Thanksgiving!

The dinner table.



My special recipes:

Cranberry Sauce:

Ingredients:

2 cups white sugar (plus more to taste) 2 cups orange juice The zest of one orange

2 (12 ounce) packages fresh cranberries

Directions:

In a saucepan over medium heat, dissolve the sugar in the orange juice. Stir in the cranberries, and cook until they start to pop. Remove from heat, and transfer to a bowl. Cool completely before covering and placing in the fridge. This can be made one to two days prior to the dinner.

Weight Watchers Pumpkin Pie with Graham Cracker Crust:

(The points value may have changed due to the new system!) Also, Everyone loved this pie, and no one knew it was weight watchers!)

POINTS® Value: 3 Servings: 8 Preparation Time: 10 min Cooking Time: 65 min

Our take on this Thanksgiving classic features a light graham cracker crust. The filling's custardy and rich, with just a hint of spice.

Ingredients

	3 oz reduced-fat cinnamon graham crackers, about 5 1/2 sheets (We used honey graham crackers due to the girls allergy to cinnamon, and it was just as good)
	1 Tbsp packed light brown sugar
	2 Tbsp butter, melted
	2 large egg white(s)
	1 large egg(s)
	1/2 cup(s) dark brown sugar
	1/4 tsp table salt
	2 tsp pumpkin pie spice, or less to taste
	1 cup(s) canned pumpkin
	1/2 cup(s) fat-free evaporated milk
	1/4 cup(s) lite whipped topping

Instructions

• Position rack in middle of oven. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
• Place graham crackers and light brown sugar in a food processor; process into crumbs (or smash into crumbs in a sealed plastic food bag with a rolling pin). Spoon crumbs into a small bowl; add melted butter and combine with fingers into a coarse meal. Distribute crumbs evenly on bottom and up sides of an ungreased 9-inch pie plate. Chill for 30 minutes before baking. Bake until crust starts to turn golden, about 8 to 10 minutes; remove from oven and let cool.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, using an electric mixer, whip egg whites until frothy; fold in egg, dark brown sugar, salt, pumpkin pie spice, canned pumpkin and evaporated milk. Beat pumpkin custard until smooth and pour into pie shell. Bake until a knife inserted in center comes out clean, about 45 to 55 minutes. Slice into 8 pieces, top each piece with 1/2 tablespoon of whipped topping and serve warm or at room temperature. Yields 1 slice per serving.

Collard Greens:

Jay looked up the "how to" on making collard greens from fresh, and I decided that they were too much of a pain in the butt, and took way too long, so what I did was I took the neck and excess fat from the turkey and boiled it in two quarts of fat free reduced sodium chicken broth plus enough water to fill my pot until the neck looked cooked through. Then I cut two bunches of collard greens into thick strips, and placed them into the pot. I boiled them on high for about 30 minutes, adding more water as needed. Everybody that likes greens had seconds and thirds, so I must have done something right!

Idle Wednesday

Once a Wine Rack, Now a Bookshelf!

I have this new wine rack that I bought at goodwill for $10 which will be featured in next week's Idle Wednesday, so I'd been debating what to do with my old one. I've had it for more than thirteen years, so I didn't want to just throw it away. I contemplated giving it to goodwill, but as I sat at the computer one day and idea just popped into my head. I'd like to free up the shelf in the art room for bead magazines, since cookbooks don't really go in an art room. I decided to get rid of all of the cooking magazines because I really don't' go through them, and I'm not ever going to get around to pulling the recipes I want out of them (So if you want them, let me know quickly, and you can have them for free. After those are gone, I really only have a couple of books I use. Remarkably, when the project was done, there was exactly enough room for all of them. Now that's serendipity!)
There is only one counter that has free space to put cookbooks on, but it's the counter that I dry the dishes on. It sometimes gets quite wet, so I need to put the books on something to keep them dry. This is when my eyes land on the wine rack. Ah ha! So, I took it down, cut the middle out, and started brainstorming. I painted it the same yellow as the table, but the light in the kitchen this morning was really bad.

Thanksgiving

We don't usually make too big of a deal about Thanksgiving. We have a very small family just me, Jay, Laurel, Miah, Billie (my mom), Mom's Hubby Ron, and brother Jason. Usually we are far flung, sometimes we are all together at the same time, but mostly it seems that one or more of us are too far away to get "home" for the big meal. However, for the past three years now we have had one person that has been with us no matter the distance. My friend Sheila. Two years ago we were all together for the first time in years because Jay got home from Iraq on Thanksgiving day. Everybody drove down to Fort Campbell to welcome him home, and I made a big meal. Last year my little branch of the family drove to Glasgow to have dinner with Mom, Ron and Sheila's family, and this year Sheila and Scotty are driving the eight hours to eat with us. Mom is doing her own thing, and who knows what Jason is doing.
This is usually the time of year where everyone makes lists. Lists of christmas presents to buy, grocery lists for those big meals we're going to make for Thanksgiving, lists of things we are thankful for... This year my list is all about my friends. I couldn't survive without them. Even so far away, and though we don't talk much, just those few minutes of chatting, or the odd comment on facebook, or the occasional phone call make me feel like I am loved. So here goes my list:

I am thankful for: (in no particular order)
Jeremiah La Forest
Sara Goff
Sheila Posey
Virgil Goff
Adam Leahy
Gina Griffiths
Angilita Rincon
Katie Hubbard
April Mathews
Jennifer Dennison
Julie Reed
Marcia Beyer
Kathy Smith
Jennifer Godsey
PJ Kerr
ALL of my weight watcher friends (who I don't know as well as I'd like, but every week you guys keep me going!)

In one way or another you guys have made me laugh, gave me advice, helped me out, had great debates, or just reached out to me in a way that made me feel happy. I am very grateful for that, because without you this duty station would be so much harder to deal with!

So, happy Thanksgiving. I wish you all safe travels, good food, and plenty of things to be grateful for!

Idle Wednesday

Expanding and Painting for a Coffee/Game Table

This table used to be perfectly square, and evergreen tree green. After many days, and ten completely ruined fingernails, it is now this mustard yellow, and a foot and a half longer. Jay and I took another piece of furniture to Lowes to have it color matched. It was a pretty darned close job! The "Leaf" that I cut to size, sanded, then painted to match is the same piece of wood that the girls found at Sulfur Well park and used to "surf" on in the creek, so there is a cute story for the kids to remember when we use the table (Boy, that was a great day!)
I decided that since I already have this twenty dollar gallon of paint that a few more projects are going to be this color. The good news is that when or if I get tired of the color I know what will go into changing it. Mind you, this means it will take a heck of a long time for me to get tired of it! The sanding alone took me and my electric hand sander three days to complete, and more than a week to paint and then stain/polyurethane it. The awesome thing about this project is that now I have a much longer table in front of the couch that I can use to fold laundry, there is plenty of room for a gameboard, and if we want to eat dinner Japanese style, we all fit perfectly. I should mention that when we bought this table from the antique store it was about a foot taller than it is now, but Jay and I cut the legs to size. Not bad for $70 all together!

Idle Wednesday

Simple and colorful.

There isn't really a lot to say about this week's submission. It's sterling silver chain, wire wrapped crystal, quartz, moonstone, opal and gold. I'm thinking next week will be a little more involved. I think that it will involve my new dremel tool, paint, and some furniture. We'll see!

Fall is Falling

And this is the ONLY color in our backyard!

What did she say?

Miah: (Whispering) Poop!

Me: (Bent over the workbench, sanding) Huh?

Miah: (Whispering) Poop!

Me: What the hell?

Miah: (Whispering) Poop!

Me: Miah! Why do you keep saying that??

Miah: (Pointing to the radio on the floor) HE'S saying it!

Me: Huh?

Miah: Listen!

Radio:

Miah: See DOO DOO!

LOL! This kid is crazy!

Idle Wednesday

Showing you an old one.

I painted this just after Jay's last deployment. I wanted to post it here even though it wasn't a new item because I am very attached to it. I never said I was a talented painter, I just like to play with the colors, goof off a little, and in this case, express my emotions. I was feeling Jay's absence acutely, and I felt like I needed to let it out. The decoupage items came from ripped out title pages of some of my books, pictures from time magazine, the Army Times, a photocopy of Jay's hand that I had done so I could "hold his hand" while he was gone, and a note Jay had written to me and slipped behind my favorite cd right before he left. He's always so good about doing little things like that, and I wanted one of the notes he left me that trip to be a part of it. My brother and his girlfriend both exclaimed over it, but I don't know if they meant what they said...people are so often full of crap. All I know is that I felt better when it was done, and when I look at it every day above my desk I remember how I felt that year, and it makes me glad that I at least know that whatever time Jay gets home tonight, he'll still be here. For now, I don't have to count myself among the army wives whose husbands are deployed.

My own recipe!

Stacy's Version of Potato Soup!
2 cup serving is 4 points

Ingredients:
12 medium potatoes
3 cups chopped carrots
4 cups chopped celery
2 packages sodium free chicken bullion
1 tablespoon garlic powder (more to taste)
1 tablespoon onion powder
salt substitute and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger (not completely necessary if it's not in your cabinet already)
2 cups fat free low sodium chicken broth
Enough water to cover potatoes


Place potatoes in bottom of large crock pot and cover with chicken broth, water and bullion. There should be enough room in the crock pot to add carrots and celery later. Cook on low for 7 hours, or high for 4, until potatoes are softened. Add celery, carrots and remaining ingredients and cook on high for two more hours, or until carrots are softened. Remove vegetables from the broth to a large bowl, retaining the broth. Use mixer to "mash" vegetables, adding broth back to the mixture until it is the desired consistency.
*Note : This will be slightly orange from the carrots, and may be odd to look at, but it tastes great! Miah usually tries to lick the beaters when I'm done! You may want to play with the time a little bit, but my husband comes home late so when I make something in the crock pot I cook it very slowly. This is my personal recipe, and it's always under construction, so if you have input I'd greatly appreciate it!
Also, the kids love to add bacon bits to the top for garnish, and as few points as it is a little cheese won't kill anyone!

