Birth Announcement!

Now that they’ve been mailed…

Wish I could send a *real* one to everyone!

One of the easiest desserts ever

We had lunch with our shepherding group last Sunday and I brought this “cake” for dessert. I realized I’d probably never shared the recipe here, yet it’s one of my favorites. I got it from a friend when I worked at the law firm years ago.  Before kids.

Banana Split Cake

Smash to crumbs a package and a half of graham crackers:

(That’s actually more like two packs. I’m more of a toss-it-in kind of cook rather than a measure-precisely kind of cook.)

When fully crushed, mix in 1 stick of butter and 1/4 cup of sugar:

And press into a 9×13 pan:

Cream together 16 oz soft cream cheese and 1/2 cup of sugar:

And spread across crust:

(Really, I could have used more of the cream cheese mixture.  I found this very hard to spread so thin.)

A layer of banana slices: (I think this was about 7 small bananas.)

And then spread a 15oz can of (drained) crushed pineapple over the bananas:

Top with Cool Whip:

Immediately before serving (so the chocolate sauce doesn’t bleed), drizzle with chocolate sauce and chopped nuts.  I only put nuts on half in case anyone in our group didn’t care for them.  You’re also welcome to put a fake cherry on everyone’s piece but I hate those things and refuse to buy them.

You’re welcome.

Babylegs/Leg warmers

I asked a friend to send me this link for DIY babylegs since I was having some difficulty finding cute tights to match one of Madeline’s fall skirts.

The pack of socks I bought at Target came in three, so I attempted the first pair with some that aren’t meant for that skirt. This project takes no time at all and can be worn on babies (babylegs) AND toddlers/little kids as leg warmers. I’m sure they’ll make the rounds between my three girls.

(Here’s a baby boy version of the babylegs. Although I would have to draw the line at (older) little boys wearing leg warmers. I’m just sayin’.)

I forgot to take a picture of the socks. I’m sure you know what socks look like.

Nice n’ toasty. (Not that we need that yet, however.)

Time Savers

Our fall schedule is a little bit nuts. The only day of the week we don’t have anything… er, okay, we have something every single day.

The kicker is getting Drew to school by 8:45. If you know us well, you know we’re usually not even UP by then, certainly not ready to be out the door. (Working on that. Ahem.)

So I just wanted to share something that helps me save morning time and results in a breakfast that my kids will gobble up. (I also do this on a lot of Saturday nights for the Sunday morning race to church.)

That is the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and chopped walnuts (to the side) ready to be made into muffins, come the morning. All I have to do is add the oil, milk, egg, and smashed bananas.

I even get the pan ready:

Just don’t forget to turn the oven on the second you roll out of bed.

(Not that I’ve done that or anything.)

Feel free to share your time-saving tips in the comments; I need all the early-morning help I can get. (And yes, I also make school lunches the night before.)

New & Improved

Alternate title: Just Call Me ‘Miss Industrious’

Alternate alternate title: Laundry Basket Makeover

So for almost the two years that I’ve had it, my laundry basket has driven me nuts. The cloth liner was too small; when we pushed clothes down into the bin, it would fall in and get bunched up along with the clothes. I’d sigh and attempt to pull the sides of the liner up while pushing down the clothes. It was never a good system.

And also? It was torn:

…on both sides.

(Sigh.)

I priced new laundry bins during one of my trips to Target when my mom was still here. And then I realized suddenly that instead of spending $40 on a new basket, I could buy fabric and make a new liner. (I know, I’m such a genius.)

I went to Hobby Lobby yesterday and bought some white denim. So for $8, I was able to make a new liner that is much bigger and THAT makes me happy:

I based the pattern off my diaper pail liner, which is basically just a rectangle with an elasticized opening at the top. (I used a French seam across the bottom and one side.)

(Bow entirely superfluous.)

See? Lots more room in there:

Oh happy day.

hair flowers

A couple of years ago I made a few hairband-flowers to wear in my hair for special occasions and places like church. They looked like something that an adult would wear and the colors were more grown-up (i.e. no neon cotton-candy pinks).

Max somehow got a hold of my white one and ripped it to shreds. But Madeline’s been wearing the brown one and LOVES having it in her hair.

So I’d been meaning to make some more, just for her, with colors that would better match her clothes. I made them last weekend while my sisters and mom and I watched a movie:

I basically hot-glued a strip of ribbon over another, longer strip that I used to tie the hairband to the flower. And then hot-glued the ribbon ends down once the band was firmly in place.

