9-25-12 "You;ve Been Chopped!"

I have long been a fan of the Food Network Show "Chopped". In every episode 4 chefs compete by creating an appetizer, entree, and dessert from a basked of "mystery ingredients", along with access to the Chopped Pantry and fridge.  The mystery ingredients are always challenging, but the time constraints bring an element of high pressure also....20 minutes to prepare an appetizer, 30 minutes for entree, and I believe, 30 minutes to prepare a dessert.  With every round, three judges eliminate one chef.  The host of the show is Ted Allen.

I first was introduced to Ted on a Bravo show called "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy."  Ted was the foodie, Carson Cressly was the fashion expert, and Tom Felicia was home decor consultant.  I can't recall the 4th guy.  This show was short lived, only a couple of seasons. Ted moved on very successfully to this Food Network show.  (All men take note of their personal grooming advice...groom your eyebrows!  Noone should have eyebrows like Andy Rooney did.   Hair coming out of your ears and nose is also unsightly!)

Some of the regular judges on the show (although they rotate and there are others) are Alex Guarnaschelli, executive chef of Butter in NYC.(My person favorite of all time...also has a wonderful home cooking called "Alex's day off, in which she shows what she cooks at home for her family.)

Geoffrey Zackarian, a well know (evidently, never heard of him outside this show!) restaurateur...

and another favorite of mine, Aaron Sanchez, Latin cuisine expert, whose passion for food and love of people is so abundant in his critiques of other chefs.

Last night, in this new season, there was a special episode of Chopped in which the chefs were 4 "school lunch ladies." Chopped had a "lunch lady" episode last year also. Honestly, sometimes my favorite chefs are those that are self taught or learned through the school of experience, rather than culinary schools. The stories these women shared about their schools, and their role not only as the preparers and servers of food to students, but also motivators and "teachers of healthy lifestyles" were so inspirational.  Please catch a rerun of the lunch lady episode of Chopped on the food network.  What interested me about all these women, were that  their school food programs were cooking from scratch with fresh ingredients, sometimes even from the school's own garden. Literally, as these women were talking about the importance of their roles, I was crying, and even Alex Guarnaschelli was wiping away tears!  These are real people with a mission to make the world better.  They are of little means, ordinary people, who make a true difference.

The guest judge for this episode was executive chef of the White House, Sam Kass.  He was wonderful in his own right! As a surprise at the end, these four women, and the "lunch ladies" from last season's episode, were invited to the White House as the personal guests of Sam Kass and the Obamas.

He gave them a tour of the White House gardens, and then they cooked together.  This surprise was beyond the wildest dreams of these contestants, and it was sheer fun to have a glimpse of their delight in the whole experience.

At my former school, Longfellow, I believe the ideal situation existed, where the everyone in the building were considered important to the students...custodians, food service workers, paraeducators, librarian, and teaching staff all worked seamlessly to give the students the best possible experience.  Key to student success. It was great to see the show "chopped" honoring the work that these women do daily. All too often, school lunch programs feed our children frozen or overly processed foods that are simply reheated.  Often students are served foods they don't need silverware to eat.  I am hopeful that Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution will continue to spread throughout our schools in America.  We are what we eat!

9-24-12 Flora and Fauna

September is the best month for my flowers.  They love the cooler nights and days that are in the 70's, not over 100 degrees.  Here are a few...geraniums and I don't know what this green plant is called.
Below, Impatiens.

Matt & Mauri's wedding hydrangea...

Judy's maple tree in the front is a little past it's glory. Due to the drought, the leaves didn't have the brilliance this year.  When Matt and Zach left home, evidentally I sent them a picture of Judy's maple tree every year when it turned color.  I can't remember which one of them said, "Mom, do you realize you are sending me the same picture of Judy's tree every year?"  Yes, I do!  Channeling Edie!

Our Silver Maple in the backyard is still green, but it will turn a brilliant yellow gold.

These are my geraniums in the back on the deck...just lush right now! They will last until the first hard frost, which may be at the end of October.  You can never tell here. 

My flowers make me happy most days.  Not so fond of all the watering time when the temps are above 90, but love them at this time of year!

