Sharing Rambling, Resources and Recipes for Learning in Life

Sharing Rambling, Resources and Recipes for Learning in Life

Author: Audrea

ParentingRecipes

Sausage to the Rescue! (Sausage Egg “Muffins”)

By Audrea2 Comments

Our other go to breakfast for school mornings besides our wonderful Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins are Egg “Muffins”. These are either a whole egg or some beaten egg, milk and/or cheese mixture poured over lunch meat, ham, bacon or porchetta. The girls love these and I love the high amount of protein and low amount of sugar they have! HOWEVER, I HATE cleaning the muffin pans after baking them. Inevitably some of the egg gets through the lunch meat and into the bottom of the muffin cups where I almost cannot get it scrubbed out.

The last time I made them, I decided to try sausage as the “crust” for my muffins instead of lunch meat. I was thinking about doing another Whole 30 and that led me to think of the Scotch eggs people often eat while doing Whole 30’s. And, drum roll please……. the sausage worked like a dream. The bottom of the muffin cups cleaned with barely any scrubbing or pressure. I had not greased the top of the tins and my sausage did not go all the way up the muffin cups. So, I did have trouble with the ring of egg left at the top of the cups. However, I got 18 muffins from 1 pound of sausage and 12 eggs. Next time I will either grease the tops of the cups or use more sausage so that it goes all the way up the sides of each cup. However, for both ease of cleaning and flavor sausage was a HUGE hit!! The girls always like these, but they had rave reviews for the flavor this week!

Sausage Egg “Muffins”

1 lb sausage

12 eggs

Olive Oil Spray

I just use my hands to press a small chunk (about the size of an unshelled walnut) of sausage into the bottom and up the sides as far as it would go (I tried to keep it about a 1/8 of an inch thick; just thick enough to not be able to see the muffin pan at all through the sausage) of each muffin cup. I beat the eggs with a whisk and then used a 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop the beaten eggs into each muffin cup to about 3/4 full. I bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. When they are firm to the touch they are done. I store them in an air tight container in the refrigerator for the week, taking the ones I need out each morning and heating them up in the microwave. My girls (they are 4 and 6) each eat 1 or 1 1/2 “muffins” every morning. I usually eat 2.

ParentingRecipes

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Granola

By Audrea3 Comments

I am trying granola recipes because I have the opportunity to sell some at an upcoming local craft event on Mother’s Day weekend at Granny’s Simple Blessings. And also because while I am not a big cereal fan, my girls and my husband are; and I am always looking for better, homemade options to replace (at least sometimes) their sugary choices!

So, once again I pulled out my Better Homes and Garden Cookbook to give me the basics for my recipe and started experimenting. This is what I came up with:

3 cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats

1/3 cup Ground Flax Seeds

1 1/2 Tablespoons Ground Cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon Ground Cloves

1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg

1/2 cup Honey

1 cup Raisins

I set the oven to 300 degrees. Whisked together the oats and spices. Used the life saving hack of greasing my measuring cup prior to filling it with honey, measured the honey and poured it into the oats and spices. Stirred together with my spatula (that I also greased with less success than my measuring cup). Poured into my 9 x 13 glass baking dish and a 10 x 10 metal baking pan. Spread out and baked for 20 minutes. I stirred the cereal and baked for an additional 10-15 minutes and then took out to cool. Previously when making granola I have always been SO FRUSTRATED with it sticking to the pan once it cools. I find the best thing to do to combat this is to stir it every 3-5 minutes as it cools to lessen (or in this case eliminate!!!!) the sticking. Once it cooled, I stirred in the raisins and then put it into old honey jars (1/2 gallon glass jars) to store! The cook book says a week at room temperature or over a month if you freeze it. You can freeze it right in the jars if you want to! Also, if you do not have old honey jars, you can use any air tight container, even a gallon size zippered plastic bag!

