Cupcakes

I made cupcakes for my son’s basketball team snack shack. Now I am not the best frosting decorator there is. In fact, I’m just an average decorator. I look at the magazines and cookbooks for ideas, but I can never really execute what they show. I mean the fancy looking cupcakes that look like Christmas trees or a gingerbread house on top of a cupcake or an angel or even an animal. I am just the average frosting from a can, and then top with some sprinkles and there you have it.

This time I wanted to actually see if the Betty Crocker frosting cans actually frosts as many as they say they do. The can is 12 ounces and states it will frost from 22-32 cupcakes. Now I have never tried this as I always end up eating the frosting from the can. Talk about a sugar high, it is sooo good. I even have put it between two pieces of graham crackers, but it is better plain. But this time I experimented and it actually did frost approximately 30 average size cupcakes. So I was very pleased to find out that what the package stated was true.

I will tell you that the cupcakes didn’t go as fast as I thought they would; the kids actually went for candy. So the lesson I learned was that kids would rather have candy, which should have been no surprise.

Day After

After a short weekend of eating, playing games, more eating, laughing, spending time with our large family of parents, siblings and grandchildren, aunts and cousins, it was time to go back home to the real world.

This time of year is always magical, special and stressful and always is over to soon. We normally stay until after Christmas to help clean up, but this year we left on Christmas Day. We wanted to beat the rain and that didn’t work. We ended up driving home in the rain going only 45 miles an hour and sometimes slower due to it raining so hard. It took 1 ½ hours longer than it should have to get home. The kids were very good throughout the whole trip, so that really helped. Because we were trying to concentrate on the road and other cars and it doesn’t help when we have to turn our head around to yell at the kids.

Tired from all the overly rich food we had, I decided to make a turkey pot pie. Since it was a cold and lazy day, some comfort food sounded really good and my family loves turkey pot pie. I just use the basic turkey pot pie recipe and tweak it to our taste. I always add parsley and celery leaves and if I have any small amounts of vegetables in the refrigerator, I add them into the pot. This time I added bell peppers and broccoli.

Recipe

3 c. water (can also use broth – vegetable or chicken stock)
2 carrots, chopped
2-3 T. chopped parsley
4 potatoes, chopped
1 ½ c. – 2 c. shredded or chopped turkey
2-3 stalks celery, chopped
2-3 T. chopped celery leaves (or whatever is on the stalk)
1 ½ t. salt
¼ bell pepper, chopped
1 ½ c. broccoli, chopped
1 T. – 1 ½ T. cornstarch (thickener)

Add all vegetables and spices to 3 c. water and cook over medium heat for 20-25 minutes. If to high, lower the heat. Add cornstarch to thicken broth. How juicy or thick you want the stock is a matter of choice.

Preheat oven to 425º. Put into a Pyrex pan (9 x 13 or 8 x 10) and cover with unbaked pie crust. Cook for 30-35 minutes, let rest for 5 minutes and enjoy.

I used the basic turkey pot pie recipe and pie crust recipe from the Betty Croker Cookbook. This can be a little fattening, but everything in moderation and it will be fine.

Christmas Eve's Eve

Today, again, I was all day in the kitchen. I had to cook the turkey bones for broth; whenever I cook a turkey or chicken I always will cook the bones after taking off all the meat for broth for soups or even pot pies.

While I was cutting up the green onions and celery for the potato salad I volunteered to make for Christmas Eve, I lit the Glade Two in One Candle. The smell was Baked Pear and Cinnamon Treat. It smelled delicious. I didn’t smell the green onions except for a little bit at first, then it was the candle.

I purchased the candle at Target. They were having a sale 2 for $5.00 each, plus I had a $2.00 off manufacturer coupon and also a $1.00 off Target coupon. So I felt very proud that I purchased the candles for $1.50 each after the coupons. To bad Target didn’t double the coupons. Then I would be like all the other websites that tout getting stuff for free with coupons. I am trying though.

