Thank goodness it's Thursday!

We cannot catch a break around here. 

Little angel popped a fever along with a sore throat and headache.  So we went back to the doctor and got her checked out.  The whole time we were there she just kept saying "I just want to go home Mommy."  And I told her "I know."

End result?

My baby girl who was sick all last week and tested negative on everything last week tested positive this time.  Positive for strep and positive for not one but two types of the flu. 

So she's out of school for the rest of the week. 

Meanwhile a few of the rest of us are trying desperately to cling to some semblance of health. 

Hopefully we will get back to normal around here very soon.

Somebody really should stop me

Writing a quick blog post when I don't feel well is a bad idea.  My goodness what was supposed to be a nice little post about my mom's birthday turned out to be one of my choppier pieces of writing.  I promise to do better next time :-)

It seems I am suffering a bit from the after-effects of the kids' illness.  While I am getting caught up on work, the cost has been sleep.

So that's the next thing I plan to get caught up on.  Sleep.

Happy Birthday Mama!

She was born 76 years ago today, during a flood.  (And still hates water--pools, rivers, streams, etc)


Around eight years ago she got the got a chance to revisit the home she was born in and was amazed at how different it looked.  Somewhere a long the way a second floor was added to the house.

She had rosy cheeks which led to her name :-)

She was the youngest of 3 girls. . .until her brother came along 13 yrs later.

She hated school when she was a little girl.  She even wrapped her legs around the big mailbox on the corner and proclaimed that she was NOT going to kindergarten.  (She didn't have to go)

So what did she become when she grew up?  Of course.  A teacher.

She had to quit teaching when she got married.  That's how it worked back then.

But then she got to be my mama.

And just like any mother-daughter, we have our good days and our bad days. We are both pretty independent minded.

But when I get sick, nothing compares with the chicken noodle soup she makes for me.

And when I have a bad day, Mom is the one that listens, says "tsk, tsk" and gets me back on track.

I love my mom and pray we get many more years together.  (That's practically an order Mom!)

Not that the lyrics really apply but this song makes me think of my mom. . .she used to sing along to the radio when they played this one:

I may never get caught up.

Last week is like a lost week for me.

The youngest got sick on Sunday.  The middle child got sick the next day.  For five days they were completely wiped out.

One had a really high fever and coughed some.  The other had less fever but an awful cough.

It really is a miracle that the entire family didn't fall victim to this mystery virus.  It looked like the flu.  It felt like the flu.  It sounded like the flu.  But apparently, it was a lousy test-taker because it didn't test like the flu.

Nonetheless the kids missed the entire week of school and we have had to play massive "school" at home to get them caught up.

Laundry fell by the wayside.

Extra house cleaning fell by the wayside.

My homework fell by the wayside.

But kids are in better shape and that is what is important.

I'll just keep the living room blinds shut until next weekend when I hopefully I get a chance to take the last standing tree down and hide it away for another 11 months.  Don't go telling everyone my last tree is still up.  It's getting embarrassing.

But when the kids are sick, getting them well and caught up in school is much more important anyway.

Jimmie Rodgers wins the "Saturday Song" contest!

I recently discovered that I can listen to a variety of music "channels" through my cable tv.  Haha--who knew?

The cool thing is these are themed stations with much more variety than I would get through VH-1, MTV or CMT.  It's like having radio without commercials.

Heaven.

So the other night while trying to help sick kids with homework we turned on the 50s and 60s channel.  I had not heard this one from Jimmie Rodgers in many many years. 

An oldie and still a goodie~~Secretly

 

Based the number of youtube hits that song has, it isn't one of the more popular ones from Jimmie Rodgers.  This of course just means people that grew up listening to it may not realize that it's available on youtube.  They probably have it in their own collections anyway, right?

 

A more well known song from Jimmie Rodgers is of course "Honeycomb" which is certainly a good catchy little song. 

 

Friday Movie--Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House

A good friend pointed me toward this one a while back.  I finally got a chance to sit down and watch it and now I'm sharing it with you.

Dear Mr. Blandings (Cary Grant) and his wife (Myrna Loy) are ready to leave the hustle and bustle of New York city in order to build a house in the country.  But it isn't all that easy.

I love the line:  "makes about $2000 a year" after describing him as having a comfortable life with a wife and two kids.  He even has a housekeeper!!!  But then again, this movie is from 1948.

