Tuesday, April 28, 2009 - Ugly shirt transformation |
It'd been a while since I'd even gone into my craft room folks, but I couldn't hold off any longer. I had some very stressful months where survival was the objective of each day, and I guess part of getting over or healing from that was the urge to create something. That's the way I roll, pretty much.
We were given some men's shirts and some of them were colors that I didn't really think any self-respecting man had any business wearing. :-P I put them through the stringent hubby approval system and ended up with a bright orange shirt to do with as I wished. I may go back to hubby's wardrobe in time, as his approval system was, in fact, less stringent than I thought it should be. :-P
I'd been wanting to try this tutorial for ages: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=170402.0
so it was obvious what I'd do with this shirt. The shirt used in the tutorial was much more interesting than my husband's kool-aid orange reject, but I thought it would turn out okay. Here's what I ended up with...
I think it turned out well. Grace was very happy with it (no seriously, she was!). It was a little plain in it's original state though, which is why I added the house to it in cross-stitch. I have no idea why I thought a house would be suitable, but it was. It just was. And I think it works because it makes us both smile when we look at it. :)
In the future, if I make another one of these (which I hope to, because it was fun, and easy, and...I just liked it) I will try to use a larger shirt so I can get as much width into the skirt as possible. And I will make sure the visible portion of my house appears to be clean when I take a photo. I mean, sheesh.
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Thursday, April 16, 2009 - Six things I desparately need to work on... |
- Invest more in my relationship with my Lord.
- Get homeschool plans under control.
- Give more of myself to my husband and children.
- Spend a maximum of an hour/day on the computer (excepting homeschool-related stuff when necessary).
- Care more about, and for, my home.
- Take better care of myself.
- Blog a little more often. :)
All of the above needs to be done without going crazy. Think I can do it? |
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Thursday, March 12, 2009 - How fun does schooling really need to be? |
If I were to make some very general observations about how I see our modern standards in education, compared to the standards of those in the Little House books (which I realize is really not a good basis for an argument, but rather a starting point from which I would like to see other people's thoughts coming forth), I would say, first, that there is a marked difference in the value that is placed on fun in the learning process.
Recently I had my first visit with the homeschool moderator for my district. I like this woman well enough, but she scares me to death. :) She kind of nodded her head in a non-committal way when I told her about my educational approach with my second grader, and then she proceeded to list a bunch of stuff that I need to add to my schedule. Fine. This is what they do. I appreciate the help there, I really do. However, I was offput by her emphatic insistence that I need to "make learning fun" and "make it come alive". For one thing, that seems like a lot, a LOT of creative energy that is required from me and I am just not sure I'm up for it. I'm being honest here.
So I got to thinking, well how important IS it that my kids' school time is exciting, and fun, and all that? If I can't make it fun enough, do I need to quit? What place does it take in my list of priorities for homeschooling? And then I thought, HANG ON a minute. I remember those Laura Ingalls Wilder books. Those kids weren't having much fun with their learning. Their teacher wasn't using hand puppets, or turning everything into a song (although perhaps that had its place, I'm not sure). They did a lot of bookwork, and wrote on their slates, and recited. They weren't bribed into learning with promises of marshmallows and clowns and bells and shiny buttons. They had discipline. They had an appreciation of the privelege of a good education (this sense of entitlement we all have these days -- it's crazy). They were expected to listen and behave well. There were consequences if they did not.
What was the result of that mode of education? It is my understanding that educated people of that time had a far better grasp on basic academic subjects than do their present-day counterparts. I have seen (online, somewhere, although I don't know where) a test from "the olden days" that would confirm that. I believe expectations were higher, and results followed suit. I believe that there would have been great benefits for their characters as well. The daily practice of self-discipline is something I can't overlook, for example. That seems to be something sadly lacking in our children today, and we are going to pay for it.
