Long Time no Update

It's been awhile since I've updated this blog. Quite a bit has happened since I posted last. For one, I've been busy knitting Christmas Stockings for the grandkids. What fun. They turned out better than I hoped. In fact, I like them so well I may make some to try and sell. Take a look.

Here's two of the five I made. They were a lot of fun to make but rather hard on my hands. I really built some strength every time I had to knit two honkin' big stitches together, or pick up those stitches along the heel flap to make the gusset. I used some big, bulky yarn. Now I'm working on just regular sized stockings again.

One of the reasons I was able to get five stockings knit in such a short time is because I sat at the hospital every afternoon or evening with Mother for six days. Yep, Mom's been in the hospital again, but she is home now with oxygen full time. Doctor says she's done everything she can do for her, and now we see what happens next. I'd say at 91 the doctor has definitely done all she can for Mother, and done a darn good job of it. Maybe too good. Sometimes I wonder where her iron will to keep living comes from. She has to have pretty much 24 hour care and she can't knit anymore. However, she still enjoys her talking books and visiting on the phone. Oh yes, she is enjoying her food too. What she can eat anyway. That's another issue. Here gums are so sore it makes it very hard to keep here dentures in to eat. Oh well, we just take one day at a time.

Believe it or not, I even have part of my Christmas shopping done. I wrapped presents today.

My baking has been neglected, but that's okay. I needed a break from that because I always eat too much of what I make. With winter setting in I best take it easy in the eating department.

We had a relaxing Thanksgiving this year. This is the first time in several years that Jerry and I haven't hosted Thanksgiving dinner. Nope, we went to KC, stayed in hotel, and took Jan, Devin, and the boys out to eat. They came to the hotel and swam in the indoor pool and then we played board games in the lobby. It was quite relaxing and stress free. Believe me, after Jerry's stress at work, a relaxing few days out of town was much needed.

We ended the weekend with a second Thanksgiving dinner at Jerry's sister's. It was great and we had a lot of fun playing Sequence in the afternoon. I'm going to have to get that game.
Today it was back to the real world of work. Three weeks and I'll be off again for about two weeks. Yippee!! I love Christmas break.

Kringle Recipe

I've tried this recipe several times now,  and not once was it not fit to eat. It's very good and really not all that much work. However, I usually don't advertise that last bit of info. I like for my friends and co-workers  to think I put many diligent hours into my successful baking adventures. And if it doesn't work out??? I throw it in the trash and never let anyone know I even tried. (This system works for me pretty well. )

Dough

1 pkg. active dry yeast (I buy yeast by the jar and use 1 tablespoon.)

1/4 cup warm water (110°-115°)

1/2 cup cold butter

2 cups all-purpose flour (I always end up using a bit more. You just have to get a feel for it)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 cup warm milk (110°-115°)

1 egg beaten

Filling                                                                                    

8 ounces cream cheese                                                        

1/2 cup sugar                                                                      

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract                                    

 Your favorite jam (I use apricot)                                      

1 Cup chopped nuts                                                                  

Mix the first 3 ingredients with mixer on medium speed until smooth.

Glaze 

1 Cup powdered sugar

4 – 5 teaspoons water

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Whisk until smooth.

Preparing the dough

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water.


Using a pastry blender or two knives, in a large bowl, cut butter into flour and salt until particles are the size of small peas. Add yeast mixture, sugar, warm milk, and egg. Beat until smooth. (Dough will be very soft.) Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours but not more than 24 hours.


When ready to use, remove from refrigerator. Punch dough down and divide in half. Return other half to refrigerator. On a well-floured board and working quickly before dough softens, roll into a 15 x 10 inch rectangle, approximately 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. (If dough gets too warm from handling, return to refrigerator for awhile.)

Spread half of the cream cheese filling down the center of the dough rectangle in a two-inch strip.
On top of that, spread your favorite jam.
Fold sides of dough over filling, overlapping 1 1/2 inches. Pinch edges to seal.

Oval Shape
Form roll into a circle and pinch ends together. Place seam side down on a large greased baking sheet. Repeat same process with remaining dough and filling. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes or until double in size.

Preheat oven to 375° and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and let cool for 15 minutes. Spread Glaze and sprinkle top with chopped pecans or walnuts. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note- I sometimes try to make a little fancier looking Kringle by cutting the edges into 1/2 inch strips  and criss-crossing them over the filling instead of just overlapping the edges like it says in the recipe.   I haven't perfected it yet, but am still trying. Heck! I don't even have the oval shape perfected yet! No matter, it still tastes wonderful.

