I would go with the windows firewall it is a decent firewall. But if you want to use zone alarm since you have it that is fine but you do have to turn off the windows one like zep gave directions for.

You have the same programs I use, malwarebytes, superantispyware, spywareblaster, update weekly and do scans.

That first AVAST scan does take a long time to run and yes windows 7 is a large program so you will have a lot of files to scan.

You are applying a very good layered protection on your pc.
Just remember to also use the secunia software inspector to keep all programs updated too.

Wait for the zinnia flower petals to fade to brown. Deadhead the flowers on a dry day once the petals have turned brown but have not yet fallen off of the plants on their own.

If the flower heads are damp at all, hang them in a cool, dry location to dry for a few days before you remove the seeds.

When you are ready to remove the seeds, you will find the seeds located behind/beneath the base of the petals. The seeds will be brown, a little 'furry' in texture, and will look sort of like an elongated arrowhead. The size of the seed will vary, depending on which zinnia variety or varieties you have.

Remove the seeds from the flowerhead--the seeds should come off the plant easily in your hand. If they don't, they are not mature enough to save. Once you remove the seeds, spread them out to dry in a cool, dry location. Let them dry for several days. Once dry, seal them in a paper envelope or small paper bag. Next, seal that container in some sort of airtight container like a glass jar with a screw-on lid, a metal cookie tin with a lid, or a zip-lock bag. Label with the variety and date collected and then store in a cool, dry, slightly dark place where they will not be exposed to excessive cold or heat.

Dawn

Center the batting on the back and sew strips to the batting/back then sew 2 blocks together along edge of batting. Open the seam and turn fabric toward the block on the front, turn under and stitch.

All stitching is done on the sewing machine.

Each block ends up being framed by the back fabric.

My question is, how strong will the quilt be since the "thread stitching the seam" is the only thing holding blocks together?

I am making the quilt for charity.

This is a good way to use small scraps. You can also use several different widths of strips instead of the 2" width making a really "scrappy" quilt, but beautiful..

Krissie

Healthy Hollyhock Spray

1 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 T. Canola Oil
1/2 tsp. Ivory Dish Soap
1/2 C. White Vinegar
1 gal. water

MeMo

(I will come out and say straight off that I love our Climbing Peace.)

If you grow climbing Peace, here is what you should be prepared for:

1. No blooms for the first 2 years, blooms in the spring only from year 3 to 5.
2. "Massive" spring flush from year 4-5 onwards, minimal mid season repeat (in fact, I will suggest not to expect any mid season flowers), then a few flowers at all times from August till frost.
3. It flowers from previous year's canes. You can't prune those - you absolutely must leave them alone - if you want a nice spring flush. I try and secure them in an arch to encourage laterals - it's these laterals that will give you flowers. Don't bother trying to train them any other ways - they are too thick and too stiff, and there are just too many of them.
4. I remove all the older canes (more than 2 years old usually) except the few really large ones that comes from the bud union. These, after 10 years have become almost like "tree trunks" - new canes arise from the top of these.
5. It's a heavy feeder - much more than any other rose. I give it a generous feed when the spring flush is over, to encourage new thick, long canes - these are next years show bearer.
6. It needs lot's of room - it's huge.

In a way, it behaves almost like a rambler, except for it's late season blooms and thick canes.

But our climber Peace's spring display is breath taking, and it remains one of my favourites in the garden. If you set your expectations to what this rose has to offer and it's limitations, you will love the rose. If not, you will learn to hate it. There is just no sitting on the fence on this one.

But I would like you to sit back and imagine one to two hundred of these 7 inch flowers, one a single rose, all at once:

Lemon Cream Oat Bars

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine -- softened
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 375º. Grease square pan, 9 × 9 × 2 inches. Mix sweetened condensed milk, lemon zest and lemon juice in medium bowl until thickened; set aside. Mix remaining ingredients in medium bowl with spoon until crumbly (you can also mix this in a stand mixer on low speed). Press half of the crumbly mixture in pan. Bake about 10 minutes or until set. Spread milk mixture over baked layer. Sprinkle remaining crumbly mixture over milk mixture; press gently into milk mixture. Bake about 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown and center is set but soft. Cool completely. Cut into 6 rows by 4 rows.

Touch of Lemon Sugar Cookies

Source: Pillsbury "Cookies, Cookies & More Cookies" 1980

2 c sugar
1 c butter, softened
1T grated lemon peel
¼ c lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
3-1/4 c AP flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp soda
1 tsp cream of tartar
Sugar

Preheat oven to 325F. Lightly grease cookie sheets.

