Kitchen Time

Martha made an appearance and she brought help. Christmas Eve was spent in the kitchen. It was a long day. Dishes were washed, dried and washed again. I made a batch of ginger bread cookies that had to sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. I mixed up a batch of orange-cranberry bread after chopping up walnuts and cranberries. While the bread baked, I mixed up a batch of sugar cookies. The kids cut those into shapes and placed them on the cookie sheets.





Into the oven for 8 minutes then removed to cool. Once the sugar cookies were made, we rolled out the gingerbread cookies. I made white frosting and we filled decorator bags.




As they decorated and worked together, I made a broccoli salad and dough for dinner rolls. I washed and dried and washed again.




It was a busy but very productive day in the kitchen. Special cookies were made just for Santa and the rest were to be enjoyed by our friends and family.



I made it, last minute made it, but we have cookies for Christmas.

White, Sweet Fluff, Part II

Those sticky white marshmallows were a hit. They have a delicious flavor with a hint of vanilla. They melt in your mouth. They were fun to slice with a pizza cutter. The second part of the recipe is easier than the first part, mainly the cleanup.

So I sliced, pulled them apart and I rolled some in colored sprinkles. So festive and a great gift idea. We gifted about half the pan since we don't need all that sugar. We have enough sugar around this house so any I can gift, I'll gift.

They are tempting little cubes of fluff. I offered my mother-in-law one and she said no. However, I showed them to her and she said, "Oh, I'll try one." She did like them although she refused to take any home with her.

We just stirred them up in hot mugs of cocoa! They did not melt but then again, the hot cocoa was more warm than hot as our children like to be able to drink it without waiting. The fluff cubes were delicious and we'll be drinking more hot cocoa over the next few days.

This recipe, I have been told, is a keeper. A new recipe to add to our Christmas recipe list. I'll definitely be making these again and again.

White Fluff, Part I

Tonight I crossed another treat off my Christmas list. For the first time ever, I made homemade marshmallows.

Let’s just say messy, sticky, gooey.

The recipe only had a few ingredients. I did not have to stand over the heavy pot and stir until the contents reached the soft ball stage. It did take time but hopefully, the end results - taste test tomorrow - will be worth it.

Below are some pictures from part one as they have to sit, covered, for six hours or overnight. I chose the overnight option. Tomorrow, I’ll cut them into white chunks of fluff and the kids can roll them in colored sugars.

For 15 minutes my mixer ran on high to beat the mixture until it doubled in capacity.



Creamy, sticky fluff.

Spread in the pan and ready to set.


I did say sticky, didn't I? Let's say clean up went well when I used boiling water to wash everything.

Finding Martha

I am struggling. Procrastinating. Avoiding and stressed.

It is a jolly time of year and I am feeling anything but jolly.

Don’t get me wrong, I do like Christmas. Our children make it special. They get so excited about Santa’s visit, tree decorating and baking. However, this year, it has been harder than normal for me to get in the Christmas spirit.

Every year I struggle with emotions. I miss my family. They are so far away. I miss the way our Christmases were. Christmas Eve we would spend with extended family and enjoy a delicious meal together. We'd play with cousins and open presents. We were all together. I have fond memories of the good old days, when family members were still here with us. We didn’t have much but we had each other and I love those memories. They are so special. Change definitely upsets me this time of year. At my age, you’d think I’d just accept it but I miss my family and being together.

Is it the weather that has me blue? That is a possibility because in upstate New York we have about 2-3 inches of snow. I associate Christmas with snow-covered trees, fields, houses and roads. Oh, the wonderful white beauty of snow. I would like to wake up to a heavy snow fall Christmas morning and have 10 inches of snow already on the ground. I am not sure my husband would agree with that as he tends to the snow removal. However, it certainly would be delightful and beautiful. I know two kids that would jump for joy over snow. After opening presents, they’d quickly dress, grab their new sleds and head outside to the back hill. They’d sled until their cheeks were red and declare “hot cocoa time” as they undressed near the coal stove. I do hope we have snow over the holiday break. Personally, I want a run or two down the slope! That might be just what I need.

And to top this whole “mood” off, I am baked out and this is not the time of year to avoid the kitchen. I have two days to get cookies baked, frostings colored, candies hardening and marshmallows setting. I have managed to bake one sour cream cinnamon-pecan coffee cake, and one batch each of snowballs and spritz. I have the ingredients in my cupboards. I don’t need to go to the store for anything. What I need to do is put my apron on and stir, mix, roll, cut, boil, spread, sprinkle… you get the idea. Where do I find the motivation? My plan is to turn the radio on – hopefully to hear good Christmas music, ask the kids to join me and together we can get some treats made. I have never lost my “Martha” before. I need her back.

Will I find my Martha?

