The Best

After complaining about stain removers not removing stains, my daughter told me to try DREFT Laundry Stain Remover. As the mother of two toddlers and a newborn, she uses a lot of stain remover and has tried them all. Dreft is gentle enough for baby's clothing and strong enough to remove the toughest stains. I gave it a try...and have not been disappointed. It's magic! Buy it!

Yummm!!!

Out of this world delicious!

The Christening Gown

My maternal grandmother made this precious christening gown in the early 1900's. Four generations have worn it.

My mother wore it (and possibly her sister, Bernice, wore it),

I wore it,

My daughter wore it,

Her first two sons have worn it,

And tomorrow her third child, sweet baby Donovan, will wear it.

I've embroidered each name on the bottom of the gown.....a history of this special dress.

I miss my grandmother....I miss my mother.....

THE HELP

I've read three wonderful books since I retired. "The Room" and "Slammerkin" by Emma Donoghue and now "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett. This is Stockett's first novel and I hope it's not her last. It was so beautifully written I was sorry it had to end!

PUT "THE HELP" AT THE TOP OF YOUR READING LIST!

Red Sky At Night....

Sailor's Delight!

The view from my kitchen window this evening!

We Fish Through Ice

Once again, we joined the throng of protesters at our state's capitol against Governor Walker's Budget Repair Bill. Though I haven't heard any official estimates, my guess is this week's crowd was well over 100,000. Protesters marched in the cold and snow for hours. At 3:00 p.m. there were songs by Peter Yarrow and speeches by union members, clergy, teachers, students as well as appearances by well known actor Bradley Whitford and co-pilot Jeff Skiles. Bradley Whitford, an East High School graduate, appeared on The West Wing and returned to his home state to support the protest. He said: "Wisconsinites are so stubborn they fish through ice." A rather catchy phrase for a T-shirt don't you think....We Fish Through Ice!

The Rally

Yesterday, I was one of an estimated crowd of 68,000 that gathered at the Capitol in Madison, Wisconsin to have their voices heard in protest...and support...of Governor Scott Walker's plan to end collective bargaining. It was a peaceful rally and it felt good to be part of this historic event. After a walk around the square, I headed inside to the rotunda. Though I lived in Madison for 21 years, worked right across the street from the capitol and walked through this beautiful building many, many times, I've never seen it so electrified with the passion and commitment of this great state's electorate. Especially significant to me were the four panels of glass mosaic work on each of the pendentives which make the transition from the octagonal form of the rotunda to the circular form of the dome. I did a little research and found the following information on the State Historical website:

Between the four arches in the rotunda are pendentives, which make the transition from the octagonal form of the rotunda to the circular form of the dome. The four pendentives of the rotunda are decorated with four panels of glass mosaic works designed by Kenyon Cox, for a total cost of $20,000. Kenyon Cox, born in Warren Ohio, (1856 - 1919) was an important American painter, draughtsman and art critic. He also painted murals for the Library of Congress and the Capitols of Iowa and Minnesota.

Cox's mosaic panels are twelve feet high and have an average length of twenty-four feet. Each mosaic consists of approximately 100,000 pieces of glass tile and represents Wisconsin's three branches of government (the legislative, the executive and the judicial) and liberty - the foundation of all power in a free country. "Legislation" is represented as a powerful older man with a long beard who holds a stylus in his right hand and is seated by a sphinx symbol of wisdom. A young man holding a leading staff in his right hand while his left hand rests upon a great sword represents "Government"- the executive power. "Justice" is represented by a young woman seated in a lion throne, who tests the scales in the balance to demonstrate the purely judicial function of weighing one cause against the other. "Liberty" is represented as a young woman wearing the traditional Phrygian cap of red, but is otherwise dressed in two shades of green, the color of youth and hope. Her right hand guards the ballot box while her left hand points upward.

As you can see, Liberty is the foundation of all power in a free country and Justice tests the scales in the balance to demonstrate the purely judicial function of weighing one cause against the other.....that's what this past week has all been about.

Foggy Day

Today, the view from my kitchen window shows my favorite oak tree shrouded in fog.

It's definitely a day to stay inside by the fireplace (I do LOVE my gas fireplace!) So, I spent a lazy hour reading The Recipe Club, a novel about food and friendship. Which, of course, made me hungry. I rumbled through all my old recipe cards and discovered my old Girl Scout recipe for Streusel Filled Coffee Cake and, within an hour, I was eating this yummy coffee cake, sipping a huge cup of Dunkin' Donut's coffee and back to reading my book!

So many of my recipes were given to me by my mother. They've gotten brown and faded over time but I treasure them nonetheless! My mother passed away 22 years ago but just looking at these recipes, written in her hand, makes me smile!

