A time to laugh - Part 2

Since tomorrow is dad's birthday, it seems fitting that I go ahead and complete my blog about Greg. (They were somewhat inseparable!) When it comes to my kids, the posts can get really lenghty, but I'll try to keep it all short and in context :)

So when we found out we were pregnant, I wanted a cool way to tell mom and dad ( I guess "reveal" type stuff was in even back in '89!)  Mom made all of my clothes, so I thought -- perfect.  I'll go buy a dress pattern, take it to her and see what she says.  So I did.  Mom looked at the pattern, thought how cute of a dress it was, not noticing that it said "materinity" on it until I pointed it out LOL  Mom and dad were SOOO excited!

And then in January 1989, along came Greg.  I can remember thinking before he was born, "Dennis and I have got this.  We don't need any help.  No one can tell me how to parent" etc... Boy were we wrong!  I was never so excited to see mom and dad bring their suitcases and stay with us for the first week!  I learned my lesson then....I needed my parents now more than ever. 

So back to Greg... he probably spent a lot more time, especially growing up, more with dad than he did mom.  He and dad were always getting into something -- every day was spent in his workshop building something.  One year for Christmas, dad built himself, Dennis and Jerry gun cases.  Greg pounded away on them, too.  Maybe that's why our door is a little crooked??  LOL  Actaully, it's perfect!  If they weren't building something, they were hunting (or attempting to), or in the garden or dad was letting Greg mow the yard.  Now, that is a tricky subject.  Mom has flowers....LOTS of flowers!  As much as Greg wanted on that mower, he wasn't very talented when it come to making those really tight curves.  There was one day when Greg mowed over one of mom's bushes.  Of course, dad took the blame, even though mom knew who did it.  As much as she loved that bush, she loved her Gregory more.  It was okay.

As he got older, and after dad died, he spent a lot of time with mom.  He would check on her, even when I didn't know he was.  In the spring when the jonquils would bloom, he always picked her a bouquet, usually from the side of the road somewhere.   He was constantly going over there, doing chores for her, carrying in her groceries, changing light bulbs, fixing her TV.  It wasn't that she was incapable of doing some of those things -- she just enjoyed Gregory taking care of her.

Grandma was the woman by which his future wife would be judged!  I didn't know this until after they were married, but Jess had told me that when they were dating, Greg had told her that if Grandma didn't approve, it wouldn't work out.  I think that says a lot about him and his character, and the love and the trust that he put in his grandma's opinion.  Now, he knew exactly what her answer was going to be about Jess -- we all did!  Mom loved her and approved :) 

Greg was always so patient and loving with mom.  Just a few weeks before she went to Heaven, we had dinner at church.  That was the one time that she went to church in her wheelchair (which she didn't want to do by the way!)  Before church was out, Greg leaned over and told me he was taking mom on over and getting her plate before anyone left.  He didn't want her waiting, and by going before church was dismissed, it wasn't really noticed that she was in a wheelchair -- or in pants, but that's a different story for a different day LOL

The day we went to the hospital, Greg was so brave.  He was trying to calm me down, when I know inside he was hurting just as much.  Such a precious, giving heart.  But true love came in mom's room earlier in the evening.  Not a lot of people know this story and I hope he is okay with me sharing....  The nurse came in to put mom's leg in traction.  She had said it would be painful, but she would try to do is as quick and painless as she could, but she assured us it would feel better once she was done.  I somewhat halfheartedly asked her if she needed help (if you know me much at all, you will know that I am NOT a nurse!).  To my surprise, she said she could really use another set of hands.  I didn't know what to do.  Greg stepped up -- he said I can do it.  Such unselfish love!  As hard as that was for him, it was a beautiful act of kindness.  At that time and that moment, I could not have been any prouder to call him my son...

I have heard before you can tell how a man will treat his wife by the way he treats his mom.  Well, he has always been an awesome kid....but if you can tell how a man will treat his wife by the way he treats his grandma, then Jess -- your days will be filled with love, respect, admiration, and devotion.  Not to say there won't be some disagreements, after all mom did get after him with a flyswatter a time or two.  But he stuck with her until the end and showed his unconditional love.

Next time.... Whit...

  

A time to laugh - Part 1

It's been over a month now.  Seems like yesterday -- seems like years ago.  I still don't know exactly how to function everyday.  Seems like every day brings something that needs done, or something that needs thought about or decisions that need to be made.  If it were for anyone else, I would be calling mom and dad and asking, "Is this the right decision?"  But -- I can't.  One of our favorite sayings here at the shelter is "put your big girl panties on."  We tell each other that all the time!  Sometimes you just have to step up, make a decision, hope and pray it was the right one, and stand by it, no matter what.  Easier said that done.

But in the midst of all my downheartedness, I decided it was time to find a reason to smile or to laugh -- at least just a little.  So I thought I would down on paper things about my family that might not be known that make me smile.  It would be easy to start with the kids -- but I thought I would start with Dennis.

I hadn't really thought about it much, but he was around my mom as a "mom" for right about as long as he was his mom.  His mom died when he was 32 and he had known my mom for 30 years.  That's hard to imagine!  So he and mom had a really good relationship.  Actually, I had told her and my dad that I thought they liked Dennis better than they did me.  Funny......I don't remember them ever telling me that I was wrong!!  LOL 

Dennis spent a lot of time with dad -- they seemed to be able to get in the worst shenanigans ever!  They would occasionally let me and mom tag along.  There was one night in particular that we were coon hunting.  Mom and I were in the truck and dad and Dennis had went to get the dog.  When they came back, you could tell something had happened.  That's when the story started about how they had seen Moses' "burning bush."  Mom and I accused them of hitting a little bottle while they were gone, but they both assured us it looked just like a burning bush.  Probably some kind of glowing bugs, and maybe you just had to be there to witness their faces, but it was priceless.

Then there was the time that we were headed to a pageant in Ft. Smith.  It was coming a really bad storm.  We were driving on the state highway instead of interstate that day -- just taking a scenic route.  All of a sudden, the sky turned pitch black.  Tornado sirens were going off and the rain was POURING down!  Poor Dennis couldn't see for anything!  Mom was in the backseat begging him to stop -- in the middle of the road, no less.  Of course, he didn't -- but she was so scared.  We have had many laughs with her about that day.

Mom loved her flowers -- ALL of them!  When Dennis would mow her yard, she always reminded him not to mow down her flowers.  I don't think he ever did -- at least not on purpose, but it probably wasn't too far in the back of his mind.

We were driving to Harrison the other day and Dennis told me about a couple of years ago when we took our camper to Branson for the week.  Mom came up and stayed with us, of course.  But then Dennis decided he was going to come back home and go to work for a few days.  I expected mom to stay up there with me as she had done in the past but she decided if Dennis was coming home, she would just come home with him for a few days and then come back with him the next weekend.  He said on the way home, they saw an elk in the field.  She had never seen one except on TV.  So he pulled over so she could look at it for a bit.  He has always been so patient and kind with her, and for that, I'm grateful.

As I said in an earlier post, one of us always looked at her house before we went to bed at night to see if she was up, had a light on, etc...  I noticed last night as we went to bed, Dennis opened up the curtain, looked over towards her house, turned the light off and went to bed.  Habits are hard to break.....

Next blog......Greg.....

What a difference a day makes......

Today marks 2 weeks.....and it's the last day of the year.  I guess there should be some irony in that somewhere.  Two weeks since mom left this world to be with dad and God.  My, my -- what a difference a day makes.  This post could get lengthy -- maybe it's just me trying to get it all "out of my system" -- if you read it -- thanks.  If not, that's okay, too.

It was no surprise to me that mom's health was declining.  Dennis and I had talked about it a couple of months ago that she was getting a lot worse.  I had even told a couple of my co-workers that I did not believe she would be here at Christmas.  Wish that was one premonition that hadn't come true.

