April's Over But Joys Continue

Week 17 has come and gone and took April with it! This was another week of small joys, but it was still a good week overall. As soon as April leaves, summer starts sneaking in, and right now we are just one millisecond from the heat and humidity it brings. I figure one of my joys is really appreciating these last few days of spring.

Saturday: TheHub and I did our usual running around, including a stop at Costco. Who in their right mind goes to Costco on Saturday when they can go other days? (Well, other than TheHub.) Afterward, I told him I will never go on a weekend again. 

We grabbed lunch while we were out, then came home to do some chores before settling in to watch Alabama softball. Texas A&M beat them to a pulp.

Sunday: Our Sister In Law's father passed away on Friday and we knew we would not be able to go to the funeral. Instead we drove to Livingston to visit with them for a bit. Even though his passing was a sad blessing, it was still hard on her because she lost both parents within a 4 month span. While we were there we listened to "Bud" stories and laughed remembering him. He was a wonderful man.

We returned home in the late afternoon, cleaned a bit (very little bit) changed clothes and walked to our neighbors for a meal on their terrace. They had invited another couple also and we spent the evening talking and laughing and eating their Friday night party leftovers.  What a great way to spend an evening.

Monday: It was an uneventful day. I had no where to go and no people to see, but I had a chair on the screened porch, iced tea and a good book! I really did not need anything else.

Tuesday: The digital download from the library was due back Tuesday and had 4 people waiting for it, so I HAD to finish the book. I am pretty sure I would have been breaking some library law if I hadn't. And I just couldn't bear the thought of being a law breaker.

Wednesday: Another solo day and another book. This one was not due back, but I could not put it down! I read it through and decided I needed to quit binge reading for a while. However, it is pretty easy to do massive amounts of laundry while reading. I might need to rethink this and just put a chair in the laundry room.

Thursday: Finally a non-binge reading somewhat productive day. I got a good bit in the house done and should have worked outdoors because it was a drop dead gorgeous type of day. Instead I did some minimal work outside, sat in the rocking chair on the screened porch and promptly fell asleep. 

I go to bed very late and normally have no troubles sleeping for about 5 or 6 hours. Lately I have been having nightmares and wake from a sound sleep at about 4 with adrenaline surging through me. There is no going back to sleep so I have just been getting up and getting on with the day, but by about 2 in the afternoon I am toast. Thursday was one of those days.

Friday: The nightmares continued, with me waking at about 4:30. Bummer! 

Have you ever felt compelled to do something and had no idea why, but you did it anyway. Yesterday I could not keep myself from doing 3 loads of towels (Yes I know I have a lot of towels.  I use a clean one each time I shower. If you have to blame anyone blame Mom because that is how I grew up.) I was thrilled I had done them all because Friday when I started to move a load of laundry from the washer to the dryer I found the dryer was as dead as a doornail. I have a collapsible drying rack for laundry to dry on, but I would have hated to try and dry loads of towels on it. I am glad I listened to my inner urgings.

TheHub and I went out to eat fairly early at our new local hangout. We ate early and did not want to go home when there was still a lot of beautiful daylight left. Instead we drove to a small lake near our house to watch the birds and all the precious children walking with their parents while feeding the ducks and geese. The swans are a bit haughty though, and refuse to accept the kids offerings. It was a great ending before going home .

When we returned our neighbors were outside with their new puppy. I love dogs and puppies just melt my heart. We got to spend a few minutes talking to them and watching and loving on Barkley.

That is about it for the past week. Look for your joys because they are always out there.

May all your weeds be wildflowers,

Anne

Friday Fun or Whats In The Neighborhoods

Last week I completely forgot to post this photo of another yeti/bigfoot sighting. This is not technically in my neighborhood but is in the one next to mine. Never let it be said people in the south take themselves too seriously.

Tuesday 4

Here is the latest Tuesday 4 by Annie.  This week  is 4 very different questions without a real theme, but they were fun to think about.

1. If you had one million dollars to spend only on yourself, what would you spend it on? 

I have very small needs and and even smaller wants. I guess I would buy myself a building, then turn around and donate it to Independence Place.

2. You can do it again. What decade are you going back to and why?

No idea. There are moments in each decade I would change if I could, but then it might alter the outcome so maybe I would not choose a redo after all. 

What's the attraction?

There were times in my life when a different reaction from me could have prevented anger or hurt feelings.

3.What's the last song that got stuck in your head?

Occasionally I will be wandering around the house and start singing "Come and listen to a story 'bout a man named Jed". I have no idea why I do that!

Alternatively, what's your current favorite song?

I have favorite songs based on the genre. For example jazz is Braggin in Brass. Classical is Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliette  "Dance of the Knights". R&B, Sir Duke or Me and Mrs. Jones. Rock, Jethro Tull's Locomotive Breath. Broadway musical, Les Mis "Let Him Live". CW is Patsy Cline's Crazy. But honestly I love music and  am fickle, so what is my favorite today might not be in a month or even tomorrow.

4.   What items do you miss from the past and wish they were still around?

Other than people I love who have transitioned to a different realm, there is not much I miss.

Though my sister and I have said we would love to find some of the awful molded plastic wigs we had as kids, along with a set of Old Maid Cards that used horror movie monsters for the  pictures.

And don't even get me started on the carved wooden antique monkey chandelier I saw over 30 years ago. My sister and I still talk about it and if I ever find it again I am going to buy it! (So maybe I would use that million from the first question to buy the stupid fixture I still lust after)

Come on and join in! Let me know what your answers are!

Life and dinner

I am still basing my meal plan primarily on what is found in the refrigerator freezer. This past week I had 4 nights where I did not cook, and that was not planned, but it just happened. C'est la vie. 

What was planned:

Spaghetti with meat sauce, salad

Veggie dinner (tbd based on what is available at the produce stand)

Tamale Pie (Using up the rest of the taco meat), tossed salad

Teriyaki chicken, rice, broccoli, coleslaw

Pulled pork, baked beans, caulitato salad

Out to eat or take out

Grilled steak, tossed salad, rolls

What we really ate:

Monday: I had some leftover taco seasoned beef that I needed to use. 

Tamale pie, coleslaw

Tuesday: Chicken from the refrigerator freezer and a big bag of frozen broccoli were the genesis of this meal. The huge basket of strawberries from the produce stand was the cause for dessert.

Chicken teriyaki, coconut ginger rice, broccoli, strawberry short cake

Wednesday: Freezer to the rescue!

Pulled pork with bbq sauce (this is not real bbq because nothing was slowly cooked or smoked over an open fire) baked beans, caulitato salad, strawberry shortcake

Thursday: I had honestly planned on cooking, but TheHub had a late dinner meeting and I had leftovers in the fridge.

Leftover tamale pie, spring greens

Friday: TheHub ate lunch late and I shared a huge bucket of popcorn while watching a movie with Son2.  We were out anyway and just grabbed something quick.

McDonalds fish sandwich for both of us.

Saturday: TheHub was not interested in having spaghetti or veggies. Instead we bought 4 small ribs from Publix's deli.

2 ribs each and spring greens. We may or may not have bought some peach ice cream. It is not a big temptation for me.

Sunday: Some of our neighbors had a party Friday night and had leftover goodies. They invited us and the couple across the street for dinner on their terrace. 

Assorted salads, sandwiches and dips

What's possibly up?

1. Spaghetti with meat sauce, tossed salad

2. Veggie dinner (squash, okra, air fried green tomatoes, coleslaw)

3. Chicken divan, rice, tomato onion cucumber salad

4. Grilled tuna, salad, rice or not (jury is still out)

5. Eat out or take out

6. Garlic butter chicken tenders, tossed salad,

7. Leftovers or takeout, salad or coleslaw

Have a great week staying on plan, going off plan, or with no plan at all!

Joys and Frustrations

Can you believe another week has passed and we are finished with the 16th week of the year? It has flown and I have not accomplished even half of what I wanted to get done. I suppose if I look at the upside I still have plenty to fill my time for the rest of the year.  Meanwhile I am going to enjoy the rest of April!

Saturday: Son3 sent us a video from their Seder meal late Friday night. All of the kids had put on an impromptu living room play about Moses and Passover.  It began with Moses ( a stuffed animal in a basket) being placed in the river (a white blanket), then rescued by Pharaoh 's daughter. Next you hear a little voice saying "6 years later" followed by another voice saying "No! 60 years later".  (We could hear all the adults off camera laughing) We were able to see a little more up until the "lamb" (small child with a white pillow wrapped around their middle) was about to be sacrificed, and then the video ended. I wish we could have been there in person, but seeing the video was the next best thing. It was a great thing to wake up to!

TheHub went out to do his recreational shopping and came home with a gorgeous purple orchid which he thought was a lily we could plant in the yard. It is ok, I like beautiful house plants! I just don't buy them because I am a horrible plant mamma.

After doing a few chores, we were ready to watch Alabama softball on tv. The rain changed that! Instead of watching they had a protracted rain delay and lost their tv time.We had to listen to it about 5 hours later. Woo hoo they won! After the game ended we watched the last few innings of the Arkansas/Ky game. 

Sunday: We woke and did not go to church even though it was Easter Sunday. Foul weather was predicted so, instead, we watched a live stream of the service. It was  beautiful  and I wish we had gone in person in spite of the rain and thunder while it was happening.

After the service I turned on The History Channel and watched their series on the life of Jesus. TheHub worked in his home office and I did some odds and ins around the house. The skies cleared and the day was gorgeous, but we still stayed at home.

We had Easter phone calls or FaceTime visits with all three sons and their families.   