Even if you haven't gone through the joys of building a home, you will be able to enjoy this one.

You'll have to click the link to get to it . . .Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House

Martha Stewart Project!

Kids are still sick :-(  Poor babes. 

I spent way too much time on pinterest while hanging out at home with them and found a gazillion recipes to try. . .but not while they are sick.  So instead today I have a project that I found during Christmas break and decided that we need to try.  My kids used to love bath fizzies but we haven't had any in a long time.  These look so cute I just have to believe they are worth trying! 

Martha Stewart Bath Fizzies

Sweet Potato Bisque

Super simple rich soup~~I'm a huge fan of it even if my family isn't. 

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup chopped onions 

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
½ block 1/3 Fat Cream Cheese
salt and pepper to taste.

Cook sweet potatoes in a crockpot for 4-5 hours on low with 1 cup of chicken broth.  Remove sweet potatoes and let cool.  

Melt the butter in a 4 qt. saucepan. Add the onions and saute for 10 minutes. Then add the chicken broth from the crock pot.

Peel sweet potatoes and cut into smaller pieces.  Add to the onions and puree the mixture in a blender (in small batches) or with a hand-held immersion blender. Stir in the milk and cream cheese. Season to taste with the salt and pepper.  I like to add a little garlic (or garlic powder) too..

More warm snuggles

At the moment, my littlest one is pretty puny.  Not strep and not the flu but so miserable. 

And her older sister isn't feeling too good either.  Have to see how she feels when she gets up.

But Little Bit and I get a day at home.

Another day on the couch, brainstorming what to get Daddy for his birthday.

And lots of snuggles.  Because when you are a little one and your temperature is outta whack, snuggles make things a little bit better.

Oh snap. Birthday season is upon us

Well, maybe not us.  I should be more specific. . . meeeeeee.

My hubby's birthday is at the end of this week.  My mother's is at the beginning of next week.  And all at once it will be my daughter's birthday.

And what do I have for my husband? 

Ummmmm, nothing?  I was going to get tickets to a hockey game but he claimed to not be so interested.  (darn it.)  Course in the end it's good that I didn't get the tickets because I am most likely going to be out of town that day.

Let's seeeeee. . .think think think.

He has socks.

Already bought him dress pants and some shirts.

Another sweater?

Bor.Ing.

Something tells me that he wouldn't be nearly as excited as I would be about getting the garage door fixed.  Or getting new gravel for the driveway (I'm lobbying for those 2 items for Valentine's Day because nothing says "I love you" like a garage door and driveway full of rocks!)

Ideas people.  I know you read this.  Now's your chance to help a girl out.

By the way. . .I'm a bit frazzled because my weekend was packed with activities and rounded out by a child with a temp of 103.8.

Help!

More Really Retro music

When I was a girl my mom LOVED Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops.  We listened to his records so much that well all had them memorized.

Music is so incredibly powerful.  It has the ability to transport me back through time.

This one was always a fun one to listen to. . .and I recently took the opportunity to play it for my youngest.  She said it was definitely the best song ever.  Well, except for all the other songs she has given that ranking to as well.


Enjoy this one. . .The Syncopated Clock.

Movie day! Lilies of the Field!

I love all the old movies you can find on youtube! 

Today's selection is Lilies of the Field starring Sidney Poitier available here, on youtube

It's a great little film about an unemployed man who stops to get water for his car when it overheats. . .and meets a group of nuns working a farm.

Check it out. you'll be singing "Aaaaaaay-men. Aaaaaaaaay-men. Aaaay-men Aaaymen Aaaymen" for a long time after watching this one. Catchy tune. You might even catch yourself whistling it.

Moulin Rouge

It's been recorded many times. . .and I don't know that I've heard a bad version of this song anywhere.  I am somewhat partial to this one by Mantavoni.  When my youngest was a little girl she had such eclectic musical taste, something like her mother I guess.  But Mantavoni was one of her favorites.  She had a CD that she always fell asleep listening to and it became her lullaby CD.

Mantavoni always had such a lush full sound.  Truly gorgeous.

"Hotel Management" aka, we saw that!

Long long time ago my sister and I were part of an orchestra that  was selected to perform at a very special music festival.  There must have been around a hundred or so of us in this orchestra.

I was just thirteen when I auditioned.  My sister was fifteen.  That was in May.  The big trip was in December.

