New Creations

I have pretty much spent most of my life avoiding anything to do with baking. I think it is the heat factor. I just don't do the heat well, and why oh why would anyone want too heat up their kitchen when it is already 85* in there????

But tonite, ahhhhhhh, the apricots someone brought in to work to day just were jumping up and down insisting that I put them into a cobbler. They were so pretty in their natural state, but goo'd up with some SPLENDA and cornstarch, they are even prettier. But you will have to wait until tomorrow for the feedback on this recipe (which I modified for apricots only). Except for the cinnamon that I went heavey on it really does look good. And it smells good too. Like a french parfume.

This weekend I tried the Splenda recipe for chocolate chip cookies. Not so good. 100 calories each. Gooey....too much....stuck together....only the chocolate chips tasted...mmmmm.....real.

But the kicker is...I went to Costco and bought us a blender. Uh Huh. The smoothies are taking over. Haven't had time to open it up yet. Guess I should and run it through the dishwasher tonite. I don't want to go back into the kitchen tonite [yes, I am whining]

I wonder if I can taste-test the cobbler wi/o leaving a mark. Hmmmmmm....

later taterz

g

Beach Baby Beach Baby there on the sand

I didn't hear anyone shout out "Thar she blows!" and point. The water was cold. REAL cold. Little overcast, but it burned off while we sat and ate our chowder. Pismo Beach. California Real. The girls invited Wayne and I. It was a spur of the moment odessy and it was Fun. You gotta go here: SPLASH CAFE even the calamari is good. rubbery, but good. Lots and lots of people on the beach today. Probably the most crowded I have seen Pismo.

Came home and had trout for dinner. Made for a fishy day.....but it was oh so good.

Tomorrow I am buying a blender. We have discovered "smoothies" at home. Vanilla yogurt, fruit, little orange juice and ice. So far the peaches are winning, but the strawberries are not too bad. Next up, bluuuuuuueberries. I love blueberries. I have a blueberry bush, this year I got SIX, yes six, blueberries. I have 5 tomatoes each on our 2 tomato plants....really, container planting is not for tomatoes. I have never seen such stunted plants.

We are in for a heat wave this coming week. I just may have to go back to the beach. : )

What a weekend......

geo

Some Oldies and A Newbie

We said good bye to Jolene who visited us for a while, had a quick BBQ, and headed to Tehachapi for fireworks

Here's some pics from the non-boating boating trip we did w/ Elaine and family, a video from the boating boating trip we did w/ Jolene, Amelia, Our Ashley, and Jolene's friend Ashley flollowed by last nights fire works

the sisters, elaine and me
vidas, vince, aliva
the beauty queens amelia, jolene, me
amelia on duty

Hooray for the Red, White, and Blue

Can you believe its the 4th? Well almost. Since I am no longer at work, I consider it the 4th. You know, Christmas is just around the corner........

5 years. RIP Heather. Life was such a turmoil for you. I know you are in His arms. Doesn't it feel oh-so-good!!!!

I blogged yesterday, but I didn't post it. Not much outside of my CrossWordPuzzle life. I am hungry for a 4th over the water. Which around here, it means going to the beach. Not such a bad idea, actually. I guess we'll wait and see what the morning brings.

I remember 4th of July on the Right Coast. I remember the barbecue, the kazillion people picnic'ing on their blankets....oh and the watermelon. Sooooo COLD....pulled straight up from the chilly stream water that would turn your feet red. Half slice of melon ~ take a bit right out of the middle so you would have melon-slice smile. Of course you would have to slurp it to get it all in your mouth, melon, juice,...ooh oh so goood it was. As I crunched my mouthful of melon, the juice would just slush out of the sides of my mouth and run down my chin, drip onto my shirt and then the ground, splatter onto my bare legs...and itch...hours later. Who ever cleaned up when they were a kid? and then the fireworks. the booms! the colors! the sparkles...and of course the sparklers! and we didn't even get hurt!!! well maybe there were some that walked on the hot sparklers in their bare feet...dummies, if you ask me.

Stories of the Revolutionary War, our forefathers fight for Independence ~ for religious freedom. George and Benjamin, Thomas and the Jacksons. Paul Revere and his midnight ride.

God bless Amer-i-ca, my home sweet home.

Tic Tac Toe

it is not. three cw puzzles today. and i got them ALL done correctly. including the NY times. i have had far too much time on my hands to get this good at them.

oh gee, the news is on. car sales have dropped. imagine that. not here at this house. we got a new one. and not because we wanted a new car smell. we got a toyota yaris to beat the $1,000 a month gasoline bill we racked up in april and may. i guess driving 75 miles one way is not efficient, but who can afford to give up a job? now if it was my job, i would have given it up. can you believe we are getting 45 miles to the gallon on the freeway?????

ack now a commercial for depends...a wedding scene...the olderly bride, is happy...she is wearing her depends. FRIGHTENING. i used to hate commercials for feminine products (you know, KOTEX) ~ can you remember a time when it was actually taboo to talk about them??????? oh wait and something else i saw..this one will blow your socks of......i acutally saw a commercial produced by Trojan...uh huh...you know,,,,"them".....advertising....this little vibrating device you can put on your finger. yes....i saw that commercial on CNN during AC360. now THAT is going just TOO FAR.

you know....i just don't want to think any more. i gotta go. my brain is on overload trying to figure out just what has this world come to??????

sayonara

A Whole Lotta Stock

Ah Monday, come and gone.

Fires, fires, everywhere. Smoke you can taste. Not healthy. The closest is about 50 miles from here. Problem is all the firefighters in CA are on the other 1,000 fires that are burning. Prayer for the fire crews, the displaced families, and most of all a turn in the weather. We could use the rain that is soaking up the midwest.

And this year, if you are here in CA, forego the at-home fireworks. Please.

Hands-free Comminication device (HCD) now required in CA. I think they are just as bad ~~ worse even.

My soap box ends here.

: )

what a whirlwind of a weekend

Okay I feel like I have traveled to Colorado and back, visiting relatives and friends along the way. Gee, its good to be back. What a lovely time we had. So relaxing. I just hope no one falls and fractures a wrist. Good grief. BETHS WONDERFUL ADVENTURE

The pics for our boatless adventure are still on someone's camera. Maybe some day. We did go boating last week and the boat worked. Yahoody. Got to try out the new 3-man raft, courtesy of Ashley. Had lots of fun......til the rope broke. Did you know tow ropes are weight rated? Go figure. I think it was due to the age of the rope and has nothing to do with the weight the boat was trying to pull.......say no more. Those pics are on someone else's camera too.

Okay the heat is killing me. We are mid-summer now, I can not complain about the weather, but my body is just not taking it. Its draining itself from the inside out. Miserable. Its the only reason I go to work now...to suck up the free AC. C'mon October!

Nap time.