Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for August, 2010

Happy Birthday, Grandma Nell!

Posted in Family, Musings, tagged on August 25, 2010| Leave a Comment »

My Wednesday Shout-Out this week goes to Hubby’s Grandma Nell. She will be 92 years young in a few days.

We had the opportunity to spend some time with her this past weekend. I hope I do as well as she does if I live to be 92. Although she no longer runs circles around us, she still is amazing.

Grandma Nell has many talents. She can crochet and cross-stitch like nobody’s business. We have a beautiful cross-stitched quilt she made us for Christmas one year that I absolutely love. Her flowers and garden are abundant and lovely. If the weather is nice, you can find her outside, weeding, watering and enjoying the sunshine.

She absolutely loves to cook and share recipes. In fact, my favorite chocolate cake recipe was one she shared with me years ago. Her past experiences have included running her own restaurant as well as being the summer cook on a dude ranch in Wyoming. She was still doing that up until just a few years ago.

A great hostess who loves to entertain, you can always count on Grandma Nell to make you feel welcome. And if you leave her house hungry, it is your own fault, not hers. She has been talking about having her own website and publishing a cookbook. I tell you, she is a go-getter.

So Happy, Happy Birthday to you, Grandma! Have a fantastic day!

Love and Hugs,

Shanna

Read Full Post »

Labor Day Party Theme Ideas

Posted in Entertaining at Home, Entertaining Ideas, Holidays, Party Theme, tagged , , on August 24, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Labor Day is coming right up. How is that possible? Where did the summer go? If you find it, let me know. I’m convinced I didn’t get my full share of summer-time fun this year.

Since we can’t bring summer back, instead think ahead and plan a Labor Day party for the long weekend. The key is to keep it casual and relaxed.

The Labor Day holiday was first celebrated in the early 1880s  as a way to honor workers for all of their contributions to the strength and well-being of our nation. In that spirit, encourage honor your guests with a relaxing party. Fill your outdoor gathering area with lawn blankets, comfy chairs, and oodles of pillows.  The theme of the day is taking it easy!

Patriotic decorations are perfect for Labor Day. Mix things up a bit by adding a warm gold or bright yellow color to the red, white and blue  scheme. Use candles and flowers from your garden for decorations. Keep it simple by slipping cut stems into mason jars or empty tin cans with the labels removed. Tie with a raffia ribbon close to the top of the container.

Your invitations could have a barbecue theme, patriotic colors, stars, flip flops or paper lanterns. Just choose something fun that speaks to you.

If your event will last into the evening hours, make sure you have plenty of warm light through tiki torches, lanterns, garden stakes, hanging lights, or candles. Also, make sure you have citronella candles strategically placed throughout the area to thwart the insects.

The menu should be foods that are simple and easy. You can go potluck or go the route of a traditional barbecue with hamburgers and hotdogs. Just remember your condiment rules. You could also barbecue skewers. Keep the menu simple and easy for you. Round out your main dish with a  big green salad, a loaf of french bread, watermelon slices and a slam-bang dessert like decadent chocolate cake.

Make one or two signature beverages instead of offering a bunch of options. Fill a bucket, kids wagon or large bowl with ice and set in individual bottles. Have pitchers or jars of ice water. Whatever beverages you decide to offer, just make sure you have gracious plenty.

You can have games available like lawn croquet or horseshoes. If you have a large gathering you could split the attendees into two teams and play a game of flag football, softball or volleyball. Just remember to have fun!

Don’t forget the music. You can play some theme-appropriate tunes like “She Works Hard for the Money,” “Working 9 to 5,” and “Working in  Coal Mine.”

Do as much prep work as you can ahead of time so once your guests arrive, you are focused on them, not on the 36 things that you don’t have done.

Sit back, relax, take a deep breath and enjoy this last hurrah of summer-time entertaining.

Happy Entertaining!

Shanna

Read Full Post »

Optimism

Posted in Family, Musings, tagged on August 23, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Word of the Week: Optimism

op·ti·mism

op-tuh-miz-uhm
–noun

1.

a disposition or tendency to look on the more favorable side of events or conditions and to expect the most favorable outcome.
2.

the belief that good ultimately predominates over evil in the world.
3.

the belief that goodness pervades reality.
4.

the doctrine that the existing world is the best of all possible worlds.
We spent the weekend visiting our families and I was reminded once again of my Dad’s continuing optimism. Pick a topic, and most likely his outlook on the subject is optimistic.  I think he shared that particularly gene with me. No matter how today may turn out, tomorrow is always going to be great!

Read Full Post »

The Hamoneer

Posted in Easy Recipes, Musings, tagged , , on August 20, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Anyone watching calories or on a strict diet will want to just skip today’s post entirely. For the rest of you, enjoy!

Way back when I was growing up, on the rare occasions we went into the big town, not just our little hometown, sometimes my Dad would take us through a drive-in for the best hamburgers on the planet. They didn’t serve fries there. No, sir. They had deep-fried tater tots that were cooked to crispy perfection and salted within an inch of their life. Their milkshakes were thick and creamy and delicious. But the thing you had to go there for was the hamoneer. It was a hamburger with some thick slices of deliciously wicked bacon that were beyond description.

I didn’t care back then what was in the hamburger, all I knew was that it tasted great and I was lucky enough to have one to enjoy.

When the drive-in went out of business, I may have even cried a few tears. No more hamoneer burgers – ever. It is a loss I have suffered from acutely over the years.

Then one day, I found cottage bacon at the grocery store and  decided to give it a try. Hello, hamoneer!  This bacon tastes just like the kind the drive-in used to put on the burgers.  So Hubby and I recreated the hamoneer and boy, was it good! For those of you who have not yet been introduced to cottage bacon, it is bacon made from the shoulder of a pig, resulting in lean pork meat that tastes like a fantastic combination of ham and bacon.

Just make your burger as usual, add cheese, top with the bacon and enjoy. If you want a real hamoneer experience, make sure you add a special sauce (mix ketchup and mayo in equal amounts) to the bun.

Yum!

Start with some cottage bacon, a delicious blend of ham and smoky bacon, there isn't anything quite like it

Assemble your burger as desired with whatever condiments strike your fancy. For an authentic Hamoneer experience, mix up a special sauce using equal parts ketchup and mayo and spread all over the bun.

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »