Wednesday, November 30, 2011
life lesson
Life Lesson tonight: while we were shopping at Walgreens, I noticed Jack
put his chapstick in his pocket so he would not have to carry it while
shopping. I told him we would forget to buy it so keep it out. Well at
dinner, he pulled out a box of bandaids and looked legitimately
surprised and upset. He handed them to me and asked how we would pay for
them. After dinner, we went back to Walgreens and I paid for them. The
cashier was surprised when I told her the story and thanked me for my
honesty--then she thanked me for teaching my son the value of honesty. I
am proud that Jack knew we had to go back to pay :)
simple pleasures
Simple Pleasures are WONDERFUL! Tonight my boys at the tender ages of 4.5 and 6.3 asked me, their mama, to go on a date with them! They chose to take me to Big Boy (Mom paying of course), go through the car wash, and then look at Christmas lights on the way home. Joy is not about the things that you do or the money you spend, but rather how you view the time you spend and enjoying life around you. Listening to my boys giggle in the car wash and ooh/aaahh at the gushes of water made me smile. Chatting with my boys about their days at dinner and watching them draw "roller coasters" and roads on their place mats gives me happiness. Showing Jack that the hole he made on his placemat with his pen could really be considered a pot hole on the road he created....and then showing Luke that the spilled hot chocolate on his paper could be a mud puddle for his cars made me remember that how we think about something is what something is--that small things are not worth sweating over. That life is WHAT YOU DECIDE and if you have to make a mud puddle out of a spill and "jump around in it" to find happiness, then so be it :) Tonight's outing reminded me of my favorite quote:
"If you don't like something--Change it. If you can't change it--Change how you think about it"
Monday, November 28, 2011
luke
luke is such a fun fun fun age right now! everything is new, exciting and he has lots to say about it..... gee, sound like anyone you know??
a few of our highlights recently:
luke has added to his list of jobs he is interested in:
**cup maker (any kind of cup)
**helicopter "fly-er guy"
he announced today:
"mom i don't like holidays anymore, i like school days"
luke loves max. he is convinced she is a chihuahua but when he first decided this, he could not say chihuahua so instead he call her his little "wa-chow-wa" so stinkin' cute! i must say, when she lays down and her ears are up, she does look like a wa-chow-wa.
he is snuggly, loving and full of "squeezies" :)
i love our little snuggle bunny 4.5 year old!
a few of our highlights recently:
luke has added to his list of jobs he is interested in:
**cup maker (any kind of cup)
**helicopter "fly-er guy"
he announced today:
"mom i don't like holidays anymore, i like school days"
luke loves max. he is convinced she is a chihuahua but when he first decided this, he could not say chihuahua so instead he call her his little "wa-chow-wa" so stinkin' cute! i must say, when she lays down and her ears are up, she does look like a wa-chow-wa.
he is snuggly, loving and full of "squeezies" :)
i love our little snuggle bunny 4.5 year old!
recipe to try :)
From: AFarmGirlsDabbles.com
Creamy Turkey {or Chicken!} and Wild Rice Soup
1 c. uncooked wild rice (I prefer the whole grain style, not the cracked)
1/2 c. unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 carrots, sliced into 1/4" thick coins
8 oz. fresh button mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
8 c. low sodium chicken broth
2 c. half and half
2 T. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. finely chopped fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
1/4 c. finely chopped fresh parsley (or 2 tsp. dried)
4 c. cooked and coarsely shredded turkey or chicken
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
PREPARATION
First
off, you'll want to get your wild rice cooking, so it's ready to add to
the finished soup. Prepare according to the package instructions. (It
takes awhile - the instructions on my bag says to cook it for 55
minutes.)
The
remainder of the recipe can be made in one stock pot. Start by melting
the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, mushrooms,
and garlic. Stir well and saute until the onion is transparent and
softened. Blend in flour, cooking until it bubbles a bit. Gradually add
the broth, stirring constantly. Turn up the heat a bit and bring the
soup to a low boil. Boil for 1 minute. Reduce heat slightly and add the
cooked wild rice, half and half, soy sauce, salt, pepper, bay leaf,
thyme, parsley, and turkey or chicken. Simmer for 20 minutes or until
thoroughly warmed. Stir in the fresh lemon juice and taste test to see
if it needs more salt and pepper. Serve with crackers or warm bread.
