Category Archives: Blogs

Walking for Donuts? Is that what Lovella had in mind?

Dear and I decided to walk along the main road outside our neighborhood today so we could check out Calleguas Creek after the rains we’ve had all week. The sun was shining and the skies were clear.

This creek is generally pretty dry with maybe a trickle once in a while. The rain storms we’ve been having have made the creek flow strong and constant. (This photo was taken after the last rain storm, not today, but the creek looked just like this today with bluer skies)

We continued up the road.

The grade you see in the distance is what Dear has to travel everyday to get to work.

Oh no, look what I see, a donut shop. But here we are on a healthy walk…

On the way back to the Condo I got a shot of the Creek on the opposite side of the road.

Now where did that come from and how did it make it all the way to my condo?

I’m hopeless people!  Not only were my walking numbers way down this week (6108 avg.) I rewarded myself for my dismal efforts with a donut! Not a little donut either.

Have a wonderful rest of the weekend…

Show & Tell ~ Napkin Rings

For Show and Tell today I’d like to share some of my napkin rings. I’ve always enjoyed using cloth napkins and napkin rings when we have friends over. I have some of my collection with me at the condo in California. Some of the rings I collected before Dear and I were married. We bought two matching antique silver ones when we were in England together with a Christian Rock Band Tour before we were married.

The ceramic white and blue are Dansk rings that I picked up at Goodwill. The pearl ones I got at clearance from Target. The dark bronze swirly ones were a gift from my son and his wife for Christmas. The silver with the scrolled design are antique sterling silver ones we bought in England in 1974. The snowflake ones I bought at K-Mart Christmas clearance 90% off. The 4 seashell ones are antiqued pewter that I bought before we were married.

It’s always fun to change up my table settings with all these great bargain napkins and napkin rings.

For more Show and Tell head on over to Kelli’s at There’s No Place Like Home.

Recipe Round Up ~ Snackalicious Super Dishes

Just in time for this year’s Super Bowl on February 3rd, Pensieve is hosting Snackalicious Super Dishes and Rebecca Writes’ January’s Recipe Round Up in one lip-smacking, crowd-pleasing carnival and YOU’RE invited!

Here’s my contribution. A wonderful Chili from one of my favorite cookbooks!

 

Mount Rainier Chili (serves twelve to fourteen)

Ingredients:

1 pound Great Northern white beans, rinsed and picked over
2 pounds boneless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups onion, chopped
4 medium garlic cloves, minced
2 – 4 ounce cans chopped mild green chilies
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1- 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, crushed
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
8 cups chicken stock
1  12oz. can beer
3 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded and divided

sour cream
salsa
fresh cilantro leaves chopped

Soaking time overnight. Place bean in a large, heavy pot. Add enough cold water to cover by at least 3 inches. Cover and soak overnight.

Place chicken in a large, heavy saucepan. Add cold water to cover and bring to a simmer. Cook until just tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and cool. Remove skin and cut chicken into cubes.

Drain beans into large colander. Heat oil in same pot. Add onions and saute over medium-low heat until translucent, about 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, green chilies, cumin, oregano, cloves and cayenne. Saute 2 minutes. Add beans and stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until beans are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 3 to 4 hours. Add additional water if necessary. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and bring to a simmer before continuing.) Add chicken, beer and 1 cup of cheese. Stir until cheese melts. Ladle chili into bowls. Serve with remaining cheese, sour cream, salsa and cilantro leaves to sprinkle on top.

This is a wonderful white chili from one of my favorite cookbooks from the Junior League of Seattle, Simply Classic. I recommend this cookbook highly because every recipe I have made from the book has been wonderful.

To see more recipes head over to Pensieve’s here.

Know & Tell Friday

Question 1
What is your favorite fairy tale?

I think my favorite fairy tale is Snow White. It might have been the first one I saw when I was little and it made an impression on me. I also like the 7 Dwarfs.

Question 2
If you could be guaranteed a spot on the reality show “Survivor”, would you go?

No, I really would not want to expose myself to the elements in that way. I’m past my physical prime and I wouldn’t want to be without my hormone pills. 🙂 I also wouldn’t want to be at the whim of the producers manipulating and exposing me in a bad light.

Question 3
Meanest thing you ever did to a sibling??? I know…. what kind of question is this 🙂

This one is easy for me. I would hide in the closet or under the bed and when my older sisters would come home from dates I’d grab at their legs from under the bed or I’d grab their hand when they reached in the closet for their nightgown! Made them scream bloody murder every time.

Question 4
Best Fashion Era… 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, 90’s or now…

I think the 60’s were great. I loved the classic Jackie Kennedy look.

 

Question 5
Have you ever skipped to the end of a book before you finished reading the book?

Maybe once. It is not a habit of mine to do that. If the book drags on at the end I might skim through to get to the end.

Bonus Questions (I found these questions through a website, and boy are these challenging…)  ~

Question 6
What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year? ~

To be able to move back to Seattle. ~

Question 7
What is one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God? ~

Talk to Him like He’s real and my best friend.  ~

For more Know and Tell click over to To Know Him.

Thankful Thursday

I’m thankful that God chose me, that He forgives me, that He loves me, and that He continues to lead me and protect me.

