}}sigh{{

Sometimes you can stay ahead of life.  And sometimes it gets ahead of you.
This has been one of *those* months.

Lots of stress at work. The computer caught a virus, the printer/copier ran out of toner and the bulletins and Cantata programs weren't run off.  Oh, and the powerpoint computer went wacko.  But God is working it all out. And through it all, even though there was/is a ****LOT**** of stress, God gave me a peace...and He still is.

He's amazing that way.

And there's been some stress at home, too. The husband of my dad's last living cousin (get all that?) died and the funeral was today. I hauled all the kids to the funeral home yesterday...a one-and-a-half-hour trip ONE WAY.  Today I have lots of stuff to get done.  I did manage to do most of it.  The 3-pound roast is cut into pieces--part of it is in the veggie soup on the stove and the rest is in the freezer for the next round of soup. Both packages of sausage has been processed and frozen--the sage sausage was put into patties and the Italian sausage was browned and ready for pizza.  I didn't get any cookies or candies made and I didn't return items to the store that I was over-charged for, but I'll do that another day.  Tomorrow after work I have to run the kids down to my folks' to go Christmas shopping (an hour drive one way), then dash back home to get the oldest to work--and the other two to church. Then Thursday it's back to my folk's after work to decorated sugar cookies (an annual tradition).  The dad of my *best* cyber friend died suddenly this weekend. His funeral is Friday--and I really want to go to be there for her. We'll see. It's nearly 3-hours away from here. Friday night is our church's Christmas fellowship dinner. It's also my mom's birthday. I was told last night (by my sister) that we're taking Mom out to lunch on Saturday, we just don't know whether it will be at the restaurant that's a half-hour from me...or the one that's two hours from me. I know which one *I* choose, but *I* am not in on the planning of this.  (Do you get the feeling that it's a long drove to *anywhere* from Mudville? I do.) Then Saturday night is the Boy Scout dinner. Sunday is full, too.  I think I have "breathing" scheduled for some time next week. If not then, definately the week after. If I last that long.

So there you have it. That's my list. A few things can be checked off, but most of it is on the yet-to-do side.

If I don't make it back, I want to wish you and your families a very merry CHRISTmas, dear friends and family.  I'm sorry, but cards didn't make the to-do list.

Merry Christmas!

Have you ever heard/seen Brad Stine?  He's a smart-aleck Christian comedian.  Just my style.  Cuz...as you all know...I'm a real smart-aleck myself.  :-)
Well, a few years ago he teamed up with Go Fish and made this recording:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAckfn8yiAQ&feature=PlayList&p=584EFE756F44F04F&index=0
So when I saw these buttons

at Christian Book Distributors, I bought them.  They arrived this week...in a plastic ziplock bag (very fancy packaging).  I ordered enough for everyone in my family (the guys' buttons are still in the bag b/c they don't want to wear theirs until after Thanksgiving)...but as people at church are seeing them and commenting, I can see that I should have ordered more. 

My pantry.

Since you've been bored with pumpkin posts, I thought I'd keep with the food theme.  Earlier this fall I think I posted that I would show you my pantry when we were done canning.
Every time I tried to snap a picture of it, the camera wouldn't work. It turns out the batteries died.
Right. There. In. My. Camera.
It was awful.
So I bought new batteries, charged them up and...got busy with life stuff.
But I hadn't completely forgot.

And while I realize that you haven't exactly been waiting on pins and needles for this picture, I do want to prove to myself that I am not a slacker.  I did not, however clean this up before snapping pictures. You'll have to suffer through it.

Here are what's left of the green beans we canned last year:

Here are the tomatoes,

grape juice,

and salsa

that we canned this year....with glimpses of the home-canned spaghetti and pizza sauces. 



And while I don't EXPECT to get snowed in this winter, I AM prepared in case we do.  We have enough store-bought peanut butter to hold us over for weeks. We're about due for a blizzard.  Any year now.  If you run out of food at your house, just strap on the snowshoes and come on over--I'll share.

Mmmmmm...Pumpkin Pie

Last night I baked a pumpkin pie using my fresh pumpkin puree.  That's it, hot out of the oven and decorated.

Some assembly was required to get it to that point, though.

After making a pie crust, I mixed these ingredients together,

and poured them into the crust.

Hmm? What did you say?

Oh, what's this?

This is the leftover pie crust that I rolled out and cut with the tiny pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter that I bought while hubs and I were in Amish country last month.  Cute, eh?  I had just pulled them out of the oven--did you notice the potholder in the bottom corner of the pic?

When the pie was done baking I put those pie-crust-pumpkins on top of the pie.

Like so.

I love those tiny cookie cutters. I bought an apple one, too.  I'll use it to cut the vent holes in (what else?) an apple pie next time I make one.

Who can handle all that cute-ness?
Next week I'll give you step-by-step instructions on gutting and butchering a deer.

Just kidding.

Pumpkin Puree...what I didn't tell you.

Jen,
If you're going to make your own pumpkin puree, here are a few tips:
Cut the pumpkin in half...top to bottom,
scoop out the insides with a cheap plastic ice cream scoop. I have two plastic ice cream scoops. They aren't good to scoop out ice cream, but I use them for lots of other things. Put the pumpkin innards in a bowl and deal with them later.
Clean the inside of the pumpkin, scraping it with the ice cream scoop (I suppose a spoon would work, too--just don't know how *well* it would work).
Put the pumpkin, cut side down, on a cookie sheet and place in a 350 degree oven for *around* an hour (it all depends on the size of the pumpkin). Turn the pumpkin half over and test the pulp with a fork for doneness. You want it to be soft.

Mmmm...pumpkin puree!

So far this fall I've done up 8 pie pumpkins into puree.  I bought 3 of them in Amish Country when hubs and I took our little Anniversary trip there last month.  While I was baking them, oldest son came home from helping an older couple from church with several pumpkins--one of which he was told was a pie pumpkin. I quickly cut it open, gutted it and popped it in the oven with the other three.  It wasn't really a pie pumpkin--just a small pumpkin, but it worked out fine.  I usually just cut up the Jack-O-Lantern pumpkins, but I may never do that again...at least not for pies. I'm sold on the pie pumpkins.
Anyway, I picked up four more pie pumpkins at Walmart last week and baked them last night.  Let me tell you--Walmart is NOT the place to buy them.  They were a little "juicier" than the ones from the Amish farmer (actually, he was a Mennonite) and the shells...oh, the shells were a story in themselves!  Two of the pumpkins had such thick shells that *I* couldn't cut into them with my sharp knife, so I called my oldest son---the one who looks like a football player.  *He* had trouble cutting them open, but he didn't give up (like his Mama).

After scooping out the goodies,

 I stacked them up. Check it out.

*NORMALLY* the shells are flimsy and collapse when you scoop out the pulp. They should NOT be able to hold their shape like this. It was bizzare!

Then I had all this wonderful pumpkin meat (pulp).

So I puree'd it.

Then I measured it and packed it into bags for the freezer.  I had 7 bags--2 cups each.

 Actually, I kept one bag in the fridge to make a
pumpkin pie. 

Or maybe some pancakes and muffins.  I haven't decided.

But with all those pumpkins comes pumpkin seeds.   I'm so glad I saved some out of the first batch to use as planting seeds for next year. (I sure don't want any thick-skinned, juicy pumpkins growing next year!)  Then I roasted about a quart of pumpkin seeds for eating from that batch.  I have at least that much this time, too.   I just boiled them in salt water,

dried them, then slow roasted them in the oven to dry them out.

Now the guys have something to take for snacks while hunting.

Next week I'm going to help our youngest son bake his Jack-O-Lantern pumpkin to make Pumpkin Butter for Christmas gifts.  He's so excited.

A new set of clothes...

My oldest son wanted to go shopping today after church.  I wanted to go for a walk in the beautiful, warm sunshine.  Hubs decided we'd go shopping.
So we drove a half hour to town and our first stop was (insert name of home improvement store here).  He'd seen a tool set in the ad that included a canvas bag and drill bits.  So I helped him find it (read: after walking down the aisles and not spotting it *I* was the one to hunt down a store worker and ask for it).  After that I took the youngest boy with me and we went to look at the mistint paint. 
Many of you have heard the stories about how I've painted the entire interior of our home with $5 a gallon mistint paint.  It's about the only reason I go to this store.
We had to look for where they'd moved it (once again---as if they're afraid people will find it). It was on a shelf with other clearance paint items. There were two gallons of mistints and they were on an upper shelf.  I tipped the first gallon towards me so I could see the color on the lid.  It said it was grey.  So I grabbed the one behind it and tipped it forward.  I never saw the lid--but the paint was white.  Very, very white.  And it was now all over me.
Oh. Yes. It. Was.
You know what? They're going to do MUCH better job at making sure they fasten the lids down on paint from now on.
When we finally got to talk to the manager (another story in itself) he asked if there was anything in the store we wanted.   I looked at him. And blinked.  OF COURSE there were things in the store that we wanted--but I'm not the type of person to take him to the cleaners over it.   I looked at hubs--he had the same thought.  We said nothing.  The manager offered to give us a shopping card.  I said that sounded fair because I obviously had to buy new clothes and it would offset that cost.  So he took us to the service desk and talked to another manager.  When he came back to us he said to go purchase the clothes and bring the receipt back and they'd reimburse us.  Oh, and the item that was in the cart--he was giving that to us, too.
So hubs is happy that his tool set was free. I got a new shirt, jeans and shoes.  And we will be able to sleep tonight.
But you know what the strangest thing about this whole deal is?  Nobody batted an eye and me walking around the store covered in paint. Nobody!  Even at the store where I purchased the new clothes I ran into someone I know and she just said "hi" as if there was nothing strange about my appearance.  Just minutes before that I looked at hubs and said, "People pay real money to look like this!"  He agreed.
I smelled like latex house paint. And my clothes were getting stiff. I was not enjoying the look.
Hubs just smiles and says I took one for the team.

So...I'm all over it now.

