Snake Plant

My snake plant’s ancestry is 73 years old… 73! That’s amazing to me considering I really do not have a green thumb, but over the years my thumb has turned a very light shade of green!

The “mother plant” was purchased around 1935 by my grandmother as a Mother's Day gift for her mother. Years later, when my great-grandmother passed away, the snake plant resided with my grandmother.

As a child, I remember that snake plant at my grandmother’s house… It was a floor plant next to the old secretary type desk in one area of the living room, mingling with all the other plants my grandmother had… Now, she HAD a green thumb. She had so many plants (indoor and outdoor) that I couldn’t even begin to name (or remember) them all!

But I always remembered the snake plant…

About 6 years ago, my grandmother gave me a few small shoots from the “mother plant”… They were only a few inches high and I was sure I would kill them within a few days!

Imagine my surprise… almost 6 years later… to see this plant live, thrive and grow… in my home… with me as its caretaker!

Sadly, after my grandfather passed way, there were some changes. My grandmother was planning to move (and eventually lived with me until her death), and felt she was getting too old to care for all of her plants.... and unbeknownst to me, the “mother snake plant” was adopted by her neighbor friend who live across the street from my grandmother...

Though I would have loved the “mother snake plant”, I am thrilled that I have a piece of my family’s history (the “child snake plant”) and that it has continued to grow over the years. It’s very special to me because since my grandmother has passed away, it’s like having a piece of her still with me.

This year, it will be time to re-pot the plant into a slightly larger planter… I hope one day it will be a beautiful floor plant, like its mother, and that I will be able to give a few shoots to my future-yet-to-be-born niece(s) or nephew(s).

Like I said, my thumb has started to turn a very light shade of green... :)

Comedy of Errors... The Shower from Hell!!

The other day, I took a shower. Now, I’ve taken many, many showers before, but you would have thought this was the first shower I had ever taken... in my life! A shower should be relaxing as the water washes away the day, so to speak... This shower was anything but that!

I start by pulling closed the shower curtain, as it was open, and one of the bamboo hooks I have that holds up the shower curtain somehow fell off and into the tub. A small piece of the hook broke off and my husband said he’d glue that back together (so, he went downstairs into the basement).

Okay, I turn on the water and get in. I notice the water temperature is just a little too warm for my liking, so I want to add more cold water. However, I apparently turn the knob the opposite direction, which added hot water! I notice that the water is very hot, but think to myself: “Well, maybe it just needs a minute for the cold water to mix in”… by now, the water is really hot! I can’t reach the faucet (opposite end of tub from where I’m standing) without burning myself, so I have to hop out of the shower to get to the faucet...

As I’m hopping out, I bang my leg on the tub and knock over the shampoo bottle...

I adjust the water and hop back in… (and pick up the shampoo bottle and rub my leg)

I shampoo my hair and manage to get shampoo in my eye (What am I... 3 years old? I could not tell you the last time I got shampoo in my eye!!)... So now I have to rinse out my eye, then finish shampooing and rinse out the shampoo... Then I apply the conditioner and while that’s “soaking in”, I grab my poofy thingy. (I know there's a name for it, but I call it a poofy thingy)

I reach for my body wash and the BOTTLE IS EMPTY!!!! (Yes, I’m the only one who uses it, so that’s my fault)

I yell for my husband (thinking he can grab a new bottle from underneath the cabinet), but I remember that he’s probably still downstairs fixing the shower hook... So, I hop out of the shower again to grab the new bottle of body wash...

I hop back in, lather up... all is going well! *big thumbs up*

Now it's time to shave... I use disposable razors and put a new one in the shower just the other day... Well, I didn’t remember to take the little plastic cap off the razor, so now I’m trying my hardest (with wet hands and a sore eye) to grip this little piece of plastic to remove it from the razor...praying that I don't slice myself and bleed to death!!

Meanwhile, I yell for my husband again, thinking he might be back upstairs... I’m still fiddling with the plastic piece and finally it comes off and hits me in the face...

