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Friday Fill-Ins

And…here we go!

1. So many of us find happiness where we least expect it.

2. Seek out the best, even in hardship.

3. Those who are accepting of other people’s faults, will be happier in life.

4. A wonderful life is waiting quietly.

5. Light is in both the dawn and the dusk. It is just the clarity of it that is different.

6. By accepting who you are you too can become Queen of all that is ordinary. At least that, is my motto!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to the snow, a fire in the hearth and a good movie, tomorrow my plans include nothing much, just cleaning up after the snow storm and Sunday, I want to read the paper make a nice dinner, and who knows?!

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. If you had known what they knew then, would you have boarded the Mayflower?

I would hope I would be that brave. I’d like to think so.

2. How far have you traveled on a boat and how do you feel about boats in general?

Hubby and I had a sailboat when we first married and we sailed from Miami, Florida to Maine and then back to Miami, Florida. We’ve also cruised from Puerto Rico through the Panama Canal to Mexico, and gone from Seattle to Alaska and back. We love the water, or at least Hubby does and I do when I have my seasickness patch on.

3. What traditions have you kept, acquired thru marriage, and/or tossed? If you’re single what are some of your family’s favorite Thanksgiving traditions?

Since we were older when we got married and I was already set in my ways, as far as what I cook and how I cook it, we pretty much just have had what I have always made. Hubby’s Mom did love her sage and summer savory dressing, so I do add those herbs to my stuffing so Hubby will feel comfortable with it, but…the main ingredient are the roasted chestnuts that is a family tradition of mine!

4. What time is dinner and how many will be round your table? And what is the one side dish you cannot do without on Thanksgiving day?

We usually eat about 2 o’clock in the afternoon. Chestnut dressing is the side dish that I MUST have or it just doesn’t feel like Thanksgiving. The other one is butternut squash prepared with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.

This year it is just me and my Hubby for dinner. I still have gotten everything for a traditional turkey dinner, as I believe in being thankful for all that we have. Also, a Thanksgiving meal is my favorite!

Yes, I know it goes against all I believe in to ask for ‘just one’, but I made up for it by asking three questions here.

5. Have you ever used a fire extinguisher? Do tell….

No. So far I have never started a kitchen fire.

6. Tell about a situation that caused you dreadful trepidation and feet dragging, only to realize later it was a true blessing.

I am one of those people who tends to jump in feet first, so I haven’t had a lot of those moments. Perhaps it was going to my first Weight Watchers meeting three years ago. I just dreaded it so much. When I weighed in, I cried. However, Weight Watchers has been so good for me. It has taught me to control my food, that I am not the only one out there struggling and the beautiful, wonderful, people I have met have blessed my my life!

7. Baked, sweet, mashed, hash browned or french fried…which one’s your favorite?

Mashed Yukon Gold potatoes. The best hands down, and that is on our Thanksgiving menu too!

8. Insert your own random thought here.

As our Thanksgiving Day draws near in the USA, I am ever so grateful for a loving family, good friends and the sweetest dogs on earth. My life is not exactly as I had dreamed it would be, when I was a little girl, but I am blessed.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We’re on Our Way Home

Here we are, in Columbus, but we will leave very soon for home. Yes, we are on our way home!

Two of us riding nowhere
Spending someone’s
Hard earned pay
You and me Sunday driving
Not arriving
On our way back home
We’re on our way home
We’re on our way home
We’re going home

Two of us sending postcards
Writing letters
On my wall
You and me burning matches
Lifting latches
On our way back home
We’re on our way home
We’re on our way home
We’re going home

You and I have memories
Longer than the road that stretches out ahead

Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing solo
In the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere
On our way back home
We’re on our way home
We’re on our way home
We’re going home

You and I have memories
Longer than the road that stretches out ahead

Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing solo
In the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere
On our way back home
We’re on our way home
We’re on our way home
We’re going home

We’re going home
Better believe it

Lennon/McCartney

Cooking!

Our host is Gattina. Come join us and tell us what YOU did this past weekend!

Today was a big cooking day here at The Dackel Princess House. Actually Hubby departed early on to go work in the forest again, and that left me with the Dackels, zucchini and more tomatoes than I knew what to do with!

So when all else fails, one must cook, yes?

I started by clearing the shelves and making sure everything was nice and clean. I’m quite lucky to have a big island counter top in my kitchen where I can spread out and work.

