An interesting Christmas for sure....

This month has been a very trying time...
So much work, but we are glad to have it.

The saddest news: We lost our good friend Greg, our neighbor Mark, The scrapbook queen Teresa Collins lost her husband, even Joe Cocker the great singer passed away....so many people leaving us behind...rest in peace all of you, we will see you on the other side....

Everyone had to work or left Nevada for Christmas so I decided to take my husband out for a massage, he has been working 7 days a week for the last 2 months. He needed some R&R!
I booked us at the Green Valley Resort, we got a room for christmas eve, 50.00 dinner credit, 2 movie tickets and use of the spa all for 130.00!! the massage was 150 with the locals discount.
While charlie got his massage I enjoyed the jacuzzi, and steam rooms. ahhhh so relaxing!

Afterwards I wanted to play some machines and bingo..let's just say I was on one very hot streak and I came home with a nice little bank roll for my check book!

But I had something bad to eat and ended up feeling very ill and we came home at 5 am. I spent christmas day eating toast and laying on the couch all day. I was fine the next day.

December 23rd I was able to have a Vegas day with my friend Tanya..we hit the Bellagio, Aria, Cosmo..we had lunch at Todd English Pub. They changed the bologna sandwich, which is why we go there, that was amazing but we learned the pastrami sliders are to die for! We had a wonderful day exploring our fabulous city!

I got some great gifts:
A garmin vivofit from the hubby and my annual Cashmere sweater, so soft!
Tanya made me a cool scarf and a pin cushion doll from a german figurine head, she is stunning!

Here are some holiday photos, Hope you all had a peaceful holiday.....

The Ice Skating rink at the Cosmo, I am going to try skating next year!

I named her Kasimira, in German it means "commands peace"

Have a wonderful New Year everyone!

Secert Santas and Racecars

I have to share the story of the secret santa...
Charlie's son Joe got his hands on the starting of a Dirt modified racecar.
Charlie has dreamed of driving on dirt and even though he won't race all the time, he would love to go try it out. He used to race on dirt in figure eight racing and loved it!
Joe built the racecar and gave it to Charlie for a Christmas gift. Everyone around the racing complex had to keep the secret and they had to keep hiding the car from Charlie because he would make the rounds to talk to everyone, needless to say it was quite an effort to keep it a secret for 6 months!!
Lots of people donated time or money to help get it built, mostly Joe doing all the work and buying parts when he could....
So 2015 will find Charlie and Joe racing their brand new awesome dirt car!

Joe, Charlie and the Dirt car!

He can't stop smiling, no really, he can't....

Still needs a little work to finish it but Joe wanted to give it to him before Christmas trip.

In other news, we took Ethan to see the Christmas lights they set up at the racetrack...Elvis, and Dinosaurs...how is that for Christmas Lights!!

Well, I will probably check back in after Christmas....enjoy your family, friends. Merry Christmas!

Thanks Chef Ludo!

I am not a big breakfast fan, I prefer savory foods in the morning, BLTs or a hamburger...when I go out for breakfast I usually order scrambled eggs because they say it is too early for lunch. I hate omelets, especially in restaurants, they always come out like shoe leather or a like a plate of rubber bands. I always want to order the veggie omelets, I love spinach and onions and tomatoes, I keep trying but every time I get a chewy yucky mess on my plate. But all that has changed now in my kitchen, Thanks to Chef Ludo, that little hunk of a French guy can make a damn good omelet!! And this morning he taught me how!

Tattoos, an accent, and loves food! Sign me up!

Let me explain, he was not actually in my kitchen, because if he was over, uh, we wouldn't have been in the kitchen...wink, wink!!

Last night Charlie and I watched "The Taste" we love this show and are so glad it is back! We like the fact that people are being judge on their food, not by the way they look, or sound, they cook a little taste of food and that is all that is judged, then the judges get to see the chef after they have placed their votes! Like "The Voice" only for cooking instead of singing. Then the chef's that get picked to be on each judges team get mentored by the famous chefs, Ludo, Nigella, Anthony and Marcus.

