Super Sunday

I am very happy because I am going to a painting class today.  I love painting classes for many reasons.  First, when I am painting everything else leaves my mind.  Secondly, when I leave my painting class my project is complete...all I have to do is let it dry and  frame it.  Lastly, I feel so dang creative...I never ever thought that I could paint but my instructor is amazing, the technique we use is foolproof and everyone who takes the class paints a beautiful rendition of the chosen painting.  Another bonus is that several of my friends take the class with me so I get to spend time with them.  Frank is wonderful about caring for Mom while I am gone so that I can just spend the day in the zone with no worries.

We all bring something to eat, I am bringing my corn chowder and some pears from my tree. It is a very full day we start at 11 and usually are done around 4 with only a 20 minute break for lunch.  My friend, Lou, is bringing a vegetable tray, my friend, Janeil, is bringing dessert and all the other students will bring stuff also so we feast for that 20 minutes we have available to us.

Before I leave I am going to go down and organize my storage room for 15 minutes.  I did not get down to the basement at all yesterday so I definitely need to get down there today. Go me....I stayed down there for a half an hour to make up for missing yesterday.

Had a great time at painting class as always and I am pleased (for the most part) with my painting.

 

"It was a dark and spooky night"

 

 

Beets, Broccoli and Brussels Sprouts

We are getting tons of stuff from our CSA right now and it has been piling up in my fridge so today I thought I would share how I am going to use some of it.

 

I decided to use up one of my heads of Broccoli by adding a Broccoli Salad to my menu for tonight.

 

Below you will find my recipe.

It changes every time I make this depending on what I have in my refrigerator and cupboard.

 

Broccoli Salad

 

1 head broccoli or cauliflower or a mixture of both

1 small red onion or 4 green onions or a small sweet onion (I didn't use any today)

1 c. raisins or dried cranberries or dried cherries (I used cherries today)

1 c. sunflower seeds or sliced almonds (today I used sunflower seeds)

7 slices bacon, cooked and diced (I didn't add this today)

 

Dressing

 

1 c. mayonnaise or salad dressing (Miracle Whip) or 1/2 c. of either with 1/2 of sour cream

1/2 c. sugar

2 T. vinegar

 

Place all salad ingredients in a large bowl.  Whisk together dressing ingredients.  Pour over salad and combine well.  Chill before serving.

Print Recipe

 

 

I also got a stalk of Brussels Sprouts.

 

 

I remove the heads by snapping or cutting them off the stalk.

 

 

I soak them in salted water to remove any dirt and/or bugs that are hiding in between the leaves.

 

 

And they are ready to be used.  I am adding them to my meal tonight. 

I will toss them with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast them.

 

 

And there are a lot of beets. So I am pickling them.

 

 

 

I remove the greens leaving a little on and leave the root end on.

Scrub them very well.

 

 

Place them in a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil.

  Turn heat down to Med and cook until easily pierced with a fork.

 

 

Rinse them under cold water until cool enough to handle.

 

 

Once you cut off the tops and bottoms the skins will wash right off with water.

It looks like I got a turnip in there also (on the right) but that's ok.  It will pickle up with the beets.

 

 

Slice the beets.

 

 

Place the onion, spices, vinegar and water in a large pot and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 5 min.

 

 

Add the beets and heat thoroughly.

Ladle into pints leaving a 1/2" headspace.

Process for 30 minutes using the water bath method.

 

 

 

Pickled Spiced Beets

 

6 lbs. of Beets, cooked, peeled and sliced.

1 large onion, sliced

2 c. sugar

1/2 T. salt

1/2 T. whole cloves

1/2 T. whole allspice

3 cinnamon sticks

3 1/2 c. apple cider vinegar

1 1/2 c. water

 

Place onion, sugar, salt, spices, vinegar and water into a large saucepot, bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 min.  Add sliced beets and heat through.  Ladle beets into pint jars, covering with the hot liquid leaving a 1/2" headspace.  Process for 30 min. using the water bath method. 

Makes approx. 7 pints.  Print Recipe

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another day.....another million times being asked the same question.

