Sunday Morning ...And The Consequences of A Noisy Blender

Well, my little scheme for enjoying a Sunday morning smoothie kind of fizzled out, didn't it? :)

Honestly, I love the idea, but I also love the peace and quiet I get when I'm the only one up on weekend mornings...my blender, on the other hand, thinks that if IT has to be woken up at 7:00 AM on a Sunday morning, then EVERYONE has to wake up at 7:00.

It's very, very...VERY loud.

So this morning, when I woke up (first...yeah!), I really wanted a smoothie, but we were all up past our bedtimes last night and the man and the child needed to catch up on sleep. They don't drink coffee. I do. Sleep? Schmeep! Just pour me another cup, Martha! So I started looking around for something quick, but good and different...something that would be a splurge, but not extremely decadent, like oh, I don't know...Biscuits and Chocolate Gravy? Nah, that's not decadent at all.....

Luckily, I remembered a pancake recipe I came across on Allrecipes recently - Peanut Butter and Jelly Oatmeal Pancakes. Oatmeal's good for you, right? :) Actually, it's not a bad recipe, nutritionally, and I replaced the eggs with egg substitute to further improve it. I wish I had taken pictures while they cooked, but alas, the dogs, Martha and Merlin, and the human child had awoken....they are a tag team, you know. One distracts while the other two maneuver within snatching distance. So I sort of had my hands full! Some of the reviews on Allrecipes indicated the pancakes were thin...not so here! Not sure if it was the egg substitute instead of eggs, if that makes any sense, or the fact that I do not know the meaning of "until just blended" and I mixed the crap out of my batter, but then let it sit while I refereed a game of touch football between two dogs and a 4 year old in the dining room. Whatever mystical chemical reaction happened in my kitchen this morning, it resulted in very thick, beautiful, golden brown pancakes that, when topped with melted raspberry preserves and a few banana slices, looked like this:

The pancake recipe, which you can find HERE, only calls for a teaspoon of sugar, so the cakes themselves are not very sweet at all...a good thing if you're going to microwave some fruits preserves and drizzle them all over. Chocolate syrup wouldn't be bad, either! I mean, it would be bad, but in a good kind of way...I can picture this as a birthday special request breakfast or maybe a morning after sleepover breakfast with maybe chocolate chips in the batter, a dollop of marshmallow fluff and some chocolate syrup...

See, I knew I'd lead myself back to Biscuits and Chocolate Gravy!

Which reminds me! I am flattered to receive this from The Ordinary Housewife:

and

It was she who introduced me to Biscuits and Chocolate Gravy on her blog - make sure you stop by and visit her if you're not already a regular like me!

I'm horrible at doing this, but I do want to share these with a few other blogs:

First my new bloggie buddy, Angeltastic at Full Circle...she's not only a friend, but she's like a blood relative to me. Probably because...SHE IS! Her mother and my mother are sisters! Yes, I have mentioned my sweet cousin before, perhaps when I had a little too much to drink at a certain cocktail party at my dear friend, Willoughby's place, This Stop Willoughby. So, stop by her brand new blog and say hello to "Beth" (not her real name, she just likes to be called that...tee hee!).

I also wanted to mention Bella Della - she lives on a farm that to me is a little piece of heaven and I just love her photography and stories! I stumbled upon her blog looking for information on Texasware bowls, and I keep coming back for more!

And finally, a shout out to MySweetCreations - I've been an admirer of her photography and talent with all things sweet over on Allrecipes, and I'm so happy she decided to start a blog of her own. You'll like it, too!

Since I never know what to do with awards, I'm also breaking the rules a bit! So please accept these awards - pass them on if you like, play along if you feel like it, but just know that I wanted to give you a shout out because I enjoy your blogs! ,I think you're supposed to share seven things about yourself...but what don't you know about me?

1.) I own a noisy blender

2.) Nearly all of my food photos are taken in the bay window of my living room

3.) I often wonder if Gene Simmons (if it was him) ever thinks of that weird girl he saw at Logan Airport circa 1979...

4.) I want to own a farm some day...meanwhile, I'm keeping Baker Creek Seeds in business with my insanity.

5.) I'm still looking for a Texasware bowl to replace the one that broke several years ago

6.) I haven't set foot in an antique shop in almost five years (the perils of having a four and a half year old!)

7.) We had Martha shaved down yesterday because her coat was just incredibly matted....If I can stop laughing at her long enough, I'll post some pictures soon!

