Christmas just would not be complete without certain items and I have been busy baking each of my days off. I thought I would take a minute and share some of my favorite Christmas goodies...

This first is Rugelach which is a traditional Jewish cookie. I love this because I am not a big "sweet" eater, I am not big on frosting etc. These are great no matter what you fill them with, they are flaky and delightful. This happens to be Dorie Greenspan's recipe. This year I have done 3 kinds with apricot preserves, cinnamon sugar and nuts and (oh boy) raspberry preserves and dark chocolate pieces.

For the Dough

4 ounces cold cream cheese, cut into 4 pieces

1 stick (8 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup chopped nuts (I prefer pecans, but you can use walnuts or almonds)

1/4 cup plump, moist dried currants

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped, or 2/3 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips

For the Glaze

1 large egg

1 teaspoon cold water

2 tablespoons sugar, preferably decorating (coarse) sugar

For the Filling

2/3 cup raspberry jam, apricot jam or marmalade

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Makes 32 cookies

TO MAKE THE DOUGH: Let the cream cheese and butter rest on the counter for 10 minutes — you want them to be slightly softened but still cool.

Put the flour and salt in a food processor, scatter over the chunks of cream cheese and butter and pulse the machine 6 to 10 times. Then process, scraping down the sides of the bowl often, just until the dough forms large curds — don't work it so long that it forms a ball on the blade.

Turn the dough out, gather it into a ball and divide it in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap the disks in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 1 day. (Wrapped airtight, the dough can be frozen for up to 2 months.)

TO MAKE THE FILLING: Heat the jam in a saucepan over low heat, or do this in a microwave, until it liquefies. Mix the sugar and cinnamon together.

Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats. (Silicone baking mats are great for rugelach.)

TO SHAPE THE COOKIES: Pull one packet of dough from the refrigerator. If it is too firm to roll easily, either leave it on the counter for about 10 minutes or give it a few bashes with your rolling pin.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into an 11- to 12-inch circle. Spoon (or brush) a thin gloss of jam over the dough, and sprinkle over half of the cinnamon sugar. Scatter over half of the nuts, half of the currants and half of the chopped chocolate. Cover the filling with a piece of wax paper and gently press the filling into the dough, then remove the paper and save it for the next batch.

Using a pizza wheel or a sharp knife, cut the dough into 16 wedges, or triangles. (The easiest way to do this is to cut the dough into quarters, then to cut each quarter into 4 triangles.) Starting at the base of each triangle, roll the dough up so that each cookie becomes a little crescent. Arrange the roll-ups on one baking sheet, making sure the points are tucked under the cookies, and refrigerate. Repeat with the second packet of dough, and refrigerate the cookies for at least 30 minutes before baking. (The cookies can be covered and refrigerated overnight or frozen for up to 2 months; don't defrost before baking, just add a couple of minutes to the baking time.)

GETTING READY TO BAKE: Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

TO GLAZE: Stir the egg and water together, and brush a bit of this glaze over each rugelach. Sprinkle the cookies with the sugar.

Bake the cookies for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point, until they are puffed and golden. Transfer the cookies to racks to cool to just warm or to room temperature.

A new one for this year which is beyond decadent is Paula Dean's Symphony Brownies. She really needs an award for these.

45 min | 5 min prep

1 11x7 inch pan

1 (19 7/8 ounce) box Betty Crocker fudge brownie mix
2 large eggs
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 (7 ounce) hershey symphony milk chocolate candy bars
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, or 325 degrees for glass baking dish.
Lightly grease the bottom only of an 11 x 7 inch baking pan; set aside.
In a large mixing bowl prepare brownie mix according to directions on the package, using 2 eggs, 1/4 cup water and 1/2 cup oil.
Stir until smooth.
Spread half the batter evenly into prepared pan.
Unwrap candy bars and place them on top of the batter.
Top with remaining brownie batter.
Bake 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out with only a few moist crumbs clinging to it.
Remove pan from oven and let cool on wire rack before cutting into squares or other shapes.

I have friends that beg for my fudge every year. I found this recipe back in the late '90s and have been making batch after batch ever since... Usually I am still making it after New Years and I even make it in place of a birthday cake for a young friend of mine. I believe he is an addict. :-) This is Skaarups Fantasia Fudge and I am giving you the link because there are dozens of awesome variations, trust me you need to try at least a few. Skaarup Fudge

1/2 cup Butter
2 1/2 cup Sugar (extra-fine granulated preferred)
5 oz. Evaporated Milk (one small can)
12 oz Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (Hersheys or Nestle)
6-7 oz. Marshmallow Creme/Fluff (1 Jar)

(may substitute 2 cups mini-marshmallows)

1 cup Walnuts (chopped) -or- 4 oz. bag (optional item)
1 tsp Vanilla Extract


Directions:
Line a 9” x 9” pan with aluminum foil and set aside. Place
chocolate chips, vanilla, and marshmallow cream into a 3-quart
saucepan (or Pyrex bowl) and set aside. Chop walnuts and set
aside (optional). Heat milk at Medium setting until warm then add
sugar. Bring to a rolling boil (Medium-High), stirring constantly with
a wooden spoon. Continue to boil for [8] full minutes -or- if using a
candy thermometer continue boiling until the boiling temperature
reaches 235°F but do not exceed 9 minutes rolling boiling total.
Remove from heat and add butter. Stir until dissolved (but no more
than 30 seconds).

