Vegan Doggie Treats

I found this cute bone-shaped cookie cutter.  I thought I'd make a few doggie treats for some of my doggie-friendly folks!

I chose a vegan recipe to make everyone happy.   This was really easy.  Hope the dogs like them!

Just a few ingredients.  

Mix and roll out just like sugar cookies.  See the little bone shaped cutter?  Cute.

Ready for the oven.  (I love my new oven!)

All done.  I haven't baked much in my new oven yet.  I think it must run a little warm...so maybe 325 degrees would have kept these from browning a bit too much.  Oh well, we'll have to ask the dogs if they mind the extra crispiness! 

I actually tasted one - they are pretty good!  Kindof like a hearty cracker.  Fun!

Vegan Doggie Treats

1 cup flour
1 cup oatmeal
2/3 cup peanut butter
2/3 cup parsley flakes (for good doggie breath)
1 banana
3 teaspoons flax seed

Mix flax seed with water to create egg consistancy
Mix with all other ingredients and water until the dough is like "people cookie dough"
Roll out on floured surface to desired thickness
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown

Card Night

I was sneaky....and snapped a picture from the top of the stairs of the card game in progress.....shhh....they don't like photographs!

File Cabinet Refurb

OK, I'm not going to fuss and whine about the current forecast of 4-8" of snow tonight.......

We needed an extra file cabinet at Asheboro.  But I really hate the cheap one I got years ago at Staples.  It's just too flimsy.  So, I stopped by our local Habitat Re-Store, hoping that they'd have a good quality cabinet.

Sure enough, they had one - the drawers slide nicely and it's got a lot of weight so it stays put!

 And the price was right!!    $12.05 for some reason.

I don't need a lock, so no worries there.

The top was rusty - so Duane sanded all that off.

And there was some duct tape on the front that came off with some denatured alcohol.

Duane used contact cement to glue some long-ago leftover laminate to the top.....then he used his router to trim it nice and neatly!

And there it is!  Already in use!  A Scout-Mom is frugal!

More snow

I'm getting pretty tired of this winter weather!!!  Spring, spring, where are you???

Just thought this was too funny....

Driving to Siler City a couple of days in a row, I noticed that the gas station had either made a gross error with their sign.....or they were suddenly charging a LOT for their gas....

Here's the flip side of the sign....just wonder why no one has told them of the error.   Or maybe an attendant is playing a joke!

Amaryllis

The amaryllis that Grandma Hall gave us for Christmas has just bloomed - very pretty!

I was surprised by the variegated colored bloom.   They are usually solid red....wish they bloomed more!

Brrrr!

Yes, it's cold.  Luckily, we put a lamp in our well enclosure to keep the water flowing!!

This morning in the car:

Storm was not so bad!

The winter storm didn't really do too much damage here....the roads were certainly icy - and still are.  But the ice accumulation didn't materialize.  So, we stayed warm and the power stayed on.

Airports closed though - can't scrape ice off a runway and you can't put salt down - not good for aluminum airplanes!! 

Stormy Weather

Yesterday, one of our book club ladies invited us to their "posh" home-movie theater to view last month's book-club book - The Grapes of Wrath - in movie form.  Remember - the black and white Henry Fonda movie from 1940? 

She provided the popcorn and candies - very nice!!!

And today has been just a lazy day....getting ready for the ice storm approaching.  Just a bit of sleet so far.  We went out and filled up the gas jugs to make sure we have plenty of "generator juice" if the power goes out.  And a trip to the grocery store for an extra loaf of bread.....then I made a big pot of veggie chili with the "beef" crumbles Mom brought me from the Seventh Day Adventist store.   We're all warm and comfy!

Leaves!

We have been ignoring our yard this year.....so I decided I'd use the pretty Saturday weather to clean it up a little.  (It's going to be bitterly cold tomorrow - high of about 27 - so today's temp of 50 seems balmy!)

The leaves and pine needles are just laying where they dropped in the fall.....and I know if I get them up the grass underneath will be much healthier.

So, I blew some of them away with the leaf-blower and I "vacuumed" some with the lawn mower....revealing a little of the grass underneath.  

And a month later, my daffy's still haven't bloomed.....I guess they're angry at the cold temps we've been having!  Hope you have a great Valentines Day!

Another Appliance Bites the Dust

Our house is 20 yrs old now....and we've replaced the washer/dryer, my cooktop, the dishwasher, the microwave and now it's the wall oven's turn......

It had failed the first time back in the fall when I had pressed "clean"....Apparently the high temps used to do the auto-clean had burned up something in the oven.

I figured it was time to get a new oven, but after searching a bit, I found that  a replacement was over $1000!  Strange that you can buy a full stove for under $500, but try to find a small wall oven and they charge crazy prices!

So, I called my local repair guy - they said you can't buy parts anymore.....but Duane then troubleshot it and determined it was a sensor for the broiler.  So, I decided that I could do without a broiler since it's not something I use much anyway.

So, fast forward to Thanksgiving....I had everything ready to start cooking and the oven quit for good!!  I luckily have the convection/microwave oven - so I ended up getting everything cooked just fine.

With all the hub-bub around the holidays, I just cooked everything in my convection oven.  About a month  ago I was in Home Depot and just happen to see a oven up on an rack at the back of the store.  I couldn't believe it - a 24" wall oven!!  On clearance!!!  How lucky was that?  I got the sales person to get the oven down and was starting the process to pay for it.  Then I noticed that the door was "crooked".  Bummer....so I told the salesperson I couldn't take it.

Fast forward to this weekend.....I was in Home Depot again - and peeked back to see if the oven was still there - and it was!  And the price was $199!!!  Apparently, they wanted it gone!

So, Duane and I went back together so that he could look at it and see if it was repairable.  He looked it over and determined that the frame was a little bent and that he could fix it!  My hero! 

It had to be disassembled, of course.  But a little bending and beating....and it was good and straight!

Old one out!!

New one coming in!

New oven ready to be installed.

 But, of course, nothing's easy.  Even though they are both 24" wall ovens, the original one was wider and shorter by about 1".   You can see the area to the left that should not be visible!

So, Duane modified the cabinet and made these aluminum pieces to "fill in" the extra space.

 And there we have it!  A low-cost, fully functional oven!

Superbowl party

You know we're not really sports fans.....but we wanted to go join in on the fun at Paradise Cove Marina.  A nice bunch of folks.

Everyone brought their favorite snack.....these chocolate covered strawberries were too cute!  And yummy!

We participated in the "pool"....but our numbers didn't win....oh well.  Fun time!

Beautiful view last evening....

And the exact view this morning!