Great nephew, Landon, insisted that he saw a man dressed in a Santa suit in the backyard when they arrived at Maw-Maw's on the Sunday before Christmas. He was right. Landon was not intimidated by the "man dressed in the Santa suit" at all and he talked his ear off, telling him what he wanted for Christmas and what he had already received, and commenting on upcoming sporting events and North Korea's nuclear ambitions.






Little brother, Grant, (the G-Man) didn't mind having a sit-on-Santa, either.......

...and neither did the Tiny Terrierist, Bonnie the Barbarian

Merry Christmas Blog Readers! We, like most of you, have been busy with holiday visiting and merry-making. I ended up ringing the Salvation Army Bell on Christmas Eve, in fact, I was the last ringer of the season. The store was crowded and people were generous. I chased one man outside because his milk had fallen off the bottom of his cart and he gave me a hug right there in the parking lot. Anyway, I was having a good time and didn't even want to stop, but Skip came to pick up the bucket and close up shop, so I went home and baked dog cookies for The Amazing Barking Dog and The Barbarian, and they seemed to really like them. More Christmas info to come......

I rang the Salvation Army Bell with Santa this afternoon at Wal-mart. Mercy me, was it cold and windy outside. Bell-ringing volunteers who have little kids with them always rake in a lot of dough. I don't have any small children to help me, so I thought the next best thing might be to ring with Santa. We also gave out Tootsie Roll Pops to the kiddos. It was cold, but it was fun, and Santa got some hugs

This is the "quiet bell" I made last year, so I wouldn't irritate anybody inside the store. I used it this afternoon to push the folding money down into the kettle, and to occasionally smack Santa on the behind.

Here are a couple of photos from Thanksgiving.

The table, set and ready...

...The guests at the table, Brent, Lindsey, Rob, Bobalicious, Jeff, Lori, Baleigh, and Maw-Maw. We ate, we played cards, we Black-Friday shopped.

Recipe of the Week:

Cream of Chicken Soup

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 medium Spanish onion (I used a plain yellow onion - did not see any onions from sunny Spain)

2 stalks celery, chopped

3 medium carrots, chopped

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour

7 cups chicken brother, homemade or low-sodium canned

3 sprigs parsley

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

2 & 3/4 cup chopped chicken

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 & 1/2 teaspoons dry sherry

1 tablespoon kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

Melt the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and carrots and cook, covered, stirring occasionally until soft, about 12 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes more.

Pour in the broth and and bring to a boil while whisking constantly. Tie the parsley sprigs, thyme, and bay leaf together with kitchen twine and add to the soup. Lower the heat ans simmer for 15 minutes.

Stir in the chicken and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Whisk the heavy cream, sherry, and salt into the soup and season with pepper to taste. Remove and discard the herb bundle. Divide in bowls and sprinkle the top of each with the flat-leaf parsley.

Here's an interesting tidbit, dear blog readers: About three weeks ago, a producer from the Oprah Winfrey Show called one of the Book Babes (Megan, who had written her a funny letter back in August) and asked for information about our book group. She wanted us to send a photo, a group biography and individual ones, as well. She also asked if any of us had read the book, Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen. Well, we sent everything they asked for and then we ran out and bought that book and started reading it, but....we haven't heard anything back from them. They discuss the book on the December 6th show, so.....I guess the Book Babes won't be on that day.

We meet on Thursday night to discuss our scheduled book, The Glass Castle, and probably the book, Freedom, and also, most likely, reasons why Oprah has not gotten back to us.

Happy Thanksgiving Blog Readers!

Very busy week around here with subbing and teaching GED classes in the evenings and trying to get Salvation Army Bell Ringers and so on and so forth. Bob is on vacation and being very helpful around the house. Today he got out his leaf vac and sucked up almost every leaf in the Hickory Hill Hood. Not kidding! Hope all the neighbors wanted their leaves sucked up because, that's what they got.

The Amazing Barking Dog and I struggle on in our lonely crusade to promote the celebration of Thanksgiving BEFORE putting up Christmas decorations. It's just wrong. Anyway, that's what we think.

Also, Happy Black Friday Shopping! Have fun and get lots of great deals. And, remember Big Lou's rules for the special day:

1. Run a little, if necessary

2. Bob and weave

3. NEVER push or shove.

Our motto: Aggressive, but friendly!!!!

