LOTS OF PLANS!

I've been keeping busy this past week but if I don't have pictures on my camera or phone, I can't quite remember what exactly I was up to.  I recently bought a little daily planner at Target.  Emily rolled her eyes and asked what on earth I could need a planner for.  I thought that I would get organized, fill in the empty spaces with projects and organizing I wanted to get done.  Set aside a day for baking or make-ahead meals.  A specific day for blog posts(ahem)...just get my life running like a well oiled machine.  Well, it's March and the planner still has a lot of blank pages.  I think I'm more the spontaneous type anyway. 

I do love to retreat into my lab (as The Husband calls it).  I bubble and boil away all sorts of concoctions on the stove.  I bake strange confections with odd flavors and then give them away so I don't get tempted to eat a ton of sugar.

I have the neatest pan with molds that lends itself best to quick breads, and I made these little beauties.  The texture is a bit more dense than a muffin, and a sprinkle of powdered sugar adds some sweetness.  These are so perfect for dunking in a mug of coffee or tea.  

  

And I tried my hand at making a Naked Cake.  Sounds provocative, doesn't it?  Baking (and cooking in general) is leaning toward the simple and rustic, much like we see in decorating currently.  Presentation of food in photography is still carefully arranged, except now we see all the little drips and globs, sometimes a fork resting on a plate with something half eaten.  It's all bare bones and crumbs, and I think we can identify.  

So it goes with Naked Cakes.  I read an article, saw the pics and recipes, and just knew it was something I was going to try my hand at.  So this is my first attempt.  A butter cake with whipped vanilla frosting.  Three layers in 6 x 2 spring-form pans.  Trial and error of course. I spread the frosting on each layer, keeping it thick towards the edges.  I smooshed those layers down and then spread the frosting all around the sides of the cake with a wide spatula.  I wish I had a smoother effect, but it seems contradictory to want to perfect "rustic". 

  

Forget the fancy fondant and molded sugar candies.  Toss out those frosting bags and tips.  Bring on the edible flowers and berries  (I found the edible flowers near the herbs in my grocery store).  Final thoughts...I loved making this and I plan to keep delving into ideas.  Cakes have become my new cupcakes, which had been the cookies, which took the place of the pies back in the fall.    Never let failure keep you from making new failures!

I recently made some changes in the bedroom.  Last week when I was looking for a lamp for Abby at Target, I found this queen size comforter marked down 60%.  Yes, you read that right!  Once I brought it home I washed and dried it on delicate and it fluffed up so nicely.  Score.  Some have asked how I can have so much white in my house with two dogs (and yes, they are on the furniture quite a bit).  The answer:  Oxy Clean.  It's a miracle worker.  I use a little of it in all of my white laundry loads.  So Milo and Layla want to tell you that this is one cozy comforter!

And it was love at first sight with this throw from Anthropology.  Look at those tassels!  My friend Melanie joked that her kitties would be having a ball with these!  

I have a lot of irons in the fire right now.  In addition to redoing the den (and that seems to have been put on the back burner right now), I have Abby's somewhat empty room to deal with.  She's doing really well in her new place.  Her biggest challenge has been taking a new route to work, and with the snow, rain and ice we have been having, it's nerve wracking for her (and me).  I've been feeling blue off and on. but you reach a point where you have to shift your attention to other things.  So, I'm working with what I have in her old room.  Right now I'm keeping the Tiffany Blue paint color as this was done just two years ago.  This dresser looks to be in bad shape but it's actually very solid maple.  I am having a go at it with my sander and some paint, finding some new hardware.  Any advice on how to get those stickers off? :(

She didn't want this shelving unit and since it makes a great TV stand, I'll slap some paint on it as well.  I think some baskets on the shelves will look great.

This will be a guest room which practically sends me and The Husband into hysterics.  I don't think we've ever had a guest here in our lives!  Unless you count the children that have left the nest and then came back to regroup, cause a lot of upheaval, leave a ton of their belongings behind, and move on again. 

