The most beautiful things in the world are not seen nor touched. They are felt with the heart.-- Helen Keller



Welcome!

Welcome! to my little corner of Gods earth.

My intent is to share faith, food, family & friendship. I want to give you a little insight as to what goes on in our daily lives. The different 'seasons' in our farm life and with every change of season brings something new. Feel free to visit often!

Blessings to all,

Laura

Down on the Farm Tabs

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Basic Knit Slipper Pattern


This pattern is similar to the slippers also posted on Peppermint Mocha Mama’s website, I also have posted a Rounded Heel Slipper pattern that works up very similar to this one.
As a young girl, my mother, aunts, cousins and I received crocheted slippers every year for Christmas from my Grandmother & Great Aunt. It is a nice memory for me and even though I do not have any of the slippers any more, my mother is now wearing a pair that she found. It was like finding a treasure. I have knitted many pairs of slippers in many different patterns. This pattern is easily adjustable to the size of the recipient and works up quickly.
Materials:
2 skeins of worsted weight yarn
Size 7US straight knitting needles
Darning needle

Instructions:
You will be knitting with 2 strands of yarn held together throughout the pattern.
Cast on 33 stitches (Leave a long tail to sew up heel of slipper)
**Always slip the first stitch in every row as if to purl, this makes a nice edge.

Heel and Ankle
Row 1: Sl1, Knit across
Row 2: Sl1, K10, PM, P1, K9, PM, P1, K11
**By (PM) placing the marker before the purl 1 you will be reminded that you need to purl and it is a good way to check yourself, The purl ridge will be on the outside of your slipper

Row 3: Sl1, Knit across
Row 4: Sl1, K10, P1, K9, P1, K11

Repeat Row 3 and 4 – 13 times this will give you a total of 30 rows (15 ridges)

Row 31: Sl1, Knit across


Body of Slipper
(at this point if you wish to avoid seaming you may knit in the round)
Row 32: Sl1, *P1, K1* Knit the last stitch
Row 33: Sl1, Knit across
Repeat Row 32 & 33 until you reach the length you want. (stop knitting at the base of your big toe) I wear a ladies size 9 and I knit 26 rows.



Toe of Slipper
Row 1: Sl1, *P2tog, P1*
Row 2: Sl1, *K2tog, K1*
Row 3: P2tog across to the end


Leave a long tail and cut yarn. Using a darning needle, run the yarn back thru, picking the yarn off the needle. Pull tight, this will form a circle at the end of the toe. Turn the slipper inside out and proceed to sew up the top of the slipper, stop at the change in pattern and tie off.


Fold the slipper in half and with the long tail from the cast on, sew up the heel.
Turn the slipper right side out. Make a pom, pom and attach.  You may also add Dimensional paint to the bottom of the slipper to enhance traction.




Enjoy!

If you find any mistakes or have any suggestions in this pattern please let me know.
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Monday, December 27, 2010

Christmas at the Mosier's 2010

Wow!  Not sure where to begin.  Jeremy, Sarah and baby Kasen arrived on the 22nd, and stayed with us for a couple of nights.  Cassie arrived from St Louis on the morning of the 24th. It was good to have the house filled up and some energy here.  We celebrated CHRISTmas on Christmas Eve.  PaPa Bears parents came over in spite of the a serious snow storm and a stern recommendation that they turn around and head back home while it was still daylight.  PaPa Bear was called out to plow snow so he missed all of the festivities at home, and the Childrens Christmas program at the church.  Which by the way, Rylee and Beckett did a fabulous job!. Josh and Brooke brought over the video last night so he could see the grandkids open presents.

I am missing my dad more this year than ever.  We have a new baby in the family and so much has happened since he passed away.  I wish I could just talk with him one more time.  I have been very sentimental with the festivities.  The vintage felt stockings, I made with the grandkids this year.  I've knitted slippers; we used to get a new pair every year from my grandmother and great aunt.
I gave the kids a bit of their past for Christmas this year, since they are no longer babies.

