Gran's Peach Cobbler Recipe

Last weekend, The Boy from Texas and I were at my parents' house for the weekend and I decided to whip my dad up a peach cobbler using Gran's recipe.  Is there anything in the world better than a recipe on an index card in your grandma's handwriting?  I think not. 

So I followed her directions and had to make some guesses due to the fact that she didn't include everything on the card.  Apparently she thought that future generations would know what temperature and how long to cook something without her telling them.  God bless her, she didn't anticipate me being the future generation!

But in the end it all worked out pretty well and we dined on this as the finished product.  I think that Gran would have been proud!

Gran's Peach Cobbler Recipe

1C sugar
1C flour
1 T baking powder
Salt  (How much?  Gran didn't tell us...I just shook a bit in my hand and called it good.)
3/4 C milk

Sift dry ingredients and stir in milk to make the dough mixture.

1/2 stick butter

In a casserole dish or pan (I used a glass 9x9 dish), put in the butter and melt.  Pour dough mixture in dish on top of melted butter. 

Peaches (I used a bag of frozen peaches and supplemented with two real peaches sliced up.  You can also use one large can of peach pie filling, but the frozen and/or real are better!)
1T flour
3/4C sugar
1/4 C brown sugar

 Mix the 1T flour and 3/4C sugar with the fruit.  Pour fruit mixture on top of the dough in the dish.  Sprinkle brown sugar over the top of the fruit mixture.

Bake.  No one knows how long or at what temperature.  Just go until the crust is golden brown and no longer doughy.  I felt like it took a long time.....maybe 30 minutes?  I baked it on 350 because that's the oven default so I was hoping that meant something.  Who knows.

Enjoy!

Sarge

"No heaven can heaven be, if my horse isn't there to welcome me." ~Unknown

I truly believe that there is a special place in Heaven for a good horse.  In particular, I think this is true for a good kid horse.

 

You know the ones.....that will stand still without blinking an eye while a kid throws a rope and whops him in the face.  Who doesn't move while another kid stands up in the saddle doing circus-like tricks.  The one that you can put a 5 year old kid, or a 40 year old city boy, on without thinking twice.  The horse that you can crawl over and under and behind and he just sort of smirks.  And most importantly, the kind of horse that makes people feel confident and comfortable and safe, and make a horse-lover out of anyone.

 

 

Sarge was one of those horses.  Yesterday, he died.  You can think what you want and argue theology if you want, but I'll just all but guarantee you that horse is walking around the golden streets.  He sure deserves to be.

Green Chile Pork Tacos

Recently I've been sort of living on this new recipe I invented for green chile pork tacos.  Since it's not every day this girl invents a recipe (I'm much more of an every day catch the oven on fire kind of gal), I figured I needed to share.

Pork chops (I prefer the boneless ones because I'm lazy and they are less work.)
Roberts Reserve Hatch Green Chile Honey Glaze (I buy it at HEB, not sure where else you can get it.  You can probably just make your own.)
Ear of corn
Butter
Pepper
Garlic powder
Avocado
Lime juice
Paprika
Red pepper flakes
Something green (lettuce, cabbage, spinach, etc.)
Shredded cheese
Corn tortillas

Pork Chops:  Marinade the pork chops in the glaze.  I don't know how much, enough to cover them up.  Cook the pork chops on the grill (I cooked them on foil rather than right on the rack because the honey will make a big ol' mess). After cooked, I put the pork chops in the food processor and grind them up.  This just makes them more like shredded pork...so good.

Corn:  Shuck the corn and place the ear on a piece of foil.  Smear on a little butter, pepper, and garlic powder.  Roll up the corn in the foil and grill it as well.

Guacamole: I use one avocado, some lime juice, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and just a few red pepper flakes.  Smash it up, mix it all together, and you're done.

Now just build your tacos:  tortillas, pork, corn, cheese, guacamole, green stuff.  I really like cabbage---it isn't slimy like lettuce and I think it tastes summery. 

Viola.  Bon appetite.  You're welcome.

The Ranch Party

Y'all.  Let me just tell you.  ND Friend and her family know how to throw a party.  Holy smokes!

