Only in Big Bear

I loooove this town for many reasons, the small town mentality, the closeness of this community.  We have blessings of saying “only in Big Bear”.  It is not too many time that you can walk through the village and see a lady walking her ?horse?  Or a miniature horse pulling a lady on a cart, waiting at the light for it to change.  Makes me just laugh with the uniqueness of this town.Isn’t this guy so darn cute?  Check out the person looking outside the window of Chad’s Bar. 

 

This team is waiting for the light to change, awwww such good manners (do you see the person in the Suburban checking them out! 

LOOK WHO'S COMIN TO BREAKFAST!

I was sitting here playing on my computer and Andy was getting ready to cook breakfast. He went out to get a dozen eggs from the refrigerator outside. He walks in with it and opens the carton he let out a laugh that stopped me in my tracks! This is what he saw:


I got up and walked over to see what the hoopla was, good morning! I actually remember doing this a couple of months ago for a surprise and it worked. When Andy closed the carton to put it away, he let out another belly laugh. He walked over to me and showed me this!


I laughed so hard I had tears rolling down my face! What a happy little egg! Now for the third pictures, doesn't he look like he is looking a you and saying "I see you!" Or "Hey does this carton make my egg head look big"?



I crack myself up! Ha ha heee hee! I'm on a roll! Ha haaaaa!

I CAN'T believe I am posting my winning chili recipe! But for you...anything!

I have been hounded for my winning chili recipe. So after much thought, I have decided to post it. After all, I wanted to have this blog with recipes so what would be better than my chili?

I hope you love it as much as everyone else did! Let me know your thoughts!!!

1.5 lbs hamburger meat
1 large onion - chopped
1 can red kidney beans
1 can black beans
1 can chili beans
2 cans tomato sauce
2 pkgs taco seasoning
1 can of Rotel tomatoes (regular)
1 can cut up tomatoes
1 pkg of dry ranch dressing (not fat free type)
corn chips or corn tortillas
(I added extra cumin and Cheyenne pepper) did I spell that right?

Fry up meat then add onions to soften
In crock pot or regular pot
Add the meat
Add the beans with the juices
Add tomato sauces, cut up tomatoes and Rotel
Add taco seasonings, ranch dressing
Medium heat for Crock pot and simmer for stove top.
After a while I added tortilla chips because I didn't have corn tortillas. That is one of my secrets, it makes the sauce velvety and smooth, it also thickens it up too. Don't know the amount, I just took a bunch and crushed them. With the corn tortillas, I cut them into strips and add a little at a time until I like the consistently. DON'T use flour tortillas, it puffs up like a blow fish and floats on top, it's an ugly thing!

Taste and add salt if needed, I don't. I add extra cumin and Cheyenne pepper. You can also put frozen corn in it, I do but didn't because I forgot to buy it at the store. Good thing, because someone else did at the cook off and people commented that chili should not have corn in it. But I like it.

That's it! Boy is it fun to make, when people hear that you use Dry Ranch Dressing, they go yuck!! But that is what makes the flavor so good! Trust me as I adjust my crown...

I wonder why they have them..Llamas

I had the funniest thing happen, actually I laughed so hard I fell down!

Remember what I had posted about being glad that I was not raising llamas?

See, I had a couple of friends over for the weekend as they were driving down my road, he sees a llama in one of my neighbors yard. (Actually, a lot of neighbors own these creatures). The wife asks her husband, I wonder why they have them? The husband replies "For their eggs?" She was still laughing when they drove up to my house and tears were rolling down her face! When she finally caught her breath and she told me what he had said, I really thought he was joking, but alas he was SERIOUS!

So to all my city friends, llamas are not kept for their eggs!!!!! I will never look at these animals the same again!!!!

Ode to a Chicken

My favorite chicken is gone! I went out today to give them water and food and there was always one that jumped up on the table so I could pet her back and rub her neck.

I noticed that she didn't jump up immediately and thinking "She is probably outside" then I tapped on the table she didn't run in. I counted seven girls and even walked out to the back to she if she was there, NO CHICKEN! She's gone! How did that happen? Who took my chicken?!!! I am very sad tonight and wanted to write some words for her.

Ode to a Chicken
Little girl I knew you when you were a pullet.
You grew as fast as a bullet.
Hunting and pecking through the goodies
I never thought of you as a foodie
Our time together was not enough
I just wish you were still here for me to fluff
I will always remember you attacking my pinks pajamas
I am just glad I wasn't raising llamas!
(Give me a little slack I am grieving over here)


God bless you little chicken!

RIP - March 15, 2009 to November 3, 2009

Look what I just ordered!

