today's goals

hmmmm
besides staying warm???
well i know i got dishes (duh)
i am going to again attempt to clean pens.......(one shovelful at a time... over 3'' of ice- while animals produces slightly LESS then one shovelful every few days????????)
OHOHOHOH
i made chicken and dumplings last night....it was wonderful. bernie was here in town working on the part of the fleet that's stationed here, so while he was late he was in town, which made his 'commute' about 7 minutes
he walked in to a STEAMING hot bowl of chicken with dumplings on top
it was literally done the second he walked in the door (i'm GOOD!)

ok fast way to make it
i had stock on hand from the non layers i had butchered a few months ago.
so i chopped some onions and browned them in a tiny bit of butter ( i used the BIG enameled cast iron sam's club dutch oven) then threw the still frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts in there with some water, covered into the oven
when the chicken had cooked enough to separate itself i took it out and cut it up into chunks
i added dried mushrooms crumbled
powdered dried celery
dried diced sweet peppers
and chopped fresh carrots
another cup or so of water
some garlic
back in the over for a bit to finish cooking the chicken (again covered)
then i made the dumplings

you can do bisquick dumplings which are down and dirty and quick as hell, which is what i made last night
i don't measure anything so bare with me

to a bunch of bisquick in the bowl
add some garlic powder
paprika
parsley
you can also add some shredded cheese and/or some butter buds powder
mix that up
now those are some of the combinations i use
sometimes i add some other things like powdered dried veggies
or dill and thyme
depends
then add some milk
not too much cause you don't want it soupie
it's like really thick pancake batter or muffin batter

bring the soup to a simmer
and drop the dumpling batter into the simmering supper
cover and let it steam for a while until cooked
that's it
serve hot in bowls

now today i am going to prepare a bit for our anniversary tomorrow
34 years
wow
actually i love bernie dearly, and there isn't anyone else for me
he's my world
now i get annoyed at him though especially when he's suffering the effects of testosterone poisioning.......
(ie: being a MAN)
but overall he's pretty wonderful
he's a city boy though, and doesn't quite still get country life, he grew up in apartments too......so homeownership and the repairs really upset him
but overall he's a wonderful, funny, compassionate (at times, he does seriously think i'm lazy! no matter what i do or how much i do) generous, smart person
he's good at what he does too
really good
and throughout all the ups and downs of our lives together
i would still marry him again!
he is my family and i think the key to me is......bernie and the animals always come first

anyway that is tomorrow
today i am also looking into some odds and ends about heating and energy rebates
i wish there was an easy way through this, or that bernie would take it on as a challenge but it's up to me
and it's not my strong suit
what i am trying to see if we can do is, get the walls/siding/insulations/windows replaced in the studio
and get rebates for it
i am trying to wade through that now
oye
i need a wiser head for this then i have

so folks ttyl