Random thoughts about... what else... food!

I made hubby corned beef yesterday - coughed up the extra $$ and bought a round instead of a brisket - I'll never buy brisket again, the round was totally lean, and since I cooked it in the slow cooker, it was very moist - HOW? Rinse the corned beef, put in the spice packet, fill the crock halfway with water, add a large sliced onion and a few cloves of crushed garlic, cook 10 hours on low - 3 hours before the 10 are up, duh, Jan, that would be after 7 hours, add cabbage wedges, baby carrots and halved red potatoes - amazing meal, no trouble, leftovers... don't forget the horseradish and pumpernickel bread.

If you are a regular reader, you know that I am a bean lover, ADORE them, I've been on a chickpea (garbanzo bean) kick lately, eat them out of the can, cook dry garbanzos in chicken broth and onions, put them in salads right out of the can, or drain them, saute them in a little bit of olive oil until crunchy, and use instead of croutons.

Making my own dressing lately, dijon mustard, rice vinegar, bit of honey, salt pepper and EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) - whisk, simple, easy - don't measure, just do it...

Been missing cooking lately, tonight I was going to warm the corned beef, make hubby twice-baked potatoes - wrong - those redskins were too thin - I waved them, tried scooping, no can do, they were falling apart - just threw them in a bowl, mashed them with potato masher, peelings and all - added the sauteed red peppers, mushrooms and onion that I had cooked down in a bit of butter, put in a big dollop of low fat sour cream, some fat free half and half, cheddar cheese - baked them in a casserole - same taste, no bother - love potato skins.

Back to the beans, told you it was random - I'm a huge fan of refried beans, never knew how to make them, never really thought much about it, always get them at the Mexican Truck Stop (El Charro, local restaurant) - they have the best in the world. Finally took the time to read about them - just cook dried pintos in water until they are tender - drain them, then in a large skillet, put a couple of tablespoons of bacon grease (or olive oil if you are being healthy, true refried beans are cooked in lard) - I'm going to do the bacon grease, 2 tablespoons isn't much for a whole lb. of beans, anyhoo, melt the bacon grease, add the beans and a bit of water, mash with a potato masher, and "fry." Hence "refried beans." How about that??? Keep adding water if they get too thick, thats it, simple, I'm going to try it.

Watched bobble head today on FoodTv (Everyday Italian, Giada whatever her name is, skinny little be-otch irritates the crap outta me, I don't trust skinny cooks, notice I said "cook", no way some of these people on FoodTv are chefs, IMO). Anyhoo, she made cupcakes from a cake mix, and then she made a mixture of marscapone cheese, strawberries, sugar and lemon, whirred in in a food processor, and using a pastry bag and tip, pushed the tip into the cooled cupcake and squirted it full of filling. Sounds to die for.

Made hubby a cherry pie, not really, Pillsbury Already Piecrust that needed to be used, a couple of cans of cherry pie filling, milk and sugar on the top crust, bake it and he has.... PIE! No butter though, poor hubby, he doesn't need it dotted with butter even though it would taste better. I like almond flavoring in it, couldn't find it, probably in the back of the spice cabinet where I can't reach. Oh well... He doesn't even like cherry pie, I do.... *blushing* He'll eat it though, he likes anything that's hot and sweet. That's why he's been batshit crazy about me all these years. Oh, laughing so hard my sides are splitting. Fever is getting to my brain...

Never know how much I love you, you never know how much I care
When you put your arms around me, I get a feeling that I just can't bear
You give me fever, when you kiss me, fever when you hold me tight
Fever in the morning, fever all through the night.

Thanks to the internet, my world this week is a whole lot smaller...

I was sitting at the computer, my GoogleTalk dings, it's John, in Cape Town, typechatting me, telling me that he and Tonia are fine, having a great time and that they had been to Table Mountain today and then to the beach to watch the sunset. So of course I Googled Table Mountain, here's the LINK. It's just amazing, to be able to visit this website, see the aerial photography, and actually visualize what they saw today. Just amazing...

It's a wonderful thing to be in touch with your kids when they are on the other side of the world, and to chat in real time and to do it FREE. It's absolutely mindblowing when you think about it... It's a REALLY good thing...

These sound amazing...

I don't actually make this stuff, but I sure would like to. This recipe for Auntie Em's Coconut Cupcakes looks positively mouthwatering. Mother always made white cupcakes at Easter time, then fashioned a birdnest on top of coconut tinted with green food coloring, and jelly beans nestled inside.

These look like they would be great for spring... I'm all grown up now, I can do without the green tint and the jelly beans...

I found this recipe in the food section of the L.A. Food Times, and posted it for you over on Jan CAN Cook.

Here's the CLICK

This is simply wonderful...

The dancers are Fred Astaire and Eleanor Powelll, the year is 1940, and this was filmed in ONE unedited camera shot. It is considered by many as one of the best dance scenes ever filmed...

Oh my....

Hooterville sent me an interesting list of facts this morning one of which was that the size of a man's penis is roughly three times the length of his thumb... Hmmmmm, bet you won't be looking at guy's hands in the same way anymore.

Things I really, really like...

Torch songs, lots of bass
Red Winged Blackbirds
Starbucks Komodo Dragon Coffee, freshly ground with a generous splash of fat free half and half
Amazing smells - fresh sheets dried on a clothesline, a clean baby, great soap, a freshly cut lemon, the aroma of a sizzling chicken frying in an iron skillet, new mown hay
Toasted bagels, dense chewy ones, slathered with Philly cream cheese
A sleeping dog in my lap
Water.... my ditch, the Heavensville Riverfront, even a pond works for me, the ocean, not so much, too powerful, too vast....
Stimulating conversation
Blooming fleurs, daffodils later this month, hopefully
Butterflies, and frogs, and ladybugs, and honey bees, total nature lover, here...
A brisk walk on a beautiful spring morning
Unexpected phone calls from my sons and my dillys
Date night with hubby, dinner and a movie - just the BEST!
Cuddling baby animals of any kind
And of course my very fave, puppy breath

Rumor has it....

That Cher's Malibu Mansion is quietly on the market and can be bought for only $40,000,000.00. If you want to see it up close and personal, the house was featured in Architectural Digest back in 2002.

Here's the CLICK

The kids are in South Africa now...

John and Tonia arrived in Johannesburg this morning, and I was in the kitchen a few minutes ago toasting a bagel, and I hear my GoogleTalk dinging over and over again. HOLY CRAP, I realize that it's John, and I quick turn my bagel off and come into the sunroom and start typechatting with him.

Well, I didn't turn my toaster off, I turned it ON and I'm just chatting away with him and all of a sudden the smoke alarm goes off. It's shrieking in my ear, the M&M's are going nuts, and I look in the kitchen, it's totally smoky. So I tell him I have to check it out, Maggie is just clutching at me, I open the garage door to try and let some of the smoke out of the kitchen, come back in the sunroom, continue to typechat with that thing making a horrid noise, and Munchie whining at my feet, and Maggie hiding in my robe. FINALLY it quit.

Jeez, this could only happen to me!!! I'm still on GoogleTalk with him, this is hot off the press...

And finally...

This has to be, hands down, the BEST girl scene in a movie, EVER.... In case you don't remember the lead in to this scene, Julia Roberts feeling were hurt after being snubbed by snooty salesclerks, and Edwards takes over. Every Pretty Woman's Hero, who wouldn't love this man!!!! Here's the clip...

Okay ladies, we hit the mother lode tonight...

