This morning while searching for a special Father’s Day quote to post to social media, I came across a cute one. If you follow me on Facebook, you’ll see the same one there. Sorry for the repeat.
The following instructional quote won’t pertain to most fathers of the present day though some moms may still use *cotton diapers. Many of you will remember diapering your babies with cloth diapers. Where did you get your instructions? 🙂 Enjoy the quote, Dads. It might help if you’re into baseball! 🙂 Happy Father’s Day. ❤
Spread the diaper in the position of the diamond with you at bat. Then fold second base down to home and set the baby on the pitcher’s mound. Put first base and third together, bring up home plate and pin the three together. Of course, in case of rain, you gotta call the game and start all over again. ~Jimmy Piersal, on how to diaper a baby, 1968
I lost my dad when my boys were teens. A favorite memory from my youth was going to work with him on some weekends. We lived in Detroit at the time. He was a heavy equipment operator and truck driver. He’d take me in the bull dozer with him on a half day of work. I remember sitting there so excited in the huge piece of machinery, amazed at how he operated it.
I loved everything about being with him on those weekends. However, I’d be terrified while he pushed load after load of whatever it was he pushed, over the edge into a humungous limestone quarry. I knew we were going over the edge! After work, we’d stop at a bar for lunch. I was too young to know where it was, but he knew all the guys there.
Later, his company moved their facility from Detroit to the Sibley Quarry in Trenton, Michigan where it remains to this day as an inactive limestone quarry. The link has an interesting tidbit about “Arm & Hammer” Baking Soda.
I know it’s hard to pick only one, but you’re welcome to share with us a favorite memory of your dad.
*DISCLAIMER: This is not an affiliate link nor do I have an affiliation with these diapers.
Image from Pixabay. Made into a graphic by yours truly.
It’ll soon be time to tell 2017 farewell, OR maybe to kick it in the behind and say, “Good riddance.” We aren’t there yet, though, so here we go with another #MFRWauthor 52-Week Blog Challenge theme in this blog hop.
Week 49: A Favorite Recipe
Today I’m choosing this recipe because it evokes happy memories.
The Pineapple Sheet Cake doesn’t have the texture of a regular cake. It’s more on the springy side. It’s made in a 15x10x1 inch pan—a cookie sheet type of pan. My boys never liked cream cheese, but they did like this recipe.
I looked online for a picture of the cake because I didn’t want to make one when I’m the only one here to eat it. Luckily, I found the recipe for “Pineapple Sheet Cake” at Taste of Home. However, my cooking time says 40 minutes where the online version says 35 minutes. Oh, and the online recipe calls for undrained pineapple where mine calls for drained. I don’t know if I wrote my recipe wrong, but I’m sure I followed what I had written. The comments on the recipe page are interesting. The page has some Test Kitchen Tips you might want to look at if you decide to make this cake. 🙂
Due to nut allergies, make sure everyone is aware of nuts in this product. I suppose the sprinkled nuts on top would be a giveaway. 0_o
Pineapple Sheet Cake Photo by and from Taste of Home.
This picture above looks like my homemade version. Perfect! Here you go:
Cake:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
2 eggs
1- 20 oz. can drained (undrained?) crushed pineapple.
1 cup chopped nuts
In a large bowl combine cake ingredients. Beat until smooth. Pour into a greased 15x10x1 inch baking pan. Cook 40 minutes. Check at 35 minutes as the online recipe says. It’s hard to tell when this cake is done because it is so springy. Pressing on it to test for the springiness, is usually how I checked for doneness.
Frosting:
1- 8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
½ cup butter, softened.
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar)
½ cup chopped nuts to sprinkle over the top.
Combine ingredients until smooth. Spread over cooled cake and sprinkle nuts over the top. Enjoy.
YUM. My family enjoyed this recipe for many years. ❤
Not to bore you, but here’s a little backstory:
I’ve had this recipe for so long, I don’t remember who gave it to me. I used to make this on occasion for my family, but often, I’d make it ahead and take it to our cabin in Pennsylvania when I knew my husband’s family would be there.
In the beginning, we all stayed in the small cabin on nineteen acres of land in the Allegheny National Forest. When they got older, the kids slept upstairs in sleeping bags on the floor. The upstairs was not much more than a half-finished attic with pull down stairs. If Grandpa was there, he slept in his bed up there. One couple slept in the tiny bedroom in twin beds downstairs. A single family member slept on the pull-out sofa bed in the living room, and another couple slept in their camper. What fun we had back then!
@ snehitdesign at DespositPhoto
The picture above is what U.S. Route 62 looks like on the way. It isn’t fun in the winter or in the fog. The last time I visited the area was around 2006.
Meaty Macaroni Bake was another recipe my sister-in-law and I would make, which went a long way for three hard-working men, four growing boys, and one niece. My apologies for digressing, but I imagine many of our favorite recipes have a story or two, to go along with them.
After many years, and as all the kids grew older, my husband and I bought our own place on a couple acres a short walk away. We enjoyed having our own space, and two bedrooms. My ex-husband still has it along with the other nineteen acres with his brothers. No, the log house below is not what we had.
Book three, Christmas at Love House: A Bittersweet Interlude, takes place in this area with a log house like I would’ve loved. Hence, Love House. Love House got it’s name in book two. I’m not trying to promote this book to y’all. I’m only stating a fact that the area was the perfect place for this story.
This is a Blog Hop, and there are other authors participating. I can’t wait to check out their favorite recipes. Come along?
Many of us at Marketing for Romance Writers wanted this challenge to continue next year. I had a hard time thinking of topics myself, but a handful of other authors had a long list of ideas. I did suggest that we use one topic in particular over again. We’ll have to see if it gets added. 😉
Thanks for joining us today. Happy Cooking.
Marketing for Romance Writers 52 Week Challenge Blog Hop. #MFRWauthor
Week 35.
WOW. Thirty-five weeks have gone by this year? Unbelievable. What have I done with the past thirty-five weeks? Well, for one thing, I’d have to say I’ve been writing about two sexy cowboys. One book went to the editor yesterday while I continue writing the next in the series. Unfortunately, I haven’t been writing here on my blog. I hope you’ll forgive me for being so absent. It’s important for me to do as many posts as I can for #MFRWauthor. Moving on…
Today’s topic is: My Bad Habits.
Do I want to tell the world my bad habits? I guess I’m about to. I might keep a few hidden to remain mysterious.
Let’s start with one: I know I drive my youngest son crazy by doing this, but when he comes over, which isn’t often enough to suit me, I run my mouth like I haven’t talked to anyone in months. I tell him things I’ve already told him. It’s obvious this frustrates him.
I didn’t realize this until a few visits ago when I mentioned how frustrated I am with a neighbor, and that I hope this person moves. I’ve been mentioning this for eleven months now. M’Bad! My son sits up and says, “I can’t wait for her to move, either!” Oops, Mom’s bad habit of repeating things came out again. I apologized and I haven’t done it since.
Bad habit number two: Biting my nails. I do this mostly while stressed. I catch myself doing this while watching bull riding of all things. Huh? I love bull riding, and I get so excited watching it. I stopped biting my nails for a long time, but before I knew it, the bad habit began again.
Here’s number three: I eat too late. It seems from the time I finish dinner, I want to snack the rest of the night. Ugh. Sometimes I snack on Reduced-fat sour cream Pringles or popcorn. I passed up buying Pringles® at my last shopping trip, and I haven’t purchased popcorn in ages, so I’m getting better, but I still look for something before reminding myself I don’t want to SNACK late.
Number four: Well, darn, I sit far too long at a time. Since physical therapy began, I’m more aware of how much I sit without getting up. I’m getting better at it now that I am in an exercise routine for my back. I graduated from physical therapy yesterday. My back and sciatica are better but not cured yet. Being pain-free is a good incentive. This is where I’m stopping. You all don’t need to know every bad habit.
Remember, this is a Blog Hop. Please check out the other authors who are participating.
Thank you kindly.
This is Labor Day Weekend in the United States. Please be safe while enjoying this last long vacation blast before summer ends.