After we ate dinner we settled in to watch The Passion of The Christ. It was brutal and hard to watch but I try to see it every Easter.

Monday: This was a slightly frustrating day. About a month ago My Beloved Sister and I had taken all of the documents, forms, papers, pints of blood, you name it to Mom's accountant for a final  trust return. .  I hung around the house all day with my phone in my pocket waiting for the accountant to call me to pick up the forms. Somehow or another the documents were mixed at the accountants and we had to run to their office at the midnight hour (ok not really midnight but right as they were closing) because they only did the final trust and never filed our two additional forms. They had to E-file extensions. I am ok with the extension but I have no idea what my tax liability might be. 

And what is a better way to deal with frustration than to have a glass of wine  a chocolate Pay Day! I couldn't help it. I passed CVS on the way home and my car voluntarily pulled into the lot. The next thing I knew instead of gritting my teeth in frustration I was chomping down on chocolaty, sweet, salty, nutty, deliciousness.

Tuesday: What a glorious day! It was truly beautiful. A bit cool and pollen laden but still beautiful. I did routine house stuff, bought veggies at the produce stand (including a basket of the most beautiful strawberries I have ever seen) and read. Since I had de- pollened the deck I could sit out there with my I-pad and read. 

Wednesday: The day started out rather boring and pretty much stayed boring the entire day. The upside was a long conversation with my cousin S. She, her hub, my beloved sister, and I plan on driving to Huntsville in early May. Another cousin (also an S) and her hub will be visiting our uncle then. We plan on meeting them for a visit and lunch.

Thursday: It was another routine day with one major and joyous exception. I did have a wonderful phone visit with Sluggy. It was filled with laughs and shared tales.  

Another small joy was TheHub had a late dinner meeting so I had control of the tv remote all night!

Friday: Son2 and I had decided to go see the new Fantastic Beasts movie in the theater. It was the first time for either of us since December of 2019. Mom was still living and I had severely narrowed places I would be out because flu season was hitting Alabama and I did not want to chance passing it to her. Little did we know Covid was just around the corner and would change the landscape totally. 

Son2 is off on Friday's and we decided the 1;15 movie would hopefully have limited crowds. We sat down in a completely empty theater, but before the movie started another dude walked in. I felt very comfortable with 3 bodies in a  200+  seat place. 

Early evening DIL3 had a showcase from her master's program streaming and we were able to watch her performance. She had the stage solo for about 30 minutes of her original songs. 

After her performance and all the sincere congratulations to her we were able to listen to Alabama softball be trounced by Texas A & M.

So this week look for your joys. No matter how small, they are always out there!

May all your weeds be wildflowers,

Anne

My New To Me Favorite Cookie

 I had been reading forever about Anzac biscuits, but had never eaten them. I decided it was high time I give them a whirl. I had everything on hand except for the Lyles Golden Syrup*, so I tracked it down and paid a ridiculous price for a small bottle, but, by crackie, I was going to make them true to the recipe I found here. (I am simply copying and pasting her ingredients and instructions below)

Don't be like me and wait so long to try them!

1 cup plain flour (all purpose flour)

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup desiccated coconut* , unsweetened

3/4 cup white sugar , preferably caster / superfine

150g / 5oz unsalted butter

4 tbsp golden syrup (Note 1)

1 tsp baking soda Instructions

Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan forced)

Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.

Mix flour, oats, coconut and sugar in a bowl.  

Place butter and golden syrup in a saucepan over medium high heat and stir until butter has melted.

Add baking soda and stir to combine - it will fizz up, this is normal. Immediately remove from heat.

Pour butter mixture into flour and mix until just combined.

Roll level 1 tablespoon mixture into balls, flatten into patties. Place balls, 2.5 cm/1" apart, on prepared trays.

Bake for 15 minutes, swapping trays halfway during cooking, or until deep golden. (Bake 12 min for chewy biscuits!)

Stand on trays for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool - they harden as they cool!

These were baked the full 15 minutes and were very crispy. I may or may not have made a second batch and cooked them a little less time for a chewier cookie. Both were delicious!

Recipe Notes:

1. Golden syrup - amber coloured sweet syrup primarily used for baking purposes in Australia and in the UK. Has a caramel-like flavour. Best substitutes:

1 tbsp light molasses + 3 tbsp honey or light corn syrup

1 tbsp treacle + 3 tbsp honey or light corn syrup

*My personal edit here: If you live in the states and have access to Alaga cane syrup, the taste and viscosity are almost identical. (Plus it is much cheaper) I did make recipe #2 with the Alaga syrup and it tasted just like the first batch. I know there are other brands of cane syrup but I did not have any other on hand to try so I can't vouch for them.

