Hello again

So it has been half a year since I have posted on here.  Wow!!  Time flies.

2012 is coming to an end, but not without the usual hustle and bustle of Thanksgiving and Christmas and all that they entail.  Programs, Christmas baking, carols, decorating, some more baking, excited children, hopefully snow!

I am thankful that December has come at last.  November was a long and difficult month, ushered in with two funerals of dear church members and ushered out with the passing of Jeff's Beppe.
A month of contrasts.  A wedding and three funerals (yes, I know that one was October 31st, but that's pretty much November!).  A couple united in marriage and two couples united in heaven.  Mourning the loss of loved ones yet rejoicing that they are with the Lord.  Delighted to visit with family that we haven't seen in a long time yet knowing the visits were due to death. 

Tears flowed.  Hugs were given all around. Whispered words of encouragement. Our Lord gives life and He takes it.  He is our life.  In Him we have a sure and certain future.  So we can smile through the tears.  We can laugh though we are sad.  We can rejoice in the Lord, giving thanks in all things, because we have Hope.
Beppe's house is quiet now during the day.  There is no car outside telling me which caregiver is here today, loving Beppe in her weakness and frailty.  Ministering to her every need.  There is no one there when I pop over to borrow or return things.

Time continues on, unmindful of our sorrows or joys.

And so we find ourselves in December.  Summer asks everyday if tonight is Christmas.  The children sing and play carols on the piano, bake special Christmas cookies, argue and bicker, tease and giggle.  Each day begins with a flurry of getting the three oldest off to school and ends with us all around the dinner table.   The hours between are filled with barn work for Jeff, housework and baking and mothering for me, math and reading and Christmas program practicing for the big kids.  The little girls spend their days playing, helping Mommy, napping and having tea parties.

Thanks to cousin Ana, we have some beautiful pictures from November:

Jeff and I at his cousin's wedding

                           

Daddy and his little girls

Troy

Kate

Emily

Jordyn

Summer

Today is.....

Day One of summer break for the goslings!  It is cool and breezy, but at least it's dry.  We have a few fun things planned so far for our holidays.  A camping trip, a visit to my family in Canada, watching Daddy play softball and probably numerous runs to Goodies for creemees (soft-serve ice cream).  And the high-light of the summer.....welcoming baby Gosliga in August when my sister finally pops!!

Day Three of life with a puppy.  We have a new family member, Rondo, a Weimaraner Lab mix.  He is cute and cuddly.  The kids have done a good job of taking care of him.  Hopefully he will outlast our previous pup who died tragically last July.  Pictures to follow, eventually.  (Yes, I have lost my marbles!) 

Day Six of a June challenge to track food, workouts and lose at least five pounds for a chance to win a prize.  I just heard about the challenge today, but have been tracking anyway, so I am good.  The challenge was issued by my dear friend Kim who is also my personal trainer, and in so many ways mentor and fellow "new-healthy-recipe-lover".  No pictures to follow!  :-)

Day Eleven of my 100 days of real food challenge.  So far, so great!!  I am enjoying this and it is becoming more and more natural to opt for the real stuff (fruits and veggies and whole wheat options,etc) and steer clear of the white stuff (sugar, flour, rice).  

Memorial Day and a New Challenge

Happy Memorial Day.

"They gave their tomorrows for our todays"  -- the quote on our float today.  One day a year is not often enough to remember the sacrifices made so we can live in freedom. 

 The goslings and I walked with our Christian school's float in the local parade.  Lovely time.  Hot.  Sunny.  Good company.  Candy...which I did not eat!

My "10 days of real food" eating challenge went very well.  I finished that a week or so ago and then took a few days "off" before beginning the biggie...100 days of real food.  Ack!  What have I done?!  Actually, it's going well so far, three days in, and I am enjoying the renewed commitment to eating healthier.

