O Happy Day

Last night as I was folding laundry I heard a loud 'clonk' as my washer stopped mid-cycle. This made me sad, since on Nov. 24th we paid $209 to get a new timer replaced on our 5 yr old washer. Clyde returned from giving his final and when he heard the news, he started researching new washers - hours and hours trying to figure out which one would fit, front or top load, best price, etc. He went to turn out the Christmas lights on the outside bushes and said they must have burned out - already off! Before bed I bailed out all the water from the washer(any guesses on how much water fills a large capacity washer?) and it took forever. I removed the clothes, planning to take them to a laundromat in the morning. This morning, Clyde was researching more about washers. I went to dry my hair and my dryer would not work. Weird - it had not been having problems. I decided to take it to the kitchen plug, just to test it. Voila! It worked! The problem was the plug in my bathroom. I wondered if the washer problem was also electrical, since I could not get any cycle to work. I tried turning on the clothes dryer - nothing! It was an electrical problem! So I hurried to the guest bath to dry my hair, and had to push the reset button on the plug to get my hair dyrer to work. Clyde went downstairs to look for tripped circuits and find the one to reset. So I went in to the laundry to check the plug and tell Clyde when it was working. I tested the clothes dryer again and it worked!!! So did the washer!! We don't have to buy a new washer after all!! And just hitting the reset button in the guest bath plug did the trick. My laundry is on one side of the house and my bedroom bath is on the complete other side of the house! So we almost went to buy a new washer, almost called the repair man to complain about his work, and got lucky just in time. It pays to wonder sometimes when your hair dryer does not work - maybe there is a different solution?! Nothing else in the house made us think there was any elelctrical issue at all -- no lights were off, fridge and clocks running... O happy day - I don't have to buy a new washer. Clyde's favorite story today.

Cousins Dinner recipes

So it was mentioned to me that I should post the recipes for the meals I serve at Cousin's Dinner each month, with the hope that some cousins might actually cook them.
So here goes:

Creamy Meatballs

Use 12 – 15 frozen meatballs from Costco or target

Mix one can cream of chicken and 1 can cream of mushroom soup

Add ½ can evaporated milk.

Mix soups and milk together, then add meatballs. cook in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes so the flavor from the meatballs permeates the soup mixture. I usually add a tiny bit of water to thin.

Serve over rice

Can be doubled, cook in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes.

Also can be frozen and cooked later.

MIMI’S Corn Chowder

	(Yields 2 1/2 quarts) This is straight from their website!!
	4 tablespoons butter or margarine
	6 tablespoons onion, chopped 3 cups frozen corn, thawed
	3/4 cup celery, large dice 2 tablespoons sugar
	2 1/2 cups hot water 2 teaspoons salt
	2 cups raw potato, peeled and cut in 1/2" cubes 1 pinch white pepper 3 tablespoons flour
	1 quart Half & Half
	Method
	On medium heat, melt butter, then simmer onion and celery for 5 minutes until soft, but not brown. Add water, potatoes, corn and seasonings. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until potatoes are barely tender. Whisk the flour into 1 cup of the Half & Half, and stir into the soup. Add the remaining 3 cups of Half & Half. Simmer for about 15 minutes until the soup has thickened to a creamy consistency. Correct the seasoning with additional salt and pepper if needed. In order to correct the consistency of the soup you may add a little milk to make it thinner. To make the soup thicker, simmer another 5-10 minutes. Mary’s Fajitas (Janice’s version) 11-24-02 One 3-4 lb sirloin tip or top round roast. Bake in slow oven (300-325) till very tender OR cook in crock pot on low all day Oven needs a little water to keep it from burning, crock pot will make it’s own juice If using the crock pot, Add a bit of the juice and tiny bit of oil to the dry packet of McCormicks Fajita seasoning. Pour over meat at end of cooking after you have shredded the meat. Cook sliced red and green peppers, onions in marg. Open can of black beans, sour cream, salsa, guacamole Slice tomatoes, lettuce, cheese Serve on warmed thick tortillas. You could also use chicken with this marinade – left over meat is yummy for sandwiches, and snacking. More recipes later.

