E-mail from my Sister -- Too Funny!

Yesterday afternoon, I received an interesting e-mail from my sister:

Julie, you really HAVE to try this on your next camping trip, it is easy and can fit into one of your camping over the fire type kettles, and I KNOW you and your kids will love it!!! One of the girls made it yesterday for a work party and it's all a matter of "DUMPING" it all in the crockpot and giving a bit of a stir and let it go! Doesn't get any easier than that!

~M

Here is the recipe for the corn casserole:

2 eggs
1 can of corn (don't drain the water)
1 can of cream corn
1 package of Jiffy corn bread
1 stick of butter
8 oz of sour cream
2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese

Melt the butter, then dump everything but the cheese together and stir like crazy. Once it's all mixed, pour it into a casserole dish, sprinkle the cheese on top and bake for 35 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Voila!

Enjoy!!!! :)

Now, until you read my response, you may not know WHY that was so funny!


My response:

Uhm . . . . I've been making a variation on that for YEARS! LOL It's even become a staple at Thanksgiving with mom and dad! LOL and is something I make with our ham for our Christmas Day dinner! LOLOL :-)

Mine does not have the eggs in it, and I don't put cheese on top, but I'm willing to try it that way. (oh, and I drain the corn.) This is one of those that I DO make regularly in my "camping over the fire type kettles" (we prefer to call them "Dutch ovens!" LOL) and have made it for many a potluck when we go to our rallies. It fits perfectly in a 10" Dutch oven and is cooked with 11 coals on top of the oven and 5 on the bottom. When I make it for potlucks, there is NOTHING left in the Dutch oven when we're done eating! Yea, it's THAT good!

Believe it or not, but it's on the menu for Easter Sunday, as it goes absolutely fabulous with ham and double-baked potatoes.

If you make it in the oven in a casserole dish, be sure to spray the dish!

Julie

PS, here' the link to MY corn casserole recipe.

If you're looking for some great recipes, check them out on our website -- we have TONS of them!

RVing Outpost Cookbook

Of course, she had to call me after reading that! When I read the initial note to Abby she just cracked up at the "camping over the fire type kettles" comment! :laugh:

What a hoot!

We'll be closed here at the RVing Outpost for Easter tomorrow, but I'm here today. I'm not sure if I mentioned it previously, but I had bought a "kit" to make fajitas when I visited the new Walmart in Medford last week. I decided, since I had the Dutch ovens and burner at the store, that I'd make fajitas! Oh, they were SO good, and the store smells really good, too! :)

Here's a couple of pics from my cell phone (I didn't think to bring my camera with me today, so the pics are a little small, but it's better than nothing!







Oh, they were SO good!

Have a great day, and a wonderful Easter Sunday!

Julie

Cool New Websites!

The other day, I stumbled across a couple of GREAT new websites and wanted to make sure I shared them with you!

The first one is called Best Copycat Restaurant Recipes Every day, Mark posts new copycat recipes! There's recipes for FABULOUS restaurant favorites like:

TGI Friday's Jack Daniel's Dipping Sauce #2

Ingredients:

1/3 C. Diced Red Onions
1/2 tsp. Finely Diced Garlic
1/2 C. Water
1/2 C. Brown Sugar
1/3 C. Teriyaki Sauce
1/4 C. Soy Sauce
1/3 C. White Grape Juice
1/2 C. Jack Daniel's Black Label Bourbon
1/2 tsp. Tabasco Sauce

Directions:

1. Place ingredients in sauce pan in order listed.
2. Mix and stir after each ingredient.
3. Place on medium heat and stir until mixture reaches boiling stage.
4. Turn temperature down to low until mixture is on a slow simmer.
5. Cook sauce for 35 - 45 minutes and remove from heat. Mixture will have reduced in volume about a 1/4 to 1/3.

Link: Jack Daniel's Dipping Sauce

OR, how about this one:

Olive Garden's Spaghetti Carbonara

Ingredients

1/4 C. flour
1/4 C. butter
1 qt. milk
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
24 slices bacon, extra thick
1/4 C. olive oil
3 C. mushrooms, sliced
6 Tbsp. scallions, finely minced
1 lb. spaghetti, uncooked
2 tsp. fresh parsley, finely chopped
1/2 C. Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Directions

1. Melt butter in 4-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat.
2. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute.
3. Add milk, salt and pepper and stir vigorously with wire whip until mixture barely comes to a boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, whipping frequently while sauce thickens. Keep warm.
5. Cook bacon until fully cooked. Drain on paper towels. Cut into 1/4-inch pieces and stir into sauce.
6. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat.
7. Add sliced mushrooms and minced onions and sauté until golden. Add to sauce.
8. Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Drain well and add to the sauce along with the parsley. Blend well.
9. Transfer to warm serving dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

Link: Olive Garden's Spaghetti Carbonara

This month, Mark is offering a FREE COOKBOOK DOWNLOAD EVERY SINGLE DAY! I've downloaded a couple of them and they're GREAT! Don't worry that the month is almost over, you can sign up (for free) and download as many as you want all in one day! Download one or 21, it's up to you!

