I first posted this recipe back in 2007. My now ninety-six year old neighbor has made this forever on New Years Day, and yes, she will be making it this year as well, and it is absolutely fantastic. Pair it with some crusty fresh bread and a green salad and it’s just the best, ever!!!
I posted it again on Jan CAN Cook, if you make black-eyed peas for luck on New Years Day, this is a winner!
When I was a little girl I had a Terri Lee doll. It was my very favorite doll, I thought she was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. And my mother who never threw away anything got rid of her! And I wasn’t alone, my friend Nisha still has her Terri Lee, my cousin Judy’s mother had the entire Family of Terri Lee dolls and a boatload of clothes, and my friend, Barb had one as well.
A few months ago, Barb told me that Terri Lee dolls were on Zulily. I looked at them, but it was summer, so I didn’t order, and then a couple of weeks ago, she emailed me and told me they had a sale on them. So I snapped two of these blonde beauties up for Lexi and Abby, and then I also bought the dark haired version in a sailor dress for myself.
I know, I’m a sentimental old fool, but oh how I loved that doll and mine had dark hair, and looks very similar to the one I bought.
When Abby opened hers, the response was “what does it do, Grammie?” Oh, how times have changed.
As you can see above, Miss Lexi opened hers, and was fascinated with the box.
Will they grow to love these dolls? Only time will tell, but Grammie is absolutely thrilled to have Terri Lee again.
Here’s what she looks like, isn’t she a beauty...
And below is one from the 50’s, it’s prettier than the reproduction, but this one is good enough for me...
Hubby decided that Abby needed an aquarium for Christmas. And Grammie knows that she loves Ariel, The Little Mermaid, and since five year old girls adore castles and pink, we put this Little Mermaid themed aquarium together for her.
It was so much fun finding the castles and the decorations, after all her Grammie and P-Pa do love to decorate, and she was thrilled with it, jumping up and down, screaming and telling us, “this is the best day of my life."
Mom, Dad and Ben all trudged to the pet store yesterday to pick out her new fish, Bubbles and Goldie, and they are now in residence. If you look closely at the fish on the right, her belly is very distended. Grammie is wondering if she might be “with fish.” She looks suspiciously preggers to me. I’ll keep you updated...
No, I’m NOT making this, but I want to!
So I’m watching FoodTV yesterday and Trisha was stirring up a batch of this candy. It was super simple, and it looks amazing. But wait, all’s not perfect, the reviews were mixed. some people say their peanuts burnt. But maybe they didn’t have the greatest slow cooker, or maybe they cooked it too long.
Yours truly has a mother of a slow cooker AND a timer, but i’m STILL not making these. And why not, if it’s so darned easy and I have a great crockpot??? Because… read my lips - I . DO . NOT . NEED . THESE . ! . ! . !
But some of you might feel differently, so go ahead, knock yourself out. These tasty little morsels of delicious decadence should be good for at least a 4-5 lb. weight gain.
Here’s the recipe, Mikey, you try it!!! And, if you live close, you could bring me just one, okay two, since I would have to share with LC.
Wanna borrow my crockpot?
An old friend from years ago, Sharon, sent me this list. It’s so funny, take a minute during the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and giggle. It’s a stress reliever ~ Jan
Number 9 - Death is the number 1 killer in the world.
Number 8 - Life is sexually transmitted.
Number 7 - Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.
Number 6 - Men have two emotions: hungry and horny, and they can't tell them apart. If you see a gleam in his eyes, make him a sandwich
Number 5 - Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day. Teach a person to use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks, months, maybe years.
Number 4 - Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in the hospital, dying of nothing.
Number 3 - All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.
Number 2 - In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird, and people take Prozac to make it normal.
Number 1 - Life is like a jar of jalapeño peppers. What you do today might burn your ass tomorrow.
...and as someone recently said to me:
Don't worry about old age; it doesn't last that long.
Oh these precious little children. Aren’t they all just adorable. Gushy Grammie here...
I was making these grilled cheese sandwiches at lunch (that’s 1 carb bread ladies, and it’s awesome). I’m now using cast iron almost exclusively and loving it. It gives food such wonderful flavor and I took a deep breath and listened to my sons, I don’t use soap on my skillets, I soak them a bit in hot water and use my trusty Lodge scrubber on them. This was really hard for me to do, but I’ve done it for a few months and hubby and I haven’t had food poisoning, so it must be okay. And the best part, my skillets are now as smooth as a babies bottom, I can even fry eggs in them with no sticking.
