Better late than never…

I am way behind schedule again today.  Out running errands to Wal*Mart, K-Mart and the grand opening of the Aldi store that moved across town.  I found the second book in the O’Dwyer trilogy by Nora Roberts at Wal*Mart.

Book Two of The Cousins O’Dwyer Trilogy
Shadow Spell

“With the legends and lore of Ireland running through his blood, falconer Connor O’Dwyer is proud to call County Mayo home. It’s where his sister, Branna, lives and works, where his cousin, Iona, has found true love, and where his childhood friends form a circle that can’t be broken…

A circle that is about to be stretched out of shape—by a long-awaited kiss.
Meara Quinn is Branna’s best friend, a sister in all but blood. Her and Connor’s paths cross almost daily, as Connor takes tourists on hawk walks and Meara guides them on horseback across the lush countryside. She has the eyes of a gypsy and the body of a goddess…things Connor has always taken for granted—until his brush with death propels them into a quick, hot tangle.

Plenty of women have found their way to Connor’s bed, but none to his heart until now. Frustratingly, Meara is okay with just the heat, afraid to lose herself—and their friendship—to something more. But soon, Connor will see the full force and fury of what runs in his blood. And he will need his family and friends around him when his past rolls in like the fog, threatening an end to all he loves”

Picture and review courtesy of www.amazon.com.

I hate getting hooked on trilogies.  But then I love to read so who cares??

Sunny and warm here today at 64 degrees right now.  The wind is the big factor  as it is gusting at 30 MPH. 

Have a great week.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

A big welcome back….

to Jenny D.  http://jennydshappyhours.blogspot.com/  She has faced many trials the past couple of years.  She is back now and I am so happy to hear from her.  Please get in touch with Jenny as she is concerned about all of her old blogging friends.  Thank you!!

I am moving away from salmon and creamed peas.  Today I am making chicken and dressing.  I have the chicken baking  in the oven right now.  I will also fix some mashed potatoes and gravy and a veggie of some kind.  I am not overly fond of  veggies but I force myself to eat them because they are good for you.

And speaking of veggies, Jane asked how I make creamed peas.  I have developed a fool proof way to make perfect creamed peas every time.  Put one tablespoon of butter in a saucepan, add 2 level tablespoons of flour.  Cook on medium heat and stir the flour and butter together like you were going to make a roux or gravy.  When the flour and butter have come together pour in the can of peas liquid and all stirring constantly until the peas are thickened and begin to bubble.  Remove from heat and add any seasonings that you like.  Now this is a veggie that I like!

It is another dreary day here again in the mid 40s.  I am really wanting to see the sun as the grey skies are very depressing.

I have read 4 books this week and they were not little tiny ones either.  The one that I just finished was Prey by Linda Howard.

 

“Thirty-two-year-old Angie Powell has always spoken her mind, but in the presence of Dare Callahan she nurses a simmering rage. Three years ago, Dare returned home to rural Montana and opened a hunting business to rival Angie’s own, forcing her to close up shop. The infuriatingly attractive Iraq war vet even had the nerve to ask Angie out, not once but twice. Before Angie leaves town, she organizes one last trip into the wilderness with a client. But the adrenaline-fueled adventure turns deadly when Angie witnesses a cold-blooded murder and finds herself on the wrong side of a gun. Then a bear comes crashing through the woods—changing the dark game completely. Luckily, Dare is camping nearby and comes to her aid. Forced together for survival, Angie and Dare must confront hard feelings, a blinding storm, and a growing attraction—while a desperate killer and a ferocious five-hundred-pound beast stalk their prey.”

Picture and review courtesy of www.amazon.com.

This is one of those books that you don’t want to put down for a bathroom run or to fix something to eat.  Linda Howard is an excellent writer although the phrases she uses sometimes are a bit salty.  I just ignore this and concentrate on the story and she rarely disappoints me.

Have a blessed day!  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Another dreary…

cloudy day here right in the heart of Illinois.  It is 45 degrees and windy out.  I have been to  Kroger, Food Depot and Schnucks this morning in addition to a couple of other places so I am running behind schedule.  All things grind to a stop at 11AM while I stop whatever I am doing to watch The Young and the Restless.

The cherry coffee cake was good.  I sent most of it to my daughter’s house.

I also made salmon patties yesterday and fixed creamed peas,  I love the salmon patties and I had a cold one for lunch today.

