Winter Sparkle

Crabapples with sparkling ice crystals

Baking Gingerbread

 Baking cookies and treats is always a special activity to enjoy this time of year. The other day the boys and I made some fun gingerbread cutout cookies. We have all sorts of fun cookie cutters; including a snowman, snowflakes, a train, and even a hummingbird. I made a small batch of dough because while baking with little children is fun, it can also be quite a challenge- and a mess! I certainly didn't want to spend all day or have it take so long that everybody got grouchy. It was just right. We had enough dough to cut out a couple of each shape and we ran out just as the little fellows started getting tired of it. When the cookies were baked we set them aside to cool (and to take a break). Later in the evening we all sat down and painted them with powdered sugar icing. When I was younger and didn't have children I would have wanted them all to be artistic and perfect. Needless to say I gave that ideal up a long time ago, which is a good thing because now I can do things like this for fun and not worry about it.  David had lots of fun spreading the paint on his cookies, Matthew had one to munch on, I made mine as artistic as possible, and we even got Andrew to paint a few!

Two Happy Little Boys

A Train!

David Ready to Paint Cookies

Cookie Icing

David; Proud of his cookie!

The Gingerbread; All Done

Winter Landscapes

Pretty WinteryThings

10 Degrees Outside

It is about ten degrees outside. I have absolutely no desire to go out there. My ideas of perfect activities on such a cold day includes reading books on the couch, making crafty things, and drinking hot chocolate. The boys however think otherwise. David keeps begging to go out to play, while Matthew brings his boots over to me every few minutes indicating that he wants me to put them on him. Finally I reluctantly bundle them and myself all up. The snow pants, the coats, the hats, the gloves, the boots. It takes at least ten minutes to get everyone ready for what I know will probably only be about five minutes of outdoor fun. It feels like such a chore. But when we finally make it outside it is worth it. It is worth it to see the sparkle in their eyes, the rosy glow on their cheeks, and the smile on their faces. Even though it does only last five minutes before they are cold and ready to go back inside.

Matthew

David

Paper Lanterns

Paper Lanterns

On these colder, darker days of winter we need to do all we can to brighten and cheer our homes. I love the cozy glow of the fire in the woodstove and the soft radiance of strands of white lights hung around the house. Something I saw several years ago at someone's house was a strand of origami paper lanterns. They were so lovely. And so simple. All it was, was a set of origami boxes/ balloons on a strand of white Christmas lights. I already knew how to make the little origami boxes/ balloons so I decided to make myself a set. The first set I made was actually a bit expensive because I went and bought two packages of fancy origami paper. This time I only spent about five dollars, $2 on a strand of twenty white lights, and $3 on a 100 pack of colorful 6"x6" scrapbook paper. Scrapbook paper is ideal for this project; it comes in just the right size, a variety of beautiful colors and patterns, and you can get a whole book of it for a few dollars. It is a simple project to do. It only requires some time and quite a bit of paper folding. During a movie is the perfect time to do it. If you want to make a set for yourself, here is how.

Start with a strand of 20 white lights and a pack of 6"x6" scrapbook paper

 

Take out one sheet of 6"x6" scrapbook paper

1. Fold paper in half diagonally
2. Open up and fold diagonally the other direction
3. Bring the corner of the triangle up to the center point
4. Bring the other corner up to form a square

5. Open paper up so inside is facing you
6. Begin to bring the two creases on opposite sides of the paper together
7. As they come together it will form into two triangles
8. Flatten and place on the table

9. Bring the two corners up to point. Flip over and do the same for other
two corners, forming a square.

10. Fold two corners of square in, meeting at the center,
repeat on other side.

11. Next fold free corner and tuck into previously folded corner.
Repeat for all four.

12. Pull open slightly. Find the end with the hole and gently blow
in a puff of air until the balloon inflates.
13. Insert white light into the hole. Jiggle gently until it is on securely.
Now make 19 more and you have a whole strand!

 

The Finished  Light Strand

Pretty Lanterns Hanging Above My China Cabinet

Winter Morning Breakfast

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Scones

We have been putting a new roof on our house the last few days. There are multiple reasons we needed to do it before winter; including the fact that moisture was getting in through some areas and that we are building an addition on the back of the house and wanted to tie the roof into that. So it has been a little bit of a rush against time to get it all done before the weather turns nasty. This morning I was up early helping Andrew blow insulation into the attic space so he could get the blower back to Spokane in time to not have to pay another day of rental fees. It was very cold and crisp out this morning. There was a thin covering of snow on the ground and thick crystals of frost on everything.
I decided that fresh baked scones and a steaming cup of coffee would be the perfect breakfast treat after working outside on a cold winter morning. Scones are so quick and easy to whip up and I love making them in different flavors to suit my mood. This time I made peppermint chocolate chip scones. It seemed very wintery and festive. They turned out delicious and were just the thing along with a cup of coffee to warm us up.

