Give It Away Wednesday--Spreading the Spirit!!

This weeks winner was Jaden,winner of 2 cotton lycra tops. Go check out her poetry, very inspirational!
I have to confess I am being a little selfish here. One of the reasons I am doing this weekly give away is to change my life on a profound level. I am stuck in some lifelong routines that don't work anymore, and that's all I will say about that! Sorry I missed Talk about you Tuesday, this week it will be Talk about you Thursday! We are having a very BIG Halloween Party Thursday night in my very SMALL apartment. A little overwhelmed here!
This week's give away is for a sweet pink cotton peasant top, a "must have" in every little girl's wardrobe. You can leave a comment here until next Wednesday at 10:00 am. Lot's of pretty things have been given away already!
Also check out Chasing Moments Photography, the wonderful photographer/mom of this little beauty here.
As always, if you know of a child in need, please let me know.

Recipe Monday

POPOVERS!
"Antique cast-iron baking pans not only are beautiful reminders of days gone by, but they also make the best muffins you've ever tasted." Beth Kidder, New England baker
Just like a lot of other blog writers, I LOVE colecting almost anything (old)! I started collecting these old griswold pans a few years back. As quoted, they are beautiful and useful. I think there is something special about having a pan that is just for a certain muffin. When we make popovers my daughter knows that this is the "Popover Pan". It's a great way to build traditions and memories.
There is a special upkeep of these that I will try and post about later. The following recipe is delicious. My hint this time is don't get creative with the flour, I tried using a whole wheat flour and the popovers never popped, the flour was to heavy. Am I the only one who doesn't know these things?! Another hint, the hotter the pan, the better the muffin. Heat the oven with the greased pan inside, the batter should sizzle when its poured in.
Grease the pan thouroughly including the top and place inside oven. Heat oven to 400
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs
Sift flour and salt in bowl then add milk and eggs. Beat until well mixed which won'lt take very long. Ladle into pan, no more then 2/3 full.
Bake for 35 minutes or until popovers are very brown and puffed.
Remove from pan immediately and serve hot.
If your interested in starting a collection, they're available on Ebay.
Remeber to scroll down for my "Spreading the Spirit" give away!

Fingerprint Friday

How do you see God's fingerprints in your life? This was my little piece of heaven this week. Check out Pampering Becki to join in the fun.

Give It Away Wednesday

"My job is to take care of the possible and trust God with the impossible." unknown

Thanks to every one who entered last week's give away. The winner was Christina, #27 picked by my daughter. Christina is very sweet, she said if she won, she would give the peasant top away. Nice!

This weeks give away is for 2 cotton lycra tops. These used to be my main selling item. They come in any color you can think of. Very useful, soft and wash well. Please leave a comment here to enter. You have until Tuesday night at midnight. And once again if you know of a child in need, please drop me an email.


SPREADING THE SPIRIT
blogs with weekly give aways till Christmas
Jumping in the Rain Puddles of Life

Talk about You Tuesday

WEE WONDERFULS

Such a sweet little blog, another dollmaker/toymaker. There is something really special going on here. It's a great project to do with children. There is a story being written and along with the story are the boy and girl dolls with different outfits. You can follow along with the dolls in their story and create them as you go. There is a small charge to download the patterns, but it's worh it. There doll patterns, clothes patterns, knitting and craft patterns. The way I see it and I hope I am right, the dolls would start school, you would make the doll and their clothes and then a craft to go with it, maybe something they will do in school. I think this is such a great idea and something so great to do with a small child. It would be a good winter or holiday project.

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

Sorry this is being posted so late. I love the idea of recipe Monday. In an ideal world, I would be spending a relaxing Sunday afternoon, baking and trying out new recipes, playing cards and having friends over. I like to try out a recipe before I post it. I will try this sometime this week. I did find a nice whipped cream to go with it or on top of coffee. I'll add that in on the bottom.
A gingersnap crumb crust underlies this spicy cheesecake, and caramel-coated pecans adorn the top, for an irresistible alternative to traditional pumpkin pie. Cut this rich dessert into small wedges to serve.
Ingredients:
For the gingersnap crust:
1/4 lb. gingersnaps (about 20 small cookies)
1/3 cup pecan halves
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
For the filling:
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 lb. cream cheese, at room temperature
3 eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree
For the topping:
1/2 cup pecan halves
1 Tbs. unsalted butter
2 Tbs. granulated sugar
Directions:
Preheat an oven to 350°F. Lightly butter a 9-inch springform pan.
To make the crust, in a food processor, combine the gingersnaps and pecans and process until crumbly. Add the brown sugar and melted butter and pulse for a few seconds to blend. Transfer the crumb mixture to the prepared pan. Use your fingers to pat the mixture into the bottom and evenly all the way up the sides of the pan. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
To make the filling, in a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger and cloves. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Using a rubber spatula, occasionally scrape down the sides of the bowl. Gradually add the brown sugar mixture, beating until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the pumpkin puree, beating until smooth. Using the rubber spatula, Scrape the batter into the chilled crust and smooth the top.
Bake the cheesecake until set or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
To make the topping, set aside 10 pecan halves and coarsely chop the rest. In a small fry pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Add all of the pecans, sprinkle with the granulated sugar and cook, stirring, until the sugar melts and the nuts are toasted and caramel coated. Transfer the nut mixture to a plate and let cool completely, then store in an airtight container.
Just before serving, sprinkle the chopped pecans over the cheesecake and arrange the halves evenly around the perimeter. Serves 10 to 12.
SPICED WHIPPED CREAM
1 Cup heavy Cream
1/4 Cup Confectionary Sugar
1/4-1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Mix ingredients together and use on top of cake or coffee.