Not only does Mark write the Best Copycat Restaurant Recipes blog, but he has a couple other FABULOUS sites, too!

Looking for a list? Mark's newest site: Everyday Lists has some great lists that are absolutely 100% free! The Everyday Lists site is still rather new, but I have inside information that Mark is working on all kinds of lists and will be getting them on-line just as quickly as he can.

In the meantime, take a stroll around Best Copycat Restaurant Recipes and download a cookbook or two and print some fabulous restaurant favorites!

Enjoy!

Julie

Happy Birthday, Greg!

Wow! I didn't realize it had been so long since my last entry! Sorry about that! Yesterday (March 18), was Greg's birthday! Yep, the old man turned 52 yesterday! It worked out with his normal schedule that he happened to be off work, so we were able to have his "birthday dinner" on schedule! The girls baked a chocolate cake for him, which was delicious. In our family, everyone gets to pick what they want for dinner on their birthday (well, except for me, I get to pick the restaurant we go to!). Greg's choice was, not surprising, STEAK! I made homemade fried potatoes and some fabulous brussels sprouts to go with it. My friend potatoes are little different than most, in that aside from the standard onion and a touch of garlic, salt, pepper, etc. I also add Worcestershire sauce and grated Parmesan cheese! I also use a seasoning called Vegetable Supreme which I have found to be FABULOUS in potatoes and even in homemade hamburgers! I can't find it at our local grocery store, so whenever I go to "town" I end up buying a couple of bottles! Yes, it's THAT good!

My brussels sprouts were a bit different, too. I grab a bag of frozen sprouts and let them thaw a bit. Then I cut them in half and let them thaw a bit more. I then use a skillet and heat up a tablespoon or so of olive oil, add some chopped garlic and then fry the sprouts in the olive oil and garlic. Oh yum! They are SO good that way! My kids even love them!

So that was Greg's birthday dinner. Other than watching Idol and Dancing with the Stars, it was a fairly normal night!


We started some new advertising, on a radio station (about 50 miles away) that is the only station around that has EVERY SINGLE NASCAR RACE live on the air. We're going to have ads during every race from now through the end of the season. This works out well, as one of our billboards is up for renewal soon and we're not going to renew it. The cost of the ads is the same as the cost of the billboard, so that should work out just fine!

This station is quite a bit bigger than the station in Medford (20 miles north of us), and has a lot more options when it comes to ads! I was sent an e-mail of the audio file and uploaded it, but I didn't want it to be so boring, so I added some pictures to it! I haven't used the Windows Movie Maker program much, but was able to add some pics to the sound! It actually turned out pretty cool!

Here's a link to it! RVing Outpost Radio Ad. Now mind you, this is a radio ad, but it would certainly be boring to just listen to it, so I added some pics! The ad will open in Media Player or some such program. I thought they did a GREAT job and mentioned the store name a TON of times! Of course, the add will change ever so often, but these folks are really GOOD when it comes to dreaming up ad copy! I'm quite excited about this new advertising venture! Jay, be sure to let me know what you think!

I had a delivery today and am happy to say that we have another NEW product at the RVing Outpost. The latest is another fabulous Coleman product! OK, OK, I'll tell you what it is! It's another Coleman lantern, but this one is a DUAL FUEL LANTERN That means that it can run on either Coleman Fuel OR unleaded gasoline! That's a GREAT option, but with gas prices the way they are, Coleman fuel may be cheaper! LOL



So, VERY cool to finally have this product in our store! I'm still soooooo excited to have Coleman products available. It's just awesome!

On another note, Sunday is Easter. We're going to be making the usual . . . ham, double baked potatoes, and of course, following the tradition of Greg's family and having cold kielbasa. I'm not sure that any of the churches up here bless the food, so we'll just eat it cold and say our own blessing. For those that don't know, it's a Polish tradition to have Easter food blessed in Church. Once food has been blessed, it cannot be reheated, thus the reason it's "cold." Yes, I thought it was odd too, when I spent my first Easter with Greg's family, so don't feel bad if you think it's odd! Now, of course, after 24 years of Easter with Greg's family, it's a tradition in our family, and our children actually missed it when we didn't have it the first year we moved up here!

Greg's mom used to take all kinds of stuff to church to have it blessed. Everything from the hard boiled eggs we were each required to eat, to the horseradish that the guys liked with their cold ham! The first time she took the horseradish, we had such a laugh over it! What wonderful memories of a very wonderful woman. I miss you, Irene! There are many times, where I think, I wish I could call Irene and tell her what's going on. And then I remember that she's gone. She's here in spirit, though, and has visited us numerous times since we moved! We know we're being watched over and Irene is definitely our guardian angel!