One Small Hand

I have managed to knit and purl my way through one mitten. I searched and found an easy knit pattern, grabbed a ball of leftover yarn and sat down determined to knit. That was over a week ago. It was simple to figure out the easy pattern. I was thrilled when the top of the mitten started to take shape. Then the thumb became easier to visualize as I knitted. Then cut the yarn, pull it through the remaining stitches and the top of the mitten was completed. Now on to the part I don't like. Sewing the seams. This step had me worried as I did not want one to see where the seam was sewn. So what did I do? I put that little mitten back into my knitting bag and walked away. Unnecessary delays due in part to a lack of confidence in my abilities.

Sunday night, that determination hit me again, apparently because I failed to bake up a storm with only 5 days left before Christmas! Needle in hand, sitting in front of our fireplace, I sewed. I took my time and sewed. It did not take very long to stitch the mitten together. The outcome put a smile on my face. I love when a finished project makes me smile.

Then the reality of this project hit me. One needs two mittens to stay warm. Little or big, I need to make two. That’s the problem with sock and mittens, you have to make two. Anyway, I did not let this realization dampen my enthusiasm. Monday morning, in the rush to get ready and leave the house, I grabbed my knitting bag. I spent my lunchtime starting the second mitten. Thirty minutes later the cuff was knitted and I was ready to knit the thumb area so perhaps, with 30 more uninterrupted minutes, I can finish the second mitten. I’ll have a pair. My first pair of mittens! These will be too small for anyone in our house so I will gift them to a friends’ child.

I managed to bake a sour cream pecan-cinnamon coffee cake last night and while it cooled, I knitted. They are so cute...



Aren't they adorable?



I'm smiling and today I bought the double pointed needles I need to start a pair, yes a pair, of socks for the love of my life.

Are you ready to rumble?

Party...not rumble! And that is what we did yesterday. We celebrated our sons' seventh birthday a week early. He loves sports - football, baseball, soccer so we went with a sports theme.

I haven't decorated a cake in a while but I was happy with the outcome of the helmet cake. He chose the colors. I decorated. I was happy because when he saw it, he said it was "awesome". One hurdle cleared!


We invited five classmates and they arrived around the same time. Our son was so excited! He planned to give them a tour of our house, but not the closets (thankfully, yes, I smiled at that). They they ran around. Six active boys. Will the house ever be the same?

Friday night, using a piece of white poster board, I cut out a field goal. From the leftover pieces, we cut out six footballs. Olivia and Elliott colored them and made the shapes look like footballs. We used these for a game - just like pin the tail on the donkey - but instead the object was to place the football in the field goal to score. The boys loved the game and they played it twice. More running around until I gathered them to play a Football Fever word find. They tried it and after one boy found a word, I said they could play again.

Lunch was served, they laughed at the table and had fun.

The time for presents arrived and they were like little rioters around our son. I could not get good pictures or get them to sit down. One present after another was opened and then they ran around for a while.

The last game, before serving the cake, was a quarterback passing game. I set a box up on a chair in the hallway. Each "quarterback" had three tries to throw the small, soft football into the box. They were so excited about this, that it took a while to calm them down. After determining the throwing order, they settled down. One boy would throw the ball, another boy was stationed behind the chair to return the ball, and after the 3 attempts, the boys rotated. It went very well, and surprisingly, it was quite a challenge.

Cake time! After singing Happy Birthday, they all settled down to eat cake and ice cream. The blue frosting colored their lips and tongues - quite a sight!

The time flew by and one by one, parents arrived to pick up their child. Our son had a great day and really enjoyed having his friends over. What a nice group of boys!

Happy Birthday to our son - we love you!

Real Estate

When one has a hobby, or multiple hobbies, space can be an issue. A large issue. Depending on available space, one can make progress on craft projects or fail to start, let alone finish a project. I enjoy various crafts – baking, crocheting, knitting, scrapbooking and journaling, card making, sewing and cross-stitching. I know some of these hobbies don’t require a lot of space. I can crochet or knit in a chair, on a bus, almost any place; however, I do need storage for my yarn, hooks and needles.

I do have my room for baking (although it desperately needs to be remodeled)!

We have a house that is big enough for our family and yet it seems as though there is little space for me to spread out, work and leave a craft project.

The big guy has a room, yes a room, in the basement to house his hobby items. It is a rather large area, with shelving, a large dresser, closet area and a door. I even outfitted it with camouflage curtains. He has had this room, his room, for years. And during these years, when I have wanted to sew (like those camo curtains) or work on projects, I had to cart everything to our kitchen table, usually later in the evening, work on the project, and pack everything back up and put it away. Just getting motivated to gather my items often stopped me.

The winds of change have blown through our house.

Did I mention I now have a craft room? I now have a craft room. Technically, it is not a dedicated room but it is space. My space. Space that I plan to use. I have been excited, almost giddy, because I have a room – space – where I can get items out, start projects and leave them – behind a closed door. No more digging out craft boxes, sewing machines, scrapbooking supplies (wait, I still have to do that) BUT I have a table – my work surface – that I can pile high with whatever I intend to work on and (this is the best part) I don’t have to pack it all up and put away. I CAN LEAVE IT OUT! Are you catching my excitement?

