Peanut Butter Cookies - with Coconut and Chocolate Chips

In my attempt to lower carbs in my diet, I've begun making the non-flour version of peanut butter cookies... The recipe is very simple:

Mix together

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg

Drop teaspoonfuls of the batter onto a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

I lower the sugar to 1/3 cup - and I don't find much difference in taste. They taste remarkably like the cookies made with flour.

The last time I made the cookies, I modified the ingredients a bit- but still added no flour:

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon of dried coconut
• 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips

The cookies tasted a little different - not as "peanut buttery" - but also good...

Next time I make the recipe, maybe I should substitute cocoa  powder for the coconut... I wonder how that would taste...

George Washington Carver, the famous American inventor, created 300 uses for peanuts... I wonder if peanut butter cookies was one of them!

"Do We Still Have Grandma's Dickies?!"

My mother liked to keep her neck warm in winter. She was sensitive to the cold. When she eventually moved into the nursing home, she didn't need them as the temperature was always warm and comfortable.

Going through clothing she no longer wore, I found a collection of "dickies" she had knit for herself - warm collars, some of them lacy. These looked as if they had came straight out of the Victorian era.

After checking with my daughter to see if she wanted to keep them, I gave them to a second-hand clothing store. They were definitely not something I would ever want to wear...

But recently my daughter sent me a photo... with a question: Do we still have Grandma's dickies?!

(Oh, no! If my daughter wants them - they must be coming back in style!!)

Winter "Art"

In winter, our yard is covered with a rather boring blanket of snow...

One morning recently, I was surprised to see beautiful shadows  appear as the sun arose... And a  "spotlight" on a cement statue...

Dynamic winter art!

Before long, the sun rose higher in the sky - and my vision of light and shadow disappeared.

In nature, nothing remains the same!

Winter Walk - Almost Like Spring

Yesterday Terry and I went for a short winter walk ...

We were in a neighborhood popular for its tiny shops and restaurants...

The sidewalks were bare - so we headed down the street...

We haven't walked outdoors  for about four months, I commented...

I wonder when this cafe will have outdoor seating!

So great to be outdoors again... all the more so because the weatherman is predicting more snow in the next few days...

Another Afghan to Finish

I often start projects but abandon them for a while... Then (sometimes years later) I come across them again. I found this forgotten project in a yarn bin upstairs.

I don't know when I started this crocheted afghan (that looks like a beach towel).

I may have started it a few years ago - then stopped when I developed wrist pain...

My wrists are better now. Maybe I should work on it again.

As-is, it would be fine as a lap cover. But we don't really need any that size. Afghans that get well-used used in our house are a lot longer...

Do I have enough yarn to finish it? Or will I need to buy more?

What to do?! It would be nice to get it done.

My Healthy Breakfast

These days, I make an effort to add calcium to my diet...

One way I do that is by eating a large serving of plain yogurt once or twice a day...

Here's a favorite breakfast: yogurt smothered in berries and nuts... Sometimes I add a slice of bread... (like this spelt and raisin bread).

Fortunately, I enjoy yogurt. Though when I was younger, I'd eat it with a side of chocolate cake!

Hay Lake, Alberta Classroom

Among my mother’s photos, I came across this one of her class in Hay Lakes, Alberta.

It is dated 1948-1949. It must have been winter - Icicles are visible through the window.

The school was probably heated by a wood stove: I remember my mother commenting that teachers - in country schools - had to arrive early to get the stove going to warm the classroom before the children arrived.

There were two classes in that village school. My mother taught the younger pupils. Another teacher taught the older group...

There are certain things I don't remember: Did my mother’s class have set grades every year? Or did the two teachers divide the students into two equal groups?

I wonder what it was like to have the same students ... or the same teachers year after year...

 I’m impressed by the well-decorated, tidy classroom with solid wood desks.

When I asked my mother how hard it was to teach a multi-level classroom, she said that the older children helped the younger ones... so all learned to teach and help, as well!

Almonte in Winter

On sunny days, I often have the urge to go for a drive...

One recent sunny day, I persuaded Terry that Almonte would be a perfect destination...

Even though the weather was cold, we could get some fresh air... and maybe even walk a bit.

If not, we could at least stop in at one of his favorite bakeries - Baker Bob's!

This former railway track is now a bike path in summer and a skidoo trail in winter.

The sidewalks and paths were passable...

The scenery, stunning!

Cold... but a lot of fun... 

So glad we went!

Remembering Hugo Bartz (Part 2): Life in Canada

Yesterday I started to share the story of my grandfather, Hugo Bartz, as recounted by my mother in a speech at his 90th birthday party on February 20, 1993. This is the continuation:

In 1928, Dad made another wise decision - to immigrate to Canada. It was not easy, but Dad was able to make all the necessary arrangements. We left Kremnanke, Ukraine, by train to Moscow on November 13, 1928, and arrived in Edmonton, Alberta, on December 13, 1928 - exactly one month later.

The first Bartz son [Theodore] was born in the Ukraine. The family continued to grow and five more sons and two more daughters were born in Canada. Everybody kept busy. We moved many times in those early years, but mostly in the Edmonton area. In the late 1930's, Dad started building dairy barns, for Emil Riske, Adolph Harke, and others. He was paid $3 a day. His helpers, $1 a day!

In 1942, he got his first contract, to build a barn 70 feet by 36 feet for $2000. This was for Emma Schultz. Dad also started building houses in the Edmonton area and in Clyde, Morinville and Westlock, Alberta.

In 1956, Dad and Mom and the youngest son, Bob, moved to Kelowna. Dad bought an old chicken hatching building, where he started a sash and door factory [Glenmore Millwork]. Bob was still going to high school, but he did the bookkeeping for Dad and also helped with the woodwork.

They enjoyed living in Kelowna [where the climate was much milder than in Edmonton]. Family and friends often came to visit, especially in the summer time. Mom was always happy to have guests at mealtime.

In 1964, Mom Bartz had a stroke, leaving her partly paralyzed. Dad was not able to find someone who could look after Mom, so in 1965 he sold the business to Ron [his second youngest son, who had moved to Kelowna to help him] and Dad was able to care for Mom. Dad was an excellent care-giver - compassionate and enduring. Mom passed away on November 28, 1966, at the age of 71.

Almost a year later, on November 25,1967, Dad married Helene Horn, a widow living here in Kelowna. They had a good life together for over 20 years. A few years ago, Helene had a stroke and her health gradually deteriorated. Dad patiently helped care for her. On August 5, 1992, Helene passed away at age 87. 

Dad continues to look after himself. He knows what herbal remedies to use for various ailments. He enjoys his home-cooked meals and still makes his own yogurt. He still enjoys going to Glenmore Millwork to see how Ron is doing, and perhaps he can sharpen a saw or do something useful. That's what makes him happy.

We are thankful that he is able to enjoy life to the full. We wish you a very happy 90th birthday, Dad, and many more to come!

[The photos above were taken in Canada, about 10 years apart. The top photo was taken about 1938, before Bob, the youngest son, was born. The second, about 10 years later, before Ted - the oldest Bartz son, back row in the middle, died of diabetes complications.]

Remembering My Grandfather, Hugo Bartz - Part 1

Going through my mother's papers a while back, I came across a speech she made at my grandfather, Hugo Bartz's 90th birthday, on February 20, 1993. I'd like to share it here - together with my own comments, which I'll add in brackets. Although Hugo Bartz was my mother's step-father - she had lost her biological father when she was two - she loved Hugo, who was her father's first cousin and later her stepfather, and always considered him as her own father. This is what she wrote:

Our dad, Hugo Bartz, was born in the Ukraine on February 20, 1903. From the time that he was very young, Dad always had a lot of responsibilities. [He often stayed home to help his mother on the farm while his older brothers went off with their dad to work at the the flour mill they owned.] During World War I, the German people in the Ukraine had a difficult time finding a place of safety. Many went to Siberia. [That is what happened to my mother's parents and her older brother, Erhardt. My mother's older sister, Lydia, was born in Siberia while they were there, but my mother was born after they had returned to the Ukraine.] To avoid the Russian military, Dad's two oldest brothers had already fled the country - William to the USA and Herbert to Argentina. 

In June 1914, Dad, who was only 11 at the time, together with his parents William and Bertha Bartz, brothers Adolph and Paul, and sisters Alma, Meta and Margaret, had to leave their home and all their possessions, including a newly-built 5-storey flour mill, which had been their main source of income and survival.

Dad had an uncle, Henry Bartz, who had lived in the Crimea since about 1900. Thanks to Uncle Henry, dad and his family were able to go to the Crimea instead of to Siberia. Dad spent little time in school. The children had to work in those days. His uncle Henry was a successful cabinet maker in Crimea. He had a large workshop with very efficient tools. So young Hugo, at the tender age of 11, started apprenticing as a cabinet maker. He worked for his uncle for 4 years. Uncle Henry was so impressed with Hugo's talent that he said to him, "Hugo, some day you will have a factory of your own."  That promise was fulfilled about 50 years later, here in Kelowna, when Dad started the sash and door factory [Glenmore Millwork.]