Thinking about the ham I'm going to make, I figured I'd just make it the way I normally do. Score the top, stick a boatload of whole cloves all over inside, press a bunch of brown sugar over that and then pour ginger ale over it and baste while it cooks. But, while reading the paper today, I came across a recipe that looks REALLY good!

Baked Ham with Bourbon Glaze

1/2 cup honey
2 Tbsp. molasses
2 Tbsp. bourbon
2 Tbsp. orange juice
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 bone-in smoked ham
Whole cloves

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Place rack in lower part of oven.

Microwave honey and molasses at high for 30 seconds to thin; whisk to blend. Whisk in bourbon, orange juice and mustard.

Score the surface of the ham on the diagonal to create diamond shapes. Stick a whole clove into the center of each diamond. Place ham in a roasting pan. Brush liberally with bourbon glaze.

Bake for 1-1/2 hours, uncovered, or until a meat thermometer inserted into thickest portion registers 140 degrees, basting every 20 minutes or so with honey-bourbon glaze.

Doesn't that sound GOOD! I'm definitely going to try it with our ham this year! I'm not sure if my parents are coming or not. They haven't decided yet, because they don't know if dad's even going to be back from his latest job.

Well, this is getting rather long, even for ME! LOL I guess I'll sign off for now.

Hope everyone has a "normal" day!

Julie

Another Dutch Oven Cooking Class Today!

I had our second Dutch Oven Cooking Class at the store today!   The class went well, but it went very quick.   I was not quite so nervous this morning as I was for the first class, but once everyone showed up (we had 8 folks today) and we were all situated, my head started to POUND!  It was quite close to migraine pain.  NOT fun, at all!   In fact, right now, it's 9:45 p.m., and I've taken six Tylenol since the class ended, and STILL have a headache.    

The headache was bad enough that I decided to not continue this entry and went to bed.  Unfortunately, upon waking this morning, it's still there . . . faint, but there.    I just saw a vitamin commercial on TV and realized the one thing I hadn't been taking was my B-Complex!    B-Complex helps your body to deal with stress . . . and I've always taken it for headaches.  I don't know why I didn't think of it before!  I always get my B-Complex from Shaklee, as I think they're the best.  I just took three of them and will grab something to eat.  I think I'll have to start taking them before each class, too.   It certainly can't hurt!  

Abby's been gone with her friend to Appleton since Friday night, so Aaron and Erica were at the store helping with the class.  Aaron watched over the register while Erica was my gopher.  Greg was on charcoal duties again.  Erica also took some pics for me . . .


Other than the class, not much has been going on here.  It's still QUITE cold outside and we had some RECORD LOW cold temperatures.   The good news is that it IS March, which means that spring HAS to come soon, doesn't it?   We're actually supposed to hit 40 degrees on Wednesday!   Wahoo!  

Daylight Saving Time started today, so when I woke up at my usual 6:45, it was actually 7:45.  It's going to take a few days to get used to losing that hour.  It's so early this year!   Right now, all it's doing is giving us an extra hour of light to look at the snow outside!        

I did see a forecast that we may be able to see the Northern Lights tonight!  I'm excited about that.  We've seen them once from our backyard, shortly after we moved in, and they were incredible!  I'll have to remember to go outside and look for them tonight!  

With the advent of spring . . . we're now back to being open 7 days a week, and "normal" hours.  That means we'll be open from 9-6 Monday through Friday; 9-5 on Saturdays and 12-5 on Sundays.   It was nice to be home for a while to get some things done, but it's time.    


Hope everyone has a normal day!  

Julie

Wisconsin in Mourning

OK folks, time to put your Packer flags at half staff! Yes, indeed, it's been a sad couple of days for Wisconsin Packer fans! OK, for folks who have been hiding under a rock the last two days . . . Brett Favre has decided to retire. :o :( Yes, indeed, it has been a sad couple of days for Packer fans.

I have to tell a story here . . . it's something that happened shortly after we moved here, and just after we got our first chickens (Fred, Ethel, Lucy & Myrtle). Some of you may have read this before, but I'm thinking that many have not heard this story. Now, you will see why I was reminded of this story later on . . . By the way, this happened on 10/06/2004. Abby was just 7 years old at the time . . .

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

While cleaning out the chicken coop, Abby (our youngest) was watching the chickens outside. All of a sudden . . .

Abby: "Mommmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyy . . . Fred's standing on a chicken!"

Abby: "Get off that chicken, Fred!"

Me: "Abby, it's OK"

Abby: "But mommy, FRED'S STANDING ON A CHICKEN! And he did that yesterday, too! "

Me: "Abby, really, it's OK . . . Fred's just doing what he's supposed to do."