However....They will always be my babies!
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Saturday, December 25, 2010

Monday, December 20, 2010

Tortellini Soup

Ingredients

1 pound ground sausage – browned
1– 32 oz carton beef broth
1– 10 ½ ounce can condensed French onion soup
1– 14 ½ ounce can stewed tomatoes
1 – 14 ½ ounce can zucchini with tomato sauce
1– 15 ounce can veg-all original mixed vegetables w/ juice

1 - 16 ounce bag frozen cheese tortellini
¼ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon minced garlic
Mix the first 6 ingredients together and simmer for 20 minutes. Add frozen cheese tortellini, pepper, salt, and minced garlic and simmer 20 more minutes or until tortellini noodles are done.

Super easy, Super quick!

Monday, December 13, 2010

Cheesy Potato Casserole

5 slices of bacon fried crisp and crumbled (everything is better with bacon!)
32 oz bag frozen hash browns (shredded or cubed)
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
1 (10 3/4 ounce can cream of celery soup 
1 pint sour cream
1/2 cup onion, peeled and chopped
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 350°F and spray an 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray. 
Mix all of the above ingredients together, place in prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes or until brown on top.
 
***I prefer to cook the casserole in the crockpot.  Use a crockpot liner for easy cleanup. and cook on low for 4 1/2 hours.
 
For a main dish: Add 2 cups of diced ham or 2 cups of cooked chicken.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

The Cat

The family cat's name is Dusty.  We adopted him from a shelter.  Dusty had reached the end of his time in the shelter, he had been with a foster family for 6 months and had been declared 'unadoptable'.  I received an urgent email request from a friend of a friend...you know how that goes.  Well anywayz...I did not want a cat, we already had a very old cat (who has since passed away) and our daughters dog in the house and I did not want another inside animal!  Papa Bear and I are at the phase in our lives that we are ready to pick-up and go.  We don't want to worry about someone coming in to take care of the animals.  So, back to Dusty.....I kept looking at that face, this went on for about a week and I knew the time had come I either made the call or I needed to let it go.  He has been a part of our family for about 3 years now and we would not trade him for all the money in the world!   He makes us laugh!  However as it turns out Dusty is absolutely the most worthless cat I have ever seen in my life.  This is where he will stay until the presents push him out. 

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It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

So, here is the Mosier Farms Christmas Tree.  I love decorating and haven't had the time to really get into it.  Now that I am retired from the corporate world (and a full time farm hand and chief cook and bottle washer).  I have the desire to fuss around with my home.  If I were pregnant....(which I am not) folks would call it nesting.  I just call it 'sick of the mess and ready to dig in and get my house in order'.


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And here comes the snow.....

Our first measurable snow fall this winter.  And boy oh boy did it make an appearance!  There was no easing into this one.  PaPa Bear got his call out to start plowing around 3:30am.  The forcasters say we can get 7 inches in total when it is all over with. 

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Thursday, December 2, 2010

Alabama Dip

Ingredients

1 LB Hamburger
1 LB Sausage(Italian)
2 LB Velveeta Cheese
16 Ounce Salsa (Chi-chi's thick and chunky medium)
1 (10 oz) can Ro-tel (Original)
1 (10 oz) can Cream of Mushroom soup

Brown the beef and sausage and drain.
Cut the Velveeta into large chunks.
Put everything into a large crock pot and stir. Cook on high for about 1 - 1 1/2 hours till cheese is melted (stirring occasionally). Turn to low while serving.

Serve with tortilla chips.

** You can adjust the 'heat' by using original sausage, mild or hot salsa 
** The cream soup helps keep it from separating and helps keep it saucy while being heated.

Thank you Bob Borries for the recipe! 

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Cheesebuger Mac

When you are in a hurry and need to throw something together for the family, this is an awesome (and cheaper) alternative to the boxed "hamburger helper".

Ingredients
1 pound ground beef (browned)
2-3/4 cups boiling water
1/3 cup Ketchup
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 cups macaroni noodles (not cooked)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 Tablespoon Steak Sauce
3/4 pound Velveeta cheese (or 1 to 2 cups shredded Velveeta cheese depending on your own taste)

Mix browned ground beef, boiling water, ketchup, onion powder,  salt, pepper, steak sauce, and macaroni noodles together in a deep skillet.  Cook on low to medium heat for 10 minutes or until noodles are done (stir often).  Remove from heat and add cheese.  Cover for 5 minutes until cheese has melted.

Serve and enjoy

What a good day!

I was blessed with spending a better part of yesterday with my newest grandson and his beautiful mommy.

What a fantastic day! He is adorable and thriving. Sarah has settled in with her new mommy role, like a pro.
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