I've got some great soundtracks for you - Anne Murray Duets: Friends and Legends - Her pure, gentle voice is such a sweet walk down memory lane... You can find her entire album on Amazon. Here's the CLICK

Here's a sample of some of the songs:

Anne Murray and Dusty Springfield - Just Fall in Love Again

Anne Murray and Shania Twain - You Needed Me -

Anne Murray and Celine Dion, When I Fall in Love -

Anne Murray and Olivia Newton John, Cotton Jenny



Anne Murray and Martina McBride, Danny's Song

Amazing Talent...

Listen to this and see if you can make it thru the swell without getting goosebumps.... K.D Lang does an AWESOME job with Roy Orbison's Crying - what a powerhouse this woman is!!!

The creek...

I took the picture of the creek yesterday outside their bedroom window. It flows down out of the hills, and it's wonderful. The land is protected, so nobody will ever build there and spoil the view.

I took very few pictures, and the ones I took turned out really badly. I don't know what I did to my camera, because Hooterville had me all set up and I was taking great pictures, and somehow I've managed to screw up my settings. I don't take pictures on Auto, like most normal humans, oh no, Jean would burn me at the stake if I did that, I have to PROGRAM the friggin camera, and I swear I forgot everything she told me. Seriously, though, nobody knows cameras like Jean, and so I always listen to her. I'm thrilled with my little Canon Powershot A720 that she told me to buy, it's so easy to use, and so easy to handle, and she may fuss at me for being so dingy, but she'll get me straightened out as soon as I feel like playing with it. She's just the BEST!

We'll be visiting again soon, and I promise to do better next visit. I do have a few pictures that I'll share with you later. We got home this afternoon, stayed this morning to see Tonia, who brought Oreo from Nashville to stay with Ryan and Lindsay while she and John are in Africa. I'm STILL sick, better though, I'll just rest up for a few days, and hopefully will be on the road to recovery by the weekend.

I did manage to shop just for a tiny bit and bought a great spring chick for all of you to see. I'll snap a picture of "Little" and publish it later...

I'm tired, the dogs are tired, LC is pooped, but oh it's so much fun to be able to do things for the kids. They were so thrilled that hubby got them so whipped into shape so fast. Nobody can organize like LC. He had both of them just hopping, but now we are gone and they can relax knowing that at least the main areas of their house is livable.

More later 'gators...

Out of the mouths of babes....

Linds had her first visitor late yesterday afternoon. The doorbell rang, she went to the door and there stood her next door neighbor, eight year old Kylie and her dog Muffin. Lindsay had seen Kylie's mom earlier in the driveway, she told her that she was a chatty little girl and would probably be visiting.

They were talking, the little girl giving her a rundown of life in the neighborhood, and she said "one of the other neighbors wanted me to find out how old you are?" Lindsay, laughing, said that she was twenty-seven and her husband was thirty-two. Then the little girl said that the neighbor also wanted to know if they had any kids, and Lindsay told her no they didn't, but if circumstances changed she would let her know. It was so cute, she was so innocent, now Dilly can't WAIT to meet that neighbor. *giggle*

We had another busy day, we'll be heading home tomorrow. It's been so much fun, and even if I'm sick,I would rather be sick here than at home. I am better though, not a lot but give me a few days and I'll be back to normal.... Whatever that is...

Still sick.....

Poor pitiful me... We are in Versailles today, despite the fact that poor hubby practically had to pack and dress me to get me going this morning. Seriously, I think I had way too much of that blasted cough syrup - I coughed all night, sleeping propped up on two pillows with a neck pillow to try and stop the coughing. How much fun was that. I kept coughing and swigging all night, so by this morning I was a zombie. We stopped for breakfast and then I slept the whole trip, no doubt drooling and snoring in an attempt to breathe...

Oh the joys of middle age...

The house is wonderful, the boxes are many, everybody worked all day trying to bring some order to the kitchen while the M&M's and I snoozed on the sofa. It is a very nice place to be sick, and did I mention that the creek is AMAZING. I've felt too bad to even take pictures. Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.... Here's to hopin...

This is what you eat when you have a cold.....

Yep, that's homemade chicken soup. And homemade noodles. It's so easy, it's Mother's noodle recipe and it just takes a few minutes to make homemade noodles, really it does.

Everybody should make noodles at least once in their lifetime. I'll tell you all how to make this great soup, but not tonight. I'm outta here tonight, but I will share Mother's family favorite recipe with you. In fact, I'll scrap a page using it. So if you are out and about this week, stop by Linens 'n Things or Kohls or a Kitchen shop, pick yourself up a noodle cutter, and you'll be all set. You can do it without the cutter, but it sure simplifies the process.

Stay tuned, I'll do this later in the week after we get back from Versailles....

Back in the saddle again...

Just thought I would let you all know that hubby left me my car today, so I zipped right down to Donut Bank this morning on my expired license for a sugar rush and a jolt of caffeine. I'm still sick, but nothing like a donut and coffee to perk a girl up...

I never realized how easy my car is to drive until that fiasco yesterday. Somebody emailed me and said I couldn't make all that stuff up. I didn't, I PINKY SWEAR I DIDN'T - I told it exactly like it was! Even I don't have that kind of imagination...

Talk about a nervewracking experience!!!

Ok, so I'm all set to go to CVS and pick up some cough syrup because I'm dyin' here - I'm showered, in my comfy clothes, out the door with my one earring - realize that hubby has taken my car, left me his, which I never drive, but mine was in the warm garage, it was a cold morning, he had to go to work, you get the drift...

And there are no sunglasses anywhere and the sun is glaring. I have multiple pairs, so I go back in the house and can I find one single pair, oh no, the only pair I can find is on his workbench in the garage and one of the sides has fallen off. So off I go to the car, with my one earring on and my sunglasses all askew on my head, feeling pretty much like bird doodoo, but oh the adventure has just begun.

I fire up hubby's car, remember I never drive this car, and it has the most sensitive gas pedal known to man woman, not to mention that I have no feet, so I have zero sensitivity to it. Well I'm lurching out of the driveway like a teenager trying to learn to drive a stick shift, I make a right turn onto my street, where my neighbor is washing his car, and I practically peel out, I'm goosing it so badly. Arughhhhh, at this point I'm about ready to kill hubby for leaving me this car! And of course I don't want to look like an idiot in front of my neighbor, so I'm trying to appear "normal" and there I am with that one earring and my sunglasses on crooked, rodding my car down the street, and my neighbor is looking at me like I'm a crazy woman, which I am!

So I'm almost to the drugstore, I look in the rear view mirror to change lanes, there is no rear view mirrow... THERE IS NO REAR VIEW MIRROR!!!! Hubby told me last week that it had popped off in the cold weather and he apparently hadn't glued it back on.

So I make it to CVS without crashing, go inside, call Ryan on the phone (pharmacist son, remember) so he can tell me what I need to buy so that I'll quit coughing. $39.00 later, I'm back in the car, swigging Robitussin out of the bottle and THE FRIGGIN CAR WON'T START!!!! It's deader than a doorknob. I am SO upset at this point that I'm given to fits of hysterical laughter. And I can't even look in the rear view mirror to see if my makeup is smeared cause there is no mirror!

I call Ryan again on the phone, poor Ry, he's telling me to just calm down and he's trying to tell me what to do, he doesn't know what's wrong either, but for some reason I messed with locking it and unlocking it and lo and behold IT STARTED. It was the security system that was keeping it from starting. Obviously I had clicked something and screwed that up, too...

So now the windshield wipers are going back and forth and I can't figure out how to turn them off. I sit there in the sun with the wipers swishing away at multiple speeds while I try to figure out how to stop the madness. Then I look at my gauges and Jesus Joseph and Mary, I'm totally out of gas!

