Sunday, November 1, 2020

Heat Day 2020

This morning the inside temperature was 65F, and it was absolutely no problem. After church we decided to visit my father and cook supper for him. My husband and I knew we would be coming home to a very cold house since the dryer wouldn't be running, the oven wouldn't be cooking, and the 9 living bodies wouldn't be maintaining a few spots of heat in the house for the entire day. So, we made the decision to name today, November 1, the official Heat Day of 2020. We turned the heat on as we scurried about to fill water bottles and as we reminded everybody to visit the little girls'/boys' room. 

I don't feel shame, especially since we were driving through blowing snow on the way home. Snow outside equals heat inside, right?

BUT there could have been an interesting turn of events in the game; we discussed during the drive home that the wind was blowing so hard that perhaps our electricity had gone out. Now, as long-time readers know,  I occasionally change the rules of this heat game on a whim. My husband and I reasoned that if the electricity had indeed gone out, then we technically wouldn't have benefitted at all from the heat being turned on. SO, if the electricity was out, today wouldn't actually be Heat Day since we would still be shivering in the cold until the power was back; Heat Day could have been delayed a whole day (or even two).

But we had lights and heat and very tired children when we got home. The game is over, and we made it to November! Yay! 


Saturday, October 31, 2020

Heat Game Update

 Temperature outside: 26 F

Temperature inside: 65 F

We woke to these chilly temps, but the heat is still not on! Will we make it to November with no heat? We will try! That means biscuits in a hot oven for breakfast, heating up leftover beans in the oven for lunch, and something piping hot for supper, too! One son has volunteered to make granola today, and that takes a long time in the oven. Warmer clothes are out of storage for everybody, so we can bundle up a bit, if necessary.

I think our chances are good of getting at least to midnight tonight before turning on the heat. Still not going to make a record (November 23rd is my record), but I count anything in November as decent.



Monday, October 26, 2020

Fall Update--Cakes (and more!)

Fall is here, and we've recently wrapped up our family's birthday season. As always, I like to post pictures of my homemade cakes (and sometimes not cakes) to encourage folks who don't have the time/talent/money to make each birthday "pinterest-perfect." 

First up is a Zoey Zebra cake. The 5-year-old requested a zebra ice cream cake. 

Zebra toy + ice cream + fudge stripe = Zebra ice cream cake

All I had to do was melt ice cream a little bit and smoosh it into the lid of a cake carrier. Then I crumbled up off-brand chocolate sandwich cookies and threw them on the ice cream and drizzled some homemade fudge topping. Last I added another layer of very soft ice cream. I covered the whole thing and put it in the freezer. Just before cake time, I flopped the cake out onto a cutting board and put on zebra stripes (cold hot fudge sauce in a zip plastic bag with the corner cut off). The toy doubled as one of the birthday presents. 

The next cake wasn't a cake at all. The new teenager requested skillet cookies. I decorated the top with the rest of the fudge sauce.




The next birthday boy wasn't really sure what he wanted, but he didn't want a decorated cake. He was more interested in flavors. So I suggested a spice cake and a carrot cake.

Looks plain but tasted good!


The cake on the left is a spice cake with a maple cream cheese frosting, and the cake on the right was Grandma's carrot cake recipe. Those are toasted pecans in that cream frosting, and, yes, they WERE tasty.


And last, and certainly the sweetest, was a repeat request. My youngest son wanted another construction cake with a toy on top and candy. I'm not sure this was actually a construction toy, but he liked it. And it was so easy; I frosted the cake with chocolate frosting, dumped a bunch of candy on top, and placed the toy. 




But there was a problem. The birthday boy took a bite and declared it too sweet. The poor child didn't even eat his own cake. To tell the truth, he wasn't the only one who couldn't eat it because it was too sweet. I felt horrible, and I learned a lesson.

And that wraps up the Fall Birthday Season of 2020.


ANNOUNCEMENT!!!

***If you are a regular reader, you might be curious about how my heat game is going this year. So far, no heat! However, I am not optimistic that we'll last the entire week. Today was chilly and damp, but I countered nature's move by baking a pumpkin, dressing the beds with flannel sheets, and digging out the warmer pajamas.

In a strange turn of events, my 15-year-old is attempting to sabotage my game by purposefully leaving the front door open. I countered his move by threatening a grounding from all electronics for the rest of his life. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

(Is anybody else playing along with my insane game?)


Tuesday, September 15, 2020

Sideling Hill Sunset

 Tonight we saw a beautiful sunset. It is the time of year that the sun sets right in the cut in the mountain. The picture doesn't do the colors justice, but I'll post it anyway.




