suziebeezieland

sour cream apple pie

Have you made Alicia Paulson's Sour Cream Apple Pie yet? I recommend it strongly and enthusiastically. I've made it a few times in the past year. It disappears alarmingly quickly around here, as if we were all raised by wolves. Which we weren't, I hasten to say. Hi, mom. :)

I made one this week to take to my sister's house for Thanksgiving. 

Do you have a mandoline slicer? A mandoline makes quick work of slicing the apples. You can fit about three apple wedges at a time on the safety holder, as demonstrated by my cheerful assistant.

Then you just zip them across the blade. (Irreverently, this always makes me think of Sydney Carton. It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest I go to than I have ever known.)

It makes thin, even apple slices very quickly. There will be some thicker slices left on the holder. Just throw those into the pie, too. :)

Here is what it looks like before you add the topping and stick it in the oven. Creamy apples, yum.

When it comes out of the oven, there are no rules that explicitly state you cannot take a test bite.

goodbye, puffs!

The Super Tough Pink Puffs ended their season today with a total of four losses, four wins, and one tie game (that was today's game against the Soccer Sweeties).

Yay, Pink Puffs!

Bob wants to coach again next year and Claire wants to play again next year, so I'd say the season was a success. :)

when i give up the gods of "i'm in control" & "my time is my own"

My sister very graciously took Claire for the whole day today (the kids don't have school) so that I could do stuff around the house to get ready for vacation. (We're leaving tomorrow for a few days up the coast, and it's been a busy week and I have a ton of stuff to do.)

In the meantime, Bob called a plumber to come check out a mysterious water sound we've had in the house for a few days.  So the plumber arrived awhile ago, and it turns out a joint in one of the pipes under the house was soldered improperly at some point in the history of our old house, and is leaking.

There is a little lake under our house.

He will fix the joint and the water will absorb into the dirt, so it's not a huge deal.  But all the water to the house is turned off, and he is working in a few different rooms, and so I'm kind of hiding in the computer room.

Watching the clock tick away and GETTING NOTHING DONE.

Most of the things I need to do today (cleaning and laundry) involve water.

A few minutes ago I really just wanted to scream, but then I decided not to, because really, I'm being an idiot.

I know you all know exactly what I'm talking about, because we are all women, and all women are busy and need more time, and I don't know about you, but I am really, really selfish about those chunks of free time I get.  When Claire still napped THAT NAP TIME WAS SACRED and I would not answer the phone or let anything interrupt that time for me to "accomplish things". 

And if my sister takes Claire for the day, THAT IS MY TIME AND NO ONE CAN MESS IT UP. EVERYBODY MUST FALL INTO LINE WITH MY PLANS BECAUSE THESE ARE MY PLANS AND THEY MUST BE ACCOMPLISHED IN THE TIME FRAME AND MANNER WHICH I HAVE ENVISIONED AND ORDAINED. I HAVE SPOKEN.

I'm totally off on my thinking in this area.  Proverbs 16:9 says, “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.”

As it so happens, my friend Charity, who is in the Tuesday evening small group I attend, just recommended a book to me called Shopping for Time.  I rushed right home Tuesday night and ordered it from Amazon, and it arrived yesterday. I have it on top of the pile of things I'm going to take on vacation.

I need and want some good, solid Biblical advice about "planning, evaluating, strategizing, and making wise choices concerning my time and priorities."

Here is what the Table of Contents looks like:

It's not a long book, because, the authors reasoned, if you are pressed for time, you don't have time to read a long book about time management.

Anyway, I'm going to read it and then report back here to you and tell you what I learn.  (I may end up reading it all today, because my options without water, sitting here in my new craft room studio apartment with the cats, are limited.) (Happily, I do have some good root beer and a broccoli salad with chicken for lunch. So I'm good for food.)

In the meantime, I'm thinking about this from Kristin Chesemore, one of the authors of the book . . . it's a post on the most excellent and valuable blog she co-writes with her mother and sisters called Girl Talk.

