ALL-AMERICAN MINI PIES

Summer is all about scrumptious fresh, just-picked flavors! What better place to put all those bright fruit flavors than in a pie... a cute little mini pie!

I have been a pie making machine lately. Me... the non-baker! Me... who LOVES the IDEA of baking... but  when it comes to actually making pies... not so much!  Me... who took nine years to learn how to make a descent pie crust!

My woeful pie making days are now over! Making these darling little mini pies was easy and so much F-U-N, FUN!...

BLUE WILLOW AND PINK PEONIES TABLESCAPE

The peonies are blooming here at StoneGable! Their big fragrant moppy pink heads bob in the breeze. They are my most favorite bloom... by far!

What a joy to go out to the garden and pick a big armful to use in a tablescape!

I have been planning this tablescape in my head for months and months, anticipating the arrival of these ballet pink beauties...

THE POTTING TABLE

It is nice to have a little spot in the shade to plant, pot and play! My potting bench is a place of constant creation, commotion and lots of good old dirty work...

WEEKLY MENU

Happy Memorial Day Weekend everyone! I hope you are having a fun "unofficial" first weekend of Summer 2012!

StoneGable is full of family and friends and we are eating ourselves silly! 

Tomorrow you will find us at the corner of the Creamery in Strasburg, waving our flags as we watch the Strasburg Memorial Day Parade! This is one of my favorite local activities of the whole year!!! A real slice of Americana!

SUNDAY SCRIPTURE~ MEMORIAL DAY 2012

God Bless our brave men and women in the military!

Memorial Day 2012

THE FIND

On a recent trip to the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay I found this beautiful big blue and white bowl in a local antique shop!  I knew it belonged in my kitchen... specifically, on my kitchen table! It was love at first sight.

But, to bring it home... the beautiful bowl had to not only have a love relationship with me... but the price had to be right!  Oh, I wanted this bowl to be "THE FIND"! 

 I turned the bowl over to see the price tag and...

APRON STRINGS

If you come to visit me at StoneGable, I will greet you at the door in an apron. It is just part of my "uniform"!

I started wearing aprons as a young wife to save my clothes from getting dirty. As the years passed I continued to wear them... to gather up veggies in the garden, wipe salty little tears, dry off dishes and messy  hands, and to hold all sorts of sundry things that end up in their big deep pockets

. Aprons also decorate my kitchen. They hang on very unique wall hooks...

IDEAS FOR MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

If you are like me, you are having a busy week getting ready to celebrate Memorial Day with friends and family. Memorial Day is also the unofficial beginning of SUMMER! We are raising our flags, opening our pools, filling our picnic baskets, firing up the grill and heading out to local parades or beaches... don't forget the sun screen and flip flops... and a little flag to wave!!!

A big part of this fun All-American holiday is food... especially barbecue and picnic food!

I have put together a few ideas to help make your Memorial Day extra special and yummy...

LEAVING THE LIGHT ON

My family never uses the front door! Or the back door! They come in and out of  the house through the garage entrance door. Thank goodness only my family insists on coming and going through the most unsightly part of our home!

The landscape in that tucked-back area was not given much thought until last weekend...

ON THE MENU AT STONEGABLE

This week I am getting ready for a house full of family and guests for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend. I am so excited for our out of town guest to visit!!!


I love Memorial Day! Growing up all of my childhood and teen years in a military family gave me a deep understanding and appreciation for heroic effort and great sacrifice of our military men and women. I saw it firsthand in my own home! 

SUNDAY SCRIPTURE

THE SECOND FRONT DOOR

It is the most glorious day here at StoneGable. Sorta like living in San Diego today! You know those days... warm, breezy, sunny, low humidity, birds singing...lawn edger whirling, trucks up and down the driveway,   voices of hearty men wafting through the open windows, men heaving mulch everywhere ... wait!!!... what?

The mulch men are here today! I am not complaining because for the last two years we have not mulched our gardens ourselves, thank goodness. I am very very grateful for that

Here is how the mulch men fit into today's post...

STONEGABLE BENEDICT

My family loves Eggs Benedict. But I have a confession. I have never made Eggs Benedict for them at home. NEVER!

 Just reading the recipe I could see that it is a very complex, time sensitive and fussy recipe. Far too much work for me early in the morning! I just leave the prep to the professional... my family eats it when we go out for Sunday brunch after church!

StoneGable will be full of family and friends this Memorial Day weekend. The perfect time to surprise them with my version of Eggs Benedict... StoneGable Benedict...

STONEGABLE BENEDICT BREAKFAST ON THE BACK PORCH

There are just those perfect mornings that are made for breakfast al fresco... and this was one of them!

I set a tray with black and white Rooster dishes and fresh picked blooms from my garden. This morning StoneGable Benedict, a take-off of Eggs Benedict, was on the menu! I never make Eggs Benedict because they are so time sensitive and just a little hard for me to deal with first thing in the morning.  So I came up with an easier, less fussy version. Stop by StoneGable on Friday for the recipe and some tips to making this classic egg dish... with a twist!

