according.to.kim

Highlights of the week

• eating turkey sandwiches for lunch --  as in, turkey cooked at home, not from the deli counter. Neil bought turkey breast filets from Costco and prepared them as follows: add VE Turkey Rub to the filets (4) and place them in a pan with about 1.75 cups of turkey broth; cover the pan and cook in 400F oven until thermometer reads 165F (30-45 minutes). It was just like having home-roasted turkey in a sandwich.
• going to the Willow on Wascana Thursday afternoon for a little Christmas party for my work department, hosted by Brown Communications (ad agency). There were four different appetizers and I enjoyed them all, but my favourite was the phyllo-wrapped goat cheese and mushrooms with caramelized onions on top. Yum!
• getting my new glasses on Thursday (as well as Neil getting his). When I picked them up I wasn't 100% in love with them -- blaming it on the fact that we had just a few minutes to choose frames last Saturday with all three kids in tow -- but they've grown on me and I quite like them now. They're navy blue and frameless on the bottom. Pretty basic.
• having a 3-day weekend. I needed every minute of it!
• checking things off my long to-do list which includes everything I need(ed) to do between Dec 5 and 18. It's good to see my progress on that list.
• seeing my parents and my brother and his family in Yellow Grass on Saturday for an early Christmas celebration. We had a wonderful turkey dinner (parts contributed by all three families which is a great way to do it!), and the six cousins had lots of fun together, as always. I enjoyed the game of Uno we played in the evening, but was sorry Robyn and Kacy couldn't participate. Poor Kacy came down with a stomach ailment in the evening and was pretty ill. I hope she's feeling better now! (so far, so good at our house!)
• having lots of photos to choose from for the final installment of my 2009 12-of-12 scrapbooking project. With our family gathering, December 12 was a great day for taking photos! I look forward to putting my December layout together, but I won't have time until mid-January at the earliest.
• getting all of our clothes packed on Sunday. Oh, how I dread the task of packing. And I think clothing is the worst part, so I'm glad to have that done. I still have shoes, swimming stuff, car entertainment, gifts, food, etc., etc. to pack... and that will consume most of my spare time this week.
• seeing Madeline perform in her MYC music recital on Sunday. She sang a song with her classmates (The Littlest Angel), played a short piano solo (Christmas Night), and played a wooden instrument in a rhythm ensemble (Jolly Old Saint Nicholas) with her class and another class. The whole recital was very nice. It was about 45 minutes long and we enjoyed lots of Christmas music from several different levels of students.
• deciding (rather hastily, I must say) to get an Australian Shepherd puppy in January! (I'll write more about this decision later.) I am totally excited about it, as is the rest of my family, but I can't help but feel we're a bit crazy to be doing this. We have never had a small puppy before (Sherlock was five months and house-trained when he came to us), and this dog (especially this breed) will require a great deal of exercise and attention from us for many years to come. I know it'll be wonderful to have a dog again, but I also know it's a HUGE responsibility! We have only seen a photo of our puppy taken by my Mom. I'm really looking forward to seeing him in person!

Hmmm, I think this blog will soon feature our adventures in raising an Australian Shepherd puppy! Oh, but first... our adventures in driving to the southern tip of Texas and back. (Yes, our life seems extra crazy right now!) I have not yet decided how much detail to include. It's very time-consuming to document each day of a trip -- and so a big part of me would like to skip it -- but I do like having a record. We'll see.

Highlights of the week, part 1 (Vegas edition)

