It's A Girl!

We found out today that Theresa and Shawn's baby is a girl. We are so excited that we are going to be grandparents again. We can hardly wait until october! Two grandsons and now a granddaughter. Oh happy days!

The Real Thing

Arrogance is a poor substitute for confidence. Taking is a poor substitute for creating. Possessing is a poor substitute for appreciating.

Staying busy is a poor substitute for accomplishing something. Anger is a poor substitute for discipline. Rudeness is a poor substitute for eloquence. Aloofness is a poor substitute for joy. Envy is a poor substitute for effort.

Rationalization is a poor substitute for truth. Artful deceit is a poor substitute for integrity. Promises are a poor substitute for commitment. Gluttony is a poor substitute for nourishment. Stylishness is a poor substitute for courtesy.

Why settle for a meager substitute when you can have the real thing? Why bother with outward appearances when you can enjoy the genuine substance of life? Get real. Make the effort to be true to your best values. Live the real thing. It's worth it.

~ R. Marston

Dance to The Doobies

We took both our daughters to see The Doobie Brothers back in the 80's when they did a reunion tour to benefit The Children's Hospital at Stanford. We all went again together in the early 2000's. I always said I was going to take my grandchildren to see the Doobies in concert no matter how old The Doobies would be at that point. I did Monday night without leaving the house! There was a 2 hour Doobie concert on TV. Jacob loved them and we danced and danced. Justin liked them and commented that they are old men! LOL. Here is Jacob and I dancing to Listen to the Music.

Turkey Trot

Video of turkey in Theresa and Shawn's backyard I mentioned earlier.

Justin Kicking His Football

Justin has been practicing his football moves for when he starts playing Pop Warner football in August. Here is a video of him kicking the football.

Justin Praciticing Football Moves

As I mentioned in a recent post I am having trouble uploading videos to my blog. Justin has been practicing football moves for when he starts playing Pop Warner football in August. I have a video of him kicking the football, but until I can work the problem out, here are some pictures instead.

Theresa and Shawn - Yard Update

They have begun to set up their patio furniture in groupings on the patio.

Newly laid park in an area in front of the patio. The piles of bark are actually holes where they will be planting 2 new trees.

We could hear a sound like a dog whimpering. At first we thought it was Hula in the house, but it turned out to be a wild turkey in their yard. He was distressed because he felt trapped and wanted to fly over the solid fence between them and their neighbors house. Either he couldn't or was afraid to. Nothing I did seemed to convince him to move to his left and go through the spaces in the wrought iron fence at the back of the yard. I took a short video of him but I am having troubles uploading videos on Blogger. I think I have the worng format for them and need to change that.

Little zucchini, just the way we like them.

Picking some zucchini for dinner tonight.

Can;t wait to taste these.

This is how big they are against my hand. (And I know what you are thining about that one zucchini!)

Time with Our Grandsons

We had lunch downtown Truckee with Jen and Jacob Monday afternoon. John and Jus were at the race track practicing with Grandpa Bob. Jacob loves the Junior puffs and was stuffing them into his mouth as fast as he could.

Here he is trying to smile with his mouth stuffed full.

Jen and John left for an over night get-a-way and Grandaddy and I stayed with the boys. A Jacob and Gram Gram cuddly moment. I live for these moments.

Jacob does a lot of walking if you hold his hands. In fact he wants to do this most of the time.

My two very handsome and adorable grandsons, Justin and Jacob. (I'm not prejudiced!)

Jacob practicing his sexy bad boy look to make the girls swoon when he grows up.

Jen and John return from their overnight get-a-way. Everyone happy to see each other.

Granddaddy resting at the hotel later that afternoon.

More Baking for Justin - Peanut Butter Chips and Jelly Bars

Peanut Butter Chips and Jelly Bars

1 1/2 cups AP flour
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold butter
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup Grape Jelly
1 2/3 cup (10 ounce package) peanut butter chips, divided

Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease (I used PAM) 9-inch square baking pan.

