Smash Potatoes

I have been on the move again! I spent a few glorious days in Chicago with Daughter 2 and Sir. As you can see from the picture of my suitcase I have not unpacked yet, and yes, it has been 4 days since I returned. Keep in mind, I returned home just in time to prepare for my 2nd Annual Wine and Cheese Open house for around the world photos. Friends and family stopped by during the Sunday evening gathering and then I had a revolving door of guests on Monday. Thank you to everyone who came by! Watch my website for my new card lines and pictures for sale!! By the way, here is one of my favorite pictures that sold Sunday evening!

Well, I wanted to talk to you about Smash Potatoes. While living in London, Daughter 1 and Daughter 2 became addicted to Smash Potatoes: the British version of instant potatoes. However, Smash Potatoes are different. They were little pellets, when mixed with hot water, exploded into mounds of fluffy potatoes. It was tricky to make sure all the pellets received water equally or else some pellets would not dissolve. I hate to think how many times we ate a few crunchy pellets mixed in with the smooth texture of the “correctly mixed” potatoes. The fun in all this? In the eyes of my children, the fun was gathering around watching Mom pour the hot water and stir like crazy. I am sure the kids heard (not learned) a few choice words when I didn’t stir quickly enough! Upon returning to the States, many containers of Smash Potatoes came with us. When friends visited from England, Smash Potatoes were in their suitcases. Like I said, the kids were addicted.
Why do I talk about this? I found a package of Smash Potatoes in the pantry tonight - a purchase from my trip overseas during the summer. The package still remains intact almost five months after I returned. We are afraid to open them. They have changed. The container is different and most upsetting, the pellets have changed. They are now flakes – just like the instant potatoes you pull off the shelf in the good old USA. Change is hard to accept. We choose to sit and watch the package gather dust rather than take the risk to discover if the flavor and texture remain unchanged. We know the experience of making the potatoes will be different and we just can’t gamble on the rest. My idea – pull out the new package of Smash Potato flakes, open it with wild abandon and go for it. Take the risk and embrace the change. Who knows, maybe Daughter 1 and Daughter 2 will become addicted once again!

Girls Trip to the British Virgin Islands

I bring to you today the last entry reminiscing about my girls trips. This is my favorite. My mamma always said save the best for last! One week on board a catamaran in the British Virgin Islands, complete with a captain, cook and seven wonderful women! Do I need to say more? Well, I will.



The only choices I had to make for seven glorious days were simple decisions. For instance, what suit should I wear? What time should I get up? Do I want to go snorkeling? Should I go tubing? Hum…should I buy this? I must say it was a dream come true. I have ALWAYS wanted to live aboard a boat. (Just out of college, I almost headed to San Diego to find a job and live on a house boat) Sir gets seasick so a romantic getaway on a catamaran is out of the question. So instead of Sir, my girlfriends helped me to live my dream.



My favorite time? A full day sail to Anegada just so we could eat 3 pound lobsters! The silliest time? Our Gilligan’s Island party during cocktail hour one evening. Our wildest time? Our evening on Jost Van Dyke at the popular bar, Foxy. Sorry that is all I am allowed to say!

Our scariest moment? We were snorkeling in a beautiful cove after lunch on our sail from Anegada to Jost Van Dyke. Most of the ladies headed back to the boat and only a few of us remained to continue on. Around the corner came a large school of tarpin swiftly moving passed us. We were so freaked out! They are big ugly suckers and there were hundreds of them swimming together. We sighed a sigh of relief as they passed, but our anxiety level rose again when they came back at us. You see, we didn’t know what they were and they looked very hungry! The four of us got together and held on for dear life as the tarpin created a close circle around us. Around and around they went. We felt like the tarpin were performing a death dance around us! Once we stopped peeing our swimsuits, we took notice of their movement. They were taking turns leaving the circle to spend a few moments feeding on a school of very tiny fish. When the school of tarpin left and we returned to the boat and we recounted this frightening event to the rest of the group. We described these big ugly monster fish only to have the captain laugh at us. His response was, “they are only tarpin, and they won’t hurt you.” Well, it was scary. We didn’t know they wouldn’t hurt us and I am here to tell you, I am not making up a fish story.

What I won’t ever forget? Watching the sun set on the water every night as I laughed with my girlfriends and we created memories that will last a life time.

Back in September I stated “All I can say is watch for drinking ladies sailing the horizon speaking Spanish and driving convertibles eating Ben and Jerry’s.” I believe I have told you about these ladies! Thanks for joining me on the ride around the world!

