Storm Center Rides Again



My husband calls me Storm Center, because I usually have no idea what the weather is supposed to be doing until I walk outside. Once I drove to Portland from Bangor to go shopping. When I got there all the storefronts were taped up. When I asked someone in the store (they were going to close early), I found out a hurricane was imminent. When Maine had a huge icestorm which knocked out power for many people for 8 days or more, I had no idea it was coming. My husband loves to recount how I came home from the grocery store the night before this big storm with cupcakes for the kids. Not batteries, not flashlights, not water. And so you know why I'm called Storm Center. I'm very proud of myself today, though, because I listened when I was buying coffee at the Blue Canoe and found out a storm was coming. I made a grocery list and then went out and bought groceries last night before a snowflake had fallen out of the sky.

So today is a snow day. I'm going to take a bit of time in the cellar to start another Big Izzy and also to begin a Gail Wilson kit. The Gail Wilson doll will either be a gift to myself or a gift for someone else, we'll see. I'm a little afraid of the kit because I have a very hard time following directions exactly.


The Big Izzy I am making is my own pattern I developed at the suggestion of a customer who bought one of my smaller dolls. I've made one of them before, but she missed the end of the auction. The last one I made was around 29" and that's the size of a toddler, y'know. After this, I probably will not make another Izannah inspired doll of this size. Does that make it a rare large Northdixie Designs doll? ;-) Well, never say never.

I mentioned having a hard time following directions exactly, right? Well, I'm like that with recipes, too. Here's one that I've customized a bit, but the original is great, too. It's for a Cuban Pot Roast called Ropa Vieja. This will be a great recipe to make on a snow day. I have a great cast iron dutch oven that my mom got me, and you can put it in the oven and let it cook with no attention. I did change the recipe slightly from the one on the site (see, I told you!). I don't use the onion soup mix - I just add more onions. And I like to add a few cans of beans to it in the last hour of cooking without a lid on the pot. I add black beans, kidney beans, maybe some white beans. If you make this do not add more wine than called for - it makes it too winey tasting.

I'm also going to make some ornaments for the kids for our little fake tree that's on the stand in the corner and pull out the Nativity scene.

I love snow days.

2 comments:

Blondie ~ Vintage Primitives said...

Lucky gal. Snow in December. Lovely pics Dixie and your recipe sounds yummy too.
I'd love to share a cup of cocoa with you and look out the window at the snow.
Hugs
Blondie

Michelle said...

Dixie,
I wish I was closer to come play in your studio for the day! I want to paint or learn to paint from you.

Hugs,
Tink


"Do not let what you cannot do
keep you from doing what you can do."

John Wooden