Abby: "But mommy he's standing on a chicken!"

Me: "Abby, that's how the eggs get fertilized, so they can have baby chickens."

Abby: "By standing on a chicken?"

Me: "Yes, Abby, that's perfectly OK. That's exactly what Fred's supposed to do."

Abby: says nothing . . . just a blank stare . . . trying very hard to figure this all out . . .


Meanwhile, Aaron (then 13 and his friend who were helping to clean out the coop) are standing there listening to the conversation, knowing full well what is happening, and turning 10 different shades of red!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


Now, when you're done laughing, you can read the rest of this and see why I was reminded of this story!

Keep in mind that Abby now knows the "facts of life." It helps, being in farm country, as she's seen the neighbor's bull in action, and has seen numerous calves born. However, there are some things that just aren't covered in school, and parents' are NOT prepared for them!

The other day, while watching TV, a commercial for Viagra came on . . . I was sitting here at my laptop when all of a sudden Abby says to me:

Mommy, what's "ED"?

I just SAT HERE and didn't say anything for a minute or two . . . trying to figure out what to say . . .

Like any good parent, I came up with the perfect answer! Oh, I suppose you want to know what it is? OK, fine . . .

My answer was . . .

Don't worry about it Abby!

Ya know . . . there are just some things that a ten year old doesn't need to know!



OK, so on to RVing Outpost news!

FINALLY, we got some of our COLEMAN products in! Yes indeed! I've had folks in Australia chomping at the bit for the Road Trip Party Grill


Well, we finally got them today, but I only received TWO of them! Both of those were already spoken for and are, as we speak, on their way to Oz! :)

We DID get some other Coleman products in today, too. I'm so excited as we haven't been able to get Coleman products in here previously.

Now IN:

DUAL fuel Coleman stove



This is so cool! If you run out of Coleman fuel, no need to worry! Just use unleaded gas! It's designed to work on BOTH fuels, so no need to worry!

Looking for just a "regular" Coleman stove? We have those, too!




We even have a Propane Coleman Lantern in stock now!



And last, but certainly not least, of the new Coleman products, is the
Coleman Black Cat Heater!



We have a couple more Coleman items coming into the store . . . we just haven't received them yet! Keep an eye on the website and here on my blog for updates on those items.

We also have a NEW Thetford product . . . do you use a "blue tote" or "tote tank"? Well, Thetford has come out with a new Tote Tank Deodorant, and it can even be used in standard Black Tanks if you're going to be away for a while!



I think that's about it for now!

Hope everyone has a normal day!

Julie

No luck with my shoulder

Well, I'm thinking that I may have to see a doctor about my shoulder.  It doesn't seem to be getting any better.   It was feeling better for a few days, but when I woke up today, that same old intense pain was back and has lasted all day, which is NOT good.    It's not just my shoulder, but actually radiates down my arm, about 1/4 of the way to the elbow.    I'm going to have to find some time to see a doctor, or at least a chiropractor to see what's going on.

March came in like a lamb for us with very quiet weather yesterday.   I was at the store all day, and was actually rather busy.  Folks are getting spring fever and thinking more and more about camping, which is VERY good for us!   A couple weeks ago, I got an e-mail from some folks in Green Bay wanting to know our hours as they wanted to take a road trip to visit our store.  Well, they came to visit on Saturday!    It was nice chatting with them and knowing that they had driven two hours to come to our store made me feel really good!  

It's still cold and we still have a LOT of snow, but it IS getting warmer.  We've been in the 20's or so lately which is MUCH warmer than we've had.  Of course, tonight we're under a winter weather advisory, because we have freezing drizzle, sleet and then snow coming!  Oh, yippee!   Just what we want!    I just hope that the roads are OK in the morning!  I'm still leery about driving when the temps are below freezing.   I'm sure I'll be much more comfortable once the temps warm up, but for now, I'm still slightly nervous.  

Maddie, of course, is LOVING the snow!  She's so goofy!  She runs out there and immediately bury her head in the snow!  She'll run through it, and reach down to grab up a mouthful . . . but then will stand there for a moment or two as if to say "DANG!  That's COLD!"  You can just see the "brain freeze" happening from the mouthful of snow!        Spring must be coming, because she's shedding like crazy already.  Just like a wolf  . . . she has "hunks" of fur that are just dropping off her near her haunches.  I've actually sat down next to her and pulled them out . . . if she let me, I'd just take the vacuum to her, but she really HATES the vacuum cleaner!   Once it gets a little warmer out, I'll spend some time outside brushing her to get rid of all that loose hair.  

We DID get a bunch of new products in the store on Wednesday!   Our new 12-volt products are now here!    

All these products are from Field & Stream and even come with a complimentary 1 year subscription to Field & Stream Magazine!

