• One for now…two for later

    November 29, 2012 / 7 Comments

    One of the first things that I discovered living alone is that I do not like to cook for one.  It’s no fun.  My daughter has “turned the tables” on me and admonishes me with “Mom, you’re not eating right” and “Mom, you have to take good care of yourself”!  It’s a bit of Déjà vu…for years ago, during her college days, I recall telling her the same thing!

    Granted, anytime I would like to drive 14 minutes, I am invited to her home where she cooks all-organic, wonderful meals for her family…and I do that from time to time.  I have even driven over and cooked dinner for them a few times!  (She posts the recipes or the links to some of her delicious dishes on her blog here.)

    It’s time to remember my love of cooking.  I certainly have the cookbooks for it!

    So, tonight, I am preparing three small meatloafs (one for now…two in the freezer for later).  I am making them reminiscent of Mama’s wonderful meatloaf with just one change.  I’m using chili sauce instead of tomato sauce.I will make homemade mashed potatoes and Birds Eye steamer veggies (easy enough).  If I am really inspired, I will cook some crispy cornbread muffins.  Mama would have made a “pone” of cornbread in the cast iron skillet but that would be too much for one.  The muffins will keep better in a zip lock bag.

    It’s not the most elaborate meal I’ve ever prepared but it’s a start…and my daughter will be happy.  Not to mention the fact that I will have some good “leftovers”!  😉

    Most of the ingredients assembled and ready to make meatloaf…
    three small meatloafs…one ready for the oven and two ready to wrap in foil for the freezer

    Meat Loaf

    1 pound ground round

    1/2 onion, chopped fine or chunky – your preference

    1/2 green bell pepper, chopped fine or chunky – your preference

    1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

    1 egg, beaten with 2 tablespoons milk

    1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

    3/4 teaspoon Lawry’s Seasoned pepper

    12 oz. DelMonte Chili Sauce

    Panko bread crumbs (about 1/2 cup or more – enough to make good consistency)

    Sometimes, I make a sauce of brown sugar, ketchup and a little mustard to spread over the top of the meat loaf…

    Combine all ingredients well with clean hands.  Makes one large meatloaf or three small ones.  Bake at 350 degrees until done.  The larger meat loaf takes about an hour.  Adjust time for the smaller ones – depends on size. 

     

  • Over the river and through the woods…

    November 26, 2012 / 6 Comments

    Over the river and through the woods, to Aunt Penny’s house we go…

    Actually, it was eleven hours by interstate and the prairie farm backroads of Iowa, Missouri and Arkansas…but the end result was definitely worth it!  It had been two long years since we’d all been together in one place…my children, my grandchildren and myself. Not since the summer of 2010 when we all met in Chicago.  At that time, my oldest and his family were returning home from almost 7 years on the medical mission field in Peru.

    Thanksgiving 2012…and all my precious grandchildren

    We all drove from three different directions to meet in Memphis…where I had grown up…where my children were born and, sadly, where their father is buried.  My children’s paternal Aunt Penny and Uncle Mike graciously hosted our family in Memphis…along with their three sons, wives and four grandchildren.  Thank you, Aunt Penny and Uncle Mike!  We love you!  My oldest and his wife are host parents to a fourteen year old South Korean foreign exchange student this school year so this was her first Thanksgiving. Altogether, there were 27 of us there for the Thanksgiving feast!  It was a wonderful Thanksgiving and I found myself wishing more than once that their Dad could have been their with us…no doubt he was in spirit.

    On Friday night, my niece Sharon and her husband joined us for a fun Corky’s Barbecue dinner.  Delicious food and fun fellowship!  Sharon and Tommy’s son and his wife and their two children stopped by to see us.  They were headed to the Christmas tree lighting at their church so they couldn’t stay for Corky’s.  It was so good to see them!

    I loved watching all my grandchildren playing together and sometimes pairing off by age and interests.  It thrilled me to see the love (and talent for) art in all my grandchildren as well as the love of music.  Four grandchildren are superb on the piano and one plays the violin beautifully.  (I know I sound just like a grandmother – what can I say?!  It’s true all the same.)  The love of books and reading was evident as well.

    I was in grandmother heaven until it came time to say goodbye to each one…then I was a crybaby.  Now, it will mean flights to see my sons and their families…and waiting until we are all together again.  Thankfully, for my daughter and four of my grandchildren, I can just get in the car and drive 14 minutes.  😉

    To see more of the Thanksgiving crazy fun, enjoy the slideshow below!  Just click the arrows to forward or reverse pics.

     

     

    P.S. For those of you who asked for them, the cookie recipes are now at the bottom of the previous post! 😉

    Note:  The Thanksgiving song above is here.

  • Baking and packing…

    November 20, 2012 / 11 Comments

    Tomorrow I will be up at the crack of dawn and on my way South with my daughter and her family.  Today, I have a “million” things to do.  I must finish baking the goodies that I am taking for Thanksgiving…in addition to running a few errands and packing.  I baked one and a half dozen banana bread muffins that probably won’t make it to Memphis…with seven of us in a van for eleven hours!  I baked three dozen of my son-in-law’s favorite peppermint cookies.  He’s driving most of the way so I’m sure he will enjoy snacking on a few of those on the way to Memphis!

    Peppermint Cookies

    I also baked a double batch of my favorite molasses cookies!  Those I will have boxed up for the trip and for the Thanksgiving reunion.  I made a large batch of trail mix (m & m’s, peanuts and raisins) and divided them into little “snack bags” for the trip.  Easy to reach for that way.  If they make it to Memphis, they will stay in the van since Penny’s grandchildren are allergic to nuts.

    As I finish this post, there is another favorite in the oven:  Cream Cheese Pound Cake.  I love the smell of almond and vanilla filling the apartment right now!

    Wishing each of you safe travels and a joyful Thanksgiving with your families and friends…

    Trail Mix Baggies

    Molasses Cookies

    Cookie Recipes…

    Dianne’s Favorite Molasses Cookies

    2 & 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour

    1/4 teaspoon salt

    1 teaspoon ginger

    1 teaspoon cinnamon

    2 level teaspoons baking soda (don’t heap these)

    2 tablespoons hot water

    1/2 cup Crisco soft shortening (make sure it’s fresh!)

    1/2 cup granulated sugar

    1/2 cup molasses (I use Grandma’s Molasses – unsulphured)

    1 egg

    6 tablespoons cold water

    1/2 cup seedless raisins (or more if you’re a raisin lover)

    Start heating oven to 400 degrees. Follow directions closely for the best cookie! SIFT together the flour, ginger, cinnamon and salt. Dissolve soda in hot water. Mix the Crisco shortening, sugar, molasses and egg until creamy. Mix in flour mixture alternately with the cold water; then mix in the dissolved soda and all but a few raisins. Drop by rounded tablespoons – 2? apart – onto greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with remaining raisins. Bake 12 minutes or until done. Makes about 2 dozen.

     

    Favorite Peppermint Cookies

    2/3 cup Butter flavored Crisco

    1/4 cup granulated sugar

    1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

    1 egg

    1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

    1/2 teaspoon baking powder

    1/2 teaspoon salt

    1/2 cup crushed peppermint candy canes

    Cream Crisco and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed.  Beat in egg.  Combine flour, baking powder and salt.  Blend well into creamed mixture and stir in crushed peppermint.  Shape into small balls.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 11 – 12 minutes on ungreased cookie sheets.  Makes about 36 cookies, so I usually double it…they’re so good.  Don’t wait too long to get the cookies off the pan or they will harden and it won’t be easy!

  • One week from today…

    November 14, 2012 / 5 Comments

    One week from today, I will be in a mini-van with my daughter and her family (seven of us) traveling (11 hours!) home to Memphis for Thanksgiving.  Memphis is where I grew up, fell in love and got married (39 years) and had three wonderful children.  My three sisters (two now in Heaven) and I spent so much time together in Memphis and Mississippi.  My nieces and nephews are so much a part of my life there.  The closer I get to Memphis, the more the memories come flooding in…whether I’m flying into the airport there or on a rare drive.

    The last time all of my children and grandchildren were in ONE location (always my dream), was in June 2010 in Chicago.  What a wonderful time we had!  My precious little Peruvian granddaughter – never shy – walked in first to the hotel room where we all were and proceeded to introduce her big sisters and then herself.  A perfect introduction.  Of course, she didn’t realize that she was the one everyone  was meeting for the first time!  (Except for me of course – I had been to Peru in 2008 where my son was a missionary doctor.)  Special memories.

    I’m looking forward to making more special memories as we are all together in Memphis with my late husband’s sister Penny and her family.  This time, my younger son’s fourteen month old  baby girl will be there too!  I can’t wait to hold her!  Although now she is so “busy” I probably won’t be able to hold her for long, but we can definitely play.  She will be so excited to be with all of her cousins!  My precious niece Sharon and her husband will come over for a fun barbecue dinner.  I can’t wait to see them!  I miss everyone and wish that we ALL lived closer to one another!  My youngest says “but, Mom, you gave us roots and wings”!  Let that be a lesson to me – about the “wings” that is!  😉

    Chicago 2010

     

    Featured photo at top:  Sweet baby girl!  She will have so much fun with her cousins in Memphis!

    I would be tempted to stay in Memphis and visit a while longer then fly back home to Iowa; however, I do not want to miss the first birthday that my baby girl and I have been able to spend together in a very long time.  My birthday (and her late Dad’s birthday also) is December 1.  Her birthday is December 4th!  She was almost born on OUR birthday.  She took the photo below at arm’s length under flourescent lights the night of the Great Pumpkin Party at our church!  Please remember:  flourescent lights are not kind to anyone!  😉

     

  • A little tour…

    November 12, 2012 / 5 Comments

    It’s hard to believe that I’ve accomplished all of this (with some wonderful help from my daughter and her family!) in just FOUR weeks! Granted, there are still a few more boxes and more books than I had room for…so I ordered one more bookcase for the living room.  I showed the messy parts too at the end of the slideshow!

    The weather is turning cold now, but the condo is warm and cozy. My Camry (you know the one with almost 154,000 miles!) is happy to reside in a garage. I do have to walk across  the small parking area to it and that might be a bit of a challenge when it is snowing…but we do what we have to do. 😉

    (There are captions on the photos but they don’t seem to be showing up!  I did not show the dining area.  I will add pics of that when I purchase a table and chairs.  It’s at one end of the long living room.  The pink “shabby chic” room is the guest bedroom.   The other bedroom is mine.  The guest bath is the one with the brownish tile on the walls.  There are 3 sets of sliders that lead out on to the tiled porch.)

    livingroom

    I love that the sofa and chair pillows are filled with soft, squishy down and actually conform and support your back!  Even though you can’t tell in the photos, they’re actually the perfect colors to go with the rug too.

  • Operation Christmas Child…

    November 10, 2012 / 3 Comments

    A couple of weeks ago our church was distributing boxes for Operation Christmas Child.  The boxes are to be filled and shipped to children all over the world through Samaritan’s Purse.  The church is large and there were stacks and stacks of boxes to fill.  My daughter took four – one for each of her children.  I took two.

    This afternoon my daughter, her two youngest and I drove to Walmart where we proceeded to buy things to fill the boxes.  I decided to buy for two girls (ages 5-9).  My eight year old granddaughter loved helping make the decisions as to which barettes, which hairbrushes, art supplies, etc.  My three year old grandson was especially interested in what would be going into the boys’ boxes.  (My daughter was buying for two boys and two girls).

    The boxes are packed and ready to take to church in the morning.  You’d be surprised just how much a “shoebox-size” box like this will hold.  I made my two boxes identical and each box holds:

    a cute 25 piece animal puzzle

    a small Disney Cinderella with an extra outfit

    one box crayons

    one package of ten pencils

    one small pencil sharpener

    one small art tablet

    two multi-packages of adorable barrettes

    one hairbrush

    one package of two combs

    one package of two children’s toothbrushes

    one carton of Kids’ Crest toothpaste

    one bar Dove soap

    one bathcloth

    A check for $7 to cover postage/shipping

    my love and prayers for the child who will receive it…

    There are boxes like this being packed all over this country…boxes that will travel across the world.  It amazes me that these two boxes will travel on a journey and end up in the precious hands of two little girls living far from me.  My love and prayers go with these boxes filled with things I hope they will like.  As I carefully filled the bright red and green boxes, I couldn’t help thinking about my own grandchildren.  Two of them are adopted – one from Peru and one from Africa.  We are so immensely blessed.

    It isn’t too late to get involved in sending an Operation Christmas Child box of your own.  Just check the links above.

    operationchristmaschild