Cover Me

Cover Me

            When I was young I loved blankets, not just for sleeping but for cuddling, cozy reading props and blanket forts made by draping them over a card table and then crawling underneath.  Being “tucked in” at night was sometimes the best part of my day.  I would kiss both sides of my pillow twice for good luck.  Don’t ask me how kissing my pillow turned into a “luck ritual” but it was a habit I had picked up quite young and then I was afraid to stop for fear of something bad happening to me the next day.  Just before I closed my eyes I imagined that, covered by piles of heavy blankets, I was feeling the best possible feeling. I believed if I wished it I could feel this way forever.  This was a wish I never made though.  I was afraid to use such an important wish too soon.  Suppose someday I enjoyed the feeling of bungee jumping and I had already used up my wish….then where would I be???

            Just the expression “cover me” brings up a sense of safety and comfort.  How many times have you been in a jam and need a major bail out, only to feel a great sense of relief when hearing “I’ve got you covered”?   Or the sense of kindness you feel when you can “cover” someone else in their hour of need.   What could be more beautiful than a snow covered mountain or a field covered in flowers?  How about a strawberry covered in chocolate or a child covered in leaves?  Being covered can be a very good thing.

            I have had many special blankets cover me over the years.  Afghans knitted by my mom, patchwork quilts made by my Grandma Violet, and even a couple of store bought fuzzy blankets that are never the same after one trip through the washer and the dryer. The NAP blanket my husband bought me a few years ago was right at the top of my list of coverings until this Christmas….all of the above have now been replaced by my new ultimate favorite blanket, the electric lap quilt!  I didn’t expect this gift; I found it tucked away in my mudroom after a neighbor stopped by for the holidays.  It was wrapped round and long like a sleeping bag.  This is one of those gifts I didn’t even know I needed, now I think I’d be pressed to do without it!

It’s plugged in in our living room and it’s available on a first come first to fight for it basis.  I even appreciate our house being a little chilly this season just so I can use my blanket.  Our lab Lakota likes to curl up and take snooze on this toasty red velour treat. I turn it on low for her and she snores loudly in a deep sleep, soaking up the heat. I am guessing that if dogs could make a wish for a “forever feeling” it would be a nap on the electric quilt.  PS I’ve got you covered. Peace and warmth to you, Sandy

             

America is not a blanket woven from one thread, one color, or one cloth. America is woven of many strands. I would recognize them and let it so remain. Our fate is to become one, and yet many. This is not prophecy, but description. ~ Jesse Jackson and Ralph Ellison

Crock Pot London Broil 

3 to 4 pounds flank steak
1 pkg. ranch salad dressing mix
1 pkg. Italian salad dressing mix
1 pkg. brown gravy mix

Mix all the dry ingredients with 1-1/2 cups water. Place roast in crock-pot. Pour the mixture over roast and cook on low overnight.

Once you do this recipe - you will never prepare any other way. The gravy it makes - is to die for.

Crock Pot Bavarian Pot Roast 

3 to 4 lb. beef pot roast
1 tsp. vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
3 whole cloves
4 med. apples, cored and quartered
1 sm. onion, sliced
1/2 c. apple juice
3 to 4 tbsp. flour
3 to 4 tbsp. water

Wipe roast well and trim off excess fat. Lightly rub top of meat with oil. Dust with salt, pepper and ginger. Insert cloves in roast. Place apples and onions in crock pot and top with roast. Pour in apple juice. Cover and cook on low setting for 8 to 12 hours.

Remove roast and apples to warm platter. Turn crock pot to high setting. Make a smooth paste of the flour and water. Stir into crock pot. Cover and cook until thick. Serves 6 to 8.
Crock Pot Coke Roast
3 to 4 Pound Beef Roast
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 Can Coke – Not diet
Place the roast in the bottom of the crock pot.  This can be fresh or frozen.  If frozen cook 8 to 12 hours.  Top with undiluted Cream of Mushroom soup and can of Coke.  Cover and set on low until internal temperature of the roast is 160 Degrees.