The Needle in a Haystack

all Good Gifts

..are from HIM

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

James 1:17 NASB

My Son Has Super Powers....or Men Who Stare At Targets

Happy Birthday Evan and sock monkey tut

.. ..My youngest nephew Evan turned one today.... so hard to believe its been a year since we have been blessed with him in our family.

I wanted to make him a very very special gift.... something just 1st birthday perfect.... and what could be more birthday perfect then this...

..These are so fun to make... I must admit that i was a bit nervous making that first cut... but I think he turned out very well.. You can purchase the socks and the how to along with the story of the sock monkey HERE

Evan laughed out loud when he saw him!

Uncle Chris had fun playing with it too...

There was yummy cake

....and an Evan sized cake

That provided much yummy goodness for the Birthday Boy!

 

 

....and hugs and kisses by so many people who love and pray for him

 

His mama said the day just wore him out!

...still holding his red balloon!

Happy Birthday Evan!

Thanksgiving at the Y

Yesterday was the annual Thanksgiving dinner at the YMCA where I work part time.

..its a chance for the over 60 set and the staff to enjoy a feast together... The Y provides the turkey/ham/ dressing/gravy/drinks..and everyone else cvhips in with a dish to share.  I don't think any restaurant in the world serves better food then the women of rural NC . yummy sweet potatoes tucked under a bed of browned marshmallows, biscuits that " make you want to slap your mama", carrot cake with cream cheese frosting stacked 3 layers high.... whoa Honey!!  The Holidays have officially begun!

I'll leave you with some fun pictures...

 

 

 

 

 

Pepperoni Rolls

I come from an Irish family.... even when we try and trace the roots to some other country.... Irish.... even our Low Land Dutch ancestors migrated to..... yep Ireland.... so it was a real treat when my Irish Auntie married a wonderful 100% Italian man

( notice the family resemblance??? I can only hope to look so good in twenty years)...

Anyhow.... one of the best things I can gnaw down on my Uncle Joe cooks are pepperoni rolls. These are not to be confused with calzones....and are strictly found in this 50 mile radius of Fairmont WV...Wikapedi claims these goodies started at Country Club Bakery.... but being a Fairmontonian ( I was born there..and the town is filled with tons of folks I love dearly still) I tend to challenge that statement.  I think it was Colasessano's but no matter where the fact is  that it happened in Fairmont ..and this dear Aunt and Uncle team cranked out the absolute best pepperoni rolls you could every hope for.

Years ago they popped in to Raleigh for a visit sporting a bag of the pepperoni jewels and since then I have tried my best to reproduce them just like Uncle Joe's.... I fall miserable short....but here is the best I can come up with....

slice stick pepperoni into thin strips ( about the size of a julienne carrot strip)

bread dough.... bread IS important.... my uncle said in a pinch frozen bread dough but I use the following

Pepperoni Roll Bread

Soft and Fast Bread Sticks
1 c. warm water
3 T. brown sugar
1 t. salt
1/4 c. oil
  3 c. bread flour

2 1/2 t. yeast

give the water, sugar & yeast about 10 minutes to do their thing... add the rest of the ingredients and mix well... allow about an hour to raise and then punch down pinch off about the size of a tennis ball and wrap 3 or 4 pepperoni strips in the center and seal... ( I suppose you can add cheese and sauce... we never have and it seems rather  heretical)  place on a baking sheet and allow another 1/2 hour raise... preheat oven to 350 and bake about 15-20 min until the tops are golden brown..

Arrivederci

Chris's New Toy

Yesterday morning we stopped by the local diner and picked up a couple of biscuits and coffee and hit the road

 

we headed north...it was such a beautiful morning to drive the back roads of VA.

 

 

and sure... we can stop and look at that old truck...

 

.... now look what's in my driveway....

 

..Seriously, when I stop at a yardsale I never spend more then a couple of bucks....

On a good note... the truck did a super job traveling the 125 miles to its new home..... and I am sure with practice Chris will get the hang of the 3 on the column shifting...and manual everything...

..1971...I hope Ford had a good year that year....

Vacation Day Three... Cowpens and Guilford Courthouse...

I was so happy to be able to give Chris the Revolutionary War trip for his birthday. he had planned for weeks setting up routes and stops... The best gift was not planned... At  Cowpens we met a wonderfully talkative ranger who spent 3 hours with my husband talking Revolutionary War. We walked trails, watched movies and jawed  the morning away.  The ranger was none other then John Robertson who has researched up to 1500 Revolutionary War battles and compiled them on a website.

 

 

The time at Cowpens had us running a bit behind ..even though we cut out a couple of stops we still had time for some out of the way battle stops

 

Cowans Ford is now a dam

 

We fueled up with our trip staple .. Bojangles fries, and headed to Guilford Courthouse

 

we finished the tour as the gates were closing

A quick stop at the Grove City Grill for a burger and we headed for home...

It was a great vacation.... we're already planning the next one!

On this Veterans Day....... Don't Forget to Hug a Hero

...I have!!!

Zooting around South Carolina.... Day 2

.. One of the things Chris wanted to do for his " birthday vacation" was to visit obscure..and not so obscure Revolutionary War sites... this led us to out of the way towns and down wonderful dirt roads in SC.  Nothing like pulling over to the side of the road  and nibbling on a piece of fruit while watching the locals and reading historic markers....

 

 

 

 

 

 

...It was a wonderful day....

Pray for the troops....

Happy Birthday to My Sweetest