Pour hot mixture over chocolates, vanilla, and marshmallow cream
without scraping the sides of the hot saucepan. Mix until the
chocolates are melted. Add walnuts if desired. Mix thoroughly and
cast into prepared pan. Cool at room temperature. Chill in
refrigerator prior to cutting. Remove from pan, remove foil, cut into squares

OK< It is off to work for me. When I get home, I have dough in the fridge chilling so it is just right to work with! Ciao or should I say Chow???

This came in my email today.

You think English is easy???

Read to the end . . . A new twist

1) The bandage was wound around the wound.
2) The farm was used to produce produce .

3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
4) We must polish the Polish furniture.

5) He could lead if he would get the lead out.
6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present
8) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.

9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
10) I did not object to the object.
11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row ...
13) They were too close to the door to close it.

14) The buck does funny things when the does are present.
15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
19) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France . Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? One index, 2 indices? Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell?

How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which, an alarm goes off by going on.
English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all. That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible.

PS. - Why doesn't 'Buick' rhyme with 'quick' ?

You lovers of the English language might enjoy this .
There is a two-letter word that perhaps has more meanings than any other two-letter word, and
that is 'UP.'

It's easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we wake UP ? At a meeting, why does a topic come UP ? Why do we speak UP and why are the officers UP for election and why is it UP to the secretary to write UP a report ?

We call UP our friends. And we use it to brighten UP a room, polish UP the silver; we warm UP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen. We lock UP the house and some guys fix UP the old car. At other times the little word has real special meaning. People stir UP trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UP excuses. To be dressed is one thing, but to be dressed UP is special. And this UP is confusing: A drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP. We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at night.

We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP ! To be knowledgeable about the proper uses of UP, look the word UP in the dictionary. In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4th of the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions. If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP is used. It will take UP a lot of your time, but if you don't give UP, you may wind UP with a hundred or more.

When it threatens to rain, we say it is clouding UP . When the sun comes out we say it is clearing UP...
When it rains, it wets the earth and often messes things UP.
When it doesn't rain for awhile, things dry UP.

One could go on and on, but I'll wrap it UP, for now my time is UP, so........it is time to shut UP!

When we stop to count our blessings this holiday week some of the most important people we have to be thankful for are those that protect our freedom and give us peace of mind. If you happen to run across someone in our military please take a moment to thank them. If you get a chance to participate in donating something for our troops this holiday, even if it just signing a card, please do. There are so many of them so far from home and their families and they NEED to know we are honored that they serve us.

The average age of the military man is 19 years. He is a short haired, tight-muscled kid who, under normal circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy. Not yet dry behind the ears, not old enough to buy a beer, but old enough to die for his country. He never really cared much for work and he would rather wax his own car than wash his father's, but he has never collected unemployment either.

He's a recent High School graduate; he was probably an average student, pursued some form of sport activities, drives a ten year old jalopy, and has a steady girlfriend that either broke up with him when he left, or swears to be waiting when he returns from half a world away He listens to rock and roll or hip-hop or rap or jazz or swing and a 155mm howitzer.

He is 10 or 15 pounds lighter now than when he was at home because he is working or fighting from before dawn to well after dusk. He has trouble spelling, thus letter writing is a pain for him, but he can field strip a rifle in 30 seconds and reassemble it in less time in the dark. He can recite to you the nomenclature of a machine gun or grenade launcher and use either one effectively if he must.

He digs foxholes and latrines and can apply first aid like a professional.

He can march until he is told to stop, or stop until he is told to march.

He obeys orders instantly and without hesitation, but he is not without spirit or individual dignity. He is self-sufficient.

He has two sets of fatigues: he washes one and wears the other. He keeps his canteens full and his feet dry.

He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth, but never to clean his rifle. He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes, and fix his own hurts.

If you're thirsty, he'll share his water with you; if you are hungry, his food. He'll even split his ammunition with you in the midst of battle when you run low.

He has learned to use his hands like weapons and weapons like they were his hands.

He can save your life - or take it, because that is his job.

He will often do twice the work of a civilian, draw half the pay, and still find ironic humor in it all.

He has seen more suffering and death than he should have in his short lifetime.

He has wept in public and in private, for friends who have fallen in combat and is unashamed.

He feels every note of the National Anthem vibrate through his body while at rigid attention, while tempering the burning desire to 'square-away ' those around him who haven't bothered to stand, remove their hat, or even stop talking.

In an odd twist, day in and day out, far from home, he defends their right to be disrespectful.

Just as did his Father, Grandfather, and Great- grandfather, he is paying the price for our freedom. Beardless or not, he is not a boy. He is the American Fighting Man that has kept this country free for over 200 years.

He has asked nothing in return, except our friendship and understanding.
Remember him, always, for he has earned our respect and admiration with his blood.

And now we even have women over there in danger, doing their part in this tradition of going to War when our nation calls us to do so.


Prayer wheel for our military... please don't break it Please send this on after a short prayer.
Prayer Wheel


'Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands.
Protect them as they protect us.
Bless them and their families for the selfless acts
they perform for us in our time of need. Amen.'


When you receive this, please stop for a moment
and say a prayer for our ground troops in Afghanistan, sailors on ships, and airmen in the air, and for those in Iraq .

Of all the gifts you could give a US Soldier, Sailor, Coastguardsman, Marine,
or Airman, prayer is the very best one.