Stir together flour, sugar, and baking powder in a large bowl. With pastry blender or two knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbles. Add egg; blend well. Reserve half of mixture; press remaining mixture onto bottom of prepared pan. Spread jelly over crust. Sprinkle 1 cup PB chips over jelly. Stir together reserved crumb mixture with remaining 2/3 cup chips; sprinkle over top.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.

Tips: For a whimsical twist on this TNT classic, use cookie cutters to cut out shapes.

Yield: 16 bars
Source: Hershey's Best Loved Recipes, 2000

Baking For Justin - Peanut Butter Chip Brownie Cups

We're going to staying with the boys tomorrow night while Jen and John have their first ever overnight get-a-away since Jacob was born. I always enjoy surprising Justin with homebaked goodies because he enjoys getting them form me and eating them so much. Today I baked up these delights to bring with me. Recipe is included. They are really good. Definiate kid and adult pleasers.

PB Chip Brownie Cups

1 cup (2 cubes) butter
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
3/4 cup Hershey's Cocoa or Dutch Processed Cocoa
1 3/4 cups AP flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 2/3 cups (10 ounce package) peanut butter chips, divided

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 18 muffin cups (2 1/2 inches in diameter) with paper or foil baking cups.

Place butter in large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH (100%) 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until melted. Stir in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs; beat well. Add cocoa; beat until well blended. Add flour, baking powder and salt; beat well. Stir in 1 1/3 cups peanut butter chips. Divide batter evenly into muffin cups; sprinkle with remaining 1/3 cup peanut butter chips.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until surface is firm; cool completely in pan on wire rack.

Yield: 18
Source: Hershey's Best Loved Recipes, 2000

Weekend Moments

Hydrangea's are blooming in the garden.......

Asiatic Lilies are blooming.......

Friday morning at the local farm stand........

They come to Mather and the proceeds benefit the Head Start Program which I love as well. We go every Friday morning when we are in town. Friday the teachers brought the kids over from the Head Start program in the building next door. They were having a good time learning about fresh prioduce.

A couple of wild turkey's roaming the neighborhood. There are a ton of them that live at the golf course in our community.

I love the sound they make.

Our shared garden at Theresa and Shawn's is really growing and looking good! Here is one of the poblano chile plants.

Banana Squash.

Heirloom tomatoes.

Japanese cucumbers.

David picking some of the gourmet assorted Italian radishes. They have gotten pretty big and quite spicy. He loves them.

Spaghetti Squash.

Peaches.

Apricots. They are getting near being ripe! There are a lot of them and they look wonderful.

Little zucchini. Ready to pick today.

Yesterday our dear friend Rose spent the afternoon and evening with us. We played Mexican Train and had a late dinner. I taught both David and Rose how to play yesterday. They both ended up doing better than I did! It was a good time with lots of laughter.

Out With The Old, In With The New

Wednesday was the last official luncheon held at Frasinetti's Winery of the Newcomer's year and the old board went out and the new board is welcomed in.

Young Board Members - Old Board

New Board Coming In - Starts in September

Beauties in Black and White - Peggy and Verona

Pretty in Turquoise - Me and Paulette

The Three Stooges - Verona, Paulette and Barbara

Baked Multigrain Penne with Roasted Vegetables

I adapted this recipe to fit what I had on hand from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe from the cookbook Everyday Pasta. In parenthesis is recipe ingredients I didn't use.

2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded, and cut into 1-inch strips
2 zucchini, quartered lengthwise, and cut into 1-inch pieces
6 to 8 asparagus spears, cut in half lengthwise, and cut into 1-inch pieces (2 summer squash)
1 small portobello mushrooms, gills removed and cut into 1-inch pieces (4 crimini mushrooms, quartered)
1 yellow onion, peeled and sliced into 1-inch strips
1/4 cup EVOO
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dried Italian herb blend OR Herbes de Provence
1 box Barilla Plus Multigrain Penne pasta (1 pound penne pasta)
3 cups marinara sauce, store-bought or homemade
1 cup grated mozzarella (1 cup grated Fontina)
1/2 cup grated Yancy's Roasted Garlic Cheese (1/2 cup grated smoked mozzarella)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus 1/3 cup for topping
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
(2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces)


Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. On a baking sheet, toss the bell peppers, asparagus, zucchini, mushrooms, and onion with the EVOO, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of pepper, and the herbs. Bake until tender, about 15 minutes or so.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. add the pasta and cook for about 7 minutes or so. Since you will be cooking the pasta a second time in the oven, you want to make sure it is not completely cooked. Drain in a colander.

