Daily Blossom

It’s a new week folks, are you ready for it? Well, grab some caffeine and dive in!  Thought I’d share a photo of these gladiolas (or gladiolus) that I got on sale at the grocery store for a total of $10! Can you believe it? I just couldn’t pass up that much gorgeousness for that little money!  They’ve made it a good full week, but are starting on the downward spiral, I’m afraid. But still beautiful. (however, my tablecloth looks ridiculously wrinkly!)  Have a great Monday guys!

flowers for her house

flowers for her house, originally uploaded by feels just like home.

I love this photo (another lomography one). It reminds me of my mom’s kitchen growing up. The windows are the same old-school crank-out kind, and the vases of wildflowers remind me of growing up a bit in the country, picking wildflowers from the fields and wild patches all around the house.

Back up and running!

work in progress...

A great big hello and huge thanks to everyone who is still stopping by. I’ve taken about a month off to focus on famliy and home and things like that, and to evaluate where and how I want to spend my energy in my life. I have missed this blog! I miss the community (and let’s be honest, the audience!). I’ve missed sharing little bits of myself every day, and I figured out that I definitely want to make time for this blog, and to continue to grow it into something great. That being said, I don’t want to neglect my in-person life for my online life. So I’m back, but I’m switching things up a bit. I still plan to post a daily picture of a flower, but most of the time there won’t be much in the way of writing to go along with that. This will leave me time to explore a different kind of blossoming.

I am on a continuing quest to thrive and flourish. You may recognize that phrase, thrive and flourish, from the definition of the word “blossom” on my sidebar. Part of that is “finding myself” and figuring out who I want to be and what I want to do with my life. Part of it is living in the moment – truly embracing and enjoying my life as it is today, everyday. I know, I know – I’m thinking too hard about it. Letting go is another part of what I’m striving for!

So there’s a bit about the direction I want to take with my writing and this blog. I still plan to show beautiful images and art and products, and to highlight creativity in many forms, so I hope you will all continue to visit with me and share your thoughts with me. I value your input, support and friendship!

Brownies!

I’ve been somewhat obsessed with brownies of late. My house smells like chocolate most evenings, and I think my husband is addicted. I’ve tried a lot of brownie recipes, and determined that there are no bad brownies! Several times I thought a batch was ruined, only to take that test bite a few hours later (I’ve been refrigerating mine for extra fudginess) and find out they’re terrific! My favorites so far, and my husband’s favorite, is one such batch. Mark Bittman’s “How to Cook Everything” brownie recipe was our ultimate favorite! I doubled the recipe and made it in a 9×13 pan, so the brownies are a bit thicker than if you followed the original recipe and made them in the 8×8 pan. Here is the recipe, doubled for the 9×13 pan.  The original amounts and measurements have been stricken through, and my changes are in brackets.  And by the way, if you haven’t tried the non-stick aluminum foil, you must get some NOW! This is the most awesome stuff! I won’t ever bake without it again!

8 [16] tablespoons (1 [2] sticks) unsalted butter plus a little softened butter for the pan
3 [6] ounces unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
1 [2] cups sugar
2 [4] eggs
1/2 [1] cup all-purpose flour
Pinch salt
1/2 [1] teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease an [9x13] 8- or 9-inch square baking pan with butter or line it with aluminumfoil and grease the foil. [use nonstick aluminum foil and don't bother with the butter!]

2. Combine the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over very low heat, stirring occasionally. When the chocolate is just about melted, remove from the heat and continue to stir until the mixture is smooth.

3. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the sugar. Then beat in the eggs, one at a time. Gently stir in the flour, salt, and vanilla. Pour and scrape into the prepared pan and bake until just barely set in the middle, 20 to 25 [30-35] minutes. It’s better to underbake brownies than to overbake them. [I cooked them until a toothpick inserted in the middle came out with gooey bits on it, instead of just coated with batter] Cool on a rack before cutting. Store, covered, at room temperature, for no more than a day. [OR, refrigerate immediately and eat chilled]

Enjoy!

The List Continues

The updated list:

* make brownies – I’m trying to come close to the recipe for these (I’ll be posting my favorite recipe soon!)
* laundry, laundry, and more laundry
* serious spring cleaning (still have the serious part to do…)
* organize my pantry
* rearrange my office/guest room
* read a book (Keeping it Real)
* garage sales
* Star Trek
* make a cute skirt (on hold – my mom borrowed my sewing machine because hers is broken)
* cookout with friends here (rained out, but we still had dinner)
* dye my hair I couldn’t decide on a color. I think I’ll let the taunting grays hang out for a while.

So what’s left is the cleaning and organizing. I almost got started on the pantry on Sunday, but decided to nap instead. I stand by my decision. But I do have cute jars to put my dry goods in, so I guess I’d better get to it!  Stay tuned for the brownie recipe and some pictures of my fabulous pantry and office/guest room (cross your fingers!).