Happy New Year to ALL!

It's about 6:30 pm (est) and I am very much on my way to watching some tv in my comfy pj's and the 2 doggies :)
I went to the Orthopedic surgeon and have clearance with a 1 lb. limit for pushing,pulling and lifting.
Alison is off to her hotel for a restful prep for the Winter Classic hockey game tomorrow and Ashton is off to Payack's (college friend) for the 4th annual new years eve event with college friends.
It snowed today about 2.5 - 3" , requiring a bit of shoveling and forecast is saying a few more all wk end which might require Ashton to head back to her apt. in CT. earlier then planned. She is on "duty" beginning Monday.
My hope is to be a bit more on top of postings for the new year, but who knows..:) Have a safe and happy one all!!!

Sneaking a nap under the tree. That's my Derb :) Bailey really isn't used to Christmas trees as we have been going away in December and not getting a tree for a few yrs. now. The routine was on my birthday,the 11th, to get our tree and decorate in a few days following. This year we are staying local and taking Christmas to my folks in CT. The last few wks. it's been crazy as always trying to figure out gifts for whom and how many. I am just into my 3rd time of PT for my hand/thumb surgery.
I've been spending time making Christmas cards with my cricut and all the scrapbook paraphernalia I have in the basement.

A Snowy Winter they are saying

What a week so far! Maybe those weather forecasters are going to be right on this year. Snow on Sunday and again today. Today's has now turned to rain,but before it did this is what I looked like after about 2hrs and 15 min of muck plowing and shoveling.The girls went out for just a little bit while it was still snow,but right in they came. A Nice warm shower and some homemade Turkey soup for lunch to warm back up :) oops power out at 12:20 and back on at 1:07
thank goodness I had saved this post :)

It's Our 1st

Snow of the season

GO GO GADGETS

This is a gotta see video! Alison actually peeled potatoes before I was ready to get them in a pot..lol wanna race? you will win!! Its by Leifheit and you can find it at
www.leifheit.com. I got this as a perk when I upped my membership at cooks.com to a premier status :)

Happy Hanukkah card

Today I made up a quick card for a wonderful woman who volunteers in my office for me. She is kind,generous and so caring. I love her dearly. We call each other 2nd Grandmother and 2nd daughter. She will be celebrating her holiday next week and I will be leaving this card for her when I go in for PT next wk.

I decided to get some of the ornaments done today that I got over the wk end. I tried using the alcohol inks and a couple came out very nicely.I think they need a few more coats of ink. I then tried the ones using a bit of floor wax swished around inside the bulb, then add fine glitter to coat :) Those are super!! I like them a lot,except when I drop 'em :(
All the time doing this, I was simmering the turkey carcass and veggies to make a stock. It's just about ready to be strained off and put in the freezer now.

1 card done today

I started this little card before Thanksgiving and finished him up today. thanks for looking :)

Terrific Thanksgiving

Ashton did a beautiful job decorating for her very 1st Thanksgiving Dinner in her apt.She made a very lovely centerpiece and had little frame name tags for each place setting. We brought the "meal on wheels" and preped it along with a few pies on Wednesday evening. Susan and Paul really enjoyed their time. Dad had a nice time,although the TV stations stink..lol Alison,Ashton and I left him in piece for a bit and went Michaels for the 5pm -9pm super specials on Cricut stuff after dinner was over. :) !!!
She has lots of leftovers even though we spread them out between herself and Susan and then left our portion at Gram & Gramps in Ct. on on way home Friday.We actually did not have any traffic backups (5 hrs down)at all other then the miserable drizzle rain.
Big kudos to DD#2 :) hugs

this and that

Yup, It's been awhile since I've gotten here. so...

1.got the jars done for Halloween for a few of our neighbors children
2. had hand surgery and hoping for the best, feeling very good and stitches and cast tomorrow.
3.having fun playing and learning stuff with my Cricut.Even Ashton made some snowflake doortags :) very pretty!!!
4.lot's more everyday stuff..
the latest was today's mail. I ordered a new replacement cutting bar for my fiskar rotary cutter and I do think this is OVERKILL on the packaging for sure!! LOL
I just hope the styrofoam curls don't end up all over the street on trash day ..yikes...

Columbus Day Holiday!

It was nice having a day off. Dad went to work, and Alison went to a Bruins game for 1pm.
I ended up going out to AC Moore to get my googlie eyes. Then I went to BJ's and got a roast chicken for dinner and the halloween candy to jo in my jars.
While watching Ina on Food TV and getting things ready for dinner, I asked Alison to get the OLD pudding out and well...I'm not sure that's what she had in mind..
It went EVERYWHERE!! including the top of my head.. thank goodness a shower is on the agenda :)

Wow, what a week..I'm not sure where the time went. Guin dog has gone back to his own domicile and I don't have to worry about tripping on him for awhile.
I got some long needed time in my bsmt. to finish up putting together the Halloween jars for the few neighborhood kids. I'm sure a few added touches will go on them as well as filling them up with some goodies before they get delivered before my hand surgery on the 3oth :)
Thanks to the gals on the cricut board for the tip of using the modpodge for my adhesive! worked like a charm.












