cleaning

I'm in the "organizing mode" these days, but I am stuck! I need help and Lord knows I can't ask the "hub", because he "don't know"! I want to organize the business area in our great room! It's in the corner as you walk into the room. I need to first figure out where to put all the items from this area, which room it needs to go, which room has the most storage for all this businees items and then go get some containers. Sounds like a quick shopping trip to Rice Lake to me!!! I would like to go alone, but somehow I doubt that will happen and questions will be asked, like

"why are you getting that?", "don't you have that already?", "where are you going to put that?" and on it goes!! Bless him, he can't help asking the questions! Wish me luck!!

birthday

Today is Gordon's birthday. Old is he you ask???? Well, old enough now to get medicare!!! He only wanted to be 21(which was the legal drinking age for Illinois when we were young)! Wow, has time flown by and going faster all the time, but to my "hub", Happy birthday, babe!!! Blessings! P.S. picture is from this summer fishing

with our twin granddaughters! What fun we had fishing!!!!

Christmas

Merry Christmas to everyone! Isaiah 9:6 " For unto us a child is born. A son is given. And the government shall be upon his shoulders. These will be His royal titles "Mighty God,"Everlasting Father",

"Wonderful Counselor", "Prince of Peace." May you all find this child and have faith in Him! Blessings this Christmas Day!!

Christmas Eve

What are your traditions?? We have tried a few over the 40 yrs celebrating, but usually come back to what we enjoyed as kids! Christmas Eve service at church usually starts us off, then coming home and snacking on cheese, crackers, herring, sausage and eggnog, then finishing the night off with bed to wait for Santa! This year will be no different except we already started snacking and the eggnog! Wishing all of a very Happy Christmas and that Christ will be the center of the celebrating! Blessings!

my back

Some of you have asked me about my back and I thought I would respond to all my followers about this ever present issue. I had a CAT scan yesterday, that is the coolest thing ever!!!! Then, I saw the neurosurgeon, he's so nice! He told me exactly what kind of surgery he would do to give me some relief, but left it up to me when I would do it! I'm not sure of the spelling, sorry, but it is called a lamenectomy, which means he would go in and remove that spur that is causing me so much leg pain! That's a great Christmas gift for me to receive! So, I will wait and keep trying PT, now he has added swimming to my plate and using our new toy, the inversion table. Blessings!!!

fruitcake

Someday I'm going to teach myself how to make fruitcake. Gordon and I love a good fruitcake, I know all the jokes about bad fruitcake, but I have had some wonderful fruitcakes in my life! So when we were at Sam's Club yesterday(mind you to pick up a Kindle Fire for yours truly which they were out of), we found a boxed fruitcake and decided to try it! It's very good! Maybe I will pass one on to you??? No, I won't, just kidding! Blessings!

french toast

I made one of the recipes from Friday's Sample Fest for our breakfast. Gordon wasn't thrilled with it and so it will not grace our table again! It was too much like bread pudding and he doesn't like that, but here's the recipe for you all to try! Recipe: (I cut this in half for us otherwise this amount will fit a 9x13 pan greased.) 12 slices of bread, place at least 6 on the bottom of pan, then mix 6 eggs, 1/2 cup of milk, pour half of the milk-egg mixture over bread and

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Pour over bread, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of brown sugar with 2 tablespoons of chopped pecans over the over the slices of bread, repeat layer. Let this soak over night or at least for a few hours. Bake at 350 for 20 to 30 minutes or until it puffs up. Make a glaze of milk and powdered sugar to serve over this. YUM(at least I think so). Blessings!

early Christmas

We had Christmas with Kate, Kurt and family today! We had fun and enjoyed the kids! Kurt grilled hamburgers for our lunch. I stopped at Target and got potato salad and cookies(as I forgot the cheesecake in the freezer). Kate cooked some yummy squash for us and we had the usual chips! What a feast!!! The kids enjoyed the gifts and we (us girls) had a shopping spree to Michaels! Blessings!

Oranges

This year it seems like old things are new again like oranges made into pomanders, I love making these and the whole house smells so wonderful!

