Nostalgia

I loved TV as a child! Here are some of the shows that I remember. You may be too young to have had the opportunity to watch these weekly shows, but they bridge the gap of time for me. See how many you can name and if you're too young... ask your parents!

1. The 64,000 Question

2. The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis

3. Lassie

4. Our Miss Brooks

5. Father Knows Best

6. The Ozzie and Harriet Show

7. The Lone Ranger
8. The Perry Mason Show

9. Leave it to Beaver

10. Alfred Hitchcock Presents
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My favorite show was "The Mickey Mouse Club"!! When my dad was out of town I would eat my dinner on a TV tray in front of the show. I sang all of the songs with them and did a few of the dances. I loved the 'Spin and Marty' movies and was a fan of Annette Funnicello.

How about you?? What was your favorite TV show when you were young??

Can't wait to hear!

Make this a great day!
Joni

Von Trapped in Vienna!

Boyd's sister and brother-in-law are "Von Trapped in Vienna". The European air traffic is in such a mess due to the clouds of debris from the Icelandic volcano. Mary and John were due home today... they live in Madison... but they finally have a confirmation for a flight on Thursday. They've been there for a much-needed vacation after Boyd's death and Mary's caring for her brother Dana who has cancer.

Sounds like an adventure to have an extended stay in Austria but "the Euros are running out", said Mary. They've been there for 1o days.

I miss you two and hope you get home 'sooner than later'. Mary stays with me about once a week and I miss our conversations. Otter loves her! Now, here's a thought for you... If you had to get stranded someplace in the world, where would you choose?

I'd choose the Provence area of France! So relaxing, smells like lavender, and I'd shop for their wonderful fabrics and eat their fantastic fresh veggies, bread & cheese with lots of olive oil.

How about you??

Make this a great day!

Joni

Dreams

I have always wanted a white picket fence... always! When I was little and I drew pictures of houses with my crayons, they always had a white picket fence around them. Boyd's unexpected death taught me that there might not be a tomorrow... do it today! So yesterday I sat down with a contractor, Bob Christiansen (his company is called DREAM WORKS... isn't that appropriate!) and he measured and we sketched. An my dream picket fence will be built... picket by picket... in a week or too! Otter will have his own little yard to prance and play in. The photo below is random off the Internet but it's how I envision my "cottage look"... with my cottage house.
This is my new Springtime bedding (Pottery Barn). The sheets have lovely lace edging and the comforter is made of voile... soooo soft. Otter loves it but I haven't been able to get a picture of him in it yet... but I will!!

Also from Pottery Barn... I bought a mixture of spring floral pillows to scatter on my red couch in the den and the blue couches in the living room. They've added a fun Spring cottage look and feeling in here.

Our tulips are almost ready to bloom... yea! How about yours!

Off to have my taxes done. Yes, I know it's almost the 15th... what can I say?

Make this a great day!

Hugs to you all...

Joni

YUMMERS!

This is a great cookbook brimming over with vegetarian yummy recipes. I bought it years ago because it has such a gosh darn cute cover! I love all of Mollie Katzen's cookbooks (the Moosewood series)! This is the Spanish Rice recipe from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest. I made it yesterday and it was REALLY yummy! It's a one pot dish and is fairly quick to make despite that the brown Rice takes longer to cook.

1 1/2 Cups chopped onion

2 large cloves crushed garlic

1/4 Cup Olive Oil

1/2 tsp salt (I use Sea Salt)

1 3/4 cups raw brown rice

2 chopped green bell peppers

1/2 tsp each: oregano and basil
freshly ground black pepper

&

Tabasco sauce to taste

2 1/4 cups tomato juice

2 small fresh tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup chopped green olives

freshly chopped parsley

1 packed cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Saute onions and garlic in olive oil with salt.

2. Add raw rice, green peppers, and spices. Saute over medium hat another 5-8 minutes.

3. Add tomato juice. Bring to boil. Turn heat way down, cover, and let simmer 15 minutes.

4. Add tomatoes and olives. Stir, cover and continue simmering until rice has absorbed all liquid. Remove from heat.

5. Fluff the cooked rice with a fork and transfer to a serving bowl. Stir in most of the cheese. Garnish with the chopped parsley and remaining cheese.

Great leftovers!!

Otter sat on the kitchen rug and watched me cook. Poor guy... he didn't even get a taste! I haven't ever given him any 'people food' and I don't want to start.

I'll probably eat those words one day!

Make this a great day!

Hugs to you all!

Joni


PS...

This is what we woke to this morning!

I am so blessed!

My friend Nicolette, who lives in The Hague in the Netherlands, sent me a SURPRISE package the other day. She made me this LOVELY quilted table runner... Thank you Nicolette!!! I love it! I put it on the table for Easter week and it's just sooooo perfect and Springy! I can't wait for Kristin to see it when she arrives Friday for the weekend.

The little candles are in glass rabbit candle holders. They didn't show up in the photo but, oh so cute and perfect with the runner.Nicolette also sent a copy of Marie Claire Idees. I love, love, love this magazine as it is so overflowing with inspiration. I used to have a subscription to it thru Amazon.com. But it ran out and I failed to renew it. I need to order it again now that I am reminded how much I enjoy it. Thanks again, Nicolette!!

And what would my blog be without a current photo of the man in my life... Otter!! Such a loving guy!! He gets his first grooming on Thursday so he'll smell sweet when he meets Kristin for the first time.

I love my new vegetarian lifestyle and the exercise I'm getting with the frequent dog-walking. Otter could walk for ever! And listen to this... 14... yes, fourteen pounds have disappeared with these life changes. And it's been effortless with the yummy good food I'm eating. More about that another day.

Make this a great day regardless of the obstacles you face! Treasure each moment!!

Hugs to you all!

Joni

Otter and Ginger

Guess who loves to get under the covers and put his head on a pillow?? Yup... that's my Otter!! He is soooo snuggly!! I think that's a trait of most beagles. He has certainly added a lot of life and love to this house. Meet our little friend Ginger who belongs to my friends Myles and Lyn. Ginger has a sister Gracie who is equally charming... she prays... HONEST! The humor in this photo is that Ginger is resting with her paws on a Scrabble dictionary. M & L are marathon Scrabble players! Ginger wants you to know that her favorite word is "MEOW" and that few Scrabble players know that it is an official Scrabble word. Soooooo... Meow to you! Ginger and Gracie love to have their teeth brushed every night. Wonder if my guy Otter would let me do that? I know there is meat flavored doggie toothpaste.

Coming this week:

1. A Great Trip to Barnes and Noble.

2. The Joys of Becoming a Vegetarian.

3. A New Cookbook Idea!

4. Kristin's 40th Birthday in Phoenix.

MAKE THIS A GREAT DAY!

~Joni

Ever see a green river?

This is what my daughter Kristin will see as she leaves her downtown condo tomorrow to go to work... the Chicago River turns GREEN! Honest!! Tomorrow!!Called the eighth wonder of the world: Dyeing the Chicago River green on the morning of every St. Patrick's Day Parade. In the 1960's, plumbers set out to determine exactly how the river was being polluted... a job that heralded the introduction of the first batch of green dye to the river. The plumbers were testing plumbing systems to see if anything was being illegally dumped into the river. They were putting a green dye into the systems of each building. If the dye ended up in the river, they'd know whose system needed an overhaul. The idea of adding massive amounts of green dye to the Chicago River on St. Patrick's Day, however, came from a plumber working on the project. What better tribute to the Emerald Isle than a bit of Irish green in the river? The first time the plumbers tried it, the people of Chicago observed the bright green water flowing by their buildings for three days. Today it's more like three hours before the green stuff dissipates naturally. The process begins at 10:45 a.m. on Columbus Drive on the morning of the Chicago parade. Men in giant white suits and masks throw an orange powder -- one of three colors, along with white and green, on the Irish flag into the river. Boats churn the water to turn it a perfect emerald green, and the current carries the color along the parade route just in time for step off at noon. The river-dyeing festivities alone attract anywhere from 30,000 to 50,000 people -- two-thirds of whom traditionally stick around and join the even bigger crowd at the parade. The dye is a secret formula but it's 100 percent safe.

MAKE THIS A GREAT DAY!!
Joni O'Possin

What a Sweet Boy!

Otter is just the SWEETEST dog! He is sooooo loving! And so good!! He's not interested in toys or rawhide chews... but checking out this teddy.

Favorite spot... the couch in the den. He loves to cuddle in the afghan that my Mom knit. Otter sheds a lot and of course the couch, being solid red, really gets 'hairy' by the end of the day.

Last week it rained everyday and created a great deal of mud along the sidewalks. YUCK!

This week is supposed to be sunny and in the 50's... great dog-walking weather!!

My pumpkins are gross and my neighbor offered to remove them for me. Guess he couldn't stand looking at them any longer. Actually... they've been buried in snow for months and not visible!! At least that's how I justify the fact that they didn't make the garbage in the Fall.

With all the walking that Otter and I are doing, I decided to change my eating habits and be kinder to the earth. I'm now eating 'green'... day #5. No more meat, fish, eggs, etc. However, I haven't given up cheese yet. That will come!! I've done this before and it's amazing how good I felt.