That's when I burst into laughter thinking about how horrible and frightening this shower has been, all the while hoping and praying I make it out alive! (Can you imagine the headlines!)

You'll be happy to know that I survived the shower from hell... And, by miracle of all miracles, I did not cut myself shaving!!

However, I will admit, I was a very hesitant the next day when stepping into the shower again, but all went well.

I'm wondering if a bath might be safer for me... Rubber ducky, you're the one....

Nah...

My Freecycle find...

Look what I found on Freecycle... A fleece throw for the doggies! It's brand new and was still in the plastic packaging.

If you read my entry titled "Under Wraps" you'll know that we have several throw blankets scattered in just about every room of the house. While the beagle loves to sleep all curled up under the blankets, my shepard likes to fluff and puff the blankets and the curls into the nicely fluffed blanket.

Many times, the beagle is sound asleep underneath the comforter on the guest bed and the shepard decides she wants to fluff and puff the comforter... for maximum comfort, of course... and she'll fluff the covers right off of the beagle! It's a funny to watch sometimes.

Anyway, we now have a new blanket to add to our ever-growing collection of doggie blankets.

And the knife ran away with the spatulas...

About 6 months after moving into our new home, almost 2 years ago, I could not find my mini spatula (from Pampered Chef). I absolutely LOVED that spatula. Yeah, I know, I don’t really cook, but this spatula was a great kitchen tool.

So, we tore apart the kitchen and began the ‘great spatula search’. We looked in every drawer, in all the cabinets, in the utensil caddy, refrigerator, freezer, oven, microwave and any place else we could think of, but we never found it.

Just 6 months or so ago… We lost our large spatula! How do you lose a spatula??!! Well, apparently we did. Again, we looked in every drawer, in all the cabinets, in the utensil caddy, refrigerator, freezer, oven, microwave and any place else we could think of, but we never found it.

(I think there is a spatula conspiracy in this house!)

Now, today, we can't find one of our steak knives... Again, we looked in every drawer, in all the cabinets, in the utensil caddy, refrigerator, freezer, oven, microwave and any place else we could think of (During all of these “searches” I still have hopes of finding the mini spatula and I must admit that I forget what I’m actually supposed to be “searching” for and focus more on searching for the mini-spatula! :) )

We don't have any children and the dogs do not use utensils. (They’re smart dogs, but not that smart!)

I have no explanation for the missing kitchen items. Of course, it is always possible that the knife and spatulas simply ended up in the garbage... and that’s probably a very logical explanation... but I think one of us would notice throwing away a large spatula and a steak knife.

I’m baffled.

Maybe one day they will all come back home to the kitchen... and maybe they'll bring with them a whole new set of knives and cooking utensils!!!

Under wraps...

The beagle... all wrapped up!! My two fur-babies are pretty funny... every day, they do something to make me laugh and 9 times out of 10 I don't have my camera handy...

Now, the beagle loves blankets... he sleeps under the blanket... sometimes he takes over the pillows and sometimes he takes over the entire bed!! We have throw blankets all over the furniture because... the beagle loves blankets!

Bed hog... blanket hog... I don't care... He's my beagle and I love him... and he just looks especially cute at times like this!

Let it snow... let it snow... let it snow!

I should you let you know right away that I like snow... more like, I LOVE snow! Give me a blizzard any day of the week and I'm happy.

We have about 9" out there... and that was between Monday and Tuesday (official recorded snow was 8.something inches) and we picked up about 1/2" more of the fluffy white stuff today... This photo is looking onto one side of my deck in the backyard...

I think my "snow obsession" developed during the time I spent Upstate NY... I can still remember the huge amounts of snow we would get and how much fun I had outside in the snow...

My grandparents lived in NY and I spent lots of time at their house... summers, school vacations, etc. Their driveway was approximately 250 feet from the road and I can remember sledding and/or tobaggoning down that driveway or sledding in the horse coral on those round plastic thingies (I think they were flying saucers or something like that)... THAT was so much fun!! One side of the horse coral area had a slight downward incline... I would pack that area up with snow and water to get it nice and slick and fly down the small hill into the opening of the huge coral.

