I'm baaaaack

I am back up and running. A dead modem has kept me off line.
I have some new pics to upload and then post. But, I have a few errands
to run first.
So you will see my grand babies soon!

We are home

It has been a a very long four days.
Zadie and I traveled through 9 states in 4 days.
Some of them more than once.
I always though he had it easy on these trips.
I can honestly say I am sick of driving.

More on this madness later. I need sleep!

I still remember.

It's funny how little things bring back memories.

Today I found my hubby watching the movie Ben Hur. It was the very first movie I ever saw at a movie theater. I don't remember how old I was. But, I do remember my oldest brother gave me a piggy back ride part of the way because it was so far to walk. All of my brothers and sisters went. No parents though. I wonder why they wanted us gone.

I remember going to the movie and I even remember parts of the movie. I have no idea how we got home.

The I started remembering taking each of our daughters to their first movie. E.T and Care Bears respectively.

So then I started wondering what movies will be the firsts for Miss Miri and The Dude.

It is so nice to have the time to ponder.

I probably won't be posting for the next few days. Hubby and I are off to New England. If I can figure out how to post using my new iphone, you"ll hear from me. Otherwise, no.

So enjoy these pics of the babies until then.

It's snowing again. Doesn't the snow look nice when you don't have to go out in it?



I am now officially on Winter Break from school.So, I have been trying to get caught up on a few things, like cleaning out my emails. It's bad when you have over 500 to clear.
I'm not done. But I did get around to watching the video on posting pictures to my blog that my daughter sent me about a month ago. So maybe I can add some pics from flickr too.

Today we are going to have Miss Miri's birthday party. But, she is sick. :(
I don't know if she will enjoy the party. But, Her Aunt M and Uncle N will be there.She so loves to spend time with them. That should make her feel better.

It's hard to believe she is two years old already.

Chocolate goodness

I am making truffles! I'm not sure why. Maybe I'll take them to work and give them as gifts.

They are soooo chocolate.

11 oz of chocolate
4 oz of cream cheese
1 tsp of water
Chocolate for dipping of chopped nuts or candy Jimmys

Melt the chocolate over a double boiler until completely melted.
Stir in the cream cheese and water.
Mix that together until completely incorporated.
Chill for at least 2 hours.
Roll into balls (about 1 tsp size)[How big you make them determines how many you get]
Chill again.
Dip into melted chocolate or roll in nuts or Jimmys.
Chill gain until chocolate coating is set.



Could this be Miss Miri on chocolate?

Happy Birthday Miss Miri! You are two today.

Phone update

With the help of someone I love very much, my new phone is doing the things I want it to do. I was even taking pictures with it last night. ( Now I just need to figure out how to post those here.)

I have music and pictures. I can face book and even make phone calls.

Remember how, when you were a kid, there was one gift everyone wanted for the holidays?

I got that gift!!!!! Thank you thank you thank you.



I'm as happy as the Dude with a bagel

I think I am old.I have been sitting here trying to get my new iphone to upload pictures and music from my computer.
I haven't been able to get anything.
I have been working for about an hour now.
NOTHING.
I have even used the phone to go to itunes.
But, I feel like I am in this loop because just about the time I think I am getting somewhere, I end up back where I started.

Maybe old people should not crave new technology.







Maybe these pictures of the kids will make it better.
Maybe they can teach me how to do this.

Hanukkah and Party

This year Hanukkah has been amazing.
Everyone was here for dinner the first night.



We had lots of good food, candles, great people and presents.





The second night, we had our Hanukkah Party. We have been hosting this party for more than 20 years. This year was one of the largest.

We cleaned house and got everything ready. Then had some snuggle time with a favorite "toy"



We had so many people it was hard to figure out who was who. So Miss Miri
and The Dude stayed Very close to the people they knew.

We ate until we could not eat any more. The Men made wonderful latkes and there was creamed herring, plain herring, bagels, cream cheeses, lox, cheese cake, brownies, mashed potatoes, a great noodle dish, cakes, veggies, shrimp and heaven only knows what all else.
(The computer will not let me add any more pictures)

So, I'll just say that a great time was had by all.







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Cold

Well here I am in frozen land.
We were at 4 degrees F this morning.
With the wind chill, it went well below zero.

But Hanukkah starts tomorrow.
The entire family will be here for Shabbat Dinner/Hanukkah Dinner.

Both of our daughters, their husbands, both grand children and
and what can be best described as our Out-law, from Nebraska.
(and very dear friend)

I will make chicken schnitzel and vegie puree in phyllo cups.
One daughter is making the Challahs.
The other is making gravy and a wonderful chocolate cake.
The gravy goes on the homemade noodles one son-in-law is making.

This is not the normal Hanukkah dinner, but it is all fried.
We are holding off on the latkes until Saturday and our annual Hanukkah party.

Wish you could all be here.