Happy Sunday, everyone!

Blogging Therapy and A Revelation

I'm not sure exactly what my intention was when I started blogging... I think I just wanted to be a part of it, as at the time several of my Allrecipes buddies either had blogs or were delving into this unchartered territory along with me when I first took my plunge. Somewhere in the back of my mind I had visions of being the next Pioneer Woman, as if somehow writing about my day-to-day existence and sharing a few recipes would catapult me to international stardom. But in real life, I just wanted to write about random thoughts and experiences, just to get it out. I've always found writing to be very therapeutic for me, regardless of who may or may not read it. Once in a while you write something and it teaches you something about yourself that really changes some aspect of your life.

And that is what happened to me a couple posts ago.

After months of warily eyeing the intimidating machine on my desk called "the scanner", I finally decided to put it to use. And much like I do in my cooking, I winged it, because I was too impatient to wait for my husband to get home and explain the goings on and I hate reading manuals. And like many other things, the scanner turned out to be a all bark, no bite and a surprisingly user-friendly piece of equipment. It is my new best friend!

So, if you look back at recent posts you'll see a bit of my family history. Posting those photos of my Dad's family has inspired me to delve back into genealogy, a hobby I've really only tinkered with until now. I know that one of my ancestors, Samuel Woods, came to Massachusetts in 1620. That's the year the Mayflower landed at Plymouth Rock! Of course, you know me, day late and a dollar short....I am as much a Mayflower descendent as I am an extra in Motley Crue's "Kick Start My Heart" video. Samuel must have missed the first boat and showed up on the next one, and centuries later, I stood on my hotel balcony wondering what all those floodlights swirling around from the vicinity of the Whiskey-A-Go-Go were all about, opting to order a big platter of nachos and watch "The Bear" on HBO instead of mosying down the strip into MTV stardom.

But I'm not bitter. Samuel actually did some pretty cool stuff himself, and his grandson was a Revolutionary War hero. Hey, we are who we are.

Then came Mom's family, and the sad story of her childhood, how the kids were split up and how they reunited. All that stuff I knew about before I told you about Ma & Pa, aka Zelica and Arthur, my grandparents on my mother's side. But now I wanted to share with you something I did not know until I finished writing that post.

You see, Pa was the only grandparent I ever met, but he was not the kind of grandfather you went to visit often, or who showered you with gifts and attention. By the time I came around, Pa had a tough time keeping his own ten kids straight, never mind his many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I have memories of him, memories I am proud of, because I would tell my friends at school on Monday that I had attended my grandfather's 80th birthday party the day before...just so I could brag about having a grandfather. But I never really knew him. Over the years, we sort of interpreted Pa based upon the stories our parents told about him, and my only personal impression of him was of the old man, sitting in the corner smiling, and occasionally mumbling something in French to one of the few people who understood the language. I can't say I knew him well, if I knew him at all.

When my grandmother, Zelica, died, leaving behind Pa and ten children, mom and my aunts always said "Pa couldn't take care of ten kids. He was an alcoholic, he was poor and they took us all away from him. He was not fit to raise us." One Christmas, my Aunt Loretta, who lived near Pa and his second wife, was all up in arms because Pa had knocked on her door and run away after leaving a Christmas gift on her doorstep - a carton of cigarettes and a bottle of Scotch. I remember her ranting, "What kind of father does that? And he signed the card 'Love, Arthur!'???"

His alcoholism was never a secret. In his retirement he would walk a mile or so through his neighborhood to the local bar, have a few drinks, and pick up a loaf of bread on the way home so he could feed the pigeons that congregated in his back yard. I would see him as we drove to my aunt's house, either walking along the road or feeding the pigeons in his yard. After his death, I discovered that after Ma died, Pa was actually committed to an asylum, because that's how they "treated" alcoholism in those days. My mother, aunts and uncles never spoke ill of him - they maintained a certain amount of familial respect towards him, but I always got the feeling that a part of them blamed him for the loss of their mother, and subsequently the childhoods they found themselves trying to forget.

