5-14-10

As the end of the school year nears the kids
seem to have field trips.
One is going next Wednesday to the zoo.
Cost $2.00.
Then another field trip the Wednesday after
for Zoombezi Bay. Now get this while the admission
cost is free, they are required to send in $7.00
for a lunch!!! I don't even pay $7.00 for a fast
food lunch so what they eatin' on this trip, steak?!
That seems a little high for a 10 year olds lunch.
They better not be eating pb&j sandwiches!

__________________________________________________

Not cookin' for supper so might consider Grandad's Pizza.
Plus we want to head to Lowes to check out some kind
of fencing to put around the garden.
While there I'll have to check out the garden
and clearance section :0)

__________________________________________________

Plans for weekend:

-Cut up scrap metal and take over to recycling center.
-put starter on guys truck.
-might go to the flea market.
-put fence up in garden.
if the rabbits still pose a problem we might
consider live trapping them and sending them
off to another area.

___________________________________________________





Stopped in Lowes this evening.
Got metal fencing and metal posts.
Also browsed the clearance section and found
a thornless raspberry and
thornless triple crown blackberry plants for $5.00 each
marked down half price.
They also had blueberry plants but I didn't
think we'd get much use out of it like the others.
I told Tony to consider these plants my
Mother's Day presents.

So far now I will have these fruits in the garden:
1. Strawberry
2. Concord Grape
3 Raspberry
4. Blackberry
5. Possible Pear Tree

Here's a couple notes I made about
the plants I purchased after doing some
reading to learn more about them.

I'm thinking about planting
these berries along the chain link fence.
I think I read you don't want to plant
them near tomatoes so this should be
a good spot for them on the opposite side
of the yard away from the vegetables.

RASPBERRIES
You don't need a "male"
and a "female" plant to pollinate them.
They need manure or compost around them
topped with a layer of mulch.
Raspberry plants produce biennial canes, which means that the first year they are vegetative only and don't produce fruit. The second year, they flower and produce fruit, but then die. The plants that fruited for you last year can be removed because they are dead anyway. Those that were vegetative last year will or should produce fruit this season. It is best to get the old canes removed as soon as possible. Most people get around to it in the fall after a couple of hard frosts.
HERE is a good sight with many questions
and answers about Raspberries.

BLACKBERRY
It takes about a year for the blackberry plant to mature enough to bear fruit. The blackberry plant will spend its first year growing side shoots off the main stems. It is these side shoots that will bear the fruit during the next growing season. Newer blackberry plants have been designed with less thorns so they are easier to harvest and prune. When purchasing a blackberry plant be sure to get the thornless variety.
Most blackberry plants can spread up to 12 feet wide and 7 feet hight. The blackberry plant is an easy to grow perennial. The average blackberry plant will produce up to 3 quarts of blackberries. The blackberries ripen from late summer to early fall. The blackberry plant like full sun and well-drained soil. The blackberry plant grows best in zones 5-8.
Dig yourself a wide trench where you intend to plant the berries and mix a good supply of that black gold into it. If you don’t have compost, then rotted manure, old leaves (should have plenty of those this time of year), coffee grounds, or any other quality source of organic matter will do just fine. Mix the soil and organic matter source in the trench thoroughly.
Blackberry Triple Crown
The Champion of Blackberries for Fresh, Delectable Eating!
The harvest continues for a month, with handfuls of new berries ripening every day!
For jumbo, ultra-sweet, utterly delicious blackberries in your own backyard, rely on classic Triple Crown. This semi-erect to trailing variety is very heavy-bearing, setting fresh new berries every day for a full month in early to midsummer in most climates. If you love big, juicy, flavor-packed berries for fresh eating, canning, and freezing, count on Triple Crown!

Reaching 8 to 10 feet high and 3 to 5 feet wide, and quicky forming a thick, stout central trunk that stands up to Mother Nature's roughest treatment, this shrub sets masses of long, arching canes packed with white blooms in late spring (irresistible to butterflies) that turn to fruit by midsummer. Best in full sun but tolerant of light shade, Triple Crown bears heavily every day for a month or more, giving you more than enough fruit for the family's immediate needs -- there will always be "leftovers" to can or freeze! And because this blackberry is self-fertile, you need plant only one, but you will find your crops even heavier if several are planted together.

