Saturday, March 31, 2012

YOU KNOW YOU KNOW

So someone was telling me a story the other day. This is how it went.

Sunday night, after a long week, preparing to go back to work, after getting two children into bed and the  ready for the next week of school.

She, let's call her Val, received a call from her neighbor, ahhh....Lisa.

 Lisa says, "Val, I've started my period, and I don't have any feminine hygiene products, will you please walk over and bring me some?"

Val gathers up the needed items, and tells her husband and children she walking over to the neighbors house for a minute.

When she arrives, Lisa greets her and begins telling her, "Girl, let me tell you about my boyfriend. We've been seeing each other for awhile, and we spend every Sunday night together. But he was acting really strange this morning. He got a phone call from his ex-wife and tried to hide it from me."

Val interjects with "Didn't you suspect he was still seeing his ex-wife when you started dating him"?

Then Lisa says, "Yes, but he quit seeing her. I started keeping his one year old some and we were spending every Sunday night together. Then he was just acting really strange this morning, when he got that phone call, and now he won't answer my texts."

After a brief pause, Lisa continues, "when I drove by his house tonight at 9 PM, his car is gone. Where could he be? He has a one year old, where could he be at 9 o"clock?"

Lisa stares intently at Val.

Val continues to remain silent, in a good listening stance.

Then abruptly Lisa begins pointing her finger at Val, and adamantly insisting, "YOU KNOW YOU KNOW! You know you know he's cheating on me!"

Val met Lisa's insistent demands with, "No, I don't know where he is." Lisa continued with her rant of "YOU KNOW YOU KNOW".

Consequently, this was our phrase of the week and we used it appropriately every chance we got.

YOU KNOW YOU KNOW!

Friday, March 30, 2012

What I'd do

What would you do on a day that has perfect weather?

On a day of perfect weather, I'd like to spend the day at home.
And never go anywhere.
I'd drink coffee on the porch and smell the breeze.
I'd run around the house as long as I could in the pj's.

Then I'd like a late breakfast, bacon, eggs and cat head bisquits.
With a little pear preserves on the side.
A tall, cold glass of milk to wash it all down.
These are things I'd do on a day of perfect weather.

Most of the rest of the day, I'd dink around, wherever I could.
Mowing some grass, pulling a few weeds.
Sweeping the porch and watering some plants.
Go down to the pond, and cast around, see if there are any hungry fish.

The day of perfect weather would end on the porch also.
Rocking and watching the sun go down, sipping on some sweet tea.
Reviewing the events of the day, and planning for tomorrow.
Hey, what's for dinner? Who me? Cook?

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Today

Describe your idea of perfect weather.
I'd like to say that any day the weather is perfect, because every day is a gift. The weather must be perfect for every day. Now, it might not be perfect for our desires and plans.

The type weather I prefer is about 75 degree temperatures, or a little warmer, but not too hot. Spring weather is great. Every thing grows, and is either vibrant green or producing blooms and flowers.
Check out these beautiful bachelor buttons.
They looked like a carpet of pink! Now this is nice weather that promotes blooms like this, and it's still nice enough that you can get outside and enjoy nature!

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Would you rather have it be very cold or very hot outside?
It is easier for me to get outside and be active when it is hot. I love the outdoors and all the activities that go along with the outdoors. When it's warm outside, we stay outside until late in the evening, and then once we get inside the house and get cleaned up and fix something to eat, then it's almost time to go to bed. Warm weather will make it difficult for me to get to the computer to blog.
I'll post pictures later of our garden project that we worked on today.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Snow Resentment

How do you feel about snow?
I have a snow resentment this year. This is about the greatest accumulation we had in our area.
I managed to get a snow day off work, but it didn't last very long, and there just wasn't enough to have fun with. The wild life and livestock appreciated it, I'm sure. But I'm always wishing for some good snow every year, I guess because we only have a little snow occasionally.