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Salmon Patties

•14 to 15 ounce can of red or pink salmon
•1/2 tube of finely crushed Ritz crackers
•1 egg
•1 heaping tablespoon of Miracle Whip

Drain and remove bones and the yukky stuff from the salmon. Add the egg, miracle whip and crushed crackers. Mix thoroughly. Pat into 4 or 5 patties. No need to add salt because the crackers are salted. You may add some pepper or Mrs. Dash if you like.

Spray a skillet with cooking spray. Put patties in skillet and spray tops of patties with cooking spray. Cook over medium heat until brown on one side; turn over and brown on the other side.

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Have a wonderful weekend.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Rain, rain….

tapping on my window pane.  It is dark and dreary this morning at 38 degrees .  The rain is falling and it put paid to my going grocery shopping this morning.

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Verb[edit]

put paid to (third-person singular simple present puts paid to, present participle putting paid to, simple past and past participle put paid to)

1. To mark a bill or a debt record as "paid".  [quotations ▼]
2. (chiefly to terminate; to cancel (plans or expectations); to stop something once and for all

   The rain put paid to our plans for a picnic.

   ***************************************************************

There is a lot of things I could do this morning but is there really any sense in cleaning when the rain is coming down??  I thought not.  Perhaps I will dig around in the freezer and find something good to cook for myself.  I know that I have one more rib eye  steak in the freezer,  Also I think I might be in the mood to bake something. 

How does this sound?

Cherry Coffee Cake

• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 can cherry pie filling
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar glaze

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly spray bottom and sides of 15”X10” (jelly roll) pan.
2. In large bowl,stir cake mix, oil, water, vanilla and eggs until batter forms.
3. Set aside 3/4 cup batter.  Spread remaining batter evenly in pan.  Spread pie filling evenly over batter in pan.  Drop remaining batter, 1 tablespoonful at a time onto pie filling, spreading slightly.
4. Bake about 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center of cake comes out clean,  Drizzle glaze over warm coffee cake.

Glaze:
2 tbsp. warm milk
1 1/2 c. confectioners' sugar
Blend together thoroughly.

I always like to bake something when I have all of the ingredients on hand.  I also use a 13x9 pan for this recipe (extend baking time a few minutes) although I do have a 15x10 pan that I use for Texas Sheet Cake.

And there, see, I have outlined my day and it doesn’t include one bit of cleaning.  I hope you all have a great day.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Beautiful but cold…,

Wednesday morning in Central Illinois.  It is 19 degrees but the sun is shining brightly, and my front yard is hosting some robins and cardinals.  I heard the birds singing so prettily as I walked out my front door to go the few feet to the laundry room at 7AM.  Spring is really here!

To answer a question from my blogging friend in Tasmania.  When I  said hot of an oven I was merely referring to the fact that I thought a 425 degree oven temperature was too hot for my glass pie plate and so I set the oven for 375 degrees.

To answer a question from Vee, the X on  the properties damaged by the tornado was done using orange spray paint.  My neighbor across the street is about my age and lives alone.  She has been trying to clean the X off and has only lightened it some.  I think her garage door will have to be painted.  At least she has a new roof now but her gutter hasn’t been replaced yet.

I have a dental appointment this morning for an exam.  I have to go to the dentist for a checkup every 3 months now since the radiation.  That is truly the pits as I hate going to the dentist. 

I fixed spaghetti yesterday and I used a different sauce, Classico.  As expensive as it was I thought it would really be good.  I was really disappointed so from now on it is back to the Ragu.  I always made homemade pasta sauce when my kids were small.  When I think back on all I did in those days I am amazed.  I worked a 40 hour a week job but I managed to keep my house in good shape and I thoroughly cleaned the whole house spring and fall, even down to emptying the cupboards in the kitchen and washing all of the dishes.  I wish I had 1/10th of that energy now.  Today I manage to clean the bathroom once a week.  Many times I just look around and think ‘oh well’ and grab a book and sit down and read.

I finished an old book yesterday.  ‘The Wedding’ by Dorothy Garlock.   http://www.dorothygarlock.com/books.htm  Sadly this book is no longer in print which means I got it at a garage sale last summer.  I had forgotten how much I enjoy her books.  If you haven’t read any of her books, give her a try.  I know that you won’t be disappointed.