Today has been an interesting eating day, one of many that I am sure to come across between now and September 3rd-ish (97 days (or so) away and coincidentally my daughter's 11th birthday).  I packed myself almonds and dried fruit to eat for a light lunch but come lunch time...it was not very appealing.  Thankfully, we were at my dear sister's apartment and she had some plain Greek yogurt, maple syrup, and fresh fruit!  Yum!!  So refreshing.  Thanks, L.

I am looking forward to the challenges ahead...birthday parties, the Fourth, Goodies', camping.

I am also planning to make a few recipes for things I love that I want to eat, such as Barbecue Sauce!  Just have to make it myself so I can control the ingredients.  Also hoping to try making yogurt cheese so I can make a fantastic herb-garlic spread to enjoy with veggies. 

A normal day tomorrow, hooray, life has been extremely busy lately.....only four and a half more days til the goslings are set free for the summer!!   Crazy!! 
 

"10 Days of Real Food"

I was recently directed to check out a website called "100 Days of Real Food". (Thanks, Erin!!) I have since spent a fair amount of time on the site, reading recipes and posts.   In short, a family of four made a pledge to stop eating processed foods for 100 days.  This website tells their story and then goes on to offer lots more info and resources and also issues a challenge to take a 10 day pledge to eat only real food.

I took the pledge and am currently on day 5.  It has gone well.  My eating was already fairly cleaned up thanks to my visits with Kim and her encouragement to eat better.  So this was not a huge leap.  There have been a few things that I have said no to and also a recipe or two that I have laid aside for now.

I am leaning towards taking a 100 day pledge, I think that would present more of a challenge as that would take me through a number of holidays; Memorial Day, the Fourth, two family birthdays and some camping. (Kell - I will find a way to make "clean" hobo pies!!)  I really want clean-er eating to become normal, not just something I dabble in from time to time and I believe this pledge would really help cement that. 

As I keep playing with recipes I am finding that maple syrup really does an excellent job of sweetening things without changing the flavor drastically.  Yesterday and today I have been playing with chocolate no-bakes and have been really pleased with the results of making them with syrup instead of sugar!  Yum!

And strawberry rhubarb crisp with maple whipped cream ..... fantastic!!!   Can't wait to make it again, even my husband loved it!  I want to attempt to modify our favorite rhubarb pie recipe, but I'm not sure I am brave enough yet!

On a side note, I am reading an excellent book right now, "Gray Matter" by David Levy, MD and Joel Kirkpatrick.  If you can get your hands on it, read it! 

Experiments in Clean Cooking

Cooking clean.  My latest interest.  Simply stated it means cooking with ingredients that are natural, not processed.  Fruits, veggies, whole grains, natural sweeteners like honey and maple syrup. 

The biggest hurdle for me has been not using white (or brown) sugar and white flour.  These have been staples in our house for so long!  I love to bake and would use up copious amounts of both.  So to find and create and enjoy recipes that use neither has been a fun challenge.  

Here are a few of my latest experiments:

Coconut Balls

These little balls are so yummy!  And so simple.  I changed the recipe a bit, using some oat flour (ground up oats) to replace some of the ground almonds.  No baking, just toss the ingredients together and form into little balls.  Easy!


Date Squares

After doing some searching online I didn't quite find a recipe I wanted to try, so I made up my own.  These squares are not baked.  The date filling is cooked but the crumbly mixture is raw.
I loved the crumb part but the date filling was very bland.  I need to experiment a little more to give it some tang to balance out the sweet crumb part.  I remember my mom's date squares being quite tasty and these just didn't quite measure up.  I think she cooked her dates in orange juice....
The crumb mixture was oat flour, oats, a little unsweetened coconut, maple syrup and coconut oil.  And a pinch of salt.

my snack corner

I just invested in these cute glass containers (thanks for the idea, Kim!) and filled them with healthy snacks.  The kids love the pistachios and trail mix!  

