Sunday, December 31

three meals today

so I finally eat 3 meals today, course not as much as I nearly would have but I did eat during the normal meal hours!! Watched some good movies last night when my tummy hurt a bit, Little Miss Sunshine and The Devil Wears Prada.

Today I attempted to watch Black Dahlia, but I fell asleep during it & others who watched the whole thing said it wasn't so good.

Going to watch Invincible in a bit, suppose to be a good Disney movie about (american) football.

Friday, December 29

gtfvbgffffnmh . . . opps that was Henry on the keyboard as he was attempting to climb to see the squirrels out the window over my shoulder.

So after my last post last night my tummy never really felt better and today it still feel bad, so I'm back to just drinking water & ginger ale. It's so weird how yesterday while we were at lunch I was getting hungry for other people's meals but once I started eating my soup I felt sick again, I thought it was a sign that I was getting better but I guess not.

Mom, Patty & Matt are at the Portland Art Museum seeing an Egypt exhibit which sounded cool, but I didn't think that walking around for over an hour was my cup of tea, maybe I over did it a bit yesterday with being out for 8 hours but I was really starting to think I was feeling better, guess this is my body's way of saying "SLOW down I'm not really ready for this yet"

Well I got up to feed the dogs & refill my water bottle, now it's back to resting, hope everyone is having a good Friday!!! TGIF to all those who are working ;)

will I make it home in just 9 hours?!?!?!?

Look at this weather, if this kinda stuff keeps up it might screw up my trip home on the 4th, I mean I'm not flying through Denver, but the whole freakin country gets soooo screwed up from one airport being down!!! Well I should get to bed as it is nearly midnight, I had a small amount of apple sauce & a piece of toast, but now my tummy hurts, so I'm gonna take a large glass of water, just in case, since dry heaves are way worse than straight throw up!!

Henry the Great II

Here is a better movie of Mom's puppy jumping for a treat

THE SUN

something I thought I might never see while in PDX, was all around today :) well truth be told I saw glimpses of it yesterday, but since I was feeling like shit I couldn't give a care, which made the sun today that much better!!

Well before I start on that I have to mention that mom, Patty & Matt made a terrific dinner last night for a mini dinner party mom had, actually truth be told I haven't tried anything that was prepared yet but everyone else seemed to really enjoy it. Zee with Rennie, Saundra, Erika, John, Paul, Patty, Mom, Dad, Matt, and I were all there. It was my first time being up & social all day, it wasn't bad since all I had to do was sit & talk a bit, but after it was over I was knackered & went straight to bed & slept in till around 9am (with a brief period of awakeness to say goodbye to my dad). Honestly if Zee hadn't come I never would have gotten out of the recliner, but I'm glad I did, cause I got to meet her little princess Rennie & we had a great time chatting (nb she was the only person who showed up on time!!!!! another one of my pet pieves, but I won't get side tracked on that right now)

Back to my day today, Mom brought dad to the airport at 8am & then took Henry for his vet check-up (where it was confirmed that he has yet another ear infection - poor boy!!) Patty & Matt arrived around 9.30am & had decided since it was suppose to be a nice day (we were still covered in clouds & fog when we looked out the windows) to go on the Historic Columbia River Highway drive. We left around 11am & first attempted to go up the Larch Mountain Road to see the Sherrard Viewpoint Picnic Area where you can see 5 mtn views (St Helens, Rainier, Adams, Hood & Jefferson), but there was a warning sign that the road was closed due to snow, so we hit all the other good spots, Women's Forum Overlook, Crown Point Vista House, Latourell Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Wahkeena Falls, Multnomah Falls, then we drove for aways & hit up a panoramic view point just past Hood River, then we doubled back to Hood River & caught a glimpse of the town before stopping at Columbia Gorge Hotel, tres cool if you ask me, we took a ton of photos & I'll try to put a slide show together, but if you look under "my photos" and then under "28 Dec 06" you'll see them all.




Food Poisoning Update: feeling 10x better than yesterday, but my food intake is limited to 3 saltines for breakfast & 5 sips of soup & 1/2 peice of toast for lunch, it's almost 7.15pm & I'm not at all hungry, even with Mom, Patty & Matt all eating in the room next to me.