I have to go check on my laundry now.  Have a wonderful day, listen to the birds singing and do stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

The work has begun…

Workmen arrived early yesterday morning to start repairing the roof on the house directly across the street from me that was damaged in the tornado.  They worked until 5PM and got all of the shingles and tarpaper off the roof.  They covered it with tarp to protect it from the snow that was predicted last night.  (We got just a trace)

Here is a picture of the house after a tree had been removed from the roof a few  days after the tornado.  Notice the trees in the back that had the tops sheared off them.  Also take note of the orange X that was painted on her garage door.  She has been trying unsuccessfully to get that removed.

The workmen are just starting on the roof yesterday morning.  To the left of the picture you can see another tree that had the top sheared off.  There is a lot of rebuilding going on around me right now.  I still have the cracks in my wall under the kitchen window.  I suppose I will have to bug the office like I did the window to get that taken care of.  Their stock answer is that they are waiting for insurance approval.  HA!

I have some errands to run.  I will stop by to visit you all later.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

 

I’m back….

tired but happy.  It was nice having my family all together again.  The food was good and I sent the leftovers all home with the kids.

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I used a recipe from www.allrecipes.com for the raisin pie.

"Raisins are plumped in water, and brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, vinegar and butter are stirred in. The filling is poured into a pastry shell, covered with a top crust, and baked in a hot oven for 30 minutes. Cool and serve with ice cream."

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups raisins

2 cups water

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar

1 tablespoon butter

1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust

pie

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Combine raisins and water in a small saucepan. Boil 5 minutes. Blend brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt together; add to hot raisins. Cook and stir until syrup is clear. Remove from heat, and stir in vinegar and butter or margarine. Cool slightly.

2.  Turn filling into a pastry lined pan. Cover with top crust. Seal edges, and cut slits in the top crust.

3.  Bake at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 30 to 35 minutes.

This is what my pie looked like.  I didn’t use that hot of an oven.  I used a 375 degree oven and it took about 45 minutes to bake.  I was afraid to use that hot of an oven with my glass pie pan.

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The brownies were courtesy of a Duncan Hines mix.

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The macaroni salad was a big hit.  I tweaked a recipe around that I found on the net.

I cooked a 12 ounce package of Barilla  tri-color rotini pasta about 10 minutes.  Then I drained and rinsed it under cold water.

I had already cooked several slices of bacon until crisp.  I diced the bacon into small pieces.

In a large bowl I mixed l bottle of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing with 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder.

I diced 1 green bell pepper that had been washed and seeded.

I diced 1 stalk of celery.

I added the pasta to the ranch dressing mix and folded in the bacon, green pepper and celery.  I then added 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese and mixed it all together.

This salad was really good and the first pasta salad that I have eaten that I really liked.

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I hope you all have a good week.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

 

Spring has sprung…

Spring has sprung and the sun’s not hid

I saw more robins, yes I did!!

And that is my contribution to poetry.  A poet I am not!

It is a beautiful day.  The sun is shining brightly with hardly any wind and the temp is in the 50s.  It actually feels like spring today. 

 I have been to Kroger’s and picked up a few things which amounted to almost $80.  You see, our Kroger store is in the process of remodeling and they have several rows of clearance items and for some reason I can’t pass up a bargain whether I need it or not.  On the downside they are changing all of the aisles around and it takes forever to find anything.  It took me 4 years to know where everything in the store was and now I have to learn all over again.

Tomorrow I make the raisin pie, brownies, macaroni salad, and potato salad.  I found a recipe on the internet for macaroni salad with bacon and ranch dressing, etc.  I have decided on that recipe.  I probably won't be online for the next couple of days.

Enjoy this lovely day that He has given us!  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Just think….

tomorrow is the first day of Spring.  I think I started counting down at 77 days. 

The snow is all melted from the ground except for gigantic dirty snow banks in the parking lots at the store.  It is 44 degrees with an expected high of 45 degrees.  It is pouring down rain very nicely right now.  I had planned to go to Kroger for a few things this morning but I will wait until tomorrow now.

My son is coming home this weekend and we are celebrating his birthday which is April 8th.  I am getting ready to fix requested things such as a raisin pie which I haven’t made for some 40 odd years.  Also macaroni salad which I haven’t fixed in a blue moon.  If anyone has an exceptional easy recipe for macaroni salad please send it to me in an email.  I also have purchased a spiral sliced ham.  This will be mostly things I can fix the day before.  I think I will make the mandarin orange salad too which I love.