Post images from Pixabay.
Wow, can you believe this is week 21? The Topic this week is: “A Childhood Memory.”
Remember, I haven’t participated every week, but some authors have, so try to visit their blogs since this is a BLOG HOP. I’m excited to see their childhood memories.
A Childhood Memory:
I grew up in Detroit in my grandmother’s large brick home. I don’t remember the day we moved in with Grandma, but I do have an early memory of living somewhere else. But this isn’t the childhood memory I will mention today. My other grandmother, my dad’s mom, lived in what we call “Up North” about fifty miles south of the Mackinac Bridge. I’m combining a couple memories that took place at her cottage home on a Lake.
We didn’t go up there often, therefore, I barely remember my paternal grandfather. One memory I have of him is when we went apple picking down the road from Grandma’s house. He had an old pickup truck. I’m willing to bet the truck was a Ford. All my family “up north” drove, and, today, still drive a Ford truck or car. How weird, because now I do to. Back to the memory…
Bushels of apples were being loaded into the back of Grandpa’s truck, but my most important memory was having my Grandpa lift me up into the back of the truck, too. 
He and I were laughing, which tells me we were happy together. I don’t know how young I was, but it might’ve been before I started school. It’s the only memory I have of him.
I think my female cousin was there. She and I are the only girls out of twelve cousins and brothers. Later when I was in school—maybe kindergarten, my dad received a phone call from his middle brother who lived near Grandma and Grandpa. After the call, my dad called his youngest brother who lived near us. (My favorite uncle)
I remember a lot of running around and my dad being sad, then my uncle appeared. Dad had packed a suitcase. This got me in trouble a lot, but I was an inquisitive child, so I asked why everyone cried. My grandpa had passed away, and my dad and uncle rushed up north to be with my grandma. I don’t remember a trip up north or a funeral, but I do remember my dad being sad for some time.
Another memory I have of the lake house was ice fishing with my dad in freezing cold temperatures. Once, on the way out the back door to the lake, I paid attention to Grandpa’s overall’s hanging frozen on the day porch. Funny, I remember the frozen overalls, but I don’t remember Grandpa being there. Something about those frozen clothes hanging on a line stuck with me. LOL. Four of my cousins still live up north, and a fifth has vacation lake property. The sixth lives in Florida. Larry, the youngest cousin of the bunch, took this picture of what used to be Grandma’s house on the lake.
Back to ice fishing. I remember being so bundled up, I could barely move. I trudged out there on the frozen lake with my dad early one morning. Once we arrived to his “spot,” he drilled the hole. After a few minutes of sitting at this silly hole in the ice, it was the last place I wanted to be because my feet were already freezing. I stuck a pole in for a short time. It wasn’t like I never fished with my dad before, but ice fishing was boring.
Oh, sure, I had brothers, but I’m the one who fished with Dad. I stood the cold for as long as I could before making my way back to the house, which seemed like a mile though the cottage stayed in sight. I remember asking my grandma about the frozen clothes. She laughed because it seemed odd to me. “How could clothes dry if they were frozen?” I’d asked.
I wasn’t one of Grandma’s favorite grandkids. Six other grandkids lived close to her and she talked about them all the time. In fact, I didn’t much like her either. She wasn’t a caring and compassionate grandma. She’d make fun of me for crying when my parents went out on the town with my aunt and uncle. She called me a “baby” for crying. At home in Detroit, my parents didn’t go out on the town, so I wasn’t used to being left alone with a near stranger. Besides, she and my maternal grandmother were total opposites, and Grandma Alice loved me like crazy. It wasn’t until I had grown that Grandma Gertie and I became friends and I did grow to love her.
Oops, I combined more than a couple childhood memories. If you’re still reading, I hope the memories weren’t as boring as the ice fishing. Thanks for reading if you made it this far.
Remember, this is a blog hop! Hoppity hop right on over to the Marketing For Romance Writers Blog Hop page. Thanks for visiting. Enjoy your weekend.
Other than the lake house, images are from Pixabay.
Link to the Blog Hop participants.
This is a Blog Hop!
