Sore back and apples!

Have been busy, and just haven't been in here writting.  My neck has been hurting and I have big knots in my shoulders!  Stephani had tried to work them out when I was down to see her, but they are stubborn, and think coming from a neck issue.  Yep - and now have had two appointments with the chiropractor.  Xrays of neck aren't good.  Instead of a curve to my neck, my vertebraes are straight and show that arthritis is present too.  I can't turn my head to the right at all, and little to the left, and the xrays also show that a couple of vertebraes are protruding out to the left side.  Ugh. So now we are going to take care of the problem, and not just the symptoms.   I was having trouble all the way down in my left leg.  Amazing how one thing can affect another area.  The adjustments have helped and I'm not in as much pain, but it will take awhile.  I can't remember the name/term that he told me and explained what I have.  Makes me mad that I didn't write it down, so now wait for next week when I go back to do that.  My pain level is a lot better, and that does help as I've been able to sleep pretty good that last couple of nights.
I've been busy sewing and crocheting and spose all that sitting and reaching forward hasn't helped.  But I have to be busy.
Saturday I even make some applesauce!  Had been given a bag of apples from a neice and they needed to be used.  The house smelled so good when I was doing that!!!!   Wish I could have bottled that smell up to use again later!

I wish I would have taken pictures of my whole process.  The apples were smaller, but a little larger than the crab apples.  The apples were kind of sour, so this turned out really good. 

Crockpot Applesauce

3# apples - you can mix the types of apples you use.  Peel and quarter.

1/2 c sugar

1 cinnamon stick (I used 3)

2 TBSP lemmon juice

2 TBSP unsalted butter (I didn't have, so used salted butter)  (seems to have worked okey)

Place apples, sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon stick in small crockpot.  Cover and cook on high until apples are very tender; about 3-4 hours.  Keep checking, and stirring, because some apples are done sooner than others.  (mine only took 2 hours).

Remove cinnamon stick.  Mash any lumps with a potato masher.  Pour into storage container or containers.  Add butter and stirr.  Let cool and store in refrigerator.

(I hadn't read my directions carefully, and added the butter to the crockpot after making sure all the lumps were mashed up.- think worked out better, as I put my applesauce in small jars.  I think it would even taste good on toast!!!)

I had seen this recipe somewhere, and then in looking up homemade applesauce on line, other recipes added more spices.  I just know I'll do this again.  Really easy!

A quick note!

Steph's biopsy came back okey - benign!  Whoopee!!!  So now the doctor will watch to see if the nodule or growth grows.  They took nine samples and she was pretty tired after the biopsy was done.  She was to have given a horse riding lesson to a young girl that she canceled out of - she thought she'd feel better than she did.   She has been on medication and that seems to be helping so she isn't so tired.  Thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers!  

It's getting chilly here in Minnesota!!!!  I've had to dig out my lightweight winter jacket!  Can't complain tho - we've had a very warm fall.   More later.   

Nite out with Walter and the crew!

 Awhile ago, daughter Leah and Steve were over one everning, and they gave us a Christmas Letter saying:

Christmas is coming early this year.....

Do you need a hint:

How about ~

Jalapeno

Texas

Walter

Bubba

Peanut

Achmed

Any guesses?

Well - we figured it out right away!  I was so excited! 

  

 When the kids were over with the invite, we had to guess where we were going!  We figured it out, because with the puppets named above, you know right away that our early Christmas present was tickets to a Jeff Dunham show.  He came to Bemidji MN (about an hour away from us).  The kids and us went on Thursday evening.  It was a GREAT show and we laughed till our cheeks hurt.

We were in the perfect spot, the eleventh row, right in the middle!     Thank you Leah and Steve for a pizza supper and a great evening!!!!!!!!!

Leah and Steve - I had my flash turned off, and took a lot of pictures before the show.  You weren't suppose to take pictures during the show.  The following pic was up on the big screen before the actual show started.  I took over 90 pictures!

