Hi!

Just a quick supper of panini's made on the George Foreman grill. After much deliberation at the store we finally decided to use a "sourdough square loaf" of bread from the bakery this time. There was a lot to choose from, so we plan on trying some of the others this winter. For the cheeses we had provolone and/or colby jack & the option of some saute'ed mushrooms. Nothing fancy, everyone just picked what they wanted for their own sandwiches. We had turkey, ham, or roast beef for the lunch meets. The bread was large enough that a half of a sandwich would have been plenty for one person. The sandwiches were grilled up to a golden brown, I pressed on the top of the GF grill when we got them started. After that they were ok on their own & actually grilled up pretty fast. Ive always wanted a panini press, but they were a little more costly than what I wanted. This worked perfect & was easy clean up since it's non-stick. Yeah!

For the next ones, I want to try to get them a little more heart smart and lower in calories.

( Aww, Khloe was trying her best to get a little taste. Adorable! I'm used to our dog Olie begging, in fact he has sitting pretty down to perfection, but I didnt know that cats actually beg too =)

Cooking Up Some Comfort Food

Spent the day with my daughter, peeling, chopping & cooking. It was nice spending time together in the kitchen cooking, listening to music & just hanging out before school gets into full swing again. We tried the Loaded Baked Potato Soup recipe we found on Pinterest. It made a huge batch! It was good and very very filling, so you could only eat a small helping. Grandma & Dalton joined us for supper, dad had to work, but we took some home for him to try.( He gave it a thumbs up!)

My daughter also made a desert she found on Pinterest...Apple Caramel Cheesecake. It was served hot with some vanilla ice cream. One of those really rich recipes you only indulge in every now and then. Fabulous!! She did a great job!

Kelsey's three cats Camille, Carmen, & Kesha just enjoyed the company and the view. They were really relaxed just taking every thing in...way too cute!

Back To School

My daughter heads back to college on Monday & asked me to decorate a 3 ring binder for her...hope she likes it! I left a place on the front cover for her to add her favorite quote or words of encouragement. Im not sure if this is what she had in mind. When she was telling me what she wanted she said preppy & sorta shabby chic. She picked out some papers for me to use & left me to it. I did use her papers for the background and added some of my stuff to what she had. I think it worked out, so Im keeping my fingers crossed till she sees it and gives me a thumbs up.

The Struggle To Snuggle...

Above: "The Ugly Blanket"
Khloe
Olie sittin' pretty

I love knitting and crocheting, but the fleece blankets seem to work best at my house. Washer drier safe and man & pet friendly! I have been cleaning again and found that I have enough fleece to make a blanket for every one I know and then some. How I could have forgotten about a stash that size I have no idea. So instead of working up yarn afghans this year, looks like everyone will be getting a fleece blanket for Christmas. I had to laugh ... I have two storage bins full of fabric and some I stored at my moms. Wow! It looks worse than it really is though, there are two fabrics for each blanket ...front & back. I was delighted to see that I have some great prints .... I still liked them after all this time. Oliver (Olie, our dog) even has his own blanket, so I guess I do need to pick out one more for our new kitty, Khloe.Well, if we have a cold winter this year, I know we will all be warm and toasty!

The very first one I made when these became all the rage a few years back was the start of it all for our house. I love paislies and I found this bright fabric with huge paislies all over it. Then I found a rainbow fabric for the back, basically the same colors. Both my kids thought it was the Ugliest thing they had EVER seen. Thus, from that point on my blanket became known as the "Ugly Blanket". They went on and on about it.... and it became this huge joke. It was made for me any way so I didnt care, just some thing to snuggle up in to read. The funny thing about it was every time I wanted to snuggle up in it, I had to go find it & pry it away from one of my kids. Yep, the struggle to snuggle was on! After that I made them each their own, but its funny, some times they still take "The Ugly Blanket"! Maybe it is time for some new ones after all. (Still makes me smile=)

Note ~ Khloe, our new kitty has now taken the "Ugly Blanket" to use as her new bed....we did buy her a bed, but I guess she didnt like it! We've all lost out to the cat!

Vet Day for Khloe

Here's Khloe all layed back in her favorite spot in the house...my son's bedroom window. ( Have no idea what that green is in the picture, but he will be cleaning it, he just doesnt know it yet!! Didnt notice until I saw this picture.) We had her first vet visit and she got a good report. All her tests came back great so there is nothing to worry about... no fleas , cancer, parasites or worms. She weighs a little over 8lbs, and now that she is eating well her fur is growing back in where she had a big bare spot before. Olie ( our dog ) is taking his time getting used to her, but he is giving in a little at a time. Now she is just sorta ignoring him..too funny.

Postcard & Tea Swap ~ Poland

It always makes my day when I receive wonderful swaps like this. We've been swapping through postcrossing, it was our second swap & Im enjoying all the new tea flavors she's sending my way. I have been saving some of them for "me time" or a rainy day where I can read a good book or knit. The beautiful postcard with the folklore pattern was bought at a cool art gallery in Cracow, Poland & the scenic postcard is from Warszawa, the capitol city of Poland. Im actually thinking of framing this one, I have the perfect spot for it!

So my search for good postcards and teas continues while I anticipate what to send in our next swap=)