Comfort Food Survey

Been reading all kinds of articles on the subject of comfort foods and it made me wonder…

just what truly makes up the perfect “make the world go away” or “now I feel better” foods anyway? Does it need to be a sweet treat or could it be a savory supper dish?

So I decided to do a survey of my own and see for myself…

just what people want when they need comfort…

or acceptance…

or joy…

or happiness…

or plain, old Mama love.

So, how about it? When you need down-right comfort what food would you reach for if it could be handed to you…and you didn’t have to lift a finger? Let me know your favorites in the comment section.

We’ll add up the results in a week and let you know the top ten. Please encourage your friends to pipe in with their favorites as well. We need a real good–down to earth list. Then, if we haven’t made them here already–we’ll find the best recipes and share them with you, in the next few weeks.

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What are your favorite comfort foods?

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Happy “Scrabble Day!” Celebrate by making our pretty little Scrabble Tile Pendants.

Pee Wee Dollies

When I was a little kid–these 3-1/2 inch dollies–called “Pee Wees” were a pretty hot ticket.

In the sixties—yes, that’s when I was a kid,  move on, move on—these little things cost around $1.25 each–about a month and a half’s worth of allowance.

I would save up for what seemed like years and then we’d head off to Woolworth’s to choose my little Pee Wee doll. It was a huge decision for a kid like me. I mean, they were–after all— coming to live with me, forever, so I had to be careful to choose just the right one. It felt more like an adoption than a…you know…purchase.

TANGENT:

So, I had this friend in the Second grade named Belisa. She was very pretty and had a graceful sense of class–for a 2nd grader–so I tried very hard to be like her. She wore pretty dresses so I wanted to wear pretty dresses. She had white shoes–so I had white shoes. But what really intrigued me was that she carried around a tiny little tan purse.  Quite a mysterious thing to an unsophisticated child like me. So, at my very next birthday, I asked for a purse–just like Belisa’s.

I was beyond excited to take my lovely, amazing purse to school the next day. Only problem was that when it came time to leave, I really had no idea what a 7 year old is suppose to carry around in the darn thing in the first place. On my way out the door I grabbed a handful of Pee Wee dolls,  stuffed them in and went on my merry way.

It’s quite likely that Belisa thought I was a complete wack-job when she saw my brand new purse  bursting at the seams–not with lace hankies and peppermint chapstick–but with nearly a dozen teeny tiny baby dolls and their itty, bitty bottles.

Crazy, that is, until I poured them all out and became the instant hit of the playground.

Oh—how to win friends and influence people…

Heh.

This Moment

A new Saturday ritual.

A single photo – no words – capturing a simple, special, extraordinary moment that I would like to pause, savor and remember.

If you’re inspired to do so—as I was, by SouleMama, leave a link to your ‘moment’ in the comments for all to see.

Happy Weekend, my dah-lings!


My New Love…

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Oh, yes. I am in love again. This does happen quite frequently–doesn’t it?

If you have the deep and abiding love of peppermint–like I do, then my wish for you is that you have this lovely experience sometime in your life. Purely, pepperminty hand lotion. Have you ever heard of such a thing? This particular brand is from William Sonoma–I know, I know…just a tad snooty. But oh my goodness! This was just the perfect little touch of luxury that I was needing right about now, you know? Didn’t hurt my feelings at all that it was 50% off either! Might just be a great gift for Valentine’s Day–if you throw the hints the right way.

My little Jillian tucked this surprise in with some other Christmas goodies and let me just say, “Hea-ven!” It smells just like my daddy’s “sugar room” from when I was a kid. He was a chef and made candy and cakes and pulled sugar taffy that always smelled like peppermint. Mmmmmm.

It’s all I can do not to lick my fingers—but even I know that would be unwise. I have no idea if the brand makes a difference or not–but I’m telling you…

If you get the chance to be near Peppermint lotion in this or the next life–take it. Or come over to my house and I’ll share a smidge…just a smidge.

Then you gotta get your own.

Happy States

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My friend Jenny said once that coming to visit my family was like “falling into a box of puppies.”  That has made me smile ever since she said it. Seriously, I wonder if I’ve never been paid a higher compliment.

Well, as it turns out–my sweet little family isn’t alone in our puppy-like behavior. It seems that, according to MSNBC’s Live Science writer, Jeanna Bryner, our whole state is scoring like one gigantic canine kennel. In an article on the happiest states in America–Utah is ranked #1. Get that.

* Utah: 69.2
* Hawaii: 68.2
* Wyoming: 68
* Colorado: 67.3
* Minnesota: 67.3
* Maryland: 67.1
* Washington: 67.1
* Massachusetts: 67
* California: 67
* Arizona: 66.8

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Apparently, we are also much less neurotic that some of our sister states. THAT I wouldn’t have guessed. Ha ha.

Here is an excerpt:

“Of the personality factors, neuroticism took a toll on a state’s cheery count, suggesting people living in the happiest states are more relaxed than their gloomy counterparts. For instance, West Virginia, Mississippi and Kentucky were ranked as highly neurotic and showed lower well-being scores. Utah, on the other hand, had a significantly lower level of neuroticism than other states.”

If you’d like to read the entire article or to see where your state ranks click on the link below. You might just be surprised to find that you and your neighbors are more content than you thought.

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In the meantime, I need to go feed my puppies.

Copy of as Father Christmas

Happy Birthday Daddy!