And how did I manage such real estate, you may want to know. I simply rearranged our guest bedroom over the holiday weekend. I moved furniture, mopped, dusted and got rid of items. The big guy helped me move an old kitchen table into the room and there it is…my craft room.

I plan to work on filling those scrapbooks that I have. I have prep work done as some of my recent photos are sorted. Oh to think we’ll have scrapbooks to browse, cards to send and perhaps I’ll get a large cross-stitch project finished within a year (I won’t tell you how many years it has been sitting in the closet – I just hope I can still read the legend).

I still have more organization and sorting to do but I am happy and making progress. So happy… sometimes I just sit in there, my craft room, and enjoy a cup of hot tea.

Can it get any better than this?

Bragging & Breakfast

December arrives tomorrow.

Our children have been in school for 3 months. Report cards were mailed from the middle school two weeks ago. Our daughter was anxious to receive her grades. WOW! I don’t think she had any issues with adjusting to a new school and schedule. Her lowest grade was an A- and she is on the high honor roll. She has taken full responsibility for her assignments. Every night I ask her about her assignments, reading and if she has any tests. She has been very mature about time management and getting her assignments done. Yes, rarely I have to get after her but 99% of the time, she is doing what needs to be done.

I am not really surprised at her grades. She has always enjoyed school and done very well. She applies herself, is not afraid to ask questions and participates in discussions. She is an active student. We even received a nice note from one of her teachers earlier this year complimenting her on her work, politeness and study habits.

This Friday, I am going to her school as we, her parents, were invited to a breakfast. This breakfast is to honor students for their academic achievements. So here, I step up and brag.

Our studious daughter was awarded the November Student of the Month- Scholarship award! What an honor and a job well done! We are so proud of you.

The reports from the elementary school are just as wonderful. Our son, a first grader, had an excellent report. I had to meet with his teacher to discuss their curriculum, his progress and any areas that we would need to help him with. Well, the first thing the teacher said was, “The only problem I have with your son is there are three boys that want to be just like him and they want to sit next to him when we have group time.” That may be a problem for her but not for us! He was given excellent remarks and his reading level is above where he is expected to be. His teacher has set a goal to have him at an M or N reading level by the end of the year. I can help with that. He brings home great books from the library that he reads and I have been reserving him books from the village library. He found a good author and he likes the books so I reserved all of them. He was thrilled and has read all but two. We will soon be looking for another author and good books. His teacher also said he is a leader, a quiet leader but a leader. He is a great “teacher” as they have buddy time where they met with their reading buddy and read. He is very patient and asks his buddy to re-read a sentence if it is not read correctly the first time and if needed, he will read the sentence to his buddy by saying, “That was good, but this is what the words say.”

Our time and involvement has definitely built a strong foundation for their learning. I’m not going to stop being involved either. I have found some wonderful mind games for gifts this season!

Making and Baking

Sunday was a day to bake. I made blueberry muffins for my husband. He asked me to make something with blueberries in them since we have over 20 pounds in our freezer and because they are so delicious! So I found a new recipe to try and boy, the muffins are scrumptious. I have a new recipe to add to my ever-growing collection.

I also wanted to make some bread, after all it is fall and that is the best season to bake and bread is one item that always gets eaten quickly in our home. With buttermilk available, I browsed through a bread cookbook and found a buttermilk bread recipe. Perfect! So I asked if anyone wanted to help make a loaf of bread and our son said he wanted to help. So we mixed up a half a batch (I should have mixed up the whole batch). Put it in a warm oven to rise and focused on other kitchen duties – mainly washing dishes.

Our daughter wanted to make black and whites (half moons) so we emptied the dish drainer and mixed up a batch. We needed to fill the cookie jar for the week anyway. I checked out some wonderful cookbooks by Carole Walter from our local library. Great cookies. Coffeecakes. Sticky buns. Muffins and more. Plus pies and tarts.

Have I captured your attention?

I’ll tell you, we have been pouring over these books. I’m definitely going to purchase one of her books and after further review and recipe testing (pies and tarts and coffeecakes, sticky buns, muffins and more), I might be adding three cookbooks to my collection.

Tip: Take a trip to your local library and check them out! You won’t be disappointed.

We always have fun in the kitchen and the results from our Sunday baking were…oh so good! The bread was perfect with dinner and the cookies, very delicious and you only need one to satisfy any and all cravings. The kids took a poll: Which glaze is your favorite? Results - three to one. Three of us prefer the white glaze; odd person out, was the Big Guy (my chocoholic).

I have two great assistants. Next time, I think I’ll assist and they can bake (and clean up)!

Veteran's Day

JUST A COMMON SOLDIER
(A Soldier Died Today)

by A. Lawrence Vaincourt


He was getting old and paunchy and his hair was falling fast,

And he sat around the Legion, telling stories of the past.

Of a war that he had fought in and the deeds that he had done,

In his exploits with his buddies; they were heroes, every one.


And tho' sometimes, to his neighbors, his tales became a joke,

All his Legion buddies listened, for they knew whereof he spoke.

