Happy News

It was our anniversary last night, so I waited up for Captain to return from his Mon-Sunday voyage. We celebrated with two slices of pie at Perkins about 11:36 pm. Just under the wire. It was a happy hour of laughing and reminiscing about the week and about the last 23 years.
This morning he is gone on another trip for work, but I awoke to some good news....

Everyone is placing bets on the name. Maybe they will name her Elizabeth (Captain's mother has a birthday today)! Maybe Diana/Charles for middle name? Maybe a future queen? Surely going to be a cute baby, given the Momma!

(Funny story: During my first week in London in 1988, I wandered into a "bookmaker" because I was exploring and I expected Jane Austen hardbacks, but I got more than I "wagered" for.)

Heroics at Home

School resumed last week, and it was a bit too overwhelming for me to write any blogs. Meggar is back to Truman, Dorito is back to Hillyard half days and doing three courses for dual credit at Missouri Western. He is also receiving many scholarship offers in mail. Some larger than his sister received from the same school?! Very exciting and confusing about which college decision to make. The twins are preparing for many January deadlines: Poetry Out Loud contest, Science Fair, March for Life, and the Catholic Scouting emblem submission. And they are without a head coach for the rest of the season, so gathering information about other teams.

Happily, this weekend was not full of travel for hockey. They had "home" games in KC. Their violin teacher came:




and their hero strength and conditioning coach came:





and Scout friends came (Jamison, Ben, and Justin)
and Schmidlings (Terry and Kathy).



Lucas, Chris, Adam, Jacob, and Dorito had a fun time together before Adam goes back to college.

Megan and I watched last Sunday's season 3 premier of "Downton Abbey" at Constance's place. She had full tea service set out and were were enchanted all the way through. Captain and I are looking forward to tonight's episode two to take our minds off all the busyness.

Jubilee Tin of Biscuits

Imagine my surprise during today's shopping trip to discover this commemorative tin for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee -- at TJ Maxx (the store of surprising deals)!  And I snagged the last one! Won't the Jane Austen Book Club ladies be surprised. Although I haven't opened the container of gingerbread star cookies covered with dark chocolate yet, I know they will go well with a British pot of tea whenever friends are visiting during this Jubilee month.

Afternoon Tea was Nothing Shabby

Alison booked a reservation for Afternoon Tea at Shabby Hattie's in Parkville. It was my first visit -- as well as for she and Emma plus Maureen and her daughter. It was the real deal!

A pot of "Queen Mary" for me. A first course of chunky tomato soup with a cheese scone. A middle course with two savories, plus chicken salad on croissant, and some Caesar Salad in won ton cup (great idea). On the top tier, a dessert course of cranberry-white-chocolate scone plus coconut pound cake. Light and sweet! I will have to go there when Meggar has a day off work!

(Caveat: The owners seem grumpy and can hardly say two words--but their homemade food and atmosphere are as fabulous as any you could wish for.)

I Met Willa Cather at the KC Library

Her dress was burgundy velvet with pink satin collar and cuffs. Her hat had an ermine fur band and feathers on two sides. Her pose and mannerisms were the same as this portrait of the famous author from Red Cloud, Nebraska. Crosby Kemper III interviewed Willa Cather (nee Jan Chapman) for KCPT at the Downtown Library to a packed audience, which included three of us from Book Club. How wonderful that she mentions her admiration for Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Shakespeare, and Homer. How timely that our book club is reading "My Antonia" for June.

Preparing for the Queen

The Queen of England is celebrating 60 years on the throne next month, so I think our "Jane Austen Book Club" will need to help celebrate her Diamond Jubilee. (Great hat by the way.) Our meeting is next Tuesday, and we are discussing an English "shocker" called "The Thirty-Nine Steps" which is fun all by itself. In preparation, I bought some Union Jack paper plates at the "Brits" store in Lawrence.
Megan said she would help me figure out a craft -- we like this embroidered crown but will look more on Pinterest. I'm still in a dilemma about what to bake for treats. Perhaps some apricot-brandy bread, filled with English black walnuts to tie in with the "Blackstone" conspirators. Probably shortbread cookies. PG Tips tea, of course.