We had a really magnificent group of instructors to go with us on the trip.  They had things planned out like you cannot believe.  We had different levels of dress for the events we would attend.  We had the opportunity to hear a symphony orchestra (up close and personal--we were in the front row, close enough to hear one of the cellists grunting while playing).  We got to go to an amazing Greek restaurant for a delightful meal (baklava became my absolute favorite treat of all time).  We got to go shopping downtown in the big city right before Christmas.  It was electric.

But probably the most incredible part was how they managed to police us--over one hundred students spread out across a couple of different levels of a large hotel.  They did an amazing job but of course they couldn't do it all alone.  No, even with a cadre of teachers and parents as chaperones, sometimes kids just have to look out for each other, right?

My sister and I were supposed to share a room with two girls from the viola section, but then one of them got sick and wasn't able to make the trip.  Somehow we ended up getting one of the best rooms.  We had 1.5 or 2 bathrooms.    My sister and I each had our own bed on one side of the room and Greta took up the opposite side of the room.

Besides having a biiiiiig room with more than one potty, we were also able to look out our windows and across the way to see into some of the boy's rooms.

And that is how we came to be part of "hotel management."  There was a group of boys across the way from us and they were misbehavin' just a bit.  They had all the lights out in the room and the windows open but there was this little orange glow bobbing around the room.

No reason for an orange glow unless of course someone was, oh, smoking or something.

So my sister and I did what any good kid would do.  Not rat them out but make sure they knew that their little activities could be seen.

(Seriously, ya wanna smoke some cigs on a school trip, hide in the hotel bathroom.  For Pete's sake, this hotel was in a U shape.  We were on one side of the U and they were on the other side of the U, 1 floor down.)

We called their room.  And claimed to be from "hotel management."  We told them that we were able to monitor the room and knew that they had the window open in the dead of winter and that they needed to close it to properly balance the heating system again.

They hung up on us.

We called again.

(Mind you this was quite a long time ago--rotary phones and no caller id)

We gave the same spiel all over again.  They questioned us because they didn't believe we were hotel management.  We insisted that from our "office window" we could see that they had their window opened and it needed to be closed.

Eventually they stopped with the cigarettes by the opened window.

Silly boys.

Corn and Bacon Chowder

Winter weather makes soups sound divine.  This one is super easy--just 5 ingredients--and fast too!

Prep: 2 minutes; Cook: 14 minutes


Ingredients:
2 bacon slices
1/4 cup chopped onion (can be found in the frozen foods section)
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper mix (also in the frozen foods section!)
2 (16-ounce) packages frozen baby gold and white corn, thawed and divided
2 cups 1% low-fat milk, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup (3 ounces) reduced-fat shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese (such as Cracker Barrel)

Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; crumble and set aside. Add onions, bell peppers and 1 package corn to drippings in pan; sauté 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

(Alternate--if you prefer to use prepackage bacon bits, sauté veggies in a bit of olive oil or butter)

Place remaining 1 package corn and 1 cup milk in a blender, and process until smooth. Add pureed mixture to vegetables in pan; stir in remaining 1 cup milk, salt, black pepper, and cheese. Cook over medium heat (do not boil), stirring constantly, until cheese melts. Ladle chowder into bowls. Top each serving evenly with reserved crumbled bacon. Sprinkle with additional black pepper, if desired.

Meeting cousins and getting free food.

We spent Saturday morning at a funeral.  The odd thing about it was that I really didn't know the gentleman all that well.  He was 92.  I only vaguely know his wife and children.  He was my mom's first cousin's husband. And yet it was so important to go.  He was a gentle person.  He had served his country during WWII as a gunner.  He was a prisoner of war.

I cried.  Over and over.  My kids couldn't believe it because they knew that I didn't know Fritz all that well.

But the priest did such a magnificent job with the sermon.  And the family was so beautiful.

And then we did the procession to the cemetery and I just kept getting knocked over by the absolute beauty of the kindness of complete strangers.

I don't know how it goes where you live but around here it is a courtesy for other drivers on the road to pull over and wait for a funeral procession.

When I was a young girl it seemed that people had forgotten that courtesy.  They were all in a hurry to get where ever it was they needed to be.

Recently though, that old courtesy has come back.  People will completely pull over and wait through a funeral procession.