Triple Crown needs rich soil, so amend it well with organic matter, and consider spraying the foliage once or twice during the growth period with Sea Magic, an all-natural seaweed growth enhancer. The canes are biennial, so cut them back hard after fruiting the second year. They will return even more plentifully in spring! Zones 5-9.


While there we were checking out the wooden
fences. Kind of liked the shorter picket
fence type. So who knows what type we will get.
Might end up with the house with the white
picket fence, lol.

5-13-10

Headed off to a yard sale this morning.
Found Jonathan some twist crayons for school .25 cents
a tupperware cup with lid .50 cents




A set of 2 curtain valances for bedroom .50 cents




Another valance for FREE.
Using that as a scarf for living room
window since it's long enough.
Still have to tinker with it some
on the window as I just threw it up
there to see what it would look like.
It seems to be a good color match
to go with the couch.




A large bag of assorted zippers FREE




Me and mom stopped in IGA.
There I found some red and white onion
bulbs that I'll plant in the garden
next to the cabbage and lettuce.
I think the bunny has started on some
of my green cabbages I have planted
so by companion planting some onions
in there I'm hoping it will keep the
rabbits out of them til I get a fence up.
Here is how to plant and care for these onions.
I am trying to be organic with my garden
without using any chemicals.
I also noticed I get many ant hills.
So to try and deal with that I have
read to use cinnamon to kill them.
I will sprinkle cinnamon in and
around their hills to try to rid them.





___________________________________________________

Worried about identity theft?
Well here is another way one could possibly
get your personal information.
Check it out from CBS News.

___________________________________________________

WHAT WOULD YOU DO FOR A KLONDIKE BAR?

Me and mom stopped in Kroger today.
I had a gal walk up to me and ask for
$1.00, said she was out of gas and had no way home.
You know the typical lines they tell ya when begging
for money. I told her I didn't have any.
Most people carry plastic to pay for groceries.
Anyway she walked off and I found her in the next
isle with the ice cream which I was wanting anyway.
She had opened up a door to the freezer and I
was thinking to myself, if she didn't have any
money then what is she doing getting ice cream?
I stood back a few because she was in the area
of where I wanted to get ice cream. As I pretended
to browse items in the freezer mom had come
around the corner. I was wondering what
was taking this lady so long to get ice cream.
I looked closer and noticed she was opening
the Klondike packages and putting the
bars in her pockets.
I turned around to mom and said quietly, she's shoplifting!
With all the cameras in that store, she did not
get caught. Then me and mom wondered out of all
the things in the store to shoplift, why ice
cream Klondike bars?

Talking about lines people give you when begging
for money here is a good one a couple gave me
when leaving Walgreens one day.
A man and a woman were standing on the sidewalk
next to the front door. The man asked me and my mom
for money because his girlfriend was on her
period and needed to buy feminine products.
It was a good thing it wasn't one of those
trips when I got feminine products cheap or free
because I would have handed a package to her
just to see what their reaction would have been.
If this gal didn't have anything for that time
of the month then she didn't show signs
of spotting on her clothes.
If this was me, I would have found a public
bathroom and used a bunch of rolled up toilet
paper to get by. So ya gotta watch these beggers
and what line they feed you!

___________________________________________________

5:00PM

Seems like side work is popping up everywhere.
First of all Tony has extra work to do with
the drywall job that will include painting.
That there will be extra money in the pocket.
Then tonight as we are out by the road tying
down the car cover a guy stops and asks
Tony if he wanted to make $100 putting in
a starter. So all seems to be going well
at the moment other than rain is supposed
to be moving in and we have another tornado
watch.