Wednesday, December 27

oh no . . .

so yesterday when I was finishing up my blog, I told you we were going out to dinner with Dad's friends, well on the way there my tummy started feeling crappy, I warned mom & Patty just in case I had to leave early. After ordering food & getting our drinks I HAD to leave! I made it home in time to spend the rest of the night with my head in the toilet, every time I took a sip of water or ginger ale, within an hour I was back in the bathroom, this went on till 3am. FINALLY at 5.40am (when I was soooooo thirsty) I took a mini sip & attempted to go back to bed, waking up at 6.30am I was so happy that my tummy was not feeling too bad, so it's 1.30pm Portland time & I have yet to eat a thing, but I'm holding down ginger ale & water - BIG step for me :) I have a headache to beat the bands & feel like a Mac truck ran me over while I was sleeping.

I hope I feel better soon esp since mom's having a dinner party tonight & Patty's Matt arrives any minute. I think the food poisoning came from my lunch yesterday since everyone else in the family had a beef gyro & I had the chicken. Mom called the place this morning just in case, so nobody else has to go through this tourture. Keep ya posted, xx

Happy Feet

I just went to see Happy Feet with my Portland friend Zee, and I must admit that it was not the greatest movie in the world, but cute & the mini adult sitting behind us had cute commentary throughout. I think I would give Happy Feet a 6.8/10.

When I arrived home, I noticed Catherine's car on the road, but I did not realise that Catherine was with her mother, Shriley, her daughter, Maria, and her two granddaughters, Soma (6) and Angelia (3, almost 4 as she told me multiple times). These kids are too cute & super super sweet, nothing like others who I have had to spend time with in October, I'm sure you all know which devil child I am referring to!! These two little girls, played hide & go seek with Patty. WHen that game was done we played hairdresser, they got my hairbrush and hairband & went to town, they never faught over who got to go first!! I hope they will be able to come to the party tomorrow, as I do love my new hairdo :)

I've just been informed that we're going to a friend of Dad's for dinner, so I must stop now, so as not to be the last to be ready!!! tarra

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Monday, December 25

Happy Holidays


Merry Chritsmas today from our family to yours
Above is mom & dad in holiday colours, Patty & me in our new matching PJs and the puppies (Quid & Henry) in their holiday jingle bell necklaces.
Update: (4.45pm PST)
We just got back from our traditional holiday movie, we saw Pursuit of Happyness, it was a really good movie, I'd give it an 8.8/10!! Now we're just waiting on the potatoes to finish cooking so we can have our Christmas dinner. We're having a capon, stuffing, mashed potatoes, "sweet" sweet potaotes, green beans, cranberry sauce, and gravy.

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Sunday, December 24

Where is Santa now?

Want to track Santa's journey around the globe? Just click right here

joke of the day


Two blondes went deep into the frozen woods searching for a Christmas tree(probably in Minnesota ). After hours of subzero temperatures and a fewclose calls with hungry wolves, one blonde turned to the other and said,"I'm chopping down the next tree I see. I don't care whether it's decoratedor not!"

WTF people?!?!?

just read this & let me know what you think, I can't even start to speak about this b/c it will turn out to be a rage against stupid people & being the holiday season I'm trying not to be mean like that. Thanks Pete for the link!!

Saturday, December 23

Henry the Great

overdue photos

So here are a few photos which I've been meaning to post but I ahven't had the chance
Sunrise on drive back from KW:Airboat ride photos: Eden's puppy, Jackson on his 3 month birthday:my convertibles from my FL trip: Vegas photos: Patty's house & my car

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My family's names

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is:
Her Most Serene Highness Lady Sara the Sentient of Eschaton End
Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title


My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is:
Marchioness Patricia the Convincing of New Invention
Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title


My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is:
Reverend Lady Mary the Antediluvian of Brompton Underfoot
Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title


My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is:
His Grace Lord Peter the Sublunary of Praze-an-Beeble
Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title


My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is:
Reverend Earl Matthew the Radiant of Deepest Throcking
Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

finally in Portland

So after receiving 1 free round trip ticket to Europe and 1 free round trip ticket within the continental 48; sleeping in 2 free hotel rooms (one in Philly & one in Vegas), visiting 5 states (CT, PA, NV, WA, and OR), and a total of just 47.5 hours I'm safely at mom's house in Portland, OR.

It is a rather LONG story, but the short of the long, is they over booked my original flight (= night in philly) & I got bumped onto another flight that turned out to be over booked (= night in Vegas ) & finally was able to get an upgrade to first class on the flight to Seattle, WA, where we (Ebonie, Sean & I - 2 guys I met who were in the same situation as I was) rented a car & drove down to Portland. The 3 of us became good friends in our 48 hours of travel with out any deodorant or clean underwear - LOL.