Thursday, September 3, 2020

Ugly Truth and Quick Cookies

Is it just me, or does it seem that the truth is hard to come by lately? With an election year in full swing and with all the COVID-19 and riot confusions, I just don’t know what to believe. Maybe you’re feeling as ill as I am from the honesty deficiency surrounding us. If so, I’ll try to help you out and give you a dose of the cold, the hard, and the ugly truth.


I hate the hot days of summer. I hate the heat. I detest the humidity. I love air conditioning. That’s the cold truth.


I can’t stand my garden looking wilted, but sometimes I am just too l lazy to water it. I complain about my tomatoes being too small, but it’s probably all my fault because I don’t fertilize enough. The poor crop of green beans, on the other hand, is entirely the fault of the bunnies. And the most prolific crop in my garden is the rocks; that’s the hard truth I was talking about. 



Wilted



I like bacon. I like bacon grease. And although my kids scold me for it all the time, I even lick the bacon grease off of the cookie sheet using my finger as a spoon. This is, most definitely, the ugly truth.


That’s not my only bad habit. I also enjoy kicking my socks off in bed. My husband scolds me when he finds several pairs of my socks under the sheets at the bottom of the bed.




Small tomatoes


While I’m being honest, I might as well tell you that sometimes I neglect my family in order to read a book I just can’t put down. Don’t misunderstand; the kids are fed and clothed and loved. But sometimes I do hide in the bathroom to read when I should be grading school papers or folding clothes. Or washing the bacon grease from the cookie sheets (with soap and water).



Snack for caterpillars


When I was a little kid, I stole a pistachio nut from an open basket in theproduce department at the A & P. I loved green pistachio pudding, but I’d never tried the nut. My mother was certain I wouldn’t like them and refused to buy any, so I slipped a single pistachio into the pocket of my jeans when she wasn’t looking. Later I closeted myself in my bedroom, took out the contraband, and felt so guilty that I didn’t even attempt to eat it. I don’t remember how I got rid of the evidence, but I do know that I didn’t try pistachios until I was an adult. To be completely honest, I still feel guilty about that.



So many rocks



And finally, because I have no desire to run for public office ever, I will come out and say it. I am a racist, but not in the way you might think. I am prejudiced in favor of the human race. Truthfully, I have been disappointed by people and their actions and words over the last several months, but I still love them. I can’t help it. I enjoy watching people, listening to people, and even complaining about people. I love big people, little people, ugly and pretty people, stupid and smart people. 



An entire garden full of rocks!



We are all so different, with different concerns and ideas and hopes and fears. But folks, we are being pitted against each other in this day and age; the media calls us maskers and anti-maskers, vaxxers and and anti-vaxxers, racists and anti-racists. How easy it is for us to forget the big truth— that we are (most of us) just people doing the best we can in a world full of controversy and confusion. 


And here’s my last truth: we need each other. I can’t think of anybody I know who hasn’t felt isolated in some way this year. Bridge that divide however you feel comfortable because we are, all of us, mired in this sometimes mucky life and need a connection to solid ground.


**************************************


I’ll never be a politician because I am a little too open and honest. But it is the political season, and the mud-slinging has commenced. It just so happens that one of my favorite cookies looks just like mud. The church cookbook from North Dakota that I use calls them Five Minute Cookies, but most people I know call them No Bake Cookies. I see them in convenience stores all the time, but the only reason I know why somebody wouldn’t make this simple recipe at home is that she doesn’t want to gain a few extra pounds by eating them all. Enjoy.


Five Minute Cookies

2 cups sugar

5 Tbsp. cocoa powder

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

3 cups quick oats

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 tsp. vanilla


In a large pot, stir together the sugar, cocoa, milk, and butter over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the peanut butter, oats, and vanilla. Drop by tablespoon onto waxed paper and allow to cool until set.




 *This column was printed in the April 1, 2020, issue of the Hancock News.

**I hope you enjoy all of the garden pictures that show just how ugly my garden can be. If you are like me and have weeds over-powering the food stuff, YOU ARE NOT ALONE! At least we tried.


Thursday, August 6, 2020

My Nemesis

This is the face of my summer nemesis.

The tomato hornworm

Tomato hornworms are evil.

Monday, August 3, 2020

Playing Catch Up

It's been so long since I've touched this blog. It's time to play catch-up. First up should definitely be birthday cakes because y'all know how I love showing the world that birthday cakes don't need to be professional (or even cakes) for a birthday to be special. Also, the pictures don't need to be wonderful.

