Sugar Cookies 101

There are a lot of mommy skills that I thought would come naturally the moment I birthed my first child. I figured I would instantly know how to change a diaper in under 27 seconds. I thought I would be able to cook dinner, clean the house, play with the baby and hit the gym all in the same day while managing to squeeze in a lunch with a friend and a stop at the library. I also assumed that I would be able to make killer cookies that my child would boast about on the playground one day.

Once the postpartum hormones settled, I realized that such Mommy skills had not been bestowed upon me and that I would actually have to figure out such tricks of the mothering trade. I eventually learned how to diaper a child quickly and I soon realized that accomplishing two out of the 15 things on my to-do list made for a productive day. I also figured out that if I practiced my cookie making skills then someday I would eventually be able to whip out a batch of homemade treats that would make my family cheer.

I have worked furiously over the past four holiday seasons to successfully improve my Christmas cookie skills. I can now confidently carry in a plate of sugar cookies into any school party of moms group cookie exchange with confidence. Allow me to pass along my semi- cookie wisdom.

First, use this recipe for complete cookie yumminess (slightly adapted from http://www.foodnetwork.com/)

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup Crisco
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tablespoon milk
• Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

The Donated Room- Light Switch Covers

I am having so much fun putting the donated room together. I think it’s the small things that really make a room work, and I just love a good custom light switch plate.

This light switch plate from 1 For You’s Etsy shop is just adorable– and perfect for the room.

See? I was so totally right, that’s cuter than cute. I love them it so much that I am thinking I should order some of their plug covers just to match. Check them out!

Yeah, these are totally adorable, and I am completely in love with them. Maybe I should get custom light switches for every room….

Is that too much?

Whisper in their ears…..

There are so many things I want to whisper in their ears.

When they are still and sleepy and holding my hand…

There are so many things that I want to say to them after a busy and fun day.

I want to say how special they are - but I want them to be humble.

I want to tell them to be happy -  but I want them to be able to handle it when they are sad.

I want to tell them that they can do anything that they want – but I really don’t want them to do anything that they want (think of the chaos in my van alone!)

Tonight I decided as I whispered in the soft little ear and tucked the little footed jammie under the covers that I would whisper

Try

I want you to try.

I want you to try anything and everything but learn from your choices.

I want you to try hard.

I want you to do your very best at everything you do.

There is so much that can be solved with just a little try.

So that is what I whispered tonight

In the soft little ear

I kissed the sleeping cheek and I tucked them in a little tighter and all I whispered was

try.

O Tannenbaum…Gesundheit!

My husband and I have celebrated 18 Christmases together.

15 of those have been celebrated under the plastic boughs of a faux-tree.

The first few Christmases we had a fake fir for financial reasons. Once we were a bit more established (Christmas #4) we jumped in our Cherokee and drove to a local tree farm.

I love a real tree. They are so real. They are so tree-y.

We chose a beautiful tree.
Tied it to the roof.
Toted it home.
Set it in the living room.
Decorated it with care.
Stood back and admired it.

Around midnight the first night we both started to sniffle.

Odd. That we would both catch colds at the same time.

The sniffles continued throughout the entire holiday season.

Merry Christmas! sniffle. sniffle.

The sniffles were thrown out to the curb with the dead tree 4 weeks later.

Oh! Maybe we are allergic to certain Christmas trees.

Year two we toted home a different variety with the same results.

Merry Christmas! sniffle. sniffle.

Year three we toted home a different variety with the same results.

Merry Christmas! sniffle. sniffle.

By the fourth year (ya, we are quick learners…) we decided we were more fake tree folk because being merry is much easier when you can breathe.

Fast forward 11 Christmases to a gray minivan full of three boys passing a local Christmas tree “farm”* today:

Reid: Why don’t we get our Christmas tree there?
Me: We already have a tree! Remember helping me put it together?
Ryan: Those are REAL TREES.
Reid: Oh.
Ryan: You don’t want a REAL TREE because they are FULL OF BUGS and when you take them home there are SQUIRRELS and RATS living in them IN YOUR HOUSE…

I love it when I don’t have to say anything more.

*The Christmas tree “farm” is actually the pumpkin patch after a holiday make-over that I animated here. Oh, and guess what?  Yep, there is an identical Christmas tree “farm” next door.

