It has been several years since the last time we bought bird food for our backyard cuties. Mainly because when the squirrels, pigeons, grackles and other blackbirds discovered the food, they would wipe out the feeders in a days' time - or less. The songbirds we were trying to attract worked well until the bullies and gluttons showed up. At that point, it became quite an expensive hobby to feed animals we didn't want to attract. So, we would take the feeders down for a week or 2 hoping the other animals would lose interest. But it would take only a day or 2 for them to discover the feeders once more when we would hang them again. So, we finally threw the feeders away. We don't have all the nuisance birds in our backyard anymore, but also, our songbird population has dropped off. Very sad trade off. Since this winter has been a bit colder than the last few winters, though, we decided to buy some bird food that had a good variety of sunflower seeds and other seeds as well as ...

Homemade Ground Beef and Bean Chili Chili is another one of my favorite cold, winter's day dump dishes. This dish also serves up to 8 people and can be used as leftovers for a family of 3 to 4.  It's very filling and tasty with just enough heat so it is pleasing and not overpowering to the tastebuds. image courtesy of  Campbell's Kitchen via All Recipes.com Ingredients 1 lb. ground beef, browned and placed in paper towel to remove excess oil 1 large green pepper, chopped 1 small onion, chopped 2 teaspoons chili powder ¼ teaspoon black pepper 3-4 cups tomato juice (from 46 oz. bottle or can) 16 oz. can kidney beans, rinsed and drained 16 oz. can great Northern beans, rinsed and drained 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes Garnishments Sour cream Shredded cheddar cheese Optional Side Cornbread  Directions After cooking the ground beef and rinsing the beans, put all ingredients into a stock pot Cook on high and stir frequently until contents begin to ...

My husband once commented that I love to cook. I'm not sure where he got that idea! I love to eat .  I have to cook to be able to eat and feed my family. So, I have simplified a lot of the main dish recipes I've collected since we were married in 1989. I share my simple recipes with you on this site from time to time. Dump dishes, crockpot meals, and pressure cooker meals are my absolute favorites, because I use fewer dishes and utensils to prepare the meals, which means less cleanup afterward. I occasionally make meals with side dishes that I also provide a few recipes for - or share my favorite packaged side dishes.  image courtesy of Alyson McPhee via Unsplash Many of my meals can also be used as leftovers for a family of 3 to 4, which is a time-saver as well as budget friendly in a world of escalating prices. I hope you and your family enjoy the meals from the simple recipes I provide. I'd love for you to leave comments when you try them.  Thanks for dropping by!...

Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup Soup is one of my favorite dump dishes, especially on a cold, winter day. My hearty and filling homemade vegetable beef soup serves up to 8 people. For families of 3 or 4, this is a great leftover meal , saving both time and money. Prepped and ready in under an hour. Enjoy!  Pat's homemade vegetable beef soup Ingredients 46 oz. bottle or can of tomato juice 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes (drained) 11 oz. can of corn (drained) 14.5 oz. can of green beans (drained) 2 cups of washed, peeled, diced potatoes 1 lb. ground beef Salt for flavor Optional Side Cornbread if desired Directions Boil washed, peeled, diced potatoes until soft  Add a couple of shakes of salt as you stir from time to time Drain potatoes Brown and drain the ground beef (browning should be done simultaneously while boiling the potatoes) Pat off excess grease with paper towels Add all ingredients into a stock pot Pour in the 46 oz. of tomato juice In stockpot, cook on high until conte...

I am sorry to hear that a health insurance CEO lost his life on December 4, 2024. That is so sad. I certainly don't condone murder, but this is proof that people aren't getting the help they need. The killer likely needed some mental health help and was denied. That's where my mind went anyway. And hopefully, the death of Mr. Thompson doesn't lead to higher insurance costs with fewer benefits, which is probably where this is going to go with health insurance companies now considering beefing up security, which will lead to the consumer paying for that as well.  His death should, instead, open our eyes to what is lacking in health insurance - empathy. I have long felt that health insurance is the leading cause of the declining health conditions in our country. By the time we pay for insurance, we have no money left to pay for a doctor's visit. We're going in the wrong direction. The United States should have the healthiest people in the world! I'm still tryin...

Easy Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwiches It's time for another recipe. And today , I'm going to share my crockpot recipe for a very Mild Pulled Pork Barbecue sandwich. And it's very simple to make. This sandwich feeds up to 6 people and can easily be served as a stand-alone dish. You will have the option to print the recipe without pictures at the bottom of the page. I like this recipe because I can add as much barbecue sauce and slaw, as layers, to the sandwich as each person wants. Or those ingredients can simply be omitted for those who don't like either. The slaw can also be eaten as a side dish instead of or in addition to eating it on the sandwich. So simple! Win-win for all who have gathered at the table. Ingredients 1.5 to 2 lb. thick pork chops (excess fat removed and meat cubed) ¼ cup lt. brown sugar 1 tsp. chili powder 2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. pepper 1 tsp. Mesquite liquid smoke 12 oz. of Coke Pepperjack cheese slices BBQ sauce Bag of Coleslaw Coleslaw dressing Hamburger bu...

October Leaf Peeping Enjoying an autumn drive I know autumn isn't a holiday, but it got me out of the house for a couple of days. It's still fairly warm here in the afternoons even though we're well over a month into this beautiful season, so I actually grilled hamburgers one night. And we went leaf peeping one afternoon. See the pictures below of some of the beauty I captured with my camera as we drove around. Beautiful sun in the clear October sky Autumn in the backyard We don't have to drive anywhere to experience the beauty of autumn though. I love our backyard . I tell my family I would miss our backyard and large deck more than anything if we had to move. One of life's secrets is having a nice place to get away from the daily grind. My place for that just happens to be our backyard. Even when the roses slowly stop blooming, the hummingbird feeders come down, and the other birds stop nesting, I still enjoy spending time on the deck or in the backyard. The pink...