Spot On Dinner ! Yum !!!

~~~" If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold , it would be a merrier world." J.R.R. Tolkein~~~I cannot leave Hubby alone with the Food Network. It is dangerous I tell you ! I go to bed with a spotless kitchen ( I am a night person and I clean before I go to bed ) and I wake up with the kitchen looking like an army of chefs were busy while I slept. Gosh darn-it, the Food Network strikes again. Dear Hubby was inspired by Mario, Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson....Bobby Flay, anyway, Hubby has whipped up a gourmet breakfast again ! Since I am not a morning person, breakfast just doesn't appeal to me until around noon. So after many years of marriage he knows NOT to wake me to eat breakfast. Just leave me a cup of very good coffee and I will come around and enjoy leftover breakfast round noon!~~~

~~~Since I have discovered the world of blogs, and FOOD BLOGS...Hubby has had a whole new world opened up. Now we have the NOBLE PIG ( click on sidebar) to seduce my Hubby. He checks her blog in the morning. He could not wait to tell me about her new postings when I was away for a few days. He clicks on ALL her food and wine links ! And he loves to try her recipes . So, here goes another posting about food. Mind you, I am not going to post the recipe, Cathy at Noble Pig does that very well and this recipe is hers..so check out her posting titled 'A Tiny Addiction" for that.~~~

~~~Here are the assembled ingredients to the recipe. Scallops, Champagne grapes , butter, onion, lemon. Our ingredients are lacking the almonds...Hubby forgot to buy them assuming we had them already. So we tried this with toasted pine nuts...it was O.K., but almonds would have been better, and since Hubby bought lots of scallops and grapes, he will pick up some almonds on the way home from work and we will have this dish tomorrow night too ! With almonds. Hey, any excuse to eat this again works.~~~

~~~Hubby is busy preparing our dinner. He asks me to go out to the garden and pick lettuce for the salad. I pick lettuce, fling a few fat slugs I found eating my lettuce to the ducks, then come on in and wash the lettuce very well. Hubby will assemble the salad to his liking.~~~

~~~Dinner is ready. Hubby has selected his wine of choice, we cooked green beans freshly picked from our garden, and to the salad Hubby has added tomatoes and Feta cheese.~~~

~~~Is your mouth watering ? Does this make you hungry ? It should. This is tongue tingling, toe tickling, heart warming good !~~~

~~~Hubby waits for me to taste his labor of love. ~~~

~~~Yes, it is pretty good. I think we will have to try this again tomorrow night WITH almonds!!!

~~~"Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity." Voltaire

What Goes On In Vegas...Shouldn't Go On Anywhere !

~~~Here we are, at the famous Mirage Hotel and Casino to see the beautiful lions and tigers, the dolphins and Secret Garden. The Lions belong to Siegfreid and Roy....in fact, I think all the animals here belong to them. The animals and gardens are beautiful. No one can argue that. BUT.......this was kind of like wading through open sewers to see a pretty flower. ~~~~~~Here #1 granddaughter poses for me in front of one of the pretty tropical gardens. ~~~

~~~#3 granddaughter and her fluffy stuffed pet. ~~~

~~~#4 granddaughter swings on the railing overlooking the amazing white lions.~~~

~~~#6 granddaughter waiting for me to stop taking pictures and PICK HER UP !~~~

