Pepper Chicken/Inez’s Clippings

Posted on by
Reply

It’s Sunday and time for another one of Inez’s Clippings. Grandma was often the butcher at the farm. It was nothing for her to head out to the chicken barn and grab a good looking hen (or rooster who was guilty of being too ornery) and take care of business –all the steps including plucking the feathers and readying it for the dinner table. I was never privy to learn the method as I was not considered old enough. I can honestly say I’m ok with that 😉 I saw enough meat prep of all kinds to satisfy my curiosity.

On a recent doctor visit, I was told to eat less red meats in an attempt to lower the cholesterol. I’m guilty of being an honest to goodness carnevore and his instructions are going to be tough. After all we live in the middle of the Farm Belt and I reitterate the fact that meat is my favorite staple.

So with all that in mind, we used up some garden produce this weekend, starting with some lovely sweet bell peppers in a Pepper Chicken dish. Chicken is on the ‘good’ list. As long as it’s not deep fried.

The step-by-step photos are in the slides below. Notes: #1-We double recipes sometimes so we can have leftovers and use up extra summer vegies. #2-The link for the recipe is here. #3-The recipe states beef and as I stated above, we substituted chicken. #4-Another difference is we added julienned celery. Crunch is important….to us at least.

  • Our rice is cooked in beef broth. Chicken or vegetable broth works too. FYI the beef broth is cholesterol free
    Our rice is cooked in beef broth. Chicken or vegetable broth works too. FYI the beef broth is cholesterol free
  • Mushrooms are sauted first. This is not on the website's ingredient list.
    Mushrooms are sauted first. This is not on the website’s ingredient list.
  • Adding the peppers and onions next.
    Adding the peppers and onions next.
  • The sauce is whisked and ready to add later
    The sauce is whisked and ready to add later
  • Vegies removed temporarily to cook up the chicken
    Vegies removed temporarily to cook up the chicken
  • Reintroduce the vegies and add sauce
    Reintroduce the vegies and add sauce

To keep this gluten free, it’s important to watch soy sauce, oyster sauce and spice labels.

Plated Pepper Chicken Stir-Fry

Thanks for dropping in this Sunday!

Advertisements

Kansas Quilt Trail/ThursdayDoors

Posted on by
3

July 4th weekend we decided to meet up at the eldest daughter’s place for some home-cooked vittles before starting out on a long day trip.

Out the window we caught a glimpse of this rainbow. Bye Bye rain!
Out the window we caught a glimpse of this rainbow. Bye Bye rain!

We enjoyed eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast—not to mention some ‘pour-over’ coffee. You know, I do believe she payed attention to my cooking tips. 😉 Click on photos to see ‘Captions”.

Breakfast with Wonder Woman
And yes we cleaned our plates
Pour-over coffee
Cup courtesy of family in Okinawa

About the drive…..we headed off after this supercharge breakfast on the Kansas Quilt Trail. Here’s a portion of the map.

Starting point for us was Lawrence, Kansas
Starting point for us was Lawrence, Kansas

As beginners, we learned that there are no warnings of quilt blocks coming up. The map is just a general reference and you must be on the lookout for them. GPS markers would really help if anyone has the ambition to enter them(clears throat). In the next few Thursday Doors, I’ll be sharing our experience. To start here is a little taste of western Kansas.

TopekaKansas
EnterPrarie
ScenicByway
Flint HIlls marker on a slab of flint
Midsummer green

And for my finale, an official door to make this a proper Thursday Doors entry. Hope everyone takes a little time out to visit Norm 2.0 where there are so many more beautiful doors. He’ll direct your path.

On the Road to the Kansas Quilt Trail
On the Road to the Kansas Quilt Trail

Sleep Deprivation/Inez’s Clippings

Posted on by
5

Sleep deprivation is a thing for many people. In our home, it happens to a couple of us—present company not included. I happen to think that my job is one of those that helps you get a good night’s sleep after the day is done. I am thankful for that. This is not to say that those who have sleep trouble aren’t working hard enough. A good night’s sleep is a mystery to many as apparently it’s a challenge to successfully treat.

You have to admit that Grandma’s clipping below is pretty cute.

I just love Grandma's sense of humor!
I just love Grandma’s sense of humor!

This weekend while everyone in Sedalia and the surrounding area is at the Missouri State Fairgrounds (working/riding rides/seeing a concert,eating corn dogs and cotton candy), I’m here at home working on a project for some good friends. They have recently moved but we have a common friend (our daughter) who will transport the project for us once it is completed. In short, I spent Saturday cutting soccer jerseys.

  • Tools for the project
    Tools for the project
  • I started with this blue and also used red.
    I started with this blue and also used red.