And remember, I feel like bird doodoo... So I go to the gas station, roar under the canopy, I'm still hot rodding the car, just can't get a "feel" for that stupid gas pedal, I managed to put gas in it and peel off to the library, where I have NO library card, because it's in MY car, but they did let me check out my book, thank goodness. I'm now back in the car where once again it won't start. WHAT IN THE HELL AM I DOING WRONG WITH THE STUPID KEY ANYWAY???? So I fiddle with it, and fiddle some more, take it out, lock the door, unlock the door, put it back in and finally get it started again and I'm off to the races once more...

I then barreled thru the fast food window for some lunch, oh did I tell you that I'm doing all of this on an expired driver's license??? Oh yeah, I didn't realize it was expired until a couple of weeks ago, and I haven't had a good hair day since to go get a new one. Jeez, Louise what a mess!!! I give the girl at the first window my money and lurch my car forward to the pickup area, and I'm thinking that if I EVER get home I'm never leaving again.

But since I was out I did go to the grocery store for just a few things... Meanwhile John calls me on the phone and I'm laughing so hard he thinks I've totally lost it, which I HAVE.... Then I'm out of the store, in the car, AND IT WON'T START AGAIN!!!!! Well, this time I realize I have the wrong key in the ignition... THE WRONG KEY. I'm not shook, oh no, not much I'm not.... Now I'm wondering if I had the wrong key in the ignition before? Who knows, who cares, I'm NEVER driving that car again, EVER!

I'm home now, safe and sound, and I'm gonna get in my jammies and try and get a grip!

Oh Men Schmen, anyway. This would have been so simple if I would have just had my own car!

But the good news is I haven't coughed once since I swigged half a bottle of that cough syrup. I actually feel quite a bit better. It's probably the alcohol... Oh gracious sakes, what a day Miz Scarlett has had!!!!! Lawdy, Mellie, I do feel a fit of the vapors comin' on...

I'm off to the drugstore, but....

I'm missing an earring... I didn't lose it, it somehow fell out yesterday, probably when I was doubled over with one of my coughing spasms. It was so bad this morning when I was talking to Nish that I had to just hang up. She called right back, just to see if I was alive. Yeah, I'm alive, but pretty miserable.

But enough of that... I have these little tiny silver hoops, nothing special, but I really like them. They are SO tiny that hubby has to fasten them for me with his glasses on with a pair of needle nose pliars. Now that's really fun...

So one fell out, and since they are a pain in the patootie to put in, no way am I taking the other one out. So I'm off to get cough medicine and stop by the library with one in and one out. Maybe I'll just look trendy? Yeah, right... Coughing and hacking and looking like death warmed over. Trendy my ass!!!

I'm just in a great mood today, how about you????

In between coughing spasms...

I played with brushes in Photoshop Elements this evening. I've discovered I just adore brushes for scrapbook layouts. These are from Rhonna Ferrar and since I was sick and tired of being sick and tired, I leafed thru my summer pictures of the patio, added a couple of pictures of our waterfall and window box to a background paper, stuck in a couple of elements and then added lots of brush effects. Not especially breathtaking, but at least I feel productive.

If you haven't seen my waterfall pictures before, hubby built this for me three summers ago. It's inside our fenced patio and oh how I love the sound of that trickling water. He added a stream to it, and it always makes me feel good to just sit by it and enjoy the birds, and the fleurs. Oh, do I have a bad case of spring fever! Click the pix for a larger image.

~ jan

Sweet little fur babies...

Day to day living with dogs is the most wonderful experience. They give me such unconditional love... The M&M's have shared the chair and ottoman with me all afternoon. They don't care that my hair is a mess, that I'm in my pajamas, or that I feel like a limp noodle who wears myself out with spasms of coughing. They gaze at me with these adoring little chocolate drop eyes, and all it takes is a morsel, just the tiniest morsel of a snack and they are so grateful.

I often feel sorry for them, that they only can eat what I provide. What if they are tired of kibble, or they are craving bits of burger or cheese? I have no way of knowing that, and so they gaze at whatever I'm eating, hoping that I'll share. And I do, if it's healthy for them. I learned a hard lesson with Munchie and a bout of pancreatitis, that you have to be really careful what you let your fur kidz snack on. Nothing rich, nothing greasy, EV-ER... And recently Jean sent me an email saying that raisins and grapes were a nono. I didn't know that, I thought that pretty much any fruit was fine for them.

Maggie has a fondness for apples and oranges, but has hasn't quite figured out bananas. She eats them, but does so with the strangest expression, it must be the texture. And the Munchkin? She has always eaten just about anything that comes her way, but I am pickier with her now that she hasn't as many teeth as in her youth. She does enjoy green peppers, though, and still gets reallly excited when I feed them to her.

I should learn from my dogs, just be grateful for whatever comes my way, and eat totally healthy. Easier said than done, long term, I'm afraid...

And in other news, Nisha is having date night. I didn't even realize it was Friday! Oh Friday nite dates are my favorite thing, poor hubby he's working tonight and he is still under the weather, so no date for me. V and Rich are headed out as well to dinner, they always go out on Friday night.

John and Tonia are going to eat Mexican , that's their standing date on Friday nights. They have the BEST little hole in the wall Mexican restaurant in Franklin. Ryan and Lindsay are moved in now, the movers just left a bit ago, Ryan is a pretty sick puppy with the flu, so it looks like John and T won't be going tomorrow after all.

They are leaving for South Africa for vacation on Thursday, they certainly don't need Ry's flu bug before they go on their trip...

Hopefully hubby and I will be feeling better by Monday, we're really anxious to visit the kids...

And that's it from my little speck o' the net. Not much action Jackson around here. The most exciting thing I've done is taken an Advil Cold and Sinus which seemed to clear my nasal passages a bit. How's that for an exciting evening???

I'm watching Oprah about redefining your life in your 40's, 50's and 60's...

And what am I thinking of this show with all these revelations, a lot of them from surgically enhanced actresses? Well, it's hard for me to identify with these rich be-otches and their privileged lives, and the wisdom they try to impart, because they live in these plastic bubbles that aren't a part of the real world.

Bette Midler is 62, and she's saying that she thinks she is fabulous, that she looks fabulous naked, and with clothes on and she thinks she's sexy. Puh-leez - nobody looks sexy at 62, and NOBODY, looks good naked at that age... you can lift the face and botax the heck out of yourself but the body is gonna sag... But then she did get real and say that she now wonders how many more summer and winters of her life she has left, and she never thought of that before...

Natalie Cole did say something of substance when she said that she is more content to be alone with herself now that she is older (she's 58). I can identify with that, as I age, I feel that I turn inward more, and am content with my own company. That to me is an amazing thing, to be satisfied with who I am and to enjoy my alone time, it wasn't always that way...

Oprah said that by the time you are in your 50's, you please yourself and not others so much, that's true also. So some of this show has merit, it's just those phoney celebrities that "jan q. public" can't identify with...

Marianne Williamson was a guest and she has a new book, I called the library right away, and reserved a copy, it should be an interesting read. It's called The Age of Miracles, Embracing the New Midlife.

And what are my words of wisdom??? I find that the most important lesson I've learned in life, one that I tell my daughters-in-law frequently, is that YOU are the only one that can truly make yourself happy. You can't look to a man to do this, or family or friends, they enrich your lives, but it's ultimately up to you, and sometimes it's as simple as making a conscious choice to be happy.

For me, it isn't so much happiness that I strive for as it is a sense of peace. Happiness is fleeting, it's made up of fragmented moments of joy, and when that occurs it's like pure sunshine, but if you can have a constant feeling of inner peace, then the rest of your life falls in place, regardless of the turmoil of the outside world.

Oh my, that's pretty deep water I'm wading in, Miss Merry Sunshine usually doesn't get philosophical... Just my two cents worth...

