Corn Dip Saga

At this time last year, my Carolina Jasmine was in full bloom! I haven't noticed anything this year. Maybe I should water it, since we haven't gotten any rain lately!
Add that to my "To Do" list.
Thursday was typical. I picked my son up from school, along with 3 friends. I took 2 of them to their homes. I dropped my son and one friend off at our house. I then left for Wal-Mart. While shopping, I ran into my Teaching Assistant. She asked what I was planning to take for Goody Day (our name for pot-luck lunches at school). Hmm, I had sorta forgotten about it. She told me she was making 7 Layer Dip. I decided on Corn Dip (It can be eaten on Fritos or as a salad.) I couldn't remember exactly what ingredients were required. No problem! I'd just call home and have my 13 year-old son look it up for me. (don't laugh, it sounded like a no-brainer at the time) First of all, no answer on the home phone. I called his friend's cell phone. (My son got his taken away a school for the semester)Again, no answer. So, I sent a text message that ended with "CALL ME". Amazingly, he did call back. I described exactly where to look for the recipe. "Go to the Espresso machine cart. Look in the bottom basket. Take out the white notebook. Flip to the section marked Appetizers and Dips on the divider tab. Look for Corn Dip". Son, " Yes, I have the notebook, but I don't see the recipe." Me, "Read off all the recipe titles to me." Son reads them off, but it isn't there. Plan B. I call my sister-in-law from whom I received the recipe in the first place. She quickly gives me the recipe. We chat a few moments. I finish my shopping, check-out and head for home. I call the boys to unload the Trailblazer while I feed the chickens, put out birdseed, fill the birdbath and water a wilted plant. I then decide to look for my recipe. It was on the back of the last page right where I told the 13-year-old to look. He simply neglected to turn the last page over! GAAAAAAH!
After a long story, I proceed to chop and mix the dip.

I will add the sour cream and mayo in the morning.

Corn Dip

2 cans of whole kernel corn, well-drained
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup each red and green pepper, chopped (I just used green)
1 small bunch chopped green onions
1 seeded jalepeno, finely chopped
Equal parts sour cream and mayonnaise

Drain corn. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Add equal parts sour cream and mayonnaise until dip is creamy. Serve with Fritos Scoops!

I doubled the recipe.

Ya'll Come Back!
Lorilee

Outhouse obsession!

First, let me assure you that all of the photos are POSED, and not the real thing! (youngest son)

Myself, my sons, my parents and one brother and his family spent several days of Spring Break in Fredericksburg, Texas several years ago. We visited a wonderful museum of old German homes and buildings. What does it mean when people are so excited about an outhouse? (yours truly)

I mean, so excited that we take turns posing inside. Is this normal tourist behavior?(brother and nephew, too young to be held accountable for his actions!)

Who could resist sharing a two-seater with your sweety? (my parents)

Ya'll Come Back! (Unless posing in an outhouse is just too weird for your taste)

Lorilee

Missing Harley!

Brenda at View in the Pines recently posted some wonderful photos of her kitties. They made me miss my sweet kitty Harley. (Named because he purred like a Harley Davidson motorcycle). We found him at our local Humane society. We decided we should get a kitten instead of a grown cat because of our 3 dogs. We felt a young cat would adapt to dogs better than an adult cat! They only had 2 kittens in a cage-a solid black cat and an orange cat with white feet. The lady opened the door and the black cat backed into the corner and hissed at us. The orange kitten came to the edge of the cage. When I stepped closer, he climbed out onto my shoulder and started purring in my ear. Needless to say, he came home with us! He slept on my pillow at night against my ear.

He was such a loving kitty. We joked that he was more like a dog personality in a cat body. He disappeared on Christmas Eve in 2007. He spent much of his time indoors, but he also went outside for several hours at a time. This is Harley with my oldest son.

I love this photo of Brian( my youngest) with Harley.

Of course, a cat always adds the finishing touch to a garden!

Any time the fountain was not running, he claimed the top tier as his throne!

Definitely no high blood pressure stress issues here! Harley I miss your sweet purring nuzzles.

Blessings,

Lorilee

Is it a Lincoln's Sparrow?

This little bird was visiting my fountain over the weekend. My best guess, using my trusty Smithsonian Birds of Texas guide, is that it is a Lincoln's Sparrow. What do ya'll think?

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee

Fat Tuesday!

Happy Fat Tuesday. Good-bye Mardi Gras, until next year!
Ya'll Come Back!
Lorilee

Clogging in Seadrift!

I had a wonderful day on Saturday! I awoke early and drove to Seadrift for a clogging workshop. I spent the day clogging with this group of wonderful folks! Three of the ladies taught us dances from the Texas Dance list! We learned "Bad Moon Risin", "Mama Mia", "Rocky Top", "Boot Scootin' Boogie", and "Jump". I sure was pooped on Saturday evening! I was falling asleep by 9:45!

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee

An Odd Egg and Other Stuff

By Friday, I could no longer put off a trip to Wally World a.k.a. Wal-Mart, for groceries! I did find a some treats for myself. I have been admiring these lights for some time in other stores. Thanks to Wally World, they were finally more in my price range! I also picked out a magazine to "wish" through!

