Category: My Life

This weeks Thursday Thirteen, will be thirteen things that I love to eat, in pictures! Needless to say, there are many more things I could add to this list, which is why I am a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers!

1. A fresh cucumber

2. My own home grown eggplant!

3 .A lettuce wedge salad with bacon and blue cheese.

4. A fresh peach from our orchard.

5. Blueberries from my friends home.

6. The recipe for Julia’s Roasted Chicken!

7. My French Onion Soup!

8. Hubby’s apples. He grows the best!

9. Roasted Chestnuts. Plain or in my Turkey Stuffing.

10. A Thanksgiving meal. It’s just my favorite!

11. Cherries from our Orchard.

12. Oh yeah, LOBSTERS!

(Photo courtesy of my cousin Janet ).

13. Real Greek Gyros and an ice cold German Beer!

It was a cold and rainy start to the week, so I decided to cook a nice warm and easy meal. A Slow Cooker Pork Roast.

You can go HERE for the recipe. It does not require much, and you will have your family ooooo-ing and ahhhh-ing with delight!

So far, everyone who has made this have raved about it. Hubby especially loves it, and when I make it with mashed potatoes he is even happier. Tonight I’m roasting some beets for an added thrill!

I like to serve a nice warm dish on a day like Monday has been. Barely 45 degrees (f) and bone chillingly cold, even little Anneliese wanted her sweater on today.

How did we know this, you ask? Well, Anneliese has the cutest way of telling us. She will come sit in our laps and pointing her snout at our face she will shake just a wee bit.

Once we head to the closet where her fine garment is kept, she gets all happy, and will wiggle into it. She has been wearing it since 8 o’clock this morning and has been quite happy.

As the sun sets, dinner was presented and currently Hubby is happily full and asleep in his chair. Dinner was, YUM, and I too, end my day happily satisfied!

Our host is Gattina. Come join us and tell us what YOU did this past weekend! After all, you never know when you will need an alibi!

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It was a strange weekend. One that brought me back to thinking about High School and how I had once had to write certain things. Back then, I really had no idea what I was doing, but through this blog, and all of you, I have learned to write.

I spent time organizing my thoughts, and then I put it down on paper. Then I went back and  organized it all. By the end, I looked back and actually felt proud at what I had done. It may have taken the better part of the weekend, but it was so worth it!

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A few weeks ago I noticed that my darling Greta had a small growth in her ear. I reacted, as I always do, I panicked! I called to Hubby, tears in my eyes, already picturing Greta minus her ear!

Hubby calmed me and told me that we would simply watch it for a while. Sure. That’s like telling me to watch the bacon cook. Poor Greta. I’m afraid I was flipping her ear over several times a day to check on that little white “growth”.

Well, time did pass, and fortunately for Greta, I have been busy. I forgot about her ear until Sunday morning. I flipped it over and guess what? It’s completely gone!

My question here is…can dogs have acne?

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I have a new cleaner that I discovered. It’s “Fantastic”! I tried it out in the kitchen on my stove, my cabinets, the screen over the stove and guess what? It cut all the grease! I could not believe it! Best cleaner I have found in years!

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It’s been raining most of the weekend, so outside things just aren’t happening. Thank goodness we got the garden fenced before the rain came. As it is now, they are forecasting 5 days straight of rain! (**groan**) I hope the rain is gone by Saturday as we have a Town wide Yard Sale next weekend!

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Well, that is about it for my weekend wrap up!

Have a great week everyone!!!

It’s been a long time since I felt this strange pressure about writing a report. It isn’t necessarily a bad pressure, just that I need to get it done, and I need it to be good. So, I have been working three days on it, taking a few hours off, here and there, and then back to the computer I go.

You know, it’ll be 35 years this summer since I graduated from High School. In High School my favorite classes were Chorus and Band, so you can guess that I was not a natural student.

My mother, for some reason I have never been able to fathom, used to tell people that I was both incredibly smart and a natural student. I used to look around for this child of hers, because it sure wasn’t me!

I’ve gone back in my mind to think, what would I have done, if my life had taken a different turn. What could I have been? I loved children, so perhaps an Elementary School Teacher, or a Child Psychologist. Something where I could have helped little kids.