9-22-12 The great bedroom cleanup

I don't know if this can technically be called a bedroom cleanup.  It is more of a bedroom rearrange.  Joey asked if we could do this at 9:30 this morning.  I started with going through Joey's clothes, sorting to a give away bag, a bag good enough for Matthew, and a seasonal bag with shorts and summer things to put away in the closet.  I asked Joey to pick up all the stuffed animals and put them on the bed.

Let's just call this "Stuffed Animal Mountain."  He also had two small shopping bags to sort some toys to give to daycare, and others just to donate to school (They use them for carnival prizes) or give away.  This sorting/throwing process needs to continue for a good long while to come.

Another thing we have pondered before is whether or not to keep the extra twin bed in this room.  As you can see, most of the time, noone sleeps in it, but it accumulates "stuff."

 I campaigned to "Keep the extra bed!"  It is very handy when Matthew comes to visit, and he and Joey each have their own sleeping space.  In the process of taking apart the twin bed and the moving of furniture, we found some surprises!

There was this delightful poster I drew for Joey's 5th birthday, pirate themed, in which the kids pinned stuff on the pirate while blindfolded.  Joey still wants to keep this, and we did not throw it out.

After moving Joey's bed, we found one of Gia's chew treats hidden behind the nightstand.  Who knows for how long!
It was good to vaccuum, wash down the walls, clean, the windows, and the ceiling fan.  Then the great moving began.   Joey and I ended up sorting through all his books, and reorganizing them.  I had a few to give away.  I put all the board books in a clear plastic storage bin, which we can bring out when Matthew is here, or save for future grandchildren.
I am on my third load of laundry so far from Joe's room.  Two were bedding, and one all his long sleeved shirts now that the weather is changing.  I like clothing to be fresh, not have "storage smell."

I am just now picking up this post, several days later.  The first night Joey was in bed before the quilts were washed for the big bed.  The second night was Culver's fundraiser night, followed by homework, and home inspection review for mom.  Tonight, the 3rd night, is the first night I could even get pictures.  The twin bed for Matthew Thomas. Note that Joey's Toy Story 3 poster made the cut, and we moved it to a different wall.  Thank goodness for fun tac.  Also, we always like to use his magnetic Melissa and Doug calendar month to month.  And Joey loves the globe on his desk, which we used to locate all the "stan" countries while Zach was deployed.

Before the first day was even over, Joey wanted to move the card table up to his room for all his legos.  It was so much nicer with open access to the bookcase and window!  Reality strikes...this is how we live.  Katie, he's using your green cube for seating!  Love how it slides under the card table.  And Zach, note that your stuffed pterodactyl is still flying in this room! 

Finally, a view of the "big bed" where Joe sleeps. A few clean/sort/throw/give tasks remain, but they can wait! 

9-23-12 Happy Birthday Ryan & Anniversary Lois & Mike

The 22nd was Ryan's birthday.  We wish him well, and most certainly his card arrived late.  It's all good.  We were thinking of him, as we do of all on their birthdays and special days.  We also wish Lois and Mike a happy anniversary on the 29th.
You may notice a lag in posting lately.  Mom is visiting, and we have been busy with house hunting work.  She is still negotiating for a home.  Time will tell.  With attempting Joey's homework before the deactivation ceremony, it seems like the days have been full.
Saturday Katie and I went to Montgomery furniture, among other stops, with mom.  Katie and I could not resist trying out the "nexgel" mattress.  Does this description tempt you?  "Cloud like comfort" sounds appealing to me!

For the ultimate in pressure-point relief, nothing beats a NexGel mattress. Gel products have been used extensively in critical care settings and for individuals who have trouble sleeping because of sore spots where their bodies contact the mattress. Double NexGel mattresses provide that same cloud-like comfort to every discriminating sleeper, while also being more long-lasting and comfortable than just about any other bed available. Made right here in North America, each offers custom comfort and a unique blend of sleep technologies for luxurious pampering.

We will be participating in all deactivation ceremonies for the return of the 842nd.  So looking forward to seeing Zach, and Matthew Thomas again.  We are grateful that everyone in the unit is safely returning home.  Prayers are answered. 