You can just see Greta enjoying the sunshine on the left side of the picture.

Then I got out all the equipment and ingredients to make the zucchini bread.

See my beautiful zucchini?

After this I used the food processor to shred it.

Then I mixed it all together and put it in pans.

And when I was done I had eight loaves of zucchini bread.

Seven of them went into the freezer, and one stayed out.

Meanwhile, during the time I was working on the zucchini bread, I had the tomatoes cooking so I could make spaghetti sauce. After a couple of hours cooking down the tomatoes, I put them through a food mill to separate the seeds and skins from the pulp.

I sauteed up some onions, peppers, celery, garlic and Italian Sausage and ground beef to make a nice thick meat sauce. After a few hours of simmering it slowly, it was done. I divided it up and froze half and kept half out. I’m thinking of making a zucchini lasagna with the sauce.

Later in the day, because I hadn’t cooked enough, I got to work on a beautiful Rainbow Trout that was given to me by my friend, Dave. This was an enormous fish and fed both Hubby and I completely!

I still want Dave to teach me how to cook this fish the way he described. Somehow I don’t think I got it right. Still we both enjoyed it, and so did Greta, Fritz, and Anneliese. They got the scraps. Arnie, funny little guy that he is, didn’t like it! I was shocked. I tried giving him the skin, but no. He didn’t like it!

So my day is ending, all the cooking is done and I am finally able to put up my feet and relax.

Tomorrow it’s zucchini lasagna!

Fiber One Muffins

FIBER ONE MUFFINS

2 points in 6 muffins and 1 point in 12 muffins.

Ingredients
3 c. Fiber One Cereal
1 c. Skim Milk
1/2 c. Brown sugar, packed (Can use Splenda Brown Sugar)
4 oz Eggbeaters = 2 eggs
2/3 c. Applesauce, no sugar added
2/3 c. Raisins, optional (Add points for raisins)
1/2 c. Oatmeal, any kind, I use old fashioned
1 tsp. Baking soda
1 tsp. Cinnamon + 1 tsp Nutmeg (I use 1-2 tsp pumpkin spice)
1 c. Whole Wheat flour

Preparation
Mix cereal and milk in mixing bowl and let soak. Add sugar, eggs, oatmeal. Add baking soda, applesauce, raisins and flour.
Stir well. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray. Do not use paper muffin liners.Fill muffin tins full with batter (they do not rise much. Bake in preheated oven of 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes. Makes 12-15 muffins. Eat immediately or freeze for later. Freezes well.

NI: Calories 141; Total Fat 1.5; Fiber 7.5
(Does not include raisins)

Put in any spices you like! I’ve also made them with nutmeg and vanilla, yum!bb

For those overseas, this is what Fiber One cereal looks like.

The Anniversary Clams

On our anniversary yesterday, you may be wondering what we did to celebrate. Well we started the day off with my taking a shower with all three dackels and giving them all a good wash down! Hubby helped to dry them off, and then I was dried off, dressed and went off to the Post Office.

The rain came in steadily by mid-afternoon, and I settled in to watch my guilty pleasure, “All My Children”. Many of you know that Fridays mean that the soap opera will end the show with a cliff hanger. Well, the joke was on me, because of a Presidential news conference, which interrupted the last two segments of the show! Rats! I did get the West Coast feed later in the day on the satellite. Yes, I know it’s silly, but I do enjoy “All My Children”.

Later in the day Hubby and I dressed a little more warmly and headed off to “Kevin’s Cafe” for the “All You Can Eat Fried Whole Belly Clams”. On of my favorite things in the world. Kevin does a great job.

My plate and then a close up of those nice clams!

I had no trouble finishing up all of my clams. I’m a Cape Cod girl! I was raised on Whole Belly Clams! Hubby ate as much as he could, but in the end we brought home a box of leftover food for him. The key for me was just eating the clams and no fries. I mean, why waste the space in the stomach with fried potatoes? Nope, give me a clam any day!

Thank you all for your good wishes!

Life is good and our anniversary was wonderful!

PS: This is my 2100th Posting on Dackel Princess!

MUD!

I woke not feeling like doing anything particular, but I managed to get my laundry completely done. Often I tell you about doing the laundry, I know, but more often than not, I do not get it finished. Today I succeeded! Yay me!

