I have been very busy or maybe not?

I know you are all waiting with bated breath for the outcome of my Orange Cranberry Poundcake and here she is.  Total fail and I filled the house with smoke.  Very greasy and all Cranberries fell to bottom.  Forgot to flour them before putting in batter.

Now did it taste good after I cut off all the nasty looking parts.

Well yes it did, and we ate it, but I certainly could not gift this or serve it at a dinner or luncheon.

I feel like I wasted precious eggs and butter only to try and use up Cranberries and that is just stupid.  So, I think Anne in the Kitchen is right, I create work! I need to be better about this.

I also spent several days mulling in my mind how I was going to take care of the venting (or lack of it in my kitchen).  By the time I got my twisted brain around this conundrum, I had spent over twelve thousand dollars to alleviate the problem.  No, I did not really, and this was totally preventable had I put a large pan on the lower rack.  So, I have talked myself off a ledge and save a whole lot of money!

 

As you can see, a little greasy?  But the orange flavor with the Cranberries was wonderful.  I will definitely try again, but not anytime soon.  I will also try and use my small bread pans as I have had some success with these.  I will keep you posted.

Sissy is a much better baker than I.  Now ask me to make a chocolate mousse, a baklava, a tiramisu, I am your gal, but to bake not so much.

I finished the month of February in the black and was able to fund all of my various accounts, but still way overspent on eating or going out.  I way underspent on groceries which was good.  So, I am giving myself a B for the month.

We have made great progress eating down the freezers but still have a very long way to go.  I think another couple of months.

I did go yesterday and got groceries for the next two weeks at least and spent 90.00 but our aunt is coming, and I had to get some special things for her.

Auntie will be here tomorrow at noon, and I got her checked in and her luggage and wheelchair arrangements done this morning.

My Husband has been horribly ill with a bad cold and the cough is horrendous and he has been a bear to live with.  Hopefully he will be on the mend soon.

I now need to get up to Sissies and get some things done.  I still have at least two more hours of knitting before I can call my scarf finished, but I will get it done.

Now as Sissy says...I am off like a prom dress.

Hugs.

Kay

Tuesday February 25th and what have I been doing?

Well, we finished as puzzle, and it was really fun. Have started another one and it is so hard, but we shall persevere.

Both Sissy and Husb have my cold and both are suffering. Sissy is so busy with wedding dresses, and I did manage to make her cookies for church for her.  They are really good.  We have so many dates to use up!

The weather has finally turned warmer and I am four days without cuddle duds on!

We have really been eating out of the freezer and last night I pulled the last of the Prime Rib soup (from Christmas) thawed it and made Popovers (thanks Lori) to go with it!  Darn good I tell you. Everything tastes better with popovers!

We have also eaten two chicken pies and Husb and I will have a beef one tonight and those will be the last, until I make more.

My days are full, and I plan and then Sissy needs something and my plans go awry.  This is okay it is why we moved here.  

This morning, I finally got my Orange Cranberry poundcake in the oven. The batter tasted great, and this is a new recipe, so I am excited to see how it turns out!  If it is good I will make small ones tomorrow to freeze and give away.  Again, we have so many Cranberries to use up.

I pulled chicken legs and thighs from the freezer that were going to get freezer burned and four chicken breasts. I baked the legs and thighs and then put them in my crockpot for 12 hours and took the meat and shredded for Chicken enchiladas and then boiled the breasts just enough to cook them and cut them in chunks for chicken pies.  I got four nice quarts of chicken broth from this endeavor, and I use a lot of broth. I then froze the processed meat.  As long as the meat is cooked and I use it soon, refreezing it into enchiladas and pies is not an issue.  Normally I do not like tom refreeze meat.  But have learned over the years cooking ahead that there is really no harm.

I really want to try and make my own yogurt in my crockpot and am researching recipes. Sissy made blueberry jam, and it would be perfect in yogurt. She thinks it is too thick for jam and too chunky.

We shall see.

I need to run up to Sissy's and dig through Her freezer to see if we have any more piecrusts made.  I also want to make four rolls of pizza dough in her Bosch mixer.  I am craving pizza.  I will also make more piecrusts if we need them.

I am working on a hot pink fluffy scarf for my Auntie who is arriving next Tuesday, and I will need to knit at least two hours a day to get it done. I normally do not put things off but for some reason I did with this scarf and now I am behind the Eightball!

