My Cookies

I made up a recipe today.  Not something I usually do.  Well, I never exactly measure anything.  But that's different than actually creating something no one has ever created before.  I searched the internet for a recipe to go along with my idea.

Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Pumpkin Cookies

I do have to say, that I find them to be very delightful.  Recipe is below the pictures.

CCCCPC (That looks like I'm from the former Soviet Union)

Pumpkin Cookie Dough

2 1/4 cup flour

3 tsp pumkin pie spice

3//4 cup butter, softened

1 1/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Mix together flour and spice.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter.

Add both sugars and beat until light and fluffy.

Add Vanilla.

Add eggs one at a time and beat until combined.

Add flour/spice mixture to sugar mixture in three additions.  Alternate with pumpkin in two additions, edning with flour mixture.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Cream Cheese Dough

1 8oz package Cream Cheese

1 egg

1/4-1/2 cup flour

1 tsp vanilla

3 tsp sugar

Cream the cream cheese in mixing bowl.

Add sugar, vanilla and egg.

Add flour slowly until it is the same thickness as the pumpkin cookie dough.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Carefully fold cream cheese dough into pumpkin dough so that there are still thick swirls of the cream cheese through out the pumpkin dough.

Drop spoonfuls of mixed dough onto GREASED cookie sheet.

Bake for 12-15 minutes.  They may still look a bit "wet" on top.  

Remove from cookie sheet and cool.

Leah turns 3

Leah's birthday is October 25th.

This year she got a bike.  Please don't mind the messy house or the boy in the background being a goof.

Leah got a Dora cake.  Gramma Snow and Aunt Sandy came up from Virginia to spend the day with us.

When you don't pay attention

I cleaned out my office ALL DAY Monday.  Because of that, I left the children to their own devices.  Yes, I know, not so smart.

Leah got the stool out of the bathroom and used it to climb onto Lucy's top bunk bed.  MacGuyver in training, I suppose.

And then there's Joey.  Seriously, I struggle to understand his thought process.  According to Robbie (who didn't stop Joey), Joey was cutting his own hair over the toilet.  Robbie cleaned up the toilet area.  But, the effort did manage to litter the sink and counter as well.

        I chose to capture the moments for everyone's viewing pleasure.

Bread in a Bag

I taught a bread making class a week ago at church.  I always try to put together a booklet of recipes and instructions to give to those attending.  I had found this Bread in a Bag recipe on one of the YahooGroups that I'm on and decided to give it a try....with the kids participating.

Kneading dough kept the kids out of each other's hair.  We may have to make bread everyday.

It was a mess but it did result in pretty good bread actually.  The trick is to knead it to death, out of the bag.

Bread in a Bag

2 cups white flour (and a little extra for kneading)

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup hot water

1 package rapid rise yeast

3 Tbl sugar

3 Tbl nonfat dry milk

1 Tbl salt

3 Tbl vegetable oil

gallon size resealable plastic baggie

bowl

spoon

greased loaf pan

plastic wrap

oven mitt

1.  Pre heat your over to 375 degrees.  

2.  Mix 1 cup of white flour, the packet of yeast, 3 tablespoons sugar, and 1 cup hot water in the resealable bag.

3.  Let most of the air out of the bag, close it, and smoosh the bag with your finger to mix the ingredients.

4.  After about 10 minutes, the mixture will start to bubble as the yeast makes carbon dioxide.  The carbon dioxide produced by the yeast will make bubbles in the bread dough, making it bigger and fluffier.  The bag will also expand.

5.  While you're waiting for the yeast mixture to bubble, in a separate bowl, mix together 3 Tbl nonfat dry milk, 1 cup of whole wheat flour, 1 tablespoon of salt.

6.  Open the bag and add the mixed ingredients and the oil.

7.  Let most of the air out of the bag, seal it closed and smoosh the bag some more to mix everything together until it's pretty smooth.