All in all it was not a terrible experience, though I must admit I could not have survived without Ebonie & Sean, my two closest strangers, as I like to refer to them.

I hope my post finds all of you enjoying your Christmas weekend & I will be in touch soon. Should you fancy calling me, just remember I am 3 hours behind NY time & 8 hours behind London time!!

Wednesday, December 20

PJs and PDX

I'm off to Portland this evening :) BUT first I have to finish wrapping presents, pack, and get my butt to the airport!

Take a look at these two cuties in their new PJs which I got them for Christmas:

Owen is sporting the pengins on a green background while Maya is showing off candycane hearts on a red background

Will update from Portland next . . .

Tuesday, December 19

photos of me & the kids

So I said earlier that they were super cute, but here is the proof:
Me & Maya
Me & Maya
me & Maya
Owen, me & Maya

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MUST BE SEEN

Look at this

That elf is the guy I use to work for, before I moved to London, I tried to make one of myself but it doesn't seem to be working, I'll keep trying & if I get it I'll post it

So I had dinner with my friend Kevin, his wife Sylwia, and their two children, Owen (4.5) and Maya (3rd birthday yesterday) along with "Uncles" Matt and Dave. It was really fun, the kids (who I hadn't seen in nearly 2 years) were fun to play with.

Kevin, Matt & I all worked at boy scout camp together & have been friends for over 10 years now!! Dave is Matt's younger brother, who would come up to visit off & on so he's become part of the camp family as well. Slywia & Kev met at work about 5 years ago. She's a great addition to our "family". Unfortunately, I don't get to see them as often as I would like to.

Owen taught me new (aka his) rules to basic games we all played as a child, just as he starts to loose the game suddenly there are these "new" set of rules which arise, until they fail him & then come out "newer" rules, followed by "the newedest" rules. Owen asked me "does you want to know a secredet you have to keep inside your tummy" so I said sure, "the baby is in momma's belly. To which Slywia turned and said, well I guess he's told you that I'm pregnant.

Maya is much more content to just sit on your lap and watch Sponge Bob, unless SB is dancing, then she has to be up & showing off her ballet moves & her amazing ability to do splits. She is obsessed with being a princess & had that for the theme of her birthday party this past Saturday. We even took some photos of us in our tiaras, which I will post later when I get them from Sylwia. Maya & I have made plans to go sledding when I get back in Jan, if we get any snow!!

Well I best get my day started, making chicken & biscuits so I have to do a bit of food shopping & get packed for tomorrow's flight to Portland, OR :)

do you know him?

He use to own a Ford Mustang & enjoy taking it to the beaches in Rhode Island . . . He use to work at Lowes while taking college classes at night . . .

He use to go to Norwich & take me apple picking in the fall . . .

The truth is, his name doesn't matter, what is important to know is that he's stationed in Iraq. He and his unit will be there through the holidays, please remember him & all the other soldiers who are stationed around the world who won't be making it home to be with their families this holiday season.

Monday, December 18

back in CT

So I'm safely back in CT after a 5 day trip to NY. Check out these cool holiday photos.

So the dentist was really really nice, aside from the part where he told me I had to get a filling replaced :( from there I went & got all my errands done that I had listed for the day (yeah me) I met up with my friend at Cracker Barrel in East Greenbush for dinner which was nice to catch up & she's doing really well with her new job & life in ALB, so that was nice to hear.

Thursday I got pulled over for making a U turn over a double yellow line . . . I wouldn't have been so upset if the sherrif hadn't been such a wanker!! He spoke to me like I was a moron, "okay miss, I don't know if you've ever gotten a ticket before but here's the deal, your info here . . . . do you understand or do you need me to go over that all again" HELLO, you just told me as if I where three years old & I am capable of reading it on my own, if I didn't understand you!! From there I managed to make it to Saranac Lake ontime & had afantastic 3 hour lunch with my friend Paula, I think we covered just about every topic under the sun & then some!! That night I had dinner at Maureen & Bob's house.