• going to Las Vegas for a couple days to attend a workshop. It was fun to go and see the spectacle of Vegas once again (I was last there in 1998 for my brother's wedding), and eat some great food, but I must say that I don't desire to travel often for work -- without my family. I really wanted them to see what I was seeing! I'm really glad I got to go though. I hadn't traveled for work for 10 years (previously, Ottawa and Winnipeg a couple times).
• attending the NN/g Usability Week conference and Content Usability workshop at Caesars Palace. The workshop was pretty good; I learned some useful things (although not a huge amount, perhaps because I often read about usability anyway). There was another workshop (re: brand tone of voice) that might have been more valuable to me. Fortunately, I was able to get the book from that one. The conference itself was very nice. Breakfast, lunch, coffee, and snacks (am & pm) were supplied and everything was wonderful! For example, the morning break included yogurt parfaits with fresh raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, and granola, and the coffee bar had whipped creme, shaved chocolate, cinnamon sticks, and more. No plastic dishes or cutlery either.
• savouring the quietness of my hotel room. This is too rare for me not to enjoy it!
• walking along the strip, and within the Fashion Show Mall and Forum Shops, on Tuesday evening. Las Vegas is such a sight to see! I do love seeing all the lights, fountains, waterfalls, and so on. People watching was fun, too. (Some people wear bizarre things!) I didn't do any gambling, and I decided against seeing a show since my time was very limited and there's much to see for free anyway. Instead, I chose to spend money on a pair of shoes for myself and Ugly Dolls for my kids.
• eating a meal at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill within Caesars Palace. This was a real treat! I had an Amstel Light beer, three kinds of bread with butter (set on the table, gratis; the jalepeño bread was especially yummy), Cornmeal Crusted Chile Relleno with Roasted Eggplant + Manchego Cheese with Sweet Red Pepper Sauce + Balsamic Vinegar (entree), Chorizo-Goat Cheese Tamale with Thyme Butter (side dish), and Blackberry-Mango Crostada with Blackberry Coulis + Vanilla-Blackberry Swirl Ice Cream (dessert). Yes, I was stuffed after all this! Every bite was wonderful -- especially the Cornmeal Crusted Chile Relleno. Absolutely one of the most amazing things I've ever eaten.
• getting home safe and sound Wednesday night. I don't mind flying, but some flight delays had me feeling a bit uneasy and helpless. My flight from Denver to Regina was delayed a couple of times due to the plane having mechanical problems in Wichita. I think they actually changed the plane in Kansas, but then they announced the flight was weight restricted because it was carrying extra fuel -- just in case we couldn't land in Regina (due to weather) and would have to turn around and go to Great Falls, Montana for the night. Huh?! I was so happy when we finally landed in Regina! (just before midnight, two hours later than scheduled)

Heavenly 100 Day Hash

In February, Madeline brought home a book from the school library called Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the 100th Day of Kindergarten. We really enjoyed this book and read it many times during the week we had it. Inside was a recipe for "Heavenly 100 Day Hash" which sounded tasty and fun to make, so I jotted it down with the intention to make it with the girls on the 100th day of the calendar year. Did you know April 10 is the 100th day? What luck that it happens to be Good Friday as well this year, so there's no school or work tomorrow and we have time to make it. Looking forward to it!

Heavenly 100 Day Hash
(from Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the 100th Day of Kindergarten by Joseph Slate and Ashley Wolfe)

Pick 10 pieces from each bowl:

1. cereal-os
2. pretzels
3. nuts
4. marshmallows
5. sunflower seeds
6. raisins
7. chocolate chips
8. banana chips
9. cereal pillows
10. popcorn

Cowgirl birthday party

Invitations:

• homemade pink cards in the shape of cowgirl boots (made from this colouring page)

Decorations:

• brown kraft paper on the table
• sisal rope draped around the room and over the window
• chili pepper lights draped over the window
• Mexican blankets over the couch and chair
• two cowboy hats hanging from the lamp (I tried wearing one and was much too hot, but Neil wore his)
• four plastic barn door panels over the TV and on the wall (from Gale's on Dewdney)
• all the plush horses and dogs from our house placed in clumps around the living room (the girls' idea and actually very cute)

Arrival and group photo:

• as each guest arrived, we gave her a child-sized cowboy hat and tied a pink bandanna around her neck
• once everyone was here and wearing their hat and bandanna, we assembled the girls for a quick group photo session
• there were 11 children including ours

Food:

• we set the food out right away, so the girls could snack on it throughout the party...
• ripple chips
  
• carrots, cucumber, celery sticks, and dip
• Pigs in a Blanket (made with multi-grain crescent dough, cheddar cheese, and mini sausages from Sobey's -- double smoked turkey and bacon & cheese; they turned out great!)

