You Can Call Me Gwen

Plans

 

I'm still trying to get used to being out of the work force, not having somewhere I'm expected to be every morning, etc.

It's been quite a challenge to me, this current season of my life.

I'm finding my prayers every morning include at least one plea that I will not "lean on my own understanding" (which I often translate as 'living in my mind'), and another that I will be directed by the Holy Spirit into His plans for my day.

Today, those plans include boxing up a little flock of paper birds to send to another of His friends who is walking through a valley right now.

 

 

As I reached for a sheet of engineering plans to wrap the box, I heard a whisper, and immediately knew that I needed to wrap the box with the drawings to the outside, rather than the inside.

 

 

God wanted to remind me and my friend of something.

 

 

We have hope and a future.

Things sometimes get a little bleak in the here-and-now, but because of Jesus, the brightest future possible is our guarantee.

Amazing.

Cookies for the Help

 

 

Today I baked cookies for Me Darlin' Mither and the many people who are currently coming and going from her home and helping during her recovery.

I ate one.

It was awfully good.

I made the oatmeal-raisin cookies Me Darlin' Mither had requested, but I added another ingredient which I know she is crazy about and it kinda took the cookies to a dangerously yummy place.

Toffee chips.

Specifically, Heath Chips.

Here is the recipe I used:

 

Oatmeal Raisin Toffee Cookies

Soak in warm water:

1/2-3/4 cup raisins

Beat until creamy:

1 1/4  cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

Then add and beat:

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix together the following and add to mixture:

1 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

Then add and mix:

raisins, drained of water

3 cups oats

1 bag of Heath or other toffee chips

Form into 1"-2" balls and flatten slightly with your hand. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes for chewy cookies (you want them this way, trust me) or 10-12 minutes for crunchy cookies (just say no). Let them cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet before removing to cooling rack.

Now, I trust you remember (from my previous post about the awesome peanut butter cookies) the trick to making all cookies become low or zero calorie cookies?

Put them in packages, tie them tightly shut...

 

 

...and get 'em out of the house.

100 Tweets

 

I don't tweet or twitter.

Neither do my 100 newest friends.

They just sit here looking cheerful...

 

 

...and making my studio feel like spring as they grow in numbers...

 

 

...until there are almost enough of them...

 

 

...to see us through to next spring.

I wasn't actually planning to have a bird hatchery this spring, but one day last week, as I was browsing in the eye-candy store called The Paper Crown, I spied a small pad of paper and thought I heard it chirping as I walked by.

So, I brought it home, got out the scissors and glue, and now maybe we can fill this perilously-close-to-empty jar.

 

 

It's the jar that visitors to my studio use to fill their take-home bags.

Zero calorie treat bags are the best.

Or are those tweet bags?

Reuse and Recyle

 

I just finished up another eight hour day on that big painting job I mentioned in my last post.

Looks like we're closing in on the finish line of Phase 1 and soon I may be able to share some pictures of what we've been through.

Today I used several plastic grocery sacks as paint-tray liners, so I thought I'd share with you the most recent system I'm using to keep the sacks orderly until I need them (to line small trash cans, paint trays, etc).

Several years ago, one of our 'adopted' shoots showed me how his (real) mom folded them for storage, which I thought was genius and implemented immediately.

 

 

I liked the simple half-knot solution because it made it easy to grab just one bag and they took up less room than when left unfolded/tied.

Last week I stumbled across a fold I like even better (you can watch the how-to here, although, believe me, I am not that particular when I fold mine).

 

 

Now the bags take up even less space.

 

 

That is nice for storage reasons, but it's also great because I like to put several extra bags underneath the ones I'm using to line small wastebaskets; that way I'll have a new liner handy whenever one gets full.

You, Dear Readers, may be way ahead of me on this one, and it's quite possible you don't even care about such a small thing.

I, however, like to get as many small things as possible in order, so I'll have time and space for the big things.

If I can ever figure out what they are.

