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Howdy-do Sugar Pies! Well,  I’ve been in a cowgirl kinda mood lately!  I want to kick up my boots and get out in the long awaited sunshine! We’ve had sooooo much rain here in the Ozarks! The storms have been almost non-stop! Whenever we  hear the deep rumble of thunder in the distance we all scramble to turn off our computers so if our house is hit by lightening all of our data won’t fry like a heap of  chicken sizzlin’ in a hot skillet! Thank the Lord, the sun is shining!  Yes-sir-ee, the bright and clear Missouri skies have got me in the mood to do a little re-decoratin’, yummy bakin’ and wearin’ some fun Praire-Chic style duds…all with a Western flair!  I can’t wait to show y’all! Yee Haw!!

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Ain’t this little Sugar Dumplin’ purty in this little chocolate-pie-brown checkered blouse?

It reminds me of a country picnic! I like that it’s modest and still feminine and so AdOrAblE! This little number is from Sheplers Western Wear…and I hope to have it hangin’ in my closet soon!

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Prairie Chic is so sweet! I have  three tops in this style. I love them! I wear a camisole underneath just to make sure nothin’s showin’ that shouldn’t be!

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The lace-up back makes it even cuter!  This sweet-as-pie top is from Urban Western Wear. I get a lot of my clothes from Western clothing stores.

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Boot-Scootin’! That’s what I do in my Old Gringos! They’re so comfortable, I wear these pretty much every day. They are a bit pricey…but I was able to combine Birthday and Christmas money, a jar of change and store credit to bring ’em on home!

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Yup, my Leopardito Old Gringo boots help me celebrate my inner cowgirl! I’ve had a thing for Country Western music and western clothing for as long as I remember. As a little girl, I can recall listening to the tunes of Patsy Cline,  Tammy Wynette and  Johnny Cash ridin’  around with my mom and siblings in our old Station Wagon back in the day. 

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When my hubby and I were raising our kids we spent a lot of our vacation  time  up in Lake Tahoe. We would spend a day horseback riding, and the other days we’d drive down to the old cowboy towns of  Truckee, and Virginia City, Nevada. It was so fun to learn the history of those towns and the infamous people who stayed there. 

bon21One of our favorite places to visit was the old Cartright Homestead, The Ponderosa, from the Bonanza T.V. show.   

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We also enjoyed the excitement  of watching a rodeo in Reno, Nevada,   Bishop and  Temecula California.  There’s just something about American cowboy culture that I’m drawn to!

 

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 When our life took us to the Ozarks in the mid 90’s it seemed like a perfect fit as we became owners and operators the Wild West Theater. We had singing cowboys, dancing cowgirls and a horse named Buckshot. We also had the privelege of  working with the legendary Son’s of the Pioneers.

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These Pioneer Boys were known for cowboy songs such as Tumbling Tumbleweeds, Cool Water and Whoppee Ti Yi Yo.  Ya Hooo! They put on a great show!

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When the Sons of the Pioneers first got started back in the day, Roy Rogers, the king of the cowboys, was the lead singer of the group.  I had the privilege once of meeting Roy’s beautiful cowgirl wife Dale Evans…that experience was a treat sweeter than the sugar cube she fed to her horse Buttermilk! What a dear lady she was!

“It’s the way you ride the trail that counts” ~Roy Rogers

As I was writing this blog post, I sat back and was struck by all of the goodness that the Lord has blessed me with. The wonderful people that I’ve met and the places I’ve enjoyed and my wonderful family, and now being able to share it with the most wonderfully, darlin’ girls in all the land…you my adorable Sugar Pies!  I was reminded of  Psalm 37:4  “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”  Boy howdy! That is true! God is so good!

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Come on now Sugars let’s gitty-up to the farmhouse so’s I can show ya my little Cowgirl-Chic decorating touches…

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An old west lantern lights the way to our front door…

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The Texas Star Design was the logo for our Wild West Theater. We chose it because it represented part of our history here in the Ozarks. One of my favorite phrases is “Don’t mess with Texas!”,  but ya gotta say it with a southern drawl, out of the side of your mouth…that makes it more fun! Try it! See? Ain’t that fun?!!

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My mama-in-law recently gave me this old wooden horse saddle form…and since I was in that “cowgirl mood”, I decided to showcase it on my entry sideboard. It sure would be fun to know it’s history!

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I went “shopping” in my house for things that would go with my western theme.  I found things that I already had to create this new “old west” look. With a background of white-washed barn shutters I added a pair of vintage frames, an old wall calendar that I found months ago for $12 at an antique store, (I just tacked it behind the larger frame), a very old pitcher …from the cabin in Idyllwild, California that my hubby grew up in… filled with creamy roses, a crowing rooster and a pair of my son J.J’s old cowboy boots.

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Here’s cowboy J.J. wearing those same boots! What a character that J.J. was (and is!) Oh! Where O where did those years go!!

 

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Do y’all remember on my last blog post I showed you this green scalloped trim? It was used in my Easter decorating…now it’s on the mantle. I’m sure it will keep traveling from room to room!

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Now, about that little cowboyJ.J. …he’s all grown up! Here he is with his Fiance’ Tiffany posing for their Engagement pictures. I loved that Tiffany chose a ranch to get their photos taken! She loves cowgirl stuff too…most importantly, she’s the perfect match for J.J.

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They met in High School. They recently finished College. J.J. with a Business degree and Tiffany with a Teaching degree.

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He treats her like a queen.

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They love the Lord.

 

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They’re adorable together.

