Tuesday, December 29, 2009

2009 Christmas at The Linnas

I had great intentions of being all ready for my guests. I had a time line down, today I wash clothes. the next day plan the meals, shop on another day so on. The weather threw me off, my son and boys came early because of the stormy forecast. That was a smart thing to do but I didn't get done what I planned.
That was OK because the grandsons wanted to cook, so clean counters(not dirty but cluttered) and floors were not important. Yes there was pancake batter all over the counter and drawers. Ice cream left out so counter had to be cleaned up. Oldest grandson was making smoothies. Oldest grandson also wanted to make what I believe is called Puppy Chow. It calls for powdered sugar that blows around easily. I was busy with cleanup, yes they cleaned up but they do not have grownup eyes. They had fun and the food created very good. We made saffron rolls. My son Pat made the dough and I made the different forms. I was on my feet for three hours and very tired so my grandchildren offered to cleanup. There was a pile of pans left and a mixing bowl, also odds an ends of cooking tools such as spoons, measuring cups. The odds and ends got cleaned but the bowl and pans were still there dirty. That was pointed out to them and back they went. The bowl got clean, but the pans remained, I laughed and did the pans. Like I said they don't have grownup eyes.
Melli told about spilling the beans at her place. My daughter bought for me a garbage disposal, that was to be a surprise. There was problems with communication about where and who picks up the disposal, Pennie or the plumber. Pennie left it there, but the sales clerk thought it should be brought to the house. She left it on the step for the plumber to get it. I came to Pennies with the mail and saw the disposal. Surprise gone but I knew I had to get the kitchen clean for it but like I said up above that didn't get done before the son and grandchildren arrived. The plumber still has not been here.
The church service was very nice, with a banjo, bells and choir. We had a candle lighting service. The boys got to go sledding twice.
Next I will tell you about the meal. I had a standing rib roast which I put in the oven at the right time. I also had a ham and that went into the oven at the right time, but I forgot about the apple roast which I was putting in the slow cooker. I did finally remember and put it on but it was not going to be ready at the right time. Alex made the fruit salad. We also had rolls and mashed potatoes. Pie, apple and lemon were for dessert .

Saturday, December 26, 2009

Merry Christmas

This is late and I did want to do I nice and pretty post for Christmas but it didn't happen.
Pat and the boys came up early because of the storm. We had a nice christmas, but the weather has not been. I know many others had the same problem. So:

Merry Christmas!!

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Raven challenge 93

Today I face another Raven's Challenge.
This week's 10-word challenge are: spaghetti, woe is me, mythology, avarice, windy, pathetic, paper towels, water, all my children, books


And for the mini: best deals of the week, Nobel Peace Prize, sleep deprived, cauliflower, practice


Mini:
Sandy Shore could not get to sleep. There had been now many nights of little sleep, and she feared she would be sleep deprived. Could it be what she ate such as the cauliflower she had last night? She might as well get up. Maybe if she read the paper for the best deals of the week, she would get tired enough to fall asleep.

Not finding any deals, she turned to the news portion. There was an article on the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize. She knew who should really win the prize, Knight her invisible penguin. Of coarse they would not give it to him, because most people could not see him, or knew what he had done. He had all that power, and with practice he was becoming more skilled at turning dangerous situations into safe ones. Like the other day when those kids got their hands on the medallion that could bring someone into another place, and then that Larry put it on taking him off to another land. Many people wanted that power. The news had spread fast the medallion had been taken away from the wizard Jem. Now it It was in Knight's custody. That photo Larry had would becoming a blank paper.

Sandy found she was becoming tired and she returned to bed to sleep.


Ten Words:

The spaghetti was all over the kitchen floor. Sandy was on her knees sopping up the spaghetti with paper towels dipped in water. She was whining "Woe is me." It was not the mess on the floor that was causing her distress, but the message she had received from Knight. It is surprising what a penguin can do with a beak. The mess was caused by her as she moved quickly to get to her computer. Wrong information was circulating that she had possession of the dimensional medallion. The avarice creatures she had seen in the world with out sound were planning to take the medallion from her.
A study needed to be done to see what weaknesses they had. She left the house, leaving the show All My Children playing on the TV. It was windy, and the walk to the university library a little difficult. She took out an armful of books on Mythology, and cornered a table just for herself. She observed the students going about their business unaware of the danger from an unknown world. How pathetic she thought.

