My Valentine, My Love

The month of February is a friendly reminder to express your love to your family and friends.  It is also a month to create heart themed crafts and recipes! 

Here are a few of the things we have been up to:

Journals:  handmade with paper, ribbons, and love

Handmade Valentine's

Heart shaped paper chains or wreaths

 

Heart Shaped Bacon for Daddy

 

We also made heart shaped pancakes (chocolate chip!) which are always a hit.  As for candy, it would have been fun to have the little conversation hearts, but all brands had the peanut/tree nut warnings on them, as well as every other bag of chocolate on the market.  So, we opted to buy a huge bag of red, strawberry, licorice which wasn't really a winner in this house.  My little one prefers her peanut/tree nut free dark chocolates which we special order from time to time from Vermont Nut Free.  Pricey, but worth every cent.  As for Mama, little handwritten notes from my love melt my heart.  I enjoy reading them with my morning coffee.

Espresso Your Love!
XOXO



 

NEW YEAR = NEW BEGINNINGS

2013 is off to the most exciting beginning for our family.  We have made a New Year's resolution to officially open a home school.  Today is the first day our Academy is open.  The pros, without a doubt, outweigh the cons and we are blessed with this amazing opportunity that has endless benefits. There are too many to list, and I highly encourage you to research the topic online and visit  your local library to learn the truths about homeschooling opposed to the misconceptions about it.

Wishing you a very Happy, Blessed, New Year!  

HOLIDAY CRAZE AND DESK MAKEOVER

Everyone seems to get caught up in the hype of holiday shopping...buy this gadget, get this jewelry, buy that plastic toy!  Well, not me.  I prefer practical, special, and meaningful. 
For example, I gave an antique desk a makeover for my little one. 
This is what the sad little thing looked like before I gave it some TLC.  Damaged top, broken hardware...

Lots of sanding, staining, priming, painting, waxing, new hardware, and voila!
  

 

 

Some sweet treats for my sweetie!

Now she has her own lovely space to create art or whatever her heart desires. 

I will be in the kitchen. :)

 

Time To Give Thanks

I am thankful for many blessings this year.  A healthy family, food in our bellies, and a roof over our heads are on the top of my list.  Today was a little bit different.  I was thankful for a gorgeous fall day, shared with family, that involved drinking lots of warm coffee, raking leaves of many colors, and soaking up the sun after weeks of cool air that chilled us to the bones.

 

Last year, Santa brought my little one a shiny, new, red sled and a snow castle/snowball making kit
(I love the fact that the big guy must have an account with L.L. Bean.)
Although we didn't get to break in these toys last year, I have a feeling that we will be giving them a whirl this winter.  We've been waiting all year to play in the snow.

Warmest Blessings













 

Remember my love of lemons?  I am not talking about making lemonade, but rather, my cousin's yummy lemon poppy bread, and using a fabulous, lemon cream lotion that smells scrumptious and it makes my hands feel AMAZING.  I am constantly washing my hands (since having a child with severe food allergies makes me paranoid about germs and any cross contamination.)  My hands feel like they have been through winter, even in the summer time.  J.R. Watkins hand & body lotions to the rescue!  They are pure heaven to my hands:  Lemon Cream, Mango, Vanilla, Lavender, Grapefruit and more.

 
Well, I like I said before, I must be living under a rock.  I am thrilled to have discovered these lotions and you can buy them directly from J.R. Watkins online.  They are on the OCTOBER SPECIALs for $8.99 USD each.  Just click on the J.R. Watkins button on the right and use my id#397395 when ordering.  These products are wonderfully yummy folks. The natural body care smells divine and the natural extracts & gourmet spices are fantastic.  My ultimate favorite: Organic Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract.   I use it in just about everything I bake...including my pancakes :) 
Be sure to click on the Monthly Specials to take advantage of the other goodies before Halloween! 
Sale ends October 31st.  NO TRICKS!  JUST TREATS!

It's Fall and Gluten-Free Soup's On!

We just returned from a much needed, sunny, warm vacation by the sea and came home to cooler weather that reminded me of how much I love Fall.  The chilly air urged me to dust off my huge IKEA kettle (actually, it's not that dusty because I love it and use it alot) to get rockin' and cookin'!

Since mini-me has picked up yet another bug from kindergarten, I chose to whip up a batch of my chunky-chicken-noodle soup from scratch.   I don't have soup recipes, I always just wing it and it they always come out to be the most delicious soups (so I'm told.) There is NO skimping going on here with my ingredients.
 
