Playing with Scissors

It was Sunday morning and I didn't quite clue in to what she said. I was settling in to the comfy chair with my morning tea. The girls were all set with their new favourite show (Wild Kratts). Then the little one sometimes known here as Smilosaurus but more commonly known in this house Evil Genius says to me, with load of pride in her voice, "Mama, I cut that thing you use."

Sure, Babe, I thought, as I sipped my tea. Whatever you say. Mama needs her caffeine this morning.

Once the caffeine kicked in I picked up the quilt next to me. Thread, thimble, scissors, and needle threader all present and ready for some handstitching. Then I went to actually thread a needle. Hmm, those fragile, thin diamonds of wire were suddenly missing from both ends of my Clover threader. For 30 seconds I actually thought I wrecked them when I put it away the night before. Then... wait a minute, I remembered that random comment from earlier from that child of mine.

I called my kidlet over and asked her to show me exactly what she cut. Proudly she pulled out my needle threader. Somehow, I couldn't even get upset. (As I normally would, let's be honest.) When I asked her why, this is what she answered:

"Mama, I'm just like Curious George."

Sigh.

In honour of all of us quilters, artists, crafters, and creative folks I thought I would do a series of posts on trying to quilt with kids around. Tips and tricks for actually getting things done with kids around. I'll do a new post every Monday for a month. Please send in any tips or stories you've got, I'd love to share them too.

Stay tuned next week for my first post on setting up your space to work for you and your kids.

Chocolate Cake for Friends and Neighbours

Do you know your neighbours?

Will they shovel your walk? Will you shovel theirs? Have you had backyard happy hour together? Built a really nice fence? Even chatted with them?

We've got some really fantastic neighbours (and one not so nice one). Once they got past the fact that we indeed were a couple old enough to own a house and not siblings living with our parents we've got along great. They babysit the girls, we watch each other's pets, and generally look out for each other. It is because of our neighbours, in large part, that we are renovating instead of moving.

So when we came home with a new washer and dryer today Poppa came over to help us get it into the house. No, we didn't make him do the heavy lifting! As I was already making dinner we invited them to join us. Besides, how much ham can two adults and the girls eat?

We pigged out, literally, on Spragg Meats ham, sauteed kale, and lentils with roasted squash and caramelized onions. I was going to be all healthy and serve a citrus salad for dessert, but it seemed more special to make a cake. Our neighbours definitely deserved cake.

This recipe was created for the latest issue of What's Up Families. I wrote a feature article on gluten free cooking. It was a great challenge for me. And a great opportunity to interview Lauren over at Celiac Teen and her family for the article. Very inspiring to see her family together and her love for baking. While Lauren isn't quite close enough to be my neighbour (but luckily still close), I would happily share this cake with her. (Check out the issue for more GF recipes.)

Hazelnut Flourless Chocolate Cake

1/2 cup plus 1 tsp cocoa
4 ounces chocolate
1/2 cup butter
3 eggs, separated
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup roasted hazelnuts, finely crushed

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8'' round cake pan. Cut a piece of parchment paper to line the bottom, place inside the buttered pan, and butter that too. Use the 1 tsp of cocoa to dust the parchment lines pan.
2. Chop the chocolate and melt with the butter in a bowl set atop of a pot of simmering water. Once melted remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.
3. While the chocolate is cooling whip the egg whites with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add in 1/4 cup sugar and beat until glossy and stiff peaks form.
4. Add the egg yolks, 1/2 cup sugar, and vanilla to the melted chocolate. Stir well. Add the hazelnuts. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten the batter. Carefully fold in the remaining whites. Stop as soon as you don't see white. Pour into prepared pan.
5. Bake for 30 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan. Best served warm.

Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing

Pulled this one out of the vault, didn't I?

My Dad handed this book to me a few months ago. I'm sure it came with the decades long Reader's Digest subscription our family had. For the last few decades it's been hiding in a table at my parent's place. Seeing as I sew, Dad gave it to me. I was taken in by the cover immediately. Isn't it fantastic?

It's gloriously retro and fantastically detailed. If I ever decide to actually sew clothes I guarantee I will pull this out as a resource. For now I can be entertained and even slightly inspired by the 70s styling. Just check out this bed cover! There is definitely a quilt in that.


Some of the sewing projects included remind me of many that I've seen on blogs and in books in the last few years. Napkins, placemats, playmats, wall organizers, bags, pillows, and even soft animals and toys. Goes to show that not everything is new.


The book also came with a little pamphlet about sewing with scraps. My favourite project, by far, is the Curler bag. Now does that ever bring back memories! My stick straight hair tied up in hard plastic curlers after the Saturday night bath. Just for the hope of curls for church in the morning. Curls that were long gone by the time church was over. I wonder if the people sitting behind me ever watched my hair fall instead of the service? I'm sure that's what I would have done with my head in front of me. Shhh, don't tell my Dad.

Workshop in Progress Feb 16

First off, I am so sorry that I never got a chance to visit last week's posts. A few more weeks and I'll be back here full force. So, what did I miss?

And what's going on this week in the Workshop?



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