SNOW DAYS - OR NOT...

Around 3:00 Thursday afternoon 

it started to snow.

  It lasted all of about

 two minutes 

and then the sun came out. 

 Once more, 

just before bedtime, 

it happened again.

  

As the big feathery flakes 

came down,

 highlighted by the light of the 

street lamps;

 not to beat a dead horse, 

it resembled a scene right off of

 a Christmas card.

  

The first snowfall 

 is always a memorable

 and pretty sight for me.

  The thought of going to bed

 and waking up to a winter wonderland 

is, in my mind, 

the ultimate dream.

But, 

yet again, 

the dream was 

short lived...

...and the morning news

 tells the

 whole story.

This was the scene 

at the Cottage in 2008. 

Such a pretty sight but

 doesn't happen very often.

 The majority of you 

who live in the part of the world 

where Old Man Winter

 bombards you each year 

are probably thinking: 

"What a mindless twit she is." 

 But, 

for a girl who grew up in a beach town 

on the west coast of the United States, 

snow in winter, 

even after all these years, 

is something to 

get excited about.

But...life goes on...

and we took a ride 

to higher country 

where remnants of the night's snow fall 

were still visible...

...very beautiful views.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Of course,

 a day of shopping 

can cure many ills

 and this little battery powered light,

that fits nicely into 

the metal sphere hanging over the game table,

 was just what the doctor ordered.

 We've been looking for

 something other than a candle 

to put inside it

 and didn't want 

electrical wires to show.

  This turned out to be

 just the right thing and 

even though it doesn't give off 

very much light, 

it has just enough twinkle ability 

to make it noticeable. 

 Now, 

the sphere has a purpose.

Have you ever seen

 a more enchanting little rabbit

 in a cabbage patch? 

 Makes looking ahead 

to spring

 an important endeavor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FYI:

I want to thank everyone

 for the kind words about last week's post.

  I don't very often 

write about food,

 as I have said, my camera doesn't take

 very good photos of prepared food 

and since we are so simple in our tastes,

 I didn't think there would be much interest. 

 But, I had some asking about

 the mustard potatoes,

 so I thought I would share the full recipe with you here:

I am showing the full recipe,

 but would imagine

 just the potatoes and the sauce 

would make a great

 side dish.

PORK CHOPS AND MUSTARD-SAUCED POTATOES

6 pork loin chops, cut 3/4 inch thick

1 tablespoon cooking oil

1 10 oz. can condensed cream of mushroom soup

1/4 cup dry white wine or chicken broth

1/4 cup Dijon style mustard

1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon pepper

6 medium potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch slices

1 medium onion, sliced

1.  In a large skillet brown pork chops on both sides, half at a time, in hot oil.  Drain off fat.

2.  In a large mixing bowl combine soup, wine or chicken broth, mustard, thyme, garlic and pepper. 

 Add potatoes and onion, stirring to coat.  Transfer to a 3 or 4 quart slow cooker.  Place browned chops atop potatoes.  

  Cover;

 cook on low heat setting 

for 7 to 8 hours 

or on high setting 

for 3 1/2 hours. 

 Makes 6 servings.

 ENJOY

...Judy...

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