Replies to Previous Posts

I do appreciate all of your comments each day, and I apologize for not replying personally to each one,every time. It is frustrating to reply on some one's blog post,forever and never hear a word back. I had that to happen here lately, and for whatever reason, I gave up on them and deleted their blog from my followings. Silly,I know, but it was kinda like hugging a tree,if you know what I mean.So thanks for ALL of the nice comments,even though I may not reply specifically to each one,every time.I do appreciate and read each one.Thank goodness I don't have as many as Nancy,Suzanne,and Rhonda.That would require a full time secretary to respond to all,or else a lot of copy and pasting with a generic Thank You.

Terry, they sold pressure canners of every kind last night at the auction.Most brought mere pocket change.Folks are getting back to canning more. I thought they would have brought much more,but many folks are afraid of them.

As for the generator, we had the bad ice storm a couple of years ago, and we bought one then. Thank goodness, we haven't had to use it since.It's one of those things, when you need one, you need one, nothing else will do,but you don't need it that often.

Pop and I have the discussion of folks wanting to burn wood to get some relief on the electric bill,and he is a very wise man.He cuts all of our wood himself. We have access to plenty of wood to cut. Although we don't have any trees on our property, he helps others in our area who do, and they barter with his help where ever needed in exchange for the wood. We purchased a wood splitter after the fire,so that was a tremendous help, considering both our ages and the ages of our friends with whom we barter.My older sister at one time wanted to get into wood burning for her home, but after thinking of all the pros and cons,she decided it would not work that simple for her.If you are not set up for a it, you will run into a lot of hassle from your insurance company. When we built our new house, after the fire, we made it a point to put in an accepted flue,an expensive unit in itself,so there would be no problem with our burning wood. We are so glad we did.If you are younger, and have a good back,access to plenty of wood, an approved flue,and a good stove,you will come out pretty good.If not, you can never come out on wood burning.There's buying the stove,first,then buying the wood,unless you plan to cut it yourself, then that brings up the chain saw. Do you have one.? If not, you'll need to buy one. Then you need to know how to use it, or hire someone to use it. There's gas and oil, and chains for it.And don't forget the mess it all makes.There is so many pros and cons to wood burning,I doubt I will be able to continue on with it, in the event,God forbid,I am left here alone in the future.A little fireplace or stove just for an occasional fire would not be so bad,but even that has it problems.I think I would do like my Mother, and go for one of those infrared heater for supplement heat.No matter what type of heat you use, you will use a lot less, if your dwelling is insulated to the max. Mom lives in a 2 car garage converted apartment,24 by 36 feet,but it is insulated well.Her infrared heater is all the heat she has and she stays as snug as a bug in a rug.I'm not telling you this to throw water on your parade, but it is something to think about.

As for the big kitchen,no, that is my basement. I am so proud of the work I have done with it. Pop has let me do,pretty much, whatever I want to do,down there, which is a miracle in itself. It was unfinished the first year we lived in the new house. Then I started tinkering with it,documenting my works step by step on my blog. I have pretty much come to a standstill with it for awhile, since I am working on MY BIG SECRET PROJECT nowadays.I have more plans for the kitchen area, but I'll get back to it later.


Nancy,Same here and old habits do die hard. A life long habit of canning everything in sight is hard to break. I started canning the very week I was married at the age of 18. My then-husband's grandmother brought us 3 or 4 peaches to eat, and I canned them. There was a dirt cellar under the old house we lived in, and it had a shelf or two. I remember like it was yesterday, canning those peaches and placing them down under the house on those dirt shelves. Thus,the canning bug began.I helped Mom all the years I was growing up, but not because I wanted to. We had to help or else.But since it was for myself after I married, I was so proud I knew how,and therefore,canned my own foods willingly ever since.I,too,end up with a lot of cans of unused things to feed the chickens, but I feel that is not really considered as wasting it, but I am trying to can a lot less nowadays,on that account.

Oh yes,Nancy, I got a package today. That was so nice.Thank you! I was repaying you for the garlic seeds a while back. Didn't expect a return gift, but it came just in time for my birthday next week,so Thanks a bunch for the book marker,soap,and refrigerator magnets. They are all so nice.

