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Happy Thanksgiving!

This is by far my most favorite holiday. Turkey, lots of fun with family, food and pumpkin pie that I make from scratch.

Pumpkin Pie From Scratch

This year I’ve added a new and daunting aspect to my pumpkin pie.  This year I’m diving off the cliff and making my pie with fresh crust not store bought crust.

In the past, I thought that I just didn’t possess the kitchen / baking prowess to create my own crust.  That was until I went to our friends and past clients, Rick and Belinda Davis.

Belinda is from Oklahoma originally and has that southern charm that just makes ya want to give her a kiss every time she opens her mouth.  She is just so sweet!

Along with being from the south comes the easy kitchen prowess.  She whipped up homemade crust like pouring milk into a bowl of Cheerios, she made it look that easy.  It was delicious!

Fortunately for me, she was willing to share her recipe with me.  But as I don’t have her permission to share it with you, you’ll have to do some major sucking up to get it!

No, you should be able to find it all over the internet along with my recipe for Eagle Brand Pumpkin Pie.

Here is a link to the recipe that I’ve used to make “the best pumpkin pie I’ve ever had” for 20 years.  Mess with the spices to taste and don’t get too locked in to the recipe spices if you can avoid it.  Following the instructions make it just about dummy proof.

I add a little cloves, a bit more cinnamon than it calls for cause that’s the way my wife likes it. (mother in law had the cloves idea)

The difference for me is that I use pumpkins, clean, peel and boil to get the meat where it’s pie ready.  I don’t use pumpkin from a can….NOT that there’s anything WRONG with that!  If you go this route, use sugar / baking pumpkins not the jack o’ lantern variety.

I hope you have many things, as I do, to be grateful for.  I know a lot of us have had a tough time with the economy and such.  It really serves to prove that the only things that really matter are family, love and giving to one another.

Those things can’t evaporate in a recession, be foreclosed on or sold short.  You don’t have to get approval from a bank, write 50 offers or give 4 pints of blood to qualify!  You’re in!

Get out there and have an awesome holiday!

Wishing you abundance and joy………..

Thanks for visiting!  I’m most grateful that you have.

Tags: pumpkin pie

My First Gardenia of the Year

It’s That Time of Year

Ahhh, a post about nothing in particular.  Sometimes I need to do that.

I love gardenias.  I wore one on my wedding day although they can fade pretty fast especially in heat.  I love the smell of them, it’s kind of intoxicating. My wife thinks they are a little too fragrant.  I can’t argue with that.  That’s what I like about them.

Flowers that don’t have a scent just don’t do it for me.

I always look forward to the first blooms of the year, feed them the “flowering food” in hopes that they will come out a little earlier but it always seems to be right around this time.

My mother in law has one in her backyard that seems to always have flowers on it but they are much smaller.  I think although I’ve never researched it, that there are several varieties of them as the plant looks a little different than mine.

Sappy post, I know.  Thought I’d share.

Thanks for visiting!

Tags: gardenias

My Favorite….

Chinese Food In Rocklin

Chang Brothers Chinese has been in Rocklin behind Safe Credit Union on Stanford Ranch Road since around 2002 or 2003.  My wife and I moved here from the bay area and were having trouble finding good Chinese food other than downtown Sacramento.  When Chang’s opened all that changed.

I can’t claim to know what “authentic” Chinese is like.  I have some Chinese friends and from what they tell me, I’m ok with that!  Chang’s is the good, solid Chinese food that has become mainstream in American culture without the chickens feet!

My favorite dish, while there are many, is the General So Shrimp.  A little fried but it’s light, a touch spicey and very good.  That said, you really can’t go wrong and if Jack Chang is cooking..you’re in for a treat.  He rarely cooks as he’s generally out front schmoozing with the guests but sometimes you can catch him in the back preparing food and when he does, it’s twice as good.

In addition to good food, Chang Bros. is also a good value and in these tight times, we all need good value.  You’ll get that and more at Chang’s.

If you do stop by, mention you read about them on my site.  It won’t do much for you but Jack will appreciate it.

Eat well, thanks for visiting!

Tags: chinese food rocklin

Strikes Family Bowling Center

Strikes Family Bowling Center Specials

The family and I went to Strikes again this Sunday for the Sunday morning before 11am special.  I had thought, as the ad said, that they were discontinuing this special as of 12/21/08 but they carried it forward making it a great value for a Sunday morning time out.  The playoff games were on as well, that was a bonus.

Here are some more specials I got while I was there:

Family Night Special – Monday through Wednesday from 3pm to 6pm.  An hour and a half of bowling and shoe rental for up to 6 people, one 16″ cheese pizza, one pitcher of soda and one $5 arcade card good toward the Rock Wall, Laser Tag or arcade games just $39.95.