__________________________________________________

5:30PM

Got my stuffed shells made. Everyone made it
sound like it was so time consuming.
I didn't think it took too long.
I browned up some ground maple sausage,
added a 15oz tub of ricotta cheese,
and 1 cup shredded Italian cheese.
Spooned this mixture into pasta shells.
The topped with a jar of spaghetti sauce
and the rest of the Italian cheese.
The sprinkled with my grinder of
sea salt and garlic.



DESSERT

CREPE ICE CREAM CUPS WITH HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE SAUCE




__________________________________________________

Ohhhh don't this look good?



The warmer weather has me thinking of
different types of cooler desserts to make.

I'm wondering if I made a waffle cone
recipe if I could just make it in a
skillet then quickly mold it in a cupcake
pan to form a cup.
I don't have a waffle cone maker, only
a waffle maker which would be too thick.


Ingredients

* 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
* 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
* 1/3 cup lemon juice
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 4 waffle bowls
* 1 cup cherry pie filling

Directions

* In a small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually beat in milk until smooth. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Spoon about 1/3 cup into each waffle bowl; top with 2 tablespoons pie filling. Repeat layers. Yield: 4 servings.

Gourmet Waffle Cones
This is a basic recipe for a rich buttery waffle cone.
(this is a recipe for a waffle maker but I might
experiment with it)

Yield: About 8 cones

1 whole egg
1 egg white
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup sifted all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. butter, melted and cooled slightly

1. Preheat the WaffleCone Express™. Start with Color Control setting of 2 1/2 to 3, but change as necessary for best results.
2. Beat the egg, egg white and salt in a small bowl with a fork until well blended. Beat in the sugar and beat until sugar is incorporated and the egg has lightened in color slightly, about 1 minute. Add flour and beat another 15 seconds or until incorporated and all lumps are gone. Add the melted butter and stir until well blended.
3. Spoon 2 tablespoons (1 ounce) of batter in the center of the iron. Bake for 1 minute then check for proper color. Cook an additional 5 to 10 seconds if necessary.
4. Quickly remove the waffle from the WaffleCone Express™ onto a clean cloth towel. If the waffle is too hot to handle with your bare hands, use the cloth to help lift and roll the waffle around the cone form. Hold the cone a few seconds to set its shape then place on a wire rack to cool.

5-12-10

Breakfast this morning.
Don't know what to call it as I just
threw it together.
It has a biscuit bottom topped
with a mixture of scrambled eggs,
cream cheese, american cheese, hashbrowns
and maple sausage.

Will have these for breakfast tomorrow
also since there was leftovers.





Last night we kinda looked over the Trans Am
before covering with the car cover.
We assumed it was in the same condition
when we sold the car a couple years back
because that's what the guy told us.
He said he only drove it a couple times
and it had been garage kept.
WRONG! It's gone downhill and needs a lot of
work and love. I have videos to show what kind
of condition the car was in right before we sold
it. It's a good thing I love Trans Ams to
see past all the current flaws and know there
is still hope for it.

We originally bought it in 2003.
Sold it in about 2006-2007.
It still has our original tags on it
and our registration in the glovebox.




For starters, here is the condition of the hood.
The guy drove it without first putting the
hood pins on it and guess what, the hood flew off!



The valve covers now have developed rust on them.




Not sure what this wire mess is about
but don't remember it looking like that before.



Headliner is now sagging.
Not sure if the dome light was there before or not.



Passenger side door panel is off.
Wasn't like this before because we bought
new door panels and I put them on.



Interior pieces are not attached. I know they
were all put on and in place when we got the car
as I put them all on myself.



Scratches galore. Any scratches on the car
when we owned it were touched up with paint.
As much as I hate to say it the whole car
needs sanded down and repainted. It's a lot
of work to do that! We did the red one years
ago ourselves.








Now after seeing the aftermath, check
out right before we sold it with a couple videos
I took years ago.





___________________________________________________

Decided to head over to Kroger to get some
things to make Manicotti. Don't know if I'll
do the pasta or crepe version or both.

After Kroger we stopped in Speedway.
I was getting the kids slushies when
they yell out Pat just pulled up outside.
The place was crowded but we managed to
kick it up a notch and get the heck
out of there before he came in the store!
AHHHH the week is not getting any better for me.
I'd rather stay home and keep to myself.
Never trust anyone and always go by your
gut instinct with anything!


