Pie

I shot a You Tube video of me making a pie crust and a German chocolate pie. Here is the recipe for the pie and crust
Betty Crocker crust
10inch pie (I like extra crust)

1/4 cup and 3T lard or add a little butter instead of the 3T lard
1 1/3 cup flour
1/2t salt

cut in lard into the flour and salt mix add ICE water by tablespoons (3-5 about)until moist. lightly pat into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill 10-30 minutes. roll out.


German Chocolate Pie (Der Dutchman cookbook)Restaurant in Walnut Creek Ohio

1 1/2 cup sugar
2T flour
3T cocoa
pinch of salt
2 eggs beaten
1/2 cup butter melted
1 can evaporated milk
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup coconut

mix sugar,flour, salt and cocoa in a bowl add melted butter and eggs mix together until smooth the stir in pecans and coconut. Pour in pie shell and bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes or until done ( it should not be jiggly in the center).

checking in

A quick check in today. I have been cleaning the house like a crazy person. We are having it appraised and if they come in I want it to be clean. I hate having strangers in my house. I needs a very complete cleaning as I have mostly given it a lick and a promise since I started working at my current job 2 years ago. I just wish I had more energy and less back pain. I remember in my 20's when I cleaned the baseboards with a tooth brush now I do ever clean them.
on the knitting front I am blocking my Brandywine Shawl. I am also work on the second sock for the Secret Garden but I hated the patten so much I decided to just make a ribbed cuff rather than use the written pattern. I think the pattern was just badly written it is very pretty but not for me.
I picked out my yarn for the Citron Shawl. It is a color my DD dyed for me. bright greens I think it will be a happy little shawl.
Next weekend leaving for a vacation of hiking, knitting and my first without the kids

busy time

It has been a busy time for me. I have done a lecture to some clinic staff on Colon Cancer screening and also worked an event for woman's health. Work has been busy and a tad bit stressful.I love what I do but it can be stressful.
I have been knitting like a crazy person on a pair of socks for the DH and all I have to do is the sewn bind off it is my favorite bind off for toe up socks. He wanted a pair for hiking and I can attest that wool socks when they get wet still feel warm and rather dry as today when I was hiking trudged through a steam and it was not warm.
The DD came home on Saturday or rather we picked her up at her school in Kent then drove we went to the Great Lakes Fiber Show. We had a wonderful time but it was way hot out. I bought the DD 10 oz of roving, almost 2 oz of silk caps, and 8 oz of dyed roving. I did not buy anything for myself I wanted to buy some yarn at Brier Rose but the line was way too long. After that we went to the Amish Door Inn in Wilmont for lunch and a little shopping.
Sunday I planted 2 full flats of pink petunias in the front flower bed.
Today we all went hiking in Kanawa State park and packed a lunch. We had to eat lunch in the car as it was raining. Thank goodness that we all brought extra shirts we got soaked from the rain and sweat. The hike was a difficult one and it was so humid we were wet before it started to rain. Ick!!!

Mother's Day

It has been a nice mother's day, without drama or any issues. The hubby and I went to eat at the Grouse Nest in the Hocking Hills. They had a nice buffet not fancy but some good food. After lunch we took an easy hike at Ash Cave one of our favorite place to walk. I can tell I am getting a bit stronger as the hike was much easier. It is time to get serious about getting into shape. I want to hike in the Smokey Mountains in late June. Time for diet and some solid exercise.
On the knitting front I finished my Hedera socks in Maizy yarn. That yarn has a wonderful hand feel and I hope they wear well. I decided to make the hubby a pair of socks to wear hiking in Trekking XXL. It will be a generic toe up sock knit on "0" circulars heel to toe should be about 10 inches and I am trying for about 72 stitches around I have only made him one pair of socks a while back when I had not been knitting socks for long and I used size 2 needles so we shall see how many stitches need cast on. I am starting with 32. The only problem I see is they are dark blue and I have some issue with seeing the stitches as the daylight fades.