So last night Ludo had his team make a real omelet. I saw that omelet and thought, damn that has to be the best omelet I ever saw. Everyone said how light and creamy the omelet was, Yes! that is what a real omelet should be like!

My FABULOUS omelet!

I went to YouTube this morning and got a Chef Ludo video of him making an omelet and cooked right along with him! Oh My, that was the best omelet I ever had!! I am so proud and happy that I was able to make a real, beautiful, wonderful, tasting omelet!!
Thank you, Chef Ludo!!

Here is the video so you can watch and learn too! I used swiss cheese, I did not have boursin on hand, and I love swiss cheese and it was so great in this omelet!

Chef Ludo makes an omelet

Welcome to December!

Wow, the year is almost over, can you believe that?

2015 will be here soon. 

I don't think I will decorate for the holidays, I want to put all my Jim Shore snowmen out but it just seems so dauntung of a task. Everything is up in the attic. plus, no one is coming for Christmas. I think I will just make my hubby take me out to see all the decorations on the las vegas strip, a couple trips through some big casinos and I will have my fill.

I may pick up a real little tree, just cause I love the smell of real pinetree in the house....stay tuned, you never know what will happen around here!

Happy December!!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY!

HOPE YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL FUN FILLED FOOD FANTASTIC DAY!

What's in your oven?

News from around the world!

Sometimes Charlie and I like to go hang out at Margaritaville on our Friday nights out, we have dinner at one of the restaurants at the Linq, then walk up to Margaritaville where they have an outside bar that sits right up along the sidewalk. We have so much fun sitting there drinking beer and wine and watching all the tourists go by, some stop and talk, some just high five you as they go by. It is just a fun happy place to hang out.

One night during the summer we sat next to a young couple, Rasmus and Linda, they were on holiday from Sweden. They were traveling all over and we told them a lot about Las Vegas and places to visit. They said they were headed to New Zealand, we said if you get near Hamilton stop by and say Hi to Charlie's sister, Violet, who runs  "Violets Coffee@Pit Lane" in Hamilton, New Zealand. We gave them the info and said goodbye.

Linda, Violet and Rasmus!

Well, guess what???
They made it to Violet's Cafe!!

Here is the message we got.....

Almost two months since we saw each other in Las Vegas, and today we met your sister her in Hamilton, New Zealand. We went to her coffee shop and drank tasty coffee and ate pie. We actually are going to sleep in their house tonight She is so lovely, and we don't regret a second that we took a little detour to see her. I attach one photo of us three Hope you are doing well!

HOW FLIPPING COOL IS THAT!!!

Travel the world and meet new friends!! We hope the rest of their journey finds them more new friends, happy travels Rasmus and Linda!!!

Chili Verde, this will be great in the winter!

I got the day off today, so I decide to tackle a big recipe. We love to have Mexican food on Sundays, so I have been making tacos or carnitas and we have been staying in and not going out.
I have been wanting to try chili verde so I searched online and found Juanita's Cocina blog had a nice one. Please go visit her at www.jcocina.com
I followed her recipe and this was so so good!! My husband came home and ate it for lunch and will eat it again for dinner! He loved it!!
I started at 9:00 in the morning and had it in the pot and stewing by 11:00. I just cooked it on the stove and did not put in the oven.
It was fun roasting the chile's, everything went well, I served it with cheese, avocado's, chips and some Mexican rice and heated flour tortillas.
This morning was cold and I thought we were going to get a cold spell in but it is now 80 something degrees out. This is going to be so good to eat in the dead of winter!! I can't wait to make it again!!

 

My dish!

 

CHILE VERDE WITH PORK

Ingredients

• 3 lbs. pork butt, cut into bite-size chunks and trimmed of fat (you can also use pork stew meat)
• Kosher salt
• 2 Tbs. vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped ( only used 1/4- hubby hates onions!)
• 1 Tbs. cumin
• 5 poblano pappers
• 5 Hatch green chile peppers (you can also use Anaheim peppers)
• 13-15 medium-size tomatillos, removed from their husks
• 2 jalapenos, stems removed, and cut in half lengthwise
• 1 Tbs. minced garlic
• 1 bunch of cilantro, divided
• 2 cups chicken stock (plus more to thin as needed)

Instructions

In a large bowl, stir the pork with 2 Tbs. of Kosher salt, mixing so that everything is well-coated. Let sit for one hour.

