Country Time Acres Blog

Makhi loves cookies!

Hannah and Brittany show off their baking skills.

This week my kitchen had the smell of fresh baked cookies not once, but twice. Tuesday Makhi and I spent time in the kitchen and Thursday afternoon the kids of Country Time 4-H worked on their baking and eating skills. Here is the Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe we used.

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour, 1 tsp. baking soda, 1 tsp. salt, 1 cup ( 2 sticks) butter, softened, 3/4 cup sugar, 3/4 cups brown sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, 2 large eggs, 2 cups Nestle’ Toll House Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 375. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla in large bowl. Add eggs, slowly add flour mixture and stir till mixed well. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake for about  9-11 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for two minutes, remove and continue to cool.

Did you know: The Toll House tradition began at the Toll House Inn in the 1930′s when proprietor Ruth Wakefield who was known for her rich desserts was experimenting and cut up a Nestle’ Semi Sweet Chocolate into tiny pieces and put it in her cookie dough. So was born the Toll House cookie! Semi-sweet chocolate morsals are also a natural source of antioxidants. For 1000′s of recipes visit Very Best Baking.

Don’t forget, for great embroidered horse kitchen towels visit   Country Time Creations. Did you visit? Leave a comment!

Laurie Warren of Kay's Kamp (in pink) with Tracy Solloway, Jowana Lamb and Bruce Ballard.

This week I met Laurie Warren of Kay’s Kamp. This is the first oncology camp in Delaware and will be held August 8-15  at the St. Joseph’s Center in Clayton. The camp is offered free of charge to any child 6-16 who is under going cancer treatment or is in remission. Laurie and her husband lost their daughter, Kaylyn to Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in 2007. Kay’s Kamp is her dream so that other children fighting cancer will have a place to go, to not be labeled sick or different and regain their childhood. As the public relations officer for the First State Corvette Club I was present when she was presented  with a check for $100.00 for her camp. I am hoping that next year they can have live animals and she will consider having a visit from Savannah. Best of luck on this years camp! Learn more at   The Kaylyn Elaine Warren Foundation.

In charity there is no excess.”Sir Francis Bacon”   As the saying goes “Give until it hurts”. But true, selfless giving – of ourselves as well as our possessions – should never hurt. The more we freely and willingly  give to others, the more we give to ourselves. I will offer myself in some way that is helpful to others, without resenting the time or effort it takes. “Linda Picone” The Daily Book of Positive Quotations. Thank you for visiting. We are sorry but, the comment box for this post is full.

A beautiful view.

A great way to celebrate our anniversary.

     One of the things I have always wanted to do was ride a horse on the beach. A few years ago I got to do just that and celebrate my anniversary too. On the way to  a family reunion in Georgia, Terry took us on a detour to Jekyll Island, Georgia to enjoy a beautiful morning ride on the beach. The kids were back in school so we were the only ones riding that morning which made it even more perfect. Our guide was wonderful and even took pictures for us. We didn’t get to visit the island but, there are many things to do there. As well as the beach and horseback riding  there is golf, nature trails, a Sea Turtle center, camping, fishing and boating. If you are looking for a great place to ride I highly recommend Jekyll island.

For great  horse  jewelry, clothing, embroidered towels and picture frames visit Country Time Creations. Did you visit? Leave a comment.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

For a little something different try serving your guest this delicious cake using real bananas and topped with chocolate frosting. Pre-heat your oven to 350. Mix the following dry ingredients in a large bowl: 3/4 c. sugar, 3/4  c. mini chocolate chips, 1/2 c. brown sugar, 1-1/4 tsp. baking soda, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg and 2 1/4 c. all purpose flour.

Mix the following ingredients in a large  bowl: 2 large ripe bananas, 3 Tbs. sour cream, 2 tsp. vanilla, 3 eggs and 3/4 c. butter or margarine. Slowly add the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Beat at low speed with a mixer till well blended. Bake in 11 X 13 inch pan for 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool, top with chocolate frosting or powdered sugar.

This recipe can be used in a gift jar by placing the dry ingredients in layers in a wide mouth ball jar. Don’t forget to include the recipe with the jar. Thank you for visiting! We are sorry but, the comment box for this post is full.

Bathtime for Savannah, she wanted to eat the bubbles!

Big sister, Cheyenne plays with Savannah.

