We Survived Christmas 2009

As we gathered 'round the tree last night to thank God for sending his Son of Light,
we also thanked him for letting us survive Christmas 2009.
The day started out with a phone call.
Receiving that information I tried not to bawl.
It seems someone said they were me
as they used my debit card for purchases in Asia and Turkey.
That was on top of me nursing the burn on my arm.
The day before I was sewing and to my alarm,
when I turned 'round to reach the scissors,
the iron on my forearm made lots of sizzles.
After my kids opened their presents with glee,
we jumped in the car to go see our family.
We had pancakes at my dad's, then headed to my mom's.
That's when the bad luck really hit like a bomb.
While playing a board game, thinking it would make all at ease,
my son started gagging and choking and couldn't breath.
I was across the table, so I couldn't whack his back,
but all of a sudden a game piece popped out of his mouth
and landed in the box with a thwack.
The snow was still falling and there was ice on the ground.
Fourteen nieces and nephews were running around.
The ham was starting to cook up real nice
when we got a call from my aunt and uncle who could not travel to be with us because of the ice.
My sister and her family had planned on going home, but didn't leave;
through the blizzard they didn't want to roam.
So, some were snowed out and some were snowed in, and through all of this we kept up our chins.
During all this, my step-brother's family did not want to be missed.
They drove through the bad weather to get to us and what a sight,
along the highway they saw off to the right
a MoDot grater truck stuck for the duration of the night.
The aroma of ham was filling the air.
The timer on the oven beeped and mom took it out of there.
She proceeded to place the dish on the stove so it could cool.
Little did she know she was about to be a fool.
Instead of turning the heat on under the spuds,
she turned on the burner under the ham and it wasn't a dud.
The dish of Pyrex glass heated up fast.
The next disaster happened in a flash.
There was no warning, just a loud burst.
It's a miracle no one in the house got hurt.
You see, the dish exploded and sent glass shards flying.
My mom and my baby immediately started crying.
There was glass on the counter and glass on the floor.
Just when they thought they got it all cleaned up,
then they'd find more.
Then the next part really ruined the mood.
There were tiny glass shards in all of the food.
We rummaged through the fridge and the freezer
to see if we could scroung up enough to make a left over buffet pleaser.
But there were 24 mouths to feed and we didn't know if there was plenty.
So I made phone calls to Perkins, Golden Corral and Denny's.
Finally I got a hold of someone at LeMaire's,
and they said we were welcome to eat catfish there.
So we all bundled up and headed that way.
It was getting late and no one wanted to play.
We waited patiently and laughed about the day.
The food was cooked fresh and served to us piping hot.
But an enjoyable Christmas meal it was not.
My little nephew took one bite of fish and spit it out,
and then started flailing his hands about.
His lips started swelling and his face got hives.
We were all worried for his precious little life.
My hubby and step-sis rushed him to the ER.
He got the care he needed from the doctor.
When my hubby was driving the Surburban back to mom's,
he tried to stop at 16th and Ingram but something went wrong.
He slid on the ice, the truck wouldn't stop.
So he hit the car in front of him.
His bumper did pop.
The night wasn't over. That wasn't all.
My sister had an asthma flare up,
thank goodness for Albuterol.
To top off the night, my brother-in-law needed the Tums.
His ulcer flared up and he was really bummed.
At that point we decided to call it a day,
and head home and pray the bad luck stayed away.
My mom was laughing so that she wouldn't cry.
We hugged and kissed and said good bye.
We're going to make t-shirts, and my hubby is writing a song
to document all of the things that went wrong.
But the one thing that helped us hold it together
through all of the mishaps and all the bad weather
was to know that God was still in control
and Jesus Christ is still on the throne.
I hope your Christmas has been merry, and unlike our, not too scary.
All of the events mentioned above did happen at our family Christmas, December 25, 2009..

Puff Pancakes

I love this recipe for puff pancakes. It's my go to recipe when the cupboards are getting bare, or when I am too tired to fix a nice and normal supper. The kids love it. And there's so many variations of toppings to make one's palate pleased. I personally get a kick of how it puffs up when cooking, and I have a little let down when the puff falls after being out of the oven for a minute or so. Here's the recipe: Puff Pancake

1/2 c. flour
2 eggs
1/2 c. milk
Pinch nutmeg
1/4 c. butter
Powdered sugar

Mix flour, eggs, milk and nutmeg together, leaving batter a bit lumpy. Melt butter in 9" pie plate; pour batter on top of it. Bake 425 degrees for 20 minutes. Sift powdered sugar on top. Serve at once with maple syrup.