Mom and Dad's Wedding Day

Due to being tired and my computer acting up late last night I was unable to post this picture in memory of my parent's anniversary.
They were married on January 27,1946.They met while Dad was in the Army,and corresponded for the remainder of his term of service. When he came out of the service, Mom said he returned home to Ky. to his parents home first, then went immediately to Louisiana to see if she still wanted to get married. They had spoke about doing so, in their letters, over the remainder of his four years in service.
They were married 54 years 8 months, and raised 9 children together, before Dad passed away from cancer on September 5,2001.They were married 3 days before Mom's 21st birthday. She will be 85 on January 30,2011.

Still Freezing?

No, as cold as it has been this winter,I am speaking of freezing our foods,not the weather.I am sorry to hear about Miss Lottie's water/freezer problem, but while thinking about her freezer problems, it got me to thinking about how dependant I am on my own freezers, and how I take them for granted.Here lately, my older sister has been talking about the fact that we all should start canning even more of the foods we preserve.With all the problems in the world,there is no longer any certainty when it comes to electricity. We are hearing that we can expect more brownouts and the like. THEY can do anything THEY want to us, and we are at their mercy, so we need to plan ahead for the possibility of no electric for short periods.I'm working on preserving more things in jars, but we have become so dependant on freezers, it is hard to do.We are so spoiled in this part of the world, and we have had so much for so long, it is really hard to think about going back and doing things the way we did when we were young. I know from my own experiences of the last 63 years, I can do it, but being spoiled as we all are to the modern way of life, it would take much time and some major adjustments.
(The two curtains in the picture are hiding my canned goods and extra jars.Doors I have planned for the 8 foot of shelving is in my plan, but for now, the curtains will have to suffice,to keep those types of things,out of sight.)


As for Miss Lottie's cheese making, I recall Mom making cheese now and then, out of necessity, when she was raising us 9 kids. It turned out pretty good, at times. We never had access to a lot of store bought cheeses, so of course, we thought it was wonderful. We had cottage cheese quite often, but other cheeses not so much.We had cows, so milk was plentiful, and products derived from milk were always close at hand.One of my favorites was the home made cottage cheese, and of course, butter and buttermilk. Yum! Mom did a lot of experimenting with various foods trying to find ways to keep us all fed. I guess I inherited that from her, because I love to experiment with foods,when I do get around to cooking anyway.Being retired,we just don't require big meals,so I only do major cooking when company is coming.
One of my favorites was the cottage cheese Mom use to make. I can't remember exactly what she would put in it, but I do remember she would incorporate things from the garden,like green onions and radishes, and then some mayonaise,salt and pepper.That was a double Yum!I remember her setting the large pan of milk out to clabber, then she'd put it on the stove to simmer for awhile, then she'd pour it slowly into a cheesecloth or something similar, to hang on the clothesline to drain all of the whey from it. Then it was ready to add the additional ingredients.How I wish I had a milk cow today!Pop won't give in,or I would have one.And as much as he loves milk,go figure.

That Dreadful F Word Again

Why is it, when you are cooped up indoors, your mind is constantly on Food? I try not to bring in junk foods unless we are having company, then I use them as munchies for the guests, until the meal is ready or for snacking through the remainder of the day,if they linger.The only trouble is,when the company is gone, the munchies remain, sitting there,calling my name.And they never need to call my name more than once. Well, the munchies are all gone, so I tried to find something I could whip up that was just as fattening,since that seems to be the only kind of food that interests me when I'm in the munching mood.
I have been thinking of trying these pecan mini-pies for some time now.I didn't bother looking up a recipe(as usual). I just jumped in with both feet and tried my own variation. I had 2 rolls of ready made pie crust in the fridge, and since Pop was onto me to clear out some of the "stuff" in the fridge, I used that for an excuse to cook. I made the mini pecan pies.They turned out pretty good.Better than I had figured they would with no recipe. So my sweet tooth will be satisfied for one more day, and the doctor's scales will go crazy tomorrow when we go for our regular check ups.Do you have days when you want to eat everything in site?

Out of the mouths of babes.....

These were made by our ten year old Granddaughter this weekend,while spending time with us.