It's beautiful.  The whole notion that complete strangers stop what they are doing out of respect for the dead and the family.

Such a beautiful reminder that people are good.

My girls went with me even though they really had no idea who these old people were.  But my youngest had the right attitude.. .she said "I get to meet more cousins and get free food!"

(Leave it to kids to find a way to make you laugh even at the most somber of occasions.)

But at the end of the day I am certain that she got more out of it than a free lunch.  

She and her sisters learned that when someone dies, you go to the funeral.  It means so much to family and friends.  This man was 92 years old and he had over 200 people at his funeral.  That is lovely.

She and her sisters learned that there are good people in the world. . .people who make sure that they take care of their friends, who are often like family.  The funeral Mass was held at the church that Fritz and Betty Mae belonged to for most of their married life.  But that church no longer has a hall for holding funeral dinners.  Their oldest daughter is a teacher so the staff at her school provided lunch at the school for the family.  That is lovely.

She and her sisters learned that family might not always spend a lot of time together but there are great stories to be told when you do get together. . .so listen up and don't be in a hurry to go home.

She and her sisters learned (again) that old people where once young and "beautiful" as in "a real good catch."  They became beautiful in a different way as they aged.

She and her sisters learned that it's OK to cry.  Even if you don't know the deceased all that well.  Funerals are about saying goodbye and always dredge up the emotions of previous goodbyes.  Sometimes you just have to go with it.

Meeting cousins and getting free food.  And saying goodbyes.

Well he walked up to me. . .

and he asked me if I wanted to dance.

Oh that great sound of The Crystals.  Back when music could be sweet, catchy,tell a story and be completely clean and safe to listen to with your kids.

This one always makes me smile.

I hope you enjoy it too!

Ahhh. . . Barefoot in the Park!

Too  rainy to run barefoot in the park around here. . .but it's great day for a good old movie starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda as a newly married couple living in an insanely small apartment in New York City. Turns out that 6 days of marriage can be pretty tough!

As I rewatched this one I kept thinking of the TV series Dharma and Greg.  Almost have to wonder if some of the inspiration for that show came from this movie.

Did I mention Robert Redford is in this one?  Sooooo young!  (Jane too but then she hasn't "aged" in the same way that Redford did, naturally)

Enjoy this one all snuggled up and warm at home!  (or wherever you might be. . . .)
 

Click here to see the movie over at youtube.

Ding, ding dong ding. . .I Mar-ried Joan!

Well, obviously I didn't.  But it was a TV show back in the 1950s.  I used to watch it late at night in the 1980s.  It was similar to the I Love Lucy series and it was a riot.  Joan Davis and Jim Backus.  Truly good stuff!  Enjoy this episode which was the pilot for the series.

Thank you Flossie!

I suppose all of us have a "Flossie" in our lives.

I met mine about six years ago.

Her real name isn't Flossie of course.  But it's the name I always use for her because it was her pen name.

She's an excellent writer.  Her messages and emails brought a smile to my face many times over the years.

We shared a mutual interest in movies and books.  We had great affection for the same actors.  And thanks to Flossie, I discovered the wacky life of Stephanie Plum as told by Janet Evanovich. 

Recently I read Notorious Nineteen and I have to say it was one of the better ones in the series.  It's hard to keep a series going through nineteen novels!  Everyone wants the characters to grow and change.  They want a fresh plot line every time.  But at the same time they like having characters who are comfortable "knowns."

When I see a new Plum novel on the shelf, I have to grab it.  I enjoy having a cast of characters that I know as well as my own family.

Thank you Flossie (babe--hahaha) for your friendship and good reads!

One-pot "Baked" Ziti

I know, you can hardly stand the excitement--back to back recipe days!  I admit, I'm excited too.  This one is a new one that I am soooo going to have to try with my family.  They have come to love One-pot Lasagna.  This one looks like it will take even less time to prepare.  

1 lb ziti pasta
17 oz jar marinara
1/2 c mozzarella
1/2 c Parmesan
15 oz ricotta cheese

Cook ziti pasta al dente. Drain the pasta. Add  marinara to the pasta pan and bring to medium high heat. Stir in the cooked pasta along with mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses then add ricotta cheese. Heat through and serve.

The recipe I read also suggested adding cut up cooked vegetables, sliced pepperoni or even diced ham.  I can see my family wanting pepperoni added to this dish.

