhibit in 2013

To Boston With Love @ Museum of Fine Arts Boston

I was not able to attend the event at the time.

I thought about this on Monday

 when first post-pandemic Boston Marathon ran again.

Always a good day to celebrate life. 

My favorite mail call of the week was this lovely box of handmade ornaments from 

My Girl from her etsy shop,

The Cozy Forrest

I am so looking forward to adding these to my tree this year! 

Also in the mail  this week  ... 

Spooky Box 2021 @ Fat Quarter Shop

It is very cute! 

Beware! ... Sneak Peek Photo Below!

Do not look if you ordered and want to be surprised!

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It is spooky!

It was not all mail time this week.

There was fun stitching on my 

 October Halloween Stitch Along @ Pine Needles

I am slow-oww-ly stitch-ccch-ing ... on this one and having fun. 

There was work done on the house by Mr Scrapatch, who always takes the opportunity to ask for favorite goodies. One day it was tuna sandwiches, which he says I only make now when our son, Jonathan, is visiting. 

The next day it was Homemade Apple Crisp 

when our neighbor shared her apple picking bounty. 

There were chicken breasts and veggies to be used in the fridge,

so I concocted this recipe:

Honey Barbecue Crockpot Chicken

2-3 large chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup molasses
1/3 cup apple cider
1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup finely minced onion
3-4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon grated orange peel

3 tablespoons orange juice
1/4 cup olive oil
6 drops hot sauce (or more if you like it spicy)
1/4 cup cornstarch

1 cup thin sliced celery

1 cup thinly sliced orange sweet pepper

1 shallot, thinly sliced 

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups rice

2 tablespoons butter

Trim chicken breasts and place in crockpot. Add salt and pepper, Mix all sauce ingredients except cornstarch in bowl and then pour over chicken. Cook on low 3-4 hours on Low.  When chicken tests done with meat thermometer, remove from sauce and cut into bite size pieces.  Add cornstarch to 1/3 cup sauce and stir. Add chicken and cornstarch mixture back into pot and cover. 

Cook 2 cups rice.  Add 2 tablespoons butter and fluff.

Slice veggies such as sweet pepper, celery, shallot into frying pan with 1/4 cup olive oil and stir fry over medium heat just to crisp tender.  I would have added other veggies if I had them.  Veggies can be cooked in crockpot with chicken. I like a little crunch to my veggies, so I cooked them on the stove.

Serve chicken and veggies over rice with plenty of sauce.

Mr. Scrapatch said it was yummy!  

This recipe is a keeper.

Happy Thursday

Linking up today with my thankful friends at 

I Like Thursday Bloggers @ Not Afraid of Color

where there are always smiles to be shared.