Friday Photos

And it is Friday yet again! This week was the last "normal" week before we jump headfirst into the holiday season. It was a busy one around here. We had...

A dog groomer appointment...

A trip to Pittsburgh for my friend Delane's one-year follow-up visit. She received a good report, and we are very thankful!

A trip in the car to visit...

Grandma! 

I wanted to visit my mom, and I knew she would love to see all "her people," as she says. I mentioned to the kids that we would be going to visit Gram, and if any of them could make it, please let me know. I was so happy when all the kids made the trip to see their Grandma! My sister Margie had her ready, and we surprised my mom with all of us, including two dogs, pizza, and pumpkin pie! She was so happy! We visited, ate, and even sang her favorite song, You Are My Sunshine. It was so wonderful seeing her so happy.

This week was beautiful.

It was also productive. These two became friends, and Flynn and I immersed ourselves in all things Eighth Grade. I had a good virtual therapy appointment, and Cosmo and Mocha each had vet appointments. Oh, and there was this...

More to come soon!!

This weekend is special because a certain young lady is turning fourteen! She has chosen lunch out, followed by a movie we all can't wait to see, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Then home for cake and presents!

Have a lovely November weekend, my friends! 

Remember to put your turkey in the fridge to thaw!

BillieJo

 

Friday Photos And Pumpkin Pasta!

Good Friday morning, my friends! How was your week? Our week was gloriously ordinary and ordinarily glorious. Flynn and I did homeschool, Steve ran errands, made phone calls, and worked on the list of things he never had time to do before. We cooked a delicious meal with produce from the farmer's market and played our favorite Halloween game. 

Guess who ended up with the Old Mummy ??

Mocha is proud to be our middle school mascot.

Breakfast one day this week: Cheddar cheese on baguette bread and fresh fruit. 

Something that made me happy this week? Getting these photos from my girls. They continued our pumpkin patch tradition! Even though Peyton grew her own perfect pumpkins, they went and had a blast! Afterward, they went to Peyton's for dinner. She made pumpkin stuffed shells, homemade dinner rolls, and this fantastic pie...

Another thing that made me happy this week was talking to this wonderful woman I am blessed to call Mom. Thanks to my sister Margie, who goes every day at dinnertime and calls me while she's there, I can talk to her every day. I love her so much.

Finally, my blog friend Ginny, who writes HERE, asked about the recipe for Madison's delicious-looking pasta I posted the other day. I texted Madison, and she was so happy to share. 

• 1 box of rigatoni 
• drizzle of olive oil
• 4 ounces of prosciutto sliced thin
• dried or fresh thyme
• 1 shallot, diced
• splash of white wine or chicken broth
• 1 15-ounce can of pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 1/4 cups half-and-half
• salt and pepper 
• 1/2 cup of goat cheese crumbles plus more for serving (can also use Parmesan)
• chopped chives
• 1 - 2 cups of reserved pasta water

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil, add salt, and cook the pasta. Once cooked, ladle out some pasta water and set it aside.
2. While the pasta is cooking, heat up a drizzle of olive oil in a pot on medium-low heat. (I used my Dutch oven.) Add prosciutto and stir often. Cook until it is crispy, and set it aside on a plate. 
3. In the same pot, add the diced shallot and thyme. (You may need to add a bit more olive oil.) Cook until the shallot is translucent. Deglaze the pot with a splash of white wine, chicken broth, or even just a bit of water. Use whatever you have! 
4. Add the can of pumpkin, half and half, and salt and pepper to taste. Whisk continuously until it begins to simmer. Depending on how thick the sauce is, add some pasta water along with the goat cheese and whisk until combined. 
5. Add the strained pasta to the pot and toss it in the sauce. Add more pasta water if the sauce is still too thick. (It should be similar to the consistency of a tomato sauce but not too watery.) Allow the pasta to cook a minute or two more in the sauce. 
6. Spoon the pasta onto a plate and top with goat cheese crumbles, chopped chives, and crispy prosciutto. Add salt and pepper if you'd like, but remember that the prosciutto is already quite salty! 

I hope you have a lovely October weekend. I am patiently waiting for the leaves to change color here, and I hope they will soon! Thanks for visiting. I am always thankful you do!

BillieJo

Friday Photos

Good morning, my friends. Friday again? This past week was a busy one here, as each week is as we begin to wrap up one season and start thinking about the next. Spoiler: my favorite! Tuesday evening, after a beautiful holy day mass, we all went to dinner at one of our favorite places in town. At mass, we ran into Linda, our friend Fr. Ross's mother, and she joined us for dinner. It was a lovely evening.

 Especially since we had our very favorite server! 

We just adore her!

I have been trying to do more reading and less scrolling, and this book was just the thing to help me do that! It is different from the books I usually enjoy, but it is so good. It tells the story of two families and spans several years, and that is all I will say about that!