We have to buy a bed frame and mattress, and I hope to find a used headboard somewhere to jazz up.  I will never be the type to make a headboard out of pallets or cork, so don't expect any forthcoming tutorials! ;-)

During Lent we try to stick with fish on Fridays.  Well, I do more grilled cheese and pasta because I'm not an a-fish-iando when it comes to making the stuff.  I do okay with shellfish, and one of my favorite meals is cioppino, or fisherman's stew.  It's a simple tomato based dish with a variety of fish, usually a combo of shrimp, scallops, firm whitefish, mussels and clams.  I happened to have a zucchini and some mushrooms so I threw those in for color.  And the bread I bought that day was sensational.  It's baked fresh at my grocery store and it had pieces of green olives in it.  We had a great dinner Friday night.  Here's my version of cioppino:

Cioppino

Heat 5 T. butter in a large stockpot or dutch oven.  Add 1 large chopped onion and 3 cloves of minced garlic.  Cook on low until just softened.  Add 2 1 lb. 12 oz. cans of tomatoes (I used diced but you can use whole and mush them up), about 3/4 of a box of chicken stock (the boxes are 32 oz. each), 1 1/2 c. white wine, 2 bay leaves, and a T each of thyme and oregano.  Cover and simmer 45 minutes.  Add the fish of your choice, I used 1 1/2 lb. each shrimp and bay scallops, 1 lb. each little neck clams and mussels, and 1 1/2 lb. cod, cut in small chunks.  Cover and simmer 5-7 minutes, making sure that all of the clams and mussels are open.  Season with salt and pepper and put on your bibs!!

I'm happy to say I have the Pin button working so if you use Pinterest, you can hover over any picture and add it to your pages.  I also want to say thanks to so many of you ladies who are following me on Instagram.  It's so much fun!  I changed my user name recently to my blog name so you can follow me here if you'd like.  I would love to share with some of you ladies who don't always comment on the blog! 

In other news, Kevin and Mary Clare came over for dinner Sunday night with Elsie.  She is such a great baby, slept almost the entire time and when she fussed a bit, Kevin would gently swing her car/infant seat back and forth and she would be fast asleep in about a minute.  I love watching him be a father.  He's very gentle and cautious, and I can sense that he has one eye on her all the time.  He and MC are a great team. 

In some sad news, and I can't go into detail because information is very limited right now, we learned this morning that two pipes broke at the lakehouse and we have some water damage.  Please keep your fingers crossed that the damage is minimal.  Next month is about the time we start to get ready for the warm weather up there.  With all the crazy projects I have going on here, a trip to Asheville in June, a wedding in Louisville in August as well as my son Jeff's wedding in mid August, and a plan in-the-works for a trip to Nashville/Franklin, TN. in October, I just want some smooth sailing! :)  I'll be back later in the week.

Jane x

TULIPS, VIGNETTES, PARTING NOTES AND FINDING POSITIVITY

I LOVE white flowers!  I know, flowers are supposed to be bright and colorful and a sort of pick-me-up, but there is something soothing and calm about white.  Whether it's tulips, roses or carnations.  They are good for the soul.  My grocery store had them for $5.00 a bunch.  I wish I could splurge on them for every room. :)  I refresh the water everyday and cut a half inch or so at the bottom off the stems, they really suck up water.  And I have this weird stuff called Preserve that I found at the garden center when we bought our Christmas tree.  It has all the same nutrients as the little packets of powder you usually get with your cut flowers.  It's the bomb. These are just so pretty on my island where I can see them all the time.

With Abigail moving last weekend and the hunt for a few things she needed that I insisted on getting for her, I found a few things that made me happy as well.  I mostly wanted candles.  I burn them constantly when it is gloomy or after it gets to be dusk.  I truly believe the rooms become warmer, physically, though I really think it's a sensory reaction.  In our weather here in the Midwest, dipping into the minus numbers most everyday, I feel my feet freezing on the hardwood floors of the kitchen until I put warm socks on.  But come evening when I have my candles burning, I can pull the socks off and feel fine.  Subliminal?

And I was loving the birdies I found.  Think spring!  A little potpourri that has the subtle scent of coconut and I'm dreaming of beaches.  Oh, happy, happy, happy!

I was crazy busy before we moved Abby out on Saturday.  I knew she needed a nightstand and lamp (and I found a great lamp at Target).  And I found this little oak table in the basement, it used to be a TV stand for us.  I knew she wasn't going to be a fan of the outdated 1980's look, so I surprised her and painted it one afternoon last week.  

It's a very light gray, which is hard to tell in this pic.  I had the quart of paint left over from a mirror frame I painted awhile ago so it didn't cost me a penny.  I think it's so cool with the shelves and detailed sides.  Two coats of paint and a light spray of matte poly to keep it protected.  She loved it.