But we'll hear his tales no longer for old Bill has passed away,

And the world's a little poorer, for a soldier died today.


He will not be mourned by many, just his children and his wife,

For he lived an ordinary and quite uneventful life.

Held a job and raised a family, quietly going his own way,

And the world won't note his passing, though a soldier died today.


When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state,

While thousands note their passing and proclaim that they were great.

Papers tell their whole life stories, from the time that they were young,

But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed and unsung.


Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land

A guy who breaks his promises and cons his fellow man?

Or the ordinary fellow who, in times of war and strife,

Goes off to serve his Country and offers up his life?


A politician's stipend and the style in which he lives

Are sometimes disproportionate to the service that he gives.

While the ordinary soldier, who offered up his all,

Is paid off with a medal and perhaps, a pension small.


It's so easy to forget them for it was so long ago,

That the old Bills of our Country went to battle, but we know

It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys,

Who won for us the freedom that our Country now enjoys.


Should you find yourself in danger, with your enemies at hand,

Would you want a politician with his ever-shifting stand?

Or would you prefer a soldier, who has sworn to defend

His home, his kin and Country and would fight until the end?


He was just a common soldier and his ranks are growing thin,

But his presence should remind us we may need his like again.

For when countries are in conflict, then we find the soldier's part

Is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.


If we cannot do him honor while he's here to hear the praise,

Then at least let's give him homage at the ending of his days.

Perhaps just a simple headline in a paper that would say,

Our Country is in mourning, for a soldier died today.

© 1987 A. Lawrence Vaincourt

To all past, current and future service men and women - thank you for all your sacrifices so I and all those I love, can live with freedoms and rights that we take for granted every day. Thank you for your service. Your sacrifices. Thank you for giving us your all. God Bless America and all those true Americans that beleive and fight for the fundamental beliefs and rights that this great country was built on.

Charlie, this is for you. Love me

Friends

A friend is one who walks in when others walk out

-Walter Winchell

This quote hit me hard. It is so true. Honestly true. I have been contemplating it for a long time. How should I write about this without getting angry? Without stirring up emotions that bring tears to my eyes? How do I write something meaningful?

How many friends do you have? Real friends?

I would like to think I have many, many friends but over the years I realize that friends come and go. You have probably received that email that talks about seasons. How some people pass through your life for a reason, how some people fade out of your life and how other people, friends, are there every day. They are a constant in this ever-changing world.

It is hard for me to let people go. I don’t like change. I don’t like losing a friend relationship. I have cried over this many times over the years. I have struggled with understanding people and their messages that they no longer find our once friendship important anymore. They have moved on, let our friendship die and I struggle with coming to their terms. I have to accept their decision. No discussion. Just action. I try repeatedly to open that door that they closed and I find nothing. I have learned to walk away from shut doors over the years and not without emotion. Strong emotions. As I walked away, I realized we are at different stages in our lives. We have little or nothing in common. Thus the closed door.

Does it have to close?

I think in any relationship, like a marriage, one has to work at it. You can’t just expect it to last forever. You grow and change and this affects who you are and all relationships you have.

In todays’ hi-tech world where one has no excuse not to maintain contact and build stronger relationships, we are experiencing even more erosion of communication. Young people today don’t know how to have an actual conversation face-to-face. They don’t know how to spell or speak proper English because they text using abbreviations. They can’t enjoy any sort of social event because everyone has a cell phone in hand.

Hey father, did you just see that great play your son made? No, too busy making that call on family time.

There is light within this heartache of mine. I have some dear, true friends that “talk” to me regularly. In fact, almost every day. I am lucky to have them in my life.

You know who you are. With hugs full of love - This quote is for you!

Seconds

I have finished my second pair of socks! I knitted the first sock without any issues. No dropped stitches! I even figured out how to pickup stitches. I read the pattern directions and the light went off. I don’t know why I didn't understand the directions when I knitted the first pair, but I guess there is a learning curve to everything you do.

The second sock started off well, but I had an extra stitch that I had to knit away and then as I was sewing the toe up, I noticed a dropped stitch. I was so disappointed but I managed to pick it up and fix it. No one will know the difference - except me and I am not telling.

So, these socks were snatched up last night by my daughter as she has been patiently waiting for me to finish them.

Take the bag

I’m stuck. I can’t figure out what flavor is my favorite? I have tried. I give myself a gold star for effort. Maybe two gold stars. I have tried too many today but can I stop? Noooooo...

I can’t stop testing. Savoring the flavors. The wonderful flavors.

Do I like the watermelon better than the very cherry?

Oh, the Dr. Pepper is so wonderful.

Then again so is the orange. The orange sherbet is even better. Where does that leave the blueberry, the peach, the vanilla? Enough…

Take the bag. Take the bag. Take the bag away! I’m going to make myself sick but they are so good.

I love, love, love Jelly Belly beans!

Blue

Berries. Beautiful blueberries. Sweet, delicious berries.

