HAPPY SUNDAY EVERONE - ODDS AND BODS AND A RAMBLE FOR 8/23/26

Good Morning.

I am having a good start to the day here. I hope you are too. 

Say cheese!

I am sure my energy level will disappear later on, but I can always rest during the day if I have to. You can find me here lolloping in about.......... 

I am looking forward to the cooler weather and can feel it in the air already. Cooler in the mornings and evenings, windows wide open. We are having quite a downpour right now though and it is thundering and lightning. I hope all is well in your part of the world. I know you have been having some horrendous heat and fires. I hope you get a good downpour for a few days to ease things.

Here is my imaginary house/houses. I was torn between two places today. You are going to have to imagine what the rest of the house looks like, but aren’t they gorgeous? 

Time for a recipe or two. I don't make what I share but they are on an ever-growing list for future Monday Morning Recipe Posts.

Amish Chicken Noodle Salad, a creamy, sweet and tangy salad that’s perfect for potlucks, 

picnics and family gatherings. Serves 8 to 10. Preparation time: 20 minutes. Chill time: 

4 hours or overnight. Ingredients - Salad: 12 ounces egg noodles (or spaghetti broken 

into thirds - 3 cups shredded chicken (rotisserie chicken works great) - 3 hard-boiled 

eggs, chopped - 1 cup celery, diced - 1/2 cup sweet onion, finely diced - 1/2 cup sweet

pickle relish (or finely chopped sweet pickles - 1 cup frozen peas, thawed (optional) 

1/2 cup shredded carrots (optional, for color).  Dressing: 1-1/2 cups mayonnaise -

2 tablespoons yellow mustard - 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar - 2 tablespoons 

granulated sugar - 1 teaspoon celery seed - 1/2 teaspoon onion powder - 1 teaspoon 

garlic powder - 1 teaspoon salt - 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Instructions: 1. Cook the

noodles just to al dente. Drain, rinse under cold water, and allow them to drain very

well.  2. In a large bowl combine the chicken, eggs, celery, onion, relish, peas and carrots.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients until smooth. 

4. Fold the cooked noodles into the chicken mixture, then gently stir in the dressing until

everything is evenly coated. 5. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours, though overnight

Is even better because the flavors meld together. Before serving: the noodles will absorb some 

of the dressing as they chill. If the salad seems dry: stir in 2 to 4 tablespoons mayonnaise

or mix 2 tablespoons mayonnaise with 1 tablespoon of milk for a lighter refresh.

Delicious add-ins: diced cheddar cheese - chopped ham instead of (or in addition to) 

chicken - chopped green onions - diced red bell pepper - sliced almonds or chopped

pecans for a little crunch.  Make ahead tips: keeps well in the refrigerator for 3 to 4

days. Do not freeze - the mayonnaise dressing can separate after thawing. This recipe

is ideal for preparing the night before a gathering. From My Kitchen to Yours....Notes....

Quick Homemade Bread - ready in about 20 minutes. What you will need: 2 cups all-

purpose flour - 2 teaspoons baking powder - 1 teaspoon salt - 1 cup milk - 2 tablespoons

melted butter.  How to make it: 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees

Celsius) and grease a baking pan.  2. In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Stir in milk and melted butter until combined.  4. Pour into pan and bake for about

20 minutes.  Soft, simple and perfect fresh out of the oven.

Fun With Food

for the little kiddos and also 

 the bigger kiddos!

How about a word of the day? 

Isolophilia: A strong preference or love for solitude where one enjoys 

being alone, associated with peace, introspection, or personal space.

Another with a little humor (in this case a very cute donkey or is he a mule? He does have rather long ears).

Word of the Day: “Curple”, the curved part of the hindquarters of a horse, mule or donkey. 

In modern day terminology I think it is called a ‘croup’. We need to ask Sandra or Val about that. 

Kindness

When you get frustrated with older people because of what they can't do, 

think of how frustrated they must feel because they can no longer do it.

Wise Words

Things to let go of: fear - chasing perfection - need to please

toxic relationships - comparison - past mistakes - self doubt

things you have no control over

Stay close to those who give peace to your soul.

Tell me, I forget. Show me, I remember. Involve me, I understand.

Chinese Proverb

Be kind to your mind, it’s where your peace lives.

Don’t let the hard days win. 

A better day is waiting for you.

And let’s…

Grow slowly but never stop. Keep growing.

It’s important to…

Stay Calm and Meow…

and 

Have a Happy Day!

