Bread Bread Bread!

I finally got around to trying my hand at making bread and i have to say I am quite pleased with the results.    I am using a quick, no knead recipe that has to rise for 12 hours in a warm spot.  For the past two nights before bed i mix up the dough and pop it in the mechanical closet ..... along with the wet mitts from the day.  The mechanical closet isn't pretty but it's the coziest place in the house.

I have had success with bread making before, using the book, Artisan Bread in just 5 minutes a Day, but since returning the book to the library I have not baked bread.  I have been replacing a bunch of books,  and it's on the list of books to get, so hopefully there will be many more days of bread making in the near future.

The thing I like most about the current recipe that I am using is that I can bake it in a pot .... yes a pot, it's perfect!  And the pot comes out of the oven completely clean!  Hardly any dishes is always a good thing.  So onto the photos, and the recipe:

The Recipe:

2 1/2 cups flour (i use 1 cup whole wheat and the rest white)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup water

Mis all ingredients together, cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot for 12 hours.  Next, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and pull the edges down, turning a 1/4 turn as you go, until it forms a nice smooth ball, with the edges at the bottom.

Cover and let rise for 2 hours in a warm spot.  Preheat the oven to 425 (or 450 depending on your oven).  Right away put in a 5 quart pot, that can be in the oven at that temperature.  Let pot heat up for 1/2 an hour, then line with parchment paper and polp your dough in.  Cover with the lid and let bake for 30 minutes.  Uncover and continue to bake for another 15 to 20 minutes.  Remove from the pot and let cool.

I think mine turned out a bit flat the first time, so tonight's bread will hopefully be a bit higher ... i added a tad more yeast.

Our First Meal

We finally had our first official meal in the "new" house yesterday.  It was a bit of a celebration as final inspection was passed, so we can now reside here!  It is all the first real meal that I've cooked since moving here last Thursday.  Things have been so chaotic that food was grabbed here and there and little more than noodles and rice were cooked all last week.

For our meal I whipped up a lovely Chicken and Butternut Squash Stew.  I was inspired by this recipe, that had been lingering on my pinterest board for some time now.  I changed things up a bit, and I'll let you in on what I did.

Chicken and Butternut Squash Stew

1 butternut squash, skin and seeds removed, cubed

olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 large onion diced

3 boneless chicken breasts

chicken stock

1 cup quinoa

bay leaf

oregano

salt and pepper

chili powder

2 roma tomatoes, cubed

juice from 1 lime

handful of chopped cilantro

I sautéed the squash instead of steaming it, to give it a nice crisp outside (no one likes a mushy squash!).  I then added the oil, garlic and onion to a large pot and cooked until soft. I added the chicken broth, bay leaf, oregano, chili pepper and chicken breast and poached the chicken.

Once the chicken was cooked, I took it out, and shredded it using two forks.  I then added it to the stock, put in the uncooked quinoa and 1/2 of the squash that I had mashed and the tomatoes.  After the quinoa was cooked (you can tell because the grain looks like it has a little tail), I added the rest of the squash, unmashed, the lime juice and cilantro.  That's it!  Pretty easy and oh so good!  I think next time I'll make it a little more spicy!

Squishy Saturday: Kool-Aid Play Dough

This is the one recipe we use at least once a week.  I'm happy to say that I've never bought play dough!  I do feel strange when the cashier rings in my 10 packages of Kool-Aid though ...... like I'm going to feed it to my kids or something!  This is a very easy, fast recipe that doesn't involve any stove top cooking.  Some people refrigerate this recipe, but I never have.  Mostly because it ends up on the floor before it has a chance to go bad!

Kool-Aid Play Dough

1 1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup salt

1 pkg kool-aid

1 cup boiling water

Add all dry ingredients together and stir.  Pour in boiling water and stir until dough is formed. PLAY!!  The kids really enjoying making this, especially when it comes time to pour in the water, the color "magically" appears when the water is added!  The great thing about using kool-aid is that it smells great.  The color isn't too intense, but one could always add more food coloring if a more vibrant color is desired!  Have fun!

Scrumptious Saturday: Mexican Beans

We eat a lot of mexican food ..... sometimes two times a week!  We eat meat, but I think my favorite filling is beans.  It's funny because I never ate beans when i was vegetarian for all those years.  I don't remember what started me on beans, but I've never looked back!