We went blueberry picking on Saturday. The whole family. In the past, I have taken the kids and we would pick a bucket of berries. This year, all of us went to pick. Saturday was a perfect berry-picking day. It was not hot, although the sun was out and it was a clear day. The bugs and bees were not bothering us. In fact, I don’t recall seeing any bees!

Upon arrival, we stopped to gather buckets and containers. The adults got to carry buckets while the children got to wear yogurt containers strung on rope around their necks. The owner told us these containers were ideal as you can pick with both hands. Of course the kids wanted the necklace buckets. Who wouldn’t? I wanted one but I had to carry a bucket. Containers in hand or around necks, we entered the blueberry patch. We started picking in an area that the owner directed us to start in. Ready, set, pick! We were off, plucking plump berries from the bushes and dropping them into our containers or, for some of us, popping them into our mouths! Yummy – just a nice treat to keep me motivated!

The four of us scattered among the bushes and went to work. We’d call everyone to gather if we found the mega-blueberry or if a container had to be dumped. After some pictures were taken by our budding photographer, the guys decided they wanted to roam and pick. Like the surroundings would change that much? So us ladies, went to the outer row and hit the jackpot. We picked and picked. Our daughter was on one side of the row; I was on the other. It was fun. We chatted, sang or just picked. It did not take us long to fill our bucket. As it neared the top, we ventured off to find the men. I could hear our son talking so we wandered, slowly, picking, eating, over to their area. After meeting at the end of the patch (no one really wanted to fight their way through the bushes) we headed to the hut to weigh-in.

Grand total almost 29 pounds of berries. Wow! I never would have thought we had picked that many. After bagging them up and carefully carrying them to the truck, we headed home.

I thought I saw blue at the patch. It took me a long time to wash, sort and pick stems off the berries but eventually we froze most of the blue harvest. In the middle of all the washing, sorting and filling of trays to freeze, I made a hot cup of tea, grabbed my KAF cookbook and browsed recipes using blueberries. I decided to make a blueberry pie. So berries still here, there and everywhere, I made my crust, rolled it out and then mixed up the berries and filled the pie plate. Topped it off with crust, and into the oven it went. As it baked, I finished washing and freezing the berries. I kept some fresh as I planned to make blueberry pancakes for breakfast and to share some with my mom.

Here are some pictures that were taken on our wonderful blueberry picking adventure!

Next weekend, I plan to make blueberry rolls. They sound delicious!

Sock it

I was motivated by a co-worker. She said “just do it”. After seeing her and talking to her about it, I decided I should. So I turned off my self-doubt. That little voice inside that said you cannot do it. Deaf to my inner-voice, I did some research. I thought positive. I started. Yes, I did it.

In order to start, I had to take a trip to the local craft store to buy yarn, double-pointed needles and a pattern booklet. I knitted in the wee mornings of our vacation. It was quiet. I could concentrate. I could read and re-read the pattern. I was able to concentrate. I was off. I started my first sock. Started not once, twice, three times! The fourth time I had the yarn and the needles all in alignment. I was jumping with joy! I am doing it. I was thrilled.



I could not wait to get up each morning and enjoy 1-2 hours of craft time. Socks are not hard to knit. I have read that statement over and over. Yet, I was not sure I could knit them. I like socks. I love the sock yarns. I am so happy that I dove in and attempted to knit a pair.



I have completed my first sock. It has mistakes. One very obvious mistake. Yet, I did not lose sleep over it. It is my first attempt. Solo attempt. I am proud to say I knitted it all by myself, mistakes included! I know how I knitted the error so I won’t do that again. (Although my son, who has claimed possession of the first pair, has repeatedly told me to make the same mistake. I will. I want him happy!) Working with 4 needles was intimidating at first but once I had 3-4 rows knitted, it was easier to work with them. It was fun. FUN!

My daughter has looked through the sock books I have borrowed from the local library. Yes, she has put her order in. Last Saturday we went back to the store, with 50% off coupons in hand, to buy her sock yarn. Her socks will have a fluffy cuff so that will be a challenge to knit with two yarns. I have crocheted many afghans with two yarns so the real challenge, I think, will be working with the fluffy yarn. It is just used on the cuffs so I can knit and purl my way through it.

So after the second pair of socks, I have a hat pattern I have chosen to make for myself. I am looking forward to working on new and challenging projects. I’ll knit the occasional dishcloth (a good way to use leftover yarn), but now that I have broke through the barrier (you can’t knit it, you can’t knit it), I have the confidence to browse patterns and attempt new stitches and projects. Oh the fun I am going to have!

And to top it off, I have joined a sock club. It meets once a month, the group gathers to knit socks, buy yarn (at a discount - club perk) so I may be posting lots of socks in the future.

America the Beautiful

Happy Birthday America!

God Bless all the true Americans. God Bless all the men and women in service now serving and protecting our country. God Bless their families as they live daily without their loved ones near. God Bless all those that have died for and served our country in the past. Our freedoms have not come without a lot of bloodshed, bravery and sacrafice.