Make this a GREAT day!

Joni

I'm in Looooooooove!!!

Meet Otter!!
He's a 2.5 year old Beagle that I saw at the animal shelter yesterday. It was love at first sight!! There is usually a 4 day wait but my timing was right and I was able to take him home yesterday. Otter came to the shelter because his owners were moving and couldn't take him with them. He craves attention and has a big heart! He is gentle and loving and is already mending my broken heart. He was up-to-date with routine shots, house trained and spayed/neutered... perfect!

Yes... he slept in my bed last night (well it's a king size). I slept with one eye open keeping an eye on him and we ended up going for a walk at 5:00 AM. The walking is just what I needed to burn some calories and Otter loves to be outside. With all the warm weather we've been having, there is a lot of MUD out there! So we'll have to wait a bit before we go to the dog park.

I need a nap!!

Hugs to all!

Joni

PS He doesn't mind the flash on the camera... Yea!!

Books and a Movie!

Have you read anything by Adriana Trigiani? Big Stone Gap? (about to become a movie). A friend suggested Adriana's new Trilogy about a family of old world Italian shoemakers in Greenwich Village. They've been making exquisite wedding shoes since 1903 and now Valentine must bring the old-world craftsmanship into the 21st century. She returns to Italy to find some answers. Throw in a romance with a dashing chef! Adrianna is such a good storyteller... I don't want to put the book down and I just started it last night.
The second book in the trilogy is Brava, Valentine. The third book has not been published as of today.

I stumbled across this movie, Easy Virtue the other night on Netflix, and watched it right on my laptop... FREE! I adored it!! Great casting!! I may watch it again! Love Colin Firth... always! And Kristin Scott Thomas is one of my favorite female actresses. And what fun when the setting is an English Country House.

Jessica Biel, Colin Firth, Kristin Scott Thomas and Ben Barnes bring Noël Coward's witty comedy of manners magnificently to life in this "deliciously cheeky" adaptation. When British playboy John brings his new wife Larita - a race car-driving feminist from Detroit - home to meet the family at their country estate, pretty much everyone's expectations are disappointed. His snooty mother is offended by Larita's carefree American ways, while Larita does everything she can to get her mother-in-law to loosen up, which only annoys her even more. John's sisters have diametrically opposed feelings about their new sister-in-law, but his father is intrigued to have finally found another who sees through the family's façade - and takes great perverse pleasure in watching his wife meet her match.

The Newlyweds

Mother and 'the sisters'.

Mother finds her dog dead in a throw pillow.

Whoops!

New DIL sat on her!!

That's it for today... Make this a great day!!

Hugs to you my friends!

Joni

Simple but Tasty!

It's beginning to be that asparagus time of the year. It was Boyd's favorite veggie! So in honor of Boyd here's a new simple and quick recipe I just tried. Asparagus Fettuccine


Break off the tough end of each spear by bending it gently until it snaps. It will break at the point where the tender part ends and the tough part begins.

Ingredients:
1 lb. asparagus, ends trimmed
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1⁄4 cup dry white wine
4 Tbs. (1⁄2 stick) unsalted butter
Zest of 2 lemons
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 lb. fettuccine
1⁄4 cup chopped fresh chives
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions:
In an asparagus pot or steamer filled halfway with boiling salted water, add the asparagus, tips up. Cover and cook until tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Cut the asparagus into 1 1⁄2-inch lengths; set aside. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add the wine, bring to a boil and cook until almost evaporated. Add the asparagus, butter and lemon zest, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the butter melts. Season with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, bring a large pot two-thirds full of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.Transfer the pasta to a serving bowl. Add the asparagus sauce and chives and toss to coat. Pass the cheese at the table.

I'm really on a 'cooking-new-recipe' kick! And I'm having fun playing in my new little red and white kitchen. A very comforting place to be!!

Make this a great day!!
Hugs,
Joni

YEA!! My Girls are Home!!

And this is what the coffee table in the den looks like. It screams, "The girls are home!" And I love it! Wendy always has fun poking through the tubs in the basement and brings touches of nostalgia up stairs. Last night it was their Smurf collections and their Sticker Books. Home sweet home! "Move over... let me take a picture!" Notice the box of Milk Duds?? More nostalgia!!Almost all the Smurfs look essentially alike — mostly male, very short, with blue skin, white trousers with a hole for their short tails, white hat in the style of a Phrygian cap, and sometimes some additional accessory that identifies a personality. (For example, Handy Smurf wears overalls instead of the standard trousers, a brimmed hat, and a pencil above his ear.) Smurfs can walk and run, but often move by skipping on both feet. They love to eat Sarsaparilla leaves, whose berries the smurfs naturally call smurfberries

There was a huge stack of sticker books, but I just took a pic of a few of them so that you could get the idea. Wendy can remember everything about each sticker... what a memory! Some great stories were shared last night.

