Author Archives: Ellen

B is for Borsch!

It’s time for Alphabe-Thursday with our dedicated teacher Miss Jenny. We are at the very beginning …a very good place to start. Today is the letter B! I’m going back to my humble food beginnings.

 

When tempted to buy a head of cabbage it must be time for borsch. This is a soup I grew up on and only learned to love from my high school years on. When I was little I can remember having to sit in front of a bowl of borsch until I finished it. Left alone at the table I’d dump the bowl back in the pot and then get in double trouble. My mom would be very upset that I spoiled the whole pot with my bread laden bowl of soup. I would dunk as much bread in the soup as possible hoping the soup would disappear…

 

The broth for this soup is made with a 7 bone beef roast. While the vegetables are cooking I season the roast and put it in the oven for additional cooking. Pieces of the roast can be added to the soup to make it a heartier soup.

Borsch is also served with a nice dollop of Sour cream and good bread. Here’s a recipe for borsch!

Things Are Looking Up…

Just wanted all my kind bloggy friends to know that I’m feeling a whole lot better. For the record, my tooth has not hurt at all and the temporary crown feels fine. All my discomfort involved the procedure. The fear involved with my throat and swallowing affected my whole body. Amazing how powerful fear can be. Once again thank you for your great encouragement to me.

Looks like I’ll be mowing some more leaves but not until next week! Tomorrow I get to go see my therapist hairdresser. Hope your week is going well.

California State Capitol

Here are some of my views of the Capitol while I took a stroll around the grounds.

The immigration of thousands of “Forty-niners” in search of gold prompted California’s admission as the 31st state into the Union in 1850, thus creating the need for a state capital. California did not have a permanent seat of government until 1860. Cities vied for the opportunity to house the state capital for the power, prestige, and economic benefit that accompanied it. Four capitol buildings existed in other cities before Sacramento became the permanent site.

Even after Sacramento became the permanent seat of California’s government in 1854, there were several unsuccessful efforts to relocate the Capitol to Oakland (1858-59), San Jose (1875-78, 1893, 1903), Berkeley (1907), and Monterey (1933-41).

I asked a policeman on the grounds why the flags were flying at half-staff and he said he believes whenever a serviceman/woman from the state of California is killed in action they fly the flags at half staff.

The California State Capitol was in part modeled after the United States Capitol, which features a bronze statue of “Freedom” as its crowning ornament. Given the already marked resemblance between the two Capitols’ architecture, the absence of a statue on the California State Capitol was intended to distinguish the two buildings. In addition, the presence of a gold ball, reminiscent of a gold nugget, reminds visitors to the Capitol of California’s Gold Rush heritage.

I did not get a chance to go into the Capitol on this day. Being born and raised in California I was happy to finally visit the grounds.

My “crown” experience yesterday left me traumatized. I find it hard to bear to have my mouth numbed to the extent that my throat feels numbed also. Feeling like I’m choking makes me panic. I wanted to pull that “hold your mouth open device” out of my mouth and run. I didn’t. I persevered and didn’t completely lose it till I got home. I’m regaining my peace on the couch in my flannels with a blankie.

Happy Hours While We May…

Dear and I are enjoying many happy hours of different types while Katie is still under our roof.

 

On Friday we went to a restaurant Happy Hour at a new place for us in Kirkland, Washington at Carillon Point. Le Grand Bistro Americain served up some good eats for us.

 

 

The views were lovely filled with boats, water and dramatic sky.

 

I’m linking up with Mary at Little Red House since she has her power back now for Mosaic Monday. Glad you are out of the dark Mary!

Another busy week ahead for me. Tomorrow I have to go to the dentist for my first crown experience…ugh! I will not be pleased if it interferes with my joy of eating experience! We are in count down mode here…22 days till Katie moves to North Carolina. This Saturday there’s a Northwest bridal shower for her at my sister Lana’s house. Looking forward to having a time of celebration with friends who have touched Katie’s life. We’re choosing joy each day and being thankful for all we have.

