It was just a SIMPLE trip to town with our 4 wheel drive.., That's all...
Change into "town" clothes, smile, yes it will go ... oh no.... vrooooom.......spinnnnn.....sliddddeeee....spewwww.....get stuck,reverse, slidddeeeddd... go into ditch... back into work clothes, grab a shovel,uncover the tractor, get it started , LOOK OUT for the hot wire over the horse gate, lift gates buried in snow to open them, then lift back to close them, close horse gates,reopen them close them , call wife back from her hilarious photo "shoot" , hook suv to tractor, , pull ....only to get the tractor stuck too, tell wife to go away (well not exactly, but I did)
wow ...I got lots of nice snow shots, I also got stuck in the ditch up to my knees when I stepped into a snow bank off of the main road to town , hopefully to be SAFER ? from an oncoming vehicle. Thank goodness I didn't also need the tractor to get out of my snow bank...it was still stuck... Oh I hear it now, oops, photo shoot is over, back to see if I can "help?"
Tractor made it up the hill, and was headed back down ??? I am sludging my way behind yep the snow is over my boot tops, NICE...brrrr........
SUV take 2.... get on your mark get set.......vrooommmmm spinnnnn,sliddddeeee mud, snow and gravel spewing everywhere. AGAIN only worse...our gorgeous snow laden driveway where is it???
Stuck AGAIN...I said it was because of the red survey flag for our new home...after all every time any vehicle reached the FLAG it stopped. dig out SUV again,then drive backwards, hit a tree, hit a buried log alongside the driveway...almost hit gate, well this WAS a fun trip to town,after all....
What about going back up the hill for a video ( I missed the first time, I was so spellbound during the EVENT..)that suggestion came out of my mouth, the same time it dawned on me what a very bad idea it was, but up the hill , went hubby in suv....suv must be related to Thomas the train...I think I can ,I think I can, I know I can...vrooooom......slidddde,spinnn.....vrooooom....snow,gravel flying.....and to the top "she" went. only to get stuck again, shovel if you please ...anyone?
Umm ,,,hubby,,,,I thinketh ...ummm...thou mayest.... shouldest ....letteth... sleeping suv's be. Finally very tired, hubby agreed to try later, WHEW, I was relieved, hubby was beginning to worry me... Good thing this was a "dry" run to town...since we didn't get out of our drive, Snow in our near future? Yep, 4 more inches predicted tonight...I do love snow, but maybe we have enough now, for where we live?
can I bake a cherry pie ,billy boy ,billy boy? yes I can and so I will, I'm still a young thing , and I really left my mother... after all it is Christmas eve tomorrow, we may lose electricity yet, and one of my kids really does enjoy a cherry pie, and of course pumpkin pie for the other "tooths"yum.
Did you know pumpkin is extremely good for dogs indigestion? I often add about 1/4 cup of canned pumpkin to the dogs food ( they do like it better when it is pie form, so I baked the left over filling in a small oven proof bowl to "serve" for a "snack" for the lil pups :-) barky bark...
Easy no fail pie crust recipe : (so easy even a kid can do it)
When I was a young bride, i watched a lot of cooking shows for ideas to become a better cook...this recipe has become a standby, prepared it has "gone" to school pie sales,church bake sales ,pie socials and potlucks,family gatherings,and potlucks,to homes in pain or struggles. May it serve you well too.