Over the years I've perfected my mexican bean recipe and I'd like to share it with you.  I don't have a photo, but trust me they're great!

Mexican Beans

1 can aduki or black beans

1 tbsp oil

2 tbsp butter

2 or 3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 small onion, diced

fresh chili (jalepeno or something similar), diced

1 cup vegetable, beef or chicken broth

1 tbsp chili powder

1/2 tbsp cumin

4 tbsp salsa (i recommend Herdez as it's not sweet)

1 bay leaf

fresh cilantro

salt

Place oil, butter, garlic and onion (this prevents the garlic from burning) in a medium saucepan.  Once the garlic and onions are softened, add the rest of the ingredients, except cilantro and salt, and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until most liquid has evaporated.  Stir in some fresh cilantro, the juice from 1/2 a lime and salt to taste.  Sometimes a stir in a little sour cream near the end!

Scrumptious Saturday: Sesame Sauce

We love all different kinds of food, and one of our favorites is Japanese food.  There is a restaurant that we go to more often than we should and it's mostly because of the AMAZING Sesame Sauce they have for the steak and rice.  Well, I recently found out that my mother happens to have a recipe that makes an identical sauce, but have never tried it.  SO she emailed it to me and I've used it several times!  I've had to tweak it a bit so I will give you the original recipe as well as my "improved" recipe.  THis sauce is to die for, you MUST try it!

(source)

Original Sesame Sauce Recipe

1/3 cup white sesame seeds

2 tsp english mustard powder

2/3 cup japanese soy sauce

2/3 cup vegetable oil

1 tbsp minced garlic

1/2 cup chopped onion

Toast sesame seeds.  Prepare mustard according to the instructions on the box.  Let stand 10 minutes.  Mix mustard, soy sauce and vegetable oil in a blender.  Add garlic, onoin and sesame seeds and blend until smooth and creamy.

I found the above recipe way too onion and garlic-y.  Also it was a bit too salty.  I could never get a good, smooth consistancy using toasted sesame seeds either ... so here's what I do now:

Tanya's Sesame Sauce Recipe

1/4 cup tahini paste (toasted sesame butter)

1 tsp english mustard powder

1/4 cup light salt soy sauce

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 a clove of garlic, minced

two thin slices of onion, finely chopped

Prepare mustard according to the instructions on the box and let stand 10 minutes.  Add all other ingredients together in a blender and mix.  Add mustard and blend until smooth and creamy.  You can always ad a bit more of anything you feel it needs more of.  Sometimes I want it a bit thicker so I'll add a bit more tahini paste, or more garlic so it's got a bit more of a bite to it!

Scrumptious Saturday: Plain Old Pancakes

I have been using this recipe since I was a little girl.  I don't know where my mother got it from, but it's amazing! The cake flour really makes it!  Sometimes I split the cake flour measurement with corn flour for a different texture and flavor!

Pancakaes

2/3 cup all purpose flour

2/3 cup cake flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 tbsp sugar

2 eggs

1 to 1 1/4 cup milk

3 tbsp melted butter

1/4 tsp vanilla

Sift all dry ingredients together, then form a well.  In a sepereate bowl, beat eggs and add milk.  Pour egg mix into well and mix until just blended, there may be lumps but that's okay.  Add butter and vanilla and gently mix until just combined.  Cook in a little oil or butter on medium heat!

the mixing

the cooking

.... and the eating! (sorry it's blurry)

unrelated ..... but check out my new retro kitchen scale!!!

Scrumptious Saturday: Button Cookies

** i just can't resist cookies that look like crafty things!**

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We made these cute little cookies on Monday and they were gone by the next day!  So simple, and so delicious!  Here's the recipe:

Button Cookies

1 cup butter, room temp.

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Combine butter and brown sugar in a bowl and beat on high speed until fluffy.  Add egg and vanilla and mix together.  Slowly add flour and salt until dough is formed.  Roll dough into logs (3 or 4) 1" to 1 1/2" in diameter.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until hardened, about an hour or so.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Roll cookie logs in sugar and slice 1/4" rounds.  Place on cookie sheet and using the blunt end of a bamboo skewer poke four holes in the centre so cookies resemble buttons.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden.  Remove from oven and let cool completely!