I have an update on my brother.  He saw the surgeon yesterday morning.  The surgeon didn’t agree with the radiologist that had read the CT scan.  So my brother will be scheduled for further tests until someone makes up their mind.  Very nerve wracking  for my brother and his wife and for Rae and me too.  I will keep you updated and thank you all for your prayers.

I saw my first robin day before yesterday.  I was in my car and I was mesmerized by the sight of it.  It doesn’t take much to make me happy.

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And for my friend Mari in Madrid who is learning English:

 

mes·mer·ize

ˈmezməˌrīz/

verb

past tense: mesmerized; past participle: mesmerized

1.  

   hold the attention of (someone) to the exclusion of all else or so as to transfix them.

2. ********************************************

Yesterday I took a list of things to the rental office that I wanted done  before I signed my lease the first of April.  I came home yesterday and there were 2 guys inside here fixing all of the things I had on my list, including changing a light bulb  in the kitchen.  I will say that all of the guys that do maintenance here are really great!!  Very efficient and friendly.

I hope the sun is shining for you all today.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

 

 

Happy St. Patricks’s Day…

“There are only two kinds of people in the world, The Irish and those who wish they were !”  an old Irish proverb.

I claim to be half Irish on my daddy’s side.  Heaven knows my maiden name is proof of that.  I have never traced my daddy’s roots but I know that my cousin Mike in Missouri has been trying to do this.    Actually that is how I found my cousin Mike and cousin Bryce and various relatives in south central Missouri.  One day I typed my dad’s name into google and that is how I found Mike and Bryce.  They were searching for our mutual grandfather.  I happen to have a picture of my grandfather on my dad’s side which I sent to them.  In fact the picture is posted in the left column of my blog.  My dad looked just like him.

 

My sis Rae brought this back for me when she visited Ireland several years ago.  I love it!

It is still cold and windy here this morning but I take heart in the fact that it is only 2 days till the first day of Spring.  Hope this week is a good one for us all!

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Winter is back…

It is 25 degrees right now and the wind is gusting from the Northeast at 29 miles per hour to reach a high of 30 degrees today.  Sure doesn’t feel like it is only 3 days till the first day of Spring.

I did nothing yesterday except to eat and read.  Very boring.  I did fix myself a really nice meal and I even made one of my semi-homemade peach pies.

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Peach Pie

•1 package Pillsbury (refrigerated) ready to use 2 pie crusts
•1 large can of peach slices (do not drain)
•1 cup sugar
•3 tablespoons flour
•1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix the flour, cinnamon and sugar together in a medium size saucepan (use your fingers so there are no lumps) Add the peaches, juice included to the flour/sugar mixture. Stir to mix the ingredients together. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to thicken and starts to bubble. Remove from heat.

Line 9 inch pie tin with the bottom crust. Pour the filling in. Dot the top of filling with margarine or butter. Add the top crust. Crimp edges together. Cut slits in top and sprinkle with sugar. Place pie on a foil lined cookie sheet. Bake in a 375 degree preheated oven until pie is golden brown and juice is bubbling out of the slits, about 45 – 50 minutes.

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I hope the sun is shining wherever you are.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

A beautiful day….

in the heart of central Illinois.  The sun is shining brightly at 40 degrees.  The temperature is expected to climb into the mid 50s today.  It is 4 days on the countdown till spring.  It is a great day to be alive!  And aren’t you glad we both are?

I am having a problem getting used to DST.  I am going to bed earlier but sleeping later.  I just don’t want to get up for some reason.

I have changed the bedding and I was fortunate no one was in the laundry room so I have the bedding in the dryer right now. 

Yesterday I ran several errands and even bought another lotto ticket.  I only buy one ticket because that is all it takes.  It pains me to report that I didn’t have one number.  I just donated $1 to the state of Illinois.  I am not sure what the lottery money is used for???

I am splurging today and I am having a ribeye steak, baked potato and green beans.  I rarely eat red meat, usually only chicken and fish.  And speaking of chicken, I ate on the rotisserie chicken from Costo all week.  I finished it up yesterday with creamed chicken on Grands big old fluffy, fat laden, calorie heavy  biscuits.  Those things are delicious but one biscuit has enough calories to take care of one whole meal. 

I think I might bake something today too just for the fun of it.

