In the Hive

It has been a busy week! Last weekend we painted and rearranged our bedroom and got some new furniture for it! This week I am working at the Hershey Quilt show! While I was at the show yesterday Karl made a triple layer cake!! This is the first time he has tried a triple layer cake and the first time he has iced and decorated a cake on his own! We think it came out great!! He wanted to make a red velvet cake, but we did not have enough red dye. He used green dye to see if the cake would come out green, it did not, it came out brown! The blue dye turned the cream cheese frosting a very pretty robin's egg color. It tasted great! Thomas was out taking pictures in the garden, can you spot the bee in flight in the snapdragon shot?

I sewed up another "curtain" this am to hide my bookshelves and I rode my bike. Now I have got to get a move on and get to college for orientation!

I got this snazzy black and white print yesterday!

We used up some of our squash from the garden tonight! Potato And Yellow Squash Frittata Ingredients 2 ½ cups chopped potato (about 3/4 pound) 2 teaspoons butter, divided 2 ½ cups chopped yellow squash (about 3/4 pound) 4 large eggs 2 large egg whites ⅓ cup reduced fat milk 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh tarragon or chives ¾ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon pepper ⅔ cup cheddar cheese, shredded Method 1. Place potato in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 8 minutes or just until tender. Drain well. 2. Melt 1 teaspoon butter in a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add squash; saute 5 minutes. Cool slightly. 3. Whisk together eggs and next 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Add potato and squash. 4. Preheat broiler. 5. Melt remaining butter in pan over low heat; add egg mixture (do not stir). Cook, uncovered, 12 minutes or until top is almost set. Sprinkle with cheese. 6. Wrap handle of pan with foil. Broil 4 minutes or...

This worked out great to hide my various players and such and the remotes still work through the fabric so we don't have to lift it up !

Michael loved the billboard at the movies last night!

I am making some new pillow covers, coasters, and a shelf curtain for the new living room decor!

We stopped at Kohl's tonight and got a new rug and runners in this pattern for the living room redo! Pretty cool.

This was our dinner the other night - it was great! Sweet and Spicy Chinese Chicken Salad with Sprouts Source: Prevention (6 servings) 12 wonton wrappers, cut into 1/4~-wide strips ⅓ cups and 1/4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce 3 tablespoons water 1 ⅓ tablespoons grated fresh ginger 1 ½ clove garlic, minced ⅓ teaspoons crushed red-pepper flakes 1 ½ lbs. mixed greens 1 ½ cups bean sprouts ¾ lbs. cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts, shredded 3 carrots, shredded 3 scallions, thinly sliced 1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Coat a baking sheet with nonstick spray. Separate the wonton strips and place on the baking sheet. Coat lightly with nonstick spray. Bake for 3 to 5 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Remove and set aside. 2. In a large bowl, whisk the vinegar, hoisin sauce, water, ginger, garlic, and red-pepper flakes until blended. Add the greens, sprouts, chicken, carrots, scallions, and reserved wonton strips. Toss gently to mix...

We did a lot of work the past week! We have to go back and catch up on our trim and we are getting new furniture, but here is a snap shot series so far!

Obviously this is not my living room, but that is the honey blush color I am using on most of the walls, and the trim paint will be the cream most likely. We are trying to decide the color for new curtains by "trying out" different colors on the sofa since I can't find a picture with curtains. Of course, then at some point, we need to get new furniture! 

The paneling came down last night, far easier than we could ever have imagined. It was only nailed on, thank goodness. The not so easy part was Michael had to remove the window trim on the bottom because it was nailed on over the top of the paneling! But, all in all, we are progressing! We can't believe we looked at that ugly panel for 11 years and thought it would be too difficult to take down!

Picked some veggies from the park, Karl is grilled some of them up for dinner! I put the last coat on the saffron threads wall and started the honey blush in the hallway. PAINT PAINT PAINT.

