Silliness

Meet our new residents!

Miss Jane Bennett, (soon to be Mrs. Bingley)...

And, the one who goes by Froggy, Monkey, Dash, and Bob the Builder...

We're not sure how long a lease to offer them. It'll probably depend on good behavior!

(Ha, ha! In that case NONE of us stand a chance!)

Unbroken

I'm going to make a prediction.

I know it's only March, but I'm pretty sure I just read my favorite book of the year.

UNBROKEN by Laura Hillenbrand
is a true-life story that is IN-CRE-DI-BLE!

Think THE GLASS CASTLE (by Jeannette Walls) meets THE HIDING PLACE (by Corrie Ten Boom).

As a boy, Louie Zamperini was the terror of his neighborhood, and that is a ridiculous understatement. (You'll see what I mean after the first few pages.)

As a teen he found something that kept him out of trouble--running--specifically the mile. He was so good he competed in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. While there, he met Hitler and was roommates with Jesse Owens. (Reading this first-hand account of the Olympic try-outs and competition was so very interesting, especially since it was during the WWII era, which I find particularly fascinating.)

In September 1941, the 24-year-old enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces, and was eventually deployed to Hawaii as a B-24 bombardier. (He arrived several months after the Pearl Harbor invasion.) It was during a mission in May 1943 that his plane went down in the Pacific, and all but he and 2 others died.

They would survive 47 days with basically no provisions, catching fish and birds, fending off sharks, and Japanese planes that strafed them from the air.

Louie would go on to survive 2 years in captivity, traveling from one Japanese camp to another. Even though each camp would be more horrible than the one before, the determination and ingenuity of the prisoners grew too as they struggled to regain their dignity.

After the war, Zamperini returned home to California, and despite a hero's welcome, he was tormented by his memories of his captors. He turned to alcohol, and though it threatened to tear his marriage apart, he didn't see how his life was spiralling out of control.

Then, one night, he found himself sitting under a big-top tent, the smell of sawdust underfoot, and heard the clear strong voice of a young man from North Carolina sharing the message of the gospel...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I can't say enough about this book. You just have to read it!

I know it sounds like a difficult read because of the heavy subject matter, but let me tell you, the ending is SO VERY INSPIRATIONAL! I couldn't say that about Walls books...they left me slack-jawed and mad.

Today, Louie is 94, and is leaving a legacy that is more about forgiveness and the grace of God, than his wartime experiences. And he is a force to be reckoned with! (Just how many people run, skateboard, and rockclimb in their 80's?!?!?)

In The Kitchen--Meme

I will not hide that I completely stole this meme from my friend Zoanna, who stole it from one of her friends. Wanna' steal it from me? Go right ahead! :-)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. My favorite and cheapest kitchen gadget...
I recently posted on my favorite finds from ALDI's, so aside from my 2 Qt. batter/measuring bowl, I'd have to say my 1-3/8" cookie dough scoop. It's great for uniform-sized cookies (especially sticky batter) mini meatballs, and much more.

2. Something I should use, but don't...
Okay, it's real confession time: my Polish china.

It's a source of contention between the hubby and I.

See, when we got married the handy-dandy scanner gun registering thing wasn't as much the norm as it is now. Or maybe we were just ignorant of such things. So aside from our silverware, we didn't really pick out anything. Just gave a list of general things we needed to my mom and she gave suggestions as people RSVPed. And it worked out perfectly...almost.

My husband's aunt and uncle said they would buy us a full set of Polish china (they actually carried the boxes onto the plane) and asked for color/style preferences. Pete told them blue and gold instead of blue and silver. And I am a silver girl...never gold. Jewelry, household fixtures, you name it--I like it silver.

It's a silly thing I know, they went to such lengths to bless us, and for my hubby it was an honest mistake. I've forgiven him and I do use the plates--occasionally. I desperately wish the whole silver/gold clashing thing didn't grate on my nerves so much.

