A lovely bag...

Earlier this summer my mom and I took a weekend trip up to Brainerd.  We are both quilters  and there was a quilt show that was taking place at the high school there.  This was a great excuse for us to head to the quilt show and also check out a quilt shop we had been interested in called Country Fabrics and Quilting.  The quilt show was great - a good selection of vendors and lots of beautiful quilts on display. But the part that I enjoyed the most was heading to the quilt shop.  The entire upstairs was filled with all sorts of fun and funky quilt fabrics.

My mom and I decided to buy a pattern for a cool bag and then get some fun fabrics to make it together.  The pattern is called Classmate by Terry Atkinson.  Mom and I worked on our bags together over several evenings.  The shiny parts on the open bag are actually clear plastic pockets.  Pretty cool, huh?  And check out the fantastic fabrics!  I absolutely love the vibrant colors and funky designs.  I haven't quite decided what I'm going to use it for yet.  Perhaps a sewing bag or I've toyed with the idea of adding a strap to it and using it as a purse.  No matter what I end up using it for, it sure is a lovely bag!

A lovely splash of color...

Have you ever seen a flower quite like this?  It's so beautiful!  The amazing colors, the star-shaped buds in the middle, the delicate little flowers....it's absolutely lovely!  I am amazed that God pays attention to even the tiniest of details - this whole flower was about the size of a silver dollar.  I just wish I knew what it was called so I could get some next summer.  Does anyone know what kind of flower this is?  Please let me know if you do!

A lovely pickled beet...

In the last few years I have come to love pickled beets.  They are kind of an acquired taste, but they have totally grown on me and any time I have them it's like a special treat.  I've been getting vegetables this summer as part of a CSA and a few weeks ago golden beets were in the box along with an assortment of other veggies.  I spent some time looking online for pickled beet recipes.  I also called my grandma to see if she had a recipe.  I ended up with a combination of Grandma's recipe along with some that I found online.  Here's what I did:

Boil beets with the skin on until you can easily poke a fork into them. (I used Golden beets, but I'm sure this will work for purple beets as well.) Take them out of the water and remove the skins. You should be able to slide the skins off without trouble after they are boiled. Slice the beets into bite sized pieces. Now boil equal parts water, sugar and vinegar (I did 1 cup each) until the sugar is all dissolved. Then I added spices - I used mustard seed, peppercorn, and a cinnamon stick. I put all the spices into a piece of cloth and tied the corners and placed into the boiling liquid for a few minutes. Then I poured the liquid over the beets in a bowl (I used a glass bowl so the beet juice wouldn't stain anything) I also put the cloth of spices into the bowl as well. Then I put it in the refrigerator overnight. The next day I discarded the cloth of spices.

I've got to be honest, I was pretty proud of my domestic skills and how the beets turned out.  These beets tasted lovely!

A lovely sunset...

A couple of weeks ago I was up north at a friend's cabin for a few days.  The sunsets there are amazing with the reflection of the sun and clouds on the water.  There is something special about how sunsets look when you are away from the hustle and bustle of the city.  God sure is an amazing painter, isn't he?!?  A picture doesn't capture it's full beauty, but this sunset was exceptionally lovely...