Happy Halloween ! 2011

Last minute costumes without much planning happened this year. I used Mere's lobster outfit and Arn used Tyler's pirate costume. We went to the party at the club and had a fun time. The band was good and played lots of oldies. Arn wanted to hit O'Malley's on Sat. night so he could sing Buffet's pirate song but their party isn't until tonight. Hoping for a few Trick or Treaters tonight! The weather should be good, we usually get snow but it should be in the 50's.

Happy 1st Birthday to Sam!

This sweet little girl is ONE today! Wish we could see her more frequently. Happy Birthday Samantha!

My Fav Halloween Movie

From the great Muppet creator Jim Henson comes this classic bursting with enchantment and adventure. Academy Award winner Anjelica Huston stars as the Grand High Witch in this exhilarating tale.Year: 1990

Two of my favorite people team up here to make the best Halloween movie ever! Jim Henson and Roald Dahl (it's adaped from his book)
The story is great and the effects are scary but not too scary.
This really brings back some good memories of watching this with the kids, reading Roald Dahl books, Jim Henson, and even Sesame Street.

Life Wisdom

We haven't been doing anything exciting lately with the recent snow storm and working. I've also have had some back issues which has slowed me down the past few days. So......I'll post some random thoughts and information which could improve lives in the smallest of ways. A few years ago Elizabeth and Christine came up with a few acronyms that are very helpful. F.I.T, F.O.M, and B.I.V. have become very useful in our lives. FIT stands for Food in Teeth, FOM stands for Food on Mouth, and BIV stands for Booger in View. It's easy to check yourself out with FIT, FOM, or BIV. As we get older we've added another one which is HIV (Hair in View as in nasal hair). Feel free to use these but don't tell too many people or the secret will be out. Watch for future postings ....

DIY

Outdated shiny brass boob/nipple ceiling fixture


I found an idea online for updating the standard 'boob/nipple' light fixtures that we are blessed with in our house. Plus, ours are the shiny gold brass finish which is outdated. I thought a out painting them another color but had a bad experience with that when I painted a bathroom light a few yrs. back. (Everytime the light was on and the bulbs heated up there was a foul odor which took us a while to figure out. It was a smell similar to sewage or a clogged drain. We finally figured out it was only smelling in that bathroom, when the kids were home and the light was on for longer periods of time) Anyway a more simple approach was this idea. We picked up 2 lampshades @ Target (13.00 each), flipped them upside down, and put them over the 'nipple' light and attached with the nut and decorative nipple which can't really be seen now. The glass from the old version is being saved for another project but will likely end up @ Goodwill. Now the 2 ceiling lights coordinate with the new black track lighting that Arn installed a couple of months ago.

It's all Happening at the Zoo

Tyler and Lauren came for a visit this past weekend. Saturday eve we went to O'Malley's and had another great steak dinner along with wings and fries. Sunday we decided to go to the Cheyene Mt. Zoo in Co. Springs. Arn had never been there and it has been years since Tyler and I've been there. The giraffe exhibit is the best! The zoo is on the side of the mountain down by the Broadmoor. We even got 'flipped off' by one of the gorillas!

What a Whopper!

This fish was caught in Fountain Creek.

My brother Stan (I call him Stanie, always have, always will) has been a fisherman all of his life. He goes fishing every week and usually has very good luck. His usual spot is 11 mile Reservoir up past Woodland Park.

He's perfected 'canned salmon' which is delicious as salmon salad. His recipe is very good but I usually make it with lots of dill and some capers.

I used to fish as a child and we'd have summer long fishing contests to see how many catfish we could catch. Fishing is/was enjoyable but I have a problem putting on the worm/taking off the fish. Maybe I should try lures and retry the hobby next summer. With the cooler weather on the way, I'm sure he's gearing up for ice fishing.

Eleven Mile Reservoir: is located at an elevation of 8,600 feet in the southeastern corner of South Park, a large natural mountain park in central Colorado. The 3,400 acre reservoir is stocked with kokanee salmon and cutthroat and rainbow trout.

Donut Time with Meredith and Tim

Meredith and Tim came to visit for the weekend since it was colder and snowy in Crested Butte. We had our first snow snowfall on Sat. (see previous post) but it started melting Saturday afternoon. They went to Garden of the Gods in the afternoon and we all went to O'Malley's for dinner. Yum! Sunday morning we made donuts which were delicious. Later, we hiked up to the reservoirs in Palmer Lake. It was a short visit but fun.

Quick and Easy Donuts (no recipe needed) - 1 can Reduced Fat Buttermilk Grand Biscuits (makes 8),Fry Daddy or Fry Baby,Oil

For jelly donuts, fry slighty longer so they aren't doughy in the center. Place on paper towels, let cool. Make a hole in the side of the donut and full with jam or jelly. We used a large syringe but a small spoon or other tool would work. Frost or roll in powdered sugar.

Decorate the other donuts as desired - roll in cinnamon and sugar, frost and sprinkle.

The donuts were delicious and better than 'store-bought' donuts!

1st Snowfall 2011

It snowed last night about 10 inches and it's wet and heavy....all signs point to a snowy winter this year. The deck under the pine trees in the back has been COVERED with chewed up pine cones several times. Some squirrels store food for the winter and some fatten themselves up for the winter(Abert's squirrel). Either way our deck has been a mess from our furry friends getting ready for snow and winter. The Abert's squirel is one of my favorite varieties. Their pointy little ears are so cute.

Chile Time!

Last weekend I bought 1 bushel of fire roasted Hatch green chiles at the farmer's market. They are grown in Pueblo,Co. I love the smell and they are so delicious. I removed the charred skin and froze them in bags. Of course we had some wrapped up in tortillas with cheese. They are also yummy on burgers, in chili, eggs, and even in soup.

Cream of Green Chile Soup
5-6 roasted green chiles, peeled and seeded (or 2 sm. cans chopped green chiles)
4 T. butter
4 T chopped onion
1/4 cup flour
2 cups milk
Salt and pepper to tast
1/4cup heavy cream
fresh cilantro or 1 tsp. dried cilantro
Melt butter, saute onion til clear Add flour and cook,stirring for 3-4 min. Remove from heat, whisk in milk. Return to heat, continue whisking util slightly thickened.
Puree chiles and cilantro, adding any of the milk mixture needed for a puree, add puree to milk mixture. Season, and reseason if needed. Add cream just before serving.