Happy Birthday Sara!!!

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Idle wednesday

Why not occupy your hands while you watch television?

Simply put, I crocheted this basket with two strands of yarn for strength. Miah has discovered it's many uses...hauling pine cones, carrying water pistols, storing coloring books...and the list goes on. I love that I can pick up some pretty yarn, start a chain, and never know what the end result will be. I just keep going until something comes to me. It's soothing to do while watching tv, or listening to a podcast while waiting for the kids to get out of school. I have tons of yarn, so be warned. There may be lots of crocheted goodies posted here.
Have a good week!

The ACTUAL Atom Video

Okay, so, the LAST post was The Atom Song. I didn't really pay attention to which video was which *again*...
This is the REAL atom video, that I'm showing today in class!!!

-L

The Atom Video

Miah, my friend Ashlyn, and I (Laurel) made a video about atoms for extra credit in Science. It counts as a test grade, and we were REALLY excited when we finished it. This just proves that it was THOMAS that caused us to not finish out Flowers for Algernon video.
We also made a song about atoms. That was not included because *someone* didn't realize which video was the blooper, and which video was the song we needed. Hopefully, I'll have the graphics and stuff done on that soon, and I'll share it all with you!

ENJOY!!!

-L

P.S. The last couple minutes is the rest of the song "Nobodies Listening" by Linkin Park, so it isn't super-long or anything, and you can just skip that....unless you like that song, of course. LOLZ!!!

Idle Wednesday

Hammering out your frustration!

These spoons were all buy themselves in a shoebox, engraved with our last initial, waiting for a reason to exist. Things tend to pile up that way here. I know there will be a use for it someday, it's cool, or some such thing...

I saw some forks that had been hammered and reused as hooks, so I made a bee line for the spoons and got to work hammering all of the week's frustrations out. I used a small chasing hammer, and a vise to shape and bend them, and my drill to make the holes. It was loud but satisfying work.

I have three line up on the wall in my bathroom, and they are the perfect place to hang my ponytail holders and headbands. Now, what am I going to do next week??

Thank you Sarah Hoy, this made my Monday!

Halloween Dance

Laurel's school had their annual Halloween dance. Laurel took the opportunity to dress up rather than wear a costume. We don't celebrate the holiday, but I figure this doesn't count as doing so. Miah was a little jealous, so she raided her dress up trunk and came out dressed as "The Karate Kid" How cute is that??
I have to mention this also: At the dance they have competitions, scariest, ugliest, prettiest...etc. The teachers line the kids up, and judge them. *Sigh* Laurel won prettiest costume, her prize was a free slice of pizza, and a soda. Geeze...all her life I've avoided the people who swear she should be in pageants, and they snuck the very thing I was trying to NOT teach my daughter into a halloween dance. Beauty or attractiveness should never be used to get what you want in life. Thanks teachers for showing her how the world works. Errg!

Indefinite Re-Enlistment, 10 years and 10 months to go.

The Flags representing all 50 states surround the room.

The Unit Motto.

The unit and company flags.
The Sergent Major insisted I get my picture taken...who says no to him?The SGM, me, Jay and the Lt. Colonel.
He held my hand forever while the 1st Sgt tried to figure out my camera. Embarrassing!
We should have quit while we were ahead...But he signed it anyway!

The 1st Sergent

The Major

The Lt. Colonel

Jay: happy, or distressed?

My t-shirt

The mugs we got. The bottom screws off to reveal a hiding place.

The "coin" The colonel slipped me. (It's a long standing tradition.) Complete with the oath on the back.

The front of the coin has the signal flags, and the Am. flag.

The coin the Colonel slipped Jay, and his knife.

Jay's new hat.

Well, it's official. We are in it for the long haul. We didn't have the ability to choose what post we go to next, but instead received a couple of thousand dollars, an acu back pack, a t-shirt, two coffee mugs, a pocket knife, and an acu pen. The re-up SGT was really big on "swag". I find it's funny that we are supposed to get excited about junk, when what the ceremony is really about the fact that we have made the final decision. There is no going back now.

I've been thinking about the last sixteen years. High school, Basic, AIT, a rotation in Kuwait to guard the border (Before the war) a tour in Korea that was absolute hell, three deployments to Iraq, all of the classes, field training exercises, deployment preparation, two kids, football games, school performances, Barn-Lot plays, four dogs, two cats, a million fish and frogs (never again) broken bones, trips to the er, friends I'll never loose, Operation Homefront, Red Cross, FRG Leadership, seven 0r ten moves, five cars, vacations, and all those stolen moments...what a life we've had together. I have no idea if I'd change it if I had the chance. Sometimes you wish for certain things to go away, but in the end we are all the sum of our experiences. I like us as we are. My little family has had it's share of insanity but we love each other. That I'd never change.