I am so addicted to this blog Pioneer Woman Cooks Actually I am addicted to her entire blog but this particular part is just well beyond yum. Yesterday I bought everything to make her gingersnap, caramel, pecan, pumpkin cheesecake. Today I put a brisket in to marinade. I have never cooked a brisket but just reading the recipe and looking at her pictures made me drool so it is marinading as we speak. The cheese cake will be for Thanksgiving to take over to my MIL. I am not doing a big meal this year, at least I don't think I am. After dealing with everyones/turkey, oyster, ham needs for the last couple of weeks is making me think that I am not in the mood for any of it. I do have a ham to cook and will probably do some sweet potatoes to go with it. MIL is having Thanksgiving dinner at her community which we could have done but we didn't sign up thinking both Tom and Tommy would be working and of course as soon as the signup deadline passed they both found out they were off. Go figure. It's OK though.

I gave up one of my days off this week (today)and I am working in the bakery. I am glad to have a chance to go play with some friends other than my "meat" ones. Our bakery is jammin' for sure today. I guess no one makes their own stuff much anymore. That makes me sad when I think about how wonderful my mother's house smeel during the holidays growing up (this from the woman who just confessed she wasn't going all out for the holidays). My house will still smell good though with the ham and pumpkin cheesecake. I will let you know how it goes!

Hope you have a wonderful holiday if I don't get back before then.

not much stitching happened yesterday. I didn't have a piece of linen in the shade of green I was looking for. Then I found a piece of linen called french lace which is green but not exactly what I had in mind. I started stitching on it and remembered why I hadn't used it. It is absolutely miserable fabric. It is so stiff it wears down the thread and the threads are horrible. Yes I know it is linen but some of the threads are so thin it looks like I have stitched over one and some are so fat that they look like I am over 3. There is a ton of back stitching on this piece so it looked horrible. I went searching for another piece and found one but this one looks yellowish green so I don't think I like it. While I was contemplating and trying to figure out whether I should rip out what I did on one or the other my stitching lamp blew up! Yipes, it took 10 years off my life for sure. Since I was off yesterday and didn't have to go anywhere, I opted to really not go anywhere so that pretty much put the end to my stitching. That kind of worked out though since I was playing on facebook and set up a group page for my 30th class reunion and posted some very old pictures of some really young kids.

Today after work, I trekked over to Lowes and bought a new lamp and then when I stopped at the grocery, I treated myself to a new Just Cross Stitch magazine. Now I am set to go tomorrow...if I can figure out what fabric to use. *sigh* I wonder what is in hat magazine that is good... OK, I am going to go read now.

National Gingerbread Day is on Novermber 21. Who thinks these things up anyway? I guess it doesn't matter but I will celebrate that beacuase well, I just LOVE ginger in all it's incarnations. This recipe comes from one of my favorite authors, Susan Wittig Albert and her China Bayles series.

Gingerbread

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup molasses
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1-1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup boiling water



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mix together sugar, butter, molasses, spices, and flour. Add baking soda to boiling water, then add to mix. Turn into a square baking pan, and bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.

You can find more ideas to "spice up your life" here at China's Thyme for Tea page

I have the day off and am planning on doing some stitching. I actually have sitting right here next to me the newest JCS Christmas Ornament issue. I have run into a little block though since I don't know which ornament I would like to do first. I have narrowed it down a bit to:

1. Hands to Work - Joy Needle Roll
2. The Victoria Sampler- Merry Little House
3.Patricia Ann Designs- Winter Frost
4. Rosewood Manor- Peace
5. Loopy Lou Designs- Christmas Stars
6. Kitty and Me- Poinsettia Biscornu

So going to Random.org I plug in my numbers and get

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

6
Timestamp: 2008-11-18 15:37:48 UTC

So it looks like Kitty and Me have some stitching to do. OK folks, off to stitch and maybe back with a picture later! hmmm...I wonder if I can find a gingerbread recipe I can cook in my crockpot...

We had our first "snow" ofthe season today. so far it hasn't amounted to anything other than a dusting but it was pretty coming down. My fresh manager made us all go outside this morning and stand in it since she believes that it brings good luck. OK, that works for me. It was fun to do.

Things were a little slower today than yesterday thankfully and I had some extra help. Poor Beau was hung over from the game yesterday and Carlos was still experiencing some angst over Steve's cutting but all in all it was a fine day.

I am now curling up in my sweats watching my Monday night comedies and trying to stay awake until I have to pick Tommy up at 11. I get to sleep in tomorrow since I am off.

You know, I love Christmas music. I love the carols and I love wintery songs. I love the memories they bring back too. What I don't love is hearing them from Halloween on. It is getting totally ridiculous. Retailers keep lengthening and lengthening the season. Here is the thing. Hearing Christmas music now doesn't make me feel more like shopping. It makes me stressed. It makes me want to scream when I go to 4-5 stores and hear 5 versions of Winter Wonderland.

I have a friend who said everything stops come the end of October. that it has become one big holiday which he calls Hallow-thanks-mas Eve. We have lost the individuality of each of those holidays and to me, they have become less unique and less memorable.

I know I work in retail and I know I am dependant on people shopping to keep my job but good grief...can we do it without ruining the joy?

I am so hooked on Facebook. I am enjoying re-connecting with people that I knew from High school and playing around with people I know from work or wherever. I love that it is free. I get so many emails from places like Classmates that tell me people are looking for me or have signed my "guestbook" but I can't see the messages or know who thepeople are until I pay them a membership fee. WHY when there are all these free sites out there do we have to pay to see stuff. Lord knows there are enough places willing to pay for web advertising space that probably Classmates and others of their ilk could be making even more money offering their services for free and raking in advertising money from the thousands of hits they would be getting... That's one of my soapboxes.

