sweet treat

peek a boo victor! we see you!

welcome back buddy!

friday night fun

    

how to make a turkey

Luke wrote a "how to Cook a Turkey" but it is a bit hard to read so I will "translate" it for you.

1. First, buy it from a store. Get it home. If you have a lot of people, make it an 18 inch one.

2. Next put it in the oven and cook it in the oven for five minutes and four degrees

3. Last take it out of the oven. Let it cool down then you can eat it. I enjoy making turkey.

He has it down to a science! :)

Turkey Day Feast

the feast

the feast for turkey day. as always i will have plenty (for which i grateful for) so if you want, stop on by!

The Menu

Turkey
Gravy
Mashed Potatoes
Stuffing (with apples) both in and out of the bird
Fresh Green Beans
Frozen Corn
Sweet Potato Soufle
Herbed Rolls
Olives
Pickles
Deviled Eggs

Dessert: Chocolate Cake and Pumpkin Cheese cake with Salted Caramel Sauce

Drinks:
Iced Tea
Decaf Coffee
Wine
Milk


Recipes

Turkey not sure how big my turkey will be yet so I might have to adjust times above.... but no matter how big it is, I will rub with sage then butter (under the skin too) and then sprinkle with salt and pepper. In the neck cavity I place a few sage leaves, lemon slices and green apple. I also stuff the turkey (stuffing below) before placing it in a turkey cooking bag. The cooking bag leaves the turkey SUPER moist!

Stuffing
diced bread that has been "crusted" up (good bread is best...sour dough, french, etc)--I have been freezing mine for a few months all torn up as I came to the end of loaves...just gotta get it out now :)
bag or two of pepperidge farm coutons
chopped celery
chopped onion
butter
sage
thyme
salt
pepper
broth
chopped green apple
2 eggs beaten

Saute the celery, and onion in butter. Add to the bread cubes and croutons, salt, pepper, and herbs. Toss with your hands. Add apple. Then add eggs, mix with hands. Now add broth, a bit at a time, until it is moist but not too wet. Place in a baking pan or stuff your turkey. I do both.

Gravy
Made with drippings from the turkey, broth, tad bit of kitchen bouquet and cornstarch thickener

Bacon Cheese Pull Apart Rolls

Ingredients

Savings in greenville, MI 48838  Change Zip >

• 12 bacon strips, diced
• 1 loaf (1 pound) frozen bread dough, thawed  I USE ROLL DOUGH
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1 envelope (1 ounce) ranch salad dressing mix

Directions

• In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat for 5 minutes or until partially cooked; drain on paper towels. Roll out dough to 1/2-in. thickness; brush with 1 tablespoon of oil. Cut into 1-in. pieces; place in a large bowl. Add the bacon, cheese, dressing mix and remaining oil; toss to coat.
• Arrange pieces in a 9-in. x 5-in. oval on a greased baking sheet, layering as needed. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled.
• Bake at 350° for 15 minutes. Cover with foil; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until golden brown. Yield: 1 loaf.

Sweet Potato Souffle BEST SWEET POTATOES EVER!!
Beat together: 3 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup evaporated milk, 2 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 stick butter.

Put in a greased cassarole dish.

Topping: mix together and put on top of sweet potato mix.  1 cup chopped pecans, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 stick butter, 1/3 cup flour, 1/2 tsp cinnamon.

Bake 350 for 30 min or until knife comes out clean.

Grandma Johnson's Deviled Eggs
12 egg yolks
4 T mayo
2 tsp vinnegar
1 tsp salt
dash pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp dry mustard OR 2 tsp prepared mustard

mix and refill egg whites

Garlic Mashed Potatoes
  I will use Yukons....and then mash them BY HAND (the only way to go) with half and half that is simmered with garlic and melted butter

Pickles and Olive Tray
sweet pickles, dill pickles, green and black olives

Corn
 From the freezer

Green Beans 
fresh green beans, trimmed and simmered with fresh garlic

ear surgeries..... again

Thanks for your support today--We are hopeful that Jack's surgery is successful. Many of you have asked so here is what he had done today:

Right ear: a skin graft to close the hole in his ear drum--he had a hole from getting his tubes removed and we think bacteria were getting into the ear drum. It is very sore right now but we have hopes it will heal okay and He will have no more infections!

Left Ear: the hole from his tube removal created scar tissue on his ear drum that formed into a pocket and he had "mucous tissue" on the ear drum (think inside of your mouth). The scar tissue was removed, the yucky tissue was deadened and we hope that healthy tissue grows back. They think the combo of the pocket and yucky tissue collected bacteria. Our hope is now that he will be infection free.

Only time will tell. Prayers, happy thoughts and positive thinking is all welcomed Thanks again for your LOVE

reality show

after skating, while josh was hunting, i took both boys to meijer for groceries.

upon arrival home, i unloaded the van, put away groceries, wrangled two kids, fed a dog and got a meal made from scratch.  i think this will be a pitch i make to the food network for a reality tv contest :)

said meal was tasty!

Chicken Tacos: Boil Chicken (I had frozen breasts....so I threw them in and boiled them until they were shred-able), Shred, Place in a hot skillet with a bit of oil, add taco seasonings and warm like you would beef. I could not find our taco seasoning so I threw in: chilli powder, paprika, red pepper flakes, garlic salt and onion powder plus some water and simmered it down. If I had cumin, I would have added it I served with tortillas, tomatoes, sour cream and sauce.