25 Year Class Reunion - How Can It Be?

Twenty five years have passed since I walked down the gym floor and received my college diploma. I doubled majored – International Studies and Business Administration. What a day it was! I was the first grandchild on my dad’s side of the family to earn a college degree. Looking back I see the greatest blessing of my college life was my friends. Years may separate us, but the bond of friendship never ends. The Homecoming weekend started with the arrival of all my bridesmaids. They traveled from Mexico, Connecticut, Atlanta and Missouri. Once we arrived on campus in Iowa the list of friends attending grew. Suitemates. Housemates. Professors. Counselors. Classmates. We laughed, hugged and reminisced about days gone by. We shared stores we wish no one would have remembered! We compared notes on who wasn’t there. We walked the halls of our class rooms, dorms and even checked our mailboxes. One friend even opened hers – 25 years have passed but the combination is still the same! The football team won. The Homecoming King and Queen were crowned. We ended Saturday with our class dinner. In May of 1983, some of us wrote a prediction of where we would be in 25 years. I was one of the lucky ones to fill this out! My results? I do have a Labrador, I am not living in Japan, my waist is a bit bigger than I predicted, I do drive a foreign car, I don’t work in the Japanese consultant for the US government making, I do have two kids (but not one boy and one girl) and I am happy to report that the 2 classmates I predicted would be in jail are not!! The dinner ended with fellow classmate, Roxie Dean sharing a casual and heartfelt concert with us. Roxie hopped up on a table, pulled out her guitar and we were captivated. Roxie is a recording artist and songwriter in Nashville. When Sunday afternoon arrived and I was home, I was truly sad and depressed. I am left only with a memory of this all too brief moment in time, pictures to pass on to others and email addresses to better keep in touch. But, our 35 year class reunion is just around the corner!

Girls Trip to Mexico

Leaves fall in Napa Valley and New England, but head south and what do you find? The Mamacitas living it up in Mexico!! Every other year, Linda and I plan a trip with a larger group of girlfriends! In 2003 and 2007 we spent a week in Mexico to catch up with old friends, lounge by the pool, and once again, rejuvenate our souls! The Fisherman’s Village is a quaint resort south of Cancun in the village of Playa de Carmen. The first time we traveled to Playa there was four of us. The second time we went, hold on to your hats – there were 14 of us! Now, we say, “what happens in Playa stays in Playa,” but I am here to tell you – even though they named us the Mamacitas – we were good. We just had a darn good time!!


How did we have fun? A couple of the Mamacitas trekked to the store to buy mint and then taught the bartenders how to make Mojitos –delicious for us all! The exercise conscious Mamacitas participated in invigorating water aerobics classes! Some Mamacitas couldn’t quit shopping – no names listed! Most of the Mamacitas enjoyed a marvelous afternoon - sunbathing and snorkeling on a yacht. A few brave Mamacitas headed off to hike ruins and swim in underwater caves – complete with a blessing from a medicine man. All the Mamacitas enjoyed dinner together at the resort – laughing, dancing, telling stories and catching up on life.




A note of interest: The Mamacitas gathered from Colorado, Kansas, Virginia, Arizona, Iowa, South Carolina and Indiana. The core group are women who all lived in London together, the rest are friends!

Girls Trip to Napa

Ah, Napa Valley! There is so much more than wine – but don’t get me wrong, I love the wineries. The expansive rows of vines stretching through the valley and up the mountains are a sight to see. The wineries themselves are quite impressive: the beautiful buildings and masterful landscaping adorn the valley. I enjoyed watching vineyard after vineyard as we drove through the valley. Linda and I had an extremely good time on our many adventures in Napa! But two experiences from the trip stick out in my mind.

Due to the weather, hot air balloon companies had been cancelling flights during our stay. Fortunately for us, we pre-booked the right day, the perfect day for the right wind, and we were able to go hot air ballooning. We floated through the air with dozens of colorful balloons. It was a perfect morning as the sun peaked over the mountains and the horizon was filled with other balloons.

Our second adventure was not as beautiful and peaceful, but equally as interesting. After diligent research, Linda booked us for an afternoon at a spa in Calistoga, in the northern part of the valley. Sorry there are no pictures as cameras were not allowed in the spa – hallelujah! A mud bath experience was ours to enjoy: we began the afternoon lounging naked in big vats of mud, only to get out looking like the Loc Ness monster, which then required a shower to scrub every nook and cranny where mud has settled! After our shower, we soaked in big tubs of aromatic laced hot water. The spa attendants kept cool cloths on our foreheads to keep us from overheating! Our next stop was the steam room, which was so hot they had created little square cut-outs in the wall so you could stick your head out for fresh air! We were then walked to relaxation beds where we laid down, covered up with warm blankets and listened to music. The treatment then ended with a massage. At least that’s what we were told – we slept through the whole message! We slithered out of the spa like two wet noodles, barely able to walk or talk! Yes! Another successful girl’s trip – taking care of our mind, body and spirit!