Just before the end of World War I, Uncle Henry had to flee to Germany, but before he left, he secretly gave all his woodworking tools to young Hugo. Hugo cherished those tools, taking them with him when the family returned to Kremnanke [in the Ukraine], after the war in 1918. He did not part with those tools until he left the Ukraine to immigrate to Canada. A good friend and neighbor, Frederick Missal, was the recipient of those precious tools.

In 1923, Hugo Bartz married Olga (nee Sell) Guhl. Olga was a widow with three children - 9, 6, and 4 years of age. Her husband, Theodor Guhl, died of typhoid fever shortly after World War I. Olga said she wanted a man who would be a good father for her children, and Hugo Bartz was that man. After the wedding ceremony, he asked the three children to call him "Papa." Whoever would call him "Papa" first would get a special treat - an apple. All three were a little shy at first, but then the youngest jumped up and called him "Papa." [That youngest child was my mother.She carried this memory with her throughout her life.] Before long the two older children called him "Papa" too.

We never thought of him as a step-father or that we were his step-children. We were one happy family.

(To be continued tomorrow...)

"Fruits" of the Winter Season

I've never loved winter, never having been a fan of winter sports...

But I have to admit that - for me - winter does have definite advantages.

If the weather were nice, I'd want to get out of the house to walk or drive somewhere interesting. But since roads and walkways are slippery these days - and winter weather has been cold - I've devoted a lot of time to tidying and organizing the house. I'm particularly happy that I went through my kitchen cupboards, getting rid of things I no longer need...

After that, I rearranged furniture in my study. which has also caused me to get rid of a lot of papers. 

The room feels larger now, one of my sons commented. I have to agree! 

So - all in all, I'm happy with what I've managed to accomplish - the "fruit" of these long winter weeks indoors!

Yogurt - And My Calcium Dilemma

I have been on a vegetarian diet for over four months now as I try to control my type 2 diabetes without medication. (The two medications I've been on for the past year and a half have both had negative side effects.)

Years ago, I read that vegan diets are especially good for lowering blood sugar naturally. I tried a vegan diet briefly at that time, and it did help. But a vegan diet is also very restrictive. Vegans don't eat any animal products, including milk products and eggs. I need protein so I want to eat both. I also rely heavily on milk for the 1200 mg of calcium I've been told to consume daily.

I've been paying more attention to the amount of calcium in foods I eat... and I've discovered - to my surprise - that different 2% plain yogurts contain different amounts of calcium. I find that hard to believe as I'd always thought that 2% yogurt, made of 2% milk which has been soured with a certain bacterial culture, so wouldn't they be pretty much the same? But whereas all milk all appears to have the same amount of calcium in it - approximately 300 mg per cup - yogurt can vary greatly...

As I read nutritional labels, I notice that calcium content varies from 150 mg. per half a cup of yogurt (or 15% of the daily recommended intake of 1000 mg. for a healthy person) to 350 mg. per 3/4 of a cup.

This can mean a difference of up to 2 servings of yogurt a day, if I wanted to get all my calcium from yogurt...

If I ate the 350 mg of calcium per 3/4 cup of yogurt type, I'd get just over 1000 mg of calcium by eating 3 servings or 2 1/4 cups of yogurt a day. If I ate the 150 mg. of calcium per half a cup of yogurt type, I'd need to eat 7 half-cup servings or 3 1/2 cups of yogurt daily to get the same amount of calcium.

What to do?!!

For now, I'm eating the yogurt that claims to have a higher calcium content. At the same time, (being a naturally-skeptical person) I wonder how accurate the nutritional labels on food really are!

But, next time I see my doctor - in about a month's time, I definitely plan to ask her about it.

Two-tone Afghan Almost Done

I've been working on this two-tone afghan since the fall...

I shaded in the pattern to get a sense of what it might look like... Hmmm... Maybe two squirrels?!!

When I finally sewed the pieces together, my daughter commented: What is that design? Two number 5's?!

I never thought of that!

Now that it's almost done, I decided to compare its size to the last one I made...

Here it is...

The two are about the same size - but the older one has a four-inch border added.  

I'll have to add a border to this new one to make it large enough to cover an adult lying on the couch. So I guess I'm not done yet!

My Two Pottery Birds

My first two pottery birds were fun and relatively easy to make.

The large one is drying - it's almost ready for the kiln...

A few days ago, I added my newer (smaller) one to the drying rack...

