39 Years! Are we really that old?

Where the time has gone

I will never know

I was 14

you were 16

I liked you from the start

then I gave you my heart

39 years brought many things

a son 

a daughter

two grandsons dear

through richer and poorer

through better and worse

through sickness and health

we have lived them all

but everyday has been better

with you by my side

As I look into your eyes

  I see the young man

who captured my heart

and you will always be

forever young

So happy to share this day with you

as we celebrate 14,235 days

as husband and wife


'til death do us part

Happy Anniversary Dear Hubby

I love you today
and always

Happy Thanksgiving

Spicy Chicken and Rice

I hope you are enjoying this week of Thanksgiving. I have been busy all week planning and making ahead anything that could be made. This recipe is the only meal I have cooked for us all week. Good thing it had six servings! We both liked it so much, I had to take the time to pass it on to you. I adapted this recipe from a recipe that showed up in my Google reader from the wives with knives blog. 

I like this recipe because you make it all in a saucepan and transfer it to a covered baking dish. It is a low fat recipe with the exception of the melted cheese on top... and then there is the possible addition of sour cream and some tortilla chips... if that interests you! We also served it with sliced avocado and fresh tomato slices on the side.



Enjoy!

 

5 Minute Chocolate Birthday Cake

My dear hubby had three days of celebrating his birthday this year. We celebrated with his family on Saturday and with our family on Sunday. After my dear hubby arrived home from work, I realized that my birthday plans for the evening were lacking anything fun! If I had thought ahead I could have put a bow on my head, but I didn't think of that in time. I decided it just wouldn't be a birthday without a little cake. 

What did we ever live without computers? I quickly found an easy recipe, I made a couple changes and mixed it up while he was upstairs changing his clothes. I hid it in the cupboard before he came down and he had no idea he would soon be having chocolate birthday cake. I even had time to unwrap a small Reese's peanut butter cup leftover from Halloween, and push it into the center of the cake. The kitchen smelled like chocolate to me, but he didn't seem to notice. 

We had a bowl of soup for dinner and after I cleared the table, I tried to sneak the mug out of the cupboard and into the microwave. Of course the surprise ended there. When the mug hit the plate in the microwave, there was a large clank! The number beeped on the keypad as I pushed "2 minutes" and "Start!" The light came on so he could see what was going on in there from the table. It was fun to watch the cake emerging from the mug. I had fun and he was impressed!

As you can see from the picture, it grew out of the mug as it baked. We sliced off the cake that rose above the mug, cut that in half and just like that, we had a birthday party! We realized later that the whole thing came right out of the mug for easy slicing. We even have several slices of leftover cake. It was very chocolatey, dense, moist and good! Of course the peanut butter cup sank right to the bottom, but I was impressed with how easy it was and how good it tasted. The best part; we don't have a big old chocolate birthday cake sitting on the counter, waiting to be eaten over the next few days! That's a very good thing!


Enjoy!

Veterans Day

Veterans Day isn't always a happy day. To all those that have lost a family member to war, I am so sorry and our thoughts and prayers are with you. Our prayers are with all those who have family members today. 

My dad served in the Navy during the Korean war. He was stationed in Hawaii and I was born there while he was in service. Thank you dad, for doing your part to make this world a safer and better place.

And, to my dear hubby who did his part by serving during the Vietnam war, you will always be my hero!

At the motel pool in Carmel

This picture was taken in 1970 when my future dear hubby was in basic training and then cook school at Fort Ord Base in California. My future mom and dad-in-law took me with them on a road trip to see him when he had a break and was able to leave the base. I was 16 years old. We all stayed in a motel in Carmel by the sea... a truly beautiful place. Fort Ord was closed down several years ago but you can still drive around inside the base. The barracks and cook school looked exactly the same. When he returned, he served out of Camp Withycombe in Clackamas Oregon for several years. Thanks hon!

An Afternoon at the Nature Park

There are several nature centers near us in the Tualatin Valley. We have been to several and they have all been pretty amazing. While our daughter and the grandsons were in town last week, we went to the Tualatin Hills Nature Park in Beaverton, Oregon. This park has a constant stream of people coming in and out. Some are taking power walks, some are riding their bikes, some are testing sports products (Nike Headquarters is near.) We were there to enjoy the beauty of nature and to let the boys run around and burn some energy! It seems like this is a good time to say that unfortunately, I didn't have either of my cameras with me. All the following pictures were taking with my phone. Note to self: always take your small camera when you go to a nature park, especially with the grandsons!

Spotted Owl

We had walked inside the park about 500 feet when we saw a man headed toward us and he was motioning for us to be quiet. I thought, are you kidding, we are outside, in the woods! He proceeded to tell us about what was going on ahead, right off the path. A spotted owl and a king snake were in the middle of a stare down! We continued forward on tip toes, anxious to see what was going on. As we rounded the corner, we saw that a group of people had gathered and some were taking pictures. 

No wonder, it was shocking to see a large owl in plain view, sitting on a tree branch about 8 feet off the path. It was very aware of the crowd and glanced over his shoulder, looking at us, several times, clearly unafraid. One of the first things I thought about was the controversy surrounding these beautiful owls. Some would say that they single-handedly closed down the timber industry in the northwest. Here are two links about the spotted owl. You will find general information about the spotted owl at this link. You can read about their impact on the northwest here.

A funny thing happened on the way out. We couldn't find our way out! We had gone off the main paved path and had walked on several unpaved paths and then we couldn't find the paved path that would take us out. We walked around for about 45 minutes, convinced that we had found the right path and that we were almost out. When we passed a large white mushroom that we had passed going in the opposite direction, we knew we had a problem. We laughed at the thought of needing to call the nature center office and having someone guide us to the entrance. 

We kept walking and we soon realized that the sun was headed down and it was getting darker as we walked along. At this point, we also laughed at the thought of needing to call 911 and asking for help if the nature center was closed. All the while, we were assuring the boys that everything was just fine. We weren't lost, we just couldn't find the main path out! Before too long, we saw a nice man approaching us and he sent us in the right direction. Before long we were on the right path!

On our way to the car, the park ranger, Molly, was just getting out of her truck. Wiley and Ivan had lots of questions for her and she spent at least 20 minutes talking to them and answering all their questions. She also gave us lots of history and information about the park.

We were glad we got out before dark. All the wild animals come out when it gets dark! Don't worry, it wasn't even 5 o'clock yet!

Happy Halloween

Our favorite trick-or-treaters!

Another favorite!