Happy Birthday, Miss Kylee!!

March 17 is Kylee's birthday and...

she loves going to Oregano's for her birthday.

So it was a family affair.

 The birthday girl - waiting for our entrees.

 From the left: Myah, Nicole, and Grandpa 'Sota

 Left to right: Hannah, Uncle Josh, and Sam 

Sorry Madison - you must have been out of the room.

 Great Grandma and Grandma Tony.

 Grandma 'Sota

 Sam always makes amazing birthday cakes for the girls.

This year she made a cheese cake.

I am not sure what was in it, but I heard someone say Baileys.

Yummmmm!

Even though Kylee likes cheese cake, she ordered a Pazooki.

It's tradition!

Thank you, Kylee, for sharing your special day with me!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Zoe's Kitchen

After a mid-afternoon movie, Maryanna and I went to Zoe's Kitchen in Chandler for an early dinner.  I had never been there before, but I had heard of it.

 Maryanna selected a chicken salad sandwich with a side of pasta salad.

She thought it was good, but would have liked a little more chicken salad.

 I ordered what they called a "Gruben" which was a turkey reuben sandwich.

I have to say I enjoyed it.  

It was turkey, some sort of slaw with a white cheese (feta maybe?).

I didn't want to know what kind of cheese, because I am not fond of feta or goat cheese.

And... like a reuben, it was grilled on rye bread.

For my side I selected "braised beans."  They were seasoned

differently - with sage - I believe - and they were also good.

I would give Zoe's a thumbs up.

Garden and Landscape Show

Last weekend's jaunt was to the Garden and Landscape Show in Phoenix.  I want to re-do my yard, so I thought maybe I could get some ideas.  I went with Maryanna and Kristene and we did have a good time.

 We stopped at this one booth where they were selling some sort of back relief.

You lay on these special pads for 20 minutes a day.

It is supposed to help your back.

So Kristine and Maryanna tried - short 9 minute sessions.

Kristene liked it.

 Maryanna was not sold on it.

 They had one of those tiny homes on display - this is the bathroom

which is actually pretty good size.

 In this picture I am standing in the bathroom looking at the entire home.

Bedroom up.  

 I honestly can't remember what this booth was promoting,

but I loved the flowers.  They were beautiful.

Maryanna wanted to try the equipment where you stand on the base

and it vibrates and moves.

Supposedly to help you lose weight.

It was a nice day - not unbearingly crowded.

And a lot of fun things to look at.  

This is my little secret... my sloppy joe recipe!

Are you as picky about your sloppy joes as I am?  To me, it's kind of like meatloaf.  You generally like your own, but others?  Maybe not so much.  Years ago, a co-worker gave me her recipe - told me it was great - and I tried it.  I have used nothing else since then.  So here's my secret...

 First you brown a pound of ground meat - we are trying to switch to ground turkey,

but for years I used lean ground beef.

 The only other two ingredients are:

Manwich and Campbell's Chicken Gumbo soup.

 Once you've browned your ground turkey,

add the Manwich and soup.

 Bring to a boil, then simmer.

 Before serving, lightly butter buns and sprinkle lightly with garlic salt.

 Broil until the edges are brown.

Watch this - they go from golden to burnt in no time at all.

But I honestly believe the buns really enhance the sloppy joes!

 I sprinkled with shredded cheese...

and you're done!  

They are so good and Kim said she couldn't tell the difference

between hamburger and turkey.  

So from now on, turkey it is.  

These are great for work or family get togethers.

I just have to say that years ago, when I lived in Minnesota

and even in Arizona, my favorite sloppy joe mix was 

"Not So Sloppy Joe Sloppy Joe Sauce" by Hormel.

I looked on line and it looks like you can still find it in stores.

I may need to go to Wal-Mart to see if they carry it.

Shhhhhh!

Now you know my secret.  Enjoy!

It's been 7 weeks since my fall...

and tomorrow I go in for another surgery to remove the 5 pins in my arms.

Keep me in your thoughts. It is bittersweet.  I need the pins out so they don't interfere with my trip to China, but I also know that the hard work will start now.

Great Place for Breakfast in Pinetop

Sweethearts Cafe

 This is the back side of the restaurant, and I find it intriguing.

There is so much to look at on the inside.

Very quaint.

Good food - try it out.

Weekend Getaway

My very good friend, Diana, who sparked my interest in quilting, invited me up to Show Low / Pinetop to visit her sister, Carolyn.  Actually, the Vance sisters (Carolyn, Diana Jean Anne, and Janie) invited me to a quilt show in California and got me hooked on jelly roll quilts.

We went to Show Low to work in a quilt shop for the day - helping out a friend of Carolyn's.  It was busy and we had a good time.  After spending the day in the store, we did a little sightseeing, shopping.  One of our stops was the Burly Bear in Pinetop.  They carve the bears out of tree stumps and everything in the store is related to bears.  It was really quaint.

Bears were everywhere!

The Book of Speculation

My book club was last week and the book we read was "The Book of Speculation."  It reminded me of "The Night Circus" because it was a carnival setting.  Good book.  Kathy, who chose the book, made carnival themed cupcakes.

 Oh my gosh, they were so good!  

You can't really tell, but they had a little bit of everything on them.

 Popcorn, peanuts, confetti, and not sure what else.

Sweet and salty.

They were amazing!

When was the last time gas was $.99 a gallon?

Do you know? Well, it was actually in March of 1999 - that was the average price for gas.  BUT...
Kimberly recently got it for $.99 a gallon when she used our Fry's fuel points.

The price was actually $1.39 a gallon, but she saved $.40 a gallon!  Pretty nice, right?

Carolyn's Cards

Carolyn showed me these cards that she made at a get together with friends.

 So simple and so very cute!

Oops! I hit the wrong button and "published" this blog post before I meant to.
Keep reading this week to find out who Carolyn is.  :)
She and her husband, Bill, graciously hosted Diana and myself at their
home in Show Low for the weekend.
(Diana is her sister).
Great weekend!