Happy Birthday, John!

Forty years ago today, at this very minute, I was in labor.  John arrived at 2.05pm, all 7 pounds, 6 ounces of squirming, adorable baby.  I was a young mother, not quite twenty-two years old, and I had not the slightest idea of what to do with this precious little infant.  But I quickly figured it out, and we’ve had quite a journey through the years, John and I.

He was always a good child, and he is now a good man.  He’s inquisitive, funny, smart, kind, innovative, good to his parents, his brother, sister-in-law, his niece and now his little nephew, and most important he’s a good husband to his wife, he’s everything a parent wants their child to be.

It’s been such a short journey to your 40th birthday, son, I hope we have many, many more to celebrate together.

Happy Birthday!!!

Love, Mom

Puppy Love, airing Saturday, September 8th on the Hallmark Channel

 

Anybody in the mood for a feel good movie tomorrow night?

Candace Cameron Bure and a Shaggy Dog, what’s not to love.  She’s such a sweetie, she reminds me a lot of our Lindsay.  And she’s on the Hallmark Channel in a movie about a lovable mutt "Jake"  whose mischievous behavior pushes two unlikely people together for good. In the film, Candace plays single mom Megan who reluctantly adopts a puppy for her lonely child only to find herself in a custody battle of sorts with a handsome ballplayer who claims the dog was his first!

The Hallmark Channel launched a Pet Project this year with the mission to help families find pets who need forever homes.  Hats off to Hallmark for promoting this and to this lovely actress for helping promote shelter dogs with this movie.

This heartwarming tale airs Saturday night on the Hallmark Channel, check your local listings for times.  I’ll be watching, sounds like a cute movie supporting a good cause.

Williams Sonoma Chicken Coops for the Gentleman Farmer’s Wife..

Williams Sonoma has gone into the chicken coop business.  Don’t you just love Williams Sonoma, you never know what they’re going to come up with next, and every catalog is a treasure!

I have a feeling that my oldest son is not going to be happy about this post.  His pretty little wife is a sucker for any kind of animal, they would have quite the menagerie if it were left up to her.  Hubby saw this picture, and he was all over it like mayo on white, he’s ready to build a scaled down version of this for their backyard!  But then LC is always “egging” it on, this spring he was trying his best to talk them into a duck, but that just didn’t “fly” with John.  A duck would have been cute, but ducks poop everywhere, so that idea didn’t go over so well.

So now he’s really into this chicken coop idea and can just picture it nestled between the birch trees against the fence, next to the neighbor’s baying basset hound.  Oh dear, I don’t know how this one is going to play out, John is not a happy camper right now anyway, as sweet little Petunia, their mini-lop bunny, took a chunk out of his finger last week.

But on with the show…

This is pretty darn cute, I must admit, and who would have thought that raising chickens would ever be trendy.  Ma would have loved this, she would thought the coop was wonderful.  We had chickens when I was a child, the chickens are fine, but the roosters can be mean.  You don’t need a rooster for a chicken to lay eggs, however, and chickens don’t crow, they just cluck, so how noisy could a couple of chickens be, really...

I think the trendy chicken fad started with none other than that famous trend setter, Martha Stewart, who is famous for her chickens.  She has raised chickens for thirty years and has all kinds of exotic breeds, and I must admit, some of them are absolute beauties.  She even taped a show about chickens, you can watch the video here.

But back to Williams Sonoma, last year John was interested in bee keeping, and Williams Sonoma just happens to be selling this backyard beehive starter kit.  Yes, that’s right ladies, looks like good ‘ole Williams Sonoma is embracing the country life. 

Oh, John is not going to be happy about this at all, not happy at all! 

That coop is pretty amazing, though, you have to admit…

World’s Best UNFRIED Pork Chops

These pork chops are just wonderful, and they’re healthy! 

I made these for dinner this evening, snapped this picture for you and posted them on Jan CAN Cook.  Give these a try, you can thank me later, they’re that good!

~ Jan

New postings to Jan’s Daily Dish

 

If you look in the right sidebar under the Red Kap Logo, you will see an email submission box.  Now you can sign up to be automatically notified every time I post a new entry.  Well, not as soon as I post an entry, you usually receive the emails in the middle of the night.  Why?   Haven't a clue, I don't make the rules, I just skip down the yellow brick road.

Now doesn’t this make your little heart go pitter-patter???  Umhmmmm, sure it does, I know you're thrilled to be able to do this.   Hey, it’s been a slow day. ;o)

Country Door Online, I’m a fan…

 

This catalog came in the mail last week, and it’s a goodie.  It’s chocked full of reasonably priced things that I don’t need, but am tempted to buy anyway.  I especially like this copper scarecrow, stuck in a bale of hay with an old shirt and a mum pinned to the lapel.  It’s pretty cute.

I love outdoor fall decorations, and have never forgiven hubby for leaving this awesome old iron wheelbarrow behind the garage at our previous house when we moved to the condo.  I know, I know, it’s been ten years, Jan, get over it! 

It was so cool, it had one side off, and I have a great picture somewhere of Munchie, my first Yorkie, sitting in that wheelbarrow amongst mums, cornstalks and pumpkins.  I would love for you all to see it, but have no idea where it is, but if you did see it, you would agree with me that he should never have left that wheelbarrow behind.  

Well, he shouldn’t!   You never know when you are going to need a long remembered treasure.

Just ignore me, I’m feeling nostalgic this afternoon.  Okay, LC, I’m over it.  You’ve gotten me countless other goodies over the year, that almost compensate for you leaving that wheelbarrow for new owners that probably didn’t appreciate it like I did.

Now go check out this catalog, you’re gonna love it.  Here’s the click!