My Sewing Tote

I had a plastic tote, with a handle on the lid, that I could pack some of my quilting supplies and take with me when traveling. 

In my tote I had my favorite rotary cutter, a 6 x 12 rotary ruler, sewing thread, and charms that I had cut from scraps of fabric. Actually there were a few hundred 5x5 charms that I had cut. 

I would carry the tote with me when going to visit my daughter, or when I stayed in my RV when I'm away from home working. The tote had as many travel miles on it as my car does. (LOL)

But somewhere in my travels or during all the company I had while my kids and grandkids were all visiting, my tote got lost. I have tore my house, car, and my RV apart looking for it. I have called all of my kids and had them looking to see if it may have been packed in with there suit cases when they went home. But so far, no one has been able to locate it. 

I visited with my oldest daughter last week, and while we were all laughing and talking about my missing tote, my daughter looked at her dad and told him it was time to stop holding my tote for ransom...the poor man about stopped breathing. He looked at me and denied having it, then he looked at our daughter and told her not to even joke about something like that.

I love my family...and they can be pranksters...but I don't think any of them are brave enough to hide my sewing tote. (LOL)

Well, the last few days I have been back to cutting out  5x5 charm squares from bits and pieces of fabric out of my stash. I have found another tote, and I had to order another rotary cutter to replace the one that was lost. It is supposed to be here this week. 

I hope every one has a great week. Remember God is good!

Have a blessed day!

French Dip Sandwich Bowl

Today is one of those days that I wanted to spend some time in my sewing room working on my quilt projects. It was also one of those days that I let time get away from me and forgot to cook supper. Luckily when my dear husband started asking, "What's for supper?" I was able to look in the fridge and had the fixins for French Dip Sandwich Bowls...a family favorite at our house. 

I have a pressure cooker that I bought to cook quick meals in for those days that I'm running short of time, because, you know...maybe I was sewing, gardening or went horseback riding or fishing...the things us country girls can't seem to get enough of. 

French Dip Sandwich Bowl

3 Tablespoons olive oil (or substitute butter)

1 large yellow onion, sliced thin

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh Thyme (or substitute dry thyme leaves if available)

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 cups chicken broth (I have substituted 3 cups of hot water and added the bouillon cubes to make chicken broth with...whatever is available in your pantry)

1 pack onion soup mix

1 teaspoon salt

2 3/4 pound chuck roast, slice in thin slices

1 loaf french bread or ciabata buns (our favorite is the ciabata rolls)

Swiss cheese slices

• In a 6 quart pressure cooker, add olive oil and heat over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic, thyme and black pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or til onion is tender and light golden brown.
• Add broth, soup mix and salt to onion mixture. Stir in sliced beef.
• Secure lid on cooker and bring to high pressure over high heat. Immediately reduce heat to low to maintain pressure and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and use natural-release method to release pressure. 

Place half a ciabata bun (or slice of french bread) in a soup bowl. Using a dipper dip some beef and broth onto the bread and top with a slice of Swiss cheese. 

Another way to eat this dish is to drain the beef mixture, saving the liquid. Place beef mixture on bread, top with cheese and a 2nd slice of bread, cut in half. Serve with reserved liquid and you have a french dip sandwich. 

I hope that your family enjoys this dish as much as my family does! 

Have a blessed day!

God is Good

In our part of Oklahoma, we have been getting a lot of rain this spring. I love it. The grass is green, the trees have leafed out, the flowers are popping up all over, the poke salet is peaking out of the ground, I love it!

The ground being so wet did make us late getting our green beans planted though. The old folks taught me to plant my green beans on Good Friday, which was too wet this year for us to get into the garden. It was after Easter this year before we could get them planted.

We had been on a visit to see my daughter and her family this past week. When we got home yesterday I was hoping to see my green beans coming up in there neat little rows. My husband and I were both a little disappointed. Since it rained hard for 2 days after we did plant the seeds, we were almost afraid that the seeds were going to rot instead of grow.

My husband dug up a couple of seeds to see if we could tell what was happening with them. 

Yes...they are breaking through the seed to form roots!

Then another hard rain yesterday for several hours. The sun did shine for a short time yesterday evening. The river behind our house was just coming over its banks.

But this morning we have sunshine, and when I looked at my garden, I could see a few of my green beans coming through the soil. God is good! He knows what is needed at the right time.

I hope everyone who planted a garden has a good harvest this year. Just remember, God is good all the time!