And it is still snowing…

and I am sick of it.  I went out yesterday afternoon and cleaned my car off and I have been out this morning and cleaned it off again.  And it is still snowing.  I am way too old for this.  C’mon spring!!

And all right already, I think it is time for Juan Martinez to wrap up his cross examination of Jodi Arias.  My head was spinning around yesterday.  Court was finally closed early because Jodi had a migraine and the sheriff’s office hadn’t furnished her any lunch.  She has been promised lunch today and court will start 15 minutes early.

The roast I fixed yesterday was really good.  I think I will make some hash with the leftover potatoes and carrots and a bit of the roast.  Just dice everything together and brown it in a skillet sprayed with cooking spray.  I like it with a lot of catsup on it.  Then tomorrow I will make BBQ with the rest of the roast.

I am looking out the window now and the snow is still coming down.  It is pretty to look and that is about all it does for me. 

Along with the trial I am reading another Lisa Gardner book.  She writes great suspense novels with a different twist.  I have ignored any and all cleaning because I figure it isn’t worth doing it in this kind of weather.

Have a sunny snow free day.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Mainstream Services

Mainstream Services

http://www.mainstreamservices.org/

I am so proud of Mainstream Services, Inc.  My niece was one of the original founders and is the current Executive Director. 

*********************************************************************************************

I am in the waiting mode here for the storm.  We have received the freezing drizzle and my car is ice covered.  We have a near 100 % chance of 3 – 6 inches of snow today on top of this.  I hope it all fizzles out!

I have a pot roast in the oven with carrots and potatoes so I am good to go in the eating department. 

I hope it is sunny and warm where you are.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Monday Morning Madness…

Well, I am not mad, actually I am happy to see another day.  What I don’t like is that our winter weather watch has turned into a winter weather warning for 3 – 7 inches of freezing rain and snow.  This nice mess is to begin tonight and last until Wednesday.  This means another emergency run to the store this morning and to Wal*Mart.  The temp right now is 26 degrees and cloudy.

I started watching the fashion parade at the Oscars last night when the cable went out.  What I didn’t realize was that the telephone and internet had already been out for about 3 hours.  My sister had been trying to reach me for a couple of hours and she even called my daughter.  So today I am not bragging on ITV-3.  I don’t know what the problem was. My phone service would go out a lot at Comcast in addition to a bunch of other stuff so I still think I have the better of the two now.

I think my laundry is ready to put in the dryer so I will catch you all later.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Peaceful Sunday…

It is a bright sunshiny day starting at 12 degrees right now so the snow is still there.  I got my car all cleaned off all ready for the next round of freezing rain and snow which is to start Monday night.  First freezing rain and then snow through Thursday.  It seems like we are having all of our winter in February.

Yesterday was a boring day,  I fixed fettuccine with Alfredo sauce from a jar.  It wasn’t bad but not satisfying.  Seems like nothing I am cooking is satisfying anymore except for the big turkey meal we had last Sunday.  Leftover fettuccine for me today I guess.  Still have some banana bread though.

I have to go out in the cold after a bit to go to the pharmacy to pick up a couple of prescriptions.  I noticed the car has a very nice layer of frost on it this morning so I will have to warm up the car and do some scraping.  I think it is only 23 days until spring so I am hanging in there.

I hope it is warm and sunny where you are because I am coming to visit you.  Note to relatives in Wisconsin: your weather is worse than mine so I am not coming to visit you.  lol  Note to relatives in Florida:  How come  I never get an invitation to visit you??  Note to sis and BIL in West Virginia:  You just told me on the phone that it was 37.4 degrees there.  That is a lot warmer than 12 degrees so get the cake baking.

Have a truly blessed day.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Back home…

Paxton sledding hill deemed too big

Thursday, February 21, 2013

A young child is pulled on a sled near Montrose Harbor in Chicago. (WLS Photo)

 

 

February 21, 2013 ( PAXTON, Ill.) -- A small town in eastern Illinois is losing its sledding hill because the city says it's just too big of a liability.