We had some leftover apples and cores from our snack at school. I like to bring them home as a treat for my chickens and the rabbit, Chewey! She is loving them!

I gave the chickens their treat of apple leftovers and gathered the eggs. This egg looked odd to me. I haven't cracked it yet!

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

I was hungry for oatmeal cookies. So last Thursday, I decided to use my sister-in-law's recipe. It was her grandmother's recipe. First, comes the butter and sugar.

The dry ingredients.

Vanilla and eggs.

Oatmeal, coconut and dried cranberries!

Ready for the oven!

Out of the oven!

Snack time! A great dessert wine-Woodbridge Moscato Bianco with some berried sugar for the rim!

The recipe---

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup coconut

2 cups oatmeal

1 cup (dried cranberries, raisins, or sliced gumdrops)

Cream together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Sift together dry ingredients. Add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in oatmeal, coconut,and your choice of "goodies". Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee

Owlet Trio!

Several years ago my brother discovered that a barn owl had claimed his deer blind in the off-season! I was so excited to take a trip out to the pasture to see them for myself! They were so cute as they stomped and hissed at us! After they left, he said the blind was a mess! He has made sure to close all of the windows since then! This is my favorite photo of the owlets!
Ya'll Come Back!
Lorilee

The Redneck Side!

My family can be entertained pretty simply! I guess it is our Redneck side showing itself. My Dad a.k.a. Pop has a place in the country for camping, hunting, swimming and fishing---with a little cattleworking, road clearing, barn building and fence building thrown in. There is a stock tank for swimming and fishing. Although, it has pretty much dried up with our drought! The "cousins" love to fish and swim.

The swamp creatures are really my two sons and sweety!

Another day at the Rocking HI Ranch, with fishing on the agenda!

Here comes Brian and Trixie. He used to bring his fish to Pop to have them removed from the hook. I don't blame him. Those catfish have some wicked fins.

You've probably guessed that this is not a "real time" post. I was just browsing throught my photo album and found these from several years ago. This time of year, I start to miss the heat of summer.

Ya'll Come Back!

Blessings,

Lorilee

My First Win!

The other day, I received this book and sweet card in the mail from Jennifer at Nyack Backyard. She had a contest to guess the theme of her garden using the seeds she had ordered as clues. I guessed "Prince". My first win on a blog! AWESOME! Watch to see if I learn anything from the book!
Thank you so much, Jennifer.
Ya'll Come Back!
Lorilee

Sunday Surprise!

We had a wonderful surprise this Sunday. Some of our ex-neighbors were passing through and stopped by to say Hello! It is unbelievable how those kids grow up! The young lady on the left is a friend of Sarah's, next is Sarah,then my son's Dustin and Brian and last of all Matthew. Sarah and Matthew played with Brian. Matthew and Brian are about the same age. They liked to strip and play in the water sprinkler in the backyard! I guess it would be safe to say they have out-grown that activity!

Aren't the Gerbera Daisies beautiful? I couldn't resist taking lots of photos. They were a gift from some very special family friends.

The rose was a Valentine's Day gift from one of my students.

A special day ended with a beautiful sunset!

Thank you for stopping by. Leave a hello!

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee

Love from my little ones!

My little students can be so sweet! They adore giving me things and getting hugs in return! I got numerous Hannah Montana and Spiderman valentine cards along with several boxes of chocolates!

This chocolate Toad from a little boy has to be the cutest. Note it even has a Gummy Bug inside! You can't beat that for a declaration of affection! Melt my heart!

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee

Young Love

The teenager wanted to get his girlfriend a Valentine gift. After picking up the teenager and 2 of his friends from school, we went to H.E.B. Plus. After much conversation and deliberation, he ended up choosing a denim heart box of candy, a bunch of pink balloons and pink Gerbera daisies. It was quite a "trip" walking through the store with 3 boys each carrying one of these items! We also had to get Pepperoni Pizza hot pockets to keep their strength up!

Aren't they cute! They tried to hide my camera, and I had to convince them they would enjoy photos of the adventure!

The blonde hair belongs to me! I was pretty much just pointing the camera behind me while at traffic lights!

Mmm, those balloons make me think of Strawberries and Cream!

I was instructed to be ready for a quick get-away! The plan was to leave the gift on the porch, and then text her to go to the door!

The smitten teen (in the green striped shirt, on the porch) is still making final adjustments. I'm not sure what inspired the cartwheel!

The deed is done!

As I am taking this photo, I am hearing, " GO, GO, HURRY! MOM GO!" The latest intel is that the gift was well-appreciated.

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee

Comforting Noise

This may seem weird, but I actually love to hear Brian practicing his drums. He is good. But more importantly, when I hear him practicing, I know exactly where he is and what he is up to! This is a very comforting thing. Sadly, when I don't know exactly where he is, there is no telling WHAT he is up to!

Bring on the noise and the comforting knowledge!

Ya'll Come Back!

Lorilee