Hi Eileen ! I attempted to answer you and VG and had a goodsized post, but the power blinked off...and there it went! That was yesterday afternoon, and I didn't get back to trying it again. We had some pretty powerful storms last night, but no damage here. The 1 inch of rain is certainly welcome. I am sorry that you had flowers ruined by the frost and snow.Our Bloodroots were through blooming, and only suffered a little damage. My poor pitiful Dutchman's Britches had managed to put up one leaf, but is now toast. I am having no success in growing it, and have decided it was in too much of a hole, so I had dug up a sizable clump of dirt with it in the center, and filled the hole with good soil for it to set on. Hopefully that will help it. Most of my roses were hard hit. I hate the way the Evelyn rose looks, and sure hope it revives. Oh, yes...the forget-me nots look good, and I discovered another one in the front bed. It is curious that they didn't 'show' last year, but are here this year. I went for my usual Tuesday visit in town. I noticed that a lot is releafing out there. It is slower up here, but still getting prettier. I am mainly concerned about the more exotic trees. Hi Vegangirl ! Great to 'see' you again ! Sorry that you suffered some loses also. I am amazed at how widespread the artic blast was. The wild blueberries were in bloom here, and all of them are lost. The wild turkeys will be short on food this year. And speaking of Kiwis, I will be surprised if my tender ones, that I've had for around 15 years, resprout. They were all leafed out. Our daffodils were finished blooming. Now the jonquils are in bloom. Some of my hostas are putting up a few new leaves. I got overly exuberant in cutting the mushy ones back, and most likely damaged the new growths. ( I was working off my frustration, and really chopped them and the mushy sedums down, and seriously pruned a pink wiegela.) It felt good to be doing something! I think the birds are returning. I still haven't seen the bluebirds back that were here most of the winter. They were nesting before the freeze. I 'did' see 2 Arkansas Flycatchers this week. They are pretty black and white birds. And we saw a nuthatch. The crows, blue jays, cardinals, tufted titmice, buzzards, wrens, mourning doves , and others, have been here all the time. Your "Wellness Program" sounds like an interesting project. I try to eay more 'good' foods, and less 'junk food'. Susan, I am with you on the critters that our cats catch. It surely helps keep the populations in control. I do rather that they don't bring them home to me ! LOL The storms are gathering again. I am hoping for more rain. I visited 2 garden centers yesterday, and brought home a bunch more plants...bedding, perennials, and shrubs. Now , the question is.. will I have the strength to plant them all? I bought an Endless Summer Hydrangea, and a Summer Snowflake Viburnum, and a HUGE elephants ear bulb ! I still didn't get more potting soil, but will be returning to town Friday to have my car serviced, and plan on stocking up on several bags then. The car was too full of plants and groceries Tuesday anyway. :-)

Well, of course one counts the dogs for a Thanksgiving meal. Geesh. LOL. What do you mean "unless you count the appetites of three dogs". I watch what I give them of the meal (like no grease for fear of pancreatitis)....but lean turkey breast won't hurt them! They'd be absolutely crushed if they sat there all day and sniffed the scent and went to bed with kibbles under their belts. Friday musings? I've been carping the diem too. Temps almost to seventy. House reasonably clean and took time to get a few projects done I've been obsessing about. Took dog for nice walk, and eyeballed the flora. Have primula in bloom........just the deep purple ones. Have dianthus in bloom. Have a few of my wild mums in bloom. All in shades of pinks and purples offset by the last of the glorious golden leaves. Last night was a glorious full moon. Wasn't red, but it was the hugest one I think I've ever seen here. Big as a Volkswagen, hanging on the horizon. I almost drove off the road when I came over a hill and spied it. Have only seen ONE wooley worm this autumn. What is wrong? It was totally black. I googled the long range weather prediction and the NWS says it's expected to be a bit warmer than average. Well, it sure the lleh hasn't been so far. I've been covering my lettuce patch in the garden, and still harvesting from it. More cabbage is heading up. The green peppers I've been growing on in my g'house are ready for the picking. Smoked sausage is sizzling now on the stove, as are a skillet of potatoes frying in bacon grease. Every once in awhile, I'll cook them in that, because you can't begin to compare the taste with something 'healthy' and it reminds me of my childhood. In the poor sections of town, it was cheap food then. You could smell of it daily at suppertime coming from every window. I have a bouquet of bright tangerine roses on my kitchen counter. I was going to 'save' them from the last hard freeze, when temps went down to lower twenties. Ha, the ones outside are still cranking. LOL. But, I am enjoying the beautiful flowers as I putter in my kitchen. Hens are finally molting and they've all but stopped laying. I left instructions to my dh, no more egg sales. My customers would gladly take my last egg for Holiday cooking. And this year, they're all mine.

