Dackel Princess

TBT: Cape Cod Memories

Last weekend, I went to Cape Cod for my 40th High School Reunion. I knew it would be a lot of fun, and it was. Seeing my old classmates and sharing memories was so wonderful!

However, I asked my sister and my cousin to join me for a long weekend. Falmouth was our place and we all just enjoyed hanging at the beach, going out to eat the wonderful seafood, and playing silly computer games back in our room. One game was where we held the cell phone to our forehead and the other two people would try to get us to say the word on the phone’s screen. Oh my gosh, that was so much fun!

We also went to the beach, we went shopping when it rained and all in all, we just enjoyed being together.

In fact we liked it so much, we plan to do this again next year, but also do it in the Spring.

Here is a short montage of our pictures, (Melodie, Janet and I all contributed) titled, “Cousin’s Weekend“.

Happy Birthday, Uschi!

Many years ago, by chance I was in a Doggy Chat Room looking for a pen friend in Germany. I had hoped to learn German, but honestly, I just don’t have that gene. But that fateful day, I met a woman who has become a sister to me, and her name is Uschi.

Through the years we write to each other, nearly every day. We have gotten together both here in the USA and in Germany, and the times we are together feel so very natural, as though we have always done this.

So today, on her birthday, I want to wish her a very Happy Birthday, and to thank her for being my very special friend and sister!

Happy Birthday and Much Love!

The Friday Five

I’m off to my High School Reunion in Falmouth Massachusetts. So this weeks Friday Five is all about High School MB.

I went to school and was scheduled to graduate in 1977. This is the class I was in school with all of my life.
Love stepped in and I took a full schedule in summer school and graduated in 1976. This is why I have two Class Reunions! Fun!
This year is so special because many of these people I have not seen in 40 years! Wow!
I wasn’t a great student. If I could go back and tell myself one thing it would be to slow down and enjoy school. Why is it that kids feel like school is a punishment?
Ah, but they say youth is wasted on the young! Life turned out just fine for me, and I really don’t regret any of it at all.

Have a great weekend everyone!

TBT: Life

It’s funny. Recently I was asked about happiness. Did I find it easier to be happy now that I am, ahem, “in my middle years”?

I answered quickly, that I was happy and I didn’t think too much about it at the time, but in the last few days, while doing mindless housework jobs, I’ve had moments of great clarity.

I looked up into the bright blue skies today, and felt such peace in my heart. So many wonderful things are happening around me. Some days I sit back and just feel the love and the happiness. Reveling in it.

In my youth I tended to feel anxious, and not always happy. I tended to look back, to regret so much. I always worried about every little thing.

In my middle years I live each day and enjoy the heck out of it. Seeing my daughter and her two children living their lives, seeing their happiness, it just doesn’t get much better.

Jack and I are settled. We know each other so well, and share our life, as we have for the last 30 years. He is still the first person I want to talk to in the morning, and the last person I want to talk to at night. After all these years I still enjoy sharing life with this man.

My doggies are wonderful, and bring so much enjoyment to my days. In fact Lili is becoming so much better, that I believe one day she will be as easy to be with as the dackels are.

All this thought about happiness, made me think of this song, a favorite from long ago. Kick back and enjoy.

Preparations

I’m dragging out the suitcase today and starting to pack for the trip to Cape Cod to go to my High School 40th Reunion. Here is the fun part. I have two High School Classes that I have been lucky enough to be incredibly close to.

I went to school from Nursery School until eleventh grade with the Class of 1977. These are the people I had all my classes with, pajama parties with, dances with, etc. I looked at the RSVP list, and I knew every name and had classes with every one of these people. And then skipped a grade and graduated in 1976.

I have really longed to go back and see my Class of 1977. It’s funny how much I have looked back and with such great fondness at these wonderful people, that I grew up with.

I have a rough idea of what I will wear. So much of it depends on the weather. Cape Cod can be wonderfully warm, also known as Indian Summer, when the leaves are changing and Autumn is upon us, but our temperatures linger in the upper 70’s and lower 80’s.

