Pumpkin Week: Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal

Time to get the blog back a-hummin' again.  And since it's fall, and finally colder weather, let's break out some warm and cozy recipes, shall we?  (Plus, I really don't have the energy or time or brainpower to finish some of the more weighty blog posts.)  So - lucky you, faithful readers (all 3 of you)!  It's. . . .


PUMPKIN TIME!!!!

Let's start with a yummy breakfast recipe, shall we?

My long-time readers will remember the great spice fiasco while making Baked Oatmeal.   Despite that unfortunate incident, I have continued to make and serve that yummy dish fairly frequently.


Mainly because it doesn't involve any knives.  Safer than - say - separating frozen hamburger patties with a chef knife.  Not that I have any experience in that.  Or any scars to show.  Nope.  None. At All.

So lo and behold, what did I find in my stash of recipes?  A variation on the theme!  So warm up your fall mornings with this yummy dish . . . . . .

Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal!

Yumminess.  Pumpkin. Oatmeal.  What more can I say?

In a large bowl, mix together:

2 3/4 c. oats (I use quick cooking, they work just fine)
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. pumpkin pie spice (more if you like)
(I think you should also add about 1/2 tsp. salt, even though the original recipe doesn't call for it)

Then add:

1 1/2 c. pureed pumpkin, fresh or canned
2 beaten eggs
1 T. vanilla
3 c. milk

Stir in 3/4 c. raisins or dried cranberries (dried cranberries.  Definitely dried cranberries)
1/2 c. chopped nuts (Meh.  Optional.  I'm not a big nut fan)

Pour into an 9x11 pan and bake at 350 about 45-50 minutes. 


Serves a whole hungry crowd.  Make sure you get a serving before the gang digs in!

And then get yourself to the store and buy a pile of canned pumpkin - you're a-gonna need it!  
(Or better yet, send your wonderful husband, while you stay home in your jammies and sip your pumpkin spice latte.  That's my plan, and I'm stickin' with it.)

Stay tuned for the next installment of. . . .Pumpkin Week!  See you tomorrow!  Lord willing. . . . .  

You Know the Drill: When it Rains. . .

. . . .it pours!

Blog's been quiet lately.  I really have about 6 great posts in draft form, and another 4 or 5 kicking around in the old noggin.  But in the past 2 weeks we've been hit with. . . .

. . . . . recovering from my sliced finger (which my mother knows about)
. . . . . celebrating 1 birthday for a 19-year old
. . . . . hosting a sweet couple for dinner
. . . . . pulling off some surprises for my Dad's milestone birthday
. . . . . navigating the fun, fun, fun world of dr's appointments, follow-ups, consults and insurance for aforementioned 19-year old
. . . . . someone (who shall remain nameless) puncturing her palm with a knife, requiring stitches (which my mother ALSO knows about)
. . . . . celebrating 2 birthdays for the Birthday Sisters
. . . . . and hosting 1 science party for the youngest Birthday Sister (which causes her Mommy to remember why, exactly she gave up hosting birthday parties a few years ago)

When the school year started, I said I could manage my schedule if no one got sick, or nothing major happened.

Ha.

Ha ha.

Ha ha ha.

Maybe I'll blog while eldest is in surgery on Wednesday.  (Thanks for praying)

Or maybe I'll play Bejewelled.  It's addictive.  (Which my Dad knows about.  It's his evil plot to get us all addicted to that game.  It's working.)

Or maybe I'll nap.

But I'll definitely stay away from sharp objects.  (Which is my evil plot to get banned from the kitchen.  It's working.)

Remembering 9/11

Student Project Portrays 9/11 Testimony of American Airlines Pilot | Bob Jones University

Friends.

You will be inspired by this powerful testimony.

Watch. Think.

Remember.

Saturday Supper: "Shy-dee-ay"

My brother and sister-in-law are, quite honestly, some of the most fun people I know.

When they got married, they had a cookbook produced, which they gave as their wedding favor.  It has a picture of monkeys on it. . . . .and there's a LONG story behind that, trust me.

Now, to be honest, I never - ahem - actually used the cookbook (there.  I admitted it.)

Until one summer.

When we used to visit at my parents' lake house in Indiana, we all took turns fixing dinner.  When it was their night, my sister-in-law whipped up this dish that was simply FABULOUS.

"Can I have the recipe?"  I asked, watching my children devour extra helpings.

"It's in our cookbook," she replied.

Oops.  Way to blow my cover.

Anywho.

I give you a yummy, easy, relatively inexpensive recipe, adapted from the famous "It's Chow Time" coookbook (pub. 2001, Monkey Lover's Press):

Grandma Darlin's Sheeyrea

(We call it Shydeeay)

1 stewing chicken, cooked (I use 1 large can of chicken)

4 c. chicken broth (use liquid from stewing chicken/canned chicken plus liquid from chick peas before using canned chicken broth)

1 can chick peas, drained

2 c. thin spaghetti broken into small pieces - don't substitute

3/4 stick margarine (I don't usually use this much!)

1 c. Uncle Ben's converted white rice (the recipe says it MUST be Uncle Ben's)

salt to taste

Here's what we do:

Get the little people in your life to break the spaghetti.  They'll have a blast, trust me!

In a large frying pan, melt butter, and then pour in the spaghetti.  Stir constantly to brown.

Next, bring the broth to a boil in a large pan with a good cover.  Put in cut up (or canned) chicken (make sure it's COOKED if you're using the stewing bird!!), chick peas, rice, salt (if desired) and browned spaghetti.  

Mix together, put cover on, and simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is done.  You might need to add more broth - just keep an eye on it.

