Summer Specials

Here are a few of the recipes I have tried this summer. All of them were enjoyed by my husband and I have been told can be repeated.

Top row:  Sirloin Steak with Sauce Robert, Grilled Chicken and Pear Salad, and Hot Honey Salmon
Center row:  Salmon with Brown Butter Tomato Relish, Chicken with Sauce Soubise, and Coffee Rubbed Pork Tenderloin
Bottom row:  Mediterranean Fish Cakes, Barbecued Steak Sandwich, and French Onion Chicken

 Tonight I will be repeating the coffee rubbed pork tenderloin, Yummy!

Treat older women as you would your mother, and treat younger women with all purity as you would your own sisters. 1 Timothy 5:1-2 

My 95 year old aunt is dying. It has been a rough two years for her since my uncle passed away. I have tried to make sure that my mother has been able to visit her sister-in-law often, but there have been more bad days than goods days lately for my 99 year old mother, so time between visits has gotten longer and longer. However, last Wednesday was a good day, and we were able to visit my aunt. With my mom in her wheelchair and my aunt laying in her bed the two were able to share what will probably be their last visit. 

Long ago my aunt shared the story of how my uncle told her she just had to love my mom because she was like a mother to him growing up. That seemed odd in a sense because my mom and uncle were not that far apart in age, but my mom was the one who was always there while my widowed grandmother worked as the sole supporter, raising her five children. So, to him my mom was like a mother. My aunt took his words to heart, because she has always loved my mom, and my mom has always loved her.  It was a struggle for my mom to stand and kiss my aunt good-bye but she did, and I heard them both whisper, "I love you!"


Treat older women as you would your mother, and treat younger women with all purity as you would your own sisters. 1 Timothy 5:1-2 

Heart and Soul in the Kitchen

I adore Jacques Pepin, and was thrilled when his new cookbook arrived in my mailbox last week.  Years ago it was so much fun to watch him and Julia Child in the kitchen.  Occasionally, I am lucky enough to catch a snippet of the two of them on PBS. Although I enjoy watching "Chopped" and other  such shows on the Food Network, there is nothing that compares to Julia and Jacque in the kitchen.

Jacques makes everything he does in the kitchen look so easy and his recipes are delicious. His next cookbook will come out in September: A Grandfather's Lessons: In the Kitchen with Shorey My copy is on order!

Bon Appetit!

A Sunny Sunday Afternoon

Playing cards has never been my thing. Growing up my brother and sister always would spend time playing cards at the kitchen table while I'd have my nose stuck in a book. Words have always been my game. Let me read, write, play scrabble or just talk, but playing cards?! Only if I must.  Apparently, my brother and sister got their card playing gene from our mother. She can play cards for hours! So every once and awhile, I will take pity on my 99 year old mother, who seems quiet and bored reading her book, and says, "Mom, do you want to play cards?" She never hesitates, and always I enjoy the time and the game.

Who knows how many more card games she has in her, so every now and then I will again ask, 

"Mom, do you want to play cards?"

August Birthdays Celebrate Christmas

It has certainly been awhile since I've posted anything. How is it that life becomes so busy, that we don't find time for the fun things in life? Blogging is a fun thing to me.

I have been knitting and cooking up a storm this summer, but you would not think so by the looks of my posts, or the lack there of! I cannot show you all the new recipes I have cooked, but I will tell you that I have made, on average,  two new recipes a week this summer.  Perhaps what I will do in a future post is copy the recipe photo, post those pictures and if there's a dish that looks tempting to you, you can message me and I will share the recipe. However, for this post let me share the August birthday, which for me was a Christmas celebration.

Steele and Stella celebrated their first birthday!

Their birthday present from me were Yankee Christmas stockings.

Although the stockings are "twins" they are not identical
just like the babies ; flip them over and you can see,
 which stocking belongs to which baby.

The stockings took weeks to knit which curtails all other knitting. Presently I do have a stole on my needles and hope to share pictures of that piece in the near future.