Early Bird Special – Saturday and Sunday 9am to 11am.  $1.50 per game and $1.50 shoe rental.

Late Nights – Sunday through Thursday after 930pm.  $2.50 per game, $3 shoe rental or $12.50 for unlimited games and shoe rental.

Great place to go for family entertainment and sports.  There are flat screens every where.  It’s awesome.

Tags: strikes family bowling

Daycare in Rocklin

The Best Daycare in Rocklin

I’ve been meaning to write this post for sometime but it’s just been so busy with work that I haven’t had the time.  It’s good to get back to blogging.  I love it.

I wanted to write about the daycare, if you can call it that, that my son goes to.  It’s called “Kids Klub” and it’s here in Rocklin.  The owner, Cheryl, is about as awesome a person, “care giver”, lover of kids as anyone I’ve ever met.  What she does for the little people who call her house home a few days a week is nothing short of amazing.  My wife and I love her to death.

Daycare Dysfunction

Just over two years ago, we were looking for daycare for my son Ryan.  We had been in two or three others and they just didn’t measure up.  There were dysfunctional people running them and it just wasn’t what I wanted my child around.  I had insisted that we pull Ryan out of his third daycare and my wife said that it was my responsibility to find another.  She told me it wasn’t easy.

I went to the web, put in some search terms in the Google search bar and there she was amonst a couple others.  I called the others and they didn’t sound too great.  She was my last call before trying another group of search terms.

When she answered the phone, I explained that what I was looking for and she asked me how I found her.  Cheryl works largely from referral.  She’s is just that good.  I was lucky to find her, luckier that she had space for us and my son is blessed.  He loves her as all the kids do.  She is stable, loving and runs a very well organized business that teaches and cares for kids. l wouldn’t want my son anywhere else.

It’s More Like a Pre-School

Ryan has learned songs, letters, words and art from Cheryl.  Every holiday there are cards she helps the kids create.  Did I say every holiday?  Yeah, EVERY holiday.  She takes pictures of the kids with, at Christmas time, Santa hats on, we got mom and dad’s day cards.  She had a huge Christmas party at her house with Santa, the parents all brought some food to share and there were plenty of desserts.  It was one of the best Christmas parties we’ve been to in years.  The kids had a ball.  See the video below.

She has a schedule of meals that the kids eat and tracks the day of every child.  She is highly selective about the people she hires to help her and they have all been great.  What Ryan has learned there is more like a pre-school than a daycare where the kids are running wild.  The environment is very structured, loving and safe.  I just can’t say enough good things about her and Kids Klub.

Honestly, I don’t know how she does it and no one else does either.  We all just love her for what she provides for us.  Somewhere our children are loved, safe and in the best of hands.  What is more important than that?  For us, nothing is.

Tags: daycare in rocklin

Eagle Brand Pumpkin Pie

A Family Tradition

In the late 80′s and early 90′s, I was a PGA golf professional at a little club in Salinas, California named Corral de Tierra Country Club.  As I look back on my working life, it was probably the best job I’ve ever had.  The membership was phenomenal, people from the agriculture business who were hard working and enjoyed life.  The golf course, for my game at the time, was challenging, in great condition and I was able to play all I wanted.  The Head Professional, Gerry, was tough to work for but as I look back on it now, he was a very positive influence on my life and I depended on him for advice years later.  He’s a wonderful person.  I believe he is still employed there in the same capacity today which, for the golf business, is simply unbelievable.

The pros they had in the past didn’t get along too well with the ladies club.  Gerry was good with them but it seemed that I ended up with the Tuesday morning shift more often than the other guys.  That was fine with me, the ladies club was odd at times but overall I loved the shift.  I always made a big deal when any of them came in the shop and we had fun.

There was one lady in particular who took to me.  Her name was Doris Davis and she had to be close to 80 years old when I worked there.  She had a problem with one of the pros before me so she didn’t come into the pro shop much until the Tuesday morning shift was mine.  Like a lot of the other ladies, every time she came in, I’d give her a big hello and a little hug, she loved it.

One year, I think it was 1988, we got to talking about Thanksgiving and I told her I always wanted to make pumpkin pie from scratch.  Buy some pumpkins, boil them up and make pies.  She lit up and said she had a great pumpkin pie recipe that would work and would I like it.  I said that I would and she brought it in the next day.   That was 20 years ago.

A Simple Pumpkin Pie

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: newcastle produce, pumpkin pie, rotary club of roseville

My Favorite Dry Cleaner in Rocklin

I’ve been using Martinizing Dry Cleaning in Rocklin for the last year, at least, and they have done a GREAT job for me.  Never a problem.

I recommend them whole heartedly.  They will take great care of your clothes.

Enjoy and, as always, thanks for watching!

Tags: dry cleaners in rocklin, homes in rocklin, rocklin dry cleaners, sacramento real estate agents