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Showing posts from January, 2013

Black & White {Think Back Thursday}

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Yesterday when I linked up my Silly Post for Debbie’s Think Back Thursday, I noticed that this week’s theme is Black and White.  This brought to mind the images my daughter created while playing with the black and white setting of the digital camera.  Photos like these: The above photo is a self-portrait of BooBear.  She likes playing with the camera.  I think the camera likes her!  The photo below demonstrates Supergirl’s love of the camera.  She loves having her picture taken anytime, anyplace, black and white or full color! I found the next picture irresistible.  Of course every time I look at it I can’t help but hear Madonna sing the phrase “strike a pose”.  Turtlegirl tells me that she was demonstrating to Tailorbear how to strike a pose. But as I searched for those pictures I found other pictures, that while not photographed in black and white cried out to be included because they were black and white themed. Our digital piano didn’t just boast ebony and ivory colored key

Just a Little Silliness

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One of the blog memes that I really enjoy participating in is Think Back Thursday hosted by Debbie over at Debbie’s Digest .  I do strive to post on Thursdays but I never seem to quite make it so I am thankful the linky stays open so I can add in sometime during the week. This week’s theme is silly and since I am needing some silly right now it sounds perfect to me.   One of the things that makes my family special is the silly ways we goof off and make each other laugh. This picture makes me smile.  It is just so Turtlegirl.  Big silly glasses and eating a pickle.    I think this was taken when she was about 5 1/2. I don’t know why but my girls were always trying to sit or climb into the strangest places.  So here is one silly girl sitting in a kitchen trash can!  She had just turned 3 a few days earlier.  Tailorbear being silly! Playing dress up gives you a chance to be silly and make up stories.  BooBear and Turtlegirl decided to put on a silly play about “the lady who was on t

Pork Roast Dip Sandwich Recipe

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One of my most favoritest (is that a word? I’m making it a word LOL) crock pot recipes is my Super Easy Crock Pot Roast Beef which makes a Fabulous French Dip .   I had a couple of pork roasts (boneless sirloin tip roasts to be exact) but no beef roasts.  We had already done pulled pork bbq sandwiches and I wanted to do something different. My family suggested we try making french dips but using the pork instead. It turned out fabulous!  This is a keeper and though I still love my beef dipping sandwiches, this Pork Roast Dip Sandwich will satisfy my dip craving.  And it’s cheaper for me than a beef roast. What you need: a pork roast ~  I used one that was roughly 2lbs.  It was enough to feed the six of of us. water ~ I used 2 cups of water but didn’t quite have as much au jus as I wanted so I would do 3 cups water next time. Soy Sauce ~ I prefer Bragg’s Liquid Aminos which is a soy sauce substitute but I’ve been using regular soy sauce.  About 1/4 cup Garlic ~ to taste and

S is for Sundays and Seniors

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Oooh that title sounds like I’m going to talk about something really spiritual like visiting a nursing home on Sunday afternoons and visiting with elderly senior citizens.  If you thought that’s what this post is then I apologize.  This post is about a typical Sunday in my home and my daughter who is 1/2 way through her senior year of high school. I’m sitting here missing my daughter.  It helps that she just called and I got to talk to her but still on a typical Sunday I don’t spend much time with my 17 year old music loving daughter. Like most people I know things are bit busy maybe even hectic on Sunday morning as people rush about getting ready.  With three “normal” teenagers there’s usually a rush for the bathroom so they can do each other’s hair or to apply some make up.  “Does this look ok?” asks one. “Zip me up” shouts another.  Once we get to church I lose my oldest.  Remember I said she was the music lover?  She heads over to the choir.  Sometimes I lose Supergirl.  She

The Wonders of Winter Nature

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I live in the Pacific Northwest on the rainy side of Washington state to be more exact.  Winter in the PNW is not the same as the winter I experienced growing up in Minnesota (Minne-SNOW-ta to the locals). Winter here is usually wet, cold and green.  Like this: Sometimes, thankfully not often, just frequently enough for the girls to like it, winter looks like this: I much prefer the first picture.  You don’t have to shovel rain! We haven’t done a true nature study session in very long time but this week’s Blog Cruise Topic is Winter Nature Study.  So I’m digging out some ideas. A few years ago when we were studying botany we were able to easily find some lichen and study it.  The above picture is from this weekend.  But when we studied lichen for science it was growing on a tree in our front yard.  A tree that no longer exists because of a record setting  storm.  (The tree is laying on its side next to the lamp post.) Since ice and snow are not common to our area, we found it

Squirrels and Knights Oh My!

