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Missouri River Flood 2011 update

Category: Off Topic | Posted: Sun Jun 12, 2011 5:31 pm

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Good news, husband's 2 weeks of sandbag filling is done! Hurrah! He's not coming home covered head to toe in dirt anymore. He actually got an unexpected day off of work today!

They've moved most of the company to higher ground, which means he'll be driving 20 miles to work instead of 5. But, one can't really complain about that! The river should be at its highest level by Friday (if they don't have to release more water than predicted from upstream dams....I'm cautiously skeptical on anything "predicted", too many variables there). We should know if the levee is high enough very soon. More of a concern is that it will remain high for weeks, so the integrity of the levee is the main concern, not the height.

Picture updated....still holding...but water is starting to seep up on the "dry" side. Not sure how this will hold for two more months. This is a small portion of the levee, but the only view not blocked by trees.



Last edited: Fri Jun 17, 2011 10:53 pm

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Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Category: Off Topic | Posted: Sat Jun 11, 2011 4:40 am

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( photo / image / picture from Pianolady's Garden )

We have a local bakery/restaurant that makes some pretty good cinnamon rolls, but they're just "off". They use way too much butter and not enough cinnamon, no raisins (shame), and cream cheese frosting. Good for a bite or two, then it's just too much. So, after the disappointment, I had to make my own cinnamon rolls! I use the bread machine version, and usually use some ready-made vanilla frosting that I let melt on top while the rolls are still hot, although the honey butter icing would probably be quite good.

Grandma's Best Cinnamon Rolls

OATMEAL DOUGH
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (2 1/4 to 2 3/4 cups)
1/3 cup quick oats
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 package Fleischmann's® Active Dry or Rapid Rise Yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter or margarine (1/2 stick), cut up
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup water
1 egg

FILLING
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins (optional)

HONEY BUTTER ICING
1/3 cup sifted powdered sugar
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
2 tablespoons honey
Servings: 9
1. In large bowl, combine 3/4 cup flour, oats, granulated sugar, undissolved yeast and salt. Heat 1/4 cup butter, milk, and water until very warm (120º to 130ºF). Gradually add to dry ingredients; beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add egg and 1/2 cup flour; beat 2 minutes at high speed. With spoon, stir in enough remaining flour to make soft dough.

2. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth, about 5 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place 45 to 60 minutes or until doubled. Punch down dough. (With Rapid Rise Yeast, cover kneaded dough and let rest 10 minutes. Proceed with recipe.)

3. On lightly floured surface, roll dough to 18 × 8 inches; brush with melted butter. Sprinkle with brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins, if desired, to within 1/2 inch of edges. Roll up tightly from long side, pinching seam to seal; cut into 9 equal pieces. Place, cut sides up, in greased 8 × 8-inch pan. Cover; let rise in warm place 45 to 60 minutes or until doubled.

4. Bake at 350ºF for 25 to 30 minutes or until done. Remove from pan; cool on wire rack.

5. In small bowl, mix powdered sugar and softened butter with fork until blended; stir in honey until smooth. Drizzle or spread on rolls.


Yield: 9 Rolls

Notes: Bread Machine Variation (all-size machines): Measure dough ingredients into bread machine pan as suggested by manufacturer; use 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons Fleischmann's® Bread Machine Yeast. Process on dough/manual cycle. When complete, remove dough to floured surface; knead in additional flour to make dough easy to handle, if necessary. Roll out dough and proceed as directed.



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White Clematis

Category: Pianolady's Gardens | Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2011 7:29 pm

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I don't know the variety of this one, but I like it. I've got three different ones going in this area. Since I took my fence down, I've had an interesting time figuring out what to do with all the clematis I had on it. One of the others is Jackmanii, and I'll just have to wait and see what the third one is.



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Garage Sale Finds

Category: Off Topic | Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2011 3:12 pm

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I haven't been going to garage sales in a few years because of the cost of gas. But, I was just in the mood to give it a try today. I found absolutely nothing for my yard, but a few things that are just ridiculous! (but fun)

I bought a marble chess set many years ago. Well, you can't just leave the pieces out because if it tips or a piece falls off, it can break. Kind of devalues the set. So.... I bought a Lord of the Rings chess set at a garage sale today & used the pieces on my chess table.





Then I found a Darth Vader Wilton cake pan, so I just had to buy it....must resist reselling it on eBay! lol



So, it wasn't a bad garage sale day, just a bit odd.

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I Had to Have It

Category: Pianolady's Gardens | Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 10:35 pm

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Ever go into a nursery with a narrow focus, determined to buy only the one thing on your list? I almost made it out without spending anything extra, then I saw this...



Variegated Basil, and it smells so good. I'll be using it in dinner tonight. $4.50 seemed a bit steep in price, but I did it anyway.

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Wind Advisory doesn't keep me from my camera.

Category: Pianolady's Gardens | Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 12:33 am

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It's really difficult to get a decent photo with 30mph winds, but it doesn't stop me from trying (although with limited success). Big storms may be coming in later, so I wanted to get a few photos of new blooms before they possibly get battered by hail again.

First peony to bloom


Niobe clematis


White is Duchess of Edinburgh. The blue is probably HF Young.


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Final Bearded Iris Entry

Category: Pianolady's Gardens | Posted: Thu May 26, 2011 7:58 pm

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Here's the remainder of this year's bearded iris. Got busy and missed a few of them before they wilted.









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Allium

Category: Pianolady's Gardens | Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 7:52 pm

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Always liked this plant, was glad to see it survived its transplant last year.



Last edited: Wed May 18, 2011 7:52 pm

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More Iris

Category: Pianolady's Gardens | Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 8:47 pm

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This is one of those from Grandma's Garden. Who knows how old it is!





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Happy Mother's Day

Category: Pianolady's Gardens | Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 7:59 pm

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Don't you just love it when something beautiful pops up that you don't remember planting? Now I know I had to have bought this on eBay, but my records don't show buying anything that fits the description of this beauty! That's ok, I like it.



Got up very early on Mother's Day and planted my tomatoes and peppers. Then spent 4 hours making cages out of 3' galvanized fencing. Got 18 cages out of a 50' roll ($27).

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