Breakfast Stuffed Peppers

I made something really awesome for dinner earlier this week.  My husband had been talking about wanting something with sausage in it.  I had been talking to my father, and he got me craving stuffed peppers.

So I combined the two!  BREAKFAST STUFFED PEPPERS.  I started with the idea of an omelette and kind of turned it inside out.

I wish I'd taken pictures because they disappeared kinda quick.

Here's the recipe:
3 large bell peppers
1 pound breakfast sausage
6 eggs, lightly beaten
shredded cheese (I used cheddar--I didn't measure, I just added a couple handfuls, so maybe about a cup?)
any other omelette fillings you like!

Cook and crumble the sausage.  (I use a potato smasher to make sure I don't have a bunch of big chunks.)  Cool completely.

Core the peppers and cut them in half.  Mix the eggs, cheese, and other random fillings (I think spinach would be a nice addition, but I'm the only one here willing to eat spinach in that form) with the sausage.  Spoon the filling into the pepper halves.  (You might have a bit of leftover filling--I cooked mine, put it in some tortillas and froze them--instant breakfast burrito, HEY-O!)

Arrange the peppers in a GREASED baking dish and bake at 350 until done, about 30 minutes.  Seriously, spray that dish down or you're gonna be scraping baked egg out of it FOREVER that night.

I would have added other fillings, but I was drawing a blank on what goes into the omelettes I usually order at restaurants.

Anywho--it's quick and easy and good.  And they actually reheat fairly well!  Enjoy!

whoops

Last two days of gratitude!  Day 29--I am thankful for humor.  I have no clue what I'd do if I couldn't laugh on a regular basis.  It gets me through a lot of things.  I am particularly thankful for the people who can make me laugh no matter what's going on.  (Though, I'm sure the day I lost my second son, when I was on the phone with my dad and laughing because he's just so freaking funny--I'm sure that day the doctors were ready to call for an evaluation of my mental state...)

Anywho.  Laughter is like sunshine.  I need it.  I think everyone does.

Day 30--I am thankful for technology.  I love computers and airplanes (though I hate flying) and phones.  I love the fact that news travels as fast as it does these days.  I love being able to type a letter and push a button and feel relatively secure that the recipient will see it within the next day.  It's amazing what we've accomplished.  And I'm excited to see what the future holds.

30 days of Gratitude--days 27 and 28

For Day 27, I'm thankful for the internet.

It makes staying in touch with my distant family easier.  Finding things to do with the kids.  Finding places.  And recipes.  (I kinda love looking for recipes...)

I love the internet because it's introduced me to some really wonderful friends, places, ideas...it's made researching my own health conditions and how to improve them without drugs a lot easier...it's like a library. And I do love libraries.

For Day 28, I'm thankful for local libraries.  And we have some awesome ones around here.  I mean really.  Someone is letting me borrow ANY OF THEIR MANY MANY BOOKS.  For FREE.  It's an amazing system, an amazing idea, and a wonderful place.

30 days of Gratitude--Day 26

Today, I am grateful for...days like today.

I had both the kids home with me today, because school was out for the holiday weekend.  And usually, that means a day full of constant screaming and fighting and crying and throwing things and chaos.

Today was different.  They were quiet and cuddly and sweet to me and to each other.  I had time to unpack boxes and make lotion bars and look for things and play a few rounds of Plants vs. Zombies because they were just being nice.  I didn't have to raise my voice once, which is good, because I have been trying hard to nurse my sore throat back to normal today.  Normally for me that means lots of water, lots of honey, and lots of lemon slices.  Today it also meant lots of hot tea--particularly cinnamon tea, because it reminds me of my mother.

And the jeweler called and said my ring is ready.  I didn't mention that yet--I broke my wedding ring a couple weeks ago.  I was putting the dishes away and got my ring caught on a drawer pull (who DOES that?  SERIOUSLY) and it yanked the center diamond--the one that was part of my engagement ring--out.  I found it, and I was VERY glad to have done so.

I took the pieces to a local jeweler, because I don't tend to trust big name diamond merchants (wonder why that would be), and they told me everything they could about it.  I was there for a while!

So.  Good kids, lotion bars, tea, honey and lemons, getting my ring back tomorrow...I'm very grateful for days like today.

30 Days of Gratitude--days 24 and 25

Day 24--I can't believe I haven't brought this up yet--I'm thankful for my health.

I have a number of issues.  I have cholesterol problems, and I can't really seem to do much about it.  I've tried, honest I have--it just doesn't work.  It's like my liver doesn't care how many plants I eat.  Either way, I'm on meds for that.  Pleh.

And I have some other issues too.  I don't like talking about them, because it's aaaaaaawwwwkwaaaarrrd, but it's me, so here it is:  I've been pregnant five times.  My son and my daughter are both, mercifully, healthy and rambunctious today.  They have another brother between them who died when I was a month away from delivering him.  His name was Ian.  After we lost him, I lost one baby at 12 weeks and another at 8 weeks.  I breathed a sigh of relief when my daughter arrived safely.

And as irritating as the former is, and as heartbreaking as the latter is, neither of them are debilitating.  I can run.  I don't have any issues with breathing or lifting heavy things.  I have no long-term or terminal illnesses.  And for that, I am truly grateful.

Day 25--I am thankful for my church.  It is a large one, and the service we attend is loud, enthusiastic, and full of really great people.  And they're working for some good things in the community, which is important to me.

30 Days of Gratitude--Days 21-23

Yesterday was mayhem.  Cooking and unpacking and oof.