I wonder if his features will be clearer once the clay dries.

He's wearing a pillbox sailors cap. Does he look like a sad sailor?!

After putting him on the drying rack, I started to make an owl... My first attempt didn't hold its shape. It kept collapsing. Was the clay too thin? I smushed him into a ball of clay and tried again with new clay. My second attempt wasn't much better...

Maybe the clay is too wet, someone suggested...

I left my second attempt to dry. Hopefully next class I'll be able to continue with better luck...

Pottery is an interesting medium to work in... The potter can't do much if the clay doesn't respond predictably. It's really a collaboration between the potter and the clay.

Making Snowmen...

A very tall snowman has gained fame in Guelph, Ontario, near my daughter's home...

She sent me a photo she took of it.

It's a special snowman - about 10 feet tall. Part of it is hollow.

There's a ladder behind it, so people can climb up and peer down through the snowman's eyes...

A family project, it has drawn media attention. Here's a CBC article!

Sorting through family photos, I notice that we also made snowmen, from time to time, with our children... though not as large.

Here is Terry making one, with our daughter and older son.  Judging from our son's curls and the red snowsuit, I'd guess he was two or three years old.

(I trimmed his blond curls when he started kindergarten at age four... and, to Terry's chagrin, the curls never returned!)

Valentine's Day Cookies

Today is Valentine's Day! I love giving and receiving chocolates...

But this year, instead of buying chocolates, I've made flour-less peanut butter cookies - which I tried to shape into hearts! (In my attempt to reduce carbs, I've also cut back a bit on the sugar!)

Easy to make!

Here's the recipe:

• Mix one cup (or half a 500 ml jar) of peanut butter with one egg. 
• Then add half a cup of sugar. Mix well.
• Drop spoonfuls on a cookie sheet. Press flat with a fork.
• Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes...

(Not sure they look like  hearts!)

Continuing to experiment, I added chocolate chips to some of the dough...

My first chocolate chip peanut butter cookies!

Inspired... To Try Making Cloth Baskets

On my recent mall walks, I've been admiring cloth baskets...

I wonder how hard it would be to make one out of fabric scraps... Would I have to sew them into long “cords”before sewing them (or crocheting them) into baskets?

One of these days, I’d like to give it a try!

(I'm sure there must be an instructional video somewhere on You Tube!)

Mall Market

In winter, I get most of my walking exercise in the mall...

Two or three times a week, I head over. 

Leaving my snow boots in the car and my winter coat with Terry in the food court (where he reads and drinks coffee), I spend an hour walking around the three levels of this large indoor shopping center.

As I stop to look at store windows or even step inside the shops, mall-walking reminds me of traipsing through a middle eastern market - something I enjoyed doing years ago. 

There is always something interesting to see.

It's always fun!

My Version of "Wally Bird" Pottery

My pottery instructor, Tim, has for years been creating his own versions of "Wally Birds" - ceramic tobacco jars, in the shape of funny-looking birds...

I, in turn, have been inspired to mimic his...

I looked up the history of these bird jars... and discovered quite a few pictures online - no two the same. Antiques, they now sell for  $50,000-$60,000 each...

The originals were made by Martin Brothers Pottery Studio in Victorian England, at a time when pipe smoking was in vogue.

They were named after Robert Wallace Martin, one of the Martin Brothers, who made the first one.

Keep Happy!

It's easy to become discouraged on grey, cloudy days - and winter is full of them!

When I was a child, I really wasn't aware of the weather... Sometimes I think about that and wonder why.

But I did escaped harsh reality (such as cleaning my room) by reading... often a novel a day on weekends... They were light reading, of course... (Swallows and Amazons, Cherry Ames, Pollyanna, Hardy Boys)... Fortunately, my parents encouraged this pastime. Eventually I moved on to longer books, like Alexandre Dumas' Three Musketeers, books that required more time .

Looking back, I think that reading was more than an escape. The vicarious adventures they provided led to my interests in travelling and in writing.

But life changes, interests change... I almost never read novels anymore. These days I prefer memoirs.

Escaping cleaning my room isn't my biggest problem these days either! Enjoying weeks and months indoors is! In the midst of winter cold and storms, I try to find contentment in things I enjoy: baking, pottery, knitting, quilting, blogging... and growing indoor flowers.

However we do it, those of us who live in a snowy climate for four or five months a year need to be intentional about finding our HAPPY PLACE. For many of us, this involves finding enjoyable pastimes...

It's important not let winter get us down!

Calling It "Spring"

Phyllis Tickle compiled four liturgical prayer books - with seasonal subtitles...

