Happy Thought
by Robert Louis Stevenson, from A Child’s Garden of Verses
A Child’s Garden of Verses
Robert Louis Stevenson’s collection, A Child’s Garden of Verses, is truly a classic. I’ve mentioned one of my favorites, Bed in Summer, before. It’s a beautiful collection of verse.
Jessie Willcox Smith is also one of my favorite illustrators. Imagine my delight when I found an old hardbound copy that was a joint effort from those two individuals! With thick pages and gorgeous illustrations, it is truly a gem.
It has a copyright date of 1905, and an inscription dated December 1919. Old enough that the letter “u” is printed like a “v”. When I hold it I can’t help but wonder at the journey this book has had through many sets of loving hands to mine. Black and white illustrations are on every page with color illustrations sprinkled throughout.
A few of my favorites:
Of all the unique characteristics of this little old gem, I might love the endpaper the most. Open the cover, and this is the first thing you see.
Instead of blank paper, it’s covered with a wallpaper style illustration. It takes my breath away.
I’d like an entire wall of it, please. Better yet, can someone please reproduce this in a quilter’s cotton? I’ll take several yards. Seriously, this would be so cute on the back of a quilt! I’ve got to think of something awesome to do with it. Scrapbook paper would be an easy one, but I don’t scrapbook anymore. Ideas, anyone?
For now, happy reading!
Jennifer
Enchilada Pie
This is one of those simple, inexpensive recipes that you can put together in just a few minutes, especially if I’m using leftover rice. It’s also one of my food storage recipes. It’s certainly nothing fancy, but my children will eat it. I simplified it recently, and am happy with the results.
Ingredients:
1 can refried beans 1 tsp. cumin 1 can enchilada sauce (I used green) 1 cup cooked rice 1 1/2 cups cheese 3 flour tortillas In a small bowl, mix together refried beans, cumin and cooked rice.
Spread 1-2 tablespoons of enchilada sauce on the bottom of a pie pan. Lay 1 flour tortilla on top of the enchilada sauce. Spread 1/3 of the bean mixture over the tortilla, 1/3 of the remaining enchilada sauce over the bean mixture, and 1/2 cup shredded cheese over the sauce. Cover cheese with another tortilla, and continue to layer in the same order. Repeat layers one last time, finishing with the last 1/2 cup of cheese.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until bubbly.
Serve with sour cream, salsa and chips.
Note: if you’re in a hurry and don’t have cooked rice, you can skip it and it will still taste great. I make two of these for my family, and one batch of my green enchilada sauce is sufficient for both. In fact, I usually have enough sauce left to add a 4th tortilla on top. I then pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the tortilla and sprinkle with cheese.
Enjoy!