12-volt 12 cup coffee maker




12-volt 4 cup coffee maker



12-volt All Purpose Cooker -- Make popcorn, hotdogs, soups, stews, etc.!   A great little 12-volt appliance!  



12 Volt Heavy Duty Blender & Grinder



I'm STILL waiting to get in our Coleman products, and am starting to get quite irritated with them.  Our distributor has not been able to get any information out of Coleman or their rep -- who refuses to return their phone calls!  If this is the way we're going to be treated, I'm thinking that Coleman is NOT going to be in the distributor's catalog again!  It's ridiculous, the way they're being treated.  I really NEED to get those products in our store, and our phone calls are going nowhere . . . .

That's about it for now!  

Hope everyone has a normal day!

Julie

Yowsers!

OK, hang onto your hats, folks . . . this one is going to be kind of long, as there's been a LOT going on!  

To start with . . . I'M GOING TO BE ON TV!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!     One of the former meteorologists on Channel 9 up here (Tony Schumacher) does segments on the news with Cooking and Gardening Tips (Tony's Tips) and occasionally has guests on the segment.  He does the segments from his home, which is just up the road from us in Dorchester.  I sent him an e-mail last night telling him that I'd love to do a Dutch oven segment with him when it gets just a tad warmer outside and he responded saying he'd LOVE to!   We'll film the segment in April to have on TV in May!  Isn't that cool!!!!!!!!    WOW! I'm just in shock . . .

Actually, to be truthful, I didn't send the e-mail.   I had it all prepared and had Greg read it.  I was busy making dinner and he said "should I send it."  My answer was "sure" . . . that way I can say it's all your fault!!!  LOL  Yep, it's all his fault!   

But WAIT!  It gets even better!  

I had a radio station ad person in the store yesterday who said that they are going to be giving away a campe r. . . donated by Kings Campers in Wausau.  She initially came in to talk about advertising, and after a bit of chatting and talking about campfire cooking, she mentioned how they're going to be taking the camper (a pop up) all over the area for remote broadcasts.  She then stated that she thought it would be really great if I could be at some of the remotes with them cooking and talking about cooking in my Dutch ovens!!!!      WOW!!!!!!!!!!  MORE free advertising!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   And all I have to do is do what I love!  

I REALLY had a GREAT day yesterday!    

So, back to "normal" news . . .  

Greg was off tonight, so we were able to have a nice family dinner together.  I made one of my favorites when it comes to chicken . . . a recipe that I found a couple years ago.  It's called Honey Glazed Chicken and is really easy to make.  We had what we call "Cheesey Hash Browns" (hash brown potatoes, fried with onions, salt and pepper, and then baked with shredded cheddar cheese mixed in and also sprinkled on top -- it's a favorite of the kids').  

We've had issues with our kitchen chairs (cheap Chinese manufacturing!)  in the past, but they were holding up OK.    We had been having a really fun time at dinner, chatting and laughing, when all of a sudden .  . . .   Abby was dropping to the floor!!!!!!!!!!!!  I sit across from her at the table, and watched as it unfolded.  As her chair gave way underneath her, she hollered, her hands flew up over her head (think of someone on a roller coaster), and suddenly she was on her butt on the floor!  OMG!  It only took about two seconds, but dang!  It was hysterical!      Good thing she's young!   She wasn't hurt, and was laughing like crazy, as were the rest of us!  Yea, we're warped, and we admit it!         

It's so cool to be able to tell ya'all about good things and normal things.  It's funny . . . after Abby fell from her chair, all I could think of was how I couldn't wait to write about it in my blog!    OK, so that's kind of pathetic, but, these computers are the way we all communicate these days.   I must admit . .. I'm still chuckling about Abby!  

So, that's it from the "normal" Mik household!   Hope ya'll have a normal day!

Julie

Got Mice?

I've been having an issue with my left shoulder for about the last six months.  The only thing I can figure out is that I'm not at the right height when I'm sitting at my laptop at home.   I tried my "office" chair, thinking that being up a tad higher would help, but it really didn't.   Sometime last night or early this morning, I had an epiphany!  We have a lovely chair pad on the beautiful wooden rocking chair that Greg's parents bought for us way back when I was pregnant with Aaron.  Because it's all wood, I bought a really pretty chair pad for it to make it more comfortable.  Well, this morning, I actually remembered that epiphany and put the pad on my office chair.   I won't know any results for a few days, but I'm already noticing a difference and am hoping that I'll wake up in the morning and not have such a sore shoulder.   That would be SO awesome as most days, I wake up and can hardly move my left arm without a LOT of pain.