Now That's Good Eatin'

I take Mom to the grocery quite often, and she loves to hit the discounted bread rack.She loves and eats a lot of different types of bread,although you would never guess it, by her size. She is skin and bones,and loves it that way.She was five foot six in her younger days.She may be an inch shorter now,due to her bones settling, but she was always right around 200 pounds her entire grown up life.With 9 kids, I guess she was entitled.Nevertheless,the last time we hit the bread rack, we bought out the Raisin Bread. I think it was 5 loaves. She has ate her 1st loaf, as have I.Today,we opened her second loaf, and ate a snack with her,before I rushed home,ahead of the snow which was accumulating fast on the roads.When I got home, I got to thinking how foolish it was to buy bread,when I had all the makins for it here. I keep a jar of fruit mix in the fridge,just in case I take a notion to bake.I mix together several kinds of things like maybe I was making a fruit cake, then I add nuts, oatmeal,wheat germ,and any other healthy ingredients I may have on hand. I've said before that I am an Aquarius, so you probably know by that, that I like to do things my way. I have always threw cakes together from scratch and they are usually pretty good.When I got home, rather that pull another loaf of Raisin Bread out of the freezer, I decided to bake my our loaf.So I did, and it ain't half bad either,with a dollop of cream cheese on top. I've already served the coffee drinkers their coffee today, so they'll have to wait until tomorrow to sample my bread.If there is any left.

Top 10 Toxic Food Ingredients

(Top 10 Toxic Food Ingredients By Jillian Michaels, creator of JillianMichaels.com)



This is an article that came through one of my email newsletters lately. I am an avid reader of health concerns, therefore I subscribe to several of these types of newsletters. It use to be, that if you were reading anything in print, it was the truth. That is not necessarily so anymore, so we must take what we do read with a grain of salt and continue on with further research,but in this case, I feel the author is on the right track. I have fervently believed the things she is saying for my entire grownup life, since I have always been fascinated with health related issues.It has always been my belief that a lot of the health and medical problems of the world are caused by the ingesting of these types of toxins. Therefore, the"getting back to the simple way of life" should bring back the normalcy mankind once knew.However,we may not see it in our lifetime.The ridding of all the toxins from our foods,our air,our water,will take a lifetime, and if the world stands long enough for folks to wise up and clean it all up,possibly our great grandchildren may get some benefits from a cleaner more toxin free world, but it is very unlikely that that can ever be accomplished.We can only begin to help ourselves, by cleaning up our own homes and avoid using as many of these products as possible.We are so spoiled to bringing so many of these things into our homes and our lives, it will be a painful slow process to wean ourselves from them, but hopefully we will one day see,it was worth all the pain.


http://www.everydayhealth.com/health-report/jillian-michlife/processed-foods-pitfalls.aspx?xid=nl_EverydayHealthManagingDiabetes_20110120aels-healthier-

No Peeking! It's a Secret Project.

Sorry for being away from my blogging so long. It really does seem like a long time to me,too. I hate it when I can't find enough time to write. I have tried to send a few comments to a few of my good friends who so faithfully comment on my stories. That is such a nice gesture on their part.
Pop went on a hunting trip down in Mississippi this past week, and those little trips of his, give me an opportunity to call in the troops, and work on whatever project I might have in the works at that time.This time it was on my Secret Project. It is a slow go, but it is coming along.Slowly,but surely. I am so thrilled with the progress we have made. I can hardly wait to see the finished product. I hope it turns out in reality as I have envisioned it forever in my mind.
Pop doesn't always agree with what I want to do, but when I get it done, he is usually as proud of it as I am. I think the reason he is always so slow to give me his approval, is the fact that it costs money. Well, I am using my family for help in the labor department, and I am pretty handy with most crafts,myself, so I will be saving a little there. And it's not like I didn't work for 30 years. I feel I have earned the right to do a little project for myself, now and then. Well,maybe this one will fall under the BIG project heading,but I still think he will be happy with the finished product,as he usually is.
My Kitchenette Project in the basement turned out pretty nice, although I still have a little more to do there. Now that one of my brothers,who has always lived in West Virginia, is living in Ky. again,and close by, hopefully I can call on him to help a little more, and get a few long awaited jobs done.

Happy 6th Birthday,John!

Pop and I went to John's home tonight for Beans and Cornbread,Birthday Cake and Ice cream.We had to have John's 2 favorite foods,too. Corn dogs and whole kernel corn,and his Dad cooked up a big plate full of Red Hot Chicken Wings,which were too hot for most of us,so we filled up on the rest of the meal.It wasn't anything fancy,but we were all there. Meemaw and Poppy,Aunt Rhonda and Uncle Marc,John's parents,Carmen and David, and sister, Leah,and Mams,Pop's Ex.John opened a few gifts. We ate the cake and ice cream,and visited for a few hours,and since tomorrow is a school day,we all departed pretty early.I'm really too tired to blog tonight, but couldn't let John's Big Day pass without recording a note of some kind.Sorry I didn't have any better pictures,but my camera is acting up.I've got a birthday coming up in a couple of weeks, so I have been hinting pretty heavy,for a new one. Until later!Have a good night,all.