O Thou, Whose Bounty Fills My Cup ~ Hymn

O Thou, Whose Bounty Fills My Cup

O Thou, whose bounty fills my cup
With every blessing meet!
I give Thee thanks for every drop—
The bitter and the sweet.

I praise Thee for the desert road,
And for the riverside;
For all Thy goodness hath bestowed,
And all Thy grace denied.

I thank Thee for both smile and frown,
And for the gain and loss;
I praise Thee for the future crown,
And for the present cross.

I thank Thee for the wing of love,
Which stirred my worldly nest;
And for the stormy clouds which drove
The flutterer to Thy breast.

I bless Thee for the glad increase,
And for the waning joy;
And for this strange, this settled peace,
Which nothing can destroy.

Words: Jane F. Crewdson, Lays of the Re­for­ma­tion, 1860.

I hope you set your clocks back 1 hour or else you were very early for church this morning!!

Saturday Fun…

Nothing deep to share just these beautiful roses we picked up at Trader Joe’s yesterday for $4.99. Why walk away without buying them? And…

…have you ever seen a Brussels sprouts Stalk? It was $2.99 at Trader Joe’s. I just had to buy it. Of course Dear and I enjoy Brussels sprouts more than most people do. It’s another one of those tastes I’ve acquired in my adult years. So I think these are on the menu for today along with some Lamb Shanks and mashed potatoes.

FFF ~ November Already…

Here we are in November and our thoughts more than usual turn to thankfulness. On Fridays we join Susanne with Friday’s Fave Five recalling our favorite things from the week.

1. Lana, Laura, Katie and I had a crafting party of sorts last Saturday. Although our production was real slow and we yielded only 6 little Matryoshka dolls we enjoyed loads of laughter. The making tears fall kind of laughter.

2. Our Pastor finished up the series on Spiritual Warfare on Sunday. One of the great things we were reminded of is that the battle has been won and we respond from a position of victory. We also were shown a great photo of the Shield of Faith and how shields were used in battle forming a solid wall of protection. This was accomplished with others beside you and behind you. We need each other.

3. I’m so thankful for my new faucet and my husband who installed it.

4. I really had a fun night opening the door for our Trick or Treaters! We had a lot and my daughter’s face makeup only scared away one little girl. I had to run after her to give her a candy!

5. I mowed the lawn one day this week and because of all the leaves it was a longer than usual workout. I was beat and when Dear came home from work he knew he was taking me out for dinner. Dear, Katie and I shared some great appetizers and we split a Kobe burger 3 ways. A good meal with no clean up is priceless after a hard workout!

I’ve noticed some bloggers who are posting a thankful post every day in November. It’s been great to read them. We have so much to be thankful for…

I’m looking forward to a weekend with nothing scheduled except for church on Sunday morning. Woohoo! How’s your weekend shaping up?

A is for Appetizers…

I really enjoy appetizers. It’s nice to have a variety of taste bites when dining. When we go out to dinner we sometimes eat appetizers instead of a big plate of food. If we are out during Happy Hour it’s tempting to eat too many appetizers when they are half priced. We like to find restaurants with Happy Hour foods that are not all fried food. We have found many good spots with great options. Do you eat appetizers instead of main dishes when you go out?

Teacher Jenny is starting up Alphabe-Thursday this week again and we are at the beginning with the letter A. This would be a good time for you to join in if you want. Thank you Teacher Jenny!

Back to Sacramento…

When I was in Sacramento a few weeks ago I stopped by the Capitol. I was born and raised in Southern California but had never visited the State Capitol. Funny that it took moving out of the state to finally stop by for a visit…

There was a beautiful rose garden next to the Vietnam Memorial.

The young service man sitting at the entrance really hit me hard.

All Gave Some. Some Gave All.

I’ll be sharing my photos of the Capitol building soon.