**********

Unspeakable Peace by Kristin Chesemore

“In all your ways acknowledge him.” Proverbs 3:6

It’s a familiar verse. One we are often quick to quote and slow to apply. And yet, if obeyed, it can produce peace in your soul and mine during busy seasons. Charles Bridges’ provides fresh insight into this little verse. Consider his comments carefully:

"Take one step at a time, every step under Divine warrant and direction. Ever plan for yourself in simple dependence on God. It is nothing less than self-idolatry to conceive that we can carry on even the ordinary matters of the day without his counsel. He loves to be consulted...Consider no circumstances too clear to need his direction. In all thy ways, small as well as great; in all thy concerns, personal or relative, temporal or eternal, let him be supreme. Who of us has not found the unspeakable 'peace' of bringing to God matters too minute or individual to be entrusted to the most confidential ear?"

Proverbs 3:6 is our go-to verse when we’re faced with a big decision. We are often quick to acknowledge the Lord and seek His guidance in extraordinary situations. However, we assume we can “carry on…the ordinary matters of the day without his counsel.” God calls this self-idolatry and pride.

How often I live as if I don’t need God in order to clean my bathroom, or discipline the boys, or get dinner on the table—as if I am sufficient in and of my self to handle most things!  My lack of dependence upon God is pronounced in these “ordinary matters.”

And yet, as Mr. Bridges points out, “God loves to be consulted…no circumstance [is] too clear to need his direction!” He wants us to bring to him all our little decisions, our minor frustrations, our small dilemmas. He doesn’t just tolerate our questions—God LOVES to be consulted! Hasn’t he commanded us to acknowledge Him in all our ways?

A season of busyness may tempt you to anxiety, but as Christians, we are truly meant to experience peace in our souls each and every day. This precious, “unspeakable peace,” comes when we bring to God all of the ordinary matters of our day. 

So what were you going to do next? Before you get up from your computer, pause, read this verse and quote again, and acknowledge Him. Unspeakable peace can be yours for the rest of the day.

**********

I loved that post! I wish I could tattoo it on my arm.

ps The photos don't have anything to do with what I'm talking about. It's just a cute pair of shoes I found at TJ Maxx yesterday for $7.00 and was excited to show you. :) And I think posts are more interesting with photos.

I have always, always wanted a pair of tennis shoes with little purple flowers on them. I just didn't know that until I saw them.

five things i keep meaning to tell you about

1. Little Dorrit

I rented it from Netflix and watched it all when Bob was in Indiana a few weeks ago on business. Boy, it was wonderful.

2. Scotch-Brite Stainless Steel Cleaner

I'm telling you, this thing is AWESOME, and not just a gimmick. It is the only thing I've tried that gets our stainless fridge looking really nice. It even removes the hard-water stains that form from drips from the water dispenser. And it's super easy to use. I love it. ♥ (I got mine on sale at the grocery store.)

3. Clinique Even Better Makeup

I'm telling you, this thing is AWESOME, and not just a gimmick. It is the only thing I've tried that gets our stainless fridge looking really nice. Oh no, wait. :D

I bought this at Sephora maybe three months ago. The bottle seems so tiny, but it just lasts and lasts. (You squeeze the foundation out of a little nozzle. The bottle is plastic and squishy.) It has evened out my skin tone, and is better than anything else I've tried in the past several years. It was a random purchase, but I'll stick with it. 

4. Lands' End Cotton Cardigans

I seem to pick up one or two more of these each year. I live in them here in California once the weather gets even a bit cool. I just wear it over a t-shirt.  I am wearing one now, over my jammies. Sometimes I sleep in one over my pajama top if it's chilly. (Remember Angela from The Office with her sleeping sweater? Ha.) I think it's like a security blanket.

When I had jury duty last spring, I lost my brown cardigan (the one I'm wearing now) and got worried that I'd left it in the jury box one evening, and the cleaning crew had picked it up.

My friend and I who were sitting on a jury together got the giggles imagining that they found my sweater and hung it in the "spare clothes for underdressed witnesses or defendants" closet (which was in the jury room), because we imagined a witness wearing it in court the next day, and me standing up and yelling "Hey! That's my brown sweater!"

But I had just left it at my sister's, so that didn't happen.

Tip for you traditionally built gals: I don't understand this at all, but the Lands End regular size "XL" is less expensive than, but slightly larger than, their Misses "1X" size. Check out their size chart info if you don't believe me.

So if you go to this cardigan for regular sizes (XL is a regular size), you'll see it's $39.50. And if you go to the same cardigan for Plus sizes, you'll see that it's $45.50. Really, I don't get it. I own them in both XL and 1X (because sometimes different colors are unavailable in one or the other) and they really are the same sweater.