Anyway, I haven't done these in years and bought some Cuties today with some whole cloves! I only did 5, as I love to eat the Cuties too much to give up any more!
Sample Fest is quickly approaching on Friday. I got a few things done with a lot to do tomorrow! Blessings!

white christmas

I was over at Isabelleathome's blog yesterday morning and came across this recipe! I took it work and discussed the recipe with my boss. We will use next week for sample fest! Congrats, Isabelle!! Anyway, I decided to make some for baskets I am putting together for Christmas gifts! It is tasty and pretty! So here is the recipe which I changed up just a tad! White Christmas recipe: 3 cups of Cheerios, 3 cups of Rice Chex(store brand), 3 cups of Corn Chex(store brand), 1 bag of Christmas peanut M&M's(could use plain), and 2 cups of stick pretzels broken up, and 1 bag of white chips melted using a double boiler. Mix the cereals, prezels and M&M's in huge bowl. Melt the white chips in the double boiler and pour the melted white chocolate chips over the cereal mix. Mix this well and put some muscle into it!! Let it cool and break it up to put in pretty jars or bags for gifts! Blessings!

cards

This year I am struggling to write my Christmas letter. I have no clue why, maybe I don't have so much news to share this year??? Or maybe what I do have to say is boring???? I'm in a rut and I don't like it! I still have time, but what a dilemna this year! Time goes so fast and now the push for getting together with family is on! I wish we lived close enough to see the grandkids Christmas programs or could go see Santa with them, but working and so many miles gets in the way! Well, the rambling goes on and on today, sorry! Blessings!

snow

It snowed late yesterday and it is so pretty out! I'm not a winter lover, but I do enjoy the snow(I like to look at it)! We spent most of yesterday in Duluth, Mn. taking parts back and some shopping! Gordon is not a shopper, I'm just saying because I ended up standing in line for 30 minutes at Michael's for 5 items( the line moved pretty fast), 45 minutes of shopping at Sam's(he bought alot of stuff there, but the lines were short there) and then took me to Olive Garden for a great lunch! So, the answer to what kind of bucket that was featured in Friday's picture is a commode enamel bucket from 30 yrs ago, who knew that a pee bucket could look so cute!! Blessings!

Jenny's

My friend, Ruth and I went to our friend's house for her open house that shows off her crafts! Jenny has a beautiful home and makes wonderful gifts out of practically nothing(I'm so jealous)!! I bought this bucket with the greens in it, because I don't think I will be putting up a tree. No one is coming home for Christmas, so I don't think I want to take the time to put up the tree! We are going to Erika and Trevor's for Christmas Day in their new home! We are hoping to travel to Kate and Kurt's soon to celebrate with them! So enjoy my bucket! Can you guess what it was in it's former life???? I will reveal what it was next time!! We will all laugh! Blessings!

cookies

I made cookies from a bag the other day and all that is left to take a picture of is these 2 cookies on the plate...:-( I bought the sugar cookie

mix by Betty Crocker to make with the kids over the weekend and never got around to it, so I made them on Monday night. One of my bosses had a birthday on Tuesday, who loves cookies, so he got a few, but other cookie monster in the house managed to eat most of the rest( I got 4) of the 2 dozen. I guess that's why he stays so slim....:-)! Blessings!!!

recipe

I demoed a new recipe last week at the store called "Cherry cream cheese spread". 1 pkg of softened cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of diced maraschino cherries, 1 teaspoon of juice from cherries,&

1/4 cup of powdered sugar. Mix well and serve on bagels or toast or what we did was Ritz crackers. It's so pink and pretty, would look so pretty for Christmas morning! Blessings!

