The Boys

Ya didn't really think I was gonna post something without a picture of Fred and his predecessor Barney did you?

Menopause Relief??

Here it is, my serving of tofu! Doctor Pop recommended some soy, so I made hot & sour soup. Great choice when your having hot flashes? maybe not, but it's good and it has soy tofu in it. It can't hurt!
We followed Dr. Pop, as patients, to London when she moved as she is such a good doctor. She is the way all doctors used to be. She is very thorough and takes the time to listen when you go to see her. She remembers you and your family and is genuinely concerned. They don't make many like that any more, which is why she is worth the drive to London!
Back to my menopause moments.....At this point I will try anything to get my hot flashes under control before Fred comes home! Although, stress does make them worse, so maybe when "Fabulous Fred" comes home I will be so happy that they will just stop completely!! Well, a person can dream, can't they! I just can't wait until we are coming home from say, a football game, and we see Freds little face in the front window waiting for us, just like Barney used to do. It just warms your heart!! All I know is while we wait until Fred is old enough to come home he couldn't be in better hands than Becki at autumnblazebassets.webs.com/ she really takes good care of them.
So, on to my recipe for my version of hot & sour soup!

3 cartons of Campbell's Low Sodium Chicken Broth
1 14g (.5 oz.) package dried shiitake mushrooms, reconstituted and chopped
1 can sliced bamboo shoots, drained
3 tbsp. soy sauce
2 1/2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1-1" piece of ginger
1 cup leftover pork, cut into small strips
2 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tsp. pepper
350 g PC Blue Menu extra firm tofu, drained and cut into cubes
1 carrot, cut into 1" strips and julienned
1 can beansprouts, drained
Green tops of 3 green onions, cut into 1" strips and julienned
3 tbsp. cornstartch
6 tbsp. water
2 large egg whites, beaten
1-2 tbsp. sriracha hot chile sauce
1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil

Combine first eight ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer 5 minutes. Add vinegar, pepper, beansprouts, carrot, green onion and tofu. Cook 2 minutes. Combine cornstartch and water; add to pan and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Slowly drizzle in egg whites while stirring. Remove from heat and stir in hot chile sauce and sesame oil.

Awwwwww!!!!!

Need I say more?

Barney's Favourite

It was really hot today, so I decided to stay in and use up the gruyere cheese I had to make Barney's favourite scones. Okay, it wasn't so much the scones he loved as the bacon and cheese that went in them. I always shared just a little bit with him; the ends of the cheese I grated and a few bits of bacon. It was lonely in the kitchen, but I managed to bake 80 appetizer bacon and cheese scones. We ate a few tonight and the rest I freeze in ziploc bags to reheat for a quick appetizer to serve company or just to have with soup. I got this recipe from the LCBO Entertaining Book and I love it. It's easy and they bake up fast. Since I still have 15 days (after tomorrow) to wait until we bring Fred home, I will probably be doing a lot of cooking to keep myself busy, the waiting is a killer. So here is the recipe for Barney's favourite scones.

Gruyere and Bacon Scones

1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. cold butter
1/2 cup grated gruyere cheese
1/2 cup cooked and crumbled bacon, about 6 cooked slices
2 tbsp. fresh chopped parsley
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or coat with cooking spray. Stir flour, salt and baking powder together. Cut in butter. Add gruyere, bacon and parsley. Mix in milk until soft dough forms. Divide in two. Turn out onto floured board and knead each piece 2-3 times. Pat each piece out to 3/4" thick rounds and cut into eight wedges. Brush each with egg. Bake 10-12 minutes. Can freeze and reheat from frozen, uncovered at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

The Long Weekend

Had a long night last night. We used to dread the fireworks on the long weekend as we were always up trying to sooth Barney. We used to turn on all of our fans, t.v.'s and anything that would make noise to try and drown out the fireworks noise from outside. I would to sing to him as he laid on top of me and drooled and shook. I used to think boy one of these days we'll actually get to watch the fireworks. Well, that day was here and I just didn't care. I would have traded it in a heartbeat to be soothing that drooling hound again.
The rest of our weekend was awesome! We picked out Fred on Saturday. Sunday visited with some of our friends showing off puppy pics. Monday had the kids for a barbecued octoberfest sausage, burgers, salad, lemonade and ice cream cones! Yummy!! Is that long weekend food fare or what!! Even got some yard work done. The weather was great! Finally hot and sunny!
Becki from autumnblazebassets.webs.com/ sent a couple more great pics of Fred last night, just more to keep me going! Three weeks today we bring "Fabulous Fred" home!!!

The Winner

.......and the winner is "Puppy G". Yes, puppy G is now officially "Fred"! We were so anxious to get to Becki's and pick out Fred today. We packed a lunch and headed out on the highway at 8:30 a.m. this morning.It took us two hours and boy was it worth the drive to Brigden. Puppy G came right over to me and that sealed his fate as our new baby!! (He's obviously not stupid!) It was so great to see him wobbling around with all his sisters and his brother. We had never seen that many basset hounds before, as we saw not only the pups, but Lola and Chuck (the mom and dad) also their other bassets. You can sure tell they have a good home! It was nice to meet Becki in person, she is super nice.
We took lots of pictures to get us through the next three weeks of waiting 'til we head back out to bring our new baby home! June 14th will be the day!!