In a bowl, combine the pasta with the roasted vegetables, marinara sauce,

mozzarella, roasted garlic cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan, the peas

and the remaining salt and pepper. Gently mix using a wooden spoon until all the pasta is coated with the sauce and the ingredients are combined.

Pour the pasta into a greased 9X13X2-inch baking dish. Top with remaining 1/3 cup of Parmesan and the butter pieces if you are using. I didn't.

Bake until the top is golden and the cheese melts, about 25 minutes. Cooked perfectly at 20 minutes in my oven. This is a great dish for every day or when you have guests because you can make it ahead and refrigerate, then bake it while you are finishing up the rest of dinner. It's delicious!

I know what I am having for dinner tonight. Leftovers!

Low-Fat Dessert

I caught this recipe in an advertisement for dole canned pineapple in magazine recently. I made it light by using crushed pineapple in it's own juice, sugar and fat free instant vanilla pudding mix, and lite Cool Whip. I know Cool whip is not healthy any way you scoop it, but..........

Mix crushed pineapple (20 oz) with juice and dry pudding mix together in a bowl. Add 1 cup Cool whip and stir gently until incorporated. Refrigerate.

Bake an angel food cake. Let cool completely.

You can cut the cake into 3 layers and place filling on top of each layer and top of cake. Decorate with fresh berries. Or you can scoop filling onto store-bought shortcakes and top with fresh berries. Or do what I opted and cut a piece of angel food cake in pieces and layer in a parfait glass with filling and fresh berries. Very light and refreshing and simple to throw together.

Fun with Produce

I love this time of year. The farmers markets tables are laden with gorgeous fruits and vegetables to choose from. I have canceled our organic produce delivery for now. I much prefer to be able to go out and pick exactly what it is I want for the week.

There is a small farm stand locally every Friday morning that I have been going to. Each week it is different. The last Friday it was a bonanza of things we love to eat.

These strawberries weer so ripe and juicy that the juice ran down your chin. I am sorry I didn't buy enough to make jam.

Look at the color of these golden beets, gorgeous! They taste spectacular too. I have to share this funny story. I also picked David up some turnips which he likes to eat raw for a snack. He peeeld one of my beets and put a piece in his mouth. He tol me these were very different tasting turnips, very sweet. I laughed so hard when I realized he was eating a raw golden beet!

Cooked up and ready to eat. Wish I had bought more to make a cream of golden beet soup.

Fresh chard. So tender and tasty.

David has been loving the artichokes.

Costco had a big bag of limes at a great price so I juiced and froze it for use in marinades and cooking.

Costco also had boxes of oranges from Exeter, CA. These are the oranges I have been dreaming off for over 25 years. My former MIL lived near there and always bought them out in the orchards. She would bring a case to us each time she visited. Fresh squeezed orange juice every morning. These oranges are what I know a fresh picked CA orange to be; sweet with just the right amount of acidity. I juiced these and froze the juice as well. I am heading back to get another case to eat and juice fresh each morning. This is a bit of heaven for me.

I like to marinate boneless skinless chicken breasts in 1 up Meyer lemon juice (or lime juice), 1/2 cup orange juice, 1/2 cup tequila, 1 tablespoon chile powder and 1/4 teaspoon or to taste of chipotle chile powder or cayenne pepper. Leave them in the fridge overnight and grill the next evening. So tasty and tender!

Moments in Truckee

The beginning of last week we went up Jen's way with friends Verona and Bill. We spent the day with John, Jen and the kids the day we drove up. Here's Jacob at the restaurant we all had lunch at in historic downtown Truckee. He was just too cute.