Little Dorrit

There is a new series on PBS's website called "Little Dorrit" about the youngest girl of family whose father is in debtor's prison in 1820s. The book by Charles Dickens is said to be fairly autobiographical. Captain and I have enjoyed the first two episodes! Andrew Davies is a fairly good screenwriter (i.e. Pride and Prejudice 1995 and Sense and Sensibility 2008). And the actors make sure to preserve his reputation!

Downton Abbey-style Valentine cards

Although I didn't see these until the day after... it was too funny not to share. The kids had a "snow day" on Monday, so Captain and I went on NetFlix to re-watch parts of the first season of Downton Abbey. Another Downton Abbey fan made these valentine cards for his blog...

Valentine Abbey

A few weeks ago my wife and I caught on to Downton Abbey, and she can’t seem get enough. I’ve been hearing background on the cast, the fashion, and the time period ad nauseum while my wife imdbs/tumblrs/wikipedias everything about the show. This isn’t a problem of course since I too, LOVE, this show.  So yesterday, I drew up 4 Downton-themed cards for her as we prep for a Valentine weekend involving another Downton marathon!

Downton Abbey Dreams

I called Meggar early (she has 7:30 am class twice a week) to tell her that I had the best dream: it was all in British accents! Even my own conversations! She said I've been watching too much Downton Abbey :-) It's true that I can hardly wait for Captain to come home each weekend so we can watch the previous episode together. He's more hoooked on the story than last year. Today, PBS sponsored an online chat today with Hugh Bonneville, which I regret missing out on. But I did go on the PBS website to the Masterpiece page to watch several short-snippet interviews with each main character. Then I voted for the good (Mr. Bates and Anna) and the bad (O'Brien) amongst them. Like one blogger commented: Why can't Richard trip and fall in front of a truck or something? Most of all, I adore Maggie Smith. She has the timing and the changing facial features that make her parts Excellent! Once during college, I had the chance to see her live on a stage play in New York City. She was old then (and that was 25 years ago), but already known  for her excellent timing and pithy delivery.

Downton Abbey - Part 2

A year later, we are finally able to watch Part 2 of the "Downton Abbey" series on PBS. Captain and I thought the first episode was better than last year's! And it's free online to watch.

Farewell with Tea

Meggar starts back to college tomorrow, so we crammed in all the last minute goodies we could: shopping in Kansas City, finding sales, and a new tea house to try. Also mass at Cure parish, connecting with KC friends, and holding hands with each other. Girly time is essential before another semester.

In fairness to her brothers, Meggar also spent time with them -- at Sonic, Starbucks, and Snow Creek. They all received stylish sweaters from Old Navy from her for Christmas, since she has an employee discount, and they loved that. Here's a photo after a long day on the man-made ski slopes along the Missouri Rivery bluffs. (Unfortunately, Polar Bear had just discovered his snowboard was stolen when they came in for a cocoa. It had new bindings which he had bought with his own money, too. What a shame.)

A Tip of the Hat to the Royal Wedding

As a true Anglophile, I should have awoke at 4 am to watch live coverage of the Royal Wedding.  But I slept in and scrolled through a few web photos after breakfast instead.  My Friday will be almost as busy as Princess Catherine's, as I'm leading a homeschool field trip to Kansas City with five other families.  I was glad to see all the pretty hats and traditional wedding customs reigning the day.  The couple appears truly in love and very happy in spite of the limelight.  Was she carrying lilies of the valley?  I read they are considered Royal flowers for such an occasion, so I learned something new and it reminded me to get my planters out of winter storage.

Easter Blessings and Enchantments

Having Meggar back in our family circle brought such joy to everyone!  Saturday, she helped Grandma and Ashlan with shopping. She also studied quite a bit for her upcoming Biology final.  Yesterday, she and the boys watched 8 episodes of "White Collar" from NetFlix while indulging in candy, junk food, and Dr. Pepper (which they had given it up for Lent).  They also sat in the hot tub telling secrets until well past their bedtimes.