Cilantro Lime Rice: Cook White Rice (I always use Jasmine). Combine garlic (I used salt this time), cilantro (I used it from the "tube" but if I have fresh I finely chop it or put it in a food processor), olive oil and lime juice. Mix into hot fresh rice and put cover back on for five minutes.

Beans: Rinse black beans, add to a small sauce pan. Add some red wine, diced Jalapeno (optional), and olive oil (about 2-3 TBS). Simmer until not soupy Mine got too "not soupy" so I added some water at the end. I also added garlic and salt. Be careful with the salt--the beans may not need it.

in the end I made a "bowl" with the above ingredients. YUMMY! Boys don't like the taco chicken so I leave some "unseasoned" for them ENJOY!

HUGE NEWS

we've paid off HOPE COLLEGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GOULISH halloween

new goal: being open to vulnerability

hoth

created by jack

monkey ball

nothing like a little wii time with mama :)

a picture is worth a thousand words

a phone call.......

game night

once there were 6........... grandma, pa, luke, me, josh and jack. and then there were 2~they were the only ones left and an hour later, josh won! i loved watching this and that they continued to play. jack only went to bed 2 hours late..... :D

booyah!

Did I tell you this already????
The other day Jack was playing Air Hockey with me and when he made a goal, he yelled out "Booyah I'm Chuck Norris!"

NO JOKE!

He didn't even know who Chuck Norris is I showed him a few Youtube Clips........ He knows now LOL

worth the read

from: http://sethadamsmith.com/2013/11/02/marriage-isnt-for-you/

Having been married only a year and a half, I’ve recently come to the conclusion that marriage isn’t for me.
Now before you start making assumptions, keep reading.
I met my wife in high school when we were 15 years old. We were friends for ten years until…until we decided no longer wanted to be just friends. :) I strongly recommend that best friends fall in love. Good times will be had by all.
Nevertheless, falling in love with my best friend did not prevent me from having certain fears and anxieties about getting married. The nearer Kim and I approached the decision to marry, the more I was filled with a paralyzing fear. Was I ready? Was I making the right choice? Was Kim the right person to marry? Would she make me happy?
Then, one fateful night, I shared these thoughts and concerns with my dad.
Perhaps each of us have moments in our lives when it feels like time slows down or the air becomes still and everything around us seems to draw in, marking that moment as one we will never forget.
My dad giving his response to my concerns was such a moment for me. With a knowing smile he said, “Seth, you’re being totally selfish. So I’m going to make this really simple: marriage isn’t for you. You don’t marry to make yourself happy, you marry to make someone else happy. More than that, your marriage isn’t for yourself, you’re marrying for a family. Not just for the in-laws and all of that nonsense, but for your future children. Who do you want to help you raise them? Who do you want to influence them? Marriage isn’t for you. It’s not about you. Marriage is about the person you married.”
It was in that very moment that I knew that Kim was the right person to marry. I realized that I wanted to make her happy; to see her smile every day, to make her laugh every day. I wanted to be a part of her family, and my family wanted her to be a part of ours. And thinking back on all the times I had seen her play with my nieces, I knew that she was the one with whom I wanted to build our own family.
My father’s advice was both shocking and revelatory. It went against the grain of today’s “Walmart philosophy”, which is if it doesn’t make you happy, you can take it back and get a new one.
No, a true marriage (and true love) is never about you. It’s about the person you love—their wants, their needs, their hopes, and their dreams. Selfishness demands, “What’s in it for me?”, while Love asks, “What can I give?”
Some time ago, my wife showed me what it means to love selflessly. For many months, my heart had been hardening with a mixture of fear and resentment. Then, after the pressure had built up to where neither of us could stand it, emotions erupted. I was callous. I was selfish.
But instead of matching my selfishness, Kim did something beyond wonderful—she showed an outpouring of love. Laying aside all of the pain and aguish I had caused her, she lovingly took me in her arms and soothed my soul.

Marriage is about family.

I realized that I had forgotten my dad’s advice. While Kim’s side of the marriage had been to love me, my side of the marriage had become all about me. This awful realization brought me to tears, and I promised my wife that I would try to be better.
To all who are reading this article—married, almost married, single, or even the sworn bachelor or bachelorette—I want you to know that marriage isn’t for you. No true relationship of love is for you. Love is about the person you love.
And, paradoxically, the more you truly love that person, the more love you receive. And not just from your significant other, but from their friends and their family and thousands of others you never would have met had your love remained self-centered.
Truly, love and marriage isn’t for you. It’s for others.

just plain busy

i am just plain busy! i think about blogging but the time slips away. i have lots to say........... just a few reminders for myself to write about:

**anniversary of tom's death this year was hard for me. 4 years. fast and slow.

**soccer season was great. we have a KEEPER :)

**O30 soccer has started back up. i too am now a keeper ;)

**thank GOD for a great hubby

crazy?

are we crazy? we hosted jack's u9 cassa team last night at our home--including the 4 of us, we had 30 here :D count in about14 of those as kids........ in our basement! it was crazy fun!!! can't wait to have these awesome folks over again.

Hockey!

this big boy moved from "learn to skate" to "learn to play hockey" in just four short weeks!!!! wooot! we are so dang proud of you lukers!!