I like to stay home and not go anywhere. If I don't have to work, my goal is to stay at home as much as possible. So to have a snow day, and be "trapped" in the house, is bliss for me! Where I come from, since we don't have much snow, we don't drive very well on snow or ice. And we tend to get more ice than snow usually.

Bear laughs at me and says that I have a "snow resentment" when we have snow forecast, and then it doesn't snow enough to miss work. He says that I'm worse than the kids. He might be right!

Now the winter before last, we had several good snows of several inches. It was just lovely here.
Love this tree. It stands outside the bedroom window of the old farm house, overlooking the pond.
Another great scene from the old farm house.
Love this barn in the winter! Love this barn in the summer!
Here the cow girls line up to eat hay and try to stay warm during the snow.
This is a scene from where I work. Can you believe I had to go to work with this much snow on this bank? This reminded me of a Bev Doolittle painting. There's nothing "camouflaged" in this shot.
Was nice to remember my snow memories, especially on the eve of an 80 degree day ahead!
Thank you!

Monday, March 26, 2012

Where it begins

How do you feel about rain?
I feel very passionate about rain.
But not very vocal tonight.
The Bear says I wasn't too passionate about the rain when it rained all through my Spring Break.
But I didn't complain.
I really didn't mind.
I felt like the rain was so needed, and it washed some of the nasty yellow pollen away.
It nourished the green grass and the trees.
There's been so little of it the last few years.
I try to never complain or criticize inconvenience of the rain.

I love a wide open space, where you can see the rain travel across the horizon.
There's nothing better than to see it coming.
I have one memory of being caught in the rain on horseback.
I was on the back of the property, and could see the rain approaching me.
I know why they call it driving rain and sheets of rain.
That's how it falls, in sheets, when you can see where it begins and ends.
I'll never forget that experience.


Sunday, March 25, 2012

Confession

So, the Bear was right, I was wrong.

He made a prediction last Saturday, the beginning of Spring Break, that I would be frustrated and exhausted by the end of the week.
Oh, he's only partly right.
But don't tell him I said that part!
I am exhausted, but not totally frustrated.
I'll not bore you with the details of what I did accomplish, though that would be the "healthier" approach for me to take.
See, I have this problem, yes, another one.
 I try to fit ten gallons of "stuff" in a five gallon bucket, as my husband refers to my "problem".
I get it from my father, he's the same way.
I have ten hours of daylight, so I plan a thousand chores!
Then when the day is done, I have trouble appreciating the things that were accomplished, because I was unable to complete all my tasks.
Is this a pessimistic attitude? Half full/half empty kinda thing? Hmmmm.
I hope not, because I think I'm actually rather optimistic for the most part.
But I like to get things done.
So, just to indulge myself at the end of my week off work, here are some of the things I didn't complete in relation to blogging:
  1. A picture of the Italian Cream Cake from my dad's birthday party, that went very well.
  2. The taxes, not related, but bothers me as April 15th approaches!
  3. An introduction of myself on my blog. I've never finished setting my page up!
  4. I didn't get to read all the blogs that I wanted to!
  5. I have no pictures for today, nor any of the events I have in mind to blog about.
So, I'm feeling better, as I reflect on all the accomplishments we did make.
Looking forward to a new day!