The many leaves decorating the Hickory Hill Hood have turned the Amazing Barking Dog into more of a gatherer than a hunter. Happy Halloween, Blog Readers! I confess that I was not home last night to greet and treat the neighborhood goblins because we went to the Purdue/Illinois game in Champaign. (which is quite a drive)


We met Brent and Lindsey at the game, and we had a good time, despite the Purdue loss because the weather was great, and well, we like Illinois too, of course.





On the drive home we stopped at one of the Stevenson family's favorite restaurants.......




At the Beef----House
Yummy, yummy, just lettin' it all hang out
At the Beef---House
Yeast rolls stacked, and that's a fact
Ain't holdin' nothin' back

Shake it down, shake it down, shake it down now


When Brent's Dad, Larry worked for Fed-Ex, he would stop here for lunch every day. The food was delicious. I think he and Brent's mom went on their first date here, but don't quote me on that.


Book Babes:
Here is the 2010-2011 reading schedule for the Book Babes of Kendallville, if you have any interest at all.

October Jasmine by Bharti Mukherjee

December The Glass Castle Jeanette Walls

January Blink Malcolm Gladwell

February Snow Flower & the Secret Fan by Lisa See

March Lunch in Paris Elizabeth Bard

April The Sisters from Hardscrabble Bay Beverly Jensen

May Olive Kitteridge Elizabeth Stout

June Pending

July Pending

Recipe of the Week:
I made these pecan pie bars and took them to our Beatles concert on the prairie a couple of months ago. I think they're a good pick-up-and-eat summer alternative to the real, heavy-duty pie we like to put on our Thanksgiving dessert table. Here's the recipe:



Pecan Pie Bars

2 cups flour

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter

4 eggs

1 & 1/2 cups white syrup

1 & 1/2 cups white sugar

3 tablespoons melted butter

1 & 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

2 & 1/2 cups chopped pecans.


Stir together the flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt. Cut in the cup of butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the bottom of a light-greased 10 X 15 inch jellryoll pan and press in firmly. Bake for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. Mix together eggs, syrup, 1 & 1/2 cup sugar, melted butter, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the pecans. Spread over the filling as soon as it comes out of the oven. Bake for 25 minutes or until set.

"I saw three ships in my backyard
On Saturday,
On Saturday.
I saw three ships in my backyard,
On Saturday in the morning."















Okay, clearly, one of these ships is in the front yard, but that would ruin the song.



Rob, my little ginger snap,







SELL...A...SHIP!









Ah, oak leaves and acorns.








My Disturbing Breakfast Story: Last Friday morning, at 8:15 AM, I watched a high school student pull from her book bag, a spoon and a can of Betty Crocker frosting. And she commenced to eating it right there. Was that breakfast, you think? I looked on slack-jawed (kind of like when I saw those little bitty girls eating the broccoli in Wal-mart) Fortunately, I was behind her and she didn't see my shocked expression. Oh, it's not that I'm some kind of food-pyramid fanatic. I've been known to spoon a little of the frosting myself. Only, I would do in my pantry - with the light out- and the door closed. What was she thinking? Later I thought, well, maybe she needed that sugar boost, you know a low blood count. And if that was the case, I humbly apologize. But, I'm really thinking that wasn't it at all. It was breakfast.




My mother-in-law, Darlene sent me this cookie recipe via Facebook. I made them today and they're very interesting, crunchy and tender, a lot going on here. I liked them. You might want to give them a try:

Grammy's Cookies

3/4 cup Crisco
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups oats
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup salted sunflower seeds

Combine ingredients. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

Another Disturbing Scissors Story - But not sharp scissors this time, big, BIG scissors - giant ones - the kind you use to cut ribbons at dedication ceremonies, which is what we did on Sunday, when we dedicated the new Common Grace/Friendship Food Pantry Facility. I was in charge of getting the ribbon and the giant scissors, but for some unexplainable reason I FORGOT TO PICK THEM UP AT THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ON FRIDAY!!!!! I didn't even think of it until late Saturday afternoon when I was printing out the program for the dedication. I left a message on the chamber director's home phone, but sprung into action on a "plan B" which was to decorate these hedge trimmers shown above. Pretty spiffy, right? The happy ending to this story is that the chamber director called me back on Sunday morning, and she was a real peach about the whole thing. She met me up at the office at noon, where I secured the giant ribbon-cutting scissors. And here they are in the back of the Jeep. My, they were heavy. It was a wonderful afternoon. The Apple Chords barbershop quartet sang, and everybody spoke for just the right amount of time. It was a wonderful afternoon. On the front page of Monday morning's News Sun was a picture of four laughing people trying to cut the ribbon with those heavy scissors. Whew.