However, I was not necessarily a natural student and I really did find it difficult to learn. Honest to goodness, I never got Algebra! I have somehow gone through life and now, here I am at 52 and I am a Secretary, taking notes and writing reports.

Oh, how I wish I had paid more attention in stenography and typing class!

1.  I know that love is the most important thing in life.

Things I Did Yesterday & Today!

1. I went to Weight Watchers and lost half a pound! I was very pleased because it was a hard week to stay on plan, due to 4 meals at restaurants.
2. I realized once I weighed in, that I am a bit of a control freak, and that I do like eating at home where I can control all things that I put into my mouth.
3. Bought the cutest little flat of Parsley Plants! I would like to get a few more herb plants and then find some place in the yard to have an Herb garden.
4. Picked up two days worth of mail. Which amounted to 4 catalogs. I joked with the Post Master, and asked if there was any good mail I could steal away! lol!
5. Came home to start laundry and do some house work.
6. That’s when I got this great idea for a dinner meal for tonight.
7. I made a wonderful lemon chicken, with a very light sauce. It was very easy and very lean, because you poach the chicken!
8. Next I made Hubby Bratkartoffeln, which is German fried potatoes with onions and bacon! He is a happy man!
9. For our vegetable we had mashed Butternut Squash! Oh, it was total yumminess!
10. More laundry was done and of course, all the dishes from dinner.
11. Today I am going to get my hair done. I seriously need a shaping of my hair. I find it very difficult to do anything with it!
12. I have a big report to write later on today. I’ve got good notes, but I expect it will be at least 4 or 5 pages long.
13. By the end of Thursday I will be tired, no doubt, but happy to have accomplished so much!

1. How many times in your life have you moved house?

Too many. I lived in three houses when I was a girl in Falmouth, Massachusetts. Then I moved so many times with my first husband it wasn’t funny. Since marrying Hubby #2 I’ve lived in three homes.

2. What subject would you study if you had a year to devote to it?

German. I have always wanted to learn to speak and read German. I would love to move to Germany and go to a college there to learn.
3. What in this world breaks your heart?
The loss of my child…
4. What is one item that symbolizes the times in which we live? Why?
The cell phone. Almost everyone has one and they have become a must have tool for calls, GPS and restaurant rating, movie show times, etc.
5. Share a favorite bumper sticker or t-shirt slogan.

“Just Hand Over The Chocolate And No One Will Get Hurt”
6. How do you like your spaghetti?

Cooked. I do not like it al dente.
7. What is one piece of advice you would give a recent, or soon to be recent, graduate?

High School? I would say, go to college and work hard to attain your dreams. A college Grad? Okay, go for it, and don’t be disappointed if you fail the first few times. It will get easier.
8. Insert your own random thought here.
Joanne is going home on Friday. Family and friends have been working to plant flowers, build ramps, install railings and clean house. All to get things read for the happy return on this beautiful woman. What a blessing it has been to watch Joanne’s recovery and now the return to Toben, her husband and her two lovely daughters, Audrey and Emma. God Bless you all!!!

Monday I attended a Conference for Library Trustees. Wow! What a wonderful event it was. I signed up for 4 seminars, not knowing, quite what to expect.

The first was a speaker, Marilyn Johnson, who I think was meant to energize us and make us laugh. She was quite good, and I did find her amusing.

Next we broke off into small groups for different classes. My first class was to learn who is responsible for various things within the Library and outside of the Library, but pertaining to us. The biggest thing I learned is how blessed we are in my little Town. All of our departments get along pretty well, and work together for the benefit of the Library.

My second class was Conflict Resolution. I think this was my favorite class. I found this intriguing. The man who presented the class truly knew his stuff. He went through various scenarios, that could be used at work and in your real like.

Next we broke for lunch, where I met up with two other Trustees and our Library Director, and enjoyed a light meal. They were as pleased as I was with what we were learning.

In the afternoon we had one more class. Mine was for Trustee Secretaries, Treasurers and Chairpersons. As the Library Trustee Secretary I had a lot of questions and I finally got a lot of answers! It was truly fabulous!

So it was a learning day and one I really enjoyed and I am so happy I went. In fact I can hardly wait until next year!