I was over it long ago...but life got busy.
Anyway, the post I had written...you know, the one that got eaten by Blogger...was a clever post all about how I read on a message board somewhere that candy corn and peanuts together tasted like a Snickers.
So. Sorry. You. Missed. It.
Cuz this post isn't nearly as clever (or funny).
I could have been my BEST-WORK-EVER!
But we'll never know, will we?
{wink}
The following day after my post was ate by Blogger and I went on strike, I mentioned the candy corn/peanut thing to my BFF and she said she had tried it. She thought it tasted more like a Payday, though. Still good.  So I told her that someone suggested adding chocolate chips.  She thought that really would make it taste like a Snickers.
But neither one of us went right out and tried that theory.
There's always next year, right?
But you know what, when dh and I were in Amish Country for our Anniversary celebration, I remember seeing bags of candy corn with peanuts mixed in.   It all finally made sense the day I read that message board.  
So, hey, if you're too lazy to mix your own candy corn and peanuts then take heart. Someone out there is willing to do all the "work" for you.  And charge you for it, of course.

Blogger ate my blog

I had a post all written out Friday when...*poof*...it disappeared. I got so frustrated that I shut the puter down.

Bet you're wondering what it was about, huh? Huh? HUH?!?

You'll have to wait. I'll get over it and try again one day. soon.
But not today. Today Kroger is having a 1-day sale. Gotta go shop!

Happy Birthday, sweet Daughter

Just a week after our second anniversary you were born into this world. You were beautiful then and you're beautiful now.

It's hard to believe you've grown this old. It's a good thing that I haven't aged along with you.

Your dad, OTOH, has gotten quite grey. But he's still a handsome old man.

Happy Anniversary to us!

This week I had the awesome privilege of sharing our 21st anniversary with my husband. This year we {gasp} got away from the kids--just the two of us--and enjoyed a couple of days in each other's company.
We love this time of year. It seems that every year on our anniversary it is dubbed the peak time for viewing the fall foliage. It is so very nice of the weather people to recognize the importance of that date.
Anyway, we went to prime Amish Country in Ohio. Not the normal, every day Amish country that we're in the thick of...but the commercialized, highly marketable Amish Country that, in truth, has little to do with the Amish people. Mennonites are who you usually see working at the stores. But that's another story for another day.
The leaves were beautiful. I tried to get some pictures with my camera phone, but somehow it reset itself back to the original settings and it takes small pics again. So...use your imagination.

tada! a tree!

And in this pic, if you squint and tilt your head just right, you'll see a humongous scarecrow sitting on the porch roof of this building. I think they sold furniture. We didn't stop. Not even to take the picture--which explains its off-kilt slant and the blurry car in the foreground.

In fact, we stopped for very few things. When I say "we" I, of course, mean my husband--since he did all the driving. For some reason we were in a hurry to get...nowhere. And we couldn't stop anywhere on the way. He's a funny man....even on a quick getaway retreat he still can't slow down and relax. I love him more than words can express.

Happy anniversary, wonderful man. We're growing old together!

Mom's Angel Food Cake Pan

I remember watching a sitcom one time where a newly wed woman was fixing a roast. She cut it in half and put it in the oven. Her new husband watched with wonder and finally asked her why she cut the roast in half. She rolled her eyes and stated that he obviously knew nothing about cooking.
Later, curiosity got the best of her and she called her mom to ask why she always cut the roast in half before putting it in the oven. Her mom told her that it was always the way they fixed it and it always turned out just right.
Later, the mother called *her* mom and asked why she always cut the roast in half before putting it in the oven. Her mom said, “Because it wouldn’t fit in the pan.”

Funny, but true--we do things out of tradition and we don't know the reason we do them.

When we go out I don’t get Carrot Cake because it always tastes like Spice Cake (which I’m never in the mood for) and it always has Cream Cheese frosting.
I remember when I was a child mom made the best Carrot Cake. It was made in an Angel Food pan, so it was tall with straight sides and a hole in the middle. It was sliced in wedges, not squares. She never put Cream Cheese Frosting on it…probably for no other reason than she likes cake without frosting. Besides, it never really needed it. The edges were wonderfully crispy—and who would want to ruin that with frosting?

Yesterday I decided to recreate that for my children. I made Carrot Cake from my mom’s recipe using her Angel Food pan. Everything was going well right up until it was in the oven for a couple of minutes. I looked in and the batter was leaking out the bottom of the two-piece Angel Food pan and dripping on the oven floor. I put a cookie sheet on the shelf under it and hurriedly called my mother to find out what I had done wrong and if I could salvage it.
“WHY is the batter leaking out? I used your recipe and your pan!”
“It’s because it’s a two-piece pan,” she said. Then she went on to explain that Angel Food cake doesn’t have any oil in it, therefore it doesn’t leak out of the pan. Carrot Cake has oil in it. “It would have been better in a Bundt pan.”

That’s when it hit me.
Mom didn’t have a Bundt pan until some time in the 80’s. She had always used the Angel Food pan because that’s the only pan she had. Matter of fact, I don’t remember her baking sheet cakes when I was younger, either. They were always two-tiered round cakes. I had no idea why I was using the Angel Food pan instead of a Bundt pan other than the fact that it’s the way my mom always did it.

