March Madness

March is a busy month for us - as I check my calendar. Lots of to-do's around the house and yard. By the end of March we have to take the car in for service and to take the studded tires off.
Have been making my list for the yard and it's long, long, long. It is kind of nice to know there is an end in sight - at least I hope. Maybe if I hide the snow shovels, MN won't send any. Or get revenge on me for all my complaining.

Did I get your attention??

I know, Christmas was just a bit ago but I like to plan ahead! My sister and I have a tradition every November - dinner at our favorite restaurant and then go to our favorite Christmas ornament shop. We buy each other ornament gifts each year.
We were talking tonight and decided we have enough ornaments. We are buying interesting stuff to a total around $20. from thrift shops! Interesting glassware, etc. or ornaments but all has to be "ah, gently used". Merry Christmas- oh, BTW, tomorrow is March 1st.

Firefighters

This post is in honor of all firefighters. Our neighbor is a volunteer FF. Some nights I hear his vehicle leave at 1:30 am returning at 3 am. Then he's off again at 4:30 til 6 am.
In the summer, sometimes the faraway chatter of radio calls. "Rescue (#--), he comes bounding down the stairs, leaps in his vehicle once more.
Summer are very busy with our dry grassy and forested areas and MVA's.
And then the sad medical calls - - -Keep safe.

Word Games #4

The word for today is: ALBINOS

my list is: sail, slob, bins, in, on, nail, slab, so, also, lab, lions, ion, bans, bail, soil, oil, nob, sin

As promised, a week ahead, the word for next week is: HOCKEY - I should have used Parmesan!

As per, the new word for next week is Parmesan. Not hockey - hockey was tough, anyway.

Rosemary for Cooking

So I've always wanted a nice rosemary plant. They don't "over-winter" here which is sad. Planted one the spring of 2006 and it did well - especially when you consider I stepped on it twice in the garden.
My bro has a 5' tall one and he uses it a lot for cooking. It's mellow enough where he lives that it survives the winters.

My friend lays a bed of rosemary on the BBQ, then sets her chicken pieces on it - delicious!

Also, they are just pretty little plants.

Mama Mia!

Wow, that spaghetti sauce had some kick to it - thanks. Tonight we enjoyed homemade sauce and I had meatballs on hand so a wonderful meal - uh, yeah, I know the meatballs are a bit large but - well, we like meatballs! Had a salad and piece of toasted flax bread. (I used DeCecco Linguini - like it as it's "sturdier" for lack of a better word.)

Guardian Angels

One night Mom fell out of bed - she was not hurt but certainly could have been.My Dad, sister, brother and BIL helped her back into bed. My Man and I slept thru the whole event - but I am convinced to this day that an angel held her in his arms and softly let her down on the floor. In Mom's memory, I posted the angel guarding children on the shore - she would have liked that.

Chili Pic

As promised. Very filling and warms you up inside nicely. Now I'm off to shovel snow which has kept falling all day long - and now we are also fogged in. I love living at 1800 feet ~
Forgot to mention that I baked cornmeal muffins today- go well with the chili. I made a double batch and throwing caution to the wind, doubled the recipe - usually you shouldn't do that with baking but they turned out perfectly.

Friends

Just off the phone talking with a friend I've known for years! Have thought of him often but time, distance, (no excuse!!) you name it and we haven't talked. Sent him a Christmas card in 2006 to his old address- of course, it was returned to sender- undeliverable. Left it in my car to ask my bro the correct address and you guessed it, it ended up under the seat - lost. Told him today and we got a laugh.
So great to hear his voice. He is always gracious and kind. I loved when he said "Be well" as his good by.
Much love to you - as usual, Richard.

Captions Requested

I absolutely love this whimsical picture of M&M. I could think of a dozen captions - any thoughts from "all" my readers?

The Bride and the Groom!

MiHwa and Mark!

My Heart Skipped a Beat

We just received these pictures from MiHwa and Mark a bit ago - my heart actually did skip a beat! Love you both more than we can ever say. xx

A Favorite Corner

This arrangement over our chiffonier is one of my favorites. Too bad that the color is not true of the walls in the pic - they are much richer green. Never tire of looking at this corner in our bedroom. I realize the picture looks a bit high but in order to get the picture, I had to remove my Hon's wooden jewel box which sits at the lower left corner of the print.

