Iowa/Winter/January

I like the change of seasons. Really. Most of the time, that is.

What I like the most is that each season brings with it a change in habits and activities.

In the summer, we enjoy picnics, gardening and sweet corn. In the spring there is asparagus and busy bird feeders. The fall, my personal favorite, is noteworthy for the vibrant leaves, football games and pumpkin pie. In the winter, I make soup every week, I take down the Christmas tree and put up  the puzzle table. There is often snow on the ground, so if we're lucky -- WE GET TO MAKE A SNOWMAN!!

That involves a lot of bundling up!!

The snow has to be JUST RIGHT to pack properly and stay together.

That's my purse in the back -- so you can get some perspective. It was a pretty small snowman...with not a lot of accessorizing...

Lilly and Warren didn't have any time to adorn Frosty on that day, because it got DARK AT 4:00. And then the temps dropped -- to below zero. But I'm glad they seized the moment and got out there to build the snowman -- even if he was a little guy...

But THIS YEAR...for the first time in my life...I have introduced a brand new activity to my January calendar. Believe it or not -- this is where I've been spending two or three mornings each week.

In the beautiful heated pool at the Bettendorf YMCA.

AND I'M LOVING IT. I told Mary to bring her swim suit. She's gonna love Aquarobics!!
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This week, I was down to 268.8  I have officially ZOOMED through the 290's and 280's...

Eggs...Glorious Eggs...

John has 30 chickens. Which means we get 30 fresh eggs every single day. HUGE brown eggs -- many of them with double yolks. SUCH WONDERFUL BOUNTY. 

He carefully washes the eggs and sorts them in his recycled cartons (each dozen gets one or two double-yolkers). He sells them for $2.50 a dozen...so they have provided a nice retirement income and activity for him....lol...

The thing is -- there is NOTHING like fresh eggs. When you break the hard shells, they stand up high in the pan -- the yolks are bright yellow....They are sooo delicious.

Eggs are nearly the perfect food. Dr. Oz says that for years they got an undeserved bad rap -- and they are nature's gift -- a wonderful, cheap source of protein...

There are so many delicious, wonderful ways to cook eggs -- they have always been part of my favorite go-to menus.

And here some of my favorite egg dishes...

Eggs In The Basket. Enough said...This was the first thing I remember cooking for myself as a child. 

Egg Dish #2: Frittata

The fritatta has turned into a verb at my house. When I realize it's 5:00 and I forgot to get anything out of the freezer -- it's TIME TO FRITATTA...

The BEST thing about a fritatta is that you start with leftovers. You can (and should) use anything that's already in your refrigerator. Whenever I make spaghetti, I make EXTRA -- knowing there could be a fritatta in my future.

Making a fritatta is more of an approach than a recipe.

1.  Beat six eggs in a large bowl.

2.  Add your leftovers.  Cold leftover spaghetti, chunks of cheese, cut up meat.  Really -- the ingredients are all about what you have on hand...

One example: cubed Pepperjack cheese, sliced salami, black and green olives, diced green onion, celery, radishes.

Another example: leftover rotisserie chicken, grated cheddar cheese and Parmesan, mushrooms,
green beans, cherry tomatoes and parsley...

3. When you're mixing up your fritatta -- you'll be heating your well seasoned iron skillet (my favorite -- but you choose)...When the skillet is medium hot, add 1 tbl of oil and swirl it to cover the pan -- then pour in the fritatta. Do not stir....turn the heat down to medium low and let it cook until it's brown and set. (about 8 minutes on my stove)

To finish it off -- put the skillet into your preheated oven. (350). You want the center set and the top brown. (maybe 15 minutes?)

Feel free to add another cup of cheese right at the end.  (I sometimes do the last 2 minutes under the broiler to make the cheese bubbly.)

If your iron skillet is well-seasoned -- you simply flip the entire fritatta out of the pan onto a serving platter. DELICIOUS...

Because it goes together so quickly, a fritatta is the perfect last minute family supper.

