Back in my kitchen

Yes, I am back in my kitchen and tonight I am wearing my very fullest red and white apron.
  It is not only very cute, but it covers the subject, and it could get messy.

First on the agenda, chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting.
because....

We are Swiss, and we are going to a Swiss Club Fondue event tomorrow.
did you know that the two words that come to mind first in a Swiss mind?

Chocolate     and        Cheese.

The cupcakes are in the oven and the mix was in a box.  No worries about that.    The frosting, also chocolate, also in a box.  So no worries.

But
Next on the agenda

Hamantaschen 
I have to try again.   I have poppy seed filling waiting from last week. 
I have a new recipe and it says that it is the best recipe ever.   
But, just in case,
I will stop writing for now.

post


Head back into the kitchen and....   

Haman in my kitchen

It seemed like Haman was in my kitchen tonight.

Here is what happened.

Since it is the month of Purim...everyone knows that...and since I was in Israel for Purim a few years ago, I have felt like celebrating Purim. 
That involves Hamantaschen.  Haman's ears,  Haman's hat, or whatever. 
Haman who was so cocky and arrogant  in the King's palace. 

So I put on my best most appropriate apron....It is my Easter apron , like Esther, like the Queen who caught Haman in his evil act.

I have a recipe that I used several years ago and with all the notes I had made I was pretty excited about making them again.
I will be brief at this point.
The dough was very sticky and.....
that was when I thought Haman had been in my kitchen...so I took charge and added some flour to the next tray and they are much prettier. 
Truth be told, they all tasted good.  I know, because I tasted two or three of them right then and there.

Next week, I want to try another recipe...If anyone has a tried and true recipe I would love to have it.
OH, the filling.  Originally, poppy seeds were placed in the cookie. Later, jams, etc, were options.  
So, I have plenty of the poppy seed mixture for another batch.
I might take a photo, if they turn out well.  

Come over for Hamantaschen, and the coffee and tea will be ready in minutes !


I live an exciting life 

Lest we forget

Lest I forget 


We had the privilege of visiting  the Skokie Illinois Holocaust Museum
I hope I never forget

The museum theme is Human Rights so there is tribute to the Black community as well as the Jewish community 
You can extend that to your own life, community.

There is much to read about...google about..so I will not cover everything, just the portion that had the greatest impact on me.

Fritzie Fritzshall ...yes that is her name and if you google    Illinois Holocaust Museum... you can see her presentation. Amazing.  She is on the board at this Museum and visits often.


She was 13 years old when her life changed. The video is very well done and she describes the events that started in her grandmothers home and moved on to Auschwitz and then to her family here is America.     The video is  appropriate  for family viewing.   Her words, however,  highlight some of the hard, very hard parts.   Then, after the video, there is a Hologram of her, Fritzie, in a red chair, right there on the stage. And she answers questions from the audience.  Depending on your audience you might hear the story that she told to us... the hardest part of experience.
                       The Boxcar

There was one window
so
no light, as obvious in the photo below taken without flash 

Fritzie and many others were loaded into boxcars 
They did not know where they were going
They were marched into the boxcars with standing room only.
No water
No food
No sanitation

She was not sure if it was a day or more that they traveled, making one stop.
That was when two buckets were placed into each boxcar.  One had water and a dipper. The other was empty.
There was enough water for maybe half the people  in the boxcar to have one spoonful.  Men, women, children, and pregnant women all hungry and thirsty.  
The other bucket was the "toilet" 
     for all to see
     overflowing and dumping as the boxcar moved

When the boxcar arrived at Auschwitz her grandfather was among the many who did not make it alive to the end.
As soldiers were posted to empty the boxcars, a Jewish soldier came by Fritzie  and whispered "you are 15 years old".   She is confidant, that saved her life.  Those 13 and under, old and feeble... they were never seen again.   

The following year or year and a half she was treated and saw her family treated in the most inhumane, cruel, unthinkable ways.    

She was the only family member to survive. She moved to America....but that is another story.  