If you're a Lucy fan, you're in for a treat - The Long, Long, Trailer

This clip is wonderful, great color, you'll love her in the kitchen...

I'll be darned if it didn't help...

I got hung up on UTube last night, I seem to always do that late in the evening, didn't turn in 'til midnight, and, poor sick hubby was trying to sleep, coughing every other breath, and so, I got out the trusty Vicks, smeared it on the bottoms of his feet, pulled up his socks and tucked him in... I've blogged enough about it lately, this was the perfect chance to see if it worked...

He coughed for a few more minutes and then settled down to sleep. It really did help him... or maybe it was the fact that I was massaging it into the pads of his feet that relaxed him. Nope, I really do think it helped. More than one of you has emailed me with the same results.

I know, it make no sense, but if it works, don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Oh, if you haven't read my blogs, putting Vicks on the bottom of your feet, then pulling on socks at night is documented to help you quit coughing.

Hope all of you are staying healthy, this cold bug has hit our entire family, even though we all live in different cities. And speaking of family, I have big news tomorrow. Nonononono, not that kind of news, nobody is prego, but it is good news.

Tomorrow, tomorrow, it's only a day away....

Don Knotts, nobody does comedy better...

Thanks for the joke Barb, you made my day...

Where did this saying come from anyway?

"I've come down with the flu."

Now just what does that mean anyway? That you've come down from a standing position to being flat on your back in the bed?

Well that sounds really stupid when you think about it, but poor hubby has indeed come down with"something." He's coughing and hacking and his nose is stuffy, and of course I'm not feeling so great either. My poor widdle throat is all scratchy and I've been up since 2am, tossing and turning. I finally get up, fire up the puter' before 5am, and guess who's on.... HOOTERVILLE. I instant message her, she's been up since 3!

We are both NUTS!!!

And so it goes this winter morning with more snow forcasted for today. I'm off to the kitchen to brew a pot, just what I need, CAFFEINE!!!

I'm pondering this morning...

Do straight real men blog? Heck if I know, but I don't see much evidence of it ... I'm always visiting blogs, albeit they are girl related, but you would think I would stumble onto some kind of guy blog on my travels around the net...

But nope, I never do... Is it that we are so much more vocal than men? That we express ourselves better? And not to stereotype, but I've always said that if it's not about T&A or it doesn't go vroom, vroom, then they really aren't too interested in it. Hence my straight man theory....

So maybe that's what it's all about with men. They are blogging about fast cars, or women's body parts. Well that would explain why I never read any of their shtick, I could care less about either of those subjects...

Oh, I'm so glad I am W-O-M-A-N... I have lots and lots of interests... food, petite bebes, gardening, gossip, friends, makeup, clothes, decorating, trashy novels, all the 'important' things in life... oh it's such fun being a girl old girl....

I love Chicken Piccata, and I've totally forgotten about it. I was reading Simply Elise and she posted it, and I simply HAD to snag it for all of you.

So, if you're looking for something new to add to your repertoire, give this a try. It is so easy and it's simply DI-VINE...

Oh, did I mention that it is EXTREMELY easy, and just takes minutes to make.... A little pasta, green salad, some crusty bread and you've got a really special dinner...

I posted it on the Jan Can Cook board, for quick access, here's the CLICK....

This one's for you, sweetie...

My good friend Nisha's daughter, Mandi, is getting married in the fall. Mandi is a workout fanatic, and of course she is in full swing, fine tuning for her wedding.

I scrapped this page for her this morning and sent it to her...

Mandi's a total girly girl, I can just see her sitting at the computer giggling over this...

Want to see the full size - Here's the CLICK...

The way it looks now...

I know, it's a lovely bed, why am I replacing it? Because what you're not seeing in this picture is the footboard - plus this is a sleigh bed, so it sits away from the wall and the footboard curves outward, and there is just a small walk area because the armoire is at the foot of it.

See that great piece of fretwork on the arched window? Originally that piece was in an arched doorway of an old home. In the early 80's I was at an antique store in this lady's home and I dragged this out from behind a box and asked her how much... $15.00!!!! That was my deal of a lifetime. I've always had a place for it, but when we moved to the condo, I thought I wouldn't be able to use it, but hubby popped it up the window, and VOILA!!!! Works for me....

I thought you would all get a better sense of what I'm trying to achieve if you could see the picture. It just took me a bit to find one...

~ jan

You're actually voting!!!!

Wow, ladies, I'm really impressed, you're actually voting on which bed you like.

I've now progressed to deciding what to put on this bed that I'm going to buy. I really think I want a down comforter covered with a duvet for a lofty look, something breezy and summery would be nice for a change, my colors now are jewel tones, and I'm growing a little weary of the heaviness of it all...

So if you've voted, thanks so much, and if you haven't, scroll down, check out the beds, then go to the left sidebar and tell me what YOU like....

~ jan

I thought you might like a peek...

We spent a recent weekend in Nashville, visiting with our oldest son, John and his wife, Tonia. John is so much like his father, they both can do pretty much anything when it comes to construction.

He and Tonia wanted to redo their fireplace mantle, and add wood columns to the library, so here they are busy at work. He's painting this weekend, I can't wait to see the finished product...

It's so nice to take these pictures, and then preserve them in these pages. Family memories, they are just the best....

You can access this page HERE.

It's decision time....

Okay ladies, I need your opinions. I'm in the market for a new bed... When we moved to the condo we bought new bedroom furniture, and even though it's really pretty, the scale is too large.

I've lived with it for five years now, and it's time for a change. So the french styled painted armoire and the leather sleigh bed are going to Versailles to Ryan and Lindsay, and LC and I are putting a flat screen tv on the wall, and I'm going to buy an iron bed.

I've ALWAYS, ALWAYS loved iron beds, that's what I was going to buy when we moved here, but that didn't work as planned, so FINALLY, after all these years, I'm getting that bed. And I've ALWAYS loved canopies, but I'm wondering if it will be too much, and the Interlude is the only one that offers a canopy, and if I buy that one, I want the footboard with the wrap around sides, and the canopy top... egads, too many decisions.

Click Picture to Enlarge

I've created a little poll, it's located at the top of the left sidebar, give me your opinions, please... My bedroom is 12x16 with a vaulted ceiling and my style is french country...

BTW, the poll is totally anonymous... so go for it...

Quote of the day...

Wow, can I relate to this after spending the afternoon with hubby, pricing flat screen tv's and iron beds.

~ jan

I have enough money to last me the rest of my life, unless I buy something.

~ Jackie Mason

Ohhhhh, ladies, look what I have for you tonight....

This is it! The trailer for the new Sex and The City Movie - coming May '08 - mark me down and sign me up. I'll so be there, front row center, opening day, with my contraband Cheetos and gummie bears, ohhhhh, I don't know about the rest of you you, but this old girly girl CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!

~ jan

I'm losing it... I'm ready to fly away now...

They're coming to take me away, HA HA
They're coming to take me away, HO HO HEE HEE HA HA
To the funny farm
Where life is beautiful all the time
And I'll be happy to see
Those nice, young men
In their clean, white coats
And they're coming to take me away, Ha-haaa!

I've had it, I admit it, even though the storm is over, there is this thick layer of ice and me, who loves staying home, is now completely claustrophobic and going bat-shit crazy!

I'm bored, can't get into scrapping, I've been going thru photographs Hooterville took last April, dreaming of digging in the dirt. I'm about ready to break out the garden catalogs, too...

The most EXCITING thing I've done is watched my Tivoed episodes of Bold and Beautiful, where mid 60's Eric Forrester was naked on a ledge, after hiding from his wife while caught with his mistress. Well, I must admit, the old guy didn't look half bad...