Because ND Friend and Tiny Dancer will be getting married in Chicago, her parents wanted to host a party back home in New Mexico for all of her friends and family out here that might not be able to make it to the big city.  So over Memorial Day weekend, we all headed to her parents' ranch for the festivities.

First off, let me brag on Super Mom for a minute.  This lady is 37 weeks pregnant, chasing around three boys under the age of 4, and still found time to get her bunk house situated for The Boy from Texas and I to stay in, provide us with snacks, and make us a homemade pancake breakfast fit for a king the day after the party.  Seriously, TBFT is still raving about her pancakes.  She is just the absolute best.  And we did not get one single picture together.  Fail!

Super Mom and her precious little family.

Oh, the boys' shirts.  They refer to ND Friend (their aunt) as RoRo.  Tiny Dancer's real name may be Sean.  Now check out the adorable shirts they wore to the party.

Okay, back to the party.  My favorite thing was the fact that Tiny Dancer's family came from Chicago.  Mind you, he's got a huge family. 7 brothers and sisters, his parents, two aunts and uncles, at least 8 cousins, there may have been more, I'm not sure.  They didn't have to haul off to the boondocks for this.  But they are so awesome and fun and supportive that they did....and I mean they REALLY did.  All of them got cowboy boots for Christmas last year to prepare.  When they got to New Mexico, they hit up the western wear store and the report I got was that they LITERALLY bought every single hat for sale in the whole town.  They were so enthusiastic and fun and up for anything.  I could not have been any more impressed with the in laws that are soon to belong to my sweet friend.

The party consisted of great bbq, four kinds of homemade cookies (family recipes), a well-stocked bar, a washer tournament (at which the priest who had never played before was my favorite participant!), dancing, and tons of fun.

The decor.

I kinda love this picture of The Boy from Texas and I at the dance.

Fr. Joe taking his turn.

Hiding out under the barn during a brief rain storm

Me and the lovely bride!

The Boy from Texas looking quite handsome pitching washers.

If there is anyone in the world who deserves a perfect engagement party, it is ND Friend.  And I think she got it that night.  Now the countdown in on for the big wedding in Chicago.  I can't wait!!

The happy couple!

Ask Me What's Now

Last week, I read this article written by an unmarried, childless 26 year old.  And guys, she nailed it. Flat nailed it.  

It was like she was putting my own thoughts down on paper (okay, down on a computer screen, but whatever).  Let me share a few of her words (in black) and my thoughts (in orange).  We're about to get a little personal here.  (That means, BFF, this post is probably more geared towards the readership with ovaries.  Don't say I didn't warn you.)

Believe me, I am fully aware that I am unmarried and childless. Heck, I don’t even have a real job at this point in time. I’m aware that I’m getting older. I’m aware that I’m not following the same patterns as my parents or my brothers or many of my peers. I’m aware that my biological clock is ticking. OH MY GOSH I AM SO AWARE.

Listen, as much as you worry about my singleness and the possibility that I might die alone in an apartment full of cats, I worry about it 10 times more.  You're not informing me of something that I've never considered.  In fact, this is probably the thing I think most about, with college football rankings and how many calories were in those cookies I just ate coming in as close seconds.

So when you — friends, family, acquaintances, Twitter followers and blog readers — remind me that I’m far behind where one would expect to be at my age, it makes me feel broken. I feel like I’ve done something wrong. I feel like I’m letting you down or making some horrible mistake.

Broken is a good word for it.  I might use the word unworthy or "not chosen."  I used to tell my friends that being the only single one made me feel a bit like we had all been dogs in the pound and they had all been rescued, yet I was left in the kennel waiting for someone to come along and choose me.  I'm not saying that is reality, but I am saying that is how it feels to a single girl in her late twenties.

Instead of relishing in the freedom, blessings and limitless possibilities that this stage of life offers me, I am left frozen, feeling like I’m not enough. Like what I’ve done doesn’t really matter or that I’ve accomplished nothing. I’m an outcast. I’m defective. I’m panicked. When you comment on my life stage as if there was something I could do to change it, it makes me feel inadequate. Most days I truly do love where I’m at right now, but when people question my marital status, I think I’m messing up my chances to do anything worthwhile with my life.