Pray for our country this 4th of July. When you hear our national athem, sing loud and clear. Respect our flag and respect our country.

God Bless America!

Packing

We are going on vacation! The time to pack has snuck right up on me. I have my lists (3 to be exact) in hand, ready to face the tasks.

I have what needs to be packed for our children and myself, the personal items that the family will need. Those items that make living together possible – soap, shampoo, and deodorant as well as some comfort items.

I have my list of foods to make, buy and pack. This list has a menu attached to it! I like to bake cookies, muffins or breads to freeze so when we arrive at our destination we have goodies to eat. It is also nice to make salads at home, package and put in the refrigerator upon arrival. I also buy some items that I would not normally purchase for us to have at home. Vacation, after all, is a time to relax, enjoy, and have fun!

We are headed north…to Canada. We have gone to the Portland area twice in the past and have really enjoyed it. It is a small town, complete with a nice store, diner on the lake and a small but wonderful playground. What more could we ask for? However, we had to rent a house we are not familiar with, so we may be father from our little town than we want to be. We are right on the water again with a beach so we won’t complain. We’ll spend a lot of time in and on the water. We have a boat rented, the Big Guy has replaced all the line on the fishing poles and has sorted through (and added to) his tackle box. I think we are ready. I cannot wait to snap shots of the big fish (that did not get away). The fishing is great so I am sure all will have a story or two to tell! Fish for dinner, anyone?

Our daughter vaguely remembers our previous two trips to Portland. It will be the first (out of womb) trip for our son. We have told him about the Hershey factory we will visit as well as a small cheese factory (great curds!) and two quaint towns we like to walk around. Two of us, not me, are excited about visiting a small but wonderful little fudge shop – trying to decide what flavor(s) to purchase. Not that I won’t eat any fudge but it is not what I am anticipating! I am thinking lazy mornings, lots of fun in and on the water in the sunshine, lots of family time and pictures. Total relaxation!

There is still a lot to do before we leave. The majority of the packing is my responsibility (thus the lists). I also have to clean the house before we leave. Check-in time is in the afternoon so we don’t have to leave our home at o’dark-thirty so that is comforting. Leave a clean house – return to a clean house.

I am taking a few knitting projects (quick and simple) that I can work on between snapshots of the big fish and some books have checked out of the library. DVD players will be rigged up in the truck and each child can take 3 movies with them as well as the Leapster and DS. And what would a family vacation be without a few board or card games? Have to be prepared for rainy days or evenings.

After all the prep and packing, I will definitely need a vacation! And the weather forecast looks wonderful!

Free Time

Yes, I have some but shhhhh! Honestly, almost daily, I feel like I am running from the time I get out of bed. However, since I take a bus to work, I have some "free" time. Approximately 40 minutes one way. That adds up over the week and I use my time wisely, if not selfishly. I read or knit. It is a little sad when your town librarian knows your schedule. If I show up early on Fridays, she'll say, "You didn't ride the bus today or are you off?" I tend to read a lot of books and then the kids and I visit every Saturday.

Last week, a co-worker gave me 12 simple patterns for dishcloths so I have been knitting dishcloths. They are fun to knit and very quick. I have made three, as I finished the third one last night after taking these pictures!

Below are the birdhouse, cardinal and bee skep. Next dishcloth will feature a ladybug.

Dip and Roll

I was up earlier than a normal morning as I wanted to make a new muffin recipe. I have wanted to make this recipe for some time now and when I mentioned I planned to make blueberry muffins for our vacation, our daughter asked if I could make a plain muffin for them since they don’t like blueberry muffins. (How can you NOT like delicious muffins with sweet, fresh blueberries?) Anyway, I remembered a recipe I had read when I was flipping through my KA (King Arthur) recipes. Donut muffins! What a perfect choice!

Donut muffins. Not fried. Baked and they look so delicious. My mouth was watering. Butter. Sugar. Flour. Eggs. Nutmeg. A few more ingredients, mix in the flour, alternating with the milk. Fill your tins and bake. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar. A simple recipe. So this morning I mixed the batter up, spooned it into 18 muffin cups, not 12 like the recipe states, and baked.

After 16 minutes in a hot oven, I pulled them out and moved them to a cooling rack.








After melting some butter and mixing up cinnamon-sugar, I was ready to top them. Time to dip and roll.[As suggested in the recipe.] Neater than brushing and sprinkling.








One muffin at a time, I dipped the top into the melted butter, then rolled in the cinnamon sugar. Almost done...


Yes, I tried one. Do I like them? Yes, but before I cast my "keeper" vote, I have to poll the family. I decided to share this batch. I boxed still-warm muffins to take to daycare for a morning snack, one for my bus driver and some for the office.

Error - apparently the link is not working properly (???)! You can go to www.kingarthurflour.com, click on the recipe tab then type in doughnut muffins in the search box and you'll have the recipe.

www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/doughnut-muffins-recipe

Just having a little kitchen fun today! Is there any other way to start the day?