For day 21, I'm thankful we live in a good school district.  The one we moved out of was not so great, and we would have likely wound up sending our children to private school just to keep their education from sliding too far.  Our son has been doing really well, and I'm really proud of him there.  A lot of people love to hate on "the schools", but we have some good ones.

For day 22, I'm thankful we have a backyard we can just let the kids play in.  They could play in our old backyard, sure, but there wasn't a fence, so I constantly worried about cars barrelling down the alley or stray cats or a number of other things.  Yesterday, however, was nice enough that, after we ate, we pretty much opened the back door and said, "there you go, go ride your scooters" and they stayed outside till dark.  With almost no issues.  It was great.  Now all we need is a trampoline.

For day 23, I am thankful for Black Friday.  I think it's insane and overdone, but if I want to get a microscope for $12, now's the time to do it, AND it means that I can go to the grocery store and take my SWEET time with everything today and nobody will bother me because they're all at other retailers fighting each other over $12 microscopes.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 20

I should be a bit ashamed of myself here.  I never did say anything about my in-laws.  So today is for them.

We might drive each other nuts more often than not, but they're still friendly and generous.  And they're still a huge part of everything my husband is today.  (And again, with the driving nuts thing...but I digress.)  We're learning to get along better and that's important.

So today I am thankful for them.

30 Days of Gratitude--Days 18 and 19

Today, a double post (again!). For day 18, I am thankful for Cub Scouts.

I realize that's a sensitive issue.  But my son was so excited for the idea of becoming a scout, and it has helped him in ways I didn't foresee.  He is at least a little more organized, he is more obedient, and he is quite  serious about the Cub Scout Promise.

On my honor, I will do my best to do my duty to my God and my country, to help other people, and to obey the Law of the Pack.

I know that any time he starts getting out of control, or not listening, I can tell him to remember the Law of the Pack.  And he will get himself together.

(Also, nothing reminds me how well-behaved he really is like going to a den meeting.  HOLY COW.)

For day 19, I am thankful for a law.  Specifically, I live in Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania requires annual vehicle inspections.  And as much as I haaaate paying for inspections (and anything that turns up during said inspections), I am grateful that, say, problems with my brakes get found BEFORE I careen into the back of another vehicle at the bottom of a steep hill.  And since steep hills are plentiful around here...

Maybe day 19 should have been gratitude for having a good mechanic.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 17

Today I am thankful for weekends.

This is a busy one for us--my son had a Cub Scout thing today, he has another one tomorrow, we went to IKEA to get some new dressers for our room--but for all of it, we were all together, and we had all day for it.  

Okay, maybe going through IKEA with the whole family is a little more chaos than I really appreciate.

But still.  We had a lot to get done and I was grateful to have a good day for it.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 16

Today I am grateful for books.

This isn't going to turn into one of those posts; at least, I hope it won't.  I just love to read.  I love discovering new stories and planning who would play each character in the movie, if casting was up to me.  I love learning little things about the world and imagining what faraway destinations look like.  I love archetypes and finding them in stories.

The fact that we can learn so much from them is just a bonus.  :)

30 Days of Gratitude--Days 14 and 15

I've already kind of bombed NaBloPoMo, haven't I?  Oh well.  Counting my blessings is still a good thing...

Day 14--I'm grateful for the change in seasons.  I might not like winter, but when I say that I usually mean that I don't like snow, or salt all over the place, or the sludge at the edge of the road that turns gray with the exhaust of passing cars.  But I do like soft sweaters, and warm mugs of cider, and crock pots full of soup, and football.

And I might not like the extreme heat of summer.  But I do like sunshine and days by the pool and popsicles.

I'm grateful I get to experience both, and I've never really lived anywhere that didn't offer both.

Day 15--I'm thankful for the Disney Channel.  I know that sounds weird, but...

We watch a LOT of Disney here.  Mostly because I have two young kids.  My son is less interested these days, and admittedly a lot of the shows are a bit dubious, but there's no foul language for them to pick up.  Nothing to give them nightmares.  No stunts they're going to try to imitate.  And--this was my favorite part about it until last Tuesday--NO POLITICAL ADS.  Which means I completely missed all of the juvenile "MY OPPONENT SAID THIS!" sorts of ads.  My election season was peaceful except for the people who came to my door to try and force their opinion on me, and I credit that largely to the Disney Channel.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 13

Today, I am thankful for my friends.  They have gotten me through many things, probably without even realizing it.  Or without meaning to.  They got me through the loss of my second son, the loss of my mother, the chaos of my pregnancy with my daughter, moving halfway across the country.  They have helped me laugh more.  They have come to me when they needed rides somewhere or help making a meal.

It's been wonderful having all of them around me.  I am never lonely.

30 Days of Gratitude, Days 11 and 12

Day 11--since everyone is doing it, and since I've already been grateful for our freedoms, I'll take the 11th to be grateful for the soldiers who provided it.  I lived in a military town until last year, so I was a little closer to seeing how their families were affected, but it means I also got to witness homecomings.  The times I would be driving down the street in time to watch a man in uniform get out of a car and have someone come flying out of the house and into his arms always brought tears to my eyes.  Theirs too, I'm sure.

But even if everyone has been saying this today, it's important to remember how many times we've come close to losing everything.  World War II, after Pearl Harbor, the fighting wasn't here.  The most recent war, after the attacks, the fighting wasn't here.  We sent our soldiers thousands of miles away for all of that.

Day 12--The bumper sticker I've seen related to this says "If you can read this, thank a teacher.  If it's in English, thank a veteran."  So today...I thank those who have educated me.  All of them, even the teachers I don't really want to thank because they made it their business to tell me I was kidding myself by setting my goals high.  But also the ones who said "Screw those people, let me show you a really cool algorithm."  Even if I'm not using my degree today, I know I can because I had a lot of awesome people showing me the way.

