Thanksgiving 2007

Some images from our Thanksgiving Day in Washington…

Laura, Katie and Dear

Our son Josh and Laura

Our lovely daughter in law Laura

My sister Lana G. (who took some great photos of our day here) and Steve

Our daughter Katie

Jamie, Ben, and Katie

Our son Dan

The lovely Bridget

Finn who belongs to Bridget and Beau

Dear carving the turkey!

Our beautiful Thanksgiving setting overlooking the Puget Sound in Washington. 2nd row Jeremy L., The Mighty Finn, Josh and Beau (Finn’s daddy)

As of June 2017 Photobucket has blacked out all my photos that I had stored there and are holding them hostage. Hopefully I can update my photos on all the posts they have ruined, over 4000 of them.

Over the River and Through the Woods!

Over the River and
Through the Woods

Over the river and thru the wood,
To grandfather’s house we go;
The horse knows the way
To carry the sleigh,
Thru the white and drifted snow, oh!
Over the river and thru the wood,
Oh, how the wind does blow!
It stings the toes,
And bites the nose,
As over the ground we go.

Over the river and thru the wood,
To have a first-rate play;
Oh, hear the bell ring,
“Ting-a-ling-ling!”
Hurrah for Thanksgiving Day-ay!
Over the river and thru the wood,
Trot fast my dapple gray!
Spring over the ground,
Like a hunting hound!
For this is Thanksgiving Day.

To all my blogging friends in the U.S.A. a very Happy Thanksgiving Day to you. For those of you outside the U.S. blessings on the rest of your week! We are headed over the freeways and through the streeted woods to our dear friends for a large gathering of family, food, fun, and fellowship. We’ll be rolling home stuffed to the gills later this evening.

Friday Feast #10

Appetizer
What was your first “real” job?

My real job with a regular paycheck was as an office assistant in my senior year of high school. It was at a company called Link-Belt. People still smoked in offices back then and that was tough being in a little area with a smoker. If I remember right I made about $1.35 an hour. Yep I’m old….

Soup
Where would you go if you wanted to spark your creativity?

I’m not an artist. I’m most creative in the kitchen so I would go to kitchen shops, buy good food magazines, and watch Food Network.

Salad
Complete this sentence: I am embarrassed when…

When I make a fool out of myself. Sometimes I’m embarrassed when I cry in public, too. I’m getting over that though since I seem to cry more and more during worship times at church.

Main Course
What values did your parents instill in you?

Honoring God and honoring your parents and your family was big growing up. One other huge thing we learned from my parents was to have people over, feed them, and love them with out expecting reciprocation.

Dessert
Name 3 fads from your teenage years.

Oh boy, oh boy. Memory don’t fail me now! One thing in junior high was to wear suspenders. (1962-1964) Straight leg levis. The surfer image was huge in junior high, too. We used cocoa butter for tanning at the beach and long straight bleached blond hair was really in. (Now we’re all hoping we don’t get skin cancer!)

For more feasting click here.

Jackson’s Party ~ #3

Happy Birthday

Jackson!

Michelle made this great cake!

Ryan, Michelle and Jackson greeted all the guests…

Aunt Me-me and Jack

Vera, Letty, Tim, and Nick

Tim, Letty and Dear…

Jack delighting in the wonder of helium…

Taking time to savor each gift…

Watching Jack

Ducks Cars in a row…

Where are we going?

Great Grandma (Baba) and Alice

Steve and Lana G!

Pretty young girls… the 3 M’s

Lovely older girls… Sisters…

Jack and Deb, time for cake!

Great grandma and grandpa and Jack! [Baba and Deda].

We had a wonderful time being together. Catching up, encouraging, talking about Jesus. Our evening ended with Deda (Great Grandpa) praying a prayer of thanks to our God for the salvation that He extended to us through Jesus Christ His Son and praying a blessing on his great grandson Jack and praying for our son Josh as he heads to China today. What a wonderful blessing and heritage we have. Then we all sang How Great Thou Art together robustly! Amen!

Hebrews 10:24 ~ “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

Overnight Breakfast Casseroles ~ Recipes

Overnight Mushroom Egg Casserole

Ingredients: 5 Tblsp. butter, divided, 1/3 cup all-purpose flour, 1- 1/2 cups milk, 1 (4.5 oz) jar sliced mushrooms, drained, 10 eggs, 2/3 cup half & half cream, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. pepper, 10 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled [I used ground breakfast sausage]

1. In a saucepan, melt 3 tblsp. butter. Stir in flour until smooth, gradually add milk. Bring to boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the mushrooms; set aside.

[2.] Fully cook sausage and set aside. I used 2 large gourmet breakfast sausages.

