Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

2 chicken breasts
4 oz. ham
1/2 c. replacement for cream of chicken soup
1/4 c. white wine
1/4 c. sour cream
1 t. garlic
1/4 t. nutmeg
2 c. brown rice pasta (or wheat pasta for those who are not gluten free)
4 slices swiss cheese

Cook chicken and pasta. Mix all ingredients (except swiss cheese) together and place in an 8x8 baking dish. Top with the swiss cheese. Bake at 375 for 15-30 minutes, until heated all the way through.

Cool Colored Glass Quilt

I began work on this quilt over a year ago. There were some things in the directions for making the quilt that I did - but later regretted. They called for stacking the fat quarters and then cutting - which is not accurate enough for quilting; my squares were not coming out completely equal and even. That intimidated me when I discovered that I was going to need to do something to fix the problem it created. So, I put it off for a year.

This quilt used the same pattern as this baby quilt I made for my friend. After successfully completing her quilt, I was ready to approach my quilt again and find a way to work with the imperfections that resulted from the cutting. As is typical when I fear something and thus put it off, it was not nearly as scary to fix as I was expecting! And, in the end, I LOVE this quilt.

This quilt is a collection of fat quarters that I gathered in Amish country, Iowa/Wisconsin while visiting my Grandma, in my home town, in Cole's home town, and even some that my mom picked up at the Hancock's Fabric National Headquarters. The quilt is full of my favorite colors...greens, teals, blues, and purples!

First Harvest of 2013!

I picked 1 pound of kale and 15 strawberries today! The garden is producing for 2013!

Minimal and Green :: Kindle Reader

We seek to be rationally minimal and to be good stewards of the world God has given us. For this reason, the Kindle makes a whole lot of sense!

I have talked to/read blogs from people who resist the kindle saying that there is nothing quite like holding a book in your hands while reading. To be honest, I used to be one of those people!

However, I am an avid reader. Our bookshelves were filling quickly. And, my book wishlist was continuing to grow. The potential for our book collection to grow into some sort of unreasonably large collection was very real. So, I gave in and purchased a Kindle.

And, I love it!

I cleaned out my book collection, donating all of those that I did not see reading again. For those that I believed I would read many more times, I purchased electronic versions using gift cards earned through our insurance company and swagbucks. Then I donated my paper versions of those books as well. The books that I currently have on my bookshelf are: homestead reference books, books not available on kindle, and children's books (because I still believe that children need to see and hold real books - it's part of the learning to read process).

I love that I can haul my whole book collection around the house and out into public with a very small and lightweight item. I am known to read as many as 10 books at one time, and I can have them all available to me wherever I am as long as I have my Kindle with me.

I also love that many books are less expensive in their electronic form than in print. Within a few months of purchasing the Kindle, the savings in cost of books had made up for the cost of the Kindle. That's not even including all of the free classic literature as well as the various freebies offered daily.

It was something I never thought I would do - but I believe buying a Kindle has been a great decision both for our minimalistic tendencies, the simplicity of traveling with books, and financial savings!

A Quilt for a Friend

A sweet sweet friend of mine is expecting a baby in just a few short months. She and her husband are the kind of people that Cole and I just love hanging out with.

About a year ago, I was she and I were together crafting when she saw this pattern and really liked it; at that point I knew that it would be the pattern for a blanket for their someday baby. I began collecting fabrics in anticipation of a fun and BRIGHT quilt. The fabrics came from Iowa, Wisconsin, Amish Country, and Kansas. 

Altogether they are so bright, cheery, and beautiful! I just love the bright batik prints against the black! 

Hopefully Baby enjoys the bright fabrics, as well.

This post is linked to the Creative Home Acre Hop.

Amazing Granola

I absolutely LOVE this granola recipe! It's super healthy and incredibly yummy.

3 cups rolled oats (I use certified gluten free, of course)
1.5 cups nuts/seeds (I use 1/4 c. hemp seeds, 1/2 c. raw sunflower seeds, & 3/4 c. slivered raw almonds - but you can use any combination you want)

Mix all of these ingredients together in a bowl.

In a saucepan, heat until melted through:
1/2 c. juice (I prefer cranberry or pomegranate)
1/2 c. honey
1/4 c. cold-pressed coconut oil
1 T. vanilla extract
1 t. sea salt
1/2 t. cinnamon

Pour the liquid over the oat/nut/seed mixture and mix well. Spread evenly on a cookie sheet and bake at 325 for 40 minutes. Your house will smell great while this is baking!

When the granola is done baking, break apart, and allow to cool and harden completely. Mix in 1.5 cups of dehydrated fruit (I highly recommend cranberries!).

Store in a ball jar and enjoy alone as a snack, with milk, or with yogurt for breakfast.

Puppy Wash

This weekend our pup, Isis, got a bath. She HATES baths - and Cole got some funny pictures!