“According to the attention restoration theory, spending time in nature relieves the stress and metal fatigue caused by the ‘directed attention’ that work and city life require.”
from NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC magazine (January 2016)
It was a rather sluggish sort of day, blah and tiresome.
But then I read the National Geographic article and thought, I need, I really really need to get outside. I put on my warm layers and went for a walk.
When I returned home, I was delighted and surprised to see a rare flock of blue birds by our pond.
“Should I bother getting the camera?” I wondered.
I quickly made up my mind, walked up to the house and grabbed the camera, half expecting the birds to have flown away, but praying that God would give me the opportunity to take a few nice bird photos. He gets all the glory……..for His gift to me, and now to you, in seeing and admiring the pretty little birds he made and provides for.
Bird photos are tricky but the nice thing about them is they take some concentration and determination, both of which are good for pulling oneself out of ones thoughts and cares of the day, and into what is seen through the lens. Getting manual mode just right, the lighting, seeing the shadows and sunshine fluttering and falling, watching for a bird to land in just the right spot.
You give to them, they gather it up; You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good.
Psalm 104:28
See the birds of the sky, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not of much more value than they? Matthew 6:26
It wasn’t all bluebirds, either. I saw robins, juncos, a titmouse, finch, blue jay, and goldfinches. They were eating the seeds off of the dried autumn grasses and bushes.
“Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have!” Matthew 6
In my deepest troubles, I frequently would wrench myself from the persons around me and retire to some secluded part of our noble forests. John James Audubon
I just got home from grocery and Christmas shopping. I have some wrapping to do before the children start getting home from school but I thought I would do a quick post about our day yesterday. I thought I would take photos all day long but I didn’t. I ended up not taking any pictures after the point where Grace and I went to the grocery store to get stuff for lunch.
The morning began with breakfast, and proceeded right into a nerf fight between Caleb and Seth.
There are nerf bullets ev.very.where.
I went outside to take care of the chickens and the rabbits. The chickens are not laying eggs. It’s pathetic. I have to buy eggs. I think they stopped because of the time change and some of them are molting.
We have rabbits because Jacob agreed to watch someone’s rabbits for them and so far they have not come to get them back. Apparently she moved in with her sister and there is no place to put them.
They are very cute and the entire family has grown fond of them. I opened their door so they could hop around the coop while I took care of the hens.
And this one
immediately went into a bag.
I thought the green background behind these red berries was lovely.
The children had a snow day because the snow had switched over to ice and then rain, consequently everything was drippy.
Under the trees the snow was dimpling from all the raindrops.
cracks in the ice look like trees
The children went outside for some sledding. Of course it was rather wet but they still had fun.
Seth was so little down there making a pile of snow.
And that was that. Grace and I went to the store, by the time we left Seth was back in the house and he asked to go with us. We said yes and bought him a big container of tic-tacs which turned into contention when we came home. Sarah and Caleb wanted them. Seth poured them all into a fiestware fruit bowl and then cried and cried because Caleb took the plastic container and threw it, causing it to break, and making the tic tacks fly out of the bowl onto the floor. I sent him downstairs. So then Seth gave it to Sarah and then a few minutes later decided he wanted it back, she started to cry, he threw it back at her, it hit the wall and broke further. I sent him downstairs next. Then Sarah was crying. Grace taped it up for her. This all happened because I was nice and bought Seth a treat. Never again.
Grace and I made a sausage stuffed french bread for lunch. Then, we prepared dinner, which was marinated meats for mixed grill kabobs–shrimp, chicken, and rib eye.
I gave Grace and David the job of cleaning the storage room and crawl space downstairs and they did a great job together.
We all took naps.
Rich came home early.
Seth broke one of my Christmas angels. Broke the wing right off.
Everyone liked dinner!
We had a relaxing evening and went to bed early, where I read a book until I couldn’t keep my eyes open.
Check out my instagram later for a photo of what I found at Goodwill this morning!!!!
I love my home, I love my nest, In all the world, My nest is best!
Good news! Sherlock the cat is back home recovering from his ordeal. We are all thankful to see him in the old familiar places…..and are fervently praying that he never again forms crystals to block his urinary track.