I am sure there are some benefits to playful learning, and I'm not saying here that I will rule out all play in the education of my children. I just don't think I'm going to spend a lot of time, or sleepless nights, bending over backwards trying to "make learning come alive", especially not to the point that it becomes too taxing on my already scanty mental resources. I don't think my homeschooling is going to fail because of it. However, I am open for discussion and actually hoping for other viewpoints here. I don't want to jump into a way of doing things unless I have considered all the angles. I'd appreciate any help I can get. :)
Man, I had other things to say but I feel like my brain is about to fall out, so I will stop. :) Help? |
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Saturday, March 7, 2009 - Ah yes, there they are! |
I knew I had more photos to share -- not many of them, but here they are anyway.
I like to stick my nearly 4-year-old daughter outside while we homeschool. She is noisy. :) She loves playing with different colors of water, measuring, mixing, adding sand and leaves and twigs, and so on. The 2-year-old enjoys this activity as well, but he's normally napping during our afternoon school session when we do this.
We also do a similar thing but with a mixture of lentils, rice, dried peas and beans and so on, instead of the water. Just for a change.
Sometimes I manage to get all five of them contained in the same room, almost doing something together, but at their own levels. I think it's cute.
(Apparently I need to homeschool myself on how to take a non-blurry photo...)
I think the above picture makes a welcome contrast to the other kind of activity they all enjoy doing together:
You know, I mean, because I try to avoid this scenario, but...nobody's perfect!
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Wednesday, March 4, 2009 - I don't know what to write about... |
but darn it, I want to post something. I have this problem a lot, come to think of it. The thing is, there's nothing very defined for me to blog about any more. My days are flowing and a bit monotonous, and nothing really stands out in them now. I don't know if that's a good thing or not (big picture) but from this side, it doesn't feel like a good thing, I must be honest. However, coming from the mindset of needing "big things" and "variety" (relative) in my day to keep my interest, I suppose it will take a while for me to be able to see, let alone cherish, the small things. I shall have to make that more of a focus in my life.
I have some photos to share. These have been languishing on my camera for a while now...I guess they serve to remind me of some of the little things I have to be joyful about. :) As I load these onto my blog I am holding a 2-year-old with golden, bouncy, vanilla frosting-scented hair. Aaah. It is good.
Okay, so first I'll show you my new kitchen shelves. I have waited a long time for these! I finally broke down on a trip to IKEA with my little (persuasive) brother and bought them, and then he put them up for me. You can also see my little herb plants in the windowsill. A gorgeous friend put that together for me to cheer me up when I was having a hard couple of days. There is oregano, basil, thyme and parsley. I would like to make another one with coriander, maybe flat-leaf parsley, and I don't know what else.
Wow, that photo is awesome. You can't even tell how messy the side of the "yard" is, or how dirty the window is. LOL. Here's a photo of Jonathan (it's a CLOSE UP!!!!). I included this because you can see my collection of aprons in the background. ;) They need to be better displayed, I have some really nice ones (thanks Aunt Jeannette and Shelly B!). Jonathan took this photo himself, therefore, not my fault.
Now moving on to some random homeschooling photos...first, we took pics of the kids' new school boxes. I stole the idea for individual boxes from Shelly B. :) I had the kids make their own labels and we stuck them on. I think they turned out great. I use the boxes to put each kid's school stuff (books, worksheets, etc.) for the week in, and that simplifies the organisation a fair bit. Shelly, I like your style.
 Jonathan's.
 Mae's.
 Grace's.
FWIW, the kids took those photos so again, not my fault. :P
We made sprouts for the first time. It was so, so easy and they were yummy, and very good for us!! I haven't done it again since then though, but I will.
This is a cookie solar system we made for Mae's unit study on "The Planets". It all went really well and as an added bonus, MAE RETAINED INFO!!
Also for Mae's unit study, we made a volcano (of the playdough, bicarb, vinegar type). This was to remind Mae that Mars is home to the biggest volcano in our solar system. It was fun, while it lasted (which was all of about 30 seconds, but oh well).
The next two are some random play clay constructions. The first is a dear little chooster (chicken/rooster?!) and eggs, made by Miss Mae with no help from anyone. She's only five, and as such I thought this was akin to fine art.
