waiting for the Aga man...

This little cat looks so much like Squeaky...

Lately we've been having a little possum come by to eat with the feral cats in the evening . Sometimes he comes early and lies under the cat tree on the back porch waiting for DH to feed and for the ferals to eat... then he comes out and eats on his own. We're guessing he's only about 6-8 weeks old... but definitely on his own.

Here's a pic I got of him under the cat tree...

Isn't he cute?

The weather has been downright chilly these last few days. Woke up to the temp being 37 F.  It doesn't take much for me to be cold, and we haven't turned the heater on yet... 

This morning I hated the thought of getting out of bed and being cold, so I stayed snuggled up after DH got up. He usually gets up around 8 am to feed the ferals who by that time have gathered around the back and front doors. Well, this morning they had to wait for a short time as DH got me a cup of hot tea first to drink in bed - so I could get myself up and about. Wasn't that nice? 

It's usually me that gets his coffee on and my tea made while he's taking care of the cats, but I don't function well when cold...

And at the moment we are awaiting the Aga serviceman. He is supposed to be here today to hopefully replace the part that's needed so our kitchen can be warm again... (as well as cook normal meals). 

I watched Martha (of Martha Bakes) make a gluten-free cake roll that looked so easy to do... and one that can use any kind of fruit jam inside (I would use strawberry). It's definitely on my 'to try' list. And when I say gluten-free, it's just that you use a different flour (oat flour, not wheat).

off the video screen  /  doesn't that look good?



Also I'm drinking a cup of Cajun mocha coffee at the moment. It's a simple recipe:

3/4 cup of fresh black coffee
1/4 -1/2 cup evaporated milk
(I use lactose-free)
1 tsp cocoa powder
1/2 - 1 tsp sugar
sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top

(on a cold day it gives me a little pick-me-up)

Also trying to think of some nice things to do to perk up people's lives. Nothing big... just little things like sharing lemon curd cookies with our neighbors or hocus pocus crescent rolls for DH and grandson. 

Do you know what hocus pocus crescent rolls are? Saw them on Facebook and thought, that looks fun and interesting - and easy! You just roll a marshmallow in melted butter, then roll it in cinnamon sugar, then roll it up in a crescent roll... and bake. The marshmallow disappears - thus, hocus pocus! And the guys like them... unfortunately I can't eat them myself, but that's OK. (Do use parchment paper under them as some of the marshmallow can leak out and get your pan all sticky)

I also like to send out cute cards or notes sometimes. This is limited to friends/family (online and otherwise) that I actually have addresses for. Guess that's a bit old school, but hard not to be at my age. I can adapt, but the old ways don't just disappear. And I still love to get/give cards and letters even though most use texting and email these days.

Closing this now, but if any of you have any ideas of how to perk up lives in small simple ways, I appreciate your comments. I do think that despite all the turmoil that is going on these days, I've found that people are actually 'trying to be kind'...  

Well, the weekend is almost here again. Wishing you a good one!

(BTW, I stopped watching the news a few weeks ago - can't watch all the political talk and commercials - since I don't believe half of what is being said anyway. DH and I just vote the way our gut tells us and ignore all the political babble.)

Hugs (virtual),

Rian