THE PLEASURE OF MY COMPANY....

In 33 years I had never once spent a night alone. The house was always filled with the noise and demands of a family. Whether cooking pans of lasagna and dozens of bread sticks or chauffeuring pre-teens to endless activities, it was just part of the job. The housework, the homework, the wash, the shopping, it was exhausting... but I loved being the hub of the wheel.

The laughter and activities of my children made me feel young. I was needed... in fact I was vital. What I didn't realize was that I was working myself out of a job.

One by one they departed for education and careers and families of their own. When my last son was the only one left I worried he would be a "lonely only."  As it turned out, watching him navigate his way through his last years of high school was a treasure.  We discussed everything from the literature in his AP English class to science (which I always pretended to understand) to religion. Sitting in a darkened school auditorium, I cried when he appeared singing the opening number from Les Miserables and when all 20 plus of his friends received scholarships to colleges I marveled at the company he kept.

Then it was his turn to go and simultaneously my husband left.

I had lost myself in my family and now I was suddenly single in a great big house that was way too quiet. Without them, I had no idea who I was. A ship without a rudder, the only companionship I had was the pleasure of my own company and I wasn't all that interesting.

Getting a job was one of the things that saved me. I was the school librarian but I also taught math for an hour each day.  I remembered... I love teaching.  I remembered... I love children's literature. And then serendipitously I discovered... I LOVE HISTORY.  Life got better.

Because I had been out of the schools for so many years I had to take a major test called THE PRAXIS. I was expected to know everything that was taught K-6. I studied and took practice tests and that same youngest son and his wife came weekly for three months to help me prepare for science and math. I was a wreck, keeping all those facts straight... it was hard.

Test day arrived. I sat in a college lecture hall with several hundred people and for two hours wrote as fast as I could. When I read the question... "What is the result of the earth tilting on an axis?"  I wanted to stand up and yell... "I know this one... it makes the seasons."  I refrained and filled in my answer.

I left the hall exhausted but exhilarated. I had no idea if I had passed the test but I KNEW I was smarter that I had been three months ago.  It was a light bulb moment. I could still learn, maybe I was even bright. I liked myself a little more.

I did pass the test and thanks to that experience I see myself and my potential in a whole new way. I try to learn something everyday. Just taught PRIME FACTORIZATION for the first time to a class of 5th graders. WOW... it was cool!

I'm NOT boring... who knew?  In fact I really do enjoy the pleasure of my company!

Introducing our "Women of a Certain Age" series

Meet AUNDREA...

Still fabulous at fifty and fearless in fashion, I would describe her as a grown up" FANCY NANCY." I sat down and asked her a few questions about her style... I was pretty surprised at some of her answers.

Aundrea learned early about accessorizing when she and her best friend Marci showed up in the same purple dress. Marci's mother had added a petticoat and a few embellishments. Aundrea was mesmerized. Never one to be jealous she simply took a page from her book. By her own admission she is all about the ACCESSORIES!

I was surprised to learn that Aundrea's closet is full of neutrals. When I took a serious look she was quite right. Within that palette there is lots of lace and ruffles and texture... things that make her wardrobe stand out. I photographed her in a cream eyelet dress with a ruffled bottom. She lifted the skirt and revealed a slip extension with more ruffles. Its a perfect way to add a little length. Her soft pink satin shirt and cardigan gave it a pop of color and multiple strand of pearls and gold chains added "bling."  Her large cameo necklace was a classy touch.

Living in a cold climate, Aundrea makes sure her coats are stylish. This beautiful jacquard is the perfect addition to her outfit. Where did she buy it? ... WALMART!  I was shocked! I'm going to have to take a second look next time I'm there.

She loves her costume jewelry. I laughed when she exposed the back of her bedroom door. Yep, she's all about the accessories. Here's another interesting fact about her style... SHE LIKES CHANGE. She does not want the perfect black coat that will last for twenty years. She wants pieces that are stylish and not so expensive that she can't move on to something new.  Careful with her purchases, she finds TARGET a great source for clothing and FOREVER 21... a "go to" for bling.

Aundrea admits she dresses like she decorates.  Her house is a showpiece.  Here is her delightful craft room.

Jayson, her lucky hubby, is a retired air force pilot and consequently their family, which includes four beautiful daughters, has lived all over the world. From multiple states in the US to Korea and England overseas, she made it a point to unpack everything and put down roots.  She created a HOME wherever they lived.