We moved her in last Saturday.  It was a long day but so fun.  This her bedroom on the 2nd floor.  She bought the duvet and pillows at Target, the comforter is from Marshall's,  the upholstered headboard came from Wayfair online for a song.  I gave her my super thick and comfy throw from Pottery Barn...she had been cozying up under it for a long time and I knew it would make her feel at home.  She was so thoughtful about everything she bought.  She is adamant about keeping a nice cushion in her savings account and the expenses of finding her own things for this apartment were terrifying  for her.  I tried to help (but not take away from her responsibilities) by getting her a few things.  Between the four girls, they really had all the essentials covered.

She has this wonderful long wall of built in cabinets so she didn't need a dresser.  I found a ton of inexpensive pictures frames for her at Homegoods.  She has given me a lot of pics to download and have printed and I haven't done it yet.  :(  She has many, many books, yet she keeps most of them stored inside the cabinets.  "I don't want anybody to think I'm a  nerd".   Sigh. 

She has a fabulous closet, this being the loft in the house.  The girls and their mothers were in awe of her abundance of clothes (she shops for them like her sister and I shop for our homes).  Oh, yeah, the size X-small aisle at TJ Maxx!

They say it takes a village and it sure did.  We moved the girls in and it involved the parents (mothers and fathers) of the four girls, their respective boyfriends, and some of their siblings.  Everyone chipped in; the guys moved beds, mattresses and dressers.  We moms cleaned and organized.  We had a wonderful midday meal of baked lasagna, Italian beef sandwiches and homemade mac and cheese (that I made :)).  We had great mimosa's that  always seem to be a staple at the  many of the occasions I blog about, wine and plenty of beer for the hardworking men.  After these guys unloaded SUV's and vans, they hung up the 60 inch TV my son Jeff donated and various pictures, mirrors and what have you with their power drills. 

I bonded big time with the mothers.  I had never really met them as we all live in different parts of the Southside and the girls had formed their friendships in our nearby high school where students come from all over.  All four of us were becoming empty nester's for the first time and it made for some heartfelt talk.  But it was mostly upbeat as we helped the girls get situated and participated in their excitement.

But...I so felt it the next day.  That overwhelming pull -the-covers-over-your-head sadness.  I really thank all of you for your warm wishes and advice in my last post where I blathered on about my baby leaving home.  As much as I want to say I've taken it all in stride...I haven't.  I may be veering off into left field but I want to mention a website I subscribe to called MindBodyGreen.  It's like a self help book that doesn't involve 14 chapters of redundant info that you forget in five minutes.  You simply pick and choose the articles you want to read.  In a nutshell,  Sunday afternoon, after forcing myself to take a shower and straighten up the house, I happened to go to this website and read an article posted that day called, The Upside Of Feeling Bad".  How ironic.  There was a  paragraph that resonated with me, "Accept the wave whatever the ride.  You use all of your energy pushing it away."  This was truly food for thought.  I spent a lot of time that day letting my thoughts and feelings flood over me; how I left home so easily in my 20's without so much as a glance backwards.  Did Abby have that lack of feeling that I did for home and family?  And don't get me started on why I felt that way then.  That's a whole different post if not a book.   It all boils down to me feeling what I need to feel instead of running away from it.

I capture

 pictures of Lake Shore Drive a lot, don't I?  It's an iconic part of Chicago.  I mostly share the lake view...this is the limited skyline I was able to snap through the car window when we left the Northside at about 7 that night.  Beautiful, but it made me feel a little empty.  The siren song that took my girl.  

In spite of what I read and did Sunday (and I hope you take a peek at that website), yesterday and today I have thrown myself into cleaning, organizing, laundry, cooking and baking.  I took Layla to the vet yesterday to get the ear plug taken out (love that sexy Dr. B.  I am such a shameless cougar!).  That perked me up (the getting out, puleeeez!) and I was also happy to get a few phone calls from Abby and some texts.  She wanted pics and videos of the dogs and the prints of her photos.  She is nesting in her new place, as I am as well.  It's a new and somewhat difficult time for both of us, but it will make us stronger and more mature.  And above all, we will always have each other.  That will never change.