My Sleep Remedies

I'm posting today in response to 50's question,over at Piggies Heaven.Thanks,50,for the idea.

At risk of being booed and jeered, and possibly ending up on the Oprah Show, or maybe Dr. Phil, or Dr. Oz's show, I am going to divulge my remedy for a more restful night.A lot of folks will frown,and a produce lot of other expected reactions, at my solutions or remedies for a good night's sleep,BUT it's working out great for my getting a good nights sleep,thus feeling much better every minute of the following day,and that's what counts. I took to sleeping ALONE,in another room,in a different bed,with a softer mattress,and no dog.Our dog,Sarah,now sleeps only with Pop.I shut my door so the cats,which are spoiled to me, can't get in my room now.I bought myself two really soft pillows.Now I have an entire bed to myself, to tumble and roll, and find my most comfortable position in which to sleep. Before,I only had 1/2 a bed, the dog was smothering me,crowding me out,and she is so heavy,I could never pull the covers up around my neck, like I wanted.The cats would come in and snuggle in my face wanting to be petted.That would interfere with my breathing,plus I have allergies.I had to basically face one side of the bed,for the most part,near the wall, which made me claustrophobic.I never really cared to sleep on the right side of the bed. I sleep better turned in the opposite direction, but being the good wife I am, I never mentioned that in 32 years of marriage. I took the other side, and dealt with it. The time of dealing,had to end now, in order to finally get a better nights sleep.I had trouble falling asleep, many nights, in my new arrangement, because I was feeling guilty for making such a drastic move. It didn't seem to bother Pop,basically because he falls asleep in front of the TV, and doesn't come to bed until 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning, so I got over it very quickly. Now I get a great nights sleep every night. My aches and pain are lessened.The numbness in my arms and hands,caused by the constant need to scrunch up in a ball on my side of the bed,to avoid disturbing others,has disappeared.Through diligent research on the part of my Chiropractor and myself,when I went to him with horrible pain in both arms and hands,we both come to the conclusion,that that was my problem. That is what the doctors on Oprah and the like, mean, when they say you must be your own advocate. You know you,better than anyone else. You must dig until you find your best solution to your specific problem,no matter what others say or think.So that is my solution to my sleeping woes.

Something's Missing!

I received my fourth book today, and as I was browsing through it, I noticed something was missing.One of the most fascinating things about blogging, is the friends that I am finding all across the world. Some of their names or screen names show up in my comments, but no one will ever know by that, that I am communicating with others around the world.That is one thing I would like my friends and family to know,when they read my book, in years to come.I have made friends around the world through my blogging.I'll never travel to see the far away places that I have only read about in books and on the computer, but I can learn bits and pieces of how folks live in other countries via my blogging.That is more than I would have ever dreamed of when I began this journey. I am learning how other folks live, whether it be different from my way of life, or very similar, as is the case in many of the stories we have been sharing. It is truly fascinating to me, to find that folks all over the world,are living,and doing, and thinking so much alike, no matter what their circumstances or situation may be.In some cases, our language and our dress may be different, but our desires for a better, more fulfilling, and satisfying life, remain the same.For many of us another common goal is the desire to live a simpler,less complicated lifestyle which does not destroy the earth we live on,and if possible,to leave it in a much better condition for our children and grandchildren.In some of my up coming posts, I hope to mention some of my new found friends and a hopefully their location, as close as I can without divulging too much information.I know that has always been a fear of mine.With the world becoming such a scary place,we all tend to live with a little bit of worry and fear of WHAT IF,so I will hopefully,be weaving a few screen names and countries into my upcoming posts in the next few weeks.

Ain't Life Grand!

Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyday could be this grand. This is Pop and his youngest daughter.She has so much of his personality,it's unreal. She has that fiery side from her Mom,too,but it doesn't come out that often, unless she tired,and hungry,and then upset,all at once.That's when you don't want to be in the same room,but this picture depicts her personality most of the time. Even though she is the mother of our two Grandchildren,and as we all know, and she reminds us all daily,that they are the sweetest,most perfect,most precious kids on the face of the earth,they can be holy terror at times,and even she,needs some relief on occasion.Thank God for Aunt Rhonda and Uncle Marc,Mams(their natural maternal grandmother),and Meemaw and Poppy.Raising these two Perfect Grandchildren is truly a family affair,especially since their Mom received a grant from the hospital here lately, and is taking some additional courses to be a Nurse Practitioner.I think that what it is called.She can have her own office,and prescribe some medications,just like a Doctor.At least, that's my understanding of it.
Nevertheless,back to the picture. I was going through some of the pictures taken at Christmas this year, and got to thinking about this particular picture. The thing that was making them, and the rest of us,laugh so hard was one of the gifts she had given Pop. It was a Jeff Foxworthy Redneck Calendar,and I just happened to have his last year's calendar handy,too.The entire family sat around after the gifts were opened, and laughed our fool selves silly over the calendars.So many of the sayings on the calendar hit home with us,I guess that's why they all seem so funny.Why we even bothered getting and giving gifts, I'll never know. I think next year, we'll just buy the calendar and have that much fun all over again. What a fun and frugal way to celebrate Christmas.

If only I'd known him then....

We visited Pop's cousin,Larry, and his wife,Edna, tonight for supper, and to check out their new car. While we were there,Edna showed me a picture of Pop,taken when he was very young. Due to a nasty divorce,Pop doesn't have a lot of pictures from his early life. They seem to have gotten lost in the shuffle. However,I have managed to acquire a few copies from different family members, as I did this one tonight. This,as you can tell, has been around awhile. Pop must have been about 16 to 20,I'm guessing.And if that were the case, I would have been 6 to 10 years old. I have heard him say many times,"If only we could have met years ago..." I learned years later, that he used to drive fast cars, and he had passed in front of my house many times,when I was 6 years old,but who knew? There's no way of knowing whether things would have worked out for us, had we met all those years ago. I guess it just wasn't in The Plan.He had to endure what he did,as did I, in order to find and appreciate each other,as we do now.We are both so thankful that we did find one another at all. Up to this point,we have had a wonderful 32 years.There have been a few bumps in the road, but overall, it's a journey I would gladly take again, if ever I had to do it over.

What to do with aging oranges

When we were young,there were 9 of us kids to feed, and Mom was a genius when it came to filling us up. I really never knew if she dreamed up lots of the ideas she used on us or where they came from, but we never went hungry.We didn't have a free run to the food like many kids do today.There were never any snacks lying around to grab, at any minute of the day.We,for the most part, grew up on real food,every time we ate anything. If we ever had sweets, we had to concoct them ourselves. Mom, would,on occasion,fix something sweet for us, but most of the time we were on our own. It was always a rule in our house though, you can cook up any kind of sweets you want from what we had available, but it must be eaten. No waste allowed. That, I suppose, is where I got the training I have had, that carried me on through life, with a job of cooking and serving school children's lunches for nigh onto 30 years.In the beginning, I was allowed to use those skills, but as time progressed, we had to stick to very strict guidelines and cook only what we were told. That's when all the fun went out of it for me. I should have asked, at that point, to be transferred to an experimental kitchen for school children everywhere. Maybe in Frankfort or the like. (lol)
The reason I tell you all of this is to give you a background of where I am coming from. That has been my motto for life. Utilize what you have to the best of your knowledge and Waste Nothing.Not a bad motto for us all to have.
Nevertheless, I come to this story. I really don't know if the rest of the world was eating some of the things we grew up with, but one of the things Mom use to make was Watermelon Rind Preserves. Pop gets so upset to this day when we have watermelon. He tries to pitch the rinds to the chickens,quickly, before I get to them first. I will can them even today.I think Mom did that out of necessity,back then. They always come in handy at Fruitcake Making time.When she canned her WRP,she would cook a few slices of oranges in with it, and it was always a fight as to who would get to the candied orange rinds first.I guess that was a sign of how hungry we were for sweets.
Now when I make my WRP, I load them up with candied orange peels.
So now you know what I do with my oranges that linger around too long after the holidays. I sometime feel, it borderlines on ridiculous instead of frugal,but they are, oh, so good in those fruitcakes, instead of that rock hard, teeth breaking, candied fruit you buy in the stores.I wash the oranges,cut off any offensive parts,dice them up into tiny pieces,rind and all,remove the seeds if they have seeds,cook the diced oranges up with plenty of sugar until they become thick and syrupy and glassy. Then I can or freeze them until I make WRP, or fruitcakes,IF they don't get eaten before then.
Hence,another one of my Frugal Tips.

