Reorganizing your counters

Sometimes all it takes is moving a couple of things around to make you wonder why you never thought to do it before.  I moved my toaster oven to another counter to allow a larger workspace by the fridge, where I was also storing knives and cutting boards.  Now I can also fit my food processor when I need to get it out. I also have more space when I am packing lunches and doing other food prep.

Why did it take me almost 6 years to think of this?

We have a section in our kitchen with mini-cabinets (less depth) and a counter.  I store my food processor, stand mixer, blender and some cookbooks there.  They're at a comfortable level for picking up and moving to a workspace, but out of the way when I don't need them.

What are your counter-top organization tips?

The Scullery, and the Felafel Burger

I have loved a locally owned restaurant for a while now. The Scullery is a quaint cafe and coffee shop in "Uptown" Greenville, NC. The food is fresh, tables are painted in chalkboard paint (and come with a little cup of chalk), and the owners are very friendly! They also make fresh homemade ice cream that is irresistible. Parts of the menu change with the seasons.  See what a local photographer wrote up in her blog here.

The felafel burger is on our list of favorites. Just the right amount of garlic and herbs. Crispy on the outside, warm deliciousness on the inside.  Their description says "Ours is made fresh every day with chick peas, herbs, lemon and garlic, pan fried and served with basil mayo, lettuce, tomato and mozzarella on delicious bread baked at The Scullery."

A great place to eat healthy, fresh foods.  Do you have a local place you love to go?   If so, what do you love to eat there?

Piano and Sheet Music

My grandfather passed away last summer, but a few years ago, when they were downsizing, he and my grandmother decided to pass the piano on to future generations.  Grandpa was a magnificent piano player, you could tell he had played almost all of his life, and he loved to sit down and play.  His love for music became a legacy that lived on.  His two sons both became professional pianists and currently teach music in different capacities at the university level.

My kids are now opening up to playing, and I'm excited that they will have that opportunity.

The bench is FULL of sheet music, some dating back before The Great Depression.  A lot of it is show tunes, but there's certainly a variety.  I decided that I'd like to display it, but I also want to preserve it, since I'm not sure if it's of value.  So for now I've tied up a small stack of the music and placed it on the piano, until I figure out what to do with the rest.

What would you do with the sheet music?

Up Close & Personal with Butterflies

A couple of weeks ago we took a short trip to Raleigh, NC.  We were going to be meeting family for dinner, but decided to spend the afternoon doing something fun with the kids.  So we decided to head to the NC Museum of Natural Sciences, a free museum with many exhibits!

I had heard about one of the permanent exhibits, a living conservatory, where live butterflies accompany you through the room that "recreates the sights, sounds and smells of a dry tropical forest."  There was also a sloth, although he was in a protected area, of course!

We were in awe of the butterflies, they flew all around, even inches from your face, at times.  There were several beautiful types, and here are some that we saw.  One thing that was interesting is that sometimes it seemed as if you were looking at different butterflies, but then would realize after a simple movement that it was the same.  They had different patterns and colors on the other sides of their wings!

We had a fun trip and a nice dinner with the family, and we will definitely be making another trip to that museum!

If you look closely, you can see that this is the other side of the wings on the blue butterfly!

I love this bag

This bag was given to me for Christmas.  I just wanted to share it with you because I love it.  I love how substantial it feels, how it stretches (so I can stuff it when I need to), how it safely holds a laptop... I also love the colors, they're so fun. 

It is now one of my personal 'good things.'

Simple idea to protect my recipe

Tonight I was working on making Cilantro Lime Pesto for my pasta dish.  The recipe was on a piece of paper.  I work on those clear cutting sheets that are very handy to have around when you don't need a full cutting board!  I realized that I could place the recipe under the cutting sheet, and keep working.  Simple, yet so easy and saves your paper recipes from splatters, wet fingers, etc.

What's for dinner at your house?

Create

Photo from Country Living

There is an innate desire within me to create.

Hope everyone has started off the new year with wonderful things.  I'm always excited for fresh starts.  I have some wonderful things planned for sharing, so I hope you'll be back to see!  My husband painted our dining room, I redecorated the mantel for winter, a fabulous recipe and so much more to come.  Stay tuned.

 

For the birds

I wrote this early last month, but didn't ever get around to editing and publishing... but I think it's still relevant, so here it is:

January is a month where many of us are uninspired to do anything.  Christmas and Thanksgiving put us into overload, we're recovering from all the activities, parties, cooking, baking... for me January is very inspiring.  When the snow comes here, it is very exciting because it doesn't happen much.  We've had snow several times this winter, which comes and goes very quickly.  My biggest inspiration for this project was seeing the birds after the snow melted.  As soon as the snow was melting and the ground was soggy, those birds were out in full force, looking for food.

When I went to pick up some groceries on Christmas vacation, they had some large pinecones on clearance, leftover from Christmas.  I bought them, and picked up a bag of bird seed on another day.

The girls and I sat down with 1/2 jar of cheap peanut butter, and covered the pine cones with peanut butter using plastic knives.  Then we rolled the cones in the bird seed.  I tied some twine to the top (tie it tightly), and then we hung them in the front and back yards (it's best to hang above a branch that will support a bird).  The seed left in the tub got sprinkled in the grass for the birds to also enjoy!

Now, we can enjoy watching the birds get some food to eat! 

Happy Winter!

Minute Muffins

Are you baking muffins but want instant gratification?  Or, do you have a little bit of muffin mix left after filling your muffin cups, and don't want to risk over-filling?

You're in luck!  There is a simple thing that you can do to have a muffin in a minute:

Grease a standard microwave-safe mug.  Put 1/4 cup (estimated) muffin mix in the mug.  Microwave for 1 minute.  You can use a toothpick or skewer to test, but do NOT over cook.  Scratch made muffins are typically light and airy, so 1 minute is plenty of time for most standard microwaves.

Use your skewer or a small knife to skim around the muffin (which should have pulled away from the sides of the mug if you greased it).  Dump it out onto a plate.  Eat while warm!

Now don't expect a pretty top, browned and crispy, like oven-baked muffins.  This is purely for instant gratification!  This is fantastic if your kids are pulling on your pant legs begging for a snack and/or you don't have time for them to wait!

I have a craft to share soon, inspired by the wintry weather and clearance sales after Christmas!  It was a great activity for the kids (and I enjoyed doing it, too)!

Muffin Tins

Sometimes it's nice to know that the items taking up space in your home are good for multiple functions.  I've been thinking a lot lately about muffin tins, which typically don muffins and cupcakes. 

Many moms out there are serving up bento style lunches at home in muffin tins.  It's a way to use up leftovers, offer a variety of foods to your child, and it's also fun for your child to eat out of a muffin tin on occasion.  Here is a blogger who I like to follow, she does 'Muffin Tin Mondays' with her child.

My garden has had an over-abundance of basil and parsley this year.  While I still have a LOT to use, I decided to save some for use in the winter months when my garden is long gone.  I washed mounds of the leaves, big and small, then stuffed a muffin tin full.  Each one is about 1/2 cup of packed basil.  I then filled up the muffin cups with water and placed it in the freezer.  Once frozen solid, I was able to remove the big cubes of frozen basil and place in a large zipper bag and freeze out in the deep freezer.  If you decide to try this and are having difficulty removing the cubes from the muffin tin, try tilting the tin near the kitchen sink and spraying with lukewarm water on the underside.  This should help them loosen up without melting them!

I work an early morning shift at my job so that I have the ability to pick up the girls in the afternoon when school lets out.  The downside is that I have to rely on my husband to feed them breakfast in the morning.  About once a week I'll prepare something that will be healthy or just different from the ordinary stuff.  I think that making a pot of homemade oatmeal or grits, then freezing in muffin tin cups, would allow him to defrost breakfast in portions as needed!

Why not make quiche or breakfast casserole in muffin tins?  This is a fantastic idea for brunches or pick-me-up breakfasts on the go.

Having a casual ice cream social?  Put different toppings in the muffin cups, add some spoons, and it's an easy setup/cleanup!

What about non-food uses for muffin tins?  If you and/or your kids like to work with beads, you can separate out beads by size, color, use tins for different string types, etc.  Easy for hands to reach in and pick out, and keeps things organized!

Use  your muffin tins when cleaning up small things that pile up in the laundry room.  Emptying out pockets?  Hair bows in one cup, money in a cup, crayons... then when you're done doing laundry, or cleaning up, take the tin with you to put those little things away!

What ideas do you have for muffin tins?
_______________________________
My friend Kimmy chimed in on Facebook, and so I had to share (thanks, Kimmy!):
"I like to make meat loaf in them!! Also at Thanksgiving I make my stuffing in them., called stuffin muffins! :) You can melt down old crayons in them and make new round crayons!!"

Took time to smell the flowers today...