All the second guessing and questions were gone as soon as I witnessed the love and gentleness in the way the children cared for their pet all weekend long.
He received much petting.
Well, it’s our first snow day of the school year. There was speculation all weekend as the children wondered if it would happen and checked the weather frequently. As soon as I woke up this morning, I felt around in the dark for my phone on the table by the bed. Rich left for work as soon as he possibly could as I was announcing to him, “It’s a snow day! Stay home please stay home with us!” He was like, “bye.”
No matter, the children are currently still tucked in their warm beds, sound asleep, and I’m in my room typing away………….enjoying what will probably be the quietest hour of the day.
On Saturday, Rich was away for a wrestling scrimmage with his team (he is the HS head coach) and I had a leftover roast chicken in the fridge so I set to work making homemade chicken and dumplings with a big pot of fluffy mashed potatoes. The only reason I got the camera out is because Seth was amusing me. He had helped roll out the dumplings and then ended up on the counter for a good half an hour playing in a cup of flour…….
Messy….but harmless fun for a boy in the kitchen.
And a warm comfort food was enjoyed by all for lunch that day.
When Rich got home from wrestling, he took a quick nap on the couch and then took the boys for haircuts…..
The reason why Rich completely spoils and worships me is because I gave him five sons and two daughters who look just like him. (okay, that is maybe just one of the many reasons).
“Sarah get off my cat! Mom tell Sarah to get off my cat! No don’t take a picture of Sarah with my cat, that’s my cat!” ~David is very possessive.
Rich and David moved this little couch (dog bed) into the other room to make a spot for the Christmas tree. It was about 28 degrees on Saturday afternoon so he could only get Caleb and Sarah to go with him to the fire department to choose the tree. I could tell he was starting to get tired and not in the mood but after a little love-spat we got the decorating done. It certainly wasn’t the same without Jacob and Ethan helping us and Grace saying things like “I probably won’t be here next year to help decorate the tree”. sigh. Not only that but the Heisman’s Trophy was going to be awarded at 8 and it was 7:55 so we were in sort of a time crunch. (Caleb is a passionate football fan).
Little by little the nest is getting festive. Yes, those are legos.
The painting from Aunt Colleen, vintage yellow fiestaware, a strand of lights, and my cookbook collection.
While searching for the decorations they found their old board puzzles.
A beautiful moment after the children were in bed…..a purring cat on my lap, candles, Sangria, and the lovely tree.
(Caleb just came in here asking if it was a snow day. After he heard the news he climbed up, “I want to snuggle with you. Can I see your phone? I want to see who won the game last night, I went to bed after the third quarter just in case it wasn’t a snow day.”)
So Sunday morning was blessedly relaxing. Rich was watching a movie and after a while I noticed him doing sit ups on the floor. This man works out EVERY DAY so I got a little bossy and said, “If you have energy I have something you could do instead.”
(Seth has appeared)
And then later on, we were getting ready for church and Rich captured this special moment. “When Moms do their Daughters Hair.” Sarah needed two tissues to get through it.
And when I showed her the photo of the final result she said proudly, “Is my hair really that long?” so I knew she wasn’t scarred for life.
Merry Christmas and a Happy Snow Day! I’ll blog tomorrow about all the things we did with our surprise vacation day from school. (Meanwhile, Seth is asking if he can open one of his presents)………
I dragged myself out of my cozy bed this morning to go wake up Seth for school, and wake him up I did, out of a sound sleep. We came upstairs together to find Caleb in the rocking chair, “There is a two hour delay, mom,” he says. Seriously, I could have stayed asleep. Ugh. But once up, I stay up and I made pancakes and bacon and hugged everyone. I heard a report from Caleb and Grace that “Sherlock was meowing all morning and wouldn’t stop. Jacob finally put him outside.” After the children all left for school I found the cat under the porch, in distress. “What is wrong with this cat?” I wondered, and then thought to myself, “He did bite Caleb not long ago, maybe he has rabies.” The more I thought about it the more I was convinced that he had rabies and since he bit Caleb, Caleb naturally had rabies as well. I called the vet and sure enough, his rabies vaccine had needed updating a year ago. I made an appointment to take the cat to the vet and also put in a call to the pediatrician to let them know Caleb was bitten by a cat that didn’t have his shots up to date and probably had rabies but I didn’t know because I was on my way to the vet with the cat. I had to leave a message and left to travel to the vets with my sad cat.