Today's project was Clean Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp.  No pictures because it is all gone already!  The filling recipe came from here, and I made up the crisp part.    The filling smelled fantastic as it cooked but was super-duper tart!  So I added a little maple syrup which sweetened it nicely without changing the flavor.
The crisp was similar to the crumbly mixture in the date squares.  But I wasn't completely wild about it.  So I will have to fiddle with it a little more.  I did bake it and it was a tasty, warm treat!! 

I want to try out some recipes with quinoa and wheat berries soon, I'll let you know how that goes.

Blushing Brides

Mom!  We found your wedding dress!!

It was not hiding, I had just not brought it out and showed it to them yet.  What delight and excitement shone in the eyes of my two oldest.

Can we try it on!?  

I knew it would be an interesting (can they really be old enough to try it on and have it sort-of fit??) and special (they are growing up!) evening.

Can we put on make-up too?

Oh, boy!  I drew the line at mascara, but they we so thrilled to be allowed anything.  They giggled all the way upstairs and I went up to find them carefully applying make-up to each other.

Sisters

 











 

















Mom, can you help us put on the headpiece and veil?

A couple of bobby pins and Em was all done up.

I was sent downstairs to wait with Daddy til she paraded down. 

Where did my screaming, tiny firstborn go?  I blinked and she is tall enough to try on my wedding gown?!

Emily

Em asked me quietly, "Mom, when I get married, can I wear your dress?"   In their sweet youth, it is the most beautiful dress they have ever seen up close.


Kate's turn.  Em assisted her and soon she came floating down to the kitchen.  Nine going on nineteen?

Kate

At some point, Kate turned and asked, "Mom, can I wear your dress for my wedding?"
 Aw.  Way to a Mommy's heart is through her wedding dress. :-) 

Visions of them as young ladies preparing each other for their special day filled my mind.  And Jeff was a little speechless, his thoughts wandering down similar paths.  It is past time to begin praying for the young men God has set apart to be their husbands.

Hula Hoop-la

This week has been Spring Break for the goslings.  While we would have loved warmer weather, this week was light years better than Winter Break.  We are all healthy and there is a delightful lack of scurrying little bugs on our heads! 

Perhaps our (mis)adventures from our week off in February deserve a post of their own!

Back to Spring Break, we spent two mornings at the dentist's office for fillings and then the patients were treated to tea and bagels at the local bakery.

On Tuesday we had the pleasure of having four kiddos over for the afternoon.  Each of the four oldest goslings has a good friend in this family so they pair off and play wonderfully for hours.  Tuesday was no exception.  The fun commenced with a hula hoop show put on by Kate.  She lined up chairs in the porch, labelled them with the audience's names, made up programs and even provided after-the-show snacks.

Kate

Our neighbor lady from up the hill came with her granddaughter to see the show.  They brought popcorn which was a big hit with the spectators.

After Kate demonstrated her skills with the hula hoops, she took audience requests and invited audience participation.  It was a lively show!

The spectators

Emily showing us how it's done

Even the guys got in on the fun

Kate's friend was amazing - she could hula-hoop all day long!

Enthralled!

On Wednesday, Kell and crew came over for the afternoon and we ended up trading a couple kids for the night.  I kept her daughter and she took Troy home.  Jeff was completely outnumbered!  He took himself to town to play basketball and we stayed home and watched "Tangled".

Kell got more sleep with the boys than I managed with the girls, but all-in-all it went pretty well....until breakfast. 

My houseful of girls decided to serve me breakfast in bed again.  Sum came up to ensure that I didn't get out of bed before my food came up.  I listened with delight to the conversation that drifted up from the kitchen as they prepared my feast.  Then I heard "We should clean this up first."  Hmmm.   Next, Jeff came in from the barn and I heard, "Where is your mother?!" Not a happy tone. 

The mini-chefs had spilled an entire pitcher of red Kool-Aid.  Ugh.  And it generally looked like a bomb had gone off in there!  I cleaned up the spill, fed the farmer and went back upstairs to eat my breakfast in bed.