This one is...some kind of...thing...well it is cute, anyway. By Jonathan.
And finally, probably one of my favorite photos of all time...Benjamin. Painting.
I could eat that kid.
I guess that's all I have for you for now. I hope to post more soon, because, well it forces me to reflect on how much we've achieved and that feels pretty good. Praise be to God for enabling me to teach my kids at home! I am blessed. |
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Saturday, February 7, 2009 - What's tickin', chicken? |
As per my sporadic usual, I have neglected my blog for about a month or so. I just don't have time, or much interesting stuff to write about. I thought I would come here today though, just to say to Moey and Shelly B. both, I miss you guys and wish I could sit and chat with both of you (at the same time would be ideal  ). I am feeling rather isolated and lonely right now, too. I suppose it shall pass.
I am lovin' me some homeschooling. Yes, even with grammar like that. I did it on purpose. Anyway, the children and I are enjoying ourselves! (The exclamation mark denotes an element of surprise behind that statement.) We are doing unit studies, lapbooks, some workbooks here and there, and lots of hands-on stuff. The little kids are daily engaged in water play, playdough, paint, scissors, glue, crayons, bouncy curls and giggles. I'm not sure what learning is happening, but we're having a ball! And what a relief...
Shelly and Moey are two of my biggest inspirations in the homeschooling world. Shelly has graduated four (right?) homeschoolers, and *ONLY* has ten more to go!  Both of these girls have some of the *best* kiddos on earth so I know they are doing some awesome things. You ladies are wonderful. I mean that.
Crafting has not really been happening around here. I have been on a new schedule for the past couple of weeks, out of sheer desperation, and for some reason I don't seem to have enough gumption left for crafting, after muddling through my routine. I think the routine is working though, in most every other way. I guess it's a trade-off I'm willing to live with for now.
Oh and a note to Karen: I am still working on that *something* for you -- it is about 2/3 finished. Hopefully I will be able to get it done before too long. It is slow going though, due to the above.
I can't remember if there's been anything else on my mind lately, so I'll go now and get my babes to bed. Ah yes, but don't let me leave you without a photo...albeit a pretty badly blurry one. All of my children, seated at the table, learning at home.
Oh man, I can't find that photo.  Here are some Tim Tams instead:
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Saturday, December 27, 2008 - Bumping for new-old post: Answers for Shanny |
I started the post below aaaaaaaaaages ago and just got it posted now. BUMP!! :) |
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Friday, November 28, 2008 - Answers for Shanny |
My friend Shanny asked some questions via my comments, a few posts back, and I thought I'd take a minute to answer those here for her, and for anyone else who may be wondering the same types of things. Also, I realized how long it has been since I posted anything but I can't think of anything really to post about, so that gives me an easy topic. :D
Shanny asked about my trip to the USA. I have been meaning to acknowledge the trip on my blog for some time now, but haven't yet been in the right headspace to do so. Well, it was great! It was overwhelming to the point that I don't think I really absorbed much of it, and now it feels more like a dream than anything, except for the gnawing feeling of missing my sister and her awesome family which feels very, very real. I only managed to take two photos, and even that was pushing it for me because I really just wanted to be there, living each moment, not happy-snapping my way through each day. Just as well, because somehow I managed to break my niece's camera, which she so kindly lent to me. So, so sorry! :(
Moey and I did a lot, a LOT of fun stuff together. We tried to strike a balance between getting out and doing stuff, and hanging out at home, relaxing. She has given a more detailed account of my visit, including specifics on some of the places we went and things we did, on her blog. Thus, I am certainly not going to exert myself giving details here. :) Link to Moey's blog: here.
Why am I contemplating homeschooling again? That's a little less easy to answer. I have always believed that good homeschooling is the best option for our family. Last year, trying to educate two young children, with two toddlers and a new baby on the way, left me feeling overwhelmed and unsure. I didn't think I could do a good job homeschooling and it no longer seemed to be the best option. Don't we always want the best for our children? So we put them in public school, and in ways, it has been a good experience for them. So what has changed?