Source: a farmgirl's dabbles
Printed from: a farmgirl's dabbles (www.afarmgirlsdabbles.com)
Sunday, November 27, 2011
256
each year i have blogged, i have increased the number of posts....and hopefully added to your entertainment. 256 is my target this year for blog posts. that is how many i had last year.... and i vowed last year to post more this year..... so right now i am at 233....which leaves me until December 31st to post 23 more. that seems doable!
i think i can i think i can i think i can :)
i think i can i think i can i think i can :)
recipes
i typed these up for a friend so i figured i should post as well :) i have posted the second two previously but not the amazing pork one! enjoy.
NEED:
1 Pork Tenderloin
a few cloves of garlic
Rosemary (fresh or dried)
Balsamic Vinegar 2-3 T
Olive Oil 2-3 T
Salt/Pepper
DO:
make small slits into the pork and push a garlic clove into each one (more garlic means you love it more) :)
rub the roast with balsamic vinegar and then oil. Sprinkle with Salt and Pepper. Rub/Pat with rosemary.
place on cookie sheet that is covered with foil. roast in the oven at 500 degrees. Smaller roasts (1 lb) will take 20 minutes or so. Bigger ones take more (40, etc). check temp with a meat thermometer--165 degrees min.
Enjoy :) I serve with garlic smashed potatoes and herbed rolls (recipes below.... :) ) and a vegetable
NEED:
red skin potatoes
fat free half and half
garlic cloves
salt
DO:
simmer garlic in 1/2 1/2 until garlic is soft (20 minutes or so) but watch it carefully so the liquid does not scorch
meanwhile, cut the potatoes into quarters and boil with salt until mashable. drain and add to a bowl while hot.
add half and half a little at a time to the potatoes. make sure to add the garlic and mash to your desired consistency. add salt to taste. they have a wonderful creamy texture!
herbed rolls
need:
frozen roll dough--thawed (overnight or all day)
melted butter
italian seasoning
do:
cut dough into halves or quarters
dip into hot butter mixed with herbs
layer in a greased bundt cake pan
let raise for 45-60 minutes (covered with a towel)
bake 30-45 minutes 350-375 degrees
NEED:
1 Pork Tenderloin
a few cloves of garlic
Rosemary (fresh or dried)
Balsamic Vinegar 2-3 T
Olive Oil 2-3 T
Salt/Pepper
DO:
make small slits into the pork and push a garlic clove into each one (more garlic means you love it more) :)
rub the roast with balsamic vinegar and then oil. Sprinkle with Salt and Pepper. Rub/Pat with rosemary.
place on cookie sheet that is covered with foil. roast in the oven at 500 degrees. Smaller roasts (1 lb) will take 20 minutes or so. Bigger ones take more (40, etc). check temp with a meat thermometer--165 degrees min.
Enjoy :) I serve with garlic smashed potatoes and herbed rolls (recipes below.... :) ) and a vegetable
NEED:
red skin potatoes
fat free half and half
garlic cloves
salt
DO:
simmer garlic in 1/2 1/2 until garlic is soft (20 minutes or so) but watch it carefully so the liquid does not scorch
meanwhile, cut the potatoes into quarters and boil with salt until mashable. drain and add to a bowl while hot.
add half and half a little at a time to the potatoes. make sure to add the garlic and mash to your desired consistency. add salt to taste. they have a wonderful creamy texture!
herbed rolls
need:
frozen roll dough--thawed (overnight or all day)
melted butter
italian seasoning
do:
cut dough into halves or quarters
dip into hot butter mixed with herbs
layer in a greased bundt cake pan
let raise for 45-60 minutes (covered with a towel)
bake 30-45 minutes 350-375 degrees
a long {relaxing} weekend
boys had off wednesday. i had a half day wednesday. so that means wed-sunday we were all together... :)
here are tidbits of how we spent out time:
**hunting
**putting up christmas decorations
**eating (eating, eating, eating)
**cooking (see above statement)
**playing games--guess who, farkle, jenga, spoons, etc.
**watching movies
**playing baseball outside (GORGEOUS weather)
**cleaning
**laughing
**making gingerbread houses/trains
**spending time with family (boyers, janiks, rauschs)
**petting maxie
**facebooking
**blogging
**watching episodes of bones
**reading
**"late night" quiet time
**playing legos
**a few trips to the corner......
**cleaning the car
**just being together
**trips to meijer
**a lunch at margos
**a dinner in lowell with vickie, carter, gordon and gordon's sister michelle!
**light contest (who has the most christmas lights on their side of the road)
**grandparents galore!
marvelous :) marvelous time together.
