Pizza, Pizza, and More Pizza

My lovely children

Who knew life could be so busy?  My youngest started playing T Ball, and my oldest started boxing in the last month.  I don't know how you other ladies do it.  I'm pretty sure my children haven't eaten a decent meal more than once a week during this entire time!  I just don't have time to go grocery shopping.  I leave for work around 7 am and return home between 5:30 and 6.  On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays are T Ball,  on Mondays my oldest has Boy Scouts ( luckily I just have to make sure he's fed),  Wednesdays,  Fridays, and some Mondays are boxing. I need a nap just writing about it!  We also have several other things we do, splattered among this chaos.  We get home, I shove pizza, Subway, pizza, Dairy Queen, pizza, and Pals in front them.  Short stuff prefers yogurt and peanut butter tortillas to this crap.  I usually just end up watching them eat, because I am too wound up from the day to want to food.  Oh, and we haven't eaten at the kitchen table in at least a year.  We eat at the coffee table and watch the news.  Then, it's on to homework, bath/showers, and bed.  This is when I retreat to my room to hibernate, scoff down some fast food, and rot my brain on TMZ.   The crazy schedule will continue until June

      I really miss being at home with my kids, but someone has to keep the lights on.  I can't figure out if it's a time management  issue, or just defeat. I need to start feeding my kids better.  Maybe we would all stop being so grumpy!  Well I'm not sure about my angst filled 12 year old.  I think we just need to suck the testosterone out of him !  I would love for any of you to share your ideas on how to work, manage your family, and still find time to feed them decent food.

     On a positive note, the laundry seems to be under control a little more.  It still doesn't make it to anyone's bedroom, BUT it doesn't seem to accumulate on the kitchen table anymore.  YAY!!!!!  We just throw it to the appropriate basket when it comes out of he dryer.  It may not be folded, but I can sit at my table if I want.  The laundry basket outside the bathroom seems to be curbing the drop the dirties on the floor habit.  I'm even able to get Thing 1 to help me sort and pick up the laundry now.  Sage has his own socks and underwear box as well.  He can go get new underwear when he has an accident, and not have to dig for it.  Baby steps right?

   Well I'm off to make a meal plan, that I will never get to shop for, and wash 5 loads of laundry.  I'm hoping to make some nice warm chicken corn chowder for dinner w. corn bread.  If you don't hear from me by midnight, come looking under the piles of bedding in the kitchen.

My Week in Photos

My week in photos.  It's missing Thing 2's first TBall practice.  I spent the entire time chasing him around and bringing him back to our plane of existence most of the time. There wasn't room for picture taking.

Thing 1 Being useful as always.  Mom are you going to blog this?

In Target ( Tar jay) they don't have laundry bins, they have LAMPERS!

Sorting out clothes that don't fit.

Beauty of Spring

Willow in bloom

Dinner was kid fun

Banana Pie anyone?

Laundry...Plain and Simple

     I had grand ideas for The Unexpected Life this week.  I thought hard all week over what I wanted to talk about;   a tutorial for my rainbow cake, what we do for family time in our house, some sort of making this place look decent deal, instead  I ended up spending half of yesterday buying shoes for the kids.  Well, I spent half the afternoon fighting over a pair of shoes for my 12 year old (so glad they told us we could return them if they didn't fit right).  My 4 year old wanted the prettiest red sparkly TOM  shoes, but his dreams were dashed when I informed him he needed sneakers.  It took him all of 5 minutes to decided on the ones that looked like lizards.  Today I am just tired.   I think springing forward has stolen what little mental capacity I have left.  So.....as I sit here in the middle of my kitchen I start to thinking about laundry.

    Laundry seems to be one of those dilemmas we all have to fight at some point in our lives, some of us on a daily basis.  When I stayed at home with the kids, I didn't seem to have as much of a problem.  I washed laundry daily, and for a year I even had to hang everything to dry because our dryer was broken.  I'm even one of those crazies that like to do the laundry when I have the time.  The problem is.......I don't seem to have any time.  Where I once washed a daily, I now try to tackle everything on one day of the week.  Compounding this problem we only had two laundry baskets.  We used to have more, but they always ended up storing things in closets.  I'm pretty sure I have at least 3 in my bedroom full of clothes I don't wear anymore.  None of us have dressers (mine won't fit in the door, Thing 1's has been claimed by another family member, Thing 2's broke 3 years ago), and nothing ever gets hung up in the closet.  So throughout the whole week our mountains of laundry overtake our kitchen and kitchen table.  Nothing ever seems to find it's way to it's home.  We are pretty lucky if out clothes even get folded.  I need a solution and I need one fast.