Games:

• the children seemed to enjoy all of the games we planned...
• pin the tail on the donkey (from Bazarre & Novelty)
• find the cowgirl boots (I printed 20 boots (same as invitation) on pink card stock (four to a sheet), cut them out roughly, then hid them all over our main floor using tape to stick them in various places -- not too difficult, but I had to give hints for the last few and we didn't find one... Madeline found it three days later!)
• rodeo roping (idea from Sophia and Madeline; Neil tied a sisal rope lariat and used some wire to reinforce the loop shape; each child sat on Madeline's little horse, Butterscotch, and then tried to toss the loop over Scooby Doo's head (stuffed animal about two feet tall); it wasn't easy, but they liked trying and there were a couple successes!)
• cow, cow, horse (played just like duck, duck, goose)

Gift opening/hot potato:

• we had the girls (still sitting in a circle from the last game) pass the gifts around slowly while The Devil Went Down to Georgia played on the computer, and then Madeline would open whatever gift she was holding when the music stopped (Neil controlled the music)
• this worked pretty well and gave me a chance to jot down what came from whom

Cake and ice cream:

• we had the girls colour on the table (kraft paper) with wax crayons while they waited for their drinks and then cake (it was great having them occupied at this time!)
• beverages were water and caffeine-free root beer served in little plastic wine glasses
• the cake was a rainbow confetti cake baked in a bundt pan, frosted with pink (vanilla) Dream Whip Fluffy Frosting; and topped with six cowgirl candles (two each of white horses, pink cowboy boots, and purple hats)
• we all sang Happy Birthday to Madeline before eating, of course (and the kids coloured on the table again while they waited for their cake and ice cream)

Free time and goody bags:

• the children played for about 20 minutes before parents started arriving
• each guest received a goody bag as they were leaving...
• a plain brown paper lunch bag filled with western-themed notepads, horse stickers, a little plush horse, and a pack of sugar-free Juicy Fruit. The top was folded down and secured with a horse sticker and we used hemp string to attach a white label with the child's name (printed by Madeline)
• everyone got to take their cowboy hat and bandanna home as well

That's it. It was a great party if I may say so myself! I will try to share some pictures soon.

***
Today I'm thankful for:

• laughter
• smoking bans
• extra strength gel eye drops (my eyes are horribly dry right now)

I made shortbread

And I'm trying not to feel like I wasted my afternoon off.

The cookies turned out okay, but the process was painful. I think my first mistake was doubling the recipe. The recipe says "This can be doubled using one pound of butter and four cups flour solidly packed." (The single recipe calls for one cup of butter and two cups of flour.) Well, I guess I misinterpreted "solidly packed" because I had way too much flour. The dough was so dry and crumbly there was absolutely no hope of rolling it out. (Next time -- if there is one! -- I think I should mix the butter and sugar together first and then add less than the full amount of flour to ensure the dough isn't too dry.) At that point, I had two choices of course: dump it all in the garbage or add some butter. I really hate to be wasteful, so I decided to add butter, but had lost all enthusiasm knowing the shortbread would not be tender after all that mixing... Nevertheless, I forged ahead. I added a blob of butter I had softened in the microwave and mixed it in. It looked better. Then I rolled and cut squares with a ruler and knife because I don't have any cookie cutters in appropriate sizes or shapes. At least that part was quick. But not as appealing to me (or fun) as the scallop-edged circle and square my mom always used! Anyway, I got them in the oven and was careful not to overbake them, so they turned out in that sense. They are a little tough though and I think they're a little short on sugar because of all the extra butter and flour in them... but they're okay. I guess I learned some things today, but it may be quite awhile before I attempt to make shortbread again!

P.S. The girls don't even like the baked shortbread (they did like the raw dough). Now I really feel like cleaning the living room would have been a better use of my time!

