A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING–OH MAH GAWD

I did something I have never done before this morning. I am going to tell you what it is and then go sit in a corner and weep.

We moved last June into a beautiful house on hillside. We love it here.

The house is 7 years old.

Our first Christmas here was great. The house is fully decorated. My plan to pack up the Christmas items this weekend started with a note left for my husband asking him to bring my storage bins upstairs for me. They were all downstairs in a large media room that we use for storage.

My husband called me at work. When he walked into the far end of the room to get the bins he stepped onto very wet carpet.

Apparently we have a broken pipe somewhere. Picture the house on a hillside and this room is basically below ground because it is against the hillside.

He called our insurance company and they sent out a plumber and a restoration company. The plumber zeroed in on where the water was coming in and cut open the drywall to expose the sewer pipes.

Oh yes. We have a sewer pipe leak.

Nice.

We are going to have to have a backhoe in to dig up the front yard to get down to find where the leak is coming from.

We are hopeful the new home warranty will cover this as the house is only 7 years old and the warranties are 10 years. If not we are looking at many thousands of dollars for this repair.

As far as we know your house insurance only covers the damages and restoration to the house and not the costs of stopping the problem as it falls outside of the house.

The plumber had my husband flush an upstairs toilet to check the leak/flow and the also a downstairs one. He said we could use the downstairs toilets……which I did when I got home.

I then went into the room with the leak and turned on the light.

OH MAH GAWD

The entire contents of the flushed toilet came flooding, gushing, pouring into the room. I went weak at the knees.

Apparently we cannot use any of the toilets, no water usage at all. Peeing is fine because it will just sit there in the bowl, toilet paper going into the garbage.

So what did this mean for me this morning when I really, really had to poop.
(sorry but I have lost all sense of propriety here)
Well… I had to…. poop… into… a… bag. There. I said it. On the internet. I used a kitchen garbage bag placed over the toilet bowl, all rolled up so it wasn’t in the water. Shoot me now please.(Just a heads up for my co-workers… if I find plastic bags on my desk going forward etc. I will make you pay…. really pay. Love you) 

We have booked a hotel room for the undetermined future. We can pretend we are on vacation…which is a good thing since we just came back from a vacation to Mexico where we were sick as could be and had a terrible time.

So…what have you guys been doing?

A FAVORITE THING

About 4 years has passed since I posted this but it was such a well received post I wanted to bring it around again. One thing I noticed in the comments is that so many of you love the flannel pajamas for yourselves as much as for your kids. Now you just need to have someone tuck you in and read you a story.

Do you know what one of my most favorite things in the whole wide world, ever, ever, ever is? No, of course you don't.
My fondest memory is of my sons when they were little. You take two little boys and dip them in the bathtub for a while until they are pink and soft and smelling of soap. You wrap those little guys up in a big warm towel and dry them off and then here comes the best part...flannel pajamas. With their wet hair combed neatly, the flannel jammies tucked in and their cheeks still pink from the bath.
This is the best thing in the whole world. A clean, warm, cuddly, loved child.One who will be cuddled and hugged and tucked into bed with a story and a kiss goodnight.

My sons are grown (my eldest turning 27 next week) yet I can still smell and feel the way this felt. I hope they can too. 

What are some of your favorite things?

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LEFT OVER WINE–IT COULD HAPPEN

WINE JELLY

Do you ever have a few open bottles of leftover wine at your place? You know when you have guests over and they each open the bottle of wine that they brought but they only have a glass or two out of the bottle. Ya, that wine.

Or that other bottle. We have all been given a bottle of wine that is not to our taste as well. Something we simply wouldn’t care to drink but also not something you would want to give to someone else.

We don’t want to waste this wine so here is what to do with it…. make jelly. YUP. Jelly. So easy as there is no fruit to prepare. Just wine, sugar and pectin.

Start by the usual canning protocol unless you plan on using it right away… Sterilize your jars, about 4 small jars. Sterilize your lids too. (You can find instructions on any canning web site)

• 3 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 cups leftover wine or champagne
• 1 package of liquid pectin
• fresh rosemary sprigs if you like

Heat sugar and wine over fairly high heat until at a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Squeeze in the package of pectin and continue to stir. Bring back to a boil and then stir for one full minute at a boil.

Put into a large measuring cup to make filling the jars easier. Pour into canning jars over top of any herbs you have added to the jar already. Cover with lids that have also been properly prepared and sanitized.

Process for 10 minutes in a hot water bath. Remove and let cool. Any that don’t seal can be refrigerated and used up first.

I made 2 batches. The first was made with leftover Pinot Grigio to which I added a couple sprigs of fresh rosemary. I dipped the rosemary sprigs into the boiling water after I washed them for a bit of extra cleanliness.

The second batch was made with a some pink champagne which someone brought but didn’t open. It is something we wouldn’t drink. I didn’t add anything else to this one.

You can serve this jelly with roast pork or chicken or perhaps on top of some goat cheese on a crisp crostini.

What would you add to this? Peppercorns? Dried cranberries? Hot pepper flakes?