First up is an 11-year-old's watermelon cake. This was an easy one since there was no piping necessary. Is there runny food coloring at the bottom? Yes! Are some of the chocolate chip "seeds" smeared with frosting? Yes! Was the birthday girl happy? Yes!

Watermelon cake just in time for the summer weather.


The second birthday was a big one-- sweet 16 for my eldest. He chose to have a variety of pies-- vinegar, pumpkin, and cherry (the only one captured on camera). It's possible there was another kind of pie, but I can't remember.


Can she make a cherry pie, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?


No frosting. Filling bubbled up on top of crust. Still a happy birthday boy (or young man). 

And now I must gear up for September's three birthdays!



Monday, July 6, 2020

Overheard

This gem came out of our discussion at lunch today: "I'm a terrible liar when I'm telling the truth."

Monday, June 22, 2020

She Can Read!

Yesterday my 4-year-old gave my father a Father's Day gift-- about 15 pieces of scrap paper with 4-year-old-appropriate decorations. The grandfather-granddaughter conversation went something like this:

Poppa:  Oooh. Very nice. Another piece of paper-- how pretty. Another one? Oh, thank you. What does this one say?

Anna: (looking carefully at it to read it) Dot, dot, scribble.

At least she can read her own handwriting!

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Out of the Mouths of Teenagers

I heard a bit of 14-year-old wisdom today. It went like this:

"Romance is the ice of entertainment: you want enough to keep your drink cool, but too much waters your drink down."

There's your food for thought for today.

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Another Overheard

Upset older sister to little brother: You know, lightbulbs don't grow on trees!

Can't fight that logic.

Monday, May 11, 2020

Overheard

8-year-old daughter: (Lets out a long, wistful sigh.)

Me: What's wrong, Sweetie?

8-year-old daughter: I wish I had a monocle.

Well, then.

Sunday, May 10, 2020

Lately (Few Words, More Pictures)



Bear vs. compost bin made of pallets



Just one step of fixing up the former guinea coop-- soon-to-be chicken coop


Soon-to-be chickens (I'm trying not to count them!)


Little boy fun


Little boy self-portrait

Warning-- if you have no interest in our new little bee endeavors, scroll no further. It's all bees from here on out.

Bee loaded with pollen


Wax comb-- a little wonky


Wax comb-- a lot wonky



Bees


Bees, a little bit closer, since you're brave


My son holding bees-- pretty stinking brave (I want to do it next time).


The replacement queen (the one with a bit of blue paint) and her attendants

The end. You made it!

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Unsolicited Homeschool Advice

I will be honest with you; while so many other people are struggling to find the new "normal," not much has changed around our house. We are still homeschooling, plugging along as best we can. 

With so many folks involuntarily homeschooling these days, I wanted to share some unsolicited homeschool advice. 

Here it goes.

Homeschooling doesn't need to look like it does at school. Sometimes homeschooling is assigned bookwork.


Okay, so perhaps something more than math was going on at this table. . . 


And sometimes the learning just happens without the teacher. Recognize those moments for what they are-- organic learning. Here are a few examples of what that looks like at our house.


I did assign a book for my older two boys to read-- Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France. But I didn't ask them to do anything with that. Last Wednesday, one son found something in Burke that resonated with him, and he surprised me with a little note on our whiteboard. This led to an impromptu discussion. It was unplanned, but it was learning.




We have a sad little piano in our basement. It is somewhat broken and a little out of tune. We don't have a piano teacher or lessons. I don't know how to play. But lately my students have been plunking away at favorite tunes. A few have taught themselves to read music the last few weeks by reading a piano instruction book. All by themselves and because they want to.



Sure, I teach music and music appreciation, but this was something I hadn't planned. (I promise you, I did NOT plan to hear so many thousands of renditions of "Ode to Joy" each day for the last 2 or 3 weeks.) And it has been very good for the children.


The big deal this week at our house is bees. We got a call on Monday morning from the post office; they wanted us to come pick up those boxes of bees that were waiting for us. Imagine that!


So we picked them up, and with no prior experience, my eldest installed the bees in the two hives he built by himself (maybe with some help from his younger brother) with materials he bought with his own money. 

Why bees? I don't know exactly why, but he became fascinated with them from reading. So he read more and more and more. It wasn't an assignment; it was his own interest.



So this week our entire family has learned about bees from the hands-on experience. We've learned about how to install bees in a hive. And we've learned something about disappointment.


Hello, dead queen bee.

