Oh Dear. It has been a while hasn't it?

Time for a recap. Well, did I tell you I wrote a book? I did, sort of. Mostly, I compiled it. It is a family history for my Grandma's 90th birthday. I had all my Grandma's sons and daughters fill out questionaires and wrote biographies. My grandma wrote her childhood memories and I put them all into a book with photos. It turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself. Actually, lots of people said they liked it. I could have picked it apart ten ways from Sunday, but I just published it anyhow.

I used Blurb.com and overall, I was satisfied. You can't tell here, but I made some huge boo-boos and contacted customer support. They were able to grant me the  clemency of a re-print even though the mistakes could have been considered *cough* my fault. I would use the service again, as I was happy with the quality of the book once completed. 

I think my Grandma liked it and that's what matters. It was her present after all.

Hmm, what else has happened? Halloween was fun, Simon dressed as a Skeleton and we carved pumpkins.

I am taking guitar lessons and they are going fairly well. The more I learn though, the more I realize I have to learn. I suppose that is progress. I am working on Christmas music right now.  I have started some gift shopping, and I got some great ideas from the bake sale they had at work as to packaging etc. I raided the same Dollarama and got my supplies. I'm ready to go. Just need to bake now, can't wait to start!

Me with my cousins, son, nephew niece and sister on Grandma's Stairs.

What do you think the Man would say if this was in his stocking?

Oh, and THIS happened. A one day strike at my work place. That's all I will say about that, for now.

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Ciao for now. Bean.

Waffles n' Caramel.

Hello, what's new? Lots of things are new and different. We are in the middle of the school week rush and the weekend wind down. Work is busy, school is busy, LIFE is busy! So we are good. I am taking guitar lessons for the first time in my life and it is exciting and damned hard work. I have to make myself practice which isn't always easy. I have to motivate myself to drill, but if I want to learn it is what I have to do. I am starting with some folk songs from the sixties so I feel a bit hippyish, strumming away in my living room, but it is relaxing. My neighbours probably don't think so, but you should hear what they do. I don't feel a bit bad about my strumming.  We are getting ready for another trip to see the family for my Grandmas' 90th birthday. I am excited because I am fairly sure the whole family will be there. It's pretty difficult to say work or school is more important that your grandma's 90th!

 I completed a book that I have been working on since the spring, with my family's help. We all contributed answers to fifty questions about family history and with photos and biographies together, it made a spectacular book. It was a lot of work and I stressed about doing it just right. I hope she will enjoy it. I am pretty proud of it.

We are looking forward to some long held goals coming to fruition. It is satisfying when you have completed a goal and then you can set new ones.

I made an amazing, enormous apple crisp at work and served it with ice cream and a drizzle of Bonne Maman caramel.  Oh Em Gee. I bought this sauce on a whim and I think I am in love. It was sooooooooo frickin' good. I was sad to have had to leave the remainder of the jar at work, although that was probably a good thing because I may possibly have licked the jar clean if I hadn't. I highly recommend it. Yum.

My latest thing is my waffle maker. (Must. Buy. Caramel!) I bought a really nice waffle maker and got a bottle of maple syrup free with a coupon. I used to only make waffles at Christmas because they were a pain on my tiny waffle iron/sandwich maker. Now, we have had them twice. I'm sure the novelty will wear off, but right now, waffles rock!

Well, off to enjoy the rest of my Saturday. Later, Dudes.

Autumn Abundance

Just got back from Smokefest and we had an excellent time, as always. This was the ninth year it has been going but only the sixth for me. We ate, we sang and we were merry! My Aunt had me make these jelly salads, which is something I have always wanted to try but just never gotten around to. They turned out fantastic and tasted pretty good too. The peaches against the red jelly sure makes a nice contrast. It was such a fantastic feast, as it is each year. With everyone contributing, it makes it fun and festive, too.

My uncle is in charge of the fish and he gets help to get it ready for the smoker and the grill. Somehow his fish is the most tender, melt in your mouth salmon I have ever had. There is nothing to compare to it. This year, I brought cherries and peaches, which were late this season and they were at the peak of deliciousness. I put some in a fruit salad and some in the jelly salads.

The rest we just ate.  

 

I also made a batch of peanut butter squares, which were gobbled up. I changed the recipe a bit, as follows: Most of 1 small jar Skippy crunchy peanut butter (2 cups) 1 bag mini marshmallows, 1 cup rice crispy cereal, melt together and pour in the bottom of a 9x13 pan lined with parchment. Melt a half a big chocolate bar from Walmart (about 8 oz) and spread over your peanut butter layer. Put in freezer until firm. Take out the whole block and cut into squares. OMG. So good, and no bake!

I could write a book about Smokefest, and someday, I probably will.

 For now though, the constant battle for organization. My closets are winning and taking over the house. I canned a bunch of apples and made apple butter. I got a baker's dozen jam jars worth. Not bad for free apples! How do you like them apples? (Sorry, I had to.)