While pork is marinating, roast the other ingredients:

Place the poblanos and Hatch chiles on a baking sheet underneath the broiler of the oven. Blacken on one side, flip, and blacken on the other side (about 5-6 minutes per side). Put the charred peppers in a bowl with a lid (or a plastic Ziploc bag) and cover for 15 minutes. After the peppers have steamed, remove the skins, stems, and seeds from the peppers. Roughly chop the peppers and place them in the bowl of a food processor.

Place the tomatillos and the jalapenos (cut-side down) on the baking sheet. Place them underneath the broiler and blacken the skins of the jalapenos and both sides of the tomatillos (turning the tomatillos after they blacken on one side). Once veggies are blackened, transfer the tomatillos, jalapenos, and any juice from the baking sheet to the food processor with the chiles.

Add the garlic and one handful of cilantro to the food processor. Pulse all ingredients together until the texture is mostly smooth with a few small chunks.

Preheat the oven to 300.

While oven is preheating, heat a large Dutch oven with the oil over medium-high heat on the stovetop. Add half of the marinated pork, browning well on all sides. Add the rest of the pork and the chopped onions, cooking until the onions have softened. Add the cumin, stir well, and cook for one more minute.

Add the chile mixture and the chicken stock to the pot. Bring all ingredients to a boil. Once boiling, cover the pot with a lid that you leave slightly ajar, and place the pot into the oven.

Cook the chile verde for 3-3 1/2 hours, or until the pork meat is fork-tender, and can be shredded easily with a fork.

If you’d like to thin the stew, you can add more chicken stock as needed and bring to a boil on the stovetop. Taste the stew for seasoning and season as needed with salt. Before serving, stir in another small handful of chopped cilantro.

Serve with desired toppings (ex: cheese, sour cream, onions, cilantro) and fresh tortillas.

 

ENJOY!! AND THANK YOU JUANITA FOR THE FABULOUS RECIPE, WE LOVED IT!!

So Busy...

Been real busy around here. Not much time to do anything but work.
I am hoping to get some cooking in, I have so many things I want to try to cook.
I think I will attempt this Pumpkin bread for my husband, he loves banana bread and pumpkin pie, maybe this will be the best of both worlds?
Pumpkin Bread

The tempertures are dropping and the mornings are getting colder and colder....

Time for sweaters and boots and knitted scarves!
And lots of Baking!!

be back soon, hopefully with a recipe or two...enjoy your fall!

Zac Brown Band and the best song ever...

I love happy songs, feel good, make you smile songs...this one is right up there on the top of the happy song list. What is better then chicken fried and a cold beer (wine) on a friday night and a pair of jeans that fit just right??? Nothing, nothing can beat that!

Fall Fun and Fabulous Finn!

Got to go to a few concerts, Tanya is always on the ready with our super secret ticket source...
Rod Stewart, Jim Belushi, and The Zac Brown Band!

Rod still sounds amazing!

Jim was ok, nothing spectacular.

These guys are out of this world AMAZING!!!!

 All were good but the Zac Band blew us away, if you get the chance run right out, they sang everyone, not just country, classic rock from Queen to Led Zep to Van Morrison!
It was awesome, the crowd LOVED them. I ran right home and got the albums on ITunes!

I also made eye contact with a Betta fish in walmart, he was so happy to meet me, of course I had to bring him home.
I had the aquarium from the fish fiasco of a few months ago, Ethan brought us a goldfish from the carnival, after I spent 50.00 on supplies he only lived 3 days. So I cleaned the tank and said no more pets.
Well, that did not last long. Once I met Finn it was all over, he is so beautiful! I got him some real plants and bridge to play under, he seems happy and healthy! long live Finn!!!

Fabulous Finn!

His Home Sweet Home!

Hope you are having a wonderful fall!