I used to secretly dread going to my hometown.  Because I really enjoyed my life--I absolutely loved my trips to Europe and cheering at OSU football games and going skiing in the winter and in the summer and being able to sleep in on weekends if I wanted to.  But in my hometown, someone would always point out the life I was missing and make me question whether what I had was any good.

What if my ultimate goal has nothing to do with marriage or kids or a career? What if my aim was to love people well, and to fully embrace the gifts I’ve been given? Would that be enough? What if my life goal was to simply run the race, to be called a good and faithful servant at the end of it all? Maybe that would mean marriage and children and a thriving career, but maybe it wouldn’t. Is it ok if it doesn’t?

That is my favorite paragraph of the entire article.  "What if my aim was to love people well, and to fully embrace the gifts I've been given."  That's what I've tried to do.  To enjoy the experiences and opportunities that have come my way, even when no shiny diamond ring was involved.  To love people well--be that my family or my friends or my friends adorable children or my sweet God Daughter--despite the fact that no one called me mom.  When people make comments that make girls question whether that is enough, those speaking really need to think twice about what they are doing.  Because if you ask me, aiming to love well and embrace the gifts we have been given should always be our aim, period.

I would like to suggest one thing, though: instead of asking me what’s next, ask me what’s now. Ask me what God is teaching me, ask me what I’m struggling with, or what brings me joy. I am learning, I am growing, and I am happy. I would love to tell you all about it.

I am 26 years old. I don’t have a husband. I don’t have children. I don’t have a career. I don’t have what people expect I should have, but I am abundantly blessed with absurd, exhilarating, and fantastic things I would have never dreamed up on my own.

So please, my dear friends, don’t ask me what’s next. Ask me what’s now.

I do hope that you all will consider this the next time you talk to a single, childless twenty something.  Ask her what's now, because my bet is that she thinks her now is pretty great and can't wait to share it with you.

Tweeter? Twitterer? Twirter?

Whatever it is called, I am one now.  To keep up with the latest ag law news, follow me at @TiffDowell.

Oh yea, and if you haven't checked out my ag law blog, Texas Agriculture Law, click here.  (Once you click on that link, you can subscribe by entering your name in the box on the right and once you follow the easy steps, the blogs will come directly to your inbox!)

Happy Saturday to everyone.  Let's go get that Triple Crown, California Chrome!  The Belmont Stakes are this afternoon!

Family Farm Friday #90: Things We Forget

One of my favorite songs is Things We Forget by Mark Wills.

  

Here are a couple verses:

I forgot how much I loved that smell of dirt fresh off the plow, 
that tailgate rattle, tires on gravel, I sure do love that sound.
And I can't believe I spent so many years running from this.
It's slow and it's small and it's life at a crawl but it's everything I missed!

Where we come from, where we're goin', how to live right here in the moment.
How to love somebody let 'em love you back.
When to let go and cry, when to lighten up and laugh,
 slow it all down and take a long deep breath, man the things we forget.

There are lots of things about home that I never forget and always miss.  The smell of fresh cut alfalfa.  Seeing baby lambs everywhere.  Branding.  Cool mornings.  People that have known me my entire life.  Dogs swimming in the stock tank.  My mom's green chile enchilladas.  County Fairs.  Setting irrigation tubes.

But while I was back home for a few days last week, I realized that one of the things that I had forgotten was the sky.  It's just bigger and brighter at home than it is other places.  Here, in the crock pot that is Central Texas in the summer, it's hard to get a good look at the sky.  There are clouds and trees and hills that block the view.  But not at home.  There, you can see for miles.  And until I left and lived somewhere without this luxury, I didn't realize how much I loved it.

Not sure how I was able to forget something that beautiful, but now that I remember, it sure made it harder to leave!

RIP Susan

Yesterday, Susan Spencer-Wendel, author of Until I Say Goodbye, passed away from ALS.  She was 47 years old and leaves behind her husband and three children.