NATURE'S BOUNTY

"Fingerprint Friday" How do you see God's fingerprints in your life? The little glimpses I do get of God here on earth have always been through nature and the cycles of the seasons. I love this time of year and hope I have captured it in these photos. Go on over to Pampering Beckie to join in and please leave me a comment so I can stop by your blog!



Don't forget to scroll down to enter my give away for my autumn peasant top!

ANYWAY

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered; Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, People may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight. Build anyway.
The good you do today people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God; It was never between you and them anyway.
Author: Dr. Kent Keith
I found this on Angie's blog here.
Scroll down to sign up for my give away!

Give It Away Wednesday

This week's give away is the cream floral peasant top.


Welcome to my weekly give away which will be happening every Wednesday until Christmas. You have until Tuesday of the following week to post a comment. I am hoping to generate some Christmas spirit ahead of time this year. Each week I will be giving away one of my designs. I need some major change in my life and I know that giving is one of the main spiritual practices whether it is giving of your things, yourself or your time. And, as I said last week and will say again next week, if you know of a child in need, please email me and I can design something special for them. Please don't be afraid to ask. Ask and you shall receive.



The winner of last weeks Halloween skirt giveaway is Tracey from Stitch X Stitch, she is from England. Congratualtions!

A Day in My Life

As I said in the post previous to this, I joined this "Day in my life" Once a month I will join with other women and share a day, today was not a good day to share. By doing this though, it helped me to look around and find something good in the moments of dispair. I also noticed that during the week, I judge my days on how much I get done, guess thats a good thing to notice and try and change. So here goes!
Woke up late as usual, Razzle and Midnight, our kittens like to sleep all day so they have lots of energy to charge around the apt all night. So I had about 2 hours sleep and the worst allergies I have had in about 30 years.
Pried my crabby daughter out of bed, made her breakfast and lunch and an after school snack. Still in my pj's (half hidden by a coat) Walk her to my favorite coffee shop to meet her friend Kate, kiss her goodbye as they walk to school together.
Grab a coffe and go to my morning meeting which I didn't plan on doing, I am still in my pyjamas! The topic was: self seeking will slip away and we will gain interest in others.
Leave the meeting early because of the sneezing and return home. Do some computer work while eating the left over pumpkin cheesecake with my fingers. Oh.

Last week when we were upstate, a farmer told me about an online dating service for farmers, so I sign up for that (time is running out for me to get my dream life of owning a small farm) I haven't dated in 8 years. I got a few flirts from cattle farmers! One man emailed me and it was like he was speaking in another language. I begin to think, Do I live in a Fantasy World? This isn't what I thought farmers do! Kill animals, yuk! Exausted and depressed, I go back to sleep for 2 hours.

Farmers we met upstate! They didn't kill animals, they grew lavender and had gourmet hens and bees and apple trees?!

Get up again, take a shower and off to my dd's volleyball game. It is almost 4:00 and with the help of a Starbucks Vivano I start to wake up. Join my mommy friends at the game and my dd scores 8 points, 8 great serves. I was so happy for her and so proud. They win the game.
Off to Best Buy to exchange the ipod dd got for her birthday. We walk up to 86th street both of us in a great mood. Her dad calls and tells her he is getting her the phone she wants for her birthday. Could her afternoon get any better?
Get to 86th, ipod sold out, hop on subway down to 42, get the ipod, dd drops part of the head phones, starts crying, there is a grateful dead record signing in the store, chaos, the whole front of the store smells like drugs. AHHH! I am leaving, go to wait outside while somehow my dd talks the manager into giving her a new set of headphones. Lots of traffic on the bus ride home. Protest outside of grand central. 7:00, dinner in the pizza place, she sits and does homework, I make 6 trips up and down to our 5th floor walk up to schlepp the laundry across the street. Oh no, I left the quarters upstairs.
Am i boring you to tears yet?
10:00 Laundry done, DD takes shower, I start sewing. Mom, can you lay down with me? (Just when I am finally about to start work) I give in because she is my life. We have a nice cozy talk in bed and hope that tomorrow will be a better day.