Saturday, March 24, 2012

Waylon, hay bales and fiddle heads

Today was a beautiful day!
Blue skies, nice breeze, and comfortable temperature.
I spent most of the day by myself.
That was a good thing.
I did make a short trip to recycle and pick up a birthday cake for my dad.
 Italian Cream Cake from Ambrosia, I'll post pictures tomorrow.
I made the Pioneer Woman's White Chicken Enchilada's and Restaurant Style Salsa.
I also stopped in down at the hay barn to meet my husband and son, who were hauling hay.
I got to see Waylon. He's a sweet boy. His daddy is Trigger. But he looks more like his momma Oakley.
These are the hay bales they were hauling.
We found a good deal on fertilized hay from last year that had been kept in the barn.
We decided to buy them because we had a really difficult time growing and buying hay last year.
Our area has been in a drought situation for a couple of years now.
Though not as severe as Texas and Oklahoma has suffered.
I needed a "hay smuggler" last year.
Do you know, that I actually spoke with someone that knew a "hay smuggler" from New Jersey.
So, I can't imagine how you smuggle hay. I guess I don't have a criminal mind!
On to the sweet little fiddle heads!
Aren't these sweet? The Bear thinks I'm crazy!
Maybe I am, but when I cleaned out around this fern in the ground and saw the new little babies coming up, I just had to get a picture!

And this is why they're called fiddle heads.
Off to bed I go, it's been a long day!

Friday, March 23, 2012

No clothes

When is it good to have no alternatives?

The best time to have no alternatives is in the morning for me. Not just any morning, but on the days that I get to go to work or I have an appointment or deadline to meet. I'm actually thinking of my closet, my clothes and the choices I have to make every day regarding what to wear.

I've found that what works best for me, is to leave myself with no alternatives in the morning.  Hmmm, how can you accomplish this? Well, I began going to the gym several years ago. I tried to go after work in the evenings. But it seemed that it was often easy to convince myself that I was "too tired" to go and work out or too busy that day. And often it was difficult to find the time in the evening after work to go to the gym, then get home, cook dinner and get ready to do it again the next day.

 I began going to the gym in the mornings. This was not an easy thing to get into the habit of doing, if you're not a morning person already. I was never a morning person, I prefer to stay up late at night, and sleep in the next morning. When I awake, I'd prefer to eat cereal and drink coffee, watch a little news on the TV. In case you're wondering, I'm still trying to get to the point of no alternatives!

 My largest obstacle, and most time consuming daily task was making a decision about what I would wear to work. Remember, I said I was not a morning person, so here's what happened in the mornings, I would stand in my closet, with a cup of coffee in hand, and stare at my clothes. Still kind of in a sleepy haze. I would finally make a decision, then change my mind. If I picked out a pair of pants or a skirt, then I'd have to choose a blouse or top. Then I'd second guess myself, and start looking for a better alternative. This could go on long enough that I would end up being late for work or having to rush to get to work on time.

In order to meet the six a.m. exercise class at the gym, I had to streamline my routine at home. Since I am not a morning person, I wanted to stay in bed as long as I could. I began choosing my clothes the night before, and this is not something I have ever perceived myself doing! I always wanted to wait and see how I felt that day when I chose clothes. Back to picking out my clothes at night, this was a great motivator to make a choice, because by the time I was in the closet picking out clothes, I was tired and ready for bed. So it became easy to make a decision, because I could then go to bed.

The best part of going to the gym and getting ready for work there is that I have no alternatives regarding my clothes at that point. I have what I have to wear. Not to say that I might have to make a mad dash to the store for a necessary item, because it's too far to go back home.


Thursday, March 22, 2012

Would you rather make decisions alone or try to work them out with another person?
If I have enough information to make the decision, I'd prefer to make it myself.
I'm just kinda stubborn in that way.


Here's what's been happening on the farm:
This is Trigger, my neighbor dog, belonging to my son, sits patiently outside. He's keeping an eye on my grandsons, just waiting for them to come out and play.
Out in the field you can see a tree has fallen. The boys were out on the porch when the tree fell.
The ground was saturated, and it just fell over.
My son said that we were lucky, our firewood fell practically at the front door.

 While we were rained out, there was a multi-generational war taking place in the house, with the major battleground on the desk.
Here we see the army snipers on the roof shooting at the cowboys, Indians and civil war soldiers.
Notice on the left, we have an Indian in full head dress mounted on a Charlois cow.
This was a tough battle!
Here the cow girls gather around the fallen tree to strip the new, tender green leaves from the branches.
This was one day I could say I had cows in the tree tops!


