New Year's resolution

New Years brings a time of reflection and a time of planning for the year to come. I normally don’t set New Year’s resolutions, but this year I am.

My resolution is, excluding necessities like toilet paper, food, and toothpaste, to buy nothing new. As many of you know, I have a book obsession, but unless I can find it used I am not buying it. Of course with EBay and Amazon this should be an easy task… but since I want a real challenge my secondary resolution is not to buy from EBay or Amazon.

Oh, this should be fun!

Dinner with the Sis

Had dinner at my sis' house this evening. Here is what she cooked.

Cream of mushroom soup made with the portabellas in last week's box and onions over steak baked in the oven. Baked potatoes, that she let me know took two hours to bake and were still firm (we differ on our potato baking philosophies - she pokes holes and I don't. My are always soft in the middle, but she has informed me that I am playing with fire because eventually one will explode). At any rate, she also made broccoli and cheese, hot rolls, and for dessert she pulled some peaches out of the freezer and slathered them with cream and sugar. YUM YUM YUM!!!

Alright Ms. Martha Stewart- you could have at least thrown some flour on yourself to make it seem like it was difficult to do all that cooking!

The Picture is from Thanksgiving last year, but shows my sister's classic "I'm taste testing something" grin!

Keith W. has a great idea for Romaine

Keith emailed me this recipe, and just had to share. Simple, and sounds delicious.

Cut the Romaine in half and then grill lightly on the grill or hot pan
Drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette dressing and sprinkle with blue cheese or feta cheese.

A Time of Reflecting:
You have heard it said before that great joy is not known without great sadness, and no more apparent is that to me than around the holidays.
When we were younger the happiest times were holidays, not for the presents, but for the joy. My father would get a little carried away with the decorations, putting Christmas ornaments on the curtains, and one year painting the dining room red for the season. When we went to Gran’s on Christmas Day he would say that if the bread (That I think my mother made) was good then he made it, and if it was bad then Clint (my oldest brother) made it. Both of which – wonderful cooks, or at the very least, adventurous.

One year I asked for a real baby for Christmas, and was convinced that Santa was capable of bringing whatever I really really wanted (as long as it didn’t cost too much). This was the year I learned there was no Santa, which I was only too happy to share this new found information with my friends, especially my dear friend Katerina. Oh the scandal!

After my father took his own life, my family went through some rather dark times, with my mother being left to care for 6 children. The holidays just weren’t the same without dad, and I remember her holding back the tears on the first Christmas without him, for which I think some of my mother’s friends pitched in together to buy our Christmas presents.

However, now we are grown and we (my siblings and I), as adults, have decided to make the holidays happy again. Our children laugh and play, and don’t get overloaded with presents, because we know what true happiness consists of - togetherness. Two years ago I finally got that baby I wanted for Christmas, when Fiona was born – Santa really does exist!!! When Scott and I moved backed to Missouri, Scott started going with me to Christmas Eve church service (only fair since I celebrate Hanukkah with him), and then we go to Katerina’s grandmother’s house (Katerina passed away in 2001), and she puts up a tree just for Fiona and I. Last year, we shed a few tears when reminiscing about Katerina, but Fiona started playing with a dancing Santa and we started smiling. Children really do make the holidays wonderful, and happiness is a choice. Joy has returned to Christmas, may you all share in it!