here are tidbits of how we spent out time:
**hunting
**putting up christmas decorations
**eating (eating, eating, eating)
**cooking (see above statement)
**playing games--guess who, farkle, jenga, spoons, etc.
**watching movies
**playing baseball outside (GORGEOUS weather)
**cleaning
**laughing
**making gingerbread houses/trains
**spending time with family (boyers, janiks, rauschs)
**petting maxie
**facebooking
**blogging
**watching episodes of bones
**reading
**"late night" quiet time
**playing legos
**a few trips to the corner......
**cleaning the car
**just being together
**trips to meijer
**a lunch at margos
**a dinner in lowell with vickie, carter, gordon and gordon's sister michelle!
**light contest (who has the most christmas lights on their side of the road)
**grandparents galore!
marvelous :) marvelous time together.
the dream
TIMING OF THE DREAM: right around the anniversary of tom's death, i had a vivid dream. it occurred in a very short amount of time--between me hitting snooze (accidentally turning the alarm off) to jolting out of bed 20 minutes or so later. and when i say jolted, i mean jolted; it was as if something poked me and i jumped off of the bed.
the dream....vivid to see the least. i have a hard time recalling it all now but the day i had it, i wrote it down immediately and later shared it with my therapist (i have been sharing quite a few of my dreams with her). what i do remember.....
THE DREAM: i was in "real time" and found out he had died a 2nd time. as i found out, i sat still and tried to absorb what had happened. i knew he was already dead but this 2nd death really upset me. i was crying but could not figure out if i was going to go to the funeral. i mean, come on, i had already been to his funeral so why would i need to go to a second funeral. i made the choice to not go so instead i went to work. while i was at school, i realized that i really did want to go to the funeral but by that time i was way later. and i was way under dressed. my jeans and sweater were out of place and looked funny. i was really sad that i did not make it in time to say goodbye again. .... and then with that i woke up with a start!
AFTER THE DREAM: my therapist asked if she could share my dream with her psychic friend who can speak to those who have gone before us and also does dream analysis. my therapist has asked me things like this before and it has never bothered me so i agreed that she could talk to her. they never use my name and do not go into any details. carol gives her something to think about and sees what "dottie" can tell her. carol called me to share what "dottie" said.......
THE ANALYSIS: some people have trouble passing on from this side to the other side and take a while. for those who might have had trouble loving fully on this side or died in a tragic/terrible way, they kind of go to a "boot camp" to learn how to love, accept whatever needs to be accepted and let go of various things so they can move on. "dottie" said that this was the case with tom. that he took a long time to move from our world to the afterlife and right around my dream he moved on. "dottie" shared that tom is happy and peaceful. he is loving fully and feels loved. he is watching over us.
MY THOUGHTS: take it or leave it for yourself but i do think there are spirits, i do think that we have angels and i do think that we can communicate with our loved ones somehow. i also think that tom probably did have trouble moving on to the afterlife. he died very quickly and very tragically so i would guess it would be a very hard adjustment to move on.... he also had barriers for himself and letting himself love others fully/letting others see every part of him so he could be loved fully (family trait) so perhaps that "bootcamp" was part of that so he could feel the 100 percent unconditional love.
the dream....vivid to see the least. i have a hard time recalling it all now but the day i had it, i wrote it down immediately and later shared it with my therapist (i have been sharing quite a few of my dreams with her). what i do remember.....
THE DREAM: i was in "real time" and found out he had died a 2nd time. as i found out, i sat still and tried to absorb what had happened. i knew he was already dead but this 2nd death really upset me. i was crying but could not figure out if i was going to go to the funeral. i mean, come on, i had already been to his funeral so why would i need to go to a second funeral. i made the choice to not go so instead i went to work. while i was at school, i realized that i really did want to go to the funeral but by that time i was way later. and i was way under dressed. my jeans and sweater were out of place and looked funny. i was really sad that i did not make it in time to say goodbye again. .... and then with that i woke up with a start!
AFTER THE DREAM: my therapist asked if she could share my dream with her psychic friend who can speak to those who have gone before us and also does dream analysis. my therapist has asked me things like this before and it has never bothered me so i agreed that she could talk to her. they never use my name and do not go into any details. carol gives her something to think about and sees what "dottie" can tell her. carol called me to share what "dottie" said.......
