Just Like a Department Store

Yard Sale tomorrow! We have been busy. We have a vintage section, clothing, sporting goods, country western, toy department, a bike shop and a fish aquarium department.



Thank goodness for good help! Happy to have a member of the 800 Club to do the heavy lifting...
Tonight the real help is coming, Caleb and Emilyn.

Friday is the fun day-sale day. Maybe Saturday morning too, since our neighbors are having a Saturday sale and placed an ad.
Here's to the big bucks and thousands of shoppers!

Tag Sale Anyone?

We are having a yard sale on Friday, maybe Saturday. If you want to think upscale and more like Martha call it a Tag Sale. We'll see how we're holding up on Friday and maybe be open Saturday morning. This a joint venture for Max and Mom. Yesterday we cleaned out the garage, loaded up the carport for our staging area. Tonight, pricing.

I haven't had a sale in years, not sure what possessed me now. No newspaper ads, just signs. That way we can back out if something better comes along.

Old school fish aquariums, vintage hat collection, bikes, clothes, skateboards, you name it, we've got it.

Any words of wisdom? Besides... "Don't Do It!"

Recipes, Chicken Cheats and Friends, Oh My!

I did promise some recipes from the luncheon. No pictures as I just wasn't thinking about posting recipes during the prep of this party.
Becky brought a strawberry and green salad. Jodi brought dessert, strawberry pizza. I made the rolls, a fruit tray and my Mom's recipe for Hot Chicken Salad. This is an old recipe, but every time I make it I wonder why I don't make it more. Maybe because of the calories?

Hot Chicken Salad
2 c. chicken*
2 c. sliced celery
2 c. toasted bread cubes
1/2 c. slivered almonds
1/2 tsp. salt

Blend together:
2 tsp. grated onion
2 T. lemon juice
1 c. mayo
1 can Cream of Chicken soup

*Okay for several years my friend Jolene has told me about buying white meat chicken, cooked and evenly diced, frozen and sold at Cash and Carry in a ten pound box.
I was skeptical. I was cheap. I held back. Foolish! This chicken totally rocks. It's delicious, it's reasonably priced and it is CONVENIENT! I don't why I waited so long. Love it!
You know the pasta, chicken, poppy seed, grape salad? Now it is easy. Chicken lasagna, slam it out in no time. I will not be without it again.
Call me a cheater- don't care.
Read this and tell me who is living the dream. Or read this bloody post Someone needs to tell her. It's like $3.40 a lb. No joke.


Sorry. Back to our regularly scheduled programming. But I love those little things that make life easier.
Mix together lightly and place in a flat baking dish. Top with 1 c. grated cheddar cheese. Bake 30-40 minutes.
I toss a few of the almonds on top of the cheese.

For the rolls I used Anna Greta's recipe for Ice Box Buns. I chose this recipe because of the weather. It was so hot outside and actually also hot in my kitchen, I am challenged with yeast recipes in the summer. Since the first rise was in the fridge my thinking was it might go better for me. I love Anna Greta's recipes and I have had these many times. Apparently I need a lesson from her because my rolls did not resemble hers in the least. I think they tasted good just looked different.

Ice Box Buns
1 pkg. yeast
2 T. warm water
1/2 c. sugar
2 c. milk
2 beaten eggs
1 tsp. salt
5 1/2 cups flour
1/2 c. melted butter.
Combine the yeast, water and sugar. When dissolved add the warm milk, eggs, salt and part of the flour. Add melted butter and the rest of the flour. Mix until a soft dough forms. Cover and put in the refrigerator overnight. When taken out of the fridge, divide into thirds. Roll each piece into a round about 9-10 inches in diameter. Cut into 12 pie shaped wedges. Roll each wedge from the outside towards the center. Put on greased cookie sheet and let rise for about 3 hours. Bake 12 minutes at 375 degree oven.


Jodi may have more photos, I was in the moment. Missed the food shots!

This is what it was all about, reconnecting with old and new friends.

It's a Small World After All Pt. 2

Remember when I wrote about Becky and Jodi coming over to plan a little luncheon, where we would prove just how small the world really is. Well, today was the luncheon. The world is small and I am feeling so blessed right now by my little world. I had the best afternoon.

Okay, let's start at the beginning. I'll take it slow. You can keep up. A bit confusing but it'll all make sense.
Jodi is my sister (not to confuse you but she is also a Snapsister).
Jodi met her friend, Becky when Becky moved here from Missouri (hereafter referred to as MO). Their guys played football together and Jodi's neighbor introduced them. Becky has been taken on sister trips and scrapped with us ever since. Love her.

Jodi's neighbor introduced Becky because she knew Becky through Ginger. She met Ginger, from MO, while traveling in Israel(or their husbands met or something, I'm a little foggy on this part). Ginger, who she met in Israel is Becky's friend from MO. Ginger and her family moved to the Pacific NW from MO about the same time Becky and her guys moved to Lynden from MO.

Jodi and Becky went to a Bible Study in Bellingham, where they ran into Ginger. So Jodi met Ginger. Are you still with me? Hang in there, we're almost there.

Ginger came to Bible study with her neighbor, Amy. Amy and her twin, Mia were just eight years old when I became their nanny. So, you see the world is really very small.

Today, Becky, Jodi, Ginger, and Amy came to my place for lunch. It was so nice to meet Ginger and to reconnect with Amy. Amy and I had lots of catching up to do. She is just this beautiful young woman loving the Lord and her husband and kiddos, it was so special to see her so happy.


Amy and I

Later I'll post the recipes. Yummo!

Boot Camp Babes

This morning at boot camp the topic of reality TV came up as we were warming up. Everyone has their vice. Jon & Kate plus the divorce came up as did Housewives From NJ, LA and NYC. Oprah was discussed briefly. Robb is impressed by her trainer, I told him I don't really want to look like Oprah. I have enough weight problems of my own. I'm not sure who said it but someone mentioned that maybe there should be a Boot Camp Reality Show. Really.

Oh yeah, we are just so glamorous and TV ready. Bring it on! Those Housewives from the big city have nothin' on us.

Segments showing Shannon and Melinda having a cat fight on the court came up. Or how about Tami VW getting thrown down on the soccer field, spittin' teeth out and jumping right back up and getting back in the game? Tough chickas!

It would start with everyone getting up at 5:30 stinkin' A.M. three days a week. Fans would be impressed. Then the producers would expose that many of us take a nap in the afternoon. It would show how we look at 5:45 in the morning with no make-up, bed head hair, and scowls. It would show just how slow I run, dead last, all the time. People would laugh. Viewers would get tired of the whining. Viewers would wonder why not everyone has a gorgeous figure. We would have to get up at 4:00 A.M. for makeup. We would have to stop eating. Not to mention the paparazzi.

Whoa. We are so NoT doing this.


*No photos for obvious reasons.

WiNdY

Yesterday I sat in the hot tub after boot camp. It was a take your weights down to the track and go like crazy boot camp day. I had a nice soak. This was before the WiNd!

While in college I had three roommates from Chino, California and they would talk about the Santa Ana winds and how much they hated them. Um, after yesterday, I know exactly what they meant. Hot wind is icky. I felt like the hairdryer was on high and blowing in my face all day. And I couldn't avoid it. I had some gardening that needed to get done. As sticks and leaves were raining down and making a mess around me. Really, I got no where.
It's a busy week with graduations and parties. And on Friday I am having a luncheon at my house. A gathering of women that will prove just how small the world really is. Just in case you were wondering.
Anywoo, I am trying to get the house tidied up and the gardens weeded this week so I would a appreciate it if the Santa Ana winds stayed in Southern Cali.