So, I have a few favorite things to show you. The first is a Lodge Scrub Brush. John had one of these, I told Ryan about them, he looked them up on Amazon and we both ordered.
\What a great brush this is, I use it exclusively on my cast iron and it does a fine job. $9.97 Prime, it’s a great price, too!
Then I bought the Lodge Silicone handle. It fits all sizes of Lodge skillets, and keeps your hands cool when you use them. It’s only $6.00 Prime.
And for only $4.62 you can get these great pot scrapers. Perfect for getting all of the residue off your skillets when you’re washing them. It’s not Prime, but it is an add-on. Here’s the click
And finally, this grill scraper. You all know how hard it is to get between the ridges of a grill pan, well this little gadget will fix that problem for only $4.43 or $9.99 for a four pack, all Prime.
I bought this 9” preseasoned skillet back in September specifically to make this Trisha Yearwood’s appe recipe that I posted on Jan CAN Cook. This pie is a winner, and just as good, if not better with peach pie filling. Want the recipe? Grab it here!
But back to this 9” skillet. It’s fantastic, my grab it every day, go to skillet of choice. It’s on Amazon for $23.22 Prime and worth every penny. A must have if you want to make that pie, a larger skillet won’t work. Here’s the link to the skillet
These Lodge accessories would make great stocking stuffers, that pie would be amazing during the holidays, but you really do need to treat yourself to this skillet. I’m telling you, it’s the perfect size!
And I also have a great blog entry on how to make old cast iron new again, hubby is working on that little project for you. It’s coming in a week or so… ~ Jan
Oh how we older people struggle with movies. There is seldom anything at the movies that interests me. I do want to see Reese Witherspoon’s new movie, Wild, it’s been getting excellent reviews, but it’s in limited release and not out yet.
So I was looking to see what’s coming out this month and found this Gena Rolands movie, Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks. It looks really cute, and I just bet our local theaters won’t show it, but we shall see.
My list this year has several repeats, things that I’ve blogged about this past year, but are so good that I need to tell you about them again.
First on my list is the loveliest, best illustrated cookbook I’ve ever owned and I’ve had countless ones. My daughter-in-law Lindsay is a fan of The Forest Feast blog. It’s a wonderful site with fantastic recipes and the author, Erin Gleeson now has a cookbook. She bought it for me for my birthday last month, and it’s hands down my favorite cookbook of all time. It’s beautifully illustrated, the recipes are fresh and innovative, if you have a foodie in your family, this would be a wonderful gift. The video above showcases Erin and her cookbook.
Here’s a link to Amazon if you want to purchase it.
If you’re an iPhone girl, this is wonderful. It’s a HiRise charger for iPad Mini and iPhone, works with all of the newer iPhones. I have it on my desk and it charges really quickly and you can talk hands free easily. It’s only $27.99 from Amazon, they have a brand new model with more color choices, but it’s lots more money.
Loreal Visible Lift CC Concealer - it rolls on, very cooling, firms your skin, conceals those dark circles, just does a great job and the price is right. Need I say more...
Not only does Amazon Prime continue to be the best thing ever for me, the number of free albums you can stream on your computer when you subscribe to Amazon Prime are mind boggling. Wonderful selection, just the best! And, do you know that if you buy a music dvd from Amazon that they also allow you to download the same album for free on your computer? I love technology! Amazon Instant Stream movies, good but it could never replace Netflix for me.
I bought these Ugg Cardy boots earlier this fall and they’re a winner. I sprayed them with waterproof protectant, and just love them. Not for rain or snow, but great any other time. I’m an Uggs fan, they’re easy wear for me. Free shipping from Nordstroms, too.
MAC Copperplate Eyeshadow - I’m a drugstore makeup junkie, except for eye shadow. MAC is just the best, always good pigmentation, smooth application, not that pricey and it lasts forever. I found Copperplate a few weeks ago when I was looking for a grey/taupe color and this is perfect., no blue cast at all, like a lot of grey shadows, this is such a good color.