Although she gathered a list of things to protect her, they were from this world would they work on creatures from another? She would do her best to keep from revealing were the medallion was.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Raven challenge 92

Today I face another Raven's Challenge.
Words for ten words: sugar, mortgage, logical, roller skates, outlandish, Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, cumberbund, unexpected, photo album, scarecrow


And for the mini: tomatoes, turtles, basement apartment, circumference, make my day


Larry after putting on a necklace with a medallion on it that was being played with by some children, found himself in a forest where nothing made sound except himself.
Sitting on the bed in the wooden shack, waiting for the one who occupied it, the one who had a roasting chicken on a spit outside, Larry pondered on the outlandishness of events. Nothing was logical.
He waited and waited, but no one showed up. He finally got up and using a stick pried a piece of chicken off, and ate it. He returned to the bed,laying down he fell off to sleep.
Morning came and again the unexpected happened. The fire and chicken were taken care of and a large leather bag was on the door step. He opened the bag and found a pair of roller skates, a cummerbund and a note saying follow the trail until you come to a building called Scarecrow.
Not knowing anything else to do, Larry followed the trail.
The walk was long, but became less difficult as Larry went. He came out of the forest into a field. Beyond the field there was a highway. Automobiles moved along the highway, but in this land of silence they did not make a sound. He spotted the Scarecrow and walked toward it.
The Scarecrow was a roller rink.
A sandwich board outside the rink,gave him the information that the Scarecrow needed help with the mortgage, and skating in formal wear would be an attraction to bring in skaters.
Larry could not understand any of this. He was brought here from the beach. He was wearing shorts. How outlandish would it look to wear a cummerbund with shorts while he was skating. He put on the skates and the cummerbund, and entered onto the rink. Only the other faces gave away the fact they were laughing at him. To a few, only the medallion drew their attention. One of those who were paying attention to the medallion was sitting at the coffee bar, and was putting way to much sugar in his cup.
He began to feel that he might be in danger, when the hands of the man began to move in threatening motions toward him. He saw a flash of a young woman come in then nothing.
Larry was back on the beach now in roller skates and wearing a cummerbund. Standing next to Larry was a young woman. He felt the medallion pulled from his neck.
Larry looked around and exclaimed," Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Clause."
The young woman extended her hand and Said,"I am Sandy Shore. I am sorry for what you had to go through, but there is something you may want." Sandy handed Larry a photo of Larry at the rink with skates and wearing a cummerbund. "For your photo album"

Friday, December 4, 2009

Raven challenge 91

Today I face another Raven's Challenge.
edge, haven, sunglasses, sprightly, telling, frazzled, juicy, quartet, tied, necklace And for the mini: bees, crackling, wooden, staple, earful

Ten Word:
The lanky lad Larry wearing sunglasses sat in the warm sun as he pealed his juicy orange. He hoped this beach haven would bring quiet to his frazzled mind. On the edge of his area of the beach there was a quartet of sprightly swimsuit clad chattering children, running about. One of the quartet , a girl had a necklace with a large medallion. She was not wearing the necklace, but was swinging it around and around challenging the other three boys to catch it. Larry was annoyed with the children disturbing his quiet, but they had not breached what he considered his spot. Then it happened the necklace flew out of the girls hand, and landed in his lap. The children became silent,there was no telling what this person would do. Larry glared.
"It is mine," he said. He put the necklace on. He heard and saw at that time a figure of a brown robed older gentleman, with a white beard, trying to run toward him in the sand.
"No", screamed the robed man.
It was too late. Larry found himself, by himself in a different location. The beach was gone. He was in a forest with no sound. There were no animal noises. He snatched off the necklace. He did not return to the beach. Where was he? He tied the necklace to a tree limb. He began his exploration of this new location.


Mini:
On a tree branch over his head Larry saw a swarm of bees. He did not hear a buzz, but he moved away from that site. He walked on a narrow path through the woods until he came upon a wooden shack with a fire in front of it. There was no crackling of the burning wood. Over the fire on a spit was what looked like a chicken roasting. Chicken was a staple of his meal plan. He felt as if he had lost his hearing. Whoever was causing this, would get an earful when he found them, but what if he could not be heard. He let out a scream. Yup he could be heard, for the scream echoed among the trees. He opened and went in the shack. It had a cot with bedding on it. He would wait here for the person who was using the shack.