Sounds delish.

Meat, wrapped in meat, slathered in sugar! aka: Brown Sugar Kielbasa with Baked Potato

That's how a friend described this meal when she saw it.  Pretty accurate and ooooooh so very yummy.

Baked Potatoes (Wash/scrub potatoes.  Wrap individually in aluminum foil.  Put in 350 degree oven before you start the kielbasa/bacon.  Potatoes need at least an hour in the oven.)

Now for the Kielbasa. . .

 

1 (16 ounce) package kielbasa (we like turkey kielbasa, less grease)
1 pound bacon (pork or turkey--depends on your tolerance for grease)
1 cup brown sugar, or to taste

Cut bacon into halves and wrap each strip around the kielbasa. I prefer to use a toothpick to hold it in place.  But some would say I'm kind of OCD about things like that.

Arrange on a baking sheet and sprinkle liberally with brown sugar.

Bake until bacon is crisp and the brown sugar melted, about 30-40 minutes.

Obviously you could do cheesy potatoes with this but I like baked potatoes to balance out the fat and sugar of the kielbasa.

Working My Way Back to You Girl!

I don't know why but this song was always fun to listen to when I was a kid. . .

Oh happy day!

If you are old like me you remember well the thrill of walking into a classroom and seeing one of these:

Fridays should be movie days, right?

A little while back I did a piece on one of my favorite movies from way back when--The Secret War of Harry Frigg.  See it here

At the time of that writing, I had not located it online anywhere.  Excellent news ladies and gentelmen--it does exist online!  You cannot imagine how excited I was to find it!  I almost couldn't wait for Friday to get here so I could share it with you!

So here you go. . .Paul Newman as Harry Frigg!

The Secret War of Harry Frigg 

RIP Patti Page

Patti Page died January 1st.  She was 85.

As a young girl she was told she had a good voice and from there, things happened.  She is known for a host of songs. . .some of which weren't expected to be big hits and several which were "crossover" hits that didn't really fit the existing categories.  Even though she was "before my time" I knew her music well because my mom loved to listen to Patti Page

Today I want to share a few of my favorites

Doggie in the Window:

Tennessee Waltz became her biggest hit.  According to FOX news: "Tennessee Waltz" scored the rare achievement of reaching No. 1 on the pop, country and R&B charts simultaneously and was officially adopted as one of two official songs by the state of Tennessee. Its reach was so powerful, six other artists reached the charts the following year with covers.

And of course I can't leave out Mockin' Bird Hill

Earlier this year I featured "Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte" as one of my favorite songs.  See that post here.

Back to life, back to reality. . .

Second semester starts today.  Yay!

Trying to get excited about going back to the grind.

Don't get me wrong. . .I really really like my job.  A lot of the time I love it.  I just get worn down by all the hustle and bustle of the school year overall.  The schedule can be exhausting.

There are things I do like about the return to work in January.  For one thing, we are starting all over again.  The "sins" of first semester are buried and all have a new chance.  Plus I really like what I teach second semester. So hard to believe that the first time I was asked to teach this course I actually cried because I thought I would hate it.

So today we head back into the grind.  Five more months until summer vacation!  We can do it!

Resolutions

I don't really believe in New Year's Resolutions.

Maybe because I've never been too successful with them in the past?

I've done the "I'm going to lose 10 lbs by _____"

Fail.

I've done the "I'm going to quit cussing."

Ask my kids.  I blame cussing on driving in a town full of idiot drivers.  And I tell the kids that they aren't old enough to cuss because they aren't old enough to drive. . .course that excuse won't hold much longer.

Maybe I should work on that "quit cussing" resolution after all?

I have had some success with "no eating after supper" and "no snacking in between meals" but that's mostly common sense.

Last year my only "resolution" involved kindness.  I think simple compassion and understanding are what are missing most in this world.  This does NOT mean "anything goes." We do not have to blithely accept everything as OK.  Standards can co-exist with kindness and compassion.  What it does mean is that  I need to be more aware of what others are experiencing and work to do what I can to NOT add to anyone else's burden.  I would like to think that I have had some success with this one. 

And yet I know I still have room for improvement.

Certainly any efforts I can make with this resolution will be good.

Do you do resolutions?  What are your resolutions?

PS--I am also going to read more books, more non-fiction in particular.