Chicken Soup For The Sick Room.....:-(

Tomorrow is my birthday.  Today, I have spent the day trying to sanitize and take care of a sick family.  The bright side is that my oldest daughter sent me an edible arrangement for for my birthday that had a lot of things I needed to help in the battle of the flu bug.

I have never had an edible arrangement nor have I ever sent one to anyone.  So, at first glance, I thought I saw ice cream on sticks like fudge sickles or something and told Scootard that we had to hurry and eat everything!  We rush the basket into the kitchen took an "ice cream cone" off of the top and discovered that it was chocolate covered pineapple....:-).  Cool...since there were four of them, that would have been a lot of ice cream in one sitting....:-(.   Funny how the picture makes it look like a cupcake..:-).

After spotting the Kale that was used as a garnish, we started to tear the arrangement apart to get to it for the soup I had to make.

I rooted through the fridge to see what else I had that I could through in the pot.  I had some fresh spinach, garlic, onion, chicken breast, cabbage, carrots and herbs. I also found some brown rice to throw in.  Now, it time to cut everything into manageable pieces.......

I had a total of 5 large chicken breast which I decided to split and cut into cubes.  Then I seasoned it with poultry seasoning and a pepper blend that I already had made up in a storage can.

My experience has been that if I add the chicken too soon, it will come out dry and tough even though it is floating in liquid.  So, I tossed all of the veggies in the pot first and brought them to a boil.

Then I decided to quick fry the chicken in some olive oil to seal in the flavor and help keep it moist while cooking.

After the carrots were done, I tossed in the chicken and let it cook until everything was tender and the chicken was thoroughly cooked........

And PRESTO!  Everyone had a bowl or two and I am hopeful that fever that my daughter has developed in the time I was in the kitchen will began to break.....:-(.

A Day In The Big City!

After having spent a few days indoors, the walls felt like they were beginning to close in on me.  So, we decided to head for the "big city" of Oklahoma City once again.

Our first stop was a store called Burlington Coat Factory.  I don't know exactly why they call it that since they carry a lot more stuff then coats.  I was personally on the hunt for more things for our bathrooms and some wall decor for our kitchen in Oklahoma.  Of course, when you are not familiar with a store, you find yourself winding through the isles looking at.....well...everything there is!  Now, I have NO IDEA what this thing was supposed to be.........

but Scootard thought he had it figured out......hahaha.  I, on the other hand thought I had discovered "Big Foot"!!

ok, so just when I was sure he had recovered from his identity crisis.......

BOOM!  What's a person to do??  I decided to well.....I don't know the guy!  hahaha  I made a quick exit to the next isle over for the purpose of insuring all possible onlookers that I was NOT with "him"! LOL

But, alas......there he found himself....basking in....shower curtains.....hahaha.  I figured, it must be time to eat or something.  People can get "strange" when they are running on "fumes".....

We headed to a restaurant that I had not been to in years.......  I love seafood, but had recently had (and was still recovering from) an allergic reaction to some shrimp that I had eaten a couple of weeks ago that left me with whelps all over my face and neck.  It also itched so much that I went through 1 1/2 bottles of Benadryl trying to get some relief from it.  But the thought of trying some crab overtook me.....so we ventured in.....  

This is a shot of the interior......And let me tell ya.....that was one huge shark.  And he was wearing a bib!  Think on that one for a minute! haha.....

I decided to run to the rest room before they came to take our orders.  Couldn't help but chuckle at the sign....:-).  Hey, whatever you call it, you CAN'T get confused about where you were..

You can't help but think you are going to be mauled by a catfish on your way out of the stall!   

Then menu was "cute" and full of all things "crab".......:-).

Now, to get this figured out.  What's a person to do??

While I mused over the menu, I noticed the buckets in the middle of the table that had been placed there to dispose of your shells.  They even offered a roll of paper towels to clean up with during and after you meal...

But I decided to eat lightly since I was not feeling that well or that hungry.  I ordered the crab cakes which were very good and mostly crab meat and not "filler" as I have found to be the case with so many restaurants nowadays.  I didn't finish it although it was very good......:-).

Next stop.... one of my favorite stores.  Bass Pro Shop......

It was chilly outside which always makes me have to run back to the bathroom.  I was amazed that Scootard headed for the indoor fireplace......:-).  You know, being Canadian and all, it is unusual to see him feeling..."chilly"......:-).

Then we started our adventure through the store again.....I have no idea what this thing is, but he liked it...:-).

I wasn't warm yet, sooooo  I found this....:-).  Nice- eh?

I guess Scootard wasn't either!  ???????....geeze....ha.  What can I tell ya....SOMEBODY HELP ME!!  haha

on the way out of the store, I stopped to have a peek at this.....:-)

yeah, baby!  So, how do I look?  Is it "me"??....:-)

oh well.  Maybe one day.....:-).