9-21-12 Project Runway

I do not miss Project Runway.  This series started on Bravo many years ago...10 or even 11.  For the past few years, it is airing on Lifetime on Thursday evenings.  I DVR Project Runway.  I want to see it without interruption, and it's nice to fast forward through commercials.  (You can view an hour long tv show in 37 minutes if you fast forward through all the commercials.)
A pattern was emerging.  I would take Joey upstairs to bed at 8:00, read to him until 8:30, lights out, and then come downstairs and start viewing project runway.  Just about the time the show would get to the runway portion of the episode, Joey would come down, and say, "Oh...you're watching this show." He would lay down on the couch and watch it to the end with me.  In recent weeks, i have been making him go back up to bed, but tell him I will not delete the show, and he can see it Saturday.
This week's challenge was for the designers to design a new costume for the Rockettes!  I said, "Joe, this is Radio City Music Hall in New York City.  The Rockettes are famous dancers!" He said, "I  know about Radio City Music Hall because it was in a Scooby Doo episode."  Here are Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum pictured with the Rockettes...

Project Runway challenges are always interesting.  They have sent this designers to the hardware store, candy store, and other odd places for materials.  There are some very extreme limitations.  I really enjoyed this particular challenge. I believe their budget at Mood Fabrics was $250.  Several of the designers had never before designed dancewear.  They had to consider visibility from the back of the theater, the movement of the dancers, and then also envision what 36 dancers in identical costumer would appear like.
Joey remembers the designers and what they have designed in other episodes.  He remembers who wins, and who is in the bottom.  As Heidi says, "One day you're in, and the next day...you're out!" Here is the winning costumer, by Chris...I was amazed and delighted (as were the judges) by the New York City Skyline design, which wrapped around the back as well.  The Empire State Building was on the back!

Joey likes to guess who will be the winner, and who has the worst designs! As we were watching he asked, "Can we go to that one store downtown? By the Corn Palace?  You know..."  I did not have a clue what he was talking about.  I asked what we bought there and he replied "stuffing".  We were buying quilt batting!  He wanted to go buy fabric to design a cat bed for Finn!  After watching the designers go to Mood fabric in New York City, I guess he thinks everyone just heads for the fabric store. 

My favorite person on Project Runway is far and away Tim Gunn. He is a former designer and teacher at Parsons New School for Design in New York City.  In addition to the show, I believe he is now a head buyer for Younkers, but I may be mistaken.  Tim is a wonderful mentor.  He says difficult things in a nice way to the designers.  He is honest and gives great constructive critisism. He never appears to have favorites, or be giving special advice to some people and not others.  He is gracious and tactful with contestants who have abrasive or diva like behavior.  I actually have some of his quotes at my desk..."Carry On."  "Make it work!" And recently..."Channel your inner winner!"  Tim Gunn makes me want to be a better person.  Thank you Tim. 

Only 6 designers left.  Joe and I will be watching to see who wins this season! 

9-20-12 Bunco!!

A couple of years ago my friend Jean organized a Bunco group at work.  You need 12 people to play, 3 tables of 4.  Some groups bring prizes, but our group just antes up with $5.  Bunco is a simple dice rolling game.  We often need subs, so Katie is playing ocassionally with my friends. We each take a turn hosting, meeting on the 3rd Wednesday of the month.  The hostess provides light refreshments, and a good time is had by all.  You can purchase a Bunco game very inexpensively at a retail store, or online.

There are even bunco accessories, such as napkins.

If you and your friends need a fun game, with some luck and not a lot of thinking involved, organize a bunco group!  It's a great stress reliever. Wikipedia offers the following description of bunco rules and information.

Rules

Standards widely recognized are: There are six rounds, progressing in order from one to six, where the number of the round serves as the target for that round's rolls. Within a round, players alternate turns rolling three dice, aiming to obtain the target number. Players gain one point for each die matching the target. If the player gets three-of-a-kind of the target number (a Bunco), they get 21 points. The round stops when a player at a head table obtains 21 points. Whoever wins the most rounds is the overall winner.

[edit]Renewed popularity

According to the World Bunco Association the game had seen a resurgence in popularity in the United States in the early 21st century, with a reported 27 million people playing regularly in 2006.^[3]

As it is played today, bunco is a social dice game involving 100% luck and no skill (there are no decisions to be made),^[4] scoring and a simple set of rules. Women who are part of a Bunco club take turns as the hostess, providing snacks, refreshments and the tables to set up the games. The hostess may also provide a door prize. Small amounts of money can be involved as well. The object of the game is to accumulate points and to roll certain combinations. The winners get prizes (provided by the hostess or pooled from the club resources) for accomplishments such as the highest score, the lowest score, or the most buncos. Prizes frequently center on themes associated with the game such as fancy dice, dice embedded in soap, t-shirts featuring illustrations of dice, etc.