I was at my desk on Monday the 15th of December.  A weird phone number came up on my cell phone -- I think from Ohio if I remember correctly.  Thinking it was some telemarketer, I didn't answer.  But they left a message.  As I was listening and heard "This is Lifeline" our office phone was ringing -- they were calling me at work.  Mom had fell and pushed her button.  I told them to go ahead and send out an ambulance, all the while they were telling me I could wait until someone got out there.  But I knew my mom.  She has never pushed her button before, even in times when later she would tell me she should have.  So if she pushed it -- she needed help and help now.  Here I am -- trying to drive home from Russellville at school time no less.  When I finally got there, she was already on the backboard getting ready to be loaded into the ambulance.  I had called Glenda -- she and Bill were on their way to Florida.  She gave me some of the greatest advice -- call and leave a message on your mom's answering machine.  She will know you are coming!  I am so glad I did that.  Mom told me that she heard me and knew help was on the way.

A broken hip -- that seems to be the worst diagnosis an elderly person can ever get.  Surgery would be scheduled the next day.  Mom was in a semi-private room in Russellville.  And so at first, I was going to go home and spend the night, come back early on Tuesday.  But for some reason, I thought I should stay.  I told mom I would go home and change clothes and be back -- she didn't argue -- first clue something was wrong.

A pretty uneventful night -- I didn't sleep but she and her roommate did -- lots of snoring between those two!  But oh, what a beautiful sound!  When she got up the next morning, she wasn't concerned about herself.  She was concerned because Whit would graduate from Arkansas Tech on Saturday and she wouldn't get to go.  She was concerned because her hair appointment was Friday with Pam and she wouldn't get to go. 

As the day progressed, her condition deteriorated.  She had so many health conditions fighting against her and her little body just couldn't take anymore.  Decisions were made that night that I am still trying to come to terms with.  For anyone who could ever say how easy it is to make the decision to "let someone go" -- well -- I'm wired differently than a lot of people I suppose.  It was, and it still, one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make.  I still question was it right -- was it the right time?? I believe in God -- I believe in miracles.  If I believe God can take me to heaven, how do I convince myself that mom couldn't have had her own miracle????  Oh well, it's probably just my view -- and I don't know how to get over that part.

Her funeral was beautiful.  Lots of flowers, lots of people, great food prepared by our church family.  One of her quilts proudly displayed.  Her jewelry on all the right fingers (trust me -- that was a harder task than we thought it would be!)  She was serenaded by the Johnson Family - a music heritage that she belonged to.  We played a couple of songs from their album and a song that was played at my dad's service that she loved.  Rev. Earl Stapleton, a former pastor and friend to mom and dad had such beautiful words to say.  And then our former pastor, Rev Jamie Burris who my mom thought was the best person to ever preach a funeral did amazing.  He asked us for stories or things that he could include so it would be personal.  I loved that.  As most know, mom had a great LOVE for shopping.  So one of my favorite parts of the message was when he said something along of the lines of mom already talking to Mary, Martha, maybe Esther asking "Where do you guys shop?"  Perfection!

I am so thankful for a couple of weekends before she died.  I called her on a Friday night to see if she would be up for a trip to Ft. Smith shopping.  She really wasn't "up" for it, but she wasn't going to pass on the trip either.  Jessica and Whitney went with us and we had the best day.  We laughed, we shopped, we ate -- what we all love to do (well the girls do -- I'm the driver LOL) She picked out a dress at Dillards.  it was beautiful.  She didn't know then that the tags would not be removed until I took it to the funeral home.  She looked beautiful in it.  We had stopped at A to Z and picked out a spray for dad's grave for Christmas on the way home.  It looks beautiful on the headstone for the both of them now.

On Sunday the 14th, something strange happened.  Whit was at the house when we got home from church.  "Let's go out to eat," she said.  With us going to different churches and everyone being so busy, the 6 of us (Greg and Jess, Whit and Jeremy and me and Dennis) going out to eat is few and far between -- especially on a Sunday!  I was changing clothes so Dennis called mom to see if she wanted to go -- we didn't go many places that we didn't ask her to go LOL  At first she said no, but then when she realized the kids would be there, she said yes.  I am so thankful that there were 7 at that table that day!  A moment I will treasure.

Her house looks so quite now.  Dennis or I one would always look outside before we went to bed to see if she was still up or in bed.  I still look every night.  I always checked to see if she was up on my way to work.  I still look that way.  I have picked up the phone to call her several times.  I'm thankful I found a couple of voicemail messages she left on my cell phone -- those will not be erased.