Now, the coffee/tea china set from his aunt in Vienna is another story completely! Though I didn't pick that out either, I TOTALLY would have chosen that set!




3. I LOVE my...
White Corelle. We started out married life with dishes from IKEA, and I loved them. They were simple, white, with plain blue petalled flowers around the rim. But they got chipped and cracked into oblivion.

I like the idea of plain white dishes. You can change your linens and table decor to fit anything that way. And when it comes to durability yet still lightweight, you can't beat Corelle. I've now accumulated a nice set of them thanks to a few birthdays.

4. What gets disorganized the most is...

Hmmmmm. Leftover container cabinet or my computer desk? It's a toss-up.

I'm going to go with the computer desk. (This post was good incentive to clean that space up! I give it a week.)

It's my 2' square command center. It's my work space and I can get a little territorial about it.

It's where I mealplan because my laptop (and allrecipes.com) is there, my cookbooks are in the cupboard above. It's where I blog, schedule appointments, keep our family calendar, listen to music, Skype the hubby, keep track of library items, and catch a missed episode of The Amazing Race or Blue Bloods on Hulu.



The person who hijacks my command center most frequently? Do I really need to mention names?

Let's just say Starfall.com and Natalia are BFF's.




5. Meal planning...
I'm lost without it. Seriously.

I only began meal planning a few years ago. I have a small magnetized white board stuck to the side of the fridge, next to my computer desk. I write out a week's worth of meals, pull my recipes out, clip them to the fridge, and make my grocery list for those meals. It's easy to see what I have to pull from the freezer each morning, has saved me from many headaches, the 4 o'clock WHAT AM I MAKING FOR DINNER?! panic, spending money on things I don't need and extra trips to the store.

6. I want...
to fully utilize my SauceMaster this summer. It's a wonderful contraption for making applesauce and all kinds of yummy things from your garden abundance.

So far I've only used it for applesauce (and my mom used it for black raspberry jam). This year I want to make tomato sauce and vegetable juice to can.

7. My best tip is...
streamline.

Find ways to simplify your kitchen space, declutter your counters, hide things that make your space look "busy", and get rid of gadgets you rarely use.

Clutter and me--we fight like cats and dogs.

8. I would like to know...
What silverware do you use on a regular basis?

We received 5 settings of our "nice" silverware when we got married, (my mom has given me more settings over the last 10 years bc she knew I wanted a total of 12), and 2 smaller sets of "everyday" silverware. The everyday sets have gotten used heavily and are still fine, but I'm wondering why I'm not using my "nice" stuff more than a few times a year. Seems silly, especially when you consider that it's just silverware. What am I saving it for? A fancy schmancy meal for the Queen?

(pictured is our design, which I love!)

9. Another tip is...
have a plan.

When I was first married I was clueless about what a good home manager looked like. Not because I didn't have a good role model of this growing up--I did! My mom is a home manager extraordinaire. But I had never done it myself. It took like 4 years til I got a clue. (My poor husband.)

By the grace of God and much trial and error, I now mealplan, cook, and shop in the way that serves our family budget and goals. Your budget and goals may be different. That's okay. But you've got to have a plan, and it should result in less waste, stress, and fuss. Because who needs those things?!

10. I love to drink out of...
I'm gonna' say 2 things...because it's my blog and I can. :-)

For nostalgic reasons: my mug from HONDURAS. It's got a handpainted mountain village painted on it. Brings back wonderful memories.

For practical reasons: the clear glass mugs we bought at IKEA years ago. They are microwave safe, dishwasher safe, and on the small side, as far as mugs go. Perfect for those of us who like our coffee strong.

I hope to get another set of 6 soon. We've used the set we have every single day of the last 6-7 years since Pete and I are heavy hot drink drinkers. (At first I wrote 'heavy drinkers', but that didn't quite sound right. Tee hee.)