And, because it's actually best when served at room temperature -- it's AN EXCELLENT dish to serve at a special luncheon or when you have company coming.

1970 Pictures!!

Elliott got a new cellphone -- and he discovered that he can take a photo of an old slide -- and convert it to a jpg.  Yes, technology CAN BE a good thing...

At first, John gave him a bunch of slides from his submarine/Navy days. That was fun.

Then -- Elliott started to email me some pictures from our Newlywed years.

I DID NOT KNOW THESE PICTURES EXISTED.

Wow...I only wish I had known then what I know now...

Because, in the summer of 1970, I did not know that I would never look better...

Me -- the summer of 1970. John and I were dating -- this picture was taken in Virginia, overlooking the Potomac River.  I remember those blue pants -- and that white top was my FAVORITE.  I wore it two or three times a week.

In our first apartment in Arlington, Virginia. My birthday, 1971. John made me a chocolate cake with peanut butter icing. I sewed that tablecloth.

When I saw that picture (for the first time in 40+ years) -- I told Elliott the cake became the Farro family tradition. The flowers were an anomaly.

In 1973, John and I standing in front of our first house. In Friedensburg, Pennsylvania.

Here's the thing, people. When I was in my 20's, I avoided being in pictures because I THOUGHT I WAS FAT. Holy Cow. I was a completely normal size 12-14. 

BUT I WAS SO VERY UNHAPPY WITH MY BODY...ALWAYS DIETING...making myself crazy, trying to lose weight.

The next 30 years was a roller coaster of yo yo dieting.  I'd lose 20 pounds, then gain 30.  It was a constant up and down for me...I was never happy, I could never accept my body.

Looking at these pictures, it hit me for the first time.  I was perfect.

CRAP.  WHY DIDN'T I KNOW THAT??

By buying into the whole unrealistic Madison Avenue depiction of the perfect woman -- I destroyed my metabolism and doubled my weight.

AND, OH MY GOD, THE TIME AND ENERGY I WASTED..!! If only I had accepted what my body looked like when I was 21 years old...wow...

Thanks a lot, Twiggy!!

My Happy January!!

I've never been a fan of New Year's Resolutions. But I do think January is the perfect time to take stock of your life.

The first order of business is to really consider what's good in your life...then BE GRATEFUL. I am especially thankful this year for my good health. And frankly, that's entirely a product of luck....and I never take that for granted. Nobody controls cancer, Alzheimer's, aneurysms, or car accidents...

And I am grateful for my family and friends. Which brings me back to January. Even though I live in Iowa, and it's the dead of winter -- I am glad it's January.

But, believe me -- IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE WEATHER!!  There are three reasons I love January:

1.  Warren was born in January.
2.  Christmas is 11 months away.
3.  Mary is coming to Iowa..!

Here are a few highlights from Mary's annual Iowa visits. 

For the year 2017 -- here is my wish for you!!

The Splendid Sampler™ Wednesday

The Splendid Sampler™ Wednesday
(...skip this part if you're not new here...)

The Splendid Sampler™ is an internet sew-a-long created by Pat Sloan and Jane Davidson. It is an EPIC sew along...

• 83 fabric designers have created specific blocks that feature different quilting techniques. (paper piecing, fused applique, etc.).
• The blocks will be released each week, and are FREE to participants until March 2017. (at that time, they'll use the designs to publish a book).
• You can use whatever fabric you like.
• There will be pictures on their Facebook page, etc.

The new block designs come out twice a week....on Sunday morning and Thursday morning. I'm doing this with my TMBC...and, therefore, it is my pleasure to BLOG ABOUT IT every Wednesday. *******************
The bad news is that my computer has a virus...and I can't access my THOUSANDS of photos. Ugh. What is this blog without pictures??


Tomorrow, I'll take this laptop to my crack computer team....and you'll know soon enough if they had any luck. I had a few blog posts written in advance, so they may post for the next day or so...but then Rita's Sew Fun might go dark. But not for long...

