Garlic and Winter Herbs

Summer's Lettuce Bed turned Chicken Garden
Now to be our Garlic Experiment. They should
have gone down in October, but I didn't
realize it was a good idea until November.

Pretty Garlic Bulbs from Mother Earth Gardens on top
of some nice new soil. I love clean soil. 

Garlic getting ready to nestle down for the winter.
Brr I hope it's not too cold for them! 

Naughty Chickens exploring the hay in the Garlic Garden.
They later dug up a few of our bulbs that Mastermind had
to replant. They might be banned from free ranging
until I can come up with a chicken fence.
Weird - chickens don't even like garlic. 

Good Sharona, the only girl laying eggs right now.
We put plastic shower curtain liners up around
the coop this weekend, too, hopefully
that encourages the other girls to get busy. 

Indoor Herb Garden. I have terrible luck with growing herbs, so this, too, is an
experiment. This is the only window in the house that gets direct sunlight,
so hopefully we have some tasty herbs this winter.
Basil in 2 pots, Cilantro, and Parsley, plus Thyme replanted.

First Snow

The yard, early morning. Quite a difference from a few days ago

Assessing the accessories.

Throwing snow at the window: such fun!

Can't quite get the shoes on with the 2 pairs of socks,
or bend over to tie them with all those accessories!
Isn't that turquoise wall lovely? I had my doubts when we
painted it in August, but with the light bouncing off the snow,
I know we made the right choice. 

A Chai on the way to work to celebrate
the first snowfall. Yum! 

There is something so exhilarating about waking up to the first true snow of the season. The way the light comes through the windows, the color of the sky, and all that WHITE! Ox and Little Frog were over the moon excited, but allowed for a little cuddle time on the couch, just gazing out at all that snow. It was beautiful. After they were dressed and oatmealed, on came the snowpants, mittens, scarves, hats, and coats despite it being a mere 3 inches of snow and a balmy 35 degrees.

Only this mama forgot to get boots. Oy. Their winter coats were bought in September which made me feel so proud and prepared. Until this morning when I realized with horror that last year's boots were not going to work. Ox immediately ran out into the backyard in his crocs, forgetting (as he does every year) that crocs and snow are not a great combination. By the time we left for school the sunroom was a mess of sloppy shoes and socks, which reminds me I have to hunt up the drying rack that makes a (temporary) permanent home in the sunroom during the winter months. . . and maybe I'll need to knit up a few pairs of spare mittens. Amazingly enough, last year's mittens and hats are all happily present and in great shape. I truly had no idea that home-knit mittens would be so sturdy, last winter was my first time with them.

So a trip to Target is in the works for tonight, both to get boots and to spend an exciting gift card that I got for my birthday. I'm planning on getting an immersion blender (kids don't like tomato chunks, go figure. We have to do something about that since I am in the mood to make lots of tomatoey things this winter), and an electric frying pan for camping. Yes we are already planning our camping trips for next summer, but hey, you have to have something to look forward to during the long Minnesota winter. In case you're curious, we're heading to Grand Marais for a week in the pop-up.

Lovely day.

Before the Snow Flies

The yard, first week of November 2013

Garden, first week of November 2013

"Snow" Fort

It's early November and we're battening down the hatches and all that for the long winter ahead. In Minnesota, winter truly is a state of mind; you can either complain about the flakes of snow once they start coming down, and feel grumbly all winter long, or you can embrace it. Last winter we had snow on the ground for over 6 months, so it is in my humble opinion that you had better embrace it.

So on this fifth day of November with the first Winter Storm Watch in effect (2-4 inches of snow in tonight's forecast) we are ready to go. Well, almost.

The yard got its last mow of the year on Sunday, and the kids' forts got mostly taken down. As you can see we are leaving one up for a winter snow fort experiment. It is always hard to get the kids outside in the winter, we are hoping that training them in the fine art of snow forts will make them more enthusiastic. We'll see how it goes.

The garden is ready, too, minus the usual layer of manure. We went with straight compost this year. The 5+ months of snow will reduce those leaves and things to a nice welcome soil for the plants come spring. Dear husband has nestled a couple of seedling apple trees that he proudly grew from seeds and has tended carefully for a couple years now. He decided they needed to spend the winter outside, now that they're "big" trees. Albeit with a nice warm pile of hay to keep them protected.

I'm already thinking spring, and picked up more bulbs for our tulip garden in the front yard, which always gets a lot of sun and grows beautifully. Last year we had a gorgeous lupine plant, too, which was quite a surprise since they are so picky about growing. The long, cold spring must have been what it needed. I added a few hydrangea and crocus to the mix for the spring. There is something so hopeful about planting bulbs, knowing you won't see them bloom until the very end of the winter. Knowing that the sight of them poking up through the snow will be such a beautiful sight, with snow still lingering elsewhere in the yard.