Week in review

Well, the hunting season is officially over for 2011! We got 5 deer for the freezer, making Italian sausage, maple breakfast sausage, fresh sausage and brats this coming week! Kora and Lily came with Kurt, Olivia was ill and stayed home with Mommy(Hi, Kate)! Shealyn and Alex went to their Dad's. We had a very nice Thanksgiving, but missed the others that weren't here! I'm in the decorating mood, but I'm not sure if I will put up a tree or not! I was visiting over at Beth Moore's blog around Wed., she was asking for favorite recipes. There were 558 replies, not all recipes, but a few stood out to me. One was "Maw-Maw's Corn Casserole". It's a pretty easy and straight forward recipe, 2-15 oz. cans of whole cron, 2-15oz of creamed corn, 16 oz of sour cream, 2 pkgs of Jiffy corn muffin mix, and 1 stick of butter. Cut up the butter and place pieces of butter in 9x13 pan, put pan

in oven as it preheats to 350. Mix the other ingredients together and pour over melted butter. Bake for 40 minutes and serve warm! YUM!!!! Blessings!

Happy Thanksgiving

Good morning everyone! I pray that families are enjoying the day together and the food! We will eat this evening around 6 pm. Erika is bringing the desserts and I will do the rest because I like doing it all!!! Lily and Kora are here to help set the table, I can't wait to watch the Macy's parade with them! I love the parade! Sometimes we talk about what we are thankful for around the table, so this year maybe we will talk about what we aren't thankful for, like no school or I don't have to work! So, Happy Thanksgiving. I'm thankful for all of you who read my ramblings! Blessings!

snow

We received about 4-6 inches of snow yesteday. It did put a little hamper on the traffic for the craft show! I sold a lot of fudge and cookies, which I use to buy our grandchildren gifts for Christmas. I did get a beautiful gift for my sweet daughter-in-law, too! She is the best wife and mom, I don't get to see her very much, but know how busy she is these days! Well, that's all from here. I know these are short posts, but that's me, too the point! Blessings!

hello

My cold is almost gone and I missed only one day of work. I have been busy making fudge for the craft sale this weekend at the American Legion hall in Spooner, please come as there are so many wonderful crafters there! Also, Vicki from Simply in Trego, called and ordered some fudge for her open house on Friday night, so please go up there and see Vicki for a great evening with your friends! I also made some Russian Tea cookies to sell this year, so I'm hoping to go home empty handed! Gordon has taken my camera so I have no pictures of fudge or cookies to show off for you! Blessings!

hot dogs and beans

So, I'm still feeling quite out of it for cooking with this cold, so tonight is the most gourmet dinner I could manage to cook for us, Hot dogs and beans! Yeah, the great old stand by and I love them dogs! I try to buy(when on sale) Hebrew National Hot Dogs, I mean they are so good! They are far the best tasting around(okay Nathan's are good too)! They are a beef frank and I think that is the taste I'm looking for, no fillers! I opened a can of Bush's beans and had to laugh thinking about the dog talking about selling the recipe! Here's hoping you all don't get this cold from anyone! Blessings!

soup

I am home today with a cold, at least I think it's a cold, but my head hurts! I have been up since 2:30a.m. stuffed up and not able to sleep. I hope to crash here sooon! But since I am home, I decided to make some soup, maybe to clear up my sinuses and mood! The photo doesn't do the soup justice, but I can smell it and I am getting hungry! I used onions from our garden, celery, shredded carrots, chicken breast and some orzo! I love orzo in soup. Blessings!

Bagel chip dip

Yesterday's demo was called "bagel chip dip." It uses Old English cheese spread by Kraft, cream cheese and garlic powder. So the recipe is: 2 jars of Old English Cheese spread, 2- 8oz. packages of cream cheese(softened), and 1 teaspoon of garlic powder. Mix well together( I micorwave the cream cheese for 30 seconds or less to really cream well) and chill for 1 hour before serving. Use bagel chips or mini rye bread or Triscuit cracker. Hugs and blessings!

