This was a big week at Jenny Lane. We waited and waited and waited for our plumber to arrive on Monday. He had said he would be here by 8:30am to take out the current heating pipes in our room and Jack’s room in preparation for Jason, the foam guy, to come and put in the spray foam on Tuesday. At one point we were starting to make Plan B because it was getting late and we didn’t think he was going to show up. However, he did at about 2:30 saying that he had been snowed in at his house and had to plow his way out. Hmmm, but he showed up. He and John got the zone turned off and capped off the pipes so he was able to get the pipes out with considerable difficulty because they were seriously rusted in place. The weather was pretty good so we knew we wouldn’t freeze but also knew that we had to have some sort of back up heat until the new pipes could be put in. It wasn’t going to stay in the 40’s for long.

Tuesday arrived and Libby and I and the dogs vacated the property as the foam insulation guys arrived. We couldn’t be here when they were working so why not drive to North Hatley and get some items from the house there and go out for a nice lunch at Manoir Hovey with friends. This is exactly what we did. It was a very nice get away for us and while it was a long drive it worked out well.

In the meantime, John stayed home to consult over the insulation project (the cats were relegated to the winter porch). He kept us updated with pictures all day long. As soon as the insulation was in the mighty duo of Les and Chris came in and replaced the windows in our room and built one half of a wall between our room and Jack’s and put up sheet rock all around the lower half of the outside walls in both rooms in preparation for the new heat pipes that are hopefully going in this coming week.

Whew, and we had Thanksgiving in there somewhere as well. It was exciting to say the least. It truly made us feel we were making some serious progress on the project. To have two separate rooms is amazing. We lived with a wall made of quilt covers for a couple of months so getting used to a wall is interesting. Mostly for the kittens. They could not figure out at all why they couldn’t just go through the wall from one room to the other. The younger kitten paced for over an hour trying to figure it out.

Wednesday we welcomed Jack home from Tennessee to his new home. He had not even been inside the house before he went away to school. It must have been strange for him to pull up to a house that he had only driven by one time and to find that it was now home. Thank goodness we had a room for him and a bed. No heat mind you, but he had a bed and a room with a door which is pretty darn good all things considered. We plugged all the leaks under the old windows with towels, he won’t get his new windows until this week, so we minimized the draft situation. We tried putting the space heater on but since there is only one circuit feeding both rooms with electricity we immediately blew the circuit. Our room has only extension cords to bring electricity into it. Yes, heavy duty ones, but they don’t support space heaters very well. Once the rest of the sheetrock is done we should be able to have Jimmy, the electrician, come back and hook up our lights and plugs. The coming week could be a big one too.

Turkey Day was wonderful. The kids left really early (5:30) to go to Connecticut to be with their other family and we went for a wonderful walk in the woods with the dogs. It was gorgeous out there and they ran and played along the trails happily. We needed them to as we were going to take them with us to dinner at Katie’s friend Jenny’s house and we wanted them to be quiet and calm. They were. All the dogs got along beautifully and played some but then they just fell asleep. We got to enjoy our first ever rotisserie turkey with all the fixings and were home and relaxing in front of the fire by six o’clock. A perfect day.

We are now waiting for the big snowstorm to arrive. Got the fire going and we will celebrate Katie’s birthday with the children tonight. We are having fun decorating the house for Christmas and continuing to make friends with it. Funny, but it feels like home in so many ways.

We love our walks with the dogs and meeting new friends as we bump into them. Most everyone is friendly and want to play. Occasionally there is a dog that hasn’t been socialized well so we avoid that situation when we can. Too bad for the dog actually. Our guys have so much fun with their buddies I am always sorry for the pups whose owners won’t let them play and haven’t taken the time to introduce them to other dogs. Wyke and Bean will never approach another dog without waiting for the ok from me. Usually I call out to the human with the dog to see if it is ok but sometimes you can just tell from the body language so we change our route to accommodate them. This is rare however.

I love the slow cooker recipes. Since we are so busy all the time it is almost like having a cook in the kitchen when we put ingredients in the pot and just let it go only to return about supper time to a wonderful meal ready to eat. Enjoy this one.

Recipe To Try from the kitchn.com

Whole Citrus-Braised Chicken in the Slow Cooker

SERVES4

INGREDIENTS

For the chicken:

• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• Leaves from 2 sprigs fresh thyme, minced
• 1 (4 to 5-pound) whole chicken
• 2 medium lemons or navel oranges, quartered
• 1 head garlic, cloves separated but left in their skins
• 2 chicken bouillon cubes or 1 teaspoon bouillon paste, divided (optional, for richer flavor)
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary

For the sauce (optional):

• 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

INSTRUCTIONS

Make the chicken:

1. Place the garlic, oil, salt, and thyme leaves in a small bowl and mix to combine. Remove the bag of gizzards from the chicken and discard or reserve for stock. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Gently work your fingers under the skin covering the breast meat and slide them back and forth to separate the skin from the meat without tearing it. Scoop up a dollop of the seasoning and work it under the skin covering both breasts. Rub any remaining seasoning over the drumsticks and thighs. Transfer the chicken breast-side up into a 6-quart or larger slow cooker.
2. Squeeze and reserve the juice from 1 of the pieces of citrus into a medium bowl and set aside. Stuff the squeezed-out citrus rinds, 1 whole bouillon cube, and a few whole garlic cloves into the cavity of the chicken. Crumble the other remaining cube over the chicken and rub it into the skin. (If using bouillon paste, just rub all it over the skin over the breasts.) Arrange the remaining lemon quarters, remaining garlic cloves, and whole thyme around the chicken.
3. Add the broth and soy sauce to the reserved lemon juice and stir to combine. Pour it over the chicken.
4. Cover and cook on the HIGH setting until the chicken is cooked through and tender, 4 or for 6 hours. Add the rosemary in the last 30 minutes of cooking.
5. Transfer the chicken to a baking sheet, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest 20 minutes. The wings and drumsticks may fall away as you lift the chicken; this is normal.

Make the sauce (optional):

1. While the chicken is resting, pour the cooking liquid through a fine-mesh strainer into a small saucepan and bring to a rapid simmer over medium-high heat. Transfer 1/2 cup to a small bowl, add the flour, and whisk to combine. Slowly pour the flour slurry back into the saucepan while whisking constantly. Continue simmering and whisking until the gravy thickens. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
2. When ready to serve, remove the skin from the chicken and discard. Use your fingers to pull the meat away off the bones; it should come away easily with gentle pressure or use a knife as needed. Serve the breasts, thighs, and drumsticks right away and tear the remaining meat into shreds for using in leftovers. Serve with the gravy alongside.
3. The garlic cloves cooked with the chicken make an excellent spread. Pop them out of their skins, mash with a bit of salt, and serve with slices of crusty bread.

RECIPE NOTES

Cook times: Cooking times longer than 6 hours are not recommended. With longer cooking, the chicken bones start to become too soft, making it difficult to separate the meat and get a good gravy.

Cooking with rosemary: Rosemary tends to get bitter if cooked for too long. Adding it in the last 30 minutes of cooking helps give the dish rosemary flavor without the bitterness.

Storage: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.