Coconut Cream Meringue Pie

Finished pie

In honor of Father’s Day I decided to do some real cooking.  I enjoyed cooking something that didn’t come from a box, but man I forgot what a mess it makes!   On the menu: Pecan Crusted Salmon, roasted potatoes, peas and for dessert-Coconut Cream Meringue Pie.  I always have a problem with meringue pies–weeping and beading.  Only once did I have a successful pie.  I found the recipe for Never-Fail Meringue at Allrecipes and decided to give it a try.  I will have to let you know tomorrow if it works.

Recycled Jean Purse Tutorial

 

 OK, my first stab at a tutorial.  I had been wanting to create a bag from old blue jeans but didn’t want to spend a lot of money buying a pair.  I have been reading other blogs about thrifting where the blogger bought clothes and craft supplies for $.25, $.50, etc. in thrift shops.  We must have a higher class of stores because the least I could find was for $5.00.  Where oh where is the rummage sale I used to help with at my church in New England— pants were no more than $.50 each!!  Well, a neighbor had a yard sale and I bought a pair of her little girl’s jeans, about a size 5 I think. 

Diaper Bag

Well, as you can see I was busy over the holiday weekend.  We are having a baby shower for one of my colleagues at work next week and I wanted to make her something.  I used Butterick Pattern #4560 and it took forever to cut out all the pieces.  First of all, the pattern had pieces for a bag A and a bag B, yet the instructions were the same.  Finally figured out the only difference was that bag A’s fabric had to be interfaced with batting and bag B used prequilted fabric.  I used magnetic closures instead of Velcro.

I wanted to use a fabric that was not babyish so that the bag could still be used for a tote later on.  It has a ton of pockets to organize both the inside and outside.  I had to “adapt” because of some mistakes I made.  The one pocket with the flap on the outside of the bag is shorter than it should have been.  I put the flap in the wrong place and it was easier making the pocket shorter than riping out the flap and redoing.  I had also twisted the strap and didn’t catch it until the bag was completely lined.  Boo-hoo!

I shortened the strap by 6″ when I fixed it and reinforced the handle ends with an “X” stitching.  I had wanted to make it an adjustable strap but it was too thick.  I think next time I make this bag I will put piping around the flaps or make the body of the bag with a different fabric than the flap.  With the fabric I used it all blends together too much.

Anyway, I am pleased at how it turned out and hope my friend likes it.

Summer’s Start

Our Deck

 Happy belated M. day to all mothers out there!!  Being a mother has been the most rewarding AND frustrating time of my life.  I was lucky to have been able to stay home with my children as they were growing up.  How do working mothers do it all??!!!  I still have “if only I did this or that” thoughts, even though my sons are grown.  I had a book called “A Good Enough Mother.”  Never actually read it but just having it on my shelf to look at the title comforted me.  It made me realize I couldn’t be perfect all the time but still be a good mom.  We must have done “good enough”  because our sons are now fantastic young men.

We have had so much rain lately that it was truly a gift to have a sunny and warm weekend.  Mother’s day has always been a signal for the beginning to summer for me since all the gardening centers have stocked up on flowering annuals.  We spent 6 hours in our small yard trimming bushes, raking leaves, weeding and edging the lawn.  It felt so good to be outdoors but my hubby and I paid for it the next day–we are so stiff!

This is a picture of our deck after we hung the baskets of flowers.  I was impatient this year to get them up and of course they went on sale the day after we bought them.  Notice the mini pergola in the background?  We added that last year out of necessity but it really added character to the deck.  It doubles as a sun screen when we pull the curtain.  Without the curtain it is hard to sit on the deck in the early evening because of the sun setting in the west.

Ahhh!  Back to enjoying the fruits of our labor–sitting on the deck, listening to the chimes and watching the goldfinches at the feeder.

Time for Banana Bread

Who would think something so “ewww” would make something so “yummm!”  This is my favorite banana bread recipe and it makes a large, moist loaf.  I always get compliments and asked for the recipe.  Of course it helps having fresh pecans and not the rancid store-bought ones.  That reddish color is not natural!!!  Walnuts are a good substitute.  Another hint: if you do not have enough bananas you can add applesauce to make up the difference.  I wonder what the bread would taste like with all applesauce?  Anyway, here is the recipe,enjoy.