Today, she was so happy to see her friends come for our tea-party luncheon.  We served the requisite chicken salad on china plates along with potato-leek soup, muffins, 3-bean salad, jell-o salad, strawberries with cream, and carrot cake.  I let myself indulge in three strong cups of tea (PG Tips) since it was a dreary day.  Our discussions ran from books to movies back to books and Jane Austen and gardening and college and LIFE.  Meggar even managed a stiff upper lip when telling how her date ditched her just 5 days before the AGD formal.  See what I mean?  It's all just a normal LIFE.  Good to have a talkative, lady-like, and intellectual daughter.

Then we girls settled in for the movie "Enchanted April."  Traditionally, we watch it every year on a rainy day in April and dream of the smells of wisteria in Italy.

Book Club Delights in Gardening

Our book club selection was "Down the Garden Path" by Beverley Nichols, who wrote from England about gardening with a dignified yet amusing British sense of humor.  He even mentions "Cranford," which earns him bonus points with our group!

We enjoyed his character sketches, which had me laughing out loud, although he admits his book was written "about nothing" (makes me recall the Seinfeld TV show). The specialty of Nichols (1898-1985) was winter flowers,the kind that he could coax into blooming December through March.  Pity that we don't have the same climate here in the Midwest. We ladies shared stories of our own gardening failures and dreams.  If it was May, we probably would have shared cuttings.  Alison gifted each of us with a "Jane Austen tuberose candle" and it smells completely of June outside my patio window!  I am eager for the return of my tuberoses (a gift from Betty at my church). But meanwhile, the occasional sunny spots of April weather have drawn me outside o the flower beds more than other years, thanks to Nichol befriending me on the Garden Path.

Another Masterpiece

Captain has become hooked on Masterpiece Theater with me.  Would you believe that I saw “Captain Wentworth” last week?  He played Hannay in “The 39 Steps.”  The spy-themed movie-ette is currently showing for a limited time and you can watch instantly here.  Because it is only 1 hour and 23 minutes long, it’s a perfect evening break from your routine.  My husband and I thought it was much better than “Any Human Heart,” which was last month’s free installment.  Of course, we are eager to see “Upstairs Downstairs,” which starts today.  I didn’t realize the Masterpiece schedule was changing so regularly, and I wanted to make sure my blog friends were also having the benefit of watching these free classics!  Plus Kristen pointed out the sweepstakes at PBS to win a trip to the UK, which I have entered again and again...

Jane Austen's Birthday is Today

In honor of the British authoress, I am posting the best recipe from a recent party with the Jane Austen Society of North America.  A proper afternoon tea was laid out by Terry and Lindy in their condo overlooking the Nelson Art Gallery.  We had a delicious view, a full cup of literary comments, and several servings of sociableness.
Apricot Bars
Cover: 1 c. dried apricots with water. Cook 10 min. Drain and chop into small pieces.
Combine:
1 c. sifted all purpose flour
1/3 c. white sugar
1/2 c. uncooked oats
Cut in: 1/2 c. butter
Press into a greased 9 x 9 x 2-inch pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min.
Beat: 2 eggs
Add: 1 c. brown sugar
Blend in: 1 c. flour
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. almond flavoring
1 c. flaked coconut
1/2 c. chopped walnuts (don't use pecans; can stir into mixture or wait and sprinkle on top at the last)
Add: apricots from above.
Spread over crust; sprinkle with nuts (see note).
Bake at 350' F about 35 minutes.
Run a table knife around the perimeter of the pan; let it sit about 20 minutes before cutting. Freezes well.
(From a Christmas cookbook by Wisconsin Power/Light and Gas Company in 1957)

12/21 Update:  I heard that Google did a special doodle for Jane:

A Book Like Jane Eyre

I didn't report on the past two monthly book clubs: in October we read "Frankenstein" which was not what I expected.  It is a lonely tale about Dr. Frankenstein and his horrible guilt over the consequences of his "creation."   For me, it held a similar moral to the modern-day story of embryonic stem cell research and frozen embryos.  Scientists who want to "play God" are letting pride blind them to the limits of their knowledge and the long-term social impact.  In November, we read "Wide Sargasso Sea" which is a retake on Jane Eyre from the point of view of the mad-woman/wife from Jamaica whom Rochester kept in the attic.  She has a sad tale of her own which only deepened my appreciation of the Bronte novel and the minor characters in other good literature.  All of us in book club will gather in December to nominate selections for the 11 months in 2011.  With no assigned reading this month, I happily finished "Longitude" by Dava Sobel.

