Oh What A Beautiful Day!

                 Awesome weather today!! The skies have cleared up, we've temporarily traded dark gray for clear blue. Thank you "mother nature". The animals are so happy they are running and jumping , acting like it's spring time! I wish, I don't like being cold and neither does the darned old 'John Deere'. 

                I have to laugh to myself when I hear all the talk about being thankful, isn't that something every one knows? Obviously not; I have always been a fan of "keep an attitude of gratitude", along with 'dream, believe, achieve'. I have been teaching those simple things to my daughters since  birth. I just thought every one did.

You thought I'd use that word ass-u-me, exactly why I don't.


              Hey I remembered to get my recipes out so I can post 'my brownie' recipe for  those awesome fudgy brownies, so I 'll post it at the end. You can just skip to the end if you don't want to hear the chatter.

               No broken pipes today, we actually left the ranch. Woo Hoo, an outing!!!    We went to the - dentist---the cowgirls needed their teeth checked  (all my critters get their teeth done--Bahahah!) I told them I could save money if they'd just let the Horse doctor check 'em out when she comes, there was no comment- wait for it-  "REAlly!! Mom!-
There it is, they always have a comment, sometimes it just takes a bit.
While they were having their dental visit I thought it was a good time to make a few calls, I called my good neighbor, Pat, seems we never get to talk anymore. I am trying not to let life get in the way of keeping in touch, for cryin' out loud she's just a ranch away. Oh well, it was great jawing with her for a while. I bet if we talked more we could solve the problems of the world!!!!  We decided it is definitely getting to be soup weather here, we look forward to that. I make lots of chicken soup through the cooler months, along with  beans and corn bread and chile of course.

I make everything homemade, on the rare occasion we eat out no one is satisfied or happy with the meal. They are spoiled. My fault I can't eat 'pre-fab' food it makes me hurt. My poor cowboy has to eat on the road a lot and lets me know about it, I can usually get him a few care packages, it just depends on where he is. He's spoiled too.

               Once we got back to the ranch vacation was over, girls went to school and I went to the sewing room. I've been working on Christmas quilts. My two cowgirls have decided they want something Christmas for their beds, so I made them quilts. Finished the quilt for one bed along with the pillows I re-covered for the living room sofa, and crocheted 12 more granny squares for another gift I'm working on. I have already finished baby blankets and a variety of crafts, I'll share with you sometime.

              I  have decided to go ahead and sell some of the sweat shirt/ jackets I've  made, they are so handy to have and every time someone sees them they want to know where to get one. I like them because you can wear a shirt under them and if you get hot you don't have to pull it over your hair, just peel it off like a jacket.  I have small, med, large, and maybe an xtra large left, let me know if your interested, (cattlecate59@yahoo.com).

        I am amazed how much the grass keeps growing, we mowed and cleaned the yard today, picked up the 'poop'  from those four legged kids that can't seem to go out in the pasture or elsewhere. They have to poop right where they know I'm gonna walk. I don't mind stepping in cow poop or horse poop, but dog poop- that stuff sticks to your boots and smears across the boot, cow poop and horse poop you  can walk on it and it stays where it is, but not dog poop that 's another deal. Yuk!    The only thing worse to step in is 'chicken shit', it's not poop , it's 'shit' and it will kill you. That is the slippery slimy white stuff that will send your legs into a kind of split like you never thought possible, not like I'm speaking from experience or anything......:)

        What else is going on.... Oh yeah the Annual Turkey Dinner is happening at our church next week, I'll be making 4 dozen of those 'fudgy brownies' along with 3 turkeys, my fair share along with chopping veggies for the stuffing etc. It's always a lot of work but there are plenty of people to help put it on and each year it's a successful fund raiser for the church. I think it gets every one thinking about the holidays. The official 'kick off' of the holiday season, well I actually use Halloween to get the festivities going on. Halloween means pumpkins to me and that means you get fresh pumpkin for PIE!   I put my token lighted fake wood pumpkin on the porch and a dollar store black cat with it's scary arched back, sometimes I even hang ghosts. My cowgirls just laugh and make their comments, until the' head witch' breaks out the C A N D Y!, then they are all about it.
Imagine that.

            My 'steel cowboy" is getting his share of rain and dreary cloudy days where he is, I told him it's good sleeping weather, especially since he's on night shift. I'd be bummed if it were nice weather when I had to be sleeping, it would be hard for me to do. I can sleep when it rains, And so can he. I'm just sayin'- there have been days of rain and it seems the whole ranch goes to sleep, you can see the z's floating through the air, (and hear them too). 
       Speaking of z's, funny thing, I kept waking myself up because I was snoring! I bought some of those 'breethe-right' strips- wow! I slept through the night! Here's the thing though, last night I put one on  but I woke up from snoring went to the bathroom, like most people do since their up, when I looked in the mirror as I was washing my hands- the damn thing was sticking straight up in the air on one side of my nostrels- holy crap bat man!- it made me jump- scared my self. I couldn't tell what in the hell was on my nose, a bugger from hell? NO wonder I woke myself up. 
   
      If my husband ever makes good on his promise  and installs cameras he'd never have to work again, the shit that happens to me is too funny, even when it hurts.


         Well let me give you my brownie recipe, been making these since junior high school, Long time ago - yea  I know.

         'Fudgy chewy brownies': (my name for them- don't over cook 'em and don't under cook 'em)
             In a medium bowl combine -1+ 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, 3/4cup baking cocoa (be sure it's baking cocoa), 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, whisk it together until it's blended and set aside.
           In a medium mixing bowl combine- 1+2/3 cups granulated sugar, 3/4 cup butter melted, 2 Tablespoons water, 2 large eggs, 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract ( Love Mexican vanilla for this)  Mix these ingredients together until they are all incorporated (mixed well), Now add the flour and cocoa mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until they are all combined, if you use a mixer keep it on low, no need to beat this.  All of this mixture goes into a 9x12 pan that has been lightly greased. Bake it in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for about 18 minutes, test it with a toothpick, the center should not be gooey let it cook 5more minutes if the center is wet (batter still) toothpick should have just a little bit on it when you test it, but no be dry or your brownies will be dry. 

Yep, these are the base brownies for my "famous loaded brownies", if you ever had one you know them, if not your missing out.
I'll share that secret next time it's late and the midnight oil is 'bout burnt out.


                 Enjoyed the time, thanks for stoppin' by.

                                    "Blazin'  My  Own Trail"


                                                                         Cattle Cate