We planted a tree off of the corner of our deck last spring so that we have have morning shade in the future. In the mean time, I sprang for an umbrella. I chose a reddish brown that closely matches our house. The umbrella has a smaller layer of fabric near the top. When the umbrella is closed and tied, it looks like a Franciscan friar's habit and cincture. Arthur put the umbrella in the basement for the winter, so now every time I go in the back room in the basement, I am thinking Franciscan.
I have been Christmas shopping. I have to share my excitement over the beautiful 18" dolls that I found at TJMaxx in St. Cloud. They carried two different brands, both Jillian's Closet dolls and Our Generation. All were so well dressed that I had a hard time deciding which one to buy for my granddaughter. I had already purchased a doll for her at Walmart, but these were so much nicer that I bought one, and returned the Walmart version. I got a Jillian's Closet doll with a pink sweater and tulle skirt. Same price that I paid at Walmart for a far prettier product with more well-made, detailed clothes.
After I got home I did an Amazon search for 18" doll clothes. What a hazardous territory for me! So many cute choices. Again I had a very hard time deciding, since I did not want to spend more than $15. I finally settled on another pink dressy dress and a pair of pink "patent leather" shoes. Ari will just have to wait until next year to get more outfits. And I will continue to look at garage sales to increase the wardrobe for the American Girl doll which we have here at the house. Of course, another option is that Grandma can start sewing dresses....
I have been spending so much time shopping this week that my plans for sewing have gone by the wayside.
I went to the doctor to have that "thing" on my finger checked. I have had it for years. The last time I asked the doctor what it was, she did not know. After canning applesauce it got irritated, and a call to the nurse resulted in another appointment. This time the physician assistant looked at it. She knew immediately that it was a cyst. After draining, she knew that it was a Ganglion cyst. After looking it up on the computer, I know by the location that it was a mucousal Ganglion cyst. When it fills again I will probably go to the hand doctor and request removal. It is in a location where it often gets bumped and poked.
Friday, December 6, 2019
Wednesday, November 27, 2019
Tea Time
I'm setting a record of sorts, posting two days in a row. The urge came after I poured myself a cup of breakfast tea.
I am using up a canister of The People's Green Tea, Daily Green Tea from the Republic of Tea. It is awful. I will be glad when I am back to my "perfectly brewed" Shaklee Green Energizing Tea. The Energizing Tea is a powder which can be used in either hot or cold water. It tastes delicious.
After reading Laura Child's books I am considering purchasing a Twinings sample box with Darjeeling, Earl Grey, and two more choices. I am hesitant because I had tried some of those teas in my college days, and did not like them. My staples for the past several years have been Irish Breakfast Tea, English Breakfast Tea, and green Energizing Tea. I drink one cup of caffeinated every day. If I want another cup with my evening dessert or as an accompaniment to a good book, I switch to decaf.
In tandem with my morning cuppa, I take my vitamins. For the next couple of weeks I will be taking Shaklee chewable calcium in place of my normal Osteomatrix. The girls see Grandpa and Grandma take their supplements when they are here. I always have the Mighty Smarts for them. Maja could eat several a day if I let her, but I usually have her stop at three or four a meal. Since she is interested in vitamins, I ordered the Incredivites, chewable vitamin C, and chewable calcium. Ari used to not like the Incredivites, but now she will take them. Maja is also very willing. The calcium is a bit too chalky for her taste, so Grandma gets to finish the bottle. It was worth a try, though. Anything I can do to get more nutrition into them, I will do.
On Tuesday I get to take Ari to the eye doctor for a prescription update so that we can get her a new pair of glasses. Anne thinks her current pair is beyond repair.
Our winter storm was not as severe as predicted. School was canceled today, but the roads are looking quite drive-able.
Happy Thanksgiving!
I am using up a canister of The People's Green Tea, Daily Green Tea from the Republic of Tea. It is awful. I will be glad when I am back to my "perfectly brewed" Shaklee Green Energizing Tea. The Energizing Tea is a powder which can be used in either hot or cold water. It tastes delicious.