Tomorrow's the day!! Finally we go to pick out "Fred"!! Becki sent some updated pictures last night and OMG are they cute! I can't wait to see them in action to make my pick (sorry Steve I mean OUR pick)ha!ha! Come on, we all know he is going to be my new baby, but if your good I might let you pet him. lol!
Off to physio, gotta get this arm working right before the baby comes home!! Stay tuned "cause tomorrow I reveal "the pick"!!!!

Decisions

Who's it going to be????? Puppy "G" or Puppy "H" Only time will tell. So, stayed tuned.....Well, it's only two more days until we go to Autumn Blaze Kennels autumnbazebassets.webs.com/ to pick out our new baby! (a.k.a. "Fred, Freddy, the Fredster") I'm taking my camera so I can have some more pics to keep me going until we bring him home in three weeks. The waiting is going to be even harder after we pick him out. We have already bought his crate, dishes and his first toy, "The Wonder Rat". Oh, it's going to be a great summer!
Barney taught us a lot about basset hounds. So, I think we are better prepared this time. They are a unique breed. "Once you go Basset, you never go back!" :)
My daughter and her husband will be getting their new house the same weekend we get Fred. I am so happy for them. It is the perfect house for them to raise "my grandbabies" and take Fred to visit (better puppy proof while your at it Brandi!). Things are working out perfect. I do believe everything happens for a reason.

My Poor Baby!

Barney, feeling a little down after he broke his leg. Poor baby!

Life With Barney

Yesterday was a month since Barney's passing. I still feel pretty lost sometimes. Barney was always there with me and it's hard to let go. I'd like to say he was my "sous chef" in the kitchen, but I guess he was more like the "quality control", he had to taste the quality of everything I made before it left the kitchen. I'm am trying to get back in the kitchen but I miss my sidekick. Tonight I made Chicken Paprika and spatzle. Chicken was Barney's FAVOURITE. Oh, wait, so was steak, weiners, hamburg and well just about anything. He loved it when I baked. He was always the first one there when things came out of the oven. Especially bacon and gruyere scones. Duh! Bacon AND cheese, go figure. One thing I learned quickly with Barney is you never go barefoot in the kitchen. You learn fast after slipping in that first puddle of drool!
Life with Barney was never boring. He broke his hind leg when he was 6 months old. A section of an old wooden fence we were replacing at the time, gave way and fell over. I screamed, both Barney and Bear ran but Barney being a pup didn't quite make it and it caught him in the back end. We were lucky he wasn't hurt worse. Of course it happened on a Friday afternoon, so after our vet had taken x-rays and determined he needed it surgically set by a specialist, all she could do was tape it up for the weekend. My husband and I spent all weekend up with that dog. It was actually the first time we watched the Westminster Dog Show as it was the only show on at midnight. Well, after six weeks with a cast, pins in his leg, and a lot of TLC Barney healed up great!
Our first trip to the cottage with Barney, I had to bring him home early as it was too hot for him and he got sick and developed a rash. So, I drove him in the air conditioned car to our air conditioned house while my husband stayed the last few days at the cottage with the kids.
It all worked out, we just bonded more and of course Barney had more room on the bed until Steve (hubby) got back.
Now that the weather is getting warmer and we're getting the patio set and porch swing out it is yet another thing that reminds me of Barney. My lounge chair, oh sorry, Barney's lounge chair that he used to share with me seems too big now just for me. The porch swing, well when he was younger (us too) he always had to lay up there on my lap while we slowly swayed. It would put him right to sleep along with my leg he was laying on! But the last couple of years he wasn't up to it and we were afraid he would hurt himself. He was content to lay on his comforter at our feet.
Barney thought this house and everything in it was his, and you know what, he was right and I thank God everyday he let us share it with him!

Here is the cinnamon bun recipe that I made on Mother's Day. I'm always trying different recipes to find a gooey, light and fluffy bun. This one is from RecipeNut at Recipezaar.com. I tweeked it a little bit using some margarine instead of all butter to make it a little more "heart freindly", but they are great fluffly buns!

Dough:
2 pkgs. active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup warm 1% milk
2/3 cup Becel margarine
1 tsp salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
7 cups of all-purpose flour

Filling:
1/2 cup Becel margarine
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 tbsps. cinnamon
1/2 cup melted butter

Glaze:

4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1% milk, added by tbsps.; just to make a spreadable glaze

In large bowl; mix warm water, warm milk, sugar and yeast. Set aside.
In bowl of stand mixer with paddle attatchment; mix margarine, salt and eggs stirring well to combine; add yeast mixture mixing well. Add half of the flour and beat until smooth, then add remaining flour, switching attatchment to dough hook half way through,(it will be sticky). Knead for 5 minutes.
Place in well greased bowl, cover and let rise until double in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.
Punch down and let rest 5 min.
Roll out on floured surface to a 16 by 20 inch rectangle.
Spread dough with the 1/2 cup of margarine.
Mix together sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle 3/4 of mixture over dough.
Roll up jelly roll fashion and pinch edge together to seal.
Cut into 18 slices.
Coat bottom of 2-9x13in. baking pans coated with the 1/2 cup of melted butter. Sprinkle with remaining sugar/cinnamon mixture.
Place 9 cinnamon rolls in each pan, cover and let rise in warm place 45 minutes, or until doubled in bulk.
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
Bake 25-30 minutes until nicely browned. Cool slightly.
Prepare glaze and spread over rolls. Enjoy!!