Here is another. I used to "own" a cross stitch oriented BB. Had it for years. Got tired of the triviality and such so eventually I just let it go. Now I "lurk" at a couple of other boards. I don't post because I just don't want to be a part of the angst. One of the boards owned by a cross stitch shop has some really wonderful stitchers and I have found some really delightful patterns and other interesting information there but there is so much junk there that it becomes hard to even find the good stuff. It is a huge bunch of vicious bck biters. OMG, election time was horrible. There is no tolerance of anyone elses opinions and no matter what the topic, someone HAS to flame. Whatever happened to if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all?

My last point isn't so much about a soap box as it is just about the questions that people can ask. I work in the meat department now nd I love it but sometimes you just have to shake your head... I had one woman ask me if we carried Angie's beef. I said to you mean Laura's Lean? That is only brand name grind that we carry AND frankly the only woman's name I have heard attached to meat. She replies "no it is Angie's..you know A-N-G-U-S" It was hard not to bust out laughing in her face. Yesterday I had a woman ask me if we carried round steak. " Yes we do, top round (london broil), bottom round and eye round. Which one do you need?" Her answer "the flat one" !!! Hello, they are STEAKS, they are all flat. Don't you wonder what her reference point is?? And lastly the man who asked "Do you have any turkeys so I can have one for Thanksgiving?" that's just how he asked it. I wanted to say we have them but you can't have one for Thanksgiving. Oh well. Like Gilda Radner said "it's always something!"

I always look forward to my days off because I want to do this or that and somehow I can never choose what I want to do first or I get sidetracked by something I didn't plan on doing or had to do (like laundry) and when I look up the day is gone. Oh well.

I guess I will put my roast in the oven and curl up and read until it is ready! LOL

It is cool and dreary (cloudy but not raining) here today so I guess if I was going to lose a day, today is a good one to lose!

I had hoped to be stitching today but by the time I gto finihsed playing on the computer,went to help my MIL shower, and ran some errands the day seemed to be about gone. I am at the point where I am thinking of a hot bath and PJ's.

I found something today that I would like to share. An Army of Women This is what is says on it's site.

The Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation and the Avon Foundation, a global leader in breast cancer research, joined forces to launch the Love/Avon Army of Women.

Our revolutionary initiative has two key goals:

To recruit one million healthy women of every age and ethnicity, including breast cancer survivors and women at high-risk for the disease, to partner with breast cancer researchers and directly participate in the research that will eradicate breast cancer once and for all.

To challenge the scientific community to expand its current focus to include breast cancer prevention research conducted on healthy women.

Join us in this movement that will take us beyond a cure by creating new opportunities to study what causes breast cancer—and how to prevent it.

Its easy to join and you choose your level of participation. Check it out.

We took MIL to the doctor yesterday to have her post op and everything is going nicely. They put her in a nice neon pink fiberglass cast and she is moving along well. We are hoping that this is the answer to at least one of her problems.

I am off today and have some errands to run and calls to make but I want to stitch some too. The weather has turned cooler so I feel more like playing around. I purchased the Wendy KC designs Bee Collections 1 and 2 and they luckily found some cute Bee fabric so I may give that a go. I am also working on Emie Bishop's a Quilter's Garden which is a lovely hardanger piece. This is off her site. I have over half of the outlining done. It is a relaxing piece to work on right now but I am sure that will change once I have to start the cutting and wrapping!

I have been playing on facebook and connecting with old friends which is a lot of fun. It can really take up some time though when you get messing around! LOL

Ok, I guess I should get moving. Day light is wasting!!

We got to take our long awaited trip to Hilton Head. I thought we might not at the last minute when after a year of hemming and hawing, the doctor's finally decided that they needed to operate on MIL's foot immediately. We managed to get it scheduled for this week and get all the testing in so we got to go AND got to leave all our burdens here.

Hilton Head is an amazing place. It was great because the beach was a short walk across the parking lot, there was plenty for the boys to do when they weren't on the beach, it was not crowded at all and the sea food was amazing! We had fresh off the boat shrimp which has probably spoiled me forever. The she crab soup at the Crazy Crab at Harbor Town was amazing too. We had a restful week of exploring, playing and just plain old relaxing. Considering we didn't get our annual trip to New York this year, we really needed it.

We came home to MIL's health issues, job interviews for Tom, Tommy having drill and Mark getting sick... We are trying to hang on to the glow though!

I am still around but my life has taken on an uncontrollable momentum. I am now working full-time in the meat department. It's not bad. Lil is still trying to settle into her new home. We still don't have the house cleaned out so we can get it onj the market but with the current state of the economy, it probably doesn't matter much.

I haven't really been sewing, just haven't been in the mood but now that the weather is getting cooler, I will probably get back into it. I have been reading a lot and working on my family tree. I am trying to get everything put back ino it since I lost everything when I lost my computer. I am up to just over 4000 people and am not finished yet. That's 30 years of work that now is backed up 3 ways to Sunday!

Tom still hasn't found a job and I am beginning to gt a little uptight about that. We are both getting too old to be job hunting.

We had the remanents of Hurricane Ike visit Sunday with up to 90 mph winds the area suffered substancial damage. Fortunately, we only totally lost one tree but lost most of our one and only pear tree, half an apple tree and another huge portion of a maple that is WAY too cloes to the house. Our electricity was out for about 18 hours which was remarkably good considering a lot of people STILL don't have power.