Oh, and Leah is such a funny planner and thinks of everything.  Dad and I each got a goody bag with

"Care Package" written on the outside!  Inside was some candy, a small package of kleenex, and an adult diaper!!!!!!!!   In case you laughed so hard that you pee your pants!!!!!!!     Funny Leah ~ she had such a great time planning our night out! 

Here's Jeff with "Peanut"  and in front of Peanut is a new puppet in the image of Jeff, and in his other hand, a little hand puppet in the image of a smaller Peanut.  That was Jeff's  last act for the evening.  I thought one picture wouldn't hurt!  Jeff is one talented ventriloquist!  His preshow was about him growing up and his love of his puppets.  That was very interesting.   He's been doing this since he was 8 years old!

Thank you Leah and Steve for a great evening!

 

Our Sept Renee Visit!

First picture after we got there, with Renee and the little pumpkin I grew.  Growing conditions were the greatest, and this is the ONLY pumpkin that grew!  But Renee didn't care!  She likes her pumpkin!

I'm so far behind on blogging that I don't even know where to start!?!?!  We had a wonderful trip south to see the kids and Renee and now have been home over a week and I haven't blogged yet ~ what's with me?  We've been so busy.  Steve is busy combining corn and working on  fall clean up, getting barns ready for winter, fixing ceilings and walls in one barn, and I've been busy too, but it doesn't seem like it has been such important stuff going on for me.  Cleaning house, washing floors; fall cleaning instead of what should have been done in the spring.  Only I know I've done some of this stuff more than once or twice this summer!  It's been so windy that it gets really dusty in the house ~ so it seems like I'm dusting all the time.  Have been out in the garden, putting decorations away, picking flower seed pods and still need to get the peonies ready for winter and dig the canna lilies.

From our trip I have some great pics of Renee that I'll share, and we came home a different way this time, drove East through Baton Rouge and up through Mississippi, to Memphis.  We stopped at Graceland on our way through Memphis, and spent 3 hours there.  A wonderful tour that we both enjoyed very much.  Elvis was such a musical icon to both of us and we still enjoy his music.  Stayed just north of St Louis that night and then got home the next evening.  Over 1400 miles in 2 days.

Renee helping Grandpa put together the antique 5 legged table that we brought with us for them.

They had a glass dinning table, and that now will be out.  It wasn't very kid proof.   This table has 3 12 inch leafs to make it larger for company, and will serve them good for many years to come.  The table is over 100 years old.

She is such great help!  Grandpa loved it!

We spent a lot of time watching volleyball, with Jessica coaching. 

We went to several Sugar Cane Festival events.  The livestock show to watch 4-H kids show their pigs.  Checked out all of the other animals there too.  Renee like the goats best.

We also went to the Friday night street dance and caught the tail end of the boat parade, saw the fireworks, and listened to great music for several hours that evening.  Jess and Floyd saw a lot of people they knew.  There were a LOT of people there.  Also went to the parade on Sunday afternoon, and then Sunday evening went to Mama and Papa's for supper and also cut out pumpkins early, so we could all be a part of having fun with pumpkins and Renee!  She sure liked the pumpkins!

Mommy and Renee did this one!

She sure loves the pumpkins!

I'm sure these are probably rotten by now, and they'll have to cut new ones when it gets closer to Halloween!

More trip pictures on next post. 

I need to get some crocheting done.  Have orders for hats and need to get them done.  Also working on getting some things done for a small craft show coming up.  Had not planned on doing any craft shows this fall, but this one came up and couldn't turn it down.  So now will be busier than I had planned on .  Oh well.  My plate seems to be getting bigger!!!!  Pile it on!!!!

I'm going to southern MN this week to send a couple of days with Stephani.  She is having a thyroid biopsy done on a growth on Wednesday.  Her thyroid counts have been all wacko, and hopefully they are getting things regulated so that she feels better.  She hasn't felt good for quite awhile.  But that hasn't kept her from the horse shows.  They are busy with them every weekend.  Talked to her yesterday and she did very well this weekend.    Hope you all have a great week and it's great to be back!   love ya, jo