3. In a bowl, whisk the eggs, cream, salt and pepper. In a skillet, heat the remaining butter until hot. Add the egg mixture; cook and stir over medium heat until eggs are fully set. Transfer to a greased 11 x 7 x 2-inch baking dish; top with mushroom mixture. Sprinkle bacon or [sausage]. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

4. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered, at 325 degrees F for 32-36 minutes or until heated through.

Tip: This recipe seems to be a little under seasoned. I’d add a little zing with some extra salt and pepper and throw in some scallions in the egg mixture if you want.

ht: all recipes.com

Breakfast Bread Pudding

Ingredients: 12 slices white bread, 1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, cubed, 12 eggs, 2 cups milk, 1/3 cup maple syrup, 1/4 tsp. salt

Remove and discard crusts from bread. [I didn’t have white bread so I used Challah Egg bread] Cut bread into cubes. Toss lightly with cream cheese cubes; place in a greased 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking pan. In large mixing bowl, beat eggs. Add milk, syrup and salt; mix well. Pour over bread mixture. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered at 375 degrees F for 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

Again this recipe also seemed like it could have used more salt, I would use 1/2 tsp. instead of 1/4 tsp. When you serve it make sure to have a pitcher of maple syrup for people to add on the pudding if they’d like. My bread pudding shown above was half the recipe and so it’s in the smaller baking dish.

Friday Feast #9

Appetizer
Which snack do you like to get when you go to the movies?

I’m a real tight wad so I usually smuggle something in. If I buy anything it would probably be popcorn…

Soup
What year did you start using the internet?

Wow I’m a real dweeb, so probably the year 2000 was when I really started using it but 2007 is when I started blogging and have never used it as much as now! 🙂

Salad
What is your first name in Pig Latin? (Here’s how to speak it if you don’t already know!)

I think my name would be Ellenay in Pig Latin!

Main Course
Name something you are picky about.

Cleanliness. Clean places to eat are high on my list and clean places to sleep.

Dessert
Fill in the blanks: I ____ ____ yesterday and I ____ ____ today.

I payed bills yesterday and I felt relaxed today!

For more Friday Feasts click here.

Blessed With Good Friends

Monday Evening November 5th…

The Table is set ~

The Candles are lit ~

Our dear friends Dave and Jody arrive from Washington for the night ~

We are truly blessed ~

For an extra treat here’s a great recipe from the Barefoot Contessa for Mustard-Roasted Potatoes ~

2-1/2 lbs. small red potatoes (I used gold), 2 Yellow onions, 3 Tblsps. good olive oil, 2 Tblsps. whole-grain mustard, 2 tsps. kosher salt, 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, 1/4 C. chopped fresh parsley ~

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the potatoes in halves or quarters, depending on their size, and place them on sheet pan. Remove the ends of the onions, peel them, and cut them in half. Slice them crosswise in 1/4 inch-thick slices to make half-rounds. Toss the onions and potatoes together on the sheet pan. Add the olive oil, mustard, 2tsp. salt, and the pepper and toss them together. (I mixed these ingredients all together before I tossed them with the potatoe/onion mix) Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until the potatoes are lightly brown on the outside and tender on the inside. Toss the potatoes from time to time with metal spatula so they brown evenly.

Duhlicious (I spelled that wrong on purpose!)

Serve hot sprinkled with the chopped parsley and a little extra salt.

For dinner with Dave and Jody we had these Potatoes with Filet Mignon, Mushrooms and Onions sauteed with white wine and cream, and a Fiesta Salad.

For dessert we had Milk Chocolate & Hazelnut filled Brioche Bites.

And Dear mixed up a Kensington Dream for Jody and I.

Good Friends, good food, good conversation, good times….

And with all this fun I’m having you’ll understand why I’m a little slow in getting around blog world today to comment…

Photo Hunters ~ Pink

My Pretty in Pink Tea…

For more Pink Photos go here.

Santa Ana Winds ~ Southern California

So we in Southern California are experiencing Santa Ana Winds or Santana Winds. Besides heavy hot winds there are several fires, downed trees, power outages, etc. Usually Palm fronds hang down uniformly on either side of the trunk. This was the best I could shoot from the comfort of my car to show that the wind was blowing very strongly.

Here’s a more technical description of what Santa Ana Winds are. (Good info for homeschoolers!)