Well I need to get another load of laundry going...

We got Tom's mother moved into the retirement community and I am hoping she does ok. She is so used to sitting around that it is hard to get her moving. I hope she finds some things that interest her and she begins to get a life rather than just existing.

I am still in the meat/deli department and like it a LOT better than what I was doing so that is a plus. Having to work all my weekends is a minus though. Life is about trade offs I guess.

I am on week 3 of Lexapro and I don't know if it is helping or not. I am on a very low dose and I haven't been on it very long yet so we will see. I think if I could get some stuff in my life under control it would be better... Well I made the job change and I got Lil moved. If she does OK there, that will be another load off.

I haven't been doing any crafting or sewing. Computer prblems have been plaguing me and frankly I just have not had any interest. That's not good but maybe on my days off if I don't have so much running, I will get back in gear.

I have been working in the meat department now for just over a week and the results are pretty remarkable. I still don't look forward to going to work, (that would have me worried!)but I don't dread it any more. I keep busy, the day goes quickly and I can see what I am accomplishing. I hope that I am really contributing to making that department run. I know it is a lot easier on our meat cutters for sure.

I was off yesterday as was Mark (since it was primary day here in KY) and we got quite a bit done and now have plans to do more. I have had hostas growing along side the house for 20 years but there wasn't any demarcated bed there. Yesterday Mark and I bought some nice brick edgers and enlarged the bed out, just about doubling it. We also bought a hand cultivator since it is way too close to the house with too many big plants in it to do the rota tiller and when we were done, I put in 3 dozen lily of the valley plants which are one of my favorites and something I have wanted for a long time. The bed primarily gets morning sun so they should do well there. This morning after examining our work again, we decided that we are getting more edgers and instead of making one large garden for tomatoes, peppers etc, we are going to break it up into several smaller ones with the edgers making the edges. I like the idea and want to leave for work earlier this morning so I can get more edgers. We are using a really common type so years from now we will still be able to replace them if necessary. Now I just have to decided what we want to plant. I want one bed just for herbs so I will probably start there. Again, it is really nice to be able to see the results of your work!

OK, so today was what most people call a day off. I didn't have to work at the job that pays me to be there and accomplish tasks for them. I did have a doctor's appointment scheduled and MIL informed me that her doctor sent her a letter telling her she needed to come in and get the results of her tests... (never good when they call you in) but that was all I had scheduled for the day. The day off starts at 5:30 when my husband wakes me while he is getting ready to go to work. I doze off again until 6 when DS's alarm goes off. I get up before him so I can use the bathroom before he gets in there and locks the door for 30 minutes.

As soon as he leaves, I get in the shower and get dressed so I can leave early for my foot doctor's appointment since I have to have MIL at her doctor's appointment 1 hour after my scheduled time at MY doctor. Miracle of miracles, I get in within 5 minutes! They still don't know exactly what is wrong with my foot. The major pain is gone but now it is very sharp and localized. A week's worth of steroids is prescribed I go back in 3 weeks but no more cast.

I am out of the doctor before 9 so I decide I am going to hit the big W and get my groceries and my birthday present to myself a bright red Zune. I decide to drop my prescription off before I shop. Well, go figure, a new girl in the pharmacy. I wait more than 5 minutes while she takes care of the person in from of me, then she takes a good 10 minutes to put my information into the computer only to THEN tell me the prescription will take 30 minutes or more to fill. Great, I now have about 20 minutes before I absolutely must leave to get MIL to the dr. I get the prescription back but can do nothing about the lost 15+ minutes. I run through and pick up my groceries and then go to get the Zune which is $15 higher than the price on line. Turns out they don't honor the online prices. I can order it online and have it shipped to the store for free but I can't just walk into the store and pick it up for that price. What a crock, you KNOW it isn't actually shipped to them, they get the order, go grab one off the shelf and call me that it is in. They won't budge and neither do I, I leave without it. I head for check out and wonder of all wonders there are only 2 lanes open. So I wait some more. I finally hit the parking lot 5 minutes later than I wanted.

I called Tommy, I am running behind, make sure g-mom is ready to go and move the car out of the garage. I get to the house, the car is still in the garage, the lawnmower is parked so close to it, I can't even get to the car. Move the mower, move the car, pull the other car into the garage, get MIL in the car and off we go. We make it to the doctor with 3 minutes to spare...at least until our appointment time. We now wait for half an hour before we get called back. We then wait another 40 minutes until the doctor gets to us. Turns out, they never said anything in the letter about her coming in to get her results, in fact everything was fine and that is why they sent her the letter. That will teach me to actually see any messages from the doctor before I schedule another appointment. Turns out though that she has a sinus infection so she is on antibiotics again.

I have to go get her prescription filled so I drop her off to get her nails done while I hit the grocery and pharmacy. By the time I get her home, get everything unloaded and feed her lunch...it is 1:00.

I get home, fix some lunch and settle down in my lawn chair with my book and the dog has a massive seizure. It must have lasted 20 minutes all told. She came out and went back in twice. I hate those. She does not deserve that.