I also have become a Watkins associate # 397322! I am the Watkins man! (woman!) I have a separate blog for that so don't worry, I won't turn this into a Watkins home party, though knowing me, my projects tend to overlap, so you may hear a thing or two about it now and then.

School is back in and I'm running like a chicken with my head cut off. It's good to update the blog though. I'll talk to you soon.

Here we go!

It's that time when trips to the beach seem like the norm and the sun seems to shine every day and this little grasshopper thinks that summer will never end. I have been back to work for a few weeks now, after my glorious Vancouver Island holiday/Anniversary surprise getaway, but it still feels like play time to me. I have managed to squeeze in a trip to the outdoor pool and the bowling alley, which were promises made and kept for summer outings. I had a long list of outings but when it came down to it, we were either too busy, or too tired from all the other fun stuff we have been doing! We have managed to get the most out of the summer and I think it's wonderful. I did get my school supplies organized and bought a few clothes, so even if I do nothing else, I think I can manage the first day of school. One day at a time right? Chalk one point for only having one kid to worry about!

Sea life at Ucluelet Aquarium

AAAH!

I am also working on a project for my Grandma's birthday and finally I feel like it may actually come to fruition, now that some key pieces of information have come my way. It will be a furious push at the end to get it done the way I want it, but I think I have it under control. I sure hope it comes out as well as I expect it to. Smokefest is just around the corner, I am super excited for it. I just love when my family gets together and this party has become the social event of the year! With so much to look forward to, it's hard to stay in the every day and get the basics done, like laundry and dishes. I just want to sweep it all it the dumpster and buy new dishes and clothes. That's not very frugal, is it?

Happy Trails!

Strawberry in my Aunt's garden

Grandma after her dip in the Shuswap August 2012. I sure hope I look as good in a bathing suit at her age!

We heard a bear going down this trail and saw his leavings!

We had a little adventure this long weekend in the Shuswap.
My aunt and Grandma along with my little cousin came from the North to visit my aunt at her cabin. We brought our tent and stayed two fun nights. The lake was absolutely to die for. On the second night we all went for a night swim just before bed. That was wise thinking because temperatures were in the high thirties. We also had a water gun fight and numerous trips to the beach due to the heat. Suppers were potluck affair with everyone contributing whatever they had. We had some nice salads, wraps and beans.


 My aunties and I were in charge of about 12 lbs. of moose meat which we formed into meat loaves and meat balls (mooseballs, hee) and patties. We had more food than we needed but I'm sure it all got divvied up. My other Aunty drove in from Kamloops for the afternoon and we all had a game of string golf. Sunday we all had a game of bocci which was good fun, before a last trip to the beach for a picnic and an ice cream cone for the road.



What a fun time with my three aunts and my Grandma.

Million dollar view.

Summer Breakfast Frozen Cheesecake

 Oh yes, cheesecake for breakfast!
 It's the only way to go. I'm writing this one down because it's a keeper.
In a rectangular Ziploc plastic container mix up a cup of graham cracker crumbs with a 1/4 sugar and add 1/4 cup melted butter. Press to form crust. In a bowl mix 2 cups cream cheese with 1 cup vanilla yogurt and 1/4 cup icing sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla until smooth. Pour over crust. Place frozen berries evenly all over the top, then puree some (or just mash with a fork and a bit more sugar) pour evenly over all. All measurements are approximate because I never measure things like this. Freeze over night. Eat it for breakfast! YUM!

This turned out like an ice cream cake, so delicious. I let the big block thaw a bit, popped it out, cut it into squares and returned it to the container and put it back in the freezer. Let individual servings thaw a bit on the plate before digging in. This way, no worries about leftovers going bad, they are safely stored in the plastic container until the next cheesecake craving strikes!

I did not feel like baking, turning on the oven and I did not have any gelatin/jello to make this a fridge cake. This solution worked out great. I think this is my new go-to cheesecake method for the summer and the yogurt gives it a nice tang. It is also slightly healthier than adding whipping cream to cheesecake. Not much, but a bit.

PB&B

Ever had peanut butter and banana sandwiches for dinner? Well, I have. That and trail mix were our dinner tonight because it is too darn hot to even make toast.

We sure had a wonderful three weeks of holiday time. At the end of our Vancouver Island getaway, I was whisked away for a surprise two night stay at the http://www.kingfisherspa.com/ . It was heavenly. We had the romance suite and it was, well, romantic. While I admired the ocean view, my wonderful husband, (in anticipation of our fifth wedding anniversary on July 28th) , whipped out the matching diamond solitaire to my wedding band. Did I cry? You bet your ass I did. I have never in my life been so surprised and spoiled. Talk about a grand gesture!

I have scads more photos so you may see a post or two more like this one...stay tuned.
Catch ya later, Bean.