Drunken Mushroom Pasta

I mad this one up during the week.  It was a great, fast meal that I was able to prepare before Cory even got home!

i like this photo, it just needs some parley garnish!

Drunken Mushroom Pasta

fettucini or spaghetti noodles (enough for four)

1 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp butter

2 leeks, sliced

3 garlic cloves, minced

lots of button mushrooms (or fancy ones if you desire!)

1/4 dry whit wine

2 tsp lemon juice

1/2 cup chicken stock

salt and pepper to taste

1/3 cup sliced almonds

fresh grated parmesan

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Meanwhile get your water boiling in a large pot and throw in your pasta when it's at a boil.  You can add salt to your water if you'd like.  I don't just because I don't like the kids eating too much salt.  While your pasta is cooking, put oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Once butter is melted add leeks and garlic and saute until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes.  Add your mushrooms and white wine.  Cook for five minutes, then add chicken broth and lemon juice.  Cook until mushrooms are soft, but still plump.  When your oven has heated, toss your sliced almonds on a baking sheet and bake for 4 -6 minutes.  Watch carefully as they will burn quickly.  Stir them as you are roasting them.  I stirred at 3 minutes and 5 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to your mushroom mixture and drain your pasta.  Serve pasta on a plate with mushrooms and sauce, then sprinkle with toasted almonds and a bit of fresh grated parmesan.

It's a fast, easy dish and I just love the way mushrooms soak up all the great wine and lemon flavors!  You can also thicken the sauce if you prefer, but I like it thin with long noodles!

You can add tofu, white beans or chicken if you like.  I just didn't have any on hand when I made this!  It also might be yummy with some fresh tomato sauteed in there!

Scrumptious Saturday

Today is recipe day!!  I'll be bringing you delicious, scrumptious creations every Saturday!

Yesterday we had German Pancakes for lunch.  Pancakes for lunch?  Yes and oh so good!  We usually eat this hot out of the oven with just maple syrup, but for lunch I put a savoury spin on it!  We topped the puffy, eggy dish with salsa and cheese!  If I'd had sour cream that would be great too!

I find that German Pancakes are a great base as they are plain, but have a lot of protein and a great crunchy on top and spongey in the middle texture!  Try out this recipe and get creative with your toppings!

(i know ... i have to work on my food photos!)

German Pancakes

6 eggs

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

dash of salt

2 tbsp melted butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place all ingredients in the blender, except melted butter and mix until combined.  You may need to scrape down the sides if flour has stuck.  Add melted butter and do a quick whirl of the blender.  Pour into a 9" x 13" glass casserole dish UNGREASED and bake for approx. 30 minutes.  Bake until puffy and golden brown on top!  Enjoy!

Butter Your Biscuits

I love a good cheese biscuit, especially with a nice hearty bowl of soup!  Whenever I get a cheese biscuit or cheese scone at a coffee shop, they are always disappointing.  For some reason they are made sweet.  I'm not sure who decided that cheese and sweetness go together, but I ain't buying it!

I do, however, make a mean, very non-lean cheese biscuit and I'd like to share the recipe with you today!

Buttermilk Biscuits

2 cups flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter (cold)

1/3 cup cheddar cheese (small cubes, or crumbled)

1 cup buttermilk*

grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  In a large bowl mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Cut butter into small chucks, then cut into flour mixture using a pastry cutter (best thing EVER, love mine!).  Mix butter and flour mixture together until it looks like coarse breadcrumbs.

Add cheese cubes and coat in the mixture.  Add the buttermilk and stir until just combined.  Drop by the spoonful on a greased, or parchment lined cookie sheet and top with grated cheddar.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes depending on size of biscuits.

And this is my little helper, and how i get anything done around here!

Celebration Time!

I can't believe it!! I made it into the Best of 2010 on Craftster!  Last year I made it in for "The Baby Blanket That Nearly Killed Me"  and this year I'm in for "Roasted Yam and Chard Tacos" recipe!  Yay!!!  I never posted the recipe here, so here is the link for the craftster posting!