In the middle of the afternoon Hubby wanted me to go out with him to do errands and ride around. I did not feel like it, especially since after our walk with the dogs yesterday, and my falling down into a deep mud puddle, while chasing the dackels, I was not terribly interested in going out. However, he convinced me it would be a good thing. Here is a picture of the dackels in the mud.

And here is Greta laughing at me. I swear to God!

So, we went off to the Post Office, and then over to see a friend of ours and his new lady. We sat around talking, and joking and laughing and eventually went out for fish and chips at a local place called “The Mug”. The food was good and the company even better.

We got home late and as we came into the drive I said to Hubby, “So what am I going to write about on Dackel Princess?”

He had no suggestions, so you will simply hear about my day and see these great photos of my little mud dogs! You will, of course, notice that there are no pictures of yours truly covered in mud. It’s a moment in time that I chose not to remember.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ice Out

I know I have written about Bob Houses going through the ice, but the true measure of springtime in my area is when “Ice Out” is declared.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

This year’s “Ice Out” on Lake Winnipesaukee is one for the record books.

“Ice Out” was officially declared at 2 p.m. Wednesday, four days earlier than the previous record of March 28, set in 1921.

“Ice Out” is declared when the MS Mount Washington can safely reach all of its ports of call: Center Harbor, Meredith, Weirs Beach, Alton Bay and Wolfeboro.

I knew yesterday would be the day. It was rainy and a bit on the raw side, but we had the tell tale winds that cause the ice to be broken up. Perfect “Ice Out” conditions for the big lake. Our little lake iced out last week and we have been enjoying the open water once again!

Here is a little bit of information about our bog lake, Lake Winnipesaukee. The Winnipesaukee Indians, a subtribe of the Pennacook Tribe, lived and fished at a village called Acquadocton. Today, the site is called The Weirs, named for the weirs colonists discovered when first exploring the region.

Location = Central New Hampshire, USA
Area of water surface = 72 square miles
Number of islands = 253
Distance around lake = 182 miles
Height above sea level = 504 feet

Here is a live view from Weirs Beach. Remember I am in the Eastern time zone so, if it is still dark here, you won’t see anything. Come back after sunrise and check it out.

Weirs Beach Cam

Going on the Mount Washington is a fun afternoon. You can have lunch on the ship while you are cruising. They also have weddings, parties and in the Autumn they do dinner cruises.

The first few years we lived here, I didn’t get out on the ship at all. Then once I went, I decided to go each year. It is so relaxing, and very beautiful! When my cousin Janet had a special birthday I took her out and we ate Lobster rolls and enjoyed the sunshine!

When we have company from anywhere, we bring them on a cruise if it is summer. Here is a picture of my sister and I on a cruise back in 2006!

So all the area is celebrating the arrival of spring. Myself among them!

Detached Retina

Sorry I have not posted. On our return from our cruise my right retina detached and since 5 flights out of Atlanta had been canceled going to Boston, we rented a car and Hubby drove me to my sisters in Connecticut, dropped me with her, she put me in her car and drove me to Dartmouth Hospital where my retinal surgeon was waiting for me.

Hubby drove to Boston, returned the rental car and picked up our car before coming home to sleep. He had driven all night and over 1200 miles to get me to my surgeon.

I stayed overnight on Monday and then Hubby came and collected me on Tuesday morning after I’d seen the doctor and brought me home.

I go back to the doctor today, but aside from that, I am down and out until my eye heals.

Chestnut Stuffing

As I have been telling you all, chestnuts are just my favorite things in the world. Especially at Thanksgiving. Today I roasted them and then made the stuffing.

Preheat oven to 400º
Soak chestnuts in bowl of boiling water
for about 30 minutes.
Drain.
With scissors of knife put an X in the top
of the rounded portion of chestnut.
Roast chestnuts on cookie sheet for
25 minutes. Put in dish towel and crack shells.
Peel. Enjoy!!!!

All peeled.

Meanwhile,

Stuffing

1 Big bag of Pepperidge Farm Stuffing
1 cup chopped onion               1 Tbs. Sage
1 cup chopped celery                1 Tbs. Savory
1 Tbs. minced garlic                2 Tsp. salt
1/2 cup minced carrot             1/2 tsp pepper
24 chestnuts                           1 stick butter
chicken stock                        1 Tbs. Parsley

Melt butter, saute chopped vegetables until tender. Mix all ingredients with chicken stock until moist. Cool before stuffing your turkey.

All done!!!