First, through their year of public schooling, I have been able to see in action what they are (and are not) doing, learning and achieving. It has been enlightening to me to see how a teacher in a public school setting approaches meeting the needs of an advanced student (my oldest child, who is nearly 7, reads as well as or better than many adults and is advanced in other areas too), in a class of around 30. Being able to see this, and quantify it, has given me some level of confidence in my own abilities to teach. Given that I feel that I can do the job, and that I feel it is the best option for my family, it follows that I should homeschool.
Second, I am a bit concerned about the public school culture, and the influence it undoubtedly has on my children. No, I don't have any specific horror stories, as my kids are only little yet. One thing is for sure; while my little people are away being taught not only by teachers (who, as much as I know they care about the kids they teach, can not hold a candle to the love I have for my children), but peers and older students, they are missing my influence and the teaching moments that would arise if they were at home with me. Because I am their mother, and one of the two people most concerned, interested and invested in their futures and the people they become in later years, that just doesn't sit well with me at all. Plus, they are obviously not receiving any Biblical teaching in public school.
A third, and related, point is that I am also missing my children. Many mothering opportunities are lost for me with my kids gone all day. Not to mention, the older children are my best helpers. 
To answer your question about craft, I am still dabbling here and there. It is no longer the focus of my day, however. In fact, days go by when I don't do any at all. Right now I am crocheting a ripple afghan for a MOMYS friend. I have a few other unfinished projects I would like to wrap up as well. I will work on those as I get little snatches of free time (which I would have more of, if I could stay away from the computer). :)
So, I think that answers your questions! I'm so sorry it took as long as it did -- I have worked on this post several times and for one reason or another, never was able to get it posted. Hopefully today it will post without any trouble. Please feel free to email me, Shanny! I hope things are going well for you.  |
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Wednesday, October 1, 2008 - Window update, and the art of decluttering, or why my back hurts. |
Whew. I have had quite the day today, let me tell you. For some reason I have this urge to purge -- and I'm not referring to an eating disorder. I have been decluttering and re-organizing everything in sight! And not a moment too soon, either. I know that Mrs. Michelle Duggar once said that she didn't really get organized until her fourth of fifth baby came along. I understand why!
I am not naturally an organized person, exactly, but having five small children living in a limited space has really brought the necessity for organization to the glaringly obvious forefront. My brain can't handle the stress and strain of all this *stuff*. Once during a previous decluttering spell, my husband complained that I was getting rid of too much, but I gently explained to him that this *stuff* was challenging my mental health, and he relented. This time around, I know he was feeling the strain too, and so he was actually eager and enthusiastic about my efforts to streamline our belongings. Actually, I am not sure "streamline" does my efforts justice. I think I'll go back to the word, "purge".
Here is a photo of the clothing of four of my five children (not including the clothing that is still on the line outside, or in the hamper. I will deal with that as I process it). I went into their rooms, and threw every single item of clothing into laundry baskets, and then dumped it all on the couches in the living room. This is not including the clothing that I organized yesterday -- the non-current sizes that are being saved for children to grow into (although you can see some of that on the coffee table, all boxed up and ready to go back into storage). This is just the current stuff that they have been wearing, or throwing directly onto the floor, or whatever. I think it is pretty impressive.
Probably even more impressive in person.
So, I actually got that all organized, and here is the photo of all the clothes that are ready to go to the charity store (as well as a few toys that made their way into the outbox):
Anyhow. The above photo is not nearly as amazing as a current one would be (which I would post here, except it is now dark and I don't like using the flash, and plus I just can't be bothered). Because now I have seriously culled the kids' toys, every last one. That little room is now, literally, half full of stuff. I mean, it is full half way to the ceiling. Seriously. So yes, I am awesome. Thank you.