I uses the Paper Doll Dress Up cartridge with my expression, chalks, Stickles
ModPodge and some confetti spiders and stars. The jars I got at The Christmas Tree Shop for $1.99. Ribbon from stash and misc. papers. I added some black tissue paper inside to put the goodies in :)
I'm pretty pleased with the outcome.

Not so long again

He came through the small doggie door and weighs probably 60+ lbs.. black lab.
He's scratching the heck out of my kitchen and living room floor because he can't get any footing and his hips don't work too well any longer,shaking like he has withdrawl symptoms.
He's eating my 2 dogs meals, day or night or anytime;even after eating his own.
He's been in my trash and had oil over the kitchen floor...
He HURTS and is too big for my house much as I do love animals, it's hard, been there done that with my own Dear Tim...
He actually started to behave like a young one at the end of his stay.He kept chasing(very slowly) after Bailey and she was having no part of that! lol
sorry Guin love you alot, but :( no more doggie sitting for that length of time ...

it's been awhile

I know it's been a bit since I last posted. I've been to Ct. cooking for a day and 1/2 and cleaning here at home, babysitting currently my SIL LAb, Guiness who is close to 15 yrs now and not in the best of shape.
I've been occupied with my new cricut machine and making Halloween jars for the fav neighborhood families because I will be having a re-surgery on my left hand thumb again to correct it's position.
Today I used up lots of our thursday takings from Allandale Farm and made a roasted veggie concoction. The left over Pot Roast was supposed to be for Alison's birthday on the 3rd, but she's been preoccupied with her Bruins !!! YUMMMMMMMMMM
The following are the different tries I've made today on a different special project :) and when I finally thought I had it, I FORGOT to FLIP the image to come out correctly when stamped!!!
:(
The left 2 are the original scan from a sheet then color removed and outlined.
the right side, the green is going to be the final stamp except flipped as it should have been :)
This little character,EEP, is on a set of sheets that my youngest daughter picked out when we got her and her sister new twin beds. The oldest picked dinosaurs. Yes, we still have both sets or atleast these. :)

xtra work shift

Thank goodness I can take advantage once in awhile of the extra hrs. It helps fund my new found CRICUT BUG!!
It was pretty slow too at work on Saturday, so it gave me a chance to admire lots of creative things the board members are showing off.
Sunday I went off to Michaels and used my 50% coupon for a Crop-A Dile big bite II,which turned out to be at least $10 cheaper then AC Moore would have been :) I couldn't stop at just that though, the Carts were on sale and I picked up Going Places.
I found the jars I wanted for the Halloween project at the Christmas Tree Shop for my special neighborhood kids because we won't be around for trick or treating this year. Instead of the plastic storage ones I got great glass screw on topped and they should hold about 3 cups worth of candy! I think that should take care of siblings and of course Mom and Dad's sneak snack when they've gone to bed.LOL
Tonight is the 1st of Monday Night Football and DD#1 and her Dad will be ranting about, so guess where I am going to go? Yes, down to my lair as they call it and play with some paper stuff.
Have a great Monday night :)

It's working..maybe...

Ashton is finally feeling a bit better if she wants to try a new recipe for something yummy to eat tonight her "lasagna-esque type dish" :) (original crescent roll recipe)











I apologize for the lack of table manners with the pictures,I am really new at this html and blogging stuff. She sent me these pictures to make Mommy happy :) While DD#2 was working on her creation, I was working on this one :) hope you enjoy and thanks for looking.. I use cs3 photo shop and item used are from Lynettes and Scrapgirls(see links in places I go)
My Toes
I am looking forward to doing alot more creative paper stuff also with my Cricut! I've been trying to play as often as I can. I've gotten a couple of cards done(previous posts) and have Halloween project in mind for some of the neighborhood kids.

back to Nature...

In a good way that is.. Our new Whole Foods store opened in Dedham and I've become a fan of their whole grain pizza dough and their fresh made Taco Bar! We've even tried the no sulfate Organic wine they have :) with no headaches at all!