As I headed out the door I tucked a couple of my favorite home and garden books under my arm to read...

A WARM WELCOME~ SILVER TRAY CHALKBOARD

I am beginning to tidy up the guest room for one very special guest! Actually, we have been giving our Gable Guest Room a much needed facelift. Now that the major work is done... new floors, freshly painted walls, closets cleaned out, dresser painted..  I am concentrating on some of the details that will make our lovely guest feel welcomed and cared for.

The word picture that comes to mind when preparing a bedroom for a guest is... NEST.  A little sanctuary away from all the cares of the world.  This is the goal... to give our guest a soft place to land and a comfortable and beautiful space for them to relax.

Open the door to the Gable Room and this is what you will see first...

ON THE MENU MONDAY~ WEEK OF JUNE 14, 2012

Hope all of you had a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

I'm STILL celebrating, so ...

Here's whats ON THE MENU...

SUNDAY SCRIPTURE~ MOTHER'S DAY 2012

My mother and me

A good woman is hard to find,

 And worth far more than diamonds...

SILVER SPOON GARDEN MARKER

Isn't it a rush to see something you think is fabulous and  say, "I think I could make that"!

The first time I saw silver spoon plant markers I was captivated... and on a mission to make them! I could picture them in my herb garden, peeking out between all the green... adding their class and sass to my parsley and mint!

 I have been gathering silver spoons and butter knives and forks with simple wide handles to create plant markers. The process of the silver hunt was just as rewarding and fun as making my collection into markers. You can't imagine how much inexpensive silver there is out there if you are looking!!!!


So, toss out those ugly plastic markers and bring some bling into you garden!!!

Here is an easy video tutorial to make SILVER SPOON PLANT MARKERS...

SALMON, ASPARAGUS AND BOW TIE PASTA IN A SHERRY CREAM SAUCE

This beautiful pasta dish is full of delicate flavors that would be scrumptious on their own, but together they become a culinary symphony!  

LILACS ON THE PORCH~ A MOTHER'S DAY TABLESCAPE

The Lilacs are blooming here at StoneGable and the air is filled with their perfume! It floats through our open windows and drifts from room to room. I wait all year for just a few days when the lilacs boom and cast their fragrant spell!

My late blooming lilacs are not really late at all. They are right on time! These delicate blooms are the inspiration for a Mother's Day table on the porch...

SUMMER WREATH TUTORIAL

Welcoming guest to our homes begins before we open our door! A beautiful wreath on our front door says, "We have been expecting you... WELCOME"!  It also makes a very good first impression! And first impressions are often lasting ones!

I don't scrimp on a door wreath. Nothing small or demure... I want curb appeal! I want a BIG wreath that offers a big welcome! I want a focal point that will draw peoples eye to it's summer beauty! It must make people want to come inside. I want a design shop wreath without the design shop price!!!!

I can get all that by making a wreath myself. One lush, with summery blooms... and you can too! Here's how...

ON THE MENU MONDAY~ Week Of May 7, 2012

This week I had a biopsy of my thumb nail bed (no worries) so my left hand was a little out of commission! 

I was not able to cook or use my hand very well.

The recipe I planned to make and post could not be done and the silver spoon garden markers did not get finished! What's a blogger to do when her best laid posting plans go awry...  Write about yourself!!! YIKES!

So, I posted  10 RANDOM THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT ME yesterday! I didn't want this to be all about me, so I asked my readers to tell me something about them too!

It was AMAZING and soooooo much fun! This has become my favorite post because of all the interesting responses!!!!! I found out some delightful and funny random facts about you!

Here are just a few...

SUNDAY SCRIPTURES~ May 6, 2012

Synagogue ruins, Sea Of Galilee, Israel

Dignify those down on their luck:
You'll feel good~ that's what GOD does.


GOD looks after us all, 
Makes us robust with life!

Psalm 41:1~ The Message

10 RANDOM THING TO KNOW ABOUT ME!

 I received quite a few e-mails last week asking to identify the flowers in the planters from last Saturday's post.  I promised I would post them today... so before 10 random things, here the are...

May Tablescapes

May is a beautiful Month! The beginning of the month is filled with soft colors and fragrant flowers! And the month ends with a red, white and true blue holiday! Perfect for creating tablescapes.

It is the best time to dine al fresco, enjoying the warming sun and the lingering daylight.

Here are some of my favorite outdoor tablescape over the last two years of May inspiration...

GUEST ROOM VIGNETTE

I am s-l-o-w-l-y working on the Gable Guest Bedroom at StoneGable.  We are giving it a much needed "spit and polish". Just some overdue changes to keep it fresh and ready for our cherished guests.

The Gable room is one of two guest rooms here at StoneGable. The larger Guest Suite, with it's own bath and back stairs, is home to our adorable niece Courtney right now. Her just-out-of-college job brought her here to our town and she is staying with us.

So right now we are down to one guest bedroom.

I love to tuck our guest into the Gable Room! It's high high ceiling, big window and antique furnishings makes this room feel so snug and comfortable...