Monday Gratitudes

Ranleigh and I had such a nice weekend. We were able to attend Mike and Karen's wedding in Detroit. Everything was beautiful. Mike and Karen are such great people. I'm grateful to know them.
This weekend also gave me time to reflect on my relationship with my hubby. I'm grateful for him, he is such a good man. He is kind, loving, great with our kids, smart, funny and very handsome.
I'm grateful for our marriage.

Monday Gratitudes

I am truly grateful for all the wonderful canners in my church family. This past week the kids and I were able to snap a ton of green beans at the home of our wonderful Sister Bridges. She was so kind to help us and take the time out of her busy schedule. We were able to can 14 jars! Good experience.
I'm excited to can peaches next. Love it.
I'm also grateful that my children start school this week. I wish that the summer was a little longer but I think it's time for them to make new friends and hopefully renew the friendships they made last year.
I'm also grateful to be on this earth and alive. I know that I've said it before but I'm so glad to be here for my family. These past several months have been pretty hard for my kids. I know that we are blessed.

Monday Gratitudes

Today was so hot and humid that it was hard to see any reason to be grateful for this time of year. But as the scriptures say there must be 'opposition in all things'. Were it not so, then value would cease to exist. I know better than to complain about the humidity and the crazy things that my hair does-the fact is- that this is going to happen over and over again. Hey this is the midwest -where the corn grows as tall as en Elephant's eye. So I must learn to accept the humidity and try to be thankful for it. Which leads me into truly looking forward to crisp fall days.(picture of Noah)
All kidding aside, I am thankful to live in this part of the country. It truly is a beautiful place.

I'm also grateful for my brother Matt (picture of him lighting our bonfire) who is serving in the military. He has a beautiful family in Utah and this is his third deployment to Iraq. My sister in-law is raising 4 kids by herself, while he is away, and she has a positive attitude. Makes me even more grateful for my hubby being home.
I am grateful to have all of the kids school shopping done. This is their last full week of summer vacation so we're going to plan a fun weekend for them.

Up town girl give-away link -Darling

This is the photo from the cover of the ‘up town girl’ pattern created by the incredibly talented and gifted Aussie designer and blogger Toni from Make it Perfect.
It’s the next piece of kids clothing that I want to make. I need a pattern for a coat. I can wing it for a skirt, …but a coat. A coat I need a pattern for.
If I’m lucky I might just win one! Pop over to Handmade Kids and have a look. Leave a comment and you could be in the running as well. Just make sure you don’t win though okay…because I want to!

Try-it Tuesdays Spinach Salad

THis is such a fabulous salad and the dressing is absolutely yummy. If you like mandarin oranges you can add those too.

10 ounces fresh spinach
1 cup sliced celery
1 quart strawberries - cleaned, hulled and sliced

Poppy Seed Dressing
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. dry mustard
2/3 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
14-1/2 red onion
2 cups oil
3 tablespoon poppy seeds (optional)

Combine sugar, salt, mustard, vinegar, and red onion in blender. Blend and slowly add oil. Add poppy seeds. Refrigerate.

Caramelized Pecans
1 cup sugar
1 cup pecans

Place sugar in a heavy pot. Once sugar begins to melt add pecans. Slowly cook until the sugar is melted onto the pecans and they are browned a little. Immediately place on wax paper. Cool.

Fun Giveaway

Rachel at PS I Quilt is having a fun giveaway, check it out.

try-it Tuesdays Chicken Pot Pie

I love homemade pot pie. It is such a comfort food. I tweaked the recipe to slim down the calories and it still tastes great. Sometimes I don't even use a two crust pie to eliminate more calories. But this recipes is a keeper. Try it -I know you'll like it. I usually double this recipe to make 2 pies but I don't double the butter. This recipe is very forgiving and can be tweaked many ways.
Prepare your favorite Pie crust recipe for 2-crust pie using a 9" pie pan.
Filling:
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup fat free 1/2&1/2 or milk
2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken or turkey
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables, thawed

Heat oven to 425°F. Make pie crusts as directed. In 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until well blended. Gradually stir in broth and 1/2&1/2, cooking and stirring until bubbly and thickened. Stir in chicken and mixed vegetables. Remove from heat. Spoon chicken mixture into crust-lined pan. Top with second crust; seal edge and flute. Cut slits in several places in top crust. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown. During last 15 to 20 minutes of baking, cover crust edge with strips of foil to prevent excessive browning. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

monday Gratitudes

Grateful that this has been a nice summer. It's been delightful to not be stuck with the normal humidity. We were also lucky to sneak in swimming lessons these past 3 weeks. Our Bishop's daughter had the summer off from BYU and gave private lessons in their pool. The kids have made great strides in improving their stamina and confidence. Noah was the only one that would let me take a picture with Laura.
Grateful that Isaak is learning great things in scouting.
Grateful for peace and quiet music yesterday morning. Sunday morning was so nice and albeit too quiet. It scared me a little because my kids are usually heard throughout the house. Well, something had to be happening and that usually means nothing good. I quickly investigated and was sweetly surprised to find all the kids upstairs playing with Legos. Ah! Peaceful mornings! You have to love em.

Self Reliance 72 hr kit Giveaway!

Shelf Reliance is excited to offer you a chance to win the Providence Essential 72-Hour Kit. This kit includes supplies for two people.
Shelf Reliance is giving away a 2-person 72 hour kit. For description and details, click here. Hurry offer ends Friday!

Try-it Tuesdays Strawberry-Lemon Trifle

To fulfill a scouting requirement, Issak had to make dessert for his upcoming Court of Honor. Trifle is an easy dessert that will feed a lot. We decided to double the ingredients and use a punch bowl instead of our regular trifle bowl.

Trifle:
Pound Cake (home made or store bought) (can also use a sponge or butter cake or ladyfingers)
1 1/2 cups Strawberry Sauce (Puree strawberries with 1/4c. sugar)
1/2 pound fresh strawberries, sliced
1 1/2 cups Lemon Curd (home made or store bought)
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

To make the whipping cream: beat cream and 3 tbls. sugar, until stiff peaks form.

To assemble: In the bottom of your trifle bowl place slices (about 1/3 inch thick) of the pound cake. Fill in any gaps with pieces of the cake. Pour half of the strawberry sauce over the pound cake. Top the strawberry sauce with half of the sliced strawberries. Then pour half of the lemon curd over the strawberries. Top with half of the whipped cream. Repeat the layers. Cover and refrigerate for 8 and up to 24 hours to allow the flavors to mingle. Then enjoy!