I was crying when I explained to the technician that I feared that my cat had rabies and that he had bitten my son. She quickly left the room to send in the vet, who came in saying, “Sherlock was vaccinated for rabies in the past and there is no way he can get rabies or pass rabies on to your son especially since it has been over two weeks since he bit your child.” She felt Sherlock all over and announced “Oh this is his problem, your cat cannot pass urine, he is blocked.” So I cried some more and tried calling my husband to ask him what to do and if we could spend 800 dollars to get Sherlock on the road to recovery. Rich grew up on a farm and values all living creatures, but only to a certain extent. ha ha. Providentially for the children and I, he did not answer his phone, so I called my son Jacob, who after all is a man now. After talking it through with Jacob we decided to go ahead and get treatment for our cat, as the only other option according to the vet would be to put him to sleep. All of us love Sherlock very much and since he had a sickness which could be treated, we decided that even though it would cost 800 dollars we felt responsible for his care and knew that in this instance it was the right decision to help our dear pet, after all he probably only bit Caleb because he was grumpy about his condition.
I drove home without Sherlock, who was being busily sedated and catheterized by the vet and her assistants to remove his blockage, which, as explained to me, was a multitude of crystals in his urine that had built up over time. In fact, the vet was a dear older lady who became a vet later in life after her own cat had the same condition. She told me that she was so impressed by her cat’s vet that she decided to become one as well. She was very nice, I liked her a lot. I’m wondering if now I will become a vet, too. 😉
I came home and ran 2 miles on the treadmill while texting my brother Dave in order to settle myself down again.
I am now sitting cross legged on my bed attempting to blog about Grace at the Christmas house.
Grace is part of the Madrigals singing group at her school and they dress up in victorian clothing and sing Christmas carols a cappella in exquisite harmony at many different venues. They were scheduled to sing at a lovely decorated museum on Saturday so I went and took Sarah with me. Rich came a little later, as well.
I loved the wall paper.
There were decorations everywhere, and a little gift shop in which Sarah spent a few dollars on matching Menorah necklaces for herself and her sister so that Grace, “would never forget me.” She said this with such sad eyes that Grace quickly told her “I could never forget you, Sarah, you’re my sister.” and then I cried a little. It was one of those moments.
The acoustics in this room were divine.
When they were finished with their performance, I took a few photos of Grace who was dressed so beautifully.
She was the queen.
There was an older gentleman in the room watching us who invited Grace to sit on the couch (museum furniture is not typically to be sat upon) for a photo.
The music director’s daughter MADE this dress for herself when she was the queen in high school.
Grace with her friend, who was coming to get her for a group portrait outside in front of the house. I gave the camera to Rich and asked him to try to get a picture of them for me while I went to go help Sarah with something.
And this is what I recieved:
~Merry Christmas~
look now! for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing. O rest beside the weary road, and hear the angels sing!
The dryer is humming. An orange cat is at my feet, busily cleaning his fur. The bed is made and I’m sitting on top of the blankets with blue jeans, a flannel, and brown moccasins on.
I can hear Sarah’s movie from the other room, I can hear the cat licking itself, I can hear the dryer, but as I look around the room, everything is quiet and still. Motionless. The trees outside are like statues. If I wasn’t typing, I would be motionless as well. My eyes would stare; at the shiny doorknob of my bedroom door, at the curtains, the fan on the floor, the patterns of the wood grain of the dresser.
What a difference a day makes. Yesterday at this time the kitchen and dining room were swarming with family, everyone talking, gesturing, laughing, working, eating, cleaning up, taking photos.
Everyone has gone.
It’s almost a lonely feeling. To make so many plans and then have a holiday over.
Caleb is loudly whistling. Rich is at the school setting up for wrestling season. I can hear the boys digging through the lego bin. Seth is singing a silly song.
I’m tired. I’m wearing the day after thanksgiving like a cozy blanket.
