Martha's Crazy Cake

Martha's Crazy Cake

Preheat oven to 350F. 
3 c. flour      
1 1/3 c. sugar
6 T. cocoa      
2 t. salt
2 t. baking soda     
10 T. oil
4 t. vinegar      
2 t. vanilla
2 c. cold water

Pur flour, baking soda, sugar, cocoa, and salt in bowl and combine.  Stir until mixture is throughly mixed.  Making wells in the dry mixture, add water. oil, vinegar,and vanilla.  Mix throughly.  Bake in greased and floured 13” x 9” pan for 20-35 min.  Test with a toothpick.
Serve with sweetened whip cream while warm or frost with the following:
Broiled Coconut Topping
1/4 c. butter
1 c. flaked or shredded coconut
1/2 or 2/3 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. nuts (optional)
3 T. half-and-half or milk
Heat  broiler,  In small saucepan, melt butter.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Spread on warm cake.  Broil 4 to 6 inches from heat for 1 or 2 minutes or until bubbly and light golden brown.  (Watch carefully, mixture burns easily.)  Yield:  Tops 13x9-inch cake.

This is a family favorite brought home by my eldest daughter while in grade school.  She purchased a small cookbook for kids and we had to try this since it does not use any eggs or milk in the recipe.  It's really good.

Time Flies

Time flies when  you're having fun.  Isn't it amazing?  I have not been on here for some time and I have done a lot of new things since then.  I mentioned my 'new' machine.  It's a Pfaff Performance sewing/ebroidery/quilting machine.  I love it.  Did I say that already?  If not, I will say it again.  I love it.  I have had sooooooo much fun sewing and creating new things since I purchased this baby in 2012.  I've made aprons, bibs, baby diaper clutch purses and so much more.  I can't believe how easy it is to use and how fantastic things look when they are done.  Sewing through jeans is a breeze and the embroidery is unbelievable.  I have all kinds of projects lined up to do and the creative juices are flowing.  I recently made an apron from an old pair of jeans.  It was adorable and I am in the process of making another one for a granddaughter.  I love being able to add embroidered names and designs to the items I make and personalize them for friends and loved ones.  It's fun to picture the finished items in my head and then to see the finished results.  Love it, love it, love it.
I have also been busy scanning pictures for my siblings and extended family.  My parents took a lot of pictures when they were alive and I now have them in my charge.  Last years I scanned in all of the slides they took and began on scanning in all of the pictures.  It is still a work in progress and when that is done I will start in on my own pictures.  I don't think it will ever end, since I keep taking more pictures all of the time.  At least now, the pictures are digital and they won't need to be scanned. 
However, having them on the computer has its drawbacks too, since they are on several drives and in many different files and I have to search all over the place for them.  I am hoping to get them all in one place soon.  The other things is that you can't readily see them.  I keep thinking I will make a Shutterfly book or calendar.  That is my next goal. 
Another project I have been doing is putting together my genealogy and I am using Legacy Tree.  I am impressed with it so far and have a lot of information that needs to be added to it.  I am hoping that I will be able to get information from my siblings to add to the record so our families can see what our heritage it and where we came from.  That same thing for my children and their siblings. 
Now I need to start another project.  My son asked for some recipes and I would like to put them online.  I am not sure how to do this and give access to all of my family and friends if they wish.  We have some great recipes and sharing would be so much fun. 

Above are some pictures of some of my latest creations. 