Family closet from http://toomanykidsinthebathtub.blogspot.com

I REALLY like the concept of the family closet.  I have been contemplating this particular idea for probably 2 years.  The more I think about it though, the less I think it would work for us.  We just don't have the space for one.  Our closets are our storage units.  They are full of exercise equipment, Christmas decorations, and craft supplies.  My oldest son has a large room, but I don't want to fill it with everyone's clothing.  He's getting to be "that age", and likes to have his own space ( and I like him to go to that space and stay there on occasion haha).  I even thought, well maybe we could set up some tall shelves in the kitchen and store things in hampers or bins.  This idea only seemed good for a millisecond, then I knew I didn't want to look at any sort of storage in my kitchen. So, if this isn't going to work for us, I'm not sure what we really need to do.  I do know that I'm not just going to sit around and wait for an epiphany.

I decided to make a preliminary game plan to climb to the summit of Mt. Laundry.  It all begins with purging.  I am going to go through everyone's clothing and if it doesn't fit....it's going to be donated.  I'm not going hog wild with this purging, but as I wash I will pull out those items of clothing.  Next, I am going to make sure those bags of clothes actually leave my house.  I currently have three bags that have been sitting by the door for 2 months.  I may have to employ the services of a family member to take care of this.  The Salvation Army is open when I am at work, and there are no drop of locations here.  Third, I am going to separate the laundry as soon as it comes out of the dryer.  I purchased 2 new laundry bins yesterday.  There is going to be a laundry basket for myself, one for Thing 1, and 1 for Thing 2.  There is also going to be a smaller bin for socks.  Luckily we all have vastly different size feet and fashion sense.  We won't have to separate them.   Fourth, I am keeping one large hamper for our clothes to go in.  It will be located in the hall by the bathroom and two of the bedrooms.  This will hopefully make it more likely the clothes will be in one contained space, and will eliminate the pile in my kitchen.  If we need to we can add another hamper in the hall.  Last, I will keep thinking about a larger solution to  our problem.

I would love to take some before  pics, but I think the laundry on my kitchen table might have eaten my camera.  Once I find it I will try to remember to post progress pics of our laundry issue.  That is if I don't die under an avalanche of clothes. 

It's Better Than Elevator Music

Instead of playing elevator music over and over in your head while waiting for another mind blowing post ( just laugh it's ok), I thought I would share with you some of the creations I've recently made in my kitchen.  I don't claim to be a master pastry chef, cake decorator, or even Chuck Norris, but I really like to bake.  I started helping my grandmother bake the minute I went to live with her at the age of 5.  By 8 years old I could bake cakes and cookies completely on my own, and by 12 I was baking cakes for others.  Then I got busy with life and I have just picked up this wonderful hobby again.  I love to see the faces of my children and family when they see my sweet creations...even if they're ghetto :)  Hope you enjoy my pics, and happy creating!

The first creation was for Thing 1's 4th Birthday. He requested a rainbow, tie dye, Hello Kitty, rock star cake.

Hello Kitty knows how to rock out.

Our rainbow Tie dye cake.  It was so yummy!

 My second Creation was for my 12 year old.  He insisted on an Anrgy Birds Cookie Cake.  It was very simple to make.

It was never quite finished, because even 12 year olds like to sneak bit of the cookie when no one is looking.

 I made these for my grandmother's Birthday.  They are a "funfetti"white cake, with strawberry frosting.

My grandmother likes the color pink.

Rosette style frosting.

Sugar crystals, A girly cupcakes BFF.

The Hen and the Caulk

     
     This past week I've been dealing with the plague.  I'm pretty sure I got it from my office mate at work.  She went down at the same time I did, and with nearly the same symptoms. So... I spent  days of my life in bed in agonizing pain, and was so tired I had to work to breathe, BUT BUT BUT I managed to accomplish a few things last weekend before it obliterated my immune system.

     I've been so incredibly busy lately, that I was very excited to get some things done in the house.  The room that has been the most neglected was my bathroom.  It had come to the point that I didn't even want to go in it anymore.  My poor tiny little bathroom was super cluttered, and well...hadn't had a really good deep down cleaning in a while.  Compounding that situation was the fact we have been ( like a lot of Americans) a little cash poor, and while I love my job it doesn't pay enough.   Everything in my bathroom is old, classic, vintage whatever you want to call it.  I have had the same multicolored stripe Martha Stewart shower curtain since my oldest was 4 (he's now 12).  The metal grommets were rusting, and we don't want to even talk about the condition of the liner.  So as a motivator to work on the bathroom,  I purchased a cute almost eggplant purple shower curtain and a new liner.  The rules were that I couldn't put it up until all tasks were complete; all the tile was wiped down ( it covers my bathroom), grout cleaned, rugs washed, everything scrubbed, floors mopped,  knickknacks dusted, the counter decluttered, and MOST OF ALL.....I had to replace the caulk in my tub.  I rent, so not one of the not so handy men had ever properly re-caulked the tub.  In one corner a "professional" had actually just made a big pile and smeared it around.  After living here for several years it was just plain ol' disgusting. It was time to get to work. 

