How Hard Can It Be?

...To check the spelling of the name on the order form with the spelling of the name on the stamp?

After a 2-3 week wait, my notary stamp FINALLY arrived. I took it out of the mailing envelope and stamped my stamper.

I looked at the impression. Blinked. Looked again.

When I was in high school, for a while I replaced the "y" in my name with an "i". Once I even dropped the "ry" on the end and signed my papers, "Sher"... Get it? :-) But never ever did I spell my name "Sherrie". So I looked at the shipping label. It's spelled, "Sherry". eyeroll

Tomorrow I'm calling the company and tell them to please send a replacement immediately! And if they want this one back, they need to send postage!!

Aieeee

Gumbo night! I made gumbo Monday night. It was delicious! We had again tonight. I'll take the last bowl of leftovers with me to work tomorrow along with some homemade cornbread. Uuummmm-um. So good! Makes a possum hug a hound! :-)

My cornbread recipe has to be somewhere on this blog, but I didn't label it. So here goes:

Set out a stick of butter before starting.

Buttermilk Cornbread

1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose or unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup oil
1 egg

Set oven on 425 degrees. Put a dab of bacon grease in each section of your cornbread pan(s). I use a cornstick pan and a 'scone' pan. Both cast iron of course! Set both pans in the oven.

In a medium size mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients.
In a 2 cup measuring cup, combine all liquid ingredients in order given. You can measure directly into the cup. Just remember to add the egg last. Beat with a fork or small whisk.
Pour buttermilk mixture into dry ingredients. Stir well. If it seems dry, add a bit more buttermilk.

For the cornstick pan (bacon grease should not only be melted, but HOT so that the batter sizzles as you spoon it in), spoon enough batter into the compartments, spreading a bit. Pop this in the oven. Divide the remaining batter evenly in the scone pan. The cornsticks are going to take about 12-14 minutes. The wedges take about 18 minutes.

Slice your favorite piece of cornbread and slather with that softened butter!

You can tell from the size of the wedges why I also bake a pan of cornsticks. If my memory serves me correctly from when I baked cornsticks on Sunday morning for when we had our 5-Sunday dinners at church, this recipe makes somewhere between 4-6 pans of cornsticks.

You can also make this by pouring the entire bowl of batter in a greased and heated cast iron skillet. Or in a 9 x 12" baking pan - but I don't know why you'd use a baking pan when you have perfectly good cast iron. You DO have cast iron don't you? If not, go to thrift stores, second hand stores, some junk/collectible/antique stores. Look for American made. Some of that imported stuff is 'pert near' impossible to season correctly.

Gumbo recipe (with photos) here:
http://keepyouinstitches.blogspot.com/search/label/gumbo

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!

Oh what a beautiful baby! Isabel - four days old - with Grandpa... With Granny... Colt 2 months, 4 days with Grandpa...With Granny...Cousins...

Welcome to My World

Thursday, January 20
Isabel
2:49 p.m.
7 pounds 15 ouncesProud parents are Sam's daughter, Brook, and her husband, Cody. Grandpa is rather proud himself!

We go see them tomorrow!!

There's Got to be a Morning After

After the snow that is...
These photos were made Tuesday morning after the snow on Sunday and Monday. I LOVE this one!

Steel Cut Oats

Back when I was in the health food store and purchased the gluten free bread mix for Judy, I also purchased a box of Steel Cut Oats for me. Carol told me about the oats. Told me how she prepared them. You bring them to a boil, remove from the stove, cover, and put in the refrigerator over night. I swear she told me that she even likes it cold. Ummm...I don't think so. The next morning you take the oats out of the refrigerator and heat in the microwave (with butter and sugar) then pour in a good glug of milk.

I've prepared single servings a time or two. The other night, I boiled 4 cups of water and poured in 1 cup of oats. I thought that would be good for breakfast on workday mornings. Will NOT do that again! What they call four servings is more like 5 or 6 for me. I got Sam to try them today. When I asked him...he said that the little ...well...wait a minute.

Steel cut oats (also called pinhead oats, Irish oats, coarse cut oats) are whole grain groats (the center part of the oat kernel). They are...well...cut in pieces, of course. And they resemble fat grains of rice. Unlike rolled oats which are the groats smashed flat then steamed and lightly toasted.

I like it. Instead of just wallowing oatmeal around in my mouth and swallowing...there's actually something to chew before swallowing. Back to Sam...

First thing, he was put off by reheating leftover oatmeal. I told him that these were different...that they were not the glutinous glob of regular leftover oatmeal. When he looked at the oats fresh out of the refrigerator he asked, "This is not a glutinous glob?"

"Not like rolled oats," I answered with a smile. Since I had already eaten my breakfast, I skipped off to the shower while he was eating his. Later I asked him how he'd liked the steel cut oats.

"Not bad," he said. "But when I first bit into one of those little bulbs...well...it was kind of like eating fish eggs."

Can I tell you that that was the end of the conversation? I don't know if I can eat another bowl of steel cut oats without thinking about fish eggs!!! eyeroll

Almost Messed Up!

I started out to work an hour late only to discover that 95% or better of my route to work was clear! No ice or snow on much of it. Just a couple of spots where the trees hang over the road shading it and on the tops of the hills.

After work, I went to Mama's to visit with her...changed her sheets and brought her mail in...twice. eyeroll When I first got there, I walked out to the mailbox (rural mail carrier) and got her mail. Changed sheets. Visited. Got up to sweep the snow off her steps and porch edge. She asked me to get her mail.

I thought, "OH NO!" But I smile and say, "Mama, I already have. You even looked at
it."

She smiled sweetly because she knew what I was thinking. "That was yesterday's mail. She (mail carrier) ran again just a few minutes ago."

LOL So I got today's mail too.

Then I headed home...the back way...the back way that still had quite a bit of snow on it...the snow that partially melted today and was in the process of refreezing. I thought about turning around, but nah...I am getting to be an old hand at driving in this stuff. After all, I made it to town and back yesterday without winding up in the ditch. So I'm driving along, over the railroad track, through the woods, around the curve...Almost home free. Then...the hill had ice on it. I started up and almost at the top...spun out. Slowly, reverse downhill a bit. Try forward again. Spin. Reverse again...and I'm thinking STOOPID. Backed about halfway down very carefully and proud of myself for steering into the direction I was sliding like you're supposed to instead of the instinct to turn the wheel the other direction. (Remember, I'm in reverse, people.) Finally got purchase in forward and got over the hill. Whew! Made it home safe and sound. Don't think I'll go the back way again until...oh...about August! ;o)

Tonight we have a hard freeze predicted...about 17 degrees. THAT is cold!

Exercise and diet program...that went out the window when the full time job came in the door. I gained just 2 or 3 pounds during the holidays and need to get that off. I'm going to have to really watch the calories. I've thought about the one Sweating to the Oldies VHS that I own...but it almost ruined so many good old songs for me. I still should get it out and just exercise here at home...I can do as I've done before...watch it with the sound turned off.

Hmmm....Wonder why Sean Connery never did an exercise video. Sigh.

It Snowed!

How about a quick dunk in the pool? :-)

Visit With Colt

I don't think words are necessary.

Swearing In

The new County Judge, my new boss, at her swearing in ceremony Friday morning. We are both excited and looking forward to getting to work Tuesday. (Monday is our New Year holiday.)

We celebrated afterwards. ;o)

I undecorated my house this afternoon. Got all the Christmas decorations put away. Even the little plaster of Paris Santa Claus that I got in the second or third grade that I did not put away last year...when I saw it later, I put it behind a picture frame. No one else knew it was there all year! I put my little tree in a garbage bag, decorations and all LOL, and put it in the corner of the guest room closet. Next year, I'll pull it out and say, "Voila!"

The table linens are still in the dining room. Guess I will do that tomorrow. Also got the - yawn - ironing done. Thank goodness I didn't let it pile up this time...only four shirts for Sam, one blouse for me, and four pairs of slacks for me. I have a brown blouse that I need to shorten. It is way loooong. And since my body is more 'mature' now - boo hoo - I don't tuck my shirts in any more. This thing almost looks like a tunic. Got all the laundry done except our sheets. I'll do that tomorrow since the courthouse is closed for the New Year holiday.

I'm telling ya...this new (old) body sucks. (I hate that word and here I am using it.) When I was offered this new job, I realized I had to dress better. So into the guest room closet I dug pulling out clothes I wore to work six years ago. The skirts fit. Even the skirts with zippers The tops do NOT FIT! If I can get them to button, they gap. WHAT HAPPENED?! I've been buying 'coordinating' pieces. A size 12 skirt/pants and a size 14 or 16 top to go with it. eyeroll DISGUSTING!

Jonathan messaged me on Facebook and asked me to thank Sam again for taking him and his bike home after Christmas. He realized how bad his front tire was...really dangerous. Sam most likely saved him from having a blow-out and being severely injured or killed. I am so thankful for those little nudges that God gives us.