can you cut the mustard?

several months ago

my friend barbara gifted me a jar of her homemade apple mustard

we slathered it on lots of things

sausages & peppers, ham sandwiches, cheese & crackers

oh it was yummy!

until i dropped the jar & broke it (insert sad face here)

i haven't had a good mustard since  

so i decided to try my hand at making mustard

the homemade pantry has a recipe for mustard

so it seemed this was a good place to start

it's certainly easy enough to make & not a lot of fussy ingredients

after allowing the flavors to mingle for several days

we enjoyed the spicy concoction on italian sausages with peppers & mushrooms

crackers & cheese

sandwiches....and well

anything you would normally put mustard on,

we slathered it with ours

it's so yummy on pita chips with a bit of swiss & topped with bean sprouts

since trying this recipe

 i've googled & found lots of mustard recipes that i'm excited to give a try

***

did you know.....

---

Cut the mustard

Meaning

To succeed; to come up to expectations.

it certainly did meet our expectations!

~*~

one down.... and almost all of one to go~

i didn't complete the kal

(booooooo)

i did however, complete one sock!

(and the crowds roar)

and i have a good start on the second sock

(clapping in the background)

i really like the pattern and the yarn is very nice to work with as well

but.....

in the previous post i told you all that i was trying kollage's square needles

sorry to say

i'm not a big fan

not because they are square but because the join made it difficult to move your yarn across

causing frustration & causing me to knit even slower than normal

i sent kollage a email and they were kind enough to send me a second improved set

honestly, i didn't notice much difference

on the upside

 they fit comfortably in your hands

 you would never know they are square

 and

 they are a company that stands behind their product!

i'll give them another try with different yarn...who knows!

what kind of needles do you favor?

~*~

33 years of togetherness~

the hubs and i were married 33 years on valentines day

as Paula Deen says, "seems like only 5 years" (under water that is...*LOL)

i decided to make his valentines candy

&

it went pretty well!

nut clusters from trisha yearwoods crockpot candy

non parallels or snowcaps from martha stewart

peanut butter fudge from my little black book

all tied up with a curly bow

a pretty table & a yummy meal!

my daughter & her better half sent us these beautiful strawberries

they were so thoughtful~

i didn't plan a dessert so these yummy berries worked out perfectly!

thanks shannon & mark!

our daughter & son in law gifted us these adorable coffee spoons

 along with karamel kisses & really good coffee

how sweet!

we love using these every morning & being reminded of their thoughtfulness

thanks abbey & adam!

the son &his wife family gifted us coffee as well

they know we love our starbucks

thanks guys!

most of all

thanks to the hubs for putting up with me all these years

~*~

happy valentines day~

the littles do a valentines photo shoot

they just make my heart swell

happy heart day

~*~

hacked!!!!!

good morning all!

if you stopped by here in the past day or so,

my blog was hacked

did you see a warning?

me too!

a bit of investigating through google

and some help from

red leg

problem solved

yea!

hope you have a great weekend

here's a little love for ya

i could just squish him!!!!!

~*~

knitting & the kindness of friends...

hey all!

it's been a bit since my last post....

a sort of 

kind of

 new years resolution was to post once a week....

ok...so much for resolutions!

i've put my knitting on hold for the sock KAL as the needles i was using were giving me fits~ 

they were square needles which are suppose to be easier on your hands

i'm not sure if they were easy on my hands as the join made

it difficult to move your yarn across causing lots stress on my wrist~

 i do magic loop so this was a issue

i sent a email to the company and within a week i had a new set of needles!

yeah for companies that stand behind their products!  thanks kollage!

on the knitting front...

i have not accomplished a finished project in a while

i'm not sure where my knitting mojo went????

i tried a hat for my little "iris....4 attempts!!!!!!  

it was a simple pattern which i should have breezed through

instead after much frustration, i tossed it in the fireplace

childish i know, but i felt better

i know i will knit again....but not that hat!

***

on to the kindness of friends....

i have a blogging friend... Andi

she's such a sweetheart

while my blog lacks lots of followers

i enjoy a kindred relationship with the ones who do follow 

andi is one of those friends

the hubs came from the mailbox and said " you have a package"

me? i didn't order anything~

it was from andi

andi knits..........

andi knits beautifully

the color combinations & patterns she pairs them with...

always beautiful!

hop on over to her blog and you'll see exactly what i mean

my sisters knitter

and while you're there, check out her sisters blog...

(she really does knit for her sister!)

beautiful photography

when life gives you lemons

i was the lucky recipient of a hand knit by andi

my favorite color....gray

i keep it on the back of my chair

 and whenever i feel a chill,

 i wrap up in what is warm, cozy and a wonderful reminder of friendship

thanks andi....you're the best! 

xo

~*~