Winter Hodgepodge

"Live in each season as it passes.

Breathe the air

Drink the drink

Taste the fruit

And resign yourself to the influences of each."

~ Henry David Thoreau

I may be one of the few who enjoys winter. So often I hear people say that they are tired of the cold and snow and can't wait for spring and summer to arrive. Truth be told, summer is my least favorite season. I do appreciate summer's longer daylight hours, and flowers growing in my garden, but I really dislike hot weather, humidity, and here in the west the all too often days of drought and the danger of fires that summer brings.   

Give me a cool, crisp day...a day to sit by the fire...a day to watch the snow softly falling...and a day to enjoy the special quiet beauty of winter, and I'll be content.  There is a special coziness about winter that

"Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand

 and for a talk beside the fire; it is the time for home" 

 ~ Edith Sitwell

The beginning of this winter was even more of a stay at home time of the year for me, as I had foot surgery. While I was healing, my husband took over most of the chores, but I did use my crockpot quite a bit to make cooking easier.   I made chicken hatch pepper and bean chili, ham and split pea soup, and many quick skillet meals.  One of my favorite vegetarian meals is to make is to saute chopped swiss chard with one chopped onion and two cloves of garlic in olive oil in a skillet, then add sliced boiled potatoes to the skillet and a package of Madras Lentils.  Mix well and heat. I buy the packages of Tasty Bite Madras Lentils, 8 packages in a box, at Costco. They are already cooked, in a not too spicy tomato sauce. and really delicious alone or mixed with other vegetables.

One of my favorite banana breads is the King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Banana Bread. I doubled the recipe and made it in a bundt cake pan as I had quite a few ripe bananas in my freezer. It is really moist and delicious. 

 

Two special events occurred in February, First, my son turned 40! I'm not sure how that happened, as I don't feel old enough to have a son who is that age. I feel like I was 40 just a short time ago myself. Second, my oldest granddaughter turned six and had a wonderful party her parents hosted at a local children's beauty salon. She and her little friends had their hair and nails done, made beaded bracelets, sang karaoke, ate pizza and cupcakes and had a very happy time!

Our neighborhood bobcat is still on the prowl. The photos above are ones a neighbor posted on our facebook community group. "Bob" makes himself right at home. Bobcats are smaller than mountain lions and mainly eat small animals like mice, birds, squirrels, and rabbits and he is obviously finding enough of them to stay around.
I'm sure you heard about the Colorado man who was attacked recently by a mountain lion while jogging in the foothills. You can hear an interview of how he was able to kill the mountain lion and escape with his life on this link.  Living among wildlife requires us to be alert, but thankfully wildlife attacks are rare.

Beautiful roses from my husband for Valentine's Day! Roses are my favorite flower and my birth month flower. They are even more precious in winter!

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Last, the good news for me is that my foot is almost back to normal! No more need to wear the heavy supportive post-op boot!  I am back to using a shoe and little by little I am regaining strength in my foot.  I hope to be hiking again soon.  Thanks for all your good wishes! 

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