Everything You Touch Shines A Little Brighter...

In the spirit of Keeping it Real, I must confess that my windows

are filthy. I mean really, really filthy. As in...I haven't cleaned

them in years! Well, the one at the kitchen sink

has been cleaned on the inside

since it gets splattered and I look out of it a lot. But the rest....yuck!

What's your favorite way to wash windows?

Is it with vinegar? Newspaper? A bucket of soapy water

and a hose for the outside? I'd love some advice

so when the weather gets warm enough, I'm ready to go!

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Shredded Beef Tacos

Real Simple Magazine had a recipe for Pulled Pork

Tacos for your crockpot this month.

I changed it a little...cooking it slow on the stove

and using a chuck roast instead. The results were

spicy and satisfying! They made the house smell

wonderful as they simmered all day!

****

Shredded Beef Tacos

2 c salsa, with more for serving

2.5 T chili powder

2 T dried oregano

1 t cumin

1 pinch ground red pepper

1 t sugar

2 T unsweetened cocoa

kosher salt

1-2.5 lb chuck roast

soft tortillas

****

Whisk sauce together and pour over meat

in stock pot. Bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat and

simmer 4-5 hours until meat is tender and can

be shredded with fork. Uncover and simmer longer

until liquid is incorporated into the meat.

Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

Serve on warm tortillas with lime, sour cream

salsa, shredded cheese and cilantro.

Yum!

Love, Love... Love Is All We Need...

Have you told someone today how much

you love them?

****

"A man who has friends must show himself friendly"

~~Proverbs 18:24

Wishing

If wishes were horses,

Beggars would ride;

If wishes were fishes,

We'd all cast our lines.

~~Scottish proverb

"Star Light, Star Bright First star I see tonight.

I wish I may, I wish I might Have the wish I wish tonight."

"When you wish upon a star....doesn't matter who you are..." "Sending good wishes to others acts like sunlight, filtering into the dark corners of their mind and lightening their burden." ~Innerspace "Dreams are wishes your heart makes!" ~~Abigail Van Buren "If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of the potential, for the eye which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints, possibility never!"

~~Soren Kierkegaard

“Wishing is good for us.

Daydreams, fantasies, castles in the air,

and aspirations all drive us forward,

impel us to make things happen.

They also tell us a lot about ourselves.

Our wishes come straight from our core,

and they are loaded with vital in."

*googleimages *

Peach

“I played poker every Saturday night for 35 years

with him and Lenore, ... I loved them beyond the music.

If Mrs. Gershwin were here today,

she would say, 'Isn't this peachy?'" ~~ Angie Dickinson

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Dark Whole Wheat Bread

If you like that dark bread they serve at The Cheesecake Factory,

this is oh so very similar! I combined 3 different recipes

and did a few trial recipes before I got it right.

I know everyone's bread machine is a little different, so

you may have to tweak it a little for your machine.

****

Dark Whole Wheat Bread

1 c milk

1 c water

3 T vegetable oil

2 T molasses

6 T brown sugar

1 t salt

2 c bread flour

1.5 c whole wheat flour

1 c rye flour

1/4 c corn meal

3 T cocoa

4 t vital wheat gluten

2.5 t rapid rise yeast

****

Put ingredients in machine in order given.

When bread begins to rise, sprinkle with

a handful of oats.

After baking and while still hot, brush top with

soft butter and lay clean towel over to steam

and soften.

My settings were for 2 lbs., whole wheat,

and medium crust.

Yum!

Fruit's Inner Beauty

"We sing the goodness of the Lord

That filled the earth with food;

He formed the creatures with His word

And then pronounced them good.

Lord, how Thy wonders are displayed

Where’re we turn our eyes:

In every season of the year,

And through the changing skies"

~~Isaac Watts (1674-1748)

Nothing is Sweeter.....

....than coming from behind with a minute to go....

to win the final game of the season....

.....and beating your biggest, long-time rival.....

...on your home court.....

...as a high school senior!

And nothing could be sweeter than being a parent

in the stands watching! :)

**photo...some of the team waiting for the start of the game.

Taylor is second from the left.

Do Your Ears Hang Low?

Nugget having breakfast.

Don't Worry...Be Happy Now

“Difficult times have helped me to understand better than before,

how infinitely rich and beautiful life is in every way,

and that so many things that one goes worrying about

are of no importance whatsoever.” ~Isak Dinesen, Danish Writer

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Beef and Noodles

Last month we had 20 guys over

for dinner from Taylor's high school

basketball team. We served Beef and Noodles...

so good, I made them again over the weekend!