Growin' Up Fast

I keenly remember how much fun Natalia was between the ages of 2 and 2 1/2...not that those 6 months were the only fun ones, you understand. :-)

Well, once again we are in that particularly fun stage with Adam. His language skills are really taking off, and we've delighted in hearing each new sentence or rambling.

Well...most of them.
"I HAVE IT FIRST!"

Since he and Natalia absolutely LOVE watching CHARLOTTE'S WEB over and over and over again, he has picked up a few lines and songs. This morning after we returned home from dropping Natalia off at Preschool, he piped up from the back seat,

"SAL-UH-TAY-SENS!" (Charlotte to Wilbur: "Salutations.")

I asked, "Sal-u-what?" (Wilbur to Charlotte) Sure enough, he picked up the rest,

"SAL-UH-TAY-SENS! mumble, mumble, mumble, mumble, HELLO!" (Charlotte to Wilbur: "Salutations! That's my fancy way of saying 'hello'!")

Then he told me to "CHIN UP." (The song that follows the above conversation.)

He loves to sing, and he's got quite the set of lungs. Natalia's been coaching him.

TRACTOR, TRACTOR has been a favorite now for a number of months. He can sing all the verses and even the ones we've added.

tractor plowing through the field,

combine harvesting the wheat, (OF COURSE we made a verse about combines!)

backhoe digging up the dirt,

firetruck zooming through the street,

carriage going to the ball,

jet plane flying through the air,

and rocket shooting to the moon

Also favorites are JESUS LOVES ME, JESUS LOVES THE LITTLE CHILDREN OF THE WORLD, the ABC's, THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE, MY GOD IS SO BIG, and I'VE GOT THE JOY, JOY, JOY, DOWN IN MY HEART. (Anyone out there remember the Psalty version with the screechy "Where?")

What warms my heart is when I hear Adam saying, I LOVE YOU, and FORGIVE ME? without prompting. I know he doesn't fully understand the reasoning behind these expressions, yet I am encouraged that they are part of his vocabulary.

...it somewhat balances out the many "I DO IT AYE AYE SELF!"

Will It Make Her Smarter? Or Sillier?

I've been a bit baffled by Natalia's DVD choices lately. I mean, how many 5 year old's are INTO Jane Austen?! She's been working her way through them all...and I confess I've got quite the Austen DVD library. Pride & Prejudice, 2 versions of Sense & Sensibility, 2 versions of Emma, Persuasion, Miss Austen Regrets...she loves them all. (I do not let her watch the longer ones straight through--they are for marathoners.) I'd like to think she'll pick up a British accent someday. That'd be cool. But so far they are rubbing off on her in other ways. She's started to use words and phrases like: actually, as a matter of fact, fortunately... (Unfortunately, they sometimes sound more like "fer-tion-ly".) The other day she was in the kitchen with me. As she was about to leave the room she turned to me, bowed at the waist, and said "Till tomorrow then". (I could NOT suppress my howl!) Today, we were breaking in a new writing tablet and she was all ready to practice her letters. The tablet's cover was flipped open above the pad and I watched as she took her pencil, began the first stroke, stopped midway and tapped her pencil point three times on the cover. Then she went back and finished her stroke. (Anyone have a guess as to what she was doing?) Yup...imagining that she was writing with a quill and pot of ink. And, for the past month or so, she's repeatedly asked me to put music on so she can dance. It never fails to make me laugh. She half-steps-half-gallops in straight lines, forwards, backwards, then twirls...meanwhile having a conversation with I'll never know who. I love my silly girl. I love her imagination. It makes me crazy, but I love it. And I love that she shares my enthusiasm for dear Jane.

I Love Thee, ALDI, Let Me Count The Ways

This is no surprise to anyone who spends a minimum of 8 hours in my company.


Not only has it been a major means of savings each week for our grocery budget, but I have found so many great things there over the years--their weekly specials are one-time deals. You snooze, you lose.


