Favorites

Jowo Sez: Just a reminder, the cookbook where every recipe is delicious is Favorites. Click on the colored word for the link to order. Natalie's Speedy Rolls are so delicious and make up like a charm every time.

Started reading Picking Cotton at Jennifer's suggestion. There are a few rough spots but considering the subject matter, that's to be expected.

All the children and grandchildren have moved into their home after 2 weeks of staying with me, confusion and broken things are now being restored and repaired, including one window, 1 Baccarat dolphin, one birthday angel from 1958, and some wood molding on the stairs. Goldfish crackers and cheerios have been removed from the sofa, diapers have been discarded into the trash, linens have been washed and renewed, floors have been mopped, toys have been put away...it's suddenly very quiet with the exception of my dad's snoring and coughing and mom's sleep-talking coming through the monitor. When the kids drove away last night I teared up in the old familiar "good-by, when will I see you again?" until it really really hit me. Celebrate! They only live 3 miles away. I'll be seeing them again this afternoon. Hooray, Hooray!

The twins, Tyler and Brooks, the least of the offenders

Waffles

Here is my individual waffle recipe but it should work in any waffle maker: Good Eating to all
2.25 c flour
4 tsp baking powder
.75 tsp salt
1.5 T sugar

2 eggs ( I like to use powdered)
2.25 C almond milk
.5 C oil

Blend dry ingredients with a wisk. Then do the same with the wet ingredients in separate bowls.
Combine and mix until just moistened. Bake in a waffle baker. I use the Villa Waffle Baker and each waffle takes about .25 C batter. Makes about 18 3.5" waffles

It was so fun seeing all of you. Thanks for a great weekend.
Cathie

Much Ado About Nothing

Jowo Sez:  It isn't often 16 women can maintain lasting friendships over the course of 20+ years and still find something new to talk about. But that's us and we're having a blast. We love life, we love each other, we love our families, and we love our Faith.  We just spent Sept 15-19 back in Wheaton doing a whole lot of nothing and it was great. Joyce S. opened up her beautiful home to us. Those of us who no longer lived in the area flew in from Texas, Idaho, Virginia, and California. A few of our friends couldn't make it. We read Gone With The Wind in celebration of 150 years since the Civil War. We compared it to The Help. We watched and slept through the movie. We visited the French Market and ate at a great chinese restaurant Saturday afternoon along with bookending the trip with two trips to Portillo's for the world's greatest hotdogs. Sorry New York. I stand by their Chicago dogs! We listened to nationally acclaimed philosophy professor David Paulson read his 2005 paper he'd presented to the Library of Congress on Joseph Smith and watched part of a football game where BYU got slaughtered before we turned it off. We ate some more and stayed up lated. Joyce S.'s husband spent the 5 days with his grandchildren. What a Pal, Paul! We laughed and cried and attempted to scrapbook items from old trips. And we ended the trip with a shopping trip to Ann Taylor where most of us bought skinny jeans at 40% off. Now to try to fit into them. Our eldest member, Elva, at 85, led the brigade. Our youngest member, Celeste at 50(?) kept us organized. And I personally enjoyed meeting and speaking at some length with a defense attorney who switched sides to protect the interests of the mother of a victim of John Wayne Gacy, and later on my flight home sat next to "The Worlds' Greatest expert on Ragtime," Terry Waldo. I learned so much and I'm enjoying his book , This Is Ragtime and  one of his  CDs.