Seems that all the young, busy, working women are big into preparing freezer meals these days. I decided to try this with my chicken casserole recipe to see how it would work. This is the old Tri Kappa Salad Bar casserole recipe. The salad bar was abandoned in favor of Basket Bingo several years ago, so I don't think they'll mind if I share this recipe with you. It will make enough to fill three 9 by 13 pans, so, we're talking about major casserole. I'm experimenting. I baked two of the casseroles and then divided it up into containers. I did not bake one pan, but put it directly into the freezer. We'll see how that works.

Chicken Casserole:

8 cups chicken

2 lbs noodles- medium, cooked

5 cans cream of chicken soup

2 - 13 ounce cans of evaporated milk

3 teaspoons salt *

1 & 1/4 lbs Velveeta cheese

5 cups chopped celery

1 cup chopped green pepper

2 cups crushed corn flakes

Combine all ingredients. Top with corn flakes and bake at 370 degrees for one hour.

* The recipe actually calls for 5 teaspoons of salt but, seriously that's too much. I usually only put in two teaspoons, so just put in a couple and then taste.

I must confess that I've been withholding some bad news from you, gentle blog-readers. You see this hole in the ground here? Well, this is where our beloved squirrel on a giant acorn stood. The poor squirrel has been decaying for some time, now. I've tried to hide it from you - photographing him from only certain angles, tying wire around his tail to hold it on there. But a couple of weeks ago, Bob just walked over and gave him a kick and that was all she wrote. We'll miss the squirrel, for sure, and hopefully, we'll get another someday. Let's take a walk down memory lane and revisit the squirrel in happier days:




Squirrel as patriot







Halloween Hi jinks!



Celebrating Rhubarb!






Spreading Christmas Cheer.




It was a gorgeous weekend in Kendallville. Have I mentioned how much I love it here in the Hickory Hill Hood? Well, I do. Hickory nuts, beechnuts, walnuts, and my personal favorite....the acorn. Sing along with me:



Acorns in my driveway
Big wind knocked them down.
Make the squirrels step lively,
They put them in the ground.
They stick them in my flowerpots
And in my flower beds.
We've got a bumper crop this year
So, watch out fur yur heads.









Recipe of the Week:

Recently I came across a cookbook entitled Perfect Pressure Cooking - nothing but pressure cooker recipes. I tried this one this weekend. Once again, I underestimated the power of the pressure cooker and overcooked the dish a tad. Still, it was pretty good. My next attempt will be Chicken Marsala.


Chicken Piccata (in the pressure cooker)

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 shallot, minced
1 lemon, juice and zest
1 cup white wine
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
1 tablespoon green olives, chopped
1 envelope chicken gravy

Place all ingredients in pressure cooker; secure lid. Set pressure cooker to MEAT (I don't have this - could be part of the problem) Set timer to 10 minutes (don't have a timer either) When cooking is complete, transfer chicken to a platter, pour sauce over chicken and serve.

From the Old Farmer's Almanac: "Every man must climb out of his own hole." (ain't it the truth, ain't it the truth).

I'm a little slow to report, but the 25th Annual Apple Festival of Kendallville went off without a hitch last weekend! (oh, except for that attempt to pass counterfeit hundred dollar bills). I found three lost children - which wasn't really too tough considering they were all three wearing pink. I just knew where to look. Bob and I did our usual shift at the information booth, and I worked the front gate on Sunday, but for the first time, I took a turn loading buses at the shuttle stop. Now, I think I've done about every job at the festival. Above is a picture taken at the Friday night anniversary reception and special showing of Raise-a-Ruckus. It just so happened that the five of us who walked over to help serve apple crisp and cider were all past presidents of the festival. Not planned at all. Darlene, on the left end, and Barb, on the right, were given silver apple necklaces because they have both been on the committee for twenty-five years! I've been on for fifteen.









At left is a picture of most of the 2010 committee taken Saturday evening. None of us are looking too fetching, but then, most of us were standing out in the cold, off-and-on drizzle all day. I was so proud of the festival this year, listening to all the praise from out-of-towners. It has evolved into a huge family reunion, with fantastic food.











