Reading and Cooking

It can be hard to find good books for our children to enjoy - ones that they like and we want them to read. Some of the same ones Hannah was fond of are not Josiah's "cup of tea". Enter Mr. Putter and Tabby, a hit with Josiah.

 

What fun books! They are by Cynthia Rylant. Josiah is pretty picky about the books he reads (i.e.- if he doesn't find it interesting, it's not worth his effort), but he gets into these and so do I. I find myself laughing at the antics of the characters and the situations they find themselves in. If you have a youngster who is ready for easy chapter books. Let me recommend Mr. Putter and Tabby.

 

Another thing I would recommend is teaching your children to cook. It worked for me today. Josiah offered to cook supper. I asked him what he would fix. He said tomato soup and grilled cheese, because I had taught him how.

Once he had the "go ahead" from me, he proceeded to get out the ingredients and with some supervision, was able to do everything except turn on the gas stove (which I have not taught him to do yet ;) ).

 

 

 

That's one very proud 8 year old!

 

 

 

Cooking up his favorite grub!

 

 

Flippin' it to perfection!

Josiah's Apple Pie

"What cha takin' ma pitcher fer?"

 

"Well, you are the person who made this pie, are you not?"



 

"I did the stuff on the top o' the pie. See the D for Dad, the J for Josiah . . ."

"Yes, I see that. So you can't take the credit for cutting the apples and . . . "

 

"No. Am I in trouble?"

"No, no, no! But we'll still call it Josiah's pie."

Give 'Em Samosas

As we go through Rome to the Reformation, we briefly cover the history of other countries. As in Exploring Countries and Cultures, it is mentioned that you might want to try enjoying a dish from that country.
There are some recipes included in the curriculum and you can also find your own.

Mice in the Kitchen?

On a trip to Grandmother's

A day that was dreary

We arrived a day after Christmas

Tired and weary.

Then what to our wondering eyes

Should we see

But a red poinsetta

As big as a tree!

But that is not all

Our eyes did behold

Don't shut your ears

This story must be told.

In Grandmother's kitchen

As neat as a pin,

Was something I spied

And I had to look again!

So still and so quiet

They made not a sound

And yet I could see them

going round and round.

They circled the platter

And shone with delight

To give each passer

A shock of fright!

Oh, mice in the kitchen

I shall not complain,

Don't think me crazy

I am totally sane.

But I proceeded to pick one up

By the tail,

It gave not a squeek,

At least not that I could tell.

From chocolate to almond,

A cherry inside!

I ate all but the tail,

It was tough as hide.

I washed it all down

With lemonade and iced tea,

Then dashed away home

To write this for thee!



July 4th, Plain and Simple

This was a very laid back 4th of July for us. About the only creative thing I did was the above dessert. Very simply, CarbSmart icecream with blueberries from our backyard and raspberries that were on sale. It was pretty yummy, though. We watched fireworks from a shopping center parking lot. From our vantage point, we could see booms and splarkles from three different directions all around us. We also saw flashes of lightening, so we were very cautious. The kids said God was doing his own fireworks. : )

Wordless Wednesday - Pizzeria

Passover

                              I

                       Passover

   For the past few years, we have celebrated with a simple seder at home. Last night, we had the privilege of celebrating  it with four other families in the home of our friends. I tried making a couple of new dishes that I had never tried before, a vegetable kugel and chocolate mousse cake (pictured above). The kugel was okey, but the mousse, mmmmmmm. I think it might become a passover tradition.

   I forgot to take my camera, so I hope Erin got some good pictures. It was lively with as many children as adults in attendance. How sweet it was to hear them read and take part in the seder. The young ones had their own table with a wooden seder plate.

   Grape juice was spilled and matzah was munched and we sang and thanked God for delivering us from our bondage to sin.

    Next year in Jerusalem! That's what they always say anyway.

   Now for a wonderful week of no leaven, as we approach the time to celebrate our Risen Lord.

Josiah makes Muffins

Happy Chef

Hot from the oven

two handed stirring

It seems that Josiah is becoming quite the little chef. We made muffins together this morning, apple cinnamon from the Bread Becker recipe book. He insisted on wearing his apron and adding all of the ingredients himself. He did let me drop the apples in as I cut them up, though.

Starting the Year Off Right

 It was a bit of a challenge getting back to the books today, but we made it.

The best part was probably our read aloud, Treasures of the Snow by Patricia St. John. I remember seeing it on television years ago. I don't remember it having a Christian theme, but the book definitely does. The issues of salvation and forgiveness are dealt with in a way that kids can really understand. Mine get excited about me reading the next chapter.

Another thing my kids get excited about is helping in the kitchen, so I let Josiah assist with making potato soup tonight. It was not planned, it just sort of happened. I asked him to bring me some potatoes and afterwards he wanted to hand each one to me to peel and chop. Then he wanted to add them to the pot. Then he wanted to help with the stirring and adding other ingredients. He never left me and kept talking about how yummy it was going to be.



 Hannah came in and I got her to wash the dishes that were in the sink while we cooked. She actually likes doing this, too. I like it when a plan comes together (not what happened this time, because I did not plan it), but I also like it when people just come along and offer to help.

What's on the Menu?

I seem to not know what to fix lately. Maybe some inspiration from past successes will help. I remember this meal!

Hannah made the colorful carrot/raisin salad. I made cranberry "sauce". The yummy chicken pot pie was a joint effort.

I used left over chicken, mixed vegetables, cream of chicken soup, mayonnaise, and Durkee's french fried onions. I made the topping from scratch, but it was very easy and delicious.

I also made a dessert not too long ago that turned out well. . .

A carrot cake for a friend's birthday.

Okey, I think I'm inspired to get back in the kitchen. Hope it inspired you, too.

Wordless Wednesday - Hannah's Latest Creation

using my mother's canned apple pie filling

and homemade crust.

Which Came First, The Waffles or the Egg

 Well, in this case, the waffles come first. The picture download process is different than I am use to and therefore my pictures are in reverse order. Since I don't have time to rearrange them, I am going to run with it the way it is. As you can see, Hannah is very proud of the waffles she has just made!
She did everything except take them out of the waffle iron. That was mom's job.

 She measured the batter and put it into the iron at the proper time.

She mixed the ingredients by hand. She likes to use the wooden spoon.

I had her put her hair up, but I forgot to have her wear an apron. Oh well, the flour brushes off anyway.
She carefully follows the recipe from the Bread Beckers cookbook and reminds herself to put the egg into the bowl and the shell into the trash and not visa versa ( she has obviously learned from her mistakes).

South Pole Extravaganza

Not really. It wasn't anything that big and dramatic. We just made our Northern Lights punch and Penguin Cookies and invited some friends over. We needed to see them before they left to go out of town for a good chunk of the summer.


Hannah made the cookies pretty much by herself. I helped make the frosting and they turned out quite yummy!



After our guest arrived and had some cookies and punch, we got in the pool. We regularly get in at 3:00. The pool is in the shade at that time of day, therefore no need to worry about sunscreen. And the water is so warm that it feels nice. If we were in the bright sun, it might not feel so refreshing.

Josiah enjoys going for diving sticks.

Danielle is a strong swimmer.

Elizabeth was fond of the dolphin.

Josiah showed me a most excellent float.

The littlest showed that he was not afraid of the water anymore.

And Stephanie and Hannah were found hiding under the boat.

The children all played together so well that after supper, the adults were able to sit around and chat for quite a while. Friends are such a blessing.