Together again

It's going to happen and I am so excited. Anxious. Counting the days. Planning. Preparing. Anxious. Excited. Going crazy....

My sister and her family will be visiting us in mid-July. I plan to celebrate her July 8 birthday with her when she is here (belated will be good this year)! I have also sent invites out to family members for a reunion at our house. I could really panic and stress about how much I need to do before that day arrives but it is all going to focus on us - family! Good food, good stories, trips down memory lane, lots of picture-taking. I know it will all turn out fine. My grandparents use to throw these gatherings together. Perhaps gram did stress? I am not sure, as I was young and oblivious to the task at hand.

Well, to top off my sisters visit, my brother called from Florida and said, "Hey, when is the reunion? Okay, we'll be there!" Yipee. Kids are now jumping up and down. Uncle Fred is coming.

The icing on the cake, was an email from my mom. Telling me her plans to drive up from Florida, met her brother in North Carolina, and together they'd drive to New York.

Excited. Not one bit. Completely...what? There isn't a word or string of words that capture how I feel. I cannot tell you the last time the three of us have been together with my mom. That fact tells me it has been TOO LONG! I am sure I'll have a story to tell after the visit and reunion.

For now, I count the days, I dig out old photos and I wait. Anxiously, I wait.

Luck or Lucky

Our kids are lucky. In more ways than they understand at the moment. I mean they have two parents that love each other and love them dearly. We provide for them. We spent our time with them. We take time to teach them. We listen to them. We talk with them. The list is long.

To them, lucky can mean so many different things. Insignificant to us but very important to them. Remember sitting in the yard looking for a four-leaf clover? If you found one, you were said to be lucky. So, in accordance to that, we have two lucky children. It does happen and our yard, as big as it is, has thousands of clover in it. So when one child finds a four-leaf clover and proves it to us all, that challenges the other to look and look and look.

Hey, I found one!

What are the odds of that happening? Well, it did. On the same day, within an hour of the first clover being plucked from it's green sea.







We have two four-leaf clovers carefully placed between wax-paper and slipped between the pages of two large books to be pressed. Once that was done, a question was asked. "What do we do with them now?"

Any suggestions!

I am here...

I have written snippets here and there about thoughts I wanted to think on, write about and post. None of them have made it to this blog however and I have some half-written and others just noted. Life seems to be speeding by me and every time I blink, another month has passed. I have to laugh about time and how fast it really ticks by when you are older. Not that I am feeling old or anything!

Next week is the last week of school, Monday through Thursday and only half days at that. Another year is wrapping up. We went to the middle school earlier this week to meet teachers, listen to a presentation, take a tour of the building and receive paperwork, supply lists and homework, summer homework. I am not sure our soon-to-be 5th grader was excited about that. I certainly did not see her jump for joy. Fifth grade is going to be a change for our daughter but she can handle it.

Tomorrow I will spend time with our son in his classroom as his teacher has put together a presentation. A “this is who they were in September and what they have done/learned throughout the school year” presentation. I am excited as our little big guy has learned so much and loves school. We will be visiting the local library on Saturday mornings to further develop his reading skills. He is patient and really enjoys reading so we’ll be reading a lot this summer! I also want to study US geography over the summer. I am still working on the lesson plan.

With the end of school, we will be going on vacation. We will travel north to Portland, Ontario. We have vacationed there twice in the past and really love the area. Lots of boating, fishing, shopping and fun! We plan to visit the Forfar cheese factory, the Hershey factory and we have a day trip planned here and there – walking around small towns and enjoying the food and shops. Most important is the family time and relaxing. We’ll be on vacation so we can do what we want to and when we want to.

After vacation, the kids will be busy with their summer program held at the elementary school. They had fun last year at this program so we decided to let them participate again this year.

The week after we return from vacation, we will have visitors! My sister and her family will be visiting us in mid-July from Texas. Yeah! They finally get to meet our kids and spend some time being tourist in our area. There is a lot to be taken care of before they arrive. It’ll get me motivated to scrub out the refrigerator and the oven as well as some other cleaning I should already have done. We also decided to host a family gathering at our home – an impromptu family reunion. Invites have been mailed so I anxiously head home each night hoping to have lots of voice messages on the phone. I cannot remember the last time we all got together. Obviously it has been too long! I’ll have my camera charged and ready to go and we’ll think of some neat things to do, I’ll pull out old photos and just enjoy the gathering. There is nothing like family. I hope we have a great turnout.

And is it really June? The weather has been wet, wet and gray lately. Although the sun is trying to poke through the clouds, it is still cool. Our garden, although very wet, seems to be doing well. Once I can get in there to weed, I’ll have to write an update. We moved our garden this year to a new spot in our field. We could not have made that happen without our very kind neighbor as he plowed and tilled the area. After getting the fence up and raking, picking rocks and pounding stakes, I managed to get it planted. I am hoping we’ll have a great growing season. I want to can/freeze all that I can. We have freezers to fill and money to save!