30 Days of Gratitude--Days 9 and 10

I'm behind, so two bits of gratitude in one!

For Day 9, and in the spirit of Day 8, I am thankful for my husband's fraternity.  He is a Delta Chi and they're amazing.  I love his chapter brothers and I'm thankful to count them as friends.  (I'd say more here, but since I'm not a Delta Chi AND I'm not my husband, I'm not sure how to quantify it.)

For Day 10, I am thankful for my warm home in a nice town.  I love Pittsburgh (and our little suburb of it) and I love our house.  We just moved in last month, and I think we've gone a long way toward making it our home.  It's full of noise on a regular basis, but I guess that's the way I roll.  It is not lost on me how lucky I am to have a roof over my head and a refrigerator full of food.  I am thankful to be indoors, not hungry, and have at least a passing idea of what we're doing for breakfast in the morning.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 8

So, um, I forgot this yesterday.  :(  In my defense, yesterday was nonstop chaos.

For Day 8, I am thankful for my sisters.  I am in a sorority.  I don't often mention it, not because I'm not proud (I am), but because the subject doesn't often come up.

Joining Theta Phi Alpha was the best decision I ever made.  And I mean that in full.  It is why I met my husband, it is why I finished college, it is why I have some of the best friends I could ever have asked for.

I never, even for a second, entertained the notion of joining a sorority prior to my first semester of college.  Had no interest in it.  But then I got there, and it was huge and loud and intimidating.  I was 800 miles away from the only home I'd ever known, seventeen years old, and alone.  That didn't last long--I went to the Greek mixer and wound up talking to the most amazing group of women.  After five minutes, we were talking like we were old friends who just needed to catch up a little bit.  Ten weeks later, I was initiated.  Fourteen years later, I love them with all my heart.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 7

Today I am grateful for coffee shops.

Stay with me here.

We recently moved (as in, three weeks ago) and today, I went to coffee with my old neighbor, S.  S is a really nice lady, always offering to help people and always laughing.  I miss her, and I'll miss her even more when she moves to the other side of the state in the next few days.  So we got together for coffee, and had a nice long conversation over our lattes about everything--religion and the election and our mutual love for music and whiskey.  All the while, we watched as my daughter wandered around our table and made the man at the next table laugh.  She liked him too, and they kept laughing at each other.

I know coffee shops can draw some real unfriendly customers, the sort of people who scream at the barista and treat all the other customers as beneath them, but I've never encountered them.  The people I encounter in coffee shops are friendly and at peace with themselves and with the world.  Coffee shops bring out the best in a lot of people.  So I am thankful for coffee shops, and coffee and conversation with good friends.

30 days of Gratitude--Day 6

Today it seems pretty obvious, I'm thankful for our freedoms.

We live in a country that peacefully changes power on a semi-regular basis.  In other areas, that is completely unimaginable, because a change of power means a revolution.

Two of my friends this morning on Facebook posted about their paths to citizenship, and how proud they were to take that path.  My neighbor (at least, my neighbor at the old place) is from Syria, and she tells me regularly how amazingly free we are here.

We're free enough that I can come out and say it:  I don't particularly like either of the major party candidates.  But I do have one that I prefer over the other, and I am free to keep my silence on that matter and carry it with me to my grave.

Whatever happens in the days to come, the vast majority of my freedoms will not be in jeopardy.  That is amazing.

30 Days of Gratitude--day 5

Today, I am grateful for my faith.

I am a miserable excuse for a Christian.  I am greedy and nasty and jealous and vulgar and angry.  But I am also blessed with an assurance that, one of these days, I'll be able to get past that.  My faith is what gets me through the worst moments and makes me want to dance for the best.

I love the Lord, and I am grateful that He loves me.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 4

Today, I am thankful for my children.  They are loud and constantly in my face and they freak out about everything.  But they are really good to each other, and they're adorable and sweet and thoughtful.  They know their manners and they're smart and funny.  I am so proud of them and so lucky to have them in my life.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 3

Today, I'm gonna be thankful for my sister.

We don't always get along, but she is awesome.  She is funny and smart and is a good mother and aunt.  I really have to admit...I'm not sure what I can say about her without embarrassing us both (but hey...we kinda grew up together soooo there's that).  But really.  She's amazing.  I'm lucky to have her.

30 Days of Gratitude--Day 2

Today I'll talk about my husband, because I'm thankful for him.  (See?  I told you I'd talk about him.)

When we met, he was the shy sort.  So it was really out of character when he walked straight up to me and introduced himself.  I was a shy sort, too...and being seventeen years old and in my first semester of college didn't help there.  But he introduced himself, and quickly became close friends.

He is smart and funny and sweet and I totally don't deserve him.  He is my best friend.  It is because of him that I have the ability to be a stay-at-home mom (which I love way more than I thought I would...but that is a post for another day).  He is my balance--when I'm ill-tempered, he's the calm one.

I don't get all sappy about him often, at least not publicly.  Mostly because I know it'll annoy people.  But if I were the sort to post every random thing that crosses my mind, I'd talk about him daily.  Several times a day, actually.

Our son is turning out a lot like him in every way.  And while sometimes that's really frustrating...it's also a lot to be proud of.

30 days of Gratitude--Day 1

I'm going to give this NaBloPoMo thing a try--and combine it with the 30 days of thanks thing I've seen a few people do on facebook.

Every one of my friends who is doing this on Facebook--all of them--started today by being thankful for their spouse.  Not that there's anything wrong with it...but I'm starting with my parents.