She thought we should put them all together in a vase of water. Perhaps I should think up a cute vase-like holder for storing them in…

(But without the water.)

Stuff we’ve been enjoyin’

I absolutely am not being paid by anyone for recommending these products. They’re just little things we’ve been using recently and have been very happy with, so I thought I’d pass along.

Pillsbury® simply…™ Cookies The convenience of pre-made dough without all the additives and HFCS.

Stretch Island Fruit Co. all-natural fruit leather A much better alternative to fruit snacks.

Munchkin Snack Catcher™ Way better than the Snack Trap we’ve used for Adelaide. These saved my sanity (and carpet) on our recent road trip.

Happy Heiny’s Training Pants I refuse to spend one more dollar on night-time pull-ups for Madeline but don’t want to let her go free because every few nights she’ll be a teensy bit wet. (And I have a thing against extra laundry.) So I bought these washable training pants and they’ve worked like a charm. She’s actually not wet them yet!

Hide ‘Em In Your Heart – for the kids, Bible memory verses set to music (CD & DVD set) by Steve Green. If we’re in the car, the kids ask for it.

(Coincidentally, it’s Thursday! Linking up to Things I Love Thursday. Perfect!)

Ready for the 4th, Part II

I got my trusty models to try on their 4th of July outfits so you can see what they look like on. (Don’t worry, I paid them in chocolate chips.)

I had taken a couple of pictures of Adelaide in the morning (above) but then later remembered she had cute navy shoes that might work with the dress and threw it on her again last night after her bath:

And here’s Madeline’s finished version:

Now we just have to decide on something fun to do!

Ready for the 4th

I’ve been going back and forth about buying my girls cute 4th-of-July shirts or making them some sort of fun patriotic dresses.  And then in a lightbulb moment, I remembered about this idea and knew it would be perfect.  (Hat tip to Mer.)

Last night I finished Adelaide’s, The Bandanna Dress, 4th of July Version:

As promised by the tutorial, this was SO EASY. It took hardly any time at all, way less than an hour. And bandannas (which come in a bunch of different colors, by the way) are only $0.94 at Walmart.

(In case you’re wondering, I AM going to make Madeline’s as a shirt.)

Donuts!!

(Originally published October, 2008.)

I got this idea/recipe from Sarah’s blog (In the Midst of It) and in case you don’t read her, I’m going to pass it along. Because this is a recipe you want, trust me.

My sisters came over last night to do their laundry and so we tried these out and watched a movie. UnBELIEVEably quick and easy. And GOOOOOOD.

Homemade Donuts: Pop open a can of refrigerated biscuits. Poke a hole in the center of each biscuit (I used my Pampered Chef apple corer):

And then fry the donuts (and holes) in a few inches of oil (I use canola):

Flip over once (this takes less than a minute, make sure you don’t go far!):

Drain on paper towels:

Roll in cinnamon & sugar:

Perfect for a Saturday morning or a Sunday evening at home. Best served still warm.

(You could also glaze them with a powdered-sugar glaze or frost them with chocolate icing.)

The Icing on My Pink Cake

We found out yesterday morning that we are having another girl. I don’t think either of us were surprised, since I’m carrying exactly like I did with both Madeline and Adelaide and with Drew I was the size of a house. (Just ask my friends, they’ll be happy to confirm.)

I’m excited… I can do this girl thing. I love hairbows and pretty dresses and crammed-full-of-junk purses. Andy’s excited, too; he’s just a little nervous about the wedding bills. He also mentioned being glad he at least has Drew and a male dog.  Drew has enough boy in him to last through about ten sisters.

The funny thing is… my granddad had four girls and a boy. My dad had three girls and a boy (and his dog was even a female). So… like Granddad, like Dad, and now like Andy.  Apparently we like to do things in patterns.

I’ll show you this cute profile shot, because I feel a little weird about showing *girl* shots on my blog.  (Call me old fashioned.)

Arianna Noelle

I realize not everyone reveals their baby’s name before birth.  We have with our other three and mostly because we’re not very good at keeping our secrets when we just don’t mind people knowing.  She IS a little tiny person, and we pray for her by name.

(Arianna – Latin, “very holy or very pleasing one.”)

What I Haven’t Told You

is that I am 14 weeks pregnant.

Ever since my dear, sweet cousin lost her precious twins a little over a month ago (which I mentioned vaguely), I’ve struggled and struggled with telling anyone our news; I just didn’t have the heart or the words. 