Friday morning I got up & went back into my old work in time to have "switching labs" cake with my old lab & coworkers, which was nice to catch up with all of them. Lunch with my friend Dave & then I did a few errands in SL (closed out a bank account, checked on my other bank account, bought some books, etc) and then back to my old work to chat with Paula &
Brandon (click on his name to see a cool photo contest of moustaches). That night I ended up going back to M&B's house since people I was suppose to meet up with were dealyed & didn't want to meet until 8pm & I didn't want to wait around (I was done with everything I needed to do in SL around 4.15pm)

Saturday Maureen & I went shopping & had lunch with
Shannon at Applebee's & then went for some more shopping, we finally got home around 7pm!! Look at what was making news while we were out mindlessly shopping.

Sunday I woke up, & got on the road to start my long trek back to CT, I had a few stops along the way so I wanted to get an early start. I safely arrived around 5pm :)

Today I have no real plan, I should get all my Christmas stuff together & make sure it fits in my bag which I need to pack for Wednesday's departure!! In sad news today, I found this out, while looking at the news this morning, but so that I don't end this blog on a totally sad note, check this out.

Wednesday, December 13

busy day

Today I have lots of stuff to do:
  • go to the dentist
  • get a quart of 5W30 synthetic oil
  • get a pair of windshield wipers
  • get my car oil changed
  • do 3 loads of laundry (already started :)
  • pack for my trip to Schroon/Saranac
  • get stamps & mail first batch of Christmas cards
  • drive to Albany & have dinner with my friend
  • drive to Schroon Lake & sleep <-- part I'm looking forward to, minus the fact that when I get there it will be cold & I have to turn up the heat & hotwater tank

The one part I'm NOT looking forward to is driving on the interstate b/c my EZpass has expired & so I have to go through the cash lanes now, which will be hard for me since I haven't had to do that since high school!! Hopefully I remember!!!!!!

Gotta go check the laundry & make sure I know how to get to the dentist's office, here and here are two interesting things to check out . . tarra

Tuesday, December 12

So sad

Why do people have to leave negative comments on my page & not identify themselves, I mean feel free to disagree with what I say but at least have the balls to tell me who you are!! I don't ever think that I implied that Chelsea was a bad team, I'm just an Arsenal fan & I said it was a good game, again not a negative thing said about "The Blues" (as they are nicknamed)

Okay back to the positive . . . James took me out for dinner last night at the
Pazzo Cafe in Rocky Hill. We each got a sandwich & shared them. I got the ~Ovoline~Fresh mozzarella, vine ripe tomato, fresh basil, topped with roasted sweet red pepper oil & he got the ~Pollo~Grilled balsamic marinated breast of chicken, smoked mozzarella and pancetta, with lettuce and tomato and we shared a Chocolate Lava cake for dessert with vanilla gelato - YUMMY in my tummy!!!!

After that we headed off to the movies to see
Blood Diamond, which was a really good movie. Of course it's not an uplifting story & there is a bit of blood & gore, but we both truely enjoyed it, which was a nice change from my reaction to Borat a few weeks ago. There are some interesting articles out there this one from the world press and this one from the UN if you are just interseted in quick facts about conflict/blood diamonds check out this.

So you want to know what I've done all day today . . . bugger all really! Had breakfast, checked email, signed for a FedEx package, showered, drove to New Haven for lunch with Anne - which took FOREVER but the food was fantastic, drove home, checked email, read the
BBC news, and Pete's blog entry for today along with Zee and Frances's blogs & now I'm updating mine . . . I told you it wasn't much important or exciting!!

Monday, December 11

Post #505

So check out this report to see the full details of my Gunners game, but here is a photo for those of you who could careless about an Arsenal football match:
My fav, Robin Van Persie, congradulating Mathieu Flamini after his goal yesterday
Okay, tonight is movie night, I'm going to have dinner & then go to the movies with my friend James (Patty's first roommate in CT), so I'm not sure what we will see since I gave him a chance to choose, I'll keep you posted!!
As for my Sunday, I think that I spent all day on the couch watching American football. I watched Miami (Dolphines) clobber New England (Patriots) 21-0, followed by the Buffalo (Bills) stomping over the NY Jets 31-13, both of these games made me sorta sad. Jim (my mate in London) & I have a running email bashing about our fav teams (Pats = me and Bills = him) so watching those games yesterday reminded me of the email that will arrive today when he gets to work making fun of my sucky team . . . oh well at least I don't have to worry about my fantasy football team loosing, since I don't have one!!!

Sunday, December 10

lookie lookie

Check this out - it's a link to my friend Fran's blog and I think her post is fantastic!!