After browsing the store for almost an hour, we decided to go to our next favorite stop.....still on the hunt for some decor for kitchen and bath..

you gotta love this place.  There are rows of ....well, just about everything you could think of for home decor..

We hunted high and low for SOMETHING that would be suitable for my kitchen.  But, alas!  It wasn't to be....:-(.  So, we headed for our last stop of the night......

Just when I thought I had seen it all........Now, I ask you; can you image getting your "toes done" sitting in the lap of a bear?? hahaha...

After Scootard grabbing a quick (not really) bite to eat, we started our "date night" at the movies.  The show?  "Lincoln".  I recommend this to those who are not familiar with American history and the struggles that the country went through to get us to the place we are today.  Still a long way to go, but glad I was born 54 years ago and not 254 years ago.....:-).

It was a long but good day....:-).

See you next time!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I wanted to wish all of my fellow bloggers, lurkers, and fans a very blessed and prosperous New Year!

I hope your holiday has been all you desired it to be, that you had a chance to hug someone you love, forgive someone who needs it, and remember those who did not see the end of the year.

Have a great year!  See ya soon.....:-).

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

We are still in Oklahoma and are enjoying a quiet Christmas Day with one of our daughters and all of my animals; Scooter and Georgio, (the ferrets) Bubbles and Pickles (the Cockatiels).

We want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New year!

This is the view from our front porch right now......:-)

The picture doesn't do it justice, but there is a bit of a blizzard going on here.  We watched it go from sleet to full blown blizzard.  We don't usually get this kind of weather in the part of Canada we live in.  So, this has been a spectackular event to Scootard.  He has never been in my neck of the woods this time of year....:-).

Now, we pray the weather is much better when we start our long trek back home in a couple of weeks.....:-).

This is a tree we found in the attic already dressed and ready to go! 

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY!

Double Dog Dare ya!

When I moved to Canada, I started really experimenting with different recipes and spices to pass some time.  One of the things I concocted was a pepper blend that I gave various names to depending on which peppers I actually used.

I figured since our trip has been delayed until January, I might as well get busy in the kitchen making some of my famous blend.  We went on the local Army base and visited the commissary and loaded up on peppers.  The included Serrano, Jalepenio, (green and red ones), Pablano, Anahiem, crushed red pepper, Habanero and a white pepper that didn't have a label.

Having done this before without being properly prepared, (believe me, I paid dearly too);  I decided to take some precautions this time around.....Now, I'm armed and dangerous!  I pulled my hair back, turned on the exhaust and put on my "protective gear".  They teach you that in the military when you are under threat of a chemical agent.  haha  Oh, I wore plastic gloves as well......:-).

We had just purchased this small chopper from the store last week and I wanted to try it out.  This picture is actually AFTER I used it to chop everything.  I had to tear it apart to clean it.  It worked like a dream.....:-).  The cutting and chopping of the peppers and fresh garlic took about 20 minutes.  The peppers had to be cut into smaller pieces that would fit into the chopper.  AND THEN, the chopper stopped working at one point.  It took me an addition 15 minutes to get it figured out with the help of Scootard.  He said it had some kind of saftely mechanism on it that will not allow it to start unless all of the parts are properly seated.

After getting everything chopped, I heated a large skillet and added some virgin olive oil (first cold pressed), and added all of the peppers including the seeds.  After cooking them for about 12-15 minutes, I added some ground Cayenne, White, and Black pepper that I had already blended in another container.  I guess by now you understand why the mask, glasses and gloves.....:-).  The house was filled with the smell of pepper even though I had the exhaust on full power.

Once the peppers were tender, I turned the heat off and added 6 large cloves of fresh garlic that I had chopped in my new chopper.  I wanted the garlic "cooked" but not "toasted" which is why I turned the heat off before putting it in the pan.  The oil was already hot enough to do the trick.



 And of course, I had to have something special to put it in.  I just happen to bring my jar from Canada already labeled.  After letting it cool for just about 5 minutes or so, I added about a tablespoon of Buckwheat honey.  I used that particular kind because it was the only honey I had on hand.  I didn't do this in my other recipes.  But I wanted to see how it tasted.  I experimented with a small amount first before adding it to the entire batch. 

But after looking twice, it occured to me that it may not be the right size. So, I found another one and decided to go with it instead.  It was till too small and I had to put what was left over in a small dish.  No matter though.  We could use it for dinner that evening....:-).  Now, the filled jar was placed in the freeze for about 15 minutes to help create a seal

We had wild salmon, augratin potatoes and broccoli for dinner with my pepper sauce topping the fish.  It was excellent.  So much so that I forgot to take pictures!  haha

Oh well, trust me.... it was good, but you really need very little.

