Winter Wonderland

What a beautiful morning.  We woke up to our first major snow storm of the year.  Overnight we got probably close to 6 inches of snow.  It is like a winter wonderland outside.  The trees are all laden with snow.  The first snow is always so pretty.  But by the end of winter we are wanting it to quit!!  Most of the schools are closed today.  It is still snowing so we could get another inch before it is all over.  So glad I can sit in my living room wrapped up in a blanket and just watch it snow.  

John and I are going to decorate for Christmas today.  He said he would help me get things down from the attic.  I don't decorate a lot.  What goes up in December has to come down in January.  My house is really small too so it is hard to do much more than the tree and my nativity

Yesterday we went to the T-Mobile store and got a new phone plan and new phones.  They have a plan for seniors that is $30 a month less than we are paying now at Consumer Cellular.  We got two free phones with it.  So now I get to play with my new phone and figure out all the new features.

Nobody got our resident bear in bear season.  He disappeared during hunting season and made an appearance right after upsetting our dumpster and scattering garbage all through the woods.  What a mess to clean up.  We are hoping he is hibernating now and will leave us alone until spring.

Yesterday we saw our two little gray squirrels.  They are so pretty.  They were scurrying through the hickory nut trees collecting nuts for the winter.  We have two little black squirrels as well but we haven't seen them in a while.  The deer come into our old picnic grove and eat the acorns.  There are a bumper crop of acorns this year and we have a high oak tree in the picnic grove. 

John and I are looking at new spots to vacation this year.  We are thinking of going with up on Lake Erie or Canadota Lake.  Both are just a couple hours drive from here.  We have to decide soon because you have to book your cabin in January for Memorial Day weekend.  We have been going to Pymatuning for years and decided we needed a change.

I am starting to look at my list of cookies to bake for Christmas this year.  I have to be careful and make sure they are ones John can eat that he won't be allergic to.  So I have to look at all the ingredients and make sure no dairy in them.  We are still experimenting and learning what he can and can't eat.  But it is so great to finally have a diagnosis and seeing him improving.  Cooking has been challenging but I am finding new dishes to make that take chicken and also how to substitute ground chicken and turkey for beef hamburger in recipes.  We are having fish a couple times a week as well.  I have a great fish batter that my sister gave me that is really good on perch or haddock.  Everyone says fish so expensive but with the price of beef now it really isn't much more.  I also like to make salmon patties and of course the tuna noodle casserole.  I make a dill sauce that I serve with the salmon that is really good.

Well that is all I have for now.  Gonna go watch it snow and make some oatmeal for breakfast.  Something warm on a cold morning.  Everybody stay safe that is in the line of this storm.