Bunco fundraisers have become increasingly popular over the years, earning large sums for a wide variety of charities. Large groups of bunco players have come together to support their favorite charities by paying an entry fee into the game, holding silent auctions, and by selling raffle tickets; with all proceeds from the event donated to the cause

9.18.12 Kmart Shop Your Way Reward Points

I love my Kmart reward points.  Unlike the Shopko Saver card, which has never done anything for me, but rather only tracks all my purchases for their data, the Kmart rewards card gives me points for CASH BACK!!!  I love it.  Any purchases from Sears (appliances), Lands End (clothing) or Kmart (just about everything else) all contribute to the ShopYourWayRewards card point total. We use the Kmart Pharmacy, and the points really add up.  The other night I took Joey to Great Clips for his monthly haircut, followed by a stop at Kmart for sudafed.  While there, we remembered that we needed to buy a birthday gift for a friend that invited Joe to his party on Saturday.  When paying for the sudafed ( yes, show my driver's licence and pay at the pharmacy window, to verify I am not a meth manufacturer) my friendly Kmart pharmacy tech reminded me that I had over $22.00 in shoppers reward points.
Next stop, Lego isle, the destination for all birthday gifts.  The stores here do not yet have the dinosaur themed lego sets, but did have the "monster fighters".They contain special character pieces, such as a mummy, a werewolf, and a little vampire.  Joey is very excited about the heroes in the series, which drive/fly various vehicles...the all terrain unit pictured here, a helicopter, and a boat.

You guessed it...I used my Kmart Shoppers Reward points to buy the Lego set!

You've got to hand it to the Lego product developers.  They are always thinking of something new.  Probably years in advance! It is a toy line that provides hours of fun.  You never see Legos at a rummage sale.  

9.17.12 Jerry's birthday and Zach is home!

I have been thinking of Jerry today, as it is his birthday.  He was a great father, father in law, and grandfather to our family, and we miss him.

On a happy note, we have received an email and an automated blackboard call that our "soldier is safe."

Zach called this morning from Anchorage, Alaska to let us know he left Kryzgstan (still in the "stans"!  This country is near China.  We looked it up.) and flew, he thinks, over Russia. The automated message said their unit has safely arrived at Ft. Bliss, Texas.  There is no firm timeline yet for their arrival in Rapid City.  We are so happy!  Zach's cell phone is broken, and he has to work things out with AT&T as soon as he has time.  Just in case you wonder why he is not calling, he had to borrow a phone this morning.

Jerry was very pleased at Zach's commitment to service.  I think he is smiling down on us today.

9.15.12 Letter for Emily

This week Joey received a letter from Emily, complete with illustrations of Arthur and DW Read. I told Joe when someone sends you a letter, you should write back, so they will continue to send you mail.

This morning he finished coloring a star wars page he started for Emily several weeks ago, and he wrote a very short letter...2 sentences!  Hopefully she will enjoy the mail anyway.  It is delightful to watch any combination of our kids together.  Joey and Emily particularly miss each other when she is away at college.

It has been a nice Sunday.  I made a chicken and rice casserole with crushed potato chip topping for lunch.  Right now I have garlic bread in the oven, and am making cream of broccoli soup.  I forget the brand, but we buy it at County Fair.  There are several varieties, but the Cream of Broccoli is the best.  It is frozen, in a bag, and you simply add 8 cups of water.

The last load of laundry is in the dryer, and all clean laundry put away. We did Joey's homework this morning, so all that remains is the before bedtime reading.  Do you ever feel if you just had one more weekend day, the balance of work and home would be awesome? The main floor of the house is looking so much better over the past month, but the upstairs really needs attention! The weeknights seem to fill up...basketball, boy scouts, etc. They are just one hour activities, but by the time we get home and get Joey to bed, the day is gone.

