A few funnies

At 10:00 PM....
Me: Anna, put the book away and turn off the light?
Anna:  Mommy, aren't you happy?  I was reading my Bible and read two stories.
Me:  Anna, I am happy you read two stories from your Bible...but not happy you are doing it so late after I have already put you to bed.
Anna (in a "I know I am busted but maybe if I use a cute, sweet voice my mom will ignore my disobedience" voice):  Mommy, those were great stories.  I am so glad I am learning to love reading.
~~~~~
Kate:  Mommy, where was that one lady from at the party?
Me:  She was Indian from India.
Kate:  Wow!  She didn't look like an Indian.  Where were her feathers?
Me:  Kate...she was from India, not a Native American Indian.
Kate:  Oh.
Me:  Remember we have learned about India.  Which ocean is it near?
Kate:  The Indian Ocean.
Me:  Correct.
Kate:  We have been there.  I remember.
Me:  Kate...that was Indian Lake.
~~~~~
Earlier this week the girls pretended to be on a mission trip and slept in the guest room on the floor in their sleeping bags.  Anna actually ended up in her bed at some point in the night but Kate woke up too at a different time in the night and convinced Anna to come back to the guest room.  When they woke up in the morning they told me all this and said they enjoyed their night in Egypt.  Kate then asked if people in Africa were poor and sometimes ate on the floor in their home.  After I confirmed her suspicion, she and Anna then proceeded to eat their breakfast cereal on the floor of the kitchen because they were in Africa.
~~~~~
I love to watch, hear, see my girls reinact either stories we have read or clean, wholesome shows/movies we have watched.  We have been on a Cosby Show kick lately.  While eating breakfast in AFRICA Anna was explaining that Old Yeller howls and Mrs. Old Yeller growls and bites.  To truly appreciate this retelling you must watch the full episode but click here  for Cliff's explanation of Old Yeller and click here for the explanation of Old Yeller and Mrs. Old Yeller.  The Cosby Show is a timeless classic!
(Sorry I was unable to embed the clip from YouTube)

Too Cute

Homemade Applesauce

On Friday my friend Lindsay and I canned 33 quarts of homemade applesauce.  All I can say is WOW!!  It was extremely exhausting.  In fact, neither one of us felt all that great the rest of the weekend.  We did 2 bushels of apples (Cortland & MacIntosh).  We tried using the Pampered Chep apple peeler-corer-slicer but unfortunately it proved to be more of a headache than help.  So, we decided to cheat and just leave the skins on (although I did still peel a lot of the apples) because we found a comment from a recipe that said we could!  Cha-ching!  Needless to say, we were still soooooo tired from quartering/coring apples.  Poor Lindsay ended up cutting herself twice.  I guess if I keep going no one will want to try our applesauce!  Ha!  The girls lasted for a little while in helping us.  Anna announced we were doing "Food Art."  Just wait until you see the pictures and her comment will click with you!  ;)  We started around 1:00 pm and I didn't finish until close to 11:00 pm.  We tried several different 'recipes' such as

• Apples with a splash of cider
• Apples & Pears with a splash of cider
• Apples with a splash of cider, fresh squeezed orange juice, orange zest & cinnamon
• Apples with a splash of cider cooked down with the leftover orange rind

The girls had a grand time being the tasters!  I think Lindsay and I both agreed our favorite is the apple and pear blend.  If we ever do this again, we will either start earlier in the day OR break it into two days. 

Yes, Yes, Yes!!!

Awwwwww.

{creating}

A very, very special little boy just celebrated his FIRST BIRTHDAY!!  To help celebrate I got my craft on!  Here are some teasers...

Stay tuned for the final reveal

Dutch Baby

Look yummy? 

Guess what?

It is!!

Super Yummy!

Guess what else?

It is super easy to make!

Super Easy!

Guess, guess what else?

It is super CHEAP to make too!

~~~~~~

It's called a Dutch Baby!

Click for the recipe!

Tip...don't add as much vanilla unless 

you seriously love you some vanilla!

~~~~~~~

One more thing...your kiddos will LOVE watching it bake!

Here's a sneak peak...

Get out of your comfort zone and try something new!

A Shout Out to.....

I just wanted to give a shout out to....

Miss Roxanne!!

~~~~~~

Thank you for sharing sweet treats!

Thank you for reading my blog!

Thank you for being a light in a dark place!

Thank you for being an encouragement to my husband!

We. Must. Meet. Soon!

WOW!!

I don't really know what to say.  The Lord has blessed me with a little one who truly adores His Creation!  She is fascinated with nature!

If she could, she would bottle every single bug she finds.  I need to research how to do a bug collection.  Might actually be something to consider (like a kit, books, etc.) for a Christmas present.  Hmmmm...

Anna found this in the birch tree in the back yard.  Isn't it amazing?  It is some type of cocoon in case you are wondering.  Over the weekend she captured another wooly worm and placed in confinement for us to watch.  She was so intrigued when it created it's cocoon that she took the lid off and grabbed it.  She had this funky goo all over her fingers and it actually began to sting her.  She cried even after washing her hands.  The wooly worm died in the cocoon and Anna learned a valuable lesson.  She nearly "undid" this cocoon too but I begged her to keep her hands off until I could capture a picture.  Sooo amazing!  Although I am certainly not the bug type I am so thankful for my little entomologist! 

