Collecting Recipes Over Coffee...I hope!

I saw this on Kerri's blog and thought I'd give it a whirl. I love soup! (Okay, I love FOOD, but soup is a handy one-pot meal.) If the link from Kim's http://kimandhercoffee.blogspot.com/blog doesn't work, at least my friends will have a new recipe.

Taco Soup

1/2 c chopped onion

1/2 c chopped celery

Saute together with a little butter.

1 1/2 c ground beef

Add to onions and celery, and cook until brown. Drain fat.

Add:

4 cups canned diced tomatos

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1/2 cup salsa

1 pkg taco seasoning

2 cans undrained kidney beans

1 can undrained whole kernel corn

1-2 cups water

Simmer 1-2 hours, adding water as needed.

Ladle into bowls and top with tortilla chips and grated cheddar cheese.

One is the loneliest number!

(With apologies to Shel Silverstein...)

Traci, our "C" had a kid with the flu,
Anne, our "U" had pig stuff to do,
Beth, our "P" didn't want to play,
So I'm all of CUPS that made it today...

We were going to make teacup and high heel shoe sugar cookies and everything, today! And by the time I got done running Maggie to town, running back, picking up Angus, unloading groceries, checking email, loading Angus, running back to town to pick up Maggie, running home to make lunch...I'd burned 2 hours in the car and 45 minutes at home. Mercy!

Next week will be an official meeting, with photos and everything.

Questions Parents Ask

These are deep, philosophical questions that beg to be answered.

1. Why is it that you can buy identical toys at the same exact time, with no apparent distinguishing marks, and the siblings will both want the "desirable one" and cannot be cajoled or bribed into taking the less desirable toy. And I'm talking Happy Meal toys, here. Do they emanate some sort of vibes that only kids can detect?

2. Why is it that my children will poke suspiciously at perfectly good, fresh, appetizing food on the plate in front of them, but pick up, without hesitation mind you, the fruit snack the dog spit out under the table from that morning? Why IS that? I'm thinking of serving their meals on the floor, under the table, on a napkin. Perhaps they'd be better received...

3. Where do children's socks go? I tell you, we've probably purchased 100 socks, in perfect pairs, for these children and we can only find about 15 random socks. Do you think the dog eats them? Do they end up in Abu Dhabi? I think if someone else is using them somewhere, fine; but I have nightmares about someday finding 85 socks in the heat vent, after the kids go to college.

4. Why do kids break everything they set their hands to? Everything!! And don't give me that old Dr. Dobson adage that they just want to see how things work! Couch cushions are no big mechanical mystery. Neither are magazines. Or Tupperware bowls, for pete's sake. I called my mother a couple of weeks ago, in dead seriousness, and apologized for breaking all her stuff. She couldn't figure out what I was talking about, at first, but when she DID figure it out, she couldn't stop laughing...I was totally serious, now.

I think that's about all for tonight. If you have any insight, whatsoever, about any of these questions, PLEASE, for the love of all mothers, comment and share. There are mothers reading this right now that are nodding their heads and saying, "Amen, sister! Preach on!" I've searched all the Dobson and Bombeck tomes and found nothing.

I've changed my mind...

Perhaps I'd rather have the wardrobe from the movie How to Marry A Millionaire...

Maggie and I watched it together, tonight, and we agreed that the dresses are just the most beautiful we've seen so far. She liked Marilyn's red gown (well who doesn't, really) and I thought the white gown was my favorite. You can't see much of it, on Marilyn, but I love the glasses, too!

So many gowns, so few balls, these days....

Mrs. McSweeney

I don't remember where I found this image. In my pictures it's titled "Mrs. McSweeney". Don't you love that name?!!

Anyway, I'm going to have a Mrs. McSweeney kind of day. I have laundry as tall as the four-year old, in each room, and an impressive organism growing, once again, in my refrigerator. I'm one of those people who gets all distracted by making Valentines and reading books my son has pulled off the shelf.

I'm going to close up the computer, after finishing this blog, and not revisit the Cohagen Chronicles for at least 12 hours. It's probably going to kill me. I love reading other people's lives! They are so interesting, compared to my dreary existance!

Just call me Mrs. McSweeney....

