Birthday Without Alot Of Fanfare

Well I guess you might say turning about 52 is not a big birthday year. I don't even think he received a single card this year. Don't feel to sorry for him though, Jim and I certainly would not let his birthday sneak by. Jim made a beautiful cake from rice cakes. Probably a recipe you aren't familiar with but certainly one the birthday boy was excited to eat. A nice whip cream topping provided the perfect topping to rest his birthday candle. He did get a few treats too after his steak dinner. A long walk through the neighborhood was next in order taking time to smell the roses for sure.

I am sure you're probably checking your calendars and seeing what special occasion you missed. But don't worry he was just happy to have a sunny day and a special dinner with two of his favorite people or parents.

Yes, Misha turned nine on Tuesday which is 52 in human years. He is happy as ever but acting a bit older. He still gets that lil spring in his step when the sun is burning brightly and he gets to go out for a long walk. He has to pee a bit more often, usually every tree or fire hydrant. Wait I guess he has always done that so maybe not age related. But at night time he now needs a little lift off our bed and placed in his snuggle bed.




Thanks for looking. ~Jackie & Jim

Our New Stove

Just before Christmas Jim and I came to the conclusion it was time to look for a new range. We found an electric double oven with convection heat from Kenmore and decide to buy that and also an above stove microwave. Well it was delivered last week and we have been successfully using the stove top and ovens but installing the microwave would take a little time. Jim needed to run a new 20amp circuit with hid behind the cupboards and design a wall support because the existing cabinet would not support that extra weight. He worked hard this week end getting things prepared. Today was the big day. Shawn came over to help left it while it was being attached. It ended up being an easy job since all of Jim's work matched perfectly to the actual brackets and hardware. It looks so nice and such an improvement. I love having some more counter space to with the microwave above the stove.

It was just Jim and me for Sunday dinner but with all his hard work this weekend he certainly needed to be treated to a nice dinner. I made a nice roasted chicken that had been marinated with lemon, fresh rosemary, and sweet onions and olive oil. It turned out so tender and juicy. We also had some nice roasted acorn squash and some whole wheat rolls. All was delish and Jim thoguht that was the best roasted chicken ever. ;)

A Very Crooked Pic But This Is Our New Stove

Chicken Ready To Go Into The Oven

Cooked Chicken


Thank you for looking. ~Jackie

Winter Blast In Erie

Finally getting the Wintery Snowy Blast that usually hits us hard until the lake freezes. Jim and I took a drive around Lake Erie today despite the freezing temps and strong winds. I managed to jump out of the car for a few minutes at a time to fire off a few quick pics. Not sure if you can tell how windy and cold it was from the pics but I hope you can get a sense of our Wintery weather.






Thank you for looking and leave a comments. ~Jackie

Wonderful Holiday

We have had a wonderful Christmas season this year. Starting back at Thanksgiving with all the Bakers in for Thanksgiving, the wonderful wedding, extra time with mom and dad before they headed out to ski country, a wonderful Christmas dinner with Patrick and Shawn, a fun party here with Jim's family the other night, a nice quiet New Year's Eve with just Jim and me sipping champagne and eating left over appetizers... well the list goes on and on.

Today we went to visit with Jim's brothers and families at the beautiful home of Diane and Bill. It is always a wonderful time visiting with them and enjoying many laughs, lots of great food and drinks.
This year was a special blessing because Santa Claus brought Skyler an extra treat and left the family airline tickets to fly from their warm sunny home in Florida to visit the freezing cold and snowy weather of Pennsylvania. Not only did he manage the tickets somehow he brought just the right amount of snow for sledding and snowman building but not to bad to keep us from visiting.

Here are some fun pics of Andrea and Skyler loving the snow and Winter weather.