“From first to last it was crowded with delights.” LM Montgomery
My go-get-’em daughter Grace is on the hunt for a college and she made the decision to go to a Christian one. Weeks ago, it came to my mind that perhaps she would enjoy a college that was very familiar to me as it was a popular option for church students in the area that I grew up. In fact, my father took a few classes there, and Rich’s aunt also attended.
I was especially excited about it because my dear friend Joanna (who is mentioned on this blog about a thousand times) lives not far from the school. So I thought, “Wouldn’t it be neat to visit the college with Grace and then get to see Joanna?”
We went on their website and chose a date to visit: November 11th. Conveniently, this was a vacation day for Grace from school. I emailed Joanna to see if she would be in town that day.
BUT WAIT, there’s more! Not only was she in town, but she was SPEAKING at a ladies conference and asked if Grace and I would like to go with her. Of course we would!
About a week later, as I was preparing our trip details, it came to my knowledge that…..
BUT WAIT, THERE’s more!My son Ethan (who is a Freshman at a college in Vermont) was going to be IN THE SAME AREA for a wrestling tournament!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What???? are the odds? The tournament was on the same day as the conference so I was conflicted. After thinking about how to solve this problem, I thought that perhaps Ethan’s girlfriend would like to come along with us. SHE could surprise Ethan by showing up at his meet and that way I wouldn’t feel bad for being at a Bible conference while my son was literally only 30 minutes away from me (my heart!).
So, eventually, I received a “yes”from Tessa, but she asked if maybe David could go along as well, so she wouldn’t have to hang around at the gym alone.
Our little trip now included two extra teenagers=the more the merrier! I made reservations at a hotel situated in between both events and had good reviews, and a reasonable price.
We headed out of town in the darkness of 4:30 a.m. on Friday morning.
Grace was blessed over and over by the people of this school, and during the tour she was shown many things to be excited about. She enjoyed every minute.
BUT WAIT, THERE’s more!
While we were sitting in the dorm listening to our tour guide explain dorm life, a familiar face walked by. I recognized this young lady as the daughter of an old friend of mine! It was a joy to see and speak with her, and for Grace as well, especially after realizing she was the cousin of her friend Kyle and a best friend of her cousins. “It’s a small world” & “church connections” are the best!
Our tour at the school was over at 3:30. Joyfully, Joanna was able to finish up her work and texted me to ask if we could go to her house for pizza dinner. This was another unexpected blessing: to be able to see her entire wonderful family, see the things she’s done in her home since the last time I was there, and also allow Grace and Dave to meet her husband and children.
Before we went to her house, we decided to head to our hotel to relax for an hour. We checked into our room and dove on the beds, each of us with our own electronic device.
But wait, there’s more! I checked our group text (between my husband, myself, and our three oldest) and saw that Rich had questioned Ethan about where the wrestling team was staying that night. We hadn’t asked him before because we didn’t want him to become suspicious about us going to his tournament.
GUESS WHAT???????? The team was driving to our VERY SAME HOTEL to spend the night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You can imagine the squeal of shock as I leapt out of bed in my joy. Tessa and I were beyond amazed and thrilled to learn that we would actually SEE ETHAN THAT VERY NIGHT!
You have to realize, we were in a very populated area in PA, there are probably one hundred hotel options, and God put us in the SAME EXACT ONE!
WITH MY FRIEND AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!! after two years!
love you, Josephina! 🙂
Steve and the kids were just the sweetest and nicest and we had delicious pizza together before heading back to the hotel.
Using the handy dandy “find my phone” feature on our iPhones Rich was able to let me know when Ethan’s bus was within 10 minutes of the hotel. Grace and I sat in the lobby, and I was still in denial that this whole thing was happening. I felt like “I’ll believe he is truly staying in this hotel when I see the bus pull up.”
AND IT DID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grace ran off to get Tessa for Ethan’s surprise #2 and I wasn’t aware of it so I didn’t get that one on video. But he was thrilled to say the least. After the team settled into their rooms, Ethan was able to come back to us and we were able to see each other until almost 11pm.