Now settled in Utah for the past ten years, she has two married daughters, a college student, a junior in high school and, to her delight, her first grandchild. Her one REGRET... not finishing college.  Maybe that will be yours in Chapter Two!  She's BEAUTIFUL inside and out and the first in our series... "WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE"

Join us Thursday for one of Aundrea's favorite recipes and how she and her girls take the "red eye" to New York City!

CONGRATULATIONS! 

The winner of a new pair of TOMS is...

Adrienne Shubin 

 HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

I hope you enjoy them!

Visit Adrienne's blog...

http://therichlifeonabudget.com

I am working on a new angle for my blog and I will post again on Monday. Here's wishing you a happy Valentines Day with the latest You Tube video to go viral.  These boys are members of a singing group called VOCAL POINT at Brigham Young Universtiy. Watch while they randomly serenade some very surprised girls.   

As seen on the Today Show

 DEJA` VU ...

The experience of feeling sure that one has witnessed or experienced a new situation previously.

I spent Fall Break in Florida with my four oldest grandchildren. Of course we did DisneyWorld, including the roller coaster ride to the top of Mt. Everest... NEVER AGAIN!

After a couple of exhausting days we took a little side trip completely outside the realm of theme parks. We visited the LDS Ranch in White Cloud where they run 44,000 head of premium Angus/Brahma cattle on 300,000 natural Florida acres, with enough orange groves to produce 50 million glasses of orange juice a year.

It was beyond beautiful... huge oak trees dripping with moss, murky water holes filled with "gators" and whooping cranes, raccoons, and armadillos. Everywhere I looked the land was pristine.

I knew that I had never been to Florida but I also knew that this was all strangely familiar. It was very deja` vu.

After a tour of the outlying areas we ended at the ranch house, a small white framed cottage with a full wrap around screened porch. There was a 6' Diamond Back Rattlesnake skin tacked to the wall and a 13' taxidermy alligator named Gus living in the parlor. I just couldn't shake the feeling that I had seen this all before.

Our guide, a sweet little woman, filled us in on the history and workings of the ranch. She laughed when she told us that part of her job is to sweep the snakes off the back porch every morning and how she loves to feed a small group of white tail deer. Unlike the mule deer in the West they are tiny, about the size of a dog.




I made an audible gasp... I knew where I was...

I was watching a young boy named Jodi and a fawn named Flag run through the forests of central Florida with the freedom and naiveté that only comes with childhood. I was standing in my favorite children's book... THE YEARLING   by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (winner of the 1938 Pulitzer Prize.)
 

I first read this book 35 years ago and was instantly drawn to the writing that is almost poetic and to the coming of age story that is touching and poignant. Now I was, quite literally, smelling it and seeing it and feeling it. Here are the beautifully written final few sentences from the book


"He did not believe he would ever again, love anything, man or woman or his own child like he had loved the yearling. He would be lonely all his life. But a man took if for his share and went on.

In the beginning of his sleep he cried out, "Flag"  It was not his own voice, it was a boy's voice. Somewhere beyond the sinkhole, past the magnolia, under the live oaks, a boy and a yearling ran side by side, and were gone forever.

Traveling is always a broadening experience. Some of us will do a lot of it and some won't venture too far from home. We all, however, can experience the world through books. "Faraway places, with strange sounding names" can become familiar haunts in the pages of a good book. 

To quote an English professor from my Alma Mater...

"Literature will illuminate your life"

I love COLOR! ... PEACHES AND CREAM

Color is light and energy and effects us on both an emotional and physical level. It can excite, depress, evoke feelings of warmth, or help us to sleep. Restaurants use it to increase appetite, hospitals use it to keep patients calm and casinos know it motivates people to take bigger risks. 

I love the color peach. It is a pale version of orange and emits a feeling of calm and well being. Its delicious to look at... feminine, without being saccharin.  On its own its etherial... combine it with gold or silver and it becomes elegant.  From the palest shade to a bit more coral, it is a perfect choice for the coming season. 

Here are some fun things I found online....  hope you're feeling "peachy"

SILK SHIRT Garnet Hill $98.00

CHEVRON NECKLACE  Talbots $49.50 ( on sale 25% off)

LACE SHOES  Dillards  $69.99

PANT (basic wardrobe piece)

STRIPE SWEATER Eddie Bauer  $39.99

DENIM VEST  Macys  $35.99

BROOCH  (vintage)

PLAID SHIRT Garnet Hill $68.00

DRESS  Garnet Hill  88.00

Couldn't resist including this old song from my teenage years....