I hope you all have a peaceful weekend.  I will keep you all updated on my brother and when the surgery will be.  That will be decided on Tuesday when he has an appointment with the surgeon.  Thank you all for your prayers.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Memories are made of this….

While reading a wonderful post yesterday by Susie S  I started thinking about growing up with 7 siblings quite a long time ago, although at times it seems like only yesterday.

I am number 6 of 8 children.  Our family was very poor. While I was growing up  I wasn’t overly concerned about this because most of the kids I went to school with came from a poor family too.  Our entertainment came from being barefoot and playing softball in the street on warm summer evenings.  The days were pretty full with household tasks.

Mom always had a big garden and we spent long hours in the summer time working in it.  Mom made us sun bonnets to wear.  The garden work fell mostly on my next older sister, my younger sister and me.  My 2 older sisters had married young and left home.  This in itself brings back a memory for me that is hard to remember but it is always there.  When my next to the oldest sister married and left home I remember dreaming almost every night about her.  The dream was nothing but the color of orange and thoughts of her.  You see she had always been like a second mother to me and I was broken hearted when she left home.

I can remember when she was dying of lung cancer quite a few years ago that Jim and I would try to get across the state to visit her as often as we could.  I can remember her saying to her husband that she and I were always ‘tight.’  I was her little sister and I was special to her and she was special to me.

My mother did not have an easy time of it.  It was hard for her to be able to put enough together to feed us all.  I remember many a meal of cornbread and milk.  I also remember the rows and rows of lima beans spread out to dry on newspapers in the attic.  We had planted those seeds and picked and shelled those beans.  Many things I had to eat as a child such as dandelion and turnip greens, spinach, wilted lettuce, etc. I will not touch to this day.  I do love lima beans though.

My younger sis, my next older sis and I were always close.  Just writing these words is bringing tears to my eyes.  I lost my next older sister to pancreatic cancer in December 1997.  She would always call me each morning about 6 AM and to this day when my phone rings early in the morning I think of her.

I miss my brothers and sisters that are gone and my mom and daddy!  My youngest brother was just diagnosed on Wednesday with a mass in his stomach.  He is to see a surgeon on Tuesday.  My niece and brother in law in WV are not doing well either.  My mind is in a turmoil and I am praying a lot for them.  I would be so grateful if you would join me with a prayer or  a kind thought.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Oh what a morning…

It is cold here this morning.  It was about 15 when I got up but  It has warmed up some now.  I still  have snow on my car from yesterday.  The snow didn’t amount to much, about 1 and 1/2 inches.  More snow up north of here.  It is only 6 more days till the first day of Spring.

My telephone service is out  this morning.  Thank heaven for a cell phone.  I have to keep in touch with my family as several family members are going through health issues right now.  I switched from Comcast to iTV-3 about a year ago.  The customer service from Comcast was very poor.  I like iTV-3 for their customer service.  The worst thing about them is that the telephone service is sometimes sporadic.  That is irritating!  Would I go back to Comcast?  NO!!  Not even for those promised $200 visa cards I keep getting in the mail from them.  To me the most important thing about a cable company is customer service and reliability.

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for my friend Mari in Spain who learning to speak English.  Stop by and say hi to Mari if you have a chance.  She is a very talented artist.

spo·rad·ic

[spuh-rad-ik]

adjective

1.

(of similar things or occurrences) appearing or happening at irregular intervals in time; occasional:sporadic renewals of enthusiasm.

2.

appearing in scattered or isolated instances, as a disease.

3.

isolated, as a single instance of something; being or occurring apart from others.

 

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Oh, Oh, just as I am sitting here typing this the telephone service is back up so I guess I will quit complaining and just thank God for this beautiful sunshiny day. 

Take care.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Winter is back…

and there is snow on the ground again, not a lot but it is still snowing.   What happened to the beautiful weather that we had for the last 3 days?  It is only 7 more days till spring so this weather has to end sometime.  I am not holding my breath though.

Yesterday was a busy morning.  I had a hair appointment then  a trip to the post office, then stopped by Food Depot for a few items (including a lotto ticket for Mega Millions which is over $300 million right now) then a bite to eat then home.

I am sitting here drinking a Carnation Instant Breakfast while I am typing this.  Did you know that stuff comes in bottles now like Boost and Ensure?  Not too bad.  I keep some Boost on hand for when I want a quick breakfast or supper. 