Vegetarian Chili

So was in the mood for something cozy warm to eat today and decided on chili - ran down and bought ground beef and then thought of my veg. chili we like so much.
As usual, will scan and post recipe and pic but for now the ingredients are: brown bean and Kidney beans, Veg soup, salsa, medium zucchini, 1 tsp paprika, tomato soup, chili powder, garlic, onions, celery, mushrooms,carrots, canned tomatoes & some of my frozen Romas, black pepper.Will take pic and show it when I serve it tonight. That's all folks.
Update: Ok, sorry once again - I know I should include the method.
Saute garlic and onion, celery and mushrooms. Once they are tender, add the chunks of Zucchini.If you cut it in 1"cubes, it does not go all "mushy". I have the carrots steamed ahead so they get tossed in after the zucchini. "Add the rest" How's that for detail? I like to let it heat in a crockpot on LOW for as long as I have time - really mellows the flavors.
Last night I topped it with Parmesan for a change. Today I'm making cornmeal muffins but sometimes I put my chili in a 9 x 13 and spread the cornmeal batter over and bake. Now that's nummy!

Time Flies

Wow- can't believe how fast the weeks go by - kind of thought they may drag when I retired.It's Friday, not that it matters, I have very little schedule to my life. That's OK, too, a nice change from being overrun by Life.
Excited to get an email from a friend I met in Oct. 2006 - she will be in town soon and we plan to meet again - time flies- haven't seen her since mid Nov. A little spark in a quiet existence.

"Word Games" #3

BLOGGERS
Bore sole sob leg log blogs loggers begs bogs gore sore lore ore slog glob bole rose rob gel
Next week's word will be: ALBINOS. Make your list up and I'll post mine Feb.28th Thursday. Doesn't get much more exciting than this, does it?

In Fairness, ha,ha

Thursday will have a new word but will also have the word for the following week so "all" my readers can have a few days to beat me at it.

"Whistle Britches"

"Hey, Whistle Britches, how about a refill?"
I'm in Grade 12 and my friend Sandy and I are working weekends at this restaurant- there were booths and tables and a coffee bar - don't remember how many seats but I was "it" as the waitress and Sandy was the "cook". Don't know if we got tips in those days - I don't think so.
When I think of it now, can't believe he left 2 teens to run his restaurant- it was in a gas station so a bit busy. I'd look up and see Sandy scurrying about in the kitchen. There was a square cut in the wall about 12" so we could pass orders and the prepared meals. All meals were prepared from scratch so we'd go in early to peel potatoes.

Anyway, one time a regular trucker came in and saw me roaring around and called me Whistle Britches. After that, I had a new name.

Genius at Work!

Well, I sure blew it with this food choice! I needed a quick supper so grabbed a "healthy" vegetarian lasagna. Read the label, you say? Is that a new idea? Too late - we've eaten it but how disappointing. Delicious, of course, all that fat makes things taste good. I was about to recycle the over wrap and read it- they call it "Nutritional Facts". a misnomer to be sure. Sorry, the print doesn't show well (or at all) but the calories are 420 for 1/8 of the 2 kg pak, cholesterol is 65mg, Fat34% and Sat/trans 68%. Came close to barfing right there. I should know better and dietitians are always saying"Read the label" - this won't happen again, my friends. I make my own vegetarian chili which is way,way less but rushing as usual.

And why the heck doesn't my post look like the preview pic!!?? Not my day, grrrrr.

MiHwa's and Mark's Wedding Invitation

The Invitation
I am the first to admit my photography "skills" are in a bad way! Just wanted to show you the wedding invitation and thank you card( green) that MiHwa and Mark used for their wedding. A classy couple.

"Easy Mushroom Consomme"

Mushroom Consomme

4 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
6 green onions, diagonally sliced
6 cups chicken stock
Salt and pepper

Clean mushrooms and chop coarsely. Set aside. In saucepan, heat oil over medium heat; cook the fresh mushrooms and half of the onions for about 5 minutes til liquid has evaporated.
Add stock - bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper to taste. Strain through cheesecloth and a strainer.

