annie blog

At It, Again

I started another shirt. Sewing these shirts is just addictive, almost.

Since some of y’all have asked, I’ll have the instructions and some links later this week. (It’s so easy!) For now, I just wanted to link to the stencil that I use. You can find it here on the Alabama Chanin site. My guess is that you would need to increase it by 400% or so. I’ll do some measurements for comparison and get those to you soon.

Okay, have a happy Tuesday, y’all!

At It, Again

I started another shirt. Sewing these shirts is just addictive, almost.

Since some of y’all have asked, I’ll have the instructions and some links later this week. (It’s so easy!) For now, I just wanted to link to the stencil that I use. You can find it here on the Alabama Chanin site. My guess is that you would need to increase it by 400% or so. I’ll do some measurements for comparison and get those to you soon.

Okay, have a happy Tuesday, y’all!

At It, Again

I started another shirt. Sewing these shirts is just addictive, almost.

Since some of y’all have asked, I’ll have the instructions and some links later this week. (It’s so easy!) For now, I just wanted to link to the stencil that I use. You can find it here on the Alabama Chanin site. My guess is that you would need to increase it by 400% or so. I’ll do some measurements for comparison and get those to you soon.

Okay, have a happy Tuesday, y’all!

More Coffee, Please

I found out what can make the first day after the change to Daylight Savings Time even more challenging — snow! So, today we’ve got lots of fluffy flakes, sloppy parking lots, and a gray, gray sky.

Fun, fun, fun.

I’m actually glad that it did snow again. My J really likes snow and he asked me the other day if we would be getting any more this year. I told him not until December. I’m happy to be wrong about that but not all that happy to be having the white stuff today. Oh well.

My maternal grandfather, Daddy Smith as we called him, didn’t change his watch when the time change came around. I think that the decision to use Daylight Savings Time might have been new in the state of Alabama at the time and he decided that he wasn’t having any part of it. I suppose that changing time matters little to you when you’re a dairy farmer who gets up around 3 a.m. anyway. I don’t know what he accomplished, save for making Ma Beaut mad when she had lunch ready an hour before anyone showed up to eat it. He and she were a study in contrasts. I loved them both to pieces.

Okay, time to focus. I’m off to find a strong cup of coffee and motivate J to get moving on the BLASTED ACADEMICS.

I hope that y’all are having a good Monday.

More Coffee, Please

I found out what can make the first day after the change to Daylight Savings Time even more challenging — snow! So, today we’ve got lots of fluffy flakes, sloppy parking lots, and a gray, gray sky.

Fun, fun, fun.

I’m actually glad that it did snow again. My J really likes snow and he asked me the other day if we would be getting any more this year. I told him not until December. I’m happy to be wrong about that but not all that happy to be having the white stuff today. Oh well.

My maternal grandfather, Daddy Smith as we called him, didn’t change his watch when the time change came around. I think that the decision to use Daylight Savings Time might have been new in the state of Alabama at the time and he decided that he wasn’t having any part of it. I suppose that changing time matters little to you when you’re a dairy farmer who gets up around 3 a.m. anyway. I don’t know what he accomplished, save for making Ma Beaut mad when she had lunch ready an hour before anyone showed up to eat it. He and she were a study in contrasts. I loved them both to pieces.

Okay, time to focus. I’m off to find a strong cup of coffee and motivate J to get moving on the BLASTED ACADEMICS.

I hope that y’all are having a good Monday.

More Coffee, Please

I found out what can make the first day after the change to Daylight Savings Time even more challenging — snow! So, today we’ve got lots of fluffy flakes, sloppy parking lots, and a gray, gray sky.

Fun, fun, fun.

I’m actually glad that it did snow again. My J really likes snow and he asked me the other day if we would be getting any more this year. I told him not until December. I’m happy to be wrong about that but not all that happy to be having the white stuff today. Oh well.

My maternal grandfather, Daddy Smith as we called him, didn’t change his watch when the time change came around. I think that the decision to use Daylight Savings Time might have been new in the state of Alabama at the time and he decided that he wasn’t having any part of it. I suppose that changing time matters little to you when you’re a dairy farmer who gets up around 3 a.m. anyway. I don’t know what he accomplished, save for making Ma Beaut mad when she had lunch ready an hour before anyone showed up to eat it. He and she were a study in contrasts. I loved them both to pieces.

Okay, time to focus. I’m off to find a strong cup of coffee and motivate J to get moving on the BLASTED ACADEMICS.

I hope that y’all are having a good Monday.

Quick and Easy Sunday Dinner

What is it about Sundays? Something about that day really challenges me, menu-wise. Of course, it doesn’t have to, and that is what this post is about. You can throw this in the oven on Saturday, or even on Friday or Thursday, and just slice and warm it on Sunday. Served with some fruit, stir-fried veggies and rice it is a really easy and yummy meal. Or you could serve it with cheese grits and a salad with maybe a sweet potato biscuit on the side. The only thing to note is that the sauce is quite salty so make sure not to reduce it down too far.

(I got this recipe from my friend Marne who in turn got it from Maggie. So, now that y’all know from whence it came I’m sure you’ll be even more likely to give it a go!)

Try this, it’s great!

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin

2 – 3 pounds pork tenderloin
bacon
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 T. grated onion
1 minced garlic clove
1T. vinegar (cider vinegar or natural rice vinegar)

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Wrap the pork tenderloin(s) with the bacon. (I like to use thin bacon for this recipe.) Mix the remaining ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup. Put the pork in a 9 x 13 (or similarly-sized pan). Pour the liquid over the pork. Bake for approximately 1 1/2 hours, turning once during baking. Please note that the baking time is only approximate. If you have a larger tenderloin it will take longer or for 2 smaller tenderloins the cooking time might need to be reduced. You just have to watch it there at the end. Pork is so lean and can easily be overcooked. I always make this in a broiler safe pan so that I can use the broiler to crisp up the bacon near the end. If you want to do this too, just make sure to pour off the cooking liquid before broiling. I usually boil the cooking liquid down a little in a saucepan on the top of the stove to thicken it slightly before serving it alongside the pork.

Happy Sunday, everybody!

Quick and Easy Sunday Dinner

What is it about Sundays? Something about that day really challenges me, menu-wise. Of course, it doesn’t have to, and that is what this post is about. You can throw this in the oven on Saturday, or even on Friday or Thursday, and just slice and warm it on Sunday. Served with some fruit, stir-fried veggies and rice it is a really easy and yummy meal. Or you could serve it with cheese grits and a salad with maybe a sweet potato biscuit on the side. The only thing to note is that the sauce is quite salty so make sure not to reduce it down too far.

(I got this recipe from my friend Marne who in turn got it from Maggie. So, now that y’all know from whence it came I’m sure you’ll be even more likely to give it a go!)

Try this, it’s great!

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin

2 – 3 pounds pork tenderloin
bacon
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 T. grated onion
1 minced garlic clove
1T. vinegar (cider vinegar or natural rice vinegar)

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Wrap the pork tenderloin(s) with the bacon. (I like to use thin bacon for this recipe.) Mix the remaining ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup. Put the pork in a 9 x 13 (or similarly-sized pan). Pour the liquid over the pork. Bake for approximately 1 1/2 hours, turning once during baking. Please note that the baking time is only approximate. If you have a larger tenderloin it will take longer or for 2 smaller tenderloins the cooking time might need to be reduced. You just have to watch it there at the end. Pork is so lean and can easily be overcooked. I always make this in a broiler safe pan so that I can use the broiler to crisp up the bacon near the end. If you want to do this too, just make sure to pour off the cooking liquid before broiling. I usually boil the cooking liquid down a little in a saucepan on the top of the stove to thicken it slightly before serving it alongside the pork.

Happy Sunday, everybody!

Quick and Easy Sunday Dinner

What is it about Sundays? Something about that day really challenges me, menu-wise. Of course, it doesn’t have to, and that is what this post is about. You can throw this in the oven on Saturday, or even on Friday or Thursday, and just slice and warm it on Sunday. Served with some fruit, stir-fried veggies and rice it is a really easy and yummy meal. Or you could serve it with cheese grits and a salad with maybe a sweet potato biscuit on the side. The only thing to note is that the sauce is quite salty so make sure not to reduce it down too far.

(I got this recipe from my friend Marne who in turn got it from Maggie. So, now that y’all know from whence it came I’m sure you’ll be even more likely to give it a go!)

Try this, it’s great!

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin

2 – 3 pounds pork tenderloin
bacon
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 T. grated onion
1 minced garlic clove
1T. vinegar (cider vinegar or natural rice vinegar)

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Wrap the pork tenderloin(s) with the bacon. (I like to use thin bacon for this recipe.) Mix the remaining ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup. Put the pork in a 9 x 13 (or similarly-sized pan). Pour the liquid over the pork. Bake for approximately 1 1/2 hours, turning once during baking. Please note that the baking time is only approximate. If you have a larger tenderloin it will take longer or for 2 smaller tenderloins the cooking time might need to be reduced. You just have to watch it there at the end. Pork is so lean and can easily be overcooked. I always make this in a broiler safe pan so that I can use the broiler to crisp up the bacon near the end. If you want to do this too, just make sure to pour off the cooking liquid before broiling. I usually boil the cooking liquid down a little in a saucepan on the top of the stove to thicken it slightly before serving it alongside the pork.

Happy Sunday, everybody!

Gary in the House

This is Gary.

He is a pretty parakeet that is the pet where Jon works. He came home to spend the weekend with us. Interesting fact: the person who bought Gary thought he was a canary and that is why he was named Gary to rhyme with canary. Gary the parakeet doesn’t roll off the tongue with quite the same amount of ease, you know?

Having Gary here is really nice. I could actually even see myself having a bird someday. I love all the little sounds that he makes. The problem is that our dog, Conan, has been ape ever since Gary entered the house. The dog is so crazy with trying to watch the boys in the yard and bark at passing dogs and be filled with rage at the mere existence of the postman AND keep track of Gary that he has just now, at 4:49 pm, gotten around to eating the food I placed in his bowl at 8 am. Crazy crazy dog.

Okay, I’m going to go make dinner for my folks now.

I hope that y’all are having a great Saturday!