So Long 2010, Here Comes 2011

With only a few hours left of 2010, I thought I'd look back at the year that was.
1. I turned 50. A big deal and not a big deal all at the same time.
2. Lots of Travel. San Antonio, New Orleans, Chicago, Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, and New York for the US Open.
3. Outdoor Baseball. Target Field is a little piece of heaven on earth.
4. Knitting. A year for sweaters. I made five and am working on a sixth. There were a few hats, blankets, a shawl, and some other little items, too. (Gotta keep busy.)
5. A New Garden Fence. After several years of procrastinating, I finally got it together and rebuilt the fence around my garden. Rabbits be damned.

With 2011 around the corner, I think I'm going to try to:
1. Get outside more often this winter. I'm a better person after I've inhaled some fresh air---even if it's frigid fresh air.
2. Pray more. I say that every year. Hope I'm getting better.
3. Plant early spring vegetables. I'm always behind.
4. Knit a big project. Japanese pattern? Blanket?
5. Bake pastry. (Maybe. I want to learn, but do I really need to eat more fresh pastry?)

Happy New Year!

Slow Cooker Bacon Jam

When I browsed through my latest copy of Everyday Food, I immediately noticed the recipe for Slow Cooker Bacon Jam. Bacon tends to get my attention and the very idea of making a jam with its tasty goodness as the main ingredient sounded intriguing, so I tore out the page with the recipe and stuck it in my stash.

This "to-be-tried" recipe stash is my source of inspiration when I'm heading off to the grocery store and every time I came across this clipping for Bacon Jam, it called out to me. But Bacon Jam, really? I couldn't decide if it sounded wonderful or positively dreadful. Eventually, I succumbed and let me tell you, it's amazing stuff.

Initially, we tried it plain on toasted bread with a glass of red wine. Mmmm. Then we spread a little on a hamburger. Oh boy! And just the other night we had it on a ham, Swiss cheese, and pear panini. Whoa!

This has been a great time of the year to make it, too. Share the wealth. I brought a jar to a party last weekend, and it was fun to see people's reaction when they tried it and then heard what it was.

Just as an FYI...as much as I love bacon, I hate the way the house can smell of bacon long after the bacon is gone, so I was concerned about having this stuff stewing away in an uncovered crock pot for several hours--one of the reasons I was on the fence about making it in the first place. I browned the bacon with the exhaust fan from the stove running, as usual, and found the aroma from cooking the jam afterward to be pleasant. No worries.

Yeah, We Got A Lot of Snow

Let's Grill! The old Weber is under there somewhere, and it's all the way up to 5 degrees.

Aw, maybe not.

The snow started falling here late Friday and didn't let up until Saturday night. All that snowing and blowing made it a great weekend to hunker down at home and get going on some Christmas decorating.

This morning, however, it was time to get out and dig. Even though the temperatures had taken a nosedive, the sun on the new snow made it fun to be out. (At least that was my thinking. I'm not so sure about my grumbling spouse who was murmuring something else under his breath while he was digging out the front sidewalk.)

The snow blower took care of the driveway, but we did have to shovel out the porch. Usually, we can sweep away what little snow blows through the screens, but this time the broom wasn't going to cut it. One big, hard-packed drift covered half the room.

By this time, even though my fingers were too cold to adjust the filter on my camera, I just had to get a picture of the snow hats on the bird feeders in the backyard.

According to one of our local weathermen, we've already received two-thirds of our normal snowfall totals for an entire winter---and it's not even officially winter yet. Don't you just love global warming?

This does make for great knitting weather. I mean, this is it. We are entering prime knitting season! So when I was out shopping last week, I stole away enough time to grab some yarn for a new project. I still have a ways to go on my current project, but I'm not about to run out of yarn if another storm hits---or worse, if my mother-in-law is here for a holiday visit. That would be horrible.

I've decided to quit being a big baby and give two-color knitting another shot. What if I try it with a knitting-in-the-round pattern? Would it be so horrible? EZ's Fair Isle Yoke Sweater might be the ticket.

I should have it done about the time those drifts out in the backyard melt.