Bridal Tea Party

After mass, we gathered with Kathryn for a Bridal Tea Party. My famous American Girl scones and other brunch foods were served on Gr. Judy's fine china. And we had PG Tips tea (only the finest!) for our pots and cups! I had hats and gloves for everyone, which made it extra special for the cousins. Every girl needs a hat, and Kathryn actually says she has a plentiful collection at home to add to our next tea party. There were family history books and a family tree to pour over afterwards. It's nice to know where you come from and into which family you are marrying. Gr. Judy made a black-and-white memory album with all the wedding photos of our ancestors and relatives. We added a few poems, prayers, bits of advice, and recipes. I'd say the essentials are all covered.
Proper Scottish Scones (from Meggar's American Girl Cooks book)
2 c. flour, sifted
2 T. sugar
1 T. baking powder
1 t. salt
1/4 t. soda
1/2 c. raisins, currants, or coconut
1/4 c. oil
1/2 c. sour cream
1 egg
3 T. milk
Combine dry ingredients first. Stir in raisins. Add remaining ingredients and stir until dough just clings together. Knead slightly on floured board, and pat to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut out rounds with biscuit cutter or pretty shape. Place on greased cookie sheet. Brush tops with milk and sprinkle with pinch of sugar or sprinkles. Bake at 400' F for 12-15 minutes. Serve with butter, jam, and whipped cream.

Box Hill Picnic in Jane Austen's Style

We had a wonderful afternoon in Norma’s huge back yard with members of the Jane Austen Society. There was perfect weather to accompany many fine delicacies at our Box Hill Picnic. Norma regretted that she couldn’t get her husband to rent a donkey, but the dozen attendees were quite pleased with her strawberries! Here are 3 of riddles that Megan and I wrote in the pattern of “Emma” to share with others. Spoiler: I'm giving the answers at the end.

#1
She lived in Bath long before Jane did, Her famous bun recipe is no longer hid.
(Who is she?)

#2
Julius Caesar was a man among men;
The second is the tubs that we soak in.
(What is the compound word?)

#3
The Queen and her family receive power from on high,
Her crown jewels shine like the bright sky.
The second is the quarter moon with its soft glow,
The whole is a residence that Jane would know.
(What is this compound word?)

#1: Sally Lunn
#2. Roman Baths
#3: Royal Crescent

And as a treat, here is our recipe from the picnic:
Rum Cake for Tea Time
1 box yellow cake mix
½ c. sugar
¾ c. oil
5 eggs
1 c. sour cream
Beat together on medium high speed for 2 minutes.
Stir in: 1 c. chopped pecans.
Pour half batter into greased bundt pan.
Combine filling: 1 T. cinnamon and 2 T. brown sugar
Sprinkle over the batter.
Cover with remaining half of batter.
Bake at 350’ F for 45 minutes until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes.
Pour Rum Sauce over cake in the pan. Cool for 1 ½ hours more, then turn out of the pan onto serving plate. Refrigerate overnight or longer (freezes well) to improve the flavor.
Rum Sauce:
1 c. sugar
¼ c. boiling water
½ c. rum

Cranford's Elegant Economy

Becca was here to welcome Meggar home from her travels. They made copy-cat Chipotle burritos and then we all watched "Cranford." We love this BBC series because it's so witty--poking fun at an old-fashioned English village before the railroad days. Two bits that I especially enjoy are
*the hyperbole phrase of the older sister when she retires to her room because she has a "headache of phenomenal proportion," and
*the "practice of elegant economy" which in their case is burning two candles alternately in the evenings to make them appear to be the same length. For me, it is taking only half a piece of gum at a time.