Highlights of the week

• having Monday off (sorry; that never gets old!)
• getting October photos printed, and then slipping them into a photo album for viewing. Since I had neglected to print photos for so long (3.5 years), I still have to pat myself on the back every time I do this! And I really like being able to flip through a real album to see photos.
• listening to an enthusiastic rendition of O Canada on Monday on the way to dance class. Sophia, Madeline, and my niece have it down pat (mostly in French) from singing it at school every day.
• telling my coworkers about how Sophia wasn't prepared for Brownie badge testing on Tuesday but she desperately wanted to get one, and they told me to find something she already knows how to do. Brilliant! So, Sophia performed Irish dance for a "Share Your Talent for Dance" badge.
• learning more of the Slip Jig in my class on Tuesday. It's a lovely dance and I can't wait to know it all, but it's very challenging for me!
• sending letters to Santa by email on Wednesday. We all had a good time entering the information and receiving a response from Santa right away.
• seeing how well the big girls have been keeping their room tidy. They get something out to play with and then put it back before getting something else out. It's amazing! With some supervision (of course), the checkout system is actually working!!!
• receiving Sophia's school photos (best ever!), but, but... where are Madeline's? I ordered them, I paid for them, but they didn't show up. Madeline says she's the only one who didn't get any. Hmmm. Whatever the problem, I hope it's a quick fix.
• receiving my Blurb books in the mail. These two books spanning September 2005 to April 2006 are particularly special to me because they cover the last trimester of my last pregnancy, the time when we learned about Georgia's heart condition, and those sweet -- but difficult in some ways (e.g., infant home monitor) -- first months of her life.
• reading a Dr. Seuss book, Oh the Places You'll Go, to the girls one night. I love the messages in that book, and I had almost forgotten how much I enjoy reading Dr. Seuss out loud. There's nothing quite like it.
• getting a few more shelves for our pantry closet. When we removed our water cooler several months ago, it left a space about 14" wide which was wasted until now. It was so great to move some stuff from the kitchen counter top and other places to these shelves.
• having Mom visit for a few hours on Saturday. The girls really loved having her undivided attention for books and board games.
• waking up at 8:00 a.m. this morning to find that everyone else was still asleep. I don't think it's ever happened before that we all slept that late.
• having a couple little girls over for a playdate this afternoon (sisters, one Sophia's age, and one Madeline's age). The five of them sure had a lot of fun together, and they all loved the snack I made for them (breakfast/granola bars with no name; just a recipe in my handwriting; no idea where I got it!):

2 c. oats
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. wheat germ
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 c. whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. honey
1 large egg
1/4 - 1/2 c. oil [yes, this is a useless measurement to give! I used a 1/4 c. + 2 tsp. today and I think I'll use more next time]
2 tsp. vanilla

[I added 1/2 c. mini M&Ms, and I think this was a big part of why the kids loved 'em]

Mix dry ingredients. Add remaining ingredients. Press into flat baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Cut into bars.

[I baked them for 25 minutes on convection and they were very hard around the edges; I'll check them at 20 minutes next time.]

34 days until Christmas

Can you believe it's that close already? The weather wasn't very wintery until yesterday, so it seemed a little further away until now! Good thing we've managed to start a few preparations...

***

The girls wrote their wish lists a few days ago (Sophia was the scribe for all three). Here's a glimpse:

Sophia asked me to write my approval on the paper so Santa will know it's okay to give this to her, and I actually did. (Have I lost my mind!?) But I did not agree to "a pet that we can take care of are self" [sic]. (She learned from her cousin that Santa can't give some things without a parent's okay. Good idea, Laurel!)

Last evening, we emailed Santa a letter from each child. I did a bit of research and decided to use this site this year: http://www.emailsanta.com/ (We emailed through the Canada Post website last year.)

I must say, this website was pretty cool and entertaining! The letter form was fun to fill out. When asked how good she has been this year, Sophia selected "my halo has been to the repair shop only a few times", which I thought was admirably honest!