Well, our little horse,Savannah is now 14 weeks old ( 3 1/2 months) and is now having playtime with big sister, Cheyenne. The two horses seem to get along great and Savannah really enjoys having a close relationship with another horse. I am hoping to start socializing her with other horses when she is about 6 months old. This week was bath time for Savannah. I don’t want Terry feeling left out so, I asked him if he’d like to help with that first bath. Needless to say he had some ideas of his own which included using a long wand to spray her.  The end result was me getting very frustrated and getting knocked on my butt!

 We have to remember that those first few baths are not about getting the horse clean but, introducing her to the bath experience. Any animal, human or other will be uncomfortable having cold water sprayed at them. I bath my horses in the back yard and don’t ever tie them. It is important to have room to work. The horse is on a lead rope and when spooked will run in a circle. The last thing you want is to get you or the horse tangled up in the hose or other objects.  What I noticed was Savannah’s fear of the sound the water made coming out of the hose. Once I played the friendly game with the spray nozzel and set the water on mist setting she calmed down. We played friendly game with the sponge, towel and scrapper. If you don’t know what I mean by friendly game, it’s taking an object the horse fears and playing with it by rubbing it on them and letting them touch it with their muzzle. This week Savannah received four baths, her pretty white coat was getting dingy and I had started calling her dirt ball. After her bath and a good towel dry I put her in a stall of clean saw dust to finish drying. I think one of my biggest challenges with her will be keeping my pretty little horse all snowy white.

For great horse frames, apparel, toys, books,  handbags, embroidered towels and figures, visit Country Time Creations. Did you visit? Leave a comment!

Jenna and Rosalyn show off their cookies.

Peanut Butter Blossoms are always a hit with the kids.

The kids of Country Time 4-H were very busy this week with fun activities. One of those activities was making peanut butter blossom cookies. here is the recipe they used:

Hershey Kisses candy, 1/2 cup shortening, 3/4 cup peanut butter, 1/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup light brown sugar, 1 egg, 2 tbs. milk, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1 and 1/2 cups  all purpose flour, 1 tsp. baking soda and 1/2 tsp salt.

Preheat oven to 375. Beat shortening, peanut butter, sugar and brown sugar in bowl. Add egg, milk and vanilla, beat well. Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. Shape into 1 inch balls, roll in sugar, place onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately place a candy kiss in the center. Cookie will crack around edges. Cool 5 minutes then remove from cookie sheet to finish cooling. Makes about 2 dozen cookies. 

Country Time Creations is proud to sponsor Country Time 4-H. For great horse gifts visit our web-site.  Did you visit?  Leave a comment!

Samantha Russum receives scholarship.

Samantha Russum, a 2009  graduate of  Lake Forset High School was the winner of a $500.00 scholarship award given by the First State Corvette Club. It was really great to be able to give this to her, I use to babysit Samantha when she was just a toddler. She will be attending Wesley College, in Dover, Delaware where she plans to study special education.  Pictured:  left to right: Jowana Lamb, Samantha Russum, Marianne Callahan and Darlene Hurley.

Here is the speech I prepared for her awards presentation:  Life, a circle that begins at birth and ends with death. But, within that circle there are many phases to pass and many paths to travel. Until now, many of those paths have been guided by your parents. As you begin your travels as a young adult remember that true success comes to those who can balance work as well as pleasure. Our Club had 32 applications for our scholarship. Each applicant had outstanding academics, were superior athletes and dedicated volunteers. Therefore, the weight of our slection was on the essay. Our scholar posses strong family values, realistic goals, a passion for her career choice and has a big heart. On behalf of the members of the First state Corvette Club we proudly present this $500.00 scholarship award to Samantha Russum.  

       We wish Samantha lots of luck and a successful and happy future.

For great horse gifts visit Country Time Creations.  Did you visit?  Leave a comment!

Salt water cowboys parade the horses.

Ponies are auctioned to thin the herd.

     It was a small town event that gained fame with the story “Misty of Chincoteague”. Now between 40 and 50 thousand visitors flock to this small island to enjoy a tradition that started  back in 1925.  The horses are hereded by salt water cowboys and take a 3 minute swim across the Assateague Channel during “slack calm”, so younger ponies can make the swim. Most visitors won’t see the actual swim as it is blocked by boats with camera crews galore. You can however,  get very close to the ponies when they are paraded down the street to the local fire company. The  fire company holds a carnival and ponies are auctioned to thin the herd. Only 150 ponies are allowed by federal permit for grazing land in the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge on Assateague. Proceeds benefit the fire company and approximately 80 foals are sold each year. This year equine extremist, Tommie Turvey will attend the event and will work with some of the ponies. The auction can make as much as $150,000 dollars. This year’s pony swim is July 29, 09. If you have never attended the pony swim, it truely is spectacular!

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