How has your weather been? We have had rainy and cool weather here, and I think I felt a hint of autumn! Last night I made a comfort meal of roast chicken with mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, and corn. I am not over hot dogs on the grill with fresh cut-up fruit, but this tasted so good on a rainy late summer evening. Lest you think I can pull off a mini-Thanksgiving dinner just like that, it was easy! I used a Perdue Oven Ready Seasoned Roaster, which is already seasoned and bagged. You just put it in the oven and cook. The drippings make delicious gravy! The mashed potatoes are the BEST boxed ever! They are Idahoan Instant and honestly taste homemade.  The corn is Birds Eye steamable frozen, easy, and delicious! The stuffing is homemade and worth the extra time, believe me! If you have yet to make homemade stuffing, try it sometime. Just rip some bread into pieces and let it sit out a bit. Saute chopped onion and celery in melted butter with salt, pepperer, and poultry seasoning, then let cool and add some beaten eggs. Pour this over the bread in a baking dish, add some chicken broth, and bake for about an hour at 350 degrees. 

Flynn and I both got passing grades from the dentist this week. I always love the feeling after a good cleaning and vow to keep them that sparkly myself. And I do. Until I don't.

Well, Mocha and I are going to start our day. Tonight, we are having a very dear friend and his family over boating and pizza. You may remember him...

Justin spent a lot of time here this summer sleeping on my couch and eating my food, so he offered to cook us chicken for lunch last week before he left for college. I am thinking chicken...you know...in the oven...silly me! He shows up at eight in the morning and rigs this up in our yard and cooks chicken all morning!

I went with it...and It Was Delicious! He cooked raw potatoes and veggies with olive oil too. We rounded it out with a fresh peach pie made by my Peyton, and it was perhaps the best meal of the summer! He cleans up too!

( From August 22, 2013 )

Justin is now married to the sweetest young woman ever, and they have the cutest little one-year-old boy that we adore! 

Have a wonderful weekend, my friends! 

Thank you for visiting!

BillieJo

Wrapping Up The Week

 

Hello! And Happy Friday! I am coming to you from the beach this morning, where we have spent a few days with my best friend Heather and her husband, Dave. Here are a few pictures of the fun we had together...

Baskin Robbins ice cream is a must for me here because we have none anywhere close to us at home. I introduced Heather to the best flavor ever, World Class Chocolate and she was hooked! Fun fact: I will always choose a sugar cone over a bowl. Every time.

I am blessed to have my oldest daughter be a hair, makeup, and fashion expert. This took about 3 seconds, and it looked and felt so good!

,

I am the only early riser, so my mornings were quiet on the porch with my coffee and rosary.

Late afternoon was for this. Sitting watching the waves and spending time with a friend.

I'm not referring to this guy, whom I was a little afraid of.

Which was ok because he had some contemplating going on.

Finally, sitting on the porch at the end of the day, everyone is full, relaxed, rested, and happy,

Because the beach will do that every time. 

Have a wonderful weekend, my friends. Enjoy these waning weeks of summer! 

Billie Jo

Summer Days

 Hello! Good Friday morning! Today dawned cloudy and cooler, not unlike most days here in Pennsylvania so far this summer. Flynn took these photos early one morning this week, beautifully showing a typical June morning in our little part of the world.

The weather so far has been more springlike, without the rain. We need rain here, and although each day brings the forecast of showers, we typically see a few sprinkles here and there. Our morning swims in the lake will wait, so until then, we are making due.

This week we celebrated a couple birthdays with some special people. My super sweet friend Heather had a birthday, and we met for dinner. We, of course, managed to wear matching tops and sweaters. Like from the exact place matching. Loft, if you were wondering!

And finally, we celebrated one of Peyton's friends from childhood, Grimace! Did you know McDonald's is celebrating his birthday??? Peyton has always loved Grimace, so we were happy to have lunch and try his birthday shake. Well, they did! Reports are it is delicious. Like a vanilla and strawberry mix?

Before I go, I want to answer a few questions from my last post about my cozy kitchen. 

~ I used the vegetables to make an easy pan of seasoned vegetables to go with dinner last night. I chopped up a white potato, a sweet potato, broccoli, cauliflower, a pepper, an onion, zucchini, and carrots and drizzled them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and Mrs. Dash. Then I baked them for about an hour at 375 degrees. The one thing I have learned is to cut the vegetables roughly the same size so they cook evenly.

~The electric kettle is a favorite! Peyton had one and told me how much she loved it. Now we have one and love it too! It heats the water up so quickly. We use it every single day.

~The mat in front of the sink is a cushioned mat that doesn't slip. It also keeps my feet from getting sore. I am trying to remember where I found it, but I am sure Walmart would have something similar.

Well, that is about all, my friends. I hope you have a wonderful weekend with your people. Tonight we plan on visiting my mother with one of her favorites, a strawberry milkshake. Sunday, we celebrate Steve and remember our amazing dads on Father's Day. And in between? Well, I will give you a couple hints...

Yep! We are heading to Pittsburgh to see Taylor Swift! Last November, Madison, Nicolas, and I spent an entire morning maneuvering the Ticketmaster website and were able to get tickets! Madison has been a faithful fan since the very beginning. She has been talking about this tour since before it was even announced. I am so excited for her and am looking forward to a fun evening! I will report back here on Monday.

In the meantime, have a wonderful weekend, my friends.

Thanks for visiting!

Billie Jo

( Era Tour Photos from Google. )