I promise in my next post that I will have my act together and share some boring recipes, maybe a few mundane shopping trips with Emily.  I might coax The Husband out for dinner at a new place, and yes, I'm visiting MC and our precious Elsie Thursday.  Can't wait!  I wanted to tell you that I received in the mail the sweetest gift for the baby from one of my very best blogger friends, Mary.  I have carried on way too long so I am going to post a picture of my granddaughter with this lovely present in my next post.  Thank you, Mary.  Please visit her, she's a lovely person!

If I haven't visited you or thanked you for your comments, I will be around soon.  It has been crazy here.  And I lost a bunch of ladies I followed by email.  I finally figured out those blogs somehow ended up in my Spam folder, so friends, I'm catching up, it wasn't personal.

I'll be back soon (and on a more positive note!).

Jane xx 

Joining in on a new multi-blogger fun party called Share Your Style.  Visit and see some great ideas at No Minimalist Here!

COMINGS & GOINGS

I'm a little remiss in wishing all of you a happy Valentine's Day.  I hope it was just the way you wished it to be and that you were snuggling with your loved one(s), whether at home or at a movie or a restaurant.  More on that for me later.

I really, really want to thank all of you, how kind you are.  I was so touched and I am so simply amazed (and I shouldn't be after all these years of blogging!) by the love, compassion and spirit of my fellow bloggers after I posted about the birth of my first grandchild.   These congratulatory wishes were passed on to Kevin and Mary Clare and so appreciated.  :)

 

We visited once Elsie came home on Saturday.  I thought I would share a few pics of the nursery Mary Clare worked so very hard on...a very simple but sweet decor.  The room is done in soft pink and cream with some teal blue accents.  

I think this sign that Emily had made as a gift says so much.

This little angel slept the entire time we visited.  So wonderful to just look at her and eat up how perfect she is, and to spend time with the parents as they relaxed and recuperated.  MC went through 16 hours of labor.  She needs a lot of rest...I think they were just happy to be home and settled and I think Elsie is going to be a very good baby as far as fussiness (fingers crossed). 

As much as I want to say that life has left off leaving me all warm and fuzzy, I said hello to one little angel and I feel I am saying goodbye to another.  Que the drama!  My youngest daughter Abigail signed on for the apartment with her three lifelong friends.  They move this coming weekend.  I went with Abby for the final "walk through" yesterday.  Lest you forget...my heart is aching over her leaving...my baby and all the worries I have for her well being (and my emotional state of mind!) When my two sons left home, and they sometimes came back for various reasons, I was so sure they could take care of themselves.  Emily left when she got married and lives just 5 minutes away, surrounded by family (for God's sake...Papa lives next door!). 

But this girl is moving to the Northside (we are on the Southside) of Chicago.  For reference...downtown Chicago is central  We are perhaps 40 minutes apart.  

On the way to her apartment yesterday, I took a few snaps of Lake Shore Drive.  No editing or filters at all.  I think it's beautiful, if not frigid looking.

Abby in front of her apartment building.

Homes across the street.  This is an up and coming area of Chicago that has a lot of young people and couples moving in.  She is just a few houses down from a main street that boasts lots of shops, restaurants and just about all you need in a good neighborhood.

The apartment is actually a "coach house" located behind another home...this is the house that is right off the street.  Many doctors from the University of Chicago Hospital lived in this area quite awhile ago, the homes are now over one hundred years old, including the building Abby and her friends are in.  The coach houses that are now being rehabbed for rental are located behind the large homes, and were built for the servants and their families.  Many of these

have been rehabbed and that's the case with the building Abby is moving into.  

There are so many beautiful architectural details but I don't want to do a "home tour".  I want to capture the spirit of the day for these four girls.  Here are Abby and Meg measuring for their TV.  My son Jeff has donated one he had from his last apartment.  The girls have a living room, dining room, kitchen and 4 bedrooms.  And one bath.  Ha!  Lots of luck gals!

Abby's room is actually in the loft area...she has beautiful light, slanted ceilings and a wall full of built-ins where she can store clothes. etc., and on top, a space to display pictures and treasures.  Here she is measuring for curtains.  These girls have great plans for a homey and yet personal look.  

Abby asked if I would go with her to Marshall's last Friday night to find a comforter and a few essentials.  It was a little different for us..this is something I do with my daughter Emily quite a lot...not so much Abigail. Abby is a pro at shopping for clothes, shoes, etc., but home decor?  We separated, as Emily and I always do, but every few minutes I would hear Abby's  little voice call, "Mom?  Where are you, Mom?"  And she wanted my thoughts. 