Tuesday night Knitting Club

Yes, it is official. I am now a member of a knitting club. One Tuesday a month I get together with six other hip, needle savvy ladies who enjoy knitting or crocheting. Some are beginners; some are experienced. Me??? I'm somewhere in between. We have a lot of fun sitting around knitting or crocheting and sharing our yarn crafting stories and showing off our latest creation. And... it's all right to brag! Nobody rolls their eyes when one of us shows off the sweater we just finished or the dishrag that is finally done. We really appreciate each other's unique talent. We also pick up some pretty useful tips, or get some help if we're stuck somewhere in a pattern of a project we're working on.

This month's get together was at my house  and there was quite a range of projects being worked on tonight.  The needles were really clicking. Two of us were working on socks, one was working on a baby sweater, and three were working on scarves. Most were knitting, but we did have one crocheter in the group. One thing  I like about this group besides the knitting is meeting new people. We're a pretty diverse group of females, but one Tuesday a month it doesn't really matter how different we are or what our political or religious views are, or what our philosophy is on child rearing. We don't gossip. We don't talk about work. We talk yarn, patterns, and what our next project is going to be. I love it!

Sweater's done!!!!

Yipee!!! Finally got my sweater done, and I have started on my second pair of socks and a little dress for my one and only granddaughter, Isobella.

My Sweater

Future Dress for Izzy!

Knitting, Knitting, Knitting

OK, I have become, at least temporarily, a knit-0-holic. I can't wait to get my necessary work done so I can sit down and knit. My latest project, a simple two-button cardigan, is just about complete. I will post a pic if it looks half-way descent. I've completed one pair of socks. (I think I've already posted that pic.) Izzy's sweater is next on my list to complete. It's started but I haven't been working on it lately in an attempt to get this sweater done. I can't have more than two projects going or I get too frustrated not being able to make a decision about which one to work on. When I'm working on one, I'm thinking about the others. Oh what a problem to have. What would really help me out here is a four day work week without a lot of night duties. However, that's not going to happen, so I have to get creative with my knitting time. I've been able to get one complete row of knitting done while waiting for my order at Sonic. I've completed an entire chemo cap while waiting for my mother to complete a chemo therapy session at the cancer center. I haven't been guilty of knitting while driving yet, but I do take my knitting with me whenever I leave the house for longer than just a quick errand.

One project done!

Here's a couple of pictures of my first completed knitting project that actually took a little more skill than just knitting and purling. When I finish my next project I will, of course, post a pic of it too. So far I am really enjoying getting a little more serious about this knitting hobby. 

Good News!!!

Yipee!!! Almost everything on my summer to do list is done. Still need to do a bit of clean up on my hard drive, but everything else is complete. Love the new treadmill, and I still have room for my sewing machine and ironing board. Jerry walks on the treadmill every morning. I do only when I don't get outside to walk.

Now that everyone in the family seems to be well or on the mend, I finally feel like I'm having a vacation. Haven't been able to go anywhere, but maybe a few road trips on the weekend will suffice. Hard to believe school starts in less than a month. I better get back to my vacation.
More later.
pm

Oh yeah! I've also started on some serious knitting. If my project gets finished and it looks good, I will post a picture!

Just Checkin' in!!

 You know that "To Do" list I published? Well, I got a little side tracked with Mom in the hospital and then having to help take care of her after she got home. However, there is still good news. I got the hard drive on my school computer cleaned and organized. At least I got one thing totally done. I also have started working on my other files. Looking pretty good. I have some more cleaning out and organizing to do at school and then I plan on digging in here at home. Hopefully, when I check in here again, I can report all school to do list items are checked off!

I know this is not the most exciting blog to read, but if it helps motivate me to get all this work done, then woohoo!!!!  It's worth it. 

Hooray for summer vacation!!!!

I have started my summer to do list and am publishing it here to see if this motivates me to carry through with at least half of what is on my list. Here goes:
Home List
1. Organize all pictures in iPhoto and back up.
2. Put all print photos in album.
3. Clean up, organize all files on hard drive, (then back it up, of course.)
4. Clean out extra bedroom to make room for a new treadmill. (The old one pooped out about a year ago.)
5. Sort and get rid of broken toys in grandkids toy boxes.
6. Clean utility room and closet so I have a place for my home office stuff.

School List
1. Clean up my messy, unorganized Hard drive on my school computer, so it will be ready for updating.
2. Organize my file cabinets, and get rid of what I haven't used in at least two years.
3. Clean my office closet.

Whew! I feel better just making the list. I may have to add to it, but this is enough right here to keep me busy for awhile. I look forward to erasing each item as it gets done. (Hope I have to edit this blog post a lot in the next few weeks.)

Happy Summer

The Credit Card Rip Off Caper I think I won!!!