The 'deer' office view

I recently moved with all of Graduate Studies into the Former Presidents' Home on the BYU campus. This used to be a home for the University President so it has a backyard and stands pretty much by itself on the edge of the hill. We often see deer out the windows around lunch time and late afternoon. The deer family lives just off the hill in the wooded part between upper campus and the lower parking lot by the tennis courts. I love the view of the yard now that many of the leaves have changed and are falling. I can see Timp right out my window and also the lake to the west. I have two walls of windows! Can't get much better than this. I just wanted to share these few photos with you so you could imagine me at work!

Tag, by no one, just for fun

Fourth folder, fourth photo. This is Clyde and myself at the Neil Diamond concert at the Hollywood Bowl in LA, October 1, 2008. We bought the cheap seats and went with Camille. We knew almost all the songs! Neil Diamond is 67 and has been singing the same songs since we were in college!

33 years

October 24 was our 33rd anniversary. That's more years living with Clyde than I did with my parents! I still love and like Clyde! We went to the temple and to dinner at the Harvest Room at Thanksgiving point. That place is an undiscovered gem! not too busy, quiet, and the most tender steak ever! and the rest of the food was delicious too. For my gift to Clyde and to ME, I stayed home from work and did something I really wanted to do - I cleaned and organized the den. It had kind of become a huge dumping ground since I began full time work two years ago and then a lot of my time was directed at planning three weddings for KC, Nicole and Michelle. No excuse I know but it was messy. I tossed old computer stuff, papers, made piles for shredding, and filed tons of papers off my desk. A filing cabinet is so great. Clyde purchased a new large clock for the den and we hung more photos of Germany. I had wanted Clyde to help me do the den for a long time but he just did not want to get into it like it needed. So 5 hours later, it looked pretty good. I surprised him with my efforts. Here's a few photos to prove it.





























Less is really more- more efficient, more space, more peace, more freedom from stress. I like it this way.

a surprise

A couple of days ago I cleaned out the drawer containing receipts I have been saving. I always keep my grocery receipts so I can tally the month and look at my yearly totals and averages. Apparently I didn't do much except plan a wedding since last November, because the receipts were quite stacked up in my skinny little drawer. What amazed me was how much I spent in some months, and more surprising was how many trips I made to the stores! I live close to Costco and go about 2 or 3 times a month - mostly for the great produce, chicken, and bread. We don't buy any junk food from there. I also go to a regular store for all the other stuff I need. I have planned menus and shopping lists for YEARS, and my spending seems under control, I thought. But adding up the number of receipts (=trips to a store) I have some self control or planning to improve. But Days Grocery is just three minutes away! Adding all the trips together some months I had 12 - 18 receipts!! (=trips to a store=spending $$) Yikes! I am going to try to plan even better, have stuff on hand for special events ( like work parties, family dinners, etc.) and go to a two week menu (buy more, shop less often). Every time I go to a store I always buy more than the items on the list or what I need so it adds up. It is a good exercise to see what you spend on food some months, because it makes you more careful, thrifty, and creative the next month. Just don't wait 9 months before you do the tally, like I did recently. I have kept track of our food spending since 1992! Since that time my household has changed sizes several times, and now it is just me and Clyde. The challenge has begun...

Who am I?

Twice in the last two days I have been mistakenly identified. Yesterday at church I was sitting next to my friend Pattie Shumway. We both have dark hair, about the same style and length. A ward member leans over to Pattie and says,"thanks for the ice cream." She looks puzzled and I whisper to her, "it was me who gave them ice cream."
Then today at 5 pm on the way to my car, someone on the sidewalk was talking on their cell phone. He looked right at me, only 4 feet away and said, "Hi Debbie, have a good night." I smiled and said goodbye. I have no idea who he thought I was! So I guess I can stand in for many faces!