In other news, I finished my window makeover yesterday. It is hard to get a good photo of a window with the curtains open because (at least with my stupid camera) the light coming in makes for a dark photo. I'll tell you what I did: I washed the window and the screen, took down, laundered and rehung the curtain, and made some braided, rag rug style tie-backs. Nothing fancy, but that's the way we like things around here.
Yeah, it works. I dig it.
So what did YOU do today?
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Friday, September 26, 2008 - Crochet food pattern links... |
There are a LOT of crochet food patterns out there, some of them free. A google search for "crochet food" will pull up a bunch of them. I will try to give you somewhere to start, but part of the fun is finding ones that you like (plus I am lazy) so I will leave some room for creative choice here. :-)
http://www.crochetpatterncentral.com/directory/foods.php
The above link has variety of patterns for fruits, veggies, baked goods, and other stuff. It is too fun looking at these -- you must check them out!
I am also quite partial to this pattern set, which is where I found the pattern for the grapes and celery:
http://www.coatsandclark.com/Crafts/Crochet/Projects/HomeDec/WR1070+Crocheted+Fruits+and+Vegetables+Basket.htm
There are still a bunch of patterns I would like to try but I don't know when I'll get around to it. If any of you (you know who you are) end up making some crochet yummies, you owe me photos. I know where you live. |
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Thursday, September 25, 2008 - About the veggies... |
First, thanks for your sweet compliments! I will post a bunch of links as soon as I can, but right now I am trying to behave myself a bit and get this house/nightmare/zoo/whatever under control. I have a timer set that is going to beep in 11 minutes 35 seconds to tell me to get off the computer.........until later this afternoon (by which time I really should have accomplished quite a lot, I should think, but then again, I don't know).
Eeeeek! 10 minutes 33 seconds......better go! :-) |
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Thursday, September 25, 2008 - Fresh produce!! |
"Hi Mommy! We picked you up a few things, while we were out. Oh, it was no bother, really!"
"Now let's see what we have here..."
"I got you a pumpkin, because I know how you like soup after you've been unwell..."
"And I think you need to eat more carrots; did you know they are good for your eyes?"
"Here's a capsicum..."
"...an onion and a chili pepper, to help spice things up a bit!"
"The celery is a bit wilty, but it was half price! What a bargain!"
"Have you ever seen anything like this? It's the darnedest thing -- you can use this fruit as apples or tomatoes!!"
"The fruiterer says these bananas are just right."
"Can I offer you a grape? So fresh, so juicy!"
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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 - Guess what day it is, again? |
I'm certainly not in the position to be able to commit to a blog series of any kind, being as inconsistent as I am, so look on this next post as sort of a strange coincidence, and don't count on it ever happening again.
With that said, I am declaring today, "Fix Something That Annoys You Day". If you are like me, there are probably many, many things that annoy you. Just pick one...maybe a really obvious, prominent one? Like this window, for example?
Some of the faults of this window are obvious:
It's curtain is falling down (what is it with curtains falling down in this house? And we like to walk around naked, too!! [I am JUST KIDDING!!! We are Baptists, folks!]).
It's curtain is dirty.
Other of the faults of the window are covered up by the falling-down curtain:
It is dirty.
It has part of a ripped paper star stuck to it.
It has no soul, nothing special.
I guess that is the short list of things that annoy me about this window, and I will attempt to fix these things as quickly as possible. Because I need to wash and dry this curtain I will have to post the after shots tomorrow. This time I do intend to set a timer for the window-washing bit at least, because I detest washing windows and I need to know that there will be an end to it.
Oh yeah, I am stuck on the "soul" part. If anyone has a Bright Idea for something I can do to give this window a heart without costing me anything or having to change the curtain, please, please, please share with me.
Anyone else up for it? What annoys you in your home?
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I know you were all wanting to see what was lurking behind that curtain. I did not want to see it, but I had to take the curtain down to wash it, so here it is:
I hate washing windows. Have I said this before? I think I have. Did you know you can also wash the window screen? I didn't know this, my sister told me a long time ago.