Wednesday, March 21, 2012

effective decisions

How do you make a difficult decision? What is your process?

My process for making a difficult decision has improved through the years. Typically in the past, I didn't have much of a process. Or let me rephrase that, to say that I didn't always have an effective process. Or maybe I just wasn't aware of my process?  No, I'm pretty sure that my process has improved with age and experience.

The first stage in most difficult decisions will involve a time of reflection, maybe over a piece of chocolate cake and a cold glass of milk. This stage might be misconstrued as procrastination, but I prefer to call it reflection.

The second stage is the seeking side, where I seek to find out all that I can about my decision. I want to know "both" sides, all the options, all the consequences. Upon being diagnosed with breast cancer March 2011, I sought all the information that I could find in making a treatment decision.

The third stage involves getting input from other trusted sources. This step has evolved through the years. Years ago, I would approach this step like a telemarketer calling everyone that I could think of that might have an opinion on the subject, whether they had any experience or not. Particularly those who I thought would take my side or tell me what I preferred to hear. I've whittled this list down, and my intentions for seeking outside opinions has changed also. I now only contact the sources that I know will tell me the truth or the actual consequences of my choices, whether it is what I want to hear or not. In making my treatment decisions, I was blessed with a large network of women who had had a similar experience, and the assistance they provided was invaluable in helping me to make a decision.

The most important part of this process is prayer. This is where I believe any difficult decision should actually begin. This is where my process has changed tremendously in my growth. At one time in my life, I thought I was in control, and ruled all the decisions. After several years of experiences, I now know who the most important consultant is in my life.  I now have a more effective process of decision making.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Decision of the day

What is something you recently made a decision about?
Today I made a decision about my house.
Or should I say the condition of my house.
My grandsons were here spending the day again with their grannie.
While they played basketball outside, before the rain, I did a little cleaning.
It wouldn't have taken much to finish it off and do the floors.
But I just couldn't get into house cleaning with my guys at home with me.
Besides, on several occasions, I would look up and the
 little one would be eating cookies on the couch.
So, I decided to continue to look at the fireplace ashes, the dust bunnies on the floor, and that annoying feather. It must have come from the pillow on the couch. Boy, it annoys me.
But I've made the decision, I'm not dust mopping the floor until after the boys leave.
So we watched a movie and took a little rest after lunch.
Then our plan was to go the YMCA and play a little basketball.
There my two guys are. They ran and shot baskets for almost an hour.
They were totally red in the face and sweaty after the hour.



Then it was time to go swimming.
See their two little heads bobbing down there at the end of the pool? 




This was about the third or fourth time we've gone to the YMCA since the beginning of this year.
We don't often get the chance to go, so it was a really great day for them and for me.
I enjoyed seeing them having such a great time in a such a wonderful atmosphere.
I love the YMCA.
Meanwhile, my floors can wait until another day!


Monday, March 19, 2012

Uncertainty and the small things

What is something you feel uncertain about right now?

I'm uncertain about the future of television and our youth. I'm rarely home on Monday nights, but since it's spring break, I'm home tonight. I've just witnessed two sit coms that aired between 7 and 8 pm. I am just a little concerned that there were so many references to sex. What do children watch at this hour? I'm so glad my grandchildren weren't here, I would have been so uncomfortable. We wouldn't have watched it, and the only reason it stayed on was that the Bear was asleep and I was too lazy to get up and hunt the remote. I was actually snoozing some too.

There are other situations I'm uncertain about  right now. I'm not sure that I'll get any house cleaning done this week. Though I did get two loads of laundry done today.

The sun rises this morning as I get up to greet the day. My grandsons are spending the day with me. I'm uncertain as to what they will want to do. The light and color is so beautiful this time of day! Magical.
As they played games on the Kindle, I washed the turnips that my father grew in his garden. I'm going to freeze some of them, as I've given away all that I can, but I'm uncertain as to how well they will freeze. I've never frozen turnips before. Aren't they just lovely turnips?!