Recipe

****

1.5 lbs stew meat, trimmed and cut in 1" cubes

1 onion, chopped

4 T butter

4 t Tones Beef Soup Base (from Sams Club)

12 oz wide egg noodles

****

Saute beef and onions in butter in large stock pot.

Cover with 5 cups of water.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low.

Simmer 2.5 hours, covered.

Take out meat, set aside.

Add soup base and noodles.

Cook until noodles are tender.

Return meat to pot and check seasonings

I usually add some salt and pepper at this point.

Enjoy!

For extra comfort, I made an apple crisp using my summer

orchard apples from the freezer.

I used my Blackberry Crisp recipe and just exchanged the fruit.

The recipe is in the comments section of that link if you are interested!

And the Winner Is.....

Thanks to all who entered my Blogoversary Giveaway!

The first name to be drawn from a hat was

Leslie from Hillbilly Heaven!

Congratulations, Leslie!

Email me your mailing address and I'll send out

your little package this week!

And Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

"Love at first sight is easy to understand;

it's when two people have been looking at each other

for a lifetime that it becomes a miracle."

~~Author Amy Bloom

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An Early Celebration....

Taylor has basketball games tonight and tomorrow

night, so last weekend he and his girlfriend celebrated

Valentine's Day. He asked if he could set up a romatic

little place upstairs in The Mister's office to have dessert

after they went out to dinner. He did a nice job setting

up a little table, candles, etc. While they were

at the restaurant, I added a few more details!

****

Candles to light the way upstairs....

Lights and ribbon in the ivy plant.... Here's "the softest stuffed animal ever" waiting in her chair.....

chocolate covered strawberries ....

a few other touches.....

....her favorite icecream.....

What a cute little couple!

A+ for Alex

Those of you with special needs kids know all about

Alternate Assessment at school around this time

of year. For part of Alex's testing, he was to

show that he is able to sort trash from recyclables.

Anybody that knows Alex and his obsession

with the discarding of all trash knows that he would

ace this activity for sure! We had to submit

pictures and chart his progress for a few day....

No problem! He's also great about making sure

all the coats and bookbags are hung up after school...

and putting plastic bottles in the recycle bucket.... .... and banana peels in the trash can! Thank you Alex! I bet you've worked up an appetite!

One Year Blogoversary and a Give Away!

Thursday, February 12th is my one year anniversary

with this blog! Yea! It's been so much fun and I have

thoroughly enjoyed meeting new friends from all over

the world. Thanks to all of my bloggy friends!

Let's have a give-away to celebrate!

This is a sterling silver Marcasite and Abalone necklace.

And the red flocked journal with lined pages comes with it!

Just leave a comment on this entry and I'll put you in the

drawing. The drawing will be open through Friday and

I'll pick a winner on Saturday the 14th!

Thanks for making my year even more special!

xxoo

Simple Pleasure of the Day...

.....is a new stack of bar mops. And if you have been blogging with

me for a while, you know that I like to ceremonially

pitch the old! In this case, the old towels went to the garage

for washing cars and other outside uses.

It doesn't take much to make this homemaker happy!

A Love of Antique Jewelry

A few of you were kind enough to comment on my ring, so I

thought I'd give you a closer look. The Mister gave this to me

for our 20th wedding anniversary and it's probably the most

favorite thing I own. It's an antique platinum and diamond

double row eternity ring. I don't know the exact age or the history

behind it but feel very fortunate to have found it in my exact

size since the style makes it impossible to resize.

There's just something about the old vintage stuff,

isn't there?

Java Justified

More good news for coffee lovers!

A new study suggests that middle-aged adults who regularly

drink a cup of coffee may have a lower risk

of developing dementia later in life.

The study found that among 1,400 Finnish adults followed for 20 years,

those who drank three to five cups of coffee per day in middle-age

were two-thirds less likely than non-drinkers

to develop dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.

Yes, that's me... in my "favorite, old, broken-in wooly sweater"

No, I won't show you my nails...

I've been stripping wallpaper, remember?

photo ~ my favorite antique mug

Sixth of the Sixth!

I was tagged by Steviewren of A Little Birdie Told Me So

to post the sixth photograph in the 6th Picture File on

my computer. Here it is!

Does anybody recognize this tourist attraction?

It's the Southernmost Point of the Continental USA!

This is in the Flordia Keys

and I took this photo in 2006 while on a cruise to the Keys

and the Bahamas. Too bad it isn't one of the Seven Natural

Wonders of the World so I could say I'd been to one! LOL

And in turn, I will tag the following blog friends!

Please join in..but only if you want to!

Protege of Life, Work and Pleasure

Natalie at Sirman's Blog

Blog Princess G of Food, Film, Fiction

Nanny of The Good Life