We were playing with an eye glass case Verona gave Jacob to play with. We were pushing it back and forth to one another like it was a race car.

When we got back to the house Justin came home form school. Here's Jacob playing with Spikey Girl, Justin's guinea pig.

Jacob playing and stopping to pose each time I raised the camera. I am not kidding. He does stops and smiles toward the camera!

Okay, one more time Gram-Gram!

and again.........

It's hard to stop snapping pictures of my little one.

Justin's friend came over after school. Can I remember her name? Nope. She is a real sweet girl.

Jus wrapping Spikey Girl up like a burrito.

Mother's Day #4 Theresa and Shawn's

Theresa called to wish me a happy Mother's Day and asked us over to see how our joint garden is growing and to give me a gift they had for me. It was good to see them. The garden is healthy and growing well!

Butternut Squash

The tomato plants are getting a lot taller!

Blossoms on one of the tomato plants.

Bell peppers.

Radishes.

Poblano chile.

One of the branches laden with peaches broke in the wind last week! We are so looking forward to enjoying homegrown vegetables and fruits. I am also looking forward to canning jams!

Mother's Day #3 The Car Wash

We had to stop on the way home to fill the van with gas and get it washed. I was bored sitting in the car waiting, first for David to fill the tank and secondly waiting for our turn to go through the car wash. Once we were inside I started snapping pictures of the windshield during the cycles. Here's some of what I took. There are some wild ones. I am thinking of blowing up a few of them to frame for a wall in my office..........

Mother Day #2 Sights

After brunch while waiting for the valet to get our van I snapped some pictures of the old historic buildings, and all the people and cars. It was a madhouse in Old Sac today.

Interesting history about Old Sac. It flooded terribly all the time. In 1862 they actually started working on raising the street level by one building floor! Some building owners jacked their building up and built a basement underneath, some left the first floor underground and built a second story onto what was the original second story and now the first story. Others left the first floor buried, and the second story became the first and they left it that way. When you roam through downtown and look at the buildings, it is amazing knowing why some buildings are one story, two story, three story.....

Lots of people......

Lots of great old buildings.

Then we drove to the other side of the river to what is called The River Walk.

These pics are out of order! We drove over this bridge to get there!

There is a moving Veteran's Plaza there with plaques that represent every war in the history of the US. The plaques started with the Spanish-American War and ended with Desert Storm.

The plaza is below. I actually cheated. The full view of the Delta King I posted in MD #1 was actually taken from this side of the river. It's the main reason we drove over there.

The following shots I took through the car window so I know they are not the best.

Wild building. It's a triangle.

Just liked this crazy sign.

Below the dome to the state capitol.

The Crocker Museum is featuring Fantasies and Fairy Tales by Maxfield Parrish. We are planning on going back on a day that is not so insane in the area.

Mother's Day #1 - Brunch

We went to The Pilothouse Restaurant on the Delta King for Mother's Day Brunch this morning. Vaden and Arlen gifted us with a gift certificate for 2 brunches quite a while ago. So thank you both for the wonderful brunch! It's a gorgeous day here in the Sacramento area - sun, clear blue skies, temp's in the mid 80's and not a breeze, even on the water.


The Delta King is a 285 foot river boat that was built in 1927 along with it's twin The Delta Queen. Both did daily voyages between San Francisco and Sacramento until the late 1930's. A state room cost $3.50! The Depression and WWII signaled the end of the stern wheeler era and both were drafted into the US Navy. They served on the SF Bay as net tenders, floating barracks, troop transports and hospital ships.

The Delta Queen was purchased and moved to the Mississippi River where she still is. The Delta King engines were taken with her for spare parts. The Delta King was shuttled between CA and Canada as a derelict. They hoped to make it a floating Ghiradelli Square or something similar but never worked out. It sank in the SF Bay. In 1984 it was brought up and towed to Old Sac and a complete renovation was done. It reopened in 1989.