Festive Art Activities Bring Families Together

The visual arts provide a wonderful opportunity for children to freely express themselves, and the holiday season offers many ways to engage children in artful displays. Even very young children relish the chance to take part in holiday decorating, dining, and merry-making. Children also benefit from creating art, because it helps relieve stress through a healthy outlet.

Spruce of your holiday table
Invite your children to create festive place cards. You’ll need to provide them with stiff card stock folded down to a small tent. Set up a creativity station with colorful markers and pencils or paints. Make sure you cover the art area, so that your kids do not have to worry about art accidents! Finally, help them to imagine holiday images that make them happy. Perhaps your children love the look of candy canes, stockings, elves, candles, snowmen, gingerbread or decorated trees. They may want to embellish each letter of the names they will be writing. For younger children, please make sure that you print out the names of your dinner guests to avoid frustration.

Edible art is perfect for the holidays
Invite your children to help select colorful vegetables and fruits to make your holiday dinner extra colorful and special. It may help to show your children the many food options from which they can choose. This can be a great way to inspire your children to eat healthy and serve food that looks beautiful, too! Have a digital camera handy when it’s time to present your dinner, and encourage your children to take a close up photo of a dinner plate. Challenge them to consider lighting and background.

Cookies & cupcakes can be oh so fun for children to decorate – alone, with family or with friends! Bake plain sugar cookies or cupcakes (you can do this in advance). Chat with your children about favorite toppings – perhaps they adore vanilla or chocolate frosting or a simple powdered sugar glaze. Explain to your children how to work with these toppings, noting that they tend to dry out pretty quickly. Once they spread some frosting or glaze on their pastry, they can select from a variety of decorative toppings. From simple, colorful sprinkles to writing or designing images in another color of icing, to using miniature candy canes or little candies, or adding nuts, marshmallows, and so forth, the creative and delicious ideas are endless!

Make a special holiday art scene
Invite your children to create a special piece of art to help celebrate the holidays. Ideally, you can provide your children with an oversized sketch pad along with lots of art materials. Plan ahead about how you can display any works of art your children create! Set up a creativity station for your children, so that they can work safely, freely and comfortably. Make sure they have pencils, markers, paints, brushes, stamps and ink pads, stickers, glue stick, scissors, cotton balls, buttons, construction paper and any other embellishments and added art supplies that will ensure a fun and creative experience. Help inspire your child by seeding ideas that can help them tap their imaginations. What does “Peace on Earth” look like? What does your perfect Christmas tree look like? Draw one of the principles of Kwanzaa, such as purpose or unity – what image comes to mind? As part of your traditional Hanukkah celebration, draw a picture of what your most delicious sufganiyot (jelly doughnut) looks like – maybe its one giant sufganiyot or perhaps it’s a stack of them. Your child might really enjoy making a piece of collage-style art that incorporates twisted tinsel wire for sparkling stars or real holly from a bush to create a special holiday scene. Remember that the joy of art is in creating it, so avoid making corrections or negative judgments. It’s okay for your child to experiment with color or design and then decide they may not like what they created. As they say, “If at first you don’t succeed (in what you envision) try, try again.” Creativity is a valuable skill that every child needs to nurture! It is a gift that continues giving back through an entire lifetime.

Consider signing your child up for a holiday art class or camp.

Brought to you by Abrakadoodle Remarkable Art. 2009. All rights reserved.

Texas Ballet Theater – The Nutcracker

- Did you know over 200 costumes are used in the ballet?
- 10 miles of thread were used to build the costumes!
- 17 loads of laundry have to be done after every performance!
- Some women go through one pair of pointe shoes for each performance!

http://www.milkandcuddles.com/

My Baby Boy Is Growing Up

Nicholas has three special bath towels. There is a lion, a dog, and a frog and they each have his name embroidered on the back of them. He has always loved these towels and when he was younger he made us make the appropriate animal sounds as we got his towel out for him at bath time.

I’m going to cherish this picture. Just recently Nicholas informed me that he didn’t want to use his animal towels anymore. He has become much more self-conscious about being a “big boy” and apparently these towels don’t fit his new criteria. I was surprised to hear the news and even got a little sad at the moment. He must have picked up on that because he then said, “Well, maybe I can keep them just a little bit longer.” Mommy thought to herself, “Good”…sniff, sniff.

