Monday, October 4, 2010

Happy Fall!


I'm back! Sorry for the lapse, but sometimes it is just hard to get motivated to put ones fingers to the ole keyboard. Not that I don't like blogging, but to be truthful, I don't feel the urgency to 'post' since I don't have any followers. I know, I know, I should be doing this for me! And really, I am!, but ya know, the 'ego boost' of a couple followers would give me a little more incentive to more regularly post. So, there you have it, I am but a shallow person looking for affirmation and acknowledgement! :-)

I have been enjoying this AWESOME fall weather, though. Finally got out of the soggy weather pattern here in Iowa, and we are now on week two of beautiful fall weather!! I spent this weekend getting the house decorated a bit for the season. My entry is now welcoming with a banner, pumpkins, gourds, and my 'classic' milk jug skeleton I made back in 1992 when my kids were in kindergarten and pre-school! Oh, time goes WAY TOO FAST!!!!!! I've been enjoying harvesting wonderful veggies from my friend's 20+ acre garden. Pumpkins, leeks, squash, peppers, gourds, Indian corn, potatoes (regular and sweet) and more! Have been using my brand new KitchenAid stackable aluminum steamer with GREAT results. It works great with squash......captures all the nutrients & results in thick mashed squash. Yum! I had been looking for a steamer for a while and finally found one at Target! I'd highly recommend it. I look forward to making lots of veggies with it!

Made a pumpkin pie yesterday with a cooking pumpkin from the garden. It is wonderful making something from scratch!! I also made a homemade butter crust. Topped it off with a pecan crumb topping, & it looks good enough to eat, no?? ;-) My hubby and I will be digging into it soon!! Yum!!!
Well, time to get a load of clothes on the line. There is a nice breeze so they should dry OK despite the cooler temps (maybe hit 70 today) AND the little no-see-ums should be blown off the clothes!! I should mow the lawn again today, too. I swear it looks as green as it did in the Spring and still needs a weekly mowing! Looking forward to yoga tonight. I started yoga classes at the Y again and love it! Lord knows my aging body needs to improve its flexibility. I think after two weeks I feel a tinsy bit more elastic! :-) I also need to get serious about eating better. While I was down to my 'perfect' weight a couple months ago, the needle on the scale has slowly, or actually not so slowly, started to move in the 'wrong' direction. I'm one of those who needs to keep tract of every bite and every calorie if I want to keep my weight steady. I guess it is time to get back to using an excel spreadsheet for my food log. Oh joy! Well, hope you all have a great week! Peace!

Friday, August 27, 2010

Life happened!

Wow! It has been three weeks plus since my last post. I was just so busy with summer's end activities..... moving kids to college, organizing/re-vamping & cleaning rooms, gardening, freezing veggies, mowing the incessantly growing lawn, cleaning up our rental property left in shambles both inside & out by our less-than-stellar tenants!, taking bike rides with my hubby and reading lots of good books. As my post title states- life happened!! Things have settled down a bit, so I'll try again to be a little more consistent! I'll share some photos I've taken recently. Tonight I did the 'foodie blogger' thing and took pictures of our supper. Iowa fed grilled pork chops!, homemade pineapple salsa with peppers, garlic, onions, & mint fresh from the garden, garden fresh potatoe slices sauteed in pecan oil and then baked ALL washed down with a 'cool one', a 12 oz Leinenkugel Berry Weiss! TGIF!!!!!
We're starting to feel a touch of fall here! Refreshingly crisp at night with low humidity and great temps! Also, have had NO rain since Tuesday when we got a half an inch. The faucet has been running pretty full out all summer, and the river through town has left its banks an unprecedented three times- the last of which was in the second week of August! We were lucky here, unlike other parts of Iowa, and no major flood damage occurred.