SEE, I'M NUTZO... TOTALLY... Duh, Jan, they already know that...

I believe I can fly
I believe I can touch the sky
I think about it every night and day
Spread my wings and fly away
I believe I can soar
I see me running through that open door
I believe I can fly...

See if you can watch this without tearing up.... I couldn't....

This video is just AWESOME. Great voice, even greater message. Crank up those speakers, take the time to really listen to this, every word! Talk about a message...

I was over at Bird Tweets, and Robin had posted this, so I just had to snag it... Thanks Robin for scouting out the good stuff... You'll be amazed at the talent of Point of Grace, How You Live...

MEET THE ORIGINAL DAISY BELLE JOY...

You've all heard me talk about Daisy Joy, and how she was Mother's friend when I was a child.

She was the sweetest soul, and was much loved by her family, especially daughters Florence and Alice, grandchilden JC, Lana, Dana and Glenn Edward, and great grandaughters Missy and Leslie, and their mother, Joyce, who came to stay with her on a regular basis.

She was especially fond of wearing floral print dresses and always carried a big "pocketbook." Her hair was a lovely shade of gray and it always had a wave to it... She was just a grand lady... She didn't drive a car, but she lived in town (Enfield, Illinois, population 900) and would walk the few blocks from her house to the post office and the grocery store, stopping often by the drugstore where Mother worked to say hi...

I loved to visit her, she adored flowers and her yard was full of them, and I always picked daffodils and peonies in the spring, and sweet peas later in the summer. I would sit and play for hours at her old upright piano in the living room, and she often made me lemonade and served cookies with it...

Her Granddaugher, Lana, sent me some photographs of her recently, I edited this one, added effects to it, the quality was grainy, so I just played up the roughness instead of trying to smooth it out, and this is the result.

I hadn't seen a picture of Daisy since I was a young woman, so I was thrilled when Lana sent me her image. And now, you'll probably be seeing this sweet face pop up from time to time...

Isn't it fun, reconnecting with the past? It always makes me feel special to use her name as a pseudonym, and I'm glad that Lana doesn't mind me adopting her Gramma's name, online...

~ Jan, aka Daisy Belle Joy...

oh yeah.....

Lindsay's blackberry cobbler was as good as it looks.... Just what I needed, too!!!

We're having major WEA-THER in Heavensville today. Another ice storm passing thru. Linds is safe back home in Lexington, she left at 6m this morning just ahead of the ice...

I should be putting on the beef stew for dinner, I should be running laundry, I should have made my bed this morning.... I should...

No motivation, the M&M's could care less is the bed is made, and I'm surely not having any company in weather like this....I think Scarlett will just curl up with a good book by the fire, along with a lap full of fur kids, and worry about all that stuff tomorrow....

In case Ryan checks in....

If Ryan has a chance to look at my blog this week, I thought he would enjoy a pix of Lindsay making piecrust for LC. He loves blackberry pie, she spoils him, and her crust is VUNDERBAR...

And, men always like to see pictures of their wives in the kitchen... Why is that???

So what did we do this afternoon???

We shopped this afternoon and Linds got a rockin' deal... on a tricycle - WHAT??? A TRICYCLE!!! Nope she's not preggers, not trying yet, but when she does have a little bambino, it will have this killer trike to zoom around on...

Seriously, it was a great deal, she loved it, of course I was urging her to go for it. So she did... Does Ryan know, of course not, she's a smart one, my Dilly. It will fit nicely in our attic until the time comes.

And, switching gears here, I just posted a recipe for lemon poppyseed pancakes on Jan Can Cook. How good does THAT sound?

Check it out HERE!

What happens when your Dilly visits???

You have a girl breakfast, fresh fruit, bagels, cream cheese, yogurt, freshly ground coffee, then you catch up on family news, go out for a girl lunch, shop in the afternoon, and tonight, visit her girlfriend who just happen to have two darling bebes...

Oh, how fun is THAT!!! Ladies day out...

Okay, one more section ready, and I'm finished for a few days...

I'm having company this week, Dilly's coming! Ry is in Chicago for the week, so Lindsay is visiting. I need a break from this computer, I've been consumed with Milly Scraps for days. Linds will be a really nice diversion, she's like a fresh breath of spring air, my daughter-in-law...

So, as I was watching Brother & Sisters, I finished one more section. I've had these pages scrapped for some time, just haven't taken the time to get them into my album...

So, if you go to Milly Scraps, enter the site, go to the index page, and click on Drinks & Libations, you will see my final entries. Those Lemon Drop Martini's are lethal, my friend Janet thinks they are the best mixed drink she's ever had, and when she orders them out, they never measure up to this Oprah recipe. Nish is a fan of Mojitos, I'll get that page up for her next.... And me, my drink of choice always has been and always will be good old iced tea and Diet Coke. Yeah, I'm so boring, I know.....

That's it for tonight, ladies, sweet dreams.....

Just for you....

I've been watching Paula Deen tonight on QVC, and she's selling her Ooey Gooey Butter Cake for $29 - this is her original recipe, she started making it even before Lady & Sons Restaurant opened, it was part of her "box lunch" in the days she sold door-to-door. It's still on the menu, with variations, still a huge favorite, they were sure loving it on QVC tonight -

So I found the recipe for you, posted it on Jan Can Cook -

Here's a quick click

Enjoy! ~ jan

I've been a busy little bee..

Lots of new content on MillyScraps today. There is a new section on the index page called Fleurs and Nature -I've linked to several pages from that area, and I also posted a family favorite, Cherry-O Pie recipe in the Cakes and Pies section.

Just CLICK HERE to access Milly Scraps, then click on the Enter Here button, and then access these different pages from the index...

Have fun...

~ jan

Had to show them one more time....

I couldn't resist posting one more pix of the tulips. They've opened up now and are at their peak. I have them on my computer desk, and I'm thinking why don't I do this more often?

It's such a simple thing, and they cost not much more than a latte from Starbucks.

It makes me feel like spring, so you will probably be seeing pix of fleurs often, now.

It's a beautiful thing...

Can anything else go wrong this morning?

Jeez Louise, it's gonna be one of those days I'm afraid. I got up this morning to dirty dishes in the sink. Something I absolutely DETEST! But it was late last night, I was tired, so I left my favorite cherry red Chantal roaster in the sink to soak. I turned on the light, took a deep breath and started washing it. WHAT??? there is a chip on one of the handles. OH NO, I haven't used it very much yet and it has a chip. *sigh* Okay, so it's on to breakfast. I get out the skillet, make hubby a healthy turkey patty, which I always season highly with Creole Seasoning to give it flavor. So I shake that seasoning on liberally, WHAT??? I seasoned it with Taco Seasoning. Grrrr, so I rinse it in the sink put it back in the skillet where i proceed to BURN IT... I get out the eggs, somehow manage to drop and break two of them on my kitchen counter, I clean up that mess, get more eggs out of the fridge, and meanwhile, of course, I'm BURNING the toast...

Okay, I'll make myself coffee.. Hubby was home yesterday, he hustled me out of the house pronto yesterday morning, I forgot all about the dirty coffee pot. **ROAR** so now I have to wash the coffee pot, and by now I'm so frazzled that I swear to god, I almost poured yesterday's coffee out of the carafe back in the cylinder to brew instead of fresh water. I did manage to catch myself before I did that. And it's only 9:30... What will the day bring? I really don't want to know at this point...

Meanwhile, Munchie is crying to go outside and go potty, and so I let Munchie out and now Maggie is running laps around the living room sofa, just pouring on the steam - - she's barking up a storm with her fur just flying. Ahhhh, my first smile of the day... I scoop her up for a much needed cuddle...