9.14.12 Permanent siding and Culvers

With the hail storm last May, our neighborhood has been inundated with roofing salesman coming door to door.  There have also been many calls for permanent siding and window companies.  About a week ago, a guy came to the door, representing "American Exteriors".  They are a nationwide company, in business for a long time, over 25 years I believe.  They carry permanent siding and windows. Their advertising is not in newspaper, magazine, radio, or tv. It is all door to door, word of mouth, and signs on completed jobs in high visibility areas.  So, pony tail dude in logo embroidered shirt comes to our door. He was so pleasant, just explaining that they were looking for homes in high visibility areas because this is good advertising for them.  We are close to school, park and church, so we are highly visible.  If I would consent to listen to a sales pitch, their next level would call us by phone to set up an appt. I told him we are dealing with only the expense of our roof this year, so we were unlikely candidates.  He said they would still like to give their presentation if we were interested.  I signed that yes, they could call us.  Why did I do it?

Please keep this in mind.  Everyone that calls you to donate to a charitable organization, buy a magazine, or listen to a sales pitch for permanent siding and windows, are simply trying to make a living in a very difficult economy.  The people going door to door, or calling you, are not sitting at home collecting benefits.  They are actually trying to work any job they can, to make a living. Most likely, this pony tail dude, going door to door, is paid hourly, but perhaps gets a small amount for every person who says "yes, I'll listen to a sales pitch."  Don't kill the messenger! The next day, we received a call from their company, and the next guy who scheduled the appt also was very pleasant.  Again, probably just earning  hourly wage.  These guys are not likely working their dream jobs, but I respect that they are doing what they can to earn a living.

Every person you encounter during the day, the smallest interaction with a stranger even, is brought to you in that moment for a purpose.  We are responsible for the energy we bring to EVERY interaction, no matter how small.  So, be pleasant to people like this.  Don't exhibit rudeness.  Even if you decline, decline politely and in a respectful way. Raise your right hand and repeat after me...

"In my interactions with other people, I will strive to be kind and respectful to all.  If someone is difficult or rude to me, I will seek to be kind even though they are not on the same plane.  I will take the higher road and bring kindness to their day.  When someone calls or comes door to door selling something, I will be kind."

We did end up listening to the window and siding manager that came to do the sales pitch, and got quite a lot of good information.  They have quality products..we just don't have windows and siding in the budget right now!
By this time....it's nearly 7:00, and the three of us are starving.  We elected to go to Culver's for supper, which we do about twice a year. Their burgers are delicious, among other things.

9.13.12 Listening to and reading...

A few weeks ago I bought a couple of CDs, which I hadn't done in a long time.  My zune account needs to be taken down, so I haven't been purchasing MP3 files either.  Just existing with the radio, and living off the playlists Emily burned for me.  I am listening to Owl City's "Midsummer Station" over and over...

Adam Young can do no wrong!  He is from Owatonna, Minnesota, thus the name "Owl City."  (I know, you're thinking of the Outlet Malls, but there is really more there.) Adam's music is so listenable.  You can just float through track after track.  unlike other collections, I don't fast forward through any tracks on this CD.  He is probably best known for "Fireflies" at this point, but this CD includes that fun duet with Carly Rae Jepson.  The other nice thing about Owl City, is I can put it in with Matthew or Joe in the van and not have to worry about censoring lyrics.

Now for what I'm reading...just finished the Hunger Games Trilogy, and am starting Tell the Wolves I'm Home for bookclub. However, what I am REALLY enjoying right now, is the book Joe brought home from the school library. There is an entire series of Geronimo Stilton books, but Joe happened to select this one, which is the 3rd in a series.

At the risk of being busted for copyright infringement, here's a page.  Look at what fun things they are doing with the text!  Different fonts, different colors.  The illustrations are varied and just incredibly fun.  Some pages have labeling that remind me a little bit of Richard Scary's style.  This particular series is a fantasy genre.  Geronimo has gone to some kingdom of the gnomes, and there's also a dragon character entering the storyline.  Every emerging reader needs repetition to increase their fluency. This reading level offers a lot of known words for Joe, yet on every page there are words that are new to stretch his decoding skills.  Think back to some books you enjoyed as a new reader, or perhaps that you read repeatedly. Joey likes non-fiction, National Geographic type books, so it is fun that he has latched onto a different genre.  If you know of an early reader, perhaps 1st through 4th grades, find one of these books, and see if they like it.  I just ordered a set of 4 for Joey from the Scholastic book order, and if you ordered the set of four, you got the newest book for free. (You can find scholastic online, and get the same great deals.  Yes, your local book stores are great, but if you are stocking a classroom library, Scholastic is your friend!) Always fun to find something new to read and enjoy. 