We went to New Bern, NC, today.  We visited Tryon Palace.  If you're local, you may like to know that they currently open up the gardens FREE on the first Sunday of each month.  We took LOTS of pictures, and here are just a few.  I love North Carolina, and how green it is most of the year.

Hope you can appreciate some of these beautiful pictures!

Have a wonderful Labor Day, and muffin tin ideas are next, I promise I've been working on that!  Also coming soon, a series of lunchbox pictures.

Eating Healthy- and Feeding Kids Healthy Foods

I have struggled for the last 4 or so years.  With what?  When my oldest daughter started eating [more than just baby food] I began the battle of the school menu, the daycare menu.  I poured my heart and soul into communications regarding the menu- the foods they would be feeding my child.  I have donated food to the daycare for ALL of the children to eat.  I have offered to consult with them on their menu, to make positive changes and keep within budget, which they have never taken me up on.

I send substitutes many times, but many times I'm so busy (I never claimed to be perfect).  I'm a working mom, after all.  But the fact remains that kids learn by doing, and they learn young. 

So anyways, the point of this blog post is that I was VERY excited to watch the new Food Revolution television show, with Jamie Oliver.  I encourage you to check out his web site and start watching the show.  I am encouraged that there is a movement for positive change!  Join me in supporting the campaign!

Recipe coming soon- healthy, whole foods, completely from scratch, and yummy!

Every once in a while I come up with a brilliant idea, LOL

Most of my ideas are okay, I guess.  It's not very often I think up something brilliant, LOL.  This past Christmas I thought of an idea.  I wish I had more time to make it even more beautiful, but it was kind of in the ninth hour.  At least from the perspective that it was a few days before Christmas, lots of stuff going on, yada yada.

Our church has a Christmas Eve Candlelight worship service.  Sounds pretty typical.  This year seemed even more contemporary, which I love.  Our girls are young, but old enough that they would want to have something lit as well, but I can't give them fire, even if they promise to be safe.

So I ran to the candle cabinet, grabbed some fake tea lights, ran upstairs, grabbed a couple of chipboard coasters, some red ribbon, big glue dots, and a powerful hole puncher.

I put 2 holes in each chipboard coaster, try to imagine each coaster now looking like a giant button.  I had a couple of feet of red ribbon for each coaster, and pulled it through the holes.  I took 2 big glue dots to the sides of the fake tea lights and stuck it on top of the "button" over the small section of ribbon, not where the ribbon comes out - rather, where the ribbon went in.

When we got to church, our older daughter got the tea light tied to her wrist with a big red bow.  Her friend got one as well.  The two little ones, our younger daughter and her friend, got to hold just a fake tea light in their hands (they probably wouldn't have tolerated something tied to their arms).

I didn't get any pictures of the kids that night, but I will say that they LOVED this and felt so grown having candlelight in the big church.  That's what made this idea, well, brilliant!   Many people sitting nearby commented on how great the idea was.

Now.  If I had more time to prepare, I would have covered the chipboard with a pretty paper and some Mod Podge before doing any of the other steps.  I'm sure there's more I could also have done to beautify them.  Maybe next Christmas!

Recycling Fun?

First I must say thanks to my readers who have stuck with me while I've been absent.  I've been working hard to be healthy, active, and keep the house up while I work and be mom.  Meanwhile, I thought about sharing this:

Sometimes recycling is just something you have to do.  I don't think we can ever classify it as fun, can we?  But as a mom, I am always trying to find ways to incorporate the things we have to do into something fun that the kids will enjoy.

When recycling bottles and jars, you're always supposed to rinse and throw away the cap or lid (except in the RARE instance that the cap or lid is also recyclable.   Do you take the time to rinse?  I get turned off by rinsing out soap, shampoo and laundry detergent bottles, it just seems to take forever.

SO, instead of rinsing those types of bottles myself, I throw them in the tub with the girls and let them have water playtime for a few days before they make their way to the recycle bag.  Simple, easy, and the kids love it.

Speaking of bottles, I have promised the wine bottle craft for quite some time.  I finally finished pictures, and need to do some final editing of the steps I took.  I hope to have that tutorial completed in the next day or so.

Enjoy this beautiful day!

My husband's birthday pie... and the story that goes with it

Many years ago, my aunt and uncle lived here locally.  She was a regular subscriber to a LOT of magazines and would pass them on to me when she was finished with them.  I used to love looking through them.  Most of them were cooking magazines such as Gourmet, Food & Wine, Bon Appetit... I loved trying new recipes out, and back then we had no kids, so I had a lot more time to experiment.