After reading Laura Child's books I am considering purchasing a Twinings sample box with Darjeeling, Earl Grey, and two more choices. I am hesitant because I had tried some of those teas in my college days, and did not like them. My staples for the past several years have been Irish Breakfast Tea, English Breakfast Tea, and green Energizing Tea. I drink one cup of caffeinated every day. If I want another cup with my evening dessert or as an accompaniment to a good book, I switch to decaf.
In tandem with my morning cuppa, I take my vitamins. For the next couple of weeks I will be taking Shaklee chewable calcium in place of my normal Osteomatrix. The girls see Grandpa and Grandma take their supplements when they are here. I always have the Mighty Smarts for them. Maja could eat several a day if I let her, but I usually have her stop at three or four a meal. Since she is interested in vitamins, I ordered the Incredivites, chewable vitamin C, and chewable calcium. Ari used to not like the Incredivites, but now she will take them. Maja is also very willing. The calcium is a bit too chalky for her taste, so Grandma gets to finish the bottle. It was worth a try, though. Anything I can do to get more nutrition into them, I will do.
On Tuesday I get to take Ari to the eye doctor for a prescription update so that we can get her a new pair of glasses. Anne thinks her current pair is beyond repair.
Our winter storm was not as severe as predicted. School was canceled today, but the roads are looking quite drive-able.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Tuesday, November 26, 2019
Winter Storm Watch
My brother Peter and his wife gave me a North Carolina cookbook several years ago. It contained a recipe for oatmeal cake which was titled "Hurricane Watch Cake". I am thinking that I might need to bake it this evening for our storm watch. The recipe is probably a Betty Crocker original, since it is the same oatmeal cake that Mom made for us when we were young. Good, no matter the origin.
It has been quite the fall in a number of ways. I had put off doing shrub pruning in the Mary Garden at St. John Cantius. Not the first time that I have waited until mid or late November, but with the predicted snow storm, I knew that I had to get cracking last Friday. I was able to prune one potentilla and most of one spirea in just an hour, but I still had several to go. Yesterday I did the remaining three potentilla and a massive trimming of the old fashioned roses surrounding the statue. I knew the biggest challenge would be getting the cuttings home. I cut and bent everything to get it into bags. By putting one bag into the car instead of the trunk, and by bundling and bending the last set of branches, I managed to cram it all in. I finished clean-up just as it was getting to ark to work. The rest of the spirea can wait until spring.
In the midst of pruning, I found a plastic Easter egg. It just so happens that I was responsible for that egg's being there. About 15 years ago, we had a homeschool Easter party at St. John Cantius. I had stuffed the eggs, and asked the youth group to hide them for the younger kids. Finding the egg gave me a much needed laugh. I have to admit that anyone seeing me kneeling on the ground in the middle of the flower bed laughing to myself probably thought I was loony, but that laugh was a blessing at a time of great stress.
I finished two Laura Childs tea shop mysteries, and enjoyed them both. Clean, and easy to read. I copied quite a few recipes out of them. I have already tested two. They are both keepers. Prior to that I had read a Miss Seeton by Heron Carvic, which I did not like at all. The dialog style drove me nuts. It was much too busy.
I am making some inroads into my UFO's. I finished a sun dress for Maja, which she has insisted on wearing a few times already. I am over half way done with my wool turkey candle mat, which I had purchased at a quilt show three or four years ago. It was supposed to have been a gift, but I decided the the person for whom it was intended did not really need it, and may not appreciate it. The lycra knit in the beautiful fall pallet which I had had pegged for myself was not large enough for the desired dresses. One piece is now cut out for a dress for Maja. The other will also be used for her. I do a few rows on my shawl here and there, but still have more than half of the last skein of yarn left.
I have started playing my clarinet again. It will take some time to remember all of the notes that I have lost, but I want to be ready for when the grandchildren join band so that we can play together. Tom Strang, our former band instructor, has invited me to play with the current homeschool band. I think I will do that.