So, the girls and I tried some today for an afternoon snack/early dinner. It’s another crazy t-ball pictures/game and gymnastics night! My four year old deemed it “Really, really, really good!” when I asked for her honest opinion on the way to gymnastics. It was less sweet than I expected. I thought about adding brown sugar, but since I’m trying to avoid sugar as much as possible, I think I may increase the raisins and maybe add some dried dates next time. If you try it, let me know what you think. Be advised we like spice in our granola and baked goods! If you do not like a lot of spice you may want to try just 1 tablespoon of cinnamon and maybe just a 1/4 teaspoon of cloves. I upped the cloves for the spiciness and because I have read about so many benefits from cloves! I was a little worried about it after tasting a little straight from the oven. But, once I added the raisins and we covered it in milk it wasn’t too spicy at all! I used nutmeg to add warmth to the flavor.

FaithFarmingRamblings

Fencing Freedom!!

By Audrea1 Comment

I was struck with a thought about our freedom in God while my husband was working to finish the fence for our back pasture. We recently built a house on 15.8 acres of land. This has been a long time dream for my husband and something I treasured for his sake. Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of having land set off from town, a place to just “be” and a kitchen designed to host and serve! We had various ups and downs through the process of buying the land and definitely through building the house!!

Before we bought this property, we signed on another property that would have needed more work to accomplish our goals, but seemed to be in a better and ideal spot! After we signed, the seller backed out and we were told that he could even though the contracts had been signed by both parties. It was a pretty big blow to us as we wondered if it meant we should stop looking for land, stay where we were, or just buy a house that was already built. We continued to pray and seek God’s plan as we wondered. He brought us to the land we have now. Land that needed no clearing, the other land was almost entirely wooded and we want pasture, and was less per acre and bigger. It also happens to sit right between very good friends of ours who also happen to be our plumbers and a wonderful lady (who actually sold the land to us) who is turning out to be another Grammie for the girls! We are EXTREMELY blessed!

Like always, building took longer than expected, but we moved in over Thanksgiving break. Both my husband and I teach and he coaches football and track. So, between school and sports he has been VERY limited in time to devote to the fencing we need to add to the property. Spring Break was the first time he was able to get time to devote to it. So he spent almost all of Spring Break (Thank you Jesus for the beautiful weather!!) fencing off the back pasture.

One of the days he was out there working, I stopped to take some pictures and it struck me that although it looked like he was making our land smaller by adding a barrier, that very barrier would free us to fulfill more of our dreams. And that struck me as just like following God. To an outsider, it looks like all God does is set up road blocks and boundaries that keep us from being free to do whatever we want. Things like: Go to Church on Sundays, Only Marry a Believer, Abstinence Until Marriage, Be Holy as I am Holy, Don’t Be a Stumbling Block, all scream Boundary Line, Restriction, Rules, and Limits! BUT, EVERY single one of those things bring us to true freedom, realization of ACTUAL goals and dreams, AND protection from SO MUCH pain! That fence that Adam built did make our yard smaller, but it also opened up the possibility to run cows when we’re ready and to bless our neighbor by running his cows on it until we do. These rules from God may limit us from something that seems good right now, but they free us from guilt, shame, fear and give us the freedom and strength to gain SO MUCH more and SO MUCH better! Just like our children actually feel safer and freer when we give them boundaries, because it lets them know we are there and they are safe, we should revel in God’s boundaries. They do not limit us! They simply reassure us that we are loved, He is there and we are safe! Then, that reassurance allows us to GO and DO ALL things through Christ who strengthens us!

ParentingRamblings

Magical Unicorn Tea to the Rescue!

By Audrea1 Comment

Every Spring Break my sisters and I try to go out together for the weekend, day or evening. We do this in an effort to maintain, build or even rebuild our friendship with each other as we advance through life and varying responsibilities. This year was harder than others to schedule a time to get together. So, we only managed to set aside a time to go out to dinner together.

