Tater Cakes-Leftover Mashed Potatoes

Leftover Mashed Potatoes

One Egg

Chopped Onions

Stir in Enough Flour to Make the Potatoes a Bit Stiff

Form into Patties

Pat Each Side with Flour

Drop in Oil and Cook

Until Brown on Each Side

Friday Foto

 

Great Grandson's 1st Year...

 

Great Grandson's 1st Birthday Party 

 

 

Valentine's Day - Tea Party

A Mother - Daughter Tea Party is so much fun. 

Erica with the tea set she helped design.

Learning to pour a spot of "tea" cocoa.

Erica and Lynn - Daughter and Mother

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

 

 

The Cure...Egg Drop Soup

If you are sick...this is THE CURE...Egg Drop Soup!

Cold, flu, stomach problems can all be better with a hot cup of Egg Drop soup.

My sweet husband got me Egg Drop soup to go,

when I was suffering from an awful bout of cold/flu like symptoms.

It was $2.74 for a quart of soup and all the stuff you see.

I have no clue how it works, but it really does cure what ails you.

100th Day of School

My Grandson loves to celebrate the 100th Day of School. Each year since he has been in school I have made him a special shirt to wear on the 100th Day. This year I made two for him to pick which one he wanted to wear. The first I used glitter glue and just wrote on the shirt, but then I saw these cute little foam dinosaur shapes...so I made a second shirt. The shirt with the dinosaur shapes will not be able to be washed, because they are just stuck on.

(The East is the name of his school.)

In the past I have sewn on 100 buttons to a shirt, pinned on 100 safety pins both in the shape of 100 DAYS and I used a permanent markers to write 100 Days Smarter on one of his shirts. The shirts do not have to be perfect or fancy, it is just the fact that the child has a one-of-a-kind shirt to wear to school on a special day. What ideas do you have to make the 100th Day of School shirt?

Pepper Jelly Pork Roast in Crock Pot

I found this awesome Pepper Jelly made with Jalapenos!

I bought both the red and green.

I loved the photos on the jar showing how to take a cracker,

 cream cheese or piece of cheese, piece of ham and then top

with a little of the jelly...omg...that looks so easy!

As you know, if you follow my blog, I am all about easy.

My husband is the cook at our house.

I decided to take a Pork Shoulder Roast ($1.49 a pound)

 and put the Hot Pepper Jelly on the roast.

First I cut a onion into wedges and put in the bottom of the crock pot.

Put about a 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup water in the pot.

Next, I put the roast in the pot and cut big X in the top of the fat.

Sprinkled with lots of salt, pepper, garlic powder.

I used the entire 10 ounce jar of Hot Pepper Jelly

(made with red jalapenos) and spread on top of the roast.

I cooked the roast on high for 8 hours....WOW....It was so good!

As the roast cooks the jelly kind of melts down over or in the roast.

I was so hungry when it was done,

 I forgot to take a photo of the finished product!

 

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year 2013 will be celebrated from Sunday, 10 February 2013 until Sunday, 24 February 2013. This is the year of the snake on the Chinese calendar.



Chinese New Year Traditions

Many traditions are performed by Chinese people and Chinese descendants before and during Chinese New Year. Here are some Chinese New Year traditions carried out by Chinese people in several Asian countries.

Cleaning the House
Before the first day of the first lunar month comes, people usually clean their house thoroughly. It is believed that cleaning the house will sweep away the bad luck from the past. Yet, the house cleaning should not be done on the first day of Chinese New Year. Otherwise, all the good luck will be swept away together with the dirt.

 

Decorating the House
After being cleaned, the house is garnished with decorations made from red paper banners displaying wise and fortune words. Red becomes the main color of decorations since the color is considered lucky as the symbol of life and happiness. There is a legend regarding red being the major color during Chinese New Year celebrations.
The legend tells a story about the mythical beast Nian which ate the livestock and children on the first day of lunar new year. After seeing Nian fled away from a child wearing red clothes, people found out that Nian was afraid of red color. Thus, people put many red decorations in front of the doors during Chinese New Year to keep Nian away from their house.


Giving Red Envelopes to Children
On the first day of Chinese New Year, children greet their parents and the older people a happy new year while wish for their happiness, wealth, and health. To reply the children’s sincere wishes and greetings, the adults give them pocket money. The money is usually placed inside red envelopes displaying cute pictures or new year greetings.



Eating New Year’s Dishes
It is common for Chinese families to gather and have a feast on the eve of Chinese New Year. In this moment, pork, chicken, duck, seafood, and Chinese New Year’s cake known as niangao are served. Niangao is a Chinese cuisine in the form of round cake made from glutinous rice. Consuming niangao during the celebration of Chinese New Year is considered lucky. This is the tradition I like to participate in for Chinese New Year...I love to go to my favorite Chinese Restaurant....New Young China and eat their awesome food...see photo of spring rolls and my plate below:



Visiting Temples
Many Chinese people visit the temples on New Year’s day. They pray for their good luck, health, and wealth in the upcoming years. Prayers, offering foods, and incense are also addressed to the deceased family members in the hope that they may bring luck to the family.

Granny's Bacon Drippings

 

I love Oklahoma businesses that start with an idea of something that is needed by others. My friend Pat told me to check out this new business located in Northeast Oklahoma, Twin Foods, Inc. began with a vision to produce great tasting, convenient, high-quality products that help reduce time and clean-up in the kitchen, while promoting the flavors and aromas of Granny’s kitchen. Jan Laub believes home-cooked meals provide “Good Ol’ Fashion” family time. Great tasting home cooked meals, made with less time cooking and cleaning, make for more quality time with family and friends.