~~~A good night's sleep after a very busy, fun, hot day in Vegas.~~~

~~~We were in Vegas because our youngest son and his wife had a business conference, and since Vegas is close to where the oldest son and his 4 daughters live., they invited me along for the road trip and family visit. We stayed at the Marriot, which is a good 10 miles from the famous Vegas Strip. I had seen the Strip oh, say 45 years ago when with my parents, we drove through on our way to Oregon. Our parents parked our family car in the shade, left me and my sisters in the car..and then they went into a casino to feed coins to slot machines. We were out of Vegas within 2 to 3 hours. The Vegas of the late 50's and early 60's was a bit different than the Vegas of today..probably no more or less decadent, it is just so much MORE of everything depraved and decadent. ~~~For some reason, after surfing the web and finding Vegas supposedly had Kid Friendly activities and attractions I thought taking the girls to the Strip for some of these attractions would be fun. So, let me put it this way...just tuck your child's bedtime story book into the pages of the latest very naughty, no one should read it, magazine. Now go ahead, read the story to your children....they won't notice the naughty pictures will they ? ~~~Yes, the attractions were noteworthy, and even amazing. Yes, many of the people working in these places were very nice and even helpful. But why view flowers in a sewer when you can view them in a garden? Everywhere you look Vegas has super huge signs and screens, with pictures you would not, should not have on view for children..actually, us grown ups shouldn't be viewing the filth either. I am choosing to NOT describe the pictures and videos the size of houses that were plastered all over the place. Let's just say that you have to have very special magazines and T.V. channels to see these at home. In Vegas they are IN YOUR FACE ! ~~~And........to reach any of the so called kid friendly attractions, you all have to traipse through the casinos. While you're traipsing through Sodom and Gomorrah your little ones will ask you all sorts of questions you do not want to answer. And( here I show my indifference to gambling) the casinos gave me the creeps. I have actually never gambled in a casino so was shocked at the zombies playing the machines. Really, glazed eyes, oblivious to surroundings. The noises and smells and what I saw gave me the creeps. I now know I do not ever want to get used to this and think it is a fine and dandy way to spend some time and money. But hey, I don't judge you your thrills. ~~~So I guess you know how I feel about Vegas. We had a pleasant and special time together at the hotel, on their grounds and in the pool. We cherish the time we had together and would do it again, except, EXCEPT---I would have stayed at the hotel and nixed the Strip. But you knew I would say that. ~~~"And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper,.......and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them." Romans 1:28 & 32

Spot On "Family Trip" to Vegas

~We've loaded the car and we're on our way to Vegas ! Youngest son Daniel and his wife Breezy are going on a business trip and since oldest son and his 4 daughters live 2-3 hours away from Vegas in California, they will join us for a family get-together! Daniel and Breezy. Daniel is a farrier (horse-shoer) and horse trainer. He used to ride bulls and bucking horses and calf-rope too. Fortunately for me, his Mom, he doesn't rodeo anymore .

~Oldest son David, fresh out of 12 years with the U.S.M.C., and 2 tours of Iraq as a tanker. Last tour as a tank commander . I am also thankful he is not active U.S.M.C. anymore. Here David poses for me with his 4 daughters, 4 of my 6 granddaughters .

~Aunt Breezy swims in the hotel pool with # 6 Granddaughter ! The hotel pool was one of the trip highlights for the little girls. 

Uncle Daniel also takes a turn at swimming with #6 Granddaughter. 

Uncle Daniel, the Human Water Park !

How many little girls can grab and hang on ?

~~~Help!~~~

I get to cuddle #3 Granddaughter.

Aunt Breezy is the coolest! Really, that is what the nieces and nephew say !

And Uncle Daniel rocks !

~I had a great time, with 4 very energetic and friendly little girls. I am blessed with good health and lots of energy so I was able to keep up with them, and I slept well at night. We swam, played in the sand , took walks around the beautiful and vast gardens and pools of the Vegas Marriot Hotel and just hung out together. ~We did spend one hectic day on the Vegas Strip, to see the 'Kid Friendly" attractions. More on that tomorrow. But I say, vacation wise, Vegas is for adults and if kid friendly is your priority there are hundreds, probably thousands of other places you should choose !

What Goes On In Vegas......Might Be On My Blog !

~~~I am going on a road trip to Vegas with some of my favorite people .We join some more of our favorite people when we get there,time to pack .I hate road trips, and I really do not like the heat or particularly care much for the desert, so guess what I am doing at the hottest time of the year ? I am going on a road trip, to the desert, in the summer . But I am very excited to go on this road trip because I will be driving to Vegas with my youngest son Daniel and his wife Breezy ! We will be meeting up with my oldest son David and his four daughters,four of my granddaughters .How can I NOT be excited ? All of these precious people are not only related...they are FUN!!!! (sorry Breezy about the bad picture ) Here, Daniel and Breezy have driven about 5 - 6 hours to pick me up for the trip.We are checking our route.

~Wouldn't you know it, since Hubby will be in charge of the critters while I am gone, I go out to do my morning feeding and there is MR. BRAINLESS ( aka Goth ) with an injured horn. The numbskull ( quite a literal term for him) has been bashing away at the fences, the tree, etc., to get to the ewes, and caused damage to his horn, leaving a bloody, gaping wound at the base of his horn. Really, you can lift the flap of skin at the base and see all the inside parts of anatomy you DON'T want to see ! And I'm leaving tomorrow...I can't leave Hubby to manage this. ~~~So, it is time to move Goth in with the ewes so he will be busy and not get himself any more injured while I am gone. This means we need to move the ram lambs OUT of the ewe pen where they are so happy with their Moms. Well, they are not happy tonight, they have been bawling all night for their Moms, but they'll get over it. Meanwhile, we catch Goth, apply triple antibiotic to the base of his horn, put a ram mask on him, and spray him with fly repellent in the hopes the flies will leave him alone to heal. Then..hooray, he is in with the girls ! (if you click the picture it will enlarge and you can see some of the damage ) ~Here is Goth with the ram mask. The mask blocks his ability to look straight ahead, thus making it a little more difficult for him to run rapidly and ram straight ahead. He can see fine out of the sides of his head. Like blinders on horses. This really has make a good difference for our ram management.