My Baby - 11/10/99 - 04/16/2010

I got going through all the pictures of Barney while having my morning coffee (boy what a bitter sweet experience!) and decided to put together a little video (my first ever attempt) of my baby. I think it turned out pretty good. I just hope Fred can bring us as much happiness when we get him! Barney was definitely "unforgettable" and will forever hold that special place in my heart. I still miss his smell, his warm body, his sassing back, his snoring, his slobbering and his unconditional love. Everyday is a little better, but the loss will always be there.
I know some people would say, "why look at pictures and go on about it" well all I can say is "why not?". He was a huge part of this family and deserves to be honoured and remembered always. It's the least I can do after all he did for me. And if that takes shedding some tears and having some long nights, so be it. His life is to be celebrated not kept in a closet so we don't think about it.
So, to whoever sees Barney's video, I hope you enjoy it.

Stayed tuned for my cinnamon bun recipe (Barney loooved it when I baked). I made them for Mother's Day and thought I would post it.
By the way my Mother's Day was just awesome!

The Yee's
- My daughter Brandi, her husband Phill and the two grandbabies Cameron and Emma
Check out yeewittlethings.blogspot.com/

Well, it's Mother's Day and no dog slobber to be found.(sigh!) We've been to the cemetary and took my Mom some purple lilacs. House work is done (with Stevie's help), cinnamon buns are rising in the kitchen, ceasar salad prep is done and now we are just waiting for the Yee's to come with the bucket of chicken. Oh, yeah and she said she has a gift (he!he!). My daughter always comes through for me! I don't know what I'd do without her.
After our Mother's Day meal, I have a date with "Wolf Blass" and a little thing called "Pinot Noir" and if Steve is lucky, I'll let him open the bottle for me (ha!ha!).

Becki from Autumn Blaze Bassets just sent us some new pictures of the boys! Thanks so much Becki! These pics really help keep us going. It's going to be tough picking one of these little guys.
I've been looking through Barney's baby album that we have and I would love to post some of his "younger" pics, but they all seem to be on my old computer, so I have to figure out how to get them onto this one. It's funny because when we got Barney he was supposed to be my husband's dog, I had a six year old long haired Belgian Sheepdog named Bear and wasn't stuck on bassets (duh! what the heck was I thinking). All I could think about was the slobber. Let me tell you, in under a week Barney had won my heart!
Him and Bear were best buds. They did everything together. Bear was Barney's chew toy and seemed to love it! Sometimes when we would come home after being out for awhile and the house would look like a cyclone hit it, but both dogs would be lying there peacefully sleeping. We always thought it would have been great to have a hidden camera on them. They had a blast! Barney was heartbroken when we lost Bear 4 years later. We helped each other get through it like we did so many things. Even though I think he did more for me.
Then I always thought I would go back to a "taller" big dog after, god forbid, anything happened to Barney. It's easy to talk tough when you still have your baby with you. Now that Barney is gone and his urn sits on the table by his side of the couch, I could not ever see my life without a basset! He won this whole family over and made us basset people for life!! Thanks Barney, for being you!

Being up late at night doesn't seem the same without Barney. He would always saunter up beside me and wag his tail waiting for me to pet him, then he would curl at my feet. He was always great company no matter what I did. We sure do miss that warm spot on our bed! Barney was one of he best additions to this family that we ever had. He completely enriched our lives and taught us patience. I am thankful that our grandkids are young, (Cameron 2 1/2, Emma 7 mths) so they will get to grow up with Fred.

One of these boys will be ours!

Here are the pups at one day old. How cute is that!! The parents are Lola and Chuck. There are 6 girls (two red and white and 4 tri-colour) and 2 males (both tri-colour).

Can't sleep again, thinking about my baby and having a menopause moment; so I thought I'd post some pictures and share the link to Autumn Blaze Bassets. This is a small family run kennel where we will be getting Fred from. autumnblazebassets.webs.com/ The pups were born on April 19th. We get pictures every week and are going to pick "Fred" out on May 22nd:) We don't get to bring him home until later in June:( Well, the wait will be worth it. It gives us time to get his things ready and puppy proof our house. It will be so nice having a new pup running around. I can't wait to love and take care of him.

In honor of my late basset hound, Barney a.k.a. Barn, Barn; I have decided to start a blog. Not only will it help me deal with the loss of one of my best friends, it will also serve as a life long diary for Fred. Fred is the new basset hound puppy I will be bringing home in late June. I know Fred cannot replace Barney, but he will help fill this hole in my heart.