Sunday is a day of rest

Sunday is a day of rest that does not often seem restful. We could truly do nothing but rest today, but we are keeping busy as we move back-and-forth from outdoors to use up the rest of the little snow we received and indoors to keep warm.

We started our day with a new pancake recipe as I am out of unbleached white flour (again, why does 25# go so fast!?!). We used this recipe with the exception of using whole milk. Of course. And there is just something extra-special about Lindley Mill’s organic whole wheat flour. It is so light…

Except my Husband did request a bacon and egg sandwich and so, of course, I joyfully made him one. I used yesterday’s loaf of 100 Days of Real Food recipe for the whole wheat bread machine loaf. (That sentence makes no sense and I am not going to make it make sense, hopefully you will figure it out.) This has become our go-to sandwich bread. I don’t know if it is the combination of the ingredients, or again, the Lindley Mill flours. I use 1/2 organic whole wheat and 1/2 organic Super Sprout (a sprouted grain flour) and it is SO very good. And in the bread machine, it has made for NO reason to buy manufactured store bread.

It is SO cold today that even with gloves, we come in with red hands that like warming under warm water…

We have made a special FC Bayern Munich star for our sweet grandparents that we’ll early in the week.

And I made lemon-scented dusting rags with this pin from Pinterest. I usually just spray my water/vinegar mix but this is certainly a quicker fix with little time investment… The cloths are the remains of a pair of flannel PJ pants made from a flat sheet and I used the lemon rinds leftover from making lacto-lemonade with the whey leftover from making yogurt in the crockpot.

And it’s just now 230p. I don’t know that much else will happen. But everyone is happy…

the morning is nearly gone

The morning is nearly gone. It began with my Husband and our humorous reflection of punk business people thinking they’d pulled a fast one. Then frustrated reflection about other business people who are bulldogging a situation. Y’know … that all is what it is. And we can only control our circumstances. And, if the Mayans are correct (even though they missed their whole Spanish demise) then does it really matter?

But my Husband left to earn our keep and the day progressed. We’ve made a fresh carpet for the playhouse.

We’ve baked a gingerbread house sans buttered molds…

(perfect for morning snacking)

And a house with buttered molds…

And another in the oven now.

We’ve set the sprouts out to dry and green. Kelly Mae found just the right spot for good light.

Rebekah Anne has helped me work the yogurt

and she has helped me feed the sourdough starter and make the dough for its first 24 hour rise.

Kelly Mae taught Sawyer to latch hook while Rebekah Anne and I worked in the kitchen.

Reade was at the table doing a Physical Science experiement.

And when Laura Lea finally woke at 1038a, she ate some crumbled gingerbread and Sawyer taught her to latch hook and she’s been busy since.

I suppose now we’ll begin to pick up the house and then have a yummy lunch.

Not sure what our afternoon will bring… Does it matter? No. Life is good. Even if it’s about to end Mayan-style.

really better than ice cream

Well, now, it’s been quite the full – yet chill – Monday. Science in the Summer and tennis lesson and golf and swimming. I know. Sounds like a privileged brat whining about luxuries. I get it. #1 – I am not a brat whining. I am proud of the opportunities my Husband provides and #2 – I am privileged because I have a Husband who wants for us to have and enjoy these experiences. And you know what? I am gonna keep it up!

So… I have to do my part, right? And that means nourishment. I tossed a round roast in the crockpot with worcestshire (and I am confident this is incorrectly spelled, but I am too lazy to get up and walk to the pantry to check), water, onion, and the most fantastic Organic Onion Soup and Dip Mix EVER. Which, of course I buy in bulk for a fraction of the price that link shows. And I served the beef with a pasta salad with green peppers and tomatoes from our garden made for a family reunion this weekend, and cukes and tomatoes from our garden and others’ of course with vinegar and oil and herbs.

But I am not even writing about dinner. I am writing about this. And it is better than ice cream.

No. I have not made this with greek yogurt. We’ve had this with our yogurt. Our yogurt is made in the crockpot and strained to the consistency of greek yogurt. That may even be what makes greek yogurt. I do not know. I don’t care. It’s so freaking good. Here’s the recipe and you will thank me for it!

And… I can start making it again. Because our refrigerator is finally fixed. It took my getting on the phone and calling Kitchenaid and traveling the country for 38 minutes in transfers to locate the “possibly unattainable part.” I did what the appliance repair company could not do after 5 weeks of trying. Because that’s how I do my part for our family.

not another manic Monday

What a sweet day to start the week… It’s noon and here’s what we’ve been up to so far.

Texas Storage Delight, operated by Sawyer, is offering a friends as family discount.