Times change. Life moves forward. Who gets a bit sentimental during the holidays? I do.
People always ask where I’m going, or they want to know what I’ll be doing for Thanksgiving. Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate their concern. Sometimes I get accused of being a recluse because I don’t have a problem to stay at home and do my job. Write.
It wasn’t always like this when I had my own family. Well, I still have a family, but one boy is across the country. My youngest son is in a serious relationship, and they do this holiday with her family. Yes, they have invited me to join them.
What do you think my advice is to others when I know they’ll be alone?
“Don’t stay home alone. Go and enjoy dinner with friends.”
It’s easy to give advice. Ask my oldest son in California how many years I’ve told him that.
Now, he says it to me. 
I remember the first Thanksgiving dinner when one of my kids wasn’t there. The oldest went to a football game with his best friend (Go Lions!), so it was different with only three of us there instead of four—five if we count my single brother-in-law. That’s when I realized the days of having our family Thanksgiving dinners together were numbered as the kids grew older.
Allegheny River
Back in those days, my family sometimes went to our cottage in Pennsylvania in the Allegheny National Forest in the Allegheny Mountains. My husband’s entire family would be there at the family cottage across from us. We always had fun.
After my married brother-in-law got divorced, I was the only female so you know what my job was, but truly, I didn’t mind cooking for everyone. At least one brother-in-law would always come for dinner anyway. Luckily, my husband (now ex-husband) knew how to cook, and he’d always lend a hand.
Times change. Life moves forward.
If you celebrate Thanksgiving, are you spending time with your immediate family this year? Tons of relatives? Friends? Going out? Staying home?
Whatever it is you’ll be doing, please enjoy yourself.
For the record, I am not staying home alone this year.
Happy Thanksgiving.
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Here we are! Another weekend. College football weekend in my neck of the woods. 
Two of our big rival colleges are playing each other and this should be good. Tailgating will be cold. This was the first day with frost on the car windows. My cousin in the upper part of the state had three inches of snow. EKK!
Enough blabbering. Today is also Saturday so you know what that means. Yes, you got it! While doing my Wednesday thing on Twitter this week, I came across a snippet for today in my newest release, an Amazon #1 Best Seller: Of the Cowboy’s Own Accord.
From the Double Dutch Ranch Series: Love at First Sight, a #Western #Romance series with gentlemen #Cowboys (with a touch of bad) and the heroines who know how to handle them.)
Dane is my military cowboy, and the youngest Carlson brother. He’s home on leave and not necessarily by choice:
Dane woke with a start and sat up in bed. His heart pounded when he didn’t have a gun. One deep breath led to another. Normal breathing didn’t come easy. Normal? What is normal? No gun. No Army. Not a damn thing was normal. His throat clenched as he tried to swallow while his gut twisted.
A warm hand touched his back. Closing his eyes again, he remembered where he was…at her place. Safe. “I’m sorry to wake you,” he whispered in the dark. His arm draped over a bent knee. Think a minute. Breathe.
“Did you have a nightmare?” She sat up and wrapped her arm around his shoulder. “Don’t be sorry. I’ve read about PTSD.”
That word made him cringe. “I don’t have PTSD. Not a nightmare. I just woke up. Please don’t mention that again. It’s a habit… Wake up to check surroundings.”
“All right, but you’re safe here.” She laid her head against his shoulder and smoothed her hand over his arm.
Dane pressed his head against hers. “The nights might get worse,” he said, hesitating before going on. “Especially when there are nightmares…”
More about this book can be found HERE.
(You might also remember the struggle I had naming this book.)
Two or more new books are coming in 2016. If interested in being notified of new releases or important book updates, my mailing list can be found here. Thank you in advance. 🙂
Have a fantastic weekend. GO BLUE!!!!!!!!!
Earlier, I had posted a blog about writing love letters. It reminded me of the greeting cards I’ve saved throughout the years. If I had love letters, trust me, they’d be saved.
As I began cleaning out ‘stuff’ to move, I came across a box with greeting cards I’ve saved over the years. I compiled them all into a box, and wrote a note on the outside to my sons who will one day have to go through that box. (*Maybe) The cards represent the many people who have loved, or cared for me, for one reason or another.
