I am not 25 anymore--or why Grandma's are not new mothers...

Ergo babycarrier--whoever invented this is a genius.

Jen went on a business trip for a few days so Bob and I were thrilled to be asked to keep Elinor for three days while she was gone. It wasn't too hard because Cris would pick her up each evening and bring her back each morning.


Jen is mostly a full time mom, but also works from home during Elinor's naps and in the evenings. But, she does have to travel once in a while. 

As you can imagine, we had a lot of fun, but I had forgotten how much energy it takes to care for a nine month old.

Bob was out in his office and both babies were crying. 

 

When he came in he whispered "Where is your camera?"

Later, after short naps.

Elinor is a baby that loves life--, is enthusiastic, inquisitive and really wants to walk [not crawl]. She will not crawl--but she thinks she can walk. But she can't. So, there is a lot of catching her when she falls, trying to get her to sit a play - then she tries to climb up on whatever she can grab and tries to walk, then she falls and the whole things starts over again..

And did I mention, that on Tuesday and Thursday afternoon 6 month Allison joined us! 

Uncle Scotty lent a hand on Thursday. Allison snuggled right down.

Jen was supposed to come home yesterday afternoon but we had a rather nasty snow storm and though her plane got to the airspace over Lexington, they could not land because of visibility. So, they took them to Knoxville and chartered a bus to bring them to Lexington that way. I think it took about 5 hours to the airport and our roads were horrible. Eventually, Cris picked Jen up at the airport and they got back safe and sound to our house and a sleeping daughter. They stayed the night and left this afternoon.

Allison in the toy basket.

We really enjoyed our time with Elinor, but I know why women don't give birth at 50--it is exhausting--but being grandparents is a joy like no other. ---Jill

 

Elinor helping me check my email.

Girls playing with Grandpa.

Elinor and Grandma--she loves her Pooh Bear.

Hot Breakfast for a Cold Day...

Well, like 70% of the US, we are covered in snow today. Frankly I love it, but it may be because I work from home and don't have to drive in it. The roads look OK though. The grandgirls will be coming for the afternoon, so I made supper already and am ready to spend some one on two time with the cutest babies ever.

But, breakfast is what I want to talk about today. I like oatmeal, kind of, but really like steel cut oats. They take a long time to cook, but you can shorten the time quite a bit if you start the night before.

Put 1/2 C steel cut oats in a pot and add 2 C water and bring to a boil, then put a lid on it, take it off the burner and let set overnight. In the morning scoop out what you want, add some milk and warm it up in the microwave. Delicious. This is two servings.

But, today I made Michigan Baked Oatmeal which is an old recipe I hadn't made for years. My sister, Gail, emailed me yesterday saying she had made it and it was great. I found this recipe in a book of breakfast recipes used at Bed and Breakfasts, so it is pretty universally liked.

So, for these cold snowy mornings, straight from the Bluegrass from a born and bred Michigan girl:

Michigan Baked Oatmeal

About 5-6 large servings

2 C old fashioned rolled oats
4 C milk
1/2 t almond flavoring
1/4 C brown sugar
1/2 C sliced almonds
1/2 C dried cherries
1 large apple, unpeeled and grated [or chopped fine]

Preheat the oven to 400°.  Coat a 3 qt casserole dish with PAM.  In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and stir well.  Put in baking dish and top with more almonds.  Bake uncovered for  45 minutes.  Serve hot. What is left over can be refrigerated and then re-heated in the microwave or pan fried in a bit of butter.  

I love this served with a cup of hot Darjeeling tea, but a cup of my Famous Hot Cocoa would go great with it too. 

Take care,

Jill

Here's the hot cocoa recipe in case you missed it:


Jill's Famous Hot Cocoa

Mix together in a 2 quart pan:
1/4 Cup dry baking cocoa
1/4 Cup white sugar [for sweeter cocoa make this a heaping 1/4 cup full or about 1/3 cup]
1/4 Cup water
1/4 tsp salt [optional]

Boil for 1 minute, then add:
1 quart milk
Heat till drinking temperature.
You can add some cream to this, or some whipped cream to the top. Kari and I usually add about 1-2 Tablespoons of real butter with the milk to give it a creamier taste. You may want to add 1 tsp of vanilla before serving.

This makes about 4 large cups of cocoa. Kari got too impatient waiting for the cocoa to heat, so she heated the milk in the microwave while she was bringing the cocoa, sugar and water to a boil on the stove. That way, when it boiled, she could put in hot milk and the cocoa was done in no time at all.

Hi Friends,

I have had a few people ask about why  I haven't posted on my blog in a while and I have to admit. I have been really busy, with grandchildren and with Kari coming home for Christmas and just with the business that comes with day to day living.

As many of you probably know, I make soap and some other products. This year I made and sold more than ever and had a great season. In addition to making soap I developed a formula for a solid cake that is sort of like chapstick for your body. I call it a Butter Cake and I thought it would be something I could sell in addition to my soap since I have all the ingredients for soapmaking already.

Well, they turned out to be very popular and I make and sold about 150 during the Christmas season. That helped to keep me busy.

Allison and Elinor are growing fast I have the privilege of caring for them from time to time. Elinor is on the verge of crawling and Allison is sitting up. They are both just so cute and adorable. I can't believe I have turned into the typical bragging grandma. Who would have thought?

At any rate, if you would like to keep up on the progress of our cottage, drop me an email. I will probably post some more cottage photos and progress reports in the future, but for now, I am forgoing posting progress here.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas holiday. All the kids were here for Christmas so it was wonderful.  We watched all three Lord of the Rings extended version movies--which we hadn't done for a few years. It was a big commitment-- but Kari, Bob and I enjoyed them immensely. We made hot cocoa every night and I thought you might like the recipe. This is an old fashioned hot cocoa, not too sweet.

Jill's Famous Hot Cocoa

Mix together in a 2 quart pan:
1/4 Cup dry baking cocoa
1/4 Cup white sugar [for sweeter cocoa make this a heaping 1/4 cup full or about 1/3 cup]
1/4 Cup water
1/4 tsp salt [optional]

Boil for 1 minute, then add:
1 quart milk
Heat till drinking temperature.
You can add some cream to this, or some whipped cream to the top. Kari and I usually add about 1-2 Tablespoons of real butter with the milk to give it a creamier taste. You may want to add 1 tsp of vanilla before serving.

This makes about 4 large cups of cocoa. Kari got too impatient waiting for the cocoa to heat, so she heated the milk in the microwave while she was bringing the cocoa, sugar and water to a boil on the stove. That way, when it boiled, she could put in hot milk and the cocoa was done in no time at all.

Take care,
Jill