for a two crust pie, 2 1 crust pies or for baked shells.(can double or triple recipe)
2 cups of flour cut in 1 cup of (originally called for shortening) I use butter or lard 1/2 cup of cold water , this will be a shade dough, gather and turn out on a well floured board, knead a few times (about 10) divide in half (divide accordingly if you increased the recipe, if you double it you can easily get 2 two crusts and 1 single crust pies out of the dough
pat out your circle of dough ,flour your rolling pin ( I use a marble rolling pin, it is so much nicer) rolling from middle of the circle outwards, roll out your dough when it is the right size kind of roll onto your rolling pin and lift it to your pan and "roll" onto it, slightly press in pan and crimp the edges if it is for a single crust or to be a baked crust (prick with a fork if it is, and set an empty pie dish inside the dough, set a soup can half full with water in the empty pan)
bake 425 degrees 12-15 min
Gift ideas for next year
WATER:If you are stranded like we have been, and haven't finished your shopping you can still give a wonderful gift, check out the link to Abba Stories where you can find how you can give a gift of water....this one would fit my merryheartblog
Goats,Chickens,Heifer: I've been considering this one myself , it seems appropriate for my farmfunnies blog... http://www.heifer.com/ , I shared this idea with client/great new friend ,since she was stranded too. She went a step farther, each of her kids is getting either chickens or a goat in their Christmas stocking (ok, ok a card with a picture of one), what a great idea Carole :-)
I went in the house for a minute, but those rowdy dogs were 
I'm sure I am moms favorite, she really loves me a lot
- Did you know mom loves me best? I got to go in the house this morning, it is really cozy 
What's up ? did you hear a mouse ? we've been looking everywhere,
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Here is a photo of their list, following is my how to mix,bake,and construct your own ginger bread house SIMPLIFIED of course.
So just what was on their list you may be wondering.
They wanted gumdrops for a gumdrop garden,
gummy bears to make a chimney
laffy taffy to make window and door sills
candy canes for a fence
a lifesaver for a door wreath for their hershey bar door ( wow, no need to huff and puff to blow this door down,just nibble your way through it)
chocolate chip cookies for the shingles on the roof
ice cream cones to build icing trees with
mike and ikes for , oops I forgot what,
and of course grandma had to add the bear ,penguins and gingerbread man
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My son just used this recipe and said it did very well and tasted good too.
Since we've had our power "flicker" I won't try to locate my old stand by one.
OLD FASHIONED GINGERBREAD COOKIES
1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup molasses
5 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
Mix ingredients together until well combined, wrap in plastic and chill for 3 hours. Roll dough out, cut with floured cookie cutters. Place on lightly greased baking sheet. Heat oven to 375 degrees, bake for 8 minuets, until brown. Decorate and enjoy !
below are my house tips
Thanks to Daughter-in-love for e-mailing this recipe to me.
A true labour of love, for this gingerbread recipe collector.
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TIPS: create your pattern: make it a simple rectangle shape out of paper or cardboard
2 4x6 (sides) , 2 4x4 pitched ends, 2 roofs ( I measure the slope of the pitch and add an over hang, and I also have the roof longer than the house sides ( you need a place for frosting icicles to hang)
roll out dough on floured surface, run a spatula under your dough so it isn't sticking to the surface
cut out your house, move to your cookie sheet (you can gently roll it up on your rolling pin to transfer the dough ( or you could gently roll it out on parchment perhaps) be sure to cut out doors and windows (if you want a stained window you can place aluminium foil over your cookie sheet and prepare it as above, then in the window space place some crushed candy's (like life savors, they will melt and become transparent, if you cut a little opening to the floor in back of your house you could even run a Christmas light bulb to add light after your home is assembles and secure)
Bake as above, as soon as your house comes out of the oven place your house stencil over the cookie and trim while it is still warm. let cool before removing from your cookie sheet.
Cover a piece of cardboard with foil and now you are ready to build.
Melt some sugar (about 1/2 cup )in a cast iron skillet (you do have one don't you? well if not a very heavy pan) it will turn dark quickly and it is extremely hot!! Have the kids far away sampling some hot coco or testing the roof shingles, while you do this part.
Hold two sides of house at right angles and with a spoon let the very hot syrup run down the inside corners, it sets almost instantly, repeat until your walls are "raised"
attach the roof, and then poor a bit on your foil to secure the house to your aluminum foundation.
Beat some royal frosting , it will dry to a hard frosting( I use meringue powder, you can find this with cake decorating supplies If you need this recipe ask me)
let the kids frost and decorate as they desire ( be sure to keep a moist paper towel over your bowl of frosting, it dries out quickly)
I will take this photo from my pictures in my outlook, and create a card for my Grand kids
Packin' , choppin' ,why even shoppin' can all contribute to neck and back pain.
Kate and Casper, intent on finding the source of the frozen ice "king",.JPG){kind=small}
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