I am thankful for our new evening Home group that encourages me and gives me the opportunity to encourage.

I am thankful for learning about other people and cultures in bloggy world. It opens up the world to me in ways that I never dreamed of before.

I’m thankful to be able to pray for people all over the world.

I am thankful that Jesus laid down His life for me and brought me out of darkness into His light.

I am thankful that God fills me with joy!

I Thessalonians 5: 23-24 ~ “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.”

For more thankful posts head over to Sting My Heart.

Winter Flowers in California

The theme for this week! 

January 23 – 29. Wildflowers in Winter, a winter image of a flower in your area.

Bird of Paradise (Camarillo, California)

I live in the city and wildflowers are out of easy reach for me. These Birds of Paradise seem to grow with absolutely no effort around here. They pretty much bloom all year long from Winter to Fall. The Hummingbirds love to come and visit these. I’m still trying to catch a photo with that little bird visiting. This one is just outside my bedroom window. Today it’s pouring down rain here and this splash of color caught in a bit of sunlight is cheering me up.

  The Bird of Paradise is one of four plants in the genus Strelitzia.  The plant most often referred to as the Bird of Paradise and the one pictured above is the orange flowering Bird of Paradise, Strelitzia reginae.

For more winter flowers around the world visit Wildflower Morning.

Wildflowers in Winter ~ Blog Carnival

So many fun bloggy things so little time. This is a busy week with lots of posts. I hope to visit lots of my favorites and lots of new places too! Enjoy. The phrase for this week is keep on scrolling, there’s more to see.

Wildflower Morning is having a Wildflowers in Winter celebration for the next few weeks. She has posted a wildflower related theme for each week and will have a Mr. Linky to add your blog entry.  Here’s what she has to say about her celebration and give away:

Every winter I find myself longing for spring. I just love the warming rays of sun and the wildflowers that start to open. It is my favorite time of year. Wildflowers bring me so much joy.

So, I propose some wildflower fun this winter to take us into the first days of spring. I will have a different theme each week through the middle of March. Join right in by making a post on your blog fitting the theme. You may copy the theme image for Wildflowers in Winter onto your blog entry, and link back to this blog so others will know where to look for more information. Then come back to my blog and enter your information in the Mr. Linky at the bottom of the page, so we can all see your post. Late entries will be accepted up to March 12. My daughter wants me to make sure and let you know that children can participate not only in the children’s art contest, but in all aspects of the Wildflowers in Winter Theme, if they have the photographs or skill to do so, and thus be entered in the drawing

Please do spread the word so your friends can also enjoy Wildflowers in Winter. I would love to see lots of entries. It will brighten up my gray winter days.
The theme for January 16 – 22 is: Your favorite wildflower photo from your files.   Here is my favorite photo/oops photos!

This photo was taken on Whidbey Island in the State of Washington. The photo was taken in July of 2007 on a walk at Greenbank Farms. We are looking back to the city of Everett across the Puget Sound. Unfortunately I can’t tell you the name of these wildflowers.

 

Just one more please…

This one was taken on the grounds of Chatsworth House in England (where parts of Pride and Prejudice were filmed) My little wild flower is in the midst of these daffodils that are now growing wild on the grounds. This was taken in April of 2004 when we took our daughter to Great Britain for a graduation gift.

Click on the links above to see more wildflower entries…

Walking with Lovella and Company ~

So I joined an online walking club over at What Matters Most with fellow bloggers. Most everyone has pedometers but so far I do not so I am figuring it out on averages and how many steps I take on average in a minute. Sounds complicated but it’s not too hard to figure out. Anyway the point is to try to get out and walk more. Here’s my first weeks average. I am calculating 6 days and taking Sunday off.

Monday ~ 7900
Tuesday ~ 8680
Wednesday ~ 9980
Thursday ~ 3500
Friday ~ 9000
Saturday ~ 12,350 (woohoo)

Total 51,410 divided by 6 = 8568

I’d like to get to over 10,000 steps a day….

Show & Tell ~ Wedding Shower Favors?

Ellen b. is not known for being one to sit around making crafts. In fact I have a reputation for being not so crafty. That however does not mean I never get inspired to try to make something “cute”. I was inspired by Vicki at Windows to My Soul when she posted a great Christmas gift idea. A whisk stuffed with candy kisses wrapped in cellophane and tied with a pretty ribbon. On the card she wrote “Whisking you a Merry Christmas”.

I decided I wanted to do the same thing but with smaller whisks and for a New Year’s Gift for my Mom, Sisters and Nieces since we weren’t together on Christmas but we are having dinner together this week. These would also make great party favors for a wedding shower. Here’s the process I went through to make these.

 

The whisks were purchased at Business Costco in Washington State. They were very reasonable ($2.25) for the small ones.

You gently pull apart the whisk and gently stuff the head with Kisses.

You can use food wrap to seal the head of the whisk or you can buy that fancy cellophane that you use for making gift baskets.

Tie the bow on with a gift card and you have a cute gift or party favor. Fun all around…

Here’s how they looked at the place settings for our dinner.

For more Show and Tell head over to Kelli’s!