FLOUR -

 

     My Grandma Margaret taught me a lot about life.  She did that by spending time with  my sister, brother and me, by talking with us, and teaching us how to do things.  There are family pictures of her with my siblings, cousins and me when we were all small children.  I do not remember much of that time, but from the expressions on her face it is obvious she had a hand in the birthday parties and holidays.  It also appears Grandma did really enjoy spending time with us as I was always told.

      She did get me interested in baking.  During a short time while Grandma lived with us, I used to watch her roll out pie dough and make banana pudding (my dad's favorite!).  Her pie dough was tender and flaky and made with either lard or shortening.  Her banana pudding was not from a box, but the custard was cooked on the stove.  After cooling, she let my brother and me help assemble the finished product by layering those special wafer cookies, while she spooned on and spread the pudding.  The topping was not whipped cream, but her own meringue made from beaten egg whites and sugar.  I was always surprised at how that gooey white glob turned into something yummy and sweet.  I was even more surprised that the whole dessert had to go in the oven long enough for the meringue to lightly brown.  The first time I watched the pudding go into the oven, I thought the whole thing would come out melted.  Boy, was I glad it didn't!

This is an unbaked pie shell.  Even with crooked fingers, a characteristic of arthritis in her hands, my grandmother had a way with making the fluted edge come out just right every time.

     It was Grandma who often took my siblings and me around other people.  Many times these were older folks around her age that she and my grandpa had known.  However, they did not ignore me being inquisitive, but included me in much of their conversation.  I'm positive I had no idea just how much I was actually learning from their stories and sometimes explanations when I just thought it was nice to be included.

     But it wasn't just about being with her.  At those times, Grandma was actually teaching us about life and situations with people.  Often she introduced me to other grownups no matter where we were; in the grocery store, on the street, or in the neighborhood.  She not only said, "This is my granddaughter," but included my name as well.  Then she would proceed to tell something about me.  That always made me feel special.  I remember being with her for lunch at the home of a friend.  We ate at the dining room table with pretty dishes and silver (not a common occurrence then for someone under the age of 10!).  Not only did that enable me to participate in conversation, but it encouraged good table manners.  I never realized this until later.  I just remember being glad to be with her. 

     Caring for others was natural for Grandma as she began in her youth by helping with her younger half-brothers and half-sisters.  That carried over with her own family; my grandpa, uncle, and mom.  My mom told me once that she had girlfriends who thought a lot of Grandma because she seemed to care so much.  One even lived with them for a short while.

     But the concern for others did not stop with her family.  Yes, they were her priority, but Grandma also took care of others as she became a nurse.  As an LPN in her day, she wore the starched white dress with white stockings, white shoes, and starched and stiffly folded white cap. I already knew that my grandmother was a people person.  I think her nursing career solidified that idea from all the times any of our family heard a compliment concerning the care they received from her.

 
     When Grandma retired from nursing, she did some private duty sitting for others.  Sometimes that was for people who were elderly or ill and recuperating at home, or with young children whose parents were traveling.  Occasionally I got to go with her to spend the night with the three daughters Grandma would care for when their parents were out of town.  Grandma always took her responsibility seriously, although she made those sleepovers a lot of fun.

     As I got older and my grandmother began to slow down, I would still ride my bike then later, drive my car over to see her.  Despite continued arthritis difficulties, Grandma was always positive and cheerful.  She always wanted to know how I was and I know she expected to hear more than an "okay".  That was fine with me.  Grandma was a great strength to me.  Her support meant so much.  I hope she knew that.

FLOWER -

 

     In honor of my Grandma, I have included a few photos of flowers that were some of her favorites.  The first one is morning glory.  Every summer, Grandma had morning glory growing on her backyard fence.  She could see it from her chair on her screened porch.  There was no favorite color.  She loved them all.  Early morning was the time she loved to sit back there and watch the blooms open. 

     The second photo is a red geranium.  That was her favorite.  She liked the vivid red color that could be seen from the street, and the fact that it would bloom easily all summer. 

     The last photo is of zinnias.  Grandma loved all the colors of zinnias too, and that they were a good cut flower.  It was her idea to have zinnias in my first small flower garden.