I swept down the spiders and cobwebs (with my pink gloves on, of course!). I washed the window. I took down the screen and scrubbed it and sprayed it with the hose. I did this all in record time, because I hate washing windows.
I did not enjoy any part of this process, except the part where my window was cleaner. No, not clean. Cleaner. It is not perfect, it is not great, but it is better.
Oh by the way, I discovered that my window does have a little soul. It looks like this:
I tried to remove this with Magic Eraser, but the red won't come off. This little artwork is here to stay.
Here is a little someone cleaning out the toys from behind the couch for mama. :-) All in a day's work, says she.
Now to work on the "soul" for my window...stay tuned!
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Tuesday, September 23, 2008 - Guess what day it is? |
I am a poor housekeeper. I'm aware of it, used to it, done trying to hide it. Sometimes it is all just too much for me and I just can't even fathom how to get on top of it, and so I don't try. Eventually I get sick of not trying and I put in a wild, energetic effort, collapsing in a heap whenever my energy dries up. Usually I am at some point of the pendulum-swing between these two extremes. I know that many people operate in the same way so I don't really feel that bad about it. Guilt would only make things worse, anyway.
So in honor of my poor housekeeping, I declare today "Make Something Less Gross Day". This won't take long -- 15 minutes or less. All you have to do is make some gross part of your house, less gross. That's it. We're not aiming for perfection, just less ickiness. I have a number of gross areas in my home (a high number). I picked this one:
I guess it's pretty self-explanatory, but I'll explain anyway. This is my laundry trough/sink. Crammed into the area between the trough and the door is a curtain that fell down, a sqeegee that doesn't do any thing worth doing, a curtain rod, a neglected mop, a bunch of fluff and dust and spiders. Yah. Ewwww. In the trough is our "nappy bucket". It is gross by necessity and I don't plan to do much with that, other than washing its lid.
Here are some tips:
1.) Do this kind of job when you are getting over a cold or sinus infection. You won't be able to smell anything, and it will help to remove you mentally from the job you are doing. If you can't get a cold or sinus infection, use one of those nose pincher things the olympic swimmers use.  Or a clothes peg, which I'm sure is more practical but might hurt a bit!
2.) You can do anything with rubber gloves on. Especially if they are pink.
3.) Do not aim for perfection. Just go for "less gross".
I did not set a timer, just put on my pink gloves, grabbed a trash bag, cloth and all-purpose cleaner, and had at it. I am sure this didn't take longer than 15 minutes, though. Am I pleased with the results?
Yup. You can do a lot in 15 minutes. I even hauled out our old, non-working dryer and put it outside wth our old, non-working washer. I don't think you want to see that, do you?
Nope that isn't the old washer and dryer out there in a backyard that looks like a jungle...it's a tall, elegant sculpture surrounded by a carefully planned and tended tropical paradise...srsly.
Happy "Make Something Less Gross Day"! If, perchance, anyone actually does have a "Make Something Less Gross Day", please come back here and share! |
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Wednesday, September 17, 2008 - Bumping... |
I had actually written the post below quite a while ago, and lost a good bit of work when I tried to submit it. I got mad at it and didn't look at it again until now...and of course now it is a totally different post. Ah well.  Thought I'd bump it since it's backdated to August. :-) |
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Wednesday, August 27, 2008 - It's been a long time |
I'll let you in on a little secret about me: I am a very "swingy" person by nature. What I do not mean by that is anything relating to sharing or swapping partners, nor do I mean I enjoy swing dancing (I, in fact, do not dance -- that is another secret about me ). What I do mean is that not only my moods, but my interests and even goals in life tend to swing from one not-very-extreme extreme to the other, pendulum-style, from one day/week/month to the next. This is precisely why I write blog posts faithfully for a couple of weeks, and then you will go without hearing from me for months. My apologies. I have tried to remedy my swingy nature but it only makes things worse. Embrace. Embrace.