In large bowl, combine sugar, butter, lemon peel, lemon juice, vanilla and eggs. Cream until smooth. Lightly spoon floour into measuring cup and level off. Stir in flour, salt, soda and cream of tartar until well blended.

Shape dough into 1" balls, roll in sugar and place two inches apart on prepared cookie sheets.

Bake 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. (Cookies will be soft in center). Makes 4-5 dozen cookies
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Basic Shortbreads
1 1/4 c AP flour
3 T sugar
1/2 c butter

Mix sugar and flour, cut in butter until fine crumbs and it starts to stick to itself.

For Elfin Bites, stir in 2 T of Candy Ball Sprinkles. Pat dough out on a non greased cookie sheet into a 8x5" rectangle. Cut into 1/2 cubes and seperate. Bake at 325F for about 8-10 minutes or until bottoms just start to brown. Cool on wire rack that has a sheet of wax paper over it.(Just in case they thought about falling through the "cracks".)

For Cherry Shortbread, (pictured above) stir in a 1/2 c of drained well finely chopped Maraschino cherries. Once additives are in, knead until a dough is formed. Roll dough out on floured surface to 1/2" thick, cut out with 1 1/2-2" heart cutter. Bake at 325F for 20-25 minutes or until bottoms just turn light brown. Cool. Melt together 1 c semi sweet chocolate chips and 2 t sortening. Dip half of the cookie or drizzle. let set on wax paper to firm.

Posted 12/06 by Terri_pacnw
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Chocolate Walnut Crumb Bars

1 c butter, softened
2 c all purpose flour
½ c granulated sugar
¼ tsp salt
2 c Nestle semi sweet chocolate chips, divided
1-1/4 c (14 oz can) Sweetened Condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 c walnuts, chopped

Beat butter in large mixer bowl until creamy. Beat in flour, sugar and salt until crumbly. With floured fingers, press 2 cups of crumb mixture into greased 9 x 13 baking pan. Reserve remaining crumb mixture. Bake 10-12 minutes at 350F or until edges are browned.

Warm 1-1/2 cups chocolate chips and milk in small, heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth. Stir in vanilla, spread over hot crust. Stir walnuts and remaining chips into reserved crumb mixture, sprinkle over chocolate filling. Bake 25-30 minutes at 350F or until center is set. Cool in pan on wire rack.
Yield: 2-1/2 dozen bars

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Holiday Biscotti
Source: Giada DeLaurentis

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup pistachios, coarsely chopped
2/3 cup dried cranberries
12 ounces good-quality white chocolate, chopped
Red and green sugar crystals, for garnish
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Line a heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, butter, lemon zest, and salt in a large bowl to blend. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time. Add the flour mixture and beat just until blended. Stir in the pistachios and cranberries.
Form the dough into a 13-inch long, 3-inch wide log on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until light golden, about 40 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes.
Place the log on the cutting board. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut the log on a diagonal into 1/2 to 3/4-inch-thick slices. Arrange the biscotti, cut side down, on the baking sheet. Bake the biscotti until they are pale golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer the biscotti to a rack and cool completely.
Stir the chocolate in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water until the chocolate melts. Dip half of the biscotti into the melted chocolate. Gently shake off the excess chocolate. Place the biscotti on the baking sheet for the chocolate to set. Sprinkle with the sugar crystals. Refrigerate until the chocolate is firm, about 35 minutes.
The biscotti can be made ahead. Store them in an airtight container up to 4 days, or wrap them in foil and freeze in resealable plastic bags up to 3 weeks.

Linda

Lemon Brownies (Marilyn)

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter; room temperature
4 eggs
Juice from 1/2 lemon
Zest from 1 lemon
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Additional lemon zest for garnish

Preheat oven to 350°. Line the bottom only of a 9X13X2-inch baking dish with Parchment paper and spray with Pam. In a mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar and salt; add butter. Stir together eggs, juice from 1/2 lemon and zest from 1 lemon; stir into batter and pour into prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until set. Remove from oven and cool on a rack. When brownies are cool prepare glaze by stirring together powdered sugar and 2 tablespoon lemon juice; drizzle over brownies and sprinkle with additional lemon zest.

Annie

lla Helfrich's Tunnel of Fudge cake, which won second place in the 17th annual Pillsbury Bake-Off in 1966, gave H. David Dalquist's Bundt pan national exposure and made it one of the most popular baking pans in the world. Pillsbury no longer makes one of the original ingredients and offers this revised version of the much-requested recipe.