Doesn't she sound like the type who would lean over the fence, while hanging up laundry, and get the latest chit-chat from her neighbor, Mrs. O'Malley? And probably a good potroast tip, too.

Class C

Very, very quickly...a public service announcement, sponsored by The Farmer's Wife!

I wanted to get the word out about this documentary about 5 Class C Montana girl's basketball teams. It talks about the total absorption of the community into high school sports in small Montana towns and explores the pressures and responsibilities of the kids who play on those teams. You can get more information about when it airs on www.montanapbs.org/classc/ and I think it's showing March 9th, at 7pm MST. I'm going to try to catch it, but if I can't, I may order the documentary on DVD.

And some of my friends are just now picking themselves up off the floor, from the shock of seeing me promote some sort of sport besides football or Iron Chef. (I think cooking can be a sport, don't you?)

If you've seen it already, what did you think?

Doris Day

Here are the images I found for Doris Day in Pillow Talk. They are not very good, and the only way to truly appreciate the wardrobe is to watch the movie! (I have two copies, if you need one.) So without further ado, pictures for Anne.

Right where we want 'em....

Well, this isn't exactly what we set out to do, having children. But it seems to be working pretty well.

If Poppop Vern doesn't get to see the kids about every 48 hours, he starts missing them. If we get really busy and he doesn't see them for 4 or 5 days, he'll call and ask if he can come get them for a few hours. (I'm not entirely sure he runs this plan through Grandma first....I guess that's none of my business!)

Yesterday afternoon, we got the call! And when that call comes in, there are a lot of happy Pluhars...again, can't speak for Grandma. The kids are happy because they get to go play with Poppop and eat all the pancakes, bacon and candy they want. Mommy and Daddy are happy because we get to stay home and eat all the chips, chocolate and pizza we want, in PERFECT silence! Poppop is happy because he gets to play tractors and tickle the grandkids for a couple of hours with no parents setting unreasonable boundaries.

It's wonderful! We watched a grownup movie from the U.K. called "The Riddle" and ate chips. When Poppop finally returned the ruffians, they were thanking him for the cookies and the pancakes, and laughing instead of fighting. For about 3 minutes. We'll take it! Vern and Naomi are going to Yuma AZ for a week, pretty quick here, so I would imagine there will be a pancake night after that, too.

Farmer's Wife Trivia

This is part of the Random 25 Things I challenged Traci to. I asked my husband if he could do it, and he said sure, but after some conversation, I realized he was sort of missing the point. So THEN, I asked him if he could come up with 25 random little-known things about me. There was a sort of snort, then he pointed out that when I have a revelation about myself, I usually tell everyone. He suggested looking through my blog from the past year and I would probably find the 25! "Surely NOT!", protests the Farmer's Wife. So I looked. And dadgummit if he isn't right! I'm hoping this list doesn't have repeats of those, but I'm not promising anything.

25 MORE Things About the Farmer's Wife:

1. I can't STAND puzzles...not crossword, not jigsaw, not Sudoku...nothing.

2. I love algebra.

3. Blue was my favorite color until I was 12 years old. Now, you'd be hardpressed to find that color in my house.

4. Someday, I'd like to own a forest green restored 1947 Chevy pickup. It's the ride of my dreams!

5. My favorite duck is a cinnamon teal. Do you have a favorite?

6. Anise or licorice scents make me feel sick.

7. Speaking of sick, cauliflower makes me throw up...and YES, I've tried it with cheese!

8. I think I'm a Southern belle, born too far North.

9. I really, really, really love pretty high heel shoes!

10. Three smells I absolutely swoon for: rain in the summer, horses, the back of a baby's neck.

11. I really only like yellow roses.

12. Tim Conway is my favorite actor.

13. I like weird salads...my friends check them out pretty closely when they come to my house for supper.

14. I've become a book snob, SOB! I nearly can't read contemporary fiction! Narrows my choices, at Walmart.

15. My favorite book in the Bible is Isaiah.

16. Cows smell good to me.

17. I like ruffles on my clothes...not everywhere, but a touch never hurts.

18. I once had a mouse in my kayak (true story). Everyone made it out alive, but neither the mouse or I will ever be the same.

19. (If you are opposed to hunting, go to #20) Shooting or hooking my meat is the greatest rush; cleaning it out is the biggest pain.