A final touch of the whimsy, along with the important reminder.

My thanks to Pinterest for today’s inspiration, and also in my signature sign-off there are several loving components from my life, all designed to give you a few smiles, hopefully. 

A long ramble so feel free to skip.

The bird is there because you all know I love birds, and the same for the squirrels. 

The dog is our sweet Bridgette who came into our family already named when our son was eight years old. She was a black labrador/dalmation mix. He pleaded her case when her human told him she was taking her to the pound, and did he want her. She was a year old and she stayed with us for 15 wonderful years. 

The cat was my childhood pet Binkey. I always thought of him as my cat. Years later my sister told me she always thought of him as her cat. No doubt he thought of us as ‘his’ humans. I still remember his contented purrs as he curled up on my lap. I don’t ever remember getting one scratch from him. He was a great yowler at midnight with all the other neighborhood cats, and also a great stalker. Cats were let out at night back in those days. We found many an interesting 'package', occasionally left inside. Yak!

The desert tortoise was son’s first pet, Big Al, so named after a movie character he watched, a gangster movie (no, not in our house, we had rules on TV watching but he had plenty of friends he could go to watch gangster movies). Big Al was the first pet to join us two years before Bridgette. He renamed him Big Alice when she laid an egg.  

Bridgette was a bit jealous of Big Alice. One day I was reading and I saw her flash by me and through the open door to the outside. It took me a few minutes to think that furtive flash was just a bit off. I went to check and Big Alice was firmly gripped between her teeth as Bridgette was digging a hole and getting ready to drop her in. (Her past human told us "she's a little bit of a digger."). Our sweet tortoise was none the worse but had a small dent evermore in her shell from Bridgette's incisors. We kept an eye on both of them for a long time afterwards. We always made a huge fuss of Bridgette whenever we could, and all seemed well. She and I had chats about her not doing that ever again.

I forgot to add the pet white rat I was given by a little boy I knew. That only lasted for a day when I came back home from school to be told that rat missed its mummy too much and asked to be taken back. Apparently mother could speak ‘rat’.  Who knew? 

The goose and sandwich in my hand came from a memory as a child. For all that I was running scared from what I thought was a crazy, hungry goose, husband said he was surprised I wasn't afraid of them to this day. I am not, still love them. You can read that story here if you missed it. 

The rabbits were also from my childhood. We had lots of them as pets. My dad built fancy rabbit condominiums on one side of our garden. At least they seemed like that to me and I didn't even know what a condominium was, but these were double decker rabbit hutches. Dad was a great hobbyist carpenter. We used to make little trails with homemade fences on each side from all dad's bits and bods and old cardboard boxes cut up. They got their daily exercise that way without getting lost. We also let them into the house occasionally.

He also had a great voice and played the piano, sang for anyone who asked. At special times of the year we all joined in many a sing-song, with our immediate family and visiting grandparents, aunties and uncles, and many friends. We had no television growing up. That was our entertainment. 

Dad built things in his spare time. He worked long hours, but he always found the time for a bit of woodworking. It was his way of relaxing. Later he put together bird houses and gave them away to anyone who asked for one, always having spare bits of wood around from his many projects.

 Dad was an animal lover, and he wanted those pets as much as we did. He always had dogs as a boy and his mother fed many stray animals in their neighborhood. Mum didn't grow up with animals. When I think of her now,  I admire her for being such a good sport about it all, though I heard, "Oh Stanley....." quite a few times.

Dad tested her patience once when he took us to a swampy pond area nearby. He brought a bucket of tadpoles home and put them in a large steel tank that he stored in the shed. He wanted us to watch as they slowly turned into frogs. It was a very rudimentary rustic pond he put together, but he filled it with mud and plants and logs from the pond. No, it wasn't pretty, but it had its own charm. Mum wasn't too thrilled when what seemed like a thousand of the little hoppers were jumping all over the place when she stepped out the back door one morning. Our garden was a perfect sanctuary for frogs, but I daresay they made their way back to the bigger pond eventually, which wasn't too far away.

That's my family ramble over with. I have probably mentioned a few of these things before but I'm repeating it for our son's benefit. This blog started out as a record for him to read about his family. I would have loved to have known my own mum and dad's ramblings, though fortunately I do know many stories mum told me, which I have put on my private blog. We are living in a great age for keeping a record aren't we? Come to think of it, son has probably heard all these before. On that note I'll finish my ramble.

Did you have any pets as a child? I would love to hear about them in the comments if you care to share.

Bye again.