I am soo excited! I guess I should have waited for Christmas but I just couldn't! I kept looking at it and looking at it, my mouth watering Ok I just had to have it, what is it, you ask? Well its, its....OK here ya go!



Don't cha just love it! I bought 2 more for Christmas gifts, I told you I was addicted to her, I am even thinking of going to one of her books signing maybe in Arizona, ok maybe I can wait but HURRY up to come out to California!!!!

Now when will it get here????

They're blowin SNOW!

Well its that time of year, I was going into town yesterday and saw what I thought was smoke (I am still in high fire danger mode). Which it was NOT! It was snow!

We are not in Denver where they were thinking they were going to get 4 FEET of snow, but hey we'll take what we can get for now, because in a couple of days it will be constantly cold!

Boys we have SNOW! Where's Andy's Beanie?

I am the Chili Queen!!

Guess What?!!!! I won the Chili Cook Off at our church's Harvest Festival last night! Talk about a wonderful surprise and boy was I shocked!!!!

Our church does a harvest festival and this is the first one Andy and I had been to. They announced that they were going to hold a chili cook off, and I said to myself "I am definitely getting in on that".

If you have read my posts in the past, I have been in the professional Chili-Cook Off for the past couple of years, only doing Chili Verde myself and the team doing red. Losing all the way, but having a blast doing it.

So I took my favorite recipe and for the heck of it, I tried it, and WON!!!!! When they asked over the speaker who's Crock Pot is this (my mouth dropped as I saw them walking down the aisle with it) I screamed like a little school girl!!!! I even jumped up and down! YaHOOOOOOO! I won! What did I win, where's my trophy? No trophy, what I got was bragging rights for the year, so here is my winning trophy. listen very carefully, I WON THE CHILI COOK-OFF! Yea!!! Where's my crown?

It was a great time, a lot of fun and the newby took the prize, yeah!!!!!

Missions Trip to Tecate Mexico...working at Rancho De Sus Ninos!

WOW, is all I can say. Our church or should I say our Mission Team at church had made plans to go to this orphanage in Tecate this month to offer our services with the construction of the facility.

I had NO idea what to expect. A little nervous, yes. A little scared, not really, but apprehensive DEFINITELY! Just not knowing is what kills me. I am the type that just jumps in and has to experience everything then make the decision to or not to do it again, I hate the 'NOT KNOWING". What was the apprehension? I am not totally certain, the condition of the orphanage, the children, would my heart heart so much that I couldn't stand it? Would tears fall down like rain and I beat my chest with sorrow? That is probably it, but alas NONE OF THAT HAPPENED!!!

What a WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE with the orphanage, that is. The trip....well.. let's just say (as I am laughing under my breath) was something you just have to experience. Hopefully, through my writing you will understand, maybe.

The RDSN (Rancho De Sus Ninos) had the directions on their website, which we printed up and Sandi had the directions via Google for the hotel. All set...let's go, only four of us ended up going instead of the 12 that we had expected, they were dropping like flies! So we took off and away we went, thinking this trip would take us about 3.5 hours instead of 6.5 hours.

The Mexican Government had closed (yes I mean CLOSED the exit for the orphanage. How in the world do you get there??? In my infinite wisdom I didn't write any phone numbers for them at the ranch. So we drive slowly to a gate that is located on the side of the road with NO signs. To make a very long story not as long, it took us three times trough the toll booth back and forth(a total of $19.00) then finally back to the same spot as the first time and Andy jumped the fence and walked through the facility until he found someone to unlock the gate. Thank God that John and Ingred had been there a couple of years back or we would have NEVER found it!

We were back there the next morning to wire the two buildings and between the four of us, we had BOTH building wired in about 5 hours! These building have been sitting for over a year just waiting to have electricity wired. The overseer, Pedro, said he had NEVER had a crew work so fast EVER! We ROCK!!!



We stopped at 1PM to have lunch with the children, ohh they were so sweet! Sandwiches were a big deal considering they usually have rice and beans for lunch, we were lucky that day! Dead tired on Saturday evening but back on Sunday to their church, something I was looking so forward to. All I can say was WOW! The band ROCKED, I don't understand Spanish, but I LOVED their music, it was Beautiful. Kids running around, people praising, everyone singing, sounded like Angles! There were over 300 people at this service and to see God working in this church is beyond words.

The houses are clean, spotless actually, the children happy to definitely loved, the whole group working as one.

I cried a few times when I was there on Saturday and on Sunday, but not for sorrow but for the love this place had.

Well, I am home, glad to be back, glad I went and I am looking forward to going there again soon!