We received a reply to each letter immediately and it was very customized with mention of the items they asked for and any additional comments they included in their letter. For example, Georgia asked for Dora stuff and Santa wrote back, "Did you know that Dora and that silly monkey Boots visited me at the North Pole on one of their adventures?" (Well, of course Georgia knew that! She's Dora's #1 fan.) Santa wrote back to Madeline, "By the way, Rudolph came running when I told him that you mentioned him in your email!"

The girls all loved hearing Santa's reply when I read it to them. The website also makes it easy to print a nice copy of the letter we sent to Santa and his reply.

***

Though I haven't acted on this yet, I have the unusual urge to do some Christmas baking (maybe it's because others keep mentioning it on their blogs!). I say unusual because I don't do Christmas baking and I've never felt like I needed to. It seems like an awful lot of work to me (I prefer to bake simple things like muffins, and I don't even do that very often!), and we always end up consuming plenty of Christmas treats without having a ready supply in our own house! But this year... I think I would like to make shortbread. Specifically, my Grandma's / Mom's recipe. It's my favourite cookie, bar none. I don't need anything else. Maybe someday I'll make some of the other Christmas favourites my Mom made when I was growing up, but I don't think I need to make more than one thing this year. That would be crazy -- for me!

Since I'm a little (or a lot) inexperienced, I should read these Better baking tips for shortbreads and butter cookies. I do have our family recipe, so I just need to find some time. (Alone time preferably... I'm sorry to say I'm not eager to do this with three little helpers. Gosh, I admire people who have the patience to bake with children helping!)

***

I always enjoy putting up and decorating the tree -- and I even like having the girls help me with this activity! But I won't do it until December. I think the 6th looks like a good day for it. This year, I'm planning to purge the things we don't use anymore from our two big bins of Christmas decorations. Both are completely full and I hope to pare them down a bit.

I just remembered I have already purchased an ornament for each child (I do this every year; here are photos of all the girls' ornaments so far). This year, I bought handmade ornaments at the Rogers Pass Discovery Centre when we drove through the mountains in the summer. This is great because I often don't get that done until after Christmas.

Neil put up our new lights on the house last week (but we won't turn them on until Dec 1). We traded in our old incandescent lights at Home Depot a few weeks ago and got some great discounts on LED lights. I'm so glad they have "warm white" lights available now.

***

Hmmm, what else? We only have a little bit of Christmas shopping done so far. I think I'm usually a bit more organized about gifts by this date. Time to get crackin'!

We don't have official plans for Christmas celebrations yet, but we will get together with my side of the family (most of Neil's side will be out of province/country at Christmas). Unfortunately, I don't have any vacation days left to use at Christmas this year, but I will have a five day stretch from the 24th to the 28th. Looking forward to that!

Madeline just said...

...in a very demanding tone, "I want pita chips, corn chips, brown crackers, and celery with dip for supper!" I think that last bit about the celery -- a very uncharacteristic request from Madeline -- came out in response to the look on my face from her tone and the start of her request.

Madeline is becoming a better eater, but as you can see, her preferred food group continues to be crunchy carbs.

From Scratch Kitchen

My friend, Sheralyn, invited me to go to the From Scratch Meal Assembly Kitchen last Tuesday for a private session (there were seven in her group). It was great! In one evening, I had seven six-serving meals assembled and ready for the freezer -- and ready to be used in a time crunch or anytime we just want something good and easy. Since Neil does most of the cooking in our house, these meals will be a nice break for him.

Here's how it works: At the website, www.fromscratchkitchen.com, you book your time slot and select the meals you want from the current menu, as well as the serving size (three or six). Then when you arrive at the kitchen (on Vic Ave), all the ingredients you need are ready for you. All you have to do is follow the recipe, measure, and assemble. And the best part: when you're finished assembling each meal, the staff clean up after you! The work stations were clean and nicely set up, so it was fun to work there too.

