Waiting...

...for her boys to come home.

Pepperoni Rolls

I told you last week how much I LURVE author Suzzane McMinn's blog:
'Chickens in the Road'.
I read it every.single.day. without fail!
I made her delicious pepperoni rolls and they were fantastic! It is sure to become a weekly staple around here. It's such a versatile bread to work with. I can't wait to try ham & cheddar or sundried tomato, olives, & feta!

Make these NOW!
And to any Creamers out there reading...
I'm bringing these this weekend for the get together!

Savoring the last days of summer...

I got nuthin'

It's been a super busy week for me and my blogging has fallen behind! Thought I'd share some great sites around the web for things I'm planning for the weekend:

I loves me some Chickens in the Road! I read Suzanne's blog every.single.day. This weekend I am making dozens and dozens of her pepperoni rolls and using the basic recipe to make ham and cheese ones, too. These will be great for the freezer for quick snacks...that is, if they even make it to the freezer!

I think I will make a few of these super cute reversible headbands from The Long Thread. I need something to tie my hair back at work but I don't want to put it up. These will fit the bill nicely and will look great in some of my vintage fabrics!

And I will be using up the last bit of our raw milk to make some homemade yogurt in the crockpot. Doug will be making a run to the co-op on Monday for more, I just need to use up what we have. Might even make some yogurt cheese for snacks next week.

These three projects PLUS getting the rest of our Fall garden planted AND my usual weekend chores of cleaning, laundry, and getting next week's menu plan and school work for the boys should be plenty to keep me busy!
The weather is cooler and I feel inspired!
Doug and the boys will be going to football games and photo shoots so no one will be underfoot!
Ahhh....I love this time of year!

Thrift store treasures

Every now and then our thrift store puts out retired school library books.

John Paul says they're really old books...like from when I was a kid!

I absolutely LOVE them!
The worn covers, the smell, the old library cards pasted in the back of them!

I particularly love the wonderful stories and illustrations. You just can't get that with books printed today.

Replaced with "better material"?
I think not!

The Fall garden is in...

...well almost!

My weekends are so busy that I have to stagger my work. I had a four day weekend this week but it still wasn't enough time for all of the things I needed to accomplish!

Luckily, Doug and the boys pitched in and I got the garden weeded and my seedlings planted:
Brussell sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and collard greens.

Next weekend I'll finish up with seeds that can be directly sewn into the ground:
Parsnips, turnips, carrots, peas (3 varieties), kohlrabi, green onion, and lettuce (5 varieties).

And the great tomato question has been answered!

Yes, you can cut your plants back after the summer harvest and they will grow back!

That has turned out to be quite the money/time saver and I can't wait to put up more batches of fresh tomatoes for the winter!
Fire up the stew pot!

The house guest -part deux

Dearest Nana,
I hope you are having a wonderful time in jolly old England!
Say hello to the Queen for me!
I was very excited to hear I was staying with Doug, Jo, and the boys while you were away. I always have a great time at their house (like the last time you went gallivanting off to Las Vegas).

But there is one thing you neglected to tell me.

Now they have a...a...

..oh, I cannot even bring myself to say it!

They have a dog!

Oh, it is just a monstrous thing!

I've endured my stay the best I could under the circumstances.

This beast invades my personal space.
What's with all the butt sniffing?


They let this dog get up on the couch
with the rest of the people.


She is quite the barbarian!
Begging for treats,
barking at strangers,
running around the house chewing up everything in sight!

Speaking of chewing,
this dog does have some pretty good toys, though.

Hurry home soon, I can't wait to hear all about your trip!

Abby:
Who let that dog in my house?

Another interuption from Kanye...

Make your own HERE!

T.G.I.F.

I feed my used tea leaves to my plants...
apparantly, someone thought the plants needed a little popcorn, too!

Please excuse me, I have a little cleaning up to do today.

Update on Sonya...

I am so so SO happy to report that Sonya should be going home today!
Finally, after over a week in the hospital, she is up walking (with the help of a walker), is tube free, and eating solid foods. We are all so thankful!
She is still very weak from her ordeal but being home is just the medicine she needs!

We plan on going up to see her on Saturday and stocking her fridge with meals, helping with any housework that needs to be done, and thanking the Lord for his merciful healing!

Lots to do....

Tea Time

I usually get my teas from Chinatown (in west Houston) but this week I was making an order to Rose Mountain Herbs for some elderberries to make more cold and flu tincture and decided to try some of their herbal teas.

I was not disappointed!

I ordered a small sampler of their 100% organic loose herbal tea blends:
Dream Tea
Peace Tea
Fairyland Tea

They came packaged in these lovely reusable tins and the fragrance coming off of these was amazing! You can visibly see the chamomile, lavender, spearmint, flower petals, etc...

I immediately brewed up a cup of Peace Tea with a little raw honey and a toasted bagel!

Early in the morning before everyone rises or late in the afternoon when they are out and about, those are MY times alone to ponder, reflect, and relax with a good cup of warm tea.

It soothes the soul.

What do you do to relax?

My weekend D.I.Y. project

We've had some cooler days in these parts and the Fall bug has bit me! I got out all my decorations and set about putting them around the house. I thought a nice Fall wreath would look pretty on the side door and checked some out at Hobby Lobby. I almost had a heart attack from the sticker shock! I knew I could make my own for less than 10 bucks.

I went to Walmart for a grapevine wreath ($2.50),
a wooden letter "C" ($1.00),
one bunch of silk flowers ($3.00),
and some ribbon ($1.00).