(Soup can be cooled, covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days; reheat over medium heat.)
Sprinkle each serving with the remaining onions.

I made this consomme a few years ago and did make it ahead. The color is rather different but the flavor is delicious. When you go to reheat it, do not disturb the sediment - What I did is spoon the consomme out of the stock pot (with a soup ladle) and then heated it in a new pot - this resulted in a nice, clear broth. I served in small cups as didn't have any consomme bowls. Probably about 1/2 cup per person is about right.
This is the easy one I'll post the detailed one later-can't find it!!!

"Can Egg Really Do That?"

So one of our sons is a chef. I try to do well in the kitchen, Kraft Dinner and the like.
Anyway, made mushroom consomme for guests one time. I asked him for his hoity-toity recipe - some hints and ideas, please. Well, instead of the 6 lines from my magazine, I have a full 8 x 11 sheet (handwritten, yes) on Mushroom consomme. Gulp. I learned words like "raft". It really impressed me that he rattled off the recipe like I'd give mine for Shake and Bake chicken!
I was a bit intimidated when told to "stir slowly til the egg presses against the spoon". Can eggs really do that, Bri? It's late so I'll post both recipes when I'm awake.

"When they were bad, they were very, very bad."

So, a lazy Sunday evening and I didn't feel like doing the "from scratch" thing for supper. So, we had the bad stuff on the left. To somewhat redeem myself, I served coleslaw with apple and red pepper strips and corn. Oh, and skim milk!

"The Shack"

The shack, as it stood last year - of course, this is is a pic of a tourist. You can see the rotted old walkway to the left. We loved to ride our bikes on it.

Midnight Madness

So I have been playing around with the set-up tonight. Finally got a couple things to work. Maybe my brain functions best after midnight cause it worked- kinda. My blog is bland - needs some life. Even a pic would do. Good night - sleep tight, all.

Pic of moon phases - not too clear- kind of neat.

"To Be Deployed"

Read Prince Harry is to be deployed to Basra. I was thinking about the Moms and Dads all over the world who face this same uncertainty and worry. Queen Elizabeth is a Mom amd I'm sure she shares a common bond with the others now. You look so mature and "all grown up" Harry. Keep safe.

Two and Counting

Ooh,ooh,ooh - 2 comments on a post and both were from "others" - I'm sure advertisers will be clamouring now- "ring" - Hold it, Nike's on the line :)

"Oh, What a Night"

A subtitle could be "Whining and Snivelling do pay off!" (Keep it in mind kids!) I guess they got sick of my whining about no cheesecake for Valentine's dinner, so - you guessed right- they bought a cheesecake. Delicious. Of course, this is after the wonderful beef filet (more whining previously). Thanks, guys!

"Word Games" #2

Gardens

snare, rage, read, , ears, rag, sag, nag,sage,
age, end, are, and
read, send, snag, sane, sear, near, gears,
dens, dares, darn, drags, dears

"Oh My Gosh"

Dinner was absolutely delicious! And Canucks won in over time- all is right in my world, ha, ha.

"Love is in the Air - Snow, too"

Well, it's Valentine's day and Mother Nature gave us sparkling diamonds- not exactly the ones I was looking for- a fairly good snowfall with wind!! Thank you, MN.
After we coffee'd and read the paper we set out to get the cherished cheesecake for dinner tonight-the lady at the bakery said, "we only get it on Friday's" - I grumbled to myself, "you're a bakery, you buy it??!!" Being I rarely make or serve desserts now due to our metabolism's taking a nap, this choked me. So now it will be Lite Chocolate Mousse (ackk!) with fresh strawberries - not bad but definitely not cheesecake.
I just prepared the carrots, onions, red pepper and asparagus so all I have to do is the ravioli and bake the casserole.
This kind of sounds like work- maybe we should change the tradition and go out for dinner next year. Actually, no, we prefer to eat in at our leisurely pace.