We can certainly tell that spring is coming!  I went downstairs yesterday to wake Aaron up, TWICE, and it wasn't until I was headed upstairs the second time that I realized that that wasn't just a big fuzzie laying on the ground in front of the stairs . . . yep . . . it was a dead MOUSE!         We're not sure if it was Mitzi or Mickey that got the mouse, but we DO  know it wasn't Murphy!  LOL   . . .   we thought we didn't have any mice, as we had Murphy . . . well, turns out that she's NOT a mouser, in any way, shape or form!  Mitzi caught TEN mice in our house in the first two months she was here!    Mitzi showed up in our garage 1-1/2 years ago and refused to leave.  She was a barn cat from across the road, and our neighbors were always asking us to take a cat, so we decided to keep her, seeing as she refused to leave.   Good thing we did!    

This picture is from the FIRST mouse that she caught in our house . . .  



Isn't that an AWESOME picture?!       With Mickey being young and relatively new to our household, we can only assume that Mitzi was the one to find and kill the mouse.   Frankly, I don't care which cat is catching them, as long as they do!      Living in the country, mice appear to be a fact of life . . . so it's a good thing we have our kitties to get rid of the problem!

After finding that one this morning, I decided it was time to check the camper for mice.  Fortunately, I didn't find any evidence out there, but still put a box of D-Con in the cabinet under the sink where we've had them in the past.   We have to put another  box of it in the front basement, as that's another place we've had them in the past.   If that doesn't work, we'll just have to take Mitzi camping with us!   

Not much else going on up here . . . it's chilly, at about 15 degrees, and we're expecting another cold front in the next day or so, but that's only supposed to be around zero, rather than the horrible -25 to -45 temps we've had in the past this winter!

Hope everyone has a normal and mouse free day!

Juliue

Quiet Week

This week has been fairly quiet.  Not much happening.  Isn't that GREAT!  I LOVE weeks like that!  

We did get some new stuff in the store that I'm excited about!   The first one is the Camp Chef Camp Oven.  This is the coolest little oven ever!  



There is NO ASSEMBLY required -- just take it out of the box and start using it!    It operates on a little one pound propane tank, or one of your bigger 20 lb. tanks!   VERY cool!  

One of the other great items we recently received is a beautiful smoker.   It actually looks like a bank vault!  




Of course, some assembly is required with this one and guess what?  It's so easy, even I was able to do it!  Only took about an hour and it was done and ready to go!   It's really a beautiful smoker.  

Fantastic Vent has come out with a removable screen for their fans to make cleaning easier.  The "pop 'n lock" screen comes two per box and like I said, makes cleaning the fan really easy!  



That's about it for store news.   For folks that are wondering, Bambi is still with us, but I'm trying hard to find a new home for her.    

Weather here has been getting better.  We actually reached 25 degrees yesterday!  WAHOO!!!!  Feels like summer out there, after all the below zero temps we've had lately!    The sun was so nice and warm.  I stood outside in my sweatshirt facing the sun and just soaking up all those beautiful rays!   Amazing how 25 degrees can feel warm!

On Tuesday, I had to take Erica to the orthopedic doctor for her knee.  The GREAT news is that she doesn't need surgery!  WAHOO!!!!!!!!    She has some special exercises to do to strengthen the muscles in her knee, and she has a new brace that will keep the kneecap in place, especially when she's playing sports.   We're VERY relieved at this news, as you can imagine!  

Remember I said I recently paid off my truck?  Well, on the way back from the doctor, the "Driver Information Center" went wacko and started dinging.  The information displayed was something to the effect of "CHECK BRAKE SYSTEM"!   Yikes!    My brakes felt fine, and I had 30 miles to drive to get back to town.   I called the local dealer and they agreed to look at it right away.  Of course, I'm thinking the worst.  I need new tires, and a $500 brake job is just NOT in the budget right now!   The FABULOUS news is that it was simply a matter of a bolt, or some such thing!    Total bill:  $69!  Wahoo!    

Ever wonder how much a highway 4x4 sign post costs?    Well, I'm here to tell you that in Wisconsin, knocking one of those puppies down will cost you $135.24!!!  Dang!   At that price, I should have unbolted the damned signs and taken them with me to hang up in the basement!!         

Hope everyone has a normal day!

Julie

Snow, Snow, go away!

I've had a couple folks mention how LOOOOOOOOONG my entries in this blog are, one of whom is my OLDER, MUCH OLDER sister (not the one that posts here, but the one that turned FIFTY a couple weeks ago), and others as well, and that it must take me forever to write this and that I must have a LOT of spare time on my hands.   Just to set the record straight . . . in a previous life, I was a legal secretary for 20 years.  Even though it's been a few years since I worked in an office, I still type at 100 wpm.  These entries really only take me 10-15 minutes for each post.  So it doesn't really take me very long to type these entries.    