It has been quite the fall in a number of ways. I had put off doing shrub pruning in the Mary Garden at St. John Cantius. Not the first time that I have waited until mid or late November, but with the predicted snow storm, I knew that I had to get cracking last Friday. I was able to prune one potentilla and most of one spirea in just an hour, but I still had several to go. Yesterday I did the remaining three potentilla and a massive trimming of the old fashioned roses surrounding the statue. I knew the biggest challenge would be getting the cuttings home. I cut and bent everything to get it into bags. By putting one bag into the car instead of the trunk, and by bundling and bending the last set of branches, I managed to cram it all in. I finished clean-up just as it was getting to ark to work. The rest of the spirea can wait until spring.
In the midst of pruning, I found a plastic Easter egg. It just so happens that I was responsible for that egg's being there. About 15 years ago, we had a homeschool Easter party at St. John Cantius. I had stuffed the eggs, and asked the youth group to hide them for the younger kids. Finding the egg gave me a much needed laugh. I have to admit that anyone seeing me kneeling on the ground in the middle of the flower bed laughing to myself probably thought I was loony, but that laugh was a blessing at a time of great stress.
I finished two Laura Childs tea shop mysteries, and enjoyed them both. Clean, and easy to read. I copied quite a few recipes out of them. I have already tested two. They are both keepers. Prior to that I had read a Miss Seeton by Heron Carvic, which I did not like at all. The dialog style drove me nuts. It was much too busy.
I am making some inroads into my UFO's. I finished a sun dress for Maja, which she has insisted on wearing a few times already. I am over half way done with my wool turkey candle mat, which I had purchased at a quilt show three or four years ago. It was supposed to have been a gift, but I decided the the person for whom it was intended did not really need it, and may not appreciate it. The lycra knit in the beautiful fall pallet which I had had pegged for myself was not large enough for the desired dresses. One piece is now cut out for a dress for Maja. The other will also be used for her. I do a few rows on my shawl here and there, but still have more than half of the last skein of yarn left.
I have started playing my clarinet again. It will take some time to remember all of the notes that I have lost, but I want to be ready for when the grandchildren join band so that we can play together. Tom Strang, our former band instructor, has invited me to play with the current homeschool band. I think I will do that.
Thursday, August 22, 2019
Pine Grove Zoo
Almost a year ago we won a Pine Grove Zoo Birthday Party Package through the St. Cloud Times. We finally cashed in on it last week, forgoing all of the perks for simple admission. Arthur and I had not been to the zoo since Anne was around ten. This was back in the day when all that was at the zoo were a few emus, perhaps a cat, and the Dewey-Radke House. I was really anxious to go and see the new zoo. It was a fun, relaxing trip. We took both girls.
When we first arrived at the zoo, we were greeted by a couple of white peacocks. We learned at the admissions counter that they would be strutting around the grounds. The zebra enclosure was our first stop, and we got quite the show from her. She was running and leaping like a banshee. It was a treat to see it.The two keepers who were in her enclosure in a zebra print ATV informed us that they believed her to be reacting to the print. They drove their vehicle out to exchange it for the tiger print ATV.
The petting stable included two alpacas, two donkeys, a Black Angus calf, and three pygmy goats. We fed them handful after handful of pellets. Well, at least Maja and I did. Grandpa sat on the bench. Ari was too scared to feed them out of her hand, so she put pellets on the edge of their pens and let the animals lick them off. That arrangement worked for the calf. One of the alpacas had blue eyes. The other had dark brown eyes. A couple of the goats got into a few tiffs, so we saw some head butting. Towards the end Maja was feeding the animals one pellet at a time, which was really a great way to extend the time she got to feed them. I could have stayed at the petting stable for another hour feeding and petting.
At the tiger cage we got to see a training demonstration. We learned training exercises are used both to familiarize the animals with the keepers, and to enable the keepers to observe the health of the animals. The keeper commanded the tiger in targeting, sitting, and opening its mouth.
