~ ♥ There Are Angels Walking On This Earth Disguised As Moms ♥ ~

Thursday, February 16, 2012

The K family

I recently was offered the opportunity to take pictures for my Sister's family. I am learning and still have so much to learn, but with the help of great subjects and my Sister's prop I think they came out well.

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Back in the kitchen

One of my favorite places in my home is my kitchen ~

I love trying new recipes and making food for others!

I spent 5 hours today in my happy place :-)

I prepped a pork roast for the crock-pot by smothering it in my homemade BBQ sauce

Having used the last of my sauce, I made a new batch!

Now that dinner was cooking I set out on my next dish...

Mocha cheesecake

Next I set up dinner for Tuesday night, Valentine's Day

I found a great recipe for chicken cordon blue

for the crockpot!!!

Lastly, I made the cakes for my attempt at Red Velvet cake!

I'll take that to work on Wednesday, but with the cakes baked

I'll only need to frost on tuesday night.

Hopefully I am please enough with it to take a photo

to post later !

Friday, February 3, 2012

Uncle Tommy's visit

Dear Son came for a visit from Seattle to see his niece.

I get super excited when I see his plane arrive :-)

We put Uncle Tommy right to work feeding the baby...

Next day we hosted a brunch for the family and shared our baked goods ~

Hubs and I had made swedish tea ring and sweet rolls...

Granddaughter Harlow & her 2nd cousin Jake 'performing for the family'

We put the babies in the center of the floor and

they kept everyone entertained for nearly an hour!!

It was great to see them together :-)

Harlow & her Uncle spent some time watching the NFL playoff game

Uncle Tommy just cracks me up!!!

It was a great visit, always wonderful to have my family together ~ ♥

Uncle Tommy was able to spend quality time with his niece

and we look forward to the next visit!!

Monday, January 16, 2012

Nature Bike Ride

I've been itching to get out and take some nature shots,

so once it warmed up to 40 degrees today we set out on our bikes...

We were in search of some gorgeous wood ducks,

but they were off somewhere else, naturally!

Found some cinnamon teal... Which we don't see much of around here!

Beautiful mallard hen and drake

Crazy way to get a meal :-)

A great white heron 

A cattle egret who had an 'admirer'...

The egret was frightened off by the cat, who was then frightened off by the egrets pals!!

The little otters were my bonus today!

Saw them swimming around and I was able to catch them playing on the bank near their den...

And finally, my railroad track shot ~ There is just something about them so intriguing to me!

I wish you all a great week -

We are preparing for my Son to visit from Washington this weekend,

which works out perfectly with my Nephew & his wife arriving from Idaho.

They will be here to meet the newest family member, my other nephew's new son.

It will be nice to see the cousins all together

and enjoy having the second cousins play too!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

ABC's of Me

Saw this on Kristal's blog and thought it would be a fun way for you to get to know me!

Age: 52, and am proud of it!
Bed size: KING! Love the hubs and to snuggle but love all the room :-)
Chore you dislike: Putting away clean dishes! Love to wash them tho... ODD, I know
Dogs: Chocolate labs! We have had three and they're great pets! Do miss having a lap dog
Essential start to your day: Checking email and a nice cup of coffee; even in the summer ;-)

Favorite color: RED

Gold or silver: Black Hills Gold or gold, but have silver too

Height: 5’6

Instruments you play(ed): flute in junior

Job title: Administrative Assistant

Kids: Two

Live: Sunny California

Mom’s name: Mom silly….

Nicknames: Sweetie, Lolly, Momma Bear, Ma

Overnight hospital stays: Two childbirths

Pet Peeves: Oh gosh, don't make me throw myself under the bus! I have plenty... Sorry!

Quote from a movie: LaChiem (to Life!) (Fiddler on the Roof) & "I Don't Know Margot" (Christmas Vacation).
Righty or Lefty: Righty, but I was born Lefty. Parents put a sock on my left hand as a baby!!
Siblings: OLDER sister…..
Time you wake up: Usually 4:15-5:30, depending on how many miles I need to run.
Underwear: Uhm yes???
Vegetables you don’t like: Okra
What makes you run late: Trying a new hairstyle
X-Rays you’ve had: None; MRI & CT, but no X-Ray
Yummy food you make: Chocolate chip cookies! Finally perfected :-)
Zoo animal favorite: Giraffes

Monday, January 9, 2012

New Year updates...

Here I thought having only one blog to manage I could post more... LOL! I do set lofty goals!!

In all fairness to me, let me explain what my life is like right now. I received a promotion at work right before Thanksgiving and since then have been trying to balance two jobs at work. I come home in the evenings and am pretty wiped out. I had also committed to myself to make a baby blanket for a family friend who is due in February. Enough with me whining, here are some updates!

My annual New Years Day meal is Cioppino, which is a San Francisco-style Italian fish stew, with fresh halibut, sea bass, Dungeness crab, shrimp, clams, mussels, and oysters in a savory tomato-based broth.

My Mom used to make this fish soup once a year, around this time and I LOVE making it now! One batch makes enough for two nice bowls plus I can fill 2-two quart jars plus a bit more! I have made the broth from scratch and our local grocery store sells it pre-made too! Tried it both ways and of course the pre-made is much easier, but fresh tastes so much better. Paired with some fresh french bread and you got yourself a meal!

We have been trying to see our granddaughter at least once a week! She is growing so incredibly fast, little stinker is holding her head up in spurts and has found her voice. She loves to spend time in her nap nanny (seriously new Mommies, this item is a MUST have) and her crib! There is something magical in her crib that makes her smile and coo!

Harlow is already 2 months old:

Hubs and I are training for our first race of the season; Shamrock'n! It will be my first of 10 planned half marathons this year; again, I set lofty goals :-) I really feel I have found my niche at this distance. I'm not overly comfortable but I know I can finish! I NEVER take any of my runs for granted, as each one is an accomplishment of it's own.

Hope the New Year is treating you all well and you are making progress on those resolutions!