We don’t have a MAC store or counter in Heavensville, so I order mine from Nordstroms, $16 and free ship.
I bought this red Vitamin 750 Pro this summer, and oh my did it ever create controversy. My family and friends thought I had lost my ever-lovin’ mind paying this much money for a “blender.”
Well, let me tell you how wrong they were. It’s the most wonderful piece of kitchen equipment, and I use it almost daily. Love, love, love this and would buy it again in a heartbeat. It was a wonderful investment!
If I could come to each and every one of your homes with hubby in tow and have him install this jar opener under your cabinet, I would do it. That’s how much I love it. Oh how I struggle with jar lids, but no more. This is the best jar opener you will ever find at the best price, too. Only $16.95. Rock star status with this one.
I’m such a fan of Torani’s Sugar Free Syrups. I have several varieties, Chocolate, S’Mores, Pineapple, Cherry, Brown Sugar and Cinnamon and they’re all excellent. I buy mine thru Netrition, which, by the way is the best online seller for Low Carb and Nutrition products. It’s always flat rate shipping $4.99 regardless of how much you buy. I could write a whole blog about the wonderful products I buy from Netrition. They sell other brands as well, but I’ve had the best luck with Torani.
Oh BookBook, how do I love you, let me count the ways. It’s the best iPhone case ever, looks like you’re carrying around a book, and it has slots for driver’s license and credit cards. It’s just amazing. I just upgraded to iPhone 6, and I’m awaiting the new release of BookBook for this phone.
I also have BookBook for my iPad and Mini. These are just the best products, vintage looking, classy, long wearing, I’m such a fan.
You can view all the BookBooks at Twelve South
And that’s my list for 2014. Hope I gave you all some possibilities for your Christmas list this year.
Happy Holidays!!!
~ Jan ~
I’ve been reading online about Christmas Teas from Bigelow and Celestial Seasonings. I picked this Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride up at the market today and it’s excellent.
"This cheerful holiday blend will warm your heart with the inviting aroma and delightfully simple taste of freshly baked sugar cookies straight from the oven. Like all of our teas, Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride has no refined sweeteners or added sugars — giving you a guilt-free way to partake freely in the pleasures of the season."
—Charlie Baden, Celestial Seasonings Blendmaster
Deanna had Bigelow Eggogg’n last weekend and it’s really good, too. Which one was best, oh the Sugar Cookie for sure. It’s a wonderful tea, very smooth and it does taste like a sugar cookie. It’s also Caffeine Free, so you can drink it at bedtime.
This “Eggceptional” winter tea is a smooth and delicious blend of black and green teas with the creamy flavor of Eggnog. Indulge in this all natural seasonal classic that is perfect to sip on a cold winter’s day. Add a splash of milk and your favorite sweetener for a taste that will melt away the winter blues.
I have a list of my favorite things this year, just running behind. And the leaves on the header are going, too. Egads it’s a zoo! Check back, I’ll post soon...
It’s that time of year again, and I have Thanksgiving recipes from several years ago that my friends shared with me. Busy day, but here’s a quick link, I’ll put them in the sidebar later.
Just click on the picture, you will link to the original file and from there, just click on individual recipes. They’re good ones!!!!
And while I’m at it, I might as well give you the link to the Christmas ones, too.
How about a blast from the past this rainy Sunday.
Nothing was better back in the 80’s than these three talented ladies. I played my Trio Album so much I had to replace it. Linda Rondstad’s voice was amazing.
Sadly, it is no longer as she has Parkinson’s and can’t sing, but oh what memories we all have of her. If you’re an Amazon Prime member, you can download this album and listen to it for free, it’s simply the best!
And if you don’t have Amazon Prime, here’s a track from the video, just crank these speakers and enjoy these talented women...
And a few years later, they teamed once again for Trio II. Just listen to Linda’s voice on this track, oh what pipes this woman had...
And here’s an interview with Diane Sawyer, who sadly lost her husband, Mike Nichols, this week. If there is a lesson to be learned from all of this, ladies, it is to just live in the moment. Today is all we have.
And finally, let’s go back, way back to 1977 when she was in her prime. Pure talent...
