Lemonade Cookies

'Tis the season for these tart cookies!

Lemonade Cookies

1 C butter
1 C white sugar
2 eggs
3 C all-purpose sifted flour
1 t baking soda
6 oz can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 T white sugar

Preheat oven to 400. Lightly grease a cookie sheet.

In large bowl, cream together butter and 1 C sugar. Blend in eggs. In a medium bowl, sift together flour and baking soda; gradually beat into butter mixture, alternating with 1/2 C lemonade concentrate. Drop mixture by rounded teaspoons onto the prepared cooking sheet.

Bake 8 minutes, until lightly brown. Brush lightly with remaining lemonade, and sprinkle with remaining sugar.

Tidbits from a Monday

I don't like to complain, but I will. I just don't have much energy. I get up early, go to work, come home and I am dead to the world. Every day I say "I will not take a nap today" but the second I get home, I am hobbling up the steps to my room. I don't know why I get this tired every day. I'm not THAT old. But I guess my body feels old.

Today I got to work and found that our computer system was down. I was able to work in Word and I was able to send and receive emails. But the calls I get require me to log info into the computer system. Usually Monday is the busiest day of the week, but today was not as busy as most. I hate answering the phone and people want me to give them information and I can't. And then, on top of that, the roofers are working on the roof at work. I am on the top floor of our 3 story building, so they are right above my head. I don't know what they're doing up there, but it sounds like they are taking a 2 ton machine and crashing it on the roof and I am filled with anxiety as I wait for the roofers and the machine to come crashing through the roof on my head. I find myself yelling "Jesus" all day long. I wonder if that's a Jewish thing. AND, each time they bang on the roof, these big crumbs of dirt come flying through the ceiling and settle on my desk, my hair, you name it.

So I came home exhausted and fought myself over a nap and thought why am I fighting? I need a nap. But I kept it short, and then I went out with old Pepper the dog to work on the garden. I had my little headphones on with music blasting. Pepper used to follow me to the flower garden and lie down with me there, but she is no longer willing to walk that far. So she stays very close to the house and seems content to occasionally roll in the grass.

I love the fresh air. I love getting lost in dirt and weeds. The way I handle ALL big projects is the same - I chip away at it, bit by bit. So I just picked a small part of the garden, dug, sat on my little kid's chair and took great delight in pulling weeds. I think the older I get, the more I take great joy in mindless activities.

And while I love to cook, lately my goal is to expend the least amount of energy to get dinner on the table. Tonight it was hot dogs. With store purchased cole slaw and potato salad. I am really going downhill. I remember years ago, I went to visit one of our claims offices in another city. There were 2 ladies who worked there. One lady came in and said "I reached the lowest of lows last night." The other lady asked what happened. The first lady said " my husband is out of town, so I made mashed potatoes for dinner and just ate them out of the pan." The other lady asked "were they instant or real?" "Real," the first lady replied. "You didn't reach the lowest of lows," said the second one. And that exchange always amused me, and still keeps me amused, 10+ years later.

After dinner, it was time to just plop on the couch and watch a rerun of Two and a Half Men and then Jeopardy.

And I'm embarrassed to say I'm ready for bed.

Mother's Day 2009

Mother's Day 2009. So many who I am close to have lost their mothers and this is a sad day for them. As I was reading one of my woman's magazines the other day, I saw this Dr Seuss quote: "Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." And I think it is a fitting quote for those who are missing a mom.

I am lucky enough to have my mother still around. At almost 84, she is like the ever-ready bunny - she keeps on going and going and going. As a matter of fact, she was honored at a lunch on Friday, winning an award for all her volunteer efforts. She has recorded tapes for the blind for many, many years. She is active in a group that makes dolls for the homeless shelters. She makes shawls for women in Somalia, leads a group of women singers that performs at old age homes, works at the food shelter, etc. And she takes care of my dad, who lost his sight years ago.

I give her my food magazines when I'm done looking at them, because she likes to try new recipes - she likes to stay young and try new things. When she invites us for dinner, nothing is simple. There is always a buffet with about 20 items on it. And her garden is just beautiful.

Of her 3 kids, I am told that I look the most like her (only truthfully, if I didn't color my hair, I would have more gray than she does!). I think I inherited from her a need to keep busy. Even when I seem to be relaxing, I am always thinking I should be doing more.

When she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and went through radiation therapy, she made sure she was scheduled for first thing in the morning. She wasn't about to give up a day for radiation therapy! Let it happen and let her begin her day.

She has always been there for her kids and grandkids. She was the emergency contact when my kids were in school, because I knew she would always drop what she was doing and pick up one of my kids if they got sick.

She has held the family reunion at her home for many years. I think no one else wants to be bothered with the responsibility of having those people over. She enjoys doing it.

I am proud of her, for all she has accomplished and for who she is. We are blessed that she is still with us. Happy Mother's Day, mom.

World's Oldest Dog Turns 21

Taken from the N Y Post - the world's oldest dog. I LOVE dachshunds, so I had to put this on here.

Chanel -- named the oldest dog by Guinness World Records last year -- is taking a rare trip from her Port Jefferson Station home to mingle with canine buddies invited to her Manhattan birthday party.

The old girl's red hair faded to white a long time ago. Her cataracts force her to wear special doggie glasses and her bones feel the cold.

Her home is kept at a constant 72 degrees. She eats boiled chicken with whole-wheat pasta, and a specially selected soft treat designed for her ancient teeth.

And she spends her days relaxing at home, only taking walks in the summer.

"She used to run three miles with me every day," said Shaughnessy, a high-school principal's secretary who adopted Chanel from a Virginia shelter as a 6-week-old pup.

"She still enjoys a walk, but now she's carried for a lot of it."

Chanel took the title as the oldest dog last spring when a 28-year-old beagle from Virginia died.

A Brief Glimpse of a Magnolia Tree

Well I've been a bit out of commission lately - mostly because my son Joe, who up until this week, has never studied in his life, has decided to study. Which means he is hogging the computer ALL THE TIME.

But Cousin Deet just sent me this picture that she took when she was in town to see Fiddler, so I had to publish it. If I were halfway competent on this thing, I'd put her blog in as a link, but I'm not, so it's http://themarmeladegypsy.blogspot.com/
Anyway, as anyone who knows magnolias, they are beautiful for just a few days, so we were very lucky to have a magnolia in bloom at the same time our talented photographer was in town.