Good Friday – “Were You There?”

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Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers.

And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.

And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!

And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.

And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him.

Matthew 27:27-31 KJV


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Happy Birthday to my BFF!

Who let the (old) broads out?

The first day of high school (Fall, 1974), the girl sitting in the desk in front of me in my first class (German II, with Herr Suhr) turned around and said, “Hi! I’m Becky.”
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It’s World Down Syndrome Day (03/21/2021)!

Our little munchkin, Rebecca (c. 2004)

I’m not usually big on “Awareness” Days, but I make an exception for this one, because it celebrates some very special people. The date that was picked (3/21) is no accident – on this date, we celebrate those wonderful people who have 3 copies of the 21st chromosome. Life in a family with a DS member is a whirlwind adventure!

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Saint Patrick’s Day meets Sesame Street meets “Danny Boy”

I tried to find this version of “Danny Boy” (Garrett Morris, SNL, 03/18/78), but it’s behind a paywall at Hulu…

One of the reasons that I love Saint Patrick’s Day is because it gives me an excuse to listen to one of my all-time favorite songs, “Danny Boy“.

If there were ever any doubt about my ancestry (I’ve got some “Kelly” and “Carroll” in my family tree), the way that this tune makes me feel like I’ve “come home” puts that to rest – there is no denying that music from the British Isles is the kind of music that stirs my soul.

In putting this post together, I listened to a LOT of different versions of the song, and I ran across one that surprised me. You see, I’ve only ever known Bob McGrath as a performer on “Sesame Street” – I didn’t have a CLUE that he had such an amazing voice!

When I heard this version, I knew that I had found “the one”:
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Sad.

Mom has been gone for a year.  I miss her every day.

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Happy Pi Day (03/14) [w/Buttermilk Pie recipe included!]

Yes, I’m a geek – I bought this for Rachel several years ago.
She’s a geek, too – she loved it….
(Okay, I bought myself one as well – couldn’t be letting her have all the fun!)

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It wouldn’t be Pi day without a recipe to fill that cool Pi plate, so here is my absolute, all-time favorite pie recipe, courtesy of my dear, sweet mother-in-law (you will definitely want to double it, because it is just that good!):
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Buttermilk Pie

(Makes 1 pie)

1 C. Sugar
3 Tbsp. Flour
3 Egg Yolks ***
2 Tbsp. Butter, melted
1 tsp. Lemon Extract
2 C. Buttermilk
1 pie crust

Mix all ingredients together and pour into an unbaked pie shell.
Bake at 350 degrees until firm (approximately 45 – 50 minutes).

Easy AND delicious – does it get any better than that?
Bon Appetit!
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*** The original recipe calls for meringue on top – I assume that the egg whites were held in reserve to make it. Other recipes for Buttermilk Pie that I have seen call for the entire egg to be used in the filling. While I have not tried this personally, I would imagine including the whole egg would not be a problem – this recipe is a little “runnier” than most; adding the egg whites would probably help firm the filling up a bit.
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Posted in Annual Posts, Family, Holidays, Humor, Just Because, Messin' with my kids, The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Happy 89th Birthday, Dad!

Today is my Dad’s 89th birthday. I can’t tell you how very glad I am that he is still here to celebrate with us – Paul lost his father a few years ago, and it is a loss that he feels every day.

This is Dad’s first birthday without my Mom to help him celebrate, and due to COVID, we can’t be there with him.  Hopefully by next year we will be able to visit with him!

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Happy Texas Independence Day! (2021)

Survivor_texas.
My dad sent me this a while back; since today is Texas Independence Day, I wanted to share them with you:

Due to the popularity of the “Survivor” TV show, Texas is planning to do one entitled: “Survivor – Texas-Style!”

The lucky contestants will all start in Dallas, drive to Waco, Austin, San Antonio, then over to Houston and down to Brownsville.
They will then proceed up to Del Rio, El Paso, Odessa, Midland, Lubbock, and Amarillo.
From there they will go on to Abilene and Fort Worth.
Finally. back to Dallas.

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The Best (Belated) Valentine’s Day Ever (a.k.a. “Boy Meets Girl”)

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Just a couple of kids…..

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It all started in a lecture hall at Texas A&M University in January, 1979. Yours truly was a freshman who started out in Pre-Med, but after one semester – and a tearful call home – I had decided to change my major to one which involved more math – Civil Engineering.

Well, the powers that be in the Engineering department told me that the Calculus class that I had placed out of as a Science major wasn’t really “the same as” the one they wanted Engineering majors to take, so I had to start all over again. I hadn’t changed my major until the spring semester started, so I missed the first “official” day of that class.

The next time that class met, I was sitting in a seat in the lecture hall, feeling quite lost since I didn’t know the professor’s name, office hours, etc. Some guy came in a little late to the class, looking all harried, and sat down in one of the few empty seats – right next to me.

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Breakfast for a Snowy Day – Amish Baked Oatmeal

Sometimes, you just have to do what the voices in your head tell you to do……

Several years ago, for some strange reason, I dreamed of Scottish Oatmeal – don’t ask me why; I’ve only heard of the stuff (maybe it was hearing my father-in-law talk about eating steel-cut oats for breakfast.  Who knows?).  I couldn’t shake this dream, so when I woke up, I had to go looking for recipes.

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Posted in Family, Foodie Friday, Recipes | Tagged | 4 Comments