I have had a wonderful few days with my precious friend Susan who came down from Big D for a visit. We have eaten a lot, laughed a lot and talked about old times. We checked out all the art stuff, loved the Estelle Stair where Lisa has done a wonderful job restoring the old building and art gallery. Love her paintings and she is such fun to talk to. We also discovered a great bead store and Susan helped me make a beautiful bracelet (at least I think it's beautiful). I'll post a photo so you can see. I LOVE it!

Feeling Creative

I have been thinking a lot lately about old friends and shared memories. I fondly remember a dear friend who was very "crafty". She always had some cute thing in the works, from knitting to crochet. I remember how much I loved to watch her making granny squares. The bright colors spoke to my gypsy heart. They also reminded me of a era I loved......hippie clothes, good music, love beads and lava lamps (the free love and drugs I could do without). I never dressed that way but always wanted to.  Now they call it boho and it is the rage among young Hollywood. Now that I am an old lady I think I shall grow my hair out long, wear feathers in it and be the (drug free) hippie I always wanted to be. You know us old folks can get away with anything. People just say "look at that poor old thing." Not many good things come with old age but at least you can do whatever the heck you want to do! Right now I want to make more granny's!

A Sad Day For Me.....

I am near tears. I had to watch my hubby take down two huge Ficus trees.....that's right.......the kind you grow in the house, that were killed by the freeze we had here. These beautiful things were right out side the bedroom windows. They were about 30 feet tall and about 4 foot around, with multi trunks. I loved looking out at them every morning and the doves and other birds perched in them too. The birds were my alarm clock. About 7a.m. they would get started cooing and chirping. I will miss their sweet sound so much. I have had the blinds closed all day.....I can't stand to see the poor stumps that are left.

Bounty From Our Garden

Even with all this DRY, DRY weather we are getting green beans, corn and yellow squash from our garden. Don't know how much longer it will last even with hubby watering it when he can. With the water prices here these are some pricey veggies, but SOOOO worth it. The tomatoes are looking good too. I also have a patio tomato in a pot on our deck, along with my herbs, and YEAH......I just picked three beautiful red maters! Thought I would give you a look at what I have been putting in the freezer and also a really good recipe for Squash Casserole. Enjoy!

Squash Stuffing Casserole

6 cups sliced yellow squash, cooked
1 small onion diced
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
8 oz. can of chopped green chilies
1 (6 oz.) pkg. Stovetop stuffimg mix
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Mix well and bake uncovered, in a shallow greased 2 quart baking dish, for about 30 minutes.

Hope you enjoy this easy, tasty dish as much as we did!

Tonights Dinner.......Yummy

Hey.....I just made the BEST chicken!!!!! Here is what you do

Cut your chicken in half (or in pieces, what ever you like, I like it in half). Rub with salt and pepper. Brown in a little oil in your cast iron skillet (hope you have your Mama's like I do). Drain off fat, put back in cast iron skillet and bake for about 45 min to 1 hour, uncovered,  depending how it's cut. Needs to be at 165 on your meat thermometer. When it's almost done make the baste by doing the following:

3 tablespoons butter melted in saucepan and add the following:

2 tablespoons grated onion
2 cloves garlic, grated
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon stone ground mustard
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce ( I used 1/2 teaspoon of Louisiana Red Hot Sauce)
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Cook for about 5 or 6 minutes then spread on chicken. Cook about 20 more minutes or until 165 on your thermometer. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. YUMMY!!!

Moon Ilusion

What a beautiful sight! The "super perigee" moon tonight is the largest in 20 years. It is 15 to 30% larger than normal. It's known as the "moon illusion". It appears so large because it's at the "perigee" point in it's orbit around the earth, the closest point in the orbits ellipses. It will be a long time before it happens again. I tried in vein to get some good photos but no luck. Will post what I got anyway. Moon photos are HARD!

Butterflies, Hummingbirds and Bees

The mountain laurel is in full bloom and boy do the butterflies, bees and hummingbirds love it! The beautiful purple color and sweet smell is wonderful. I enjoy sitting on the deck with my cup of coffee (in my Elvis mug ya know) watching them suck up the tasty nectar. When you were a kid did you ever pull the stamen out of a honeysuckle bloom and suck on it? I wonder if the hummers, butterflies and bees find the taste as sweet as we did........