Ready For Some Snow Fun

Snow Family, dog and all
(is this not the cutest snow family ever)

Family Portrait

Andrea

Skyler

Beautiful Cousins

Snow Angels

Christmas 2009

Wonderful day and meal although a bit quieter than Thanksgiving. Kara, her husband Michael and baby Elliana celebrated in SC. Mom and Dad celebrated at Stan and Alison's. I bet it was an exciting morning there with Sami opening her surprises from Santa. Julie and David stayed home in ABQ and went to a very nice special Christmas Buffet. Dianne, Jay and Abby stayed at their home in Virgina to enjoy a special relaxing Christmas without travel. I hope you all had wonderful day in your own tradition.

We serve Prime Rib on Christmas Day. Its a real treat and I scour magazines and cook books for other delicious treats to accompany the meat months in advance. This year I tried a special Porcini and bacon sauce to accompany the prime rib. I think we all loved it except for Shawn who stuck with the basic but always good beef gravy. For a festive treat Jim wanted a cheesecake but wanted a lighter fluffier style. I found the perfect recipe in the November edition of the Southern Lady Magazine called Key Lime and Raspberry Dessert. It was every bit as delish as it was pretty looking.

Here are some pictures from today.

Early Shot of the Table
I love using the family china and silver to set a beautiful table

Place Cards
With three joining us for Christmas dinner it is most important to have assigned seating to avoid that last minute rush to find a chair. (lol)

Misha is Looking Forward to Some Treats
Jim likes to give Misha a treat or two this time of year.


Prime Rib Roasting In The Oven


Lots Of Candles For Christmas


And Centerpieces


Amanda and Shawn


Favorite Angel Ornament


A Cute Pair


The Excitement Of The Year Poppers
(they might be out growing this tradition)
Grand Finale
very delish tasting


The Gang

Thank you for looking. Happy Holidays!

Featuring the Band

Jim and I went to a High School Football game tonight to watch our Niece who plays the flute in the High School Band. Our niece although only in middle school made the h.s. band and tonight was preforming at a playoff game for the District 10 Title. They looked great and sounded wonderful. I was able to fire off a few shots.






Thank you for looking. Jackie

Keep Your Hands Off The Cookies

I am not sure how many times I have had to say that to my kids growing up. Well I guess my life has come full circle. I know I heard that phase many times growing up, repeating many times to my three children and now today I unfortunately forgot to tell my Mother "Keep Your ands Off the Cookies!"

Let me explain...

I have been very busy the last few weekends baking special Spingerle Cookies. I remember these cookies growing up. They were a favorite that my German Grandmother made on very special occasions. I thought it would be a beautiful way to bring in some of my daughters heritage into her upcoming wedding by making these special cookies for cookie trays. I researched the best recipe, looked for that perfect mold, ordered some great anise for a traditional flavor, and ordered the secret ingredient to the best Springerle cookies, Hartshorn. The cookies have been turning out great. But occassionally I find one or two that don't make it in the real cookie tins but instead a tin of misfits for our snacking. Just yesterday I robbed the can for her when mom and dad came for dinner. After they left from dinnere I made my last batch. Its a tedious process where you make your dough, roll it, then flour and cut each cookie individually then place on a cookie sheet to dry. This drying process lasts over night. Then they are baked the next day. Actually this is one raw dough that you absolutely can't eat raw. The amonia is toxic.

Mom gives me a call at work today asking if our dog Misha wants a walk. It was a beautiful day here in Erie so of course our little yorkie would be thrilled for a mid afternoon walk. It never occurred to me that she would go in the dining room and snatch cookies of the drying sheets. But to my horrified eyes I saw two empty spots on my cookie trays. After calling mom and her admiting she took two cookies and just ate one because it tasted kind of funny off I went to call the poison control center. I reached a operator that chares for the minute so I then called the House On The Hill that I purchased the ingredients from. They were very helpful in telling me she will be fine but unfortunately may suffer from terrible gas and stomach problems tonight. Eek.

If you have not seen Springerle cookies here are a few pictures.

This is the raw cookie drying

Cooked Cookie, Still Stays White Just Gets Thicker

Secret Ingredient

Well, Mom, Hope you are doing ok tonight. Love Jackie