*****This is part of a 31 Day 2013 Challenge****

 

Mom had a very good time last night.  We went to the Voyageur Restaurant which is always nice.  Mom enjoys watching the boats and freighters go by while she dines.  She ate very well also which made me happy because she had refused anything other that some watermelon all day yesterday. After dinner we went into the bar and finished our wine with a group of friends that were meeting the Benda's up there and of course everyone fawned over Mom so she was in her glory.  We heard what a great time she had about 30 times on the way home.  That was interspersed with her remarking how far of a drive it was home and that it didn't seem to take that long to get to the restaurant.

 

When we pulled into the yard Mom said "oh yeah, I've been here before, is this where I'm sleeping tonight?" I replied that she was and she said she better not because her husband wouldn't know where to pick her up.  I told her not to worry that he knew exactly where to find her. She asked when I had told him where she was and I replied that I told him before he left.  That seemed to satisfy her.

Frank's brother Dan came over and he and Frank went to get the Benda's trailer so Dan could pick up a dining room set he bought at an estate sale yesterday. Mom has been up this morning for 15 min.  Since that time she has asked me 8 times whose car is parked in front of our house.  I barely get the answer out of my mouth and she is asking again.  It is going to be one of those days I think. Now she wants to know why no one ever told her that Frank had a brother and why she has never met him. IT IS going to be one of those days.

Instead of dwelling on that.....I think I will look at some more memories....

 

This is from our trip to SF after my nephew's wedding.  The plan was that my sister was going a week before the wedding to do some sightseeing and we would fly with Mom and Pops to CA for the wedding.  Then Mom and Pops would fly home with my sister while we stayed for a week of sightseeing.  That plan lasted until Mom and Pops found out Frank and I were going to SF and of course Pops said "we want to go".  It was a great time and left us with great memories.  This was before Mom started getting forgetful.

 

See Day 6

Onto the Organizing

I have to say that I am losing some of the excitement about this project because now my basement is looking like my storage room did.  I know that it is only temporary and that in a few more days I will be done clearing the storage area out and putting the stuff I am keeping back in an orderly fashion but there is no door I can close to the rest of my basement to hide the mess that is there right now.  This makes me very anxious.  I find it difficult to go down there and work on any of my sewing or Christmas projects because all that mess makes me nervous. 

The only good thing about it is that while I may not get anything else done in the basement in the next few days I will definitely persevere with the organizing and getting rid of the clutter because I cannot stand to have it in my living area.  Another good thing is that while I can't go down in the basement, maybe I will get my reading done.  I have been reading the same book for over a month. It is not bad but it is not one of those books that you hate to put down and cannot wait to get back to but again, my OCD kicks in and does not allow me to not finish it and move onto a more enjoyable book.  I am nearly done though so perhaps this basement project will be the nudge I need.

Seriously.......a Free Saturday!! And, of course, the Weekly Menu

I could not believe it when I looked at my calendar and it was clear.....there was nothing on it except working on the weekly menu, going to the farm and singing at 4 pm Mass....wooooohooooooo....that means we can start putting all our summer yard stuff away for the Fall.  It is sad how excited I can get over the little things LOL.

I planned a crockpot meal for tonight so it could cook all day while we did yard work and be ready to be served up when we get home from Mass, but Frank ended up having to go to a work meeting and it is pouring rain. We are still having the crockpot meal but no yard work today. On the way home Frank is stopping to pick up his Mom and bring her over so she can go to Mass with us and then stay for dinner and a visit.

Tomorrow I am taking a painting class (soooooo excited) and Frank will be making dinner.  My bet would be that he will make spaghetti since that is his specialty. This is the first week for Try it Tuesday so I have a new recipe on the menu. On Wednesday, weather permitting, Frank is going to fly a couple up to Mackinac Island for the day.  He donated this trip for a fundraiser.  I hope to go with him if I can find a Mom sitter, if not Mom and I will meet him for dinner after he lands. Friday we are having our friends the Greens and the Wronas over for dinner and Don Wrona is allergic to seafood so no Fish Friday this week but Salmon on Tuesday so it's all good.