Ooh, you came out of a dream, 
Peaches and cream, 
Lips like strawberry wine, 
You're sixteen, you're beautiful and you're mine.

 I'M IN LOVE!

Here it is... the recipe for Texas Sheet Cake!

Oh wait... you already have it? I know... it's been around for years. But... what you don't have is MY mother's over the moon, amazingly delicious, "MINUTE FUDGE ICING" recipe.

I can remember her saying, "This recipe is tricky" and I even recall a few disasters. I was totally intimidated until I realized... if you can count to 60 you can make this.

It is to die for! In fact, I give this frosting partial credit for the summer Andre fell in love with my daughter Annie. Fourteen years and four baby girls later, he makes it better than I do!

ENJOY!

TEXAS SHEET CAKE

2 CUPS SUGAR

2 CUPS FLOUR

Sift these together and set aside in a large mixing bowl.

1 STICK OF BUTTER (no substitutions)

1/2 CUP CRISCO

1/4 CUP COCOA

1 CUP WATER

Place all of these ingredients in a sauce pan and bring them to a full boil. Pour this over the sugar and flour and mix well.

ADD  1 tsp. soda dissolved in 1/2 cup of Buttermilk

ADD  2 beaten eggs and 1 tsp. vanilla

POUR mixture into a greased jelly roll pan (cookie sheet) 

BAKE at 400 degrees for 20 minutes

Cool...

MINUTE FUDGE ICING

PREP - Fill the sink with at least 6 inches of cold water.  

Get a large angled spatula to spread the frosting

1/2 CUP COCOA

6 TBS BUTTER (the real deal)

3/8 CUP OF MILK

1 1/2 CUP OF SUGAR

Mix all of the ingredients together in a sauce pan.  Over medium head bring it to a boil, stirring constantly.     BOIL FOR EXACTLY ONE MINUTE....  That means you must count to sixty and keep stirring. (If you over cook this it will turn to sugar and have a horrible grainy texture... under cook it and it won't set up.)

After boiling for exactly one minute, plunge the saucepan into the cold water in the sink.  Continue beating the frosting until it JUST begins to thicken.  Immediately pour it over the cake and using your spatula spread it evenly. Within a couple of minutes it will harden and you will have fudge icing. 

YUM!!!!

NOTE - Its also great for dipping strawterries

 HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY 

FOLLOW us by e-mail (top right hand side of the page) and you will be entered to win a FREE pair of TOMS  Winner will be announced on Valentine's Day!

 COCO AND THE LITTLE BLACK DRESS

Coco Chanel, born Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel in 1883 was only 12 when her mother died. Her father, unable to care for his three daughters and two sons left Chanel and her sisters in an orphange in Paris. Though she describes her childhood as dark, the nuns did teach her to sew and by 18 she had found work in a tailor's shop.  Her skill and her irrepressible spirit would change not only her life but the entire world of women's fashion. 

Chanel was a free spirit of grand proportions. For a while she performed as a singer at a cabaret outside of Paris. There she made many friends and aquired the nickname "Coco." By her own admission it was a shortened version of  "cocotte" (the French word for ‘kept woman.)

Teeming with creativity, she began making hats as a hobby and quickly attracted the attention of the female elite of Paris. She left the stage and with financial backing from her lover, opened her first millinary shop. 

Her distain for the uncomfortable corsette compelled Chanel to make her own clothes, creating styles that were less restrictive. She often included fabrics and elements from mens wear and introduced nautical stripes. Women would stop her in the streets to inquire where she bought her clothing. Seizing the opportunity, Coco began selling feminine and easy fitting dresses, winning customers from around the world. 

Those of us who love Downton Abbey have watched this fashion revolution playout over four seasons. The once corsetted Mary embraces the modern look with the soft and easy fit of her wedding dress. She was ethereal decending the staircase.

Chanel is known for many things... her perfume, her ropes of pearls, her classic collarless suit. But her most notable accomplishment was the design for the first "LIttle Black Dress"  It appeared in Vogue magazine in 1926 and was dubbed the "Chanel's Ford" meaning it was accessibile to women of all social classes. She had taken the color BLACK, long associated with death and mourning and tranformed it into something elegant, sophisticated and iconic.

Over the years the Little Black Dress has endured multiple interpretations. Dresssed up, dressed down, ruffled, feathers, cropped... it remains today an essential element for a well dressed woman. 

Watch this short video on the legend Coco Chanel...

INTERESTING NOTE - Chanel also introduced the pea jacket and bell bottom pants for women.