She assured me that it would be fine if I set the pan on a cookie sheet—that it would soon stop leaking. She was right. It turned out well and is delicious.

Next time I’ll use a Bundt pan. But I still won’t put frosting on it.

So what about you--are you doing things out of tradition? At home? At work? At church? Are you afraid to do things in a different way just because "this is the way we've always done it"? Traditions aren't a bad thing, but if we get hung up on them, it's not healthy.

Blessings to you, my friends.

Brownies

In my last post I mentioned a brownie recipe, but I didn't share it. Well, I felt so bad about it that I just *had* to come here today and post it for you. So as soon as I put the carrot cake in the oven that I made from Mom's recipe, I dashed right over here to post this brownie recipe.

You love me for being me, right?

Hershey’s Best Brownies

½ cup vegetable oil or melted butter
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
½ cup unsifted all-purpose flour
1/3 cup Hershey’s cocoa
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup chopped nuts, optional

Blend oil or melted butter, sugar and vanilla in large mixing bowl. Add eggs; beat well using spoon. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually add to egg mixture. Stir in nuts. Spread into a greased 9-inch square pan. Bake at 350° for 20 to 25 minutes or until brownie begins to pull away from edges of pan. Cool in pan. Frost with Creamy Brownie Frosting. Cut into squares.
Yield: about 16 brownies

Creamy Brownie Frosting
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
3 tablespoons Hershey’s cocoa
1 tablespoon light corn syrup or honey
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Cream butter or margarine, cocoa, corn syrup or honey and vanilla in small mixer bowl. Add confectioners’ sugar and milk, beat to spreading consistency.

Chocolate Syrup

Years ago I worked in the accounting office for a grocery store chain. One day a store employee walked into my office with a pamphlet in hand. She told me how her grandmother used to make the best brownies from the recipe was on the back of the Hershey's cocoa box. Only it was no longer there--so she wrote the company. They sent her this pamphlet that had not only the brownie recipe, but several other recipes. She asked if I would make some copies for her so she could share with her mom and sister. I told her I'd be glad to on one condition...I got to keep a copy for myself. :-) While I had to agree, the brownie recipe was good *AND* easy (I declared I'd never buy another boxed mix) the recipe that has stayed with me nearly 20 years later is the chocolate syrup recipe. I have several boxes of brownie mix in the cupboard, but I haven't bought a can of syrup since I began making this. Its quick to make and tastes a *lot* like the canned stuff. Give it a try:

Hershey's Cocoa Syrup

1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
dash of salt
1 cup hot water

2 teaspoons vanilla

Combine sugar, cocoa and salt in saucepan.
Gradually stir in water.
Cook over medium heat. Boil 3 minutes.
Remove from heat and add vanilla.

Pumpkin Recipes, part 2

Here are more of our favorite pumpkin recipes:

Pumpkin Pie Fudge
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup mashed pumpkin
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 package (12 ounces) vanilla flavored baking chips
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1/3 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preparation Directions:
Using butter or margarine, lightly grease the sides and bottom of a medium saucepan.
Place the sugar, evaporated milk, pumpkin, butter, salt, and pumpkin pie spice in the saucepan.
Stir constantly over medium heat.
Bring the mixture to a boil and boil for 12 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the baking chips and marshmallows until melted.
Stir in the nuts and vanilla.
Pour into an 8-inch square pan that has been lined with foil and greased.
Chill mixture until set.
Cut into small squares to serve.
Cover and store in refrigerator.

*********************************************

Pumpkin Mousse
1 ½ cups milk
½ cup canned pumpkin
3-ounce package of instant vanilla pudding mix
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
7 teaspoon ground ginger
7 teaspoon ground cloves
1 ½ cups whipped topping

Stir together the milk and pumpkin in a mixing bowl.
Add the pudding and spices and whisk until thickened.
Fold in whipped topping and chill.

***********************************************

Pumpkin Ice Cream Makes about 2 quarts.
1 (16 oz.) can pumpkin
1 cup packed brown sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup half-and-half
½ teaspoon grated orange peel
¼ cup orange juice
2 cups whipping cream
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Pour into ice cream canister. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions.

Pumpkin Recipes

In honor of my color scheme, I've decided to share some of my favorite pumpkin recipes.

Making your own pumpkin puree is so easy, you'll flip when you realize how much you can save by doing it yourself. Simply cut a pumpkin in half (it doesn't matter which direction--but it doesn't roll if you cut it from the stem down while it's sitting upright). I've found that cleaning it out is made easier by a cheap, plastic ice cream scoop. I'm not a fan of the slimy innards, so I don't usually keep the seeds. Once clean, place the cut sides down on a baking sheet and bake it at 350 for an hour to 90 minutes...depending on its size. Once its soft, flip the pumpkin over and scoop out the tender flesh and puree in a food processor, discarding the outer shell. Put the puree in freezer bags (I measure 2 cups for each) and freeze.

Once you have all that lovely puree, you're gonna want to make something. My youngest son loves to make pumpkin butter and all three of my children love pumpkin muffins and pumpkin milkshakes (just make a vanilla milkshake, adding 2 TBS pumpkin puree and 1/4 teas. pumpkin pie spice).