It is now 5 PM and my day is about gone so I think I will try and savor the last few hours before the crew heads home. No more days off until Sunday. *sigh* it's a good thing too, working is less stressful! :-)

much to my disappointment. Traveling with the MIL was rough to say the least. Stupid me booking a flight out of Louisville when they are Code Red because of Derby Weekend (OMG)it is just awful when the handicapped are treated like major security threats because they are in a wheelchair or wearing a cast... (although I do understand the necessity). Also a huge :-P to the ignorant persons working a Louisville Airport for not listening when I explained I was traveling with a handicapped passenger in a car with a handicapped tag and telling me I could park right next to the airport doors and not out in no man's land where the shuttle never shows up, (isn't wheelchair accessible anyway as we found out going back)and who can't understand when I say someone can't walk, that means they can't get on a plane that isn't wheelchair accessible without assistance! Good grief...

On the flip side, it was wonderful to be with my family, excellent that I got to see a myriad of cousins that I don't normally, phenomenal that my cancer battling SIL is doing better and beyond compare that I got to see all but 3 of my nieces and nephews this trip. I will post some pix later. I had a wonderful girls night out with my 7 yo niece and I never knew there was so much pink in the world...or at least at Michaels. And a spent some quality time with my head in the engine of a '66 Chevelle that can kick the ass of anything on the road. Not sure about that Sonoma truck though, just not my choice to play with... LOL

It is always very hard to come back to this. Well the washer has beeped so I'd better go dump everything in the dryer so I can go to work. Talk about depressing. I do believe it is time to seriously job hunt. That job is sucking the life out of me.

I am off to NJ. I cannot wait but I know even with all my traveling today (plane, train and automobile) today will fly. Yesterday mom told me that my cousins Matt and Linda are in NJ until tomorrow so tonight hopefully all of us (my mom, my brothers and their families, my cousins and their families) will all be going to dinner when we get there. What fun. I know I won't have any trouble sleeping tonight!

OK, time to get the boy up and moving and finish packing. See you in a week!!

These are such fun... Too bad I have to go to work :-(

I finished a card today for my step daughter who just finished cosmetology school. I just love it.

I also put the finishing touches on some ATC's (Artist Trading Cards) and posted them on the CoC board. All five were gone in a matter of hours. I finished up 4 more tonight but haven't posted them yet. These are the sze of baseball cards and really fun to do.









That's probably about it for today except for finishing laundry. The temps are supposed to drop and it's supposed to rain. We may have yet another frost, lucky me, I just put out my mandevilla and one of my clematis is ready to bloom... *sigh*

Thank the Lord I don't have allergies because I would hate to miss this. Everything is in full bloom here. I came home and as I pulled in the driveway, the sight took my breath away. The pictures don't do it justice and wish I could share the scent. My windows are all wide open. We are supposed to get rain tonight so we will start losing petals but oh my, it is wonderful right now.

This is for the Tea Bag folding challenge. The fold is popping diamonds, floating squares. The tile is Rosa's. The smaller flowers are the same tile just cut into quarters.

I wish you could see how these just pop off the page. I had a nice time playing with my cards today. I could have done without the 4 hour forced hiatus but, oh well, tomorrow is another day.

Not too bad considering how much time I have either worked or had to runaround... Looks like it is going to rain so we will probably stay home and I can stitch.

The first one I destroyed. I had it really nice before I went to bed last night and when I woke up this morning, thought of something I thought would dress it up a bit and of course, screwed it up. So you get this one instead.





The 3D piece is from The Lilac Garden. There were 3 different colors of butterflies on the sheet so I am sure I will think of something else exciting to do with them at some point. This is my entry into the General Card Challenge at Circle of Crafters.

I may have my teabag challenge card to post later.

We are supposed to go to theInternational Kite Festival in Georgetown today but we are still debating that. More later maybe!

It is called a diamond fold. I have the card made but o.f course, the piece I had planned on putting on the front of it is way too big so noI have to figure something else out. It was fun learning thought so you might want to give it a try. I will post a picture of mine as soon as I get it finshed.

Here is the youtube video that taight me how to do that. It was very simple really.

Thank goodness since it is the first day of an open house at Sam's and it will be nuts with anyone able to shop even if they are not a member. I do have to work tomorrow though so I am sure I wil get paid back for being off today. Tomorrow will be a LONG day since I have to get up a 4 to take DS#1 to Battle Assembly and then go to work at 9. I get off and 5 and have to go pick up DS#2 at my MIL's. I am sure by the time I get home, I will be ready to drop.

We started this morning on a roll. There evidently was a 5.4 earthquake in southeastern Illinois about 5:30 this morning and it rolled right on up here. It only lasted a few seconds and there was no damage but we felt it. Mark slept right through it. I was already awake though.

I have made good progress on Desert Star. I have finished all the little squares around the edges and have started the first of 4 rounds of stitching around the border. If you look at the star from the other day, the borders will go to the point on the outside squares so I have a bit to go. I am enjoying it though. Last night I was just too tired to stitch since I worked early and then had running to do, came home and helped DS#2 put together a wheelbarrow and fixed dinner. (yummy stuffed salmon, sauted aspsragus and mushrooms and fresh strawberries for dessert)

OK, I am going to get some stitching done this morning before I go get my MIL. I need to take her to get a picture ID made for the trip.

I fixed this the other night for dinner and decided that I wanted to share the recipe. It actually came from the Betty Crocker web site. The only thing I do differently is double the sauce recipe as it is delicious... Actually the sauce would be perfect over pound cake or angel food as a dessert as well. Use fresh lemons and not the bottled juice. It really does make a difference. Enjoy !!