We did get to experience the otters swimming above us in the tunnel. One of the otters put its nose to the drain cover and followed it around and around, as if it were trying to pull it off.
Other animals which we saw were Arctic and grey wolves, prairie dogs, a cougar, bison, antelope, turtles, and kangaroos. We also got to see the peacock spread his wings. We picked up a few feathers that had coloration from his tale, without the complete eye showing. Almost lost was the display of poison dart frogs, a tarantula, a chameleon, and another little creature requiring a dark cage. The petting stable attendant pointed them out to us before we walked away. We also got to feel animal pelts.
We were not allowed to bring in our own food. I thought the food expensive until I saw how much we had gotten in our chicken baskets. We could have skipped one order and split the other baskets between us.
Broadway Street was under construction at the time that we were there. We were not sure if that affected the number of people who were there at the same time as we. We thought the very small crowd and the small, enclosed grounds a good bonus. These things made the zoo feel safe, and the visit relaxing. We did not need to worry about the kids getting lost or abducted. At the same time it was large enough to be interesting.
On the way home we stopped along the Little Falls Dam on the Mississippi River. The girls were not the least bit timid about climbing rocks along the shoreline. I told them that adventure was only possible because I had made them wear tennis shoes for the day instead of flip flops. Hopefully they remember. We saw a fisherman with a huge river cat fish. We also saw touch-me-nots, but the seeds had already sprung from their pods. Sniff! Grandma's favorite flower from Bald Eagle's shore.
When we first arrived at the zoo, we were greeted by a couple of white peacocks. We learned at the admissions counter that they would be strutting around the grounds. The zebra enclosure was our first stop, and we got quite the show from her. She was running and leaping like a banshee. It was a treat to see it.The two keepers who were in her enclosure in a zebra print ATV informed us that they believed her to be reacting to the print. They drove their vehicle out to exchange it for the tiger print ATV.
The petting stable included two alpacas, two donkeys, a Black Angus calf, and three pygmy goats. We fed them handful after handful of pellets. Well, at least Maja and I did. Grandpa sat on the bench. Ari was too scared to feed them out of her hand, so she put pellets on the edge of their pens and let the animals lick them off. That arrangement worked for the calf. One of the alpacas had blue eyes. The other had dark brown eyes. A couple of the goats got into a few tiffs, so we saw some head butting. Towards the end Maja was feeding the animals one pellet at a time, which was really a great way to extend the time she got to feed them. I could have stayed at the petting stable for another hour feeding and petting.
We did get to experience the otters swimming above us in the tunnel. One of the otters put its nose to the drain cover and followed it around and around, as if it were trying to pull it off.
Other animals which we saw were Arctic and grey wolves, prairie dogs, a cougar, bison, antelope, turtles, and kangaroos. We also got to see the peacock spread his wings. We picked up a few feathers that had coloration from his tale, without the complete eye showing. Almost lost was the display of poison dart frogs, a tarantula, a chameleon, and another little creature requiring a dark cage. The petting stable attendant pointed them out to us before we walked away. We also got to feel animal pelts.
We were not allowed to bring in our own food. I thought the food expensive until I saw how much we had gotten in our chicken baskets. We could have skipped one order and split the other baskets between us.
Broadway Street was under construction at the time that we were there. We were not sure if that affected the number of people who were there at the same time as we. We thought the very small crowd and the small, enclosed grounds a good bonus. These things made the zoo feel safe, and the visit relaxing. We did not need to worry about the kids getting lost or abducted. At the same time it was large enough to be interesting.
On the way home we stopped along the Little Falls Dam on the Mississippi River. The girls were not the least bit timid about climbing rocks along the shoreline. I told them that adventure was only possible because I had made them wear tennis shoes for the day instead of flip flops. Hopefully they remember. We saw a fisherman with a huge river cat fish. We also saw touch-me-nots, but the seeds had already sprung from their pods. Sniff! Grandma's favorite flower from Bald Eagle's shore.
