Vintage Books & Jamie Cooks

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Head on over to Mercedes' World for a chance to win a vintage apron!
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Nice title, eh? It rhymes and everything.

Lots of pictures today which means not a lot of talking. Good, I don't have much to say. If you know me, you know that's not true. See how much I had to say about not having anything to say? Moving on...

Let's start with...

Vintage Childrens Books! I love them. My fascination started when...ok, I know I said I wouldn't talk much but I might have lied. A little.

We took a trip to New England last fall and found a huge antiques shop in Quechee, VT. I'm not usually an antiques kind of girl but I found out that it was for lack of knowing how fabulous antiques actually were. You have to dig. Dig past someone's grandma's porcelin salt and pepper shakers. Past musty smelling 1970s romance novels. Past gaudy dinnerware (who would serve people food on that!?)...you get the idea. I gravitated toward books. Childrens books. Let me share with you my finds...

They sit on a shelf in my living room. For frame of reference, I posted a picture of my living room. Yes, I know the TV is ginormous. Yes, I know I need curtains and crown molding. Okay, now can we move on? I just love to look at them. Have I read them? What? They're books, old books. They're for decoration (I'm kidding, of course).

East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon is my favorite. The book is mentioned in the Anne of Green Gables books and I didn't even know that when I bought it. Isn't it a gem? I love that the illustrations are watercolored. I can't be sure if the book was made that way or if a past owner did it. I have a hard time believing that it was a past owner because they are so intricately done. There is also an inscription on the inside cover that says "Wishing you a Merry Christmas. From Alice 12/25/23". I love that, I just love it.

Next, we have The Aeroplane Boys Series: The Aeroplane Express. I admit I got this one for its looks.

And finally, we have Tom Swift and his Electric Locomotive. This one has an inscription on it, too, and it says: "Charles Ackley from Mother, Christmas 1921 (could also be a "7", not sure)".

Aren't they lovely? I just bought another one online yesterday and will post pictures when I get it.

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Here's my hand-me-down helpful hint for today... Freezing Juicy Fruits. Not the gum.
I took the advice of some gals in the recipe_exchange group and spread the massive amount of blackberries given to us by David's grandma onto 3 cookie sheets. Then I stuck them in the freezer and when they were sufficiently frozen, I pulled out the cookie sheets and scraped the contents into freezer bags. The picture to the right is what the blackberries looked like after they had been frozen and poured into the Ziploc bag. Aren't they gorgeous? I think I'm going to have to use this freezer/cookie sheet method with all juicy fruits that I want to freeze and store. It worked like a charm!

Here's Tess while I was scraping the blackberries into the bag:

"Please, Ma, can't I have just one?"

For dinner, David grilled pork chops that I had rubbed in Rudy's Rub. Mercy me, that stuff is spicy. I made some rice (more on that in a minute), salad with salsa ranch dressing, and also used a recipe I found for Cheesy Garlic Bread. It was only "ok" for me. I used Texas Toast instead of french bread which might have been my first mistake. I wasn't a fan of the mayo taste. I think I'll stick to butter and garlic salt to make my garlic bread next time! The mozzarella on top was fantastic, though. The rice was Rice-A-Roni Whole Grain Blends Chicken & Herb Classico. I know, what a mouthful! If you haven't tried their Whole Grain Blends or their Nature's Way line, you really should. They're fantastic and it's nice to know they're better for you.

So, last night after (or was it before? I have a horrible memory) our 30 minute, 2 mile walk around the park, I made Crumb Topped Choco-Peanut Butter Bars. Peanut butter theme lately, I know. Not sure why. Anyway, they were very yummy, but like all yummy things, they must leave my house. I stacked them on a paper plate and sent them to work with David this morning so he could share the love with his coworkers. I'd be lying if I said I sent them ALL to work with David. I confess I have a few safely sealed in a Tupperware container on the counter. Report from David is that a couple of coworkers have tried them and said they were good. He had them still covered with the foil I put on them this morning so I told him they would be fine if he took the foil off. Too much information right there, wasn't it?

Tonight is Mexican food with a friend while David plays softball.

I have this fear. I'm afraid that if I act excited about the Mariners winning the last 2 games their winning streak will end. Who am I kidding? Their winning streak will end whether I mention it or not. I love my team, but I'm realistic about this season.

Oh Raul.

Why does your bat start heating up only after the Mariners become the worst team in Major League Baseball?

It's supposed to be in the 90s here in Seattle today. Pretty unusual for us, but I don't mind it. I'm glad David and I put A/C in our home last year. Most homes in the Pacific Northwest don't have A/C - builders definitely don't automatically include it. I love that I can still bake and cook in my A/C house even when it's 90° outside.