I know that time will heal wounds, but right now, the wound is very deep and it hurts so bad.  Dennis' parents are both gone, and now, so are mine.  As we have talked -- we feel like orphans.  I know there are plenty of aunts and uncles who will step in to try to feel the void as best they can -- and we SO appreciate that -- we love them all.  But we also know it will never be the same.

So now, one year closes and a new year starts -- wow what a difference a day makes.  I am still very much in the "one foot in front of the other" mode.  We will continue to live, we will try to smile and eventually, hopefully, find some peace.  I'm so thankful for what my mother taught me -- to love, to respect, to laugh, to smile.   She taught me how to be a good wife, a GREAT mother (ask my kids LOL) and one day, if I take after her, I will be the BEST GRANDMOTHER in the world!

Thank you mom for all you did for me and for just being my mom!  I love you!

Jannie Lou

My new toy!

Dennis and I have crossed over into the EGGhead world!!

This past weekend, I was fortunate enough to help put together the first EGG'N in the Valley event for the shelter.  We had some awesome cooking teams come from all over to cook on the Big Green Egg.  I was so nervous -- had no idea what to expect in the way of the crowd, what our teams expected, what our craft booth people expected, how the entertainment would turn out, and most importantly (for the shelter) how much money we could raise since this will be a continuing major fundraiser.  Yep..... I'm a worrier.  I must say, I came close to a nervous breakdown a time or two. 

But in the end, all I can say is WOW!!!!  Talk about some amazing cooking teams!!  I had food that included a breakfast casserole, bacon wrapped watermelon rind (and it was delish!), stuffed peppers, meatloaf/potatoes, apple pie.... and the list goes on and on.  Our cooking teams were on fire (or smokin' hot, as our t-shirts say LOL)  All this time, I was so worried for myself about what I could do for them, and in return, they showed me what they could do for me.  They showed up and showed out for our event (and I mean that in the best way possible!!!)  Talk about some amazing dishes, some of the friendliest people I have EVER met and just made our event the best it could possibly be! Our entertainment was phenomenal, the arts and crafts booths were fully stocked and enjoyed by all.

During this journey, we had to pre-sell these things called EGGs.  I had no idea what an EGG was -- it was a board member who come up with this idea since she has one and has been to an EGGfest before.  It was a first not only for Russellville, but for the great state of Arkansas as well.  So being the good executive director that I am (HA!) if we were going to sell these EGGs, I thought it was part of my responsibility to purchase one.   The more I got to reading about them and the more researching I did, I became more intrigued, to say the least.  And then, the big day happened.   Seeing all these grills going out there just made me that much more excited about purchasing one. 

So now, it's sitting at my house, just waiting to be fired up.  The decision is being made....what to cook first....and second....and third....and how am I going to convince Dino that we need to build a deck around it....oh and we need the Mini for the camper.....  Welp, they say a way to a man's heart is through his stomach.....guess I got that covered now LOL  I can already tell he's going to enjoy it as much as me.  I will posting more about my new grill and hopefully some wonderful food pics and recipes!

God Bless,
Jannie

Mom's Chocolate Pie

I am very fortunate that my mom is an excellent cook!  My dad was also a very good cook!  I wonder why that gene didn't get passed down to me??  Oh, well, I do love to try so today I thought I would try one of mine and dad's favorites -- Mom's chocolate pie!!  And it's been a while since I have blogged about cooking anything -- it seems like every time I start to blog, something happens.  We live in a busy world, I guess.  But today, I have the house to myself (well me and Daisy -- we're grand dog sitting this weekend LOL) so my mixer was happy to see me :) 

Now, in starting with the pie, you have to start with a pie crust, right?  My mom always made hers, but of course, I took the easy way out and bought a pie crust.  I did have to put it in the oven and cook it, so does that it make it at least a little homemade??? LOL

So however you chose, cook your pie crust according to directions.

Now we need to start with the filling.  First we need to separate the eggs.  I'm sure my mom would separate using the shells, but I chose to use my trusty egg separator apparatus LOL  Whoever invented this jewel of an kitchen accessory should be put on a pedestal LOL 

So take 4 eggs and separate the egg whites and the yolks.