9.12.12 "Lean, Normal Range"

Last week Finn was wheezing and sneezing.  We lost Jack by waiting too long for a vet visit when he had a respiratory illness, and I didn't want to make the same mistake with Finn. Into the cat carrier he went, yowling the most pitiful sounds all the way across town.  (I have never known any cat to be happy, travelling in a vehicle.)  We adopted Finn from the animal rescue group a year ago.  He is very affectionate and a purring machine.  He has always seems to us to be "skinny" or on the small side.  The vet weighed him and she said, "Finn falls into the lean, normal range.  He is 6.5 pounds.  This is a healthy, normal cat that gets good exercise.  Normal for cats is not like Garfield."  Good to know! He has been on antibiotics since Saturday, and is showing marked improvement in the sneezing and wheezing category.

We have adopted all of our cats.  The first two came to our home, had lived off the streets, and found us!

One of Finn's favorite pass times..Looking out the patio doors at squirrels and birds.  He waits to go out.  Then he sits at the door and waits to come back in! Cats are independent.  You can leave them for a weekend without someone to care for them.  They are glad to see you when you return. They don't bark.  I once read that children with pets display more qualities of empathy for other people.  We know that pets lower blood pressure and stress levels.  All in all, I would say I smile 10 times a day that I would not if I didn't have Finn to laugh at.  

9.11.12 Thinking of everyone in our country

On 9.11.12, I was in a computer lab with my 3rd grade students, who were taking a state mandated test.  (Sigh.) These tests are like lock down...ultra monitoring of students, noone leaves the room, etc.  My principal came in and said, "Mrs. Heesch, you are needed in the library for a few minutes.  I will take your class."  (Shocking and rare!)  She wanted me to see some of the footage of the twin towers and the live coverage, just so I would be prepared for dealing with students.  Older students watched some of the live footage.  For 3rd graders, I kept the focus on our normal day, feeling that they should talk with their families at home first, and also knowing we would be discussing this day for years to come.

I missed teaching yesterday.  There is such importance to being there in the teachable moment for students.  The discussions of the tragedy of 9.11.12 are so multifaceted and beneficial.  Children need to understand that there are people of all ethnic groups, religions, and nationalities that are extremists, but there are also wonderful people of every ethnic group, religion, and nationality in our world.  There are so many great books and resources for learning more about the events of this day, and how it affected people in New York City, our country, and our world.

We need to be respectful of the enormous undertaking the groups trying to make our country and citizens safer were faced with.  At my company, we fly a lot for work.  We dress for efficiency of airport travel, and are always respectful of security staff, who are all just trying to do their job.  We don't wear a lot of metal jewelry on that day. We wear shoes we can slip off.  We carry all the right ID and paperwork.  We have dr. notes excusing us from scanners if we are pregnant.  In retrospect, is it really that hard to make sure you don't have a bottle of liquid over 3 ounces?  Is this really worth not planning for or being difficult over?

In our country, we have freedom of speech that allows us to critisize those who defend our freedom and keep us safe.  Freedom isn't free, and never has been.  Today I think of all the victims, citizens of every ethnic, religious, and nationality. We are all in this together.  More than ever, our children live in a global world.

9.10.12 Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

Yesterday Katie asked me for the recipe of chicken and wild rice casserole that she often requested for her birthday, growing up.  I couldn't find the original recipe, so here goes from how I've been throwing it together for years.  It's a little costly, and time consuming.  There are things you can do to speed up the process.

2 pounds chicken breast, poached.  (do this ahead of time...Cover 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts in  water, bring to a boil, put on lid and simmer on low for 25 minutes.)  Dice the chicken when cool.

8 cups of chicken stock, bring to a boil.  Add 2 cups of long grain, wild rice.  Cook according to package directions.  Simmering for at least 45 minutes to one hour.  The rice is ready when it puffs open.  I pretty much just leave what liquid is left in there, and the rice continues to soak up the broth.

Cut a pound of bacon into 1/2 inch pieces and fry.  Drain off all the grease, and blot on paper towel.

Next, melt one stick of butter in a large frying pan.  Dice and add:
One onion
4or more ribs of celery
After those saute, add an 8 ounce container of sliced, fresh mushrooms.

Mix together the rice, diced chicken, bacon pieces, and sauteed veggies, and stir well.