20. I can become totally, completely, insanely absorbed in gardening...doing it, reading about it, discussing it.

21. One of my biggest fears in life is growing stagnant; spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically.

22. I have an astounding memory for lines from movies and songs, but not for what's in my refrigerator...

23. I LOVE picnics! Even in the living room.

24. If I could wear clothes like Doris Day wears in Pillow Talk, I'd be a happy woman.

25. My favorite sound in all the world is laughter...particularly from my family.

26. Swimming suits are from Satan.

27. I like pie for breakfast.

28. I like waffles for supper.

29. Carol Burnett....comic genius and can bring me to tears, no matter what.

30. I'm not good with boundaries....such as having 30 things instead of 25.

Happy Valentine's Day!

This is my FAVORITE of all holidays! And it has been since I was just little. There are pictures of me holding a Valentine from my Dad that is nearly bigger than me, when I was not yet 1, and he's faithfully given me a box of candy every year of my life. Yesterday, I went to the mailbox and there it was! He was my first Valentine, and probably will always be my favorite. And Dad always signed his cards to me with x's and o's....I look for them!

When I was in the one-room country school, it was a big deal to make Valentine boxes! I remember working so hard on those, and it was so fun to see what everyone came up with. There was great worry over what Valentines to give whom, because I wanted the boys to know I liked them, but in a general "you're pretty cool, for a boy" sort of way. It was very complicated.

I love the paper heart-shaped doilies, the construction paper hearts, the chocolate, the girly aspect of it...everything! Last year I tried to make red pancakes for my family. They were met with great suspicion and I probably won't do that again this year. I think we'll do something with the strawberries.

Oh! And I gave the bookclub girls a little package, on Thursday, sort of as a joke....inside there was a pendant I made, a bodice-buster swoony romance novel, heart shaped glitter and a homemade card. Happenstance would have it that I was able to tailor each book for each person; Scottish lords for my Caledonian friends, artist stuff for my artist friend, Southern Scarlett-type for the Gone-With-The -Wind buff. I'd grabbed a handful of them at the secondhand store without looking, and it was a funny coincidence! Anyway, no one was that impressed with the handmade card or pendants I'd labored over, but they LOVED the books! How funny! We were reading parts out loud and laughing when the hostess's Dad called. She was trying to shush us, but we were having too much fun. Dear me. I wonder what he thought of her bookclub!

Hope you have a wonderful Valentine's day, full of xoxxoxoxoxoxox's!

Maggie moves out...

Well, she didn't run away again, but she DID move out last night! The good thing about my girl is that she's able to learn and adapt. She decided not to run away, because it was getting dark, but the loft in the playground looked like a great place to live where no one would be on her case all the time. So she packed her backpack up, AGAIN, and her new horse sleeping bag, announced her impending departure and strolled out of the house.

It didn't get quite the response she was looking for. Keep in mind that it was about 15 degrees out, and I was already pretty peeved with the child. I told her to watch out for wild animals and wished her well.

Here are the pictures of her hideout. She's TOTALLY mad that I was amused! And get this: she managed to tough it out for about 20 minutes. She's TOUGHER than her mama, I can tell you that. After a decent time for us to miss her, she came and requested help packing up, and apologized for her snottiness. And saw the chips and sandwiches on the table, and suddenly remembered that even though she'd seceded from the union, she'd not packed hardtack.

All is well, now, but I had to tell on her. And for heaven's sake don't give her a lantern for her birthday, or she'll be gone....

Travel MUGS

It just occured to me that all the official members of CUPS had a week off! The Perpetual Hostess, Anne, stayed home and slept in. (RIGHT! She has a 10 month old baby...do YOU think she slept in?) Refreshment Provider, Traci, came to the meeting, but because the GrandCup wanted to make a special dessert, she was off the hook, so to speak. And the Activity Director/Secretary is submitting her report, but we didn't have any activities!

It had been a sick week for the members of CUPS, so it was a real treat to just show up and have a GrandCup fuss over us! And fuss she did. You see the picture of the chocolate cheesecake? (That would be the cheesecake BEFORE we tore into it...) We had REAL whipped cream, for the cheesecake and the coffee. GrandCup is trying to reach goal in WW, so she didn't partake, but we ate her portions, too.

