For Dinner Tonight

This was going to be dinner on Christmas Eve.. trying to go with the seafood theme.. We ended up doing something else.. so tonight is the night.

It's from About.com Busy Cooks/Linda Larsen

This simple and very elegant recipe takes only about 15 minutes to prepare, and it's special enough for entertaining.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. frozen fully cooked shrimp
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, minced
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp. honey Dijon salad dressing
• 1 cup frozen baby peas, not thawed
• 3 cups hot cooked rice

Preparation:

Thaw shrimp according to package directions, and remove tails if necessary. Drain well and set aside.In large saucepan combine butter and olive oil and heat until foaming. Add garlic and onion and saute, stirring frequently, until crisp tender. Add shrimp and stir well. Cover and simmer for 1-2 minutes until shrimp are thoroughly heated.
Remove cover and add lemon juice, salad dressing, and peas. Cook and stir until everything is heated and blended. Serve over rice.

Years Ago

Yesterday would have been 35 years of marriage had we not split up.. I thought the sun rose in him and you can see it in the picture.. Young love.. old dreams.. it was not to be.. but he is the father of my 3 wonderful children.. he's not here anymore.. took his own life in 08.. his wife won't let anymore read the note he left.. but she told my oldest right after it happened that he said he had done so many wrong things and hurt so many people he couldn't look at himself in the mirror anymore.. she now says that's not true.. BUT I know it's true.. I loved him and so did the kids.. thank God for a man like Peter who I can love much, much more and who loves me and my kids!  A man we can count on.

My Dad

Thinking of my Dad today.. This is the anniversary of his funeral and service.. he's been gone 33 years.. I'm almost the same age as when he died.. gone too soon.. but not forgotten.

Caramel Apple Dip

I emailed the blog owner where I got this recipe and have not heard back from her.. so I'm going to post.. The blog is Triedandtrues.. (http://triedandtrues.blogspot.com) She has a a ton of easy recipes that look good.  Check it out.

"Caramel” Apple Dip

Another recipe from my mom. It's easy and good- everyone loves it.

½- 1 cube butter
¾ c. brown sugar
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. salt
8 apples

Heat butter & brown sugar in microwave on high (covered) for 3 minutes. Stir in cream cheese. Add vanilla and salt. Cool. Slice apples & serve.
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Patience

I got this quote from Clover Lane (http://www.memoriesoncloverlane.com/)

Patience is not passive;

on the contrary, it is active;

it is concentrated strength.

Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton

 

 

Years ago I asked God to give me patience and boy did he give me lots of lessons.  They say be careful what you wish or ask for.. At times I was sorry I asked for patience.. but now I'm glad I did.  I still have my moments but usually I'm patient and fairly laid back.. and when I'm not I have to stop myself and think about being patient, giving a second chance to someone.. I think the same is true about happiness.. it's a choice.. we can be happy and cheerful or we can find wrong in everything in the day..I chose to be happy and hopefully, patient!

 

The picture if is of my 2 year old Erin 30 some years ago... she had to go to her room for some time out.. a few minutes later when I opened the door she had spread Desitin all over herself, the carpet and the door.. how she could even get the jar and open it is beyond me.. Instead of being mad I just laughed.. what a sweet, dear girl.. This was before digital cameras.. and I didn't have any flash bulbs for my camera.. so I took her outside and took this picture.. It took days to get that out of her hair.. She says she remembers doing it and we always laugh about it now.  I'm glad I was patient.. and I'm glad I took the picture :)

 

Snacks and Cooking

A while back I decided to make an after school snack for Max everyday.. I haven't lived up to it as far as making something and having it on the table for him every day.. but I make sure there are things in the house for him to eat.. I've been trying a little harder to actually have something waiting for him.  I remember going to my friend, Gail's, house after school.  Her parents worked but her grandmother lived with them.. when we would come in she would have a snack and a glass of milk on the table waiting.. then we would all sit down to visit about the day.. I always thought that was heart warming.. Sometimes I did that for my kids and sometimes not.. I was always available for them though.. lots of times we would all pile into my bed and watch something on TV.. like the Golden Girls..

Yesterday, I made a caramel apple dip.. so good.  I didn't have apples so I used clementines and grapes for dipping.. checking to see if it's ok to post the recipe giving credit to the author.. Today I'm making caramel corn.. been wanting to do that for a while but just haven't gotten around to it.  There are a ton of recipes online for this and they seem pretty similar.

The picture is of my girls long ago.. we used to have a baking day once a week.. it was so much fun.. we made pie crust, cookies, bread.. they are showing off the little quiches they made..  We always made a big mess but it was sweet time together and good memories. The girls still love to cook.. and of all things.. my son works as a gluten free baker.. all the while in school to become a mathematician..who would have ever known??