      In the past I have used caulk to seal up some insect super secret escape hatches.  It came out great and was super simple. This time I thought, "Well, I've done this before this will be a piece of cake"!  It ended up being a bit of a big mess.  I prepped it all the night before.  I pulled out 3 layers of caulk between my tub and the tile.  It was really difficult to get it out.  When I pulled it out was was horrified to see the grout was broken into little pieces, and in one spot there was a 3/4" gap between the tub and tile.  I thought nothing I can't deal with. I made sure to clean the new open space as to get rid of dirt and decomposed grout.  This is a really important step to ensure the new caulk has fresh start and a clean surface to adhere to.  A girl doesn't want to spend all this time just to have it peel up and mildew.  The next day, I went to the store and purchased caulk.  I decided against using the regular caulk and gun and went with the type in the tube you can squeeze out yourself.  The first portion I caulked was easy, then the more I moved along the harder it became.  It was hard to get in an adequate amount of caulk in the areas where the gap was large and very deep. This is where my cake decorating skills came into play. These areas were also a trouble spot when smoothing out the calk.  In previous small jobs I just used my finger to smooth everything out, or once even used one of those tools you can buy.  The problem with this jo,b was the irregularity in the gap between the tub and tile.  I ended up using my fingers in the end, but it didn't come out as aesthetically pleasing as I would have liked.  I did accomplish the goal of making sure the areas that needed to be filled in were, and that there was no space between the caulk and tile where water could seep in.  I think next time I might change how I do things, but hopefully there won't be a next time in this apartment.  At the end of the day I completed all my mini goals in the bathroom, and with the smell of original Pine-Sol wafting in the breeze, I put up my new shower curtain.  Mission Accomplished (but not in the George W Bush sort of way haha).  It's funny how less than $20 can make a room look brand new!


Tools used for the Tub Project
Utility knife
Scrub Brush
Bleach
GE Kitchen & Bath Caulk-It
Lots of Paper Towels
Elbow Grease
  
      As for my blog self challenge/ to do list thingamabobber, I haven't decided how I am going to graphically show what I've done or what I need to do.  I'm also not sure where to place it on my blog.  These are all sorts of things I should be thinking about while I drive to work instead of singing to LMFAO songs. :) 

New shower rings ( to go with my vintage pink tile)

New shower curtain (it's much darker in RL)

How Time Flies When You're stuck Behind a Desk

 Last time we blogged I was looking forward to fall.  What the?  Spring is upon us and the fall season flew by at warp speed.  I started working at the end of the summer at a great place that I love, but I have had a monumental problem meshing mom life to work life.  I am always so exhausted at the end of everyday, which is not helped by the long commute to and from work.  In the meantime my home and everything inside has gone to pot.  I desperately want to get back on track and blog again.  I have been doing some fun little baking projects over the winter that I would like to share, plus we may start talking a bit about my goal to organize myself and take my house back and get the children back in order.  Do any of you have any great tips on juggling work and home? I 'd Love to hear your advice.  I am contemplating some sort of self challenge.  I'm still working out what this  is going to be, and how I will set it up.  I may even ask you all to join in, or update us on how you are doing.  In the middle of this, I am also thinking of moving.  I have had about enough of apartment dwelling, and my long time neighbors are trying to buy a home.  I've missed everyone.  Here's to keeping my ADD brain on track! 

Thinking Forward to Fall

   
     Fall isn't in the air, but it is in my mind when it comes to the garden.  Originally,  I had just planned just on planting some pretty fall flowers, because they are much lower maintenance that anything that produces food.  Through researching what to do to prepare for next spring, I have convinced myself to plant one or two things just to see what happens. Most people think of summer as being the only time you can grow your own food, but if you plan properly you can extend your growing season through most of the year.
     What you can grow, and when you need to plant it depends on where you live.  I suggest your state or county extension if you need help with finding your zone and plants that work well with your climate.  Here in TN the UT Extension has a free publication on fall vegetable gardens you can download.   Make sure you research what you want to plant because not all cool weather plants are created equal.  Many crops planted in the spring prefer cool and moist conditions, and if you have been outside lately you know that's not what goes on this time of year.  There are other precautions you must take as well, like keeping the seeds moist. One tip in improving your germination success, is planting the seeds 1/4 inch deeper than you would in the spring.  Compared to spring and summer crops you may also need to give your fall garden a little more TLC.  This is the one thing that seems daunting to me.  I spent  A LOT of time this spring hand picking insects off my tomatoes and I'm not sure I am up to the work this fall.
    I have been thinking about what I might want to plant for my fall garden. I have been thinking something simple like greens or lettuce and a few flowers.  I really need to think about it some more and see what seeds are available. SO as your summer garden starts to wind down, will you be thinking about a fall garden?  What will you plant?  Do you have any tips?  Happy gardening!
   

