Pizza from Scratch

I had never made pizza completely from scratch before but I was inspired by another blogger to give it a go. She's vegetarian so I don't keep on hand the same ingredients that she uses, but I was inspired none the less. While my pizza dough was making in the bread machine (I substituted 1/2 c. bread flower for 1/2 c. whole wheat). I started cooking tomatoes for the sauce.
Since I had more yellow tomatoes I decided that was what I was going to make my sauce out of. The finished sauce looked strange but had a wonderful flavor. Yellow tomatoes are sweeter than red as a general rule so I didn't add sugar as most pizza sauce recipes call for.

Below is all the ingredients for my pizza with the pizza dough in the back waiting to be rolled out. The meat in the lower left bowl is sliced ham and turkey.

My pizza cooker instructions say to brush the dough with butter and cook for 5 minutes at 300F. I brushed my dough with olive oil.

Then I spread on my tomato sauce and covered it all with my meats. One half I am putting everything on and the other half will be in three sections. One just meat, one everything but onion and the third with everything. This is for the three grandchildren that were visiting. All of it is covered with mozzarella cheese.

Then the lid is put on the cooker and I cook the pizza for half an hour at 250F

Because everybody was hungry I forgot to get a picture of the whole pizza before serving it up. This cooker doesn't brown the cheese on top and I'm just learning what works but I'd say that this pizza turned out pretty darn good. The grandkids ate theirs anyway.

Do you have a favorite pizza dough recipe? I'd be interested to hear what you like.

Petty Pin-up Girls

When I was a teenager my room was in the basement. I liked it down there because it was like being in a cave. The windows were small so they didn't let in a lot of light and the temperature didn't vary greatly. When I left home dad did some remodeling. The basement windows needed work because they leaked sometimes. When they took out the old wood and wallboard he found some papers folded up in a cavity in one of them. They were pictures of pin-up girls. The house was built in 1957 and we moved in around 1963(?). Mom gave me these pictures the other day and I'm posting the more presentable ones here...
They appear to have been in a book that measured 6"x13".

I did some checking online and I've found that they were drawn by George Petty for Esquire in the mid 1950s.

The previous two might have been a little showy, but I hope I didn't offend anyone with them. I find all the girls very pretty.

These last two in the swim suits look no different than you'd see in any pool or on any beach in the world.

The more risque pictures I have posted in an album here. Makes one wonder why the pictures were hid away in the cavity of the basement window. Was it a construction worker placing a time capsule of sorts? Was it a young man not wanting his mother to find his girly pictures? But I think it was in a place that wasn't accessible, so would probably have to have been the construction worker.

Thanksgiving Day

This year we all went to mom's and spent the several hours cleaning out the garage. This was one day that we knew everyone could get together to do this.
Mom has no use for all dad's large tools and all she really needs there is what someone might need for minor/emergency repairs, plus some gardening tools.

There were also some tools and other things in the house that mom will not use that was dispersed to family members. As I go through things I have brought home I will post about some of the more interesting treasures.

Around 3pm we all went in for out Thanksgiving feast.

Thanksgiving prayers were given and everyone lined up.

The children always seem to prefer sitting at the bar. These are my grandchildren but I have pictures of my children in the same places not all that many years ago.

But the turkey is what it's all about, isn't it PK?

Nawww... It's the gathering of family and friends, that's what the memories are made of.

Being Thankful

It's been a year of highs and lows. I've had a difficult time getting back into posting to my blog, or doing many other things as far as that goes. In September I lost my father and there's a void that I'm still in the process of learning how to deal with. I am forever thankful to have been born into the family that I was fortunate to be blessed with. I could not have dreamed of better parents.
Never do I recall ever feeling as though I was not wanted or loved. Never do I recall ever going without a meal, not have something nice to wear or have change to grab a soda with friends. I am thankful for having been taught the value of a good days work. To see the joy in accomplishments at days end. To be able to look back at the row planted and know that the row ahead would soon be done.

I am thankful for the gatherings of family and friends for all the many occasions through the years. That one of our great joys is making time to be with one another and celebrate all that are there and those that are not, to remember those that have gone on to their heavenly reward.

I am thankful for the "Faith of my Fathers" because it was through the examples of my elders that I truly saw what it meant to be Christ like. I am thankful for the Word that my grandmother asked that we memorize so we could recite to her when we would visit the few times a year. The Psalms taught me to love poetry and the way words could paint a picture in your mind.

I am thankful for learning to sing the old hymns, they taught my heart joy like no other. Singing is something the soul does out loud, you know it when you hear it and when your soul sings it's like flying. This same feeling can also be infused into musical instruments and they become an extension of your soul.

In more recent times I am especially thankful for my grandchildren. My hopes and prayers are that I can pass on to them the same feeling of thankfulness that was passed on to me. To be able to do that would give me even more to be Thankful for.

Hoping All of You are Having a Joyous and Happy Thanksgiving!

K-Monster's Halloween Birthday

Saturday was Halloween and K-Monster's birthday is a couple days prior so my daughter held his birthday party so they all could go trick or treating afterward.
New decorations this year was the giant black pumpkin and black cat whose head went back...

...and forth.

There was the ghoul in the old pickup truck, the bones on that dash light up and what's left of the old spider they had built several years ago.

Saturday was a beautiful, sunshiny day. After eating pizza they all went outside and played on the trampoline and with the Nerf guns.

Little PK had my old camera and was being a shutterbug. I'll post some her pictures later.

My brother brought his new toy, and Airsoft gun, that the boys had fun shooting at pop cans and Styrofoam plates.

K-Monster had a giant cookie instead of a decorated cake.

And we sang 'Happy Birthday' but there were no candles.

After cake/cookie and ice cream it was time to open the presents. Most of his presents came in the form of cards with money in them, which was just fine with him.

Then we were directed outside where his new bicycle and Nerf gun were waiting for him.

Time for everyone to get dressed up...

Isn't she just the cutest little witch?

Here's our group of Trick or Treaters all ready to gather loads of candy.