I usually double the recipe for my family. It's not real filling by itself, so I serve it with eggs and bacon, or alone for more of a snack. Our favorite toppings are powdered sugar and syrup (not the most healthiest of all meals...). But some like apple pie filling or crumbled bacon and spinach and cheddar cheese. One can vary in any way he chooses for a scrumptious delight. I found the recipe on Cooks.com, along with about 40 more variations-- one with the batter made in the blender with orange juice as one of the ingredients. Haven't tried that one yet, but sounds yummy. Bon Appetite!

The Worm Who Grew Too Much

When leaving a place of business a couple of weeks ago, all clad in warm clothes and rain coats (because of the 13 straight days of rain we were receiving), I was suddenly intrigued by something that caught my eye.
Now, I know earth worms surface during rain spells. And I also know the ones that live in my neighborhood are usually 6 inches long or shorter. And, it must be said, my son, being on the fresh side of 4 years old and having many environmental allergies, has not yet experienced the joy of puddle jumping and worm catching and digging for worms, like some of the rest of us. So, I did not want my son to miss the opportunity of his little life to see THE WORM WHO GREW TOO MUCH. It it by far the biggest worm I have ever seen, but I thought it was awesome. And had my son not started screaming like a little girl, "Get in the car!!! It's gonna get us!!! Get in the car!!! It's gonna get us!!!" I would have picked it up and played with it a bit. My son immediately grew cat claws and instinctively stuck them in my leg and sides out of great fear, as I laughed my head off. I tried explaining to him that worms can't hurt us, that their mouths aren't even big enough for us to see, and all the great worm facts I could come up with at that moment in time. He was still scared, I still laughed, I got him and his sister buckled in their seats in the car, and then I took a picture of this worm of all worms. The mother of all wigglers, the most giant of all night crawlers, and the most amazing annelid I have ever seen.

Wanna know what irks me a HUGE amount???

This really gets my blood a boilin'. Meat is not cheap these days. One pays by the cut or the pound, correct? I have stopped buying my meat at Wally World because its just not as good a quality as the local grocery stores. And I am trying to support the local stores more than "the wal-marts". So a couple weeks ago I bought a roast. Can there be any better meal on a Sunday afternoon that pot roast??? And I'm not talkin' bout from the crock pot. (Though those are scrumptious too) But slave over the stove, sear the meat, add your seasonings and veggies and cook in the oven pot roast. I took this wonderful looking roast out of my fridge, peeled back the plastic wrap and was about to douse it in flour, salt and pepper, when I looked at the bottom of the roast and just about lost my appetite. Now, I know good and well that meat cuts contain fat. Usually small portions of fat. Adds to the flavor, right? Well, what would YOU do if the entire underside of YOUR roast was a quarter of an inch LAYER of fat??? I cut it off and took pictures, because I knew I had to have proof. (and because I wanted to blog about it) And then I called the store I purchased said meat from. Being a Sunday afternoon, there was not a lot they could do about it. So said the manager. She told me she was the "lowest" manager, and she didn't know what she could do about it, so could I please call back "tomorrow". What ever happened to, "Let me take your name and number and I will have someone who CAN help you call." and the "I'm sorry" that used to come with mistakes or disappointments? Eye yi yi. All that being said, the roast was still a delight to the taste buds. What do you think about this???

Homemade Deoderant, Anyone??