____________________________________________________

I forgot to post this last night. Wonder why?
I wasn't in the best mood. This week
seems like a crappy week for me.

But anyway we had BBQ Pork Ribs.
I did these up in the crock pot.



___________________________________________________

Tonight I made homemade cinnamon rolls.
Made the dough in the bread machine.
I made the frosting from cream cheese,
vanilla, milk, powdered sugar and orange zest.



___________________________________________________

The other day when Tony was welding the trailer
I kept telling the kids not to look at him while
welding because it was too bright
to look at. They kept trying to sneak a peek.
So I finally told them the skin around their
eyes was turning a purplish pink from looking at it
(it was because they were tired and getting circles). They believed
me and went running for a mirror to look in.
It was funny to see them inspecting their faces
in the truck's mirror.

I'm so bad. This evening I went to take a hot
bath. I had put some clear cucumber peel mask on
my face and was letting it dry when Jonathan came in.
I knew it was almost dry and he wasn't aware that it
was on my face. I pretended to itch the side of my
face to loosen the mask some and let a piece
or two dangle. Jonathan gave me
the strangest look and said mom your skin is peeling
off! So I felt around on my face and started peeling
big pieces off. I said maybe it was because I looked
at daddy welding the other night. I thought Jonathan
was gonna puke because he started heaving
and ran out of the bathroom. LOL!
I never told him what it was. But now I know he
won't be watching anyone welding without a mask
for fear his face skin will start peeling off!! LOL!

__________________________________________________

I think that I have decided to make stuffed shells
for supper tomorrow. I will stuff them with a
mixture of maple ground sausage, ricotta cheese
and a shredded Italian cheese mixture. Cover
with spaghetti sauce & parmesean cheese and bake.

Then for dessert I will make the crepes I talked
about. I will make them into cups to serve
homemade ice cream in topped with some homemade
chocolate syrup.



Ingredients

* 2 cups milk
* 2 eggs
* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* Pinch salt
* 1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
* Orange butter, recipe follows
* 1 tablespoon butter to brush the crepe pan

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Add milk and eggs to blender and combine. Add the flour 1/2 a cup at a time, blending after each addition to ensure there are no lumps. Add pinch of salt and melted butter then blend for 30 seconds until you achieve a smooth, silky consistency. Set aside in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to rest.

Dip a piece of kitchen paper in butter and grease a small frying pan. Ladle a spoonful of batter into the pan. With a flick of the wrist swivel the pan in order to get a nice even covering all over. A good crepe should be paper- thin. Cook on a high heat and flip it over when you see the edge turning golden brown. Remove crepes from pan and fold in half and press into a muffin tray to form little cup shapes. Bake in hot oven for 10 to 12 minutes until slightly crispy and brown around the edges, the middle should remain spongy and light.

-----------------------

VANILLA ICE CREAM
(no ice cream maker needed)

2 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup Karo light syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

With electric mixer, beat eggs until light
and frothy.

Gradually add sugar, beating until dissolved.

Add milk, cream, corn syrup and vanilla,
beating until blended.

Freeze about 3 hours, until firm.

Remove from freezer and beat with electric
mixer to break up ice crystals and make
ice cream smooth.

Return to freezer for another 2 hours.

5-11-10

9:30AM

What a yucky, dreary, rainy day out!

I kept Jonathan home from school.
He has a cough along with going to bed
late last night and not getting enough sleep.

I don't plan to do much today other than
maybe some dishes and a load of laundry.
For the past 5 days we have been running
not stop late into the evening.
Tonight not going anywhere. Tony even
cancelled going out to finish up the drywall
work til another day. We are too wore out!!

I might go out and grab a couple trays
to plant some more seeds in to get them
done and ready to go soon. Other than that
this weather describes about how I feel at
the moment.

___________________________________________________

4:30PM

Moving in slow mo today with a backache.