Okay pound cake has been in the oven 45 minutes, and I smell smoke...

This is going to be a failure, as the pan ran over and I failed to put a large sheet pan under it and the bottom of the oven is a mess. So, I clean it as best I could and cake is nor nearly done, covered it with foil and opened every window in the house, set out the huge fan.  Our oven is not vented, and we will have to fix this somehow someway.  Don't know quite how I am going to do it, but it will be a priority.

I also must remember to put a large sheet pan down when I bake. Stay tuned I will let you know?

Hugs;

Kay
 

Where have I been?

The Baby grand where our robot always got stuck and of course Bud!

Morning everyone!  I have been a busy girl since last Friday when I last posted. Don't ask me what I have done as most of it is a blur.  

We had Roscoe (Sissy's Corgi) while she was gone which filled our days in many ways, and we deep cleaned Sissie's house while she was gone.  We absolutely love the Robot vacuum and were astounded by how well it worked.  This will be a God send for Sissy.

Husb and I bought one way back when, no docking station etc.  But I remember it being rather expensive.

We thought it would help keep up with the Cat hair and our house was entirely carpeted on three floors except for the kitchen bathrooms and laundry room. Ours did not work that well and continually got stuck on a baby grand piano leg and whined.  I would set it and come home from the office and there it would be screaming from a piano leg.  It got to the point where it just went to one particular leg, grabbed on and hollered.  So, it went bye-bye, and we bought a very expensive Shark vacuum (which we still have) to replace our very old Sears canister vacuum that we bought used when we first married 40 years ago.

Yes, we grow old with our appliances!

Well, these robot vacuums have vastly improved, and I love the name Clean Elizabeth. Sissy is such a card!  She is thrilled.

I have been doing very well with eating down the freezers, but still have a very, very long way to go. Like maybe two more months and I will be able to start really cooking again.

WE finished a jig saw puzzle while Sissy was gone and started another one which is very fun.  I made a homemade chicken soup on Tuesday night and Sissy came for dinner and she cooked last night and spent the night with us and worked on the puzzle. WE really try to do three or four meals together every week to help us both whittle down the havoc that I have created in our freezers!

There is enough chicken soup for dinner tonight and it allowed me to use up three containers of chicken broth, veggies that had seen their better days and frozen chicken pieces.

We both still have so many baking supplies left over from Christmas baking, so today I am going to make a couple of loaves of cranberry orange poundcake which freezes beautifully.  Dessert for two weeks.

I also want to make those date oatmeal cookies Sissy came up with which are to die for.

The weather is actually turning warmer (Hallelujah!). Maybe I can finally get out of three layers of clothing which can be a bit restrictive. Both Husb and I have really suffered from the different weather here in the west, thirty-six years of east coast weather has changed our bodies.  WE will eventually get used to it, but it will take a couple of years, as it did when we moved east.

I was up at 5:00 this morning and watched the Sun come up and we can actually see the sun for the first time in almost three weeks!

I have done some morning chores as it is now 7:45 and I will let Sissy sleep until 8:30. I know she did not come to bed until midnight.  She has a Bridal fitting at eleven so this will give her time to wake up and get to getting.

I must do a small grocery shop today and I mean small and put gas in the car.  I do not know what Sissy needs from me today, but I will be there for her.

Now I am going to read a couple more blogs and get on with my day!

Have a great and productive day!

Hugs,

Kay

Happy Valentines Day!

 Where has the week gone?  It is now Friday, and I have had a busy week! Sissy made sure of that as I have run errands for her all week long and made her shortbread, and, and, and...

Just got Her on the road an hour ago for McCall and now I have a four-day weekend just to do my own thing.

Pictured left is the shortbread that we put into clear gift bags and had just enough for her crew which makes me happy!

It is snowing heavily but does not seem to stick just melts on top of what is already there.

I woke at 6:00 this morning which is very late for me, and it was 28 degrees outside! A tropical paradise compared to the past week when it has been in the teens.

Sissy spent the night last night as I made dinner, (Tacos and they were very good) and we started a new puzzle.  It was snowing so heavily that we did not want her driving up to the Elks and she was already packed except for the French bread which did not get made (imagine that?).  

We have Rosco for the weekend and she brought him down and then went two stores in heavy snow and no French bread!  I told her if Lewiston was anything like DC there would be no bread anywhere and I was right. So, while I was making dinner, she started her bread here as I had all the fixings.

I worked on the puzzle for about an hour and got a bad sinus headache, so I turned in early, about 8:00. My cold is still lingering a bit.  Sissy crawled into bed about 11:30 and I got her up at nine and she was out the door with French bread!

It looks wonderful and smells wonderful!

Today I am supposed to meet Lil Sis for sisters' lunch across the bridge, so I need to go and clean off my car.

I have done my morning chores and cleaned up after Sissy (how unusual) and we will have tacos again tonight with soft shells this time to change it up!  So, dinner is planned.

I am still in my P.J.s and need to get dressed and ready to greet my public.

Husb is busy working on the puzzle, and I may join Him for a bit.

This one is much easier, and I think we will finish it in record time.  WE only have one more left and Sissy does not want us to start it until she returns, so after I meet little Sis for lunch I will go to Walmart (which I hate but needs must) and buy a couple more.  The weather is just going to be crappy for the next five days so essentially house bound we are.

Picture of the shortbread gift bags which I think turned out very cute.  I put them in a nice box, so would not get crushed on the trip.

I hope everyone has a great day!

Hugs.

K

Sort of punk the last couple of days!

I have been quite busy the past two days while feeling pretty punk. Today I woke full of energy which means this cold has turned the corner...(I hope).

This picture is of some of the Valentine cookies Sissy and Husb made, and they are so good.  Sis flavored the frosting with maraschino cherry juice and almond. Perfect combination.

Sissy has also cooked for us the past two nights as I just was too tired out.

Her chicken enchiladas are to die for.  I do not like to eat the same thing two days in a row, but we had them again last night and I swear they were better than the night before.

I thank God daily for a sister that will take care of me when I am down.

We also finished another puzzle, and this one was very hard!  Can't wait to start the next one.

I cannot rotate this picture, and I do not know why?

 Someday I will figure this out, but not today.

I was up at 5:00 and watched the moon drop and it was beautiful.  Only seven degrees outside, but I bundled up.

I love going out early in the morning with my first cup of coffee and saying my prayers and thanking God for another day!  It recharges my soul.

It is now 7:22 and I am on my second load of laundry which is drying, and I have cleaned the Cat Box (oh joy is mine! - I do this every morning as part of my morning routine, and I swear my Cats are trying to recreate Stone Henge!)

We have company coming this morning at 11:00.  A girlfriend and her Husband that live across the river. We went to grade school and high school together and were Cheerleaders together.  They have not seen the House, so they are coming to see our tiny little Bungalow and then we are going to lunch.  My Friend got Covid two years ago and she was very, very sick and we thought we would lose her.  She is finally on the mend, and I cannot wait to see her!

I went up to Sissy's yesterday afternoon after Husb and I went to Veterans Lunch and made four dozen pecan shortbread cookies.  They are in the fridge to completely harden and then I will dip half in dark chocolate this afternoon after lunch. The heart-shaped pan was difficult, and I lost quite a few cookies until I figured out that I was overfilling the mold.  It had been so long since I had used it, I forgot.  With the price of butter, I was quite annoyed.  But we had about twenty pounds of butter left over from Christmas so I cannot complain.  I will take pics when I dip them this afternoon.

Sissy's shop is starting to fill with wedding dresses and in the dark they look like ghosts.  It will get very busy, very soon and I will be at the spare machine again.

Husb finally got the Idaho plates on our Car in the freezing cold yesterday and we are now Idaho legit.

So many things are so much less expensive than the DC area.  The plates (personalized with Retired Navy which costs more but it made the Husb happy) for two years were only $174.00.  Our Car insurance has gone down by over $1,000.00 a year.

Amazing!

Well, it is now 8:44 and Husb is up, and I have finished my morning chores (including laundry) and am dressed for the extreme cold.  

I am now going to run to Albertsons and get some fresh flowers because I love them.  I will then read for a bit and wait for my Friends.

Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Hugs.

Kay

What happened to Saturday?

 Yep, this is me!  I have a cold and it is worse at night and early in the morning and then I rally by taking some OTC meds.

Yesterday was cold and snowy but I managed to get quite a bit done, despite my drippy nose.

We are working on another puzzle, and this one is much more difficult.

Sissy spent the night Friday night along with her Dog Roscoe, as the snow was really coming down and we just did not know how the roads were going to be going up to the Elks where she lives.

She went to book club and then stopped here and wanted to work on the puzzle.

I felt so punk Friday afternoon that I laid on the sofa and fell asleep for three hours (I rarely nap, or I should say I am bad napper).  I woke when Sissy arrived and my head was killing me, so I went to bed after taking some more cold medicine and slept 10 hours.  I did not even awaken when she crawled in bed beside me.

We worked on the puzzle on Saturday morning and then Sissy and Hubs went up the Hill to start baking sour cream cookies for Valentines Day and I went to the grocery store (by myself) and I was very good and only spent $28.35 for the week.

I brought my groceries home and went up to Sissies and Husb and she were rolling out cookies.  I stayed away because of my drippy nose and worked on a scarf I am knitting for my aunt for her 90th birthday.

The cookies are frosted and gorgeous.  I will need to take a picture later today.

WE had dinner plans for the evening to celebrate our little Sisters significant others retirement.  It was snowing so heavily that Husb and I were concerned but the sisters were not.

We drove in snow all the time in DC, but there were no hills, and the roads were always salted and plowed.  Both sisters have four-wheel drives (this will definitely be our next Car purchase whenever that may be) so we left our Car in the Elks and Kim drove us to dinner.

It is probably one of the best Restaurants in town for Japanese cuisine, but very pricey. We sat at the large hibachi for the show and Husb, Kim and I split one entree and then ordered three sushi rolls. 

Sorry but I cook better stir fry, fried rice etc. than what we ate, but the sushi was fantastic.  We had a very good time.  It was still snowing heavily when we left the restaurant, but both Sisters mastered the roads.  We stopped by Dairy Queen and got an ice cream cake (again very pricey but of so good) and took it to lil Sis's across the bridge into Washington.  WE had many laughs and then back up to Kim's. 

Husb decided to brave the roads, and our car did just fine.  I fell into bed and slept like a rock.

Still stuffed up today and drippy but the horrible headache is gone.  A sign I am on the mend.

The trees are so beautiful this morning and the roads are clear so that is good. The temperature is really going to drop this next week, so very little melting, but no snow in the long-term forecast.

We are having dinner up at Sissies tonight and I am spending the night up there so I can get an early start on my Valentines cookies.  I make pecan short bread hearts dipped in dark chocolate and they are a favorite.  However, my pan only holds 12 cookies (I paid a fortune for this pan at Williams Sonoma years ago) so I must make many batches in the oven.

Now that the Husb is up I am going to go have a cup of Coffee with Him and work on the puzzle.  WE will listen to Mass on the radio.

Have a blessed Sunday.

Hugs;

Kay

Friday already, where does time go?

Here we are on Friday the 7th of February and I started getting a cold yesterday.  Got it from Sissy I am sure and I had a horrible headache last night, but it has abated and now I am just stuffed  up!

I went up to Sissy's yesterday to get Cold Medicine and we had some good laughs as her medicine bin (which she keeps way up high in the linen closet due to the grands) was overflowing.

Now I remember after Jel passed cleaning this thoroughly and throwing out meds that were 10 years old.  Well, I do not know where some of this stuff came from, but we threw out a counter full of expired things and the bin is almost empty.  She did have some cold medicine so that is great, and it does help.

We did not go to the grocery store as planned as Husb said forget about the milk. I have lost the craving.

So yeah, it is the 7th and I have not been to the store in a week and I am proud of me!

I then invited Sissy for dinner and told her we were starting a new puzzle!

Dinner was bleh!  Not my best effort but we ate it!

Then began work on the puzzle and it is going to be a tough one.

Sissy then had to go to Book Club and I just went to bed as my head was killing me.

She did return and worked on the puzzle with Dan until late last night.

Today I must run to the MVA as I have a question for them and then I will go and fetch Sissy for Sisters lunch.  WE need to plan some Holiday baking.

We have not done Sister's lunch since before Christmas as our schedules just have not jived.

It is very cold and windy today and I doubt there will be any melting of snow, and it is going to get colder next week!  Oh Joy!

I am done my morning chores, and I am ready to greet my public!

Have a great and productive day!

K