Snow Day Foods!

We have been snowed in since Monday night with wind chill in the minus teens for days. On Monday it started with a few hours of rain then turned to freezing ice, then sleet, then snow...by Tuesday morning all schools and a lot of business' were closed due to over two inches of ice and 4-6 inches of snow, something West Texas is not use to. The kids played in the snow on day one and I baked peanut butter cookies and added chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Basic recipe

Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Method

1 Cream the butter for 2 minutes. Add the sugars, cream for 2 more minutes. Mix in the peanut butter and egg. Mix together the dry ingredients - flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir into the sugar butter mixture.

2 Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate at least 3 hours.

3 Preheat oven to 375°F. Shape dough into 1 1/4 inch balls. Place about 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten in crisscross pattern with a fork. Bake until light brown, 9 to 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheets for a minute; transfer to rack to cool completely.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

For chewier cookies, bake at 300°F for 15 minutes.

The dogs even enjoyed playing outside but loved curling up inside to keep warm and Roxie, our rescued Spitz, lays in the oddest of places. Last night I walked into the family room to fi

nd her on the back of the love seat behind my Husband's head....she's a silly lovable dog that brightens any day.

Today the kids did not even think about going out and the dogs only go just for business purposes. After dinner, I decided to give the kids something special and my Ri

ce crispy treats. A while back Seddy on her blog had made some and I had had them on my mind but I must admit I do a bit different. The last time I went to Wal-Mart I found A French vanilla flavored marshmallows and I made them with cocoa crispies instead of the plain and I made a batch of peanut butter and cocoa rice crispies. Yum-Yum!

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Here are the recipes

Peanut Butter Rice Crispies

• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 package (10 oz., about 40) regular marshmallows- OR -
• 4 cups miniature marshmallows
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 6 cups cocoa crispies

1. In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter until melted.
2. Add cereal. Stir until well coated.
3. Using buttered spatula or wax paper evenly press mixture into 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan coated with cooking spray. Cool. Cut into 2-inch squares. Best if served the same day.

For the plain use the same recipe but exclude the peanut butter.

Pottery studio...Pugmill and New/Used Wheel

Well, I have not cleaned the inside studio out yet but I have to get in there and get it done! By golly I have orders! BUT, I also have to get back in the pottery studio and it was clean until my Dear Sweet Husband drove from Texas to Arizona for some great deals! He bought me a barely use clay boss to add to my Pacifica GT800 (which I love) I did want to add a Brent CXC to the mix but we found this clay boss like new for 500.00 with bats and glazes and it is the 1 horse power. I now have another to be lazy and go from high fire to low fire without just micro cleaning the wheel down and my son Devin (age11) can now throw opposite me. He has been working clay since he just turned 6, in fact he has been doing it longer than me.
He went with mt Husband, John, on this mission to get a pug mill, I found a nice lady that goes to auctions and buys then out. SHe bought a couple of pug mills but did not know what they were, she called it a clay kneader. But, what I called her about was she had wheels for sale for 100.00 dollars each and of coarse they were gone! But, she told me she had a BLUE BIRD deairing 800 clay kneader and would sell it for 300.oo dollars and she claimed it worked, well, we decided if it did not we wanted it. John and Devin loaded the car with movies and the dvd player and left on a Sunday morning to make their rounds. They came back on Monday by 2pm, Devin skipped school (he makes straight A's) and went right to bed and John and my oldest Dylan unloaded the car and we played and touched our new toys. I have been dreaming of a pugmill but I must admit I might not be ready for such a big one. I really would like to have two bluebird 400s or two shimpos that size..to run low and high fire clay. Time will tell maybe this will be easy to clean once I take it apart for it first cleaning. But right now its LUCKY, LUCKY me!

I need a CLEAN STUDIO!

MY BIG OLE" MESS

Most people know that I went back to school after years of nursing! Since the Fall of 2008 I have been driving to Angelo State University to up my education in pottery-mainly high fire reduction and jewelry (lost wax casting). Well, the end is near! Classes were finished last semester and this semester I just have to do a student show...NO BIGGIE!
What does this have to do with my studio you ask? After classes were finished it was time for the holidays and the house had to be cleaned and of coarse the studio was ignored for the time being and it went to hell in a hand basket and QUICK! So here are photos of it! YUCK!!!
I am cleaning it up and posting goodies, things I will not do, or try, want to do, tired or moving around or tried and don't want to do. Like what? Solder memory pendants. Blag! Not my thing, a 65 dollar iron and the copper tape and all the extras (some a friend gave me after she stopped doing lead stained glass but most I bought) and now it is all in a box and going to be sold on etsy.
And a beads, broken jewelry, ceramic pendants...I am going to make my creative life easier and more organized.
I have always been able to pick up a hobby/art and be able to do it well but I have so many things I do or can do but I can not spread myself out like this so, I will sell off the supplies and stick to what I love and just get better at that...pottery and jewelry making!
I feel empowered and will use this blog to start off my new life.....next we will look at my pottery studio and the new purchases. Cheers!