Pumpkin Spice Makes 8 teaspoons
Ingredients:
4 Tsp Ground Cinnamon
2 Tsp Ground Ginger
1 Tsp Allspice
1 Tsp Nutmeg

************************************************

Pumpkin Butter Recipe Yield: 3 Cups
2 1/2 c Pumpkin; cooked, mashed
3/4 c Sugar
1/4 c Apple cider or orange juice
1/2 ts Cinnamon, ground
1/2 ts Cloves, ground
1/4 ts Allspice, ground
1/4 ts Nutmeg, ground
Combine all of the ingredients in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until the mixture thickens. Cover and chill.

************************************************

Pumpkin Chip Muffins
3 eggs
2 cups sugar
16 ounce can pumpkin
1 cup applesauce
½ cup vegetable oil
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups (a 12 ounce package) semi-sweet chocolate chips
Beat eggs, sugar, pumpkin, applesauce and oil until smooth.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Add to pumpkin mixture and mix well. Fold in chocolate chips.
Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups ¾ full.
Bake at 400° 16 to 20 minutes or until muffins test done.
Cool in pan 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack.
Yields about 24 standard-size muffins.
*Can substitute carrots or zucchini for pumpkin or raisins for the chocolate chips.

************************************************
Tomorrow we'll tackle Pumpkin Fudge, Mousse and Ice Cream.

Ah, Autumn...

Even though this hasn't been a textbook year weather-wise, it's still so nice to have Autumn/Fall here. You won't hear me complaining about the cooler temps and the fallen leaves. Granted, because of the wacky weather, the leaves are falling early--some even before they change color. But still, I just adore this time of year. There's just something about Fall. Love is in the crisp, sweet air. Hubby told me last night that he'd taken our Anniversary off (to surprise me) and that last week he'd also scheduled the following day off...making a 4-day weekend for us! He asked if I wanted to go away somewhere with him--just the two of us. YES!

So, what's your favorite season?

Tomorrow I get my kitchen back!

The tomato juice is made

the pizza sauce is made


and the last of the grapes were used up in making juice today.


Tomorrow the kids and I will pack away all the canners, rings and equipment and I'll have my kitchen countertops back. I've been canning for nearly a month and I am sooooooo ready for this stuff to disappear for another year.

Tomorrow I think I'll start making up batches of cookie dough to freeze for later--when it's baking season. You know, drop oatmeal or chocolate chip cookie dough onto trays, freeze them, then bag 'em up with baking instructions and pack back into the freezer. Then, when you've got the oven heated up from baking a meatloaf or a casserole, you can just pop a sheet of cookies in the oven in no time and VIOLA! there's dessert.

I love it when I look like super mom! :)

Besides, now that I'm in perpetual motion mode, I have to do SOMETHING lest I look like a slug. The winter cometh...and I really do turn into a slug on those dark, depressing days.

Oh...Allie, I just want to thank you for all your encouraging words. You don't know how much it means to me to find a friendly comment after I've posted. Thanks for being there for me, friend! I'm sorry for all the times you've asked a question and I haven't answered. You deserve better. I love you, man! ;)

Critters...again

In late July and early August I blogged about some of the critters in our world...and promised pics of others.

Well, today is the day, my friends.

You're barely able to contain your excitement. I can tell these things.

So without further eloquence, meet:

the salamander,

the baby bass,

and the uninvited bat.

Yes, that's a badmiton racket. You don't think bats let you pick them up and move them out of the house, do you? I don't allow my boys to touch a bat--and you KNOW that *I'm* not going to touch one. Besides, you have to STUN them before you can move them--hence the racket.

We also had three toads...but I made the boys turn two of them loose. It's really difficult to catch enough crickets for three hungry toads. And we have crawdads. I don't know how many we have today. The boys keep catching them and putting them in the same tank. Crawdads are territorial, you know. You can fill in the blanks on why the population keeps dwindling. I don't know why I don't have any pictures of these critters. I handed the camera to the middle child with instructions to bring me pics...but these are all I got for my troubles. Oh well, it will give me something to blog about later.

TTFN

Been a little busy.

This past month has been a doozy....both at home and at work. 'Tis the season and if you don't keep moving, you'll either get run over or you'll run behind. Speaking of running, I'm feeling a little *blah* because I've neglected my treadmill. More thoughts on that in a sec... First lemme brag on how I've been working on my homemaker skills:

So far I've put up 60 pints of salsa

12 quarts of grape juice (no pic) and 10 quarts of spaghetti sauce

and tomorrow I *plan* on working on pizza sauce. This time I'll *try* to follow the recipe.

You see, I don't usually use a recipe when I cook. We've been making salsa for several years now...and its still a question of how its going to turn out because I don't know how hot the peppers are this year. ...until I make a batch. Then I can adjust the heat for every following batch. Hubby gets to try the first batch of salsa...it's *usually* spicier than I like it. I'm selfish that way. He will tell me how spicy it is, then I know how many peppers to put in the next batch depending on if I'm making mild, medium or hot.