The Santa Ana is a dry, sometimes hot and dusty, wind in southwestern California that blows westward through the canyons toward the coastal areas. Santa Anas are a seasonal phenomena, occurring mostly during fall, winter and spring, tending to peak in December. The wind usually has its origin when cold air spills southward into the Great Basin, trapped between the Rockies to the east and the Sierras and Southern California coastal range to the west. This cold air mass is characterized by unusually high pressure near the land surface. Winds are driven into Southern California when the pressure of this interior air mass exceeds the pressure along the California coast. Winds are often strongest in mountain passes which are ducts for the continental air flow. Because the air over the higher elevations of the Great Basin sinks as it flows into coastal California, it is heated adiabatically, and temperatures are often quite warm. This continental air mass is invariably dry, so humidities in Santa Anas are low, often less than 25% relative humidity. Santa Anas have occurred irregularly over the time period since about 1950 when we have collected detailed wind and humidity observations, with some months experiencing Santa Ana conditions 30% the time, and other months less than 5% of the time.

Santa Anas have several colorful nicknames including “devil’s breath”.

What atmospheric ciruclation features are associated with Santa Ana events?

Any low-pressure system in the Pacific off the California coast may change the stability of the Great Basin High. The Great Basin High winds then turn southward along the eastern slopes of the Sierras. The low-pressure system over the Pacific literally sucks the winds through the mountain passes of Southern California toward the coastal areas.

[there’s a new word for me, adiabatically]

This next part is not technical or educational just informational and personal…

When Dear and I got home from church on Sunday we found we had lost power in our condo. So what do you do when the weather is hot and windy and your power goes out? Why you find the closest eating establishment that has power and eat out! J.J. Brewsky’s was open and ready and willing to feed us.

Dear ordered the Steak and Guinness Pie with what else but a Guinness.

I had the Carnitas cooked in Arrogant ******* Ale, a seasoned shredded pork, egg, and pico de gallo dish (very spicey and yummy) with an Arrogant ******* Ale of course. And now because when the power goes out it makes us a bit giddy and creative and desperate, we have a challenge for you.

Which of these heads is the Guinness? The one on the left or the one on the right?

UPDATE AND ANSWER!!: Because I have the patience of a Hare in the Long Patrol (Brian Jacques Redwall Readers will understand) I can’t wait any longer to tell you that Katie, Beth, Mz. Ellen, Southernbell, and Crystal are correct. The Guinness is on the left! Thanks for taking a stab at the quiz everyone. They were two similar heads so it wasn’t easy. And Katie you certainly do make your father proud because you listen to him and remember what he says….

update #2: Dear says, “The head on Guinness is famously smooth and creamy, with fine bubbles (right on Katie!) because the gas is not carbon dioxide but rather nitrogen which creates smaller, more persistent bubbles. Until somewhat recently Guinness was the only brew to utilize nitrogen. Imitation being the sincerest form of flattery some other brewers have used nitrogen to replicate the creamy head.”

Leave your answer in the comments…

And here’s a photo of me flapping in the wind. I think the wind widened my hips! I really don’t think it’s all that good food and ale that I just had, yep I’m blaming it on the wind….

Now later in the day we are seeing the effects of the Malibu and other fires in our skies outside our condo. The orange cloudy glow that blocks the sun is a very telling sign of the fires and winds.

Photobucket has blacked out all my photos on my blog posts and is holding them hostage. As Time allows I will try to restore some of my posts with new photos.

ht: http://meteora.ucsd.edu/cap/santa_ana.html

Solvang, Santa Ynez Wineries and Los Olivos

What a lovely Saturday Dear and I had. We left the Condo just before 8 in the morning and headed North on Hwy 101 to Buelton then East to Solvang. Solvang is a small old world Danish town with shops, restaurants, bakeries, and museums. We did what you should do when you visit Solvang and had some Aebleskivers! The center picture in the collage above is of our Aebleskivers served with Rasberry syrup and powdered sugar. Yummy! They are cooked in a special pan to make them round. Their story is below. I hope you can read the fine print.

After we were done in Solvang we continued East to the first two wineries we decided to visit. Sunstone Winery was in a beautiful setting and the buildings were said to resemble a Provencal countryside. I’ve never been to that part of France so all I can tell you is that the setting is lovely and quaint.

This is Dear and I on the porch at Sunstone.

From Sunstone we continued a little farther east to our favorite winery of the 3 we visited, Gainey. The setting here was beautiful also with a panoramic view of the surrounding mountains. Oh and if you ever do visit this one don’t miss the ladies restroom. Pretty impressive.

From Gainey we headed North on Refugio Road to Los Olivos. We were surprised to come upon their once a year Fall street fair! We saw wonderful classic cars, all kinds of wares, and Alpaca’s! The smells were wonderful with several BBQ’s going with the famous Santa Maria Tri-tip beef cooked to perfection. We ate at the Los Olivos Cafe & Wine Merchant. Then we headed South on Alamo Pintado Road to our last stop Rideau Vineyard which is housed in the refurbished country landmark known as the Alamo Pintado Adobe. Originally built in 1884.