Menu Planning SavesTime and Money

     I used to be the Queen of Run to the Grocery Store.  It seemed like almost every day I there was something.  After I had Thing #2 going to the grocery store became exponentially more difficult.  I'm not sure how my friends with large families ever make it through the store in one piece and with their sanity intact.  There are several small changes I made to make my life a little easier.
     One thing I have done to make my life a little less complicated, and save a ton of money is menu planning.  In it's simplest form all a person has to do is sit down and spend a few minutes jotting don what meals they want to eat for the week.  I know some of our city friends don't have the ability to shop for a week at one time because public transit and a cart full of groceries to carry wouldn't work, just plan for whatever span fits your lifestyle best.  If you have transportation and the storage space by all means plan for a month.  I personally plan for a week, because that's what I can fit in my car, lug up a flight of stairs, and store in my house.  Once you have your meal plan completed you need to make a list of the things you will need to buy.  It is always good to check out what you already have in stock to avoid buying many duplicates.  The most important part of shopping with your menu plan is actually using the list you brought.  As long as you buy everything you have on your list  you will be able to avoid unnecessary trips to the store.
     Once you have mastered the basic menu planning, and you feel like you have a little more time to spend on it, you can move on to reducing your grocery budget.  Now, I know you're thinking, "I've already reduced my bill by sticking to the list why should I do any more?"  My answer is, YOU CAN SAVE EVEN MORE!  The next step is shopping sales.  If you get the local newspaper,  the Sunday paper usually has the grocery stores' inserts.  Take out the insert from your favorite store and look through it. You can start by circling things that are on sale that you would typically buy.  Don't go out and buy things that you won't use just because they are on sale, you will be wasting your hard earned money.  Finally, using these sale items build your menu.  For example: While browsing through your ads you find turkey 49 cents a lb at Store X.  You think this is a great deal (you might even buy 2 of them) and you choose this as the foundation to your meals.  One day you might have a roast turkey with the trimmings, the next day you might have turkey pot pie, another day you might have turkey stir fry, and turkey tacos, and freeze the rest for another time.  So you don't get turkey phobia you could space the turkey days out with vegetarian meals.  Pasta and beans are always a cheap way to make filling meals.  Add coupons to sales for an even bigger bang.  If you have a garden take your fresh veggies and fruits into consideration too! 
  So try menu planning!  It will save you from running to the grocery store four times a week with screaming children or pet monkeys in tow!  It might eve make you improve how you eat!  Now make sure to stick to your list and you are ready to go.

If you want a great simple menu plan printable you ca go to Organized Home .  I knwo you can also find templates to use on the Microsoft Office website.  I prefer to use a weekly planner note pad I picked up at the Dollar Store.

THIS WEEKS MENU

Dinner
Chicken Corn Chowder (using leftovers) with crackers
Three Cheese Broccoli Stuffed Shells with garlic bread sticks
Poor Man's Dinner (we use ketchup instead of spaghetti sauce and add garlic, salt, and pepper)
Hot turkey and Cheese Subs with shredded carrots
Breakfast Casserole
Grands Deep Dish Pizza
Spaghetti with meat sauce and greenbeans

Lunch (all served with fruit or veggie)
Sandwiches (PB&J, turkey)
Chicken Nuggets
Grilled Cheese
Chicken Noodle Soup

Breakfast
Cereal (I let the kids chose a box and I pick the other)
Frozen Waffles
Homemade Pumpkin Muffins

Snacks and Treats
Kroger brand cheese crackers (like Cheez it's but better)
Chex Mix
Homemade Sugar Cookies


I let the kids pick the fruits and veggies out at the store unless there is a a super deal.The current faves are watermelon, cantaloupe, bananas, apples, shredded carrots, and cucumbers(which are now free from the garden) .

     In other news my in the ground garden is amazing.  This is the haul from yesterday.  I picked 4 huge cucumbers and half enough green beans for dinner. This is from a 2X4ft garden plot!  and I pick 3 times a week.  My poor container garden is pathetic. It is so depressed it refused to have it's picture taken this week.  I'm already planning how I am going to improve the container garden next year.

It's July Already?

     Wow! When did July happen?  It seems like the kids were just having their last days of school. Now, my oldest has less than a month before his great adventure in middle school begins!  This summer hasn't gone quite how I had planned it.  I imagined swimming at the lake once a week, fun crafts with Thing #2, and playing outside together.  Instead, Thing#1 has spent massive amounts of time hanging out with friends and having sleep overs.  I am really glad that he is old enough to spend time with his friends independently of me, but I miss him a little.  I have actually had to tell him to stay home just so I can see him. My little guy seems to be content as long as his big brother is home.  After about a month, the crafty mornings stopped because I ended up chasing him around the house with paintbrushes.... and if he gets one solitary minute alone he will be creating the best toddler graffiti art ever all over my walls and furniture.  So now in the lull of summer vacation we sit a lot.  I get up and do my "Morning Routine", I attempt to make my 11 year old do some of his chores, and Sage plays.  By the afternoon it's too hot outside to play and we have quiet time.  By this time the say is 2/3ds over we are all lazy and tired from doing not much.  They need to call July the Doldrums of Summer. 
     As for me I'm STILL trying to find a job.  I never remember it ever being this hard EVER.  I have been in school and at home with my children for the last 3 1/2 years so I have no recent job history which probably doesn't help.  Maybe I should put that I am a freelance writer Ha Ha!  I'm still tending what is left of my container garden.  We added our tomatoes we grew into our sloppy joe's last night.  We haven't had enough to make an entire dinner!  I am getting ready to pick a cucumber in the next day or two from the container garden and I might have a few more at my "in the ground" garden.  We have had plenty of green beans from this garden as well, and  I hope to go out this weekend and pick some more.  I'm also still using my FlyLady routine with quite a bit of success.  I have even managed to get all my morning chores done before lunch the past two days in a row!  This is quite a feat with 2 children in the house.  It has made a huge difference in the house even if I only get part of my list done.  I have also started requiring my oldest child to put in 5 minutes a day in the living room.  This is a huge burden reliever for me. Next week is going to be crazy around here and I can use all the help I can get.
     I hope everyone is having a great summer no matter what you are doing.  Remember, Don't worry be happy!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

This week has been the third week of my battle against poison ivy and the new secondary allergic reaction to who knows what.  Three weeks of itching can get a little old. I have it all over, but and my stomach is the worst.  I finally went to the Dr. and they gave me a steroid shot and a pack of oral steroids to take, plus some medicine to help the itch.  The shot helped out TONS.  I'm starting to itch again and the second reactions just look as red as ever (the photo doesn't do it justice).  The nurse who gave me the shot was great.  I didn't even feel the needle!  I find this amazing, but then it might have ti do with the plethora of extra padding on my hip.  HA HA!

secondary allergic reaction to something on my arm

I refer to these as my ow personal fireworks courtesy of mother nature.

     We also made ice cream this week from a  recipe I found.  I will hopefully get that post up in a few days.  We had so much fun doing it as a family and it tasted good o a hot afternoon.

     The container garden is still plodding along.  The cucumbers are growing and have several fruit on them.  The tomatoes are hanging on and I even have some more tomatoes that I am hoping will make it till picking time.  It just got too hot for the greens.  They sprung up and some have even started to go to seed.  I'm going to do a second planting in September when it cools down.  While I was picking my kids up yesterday at my mother's house, I took a look at my "in the ground" garden.  I donated some supplies to create another raised bed in my Mom's square foot garden so she gave me half of the new bed.  I planted vine cucumbers and 2 varieties of bush beans.  This garden has exploded in the last week.  The cucumbers are just starting, but the beans are finally producing harvestable veggies!  I managed to pick a bowl full yesterday and I am going back Sunday and will hopefully grab some more.  I'm thinking a nice stir fry diner.  Here is a slideshow of my garden at night and day and my combined harvest.  I know it's meager, but my vegetable garden is small. I'm also proud to say I haven't used any chemicals on my plants. Enjoy!

Hectic

Who need's paper when you can create art on yourself?

     Life has been crazy at our house lately.  Normally summers around here are lazy and boring.  Since my youngest was born, my older child (who is 11) hasn't had as many play date opportunities because it has been hard to lug his little brother along so I can help supervise.  I think my oldest would die if I said he was going to a play date. I guess they don't call them play dates when they are going to middle school....they are "hanging out".  We are lucky enough to live in a neighborhood filled with kids, so now that he is a little older this year I have let him walk or ride a block or two to a friend's house.  A lot of time the friends wander over to our house.  Then, they all roam around like an unruly pack of feral dogs from house to house. So needless to say with this new freedom, my oldest chooses to hang out with his friends rather than his little brother and his mom.  I guess it's all a part of growing up.  On the other hand my youngest (who is 3) is getting very busy as well.  Unlike his older brother he is not content to sit and play quietly.  The world is his Mount Everest and he is bound and determined to climb and jump off every part of it.  I spend a majority of my day making sure he doesn't end up in the ER.  I try to plan some sort of activity for him each morning.   Sometimes it's playing outside if it's cool enough, or painting on old paper shopping bags.  To top it off I am STILL trying to find a job.  The economy isn't being kind to someone a semester short of having a master's degree. I'm exhausted just thinking about it all.

     When I am not trying to wrangle children I am still tending my mini container garden.  The peas were and EPIC FAIL.  I was able to harvest (if you can even call it that) one tiny little pea pod.  Then they all turned turned a funny color and died.  The cucumbers that I originally thought were going to die are doing better.  One of the plants is doing great.  I have had blossoms ans now there are tiny cucumbers growing on both plants.  The tomatoes are starting to die.  After fending off the hungry bugs by hand picking aphids and other assorted six legged creatures of they now have blight.  I am not spraying anything on them so I have just been trying to slow the demise by picking off and disposing of the damaged part of the plant.  It seems to be working a little.  I had two decent sized tomatoes and I picked them while they were green to save them, and I plan to do that with the rest as they get bigger.  Maybe I will have enough to make a little something by the end. I apologize for not having garden pics this week, but it has stormed for the past 4 days or so.

Hang in There!

Over the next few days (or longer) you might see some cosmetic changes to this blog.  Like me, my blog gets bored with  the same look after a while.  It might take me several changes before I like what I see.  So if there are multiple backgrounds, bad color choices, or the alignment is off here an there, please forgive me.  Sometimes my toddler decides to base jump the kitchen counter and I have to stop blogging to intervene. 

Peach Crisp

Yay!  Now that I have canned peaches…what do I do with them?  Originally, I thought I would make a peach pie, but at the end of a busy day I know for sure I don’t want to be making pie crusts.  Then I pondered about a peach crumb cake, but I just made two batches of banana muffins. All of the sudden, Pow! It came to me (All epiphanies should be accompanied by a POW)!  A peach crisp would be perfect.  It is spicy like a pie, crumbly like a coffee cake, but easy and FAST.  This is something a novice Betty Crocker or Susie Homemaker could do.  We all have to start somewhere.

What you’ll need:                                                                             

Filling

2 pints of peaches ( 2 large cans of store canned peaches would work too)

2-3 tblsp all purpose flour

¼ tsp. cinnamon

Topping
(I often make a double batch and freeze half)

1/2 c.  all purpose flour

1/2 c. fast oats

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2  c. cold butter

Directions:

Drain liquid from peaches.  Pour them in a bowl ( I had to drain them again after I put them I a bowl as well).  Add cinnamon and flour. Stir.  ( Because they are packed in syrup I don't feel they need more sugar)

Combine flour, oats, sugar, and butter in a large bowl ( I chop the butter into small chunks).  Using your hands mix the ingredients until the mixture easily crumbles in your hand.  The butter should no longer be in chunks.  

Pour your peach filling into a pie plate or an 8-9 inch cake pan or casserole dish.  Next crumble the topping over your filling evenly.  

Bake your peach crisp for 30 -40 min at 350 degrees.  The top will be a golden brown.

 

Serve warm with cream, ice cream or whipped topping.

I Think I CAN!

     I was finally  able to do  little canning this week.  Peaches were on sale this week at one of my local grocery stores.  They aren't technically local, but they come from the next state over, so that's good enough for me.  I have never canned peaches before so I made sure to do a little research first.  It is VERY important when preserving your own foods that you do things in the safest way possible.    The best and most up to date instructions on food preservation can be found on the USDA 's website.  I know some of us like to find instructions on YouTube, but when dealing with food it's best to follow the basic instructions from the government ( or another up to date source).  Now don't get me wrong, I did watch a few YouTube videos to get the gist of things, but I also saw some mistakes made that could make you very sick. 

     To try out canning peaches, I bought 15 or 16 nice sized, ripe yellow peaches.  I figure if I mess up it isn't too big of  blow to my food budget if I mess up.  This many peaches should make about 3-4 pints.  The first thing I did was skin the peaches.  To do this I boiled a pot of water and placed the peaches in the water for about 60 seconds, then immediately placed them in cool water.  The skins of the peaches then slide right off.  I was amazed at how simple it really was.  After taking off the skins, I removed the pits, and sliced the peaches.  You can chose whatever slice size you prefer.  My peaches didn't look to pretty after slicing them, but my stomach doesn't mind ugly food. Next, I mixed in 1/4 c. of lemon juice to try to prevent browning.