And then, as if this wasn't quite enough, I made cinnamon rolls. I've been wanting to make them ever since I saw the Pioneer Woman make them on her Food Network show. Everyone raved about them on her website! So, we made them today. My grandsons loved rolling out the dough and getting flour all over our hands, and shirts, and pants, floor, cabinets and refrigerator.


I'm uncertain as if I'll do any cooking tomorrow!
P.S. This is the take home version on the styrofoam plate for my son.
































Sunday, March 18, 2012

Gardening apron

The fabulous apron my friend Miki made for my birthday last month.
I love the horses and the black rick rack around the edge!
But best of all, is the large area inside the two pockets to carry garden produce!
 Now I won't have to roll my shirt up and use if to carry veggies from the garden to the house, if I forget to carry a basket.
I love to center my text under my photos. Is this wrong? Since this is not poetry?
This is the other apron she made also. It has all the colors of my house.
She is so talented. She also cooks and bakes.
She's often wanted to have a restaurant or write a cook book.
And she can sew too!
I have such talented friends!
I stopped by the race track one morning this week to see the horses gallop.
The Bear stopped and let me take this photo at the gas station.
One of the two new babies born this week. They're growing, running and follwoing the herd already.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

The Bear's Prediction for Spring Break

I have a week of spring break ahead of me! Yippee!
I'm always so expectant in the beginning of a week off from work!
The list of spring cleaning chores that I'd like to accomplish is usually more than a mere human can complete.
The Bear told me tonight that he was dreading this week. He expects that I'll be frustrated and exhausted by the end of the week. Exhausted from working too hard, and frustrated because I won't accomplish everything from my astronomical list.
Of course, I'm still in denial, not yet able to admit that he's probably right!
I even went so far as to tell him that he's wrong, "I am going to have fun, and enjoy being at home".
He then asked me to put that in writing.
That won't be necessary, as we'll both remember by the end of the week.
Though I'll act like I don't remember what he's talking about!
We'll see how the week goes. I'll keep you posted!

Friday, March 16, 2012

doubts

Discuss the word doubt.
This is another word that I'd like to add to the archaic list from yesterday's writing prompts.
Not that it is archaic, but a word with a negative connotation.
I can definitely add it to a list of words that I doubt I'll frequently use much anymore.
Now I think I'll see how often I can use the word.
Doubt is a word I associate with little faith or trust.
There were times in my life when my thoughts were consumed with doubt and fear.
Situations when I was trying to achieve an outcome of my own, doubtful of trusting anyone else.

I'm really doubtful that I can share much more tonight. I'm over extended, and it's "past my bedtime".
Let's put our fears and doubts away for the night!



Thursday, March 15, 2012

Pencils, guaranteed to change your mood

Would you rather stay or go?

I looked at the writing prompt earlier today. I like to have a little time to contemplate the topic.
Is this legal? Does anyone else do this also?
Immediately, I considered the literal interpretation in connection with my physical location.
I'll not say what I thought at that time.
It is usually a good thing when I don't act on my first thoughts. Or write about them either.
So I'm visiting with students, and handing out pencils.
Not just any ordinary pencils.
These are heat sensitive pencils, or as I refer to them, mood pencils.
They are actually pretty interesting pencils. When you hold them, they change colors.
Two purple pencils, see the bright pink on the one that I was holding?
Might help if I had taken a little closer shot, huh?

The pencils were quite a hit with this crowd. As I was visiting with a group of girls, and they were musing over the mood pencils, I over heard one girl ask another if it would change your mood.

I told her that of course, a pencil could change your mood!

A pencil and paper, if used, are capable of changing your mood, your attitude and your general well being. From my experience, anytime that I journal about my feelings or situations, I come away with a changed perspective. I usually write until I have the answers I need.