I will take pictures at both events. And will post them here as soon as I can

Happy Hanukkah to everyone.



I don't know if this was last years party.
But, as always the men are in the kitchen cooking,
like they should be.

SNOW

The snow has arrived.
These are not just normal flakes.
These are the BIG fluffy ones.

Yes, that is Miss Miri playing in the snow.
What a wonderful time of year.

Hanukkah is coming (2)

There is so much to do!

A house to clean and decorate
Food to make
Candles to get
Hanukkah candle holders to clean
Gifts to purchase and wrap

Hanukkah starts this Friday. (And I still have this stupid cold.)

But it will all be worth it come Shabbat. When my house is full of the people I love.

Hanukkah is coming

Hanukkah is in the air!

This Friday night is the first night of Hanukkah.
No it's not the "Jewish Christmas"

It's different!
It's not about the presents, although that part is fun.
It's not about the food or the candles either.

So, what is this all about?

If you are reading this you already know about the Maccabees' fight for freedom.

But, this holiday is about so much more.

It's about social justice. It's about doing what is right even when that isn't popular or easy.

It's about helping other people who suffer, "pain we felt so long ago". (From the song "Light One Candle" by Peter Yarrow)

This Holiday is about more than ourselves. It's about standing up for something you truly believe in.

This year, with so many people angry about what America is doing or not doing, be a voice for reason. Listen to the other side. Not just to frame your next argument, but to hear what they are saying. Then ask yourself "What can I do to make a positive change". You can not change anyone else. You can only change yourself.







And then PARTY

They share

I love my grandchildren very much. I do.
I love to share my food with them and play with them.

I have danced in the rain with Miss Miri.
I have played in the snow with her.

I have pushed swings and strollers for both of them.
I have baked cookies and tickled them.

Miss Miri has played in my shoes,The Dude has tried to eat them.
They have read my mail and even had some of my drinks.

There is nothing I would not do for them.

But, after the third or forth cold this season I am ready to say ENOUGH!

Please don't share your colds anymore.

No, she didn't?

Well, yes she did!
My wonderful beautiful granddaughter did.

She Mooned he Zadie. ;)

Now most 23 month olds are pretty good at taking off their clothes.
It's just something that goes with being almost two.

Being able to control even something as simple as your own clothes is a big deal.

But, today Miss Miri not only took off her pant and undies but she Mooned her very own Zadie.

It's a good thing he has a great sense of humor.




Here is the little darling herself. (With clothes and Bubbie's shoe on her head)

Toys

Watching these two cuties learn to share is amazing.
They want the same toy. Then they don't.
Then they do again.
Then Miss Miri wants to watch the dude play with what ever it is.
Then the other way around. It really is quite cute.

Red Snapper

One of the nice things about my Hubby is that he almost always takes something out of the freezer for dinner. This is nice because I forget to do that before I leave the house. Since he leaves after I do it's nice to have something defrosted and ready to cook. It's always a surprise to me. That's kind of fun too.



There they sat, two beautiful Red Snappers,all ready to be made into something wonderful. Calling to me.

What to do with them? To the fridge I went looking for ingredients to make these fish into something tempting to the taste buds.

I found lemons, a good start. Red bell peppers were there. But, there really wasn't much else to add to the fish.






A few spices and we were off! Red Snapper in the Vera Cruz style.




2 small red snappers (Fillets can be used) 1 to 2 pounds
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 heaping tablespoon chili powder (more if you like it hot)
1 15oz can of tomatoes coarsely chopped( use fresh if they are from your garden)
3 red bell peppers chopped

1. Put the snapper in a shallow bowl that is microwave safe.
2. Mix the lemon juice and chili powder.
3. Combine that mixture with the tomatoes and peppers.
4. Pour all of that evenly over the fish.
5. Cover the fish with plastic wrap. Be sure to vent the wrap.
6. Microwave for 8 to 10 minutes until the fish flakes.
7. You will need to rotate the fish every few minutes.

They were wonderful. They sat on the plate right next to green beans saying something like "I have given my all to sustain you" Corny? Yes! But very tasty.

Erma Bombeck once wrote, by the time she had her third child, there was nothing in the fridge to eat except healthy food and yogurt.

I have discovered my fridge has little for a toddler to eat. I have some string cheese. Sometimes fruit. (like an over ripe banana) There is a box of zwieback cookies.

But, are those really things a toddler wants to eat?

Where are the cookies? Where are the raisins, the pretzels, or chips? Ok, how about some healthy finger size fruits? There are any number of kid friendly snacks, some of which are even healthy. So where are they?

Well, this Bubbie needs to find those kid friendly healthy snack foods.
The search is on, I will find them and stock my kitchen with things kids like to eat!

Stay tuned to see how the hunt progresses.