I never met Susan.  But I know her story.  Both from reading her book and from losing someone I loved to ALS.

Though she was dying, Susan was able to live out her last years in amazing fashion.  She traveled the world, reconnected with her birth mother, saw the Northern Lights, gave her family and friends amazing memories upon which to cling now that she has gone.  As she put it, "I cannot lift my arms to feed myself or hug my children.  My muscles are dying, and they cannot return.  I will never again be able to move my tongue enough to clearly say, 'I love you.'  Swiftly, surely, I am dying.  But I am alive today."

Susan offered a bit of insight into what Mr. Franklin must have thought and felt as he was saying goodbye.  This woman in Florida, whom I never met and frankly with whom I probably didn't have much in common, offered me a bit of peace five years after I said my own goodbye.  For that, I am thankful.

Please keep Susan's family and her friends in your prayers.  May God be with them all.

Where Have You Been?

Everywhere might be the short answer to that question.

I was in New Mexico watching Baby Hepburn graduate from high school (and ROCK her speech!)

I think we clean up quite well.

Afterward we headed to visit Ski Trip Jerry and Dr. Kyra (they are married even though their blog names don't show that very well) where we proceeded to hang out and visit for 2 hours while the men drank Natty Light....Ski Trip Jerry's favorite.  Those two crazy folks are two of my absolute favorite people and I just love that The Boy from Texas likes them so much that he actually suggested the visit! As if I needed something else to add to the "win" column for him.

I also got to enjoy the fact that it rained!  That's right, folks, over three night we dumped a total of 3.10" out of that there rain gauge.  Answered prayers!

I also snapped this picture of these two kunckleheads...Sarge and Buttons.

Next it was off to Clayton for ND Friend and Tiny Dancer's Engagement Party.  This will be getting its very own blog....stay tuned.  It was that good.  Here's a sneak peak.

Dear professional photographer...please don't sue me!

Then I met this sweet little guy in Amarillo....Aunt Tiff is quite smitten with him!  And I had an awesome visit with his mom and grandma!

Please note I held him without any tears from either of us.

Oh, I got sworn in as an officially licensed lawyer in the State of Texas.

Taking the oath...

Me and this boy I know.

The parentals.

Then it was off to Lubbock for an Ag Law Conference.  While I was there I went for a run around the Texas Tech University campus and I have to admit, it is really quite beautiful.  Had someone shown me that when I was in high school, I really think I might have considered going there.  (And the still picked OSU because, who are we kidding here?)

Go Pokes!

After that The Boy from Texas and I headed back to New Mexico for a weekend of fun at Aunt and Uncle Evil Kineval's new lake house!  Fishing, swimming, four wheeler-riding and LOTS of eating made for an excellent weekend.

I do enjoy a boy in a large cowboy hat.

But first, let him take a selfie.

One Year Ago

“The only thing standing between you and your goal is the bullshit story you keep telling yourself as to why you can't achieve it.” ~Jordan Belfort

One year ago today, I started my new job.  At the time, I told people I may have found my dream job.  Indeed, 365 days later, I think that I have.  Don't tell my employer this, but I might do this job even if they didn't pay me. 

During the last year I have been able to travel all over Texas.  I've talked with hundreds of ranchers, partaken in a lot of barbeque brisket, given over 50 presentations, seen lots of cows, eaten rice salad for the first time, spent a fortune on plane tickets, bought a new house, hopefully provided some useful information, planted a few flowers, learned more than I could have ever imagined, created an ag law blog that has over 400 subscribers and gets over 4400 hits a month (click here if you've not seen it!) and made some great friends along the way.

 

 

It was quite a leap for me to take this job.  I quit a great job, gave up the chance for some dollar signs to come my way, moved 9 hours from home, signed up to live in the hottest most humid place on earth (maybe not true but it feels like it!), and ended up with a boyfriend 9 hours away.  And I would make the same decision again!

So if you have a chance to chase a dream....do it.  Go.  Give it a whirl.  And hopefully a year later, you'll be able to look back and smile at the fact you were brave enough to leap.