Labor Day Wk End

Wow, where did time go? I've been trying to do so many different things,but never seem to get them all wrapped up. I've been trying to be very supportive of DD#2, she is finding that "being the boss" isn't an easy task by any means..although it is getting better day by day and time will help her in the end. I have no doubt she will prevail all the lumps and bumps :) DD#1 is heading back to work tomorrow after her 3 wk. re-coop from surgery and is looking good :)
Derby is standing here looking up, she is smelling the dinner plate in front of me which has left-overs from our dinner last evening to Ruth's Chris. We took advantage of the summer special 3 course meal for $39.95 per person. We had a gift certificate for $150 and the total was $168 without tip..not bad!! Alison had the house salad, a 6oz petite filet mignon topped with 3 shrimp and mashed potato side, Walt had the roasted tomato soup with crab,(I had to recreate,without crab this time) and then 3 crab cakes with sautéed mushroom side, I had the roasted salmon with roasted tomato sauce and a green bean and garlic side. Tonights menu was awesome and Alison added a 1.32 lb. lobster,and we ate the left over salmon and crab cakes with an added lemon butter caper sauce with wine that Walt whipped together! YUMMO!!!
Roasted Tomato Soup








Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
4 lbs tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
5 garlic cloves, unpeeled
4 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp kosher or sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp sugar
1 Tbs butter
3 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream ( I did NOT put cream in)

1. Arrange tomatoes, cut sides up, on a large baking sheet lined with heavy
duty aluminum foil (makes for easier clean up). Add unpeeled garlic to
tomatoes. Drizzle 3 tablespoons of the olive oil all over the tomatoes and
sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes for 1 hour, let tomatoes cool
for a little while and then peel garlic.

2. Cook onion, oregano and sugar in 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the butter
in a very heavy pot over medium heat, until onion is soft, about 5 minutes.
Add tomatoes, garlic and stock and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.

3. Place an immersion blender into the pot and puree the soup. If you do not
have an immersion blender *(promise yourself to go buy one), pour the soup
into a regular blender and puree. You may have to do this in batches, if you
use a regular blender. Force pureed soup through a strainer to remove skins
and seeds. Pour strained soup into a small clean pot, stir in cream and
taste for salt and pepper. Simmer just a couple of minutes to reheat.

4. Ladle soup into bowls and place a Parmesan crisp on top. Serve another
crisp on the side.

Nutrition (calculated from recipe ingredients)
----------------------------------------------
Calories: 1540
Calories From Fat: 1039
Total Fat: 117.6g
Cholesterol: 193.6mg
Sodium: 2435.9mg
Potassium: 5276.4mg
Carbohydrates: 102.9g
Fiber: 24.8g
Sugar: 63.7g
Protein: 35.5g

Recipe Author: adapted from Gourmet

* I strained the seed,skins and then I added a few tbs of chicken broth and put the goodies into my fod processor and added to the soup! gave the great depth of flavor of roasting!

I was making chicken wings on a stove top grill.. and I didn't want all that grease splatter, and I don't have any screens other then the round. I thought " a cookie sheet will work, and topped the chicken with it and I even added a brick to give extra crispiness !"
helped a lot with clean up and the wings were great!. You could even use the cookie sheet as the serving tray,but please don't forget the pot holder!!!

unexpected post

Frost Advisory:

Issued at: 3:42 PM EDT 8/31/09, expires at: 11:45 PM EDT 8/31/09

frost advisory in effect from 2 am to 8 am edt Tuesday

Alison so called this last night! Even though it is not Our county, I have to congratulate her! WHY DIDN'T SHE BECOME A FORECASTER???
growing up she would sit on the steps at Grampa Foley's and wait for the booms and flashes to come from the dark black clouds. They even got her a NOAA compact radio for a birthday gift one year. Through middle high school, we always thought she would become a forecaster. She used to say "that is what I want to do".
hmm, didn't happen, oh well

starting again..lol

okay, I am going to try the daily stuff again. It's been a weird few days and I think I might be ready for a back on track approach. Is there anyone else who thinks this way too?
An impromptu visit from DD#2 this past sat evening. Her and Dad tried to see the latest Harry Potter and that was a BIG BUST!! NO ONE IN THE THEATER,YET it was open,LIGHTS ON and she even was able to turn on the validating machine for parking! ..lol :) that's my girl!!(they all never did find anyone)
Today, Monday ..day was eh but I did get a special Birthday card made with my cricut for my neighbor Terry :)

Alison (DD#1) had a meeting for Grad studies back at her alma mater :)..MD for a surgical quick fix.All ok . She has 4 more days home and then back to work she goes.
A basic hotdog and Mac n' cheese for dinner tonight