~~~Off to Vegas ~~~

From My Porch

~~~This is Delilah. She is my only non-purebred Jacob sheep. Delilah is 1/2 Jacob, and 1/2 Romney. I think she is sweet, and she gives me a large quantity of brown / black wool. Today I will spin up some of her wool.~~~~~~On the way to the porch, after checking on Delilah, I got distracted by this beautiful dragonfly. I am fascinated by dragonflies, and the varieties around here are many. I think having a big pond in our front yard attracts them, and also provides a constant food source for them too.

~~~Here is a basket of Delilah's wool. I think her wool is getting lighter as she ages. Last year her wool was definitely black. This wool does not look black, but I can use dark brown wool too.

~~~It is relaxing to spin my wool on the porch and enjoy my porch company. As my bobbins filled up with single ply yarn I noticed the difference between the yarn Delilahs' wool produced last year and this year.~~~

~~~Do you see the difference ?~~~

~~~The difference is subtle, but the colors are different. If you were to begin knitting a garment with last year's yarn, then proceed onto this years' yarn to finish it, the difference would be glaring.~~~

~~~Candy-Cat sits with me. She is always a quiet companion.~~~

~~~This hummingbird is feeding at a feeder hanging from the grapevines growing along the porch, just 3 feet from where I am spinning. There are 2 feeders hanging from the grape vines and the hummingbirds come and go from dawn til dark. Sometimes the hummingbirds whiz by so close I can feel the air quietly whoosh my face. ~~~Beatrix is smiling at me. She loves me so much. She is happy to spend all her time just being near me. I don't think I am so very interesting, but Beatrix would even ignore food to be by me.

~~~The ducks, ever curious and hopeful there might be edible handouts waddle past, just checking !~~~

~~~There is room on my porch for more company, come on over, bring your needlework ! I'll brew us a pot of coffee and serve us some pie !~~~

Good Friends, Good Food...?

~~~Hubby heads out to the barbecue, friends are comin' for dinner~~~~~~Good friends for dinner....reminds me of a wine label we saw at the Redhawk Winery in Salem, Oregon. It was Donner Party Wine : Good Friends, Good Food ! I believe this wine label won at least one award for bad taste....'bad taste' , get it ?

~~~I was surprised when telling this story about the wine label, that most people did NOT get it. Do you ? DONNER PARTY ??? ~~~Anyway, we had friends over to eat dinner WITH US, not FRIENDS FOR DINNER ! Get it ?

~~~Hubby is barbecuing dancing chickens ! Aren't they cute ?~~~

~~~Don't they look like they are having fun ?They are dancing....wouldn't you if you had so much beer in you ? ( note beer cans chickens are sitting on )~~~

~~~Hubby carves the chickens and....what can I say, he had to elbow me away from picking all the crispy luscious skin off the platter before it could be moved to the table.~~~

~~~WE had freshly baked apple pie and peach pie. Our friends brought the Vanilla Bean Ice cream.~~~We also had fresh picked snow pea pods (from our garden) sauteed in butter, LOTS of butter. ...and a salad of freshly picked lettuces from Hubby's garden. Of course I added tomatoes, cucumbers, and lots of that cheese I like....but I am not s'posed to talk about that cheese anymore, Hubby says that is enough talk about that cheese...so our friends and I had a lot to say about how much we liked that cheese in the salad.....where could they buy that cheese ? What else could we add that cheese to ?....Ooops, not s'poosed to talk so much about that cheese. Well, at least I didn't add it to the brussel sprouts we had for dinner ! ~~~"Go your way and eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart (if you are righteous, wise, and in the hand of God), for God has already accepted your works." Ecclesiastes 9:7 amplified

With Rams, Consider Safety

+ My Jacob sheep rams have been a challenge to me over the years. They are magnificent and dangerous and very deadly to each other. Common sheep lore and experts write about successfully keeping rams together, somehow I have totally misunderstood their advice, or it doesn't work all the time. Maybe it doesn't work for me because I do not have acres and acres of land for the rams to roam. However, I have observed the nature shows demonstrating rams with whole mountain ranges to roam, going out of their way to collide. On three separate occasions, with different rams, the collisions have resulted in death once, and in injury that required putting down another ram. Very big , sharp horns are dangerous. That is why some animals were created with horns. Protection and confrontation and defense go so much better in your favor if you have weapons, and some rams have WEAPONS! I am getting my sheep ready for the Puyallup Fair. It runs for 3 weeks in September, my sheep and I will be there for 5 days in the 'Animals Of The World' exhibit. I need to make sure my ram is unable to harm me, the other sheep, the public. This is a challenge....and so far we have been able to do this successfully. If I had doubts about our ability to exhibit safely I would not take Goth to the fair.