This is when I correlated the topic of "stay or go" with the pencils and the blog.
I think I'll stay.
I'm halfway through my third month of blogging. I appreciate the daily discipline. I feel like my writing is improving somewhat. I like some of the things I've written. I enjoy reading others' blogs and making new friends.




Wednesday, March 14, 2012

I know I'll win that mixer drectly!

Whether or no" is an archaic way of saying "regardless." Talk about a different archaic phrase you know.

So I knew the word I'd use. I've always been fascinated with this word. I suspect that the meaning of this word evolved into something else, other than the original meaning or implication. My mema, who I credit with so much of my southern mannerisms, language and superstitions, taught me this word.

She would say, "I'll cook you sum chicken in dumplins drectly".

I was an adult before I figured out that this word, drectly (two syllables), was actually directly (a three syllable word). It was used to indicate that something would happen soon or in the near future. Once I discovered that it probably originated from the word directly, then the definition that I had contrived in my head, didn't fit anymore.

Though I discovered the truth behind the language of my ancestors, I continue to use that word as my mema would, every chance I get and a few others too!

You could mosey on over to that pioneer woman's site and sign up to win this fabulous mixer! I have already blogged about wanting this mixer last week, and now she's giving away three of them. Isn't it a beautiful machine? It just takes my breath away!
Day two of my venture outside to enjoy the fresh air, led me back to the green pastures. The cows are getting really happy because the grass is getting so green. See the new baby on the shaky legs? He was born yesterday and he's still learning to stand and walk.
The Bear helped me work on my weedy garden. We pulled some weeds and discussed the plan to get all the weeds out of the bed drectly. I'm wanting to plant some snow peas, but am afraid that I've waited a little too late already. But I'll probably put them out this weekend anyway. I'll let you know.

Then the day closes, as the clouds pass over Jessie's tree. This is the tree we refer to as my son's tree. Some of the last pictures I have of him are in front of this tree.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Greener pastures


"Whether" can mean "which of two." Present two alternatives for your readers.

The Bear always credits me with making things more difficult than they have to be.
Hmmm.....this blogging project has turned into somewhat of a self assessment.
When I copied and pasted the writing prompt for tonight, I immediately started "thinking" of alternatives that I could present.
So I thought, this will be easy! Chocolate or vanilla.
Something like that. Easy, I thought.
But as it turned out, I was going to have to come up with some passion about choosing food, and who doesn't go through that already?

After I arrived home, I surveyed the evening duties, trying to arrive at priorities.
Immediately, my thoughts turned from blogging to trying to arrange dinner and other duties to allow me to get outside and go for a walk on this glorious day.
Then I knew what my topic or alternatives would be;
 either to sit inside at the computer or go for a walk.
And now that I'm reading the prompt again, this choice is actually for my readers, not me!

So, I'm going to share my pictures of the afternoon.
Here you see my weedy, raised bed, garden. Can you see it among the weeds?
Next, are the dogwood trees that must be planted, soon!
Actually, we have about six trees to plant this spring.
Now to the alternative to sitting at the computer, going for a walk with my buddy.
Dixie is excited! Can you see her tail wagging in this picture!
She almost wouldn't be still for me to take the picture.
Then we walked. It was a glorious afternoon.
It had just rained a few days ago.
The trees are budding, and the grass is growing.
I love these mesquite trees.
At least that's what my son, that I haven't named yet, calls them.
And then there's the rye and wheat grass fields with the pond in the distance.
Everything is getting so green!
I love spring.
Thank you BlogHer for the writing prompt that got me out for a walk today!

Monday, March 12, 2012

"secret" to life and contentment


Would you rather always know the truth or remain blissfully ignorant sometimes?

There was  a time in my life, when I wanted to always know the truth.
That would have been when I felt more in control of my life.
Also, as I was new to many experiences, I had the need to know all that I could about everything.

Now that I've reached a certain level of maturity, I'm not so concerned with knowing the truth about all the things that were once so important to me.
Once I learned the "secret" to life and contentment, the worldly things were not as important.