 

Swiss Steak

Saturday
Swiss Steak served over Egg Noodles

Sunday
Dinner by Frank

Meatless Monday
Mushroom Ravioli in Alfredo Sauce

Try-it Tuesday
Fennel Crusted Salmon (found in this cookbook)
Roasted Baby Potatoes
Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Wednesday
Out for Dinner after Flying

Thursday
Roast Chicken
Mashed Potatoes
Roasted Squash

Friday-Dinner with Friends
Margaritas
Guacamole with Chips
Oaxacan Black Bean Soup
Tacos of Tomatillo Chicken with Wilted Greens and Fresh Cheese
Chocolate Pecan Pie
*All recipes (except Margarita's) can be found in this book

You can see this and a lot more menu ideas at Menu Plan Monday

Finally Friday

Nothing on the schedule for today.  I want to get some exercise in, work on my October Organizing, get to the store for feed for my turkeys, chickens and pigs and get some laundry done.  My nephew, Jake, is coming over tonight to have another shooting session before duck hunting opens this weekend.  I had hoped that his parents (my sister Dawn and her husband, Tom) and his brother, Ryan (our Godson) could come for dinner tonight but Dawn has to work.  So instead of cooking I think we are going to meet our friends, the Benda's, out for dinner tonight.

I am sending Mom and Nancy for massages this afternoon so hopefully I will get some sewing done while they are gone.  Friday is also the day my friend, Tamie, comes to clean.....I love the way my house looks and smells on Fridays!!

So far it has been a pretty lazy day for me.  It is 10:30 and I am still in my pj's.  I did get some laundry going, made Mom and Nancy breakfast, took care of the chickens, turkeys and pigs, and got the house straightened up for Tamie to come in but now I am trying to convince myself to get out and take that walk, pick up feed or go down and do my 15 Minutes of Organizing.  I need to get moving soon though because we have a 1:30 appt. at the bank to get Tingting's car loan and go pick up her new (used) car.

 

I took the dogs and went for a hike.  This is one of my favorite places to hike in the fall and spring...not in the summer though....it is a mosquito paradise.  Other than birds and bugs today the only wildlife we saw were lots of frogs that Bella thought were there just so she could chase them.

 

Tamie went down to the basement and looked through the donate pile. She adopted a cake platter, some glasses, a dvd player, some cd's and a couple of knick knacks.  I am happy they found a good home.

 

 

And here is Ting with her new car...she was jumping out of her skin excited!!

 

Day 4- Memories of Mom

****This is part of my 31 Day Challenge 2013****

My earliest memory of my Mom is her sitting at the kitchen table polishing her nails.  Mom was always primping and preening.  She was very stylish, she wore mini dresses and blonde wigs.  She spent hours on her appearance and Pops was proud to have such a beautiful woman on his arm. They had, what appeared to be a fairy tale marriage.  Mom was Pop's princess and he adored her.  They were married for 74 years before Pops passed away.  I cannot imagine what it would be like to be with someone for your entire life and then have them gone.  I think perhaps this is one of the reasons God chose to give Mom this disease, so she wouldn't spend the last years of her life mourning the only man she ever loved. 

I was fortunate enough to have spent a lot of time with both of my parents.  After Frank and I got married his job allowed us to travel many places on conferences.  Whenever we would tell my folks about where we were going they would want to tag along and Frank was gracious enough to allow this.  My parents must have enjoyed these trips because for the next 15 yrs. every time we would go on vacation my Pops would say "We want to go".  We had a lot of laughs, a lot of fun and we are left with many great memories.

 

This is a photo of Frank and I with Mom and Pops on a Glacier in Alaska in 2005.

We had taken a cruise and this was one of the day trips...a helicopter ride to the glaciers.

It was on this trip that we first noticed that Mom was becoming forgetful.  Pops let her go to the bathroom by herself and she ended up being brought back to us by an employee who found her wandering around lost.

 

More and more often now Mom doesn't remember Pops.  She believes all of us are her siblings and that her Mom and Dad are still alive.  Just the other day as we were watching tv she looked at me and said "You better take me home now, Mom is going to be worried about me."  I just assured her that her Mom knew where she was and that she would be sleeping here that night.  She asked where she would be sleeping and I replied "upstairs in your room".  She asked if I would be sleeping up there also and I indicated my room and told her I would be sleeping in there.  She said "Isn't that Frank's room?"  I said it was and she asked if I was sleeping with Frank.  I responded I was and she says....."Well, what does his wife think about that???? 

 

You have to laugh or you would spend your whole day crying.

 

Today I am sending Mom and Nancy for massages.  I try to get Mom a massage every couple of months.  She doesn't remember it as soon as she gets home but she really enjoys it while she is having it and we just live in the moment.....maybe another reason God allowed her to have this disease...to teach me to live in the moment.

 

See Day 5