Beautiful music and wonderful company!

This afternoon was filled with beautiful music and wonderful company! Aproximately 95 women and 2 men gathered this afternoon for a luncheon hosted by Women in Christ United. The beautiful chapel at Roneys Point Presbyterian Church was the back drop for The Thursday Morning's Music Group's Chorus to perform a variety of songs. Their voices blended together and rose to the heavens in harmony. The versatility of the selections range from Perry Como to Spiritual soul touching melodies. Several women sang solos and Anita Chops did the directing. We then had lunch at Generations Restaurant and Pub,http://generationswhg.com/home.php . The lunch special was a crab cake sandwich with lobster sauce, tomato, and lettuce. Hopefully, this scrumptious sandwich makes it to the regular menu. The atmosphere was warm and the service was efficient and professional.

The Hills Are Alive With...Zucchini

It's the time of year when you need to be suspect of the neighbor or friend offering you tomatoes. The tomatoes will no longer be delivered in a clear bag or in a basket. You'll be handed a brown bag that feels slightly heavier than normal. Before you plan the day for canning tomatoes you need to empty the bag. I have found that frequently in late summer the bag only has enough tomatoes on the top to hide the abundance of zucchini on the bottom. I've been raised that you should always accept gifts from the garden when you add that to the "its a sin to waste food" bylaw it becomes a challenge to use all the zucchini. To help with the dilemma try the Zucchini Fritter below. You can add jalepino peppers to the mix if you like heat in your food. Salsa is a perfect dipping agent for these delectable treats! Zucchini Fritters Ingredients 1 large zucchini, finely chopped or grated 1 small onion, chopped jalepeno pepper finely diced (optional reduce onion to half) 3 eggs, beaten 1/4 cup freshly grated Romano cheese 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 1 cup 2% milk 2 cups all-purpose flour salt and pepper to taste garlic powder to taste onion powder to taste cayenne pepper to taste, optional, provides a bit of kick 1/4 cup vegetable shortening Directions: In a large bowl, mix together the zucchini, onion, eggs, Romano cheese, Parmesan cheese, milk, and flour. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and cayenne pepper. Heat about 1 tablespoon of shortening in a large skillet over medium heat. Drop 1/4 cupfuls of the batter into the skillet, and flatten slightly with the back of a spatula. Turn fritters over when the center appears dry. Cook on the other side until golden brown. Add more shortening to skillet as needed, and continue with remaining batter. About 2 and a half dozen fritters.

Road trip with Mom...

We started out at 8:20 am. My Mom insisted on driving. I think the fact that she makes the trip to my Aunt and Uncle's home in Irwin, PA in an hour and a half to my 2 hours maybe the reason for her insisting on driving. My 71 years old Mom displayed the reflexes of a 20 year old when a man in a truck pulling a trailer crossed into our lane. She zigged and then she zagged avoiding the concrete divider and his vehicle. I think I was more rattled than she was after the incident. Her only response was to pass him honking her horn and shaking her fist at him...very IMPRESSIVE. If I had been driving we probably would have ended up like smashed flies on a wall. My Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Phil live in Irwin, PA. They are very gracious and have a warm, inviting home. We visited for a bit and then went for lunch. We had lunch at Bella Mimi's Restaurant And Catering in Jeannette, PA. The restaurant offers fine Italian cuisine in a relaxing, clean, and friendly environment. The food was outstanding. I got the chicken devonshire and french fried sweet potatoes. We shared the fries as our dessert after our meal. My Uncle ordered his angel hair spaghetti with an oil and garlic sauce. My Mom changed her order to the same. The spaghetti and meatballs were done to perfection as the empty bowls gave testimony too. My Aunt's salad was colorful and crisp with a light Italian dressing that she enjoyed. My Uncle had to work so he left and generously treated us to lunch. On our way back to my Aunt's home we stopped to visit my Aunt Shirley. She was on her break at work. I sat down beside her and bumped her arm. She jumped and exclaimed, "Sheri". I feel that since she recognized me I obviously have inherited my Mom and Aunt's genes. We dropped my Aunt off at her home anad had an uneventful trip home!

A Visit to The House Of Carpenter

Triadelphia United Methodist Church is a small community minded church. We collect food items to help support the House of Carpenter. The House Of Carpenter is a Methodist based ministry established in 1964 to help the poor. Its located at 200 South Front Street in Wheeling, WV.
Yesterday, a fellow member of the church and I delivered our items that had been donated to the House Of Carpenter by our members. This was my friend's first visit. She was amazed at the size of the building and how beautifully it had been renovated.
We dropped our items off and went inside to take a short tour. The thrift store was clean. It was staffed with personable  people eager to help. They had a wide variety of clean, stylish clothing priced for 25 cents. A selection of books, jewelry, tapes, and pottery were also available to purchase.
A gentleman showed us where the food pantry was located. He told us that they had provided food for up to 850 families in one month. The new leadership has been requesting a variety of items a tad different from the normal requests. Yesterday we delivered soup and crackers along with peanut butter and jelly. In the past we had been asked to collect spaghetti sauce and pasta. These items are popular and easy to fix. Our congregation enjoys donating food that is kid friendly. 
Those who wish to make a monetary donation can mail it to: the House of The Carpenter, 200 S. Front St., Wheeling, WV 26003. For more information about helping the House Of Carpenter, call 304-233-4640.

Through the eyes of a 2 year old...

I took my grandaughter for a walk around the lakes at Oglebay. I had forgotten how magnificent the world looks through the eyes of a 2 year old. Her face was an incredible explosion of expression. Her eyes twinkled, and her mouth would turn up in delight at the amazement of the simplest things. I thought I'd share some of her comments on our exursion.
There was only one gaggle of geese at the lakes yesterday but they were noisy and argumentative. Kel's was totally memorizes until they decided to bring their disputes to us. When the geese came ashore bickering back and forth Kel's looked at me and said. "Mum let's walk quietly away." She then started tip toeing away with her finger on her lips.
Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera.
 A bit further down the path we saw a turtle on a rock with his neck stretched towards the sun. He resembled bathing beauties everywhere. The sun filtering through the trees had him spotlighted on the rock. Kel's asked me, "Is he singing Mum?" With that our singing bathing beauty became an Olympic swimmer and dove into the lake...
On the path between the 2 lakes we watched a chipmunk scurrying through the fallen leaves. To me his travels looked random. To Kel's he looked as if he was playing hide and seek. She laughingly told me that he he didn't hide very well.
The upper lake is smaller. Yesterday it was geese free. Kels seemed to find this lake much more to her liking. She noticed that the leaves were falling off the trees. She asked, "Mum, why is the tree losing the leaves?" I explained that autumn was coming and trees were getting ready for winter. She replied, "Ok, its cold in winter right?" I said. "Yes." She grinned and said, "I like winter."
When we left the upper lake and started down the path to Schenk lake she took my hand and said, "I dont want to lose you." I looked down at her wondering what she could ,mean. Her and I were the only 2 people on the path. I said ok and asked, "How is this path busy?". She pulled me down and said, "Look." There were ants and other bugs all over the path. They were scurrying everywhere. I laughed at her and agreed that the path was very, very busy!