This is Fritzie 

Hologram of Fritzie
There are  Holograms of 13 Holocaust survivors 

The rest of the tour was hard, but I could not shake the memory of that precious lady and all she endured.

I want to share a part of the story with my grandchildren.... they are young, but this is part of our history, and reminds us of how much we have to be thankful for and what we might have to fight for in our lifetime.


Thanks to Russ and Sharon for taking us to:
    Illinois Holocaust Museum  ( 3rd largest in the country )
    Skokie,Illinois 
    

( Les, I will always remember you, and the beginning of my love and appreciation for all things Jewish ) 



Then last night, an old Perry Mason
         Desperate Deception...similar content
             

Next stop... WDW

We go often, but this time it was to acknowledge the end of hubby's radiation treatment.
MY choice, because we were on the journey together.
OK, it is not his favorite place, but it is mine.
Mine, because we are miles away from hubby's wood business.
He can actually relax and leave his phone turned off.

So, bottom line... we enjoy each others company.

and the food

and many of the attractions.

When we checked in, they gave hubby a pin to wear.
If you are celebrating something, you write it on the pin.
Birthday
Anniversary
or    Good Health...that was the pick for hubby.

So here are a few of my highlights

This little face resembled our grandson when we was that age
I could not stop peaking....something  about those eyes and
wishing our now 13 years was with us







It was a clear night and this was the view on the river boat

And then the landing
boat landing, that is. 

Not everyone takes pictures of necessary rooms
but
I am not everyone 

Can you guess, this is a seafood restaurant   

And then, who knew we had room for a dessert for two.
Well, it said two, but it was easily enough for four 
The waitress serves up two pieces...

So after we had stuffed ourselves with mud pie
We offered the remainder to the family behind us
Their little man decided it was his first course

Permission granted by his mother to post

That is the end of our first day at the WDW Resort and an easy highlight. 


                                      Thursday
First full day begins with breakfast
As we were leaving the dining room a tall dark and handsome man smiled at me.  I thought he might be smiling at someone behind me, but I smiled back.  As he passed by I heard him say
          " we ate every bit of the pie "
By the time I realized what had happened I turned around and ....
Well, I hope he heard my happy reply, though I could not tell where he had gone.



enough said
but, it was nice.

We have our favorites at Hollywood studios.   Many of the fun rides are gone, but there is still the play  Beauty and the Beast...which we love.

.
and Lunch at  Prime Time Cafe.

Each year we get a photo of someone sitting in the turquoise lounge chair
This year, no lounge chair..but it is turquoise 

And every table is like it's own kitchen table
playing old black and white clips of
50's shows

There is time for Indiana Jones  and a couple more attractions  

Then we leave Hollywood Studios and take a boat ride to Epcot Center.   We could spend more than a day at Epcot,  so we do. 

This is part of the Festival of the Arts event...We helped both days.

And by the end of the second day......Finished !


and this is the postcard all participants received...

Friday 

                                  


Full day at Epcot.   Good weather... Good Food.



                                             Saturday 



The Magic Kingdom
                                                                    

Breakfast with favorite bear 

Now we are ready to head out to the rides 

Goodbye Crystal Palace,

Hello ...

Favorite ride 

Country Bear Jamboree
It's a tradition 

And this is my favorite spot at WDW   The Grand Floridian 

We have dinner in their family dinning room 

Fresh and delicious  

Always room for dessert  

Good bye Grand Floridian

We end our last full day at the Park, and on the shuttle back to our room a passenger commented on Darrell's Celebrate button.

You have to look close...it says...Celebrating Good Health 
This is the end of the day and kids are tired and parents are exhausted and the bus is often quieter than in the morning.  So the conversation was a little more "public" and serious.  Talking about cancer and treatment and family and celebrating and... 
well suddenly , the back end of the bus was clapping.   

And yes, that was my highlight of the day....maybe even the whole trip.  

Once again, final morning

Waffle ! 

But is is also a day at the Park.

The Animal Kingdom

And much much more.