I am now a happy camper! The Better Business Bureau came through for me. They contacted the Chase Credit Card services' executive office in Delaware and I got a call from them yesterday. I returned the call, and a very cordial Stacy from their executive offices assured me my late fee and service charge had been refunded and will show up on my May statement. Can you believe that they had the *&%@s to charge a $29.00 late fee plus a $1.00 finance charge on a $44.00 statement that was exactly one day late according to their posting practices. The $1.00 I could see; maybe. The $29.00 was inhumane. The funny part is that the actual due date for the payment fell on a Sunday and my payment was confirmed through my bank the following Monday, but the Credit Card crooks didn't post it till Tuesday, so they claimed that it was two days late.
My advice, watch your credit card statement very closely. I noticed my last statement I got on April 24, 2009 was due May 5, 2009. You do the math.

New Projects

I have started a new hobby in addition to my baking adventures. I am now getting into needlework. By that I mean knitting, spool knitting, crocheting, and Tunisian crochet. The possibilities of what you can create fascinates me. Here is a picture of my first project where I used all of the above needlework methods. I'm having a friend make the liner and I still have to come up with an adequate way to keep it closed so the contents won't fall out, but for the most part I'm pretty satisfied with this original-designed purse. I don't even know if I could replicate it. I made it up as I worked. Hmmmm!!!! Anyway, here's some pictures of my first project.
It took about ten hours to complete. That's a very rought estimate.

Chee-zzy Potato Soup Recipe

5-6 diced potatoes

1 medium-sized onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced 

2 Chicken bouillon cubes or you can use the bouillon granules.

1 lb. Velveeta cheese, cubed

2 Cups milk

Dash of salt and pepper

Cook potatoes, onion, celery, bouillon cubes, salt and pepper until tender (approx. 20-30 min).

Drain 3/4 of the liquid. Add milk and cubed cheese; stir constantly. Serve as soon as cheese melts. (better make sure you're at medium heat or lower when cheese is added)

Home and recovering

We've been home from the hospital a week now and Jerry is getting better every day. Still has to sleep on the couch, but at least getting some sleep. He's been a pretty good patient throughout this whole ordeal. He walked around the block yesterday, and he does a lot of walking in the house, pacing actually. He says the pain is getting less and less every day. We go back in a week for a procedure to check out how he's healing. One week down and seven more to go. By then he should be fully recovered. Yipee!!!

Day 3 in the Hospital

Well, here I sit once again in a hospital room wide awake while Jerry is sound asleep. No big deal, that's the way it is most nights at home. He didn't get much sleep last night. It was a doozy, but now with the pain medication adjusted and solid food on the menu, he's doing much better. In fact he's progressing better than the norm. We're very thankful for that. He had some visitors today and also received lots of cards and calls wishing him a speedy recovery or offering to do anything needed. Boy it's great to have such a great family and great friends. I used to take that for granted, but I sure don't anymore. I know there are at least two patients on this floor that have had not one visitor. I don't know if they have any family or not. I don't know what kind of surgery the other patients have had, but Jerry's kept me pretty busy doing lots of little things he can't do by or for himself yet, and If I weren't here he'd have to call the nurse tech (that's what they call them here). She has five or six other patients to tend to and if she had to help Jerry like I have been, she'd spend most of her time in here. I guess that's why they encouraged me to stay. It also explains the built-in bed in each room. It looks kind of like a window seat with attached cushions. A single sheet fits over it quite nicely and the patient can call you any time during the night and easily wake you when help is needed. Hummmm!!! Good News! We should be out of here Monday. I'm looking forward to my samo, samo routine. Another thing I use to take for granted and even sometimes bemoaned, but it looks pretty inviting right now. Wow, I'm on a roll. I've posted twice in three days on this blog. Maybe next time I'll have another new recipe to share. I'm looking for a Cream Cheese Kringle recipe. Can't wait to try it!

Happy Birthday to me!!

This will be a very memorable birthday for me. I'm sitting here in a hospital room while Jerry sleeps -thank goodness he can. He had his surgery today and everything went well except for the long wait to get to surgery. We arrived at 11:30 A.M., he was taken to pre op at 12:30 P.M., but didn't get to the operating room until 4:30. He was in recovery a little after 7:00 and got to his room at 9:15. What a day. He hasn't eaten solid food since Wednesday morning. However, I'm not complaining, and he isn't either YET, because the surgery was completely successful. Of course, we won't know for sure about the cancer until Monday when the path report comes back, but the doctor was very confident that it was all contained within the prostate, and since that's been removed ---wa la ---he's cancer free. Yipee!!! Now the long recovery and keeping him from overdoing. The first two weeks shouldn't be a problem, but after that I may have to get mean.

One other thought before I sign off. I sure am blessed with great family and great friends. Thanks!

P.S. He was sleeping. He's now asking for ice. That's a good thing.