You can use the product Fruit Fresh if you like.  Now, I had a slight problem...I had to leave for the afternoon.  I threw my peaches int he fridge and covered them up. When I got home I picked up where I left off, but my peaches had definitely browned.  I proceeded anyway.   I decided to hot pack my peaches because I had read in many sources that this was the best way to go.  I wasn't sure how much syrup to make, so I just followed the recipe of 3 c. sugar and 6 c. water.  I threw in the peaches, and brought the peaches and syrup to a boil.

Meanwhile I sanitized my jars and lids.  When the mixture was ready I pulled each jar out of the boiling water.  I placed a canning funnel on the jar to keep the mess to a dull roar.  I ladled in the peaches and made sure to cover them with extra syrup, making sure to leave the recommended head space in the jar. I used a spatula to remove air, and put the lids on and placed them back into the boiling water.  I processed the jars for 30 min in the water and then removed them.  I made sure to place the hot jars on my counter in a place they wouldn't be disturbed (or touched by an unsuspecting toddler THEY ARE  HOT).  I checked them about 20 minutes later and they seemed to process like they needed.  Unfortunately, the peaches did seem to be floating.  I left them overnight to cool and sure enough they had sunk back down by morning.

  Next time I can peaches I might make a few changes from what I did this time.  I think I might go with a lighter syrup.  The syrup seemed a little sweet to me when I tasted the left over peaches.  Second, I think I will add some more syrup to the jar and maybe pack the peaches in a little tighter.  I have yet to try the peaches I have canned.  I'm a little nervous about the whole thing actually.  That will be the true test of my canning success. 

GARDEN UPDATE:
     The tomatoes seem to be doing well.  I have two tomatoes on each plant.  They get bigger every day.  The salad greens are growing, but I think I planted them a little too late in the year for our climate.  We will see how they go.  You can harvest them at any size, but I would prefer mine to get be triple the size they are right now.  The cucumbers have made a rebound and look great!  I even have a little cucumber starting to form.  Now for the sad story...get the tissues out.  The peas were a failure.  I pulled them out today.   I am hoping to pick up some marigolds cheap to keep the bug population down.  Not everything can be a success.    This winter I will have to do a little research.  Oh an we had some baby birds in the front yard.  They flew away last week, but I was luck enough to capture them.

I Found My Sink!

  
     Hi, my name is Amber and I suffer from Chronic Messy House Syndrome.  Kidding aside, I know this is something many of us suffer with.  It crosses all socioeconomic, education, and child status levels.  I have been a messy person almost my entire life.  I think there was only one time that I can remember having an immaculate house, and that was when my oldest son was a baby and toddler. I gave up on immaculate after boy child number two.   Even as a child I was messy.  It was so bad, that every year when I went to overnight camp, my grandmother would come in and purge.  I kept nearly every toy I had growing up.  This probably comes from when I was little and my mother wasn't able to spend money on things like toys.  At one point I was one of those kids that got nothing for Christmas ( one of the children from the other family we lived with gave me a Hot Wheels to make me feel better). When my grandparents got custody of me I was lucky enough to be spoiled rotten, but I still hung on to "things" for dear life.   I am a lot better about getting rid of things than I used to be, because I realize the stuff isn't important.   I try at least twice a year to donate our still in good shape clothes and toys (It's actually mandatory at Christmas to give away 25% of toys to charity).   This cuts down on clutter and makes my children realize, that even though we struggle , there are families that have even less. Since I have been able to keep everything to a dull roar, I have decided I want my house to actually be tidy.  Step in Fly Lady. ( She has a book just go to my Books I Love  in the right column and click on "Sink Reflections")
   I have been a fan of Fly Lady for the past 11 years.  I have used her baby steps to at least minimize the clutter damage.  I  fall of the wagon more often than not.  I am pretty good keeping up the routine when I am at home with my kids in the summer, but the second I am in school or work.......well, you know the story.  I  jumped back on the wagon about a month and a half ago halfheartedly , but I am determined to step it up.  I have already established and adjusted my routine and this week I am adding two more habits.  They are puting away dishes and shining the sink. Today, I actually followed the rules of shining completely... minus soaking the sink in bleach for an hour ( my sink won't hold water for an hour).  I probably won't soak my sink in bleach very often, because I feel like we use to much antibacterial products in our homes (we are all in good health in our home).  I of course always disinfect after meat, illness, and things like that.  If you have someone in the house who is immunocompromised you would of course want to disinfect things on a constant basis.
     Keeping a routine and a clean house is also good for the soul.  I have to admit I am a bit "complicated" leaning on the overused Facebook term "it's complicated", but that's the best way to describe me.  I have had a lot of ups and down's in this life and routine is what always helps me bounce back.  Getting up, getting dressed, and actually doing something, ANYTHING can help a girl start off her day in the right direction.  At one point I literally had to write out a schedule.  Fly Lady doesn't use lists but with my ADD and my "dynamic personality" I find that having a list broken down in small increments (and crossing each of when done) helps me see that I have accomplished something.  Sometimes I will even take before and after pictures, so I can physically see what I have done.
  So check out Fly Lady and see what you think.  Does it work for you?  Just set your timers to 15 minutes and go!