We sat and visited and looked at all the quilt-y projects she has going. The time went really fast, and we had to pack up early to make it to the preschool Valentine party in town. We were there long enough to exchange germs from each sick household and get our chocolate and cream fix. Oh, and the missing CUP called and expressed regret at not being there, but we didn't take her any cheesecake. This is a tough club. Be there or be square.

Next week, we will be meeting at the regular place, regular time....and I'm going to work on a doozy of an activity!

In explanation...

As some of you have already noticed, I am a Facebook drop-out. That's right. It doesn't mean I don't want to be "friends" with you, really, it doesn't! But here's the reason I got out:

I couldn't take the stress. I couldn't decide who should be my friend and who shouldn't, first of all. Just because we graduated from the same high school or live in the same state or met once at Miles City Bucking Horse Sale in the 90's seemed really great reasons to share details of our everyday lives.

And that stressed me out, too. I get kind of attached to friends. I care what happens to them and pray for them and worry about their dogs....I can't seem to have casual friends; they are all terribly significant to me! Well, I discovered on Facebook, people post little things that caused me to worry all day and check back 6 or 7 times. Would Kristi get Reece to take a nap, thus avoiding the 7 p.m. meltdown? Would Vic release a black-footed ferret in Jane's wheat field? (I still don't get that particular function of Facebook.) Would Andrea go get groceries or just stay home? The suspense sucked me in. And yes, I realize that may mean my life is a bit...slow paced, shall we say.

My best friend from high school totally scared me when I was looking at her recent pictures and a little window popped up AND SHE TALKED TO ME! I had no idea what to do or how to answer her. I was also feeling a little guilty looking at her pictures, even though they are public. I finally found the chat button, after nearly locking up my computer, and told her what a lovely family she had. But the whole experience took 3 years off me, and besides that, she shared that she was able to pull the 4 gray hairs in her head that she found that week. Now I'm stressed because (and this is probably too much information) I have that many gray hairs, weekly, mind you, on my chin. This I was not going to share with her, and I probably shouldn't share with you. But I'm on a roll. If I catch you looking at my chin, in certain light, I will start crying, right there in Walmart, in the hair care products and lipstick aisle.

Have you ever put on a dress and felt sort of funny, sort of not-quite-yourself, but you talked yourself into wearing it because it was pretty and everyone you asked said you looked great? At the end of the evening, you were exhausted from trying to adapt yourself to the dress, even though there was nothing inherently wrong with it. Facebook was a gown that fit all wrong, for me. So here I am, back at Cohagen Chronicles, in my gypsy skirt, relieved that the blue satin is off, and hoping everyone else at the ball is having a good time.

Now, if you want to tell me details of your life, please leave a comment. I dearly love to hear from you! And I will be keeping track of you and praying for you and laughing with you, but PLEASE don't ask me to put that dress on again. It clashes with the gray.

Projects with Pluhars

It seems like we've had some big projects in our household in the last couple of days. First,and most impressively, I got our deepfreeze defrosted and cleaned! In some people's houses, this would not be such a huge deal; my mother-in-law's, for example. Frost doesn't dare accumulate in her freezer...it's not allowed. So I'm including the before and after of our deepfreeze so you can appreciate what I'm talking about.

Maggie has been doing dishes everyday to earn her china tea set back. She had a wad of toys on the floor in her room and despite constant scolding, declined to pick them up. The final straw was when she told her mother, "It's okay, I'll get more." So my darling daughter is earning some of her favorite toys back with slave labor. She's on day four and I believe she has the idea. She feels like Cinderella

Today we worked on Valentines. I tried something new, with vintage images in frames, and it was fun! They are by no means professional, but I don't think my sweet friends and family will mind. Maggie came out while I was working on them and wanted to do valentines of her own, so we got her stuff out, too. By the time Angus joined us, we were elbow deep in hearts. He did some train valentines and growled off to the living room to break a gingerbread muffin in little teeny crumbs. So here are the fruits of our labor! PopPop wants to know when Valentine cookies are forthcoming. Maybe we will have to make a "trial" batch, to see if they will turn out.