THE ANALYSIS: some people have trouble passing on from this side to the other side and take a while. for those who might have had trouble loving fully on this side or died in a tragic/terrible way, they kind of go to a "boot camp" to learn how to love, accept whatever needs to be accepted and let go of various things so they can move on. "dottie" said that this was the case with tom. that he took a long time to move from our world to the afterlife and right around my dream he moved on. "dottie" shared that tom is happy and peaceful. he is loving fully and feels loved. he is watching over us.
MY THOUGHTS: take it or leave it for yourself but i do think there are spirits, i do think that we have angels and i do think that we can communicate with our loved ones somehow. i also think that tom probably did have trouble moving on to the afterlife. he died very quickly and very tragically so i would guess it would be a very hard adjustment to move on.... he also had barriers for himself and letting himself love others fully/letting others see every part of him so he could be loved fully (family trait) so perhaps that "bootcamp" was part of that so he could feel the 100 percent unconditional love.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Friday, November 25, 2011
crafts
oh the crafts we have been creating! oh the hands on fun we have been having!
**thanksgiving paper plate turkeys
**glass ball ornaments with paint swirled inside
**watercolor painting
**shaving cream on the counters to draw, spell and create
**paper towel tubes as light sabers, binoculars and "scopes" on "guns"
i have more plans to do coming soon :)
**thanksgiving paper plate turkeys
**glass ball ornaments with paint swirled inside
**watercolor painting
**shaving cream on the counters to draw, spell and create
**paper towel tubes as light sabers, binoculars and "scopes" on "guns"
i have more plans to do coming soon :)
thanksgiving
my favorite holiday
thankful for blessings we have
lots of noise, commotion and craziness from cousins/brothers having fun
food to share, and bread to break
a house to gather in, an oven to cook hot tasty food
tv to watch--star wars, football and parades
games to play: guess who, farkle, scrabble
family to enjoy and puppies to pet
thankful for blessings we have
lots of noise, commotion and craziness from cousins/brothers having fun
food to share, and bread to break
a house to gather in, an oven to cook hot tasty food
tv to watch--star wars, football and parades
games to play: guess who, farkle, scrabble
family to enjoy and puppies to pet
a few
since i print this blog into a book each year, i wanted to document that not only do i have one great lengthy blog this year but actually have four.
one is a private spot to share my anxious thoughts. i share this spot with my lovely friend tina who is strength for me.
two are school blogs--i have tracked (almost daily) my lessons, notes, and upcoming things in my classes.
this one makes four! whew. i must be a writing fool! :)
one is a private spot to share my anxious thoughts. i share this spot with my lovely friend tina who is strength for me.
two are school blogs--i have tracked (almost daily) my lessons, notes, and upcoming things in my classes.
this one makes four! whew. i must be a writing fool! :)
Monday, November 21, 2011
updated schedule...yes i am that girl :)
| Saturday Night | Turkey to fridge to thaw | |
| Sunday | ||
| Monday | Bread out to “crust up” | |
| Tuesday | ||
| Wednesday |
Clean
in PM
tea
boil
eggs eggs
cut
up celery and onion
butter
out on counter for Thursday am use
|
|
| Thursday | Morning | Rolls out to thaw |
| 08:00:00 AM |
Rolls
out
breakfast
coffee
Clean
shower |
|
| 9:30:00 AM |
Set
table, etc.
Cheese and Snack
Crackers Out (reg cheese too) |
|
| 10:00:00 AM | Start getting turkey ready and preheat oven to 350 | |
| 10:30:00 AM | Turkey into oven | |
| 11:30:00 PM |
Boil
Sweet Potatoes
Make Deviled Eggs |
|
| 12:15:00 PM |
Peel
Potatoes
Prep
Green Beans
Corn to a bowl for
microwave |
|
| 12:30:00 PM | Make sweet potato souffle | |
| 12:50:00 PM | Stuffing into oven | |
| 01:00:00 PM |
Start
boiling water for potatoes
Make
Rolls
Sweet
potatoes into the oven
Pickles
and olives on a tray
Deviled Eggs on a Tray |
|
| 01:30:00 PM |
Turkey
out of oven? and let REST!
Rolls
into oven
Make
Gravy
Put
on Green Beans
|
|
| 01:35:00PM | Corn into microwave | |
| 01:50:00 PM |
Mash
potatoes
|
|
| 02:00:00 PM | Eat the Feast | |
Based on a 12-16 lb turkey cooked in a Renyolds Cooking Bag at 350 degrees.
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