Hello Santa!

When I try to make a Christmas list of what I'd like, it sure isn't easy. Been trying to think of things that aren't that expensive, under $20. So I started thinking of what would be something to put on the list. I drew a blank, except for one item I've been eyeballing the past few months. I saw it at Lowe's and it cost something like $17.00. I pass by it every time I go in there. Right there by the customer service desk are a rack of books.  

In between the how to make a house deck and how to install a ceiling fan, is the one that jumps out at me every time. It is a Bisquick recipe book. Odd isn't it? I guess the handymen get hungry. How many things could I possibly make from this book with using Bisquick? Would I even use it? I love making chicken and dumplings using Bisquick and I make baked biscuits quite often. I use to make pancakes, but I now use pancake mix. Although I do remember a good recipe we use to make that was a really good coffee cake with a brown sugar topping. Ok, maybe I'd use this book more than I thought......

I've been a good girl, Santa!

What is on your Christmas list that you'd probably not buy for yourself, but you'd like to have? 

Why Didn't I Think of That?

I love those emails with unusual ideas! So passing those ideas on to you today. You are welcome!  

The Flip Flop idea cracked me up and the noodle under the sheet for kids was awesome. 

Solutions to problems you probably didn't realize you had Which one did you like the best?

Feed a cold or is it feed a fever?

Caught a cold on Saturday and today I finally felt human again. So I haven't gotten a whole lot done with anything lately. I did make dinner tonight, if heating in the micro counts as making dinner. It was better than the chicken noodle soup I've been eating for the past 2 days. Although I rather enjoy chicken noodle soup anytime. That seems like all I crave when I have a cold though.  Ice cream also helps me feel better. But than again, ice cream makes me feel better anytime. Apple juice is my choice of drink too. Yesterday I couldn't taste anything I ate or drank, but I still managed to have all of the above. I pretended I could taste it. Or was I just hoping. 

So what is the food or drink you have to have when you are sick with a cold? 

Not A Black Friday Shopper

How was everyone's Turkey Day? I've been busy the past few days with the 4 day weekend. Not even sure what has kept me so busy, but it seems I didn't have time to blog. Maybe I just didn't have anything to blog about. What? Me? Not talking about anything and everything? Consider this your few days of quietness from me.

My favorite Thanksgiving side dish was Chris and Mom's sweet potatoes. I am not usually one to like those very much, but I gave it a thank you try. And boy, they were good. I thought I was eating a Pumpkin Mousse. I need to get that recipe from her. I will post it for anyone who might like to try it for Christmas this year. Oh and don't forget how great the pear mold is too!

I didn't do any Christmas shopping either. I'm just not one of those crazies who get in line for a blender or toaster at 4 am. I'd be the one who got trampled in the rush. No thank you. I don't even have a Xmas list yet. 

So tell me what your favorite dish was? And if you were one of those crazies and what treasure you found. 

Pear Mold

It is almost Thanksgiving and if you haven't been to the grocery store yet, good luck with that. The check out lines are always so long. I went today, Tuesday, and it was fine. I think I went at the perfect time.  

Rod and I are going up to my brother Roy and sister in law Sharon's house in Bothell, on Thursday. Chris came over and picked up mom today, so she won't have to drive over and back the same day. I'm thinking the traffic will be slow going. Going there and coming back again. I will bring my book. 

So what is your favorite Thanksgiving side dish? Mine would have to be Pear Mold. It is a family favorite all these years. I sure hope someone is making it again this year. And I hope they doubled the recipe. It is that good. Trust me. 

Instead of using the Dream Whip, I always use Cool Whip. Less work. I think I just use the smaller tub. And we always double the recipe, so you would need 2 small tubs. We just wing it on that part. 

Let me know what your favorite "must have" for Thanksgiving dinner is. Also, where will you be stuffing yourself at this year? 

Happy Turkey Day Everyone!

The Years Just Fly By

Today I turned 60 years old. Dang, wasn't I just 16 and falling in love, 18 and getting married, 19 and having a daughter, 24 and having a son, and 39 and becoming a grandma? Than my 40's and 50's went by so fast. Now here I am at 60. That is a big one for me. Sixty seems so old. When Rod and I talked about growing old together, was it the age of 60 that we were thinking of? I hope not, because I'm not ready to be old yet. 

Here is a picture of us dancing from last night. Ok, ok, so I'm lying. 

But now that I'm sixty, I can get away with telling lies, saying what I want to and not caring what anyone thinks. I'm sixty, remember? I think I'm going to like this 60 thing and my new attitude to go with it. I can be as cocky as I want to be. If you don't like it, look above. 