Comment on my silliness

I think I may have fixed the comment form.

I'm going to go back to pen, paper and envelopes. Or send my articles to the Jordan Tribune. Don't you think EVERYONE in Garfield County wants to know about me cleaning my freezer and the angst over the purse?

I'm guessing everyone in Garfield County already does know....

I'b geddig a code..

So not only did I blow my blog to bits, I came down with the cold that Traci has been fighting for about 5 days. Talk about crummy luck! I'm sitting here, sipping on a vat of Market Spice Tea, trying to breathe, and hoping I finally repaired this silly page. That'll teach me to get all confident and artsy! I'm almost to the point of having someone create a template for me that would incorporate books, coffee, old maps, retro pictures, garden-y things, French stuff....maybe an antique-retro Parisian cafe' theme. With cows. I'm guessing that's why I haven't found anything that really suits my style! How does one incorporate ranch-y things with French things?

Moving on...I'm going to lay my soul bare...do you think you can take it? I've found myself, during the winter, becoming increasingly dissatisfied with my abode and the size of it. I feel like the kids and I are constantly all over each other and that it causes us to start chewing on one another, like too many lab rats in too small a cage! So each time I go to town, I get a "Dream Kitchens and Baths" magazine or "Floorplans for Fabulous Homes" and drooling my way through them. And instead of helping, it's making me more covetous of big houses! One recent day, after thumbing once again through the kitchens of my dreams and imagining what grand food I could prepare with 6 burners and a double oven, AND the manditory prep sink, I picked up an old Reader's Digest to throw away.

Now, I don't know about you, but if it's print, I read it. Even old stuff. Even shampoo, syrup and ammonia bottles. Where two or three letters are gathered, it's an opportunity to read. So instead of throwing the dang magazine away, like I had intended, I thumbed through it and accidentally(by God's hand) read an article about some women in an African village that had to gather fuel for their cooking fires everyday, and in doing so, were raped and beaten and their children harmed. A woman in the U.S. found out about them, somehow, and developed a simple solar powered cookstove for them to use. She found a company to design and manufacture them, and sponsors to pay for the stoves to get to the villages that needed them. The village women's lives were transformed, because they only went to get firewood about once a week, and had been able to cooperate with each other to protect one another. So much good!

I guess you know that I had a change of heart about my warm, safe little kitchen on the prairie, and a huge kick in the butt to start thinking of AND doing for others. I'm not sure what I can do; I'm still praying about that. I can tell you this: those magazines were donated to the library, and I'm treating my four burner propane stove a little more tenderly.

All the lessons I've learned this week include:

1. Don't fix a blog that isn't broke.

2. Faux giraffe purses really are worth $49.95, and oddly, go with everything.

3. Defrosting a deepfreeze will take all the backbone you have.

4. Good friends share everything; germs, danish, laughter, tears, and seeds.

5. If you ask a two year old what he's doing, and he responds with "Nofing, mama...", it's going to be somefing and you will need some of that deepfreeze backbone.

6. Little houses just mean you get to see more of the people you love. A LOT more.

7. There IS a world beyond the porch, and I need to invest more in it.

That's about all the philosophy I have for today. The tea is gone, and I hear somefing going on in the boy's bedroom.

I may have broken it beyond my abilities...

I really should call someone, right before I do something really stupid, and have them talk me down. Really.

I was all inspired by the new purse and decided my blog needed a facelift. Well, here's the thing: those with no surgical training, shouldn't go near a face, if you know what I mean. You'll notice my blog has a decidedly different look....but I broke it! I don't know how to get my list of friends to show up on the side, again. (I can see HALF of the title, hanging there, taunting me.) I don't know if I can add widgets....maybe part of this template is protecting morons like me from adding widgets, gadgets and midgets. At least something is protected from me!

Does anyone know how to edit HTML? Would you coach me? Can this blog be saved? Are there 12 Step programs for people who blog too much? "Hello, I'm Mary, and I'm a blogaholic. I just deleted crucial html and wacked the widgets...I'm having withdrawels. Somebody intervene, please!"

CUPS of sanity

Look what came in the mail from the Grand-cup in Idaho! (I think she loves us. I know she loves us, because there was chocolate in the package.)

The two youngest attendees, Cupcakes, in their weekly snuggle.