Likewise, it can be cold, damp and windy. So clothes will be packed for both occasions.

I am planning to go out on Friday night and have the two food items that I absolutely love, but cannot get here. The first is a “Stuffed Quahog” (A hard clam, also known as a quahog, pronounced “KO-hog , is an edible marine bivalve mollusc that is native to the eastern shores of North America). A Stuffed Quahog, consists of a breadcrumb and minced clam mixture that is baked on the half shell of a quahog hard shell clam. And it is gooooood!

So, that’s first on my menu. The second are fried whole belly clams! Oh, I can get them up here, but it’s somehow not the same as eating them in my hometown, of Falmouth on Cape Cod.

And as I said the other day, spending time with my sister, Melodie and cousin, Janet, will be so wonderful!

I am praying that there is no rain on Saturday during the day because our biggest hope is to sit on the beach in our beach chairs, talking, reading our books, and enjoying the sunshine and the smell of the ocean. And remembering the days gone by, when we were little kids.

Ah, Falmouth! My hometown. How I love you!

Peach Cobbler

On Sunday, Jack dropped a small-ish box of peaches that he had just picked, while he was walking down the cement stairs outside. He came in and told me, and was pretty upset about it. Well, I remember seeing The Pioneer Woman make Peach Cobbler recently on her show, so I went to The Food Network’s Web Page and searched for the recipe and sure enough, there it was.

Here is my Peach Cobbler

Ingredients:
Butter: for greasing baking dish

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Fruit:
3 pounds frozen peaches (I used fresh peaches)
2 cups sugar (I used 1 cup of splenda and 1/2 cup of sugar)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons lemon juice
Pinch of salt

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Topping:
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 heaping tablespoons sugar,
1 + 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons vegetable shortening or lard
3/4 cup milk
2 whole eggs
3 tsp sugar and 1/4 tsp cinnamon for sprinkling over the top

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Serve With:

Vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter a baking dish.

For the fruit: In a bowl, combine the peaches, sugar, flour, lemon juice and salt. Stir and set aside.

For the topping: In a separate bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir together. Add the butter and shortening, and then cut together with a pastry cutter. (I used my food processor)

Beat the milk and eggs together. Pour into the flour mixture and stir with a fork until just combined.

Pour the peaches into the prepared baking dish. Tear off pinches of the dough topping and drop it onto the surface of the fruit, creating a “cobbled” texture. Sprinkle additional sugar/cinnamon over the top.

Bake until golden brown and bubbly, 30 to 35 minutes. Allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. If the cobbler is too juicy, use a turkey baster to remove a little of the juice (or spoon the juice over ice cream). Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.

You can go to the Food Channel and watch Ree make this. Here is the link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/peach-cobbler-recipe-1989055

Enjoy!

The Friday Five!

Well, here we are again! Another week has come and gone as well as the summer. Welcome Autumn, as today is the first day of my favorite season. So many things are happening right now, but here are this week’s top five!

Our dear friends from Massachusetts are coming up today to go out to lunch with us. So, what does this mean? All the little jobs I’ve been putting off in the house got done on Thursday. Things like vacuuming and washing floors and dusting….but it all got done. The house looks and smells great!
I went and had my hair styled yesterday. It’s slowly growing out, and I love how my new stylist is helping me achieve this. She is also a master with color, and I feel so fresh and rejuvenated. The new style is in the side bar to the right.
It looks like it will probably be too cool to wear bathing suits to the beach next week when my sister and cousin and I go to the Cape. But that’s okay. Our alternate plan is to go to the beach, in jeans and a sweat shirt, sit on our beach chairs and enjoy the ocean.
I am so looking forward to our girls weekend. It’s our first one ever! Sort of odd thinking about this, as Melodie and I grew up in Falmouth on Cape Cod, and Janet came down all the time. And here we are grown adults, and we’ve never done this before. I guess there is a first time for everything!
I started working on a Christmas gift. I would really like to make several Christmas gifts for people this year. I want to personalize things a little more.

Well, that’s it for this week. I hope your week was a good one, and that the start to your Autumn is full of bright skies, colorful leaves and happiness!

