16 June, 2020 - Biscuits & Elsa the Dog

Dear, Mom -

Elsa would really like to give you a big kiss on the cheek. I told her I would send you a picture for now and then take her to give you a kiss later on. She is showing you her big, white teeth. She has been taking very good care of them and likes to smile to show everyone. She doesn't need a dentist, just a good bone to chew on. Apparently, that is her secret. I think she kind of looks like a lady werewolf, but she's very friendly and also having a terrific hair day!

This evening for dinner I made some home made biscuits. I made one mistake and that was that after I mixed the biscuits, I put too much flour out on the counter so they wouldn't stick when I layered them. The gal in the recipe video said to put a generous amount on the surface you were working on, but I guess I went a little overboard. They still turned out, they were just a bit dry due to the excess flour. I made them to go with my home made chicken soup, so dipping them in the soup was just fine. All and all, they tasted great and I learned what not to do next time. Also, Paula next door told me to use a rolling pin instead of flattening the dough with my hands. The gal in the video said DON'T use a rolling pin. So many people giving different instructions. Next time I will use less flour and roll the dough out with a rolling pin and hope for a more consistent biscuit. I also didn't have a round cutter so I improvised with a glass bottle top. It actually worked really well. (Ignore the odd biscuit out on the right end. It was the one I put together with all the leftover scraps and it just didn't quite keep its shape.)

Today, I got lots and lots of great pictures of flowers for you. Some from Bob's son Philippe's garden and some from my own. A beautiful wood lily, or flame lily:

A nice evening primrose. Philippe had quite a big plant of these with many blossoms. The lighting outside was a bit strange due to cloud cover, so it didn't turn out as bright as I hoped it would. After I edited it a bit, it ended up looking more like the way it did in the garden.

Here are my snapdragons blossoms. They are so colorful. I have these next to the start white ones and it looks so nice in the flower bed. I can't wait for the wildflowers I planted in the same bed to start blooming, as well, so we get a variety of colors.

I know I have shown you my hydrangea before, but look at it right now as it is still maturing. The colors are unbeatable. One thing I love about a hydrangea is the shape of the leaves while it is still forming. 

Other than biscuits, Elsa, and flowers, I don't have much else to report. I spend the afternoon next door setting up the neighbors new television for them. It is one of those Smart TVs that you can watch lots of different things on. I put lots of apps on and synced them to Paula and Birgit's accounts. It took a couple of hours to do, but they are very happy now. They really have only had one channel to watch for the last couple of years. They mainly watch OPB so they can watch News Hour and Antiques Road Show. You used to like that show, too. It's always interesting to hear the history behind certain antique objects and what they are worth.

I'm off to bed now. Tomorrow I have more (yep, you guessed it) yard work to get done. Specifically, if it is a nice day, I am hopefully going to start rototilling. I will have plenty to do throughout the day in many different areas of the yard. There is a strip in the back between my neighbor's garage and our sheds that I want to get tilled and leveled. The dirt that I take from there will go to the front of the house to level out the driveway and yard. Then I will need to get some grass seed to fill in where the yard is patchy. It never stops. At least with all the rain, the ground should be nice and soft to work with.

Have a lovely day. I hope to see and talk with you soon. All my love to you. I love and miss you very, very much. Big hug and big kiss! Hang in there, kid! Your daughter, Sally