Last Cancer Treatment Was TODAY!

Congratulations to Tissa!

She has made it through 33 treatments for

breast cancer...

chemotherapy and radiation.

Tissa is amazing.

She kept a positive outlook,

She took care of herself

(her husband passed away nearly six years ago)

by ...

eating properly

exercising almost daily

sufficient rest

(even though she hardly gave up any of her family, church,

and civic duties... and there are many!)

and just knowing that all would be okay.

Tissa, you are an amazing woman

and sister-in-law who I am also blessed to call

"my dear, dear friend"!

I'm saying many prayers these days

that Tissa has been spared.

Delicious Roasted Asparagus!



Supper was quick and oh so good!

Veggies with chicken breast.

I think you can figure out the different vegetables with the chicken breast... but

I wanted to share with you the way I prepared the asparagus...

I made a trip to Sprouts, the only real health food store in our area. (I'm not a health nut by any means, but for where I was in town, it was convenient.)

Sprouts had fresh asparagus for 99 cents a bunch. I bought two.

I "popped" the ends of one bunch and after washing and drying them I placed them in a large Zip-Lock bag. 

I poured olive oil over them and sprinkled sea salt and Beau Monde Seasoning in the bag and sort of "mushed" them around.

I turned the oven to 425 degrees and poured the asparagus onto a cookie sheet.

I roasted the asparagus for about 12 minutes.

Downright yummy! So glad I have one more bunch to cook.

I'm linking to Savvy Southern Style for

Wow Us Wednesdays!

http://savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.com/

Greening Up at the Ranch

A weekend at the ranch is always full of surprises.

I hadn't realized the cactus would be starting to show 

new growth and the wildflowers were just coming out.

We don't have our state flower, the Bluebonnet, yet, 

but this field of yellow flowers were so beautiful.

As we left the ranch today, I couldn't resist

snapping this picture.

I had some fun with the color on my photos 

today, however, in "real life" what we enjoyed

 was just as beautiful.

I am linking to Little Red House

for

Mosaic Monday

http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com/

Be sure to stop by Little Red House for some beautiful

photography and collages.

Chocolate Potato Cake - My Father's Favorite!

Happy Birthday

to my father who would have been 88

on March 1st

My father always felt very self-conscious about his birthday celebrations and wasn't very comfortable with being singled out and fussed over. I think this photo of him taken with his favorite birthday cake sort of shows the shy side of my Dad.

BUT -- let him start talking about his WWII experiences and you just better listen up. He had much to tell. I sometimes wonder if he reflected back on those experiences and related current events to what he was doing during battles, marches, and other wartime experiences. Those years in the Army spent mostly on an armored car, had the most impact on him for the rest of his life. I promised myself that I would not give a long address about my father... I couldn't get it all right and he would be shy once again about my attempts to explain who he was.

I will tell you -- he was a great father and

I miss him everyday.

I love you, Daddy! Happy Birthday!

********

My Father's Favorite Cake

-Chocolate Potato Cake-

2 c. sugar

1 c. shortening

4 eggs - separate and whip whites

2 c. flour

4 Tbsp. cocoa

 2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2/3 c. milk

1 tsp. each: ground cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg

--

1 c hot mashed potatoes (not instant)

1 c. pecans, chopped

1 tsp. vanilla

--

Icing: 1 box powdered sugar

1/2 c. butter

1 egg yolk

3 Tbsp. cocoa

5 Tbsp. hot, strong coffee

   Cream 2 c. sugar with 1 c. shortening. Add 4 egg yolks and cream well. Sift together: flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg

--
1 c hot mashed potatoes (not instant)
1 c. pecans, chopped
1 tsp. vanilla
--
Icing: 1 box powdered sugar
1/2 c. butter
1 egg yolk
3 Tbsp. cocoa
5 Tbsp. hot, strong coffee
    
     Cream 2 c. sugar with 1 c. shortening. Add 4 egg yolks and cream well. Sift together: flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add alternately the milk to creamed mixture along with hot mashed potatoes. Fold in 4 stiffly beaten egg whites, pecan, and vanilla.
     Grease 3 round cake tins and line with wax paper.
     Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Frost when cool.

My father after his last military reunion.

I am linking to

Mis Helen's Country Cottage for Full Plate Thursday

                                               http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/

Designs by Gollum for Foodie Friday

http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/

*

Finds for my booth

A shopping trip to Port Lavaca, Texas

brought some real

"finds for my booth"...

The prices were right...

not a huge investment by any means...

but just right for my little booth at

a small antiques consignment mall.

* Indian basket -- real/not real ??

* Kiln rug purse

* Fenton plate

* Ironstone child's plate from England

I'm looking forward to placing these items in my

booth tomorrow morning and

we'll see what happens!

I'm linking to Savvy Southern Style

for WOW Us Wednesdays

http://savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.com/

Wet a hook, enjoyed the countryside and ate too much!

My husband and I took a weekend off to travel four hours to enjoy some time away. We are so fortunate to have land and and original  homestead still in the family. Otto Peterson from Sweden and his wife, Mabel,  from Kansas (originally from Sweden) raised two sons and farmed and ranched this land. Fish and oysters were plentiful and the two boys grew up helping their parents and enjoying life.

What can be more grounding than to walk the land your ancestors walked?

My husband got to "wet a hook" and even though he didn't catch any fish, he enjoyed the quiet time and the sunsets there were amazing!

The wildflowers were also amazing!

Even though it was quite chilly, the approach of Spring

was everywhere.

A visit to a relative's home treated us to a fantastic meal.

Fried oysters, roasted asparagus, twice baked potatoes with grilled shrimp.. and then I took my spinach and papaya salad to go with it.

I'm sure my husband's ancestors ate fried shrimp, however, the rest of the meal would have probably been a little foreign to them.

***

Now as for my "fishing" excursion...

antiquing with my husband's cousin was so much fun!

Here are my finds that will be placed in my booth at

New & Again Antiques Mall in McAllen, Texas.

Such a wonderful weekend!!

Linking to...

Mosaic Monday at Litle Red House

http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com/