Sunday, December 30, 2018

A One Pot Meal. . .

I cook for two guys almost every Sunday, and I am so grateful to be able to do that. This week I also cooked for another friend on Saturday night... It is super chilly in Missouri. and the wind has been fierce. Soooooo. I opted for spaghetti and garlic bread Saturday.... and Navy beans, corn bread, and copycat Colonel Sanders coleslaw today. Easy peasy comfort foods. Right?



Well, it appeared as if an explosion went off in my kitchen... I clean as I go if I have time... It went great, and the guests were appreciative.... But even though I "looked" and soaked my beans all night and put them on on my slow cooker at 5:30 this morning, they were shocking little bullets at noon. There sat my two guests, telling me how good it all smelled... So I moved the beans to a never-tried Pioneer Woman Instant Pot (a gift from a dear friend). After a bit of technology crash course, they were done in 25 minutes plus warm-up. (10 minutes maybe). But that lovely big sink of mine was overflowing with appliances! No complaints here.

I am going to look for my mother's method of fixing steak in a pressure cooker. It involved flour, browning, vegetables, water, seasoning, Kitchen Bouquet, and a splash of ketchup. Her pressure cooker was scary, so she always herded me right out of the militarized zone. Thus, I am not sure how to fix this... It is truly fit for kings if I get it right... not wet and soupy. but moist and ooooh! la! la! I hope there is a card with instructions in her recipe file. I don't count on it because she cooked by "heart."





Tomorrow is New Year's Eve. Stay cozy and safe.





Whimsy and Hugs!

Thursday, December 27, 2018

Fabulous



As many of you who have been loyal readers and friends and family know, I like to choose a word of the year. Often (usually) I don't remember it even until February, sad to say. But... even so, it is a fun thing to do...



I think this word is a shocker. It hit me tonight, and although it doesn't describe my style... or myself.... I cannot shake its magnetism.



FABULOUS.



Ever the word origin guru, I googled and checked the thesaurus. Sounds good to me.



amazing, astonishing, astounding, fantastic, fantastical, incredible, marvelous, miraculous, phenomenal, prodigious, stupendous, unbelievable, wonderful, wondrous. See good. Particularly excellent: divine, fantastic, fantastical, glorious, marvelous, sensational, splendid, superb, terrific, wonderful.




So.... this word will be fabulous for 2019. Fables and fantasy (with the old French origin "fableux.") Wonderful and divine (to ground me back to the Heavenly Creator.)





Whimsy and Hugs!

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Christmas Night

Lovely, lovely Christmas! I discovered that Santa had found us and our stockings that were moved from prior years. He remembered the big jar of olives for mine! I have to wonder exactly what year I would have stopped taking as many olives as I am old on my plate. My mother intervened at about age 9... Enough was enough, she said, questioning if I planned to take 45 olives when I was 45.  Well, uh.... I guess not. Dunno. I have a pretty big jar, and I am the only one who likes them.  So..... there!



My son got me wonderfully thoughtful gifts. We decided not to wrap ours for each other... It was fun!

Of course, I made more chili.



My sister/cousin came for our little gift exchange, and let me say, I wasn't that good! I loved everything.


I wish tomorrow could have been a vacation day for my son, but it seems like another Monday... Short week, I hope.


Callie decided she loves Christmas! Extra naps and a big jar of treats! Not a creature was stirring! Her kind of holiday.

Whimsy and Hugs!

Saturday, December 22, 2018

Merry Christmas!




Enjoy a wonderful Christmas! 
Thank you for reading my blog.



A full moon on the Winter Solstice... Who can see the rings that rainbow around its core? 



Whimsy and Hugs!

Friday, December 7, 2018

Christmas at our House

Whimsy and Hugs!  Just thought I might share pictures of our home this Christmas. I am really enjoying the new rooms. I set a goal to be finished with everything by the 7th....  That's today! So I  have been loving the sparkle and shine. This week I had a couple days with good friends here for lunch. I love seeing my friends and family at my table!!!


Cheese ball recipe is so easy! I mix a room temperature package Philadelphia Cream Cheese, 1/2 c. Harry & David Sweet Onion Relish (or Salsa also works!), 1 c. shredded (bagged) cheese of choice, 1/4 c. crumbled bacon, 2 T. minced onion. Blend together and top with parsley. As Paula Deen says, "Let the flavors marry." Chill and serve.




Mama stitched the Lord's prayer years ago, and I found the pretty festive picture that Mama had bought and stored in her closet.  


I bought this tree a couple years ago. In this light it looks lemony yellow, but it was called "buttercream." My original idea was to finish it out with old family cookie cutters and red gingham... Here's the part where I know the location of cookie cutters....  FAIL!



Watchcat...  It is a thing! She takes her job seriously. 


I have been on a binge of making Rice Krispie treats. I usually add a big scoop of peanut butter. I make it in the microwave (3 minutes) so from idea to cookie is only about five minutes tops.. I  found these adorable cookie wrappers on Amazon. HERE


Two lace pot holders in white crocheted by my two grandmothers.



I love to have different teas for my guests to choose.






The struggle to keep this bedroom of mine presentable is a constant battle. It is visible at all times, so... I can't let up a second. The comfortable nature of clutter is waiting in the wings to leap out and mess this room up "good." And... I have no closet (my usual culprit for stashing nonsense behind doors.

















Mama's Hallmark Houses collection.





I spent today with my Christmas cards and wrapping papers...  Even the sparkly sunshine has not melted the snow from the branches. This year really seems like winters of my childhood, with several snows in the books. I have some crochet projects and stitching kits to work on.. Merry Christmas from our house to yours!