As the gal at Angry Chicken so eloquently put it, we had a "I'm not a dirty hippie party"! And it was fun. Have you ever thought about making your own deodorant? Or buying it homemade? I never really thought about it until a couple of months ago when I read about it on Angry Chicken blog, and then my friend, Sarah, talked about it. She and I are both allergic to stick deodorant. The only kind I have found so far that works for me is the Degree spray. Still, I am not comforted with the gazillion ingredients on the label that I can't even pronounce, or much less know what they really are.
Sarah got all the ingredients together and we piled in my kitchen with my oldest monkey, and together we made our own lovely assortment of deodorant! My daughter got to count this project as a credit for science and math, so that was a major bonus.
We used the recipe from Angry Chicken. All natural ingredients. Cha-ching! Corn starch, baking soda, vitamin E oil, cocoa butter, Shea butter, and then essential oils. We used vanilla in some, and tea tree in others, and then did a batch of unscented. It still holds the scent of cocoa butter. Its not too expensive to make, and it makes a LOT that will last a long long time. It is NOT an anti-perspirant, but I can live with that. After we mixed it up, we divided it via funnel into the little baby food jars I had been hanging onto for the "we might need these some day" reason. Good thing, eh?
Who knew going green (little by little) could be so fun and smell so good????

Items for Sale

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sewlongfarewell/
Please go take a look at some of my creations! This is diapers and nursing drapes.

We've had a tough summer. My younger sister had a fall July 4, which has left her with brain damage and the need for a lot of therapy. We are so thankful that she lived as the doctors did not expect her to make it. We've traveled back and forth quite a lot throughout the summer to see her in a facility about an hour away. My motivation level for sewing and crafting went spiraling down the tubes. My mom and I were to be getting ready for the upcoming craft show in November. It would be our second time to have a booth. Mom has not had time or energy to even think about sewing. While on our way to see my sister the other day we were discussing what we needed to do to come up with a game plan for getting our items ready. I said what I thought would be best; call the craft club and back out of our booth. See if they would keep our booth rental money to secure us a booth in the Spring show. My mom took in a big breath and gave out a big sigh of relief. So, we are now not worried about our booth and the lack of things to put in it.
Over the last month I have pulled out the sewing machine again and claimed the kitchen table as my workshop. The monkeys have grown accustomed to eating on the floor, the coffee table, and the bit of linoleum right inside my front doorway. I have made three new diapers off of 3 new patterns. One Little Comet Tails Little One Size diaper, one Darling Diapers Unlimited medium sized diaper, and one EZdiaper. I don't care for the EZdiaper. The idea behind it is genius. If you make it without a true "outside" waterproofing material, there is no way to put the diaper on backwards or inside out. I just don't care for the fit of it as it's just a big rectangle. But a lot of mama's from the Diaper Sewing Diva's board rave over it. I really like the DDU medium sized diaper. It's got a great trim fit. It is different from the others that I've sewn as the waterproofing layer rolls inward at the leg seams so there is much less chance of wicking or leaking. I used a light purple pul outer with bamboo hemp jersey inner, and a snap in soaker made from zorb and sherpa. The LTC LOS diaper, well, I am a little disappointed in. It is trimmer than most one size diapers. It has a snap to adjust the length of the rise. But either I just don't "get it", or the one snap to do this with doesn't do a lot of adjusting. Still, it fits my baby, so I will use it.
I am hoping to open an online diaper store with the diapers I am planning on making. My original goal was to have this done by the end of September. I think I am looking more towards October for that to happen. But, I did get an order last week for 2 diapers, a wet bag and a diaper bag for a friend for a baby shower. I am thrilled with how they turned out and hope the recipient will be as well.
The kids are doing well. My oldest monkey turned 11 last month. She's started sixth grade and thinks she is on the road to adult-hood. She just found out last week that she is getting her 3rd poem published in the spring. I am proud of her for writing and entering her poems. I was always scared to enter my work in anything.
My middle child turned 4 in the summer. He asks me every day if its his birthday again because he wants to be 5 so he can go to karate with his big sister. And now that school has gotten back in session and the buses are running their routes, he watches out our big picture window with wide eyes and a drooly chin yearning for his chance to ride a school bus. Too bad. Homeschoolers ride their slippers to school. Not the bus.
My youngest is almost a year and a half. She is cutting massive amounts of teeth and growing. She has inherited my grace. The other night she fell down more times than she walked straight, leaving her with bruises and scrapes on her precious little face. She is also a climber, which has left her with bumps on her head from falling off of the things she is climbing. Her favorite place to be right now is perched atop the piano bench. She is very independent: she does not want help up or down, no help eating (which leads to big messes after meal time), and is not fond of hand holding when outside. Thank goodness she still likes to be held and to play with my hair when she's tired.