Morning is here already! I have a few projects to get done today. One is a card i'd like to make for my niece who just officially became engaged and my sil is having an informal gathering as a celebration this afternoon. I need to make spinach veggie dip to bring.
Ashton popped her head in briefly to go see Harry Potter's latest with Dad.Her job is taking a toll on her sanity and especially her "free" time. oh, and I will get the latest cooking adventure's in here somewhere I hope today :)

tweaking some things was an ADVENTURE in itself! HTML..what??? well,search I did go and this is where most of
my help came from HERE. I had asked DD#1,but she's not up to doing much of anything but watch TV and sleep-both of which really is not out of the norm.(2:15pm)
off to play with my cricut and some digi scrapping in my bsmt craft area :)

so so day

I finally got a sleep in (sorta) and it was nice :)
After showering and playing a bit with the dogs, I got Alison to take a ride to AC Moore's with me. I want to start really scrapping paper and cards again to use up some stash,but I needed to get some tacky adhesive for my new rubber stamps I bought that are unmounted sheets. Ashton's got some boomers going through her area now and we are waiting for some too
Have a good night all..
oh gads, Walt just walked in ranting and raving about his encounters at BJ's a few minutes ago...oh no...here we go!!!

almost dinner time :)

Alison pretty much slept much of the day. I can't really say it's the surgery,but it could be the anesthesia stuff.
Derb abd B loved it that I was home even though it was 95 earlier and 88.5 now. Around noon time I started, in foil, 4.29 lbs of spare ribs that my neighbor Terry gave me and
now Walt is out putting on the "crispies".(brief break, Ashton just called :)))))_ ) on the ribs for dinner. We have to eat left over salad before our pickup from Allandale tomorrow. We bought into a Community Share Program from a local farming coop and it has been tremendous. The veggies are all grown organically and are the freshest anyone could ask for. We get 1/2 bushel every Thursday(we got to pick Tues. or Thurs.) and it's the seasons choice of what we will get.I am putting together a few 12x12 digital lo's of the taking every week so far and will post a link to photobucket when I get it done. ...Yeah! time to eat!! night everyone! ps. Alison promises me she will show me how to fix those pictures from the caramel adventure post :)

all went well- monday

everything went terrific for Alison! She felt really great,aside from a wicked dry throat. I brought her her laptop and she was in her element, just not her own bed.
The temp managed to hit near 95 today and it's really having a toll on our new backyard grass :( Even the dogs hate to go out in the heat let alone crunchy brown grass. Taking Wed-Fri off to tend to DD and I will tend to that grass too..lots of big long drinks!
I found a few great card blogs which I will get links to later this week. I really want to play with my Cricut and the new Pooh and Friends cartridge I won on EBAY :)
ok, enough babbling... stay cool everyone!

cleaning day - sunday

not much going on today. Need to get laundry put away and house cleaned up. Alison goes in for her Breast Reduction surgery in the morning, so it will be a few hours earlier then normal for getting ready. Derb and B will be all mixed up.
I'm planning on a regular day at work.I don't think she will even be in her room before I leave and then after I let the dogs out for a bit, I will head back for dinner perhaps.All depends how she is feeling :)

a bit late..Saturday's adventure..

going back just a bit,I tried out my hand at making my own Caramel to use in coffee or even on dessert :) It it quite easy,but takes a little time because you really need to watch it.
I used Sunny Anderson's recipe from her episode that she made a Thick Banana Foster Shake

1 cup sugar
1 stick butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup heavy cream (I used 1/4 cup heavy cream and 1/4 cup Land of Lakes fat free creamer)
It came out great and so yummy!

Friday Evenings Cooking Adventure

I decided after seeing so many recipes for roasted veggies and realizing that we had most of them in our refridge and veggie basket, I wanted to do something really simple for dinner. This is what I came up with:

Toasted Garlic Bread with Roasted Veggies and Feta

I roasted the veggies with just a sprinkle of salt and pepper drizzled with Olive Oil at 375*

Cut about 4" slices of a fresh baguette sliced horizontally that I bought at Au Bon Pain(dangerous because its at work,and is another whole story) put about 1 teaspoon of Minor's Aoli and toasted them.When the bread was done,I sprinkled a bit of feta and topped with the veggies :) Oh so wonderful for a very hot summer evening! DH Loved them which is even better!

digi credits: Happy Summer Book Tag

http://www.digital-crea.fr
http://elodigi.canalblog.com/

fonts:agency fb and arial narrow


The second part of dinner was to try out some Fried Zucchini. I had been a lunch with my 2 picky daughters and ordered these as an appetizer. I actually got both of them to try them and they loved them!
I found a recipe that bakes rather then fries and you definitely could not tell the difference! so.. here is part 2:

Oven Fried Zuchinni

I started with fresh zuc's from Allandale stash and from a co-workers garden. I used this recipe as the base. Click here to see original. Enjoy with your favorite Marinara or Red Sauce. I happen to have made some and it was perfect with these :)

my recipe variations: 1/4 cup Italian style Panko (Progresso) and 1/4 cup plain.. 1/2 cup shredded fresh grated Parmesan(stop & shop) a dash of cayenne pepper drizzles of Olive Oil

In theBeginning...

This is the very 1st of my adventures... Today I started to discover what Blogging is all about. I am finding I am very picky about the available fonts here :/ and will be investigating if I can add or change it :)