I'm not saying that while your children are home they need to pick up an expensive hobby like beekeeping or that they need to learn to play a musical instrument. But you should allow your children to explore their interests-- on their own. Learning happens all by itself sometimes, and overwhelmed parents who are trying to work and teach school from home can take comfort in that.

While learning happens on its own, don't completely ignore your children. If you notice an interest, try to give your child time and resources like books or craft materials or free rein in the kitchen to follow that inclination. And don't be disappointed if the interest only lasts one day. Learning happened. Really, it did. 

And if your child is more interested in laying out all those educational books Grandma bought him on the floor so the army soldiers can have a better surface for combat, so be it. Yes, independent play like that can be learning, too. 

So don't stress too much. Do what you can*, and then allow your children a little independence. Learning will happen without you. I promise. 


This picture is from almost 9 years ago when I was very pregnant and had 2 preschoolers. While the boys were outside for recess, I was inside having a meltdown because I hadn't planned a fun activity for the boys to make a model of the solar system.  The next thing I knew, the boys were running inside and dragging me out to show me their creation-- a sidewalk chalk model of the solar system. And they explained to me all about it using big vocabulary words and everything. The best part was that it was completely their own idea.

*Please make sure your children read or are read to (by you or by audiobooks or by Grandpa on the phone) while they are not in school. It can be assigned by school or it can be a newspaper or an old fairy tale. Keep them exposed to words!




Friday, April 17, 2020

Five on Friday

1. Bees!  Okay, so not yet. But soon. Soon we will have bees. My eldest son has been obsessed with interested in honeybees for a couple of years. He saved up money, bought supplies, and ordered bees. He also set up a webpage for the whole endeavor. I'm a bit of a partner with him in this, but we've changed roles because he is the boss while I am the underling.

Son-created website


So, if you're interested in following along on our latest adventure, check out Sideling View Apiary's webpage. He will be updating the blog there to document our adventure in treatment-free beekeeping. I'll also put a link in my sidebar.

2. Instagram. I signed up to Instagram today so I can follow my friends. But. I haven't figured out how to post things yet. Someday. (I think a big problem is that I don't have a cell phone.)

3.  Dress. I made a dress for my daughter for Easter. I learned a lot. Unfortunately, I had to learn a lot the hard way. For example, store-bought patterns can have multiple mistakes (I'm talking to you New Look #6427). But my sweetie was absolutely thrilled with the results.


Hand-dyed scarf was made at homeschool group.

I spent a lot of time on this, so I haven't made much headway on the Great Clothes Heap Challenge. However, I like to think I learned skills that will come in handy when I try to repurpose that huge pile of unwanted stuff and make it useful again.

4. Soap. Remember how pioneer-y I was feeling a few week ago?  Well, the soap didn't come out perfectly. In fact, when we flopped it out of our primary mold, it wasn't ready and cracked and generally looked ugly. But it'll be okay. Today we cut it into bars. We put all the ugly ones and pieces into a container; these bits and pieces will become "hand-milled" soap later because my daughter wants to make "flavored" soap. (By "flavored," she means "scented.")

Ugly soap


5. Spring. It's still a bit chilly out sometimes, but spring is here. It's fun watching spring creep up Sideling Hill.


I'm looking forward to getting more things planted outside. One of them is this beauty a friend gave to me.

I have just the spot for this on the east side of the house.

That's all for now. How's your week been?




Sunday, April 12, 2020

Easter Present


Alleluia! 

He is risen!

Because I didn't get a new picture of Jesus this year. . . 


Have a wonderful Easter!

Saturday, April 11, 2020

Easter Past

My dad told me that it was national siblings day today (or yesterday), and folks on Facebook were posting pictures of themselves with their siblings. Since I don't do Facebook (except for my Etsy shop), I thought I'd post a picture here because I love my sisters. It's a bonus that my mother was in the picture, too.

Ta-da!

That's me, right there in front wearing the crocheted purple skirt and vest. My sisters are the ladylike-looking ones on either side. 

I'm fairly certain I was all dolled-up because it was Easter. I was blessed then to have two wonderful big sisters, and I am no less blessed now!

Saturday, April 4, 2020

Life is Still Full

Do you worry? My mother did. If people could be paid for worrying, my mother would’ve been filthy rich. 

Since the pandemic situation interrupted our normal routines, I’ve found myself thinking of Mom and, to be honest, feeling somewhat relieved that she didn’t have to deal with it all. For starters, she had severe COPD. For years we avoided visits with her if anyone had so much as a sniffle. This coronavirus would have killed her, no doubt. Plus worrying about social distancing and toilet paper and money problems and the health of all her grandkids— well, all that worrying would’ve done her in just as quickly as old COVID-19.