Tony had a doctor's appointment this morning
for the pain in his legs, knees and hips.
They did blood work and are sending him to get x-rays and then
will do a follow up.

I managed to get about 4-5 seed trays planted
today. Parsley, Dill, Spinach, Onion, Widlflowers,
Marigolds, Shasta Daisy, Forget-Me-Nots, peas and so on.

I also got dishes done and a load of laundry.
For supper I threw some BBQ ribs in the crock.

I am just too whipped to do much of anything else.
Me and Jonathan laid down and took about a 3 hour
nap that's how exhausted we were.

No school tomorrow. Not sure why as it is not
listed on my paper of all the days they are out
of school. But Christopher did bring home
a paper that said no school.

___________________________________________________

5:05PM

Tony's on his way home. Going to head off to Napa
soon to see how much a new trailer hitch costs.
For extra safety precautions we want it bolted
then welded on. Have to call a friend of
Tony's who is a professional welder to come
out and do it. I don't want to go through
what we went through last night again!


Going through recipes and trying to get a game
plan for the next week's upcoming menu.

I'm thinking about some crepe manicotti one night.
Did you know manicotti is originally supposed to
be made with crepes instead of pasta? I didn't
know that. Learn something new everyday.
I saw this recipe on the Food channel the other day.
Of course I will have to tweak it some to suit our
needs and what we have at hand.

5-11-10

9:30AM

What a yucky, dreary, rainy day out!

I kept Jonathan home from school.
He has a cough along with going to bed
late last night and not getting enough sleep.

I don't plan to do much today other than
maybe some dishes and a load of laundry.
For the past 5 days we have been running
not stop late into the evening.
Tonight not going anywhere. Tony even
cancelled going out to finish up the drywall
work til another day. We are too wore out!!

I might go out and grab a couple trays
to plant some more seeds in to get them
done and ready to go soon. Other than that
this weather describes about how I feel at
the moment.

5-10-10

I am a smoker so I have been looking for ways to
cut costs with that. I know the best thing to do
is to quit but that's easier said than done.
I had a homemade cigarette the other day
that was about like my Doral Light 100's.
So I started asking questions about costs
and supplies because I had thought the tax
increase had killed the idea of saving money
by rolling your own.



If you buy PIPE tobacco
it is cheaper than
cigarette tobacco!! There is a brand called
Criss Cross Smooth Blend that can be found in most
tobacco stores. It runs anywhere from
$10 to $15 a 1 pound bag. I asked this person who
made their own cigarettes how much can be made
with that one bag and he said about 3 cartons.
Cigarette papers/filters run about $10 to $15
a box of 200 to 1000 from what I saw on Ebay.



So for about 3 CARTONS I would said would run you
about $20 to $30.
Now compare that to about $50 for 1 CARTON!!
Or look at it this way, at least about $1.00 a pack
compared to $5.00 a pack!!!

I am currently watching some auctions on Ebay
for cigarette makers. Some can runs as cheap
as $8.00 with shipping all the way up to
about $40.

Pipe tobacco is not taxed like cigarette tobacco.
Read this article I found how some manufacturer's
of cigarette tobacco are finding ways of selling
it under pipe tobacco to be able to sell it
cheaper without the tax increase.
This is why I mentioned the Criss Cross brand above.
It is labeled as a pipe tobacco but it can
be used for cigarettes.
___________________________________________________

This morning I took out mom's trash for her.
I ended up trash picking in her own trash can, lol.

In there I found a pair of rubberized garden gloves
my step-dad had thrown out. There was a couple
spots where the rubber was coming off but I didn't
mind. I could use these in the garden and not
get dirt under my nails.

When asked why they were thrown away my step-dad
told me it was because they had Ortho Weed Killer
on them. I'm thinking, SO, I'll throw them
in the washer with a little bleach and hot water
and wash them up.

People are soooo wasteful! But I am there to help
and swoop up on it! I scored me a free pair of
garden gloves!



