Santa Claus Parade In Norwood

I took my little earth angel to the Santa Claus Parade here in Norwood Ontario.
The temperatures were not bad, a breezy -1 Celsius and a great time was had by all.

              Tired after the parade she had her bath and jumped into bed

Cat Sitting

I just returned home after spending the last 8 days minding my son and his wife's fur babies.
I had a nice time away baking and cooking my little heart out and playing with the little sweeties.
I ensured the fridge and freezer were full of good things so that when Blair and Cheryl got back from Jamaica noone would need to worry about cooking for a while.
I enjoyed my time away and would have loved to stay to visit for a while but Blair had to get back to work and Cheryl had a couple of days before having to get back to the grind but had many things she wanted to do before then.
I will get to see them around Christmas I hope, they are waiting for schedules so they can plan on coming home for Christmas with us here.
My youngest son Ryan and his significant other Kate are in  the entertainment industry so we do hope they will be able to make Christmas as well.
I atleast hope that my Granddaughter will be making it for our Christmas.
We try to wait to see what everyone's schedule for work is and at times our Christmas is a few days to a week early but it is shared together which is the main thing.
What do you do to accommodate your loved one's work schedule at this time of year so that you can celebrate Christmas together?

Christmas Cheer!

Since it is the start of the Christmas season I figured I would post a first of many recipes to follow for this year.

On while browsing Pinterest this yummy recipe jumped out at me and I can safely say there will be many of these mixed in my kitchen this season. To be honest if you follow this link you and tried all the drinks that appeal to you, you would miss the Christmas season!

http://www.pinterest.com/dadscookbook/happy-drinks/

Candy Cane Shots - what a easy and cute idea!!

Godiva White Chocolate Liqueur
Peppermint Schnapps
Crushed Candy Canes

Wet the rim of a shot glass and dip into the crushed candy canes.

Mix equal parts Godiva white chocolate liqueur and Peppermint schnapps together, Shake, pour into the rimmed glass, fancy napkin
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Great News!

This is me and my beautiful niece Britini.
I got some fantastic news today that she will be becoming a mother in May!
I am so excited for her and her hubby Dan I know they will make wonderful parents.

Remembrance Day 2013

Remembrance Day 2013 has to be the most gloomy and wet day I have seen for the Remembrance Day ceremonies here in Norwood.
Still the veterans and their families and members of the community marched up to the cenotaph to pay their respects.
I am so thankful to have made the acquaintance of many of our senior veterans and their families when I worked in the community nursing home to home, and others in the nursing home and retirement home in town.
The veterans deserve respect for all they have done for our country and I am truly thankful to them for all they give to keep us safe and free.

Shameful Disrespect to Our Veterans This Remembrance Day

http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/sunnews/canada/archives/2013/11/20131107-092513.html

If it wasn't bad enough that they want to disrespect the veterans with white poppys, they are now having issues with the ceremonies held for Remembrance  Day. Another thing I find very disrespectful is that  4 days before Rembrance Day  the release of the new five and ten dollar bills  they  removed the veterans  from the ten dollar bill.
Reading the news lately makes me just shake my head in disbelief and wonder...has this whole world lost it's mind?
Weigh in, what do you think?

My poppy will ALWAYS be red

http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/sunnews/canada/archives/2013/11/20131104-142226.html

I really can;t believe that they would disrespect the veterans this way.
What do you think about the white poppy?
Do you think that it is disrespectful to our veterans?

Gretchen And Grandma's Baking Adventure

I enjoy spending time with my granddaughter more than anything else.

This past weekend we did some baking and this was the very first time Gretchen baked something by herself.

I supervised her baking cupcakes, really the only thing I did was slice and help her scrape out the vanilla beans and to ensure her measurements were correct before she added them, other than taking them out of the oven that was all I contributed.

The cupcakes were fantastic! I know she was as proud of herself as I was of her.

I am so happy that she has inherited my love for baking, now I have someone to leave all my special recipes to.

The recipe for these amazing cupcakes are from a blog I love to read it is Sally's baking addiction and the recipe is as follows.

VANILLA CUPCAKES

• 1 and 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 egg whites
• 1/4 cup vanilla greek yogurt (or plain; or regular yogurt; or even sour cream) we used sour cream
• 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk (or cow's milk; or soy milk; or plain almond milk)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• seeds scraped from 1/2 split vanilla bean

VANILLA BEAN FROSTING

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 4-5 cups powdered (confectioners') sugar
• 1/4 cup heavy cream*
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• seeds scraped from 1/2 split vanilla bean
• salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line muffin tin with 12 cupcake liners. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter in the microwave. Stir in sugar - mixture will be gritty. Stir in egg whites, sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract until combined. Split 1 vanilla bean down the middle lengthwise. Scrape seeds from half of the vanilla bean into batter. Reserve other half.
3. Slowly mix dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until no lumps remain. Batter will be thick.
4. Divide batter among 12 cupcake liners (or 24 mini) and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Bake for 8-9 minutes if making mini cupcakes. Allow to cool.
5. To make the frosting, beat softened butter on medium speed with an electric or stand mixer. Beat for about 3 minutes until smooth and creamy. Add powdered sugar, cream, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean seeds with the mixer running. Increase to high speed and beat for 3 minutes. Add more powdered sugar if frosting is too thin or more cream if mixture is too thick. Add salt if frosting is too sweet (1/4 teaspoon). Frost cooled cupcakes .
6. Store cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days and in the refrigerator up to 7.

*Strongly urged to use heavy cream.  You may use milk or half-and-half, but heavy cream (we used sour cream and whipping cream)  will give the frosting a thicker texture.  I recommend it.

Halloween Sweetie

I had my little earth angel here with me for the last couple of days and we had a blast together.
Since she has started going to school our time together is not as often as it had been before but we have learned to ensure the time we do have together is quality time.
Gretchen came to visit right after she finished trick or treating on Thursday evening.
She looked so sweet in her little mouse princess costume.