Morning Glory vine

Red Geranium

 

Bed of Zinnias

    FLOUR

     You know how it is when you are in an exam room waiting for your doctor and you fiddle through a magazine trying to pass the time?  Well I found a recipe recently while in this precarious state, and was so sure I would like its outcome that I talked the nurse into letting me tear the recipe out of the book.  I never do that!  However, it did help that the magazine was four years old (LOL).  But anyway, as you can see from the photo below, these are Toasty Whole Grain Orange Muffins.  I really do like them.  Yes, they are an alternative from baking something really sweet, but anymore, that's okay with me.  I do like sweet.  My goodness, I grew up with plenty of sweet stuff.  But now, I am really interested in trying recipes that offer healthier options.  I hope you will try these and enjoy them.

Toasty Whole Grain Orange Muffins

     As always, I am only providing information and not gaining anything from anyone for doing so.  I typed the recipe name into the Internet and the same information came up that I read in Better Homes and Gardens magazine.  The link is below and I will comment on just a few things here about what, if anything, I did differently.
     This muffin recipe takes a little more time than most.  It has quinoa in it and unless you have one cup of it as a leftover, then you have to start anew as I did.  But that was okay with me.  I am unaccustomed to having quinoa all the time and did inadvertently make too much.  (Of course I did!)  But I ate the rest with dinner later!  When reading the recipe the first time, the quinoa caught my eye immediately.  I have eaten quinoa on only a few occasions and liked knowing this would be another way to enjoy it.
     After you make the quinoa and it has cooled, it must be baked with the chopped walnuts and rolled oats.  After 10-12 minutes, this mixture must cool slightly before adding to muffin batter.  Yes, you could probably just put everything in without baking the nutty mixture, but I believe your muffin product would be gummy and undesirable. This baked whole grain addition gives the muffins crunch and texture.
     You do need to have a medium size orange and a means to grate the orange peel.  The orange provides a mild but definite citrus flavor.  Most other ingredients are standard, except for buttermilk AND sour cream.  The day I made these I had no buttermilk and used cream that was near its expiration.  Three tablespoons of butter is listed as a wet ingredient.  I only had margarine and substituted that.
     My suggestion would be to make your quinoa the night before.  Then you would be ready to start your recipe by baking the grain mixture first.  The recipe in its entirety can be found with a click below and you will also see the start to finish time is 50 minutes.....and well worth your efforts!

  bhg.com/recipe/toasty-whole-grain-orange-muffins/    


     And... Do you know what would go well with those muffins?  When you click on the link for the recipe, the very last thing one would read is that the muffins can be served with orange marmalade.  Sounds good, right?  Especially since there is orange zest in the muffins.  I actually had seen a recipe for orange marmalade and contemplated making some BEFORE I found the quinoa muffin recipe.  So when I stumbled upon the BH&G article, I knew I would make the marmalade as well.  Here is the link below taken from one of the Barefoot Contessa shows on the Food Network.  Again, I am only sharing information...but like the muffins, this marmalade is scrumptious.

My stash of orange marmalade for the frig.

     I was a little leery at first, wondering if I could accomplish the task of making oranges, lemons and sugar actually taste like something since I do not preserve fruit often.  But I was pleasantly surprised.  My end result is sweet, even though I did cut the amount of sugar to about six and a half cups instead of eight.  I would rather taste the tartness of the orange and lemon with the sweet of the sugar instead of getting an all sweet bite.
    About the only thing I could say otherwise is that the recipe is time consuming.  I actually like that it begins on one day and ends on the next.  The cooking involved on the second day turned into about 4 hours for me, including the water bath processing I chose to do.  My added cooking time was probably due to my caution as to not boil or burn the fruit mixture.  But the marmalade finally passed the firmness test.  Like I said, I chose to process mine in a water bath and ended up with eight half pints.  However, there wasn't enough room for the near cup full that was left in my pan.  So...that orange deliciousness got stashed in my frig.  Besides, I had to have something to pair with my muffins, right?

www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/annas-orange-marmalade-recipe-1946762 

& FLOWER

     I was hesitant when I first decided to try growing an orchid.  I didn't know if I could wait patiently for it to bloom, much less keep it alive until it reached that stage.  I read about their care and do try to keep any orchid in an environment as close to its natural one as possible.  I only water them when they are dry, which in my house is once a week.  However, they do not like to sit in water and I drain their bottom tray if it becomes full.  I put orchids in my north window or my south window.  In winter I try to keep them from cold drafts.  In summer they go outside on my south facing porch with many of my other plants.  I position them back against the house and under some larger plants as much as possible.  Following these things, I have been able to enjoy blooms most every spring, unless an orchid as been newly potted the previous year.

