Winter Weekend Fun at Grandma's

Our pacific northwest liquid sunshine is back and the snow is disappearing.  Soon the pretty white stuff will be a memory and we'll be hearing everyone's driving adventures as well as what they did with their time.  Many people I know were lucky enough to take advantage of vacation days and stay home out of the ice and cold.  It's been fun seeing the pictures show up on Facebook of my friend's yards and the beautiful snow shots they preserved with their cameras. I do have a good car and could get around, but on the short trip I took to get groceries Friday, my car slid a couple times. There was an instance when I realized it wasn't going to stop before the guy in front of me. I finally brought it to a stop, but I was sideways in the intersection waiting for the light. Definitely felt a little funny waiting for that light to change. I took it very slow and stayed on the main streets that had been traveled already. I am still a California girl inside, I haven't mastered the winter snow and ice driving even after being here over twenty years. Best I try to drive as little as possible when it's icy.

Last week I was catching up my spreadsheet I use to track my vacation days and couldn't remember what I had done in February last year as it looked like I took a few days off in February very close together.  It wasn't until after I noticed another friend's snow picture was dated Feb. 9, 2010 that I realized I was probably doing the same thing I've done for the past couple days, staying home out of the cold. I had some fun with Kaylee, got some things done around the house, made some wonderful meals for the week, but I am ready to get back to work.  I found myself thinking I missed work this morning.  I am ready to talk to some other adults and do something mentally challenging for a change.  Vacation is nice, but it's also nice to get home and back to the regular routine.

Kaylee has been with us since Friday morning and we'll be taking her to her other grandma's soon.  We've been spending a little more time with her as her little brother is very sick.  He has some seizure problems and it's been complicated by a terrible case of pneumonia.  He's been on an artificial breathing device for over a week.  They tried to remove it, but he is still not breathing on his own. Today he had another seizure.  I am worried about him.  The hospital is in Portland so Rachel is staying up there at the Ronald McDonald house.  I am glad they moved closer to grandma's so we can help where we can.

We made good use of our time together inside. We made some crispy vegan oatmeal cookies.  These came out a lot like the oatmeal cookies I grew up making.  I added some chocolate chips and unsweetened coconut shreds.

 

We did some crafts, Kalyee made a great scrapbook page. I got out some pictures for her to choose from, the fancy scissors, and all the scrap booking toys I've collected and she had a lot of fun.

We had a pizza party with lots of fresh vegan ingredients. WW Pita Bread, homemade sauce with whole tomatoes, garlic, and herbs, caramelized onions, roasted red pepper, sun dried tomatoes, vegan italian sausage, and daiya cheese, a vegan cheese made from tapioca.  We used a cheddar and a mozzarella flavor.Kaylee made her's and grandpa's pizzas so his hands could be free to take pictures.



She was with me on my produce rounds Friday and noticed some blueberries on the counter at Payton's. She said "I remember you made a blueberry cheesecake once, would you make one for me?"  Of Course!  Thanks for the idea, I made one of my favorite vegan cheesecake recipes from the Vegan World Fusion Cuisine Cookbook.

"I live in the moment more than I realize" ~ Star Lotus

Winter Snow Holiday

It's been a good week inside my home. I mean inside.  I gave the car to my husband who normally rides a bicycle and just stayed home this week. Work was slow and the weather was icy and cold. I am reminded that it is a good time of year to take some vacation days. I have just loaded up on cooking staples recently at the coop and from the local organic farmer so I have plenty to play with in the kitchen. I am grateful my job allows for this time. It's safer not to drive and I just don't get that much "at home" time that doesn't include pre-planned activities. Having some time to myself, I took it slow all week, relaxed a bit, read a bit, did some home chores that have been on the list for awhile, cooked something fun toward our holiday meals every day and took the time to walk a few times when the sun was shining. It was tricky walking in the ice. I decided walking was just as dangerous as driving. I broke my ankle last year and didn't want to go through that again.  I took it slow and carefully. I also got to speak to my youngest son twice on the phone and we drove out to St. Helen's to visit him Saturday. My oldest son should be on his way to Hawaii from Afghanistan by Wednesday,  That's terrific news!

I am not too worried about my car in the snow, I do have a Subaru. The snow isn't really that deep, but what snow was there did freeze and there are an awful lot of people with sliding stories to tell. I can also hear some sliding and tire turning on the road below from the deck. I just thought it wisest to stay home and play, since I can. I got to see quite a few people, including a semi truck, work very hard to negotiate the ice on our own street. The truck did worry me some.  He shouldn't have even driven down our street in the first place, but since he did, he had to figure out how to get back out.  It wasn't easy for him.  I think it took him 45 minutes just to get by my house. His tires were turning, burning, and smokin' for quite awhile.  He even fishtailed in front of my house.  My car wasn't parked in front of my house as it usually is, thank goodness.  That would have been typical, stay home to avoid driving and have someone wreck the car anyway while it was parked.

Even though I didn't go very far from home this week, I wasn't bored. There was plenty of activity inside and outside to watch. I had Kaylee over for a couple of days and we did some grandma/granddaughter activities. It's winter for sure in my neck of the woods.

I got to see evidence of our regular visitors in the snow this week. It looks like the raccoons are still about and the deer are still cruising through.

I am grateful for all I have and I am reminded that there is a lot of love in my life.  I have decided though that coffee belongs in the disaster survival kit.  While being inside for so many days I got to thinking that I could survive if really stuck at home, I have lots of bottled water, dried beans, home canned fruits, vegetables, and dried herbs, but that I might run out of a couple items like coffee and tea. I will be adding some things to our survival kit downstairs after this week.