So when I still had **at least** another bushel of tomatoes left after doing up the salsa, I decided to make something else with it instead of just canning them straight. I'm stupid that way--thinking I need to pile more work on an already busy schedule. Up until this year, the only kind of tomatoes I've canned has been chopped (for soups) or salsa. So I looked up some spaghetti recipes and combined the things I liked about them and made a batch. ONLY...I thought they didn't use enough spices--oregano, basil, etc--so I added more. I think by the time I finished adding I had **at least** twice as much as the recipe called for. Yeah, it was overkill. So today when I made lunch I used a jar of homemade AND a jar of store-bought to dilute it. No complaints from the family. Maybe I'm just sensitive.

So...that's why I said I will try to follow the pizza sauce recipe. No guarantees....I'm not known for following recipes. I almost always add my own touch. My philosophy is that every recipe is just a guideline...a suggestion. If I choose to follow it, good. If I choose to add or take away, good. The bad part is that I rarely make something the same way twice--so if you liked it today, you'd better enjoy it...because tomorrow I'll try to improve it.

That's just how I ride. :)

I don't just mess up *food* recipes, either. I'm talented enough to mess up other recipes, too. I bought all the stuff needed to make homemade laundry (powder) detergent. One night last week I gave Timothy the job of grating the soap. He loved it. So then I let him be in charge of measuring the ingredients and mixing them up in the food processor until they formed a powder. I'm such a fun mom. He did a great job. So he ran to his room and got a load of laundry to try out the new detergent. YES! He's finally going to wash some clothes! (Don't get excited--it didn't last.) The homemade detergent worked wonderfully. So I did a load with those messy towels that the salsa leaked onto. Not only did it lift the stains, those towels looked whiter than the ones in the drawer! I was so pleased. So the next day when we put the ingredients away, I said something about the box of Washing Soda. My daughter corrected me...Baking Soda. No, it says right here on the box...Baking Soda. ACK! I *know* the crumpled box in the laundry isle that I reached behind to get this box said Washing Soda, so I never thought to look at *this* box. I won't make THAT mistake twice. {sigh}

I can get in trouble in my spiritual life by not following God's "recipe", too-- I can't take the same approach that I have with cooking. I will mess it up EVERY time if I pick and choose things from God's Word. We have to read the Word and follow it, no varying to the left or right. The gate is small and the way is narrow (see Matthew 7:14)...so we need to make sure we stay on the right path.

I hope and pray that all my cyber friends are spiritually fit. Keep working on those spiritual muscles. We're only in this world for a short time.

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

I *LOVE* August! I'm tellin' ya, that first bite of ripe tomato straight from the garden...UGH! So good!

Another of my favorite things about August is....it's Blackberry season!

My boys went Blackberry picking today.

HeHeHe {skipping around the house with joy}

So what did I do? I baked a pie, of course!

It was delicious. With ice cream.

Then I put the rest in the freezer on a cookie sheet.

Hello, my pretties. I love you. All of you. I show no favoritism.

Once they were frozen, I measured them and bagged them to be put in the freezer--to be made into pie another day.

I usually mix the pie filling and freeze that, but I decided not to do that this year. I'm flexible that way.

Shhh...don't tell anyone...but those two bags aren't the first ones to be put in the freezer this year. I have more. HeHeHe {skipping around the house} {again}

I am SOOOOO having Blackberry pie in the dead of winter when it looks like THIS outside. That's a link to my very first blog post, BTW.

{sigh} All is well in my world. Well, it will be as soon as I buy three bushels of tomatoes from the Amish farmer down the road and can 30 quarts of chopped tomatoes and 50 or 60 pints of salsa. I predict more skipping around the house to come.

Finally made it to the Teacher's Store

It might be my last trip for a few years. Maybe forever.
Why?
Because the local Teacher's Store caters mainly to the Elementary sect now.
We searched for an hour to find enough stuff for my 11th-grader. We ended up finding a few things in the clearance sections (spread throughout the store--including upstairs where there is NO air conditioning). We worked for that discount, I'm tellin' ya.
It's a sad, sad thought that I won't be going back and fingering through all that neat, schooly stuff.
My 6th-grader will be working on the same stuff he did last year. Sadly, he decided he didn't need to do school last year...and didn't. So I'm ordering replacements for the few workbooks that he wrote in and he's doing it all again--and then some. Yeah, you guessed it. Welcome to puberty, child.
OH! This year's fun item from the Teacher's Store was.....drum roll please...PENCILS. Pencils of all things! But, that's all they wanted. The 11th grader got one that says, "My Teacher thinks I'm SPECIAL!" ....which cracks me up--and did him, too. The 6th grader got one with his favorite critter...frogs. And for my graduate I got a West Virginia pencil . We live in Ohio.
So...what's new with you? I want to visit my folks this weekend...but it's filling up fast, so that might not happen.

My life is uber exciting.

Or not.

I have a list as long as my arm of things I SHOULD be doing....but I'm not.

Why do I put things off?

I have to send a letter to the school Superintendent about how last year went (good for one child, not so well for the other) and pick up the application to homeschool for this coming year. Public school starts next Wednesday in our town. I really, really need to get these things done.

I had a birthday last week AND I remembered to get the license renewed on the vehicles. {using finger in the air to strike one up for me for getting something right}
So there's that.

