That which was lost is found! Saturday morning I began preparations for a feast. My youngest son was coming by to take my bathroom sink apart and hopefully find the diamond earring I had carelessly lost down the drain earlier in the week. The feast was to reward his effort.

I started the chicken early and put the Allen’s green beans on the back burner to simmer with a chunk of cured bacon. (That’s how we cook green beans in Kentucky—and they have to be Allen’s.) And I had to have mashed potatoes—all home-cooked meals call for mashed potatoes. But the best part of the meal was the fluffy, tender dumplings–Chicken and Dumplings, a real southern treat. It was a perfect meal for a cold Kentucky day. I also opened a jar of the pickled beets that my friend, Mandy, canned last summer.

The meal was excellent, and Stephen found my earring! He fished it out of the overflow channel with a guitar string. Amazing.

The Oscars will be presented later tonight. What if one of the actresses dropped her earring into the sink? It would probably be too big to go down the drain. For sure, none of those lovely ladies would be able to fit into her gown if she ate chicken and dumplings.