Here's the dangerous (yet delicious) part.  Add 3-4 cups of half and half.  I have even used heavy cream before.   Depends on how much broth is left in the rice.  Cover with foil, or a lid, and bake in the over at 350. The flavors will continue to blend.  I am also thinking you could do this part in a crock pot if desired.

This recipe easily fills a 6 quart pan.  There are times when I made it larger ( or halved it and made a smaller batch) and had to put it into 2 separate pans in the oven.  It is delicious leftover as well.  Sorry...no photo today! Happy eating.

9.9.12 Kitchen Cupboard Cleanout

Well, one thing leads to another.  Katie asked me for the recipe of her favorite chicken and wild rice casserole dish, the one she often requested for her birthday meal throughout the years. I opened the cabinet above the microwave, where I store cookbooks, phone books, and assorted other things, and was struck by this:

The inside of both cabinet doors were full of taped on pieces of paper with phone numbers..

• "moms in touch" group that I belonged to when the kids were small
• Matt's numbers
• Emily's friends
• Katie's babysitting families
• Zach, no number listing for you.  All in your head, no need to write them down likely!
• The poison control hotline number (for which I did actually dial twice, for Emily both times! Once when I was baking, I left the bottom spice drawer open for her to play in.  She was a toddler.  She got the bottle of almond extract open and drank some.  I knew it contained alcohol, so I dialed!  She never did show impairment, must have tasted worse than it smelled.  The other episode, she ate a silica gel pack out of a shoe box!)
• Clinic phone numbers for physicians who no longer practice
• School numbers for schools no one attends
• The number for the substitute teacher hotline

Clearly, even though I cleaned the cupboards now and again, I never really paid attention to what was on the doors. You get the idea!  I took down all the scraps of paper.  Some of these numbers are from 15 years ago.  Today everyone puts their contacts in their cell phone.  Opening the cupboard made me realize I need to clean the cupboard.  Cookbooks are strewn all over the kitchen counter top  right now.  Mauri and Katie, I found the pampered chef cookbooks that have recipies for the covered stoneware baker that you have. Katie, I have a cookbook for the Tupperware Stack Cooker dad just got for you!  I only use it to melt marshmallows and butter for rice krispie treats, and steam vegetables, but you can take a look at the cookbook another time.

Addendum...job complete.  Other observations are:

• I need to throw away pizza coupons more often.
• Can't remember the last time I lit something with an actual match, rather than one of those bic lighter tools...but my cupboard had several books of matches and a box of kitchen matches.
• No one in our family needs to by cough drops for the next 20 years. I had a rubbermaid container filled with about 20 bags of every cough drop/throat drop you can imagine.  
• Need to decorate a cake like a menorah, with candles, a carrousel horse, or a train?  See me.  I have the books to show you how to do it!
• Need a specialty recipe for Bisquick, Campbells Soup, Velveeta, Philidelphia Cream Cheese?  See me.  I've got the book!
• Need a recipe book for the Ronco Rotisserie cooker, the Magic Bullet, or the Tupperware Stack Cooker, or Pampered Chef pans? See me.  I've got the book.
• I need a better way to store the recipies I'm printing off food network, like a binder with plastic page protectors. They are usually good and I make the recipe more than once.  

Mission complete.  Cupboard clean~!  Even better, I just realized that in the last 2 months, I have cleaned our kitchen pantry floor to ceiling, and all but one remaining cupboard.  It's a good feeling.  

9.8.12 Heartland Quilt Show

Let me begin by saying my cell phone photos will no tdo justice to the quilts Katie and I saw today at  the Heartland Quilt Show.  The colors and textures were magnificent. It's amazing to see the creativity that abounds, and the love and dedication that has gone into creating the pieces.  I received a post card invitation from my former coworker, Karen Lunn, who is happily retired and quilting up a storm.  This quilt group meets the first Saturday morning of the month.  Sometimes they just work on pieces in progress. Sometimes they have a "challenge with rules", and sometimes they have skill lessons for new techniques.  There was an entire wall of patriotic quilts...

How about this flag, made from these little rosettes?

Love these stars!

There were more traditional patterns as well.  Each quilt had a little handwritten description written on it.  For this quilt, the quilter was given a "bag full of these flowers, in different sizes".  She added to and finished the piece...

What about this more modern take on a flower pattern? Magnificent!

