Is it Wednesday and I am laying on the beach????

Thank you for all of your get well wishes this week! Things are slowly improving each day, not as fast as I would like but improving never the less. I am a very impatient patient. I have things to do and I want to do them NOW but I am learning that I have to sit back and take things slowly. Mom and I joke about our issues as we sit in her recliner chairs watching Regis and Kelly in the morning. Oh to be even a tad that peppy right now as Kelly is!

Last month at my BIL's birthday party my sister put on a yummy buffet for us all. My SIL brought this recipe and it is so tasty I thought you all might like to try it. Even if you don't like broccoli you will like this!

Sweet and Crunchy Broccoli

1 lb. bacon

1 large head of broccoli

1 medium red onion, chopped fine

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

Fry the bacon until crispy and crumble into bits. Chop broccoli into 1/2 inch chunks. Add onion, raisins and sunflower seeds. Toss with dressing below and chill.

Making the dressing

Stir together 1 cup of mayonnaise, 1/2 cup sugar, and 2 tablespoons pickle juice. Mix well with salad.

This has a tangy but sweet taste and would make a wonderful side dish for any occasion. I think I might try throwing in some dried cranberries too! Yum! Thanks Chris!

About every Sunday after church we go down to the Muddy Rudder for lunch. About this time each year we are treated to the antics of the Surfing Santa! It's very crisp and cold and we always worry that he might take a tumble in the mighty Penobscot River but so far he hasn't. I went right out on the restaurant lawn so that I could get some good shots of him. He was kind enough to wave for my camera.

Each fall I hang corn out for decorations. I have had these ears of corn for probably 5 or 6 years and just put them away when I put up my Christmas decorations. I noticed a lot of blue jay activity around the front porch the other day so went out to investigate and guess what they were eating????? That old hard corn right off the cob!!! Now it can't have much flavor after all these years and the kernels must be hard as a stone but they have been working on it all week. It's not like they don't have a bird feeder out back with nice sunflower hearts in it.......

A big CONGRATULATIONS to Pea over at Pea's Corner on the birth of her beautiful granddaughter Lily Abigail who arrived recently to parents Shawn and Wendy. Pea you are going to make one of the BEST Nana's around! I'm still resting up from Pea's Birthday Bash that she had for all of us on her birthday!!


Our hay arrived a week or so ago. We always like the feeling of the loft being full to the brim with nice fresh hay and shavings. This year we got second cut hay which is darker and has more protein. We thought it would be good for Buddy at his advanced age and help keep his weight up plus it is a bit finer so would be easier for him to digest. Now we are going to have to be careful not to fed out as much to the ponies as their weight will jump right up into lala land and they will explode! Not really but they will gain way too much weight for their body size and we don't want that. They will LOVE it and probably put on the hungry act every time I walk by them. They are good at that. They may have just eaten their grain and hay ten minutes ago but if you walk into the barn they whinny and paw the floor as if they haven't seen a bite to eat in two weeks! All you horse people know exactly what I am talking about!

There's nothing that smells any better to me then nice fresh sheets that have been dried on the line outside! Especially on a nice crisp fall day with no humidity and a breeze that snaps them around! My bed just smelled sooooooo good that night! :o)

I guess that's it for today. Mom's nurse and PT people should be here any time soon. She's walking really well and could go without her walker but it just wouldn't be safe at this point. We don't want her taking a tumble!! Have a good week everyone and I am still trying to get around to visit you all!! :o)

P.S. Dana at Old Red Barn is having a quilt give away again this year! This time she is giving away THREE quilts so be sure to hop over and enter!