I never harbored any animosity towards my grandfather for who he was. I was just happy I actually had a living, breathing grandparent. My mother had such a horrible upbringing in her foster home that I do believe part of her blamed him for the course her life took. Again, "He was an alcoholic, so of course the state wouldn't let him keep us". When he entered the nursing home at the age of 86, she rarely visited. When his second wife passed away eight years later, we attended her funeral - by all accounts she was a lovely, wonderful lady - then tagged along to visit him. At that point he was semi-catatonic. He was blind, deaf, and did not speak. They recommended you call before you visited, so they could dress him and prop him up in a chair for you. That's how he was on that day, and it saddened me to think his life had come to this. A tall, thin, frail old man, sitting in a chair, grasping the attached tray for dear life so hard that his arms trembled. You knew he felt as if he was going to fall, even though he did not communicate in any way, shape or form. The nurse told us he could not hear any more, but you could touch his hand and he may or may not realize you were there - she wasn't really sure.

Pa shared his room with a young man who was dying of brain cancer. He was about 40 years old, but had a stack of coloring books and 1st grade level story books that he gazed at in awe. He was very friendly, and seemed to enjoy the company although his speech slurred occasionally, and after the nurse exited, he excitedly told us that yes, Arthur does speak! But only when he's sleeping, and he only speaks French. He said "I think he can hear you, but you need to yell into his left ear as that one seems better."

My Uncle Paul and Aunt Rose visited him faithfully every single week. That day, Paul leaned over and said "Hi Daddy!" and received his usual no response. Aunt Rose spoke to him, too. She said, "Pa! Someone else is here to visit...it's Blanche and her daughter, Christine!" Of course Pa did not respond. He couldn't see, hear or speak. And at this point, no one was sure that he would be able to comprehend anything anyway.

My mother approached, and leaning over toward his left ear, said loudly, "Hi Pa! Its me, Blanche! Your daughter...BLANCHE!"

And the strangest thing happened. Pa took a deep breath. His arms and legs shook, as if he felt like he was going to fall. He clenched the edge of the tray for dear life. And he smiled.

Of the few memories I personally have of my grandfather, that is my favorite. Somewhere inside, my grandfather was still there, and at that precise moment a weight was lifted off my mother's shoulders when she realized she had a father, and the sound of her voice made him happy. It is because of that moment that I let go of any disappointment I might have felt towards my grandfather for not being there for his kids, for not fighting to keep them. Whatever decisions he had made in 1935, he had paid for his entire life. And now, here he was, three months away from taking his final breath, and there was simply no reason to hold any kind of grudge. I had a grandfather whose children were taken away from him because he was an alcoholic. I accept that. That's just how it was, and there's nothing to forgive.

Only now, after reading through my aunt's scrapbook, scanning in some photos and putting my thoughts into words, I've changed my mind. I realize I was wrong - we ALL were wrong - in our assessment of Pa. He did not lose his children because he was an alcoholic. He was an alcoholic because he had lost his children. He failed them. He let them go, releasing his paternal rights in the hopes they would all be adopted into better homes, and he regretted it the rest of his life. He drank to forget, he remarried to have someone to talk to because he was afraid of his children rejecting him. He did not pretend to be a father, because he felt he had been an unworthy one. That is why he kept his distance. That is why he chose to speak in French, even though he knew English. That is why he signed his Christmas cards "Love, Arthur".

And so, Pa, Grandpa, Arthur....I do not forgive you because there is nothing to forgive. But I hope you can forgive us for the way we thought of you all those years. Some of your children are with you now, probably laughing with you over the big misunderstanding that life can sometimes be, and I just wanted to let you know that I can laugh with you now, too. I am sorry none of us had the insight to realize the loss, the humiliation and the pain you endured over the years, and that our perception of you was clouded by our own insecurities. But this crazy world of blogging, which you know absolutely nothing about, has shown its worth to me by letting me learn to know who you were and who you are.

Many Thanks!

I have been so remiss in acknowledging some of the wonderfully sweet awards my blogging buddies have bestowed upon me that I hope I'm not forgetting anyone!

Two wonderful blogging buddies of mine have shared this award with me:

Polly and Willoughby, thank you so much for thinking of me! If anyone here has NOT visited The Fifth Sister or This Stop Willoughby, please stop by and say hello! I'm sure you will enjoy their blogs as much as I do!

In return, I am supposed to give one word answers (lotsa luck!) to the following questions.

