First -- And Last -- Swim Party of the Summer

This year we simply couldn't get our act together to plan some pool parties.

If it wasn't the kidlet's camp/swim meet obligations, then we were out of town, or had so much stuff to do, or we wanted the peace and quiet to enjoy our own pool.

We're slackers, I know.

 But this weekend we got it together.

It helps when family is visiting, as it gives us the kick in the tookus to get it together to throw a party.

My brother Dan (he's the oldest of the Sullivan crew--and 19 years my senior) and his wife Betty Ann came to visit and stayed with my mom.

I would have thrown a pool party for my brother Charles when he visited a few weeks ago, but that was the weekend the hubs and I left for Canada. :-(

It was a smallish gathering, only fifteen of us, but it was fun to sit around the table and chat.

We don't do enough of that any longer. Everyone seems to be so caught up in their own lives that these few chances we have to visit are few and far between . . . plus it doesn't help that the family is scattered all over the US and in Germany.

So I actually cooked. I made macaroni salad, ice cream (the base is a cooked custard), a mixed berry compote (blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries), baked beans, green tomatillo salsa, tomato salsa, along with the getting the various toppings ready for hamburgers, and the hubs pulled out the frozen drink machine to make margaritas.

We still have a pitcher of 'ritas left in the freezer--Margarita slushies!

Yeah, I don't think I want any more, thank you very much! It's right up there with the rest of the ice cream--it was so rich--good, but really, really rich.

But the best memory of the day was when my brothers started talking about my dad, who passed away in 2001. My dad was a dentist, and all of us had our dental work done at home, either in the garage or dining room. My older brothers all had fillings (silver) put in their mouths forty or fifty years ago--AND THEY WERE STILL WORKING PERFECTLY!

Most fillings are suggested to last 20 years, but the fillings my dad put in were still going strong double that timeframe. In fact, the teeth were becoming weak, not the fillings.

I know at the time, we weren't always grateful for the dental care, but it's nice to see that Dad left a legacy of quality dental work behind.

Later, Peeps!

Foodie Friday -- Making Truffle Filling

I know it's a little early to be thinking of making Christmas candy, but I had huge blocks of Ghirardelli chocolate in the freezer and virtually all the ingredients to make nine out of eleven fillings.

--this is called planning ahead. I bought all those blocks of chocolate last spring because I knew they would disappear over the summer months!

Some are new flavors. Some are tried and true flavors that I simply didn't have enough filling left to make a batch of candy.

I tried to measure and time everything so I could tell you that it's a 'one size fits all' procedure, but I can't.

The fruit purees took up to 45 minutes to boil down (and boil over in the case of Bronx Cheer, a raspberry filling--walk away for one measly second to read a food blog and BAM! Oh, the flames! The sizzling! the mess!), while the liqueur syrups were finished in less than 15 minutes.

Some of the fillings needed more cream than others (the ones made with dark chocolate, for sure), while the ones prepared with white chocolate didn't really need any cream.

Shoot, I had to remake a couple of them because they didn't harden like I expected them to after they cooled down. Cherries Jubilee was one of those culprits, while Pilgrim's Progress (maple) had the opposite problem of setting up while I was stirring in the chocolate. I packaged it anyway, but turned right around to fix the problem.

Though they are in the freezer, I have a feeling I'll have to rework Mango Madness and Bronx Cheer. I really don't want to add more chocolate to harden them up, because it will change the flavor profile. Ugh!

In one or two of the flavors, I added a touch of salt to cut the sweet and enhance the flavor.

I also checked the temperatures while I was cooking them down.

And no, there was no magic number here. Some of them were at the perfect syrup texture at 100 degrees Celsius, but other syrups were finished at 90 degrees C.

I added sugar to all of them, but it varied too. I didn't want them too sweet since the chocolate could push it into the overly sweet category--especially white chocolate, as it can be a little cloying!-- but if there wasn't enough residual sugar in the liquor or fruit, then I needed the sugar to make the syrup.

So while I was making the fillings, I was tweeting about it. A few people responded, but I had fun making up names to go with the fillings--some are lame, but some are very fitting!

