Cassie-b

Happy New Year

Have a safe and happy new year!

2006 is the Chinese Year of the Dog

People born in the Year of the Dog possess the best traits of human nature. They have a deep sense of loyalty, are honest, and inspire other people's confidence because they know how to keep secrets.

But Dog People are somewhat selfish, terribly stubborn, and eccentric. They care little for wealth, yet somehow always seem to have money.

They can be cold emotionally and sometimes distant at parties. They can find fault with many things and are noted for their sharp tongues.

Dog people make good leaders. They are compatible with those born in the Years of the Horse, Tiger, and Rabbit.

I was born in the year of the snake.

People born in the Year of the Snake are deep. They say little and possess great wisdom.

They never have to worry about money; they are financially fortunate.

Snake people are often quite vain, selfish, and a bit stingy. Yet they have tremendous sympathy for others and try to help those less fortunate.

Snake people tend to overdo, since they have doubts about other people's judgment and prefer to rely on themselves. They are determined in whatever they do and hate to fail.

Although calm on the surface, they are intense and passionate.

Snake people are usually good-looking and sometimes have marital problems because they are fickle. They are most compatible with the Ox and Rooster.

I'm not sure that description fits me.

It's almost 2006

It's almost time to welcome in a new year.

If you would like to enjoy a few different holidays this January, I have included a calendar page (in the extended entry of this post) with some different and unusual celebrations for you.

Have a wonderful year!

Late afternoon sighting in Bucks County PA

Thank goodness I got the cookies and milk out early!

Any believers out there?

Merry Christmas - Happy Holidays

Have a wonderful day!

My name is Carol, but you can call me Cas

And according to these folks -

CAROL is the #18 most common female name.

0.565% of females in the US are named CAROL.

Around 720375 US females are named CAROL!

And I have always thought that Carol is a very festive name this time of year.

Wish us luck

Our Christmas tree is up and only the slightest bit crooked.

Smokey Joe loves it. He has been busy chasing all those little bits of tree that fell off as Don was bringing the tree into the house.

He thinks the water from the tree stand is far superior to the clean water in his bowl.

Today we’ll put the ornaments on the tree.
Wait till he gets a look at those.

I have a feeling that we’d better put unbreakable and unchew-able ornaments at the bottom, and hope for the best.
I just hope this doesn't happen -

Good cookies

Looking for a good cookie recipe?

I have made these several times this year,
and they are really good.

Posted by cassie-b at 12:52 PM | Comments (5)

Nostalgia

Another Childhood Memory

Don and I both have memories of these trains from Christmases past.

These folks have some nice short video clips.

There’s been a lot of changes since the trains circled our Christmas tree
when I was a child.

Blog troubles

I'm unable to comment on about a half dozen blog sites that I read regularly. The comment box won't even show up for me.

Is anyone else having that problem?

Any suggestions?

Wintry Mix Event

Yesterday was very cold here - and we were busy preparing for a "Wintry Mix Event". I'm not exactly sure what that means, but it was cold.

So I thought that maybe some good cold weather comfort food was in order.
Maybe it will warm me up. I think this is a particularly easy recipe. It only takes 10 minutes or so to get everything into the crockpot.

My recipe for CHILI IN THE CROCKPOT is in the extended entry of this post.

CHILI IN THE CROCKPOT

2 sweet onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 -2 pounds hamburger
2-4 tablespoons chili powder
2 cans (16 oz. ea.) tomatoes (I used frozen tomatoes - from my garden)
1 can tomato paste
2 or 3 cans beans your choice (I like to use black beans and garbanzo beans)
1 chopped red or green bell pepper
salt and pepper

optional: shredded cheese, chopped onion and/or sour cream for topping

Cook onions and garlic in 2 tablespoons of oil for about 5 minutes. Add hamburger and cook till browned. Stir in chili powder and cook 2 minutes more.
Meanwhile, in crockpot, combine remaining ingredients. Stir in browned meat mixture. Cover and cook on Low setting for 8-10 hours.

Anyone got a coloring book?

I think there's probably a coloring book and crayons in almost every household.

Crayola Crayons were invented by cousins Edwin Binney and C. Harold Smith.

The first box of crayons sold for a nickel, was produced in 1903 and contained eight colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, brown, and black.

In 2003, The Crayola brand celebrated 100 years of making the world a more colorful place for children.

I’m giving a coloring book and crayons to 6 children
who are not usually on my Christmas list.
It's a small gift, but I think they'll enjoy it.

Four new colors of the next century were introduced and named by crayon fans: "inch worm," "mango tango," "wild blue yonder" and "jazzberry jam!" Since 1903, when Binney & Smith introduced the first Crayola crayons, people have been fascinated with the history of our color names.

Click here for a list of 120 core crayon colors and the years when they were first introduced, along with discontinued colors and names that have changed over the years.

Unlucky at Cards, Lucky at love.

I play a game or two of cards a day on my hand-held solitaire game, and my record of wins is absolutely deplorable.

Lucky me!

Snow - again

Snow is so pretty - especially when you don't have to drive in it. And I don't!
At least not this time.

This picture was taken in our back yard this morning.

And this is our shy cat, Gracie, enjoying the snow from the bedroom window.

Flu Shot

I'd rather be blogging!

I'm sorry to post a less-than-pleasant post in this pre-holiday season, but -

I hate spammers. They send me messages containing words I never use. They try to enhance my body parts (some I don’t even have) and it’s such a waste of time getting rid of their stuff.

I deal with about 20-40 spam messages a day, and I’d rather be blogging.

I just can’t figure out why they do it.

So what’s the thrill?
Am I missing something?

Posted by cassie-b at 09:22 AM | Comments (14)

First Snow

This morning we woke up to a white world. Our first snow! and I'd like to comment that the first snow is the only one I like.

Cold weather and I don't mix terribly well. Don loves snow, but that's because he's an avid skier.

First Snow

December already

And I won't even mention how many shopping days left!

If you need extra reasons to celebrate, maybe the calendar page in the extended entry will help you out.

I'm thinking about Oatmeal Muffin day. Maybe I should find a recipe!