Mae’s Cafe is cleaning up from its breakfast crowd and readying to serve lunch.

Our privately run post office, operated by Rebekah Anne and her baby girl, is prepping for the tax filing rush.

We have BBQ and yogurt cooking side-by-side.

Two loaves of sandwich bread made and two in the oven.

The table is freshened and ready for lessons after lunch.

Monday is laundry day for half of us. It’s a quick-dry-outside-day, too!

I did sneak a couple of moments to work on a hand sewing project using a vintage tea towel.

Having completed Math, Piano, and Independent Reading, Reade stole some time to cuddle Blackie.

And now Mae’s Cafe is serving lunch! Fresh, homemade bread, fresh, homegrown sprouts, yummy local organic strawberries, and good ol’ conventional cheddar cheese.

I hope your week started as sweetly as ours.

“…it’s my favorite sound in the morning.”

Most mornings during the week, I wake soon after my Husband and make us breakfast. It’s a simple meal. Usually toast, fried eggs, and homemade yogurt with honey. He is usually out of the shower as I am setting the food on the table and he makes our coffees. We each quietly have a moment while holding hands and then while we eat we talk, brief one another on our days, and sometimes look through the Times Snooze newspaper.

 

Sometimes there are children asleep on sofas. Only the oldest regularly sleeps in a bed alone. He’s as tall as I am, so that’s a good thing. But most of the time the children fall asleep where we are. And often times that is on a sofa.

 

Last week when my Husband had long left for work and the red head popped into the kitchen with her bright eyes and snuggled in a too-small and now ragged favorite robe, she immediately asked, “What did you make for Daddy’s breakfast.” I replied with grits, eggs, sausage, and yogurt. Without missing a beat Rebekah Anne says, “I like falling asleep on the sofa because I get to hear breakfast and it’s my favorite sound in the morning.”

my day was a {this moment}

{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Share your moment here and look for others at SouleMama.

My whole day was a {this moment}. I am breaking the “rule” and sharing bits of it with lots of pictures rather than one picture with no words. Just because.

I made yogurt for the first time. It is delicious. Here is the recipe.

I rinsed the sprouts…

…then I fed the sourdough sponge.

The daily bread was made.

Then another sourdough recipe tried. It is beautiful and very good but does not taste like sourdough so I will not share the recipe.

It was a little after 9a when I made the bed…

…and then tried to dry my linens outside in 60mph gusts.

For our camping scout, our day of horsemanship for the older girls, and a day in the Capitol with the littlest ones, I made jerky…

…and granola bars…

…and chocolate protein balls.

And then I packed the scout’s in reusables that can be lost.

I packed the girls’ reusables (an with a napkin).

I packed the snack box for our family that will be only four for many hours.

The pizza dough for the evening was mixed, kneaded, and left to rise.

Then it was 12:30 and time to serve lunch.

While the children ate lunch, I mended a pair of ski bibs that a friend would be by to borrow. I should have taken a photo. It wasn’t a bad 3-corner tear repair.

Then, with a sweet 7 year old beside me working on his double-plus-one facts, I knitted past the first decrease row.

My sweet friend came by to borrow the bibs. While she was here she shared some sad news. I am still waiting to hear an update…

Then I knitted some more and we worked on doubles-plus-ones some more.

It was 330p.

I shuttled my scout to his camp out where he set his tent just before the rain.

And what a rain it was. I was on the interstate and had I been able to get onto the shoulder, I would have. I was in tears by the time it broke. I do not like driving in the rain.

After working with a student to the west, I headed home. While reflecting on my day and listening to my iPod, I thought the tune

Sister, you got it good.

Then… This songplayed next.

I drove the rest of the way home in dry silence.

Oh So Marvelous Oat Bran Muffins

These are unbelievable.

Made from Lindley Mills’ (a local organic grain mill on an original mill site) Marvelous Oat bran Muffin mix, these are now a favorite. And made available all day long with apples and water, they’re a great way to purge all the Super Bowl fare from little (and big) bodies.

The mix directions say “just add water” but the ladies at the mill suggested lots of other things in lieu of water – orange juice, apple juice, milk, buttermilk, applesauce, half and half… And the list goes on and on before I even begin on the add-ins – fruit, nuts, flax, baking chips… Two cups of mix to 1/2 cup of liquid produces, according to the package, 6 large muffins. I am getting 8 regular muffins and I double the recipe each time so we have about 16-18 muffins on which to munch.

There are three (two-cup) batches in each two-pound bag at $2.50/ bag purchased direct from the mill. I am certain this is sold retail, I just don’t know where or for how much. The ingredients are not all organic, but the grains are. Check out the last picture below.