I NEED to get over to the teacher's store to pick up school books for the high-schooler. Then I need to place the order for the 6th-grader online. The little darling needs a few replacement workbooks in the same curriculum he used last year....sixth grade...again. What IS IT with boys at this age? They suddenly have no ambition to do anything but play. Oh wait...little boys have never had ambition to do schoolwork...just play. Sorry...was freaking out about normal everyday stuff.

But then...lately I have only wanted to play, too. So, I guess I shouldn't feel so bad about the boy doing it. Only I'm an adult and I have to snap out of it. I have responsibilities. I have duties. I have....oh nevermind. I think I'll go bake some zucchini cookies. A lady at the library gave me a new recipe.

More critters.

The other day I posted about some of the critters the boys catch and release. I've been wanting to post about the ones that they've kept...but my middle son hasn't taken the pictures for me yet. I'd do it myself, but I like to encourage him in things that he's interested...and this year it's photography.
Anyway, today while I was at work I saw this butterfly. It landed on the landscaping rocks in front of me and waited for me to get a camera, all the while slowly opening and closing it's beautiful wings in the sunlight....then it danced and flittered around me for a minute or two before it landed again.

Does anyone know what kind of blue and black butterfly this is?

God's green Earth

During the winter I showed you some pics taken by my brilliant middle child.
I think it's about time I showed you some more, don't you?
Good, I thought you'd agree. {snicker}

It's summer in my neck of the woods and since I have two boys, you know what that means. They do a lot of catch-and-release of little critters. They keep them in a bucket or aquarium for a few days, then let 'em go. Here are a couple of this summer's victims scientific observations.

Zucchini

I know how to spell that word "real good." I have to...I need to look up recipes every year.

This year I planted six HILLS of zucchini. Three seed in each hill. Each hill had at least two seeds take off. A couple of them had all three produce a plant.

Yeah. You know what's coming next.

I don't usually have a problem getting rid of our extra zucchini...but then again...I don't usually plant that many at once. You see, ideally I would plant a few seeds in May, then a few more in June.

I lost my head in May and planted the whole packet of seeds.

So I just got back inside from picking this weekend's crop. Nine, count them...NINE more zucchini to add to the six that are already on the countertop. Two of them are biggins.

This past weekend I used one of the two biggins I picked LAST WEEK by cutting it open, scooping it out and frying it in the deep fryer. Dh wasn't crazy about that. It's been ages since I've fried our food, so we're not big on fried food anymore.

Today I used a regular sized one by chopping it up and putting it in the pan of taters and onions. Nobody knew it was there. he.he.he.

It's too hot/humid to bake zucchini bread. Anyway, I did that last year and put about three loaves of bread in the freezer. We didn't eat it before the freezer burn got to it so I won't be doing that again. In years past I've grated up the biggins and put them in the freezer to bake into breads later when it's cool outside, but never used it up before the freezer burn got to it, so I won't be doing that this year. And I've pretty much zucchini'd all my usual victims er, friends.

Does anyone want any zucchini?
Please?

The joke's on me.

Back in May I titled one of my posts "Been MIA lately". Actually, there's only one post in between THAT one and THIS one. That title belongs HERE.
Anyway, the summer is in full swing here. Today we will be wrapping up the last of the summer camps. There were three....count them, three....this year.
Actually, now that I think about it, there have been three for several years now.
The first one is a family camping vacation.
The second one is church camp, where usually only one of my teenagers attended...but this year two of them went.
The third one is Boy Scout camp. Dh goes to camp with the boys--and I miss having him here, but they really like that he's there...so it's a trade off. That's where they've been all week and I expect them home any minute. With laundry. And stories. Dd and I didn't get to do nearly enough girly stuff together. We spent one entire afternoon at the 4H project judging. It was even less organized this year than in years past. This is her last year in 4H. She's an adult now.
If anyone still reads this blog, I'm sorry that it's been so dry lately.
More updates later. TTFN

Graduating Class of 2009

The graduation was last Saturday. It went well. Katherine felt special, which was everything I wanted for her. She didn't wear a traditional cap and gown. Everyone who knows us well knows that we aren't very traditional.

Instead she wore a sash and headband (with a cap and crown attached). Both said, "Princess Grad".

I'm surprised that nobody has put out a webpage with ideas and suggestions on hosting a homeschool graduation. For those of us doing it for the first time, it's intimidating. In the end we decided to do our own thing. I wrote a speech. Her father presented her with the diploma. Then she gave a speech.

A friend grabbed my camera and took pictures, otherwise I wouldn't have any.

*I* forgot to take any pictures! Can you believe it? That was my only regret from the day...that I didn't get any pictures of the guests. After everyone ate (of *course* I fed them all), the teens got a game of softball together and played outside in the heat and humidity. We older folks stayed in air-conditioned comfort and talked. :^) I'm so glad I put on all the invitations to "dress casual." I think everyone was comfortable, therefore we all had a good time.

We are so blessed. I just can't say that enough. We are blessed with friends, with family, with fincances and support. I could go on and on....but I won't. Thanks for reading.

Been MIA lately.

Did you miss me?