I mentioned in the beginning of this post how I have been reading! I finished Steig Larsson's dark and suspenseful trilogy and just loved the whole series! It was amazingly easy to get quite attached to the flawed yet, at the same time, highly endearing characters. Do any of you feel the same? In a completely different, and I mean different!, genre, I finished "Take Four", the final book in Karen Kingsbury's Above the Line series. It was good. Looking forward to the Bailey Flannigan series which will be a continuation of sorts of the Above the Line series focusing on one of the main characters. I'm also completely taken by Alexander McCall Smith's "No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency" series. They are just the cutest stories. Love them! Just delightful reads! So, as you can see, I've had my nose firmly in a book whenever I've had the chance! I usually try to limit my reading to just before bed.............. otherwise it is amazing how a day can fly by reading a book!!!! :-)

I saw my first movie on the big screen in ages recently! A friend and I caught a weekday matinee showing of "eat, pray, love" starring Julia Roberts. Julia did good job, but I must say I was not enamoured of the storyline. Maybe I should have read the book first- I just found it, shall I say, a little bit too 'new age' for my tastes. Anybody share my feelings or, in agreement with my sister, do you think it was the greatest movie ever and want to catch the first plan to Bali?! I really enjoyed catching a flick with a friend, however. I hope to do that again soon.

Well, I think I'll share a couple more photos and then call it a night. I've got more books to read!! First, an updated photos of the kitties!


Then a picture of my fall centerpiece in the formal dining room. Yeah, I'm definitely getting a bit anxious for a long, mosquito-free, beautiful fall season!


Good night!! Peace!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Plums and packing!

The plum tree in our yard is loaded this year, so I battled the mosquitoes and picked enough to make two batches of homemade cooked jelly! I tell you there is something extremely satisfying in hearing the 'pop' of the jelly jars as they seal after their hot water bath!!! I tried something new this year- reduced/no sugar pectin to make my jelly. I made one recipe the traditional way which took 6 1/2 cups of sugar to 5 1/2 cups plum juice- yikes, talk about a sugar high!!! The second batch I used Bell no sugar needed pectin. It appears to have worked great- set up well. I used 3 3/4 cups sugar for 5 cups of plum juice. (Yes, you can just cut back on the sugar- you don't need to go the no-sugar or sugar substitute route! Personally, our wild plums are too sour to eat without some sugar!) So, now I have beautiful jelly jars set aside for gifts for Christmas and other occasions, and I have a 'lite' option to give my more health conscious friends & family! Super!!!!

The other project I am doing now is helping my daughter with her "BIG MOVE" to graduate school this weekend. It will be her first apartment!- she was in the dorms for four years of undergrad. We are taking a two vehicle caravan, and that still won't carry it all! One vehicle is even a truck with topper! Her Dad has to go that direction on business in several weeks, so he'll take another load! It is an exciting but melancholy time!! I'm just happy I'll be able to spend about four days there helping her settle in before heading home. Dad is staying home to watch the fort, so to speak. If he came along we'd have to take the "Lucy" and there is no room in the truck for her kennel. Plus, since he has a job, he can't take the time off I can. :-) The trip is a good nine hours so here's hoping it is a safe and uneventful one! Peace.

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Monarch eggs & caterpillars, at last!!!!!!!


Yes, I am soooooooooooooo psyched! I went out to check my milkweed plants this afternoon and lo and behold, I found some Monarch eggs and a wee, bity caterpillar! I am so happy! Just feel like I'm doing my itsy bitsy part to save the Monarch. Anyway, I took a photo to share the joy, so to speak. I'll take more as the caterpillar(s) grow. Keep on with your terrific weekend. Mine's sure a good one despite having to mow the freakin lawn, again!!!! Oh, and the river has yet to completely spill over its banks yet which is real good news. Bye!

Friday, July 30, 2010

Faucet's still on, Lord!!

Yes...... we are still sopping wet here in Iowa. About 2" again last night! The river through town is out of its banks again and isn't due to crest until Sunday! Not good. Just got back from a bike ride and got to see where the river has already risen over our community recreation trail. Heck, the waters had just receded from the flooding last week when we got over 4"!