I still don’t.

But I also know that it would be really awkward one day to start talking about a new baby right out of the (hopefully clear) blue sky. 

(And I’m also too vain to want you to have to wonder if I’ve just eaten one too many hamburgers at every meal for the last several weeks.  Which may or may not be the case anyway.)

So as you rejoice with us, please continue to lift my cousin and her hubby up in prayer.

And PS – Today is our 7th anniversary!

Parenting on Purpose

A few weeks ago Andy and I attended a short parenting conference put on by the youth of our church. (They did all the babysitting and served the lunch, accepting donations for upcoming missions trips, etc. I thought it was a great way to do fundraising and I know they blessed us parents through their work that day.)

There were three speakers; our senior pastor’s topic was “The Training and Instruction of the Lord,” one of the elders (who also happens to be our Sunday School teacher) spoke on communication, and the director of the local Christian youth network spoke on “Fueling Your Child’s Passion for Christ.”

Even though the conference was short, it was one of the highlights in my (continuing) education on how to be a godly parent. (I need to find out if any of it was recorded and get a copy, STAT.) Due to length, I’m going to have to break this into more than one post…

THE TRAINING AND INSTRUCTION OF THE LORD

Introduction: Col. 3:20-21; Eph. 6:1-4
These are the two verses that speak to children obeying their parents in the Lord. Pointed out that immediately after that directive in both verses, Paul tells fathers not to embitter or exasperate their children – this is just as important as that obedience! You can embitter or exasperate both by underdisciplining AND by overdisciplining.

I.  You are to train & instruct them by your walk

A.  Scripture teaches believers how to “walk” – (Deut. 8:6, I John 1:7; 2 John 6; 3 John 4)
B.  By your walk you teach & instruct them 24/7 – they pick up more by watching you than what you say
C.  If your walk fails consistently to line up with your talk then they will learn to disrespect and then disregard you
D.  But if your walk matches your talk, you can become your child’s hero
E.  Therefore,

1. How should you live? (Col. 3:12-17)
2. What should you do when you sin? Your children should know what confession/repentance/forgiveness looks like because they watch YOU
a. If your kids never see you repent or ask forgiveness, you are deceiving them and living a lie

II. You are to train & instruct them by your words

A. “Sticks & stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me” – that’s a LIE. (Prov. 12:18; 15:1; 25:11; 4:3-5, 20-22) Words are a double-edged sword, can be used for life and health.
B. Informal training and instruction – happens all the time
C. Formal training and instruction (Deut. 6:7)
1. Teach them about men and women who had a passion for the Lord and served others in His name

III. You are to train & instruct them by your disciplining

A. Training and Instruction –
1. They should obey you without challenge, excuse, or delay
2. Remember Paul’s warning (introduction above)
3. Remember your purpose
B. A Biblical pattern of discipline
1. Spanking (Prov. 22:15; 13:24; 23:13-14; 29:15)
2. How we did it…
a. When our child deliberately disobeyed, we took them aside
b. We talked WITH (not at) them, and asked two questions:
i. Do you love me?
ii. Do you love Jesus?
iii. Disobedience IS sin.
c. We then…
i. Spanked them (Prov. 22:15; 13:24; 23:13-14)
ii. Forgave them, assured them of our love
iii. Prayed with them
iv. And then it was OVER (Like our sins are IMMEDIATELY over with God)

IV. A Few Brief Observations

A. Raising children should be a delight (Prov. 29:17)
1. The first few years are crucial
2. The teen years should be a delight (they should be well trained by then in practicing “common courtesy”
a. Discernment
b. The biggies: LYING & DISRESPECT
B. Remember: Your child’s relationship with the Lord is ultimately their responsibility

BUT WHILE THEY ARE STILL YOURS YOU CAN BE USED PROFOUNDLY BY THE LORD TO SHAPE & MOLD THEIR THOUGHTS AND BEHAVIORS…

AND IN THIS LIFETIME YOU WILL NEVER HAVE A GREATER RESPONSIBILITY, OPPORTUNITY OR PRIVILEGE

(Outline follows handout.)

Don’t forget!

Daylight Savings is tomorrow – don’t forget to Spring Forward your clocks!!!

Free Shipping at Lands’ End

I just noticed a free shipping code in our Blissdom swag bag, and the letter says to share with our readers. So here ya go!

Promo Code: BLISSDOM
PIN: 2175
Expires Sunday, February 15 – so hurry!!