We always have children’s CDs playing “kid songs” in the car. In the last month or so of school, Nicholas would enjoy listening to the songs on the way to school but as we pulled into car line for me to drop him off, he would usually ask me to turn the song off. He explained that he didn’t want the moms working the car line or other children to hear the songs he was listening to.

Now this week it has hit a new level. Every time I put in one of our “kid song” CDs, Nicholas informs me that these are baby songs and asks me to skip to the next song. We go through most of the CD without listening to more than one song that is acceptable. I’m not sure where to look but apparently I need to find some CDs with “big boy songs”.

The Perfect Gift For A 13 Year Old… A Facebook Profile

How would you like to give your 13 year old the perfect gift?

Well, I have found it… a Facebook Profile!

If you think I am crazy, then keep reading and let me explain.

Ask any 13 year old if they are on any social network sights and the answer will most likely be yes. I have heard many kids state that as soon as they are 13, they are getting on Facebook. Of course, I have heard that many kids are getting on Facebook younger than 13. Unfortunately for them, Facebook has a policy that states: You will not use Facebook if you are under 13. If they are caught, their profile will be taken down.  In addition, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) states that any website collecting personal information from anyone under 13 must have parental permission.

I believe as parents we need to enforce these policies. One reason they have this age requirement is that most kids under 13 are not responsible enough with posting personal information.  And this brings me back to why I think you should give your child a Facebook Profile when they turn 13.  If you handle it the right way, it can become a fun teachable moment.

When my daughter turns 13 in a few years, I will say, “Finally 13! I bet you’re ready to set up your Facebook Profile (or whatever the latest social network craze is). One of my gifts is to help you set it up, so let’s get on the computer!” Then I will teach her about privacy controls, her profile picture, posting personal information, adding pictures, videos and links.  I will talk to her about what to do when someone she doesn’t know wants to “friend” her. I can show her the IM feature and teach her how to use it.

After we set it up, we can “google” her name and I can show her that her Facebook Profile picture is actually public and anyone will be able to see it. That means mom, dad, relatives, teachers, fiends parents, grandparents, etc. I will let her know her profile picture is important and it should be something you would show your best friend and your grandmother. I can show her the difference in what information is revealed by the different privacy settings. I will talk to her about the Facebook applications and I will tell her some of these contain viruses and malware. Then we have the Facebook fan pages and groups.  I can show her using my Facebook profile the information that is available to others when you join a group or become a fan.  These activities expose your picture and name to the other members that you don’t know.  Some of the people in the same groups will see your picture and may try to “friend” you. I will ask her how she will handle that.

In addition, I will talk to her about private information. I will let her know she needs to be careful about what she posts.  Even typical teenage posts can have consequences. I will remind her of the story about the girl that was upset her father couldn’t go to her school musical.  She shared on her MySpace page that she didn’t want to work for someone like her dad’s boss, who yells all the time and treats her dad like dirt.  After she posted it she realized her bosses son was one of her “friends”. A few weeks later, her father was fired.  You can read about this story by clicking here in the Family Circle, Share Tactics article.

She will have to be careful about what her friends are posting too.  I will talk to her about helping her friends stay safe online.  Are her friends accepting friend requests from people they don’t know? If so, her posts may be seen by her “friend”. Are her friends posting pictures that may reveal too much? Locations, addresses, vacation plans, etc. all these innocent posts can have consequences.

As you can see, by giving your 13 year old a Facebook Profile for their birthday, it opens up the communication to online safety.

And that is why I am giving my daughter a Facebook Profile on her 13th birthday!

If you found this article informative, don’t forget to pass it on to others!  All parents need reminders about online safety.

Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Spicing up the leftovers

Leftover turkey casseroles can be such a drag.  Why not take that dark meat that you know you don’t really want to eat– and spice it up with a little help from your neighbors to the east?

That’s right.  Leftover turkey makes a fantastic base for good ol’ southern jambalaya.  It disguises that old-turkey taste and makes a nice change from the same old recipes you pull out every year.  Better still, it tastes wonderful!  In fact, I’ve been known to buy turkeys off-season partly so I’d have leftovers to use in jambalaya.  (Total truth.)

Here’s a version which is much healthier than the “authentic” thing (yeah, I know it’s supposed to clog your arteries, but I’m too much of  a health nut to go completely traditional), but tastes just as good.  I can’t promise your mouth won’t be on fire, but I can promise you one thing: you’ll love it.

Step 1: Make the Cajun spice mix. Mix spices together and set aside.

• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp. white pepper (trust me, it makes a difference)
• 1 tsp. ground black pepper
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. thyme
• 1 tsp. sage
• 1/2 tsp. basil

Step 2: Cook the sausage and vegetables. Starting with the sausage, saute sausage and vegetables until vegetables tender.

• 1/2 Tbsp melted butter
• 1 c. diced andouille sausage (if you can’t find it locally, substitute another smoked sausage)
• 1 c. diced onion
• 1 c. diced green pepper
• 1 c. diced celery

Step 3: Add the tomatoes. Stir in, cooking for 2 minutes.

• 2 c. drained diced canned tomatoes

Step 4: Add the rice. Add and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

• 1 c. raw (uncooked) rice

Step 5: Add the turkey and a bunch more ingredients. Stir in, and cook 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

• 2 1/2 c. chicken stock
• 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 3-4 Tbsp.  minced garlic
• 1 – 5 tsp.  Cajun spice mix (see above).  Start out small, adding more if you need it– it can get spicy pretty fast!
• 2 c. chopped cooked chicken or turkey

Step 6: Add the last few ingredients. Stir in and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until rice is tender.  You may need to add more liquid if it starts getting dry.

• 2 c. small shrimp (raw or cooked, and you can leave them out if you hate seafood, but it’s much better with them in!)
• 1/4 c. finely chopped parsley
• 1/4 c. finely chopped green onions

Serve in bowls with fresh French bread and a green salad…and let the good times roll!

Squares, Circles and Triangles

“If a Fulani man tells you something is just up the road, you better pack an extra pair of shoes  because you will wear your first pair out walking.”

In July we travelled North to see the city of Kano.  Here is the story:

On Sunday we loaded up our car and headed North- to Kano.  Kano is the oldest city in West Africa and the 2nd largest city in Nigeria.  The state it is in- also called Kano- is a Muslim state and ruled by Sharia Law.  Only about 1 percent of the population is Christian.  We had heard about Kano before coming to Nigeria and were excited to go up and visit, to see if it might be a possible future location for us to do ministry in.  There are two main people groups in Kano- the Hausa and the Fulani.  Traditionally, Fulani are nomadic cattle ranchers and farmer.

Our friend and language teacher, Abdullahi, is Fulani.  His father was forced to flee his village when he converted to Christianity.  His father is now a missionary, working among the Fulani of Northern Nigeria and Niger.  Abdullahi and his wife, Bamyil, accompanied us for our trip, as did our friends, the Camiolas. The plan was for Abdullahi to take us to visit his mother’s village while we were in Kano.

So, Sunday morning we headed out….our car filled with luggage and coolers- so that we could bring back cheese and butter as it’s much cheaper in Kano. We were told it is better to travel on a weekend day as there are not as many road blocks…well, we counted 20 on our way!  Fortunately, most were military road blocks put there to prevent highway robbery, so they did not stop us.  It took about 4 ½  hours to arrive in Kano.  We first went to the guesthouse to check in and then the plan was to have lunch at Pizza Hott, the local pizza place (every time a Nigerian spoke of it we thought they were saying Pizza Hut!).

Abdullahi is not too familiar with Kano so he got directions from a friend.  Well, needless to say, we got way lost!  We made a square around the downtown market area numerous times.  Finally I spoke with Mary, the missionary there, and she directed us down the correct route.  Once there the pizza was worth waiting for!  They brought out circles of dough covered in sauce and most importantly, mounds of cheese!  It was the best pizza we’ve had in Nigeria.

After pizza we decided to go to the fabric market and see about buying some fabric.  A lot of the fabric in Nigeria is made in Kano, so it is cheaper to buy it there.  Well, the fabric market is 10 times the size of the one in Jos and it was so overwhelming!  The hour we had to shop was not enough to make a decision as to what to buy.

By the time we finished with the shopping we were all so tired that we just went back to our “hotels” to sleep!  This was the first time for Caden to sleep in a big-boy bed that is not his own.  The experience started out ok but he woke up at 1:30 and would not go back to sleep.  He and I were up until 4:30!  Needless to say I was a bit grumpy the next morning.

So, Monday morning the plan was to drive to the Fulani village where Abdullahi is from.  We headed out for what was to be an hour journey.  We brought  a bag of granola and a few bottles of water to have for a snack.  The drive was pleasant enough, we were seeing many villages along the road and the buildings in the villages were different from the ones in our state.  Our conversation was good and we were all excited to be going to the village. Then our friend had us stop to ask about the directions.  After stopping he seemed to thing we were going in the right direction so we kept going.  2 hours later we ended up in Duce, the capital of the new state of Jigawa…nowhere near our friend’s village!  The option was to drive the 2 hours back to Kano or 2 more hours to the village (which would leave us an hour away from Kano).  We decided to continue to the village.  Well, 2 hours and many stops for direction later we found out that we were still over an hour from the village.  By this time the 5 kids with us (as well as us adults) were tired, hungry, and in need of a restroom!  So, we decided to head on back to Kano without seeing the village.  Apparently, Abdullahi’s friend who gave us direction misunderstood where we wanted to go, so after 5 hours of driving we did a triangle that took us from Kano, through Jigawa state, and back.  We did see a lot of interesting landscape and many villages and towns.

After grabbing a bite to eat and resting a bit, our Nigerian friends decided to go to the village in a taxi, since their family was disappointed not to see them.  We had made arrangements for Mary to show us the ministries SIM is involved with in Kano.  There used to be quite a large SIM presence in Kano but years ago there were some problem, so SIM left Kano, leaving the Nigerian denomination, ECWA in charge of the ministries.  Now, it is safe to live in Kano again, so there are 3 families and 2 singles who will be involved (at the moment all but Mary were on Home Assignment).  Mary explained that since the Nigerians are better suited to do ministry in that region, SIM’s strategy is to support the church and help with training and equipping.  She showed us a resource center and library run by SIM, a sewing ministry, and 2 ECWA hostels that board children whose parents are missionaries and children who live in villages but whose parents want them educated in the city.  Unfortunately, there is not adequate funding for these hostels and they are in poor condition.  Plus, there isn’t money to pay for enough staff- each hostel has one house parent that is there on a part-time basis…and all together the 3 buildings (one for girls, two for boys) houses over 200 students!  Mary is working on raising the funds to dig a bore-hole to provide water for the boys’ houses and their neighborhood.  At the moment the boys walk 10 minutes to get water.

Once our tour was over we returned home to rest before heading out to dinner as the restaurant we were going to did not open until 7.  Well, when it was time to leave, I locked us out of the house!  This delayed us as we had to find the landlady to let us back in!  Once we got that sorted out, Mary took us to a beautiful Chinese restaurant.  When we walked in, we all said, “We’re not in Nigeria anymore!”  There were 12 of us all together so they put us in the VIP room.  This worked great as the kids were getting tired and there was room for them to run around.  Plus, we didn’t bother the other diners!  We ordered a ton of food and ate almost every bit of it.  It was so good!  Plus, it was really nice to be out at night.  We don’t go out at night much in Jos since there is not much to do.

Tuesday morning we got up and packed, changed a tire with a bent rim, took the tire to be repaired, then headed to do a little more shopping and site-seeing.  We bought some fabric to cover a few sofa cushions, then headed to the dye-pits to see how they dye fabric.  That was interesting.  They have these deep wells that they fill with water and natural ingredients to make dye.  Right now they are dying things blue.  They use indigo flowers, potassium, and ash from a fire to make the dye.  The large vats of dye are used for one year!  They dye fabric that is bought with patterns in it, and they also do beautiful tie-dye.  We walked through a neighborhood to see the woman who tied the knots for the tie-dye.  It is not an easy job.

Kano is a large city and the traffic is awful , so by the time we were done with the Dye=pit, it was time to have lunch and prepare to leave.  So, we headed back to Pizza Hott for another round of the delicious pizza before leaving Kano.  We had planned to depart by 2:00 but due to some miscommunication we did not get on the road until after 3:00…not good as the roads are not great to drive on after dark.

The positive about traveling at night as there are not as many road blocks.  However, we didn’t get to the worst part of the road until after dark and it was raining.  We hit a huge pot-hole and…click-click-click…the rim of a tire was bent and the tire was flat!  So, not only was it after dark and raining, but now we had to drive even slower as we don’t yet have a full-sized spare!  We arrived home very grateful to be here at 8:30 PM!

Although our journey to Kano was full of wrong turns, long car rides, dust, heat, trash (the city is very dirty), flat tires, and frustration, we did come home with some great pictures, cheese, butter, and lots of memories!  Plus, we now appreciate our “small” city of Jos so much more

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