Now. . . here's where the recipe gets controversial.

The Sauce.

In a saucepan, mix together 1 small can tomato sauce, a dash of garlic powder, and a can of peas (shudder).  Bring to a boil.  Serve over the Sheeyrea.

I avoid making the sauce if at all possible. I have an issue with peas.  Don't ask.  It's a traumatic childhood memory.  (Again, secretly hoping my mother doesn't read my blog. . . . . . )

My eldest, however, LOVES the sauce, and if I didn't include it, she would cry "Foul!"

But she does read my blog.  So there.  I included it.

Rather noble of me, don't you think?

Friday Freebie: Math Drills Made Motivating!

I think I'm in an alliterating mood :)

But let's get back to all-things-homeschooling, shall we?  (I never really, REALLY feel like we've started school until September. . . .it's the Yankee in me, I suppose.)

Here is the part where I confess my shortcomings as a teacher.  I have realized this year, that my students (who shall remain nameless) are exhibiting a weakness in math - fact recall.  They memorized the cute skip-counting songs, and can figure out the facts given enough time, but we need instant, memorize recall here, folks.

And I missed the boat. 

So.

Deciding it was time to remedy that glaring weakness, I went to my favorite homeschool resource and asked for recommendations.  One stood out:  Xtra Math.

Basically, Xtra Math is math flashcards online.  But more!  Your student races a timer, and gets their own progress report on how they are doing. . . and it's HIGHLY motivating for my girls to try to turn the "square green" (aka - answer the question in less than 3 seconds) and to get a "smiley face" on their chart.

I can also run reports for me.  . . . .and just as a sneak peek, they look like this:

So here I can see what problems Amy knows (the smiley faces), which ones she could answer in less than three seconds (the green checks), which ones she got wrong (and what she put for an answer!), and which ones she ran out of time when answering.  Pretty neat, eh?

We are really enjoying Xtra Math.  I thought it would be too much for Amy (1st grade), but she's gotten the hang of it now.  We're incorporating it as a part of our morning routine. . . and I'm looking forward to seeing how our math facts improve!

In Which I Find Out if My Mother Reads My Blog

"Many are the plans in the mind of a man,

but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand."

Proverbs 19:21

Yeah, it was a good night.

I was really humming along, the quilt was getting So. Close. to done. Girls happy, pancakes cooking for dinner, a night of quilting, full of promise, stretching gloriously before me.

And then.

A glass.  A sink.

A cut pinky finger.

I'm ok, really.  Just sitting here, all taped together, hunting & pecking on my laptop.  Watching "Tangled" with the girlie girls.  Looks like the Lord has an interesting way of getting my attention and forcing a little rest this weekend.  And you know something else?  Just for the record, I always cry at the end of Tangled.  The longing of Rapunzel for her parents, the hope, the reunion. . . . . it just gets me.  There's a spiritual lesson in there, but my hand hurts too much to think deep spiritual thoughts right now. 

At least I don't have any gigs scheduled!  Maybe tomorrow I'll feel like quilting again. . . .

Lord willing.  

And, Mom- if you're reading this, I'm really fine :)  Do. Not. Panic.  That part about my hand hurting was poetic license to make a point.  Really.

The Last Deep Breath Before the Plunge

Sorry - my blog's been a little, well, quiet.

As a matter of fact, I can't believe it's almost September!  How did that happen????

But I'm sitting here tonight and thought I'd throw a little something up for my loyal readers (all 2 of you!)

(ok, ok - I SHOULD be quilting, but I'm just too mentally frazzled and will probably make a mistake like I did last night - you know, the one where I forgot to put down the walking foot, and stitched about a mile of invisible thread into loops on the back of the quilt???  Yeah, that mistake.  Not so interested in repeating that one.)

This weekend, it all begins in earnest.

Kathryn is in her "Connections" weekend at Samford.  Lots of chances to meet new friends, new classes - even attend a 90s party.  (A 90s party???  What does THAT involve?  I was too busy being pregnant in the 90s to remember much . . . . . . . . except Barney.  And Magic School Bus.  And diapers.)  It's thrilling - and humbling and a smidge scary - to sit back and coach from the sidelines as she enters this new phase of life.

Today's quote, College Student Version:

Me:  "Kathryn, I'm just not so sure I'm good at this being the mother of a college student thing.  I don't know when to offer advice, and when to stay out of it and let you handle it on your own.:
Kathryn:  "Don't worry, Mom.  I'm used to being the guinea pig."

Next week is The Insanity.  I'm always fooled into this false lull in August - you know, the "Hey!  This isn't so bad!  Maybe our schedule will work after all. . . . . . ." false lull.  Anyone else have that???  But next week starts ballet, piano, and my own (itty-bitty) piano studio.

So between homeschooling the kiddos, teaching science at 2 co-ops, piano students, and general driving around, don't look for too much on the blog!  Although, you never know when the muse will hit me. . . . . .

Like this gem.

Today's quote, Six-Year-Old Version:

Amy:  :tears:
"Mom!  Hyenas are NOT in the dog family!  I can't put them in my Dog Times newsletter!"
:insert more tears, sad eyes, and general crushed state of despair:

Me:  "It's ok honey,"  (tries desperately NOT to look at the other children downstairs, who are all smirking and about to blow my cover), "We'll give the hyenas their very own newsletter soon."

I'm so glad I have them at each end of the spectrum, and everywhere in between.

Wishing you all great Joy in your Journey, especially for my fellow homeschooling moms who are starting their new years!

Eh, don't worry.  I'm not going anywhere.  Give me a few weeks to finish Kathryn's quilt, and I'll be back. . . . . . .