My Disturbing sharp scissors story: You know how every summer there are those college kids who, because, I guess they couldn't find any other work, are reduced to selling knives? Well, I let one into the house this summer. She was the sister of my friend's neighbor, and I thought, oh, it wouldn't kill me to listen to her presentation, so I said, "okay."


She was very sweet. I sat her up the kitchen counter, and got her a beverage, and then she proceeded to unfold some black material and produced a pair of pretty nice looking scissors. She took out a penny, an honest-to-goodness copper penny and she cut in right in half with those scissors. She asked me if I would like to have a pair like that and I told her I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I had a pair of scissors that sharp in my house. She thought I was kidding, but I wasn't.


Then she made me show her my paring knife and a steak knife. She gave me a one-inch thick piece of twisted rope and told me to cut it with my steak knife - the idea being to make fun of how long it took me to saw away at this rope compared to the way she could cut through it like butter with her super-duper knife. I tried to explain to her that we rarely served a cut of meat that was as tough as that rope, but she wouldn't listen. I purchased my paring knife in 1978 from Delbert Morgan's Sunday School class, so I don't think I have to tell you how it fared in the competition.



End of the story is that I bought a three-knife set. Yes, YES, I DID. I was suckered in by the French chef knife because of its awesome slicing/dicing capacity. They came to the house and they looked beautiful, but the first time I used one, I cut myself three times. I kid you, not. I thought about sending them back, but then it got too late. So now, they're mine and I'm trying to be really careful when I use them, and when I put them away, I hide them, so I can sleep at night. I guess some things are just way better than they need to be.

We knocked out a wall last fall and added this dining room onto our house. I wanted a table that could seat at least ten people and we can actually seat twelve comfortably here.

Local Amish craftsmen made the table and corner hutch out of maple.

I purchased the baker's rack in the other corner from overstock.com. An antique sideboard is on one wall and two sets of windows on the opposite wall offer a view of the woods in our backyard.

Dear Blog Readers: Are you bothered by all this bedbug buzz? In a recent phone conversation, Lindsey mentioned to me that she was creeped out about this newest public panic. To help her put it all in perspective I talked a little bit about global warming, and unemployment, terrorism, Alzheimer's disease and brain cancer, and I think I made her feel a lot better. But then the October 4th issue of Time magazine arrived in the mail and it featured an article entitled "This Really Sucks," which I read late at night, in bed.

Did you know that there were 82 cases of bedbug infestations in New York City multifamily residences in 2004, and in 2009 there were 4,088??!!!! Did you know an adult bedbug can go 550 days without food???? Did you know that when Bob returns home from his many business trips he flops his folding travel bag right down on the bed????

Apparently bedbugs can cause real psychological damage because they're creepy. "They're invading your sanctuary, your bed, and suddenly you can't sleep because they're coming out of your walls, out of your box springs, to feed on you in the night."

I turned out the lights and lay there in the dark, feeling itchy, thinking about being psychologically damaged (and bitten) by a herd of stampeding stinkbug cousins. Then I jumped up, turned on the lights and did a quick mattress and box spring check, and I am pleased to report that the Hickory Hill Hood (at least, 1109) is bedbug free.

I subbed in second grade today, and it was a long day, and I'm tired, so goodnight blog readers, sleep tight and don't let..........

I baked this cake on Friday for Dave and Jean Baker's 60th wedding anniversary. It was an attempt to recreate their wedding cake, only not really, because this is three layers of carrot cake. The cream cheese frosting is not that easy to work with - hard to get perfectly smooth. This is their original wedding cake topper and that's Jean's wedding gown hanging in the background. Still lovely after sixty years. Congratulations to them!

Still Reading: The Postmistress

What a beautiful weekend this has been! I snapped these pictures this afternoon. I've tried planting sunflowers in my front yard flowerbed for the last few years, but critters always dig up the seeds. The birdfeeders are posted at the edge of the garden and I guess the critters just can't get to every seed back there. I call this: "Sunflower with Bumbly-bee".......

And this is "Sunflower with Butterfly."

And this would be "Little Roxanne comes to visit Grandma and get some chicken snacks and cheese chunks"

Lindsey came up on Saturday for a special Book Babe meeting. We decided last fall to end our year by inviting our daughters/sisters/moms to join us in reading and discussing the book Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay. We had one heck of a time scheduling our meeting, postponing it a couple of times and finally settling on Labor Day Weekend. Brent and a friend went to the Notre Dame/Purdue game. The friend dropped him off in Fort Wayne last night and we enjoyed a late dinner at Casa Grille. Today, the kids and Bob played golf (less than half price with our Groupon coupons) at Noble Hawk. Then the kids went on to Chicago to meet friends and then attend a Cubs' game tomorrow.

