Outdoors at the Log Cabin

The weather has been fantastic the past few days at the log cabin. Today is sunny and 60 degrees. Greg is driving up this afternoon to share the rest of this lovely weekend with me. I plan on making him some ribeye steaks, garlic cheddar mashed potatoes and corn casserole. I wanted to share some of the outdoors with you.


Here's a ladybug that Marvin the cat tried to eat! I was actually able to get this out of his mouth unharmed.




A view of the lake shoreline....




A lovely cattail......

Glorious morning at the cabin.... (and log cabin follower winner!)

Yes, I've snuck away to the log cabin mid-week. It was a glorious morning today, wish I could've shared it with you! The lake ice has melted, the sun is shining, the birds are chirping....




And my beloved loons have returned. I honestly had tears in my eyes as I watched the pair swim across the lake (very far away from me so escuse the bad photo!)


And least I forget, another winner from my log cabin followers. Congratulations to JyLnc at A cup of joe with a view! I will be sending you a surprise gift from my nature store! Jylnc - please email me your address at shelleyupnorth at gmail dot com!

FYI - I am able to make personalized Mother's Day Gifts from my nature store. If you see a photo you like at my nature store, I can place that on any gift item such as a coffee mug, print, T shirt, keychain, greeting card, box of note cards, etc. Please contact me at the email address above with any questions or requests.

Entertaining at the log cabin

I love to entertain family and friends at our log cabin! At the heart of entertaining is good food in my opinion. I love making dips! This past weekend when I was shopping in Chicago, I picked up a "Dip Chiller." Perfect for keeping dips cold especially when you're outside in the summer sun. The top is removable, you put/hide ice cubes underneath. Why didn't anyone tell me about this invention?! LOL!

By the way - you also didn't tell me about Bone Suckin Sauce! While I was in this shop - stuffing my face with at least 20 different food samples, I tried this dip made with this wonderful barbecue sauce. (Let's just say I returned to the "free" sample about 5 times!) Please share any of your favorite easy dips you like to make in the summer!

Here's the recipe:

No Bones Party Dip
1/3 cup Bone Suckin Sauce
8 oz Cream Cheese
6 Tbsp Chopped Onion (red is best I think!)

Mix all ingredients together. Serve with crackers, pretzels or chips.

Back from a long weekend!

Did you have a nice Easter? I certainly did in Chicago! One of the highlights was visiting this nature preserve by my aunt & uncle's house called Cuba Marsh. It is over 700 acres with many pretty walking trails. I saw so many Tree Swallows which were very hard to photograph. They move so darn fast!




Here's I finally managed to get a shot of 2 Tree Swallows on top of a nest box.



And finally - a shot of Dudley - my cousin's pitbull. I have to admit when I heard he had gotten one I was a little fearful of going to my aunt and uncles. I had preconceived notions of this dog (the media will do that to you.) Well this dog is well trained and a big lover boy! My aunt calls him the "pitiful pitbull" rightly so. The first night while I was watching t.v., he put his head in my lap and went to sleep. It was love!

Good Friday

We are headed out the door today to Chicago to spend Easter weekend with my aunt, uncle (whom I affectionately call "The Padrino") and cousins! We always have a lot of fun and eat a lot of good food.

I hope you all have a safe and wonderful Easter with your families! I'm not sure if I'll have internet access this weekend so I look forward to catching up with all of you on Monday!



P.S. Will anyone be eating green eggs & ham? Ha,ha!

Log Cabin Follower Winner

Greg drew the first winner of my Log Cabin Follower Giveaway and the winner is Sarah at Ten Years! Sarah has 2 blogs, a knack for decorating, a beautiful family and is a wonderful photographer. Be sure to check out her blog! Congratulations Sarah! Please email me your address at shelleyupnorth at gmail dot com. I will be sending you a surprise little gift from my nature store!

My next winner will be drawn next Thursday!

A drawing and a good recipe for Easter!

Don't forget to check back tomorrow night for my drawing! I will draw a name out of my log cabin followers and send them a little gift from my Nature Store. To all my followers (and visitors!) - thank you for visiting me! I have met so many wonderful people!

On a side note, I have discovered a great recipe for corn casserole by Paula Deen! This would make a great side dish for the Easter table. My brother-in-law hooked me onto this and then I had to make it. Yummy and easy to make!

Corn Casserole - Paula Deen
Ingredients
1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 to 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, stir together the 2 cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and top with Cheddar. Return to oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.