Short Interruption here....had to make 3-Layer German Chocolate Cake for David's 68th Birthday!

Every year, the first part of September, I bake a 3-layer German Chocolate Cake (yes, from scratch!), with Coconut-Pecan Frosting. So Saturday, I baked my 40th German Chocolate Cake (every year, since we've been married, for David's birthday). Well, there are about 6,000 calories in each piece of this cake, so I thought it might be a good idea to share it with some other people. I invited Dave and Carol Hansen to come for a bratwurst supper, and some of that cake. They did come, and we had some good beer, and the supper - (I made my mother's home-made baked beans (cook the dry beans gently for an hour, and then mix them with 2 cups of the cooking liquid, some molasses, some brown sugar, some chopped, cooked, thick-cut, smoked bacon, and some chopped onions, and bake them for 7 hours in a 300 degree oven....I've decided they were a bit too dry, so next time I'll add more of the cooking water back into the beans....) We had sliced Heritage tomatoes, some colorful baby carrots, dill pickles, and the fixings for the brats. 

I had made a garlic 'Toum' - 

A scant 2 cups of garlic cloves, peeled (about 7 heads of garlic, peeled, and 1/2 t. kosher salt, processed in a food processor until very finely chopped. Slowly add (in as thin a stream as possible) 1 1/2 cups of organic canola oil, then stop to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl. Continue adding another 1/2 cup of canola oil in a similar very thin stream, until the mixture resembles creamy cooked grits. Then add 1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice (1-2 lemons), and pour it in a very slow stream as the processor is running. The mixture should begin to look whiter and lighter. Add 1/2 cup more of the oil in the same very thin stream, then slowly add 1/3 cup of water. The mixture will loosen, but will not become runny. Finally add the last 1/2 cup of the oil in the same very thin stream. The resulting paste should be creamy white and fluffy, like beaten eggs. If not, keep motor running and add more oil to get right color and consistency. Store in tight-fitting lidded container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. (I just spread a thin layer on some leftover brat bun and toasted it in my skillet with my eggs for breakfast....yum! Also would be good on cooked spaghetti...just as a 'dressing' for the spaghetti...but remember to cook it for a bit after adding it...it is raw garlic otherwise, and quite pungent and a bit bitter to the tongue...)

I spread a very thin layer of the Toum on one side of the brat buns that Dave and Carol had brought. We cooked our brats in a bottle of David's home-made beer until they were cooked through, and then they went on the grill. The buns also were grilled lightly, which made the garlic paste really delicious (it is pretty strong without cooking). Dave liked the garlic paste so much, he asked for a small container of it to take home. They are thinking it would taste great on the crust of their wood-fired pizza they make. And, I was glad to give it to them...how much garlic paste can two people consume in the 1 month period it is supposed to last? (As I use this paste, I will post recipes that I use it in...the original recipe came from Iowa Public Radio's program 'Splendid Table.' I ended up throwing out about half of the garlic paste a couple of weeks later...just too strong for most of our uses, and since I'm avoiding bread, I can't use it to make garlic bread, which was really the best use for it...)

So, brats served on toasted brat buns with a little of the garlic paste toasted on one side, with sliced red onion, pickle relish, Dijon mustard, and Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce...what's not to love?

Of course, we enjoyed some of David's home brew - rhubarb beer this time. And/or lemonade...  And, for dessert, a nice slice of the German Chocolate Cake with some of David's homemade vanilla ice cream (and coffee for those who wanted it...)

 Here's what is left of the cake...So delicious! 

So, we sat for awhile out on our newly stained deck, with my flowers blooming, and enjoyed the cool breeze and the evening calm....

 

       The deck looks great...and my flowers are doing very well...ah, retirement!

     This old huge Silver Maple tree frames the grove and beyond that, the view to the north.

 The View to the North...rolling farm land and Wolf Creek Valley

Tomorrow it will be back to my mother's life story, and my life with my kids growing up... stay tuned!

Time just keeps going past...and more so when life is full, and you are having fun!

When Diane was about 2 and Doug was 3, we took a train to Dallas to visit my sister and brother-in-law and their kids. In this shot, we are at the zoo. Left to right: Carol (me), Steven with probably Doug next to him (can't tell just legs and shoes to look at), then Margaret, Diane in the blue checked pinafore, Al in the red shirt, and Julie...all looking at an ostrich, I think!