I first start by baking skinless chicken breast tenders in a bath of organic milk (soy or cow cream, whatever you fancy) and Earth Balance (or regular butter) to keep them from drying out.  It only takes about 30 minutes at 350 degrees F, so while they are in the oven, my kettle heats just enough olive oil to cover the bottom on medium/high heat.  Add a chopped onion, some chopped carrots (a small bag of large ones or baby ones), and a bunch of celery with leaves (or celery seeds if you don't have any).  Once these veggies soften a bit, I add a bag of frozen cut green beans (and sometimes 1/2 a bag of frozen peas & carrots).  Then I like to sprinkle on dried basil, parsley, salt, and sometimes oregano.  Again, no measuring...I just eyeball it and it looks to be about a tablespoon...I just sprinkle enough to dust everything in the pot.  After a few minutes I add 1 quart of chicken stock (be sure it is gluten-free.)  I let it bubble, and then add another quart, bring to bubble, and then add another.  So, I use about 3.  Once it bubbles again, the chicken may be almost done, so take it out of the oven.  Keep a large cutting board nearby with a fork and a nice large chopping knife.  So, when the broth is most likely bubbling, I add a 1/2 box of GLUTEN FREE pasta and cook per directions.  I LOVE Trader Joe's corn spiral pasta.  It is awesome, and tastes like regular wheat pasta.  Now, if you don't need to go Gluten-Free, just stick to whatever you have in your pantry then.  While the noodles cook, time to chop up the chicken into small chunks on the cutting board (I like small bite size for little ones.) When the noodles are done, add the chicken.  Finally, I like to add 2-4 cups of cold filtered water to help cool down the soup.  Before serving anyone bowls of my soup, I always have to add a few ice cubes to the bowls, and then fill with soup before serving, so it cools nicely.  

My kettle is HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY!

 

I make such a big batch, that I always have enough to freeze in small containers to have on hand for quick and easy kid-size meals.

 

See?  NO SKIMPING!  Yummy, chunky, chicken noodle soup!

 

I like top my soup with fresh Romano or Parmasean cheese. 

Whatever you fancy.  Enjoy!

I've Been Going Nut-Free Nutty!

The summer has come and gone, and I deeply apologize for not updating my blog the past few months.  I do not have enough words to accurately describe the stressful feeling inside me as I have been preparing the love of my life to experience the joys of kindergarten.  I thank heaven that I discovered the The Nut-Free Mom Blog, which, to me, has been holding my hand on this journey.  She has been my go-to source of information, as she truly understands the fear of having a child with a life-threatening food allergy.  I have had no experience as far as what to expect from a public school regarding the safety issue in this matter.  I have been homeschooling for the past 5 years, in a dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free bubble and stepping out of our safety/comfort zone has been sheer terror.  Sure, there is a nut-free table in the cafeteria/dining room, but that doesn't sugar coat the fact that some parents send their kids whatever they want for lunch---PB & J.  It seems like to be a staple in every kids diet.  How about splurging on some sunflower seed butter?  It looks like peanut butter, it's delicious, and it's healthy.  I would not recommend soy nut butter or almond butter.  As a peanut-butter thing lover, I am proud to report that I have been very pleased to eat a whopping spoon of this fine substitute right out of the jar.  I even made AWESOME peanut-free peanut butter cups a long time ago, but since I ate them all (my child must be insane not to like them) I thought it was in the best interest of my rear end that I didn't immediately make another batch knowing full well that I would be the only nut to devour them all.  It seems to me that I am way over due to make more.   So, I will just save the cheap, nasty-tasting soy nut butter for the following traditional project that every kid should be able to make:

PEANUT-FREE, BIRDSEED, PINE CONE BIRD FEEDERS
(What a tongue twister.  Say that 10 times!)

 
With a big sigh, I can honestly say that I now feel comfortable, as my mini-me is in a school that provides excellent care.  So far, there is a never ending stress of safety being the first priority for children, and curriculum is second.  (Whew! Take a deep breath, Mama.) I have been impressed with the school so far, but my child is disappointed.  She complains (in so many words) that she is not being mentally challenged enough.  Perhaps homeschooling should be my top priority?  We'll see.  I have been extremely busy focusing on so many other family and business issues in life that the idea of having to add homeschooling to my never ending to-do list has a good chance of sending me to a loonie bin, which I never would have expected.  I LOVE my child and I deeply miss her, everyday as I leave her walking the intimidating, long and endless halls of elementary school, as if from a horror film.  The entire staff is wonderful, so as I drive away, sobbing and wiping my eyes so I don't veer off the road, I remind myself that she is smart and I prefer that she continue her education in the Homeschool of Mama, but I must let her experience fun in kindergarten, at least for a little while.

As I close this post, I will say that it has been relatively easy to go nutty with so many issues on my plate, but I have remained amazingly strong...just the way I like my coffee.