After being outside for hours on end,my grandmother always had a cup of hot chocolate waiting for me... with marshmallows... when I came inside. I can remember the warmth from the fireplace as I rubbed my hands together in front of the fire to warm them up.

I guess that's why I always have liked snow...it's calming, it makes me smile and it reminds me of happy times and it's really the only time I drink hot chocolate!

This is why I don't cook...

You know that expression about too many cooks in the kitchen... well that happened to to us yesterday over chili dip... chili dip of all things!

So, here's a look at what it is sometimes like in our kitchen...

I’ll preface this by telling you first that years ago, my husband used to be a chef’s assistant in a hotel’s restaurant... He is a very, very good cook and I appreciate that and don’t mean to minimize or take anything away from that... but we both just "cook" differently (for instance, if I want chicken soup, I'll open a can of Campbell's or a package of Lipton.. My husband, on the other hand, will make it from scratch)

Well over 10 years ago, before I even knew my husband, I obtained a chili dip recipe from a friend... It’s not a gourmet recipe, it didn’t win awards... it’s a can of chili, cheese and a microwave and that’s it! So, for years I’ve been making that chili dip. Friends and family have loved it... my sister craves it! Again, it’s something anyone could make, no special schooling or skill required, but my sister and friends have told me it just always tastes better when I make it.

So, yesterday, I was going to make my chili dip. (I have made this several times for my husband so it's not like it was something new)

I had visions of us eating this with tostitos and other snacks while watching the big games on tv... Life is good!

I take out the can of chili and a bowl. My husband proceeds to take out a pot and place it on the stove. I ask him what he’s doing. He informs me that the pot is to cook the chili in... I look at him strangely and tell him that I’ve never "cooked" the chili on the stove... it’s all done in the microwave. Hubby says that he ‘thinks’ the chili cooks more thoroughly when it’s cooked on the stove, but… "it’s your recipe, you do what you need to do"...

I proceed to open the can of chili under the watchful eye of my husband, who again asks me if I’m going to cook the chili on the stove and he’ll help!!! (I don’t need any help… it’s chili and cheese for goodness sake, not a rack of lamb!!)

I decide that I’ll cook the $%^&* chili on the stove to warm it up, shut my husband up, who is apparently withering away from hunger right before my eyes, and then finish doing what I need to do in the microwave... no big deal... I've never prepared it that way in the past, but it will still be good!

Almost game time... chili dip coming up... Life is good!

The chili is now in the pot on the stove with a low flame… My husband gets the shredded cheese out of the fridge (I’m thinking he’s just helping me) and then he starts talking about putting the cheese right in the pot to melt it and this and that...

(He's now in full blown Iron Chef mode, ready to take on Kitchen Stadium!)

At that moment, I just lost it. We begin to argue about the $%^%&* chili dip and how I’ve been making it the same way for years and although I appreciate his help, guidance and assistance in the kitchen... I can manage this one dish just fine. My husband states that he wasn’t trying to tell me "how to make my chili dip" and "it’s my recipe" but he "just thought"…

So, with that, I immediately remove the pot from the stove and pour the chili into the bowl so it can go into the microwave (since it's my recipe) and, after 10 minutes of back and forth bickering/discussing the chili... the $%^&* chili dip will finally be done and then we can eat it...

I pour the chili into the bowl and I am just about to put it in the microwave when my husband says… "aren’t you going to cook that on the stove?" (And, although he did say that in jest with a smile on his face… I still chased him out of the kitchen)

The chili dip was perfect (as usual)! And, I didn’t hear one ‘complaint’ from my husband as he ate it like there was no tomorrow!

(And, visions of me dumping the chili dip all over his head soon replaced those wonderful 'life is good' visions I had had earlier)

The next time I want to make something in kitchen... I’m locking him out of the house!!

