aww...I was only dreaming....

It felt so real....somehow or other I won the lottery....and then I had to figure out what to do with the money..... Sounds easy enough....pay off the mortgage....help family members with theirs....replace vehicles..... all common sense stuff....but then the panic set in.... who all would I help...and at what point would it be help or would it make life too easy for someone.....and would it enable them to start creating the same mess all over....and if you help this person would you also have to help that person.....maybe the dream was triggered by the nightmare Haiti is living....I don't know.... when need is overwhelming...where do you start..... I guess you just jump in and deal with each step as you reach it...

thanksgiving comes early...

I'm starting my Thanksgiving celebration early this year. After spending the last ten days in a hospital room, watching my husband recover from emergency surgery, I am feeling very thankful.....for life....and the soft sounds of my husband snoring ......in our bed.....life is good....and I'm thankful. The very first thing I am thankful for is that this ordeal did not begin until we were on our way home from a short beach vacation with the two oldest grand kids. The time spent with them was so special....something that I will treasure always.... I am thankful for the excellent care we received in our small town hospital....sometimes we think bigger is better....not me....I'll take small town care any day..... I'm thankful for the nurses who worked and worked over my husband on the really bad days.....and for the ones who gave me a hug when I needed it most..... I'm thankful for my daughter and sister who brought food to me at the hospital...I could not deal with food....or where it was going to come from.....I'm thankful for the friend who took me out to eat while her husband sat with mine.....I'm thankful for my mom who sat with me for hours at a time.... for my son-in-law's dad (we just call him our brother-in-law) who stopped everyday on his way home from work and would sit quietly in the room with him and conversation was not necessary.... I am thankful for our church family who visited...I'm thankful for the men that my husband works with who came by daily and encouraged him......I'm thankful for all the friends who kept in touch through Face book and for the prayers they prayed....we made it home....and I am so thankful.....life is good and above all.....God is good.....I give Him all the credit....

the brain....it is a mushing......

Yep...my brain is turning to mush....just does not work like it used to.....how do I know this....well all I have to do is look at the online games I play with other people....they are all word games....and my opponents are killing me....they usually win.....it is the margin they win by that has increased....yep...my brain is mushing....... So why is this happening....well I think I have been a little distracted lately....you would think that by the time the fourth grandchild enters the world, it would not be a big deal....but it is and was....mostly because my daughter always has interesting pregnancies....never the same way twice.... I am incredibly fortunate that we live within a few miles of each other....and that means that I can help with the kids or run errands....or whatever.... I know some people would not consider that a good thing....but I am very thankful for this opportunity. I grew up on the mission field ....that meant that I did not see my relatives very often. I wanted to be a part of my daughter's life....I wanted to see the children grow....I wanted them to know me....and they do.....and when they see me....and run to me and throw their arms around me......well....my heart turns to mush too.....so mushy brain and mushy heart....yep...that's me. Next week, my husband and I will take the older two kids to the beach with us......we missed our annual family vacation this year.....it fell too close to the newest birth....and usually is a grand family affair with daughter and family and son-in-law's parents.....we all look forward to spending that time together at the beach. My granddaughter refers to the newest addition as "the reason we didn't go to the beach this year".....it is a very important event for us......so my husband surprised me with the idea of a long weekend at the beach.....latter than usual....but who cares about that....it is the beach....the sounds....the smells.....the food.....and the opportunity to include the two oldest grandkids......not our regular event.....but a mini version.....so we will be ready for next year......can't wait.....for next Thursday....or next year......life is good....

quiche....ahhh quiche.....

It was one of those days.....I wanted to make a brunch that would have leftovers.....that I could eat in the mornings before I head off to work.....something easy and tasty..... So after thinking through the contents of my fridge....I came up with quiche.....a lovely dish....able to turn a variety of objects into a tasty slice of eggy goodness... My fridge yielded the following combination of items....cream cheese stuffed jalapenos, ricotta cheese, bacon, eggs and Parmesan cheese.. from my freezer...spinanch...and from the pantry....evaporated milk. After whisking the eggs, milk and ricotta cheese together I added the chopped spinach and divided the mixture between two frozen pie shells. The jalapenos were thinly sliced and evenly dotted the outside surface of the pie along with chopped bacon and sausage slices....after a final sprinkle of garlic powder, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese they were ready for the oven....and they were perfection....tender...a little spicy....and there are leftovers.....a little labor (it is labor day after all) and enough left over to enjoy for several mornings....life is good

of the amish, friendship and bread....