January 2011 Pepper

Sorry it has been awhile. One of my New Years resolutions is to work my blog! Today Pepper went to the Vet, the surgeon was in town also. The xrays show healing is now, finally taking place. On his right leg, where the ligaments were torn and the wrist was broke his leg sways back. This is permanent damage and it was causing stress to the other leg and it was not healing. This was a set back, a brace was bought and we used it and have seen a improvement...in fact, several. He has went one full month without breaking the right splints and healing is finally progressing. He does not like the brace and he chewed it and found ways to pull it off. It has velcro on it and if he gets on something like the couch and the velcro attaches he can pull it off. I will sometimes lightly coban the brace to cover the velcro. He is a turd and can be sneaky so, if he leaves the family room we know he is going to take off the brace. His weight is still a issue, it has yo-yo'd and funny, it seems to yo-yo with my husband's work schedule! June 18, 2010 was when this happened and the reward was over 1000.00 dollars and now it has been put to rest. I am sad to say people have been in a up roar and wished us well and know us and Pepper by sight BUT, no leads on who did this! Animal crimes are on the rise everywhere and we need to make people accountable....Please read this story....
http://bigcountryhomepage.com/fulltext?nxd_id=330856

Pepper is alive but handicapped, he is a indoor dog only, now hates men...all men! Except the family like my husband and sons but, my Dad is one he dislikes now and my Uncle,who, both love animals. He is scarred emotionally, he hates thunderstorms, laundry, the vacuum cleaner...if these items come out he runs and hides. And lets take about cats, for some reason now he runs.
He has changed in some ways but his love for us and strong will to live is still in tact.
Here is a new photo posted of him and a old one of him prior to the accident. We keep his hair short to be able to get rag baths due to being in splints 24/7....he not as pretty anymore but his eyes are full of love. I will start keeping this blog up to date on Pepper's recovery for I am done with school and now he and I are in the studio daily.
Michelle and Pepper

Pepper Update

So sorry for those that follow Pepper's care...he has been on a up and down battle or at least we have!!! He is happy as long as his belly gets rubbed! He breaks the splints so often that now we replace them every 10 days instead of 14 but he still breaks them. We may need to push to 7 but, our wallet say NO! But, his health has been the #1 factor so, we do what we have to! He now has a new style it is the indoor doggie do! He got to be a mess and since he will be a indoor dog from now on....photos will be posted.. and tail was left intact. He is gaining weight even though we watch his food intake...though the boys have been sliding fries off their plates. His neck is as large as his shoulders and his growing. He is near 30 lbs but should be 20, this will not be good for his legs but, since he is down and hardly eats...I guess what he does eat just goes straight to the neck, belly and thighs!!! I know how that feels!
This weekend I wanted some homemade peanut brittle and made it...it is so good and I do not need it but I had to have it for a sweet tooth! No, Pepper did not get any! I promise to do better here and on face book but the esty link is up to date http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?page=13&thread_id=6558905

pop back and read some!

Surgeons report

Next Friday the surgeon will do a last effort surgery to repair the leg...the damage was so bad in the first place and his leg is so small and now three pins are pulled out and he has a fracture that runs lacteral down the leg....they will try to wire the plate in place, he will have to be down immoblized ...right!!! They don't know this dog! He understood that some dogs just can not be kept down and stated that smaller breeds are the worst. If this does not work they will do one surgery to remove all metal work and let it heal as it will and we will get a custom made doggie wheelchair. He is too lively to be put down. Removing that leg is not a option and the other one will never be able to hold him even with the wrist fused. If he wasn't so loving and happy maybe putting him down would be a option but it is not. Again, Thank you for the support. Michelle

New Hit!!!

After one week of us knowing that pepper has been down, not feeling well, after the splint change...I called the vet and told the what was up. They told me to bring him in. I told them he has been down, does not use the left leg, hardly eats, and will just stay in one spot if you are there all day. They checked him out...temp. - okay, no smells, splints - okay...lets x-ray, bad news...plate and half of the pins are pulled out and vet does not think surgeon can repair. A call is been made and we are waiting to hear. We will take precautions like he will have surgery in am but we will not know one way or another until the morning. If it can not be repaired, it can not be removed due to the other leg can not hold him due to its injuries. He will have to be put down....this has been a hard hit. After all our family was attacked....and now after all we have done we might lose him.
Thank you for all your support, Michelle