   Even when it's still too cold to garden outside in the early spring, at least I  can enjoy my orchids in bloom.  This time of year is when they most often appear, even though I have had different plants bloom later.  The purple shaded orchid above is the Dendrobium.

This white one above was given to me by a dear friend last fall.  It is a Phalaenopsis and has displayed 13 beautiful blooms for the first time at my house. 

This is a Cattleya orchid.  I love that it has this peachy color with purple on the ruffle.

  

I have read two books this winter and I thoroughly enjoyed both of them.  But before I continue to sing their praises, I want to make it known that I am not profiting in any way from either one.  I only want to share this knowledge in case any of you want to read them as well.

     Deep Run Roots, Stories and Recipes from My Corner of the South, by Vivian Howard is an amazing book.  It is way more than a collection of recipes.  If anyone has seen her program, "A Chef's Life," on PBS, you know that Ms Howard made the decision to expand her knowledge of local Eastern North Carolina ingredients by talking to farmers and growers of livestock.  Their own experience of how certain vegetables are grown or animals are raised is also included into each broadcast. She additionally has visited and prepared food favorites with family, neighbors, and local cooks.  In this written collection, Ms Howard has taken all of her wealth of information and prepared it literally for your enjoyment.  Her experiences are shared genuinely and honestly, often with a humorous anecdote for each ingredient plus she tells its whole farm-to-table story. Then recipes for each ingredient follow with her own delicious spin.

collard greens

  I will admit that I never learned to eat greens (except spinach and kale), but Deep Run Roots has a couple of recipes with collard greens that might make a believer out of me!



My second book has been the memoir, Make Something Good Today, by Erin and Ben Napier of Laurel, MS.  I am really proud of these two.  This book is a personal reflection of how these two amazing people grew up, found each other, and decided to spend their lives in business together; only one of which is the popular HGTV show, "Home Town."  Their respect and devotion for each other, values, morals, work ethic, and creativity give a lot of insight as to why their program is successful.   Congratulations Ben and Erin!  Your show makes me want to visit Laurel.

FLOUR

     Who's made strawberry bread?  Recently I followed a strawberry quick bread recipe and scooped the batter into a muffin tin instead.  They turned out well despite the change.  I often try different things at the last minute.  

strawberry muffin

     There are actually several recipes for strawberry quick breads on the Internet.  The recipe I used was basic: flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, egg, vegetable oil, and strawberries with about a fourth cup of their juice.  I believe any basic quick bread recipe that allows the addition of fruit would work. Some of the recipes I've read call for frozen berries in order to make this bread any time of the year. Since I used fresh strawberries purchased from a local store, I went ahead and incorporated the two cups of sugar my recipe called for.  Had the berries been seasonal and come from a local grower, I would have used less sugar.  Some recipes call for the addition of toasted pecans or walnuts.  I did not add chopped nuts this time, but may do so in the future.  The only other thing to consider is color.  Depending on your berries, sometimes strawberries do not bake as red as they seem before entering the oven.  A few recipes I read suggested the addition of red food coloring.  It's your call, but I would not add more than one teaspoon.
     I believe this bread is versatile enough to be made into large or small loaf pans or baked into muffins as I did.  For my muffins, I just adjusted the baking time as you would have to do if baking in a container different from what your recipe specifies.  I thought the bread I made had a wonderful, slightly sweet strawberry taste.  It made me think more of the coming of spring.

 

& FLOWER

      I know many of you have purchased amaryllis bulbs before.  This is one I had a few years ago that my sister-in-law gave me.  

blooming amaryllis

  

     If you have never kept the bulb so it would bloom again the following year, it is actually quite simple.  When the blooms die, go ahead and cut the stem back to within an inch of the bulb and continue treating the amaryllis like it was any other house plant.  Here's where I tried something different.  When the weather was warm, I planted this bulb outdoors in one of my flower beds.  That's right.  I just dug a whole and placed the bulb in the ground and covered it up.  I do remember letting the very tip of the bulb show.  All summer long the bulb grew several leaves, was fertilized, received adequate sunlight and watered like the other flowers and shrubs nearby.  When fall came, I dug the bulb and let it dry in a dark place inside my garage for a few weeks.  I was not timely about getting it out for the holidays, even though I think it would have done well regardless.  After Christmas I potted the bulb and began treating it like a house plant again.  The red blooms you see in the photo above  were my reward.  It just takes a little patience and remembering what those long green stems are growing in your flower bed.  It can be done, and is well worth the effort!

