Psst--easy dinner secret

Scalloped potatoes are an old favorite at my house. In fact, they've been a family favorite before I was part of the family (we're talking Robert's family here). Oh, it's a long and involved process. You have to peel the potatoes, slice them ever so thinly and uniformly, mix up a sauce, cut up ham, dice up green pepper . . . and bake the whole thing in the oven for about 14 hours (or a little less) to get the potatoes to cook through.

So much for that. I'd rather spend my time blogging.

Hel-looo, Betty!

All I have to do now is boil water, add milk and a little butter. When someone-who-shall-remain-nameless first picked these up at the grocery store, I grossed out. But these are real potatoes, a decent sauce, and I think I actually prefer these to the old family favorite recipe. (Ham and green pepper optional.)

Definitely recommended--be sure to get the Value Size.

Weekly Menu

Dad's choice (Mom working)
shrimp in garlic wine sauce, pasta, Spinach Madeline
PW's lasagna, with Italian sausage
scalloped ham and potatoes
YOYO
chicken?
pork chops? (Cindy's orange?)

Lunch (with or for):
smoothies
grilled PB&J
Linda's Marinated Mozzarella
parmesan pesto things
tortilla rollups w/meat, lettuce, tomato, dressing

On the back burner:
pork loin
Renita's Funnel Cakes!!!
chicken fajitas
meatloaf
Rocky Mountain Salad
Orange Chicken (found on Heather's blog)
pot roast
hot dog ideas from SHS! (link only available to SHS members)
Laura S.'s chicken pot pie (when I'm feeling particularly brave)
anything with ground beef, I have a LOT of it
Laura's chocolate pie (with evaporated milk, thank you very much), or PW's with fake eggs which I've made before and was GREAT!

Sunday

It's been gray and overcast for two days, pretty unusual around here. Today it rained. That's not a bad thing; if it's going to be cloudy, it may as well rain.


We went to church this morning. We've recently opened up our large church kitchen as a "Calvary Cafe." Robert signed up to be a Muffin Man today (okay, he was really the money changer, lol), so we hung around for quite a while.

A small group of kids ended up going to see Bolt this afternoon. It was especially exciting for Trevor, as he got to go along with some of his friends too. He was so cute, repeating a few times, "I know this is a big opportunity for me!"


Robert and I stayed in town and went out to lunch. Oh, I just hate when that happens!


We did a little shopping at the mall.


We picked the kids up and headed for home. By the time it was all over, I somehow managed to get out of cooking or fixing any type of dinner. I can live with that.

It was a nice and relaxing way to end the past two weeks of mini-break that we've had.

Bet you'll never see this again

Kroger has a deal where you get $.10 off each gallon of gas for every $100 you spend in the store. I shop there frequently, and since I don't live near a store with a gas station, I didn't really pay attention to the promotion.

Until yesterday. I swiped my grocery card and paid this much for gas.



Let me tell you, I was giddy.



I don't know if this is a usual promotion, or just a short term special, but I plan to find out!

I love Kroger!

Well, THAT was fun!

So many of my blogging friends have been using templates from The Cutest Blog on the Block (see the upper left hand corner for link). I was definitely gunshy, until Dorothy said how easy it was. Holly saw some of the template choices and was VERY encouraging to me.

Thanks Dorothy! Thanks, Holl!

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Let me know if you have any trouble loading the page.

It's beginning to . . .

Back to Thanksgiving

Our neighbors invited us to share Thanksgiving with them this year. It was quite lovely. Robert baked his famous pumpkin pie, and we brought a bottle of wine. That left the morning wide open for me to preview Christmas sales online, and I was quite successful. :) (This is another way of saying that I didn't get dressed until well after lunch.)

Although they technically live "across the street," it's more like over the river and through the woods, so we drove.



We had a very nice meal and enjoyed their hospitality.



Holly and Trevor left a little early. I am a slow learner, and we didn't bring a flashlight. Our neighbors generously offered one of theirs, so the kids could get home safely.

When we left, they sent us home with two grocery sacks full of leftovers. I think we have all of their tupperware. But I know what we're having for dinner tomorrow night! And I'm wondering how I can get them to invite us over again next week.

