Heavenly Beauty

Will I ever get used to these big, beautiful Kansas skies?

I mean, will I wake up one day and not notice them,
perhaps be totally bored *yawn* by them and
take them for granted?

I sure hope not.

Tonight's Kansas skies at 5:30 p.m. central time.
Top photo, the sun sets in the west.
Bottom photo, the sun's rays cast a pink glow on eastern clouds.

Cattle Drive!

We left the house at 6 a.m. Saturday morning, horses and saddles loaded, to help a friend drive his cattle off pasture. It was a fun day, for the humans and horses alike!

Beautiful country - I only wish I had gotten more photos!!

Yes, me on horseback behind the cattle, hence the blurry photo.

This is what many of my photos looked like...
camera + horse = lousy pictures!

Hubby returning from search for renegade cow and calf...
they made a clean escape!

My ride on the right, hubby's on the left.
Yep, they worked hard - enlarge to see their sweatiness.

Our host.

His house.

The front porch.

The front door - isn't it beautiful?

My photos don't do their house justice. I've always loved stone houses, and this one was stunningly gorgeous. To the right of this front door was a side porch with a grill and refrigerator built into the stonework... further to the right was a stone fireplace with a flagstone patio, wicker furniture and an arbor over it, and to the right of that, a built-in pool. Can you just imagine evenings around that fireplace with a glass of wine in hand. I wish I would have gotten a photo of it.

Oh yeah, I could definitely live in this house!!

Flagstone and lush plants. Gorgeous!

Part of the stone garage.

The well-decorated roof.

The barn - I love the old stonework.

Getting ready to sort some cattle.

Our host, doing more sorting...

...for vaccinations, and preg checks.

Pastureland in front of house by driveway.

A few photogenic kids...

... and of course, the necessary ranch dog.
This is Ruben, a 6 month old Aussie.

The only thing I regret about our day - no pictures of me on Murphy!!! Hubby agreed we need to be sure to get pics of me in the future.

This was my first ride away from home on Murphy - I mistakenly thought since he's an older horse (25) that it would be an easy ride. Wrong! Murphy, being the old cow horse he is, was hard to hold back. His ears were cocked and he was excited to be back at his old job. He wanted to herd those cattle and nip at them! Plus the terrain was very rugged and hilly. Lots of rock ledges and very rocky fields to navigate - quite a jolting ride for this novice. But all in all, I think Murphy and I did pretty good - I enjoyed the challenge. I definitely need more practice on him. I need to learn how to remind him that I'M the boss, not him! He fought me every step of the way yesterday.

By the time we got home at 4:00, I was a little bit sore. But not near as bad as I thought I'd be. I was more tired than anything, and I think I crashed out by 6:00.

Midlife can be hell sometimes.

And the Winner is....

Paint Girl!

Thank you to everyone who commented and I truly wish I could send a bag to every single one of you for your sweet pups!!!!

Trixie did not cooperate (as usual) so I had to enlist Tori to pull the winner's name out of my lil mexican bowl. Anyone who has seen my photos from past giveaways knows that Tori is a pro at picking a winner! Alas, no photos this time.... that's what happens when you're back to working 40 hours plus a week.

Paint Girl, do please send me your address via my email - suzgarten(at)yahoo(dot)com. I will be making a fresh batch this weekend so I will get your bag out to you on Monday.

Thanks again to everyone who commented...
you are all the best and your pups are too!!!

"Homemade with Love" Dog Treats Giveaway

UPDATE: Deadline to enter is extended to Midnight EST, tonight!

Enlarge to see detail.

Trixie Lou's Cheesers... we (me, Trixie, Tori and Ringo) have finally perfected this dog treat recipe so that they are yummy, crunchy and good-for-your-pooch! Made with organic oat flour and brown rice flour, they are free of the ingredients that typically cause problems for our pups - wheat, corn, soy and yeast. I've added co-jack and parmesan cheese to the dough, and sprinkled some co-jack on top for a crunchy finish that our dogs love. There are no preservatives, so you'll want to use them up within a week or keep them in the refrigerator.