We played

We had a beautiful weekend. Not only did we celebrate Easter but we enjoyed the warm, sunny weather. The weather was very warm for this time of year (in the 80’s) but you won’t hear any complaints from us. We enjoyed the sunshine, the warm breeze, the grass under our feet. Ah! It has been a long time since I have been able to open the windows and let the fresh air flow through our house.

We played. We played in the dirt as I am trying to rid my one flower garden of a ground cover. To do that, it is necessary to remove the roots of this ground cover. So with shovel in hand, I dig, and our children dig through to find those roots. We put them all in a bucket and move around the garden. I think we did a thorough job so far but time will provide that proof of our efforts. Our son also collected worms as he enjoys fishing in our lower pond.

One activity leads to another. We played in the water. Fishing poles, worms and a place to sit – that was all we needed to go fishing. He caught around 12 fish and he was happy. He could fish all day if we would sit on the bank with him. He doesn’t need help with baiting the hook or removing the fish so I sit and we talk. It is a nice time for casual conversation.













All this activity tends to take us inside. Fresh air seems to affect a persons’ appetite. That or our children are experiencing a growth spurt! We eat quick lunches but we prepare for our Easter celebration. A little bit of this and a little of that, and we are on our way to creating a tasty pie. With the leftover pie dough, our son creates an individual apple pie. Oh so yummy! With little assistance from me, our daughter follows the recipe and creates a delicious three-layer no-bake dessert. She does a great job and when she is unsure, she calls for me.

Meanwhile, I play in the water – dish duty for mom!

No Vacancy

Our little red barn is full! It no longer houses our lawn tractor, lawn chairs and other miscellaneous items that we store in it over the winter months. After being swept clean again before putting down shavings and straw, filling the feeder and cleaning out and filling the water buckets, we set them free.


Our three little pigs in their new home! Meet Buck, Buttons and Spottie. This is our third year raising pigs. They are adorable! Especially when they have a clump of mud stuck on their pink little snout. They love to rut and run around kicking up their feet.

This is their third week with us and they are getting more comfortable with us getting in the pen with them. They have developed a taste for the fresh, green grass we pick for them and feed them. They also like to nibble on our boots, knees, clothing – you have to be aware of where they are and what they are doing.

Yesterday we had to corral them into their barn. I became a vet for 15 minutes. While John held them, I swabbed behind an ear and administered one shot to each pig. (They have very thick skin). The kids did not like the squealing so our daughter ran to the swing set. Our little big guy was my assistant, handing me the cotton balls and bottle of rubbing alcohol, until it was time for his pig to get the shot. He left because he said he could not watch.

One, two, three and they were all out running in their yard, enjoying the sunshine.

Every Day Life

Happy New Year. Happy Valentine’s Day. Happy Birthday and I hope you celebrated St. Patrick’s Day!

Three months have passed and I keep saying, I should write something. So here goes, as I write something.

We have been enjoying beautiful spring weather. Yesterday it was almost 70 here. My mom emailed me stating NY had warmer weather (by 5 degrees) than Ocala, FL. That doesn’t happen very often! But is has been a strange year regarding weather.

I am anxious to start digging in the dirt. I have two flower beds that I want to create. One around the birdfeeder and one, with the kids help, around the graves of our dogs.

The ice has disappeared from the lower pond and although the upper pond had some ice still, the salamanders are swimming around. We know the water is still very cold as the Big Guy fell in the lower pond (just got water in one boot) as he was trying to push the ice with his walking stick. Good lesson for the kids – don’t play with the ice on the ponds. Don’t play around the ponds - period. It is too cold for me to jump in after you. I would, but I definitely would not like it.

The big guy had is birthday in February and we’ll celebrate mine at the end of this month. We made him a massive white chocolate cake that we shared with family and friends. It was definitely delicious and rich. One small, thin piece was enough. And it was the heaviest cake I have ever made.

The kids have enjoyed parties at school for Valentine's and St. Patrick’s Day. I don’t remember St. Patrick’s day being celebrated as much when I was in school. Did you know that if you don’t wear green, the leprechaun will pinch you throughout the day? I completely missed that custom. I did, however, wear green on Wednesday so I did not receive any pinches. Our son won the green contest in our house. He was green from head to toe and had a fun-filled day!

New news! Our daughter has her first pair of glasses. I took her to the eye doctor to have her eyes tested due to some comments she made and yes, for the time, she needs glasses for distance. She picked out a great frame and she went home the same day with glasses on and saying, “I can see, I can see!” So glad she is happy and wants to wear them. She said she received nice comments from many people so that made me happy. Kids can be some mean and ruthless and I was concerned about name calling. Their school works hard to promote a caring community and their efforts have been rewarded. So here she is, looking studious and older…



We also had dental appointments for the family. Great checkups for all of us so we go back in six months.

Stay tuned as I will be writing more and posting some pictures as we are getting our 3 piglets tomorrow. The Big Guy gets to put his muck boots on and become a farmer for six months.