Happiness is....

Finding your local supermarket now stocks  PG Tips...

and its on sale....

Its been a long time...

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

Today I say good bye to two Constant Companions

They have walked miles with me.. 

taken me on many adventures..through lifes ups and downs. 

Today we walked our final 10,000 steps together.. 

enjoying the early morning sunshine 

and finding the first snail I have seen since moving to America five years ago..

(seriously!!) 

They have served me well and deserve a well earned rest in Shoe Heaven.. 

(no I dont mean the Jimmy Choo store).... 

RIP my Good and Faithful Friends

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

p.s..I couldnt afford a coffin...I hope the kitchen bin is ok......

Whats for Dinner~Meal Plan Monday

Its the last few days of July.. and I cant really believe Im saying that. Time is flying

Another busy..and fun.. week ahead. More food preserving in the kitchen and cookies to bake for Thursday for our Ladies Group in the park. Plus hubby enjoyed the Zucchini Bread so much ... he wants me to make it again.

Friday we are going to the Orange County Fair. Its the last weekend and life has been so full we almost missed it. Saturday we are going to spend a relaxing day at the beach.

We are eating a lot of chicken these days... and beef only once or twice a month. I only wish I could get MrD to eat more fish...even if its in stick form. So this Thursday its beef ...and its done in the slow cooker. We have to go for a follow up to Hubbys medical procedure from two weeks ago. It showed that he has a hernia and two stomach ulcers... so the doctor want s to see if the pills he gave him are helping. Hes also going to ask if hes slowed down at work.. ..I think they will hear the laughing in China!!! Men!

Have a great week

Weekly Plan - 29th July 2019
 
Monday              Lemon Chicken, Vegetable Stir Fry, 

Tuesday              Mexican Pork Carnitas

Wednesday         Cilantro Lime Chicken Kebabs, Rice and Salad

Thursday            Spicy Slow Cooker Beef and Peppers, Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli

Friday                 Orange County Fair

Saturday             Beach Day 

Sunday                Chicken Tenders, Spicy Potato Wedges, Ranch Dip

Sunday Thought ~ Psalm 126:2

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

Big Birthday....and Quilts

Happy first birthday to our gorgeous grandson. 

How hes grown.. 

We haven't met him yet cos he lives in England...

but we will be visiting next year. 

If this year goes as fast as last year.. 

I will soon be having lots of kisses and cuddles with him. 

Love you Little Mister xx

I love the fourth Saturday morning of the month. 

Its when we meet in the Fellowship room of our chapel for Knots of Love 

and make quilts for newborns and those who are ill.

Each one is personalized with the name of the recipient. 

Its a great time  to chat..and laugh 

and remember why we do it

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

Fire... and Ice

Friday morning is my grocery shopping time. I usually walk to the supermarket for when it opens at 6am  I time it just right for hubby to pick me up on his morning break when he heads home to swap the truck for his motorbike. He says hes still too sleepy going to work at 1.30 in the morning to ride his bike

I love going out that early. At just light..its still quite cool. Im telling you as soon as the sun makes an appearance.. temperatures shoot up . Its not really the heat that gets me...its how strong the sun is on my skin.. It feels like its on fire and I burn so easily. It seems to be worse since I had the chemo last year

I always manage to get a few photos on the way though... and makes the whole shopping thing less of a chore

By the time I got back it was already getting very warm...and by the afternoon it was in the mid 90s. My little kitchen was even warmer as I decided to deal with the leftover zucchini from making the bread yesterday.

With the Ac on full blast and the ceiling fan spinning I sliced the zucchini and plunged them into a pot of boiling water..bringing it back to the boil for about two minutes

Then I plunged them into a bowl of ice water to stop them overcooking. Honestly.. I could have plunged in there myself.

After draining them... I spread them on parchment covered baking sheets and popped them in the freezer for a couple of hours.. And yes I lingered slightly at the open freezer door...enjoying a bit of the icy blast

When they were frozen I put them in bags and put them into the freezer. You dont have to blanch them..but I find it takes some of the moisture out and they stay firmer when you defrost to use

A few more bags into the Food Storage... and enough for a few meals

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

Books ..Beaches.. and Zucchini Bread

It was another full day for me. Its actually rained here this morning.. and I thought our church ladies study group in the park would be cancelled. But like little troopers.. armed with a couple of gazebos... most of the ladies showed up.. And its a great book we are reading...so Im glad it went ahead  

I think the UK has stolen our weather.

Its unusually hot over there right now

My daughter sent some photos of Little Miss enjoying time on the beach... 

I got them just as my Facebook memories popped up.. 

coincidence??

 What a difference a year makes!

The Zucchini Bread turned out really good. Its not too sweet.. and it had the right amount of chocolate chips and nuts. MrD cut himself a slice even before it was cool. I will definitely be making it again. 

Now...what shall I do with all the leftover Zucchini ?

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

3 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 eggs

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup orange juice

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups grated zucchini

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 tablespoon orange zest

whipped cream or butter to serve

• Preheat oven at 350 °F. 
• Grease (2) 9 by 5-inch loaf pans.
• Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, spices and baking soda.
• In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and fluffy.
• Add sugar, and continue beating until well blended.
• Stir in oil, orange juice vanilla, zucchini, pecans, chocolate chips and orange zest.
• Stir in sifted ingredients.
• Pour into prepared loaf pans
  

• Bake for 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
• Remove loaves from pans and cool.
• Chill before slicing.
• Serve with whipped cream ... 

or butter and cold milk like hubby

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

Morning Sky....

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

Happy Hearts....

More hearts are finished and ready to ship out

I must be honest..

I feel a little disappointed when they go...

cos I love them all

Oh well...

Im sure they will be happy in their new homes

Love and Hugs 

Phoebe x

Whats For Dinner ~ Meal Plan Monday

Another busy week coming up. Busy but enjoyable. Someone gave me a recipe for Zucchini Bread. It sounds interesting.. and I've never tried it so I'll give it a go. I'm also going to attempt to dehydrate potatoes.. yes I really have the Food Preserving Bug

I need to do a bit of sewing too. .. a couple of hearts for my Etsy Shop... and maybe a new apron for myself.. I desperately need one

With Bible Study in the park on Thursday morning.. our monthly Knots of Love Ministry on Saturday..and a birthday party on Saturday afternoon... its a pretty full week.

I wonder if I could stretch a couple of hours in each day...

Weekly Plan - 22nd July 2019
 
Monday              Sweet and Sour Chicken  Vegetable Stir Fry, 

Tuesday              Chicken Frajitas, Refried Beans, Pico de Gallo.

Wednesday         Ham, Poached Eggs, Potato Wedges, Peas

Thursday            Slow Cooker Stuffed Peppers, Salad

Friday                 Teriyaki Turkey Burgers on Toasted Buns

Saturday             Birthday Party 

Sunday                Chicken, Garlic Roast Potatoes, Broccoli, Corn

Sunday Thoughts ~ Colossians 4:2

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x

Blue Sea... Blue Skies... Blue-tiful...

Hoping for a relaxing day..Hubby and I headed to Long Beach on Saturday...only to find it closed due to a Triathalon taking place

Luckily California has lots of beaches... so we headed down Imperial Highway to see what we could find

We ended up at Dockweiler Beach close to LAX..and it was absolutely gorgeous. 

I was a bit concerned about the noise of planes taking off just above our heads every two minutes

But honestly...after five minutes you didnt really notice it... except perhaps when the Hello Kitty Plane went over... which Mr D still dosnt believe is real cos he slept through it...

Love and Hugs

Phoebe x