Budget Wows?

I guess when you've been on a budget your entire life, it doesn't seem to hurt so bad, when they say you're gonna have to tighten up a bit. That's been the story of our lives. It's not so hard to do around this house,since Pop and I both, grew up living pretty close to the bone. We know how it's done. We may have gotten away from that lifestyle a bit over the years,since we, like most in this country, have had plenty for a long time. Times have been good for the most of our 32 years together. We have not had to strain that much to live a comfortable life. We live simple, but comfortable,and I think that may be the reason we are not feeling the crunch so much now, when things are really bad. We don't waste,and frugal has been our way of life the entire journey.The kids have made fun of us and complained, at times, about us eating cost cutter foods, instead of the big name brands, and us wearing consignment store clothing, instead of shopping at the fancy shmancy stores that sell expensive name brand designer clothing.It bothered me for many years to know they were so spoiled,they felt they must have the name brand things, but I think it has finally sunk in,as to why we did that. When we do get a check,it doesn't all go out for credit card payments,house payments, car payments,and the like.When ever one of them needs help in any way, they know we will be there when and if things get too rough. That is worth a lot. I hope they have finally come to realize why we have lived the way we have for all these years.
The pictures I posted today is just a sample of our way of doing things. We had a big meal for the fellows working on our pond lately, and there were a few left overs. I took a couple of left over potatoes which were smothered over the green beans, and about 1/2 cup of left over corn,I diced up a fresh onion,threw in an egg and a couple of heaping table spoons of flour,and a dash of herb seasoning blend.I smushed this all together and took my little cookie dough dropper, and dropped the mixture into a pan of hot oil(the good oil,Of course).With a dab of Ranch dressing,they were scrumptious.Leftovers are used up,we are filled up,no money spent for this snack, and that will hold us until our evening meal, and we'll start the process all over again. It is amazing how good anything tastes when deep fried.(It's not a good idea to eat deep fried that often, but for a change,it not so bad).

A Surprise for Me

I had big plans of getting on the computer this morning and putting up a new post, but all that changed very quickly.Pop's nephew was working in our area, doing some excavating for a neighbor,Connie's kin folks,so he stopped by here to see if we needed anything while he was working close by. We never miss a chance to use him,if we get one. He is in such demand. Nevertheless, he stopped by and did a small job for us, and I fixed a small supper for him and his helper, and another neighbor,and Pop.Pop and I like the Mushroom Cheddar Burgers with lots of smothered mushrooms and onions,so I fixed them each a huge sandwich,which is a meal in itself. We had Mock Italian Cream Cake,for dessert,which I had frozen,and our drinks. that was supper for us all.They had to come back early today, to finish up their job, so Pop informed me that they had talked it over while working on the original project, and while BJ was here, he would dig me a little pond that I had been wanting for years.That was my surprise. I really had a much bigger pond in mind, but I never let on. A small pond would do. I could hopefully use it for water for my Purple Martins and maybe get a couple of ducks,and some fish. I no longer have the goats.Things change and life goes on.It will be a small pond in the back yard. I was hoping we could have it dug in the front, so it could be seen from the road,but due to various circumstances,like the lateral lines, and then a huge sink hole,the back yard will have to do. I was taught never to look a gift horse in the mouth. And I do appreciate Pop thinking of me.
We don't cook big meals that often at our house, so hopefully,I had pretty much everything I needed in the pantry and the freezer to fix one today. BJ loves hitting in here for a meal, so I wanted to have everything nice.I worked for 3 or 4 hours getting it all together and cooked up to have lunch at high noon for the fellows. I chicken fried about a dozen small beef steaks,then made gravy for them. I peeled about 8 or 10 medium potatoes, and a big onion,and laid them on top of two quarts of home canned green beans, along with a big chunk of bacon rind. I put it all in my new 18 quart counter top roaster.Then I thawed and fixed 2 bags of last summer's cut off corn from the freezer.I whipped up a bowl of cole slaw. Baked a dozen biscuits.I made an apple crisp with the apples and topping mix I received from a neighbor for Christmas.I added a few fresh apples and a little more brown sugar and butter to be sure I had plenty for all.We topped it with vanilla ice cream.We had ice tea or colas for our drinks.
I was really pleased with myself over fixing such a nice meal without getting all bent out of shape. I love cooking if I have enough folks to eat it,without having so many left overs, and that was no problem today.I do love cooking for a bunch if I have the time, no interruptions, and everything I need to make the meal nice, without running to town for something.Everything fell into place today.
The pond is finished, and all filled up on the big meal, so it was a really good day.BJ left his equipment here for a few days, so Pop used the extra gravel that was left over from the projects to rework some of the driveway.
We'll be working more on the little pond as time goes by. We'll add more rocks around. There is no shortage of rock on our property.We'll probably put in a pump of some sort and later a few fish. We're new to this type of thing, so we'll need to learn as we go.We have a few friends who are giving us pointers, on the do's and don't's. Pop says if all goes well, we may have the Amish fellows to come one day and build me a gazebo near the pond.Hopefully,I'll have a little more to blog about this Spring.All in all,it's been a good day.Hope your day has been as nice.