I'm not sure why the autumn/winter one ends on January 31 and February 1 marks the beginning of "spring."

Perhaps it does in Tennessee, where she lived... Definitely not here in eastern Ontario...

Yet, seeing the word "spring" on the cover does cheer me up!

Getting a Better Night’s Sleep

I rarely have trouble falling asleep. My “secret” is to go to bed as soon as I feel tired. I get ready for bed long before then. Sometimes I relax by reading or by playing free cell or solitaire. When I start to feel tired, I head straight to bed.

Often I wake up after five hours of sleep. If my mind is awake, I get up and read until I feel tired again, hoping for another two to three hours of sleep.

Not long ago, I added a new pillow to my sleeping scenario: an anti-snore pillow that I had bought for Terry a few years back. At the same time, he purchased a new pillow for himself, so he never used this one. (Now he uses a sleep apnea machine - and has the best sleep he’s had in years.)

Since beginning to use the anti- snore pillow, I’ve been sleeping better, too - once for uninterrupted 9 hours!

Why has this pillow made such a difference, I wondered. So I googled my question, and discovered that improved sleep was due to the angle of the pillow and an indent in the middle that keeps the head in a position that aligns it to the spine.

Who’d have thought this “alignment” would make such a difference in sleep?!

Keyless Entry Issues

I recently heard about a new truck that was stolen because thieves were able to "read" the keyless FOB entry code. (Ironically, that truck was found not long afterwards because the same thieves stole a second truck at the same time - only this one had a GPS tracking device in it. The owner was able to tell the police exactly where the second truck was parked - and the first truck was parked nearby!

Stories like this make us wonder how to protect our own vehicles from thieves armed with devices to "read" our personal keyless FOB entry code.

Terry read somewhere that storing the keys in a tin can protects FOB keys from detection... I'll have to do more research to see if it's true... But if it is, I'll be happy! Now I'll have a reason to keep cute metal coffee tins with lids!

My Three Favorite Maria Kondo Tips

A year ago, I started to declutter, Maria Kondo style...

My closets were the first to feel the impact of her organizing style: Asking oneself if clothing and things we owned brought us a sense of joy? If not, get rid of it!

Second, I really appreciated learning her style of folding... It brought a sense of order to my drawers.

Recently going through cupboards, I thought about a third principle I think is very good: Keeping a stash in one place, not in many. 

I utilized this principle as I went through kitchen drawers bringing all our egg cups and accessories into one place, then did the same with all our Chinese food utensils.

Hopefully, no more wondering where they all might be...

Too Much Research...

Terry and I tend to do a lot of research before buying an appliance. In the old days, we'd consult consumer magazines in the public library. Now Terry goes online.

Our research has paid off, I think. Our appliances usually last a long time. Our "champion" was an Inglis clothes dryer that lasted over 30 years - all the years that our children were at home, and then some!

We've only had three fridges in the 38 years we've lived in this house... (We're also on our third stove and third washing machine. We're still using our second dishwasher in 34 years.)  So, all in all, our research, I think, has paid off!

But our latest fridge - purchased 6 1/2 years ago - started to make popping noises a few months ago. It still works - but for how long?! A repair would cost a third of the price of a new fridge...

So we decided to get a new one - after all, our fridge has passed half its life expectancy. We were on the verge of buying a brand that several salesmen recommended...

Then Terry, doing more online research, came across dissatisfied buyers - and even a class action law suit against the company we were planning to buy from...

In customer satisfaction, our current fridge ranks higher than the one we are planning to buy... But Ottawa has no authorized repair company for the brand of fridge that we currently have - a fact that has frustrated us greatly!

Should we buy another fridge like the one we have?! Or should we go with another brand?!

What to do?! The more research we do, the more confused we become!

Groundhog Predicted Warmer Weather

I don't pay much attention to groundhog predictions... I've been disappointed too many times!

But last Sunday, someone commented that it was Groundhog Day... So I glanced out the window and noticed that the weather was cloudy... According to the groundhog-day-prediction myth, this means that spring is starting RIGHT NOW - NOT 6 weeks from now...

As if on cue, the following day (yesterday) was milder. Early in the morning, I even caught sight of a baby-blue sky. Then clouds moved in.

But I won't get my hopes up...

However, I've taken pictures of some of the trees in our yard - to see how much snow will melt over the next three warmer days.

I notice a shadow under the trees - a bit of sun is getting through the clouds...

If the weather continues to stay warm, I'll be thrilled! And I'll be sure to keep you posted!