So what are you waiting for? Leave a comment now for your chance to win a bag of these yummies for your pooch(es). The giveaway will close tomorrow night, Monday, at 6:00 p.m. EST and a winner will be selected by none other than Trixie. Maybe. If I can bribe her to pick a name! Winners are limited to U.S. ~sorry! I can't afford the overseas shipping costs.

I have also decided to sell my "homemade with love" dog treats for the next few months. Price is $6.50 + shipping, payable via Paypal (see button to right, in sidebar), or you can mail a check. Email me at suzgarten(at)yahoo(dot)com if you'd like more information.

I hope to add a beefy and chicken flavor biscuit soon, but for the moment just the Cheesers are available. There are approximately 2 dozen medium size bone-shaped treats in the bag, which weighs between 6 and 7 ozs.

I am trying to keep the cost of shipping reasonable, but the United States postal service makes this task difficult. As long as the total weight of the package is under 13 ozs, it goes first class, approximately $3.26. If you want 2 packages, the box weight tips the scales past 13 ozs, so we'll use Priority mail, the small box rate, which is $4.95. If you want more than two bags of treats, I'll work with you to keep the shipping costs down.

Treats will be baked on weekends and shipped on Mondays and Tuesdays only so that they don't get stuck at the post office over the weekend.

There is nothing better than to end a bad day covered in dog slobber!

Simple Jelly/Jam Jar Design

Some scrapbook paper and a creatively hand-printed label. Really, how much simpler could it get?

I was thinking all week, how could I very simply decorate my jars? I was stuck on the typical fabric lids that one usually sees everywhere.

But I wanted something VERY simple. Easy. Quick.

I saw an idea to cut a circle from felt and embroider a small design such as a cherry, strawberry or apple. Very cute, but still too time consuming for me.

Then hubby suggested "construction paper, draw something on it"... and that's when it hit me, just use some of my scrapbook paper! And voila, there I had my finished jam jars!

Side Note:
The jam has officially been declared a success... hubby wondered
why I left one half of his english muffin un-jammed...
I told him it was for mopping up his egg...
he wanted jam on it!

Puerto Rico!

Congrats to Terri B who correctly guessed my fav vacation spot!

Puerto Rico is definitely one of my favorite spots* to vacation - but it's got to be at this resort and this resort only! They know how to pamper their guests, and how to help them relax and enjoy everything their exclusive location has to offer.

We stayed at a villa in Las Casitas Village, which is part of the El Conquistador resort. Actually, it is a bit more wallet-friendly to stay at the hotel as opposed to the villas (and the hotel has undergone a huge renovation since we were there). But I was lucky to get a price break at the villas in 2006 when I booked one for my mother and I... maybe it was a temporary price reduction, or perhaps just a boo-boo with their online prices. In any event, we got a villa for $169/night, AND they didn't charge us for a 3rd person when we added my sister at the last minute. That $169 split 3 ways was mucho reasonable!


Click through the links I provided, and check them both out - it's gorgeous there! The hotel is offering rates as low as $149/night and a special fall package with a 4th night free.

Thank you to everyone who commented and guessed. My brain is conjuring up future giveaways, so stay tuned for more opportunities to win goodies that'll put a cheery spin on dreary winter days!

*Puerto Rico is not my ONLY favorite vacation spot
I have others, such as Hawaii and Mexico.
Actually, the more I think about it, my favorite list could be pretty long...

Where is My Favorite Vacation Place?

Do you know where my favorite vacation spot is located?
Ok, this is only ONE of my fav vacation spots... I have many favs.

The infinity pool - this is one luxury item my toes could get used to everyday!

How cool is this - in the infinity pool while a storm brews over the ocean.
(This is my sis here, not me.)