2. Oats & batter consistency - Different brands of oats can have different levels of absorbency. Your dough should be firm enough so that you can roll it into balls without it sticking to your hands, but pliable and wet enough so that you can flatten the balls without the dough crumbling. If your dough is too sticky, add more flour, if it is too dry, add more melted butter. Don't worry about playing around with this recipe - it's a pretty forgiving biscuit dough!

3. Storage - Anzac cookies stay crisp for about a week in an airtight container. After that, they soften a bit but are still good! If the biscuits go soft, they can be crisped up in the oven - 5 minutes at 180C / 350F.

4.* Me again: Don't try and find desiccated coconut at the store. Make your own. Buy unsweetened shredded coconut (easily found at Latin markets here) Lay the coconut out on a cookie sheet in a single layer and bake at 250-300 F until it feels brittle. This should take just 5-10 minutes – check on it regularly. I crush mine just a bit so it is a little smaller but you don't have to. I usually buy a container  of coconut and dry all of it. It keeps in an airtight container at room temperature for about a year.

#3 is a bit of a lie. There is no way those cookies would last over a week here

If you want something buttery and delicious give these a try. I am so glad I did!

p.s. They are pretty good with a cup of coffee for a continental breakfast! Yes, that is what I am calling it!

Tuesday 4

This week the questions found by Annie @Tuesday 4 are all about cooking. I really do like to cook so these questions are right in my wheel house.

1. When did you learn to cook? 

I honestly do not remember a time when I did not cook. My parents had a home movie of me when I was 2 1/2 stirring pudding. I was standing on a stool and my mom was holding me around my waist while I was "cooking" on the stove. By the time I was about 6 or 7 my best friend, Kathy and I played in our Mom's kitchens. They both would let us make anything we wanted to make as long as we cleaned up afterward. I can remember us sitting at the kitchen tables pouring over recipes.  Mock Champagne? We made it. The same for mousse, every kind of cookie we could think of, cakes, stuffed potatoes, etc. 

By the time I was 10 I could get a simple meal on the table pretty easily and when I was 13, I made a pact with Mom. I would cook if she would sew for me. She loved to sew and hated cooking and the opposite was true for me. It was a great deal for both of us. Dad loved it too because I was a better cook than Mom and was a lot more adventurous. We kept that up until I left for college.

By the time TheHub and I were married cooking was second nature to me.

2.  How often in the week do you cook? 

Generally I cook at least 5 times a week, but there have been weeks that I don't cook at all. It mainly depends on what we have going on.

Order in?

We do not order in, but we do take out. If we go out  to a restaurant most likely we will not do take out that week, unless are out doing things on Saturday. Sometimes we will pick up something for lunch and bring it home.

 Go out? 

We have started going back to restaurants, but they have to still have distance between the tables and I do not go at times when the crowds are there.

3.  Which foods are absolutely necessary at a cookout?

I live in the south and cooking out can be two completely different things. It can be as simple as throwing something on the grill, and trust me, I have grilled almost everything under the sun. I have baskets to grill fish like flounder or snapper, baskets to grill vegetables, skewers, a pizza stone to toss on the grill and other grilling toys. We grill a lot during the summer just to keep the kitchen cool. So for us a cookout can be anything at all.

Now a BBQ is an entirely separate entity. It requires slow cooking or smoking pork or chicken, sauces, a bbq mop, and a lot of time. Generally with bbq we have caulitato salad (cauliflower based potato salad knock off) coleslaw, baked beans, and bbq bread.

4.  Do you have a meal you are especially good at making?

I love Cuban food and make a killer piccadillo. If I make empanadas using that as the filling they are really delicious.

https://newhappeningsatthetable.blogspot.com/2014/08/empanadas.html

(cheaters note:you can find empanada pastry in the frozen section of Latin markets)

That people often request for you to make?

Son3 asks for the picadillo when he is home. TheHub regularly asks for my peach cobbler or spaghetti. 

So come on and play along. Let's see what is cooking at your place!

The Hunger Pains!

This was a banner week for me. I actually stayed very close to what was planned, so yea me. In truth, I just did not want to go to the grocery store and I had everything planned for the week's menu on hand anyway. The substitutions I made were pretty small leaving something off or changing side items. (Except for swapping tacos for spaghetti) This week was the best!

Planned:

1. Chicken yakisoba

2. Squash casserole, green beans, coleslaw, cornbread

3. Black and blue salad (had some leftover steak from Sunday's dinner)

4.Grilled hamburger patty, tossed salad saffron rice

5. Spaghetti w/ meat sauce, tossed salad

6. Out to eat or takeout

7 Grilled tuna, avocado rice, cucumber tomato onion salad

What we really ate:

Monday: Squash from the produce stand decided what the meal would be.

Squash casserole, coleslaw, cornbread

Tuesday: We still had leftover steak from Sunday's grill that I had planned to use

Black and blue salad, dinner rolls

Wednesday: Finally! Even better, when I did my pantry inventory recently I found a package of forgotten buckwheat soba noodles. 