Went shopping with my friend Anne today, we got her a dress for a wedding in Feb at the Westfarm's Mall - in & out painlessly!! Then we went to Bed, Bath & Beyond, followed by Linens & Things, and then a final stop at Target . . . all done by 12.45pm, so we grabbed some food at the 99's Restaurant in Newington on our way home.

This afternoon I finished writing my christmas cards, well for all those who have given me their address that is!

Tonight I cooked dinner for Matt & me (Anne & John went out with John's brother & wife) I made lemon parmasan crusted chicken with a salad & broccoli with a wee bit of cheese melted on top (yeah me)

Okay, off to try to find something interesting to watch on the telly, this might be harder than I think, but I'm hoping on a Saturday there should be some good movie on at least one channel, fingers crossed!

Friday, December 8

movies

So I'm considering going to the movies in the near future . . . I already know I don't want to see Turista or Santa Clause 3, but as far as these others go I'm not too sure, so any input would be appreciated!!

Well I'm gonna sit back, relax & wait for some comments, I know some of you out there have seen at least one of these to give a thumbs up or down rating, PLEASE!!!

TGIF to all of you who are working!!

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The double seater

So I did not take these photos, but thanks to the construction guys who are building dad's dream garage, we were able to see the sad state of affairs in Adirondack, New York!! I'm not sure what is going to happen next, I imgaine the tree will be taken down & then they will check out the condition it's in & go from there, but since I have not spoken to my dad (who is in Las Vegas, NV at the mo) these may be the last shots of the much loved double seater outhouse.
looking at it's front door & left side - you can see the tree that snapped in half (on the right)
right hand side (with windows) & front door
I got a ton of cards written out yesterday and some presents wrapped up, along with 2 loads of laundry, 1 dishwasher loaded/washed/unloaded, and even a little computer play time, all in a days work!
Today I have no plans, I thought about going out to get some last minute things, but I also know that today's high is suppose to be 32F, which makes me think of all the things I could do inside & never have to leave - LMAO!!
Tomorrow Anne & I are going to Westfarms, she is looking for dresses & did not like what the Meriden mall had to offer. I think Westfarms is the mall kinda near Patty's which I rather enjoy going to, but I'm not totally sure. I'll have to ask ma petite soeur later today & also see if she recommends any other malls for dress shopping in the lovely state of Connecticut!
Those interested in reading a bit about Ebola & gorillas, check this out and if that is of no interst to you, you can check out this article about Ashley Cole's fears for Sunday's match, and that's all I've got for ya today, tarra.

Thursday, December 7

uneventful update

So I don't have much to tell today, but I was reading some friend's blogs earlier & I think if you hvae a chance you should read Zee's post from yesterday - I found it very interesting, but maybe that's just me. Here is the story and here are the photos of what I missed in London (thank goodness) luckily it did not seem to cause any distress for my boys, who did okay last night and is positive news, check this out - Shann did you hear about this?!?!?!

Eat left over lasagna & chicken 'n biscuits last night for dinner, after the power came back on! I was writing out my Christmas card list when all of the sudden the dishwasher stopped, so I went into the kitchen to check it out, figured I'd tripped a breaker, so I went looking for the breaker box, but couldn't find it (remember I'm staying with friends so I don't know the house that well). I went to call Anne to find out where to look when the phone didn't work (portable phones don't work during power outs), then it dawned on me, maybe all the house power was out, so I went back to writing my list. Around 4pm, Matt walked in & asked why I was sitting facing the telly without it on & I explained, he was really bummed because he had stopped by to watch sports center with Johnny before his soccer match (which he won 9-2, in case you cared). Johnny arrived around 4.30pm & after a fair bit of fannying about they decided to call the electric company, who come to find out had no clue. About 20 minutes later the guys arrived & announced that a squirrel had blown a fuse in the transformer (or I think that's what they said) all I know was that there was a dead squirrel at the bottom of the pole! The bucket truck showed up & within 30 minutes we had power again - yeah!! How did people do stuff before they had electricity - candles are NOT bright at all, vrey hard to read & write by - I know because I was still trying to write out my Christmas card list.

Tonight Johnny is cooking chili, so I'm fre all day to do whatever my lil heart desires . . . if I just knew what that was I'd be all set . . . I'm basically done with my Christmas shopping, so I don't have to do that . . . I don't have to go food shopping because Johnny did that . . . I need to get my oil changed, but that's not super exciting & since I'm not planning on driving anywhere I don't have to go out just for that . . . so I'm back to not having much of anything to do today . . . I'm sure I'll come up with something eventually.