ahh..the amish, friendship and bread...
Put it together and what do you have? Amish Friendship Bread....a very interesting object.. Give it to a friend....they stir... feed....stir some more ....and finally it multiplies into more stuff....to give away....or bake.... So I had a batch of starter working it's merry self along on my kitchen counter. (This batch was originally frozen so that I could start it at my convenience.) You stir for several days...feed it once in the middle....stir several more days and then divide into four containers and bake the remaining bit into a loaf for yourself. After you have been through this process several times...well several things happen....one, you run out of friends to give it to....two, you bake it all....or three, you freeze several batches and bake what you will. In theory it should divide into five equal parts...but when I measured it into five containers...low and behold....the fifth container was a little short....but since I would normally be baking that amount I figured it would do the job....even if it was not the same amount as the others....so I put all the containers in the freezer...and when I so desire...I will make some chocolate bread or pistachio bread, or lemon bread....or coconut. You see....each recipe calls for pudding mix ....and that is where all the different flavors come into play...and you can experiment to your heart's content....yep...yep...yep.... My husband loves pistachio so I always keep that flavor of pudding on hand for that very reason... Me...I like chocolate with chocolate chips or nuts or both... It is fun to experiment. I turned it into zucchini bread on this last go round...and it was very tasty....so I have five containers of starter....and I'm ready to start another cycle....of kitchen counter fermentation.....

beginning and ending on a sweet note....
I ate a thin slice of zucchini bread on my way to work yesterday...have to eat with the pills I take.....and then found out we (my sis and I) were supposed to be in a meeting back where we started.....so we turned around....drove back ...and walked in late.....they had already eaten breakfast....and were just getting started on the other stuff...but we were still late.....So we sat and listened...and found some danish during the break.....and listened some more.....don't get me wrong....it was important stuff....just not the what I thought I was going to be doing all morning....so when everything was finished at 12 we headed to lunch....and then on to our regularly scheduled work day......to pack everything we needed to do into the remaining hours......amazing how much you can do in a condensed time period when you need to......and then home again..... I walked in the door....grabbed some refrigerated pizza dough ...some cheese and headed to my daughter's house to attend my first "Food Club". There were seven of us making little individual pizzas and freezing them for later consumption.....my refrigerated pizza dough did not work really well for that so I made pizza rolls....it did work for that! My daughter had made these little sweets to munch on....and they were really good....I had to remind myself that I had not eaten dinner...and these little guys were not my dinner....but they were really good. I called my husband on my way home (he was eating Mexican) to ask if he could bring something home for my dinner....but couldn't get ahold of him.....so I heated up some bread salad....it was good but not quite in the same category as chicken nachos.... So, my goal for myself today is to eat more veggies....and protein....and less sweets.....but it is potluck at church tonight....and there are always sweets...usually of the cake variety......maybe if I make a big salad as my contribution.....I can justify the cake....maybe.....

the weekend that was......

My husband took the grandkids camping....it was a grand adventure...the other grandfather went along for the ride....and a ride it was....rafting down the Hiwassee....getting stuck on a waterfall....men trying to maneuver the raft off the rocks....kids yelling for help....yep....all the ingredients for a grand adventure..... My adventure was a little milder.....dinner out.....major theological discussion....way too intense...but thought provoking never the less.... Shopping time with my daughter and littlest grandchild on Saturday.....eating sushi for lunch....watching him experiment with chopsticks....rice everywhere.....more shopping for school supplies.....half hour break at home before making another trip to the big city....and realizing that my phone had disappeared...turning around and going back....searching the house....only to find it in the car...where it had fallen out of my purse.....back on the road again.....and meeting up with friends for dinner.....then some shopping at one of my favorite stores......TJ Maxx...yes I love that store....especially the home good sections.....on to some coffee at Starbucks....sitting outside and chilling .....then home again...... Made some rice and miso for breakfast the next morning....still in Japanese food mode.....and chilling while I waited for hubby and the grandkids to return......they needed some pool time when they got home....to wash all the camping dirt away.....who needs a shower when you are camping.......and then mexican and music for dinner...... Church on Sunday as usual... lunch with the fam....afternoon naps....and cheese sticks and a cheesy movie for dinner.....the end of the great adventure.....it was a lovely adventure.....and the end of the weekend......