Roasted Yam and Chard Tacos

Bread Love

I have been trying for ages now to make bread. I have given up on bread loaves and found a happy place in flat breads. I found an AMAZING recipe for naan bread and use it for everything. I use it instead of pita, sandwich bread, pizza dough (best ever!) and just for ripping into on it's own.

You just can't beat warm, fresh bread, flat or otherwise!

Recipe:

2 cups bread flour (or at least unbleached all purpose)

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

2 Tbsp melted butter or vegetable oil

3/4 cup plain yogurt at room temperature

1 Tbsp of water as needed to get right consistency

Mix all dry ingredients together, then add oil and yogurt. Mix together with hands and add water as needed to get a nice firm dough. Not too sticky, but held together well. Coat with oil and let rise for 20 minutes or so.

Roll out to about 1/4 inch thickness or thinner and place on an oiled pan. Back at 450 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes, or until lightly browned. Sometimes i cook it a little less for the extra doughiness!

When making it for pizza dough I bake it for three minutes without toppings, then add the toppings. I add a thin layer of sauce, toppings and cheese so as not to take away from the fabulous texture of the bread. I then bake it for another 3 to 6 minutes depending on toppings, or until cheese melts!

Foodie Friday

Almond Goodie Bars

These are insane. Sugar and butter, melted ..... oh my god, I ate four of them this morning and it's not even 8am! They are sticky, sweet and addictive! Great for a quick dessert served with ice cream, or a take long dinner party. Sure to impress and super easy!

1 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

a couple handfuls sliced almonds

one pkg. graham crackers

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil. Place one layer of graham crackers on prepared baking sheet.

Melt butter in a small pot, add sugar and stir until boiling. Reduce heat a bit and let bubble for one minute.

Add almonds and stir. Remove from heat and pour over graham crackers. Spread around so all graham crackers are covered in the butter sugar mix.

Place in oven and cook for eight minutes, or until bubbly on top.

Let cool COMPLETELY (it's hard!) before eating.

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This is the secret project that I have been working on. They are photo albums for my friend and her husband. They were married on July 10th. The small photo albums are for their daughters. Both their daughters are quite young, so I thought a little photo album of their own would help them remember the amazing day!

Butter Chicken, or Butter Tofu

I have to admit, I have never been a huge fan of indian food, however it's growing on me. I was introduced to butter chicken through a recipe that my sister was given. After making it once, the whole family was hooked! I think we could eat it every day!

Usually we do eat it for about three days in a row, though switch it up a bit. The first day we eat butter chicken (or tofu as we are slowly becoming vegetarian) over basmati rice, with mango chutney, and poppadoms.

The next night we pick out most of the chicken (or tofu) and use it to make naan bread pizzas. We spread a bit of sauce on, then the chicken, some roasted garlic and top with parmesan cheese! Served with a green salad and it's an amazing dinner!

For our last night of butter chicken, we use whatever sauce and chicken that is leftover on top of pasta! Sometimes we use tortallini, and other times penne. We also saute some veggies to throw in the sauce as well ..... sometimes we have to blender the veggies to get the kids to eat them with the sauce though!

Here is the recipe so you too can eat it everyday ...... if so desired!

Boneless chicken or extra firm tofu

one lb. butter

two cans crushed tomatoes

ginger (about the size of a small egg)

whole garlic bulb (sometimes i use less)

an onion

garam masala

tandoori masala (sometimes I don't have this on hand, so just add more garam masala if you can't find it!)

juice of one lemon

one bunch of cilantro, chopped

heavy cream

salt and pepper to taste

Mince ginger, garlic and onions. Melt butter in a large saucepan. Saute ginger, garlic and onions until softened, about five minutes. Cube chicken or break up firm tofu and saute until browned. If using tofu, you can just skip the browning process and add the next ingredients right away. Once chicken is cooked, add the crushed tomatoes, lemon juice, garam masala, and tandoori masala. Cook on medium-low for about two hours.

This is best if made the night before, or in the morning, so all the flavors meld together. Once you are ready to serve the butter chicken/tofu, add the heavy cream and chopped cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve over basmati rice!

Enjoy!!

Sleep Report

We've been getting sleep! The boys still wake a few times in the night, but it feels like we are getting sleep. Jack's been great with bedtime routine and falling asleep for so long I can't even remember anything different. Little Dylan seems to have gone down to one nap a day, so is not the night owl he once was. We let him fall asleep in our bed, then transfer him to the crib once we are ready for bed. Usually Dylan will sleep in the crib until 3am, then he wakes and we bring him into bed with us.

Cory has been away for a few days and is back tonight. Here's hoping the boys continue these good sleeping habits!

I have been slowly transforming by blog focus. Shoot From the Hips will continue to be my parenting and family blog. My new blog, Cute Nest, is where you will find all my creative adventures and tutorials. Tonight I did a post and recipe about our new organic delivery service from Share Organics!

Long Day

A quiet living room shot, i set up the tripod for Jack, but he decided to play downstairs instead of taking self portraits.

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Today has felt like the longest day ever! We had a rough start to the morning. Cory left before either of the boys got up and Jackson was pretty upset as he hadn't seen Cory since before hockey yesterday!

We were hanging out making cookies this morning. Then we had our Messy Monsters Art Club. We made igloos out of packing peanuts, but mostly the packing peanuts were turned to mush by the water (cornstarch packing peanuts stick together with just a bit of water!).

We had to cut the play time a bit short as I was meeting my sister and uncle for lunch at Fol Epi, an amazing bakery in Dockside Green. I have a feeling that this guy who used to be in a punk band called, Black Kronstat owns it. It was hard to get Jack in the car to go for lunch, but we made it, albeit a bit late!

We had amazing pizza and a good italian soda, then watched a tug boat being transported from the dry docks, back into the water. We also walked to the giant waterfall (manmade of course) on the side of a building, but it was too windy to play in the park.

We hung out outside, and all i wanted to do was mow the lawn. i won;t use our lawn mower, it's horrible! Smelly, old, heavy gass powered beast! I am lobbying for a reel mower and found one with great reviews for $150. Cory's not into buying a new lawn mower when we have one that "works fine". Hmmph.

I watered the blueberries and Jackson watered the trees and flowers. I am planning out the garden and need to get some more soil for our bean teepee. I also have to find some way of making a small raised bed. One great suggestion is to use slab wood, it's free, still has the bark on it, and is at all mills. Big question .... where is the nearest mill? One day I'll research that and make the beds.

We had movie night tonight and some great aduki bean tacos. I was going to make the beans from the dried ones i bought, but didn't have time, so canned had to do. Here's my bean recipe for Mexican beans:

one can aduki or black beans, rinsed well

half can vegetable or chicken stock

onion, diced

garlic clove, minced

1 tbsp butter

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

one bay leaf

I pour i dash of olive oil in a pan so butter doesn't burn, then melt butter .... i probably use more than a tbsp of butter, just eyeball it. Then saute the onions and garlic until soft and add the rest of the ingredients. I bring the mix to a boil then reduce and cook until the liquid is thickened. Sometimes I have to add a bit more stock, depends how much time i have and how quickly the sauce thickens. Once bean mix is as thick as you'd like it, remove the bay leaf and serve in burritos, tacos, tostados or any other way.

Cory clenaed the kitchen like a madman after dinner and D went to bed 1/2 an hour ago. J is off to bed now and I have a few things to get done. I am trying to spend this week researching and planning for the weeks ahead for Project Cute Nest. I think I have decided on most things for our bedroom, but am limited with budget at the moment. For now I am settling on some little DIY projects and just new paint!

Simple Cooking

Today made pasta! I used a very simple recipe of 2 cups flour and 2 eggs. I had to add a little water, but it turned out great! I decided to cut the pasta with the roller and used the thin, spaghetti setting. This was the best tasting, most wonderful textured pasta I have had!

I made a simple sauce so the noodles would shine through. I sautéed onions, garlic and mushrooms. Then I added vegetable stock and a bay leaf (this is a MUST for all my sauces). Simmer util reduced by half and add a bit of cornstarch/water mix and thicken. Serve with a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of fresh parmesan and dinner is done! I never add salt or pepper to my sauces because of the kids, but it tasted great once added at the table.