Sunday

We went to church this morning and now with the sleepiness of the afternoon, I'm trying to stay awake, not working so well! But in the meantime, I'm cooking a buttercup squash, frying some venison for taco salad for later and listening to "Swamp People" with Gordon(he's watching whilst I'm typing)! The weeks fly by and so does the weekend! I did manage to go sit in a hot tub yesterday after work for my back, it seems to feel pretty okay today! Is it the soaking or just the day? It's also raining here which is better than snow! Well, this is just some rambling, nothing for a recipe, but I'm thinking! It's almost time to make fudge, rifle season and Thanksgiving! Hugs and blessings!

new products

I love to read other blogs and they seem to be so eloquent with words whereas mine is straight to the point, can't help it, it's genetic! My dad was like that and I seem to be like that more each day! But I do detour with that statement! There are new products out all the time, but these 2 are being demoed today and tomrrow at work! New to Country Crock is Honey Butter, we will have it on english muffins to try. Then, tomorrow Rondele cheese has a new pub cheese out which has 4 flavors! So stop in Schmitz's and try out some of the new products. I will be serving Tombstone, it's Friday people, I(99% of the time) serve pizza on Friday! Blessings!

peanut butter pie

I was cleaning the freezer above the refrig yesteday(what a junk yard) and took out pie shells to bake. Gordon said what kind of pie will you make, I said I don't know and then today came with a peanut butter cream cheese pie idea! I have made this from time to time while I have dieted as a treat and love it without the crust, so why not with a crust! So recipe is 1 cup of peanut butter(chunky or creamy), 1/2 cup of powdered sugar or artifical(this will be less of a 1/2 cup), 1-8oz. package of cream cheese(light) and cool whip(lite). Make sure the cream cheese is very soft(microwave for 30 seconds if needed), add the peanut butter and sugar in the mixer, then add the cool whip. Refrigerate for about 1 hour, you can add 1/2 cup of crushed peanuts or choc. chips when you are about to serve. It is very good! Blessings!

cranberry sauce

Is it too early to start planning Thanksgiving and make some sauce??? I think not!! It's my favorite holiday as it is looked over with everyone freaking out about Christmas and the shopping holiday! I remember some of my family gathering when I was a kid and I love this holiday! I love it when my kids can come and enjoy a meal with us! So, with that in mind, I think everytime the extended families gather, we should somehow celebrate the idea of giving thanks! We have so much to be thankful for in our lives! So start planning the next gathering! Hugs and blessings!

new toy

The grocery store has a new toy to be used by the public! It is back by the pizza demo station. Please come back there and try it out! It helps you figure out dinner or any meal by providing recipes for that meal! It's user friendly, just touch the screen and it's up with beautiful pictures, ideas and then printed recipes! It can also help you plan your shopping list using the weekly ad from the store and build your menu around the flyer! WOW!!! Blessings!

Memory verse

In January, I signed up to memorize scripture with Beth Moore. Well, it's been a challenge for me, but a good one. Sometimes I did well and other times not so great! My very favorite verse is Proverbs 13:12 "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream come true brings joy and life." Isn't that a great verse!! I can recall that so easy, but not some of the ones I have been learning, go figure! This weeks Bible verse I chose is from the little book of Habakkuk 3:18 "Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the Lord of my salvation." NLT Translation. This verse just reminds me whatever falls my way to rejoice in the Lord, I try to do that, but don't always succeed. Hugs and blessings!I

pumpkin cake

Erika and Trevor came over for a few hours of visiting. The boys wanted to shoot their rifles in preparation for deer season which is coming up in 4 weeks! Erika and I just gabbed for 1 hour!!! She has certainly grown into a godly woman! I truly miss our gab sessions and enjoyed every minute with her!! There were 7 turkeys in the garden walking in the corn that never matured for us to eat,(sorry it's hard to see them, but they are there in the corner of the corn) so cool!! So, I made this pumpkin cake for dessert! Recipe: 1 can of pumpkin, 1 teaspoon of pumpkin spice, 1 yellow box cake mix, 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon of baking soda and 2 teaspoons of butter, melted. Mix eggs, butter,and pumpkin, then add the rest, mix for 2 minutes(I used the Kitchen Aid). Grease a 9 x 13 pan and bake for 30 minutes at 350. YUM!!!

