Thursday, May 31, 2012

Memorial Day




Lagoon


The weather was perfect!

Later we went to the Bountiful Cemetery.

Grandma Carlson
Eva Deon Carlson



Grandma and Grandpa Child
Brandt Child
Venice Maxwell Child



My Dad
Grandpa Bruce Black Whitney



My Grandparents
Beatrix Black Whitney (Trixy)
Leon Kenneth Whitney (Eli)




We had a great day!








Saturday, May 26, 2012


School is out, need I say more.
Today I got to spend time in my flower and veggie garden.  Doing yard work on a cool spring morning is even better!  The wind started blowing really hard after two hours of pulling weeds and supporting my new fruit trees that I planted last year.  Being outside around nature is so calming and satisfying. I even like to listen to the strong winds blowing our neighbors big trees that shade our yard. Now it's sprinkling so I've come inside to blog. 
I've been thinking about joining twitter but I just can't bring myself to making up one more password.  I have so many passwords to link up. There's my library card, Blogspot.com, Facebook, Provo School District, Comcast Email,  and a few others where I've already forgotten the stupid top secret word.  It's funny, I try and memorize the passwords as all related but even then I get those mixed up.
Twitter has some highlights that I would like to follow.  There is news, theatre, and music.  You don't have to own a cell phone, which I don't.
I'll have to keep thinking about it.  Meanwhile enjoy your summer, I know I will!!

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Hawiian Haystack





It's at the end of the school year and boy am I ever so glad!  May runs second place for me as being the busiest month. Out of all the school lunches we served this year I would have to say Hawaiian Haystack was the favorite.
Pizza came in second.
You can cook Hawaiian Haystacks easily with two cans of Cream of Chicken Soup and a can of Chicken Broth.  Or, you can make it from scratch using water, chicken bouillon, and flour.  Which is the way our head cook K makes it.  Boy is it ever so yummy.  The neat thing is she doesn't follow recipes.  She's been cooking for school lunches so long she can figure the meals out in her head.  Simply amazing.


My manager printed me out the school district recipe but down sized it for a family of six with lots of leftovers.
Chicken broth or bouillon            1/3 cup + 6 1/2 tsp
Water                                         2 qts + 2 1/4 cups
Pepper                                       7/8 tsp         (remember we can't use salt so add some)
Water, cold                                1 qt + 3 1/2 Tbsp
Cornstarch  or flour                     2 3/4 cups + 1 Tbsp
Pineapple Juice                           1/3 cup + 6 12 tsp

1. Use diced USDA chicken.
2. Heat water to boiling add chicken base.
3. Add pepper (and salt)
4. Mix cold water and cornstarch.  Mixing well to get out all lumps.
5. Add to broth mixture stirring constantly.  Boil and sitr until gravy is thick.
6. Add chicken and pineapple juice.
7. Cook until internal temperature is 165 F

Then we put out peppers, green onions, tomatoes, peas, pineapple chunks, coconut, graded cheese and chow mein noodles.  All chopped up.
Enjoy!
                          

Monday, May 7, 2012

Radio Fan

I've become a radio person now that we don't have T.V. anymore.  We still have Netflex but I only watch it on the weekends.  Funniest Video's is probably our families favorite. 
Dave Ramsey is on one of the radio stations every night from Monday to Friday and he is very interesting.  I enjoy listening to the different callers yelling,"WE'RE DEBT FREEEEE"!! Or they ask Mr. Ramsey how to help them solve a money problem.  He seems very down to earth and really promotes buying things with cash.  I've learned a lot in the last six months.
George Noory is another favorite of mine.  He is after Dave Ramsey and if I wake up in the middle of the night his program is broadcast again in case I can't go back to sleep.  Some of his guest are very interesting and if they talk about really bizarre things I usually turn it off.  The most entertaining are the callers.  Mr. Noory get's alot of truck drivers who have to drive all night or people who just can't go to sleep.  He is a great listener and if people get to carried away he carefully cuts them off in a very friendly way.  It's hilarious.
Saturday mornings at 9:00 am is Joy in the Garden.  She is this delightful elderly grandma who takes calls if you have any garden questions.  Very informative!






Since I'm a news person I like to follow Mitt Romney. I've been thinking a lot about the most recent news story that Mr. Romney commented on concerning a Chinese Blind Activist, Chen Guangcheng.  I googled him and found out that he was blind from a severe fever when he was a baby.  He lived in a poor village in eastern China and was illiterate until his early twenties when he went to Qingdio, a school for the blind.  Afterwards he taught himself law and took auditing night classes.
I read in the NY Daily News that he eventually came to champion the rights of the poor and people with disabilities.  He organized a class action lawsuit that exposed forced abortions and sterilizations that officials in his community were performing in  order to comply with China's one-child policy.
Chen was put under house arrest with his wife and two children for nineteen months. Just two weeks ago he was able to escape by faking he was sick and couldn't move for several days.  The guards were lulled into a false sense of security, and Chen was able to slip out through the woods during the night.  He had to jump over a wall and that's when he broke three bones in his foot.  After three days and three hundred miles he made it to the US Embassy.  The Chinese Authorities are very upset and after staying at the US Embassy he was transported to a Beijing hospital to get his foot taken care of.  But he fears for his family and his life.  There are dozens of police that surround his hospital room and two of his friends have been beaten up very badly when they wanted to visit him at the hospital.
I haven't read the news or turned on my radio today but I'm going to keep informed and continue to listen to the radio about all the courageous stories like Chen Guangcheng and his family.  I hope the US Embassy can help them come to America.  We are very blessed to live in this wonderful land!

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

My Mom













Tonight I have a prayer for my mom.
First of all I really miss you.
You've been gone for almost eight years.
When you came to visit your grandchildren
there was excitement in our home.
I hope they don't forget you, I know I won't.
Thanks for all the long hours you spent in my behalf.
Long ago we never had much money, but you always sewed
me such beautiful clothes.
I didn't realize how much work that must have been.
I do now because sewing is very hard for me.
You were very supportive in my life.
I know you carried heavy burdens.
I wish I had been more grateful and helpful to you.
The neat thing is I know your still alive, I just can't
see you.
Sometimes I think I can feel you near.
I also know we will be together again.
You had strong faith.
Now I need to be strong for my family.
Thanks for everything!
I love you mom.