Kay McCabe is a member of the Park District board in Paxton. She tells The (Champaign) News-Gazette that the district's insurance company warned that costs would sharply rise if anyone had an accident on the hill in Coady Park.

Paxton is about 30 miles north of Champaign and sits in one of the flattest areas in Illinois. Places to ride a sled downhill in that part of the state are almost all manmade.

Park District Director Neal McKenry says he believes people will miss the hill but he hopes they get over the disappointment.

Workers have already started removing trees and other vegetation from the hill.

(Copyright ©2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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This article was in the Peoria Journal Star yesterday.  I sat right up and took notice because Paxton is the little town where my children were born.  Jim and I owned our own home there (with a garage ) until I sold it in 2010 and moved here to be close to my daughter.

I remember when the land was donated to the Paxton Park District by Ms Coady, thus the name of the park.  I remember at the time that a good portion of the citizens of Paxton did not like the idea at all because of the raise on our taxes.  And now it is coming down.  And that is as the world turns.

I hope you are all having a peaceful weekend.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

And the snow did come…

About 4 inches of it.    That is my car in the front of the pic.  If you click on the pic you will see the tree that I filmed each month last year and the cemetery behind me.  I will have to get out after a bit and try and clean my car off.  There was a period of freezing drizzle mixed in so that makes it a bit tougher.  Have I mentioned a few thousand times that I miss my garage?

I did go to Kroger yesterday morning and get the basic items needed for when the weather gets bad.  The store was full of wall to wall shoppers and all of the check out lanes were open. 

Then I came home and turned on the Jodi Arias trial.  The cross examination was beginning and I was riveted. Juan Martinez, the prosecutor was not kind to Arias. 

My DVR has not been working properly so I had to wait for a technician to come.  I have a new DVR but I lost all of my settings and shows that I had recorded so that didn’t make me happy.  I was told that the DVR’s have a hard drive like a computer and that was going bad on my old one.  I will give ITV-3 a plug here and mention that there was no charge at all for me.  I am so happy that I got rid of Comcast last year.  They have such rude customer service and they are raising their rates each month.  My daughter has Comcast with the cable and internet hookup and she pays only $2 less per month than I do with phone, internet and cable and DVR.

Finally after the technician left I decided to make some banana bread.  It was just beginning to snow but I went out to a couple of my neighbors to deliver a loaf of warm banana bread. 

Banana Bread (my recipe site)

This is the recipe I have used for banana bread for all of my married life. Jim loved it. I will never forget him sitting in by the front window in July 2006 eating banana bread and drinking a glass of milk while he was watching the city finally put a new curb in front of our house.

•1 cup margarine
•2 cups sugar
•4 eggs
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•2 teaspoons soda
•4 cups of flour
•6 large ripe bananas mashed
•1 cup chopped pecans (may use walnuts)

Have oven preheated to 350 degrees. Sift the dry ingredients together and set aside. Cream the margarine, sugar and eggs together. Add the flour mixture together alternately with the mashed bananas to the creamed mixture. Fold in the pecans. Pour into two loaf pans (or several small loaf pans) that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for approximately 1 hour for lg loaf pans. Watch smaller pans. Bread is done when the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  

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Then I came back in and got immersed in the trial again.  Arias just set there and smirked all the while she was being questioned.  I think she is a pathological liar. 

I am ready to come and visit you all and I am bringing homemade banana bread.  Coffee for you, tea (decaf) for me please.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

It’s a Waylon, Willie and Watchful Wednesday…

I confess, I love Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings, although not as much as my all time favorite George Jones.  If you have been my blogging friend for a few years you all know I am a big classic country music fan.  Todays country music has no body and soul.  That is the best way to describe it I think.  I listen to this music on WIRL Peoria.  http://tunein.com/radio/WIRL-1290-s23733/  What a great way to start the morning.  I turn on the radio and do my half hour of exercise.

It is a watchful Wednesday because we are under a winter storm watch for tomorrow and Friday.

WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH LATE THURSDAY NIGHT...

A WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH LATE THURSDAY NIGHT.

* TIMING... SNOW WILL DEVELOP OVER PARTS OF WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS BY EARLY THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE THROUGH THURSDAY EVENING.

* ACCUMULATIONS... 4 TO 6 INCHES OF SNOW WITH HEAVIEST AMOUNTS NORTHWEST OF THE ILLINOIS RIVER.

* WIND... EAST WINDS WILL INCREASE TO BETWEEN 15 AND 20 MPH WITH A FEW GUSTS REACHING 30 MPH... WHICH WILL DEVELOP SOME BLOWING AND DRIFTING OF SNOW DURING THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO THURSDAY EVENING.

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Since I live close by the Illinois River I am hoping we get the lesser amounts of snow.  I know a lot of you love snow.  I personally do not.  It has to be shoveled and cleaned off the car and driven in and I don’t like any of those three things. 

And now I am off to have my breakfast.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Safe Haven…

 

“An affirming and suspenseful story about a young woman's struggle to find love again after she arrives in a small North Carolina town. Her reluctance to join the tight-knit community raises questions about her past. Slowly, she begins putting down roots, and gains the courage to start a relationship with Alex, a widowed store owner with two young children. But dark secrets intrude on her new life with such terror that she is forced to rediscover the meaning of sacrifice and rely on the power of love in this deeply moving romantic thriller.”

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If you like Nicholas Sparks books you will love this movie.  I really like his books.  They usually have a surprise ending as this one did.  Sometimes the endings are sad.  I really prefer happy endings.  I loved this movie and I give it 5 stars!  I saw this movie yesterday with my daughter.

Yesterday the weather was spring like with temps in the low 50s.  This morning it is cold again with a temp of 14 and 2 below wind chill.  A snow storm is headed our way on Thursday.  The amounts predicted are varied depending on which way the storm moves.  Oh, I am longing for spring.

I hope you all are having a good week.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

13 degrees again…

but at least the sun is shining brightly.  Snow is predicted for Thursday and Thursday night, several inches right now.  I hope that forecast falls flat.

I wanted to clear up something for my friends who thought I didn’t realize it was February instead of November.  I said in a previous post that I bought a turkey at Kroger last week at the unbelievable price of 88 cents a pound.  So I declared at that time that I would fix another Thanksgiving meal for Sunday (today).  I have fixed the turkey and the cherry cheese pie.  I have yet to fix dressing, mashed potatoes and the gravy along with the green bean casserole.  So you see, it is almost a Thanksgiving dinner.  Well, actually, it is as I am thankful that the Good Lord granted me another day.

Hopefully I am done with doctor appointments for this month.  I have 2 in a row in March and then in April begins the dentist for a crown.  That is something I am not looking forward to.

By my driveway at my old home.  It was beautiful in the spring.

Have a peaceful day.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Saturday Sunshine…

The sun is shining brightly and it is 13 degrees.  I thought about going to the store for a couple of things but I decided I didn’t want to go out in the cold.  Besides when I go to the store for a couple of things I end up spending $50 on things that I don’t even need or want.

I am fixing the turkey and getting things ready for my Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow.  One change in plans.  I am having cherry cheese pie instead of pecan pie.  The rest is still on.

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Easy Cherry Cheese Pie

This has always been one of my daughter’s favorites. So easy to make.

•8 inch graham cracker crust
•8 ounce pkg cream cheese softened
•14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
•1/3 cup bottled lemon juice
•1 tub of cool whip
•1 can cherry pie filling chilled (may use strawberry or blueberry)

Beat cream cheese till light and fluffy. Gradually beat in condensed milk. Stir in lemon juice and a teaspoon of vanilla (optional). Fold in whipped topping. Pour into crust. Chill at least two hours. Top with pie filling before serving.

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I have been to visit all of you that have posted this morning.  I am off now to the kitchen to get busy!