And on with the show....

Going back to my childhood, AGAIN....

Oh my, today hubby didn't work today, so we were out and about, checking out flat panel tv's, and a new bed for our bedroom, but that's a whole other blog. Anyhoo, we stopped in at Yen Ching, my favorite chinese restaurant (chicken and hot sauce, hot sour soup, iced tea with extra lemon, ummm) for lunch, and I visited the ladies room. As soon as I hit the door, the most wonderful smell permeated the whole room.

It brought back so many memories of Mother, I didn't want to come out... I was in there with this huge grin on my face, just breathing in the air and reminiscing...

And what was this wonderful smell? No, guys, c'mon, of course it's not what you're thinking. Quit wrinkling your noses, and going ewwwwww..... I know you're wrinkling your cute little noses....

The entire ladies room just totally, completely, REEKED of Clorox! YES, CLOROX!!! It smelled so fresh, so absolutely clean, that I came home and poured some in my toilette. I did, for real I did...

My Mother was the Clorox queen. She lived for the stuff. I sometimes think she must have been addicted to the fumes... We ALWAYS had a pan of Clorox bleach water in the kitchen sink, with dishcloths immersed in it to whiten. Our dishcloths were nothing like the ones you have today, in fact I blogged about dishcloths a few months back. We always had white flour sack dishcloths. These were the real McCoy, sewn from the cloth bags the flour came in, not by Mother, but by her sisters, either Aunt Hazel or Aunt Idalene. Oh, they whipped those things up on a regular basis, but I'm clueless as to where they got them as I grew older, we hadn't bought cloth sacks of flours for YEARS. My Aunts were always so thrifty, they probably had them stored away under their beds from years past...

Mother liked nothing better than doing laundry, and she bleached the heck out of everything she could get her hands on. Hence, my love of the smell of bleach. Oh yeah, Clorox rates right up there with Vicks Salve in my nostalgia book...

So, I had a nice little trip down memory lane, in the ladies room at Yen Ching, and when I came out MUCH later with this sappy little grin on my face, LC just looked at me with this quizzical expression, but he didn't say a word and neither did I.

You know guys, he probably thought I was having "issues"... MEN SCHMEN!!!

Excuse me now, I'm off to smell> flush the toilette

~ jan

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....

Hubby got me fleurs for Valentines Day... TULIPS!!!

We've been married thirty-seven years this summer, and this is the first time he's ever given me tulips, hot pink ones, too...

I'm thrilled, what a nice change from roses!!!

Life is good...

THINK SPRING!!!

My munchiebusiness.com index page has a new look, too. It may be snowy in Heavensville this week, but in my sunroom it's SPRING!!!

Here's the click if you want to see it up close. And yes, that's the beloved ditch of my childhood - Hooterville snapped this picture last April. The smaller picture shows the azaleas in bloom at the "Gingerbread House," - our last home....

I love the Henny Penny hen...

Happy Valentine's Day....

This is the BEST EVER, in my opinion, episode of I Love Lucy - so here it is, girlfriends, the hilarious Chocolate Factory Episode, in all it's glory, to you from me, for Valentine's Day...

Enjoy!!!

~ jan

A book for you to try...

My friend, Mary, told me about a book she's enjoying - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsover. I thought I would pass it along, some of you might enjoy it, also.

I'm off to the library tomorrow to check it out... and pay my fine for overdues... *blush*

~ jan

Priceless... thanx Trisher for sending it...

To my darling husband,

Before you return from your business trip I just want to let you know about the small accident I had with the pick up truck when I turned into the driveway.

Fortunately not too bad and I really didn't get hurt, so please don't worry too
much about me.

I was coming home from Wal-Mart, and when I turned into the driveway I
accidentally pushed down on the accelerator instead of the brake.

The garage door is slightly bent but the pick up fortunately came to a halt when it bumped into your Ferrari.

I am really sorry, but I know with your kind-hearted personality you will
forgive me. You know how much I love you and care for you my sweetheart.

I am enclosing a picture for you.

I cannot wait to hold you in my arms again.

Your loving wife.
XXX

P.S. YOUR GIRLFRIEND CALLED!!!

What's going on with the Dish???

I couldn't handle that valentine stuff anymore, so yesterday I built a new header. The weather was just horrid, and I wasn't in a great mood, could you tell??? Egads, it was drab and so... BROWN! I looked at it this morning, it had to go, it was as bad as all those xoxoxo's...

So I started over... Today was a better day, and I know I'm rushing spring a bit, but this one is so fresh. Doesn't it make you smile to look at it???

Life is good better...

This was my breakfast...

I'm not an egg person, not at all, EXCEPT for poached eggs. I just adore them, so does Ryan...

They are so easy, too - I just put on a kettle of water, bring it to a low boil, add a splash of apple cider vinegar and salt, break an egg in a small cup, immerse it partly in the boiling water to set the egg white a bit, then slide it into the water, cover it and cook it for 2 minutes, 45 seconds. Yep, that's exactly how long it takes to get them to look like this. If you want them firm, 4 minutes does it.

Take out of the water with a slotted spoon, let them drain, plunk them on a piece of toast, a bit of salt and fresh ground pepper a dash of hot sauce... oh they are sublime....

2 poached eggs, 2 pieces Natures Own Wheat Toast = 5 Weight Watcher Points!

Finally, something positive in her life...

I read this about Britney in People Online this morning, I actually teared up when I saw it. Maybe there is hope for her....

Britney Spears has class – dance class, that is.

The 26-year-old singer – who's in the midst of a custody battle over her own kids, Preston, 2, and Jayden, 1 – logged some quality kiddie time Monday, teaching dance an hour-long dance lesson to a group of six children.

Read the entire article HERE...

The best part of waking up....

Is a morning pot of joe, made with Starbucks Komodo Dragon beans, my ABSOLUTE fave!!!

And check out this coffee scoop, I've been meaning to tell you all about it for quite a while now. It's also from Starbucks, actually CHEAP, do you believe it??? It is, really, just $2.99, and instead of using that little measurer that you've had since you first started drinking coffee, this one equals THREE scoops, instead of one, so it's faster...

Yeah, I'm a logo ho, you all know that, Tonia gave me a gift card last fall for Starbucks, and instead of using it for coffee, I bought their canister, vacuumed sealed, works great - Thanks, T!!!

And the mug, my beloved Rainforest Cafe Mug, that I've had for years, and no I didn't get it at Rainforest Cafe, hubby got it at a rummage sale. Hey, works for me!!!

And my coffeemaker? It's a pain in the patootie, Cuisinart Grind 'n Brew, that sucker is so hard to clean, but I love it because I like freshly ground beans, and don't want to have to do it separately.

Linds has the same pot, and she hates cleaning it, too, but it does make good coffee... Nothing better in the morning than the aroma of those beans when you first open the canister and then the coffee...

So, I'm all gassed up and ready to go this morning, it's a wintry morning in Heavensville, we have snow and a thick layer of ice, so needless to say, I'll be playing at the computer today, no going out for me.

I made a great soup yesterday, really different, one I've made several times before. I'll share the recipe with you all later in the day, I'm also building a new layout for The Dish - I just can't handle those XOXOXO's any longer...

Can't stop laughing...

It works, it really works!!!

I heard from my cousin over the weekend, she said that her five year granddaughter was coughing constantly, and that her daughter tried rubbing Vicks on the bottoms of her feet, putting her in socks, and tucking her in bed. She didn't cough until 5am.

IT ACTUALLY WORKED!!! How about that!!! Now if I only had feet!!! Dang, there is always some kind of hangup with me...

But not for the rest of you, give it a try, it really works!!!!

Had to have it...

Tonia and I were shopping this afternoon and I found this canvas stretched on a frame - it's big 28x22, and ANYTHING Yorkie is hard to find. And it's little tongue is sticking out of it's mouth, just like the M&M's.... *sigh* I'm in love....

What am I going to do with it? Heck if I know, but I HAD TO HAVE IT!!!!! Seriously, I'll just take something down from the den and put this up. We have a lot of old advertising stuff on the walls in the den, but nothing Yorkie - This was too good to pass up. Yeah, even LC liked it....

Life is good.....

I feel like we're on vacation, well we are, kinda...

We're in Nashville today, at John and Tonia's. The weather is amazing, we just had lunch on the deck, Tonia and I had on sunglasses, the sun was so bright, and it was actuallyWARM HOT.. All the fur kids enjoyed lazing around in the sun, too. It was more like April than February.

They will be mowing soon, their grass in the backyard is green and growing. I just checked Heavensville's forcast, YIKES, it's going to be a HIGH of 28 tomorrow... What a difference a day makes...

How sweet is this?

I was browsing Martha Stewart's blog this morning, and she had pictures of her dogs thru the years. Is this just not adorable?

Her annual dog show was yesterday, she had a lot of rescue dogs on. It's a good thing she does, with animals....

More pictures and video HERE....

Well, isn't this interesting...

There is a site called Vote Chooser - I read about it from Lori, at PugsPlace, anyhoo, you go to the Vote Chooser site, answer ten questions, it pools your answers into a database, and tells you which candidate you should vote for in the 2008 election.

And my candidate is... Barack Obama????? - WHAT.... OBAMA????? I DON'T THINK SO...

Oh well, it's fun to do this, even though I am NOT voting for Obama...

Here's the Click???

UPDATE: Hubby just took the quiz, his candidate - Hillary Clinton, now isn't that interesting....

The Grammys....

I'm not so much a fan of awards shows anymore. I just can't identify with the music, or the performers, but, this is something I will definitely want to watch - check this out... I'm a HUGE Tina fan...

Just in: The Grammys have announced several performers and presenters for this year's show!

The big news is that six-time Grammy winner TINA TURNER will perform a duet with BEYONCE during a special segment of the show. Beyonce has paid tribute to Tina in the past with a performance at the 2005 Kennedy Center Honors, but this is the first time they will share the stage together.

Check out this clip of Beyonce singing Proud Mary - she just nails it - it's AWESOME...

~ jan

And of course, you have to watch the real deal. OMG, I had forgotten how those legs go ALL the way up to her a** - simply AMAZING...

I've seen two shows lately that went on and on about how mid-life is a great time for women. Just last week Oprah had a whole show on how great menopause will be . . Puhl eeeeee eze! I've had a few thoughts of my own and would like to share them with you. Whether you are pushing 40, 50, 60 (or maybe even just pushing your luck), you'll probably relate.



Mid-life is when the growth of hair on our legs slows down. This gives us plenty of time to care for our newly acquired mustache.

In mid-life women no longer have upper arms, we have wing spans. We are no longer women in sleeveless shirts, we are flying squirrels in drag.

Mid-life is when you can stand naked in front of a mirror and you can see your rear without turning around.

Mid-life is when you go for a mammogram and you realize that this is the only time someone will ask you to appear topless.

Mid-life is when you want to grab every firm young lovely in a tube top and scream, 'Listen honey, even the Roman empire fell and those will too.'

Mid-life brings wisdom to know that life throws us curves and we're sitting on our biggest ones.

Mid-life is when you look at your know-it-all, beeper-wearing teenager and think: 'For this I have stretch marks?'

In mid-life your memory starts to go. In fact the only thing we can retain is water.

Mid-life means that your Body By Jake now includes Legs By Rand McNally -- more red and blue lines than an accurately scaled map of Wisconsin .

Mid-life means that you become more reflective . . . You start pondering the 'big' questions. What is life? Why am I here? How much Healthy Choice ice cream can I eat before it's no longer a healthy choice?

But mid-life also brings with it an appreciation for what is important. We realize that breasts sag, hips expand and chins double, but our loved ones make the journey worthwhile. Would any of you trade the knowledge that you have now, for the body you had way back when? Maybe our bodies simply have to expand to hold all the wisdom and love we've acquired. That's my philosophy and I'm sticking to it!

Well my puter isn't fixed....

The Dell Dude was here, and he sat in the floor and plugged stuff into my tower, and he fired it up and the screen was bright green, looks like the video card is bad now. So he ordered one and he's coming back in a day or two. And after he left I turned it on just to see if my harddrive was working and it sounded weird. So now I guess the sound card has a problem, too. And I can't wait for him to try and activate the media center, I bet the tv part won't work either.

And so here I sit, on my laptop, by the fireplace, at least I'm online, I'm not scrapping, which is what I want to do, but at least I can be in touch with all my favorite sites.

I'm seriously computer addicted, girlfriends, but then you all knew that. I just don't handle this kind of stuff well. I don't like conflict, I just want everything to WORK....

Update later....

poor pitiful me

My latest theory on toronados....

You'll never know how much grief I've gotten from my family since my blog entry about sitting in the car in the garage when toronado warnings were issued. OMG, they all came down on me like a ton of bricks, saying that was the stupidest idea I've ever had.

Ryan called this morning, first thing, to tell me that he watched news footage of the toronado last night at that university and all the car windows were blown out. So, I told him that I have a new theory. I'll get in the TRUNK of the car. Doesn't that make sense? Totally enclosed in the garage, no glass can get to me, surrounded by metal. Of course, I don't know how I would get OUT, if I slammed the trunk lid, so I told him if there was a storm and I was nowhere to be found to look in the car trunk.

Well, you can imagine his reaction to that. So, then I was thinking that if I was in the bathroom or in the closet where everyone tells me to go, of course I would be holding the M&M's, but I might not be able to hold on to them in a storm and they would just blow away. Well the thought of that is absolutely unfathomable, so I told Ryan that I would put THEM in the car trunk so they would be safe. Or, I could possibly put them in the washer and the dryer. Hey, these dogs are little, remember?

Well, he thinks that would really traumatize them, but at least they wouldn't be unprotected. Oh, I think this computer crisis has just totally fried my pea brain today.......

*sigh* What's a Yorkie Mother to do......

Well I've just had a helluva last 24 hours....

It all started with a trip to the oral surgeon, and computer problems, so I wasn't online all day, then we had a stormy night. Jeez Louise, it wasn't one of my better days.

I went to bed yesterday afternoon, sweet Maggie, just kept sniffing my face, just sniffed and sniffed, and then she licked my cheek,then snuggled down beside me with her head on my cheek and just laid there, so quiet, she wasn't sleeping, but she knew something was not quite right and I think she was trying to help. Sweet little soul...

And last night it was stormy and hubby was working, and there I sat, in the chair, reading a book with Mags in my lap and Munchie next to me on the ottoman. And I felt safe... Yeah, I know it's an illusion, but it was comforting. Those of you who aren't doggie parents, have no idea of what you're missing...

And now the Dell Dude is coming this afternoon to fix my computer, so I will be back scrapping "hopefully" and in a much better mood. And am I hurting from the dental crap, nope, I'm swollen, but not hurting. And I did have Marti take me thru G. D. Ritzy's yesterday for a strawberry malt, oh that did help. Really it did. Veronica Jeanne, if you're reading this, I know you're smiling, V thinks strawberry malts make every problem in life easier, too...

So I'll be back soon dear hearts, boring you all with my silly nonsense. Life will be good again. Let's just hope the Dell Dude can fix my puter!!!

Oh.,......W-O-W....