Now, on to the last two days.   We had all kinds of warnings yesterday about snow and how much we're going to get.   The store was closed as it was Sunday and we're still on winter hours, so I wasn't worried about going anywhere.  Greg on the other hand, had to work from 4 p.m. to midnight.   It was NOT a fun drive to work, that's for sure!  

We only got about 8 inches on Sunday, not too bad, but we had a LOT of blowing and drifting.  Unfortunately, Greg had to work from 4 p.m. to midnight.  I was worried about him getting there and back, but that wasn't a problem.  The problem he had was getting into the driveway!     When he got home, the driveway was drifted over with at least 3 foot drifts, and he couldn't see them, so he literally plowed right into one!       He couldn't get out, so he left the car at the end of the driveway and walked through all those drifts.  Needless to say, he was NOT a happy camper when he finally got into the house!  

This morning, our neighbor came over to plow for us (thank goodness for neighbors with BIG tractors!) and only did the other driveway because Greg's car was stuck.  Once Mike (our neighbor) finished the other side, I moved Aaron's car over to where it was plowed and backed my truck out of the garage.  I backed up to Greg, intending to pull him out.   Who'd have thought that my BIG, HUGE, BEAUTIFUL truck could NOT pull him out?  Certainly not I!       Yea, I'm as surprised as ya'll are!   I even put my truck in 4-lo, but nothing!   With the extra blowing and drifting from overnight, his car was buried up to it's headlights!    Sheesh!   

Thank goodness for neighbors with BIG tractors!   Did I say that already?    Well, Mike got some chains and was able to pull Greg's car out of the snowbank for us.  He then plowed the rest of the driveway.  I finally got to the store about 10:30 this morning and was able to get all of today's orders out.  I ended up closing early because it snowed all day long (NOT forecasted, of course), and I really wanted to get home without skidding across the highway again.  

We ended up with a total of about 12 inches since the snow started yesterday morning.   Like I said, not a really big deal here over two days.  The blowing and drifting is just too much, though!  

Here's a pic out our patio door, looking at the deck -- this drift is about 4 feet deep, and I think Abby would be lost in it!  




From our kitchen window --



The front yard:



The geese, sitting on our front porch -- the only place that was sheltered from the wind -- and only because it was enclosed by snowdrifts!




So, that's it for now!  Even though we've gotten more snow than normal, we haven't gotten as much snow as the folks in Madison have had!    

Hope everyone had a "normal" day!

Julie

Mik Mutiny!

These last few days have actually been good!   Wow.  What a relief to be able to say that!   For those wondering, Bambi (our lone remaining goat) is doing fine.  I'm sure she's lonely, though.  Goats are sociable creatures and a single goat is a very lonely and unhappy goat.    The good news is that we may have found a home for her!  

I need to backtrack a bit first, though.   The girls went on a field trip with their 4-H club today to see High School Musical on Ice in Green Bay (about a 2 hour drive from here).  I had to drop them off at the neighbor's house down the road at 7:45 this morning and they got on the school bus with the rest of the 4-H club to see the show.  Seeing as 4-H has so much to do with animals, I told the girls to talk to the other kids and parents and see if anyone is looking for a goat.   Turns out one of the kids said their grandpa was looking for a female goat.  Apparently, one of his milking goats recently passed away, so he needs another that can be milked.  Bambi is not "fixed" so she can be bred and then milked.  She's just the right age, too, as she's just going to be two this year.   Wahoo!!!!!!!!!!!!   I'm SO excited!   Please, keep your fingers and toes crossed that "grandpa" will take Bambi for us!   Best of all, he's close enough (within about 30 miles or so) that we can visit Bambi whenever we want and can even hang out with her babies!  That would be such a GREAT ending!!!!!  

I suppose ya'all are wondering about the "mutiny" I mentioned in the title.    Well, that's just a little family "issue" we're dealing with right now.   Aaron bought a Nintendo Wii for himself back in September.    Now, Aaron owes us a chunk of change for his car, license, title, insurance, cell phone, etc.   He wants to buy a laptop for himself, but he's not allowed to buy that until he has us paid off.  

Apparently, there are NO Wii's to be found within a 100 mile radius of our home and there are boatloads of folks willing to pay top dollar for them . . .   you see where this is going?    Yep, Aaron has decided to sell his Wii and make about $100 profit.   He really wants to get us paid off so he can save for his laptop!    

So, what's the big deal you ask?  Well, the girls are TICKED!  They play with the Wii as well, and it's the only thing that keeps Aaron off the kids' computer so the girls can go on.  Abby is fit to be tied and is having a hard time grasping the concept that Aaron bought the Wii with his own money so he can do what he wants with it.  She, of course, doesn't have any money, but she's desperately looking for stuff that she's bought out of her own money to sell to come up with money to buy her own Wii!  