Chicken and Dumplings

It was going to be cold and rainy for the next few days. So it sounded like good day for chicken and dumplings for dinner. I use to make this all the time when the kids were little. And I still make it every month or so. I use Bisquick, so it makes it really easy. I made this on Friday night. 

First I boil the chicken, ( I use frozen chicken tenders ). Cover the chicken with water and boil for 20-30 minutes.

Once the chicken is cooked,  it is time to add a chicken bullion cube or two, or three, or four, depending on your limit of sodium. I have been using 1 bullion, just for that reason, and it seems ok to me. Add more if you don't mind the sodium.  Make sure your pan is 1/3  full of the water/bullion/chicken. Leave the chicken in the pan while you cook the dumplings. I find that the 1/3 works for me, but you can experiment on how thick you want the gravy. You don't want too much liquid, as it will make a thin gravy, and nobody likes thin gravy on their dumplings. Trust me on this. 

In a bowl, mix 3 cups of Bisquick and 1 cup of milk. I add more milk if needed. I like the dough more on the softer side, instead of the dry side. Just mix it up by spoon. Nothing fancy or hard to do.

Heat the chicken and water to almost boiling and add the dumpling mixture by spoonfuls to the pan. I made 6 dumplings or you could make them smaller for maybe 7-8 dumplings. Cook on low/med heat for 10 minutes uncovered. Now put a lid on it and cook for 10 more minutes. No peeking.

Now it is done and ready to eat. Don't forget the peas!

A Funny for the Day

Lipstick in Catholic School According to a news report, a certain private Catholic school was recently faced with a unique problem. A number of 12-year-old girls were beginning to use lipstick and would put it on in the bathroom. That was fine provided it was of a natural or neutral skin tone, but after they put on their lipstick, they would press their lips to the mirror leaving dozens of little lip prints. Every night the maintenance man would remove them; and the next day the girls would put them back. Finally, the principal, Sister Mary, decided that something had to be done. She called all the girls to the bathroom and met them there with the maintenance man. She explained that all these lip prints were causing a major problem for the custodian, who had to clean the mirrors every night (you can just imagine the yawns from the little princesses). To demonstrate how difficult it had been to clean the mirrors, Sister Mary asked the maintenance man to show the girls how much effort was required. He took out a long-handled squeegee, dipped it in the toilet, and cleaned the mirror with it. Since then, there have been no lip prints on the mirror. There are teachers...... And then there are educators! Wouldn't you just love to be there to see those girl's faces? I'd even pay to be there...lol

Freebie

While shopping for groceries today at Walmart, I heard an announcement that they were giving away a free paring knife in the  produce section. Just look for the red flashing light and listen to the man give his demonstration for 3 minutes, and you will get the free knife. 

 A free Surgical Stainless Steel knife. 

I have this knife and I love it. I stood listening to another knife man 25 years ago in Kmart. I use mine all the time. I need a new one. No wait! We will get 2 of them, because my mom gets one too..So off we go to the produce section. 

It is suppose to stay sharp for life. Than I wondered if they would replace mine, since it got caught in the garbage disposal and has a messed up handle. Hey, he said no questions asked, they just replace their knives. His little speech lasted 15 minutes, not 3 mins, and all I heard was blah, blah, blah....My back was aching and my feet were done for the day...My mom is giving me the do you really need this knife look...Come on knife dude, talk faster and slice those damn (demo) tomatoes and give us our knives already. I'm done standing here. Finally!!  Thank you! 

So now I won't have to dig in the dirty dishwasher looking for that favorite knife. I have backups!

At the Pullayup Fair, I've stood and listened and bought a squeegee with a long handle, a magnetic duster, and the pink gel cleaner in a tub. Oh and a shammy rag.  

What demos have you stood around listening to? Did you get anything free?

The Family Inn of Manchester

I wonder why it took us 27 years to try a nearby restaurant. Every time we drive by it, we say we should try this place sometime.

It is called the Family Inn at Manchester. I think the outside of the place is very uninviting and we would just say, someday we will try it. 

There is a Pub right next door called the Manchester Pub. At times you might see around 100 bikers parked there. It is referred to as a Biker Friendly Bar.  Between the bar and the restaurant, they both seem very popular.

So this past Saturday evening, we decided to try something new. Or old. It depends on how you look at it. Rod, my mom and I wandered in and right away I realized how homey it felt. I guess it really is true that you can't judge a book by it's cover. 

Cute place, huh? The people working there were very friendly and helpful. I can't wait to give it another try. 

This was where we sat. It even had a wood stove to warm the room.

The fish and chips were yummy. 

And the homemade pizza was excellent. 

The next time my sister Carol comes out from TN, I know where she will want to go.

 The Biker Bar!

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there!

Been busy with this and that. So hello to all my blogging  friends. Did you miss me? What is today? Wednesday already? I need a day off doing nothing. Friday I did errands in town, wash, dinner and more wash. Saturday I can't even remember what I did, but it was probably something productive at home. We did go out to dinner though. 

Sunday was Costco day, and that is always fun. I am probably one of the few people who enjoy going there. Came home and made a Costco cooked chicken dinner. They are so good and less work for me. 

Monday my sister in law Chris came over for a few days. She is such a big help to me with my mom. We got out for a few hours at the casino and had dinner at the buffet. Yeah for me, I felt like I was on vacation.

Than yesterday, Tuesday, we took my mom to lunch at Applebees and to the mall to get her some winter clothes. New blue coat, a pink fleece jacket, Cuddleduds, new fleece jammies, and 3 pairs of warmer pants. Oh, and 3 new electric throws from Costco. She wears the heat out of them every 6 months. They just stop heating up. So I think she is all set on her winterizing.

Last night was Taco night and a yummy Costco apple pie with ice cream. And more wash...I even started my new book last night around 11 pm..I was exhausted from shopping at the mall. I love online shopping, especially Amazon. Hello Christmas shopping online. 

Today is Rod's day off, so we are going out to do whatever we want to do. Chris said we need to get out alone. She didn't have to twist my arm. I think the Spaghetti Factory is in my vision for our dinner date tonight. So in a nutshell, that is where and what I've been up to the past few days. Nothing earth shattering, but that is how I like it. 

Orange Cake

Orange cake is so yummy. You need to take my word for it. I decided on Chocolate frosting for it and it was a good choice. 

Orange Supreme!

My mom was bored on Tuesday, so I suggested she make a cake. I wasn't sure if she would want to, but with my help, she did great. 

Tada!

Would you like a piece of cake?

or 2 or 3 or 6?

I think we should call this "my mom was bored with watching the election cake." 

What was the last thing you baked? 

World Prematurity Day

Help Light up the White House in Purple, on Jan 3rd 2013

Little Colton with Daddy. 

And our big boy Colton now!

Most everyone knows that my grandson Colton was born 10 weeks early, and only weighed 2 pounds, 6 ounces. Because of that, I became aware of how much good the March of Dimes does for all premature babies. They need your signature to get the White House lit up purple. Just click the "sign petition" link below. 

We can end this crisis My Friends, For every child who has overcome the challenges of being born too early. For every parent who has fought through the distress of a premature birth. For them, we recognize November as Prematurity Awareness Month®. The March of Dimes is pulling out all the stops to make sure everyone knows how urgent the prematurity crisis is in this country and around the world. We're asking for the White House to be lit up purple early next year as a symbol of hope. We have less than 2 weeks — until November 18th — to get 25,000 signatures. Urge the President to raise awareness about the prematurity crisis by lighting the White House purple! Our goal is to get the White House lit in purple on January 3, 2013 — both to honor the 75th anniversary of the founding of the March of Dimes by President Franklin Roosevelt, and to give hope to the families whose children have been born too soon. So far, more than 7,000 people have signed our petition at WhiteHouse.gov. Please join them by November 18 and help us raise awareness about the prematurity crisis: sign petition Sincerely, Jennifer Howse President, March of Dimes

I just signed the petition and it only took me just a few minutes. I am signature # 9096. 

Nancy K

Port Orchard, WA

November 07, 2012
Signature # 9,096 

I want to see the white house lit up in Purple on Jan 3rd 2013. 
Wouldn't you like to see all the Purple too?

Chicken Parmesan

Italian Night!

These are great if you haven't tried them yet. I get them at Costco, but I'm sure you can get them anywhere. 

They are uncooked so they need to be cooked for 30 minutes or so. I cook them from frozen on a cookie sheet. I turn them once and than later I add spaghetti sauce, shredded cheese and Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. Bake for a few more minutes and you get what you see in the photo. 

I make pasta for the rest of the spaghetti sauce and add some garlic bread. Easy to make and better than just spaghetti. 

And the best part is leftovers the next night. I put one of the Parmesan chicken on a bun and have a Italian chicken sandwich. 

What do you think? Does it look good?