Last weekend we drove down to Noblesville for our annual Symphony on the Prairie. This year - The Beatles. Mom, Aunt Kae, Jeff, Conni, Lori, Baleigh, Brent, Lindsey, Bob and I picnicked and and sang along with all the great Beatles tunes. WE HAD A REALLY FUN TIME! We decided that next year we're taking a table along too.

Jeff and Conni drove Mom and Kae back to Effingham that night, but Lori and Baleigh and Bob and I spent the night at Lindsey's and did some shopping on Sunday afternoon. We left the boys at home. Bonnie kept an eye on Grandpa to make sure he didn't get out of line.

Reading: The Postmistress by Sarah Blake

Recipe of the Week:

I was cleaning out my recipe box and came across this one. I think it was on a package of frozen chicken breasts and I had never tried it. I fixed it on Friday night and it was very good. My only complaint is that there wasn't enough yummy sauce. I cut the breasts in half for quicker cooking time. When I make it again, I think I'll just use three breasts and cut them each in half. I also might double the sauce recipe because it was really good and you'll want plenty.

Chicken Breast Stroganoff

Boneless breasts (6 pieces)

1 & 1/2 Tablespoon butter

1 & 1/2 cup fresh sliced mushrooms

2 Tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

2 teaspoons dried chives

1/4 teaspoon dill weed

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup chicken brother

1 Tablespoon flour

1/2 cup sour cream

In a large skillet, melt butter and brown breast fillet on both sides: remove chicken and reserve. Add mushrooms, parsley, chives, dill, salt, and pepper; cook until mushrooms are softened. Stir in chicken broth and return chicken to skillet. Cover and simmer 15 minutes or until breast fillets are tender. Remove breast fillets from skillet and place in a heated serving platter. In a small bowl combine flour and sour cream. Stir sour cream mixture into skillet; cook until heated through. Serve sauce over breast fillets.

Kid City happened yesterday at the fairgrounds. Painting this fence is a kid-favorite event there. The local paint store allows kids to choose and mix (with help) their own paint colors. Then, they get to paint a portion of this fence and they can take their leftover pint of paint home with them. Looks like blues and greens were big this year. I helped out at the KPC Design an Ad Booth. Fun times. Kid City is a wonderful event for families in our area. It's held each year on the first Saturday in August.

Happy 30th Anniversary to us! On August 10th, Bob and I will celebrate 30 years of "Livin' the Dream." We were married on an extremely hot day and we honeymooned in St. Louis. There we took in a Cardinal game and then toured the Anheuser Busch Brewery where we were privileged to view the back sides of several of their top Clydesdales. I don't think many young couples today would choose that locale for honeymooning. Brent and Lindsey went to Hawaii. Heck, Rob and Candace went to Hawaii to get engaged. Times change. By the way, this picture is part of the Church Directory/Obituary package.

Reading: I finished Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets last night. Yes, yes, I know - an action-packed weekend here in the Hickory Hill Hood.

Recipe of the Week: I decided it was finally time to take on some of the recipes in the Julia Child: Mastering the Art of French Cooking book. I started with Gateau a L'orange et Aux Amandes (Orange and Almond Spongecake) because it reminded me of a couple other cakes I like - Gateau Ganache and the Orange Poppy Seed Torte. (recipes for both in the blog archives) Alas, I was not altogether pleased with the results, so I am not going to post the recipe here. The jury is still out on this one because I don't know if it's me or the cake.

This and That: A Catching Up Post. I realized last week that I did not mention to you, blog-readers, that Bob made a trip to Turkey in June. He went over to check on a paper problem and he was in Istanbul and Ankara. Bob said the food was good and the Turkish people were very accommodating. But, FYI, if you're ever over there printing textbooks for their government, you might want to know that they are very serious about the correct color of the Turkish flag.

This is a cake that I baked to celebrate Landon's half-birthday, because last December there was so much going on at the Kutscher house, the special day just didn't get the celebration it merited. For those of you who might not recognize these characters, they're Otis and Maddy from "Back to the Barnyard." Otis is a man-cow, but for some reason, he sports a nice set of udders. I don't understand why that is, so I just went with an Otis bust. (which is pretty masculine)

Sung to the tune of "I've been Workin' on the Railroad"

"Bob's been workin' on my backsplash

All the live long day."