Christmas is upon us and everyone is anxious for it to happen. Funny how we anticipate it for so long, then it is over in a flash and everyone has to go back home to their lives. Hopefully this time we will take a little bit longer time to enjoy what we have and the people who are in our lives.

Rain

“Rain, rain go away, come again some other day.” It feels like the pitter patter of rain is never ending. I don’t think that I can live in Seattle or anywhere it rains a lot. It has rained steadily for two days and the forecast is for more rain for the next two days with chances of thunderstorms. Great, just great. I don’t mind the rain; in fact I enjoy the rain. Rain to me is a time to sit in front of the fireplace with a cup of steaming hot cocoa, eating cake, wrapped up in old jammies and watching old reruns on TV, except not everyday for a week.

But that wasn’t my day. Instead I ended up mopping up water that is seeping into the washroom. Then I had to go outside in the pouring rain to see if water was coming into the house. After putting on old work clothes, not rain clothes, as it never rains in southern California, went outside to investigate. There it was, somehow water was gushing out of the hill by the house and some was going under the foundation. Most of it was running away from the house, but I needed to divert the water that was running into our house. The only thing I thought of was putting dirt next to the foundation and hopefully it would hold. It did, at least for a while. But since it keeps raining with no end in sight, the rain washed away my dirt that I put next to the foundation, meaning I have to continue to mop up the washroom and also continue going outside to put dirt where the water is entering the house.

So much for sitting in front of the fireplace. Oh, and the bathroom roof is leaking too.

Day Eleven

Today I made this delicious broccoli casserole. It was to die for. My husband even said it was fabulous and he normally doesn’t say anything about my food.

I found this recipe in a 2006 Taste of Home® magazine. It was in the October/November 2006 issue to be exact and it is called Comforting Broccoli Casserole by Kimberly Laabs.

I was looking through the magazine and decided to make it for our Christmas Day lunch, but I needed to try it out first. However, I didn’t need to because everything I have ever made from Taste of Home® is enjoyable.

The recipe is as follows:

2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (10 ¾ oz.) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup (4 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Swiss cheese
½ cup Mayonnaise
2 T. butter, melted
1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen broccoli cuts, thawed
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
¼ cup dry bread crumbs

In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients; fold in broccoli. Transfer to greased 1 ½ qt. baking dish. Sprinkle with bread crumbs. Cover and bake at 400º for 30-35 minutes or until heated through.
Yield: 8 servings.

The only thing I changed is that I used fresh broccoli and pre-cooked them. I also think that I would take the foil off at least 10 minutes before the timer goes off to get the topping browned a little bit. I think it would look prettier.

Day Ten

Today I didn’t have much chance to really look at my front kitchen window. I was in a hurry to get out of the house. First I need to go for my morning walk. Oh how I enjoy those walks, it is so invigorating! After my walk I needed to go get going before it was to late in the day and nothing would get done. I ended up at Bed, Bath & Beyond® looking for a chair pillow or gaming pillow chair for my son. Lo and behold, I ended up seeing one sister there and we talked for a while. It was like we didn’t see each other the day before for lunch. Then she left and I was still holding the chair pillow when I saw my other sister. This was not planned and it is not like it was the only store in town. So we talked also, she told me where else I could go for pillows with armrests.

Needless to say I went all over town looking for this and couldn’t find anything! However I did end up getting some groceries that I needed from Wal-Mart® and then I ended up at Marshalls® looking for vinyl press-on wallpaper flowers for my daughter and they were there. The only problem I had was deciding which ones to get – the purple, blue and brown circles that I liked or the pink and orange flowers which also had peace signs which she is into right now. Yes, I went with what she would like. I knew it would make her happy.

I was not able to find a pillow chair for my son. I did go online and found some bean bag chairs and gaming pillows that I might purchase. Or I just might wait until it is too late like I always do.

