Roly Polies Help Make the World Go 'Round!

Here's a little book I put together to help teach my children some green-living concepts. Hope your kiddos enjoy it as well!!

My Boy Loves His Cap

He really wanted to drive this.

Trikes were awesome back then.

Monster Snapping Turtle

As we were driving home yesterday, we saw this unusual black object in the road. Of course we had to inspect it.

As we got closer, much to our delight, we found this HUGE snapping turtle hanging out in the road. The picture does not do it justice. The shell was about a foot and a half long, not including the head and tail.

Check out that leg!

I don't know what this thing is eating to get so big, but I kept the kids away from it. They don't call them "snapping" turtles for nothing. I've heard the phrase "half alligator, half turtle" in reference to their disposition and appetite.

p.s. you know I couldn't leave you without a silly joke...

What kind of phone does a turtle use?

A Shell Phone.

A Low Country Twilight

click to enlarge

Twilight is my favorite time of day. Its peaceful colors invite a calmness of mind and a slowing of rhythms. For some, like the solitary Osprey seated on the branch, it signals the beginning of the hunt. I live near a little salt creek marshy area and pass this tree daily. It often has an Osprey in it, scanning the creek for fish. Sometimes she catches one and will sit on a branch, fish in talon, enjoying her meal. This particular humid late summer evening, I passed the tree as usual but was struck by its beauty, so much so I had to pull over and take a picture. Cars were going past, oblivious to the magical scene above them. This is Coastal Savannah at its best. I love it. It is home.

Bonne Nuit!

Surfs Up at Tybee

Click on the image to enlarge it.

How Do You Catch A Squirrel?

How do you catch a Squirrel?

Climb into a tree and act like a nut!

What do you call a cow with a crown? A "Dairy Queen"!

Chicken Butt!

What do you call a Donkey with one leg shorter than the other? A Wonkey!

So this katydid walks into a bar...

The bartender says "Why the long face?"

Quick Chicken and Dumplings

My girl loves these chicken and dumplings!

It's easy and quick and you'll have leftovers for lunch the next day and most likely dinner that night.

Or take some to your Grandmama for pete's sake...

Ingredients:

4 Chicken Drumsticks (with skin)

2 Boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 can Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup

4-6 carrots (chopped into slices)

1 medium Vidalia onion (or 1 small regular onion) quartered

1 tbsp minced garlic (I use the little jar of pre-minced)

salt and pepper to taste

1 package of Mary Hill's Dumplings (God love this woman!)

Fill a stew pot half full of water and put your chicken in it. Salt and pepper to taste (not too much b/c the soup will add some sodium). Bring to a boil and boil for about 45 minutes. Add the carrots, onion, and garlic. Continue boiling about 30 minutes or longer until the chicken is done and real tender.

Remove the chicken from the pot (leave the carrots etc.) and set aside. When the chicken is cool, shred the 2 breasts with a fork but leave the drumsticks whole.

Remove about 2 cups of the chicken broth from the pot and whisk with the can of mushroom soup til the lumps are gone and then add the mushroom soup mixture back to the rest of the broth. Return to a boil. Add the dumplings one at a time to the broth (per dumpling package instructions), reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 30 minutes.

Add all the chicken back to the dumpling mixture and then serve.

Serve with Butterbeans and an episode of Masterpiece Theatre for ultimate satisfaction.

p.s. I'm an eccentric old lady at heart - as if you couldn't figure that out by the above comment.

p.p.s. I'm still waiting on the that supscription to "Reminisce" Nana.