Wine on the Keyboard — Life, uncorked.

The Ultimate Scrapbook-or Not

by Kay~Kacey on 10/21/2008

You know how some people carefully plan out their pictures? They crop them and set them up in beautiful designs in their scrapbooks? Or at least they buy photo albums and stuff their photos in there?

That is so not me. You’re more likely to find photos I like tucked all around my house.

photos on window

Like taped up all around my window beside my computer where I can see them every time I look out the window. Or tucked under a magnet on my fridge. Or slipped into the mirror’s edge on my dresser. At Christmas time, when anyone sends me a photo in their Christmas card, I tuck it into the “seam” on my kitchen cabinets. The kitchen is cheerfully decorated with pictures of friends and family for the holiday season.

I WANT to be a scrapbooker. I really do. It’s such a great idea. It’s just that I never take the time to do it. I also worry that I’ll tuck all these photos in gorgeous scrapbooks…and hardly ever take them out to look at them. The way I have them scattered all around the house, I see them all the time. An ever changing vista of happy memories.

I also love to make DVD slide shows of photos set to music. Though, once again, how many times do people really play these DVDs?

How about you? Are you a scrapbook person? A blow them up and frame them person? Stuff them in a box? Make slideshows? What do you do with your photos?

Mom, he’s looking at me!

by Kay~Kacey on 10/20/2008

My kids used to always say that to me. “Mom, he’s looking at me!” Like that was some kind of ultimate transgression. Okay, I do miss that kind of funny nonsense around here sometimes. Sometimes.

But, who knew the birds would start talking nonsense to me too?

yellow shafted flicker

I spotted this lovely yellow shafted flicker out my window. Haven’t seen one in a very long time. He paused and posed for me, thinking he might be the next America’s Top Model or something.

Lady are you looking at me?

“Hey, lady, are you looking at me? Are you trying to figure out what type of bird I am?”

red spot on flicker

“Here, can’t you tell by the spot on the back of my neck? I’m a Yellow Shafted Flicker!”

(Me? Silly me. *I* thought the bird was bowing down to my photography greatness)

red neck on yellow shafted flicker

“Okay, fine, lady. Here’s a better shot. Make sure you get it from an angle. Catch my highlights.”

yellow shafts on tail

“Sigh. Let me make this easier for you, lady. See the yellow shafts on my tail? Hm, think that’s why they call me a yellow shafted flicker?”

yellow shafted flicker front

“Are you about finished, lady? ‘Cause I want to go back to eating. ‘kay?”

Kacey’s note: I don’t really think it’s fair for these birds to talk back to me too. Must be a male… And as a total aside, I kept wanting to type in Flickr (like my photo site) not flicker. 🙄

Easy Stuffed Chicken

by Kay~Kacey on 10/19/2008

How about a quick, easy recipe for stuffed chicken breasts? Yes, I’m fully aware that most of the recipes I post here have the word easy or quick in them. I’m an easy kind of gal. No, that didn’t sound right. Nevermind. You know what I mean. While I do have some time consuming, complicated recipes, I find as I get older, I rarely reach for them. So I’ll share with you one of my almost instant dinners.

Easy Stuffed Chicken Breasts

chicken breasts (however many you need to feed your family)
Chives (I prefer fresh, but if you don’t have them growing out your door like I do, use dried)
Cream Cheese (I prefer soft cream cheese, a couple 2-3 tablespoons per chicken breast.)
Bacon (one piece per breast)

easy chicken ingredients

Really, can it get much easier than this?

homemade spice rack

Get your chives right out your back door, or grab them off your homemade spice rack.

cream cheese and chives

Mix chives in with the cream cheese. I think I used about a half the tub of cream cheese for 4 large chicken breasts. Give or take. A couple of teaspoons of dried chives. Use more or less to taste.

stuff with cream cheese

Flatten the chicken breasts. (I flattened but didn’t pound them flat, you know?). Spread on cream cheese mixture.

wrap in bacon

Wrap in bacon and place open/stuffed side up on wire rack over baking pan. (I’ve also just baked them down in the pan, but I prefer to bake them up out of the grease/drippings).

Bake for about an hour on 350. (Note to self, use regular sliced bacon, not this thick sliced bacon I used this time so the bacon gets crispier.)

There you have it! The main course of a romantic dinner for two…

don't forget me