The Best Low Calorie Peanut Butter Cookies

 

I am sitting here enjoying a truly sweet and delicious orange (thank you, God), and remembering that I wanted to tell you about the best peanut butter cookie recipe.

 

 

No, seriously.

I did a Google search for "the best peanut butter cookie recipe" and I found this one over at Alaska from Scratch, which I have to agree lives up to the name.

When I made mine, I flattened them a bit with the classic fork crisscross and then sprinkled some coarse salt on them before baking.

Able Baker Dana says it took them "over the top".

However, what took them over the top for me, was finding a way to make them non-fattening without altering the recipe one bit!

You simply enjoy one and then...

 

 

... make some taped shut take-home packs for the grandshoots, to keep them from howling when it's time to leave Pretty and Poppa's (I'm sorry, but I secretly love that they want to cry when they have to leave).

Then use the rest to make tied-shut give-away packages for whatever people happen to be part of your life for the next few days.

 

Today has been a beeeeautiful spring-like day, and I took advantage of the weather by spending hours scalping the front lawn, cleaning up flower beds, and cutting back some herbs and decorative grasses.

Also, Prince Charming sent some lawn-care guys by to take a look at our 'weed situation' and give us a quote for spraying.

Three guys in a big truck pulled up, measured up our lawns, spoke kindly to me, and said they'd be back to spray on Wednesday.

They were eating peanut butter cookies when they drove off.

I really liked that.

 

Hearts and Roses and Poetry and Paint

I'm cleaning out my camera files and thinking.

Thinking about the lovely Valentine progressive dinner we had, with poetry and other romantic readings, and with fun appetizers served here...

 

.

.. followed by a delicious entree and dessert served elsewhere.

 

I'm thinking about the little impromptu Valentine's lunch with some of the grandshoots...

 

 

...and the just plain love-them-to-pieces days with other grandshoots.

 

 

I'm thinking about the many jigsaw puzzles which have been put together over the (LONG) winter months...

 

 

...and some of the really good recipes I've discovered lately (more later).

 

 

But, mostly, I'm thinking about paint.

Lots and lots of paint and painting has been in my life over the last two months.

I finally started working on the room Prince Charming plans to use as a recording studio.

I was pretty happy that the big drop cloth covered the floor from wall-to-wall in one direction and was only a foot shy of doing so in the other direction.

 

 

However, because of the truly amazing amount of painting I have done over the course of the last 35 years, I am extremely skilled at it now and I was able to knock the loaded paint tray off the top of the ladder in such a way that it dumped a significant amount of paint onto that one foot of unprotected carpet. (Don't try this at home, kids; I am a skilled professional with years of experience in this line of work.)

Now, we're not talking about some blend-in color here, either, Dear Readers.

No.

No.

I painted this studio a nice, masculine, deep gray-brown (Warm Stone by Sherwin Williams).

 

 

My dear friend, Able Baker Dana, was here at the time and narrowly escaped a Warm Stone shower, herself.

Would you like to see the big mess on the carpet?

This is it:

 

 

 

Though it's perceptable up close like this, when the room is taken as a whole it's hardly noticeable (which is good, since new flooring for this room is pretty much not on the priority list).

Since Able Baker Dana was so astounded that I was able to salvage that carpet, I'm going to share a trade secret.

Three words.

WATER and ACT FAST.

I got a bucket of water and, after first scooping and wiping up the globs and puddles of paint, I simply started pouring large amounts of water on the carpet and then soaking it up with old towels.

Over and over again.

For quite a long time.

But, you see, it works well most of the time.

I have a similar story, with a sadder ending, which I will tell you when my currently on-going painting project is finished.

THAT project is why I am thinking mostly about paint as I look through my camera files.

One day, when I went upstairs to fetch my camera before leaving for another day on that job, I caught a glimpse of myself in the hall mirror and snapped a photo so I could remember...

 

 

...what February really looked like on me.

Keeping it real, folks, keeping it real.