___________________________________________________

Just yesterday me and Tony had to restake
our baby tree out front. We purchased 2 trees
almost a year ago from Lowes. Found them in
the clearance section for about $1.50 each!!
They came with not tags to say what kind of
trees they were. I did a little research
and think they may be pear trees.
The tree on the side of the house did not bloom
this year but the one in the front did.
Anyway as we were restaking this tree we noticed
it had fruit buds on it!! YEAHH! So guess
we will find out this year what kind of tree
it is. I figured it would take many years
for a tree to mature before producing fruit.
But I did learn it took 2 trees to produce any
fruit is why I planted 2 so they could pollinate
one another. This tree is not very old. The trunk
and branches are about the size of a pencil
circumference. So how is it supposed to support
all this fruit??? Guess I'll have to read up
on what to do. But for now I am glad to have
a fruit tree with free fruit in the near future!




You know every mother's day people like to give
gifts such as a bouquet of flowers. Well I like
to ask for flowers BUT ones that I can plant in
the ground. Hubby has bought me a mini rose
bush one year. Next year I might ask for a raspberry
or blackberry bush, something we can enjoy and
get free fruit from year after year.
Now whatchya gonna do with a bouquet of flowers?
Throw them away after about a week! So why
throw money in the garbage??? Ask for plants
that will come back year after year.
I like ornamental along with fruit bearing ones.

Be sure to check out the clearance area in Lowes
or Home Depot in the garden area. Sometimes you can find stuff for
cheap like I did. I think that's where I got
my Concord Grape also.

__________________________________________________

Kitchen Tip

When setting out your styrofoam tray
of fresh mushroom do not place it on
a burner then turn on wrong burner!
Smelly! Now I have to scrape plastic
crap off my burner!

SUPPER

Brats topped with saurkraut, onions,
mushrooms, cheese and green peppers.

Another money saver tip of mine:

I don't buy buns too often.
I use a regular loaf bread for hot dogs,
brats and hamburgers. Why buy
a package of 8 buns for $1.00
when I just bought loaves of bread
for .39 cents. I can use this for many
more hot dogs and hamburgers than
a package of 8 buns.

___________________________________________________

4:20PM

Trying to hurry up and have supper ready by
the time Tony gets home. Have to go out
to Blacklick this evening to work on welding
the trailer. I hope it all works out.
PLEASE PRAY THAT IF IT DOES THAT OUR RETURN
HOME WITH CAR AND TRAILER WILL BE A SAFE ONE!!
I have been soooo worried about getting the car
and trailer home in one piece.

___________________________________________________

Here's my seedling inventory that are sprouting.
Already planted the cucumber seedlings.

ENCHANTED ROSE ZINNIAS



CRACKERJACK MARIGOLDS



SWEET SPANISH ONIONS



DWARF GRAY SUGAR PEAS



GARDEN BEAN



RADISH & SWEET BASIL



FLYING SAUCER MORNING GLORIES



LARGE RED CHERRY & DELICIOUS TOMATOES




___________________________________________________

5:00PM TO 10:45PM

Just got home!

IT HAS NOT BEEN A GOOD NIGHT!!!!!!!!!!

But I had my camera handy to document
how the night went. This usually doesn't
happen when there's some action going on.

Passing through Gahanna on the way to
Blacklick we saw this license plate
on a Suburban of all things.



I finally got a picture of this weird mail
box. I cannot figure out why the one is up so
high.



Randy and Tony welding the trailer hitch.







Here's my picture & video story of tonight's events....


GOODNIGHT!!
GLAD TO BE HOME!!

This is in Gahanna on Granville.
Driving along. Then bump, thud
and eerie scraping sound.
Managed to drag it just up the
street into the library's parking lot.



Cop said it was sparking pretty good after
the trailer hitch broke.
He was going by in the other direction
as this happened. Did a u turn
and came up behind us with lights on.
He saw we were all ok but shook up.
He left shortly after checking out
the situation.




You probably can't hear me in this video
due to the diesel tow truck running but
I say, "Oh that's something I didn't need to see"
The tow truck people are hooking our trailer
up to the back of the roll back when out pops
this lil surprise, LMAO.