Chicken yakisoba (This dish was so veggie intense that it did not require salad or slaw. We even decided next time to leave the chicken out entirely)

Thursday:  I had volunteered at IP and was just not feeling like cooking. TheHub never minds eating out or doing take out.

Zaxby's chicken tenders, coleslaw

Friday: Neither of us wanted a huge meal and I was happy to accommodate that, especially because there was seasoned taco beef in the freezer.

Tacos with lots of veggie fixings, coleslaw

Saturday: The plan was to grill the patties, but the weather decided otherwise

Hamburger patty, saffron rice, green beans

Sunday: Nothing like having a traditional Easter meal. 😁

Grilled tuna steaks, tossed salad, toast (I was lazy and the toast replaced the rice. Neither of us cared)

Next Up (Possibilities)

1. Spaghetti with meat sauce, salad

2. Veggie dinner (tbd based on what is available at the produce stand)

3. Tamale Pie (Using up the rest of the taco meat), tossed salad

4. Teriyaki chicken, rice, broccoli, coleslaw

5. Pulled pork, baked beans, caulitato salad

6. Out to eat or take out

7. Grilled steak, tossed salad

I guess I will see if I can keep the staying on plan trend going or not! No matter, we always eat!

Have a great week staying on plan, going off plan, or with no plan at all!

Week 15 Already?

As is my usual, this is the list of joys I had this week. There were more, but these are the highlights.Some weeks we do more than other weeks and some weeks the joys are huge and some weeks are smaller. I guess these posts are sort of like my personal diary. If I am having a blue day I will re-read the previous weeks joys and it usually lifts my spirits, and I love doing the year's joys in review on NYE.

Saturday: TheHub and I did our usual running around on a beautiful, yet chilly day. Once we were through with our errands we came back to the house and did a few chores here before settling in to watch Alabama's softball game. 

Some of you might read this and think I am a sports nut. The truth is, I disliked watching sports intensely when I was younger. I grew up in a female family and Dad was the one who altered what he would like to see in favor of what the"girls" wanted to watch.

 Then I met TheHub who played sports through college and was a big sports fan. I went to games when he played, or to other games he just wanted to see. Thus began my baptism as a watcher of sports.

We got married, had not one, not two, but three sons, all who played sports. Naturally I watched and cheered for them no matter the season or sport, and as time went on my views broadened and I did become a sports fan (OK mainly a University of Alabama sports fan).

Now, because a certain young female who owns my heart is playing softball for the first time, I am partial to the Taquitos and hope to travel to Portland to see her play.

Sunday: The day was much warmer and gorgeous. We were able to plant tomatoes, squash, marigolds   and several herbs, and to add more soil to the lush potato plants

After yard work and showers, we settled in to watch Alabama softball followed by "Billions".

Monday: I try to keep Mondays open with nothing scheduled. For some reason I like having no commitments so I can get things in order for the week. I did a lot of food prep on Monday since I tend to get uninspired for cooking later in the week. 

Veggies were sliced, diced, and chopped to make the weeks meals a little easier. I also made refrigerator coleslaw on to have on hand throughout the week. This is something I do nearly every Monday.  We have either coleslaw or salad with our dinners each night.

After a quick supper we watched Alabama Softball.

Tuesday: I was very excited because the Barbie hair rooting tool and hair for rerooting came via Amazon. I decided I would start rerooting after dinner.

Wednesday: After staying up Tuesday night through Wednesday morning until 4:30 am, I was not so excited the rooting tool and hair came. I possibly bit off more than I can chew. I worked and worked on the Barbie head and still had only two rows of her hair rerooted. It was much more tedious and difficult than it looked on the YouTube videos.  I think watching them is kind of like watching a home improvement show where they build a deck in 30 minutes. Careful editing makes the project seem quickly doable. 

Barbie could have a full head of hair by Christmas__maybe! There is a joy being able to just put it aside while I watch tutorials on how to make a barbie wig!

Thursday: I was very excited to be able to go to Independence Place again. We worked finishing the wildebeest masks for their play. I do love volunteering there and get no greater joy than seeing all of the participants. 

Friday: Following The Great Pollination comes the De-pollination. I do not like the annual job of scrubbing the furniture on the screened porch or washing the walls, screens, ceiling and floors, but the porch and decks are cleaned. I know I will have to do it one more time but at least it will be just rinsing things off rather than dealing with pollen "paste". The big joy is that we can enjoy sitting on the porch in the evenings now. Next up? Dealing with the carpenter bees!

Have a great week and look for your joys no matter how small. They are always out there!

May all your weeds be wildflowers,

Anne

Friday Fun

It only makes sense that a neighborhood with a yeti wearing bunny ears would also have a zebra in front of a house. To be honest he only wears a costume at Christmas when he dons a Santa hat. The rest of the year he just stands underneath the tree as a neighborhood sentinel. I pass by him also, each time I leave the neighborhood and knowing he is there makes me smile too. 