Monday while at Costco I got a rotisserie chicken.  They cost $4.99 and the chicken is a fairly good size.  I took the meat from the bones and used the carcass to make homemade chicken vegetable soup. Cook carcass in boiling water for a few minutes.  Remove rest of meat and strain broth,  I then refrigerated it overnight so I was able to remove the fat from it yesterday morning.  I diced one large carrot, 2 diced stalks of celery, 1 large potato diced , some frozen peas and a diced onion.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about one hour.  Add seasonings and more chicken if desired.  If you don’t have enough broth add a can of Swanson chicken broth.  I really enjoyed the soup.  I don’t eat nearly enough veggies and this really seemed to satisfy me.

And now what am I going to do with the rest of the day?  It is too messy to go anywhere and I would have to clean my car off again.  That alone puts me out of the mood to do anything.

I hope you all have a good day.  Stay safe and be happy!

Beth

 

Spring is coming….

Another beautiful morning checking in at 38 degrees.  It is to reach the upper 50s today.  It is 8 more days till the first day of Spring,  I know that spring is coming because I have seen numerous birds the last couple of days.  No robins yet but I know they are on their way!

I got up early to do laundry this morning.  It was still dark at 7 AM  It is just now starting to get light.  I am not a fan of DST.  I am a fan of baseball though and I am getting ready to cheer my ST Louis Cardinals on to another winning season.  Perhaps we will end up facing the Red Sox again and have another chance.

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St. Louis Cardinals

1. The St. Louis Cardinals, a team based in St. Louis, Missouri, compete in the National League Central Division of Major League Baseball. Busch Stadium has served as their home field since 2006. Wikpedia

Founded: 1882

Arena/Stadium: Busch Stadium

Manager: Mike Matheny

Location: St. Louis

Mascot: Fredbird

World Series championships: 1926, 1931, 1934, 1942, 1944, 1946, 1964, 1967, 1982, 2006, 2011

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Louis_Cardinals

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I have to get busy now as I have a hair appointment at 10AM.  Catch you all later.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Clarification…

To begin with I didn’t wake up Sunday morning with no way to hold my head that didn’t hurt.  That is the first line of the song  ‘Sunday Morning Coming Down’ written by Kris Kristofferson and a smash hit for Johnny Cash.  I keep forgetting that not everyone is a Johnny Cash fan.  I do thank you all for the well wishes though.

It is starting out to be a lovely day.  The sun is shining brightly and the temp is to reach into the 60s today.  What a treat that will be.  It will help to melt down some of those mountain high dirty snow piles around here.  I am planning a trip to Costco this morning to see what they have new for spring.

And speaking of spring, it is only 9 more days till the first day of spring.  Yesterday I saw a woodpecker and several sparrows and a couple of black birds, all hovering in the front yard on some bare spots where the snow has melted.  The squirrels in the front yard have gotten really skinny over winter too and they were digging trying to find their buried acorns.

I am stalled on the spring cleaning simply because I don’t want to do it.  When it dries up outdoors perhaps I will get back in the mood.  For now I just want to go outside and shout at the top of my lungs that I have survived this record breaking winter.  That said I just bet that we have some more snow starting tomorrow night into Wednesday morning.  No, I don’t have to bet on that as that is what the weather person has predicted.

I hope your week is great.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Sunday Morning Coming Down…

Shades of Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson.  http://www.kriskristofferson.com/

“Well I woke up Sunday morning with no way to hold my head that didn’t hurt”  And it was 8 AM and Daylight Savings Time had just begun and my day was starting an hour earlier or later, whichever way you choose to view DST.  I just wish that they would leave the time one way or the other.

I made the banana bread yesterday and it is delicious.  No chocolate chips and I didn’t even put nuts in it this time.  Below is a picture of the scene that Jim was watching in July 2006.

If you want to click on this pic to make it larger you can see more clearly the postman across the street.  We had a post office box but the mail in our neighborhood was delivered about 9 AM each day.  You could set your clock by it.  Across the street on the corner lives one of my best friends Jo.  I sure do miss her.  The young man driving the equipment is the son of one of the city leaders.  One nice thing about living in a small town is that the sons and daughters of the biggies in the town don’t ever have to worry about a summer job or a lifetime job if they want it,  I think it might be called nepotism but perhaps I am growing a bit cynical in my old age.