These were my selections:

• Chicken Broccoli Divan with Tea Biscuits
• Easy Cheesy Tortellini Bake with Sausage
• Lime in the Coconut Thai Chicken with Basmati Rice
• Sesame Chicken with Orange Sauce and Rice Pilaf
• Slow Roasted Beef Enchiladas
• Spinach Feta Artichoke Stuffed Chicken with Roast Potatoes
• Sweet and Saucy Saskatoon Berry Ribs with Crunchy Baked French Fries

All the side dishes were already prepared (except the potatoes are not cooked, and the tea biscuits require the addition of milk, and baking, of course). You just need to make sure you take the appropriate side dish home and cook it along with the rest of the meal. Also, I think another vegetable or salad is needed to complete the meal, so that's up to you.

I couldn't resist trying one of our meals right away, so on Wednesday, we had the Lime in the Coconut Thai Chicken. It was delicious! (And I didn't put banana in it because Neil hates bananas.) I think that one in particular was a bit more work to cook at home than the others because the chicken needed to be browned before it went into the oven. The others I selected just need to be defrosted and then baked in the oven.

I chose to do six-serving meals because we like having leftovers for lunch or supper the next day; however, the side dishes are probably too small for us to have any leftover as our kids will want to eat those the most. That was the case on Wednesday, so we had to make more rice on Thursday to have with the leftover Thai chicken.

I think the prices are reasonable for the food you get and the service. After all, they do all the grocery shopping, ingredient prep, and clean-up. It's about $6.00 a serving (not including the extra veggies we need to add at home). That's about what we'd pay for a crappy fast food meal, so I figure if these yummy meals can replace some crappy fast food meals (that we don't have very often anyway), then it's all good!

P.S. CTV was there on Tuesday to interview the business owner and film us assembling our meals. I think it will be aired on Thursday, Feb 14. I really hope I don't appear very much, or at all! I found it a bit distracting to have the TV camera pointed at me or my hands as I worked. When I was making the enchiladas, the camera guy warned me, "the camera will be right here under your elbow." Oh - great!

Daily scan: 10 Feb 2000

In Feb 2000, we toured the González Byass sherry wine bodega in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain (see map). You may have heard of their brand, Tio Pepe. This is the inside of a wine cellar (though called a "cellar", it is not underground, but rather a large warehouse that's kept cool, damp and dark). Did you know the only place where true sherry wine can be produced is in the sherry wine region of Spain?

I must admit I'm not a huge fan of sherry wine itself, but I fell in love with sherry wine vinegar in Jerez where there's a bottle on every table. There is nothing like a simple oil and vinegar salad dressing made with good quality sherry wine vinegar! For weeks, Neil carried a bottle of González Byass "Vinagre de Jerez" through Spain, Portugal, and Andorra so we could take some home. It was worth it, wasn't it, Neil?

Daily pic: 22 Dec 07

We had our first family Christmas gathering on Saturday. Laurel and Bronwyn were leaving for Texas this morning, so we went to their house yesterday to eat supper together and exchange gifts. For supper, Neil picked up food at Smokin' Okies BBQ. Nice and easy! Afterwards we had chocolate fondue using the fondue pot and chocolate I received in the huge chocolate basket I won in October. For dippers, we used things we had on hand -- toasted pecans, rolled vanilla cream wafers (from my recent gift basket), ginger thins, mandarin oranges, and marshmallows. It was all good!

Christmas events

Neil took this lovely picture at Madeline's preschool Christmas party this morning. She's opening a little gift from Santa (that we helped him select). I wasn't there today; instead, I'll take time off to attend the preschool pajama party that happens to be on her birthday next month.

At work today, we enjoyed a delicious staff appreciation lunch. The managers in my department brought food in for the occasion. It was partly catered by Peg's Kitchen (perogies, cabbage rolls, sausage), and we also had a chocolate fountain with Callebaut chocolate and all kinds of goodies for dipping. Yummy! I didn't eat supper tonight and I'm still not hungry.

Sophia's class went to Government House this afternoon and learned how the pioneers celebrated Christmas. She was very impressed by all of the poinsettias there, as well as the Christmas tree decorated entirely with little gifts and food (like popcorn, candy, and orange slices).