After dinner, we stopped by one of our favorite “for fun” stops, Savoy Tea. They always have some different flavors of tea out for sampling. This time one of those flavors was Magical Unicorn Tea! Now, if any of you are Momma’s to little girls you probably know how exciting I knew this would be for my ladies! My girls have been privileged to grow up, like I did, having tea parties with their grandmas and nanas. I don’t like coffee, so there is always tea at our house and my girls often have tea with me. We even have our own “tea parties” at breakfast time on the weekends, replete with a tiny tea pot and tiny tea cups filled with real tea. So, the combination of unicorns and tea is perfect for an “I was thinking about you while I was gone!” treat for my daughters. However, I had to ask the fatal question, “Is there artificial coloring in this?” I had to ask this question because this wonderful find was a brilliant purple hue. I was overjoyed to find that my favorite tea company had come through yet again, when the salesman replied that the color was all natural from the flowers in the tea. He then showed us the magic of the tea by adding a bit of lemon juice and changing the brilliant purple hue to a wonderful deep rosy color!

Needless to say, I bought my girls a tin and took home to them some magical tea and the free unicorn stuffy that came with it! However, the magic of the tea was only just beginning. As I tried, once again, to focus on maintaining and reaching an ideal weight, I found myself craving something sweet. However, I was out of calories and carbs for the day. I remembered the girls’ tea. I tried a cup and found my own magic in that wonderful purple brew! Slightly sweet, warm and comforting, it calmed and fulfilled my craving! It also gave me a caffeine free option for a second cup of warm wonderfulness in the morning after my typical Benner English Breakfast Tea that I buy from Aldi.

So, Savoy Tea Company and a little Unicorn Magic have brought my daughters and I continued warmth, joy and magical moments. In fact, I just finished a cup and my oldest is getting ready to start hers as we read a book together! Magical blissfulness at its best!!

ParentingRecipes

Whole Wheat Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins (sugar-free ish)

By Audrea1 Comment

I have been working to do more food prep on the weekends to simplify making 20 lunches and breakfasts and usually 5 dinners every work week. It gets hard and it gets old!! BUT, I really care that my family, and my girls especially, have healthy food to eat. And, when you’re trying to use whole wheat flour and avoid artificial colors and stay on your budget, homemade is just about the only option there is. I like and even, on occasion, love cooking and baking. However, cooking and baking on top of a full time job away from home, in addition to parenting two energetic ladies and supporting a husband who coaches two sports and teaches English (not his favorite subject) and helping at church every Wednesday evening and keeping up with homework, gymnastics and t-ball it can get a little overwhelming sometimes!!

A couple of months ago, I added homemade breakfasts to my agenda. I did this after deciding that I just couldn’t condone the amount of sugar I was feeding my girls in the form of pop-tarts and granola bars. In addition to that, I decided that as much as possible and tolerable we should have truly whole wheat baked goods.

I’m not going to lie, it’s been a struggle!! I take the time to make something and usually the girls LOVE it when it comes out of the oven and even as they snack on it for the rest of the weekend. However, it seems invariably as we start the week that: “I don’t like that!” or “That’s gross!” or “Not again!” are the comments I hear. And it’s FRUSTRATING!! I’m trying to compete with Daddy’s Pop Tarts and I feel the need to give good, nourishing food that promotes focus and is filling for school! I spend extra effort and time because I believe it’s important and I love my daughters and it is SO easy to want to give up!

And so, drum roll please!!!!!!! Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins to the rescue!! We have successfully and deliciously made it through an entire week that ended with the very last of the bread for a bedtime snack because the girls liked it THAT MUCH!! I had been finding the recipes I was trying with whole wheat flour to be okay, but often dry or lacking flavor or just not as good as the “real” thing with white flour and sugar.

So, I pulled out my beloved Better Homes and Garden Cookbook and used their “Make it Mine Muffins” recipe as my guide. The result was a low fat, moist, light, DELICIOUS muffin with no white flour or sugar (except from the chocolate chips) that my daughters thought was a treat EVERY SINGLE time they ate them, my husband said was good and that I felt actually proud enough of, that we shared with our neighbor! So, here is the recipe:

BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS (or bread)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease muffin or bead pan. Yields about 29 muffins (I made 18 muffins and four small loaves of bread from my batch)

4 cups Whole Wheat Flour

1/2 cup chocolate chips

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 Tbsp ground cinnamon

4 large eggs

1/2 cup honey

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups milk

2 cups mashed bananas (I used thawed frozen bananas)

2 Tbsp ground flax seeds

I whisked together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, flax seeds and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Then I whisked the milk, bananas, honey and eggs together in a smaller bowl. I poured the liquid mixture into the dry mixture and mixed by hand until combined. Then I mixed in the chocolate chips by hand. Then I scooped into the greased muffin pans and loaf stone. Then I baked the muffins for 15-20 minutes and the loaves baked for 25-30 minutes.

HealthParentingRamblings

Respiratory Relief

By Audrea1 Comment

My youngest daughter has struggled with congestion and snot, literally from the day she was born. When she was tiny, I often wondered if it was because we had her at home and maybe the midwives were not as thorough, as the hospital had been with our first daughter, at sucking out all the gunk from joining our world. I then wondered if it had to do with the rate in which my milk would come down while she nursed. It was so much faster and so much more than I had had with my oldest that maybe that was causing the problem. I mean it certainly caused more spitting up than I had had with my other daughter. Then I thought of dairy and so cut all dairy out of my diet and that seemed to help her some.

Even so, she had ear infections, runny noses and then croupy coughs for almost all of her infancy. I knew they weren’t nearly as chronic as a lot of other kids, but it was so much more than I was used to. My oldest has had one ear infection and that was just this year at 6 years old. Once my youngest could blow her own nose it helped A LOT. The snot didn’t get the chance to sit and grow infected. However, she continued and continues to struggle with allergies. She’s taken prescription Zyrtec, we’ve used Vick’s vapor rub, she’s taken Benadryl for days on end. Then the last time she had a lot of drainage even those medications didn’t seem to help dry it up.

So, I tried essential oils. Many they would help her be able to breathe better and be able to sleep without constant coughing. But, still nothing dried up her drainage. She has outgrown much of her sensitivity to dairy, but continues to be prone to seasonal allergies and irritants like pets and smoke (cigarette and even wood). After reading on their website and finding a large variety of their oils at our local drugstore, Teasley Drug, I tried some of Northridge Oak Oils Respiratory Blend. It not only helps her breathe more easily, but I truly believe it dries up her drainage. I am SO thankful to have something to help her that doesn’t make her sleepy or hyper or have any other unwanted side effects!!

HealthParentingRecipes

Homemade Toothpaste

By Audrea1 Comment

As promised, here is my follow up on our toothpaste making adventure! And it was an adventure with 3 helpers 6 and under. My youngest sister and I partnered together to get the ingredients and make this homemade toothpaste from the Weed ’em & Reap website. Then we launched our pioneering adventure with the help of my 2 daughters and her daughter. We worked to measure out the ingredients and let the ladies pour. We tried two different mixing methods (her blender and my mini food processor). We stopped half way through to have everyone try it and decide whether or not we wanted to double the batch. And we doubled it and we’re using it!

We did not have the Essential Oils on hand that the recipe calls for so we added some ground cinnamon for some flavor. We also decided to add some turmeric after reading that that is a natural tooth whitener. Ours came out much thicker than we expected, especially after reading all of the comments about watery mixes. We left it thick since that would be similar to if we decided to leave out the coconut oil and water (we included both) to make tooth powder.

She has been using the toothpaste, but still follows with her straight baking soda that she’s been brushing with for years. Her children just ran out of their tube of toothpaste (thanks in large part to a trip into the toilet during morning brushing time!!) and have just started using it. They are not sold on it.