Now I'm learning to accept not having all the answers.
Being in limbo or a state of unknowing is peaceful, if you let it be.
I'm envious of those who have lived most of their lives in a blissful state of ignorance.
It leaves you fresh and light, not so weighed down and tarnished from the truth.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Family and friend's handiwork

For fear of focusing too much on myself, and failing to include my family and friends enough in my blog, I'm sharing their wonderful handiwork today.
 My husband, the Bear, is a brick mason. 
My son, I haven't named him yet,  I still call him by his father's name, is a carpenter.
I always put way too much emphasis on naming children and pets.
I didn't want to be responsible, if they weren't happy with the name later on.
Back to my focus today.
The Bear, and the un-named son, are working on this project together.
Beautiful rock work! What a kitchen this will be!
I don't know if you can see the old barn beam above the bay window nook.
It's absolutely gorgeous also.

There's that beam again. I just love old barn lumber!
There's lots more rock in this house. I'll get more pictures and keep you updated.
There's going to be lots more barn wood also. I'll keep up with that too!

This is my sweet, baby grandson's painting. His Mean Grannie sketched the outline of the horse and he painted it.

Mean Grannie should have chosen a little thicker paper, as the the moisture in the paint really wrinkled up the paper. But I love it anyway!









This is my sweet, older grandson's cartoon drawing and painting.
He's quite adept at looking at drawings and then recreating them!
His grandfather was quite an artist.

I think they're both rather talented!








These are the craft of my precious friend Colleen. She is so talented, she can just learn to do anything! 

 As you can see, I'm completely surrounded by smart, talented people!

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Cooking (chaos) for my Friends

I got new pans for my project. Because I wanted sheet pans just like the Pioneer Woman!
And a new cutting board. She said I would need one of those too. 

My friends are having a dinner party and they asked me to bring a dessert.
I'm making the Red Velvet Sheet Cake that Ree Drummond featured on her blog and Food Network show recently. I love red velvet cake and it looked so easy.

I'm sparing you the detailed photographs of the cake making process.
But I can tell you that I learned a few things.
The most important, was that I will always refer to the Kindle version of the recipe, rather than the printed recipe.
I really need all the visuals and lovely photos that PW provides with her recipes.
My mother recently commented to my husband, I mean, apologized, saying that she realized that she never taught me to cook.
I really didn't buy square pans, they just look like that, they are rectangular.
 My photography is not the greatest either.
So I set out making this cake. I learned that when you open a large bottle of vinegar to measure a teaspoon, it's best to measure it over the sink, rather than the cake batter.
I couldn't taste the extra vinegar.
Colleen, let's keep this to ourselves!
It really wasn't that much more vinegar.

I had cake batter all over my shirt, face and cabinets by the time it was all mixed up.
By the way, I think I would do better if I had a Kitchen Aid stand up mixer, specifically the orange one with the Pioneer Woman flowers on it.

So, at this point, the cake has been baked, and I've overcome all the obstacles.
My husband, the Bear, sat quietly in the living room, and was quit surprised with the outcome. 
He was so supportive, that he washed all these dishes!
Here's the fabulous icing. See what I mean about the mixer?
PW was right about that icing. It is delish!
Heat milk and flour, then add to butter and sugar, and whip the "heck" out of it, she said.


Then I had these fabulous berries from Sam's. Can you believe someone, somewhere, grows berries this nice, that are ripe in March?


 
I hope not to tempt anyone that doesn't have access to these kind of berries where you live.

Have you seen blackberries this big? They must be dew berries. So I iced the cake, ate some raspberries and black berries. Then I placed some raspberries on the cake. It looked just like PW's cake!

TaDa! Here it is! Why does it look so square? I decided to save the blackberries for a cobbler.

And it's just as pretty on the inside! This is what was left after the party.
I'll have to work on my presentation. It would be even prettier on a cute blue plate like PW.
But if I cut another piece to photograph, I might have to eat it!