8.  Open the bag and add the other cup of white flour.

9.  Reseal the bag and smoosh again until smooth.

10.  Take the dough out of the bag and knead it for another 5-10 minutes.  You might have to put some extra flour on your hands.  Kneading makes the dough stretchy so it keeps it shape and gets a nice chewy texture.

11.  Now put the dough into a greased loaf pan, cover it loosely and plastic wrap and let it rise for about 30 minutes.

12.  When the dough has risen, put it in the oven.  Be sure to remove the plastic wrap.

13.  After about 25 minutes, it should look gloden brown.

14.  Pull it out of the oven and let it cool.

Leah and the Potty

So, I really wish I had a video to go along with this story.  Actually, while this was happening I thought I should go get the camera, but then I thought it wouldn't be appropriate.  But, it is funny.

Leah is a week away from being three years old.  We've got the "pee in the potty" part of potty training down.  Why is it that the poop is so difficult for the children?  I just don't get it.  Well, Leah is having problems with pooping in the potty.  She'll hold it for days.  

Leah knows when she has to go.  Wednesday night Sam and I tried to bribe her with anything and everything to go.  We even brought her little potty chair out to the living room to watch tv with us.  I promised her fruit snacks (yes, I know--not a great choice for a constipated child) and even opened the little package for her to see the colors.  Poor thing, she carried around the bag and kept sticking her nose in it to smell the snacks.  She never did try to eat one.  Pretty impressive.  We finally put a pull-up on her hoping that she would poop.  Instead, she crawled up on Sam's lap and just about fell asleep.  No poop.

Thursday morning we were walking out the door to go to gardening class when Leah announces that she has to go poop.  Seriously?!!  

I take her back to the bathroom and put her on her little potty.  She made a little effort but the only thing that convinced her to stay put was for me to sing songs to her.  Yes, songs.

Bless her little heart.  She was really backed up.  I'm singing every Primary and nursery rhyme song I can remember.  She grunting and groaning, her little face is turning bright red at times.  She even grabbed hold of the little wall between the bathtub and toilet for help.

My singing, accompanied by a random child walking by the bathroom from time to time, seemed to be the magic.  Just before she reached out her hand for me to hold and support her during the passage she said to me, "Mommy, sing loudah, I don't wanna hear the poop."

Applesauce

With the help of Diane Paul and Lucy Bergin, I was able to can 31 quarts of applesauce and 1 quart of apple juice. I pulled the apple juice from the peelings and cores of the apples, using my steam juicer. I can later go and make apple jelly in the winter, when there's nothing else to do. :) It's pink because I put candy red hots in it to make it a little cinnamony.

1 Year Anniversary

It's been a year ago today that I pulled the kids out of school and started the journey of homeschooling.

I have shed many a tear and been overly frustrated.  Just as recently as August, I almost put the kids back in school.  I'm thankful I didn't.

I would've missed our trip to the beach.  The trip where I fell in love with my children all over again.  The trip that Lucy says her favorite thing was spending time with her mom.  And she really means it.

I would've missed seeing my son Joey sound out his first words while learning to read.

I would've missed observing my children becoming better and better friends.  Oh, they still fuss and fight a lot, but they work and play together much better than ever before.

I would've missed allowing the kids to be involved in so many extra curricular activities and watch them expand their talents and skills.  While in school, there just wasn't time to do so much before bed time.

I would've missed seeing their eyes light up when the finally "get it".

They would've missed seeing their mom serve others.

They would've missed being an integral part of their baby sister's development.

They would've missed sleeping in. :)

They would've missed marching to the beat of their own drum.  A couple of them have VERY different beats.

They would've missed learning how to become more self reliant by learning how to cook, clean and take care of themselves under their mother's watchful eye. :)  (Yes, I know that sounds like housework, but they need to learn it)

They would've missed learning how to learn their own way and what they want to learn.

I'm am ever so grateful to the Lord for His exhortation that I pull the kids.  It was nearly a year before I shed my resentment.  I am more thankful than ever for Him knowing better than me.