The troops were rallied and we gave the disaster area a thorough cleaning!

Friday was shopping day for Kate, Em and I, with JJ in tow.  We had a busy, successful trip.  Kate got to spend her birthday gift card from Toys R Us.  I returned some things here and there and we bought out Costco!





Jeff played in a softball tournament today.
  The team lost both games but he did hit a home run.
And he looked fantastic in his uniform. :-)

One more day until the goslings go back to school.  Then five weeks or so and they will be turned loose for the summer!

No-Bake Making

Emily is persistent.

When she wants to make something, do something, go somewhere, she doesn't let up in her quest to do whatever it is she has set her mind on. 

Lately it has been about No-Bakes.  Also known as Boiled Chocolate Cookies.  We recently attended a baby shower where Em ate a few delicious no-bakes.  After that there was no rest until I let her try her hand at making some.  The first batch was a flop.  Hardened immediately and we ate a few of the rock hard clumps straight out of the bowl before tossing the mess.

The second batch I made and added peanut butter to them (the ones at the shower had pb, but Em said she didn't taste that). They were tasty and served to Bible study ladies and put into lunches.

Third batch.  Chocolate with a bit of coconut added to the oats.  A hit.  Most of these were given away as part of a birthday present, Em got two in her lunch.

Fourth batch.  Peanut butter and honey w/ oats, flax and chia seeds.  Clean and delightful.  :-)

Fifth batch, repeat of third because Emily caught me making the pb and honey ones and needed some that she liked! 


Peanut Butter and Honey No-Bakes

1 cup honey
1/2 cup natural peanut butter, smooth or crunchy
2 cups quick oats
2-3 tbsp ground flax seed, optional
2 tbsp chia seeds, optional

Mix honey and pb in saucepan.  Bring to boil and boil for three minutes, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat, add dry ingredients.  Stir to coat.  Spoon onto wax-paper lined cookie sheet.  Allow to cool.  Yum!

Next time I want to add some unsweetened coconut.  :-)

Chocolate No Bakes

1/2 cup butter
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup milk
3 cups oatmeal
1/2 cup coconut, optional

Bring first four ingredients to a boil in a saucepan.  Stir and boil for 3 minutes.
Mix in dry ingredients.
Spoon on to wax-paper lined cookie sheet.
Let cool.  Enjoy!

Kate's Adventure

Kate, our sweet nine year old, had surgery this week.  She needed to have tubes put in her ears and her adenoids removed.  She has been a mouth-breather and snorer for a long time.  When I took her in to have things checked out, the doctor peeked in her ears and decided to retest her hearing. (We had it tested last fall and were told it was fine.)  Not fine now.  She had lost some hearing in both ears.  The doctor described it as how you would hear if you had earplugs in. 


On Wednesday, Kate and I went to the hospital for her surgery.  She was very concerned about having any needles.  Thankfully, the anesthesiologist was able to do the IV after she was asleep.  Kate was very patient through all the questions and waiting time.  We had fun taking some pictures on our iPad. 

When the nurses came to get Kate to go to the operating room, they asked if she wanted to walk there.  No, she wanted to ride in the bed!  The nurse asked if she was a princess and wanted to be spoiled for the day.  She also asked if Kate was an only child.  I laughed and told them that Kate is the second of five.  That explains why she wants to be spoiled!!  So, Kate rode like royalty down the halls to the OR! :-)  

 


When Kate got back to her little room after the procedure she was very quiet and sleepy.  She ate a Popsicle and then perked up pretty quickly.  The rest of the day she rested at home, watching TV and doing some homework.  She is still pretty stuffed up but that should clear in a few days and she'll have a much easier time of breathing through her nose!!  Yay!

Kate was very excited to take her little stuffed pig home with her.  They are nearly inseparable! 

We are so thankful for the Lord's hand over Kate and for the wonderful doctors and nurses that took care of her.  He is gracious!