Foods of the World—Spain

Let's go to Spain ! Oh how I wish I really could ... but for now, I'll have to make do with just going there in my kitchen !! And on the beans blog ... in your kitchens !!

To get you started, I'm going to give you the link for a wonderful website that has amazing recipes. The people who run this site are friends of our family from way back !!

If you live in the States or Canada you can even order food from them ... but I'm really just directing you to the recipe section ! There's some yummy stuff in there !!

So ... get your research hats on. Find your recipe. Get cooking and photographing and posting ... I can't wait to see what you all do !!

(click on the La Tienda "photo" to go to the website ...)

Our daughter, Bonnie, is running a month of Spanish recipes on her recipe blog, called Pass the Beans, Please...A Collection of Extremely Healthy, Yet Surprisingly Tasty Recipes. The above is from that site. Check it out, and check out La Tienda, the best of Spain in America. It really is!

The Fruit of the Vine

This past weekend we had a houseful of jelly makers. Jimmy brought 25 pounds of grapes from a friend's vines. Pam and Jill came to help, and brought some friends. Hannah was here for the weekend. Kathy headed up and coordinated the proceedings, producing over 50 jars of jelly. Plums from our back yard were also picked and turned into jelly.

Here's Jimmy harvesting the grapes.


Washing the grapes.



Weighing the grapes.

Jimmy crushing the grapes.



Jill gets into the act.


Pam at the stove.


Grapes simmering on the stove.

Straining the juice.


Makin' jelly!

Helpful Hannah helping.

Kathy with the first grape juice.

The first batch.

Prune hands!?!


The bottom line: A great time was had by all, and the results will make great gifts and tasty treats for a whole bunch of people.

Note: All the pictures in this post were taken with Jimmy's iPhone—amazing. I "lifted" them from his Facebook album, but with his permission!

Happy Birthday, Ellie!

Today is Ellie's birthday, and we wish her every blessing and happiness.

Here are a few pictures of Ellie—past and present—then and now.

This first one shows Ellie at a birthday party—then. Here's the radiant smile that lights up a room and brightens a father's heart.

Here she is—then—but where? Spain? The picture simply says "Ellie at July 4th fair."




The gang's all here to celebrate Ellie's birthday—then. Anybody know when? Where?



Another cake, another time—then.

Ellie—now. See how the room still lights up?

Now—This past summer on the ride dubbed by Aidan the "Miracle Round."

Ellie now—with Aidan. The twinkle in the eye and the bright smile pass to a new generation!

Ellie—now, with the family.

Bonnie's Beans Blog Bids for Best

This is a copy of a post on Bonnie's Food Blog, called Pass the Beans, Please (see link at right).

Bloggers Choice Awards ...

This is Michelle, my friend that I've only maybe met when we swam on the same swim team, in Spain, as kids. Remember when she posted the review of this blog on my highschool's alumni blog ? The one she started, maintains and does such a great job with ...Well, now she has nominated us for the Best Food Blog on the blogger's choice awards website !! How cool is that !?!

If you think this is the Best Food Blog ... click on the button above and cast your vote !! I just did ! That give us two votes ... me and Michelle !! ha ha. Have a look around while you are there. I saw Pioneer Woman Cooks is in the top three. One of my favorite food blogs that I've been reading for ages now ! Tried some great recipes from there too !! Not that I'm gonna vote for her ... I think she's popular enough already !! Thanks Michelle for your nomination and vote !

So, if you have any interest in Food, Spain, our daughter in Australia, Blogger's Choice Awards, or some new recipes, check out Bonnie's Beans Blog.

Concert Last Weekend

We went to a wonderful concert last weekend. It was recommended by our good friend, Deb, who is involved in a multitude of musical groups and events around Colorado.

Here's the link to a couple of her groups.

This is the program cover:

The building where the concert was held, St John's Episcopal Cathedral in Denver, is an amazing structure. These few pictures I was able to find on the Internet do not do it justice, by any means.

We were very much reminded of the cathedrals of Europe.

This one was done with an interesting effect.

And here were the pieces we heard.

An Annual Tradition

Every year, my cousin's friends (who are also our friends) make the journey from Madrid to Denver for a visit. It has become a tradition that we enjoy one dinner together at our home. Here we are at tonight's get-together.

Kathy always makes excellent meals, and she loves to treat guests to unusual meals they may never experience elsewhere. This year, she prepared "Low Country Boil," a delicious crowd-pleaser she learned from a cousin at the Reunion a few years ago. Here she is dishing it up.

A visit of friends is the perfect excuse to get everyone together for a special meal and fellowship. Here's the gang (except for Stephanie, who had not yet arrived from a meeting).

Another view of the group, preparing to dig into the repast Kathy had prepared for us.

A fine tradition. An awesome meal. Excellent fellowship.

After dinner, we watched some Olympic coverage before saying goodbye for another year.

Vote for our Friend

Today we received an email from our friend, Deb, about whom I wrote earlier here.

You may remember she plays viola for the Longmont Symphony Orchestra and the annual Mahlerfest Orchestra. She has also played in the community orchestra supporting the annual singalong of Handel's Messiah in Boulder, an event we have sung along with at least five times!

Besides teaching music appreciation and the theory of music at the University of Colorado and all the other things she does musically in the community, she is the manager, arranger, and violist for the Ribbons and Strings ensembles.

Anyway, Deb asked us to vote for her group at the Denver Channel 7 site here or here, if we felt so inclined. We did, and we would invite you to do so, if you feel so inclined, as well.

And by the way, if you are looking for a group to play beautiful music at your next event, check out one of the Ribbons and Strings ensembles.

A Peaceful Day on the Lake

This year Kathy's annual family reunion was in Toledo, Ohio, so we took the opportunity to visit my family in Ashland first. One of the highlights of our too-short visit was the wonderful morning and afternoon we spent with my good friends from high school, Thorne and Linda. They took us out for a delightful cruise on their pontoon boat.

Here was the view from where I was sitting as we set off on our voyage.

Here's our grandson, Aidan, helping the Skipper steer his boat!

Linda in the bow of the boat. Aidan steering. There was a heron in the background but somehow it didn't show up in this picture.

It's not in this picture either, although that's what Jimmy is photographing.

Here's Aunt Hannah with her newest nephew, Jack.

At lunchtime, we found shade near a small island and had a tasty and refreshing lunch prepared by Linda in the onboard galley.

Here we are saying goodbye after a wonderful cruise. The weather was beautiful. The lake was calm, and the company was delightful. Thank you, Thorne and Linda, for this fantastic highlight of our Ohio trip.

Central City Opera Weekend 2008

Our annual Central City Opera Weekend is coming up at the end of this week, and yet I still have not published any pictures from last year's event. As we look forward to this weekend, here are a few pictures from 2008. The 2007 trip was documented here.

Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story was a big hit and came off splendidly on the Central City Opera House stage.

Arriving at the Chase Creek Inn Bed & Breakfast in Blackhawk, Colorado.

The operas performed in Central City in 2008 were all in English.

The front of the Opera House

Three lovely ladies in the garden outside the Opera House.

Inside the Opera House


The Chase Creek Inn B&B

Rich and Kim return from a nice walk around the neighborhood of the Chase Creek Inn B&B.

This beautiful fountain was built recently at the end of the street of the Bed & Breakfast.


The Central City Opera House Association specializes in performing American opera. Susannah was a fine example of that genre.


Former Weekend
2007