Scrapbook expo Ontario

Just got back from scrapbook expo in Ontario California!
We scrapped, we ate, we drank wine!
I got some nice pages done in my Scandinavian Cruise book.
Travis, Rebecca, and Della came out one day to have lunch!
So good to see them!
Taking the rest of the year off to snuggle down for winter, I have 4 scrapbook trips planned for next year, wheeeee!!

christy

Mary

Me

Hmm, someone runs hot and someone runs cold!
 I always bring a scarf, hat and my fingerless mittens!
Those warehouses get mighty cold!

Fall can be fun????

I pinned a recipe for a creamy chicken soup, not your ordinary chicken soup, something new, will try it when it gets a little colder here. If you are cold enough where you live just go here to get a jump start but let me know how it turns out! Creamy Chicken Soup

I am cleaning and organizing getting ready for the winter hibernation period...I love that I can walk on my treadmill at night with the garage door open and the chill in the air coming through...
I have many new recipes to try this winter so get ready to get fat!

just about what happens when I am on the treadmill....hubby thinks I am running...hahahahaha!

I am going scrapbooking soon with Christy and Mary and we will scrapbook, drink wine, eat good food, and just relax. I love my scrapbooking trips....they keep me sane.

Not much new going on here, just gearing up for winter, cleaned out my closet and switched out my shorts and tank tops for turtlenecks and corduroys! I love my cords, Victoria's Secret makes the best corduroys in the world!

yeah, that's what I look like in them...bahhahahahaha!

I am old school, love my cut-offs in summer and my cords in winter....

Keep smiling and keep working hard and praying for a brand new day...

Okie Tacos

Sorry if that title is not politically correct but that is the only name I know these tacos go by!
It is a family recipe handed down from some okies from Muskogee...
Alene Edminson I believe was her name...

My mom had a boyfriend and that boyfriend had a mom that liked to cook big meals for everyone on Sundays, if we all went fishing at little rock dam, she would cook up trout and catfish, with Pappy's famous hush puppies, but if we did not catch anything we ate Okie Tacos, and I was sure glad when we did not catch anything cause them there Okie Tacos are to simply to die for!

Taco fit for an Oklahoma king!

Here is how you get yourself one of them there Okie Tacos:

1 pound ground beef
1/2 onion chopped
1 medium can kidney beans, drain and smash them a bit
1 medium can Las Palmas enchilada sauce
1 small can sliced black olives drained
1 jar cheez whiz-do not leave this out, it makes the damn taco!
lettuce chopped
tomatoes chopped
sour cream

some 8 inch flour tortillas and some Crisco oil to fry them up in

Brown your beef and onions, add sauce, olives, beans. Bring to boil then turn down fire to simmer for about 30 minutes. Then heat up the Crisco, about 1/2 cup full in a large cast iron skillet, just enough to coat the bottom and fry up your tortillas until crispy and brown, lay on some paper towels to drain, once you have your meat mix cooked and your tortillas fried up, just grab a tortilla, ladle a big ol spoonful of meat mix in, top with a line of cheez whiz, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, fold up and enjoy, sometimes if it gets too messy you have to eat with a fork! This will make about 8 tacos, but they are big and filling, so you don't need much!

And there you go, Okie Tacos! D-DamnDelicious!! YeeHaw!!!

Fall??? Whaaaaat?

OMG!
Is it fall....already???
NO, NOPE, Nah-Uh, No way Jose!

My summer is over, no more lounging in the pool, no more chips and salsa and margaritas, no more cut-offs and tank tops, oh poor, poor, pityful me....

 

Going to go hibernate, wake me in the spring!

 

The set is now complete!

Wow, I have been busy with work for my husband, work in the house, work for my etsy store!
But I have such great things to show for it!

I completed my camera set, The purse/carry all was made by the ever so talented Tanya, She has a wonderful beaded sparrow necklace on her blog right now that you can own, go check out her blog by clicking here: BeadandNeedle

I have my camera strap in retro fabric, my camera bag with matching buttons, my camera bag strap in retro fabric. And now a purse in retro fabric to carry my stuff in! Tanya owed me a purse as we had bet on the world series and Boston Red Sox with My Napoli, beat her Cardinals last year! Wheee!

I also made some very cool straps for Army, Navy, and Marines. I even have one for the Fire Department....

All available in the etsy store: www.peaceloveandartshop.com