Wednesday, April 3, 2019
Olive Garden Bread Sticks Copycat Recipe
Last week I found this recipe for bread sticks on Pinterest. I made the recipe following my own steps for mixing and rising. I also halved the recipe, but it still made 15 bread sticks. Here is my modified version of that recipe for hand mixing, with the corrected yield.
Would that I were Sister Monika I.S.S.M., and could just pull chunks of dough off of the ball and get the right amounts for shaping in the number that I needed! I watched her shape rolls when I was in Waukesha last summer, and I was so impressed with her technique for shaping, as well as the way she added beauty to her bread baskets by garnishing some of the rolls with poppy seeds, some with sesame seeds, and then left some plain. So simple, but it made such an appealing presentation.
Would that I were Sister Monika I.S.S.M., and could just pull chunks of dough off of the ball and get the right amounts for shaping in the number that I needed! I watched her shape rolls when I was in Waukesha last summer, and I was so impressed with her technique for shaping, as well as the way she added beauty to her bread baskets by garnishing some of the rolls with poppy seeds, some with sesame seeds, and then left some plain. So simple, but it made such an appealing presentation.
Olive
Garden Bread Sticks
1
½ cups warm water
2
tbsp sugar
1
tbsp salt
2
tbsp softened butter
4
½ cups bread flour
Dissolve
yeast in warm water. Let sit for 10 minutes. Add remaining
ingredients, mixing until all ingredients are in a ball. Cover and
let rest for ten minutes. Knead on a floured surface for 5-8 minutes.
Let rise until doubled. Gently punch down. Divide dough into 36
pieces. Roll each piece into a log. Place on greased baking sheets.
Let rise again until double. Bake at 400 for 12-15 minutes. Remove
from oven. Immediately brush with a mixture of 3 tbsp melted butter,
¼ tsp. garlic powder, and ¼ tsp salt. Serve warm.
Tuesday, March 26, 2019
More on Marge Fenelon
I continue with the novena included in Marge Fenelon's book, Forgiving Mother. I so appreciate her writing, and I am finding a new confidence in praying to the Blessed Mother. I pray the novena prayers in the first person plural as a means to pray for healing for myself, my daughter and my granddaughters.
I stayed up late Sunday night to finish Raymond Arroyo's Will Wilder: The Relic of Perilous Falls. I would classify this book as an adventure story in the flavor of Indiana Jones. It was a relaxing foray into the land of fiction. That does not mean it was prudent of me to stay up until all hours of the night when I had such a full day yesterday.
I had my free motion class yesterday afternoon. I sewed one of my squares with the wrong thread, and in the wrong direction for the print. That square will just have to become a fabric basket instead of going into the quilt. We missed two of our classes because of snow storms, and I had not done any free motion quilting in between. However, I felt comfortable jumping right in. I left my free motion foot and top-stitching needle in the machine so that I can continue on this afternoon or tomorrow.
Yesterday I went from quilting to a quick dinner at Culver's, to the Catholic United Financial workshop at St. Anthony's, at which our council was serving refreshments. I was the keeper of the keys, so it was late before I was able to leave. I made a quick visit to Jesus in the Adoration Chapel, getting home around 9:15 PM.
I am looking forward to the next three days of relative quiet before a busy Friday, Saturday and Monday. My little girl may come over to do some sewing while she is on spring break. If she does not, I will keep myself busy with my own sewing and cleaning. Besides the quilting, I have some birthday gifts to sew, and lots of fleece to use up. My own "cutesy, cutesy, cutesy" Siamese kitty fleece blanket fabric awaits me! I am gloating over the beautiful fleece prints which I have on hand!
I stayed up late Sunday night to finish Raymond Arroyo's Will Wilder: The Relic of Perilous Falls. I would classify this book as an adventure story in the flavor of Indiana Jones. It was a relaxing foray into the land of fiction. That does not mean it was prudent of me to stay up until all hours of the night when I had such a full day yesterday.