They go back as far as my early adult years—starting with wedding congratulations, high school graduation cards, and college graduation cards. (I graduated as an adult with children.)
Also included are “welcome new baby cards,” homemade/purchased birthday cards, and wedding anniversary cards. Oh, of course I have a multitude of ❤ Valentine’s Day ❤ cards. I have many from my best friend—who is still my best friend. I have funny, sad, and photo cards. Of course, you can’t live a life without sympathy cards involved, too.
This isn’t to say I’ve saved every single card I’ve ever received.
One in particular stands out. A handmade card that came straight from someone I knew in prison. The card is absolutely gorgeous, and was created by an artist who made cards for inmates—an inmate himself.
My goal has always been to make a large collage out of those cards that show me as 
a wife—an ex-wife once and a widow another time. Therefore, I have step-mom cards from my second marriage. Cards that show me as a mom, aunt, niece, sister, friend, teacher. Many are from people who have passed away.
I told my youngest son if I made them into a collage, he could show it at my funeral instead of making a photo board. Of course, if they do make a photo board, I’d instruct them to add all my book covers. 🙂 That’s a big part of my life so I believe it would be necessary. Do you agree?
Everyone can look at my sexy cowboys and maybe not be sad because I died. I might be off to cowboy Heaven for all I know.
This collage is a visual in my head. It might be on a big poster board, or maybe something sturdier. I’d cut out the reason for the card, be it mom, wife, etc. Then, I’d cut out who the card was from and add it beside the title of the card. I’ve loved creating photo collages for a long time, so this would be easy and fun. After the collage was finished, it could be laminated so it’d last. Depending on how it was made, it could even go into a frame. I know there are sites online where you can do Scrapbooking. Maybe I could also do a collage online instead. It isn’t like I have time to scan all those cards, though.
Why bother? The collage would be more important to me than anyone else, so after I was gone, they could trash it along with the funeral flowers if they chose.
My youngest son and his girlfriend recently helped me get my storage tubs and smaller items moved before my movers came for the heavy load. I showed my boy’s girlfriend the box of cards. Her reaction surprised me…
Her grandmother had recently passed away and she told me that she and her family had to go through every card, letter, and pieces of old, saved mail, etc., and trash it all. “No one will want to go through that stuff,” she said. In reality, she’s right because as I said, the cards are more important to me. *Hmm, on some cold winter day, I’ll create the collage for myself. No harm in letting it hang on the wall for a time. If I get sick of looking at it, the Dumpster is right down at the end of my parking lot.
Is it just me?
My son says I’m weird. Does this make me “weird”?
It’d be my pleasure to have you follow my blog if anything I’ve said here is of interest to you.
If you’re interested in my novel writing at all, I also have a Mailing List. This mailing list is to be notified of new releases or important book updates. In other words, I don’t bombard your Inbox with newsletters.
Thanks for stopping by today. 🙂
Moving Van Photo: http://morguefile.com/, Greeting Card #1 Photo credit: © Retro Clipart | Dreamstime.com, Greeting Card #2 Photo credit: © Vladimir Ovchinnikov | Dreamstime.com
Hopefully I’ll be able to do this brain dump in five minutes, but don’t count on it this week. I missed two weeks and really wish I could write something different this week, but my mind still lives in fear for my brother’s family. Here’s my dump and you’ll see why I feel as I do. This SOC doesn’t seem to fit with my Blog’s Christmas theme but I have to have something normal right now.
Last week I received an email from one of my cousins asking if everything was okay at my brothers. He said “I saw it on the news.” It? I had no idea what he was talking about since I didn’t watch the news that morning.
I immediately called my brother and his nightmare became mine, but he was on his way to talk to detectives and couldn’t talk on the phone long. The previous night he was sitting at his table eating dinner and the next thing he knew there was a shotgun in his face and 3 masked men standing in his dining room. His two grown sons were home; my sister-in-law had just left. To spare the details, just know now they are physically okay although one nephew went by EMT to the hospital to get 15 stitches in his head from being hit with the butt of the pistol.
