What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Last week I mentioned that we were almost out of dry soup mixes. During the winter we eat a lot of soup. In the summer, we eat a fair amount of soup. Sometimes soup and a salad are perfect . . even when it’s super hot outside. Having a variety of soup mixes works well...

Even though I have a hectic week ahead of me, with many day-job presentations, some of which require considerable sample-making and five Zoom meetings on the weekend, I am calm. I am in control!

What happened? After yesterday's three Zoom calls, I looked at the chaos and said, "ENOUGH!" There were samples all over the floor, which Murphy thought was great to trod upon as she attempted to get some petting. Scissors, needles, thread, and hoops were strewn everywhere, and the situation was not working. The visual clutter alone made me—I don't know what's a good ...

It was a busy day, but it was a GOOD day! I decided to get off my butt and start putting some of this stuff away. Some things in Studio B have languished on the tables since September! Seriously? I know better. So I made HUGE leaps and bounds to get things back in order, and you know what? I feel so much better. I can see open spaces. And I'm much calmer and happier. 

Maybe all those quotes are helping me to see the light! 

Since my decision to change the coloring for Dear Jen, I could put ...

Stand up - sit down! Do that ten times an hour, and WOW!!! That makes a difference. It gets easier! If you can't do ten times - try ONCE an hour! Your quads will thank you! I won't say that my leg feels better because of this, but with all the extra stretching, it's so much better than it was. I have my moments, and they are really dependent on how I sit. So, I'm learning to live with it until I get some answers. 

Now, I need to catch up on other things that have happened over ...

First, my “canned ham & beans” are not really “canned ham & beans”. Why do folks keep coming back and reading my nonsense?

In September, 2023, I wrote this blog post about canning this Chipotle Beef Soup (link to recipe is included). I followed the recipe pretty much exactly (“exactly” isn’t always *exactly* for me) except I may have double quadrupled the recipe because, according to the blog post, I ended up with 12 quarts and the recipe...

You know I’m a big fan of Louise at The Salted Pepper. She has a website with printable recipes but I do love her videos at youtube. When I saw her making Dill Pickle Soup, I could not stop thinking about it. Most of the time, I can look at a recipe and have a...

It has been bitterly cold this past week, and the birds are stuffing their beaks to get enough energy to keep warm. Of course, this means the feeder empties out quickly on some days. We have a pair of hairy woodpeckers that live here year round. Here the female hangs off the bottom of the feeder, while a goldfinch sits on the left keeping a close eye.

The goldfinch flew off, and a bluebird stopped by to take its place. More goldfinches were visiting and taking turns.

A titmouse landed on the empty suet feeder looking for more sustenance on ...

A few days ago I decided to pull a couple of briskets out of the freezer and let them defrost, then I’d smoke them. We cook and eat a lot of dry beans and I love having just a bit of smoked meat for seasoning so I planned to can up small bits of the...

If you are a canner and haven’t watched any of the videos by Grow & Preserve, I encourage you to do so. She cans so many things that look amazing and everything I’ve canned based on recipes she’s shared . . it’s all be great. In this video, she makes and cans and then shares...

Does anyone remember the blizzard of ’78? I was a freshman in high school and that blizzard shut down Northeastern Ohio for at least a week. We lost power and my folks did their best to keep our house somewhat warm by using the gas oven in the kitchen and the wood burning fireplace in the family room. We all slept in the family room in front of the fire. It was so cold! There was over 3 feet of snow and roads were shut down for days while people tried their best to dig out. 

Fast forward to now ...

I’ve been wanting a pot of vegetable beef soup all week and just hadn’t taken the time to make it. I had a chuck roast in the freezer that had more fat and bone in it than it did meat so I defrosted that one, cut out as much of the good meat as I...

The post Vegetable Beef Soup appeared first on Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara.

Several weeks ago I came across this recipe/cooking site: Half Baked Harvest We all like different foods; we all have special dietary needs . . well, except some of us have the needs and pay no attention to them. This site probably isn’t where you’ll find most of your low fat, low carb recipes but...

The post New to Me Recipe Site appeared first on Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara.

A reader had shared this soup recipe – Farmers’ Market Vegetable Soup (for canning). Of course, you could make it and freeze it or cut the recipe down if you don’t want to make a ton. I had already made it once. The recipe says it makes 6 quarts but the first time I made...

The post Canning Vegetable Soup appeared first on Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara.

I am a self-taught cook and the way I do things is not necessarily the way others do them but . . as Vince says . . it eats! As long as he’s happy with what I cook and I’m not hungry, all is good. I’m not going to say he’s happy with everything but...

The post Beef Stew for Dinner appeared first on Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara.

We may have gumbo for breakfast because I can hardly wait to have it. But, I’m doing better than Vince did. He had been out and came home and smelled the gumbo and wanted to know if he could have just a taste! Of course, he could. I fixed him a tiny bowl, with no...

The post Gumbo Is Made appeared first on Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara.

I don’t know if y’all go back and read the comments on the blog posts but the other day, Rebecca included a link to The Quilty Soup Along. There are already many links to soup recipes that look so good. If you love soup, especially during the fall or winter, you might want to check...

The post A Great Soup Site appeared first on Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara.

We made a quick trip to the campground where our son and his family were staying this week for dinner out on Saturday evening; we wanted to help celebrate our favorite daughter-in-law's birthday (albeit a few days late). They're loving their new camper trailer and finding every excuse that they can to hit the road and explore the sights that our state (and those close by) have to offer. Gregory

We made a quick trip to the campground where our son and his family were staying this week for dinner out on Saturday evening; we wanted to help celebrate our favorite daughter-in-law's birthday (albeit a few days late). They're loving their new camper trailer and finding every excuse that they can to hit the road and explore the sights that our state (and those close by) have to offer. Gregory

It's Thursday~ that means it's homemade-soup-for-lunch day around here recently. For years I've bookmarked soup recipes and never made them; that all changed this month. As I mentioned in an earlier post, with no parties or open house this year, I find myself with no one else to cook for but us! Capitalizing on that fact I began a new weekly tradition. Two weeks ago it was homemade split pea with