We will be traveling to SC in our little red truck, to deliver a hot water heater to Bill. We replaced our electric hot water heater (less than a year old) with a gas heater when we installed a gas furnace last week. We decided to replace our electric heat pump with gas furnace - and it's so much warmer in our house without the fan blowing cold air.
Jim's brother Larry will be joining us for Christmas this year so he won't be all alone in Virginia Beach. His wife Suzi died last February after suffering a stroke. We will stay in a motel in Florence and visit Bill and girls during the day. The girls are all grown up. Not a single toy on their list this year.
I've been cooking for almost a month, baking cookies, jellies, candies, etc. to take with us on our trip.
I haven't bought Jim a present yet. He won't give me a list. So I am going shopping on Christmas eve and find him something special. There's so much excitement when shopping on Christmas eve. Ordering gifts on line and having them shipped to persons on your list is so "un-Christmas". I love making decisions at the store, purchasing the presents, and coming home and wrapping them. We are still using Santa Claus wrapping paper that James loved. Enough for one more year. He got a bigger thrill out of choosing and buying gift wrap paper, bows, and bags than buying the presents.
So come next Thursday morning around 7 a.m. you will see us pulling out of our driveway in our little red Christmas pickup, heading northeast to SC - about a 9 hour trip, depending on weather and traffic.
My cousin Linda suggested that I put a recipe on my blog every time I write one. Something I make often are oatmeal cookies. They never turn out the same, even using the same recipe. I blame this on my oven, and Jim has ordered us a new stove. It won't be delivered for 2 or 3 weeks - special order from Sears, slide-in oven, to fit space we have for our "drop-in"stove which is very old, went thru a flood, bad thermostat, etc. etc.
OATMEAL COOKIES
1 cup vegetable shortening 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sugar 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup brown sugar, packed 1 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs 3 cups Quick oats (not instant)
Preheat oven to 350ยบ.
Lightly grease cookie sheet.
Beat shortening and sugars until cream.
Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.
Combine flour, and baking soda.
Add to mixture and mix well.
Stir in oats; mix well. Shape into 1-inch balls.
Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet, flatten slightly with fork.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until light golden brown.
Let stand 1 minute before removing to racks to cool.
Makes 5 dozen.