I had a nice walk with a friend on the trail this morning before the river started to breech its banks! The top of my head is itchy now, though, as I just discovered I got a little sun-burned. I was so good about putting on sun screen before we took off on our walk, but alas, I neglected to wear a hat! Someone needs to create hair styling products with sunscreen in them.... or are there some on the market already? Share your info here if you know of some good ones! Anyway, it was so nice to have a walk-n-talk with a friend. Now as an empty-nester (and in between jobs, as well) I am trying to work on cultivating some friendships. I fear I let that part of my life go by the wayside as I focused almost exclusively on my family (particularly children!) and my work. Now it is time to start expanding my support network 'cuz I find it gets a little lonely when the kids have 'flown the coop', so to speak! Any of you out there feel the same? All I can say is this transitional phase of life (going from full-time motherhood to full time couple-hood) can be challenging! I mean, I love seeing my children grow, mature and thrive, and I relish the adult relationship we are starting to enjoy... yet, it is still hard not to feel somewhat left behind. They are just starting the exciting, albeit sometimes daunting!, journey to total independence & young adulthood while I'm facing the stark reality of middle age (yikes- turn 50 in May!) and beyond! Oh well, I think I'll move on from this rather depressing tangent I've taken off on- more on my mid-life crisis in another post! :-)

Have been getting some wonderful fresh veggies from my friend's garden lately. I froze some sweet corn the last couple days so my two children can eat somewhat well away at school. I should clarify that- my daughter does not need any help eating well, she does an awesome job! However, my son is lacking in the culinary arts department! He just has too many conflicting interests and good eating habits get put on the back burner, unfortunately! Today my husband cranked up the smoker, and we had wonderful pork chops, sweet corn, green peppers, okra brushed with olive oil & onion filled with honey all on the grill! Pair that with some red wine and homemade, garden fresh carrot cake for dessert and life just couldn't get much better!! Oh, with my carrot cake recipe I finally tried the healthy tip of replacing one-half of the vegetable oil (I use canola, of course!) with plain, unsweetened applesauce. It worked terrific! I could not taste or see any difference, and the substitution certainly shaved off some unnecessary calories!

Well, time to get back to my page-turner book. I'm reading the first book in Stieg Larsson's acclaimed trilogy, "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". Although a bit dark, I am loving it and can hardly put the book down. I'm nearing the end and am on the 'reserve list' (first in line, thankfully!!) at our local library for "The Girl Who Played with Fire". Good night and have a GREAT weekend. Peace.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Shut off the faucet, God!!

Yes, we've received more rain here in the soggy state of Iowa!! Four, yes, four!, inches overnight!! I would have taken a photo of the rain gauge, but my hubby dumped it when he went out to check it this morning! Unfortunately, it was a little too much moisture for the soil to absorb, so our basement got a little wet. Luckily, it leaked in on the side of the basement where we have a drain and no carpet- the utility room and pantry. The dehumidifier ran all day along with our AC and that made short work of the water. Really, I've not much to complain about compared to the flash flooding some communities had to deal with. What a summer! Usually by late July we've stopped mowing and our lawns are getting brown- especially our lawn since I refuse to waste a precious resource keeping a lawn green!

Finally had a chance to take some updated photos of our kitten, "Elphaba". "Elphie" is growing so fast! She is getting along well with or other two cats, "Frodo" and "Sam". My husband captured one photo of "Fro" and "Elphie" sleeping together in one of their favorite 'nap' spots- cats have so many as those of you 'owned' by a cat(s) already know! :-) Hope you enjoy the pics!



Have enjoyed the bounty of a friend's large garden lately. We've been out 'shopping' in the fields, and I've brought home sweet corn, green beans, beets, lettuce, cabbage, cucumbers, kohlrabi, onion, potatoes, broccoli, basil, peppers (green and jalapeno), turnips, zucchini & peas. Looking forward to tomatoes, cantaloupe and watermelon! I made my favorite veggie recipe yesterday- a chocolate zucchini cake! Yum! I also had fun making a yummy Mediterranean dinner last night- shrimp piccata pasta with salad greens, walnuts/dried cranberries & apple cider dijon vinaigrette and a glass of white grenache! It made my husband and I feel like we were back in Spain- we had a wonderful trip there earlier this summer! Anyway, my husband thought the meal deserved a picture! As I rarely get that enthusiastic of a response for most of my meals (and rightly so, I must admit!), I immediately grabbed the camera. Thought I'd share it with my imagined? blogger followers, too. Bon appetit! Opps, I mean, bueno comiendo! I'll try to post the recipe for the shrimp piccata pasta soon. I must admit the salad was one of Dole's awesome bagged mixes! :-)

Not much more to post today. "Elphie" is being very naughty right now, so I need to supervise our rambunctious kitten. Have a great night. Stay dry!