Art Project

The girls have been learning about different types of lines in art and how lines can evoke emotion.  An excellent example they learned about during this study is this print.  It is called The Great Wave by the Japanese artist Hokusai.  It is a woodblock print.  To semi-replicate this technique while gaining understanding of lines the girls did the following art project.

First they painted a simple picture/design using tempra paints onto a cookie sheet.  They then used Q-tips to draw various lines into the paint to create texture, depth, and detail to the painting. 

{creating}

Just an eansie, teansie, little bit!

Being Refined

I can't sleep so I thought I would try to put into words the things that are on my mind.  I shared how the Lord has lead us to schooling the girls at home this year.  Well, since the exciting first week of starting we have had some highs and lows.  Right now, although we are doing great academically, I would venture to say we have had more lows.  At one point I thought it was spiritual battle but now I recognize this as the Lord's process of  us being in a refining fire.  I lose my patience.  The girls argue.  I have a sharp tongue.  I plead with Scott to keep praying for me.  Scott sits with us during school.  I pray for the Lord to help me hold my tongue and extend my patience.  I thank the Lord for this opportunity and privilege.  I think about the loss of my freetime.  I think about how I don't have time for my hobbies  The girls argue.  The girls don't meet my standards.  The girls laugh.  The girls play.  Today was yet again another day I was struggling to hang on to sanity by the time daddy woke up.  I asked him if instead of going swimming if he would like to have some time with the girls to go run an errand, leaving me the opportunity to be alone.  The girls and daddy were in agreement.  They left.  Soon after they left I called my friend and headed over to her house.  She provided laughter, hugs, Scripture, her heart, advice, encouragement, friendship, and even some awesome hand-me-downs.  It was priceless!  My spirit was lifted.  The girls' spirits were lifted as well.  We had a fantastic evening.  Tonight as I climbed into bed to read a new book (Book 2 of Marta's Legacy Series by Francine Rivers) I first read some Scripture.  Amazing how it can just soothe the soul!  As I was reading I noticed the CD the girls were playing since they always play a CD while falling asleep (and have recently learned how to replay all).  Tears sprang to my eyes as I recognized the CD as the lullaby CD I used every single night for them when they were babies.  While reading His Word and listening to these beautiful lullabies my mind drifted to the precious little girls who were sound asleep in their room.  About each of them as babies, toddlers, preschoolers, and now being full-fledged kiddos!  What a privilege I have to be their mom.  To be their teacher.  I had to get up right then, go kiss them, and pray over them.  I don't know if I am making any sense but here is my point....I can't lose focus!  I am their mama!  God made them!  He made me!  He is sovereign!  He is working out His good work in us...and part of that is the refiner's fire.  He needs to extract our impurities to continue to perfect the good work He started in each of us!  Thank you Lord for your loving kindness, compassion, and mercy!  Help me to see these little girls through Your eyes!

Hearty Butternut Squash Soup

Wowy Zowy...The girls and I fell head over heals in love tonight with this yummy soup (although I suspect Anna was mostly loving with the bacon crumbles).  The butternut squash was out of our garden!  Can you believe it?  I am truly amazed at what goodness came out of our garden this year.  Anyhow, this recipe is definitely a savory soup using the butternut squash.  This is a picture of the tiny little bit that we had left over.  Look below for the recipe...

1 medium butternut squash (about 2 lbs)

3 TB butter

1 med leek or sweet onion, chopped

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 (14 oz) cans of chicken broth

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Toppings: bacon crumbles, sour cream, fresh thyme

Cut squash in half lengthwise; discard seeds.  Place squash, cut sides down, in a microwave-safe dish.  Microwave at HIGH 7-10 minutes or until tender; cool.  Scoop out pulp, discarding shells.

Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium hear; add leek/onion and thyme.  Cook, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes or until caramel-colored and tender.  Add squash pulp and chicken broth; bring to boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes, stirring often.  Remove from heat; cool.

Process squash mixture in a blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides.  Return to Dutch over; stir in salt and pepper.  Cook 5 mintues or until thoroughly heated.  Serve with bacon and sour creams.  Garnish if desired.

**This recipe is from one of my favorite cookbooks!!  The funny thing is Kate wanted to buy this cookbook for my mom a few years ago while I was still working.  Guess where it was we went very often for dinner???  Anyhow, after I resigned to stay home, I asked my mom if I could borrow the cookbook.  Yep...I haven't given it back!  Sooooo many super yummy and easy recipes!!

Click here to link to Amazon to check it out for yourself.

Scrumptious...Totally!

Way Easy, Scrumptious, One Dish Dinner!!

Cut up a zuchhini, yellow squash, yellow pepper, red pepper, and some chicken breasts.  (I toss in some tomatoes too).  Coat with EVOO, salt, pepper, rosemary, fennel seed and roast at 350 for 20-25 minutes.  Toss with penne or bowtie pasta & parmesean cheese!  For extra goodness, add a little butter and fresh basil!

Cheating Jack-o-Lanterns