The Harvest Ham and the Blizzard Turkey

An hour ago I returned from a trip to Champaign and the grocery store to purchase the necessary items for our Christmas dinner and brunch the following morning. I had carefully gone through all the ads and determined which grocery store had the best values and I had my list in hand.

Now we have had blowing snow in the last day or so and parking lots are icy and slick so I was taking my life in my hands. The last thing I needed right now was a broken bone but the groceries were necessary so I braved the elements and persevered.

Up and down the aisles I went, sometimes repeating myself for forgotten items, crossing them off my list as I went. At last I was finished and headed to the check out counter. Half my groceries had been scanned when it dawned on me that I had gotten whole turkeys and not turkey breasts. Now I was getting two, one for our dinner and one for my daughter in law. Too late to return them to the meat department. So now what do I do? I could use the whole turkey for our dinner but Michele wanted a breast only.

And then I thought of Phyllis, the originator of the Blizzard Turkey and the Harvest Ham. Oh I wish you could hear her tell the story of the ham but you will have to trust my memory for the jest of the story. You have to know Phyllis to really appreciate this because no one can tell it like she does  and it is so like her. Her husband is a farmer and of course is busy morning to night, especially during harvest time. Now Phyllis is a woman who thinks ahead and, as she tells it, she goes to Sam's Club and buys a big ham and has them slice it. She also buys several loaves of bread and a big jar of mustard. Then she clears off her table and lays out a multitude of bread slices...slap a piece of ham on each, squirt on some mustard and top with more bread. Toss each one in a baggie and into the freezer they go. Every morning her husband grabs a bagged sandwich and maybe an apple for dessert and off he goes for his days work.

Our elevator during harvest

Every winter when the turkeys go on sale Phyllis buys a big one and pops it into the freezer. Then when a blizzard swirls across the country and the snow is blowing around she puts that turkey into the oven and says the smell of that bird make her feel warm and happy. That is a Blizzard Turkey and I now have that extra one I bought today safely in my freezer awaiting the next blizzard in G'ville.

Recipes and Socks

What is it about both recipes and socks that cause them to disappear, one somewhere between the washing machine and the dryer and the other from our memories?

How does one sock somehow entwine itself in the corner of a fitted sheet to disappear for weeks or cling to a sweater, now put away for the summer, only to reappear next fall? So the question is, does one save those left and lonely socks for the future just in case the mate should appear? Should there be a small drawer for the sole survivor to wait? Is there a website somewhere where lonely single socks can find a new
mate?

I write a page for my quilt guild's newsletter every month that features recipes. I usually try to use ones that have come from fellow quilters  that we have oohed and aahed over at the various gatherings or groups. I also receive several email newsletters that offer good ideas. This morning I spotted a recipe for a cake that I have made for my family long ago in the past but had forgotten about and it started me thinking about many old recipes, long forgotten and lost (like the socks). I remember treats my Mother and Grandmother used to make for us as children but have no recipe for them. What about the chicken and dumpling recipe I made for my kid when they were little? How could I forget that. I made it multiple times.

So, when all the hustle and bustle of this Christmas season is past and winter makes it's presence felt here in G'ville,I make a pledge to myself to delve into those piles of paper, printed from online, all those recipe cards stuffed in various boxes, and the collection of books in a dining room cabinet. I am going to find as many of those old time, favorite, and remembered recipes as possible and find a way to preserve them for the next generation. Maybe I will build a cookbook for my grandkids so they will never have to wonder whatever happened to that recipe for.......

A Little Spot of Ground

This little town I live in is in the middle of nowhere. It is exactly the type of village I always thought I would never find myself living in. I grew up in a city and loved it. Here there is only the elevator and a scattering of houses existing side by side with the railroad track. Years ago those tracks carried passenger trains and evenings at dusk we could see the brightly lit cars with people going somewhere. Now those trains are a thing of the past and only grain and work trains fly past.

I find myself feeling lonesome at times for the hustle and bustle of a city but mostly for the people going about their busy lives. My husband is somewhat of a workaholic, being years past the normal age of retirement, but still walking across the street to work every day. This is good for him, as he wants it, but for me it brings aloneness too often. In nice weather I seldom see him until almost dark. My sons are all grown and busy and even the grandchildren, now grown, have busy lives of their own...and this is as it should be.

