A Few Things On Next Week's Agenda

Hi there everyone. Hope you are having a good evening and your week-end will be a fun one. Can you believe March is just around the corner....whew time does fly by. I think I'm going through "Winter Fatigue" (that would be "just getting tired of the winter blahs") although JP said it was just "Cabin Fever" either way, I am looking forward to Spring and walking outside and getting some fresh air. Lately it has been way too cold and snowy for me or Kylie. I have noticed it is getting lighter and lighter at 5:00....yay...pretty soon we can start walking again.

I was looking at Pinterest and saw some things I would like to try...that's always a fun thing for me to do. Don't these sandwiches look really good below....yum. I think the recipe said a slice of toast, with mayo, tomatoes and avocado with melted cheese....mmm. Sounds good to me.

Here are two drinks that I might try....they sound so refreshing don't they? If they worked and did the things said....it could be worth it. I do have some frozen lemon and mint ice cubes in the freezer. Need to get some ginger....maybe I could use a tsp of ginger might work. Looks like the drink below could be made tomorrow for breakfast. I have all the ingredients. Maybe I could turn it into a smoothie???

These two beautiful cards....I just love. I am going to a Stampin' Up Camp on Sunday. So I know for sure, one of my purchases will be this lovely butterfly. So pretty. Oh, there are a few stamps I will be buying also. Maybe the set on these two cards.

I saw this cake today....mmmm....it sounded delish. The cake is baked in a cast iron pan...now that is interesting to me. I printed the recipe out...so if it works I will surely put it on my blog. I think it is diabetes worthy...I will just cut down on the sugar, like from a cup to 1/2 cup. If I can handle it and not get tempted....and maybe two bites at a time, leaving the rest for JP.

Doesn't this little dish look yummy.....grilled tomatoes on a bed of spinach, a poached egg and grilled portobella mushroom....nice breakfast, lunch or dinner right????

So there you have it....some cards, drinks, desserts and food I plan on making this next week. As for soups.....I have a recipe for Chinese Meatball soup and Basil Tomato Soup and Turkey Meatballs.....sound good??? A few other recipes I need to try...Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken and Eggs baked in Portobello Mushrooms. I may also try a recipe that I have not made in a very long time, Tuna Fish Casserole. JP will be eating well this next week, don't 'cha think???

Time to close and go do some wash and ride the bike. I hope you liked my plans for this next week.....maybe this will help me get past the "Winter Fatigue" phase.

Have a good night and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Cookies~~Cookies and Taxes

Hi there everyone. Hahahaha funny little pug dog, he's not exactly what you were expecting for tech support....right? Thought we could all use a little bit of humor on Monday's. Yep, even though it is still Christmas Cookies. Tech support is on the way!!

Not much going on here. Worked on income taxes Saturday. Got the bulk of it done, now I just have to figure out medical expenses and medicine, then I am done. Whew, what a job!!! Would be nice if we got a refund...then I could pay a few bills........it's a never ending circle of paying bills. Thank God for COOKIES!!!!

We got some good news the other day. The "Rebuilding Together" people that fixed our roof in October will be coming again to fix the kitchen ceiling and put a new fan in. I suspect there was a lot of water damage so they feel a new fan needs to be added. Fine with me. I suspect they will let me know how much work is ahead of me as to what I must move out of the kitchen, dishes, food etc. They will be also putting in banisters down the basement and a few other small details....I think the porch might be painted too. We will see. This will all take place in May, so I have much to look forward to.

Well, I guess I must take down my Valentine Tree....guess it is time. It's been fun....I will miss the pretty lights. I suppose I could leave the tree up till St. Patrick's Day.....hummm....we'll see. I am not sure Mr. Elf wants to take that long nap till Christmas as yet.

One more week of February and we are entering March...my goodness these days are flying by. Maybe March will come in like a lion and go out like a lamb and could it be "spring is right around the corner" YES...yes....yessssss!

 

Well time to close this blog for the night. Need to get downstairs and get some cards made for Hospice. The next meeting is March 6th....so I have some work a head of me. But, it is fun and relaxing work.