 Carol in front (why do I always carry such a huge purse??), then Diane and Steven. Nice long neck (the giraffe..)  .....I made the top...

Petting the goats at the Dallas Zoo...Carol (with danged huge purse!) and Diane in her cute pinafore...and goats!

And, here are cousin Jeff and Doug near a train ride. Best buds!

 With the Brookners visting Six Flags. Left to right - Carol, Steven and Julie.

 Wet hair after 'moist' log flume ride at Six Flags Over Texas... that's me... (I made that top, too...)

 Here I am at Six Flags...looking a bit somber... Pretty landscaping, with the flags, fountains, and flowering bushes... A fun day!

We went to a country club (not sure if Al & Margaret were members so he could play golf there, or what...) and took in the swimming pool. Carol in two-piece suit, Diane at my feet, and Doug getting in the water with his 'floatie' board. I think that might be Margaret and Al in the background, sitting in lawn chairs. Not sure of that, though....

 Another shot at the pool, with Doug, Carol and Diane...fun in the sun in Dallas!

More Six Flags... we've been caught doing something bad, I guess! Carol, Steven, and Julie in the stocks!

Diane and Doug at Margaret's in Dallas...sunny and warm!

Doug and Diane on the front porch at Margaret and Al's house in Richardson, Texas.

Here are the two Brookner boys (Jeff and Steve) with Doug at the Dallas Cowboys stadium.

Here are Steve and Jeff playing ball on their patio behind the house... Sports fans most of their lives...

'Big Al' at bat! Steve must be the catcher, and Jeff is sort of in awe of his dad!

We had a good time. The Brookners sure know how to entertain their guests! Lots of different places to visit and good food to eat. (And wonderful memories of that time together!)

Kids are fun...and a lot of work!

Here are a few photos of the kids as they grew up... We lived on West 7th Street in Cedar Falls during this time. In fact, I lived on West 7th Street from the time we bought the house before Diane was born until Vern and I divorced in 1974, about 12 years total.

This is one of the first pictures of Diane. As mentioned earlier, I don't have the baby pictures of my first three kids, so I will post photos that are taken from slides. I don't think we had a regular camera back then, and just took slides which can be a disadvantage if you no longer have a slide projector. But, Diane got these converted into photos for me, so I at least can remember how they looked as babies. 

Diane had very soft, fine, strawberry blonde hair, and it was sort of like a little cap of very soft fringe standing out around her head. Somehow that gives her a bit of a 'shocked' appearance...

This photo was in our kitchen, and those 'fruit' plates above her on the wall were some I made in a 'ceramic' class. I did a lot of crafty things along the way...just my artsy nature pushing itself out! Diane looks like a happy baby here, but she was very colicky for the first three months, and I was sort of beside myself about what to do with her. With Doug just 21 months old when she was born, it was almost more than I could handle. She started out crying at 10 p.m. within a week after she was born. The crying was frantic, and she would double up in pain. At the time, I had no idea that she had a milk allergy, and neither did our doctor. I tried to breast feed her for about 3 months, but she was so fussy and I was getting so little sleep that finally I had to quit and started giving her a bottle. Well, that did not work out well either. She got very constipated, and the doctor advised me to put strained prunes and molasses into the formula I was making. I did that, but nothing really helped. Similac had just come onto the market for babies, so the doctor suggested that I try that. Well, she spit up the first feeding and then was angry and hungry. So, long story short, for the first six months I was nearly a basket case with her. Doug would wake up at 7 a.m., and I had to get up to take care of him. I could put him down for a nap at 1 p.m., and then Diane would wake up at 2 p.m. (she was sleeping good hours, but all at the wrong time of day!) I would feed Diane at 2, and she would start crying (sort of screaming...very hard to deal with, but even though the doctor told me to just put her down and close the door, and let her cry, I couldn't do it. So, I simply held her all afternoon, sometimes in the rocking chair, and sometimes while I was standing in the kitchen making dinner. Doug would get up from his nap around 3 p.m., and he was such a good little boy that he would play with his toy cars and not be any trouble. He would go to bed around 8 p.m., and then at least I only had one child to deal with. At the end of her colicky period, when she was at least 3 months old, and probably more than that, as I think it sort of gradually subsided, she was wailing from 2 p.m. until 2 a.m. At that point, I was getting about five hours of sleep every night, and I was nearly a mad woman. We were on a very tight budget so I didn't have any relief. Even my neighbor friend, who did take care of Diane for 45 minutes one afternoon so I could go get groceries, said she couldn't take it. So, that was then end of that. 