I really don't have a lot to tell you, except that I am taking a big trip in a little less than a month and for some reason it makes me feel both panic and denial...I am leaving my husband and four of my five children for two weeks, which I have never ever done. I am worried about this. I am also worried about taking a loooooong flight with a 6-month-old baby. He does look so awfully cute in his passport photos, though. :-)
On the other hand I am overwhelmingly excited about visiting my sister and her family, including her precious new baby girl!! I haven't seen my sis now in a little over a year and it has been pure torture. I think one of the saddest days in my life was the day she stepped onto a plane with her family and waved goodbye. :-( It has made me really glad, and thankful, for the relationship I have with my sisters. I know that not everyone has that and it is such a blessing to me. I can say quite honestly there is no one on earth who understands me quite like my sisters do.
As for the future of this blog, there have been a few issues I've been thinking over. I don't really like blogs. I'm not saying there's any specific blog I dislike (there are, but that's not the point) but I have grown tired of people acting as if they have some field of expertise when they don't, just because they can get away with it. Hey, I've done it too. Everyone wants to feel important, that's okay. I just find it annoying and I'm sure I don't want to have a blog that invites me to do that. I either need to refocus this blog elsewhere or stop writing it.
Another issue is that all of my crafting efforts have been majorly back-burnered (I know that is not a word. Embrace!!) I was fooling myself thinking that now is a good time for me to try to take over for Martha Stewart. I have five children. FIVE. I will probably have at least one more. THEY NEED ME. Now you can tell me that crafting is a part of who I am and I will lose my identity if I give it up but the truth is, my identity is found in Jesus Christ and Him alone and there is nothing else that matters. That was a scary thought for me at first but man it is so freeing! I know that He has given me my husband, children, home, church and friends and that is where I need to focus my efforts right now. All other things that I had attached to "my identity" were false, just dead weights keeping me from doing what I need to be doing.
Finally, we are carefully considering homeschooling again next year. I am scared to homeschool again because I really worry that I will fail my kids -- but I know where this public school business is heading and it's not good. And besides, I want my babies back. This home just doesn't feel right without all my children in it.
So yeah. This blog is changing, and I imagine it may lose some readers (I know I have a huge hoard of fans ravenous for any written morsel I throw their way, right?). I'm sorry if that is disappointing but I really have to focus right now on the things that are really important to me, I mean, really REALLY important. Eternally important. You know? |
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Thursday, July 17, 2008 - Model A's and Model B's |
There's sort of a theory in our household that our children fit into two basic categories for appearance. Our model A's so far are Jonathan and Grace:
 Jonathan
 Grace
And in the Model B category we have Mae and Benjamin:
 Mae
 Benjamin
So my question for you is this: which category do you think Seth fits into? Look at his coloring, the shape of his eyes, the shape of his nose...and if it helps you, the birth order so far has been A, B, A, B...
 Seth
So what do you think?
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Saturday, June 7, 2008 - Don't try this at home! |
I mean, you can if you want to, of course...but I wouldn't recommend it.
Vegetarian Mushroom-Walnut Meatloaf
INGREDIENTS
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 12 ounces crimini mushrooms, chopped
- 1 small red onion, finely diced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 tablespoon ground sage
- 1 1/4 cups cooked brown rice
- 1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped
- 1 envelope onion soup mix
- 1 cup oat bran
- 1 cup wheat germ
- 2 egg whites, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons prepared mustard
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the mushrooms, onions, and bell pepper; cook until the onion is transparent, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle sage over the vegetables, and cook until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes more. Transfer vegetables to a large mixing bowl.
- Stir the rice, walnuts, onion soup mix, oat bran, wheat germ, egg whites, Worcestershire sauce, and mustard into the mushroom mixture until thoroughly blended. Spoon into prepared loaf pan, pressing down mixture with a spatula to flatten top.
- Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Let rest 10 minutes before slicing.
Yes, we had this for dinner tonight and basically had to force it down. My search for a decent vegetarian "meat" loaf continues...