My parents.  I probably drove them absolutely bonkers.  But they were still awesome.  Mom was the one who always volunteered in our classroom, made cakes and candies, came up with all kinds of crafts...you know the sort.  I wish I was more like her that way.  Mom lost her battle with cancer two weeks after my daughter was born.  I miss her terribly but I am very grateful she's free of pain.

Dad was always building something when I was growing up.  He likes computers and carpentry and metalworking and...like I said.  Building stuff.  It amazed me then, amazes me still.  I get to talk to him often but I miss getting to hang out with him.

So that's today.  Today I'm thankful for my parents.

(Don't worry, being thankful for my husband is coming.  eventually.)

Farmer's Market Sangria

Oh, I wish I took pictures of my projects. I don't, mostly because my life, my apartment, my kitchen, and my dining room table are all a colossal mess that I don't want to subject everyone to the horror of it all. I tell myself it's the nature of moving cross country and unprepared with two young kids. :) Anyway. I decided, some time ago, that I wanted to try making a Farmer's Market Sangria. This may not count as a true sangria, because most of the recipes for sangria I've seen involve citrus fruit of some sort. But this is Pennsylvania, and one thing we don't see locally sourced is citrus. We're just that way. Here's what I suggest trying: *Go to the fruit farmer's tent. Get some berries. I chose strawberries and cherries. *Go to the winery tent. Get a 750mL bottle of a sweet red wine. I chose a blueberry wine that is really fabulous--I mean, so fabulous I think my husband may even voluntarily enjoy a glass. That's...it, really. Pour the wine into a pitcher. Wash and quarter about one and a half cups of strawberries. Add them to the pitcher. Wash and pit about half a cup of cherries. Add THEM to the pitcher. Pop it in the fridge and wait for a few hours so the flavors can mingle a little bit and get to know each other. And--this step is completely optional--add a cup of ginger ale or club soda when you're ready to serve. It was light, flavorful, and cheerful. And I am really sorry, I didn't take pictures of everything.

READ!

Ray Bradbury was 91 years old when he passed away this week, so I think he'd earned the right to a peaceful departure, but his loss is still sharp. Fahrenheit 451...I know a lot of people probably claim to love it, but it's true, I really do love it. (What is it about dystopian novels that draws us in?) Mr. Bradbury once said that it was his only work of science fiction, because it was the one that could truly come to pass. A number of people have argued that that isn't the case, they'd never outlaw books, the whole wraparound television thing isn't coming. What Bradbury was alluding to was much more subtle by today's standards. We see it all the time: someone in line at the grocery store, constantly on the phone because they can't be bothered to actually interact with the person that's standing right in front of them. Constantly texting instead of having dinner with the family. Video games and movies instead of going outside and playing a game of baseball (though given the speed with which people drive, which he ALSO mentioned...) His slippery slope argument is indeed just that, but to a degree, it's already coming true. Books are challenged by groups all the time in an attempt to have them removed from schools or public libraries, because we can't be exposing our children--or anyone else's--to certain ideas. If they read any Harry Potter books, they might get the idea that they can brew potions and such (though good luck finding powdered horn of bicorn). If they read The Grapes of Wrath, they might figure out that life during the depression was not terribly idyllic. If they read What's Happening to my Body?, they might find something out in a way that doesn't make it awkward for them. Are some books dangerous, as the society in Fahrenheit 451 so ardently believes? Maybe. I've read a lot of banned and challenged books, and I've never read one I'd categorize as dangerous. Fire will never destroy them, it matters not how many copies get burned.

Farmer's Market Monday: First day of the season

I love farmer's markets. The people there are just amazing, and the variety of booths...wow. Today the market seemed a bit more expensive than the grocery store. The strawberries were $5 per pound, and at the store they're half that, that sort of thing. It'll get better as summer goes on, of that I am sure. But I did buy a few things. There was a booth run by ladies who were giving away samples of their salsas, and I bought a jar of their Extra Hot (which is, indeed, extra hot--and extra wonderful). I also got a jar of low sugar strawberry jam. Then we wandered over to the area my son kept trying to drag me over to and bought some cookies the size of my head. All over the place people were barbecuing and selling fresh pirogi batches and popping kettle corn...oh I love farmer's markets. I was just a little dismayed at the prices for produce. And local wines. Next time, I'll bring more cash so I can score a bottle. For now, though, I've been contemplating that jar of jam. And the pie crust in the refrigerator that I've got to do something about. And maybe, just maybe, getting some lemon curd tomorrow so I can make lemon strawberry tarts. If they work, you'll be hearing all about them. :)

Ice cream time!

So earlier today, in spite of the cool(ish) and rainy weather, the kids were clamoring for ice cream. And I found all the pieces to my ice cream maker a couple weeks ago. Coincidence? I think not... After a (mostly) failed trip to Jo-ann, I ran to the store and grabbed the ingredients for ice cream. Feeling a little nostalgic, I also picked up some candy to mix into it. I remember making ice cream during the summers when I was growing up. I think my mom did it in part to get us out of the house. But she always, always mixed the custard for vanilla ice cream. And every time, she stopped us halfway through to add broken pieces of Skor bars. Those were her favorite--I never saw her eat one, but every time we made ice cream, we added those toffee bits. Every time we went to Dairy Queen, she got a Heath Bar Blizzard. This time, I chose Mini M&Ms. And the children rejoiced. I admit I cheated--I didn't mix everything from scratch. I bought a packet of Junket Very Vanilla ice cream mix and the ingredients it listed on the label (which amounts to heavy whipping cream and whole milk--neither of which I use much of, so thankfully I can buy it in sufficiently small quantities). Mix and pour into the ice cream maker. Technology makes it so easy and fast. I'm not going to be able to send my kids outside for a few hours to turn the crank on one of those old style ice cream machines unless I get rid of this fancy thing. I may have to find one of those old crank ones, just because it's part of summer that kids shouldn't miss out on. Anyway, the ice cream was faboo. DH actually ate two big bowls full. I think that means I need to make more soon.

Reflections and self-spoiling

Today is my mother's birthday. She would have been 59. Perhaps this is what led me to search for her name yesterday, when I stumbled across a post someone left in a guestbook for one of her online obituaries. She left a sweet little bit about how she, my mother, and one other lady had all been best friends in high school. N--the other lady--died in a car accident at the age of 19. Nobody had reached out to this poor woman when my mom passed, and she did not find out until about a year and a half after it happened. So I think I'll be sending her a letter soon. If I tracked down the right woman, that is...otherwise I'm sending a letter to a woman I have zero connections to, and she'll simply be confused. Anyway. All this Debbie Downer-ism kind of left me in the mood to share one of my favorite things. Chocolate Sugar Body Scrub. Originally found on Pinterest, I've traced the recipe to Chasing Cheerios, and it is indeed wonderful. In a bowl, mix: 2 cups brown sugar 6 tablespoons cocoa powder 2 tablespoons vanilla extract 1/4 cup olive oil Put in an airtight container. The bad news: it makes a total mess of the bathroom. The good news: everything will smell like brownies! Plus your skin will feel soft and wonderful. It's a nice treat at the end of a bad day. Note that everything in it is edible, but just because you CAN doesn't mean you SHOULD. It is not delicious. Anyway. Thinking of my mom today, and her wonderful friends. And getting ready to go spoil myself with chocolate. And then perhaps some chocolate.

The Hunger Games

I finally persuaded my husband to get an e-book copy of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins for our Nooks. He's been half-disinterested in reading it. I hadn't made up my mind until I considered it for a little while. Everyone I know who has read the books--every last one of them--LOVED it. That's never happened with any book I've heard my friends speak about before. Some of them LOVED the Harry Potter series, a lot of them thought it was too shallow for them. Some of them LOVE the Dresden Files books, many are lukewarm-ish to the ones they've read. Ayn Rand, most of my friends actually really hate her books. There's a couple of people who like them. All the books we were ever assigned to read in classes. There's never once been a case where absolutely everyone agreed. But everyone I've spoken to LOVED The Hunger Games. And I finally caved in to peer pressure, and started reading the first book last night. I am currently five pages away from the end. I can honestly say, it isn't just the story line that drew me in. The story is mesmerizing, don't get me wrong, but the voice with which it's written caught me completely off guard. I enjoy first-person narratives, and particularly this one, because it's a lot less like a story and a lot more like a conversation with my sister. The one part of it my husband and I discussed was from a very early point in the book. I'd been reading a free sample, and I could only describe the author as very blunt. My husband was intrigued by one of the subtleties the author had laid for us. After talking about it for a moment, we discovered he'd used the word "subtle" to describe the same exact sentence in the book that made me call it "blunt". If that makes any sense. Anyway. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, at least as much as one CAN enjoy a book about a post-apocalyptic fight to the death involving children. And I think it's mostly because the way Collins tells the story (through Katniss's eyes) feels so very raw. So. That's today's odd little bit of sunshine.

Memorial Day

Today's post could only have been about one thing. As I understand it, Americans have a global reputation for being greedy, slovenly, bloodthirsty, arrogant, ignorant, pretentious--the list goes on and on. And that is a pity. I have a hunch that the majority of the people who hold that opinion of our people have never been to America, or if they have, have never made it out of a major city. Or perhaps they've never met an American; or if they have, they've only met the poorest examples of Americans. So seeing these examples and saying what they do would be rather like me reading one article about a French person and calling the whole country drunken and debauched. It isn't true. I've not been to France, but it seems like it would be a lovely country with wonderful traditions, and I'd love to have the opportunity to see it someday. But this country I know a little something about. And I've met many examples of greed, and laziness, and arrogance. But I've met far more people who are generous. Helpful. Humble. Innovative. Intelligent. Open-minded. I've seen volunteers who feed the hungry on a regular basis, because it's the right thing to do. Many of my friends speak at least three languages. (Personally, I will confess that I am no longer fluent in Spanish, and I speak just barely enough Japanese to get myself into trouble.) As a student at a STEM-focused university, I met extremely intelligent students with invention ideas that, should they come to fruition, will change the world. American researchers have made great inroads into scientific discoveries. I wish the world could see these examples. I'm not sure when opinions about America and her citizens took such a hard left turn, but it pains me to see it, because I love this country. We are ultimately blessed to have things like clean water, access to fresh food, the right to voice our opinions, choose our own church, go where we want whenever we want...the list, again, goes on and on. And a large number of these things we would not have today were it not for the bravery of our soldiers who have fought to keep our land safe. Starting today, I renew my promise to not take these things for granted.

Sunday Fun

So I mentioned that, every once in a while, my daily drop of sunshine would be something personal. And today is one of those days. After lunch today, we took the kids to the public pool for a couple hours. The local public pool is actually a really nice one. It was very warm today, and surprisingly enough, the pool was not really all that busy. We had plenty of space to play. I spent the entire time up at the toddler pool with A2. My husband was down at the main pool with A1 for most of the time. They had a lot of fun and got a bit sunburned (but mostly they're okay, which is saying a lot for two kids of Scandinavian descent on a bright day), and played and played and played. Afterward, I asked my husband if he wanted to go anywhere else...and he said no, until I mentioned the idea of ice cream. :) So we went to Dairy Queen, and got some treats. I got the kids chocolate malts--partially because I thought they would enjoy them, but mostly because they'd have lids and straws and let's face it, they're messy critters. On the way home, A2's cup started to tip over. She righted it, then started to lick a dribble of chocolate from her hand. And as she stuck her tongue out and put her hand to her mouth--she slowed down, her eyes dropped shut and she fell asleep. With her hand in midair and her tongue hanging out. We all enjoyed a good laugh there. Anywho, they also wore themselves out enough that they're good and asleep now. And probably will be all night. :)

how do you choose a favorite charity?