I had my free motion class yesterday afternoon. I sewed one of my squares with the wrong thread, and in the wrong direction for the print. That square will just have to become a fabric basket instead of going into the quilt. We missed two of our classes because of snow storms, and I had not done any free motion quilting in between. However, I felt comfortable jumping right in. I left my free motion foot and top-stitching needle in the machine so that I can continue on this afternoon or tomorrow.
Yesterday I went from quilting to a quick dinner at Culver's, to the Catholic United Financial workshop at St. Anthony's, at which our council was serving refreshments. I was the keeper of the keys, so it was late before I was able to leave. I made a quick visit to Jesus in the Adoration Chapel, getting home around 9:15 PM.
I am looking forward to the next three days of relative quiet before a busy Friday, Saturday and Monday. My little girl may come over to do some sewing while she is on spring break. If she does not, I will keep myself busy with my own sewing and cleaning. Besides the quilting, I have some birthday gifts to sew, and lots of fleece to use up. My own "cutesy, cutesy, cutesy" Siamese kitty fleece blanket fabric awaits me! I am gloating over the beautiful fleece prints which I have on hand!
Thursday, March 14, 2019
Dolly Diapers
In an earlier blog I wrote about making diapers for my granddaughters' Baby Alive dolls. Last week-end after Ari left, I went into the bedroom to clean up all of the dolly items she had carried there. I had a good laugh when I found a dirty diaper and poop all over the floor from the two "kids" - a wet disposable diaper, and one of my homemade diapers complete with yellow Play-Doh stain, and yellow Play-Doh poop. I would have called Ari and "scolded" her about leaving dirty diapers on the floor, if I had known she would take it in the right spirit.
I continue with my vision therapy. I can tell that I have made progress, but I can also tell how misaligned my eyes are when I do the exercises. And now I am wondering if I will in fact like the final results when therapy is done! A few weeks ago I was looking in the mirror, and saw what was more of a 3D image looking back at me. I was a bit freaked out. I thought to myself that I have a hard enough time seeing my fat as it is. In 3D, I may really feel huge.
I am currently reading Forgiving Mother, written by a fellow Schoenstatter, Marge Steinhage Fenelon. I do not necessarily need to read it in terms of my mom, but I wanted to read it to preview it for others whom I know have a need to forgive. I find myself having to stop frequently to pray for my own faults and for those I need to forgive as I read. Marge's scripture quotes and catechetical teaching are very compelling. Forgiveness is one of those things rarely preached from the pulpit. (One sermon on the topic by Fr. Bob Landsberger stands out, as does the private counsel provided me during an annual Opus Sanctorum Angelorum retreat). We need to hear Marge's words about everyone being a child of God, no matter how evil they are. This is especially apropos given the persecution of Christians which I feel is imminent in our country. We need to be able to say that we forgive those who persecute us, and see persecutors as children of God. And we need to hear Marge's words about vengeance belonging to God alone.
I continue with my vision therapy. I can tell that I have made progress, but I can also tell how misaligned my eyes are when I do the exercises. And now I am wondering if I will in fact like the final results when therapy is done! A few weeks ago I was looking in the mirror, and saw what was more of a 3D image looking back at me. I was a bit freaked out. I thought to myself that I have a hard enough time seeing my fat as it is. In 3D, I may really feel huge.
I am currently reading Forgiving Mother, written by a fellow Schoenstatter, Marge Steinhage Fenelon. I do not necessarily need to read it in terms of my mom, but I wanted to read it to preview it for others whom I know have a need to forgive. I find myself having to stop frequently to pray for my own faults and for those I need to forgive as I read. Marge's scripture quotes and catechetical teaching are very compelling. Forgiveness is one of those things rarely preached from the pulpit. (One sermon on the topic by Fr. Bob Landsberger stands out, as does the private counsel provided me during an annual Opus Sanctorum Angelorum retreat). We need to hear Marge's words about everyone being a child of God, no matter how evil they are. This is especially apropos given the persecution of Christians which I feel is imminent in our country. We need to be able to say that we forgive those who persecute us, and see persecutors as children of God. And we need to hear Marge's words about vengeance belonging to God alone.
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