By Popular Demand

Okay, okay, okay. I will give you the recipe for these rolls I made for Thanksgiving Day breakfast. But first, a little history.

My grandmother is Swedish. She made (makes still? I don’t know) the very long and intricate original version of the recipe I’m about to give you. It’s an all-day event and very easy to mess up and ruin completely. Which, after spending all that time, effort and energy, is just depressing.

However, I’m a modern-day mama with modern conveniences at my fingertips. I do not bake bread that I’ve kneaded by hand. I spend most of my time chasing after toddlers and cleaning crayon off the walls. So I use my bread machine to mix dough for me and we get homemade goodies that way.

A few years ago I adapted my grandmother’s recipe with a cinnamon roll recipe that worked well in the bread machine. Since then I’ve only baked these buns with bread machine dough.

(Perhaps sacrilege. I don’t care. It’s this method or nothing in my current stage of life.)

So, without further ado…

Pour into the bread pan (in order): 1 cup milk, 1/3 cup melted-but-not-hot butter, 2 eggs, 1/3 cup sugar, and 1/2 tsp salt.

Place 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour into a bowl and wisk 3/4 – 1 tsp ground cardamom into the flour. This is very important. If you just dump the cardamom into the bread machine without mixing it into the flour first, it will be very clumpy. Trust me.

Pour flour mix into the bread machine pan on top of all the other stuff. Make a little crater with your finger in the flour and pour 1 package active dry yeast into it. (I personally use Rapid Rise. I’m patient like that.)

Plug in the machine and hit ‘dough’ setting and press ‘start.’ Mine takes an hour and a half.

Once the dough is finished, you’ll grab small handfuls of dough and roll them out like snakes. Maybe 10-12 inches long, 3/4″ thick. With your non-dominant hand, pinch the middle of the dough snake and hold it up so the two ends dangle down. Grab one of the ends with the other hand and swirl them around each other so you have a twist.

Loop the entire twist around itself about two times, or until the end can be tucked underneath the roll. Pinch it into the bottom of the roll or they will unwind.

Dip the tops generously into melted butter (that you already had prepared on the stove, right? Ahem.) and then roll the buttered tops around in a cinnamon and sugar mix. I think the ratio is a cup of sugar to a teaspoon of cinnamon, mixed well.

Place sugar-side-up into a casserole pan… usually 3 to a row, 4 if they’re small. Place covered with a tea towel in a warm oven to rise again – they should double – for 30-45 minutes.

Before doubling:

(Side note. See that one in the middle, up close? The bottom didn’t get sufficiently pinched so you can see what I mean by unwinding.)

After doubling, about to bake:

Remove the tea towel (do NOT forget) and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden. Drizzle with powdered sugar icing while still hot. (About 1 cup powdered sugar to 1 tablespoon water.)

Best eaten very warm with a pat of butter. These are probably the single most poignant food memory I have as a child… My mom made these every Christmas and every Thanksgiving.

And occasionally, even upon request.

Quick

Hopefully I’ll have a real post up later today, but in the meantime here are a couple of good things to share:

Top 10 ways to brat-proof your child by Vicki Courtney. Hat tip to Trina.

I made this Taco Soup last night for dinner and my kids scarfed it down. I’m sure all the cheese and chips mixed in didn’t hurt.

(Also, I didn’t have time for the crock pot, so I made it in a pot on the stove and it worked just as perfectly.)

And I was going to add a few others but I have GOT to get Drew ready for preschool.

Sneaking-in a Superfood (spinach)

Lately I’ve been trying to get Adelaide to eat fresh spinach and the best way I’ve found is to whip it through my food processor with some water and add it into her food. Putting it in spaghetti sauce is super easy because the spinach looks a lot like the other herbs and you can hardly taste the difference.

Cooked spinach is stringy and has a distinct flavor that is hard to sneak past children (and older babies in particular). My older kids will eat fresh spinach like lettuce, but Adelaide is slightly prone to choking on it.

I put a bunch of fresh leaves in my processor and pour in a little water and turn it on:

It looks about like this when done:

Paste it on (shown with vegetarian refried beans) and hide it under some fresh salsa or pico:

Although not vegan, sometimes we add cheese:

How I usually serve this dish, folded over and cut into a more manageable size:

(Sometimes I’ll just make a bowl of the pureed spinach/beans/salsa/cheese and just give that to Adelaide with a spoon and she LOVES it.)

I use very mild (but fresh!) salsa, by the way. Try it out, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised!

Works for me!!