The next morning, I drove Dave and Tessa to the college to watch the wrestling tournament. Grace and I continued on to Joanna’s house. We picked her up and had time to go through Dunkin’ drive thru for tea, and then to the church where Joanna was one of three women speakers.
Right off the bat, my soul was being soothed by the songs, the women, and the atmosphere. It was just what we needed to make this weekend away from home PERFECT.
And to see my daughter and my dearest friend together…..Bibles open…..learning, growing, singing praises, loving…..it was such a gift. God ministered to me and my children over and over in the most tangible ways. It was overwhelming, to say the least. I’m still feeling the adrenaline rush as I type.
Joanna’s talk was Christ centered and soulful, I was in tears. One of the stories she told was about the time she and her husband adopted their daughter from Ethiopia, and how moving it was to be able to take the orphanage clothes off her new baby, and, as her new mama, to dress her in a handmade, beautifully smocked dress (made just for her by dear Dawn). This continues to serve as a beautiful reminder to her of the very same way that God clothes us as His dearly beloved children, showing us that we belong to Him.
She even had the dress with her to hold up and show the women. Tears!
sisters in Christ, friends for over twenty years, soul sisters, always and forever
Joanna came with Grace and me to the remainder of the wrestling tournament. This was the first meet she had ever watched, and it was fun to share with her something that is a HUGE part of my life each winter. We had missed out on Ethan’s two matches but Tessa was kind enough to record them for us. He lost his first match by points, and won the second by a pin.
I was able to meet one of the other moms of the team, and two of the coaches as well. It was fun to watch the matches and it made me excited for the upcoming wrestling season for my younger boys.
The meet ended and we took a few photos before Ethan got on the bus for Vermont.
(David took a 2 hour nap in the hallway during the meet, LOL) And Grace (although you can’t tell) was in tears and starting to feel shaky and sick. The excitement was starting to catch up to her.
So Joanna and I dropped them off at the hotel and the two of us were able to go out to eat. She took me to a Greek place that she and Steve go to on their dates. (Thank you to Steve for the suggestion!)
You can just imagine all the talking we did.
I took her home and continued back to my hotel room, completely filled up with the goodness of the day.
The next morning we allowed ourselves to sleep in a little. We left by 9 and made a stop at Krispy Kreme donuts before entering the highway for the three and a half hour drive home.
This post doesn’t even begin to describe all the ways God blesses our lives. But it does give a taste of how what we think will be an ordinary life can become abundantly and richly touched by His hand. It was a *praise and thank you Jesus* sort of weekend! And it is a *praise and thank you Jesus sort of life* for all those who believe on His name.
“May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.” Numbers 6:24-25
But there are also many other things which Jesus did–so vast a number indeed that if they were all described in detail, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would have to be written. John 21:25
People who know Grace know what makes her special.
(Everyone is special in their own unique way. Everyone.)
And Grace is special because of what is in her heart, her mind, her soul.
Her heart is full of love. Ever since she was a little girl, she wanted a hand to hold and someone to listen. She wanted to encourage, give attention, give hugs.
Her mind is bright. It wants to lead. It thinks of things that no one else does, because God gave her a gift, just as He gives each one of us a gift to use for this world we live in. There is no one like Grace, there is no mind like her mind. She has desire to busily learn and grow. So many interests, hobbies, jobs. Once she sets her mind on something, look out.
Her soul belongs to God. She loves the holy Scriptures, the hymns, the worship. Her spirit always rejoices, and produces the good fruit of love, joy, goodness and peace.
As her mom, that is what I see.
At first I thought, I’m not going to wax eloquent with this post, I’m just going to let the pictures speak their thousand words.
But who am I kidding? I have words! Must.get.them.out.
It just so happened that when she was born, and after the nurses made sure her airway was clear, they gave Grace to her Dad first……and I love that. (She certainly is a Daddy’s girl.) My husband placed our first little daughter into my arms. And she was an absolute DOLL. A teeny tiny doll baby………..
That was 17 years ago, today.
Happy Birthday, Grace!