Sorry the picture is not better but he sits fairly deep in the yard. I don' know these particular neighbors well enough to walk through their lawn to take a picture and the yard is on a curve where getting rear ended is a possibility. So this is a snap and go shot that had to be enlarged. At least you get the idea of what I get to see driving through the "hood.

What's For Dinner?

Planning___I am not sure why I do it, since I am as likely to go off plan as to stay on it. Actually, I am more likely to ignore it. What I think sounds good on Monday usually either does not sound great later in the week, or time and desire to cook had left me.  Still I check to see what I have on hand and plan around it. (Knowing I will most likely change my mind, and change things around. Oh well! )

This is what was planned:. 

1. Parkinson's fundraiser. Some chicken meal most likely

2. Sunday school class social @Mikey's Grill. I am sure TheHub and I will order fish

3. BLT's

4. Grilled chicken, avocado rice, cucumber tomato and onion salad

5. Chicken yakisoba, broccoli, spring greens salad

6. Grilled cheese sandwiches, coleslaw

7.  Carnitas, saffron rice, grilled peppers, onions, and tomatoes

This is what really happened:

Monday:  We wanted something simple and quick so we could watch Alabama Softball and the NCAA basketball championship. We had some perfect tomatoes so this was the perfect meal

BLT, bbq potato chips

Tuesday:  The Parkinson fundraiser had been on our calendar for quite a while, but the meal was a very pleasant surprise.

Really delicious small plate dishes from various restaurants

Wednesday: We had a long overdue social with our Sunday school class. Great company, conversation, and food.

Mikeys crab cake and house salad, or grouper Oscar and house salad

Thursday: I had spent the day out with My Beloved Sister and just did not feel like cooking

Grilled cheese sandwiches, coleslaw

Friday: TheHub and I did a little running around after he got home form work Friday evening. It was cold and damp and neither of us wanted to go anywhere to eat, but did not want to wait until I got something cooked. 

Captain D’S two piece fish dinner col slaw and green beans

Saturday: Though the sun was out the day was still much cooler than I thought it would be. When TheHub suggested having chili I was totally onboard, especially since I had frozen enough for a meal the last time I made it.

Chili, coleslaw 

Sunday: The day was gorgeous and warm again. We worked in the yard and got some things planted and  realized it was the perfect day to toss something on the grill. Thankful the freezer was stocked with options.

Steak, tossed salad, dinner roll

Possibilities for this week:

1. Chicken yakisoba (I am going to make this come Hell or high water)

2. Squash casserole, green beans, coleslaw, cornbread

3. Black and blue salad (had some leftover steak form Sunday's dinner)

4.Grilled hamburger patty, tossed salad saffron rice

5. Spaghetti w/ meat sauce, tossed salad

6. Out to eat or takeout

7 grilled tuna, avocado rice, cucumber tomato onion salad

Have a great week staying on plan, going off plan, or with no plan at all!

Joys!

Well, I forgot to post this yesterday, but it did not mean joyful things weren't happening. It really just means I had filled Saturday with things that were not computer related. So this is the (day late) list of joys for the 14th week of the year. 

Saturday: Beautiful windy morning. On our way to run some errands, we took the scenic route and found another house with a yeti. (This one was painted black and most likely was a Bigfoot, but I like calling it a yeti) It made us both laugh. In the afternoon we watched Bama softball, I had a little power nap and then we watched the basketball semi finals. I had no favorite teams but they were great games.

Sunday: TheHub and I went to see the play Fiddler On The Roof. It is one of our favorites and had a wonderful cast. On the way home from the play we noticed our neighborhood yeti  was wearing Bunny ears. It made me grin. We got home in time to see the last couple of innings of the Alabama softball game.

Monday. This was a lazy day for me (I did laundry and read) then the evening was filled watching Alabama softball and the NCAA championship basketball game. What an exciting game it was!

Tuesday: We went to the Alabama Parkinson fundraiser. I do not usually enjoy fundraisers but this one was really fun. There was the usual silent auction and I "won" two of the things I bid on. The artwork is now hanging in my dining room and when Son1 and family come to town we will have the meal at Food Bar.  

Wednesday: I played with the Barbie head. I had removed her face and repainted a new one. Though I knew how small it was, I did not realize exactly how tiny the actual paint applications would be. I wiped a lot of faces off before I actually painted one I liked. It is still not perfect and I might probably will repaint is later. 

We went out to eat with our Sunday School class. I had not seen some for almost 2 years and it was wonderful to catch up with all of them! We are oh so slowly getting back to doing things. 

Thursday: The day was cooler but gorgeous. I had the most wonderful day exploring with My Beloved Sister. We went several places, found some new and different things, then had lunch out. Ok we ate at about 2:30 so the restaurant would be less crowded, but it was still a fun thing to do.

