5 Tasty Recipes

5 Tasty Recipes  (that I didn't invent :))

My own sparkling cranberries, made from the recipe below. So pretty!

1. Candied Walnuts -- good on salad, good eaten straight....

2. Sparkling Cranberries -- a friend of mine linked to these on facebook, so I made them yesterday. SO beautiful and delicious! You should at least go see the pictures (and maybe make these, while cranberries are still available!)

3. Poached Figs -- so this is out of season, but you should really save it for when figs are back! Even if you don't like figs...This recipe turns them into beautiful things. (It's very versatile, too. I don't usually have port, so I substitute whatever wine, red or white, I happen to have around. :))

4. Brownies -- it makes a big 9x13 batch, so if you have a small family you can freeze them. (And they are delicious straight out of the freezer, too.....) I usually cut the cinnamon in half, cause it was a little much for us.

5. Mushroom Soup -- something completely different! It is SO tasty, and the author claims it will boost your immune system. And your immune system will need a boost after the other four recipes!

5 Things I've Loved for Blaze

Obviously, a huge part of my job description these days is "mom"! So for my list this Saturday, I thought I'd tell you five of the things that have been most helpful with Blaze (barring the obvious like diapers, crib, etc).

1. A door-length mirror (got mine on sale for $3!). I have it lengthwise on the floor, propped up against our bookcases. Blaze will sit in front of it and make adorable faces at himself for quite a while. :) I heard that a mirror like this helps babies develop better coordination, too, because they can see what they're doing.

2. A bouncy seat. I have this one. We took the toy bar off because the toys would just hit him in the face and they were an awkward distance for grabbing. Blaze still loves this, although he is SO close to being at the weight limit. Right now he is even sleeping in it a bit, because he has a cold and being upright seems to help him breathe better.

3. This youtube video. When Blaze was newborn, I would play it to help him go to sleep in the wee sma's. And to help keep me relaxed, too, because I tended to get a bit despondent at 3 am with no sleep in sight. Right now, with his cold, I've been playing it again to help him go to sleep.

4. Random household objects (garlic press, basket of measuring cups, anything with an interesting shape and texture). Now that he can grab, lean, and roll, he wants to be into everything! I try to give him lots of things to explore so that he doesn't get bored. The garlic press was especially a hit. :-D

5. A clock. Blaze was a pretty fussy newborn, and has been pretty fussy at nights for a bit. The clock (or cell phone :)) helps me narrow down why he's crying. For instance, if it's 3 am and I just fed him at 2:30, I am pretty positive that he's not hungry!

How many books do you read at a time?

I am never reading just one book. My usual mode of operation is to have several stacks of books by my bed table. Variously mixed in will be Bible studies, cookbooks, craft books, novels...a little bit of everything really. Right now I am at various stages of 5 "reading" books (other books for browsing would include cookbooks and craft books).

My Life For Yours by Douglas Wilson has been wonderful fodder for discussion in our Ladies Group. This book walks through the house using each room to discuss all of the wonderful ways we have to lay down our life for others and grow in grace.  I can't recommend it highly enough.

Naked Wine by Alice Feiring is the tale of a woman who sets out to make wine with nothing but grapes. I am not far into it so I can't give a good review of it but the portion I have read has been well written and interesting.

Fasting Made Simple by Paula White is not as trite as it seems by the title. I was suspicious at first but am almost through and have gotten a lot out of her wise discussion of this mysterious topic (mysterious to me, anyway). It has always seemed to me that fasting was part of a scheme to get God to do something, as if He could be coerced. Paula White has done a really good job of giving a better biblical perspective and helping to clear the clouds in my mind about fasting.

Postmillennialism by Keith A. Mathison is, as it is named, a book about postmillennialism. I have to admit that I have been working very slowly through this book. There is a lot to grab ahold of and chew on and I have enjoyed this book a lot. I am half way through now and hope to pick up speed.

Dirty Life by Kristin Kimball is a book about a New York woman who met a farmer and how her life was turned upside down as she transitioned into a farmer's wife. But her husband, Mark, was not just any kind of farmer. Her farmer had a dream to have a farm that supplied ALL of their food needs and the needs of select others. He uses horses to farm, as the Amish do, and will do almost anything to not use any sort of machinery. Their relationship is not Christian but it is an interesting story about sinners who build a farm from scratch. I am one chapter from the end and I have really enjoyed this book.

Saturday List

What are you eating for dinner this week?

Mmm, I wish this was on our menu! Delicious cheeses from the farm of some friends.

I menu-plan our dinners week-by-week to help keep us within our food budget. Here's what we're having this week:

Sunday: Burgers (Ryan's favorite! -- and I love that are hardly any dishes to wash afterwards)

Monday: Pasta with Chicken Alfredo sauce, and carrots prepared somehow or other (roasted? steamed?)

Tuesday: Black beans, taco-seasoned burger, and rice with salsa, sour cream and maybe avocado

Wednesday: Thai Red Chicken Curry (found on Noble's food board on pinterest :))

Thursday: Crispy Sweet Potato Fries, with some sour cream dip if I find a recipe I like. Every other Thursday we go hang out with some of our friends for a book study, and we all bring a finger food to share. So we will eat more than just sweet potato fries, but that's what I'm bringing. ;)

Friday: Meatballs & Gravy, my mom's oven-roasted potatoes (the secret ingredient is onion soup mix!), and broiled zucchini with butter, garlic and parmesan on top.


If you do a menu plan, I'd love to hear what you're having in the comments! I'm always on the hunt for awesome dinner ideas. And if you don't menu plan, do you have favorite dinners that you fall back on a lot?

You Can Never Be Too Prepared

I can feel the excitement of holidays approaching in the air. We feel extra anticipation around here because Noble's baby is due this month! And with all these activities creeping up on me quickly I am trying to think of what I can get done now to keep the our Thanksgiving dinner from being something I might be less than thankful for.

Five things to prepare for Thanksgiving

1. Plan the menu now. Can't start preparing if you don't know what you are preparing for.
2. Start watching grocery store sales for your turkey.
3. Make enough pie dough for all the pies you'll need. Pat it into a disc, then tightly wrap in foil or plastic wrap and freeze. Let the dough defrost overnight before baking.
4. Make cranberry sauce and either can it up or freeze it for later.
5. Shop now for all of the things you will need that aren't fresh, ie chicken stock and canned pumpkin.

Does anyone have other things they accomplish early to prepare for Thanksgiving? I would love to hear about it to help me be even more put together.

5 Things That Whacked Me in the Head

My mom has a list for us this Saturday, but she has been so busy bearing fruit in real life, co-hosting a baby shower, etc., that she hasn't had time to post. Her list is of ideas that have struck her from My Life for Yours (by Douglas Wilson), the book she is going through in the women's book study she is part of. The chapter they went over recently is "Sleep in the Bedroom."   Here is what she says, and her list of five things she's been inspired to do by the chapter: 

Some chapters [of My Life for Yours] are encouraging and good to remember

and some chapters whack me in the head. Sleep in the Bedroom did that for me this week. 

[5 Things to Whack You in the Head]

1.       Honor the Lord by rising early

2.       Be thankful for the blessing of work – work hard

3.       Recognize God cares for us and He is tender with His people

4.       Recognize that the peace that makes no sense is a BLESSING from God…not something we drum up

5.       Learn and sing psalms of gratitude

 She would have given us some other good words as well, but she was so busy! We will have to look forward to next time. 

We'll see you back here on Monday!
Courtney

A Saturday List

I thought I'd tell you about my projects I'll be working on next week. It's a short list -- I try not to think about too many things to do at once. :) There's a balance to this diligence thing. If I stack up too many things to do, that discourages me instead of motivating me! But here is what I'm working on next week:

1. Socks for Ryan. He doesn't like traditional dress socks, so I'm trying to make him compromise wool socks -- dressy enough for school (he's a teacher), but comfy enough for his toes. I have one finished already, and I'm about half way through the other one! I'm using this pattern (first time with toe-up, for you sock-knitters out there!), and this yarn. This is a spare time project -- I work on it in little free moments around the day. (10-21: Check!)

2. Decluttering my magazines. I've been inspired to do this by reading this book, which is about taking small steps to simplify your life. Most of my magazines are Cooks Illustrated, so I need to go through and decide which recipes and articles I really want to keep...and which back-cover art is worth gleaning. It's a little hard, because they are chock full of such useful information! But the truth is that what is important to me, I already remember after reading once (for instance, the trick of saving your butter wrappers to grease pans with later). (10-21: Check!)

3. Making biscuits and gravy for Ryan. He's on fall break this week, so I thought it would be a nice surprise for him to have biscuits and gravy one morning. :) (I know this seems small for a project, but that is what having a baby will do to you!) (10-21: Check!)

4. Cleaning the bathroom. I try to get this done every week. ;) (10-21: Check!)

5. Deep cleaning the kitchen. (10-21: Halfway Done!)

My secret to getting anything done now that Blaze is here is to try to do it before he wakes up in the morning.

What are the projects you're working on next week? This past week I finished my thank-you notes for all the sweet presents people gave Blaze!

 Who wouldn't want to give this chubby fellow presents? But maybe they should give his mama some sense of "matching." ;) 

Watch out for an update on Monday! And have a lovely sabbath. :)
Courtney

(10-21:  Edited to show that I did some of these! Woohoo!)