Our sweetheart

And the rest of 2011

It is absolutely amazing how fast 2011 is passing by.  We just finished our 1st 9 weeks of school...Fall break is here and Halloween is just around the corner.  I've had a lot on my mind lately, with lots of responsibilities keeping me busy.   But that is the way I like it.... busy busy busy!  I hope for you that the rest of 2011 is happy and healthy.  Please remember our men and women in the armed services as they go about their lives, providing us with our FREEDOM to live as we choose.                                          God Bless America.

Mommy's Heart

 Teacher Debbie Moon's first graders were
discussing a picture of a family. One little boy in the picture
had a different hair color than the other members . One of her
students suggested that he was adopted.
   A little girl said, 'I know all about
Adoption, I was adopted.'

   'What does it mean to be adopted?', asked
  another child.

     'It means', said the girl, 'that you grew
in your mommy's heart instead of her tummy!'

(dedicated to all adoptive and foster parents, especially my parents, Elton and Judy Teel, who adopted my brother and me and to my daughter and son in law, Amy and Jeff, who have opened their hearts to foster wonderful children)

Blessings

Today marked a new beginning for our family.  It has been a hard road to get to this point, but I feel very blessed to have made it thus far.  I have prayed that our family would be blessed with grandchildren.  My prayers have been answered.   And now I understand what a wonderful blessing each of these grandbabies truly is.   So lesson for today.... trust that good will triumph over evil.  And that hardened hearts will refind their way back to kindness, trust and good will.

100

We recently celebrated 100 days completed at school. Kids counted to 100, they made pictures out of beans, ornaments, just about anything you can think of....each had 100 things in it. 100 is a big deal.
February 6th marked what would have been Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday. Wouldn't that have been nice if he could have been healthy and celebrated it. 100 is a long time. You read about people reaching that mark and some even surpassing it. Willard Scott helps celebrate with these folks, by mentioning their names and showing their pictures on the Today show. But it is not the norm. Too bad. I think we need the wisdom of these centurions. And if we are lucky enough to know one of these, hopefully we are smart enough to sit down and LISTEN to them.

Toys

How many of you grown ups have toys? Not the same Barbie dolls or G I Joes, or even bb guns and toy tractors..... I have my own "toys"...... 3 of them... my horses, the arabian, paint and golden "Trigger" looking quarterhorse named Kandie.... The Chief has a new toy and boy is he in "hog heaven." His newest toy is a 1987 Jeep Wrangler. Officially purchased, now he is surfin the internet looking for accessories to add to or replace to this blue/tan "NellieBelle"..... yes... The Chief names his toys. Once we had a great Ford pickup named Ralph... Ralph was famous...so famous he was recognized in an Oklahoma City parking lot... everyone around here knew Ralph.... Now he has "NellieBelle". Named of course for Roy Rogers' sidekick's, Pat Brady, jeep... this was the tv show...not the movies.. Anyway... new toy on the farm... Yep.... NellieBelle...

Family and February

February.... the 2nd month of the year.... red and pink...colors associated often with this month....President's Day....Valentine's day..... A recent commercial said Valentine's Day is a day about "us". I like that. But February is my least favorite month of the year. February 3rd would have marked my parents 72nd wedding anniversary ( if they had been here ), my sweet Aunt Betty passed away on this day also..... February 14th marks the 5 year anniversary of my daddy leaving this earth and February 26th will be the 23rd anniversary of my mom leaving us. There is only 1 highlight for me in this, the shortest month of the year. That would be February 22nd. That was the day my beautiful Amy came officially into my life. So except for "Amy's Day", I dread February every year. If I could go from January straight to February 22, and then to March... I would.

Chili

One of my favorite cold weather comfort foods is good ole chili! How many of you have your own version that does NOT come in a can? My recipe originates from one of my favorite cookbooks that "The Chief" brought me from one of his official trips. The cookbook is called "Texas Cowboy Cooking" by Tom Perini. My version is slightly different... Here goes..........

4 pounds of chili-ground meat or (my version) 4 lbs of ground Black Angus hamburger (it's really lean)
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic ( fresh is best!)
1 tsp of ground oregano
1 tsp cumin seed
3 tablespoons of chili powder
2 16 ounce cans of stewed tomatoes ( I used diced)
2 cups of hot water
2 green bell peppers, chopped ( I use a green and a red....just for color)
3 large red and 3 large yellow sweet peppers, chopped
salt to taste
And I add 1 15 ounce can of tomato sauce

Put chili meat, onion and garlic in a heavy skillet ( I like cast iron)
Sear until light colored. (Drain any fat off ) Add oregano, cumin, chili powder, tomatoes, hot water and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer about an hour. Add peppers and salt to tast and continue cooking for 15 additional minutes. Makes 9 large bowls of chili.
Enjoy!! As a side note,,,,, shredded cheddar cheese on top is a great garnish!

New Thoughts

Welcome to my new blog! I recently read where the Huffington Post sold for millions of dollars to AOL. Not that I think this would ever sell, but after all, if Ms. Huffington's opinion sells, why can't yours or mine be just as important? That being said, this blog will include personal info from our family farm, as well as local events and some of the best recipes in Oklahoma. Check us out for new info. If you have a recipe to share, please email it to me, along with info as to where you got it, if its a handed down recipe from your family, etc.
Our newest news is...(in case you haven't heard...) The Chief and I have become grandparents. Our middle daughter, Amy and her husband Jeff, have become foster parents to 2 beautiful children. (due to privacy restraints, I can't say anymore about them other than they are great kids!) And our youngest, Laurie and her husband Matt, gave us our beautiful little granddaughter, Hinley. Hinley is now 3 months old and growing by leaps and bounds. Many of the photos will be of Hinley and other shots of our farm life.
We have had a blizzard, and now round 2 of snow has hit the ground. It's very cold, the horses seem no worse for the wear and it's nice and cozy inside the farm house. So while its in the teens outside...I'm cozying up to the roaring fire and watching some old movies!