I have friends and often drive to town to visit and sit and sew with them but a person can't do that every day. I remember ny mother in law telling me years ago how her garden made her happy. Now I certainly do not have a green thumb and know little about gardening but in my front yard is a small spot of ground that I have claimed for a flower garden. Last year I planted bulbs and enjoyed the tulips, daffodils and early crocus this spring. Now as I walk along the side walk I see the two red plants Dennis and Michele gave me for Mother's Day and the beautiful hanging basket of lavender petunias that came from Mike. I have added flowers of yellows, purples, and whites. On the porch are barrels filled with dark purple flowers and greenery.

This afternoon, feeling somewhat alone, I spent a couple of hours sitting on the ground pulling weeds. Oh, the violets and weeds will return and they have almost sprouted up at the end where I started but I had a lovely afternoon. My little spot of ground will never be worthy of a picture or praise but my mother in law was right....it is a joy!

Our Golden Girls

Sitting at my computer this morning, reading email, I happened to glance out the window and saw our Golden Girls across the road where my husband Leon was working at the grain elevator. I must get a picture of the three of them together but above is one of the youngest, Morgan, who is two,  taken in AL at the beach this spring. The legs and feet belong to my middle son, Gary.

The oldest Golden actually belongs to Brad my oldest grandson who received her as a gift after the loss of the family black lab years ago. Brad, now grown and off on his own, left Carmela with his brother and sister and parents and she is now the family dog. Carmela is now getting older and has slowed down considerably. She still rides up to work at the second elevator every day in the back of Dennis's pickup but she now has to be helped into the bed of the truck, not able to leap up herself. Every night finds her beside Brian's bed where she guards his sleep. On weekends, when there is no formal work to be done, she walks up to Galesvilles to visit me and I find her at my back door hoping I will supply a treat. I call her our gentle giant as she is a big dog but gentle as a lamb. Even the thought of losing her, which I know we will before many more years, brings me to tears. I will miss that dog terribly!

The middle girl is our Maizey, who is now three and still somewhat of a pup. She came to us after we lost our Penny at the age of 12. My husband  Leon said no more dogs. It is too hard to lose them. Knowing him well, I waited a year and then was lucky enough to find Miss Maizey. He complained and growled around the house for about 2 days and then fell in love with her as I knew he would. She now goes to work every day with him and is in the pickup if he even mentions a "ride". The other day he waited for her to jump up into the bed of the truck and she stood patiently waiting beside the door until he figured out that she prefered to ride inside the  truck with him and not outside. Of course he opened the door and in she jumped.

So now, all three Golden Girls are outside in the sunshine, Carmela lying in the sun watching the younger two ones frolicking and jumping around. All three have their summer haircuts, done by Brad, to keep them cool and cut down on fleas and ticks (these dogs all spend time in the woods) and he has left a tuff of hair at the ends of their tails, making them resemble three lions. Sometimes I have to check the color of their collars to be sure which is which at a distance. As soon as coffee time at the elevator is over and the guys head home the dogs will also  follow but they will be back and of course I keep that jar of treats full for the next visit!

The Annies

March 7th already. Where does the time go? Last Saturday the Annies met. I had promised to explain some on my groups so I guess that's as good a place to start as any. The Annies started out as AAA, Addicted Attic Annies. Now where did that come from? I have no idea. You know how it is when a bunch of quilters get together and ideas start to flow? I think it had something to do with being addicted to old fabrics (repos) often found in attics. However it started, it is now simply the Annies.

We are a group of Civil War fanatics gathered from the membership of several small groups with the common love for doing swaps and using exclusively Civil War fabrics. Some belong to the larger local guild and some don't. But...get us together at the once a month gathering and time flies as we have show and tell and swap blocks and ideas. We started out serving coffee and tea but now do a full brunch each time. So now the recipes are also swapped. Well, what is better than good food and quilts?

Here are a couple of quilts from last Saturday's Show and Tell.....

There were oooooh and ahhhs when Joan showed us this top. Knowing her limitless stash I doubt there are two pinwheels alike in this quilt. And Joan does her own quilting so this will soon be quilted and bound.