I think that's why I like winter so much. The changing of the seasons is so hopeful; November's anticipation of snow is like a long-day's anticipation of sleep. And while I know that March's snow (okay, April's snow. . . possibly May) will bring a bit of eye-rolling, knowing that it is all about to end and those tulips will start popping out is something that is thought of even in November. The cycle is inspiring. Spring always comes. Even in November.

Bread

Bread Dough Tornado

Theeeere's some Bread Dough on the rise!

Buddha Dish: when eating bread and butter is truly exercise.

Beautiful Bread

I'm baking more these days. Lots of things. I took a break from my meal swap (in the aftermath of Ox's vegetarian phase and my "Quit All The Things" phase) which gave me more time and mental space to bake.

Plus its very trendy, which we all know is so important.

My most recent change-of-life is making bread for the family. It has been intense and lovely. I started with an old bread machine, made four loaves in one weekend trying to find a recipe that worked (I refuse to buy special ingredients just to make a machine work; Bread flour? please. Powdered milk? silly) and realized that I hated the big square loaves. I wanted real bread.

My dear husband, ever the Mastermind, bought me two gorgeous new bread loaf pans, and the rest is history. That is if a 6 week experiment can be called history. Store-bought bread might be history, though, Mastermind didn't automatically buy some at the store yesterday as is his habit (yes, he does the grocery shopping).

Step 1: In the quest of Keeping It Simple, I realized the real convenience of a bread machine is that it does all the hard work for you. Kneading sucks, even if it is good for wobbly underarms. I had a vague recollection that a kitchenaid mixer does much the same thing, and had a 12 year old, unused, bread hook attachment sitting in a drawer somewhere.

Step 2: find a recipe that works. A few good google searches yielded a few promising results. First up was BabyLovinMama's "Making Bread with my Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer." Delicious. But the recipe was all spread out along the blog and was annoying. Plus I want wheat bread. I'm on week 2 of Plan To Eat's No Fail Wheat Bread, this week I added a half-cup of wheat bran for added wheaty-ness. So far this is my go-to bread. Next time I'm going to add a quarter-cup of molasses instead of the honey it calls for. I just love molasses. Which brings me to another point. Why can't I find a molasses cookie recipe that actually tastes like molasses? Every recipe I've tried (and I'm only on #2 by the way) results in a mild ginger snap which is insulting to the non-mildness of molasses.

Step C: This step makes me sad and might be expensive. The kitchenaid I got as a wedding gift from my dear aunties might not cut it for much longer. It's not quite big enough, the bowl gets so wedged into it's tread after the kneading that I have to whack it with the rolling pin to loosen it, and it gets VERY hot (nobody could ever say it has wobbly underarms though). I really don't want to spend the dough (ha ha) for a new fancy one though, so it will have to do until it if-and-when burns out and I have no other choice. It seems 12 years of marriage and all the awesome wedding gift appliances are starting to show their wear.

Step 4: Devour all the bread, especially with butter (I got an awesome new Buddha Dish for my birthday, I've been wanting it for at least a year. Makes butter so much more meditative. You can tell yourself it's as good as yoga, and therefore you are exercising by eating butter. Yes.)


We enjoyed today's loaf #1 hot out of the oven for lunch with a new spaghetti squash au gratin recipe. Fantastic, and I think our new go-to spaghetti squash recipe, too:

Spaghetti Squash Au Gratin
(credit: no idea, it's all over facebook)
1 med. spaghetti squash
2 Tb butter
1 small onion, sliced very thin
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (we omitted, for kid taste)
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/2 C sour cream
1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese (we thought asiago would be amazing, too)

1) Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Place in a covered dish with a 1/4 inch of water and microwave for 10-12 minutes. 
2)In a skillet, saute the onions, red pepper, and thyme in the butter. Cook until onions are slightly caramelized. Salt and pepper to taste
3) Using a fork, scrape the inside of the squash and mix with the onions, sour cream, and cheese. Transfer to a buttered baking dish. 
4) Bake for 20 minutes at 375. 


Now to go plant some bulbs. Busy fall Sunday here.

Changes

I've had several people ask me if I am going to continue blogging. . . that they actually enjoyed reading what I wrote (!!!)

I have to admit that the format of blogger makes me cranky, and that was one of the main reasons I stopped. It was irritating that pictures kept moving around on me every time I saved. And who has time for that?

But I've been changed, too. The original purpose of this blog is no longer relevant. My desire to erase my mamaguilt, just a little, peaked into a full-blown panic attack about 2 months ago (mom, please, I'm fine) and my doctor telling me "well sweetie, you've always been a bit high strung." I realized I needed to change again.

So I'm back, my purpose is to simplify. Or more specifically, to really only get worked up about what really matters. I quit lots of things, started saying No, and began baking again. I'm inspired by one of my favorite blogs of all times, SouleMama, and her busy-yet-simple life in Maine. There is now a very huge part of me that would give it all up for a farm in the sticks (I blame the chickens in part for this, they say chickens are like a gateway drug and I would have to agree. I kind of want to get some emus or alpacas. New Brighton might draw the line at that).