Of all the marking tools I’ve researched, I found these are the best for quilting. Just don’t use the orange. For some reason, it doesn’t wash out the best. As a daycare provider, ask me how I know this. 😉

  • Cardboard template with center point marked
    Cardboard template with center point marked
  • Outline made
    Outline made

Hard to see in the second pic, but I’ve pinned the opening closed prior to cutting.

  • Measuring the length
    Measuring the length
  • Measuring the width
    Measuring the width
  • Cut 2 blocks at once for a saving time and for accuracy.
    Cut 2 blocks at once for a saving time and for accuracy.
  • Centered and Cut
    Centered and Cut

Some factors to consider when making someone a jersey/t-shirt quilt is that the shirts are not replaceable. For this reason, it’s taken me some time and contemplation on how to best begin. If you have a project someone has requested, definitely do the homework first so there are no regrets later. As in carpentry, measure twice, cut once. Don’t let it deprive you of sleep.

Block Cutting Complete
Block Cutting Complete

Stay tuned for the completed quilt in an upcoming post. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!!

John Speer Farmstead Site/ Thursday Doors

Posted on by
18

If you carefully read the story below, you’ll see that the farm land was owned by John Speer and the current house located here once sat diagonally across the street was not owned by John Speer. It was moved here in 2000 honoring John Speer, the founding citizens of Lawrence who showed great resolve in rebuilding after the Quantrill raid of 1863 as well as preserving the architecture of that time. Being a Missouri girl, I do not like being categorized as a ‘Bushwacker’ but since Kansas has taken such great care of my daughter’s college education, I will tolerate it just this once. 😉

We were the only people present at the time. It was Father’s Day weekend and I’m sure many had made special plans. As you can see, our plans were bent on sight-seeing.

And being as we weren’t in anyone else’s way, we peeked inside a bit….

Leaving you this Thursday Doors with some extra photos below. Hope you’ll take time to stop at Norm 2.0 by clicking here to see his door display and the doors of many more entrants.

Poor, Potatoes and Molasses

Posted on by
2

Usually this is a Sunday post but due to the amount of stuff I needed to catch up on this weekend, that was not gonna happen. And I’m still behind. So Monday it is for another installment of Inez’s Clippings.

Play on words
Play on words

Part of my ‘to do’ list this weekend was harvesting some tomatoes. Po-tatoes are still in the ground and waiting for the hubster to take time out to dig them. I hope our new method of the adding a board-raised bed works. (fingers crossed).

Bunny watching
Bunny watching

The 4-post boxes in the background mark the beginning of the potato boxes. Notice our piles of compost ready to be tilled in for the gardening season are keeping the girls from pouncing on the little bunny. He has remained that tame throughout this year. So far he only wants my clover in the yard.

Mid-stage of potato growing.
Mid-stage of potato growing.

This was our first attempt at this sort of potato growing. The jury is still out on how much or less we will acquire. Hoping for a bumper crop. Speaking of a bumper crop, I have a tomato weigh-in for you….

1 lb. 10.5 oz.
1 lb. 10.5 oz.

A small dinner plate will do for this one. And yes, I get my gardener genes from Inez’ side of the family 😉

Henry County Museum/Thursday Doors

Posted on by
5

I admit it. Last week’s entry for Thursday Doors was a scramble. Got a few leftovers in my stash from that day trip to share and hope you’ll enjoy.

Last week's and This week's are adjacent buildings.
Last week’s and This week’s are adjacent buildings.

Clinton has some gems. One of these is on the National Historic Register and listed as the Anheuser-Busch Building. It’s now a museum.

Henry County Museum
Henry County Museum
National Register of Historical Places plaque
National Register of Historical Places plaque

The building next to the museum has only one clue as to what it is used for…..

Children's Corner Theater

In case one of my kin from Clinton decides to enlighten me on the building’s use, I will update this post at that time. Until then, I just wanted to share its fine details and also share the next photo that I think you’ll appreciate….

Courtyard with gate (door) between the buildings
Courtyard with gate (door) between the buildings

This lovely courtyard would be a lovely spot to relax on a warm summer day in August, don’t you think?! Hope everyone is finding time to relax this summer. If you have a few extra minutes, please head over to Norm 2.0 for more wonderful Thursday Door entries. He’ll give directions in finding all the gorgeous doors worldwide.

The Water Dipper/ Inez’s Clippings

Posted on by
5

First the clipping….

The Water Jug

In case you are unaware, a “Hane” is a piece of iron attached to the collar of draft horses pulling a wagon. Water jugs were the way to transport water back in the day before the beginning of the Convenience Store. No water bottles, Tervis’s, Thermos bottles, etc. And everyone shared from the same container. Germs? No there were no germophobes in existence. At least not in our neck of the woods.