Okay, I’m on a rant this morning, just seeing red and have to get this off my chest. I’m watching GMA and they have a clip from three weeks ago of Bill Cosby sitting down for an interview with his wife, his long suffering wife, and she’s just grinning from ear to ear like everything is hunky-dory in their marriage. The reporter starts questioning him about the alleged sexual assaults and he refuses to answer over and over again, then he goes on to badger the interviewer, trying to get him to not release the tape. And there she sits, with that smile pasted on her face.
Now my problem isn’t with Cosby as much as it is with his wife, the man apparently is not the Cosby we thought we knew, if the allegations are true, he’s a criminal! He had power, abused it and got caught with his hand in the cookie jar, albeit it, a stale cookie jar. In my opinion, the old fool should just stay home and shut up!
But what is this woman doing, sitting there beside him presenting a united front! She looks like more of a fool than he does. It’s such a pattern, all the politicians, sports figures, etc., they admit their transgressions on camera with their wives next to them, “standing by their man."
Why???? Camille Cosby is a rich woman, why, why, why is she sitting there with him when he is in so much hot water he’s boiling. Because he told her to??? Where is her pride, where’s her backbone ? She doesn’t need his money, why doesn’t she just kick him to the curb and let him fight his own battles.
Is it position, status? Well that’s all gone to hell in a hand basket, and this morning more women are stepping up to the plate, accusing him of sexual abuse.
Totally infuriates me, totally!
Okay, I’m done, I’ll go back to my nonsense, just had to put in my two cents worth!
Neither wind, nor sleet, nor snow will deter Miss A from her horseback riding lesson….
Hubby and I have always collected antiques and when we moved to the condo twelve years ago I was so tired of them. I just wanted them gone. Exit vintage, enter French Counry.
And I love French Country, I’ve always loved it and I’m not tired of it, but when I see pictures like the one above, Joanna’s House from The Fixer Upper, it makes me long for all things vintage again. This show also makes me long for fainting goats and chickens, but it’s not to be, there will be no more houses to renovate, no more dreams and plans for restoration, that ship has sailed.
But wait, has it really? Not quite, we’re not finished yet. Because of the popularity of sliding barn doors and yours truly watching way too many episodes of The Fixer Upper, I talked hubby into putting a door on a track to close off the den. The grandchildren sleep in there when they visit, it would be perfect to block the noise and it would be fantastic! So the hunt was on, and it didn’t take long for LC to find the perfect door on Craig’s List. Even more perfect was the price $30. Sounds like a deal, right? Well, not exactly.
Now, I know you’re thinking, “oh my” that’s pretty rough. And it is, but hubby is a miracle worker. It has great bones and I have no doubt that he will restore it to it’s former glory.
He just bought the track for it to slide on, oiled bronze, that’s where the cost comes in. But I paid $30 for this, remember? And he’s going to have the word ANTIQUES painted vertically in the middle pane, that’s more money, but it’s going to be great when it’s finished.
So did that satisfy my need for a little home improvement project. Oh no, not at all. When we were at the lake this fall with the family, the house we rented had a wonderful old industrial warehouse cart that they had refurbished and used for a coffee table. I was in love, it was just so cool and so I’ve been searching for one.
Last week in Heavensville, a large furniture company, Karges, who had been around since the turn of the century was having an auction and they had 100+ of these old industrial carts for sale in this huge old brick warehouse. We went to the preview, it was cold and damp in that old building, but we checked them all out, took pictures, I especially loved one that had been painted and the paint was all peeling off. We didn’t however have a tape measure, and we came home and decided that one of these would just be too big for the den, LC thought it was 3ft. wide, 48 inches long. So the day of the auction we decided not to go. It started at 9am and by noon I was in a tiz. You know how you just have that nagging feeling that you should do something, well my gut was telling me we were making a big mistake not buying that cart! So poor suffering hubby, knowing that they wouldn’t have sold it yet, decided to check it out online and lo and behold, they were having an online live auction. Since I had taken a picture with the item lot number on it, we didn’t have to go down to that drafty, cold building, we could just bid ahead online. So we did, and all afternoon we watched things sell. It was so much fun, just sitting around in our cozy house, drinking hot tea, watching things sell. Cart after cart after cart sold, the prices were great, they were selling for $100 to $150 apiece, they would sell them in lots and you could have your choice.