* * *

These may seem like odd Thanksgiving shots, but I am pretty reluctant to plaster the faces of people I don't know well on my blog. I don't often mention blogging in mixed company, and when I do, it's in the context of "a little family website I have."

But we ARE all family here, aren't we?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Recipe - Trevor's Coffee Cake Loaf

Okay, so we really got this from Heather at Joyful Wanderings. It looked great, and it looked easy and quick for Trevor to make on Thanksgiving Eve.

COFFEE CAKE LOAF

Cream together:
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar

Add, one at a time, beating well:
2 eggs

Combine the following in a separate bowl:
1-1/2 c. flour
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder

Add alternately to creamed butter mixture:
flour mixture (from above)
1/2 c. milk

Combine cinnamon mixture in a small bowl:
1 T. cinnamon
1/4 c. sugar

Grease one bread pan. Put half the batter in the bottom of the bread pan, and sprinkle with half of the cinnamon mixture. Top with remaining batter and remaining cinnamon. Bake at 350 for 45 mins. (Ours needed 50-55 mins.) You can easily double the recipe to make two loaves.

Homeschool Blog Awards

Two of our SHS Blog Ring friends won in their categories this year, VERY exciting!

Cynthia for Best Variety
Lee, the HomeScholar Helper, for Best Curriculum or Business Blog

Just think . . . we knew them when . . . :)

For more winners, go to The Homeschool Post.

Thanksgiving Proclamation

By the PRESIDENT of the United States of America, George Washington, dated October 13, 1789

* * *

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANKSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

* * *

Click to see the entire article as published in the Massachusetts Sentinel Oct. 14, 1739.

Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Weekly Menu

Dad's choice (Mom working)
YOYO (Trevor and I ate "out" at the grocery store)
YOYO (because no one wanted the spaghetti I had planned)
Thanksgiving (at the neighbors'); Heather's Coffee Cake Loaf
Encore Presentation: Thanksgiving
YOYO
YOYO

Lunch (with or for):
smoothies
grilled PB&J
Linda's Marinated Mozzarella
parmesan pesto things
tortilla rollups w/meat, lettuce, tomato, dressing

On the back burner:
pork loin
Renita's Funnel Cakes!!!
chicken fajitas
meatloaf
Rocky Mountain Salad
Orange Chicken (found on Heather's blog)
pot roast
hot dog ideas from SHS! (link only available to SHS members)
Laura S.'s chicken pot pie (when I'm feeling particularly brave)
anything with ground beef, I have a LOT of it
Laura's chocolate pie (with evaporated milk, thank you very much), or PW's with fake eggs which I've made before and was GREAT!

Deer (by) Trevor

Inspired by Heather's son



and proof that a little bit of cardboard and a lot of tape can go a long way in a boy's imagination.

Ten shots of Tuesday

Breakfast: Instant oatmeal, sliced banana, craisins, and as much coffee as I can gulp down.
It's a good day when I have time to read the paper.

My lovely drive to town

We have a large children's area, including easy readers hidden behind these shelves,
and other sections for juvenile fiction, young adult materials, biographies, reference material, magazines, public computers, and seating areas.

Getting turkey tails ready for story hour

Lunch: Leftover broccoli and rice casserole, a magazine, more caffeine--I'm good to go.

Becky fighting fires in an outdoor ashtray.
We have more emergency maintenance calls than all other county buildings combined,
including the courthouse, and we're getting keyed locks for our public bathrooms soon
(in an effort to cut out the crap, haha).

It was slow, and we decorated for Christmas.
I was happy with how my snowman case turned out.
See my pretty snowflake cutouts?!

Robert dropped Trevor off, and Trev played on the computer while I finished working. We drove up to Roanoke for chess club.

What's fast, cheap and healthy for dinner? We chose the new Kroger Cafe, lol.
It really was quite good, but the store was a little chilly.

Sitting with the other moms at chess

If you can't lose with grace, you can lose with style :)

Drove home and CRASHED (into bed, at least).

Triops update

Trevor began growing his triops about five weeks ago. Two of them died last week, one right after the other, and I figured their time was up. I don't mind changing the water in general, but it was FAR too gross to do that with the two dead bodies. No one else changed the water either.

One more nice thing about triops is that they clean up after themselves. After two days, the one guy that was left decided enough was enough, and HE took care of the two dead bodies.

Little cannibal.

But I appreciate that about him. And he's still alive, so that's good too.

Book Reviews - When the Heart Cries; and When the Morning Comes by Cindy Woodsmall

These are the first two books in a three-part series, Sisters of the Quilt, by first-time author Cindy Woodsmall. I read these in preparation for an upcoming Blog Tour of the third book (and I'll also be giving away a copy, so keep your eyes open!). If you've enjoyed books by Beverly Lewis and Wanda Brunstetter, this is definitely a series for you.

When the Heart Cries. Hannah Lapp is a 17 year old Amish girl with a secret Mennonite boyfriend. At the beginning of the story, Hannah is raped by a stranger. (I was surprised by this storyline, although it was handled very vaguely and briefly, even referred to as "the unmentionable" by her parents.) As word of Hannah's pregnancy spreads throughout her community, rumors of her boyfriend and other "offenses" are revealed. Faced with losing those she loves, Hannah flees in search of the aunt whom she has never met.

When the Morning Comes. Settling in with her aunt and her aunt's adoptive family, Hannah struggles to adapt to the world of Englischers. As her world opens and her heart begins to heal, Hannah pursues a career in the medical field and finds a second chance at love. Her carefully pieced together new life begins to unravel when she receives a desperate phone call from home.

Again, I've really liked these books. I've already started the third book and am anxious to finish it. I absolutely recommend this series. :)

I love your blog

I've been trying to get this post written for a month. I'm pretty pathetic.

Two of my loopy friends, Debbie at Following the Narrow Path and Yvonne at Grateful for Grace sent this on to me recently (relatively, lol). It was especially nice, as last month marked my second anniversary of blogging. Thanks, Deb and Yvonne!!

The rules for this award are short and sweet.
1. Link back to the person who gave you the award.
2. Include the award on your blog.
3. Pass it on to 7 worthy bloggers with links to their blogs on yours.
4. Notify your recipients.

I miss no longer having the time to keep up with friends' blogs. But here are a few of my favorites, and you might enjoy checking them out too.

Susan, Lazy Susie: My loopy friend Susan wears little black dresses to grocery shop and garden, is married to a dashing French pilot/doctor, and lives an exotic life on the beach in Mexico. Or something like that.

Jana, Waterside Living: I met Jana on another hs list; we also have similar hsing styles. Her area in North Carolina looks a lot like mine, except that she lives on a peaceful lake.

Becky, Woodynook Creations: Becky's nature photos are absolutely incredible. I'm taking full credit for getting her into blogging last year. :) Becky is an oh-so-distant third or fourth cousin of Robert's, and she and I met online about ten years ago while doing genealogy. I see she already has been given this award; but she deserves it again. And again.

Heather, Joyful Wandering: I love Heather's blog, and I can relate to a lot of her hsing experiences.

Renita, Home Daze: Renita is a loopy homeschool mom to four lovely daughters. Renita doesn't mind sharing her ditzy moments, and she makes me smile.

Robin, Life of Rileys: Robin's a loopy friend who posts a lot of Colorado photos, which I greatly appreciate. I enjoy reading about her family, and I can't believe she just had a baby and continues to blog without interruption!

Donna, Ummm: Donna is a RIOT. See why Missouri ranks 50th in spelling/grammar. (And no, it's not a reflection on Donna's language abilities, lol.)

* * *

Thanks again, Debbie and Yvonne!

Book Review - Falling Leaves: The True Story of an Unwanted Chinese Daughter by Adeline Yen Mah

Reading about other cultures, particularly Asian and Middle Eastern, has always fascinated me. Falling Leaves is an autobiography, a 20th century Chinese Cinderella story. Adeline's mother died shortly after her birth, leaving behind a husband and five children. Adeline's father was a wealthy businessman and quickly remarried a much-younger French-Asian woman. At the time, particularly in port cities, anything Western was considered superior to Chinese, and a half-European wife was a trophy.