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nep·o·tism

noun \ˈne-pə-ˌti-zəm\

: the unfair practice by a powerful person of giving jobs and other favors to relatives

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The time is growing short on the countdown till Spring.  It is only 10 more days!  It a beautiful sunny day here to reach the 40s.  Tomorrow in the mid 50s!  Hooray!

Have a peaceful day.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

 

Good news and….

Thanks to the reader who commented on my post yesterday correctly identifying my vine.  It is the cardinal vine.  http://awaytogarden.com/cardinal-climber-and-its-cousins-annual-vines-that-are-hummingbird-favorites/  I am going to see if I can be allowed to plant it around the light pole at the end of the driveway.

I got wonderful news yesterday after a visit to the Cancer Clinic headed by my oncologist and the ENT surgeon.  I am officially in remission.  I will have to visit the cancer clinic ever 2 months.  No pet or ct scans unless they find something in my examination.   Thank you God!!!  And thanks for all of the well wishes and prayers from my blogging friends.

It is now 11 days on the countdown till Spring.  Not very spring like here today.  In the low 30s with some kind of precipitation going on out there.  I am not sure what kind.  To be in the mid to upper 50s on Monday.  Sounds heavenly!

Daylight savings time starts tomorrow.  Time to set the clocks ahead 1 hour.  It takes time for me to get used to this.  I don’t like it.

I am all set to make the banana bread today using my tried and true recipe that I have used for the last 40 years or more.

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Banana Bread

This is the recipe I have used for banana bread for all of my married life. Jim loved it. I will never forget him sitting in by the front window in July 2006 eating banana bread and drinking a glass of milk while he was watching the city finally put a new curb in front of our house.

•1 cup margarine
•2 cups sugar
•4 eggs
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•2 teaspoons soda
•4 cups of flour
•6 large ripe bananas mashed
•1 cup chopped pecans (may use walnuts) optional

Have oven preheated to 350 degrees. Sift the dry ingredients together and set aside. Cream the margarine, sugar and eggs together. Add the flour mixture together alternately with the mashed bananas to the creamed mixture. Fold in the pecans. Pour into two loaf pans (or several small loaf pans) that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for approximately 1 hour for lg loaf pans. Watch smaller pans. Bread is done when the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

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Have a peaceful weekend.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Hooray….

only 12 more days till Spring.  And we are to have a heat wave today.  It is  34 degrees right now to climb up to 46 degrees by afternoon.  I can live with that.

Yesterday was grocery shopping day.  My daughter went with me and we went to Kroger and Schnucks to shop the bargains.  I purchased strawberries and blueberries.  It is too early for the strawberries and they are tasteless.  I love the local strawberries in June.  I will freeze the blueberries  for blueberry muffins a bit later.  No good buys in the store this week.  I did find a bag of bananas for 99 cents.  All in good shape, just broken apart from the bunch but not overly ripe.  I will make banana bread tomorrow from my own recipe not Chef John’s.  My kids informed me that they like banana bread without chocolate chips in it. 

I have doctor appointments today, just a checkup to see how I am doing since my treatment.  I like both of these  doctors, both very nice and caring.

I have started spring cleaning in the kitchen.  The shelves are all cleaned out.  I probably should have waited on this until the cracks on the wall (caused by the tornado) are fixed. I did run out of shelf liners but it is all cleaned and a bunch of junk put in the garbage.  How do we accumulate so much stuff.  I have only been here 4 years and I couldn’t believe the stuff I was saving.

I am still working on cleaning out my CD collection.  I have donated to Goodwill and sent to some of my blogging friends and to my WV sis and her family and I still have several hundred.  Some I guess I can’t bear to part with.

Sharing another picture from home.

I don’t know what the name of this vine is.  The hummingbirds loved the flowers on this.  Jim and I would sit on the back porch and watch them.  Beautiful!

I need to close now.  I will be around to visit in a  little while.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Continuing the countdown….

Only 14 days to go on the countdown till Spring.  It is 23 degrees right now with snow showers.  My daughter came over yesterday and finished shoveling my car out.  THANKS!! 

I did run some errands yesterday morning and got started on the spring cleaning.  Nothing drastic but it is a start.  Today I am cleaning out the drawers in the kitchen and putting in new lining.  Not a favorite thing to do but needs to be done.

Sharing some photos from my flowers at my old home.

The hens and chickens were started from some we brought from Jim’s mom’s house many years ago.  I brought two containers of them when I moved here and they are flourishing.

