Archive for the ‘Life’ Category
- In: Life
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I love easy recipes. And this is one easy recipe.
For the batter, have a box of cake, cinnamon and a Diet Coke.
Pour the dry cake into a bowl, adding a teaspoon of cinnamon and the entire can of Diet Coke.
Pour into cake pan and bake as box instructs.
You could stop right there and have some of the moistest cake ever. But I took it a step further and made icing from this recipe.
This is the cake I made for Ryan the other night.
Bon Appetit!
CD Giveaway!
Posted on: March 4, 2010
Emily, over at The Adventures of Miss Mommy, is giving away 5 (you read that right, 5) Scripture memory CDs from Seeds Family Worship. I’ve heard them before and love ’em! The best part? Each winner actually gets two CDs, one to keep and one to share. Pretty awesome, right?
So, go over to Emily’s site and sign up.
Be sure to tell her I sent ya!
- In: Life
- 5 Comments
I am not a breakfast-for-dinner kinda gal. In fact, I firmly believe that eggs are not to be consumed in breakfast fashion after 10 am. But pancakes? Pancakes are a whole different story. Pancakes are so close to cake that, like cake, they may be eaten at any time of the day: morning, noon, night, or late, late night.
I used a basic pumpkin pancake recipe, switching one cup white flour for one cup whole wheat and adding 1/4 cup flax seed.
Mix together the dry ingredients.
Next add your wet ingredients (milk, egg, pumpkin puree, vinegar and oil). Mix until thickened.
When you’re cooking pancakes, wait until it’s “bubbly” to flip. The bubbles let you know the side facing down is done.
These pancakes are very filling and have just the right amount of sweetness. I served the pancakes with turkey bacon and applesauce.
Bon Appetit!
- In: Life
- 7 Comments
Last Monday, Jonathan’s boss came over dinner. Ryan is a 30-something who is pretty fun to be around and we (mostly Jonathan) have gotten to know him well over the last 2 years. Even though he insists on not being called “boss” his name is still on the building, so I decided that we’d go all out, Mexican style. I made Chicken Fajitas with rice, black beans and homemade tortillas.
First I sliced up bell peppers and onion:
Then I sliced up chicken into strips:
Then I put some oil in a large frying pan. I cooked the meat then added the vegetables. I made my own fajita seasoning from this recipe, which turned out awesome, and added it to the chicken and vegetables, once the vegetables were a little more tender. Then I added some water, stirred and let simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Here is the outcome:
I even took the dinner one step further and made homemade tortillas. I’m not quite ready to share my top secret recipe, but I will say this, I want a griddle. Nothing like cooking 3 tortillas at once to make my heart go flutter-flutter.
And here is the complete dinner, topped off with a Mexican Chocolate Cake*:
Bon Appetit!
*The recipe for the cake will be coming soon!
- In: Life
- 12 Comments
Our family makes a regular practice of having daily quiet time for the girls. I have them both sit on blankets with toys and books (or coloring books and crayons for Julia) for about 30 minutes. Over the last several months I feel like I’ve hit a quiet time rut. It seems like we are always giving Julia the same books or the same toys and her interest is fading fast. I read a great idea nearly a year ago on Keeper of the Home about having quiet time bins. The idea is to have bins for each day of the week, containing something new for each of the days. The child only plays with those items/toys on that day. I’ve been wanting to put this into practice since first learning about it, but haven’t wanted to splurge on nice bins. That is until now.
Paul’s Discount is a local store in town. They just had their “Dollar Days” and guess what? Shoebox sized bins were on sale for $1. Sweet! I bought five and here’s what I made:
I am still working on filling them with great things I know Julia will enjoy each day. She’s thrilled about her “boxes” and was more than excited when she got to open it for quiet time yesterday.
Just to add some cheesiness… I have these little 16 oz containers inside each bin for Hannah. The containers hold one or two small books each. I did this 1) because I thought it was kinda adorable 2) to help Julia later understand that the contents of the bins are to be shared with her sister. When Julia did her quiet time, I pulled out the small containers for Hannah. Not surprising, Hannah liked the box more than the books or other toys she had!
A dandy of a treat
Posted on: March 1, 2010
- In: Life
- 6 Comments
I found this recipe for Saltine Candy Treats off Blissfully Domestic and made some for Valentine’s Day (yes, I’m fully aware V-Day was over two weeks ago). Leah made a version of these at Christmas, using cheez-its, so I called her in to help me out. Props to her for the photos!
You will need:
I thought the contrast of fat free crackers with a cup of butter was pretty ironic. Don’t ya think?
Cover a cookie sheet with tin foil. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Arrange crackers in rows and columns, overlapping for extra layers.
Melt 1 cup butter and 1 cup brown sugar. Bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes.
Spread over crackers and place in the oven at 400* for 5 minutes.
Once done, remove from oven and cover with chocolate chips, spreading them to make a frosting. Leah had a helpful hint of placing it back in the turned-off oven to melt the chocolate. Worked like a charm.
And the finished product:
The contrast of sweet and salty is really yum. Makes a very delicious cookie substitute!
The 12 Project
Posted on: February 28, 2010
- In: Life
- 2 Comments
I came across this site, earlier this month, that does one of the funnest challenges I’ve seen yet:
- Take a photo of your family once a month.
- Write a few things about that month.
- Make it into a book at the end of the year.
I missed out on January, but we finally did our picture for February. Today, actually. Which is very fitting for us, being the last day of the month. Sort of symbolizes how we do things. Very planned, yet very last minute. (That seems like an oxymoron, but trust me, it’s how we roll.)
We sign for our house on Tuesday and wrap up our last week at the Abdos’. The last 8 weeks have been some of the best times I think our family has had. I am learning more and more about how to give of myself, not just to Jonathan and the girls, but those around me. I’m not always great at it, but the Abdos have been gracious in helping me grow and stretch myself. It has been overwhelming to see how all four boys interact with the girls. They have become older brothers to Julia and Hannah and it fills my heart with joy. Joe and Shirley have shown me that, while it’s tough to wrangle 4 teenage boys, it’s not impossible and can be done with overflowing grace and love. If I dare say, seeing their family has made me excited for when my girls become teens. Since moving here, Jonathan and I have had the opportunity to have weekly date nights. That has been amazing. Funny enough, we go to the same place each week. Typically, that’s not our style, as we like variety, but the setting is relaxed and perfect for hours of conversation.
I am excited for this next transition and settling into our new home, but it is bittersweet to leave the Abdos. They are very much a part of our family and we are so grateful that we’ve become a part of theirs.
- In: Life
- 11 Comments
Want to hear something even crazier? I’m really glad.
Ok, I’ll give you a moment to compose yourself.
Better now?
The first time I toured the house, I didn’t notice the lack of dishwasher. But sure enough, it’s not there. The kitchen is a galley design, meaning it’s long and narrow. The house was built in 1959, and while other parts of the house are very up-to-date, the kitchen is not. The kitchen is something Jonathan and I discussed a lot before putting in an offer: could we live with it as-is?
Yes. And I love it.
We’re a family that hosts. A lot. In fact, I’m fairly certain Hispanic and hosting are spelled the same. So, why would I love “wasting” time in the kitchen? Because, and this is where things get crazy, it’s simple.
I didn’t have a dishwasher until my family built our house when I was 17. Actually, I take that back, my family did have a dish washer: me. And while at the time, washing dishes for my entire family was by no means fun, it was usually the only part of my day that was just to myself. I’ve been telling Jonathan lately, that in all the chaos, all the facebooking, blogging, playdating, 1/2 marathon training, news-updating world that has become my life, I’m really longing for something that takes it back a few steps. And hand washing dishes is one of those.
We do plan to remodel at some point. Since hosting is a big part of our lives and the kitchen is the natural place where we gather, we would like to make it more inviting for our “extended familia”. But, the ideas we have are going to take time to see through. Which means, in the mean time, I’m going old school.
Jonathan and Sarah
I’m pretty opinionated.
I’m very loud.
I’ve been known to speak then think.
And despite all that, I’m loved by one very understanding man. One of the greatest things about Jonathan is his overwhelming patience for me. Even in all the crazy things I do and say, he gives himself to me more and more everyday.
Indeed, I am loved.
- In: Life
- 6 Comments
How in the world do you use yeast?
If there is one thing in the cooking world that mystifies me, it is using yeast for baking. I have only used it in my bread machine and have never ventured beyond that. I’m even apprehensive about the terms; testing the yeast, “it’s live” or “it’s active”, then there’s fresh yeast, dry active, or instant. Your water has to be just right, the room temperature just so… one wrong move makes everything go sour. It’s like everything has to be aligned perfectly for these little microorganisms to work.
What are some tricks, tips, help “bewares” that you can pass along?
A Wife Loved Like The Church 
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