You know, even if you’re not normally a worrier, the current situation is enough to make you feel unwell. We’re all of us a little topsy-turvy. Even homeschoolers like me who are used to being home with the kids have had to change routines. My children are bemoaning a lack of new library books while I am missing gathering together with my church family each Sunday. My husband, a pastor, has been scrambling to figure out the best way to shepherd his congregation. 

Yes, these times are more difficult for most of us, and worry comes too easily. We have been told that worry cannot add a single hour to our lives, and I know it is true. Otherwise, my anxious mother would still be alive. But she is not.

But we are alive, and that, my friends, is important. If you open your front door tomorrow morning, the birds will tell you all about it, if you’ll listen. So will those spring peepers (if you’re more of an evening person). Listen to them.

Turn off the television, the smart phone, the radio, and the computer, and listen right now. What do you hear? Do you hear your children laughing or maybe whining or perhaps jumping on your bed despite the fact they’ve been warned three times already? Life.

Or maybe you hear your husband turning the pages of his newspaper or making your morning coffee? Life.

Maybe you hear the cat sitting on the ledge outside your kitchen window meowing for some food? Life.




Even the faucet dripping, the toilet flushing, and the dishes clinking in the dishwasher are all sounds that accompany life.

Right now we have an opportunity to be still and listen. We have enough time in a way we’ve never had it before. There are no meetings, no school, no sports practices or games. 

In a time when we feel helpless to help, try listening. Listen on the phone to your friend tell the same story for the third time. Listen to your child or grandchild read from a book or recite the times tables. Listen to your spouse sing in the shower or chop up vegetables for supper. Listen to your dog snore on the rug in the evening.

Be still and soak up all the wonderful sounds of life until you are full, so full of the joy of it all that there’s no room left for useless worry.

*************************************


Speaking of joy and life and an end to all need for worry— Easter is approaching, and Easter means eggs. At our last church potluck, I had the supreme joy of tasting smoked deviled eggs for the first time. If you have a smoker and like deviled eggs, you simply must make these for your Easter dinner. No arguments; make these!

That being said, I haven’t made them myself, so I don’t have a tried-and-true recipe to share with you. However, my friend who made those lovely eggs told me how she did it (she doesn’t use a recipe), and that is what I can share with you. My directions assume you know how to hard-boil and make deviled eggs.*

Smoked Deviled Eggs

First, hard-boil eggs. Next, peel the hard-boiled eggs. Then smoke the peeled eggs in your smoker on the lowest setting for half an hour to an hour. They will be a light shade of brown.

After eggs are smoked, follow your normal recipe for deviled eggs. I don’t follow an exact recipe for the egg yolk mixture, but I do add mayonnaise, mustard, and a little of something sour like vinegar or pickle relish. My friend adds some horseradish. And don’t forget to sprinkle paprika on top; my family says it’s not really deviled eggs without the paprika on top!

*If you’ve never made hard-boiled eggs or deviled eggs, you should be able to find a basic recipe in most cookbooks or online. Or you can send me an email, and I’ll walk you through it.

**This column was printed in the April 1, 2020, issue of the Hancock News.

Friday, March 27, 2020

Feeling Homesteady

Today I wonder if I should find my sunbonnet, tie it on, and let it hang down my back. I am feeling like a pioneer. Why?

Well, look what's going on in my kitchen.

Quite the array of pots and such, eh?

Yes, we're making soap. And soup (back burner). But the rest of that stuff is soap stuff. The blue pitcher holds the lye-water mixture. The front pot holds the fat.

Lots of fat
And in the oven? 

Bread dough rising for supper

If I had chickens, I think I'd go gather the eggs right now. Maybe I'll just go learn how to sew an Easter dress instead. 

What out-of-the-ordinary things are you doing while you're staying home lately? Try anything new?





Thursday, March 26, 2020

Old Joke

Says 15-year-old: "I want to write a book when I'm younger called How to Reverse the Aging Process."

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

What Happens When. . . ?

What happens when a big Nissan van. . .






meets a tiny little killdeer?

Killdeer intimidation


Well, in our van vs. killdeer matchup, our big van backed down.  Why?



Well, that's not close enough for you to see, is it?

How about now?

Well, hello little mama bird!

The tiny little nest was so hard to see in my father's driveway.

Well-hidden nest


Little mama bird protected her three little eggs fiercely. Good job, mama bird!