The color selection is limited this late in the season, but the "old" colors go on sale. If you get on their email list you'll get the sale coupons, and I use them and wait for the cardigan 10-percent-off and free shipping sales. I think there are two of those sales each year, but I'm not positive.

Can you tell I'm really into cardigans? :D

5. Sarah's House (Fine Living Network), Income Property (HGTV) & The Unsellables (HGTV)

I'm telling you, those Canadians sure make good decorating shows. I used to watch so many of them, but these are the only three I TiVo and watch now each week. (I guess that still sounds like a lot, but I probably used to watch eight or ten.) (Do you know when I weaned myself off decorating shows? When I had that week where I went all insane for the Twilight books, and nothing else seemed interesting. I just never went back, because house decorating seemed boring compared to the Cullens.)

But I look forward to them immensely! Very relaxing.

ps There's the Sofie (with an "f") Allsopp who hosts The Unsellables, and then there is a different Sophie Allsopp who is a children's illustrator. (I love her sweet illustrations.) I am surprised that I am aware of two people with this name.

recently in suziebeezieland

Thanks to the magic of Wordle, here is a helpful summary of recent suziebeezieland posts, in case you need to catch up but don't have time to read much. (You can click to make it bigger.)

black bean soup

I'm not a big fan of soup. I like to chew dinner.

But I bought the cookbook Cooking with Trader Joe's at Claire's school's book fair a couple weeks ago, and last night we made the black bean soup for dinner.  (Claire helped.) I could tell from reading the recipe that it would be the good kind of soup . . . the kind that is full of stuff and more like stew or chili.  In fact, this was like a mild chili. If it were my cookbook, I'd call it "Black Bean Chili".

It was yummy! And easy! Really, you know you're on the right track any time a recipe starts out by sauteeing onions.

I served it with corn bread, so we could crumble some into the soup. The specific, capitalized ingredients in the recipe are products sold at TJs . . . but obviously, you can use non-TJ ingredients to make this yourself. :)

Black Bean Soup
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and chopped, or 2 cups bagged Freshly Diced Onion
1 clove crushed garlic, or 1 tsp. jarred Crushed Garlic
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
2 (15-oz) cans Organic Black Beans (do not drain)
1 cup (half a jar) Chunky Salsa
2 Tbsp lime juice (juice of 1 lime)
Plain yogurt, such as Plain Cream Line Yogurt, or sour cream

1. In a medium pot, sauté onions in olive oil until they are soft and translucent. 
2. Sprinkle in cumin and garlic and sauté for a minute; pour in black beans (including juices), salsa, and lime.  Stir to combine and bring to a simmer.  Simmer covered for 20 minutes.
3. Ladle soup into individual bowls and top with a dollop of yogurt.  Chili and Lime Tortilla Chips or other white corn tortilla chips go nicely on the side.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Hands-off Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves 4-6*

(I'm sorry that once again I forgot to take a photo of the finished product. We were hungry!)

*I question this serving info. Six tiny little elf or pixie children, maybe. Not six human adults.

veteran's day

I turned 44 this past Wednesday, and you know I'm five years older than Bob, so he was giving me a bad time all day, as he does every year. :) He doesn't turn 40 until February.

But then at dinner, Claire blithely mentioned that they'd discussed veterans in class, and she'd raised her hand to tell her teacher that Bob had been in World War II.

Gosh, how I loved that! :D

(Bob did explain to her that he hasn't been in any wars at all, he was just in the Navy as an attorney for three years.  So I guess that particular mistake won't happen again, although I wish it would. Ha!)

sean's yurt

I think I've mentioned before that my favorite "house" of all time (besides my mama's house, of course) was on an episode of Sarah Richardson's Design, Inc. several years ago, and was actually a Mongolian yurt. 

Any time I am temporarily wooed by the serene minimalism of modern design, I remember Sean's Yurt, and am again certain that I am a cottage girl, through and through.  The best way to do "minimal" for me, I think, is to have a small place, without too much stuff. But that stuff should be soft and warm and gentle and rustic and handmade and natural and flower-y. Yep.

Sean's Yurt was built as a vacation home out on a lake in Canada a few hours outside Toronto for a guy named Sean. (Hence, "Sean's Yurt.") The show continues to run in syndication on Fine Living Network in the U.S. (and maybe elsewhere), so if you can catch it, it's fun to watch, because through the miracle of time-lapse photography, you see the yurt actually being built.  Kind of like the barn-raising scene in "Witness," but with less cool music and no Viggo Mortensen.

