My Kind of Superbowl Sunday

...which means I didn't watch the game.  Instead I had the whole afternoon to putter around outside in the garden and with the animals.  I'm just not a big football fan (or baseball or basketball or golf).  I know, I know.  So un-Amercian.  I'm telling you, I am actually French and somehow got traded into an American family as an infant.  (Don't tell my family I said that).

This morning Brett and I took the horses on a trail ride.  We took the ridge trail which is, as you would guess, quite steep.  I haven't wanted to take that trail with Jackson since before his hock issues.  But, he's been so strong and sound since he got injected last September that I suggested we give it a try.  It's a great workout for the horses and the views are spectacular.  Of course, we forgot the camera.  Sorry!  When we got home, Jackson was tired.  I was too.  I checked his feet and turned him out to roll and relax.

Next, I made cookies for work.  Once a month, my staff and I bake cookies for the nurses.  I work in a hospital but my department isn't involved with patient care.  So, this is our way of thanking the nurses for all their hard work.  We always bring in homemade cookies.  I made these:

Crisp Cocoa-Pecan Cookies

The game was getting started about then so I scooted outside.  I washed Jackson's tail and then turned him loose on the grassy slope.  He munched away on the grass while I groomed him, erasing all the sweat marks from this morning, and braided his tail.  Then I sat in a chair with our barn cat enjoying the sunshine and the quiet.  It was in the mid-60s today so it really REALLY felt like spring.  After I put Jackson away, I let the dogs out and puttered around the gardens looking for signs of spring.  I found a hyacinth poking it's nose up into the sunlight.

After finishing the evening chores, I headed back to the house and made dinner.  I roasted a turkey but tried a different method.  Yesterday, I cut it into large pieces and put them in brine.  Today, I cut up some onions and carrots and scattered them in the roasting pan.  I added a bundle of herbs from the garden (parsley, thyme, bay and sage) and put the turkey pieces on top.  It worked out great and the drippings made a wonderful gravy.

Wine, of course.  A pinot noir from New Zealand.

I'm trying to control my portion size.  Did I do good?

I'm pooped!