Friday: What a difference a day makes. The day was cold (for us) and gloomy. When TheHub and I went out Friday night we both had to wear coats. I declare it a personal foul against Mother Nature. I don't do well when I have to change from shorts and flip flops to sweaters and coats in the same week. We still had a good time even though we were so cold we had to light the fireplace when we got home. The heat was a true joy! Yes, we are weather sissies!

So that is the nutshell version of joys for the week here. Keep a lookout for them for they are always around.

May all your weeds be wildflowers,

Anne

Friday Photos

I thought I would start showing some photos of things I see that make me smile. What is more fun than a yeti with bunny ears? He/she has wears holiday appropriate headdresses depending on the season. Luckily I get to see her/him every time I leave the neighborhood.
 

Tuesday 4

Once again it is time for the questions from Annie@Tuesday 4. This week's questions concentrate on what we are reading and what we are watching.

1.Which is better... the book or the movie?

Depends. Most of the time the book is much better than the movie. One huge exception is the movie Forrest Gump. The movie is 1,000 x's better than the book

2. Got a reading list for the year?

Not a list but I do have a few library books on hold

The Sentence Louise Erdrich

Booth Karen Joy Fowler

The Unsinkable Greta James Jennifer E smith

The Space Between Us Thrity Umrigar

Found a real winner you will share with us?

I just finished Brown Girls by Daphne Palasi Andreades. I loved it

Yesterday I read The All Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion by Fannie Flagg. It was typical of her style and I enjoy reading her books when I want some light reading.

Speaking of Fannie Flagg, if you are ever in Birmingham you can eat at the real cafe "The Whistle Stop Cafe" was based on. 

As an aside, I think my favorite book she wrote was "Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man" I am pretty sure it is a fictional interpretation of her time spent as a contestant in the Miss Alabama pageant.

 

3.What TV shows are you watching lately?

Billions on Showtime, Ghosts on CBS, This Is Us on NBC

4. Is there an actor or actress whose movies you consistently enjoy? 

None that come to mind

Come on a play along!

I Plan, I Blink, I Change My Mind

Another week, another plan, another plan ignored!

This is what I had planned for the week:

1.White bbq chicken, potato salad, caulitato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, something dessertish.

2. Ketofied chicken yakisoba, some sort of green veggie side dish (Thanks Hawaii Planner)

3. Salmon filets w/ butter dill sauce, asparagus, sliced tomatoes, cucumber slices 

4. BLT salad dinner

5. Pulled pork, leftover baked beans, leftover potato salad, leftover caulitato salad

6. Out to eat

7. Tacos/ taco salad

This actually happened:

Monday: I needed something quick since I had read pretty much the entire day.

Tacos and fixings

Tuesday:Had the wonderful Sluggy family for dinner. Sadly TheHub overcooked the chicken. Sorry y'all!

White bbq chicken, potato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, strawberry shortcake

Wednesday: I had planned on pulling some shredded pork butt out of the freezer but neither of us cared about it one way or another.

Leftover potato salad and baked beans and coleslaw

Thursday: I was busy playing with a future doll project and did not bother to take anything out of the freezer to make for dinner. Thankfully there are plenty of food take out options all around us.

Jacks, chicken dinner take out

Friday: I had planned a BLT salad, but TheHub had brought some leftovers from a boxed luncheon they had at work.

 Leftover fettuccine alfredo, tossed salad

Saturday: We planned on watching the Duke/NC basketball game and eating afterward. As it turned out neither of us wanted much so this is what happened.

Stuffed baked potato 

Sunday: We had plans for an afternoon event and did not get out until about 4:30. We had eaten a late breakfast and decided we would just pick up something on the way home for an early dinner, and call it a day.

 Arby's roast beef sandwich, sliced apple

What is up for this week?  

We have two events during the week that will include dinner so. . .

1. Parkinson's fundraiser. Some chicken meal most likely

2. Sunday school class social @Mikey's Grill. I am sure TheHub and I will order fish

3. BLT's

4. Grilled chicken, avocado rice, cucumber tomato and onion salad

5. Chicken yakisoba, broccoli, spring greens salad

6. Grilled cheese sandwiches, coleslaw

7.  Carnitas, saffron rice, grilled peppers, onions, and tomatoes

As usual this may or may not happen. We will eat regardless and life will roll on.

Have a great week staying on plan, going off plan or with no plan at all!

The Joys of the Written Word

The 13th week of the year has come and gone and we are now in the beginning of April. It seems like just a month ago we were toasting the New Year, and now we are a quarter of the way through. How is it possible for time to go by so fast, other than that mathematical percentage of the time your day takes relative to the number of days you have been on earth. But I only do checkbook math so I can't be bothered with it, other than to say the year is spinning by. So few days of the year left, and so many books on my reading list! 