Okay, gonna watch some day time telly for a bit while I decide my plan of attack for the day, oh yeah I need to call the dentist for an exam & cleaning, that should be really fun (LMAO)

UPDATE (as of 11.30am) Today I am going to get my Christmas card project started . . . first I have to email all those people who's addresses I'm missing or can't remember street numbers for, then I will start writing some of them out, when I get bored with that I will have to go & buy more cards since I got 40 & just realised my list is up to 83 & I worry I've still forgotten people (YIKES I'll be writing Christmas cards till news years at this rate!!!) . . . I knew I would find something to do today, not quite sure if it's considered fun, but it's gotta get done. Oh, btw Dad, I did make the DDS appt so you can stop worrying about that!

Tuesday, December 5

tonight's dinner - DELISH as well

Creamy Spinach Lasagna (from Cooking Light magazine)

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 1/4 cups chopped onion (about 2 medium)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (16-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
3 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (26-ounce) jar marinara sauce, divided
Cooking spray
12 cooked whole wheat lasagna noodles, divided
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 375°.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion; cook 10 minutes or until onion is browned, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic and spinach. Reduce heat, cover, and cook 3 minutes or until spinach is tender. Set aside.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, milk, salt, black pepper, and red pepper in a small saucepan, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add 2 cups milk mixture to spinach mixture. Cover remaining milk mixture, and set aside.

Spread 1/2 cup marinara sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles over sauce; top with half of spinach mixture. Top with 3 lasagna noodles, 1 cup marinara sauce, and 3/4 cup cheese. Layer 3 more lasagna noodles, remaining spinach mixture, and remaining 3 lasagna noodles. Top with remaining marinara sauce. Pour reserved milk mixture over the top, and sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese.

Bake at 375° for 50 minutes or until lasagna is browned on top.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 piece)

CALORIES 328 (25% from fat); FAT 9.3g (sat 3.8g,mono 3.6g,poly 1.2g); PROTEIN 17.3g; CHOLESTEROL 19mg; CALCIUM 371mg; SODIUM 726mg; FIBER 6.9g; IRON 3.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 45.6g

some photos

Lookie what we have here then a few more here and perhaps you'll enjoy these AND if you are still have some time you can check out this.

Well I'm off to mail some care packages to a friend who is stationed in Iraq, then food shopping for dinner tonight (will post that recipe as well, as I know it's a good one!!), and then I should probably head home & start to wrap my christmas presents!!

dinner tonight - DELISH!!!

Chicken & Biscuit Casserole

1/4 cup butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped baby carrots
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 cups chicken broth
1 (10 ounce) can peas, drained
4 cups diced, cooked chicken meat

2 cups buttermilk baking mix
2 teaspoons dried basil
2/3 cup milk


DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2. In a skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Cook and stir the garlic, onion, celery, and carrots in butter until tender. Mix in the flour, sugar, salt, 1 teaspoon dried basil, and pepper. Stir in broth, and bring to a boil. Stirring constantly, boil 1 minute, reduce heat, and stir in peas. Simmer 5 minutes, then mix in chicken. Transfer mixture to the prepared baking dish.

3. In a medium bowl, combine the baking mix and 2 teaspoons dried basil. Stir in milk to form a dough. Divide the dough into 6 to 8 balls. On floured wax paper, use the palm of your hand to flatten each ball of dough into a circular shape; place on top of chicken mixture.

4. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Cover with foil, and bake for 10 more minutes.

Monday, December 4

out to PDX again

11.54pm 20 Dec arrive Portland
and
10.45pm 4 Jan arrive Hartford

YEAH, Christmas with the family :)

sorry

I know it's been awhile since I last posted, to be honest so long ago I have no clue what I was telling you back then . . . I had a great thanksgiving in Stamford, with lasagna appetizer, gotta love Italians ;) Since then I've been bumming around CT & had a mini trip to RI to visit my ex-fiance's parents & older brother this past week, not going to DC, as I might have to pop over to London for 1 last interview. Still planning on going out to Portland for Christmas, working on getting those tickets as we speak.

Off to get a recipe for chicken & biscuits . . . Tarra

Saturday, December 2

gone but NEVER forgotten

Rifkin Alexander passed away today at 13.30 today he was 7 weeks and 3 days.We will all miss him!!