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Freedom!

Another week has zipped by, but the good news is I am ALL DONE with my census work! While it was okay some of the time- met some real nice and helpful people- overall it was disappointing. As seems typical of any government enterprise, the census bureau was quite disorganized with a lack of efficiency as well as fiscal restraint. So many mistakes were made and repetitive actions taken, that I quickly became rather disillusioned. I did my assignments with speed and accuracy, but I can't say the same for other enumerators. The U.S. Census needs to make some major changes and go digital in 2020! Hopefully 'change' will come.... but, as with the promises of my successful presidential candidate, one's rhetoric is often completely disengaged from one's actions and results.

Still no camera, so I can't share updated photos of our little "Elphaba". She is growing like a weed!! So adorable! All the cats are getting along well now except for the skirmishes which are typical of any 'siblings', two- or four-legged! :-)

It has been horrifically hot here in Iowa. Heat indices in the 100's! I feel blessed to have central AC! I don't know about you, but the combo of heat & humidity has always done me in!!! Despite the heat, I did do a little cooking yesterday. I made my first homemade chocolate custard/pudding. No jello pudding box mix for this gal!! It was quite the project, but it turned out awesome. So thick with a great chocolate flavor. It was worth all the steps... making sure that the initial heating of the milk did not reach boiling, grating three squares of unsweetened chocolate, separating eggs (yeah, I put the custard in a pie shell and topped it with meringue. Realized too late that meringue is touchy to make in high humidity AND more is not better when it comes to the time your eggs are left outside of the fridge before separating!!), and then CAREFULLY heating the mixture to a full boil lasting thirty seconds WITHOUT scorching! The one step I drew the line at was putting my finished custard through a sieve to make sure there were no little egg clumps- figured a few tiny egg clumps wouldn't kill anyone. (I've yet to really taste any!) I'll try to post the recipe when my daughter has time to show me how to attach recipes to my blog. Remember to bear with me.... I'm a newbie!!!! :-)

Finished reading Take Two and Take Three by Karen Kingsbury- both so good! Now I just have to wait for her to complete Take Four which I think completes her Above the Line series. Now I'm on to reading Nicholas Sparks' The Last Song. Started out kind of slow but now I'm totally into it. I LOVE to read.... I really try to restrict my reading time to defined periods (a half hour break during the day or just before bedtime) otherwise I can easily find myself reading away an entire day! I know there are worse vices, but nothing gets done around the house (i.e. cooking, cleaning, taking care of the pets, interacting with my hubby :-), etc......) when I'm totally enraptured by a book! Ah, it's my 'cross to bear."

This has been a nice weekend starting Friday. Had to pick up my husband from the airport and got to combine that with a visit with my son! It happened to be moving day for him because of renovations occurring in the college housing complex he is residing in during his summer internship. All the interns had to move into the newly renovated apartments so their old ones could be updated. The new apartments are much nicer, and he really 'lucked out' on having Mom and Dad available to help on the hottest day of the year!!! Yesterday, I did a little cooking (my custard!), and we did some grilling (pork roast, hot dogs and hamburgers) in order to avoid using the stove. Despite the wicked temps, my hubby and I fit in an evening bike ride- not too bad since there was a breeze and we kept moving. This morning we slept in a little and attended the 10AM Mass rather than our typical 8AM Mass. Father Matt was back from his two-week vacation which was nice. He always gives good homilies with at least one joke!! Now I'm just waiting for my daughter to check in- she was up in the Twin Cities visiting a friend this weekend- and should be on the long drive home about now. Gathered she's having a GREAT time via her facebook update!!

Well, I know it is the Lord's Day, but I still have a little housework to do. The saying does go, "cleanliness is next to Godliness", so I think God will be okay with me doing a little vacuuming! Have a great Sunday! Peace!