It's our favorite place in this area to have champagne brunch. The atmosphere both inside and out is beautiful and the laden buffet tables, omelet stations and carving tables offer very good food.

There were so many people who made reservations that they also set up tables outside as well. We were asked if we wanted to sit out there and said no. Once we saw that there wasn't a breeze and you were in the shade we thought it would have been a very nice place to enjoy our brunch.

David enjoying the view while I am snapping pictures.

I am a happy Mom.

My amazing husband. We had a lovely time, but I missed my mother, our kids and grand kids. I remembered how we would all get together and have brunch for Mother's Day and other occasions. Those were very special times. We will be seeing Jen and her family tomorrow which we are excited about, and we did see Theresa and Shawn this afternoon. (Garden pics to come.) Happy Mother's Day to all the Mom's!

Have a Great Day!

The day the Lord created hope was probably the same day he created Spring. - Bern Williams

Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. - Warren Buffet

In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you. - Deepak Chopra

Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant. - Rpobert Louis Stevenson

Everyone is trying to accomplish something big, not realizing that life is made up of little things. - Frank A. Clark

The future belings to those you believe in the beauty of their dreams. - Eleanor Rossevelt

To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart. - Donal Laird

A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. - Erin Majors

An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory. - Friedrick Engels

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

I've always felt it was not up to anyone else to make me give my best. - Akeem Olguiwa

Happy Retirement Ron!

My brother Ron officially retired the last day of April. Deb, Erin, David and I were able to be there with him in Omaha via a video conference and phone conference. We were ab;e to see everything and hear everything, and even talk to Ron. Erin has a web cam so Ron was able to see them too! It was so awesome!

There's Ron and I believe that is his former boss Chuck. Chuck and Ron Hunt made all this possible for us to be there too.

I sent lots of pictures of Ron as a little guy, growing up and some recent ones. Erin sent some recent ones too. They made a power point presentation so we could see it as well on our computer screens. They wrote funny and real text for the pictures. Lots of fun, memories and laughter.

Some of the people that were there to help send him off. It was such a special day and I am still excited to have been able to be there with Ron. His son Ryan was there in person taking lots of video which was really special too. Congratulations Ron on being a retiree!!!

Garden Happenings this Week

We picked up a couple of bird of paradise plants, cala lilies, Dahlia and peony bulbs, and a few other items for our garden.

Roses in the garden.

Dahlias coming up left from last year. We planted more in this pot and another pot on the patio.

Peach colored rose.

Peace rose.

Reba Macintyre rose.

Pink rose.

The George Burns rose. Looks like a carnation doesn't it?

Planted some chives next to the thyme and sweet basil pots outside the kitchen slider.

Another rose.

This miniature rose Theresa gave us when we first moved into this house 8 years ago. It is always healthy and full of blooms. Love the yellow/orange brightness of it.

My neighbor Deborah gave me sweet pea seedlings a few years ago. They came back this year. I love surprises in my garden!

One of the bird of paradise plants we put in a pot at the entrance area to the spa.

Another new plant we put in the ground.

The hydrangeas are budding!

A Day In the Wine Country

Yesterday we spend the day in the wine country. We went out for a private tasting and food event with Continuum at their new estate. We our day raining day in the wine country at Silver Oak tasting their new releases. Wonderful as always, though this year I think the Napa has the edge over the Alexander Valley release. It was nice to see their new tasting room and winery after the old one burned down a few years ago. Very well done. From here we went to Twomey for a special tasting of their newly released pinots, and also a sauvignon blanc and a one time bottling of syrah. There was a food pairing (appey) with each wine. We weren't crazy about the pinots, but loved the syrah. I am a fan of their sauvignon blanc. They did the majority of the tasting and pairings in the barrel room.

We ate a picnic lunch in the car in St. Helena; David a sandwich and I sushi since it rained most of the day. Then we headed over to Yountville and did some wondering around through Michael Chiarello's Napa Style store, poked our heads into his new restaurant Bottega, a fabulous glass gallery and art gallery before heading on to Continuum.