I rarely see this girl of mine these days because she’s a busy busy senior in High School, and very very involved in Drama and Music. When I got home yesterday afternoon, the bus from school had already gone by, and so I chatted with Dave in the kitchen and then made my way through the living room to get to my bedroom…..and there was Grace on the couch, reading a book. Oh I was so excited, I admit I shrieked with glee, I grabbed her and we went outside to do her birthday photo shoot (I like to take good photos of my children on or around their birthdays). Photos that I didn’t think I would have time to take because I rarely see her in the daylight hours. Squeeeeeeeeeee!
“One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar.”
HELEN KELLER
Grace and I have a great relationship….although at times it is better for her to go to her Dad with things, as well. (He and I make an excellent parenting team and often give each other high fives).
She adores her two big brothers, and her younger siblings, as well. In my mind, I can see the relationships she has with each one.
“But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” Luke 2:19
That’s what mothers do.
Grace is applying to colleges and in a few weeks I’m taking her to visit one. There is part of me that is already preparing for when she leaves and I’m not going to lie…..it’s going to be hard for our family to see her go. But go she must, because she’s meant to soar.
(Grace’s cat kept photobombing)
Yesterday while the kids were at school, my mom and I were texting and trying to decide what kind of cake Grace would want me to make for her…..Mom said “vanilla with strawberries” and I guessed “chocolate with vanilla frosting.” Hours later I was able to ask Grace.
She said she wanted a cheesecake, and even specified the temperature of it: partially frozen.
partially frozen cheesecake!!!! Never would have guessed that one.
I haven’t MADE a cheesecake in probably 20 years so this is going to be a fun day.
(one of my favorite photos, which came about because I said, “KITTYYYYYY!” a bit too frantically, trying to get the cat to look at the camera). ha ha ha ha! They have the same expression on their faces!
While writing, this song popped into my head:
Forever and ever, you’ll stay in my heart And I will love you Forever and ever, we never will part Oh, how I love you Together, forever, that’s how it must be To live without you Would only mean heartbreak for me.
~Aretha Franklin, “I say a Little Prayer”
I think I’ll play later and make Grace dance in the kitchen with me. ❤
Rich’s Aunt Phyllis visited this weekend with her cousin Marie. Rich’s Dad came, too. They wanted to watch Grace in a play at her school. It was such fun to attend together but my favorite part of all was when we were home again and the ladies were snuggling up on the couch reading an old old copy of Mrs. Piggle Wiggle. Aunt Phyllis gave the book to Grace and it is special because her mom (Grace’s Great Great Grandma) used to read it to her children at bedtime. And from this very copy Aunt Phyllis and Marie each read a chapter aloud to the girls. On Sarah Joy’s lap is a quilt that was given to her Great Grandma which she kept on her lap during her last years. It was made by another relative. Aren’t relatives the best, the most inspiring of all? I love all the women in my family, both in my own family and the family I married in to. I feel very blessed by all the stories, sewing, quilting, crafting, working, mothering, beauty, books, baking, and so on……that I learned from my sisters, cousins, aunts, Mom, and grandmas. All so uniquely special and dear.
I look into their faces and see my self, and own children, in them.
Rich is hosting an off site meeting today for work and as always, I am making homemade rolls for our sandwiches. (they are rising as I type) I don’t divide my Grandma’s recipe anymore because I can use all the dough I can get! Last night I mixed up the dough and put half in the refrigerator for today’s rolls, and formed the rest into a big pan of cinnamon rolls. After all, it was a holiday, it was Halloween! I baked in the kitchen while Davy made clam chowder and Rich took the three youngest children out trick or treating. We had Harry Potter going on TV and there were a roomful of teen-sized kids in the basement having their own party.
I posted the photo of the completed rolls on FB and Instagram and several of my dear friends requested the recipe.
My Grandma (her name was Mary) used to bake these rolls by the hundreds…she was well known for them in our church and in her home for the holidays. She in turn passed the bread baking art down to her daughters–my mom Cindy makes amazing bread on a weekly basis and I’ve shared several of her recipes here on my blog already. She is a most amazing baker and I’m thankful she is just a phone call or text away to answer my questions and eventually answer questions for my girls, as well. The Mama/Grandma hotline! So blessed.
Isn’t family wonderful? I know yours is, too!