5 things you don't know

I was reading joy the baker's blog, she is so funny to think 30 is old, LOL!! Anyway, she was making a list of things you might not know about her and so, I thought I could do the same!! 1. I don't like heights, ladders are awkward to say the best for me to handle!! 2. I don't like my picture taken, never have, never will! 3. I really love coffee! 4. Don't like scary movies, don't see the point, life is scary enough at times! 5. I LOVE to pray, if you ask me to pray for you, I will always! Now, it's your turn!! Name 5 things I don't know about you! Blessings!

fall

The trees are starting to lose their leaves. That means fall is reached it's peak! I still have a lot of apples to deal with, but not sure if I want to make more pies or applesauce! Both of our kids are moving either this month and next month! Kate, Kurt and family are moving 3 blocks away from where they are now. Erika and Trevor are moving to another small town(10 minutes from where they live now). I'm sure Gordon and I will be helping somewhere, but I will do very little with my back the way it is! You know it's hard to stand around and watch, but I can cook a few meals somewhere! How many times have you moved??? We have moved 4 times in our 40 yrs of marriage! Blessings!

new book

I bought myself a new book and it arrived yesterday! I had been a fan of Laurie Colwin, but sadly she died suddenly in the early 90's and I was left with only a few articles from her in Gourmet magazine that I had saved. Laurie not really knowing that she would be gone so quickly from heart disease, had managed to write 6 aritcles for Gourmet ahead of time, but that wasn't enough for me! Well, time has passed and I was on thekitchn.com the other day when someone blogged there about some of her books! WOW, I thought I could afford one, maybe more to read and cherish! I'm pretty pumped to get reading, but just wanted to share this with you! I realize that this may not be your cup of tea, but it sure is mine! Blessings!

pears

I got a lug of pears from the store and managed to can 5 quarts tonight! They are the cutest pears, so little and sweet! I was thinking of a pear cake, but decided we didn't need anymore sweets around here, but the pears themselves! Blessings!

pie

October is Pastor appreciation month. So since I picked apples with Gordon last weekend, I made pies today for our 2 pastors and their families. They look very nice and I hope they taste good! Pastor Ron and Pastor Chopper are so great, their families are so sweet. Gordon and I really do appreciate them! Blessings!

apple time

It's apple time everywhere! I went with Gordon to pick at my friend's house on Sunday evening and today after the doctor visit(which went well), I decided to make baked apples for dessert! I love baked apples, I have made them with diet coke in the middle or diet root beer, apple pie spice with brown sugar and today, just plain old brown sugar! Have a great evening! blessings!

update

Well, I decided on the way home from church to update my website, so please let me know yea or nay! So many choices and I liked the one I had, but thought maybe people were tired of it??!!! Blessings!

Saturday

Today has been a busy day for me! I bought a box of Italian plums yesterday at work, so I got up way too early and started on them this morning, turning them into plum jam! Yum, that's good and so pretty! Next, I had put a chicken in the crockpot last night and I had that to deal with this morning. I asked Gordon what he would like from the chicken, soup or chicken and dumplings. He requested both and since he has been fighting a cold, I said okay to him, we will have both sometime this weekend! A ham is in the oven for supper! Have a great weekend! Blessings!

back

I've had a few of you ask me about my back, so here's the scoop! I've had issues with my back for 40 yrs after a few accidents! So, now with age(I hate that) and wear on my back, it's not good news! I had a MRI and x-rays 3

weeks ago, this is what it showed us, 3 "slipped disks" and some curving on the lower spine(age related), but the lower disk is pinching and pulling, so that's where the lower leg pain comes in to play and almost unbearable back pain lives! I told my pastor that "pain has become my evil friend." He had just preached on the book of James that talks about prayer and healing. He said that pain isolates the person in pain, how very true! Gordon knows when I have had enough, I become very quiet and withdrawn(which is not me). So, with saying that, I apologize to many of you when that happens! So, next week I will get a shot to see if I get some relief from all of this, I pray it does as I'm looking at surgery otherwise. Please don't tell me the horror stories(I've heard them all), but pray that God's will be done! Well, that's all from here today, today seems to be may be a good day, pain is okay this morning,scale of 0 to 10, pain is 6,YEAH! Sorry this isn't a happy or fun posting today! Blessings!