TBT: Baby Shubi

Our darling Shubi, our first wire-haired dachshund, was born in Landshut, Germany. She was the light of my life and although she has been gone ten years, I still miss her very much. Here is a picture that was taken the day we brought her home from the breeders.

And here she is with Jack during her later years.

Shubi only lived 10 years, due to a terrible illness called Granulomatous meningoencephalitis (GME) which is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. We treated her with chemotherapy pills and prednisone, until we knew it was time to stop.

But she sure was a special dog and we enjoyed each and every day that we shared with her!

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. What’s something you’d rate a 10/10? Tell us why.

Oh definitely my grandchildren, Savannah and Quinn. They put a smile on my face each and every day. When I am able to actually be with them it is even better! Love being an Oma!

2. What job would you be terrible at? What makes you think so?

Principal at a high school. There is no way I could handle difficult situations with hostile kids. I’m just not tough. I wish I was, but I am just not.

3. When did you last take a fall? What’s something you’re falling for (in a good way) these days?

Last fall? Well, I actually fell in the shower about 6 weeks ago. Thankfully I got nothing more than a small bruise.

What am I falling for in a big way? Aside from my grandchildren, I am falling for The Pioneer Woman. Now I am not like many of her fans, who have purchased every bit of kitsch that she has in the stores, but I do enjoy her shows and the cooking. I have tried a few of her recipes and all I can say is, the girl can cook!

4. According to the Travel Channel here are some of America’s best fall festivals-

National Apple Harvest Festival (near Arendtsville PA, close to Gettysburg), Harvest on the Harbor (Portland Maine), German Village Festival (Columbus Ohio), Wellfleet Oyster Fest (Cape Cod), and Wine and Chile Fiesta (Santa Fe NM)

Have you ever been to any of the festivals listed? Which one appeals to you most? Does your hometown have any sort of fall celebration, and if so will you make it a point to attend?

We have a chowder festival in the Autumn and many Farm Festivals, as I live in Farm Country, here in New Hampshire. Although I have not been to the festivals mentioned I have been to Apple Festivals, and German/American Festivals, in this country and in Germany, as well as Lobster and Strawberry Festivals on my native Cape Cod.

5. What is your goodbye message to summer?

Let’s do it better next year! This was a rather challenging summer, and next year I really want to get to the beach and spend more time with my grandchildren!

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I came across a video on the Internet made by a nurse on Facebook. (I have included the link for anyone who is on Facebook, so you can view it) The Nurse had just come off of a long shift at the hospital, where she comforted a man as he passed from this life to the next.

She talked about the beauty of this experience, but also encouraged people to live our lives to the best of our abilities! Enjoy life, find happiness, do what you love! Life is so short! Don’t waste time!

This & That Tuesday

After a somewhat challenging summer with Jack’s toes (foot), I am finally happy to report that things are healing up. I have learned so much during this time, throughout the long process of recovery. I have learned the correct way to treat sores and splits, and when to call it a day and get him into the doctor.

During our last visit to the doctor, he commented that I have done an amazing job caring for Jack. This made me feel pretty happy. It is not easy work, and there have been times, I felt like I was failing. But in the end, I have done well, and for that I am proud.

I am getting ready for my second High School Reunion. You see, I officially graduated in 1976, a year ahead of my actual class. I wanted to get married to my High School Sweetheart, and so I went to summer school and got all the credits needed to graduate a year early.

Last year I attended The Class of 1976 – 40th reunion. That was a lot of fun. I have so many long term friends in that class as well, and had a wonderful time. This year is the 40th Reunion for The Class of 1977. My actual class. These are the people I have known since I went to Nursery School.

I looked at the RSVP list and I can honestly say I know each and every one of these people and had many classes with them during those years.

My sister and cousin are coming down with me. Although they won’t go to the Reunion, we are planning to do some fun things around Falmouth, the town I grew up in.

One thing I hope I can do is go for a long walk along the beach. For me, tasting the salt on my lips, and feeling the ocean air in my face and hair, makes me feel like I have come home.