I had the best problem the other day. One of the newsletters I subscribe to is Tastelite. Every time he gets ready to leave for a cooking gig (he's a yacht chef), he starts a contest that he calls ”Where in the World is Chef Jeff”. We get one clue. This time, my guess was San Diego. My prize was $100 donated to my favorite charity. It's tough to choose one! I could have chosen something related to my sorority, because our centennial Convention is fast approaching. Or to veterans, because I believe that our country has a responsibility to care for the people who have fought for our freedom. Or to breast cancer, because my mother's birthday is also fast approaching and she would have been 59 this year. Or any number of things. It's tough to choose, because there are so many things that mean a great deal to me. I eventually asked that the money be given to St. Jude Children's Hospital, because what they do there is amazing and well worth supporting. This is the best problem to have, and I'm grateful it was one I had.

I suggest a new strategy, R2. Let the Wookiee win.

It's nerd time!

One of my friends pointed out that the original Star Wars film debuted in theaters 35 years ago today.  I was not there--I was still four years away from being born, so I have an excuse.

Since then, being a Star Wars nerd has kind of turned into one of my defining characteristics.  I didn't realize it until one Thanksgiving when we were at my parents' house, and my husband and father were discussing something.  I rounded the corner in time to hear my husband say, "Barbara will know, she's a Star Wars nerd!  Who was it that played Obi-Wan?"

My response was, "Okay, first of all, I am NOT a Star Wars nerd, and second of all, it was Sir Alec Guinness."

Mom laughed so hard she snorted.  Which got us all laughing.

But it's true, and it makes me happy.  I love most everything about the series.  My favorite movie is The Empire Strikes Back, and I actually don't hate the most recent movies like everyone else seems to.  They aren't the best, but I definitely enjoyed the stories.  If they could be done over again with a different cast, they'd be far better.

I'm off to start watching the series again.  See you all tomorrow.

removing Jello stains

I can't speak for other people.  But some days, my daughter's clothing is a good introduction to her...

"HI!  Today I had a cold but I also ate a hot dog and some jello and some chocolate milk and played in the grass and scraped my elbow and accidentally got into the brown sugar and crawled under my bed and I like to draw!"

Today, it was the jello one that had me really freaked out.

She was wearing one of her favorite shirts today--my husband got it for her during his last business trip to California.  It has his company's logo on it, along with Elmo.

Usually, if she's going to be eating something messy, I'll take her shirt off of her before she starts eating, because she is NOT a neat eater.  Especially with Jello.  ESPECIALLY with raspberry Jello.

And I did.  And she still managed to get stains everywhere.

So I tried everyone's favorite quick stain remover, in a modified version.  I made a thin paste of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide and dabbed it on her shirt.  A few minutes later, I rinsed it off...and now I think I'm gonna have to soak her whole shirt in a solution like this, because WHOA it removed stains I could not even see.

Wonder if this will work on the carpet where she dropped a big blob of it.

Remind me, why do I feed her Jello at all? Oh, right, because they love it and because it's summer....

Super pretty magnet time!

So remember the magnets I had holding up the Summer Cricut sign a few posts ago?

I made more today as an end-of-year gift for my son's teacher.  And here is the tutorial!

I found this idea originally on Pinterest.  It is super easy, super fun, and super cute.

First up, assemble your supplies.  You will need:

(please ignore my daughter's lunch at the edge there.)

• some scissors
• a pencil
• a sheet of scrapbook paper that you like
• a bag of large clear flat glass stones (available in the floral area of your craft store)
• a tube of E-6000 glue
• a glue gun
• some good strong magnets (the magnets I have pictured are ideal for this--strong enough to hold something to the refrigerator, but not so strong as to rip works of art)
• a nice cup of tea

Trace the stones onto the paper.  I would suggest doing a few at a time--they aren't uniform in size or shape, so that kinda makes this step a tedious one.

Cut the circles out.  Put a glob of E-6000 on one of the stones, squish its paper circle onto the glue.  Repeat for all the stones.

While those dry, enjoy your tea.  You've earned it.  :)

Break out your glue gun, put a dab of hot glue on the back of the paper, and add a magnet.  Once again, repeat for all the stones.  (Realistically, you can use whatever kind of adhesive you think will work best here.  I used Krazy Glue on these--I don't recommend it.  It leaves a dark-ish spot on the other side of the paper that you can see through the magnets.)

And...that's it.  You're all set!

I'd post a picture of the finished product, but I haven't figured out the packaging yet (and I can't find my real camera--had to use my phone for the one I got).  Hopefully tomorrow?

Making yogurt!

I know I said it wasn't going to be today's post...but it's been one of those days.  I'm not feeling well (but if a sore throat and a touch of fatigue are the worst of my complaints, I've got it good) and don't really feel up to writing tonight.  But days like this are exactly what made me decide to try to do this.

I made yogurt yesterday.  I follow the instructions that are on Crockpot365, at least mostly.  Her instructions include times for everything; but I've been doing this long enough to know that my crock pot is old and cannot do things at the same rate as hers.  After careful reading, I've learned the temperatures involved and have been using my candy thermometer to do this ever since.