Kristin and Wendy have left for Chicago where Wendy will catch a flight to Phoenix and where Kristin lives. It's always so empty when they leave but I am so blessed to see them as often as I do.

Safe travel girls!

Hugs,

Joni

Yummers!

I found this recipe on kashi.com and it is YUMMERS!

Beans make a nutritious alternative to meat, and heating them briefly in olive oil and garlic infuses them with flavor.

Makes 2 servings

4 ounces whole-wheat pasta shells, tubetti, ziti, or rigatoni
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed
1 large clove organic garlic, minced (I smash mine and remove it after it has been sauteed with the beans)
2 ripe medium tomatoes, diced
2 Tbsps oil-cured black olives (I use regular black olives)
¼ cup sliced fresh basil... a must!!
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 Tbsps freshly grated Romano cheese ( I use Parmesan Reggiano)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add beans and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until the beans are just heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Add tomatoes, olives, basil and pepper. Stir gently to combine. Divide the pasta between 2 plates and top with the bean mixture and cheese. I toss it all together! I also add chopped green onions. OR you could add chopped red onion to the beans and garlic when sauteing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm finding a sense of peace in the kitchen and I've printed a stack of recipes to try. I'm about to go back to the kitchen and make Leek & Potato soup. A favorite of Kristin.

Make this a Great day!
Hugs,
Joni

Another Great Loss

Gabby died Tuesday at the age of 18 years. She loved to sleep on my lap and play with plastic bags. Her love and warmth will be sadly missed. I love you Gabby! Go be with your Daddy.

New Scrapbox!

I want to introduce you to Angel. She was rescued from a Puppy Mill by one of my good friends. After a lot of love and extensive grooming, Angel is thriving in her lovely new home... she had previously lived in a crate and was used for breeding. Angel has a HUGE wardrobe and I wanted to take photos of her in her many outfits. However, she didn't like the camera's flash. I will try again soon and share them with you. Isn't she adorable? And she has a personality to match!
I made another Scrapbox this weekend. I wanted to preserve my favorite book from when I was growing up. My Mom read it to me several times and then I read it myself a few more times. It has such unforgettable characters like Hookie-the-Goblin, Little Lemon Cookie, Snickerdoodle, and more. I read it to my girls when they were little and then they read it themselves, too! The book has been a fixture around our house since the 1940's.

I created a scrapbook page about this book experience, reduced it to 6x6, and printed it to be included in the scrapbox. The spine of the book was broken and I used a very strong 2-sided tape (from a scrapbook store) in the corner of each page to keep the book together

I stumbled upon scrapboxes at Tuesday Morning. They had Martha Stewart's label on them and they were only $3.99 each (originally $24.99). I bought them all!! The box I used for the above creation is from TJ Maxx. All scrapping materials used in the making of the above layout are from Designer Digitals (click on 'my Gallery' for more details).

My daughters are coming home this weekend and I can't wait!! We're going up to the Green Bay house to move all my scrapping materials, Summer clothes, and anything else of importance that was left behind. I just love every minute that I get to spend with them... such a gift!

Choose to MAKE this a great day!

XOXO

Joni

Snow, snow, snow!

Snow... those beautiful white delicate flakes... that can shut down whole cities. Isn't that amazing when you think about it! My heart goes out to the East Coast and all the people that have been negatively affected by their recent storm. And another storm's on it's way! We had snow all day yesterday and it's predicted to hit us hard today and tomorrow morning. I love being snowed in! However... I wouldn't feel the same if I had to go to work.
********************************
Yesterday I added white wooden snowflakes to red branches on the fireplace. Wendy found the snowflakes at Crate and Barrel and they are so delicate. Love them! Thanks Wendy!!
I have become very sensitive to caffeine and am now on a quest for herbal teas and/or caffeine free teas. Some are soooooo tasty... and smell so good! At this time of the year I seem to have a cup of something hot in my hands most of the time.

RANDOM THOUGHTS...

~ "The Bachelor" was ridiculous last night!! Such phony drama... obviously rehearsed!

~ I am loving Geraldine Brooks novels. I bought them all! Remember... I buy on Amazon.com from their used books. So inexpensive and almost always in great shape.

~ Has anyone seen the movie "Amelia"?? I'd love to know what you thought of it!

~ I just watched "The Hurt Locker" and "Inglorious Bastards" as they both had a lot of Oscar nominations. I wasn't crazy about either of them.

~ Yesterday I wore my Uggs, a plaid flannel nightshirt of Boyds, and an apron over that. Try and visualize that for an outfit! It sure was comfy! Boyd would have laughed!

Make this a GREAT day! You have the choice... and if I can do it, so can you!

Hugs to you all,

Joni

Scrapboxes

In the February Issue of Martha Stewart's Living magazine, there's a long article with photos (see: below) about a very talented gal that makes scrapboxes. You can also find out about them on Martha Stewart's website. I had to try creating one and bought several on an online site (they also have them at Michael's Crafts).

My box is 8x10 but they do come in other sizes. I printed a photo of Gabby and glued it (around the edges) to the back of the box. Then printed some letters from my stash and mounted each on a piece of red paper (for sturdiness and color), and staggered them with small pieces of foam to make them 3-D (there are actually 3 different heights but the camera didn't catch that). Finished it by gluing one of Gabby's favorite catnip mice to the bottom of the box. Simple and quick to do!! And it looks cute hanging on the den wall. Boyd would have liked it!

Here are the pages from the issue of Living about scrapboxes. The photos in the article are small but try clicking on it and see if it enlarges. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don't!

I have soooooo many ideas of ways to use these shadowboxes. Can't wait to start another!

Make this a great day!

Hugs,

joni

Good Eating!

I have fallen in love with Kashi Frozen Dinners!! They are soooo tasty, unique, and very healthy!! This particular dinner (that I had for lunch yesterday) had such wonderful flavor and so many good grains in it... oats, brown rice, rye, red winter wheat, buckwheat, barley, and sesame seeds. Over this interesting combination were strips of chicken breast, spinach, orzo, red peppers, crimini mushrooms, Parmesan cheese and a garlicky sauce. It was soooooo yummy!! I'm hooked! They are a bit more expensive than most frozen dinners however Walmart has a great selection and good prices. I've had several of the other entrees and each one was tasty! Very high in fiber!!
Check out the Kashi website for some really great sounding recipes.


It's 0 degrees at the moment but I'm in the mood to go to Target. I do have a short list but with Valentine's Day quickly approaching I want to see what they have to add to my heart collection. Even without Boyd here I want to make the effort to continue familiar traditions. I think that's really important for my mental and emotional health.

I love Target!

Make this a GREAT day and treasure every moment with family and friends!

Hugs around the world... Joni

Hello you wonderful people!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the kind comments when Boyd died. I read them over and over and they brought me such a warm feeling. I love you all for responding to a difficult post.

I'm getting used to being alone... somewhat... and thought it time to attempt posting on my blog. My attention span is very short right now... I'm finding it hard to concentrate. But it's a beginning!

I was looking for a crazy photo in my files and found this one of Wendy, her friend Tiffany, and Kristin. It was taken New Year's Eve at a "Wigs & Wine" party. Kristin had flown to Phoenix from Chicago to celebrate with Wendy, Darin, and friends and get a bit of sunshine. Kristin was back in Phoenix last weekend to run the PF Chang "Rock and Roll Marathon" with a whole group of friends. FUN!!

Wendy and Darin just left for the PGA in Florida. Kristin is joining them tomorrow night. They never sit still. They live each day!

When I found Boyd that Monday, both girls were here that same day. They stayed for a week and held me up and organized the funeral, etc. I applaud their employers for giving them that time.

I copied this from Karen Walker. Try it yourself!

Outside my window . . . fresh snow on the sidewalks and sunny.
I am thinking . . . please let this Vertigo go away so I can drive.
I am thankful for . . . another day and my wonderful girls, my friends, & SIL Mary.

I am wearing . . . jammies with a hoodie sweatshirt zipped up. Charming!

I am remembering . . . Boyd
I am going . . . to get the Christmas decor tucked away in the basement today.
I am currently reading . . . 'People of the Book' by Geraldine Brooks. It's the first book I've tried that has hooked me.
I am hoping . . . for another good night's sleep.

On my mind . . . organizing papers for my attorney.
Noticing that . . . I'm not eating well... few veggies.

Pondering this word . . . "widow". I don't associate it with me. That's something that only happens to other people.

From the kitchen . . . I actually made chili a few days ago. After one bowl I froze the rest.

Around our house . . . Stacks of legal papers.

One of my favorite things . . . movies, movies, and more movies. I get lost in them and forget reality.

There! I did it! And it wasn't so difficult!

Love to you all!

joni

Sad News

Yesterday, January 4th, my dear Boyd died unexpectedly at home. He was 62 years old.