Our accommodations, top floor. A villa.

A private island retreat. Bliss.

Lunch guests, and my sis's arm.

Yep, my sis again.
(a clue... architecture)

A small jar of home-made strawberry jam will go out to whoever guesses this vacation place first... since family knows where this vacation spot is, I'm afraid family* is disallowed from this lil giveaway!

Once someone has guessed this place, I will follow-up with more detailed information. You know, just in case one of my readers really wants to GO there.

*Family will get a small jar of strawberry jam whether they want it or not.

Wordless Wednesday

Life is Always an Adventure!

... even when you do something as simple
as make strawberry jam for the first time!

What fun! I only had two quarts of strawberries and decided on the spur of the moment to make jam, going the whole route and canning it too. I can't begin to describe the self-satisfaction when I heard the first jar pop and seal as it sat on the kitchen counter.

I stopped and stared at the jars, marvelling that I,
a canning newbie, had succeeded!

As a side note, I researched pectin quite extensively before I began canning my strawberries. Here's a web page that has tons of info on pectin. I found it to be quite interesting and even reassuring - pectin is a natural occurring substance found in many fruits. The prepared pectin that we buy comes from apples and just helps our jam to thicken quickly, so we don't cook all the vitamins right out of them. This page also helps you troubleshoot if your jam turns out too stiff, lumpy or runny. AND it tells you how to make your own pectin, if you so desire. Check it out, it's quite interesting.

I think next year when we get that garden put in I will just HAVE to buy a proper canning pot. I made do with something I found in our kitchen that was just barely deep enough to allow the water to cover the jar tops - the water splashed out as it boiled and I went through 10 tea towels, mopping up the top of the stove as they processed. But it worked, and I have 6 finished jars of strawberry jam.

Y'all stay tuned now...

I'm hoping to have a country giveaway very soon. It's been way too long since I've hosted a fun giveaway and I miss it!

Wishing everyone a well and happy week!

The Best Cut-Out Cookies Ever

Look good? Well, they are, trust me. These are the best buttercream frosted cut-out cookies, hands down, except for my home-made version. And I'm going to give you the recipe right now!

Oz Girl's
Wake-Up-In-the-Middle-of-the-Night-I-Gotta-Have-One
Cut-Out Cookies

In large bowl, sift together 3 cups flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda and 1 cup sugar.

Cut in 1 cup butter til mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Use real butter, not margarine. *blech*

Blend in 2 eggs, 4 tablespoons milk and 2 tsp vanilla.

I do the above by hand. I don't have a KitchenAid mixer. If you do, I hate you.

Chill dough. This step is important, or you will have sticky dough. So, do like Oz Girl tells ya, and chill the dough.

Roll on floured counter, and cut shapes. Get creative. Hobby Lobby has a kazillion different cookie cutter shapes. Be careful not to roll your dough too thin or you will have crispy cookies. *blech*

Bake at 400 for 6-8 mins. I use airbake cookie sheets, and they turn out perfect every time!

Perfect Buttercream Frosting
Slightly beat 1 egg white. Add 1 tsp vanilla, dash salt, and 1/2 stick melted butter. Add 1 box powdered sugar, then add up to 3 tablespoons milk til right consistency. You can separate into bowls, and add different food colorings for variety. If frosting gets dry before you are finished frosting cookies, add just a tad of milk.

I usually decorate each cookie immediately after frosting with colored sugars and other decorations. The quicker you decorate the better - the frosting will set up within 30 minutes!

If you're really lazy and not up to all this effort crazy busy, then just buy them from Cheryl and Co. You'll pay through the nose, but OMG are they yummy. The above pic are the cookies that I bought for hubby. Never mind that he is in Washington state for the whole month....

Whether I make them myself, or have Cheryl and Co. in-house, when I wake up in the middle of the night, it is an absolute trip to the kitchen for a cookie and milk!