Exhibit A: Wrought Iron Wall Piece




Exhibit B: Glass 2 Qt. Batter/Measuring Bowl (I've never used the lid--but this bowl gets used at least once a day.)







Exhibit C: Kid's Rubber Boots (they doubled as snow boots one year and are used weekly when we walk to the neighbor's to buy eggs)







Most recent, Exhibit D: 5 Qt. Cast Iron Enameled Casserole Dish (mine is a very pretty blue)







Last week I decided to pick up one of the few of these pots remaining (the price had been reduced even more to $25!!!!!). Since reading Julia Child's memoir "MY LIFE IN FRANCE" and delighting in the movie JULIE & JULIA, I've been wanting to try my hand at Boeuf Bourguignon.





It really is just Beef Stew, and yet the laborous steps outlined by Julia Child and the SCRUMPTIOUS result makes that label a ridiculous (absurd, really) understatement.





I think I've made some pretty tasty pot roasts in the past, so working with a big chunk of beef wasn't too daunting. I just didn't want to spend an hour and a half prepping the dish for the 2-3 hours it would then spend hanging out in the oven. After perusing the internet and combining J.C.'s, Rachael Ray's, and a few other simplified recipes, I came up with this...

Shhhh, I left out the braised pearl onions, but with the extra regular onion I used, no one was the wiser.




My hubby practically swooned, my kids gobbled and asked for more... try it! It's even better the next day!



BOEUF BOURGUIGNON

8 slices bacon, chopped
4 lbs. stew beef, cut into 2" chunks (I used brisket--it's what I had)
4 Tbsp. butter, divided
2 large onions, chopped
1/3 c. flour
4 c. beef broth
1 (12 oz.) bottle red wine (I used burgundy cooking wine, found at Weis)
4-6 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1" diagonal chunks
1 Tbsp. dried parsley (or a handful of fresh)
2 bay leaves
2 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 (10 oz.) package fresh mushrooms, sliced


DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Cook bacon over medium heat in stovetop/oven safe pot, then remove bacon to a platter and leave drippings.
3. Dry meat with paper towels, then brown in batches in reserved drippings, being careful not to crowd the pieces. Remove to platter. (This part took me about 15 mins.)
4. Add 3 Tbsp. butter to pot, melt, then saute onions about 3-4 mins. until transparent. Sprinkle flour over top, stir until blended, then gradually add broth and wine. Add bacon, beef, carrots, parsley, garlic and black pepper, put lid on pot and cook on lowered rack in oven for 2 1/2--3 hours. *Remove bay leaf when finished.
5. About 20 minutes before serving time, melt remaining 1 Tbsp. butter in large skillet over medium heat, and saute mushrooms until browned.
6. Serve with mushrooms over top and your favorite sides (mashed potatoes, noodles, salad). Makes 6-8 servings.

Bon appetit!

You Say Hoary, I Say Hairy

Yesterday morning's frigid temp's yielded a beautiful sight--hoar frost!

All that is needed for this breathtaking display is the combination of freezing temperatures, low winds, low-lying fog and clear skies. The clear skies allow the plants and other surfaces to cool more quickly that the surrounding air, and the moisture crystallizes in a thick, hairy frost.


I know I've said it before, but I just LOVE the scenery yielded by our pre-school commute.


Round-trip, it is less than 10 miles, is solely confined to back country roads, sprawling farms, a lazy winding creek, 2 covered bridges...oh, and a construction site with enough diggers, graders, and dump trucks to endlessly delight my kiddos.


This morning's frost was a feast for the eyes, like God had sprinkled sugary feathers over everything.


While I'm still itchin' for spring, it was a reminder that there are blessings in every season.

Just like my impatience for spring, I've been struggling with impatience in being physically made low (my knees taking a long time to recovery). BUT, there IS blessing for me in this season. And it doesn't take long to discover it, once I stop whining (whether spoken or suppressed).