We put in a bid of $160 and when the time came, sure enough it was sold in lots with your pick. Well, it sold for $110, and I was sure we didn’t get it since we weren’t there to bid on it in person, after all, this was our first rodeo with bidding at a live auction online and we weren’t quite sure how it worked. And after it sold we heard the auctioneer say, “oh, they only bought one, just the painted one.” Hot damn, we got it after all! And when we picked it up, he took a tape measure with and it’s not 3 ft. wide, it’s 2 ft. wide, so it’s going to work easily.
For now, it’s sitting in the garage next to the door, but we’re having a blast of winter this week, five inches of snow last night and frigid temps all week, so it’s going to have to warm up a bit to work on our projects, but oh, it’s so exciting. We both can’t wait to see what the finish pieces will look like.
Above is a picture of the top of the cart that I took at the auction, and you’re probably looking at this and thinking “law-dee, that woman has lost her ever loving mind.” Ok, so it’s a little rough, okay, so it’s a lot rough. But thats what I want, a primitive look. Oh quit rolling your eyes and thinking, “um-hmmm, it’s primitive all right." Hubby will sand the paint off even more, stain it, give it a few coats of polyurethane, clean and restore all the iron wheels and it will be awesome.
Here’s one exactly like ours that’s been refinished, and you’re thinking, "no way that piece of crap in the picture is going to look like this". But remember, hubby has the magic touch. Ours will look like this, except with the painted top, and we will stencil Karges Furniture Co. on the side of it. It’s gonna be fantastic and I’ll show you the finished product.
That’s not all of the projects we’ve been working on, but that’s another blog entry, the rest of them. Check back, I’ll be posting more soon...
My friend Nisha made “Hammie Sammies” and said they were fantastic.
Check them out on Jan CAN Cook, we’re making them soon!
So, hubby and I are at Rural King, he’s inside buying rabbit food for Butterbean, I’m mindlessly clicking on Facebook links and I come across this video. Well, it’s the funniest thing I’ve seen in forever, and I’m sitting there laughing so hard tears are streaming down my face.
Passersby are looking at me strangely and I continue to just laugh hysterically.
I came home, watched it again, and same scenario, belly laughs. This guy reminds me of LC, oh he’s a treasure….
You watch it and see what you think. ~ Jan
You all know how much I admire Crazy Miss Tammy and her enlightening videos. Well, yesterday I watched this NuFace Demonstration and was pretty skeptical. She used this machine for the first time on half of her face, and I have to admit, you could see immediate results.
What you don’t know is if it lasts for several hours or several minutes, and if repeated use really does firm your skin. It’s pricey, but the mini verson is $200, which is very doable. I just don’t know if I would actually take the time to use this on a daily basis. Maybe ten years ago, but I’m quickly approaching sixty-five in just a few days, you can only do so much. Know what I mean, Vern? But it is an interesting experiment, give it a watch, see what you think. ~ Jan
If I could turn back time
If I could find a way…
It’s the hot ticket this season, this Burberry Poncho. Sarah Jessica Parker had her’s personalized.
If I was a rich girl, I would snap this up in an instant as I love, love, love poncho’s. But at $1395, it’s a bit out of my league. Apparently it has been so popular that it’s hard to buy, eBay is selling it online for $2,050.
So I’ll just look at the pictures and drool, but if you want to read all about it on Burberry’s site, here’s the click...
There’s frost on the pumpkin in Heavensville this morning. I saw this picture of The Biltmore House in Asheville on Facebook, it was too pretty not to share.
We used to spend a lot of time in Ashville, many, many years ago. John was a baby, LC’s company had facilities there, and John and I would always tag along when he went to Asheville. We’ve toured the Estate several times, it’s simply amazing and worth the trip just to see it.
It’s history is fascinating, you can read more about it here...
The grandkids looked so cute this Halloween, Olaf and Elsa, and our little lamb, Lexi with Izzie the Wonder Pup Lamb and I thought they were all just perfect. What joy these little souls bring to my life, oh little ones you are all too cute for words.
XXo ~ Grammie
I saw this earlier today and just had to share. Is it not perfection? Love the coziness, the colors, the details, notice the lamp inside the cabinet. And of course the roosters, what is it with me and roosters...
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