Today is Week One of Project Cute Nest as I am now calling it. I did some work organizing, got new pulls for the kitchen and installed them, finished the play kitchen and had Jack choose the paint color for his room ..... a fantastic blue! I will be posting at the end of the weekend on my new blog, Cute Nest.

Packaging

I have been a bit disturbed by our amount of recycling these past few months. It used to be that I was proud of all that we recycled, it was now going to a new home instead of in the landfill. But now I realize that we seem to consume an awful lot items that have an terrible amount of packaging.

The majority of our packaging comes from milk jugs, cereal and cracker boxes. I am guilty of consuming a great deal of milk and I have been trying to cut down, if not eliminate completely. This is going to take some time .... i'm really not into milk alternatives like soy or rice milk. Crackers on the other hand i can change right away.

Today Jackson and I made Cheddar Rosemary Crackers and they are better than anything you could buy! I need to find one or two more cracker recipes for a good variety, but all in all we seem to be heading in the right direction. The big push to have homemade crackers is that I'll know exactly what is going in them. We'll see if I can keep up with making crackers every week! Sometimes we go through an awful lot of crackers!

Okay my computer is acting up and this is coming to a close, so there you go, home made crackers and hopefully less milk for this little family!

Back Again

Play Slime!

Walnut Pasta

take some leeks and slice them up. melt butter and add leeks. cook until tender and add walnuts. toss in some diced tomatoes and cook up some pasta. Once the pasta is cook and drained, toss with the walnut mixture. Serve with grated Parmesan sprinkled on top!

Little D

We are pretty well back to normal in the sleep department! yay!!!!! i couldn't be more thrilled! It had been two weeks of not sleeping and now we've had two good nights! Last night was great, with two stretches of 4 hours! Not much is going on around here. Cory has been travelling a lot for work and will continue to do so next week. He comes home in the evenings, it's just an early start for everyone!

Right now Jack is busy playing with play slime! It's an amazing thing that I found on Ohdeedoh. The site is dedicated to kid's decor and activities .... it's great! I am keeping busy with my crochet work, I'm working on a couple of orders, and have already sent out my first Baby Jingles Ball! I am looking into doing some advertising for the shop, and am just figuring it all out! Tonight I'll be tidying the art studio for another great Messy Monsters Meeting! Last week we did a rather involved craft (the night before I spent an hour cutting, hot gluing .... burning fingers) of making cardboard boats. This week it's just simply painting little models I had purchased from a craft store.

I am tying to get some reading in as well. I got The Art of Simple Food from the library and am loving it! I used to pay more attention to the quality of our ingredients, but lately I've just been grabbing whatever is on sale. It has reminded me of how important simple, good quality ingredients are to cooking! I am looking forward to the market in Bastion Square this spring! They have HUGE tables of fresh farm foods! I know I won't be doing much gardening myself, but I can at least buy local, organic goods!

The Fives and The Laundry

I have a lot to say. That is I have a lot to say if I categorize things into lists, it seems. Starting very soon, I will be writing articles once a week containing five items. They will be called "The Fives" by Mama Edgar. They will be posted on Mondays, to start the week off right! For now the posts will contain information and ideas about preschoolers and other related subjects. I will do a few baby ones, though I'm not doing too much for little D these days, he's pretty self sufficient! Dylan is making some big changes though.

Just today I put Dylan down on the sheepskin, while I tucked Jackson in for nap. I glanced down to find D rolled on his side, then saw him continue the roll all the way onto his belly!! Yay! My little one is learning how to roll! So no more leaving him on the couch, or change table anymore!

Yesterday's dinner was a success, though I scrapped the potato idea and went for pan fried polenta instead. I also made a sort of raspberry, blueberry crumble/bar thing. It was great, and will be gone by the end of today!

My day consists of laundry, which is a bit more time consuming as I am hanging everything to dry. I finally have the energy and the want to do it. I have found that my clothes peg bag is far too small .... looks like I may need to make a new one! (see i told you i couldn't give up crafting!). It is so rewarding seeing your laundry flying about on the line and the smell of it afterwards is to die for! I could just bury my nose in those crunchy towels all day!

Today on Craftster, someone found this great salad recipe page! I have decided my next homesteading project will be to make bread, using a homemade sourdough culture! Stay tuned for that one .... it may take a couple weeks!