Day Nine

Today I knew I had a lot to do, but I didn’t want to take that much time to do it. Of course I was late to lunch, but only by a few minutes. Today my siblings and I were getting together to discuss Christmas weekend at our parents and who was going to bring what. And this time I didn’t want to be over-ruled or ignored, and I wasn’t! It felt so good! I mean we all talked and ate, and a lot got done. We even brought notebooks to take notes, but only one sister is going to type it up and send it to everyone so that we know what we said we are bringing and if we forgot anything we could add to the list.

We have been doing this for the last couple of years because we all go to our parents’ house and it is not fair to have our mother do everything. All in all, there are about 50 of us that show up and sleep at our parents’ house. Of course some of us bring RV’s because there is no way we could all fit into a 1700 sq. ft. house. Christmas has always been at our parents’ house and it is very enjoyable for us as well as the grandchildren. There is no snow on the ground, but there is cold weather, sometimes rain and lots of riding motorcycles and quads on the ranch. But they are slowing down as they age and it is not fair to have them buy all the food and do everything, so that’s where we come in with helping with the food and cleaning up afterwards.

I think we have everything under control with who is bringing what. Hopefully we have just enough, except we usually have too much food. And we are always stuffed by the end of the weekend, but isn’t that what holidays are for?

Day Eight

“Mom, I want a dress up room!” I hear that constantly. I know that I promised to kind of get one for her, but I have no idea how to create one. I looked at magazines to get ideas, and there are some good ones out there, but I need to make it not as expensive as what is in the magazines.

Then she decides she wants a Fancy Nancy Room with secret hide-out. She even made her own secret hide-out with a chair next to her bed, blankets on top, books, pillows and dolls underneath. So now I am worried that if I create a dress-up room or Fancy Nancy Room, she will have moved on to something else.

I was thinking about getting some stickers that stick on the wall, sort of like wallpaper, but pictures of flowers, or circles, stars and squares. And she can put them on the wall, this way she can have a hand in decorating her room herself and it might be something that she can grow up with. I also thought of some type of sentence to put on the wall, something encouraging so that every time she looks at it, it will make her feel good. I also think a fluffy chair will be good.

Hopefully by the time I get everything together she won’t have grown up and moved out of the house.

Ice Cream is Like Water

Around our house ice cream never stays long. I just purchased a gallon container of ice cream on the 9th of this month and it is already less than ¼ left in the bottom. This family eats it like water, actually everyone but me eats it like water. I only have maybe 2/3 of a cup of ice cream at night. It’s the children and the husband who put at least 1 ½ cups of ice cream in their containers. I don’t purchase the expensive stuff, it costs too much and I can’t afford to be “throwing” that money away on ice cream when it is better off being spent on say staples like milk, flour, fruit and vegetables.

I have purchased the gallon containers from Target, and Von’s, but the brand that we truly enjoy is Golden Crème. There are not a lot of flavors, just vanilla, chocolate, chocolate chip, cookies and crème (Oreo type cookies), sherbet, vanilla and fudge swirl and Neapolitan. That’s more than enough for us to experiment. If we really wanted something special and we had extra money, we would purchase Dreyer’s, especially when they come out with the Girl Scout cookie ice creams. Delicious!

I have made ice cream from scratch and it is the most exquisite tasting ice cream there is, but I usually don’t have enough time to do it all the time. And with my family I would probably be making ice cream daily. So it is store bought ice cream I will continue on purchasing and hopefully I can teach my family a little moderation on eating it, at least to make it last a full week instead of 5 days.

Day Seven

The hummingbirds flitter to and fro happily collecting their food. I often wonder if they have problem pre-teenagers. Probably not, because all they do is fly to get nectar and food and then go about their busy day. They instinctively know what to do and how to do it and there is no attitude at all. Lucky hummingbird mothers.