This is my general rundown:

INGREDIENTS:
1 half gallon 2% milk
1/2 cup live active plain yogurt
1/2 cup dry nonfat powdered milk (optional)
1/2 cup sugar (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)

Pour that half gallon of milk in your crockpot.  Turn it to low.  Check the temperature every hour or so--Crockpot 365 says this step takes 2 1/2 hours, I've discovered mine takes more like 3 1/2.  Either way, get your milk up to 180 degrees.

ONCE IT'S THAT HOT, turn off your crock pot and let it sit for a few hours.  Your target temperature this time is 110 degrees.  (Otherwise it'll kill the live active cultures in the yogurt--kind of like making bread.  Start off with your liquid too hot, and the yeast doesn't do anything at all.)

Scoop out some of the milk from your crock pot.  Mix it with your yogurt and your powdered milk.  If you're using the sweetener and the vanilla, add it now.  Stir the mixture back into your warm milk in your crock pot.

A note, before I go on:  the powdered milk is optional.  I add it mostly because, otherwise, this recipe tends to be a bit on the thin side for my tastes.

Now for the strange part:  Put the lid back on, then wrap your crock pot in a heavy blanket.  Fold up another heavy blanket and put it on top.  Scoot everything away from the reach of marauding toddlers.

Wait eight hours.

Unwrap everything, and behold your glorious homemade yogurt.

Then scoop it into jars for storing in the refrigerator.  I usually put 1/2 cup into its own tiny container and stash it in the freezer--that way, I don't have to buy another tub of yogurt to do my next batch!

This will keep for about a week to a week and a half.

But what if I'm lactose intolerant?


I've never tried it with soy milk or the like, but I have friends...the general impression I've gotten is: almond milk works a lot better than soy milk.  Instead of the milk powder I have seen recommendations to use tapioca starch in its place.

SO now I have fresh yogurt in my refrigerator.  I'm gonna have a big scoop of it tomorrow with a frozen fruit cup (thawed of course, eating a big frozen chunk of anything does not sound groovy).


With a little luck, tomorrow will be a craft thing day.

Chicken Pillows

I was GOING to post something today about the yogurt that I am currently making.  That's gonna wait for another day, because what I am super excited about now is tonight's dinner.  I made Chicken Pillows.

No pictures, because mine did not look as pretty as the ones she made.  :(

The recipe I cobbled together is:
8 oz softened cream cheese (I used low fat)
1/2 cup sour cream (again, low fat)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped chives (I didn't have any chives.  So I used rosemary.)
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh minced onion
3 cups cubed cooked chicken

Mix those ingredients together in a bowl.

Open 2 8 ounce cans of crescent rolls.  Press the seams of two of them together to make a rectangle.  Put about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture in the middle of each, and fold the edges over the top.  Make sure there aren't any leaks or things get messy!

Dip your pillows in melted butter, then in bread crumbs.  Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.  I served them with fresh steamed broccoli, because we all love broccoli.

There's a gravy recipe on the site linked to above, but I spaced on making it.  :(  Maybe next time.

But the thing is--we all loved it.  My husband even asked me what goes into them, and he NEVER asks about what goes into a recipe.

Anyway.  Good dinner days make me very happy.

The yogurt post will probably be Wednesday--I don't want to turn this into a food blog!

What's in my garden

I am not much of a grower of things.

As in, I'm really bad with plants.  Most of them I just can't figure out.  So here, in our little apartment, all I have in pots on the patio are lavender, rosemary, basil, peppers and tomatoes.  I so far have one tiny tomato on my plant.  I'm hopeful it won't be the only one.

What I'm really excited about is the rosemary.  It's going nuts!  I've never had a rosemary plant behave this well.  Maybe it's the soil.

I have a good healthy bunch of it that I've snipped off the bush, and once it's dried, I'm going to put it in what's left of my bottle of olive oil.  A note:  any herb-oil infusions you make, the herbs MUST be dried.  Otherwise you're tainting your oil with water--which can and will set off some bacteria.  It's bad news.  So.  Dry your herbs.

I DO have a dehydrator, and I'll post some stuff about that later this summer when the farmer's market starts back up.  For the rosemary I have now though, the dehydrator would have been a bit of overkill, so they're air drying.

So in a week or so, I'll have rosemary infused olive oil for marinades and sautees and...it's gonna be fun.  :)

Mama's New Toy: The Cricut

My dear husband gave me a Cricut for Mother's Day.  I love it so far, and I've barely scratched the surface of what this thing is capable of.

The very first thing I made was some letters.  I had a vision in mind for something I wanted to put in the scrapbook of my parents' wedding photos, and the Cricut I got came pre-loaded with the perfect one:

(Those were the photos I got from their reception.)

A few days later, my newest cartridge arrived for it.  I made a card:

I'm planning to send it to my son while he's at camp.  :)  I also programmed it to cut out the envelope, but that was how I learned NOT to use heavy paper for envelopes.  I'll find a lighter paper and try it again.  (The grasshopper in the picture above is also supposed to have a frame around it, but I rather unwisely cut it out of the same light green paper.  So...no frame for the time being.

Then, just to show off the layers feature, I made a little thing:

In the yellow:  the Silhouette feature.  The red paper shows the Layers, and the orange is the Shadow.

Assembled, it looks a little something like this:

(The magnets are a future post--I have more to make!)

The Layers are a little hard to see , but there's two dots underneath the first M, and the other accents are inside the U, the E and the R.

And like I said, I've barely scratched the surface of what I can do.  I know people who have made their own stickers, or vinyl clings, or labels...I could go on and on.