But we didn’t have a water jug per say. We had a metal dipper. It hung by grandma’s sink and anytime you needed a good swig of water, just grab it and fill it up. That fresh well water pumped right to the sink was ice cold and always hit the spot. Ice cubes? Nah. The only time you needed ice was in your tea or when you were making ice cream.

I searched high and low for a photograph showing that enamel covered metal dipper. After all, the kitchen was always the gathering place for the women folk. We kids knew exactly where they’d all be hanging out. But I only found a couple photos of the kitchen and they’re not taken at the correct angle so you can’t see the infamous dipper. But I want you to see the photo I found anyway as it shows a Norman Rockwell-ish moment in 1969 with my mother reading and Great Grandma sitting while resting her feet. In the kitchen with no tv, no radio, no cell phones, no computers. Just togetherness.

My mother Eileen and Great Grandma Hunter
My mother Eileen and Great Grandma Hunter

WW & H Exchange/Thursday Doors

Posted on by
12

Bringing you a short and sweet post from Clinton, Missouri this Thursday Doors. If I’m not mistaken this is part of a cultural arts center connected to the Henry County Museum. I hope to head back there soon to visit during its open hours. Museums in small towns are a sign of local pride and happy to see this town embraces its history.

Newer windows and doors for energy efficiency due to Missouri's extreme weather fluctuations is a must.
Newer windows and doors for energy efficiency due to Missouri’s extreme weather fluctuations is a must.

A good effort in trying to keep with the rest of downtown Clinton’s architecture by switching up the windows and doors.

Peeking out the door
Peeking out the door

Now this is my kind of graffiti! Humor never hurts either.

For more wonderful doors I hope you’ll visit Norm 2.0 and let him direct you to the rest of us–his door contributors.

Daily Smiling/Inez’s Clippings

Posted on by
Reply

I don’t know if my grandmother ever contributed any stories of her own to newspapers while teaching back during her teaching days, but I definitely know from my own personal experience that kids can and will say things that make you smile on a daily basis. It’s probably why she was drawn to cutting out the ‘funnies’ from the newspapers.

Before I share Grandma’s clipping for this week, I wanted to share a bit about our week during storytime. As a regular activity, we talk about stuff related to the story of the day and I have kept track of several of these over time. This past couple weeks, we had an Insect Theme goin’ on and the question I posed to them went like this….

“If you found a beehive on the ground, what would you do? Why?”

  • Owen(age4) “Put it back up–Because the bees will be sooo happy”
  • Hunter(age 4) “Go in the house–Because they will sting you.”
  • Owen yes we have 2 Owens (age 4) “Don’t be around it–Because they will sting you”
  • Bella (age 2) “Be afraid! –I don’t know & my daddy afraid & my mommy afraid!”
  • Jonathan (age 2) “Run away to my house, no a different house–Because I don’t like bees!”
  • Miles (age 5) “Scare it away — Cause I don’t like bees.”
  • Hudson (age 5) ” I would pick it up and put it back and wait for more bees to come back — I don’t know why”
  • Ben (age 7) “Leave it alone & walk around it — So I don’t get stung.”
  • Sawyer (age 7) ” Leave it alone so I don’t get stung and walk off”

So to reassure everyone out there, we had further discussion of how to handle this situation and also about the benefits bees provide to our environment. In addition, I just want to say that the next generation is going to be OK. They have empathy, caring hearts and are wonderful little people! So, if this didn’t make you smile, maybe the funnies coming up will…..Have a wonderful rest of your Sunday!!

Clinton, Missouri Coca Cola/ Thursday Doors

Posted on by
6

Do you remember the 1971 Coca Cola commercial with the song that was supposedly the most popular commercial ever? Well, being nostalgic, I looked up the lyrics and I am surprised there isn’t more to it. I remember more lines than what I’ve found. Was there a later commercial that extended the song? I feel like there must have been and I’m just not feeling like looking more into it. For now, though, I’ll settle with the ones I’ve found and the song will be running through my head like a broken record the rest of the day. Nope, not gonna write them here. One of us suffering is enough.

For Thursday Doors, I am sharing a Coca Cola building from Clinton, Missouri which is, naturally, the reason I’ve got that song stuck in my mind. Clinton is a town in the western portion of Missouri with a population of over 8800. For me personally, it’s home to some family members and the location of my podiatrist. So there you have it, the reason I’d be visiting there. Hope you enjoy the photos and aren’t rubbed the wrong way with the whole song reference.

Loading Dock door
Mural Wall with doors
Front Door with more signage
Green Doors in direct sunlight
Window with character
Door with vines

Please take time to visit our Thursday Door host Norm 2.0 by clicking here and he’ll direct you to wonderful doors all across the world.