Don't forget to leave a comment on my blogs...every comment is worth a chance to win a St. Patrick's Day card from me. Even if you just stop by and say "Hi Louise" that's good enough for your name to be dropped in the bowl. March 10th will be the day to pick 4 names.

So have great night and good week, keep looking up.

Cheers ~ Louise

Made Some New Cards Today

Hi there everyone. Well, today I went to my friends house to make these beautiful cards. BURRRR it was cold outside...traveling to her house was a little chilly, but once there, things warmed up.

We made this cute card that looked like a miniature "dressing screen" not sure if that's the real name.....but I sure wouldn't mind dressing behind this screen...ummmm...as long as there was not a window behind the screen...lol!

The card is a 4 paneled card, the top and bottom of the card was punched with two different punches. I screwed up on the first card....so teacher helped me with the second card. Then each panel was stamped with a lovely flowered design then colored with copic markers. Not sure who I will give this card to....maybe keep it and just enjoy it for awhile.

In this picture, the same card folded up and tied with a lovely purple ribbon, which fits perfectly in an envelope.

This was a really neat card to make. I accidentally sprinkled the card with too much water. I wanted to start over but the ladies said it looked like the Northern Lights...so, I continued on with making the card. First the card was dabbed with distress ink around the edges of the card, the pink added in the center. Water was sprinkled (not blotched).....then let dry. Stamped with a scenery stamp and bow with embossed greeting. I really like the effect, I might try this technique with red and orange ink...maybe it will look like a fiery sunset. 

This next card was fun....again I messed up on the bird....added too much brown....Betty gave me a new bird to color. I just don't know what my problem was today.....one of those days I guess. The bird and pine cones were embossed then colored with copic markers.

Now this was an interesting card to make. It is actually a paper napkin. I never would have thought to use a napkin. It was a 3 ply napkin, so we had to peel the napkin down to this layer. (Again, I had a hard time peeling the layers...geez!!!) Then, after struggling to get to this layer, finally glued it to card stock. Then it was layered on a decorative die cut....a gem added and a birthday wish at the top.

I think I might try making some more napkin cards....will keep my eye opened for some interesting napkins.

Well, again, I am having another card give away of a St. Patrick's Day card. I am thinking to give away the header card at the top. So, all you need do is leave a comment on each of my posts till March 10th. I will pick a 4 names and mail the winners a card in time for St Patrick's Day. Wish you all could be winners....but I can always have another card give away till you all receive a card.

Have a great day and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Before and After Steak and St. Patrick Cards

Hi there everyone....this will be a short one....just wanted to show you the "before" and "after" pictures of that wonderful and de-lish-ous heart shaped rib-eye steak.

So here is a picture of the steak in it's "before" state, fresh out of the package from the butcher....I salted and peppered it and poured some steak sauce on top, letting it sit in the frig for a few hours.

A picture of the steak "After" it was pan fried in coconut oil with some onions and mushrooms.....oh my was this ever a good piece of meat....not sure if it was the coconut oil that did the trick, but it sure did smell good.

Here you see the whole meal....salad, mashed potatoes, garlic bread and left-over cod fish from the night before. There was steak left over for Sunday's meal of Steak and eggs and English muffins. Oh Yum!!!!

I will be doing another Card Give Away....this time a St. Patrick's Day Card. Starting today....all you need do is leave a comment, even if it is just to say "Hi". I will put your name on the list and every time you comment, is a chance to win one of my cards. On March 10th I will pick 4 names and then send those 4 a card.

I so totally enjoyed the Valentine give away....I wanted to do another one. Well, time to close for the night...have a good evening and keep looking up....warm days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

Happy Valentine's Day - Steak and Cards

Hi everyone. Hope you had a wonderful, fun, filled day and your special someone made it even more special in some unusual way. In the above picture are two cards I received in the mail. The one on the right is from Brenda in Indiana, so simple, but yet so elegant. The card on the left is from Shirley, a card maker here in Appleton. We have been sending each other cards for over 7 years. It's always fun to see what she makes....I think she is truly an artist. She recycled this card as it was a store bought card and she turned it into a new handmade card.

 I just got home from Jacobs Meat Market in Appleton. JP gave me some money to buy whatever I wanted...so I chose this heart shaped Rib-eye steak.....my, my was it good!! As you can see, Kylie took a liking to it and if it had been a bit closer, she might have taken a bite out of it.