My daughters and I have been using it since we made it about 2 weeks ago. They aren’t completely sold on it either and every once in a while they still ask for their strawberry toothpaste. I didn’t let them finish their “regular” toothpaste before switching! But, if told that their strawberry toothpaste is an option, but won’t make their teeth white like the new toothpaste the will choose the new. And, it’s true!! Both girls would have some yellow build up on their front teeth even right after brushing and they don’t now! I think my teeth are whiter than they were before, although it’s not a startling difference and my husband can’t see it! Also, although my tooth sensitivity is not completely gone, it is reduced and that is a HUGE deal to me. It’s a huge deal not just for my own comforts sake, but also because it means it might be strengthening the girls teeth and that is my BIGGEST goal!!

So, we will keep using it. I do want to work on the consistency next time because I think it will be easier for them to use and it might also help it last a little longer. Since it is so thick and is taking getting used to, I and Daddy are doing a lot more brushing than we used to do. Although, that may pay off in cleaner teeth, too! Overall, this is a big success. It was SUPER easy to whip up and I’m SUPER excited to get more oils from Northridge Oak to help with flavoring and perfect the consistency to get even more buy in and enthusiasm from the girls!

FaithRamblings

Mary or Martha

By Audrea3 Comments

Today is a struggle between who I want to be, who I choose to be, and who I feel I can’t help being!

I want to sit like Mary at Jesus’ feet. I want to sit in blissful peace learning from Him and trusting Him to perfectly orchestrate and work out everything around me. I know He is in control! I know he loves my daughters and husband more deeply and more perfectly than I do! I even know that if anything difficult, bad or untoward comes into their paths that He’ll use it for good! However, I feel like Martha!

I worry and pray for resolutions that seem impossible! I struggle to lay every concern and worry at His feet and walk peacefully away. I endeavor to serve with joy and rejoice in a calling that chafes with every step and thought. I seek blissful, faithfull peace and I can’t find it. My reality chafes against my wishes and hopes. My responsibility chafes against my preferences and dreams! I confess and ask and seek His face, presence and strength!

And you know what, it finally comes! Not when I asked for it, not quickly or all at once. But, as I put one foot in front of the other, I find solid ground. As I pray and confess, again and again, I find constant strength. As I focus on Him, I walk right past difficulties. And then, there I am, at the end of an impossible day with a little more faith and a little more peace and a LOT more rejoicing. He IS and ALWAYS will be faithful! It’s not always blissful, but being faithful leads to being faithfull, and being Faith Full leads to strength and peace. Then, strength and peace just might if I let them, lead me to bliss!

EducationParentingRamblings

Education: What’s the Point?

By Audrea1 Comment

There have been some questions swirling around in our school district this year that have elicited some very strong feelings and opinions on my part. As I have been trying to get and then maintain a quiet heart and mind and seek a balanced perspective, I have been contemplating what the actual purpose of education is.

At first glance or thought it seems rather easy to identify this purpose, it’s to educate right? But, then ALL of the questions come into play about what educating means? Educating is just adding knowledge, right? But, if we’re to educate the WHOLE child then doesn’t it include feelings, self-esteem and mental well being? Once all of these layers and myriad of focuses come to mind then everything can get very murky, very quickly! So, I had to try to clear all of this out and I gained traction when I considered one of the my few solid take aways from my Educational Education!!

Education as a profession is known to jump from theory or bandwagon or school of thought to the opposite and back again, the whole pendulum analogy! In the midst of all of this it can be hard to gain any real bearings as an educator, and that is compounded when you also become a parent. However, especially once you become a parent, bearing must be sought, found, and clung to based on faith and the responsibility to God and the children He’s entrusted you with. So, my bearings and compass currently come from the idea of “begin with the end in mind”. This idea, that I first learned about in conjunction with lesson planning and assessment creation, is one that seems to stand through every tide and theory and cultural shift. I think the reason it stands up so well is because it lines up with Biblical thinking and teaching. We are commanded as Christians to test everything against God’s word, which will stand unchanged throughout all time. We are to measure everything we do and think and say against the example of Christ, our eternal high priest. We are to lay up treasures in heaven, our everlasting home. We are always to look to the end to decide what we need to do, think, learn or focus on now.