This evening, I prepared lots of veggies and dips for our Christmas "food day" at work tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it! Potlucks are always so good.

Tomorrow afternoon, Neil and I will both go to Emerald Park to see Sophia's class perform their Christmas program at a senior citizens' home there. I will use a couple hours of overtime for that. Wish I had more vacation days left! Oh well, at least I have enough for next week and it will be so awesome to have the whole week off -- and be at home most of the time (a rare treat for me).

Finally, Sophia will have her class Christmas party on Friday. Madeline is now finished school for the holiday. Both teachers' Christmas cards and gifts have been given/handled. One parent collected $5 from each student for a gift for Sophia's teacher (works for me!), and to Madeline's teacher, we gave a nice bookmark with a beaded tassel.

Daily pic: 19 Dec 07

Isn't this striking? It's dragon fruit. We like trying new things, but hadn't tried this before. Sophia saw it on Daniel Cook and a classmate of hers took one to school for lunch, so she asked for it and was very happy when Neil told her he'd bought one today. Sophia really liked it and says it's "like a big kiwi". I don't see the resemblance in flavour, but I liked it too (but then, what do I know? this site also compares it to kiwi). The flavour is very subtle, with just a hint of sweetness and no tartness at all. It was easy to scoop out the flesh with a spoon.

Daily pic: 30 Nov 07

We made cookies tonight. Sophia just remembered today that she got a cookbook called Kids' Favorite Christmas Cookies last year. Of course, we had to make something out of the book today. The cookies we made, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip, were the least Christmassy of the bunch in my opinion, but they were the only ones for which we had all the ingredients (except we used almond butter instead of peanut butter 'cause that's all we had) -- or didn't involve hours of chilling, rolling, and cutting. We didn't even start until 8:30 p.m.

Daily pic: 25 Nov 07

We're off to watch the Grey Cup at our friends' home and we're taking bison ribs and pork ribs for supper. Neil also made a special barbecue sauce for them. Mmmm!

Kick-off in 56 minutes. GO RIDERS GO!

Daily pic: 20 Nov 07

Taco Cabbage Soup. I often consider taking a picture of the food we're eating just so I'll have a daily pic -- especially on weekday evenings when it's often challenging to take one -- but I usually don't for various reasons. This time was different because this particular food has a story. It connects me with family, memories, and a different place and time.

I got this recipe from my Grandma Byrns, who got it from her Aunt Cad, who got it from the Cabbage Patch Restaurant in Snohomish, Washington. I obtained the recipe in 1995 when I drove (by myself) to Redondo, Washington to visit my Grandma. On that trip, she took me to Snohomish where she was born. It's a lovely and historic little city, known for antiques, not far from Seattle. While in the area (I'm not sure of the exact location), we also visited Grandma's Aunt Cad (Clara V. Harrison, wife of Nils C. Nelson), who was 88 years old and still living on her own. She was a tall slim woman, and I recall a few other specific things about her:
(1) She married when she was only 15 or 16 years old, (2) she loved to run, and she jogged daily for most of her life (I think it's so interesting to think of a woman jogging during the 1920s, 30s, etc.), and (3) she loved making Christmas decorations of all kinds. When I was there, she gave me a red, green, and white crocheted potholder or hot pad. I still have it and it only comes out at Christmas time. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to meet Aunt Cad. She died the following year.

Now, back to the soup! My understanding is that the Cabbage Patch Restaurant in Snohomish, WA always had this Taco Cabbage Soup hot and ready to serve. I wonder if they still do; it isn't mentioned in their current menu online. I'm sure they had it when Neil and I went there in 1996 (shortly before my Grandma moved to Saskatoon). Anyway, we enjoy this hearty soup at least a couple times a year. It's an easy, old standby.