Anywho.  With the number of scrapbooks I have coming up to make, this thing is going to get a LOT of use.  I'm thinking once Adrian's camp scrapbook gets underway, this Summer cutout will go in it.

There are some significant drawbacks to a Cricut--not the least of which is the cost.  The machines are NOT cheap, especially if you want to be able to use all the cartridges they sell.  There is a much less expensive model available, but rather than cartridges, you have to use your computer, and I'm not sure what designs are available that way.  The cartridges are expensive too--if you're lucky, you can find them on sale at the local crafts stores for $35.  Otherwise they're anywhere from $40 to $90.

The sticky mats don't last forever--but I'm told there's a way to re-stick them.  Haven't tried it, will let you know when I do.

What truly sold me on wanting one was when one of the ladies I talk to told me her kids use hers for school projects.  I can imagine this thing will help make any poster cool, no matter how boring the subject matter has the potential to be.  :)  (Cuz let's face it, we all remember some of our class projects being VERY boring.)

My husband is right, my mother would have loved this sort of thing.

SOS Mix

Before I begin, I should mention that at least for a while, this is going to look a lot like my Pinterest boards.  The difference is mostly going to be that the stuff I'm putting here is stuff I have tried and will do again.

So like I mentioned yesterday, I like to cook.  And a lot of times, that involves cans of cream of whatever soup.  (Most recipes are specific--cream of mushroom, cream of broccoli, and so on...but I decided a long time ago, I don't care.)  Canned cream soup comes, usually, with a number of considerable drawbacks.

First, although it isn't a diet plan I follow, several of my friends do...and they tell me it's difficult to find gluten free cream soup.  Of course, you could make your own, but that's time consuming and not that easy to store without a lot of freezer space.

Second, have you ever looked at the sodium content of a can of cream soup?  It's terrifying!  I don't tend to make a huge fuss over most labels--sodium and cholesterol are two of the places I'll make an exception.

There's a number of things I'm sure I'm forgetting, but those are my two main ones.

So when I joined Pinterest and started reading One Good Thing by Jillee, one of the first things she posted that I read was about a bag of Soup or Sauce Mix her neighbor gave her.

Effectively, it's a powdered mix using ingredients available in most kitchens that you can use to make sauces.  Or the equivalent of a can of cream of chicken soup.

The ingredients are:
2 cups powdered non-fat dry milk (which is available at most grocery stores, either in the baking aisle or near the evaporated milk)
3/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup instant chicken bouillon (regular or low-sodium--I used low sodium)
2 Tbsp dried onion flakes
2 tsp Italian seasoning (optional)

Mix well and place into a resealable container (whether it's a bag, a jar, whatever you want to use)

To use, mix 1/3 cup of the mix with 1 1/4 cups cold water and simmer till it's creamy.

There's a wealth of information available at the link above--Jillee includes pictures and lots of wonderful information.

I've used it in a number of recipes so far, and I honestly don't know that I'll buy cream of whatever soup again anytime soon.  It isn't something I just eat on a regular basis, it's always been recipes, and flavor wise?  This is almost better.  I think it's creamier, and I KNOW it's less salty.

Anyway, that's my bright spot for the day.  Maybe tomorrow's will include pictures!  I DID find my camera battery...

Reboot!

Well.  After wandering away for (ahem) two years, we're going to try this again.

And this time, it's in my list of daily bookmarks, so I am (hopefully) going to be able to stay focused.

Welcome to Seeking Sunshine.  My goal here is to post one thing a day that I have tried and loved.  Or something that puts a big ol' goofy smile on my face.  Some of the things may well be personal in nature (kids' birthdays, my upcoming sorority Convention, that sort of thing), but I'll still post projects, recipes, DIY sorts of things.  You will notice I am passionate about a number of things:

Good Books.  I love to read, and I love to read recommendations from friends, and I love to recommend books to friends.  And I love to read to my children, and I love that they love to read/have stories read to them.  Granted, reading recommended books backfires on occasion (I once read The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand because someone I trusted recommended it to me--I hated it and it may well be one of the only books I've ever thrown away).  Most of the time it works out (I also once read the Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher on the recommendation of a friend, and now it's one of my favorites).

Good Food.  I love to cook and eat and eat and eat.  If I post enough recipes, you'll notice I am not diabetic, abstaining from alcohol, vegetarian, gluten-free, lactose intolerant, etc.  I kind of like the old joke that I'm on the seafood diet--I see food, I eat it.  There's exceptions (I seem to be allergic to mushrooms, and brussels sprouts are not allowed in my house), but mostly, I like food.

That said, if you have recommendations for altering a recipe so that it is friendly toward any of those ends, I am all ears.  Particularly if it helps me lower my cholesterol.

Crafts.  I am not, in general, a terribly arty person.  I like to scrapbook, but I've noticed that my scrapbooks look kind of amateurish next to people who are really good at it.  I'm very much a beginner there.  But I think it's fun and hey.  My memories are preserved!  I also like to sew, but I'm not entirely certain where my sewing machine is at the moment.

Nerdery.  I think we've all got a geeky side.  :)

Football.  I love football season, and I think they could benefit from making it longer.  I totally understand why they can't play dozens of games per season, but I live for the start of preseason.  I am lucky enough to have three teams I can claim some semblance of hometown loyalty to, so unless it's a really bad week, I'll be cheering for SOMEONE who will win...

Anyway.  My name is Barbara.  I am a stay at home mother to two wonderful kids--A1 is a six year old boy with high spirits, A2 is his rough and tumble sister who is two-and-a-half years old.  I live in Pennsylvania, though I am a Kansas girl to the core.

That about sums it up.  If you made it through all that, hats off to you.  I promise I'll talk less tomorrow.