The little things in life...

The beagle went in for grooming earlier today (the shepard goes for her "spa" day next week)

Now, that's a great looking doggie!!



And, of course, he brought home some goodies for he and the shepard... Some 'action' shots of the beagle at play:





Another great looking doggie!!

Going to find a quiet place to play...





Well, they must have worn themselves out... Now, they're both sleeping!

On the dinner table...

Tonight, we had chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy and Italian green beans... and, even though I am trying to be in the kitchen more in 2008, I did not cook this... hubby did *big grin*



What's on your table?

I love football...

Those are three words that I never thought would ever come out of my mouth... Ever!!

A few weeks before Christmas, my sister and her boyfriend invited myself and my husband to join them for a weekend in Green Bay, WI to attend a Packers game... Before that, I had never, ever, been to a football game.

I fell in love with football right there and then...on that cold December day at Lambeau Field... with at least 72,000 people in attendance and millions more watching at home.


Years ago, I used to watch football... root for some teams, gather with friends on Sunday to watch the games, host Super Bowl parties, etc... but I never really got it. I never got the excitement or intensity other people felt.

I have become such a fan of the sport itself, in such a short amount of time, and now I GET IT!!

I now know what I've been missing all of these years. I've watched the last few games of the season and all of the Playoff games to date... I don't even care who's playing... I don't care where they are playing... as long as they are playing and it's on my tv!

Now, of course, since the Packers were my first, that's the team I have been cheering for and that's who I will continue to cheer for all the way to the Super Bowl and beyond.

Just like you never forget your first love, the Packers now have a very special place in my heart (and have gained a new fan!)

*Go Pack Go*

Mug Shot...

Time to meet the doggies!!

This is our beagle mix... I fell in love with this little guy online and we adopted him from a local rescue shelter when he was about 4 months old. As soon as I met him, I knew I had to take him home... He was so small and cute and cuddly. Now, 4 1/2 years later, he is much bigger and stubborn and grumpy... but I still love him as much today as I did when I first saw him. And, trust me... he definitely has certain traits and characteristics of a pure bred beagle... When I first heard that howl, I thought the sky was falling and ran for cover! He can also be as stubborn as the day is long and many times we've had "stare downs" where I swear you could hear the theme song from The Good, The Bad and The Ugly playing in the background! But, when you get right down to it, he's just a big beagle baby that loves to be cuddled and have his tummy rubbed.

So, the Beagle ruled the roost for the first 3 months after we adopted him... then came the Shepard! (*Cue theme song from The Good, The Bad and The Ugly*)

And this is our Shepard mix... We adopted her from the same rescue shelter as her "brother" when she was just about 8 weeks old. What a sweet little puppy she was (well, she still is sweet!) When we originally saw her, we were not in the "market" for another dog... we were actually at the local pet store, where adoptions are held, to pick up a few things for the Beagle, when my husband spotted a few puppies playing in a box.

Since we knew the people from the rescue, we stopped to chat and my husband picked her up... Once he did that, it was all over... I knew she would be coming home with us. If you can imagine the look on a grown man's face, holding a small cute puppy... and the look on that small, cute puppy's face being held by this grown, caring man... *sigh* My heart just melted.

So, for the first several months the Shepard was so small that she could walk right under the Beagle. She was a feisty little puppy too... she didn't take any crap from the Beagle. A few months later, the Beagle could walk under the Shepard! She has a very cute personality... she's full of energy and I honestly think that she could play with her ball 24/7. In November, the she celebrated her 4th birthday!

Since they were both so young when we adopted them, they have really bonded and act much like siblings and they were very similar to children...We went through teething, the "terrible two's", and those horrible, rebellious doggie "teenage" years! (and survived)

Here we are, more than 4 years later, and neither one of them can figure out who the dominant one is... it's pretty funny. I think they each "share" that role because some days, it seems as though the Beagle is and other days, the Shepard.

They each have their own sweet personality and the things they do make me laugh daily! They are very much a part of our family and have filled our lives with so much fun and love. (They paid me to say that)

Just call me... Julia Child

I should start out by saying that I do not cook that often... I like to cook (sometimes)... I'm not a bad cook... but I most definitely like to eat!! My husband does 99.9% of the cooking in our household... He's a MUCH better cook than I am... plus, years ago he worked as a Chef's Assistant, so he makes delicious, yummy meals!!

Anyway... part of my goals for 2008 was to be in the kitchen more... you know, roll up my sleeves and get to know my stove a little better.

Today, I decided to do just that. However, my cooking went to the dogs... literally!


I told you!


My husband kneaded and rolled the dough and then I cut (He just can't stay out of the kitchen! LOL)


Ready for the oven...


And, they're done!

So, my first official "cooking" of 2008 was for the dogs... who, by the way, loved their homemade treats!!

No parking...

How funny is that sign?

Not funny, like "ha ha", but funny in the sense that it's something you just don't see everyday.

I went to a Packer's game a few weeks before Christmas and basically made my sister's boyfriend (who was driving) stop the car... in the middle of the road, with traffic behind us, just so I could snap that picture!

Go Pack Go!!

From trash to treasure... and in between

As I've mentioned... I like to decorate. I also LOVE shopping at garage sales and participating in my local Freecyle... You know what they say about one man's trash being another man's treasure!

Here are some of the trash to treasure projects my husband and I worked on this past year:

This is a bench we found at a garage sale for around $10.00. The bench was in great condition, except for the covering...

Here is a picture of what the original covering looked like:



And here is our new trash to treasure bench:



We painted the legs black, added new padding and new fabric to the seat. This bench sits at the foot of our bed.


I found this trash to treasure for TWENTY-FIVE CENTS at a garage sale (left side of picture)... We removed the heart at the top and the pegs at the bottom, painted it black and it now hangs in my "modern" styled hallway:



This next trash to treasure was courtesy of Freecyle... (have I mentioned I LOVE Freecycle!!):


We tightened it up and gave a fresh coat of red and black paint... it sits outside in one of our garden areas.

Next would be the "in between" that the title of this entry refers to... This is a headboard my husband made for our bedroom. Wood, batting, foam and one of the sheets that came with the comforter set you see in the picture (I'm picky about my sheets... high thread count needed!!)

Here is just the headboard:



And, here it is in the master bedroom:


And those are a few of my trash to treasures... and in betweens.

Rain and Wind and Tornados... Oh my!

What is up with this wild weather we are having?? Again, I had to look at the calendar to make sure I knew what month it actually was!

Yesterday, the temperature was beautiful... the high was 63*... In Illinois... In January.

Unfortunately, because of those temperatures, we had afternoon thunderstorms and a tornado touched down not too far from where I am....in January!

Tornadoes scare the crap out of me!! I'm used to some severe weather (thunderstorms, warnings, heavy rain) in the Spring... but not in January!

I watched the clouds from that storm roll in... I watched them get darker and darker as they moved closer and closer... I saw how black and green and mean looking they were... They made me shiver. And, to know that those same clouds and that same storm system was basically forming a tornado right over my head that would touchdown and cause damage/destruction just a few short miles away from me, made me shiver even more!

I will admit... I love a good thunderstorm... I love to watch the storms as they pass by... The roar of thunder, the bolt of lightening...clouds can be amazing and I can see the beauty in some of them.

There was no beauty in yesterday's clouds.

In New Jersey, we didn't have tornadoes...at least during my residency in that State... We had Nor'Easters, some hurricanes, remnants of hurricanes or tropical storms... but no tornadoes.

When I first moved out here, I was home alone on a Tuesday morning and heard the emergency sirens go off in my town. I found it odd because it was around 10:30 in the morning and the weather outside was fine...

(Okay, you have to understand that in New Jersey, in the town where I lived, the emergency sirens were used to let you know that school is canceled that day due to bad weather... mainly snow. On those days, between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. the sirens would sound 3 times... Myself and probably every other child in that town anxiously awaited the sound of the siren because that meant it was a... Snow Day!!!)