apple cke

Tomorrow night is our turn to host Bible study! We love our group, we are very good cooks, but most of these ladies are very great bakers! I an okay baker, I would like to be better, but I don't need to have the calories around the house! So, I have a bag of apples to do something with and remembered a recipe from smittenkitchen.com and thought I would give it a whirl, but my back and leg decided to act up and so I did what I could with the recipe! Recipe: 5 cortland apples, peeled and cut up, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon and 2 tablespoons of sugar, put the apples, sugar, and cinnamon in a separate bowl and put aside! Mix 3 large eggs, 2 cups of flour, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, 1 1/2 cups of sugar, 1/2 cup of orange juice and 3/4 cup of oil. Mix well and place in 9 x 13 baking pan. Bake at 350 for about 45-60 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean. I plan to serve this with vanilla ice cream! Blessings!

broccoli cheese casserole

We have a party to attend tomorrow night and I needed to make a dish to pass, so I decided to make broccoli and rice/cheese casserole! I used wild rice as I still have 5 pounds left from the 40 pounds that someone gifted me about 2 yrs ago. Recipe is: 2 cans (plus one can of water) cream of chicken soup, 2 1/2 cups of grated cheese(I used Velveeta, not grated, but cubed), 3 cup of wild rice, and 2 16oz. packages of frozen broccoli thawed. Mix well and bake for 45 minutes at 350. I'm ready to party now, YEAH!!!!! Blessings!

bean dip

For Friday's demo, I made this Mexican bean dip. Recipe: 1-8oz package of cream cheese, 2 1/2 cups of shredded cheese, 2 Tablespoons of dry onion soup, 1 teaspoon of cilantro, 1 cup of sour cream, some dashes of hot sauce and 2 minced garlic cloves. I added to it yesterday to make it stretch a little farther was a 1 cup of salsa. It was very good! Blessings!

Beans

I love baked beans! I know some of you are secret lovers of beans, but not of the gas they may provide your body with at times! My friend, Lori, made beans 3 weeks ago for a gathering of friends and they were fantastic! So, I called her and asked for the recipe, by the way she really doesn't have a recipe, so here is what she said to do. Recipe: soak and cook some beans, drain the beans and add one can of tomatoes(diced, or crushed or whole) to the drained beans, one onion chopped(this is were it gets fuzzy), add some brown sugar(maybe 1/2 cup), some bacon(I'm thinking 3 slices cut up), and some molasses(you are on your own with this ingredient)!At this point, I put the beans in my crockpot and cooked them on low. Cook this for 1 - 1 1/2 days till beans are tender, tomatoes break down, the bacon and sugar have some together! They are excellent! Blessings!

potatoes

Gordon has been digging potatoes for the last month, a few at a time! They are so good. I never would have believed that there is a difference in homegrown and commerically grown, but there is! Homegrown has a much better taste, the potato seems clearly better tasting, maybe the soil or tender care??? We enjoy potatoes and I have come up with many ways to make "taters" such as oven fries with

Emerils seasoning, fried potatoes, chunked potatoes with butter and parsley, just to name a few. I saw on the 1st episode of the Pioneer Woman on food network, her recipe for mashed potatoes is almost over the top! They have cream and cream cheese in them, WOW!!!!! Blessings!

a day of remembering!

Today is a day to remember those who lost their life on 9/11. We will never forget what happened or where we were when we heard the news! I honor the families that have carried on during this time! I had just clocked in at my job when I heard the news, most of us where just numb to what happened! We honor and pray for the fallen! We honor those men and women who still fight for freedom! Blessings!

corn soup

Well, I am suppose to make corn soup according to the recipe in the Dorie Greenspan's cookbook "Around my French Table", but I didn't have all the ingredients and wasn't going to go back to work and pick them up! So, I made do with what I have on hand such as cream not milk, whole baby carrots not cut up carrots. So here is my recipe: 4 ears of corn cut off the cob, 1 pint of half and half, 1 cup of water, 2 very small onions, 2 tablespoons of oil, 2 sprigs of thyme, and 1/2 of a jalapeno pepper. Saute onion in oil , add corn and stir well. Add cream and water, salt, pepper to taste, and then add the jalapeno. Spicy, but nice! Blessings!