Carol's wallhanging got us into all kinds of trouble. We already were starting a new swap this month but when we saw this, the hands went up, "Oh why not. It's an easy block. We can do two can't we?" It's kind of an inside joke that when someone brings a book to share we automatically raise our hands and soon we have a book order going. Or a fabric order or a second swap going.....

Before we know it, it is after noon and time to head on our way home. We scurry out the door but know that the first Saturday of the month will soon come again and the Annies will be together again!

February 26...A Quilty Weekend

My favorite type of weekend....Quilty !

Friday I drove the 20 miles to Champaign and met with friends to "sit and stitch". This is an informal bunch who try to get together every Friday, Illinois weather and family events permitting, and sew, gab, and perhaps do some shopping later in the day.

Many take their machines but some prefer to do hand work such as binding. We arrange tables in a sort of a square circle so we are officially a sewing circle? Most have one of those little Gem machines so we have electrical cords snaking all over the room and fabric is flying.

My friend Gail was working on the binding of a baby quilt (upper right) to be sent to England for a new baby, born very early, but now at last home with family. The blocks came from a swap we did in local guild several years ago. I think I have a pile of those blocks somewhere but don't they make a cute baby quilt? Maybe when I dig into the "closet from hell" I can find mine?

Saturday was the date for the Land of Lincoln Quilt Guild, our regional state guild. We met in Decatur and had a fine day. Breakfast snacks at nine followed by the board and business meetings, then a catered lunch and finally a nice program. One of the highlights is always "show and tell". I seldom have much to show but yesterday I took the completed top of the flag quilt (upper left) which I finished on Friday. Now, I realize a top is not a finished quilt but it is now at the point I can turn it over to Sue, one of our more than capable long-arm quilters.

I bought the pattern at another LLQA meeting about a year ago and after showing it to my Annie's (Civil War) group we decided to do it as a swap. We bought a common background and drew names for which sets of three alike blocks we would do for each other. Each swapper did her own star section. I did my star section like the pattern showed using a light background but when I put it with the rest of the quilt, it looked awful. So, I got a bottle of fabric dye and tried that...still awful. I knew I would never be happy with it the way it was so I redid the section using the common background. Thank goodness we had purchased enough!

Today, Sunday will be catch up day for me here on my corner. I have two sets of minutes to write and send out, two pages of recipes to be written for newsletters, and my house is a bit of a mess. Oh by the way, I have committed myself to doing the Farmer's Wife quilt...insanity? There is a blog doing this and four of us have been bitten by the bug........

February 18...Time to Quilt

It's been a while since I last wrote in this blog. Every morning, with my first cup of coffee, I write to my quilting group, the OddOnes (another story for another day) and they hear much more than they ever wanted to know abut my life here on the corner. It seemed redundant to repeat the same so I have decided to dedicate this blog to my obsession, quilting. Being the ripe old age of 72 and already possessing more fabric, patterns, kits, and ideas than I could possibly ever finish I have dedicated this year of 2012 to finishing a few on my older projects. Now I know myself too well to believe that I will not start any new ones but at least I am going to try to combine the new and the old.

Located in my quilt room is the "closet from hell". In this same closet are three humongous tubs filled with kits, numerous BOMs, sets of swap blocks, fabric packs for projects, unfinished tops, unfinished everything you could think of. On top of the tubs is even more. One is in peril merely opening the closet doors. I opened said same doors and pulled out an unfinished quilt started about 12 years ago. I started doing it in thirds and had the center finished, the first third partially quilted and the last third pieced only. It combines both piecing and applique.This will be my first project to finish. I surely was a novice back them because there are some glaring errors. I had to laugh at myself when I noted I had quilted the first two thirds clear up to the edge. Now, how did I think I would join those two pieces? Obviously there will be some unquilting happening. I'm making progress but will say I would not do another quilt this way. I honestly don't enjoy hand quilting except on small pieces. Evey day I am thankful for the wonderful long arm quilters we have nearby, without whom I would never have finished quilts. Someday in the not too distant future I may be able to post a pic of this quilt...finished at last.

The quilt top above is one from a swap in my Annie's group, a Civil War bunch who meet once a month and do swaps using only Civil War fabrics. I took these blocks to a recent retreat and got the top together. Oh how I love these retreat...what motivation from stitching with friends.

Today, give yourself the gift of time to spend quilting or doing whatever your passion is.......