Horribly dysfunctional Niang ("mother") is a hateful and controlling character, manipulating her husband and children throughout the book. Trapped between their strong sense of filial duty and the evil Niang, the children spend their lifetime vying among themselves to gain the love of at least one parent. Even at the end, no one comes out the "winner."

Equally interesting is the backdrop of the book: the fall of the Qing Dynasty and the rise of Chiang Kai-shek; the Japanese Invasion; the Chinese Civil War and migration of the family to Hong Kong; the emergence of Mao Tse-Tung and the Cultural Revolution.

This is an older book, found on my library shelf. While it wasn't the best book I've read about the Chinese culture, I found it hard to put down; definitely an interesting read.

Soccer Banquet

From the beginning of soccer practice through the night of the banquet, the soccer season has lasted for three months. IF we (okay, Holly and Trevor) play soccer twice a year, that means we can have a soccer life for six months out of the year.


I can live with that. I've LOVED soccer. I don't care so much about the game of course, but it's been SO fun to see the same wonderful church friends these two extra times a week.

The kids were each given a plaque with their team photos and a ribbon.

Holly and Trevor both had a blast this season. This has been Holly's favorite soccer season ever, and Trevor went from not wanting to even sign up to looking forward to each practice and game.

In a seriously odd coincidence, all of the girls on Holly's team showed up in green shirts.

This amazing league has done wonders to make us connected to our new home, second only to our church. We're looking forward to seeing what spring season brings.

Weekly Menu

The fact that the week is almost over makes this easier.

Dad's choice (Mom working)
soccer banquet
Potage of Lentils soup, otherwise known as the night I was a terrible wife
Dad's choice (Mom working)
breakfast burritos
french onion soup, otherwise known as the night I will be a wonderful wife
crispy parmesan chicken, broccoli rice casserole, ??

Lunch (with or for):
smoothies
grilled PB&J
Linda's Marinated Mozzarella
parmesan pesto things
tortilla rollups w/meat, lettuce, tomato, dressing

On the back burner:
cutlets Romano
chicken ala king, rice
pork loin
Renita's Funnel Cakes!!!
chicken fajitas
meatloaf
Rocky Mountain Salad
lasagna
shrimp in garlic wine sauce, pasta, ???
pot roast
hot dog ideas from SHS! (link only available to SHS members)
Laura S.'s chicken pot pie (when I'm feeling particularly brave)

The Barf Queen reigns...again

Why can't I just do things the easy way? I've written before about my almost-too-numerous-to-count barfing episodes. (For your night's entertainment, read here and here. Believe me, it might be good for more than one night.)

I started feeling sick at work on Friday. Robert had dropped me off earlier in the morning, and he was with the kids at Holly's riding lesson, way too far to come get me. My boss offered, repeatedly, to take me home, and I finally agreed. (I feel so guilty when people do things for me.)

It's comforting to me to be able to say, "I just live down the road from Shirley," and people know where I live. Joyce was flying down the road with me leaning back in the passenger seat when the urge hit me, and it hit me bad. "I need to pull over," I mumbled. While she drove on, looking for a safe place to stop, I leaned my head out the window and everything came up. Again and again and again and again and again. And when she stopped, I didn't.

It doesn't take a science mom to realize what happens when you throw something out the window of a moving car. And don't hold your hair back. UGH. On the plus side, at least everything stayed outside of her car.

I immediately felt better and told Joyce we'd laugh about this in a few days. She said it'd take me longer than that, but she doesn't know that barfing is practically my life. (She hasn't known me that long.)

As I stumbled out of the car at my house, I was SOOOO very thankful that Robert had the hose hooked up. With the power nozzle even. While Joyce insisted she'd go back to town and that her car needed washing anyway, I convinced her to wash her car off at my house. She's a saint, but by now you already know that.

Talking about it with Robert today, I told him how mortifying the whole thing was. His response: "It happens." "Oh yeah?" I asked. "When was the last time that happened to YOU?"

Some of us are just born to repeat history--their own, over and over.