I also pick up organic all-purpose, organic whole wheat, organic grits, and organic rolled oats from the mill in 25# – 50# bags. So, if you’re a local folk and would like me to pick up and split for you, let me know by messaging me through the blog. I don’t charge “extra”, I just round up the per pound price to the nearest whole or half cent.

Here’s how we like our Oh So Marvelous Oat Bran Muffins:

5c Lindley Mill Marvelous Oat Bran Muffin Mix

1c orange juice

1/2c whole milk yogurt

Bake for about 25 minutes on 400F. Makes about 20 muffins.

this post linked with Raising Homemakers’ Homemaking Link-Up

Quick Pick-Me-Ups

Breakfast is the most important part of the day. Yes, it really is.   I do not care to eat in the morning, but I always feel better when I do! The most important factor in our breakfast eating is my planning. If I know in advance what we are eating, then it gets made. If I have to fumble around deciding, then it’s cereal. And cereal is OK. But not for every day. So, in Suzy Homemaker Style, here are my suggestions for QUICK breakfasts.

• Oatmeal. The real kind. Not instant, not quick cook. Never in the microwave. But the kind that takes 5 minutes for the water to boil and 5 minutes to cool. Steel cut takes a little longer and is far better tasting and healthier than rolled, but the rolled is faster. So, open up a box of Quaker Old-Fashioned oats and don’t smother them with a ton of stuff. A pat of butter, a sprinkle of brown sugar, and a splash of milk makes it the yummiest breakfast ever. And you’ll live to be very old. We know this to be a fact!

• Fruit and Milk. Take fresh or frozen fruit and rinse it, cap it, peel it, slice it whatever makes you happy, and then sprinkle it with sugar and the juice of half of a lemon and stick it in the fridge.  In the morning just pour some milk over it. MMMMmmmm. Add a piece of lightly buttered whole wheat toast and even better!

• Peanut Butter Toast with a fruit smoothie. Toast the bread. While it’s toasting, fill a blender with yogurt, fruit (fresh, frozen, one or more kinds), some ice and some local honey. *pop* The toast is ready! Spread peanut butter on it. While the peanut butter is melting into the bread, blend the smoothie. One of our favorites!

• Cream of Wheat with fruit and syrup. Like the oatmeal, buy the real stuff, not the instant or quick cook. And make it on the stove. Add some sliced fruit and a drizzle of maple syrup. We usually have boiled eggs with this for our protein.

• Eggs and toast. Please. Eggs, scrambled or fried, are super fast to make. If you want a shortcut, blend your eggs the night before. Just take them out of the fridge and let them sit on the counter to knock off the chill while you get the toast going and the pan out. Could not be easier. We often have boiled eggs with breakfast as well. I just boil and peel them the day before, usually assigning the task to a child, actually.

• Flop. Hands down the most flexible recipe in the entire world. Yes. The entire world. It can be made quickly in the morning, the night before, the batter made the night before, etc etc etc. Add eggs and extract. Add fruit. Add whatever. This is good as is or fancied up. LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe. The best thing to ever be produced by Gooseberry Patch.

Preheat the oven to 350F and oil 2 round cake pans or grease a cast iron skillet (I prefer the skillet!)

2c sugar

1c flour

1 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

1 T melted butter

1 c milk

Mix it up. Pour it into whatever and dot it with butter pats and brown sugar and cinnamon. It takes about 20 minutes. MY favorite. It’s a great dessert, too!

So, as you can tell, we believe in butter, sugar, and whole milk. We have to. We’re Southern. It’s a commitment and we honor our commitments. And we are a very healthy family. Enjoy!

pretty much anything can be made with stuff on hand

So, it’s been a while since I’ve been in my grocery groove. I am trying to get there. Truly. If it were cold outside and if the night fell before dinner time, it would be easier. But once I get necessities done, well, OK. Grocery shopping is a necessity.

And ignoring that necessity left me in a pickle for an afternoon snack. Since one of the children was recovering from a quickie stomach thing which made her throat a bit raw, she wanted something cool and thick. I thought a smoothie would fit the bill. But I only had grapes and granny smiths as fruit in the house (and that was thanks to my Husband who recognized the dire need for sustenance yesterday).

And here is a recipe for Struck Throat Smoothies:

An apple, peeled and cored
Some grapes, maybe a good handful
Some orange juice, maybe a cup
Some honey, maybe 1/4 cup
a good dollop of plain yogurt
And ice as necessary.

Just blend and drink. It’s festive, too, with the grape skins floating around it looks like little streamers welcoming me to the party. Because there were a lot of us and we REALLY like smoothies, I did use three apples, and more grapes, and more of everything.

*I am linked up with Mama to 4 Blessings Mama to 4 Blessings!