In fairness, I did just read some very positive reviews of this recipe, so maybe I did something wrong? It sounded good, in theory. I don't know, though. One cup of wheat germ, one cup of oat bran and one-and-a-quarter cups of brown rice does seem a little excessive in my humble opinion. Anyway, I am sure diaper changes will be fun in this house for the next couple of days. |
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Monday, June 2, 2008 - A couple more veggie burger recipes |
I am hopeful that I may in fact succeed at converting some to homemade veggie burgers (over store-bought -- I mean, really) and so I thought I would provide two more recipes for you to try. These two are actually favored over the last one I posted, it is just that that one was on the menu and I am a stickler for sticking to my menu at the moment because I want to make sure that it all "works".
Anyway, on to the recipes. These are both from Jonni McCoy's book, Miserly Meals, which happens to have some great vegetarian recipes in it. There are a couple which I will not be trying again (like the "Meatless Meatloaf"), but overall the Vegetarian Main Dishes section of the book was vastly helpful in planning my own menu. Both of the following veggie burger recipes have been tried, accepted and added as favorites by my family. There are two others in the book which I have not tried and I won't include those recipes because I don't want to be blamed if they are not as good as the others. 
Favorite Veggie Burgers
Serves 8
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup walnuts
2 cups fresh bread crumbs
1/2 cup cooked rice (brown is best)
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 tsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/4 cup rolled oats
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. cumin
2 eggs
1 tsp. onion powder
1 T. dried parsley
Place the sunflower seeds and walnuts in a blender; cover and blend until finely ground. You may need to stop the blender and stir the nuts around so all parts are blended.
Combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mold into patties. If necessary, dust with flour to keep the shape. Fry in oil for 2-3 minutes per side or bake at 180 for 10-15 minutes or until the center is hot.
Serve on hamburger buns with condiments.
Lentil Burgers
Serves 6
1/2 cup dry lentils
1 large potato, grated finely
1/2 cup minced onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
2 T. flour
1 egg
1/4 tsp. prepared horseradish
2 T. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
Rinse lentils. In a covered medium saucepan, cook the lentils in 2 cups of water for 30-40 minutes or until tender. Drain well. In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the remaining ingredients with the cooked lentils. Mix well. It will be moist but not thick.
Form into 6 patties (1/2 cup of mixture each) and fry in olive oil for 2-3 minutes per side or bake on a greased cookie sheet at 200 for 10 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
Serve on a hamburger bun with condiments. Leftovers can be frozen.
Note: This can also be baked in a loaf pan and served like meatloaf.
I really can not recommend these recipes highly enough, especially the first one. If you have become accustomed to store-bought veggie burgers, these will come as a pleasant surprise both because of how easy they are to prepare, and because they are so tasty. Their flavor is enhanced and heightened by eating them with homemade hamburger buns, so I also recommend making those yourself. Yum!! Yum, yum, yum, yum, YUM!!!
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Sunday, June 1, 2008 - The veggie burger post |
This evening we had curried walnut grain burgers on homemade wholewheat rolls. I told you I would post next time we had veggie burgers. Now would I lie to you? I even took a photo, see?
I know it is not a good photo, but it was a good, good, good dinner. I don't think it would be very nice of me to post about it without sharing the recipe, so I will do that now. :-)
Curried Walnut Grain Burgers
Serves 6
2 eggs
1/3 cup plain yogurt (or substitute 1/4 cup of water, it will come out fine)
2 tsp worcestershire sauce
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
1 1/3 cups cooked couscous or brown rice
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup minced green onions
1/3 cup bread crumbs
Combine eggs, yogurt, worcestershire sauce, curry, salt and red pepper in a large bowl; beat until blended. Stir in couscous or rice, walnuts, carrot, green onions and bread crumbs. Shape into 6 patties on a baking-paper lined cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, turning once. Serve on hamburger buns, with condiments.
These do not taste like meat, nor are they supposed to. They taste better than meat. My personal kiddos eat these much better than they do a cheeseburger.
For those who are interested, I calculated the WeightWatchers points for one patty and came up with 2 1/2 points.
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