In other news the tomatoes are great, the cucumbers are flowering, the salad greens are growing, and well.... the peas look ill.  I spend a lot of time picking aphids off one plant, but it is paying off!

Storms...Again

Approaching storm  5/26

When it was starting to get a little scary looking 5/26

The edge of the scary clouds

Red sky by night sailor's delight (after storm 5/22)

Edge of storm on 5/22 as it clears out pretty huh?

Food Choices

     I love to read blogs almost as much as I love YouTube.  The other day while I was navigating an insurmountable amount  of homesteading blogs, I came across an interesting blog 100 Days of Real Food  (You can also find this link on my homesteading page).  It is about a family who has taken a pledge to eat "real food" for 100 days.  The blog tells about them, what rules they are going to follow, and even mini pledges for readers to join.  This all sort of inspired me.  I say sort of because I have a commitment problem hahaha!  I decided instead of taking one of their real food challenges, I would make up my own.  This way I wouldn't be setting myself up for failure.  Anytime I go all out into something it never lasts very long.  So I don't really have any of it outlined yet, but I know for a fact I require high fructose corn syrup on occasion.  Factoring this in  I decided to start by eating more whole wheat and reducing the amount of white sugar in our diet. 
  The first step to conquer,  How do I add whole wheat to our diet without my children noticing (as much)?  Easy!  Bread and muffins!  These are two things we all like.  I had already planned on making banana muffins and wanted to try one of those no kneading bread recipes.  I went on a mission across the internet to find recipes I thought would work.  They had to use whole wheat and no white sugar.  It didn't take me very long to find some recipes to try.  Now there was no turning back.  I got out all the ingredients for the muffins, then mixed them up and tasted the batter.  Well they definitely had a stronger taste and heartier texture than my regular white flour muffin batter.  I was a bit worried about the outcome, but threw them in the oven and crossed my fingers.  As a side note, I don't use paper muffin cups when I bake, so if you do the same thing make sure the tin is greased or you apply cooking spray.  Twenty minutes later I realize the oven was turned down by Thing #2 and the muffins had been baking at 175 degrees.  I turned the oven up and baked them for 15 more minutes and hoped for the best.  Fifteen minutes later my muffins emerged and looked pretty good.

WW Banana Muffins

     While the muffins were baking, I started working on the bread dough.  This was a very simple recipe I found on the back of the flour bag.  I didn't even have to look for it!  Thing #2 and I worked on mixing the dough together and had fun.  It's always a great idea to let your kids help you when you bake.  First spending time together in a positive way does a family good.  Second they start learning skills they will need someday.  I always tell my sons they need to learn to cook and bake, because they shouldn't count on their wives to do everything for them.  Back to the baking.  After mixing the dough together we threw it on a baking pan ( we decided to go with the round bread rather than the loaf).  We let it sit for 90 min to rise covered in a greased peice of plastic wrap.  You could cover it with a towel and it would work just as well.  (A tip for those of us wh turn on the AC, you can put it in your bathroom with the window open and it will be warm enough to rise).  We ended up having to leave for Thing # 1's 5th grade graduation, and threw it in the fridge and crossed out fingers yet again.  When we came home I let it sit out a little before we put it in the oven.  We baked it for the amount of time specified on the pacakge, but it relaly could have stayed in another 5 minutes.  You will have to watch your bread as every oven is different.  The bread came our beautifully.  We sliced into it right away and tried it out.  The boys LOVED it!   Mom earns a star!  We tried the muffins the next day and they were tasty.  Actually Sage has eaten them every day and he is a picky eater.  The boys have had them for breakfast and for snacks.  

WW Homemade Bread (do you see the little face?)

     I may start a page for our own Real Food Challenge.  I also went out and bought a bunch of fresh veggies.  I figured the boys and I could come up with some recipes and try new foods ( or things we don't like).  In other news today is the last day of school for both boys, I continue looking for a job, and  the garden is still alive.

RECIPES FOR MUFFINS AND BREAD ON RECIPE PAGE.