Photo Hunt: I Spy

Do I Spy the document due to the principal, that P.O. I was to turn in, and a laptop?

Yes, plus I Spy the top of my desk. I had heard a rumor it was a dark brown color!
To find other photo hunters playing I Spy go here.

Fun Friday: A-Z About Me

I saw this meme on another blog and thought I would again challenge myself using an A-Z format.

Rules: List ONE word for each letter of the alphabet that describes you.

Artistic

Baker

Collector

Driven

Encouraging

Flutist

Gardener

Humorous

Insightful

Jolly

Kind

Learner

Memorykeeper

No-nonsense

Observant

Photographer

Quick-witted

Reader

Sentimental

Talkative

Understanding

Valentine

Wordsmith

Xanthochroid

Yahoo

Zealous

Try out this A-Z meme. It is really fun! I did have to get out the dictionary for a few letters.

Even With Snow... It Still Feels Like Spring

Snow is still waiting for warm weather to melt it away. As we sit outside though we feel the warmth of spring sunshine, enjoy a blue sky, and see signs of life in the garden. The dogs love being outside more and it is hard to keep us inside also!

Memories of Food Combinations

I am continuing through writing exercises in Old Friend From Far Away which I first wrote about here. Moving from one memoir prompt tonight I began to remember food combinations that have always been a part of my life. The traditional ones that have stayed in my family are eggs with toast, meat loaf with baked potatoes, spaghetti with French bread, and Darigold vanilla ice cream with Hershey's chocolate syrup. I think it seemed impossible to drink hot cocoa without marshmallows when I was a child.

My mom always had a weird food combination called Rolled Radish Sandwich. She would take a slice of bread, cover it with butter, take some radishes that I don't even remember being sliced, put them on top then roll it up like a burrito. She loved those for lunch on Saturdays during my childhood. With a bottle of Pepsi or Squirt she was in seventh heaven. It was a combination the siblings couldn't stand, but we enjoyed others from those childhood lunches including tomato soup with toasted cheese sandwiches, tuna fish mixed with pickles and Tang ( not the orange stuff... the Nalley's brand of salad dressing), chicken noodle soup with crackers, and Franco-American spaghetti served with a slice of while bread and butter. It was quite a feast if we were given the privilege of dining on a Swanson's frozen chicken pot pie.

Some of the combinations I savor still came from school lunch during grade school. Combinations that come to mind are chili with homemade cinnamon rolls , wieners with sauerkraut, homemade white rolls accompanying turkey gravy, and jello that seemed to go with just about anything.

My Grandma Woolum always had fried chicken with potatoes and gravy and homegrown green beans. Swiss Steak, corn on the cob, and caramel cake was a likely combination when we had dinner at Auntie Lila's. My brother does a delicious mix of eggs, potatoes, and veggies in breakfast skillets. When Mom makes pork chops applesauce is usually served. My sister is a very creative cook and her yummy salads have combined oranges with dark greens or a variety of fruits in a delicious fruit bowl.

I don't know how food combinations ever came about. I suppose some families began traditions that were passed down. Others just tried foods together and realized they worked. I love zucchini and chocolate together in breads and cakes now because of recipes I have experimented with. I also now enjoy the flavor of mint with hot chocolate. Can anyone eat Chinese pork without hot mustard and sesame seeds?

There were a few combinations that didn't work. Cinnamon on Dad's eggs was a cooking error my brother had to live with. Forgetting the clams in the chowder on Christmas Eve has been a running gag in the family. I learned early in my adult life never to serve my father a combination of ethnic foods. He threw them out the window when the chef ( myself) wasn't looking as not to hurt my feelings. What... like I wouldn't find them later?

I will still continue to remember hot beef sandwiches Mom whipped up using the leftovers from the Sunday roast. Cottage cheese always seemed to have canned Dole pineapple by it's side. If steaks were served it was always with green salad, Mom's homemade blue cheese dressing, and baked potatoes.

Have certain food combinations remained a tradition in your family?

Best Blogging Buddies Award

I would like to thank Granny Smith for this thoughtful award and the kind words she wrote about my blog. You can visit her beautiful blog here.

Like Granny Smith I am going to keep my list short for this award. I have many blogging buddies that I love to connect with each week. I chose the following group because they all have something in common. They either grew up or live now in the area of the Northwest we call the Inland Empire. Without blogging I may not have met some of them.
La Tea Da at Gracious Hospitality continues to amaze me with her informative and inspirational blog. We live in the same state and found out after blogging that we taught in rooms next door to each other at different times in a middle school, and can share many stories about the staff we both worked with.
Pamela at The Dust Will Wait is another eastern Washington blogger that shares photos, memories, poetry, and stories of her life. I am always in awe of her photos.
Nonizamboni at Peacock Blue also grew up in Idaho and we have found we share a love for writing, gardening, photography, family, and recipe sharing. I also love the music and books titles she shares.
Silver Valley Girl is my sister that got me blogging. She tells stories of the history of the Silver Valley, does photos of the area around our hometown, and gives us good tips on movies, music, and television series' at her blog Silver Valley Stories.

Congratulations to each of you. Your blogs are each unique in their own way. That is one thing that keeps me blogging.

Give Me Five Monday

Becca's Buzz hosts Give Me Five Monday each week. Today's five is: Give Me Five ways you like to de-stress, relax, wind down or kick back.

For me I like to :

Sit in a handmade chair in the recycled brick, recycled fireplace, gathered rock, inexpensive gazebo designed by JEJ.

Sip tea in the morning while sitting on the deck.

Go camping to a quiet place surrounded by trees, quiet, my dogs and husband.

Take the camera on ten-mile road trips around the area and capture peaceful photos.

Read a good book in complete silence.

To go to the home of the Give Me Five Monday meme go here. Feel free to participate.