First Sled Ride

It snowed last night and all morning, so we decided to introduce Lydia to snow and sledding.  She loved it, of course.  She really likes to walk in the snow.  She finds it fascinating.  Our neighbors are nice enough to let us use their hill, which is perfect for kids' sleds.  Here's a shot of the hill:

Here is where Nathaniel hangs out at the bottom of the hill, to make sure our kids don't wind up in the road or in front of the few cars that could come by.  (None did.)

Doesn't Lydia look cute in her snow suit?  I think we bought it for Malachi at a yard sale or something, but then we moved to Texas, and it never got used.  Well, today it saw snow, and she stayed dry underneath, so it was a perfect suit for her! 

Here they are before sledding.

It was tons of fun.  I haven't been on a sled in years.  I took Lydia in after only about 15 minutes (she is only 1), but the boys stayed out for quite a while.  It was perfect play-in-the-snow weather, right around 31 degrees.  Unfortunately, later in the afternoon Lydia got sick, and now she is sleeping in her footies in her crib.  I guess if we get more snow tomorrow, the boys will have to enjoy it without her.  :(  They willl have a busy day, though.  They are singing and doing their puppets at the nursing home tomorrow after church. 

Leaves and Spanish storytime

This picture is a couple of weeks old now, as you can guess since it's way too cold and wet now to be playing in the leaves, but I thought it was a fun action shot.  My kids and nieces were helping Pa and I rake at my parents' house.  OK, mostly, they were playing, but we did get some help out of them.  It was a lot of fun.  My siblings joined in, too, and all three of us were taking multiple pictures. 

Does anyone else have trouble putting more than one picture in a blog entry?  Sometimes I have no trouble, and other times it just won't let me browse for more.

I just printed up the fliers for my next project: a Spanish storytime.  My church asked if I could do something with moms and kids, and we came up with a storytime format.  It will be in Spanish and English.  The idea is to slowly introduce English to Spanish-speaking toddlers/preschoolers and their stay-at-home mamas.  I start in January.  I am nervous, but very excited.  (Missy, I will be asking for help with felt farm animals!)  This is really all me, because no one else at church speaks Spanish, but they are eager to reach out and start some type of ESL program.  This is the beginning of something that will hopefully expand later on...

After Thanksgiving

Yes, I've been gone a while.  We went to Nathaniel's parents' for Thanksgiving, and that went well.  We took the boys bowling for the first time.  I wish you could all see Malachi's happy dance.  It is so cute, and he did it after EVERY single frame!  Both boys had a blast, and my ordinarily super-competitive father-in-law just sat back and enjoyed watching them bowl, which was awesome.  (And my boys thought the bowling shoes were cool! :)
Now we are just trying to get back in the swing of things and get ready for Christmas.  My poor baby had a stomach bug Monday, but she's fine now and we're hoping no one else gets it.

Lydia's Favorite New "Game"

Lydia's favorite new "game" right now is to change her baby.  She strips her doll and gets her own (real) cloth wipes.  I can hear her talking to her baby.  "Oh, poop.  Clean you up.  Change you." 

Pink Applesauce

Around here, pink applesauce has been extremely popular.  No, I haven't been buying the neon pink, expensive concoctions you can find in individual servings at the grocery.  I've been making my own strawberry applesauce, which we all enjoy, even Malachi, who won't eat strawberries or apples!

When I first looked into making applesauce, I consulted my husband's grandmother's old (1950s?) cookbook.  It listed applesauce under dessert, and my first thought was who in the world would ever consider applesauce a dessert?  And I certainly kept in mind that this is a cookbook that actually advised housewives to serve margarine at every meal for their families' health!  But I get it now.  Homemade, hot applesauce topped with a bit of vanilla ice cream definately qualifies as a delicious dessert (and you know I love desserts!).

This is more of a how-to than an actual recipe.  All you need is strawberries, apples, cinnamon, and water.  If you have one of these:

The boys love turning the handle on the apple peeler.

it really helps.  My corer/peeler/slicer is from the Pampered Chef, but I'm sure there are other brands, too.  The only thing is, you have to have firm apples, so you need to use it soon after you get your fresh apples.  Waiting a couple of weeks means that you will have to peel and core by hand!
I basically fill my biggest pot almost full of apples and add about 2 cups of frozen strawberries.  (No need to defrost.)  I add 1-2 cups of water and a healthy amount of cinnamon.  Then you just cook it until the strawberries turn to goo and the apples can easily be smashed with the back of a spoon.  You do need to stir it, but not constantly.  I'll stir, then put pajamas on my daughter.  Stir, then read the boys a book.  Stir....you get the idea.  Then you can either leave it lumpy or blend it smooth.  I love using the immersible blender my sister gave me, but the food processor or regular blender will work just fine.  Whatever you use, be careful; it is HOT!  I usually turn off the heat and let it sit a while before blending.  It does freeze well, but I put the jars in the fridge overnight to cool before freezing.   Try other fruit, too.  We also like purple applesauce (made with blueberries), and I've thought of trying other combinations.

In other news, Nathaniel is home from Europe!!!  We are so glad to have him back.  He and the kids are all asleep now, and it is wonderfully quiet and peaceful here.

Down time and etc

Lydia's been taking a regular, longer nap these days, so I've had a bit more downtime in the afternoons.  It's been wonderful.  I've been busy crocheting and cooking lately.  I messed around with my ranch dressing recipe and improved it (I will update it on the blog, if anyone's interested).  I'm currently crocheting Nathaniel a wool hat.  I hope it fits.  And I've had to spend many mornings this week at the school.  One of the reasons was Malachi's Thanksgiving program.  And he and Elijah both got medals at the assembly for participating in the PTA art contest (which they loved!).  We've been keeping busy, which is good since Nathaniel's been in Europe all week.  We can't wait to have him home tomorrow night!

Cranberry Orange Muffins

Cranberry-Orange Muffin on a placemat my wonderful friend Karen made for me!

This weekend, my sister and nieces came to visit!  We had a great time.  Nathaniel watched all 5 of our kids (in the evening, including bedtime!) so my sister and I could go see Burn the Floor.  Fabulous!

For breakfast, I made the ever-popular pumpkin muffins, but I decided to try something new, too: Cranberry-Orange Muffins.  I am happy with how these came out.  Malachi particularly liked them.  I think they are better cool; the orange flavor doesn't come through when the muffins are hot.

1 3/4 c whole wheat flour
1/3 c honey
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 c milk
1/4 c water
1/4 c applesauce
1 orange
1 c fresh cranberries

Chop the cranberries.  (I measured them before chopping.)  In a bowl, combine milk, water, egg, and applesauce.  Zest orange into bowl.  Then add the dry ingredients and mix.  Add cranberries.  I peeled the orange and broke it into small segments.  I added half of the orange to the mix (my kids ate the other half).  Bake at 400 for 9-10 minutes for mini muffins or 19-20 minutes for regular muffins.  Enjoy!