Baking Day # 3

Have you ever done this, mix up cookie dough and then leave it in the fridge for a few weeks ? Well I am guilty. Today I took the dough out that had been in the fridge for sometime and baked them. This is my husbands favorite cookie, there are recipes everywhere for it. The nice thing is you don't need eggs. So the cookies are baked and you can't tell they had been in cold storage for several weeks and most of all my husband is happy. I don't think he'll be so happy when he's doing his 1 mile race tonight, oh well!

Baking Day # 2

So yesterday after getting home from picking up the race packets I started on my white pear and cranberry cake with whiskey caramel sauce. I found this recipe on line at Racheal Ray's web site last year and it was a big hit. Today I was making it for my friend.
We had our last coffee before Christmas and exchanged gifts. She was thrilled to have the cake and sauce. I got a scarf and puzzle from her. I think the best gift we give each other is the gift of friendship.

Lemon Cookies

This morning we were suppose to go to Dallas to pick up the race packets for this Wednesday, however the weather was so nice that my husband wanted to stay home and work on the out door lights. It seems there are some strands that aren't lighting up. Tomorrow we will go to Dallas, today I baked my first batch of Christmas cookies.
I tried a recipe from Giada De Laurentis, lemon ricotta cookies with lemon glaze and they are much better than the picture. I picked this so I could use the lemons from my tree. If I make them again I will not use 2 tablespoons for each cookie, way too big. She said you'd get 44 but I only got 24. You can find this recipe at foodnetwork.com

If you like lemons you'll like these !

Inspiration

Sometimes a spur of the moment can turn into a lovely evening. Yesterday we called our neighbor and invited her to dinner with us at a local restaurant. She was delighted to go. Lydia is never at a loss for words and so conversation flowed at the table. She lost her husband in August after 60 years of marriage. When she started telling us what she does I was floored. At 82 she works out at the YMCA three times a week on the other three days she walks 2 miles. She sings in the church choir but has dropped her other choir. She also did Weight Watchers and reached lifetime and has kept it off by still going to the meetings. She is like the EverReady rabbit, just keeps on ticking. I hope when I'm her age I'll still be as active as I am now.

Freezing Here

Yesterday I had an appointment with the dermatologist. I have had this dark area on my ankle for some time and kept forgetting to get it checked. I mean we are talking like a year or so. After Jenny commented on it at Thanksgiving I came home and made the appointment. The last time I had been to the office was in 2008, oops! I also had a spot on my hand and my nose. Well the hand and ankle were nothing but old age however the nose along with 4 other spots on my face were precancerous and needed to be froze off.
I got to thinking after I left the office that I never put sunscreen on when I go to run. I figure I'm out early enough that the rays won't bother me, but maybe that's not true. Maybe I need to start using sunscreen when I run.

Maybe a Mile

Are you feeling the Christmas crunch ? Seems like there is so much crammed into the weekend.We had a Christmas party in Ft. Worth on Friday and spent the night there. Saturday was the Madrigal Feaste at the high school put on by the high school choir. This is the second year for our granddaughter to be in it and last year we missed it.

Sunday we headed over to North Park mall, one of my favorites in the Dallas area. Allie wanted to pick an angel off the tree, something we try to do every year.

We were shopping for a 6 year old girl. I snapped a few pictures of the mall decorations as we made our way through the crowds. Orchids and pointsettias were beautiful.

Santa and sleigh are made from pecans, they fly over a small pond that has ducks swimming in it.





Allie found a dress and shoes and then we went to Build-A-Bear

to get a teddy bear. We got a hat and scarf that matched the girls dress.



After tagging all the gifts and putting the in a big pink plastic bag we went to Maggiano's for Sunday dinner. It's one of our favorite restaurants.

Here's to a great day. As for exercise we figured we walked at least a mile, maybe a bit more.

Good To Be Back

Okay, so I have been sitting on my ass the last two weeks thinking about going to the gym but not really making any effort to do it. Then this morning Christy came down in workout clothes and I asked her what she was going to do. She said she was gong to go use the treadmill at the gym and did I want to come long? I didn't jump out of my chair, but did decide to go. I didn't realize how much I missed the gym, it felt good to be back. We did an easy run/walk program that was from a running magazine.