A shot of Bouchon restaurant while driving to Continuum.

The first stop for this special Continuum tasting is a parking lot where we catch a van limo that takes us up and up the hills to their new estate. We were in the back seats having been the last to fill this limo. At one point we were climbing so steeply that looking out the front window of the limo all we could see was sky.

A few shots I snapped on the way up the hills......

Once we reached our destination we were let off in front of the estate. The first thing you see is a lovely pool and surrounding gardens. Walking a lovely stone pathway takes us to a long porch/walkway in front of the main house and guest house that links them together. There is a table set up and they are pouring a white wine and Tim Mondavi and his daughter Clarissa are there to welcome and greet each guest as they arrive. From there we went into the guest house to the kitchen and eating area. Here they were pouring tastings of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, and petit verdot. I am a fan if the cab franc. They served an olive panna cotta with it to bring out the flavors in the wine. Awesome! Then we made out way to the main house. A room right off the entry way (I believe to be the dining room) had a live jazz group and buffet tables laden with finger foods; pates, a dried salami that had an orange flavor to it that was delicious, dried prosciutto, cheeses, nuts, olives, pickles, breads. Stepping down a few steps from the entry way we went into what I would say was the living room. A gorgeous stone fireplace and a wall of glass doors leading to balcony over looking hills, trees and vineyards. Lovely. Here they were pouring the 2006 Continuum. Very nice. Walking past the room with the band and passing the kitchen which was closed off because the caterers were working there, we walked up a small flight of stone stairs to another room that I would say is a bedroom with a separate small sun room off it that overlooks the pool area and gardens. They were pouring the 2005 Continuum here. Very very nice. During this event wait staff passed around appeys. A few examples halibut with capers, citrus zest and herbs served in Chinese soup spoons and boneless leg of lamb stuffed with herbs and garlic and with an olive tapenade served on bread. An absolutely delightful day and experience. We made our way back down the hill in the limo to our car and headed on home. I am sure tou are wondering why I was guessing at what each room was. They had removed 99% opf the furniture and art work from the walls (the hooks were still on the walls) so that nothing was apparent of what the house is decorated like perssonally. The guest house had most of it's furniture still in it.

Vegetable and Fruit Gardening Happenings at Theresa and Shawn's

These pictures were taken a week ago.

The radish seeds are growing!

The first tomato plants that went in the ground really took off.

We are all excited to see them happy and healthy.

Above is the Clementine Mandarin tree I bought for the shared garden.

This is the Eashington Navel Orange tree Theresa got. We discovered there is already a navel orange tree in their yard and we have one in our yard, so hopefully we will be having lots of oranges!

Fruiye, fruit and more fruit! I forget what trees I snapped pictures of. I know the apricot tree for sure.

We are so going to have home canned jams and fresh fruit this year!

Food and Art Happenings

I used some of the fresh Meyer lemon juice and peel I have in the freezer and made sorbet the other day.

Simple in my ice cream maker. I made a simple syrup and made sure to keep it in the fridge over night (2 cups water to 2 cups sugar) to get very cold. I added a tablespoon of finely minced Meyer lemon zest and 1 1/2 cups fresh juice to the simple syrup. The juice and zest were chilled as well. Poured into my ice cream maker and let it run for about 55 minutes. Place in n airtight container and freeze until hardened.

It is really good. The zest really gives it an added lemon kick.

Sunday I attended a luncheon and silent auction of an art guild my friend Averill is President of. Our special group of ladies went together and had a great time,. There was a wonderful fashion show by three different stores and drawings throughout the day as well. Lots of big fun and I wasn't out bid on 2 of the 4 items I was trying for. I will have to snap pictures and post them .

The luncheon was at the Spaghetti Factory in Roseville. The very nicest Spaghetti Factory any of us have eve been to.

Some of the items in the silent auction.

They were set to roll.

Most of the items were hand painted, though there was also some sewn items and handmade jewelry.

I did get the Easter lady bunny you see in this picture. It is made out of a dried gourd. It's too cute.