Race for the cure

As summer approaches I become increasingly busy with work related activities. On May 1st in Charleston WV I worked a tent at the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure. I handed out about 2,500 pink ribbon chip clips. I arrived at the tent with my husband at 6AM way too early. I was followed by 2 co-workers at 7:30 after the set-up was done. Thousand of race participants and survivors were on the Charleston WV capitol grounds,it was a sea of pink. The sight of so many breast cancer survivors was a wonderful and touching sight. I came home satisfied but so exhausted. I sure don't want to do that too often.
On the knitting front I have turned the heel of the second Hedera sock. I am stuck on the Secret Garden sock heel it is so different than I have done before and I think the directions leave a lot to be desired and could be much improved. I need to finish this stuff so I can knit a summer top and start the wedding veil for my daughter in law to be.
And so the busy season begins

Time flies

How time flies! It has been a week since my last blog, way too long.
The weekend was fantastic. DH and I went to visit our son and future daughter in law. It is a long drive almost 5 hours for a short visit but I had not been up to visit in almost a year and had not seen him since Christmas. I could not have asked for a better girl for my son to marry and he better treat her right.
Due to the long car ride I got a lot of knitting done. I finished up Hedera sock #1 and got 13 of 15 repeats done on the foot. I am making them toe-up rather than top down. I had started Secret Garden from Blue Moon Fiber Arts switched to a finer yarn rather than the med weight and the pattern is working out well. I want to get the hedera's done soon as that is my favorite pattern for socks at the moment. I also need to finish a small shawl I started soon so I can think about making a summer top. I am a rather monogamous knitter and get anxious if too many projects are going at one time.
As for my Monday at work it was a Monday. Tomorrow working a woman's day out event. Over 3,000 are expected the good thing about that is I get to wear jeans.

Weekend

My weekend is coming to an end and I am so beat. the good side of the is I got some yard work done. The front bed is now finished and waiting for my spring flowers to be planted. I started this bed last summer and it never got finished not my fault really. Bad weather and a very long delay on my top soil that was not too great, made it difficult to finish so I bought many bags of top soil, added them then built a second level of decorative block.
I had to rip back a pair of Socks that Rock Sock Club socks. They were way too big. I am trying to use size "0" needles to see if they will make them small without having to decrease the amt of stitches and redo the pattern. I love the patten I may have to try a different yarn one that is finer. The STR yarn is med weight and I am not fond of that weight but I so love the color of the yarn. More on that later.

Work

Most days I think I have the best job in the world. I work with breast cancer patients. I often get asked if I find my job depressing and the answer is no I find myself so amazed by the wonderful people I meet. However there are some days that my job just stinks and today was one of them. Someone I care about is going to leave this world sooner rather than later and mostly death is not a bad thing to me due to my beliefs but she should be health and happy and being driven nuts because of her kids not fighting for her life that she is not ready or willing to say good bye to. I think medicine is a wonderful thing I have been involved in the medical field in one form or other for 30 years. Today modern medicine is not enough and I wish it was!
I also feel very sad for the miners in WV and their families. My husbands family had been coal miners and we only barely understand the heart break and fear they must be going through. My thoughts are with all of them.

Easter Sunday

Today has been an awesome day. I could have been depressed that my kids are not home for Easter but instead of being down JR (hubby) and I decided to go hiking and have a picnic after church today. I fried some boneless chicken thighs, made a broccoli salad and a fruit type salad. Baked off some cookies.
We hiked the Ash cave rim trail not long but a bit more rustic. I was surprised that it was not as difficult as the last time I did it. I am trying to build up my stamina and strength to do the Grandma Gatewood walk in the Hocking Hills it is 12 miles. I am planning on having a back MRI again in the near future as it is bothering me a bit.
I am rising some biscuit of the sourdough variety for dinner just a snack really.
The drive up to hike is about an hour so I knit on my Hedera sock I am half way finished the cuff. Tonight I will be working on the toe of my Secret Garden sock.

Welcome to my world

My first dyslexic post. I am a compulsive knitter, love to cook and hike. If I had my way I would live up in the blue ridge mountains or at least the Hocking Hills. I would be outside hiking most days even though I am over weight and out of shape.
I am currently knitting Hedra Socks by CookieA those are me in the car riding socks and I am getting ready to start the The Secret Garden Sock from the Rockin Sock Club.