Streusel Filled Coffee Cake

Mix together thoroughly:
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 cup milk

Sift Together and add into above:
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Streusel Topping Ingredients
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons flour
4 teaspoons cinnamon
4 tablespoons butter (melted)
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease and flour a 9 by 13-inch pan. Mix sugar, shortening/butter, and egg thoroughly. Stir in milk. Combine and sift flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl Add to sugar, shortening/butter, egg, and milk. Stir together.

Spread half of the batter in pan. Sprinkle with half of the streusel mixture. Add the remaining batter and sprinkle the top with the rest of the streusel.

Bake 25 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Happy Valentine's Day

For you see, each day I love you more

Today more than yesterday and less than tomorrow.

~Rosemonde Gerard

Happy Valentine's Day To You All!!

To Curtain or Not to Curtain...That Is The Question

My intention was to leave all my lovely windows free from blinds or curtains. But, it's looking like I will need something at this window as the morning sun shines right on my new sofa.

Hmmmm....

Dinner Perhaps?

They're getting braver....this big fellow was right next to the house!

Sweet Baby Boy!

This morning at 2:05 a.m. our daughter gave birth to a healthy 9 lb, 22" baby boy! She was scheduled to be induced later today but this little guy decided not to wait!

Everyone is tired and happy! Time for bed!

Will It Be Pink or Will It Be Blue?

Burp pads. Lots of burp pads. I could NOT make enough burp pads for my daughter's last two sweet babies--both boys. They were definitely spitters!

This time around I've changed the style a bit and even made some PINK ones just in case we hear "It's a Girl!!"

We're Having a Baby Basket

Our third grandchild will be born very soon! In preparation for each delivery I've put together a "We're Having a Baby Basket" to take to the hospital. Though it's not finished yet, here's a peak at the most recent one.

SNOW, SNOW, SNOW

I guess the weatherman wasn't kidding when he forecast 12" to 18" of snow for our area!

Our driveway is winding and long. So, today, the fellow who plows for us earned every penny! Mr. Amazing was a happy man!

What to Do On a Lazy Winter Day

Bake!

I decided to bake these sweet treats to cheer up my very overdue daughter and her family who are also battling nasty colds. There's something about going past the "due date" that makes every single day thereafter seem twice as long.

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Brownies

2 Cups flour

2 Tsp. baking powder

1/2 Tsp. salt

1 Cup peanut butter

2/3 Cup butter

1 Cup sugar

1 Cup dark brown sugar

4 Eggs

1 Package of chocolate chips

2 Tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 9 x 13 pan. Mix together the peanut butter, butter and sugars. Add eggs one at a time and mix well. Add mixed dry ingredients. Add vanilla and stir in the chips. Bake 20 to 25 minutes. When done, a soft imprint will remain. Do not over-bake.

Let's hope this gets the ball rolling!

A Rafter of Turkeys

There is definitely something to be said for looking out the window! Today we were greeted by a rafter of turkeys. I wasn't sure what a group of turkeys was called so had to look it up. I guess they can also be called a gang or a gobble of turkeys. Either way, it was such fun watching them move cautiously across our land!

RETIREMENT

is...well...wonderful! I'm amazed at how quickly I've adjusted to it all. The downside....if there is one....is that I'm rather lazy these days! I can spend all morning reading and looking out the window at sites like this. We've had a spell of frozen fog the last two days and it's absolutely breathtaking!

My New Year's Resolution should have been to get up and get going!

Christmas 2010

We celebrated our first Christmas in our new home and it was wonderful. To have my husband, children, son-in-law and grandchildren all under one roof was the best present I could ask for! There's no gift you can buy that tops the warmth in your heart as you watch the ones you love laughing and enjoying each other. Those memories will be with us forever. Christmas is a time of reflection as well. As I look at the ornaments on our tree, I am reminded of past Christmases and the many dear friends and their gifted ornaments. Many of those friends are no longer with us but they're remembered every year as we decorate our tree.

This sweet Santa ornament, made of cotton batting, is one of my very special ornaments. It wasn't given to me as a gift, rather it was discovered it in a box of treasures I'd bid on at auction many years ago. We'd bought several items that day and it wasn't until near the end of the auction that I found out the name of the person whose possessions we were bidding on. They belonged to a very lovely woman named Carol. She was an interior decorator who I'd met through work. We'd chat over the years and then she stopped coming. What I never knew is she'd had a stroke, a bad stroke. She was in a nursing home, unable to speak and her life was changed forever. Her mother was auctioning her possessions, and many of her treasures. When I opened the box I found this Santa tucked under layers of yellowed tissue paper with a note pinned to his chest which read, "Santa Claus...made in second grade." Every year I think of Carol as I gingerly place her ornament in a special spot on our tree and it reminds me to enjoy every minute of every day.

I wish you and your families a magical, memorable holiday.

The view from my kitchen window! Yesterday's storm was categorized as a blizzard and it's definitely lived up to its name. I find it difficult to pull myself away from the window to get some work done. There's nothing quite like a "snowed in" day with the fireplace going, Christmas music playing and beautiful oak trees! Hope you are all snug and warm in your homes too!