This was one of my favorites....an elephant piece.  The coloration was delightful, and although you can't see the detail in the photo, each white circle was quilted with a spiral pattern....

Here's another delightful children's quilt...caterpillars!  So bright and cheerful. The caterpillar faces lifted off the edge of the quilt, like a flap.  A little hard to see in my photo.

This was part of a challenge piece, in which every quilter had to use a specific blue fabric.  

Here's a Halloween quilt, made by my friend Brenda.  These are Halloween fabrics, and there were machine quilted cats around the border of the quilt.

Katie joined me for the quilt viewing, and we also ran into our good friend Joanna.The quilt pictured in the upper left of the photo had the Robert Louis Stevenson poem about "the swing". The texture in the tree bark, grass, and tree leaves, not to mention the swing itself, were amazing. 

Finally, I loved this quilt.  The woman made this in memory of her husband, and the stars are from the fabric of his shirts.  This really spoke to me, thinking of the nice shirts my mom always bought for dad. 

There were easily a couple hundred pieces to look at.  I purchased raffle tickets for a quilt they are raffling off.  It would be delightful to win! Katie and I signed in as guests number 103 and 104, so our chances of winning the queen sized quilt might be good.  The quilt show runs all weekend though. The ladies only do the show every other year, so we have a long time to wait. It was a delightful, quiet activity today that fed my soul.  You cannot help but be inspired when you look at the talent, skill, and devotion that goes into these pieces.  There were hand embroidered blocks, blocks with Psalms to comfort someone who was critically ill, and modern, crazy pieces.  Quite simply, amazing work.  

9.7.12 Campbells Soup and Pnuemonia

Fall seasonal allergy misery is a given for me.  Last week I started wheezing, and ignored that I was getting worse.  So, Wednesday morning, when I started running a temp, I called for an appointment and left work early.i have pnuemonia, sinus, and ear infection in right ear.  This is day three of the fever, which I hoped would break after 48 hours on biaxin, but it has not.  They gave me a steroid shot, which helped with the breathing for a day, but benefits appear to have subsided.  I called the nurse to find out if they could give me a prescription for prednisone, but they can't before Monday, because of the shot.  They directed me to go buy Sudafed to combine with mucinex to help loosen up the breathing.  You know what that means...I had to make a trip out of the house to the pharmacy.  Before doing so, I decided to throw something into the crock pot for supper.  I decided on this recipe from the Longfellow cookbook:
Crock Pot French Onion Chicken Breasts, submitted by Jacki Roy..

• 2-3 pounds chicken breasts
• 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
• 1 can French Onion Soup
• 1 cup broth

Put chicken in slow cooker.  Combine soups and broth.  Pour over chicken.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Serve over rice, pasta, or potatoes.

O.k.  I'm in!  However, going for more of a one pot solution, I added 2 pounds of carrots, (because Joey and I love them...sorry Dan.) and these glorius Klondike Medley potatoes.  How fun is this that there are purple potatoes?

I thought I always had french onion soup on hand, but there was none in the pantry.  Had to go out anyway for the sudafed, so stopped at Rob's for the soup. No french onion soup!  He had french fried onions, and Lipton's dry onion soup mix, but that wasn't what I was after. I proceeded to Kmart for the sudafed, thinking they may have french onion soup in their grocery section.  No french onion soup!  I decided to drive to the nearest grocery store, 2 miles away, on my quest for the real, Cambells french onion soup.  (Their beef consume and french onion soups have been boiled with bones, so it has that gelatinous, rounded flavor that is missing from a plain broth.)  I go to the soup isle.  You wouldn't believe it, but in all 200 flavors of campbells soup, there is NO FRENCH ONION SOUP!  What the heck?  Is there a run in our entire city for this product today? By this time, I feel exhausted and just want to go home and lie down. I purchase one can of Campbells Beef Consume, and one of Beefy Mushroom.  (Again, Sorry Dan.)  I arrive home to throw all together....Campbells, why do you do this to us?  What's up with half your soups having the pull top lids, and half having to be opened with a can opener?

I throw everything into the crock pot, and at least supper is started. Even though I am now 75 minutes behind my orignal thought to start supper.  On a side note, the Beefy Mushroom was really nice over the top of the chicken breasts.  It has more of a gravy consistency than a broth. Here's to supper, and the best of intentions.  Think I will lie down now!