Month: January 2023

WIP Wednesday & Kitchen Musings

Well, the good news is that I’m half-way across Sleeve Island! I finished up the first sleeve of my never-damn-ending Scottish Ale pullover.

I’m so dang sick of this sweater, it’s unreal. But I am not allowing myself to touch another project until it’s finished, because if I don’t get it done soon, I never will. I am ready to put this one in my rearview mirror for sure. I can already tell the sleeves are not sized very well, and it looks like other knitters had similar thoughts based on project notes in Ravelry. I don’t care at this point, though. I will finish it, and if it doesn’t fit, oh damn well.

In unrelated news, we’ve been going strong on our 20% better initiative. I put in an order to the farm that included beef, pork, chicken, sausage, and local butter (Morrell Dairy Farm) and honey (Hummer & Son).

These quiet January days let me slow down and be a little more methodical with cooking and menu-planning, which has helped keep the waste to a minimum and given our budget a break from the frenetic entertaining of the holidays. I’ve been leaning into all the comfort foods. I used the smoked ham hocks for a big pot of purple hull peas, the sausage for Monday red Beans and rice with cornbread, and the ground sausage for Saturday morning biscuits and gravy (with bacon, eggs, and cheese grits…well, because). At the Husband’s request, the chicken took a decadent gravy bath and landed on a pile of buttery, fluffy mashed potatoes, while the honey added sweetness to a new roll recipe that I test-drove during a baking binge. I’ll smother the pork chops in a mushroom mustard-cream sauce tomorrow night, and the local butter will jazz up carrots that need to evacuate my crisper drawer. Overall, I would say our kitchen energy feels both cozy and intentional.

Speaking of the kitchen, my goal to bake more this year is in full swing, and I’ll give an update at the end of the month, but here’s what was on the menu this week:

I made this Brownie Cake with Cookie Butter Frosting, which was a big hit with everyone. I will note that the brownie took a wee bit longer to bake than the recipe stated, but otherwise, anything with cookie butter has my vote,

I also baked these Nutella Cookies, leaving out the chopped nuts so the kids wouldn’t riot. The Husband absolutely loved them, and I think they will make the permanent rotation.

Finally, my local botanical shop released a special edition Mardi Gras candle, and you can bet I did not pass Go on my way to snatch that up.

So, that’s the Wednesday update. I’m off to get dinner started. Oh, and guess what? Good thing Bean and I did not murder each other in the making of her science fair project. That booger won first place. Will wonders never cease…

 

WIP Wednesday

So, as I talked about earlier, one of my goals this year is to knit projects using my current yarn stash, and only purchase yarn from our travels or fiber festivals. However, before I dive into new projects, I decided I needed to address my unfinished objects (UFO) bin and finish up some items that fell by the wayside for one reason or another. As much as it feels like a chore, I know I’ll feel better clearing the proverbial deck a bit. I ended up happily frogging my 2022 West Knits MKAL shawl and recovering the yarn to repurpose. I was not a fan of the knitting process or the finished product, so that was an easy decision. As for what I’m trying to finish up:

I’m on the first sleeve of the Scottish Ale pullover in Cascade Eco + in the Lichen colorway. I started this WAY back in 2018. I finished the back and promptly decided that I should have known myself better than to pick a seamed sweater. I am not a fan of the construction, but I promised G-Man I would make it, so here I am. I knitted up the front, and now I live on sleeve island for the foreseeable future.

The second project I dug out was The Shift Cowl in various colors from Spincycle Yarns. I ran out of one color completely, reordered it, and it looks like I will be playing serious yarn-chicken with the other two colors. Based on my gauge, I don’t think I should have run out with a full section and a half of pattern left, which makes me wonder. I also do not want to spend more money on the other two colors, as this yarn isn’t my favorite, so hopefully I can eeek it out with what I have left.

Finally, I picked up Bean a needlepoint stocking canvas a couple of years ago, and considering she’s about to be 11, I need to suck it up and get it done. Needlepoint is not my favorite thing to do, so I’ve designated a few times a week to put the knitting down and pick this monster back up.

So, while I am currently slogging through a few forgotten WIPS, I’m also planning and kitting-up new projects. No big blankets, no baby knitting on the horizon, and no MKALS. Rather, I have several sweaters patterns I’ve been eyeing, a cowl that I have been waiting to cast-on forever, a shawl or two, and a massive lace beaded project that I may try to knock out this year.

In the meantime, however, I’ll still be here, on sleeve island, cursing my way through it.

 

20% Better–Improving the Way We Approach Food, Community, and Sustainability

It’s no secret that sustainability, “shop local,” and reducing our carbon footprint have been hot topics for a while. Unfortunately, my little corner of Louisiana is the complete anthesis of any of these ideas (except for some trailblazers who I will talk about later). We do not have any recycling program in my city, or composting. The grocery store will not only give you 40 plastic bags, but you will also often see just one item packed per bag (yep, no lie). Most of our stores are big box (with a few exceptions), and the farmers’ market looks a bit anemic compared to what you see on TV. So, let’s just say it’s not the easiest place to explore sustainability.

Some of my Southern upbringing has helped. I’m a fair scratch cook, know how to can the garden produce, and I sure can stretch a meal. My husband maintains the garden, which also contributes when the weather hasn’t wiped it out (seriously? 8 degrees in Louisiana?!? RIP winter garden). But I confess, a few things got me thinking, or should I say re-thinking my current state of homemaking:

  • Walking through the empty grocery store at the height of the pandemic made me realize just how fragile the supply chain is.
  • Losing our city recycling program shone a light on just how MUCH garbage our family produces.
  • Seeing so many small businesses close permanently in recent years.
  • The dumpster fire our environment is becoming.

Because if all of this, I’ve felt the urge to make some improvements, but I needed to be realistic about getting started. First, I knew any changes couldn’t be too impactful on my family’s routine, or they would rebel. Second, I needed to be realistic about what I could really incorporate both in time and budget, since I would be 100% in charge of this endeavor. Third, it would require some research on what is available locally and what I might need explore online.

That’s why I came up with the idea of “20% Better” for our home. If we can just start by doing 20% better in terms of sustainability and shopping locally, well, that’s pretty manageable, right? Here is how it’s going so far:

Food

One of the most significant improvements we’ve made is sourcing about 60% of our meat and dairy locally. Between the farmer’s market and social media searches, I found four local producers for sustainably produced meat (Mahaffey Farms, Sample Farm, Smith Family Farms, and Wooldridge Meat), including one that will deliver to my door for a fee (worth it because the gas to get to their store in the next parish is actually more than the fee). Morell Dairy Farm in the north part of the parish began stocking their products in several area stores, so I am able to access local milk and butter. When I tell you the quality is night and day compared to what I was buying at the Wally-World, I’m not kidding. Is it more expensive? Of course, but honestly not as much as I thought, and the extra expense has me thinking more consciously when I am meal planning to reduce waste. Not only am I getting better products, but I’m also spending my money directly in my community.

Household

In trying to reduce our plastic footprint, I’ve been test-driving two companies: Dropps for laundry detergent and Blueland for household cleaners. While I like Dropps so far, including the compostable packaging, I have to give Blueland a thumbs-down. I just don’t think their products clean as well as what I have been using (and HATE their bottles), so it’s back to the drawing board on that. If you have less-waste household cleaning products that work, let me know because I’m still searching.

One of the biggest impacts to our household waste has been this countertop composter I purchased from Vitamix. When all five of us are home, we have a LOT of food scraps from cooking. If we were to toss it in the compost bin outside, the sheer volume would turn it into a rotten, stinky garbage pile in a week. Our neighbors would not appreciate that whatsoever, and I have enough naughty trash pandas and possums causing mayhem as it is. I use this gadget every other day, if not daily when the boys are home. It reduces my veggie and fruit peels, eggshells, coffee grounds, chicken bones, and other kitchen waste from two liters to about 1/4 cup of dried organic matter ready to go into the compost bin or directly into the garden. This picture is over two weeks of kitchen waste, now reduced, that is about to go out to the garden:

 

The household component of “20% Better” is a work in progress, but I’m hoping to find more ways to cut down waste until such time that the city gets it’s sh$t together and brings back recycling.

Shopping Local

I confess, I am guilty of succumbing to the siren song of Amazon Prime, especially since my options locally are often big box stores with limited inventory. We also only have one big-name bookstore with less-than-ideal selection.  Often, ordering online is the only way to get some things, especially books and specialty ingredients (well, specialty for my corner of Louisiana). However, over the past year, we have also been paying attention to local businesses and artists with the help of social media. We found a local botanical shop (Clean Slate Botanicals) and befriended the owner/maker. His candles smell amazing and last twice as long as Bath & Body Works, and I can return the locally produced ceramic container for discounted refills. We purchased several works from local artists featured at 318 art Co. as we’ve slowly decorated the house, and 20% of our Christmas gifts came from local artists or entrepreneurs. We’ve followed local business pages and are trying to attend more area events to see what else our community has to offer.

So, that’s what’s going on around here. We started the “20% Better” initiative last year, and my goal for this year is to build consistency, expand our efforts gradually and incrementally, and just be more conscious about the whole sha-bang. I know we tend to feel like it’s an “all or nothing” mentality when it comes to change or improvement, but I’m approaching changes one small strp at a time. I think the biggest challenge is simply taking the time, because it does take planning and a little research to make informed decisions and changes. Speaking of shopping local, that reminds me…I need to go pick up a King Cake for the weekend. It’s Mardi Gras Season, Y’all!

**Usual disclaimer: This blog is not monetized or sponsored in any way. The links I provide ARE NOT affiliate links, they are just for your convenience. All reviews are of products I pay for with my own money, and I have no problem telling you the truth about them. If you see an ad on my site, that comes from WordPress, my site host, as the toll of free blogging. I have no control over the targeted ads they display to you**

It’s Time for Some Quiet

Whelp, it’s 2023, for better or worse. 2022 flew past like a wild wind, and while I didn’t accomplish many of my personal goals, I can’t say that we didn’t have a pretty full year. So, here’s the recap of the highlights:

Books Read: 43

I read a little bit less than my goal, but I did better than I thought I would. My top three G-rated reads were:

  • Paperback Crush. This is a non-fiction work that takes a retrospective look at the teen novels of the 70s-90s. If you grew up on Babysitter’s Club, Fear Street, Sweet Valley High, etc., this walk down memory lane is definitely worth it.
  • Kitchen Front. I’m not usually a fan of historic fiction, but I ended up really enjoying this one. Set during WWII, it follows a group of women, each trying to win a recipe contest, but the recipes must be based on the government’s wartime rations.
  • The Sweet Taste of Muscadines. A southern coming-home story with rich characters, scenery, and family secrets.

As a side-note, I read plenty of trashy romance novels this year, but that’s between me and my Kindle.

New Baking Recipes Tried: 14

While I am a pretty confident cook, I’ve never been much of a baker. I have plenty of recipes I grew up with, but I tend to get terribly impatient with baking. I did not attempt nearly as many new recipes as my set goal, but something is better than nothing, I suppose. My top two favorites were the Basque Lemon Ginger Cheesecake I saw on Food Network and the Jam Thumbprint cookies from Cheryl Day’s Treasury of Southern Baking. (Yes, that sounds basic, but I ate those damn things for breakfast for a week)

Finished Knits: 9

Obviously, that is way lower than my usual year, but this queen-size beast of a blanket damn near killed me. My finished objects included two baby blankets, one sweater, two hats, one pair of slippers, one pair of mittens, and a novelty business card holder. I also won five first place ribbons and one second place at the state fair.

Places Traveled: 7

This was certainly the travel year because we celebrated a lot of milestones. G-Man graduated in 2020 amid Covid so he missed out on all the things, Bear graduated, and the husband and I celebrated 20 years. I loved the Italy Trip, and DFW Fiber Fest. Cancun was an impromptu but super-fun. Bear finally got to use the concert tickets he received for his 16th birthday…in you guessed it, 2020.

We had so many other things going on throughout the year that by the time we hit this week, I think we were all feeling ready for some quiet. Or maybe the past week of Hell has me thinking so. Yep, it’s science fair project time, my friends. That veritable torture chamber for parents. In related news, I’ll never get ice from a fast-food ice machine again:

As for 2023, I have set some goals and have my planner in order (Commit30 if you are wondering):

Kitchen:

  • Continue expanding my baking skills, both savory and sweet. I hope to try at least 30 new recipes this year.
  • Expand my pasta skills. Italy inspired me soooooo much and I would love to dive deeper into this one.
  • Finish the family cookbook revisions and re-print it for everyone. This will be a big project. Now that my favorite software is defunct, I’m struggling to find one I like.
  • Be a little more adventurous in recipes and cuisines.
  • Source more locally (I’ll talk about this in a future post).

Fiber Arts

  • Say it with me: KNIT FROM STASH. My yarn stash is ridiculous, and I’m committed to knitting from it exclusively. However, my husband is taking me to Rhinebeck this year, so…
  • Learn to spin. I received a spinning wheel last year and have been too intimidated to really get into it.
  • Finish at least two UFOs that have been languishing away.
  • Finish Bean’s needlepoint stocking.

Health/Personal

  • Fix this trainwreck. ’nuff said.
  • Less phone time. I did not realize just how much time I waste scrolling when I could be doing things that actually bring me joy.
  • Realize skincare is a thing.
  • Not use profanity during my mammogram. (yeah….we can dream, can’t we?)

So, there ya have it. I’ve posted before that I actually like setting resolutions/goals at the beginning of the year. Some years were complete busts, but some actually worked out. It doesn’t hurt to try. 2022 was amazing, but now that I’m past the busiest year I can remember, I’m ready for some quiet time to focus ahead.

After I get past this science fair bull$**t.

**Usual disclaimer: This blog is not monetized or sponsored. The links I provide ARE NOT affiliate links, they are just for your convenience. All reviews are of products I pay for with my own money, and I have no problem telling you the truth about them. If you see an ad on my site, that comes from WordPress, my site host, as the toll of free blogging. I have no control over the targeted ads they display to you**