 Saturday: This turned out to be a really fun day. TheHub and I began the day with breakfast and conversation. We both did a couple of quick tasks before getting ready to run out. 

The day was drop dead gorgeous, perfect long sleeve weather, with heavy winds. If I had been wearing a wimple I could have pretended I was the flying nun.

Last week we drove to the nearby truck farm produce stand, but they were not there. They are only open from spring until the first frost. We decided to try them, expecting they would not be there until the first of April. But lo and behold, there they were. Their farm is not producing yet, but they have a couple of farmers in Perry Florida who supply them with crops that are not growing here yet. I was so excited to get 5 vine ripe perfect tomatoes, some small cucumbers, and summer squash. Additionally they had ferns, mandevilla, and hibiscus. Every year I get a mandevilla and train it to climb up the handrail to the upper patio. I get a hibiscus and Boston fern for the front porch. I did come home with the fern and will go back Thursday to get a different color hibiscus and mandevilla. They only had yellow and I wanted red, hot pink, or salmon. Their prices were great and the plants were beautiful, plus I love doing business with them.

After we left there we drove to my all time favorite plant shop, Myers Pottery and Plants. I salivate just walking through there. We left with a Gerbera Daisy, a double begonia, and some assorted herbs. I will go back in a few days if the Meyer lemons are delivered. 

A couple of quick errands later we returned home to watch Basketball. I was pulling for Houston and Arkansas today. Both lost but I will be watching St. Peter's tomorrow and cheering from the den.

I still have company coming, and still did nothing to get ready for them!

Sunday: I read___a lot! Company is still expected on Tuesday and I did little nothing to get ready for them. Well I actually did vacuum up a mess I made in the den, so I guess that counts as something! Instead of cleaning, I watched St.Peter's lose to whomever they were playing, and then I watched Billions. If they gave out a prize for procrastination I would win every time.

Monday: I woke looked around the house at everything that needed to be done. I did actually clean the powder room and thought about heading upstairs to get the room ready, but then my book started screaming at me, so I caved in and read. I did stop to prepare potatoes for potato salad and I made shortcakes for dessert on Tuesday, but did I get ready at all? The answer to that is nope!

Tuesday: I woke up in a panic because I was having guest to spend the night and had done little nothing to get ready for them except to put together a couple of things to eat. The baked beans were in the crockpot doing their thing and I did manage to wash and change the bed linens, put out fresh towels, and clean the adjoining bath.

After that I halfway got the table ready for dinner, and then read for a couple of hours. I had to panic all over again because time for them to get here was approaching and I had still not had a shower, nor swept and mopped the kitchen. I did sweep and mop, got clean and gussied up (put on clean clothes and a nickels worth of makeup), turned on Motown music, and waited for the doorbell to ring (Even though it is a stupid Ring doorbell and doesn't ring. Instead it "talks" and says "someone is at your door". Technology at its finest, right? Because before I had the Ring I never realized when the doorbell rang "ding, dong" that someone was at my door.😐)

And who was standing there? Sluggy and Mr.Slug. They were returning home from their big trip west, and stopped to have dinner and spend the night with us. Total joy! It was so good to see them again!

Wednesday: Sluggy and Mr. Slug left Alabama headed toward home and I was left with a perfect gift. A plaque saying "Well Bless Your Little Heart" It had been slightly altered to be just perfect for me!😇

I read then read some more. This Libby app could be my downfall!

The Great Pollination had not yet peaked, but was close. The day was fiercely windy and every time the winds blew a huge yellow "cloud" of pollen blew across the yard. It pretty much signaled zero time outdoors for me.

And then he rains came and washed the nasty yellow stuff into the drains, creeks, and rivers.

Thursday: This was a gorgeous slightly cooler day made even better by getting to visit with my DIL.

Once our visit was done I messed with the Barbies I bought for restoration projects when Pip is here.  Now I have taken the hair off two heads and have a wig cap made for one of them. My next step is to remove their painted faces. I want to have them completely ready for whatever she wants to do with them.

Since I spent my afternoon playing with dolls, I had nothing ready for dinner. We ran out to pick something up and were rewarded with a view of a butter colored western sky.

Friday: The day came and the day went. It was a gorgeous day, but unfortunately the pollen was back in full force. My dark blue car which was clean the day before was covered in yellow "dust".

My productivity was near zero, unless you count reading a book as being productive. To me reading is sheer joy and that is what this list is supposed to be about anyway, so maybe my day was filled getting something joyful done. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

After TheHub got home from work we ran a couple of quick errands then came home and watched "Death on the Nile". It was decently interesting and the scenery alone was worth the time investment.

And that about sums up my week's joys. It was a good week filled with friends and books. What could be better?

Have a great week finding your joys, no matter how large or small they are.

May all your weeds be wildflowers,

Anne