In spite of all of that (and time does heal...and the mind lets go of stressful times...), Diane was my little sweetheart. I was so thrilled to have a little girl! Lots of cute little outfits to sew and knit... and doll clothes, etc. Just my 'cup of tea!'

And...here are the two reasons why I was content with my life...absolutely darling kids! (I see that little red dot on Doug's forehead...it was from his bout with chicken pox...but he didn't get too many 'dots' and I don't recall that he was very sick.) Aren't they cute?

Another view of the same cute kids... wish I had spent more time giving them hugs...they are too big now for a lot of hugs...

Books were pretty important to us when the kids were little. I am a big proponent of giving kids a whole lot of books, and encouraging reading at every opportunity. Such a great way to start a child off in the world!

What a cutie! I absolutely loved it when she smiled...after all those days and nights of awful unhappy crying! Diane was a very petite little girl, as you can see here. It must be a summer photo because of her short-sleeves, and she was a late fall baby, so she must be about 8 months old in this shot.

And, here am I holding my little doll. We must have been going to church or just back. I rarely wore dresses except for church. I made this outfit...I was so glad I learned to sew, as I saved a ton of money making clothes!

See those bushes on either side of the porch? Before Diane was born (I was big and quite pregnant...), Vern had borrowed the neighbor's electric hedge trimmers, and I didn't think he was doing a good enough job trimming them (living with an artist can be a pain in the backside...picky, picky, picky!) Anyway, I told him I wanted to do the trimming, and I was busy at it when Doug woke up from his nap. Vern went inside to get him, and brought him out on the porch to 'see what Mommy is doing.' Well, when they came out, I took my left hand off of the handle at the bottom of the trimmer, but did not shut it off. Carelessly, I went to grab that handle again, with the thing still running!, and instead grabbed the moving blades! Needless to say, I sawed my thumb pretty badly. Vern grabbed a towel, and we got into our car and drove around the corner to Sartori Hospital emergency room. Luckily it was the middle of the afternoon, and my doctor was actually at the hospital doing rounds. He met us, and I was taken to the surgery where he sewed up the cut. It took 4 stitches, and the injury damaged my tendons in that thumb, which are still a bit numb, all these years later. But, the worst part of it was the lecture I got from Dr. Bremner...a really nice man, and a caring one! He told me that if I were going to cut off a finger, any one of them would be better than my thumb! You can pick up things with your thumb and the palm of your hand, if all of your other fingers were gone, but it is very hard to pick up things without a thumb (think 'opposable thumbs!') Our thumbs are the difference between us and many animals, and make it so we can perform so many tasks with those thumbs. So, after I got my stitches, and we went home to finally eat our dinner and relax, I had earned a very good lesson. Turn the damned tools off before you stop paying attention to them!

Now, here's a cute shot! I can't remember where we got the fur muff and hat, but I was always up for hand-me-downs, and garage sale bargains. The coat is cute too, but I don't have a clue about it. Those little details just get lost in the tangles of one's brain when there are too darned many things to remember over all this time!

My cute kids! (A bit of a pout on Diane's face... she's probably tired of holding still for pictures!)

Well, this one's good! What a great smile! (Oh my goodness...I really hate that old nylon frieze fabric! But, we didn't spend money on furniture back then...)

...And, here are my two cute kids on that ugly couch! No wonder I enjoyed being a 'stay-at-home' mom!

And, here's Doug on the 'bad' couch. Might as well get it over at the first...

Doug is 'reading,' but I think the book he has in his hands is a paperback book of poetry...not something he would choose on his own, I'm thinking.... Mom must have told him to hold the book. (And, it looks like it is upside down, since that's the book's front cover facing the camera...) Still...ever see a sweeter child? I got them all...every one of them!

Can you tell about her mood? Well, I sure can! Sometimes full of smiles, and other times...well, watch out! (But, still cute, anyway...)

Doug is using his little toy shovel on all of that deep, heavy snow! But, he's trying, for sure! In the background you can see the addition that was going on Sartori Hospital back then...

I think that's all for today. To be continued...

My totally new life...

 Doug and Diane at Potato Lake, about 1963 - sweet little people!