This is what I made yesterday:

Pilgrim's Progress -- maple, made from 100% dark amber maple syrup
Midnight Magic -- blackberry and Crème de Cassis puree, it's a beautiful deep purple
Mango Madness -- No mangos, so I tried a Bare Naked smoothie with vodka, a gorgeous yellow-orange color
Bronx Cheer -- raspberry, yanno, Raspberries with raspberry pucker-- a simply divine red with a hint of pinkness
Honey Bear -- honey, Barenjager liqueur with dark chocolate
ButterShots -- butterscotch, Buttershots liqueur with dark chocolate
Cherries Jubilee -- Frozen dark cherries (we don't really get cherries here) and a Bacardi Rum Reserve (I didn't have any brandy!:-()
PomPom -- Pomegranate juice
Cup o' Joe -- coffee, Kahlua liqueur in dark chocolate

I still need to make Strawberry Margarita (I didn't have any limes) and Black Forest (no cherry pucker). The difference between the two cherry fillings: Black Forest and Cherries Jubilee is the liquor the fruit is macerated in and the type of chocolate, dark chocolate for Black Forest, and white chocolate for Cherries Jubilee.

Once my fillings are finished, I can experiment with some various caramels that I want to try.

Why am I starting so early?

Because molding chocolate is a time-consuming, back-breaking job that uses ALL my available counter space, including the stove! I simply don't want to stop what I'm doing to make a filling.

And since I just defrosted the freezer, there's all sorts of room!

Later, Peeps!

Pillows

Have you ever noticed that when you go on vacation, you sleep better? Or you happen to notice that your back doesn't hurt any longer? Or you climb into bed, sink down into its comfort, and think, "Oh, I love this bed."

Actually this was how we got a new mattress--we were at a Holiday Inn Express in Branson. If you slept better at a hotel than on our own bed, then it's time to find a new mattress.

Anyway, we stayed at the Banff Springs Hotel and my response to the pillow was, "I love this pillow!"

And when you have this response to a hotel bed or pillow, it's time to look at the one you have at home, as it's probably time to get a new one--this is especially important if you have this response to the basic $29.99 dollar-a-night-hotel pillow!

So while I was on my boondoggle to Canada, I had the opportunity to try a couple of different pillows.

The first pillow was the one that came with the room. It was a fluffy 80% waterfowl down and 20% polyester fiber fill.

It was really comfy.

I'm a pillow hugger. . . I think they call it a 'side sleeper', but I sleep on my stomach as I hug my pillow. This part down pillow was wonderful. Fluffy and plump, but squishable.

But they also had a program that allowed you to try other types of pillows. Of course, they called one the Zen Bamboo experience, or the Mystic Cloud, or whatever frou-frou name they could think of.

The first one that I tried was basically a TempurPedic formed pillow.

I hated it.

It was too hard, too unmoveable, too unsquishable, just too . . . too.

Very much like the TempurPedic bed we tried. HATED IT. I had to wake up too much to push myself out of the cavity my body had formed in it just to flip over.


I wanted to try their Cloud pillow, but they were all unavailable at that time, but we figured that it was probably the Sobakawa Cloud pillow. So we trundled over to Bed, Bath & Beyond to go pillow shopping.

Hours later . . . We bought hubs the 600 fill goose down pillow and me the Sobakawa Cloud pillow.

Guess what?

Yeah, I didn't like the Sobakawa Cloud pillow, but he did.

So I tried the fluffy goose down pillow for a couple of nights . . . and every night I woke up in the middle of the night with a sore neck. Luckily, I had my trusty old pillow right next to the bed so I could switch out.

It was just too fluffy. Go figure.

Guess I'm a loser in the new pillow department, and I'll just stick with my good old foam pillow until it disintegrates into a gazillion different pieces.

Later, Peeps!

Weighty Wednesday -- Believe

I'm going to piggyback my Weight Watcher's meeting topic today:

BELIEVE

The power of belief has long been the mantra of many people for many reasons.

When I had major neck surgery, I held the firm belief that I was going to come through the operation just fine. I believed in the hospital. I believed in the neurosurgeon. I believed the surgery would remove the pain

It did.

And for 21 years, everything has been wonderful, until recently when age has finally caught up to my compromised neck.

I still believe that if I need additional surgery that all will go well.

When I started writing, I believed I would succeed.

Well, success comes in many forms. No, I'm not a NYT best selling author, nor do I think I will ever be one. It's just not in my belief system to wish my fantasy world into my reality.

Too many outside factors will manage this belief.

In other words, this particular belief is out of my hands. I can't make people read my stories. I can't make people like my stories, characters, etc.

But I believe I can write the best story that I can.

When I was horseback riding, I believed I could compete at the top levels of the hunter world.

And yet again, this belief was unrealistic. 

None of my horses were capable of competing at those levels, nor was I able to afford to compete at those levels. My belief that I could have an incredibly perfect jumping round didn't make sense because too many other factors were involved: my horse, me, the judge(s), or even the fact that a spectator could walk through a patch of sunlight at the most inopportune time that would make my horse spook.  

I could believe it all I wanted to, but until the planets aligned, and I was perfect with my cues to my horse, then it wasn't something that was going to happen.

Eventually, I believed that every time I mounted my horse I would have fun. I would enjoy the beautiful animal that allowed me to sit his back.

This belief was realistic, and came true every single time.

I also believe that I'll win Publisher's Clearing House . . . . and we know what the odds of that particular event happen would be, about a gazillion to one!

The power of belief is a wonderful thing, but just saying you believe in something isn't going to make it happen.

If you truly believe in something, it will take a lot of time, it will take a lot of commitment, and it will take a lot of hard work to make it happen.

And so does losing weight.

Just because you believe you can lose weight isn't going to make it happen.

You have to focus your commitment on YOU. And while you are on your weight loss journey you will discover that, yes, you are strong enough to lose weight. You are committed to losing weight. And you WILL lose weight.

Even at journey's end, the journey won't be finished. You will face new challenges.

The challenge of maintaining that lost weight is almost tougher than losing the weight.

I know.

Because I've gained 7 pounds over vacation . . . and I came home from vacation four weeks ago. I have to believe that I can lose those pounds because I've done it before. Right?

All it takes is focus, commitment, hard work, and belief in myself.

Because if you don't BELIEVE in yourself, who will?

And if all else fails, then have some dental work done. . . because I can guarantee that you will not want to eat with a numb tongue, numb lips, or numb face, or if your teeth are still sensitive for days or weeks--food will not be your friend.

Believing you can do something is one thing.

Having the courage to actually DO it is a whole different matter!

I believe you have to courage.

All it takes is your belief that through commitment and hard work you WILL succeed.

Later, Peeps!

Thawing the Freezer

Years ago we bought a small upright freezer. The reasoning was that the hubs didn't want to find me as a popsicle in a chest-type freezer some day when I fell in trying to get something out of the bottom!

I'm not that klutzy, just short . . . with little arms that can't reach anything.

Since I'm too lazy to go into the garage and take a picture, I just swiped this picture off the internet and this freezer looks amazingly like mine. Height-wise, it's slightly less than five feet high.

So, anyway, it's not a self-defrosting freezer and it needs to be defrosted every couple of years. I've been planning to do it for awhile, but I chose the day of my dentist visit to do this.

Partly because I had numb face, numb tongue, numb everything. I couldn't eat. I couldn't drink. And I certainly couldn't show my face in public!

So I turned off and unplugged the freezer, emptied the freezer items into some ice chests, got out the heat gun and went to town. . . oh, it helped that I put a baking dish under the front of the freezer to catch most of the melting ice.

About an hour later, it was frost-free, clean and dry.

I chilled it down before I started packing the stuff back in.

The most unusual product: rib bones--Oklahoma summer, remember? I don't put anything in the trash that will stink. If it won't go down the disposal, it goes in a freezer bag until the next trash day. . . but many trash days have gone by since we ate ribs. Put note on freezer door to remind myself for next trash day.

Found: Lentil soup, and homemade enchilada sauce.

Candy making stuff: the entire bottom shelf is loaded with Ghirardelli chocolate for fillings, caramels, and about 26 flavors of truffle fillings, caramels, and stuff.

Some of it is still good, while I need to make more of some flavors: Kahlua, Buttershots, Black Forest, Chambord, and Barenjager just to name a few.

Some of it, I'll probably trash: bananas foster caramel (didn't translate well), berry caramel (too buttery), maple walnut (too grainy), cherries jubilee (weird oily taste).

If you want to know the flavors that I will probably be making then go here, and scroll down past the afghan.

I'm starting to get excited about candy season, and these failures give me a chance to play with new flavors . .  .

Later, Peeps! I'm going to order some supplies and candy boxes and get to work!

Time to get my Crown

No, sorry, not a real crown, though I'd enjoy one of those far more than what I'm about to get today.

I hate going to the dentist.

It probably has to do with the fact that my father was a dentist, and he took care of all our dentistry needs from home, in the dining room, with outdated equipment.

Scarred me for life it did.

The stories I could tell of foot pumped drills, teeth flying across the room, and hypodermic needles the size of your pinky finger.

I really hate going to the dentist.

But I go twice a year for a teeth cleaning, fingers clenching the armrests. With technology, the experience has been better . . . until this last time.

I guess I grind my teeth. I assume that's what caused the super deep centers in my molars which eventually turned into 3 cavities and one seriously cracked tooth, well, the cracked tooth might be from chomping down on Jolly Ranchers.

Go figure.

Well, I'll probably be a cranky, drooling curmudgeon later, so I'll just bid you all a good day!

Later, Peeps!

Boondoggle

Definition: the act of boggling a doon . . .

Or how about: term for a scheme that wastes time and money, usually related to business expense that provides no real monetary outcome.

In other words, I've been on another vacations sans kidlet. She had school, so we couldn't take her with us. Hubs had to go to Canada--specifically Banff--for a business conference. I had every intention of blogging daily, but you see how well that went!

I believe this picture was taken from Surprise Corner. I took this one two years ago. Though I have downloaded my pictures they are still on the hubs computer, not mine.
Anyway, we went early over the Labor day weekend--erm, Canada had Labor Day weekend, too-- and mix that with some gorgeously warm weather and that equals serious crowds around Lake Louise and Banff!

The road to Moraine Lake was shut down, and people were parking everywhere on the two-lane main road from Canada's Highway 1 up to Chateau Lake Louise. Luckily we had last minute reservations!

We hiked. We climbed mountains. We ate a ton of food. We were spoiled by sleeping on down pillows. We had wake up service where they brought coffee and juice to the room. I used a coffee machine that was simply--TO DIE FOR!

We were spoiled. . . . well, I was more spoiled than the hubs since he had given me a spa day as a belated birthday gift.

I enjoyed my spa day, but to be honest that sort of pampering isn't really my thing.

Who knew, right?

When hubs was at his meetings, I hiked quite a few trails. But I must say my biggest accomplishment was hiking Sulphur Mountain. I hiked one mile through the spongy moss covered ground in the woods just to reach the trailhead for the mountain.

About two hours later, and 8,041 feet UP, I made it to the top. I borrowed this picture of the view from the internet, but I'll post one of me in it later to prove I did the hike  .  . . well, I'll also have to show you some pictures of the trail to prove that I hiked and didn't cheat by riding the gondola!

Tunnel Mountain, which I also climbed, is the tiny mountain just left of the center of the picture. Banff Springs Hotel, near the bottom of the picture and slightly to the left, was where I walked from.

The climb was so worth it! Though two days later, my hips and upper thighs are still stiff and sore!

Sorry, I didn't post while I was goofing off, but that's the beauty of having my own blog . . . I can goof off and not post!

Hopefully, I'll get my pictures together to post next week.

But I won't promise anything since I have to go to the dentist bright and early Monday morning to have the crown work started and a couple of cavities filled.

Hey! That might be the secret to losing this extra weight that I gained! Have dental work done so I can't eat!

Later, Peeps!