Clip off all the branches on your silk flower bunch and paint your lettering.

Start from one point on your wreath and build outward on both sides. Weave flower stems through the grapevine and secure with hot glue if needed.

Hot glue some ribbon onto your lettering and secure to a branch on the wreath.

String the wreath up with ribbon and nail/staple to the top of your door!

Voila! A pretty little Fall accent for less than ten bucks!
Come Christmas time, I'll take it all out and substitute poinsettias and red velvet ribbons.

Menu Plan Monday

Busy weekend for me. Spent sometime in Houston sitting with my sister at the hospital, rushed to get laundry and household chores done, dealing with kiddo drama...but I DID manage to get my meal planning and grocery shopping for this week done!
On the menu are easy prep meals for the days that I work and then I hope to cook some extra meals to stock Sonya's freezer with for when she comes home. A busy week ahead, that's for sure!

Monday: Turkey and dressing. Will put a large turkey breast (you can get them for a really great price "off-season") in the crock to cook all day. Will make a pan of cornbread dressing Sunday night so that all Doug has to do is pop it in the oven right before dinner. The turkey makes it's own gravy, it will be a little taste of Thanksgiving a few months early! Will make an extra pan of chicken dressing for the freezer for Sonya & Mason.

Tuesday: Enchilada casserole. Will fry up a pound of ground beef Monday night and assemble this easy dish before going to work the next morning. Doug can pop it in the oven about an hour before dinner. Will serve with chips and homemade salsa from the freezer.

Wednesday: Turkey pannini and fruit. Will use leftover turkey meat from Monday to make turkey/spinach/tomato/swiss pressed sandwiches. Will use lots and lots of our hot pepper butter on them! Serve with fresh fruit.

Thursday: Pasta primavera. Whole wheat bow tie pasta tossed with a homemade alfredo sauce and fresh veggies (zucchini, yellow squash, broccoli, red pepper, and julienne carrots). Will make a double batch and freeze half for a meal for Sonya & Mason.

Friday: Minestrone soup. Will serve this comforting, vegetarian meal with whole wheat artisan bread. A double batch will go into the crock and half will be frozen for Sonya & Mason.

Saturday: Chicken and vegetable kabobs over brown rice. Doug is really loving his new grill and what could be easier than kabobs? The kids will have fun making these!

Sunday: DINNING OUT! Just typing all of this is making me tired and a night off from cooking will be well deserved by all!

In addition to the three meals from our own menu, I'll be making two more soups for the freezer for Sonya (easily simmered in the crock pot while I'm at work) and maybe a vegetable dish or two. Sonya's stomach was greatly insulted during a routine medical procedure and she has a long haul ahead for recovery. All of my meals for her are going to be made with bone broths and organic vegetables. I'm also sending her some kefir, kombucha, and lactofermented vegetables in an attempt to help her regain the healthy flora in her gut which will, in turn, help the rest of her body to heal. I ask for continued prayers for her and her family.

Joe Wilson is my new hero!

It's TRUE!

Victoria Jackson's blog post at Big Hollywood
sums it up quite nicely!

Sonya update...

Thanks to everyone for the prayers for my sister and her family...please keep them coming!
I was very blessed to be able to sit with her yesterday. The short story is that she went in for a very routine endoscopy. Her stomach was punctured and the gases from the procedure leaked into her body. It caused a collapse of both her lungs and gases being trapped in her subcutaneous tissues (a condition called subcutaneous emphysema). Needless to say, she is in terrible pain and so are her husband and daughters who have to watch her suffer needlessly.
The next few days are crucial to make sure she doesn't develop sepsis, that her gut can rest (with the presence of an NG tube) so the puncture can heal without additional surgery, and the air in her tissues will resolve so she can regain lung function.
There are LOTS of readers of this blog (even though your comments are few!) so please storm Heaven for her and her family!!! Put her on every prayer list you can find, I beg of you!

Thanks to all who have already prayed and expressed concern. I hope to be able to go back up this weekend to help where I can.

Requesting prayers again!

My dear sister went in for a very simple procedure but ended up having some very serious complications. She is in ICU and is not well at all. PLEASE offer prayers on her behalf today as well as for her husband and 3 daughters.

Three ingredient peanut butter cookies

Yes, you read it right!
I was looking for an easy cookie recipe and found this one on www.alllrecipes.com:

One cup of peanut butter
One cup of sugar
One egg

THAT'S IT!

As usual I had to jack with the original recipe:
I used:
One cup of natural peanut butter
One cup of organic cane sugar
One farm fresh egg
1/2 cup of oats
2 T. ground flax seed
2 T. wheat germ
1 tsp. baking powder (just to lighten it up)

This is a very dangerous recipe to have. I mean, what if you're sitting around watching a movie late at night and get the urge for something sweet? There's nothing to stop you from making these simple cookies....batches and batches of cookies!
Very dangerous I tell 'ya!

What's for lunch?

It's bento, baby!

This week it's my four back-to-back 12 hour shifts.

It's rough.

Seriously.

Here's one way I like to perk up my day:

It's such a great pick-me-up unpacking a cute little bento for lunch!
Here I have some homemade Pad Thai with fruit.
I'll even pack my chopsticks to go with it!

I've also started having a little "tea time" mid-afternoon:

Here I have some peanut butter oatmeal cookies with a delicate jasmine tea.
This is going to be so good about 3:30 in the afternoon.

You know the time...

It's the time when you either need a power nap or want to raid the vending machines!

(Or in Doug's case, a Bucee's run for jerky and Dr. Pepper Icees.)