I salted and peppered it and put a little steak sauce on it and let it sit in the frig for a couple of hours. When it came time to cook it, I sauteed some mushrooms and onions in coconut oil. (no, I could not taste the coconut). Took the mushrooms and onions out of the pan and dropped the steak in. Cooking till the center was 100 degrees. Dished the steak and poured the mushrooms and onions on top. OH MY WAS THAT STEAK DE-LISH-OUS!!!! I took a picture of our Valentine's dinner all cooked up, mashed potatoes, salad, garlic bread and left over fish....that will be the next post. We still have enough steak left for dinner tomorrow.

Here is another picture of Kylie, enjoying the smells of Valentine's Day.....if she could have, she would have. Yes, she did have some steak too for her dinner....cooked of course, not raw.

I just had to take a couple of these pictures of Kylie.....she is so darned cute with her antics. I think it sure would be a very quiet and boring home if Kylie did not live here.

Love is in the Air....

Hi everyone.....just a short little post for tonight. No, I did not buy bacon for our breakfast tomorrow....sure does sound good though.

I think I will go to the butcher tomorrow and buy a rib-eye steak shaped in a heart....so JP and I will celebrate Valentines....stuffing our mouths with a good piece of meat. Tonight for dinner, he is having fish and mashed potatoes and "Italian Mystery Soup" I shall have to write down the recipe and pass it along to you my readers. But, first I must see how JP likes the soup....if it passes the grade....I will post it. Perhaps I need to write the recipe down before I forget.

I bought JP a BIG can of beans for Valentines....it's what he wanted, maybe I will wrap the can up and tape a valentine card to it and have it sitting on the table tonight for him to open. Such a nice gift...hahahahaha!!!!

Well, time to close, have to go get my new printer set up so I can make some labels tonight. Have a good evening. Oh and thank you Brenda for the lovely Valentine's Card. I shall post it here tomorrow. Cheers ~ Louise

And the Winners of This Lovely Card are.....

Hi there everyone...hope you are having a good day. So we got home from church today, and the first thing I did was pick the 4 names out of the bowl. And....these are the winners of this lovely Victorian Valentine card.

1 - Patricia - www.patricia-heythereitsme.blogspot.com
2 - Tina - www.kittykatkards.blogspot.com
3 - Brenda - www.inkspiredtostamp.blogspot.com
4 - Biz - www.mybizzykitchen.com

Hope you will visit their blogs also.....I visit them daily, always looking forward to what they have posted and getting some new idea, whether it be card making, food making, exercise or just a little encouragement in daily life.

Tina recently posted a great recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Mug Cake....oh my was that DE-LISH-OUS!!!!! Oh and she makes some really neat cards and sells on Etsy too.
Biz posts wonderful ideas about food, dieting and exercise...she is a daily visit....and I must have something to eat before I read her blog because I drool over the food she makes!! She has entered a couple of Recipe Contests and is a contender to win 10k for a pizza she made. Can hardly wait to see if she wins!!
Brenda always has great ideas about making cards. She lives life day by day tackling the problems she deals with living with a husband who has Alzheimer's.
Patricia took a wonderful cruise to Alaska....it was so refreshing, felt like I had gone there too even if it was via blogland. She posts lots of food too, along with everyday life.

So there you have it, the winners. I will get the cards addressed tonight and sent in the mail tomorrow. Hopefully you will see your card by Valentines Day and the Pony Express moves swiftly through the bad weather that is coming soon.

Have a great night and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

My Valentine Tree....

Hi there everyone. Hope you had a nice Saturday....it was lovely outside today....I should have taken a walk with Kylie, but I did not. Maybe tomorrow.

Today I am posting my Valentine's Tree. Lots of hearts, and look there's that red elf....he must have hid among the branches when I was taking the Christmas stuff down, I think he hoped I would miss him.....well, I really didn't only reason he stayed in the tree was cause he is RED and perfect for Valentine's Day.

I suspect the tree will come down after Valentines.....I don't dare leave it up for St. Patrick's Day. I love the lights....and will miss them.