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Scones

Makes 8 scones

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon. salt
2 tablespoons sugar
5 1/2 tablespoons cold butter
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 -1 teaspoon peppermint extract
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add chopped cold butter and cut in with pastry cutter or hands until mixture resembles course crumbs. Add egg, milk, and peppermint extract. Mix until just combined. Add chocolate chips. Knead until dough forms into a ball. Flatten dough into a circle on a floured cutting board. Cut into eight triangles and place on a cookie sheet. Bake for 12- 15 minutes or until lightly golden. Serve warm with a cup of tea or coffee.

Grateful Everyday

Thanksgiving... a day to gather with loved ones, a day to eat mountains of delicious food, a day to be thankful for our many blessings. Sometimes it is easier to set aside one day to be thankful on, almost as if we fulfilled a duty and now we can go along our way. But what is one day of thanksgiving worth if we don't fulfill the harder task of being grateful everyday? Everyday when the hours are long and weary, everyday when the children are whining and the dinner is burned, everyday when all the mundane tasks overwhelm us. Sometimes it is hard, so hard to remember to stop and count our blessings in the midst of the mess that is so often everyday life. But they are there; a kiss from little lips, a fleeting ray of sunshine on a cloudy day, a crackling fire in the woodstove. And not just to notice all the good things that are so easily overlooked, but to actually give thanks for the hard things, the painful things, the challenging things. This Thanksgiving may we not only give thanks, but stop to remember why we can give thanks in all things... because we serve a great God who gives us grace for everyday, who gives us growth in the hard things. For this may we be truly grateful everyday.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Potato Party

Well this post is a little late, but I figured better late than never. Back in September we were blessed to have the help of friends, family and neighbors to get our potato crop out of the ground. We made it into quite a party. In the evening we all had a harvest dinner of potato soup and Asian cabbage salad. We also celebrated David's 4th birthday with a some cupcakes, balloons, and gifts.

The Potato Harvest Crew

Matthew Helping Sort Potatoes

Picking up Potatoes

Potatoes

Happy Birthday

David Turns Four

Feeding the Poultry

Both boys absolutely love feeding the chickens and the ducks. It is so much fun for them to throw the grain. Matthew almost always cries when it is time to put the can away and go back inside.

Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

This summer I had an abundant crop of colorful and delicious cherry tomatoes. I picked a whole bucketful the other day to save the last of them from freezing. I wasn't really sure what to do with them all. So after looking for some ideas online I decided to try roasting them. It was quite simple. I cut them in half then tossed them with olive oil, some fresh chopped basil and oregano, and a handful of whole peeled garlic cloves. I spread it all on cookie sheets and roasted them at 450 degrees for about 25 minutes. After they came out of the oven and cooled a bit I put them in jars and covered them with more olive oil. I kept on jar in the fridge and the rest I put in the freezer for future use. They would make a great pasta or pizza topping or for just snacking on.

Autumn Pear Tart

I love Autumn, the smells, the flavors, the colors. This delicious pear tart has become a tradition for me to bake each fall.

Marcus CiderFest

We had a fun day at the CiderFest this year. We had a booth to sell our pumpkins, potatoes and other vegetables along with my body care products. The weather was perfect. A little bit cool and cloudy in the morning with beautiful sunshine in the afternnon. David enjoyed the parade but his favorite part was watching the ciderpress, he would have watched it all day if he could have. Matthew was pretty fascinated by it as well.

Squash Harvest

Last week we finished harvesting the squash and pumpkins. I love all the shapes and colors, they are one of my favorite parts of fall.

Fun at the Corn Maze

Last weekend we took the the boys and their cousin Justus to the corn maze. It was a gorgeous fall day, sunny and warm. David and Justus were so excited to run through finding the numbers and deciding which path to take. Matthew was so cute laughing and toddling behind trying to keep up with the bigger boys, when he got tired he rode on Andrews shoulders. It was a perfect way to spend an autumn afternoon.

Exploring the maze

Which way should we go?

Keeping up with Daddy

Running along

Matthew

Taking a rest