It seemed appropriate to usher one of the worst years of my life at a peaceful and centering place. I headed to the Oregon Coast with Dana and Dodger to breathe in some fresh air, exhale the bad, and throw the ball (for Dodger of course). What a healing place the coast is for me. The calming sounds of the ocean, the salty air, the beauty all around, remind me that no matter what is going on in my life, there is always a place to go to recharge. Breathe in. Breathe out.
Christmas used to be my favorite time of the year. The decorating, the gift giving, the entertaining. I channeled my inner Martha Stewart. Baking cookies, buying and wrapping gifts, and creating the perfect cocktail menu put a permanent smile on my face. That is until last year. A week before Christmas I learned that my 13 year marriage was ending. The visions of Christmases gone by evaporated in the blink of an eye. And a sadness took its place. This year, I am determined to recapture that joyous feeling. Fake it ’til you make it, right? I started small by decorating the mantle- stockings for Bonnie and Clyde (the cats) and me.
And decided to write some Christmas cards….
And then I decided to get a tree…
My car is deceptively large when the seats are down!
The ties made it easy to get inside
It passes the inspection…
The Barbies await – did I mention I have over 15 Barbie ornaments?
Lights are on – ready for the ornaments
The finished tree
Topped with a Tinkerbell
I was so inspired that I decided to take a walk and enjoy the Christmas lights. My neighborhood embraces the holiday season- some even hire professionals to set up the lights!
So for all of those who are feeling a bit blue this holiday season, I send you many wishes of happiness and health and joy. Go out and rediscover the enchantment of Christmas- one little step at a time….
Well, I looked at my turkey leftovers and decided to make a version of roll-ups. I believe the original recipe came from my Mom’s Welcome Wagon cookbook from Central Pennsylvania and was called “Chicken Roll-ups”. The original recipe uses chicken, cheddar cheese, crescent rolls, and cream of chicken or mushroom soup. I decided to take a Mexican twist on the original. I used turkey leftovers with a Pepper Jack/ Cheddar cheese and skipped the soup in favor of guacamole. How can you go wrong with dough, cheese, and turkey?
Tillamook Mexican 2 cheese blend
Cut up turkey and cheese
Crescent roll being rolled flat
Adding the turkey and cheese filling
Roll-up rolled
Prepped for the oven
Freshly baked
Roll-ups plated with a side of guacamole
Recipe:
Turkey – cut into small pieces
Mexican 2-cheese shredded (Pepper Jack & Cheddar combo)
Crescent rolls
Side of guacamole (I make my own using only an avocado, minced garlic, and sea salt)
Today is one of those mornings where the crisp, cold air burns each time you inhale. For Portlanders, this is a rare treat because we are usually zipped into our rain coats and grumbling about the dark, rainy days. Personally, I welcome the cold, sunny weather. On my morning walk I discovered some interesting frozen scenes that glistened in the sunshine. So I had to capture a few of them……
Flirting with Creativity 