Cherry-Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake A little balsamic vinegar balances the sweetness of the cherries and enhances their flavor. Serve the cake with espresso or tea in the afternoon or with whipped cream or ice cream for dessert. Ingredients ¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature, divided ¼ cup dark brown sugar, packed 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar 3 cups whole pitted fresh Bing cherries or other dark sweet cherries (about 21 ounces whole unpitted cherries) 1 ¼ cups all purpose flour ¼ cup yellow cornmeal (preferably stone-ground medium grind) 2 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt 1 cup sugar 2 large eggs, separated ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract ½ cup whole milk ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar Method Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Combine 1/4 cup butter with brown sugar and vinegar in 10- to 11-inch ovenproof skillet with 2-inch-high sides. Stir over medium heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Increase heat to high; add cher...

I painted on the first coat of our darker shade this am. This and one other small wall are going "saffron threads" and the other will be a lighter "honey blush".

We have some little jobs to finish up in the kitchen yet, and now we started on the living room! Yikes! Michael is also going to take down that nasty plastic paneling you see! I am so tired of cutting in and painting trim!!!!

Of course, we had to have blueberry pie after yesterday's picking. This is a really simple, quick recipe! It is one of the boys' favorites! Jan's Fresh Blueberry Pie Ingredients 1 cup granulated sugar 2 tablespoons cornstarch 1 cup water 4 tablespoons lemon gelatin powder 4 cups fresh blueberries 1 graham cracker pie crust, 9 inch Method In a medium saucepan, mix together the sugar and cornstarch. Pour in water and bring to a full boil. Turn off heat and add in gelatin; stir until completely dissolved. Let cool. When mixture is cooled fold in blueberries. Gently pour into the graham cracker crust. Cover and refrigerate for about an hour or until ready to serve. Description: "" This is a superb, easy dessert made with all-fresh blueberries during the peak of their season. You're gonna love it! At serving time, garnish with whipped topping. "" Prep - Start to finish: 30 Minutes Source: AllRecipes.com (8 servings)

Andrew, Thomas and I went blueberry picking this morning. Karl felt a bit under the weather, so he stayed home. Thomas spotted a baby bird in one of the bushes!

I teased my friend Karen that my bee balm is taller than her! Karl is a bit taller than her at 5'4", and now it is outgrowing him too!

People have always said Thomas and Karl were my "twins." I came across their second grade photos and posted them below. They really did look alike at that stage of their lives! Thomas in kindergarten: Karl in second grade: Thomas in second grade:

Please notice, Michael has three plates in front of him. That means it must have been really good! Chocolate Caramel Hazelnut Pie 7.5 ounces wegmans pie crust, 1 pie crust from 2 crust package ----FILLING---- 1 ½ cup sugar ½ cup water ½ cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces 5 ounces evaporated milk 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped 2 cup hazelnuts or filberts, skinned and coarsely chopped ----OPTIONAL DECORATION---- 8 whole hazelnuts, skinned 24 sliced almonds Filling preparation: First, blind bake the pie crust as directed on package. Then, in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, stir together the sugar and water. Set the saucepan over medium-high heat. Let the sugar mixture come to a boil and continue to cook until it caramelizes. Do not stir the sugar as it cooks. If it caramelizes unevenly, you can move it around by swirling it in the pan. When the sugar is a rich golden brown, remove it from heat and stir in the butter and evaporated milk gradually, mixing well with a wooden sp...

Sweet-and-Sour Pork Ingredients 1 spray cooking spray 1 ½ pounds lean pork tenderloin, cut into thin strips 15 ounces canned unsweetened pineapple chunks ½ cup water ⅓ cup rice wine vinegar ¼ cup packed brown sugar 2 tablespoons cornstarch ½ teaspoon table salt 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce 2 medium green bell peppers, sliced 1 small onion, sliced Method Heat a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add pork and cook until golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes; remove from skillet and set aside. Drain any remaining fat from skillet. Drain pineapple chunks, reserving juice; set aside. Combine water, vinegar, sugar, cornstarch, salt, soy sauce and reserved pineapple juice in a small bowl; add to skillet and cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Add pork; cook covered over low heat until meat is tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Add peppers, onion and pineapple chunks; cook 5 minutes. Serve over your choi...