During those times, 10 years ago, I stumbled upon an interesting pie recipe in Bon Appetit (from the January 2000 issue).  I was intrigued by the ingredients, and decided to tear it out.  One Saturday, I set out to make that pie.  Little did I know, there was a lot of involvement and time required to make it.  So I slaved all day to make that pie.

When my husband asked me what kind of pie I had made, I told him it was a Pear and Blueberry Pie with a Walnut Streusel Topping.  He said it didn't sound very good.  I told him that it took me all day, and it was fine if he didn't like it, because I would never have to make it again!

After dinner, we ate the pie with vanilla ice cream.  He proceeds to tell me that it's the best pie he has ever had.  I also LOVED it.  So I told him that he can have it once a year for his birthday, and that's it.  Over the years, it has become famous among our friends.  Word quickly got around.  Some years I have friends over for his birthday and to share in the pie experience, and some years we just share the leftovers.  But I have gotten the creation of the pie down to a science, and for at least the last 7 or 8 years have made 2 pies at the same time.  It is still over a half day to make, but well worth the time for us.

Many people over the years ask for the recipe.  My response is always "are you sure?" and sometimes people decide not to get the recipe after I explain the process.  It's really not bad if you love spending time in the kitchen for something that is great!  For those of you who would like to make it, below is the link for the pie and the topping- not sure why it's called a sauce on the linked page, it is not at all a sauce on top.

Pear and Blueberry Pie 

Walnut Streusel Topping

Happy baking!

If you plan to make, keep reading:
My notes for making crust:
The crust on the bottom layer has shrinkage issues.  Try to make it large enough to go at least to the edge of the pie dish, then get a fork and poke fork holes all around the sides and bottom.  This will help you tremendously.  I have tried weighing it down with beans and not doing anything at all.  The forking method has worked best for this crust.  It is very flavorful and my husband has refused to allow me to use a different bottom crust. ;)

Also, please note that any of the 3 layers can be made in advance and refrigerated, covered.  Layer the 3 layers only when you're ready to bake the pie(s) in the oven.

Merry Christmas! What our girls loved doing this year...

Merry Christmas!  May the  peace and light of Christ live in you all year long!

Last year was our first Christmas with two daughters, so we bought a pink Christmas tree and let the big sister decorate it.  We encouraged her to use dress up bead necklaces for garland.  She adds in bracelets and rings, too.  We did give her some cute ornaments, as you can see here, like the plush cupcakes and lollipops, and a few others.  She loves decorating the tree!  Little sister has really enjoyed taking ornaments off, this year, ha ha!  It drives her big sister crazy and we just laugh.

This week I had the week off from work and spent it doing fun things with the girls.  Monday we went to the aquarium at the beach.  The divers in the shark tank dressed for Christmas, Santa and 2 elves.  Their shark steering poles looked like candy canes.



The next day we spent with some friends.  My friend bought two gingerbread house kits for the older girls.  The little ones enjoyed decorating the little gingerbread men that came in the kit.  We ended up with goldfish buttons!  So cute.  They enjoyed eating the treats.

I hope you and your family have a very merry Christmas!  Blessings to you and yours! 

Coming soon:  I made a birthday cake for Jesus, and you will love the frosting I made.  I will share my recipe soon... also a gift craft I did using wine bottles and other cute bottles, and it's not the usual lamp idea using Christmas lights!  Stay tuned!

Tree of Thanks

Sorry for the extended absence around here.  It's been one drama after another.  I wanted to share an idea that I did with the family this year during this season of Thanksgiving.  We sat down after dinner with tags and crayons, and wrote/drew what we are thankful for.  We put ribbons and twine on the tags so they could hang.  We did this last Thursday night.  We planned to hang them on Friday night, but one daughter ended up in the ER, and we had an action packed weekend after that!  So [tonight] we finally did finish hanging them on the 'tree' that is really a large branch that I stuck into my mum pot.

Since our youngest can't write or really draw, we let her scribble and then we wrote words for her, like milk and baths. 

I really enjoyed the activity, and our oldest got creative, too!  She wrote SUN on one and drew sunshine.  On another she wrote a happy face and a sad face.  She told me that she loves God whether she's happy or sad.  On another she wrote "Tom met Sam" as a way to represent her new love of reading books.  She has just learned to read.

YaYa (grandmother)

Ice Cream (yes he loves it that much!)

This is definitely an activity I'd like to turn into a tradition.  What Thanksgiving traditions do you have?