I couldn't help but fall into the excitement of these girls.  They are going to have a great experience.  Finally seeing where Abby is going to live made me feel much better about her moving out.  Well, not so much the moving out part...but where she is moving  to!

Friends forever...Megan, Nora, Abby and Shannon.  We had a champagne toast!

Back-tracking...Valentine's Day.  I have heard so much about couples not doing anything special for this romantic day anymore, and yeah, I have often felt that it is for the younger crowd.  I can't imagine us holding hands across a table and counting the minutes until we get get home!  I've tried to make it a bit special by having a little spread of appetizers in the evening...a little champagne.  Something to set it off from any other day of the year.   We all know restaurants are booked, and this year, the big day being on Saturday...oh my...get a table at restaurant...no way!!

I succeeded though at making reservations at a restaurant in downtown Chicago after researching and reading many reviews (as I always do).   I simply decided we needed to change up the routine.  Surprisingly, The Husband  loved the idea!

We had a great time, from a pre-dinner drink at the bar, to a wonderful dinner that surprisingly didn't cost an arm and a leg.  The decor was awesome.  I was so proud of myself for making the plans...The Husband would have been content with ordering a pizza at home, yet responded positively to the whole evening!!  God love him!   At 9 degrees and heavy winds,,,we were troopers!

On to good things.  Shoes.  I have to change the subject lest you think I am no longer  the Blondie you know.  Are these not the bomb? 

   I will hopefully find a place to wear them soon.  

I was in Pier 1 today, I was buying this and that for Abby's new home and without any plans...found myself in the making of an Easter basket for my new little one.  The salesperson doing my ringing up was very pleasant but not the talkative type.  As she did her thing I started to tell her about my newborn granddaughter, and my baby daughter leaving  within a week,  How everything I was buying was for them.  She did a lot of of "Hmmm, that's wonderful."  She was busy I know.  But still, I whipped out my phone and shared a picture of Elsie and then one of Abby.  "These are my babies."  I said, yet she had little to say.  It didn't matter, I still  felt the tears coming.  I guess that's life.  At least my life right now.  :)

Jane xx

A BABY ANNOUNCEMENT

 

 

Elsie Jane

February 10, 2015

11:18 p.m.

8 lbs., 12 oz.

21 inches

Proud Parents

Kevin & Mary Clare

xx 

DOG DAYS OF WINTER

I did a little vignette on a table in my family room, something to capture the essence of outside the window right now.  A big lack of color, bare trees and shadows on the snow.  Maybe I should spread some bright reds and yellows and blues around to brighten up the place.  I think February is one of the harder months for many to deal with, that sort of halfway point between the start and end of winter.  I really don't mind cold weather, I sort of roll with it.  And gloomy days are taken in stride, I think of them as days to just cozy up inside and have a good excuse to be lazy.  But lately it gets a bit lonely around here; busyness keeps me occupied and I am running out of ideas for busyness!

When the girls were young we made handmade valentine's with the usual construction paper, lacy white doilies and lots of glitter.  We hung drugstore hearts on the windows and baked cookies with pink frosting.  I really don't decorate at all for the occasion now.  I lean towards pink and red flowers and candles, and I have cute little XOXO decoration on my front door, but that's it.  It's probably good that I cut back from December until spring! lol!  I usually find one or two bunnies to add to my collection then, and I have already seen the critter Pier 1 has out this year.  Oh, my.  I think it's more hare than rabbit.  I can't wait to grab him up!

Good old Tulo came to visit yesterday and brought his owner, my son.  This dog is always panting, 24/7, no matter the time of year.  When he's not slurping down Milo and Layla's water, he cries to go out.  This was probably his third trip out to my backyard, and he would just lie in the snow chewing on sticks he managed to find buried.  He's a big, lovable polar bear.

Little Layla developed some complications from the ear infection she had a few weeks ago.  She was scratching at the left ear and shaking her head a lot, the way we do when we get water in our ears.  So off we went to the vet this afternoon and it turns out she has a lot of debris in the ear left over from the infection.  He put some sort of oil plug way down in it and this dissolves everything.  She has it taken out in two weeks.  I think she has a crush on Dr. Bauer.  I've been going back to him instead of our original vet, who is a female, as he treated her from the start of this infection.  She used to nip at the other doctor but lately, when cute Dr. Bauer walks in, her tail wags, her ears go back and I swear she bats her eyelashes.  Did I mention he was cute?  Oh yeah, I did.  ;-)

Do any of you eat when you're bored?  We start off in January with such good intentions and before you know it, the refrigerator is a constant source of entertainment.  My addiction to sweets has gone down drastically lately, I'm not sure why, hormones?  I'm not going to question it, that's for sure.  But I like something small between meals, usually something salty, and almonds just don't thrill me all the time.  The other day I made a little spread to eat with veggies.  I pretty much followed the holiday appetizer my mother always made, stuffed celery.  