 

This is an awesome idea...I love to season food with the taste of bacon drippings. My Granny and my Mom always had a can with bacon drippings sitting next to the stove, and poured a little bit in dishes they cooked. This would be so handy to have a couple tablespoons to make a little gravy any time you wanted some!!!

 

Granny’s Good Ol’ Fashion Bacon Drippings started with a recipe for seafood gumbo. The recipe called for 1 cup of bacon grease. Not wanting to go to the store, buy bacon then cook the bacon (time consuming and a messy clean-up), the recipe book was closed and the gumbo never cooked. Over the next several days the search was on to find a company that simply sold bacon grease to the consumer. None were found and Twin Foods, Inc. was started by Jan and her twin sister Jill.

 

Twin Foods, Inc. is proud to introduce Granny’s Good Ol’ Fashion Bacon Drippings. Now, the same ready-to-use bacon grease that for years has been on our Mother’s and Grandmother’s counter tops and in the culinary toolbox of renowned chefs to enhance the taste of certain foods is pre-packaged and ready to use!

 

You can order on line at

http://twinfoods.com/shop/

 

 

Tastes great EVERY TIME.

Granny’s #1 Secret is bacon grease.

Before Granny’s Good Ol’ Fashion Bacon Drippings, the only way to get bacon grease was to buy bacon, fry it, strain it, store it and clean it up. Now you can simply buy it pre-packaged.

No Trans Fat, No Hydrogenated Ingredients.

 

Granny’s Good Ol’ Fashion Bacon Drippings is currently shelved next to the packaged bacon, in the refrigerator section. Look for it in your store and can't find it, but you would like to be able to purchase this product at your local grocery, please ask the manager to visit this website for ordering information.

 

 

Jan Laub and her twin sister Jill have no clue who I am and I did not receive anything for writing about their business, but I think this is a really good product idea and want to share it with my readers. Thanks to my friend Pat Clayton for pointing out this MADE IN OKLAHOMA company.

 

Friday Foto

This photo has been all over the news and internet...no idea who took it, but I love it!

 

WOMEN IN CONGRESS

 

OK ladies...do like their mother's would have done...

grab those guys by the ear and get their attention!

Valentine Can Craft

One veggie or soup can

Conversation heart stickers

Candy

 

Stick the conversation heart stickers on the can. Fill with candy.

This could be personalized using a Sharpie on the big hearts.

Easy quick to make party favor.

Valentine Craft Jar

My Niece, Hayley made these cute jars filled with candy

and topped with a dish scrubber for us at Christmas.

I thought it would be a good idea to use for Valentine's Day.

Make the dish scrubber by gathering net to form a round ball shape.

Glue a piece of ribbon around the jar.

Put on a foam conversation heart sticker on top of the ribbon.

Fill with candy.

Poke the dish scrubber through the jar ring,

place the jar flat on top and then screw on the ring.

Cute to give to a teacher or for children to make for grandparents, etc.

Saving

 

It is only 45 weeks until Christmas...

using this method of saving you could have $1,035.00 to spend!

 

Valentine Wreath

 

I love to make wreaths for ever occasion...

I made this simple Valentine Wreath for my Granddaughter.

I used things I already had on hand...

 

Coat Hanger - Shape into Heart

Two Strands of Beads - my Granddaughter's favorite color is purple

Sparkle Pipe Cleaners

Peel and Stick Conversation Hearts

(go to the after Valentine Day sales and get you a package of these hearts)

Glitter Glue and or Sharpie

Simply shape coat hanger into heart shape

Wrap the beads around the heart intertwine with pipe cleaners to hold in place

Attach pipe cleaner down the middle and add peel and stick hearts

(one on each side of the pipe cleaner so they stick together)

I used the glitter glue to write their names and it ran together

so

I smeared it and just made one side of the hearts glittery

you can always "cover up" a mess...

The other side can be left plain...

I used white and lavender hearts to go with purple beads

I decided to do one side with the glitter look and the other

with their names...they can decide which they like

Wreaths do not need to be real big or expensive...

 

 

 

The wreath below is one I made last year for my daughter...

heart shaped wreath

ribbon

glitter hearts

Shake-N-Pour Cupcakes

My Granddaughter found this new product at the grocery store. SHAKE-N-POUR Betty Crocker Cupcakes. Makes one dozen cupcakes and all you do is add water, shake, pour and bake! She sent me these photos of her cupcake baking.

 

 This is my Granddaughter...I am so lucky to have her!

Groundhog Day

 

Groundhog Day  is a day celebrated on February 2. According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, then spring will come early; if it is sunny, the groundhog will supposedly see its shadow and retreat back into its burrow, and the winter weather will continue for six more weeks.
 

Modern customs of the holiday involve celebrations where early morning festivals are held to watch the groundhog emerging from its burrow.

 

In southeastern Pennsylvania, Groundhog Lodges (Grundsow Lodges) celebrate the holiday with fersommlinge, social events in which food is served, speeches are made, and one or more g'spiel (plays or skits) are performed for entertainment. The Pennsylvania German dialect is the only language spoken at the event, and those who speak English pay a penalty, usually in the form of a nickel, dime, or quarter per word spoken, with the money put into a bowl in the center of the table.

 

The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Groundhog Day, already a widely recognized and popular tradition, received widespread attention as a result of the 1993 film Groundhog Day, which was set in Punxsutawney and portrayed Punxsutawney Phil.

 

 

Friday Foto

Oklahoma Route 66 Museum - Great Place to Visit

 

Oklahoma Route 66 Musuem in Clinton, Oklahoma is a great place to visit.

Get Your Kicks On Route 66

They change some of the displays on a regular basis.

I am all about all things Route 66,

but this guy below is REALLY a Route 66 nut.

Hope you have enjoyed these five blog posts about the

Oklahoma Route 66 Museum.

Plan a Route 66 trip of your own one of these days...