Not like me. My children have stubbornness borne into them; it is part of their DNA. Let me explain. My son had a basketball game on Friday night; I dropped him off and went to find a parking space. When I finally go to the gym he was nowhere to be found, but there was plenty of time so I wasn’t worried. Then it was time for the game to start. At first I wasn’t going to look for him, I thought to myself that he is old enough to know when the game will start. But then I thought about it and went looking for him. He was outside playing basketball with one of his friends. I did get mad because he should have been already in the gym with his uniform on.

He went to the gym looked for his coach and was told where to find his uniform. Well to make a long story short, the uniforms didn’t come in and all that was in the room were some XXL shirts. My son wears a size small adult, actually an extra-small adult. So needless to say he wouldn’t wear one and he was upset and he wouldn’t play. Times like this I honestly wish I knew what to say, but I don’t, so I yelled at him. We sat for a while watching the game, me thinking that he would get over this and decide to play, but he didn’t. So before the game ended I decided to leave because as long as he wasn’t going to play it wasn’t worth staying and watching the game. On the way home I didn’t say anything, but of course he pouted and said that he wasn’t going to play basketball. Again I didn’t argue with him, because I knew it wouldn’t do any good. The next morning I did speak a little to him saying that he needed to start acting a little more grown up, that if the guys saw him crying or pouting he would be picked on. That I can’t be around all the time and that when people say things to him, he is going to have to learn to protect himself. I told my husband that I don’t know what to do with him, because he is stubborn. I can’t bribe him to do something, which is not right. The whole point is that he loves to play basketball and even though he is the smallest on the team, he still enjoys it. So where did this stubbornness come from? We know it is from us, it is always the parents.

Day Six

I was going to write about the older man I saw flipping someone the bird out of his van window because they were either to slow or didn’t put on their turn signal on. I was going to say something about what kind of example are we setting for our children when we do things like this and then ask what is wrong with the youth today. And these same people say that the kids have no respect for their elders and they should all be institutionalized.

But then I went to a winter concert at my son’s school. As I walked into the gymnasium, it took me back to my youth. There were metal folding chairs put out for all the parents and family to sit on, plus they had some bleachers against the wall. My son told me where he was sitting in the band, so I tried to sit on that side of the room to see him. The crowd for the most part was attentive, there were a few cell phones ringing and once in a while you can see the glow of someone texting on their cell phone. (The man sitting next to me!). The event turned out to be very nice, the band played, the choir sang and did a play and a young boy played solo on the piano. I truly enjoyed myself.

It made me think that we can not cut the arts out of our schools. Our children need to know about music, drawing, theatre and, if I may be so bold, cooking and sewing. In my opinion music teaches musicality and rhythm, drawing teaches about the movement of your hands (fluidity) and theatre teaches the ability to speak in public. I believe that the later two fall under the heading of good nutrition and taking care of oneself. All of these are needed.

Day Five

Today I contemplated my day, what I have to do every day just to get things done and what I needed to add to that list. My normal day doesn’t have a list, it is things that are automatic and need to be done daily. But when there are extra things on that list that need to be done, then I have to write it down or else it will never get done. It will just be filed away until I remember it again.

So every morning when I get up, I have to get the kids and husband up. Now if I had kids that got up when their alarms went off or even when I told them to get up the first time, which would be great. But it takes probably about 15 minutes before they can really get out of their comfortable beds and make their way to the kitchen to eat. Then I start making their breakfasts, plus lunches, then hurry them to get dressed, brush their teeth and comb their hair and finally take them to school. My husband takes one and I take the other, which means I come home first and start making breakfast for us and making him lunch. That’s our little alone time just to sit and be with each other. Then it is wash the dishes and clean the kitchen. Move on to the bedroom, fix our bed if it wasn’t done already, and get dressed for the day, brush teeth and comb hair. Oh, then I remember to put the clothes away that were brought upstairs from being folded the night before and feed the chickens. Feeding the chickens takes a little time because I enjoy watching them, they are so fascinating. Okay, back into the house to figure out what is for dinner, and then start working on my husband’s business. And I can’t forget washing a load of laundry or two while I am down there.