So, what does it mean that the reason for education is defined by “begin with the end in mind”? To me it means that we should always look at the end of what and where the children we are educating need and are going. They need to be able to be solid, contributing members of society and they are going out into the “real” world. So, the purpose of education is to equip them with whatever knowledge, information and life skills they need to be an exceptional employee as well as a thoughtful and active citizen locally and nationally.

So, anytime we are evaluating a new curriculum, initiative, school of thought, whole child view or discipline change, we must ask ourselves whether or not this will better equip our children for success in life. And if there is even a chance that it might weaken instead of strengthen them, simplify rather than educate them, we MUST step back and reevaluate. Our children are already strong and powerful! They are resilient and forgiving! We do them a disservice if we water down any information or shield from any situation that would actually teach them more, raise the bar or strengthen their ability to do hard things. We are not called to coddle our children, but to help them grow. Growth is hard, but it is also necessary and rewarding!

HealthParentingRamblings

To Fluoride or Not to Fluoride; “That is the question.”

By Audrea1 Comment

I was recently asked by one of my sisters whether or not we choose to “get” fluoride for our daughters at the dentist. I told her that we do because up until we moved into our recently built house we had well water (I miss it SO MUCH!!!!!) and so that was the only fluoride the girls got. Also, our oldest has had major issues with cavities. Our youngest, although, much better than her sister has still had way more than her mother (I’ve never had any and feel so inadequate to support the girls on their journey through all this dental work). So, since our girls never had fluoride in their drinking water and up until recently, due to age, never had it in their toothpaste, I figured the little bit painted on their teeth at the dentist’s wouldn’t hurt and might help.

My sister then followed up with questioning me about why fluoride is bad. I had to reply that I didn’t know. I just remember, as does she, hearing from various natural food and other natural/herbally minded folks we were raised around saying it was bad and should be avoided, filtered out of water and refused at the dentist.

So, of course, I had to look it up! I have NOT done excessive or even a lot of research on this yet! What I have read, though, says that topical application is best at helping with dental health. This is what happens at the dentist and mostly what happens with your toothpaste since you spit it out. Given this fact, along with our girls current struggles with cavities or dental carries, we will likely continue to “get” fluoride at the dentist. I do hope to help and possibly remedy some of our daughters issues with homemade toothpaste and diet. I am working to add more vitamin K rich foods in their daily eating and hope to soon try making our own toothpaste. I’ll let you know how the toothpaste thing goes! I’m cautiously optimistic!!

Effects from ingesting fluoride, however, are not so happy or helpful! Ingestion is what you get from fluoridating water and minimally from toothpaste. The toothpaste part is my own thought on the subject. I just think that once you put something inside your mouth, it is unlikely that you will actually avoid all ingestion. Too much fluoride, the definition of that amount can be debated, does all sorts of fun things like messing with your thyroid function, weakening your bones and ligaments, and actually discoloring your teeth by causing those interesting, super white spots that some people have.

So, my personal conclusion for our family, is that I want the fluoride filtered out of our water. If in fact is in there. That will be one more thing I will have to investigate. And I want to continue to give the girls toothpaste without it. I plan to continue to let the dentist paint their teeth with it, at least for the time being. That may change either as I research fluoride more or they “grow out” of their dental weaknesses through food and homemade remineralizing toothpaste AND God’s loving intervention! After all, if it is the right minerals and the right foods that “fixes” their teeth, it is definitely HIS intervention! I really want to continue working through, researching and understanding this with balance in mind. However, I also don’t want to help the girls’ or my teeth by harming the rest of our bodies.