Like most people have mentioned, I keep staples around the house at all times. Our family's staples, based on the foods we like to eat, are the following: pasta, brown rice, whole grain bread, soft tortillas, potatoes, onions, olive oil, canned legumes, nuts (we keep them in the freezer), peanut butter, jelly, pasta sauce, canned salsa, tomato products (I mostly use whole packed tomatoes and tomato paste), a few types of Progresso canned soup, milk, eggs, butter, some simple cheese for cooking, certain fresh fruits and vegetables (apples, oranges, bananas, broccoli, carrots, celery, baby spinach), certain frozen vegetables (peas, carrots, green beans, corn), canned pineapple, frozen meatballs (my own), a couple pounds of frozen ground beef and/or turkey (in one-pound packages), and a couple pounds of frozen chicken pieces (also in 1-1.5 pound packages), and a few frozen dinners. I'm sure I've forgotten things, but you get the idea. Oh, and in addition to the baking supplies, condiments, sauces and herbs and spices I always have on hand, I keep around a package or two of brownie mix, in case my (live-in, like-a-daughter) niece tells me she needs something to take to school tomorrow. These staples are the things I buy over and over, whenever needed. I used to have a list that I kept on my computer and printed out each week, but I've been doing it so long I don't need that any more. And if I buy something I don't need yet, I know I'll use it. I buy the canned staples in bulk when I can get a good price, and I try to get the best price possible on the rest, but I honestly don't worry a whole lot about it. I practice FIFO (first in, first out), too - if I buy a few pounds of chicken this week, but still have some chicken left from last week, I'll freeze the fresh chicken and use the frozen. With these staples, I can always prepare a meal without having to run out to the store. I don't plan meals ahead of time, but I have a general idea of things my family likes to eat, maybe two weeks worth of meals. As I'm making dinner one night, I try to think ahead to the next night and make a tentative plan for what we'll have. Sometimes I'll even do some ahead-of-time prep, though not often (usually only if I want to put something in the crockpot). In addition to the staples I always have on hand, I also buy meats, produce, or other things that look good or are on sale, but only if I know I can use them in the next day or two. I go shopping a couple times a week for produce, bread and milk, as my favorite market is four blocks from my house (not as good as Tally Sue, but not bad!), so there's always another chance to look for something good on sale. I do the same thing as Celticmoon, too, keeping a short list of things to get if I happen to be near a place that has them on sale. If I were you, I'd start this process by making a quick list of meals your family likes to eat. Take no more than five minutes to do this. Then take another five or ten minutes to make a quick list of ingredients in these foods. Voila! There's your list of staples to keep around at all times. Use the list to give you ideas of what to make on a given night. If you have some time, maybe it's tacos or roast pork; if you're rushed, omelettes or spaghetti and meatballs. All with your staple vegetables or whatever you've found on sale that week. Make another quickie list of snack foods for your kids. The basic snack foods we keep around are carrot and celery sticks, oranges peeled and pulled into sections (I just peel one at a time, then do another when Chloe eats one), turkey slices from the deli rolled up with cheese slices, nuts, raisins, fat-free yogurt, whole wheat crackers to spread with peanut butter or top with cheese, and apples. Sorry if I went into too much detail. Good luck!

Sjerin, I sleep lousy anyway so waking up a few times last nite, is pretty much normal for me. Here's the recipe, it's a Paleo recipe. I used a boneless blade roast and it was so tender. I love cooking beef so that it falls apart. I cut the rub in half, and used dried cranberries for the figs. Slow Cooker Mocha-Rubbed Pot Roast Recipe (stupideasypaleo.com) Prep time: 20 mins Cook time: 6 hours Total time: 6 hours 20 mins Serves: Serves 6 For the Mocha Rub (you will have extra) 2 tbsp finely ground coffee beans 2 tbsp smoked paprika 1 tbsp black pepper 1 tbsp cocoa powder 1 tsp Aleppo pepper (or sweet paprika) 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp ground ginger 1 tsp sea salt For the Roast 2 lb. beef roast (I used grass-fed chuck) 1 cup brewed coffee 1 cup beef broth ½ an onion, chopped 6 dried figs, chopped 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar Instructions Prepare the mocha rub by mixing together the finely ground coffee, smoked paprika, black pepper, cocoa powder, Aleppo pepper (sub: sweet paprika), chili powder, ground ginger and salt in a small bowl. You won't use the entire batch if you're making a 2-pound roast. It stores well in an airtight container. Pat the beef roast dry with a paper towel. Spoon 3 to 4 tablespoons of the mocha rub mixture over the roast and rub it in well with your hands. Combine the brewed coffee, beef broth, onion, figs, and balsamic vinegar in a blender. Puree until liquified. Pour the liquid into the crock pot and place the roast gently on top. Cook for 5 to 6 hours on low. Remove the meat and shred with two forks. You can then boil the liquid until it reduces and thickens or simply serve as is. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper to taste.