the remaking of a kitchen

on some friday evenings during the spring and summer, well sometimes in the fall, someone in the neighborhood places a kitschy figure of a gnome in their yard or on the porch. this signifies you all come over between 5 and 6 on friday night, byob and catch up on what's been happening.
last night jim was the host in his lovely backyard, with patio, waterfall, lap pool, and view of the lake. i decided that i would bake something and made crackers. i have been curious about them, read lots of recipes and finally took the plunge. when i mentioned my idea to don he agreed gnome night would be a great test. i would either come home with an empty basket or they would all be gone. well, the basket was not entirely empty, but i brought home about 1/4 cup of them, so i am claiming success. this could be minnesota nice....never eat the last of whatever. :) i told auntie lee what i was doing and she could hardly believe i would really make crackers....probably thought i WAS crackers.....but liked the sound of the ingredients. i will have to tell her the results. they were pretty good....but i couldn't find the small cookie cutters i wanted to use, so finally ended up with a champagne flute to make circles, and then used the knife to further shape them. they had both flour and cornmeal with sharp cheddar cheese, sesame seeds (instead of the recommended poppy seeds) and a bit of butter. how could they not taste good?
the next ones will have pepperjack cheese and some whole wheat flour as well as some seeds. yum. they were easy to make, and worth the effort.
i'm going to search for a recipe using rice flour to do a gluten free cracker.

Labels: crackers, gnome night

i'm not sure why i've taken a blogation.....a respite from blogging. it just happened without my realizing it. now that the offspring are busily recording thoughts it's time for me to get with it again.
the foxes kept us interested and amused for quite a spell. we know that one of the babies died of unknown causes. after that we were not seeing the whole group at one time, but maybe that is just part of growing up in the den. mom fox has been spotted occasionally, but i guess the kits have just gone their separate ways, and maybe we will see them again next spring. it was really fun watching them. now the neighbors across the street are dealing with the angst of a digging pest. mom and one of the young wood chucks are getting into the fence protected vegetable garden. they have been sighted going over the fence and there has been evidence of them burrowing under the fence from both sides. they have totally destroyed some squash plants, eaten all the green beans, and possibly knocked over some tomato plants. brian is moving the haveaheart trap to a more optimum spot on a daily basis depending on indications from the previous attack. so far no luck. there has been a report of a death by pellet in another nearby yard.
my flowers seem to be growing daily, not quite thriving as yet, but approaching that condition. most of them are in pots, but i have a couple of areas where they are in the ground.....a combination of perennials and annuals. there are also a couple of cucumber plants that gary purchased for me to plant away from the wood chucks and there are a few minute cukes set on. i was unable to find any juliet tomato plants, so i have a cherry tom that has a couple of bitty green tomatoes and lots of blossoms promising more to come.
the other beds are doing ok.....the hosta glen under the big trees has suffered somewhat due to the dryness. the trees suck up so much moisture and our increased watering restrictions have not helped. we are now allowed to water on odd days, but not between 11 am and 5 pm. don feels this favors those with sprinkler systems and he is right. we don't seem to get up early enough to do most of the watering before 11. retirement rocks. :) i have planted some perennials on the terraces to the left of the shed and they are slowly taking hold. it was so dry in that area, that it was like moving dust when i was planting!
other than that, it's been a busy spring. i painted the bathroom with some help from don on the dreaded woodwork and the ceiling. i like how it looks. we have had visitors....kyla, david and matt were here for a short visit on the way up north for a family reunion with his dad's group. it was so good to have them here. now they have to come again and bring haley too. she had a band trip to florida that competed this time.
we have been to omaha twice.....once to a wedding luncheon celebrating david and lesley. we also had dinner with them and the rest of their family at dick and judy's. sarah and david were there that weekend too altho we didn't see them very much. sarah wanted david to meet auntie lee and they did that and thrilled lee. she is still talking about it and adding to the story each time. i was able to visit my friend izen, and felt so fortunate to have had a bit of time with her as she died early the next week. we returned to omaha again for her funeral and we visited auntie lee again....and she was amazed that we made it two weekends in a row. we made some big decisions and relieved her mind on several issues. she is doing quite well with hospice care and seems stable for now.
the next week we had a visit from a dear friend who has been undergoing testing at mayo. it was good to have her with us again.....it's been a while between visits.
last week we spent a long weekend in san francisco with sarah and david. we stayed very close to them in a condo owned by the cousin of my friend jan. it was a lovely place and we felt so welcomed and pampered by their evident hospitality. it was fun to see sarah and david's apt, not theirs for much longer, but they have talked so much about it, i felt i HAD to see it. they are looking at places to move and we are keeping our fingers crossed for them!!
sarah and david were excellent tour guides.....we saw THEIR san fran which was different from the one we'd seen on combined business/pleasure trips. it was delightful.....we ate wonderful food and approve of their favorite restaurants whole heartedly! pizzeria delfina gets multiple stars! zazzie is fabulous! the burmese place was delicious. sausalito is still lovely, and and and.
on sunday we drove to santa cruz and enjoyed the fabulous brunch prepared by sandy, david's mom. the first picture is the amazing souffle.....it was gorgeous as well as delicious. it was great to finally meet sandy.....we were able to share some little private chats as the day progressed. i enjoyed her as much as i thought i might after the few emails we'd exchanged. we shopped and wandered downtown s c, and then had a great italian dinner. the second photo of sandy with david shows sandy's stealth. that would be her holding the tab in her left hand clear over to the right and out of anyone else's grasp! sneaky woman, but very generous!
on monday david took us on a tour of usf, both campuses. well, they are really just a block apart. i think. it is a glorious piece of real estate and the grounds are lovely. beautiful landscaping and gardens. the view is spectacular, and even more important, david loves being part of it!
we are grateful to both sarah and david for making it such a special trip. sarah took time off for the entire time and drove us every where. she really knows the city and is an terrific guide.

Labels: san francisco, sandy, santa cruz, sarah and david