Thanks everyone for the kind thoughts. You all are so great! I did talk to Kenzie yesterday and will get to see her when the weather lets up. The snowplow hasn't been past in 3 days. We are still hoping to have our Christmas gathering tonight with Rick's kids but we'll have to see. If the plow doesn't come by he plans to blow snow all the way to the highway. I'm doubtful as there is an 80% chance of more snow for today. Tomorrow looks promising. So I hope to go to Walmart and buy more gifts for Kenzie before we pick her up. Since SIL didn't tell anyone that he was going to bring Kenzie to IA, I had sent all her gifts to FL. The crustless cranberry pie and real whip cream was our dessert yesterday. I also made it earlier with the blueberries and it was fabulous too. Chelone, the decorations are wonderful and suit your house so well. V, the insane tree made me smile. Your nativity looks like the same figures that I have from my grandma. My mom has them too. She bought her's one at a time at the dime store. I have a few that say 29 cents on the bottom. What fun it must be to watch Misty unwrap presents. Kathy, Mr. Baby is just as cute as can be. I'm sure you have a fabulous Christmas with him around. Christmas is just so much fun through the eyes of a child. Eden, love all the Bella and Kate pictures both here and FB. I also enjoyed Brad's song. So lovely to have Ei stop in for the holidays. I love the way you decorated your porch and Scout sitting in the middle is perfect. Deanne, gorgeous card - the picture is fabulous and the border perfect. Our electricity has blinked on and off for the last 2 days so computer time is brief. My computer is old and takes so long to come back on. I did get a little time to print 3 8 x 10 garden pictures yesterday that I intend to frame and hang above my sofa. I had the local news on in the background and just heard a report from Jeremy's girlfriend about the weather where they are. She was calling in reporting. I guess I don't need to call and ask him when his GF is a reporter. She mentioned that they spent part of the day yesterday helping people who were stuck. Well, I guess I'd better get the house in order in case things do happen today. The food is all last minute stuff so I will wait to see what the weather does. Michelle

Woefully behind (no hope of catching up as the field rounds the far turn and heads down the homestretch). I am mastering the woodstove in the Salon (where I've been puttin' in quality time). It's an interesting exercise in how to maintain the comfortable temperature without having the furnace come on to augment the heat over night. I feed the stove 3 times/day; early morning, upon return from work, and before going to bed. I have a nice bed of coals at the end of every burn and have not had to start a fire "from scratch" in nearly 5 days now. I have asked Santa to bring me a new poker (long handle) and a coal rake. The coal rake will allow me to save the coals and empty accumulated ashes at the same time with minimal inconvenience. Christmas decorations are not yet finished, but could be by the end of this snowy day. :) It's beautiful outdoors today which reminds me to tell Michelle your snowy door shots are terrific. I have not poached the topiary idea, BTW. I love watching the Cardinals here. The colors of both Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal are just beautiful; one so bright and the other a restrained variation on the color scheme. I like to study the detail of the feathers in your shots, Deanne. It reminds me of Larry. Knowing a bird personally over many years (17) gave me a great appreciation of them. OK, I have to go play with the stapler and greenery. :) Waving to all, esp. Woody!

Everytime I make this old Wishbone recipe, people think I'm a superstar: * Exported from MasterCook * Salad, Vegetable Crunch Recipe By : Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : Salads Vegetables Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 2 cups broccoli florets 2 cups cauliflower flowerets 1 cup sliced celery 1 cup cherry tomatoes -- halved 1 cup zucchini -- sliced 3/4 cup green onion -- sliced 1/2 cup pitted ripe olives -- sliced 1/4 cup carrot -- sliced 1 cup (8 oz) Wish-Bone Italian Dressing 1 jar (3 oz) Hormel Bacon Bits In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except bacon. Cover and marinate in refrigerator, turning occasionally, 4 hours or overnight. Just before serving, toss with bacon. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTES : I have never used the bacon bits in this recipe. I add 1/4 red, green, yellow, orange peppers. When making a large recipe of this, I sometimes add one envelope of Good Seasons dry Italian seasoning to the salad dressing to make it stronger. Really, any favorite Italian dressing works........

Catherine's Spicy Chicken Soup Ingredients 2 quarts water 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 teaspoon garlic powder 2 tablespoons dried parsley 1 tablespoon onion powder 5 cubes chicken bouillon 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, chopped 1 (16 ounce) jar chunky salsa 2 (14.5 ounce) cans peeled and diced tomatoes 1 (14.5 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes or sub Rotel tomatoes and chilies 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed tomato soup 3 tablespoons chili powder 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained or frozen 2 (16 ounce) cans chili beans, undrained or black beans,rinsed and drained 1 (8 ounce) container sour cream Directions In a large pot over medium heat, combine water, chicken, salt, pepper, garlic powder, parsley, onion powder and bouillon cubes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 1 hour, or until chicken juices run clear. Remove chicken, reserve broth. Shred chicken. In a large pot over medium heat, cook onion and garlic in olive oil until slightly browned. Stir in salsa, diced tomatoes, whole tomatoes, tomato soup, chili powder, corn, chili beans, sour cream, shredded chicken and 5 cups broth. Simmer 30 minutes. **save the sour cream to add at the table, along with shredded cheddar cheese and corn tortilla chips. Want great tortilla chips? Buy a package of fresh corn tortillas. Spray or brush both sides with olive oil, cut each tortilla in half and then julienne them into 1/4" strips. Spread the strips out on a nonstick cookie sheet. If you like, sprinkle with sea salt, chili powder and/or cumin. Bake 5 minutes at 425 degrees and check; sample and bake longer until the chips achieve your desired crispness. The julienned chips are great because they're easy to pick up with a soup spoon. You'll never go back to store-bought chips! can make in crockpot.freezes well.