See ya next time  

Christmas In The City

It is COLD in Oklahoma now.  I have had to get Scootard to pull the battery out of Ms Vickey as the temps have plumeted to below freezing in the past couple of days.  I guess winter is officially here.  We did have one nice day the other day and decided to take our daughter to the state capital. 

She had never been and Scootard and I have been twice for his visit, but always caught them "closed".  It had been several years since I had been inside and was a little sad over the pitiful displays that were there.  But I did like this one that was sitting over the state seal in the middle of the rotunda...by the way, I tried resizing my pics before posting them.  The first two were fine, then all the rest uploaded according to the size they are now.....:-(.  So, I just made them all uniform or rather Scootard did, but had to do it from his computer.  We have concluded that it is something with my computer that is causing the resizing issue or some kind of a conflict with the blogger software.  Otherwise, you would be looking at this from a microscope....:-(.

The ceiling is so massive that it was impossible for me to get the whole thing in a single shot.  This is looking three stories up AND the lighting was not that great.

This is what I call the "grand stair case".....:-).  Can you imagine living somewhere with steps like that?  Geeze...definately would have to have "merry maids" coming in at least once a week.

Since Scootard and my daughter had not been here on a tour we decided to take one.  Did I mention security was "intense" going through.  It was almost like being at an airport.  But I guess once you have had a visit from the likes of Terry McVeigh (the Oklahoma city bomber), you cannot be too cautious.  After learning that the tour started every half hour, Scootard had just enough time to make a new friend.  I'm not sure I liked her...:-(.

We met up with the tour guide and began making our rounds....The bronze statue was called "The Watchman".  This is the top of the grand staircase that "Merry Maids" would have had to come clean if I lived here....:-).

This is the Hall Of Governors.  All of the governors that have served the state of Oklahoma are immortalized here in bronze with the exception of three governors.  The current governor is among the three and must finish her term before she is set in bronze here.  The other two were impeached and will not be admitted here.  

Art was in abundance in the capital halls.  This is an example of some of the work on the walls and ceilings.

After completing our tour, our daughter wanted to visit the Memorial and the museum for the memorial of the Oklahoma City bombing.  This is the west side of the memorial.

I had only been able to bring myself here two years ago.  It was hard to believe that it had been 17 years since this happened.  Being there made it feel like "yesterday".  It took me 15 years to get here and this was my third visit.  It was bitter sweet.  The wreaths were so beautiful, but the memory was bitter and sad.  You could almost here the blood crying out from the ground.  Very sobering indeed.  A stark reminder of the depravity that humans are capable of stooping to.

Very nice....you cannot see the difference from this shot in the chairs, but the smaller ones were for the children that were killed in the day care center.  McVeigh, before his execution refered to them as "collatoral damage".

We went through the entire inside and after having had enough sadness for the day, we decided to get some dinner.  Time was passing by, it was cold outside and we were hungry.  Scootard found a place to park and we waited outside the resturant for him.  I was tempted to rent this coach for a night ride, but the wind was biting a bit.

I had my heart set on some spinach manicotti, but alas it was no longer on the menu. 

The right side of the picture below shows a street car that has been made into a seating area for the patrons to eat in.  I have eatten in it once, but it seemed that they forgot I was there.  So, I opted to sit at a regular table.  Also, it would have been hard for my daughter to get up the stairs.

She loves here veggies and decided to order a vegetable lasagna.  I don't think she left any either...ha.

I ordered garlic shrimp.....it was spectacular!  I could not finish it and had it for leftovers later.

Scootard ordered Southwest chicken lasagna.  It was pretty good too.  I had a taste of it....:-).  But I didn't give them any of mine! haha

It was time to head home after filling our bellies.  The lights were on everywhere and it made the city that much more beautiful.

I love this time of year as I think lights make everything....well...brighter; of course!

parting is such sweet sorrow!  Farewell, resturant....

There is a section of the city called Bricktown which is a huge torrist attraction in the winter and summer months if the weather permits.  This is a shot of the canal that I tried to get "on the fly" from the car as we passed by.

I'll bet living in those apartments right over the canal is not a cheap thing....

Then we passed this bird looking thingee on the highway......I think I could have made better use of tax payers dollars than that thing.....:-(.

 An hour and a half later, we made it back to our own city and decided to take a quick trip through the "Holiday In The Park" which comes up every year at Christmas time.

I think it has only been hosted here for the past 4-5 years now.  I still find it a bit sparce.  I don't know how tall this tree is, but I am sure it was taller than me...:-). Which, by the way doesn't take much to do....

Well, we heard later that the prairie dogs who are locals in the park have been vandalizing the sets by chewing on the wires and causing some of the lights to go out.  There has also been vandalism by humans....wow, what a world is all I can say to that. 



It was a wonderfully full day with family....:-).  Once we got home and got settled in again, I decided to go into our backyard and see what the sun was doing.  This is what I saw.....:-).

See ya next time!