Tomorrow I shall be picking 4 names. If you have commented on any of my blogs for past few weeks, you became eligible. Each comment was worth a chance to win and Valentine Card from me. I can hardly wait to pick the names. I will let you know if  you won by an email and if I need your address, I will let you know. I do have a few addresses......so we shall see.

Nothing too much happened today....just worked on Income tax and getting that all organized. Still have to go over the medical stuff and pull all of the 2014 bills out of the files.

Making this a short and sweet post, have a good rest of the day and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

There is Still Time.....

Hi there everyone. Well....it's Friday, where did this week go to??? So fast, the days are going. We are so busy wishing our lives away, always looking forward to the next season, the next day off, the next vacation, the next holiday, the next meal, the next football season, the next I-phone, the next, the next, etc. It's no wonder the days and weeks fly by so fast.

There is still time to leave a comment on my blog to get your name added to the bowl to receive this lovely vintage looking Valentine Card....just for you!!! Yes, Sunday, February 8th I will pick 4 names from the bowl, every comment left is a chance to win. So if you have left 6 comments, that is 6 chances to win....2 comments, two chances. I will contact those that won on Sunday night. If I have your address, then great, if not I will need your address to send this card. On the 9th I will post the winners who won. Who knows, if all works out.....I may just do this for St. Patrick's Day also.


Been busy making St. Patrick cards....and getting ready for Hospice on March 6th. Need to have put together about 75 cards, St. Patrick, Easter, Thinking of you and Thanks You's.  What's really been fun is that I can still use my heart punch to make the shamrocks....such fun, each shamrock requires 3 hearts and the stem is punched out with the heart punch also. I will show you the St. Patrick cards later ,as that will be for another post in a week or so.

Not much going on at the moment. Started the income tax dance....that always takes me awhile to get motivated to do....tend to procrastinate on it, I have to have my part done by March 10th and then take the paper work to the accountant to finish. No.....I cannot do my own....it's so hard to understand the language on the tax forms, I would mess it all up. Better to have someone who knows what they are doing.

Well, time to close here, need to go to bed. It's 2:05am. So good night and I hope Friday, February 6th is a good one for you all. Keep looking up!!!  Cheers ~ Louise

Six More Weeks.....Enough Said!!!!

I find it hilarious that New York City's Groundhog saw his shadow and the Mayor said "Spring is Coming"!!! (So what does that mean...he saw his shadow or he did not see his shadow???) Philadelphia's Groundhog said 6 more weeks....I think these groundhogs need to get their stories straight...don't you???? I think spring will come no matter what, for some, it just might be earlier, rather then later for others. As for the groundhogs, we shall see which one is right. It's sort of like the weatherman...no two can predict the same weather...hahahaha!!

So how are things by you? As my mother always said, "everything is calm and quiet here"......well, for the moment it is quiet here. We had to get our furnace fixed yesterday. Sunday, late night, I was working on making some cards and noticed water leaking around the furnace, then I noticed the carpet was wet.....yikes where is this water coming from???? I never knew the furnace had water running through it...but it does. Here I thought it was the "april-air" but that was never connected. Goes to show how much I know about furnaces. The repairman said, good thing I saw the problem...it could have gotten worse. I am always downstairs, so I could not help but notice....so now I wait for the bill.

Don't forget to comment today or tomorrow....just a "Hi" is good enough to qualify you for a Valentine card from me.  Each time you comment is another chance for your name to enter into the bowl, on February 8th, I will pick 4 names to receive a Valentine card from me. Hopefully it will get to you in time as I hear the "pony express" is running pretty slow these days what with weather conditions around the country. I sent a letter to a friend on 1/27 and she just received it yesterday....it was headed towards the east coast, guess it ran into bad weather along the way.

Finally decorated my "Valentine Tree" yesterday.....oh so sweet. I will take a picture of it for you, to get you in the mood for romance!!! Most likely I will buy myself some flowers as the husband is not a romantic person. Maybe we will go out for dinner, just for a change.

Well, time to close, have to go food shopping and pickup meds for JP. Have a good day and keep looking up...stay warm and cozy tonight....it's suppose to snow here again, maybe by you sunshine. Cheers ~ Louise