ROLLS
3-4 cups milk
3/4 cup sugar
1 T. salt
1/2 cup butter
3 cups water-divided
2 T yeast or 2 packages
2 eggs
close to 5 lb bag of flour
Mix 1 cup of warm water with the yeast and set aside. Heat milk, sugar, salt, and butter until dissolved–let cool. Add 2 cups cold water to mixture. Add the 2 cold eggs to the milk mixture. Combine the yeast mixture with the milk mixture. Add enough flour till the right consistency. (Approximately 5 lbs).
Knead dough till smooth on a flour surface. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let rise for about 2 hours (until doubled in size). Punch down dough-knead-then shape rolls or roll out for sweet rolls.
Place rolls in a greased pan and cover and let rise till doubled– about half an hour.
Bake at 350 for 24-25 minutes, till golden brown and rolls sound hollow when tapped.
Makes about 3-4 dozen dinner rolls and a 9 by 13 plan of sweet rolls.
(note: children LOVE to watch the process!! Sarah Joy eats a bit of the dough raw–she loves it!)
Roll dough to about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick on a floured surface. Pour on melted butter and spread to edges. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture. Roll up and slice about inch thick with a sharp knife. Place in well greased pan or into pan with caramel nut topping mixture spread in the bottom. Let rise for 1/2 to 1 hour and bake at 350 for 25-35 minutes
(note: raw cinnamon roll dough is even better! you can rub it around in the butter left behind on the counter! My dad loves to do this.)
CARAMEL Nut TOPPING 1/2 cup melted butter 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup chopped nuts
Thank you to my Aunt Colleen for sharing this recipe and making sure it is in the recipe files of all our families! You are wonderful.
NOTE-I use my kitchen aid mixture to knead the dough and then finish it off on the counter because I do like to get my hands on it during part of the process. It’s so soft and warm….good to work with.
*****
THIS IS MY HUSBAND’S GRANDMOTHER! Her name was Sarah Lillian but everyone called her Lillian. Aunt Phyllis shared this 1980’s newspaper clipping with us. It is from when Grandma was working in a school cafeteria (the very same school Rich and I and all our relatives attended) These were the days when children actually ate some HOMEMADE foods, like these big homemade peanut butter cookies (800 of them baked at once). I love the details in this picture and I know these ladies loved working together. They made biscuits, apple crisp, and so many other delicious foods for the children.
*****
My kitchen, where I think of all the women in my family as I work.
Dedicated to mamas, grandmas, and aunts everywhere.
You make a difference wherever you are, even long after you’re gone.
You are loved.
She keeps an eye on everyone in her household, and keeps them all busy and productive. Her children respect and bless her; her husband joins in with words of praise: “Many women have done wonderful things, but you’ve outclassed them all!” Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades. The woman to be admired and praised is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God. Give her everything she deserves! Festoon her life with praises!
A delightful story came home in Sarah’s backpack on Monday. Picture me reading this in the kitchen after baking two batches of two different kinds of homemade cookies, for my children.
It was a fascinating eye opener for me, as I tend to live in dreamland where children don’t care about video games as much as smiling parents with big hugs, warm cookies, friendly kitty cats, a big front yard outside in the country, lot of siblings, and clean bedrooms full of a magical assortment of good wholesome toys, puzzles, and books.
Ha ha ha ha ha ha!
It’s the “evre day” that gets me. If it said “sometimes” or “occasionally”…..sure. But “evre day”? really?
So, without Further Delay….
Evre Day Aftr Scwol, by Sarah, six years old, & perhaps a genius
I went don stars. too play viteo gams. I like to play viteo game. I like playing mincraft. Sarah said, “I like playing mincraft.”
I saw a Zombe it was abowt to esplod my howse. Me and my dogs ar going to cil the Zombe. Sarah said, “cil it dogs.”
I dfetid the Zombe. And I was hape. And my dogs wr hape to. I went bac to my howse to feed my dogs. Sarah said “I love my dogs.”
Aftr I dufetid the Zombe I went to my hose. In my hose I gave my dog’s mett. Sarah said, “I love my dog’s”.
Aftre I gave my dog’s mett I went to go hunting with my dog’s. Sarah said, “yee haa”.
Good to be Home 