 Fun in the nice, clear lake water...Doug, Diane and little Dave

 Party at Jan Barnes' - left to right: Sue Barnes, Doug Hansen, Diane Hansen, Kevin Barnes, and Todd Barnes (about 1965 or 66)

 Here's an earlier photo of Sue Barnes and Diane...don't you just love their frilly dresses?

 The Hansen Kids...Dave, Doug and Diane (about 1968 or 69)

 Diane, Dave and Doug on the porch on West 7th St. (about 1967)

 Doug and Diane (with hand-knit blue sweaters made by Mom) - Easter, about 1964

 Diane on a lawnchair in Wilma's back yard - about 1964

She was such a cutie!

 Diane with Merry and Merrel's Pepi - about 1964

The Hansen Family - Vern, Carol, Dave, Diane and Doug, 1966

As you can see, my life had quite suddenly expanded. I was a very busy woman with three little kids. I can remember how worried I got each time there was a threat of tornadoes in our area. I took my responsibility for protecting these three young lives very seriously. I think the term 'worry wart' was made especially for me. (Interestingly enough, once my kids were all grown and had left home, I lost my fear of storms....but still make sure I have my portable hard drive with all my photos on it, and the documents for the older ladies for whom I was power of attorney, all safely in my purse, which went to the basement with me, along with a flashlight, some shoes and the dog on his leash! Any other adult in the house was on their own!)

Vern graduated from college, and we found and put in an offer on a cute little two-bedroom house on West 7th Street in Cedar Falls. All three of my oldest children were born at nearby Sartori Hospital. I could look out of my window in the maternity ward when little David was born, and see our house just southwest of the hospital. It was a really busy time, and I didn't find myself bored ever! 

Here's our little house on 7th Street. Looks like this photo was developed in July of 1966. Wilma with Doug and Diane.

This is a photo of Doug with my dad, Wayne. It was taken in front of their house on Mound Avenue in Cedar Rapids. Doug was about 2 years old in this photo...before Diane and David were born. My dad was working for my brother-in-law, Jack Brown, at the time. He helped at the food warehouse Jack owned, and Daddy found out that Doug liked canned chocolate malts. So, if I recall correctly, he brought home a whole case of those chilled malts, and had one on hand for Doug every time we visited.

The house on 7th Street was in need of a new paint job, and we had to do that before we could get the loan approved. So, we put on a new coat of paint, and moved in. We had some very nice neighbors on 7th Street. Morning coffees were common among the younger women who had children, and I made some good friends living there. I also made friends with a gal across the street who enjoyed sunbathing and chatting with me...lots of warm hours talking about world problems, and enjoying the sun. The Burmans had something in common with us...they also loved northern Minnesota, and went up to Gull Lake for a couple of weeks every summer. Later, Karol and Karen Burman were babysitters for my kids...it was so great to have a nice family across the street, and babysitters to boot!

 The Hansen Kids - dressed for Sunday (Doug never did like this crocheted vest I made for him, but he was not one to argue... I also made Diane's jumper)

Nice suit, Dave!

This photo was taken at Potato Lake. Looking at the bell-bottom pants on Diane and Doug, I would guess this was taken in the early 1970's...the kids loved to play a 'fantasy' game with their stuffed toys. They had names for each animal, and had invented a story about these animals living in 'Bear River City, Utah.' I think my three older kids had a pretty good time together, in spite of the little sibling 'issues' they endured. The two boys enjoyed teasing Diane, but I think it may have made her a more self-sufficient person...she had to put up with that, and still enjoyed playing with her brothers. The cabin behind them belonged to Aunt Rachel and Uncle Herbert. They had painted the cabin a pink color and Rachel had made new trim panels for decorations. Our place up there was pretty special, and lots of fun.

 Left to right - Doug, Diane and Dave Hansen, with Susan Brookner, me, and Wilma on the right. I think we were all going to church that morning...in Park Rapids. 

Diane loved purple (still does!), so I painted the walls in her bedroom with a pale lavender color, and the woodwork purple. Notice the 'folk-art flower' painted on her purple dresser. I was always finding old furniture to refinish for use in our house (think I got that tendency from my mom, Wilma!) Diane has a toy stuffed piggy on the bed with her in this photo. I remember a time when she wanted a baby pig in the worst way. That didn't happen, but she and Dave still are animal-lovers...Diane and Jerry have four Yorkies, and Dave and Carol have four cats. I am pretty sure that fondness for animals came directly from me...

To be continued....