 

While on a trip once my husband and I saw these amaryllis bulbs and what we know as "Easter lilies" blooming in an actual bed.  Granted they were surviving in a tropical climate, but as you can see, with the right temperatures, it can be done.

WITH SUEZ -- If you want to have an ending, make sure you have a beginning.

     To say that I am a nut about genealogy is an understatement.  I remember one event more than others when I think about what drew my attention to the past.
     Many years ago I was at my grandma's house one afternoon while my mom was running errands.  While there, I noticed a big box of pictures on the floor of my grandma's closet.  I asked her if I could look at them and as with most everything else, she let me.  I dragged the box into her living area and next to her favorite rocking chair.  She told me to dump the pictures out onto the rug.  I then sat down on the floor beside her and began asking about the identities of each person.  TALK ABOUT PATIENCE!  I remember thinking that some of the people looked funny to me, the way they were dressed, or what they were doing when the picture was taken.  A young likeness of my grandma's sister-in-law was in one photograph.  (See similar likeness below.) Her silky hair was dark brown with waves cascading all the way down her head from her part to the ends.  Later on I learned that the look was created from a permanent wave machine that made the female getting her hair styled appear as if she was hooked up to a large spider.

Example of permanent wave

     I continued to get those pictures out multiple times when I visited my grandma until I felt like I knew who was in each picture.  Grandma got to where she would quiz me to see if I really did remember.  I enjoyed seeing how Grandma looked like her father and how her son, my uncle, resembled her.   I also learned a lot about where family members worked and where they lived, especially if it was different from my hometown.
     It became kind of funny in my family when (not to be morbid) someone would pass away and there were photographs shared or letters exchanged.  My parents would hand me a lot of the information because I was always asking questions about relatives.  If there were pictures, one or both parents would say, "Give them to Sue." 
     My mom and dad really weren't surprised at my interest.  I had been keen on American history since first introduced to it in school.  That spurred me to enjoy reading biographies and virtually anything that included a historical event or reference.  World history, Latin, art history, and more came later.  As I grew up and my interest continued, I began to write distant cousins, aunts, uncles, etc., to see if I could learn anything more about either side  than what my immediate family had already shared.

     If you want to know more about your family history, you need to ask questions.  Depending on your situation it could mean a LOT of questions.  That will give you a beginning which will be the foundation for all you learn hereafter.  Just like building a house, you have to build from the ground up.  As you learn things, fill in a family tree template like the one shown at right to help keep you focused.
     Even though I have been interested in my past for quite a while, there are things today I wish I had asked about and failed to do.  And those people I would have asked are now gone.  For example, I am still trying to find connections to complete all the lines going back in my family history and have recently "hit a wall" with a maternal line.  And the person I need more information on is my beloved grandmother's own grandmother.  See what I mean about asking questions?  Make sure you do so, sooner than later.

FLOUR -- Still sometimes learning the hard way

     Recently I began reading recipes for sprouted grain bread or bread with grains one has ground.  I really liked the healthy aspects of both of them; more nutrients, fiber and protein.  I even let my excitement get the best of me (go figure!).  I mean the idea of making this really healthy bread was going to be great (right??).  So, I ordered the whole list of bean, pea, and grain assortment to make one Ezekiel bread recipe.  But when it came down to it, I was not prepared to make this bread because I did not have the right equipment (despite hoping I did).  I loved the idea of grinding my own flour (which this particular recipe required), but my multi-functioned blender and my excitement was not enough to get the job done. And my food processor would not have done the job either.  Some articles and recipes I have read recommend a coffee mill or grain mill for grinding, neither of which I have.  I've even read where someone used a meat grinder (????).  So long story short, I attempted to grind the dry peas, beans, and grains called for and went about adding the yeast mixture and remaining ingredients.  Let's just say the finished product did not stay in the house long.  It became food for the neighborhood bird population who were probably mad at me for giving it to them.  LOL!  

hand crank grain mill

     So if you are interested in making sprouted bread or bread from your own ground grains, make sure of your equipment beforehand.  Also read, read, and read again about how to make the various recipes before purchasing and diving right in.  Actually I now see this sprouted bread experience in three phases.
     1.  You can always buy all natural ground flour from your favorite grocery or health food store.  That way you can use the natural whole wheat or alternate flour first in your chosen recipe and see if you will like the outcome before you get in too deep.  Then if you want to grind your own grains, you can consider how to get the job done whether it entails making an equipment purchase or not.  
     2.  Also, I have since read more and like the idea of sprouting wheat berries for a recipe, drying them in a low temperature oven, then grinding them in a blender to go into a bread recipe.  It is also possible to sprout your wheat berries, grind them in your food processor, and add them to your recipe without drying.  

wheat berries

     3.  There are also bread recipes for using sprouted grains and adding no flour.  That method means extra attention to the sprouting process and particular timing in the bread making process.  I will only try this last process after I get confident with the first two.
     So I will try, try again.  Hopefully I will have good fortune in sprouted bread baking in my future.....and you will too!
    

     WITH SUEZ - How do you spend time with friends and loved ones?

 

        Okay, who has ever drunk a soda from a glass bottle that had peanuts poured into it?  Who remembers stopping at the roadside market for a Nab?  Those are just two of the things my brother and I talked about a couple of weeks ago.  This is the time of year when many family members reunite for a meal and some time together.  Perhaps many of you are looking forward to visiting parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc., in the next few weeks.  In today's world, distance and circumstances may separate family and friends, but that's what makes reuniting so special when the opportunity arises. I hope this piece brings you a chuckle or two.

glass soda bottles

     So, getting back to my brother, I dedicate this piece to our recent and in person conversation by sharing some of our fond memories.  What I was surprised to learn is how much of what we talked and laughed about all came back to food.  We began with the soda and peanuts.  Even as a young child, the first time I was told to pour my peanuts into my soda bottle, I thought it was a bad idea.  However, doing so provided us kids with fizzy, sweet and salty slurps which we enjoyed for a while.  (We did not continue the habit very long.) Then next was the Nab (shortened from Nabisco) which became the name for a cracker/peanut butter packet first made by this company in 1924.  (See link below) When my brother and I were young, a "Nab" could be the cracker packet, or something else that more or less held you over until dinner.                                                             ( www.southernfoodways.org/a-nab-is-a-nab/ )     (Please remember if I provide a link in an article, it is only to share information.  I do not benefit from doing so in any way.)



     We reminisced about being invited INSIDE our neighbor's house on Halloween to choose homemade treats directly from the platters on their dining room table.  I remember the elderly couple next door offered the best frosted brownies ever!  I chose a brownie once and it was wrapped in a piece of waxed paper and handed to me.  I did not make it home with that brownie!

     Also special were our grandma's caramel apples. 

Caramel apple

I remember coming home from school and watching her melt the caramel, put the popsicle sticks in the apples and dunk them in the gooey sweet concoction melting in the top of her double boiler.  They were sticky and swell, but also a sure fire way to get us to eat a red delicious apple.  Smart grandma!

     Then there were our pecan trees.  We had several which produced sometimes copious amounts.  We kids learned to pick up pecans.  (Don't laugh.  This is a learned task for a small child who's looking up instead of down, which was ME!!!)  We also had to crack pecans and pick out pecans.  Honestly, just being around pecans so much in the fall is how I learned to eat them plain, because sooner or later I did get hungry.  I even learned how to crack two in my hand.  Now I probably couldn't squeeze my hand hard enough to crack even one.  After the chore of getting them ready to eat, there would be times, like for company, when our mom would roast some in the oven with just plain old margarine and salt.  Probably not the healthiest, but oh my gosh were they ever good!

Pecans

     We also talked about being glad that we learned to eat certain kinds of vegetables because they were prevalent.  My brother's favorites then and now were the small legumes: field peas, crowder peas, black eyed peas, and purple hull peas.  Then there were butter beans or limas, whether small or large, speckled, white, or green.  He still loves the peas.

Crowder peas

      I asked my brother if he remembered the time our mom dug a hole in the back yard, made a charcoal fire, and smoked a beef roast in that pit.  She had gotten the idea from a friend.  After she dug the hole and built the fire, she put a grate atop the coals.  Next, the roast that had been slathered with plain yellow mustard and wrapped in aluminum foil was placed on the grate.  Then our mom raked the displaced soil and grass over the entire hole, covering the meat and smoldering coals.  I remember looking at it and thinking our dinner was going to be dirty!  But it wasn't, and my brother agreed with me.  That roast was delicious.

      There was another time, he reminded me, that we ate Sunday dinner picnic style on the floor of my parents' bedroom.  Unusual I guess, but it was summer and they had just installed a brand new window unit air conditioner.  Pretty smart idea on a hot day and a fun change of pace.

      Outside of food, I could tell this next memory was a favorite of his.  My brother referred to it as the infamous ride through the yard.  Our sister was near driving age at the time, and as yet without her license.  However, she talked my brother into riding with her through the yard in our dad's old Nash Rambler.  The car was parked in our driveway in a spot at the front of the house, with the front end headed toward our side yard.  She, with my brother in tow, basically drove the remaining distance across the front yard, made a right and headed down the far side of our pecan trees into the back yard (where our mom was sitting in a lawn chair reading the paper).  She turned around the farthest tree and they headed back up the other side of the yard, returning to where they initiated the ride.  I was in the back yard playing and saw the car; my sister holding the wheel and my brother with his eyes wide and holding on.  All I could do was stand there with my mouth open.  Mama jumped  up and threw her paper in the air.  To my sister's credit however, she didn't hit anything and both of them survived their wild ride!  

      Many Saturday nights were spent in front of the television with out entire family.  Watching tv when we were very young was more or less an event.  We would sometimes invite a particular family over from our neighborhood to watch with us.  They would enter our home with a freshly baked treat or two; something usually warm from the oven or just frosted.  And, you could always tell they had changed into nicer, clean clothes for the visit.  Programming would start with "the Lawrence Welk Show."  It was a musical variety show with singing and dancing and Mr. Welk conducting his orchestra.  I believe now watching this show helped me to appreciate different musical styles.  The latest program of the night would be the western show, "Bonanza," before it moved to Sunday night or "Gunsmoke."  I remember several times falling asleep before the evening was over.  I wish I had mentioned to my brother how we used to play a game where one of us would hum the theme song to a television program and the other would try to guess the name.  The theme to "Bonanza" was always part of the game.

     We had the childhood where we knew our neighbors and walked to and from elementary school.  Sometimes my brother would play catch in the front yard with our dad, sometimes Mama instead.  He also remembers when he was a little too close to the house when he threw the ball!  But he did bring up when all five of us would play baseball after supper using the pecan trees as bases.  Now that was fun.  Our dad would pitch and we probably had more than enough chances to hit the ball because he was so patient. 

     So thanks for the memories, brother.  Here's wishing at least a day of reminiscing for all of you!







 

ABOUT ORGANIZATION - Our home may not always be the neatest or the most tidy, but I do know where things are.  I can't help it.  I was raised that way.  "A place for everything and everything in its place," is attributed to Benjamin Franklin, but was often said by my mother and grandmother during my growing years.  As I grew older and I remembered hearing that phrase, I assume it was initially said to get me to clean up a mound of Barbie dolls and their various clothing pieces or my stuffed animals.  Words from Ben surfaced again if I misplaced something that needed to be returned to school.  Then later when I didn't put things away in the kitchen or wash my dirty dishes from baking, I wasn't allowed to do so again until I followed through with the necessary returns and cleaning.  

     Mean?  No.  Strict?  Maybe, but honestly I wouldn't be happy today if someone went in my kitchen and left it with ingredients still out, gooey food smears and crumbs on my counter along with dirty dishes in the sink.  Would you?
     I am glad I was taught to put things away.  I can actually remember thinking as to the best place to put my dolls and toys.  I have always thought of putting my things away as more of a task in my favor because I AM THE ONE who gets to make the decision as to their location.  
     Once I learned to put away things it didn't take near as long to find them again and get dressed, ready to walk out the door with shoes, coat, hat, gloves, umbrella, book bag, or whatever.  Then I was able to keep up with my things at home, as well as at school, then in my dorm room when I went away to college, and at my places of employment and later my own home.  This organizational habit that begins when you are very young can most certainly carry over into adulthood.  It can help with your focus for the day, the week, the month, the year, etc.
     Now, I know there are people who can find things in an environment that is not always organized.  I applaud them and admittedly am not one of them.  I have even read where some people are more creative in their workplace at a less than neat desk area.  I KNOW this is not me, but that's okay.  

   
AND STUFF - On the flip side of this, I may know where my stuff is, but I'm also constantly noticing how much of it we have.  Why?  I attach more sentiment onto things than I should.  So organization is one thing, but getting to a point where I have too much cancels out that skill.  That is why I take time to periodically go through boxes, stacks of books, clothes, shoes, dishes, knickknacks, etc.  This is not always easy and yes, sometimes I have to make myself.
     For example, recently I was cleaning out items from our kitchen pantry.  I keep shopping bags tucked away on the floor in the back along with other items only used periodically.  I noticed the bag holding them was bulging so I snagged it and pulled it out to sit on the floor and go through it.  Here's where I tattle on myself.  Part of the bulge was used packing paper, oversized plastic and nicer folded bags from department stores, and plastic souvenir bags from trips we'd taken maybe 10 YEARS AGO!  In good condition or not, I know we really do not need all of this.  Sometimes I remember things I've heard about people who lived during the Great Depression.  In my family, I know from the stories, that they tried to find a use for everything instead of throwing it out. I guess that became a learned behavior for me.
     Anyway, getting rid of what we are not wearing or using makes me think of Marie Kondo's book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.  What has stayed with me from her book is, and I paraphrase, if you come across something you own that doesn't bring you joy, then you should get rid of it.  Well, I guess my behavior of giving things a second chance has changed now to, "Do I have any further use for this."  Whatever works, right?

     

     FLOUR & FLOWER

     This is a picture of a bran muffin I made recently.  Made with bran cereal, this recipe was nothing fancy and nothing new.  But it was the addition of raisins and chopped pecans that made the muffins unique.  Yes, what one adds to their baking can change the outcome in flavor, texture, color, crumb, etc.  Add-ins are definitely popular now.  I recently read a recipe by Tracy Benjamin in the August 2018 edition of Better Homes and Gardens Magazine for Hippie Banana Bread  that included chopped nuts, dried fruit, and olive oil to name only a few of the ingredients.  Since then I have made it about five times and really like it.  Does it still taste like bananas?  Sure it does.  So you must ask yourself, are you a purist or are you adventurous.  Can the regular banana bread eater accept a little added something in his/her favorite breakfast bread or snack?  Try adding a handful of something you like in your next baking effort.  The range of possibilities is long.  You might be pleasantly surprised at the outcome.

Bran muffin with raisins and pecans.

 

     The flower above is Celosia or Cockscomb and has become one of my favorite flowers.  I especially like this vibrant reddish pink color in late summer and early fall when other plants are waning.  I have both varieties like this one that reminds me of a brain or a cauliflower, and the other which resembles the headdress of a rooster.  I get many seeds from these beauties every autumn.  They are a good addition to a landscape with extra space that might need more color in late summer until frost.

     I remember how much my grandmother loved morning glories like those at left.  She would sit in her chair on her screened-in back porch and look out at her fence covered in them.  I guess I get her love of this particular vine.  I have them each year.  These seem to be liked by hummingbirds that are nearby and something that appears to like nibbling on the leaves.

     I was happy to see these zinnias doing so well this year.  The seed for these came from what I saved from last year's blooms.  It was the first time I have ever saved seed like this.  It is even more special to me since the very first flower garden I had included zinnias.  I have already started snipping dead head zinnias to save the seed for next year.










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SUPPORT AND KIND WORDS     "Have I told you today how beautiful you are?"  There it was......the question.  Hearing it always made me blush and duck my head, even at five years old.  Just about every time I ever saw Dr. A for an appointment, he asked that question.  Of course after responding I would always be at ease, no matter how sick I actually was.  He could give me any manner of shot (injection) or prescribe the yuckiest of medicines, and I would take it because the nice man said I needed it.

     Dr. A was so kind and had such a gentle manner.  I remember he would talk to me about things I liked or what I liked to do.  Before long he learned I liked flowers and one day gave me a glass paperweight from his desk because there was a painted flower design in its center.  I was shocked!  I also still have it.  Now every time I look at the paper weight I think of Dr. A and how smart he was at making connections.  A seasoned physician, Dr. A probably figured out just how to reach patients many years prior to me. But I believe he was really that kind of person.  Isn't it amazing what a kind word will do?


     My Grandmother Margaret liked taking care of people.  In her lifetime this included her stepbrothers and stepsisters, her husband and their two children, their grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.  Outside of her family she had a nursing career for many years at the local hospital and later served as a sitter for children of friends and also the elderly.  My mom used to tell me that all her school-age friends liked my grandma because she made them feel so welcome when they visited.  I'll vouch for that.  I will always remember my grandmother as warm and friendly.
     When I grew old enough to ride my bike to her house a few streets over, it was such a treat to visit her.  Of course there was a bit of spoiling going on.  Haha!  I would ask if I could have a snack of some kind and she would reply, "You can have anything you want."  If she had it, then whatever it was became yours.  My grandmother allowed me one day to pull out a large box of old black and white photos from her closet.  There were printed faces in there I had not seen before; some in matted paper frames and others loose.  She allowed me to look at them, even allowing me to dump them out in a pile.  (Can you imagine the mess?)  But she sat there with me while I asked about each one.  It was Grandma doing this over and over that helped me learn a lot about the maternal side of my family (not to mention, all of their names!).
     Grandma was also a very good listener.  I'm sure she didn't always agree with all of my thoughts, (as I well remember her laughter) but she let me express them nonetheless.  I admit that she and her home were sometimes an escape when I was a teen and my mom and I did not see eye-to-eye on things.  I would use Grandma as a sounding board.  There were certainly times when I was wrong and she would set me straight.  But she had this way of softening the sting by explaining the behavior of others that made anyone listen, especially teenagers.  Though I might be disappointed or had hurt feelings, she made things easier to understand.  I always left her house happy.

     Grandma had a lot of wonderful qualities.  One thing I will always remember is her saying that I could be whatever I wanted to be.  So......."if only I could be as supportive and caring as you, Grandma."

FLOUR

     I have been baking for local farmers' markets for five summers now.  Granted, not a long time, but enough for me to learn that more people are looking for baked goods that have alternatives for all-purpose flour and regular sugar.
     I was recently reminded of some tips associated with baking substitutions when I reviewed a Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Fall Baking issue from 2014.  I have used a couple of different kinds of gluten free flour.  One seemed to be more grainy than the other.  BH&G says to use more liquid in recipes that call for GF flour because it "absorbs more moisture." I did not know that or somehow I missed learning that fact.  Actually when I did use that particular grainy GF flour, I DID use more moisture because the batter was stiff.  I also read that one should use smaller pans when using nut flour.  BH&G says it does not rise as well as whole wheat flour.
     When substituting regular sugar with an alternative, "add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract for every 1 cup sugar substitute used in a recipe."  BH&G says this will "boost the flavor."  Also apparently using a sugar substitute keeps your baked goods from rising as much.  "Achieve more height by switching from 9-inch pans to 8-inch pans with 2-inch sides," BH&G says.
     Lastly, this BH&G issue supports using banana, canned pumpkin, or applesauce as a fat substitute.  Banana and canned pumpkin can be used as a fat in cookies and also provide their flavors.  Canned pumpkin and applesauce can be substituted in cakes and quick breads.  I can already vouch for using applesauce as a fat in quick breads.  I do this a lot when a recipe calls for a cup or more of oil.  Somehow that much oil alone does not sound appealing.

applesauce

 

     FLOWER

     I was lucky enough to catch a swallowtail butterfly on one of my zinnias recently.  Boy, do I have a new respect for nature photographers.  Waiting for the exact time for this butterfly to relax his wings just so I could take this picture was a little challenging, especially thinking I would scare this one away.  I have always read and heard that they like bright colors.  The orange was the ticket that day.

     I have been really lucky with basil this summer.  I have started so many plants just from taking cuttings from what I already had.  It seems that all one has to do is turn around twice, or go to bed and get up the next day and the basil has grown a foot!  One can see how this plant is beginning to flower in this photo.  If you see this make sure to pluck the bloom away or cut it off.  The basil leaves become bitter if you allow your plant to flower too soon.  Rest assured I snipped off these blooms so this plant could continue to grow.

     The above photo shows two types of sedum.  This plant has succulent leaves and flesh-like stems.  It can grow in shade, but does well in sun.  The lighter green plant has a bloom that begins white and turns to pink.  The darker green variety has a dark pink-colored bloom.  Both have grown in this flat bird bath container for several years.  That should tell you that sedum can live through the winter and return each year, thus it is a perennial.