It is a real Safari Ride and this year we saw more wild life than ever before.. maybe it was the weather    

Not quite as good as it looks, quite  tasty
A final treat before
Going home
 

We knew the flight home would be interesting.  We flew from Orlando to San Diego ( cheapest seats ) and then to Seattle.  We knew that flights had been cancelled the day before and the weather was still threatening.  But, we made the connection and arrived home to find.......      The expected snow

But, the unexpected 40 degrees in our home.  The furnace had stopped working and no one at home to get help...  2:00 in the morning and hubby made a fire in the wood stove.


I live an exciting life,  and a blessed one. 

Much to be thankful for.  

It was a great day
Well, it was a busy day
OK. it started last night.

I try to plan menus, check the freezer, make lists...all the night before.  
Funny thing last night.  I pulled out what I thought was meatloaf.
It was some bar cookies.  Well, that means I don't have to make a dessert for Bible Study,  but I will need to take out some beef for meatloaf.

  I had gathered recipes and tips from my girls to prepare something Kale for my friend.

She does not like Kale, but she knows I like Kale. So, bless her heart she asked me to make something Kale !!   
Then comes the shopping trip. Somehow I had three lists and focused on two of them so.... came home with just about everything.
Spent the evening preparing two salads with Kale.  Don't you just love saying the word  Kale ?!   

It took me about 3 hours.  Fun hours.  OK. I was watching  The Magnificent 7 while massaging Kale 
And wearing my favorite colorful apron. 
All good !

Now it is today.
Salads are ready and on ice in the car.
Bible Study is in my tote bag and I am ready to go.
Less than a mile to the church, but I am running a little late..hated to give a brief hello to neighbor Pooja and hurry on.

Approaching the parking lot and the car feels and sounds funny.
Well, I am not going to drive Sabrina to my friends.  So I call Hubby and he agrees to meet me here at 11:15 with the other car and take care of matters.

Walking into the church and Kristi says " I suppose you know about your tire? ...it is flat "

So, quickly call hubby again.  Helps to know the details before tackling the job.

ll;15 and he is waiting for me.  
He greets Bonnie,who is walking out with me and  who always looks so classy.   
She says  " Hi,  your wife told me her tall dark and handsome husband was waiting for her. "
How sweet of her to look beyond the beanie hat and well worn miss matched outfit. 

We head to Sabrina and find out there is no jack.
No jack in the other car.
Change of plans

  ( are you still with me? - it gets better )

We start home and find a garage... no house sale !  What? In February ?  Yep.  So we stop and quickly find a few things like
a little text that looks like this:

$1.00 well spent  

My neighbor Jane was there... We agreed we needed nothing.  
Very beautiful home... new kitchen...front yard I have admired for years... 
Back to the sale.  After we all bought a few things we left and Jane checked her car to see if she had a jack.  No.
We go home.

Hubby checked one last time for a jack, and then said his goodbyes.
Apparently, it did not dawn on him that I needed the car to take my salads to my friend. 
I would not take his pick up for a number of reasons.

So, while waiting for hubby to return, I made meatloaf and swept the floors and dusted the living room..

By 2:00 I was out the door.

and this is the door I walked up to

And This is Baby .   Cute and quiet.

Had a nice visit with my friend.  
I think she has a positive attitude about Kale.
I think she is going to have a positive attitude about Kale.
The salads looked fresh and interesting.
Also included a few crackers, two chocolates, napkins and a tooth brush  ( don't tell anyone, but Kale gets in your teeth, and it's green )

Did not want to tire her, so I headed home.

Called to invite our Octogenarian friend to dinner.
He said no, he was sure his daughter needed him, but yes, he would come to Bible Study.

Well, it is a good thing he did not come.  The meatloaf did not hold together.  Hubby thought it was hash.   Home grown corn from the freezer, was a little hard to chew. But, we had plenty of Kale salad.    

7:30 Bible Study.
9:00 refreshments.  Guests were quite content with my bars, trail mix and cups of berries.

Then they went home. Hubby went to bed. I cleaned up the kitchen and here I am doing what I like to do... talk to myself  about my day.

If anyone listens, they never tell me
              seldom tell me 


 Marti, I know YOU are listening 
Sleep tight


I live an exciting life.