I have decided to do this because the babies have colds. Now kids get colds, but when you don't feel good you don't want to eat.
They do try to eat. But, something fun to eat just makes you feel better. Tonight we had curly noodles. That seemed to go over well. But, they need more. They tried a few bites of the chicken we had with the noodles. But...

So, now I have a plan. I will find good healthy snacks for the little ones.

This is the Dude with a cold.



Here is Miss Miri helping herself to tissue. Notice she is wearing Bubbie's shoes.



And let us not forget brotherly and sisterly love sharing the cold.

Back to the real world

Now with school back in session things are getting a little busy.
Add to that an unexpected visit from my grand babies and I have a full day.

I have noticed that I have very few pictures of the kids together.
That is something I need to work on.

The four day weekend was wonderful. I spent two days with the kids and an extra day just with my daughters.

Sometimes life give extra!

I so enjoy spending time with my children and grandchildren.

So, time for pictures!!!!!!!



This is the Dude. His has found he can crawl under the table.



This is Miss Miri just being her cute self.

Some days

Some days just don't go the way you plan.
Today was one of those.
All the things I had planned to do just did not happen.
So, it's back to the drawing board.
Perhaps tomorrow will work better.



We could always blame it on someone getting two new teeth.

Turkey day

Thanksgiving was wonderful.

My daughter cooked and hosted her very first First Thanksgiving dinner.
Everything was wonderful !


The turkey looks great!



The green beans were awesome too!
We had two kinds of stuffing/ dressing. (Made by me) Potatoes and sweet potatoes. The most amazing rolls made by my other daughter. And more food I can't even remember. Pies and appetizers before dinner. Wow!



And yes, that is Miss Miri in a bowl.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We have so much to be thankful for.



Even the "Dude" had his share.Here he is with a mouthful of wipped cream his Uncle thought would be good for him.

I took a break yesterday. I didn't post. But I did cook.



This is Oyster stuffing/ dressing.

This one is cornbread dressing/ stuffing.



I know they look a lot alike. I think it's the celery and of course they are both made with bread. I am not going to write out the recipes because everyone has their own. Or, you can go on line and find a million stuffing/ dressing recipes.

For anyone who cares, stuffing goes inside the bird. Dressing is cooked separately.
So these really are dressings. But, when I call them dressings my family thinks of the stuff you pour on salads.



I had to include a picture of Miss Miri hugging her Zadie. And if there is a Miss Miri then to be fair we need a Dude picture too.

The week is winding down. Just one more day until Thanksgiving. The only thing I have to do this year is make the stuffing/ dressing. After almost 32 years of doing Thanksgiving at my house, I will be going to someone else's house.

I know there was a year or two when I didn't cook. I went to visit. But this year it seems that I am passing the gauntlet on to the next generation.

I will be making two different types of stuffing/ dressings. One will be cornbread. One of my daughter's really loves cornbread stuffing. The other type will be oyster.
Hubby has a "hankering" for oysters.

The cornbread is made and I am ready. Tomorrow maybe pictures of dressings in the works.

Just a thought

Bubbie's house is quiet today. Everyone is gone and I have the house to myself.

But soon it will be filled with laughter and Joy!!!!

Lately, I have been hearing stories from friends with young children.
Many of those young parents say the same things. They do not understand why their own parents, the grandparents, are more concerned with belongings than their grandchildren.
They want to know why children playing is a problem for the older generation.

Too start, these young parents need to understand that their parents may have waited a long time to be able to purchase what ever it is they are worried about. They may have saved or waited until there were no young children around to buy that wonderful something.

Or perhaps your children are a little too active for their grandparents. Remember grandparents are not used to little ones any more.

But, for those grandparents; It won't be like this for long. Before you know it those little ones will be grown and gone. If you do not have the time for them now, don't be surprise if they don't have time for you later.
All of your things can be replaced. But, those little children can't. You may not know it, but they see what you do and how you act toward them. They remember.

How do you want to be remembered after you are gone? As the Grandma who didn't have time?
Or, the Grandpa who didn't want his yard messed up.

I would prefer to be remembered as the Bubbie who made cookies, built forts, read stories and played in the mud. The one with toys all over the house. But, that's just me.

Parents, remember, with any luck you will be grandparents yourself some day.
What type of grandparent will you be?

Cooking with Miss Miri

Many people think cooking and baking with small children is a bad idea.
They claim it's too messy or it's too much work.

Well, it is messy. And, it is a lot of work. But, just check out how involved this
little girl is.

She is thinking, and learning and most important having fun with her Bubbie!

What a great way to spend an afternoon.

Don't worry about the mess. It really doesn't take that long to clean up.

We started out with premade dough. Lots of flour and two rolling pins.
(One for her and one for me)

She learned how to roll out dough and how to use a cookie cutter.

She made her own cookies and while she was working, Bubbie made cookies for the family.

If you are wondering, yes she has her own apron with a great big "M" on it.

I am looking forward to a lot more cooking and baking afternoons.