Another Daybook . . .

Outside my window . . . Hello!  It's been a long time since my last post...life has been a little crazy ;0)  But, hopefully things will slow down a little and I can try to get back to regular blogging and visiting.  

This is what was outside my window this morning, 6 inches of new snow.  Some of it has melted because of warmer temperatures today, but it's still there, like it or not.  It did cover up the ugly winter grass and vole trails.  I think the voles have overtaken our lawn over the winter, and that means lots of yard work this spring, if spring ever gets here that is.  

This is what I saw one day when I opened my front door.  These icicles were probably 4 feet long.

I was at the church one day, and felt pretty lucky that these icicles weren't hanging off of my house!

On my playlist . . . 

This has been a very emotional month for our family.  I think I told you that  my grandson has been called on a mission for our church, to the North Adriatic Mission, which takes in, Croatia, Slavonia, and Serbia.  We are so happy for him, but at the same time my heart is already missing him.  He will be gone for two years.  This has been a dream that is finally coming true for Brody.

What I'm thinking . . . We had a farewell dinner for Brody after his farewell at church on Sunday.  It was wonderful, so many of his family and friends came to support him and wish him well.  

Bob and I with Brody.

All but one of my grandchildren.

Brody will be very missed.  He leaves on the 29th of March.  He will spend 6 weeks at the Missionary Training Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, so that he can learn Croatian and Slovenian, two of the most difficult languages in the world to learn. At his farewell, he read two scriptures in Croatian, it's amazing that he can already speak and read some of this difficult language.  We are excited for him to start this new journey in his life!  

What I'm thankful for . . . Well, it's March, and I am happy for birthdays!  My oldest grandchild, Christian, the one missing from the photo, had a birthday on the 15th, and we had fun celebrating his birthday with him.  We went out to dinner and then came home for cake and ice cream, his cake was brownies.  We loved getting to spend time with him. 

Something I love . . . Looking at travel trailers or just getting out for an afternoon.  Last Saturday Bob and I decided to go to the trailer show.  No, we don't need a new trailer but it was fun to look.  This is one I really liked.  It had some fun bells and whistles, but I really love my old trailer...I think we'll keep it for a while.  The new trailers are very pretty, with a very pretty price tag, and this wasn't even one of the fancy ones! 

Something we are working on . . . Snow removal.  We've had so much snow here in Idaho, that everyone is afraid of flooding.  We have stairs in our basement that go out into the backyard, and the snow is so deep that my husband was afraid it would come down the stairs and flood us.  So, here is a picture of him trying to move the snow away from the stairs, and making a mess of the yard ;0)

I'm wearing . . . Because it's still cold outside, I'm wearing a sweater, sweat pants and my fuzzy slippers.  It seems like it's my favorite outfit these days.  One day it will warm up and I can break out my sandals!

Creating . . . My creative juices have stopped flowing.  I'm still going through things and getting rid of or donating boxes of items I haven't used in years, or things that I no longer need.  It's an ongoing process for me.  My next project is to clean and declutter out from under the stairs.  It's amazing how much can fit in that space.

In the kitchen . . . Meals have been hard for me, but I'm working on it.  The other day a dear friend brought us a big box of elk meat.  He and his son got an elk this year, but they are the only ones who like it.  Lucky for us, we love it!  When I was a girl, most of our meat was wild game and fish, so I grew up eating it.  Last night I fried some up, threw in a sliced onion, let is simmer on low for a while, and it was delicious!  I'm looking forward to making a roast for dinner one of these first nights, it's always delicious. I'll try to remember to take a photo of it.

My granddaughter texted me last night and wanted the recipe for my banana bread.  This is a wonderful recipe that my sister gave me years ago, but it's my go-to recipe for banana bread.

Banana Bread - makes one loaf 

1/2 cup butter 

1 1/2 cup sugar 

2 beaten eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. soda

1/4 cup sour milk or buttermilk 

1 cup mashed banana

Cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs and vanilla, beat until fluffy.  Add dry ingredients, alternate with milk and banana.  Beat well.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  

One of my goals in the next few months is to make her a book of some of my favorite recipes, and some of her favorite recipes that I make.  A new bride always needs a good cookbook.

Something to leave you with . . .  I love it when I can see the sunset in the north, and it's is perfectly pink. 

Suddenly the horizon seemed wrapped in a mass of pale pink clouds... a perfect rose without a break or rift. It was as if a pink aurora had flashed out low down in the sky, giving everything around a roseate tinge. ~Emily Read, "Hugh Granger's Wooings," 1874

Be safe . . . XOXO

Hugs and Love, 

Barb

My Daybook . . .

Outside my window . . .  This is what it looked outside my window a few nights ago... I'm ready for spring.  Today the wind is blowing and the snow is drifting over the roads and in the yard, I'm kinda done with winter :0(  I just need to remember that we need the snow so badly, and I know I will appreciate it in the summer when everything is green and beautiful.  Plus, I know that I will complain about the heat and wish it was cooler.

On my playlist . . . 

I've been deep cleaning my kitchen, so I've had Alexa playing old country music to keep me going.  It seems like every song that played had a memory attached to it.  Not necessarily about old crushes, but about things from my past, good things and sometimes not so good.  Isn't it funny how music can bring back all of those feelings and memories that we had completely forgotten about?  It has been fun to drift down memory lane while working and keeping busy.  

What I'm thinking . . . I'm thinking about how fun we had at my grandson's, birthday.  Nathan turned 12 on March 1st, and is the first of many birthdays this month.  We had dinner with them, of course, one of his choosing.  We had biscuits and gravy with scrambled eggs and homemade sourdough biscuits (they were delicious!!), birthday cake and rice pudding, another one of his favorites, with ice cream.  I made the birthday cake, and my daughter made the rice pudding, so yummy!  After dinner we played a game called, What do you Meme, for families.  It was really fun, if you have older children or grandchildren it's a hoot!

I would love to know what he is thinking in this photo!  And, I would love to know what his brother is thinking!

Nathan loves magic, and so this gift was one of his favorites.

What I'm thankful for . . . I'm thankful for good health.  I'm feeling so much better after my surgery.  I have more energy, I am off of several medications, my feet don't hurt, and I've lost a few pounds...these are all side benefits.  The biggest and best benefit is that I no longer have stomach problems, and no more heartburn!

Something I love . . . I bought new computer/reading glasses, and I love them!  My glasses with the bifocal in them just don't work good when I am reading or working on the computer . . . I'm alway tipping my head up, and it's uncomfortable.  These are kinda big, which I love, but they are really comfortable and easy to wear.  Here is the link if you are interested.  They're called, ZXYOO 3 pack, oversize square reading glasses from Amazon.  You get 3 pair of glasses in the pack, or 4 pair, which ever works for you.  I have one in each room that I need them. 

I'm wearing . . . My big fluffy house coat and my fluffy slippers.  Did I mention it's really cold and snowy outside?  I'll change into my mom uniform soon, sweats a t-shirt and warm socks.  After all, it's a stay-at-home kind of day.

Creating . . . I haven't really got any projects going right now.  Although, I am creating a few messes as I deep clean my kitchen.  My daughter told me that she loves the hot pads I made her, so I'll probably get into my yarn stash and make her a few more.

In the kitchen . .. Well, besides cleaning, which I will finish up today, I plan on making a ground turkey meatloaf in muffin tins for dinner.  I just make my favorite meatloaf recipe, put the mix in muffin tins, that I have sprayed with cooking spray,  and bake at 375 degrees for about 15 to 20 minutes.  I love the little individual portions.  Not only do they cook fast, they freeze beautifully.  

I plan on making a meal plan soon.  I find that I actually save money when I have a meal plan, because when I go grocery shopping, I just get what I need, not what sounds good at the moment.  I'll post it when I get it done.  I like seeing other peoples menu ideas, so maybe I can inspire you in some way too!

Just sayin' . . . From my Irish roots . . .

Have a wonderful week-end!  Be safe XOXO

Hugs and Love,

Barb

March Madness Begins soon and Hodge Podge . . .

 

We still have snow.  Lots of snow.  Tonight it's snowing and blowing... lots of snow.  We had planned a trip to town tomorrow for some groceries and gifts, but I think we'll just stay home and stay warm.  I'm tired of the snow, but I know we need it, and so I'm doing the best I can to tolerate it.  

Well, like my title says, March Madness begins for me very soon.  We start off with a birthday on the 1st, then on  the 15th, 16th, 17th and 30th of March.  My mom's birthday is on the 22nd, and my granddaughter's is on the 13th.  Even though they're not with us now, we celebrate their birthdays in our hearts.  We also have a missionary farewell, on the 12th, and a family dinner on the 11th...or maybe the 12th, we haven't decided.  I am also taking Averi on the 22nd for 11 days while her parents take a much needed vacation.  I will probably get even less blogging done than I do now!  So, like I said, March Madness.

I've been organizing the basement, and believe it or not, I don't have that much more to do.  Maybe we'll try to work on that tomorrow.  I also want to wash down and clean out my kitchen cabinets...what to do, what to do... maybe both, we'll see when my energy runs out ;0)  

Today, on our way home from church we ran into a flock of turkeys.  We haven't seen them for a while, but it looks like today was the day to flirt with the girls.  They are so beautiful, and apparently they all wanted the attention of this one female!  I love how she is really looking them over...

This guy was really showing off!  Isn't he pretty?!

And speaking of birds, these guys are always hungry.  It's been such a long cold winter that we try to keep food in the feeders all the time.  They eat a lot!

Last week, Tanner's school was celebrating Harry Potter, so he dressed up like Harry.  He really does make the best, Harry Potter! 

I'll leave you with these silly, snow puns...I warned you, they're cheesy!

• What do you call it when it gets so cold that the cash machine won’t function?
  A spending freeze!

• Why can’t you depend on snowmen to hang around for long?
  They’re too flaky!

• Mother knows best, and when winter comes, Mother Nature snows best.

Stay safe . . . XOXO

Hugs and Love, 

Barb