Ingredients:

CAKE

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups margarine or butter, softened

6 eggs

2 cups powdered sugar

2 1/4 cups Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

2 cups chopped walnuts*

GLAZE

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

4 to 6 teaspoons milk

Preparation directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 12-cup Bundt pan or 10-inch tube pan. In large bowl, combine sugar and margarine; beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well. Gradually add 2 cups powdered sugar; blend well. By hand, stir in flour and remaining cake ingredients until well blended. Spoon batter into greased and floured pan; spread evenly.

Bake at 350°F for 45 to 50 minutes or until top is set and edges are beginning to pull away from edge of pan.** Cool upright in pan on wire rack 1 1/2 hours; invert onto serving plate. Cool for at least 2 hours more.

In small bowl, combine all glaze ingredients, adding enough milk for desired drizzling consistency. Spoon over top of cake, allowing some to run down sides. Store tightly covered.

Yield:

16 servings

Tips:

*Nuts are essential for the success of this recipe.

**Since this cake has a soft filling, an ordinary doneness test cannot be used. Accurate oven temperature and baking times are essential.

High altitude: (Above 3,000 ft.)

Increase flour by 3 tablespoons. Bake as directed above.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse Torte

3 cups sugar
2 2/3 cup all purpose flour
1 cup plus 1 tbs. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 tbs. espresso powder dissolved in 1 ¼ cups of warm water
¾ cup vegetable oil
1 ½ cups buttermilk
3 large eggs (room temperature)
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Peanut Butter Mousse

10 oz. milk chocolate (you can also use semi-sweet)
½ cup creamy peanut butter
¾ cup milk
1 cup heavy cream

Chocolate Glaze

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbs. corn syrup

Preheat oven to 375º. Lightly grease and flour a nine inch spring form pan. Sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, add the dry ingredients and mix slowly until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together espresso, oil, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla. Slowly add all of the espresso mixture to the dry ingredients. Increase speed to medium and beat until mixture is smooth, about 1 minute. Scrape with a rubber spatula into prepared pan. Bake approximately 35-40 minutes or until cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in pan 20 minutes, then invert on wire rack to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Mousse

Melt chocolate over double boiler. When completely melted, add peanut butter. Whisk until smooth. In a separate pan bring milk to a gentle boil, remove from heat. Add half the milk to chocolate/peanut butter mixture. Mix well and repeat with remaining milk, again mixing well. In a separate bowl, beat heavy cream until soft peaks form. With a rubber spatula, slowly fold the whipped heavy cream into the chocolate peanut butter mixture, mixing only until combined.

Chocolate Glaze

Combine heavy cream and corn syrup. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add the finely chopped chocolate, stirring until smooth. Chill slightly to firm.

With a serrated knife, slice cake into three even layers. Smoothly spread ½ of the Peanut Butter Mousse mixture on the bottom layer. Top with middle cake layer. Repeat using remaining Peanut Butter Mousse mixture, capping with top cake layer. Ice top and sides with Chocolate Glaze

--Gina
http://lindseysluscious.blogspot.com

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES FILLED WITH PEANUT BUTTER CUPS

7 oz. milk chocolate
3/4 C. butter or margarine
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/3 C. granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 C. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
12 mini peanut butter cups

Preheat oven to 350ºF. (325 F for dark pans). Line muffin pan with baking cups.
Melt chocolate and butter together; stir in vanilla extract.
In a separate bowl combine sugar, unbeaten eggs, flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in chocolate mixture. Fill muffin cups half full; place peanut butter cup in center of each and top with remaining batter. Bake 20-25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Once you have your stitch length set, you can adjust your tension if necessary. To check tension you just need to look at it. Because you have contrasting thread on the top and bottom, this will be easy. Just check both top and bottom sides of the seam and make sure that you don't have little dots of the contrasting thread popping through. If you see the bobbin thread on the top of the seam, loosen your top tension because it's pulling too hard on the bobbin thread. Do just the opposite if you see the top thread on the bottom of the seam--tighten your top tension. Do this in SMALL increments, never more than an eighth of a turn at a time. This should be enough to correct the problem. If it's not, you may have to adjust the bobbin tension as well, but since I'm not familiar with modern machines, I'm not going there! One thing that is important is to READ YOUR MANUAL!! It should explain how to adjust both top and bottom tension for your particular machine.

Because I learned to sew in the dark ages, long before computerized machines, I was taught how to correctly balance tension, and it's one of the reasons that I still use old machines for all my sewing today--because I can make such adjustments without fear. I'm always surprised when I'm at quilt guild and someone says, "I haven't been able to sew because my tension went goofy and now I have to take the machine in for repairs." When my tension is goofed up, I just re-adjust it and get back to work! It's usually just a case of bumping it while wrestling a big quilt through the machine.

Annie