Happiness Is...

I haven't been posting much lately, just really busy with work and going back & forth to the Ormond Beach house. Here's a few pics from the past couple of weeks and what I've been up to.

It actually got cold enough In Ormond to cause the trees to shed their leaves, something we never see in South Florida!



Martini Hour at Hyde Park, love the $4.00 Cosmos!



We met this group of Swiss tourists, had a blast hanging out with them at the Ocean Deck!



They told Beren that his last name is very common in Switzerland which was interesting because his grandfather did indeed trace his lineage all the way back to that country. I think I can see the resemblance here!



Kali & Kevin are up visiting this weekend, so nice to show them around town for the first time! We took them to Miltop Tavern where Kevin enjoyed a drink called Swamp Water. Ewww, I hope it tasted better than it looked!



In honor of Valentines Day, Beren bought me these lovely flowers; don't they look just perfect on the dining room table?



Kali & Kevin spent the afternoon baking cookies while I made cupcakes





Here we are heading out to the local country bar, Beren wants to take line dance lessons so he can keep up with the other cowboys, lol, but I'm not sure I'm quite up for that!



Back at home, Jackson hops up on my altar every morning, I think he's visiting Salem



I started a new kitchen experiment you can read more about it here on my other blog.



Hope you all are having a wonderful long weekend, Happy Valentine's Day!

Grand-Pets

As much of an adjustment as it's been for the 2-leggeds in the house, it's even more so for the critters! So far we've survived the first week with minimal fur flying though Lucy did receive a sharp smack to the nose courtesy of Jezebel! No pics of that event, nor of the brief nose-to-nose encounters between Jackson & his new canine sibling, but here are a few cute shots of other furry encounters:

Presley Meets Tabitha...



So glad Presley is blind & therefore can't see the look of disgust Tabitha cast him!



Jezebel Meets Presley



Lucy & Presley, enjoying the view



Jackson's been spending a lot of time at my desk and on other higher-than-Lucy surfaces so that he can peer down at her!



So glad Presley doesn't have any interest in stilettos!



So, there you go, a couple of the newest members of our household. Next time I'll introduce Killer, the 4-foot Ball Python, ok? *wink*

On My Hearth: Peanut Butter Fudge Bars

I woke up to a bit of a mess this morning, little Jackson on my bedroom floor looking up at me quietly, totally out of character, not his usual bouncy kitten self. I immediately woke Lily and had her take him to the vet, just knew something wasn't right, and the pile of vomit (sorry!) in her room confirmed my suspicions. He's at the vet now, they believe he swallowed "something" and it's stuck in his bowels. They gave him a laxative and are waiting for it to do it's job. Poor little baby! And all of this just after I posted this morning about my critters..

On the heels of that I got a call from Dad informing me that my aunt is arriving from Ohio on Monday. While this is good news, it's important that she spends some time with my mother, it requires planning and preparation which increases my stress level big time. Sigh.

So, what do I do when I'm overwhelmed and anxious? I retreat to the kitchen.

I have all of the ingredients on hand for these bars so they'll be a cinch to whip up, and hopefully some baking will work it's magic on this stressed-out kitchen witch.



Peanut Butter Fudge Bars

Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Ready In: 40 Minutes
Yields: 30 servings

"Peggy Murray of Enfield, Maine relies on a cake mix and other pantry staples to make these rich crumb-topped treats."

INGREDIENTS:
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons butter or margarine

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a bowl, combine cake mix, peanut butter, egg and oil. Press two-thirds of the mixture into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes.

2. In a heavy saucepan, heat the milk, chocolate chips and butter over low heat; stir until blended. Pour over crust. Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars.

Pampered Pets

We loooove our critters here at the castle..and they are spoiled rotten as a result!

Since when do we have a pet duck? Maybe if I'm very quiet they won't notice me?

Hey, that's my water!

Jackson (yes, that's his new name) was only supposed to be visiting for the weekend while Lily and her boyfriend were away, but it appears he's made himself quite comfortable, hasn't he?

Jezebel says it's her turn

Salem waits (im)patiently each morning for us to turn on "his" water fountain

Tabitha wants to come along!