Now That's My Kind of Gift!

Pop has a few of these cutters in his garage, but they are old and dilapidated, their not that clean, and some are not that sharp. He picks them up for a song,at the Flea Market, and maybe even the auction.Who knows,maybe even yard sales. He hates it when I stop at yard sales, but when he is out alone,he has been known to stop at a yard sale or two.Go figure.Nevertheless,we were at our local Do-It-Center, picking up a few last minute stocking stuffers for the guys,and they had this set on sale.A really nice set. New,clean,pretty,sharp,one left cut,one right cut,and one straight cut.Just perfect for a gift for Myself.So I bought it.I put them in a gift bag and under the tree with a pair of Winchester socks.I had bought a pack of three for stocking stuffers for the guys, and since there was an extra pair,and Pop only wears white socks,I put them in my bag.I was making bags for the rest of the family, so of course, I needed one,too.Christmas came and went, and there sat that gift bag,still under the tree. Pop asked,"Who forgot their gift?",and of course I replied,"No one,that was my gift to Myself!"No one knows better than you, what you really want and need at gift giving time.So get it yourself.That's one sure way of getting what you really want,and I do love my new set of tin snips.

Phone Book Epidemic!

Nancy,once again,has given me my idea for another post. She started her blog with a joke, but here in our area, we have almost as many choices in phonebooks as they do in license plates.When the time comes for the new books to come out, they are everywhere.In the mailbox,on the ground by the mailbox,on your doorstep.We have a circle driveway.They even drive through it and drop one at our garage door.If by chance they missed your house, you can drive down the road and find them at any abandoned house of your choosing.They clutter the roads for weeks, where no one has picked them up, and the wind and the rain have scattered or deteriorated them.It seems a little ridiculous to me. They scream Cut down on Waste.Recycle.Keep the roadside clean.Be Frugal.Who the heck is managing the production and distribution of the phone books? Isn't there anyone in that organization or any other organization that can better coordinate the printing and distribution of the phone book.There has got to be a better way. Are the printing companies so desperate for work,they need to print thousands of copies of the same book for every Tom,Dick,and Harry company down the road. Why don't they make a company just for printing the phone books, and let folks that want them, just order ONE. Surely they would rather pay for one,then have so much waste and clutter up and down the roads, not to mention paying someone who is going to abuse the distribution of them just to get a paycheck.
I think I need to wind this post up. It is making my blood boil. That's why I don't get involved with politics.I can get fired up really quick when discussing certain things,and most any topic involving politics,will do it every time.

"Notes to Self" Boards

Nancy, one of your comments brought my little black boards to mind. I was working on these, when Christmas came along, so I put them aside for awhile. I'll take them up again soon,but for now I have another pressing project in mind. It is one I am really eager to get set up. I have asked some of my siblings to assist me, rather than paying someone else to do it for me. That is really dumb, when we all have so many combined talents.There are a couple of siblings that are between jobs, so hopefully they will have a day to help me on my little project.I can hardly wait to see if the finished product is as nice and as useful as I have imagined it to be in my mind. I know it will be a great help in the organization of my craft room.I will keep this project a surprise until I get it all set up,so watch for the unveiling in the up coming weeks.

Suzanne, you can do it!

Suzanne,of Chickens in the Road, has listed as one of her many goals for the new year,as building a new barn. I just want to say,"You Go Girl,You Can Do It."

I'm sure there are many videos and the like made on the subject, but this one with Napoleon Hill seems very appropriate.

My older sister of Nails in My Pocket, undertook the same project, and with some help and the grace of God she got the job done.

Several family members pitched in, and the above pictures show the progression of the barn as we went along.