Reminiscing on Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to "all" my readers.
Was just thinking about our first Valentine date way back in 1964 (we had met near the end of January) - my love came to the house to take me out for dinner - as I walked to his car, he slipped a card and beautiful, heart shaped box of chocolates on the entry table. Just as I stepped into the car, Mom called me back - said Dr. Doolittle was on the phone. My boss. When I got to the entry, turns out she was just excited about my surprise gift - which now wasn't. At the time I was pretty annoyed but didn't let on to her or my love. To this day he doesn't know Mom "told". So this has become a memory of Mom and a cute one for me to remember her on a special day. Anyone who knew Mom will know it's something she would have done.

"Cables, Hubs and Viruses"

So my computer store sold me stuff but tossed in a cold for free this afternoon.
If this works after my hook-up, I'll breathe a sigh of relief - and it will be my last easy breathing for a while, I'm sure, as the fellow had a vicious cold. Felt sorry for him but sorrier for me as he kindly tucked various viruses in my bag and a sneeze to go.

"A Gentle Reminder"

Only two days to go til Valentine's Day - are you ready? Decided to make a new dinner menu this year- it's been kind of tradition to make beef filets in a red wine sauce. We're having a vegetarian meal of lemon baked asparagus, julienned carrots, stuffed ravioli -- and cheesecake. We prefer to stay home and have a special meal rather than dining out. Baubles and roses are still acceptable, though - hint, hint.
PS I'll post the recipes after the meal - still don't know how to link cause I haven't read up on it!

"Chicken Enchiladas"

So I made chicken enchiladas on Sunday night. Recipe from Southern Living - absolutely delicious and looked good but way too much work - at least this recipe.
Everything was done from "scratch" and there is an easier way - I found out as I searched for "Lazy Lady Enchiladas"!
We found we prefer mozzarella cheese rather than cheddar on top but no big deal. Also, I used lots of fresh mushrooms in place of the red pepper.
Being new to blogging, I haven't read how to link to this page so will learn that and then provide the recipe. Can cook- can't compute! How very interesting one son is a chef and one is a "computer guy" ---

"Good Night, Sleep Tight"

Time to wrap it up for today - just a reminder for you "snorers" out there- maybe roll on your side so puddy cat doesn't bring a gift in the night. Well, that's all for today- pleasant dreams ---

"MiHwa and Mark" February 4, 2007

MiHwa and Mark - congratulations

"Hiding in the Palm"

So Buddy, the cat, likes to mess around and hide in our palm. He thinks he can't be seen (dumb cat) . Not that dumb though - moments after I said I don't approve of him on the wall, he crawled out and sat in plain view.

"My Memory Box"

One Christmas my Brother-in-law drew my name and I was overwhelmed to receive this wonderful painted box(from Bombay). It is so beautiful it nearly got "saved for good". For a couple of years it held my payslips, now it holds my memories.
Thanks, Dan!

"Word Games" - Cachet

Life doesn't get much more exciting than this - I like to think of a word and make as many other words from it as possible. My Mom and I use to do this - we'd choose a word and try to beat the other with our list. Once had all we could, we'd fax our list to each other. It's amazing how many words you can make from some rather short, "few letter" words.

My choice today for my loyal reader is: cachet which means:mark, stamp or mark of authenticity, distinction.

My answers are a few lines down - see if you can beat me!


chat, hat, at, cat, tea, heat, hate,cache, teach, each, cheat, eat,the.

Anna Nicole Smith

Really shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of Anna Nicole Smith today - I wasn't a fan per se but followed her story after she brought her child into the world and then lost her son.

Prayers and support for her family, friends and child. Rest in peace, Anna Nicole.

Seoul to Tokyo ---

So MiHwa and Mark are back home in Seoul after their wedding. Hopefully I'll have some pics to post soon. It's been a whirlwind for them and they are going to holiday in Japan with honeymoon to follow somewhere warm next winter.
It's going to be a wonderful time having them both in Vancouver - the family can't wait! (Now I've probably scared them silly.)

All the best, MiHwa and Mark!
Update:lots of wonderful pictures, thanks!

MiHwa and Mark