She simply mixed softened cream cheese with chopped green olives (with the pimento), and spread it on whole stalks of celery.  We loved crunching on these while we waited for the ham or turkey to be ready.  So here is simply 8 ounces of softened cream cheese, a 6 ounce jar of drained and chopped olives, and a pinch each of garlic and onion powder.  I kept it covered in the fridge for a few days with a plastic container of cut up celery next to it.  Oh yum...creamy, salty and tart.  The perfect snack.

And I made the most fabulous dinner the other night as well.  It's a variation of a recipe I found in a new cookbook of mine, Skinnytaste.  This is a fantastic book filled with recipes that have been trimmed down of fats, sugar and processed ingredients.  I really only changed it because I didn't have some of the ingredients and it wasn't going to stop me.  In a nutshell, I made a dry rub of:

1 t. garlic powder

3/4 t. kosher salt

1/2 t. cumin

1/2 t. paprika

1/4 t. oregano

1/4 t. chipotle chili powder or cayenne pepper

*Tip...I really don't measure much anymore when it comes to herbs and spices.  Measure a teaspoon of salt or pepper in your palm.  You will then get a future idea as to what that amounts to just by looking at it.  And if you want more or less of something...go for it.  

I used the rub on a 1.5 pound piece of flank steak, which is super lean.  I really think you could use boneless chicken breasts or even a nice piece of salmon.  Let the meat sit for 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, make your vinaigrette:

3 T. fresh lemon juice (the recipe suggests 2 T. lime and 1 lemon)

2 T. olive oil

1 T. minced scallions

1 T. minced fresh cilantro 

S & P

Shake or stir.

I used a grill pan to cook the steak over medium to high heat.  Use a thermometer because the thickness of your meat will vary from mine.  I cooked each side for 10 minutes to have a medium rare temp.  Let the meat rest for 5 minutes and then cut it against the grain in to strips.

While the steak is cooking, assemble your salad.  I made 2 plates that started with a layer of romaine.  I then added some minced shallots and halved cherry tomatoes.  I think you can do what you want with this part.  I then spooned some of the vinaigrette over the greens, laid a few slices of steak over that, and then topped it off with the remaining dressing.  As I said, I divided this over two plates for The Husband and I, and I had a lot of extra meat which I'll use in one way or the other.  

I'm still working on a Pinterest button.  Feel free to cut and paste or come back next week when I hopefully have it.  

 

I just caught Layla going to town on a rawhide bone, she must be feeling better.  The little monster.  

And I'll end with really exciting news.  Tomorrow morning Mary Clare's labor is going to be induced.  I am beyond excited, the whole family is.  A new generation of B's!  Say a prayer and the next time I come back I'll have a few snaps of this long awaited miracle!

Jane x

GIFTS, SNOW, FOOD & MANY BLESSINGS!

Thank you for all of the sweet Happy Birthday wishes.  Between my trip downtown, which doesn't happen too often, and then a really great day on my actual birthday Tuesday, I am feeling so spoiled!  I spent that day just hanging out in the kitchen (my favorite place), making cupcakes which I pretty much gave away to everyone and anyone (as I certainly don't need them lurking around here!).  I made a big pan of mini-cupcakes, vanilla with a cream cheese frosting...

...and then some larger ones, simply because they are less tedious than all those little ones you scoop out from the batter by the teaspoon.   I'm lazy like that.  

  At the last minute I invited Emily and Mike over for dinner.  Sounds strange to be making your own dinner on your birthday but The Husband and I splurged and had a culinary feast over the weekend... I still wanted to do something fun.  I made lasagna, a salad and crescent rolls.  And we had cupcakes for dessert of course.  I probably shouldn't even show the table I set...someone set their plastic cup of ice water down.  Well, real life intrudes.  :)

I won another giveaway.  Oh my gosh!  I should be playing the lottery!  This beautiful handmade pillow came from my "Best New Friend", Vera, from Row Homes and Cobblestones.  We "met" just a few months ago.  Have you ever read comments on a blog you are visiting and just had a sort of feeling about the person...as if you knew they could be a friend?   That's how I felt about Vera.  I had to go to her blog.  We commented back and forth, emailed, and soon found we were soul mates.