Lemon Ginger Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (1 1/4 lb)
1/2 cup Original Bisquick® mix
1/4 cup Progresso® plain bread crumbs
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1/2 teaspoon grated gingerroot
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

Lemon Ginger Sauce
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon grated gingerroot
1 drop yellow food color
Lemon slices, if desired


1. Between pieces of plastic wrap or waxed paper, place each chicken breast smooth side down; gently pound with flat side of meat mallet or rolling pin until about 1/4 inch thick.
2. In shallow bowl, mix Bisquick mix, bread crumbs, lemon peel and gingerroot. Pour 1/2 cup water into another shallow bowl. Dip chicken into water, then coat with Bisquick mixture.
3. In 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Cook chicken in oil 8 to 10 minutes, turning once, until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170°F).
4. Meanwhile, in 1-quart saucepan, mix lemon juice, 1/4 cup water, the sugar, cornstarch, gingerroot and food color. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened and bubbly. Pour sauce over chicken. Garnish with lemon slices.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Cook chicken in oil 11 to 13 minutes or until meat thermometer inserted in center of chicken reads 170°F.

Not only did I get pictures taken of a bunch of my cards but I also got a lot of stitching done on my canvas work. Yippee!

My cards: These are by Penny from CoC












These, I had bookmarked on my desktop computer and since that has decided to take a vacation, I can't tell you who they are from.













Last but not least, my canvas work. This is Desert Star. It is part of the regional quilt series from From Nancy's Needle. I need to finish the squares in the corners and along the outside and then there are several rows of borders to do but really, it is about finished. I would judge it at about 75%. I am going to try and get it finished so I can take it to my mom's when I go and we can get it made into a pillow. I had forgotten how much I loved this pattern so I am really glad to get back to it.

When I went to bed last night, I was planning on working on my canvas piece today. Well it is now 1:00 PM, I am still in my robe and have not stitched one stitch! I haven't been playing though. I had to muddle through my FIL's income taxes because we just got a copy of one of his forms last week. We never got it and I didn't know that until I started going through last years stuff. I am lucky we got it as quickly as we did. Then I had to finish our state taxes and help DS do his state taxes. We can do federal on line but state cost $30. I can't see paying more more so I can pay even MORE money. I will put everything in the mail tomorrow.

It has gotten cold here again and we are under freeze warnings again tonight. It will be 74 again by the end of the week though. Spring is quixotic for sure.

OK, I am off to pull some chicken out of the freezer for dinner, see if I can find some place that still has pellets for the stove and maybe dig up something for lunch.

BTW with the coming of spring comes the blossoming of dandelions. I never spray them of dig them up because I remember picking them for my grandmother and mother and my kids picking them for me. Those little yellow "pests" and be pretty important. I have eaten cooked greens and drank dandelion wine. Here is a recipe for dandelion syrup which can be used as a replacement for honey. This came from Prodigal Gardens medicinal herbs and wild foods. The comments in the recipe are hers. There are other good recipies there as well so check her out...Enjoy Monday!

Dandelion Blossom Syrup

This is a traditional recipe passed down from the old world Europeans. I use it as a substitute for honey in any recipe that I’m trying to make wild.

1 quart dandelion flowers

1 quart (4 cups) water

4 cups sugar

½ lemon or orange (organic if possible) chopped, peel and all

Note: The citrus is optional, it will give the syrup an orangey or lemony flavor. If you want the pure dandelion flavor, you can skip the citrus. I make it both ways each year.



1. Put blossoms and water in a pot.

2. Bring just to a boil, turn off heat, cover, and let sit overnight.

3. The next day, strain and press liquid out of spent flowers.

4. Add sugar and sliced citrus and heat slowly, stirring now and again, for several hours or until reduced to a thick, honey-like syrup.

5. Can in half-pint or 1 pint jars.

Had to take MIL to the doctor this morning for her follow up visit and to check out her cough and the rash on her legs. Looks like simple allergies for the cough and a reaction to some medicine that they gave her at the re-hab place causing the rash. Hopefully both will be resolved shortly.

He said it would be ok for her to make the trip so I bought our tickets to go east at the end of the month. I cannot wait. By taking Tommy with us, we can fly out of Louisville rather than Covington and even with buying 3 tickets instead of 2 we saved over $200. It stinks that there is an airport practically in my own backyard that I pay taxes to support and I have to pay for gas to drive 100 miles to get a decent airfare.

After the doctor, I took her to have her hair styled and then to have her nails done. After that, we went to lunch. I took her home and she was asleep almost as soon as her butt hit her chair! lol She had a great time and couldn't stop smiling. It was fun that there was a baby in the restaraunt that kept smiling and waving to her. I know she can't wait to get to Joe's and see baby Grace, Sidra and Dade.

I came home by myself and Ab's and I had peace and quiet until after 6 since Mark and Tom went back to Lil's to have dinner and watch a movie. We were able to get outside when there was a break in the rain and I got her running a bit. I came in and finished my book (Allison Brennan's The Prey) and put together a couple of tea bag medallions. Just watched the Ghost Whisperer and now it is time to get my shower and get settled for the night. I am working both days this weekend, 9-5. Oh well, vacation's coming. Amen for that.

finally. The rehab place called yesterday and told us to pick her up at 10:00 am and since I don't trust anyone, I called at 9 this morning and lo and behold, they hadn't even gotten the discharge orders. I finally managed to get her out of there a little after 11. We will see how things go. She has an appointment with her regular doctor Friday morning and PT will be coming to the house.