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Valentine’s Day..

was nice!  I treated my daughter to lunch at Red Lobster.  We did a bit of shopping before.  It was a very nice morning.

Taken at Red Lobster 14 February 2013. 

Taken through the windshield of my car. 

The lunch was great.  We both had Sailor’s platters.  I love shrimp and the Cheddar Bay Biscuits are always delicious!  All in all a very lovely time.

I hope you all have a great weekend.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Happy Birthday…

to my daughter.

Click on picture to make larger.

I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine’s Day!  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

The sun is shining…

and the frost is heavy on the ground.  It is 25 degrees and the sun is starting to shine and the predicted temp for today is 45.

I once had a fellow blogger tell me that no one was interested in reading what my weather was for the day and the mundane things happening in my life.  That was in 2005 and I didn’t let her deter me one bit,  I am still going strong and giving my weather forecast in almost every blog I write.  Also such boring things as doctor appointments, what tests I have had, the date and the results.  This info has proved invaluable since I moved here. 

It will be 3 years on April 15th since I moved here.  I can’t get over how fast the time has passed.  I like living in a larger city but I miss my old friends.  I am friendly here with my neighbors but I don’t have any friends like I left behind.  Jo and Sandi and Christine, I miss you all.  But life goes on and we adapt to our environment and that is what I have done.

I see my daughter more now in a week than I did in almost a year at home and I really appreciate her and my son in law!  I see my son a bit less because where I lived before was closer to Chicago and that makes me sad.  I have nieces and a great niece here that I see occasionally so it all balances out.

I am doing laundry this morning, running back and forth to the laundry room while I am typing this.

I have a doctor appointment today so I need to close this off.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Monday…

and the rain has stopped.  It is 34 degrees and extremely windy.  I have been out to the post office, bank and Kroger.  Kroger has their Private Selection turkeys on sale for 88 cents a pound.  I purchased one and have it thawing in the bottom of the fridge.  This means a Thanksgiving meal on Sunday.  I will ask my daughter and son in law to come and share after church.  So that means mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole and stuffing.  I will skip the pumpkin pie because it is not one of my favorites and go for pecan pie. 

Yesterday it rained all day and we got about 3/4 of an inch of rain.  We are still at a deficit.

I am all geared up for Valentine’s Day because as I have mentioned before it is my daughter’s birthday. 

I hope this is a good week for all of us.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

 

Raining again…

It is raining here again this morning.  We even had a thunderstorm when I first got up.  The rain deficit is slowly but surely being whittled away.

I hope you all have a truly peaceful Sunday.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

This is the way I roll..

was written in white  letters with the Pillsbury dough boy and seen on blue flannel lounging  pants in a doctor’s office in Peoria this morning.  I about fell out of my chair viewing the outfit this gal had on.  In addition to the dough boy lounging pants she had a t-shirt on with a saying I couldn’t make out.  She had on a thin hooded jacket with a crisscross pattern on it.  I love to watch people.  It is a favorite pastime of mine when I am in a waiting room somewhere.

Pillsbury Dough Boy

Definition of CRISSCROSS

transitive verb

1

: to mark with intersecting lines

2

: to pass back and forth through or over

intransitive verb

1

: to go or pass back and forth

2

: overlap, intersect

*************************

After the doctor’s office we ate at Wild Berries.  I had hot roast beef sandwich with chicken noodle soup and a small cheesecake dessert with strawberry topping.

I am thinking about my friends in the Northeast and praying that you all will be safe in the storm.  Please keep us updated!

Beth

Rainy Thursday…

It is 36 degrees and pouring down rain.  The rain is not freezing and that is good.

I have been out in the rain to pick up my tax returns.  In Illinois the seniors do not have to pay state income taxes.  I probably shouldn’t have said that.  Our state is the poorest state in the country so I don’t want to give them ideas,  I was pleasantly surprised at the outcome.

I made homemade oatmeal raisin cookies yesterday.  They were really good.

