Leaving on a Jet Plane

Jake left this morning with his Symphony Orchestra for LA, to compete in the Heritage Festival. He has a solo on his viola and will be performing In Fantasia On A Theme by Thomas Tallis. (Of course they will also get to do a little site seeing including Disneyland, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a Queen Mary Haunted Tour, a Los Angeles Philharmonic Concert, and a Jekyll and Hyde production at the Pantages Theatre. I want to go!) He's already texted me to say that it is sunny and warm there. Here's a picture of the kind of weather he is missing, poor thing.

Wordless Wednesday

Turkeys on Ridgewood Road

There were several of them, and as always, I can never seem to snap the picture fast enough to get a really great shot. They tried to run up the road, but then scattered to the side. The same thing happened Sunday morning when we had seven deer meandering through our back yard, and I ended up just staring at them! Oh, well.

The Weekend

Craig and Rita came to town from Utah this weekend and hosted an open house for Craig's dad, Earl, in celebration of his 90th birthday. As we were talking to them, we realized that we hadn't seen each other in over seven years! It does feel like time goes by quicker these days, but I also think that things like Facebook help to keep me current. 

The rest of our weekend was spent doing chores around the house and then relaxing. I made more yogurt in my crockpot, this time using 1 percent milk, and I'm excited to see what the texture will be when I finally pour it into the mason jars. I made a trip to Michael's to look for supplies to make a wristlet corsage, too. It's true that the days of school dances are coming to an end soon, but I keep thinking that I'd like to try to make one, perhaps for Prom. I'm going to give it a try, and maybe I'll post a picture of the end result. Plus now that I have made this a public announcement, I have no choice but to follow through.😉

And here it is

Wordless Wednesday

Sweetheart's Dance

Kate came home from college this weekend for a visit, just in time to go to Sweetheart's Dance with Jake. We took pictures here and made them a dinner of Fettucini Alfredo with Chicken, Strawberry Cheesecake, and Sparkling Cider. Jake told me later on that they actually spent most of their time at the dance, dancing!

Valentine's Day In

More and more, we are liking the idea of spending Valentine's Day at home. It also happens to be our wedding anniversary, and this year marks 26 years for us. So we do celebrate. I made Bruce some Spaghetti and Meatballs, partly because I think Italian food is romantic, but mostly because he loves Spaghetti and Meatballs. I got him some flowers and he got me a big heart shaped box of chocolates. Then we watched the movie, Groundhog Day, all cozy in bed. It was a wonderful evening, and so much better than being out and about in the crowds.

Wordless Wednesday

Empowered

I woke this morning with a feeling of dread. It wasn't that I didn't sleep well last night, I did, but the morning was so gray and the weather forecast was for yet another winter storm. I made my morning coffee, took care of all the animals, and read the Sunday paper. Then I decided to check Facebook and Words With Friends. All good things in their own way, but sometimes the internet has a way of pulling you in and productivity goes out the window. And, I hate to feel stuck, especially when I know there are so many other things I could be doing. So, I forced myself to take a shower and get dressed, picked up the kitchen, and started cleaning bathrooms. I wasn't feeling too much better though, and by this time the icy rain had started, then flurries, and the snow was starting to pile up. I called Debbie for inspiration and found out she was heading out to shovel her driveway for the third time today already. Wow. She said, you can do it, too. Normally Bruce would be out there taking care of the snow, but he's been in Orlando on a work trip, not due back until midnight, and I'm thinking he's not going to want to deal with all this snow when his flight finally gets in, if it gets in at all because of the weather. Alright, I thought, I'll go out and work on the driveway. It will be good for me. Kind of like forcing yourself to drive to an area of the city that you are not familiar with. These things are good for you. I did ask Jake to help and he graciously agreed. He manned the snow blower, and I manned the shovel, and together we got it done. And you know what? It felt great. Fresh air, some exercise, and seeing an accomplishment feels great. I don't know why we fight these things in the first place.

Mama Katers Time

I am so blessed to have a daughter like Katie. She is like a little sparkler that lights up every room she is in! She came home for a visit and we had our Mama Katers tradition of going to lunch at Panera and then watching a movie together on her laptop. We frequently watch a horror movie, but this time we watched a silly girl flick and made fun of it as it played. We also decided to go visit my parents and picked up some chicken and salad from Cub to eat lunch over there. It was a nice afternoon.

Snowy Wednesday

We got more snow this morning, and the roads were a little slick. By afternoon, though, things were melting and the sun tried to come out. I met Debbie for lunch at Applebee's and we had some tasty salad and tea. I was looking forward to our meeting, as lunch with a friend is good for the soul! I had my usual workout at Curves, and now I'm thinking that we'll just eat up leftovers in the fridge for supper. And if anyone is interested, my homemade yogurt turned out really well! I've decided that I like to drizzle a little honey over mine or eat it with some sliced banana. Dare I hope the family will share my enthusiasm?

Full Weekend

We had a weekend full of meeting both old and new friends. Coffee House at the High School on Friday night to watch Jake perform, a dinner out and concert Saturday night in St. Paul to hear an old college roommate plus a guitar instructor of Bruce's perform, a lunch on Sunday at Debbie's and then finally getting to meet her new guy! Followed by a Superbowl Party with some folks we haven't seen in many years. It was a wonderful weekend, but definitely not typical for us, and I actually had trouble getting to sleep last night as my mind wanted to keep thinking about everything. Today was back to the routine of work and home things... a few loads of laundry in the evening, plus I decided to try to make a batch of homemade yogurt in my crockpot. It's been a couple years since I've last tried, and this time I added some unflavored gelatin to see if I could thicken it up a bit. I also wrapped the pot in a towel and placed it in the insulated carrier to culture overnight. With our cold Minnesota winters, the kitchen counter tops can be chilly. We'll see if it makes a difference. Here's a picture of the last batch I made. Homemade yogurt is quite tasty.