So you'll see a change. Less pictures (or all of 'em slumped up to the top, who cares about formatting anyway?), more about baking and knitting. And of course Ox and Little Frog, because they're so darn amazing. The nicknames still fit after all these years, too, although Ox is contemplating changing his name to Rory. He just watched the Doctor Who where Rory and Amy bid adieu, and it made quite an impact on his developing psyche. I doubt I'll post every day like SouleMama, or even once a week, but a little baring-of-the-soul is good for you.


Plus I have to admit looking back on the posts I've posted so far is extremely entertaining.

Today I am Angry

First day of my summer break, shopping for little activities for the kids in case it rains, and once again I am confronted with an unequal world. Sexist toward our boys.

Why is it I have to spend 3 times more on crafts for my son? Why are stores dominated by things for girls? Why can't I go to Target and find nice clothes for my son, in the boys section that is so much smaller than the front-and-center girls section?

Of the 16 coloring books on a display at Michael's today, three were "boy themed" (shocker, Sponge Bob, Angry Birds or Superheroes, take your pick. You, boy, are only allowed to like throwing animals or attacking bad guys). The gender neutral (and much cooler) activities cost 6 times more. I can think of a hundred other themes that both boys and girls would like, where are those coloring books?

This sexism is not new, I noticed it immediately at one of my boy's first baby showers. He got hardly anything, whereas a close friend having a baby girl got TONS of great things (from much the same crowd). Someone actually said "well that's because girls are more fun to shop for!" Of course they are! You can actually FIND stuff to buy for them! My baby boy was just as special as all the girls out there, and deserved to be treated with equal respect, not like a second-class citizen.

At Easter he chose a really nice pink and white checked shirt, very obviously tailored for a boy. He loved wearing it. Once. He now refuses to wear it because somewhere along the way it has been communicated to him that he is not allowed to wear pink. He has become aware of a world in which he cannot wear what he wants to wear, and he is limiting himself as a result.

So I found him a few things, on my trip this morning. Some old-school marbles, a set of jacks, and an awesome activity book, each around $9. . . and a cross-stitch kit of a frog for $2. That little cross-stitch kit saved me from absolutely losing my mind this morning; someone somewhere knows that little boys like to create, too, and should be allowed to do so. To that person, thank you.

To America, I am a mother who is mad that our children are not being treated equally. Is it the biggest of problems? No, but it's a problem. I'm a woman, raising a boy and a girl, and I'm telling the world that the feminism pendulum has swung too far. Our boys are not being treated equally.

Mother's Day 2013

Mother's Day in pictures:

*technically this was the day before MD, but
Mastermind was on a day-long beer tour so
the kids and I went to Paint You Plate
Ox painting a chicken (of course)
Little Frog getting an awesome family portrait.
I can't wait until we get to pick these plates up! 

   

Ox brought home an awesome card he made at school,
and a little clay pot. Treasures.

Cauliflower.
6 heads of it I chopped on Mother's Day,
for Baked Veggie Mac and Cheese (x6)
for meal swap. My arms were tired after
all the chopping and grating (cheese, carrots)
No other pictures I took looked good, since
all the ingredients are pale.

Our household ban on TV has resulted in our
backyard being taken over by an obstacle course.

socks I knitted for my mom. this yarn was gorgeous and soft
clearly I need a camera for next Mother's Day.

The honest reality of Mother's Day
Happy Day for kids, Mama ends up looking
like a train wreck by the end of the day
(that perma smile was starting to fade)

Baked Veggie Mac and Cheese - great for freezing, total kid favorite (and mama favorite). Don't skimp on the cauliflower, when it's mixed in with the cheesy noodles most kids won't even notice it. I baked half of my batch on Mother's Day and tucked it into the kids' thermoses for lunch the next day. I've also made a huge double-batch of this for kids' birthday parties. Yum! 

1 lb elbow macaroni

1 head cauliflower, broken into florets (the smaller the florets if you're really trying to hide it)

1 lg carrot, grated

4 Tbsp butter

1/4 C flour

1 tsp dry mustard

2 C milk

1 lb sharp cheddar (I used about 3 cups of cheese, closer to 3/4 lb altogether)

salt & pepper

healthy dash of nutmeg (optional - but amazing. Will make the mac & cheese more fondue flavored)

1) heat oven to 350, butter large casserole dish

2) Cook macaroni according to package directions for Al Dente. 3 minutes before pkg says done, add the cauliflower to the water. 1 minute before, add the grated carrot. finish boiling and drain. Add to casserole dish. 

3) Make sauce: melt butter over med. heat in a saucepan. Whisk in flour and spices to form a paste. Add milk & bring to a boil, whisking to prevent lumps. As sauce thickens, stir in cheese until melted. 

4) Stir sauce into macaroni & veggies. 

5) Bake for 30 minutes until bubbly & brown.