Old Fashioned Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Small box of raisins
•1 cup of water
•3/4 cup of shortening (may use Crisco or margarine)
•1 cup white sugar
•1/2 cup of brown sugar
•2 eggs
•1 tsp vanilla
•1 TBL maple syrup
•2 & 1/2 cups flour
•1/2 tsp baking powder
•1 tsp soda
•1 tsp salt
•2 cups oatmeal
•1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Use ungreased baking sheet. Simmer raisins and water in saucepan over low heat until raisins are plump. Drain raisin liquid into measuring cup. Add enough water to make 1/2 cup.
Mix all dry ingredients together and set aside.

Using mixer mix shortening, eggs, and sugars together. Add maple syrup and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients with the raisin liquid. Fold in the raisins and the nuts.
Drop rounded tablespoons of dough on baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 8 – 10 minutes until golden brown.  Makes 4 – 5 dozen according to size.  I make big cookies.

If you are a lover of spice you may add 1tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp cloves.  I don’t add these spices.

If I lived close by my Twin in Tennessee I would have fixed some cherry cobbler for her and her son.

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I am staying in the rest of the day, watching the trial and watching it rain.

Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Glorious Day…

It is beautiful out today.  23 degrees to rise to 40 today.  The sun is shining brightly and that brings a smile to my face.  I am in the mood to do some spring cleaning.  I think however, that I used up all of my energy exercising for 1/2 hour this morning.  So let’s wait on that for a few weeks.

I am well satisfied with my haircut for a change.  lol  I really miss my old beautician at home.  She was the daughter of a friend of mine and she cut my hair for over 25 years.  I  stop in to see her when I go home to visit Jim’s grave.

I am still wrapped up in that silly Arias trial.  Arias has taken the stand and is undergoing examination by her defense attorney.  Today will be her third day of her testimony.  I can’t wait for the prosecution to cross examine her.  She has dissed her mother and father and the many guys that she had lived with or had affairs with, etc.  Her poor mother sits there in the front row listening and every now and then she will whisper something to the woman sitting next to her who is her twin sister.  This is just like a soap opera. 

dissed past participle, past tense of dis

Verb

Act or speak in a disrespectful way toward.

I think I need to close this for now as I am in the mood to cook something.  Not sure what yet. 

I hope you all have a good day.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Good Morning Sunshine…

Well, it is partly sunny.  I see the sun peeking out from behind the clouds  once in awhile.   The temp is to reach 38 degrees today.

I did not want to get up this morning.  One of those mornings when I really had to force myself to get up.  At least it is getting light a little bit earlier each morning.  That will change on March 10th when we go on daylight savings time.  I am not a fan of daylight savings time as I can see no point in wanting it to stay light out until  9 PM.  Now when I was young it was a different story. 

I saw the tax accountant yesterday and dropped my pile of stuff in his hands.  He sends a question form for us to fill out each year.  I didn’t fill it out this year.  He charges way enough money that I figured he could do that himself.  I don’t have all of the stuff to contend with like I did before I sold my house and I could probably do it myself in a few minutes if I wasn’t so lazy.

Because of the power outage  (thanks Beyonce) my DVR recorded an hour of the Super Bowl instead of Elementary which is one of my favorite new shows.  Rather aggravating!

I need to get a move on as I have an appointment for a hair cut this morning.  Fingers crossed!!

I hope you all have a great week.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

The Dinette Set…

~ Copyright Julie Larson ~

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Have a peaceful Sunday.  stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

Happy Groundhog Day…

If I knew you were comin’ I’d have baked a cake…

and I did which will be served with strawberries and whipped topping .  Does anyone remember that old song sung by Eileen Barton?

Eileen Barton

I purchased California strawberries at the store yesterday.  They don’t have the flavor yet that they will have later in the season but they are not half bad.  Good enough I thought that they needed to decorate a cake.  My  niece is coming for lunch and that will be our dessert.

Sunny and 2 degrees this morning with a wind chill of 15 degrees below zero.  However, it is the first day of February and it will soon be spring.

I hope you all have a good weekend.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth