Time really does fly...

Wow! It's been over a year since I posted anything. Seriously, where does time go? Oh yeah, I'm a full-time working mother...that explains it, at least a little.

The first thing I need to do is introduce you to my granddaughter, Karli.  She was born November 22, at 3:30 p.m., weighing 5 pounds 15 ounces and measuring 19 5/8" long. Perfect and healthy in every way! Oh, and mom recovered GREAT from her c-section (after two and a half days in labor!).

About 3 hours after birth:



Here she is at 6 weeks old:

And one more at two months:

Isn't she gorgeous?!?!?!! I think I'm starting to get the hang of this whole grandma thing, and I think I'm really going to enjoy it, too!

We spent this past weekend celebrating my grandpa's 95th birthday. It was great seeing my sister and my Ohio family again. Sadly, the visits are few and far between. With the addition of Karli, it made five generations - again! My oldest daughter (aka Karli's mom) made five generations on my dad's mom's side of the family. My great-grandma was 94 when my oldest was born, and my grandpa (dad's dad) was 94 when Karli was born. I think that's kinda cool.

 

On a different, but related note, I have started crocheting again. Related because I picked up my yarn and hook when I found out I was going to be a grandma. I have a few projects under my belt, and a few CIPs (crochets in progress). Karli has a beautiful blanket; my son-in-law and youngest daughter have scarves and I made one for myself, too; one lapghan for Soldiers’ Angels; an OSU afghan for my son; and, an afghan that I started years ago and lost the pattern for.

Last week, I was cruising around looking for patterns and discovered The Checkerboard Textures Throw Crochet Along at Red Heart. I fell in love and have finished the first square. I am really pleased with how it turned out, except for the fact that it is definitely NOT a 10x10 square like it's supposed to be! What do you think? I'm hoping that all my squares will turn out the same size and the afghan will still come together like it's supposed to.

My problem now is that I have found two more crochet-alongs that I am smitten with. First, the 2014 Block-A-Month CAL and then the Moogly CAL 2014.  I’m not even a huge fan of Granny Squares, but I do love a good challenge so I’ll probably be making three blankets (in addition to the other CIPs I have going) this year. You can never have too many projects going at once, right?? The BAM CAL only does one square a month, while Moogly does two, and Red Heart does four! Hmm...decisions, decisions...

NaNoWriMo bites the dust (and a recipe!)

Well, I tried. I tried to squeeze in 1,667 words each day last month. I tried and failed. Apparently, 24 hours is just not enough time to be a full-time wife, mom and Administrative Secretary, and a part-time taxi driver, doctor, dish washer, laundry attendant, cook & bottle washer, and novelist...get the idea? I am not giving up, no, I am just going to postpone this adventure for now. The thoughts are still swirling in my head and they'll eventually make it down on paper. Just not right now, maybe not in 6 months, but maybe next November when NaNoWriMo starts up again. We'll see...

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Thanks to Pinterest I have hundreds of new recipes to try (as if my dozens and dozens of cookbooks didn't already have enough!). This one was a big hit at my Dad's 70th birthday party back in September, and I made it again today for our Christmas lunch at work.

 

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls

 

 

Thanks to Dori at Riches to Rags by Dori and Tonia at The Gunny Sack for this great recipe. They both have step-by-step pictures, by the way. I wasn't thinking "blog it" when I made them this morning or I would have taken some myself.

 

I did change the original recipe a touch this time and only used mozzarella cheese...ok, string cheese cut in pieces. You can get 7 perfect-sized pieces out of one piece of string cheese :) I also forgot the Parmesan - gasp! I know, I know...what is a pizza bite without Parmesan. Or Parmeesheean, as my Dad says. I didn't have any Italian seasoning either, so I just used oregano. Ack, I also brushed with butter after baking instead of egg before baking (oregano and garlic after baking as well) and baked at 400° for a tad longer than 20 minutes. Guess I changed it a bit more than a touch. Hope they taste ok! I'll let you know. They do look good though, don't they?

 

Ingredients:

3 cans buttermilk biscuits, not the flaky kind (10 biscuits per can)

60 pepperoni slices

Block of cheese

1 beaten egg

Parmesan cheese

Italian seasoning

Garlic powder

1 jar pizza sauce

 

Directions:

1. Cut the block of cheese into 30 squares (1/2" - 3/4").

2. Flatten one biscuit and layer pepperoni, cheese, pepperoni.

3. Gather the edges of the biscuit around the filling, and squish gently to seal. Repeat with remaining biscuits, pepperoni and cheese.

4. Place pepperoni rolls in 9x13" baking dish. Brush with egg and sprinkle with Parmesan, Italian seasoning and garlic powder (or whatever you want really...see my note above).

5. Bake at 425° F for 18-20 minutes.

 

Serve with warm pizza sauce for dipping.

Better late than never!

Wow! It's been quite a while since I posted anything.  My laptop still isn't working, and it isn't nearly as convenient using the desktop computer downstairs.  I've taken over the hubby's MacBook (which I'm not nearly as fond of as my Sony!), and hope to start posting more frequently.

I've never thought of myself as much of a writer, so signing up for NaNoWriMo was not something I had planned by any stretch of the imagination! 30 days...50,000 words...1 novel. Piece of cake, right? HA! Here it is day 5, and I'm already 5,225 words behind.  Who knew writing 1,667 words a day would be so difficult? I'm sure I speak at least that many words during the day, but actually writing that many words is proving to be a challenge.  Time, that's my excuse. Not enough time to write. Working 8-5 sure cuts into my writing time, then the family needs my attention in the evening, which also creates a free time issue. Plus, I'm not sure where my story is going so I'm winging it. Having never written a novel, or anything other than school papers for that matter, I don't have a clue what I'm doing. Character development, plot-thickening events, and the moral of my story will have to come later. For now, the goal is just getting the words onto paper. The details will come later.

My friend, Sheri (http://www.sherisalatin.com), and my brother-in-law, Kevin (http://kwsleadership.wordpress.com), are also participating in NaNoWriMo.  Wish us all luck!!