It's also fun to watch someone decorate a round building.

It was not without its challenges. Like when Sarah slid down the muddy hill.

Anyhoo, this little episode sits at the bottom of our TiVo list year after year, because it is STRICTLY FORBIDDEN to delete it.  I watch it occasionally, when I want to feel cheerful or inspired.

I have searched regularly for photos of Sean's Yurt online, but have only ever found little promotional photos, almost thumbnails, that go with the episode.

So I finally took it upon myself to sit in front of my t.v. with my camera (something I've never tried before) and take pictures of my beloved yurt. :)

I wish it were in HD, but it's an older show, so it's not. So the photos aren't the quality one would hope for. Also, that black stuff around the edge or in the corners of some of the photos is my t.v.  They were shooting in a small space and panned across and up and down a lot.

Anyway, without further adieu, I bring you "Sean's Yurt". This is my ideal of sweet, easy-breezy cottage style. :)

They built a wall in the yurt to create a flat place to put the kitchen along (yurts are round, in case you are unfamiliar with yurts), and to separate the bedroom from the rest of the living space.

Just look at this kitchen! Beadboard, butcher block, daisies, geraniums, vintage fridge. Look it! Look it! Are you lookiting?

"There's nothing more cottagey than pale green," said Sarah.

The bedroom was just adorable. I love how the snazzy, modern pillows work with the traditional wedding-ring quilt to freshen it all up.

The photographer was standing with his back to the wall, so they just panned up to show the whole bed and star above it.

How fun to just have a chest-of-drawers and then hooks for your clothes. This would work for my wardrobe, because I do not own a single dress or pair of high heels. :)

So the bedroom is behind that wall on the right, and this is the whole rest of the space.  I have often wondered where the bathroom is. I bet outside. :)

(Remember in Ramona the Pest when Ramona asks Miss Binney how Mike Mulligan went to the bathroom when he was digging the cellar all day from sunup to sundown with his steamshovel Mary Anne?)

They had a problem with the floor, because Sean got a good deal on wet wood, so it cupped a bit. Sean was going to nail down a board or two every time he visited the yurt until it was all fixed. But you couldn't tell from the shots . . . it just looked pretty and rustic.

I was so impressed with how well they defined the seating area, without any straight walls to work with. Genius.

Sean wasn't crazy about the ladybug-and-dragonfly fabric on this pillow, but Sarah gave him a non-ladybug fabric option on the other side, so he could flip it. I wouldn't flip it. I love those ladybugs.

They did this whole thing on a tight budget. Those wooden chairs were five dollars each! They had to paint the wooden furniture a couple times to get it the shades of watery blues and greens they wanted. (I think of these pale greens and blues as Sarah's signature colors.)

Can't you see yourself reading in this chaise? I sure can.

The table was just adorable.

Sarah was excited about it, too.

They didn't have to paint the bench. It just came all perfectly green and chippy like this.

Here's the team by the nearby lake, exulting in their good job. Good job, guys. :)

And here is Sean and his dog and cute family. I really hope they're enjoying their cute yurt. Hooray!

living room furniture rearrangement

I rearranged the furniture in the living room a couple weeks ago.  It used to be like this and now it's like this.

So if you come in, there's the back of the sofa. Not great, but having it all this way means we can sit in the recliners to watch the television, and we have a few more viewing spots for movie nights. There is also more empty rug space to play on.  And the recliners can recline, and there is still room for the ottoman for the other chair. It took me a long time how to figure it all out. I really needed an engineer to come over and help me.

 

I think the old set-up was more symmetrical and pleasing to the eye (I love symmetry), but this functions better for us right now.  Sometimes you've just gotta go for function.

My next project is to get that fireplace brick painted white.

I'm also ready for some new art over the fireplace. I've had that same poster in my main living space for over fifteen years! :)

The television is the elephant in the room. :) Just pretend it's not there.

 

I was going to put a stack of books or two on the left side of this bench, but it has turned into a favorite kitty hangout, so I'm leaving it be for now.

I love furniture rearranging. It's free and if you mess up, you can just change it back. Yay.

suziebeezieville

Hi ladies! :) Don't miss checking into suziebeezieville for an almost-daily dose of pretty design/decor/craft photos from around the web. If you like that sort of thing, I mean. :)

the laziest day ever

November started off very, very slowly at my house. I did nothing on Sunday. NOTHING, I tells ya.

