Patience & Wisdom

I received this in an e-mail today. It was sent as a joke, but there's a lot of truth in it!

One of the greatest secrets of life is having patience & wisdom...

What Pasta Dish Are You?

You Are Spaghetti Bolognese

Compared to most people, you are well grounded and down to earth. You have old fashioned values. Your taste tends to favor what's tried and true. You love comfort food. Familiar situations put you at ease. You think that the best cooking comes from your family's kitchen!

What Pasta Dish Are You?

A Beagle Birthday and more....

Today is Betty's 9th birthday!! Happy birthday, Betty!!! It's hard to believe so many years have passed since she and Veronica came to live with us. I made her a little party hat which she was NOT happy to wear. Poor Betty.

My son and his girlfriend gave me two jigsaw puzzles for Christmas last year. I completed the first one in January. I worked the one pictured here this past week. It's part of a series called "Angel Wishes" by Kathleen Francour and is entitled "Vintage Violet". The glittery wings made it fun to work!

Here's a little time waster for those of you with nothing better to do. Click on the ball and it will change color. "Ball Time Waster"

Family Time

Tonight was one of those rare occasions that I managed to get all my family in one place at the same time. Of course food was involved!

My older daughter has a busy life working as an RN and being the single mother of a first grader. My younger daughter and my son are both college students. One begins classes in a nearby town tomorrow, the other in a neighboring state next week. We all gathered at a local Chinese restaurant for dinner and photographs. The last photo I had of all three together was taken in 2006. It was time for an update! The cutie pictured here is my granddaughter.

It was great getting everyone together: my husband, both daughters, my son and his girlfriend and my granddaughter. Nothing like family!

Onion Ring Chicken

I got this recipe from a magazine years ago. As you can tell from the photo, I've changed it around some for my family. We prefer our vegetables separate from the chicken and rice. I've included both the original recipe and the changes I make.

Mrs. Schermerhorn's Famous Chicken & Rice

2/3 C. uncooked regular rice

1 can (2.8 oz.) Durkee French Fried Onions

1/2 tsp. Durkee Italian Seasoning

1-3/4 C. prepared chicken bouillon

4 chicken breast halves, skinned if desired

1/3 C. Italian salad dressing

1 bag (16 oz.) frozen vegetable combination

• Combine rice, 1/2 can French Fried Onions and Italian Seasoning in 9"x13" baking dish.
  
• Pour bouillon over rice mixture. Arrange chicken on top; pour salad dressing over chicken.


• Bake, covered, at 400F for 30 minutes.


• Place vegetables around chicken, covering rice.


• Top chicken with remaining onions; bake, uncovered, 1 to 3 min. or until onions are golden.

My changes: I use the larger can of French Fried Onions, reserving about 1/4 of the can for topping the chicken at the end. I don't measure the Italian Seasoning or the salad dressing and probably use 1/2 cup (or more) of the salad dressing. I leave off the frozen vegetables and just uncover the dish to bake the remaining 20 to 25 minutes. I use boneless chicken breasts or tenders, depending on which I have on hand.

Blueberry Sour Cream Muffins

Most Sunday mornings we attend an early service at our church. Occasionally we'll go out for breakfast afterward or I'll make something special when we get home. This was one of those days. I decided to try a recipe for blueberry muffins that I found in the Tea Shop Mystery I'm currently reading. They were quick and easy to prepare and tasted quite good. If I make them again, I'll skip the paper liners and cook them directly in the muffin pan. Also, they needed to bake a couple of minutes longer than the stated time. Here's the recipe as it appears in the book:

Blueberry Sour Cream Muffins

1/4 cup applesauce
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1-1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup sour cream
1 cup fresh blueberries

Stir together applesauce, sugar, and eggs. Combine flour and baking soda, then add to wet mixture and mix well. Stir in sour cream, then fold in blueberries. Spoon the batter into muffin tin (use paper liners) making sure cups are about 3/4 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes.

Mid-August Ramblings

Rain, blessed rain! Having experienced the driest July on record in our county, we finally got some rain last weekend. I don't know what the "official" amount was, but we received 4.3" at our house from Sunday through Tuesday. We had another brief shower today and it looks like we'll get a little more over the next day or two. With the rain came cooler temperatures which I know was a relief for all our animals.


We often see does and their fawns grazing in our yard. Many times a doe will have twins with her. On several occasions this year we've seen a doe with triplets!


Despite frequent watering, the heat took its toll on our tomato plants. We're still getting a few, but are no longer overwhelmed with the harvest. I must say, though.... it was good while it lasted: bruschetta, tomato & onion salad, salsa, tomato sandwiches, spaghetti sauce and more.


I'm currently using Shelfari on my blog as a way to share some of the recent books I've read. It's a neat site in general, but I doubt I'll use it for more than that since there are some features about the site I don't like.


Tom, our original Boer billy goat, is still limping, but finally getting around a little better thanks to some antibiotics and a little TLC. We're still not positive what happened to him. It's not easy to examine a 200+ pound goat (with massive horns), but we think he either cut himself or was bitten by a snake. It was a little touch and go for awhile.... the vultures were on the ground with him that first day!


I collected owls when I was in college (they are my sorority mascot) and still think they are beautiful creatures. This puzzle by William Vanderdasson is entitled "Silent Watch". It measures 18" x 24", but is a large-piece format which made it easy to work. I completed it in just a couple of hours.

Catching the Big One

"Catching the Big One" appeared on the August 3, 1929 cover of The Saturday Evening Post. This puzzle was a pleasure to work.... hard enough to be challenging, yet not so difficult that it took away the fun and relaxation. I think what made it most enjoyable was that every time I sat down to work on it I thought about the friend that gave it to me. Thanks, Quid!

What kind of tea are you?

Those of you who have followed my blog in the past know how much I enjoy my cup (or two or three) of tea each day. I had to share this blogthing when I saw it!

You Are Black Tea

You have a bold personality. You're not afraid of simply being yourself. You have the courage to speak the truth. You are fearless in your actions. You come off as a bit intimidating and unapproachable. Only confident people are attracted to you. You don't try to scare off anyone. You're just an intense person!

What Kind of Tea Are You?

Should we ban Dihydrogen Monoxide?

A friend sent me an e-mail this week that included the YouTube clip I've featured here. It made me realize just how gullible our society can be! After watching the clip, I decided to type "dihydrogen monoxide" into my Google search and was amused to see what all came up. Snopes and Wikipedia both had articles regarding hoaxes, but one of the more entertaining sites I found was the DHMO homepage.

In this Internet age of ours, it's important that we check out the "facts" we're bombarded with. There are several "myth-buster" sites out there, but my favorite has always been Snopes.

So, please...before you open your mouth (or hit that forward key).... check it out!! It might save you some embarrassment.