This graduation thing has come up QUICKLY! Faster than I had planned. I'm a list-maker, so stay with me while I write this all out so I can see it.

The cake is ordered and paid for. There's a 3 dollar coupon in this week's ad for this week's cake orders. It couldn't have been in there LAST week, could it? {sigh}

Most of the food is bought. In fact, I think *all* of the food is bought. Now it just needs fixed. Any volunteers?

The photo collage is coming together. By that I mean...I have the tri-fold board and the pictures. Some assembly required. That's the sticker. When I laid the photos out on the white board, I didn't like it. It needed a background. After much consideration and some discussion, I decided to lightly spray paint it. It seemed like the best option. Katherine wants blue and purple on it. Do you know how difficult purple spray paint is to come by here in Mudville? We went to town and still had a time of finding the right colors. {sigh} I wasn't about to drive to the big town this late in the game, so we settled. Now to just finish it in time.

What else? Oh, decorations are bought. We *need* to start decorating so I can see what we've got and if we still need anything. It's been over a year since I started buying for this event and I can't remember what all we've got.

I need to get the tableware out and make sure we have enough.

What am I forgetting? Answer quick--the graduation is Saturday afternoon.

Typos

I hate making typos. It must be the perfectionist in me. Sometimes it bothers me when I read a typo. Not from friends, but from "professionals". The desktop background that I have at work has a typo on it. I can't enjoy it because once I saw the typo, that's all I see.

But most of the time they make me laugh. Take this one, for instance. It made me laugh...so I saved it. It's from a paid ad in a local newspaper many years ago.

Yeah. You read that right. You too can own your very own 15 foot fool. I am VERY curious about the "accessories" that come with it. Is it a "he" or a "she"?
So many questions. So few answers. I could go on and on...but I'll let YOUR imagination take you were it may.

BTW, spellchecker found no typos in this post. But there is one. I left it in just for kicks. It's good therapy for my perfectionist ego to make a few mistakes every once in a while. It keeps me grounded.

Just thought you might want to know.
TTFN

Okay, here's my River Barge story...

When dh and I were first married








we rented a little house that sat right along the riverbank. The Ohio River riverbank, that is. It was just big enough for the two of us and we were so happy to be living as a couple. Both of us worked full time jobs. He drove a delivery truck and had to be at work at four o'clock every morning. I worked an office job and had to be at work around eight o'clock (they were very leniant). Anyway, since we lived 40 minutes away from work, he would get up at three...and being the loving, newly-married wife, I'd get up with him and see him off to work. Then I'd stay up and do the housework, write the Thank You notes and do all those other mind numbing tasks. Sometimes my job would be slow and I'd come home a little early...and sometimes it was stressful and I had to work late. All of this would eventually take its toll and I'd be extremely tired by the time I got home from work. On one such evening I went to bed as soon as I got home...thinking I'd just take a little nap and get right up to fix supper.
Well...I ended up taking a big nap...in a deep, deep sleep. I woke up when dh came running in the room and called out my name. I woke up disoriented because it had become dark while I slept...and dh was excited about something.
It turns out (as he tells it to me) that a barge was traveling down the river. When they travel at night they use a spotlight to keep track of the shoreline so they don't run aground. Nothing unusual about that. But on this particular night this particular barge was shining it's spotlight on our house. Specifically...on our bedroom windows.
And it was blowing it's airhorn.
Dh's imagination got the best of him and he thought maybe I was standing at the window dancing for the barge-hands. Or so he says. We'll just have to take his word for it, I guess.
*I* never saw the barge light. And *I* never heard the horn.
And I certainly wasn't dancing in the window.

What is it like in your part of the country?

Last week when we traveled to my parents' house to take the Senior Portraits, I snapped a few pictures since:
A) I had my camera in hand

and

B) my 16-yr-old wants to drive every chance he gets.

I've been wanting to do a blog on this every since I opened my blog account. Well...actually...since before that. I have a friend (HI COLLEEN!) who lives in Colorado. I live in Ohio. She was in West Virginia (get out the map if you need help with this, people) and so...since she was so close...we hopped in the car and drove over and saw her. The conversation drifted to the terrain and the differences in the two areas and she asked me something along these lines: "How can you stand this? I feel like I'm boxed in!" And you know what? I never really thought about it. I've lived in the hills all my life. When you travel, you're either on the hilltop, in the valley, or in between going up or down. (Life is kinda like that, too.)

So here we go.
Since we're in the hills, it's a good place to have livestock.












Cattle are popular.












And when you're on your way up to the hilltop or down to the valley, you have to go through a lot of twists and turns. If only I'd have waited one more second you'd have seen the next turn after this one. Sometimes you really zig-zag!












And sometimes it straightens out.

Going down...just so we can go up again.












You can't tell it, but through these closest (bare) trees you get your first glimpse of The River. We're on the hilltop here. We have to go to the valley to get to The River.












And down here the road is flatter and straighter.












Every time I mention The River on the web, someone always asks, "What River?"
The OHIO River, of course!












Where the barges run up and down The River all day and all night.












And that reminds me of a story...
Remind me to tell it to you later. Woo-Hoo!