Have a lovely peaceful day.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

 

 

Another cold Monday….

at 6 below zero.  We got about 6 inches of snow all totaled and the temperature plummeted.  It is bright and sunny this morning.  It is supposed to warm up a bit gradually this week.  I hope so as I have appointments with my oncologist and surgeon on Friday.  There are 16 more days till Spring.

I went out yesterday afternoon to clean the snow off my car.  When they clean the driveway they blow the snow high behind my car and when they snow blow the sidewalk they blow it up against my tires.  Yesterday about finished me off as it was so cold and the snow was the heavy kind.  I am really hoping this was our last major snowfall of the year as my poor old body can’t take much more. 

From the shrub behind the garage at my old home taken 18 April 2006.  I don’t have anything beautiful like that in my yard here.  Just a magnificent old oak tree in the front yard and lots of squirrels.  I haven’t seen a bird all winter.  Since I am renting I can’t put up a bird feeder.

I am busy doing laundry this morning.  Then I need to do some dusting and cleaning.

I hope you all have a good week.  Stay safe and be happy!

Beth

More snow…

and bitter cold but what else is new.  I am so expecting it.  My car is a giant snowball again and I will have to try and get it cleaned off when the snow is all finished.  The countdown till Spring is hanging in there at 17 days.  Next Sunday Daylight Savings Time begins.  I am not looking forward to that at all.  I will take my daylight in the morning instead of evening.

I am reading a new Lisa Jackson book that I ordered from Amazon titled Memories.  Actually it is two of her books from the late 1990s.  Have you noticed that the really popular authors are releasing a lot of their earlier works at the price of their new books?  I don’t remember reading this one before so I am enjoying it.

A HUSBAND TO REMEMBER

“Nikki Carrothers wakes in an island hospital with no memory of her past, how she got there or of Trent McKenzie—the man claiming to be her husband. Though she's undeniably attracted to him, Nikki's not sure he can be trusted. Even as her memory returns, he's the one piece of the puzzle that remains a mystery.”

 

NEW YEAR'S DADDY

“Veronica Walsh is haunted by the memory of her late husband, having lost him years ago in a ski accident. Now she focuses solely on her daughter, Amy, certain that no man could ever fill the void in her broken heart—until Travis Keegan comes along.”

All material is from www.amazon.com.

Have a peaceful Sunday.  stay safe and be happy!

Beth

I never realized….

how naïve I was until I started dealing with  iPad, iTunes and Amazon MP3 downloads.  You see, to begin with my blogging Twin sent me an iTunes gift card at Christmas,  I had to ask my Twin how to use it.  I did and I downloaded The Essential Ray Price album (41 songs) to my iPad with no problem.  I have an $8.30 credit with iTunes and each time I try to use it I go through such a rigmarole and I am never able to complete it.  

Anyway, I love Johnny Cash.  When I was young  I had all of his albums which are long gone by the way.  On the album ‘Hello I’m Johnny Cash’ is a song called ‘Sing a Travelin’ Song.’  I love that song and I have been trying to find it on a CD for a long time.  Amazon has the CD but it is a remastered foreign version that had bad reviews from ones who had purchased it.  I finally found the original version at Amazon on the MP3 downloads.  It took me hours to get that all figured out.  I have it now on iTunes and my Windows Media Player.  Whew!!

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rig·ma·role

noun \ˈri-gə-mə-ˌrōl, ˈrig-mə-\

: a long, complicated, and annoying process, description, etc.

 

See rigmarole defined for English-language learners »

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johnny cash

I will never forget the first time I saw Johnny Cash in person.  It was at Arthur Illinois at the Moultrie/Douglas county fair grounds. 

“ 1969 – Perhaps the biggest Fair before or since in terms of attendance, the Mo-Do County Fair started off opening night with George Jones and Tammy Wynette one of country music’s biggest acts. Only a few were bigger and Johnny Cash with his entire show including his wife June Carter, the Carter family and the Statler Brothers were one of them. They played to a crowd of between 15-20 thousand people. Only the recent Fireworks during Arthur’s Freedom Celebration have ever witnessed such a crowd in one day.”  http://www.moultriedouglascountyfair.com/history/history%20main.html

I remember that there were people on the rooftops of the buildings and in the trees, people everywhere.  It was one of the best times ever.  Somewhere I have some pictures I took that unforgettable night.  You can see that I am a classic country music fan.

I about forgot the countdown till Spring is 18 days!

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth