Happy 4th Birthday American Homestead!

Happy 4th Birthday to the American Homestead

blog!  Four years ago today I started my blogging

journey, it also happened to be my birthday so I 

thought that would be good luck.  I had no clue 

about how to blog, I didn't really know how to 

upload photos from my camera and I think I was

a bit shy about writing whatever I wanted for all 

the world to see.  Oh , how times have changed!

My daughter sent me off to eastern Europe four 

years ago with an index card with a few instructions 

written on it and somehow I figured out how to do it.

Avalon, our American Homestead, has been filled with 

people who have come to visit for Thanksgiving week.

Kasey, our Hawaiian daughter (Kate's former college

roommate) lives on the beach in Hawaii but makes us

happy by spending some of her Thanksgivings with us.

Last night, to kick off my birthday celebration, she made

me Haupia ~ a coconut custard that tastes like a pina 

colada, it was delish!  Thanks Kasey! (And Kasey's Mom

who sent out the mix from Hawaii).

It has been a busy week of movie watching, talking and

feasting.  Photos of our feasts will be sure to show up on

future blog posts.  

I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving and thank 

you for visiting the American Homestead!

A Beautiful Day in Bloomington

Yesterday we headed south to pick up our

guy in Bloomington.

It was a cold day but still beautiful

with the sun and blue skies.

We took a quick walk around campus.

This is the Well House, one of the oldest structures

on campus.  Legend has it that a couple will be together

forever if they kiss at the 12 strokes of midnight on

Valentine's Day.

This is a great old building but with 

something new this time.

Here is the new statue of the famous Hoosier,

Ernie Pyle, a one time student at Indiana University.

It has quickly become an infamous statue

due to the misspelling of the word "Corespondent".

Then we headed back indoors to have

a  lovely lunch at the Tudor Room.  I 

always feel like I am at Hogwart's when

I eat here.

Early Bird Baking

In a few days our Thanksgiving week company

will start arriving and that means we will be having

a few Dutch Breakfasts.  And with those breakfasts

I always like to serve some baked goods.  When we

are in Europe and can run down the block and buy

beautiful pastries, that little jaunt is a pleasure but

when we are home on the prairie, we don't have as

many options for breakfast baked goods.  So, I make

my own.  Now I could get up really early and bake 

and mess up the kitchen and wait for the tea breads

to cool but that's too much stress and work when 

what you really want to do is have fun! Last night,

before, during and after dinner I baked a few tea

breads, I made Irish Tea Bread and Pumpkin Bread.

Remember to ALWAYS grate your nutmeg, it 

is so beautifully fragrant.  It makes the ground

nutmeg you purchase look like dust...

When mixing together your dry ingredients,

use a whisk, your ingredients will be perfectly

mixed.

In a few hours I had my baking done.  Now since

I will be using them next week and they don't 

have preservatives, they wouldn't last if I left

them as is.

I cut each loaf in half and wrap in paper.

Then into freezer bags and into the freezer.

I pull a few halves the night before I need 

them and by morning they are perfectly

thawed and ready to slice and eat.

Enjoy!

Homekeeping: Pre-pressing Table Linens

Thanksgiving week is our biggest time for

entertaining in the entire year.  Our guests 

start arriving on Saturday and we will have 

a house filled with people we love.  We are

all cooks and that means most meals will be 

at home.  I love to set a pretty table and use

the many linens and dishes I collect.  To save

time I iron all my linens ahead of time.  I use

skirt hangers to keep them neat and hang 

them out of the way on a rod in my laundry

room.  

I keep a little weekly planning list so

if I'm busy I can send one of the kids 

to gather the correct items to set the 

table.

After all, it's much more fun to spend 

time with your loved ones than to be 

off alone ironing when everyone else

is having fun.  A little planning can

 make entertaining a breeze.

That's ME! ~ In the Land of Wonder, the Land Down Under

What a way to warm up a frosty day in the

American Midwest.  A copy of Australian

Patchwork and Quilting arrived from all the

way on the other side of the world.  AND, it

has an article about me and my book.  Oh,

thank you so much Australia ~ I can't wait 

to finally get to see you next summer.

I apologize if the photos are a bit blurry

but I admit I was a bit teary when I was

taking the pictures.  It was a mix of happy

and sad tears.  You see, the article talks

about how my Mum encouraged my 

interest in embroidery and our trips to the 

Five and Ten store where I would always 

want to buy embroidery floss while other

little girls were buying paper dolls and candy.

So, I sat down and had a big boo hoo.  We miss

our sweet girl so very much... But I know she 

would have loved this article, after all, it's why

she encouraged my interest in crafts all those

years ago.

Thank you so much Ally!  I love it!