Taco Cabbage Soup

• 1 1/2 lb. browned hamburger [bison for us]
• 1/2 [small] head of cabbage, cut up
• 1 can kidney beans
• celery, sliced
• onions, chopped
• 1 (46 oz) can tomato juice
• 1 pkg. taco seasoning [or 4 Tbsp. VE Taco Seasoning, plus salt, for us]

Put in a crock pot and cook all day (or simmer on the stove for two hours). [We cook the celery and onions with the meat for a few minutes before mixing everything together.]

***

Isn't it neat how something as simple as soup can spark so many things?

Daily pic: 16 Nov 07

This seemed appropriate (and convenient) after attending an Epicure Selections party on Friday evening. I was there to observe the consultant (my "boss") in action. I'm very glad I went; I picked up a lot of good information and it was fun. The hostess was actually a friend of mine (who had booked her party before I became a consultant), and a few other friends were there too. It was great to catch up with them.

For those interested in this stuff, you can see I have quite a few products available for sampling (and more on the way). If you have any questions or would like recipes, just ask!

P.S. The Gingered Apple Crisp I made this week was an Epicure Selections recipe. It included VE Crystallized Ginger in the topping and VE Apple Pie Spice in the apples. It was very well received at work. The recipe was huge, so about 15 people tried it. Several people commented on the ginger in particular. I will make it again for my family!

Daily pic: 14 Nov 07

Gingered Apple Crisp. It's so rare for me to bake anything, or make a dessert of any kind -- other than a fruit smoothie or (sadly) instant pudding with the girls -- that I have to take a picture of it when I do! Well, that, and I needed a photo for today. I would've liked to take a photo of the apple part too, but this crisp won't be cracked open 'til tomorrow.

Here goes nothing!

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that we were going to be starting a little business venture. Well, we've started! Sort of. Gosh I'm nervous about announcing this...

I've become an Independent Epicure Consultant. (And Neil is going to help in any way he can, which is why I used the term "we" above.) No idea what that means? Then please check out my personalized Epicure Selections(TM) web page. Products include pure spices, spice blends, dip mixes, rubs, popcorn seasonings, salad dressing mixes, sauce mixes, sea salts, peppers, salt-free seasonings, specialty jellies/sugars, tea, Belgian chocolate, seasonal/holiday items, cookware, knives, cookbooks, and more.

I love this stuff! So why am I nervous about revealing that I'm doing this? I guess it's because you might think I'm crazy. Or maybe I think I'm crazy (don't I have enough to do?). But those aren't the main reasons. It's because over the past couple of weeks since receiving the starter kit, all of my reservations about "selling" have surfaced. I just don't want anyone to buy anything they don't want. And I don't want to annoy people. I really don't want to annoy people. I know some people are not receptive to people trying to sell them things.

Perhaps I just want to be an order-taker, not a salesperson. Can this business work with that kind of attitude? I'm not sure, but I hope so. Maybe I don't need to "sell" Epicure Selections; they're such great products, they'll sell themselves, right?

But, having said all that, I realize I have to at least let people know I'm doing this or I certainly won't be taking any orders. So, here I am, telling you -- my closest personal blog-reading friends and family --that I'm an Epicure Consultant. (Feel free to tell others!)

I'm very curious to know if any of you have purchased Epicure products or if you haven't even heard of it. Also, I have a bunch of catalogs that I'd like to give to people who are interested in taking a look. Please let me know if you'd like to see one. If you don't, that's absolutely fine! And don't worry, I won't be stalking anyone at work or at the gym (my, wouldn't that be obvious?!).

You may be wondering, of all the home-based direct-sales type businesses out there, why I would choose this one? There are several reasons, but mostly because I like the products and I tend to reorder some of them fairly often -- and I'm sure other people do too. Plus, it's all about food... and I really like food. Who doesn't?

P.S. You can also view all of the products by clicking 'Browse Products' on my personalized Epicure Selections(TM) web page. (You can't view them on the regular ES website.)

Daily pic: 14 Oct 07

Georgia is such a good eater! She's always willing to try something new. I made hummus this afternoon and she absolutely loved it. She didn't even eat the pita chips; they were merely vehicles for getting the hummus into her mouth as quickly as possible.