Everyday Adventures

Cold weather has hit Oklahoma. The high temperature Saturday is supposed to be 29 degrees, with a wind chill well below that.

I know that is not all that cold for those of you that live in the northern part of the country, but for Oklahoma it is pretty cold, especially when it is supposed to last for quite a few days. It is winter though so I won’t complain too much. It will be spring and summer before we know it.

Cold weather means lots of soups, chili, and comfort food. Many of them have been cooked in my new Crock Pot.

For whatever reason, I seem to be hard on Crock Pots. I am not sure if it is because I use them so much or if it is because they don’t make them like they used to. But it does seem like I replace them more than most people.

My favorite Crock Pot broke quite awhile ago. I had planned to replace it, but never did. I have several Crock Pots in different sizes, so it wasn’t a priority. However, my daughter was paying attention and knew that I really wanted a new one. So my kids got me one for Christmas!

They got me this 6 qt Crock Pot and so far I love it. One of the things that I have noticed is that it doesn’t cook as hot as some of my other Crock Pots have cooked. That may not sound like a good thing, but it is. The last few Crock Pots that I have bought seem to cook very hot and not very evenly. Rarely could I cook something for 7-8 hours because it would be way over cooked.

The new one though seems to cook more evenly and at a better temperature. I will have to cook with it some more to be sure, but so far I think I am going to really like it.

If you are looking for a new waffle maker, be sure to check out my Ask the Readers post that I did on waffle irons. I loved all the comments and thoughts that I got. My readers are the best! I will share which one I decided on soon.

Have you seen these carrots at Costco? Now, I know that not everyone shops at Costco and I know they have multi colored carrots at a lot of stores, but the bag of colored carrots that I got at Costco recently was so good. Multiple Costco employees commented on them as I checked out and left the store. This is the first time that I have seen them there and hope they keep carrying them.

I used them in my Slow Cooked Cheesy Vegetable Potato Soup and it was delicious. I will definitely be making that soup with multi colored carrots again.

And speaking of Costco. This jam is amazing. I am pretty sure you can get this brand other places, especially on the West Coast, but I found it at Costco. I grew up picking and eating Marion Blackberries. They remind me of Oregon and home. I was so excited to find this in Oklahoma. If you have never tried Marion berries you need to. They make the best jam.

My daughter and I have been working hard updating our book site the last few weeks. I shared my favorite books of 2017, along with the entire list of 101 books that I read last year. My goal last year was to increase my reading and decrease my mindless scrolling on social media. I think it worked, or at least helped, because that is the most books I have read in years.

My daughter also shared her favorite books from 2017 and the twelve books that she hopes to read in 2018. She reads way more than I do and I love seeing the books she chooses. They might not be the books an average teenager would read, but they are some great books. Many of what she read in 2017 are now on my list to read in 2018.

If you like to read be sure to sign up for our book newsletter.

I hope you have a great weekend! Since it is cold here in Oklahoma, I think I will spend as much of it as I can in front of the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate and a book.