My folks spent the night on Hallowe'en (we had a little Hallowe'en party here Saturday night), and we got up Sunday morning and Bob made us all yummy crepes.  Then my parents went to church and Claire and I stayed home with Bob, because he left for a business trip at ten and we wanted the last bit of time with him.

I was so tired after Hallowe'en.  It's been crazy busy for a couple weeks around here.  And I was catching a cold (which has now been caught, alas) which was making me groggy. I just sat in the recliner and watched Bob and Claire play Wii baseball. 

I did some Wii bowling without ever leaving the recliner. Yes, I did.  I also pet the cat on my lap, and took a few photos, but that's all the moving I did.  I may have lifted a coffee cup to my lips.  But that's it.

After Bob left for the airport, Claire and I watched some t.v.  Then mom and dad came back from church and brought yummy sandwiches, which we all enjoyed.  I had managed to get out of my jammies and throw some clothes on at this point, but just barely. 

After my folks left for home, Claire and I went back to doing nothing.  We may have watched a video. There was some napping, and some reading. Some eating of Hallowe'en candy and some eating of real food. Not much of anything else.

The pets were also not doing much.

I have to tell you that I never have days like this. Never.  I cannot stand to do nothing.  I like to be doing something.  Fold some laundry. Do some dishes. Paint something. Write something. Read something.  Make something. Cook something. Whatever.  And I usually pick up the house a bit, even if I don't do real cleaning. 

So I can't remember the last time I had such a completely lazy day.

It was WONDERFUL. :D

a happy hallowe'en

our cathy's totally awesome sugar cookies

Our Cathy shared her sugar cookie recipe with us several years ago, and I think it's high time that I repost the recipe. It has become my one and only sugar cookie recipe. They are so rich and good . . . almost like shortbread.  I make them for almost every holiday, to cut out with cookie cutters and decorate.

I want to add that I divide the dough in half when it's time to roll out, and stick the half I'm not working with back in the fridge until I'm done with the other half. This is so rich in butter that it quickly becomes difficult to work with if it warms up, so work with small bits at a time, is my advice. :)

Also, I have to add time to the baking. But my oven runs cold, so it might be because of that. (I have to set my oven for 25 degrees above what I actually want it to be. I should get it calibrated one day.)

Also, do what Cathy says and roll them out thickly.  If you try to make them skinny like regular sugar cookies, it won't work. Okay. That's all my advice. Here is Cathy's recipe in her own words straight from her, Cathy:

Our Cathy's Totally Awesome Sugar Cookies

Cream together 2 cups of butter and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

Add:
4 egg yolks (I often substitute 2 whole eggs and haven't noticed a difference in quality)
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 1/2 cups of flour and
1/2 teaspoon salt

Knead 7 or 8 times, adding flour as needed to make a non-sticky dough.
Chill for one hour.

Roll and cut with your favorite cookie cutters. (I roll them pretty thick - about 1/4 inch...)
Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. You want them to just barely be turning golden brown around the edges.

an autumnal craft

Here's a neat tutorial on how to wax leaves. I think they are so beautiful!

homemade margherita pizza

Our Elizabeth D. posted a link on her tumblr blog (tumblog? I'm not sure how to spell that . . .) to this Quick Pizza Margherita recipe. I was happy to see it, because I love a good margherita pizza, but have never made it myself! And the word "quick" is always good.  Thank you, Elizabeth.

I almost always order a margherita pizza if I'm at a restaurant that offers it. It's interesting to see how different places can make such a simple formula really triumphant, or just okay, or truly awful.

So I made it on Friday night and it turned out yummy and we all three loved it. Hooray!  :)

Also, the only ingredients I didn't have on hand already were the tomatoes and the crust, so that was nice. It was economical.  I just served it with a salad.

The only thing I will do differently next time is use different dough. I used the refrigerated Pillsbury pizza dough that comes in a tube, and you know, I think it's the same as their biscuit dough. The crust tasted exactly like Grands biscuits. So next time I'll get Trader Joe's pizza dough, which does not taste like biscuits. :D

I guess you could also make your own dough ahead of time and freeze it.  Do any of you make pizza dough regularly? Do you freeze it?