I could title this post the things children say but t here are some days.  You don’t know if you should laugh or cry so you laugh because it feels better than crying.  (Ok I laugh because I hate that stuffed up feeling I get from crying.) Supergirl is very much like a 6 year old 1st grader.  Her actual skill levels cover a wide span but over all 1st grade seems to work.  For history we are using Story of the World Volume 1 by Susan Wise Bauer.  We’re also adding in The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia (The Red Cover version from 2004).  I’m using the activity guide as well. Yesterday while I read about Sargon, she colored his picture.  Then I pulled out the narration prompts form the activity book.  “Who was Sargon?” I asked.  She responded with “He wanted to rule the world.”  (and wouldn’t you know it but then I had Tears for Fears singing “Everybody wants to rule the world” in my head.)  Ok.  He wanted to rule the world.  That makes sense.  I can get that from what we read. So then

R is for Roasted Brussels Sprouts

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This past week has been R week for Blogging Through the Alphabet.  I was going to blog about Reading (and I will) but then I thought no, I’ll do my R post on Reflections.  That didn’t happen either and here it is Sunday and the last night of the R week.  So I’m making dinner.  We’re having R oasted B r ussels Sp r outs.  R is for a Recipe!  R is for Roasted Brussels Sprouts. When I was a child I liked Brussels sprouts.  I also liked broccoli and cauliflower.  I knew I was weird even back then.  Nobody else seemed to like those “weird” veggies.  They all preferred corn or peas or carrots.  I like carrots.  I like green beans.  I’ll pass on the peas and corn thank you.  I grew up with Brussels sprouts.  I think my mom always bought frozen ones and she’d toss them in butter.  But then one day, I ate an overcooked Brussels sprout.  It was mushy and the texture was horrible and I couldn’t eat another one.  I just couldn’t.  Not for years. So the years go by and my children were spared th

Wood {Think Back Thursday}

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It’s been a long time since I’ve participated in Debbie’s Think Back Thursday meme but when I saw that this week’s theme was “wood” I knew just the pictures I wanted to use.  We took a trip 9 years ago.  9 years!  I cannot believe it’s been that long!  It was an awesome little trip to spend some time together as a family.  I had been a single parent for nearly 1 year while Honeybear had gone to “play in the giant sandbox.” (Think Middle East Military Deployment).  On this trip we drove through Oregon to take a field trip to see crater lake and then on to northern California to see some really big trees. Mostly I just wanted to be able to say I had been to California! Photographic evidence that at one time Turtlegirl and BooBear really were taller than their younger sister, Tailorbear. You can see little Tailor’s head resting on her arms. She’s barely able to see over that sign. I love seeing pictures of my husband with our children.  Above: he holds a Supergirl who had only just st

Hungarian Goulash {Crockpot Recipe}

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I never seem to follow a recipe exactly but instead take a bit of this and little of that and throw it all together.  This week I want to share my variation of Crock Pot Hungarian Goulash.  The original recipe came from the Complete Slow Cooker Cookbook by Carol Hedding and is titled “Hungarian-Style Goulash”  It is described as a stew.   I think of it as more of a saucy dish served over noodles, but Ms. Hedding’s version is more like a broth with chunks of meat and vegetables. If I created her recipe, I would be tempted to put the noodles in the crock pot or to put the noodles in a bowl and ladle the Goulash. But here is “Tess’s Hungarian-Style Goulash” What you need: 2 pounds of beef such as cheap roast or round steak or stewing meat, trimmed and cubed 2-3 medium onions thinly sliced (Ms. Hedding’s variation said 6 onions.  That’s too much for my husband <grin>) 2 cups slicked mushrooms (I used regular white but portobello appears in some variations) 1 1/2 large gree