Check out this Doris Day clip from 1971, girlfriends. I love, love, love the yellow dress and the hair - she looks EXACTLY perfect for 1971.... Voice isn't bad either...

I answered a little quiz...

Stephani posted this quiz on her blog, same quiz, different answers, of course... I swiped it. Thanks Steph... Anybody else want to answer this, just jump right in there...

1. Who would you love to be your Valentine?

Okay, you all know who my valentines are, let's go outside the box..... I would love my valentine to be.... ummmmmmm.... The Barefoot Contessa - HUH??? WHY??? So she could cook for me, silly.... My valentine doesn't have to be a man. Well, if I'm perfectly honest, I wouldn't mind Paula Deen cooking DESSERT for me, but I would want the Contessa to do the appetizer and the main course. I'm hungry, no dinner yet, can you tell???

2. What treat would you love to receive in a heart-shaped box?

A salad from Olive Garden... Well, I would.... Or that new Voyager Cell Phone, that would be FANTASTIC... I've probably got a better shot at the salad...

3. Have you ever had a secret admirer?

OMG, I did in high school, let's don't go there...

Did you find out who it was?

Yes, actually it was more of a STALKER... For real it was... And then there was the perverted neighbor when I was in my 20's who would call me on the telephone, whispering obscene messages. YUCK...... Well, he did until one time when he called, not knowing LC was home and hubby got on the phone and read him the riot act. ***MY HERO*** Stupid neighbor never called again. But he did leave his wife for their teenage babysitter. MEN, SCHMEN!!!

Sadly, I've never had any "normal" secret admirers. *sigh* I'm afraid it's too late now...

4. What’s your favorite movie to watch on Valentine’s Day?

I'm so burnt out on movies, it would probably be watching You've Got Mail again. I did love that movie, or maybe The African Queen...

5. If someone were to serenade you, what song would you want them to sing?

Okay, don't laugh, I'm serious - When the red red robbin comes bob bob bobbin' along... That just popped into my addled brain...

6. What would you write on a candy conversation heart?

I Luv my M&M's

7. If you were to write a message in the sky to your Valentine, what would it say?

Visit me online at munchiebusiness.com... haaaa, I would, I really would...


8. Instead of a dozen roses, I’d like to get a dozen_________

Plump, chewy, soft, oatmeal cookies, studded with pecans and raisins... Or an assortment of Cadbury Eggs, mostly Caramel ones, oh that's Easter, sorry...

9. If I could spend Valentine’s Day anywhere in the world _____________

It would be with hubby in a bed and breakfast at Carmel by the Sea, cozy fireplace, a gadzillion thread count sheets, fresh flowers everywhere, room service breakfast with a pot of steaming hot coffee, brewed from freshly ground gourmet beans, fresh scones AND croissants AND an assortment of warm blueberry, bran, yes, BRAN, I like bran, banana and morning glory muffins, AND soft, creamy unsalted butter AND boysenberry jam with whole boysenberries, AND a fruit and cheese plate, sharp wisconsin cheddar, baby swiss, and a wedge of brie, strawberries, pineapple, peaches, red grapes, watermelon and fresh 'squoze' orange juice, with pulp, California oranges, of course.

The M&M's would be curled up by the fire, there would be a stack of morning papers to read, smooth jazz on the stereo and shopping and lunch later in the village with a prepaid, unlimited charge card. Maggie Moo would be tucked into my purse for everybody to ooh and ahh over (oh, she would be freshly bathed and groomed and having a really good fur day, too, in designer doggie duds, Munchie would be trotting by my side on a rhinestone studded leash with a hot pink Chanel collar, her shiny coat glistening in the sun, and hubby would be ferrying all my purchases to the car and not complaining... AND, did I say that I wouldn't gain a pound from all that food and that I would slide into size 10 clothes, no make that size 8, and I wouldn't look a day over 50 40 35. AND, I would be having a really good hair day, my makeup would be perfect, and I would have this GREAT trendy outfit, and a KILLER Hermes bag WITH matching wallet, and a FANTASTIC pair of Manolo Blahnik shoes... ahhhhhhhhh...... And since it is pure fantasy, I would LOVE to drop in later on Doris Day, and show her my dogs, and Betty White would be visiting her, and we would all have tea, with all of our dogs by our feet, and talk about their old movies... Well, actually Doris Day does have an Inn in Carmel that is dog friendly, maybe I would just want to say there instead of the bed and breakfast, but I would want to visit her at her house.. We would stay in the Honeymoon suite, of course... Ocean view.... Red rental car... convertible... top down...

10. Who is the most romantic couple in history?

Bacall and Bogart, Hepburn and Tracy, Lucy and Ricky, even Fred and Ethel had their moments... Omg, all these people are DEAD, except for Bacall.... Yikes...

Am I the only one having problems finding books???

Well, today was library day. I usually have a reserved books to pick up, but not today. Today it was strictly go through the shelves, browse the aisles, see what I can find day... And what did I find??? A bazillion books for young women, not teenagers, YOUNG WOMAN. All the titles on the covers were written in various squirly fonts, showing 20 something women in various stages of dress undress. And while I have no problem with this, I'm glad that younger women are reading, and even I occasionally enjoy these books, usually ones suggested by Lindsay.

But, I don't want to read these on an ongoing basis. I'm long past my twenties, but I'm having a REALLY hard time finding books that interest me. Trisher gave me one of her books to read, a Charlotte LaRue mystery by Barbara Colley, but I just couldn't get into it. I've exhausted my favorite authors, read everything they've ever written - if you look at my Library Books in the right side bar (scroll down a bit) YES, I finally updated the list, you will see a bunch of nonsense. I'm even rereading my favorite LaVerle Spencer, even though I've read everything she ever wrote, I'm now reduced to rereading.

So if ANY of you have a great author, somebody that will interest women of a "certain" age, PLEASE, leave me a comment or email me. I would really like some input. And what do I read? Trash, light romance, light mystery, hopefully with a heroine over the age of 30. Some of my favorite authors are Barbara Delinsky, Nora Roberts, and Jude Devereaux. I also like contemporary novels, I'm not a fan of historicals.

HELP, PLEASE...

Mrs. Hullings Banana Coconut Cream Pie...

I scrapped and posted the recipe for this great pie in Milly Scraps. You can access it from the Pies and Cakes Index HERE.

~ jan

Think Spring....

Bake a lemon-upside-down cake... I just posted the recipe on Jan CAN Cook. I had read about it last month in the L.A. Food Times, and wanted to get it on the site before they deleted the file.

CLICK HERE

~ jan

I'm getting really tired of all this valentine stuff....

All these XOXOXOXO's are grating on my last nerve. I said I wouldn't redo this page before Valentine's Day, but egads, this is wearing a little thin...

I've been working on Milly Scraps - the first two pages are brand new, and totally different than what I had before - Check the first page out HERE and then click on thru to the next page to see my new index page. Now I don't like my other index pages. This stuff NEVER ends..... It's a good winter project, though... keeps me outta the looney bin.... Well, that's debatable...

I found John's favorite boyhood pie, Mrs. Hulling's Banana Coconut Cream Pie, and it's in Mother's handwriting, that's the next thing to scrap, check back later and I'll post the link. Oh, and is it ever GOOD, ladies, OMG, this pie is nectar of the gods...

And speaking of Banana Coconut Cream Pies, I just posted a recipe on Jan CAN Cook, it's not Mrs. Hulling's, but it's an amazing pie - this one has a coconut crust - it's really different, and if you aren't good at making pie crust, this one is a no brainer. It's from the L.A. Food Times, from a few years ago, it's good, too. Oh, would I love a piece of pie.... But oh no, I'm TRYING to be good... My life sux....