Brain dump of ideas for the wedding

*I have been saving old jars for candles and old bottles for the flowers and grasses. Wire to string them up on poles is a great idea.

*Polaroid cameras on the tables and ask people to put the photos on a clothesline 'wall' with clothespins?

Books to take or share

Scrabble
Jigsaw puzzles

Hammock

Firing range

Fireworks

Fire spinning

Blankets in case it gets cold

Car-b-que? what to do, what to do!

What time to start the ceremony - day, night, late afternoon?

Food? Food!

Blech. Faux-quilting. Rag rugs.

Blech. My favorite new word. I have been sick since last Thursday and can't seem to shake this cold. I have been exercising, have taken tussin to loosen up the chest congestion and it is still hanging on. Stubborn cold-please go away.

Last night I decided to use my blog as a way to motivate me to start and finish my projects. The first 2 projects are to use up my scrap fabrics and make Z a rag rug for the side of his bed.

Scrap fabric purge - Faux-quilting project

Went thru all of my scrap fabrics last night and it seems I used alot of old soft washed blue jeans, grey-blues, silvers, greys and black at some point. I began cutting out 5.5 x 5.5 inch squares last night to make a quilt for my bed. Now mind you I have never made a quilt in my life-so I have decided to figure it out and make a faux quilt. I have organized the project in my head like this:

Step 1. Cut out all squares.

Step 2. On my bed layout the squares in a pattern that seems pleasing to my eye and then pin together-make the overall pattern no larger than the size of a queen size flat sheet.

Step 3. Sew squares together on my sewing machine.

Step 4. Make a quilt sandwich and pin together 3 layers: Sewn patchwork, a layer of flat quilting batting and a sateen queen size flat sheet. Sew all edges together.

Step 5. Using embroidery floss embroider an X at the at the corners of all of the squares to keep the layers from shifting.

Seems easy-will keep you posted and add a nice pix of the stack of fabric squares.

Rag rug for next to Z's bed

With the scraps of the scraps I have been saving 1 inch strips to make a rag rug for next to Z's bed. He asked me a while ago and I did some research online about how to make one. Turns out it is really simple. Here are the links to what I found: http://crochet.about.com/library/weekly/aa092599.htm and http://vintagechica.typepad.com/the_life_and_times_of_thi/2006/10/rag_rug_tutoria.html

With cold weather coming I want to get this finished fast for him. I just hope the puppy doesn't eat it. And now for some recent pix of that ferocious beast aka the puppy Feena. Who by the way has taken to sleeping in.the.bed with Z every night.

Dinner tonight and in fact, every night

So I think this will become a regular feature on my blog - what I made for dinner last night or recently. Dinner is always a reality but sometimes a challenge after a long day at work. Pretty much on a daily basis I scan the web for things that sound interesting to make or to use up ingredients that I have. I look at a wide range of blogs and websites for inspiration and as I get organized will post them on the list of sites I yum.

Last week I made dinner from recipes I got from 2 different blogs - Salmon Fish Cakes from: http://eatlikeagirl.com/2007/08/14/salmon-fish-cakes/ and Marinated Baby portabellos with Spinach from: http://showmevegan.blogspot.com/search/label/mushrooms .

The fish cakes I made exactly as the recipe states except I sauteed them in a nonstick pan with a touch of oil instead of deep frying them. For the mushrooms I cooked the whole recipe instead of serving it cold. Mushrooms, handfuls of spinach and a whole red onion thinly sliced, sauteed up in that wonderful sauce. OMG they both came out so good. This time I plated it with spinach and onions on the bottom, mushrooms next, then a fishcake and drizzled some sauce over the top. Next time I would add a bed of brown rice, couscous or quinoa for something extra to sop up the sauce and Next Time I will be taking a picture. Oh yes.

Actually the whole dinner process may become fun in a new way soon; we just ordered a deep freezer and I will be able to prepare a bunch of homemade freezer meals to have for those night when I just don't feel like cooking. Z wants the freezer because he wants to buy a whole free-range, grass fed cow from a farm and have it rendered for us to save money. One freezer meal I have made so far is a combination of a freezer meal and a crockpot meal-the ultimate in using tools for those busy nights!

Easy freezer/crockpot meal

Take 3 lbs of either chicken, beef or pork and put in a gallon size freezer bag, pour in 2 cups stock/broth of your choice, 1/2 a cup of red or white wine and either a few fresh sprigs of rosemary and thyme or a tablespoon dried of each. Seal bag and shake up to mix ingredients, put in freezer. Label bag with the following: Date sealed and this recipe - Step 1. Take out of freezer-do NOT defrost, take out of bag and put frozen mess in crockpot. Step 2. Add into crockpot 3 peeled and chunked carrots, 3-4 chunked red potatoes, 1 chunked yellow onion. Step 3. Put lid on crockpot and set for 8-10 hours. Step 4. Come home after work and enjoy!

And finally one last easy, yummy dinner idea.

Heat oven to 450. Make thick wedges of 2-3 baking potatoes, toss with a little olive oil, sea salt, pepper and fresh rosemary and/or thyme. Bake for 45 minutes, turning once. When there is 20 minutes left for the potatoes melt 1/2 a stick of butter in a pan, add in a whole sliced up red onion and your favorite sausage (not italian sausage, more like a blue cheese stuffed or chicken and apple) saute until onions become translucent. Serve everything and pretend you are in Paris.

Jewelry images I love

A bunch of images of jewlery that I am in love with, I am unsure where most of these images came from-just know I saved them off the web at some point or another. If you know who to credit them to-please tell me and I will update my blog.

Colors for inspiration and dates in a juggle

Things on my mind today:

What day should I get married? 6/20/08 or 6/27/08? I am leaning towards the first date - it just seems more balanced with the 6+2=8.

Things I have decided about my wedding so far:

Color theme for my wedding - Blues, greens, blue greens and tones of white and cream.

Going to be at my friends farm in upstate NY.
No suits or ties allowed.
Asked my friend to be my maid of honor-thanks C for saying you would stand up for me!
Going to be making my own dress.

Flowers in mason jars, fireworks and fire spinning.

Big chinese lanterns on the ground in clusters in the field all lit up from within.

Marry just before sundown.

Been sick but still Making Pickles-yahoo!

Ok so I have been sick since last Thursday but I dont care since I am completely wrapped up in making refrigerator pickles now.

Links to the ones I am going to try in the future:

http://coconutlime.blogspot.com/2006/08/dill-refrigerator-pickles.html

http://awaytogarden.com/dan-koshanskys-refrigerator-pickles

and the ones I am making tonight:

http://buffalobuffet.wordpress.com/2008/08/16/recipe-refrigerator-pickles-can-even-conquer-zucchini/

Well I am sorta making those but not really, going to cobble together a recipe with what I have on hand and see how it comes out.

So many new things going on in my life-I got engaged on burn night-my honey Z proposed so romantically-it was 5 years to the day that we met! So now I am wearing a beautiful sapphire and will be marrying the guy who makes me smile even when I am down.

what else, what else? hmmm...