Anyway, so the sirens are sounding at 10:30 on a Tuesday morning with perfect weather... I couldn't understand it. This happened for several months before I finally asked my husband about it. Since he grew up here maybe there was a reason there was no school on Tuesdays.

Once my husband was able to compose himself after laughing so hard at my question, he informed me that the sirens I heard were the emergency sirens... you know... emergency... Tornadoes!! *Yikes*

I didn't realize they had used the sirens in this way... for quite some time, I just thought there was no school on Tuesdays!!

In addition to hearing those emergency sirens every Tuesday morning (for testing purposes), I have heard them several other times (not for testing purposes)...

Unlike years ago when I couldn't wait to hear that siren sound to let me know there was no school that day... the sounds of that siren no longer evoke the same emotion in me as they did so long ago.

Let's talk turkey... Errr... I mean... Ham!

When I lived in New Jersey, prior to moving to the mid-west, it never occurred to me that the entire United States of America, or the entire world, for that matter, did not revolve around the State of New Jersey... That something so simple, so delicious and such a part of a Jersey Girl's life could not and would not be found outside the borders of that State... How could this be??


Pork Roll (a.k.a. Taylor Ham) is unheard of out here... *Gasp*

Seriously, they (grocery store workers, waitresses, etc.) look at you funny if you even utter those 2 words... either combination of them! What is a Jersey Girl to do??? How is this possible??


For the past several years, in order to satisfy my Pork Roll/Taylor Ham craving... (Oh, yes, you just don't understand... This is a New Jersey staple... found in homes, schools, restaurants, diners, and probably in every grocery store of that wonderful Garden State)... I have had to resort to having my sister smuggle packages of this coveted pork product across the border of 3 different states...just so I can my fix a few times a year!

There is nothing like a Taylor Ham sandwich... with ketchup (yup... I said ketchup) on a hamburger bun.... or... or... a Taylor Ham, Egg & Cheese sandwich on a hard roll (again, with ketchup)... To me it's like a slice of Americana, and should be right up there with baseball, Mom's apple pie and 'going down the shore'...

You good people who have never heard of or tried this stuff, just do not know what you are missing!

Oh, and don't get me started on a 'light and sweet' coffee...

Spring Cleaning... in January!!

If I didn't have a calendar in front of me, I would have thought it was Spring outside today! What a wonderful January surprise... temperatures in the high 50's. Of course, by the end of the week they will back into the 20's, but it was an enjoyable day.

We took down the Christmas tree and the last of the Christmas decorations... Have you ever noticed that it only takes 5 minutes to take down the decorations, but hours to put them up?? Why is that?

So, in the process of de-Christmasing the house, we started cleaning and organizing... things were flying out of the closets, drawers, and any place in general "stuff" goes to hide in! And, we'll do this entire ritual all over again in the Spring *sigh*

I like a clean house and I also love to decorate... so today was almost like a "clean slate" (pun intended). Here's a pic of my new table setting. My kitchen is a "work in progress", and I am going for a "cafe" type of theme in there... and, for the moment, I'm happy with it - Of course, that's always subject to change. As I said, I love to decorate, so you will see many more pics as I go...

Until next time...

Blogless no more...

I have finally joined the ranks of thousands of other people and started a blog... where I can share my innermost personal thoughts and feelings with all of you (yeah, right!).

I like to write and, of course, I am experiencing "bloggers block" because I now have a forum in which to speak, but have absolutely nothing to say!

Maybe I should just start with some basics... As the title of my blog shows, I am originally from New Jersey, now living in the mid-west (that alone should provide lots of fodder for this blog!). I am married... I work... and I have 2 dogs (again, more fodder for this blog - I'll introduce you to them soon!).

In this blog, I hope to share with you the daily musings of my life, as well as some of my passions (reading, animal advocacy, etc.).

Until next time...