1. Where is your cell phone? The Zone...The Phantom Zone (see I told you this one word thing wasn't gonna work!)

2. Your hair? Wheat

3. Your mother? Worried (that her daughter may try to eat her own hair…kidding!)

4. Your father? Awesome!

5. Your favorite food? Salmon (huh? I thought I’d say chocolate for sure!)

6. Your dream last night? SMILES!

7. Your favorite drink? Coffee

8. Your dream/goal? HobbyFarm (I made it one word… oops! Sorry!)

9. What room are you in? Office

10. Your hobby? Daydreaming

11. Your fear? Cancer

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Healthy

13. Where were you last night? BJ’s/Home Depot

14. Something you aren't? Confident

15. Muffins? JordanMarshBlueberry (don’t give me that three word crap…there’d be spaces if it were three words!)

16. Wish list item? Espresso maker

17. Where did you grow up? Massachusetts

18. Last thing you did? Sip (tea)

19. What are you wearing? Business-casual

20. Your TV? Husband’s

21. Your pets? Misfits

22. Your friends? Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

23. Your life? Evolving

24. Your mood? Bummed

25. Missing someone? Co-workers (out on maternity! How dare they…)

26. Vehicle? Toyota

27. Something you're not wearing? Nail polish

28. Your favorite store? Yankee Candle

29. Your favorite color? Purpley-Blue

30. When was the last time you last time you laughed? Now

31. Last time you cried? Tuesday (because I was laughing too hard)

32. Your best friend? God (for giving me more than one)

33. One place that you go over and over? Childhood

34. One person who emails you regularly? Brenda

35. Favorite place to eat? Bocado

Someone beat me to it...I see Chicago Mom at What's For Dinner already got this award....well, now my dear you have bookends! Teach me how to parallel park and we'll call it even!

And I want to acknowledge two new blogs that I've been following - a very touching yet funny blog about caring for one's elderly grandmother, Managing Mimi, has had me reminiscing about my mother-in-law, Pat, who we lost this year, and also looking to the future as my parents get older.

And if for some filling vegetarian meal ideas, pop on over to The Hearty Herbivore for some great menu ideas. I don't know about you, but I never would have thought of a potato salad sandwich! And I want one. Now. :)

And from Chicago Mom, The B.I.N.G.O. award! Thank you for the wonderful props! (She called me Beautiful!...Well, my blog anyway! Ha ha!) Looking for a good meal, friendship and some laughs, head on over to her blog!

I have to tell you, five blogs to share an award with is easy, but I am having a tough time with the adjectives! I need to browse through my thesaurus, and I'll return to this one soon, I promise! Just wanted to say thank you to Chicago Mom for sharing!

We Interrupt This Blog....

Sigh. Guess which one I am?





I used to love those "Hi. I'm a Mac" commercials.

The I'm A Mac guy is a cutie-patootie, so I kind of felt like I was somehow cool to be associated with him by owning a Mac. You know, the kind that rarely, if ever, are affected by those nasty viruses floating around. To further fuel my delusions of coolness, I also just recently discovered Facebook, and was having fun over there...I always thought I was too old for Facebook (or "FB", as we regulars call it) but I seem to be fitting in nicely! I even post more than my ultra cool, 24 year old niece. And my also ultra cool 22 year old nephew signed up after I did...probably copying me! Of course, he still hasn't responded to my friendship request... hmmmm. How you say... WTF???


Well, come to find out, I'm as uncool as I originally suspected. I guess Mac ain't exactly interested in middle-aged women, cuz mine up and left me! Yep, crashed Saturday and we got the bad news today - the relationship with this particular Mac, my beloved G5, is over. He's gone. He's never coming back. Like my brother-in-law said of Johnny Damon when he signed with the Yankees, "He's dead to me".




I'm going to wheel PC to the nearest pub to drown my sorrows (and complain that I have no idea when I will be able to update my blog again, since all my photos are on a back up file that I have nothing to restore to at the moment). PC and I have always remained friends, co-workers even, so who knows where this will go.

We will be looking at the newer Macs this weekend.... then again, PC is certainly a cheaper date, and now that I'm looking at him, he's kinda cute! ;) Besides, for my little blog, my recipes and family photos, what do I need with a hot looking, fully loaded, fun loving Mac? Maybe me and PC are meant to be together...

Unless, of course, the new Mac looks like this....



In that case, I'll be seeing you at the office, PC!

(Note to self: While computerless, GO TO GYM. This new Mac looks pretty hot - don't want him to lose interest if he does indeed move in with us)

So folks, if you don't see me around much in the next few days, you now know why! I can't access FB at work, and can only do quickie little updates on my blog from there...but rest assured, I will be lurking and keeping my eye on you!

Have fun! And wish me luck! ;)