Just so you get the idea of how completely huge Madame Serengeti is, and what different personalities Traci and Mary are....this is a major photo, since Traci had sincere reservations about coming that close to a handbag this wild.

This week, CUPS nearly didn't get thrown together. Traci had been in Billings the day before, Anne had been buried in pork paperwork and potential problems, and Mary had worn herself to a frizzle worrying about whether her bag would make it to the house. (You see what drama we have, what issues we face every week. Don't whine to us about your stacks of bills, health problems or bad manicure; we have REAL concerns. Will Traci make it to Costco? Will Anne know what form the producer needs for slaughter? Will the faux giraffe be a gaffe? Nailbiters, I tell you.)

And when we did finally meet, it was more like a meeting of MUGS (Mothers Under General Stress). We intended to make more valentines with the fun supplies, and not eat so much. We actually ate most of the danish Traci brought from Costco (she DID make it) and talked and drank coffee with whipping cream that we didn't actually take the time to whip. But it was good and relaxing, and so sweet to be with loving friends that accept each other and laugh at foibles in each other's lives.

Next week CUPS goes on the road, for a visit to a Grand-cup who promises to make us a scrumptious dessert and show us a good time. (This dessert had better not be made with Splenda or skim milk, I tell you. Wednesdays are for the good stuff!)

So, would that make us travel MUGS?

The moment you've all been waiting for!

It's HERE!!!

I'm pleased to announce the arrival of Madame Serengeti, the wildly (roll your eyes) controversial purse! Okay, the word "purse" doesn't begin to describe this bag. When I told you it was a BIG HONKING PURSE, that was an accurate accounting. If I decide to suddenly hop a plane to Paris, this is the only luggage I'll need. I can carry a romantic dinner for 4, with dessert and beverages. If we want to get into a theme park without counting my two year old son, we'll sock him in Madame Serengeti and no one will be the wiser. I've been afforded tremendous opportunity with this valise!

I'll take a picture tomorrow, at CUPS, so you get the full effect; although I'm not sure any camera can truly capture the spirit of Madame Serengeti.....

(My wardrobe is looking a bit drab, now. Do you suppose they make Nutra-Lix sweatshirts that go with faux giraffe?)

Bobby Burns Night 2009

Bagpipes thrill me. They are wild instruments that defy description, and inspire strong memories and feelings in those who have the privilege of hearing them. It is my personal opinion that in order to truly appreciate them, you should hear them outside with hills all around to echo back the song and the wind to carry it for miles. When I hear them inside, they seem trapped....still beautiful, but constrained.

Once a year, we have the privilege of hearing the best bagpipes and drums in the country play in celebration of Robert Burn's birthday. For three hours, the gym of the community college in Miles City, filled with around 800 people, rocks with traditional Scottish music and dance. This is a 101 year old celebration and if you ever get the chance to attend, don't miss it!

This is a picture of our friend Scott Glasscock, playing for some of the dancers. He's the head piper and deservedly so. We didn't know for the longest time that in the Caledonian world, he has acheived sort of rock star status and is asked to sign autographs and have photos taken with starry eyed fans! And this year, I noticed a difference in the stockings that the pipers wear. I asked Traci, his wife, about this and she said puffy socks are all in fashion right now. Who knew?!! So if you encounter a bagpiper, wandering around with flat socks, you might want to let him know that all the cool Caledonians are wearing puffy socks. It's all the rage.

My husband is Czech/Bohemian and can't keep a beat to save his life, and I'm Irish Norwegian, so we are sort of Scot wannabes, I guess. Scott and Traci graciously allow us to sit at their table anyway and never say a word about our lack of clan tartans. This year I tried to take pictures but was completely stymied by the poor light and constant motion! The result was that all the pictures have complete movement and soft edges, and oddly captures the feel of the evening. I was hoping for crisp, professional images and instead got really dreamy, active ones that make you feel like you forgot your glasses!

There's really no way of blogging this to do it justice, so I'm going to add a couple more pictures and call it good. Hope you enjoy them, and if you're ever in the Miles City area the end of January next year, hunt us up and we'll try to get you in to Burns. And if you buy Scott a Guinness, maybe he'll sign your puffy socks.