Guilty Pleasures of Pinterest and Quilting

     I think I am now addicted to Pinterest, but in a healthy way.  I love sewing and making things for my family and I find the most amazing ideas from my Pinterest friends.  Some how I seem to really connect with several of those who pin from my boards.  You find so many people who have interests very similar to your own and you know that somehow you are kindred spirits even though you are many miles apart. 
     I was recently invited to join a "Group" board on pinterest.  It is a board for those of us who love to make quilts.  My own Pinterest board for quilts is called "Quilting Bee" and I have pinned some really gorgeous quilts and ideas and tutorials to this board.  However, joining the group "Board"  has opened up a whole new world of wonders.  There are thousands of quilters out there with some of the most wonderful, awesome, gorgeous, creative quilts and the list goes on.  The group board has given me the opportunity to connect with so many more people of 'like' interest.  You cannot believe the art that goes into making a quilt and the creativity involved is amazing to me. 
     I am just beginning to step in that direction.  I just completed a quilt for my grandson.  I designed and appliqued the entire quilt and pieced it together.  It was such a joy to watch it come to fruition.  A friend of mine in St. George did the machine quilting.  She owns a quilt shop there and it is a wonderful place to visit and create dreams. 
     My daughter loved the quilt and let me borrow it back to enter it into the county fair.  I'll find out next week how it did and if I won any ribbons.  Our county is full of ladies who love to quilt and they have groups who meet regularly to work on new ones.  I love going to the local quilt shows to see the finished results.  I have yet to see any duplicates.
     My next quilt is a "quilt as you sew" adventure.  It is made of "minky" fleece and the fabric is cut into strips that are laid down on top of the batting and the backing fabric and you sew through all of the layers as you sew the strips together so that the end product is quilted and all you have to do is sew on the binding.  It sounds fun and the fabric is bright oranges and turquoises and prints for another little boy baby quilt.  It will be for another soon to be born grandson. 

     Well, enough for now, I will have to write next about my new sewing machine...

I found a dimond mine...

Guess what I discovered? Go on guess. Pinterest! Yay, joy and anything else that describes ecstacy. It is a treasure trove of interesting things and items and it is not limited to time and space it seems. I am constantly amazed at the variety of items that are pinned on the boards by all those who are part of Pinterest. It amazes me even more when someone pins something I have pinned. The only problem is there is so much out there, you can get lost in the pins. For instance, I have a board for recipes and once you start looking at other pinners and their boards you can spend hours, even days drooling over all the deliciousness on display. Not only that, but once you do decide to "repin" you then have to decide if it goes to "Recipes", or should you post that pin under "Christmas", "Thanksgiving", "Valentine's Day" or a host of other boards.
I am very new to Pinterest, but I love the fact that I can group my pins under specific items of interest to me. My boards reflect me in a very personal way: my joy of cooking, my love for nature, my artsy-craftyness, my love of creating and I have only begun to explore the possibilities.
Sharing pins with others of like mind or interest opens up all kinds of avenues to interact with others and explore even further options I may never have found on my own. Pinterest allows me to find ideas, thoughts, skills and more and learn and grow in a new way.
Thanks Pinterest for sharing and allowing all of us to pin.

The Costa Rican View

Wow, isn't life amazing. Last week I was in rain and snow and this week I am in rain, sand and sun. Our wonderful friends invited us to visit them in their new home in Costa Rica. After a long day of three flights and several lay-overs we arrived at our destination. We did lose one piece of luggage on our trip, but it arrived safely the next day. Our friend had some business in the mountains and we were able to fly with him in his chopper and see some of the country from the air. The rain forests are amazing and we saw the pineapple fields that stretch out for miles. We spent the night up in the rain forests at a beautiful place built by a man from Australia. His love for wood and beauty show in everything he does at his place. It was truly gorgeous. We spent some time at the National Museum in San Jose and watched the blue butterflies and saw some of the displays of pre-Columbian gold and jade and pottery. Today we went to Manuel Antonio beach and spent time strolling through the water, the tide was really high and so we were unable to really swim, but I got some great pictures. On the way home we visited another beach at Jaco. It was wonderful. The water was great and the sand while black, was smooth and wonderful to walk through. Tomorrow we head for Arenal to visit the volcano. I will add pictures.

Tea Time Again

It is almost time for our semi-annual Tea with the Moms. We are calling it Tea Mania Time and the kids are really excited about this upcoming event. I will have to post pictures of the delectable eats and treats. I think Faye and I have as much fun planning it and finding fun foods to try as the kids have attending. This has become a tradition at our home and I think this is our 5th Tea. We always plan it during a time when Bruce is on night shift; it is a time for us to get together as Moms with our children and enjoy each other around the table. We visit and play games or watch a movie after the tea. Of course, since the children really don't care for tea, we generally serve Hot Chocolate or Root Beer Floats instead. As the day nears I will have to post the menu.

LeRoy Thayn slides Box 1