And that's all I've got , so far.

READING: Last week, I finished up Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay, which is the Book Babes' next discussion book. This week, I 'm reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Recipe of the Week:

I made these deviled eggs yesterday and, at first, I didn't think I cared for them that much, but after they had set covered in the fridge for a while, I realized that - yes, yes I did like them and so did Bob. Here's the recipe:

Savory Deviled Eggs

6 hard cooked eggs

1/4 cup mayo

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon dill weed

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

From the Old Farmer's Almanac: If you receive a bag of walnuts, your wishes will come true.

Two Busy Weekends, and really not much time to blog in between. On Friday, July 16th, Bob and I picked up Lindsey in Indy and went to Effingham, where we watched my cousin Rich's band (The Naked Sissy's) perform at the Orchard Inn. We hadn't heard them and tried all last summer to catch them, but it never worked out, so we decided early this summer that this would be our Naked Sissy's Weekend. We were joined there by Jeff & Megan, cousins, Lisa and Cary, Lori and Dan, and ran into many other noteworthy folks. Sidenote: I wonder why they use the possessive form of Sissy's? and not plain old Sissies?? The Naked Sissy's....what? I saw four sissies in that band. Hmmm. I wanted to ask but didn't want to come off like some nitpicky English teacher....I took this crappy picture of my cousin, and then my camera battery ran out of juice and I was finished taking crappy pictures for that weekend.





On Saturday, Bob and Lindsey and I drove down to Lori and Dan's in Carbondale to see their house and to tour the wine trail in Shawnee National Forest. It was very, very hot there, and a huge dog followed us into the tasting room at one winery, seeking refuge in the cool air. He hid under the counter between us and slapped a giant paw on my sandled-foot, in some kind of desperate plea not to rat him out or the proprietor would toss him back out into the hot parking lot. He was a big Newfoundland named Bandit. Here he is with Lindsey. Note that Lindsey is not holding a wine glass, but a bottle of Saluki Dunkeldog beer, bottled by Big Muddy Brewery. After tasting some wine (and beer) we went back to Dan and Lori's lovely house and grilled some brats and began food preparation for the Hankins' family reunion to be held the next day back in Effingham. Here's a picture of Lindsey and Baleigh taken just before serious cookie baking commenced. (Baleigh after a long hot day of tournament softball) To the right of Lindsey, you might notice a piece of my luggage, which I love dearly. It's Etienne Aigner and I've had it for eleven years. It's very distinct and easy to spot on the baggage carousel. I never want to part with it.





Sunday, the 18th began like Saturday the 17th had ended - hot - very, very hot. But, as we were driving north a big storm passed through the area and we arrived at Community Park just as the rain was letting up, and the temperature dropped significantly and there was a breeze, and well, I think God must have been smiling down on the Hankins' reunion because it was the best day they'd had there in weeks. Here's a picture of most of the family members present that day. I took the liberty of having some shirts printed up that said "Hawkshawfest 2010." That's because our grandpa used to tell us that we were part Hawkshaw Indian, which of course, we aren't, as there is no such tribe. However, some younger cousins, not wanting to doubt his word, bought into the notion. So anyway, it's a running joke and here are some of the Hawkshaw tribe members - Scotsmen and women posing as Native Americans:

Last week I filled in for Sally at the park department for the very last time because Sally is retiring at the end of this week. She's worked there for 23 years, and I've been filling in for her when she goes on vacation for the last 12 years or so. There will be a doin's for her on her last day. On Saturday morning, Bob and I traveled to Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania to surprise our dear friend, Stormy for her birthday. We were waiting for them at one of their favorite restaurants, and I do believe that she was truly surprised. Here we are at the restaurant. On Sunday we went into New York to see an exhibit at the Metropolitan Art Museum. American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity.



















We drove back to Wilkes Barre Sunday evening. I had baked a carrot cake for her birthday and here we are eating it.








And one more shot - but is this a picture from the Met?

Heck, no. This Winged Victory replica is in Nick and Stormy's bedroom! How cool is that? All we've got in our bedroom is a silk ficus, which really should be pitched in the trash.



So, there you have it. I've got nothing going on this week at all, so maybe I'll get some cooking done. Thanks for stopping by!!!!