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They make each other laugh.

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When J.J. saw this “horse” he jumped on top of it and decided to go for a “ride”!  Whoa Nellie! Yee haw!

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That’s my boy…cowboy J.J…and his cowboy sweetheart! He’s a real hoot ‘n’ holler! I think he would make the best Rodeo clown! lol

 

Their wedding day is in June…just around the corner!! Woo hoo!

 

Last, but not least on this “Trail-ride” of a blog post…milk-and-cowboy-cookies

How about some hearty Cowboy Cookies with a nice cold glass of milk fresh from the dairy!

These Cowboy Cookies come from the kitchen of a true Texan…none other than the former first lady herself…Mrs. Laura Bush! She won a contest with this recipe that Family Circle Magizine put on.

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This recipe makes a wagon load of cookies! The dough started to overflow before I was finished adding all of the ingredients! I had to transfer it to a bigger bowl!cowboy-cookie-bowl

If you don’t want to use up all the cookie dough in one big batch, you can form a log, wrap in wax paper and freeze it. Then when you want a some fresh baked cookies, you just slice and bake!

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The instructions call for a 1/4 cup scoop for each cookie…we’re talkin’ big Ol’ Texas size cowboy cookies!   My ice cream scoop was perfect!

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Come ‘n’ get it!They came out perfect after baking them for 16 minutes. They are delicious! I think you can get very creative with this dough by adding some dried cranberries, and maybe substituting one of the three cups of Chocolate chips for Butterscotch chips. It would be fun to try some new combinations! It’s a hearty cookie, full of flavor and the perfect combo of crunchy and chewy!!

“It’s the face powder that get’s a man interested, but it’s the baking powder that keeps him home.” ~ Gene Hackman

Laura Bush’s Texas Cowboy Cookies

Ingredients

· 3 cups all-purpose flour

· 1 tablespoon. baking powder

· 1 tablespoon baking soda

· 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

· 1 teaspoon salt

· 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, at room temperature

· 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

· 1 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar

· 3 eggs

· 1 tablespoon vanilla

· 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

· 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

· 2 cups sweetened flake coconut

· 2 cups chopped pecans (8 ounces)


Directions

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Bake Time: 16 to 20 minutes
Yield: About 3 dozen cookies (see note below)

1. Heat oven to 350 F.

2. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in bowl.

3. In 8-quart bowl, beat butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 minute. Gradually beat in sugars; beat to combine, 2 minutes.

4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Beat in vanilla.

5. Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Add chocolate chips, oats, coconut and pecans.

6. For each cookie, drop 1/4 cup dough onto ungreased baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart.

7. Bake in 350 F oven 16 to 20 minutes, until edges are lightly browned; rotate sheets halfway through. Remove cookies from rack to cool.

Note: For 6 dozen small cookies, use 2 tablespoons dough for each. Bake at 350 F for 15 to 18 minutes.

Copyright 2000, Laura Bush

For all of you Prairie Sweethearts out there, I rounded up a few of my top cowboy cookbook picks that will make your cowboy spin his spurs and gallop to the table lickity split!

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How to Win A Cowboy’s Heart: Meals to bring the romance of the West into your home. By Kathy Lynn Wills. This sweet book if full of  stories, quotes and recipes…my favorite kind of cookbook! The chapter titles reveal it’s adorable contents: Good Morning Dear, Hungry By Noon,Evening Shadows: Quiet Suppers At Home, The Preacher Comes To Call, A Saddle Bag secret, Hand Holding In The Parlor, Before the Barn Dance…and so much more! Darlin’ just Darlin’!

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The Pastry Queen: From Texas Hill Country’s Rather Sweet Bakery & Cafe. Okay, can I just say FABULOUS!! The yummies that Chef Rebecca Rather makes are amazing! The color photos are breathtaking! Reading this cookbook is like taking a mini-vacation to the Texas Hill country!  And I haven’t even started gabbin’ about the recipes! Aunt Mollie’s Coconut Cream Pie, Triple Threat Chocolate Chip Cookies, Texas Big Hairs Lemon-Lime Meringue Tarts (shown on the front cover), Hill Country Peach Cobbler…my oh my! Once again it’s filled to the brim with stories and tons of tips! LOVE!

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The Pastry Queen Christmas: Big Hearted Holiday Entertaining Texas Style. Okay, can I just say FABULOUS again? I know Christmas is a long way off, but you can prepare these recipes all year long. It’s just as amazing as the one before, only with a sassy Texas Christmas twist! There are gorgeous photos of her Christmas Decor and ideas for wrapping food gifts.  Some of the recipes are:  My Mother’s Best Corn Bread Dressing, Apple Dumplings, Martha’s Best Ever Rolls, Earthquake Cake.  Again LOVE!

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Pastry Queen Parties: Entertaining Friends and Family, Texas Style. Well, this one is on my Wish List! If it’s as good as the first two then it will get two thumbs up from me! Miss Rebecca is one talented Texas Darlin’!!

Well, Sugar Pie Cowgirls, thanks for mosey’in by! As always I am honored and thrilled when you take the time to leave a comment. I know there are thousands of blogs for you to choose to read, I’m just so thankful you’ve picked mine.

God Bless your Darlin’ heart!

Aunt Ruthie

P.S. Happy Mother’s Day to all of you Sugar Pie Mamas!!! If you have a chance come on over to this link to read about my MOTHERHOOD MOMENTS. Being a mama of 4 kiddos has been thrilling, challenging and mostly wonderful!

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