Now I have this one pot that is the only one that I will use to make pies.  It is really heavy duty and I don't have to worry about stuff sticking as much.  That's a good thing :) 

After you have the eggs separated, beat your yolks and then add 1 1/2 cups of milk.

Now for the dry ingredients:
Mix together a 1 1/2 sugar along with about 3 heaping tablespoons of flour.  Mix together and then add about 3 heaping tablespoons of Hershey's cocoa.

Now another thing about my mother is she never measured anything!!  That I did inherit that from her.  So when I say about -- well I just kind of guess.  If you stump your toe and add a little more, it's okay.  Just be careful with the cocoa -- too much will make it bitter.

Now for the cooking stage:

Cook your milk/egg mixture on medium high.  Once it starts getting hot, you will want to stir it very often or continually.  Once it starts to boil, add the dry mixture.

Now it is important to continually stir -- no one wants burnt chocolate and it will stick very, very quickly!  I didn't keep up with the time, but I would say I probably cooked this at least 5 - 8 minutes. Just remember -- KEEP STIRRING!! :)  It will start to thicken up -- my rule is when I can pick the spoon up and it's really slow falling off the spoon, it's ready.  But hey, if you take it off too soon and it doesn't set up -- just eat it with a spoon!  I won't tell...

Now pour it into your prepared shell.

And now......the hard part for me.......the meringue.....

I have a love/hate relationship with meringue.  Sometimes it works for me....sometimes it doesn't.  I think today was a good day.

So make sure that your egg whites are at room temperature before you start whipping them up.  I think where I have messed up before is that I don't have the patience to wait on it to get done.  So I took my time today :)  I started beating the eggs on a medium speed.

Oh, and add a little bit of cream of tarter, too... about forgot that step.  I just added about a 1/4 tsp.  Beat until they are soft and well mixed.

Now we have to add the sugar -- the general rule is 2 TBS sugar to each egg -- so 4 eggs -- 8 tablespoons of sugar.  The trick is to add the sugar SLOWLY!  Don't get in a hurry.  You want the sugar to completely dissolve.  Beat with your mixer until stiff peaks form.  Then spoon the meringue on top of your pie filling.  Make sure to close all the edges.

Put it in the oven just to brown the meringue.
And then here you go!!!

At least it looks somewhat pretty LOL  It sure tastes like mom's and according to my brother-in-law, it tastes like his mom's did too!!  So that makes it a doubly good recipe.  Every family gathering, I try to make one for Dennis and his brothers since their mom is watching over them in Heaven.  I think her and my dad would be pretty proud of this pie!! 

Happy cooking!!
Jannie

Nella's Chicken

So I'm not too good to admit that I love to use other people's recipes.  I have a friend/co-worker, LaNell Thompson, who is a great cook.  A few weeks ago, we were all tired at the office of fast food and decided we wanted some good "home cookin'" -- so LaNell to the rescue.  She decided to make us some of her baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and biscuits.  It was so good and so easy.  So I asked her if I could share her recipe on my blog and luckily for you, she said yes :)  And luckily for me, I get to use my new casserole dish that I got for Christmas and have never used.  Isn't it pretty??

So our list of characters includes:
Chicken breasts
Seasoning (I used Cavenders, Kosher salt)

In a skillet over medium heat with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, sear the seasoned chicken on both sides.  Oh, and don't tell Dino I used olive oil -- he hates it!  I'm not sure why.  So I cook with it and he never even knows LOL  Once you sear your chicken, remove it and put it aside.

Then in a bowl, I mixed together a can of cream of chicken and a can of cream of mushroom.  LaNell says you can use mixed, or one of the same kind -- just take your pick.  I almost grabbed cream of celery instead of cream of mushroom.  That could have been good too!  LOL   I also dissolved a chicken bouillon cube in a cup of boiling water and mixed that in with my soup mixture.

Then I placed my chicken breasts in my casserole dish.  Don't they look delish??

And now.....one of my favorite parts!  I get to use my Rada knife and cutting board.  I absolutely LOVE my Rada cutlery.  And did you know that the shelter has an ongoing Rada fundraiser??  I'll provide the link to our site at the end of this blog.