Erica's just ticked, because she figures that Aaron will be on their computer even more now, seeing as he doesn't have the Wii to play with!    So, it's  a little girl mutiny in the Mik Household!       I'm pretty sure I can deal with it, though . . .

As the hamburger is cooking for the tacos we're going to have for dinner, I'm watching the movie Miracle, which is the story of the 1980 US Olympic Hockey Team . . . you know . . . where our guys WON the gold medal, against all odds.   I've never seen the movie, even though it's rather old, but it's a really good movie and I'm thoroughly enjoying it!  

I'm not sure if I mentioned this earlier, but we're finally getting some COLEMAN products in our store!   Wahoo!!!!!!!!!!!!   We weren't able to get them earlier for various reasons.     I called our salesman yesterday and it's entirely possible that we'll have them in our store this week.  I'll find out more information on Monday, but I'm totally psyched to be able to get Coleman's products in our store!    As soon as they're in, I'll be sure to let everyone know!  

So, that's the latest update . . . a "normal" day in Mik Land!   Isn't that cool!!!!!  

Hope everyone else has a normal day!

Julie

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentines Day, everyone!   I woke up this morning thinking how nice it was going to be to make an entry here about how "normal" it's been these last couple of days.  We don't seem to get much "normal" in our family, so it's been quite nice!  

We were supposed to get a lot of snow, they were talking anywhere from 3 to 12 inches.  We had all kinds of warnings, etc. yesterday for overnight and today.  I woke up at 6 and turned on the TV, well, we got about 5-6 inches up here, so no big deal and the kids had to go to school.  South of us, of course, they got a lot more!      LOL  Ha, ha, better them than us!    

Unfortunately, that was the end of "normal."   Aaron went out to take care of the goats.  We only had two left -- when I mentioned in a previous entry that we had "lost" Spud, that was my gentle way of saying that she had died.   I apologize if I misled anyone.    Well, we're now down to one goat.  Rudy died overnight.    Bambi is the only one left.    I'm so sad.    Aaron was so angry.  He'd been taking such good care of them.  The only thing we can come up with is that they couldn't handle the severe cold weather that we had.  I don't know.  I give up.  I have already made a call to a friend who's mom and dad have a farm and have goats.  I'm hoping that they'll take Bambi for us.  I just can't deal with this any more and goats are very social creatures.  They need to be around other goats.  One goat is a very lonely goat and I just can't do that to Bambi.  She needs to be someplace where she has other goats to talk to and play with.   I'm just praying that these folks will take her.  Please keep your fingers crossed!    

We're going to stick to poultry from now on.   The chickens and geese are doing fine and we've had no further incidents with them.  Maybe it's for the best.  I just don't know anymore.  

Aaron had to leave for school, so we'll talk more about everything tonight and try and figure it all out.   Unfortunately, Aaron wasn't able to leave!   Remember that snow I mentioned above?  Yep, you guessed it, his car was STUCK.   I woke Greg up to go and help him, called the school to tell them that he'd be late and then jumped in the shower.    When I got out of the shower, Aaron came upstairs and told me that he was probably going to be home all day.  What?  Why?  you're still stuck?  My thought was that I'd pull him out with my truck (I've had to do that for Greg in the past, so no big deal).   Apparently, Greg had already thought of that though, and he managed to end up getting MY TRUCK STUCK AS WELL!     

OK, time to get out there.  As I'm putting my boots on, Greg is walking across to the neighbors (you know, the ones that plowed out so we could get our septic tank emptied).  I'm looking at my truck in the driveway, thinking, geez, my tires were buried a LOT more than that when I spun out and hit the snowbank.  Hmmmmmmmm  I'm also noticing that there are no ruts in the snow behind the front tires . . . do you see where this is going?   I open the door of my truck and gee whiz . . .  it's NOT EVEN IN 4 WHEEL DRIVE!        No wonder he was stuck!  I put it in four wheel drive and backed right up without a problem!      

Aaron rocked his car back and forth a little bit and was able to get out of where he had been stuck and he left for school, with me hollering at him to drive CAREFULLY!  I had already called the school, so he didn't have to rush to get there.  

Greg walked back over and said "what'd you do?  How'd you get it out?"   Uhm, dear . . . I put it in FOUR WHEEL DRIVE.    

OK, to his credit, and as he told me, his car is "all wheel drive" so there's no buttons to push.  He doesn't drive my truck very much and never even thought about putting it in four wheel drive.  Still, I thought it was pretty damned funny!    He went back to the neighbors to tell them we're fine and don't need any help.  I'm sure they're wondering about us these days!   We always seemed so "normal" until this past winter!    

So, I'm now at the store, didn't wipe out or anything on the way, the kids are safely in school, and Greg is at home, hopefully sleeping.     I'm REALLY hoping that things will be "normal" whatever that is, for the rest of the day!  

Hope you all have a "normal" day!    

Julie