I am deep into Patricia Cornwell's Book of the Dead and thankfully, am loving it. her last few we awful (hey, that's my opinion. This one is back to the writing I love. I hated to go to work today because I want to just keep reading... (ok, I hate to go to work even if I am not reading).

Well I guess it is time to pack it in. I have to be at work at 6 and today was a long one. I got my camera fixed so now I can get some pictures of all the cards I have been working on! I also think it is time to get back to stitching. At least my hands haven't been idle!!

I had 4 days off, didn't accomplish much but I did manage to stay off this foot pretty much.

Yesterday Tommy and I went out to play and ended up at Lowes where I spent a small fortune on the ingredients for two hanging baskets. I bought the baskets with the coconut husk liners and I really like them. In each basket I put a beautiful burgundy Martha Washington geranium, two hot pink Gerber daisies and a rosemary plant. They have pleased me to no end! I also bought Tommy a pot and soil to put together a little herb garden for Lil's with parsley,sage, rosemary and (nope not thyme),oregano. He still needs to find some basil but it will get him started. Hopefully we will be moving Lil to an apartment soon so then the pot will come home to me.

I am making plans for my Jersey trip and am getting excited. I haven't been home in nearly two years and I am so ready. The week will fly with little jobs mom needs done, spending time with my brothers and maybe taking a trip to see my aunts and cousins in PA. I haven't mentioned that to mom so we will have to see what happens. I am also hoping to get to see my friend race the new truck he got. I have never gone to see him race and I am excited to get the chance.

I did a lot of strolling down memory lane the last four days.

Brother's Saloon was my old stomping grounds when I was in college. My cousin Matt worked there when it opened (If you click on the openieng night page and scroll down you will see his picture Fast Matt indeed!!)and his brother Bobby was working there when I was in college. I spent most every Thursday (I think it was Thursday) night there listening to a band called The Shades. I had a huge crush on the drummer Gorgeous George Messina. While I was stumbling around reading all this nostalgic stuff, I discovered he is still drumming for a band called The Characters. I ran across them on myspace and sent him a message. I am looking forward to hearing from him.

The weather has finally broken and we have had some wonderful, warm, sunny days. It has felt so good. I even slept with the windows open last night and we had a great chorus of frogs going all night long. I just love that! In addition to playing with my plants (no gardening yet, staying off the foot!), I have sat outside and put together a number of cards. I need to get the camera and get some pictures taken to post. I am really enjoying that.

I also read the last of the China Bayles Mysteries (that I have) Spanish Dagger. Nightshade is out and I need to pick that up ASAP. Unfortunately, no one can write as quickly as I can read.

More rain is coming tomorrow and while I am not looking forward to it, I will be working so it doesn't much matter...

Pam got me thinking about a canvaswork piece I started a couple of summers ago so I think I will dig that out and see if it gets me stitching again. I took Danny's sampler to Michaels to see if I could get it framed yesterday and they were so incompetent that I walked out. I went to Hobby Lobby and that is probably where I will have the work done. Their framing is on sale next week so I will wait. I need to dig out Denny and Mel's piece and take that as well.

OK, off to dig through my supplies and see if I can find the threads for this canvas, then pay some bills, file my taxes and *gag* off to work.

I had the entire day to myself and did absolutely nothing except for cutting out a couple hundred tea bag tiles. After I got them cut out I figured I'd fold and I have made just one medallion. I fiddled around a lot trying to figure out what tile would fit the fold I was using and was not thrilled with the finished medallion but I did enjoy the fold.

My good computer took a vacation last week and I still have not found where I have stashed the re-boot disks. I really hate to re-boot too since I will lose so much. It has been way too long since I backed up my files. I will never, ever learn I guess.

My foot is still in the cast,going on 3 weeks now. It will be on until at least the 15th. I am becoming more and more worried about what may be wrong...I really need to get rid of this thing and make some major job changes. One way or another, I am finished with this job. Who knows how that will work out.

Well I guess I will go address these cards I wrote out today so I can mail them tomorrow. I wish I felt like stitching but nothing appeals to me right now.

Last Tuesday, my doctor put my left foot into an aircast to try and heal some damaged tendons. I am still working but am staying off my foot as much as possible when I am home so those folks at Circle of Crafters are keeping me busy. There is always something new posted that can keep me occupied for hours. These are 3-D cards although you may not be able to tell that. I spent most of the day playing with them and actually have several more pictures put together, ready for cards. They really are very pretty and I don't think the pictures do them justice.

I have been having more fun playing with these. The red card is made in a "pyramid" manner with that mandala made of 5 or 6 layers, each one cut out and then glued on the next. I need to get some mounting tape so it looks more 3D.

The blue/green card is done with tea bag tiles. i just love the colors in this one.

Most all of my "motivation" is coming from the ladies at the Circle of Crafters. They have great information and links to lots of supplies and ideas. Check them out!

This one was posted on the COC board today and I did it one way and thought it would look better in another way so I ended up doing it twice and I love them both. This may be my favorite one so far.

making those medallions with the tea bag tiles. I put together two cards tonight...neither are really good cards though. I am just not a scrappy person I guess. in any case, the medallions are pretty.

These all use the same pattern square. Folded and mounted together differently, you would barely know it.
These are all the same pattern, different size and pattern squares. This is this month's chalenge square on the Circle of Crafters board. You have to make it into a card to enter the challenge and it has to be a green medallion. I may do another. This green one is really big.



I just love this one. the center pops out.