Warren's life, Row by Row

When Elliott was three years old, he took all the spice boxes out of my spice drawer and lined them up across the living room.

When Lilly was three, she collected plastic dinosaurs, and she always had them marching in a parade down the hall, around her bed or up on the side of the bathtub.

Warren has the very same, identical play habits.  He LINES THINGS UP...Mostly trains.  (Of course -- if a train is not in a perfectly straight line -- there will be trouble. )

This could be my favorite 2016 Christmas picture of Warren...

He has a unique way of playing with the Fisher Price Nativity set...

OF COURSE he had to line up all the characters...(the line was long, and included several Santas, some Shopkins, a rubber duckie and a few troll dolls)

Warren will spend an hour lining things up...

Last summer, when we went to visit Sue -- she brought out a basket of wooden blocks.

Before I could drink a glass of ice tea -- he'd created the perfect single line formation...Warren's building never goes UP -- it always goes in one long line...

During the holidays, we did a lot of cooking. One of my FAVORITE TRICKS with kids is to open up a can of refrigerator biscuits...

I've been doing biscuits with kids for many years.  I have all the fun stuff -- child-sized rolling pins, cookie cutters, biscuit cutters...you name it.  Kids love to handle the dough -- they roll it, flatten it with their hands,  make ropes, braid it...there are SO MANY POSSIBILITIES.

But this was a new way to play with the dough...

Warren cut the dough into little pieces, then he rolled them in sprinkles and lined them up.

He made a complete circle -- all around the cookie sheet...

He was SO PLEASED with himself.

When he was done -- he looked at his work and said, "My Mom is really gonna love this."

Happy Birthday, Warren. You are my sunshine....

Food and the Holidays.

FOOD IS LOVE.  If you are having a family celebration of any kind -- somebody is IN CHARGE OF THE FOOD.

And it's certainly a major element of what we affectionately call, "THE HOLIDAYS".

My life is just like yours...and starting with Thanksgiving -- every single day was filled with delicious food I enjoy and look forward to.  Many of our most treasured family traditions circle around food I only eat once a year...so the holidays are brutal if you're trying to lose weight.  Ugh. 

But,  after spending ALL THAT MONEY -- and TIME -- to go to Fat Camp -- I was determined to push the reset button on my life and make better choices for myself during this very delicious, tempting holiday time. And I did.

The thing is -- there is nothing more boring than people who  TALK ABOUT WHAT THEY EAT.

So you needn't worry.  I'm not going to do that.  I didn't do it during the holidays -- and I'm not about to start now.

You know I consider myself to be a VERY LUCKY PERSON -- and I feel that way every single day. Especially this year. During the holidays, my life was filled with wonderful events and parties. AND SO MUCH GOOD FOOD.  Breakfast with my friends, lunch with people I love who are visiting for the holidays. Every celebration centered around the food...

For example,  the TMBC Christmas Tea!!

Hey -- My people know how to have a good time -- and FOOD IS A BIG PART of all that. I enjoyed every single minute, eating and laughing with my friends and family. And I like to think that nobody took much notice of what I was or was not putting in my mouth. 

The important thing was the TIME WE SPENT TOGETHER.  It's about being there, living in the moment, having conversations, and making memories...

Sure, those little Christmas trees might be delicious...but that was not what mattered on this day.

The most important thing about the Oreo truffles was how much fun Lilly and Warren had while making them.

And I hope they always remember Grandpa's red and green sprinkle Christmas pancakes.

But what Grandma ate for breakfast on that day was not a topic of conversation...and -- hey -- here's a news flash, people -- NOBODY CARES WHAT YOU'RE EATING. 

The Holidays are a wonderful time to do some really important things, like:

MAKE MEMORIES.
SPEND TIME WITH YOUR PEOPLE.
GET OFF YOUR DAMNED SMARTPHONE AND HAVE A REAL CONVERSATION.
VISIT A FRIEND.
MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN SOMEBODY'S DAY...

P.S.  This morning I did my Monday Morning weigh-in.  I weighed 271 pounds.