She made several pillows for her recent giveaway and chose two winners.  Each pillow was different and so beautiful.  The one I liked the most (and it was so hard to decide), was this one and the gorgeous inscription on it is, "Life Is But A Dream", in Italian.  Love!

I wanted you to see the fringe on the ends.  Wow, you just don't see that too much anymore.  This pretty pillow has taken center stage on my living room sofa for all to see.  And the candy...sorry, The Husband snatched it up before me, I guess that's a good thing.  Thank you Vera! :) 

On to some food, but not a recipe.  I thought I'd make mention of the popularity I've seen of roasted vegetables, especially in the fall, and also in the summer on the grill.  However, I was always disappointed in my results making them.  The veggies came out either hard or mushy.  Some were dried up beyond recognition, so unlike the vibrant pictures I saw in magazines and cookbooks.  The truth is, not all veggies are created alike.  After a bit of experimentation, I came up with a great method, and we had the most delicious dinner recently that cast a whole new light on oven roasted vegetables. 

 I browned chicken breasts (bone in) in a saute pan with olive oil.  This seals in the juices.  I removed the chicken from the pan and set aside.  I then added some roughly chopped root vegetables...carrots, turnips, and parsnips to the same pan.  They caramelize a bit that way, releasing sugars.  I put the chicken breasts in a casserole dish, arranged the veggies around them, added a few sprigs of rosemary for flavor and a pinch of S & P.  Covering with foil, this baked for a half hour at 350 degrees.  You can omit the chicken if you want a meatless meal, very easily done. 

  Now that you've baked (and steamed with the foil) these fibrous sort of veggies, you can add the softer, quick cooking ones.  I did asparagus, leeks and cherry tomatoes.  I drizzled everything with a little olive oil and seasoned with Mrs. Dash.  Love this stuff!  Cover with the foil again for 15 minutes, remove foil and bake another 10 minutes.  Perfection!! 

I thought this was great.  It sounds like a lot of work but it's not.  I actually did the chopping and sauteing while I was putting groceries away, using up the vegetables I had in the refrigerator to make room for more.  This is foolproof.  I hope you try it.  I still haven't figured out the Pin It button but I thank all of you for the help.  I just need someone computer savvy to help.  In the meantime, you can always cut and paste the recipes and I would be so flattered! :)

Little Elsie has not entered our world yet and Mary Clare is a trooper, still working full time, just waiting it out.  The original due date is February 11, but because the baby is growing by leaps and bounds, a delivery by caesarian was contemplated.  Right now it's a "wait and see" sort of thing but I know it's weighing on MC and Kevin's minds.  Say a prayer and let's keep counting the days, hours and minutes!!  My friend Cindy from Applestone Cottage made this gorgeous little dress for Elsie.  You probably remember that Cindy and I became blogger friends way back, six years ago in fact.  We meet up personally every year.  She has taught herself to sew in the past few years and has been churning out clothes for her two granddaughters like crazy.  She has a grandson on the way, can't wait to see what she comes up with.  She never stops!!!   This is darling and the little sash ties in a bow in the back.  Thanks, Cindy!

And as if you can't have enough thoughtfulness from blogger friends...thank you Melanie from Comfy House for the birthday card.  That and the recent giveaways I've won, how lucky can a girl get?

I grocery shopped today.  Before you think I'm some sort of hero being out there in 13 degree weather, consider this.  There have been good, good people in our community driving around with shovels and sand helping others stranded in drifts and plowed in driveways.  Just randomly driving around, helping where they can.  The big plows come by and basically make a wall of snow in front of our homes and driveways.  With the bitter cold, it's so hard to shovel.  I've gotten stuck backing out, but I have years of experience and have done okay getting out of the mess.  Abby has gotten stuck a few times trying to back out of the driveway.  The Husband and her boyfriend, Tom, were trying to push her car out yesterday when a good Samaritan driving down our street jumped out to help.  Wow, it makes you believe in humanity again.  

Well, off I go.  Let's hope for a warm up here and good wishes for the East coast yet again.  Be safe.

Jane xx