In the end, my nephews got the guns away and the three men took off. Well, needless to say, I am living in fear for them right now, as are they. They went through it and are fearful each night, and I have the after effects as well. To think all three of them could have been killed in the blink of an eye, and what my sister in law could have walked into, scares the crap out of me. I am so worried for them.
I can’t go into a lot of detail right now, hopefully later. I hope and pray they catch these thugs who apparently think nothing of another human life. My brother felt that he was going to die that night, and when his son was hit in the head, he didn’t know if he was shot or what, since a gun did go off. He only knew there was blood all over the floor and my nephew. Each one of them thought they were going to die that night.
My fear is great for them and I so want to be able to protect them, but who am I? Just thinking back at this horrible ordeal makes my heart pound and race. How do they get through their nights, when I think of it all night and I’m on the other side of town. Will the fear ever go away? Will they ever feel safe again. I’m so afraid for them.
This was my Stream of Consciousness Sunday. If you want to participate here are the rules.
Now…
1. Grab the button
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2. Write your post.
3. Link up here: All Things Fadra
Have you ever made a wish? I bet everyone has one time or another. Birthdays are the first thing that come to mind. Even if we don’t want to, our friends practically beg us to make a wish as we blow out our candles. Think about this for a moment. Do you expect the wish to come true? I do it for fun and to please everyone else.
Well, let this take a different turn. What if those wishes could come true? Let’s imagine for a minute or two, that we have three wishes. These three wishes are just for us and our own personal gain, pleasure, or whim. Of course, we all wish for world peace and for the hungry to be full.
What would you wish for if you knew your three wishes were guaranteed to come true and at no out-of-pocket costs? Before I started writing this, I tried to think of three things that would make my life better. It wasn’t easy to come up with these ideas, after all, it will probably never happen again in my lifetime, so I want to make it right. Remember, we are to use it for our own personal needs and wants.
My number one wish would be to have good health… (I’m including my two sons in this wish.)
With good health, I [We] wouldn’t have to worry about any family illnesses or diseases. After all, we’d have a guarantee. I think in my mind’s eye, my life would be better all the way around if I knew we didn’t have to worry about getting sick. All three of us would save money on health insurance. Think of all those hours waiting in doctors’ offices. That would be over. Medicine? There would be so much money saved by not buying prescriptions. I do believe good health would be one of my three wishes. I’m left with two more.
My second wish would be to have an endless amount of money. (Is this selfish?)
I don’t know where this money is going to come from. It doesn’t have to be a lot of money all at once. It has to be money that is always in my bank account, and it magically appears as I need it. Do I want to buy a new house? No problem, I’ll write a check. Of course, the house will be large enough to house my immediate family for as long as they wanted to stay. Did I mention an extended vacation? Why not? After all, the money is in the bank for whatever I might need. Never living with an endless amount of money, it’s hard for me to say what I’d do with it. Just think… Endless money!
For my third wish…
Hmm, do I wish for more wishes? Would that be greedy? We all know it would be. I think for my third wish, I’d wish for a happy family life. No family quarrels, no family problems, no worries. Everyone would live close to each other, and be one happy family. There would always be laughter, love, and trust. We can’t leave out best friends, though. No, we can’t get along without best friends.
So, for today, these are my three wishes. Who knows what I might wish for tomorrow or the next day. For now, this is how I feel, and I think these wishes fit today. I invite you to take a minute and think about three wishes. Remember, this is for you, something you deserve in your life. Do it for fun. Go all out and see what you come up with. When it comes around to your birthday, and you see the candles burning, get ready– You know someone is going to ask, or I should say, tell you, you need to make a wish.
Go ahead and think about it. We know our three wishes aren’t really going to be granted by some genie or unknown force with the power to do so. Maybe if we do think seriously about it, we can grant our own wishes. Maybe it’s impossible to have endless money in the bank, but it is possible to contribute to your own good health, or to a happy close-knit family. See, there might be ways for some of those wishes to come true. Try it! I’d love to hear about your wishes, so please feel free to leave a comment.
Mary J. McCoy-Dressel 
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