Going "home" for the first time in years...

The family and I decided that this year we would travel north to my old hometown in SE Michigan to visit family around Christmas time.  I haven't been back to that town since 2003 and that was the last of only a handful of visits since I had left when I was 19.  
I can honestly say that going back again wasn't what I expected.   I knew Detroit has been hit hard by the faltering auto industry and I suppose I should've expected to see the same thing in my hometown since it's only about 20 minutes south of Detroit.  I didn't expect it though.  I had a picture in my mind of what it had looked like back in 2003 and what it had looked like throughout my childhood.   And the picture in my mind was nothing like this...

I remember walking down the street in my old neighborhood as a kid and there would be people outside talking, laughing, kids playing.  The houses weren't fancy, not by a long shot, but the people took pride in them anyways.  The yards were mowed, the houses were painted, there were even neatly manicured little flower beds.  
I walked the old neighborhood during this last visit and it looked like a totally different world.   For Sale signs every where.  An empty lot were the corner store had been.   Cars rotting in the yards.  Smashed windows.  Chipped paint.   It was kind of sad.  
The library where I had spent so much of my childhood was empty.  The parks where I had played were rusting and falling down.  
My friends and I used to run the length of the beach, picking up shells, throwing rocks, swimming every chance we had.  We spent nearly every day of the summer right next to the water.  Now, the beaches were littered with trash and no one seemed to care anymore.  
I guess it didn't dawn on me at first how much of life in Michigan was entrenched in the auto industry.  Looking back now I see how depenedent the South East corner of the state was on that one industry.   If you didn't work at the auto headquarters in Detroit then you likely worked in one of the many plants spreading across the state.   If you didn't work in a plant than you probably still worked at a job that was somehow connected to the auto industry be it tires, parts, or car sales.   My father worked as an over the road truck driver (delivering auto parts from the Michigan plants to the rest of the country).   My grandfather had worked at the tool and dye (making machinery for the auto plants).
It was a real wake up call.  I'm not sure the town will ever get back to the way that I remember it.   I guess the old addage "Never put all your eggs in one basket" holds true. 

Christmas Blessings

"And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. (10) And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. (11) For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (12) And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”

Doggie Duds version 2.0

My neighbor and dear friend enjoyed the sweater that I made for my mini doxie so much that she requested I make one for her chihuahua Nina.   Well, Lord knows I can't turn down a project so I complied to her request.  I pulled out some left over pink yarn from my daughter's afghan project and went to work.

My neighbor LOVED the sweater.  She's almost as much of a pink freak as my daughter.

Unfortunately I don't have Nina to model for me, although she seems to be much better at it than Cookie ;)  And none of my daughter's stuffed dogs wore it right.

Soooo, we'll just have to settle for these pictures for now.

Christmas Poem

The merry family gatherings –

The old, the very young;
The strangely lovely way they
Harmonize in carols sung.
For Christmas is tradition time
Traditions that recall
The precious memories down the years,
The sameness of them all.
-Helen Lowrie Marshall

First Snow of the Season

It's finally starting to feel like Christmas.  We awoke this morning to a changed world.   When I went to bed last night the great outdoors looked bleak, muddy, brown, just generally kind of gross.   When I woke up this morning it looked like this...

Except of course, everything was in color.   I just happen to really love the way wintery

pictures look in black and white.

I'm still a little behind in terms of my chores.  I've finished several of the gifts I intended to make but I still have several more to get done.  I've rounded up a bunch of Reminisce and Good Old Days magazines (courtesy of my Grandmother) to donate to our local nursing home and those should be going out on Monday.  Right at this moment I should be cleaning but instead I'm "blogging" but if it counts for anything I do have a load of laundry in the washer.   It may not be much but at least it's something.

In the spirit of the season I have a new charity organization to spotlight: Heartmade Blessings.  "Heartmade Blessings is a world-wide group of volunteers dedicated to providing hand-crafted items to those people suffering a loss, tragedy, or going through a rough time that need to be reminded of the simple fact that people care."  Check them out!

More Christmas Cookies

We've finished another batch of Christmas cookies.

By the time we are done we should be able to feed Santa and an entire army of elves.

The kids had a blast decorating these cookies and they are pretty tasty too.

'Tis the season for sharing so here's the recipe for these cookies and the frosting.

Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

Step 1.  In a large bowl cream together butter and sugar.  Slowly add in the eggs and vanilla extract until well blended.  

Step. 2.  In a medium bowl sift together flour and baking powder. 

Step 3. Slowly stir the dry ingredients from the medium bowl into the large bowl and mix until dough forms and pulls away from the side of the bowl.

Step 4.  Cover and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.

Step 5.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  

Step 6. Divide the dough in half into 2 balls.

Step 7. On a lightly floured surface, roll one ball to about 1/4 inch thick

Step 8. Cut out shapes and place onto an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake for 7-9 minutes.  Let cool before adding icing.

Icing

*This is not my recipe.  I found this recipe online and liked it even better than my own.

Ingredients:

2 sticks butter, room temperature

 2 cups Crisco shortening

 1 teaspoon butter flavoring (Wilton’s makes the best flavored version)

 1 taspoon pure vanilla extract (I use Wilton’s Clear Vanilla)

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

2 pounds powdered (confectioners) cane sugar

 1/2 teaspoon salt

 1 tablespoon meringue powder (optional but the texture will be smoother)*

 Water as necessary (I usually add about 2 tablespoons but you may need more or less depending on the humidity in your neighborhood)

Directions

Step 1. In the mixer, mix butter, Crisco shortening, and salt together to incorporate, about 5 minutes on low.

Step 2. Add almond, butter and vanilla extracts. Mix together well. Add about 1 pound of powdered sugar and the meringue powder and mix.



Step 3. Add 1/2 cup of powdered sugar at a time and mix until you get the consistency you want.

 Step 4. Add a little milk, a teaspoon at a time, if necessary to thin the frosting. Blend well on low for several minutes.

Use immediately or cover and refrigerate. NOTE: Buttercream Icing will last for weeks as long as it is well sealed.

Doggie Duds

This is my first attempt at crocheting a dog sweater.

No, I don't dress my dogs up and no they don't have huge wardrobes of clothes.

This is more function than form, mini dachshunds and below freezing temperatures with bitter wind chills don't tend to mix well.

The whole thing took me about 4 days to crochet which really is much longer than it should've taken but life gets in the way of creativity sometimes.

She's not much of a model.  She seems to view having her picture taken as some sort of punishment.

I guess she's not destined for a life in the spotlight.

This is the best shot I could get out of her.

The sweater is pretty cute I think and it serves it's purpose.

She went outside just after I took these pictures and was able to stay out for more than 5 seconds.  She was even able to explore her favorite holes and nooks and crannies.