Quarter up an onion -- I'm not an onion fan, so I used a small one.  And then cut up some peppers.  Something about the colored ones -- they are so pretty and makes the dish a little "fancier" looking, don't you think??

I didn't use all of them -- just a dab of each.  But not to worry -- I finished cutting up the rest and put in separate freezer bags so now, if I don't have fresh peppers, I can just go to my freezer.  Not as good as fresh, but it will do in a pinch...

So I placed my onions and peppers all around the chicken and poured the soup mixture on top of it. 

Cover with foil and bake 1 - 1/2 hours (depending on thickness of chicken) in a 350 degree oven. 

And then........voila!!!

Use some of the liquid to use a gravy over mashed potatoes or serve over a bed of rice.  Yummy!!!

And because we love cheese, I shredded some mild cheddar on top of my piece. 

Very tasty and super easy!  Thanks LaNell for a great Saturday lunch!!

Happy cooking!
Jannie

It's a candy making kind of day!

For those that don't know me very well, I LOVE to be in my kitchen.  I'm not a good cook and certainly don't claim to be, but I do love to try.  When Dino and I got married, I knew that one of his favorite things that his mom made was peanut patties.  You know, that's that soft round red candy patty that at the convenience stores sets usually right next to the counter.  Anyway, it is something that I never did really eat growing up, but he loved his moms.  So I made the decision to try to master them.  It's usually hit or miss -- I seem to always want to make them when the humidity is high.  And I have never really found out why, but if humidity is high, can't just won't set up.  So this morning when I got up, I decided that I would try it today and see how they turned out. 

So here we go -- here is the cast of characters:

You're going to start with butter (and use the real stuff), red food coloring, peanuts, vanilla flavoring (I use imitation and it works fine), baking soda, Karo Syrup, Sugar and you'll need water, too.

Start by using a heavy sauce pan.  Mix your sugar, syrup and water together and bring it to a boil on a medium high heat.

After you bring it to a boil, mix in a bag of peanuts and let it continue to boil.  And notice my wooden spoon?  I have no idea why, but I always use a wooden spoon.  Come to think of it, I use a wooden spoon a lot of the time when I cook.  I think I need to go buy more! :) 

While your peanuts are on the stove, take a shallow baking dish or cookie sheet and butter it up.  And now we wait -- let your peanut mixture cook to a soft ball cooking stage.

Now, I typically use a candy thermometer when making candy, but once you make it a few times, you can usually tell by looking when it's ready.  Cook it to softball stage which is about 240 degrees.  Once you reach that, remove it from the heat.  Add in the butter, vanilla, baking soda and red food coloring.  And by the way, I kind of stumped my toe when I put the food coloring in.  I normally wouldn't put that much.

Now the hard part begins.  You have to beat it all together.  Beat and beat and beat and beat.  The more you stir, the harder it's going to get stir.  That's a good sign.  You'll know when it's close to being ready because you will beat the glaze off the top and it will start being kind of stringy.  Don't know how else to describe that.  Guess I should have made a picture.  I didn't time it, but I probably stirred this a good 5 or 6 minutes.  When one arm gets tired, just switch to the other one and keep stirring LOL

Once you get to the point to where your arms won't move anymore, then pour it out onto your buttered pan.  It will probably be a little bit hard to spread out, but that's okay.    Let them cool and then break them into smaller pieces.

And if everything goes as planned, this is what you end up with.  Like I said, I added a little bit too much food coloring, so my patties didn't turn out quite a pink as I would like.  But it doesn't affect the taste. 

So thanks to my mother-in-law, Peggy Condley, for one of the best recipes she left for me to make for Dino.


Here is the receipe:

Mix together
2 cups sugar
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. white karo

Bring water/sugar/karo to a boil then pour in 3 cups of peanuts.  Cook until it forms a soft ball (about 240 degrees).  Remove from heat and add 3 tablespoons butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 3 or 4 drops of red food coloring and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda.  Stir until the butter is melted and beat until it looses it gloss and becomes a little sticky.  Pour into a buttered sheet.  Let it cool and then break apart into smaller pieces.


God Bless,

Jannie