Lunchtime brings another set of things that need to be done. After lunch is when I really start thinking about dinner, because if I don’t have ingredients, then I either have to run to the store to pick up the ingredients or decide what else to make. And when I have no money to go to the store then I get really creative with what is in the house. To bad I am not a gourmet chef who can whip things up with what I have in the pantry. Back to downstairs because not much time left before I have to go pick up the kids from school. Once they are back from school I have to help my daughter with her homework, so that takes time, plus I am making dinner at the same time.

Dinner comes and goes, dishes are washed and showers are taken. Then it is time to relax, but no because there are clothes to fold while in front of the TV. When the clothes are finally folded and the kids are put to sleep after reading with them, making my daughter pick out her clothes for school the next day, then I finally get to relax. So in a stupor I sit in front of the TV when I promptly fall asleep because I am too tired to move.
And somewhere in that normal day I have to remember to go to the grocery store, bank, post office, plus any other extra places I need to go. I also have to remember to pay the bills and what ever extra stuff I need to do for my husband. Now if I worked an outside job I don’t know how I would do it and because of that I give working mothers so much credit. Maybe they are just more organized than me.

Day Four

Today I went for a brisk walk in the morning with my sister. The day was turning out to be beautiful. The sun was out and it was warm on our bodies. I wore a jacket, as I am always cold; I think it is just my nature. Our walk always starts out the same. We end up going up a hill, whether it be at my house or hers, there is always a hill. So for the first few minutes of walking up what seems like a very steep hill, we don’t talk. We have talked before walking up the hill, but we get to winded.

We walk about twice a week, or at least we try to. It isn’t easy with our different schedules. She might have errands to do in the morning or I have work for my husband’s company to do. When we first started it was just once a week, but then we decided twice a week would be better for us. And it is because that is really the only real exercise I get. I walk around the house, going up and down the stairs, going from room to room to put clothes away, going outside to take out the trash, but really it is not enough exercise. I have a counter that tells you how many steps you take during the day and without exercise it is about 6500 steps a day. I know it has been recommended about 10,000 steps a day, so I am not getting enough exercise, which means I am a more sedentary person than I should be.

Day Three

Last night it rained. Thank goodness we were all inside, safe and warm, the fireplace was on. Oh, how I love the fireplace. I wish there was one in my bedroom, plus a TV. Then I would never come out. So on that thought, maybe it is a good thing I don’t have those things in my bedroom.

I just finished putting a load of bath towels in the washing machine and I sorted out the rest of the laundry to wash, it looks like about 7 more loads. How can only 4 people generate that much dirty laundry? Oh plus all the rags that need to be washed, so actually 8 loads. I am running out of laundry detergent, so I will need to purchase some, probably today or tomorrow. I used to buy Tide® all the time, and the cheapest place was at Costco, but times are tougher now and I can’t purchase in bulk like I used to, so I have to go to the store. Because Tide® is expensive, I have to purchase what is on sale, what I have a coupon for and where it is the cheapest smaller container.

So sales papers and coupon papers are what I do now, even more than ever. I go online to check out the coupon sites, http://www.CouponMom.com and http://www.BargainBabe.com are very good sites and they do help. In fact I purchased Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup at Target for 25¢ each. I was so excited because it is not that cheap. Even when I purchased it at the 99¢ Only Store it was 49¢ each. So what I used to think was a waste of time is no longer a waste, because if it helps me even just a little, then it is good for me.Last night it rained. Thank goodness we were all inside, safe and warm, the fireplace was on. Oh, how I love the fireplace. I wish there was one in my bedroom, plus a TV. Then I would never come out. So on that thought, maybe it is a good thing I don’t have those things in my bedroom.

I just finished putting a load of bath towels in the washing machine and I sorted out the rest of the laundry to wash, it looks like about 7 more loads. How can only 4 people generate that much dirty laundry? Oh plus all the rags that need to be washed, so actually 8 loads. I am running out of laundry detergent, so I will need to purchase some, probably today or tomorrow. I used to buy Tide® all the time, and the cheapest place was at Costco, but times are tougher now and I can’t purchase in bulk like I used to, so I have to go to the store. Because Tide® is expensive, I have to purchase what is on sale, what I have a coupon for and where it is the cheapest smaller container.

So sales papers and coupon papers are what I do now, even more than ever. I go online to check out the coupon sites, www.CouponMom.com and www.BargainBabe.com are very good sites and they do help. In fact I purchased Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup at Target for 25¢ each. I was so excited because it is not that cheap. Even when I purchased it at the 99¢ Only Store it was 49¢ each. So what I used to think was a waste of time is no longer a waste, because if it helps me even just a little, then it is good for me.

Think

Yesterday I looked out the kitchen window to watch a hummingbird drink at the bird feeder we have. It is so small, it actually looked smaller than the other hummingbirds we see flittering around. But it is hard to tell, because they fly in the air so fast and they don’t all drink at the same time.

To watch these birds are amazing, it reminds me how fragile life is and how we need to help each other. For without the food we provide for them, it would be tougher for them to eat as during the winter time there are not a lot of flowers blooming to give them the nectar they so need. Maybe it is a metaphor or a conundrum or whatever that word is, because everybody needs help once in a while, whether it be animals, plants or people. And we as a society, as God fearing people, and as good neighbors need to give it to them the best way we know.

It will make us feel better, even for a little bit. Our problems and troubles won’t be gone, but they won’t seem so gigantic and hopefully, just hopefully we will have thought about someone else’s problem and not about ourselves for a while.

1st Day Jitters

As I am looking out of my kitchen sink I can't tell you how excited I am to be writing this.  Yesterday was my first day of opening this blog and I was so thrilled about it that I just had to put in a real quick article that I wrote for Triond just to see how it looked.  When I get excited about something or I really like something, I keep going back to it and looking at it or eating it.  It is like when I had a new fan in my living room put in.  I kept going back into the living room to admire it.  First I would put the light on, then I would put the fan on just to see it work.  I think I kept doing that because I felt I made the right choice and I needed to keep affirming to myself.  I did stop after the first day.   Then it became old, like yes it is nice and it works and it matches the room.  Move on. 

So that is what I did with this blog.  I kept looking at it to see if the colors, the layout and the wording were right.  So please bare with me, as this is my first time stepping outside my box, and it is a square box, trust me.  Sometimes I will have a lot to say and other times, maybe not so much.  I am sure I will change things around, but I can't say when.  I will talk about the products I like to use (I really do love Bar Keeper’s Friend®), what is on my mind,  and what problems that I face that other women might face.

Bar Keeper’s Friend®

I have recently discovered a cleanser that has been around for a long time.   This cleanser has been around since 1882 and is composed of oxalic acid in a powder form.  My mother-in-law gave me some Bar Keepers Friend® when we moved into our house and I have used it ever since. I recommend this product to any one that needs help in cleaning their pots and pans, specifically stainless steel.  I often find that after cooking soup, pastas, potatoes, vegetables in my pots and pans a stain or outline of the food is left on the bottom on the pan, or sometimes a water mark line is left in the pan.  Just scrubbing with a sponge will not take off these stain marks.

I have tried various cleansers but they are not satisfactory, there has always been a little stain left.  I pour Bar Keepers Friend® into the pot and make a little paste with water and use my non-abrasive sponge to scrub the pot and it works like magic.  When I make tacos or fry something there is always burnt oil in the pan.  That will take a little elbow grease to get the dirty marks off, but it does work and I truly love it.  Sometimes I let it sit for about a minute then scrub and that works.

Besides stainless steel, I have used Bar Keepers Friend® to clean porcelain and ceramic tile, fiberglass, acrylic, copper, brass, and chrome fixtures.

 It is not always easy to find in the grocery stores, but you can always ask your store manager to start carrying it.  I have found it in Smart & Final and the price is very reasonable.