Gabby Talks

Not traditional by any means

2005-10-12T19:42:00.000-04:00

Many homeschool families have a schedule. I'm afraid that I'm not one them. My girls started off the day by sleeping in and not getting up when I asked them to. By the time they got up and could manage to find their way downstairs for breakfast, I had already washed 2 loads of laundry, loaded and ran the dishwasher, printed out their lessons and had them neatly waiting for their arrival in the learning center. Needless to say they were not impressed. Anyway, today we learned about fire prevention and they took a test about it. Tomorrow will be designing an escape plan and drill. That should be really interesting. I will also be covering Math (with the workbooks I found in the recycling center bin. No marks!. I have a book diving fetish). Let me explain, I take our recyclables to the center on purpose just so I can see what hardbacks and paperbacks people have gotten rid of. I live in a college town and this can be quite interesting to see what you can find. I was going to look in the magazine area, but someone had dumped porn magazines (alot) in there and felt that it might not be such a great idea to rifle through them with my bare hands. Anyway,
tomorrow I will be figuring out which little indian broke mommy's digital camera....

Homeschool Adventure

2005-10-10T12:01:00.000-04:00

Teenagers are very difficult to raise. There are social issues, peer pressure, and just plain crankiness to deal with. I have two teens that were being teased at school to the point of tears and migraines. I have chosen to homeschool them both. As a result of this decision, I feel very uneasy about this new adventure. Not that I won't be able to handle the work involved, but that I won't be providing them with everything that they need. There are so many different views on homeschooling including deschooling, unschooling, eclectic homeschooling, classical homeschooling....whew! Who knew that there were so many (and many more) different styles of homeschooling? Everyday is going to be an adventure both for me and my girls. I think that this blog will document our triumphs and failures both of what worked and what didn't. Let the journey begin.

You say Jaffles, I say Mmmmmm!

2005-05-12T15:18:00.000-04:00

Where does all the time go in a day, a week, a month? It seems like the days are really flying by now. I can't seem to find enough hours in a day to get everything done that I want to do. For weeks now I have been trying to update my blog and I never can seem to get it done. I finally have resorted to emailing my blog entries. Pretty pathetic. Anyway, not wanting to turn this blog into a boo-hoo site, here is the real blog for today....today Gabby Talks about Mountain Pies.
Being an outdoors type of girl, I take pride in being able to cook a gourmet meal over an open fire. I have these pie irons called "Mountain Pie" makers that were given to me by my dad. I remember using them on some expeditions with my dad but I always made things like dippy eggs and peanut butter mountain pies to see if I could really gross my mom and dad out. What they are, are a campers most versatile tool. There are many ways to use a pie iron. You can toast bread, make scrambled eggs, roast potatoes, make desserts and many more ideas. What you do with the pie iron most, is making mountain pies. In Britain, they are called "Toasties", and in Australia they may be better known as "Jaffles" (pronounced jawfuls), although they may also be called "Hobo Pies”. The only difference that I see is that in Britain they actually use a sandwich maker to make “Toasties”, not a pie iron. The mountain pie has actually been around for quite some time.

In the 1970s, a man called John O'Brien sniffed the wind and saw the world was changing. It wasn't just bad fashion and big hair. More women were entering the work force and families were looking for quicker ways to cook dinner.
John had six kids, and when they went camping, they loved the jaffles they cooked over the fire so much he decided to import some toasted sandwich-makers from the only place in the world where they were being made: Belgium.
He used Newcastle as a testing ground and they sold like hot sandwich-makers. John then tried to get 250,000 more, but the Belgians told him no.
"Stuff 'em! I'll build my own," he thought, "but mine will be better."
Toasted sandwiches back then were too big and too messy: a culinary treat that was booby-trapped. And when you bit into it, anything could happen.
John invented the scissors action, which automatically cut and sealed your toasted sanger.
The late John O'Brien patented the scissors action and turned the world of toasted sangers upside down. His company, Breville, have now sold over 23 million sandwich-makers around the world.
Courtesy of: The New Inventors, ABC tv.
You may be tempted to try them when you are out camping in the wilderness somewhere but be very careful when eating them, I wouldn’t want you to burn your tongue! The inside of the mountain pie can be very dangerous if you do not let it cool down a little before consuming your delicacy. (Let’s just say that I had a very bad encounter with a microwave and coffee which now has left me phobic of hot food.) Anyway, if you would like to try something new in your Mountain Pie, try these websites for new recipes from ordinary people.
http://www.greatcamps.com/pie-iron-dinners-recipes-contest-7.htm
http://www.chuckwagondiner.com/pieiron.html
Or, if you prefer, you can always try my dippy egg and peanut butter combo. Until Gabby Talks……

Why Can't You All Just Get Along?

2005-04-09T11:18:00.000-04:00

"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on."
Robert Frost

Well we all survived the birthday party from Hell. It was a first boy/girl overnighter. Let me just say that this was the first, and the last. No one was seriously injured, but some feelings were hurt along the way. The evening started out okay, but then the girls started to get on each others nerves and talk about each other the way girls do. There were tears, bad words, and stomping..alot of stomping (as well as silly string, confetti, and shaving cream..). I posted this picture of the ducky cake that I made and frosted myself. I think that was actually the best part of the whole evening. All I can say is that the evening turned out to be..well, just ducky. Until Gabby Talks again.....

Water, Water Everywhere...

2005-04-09T02:00:00.000-04:00

This is a picture of the Bloomsburg Town Park after the Susquehanna River crested at 27.1 feet. It isn't far from the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds. Bloomsburg is located in Columbia County, Pennsylvania. We have the privilege of being the only "Town" in Pennsylvania. We are home to the great Bloomsburg Fair. It is really a big fair and we even get some really good entertainment. Mostly country acts but usually Thursday night is rock night. There is also figure 8 racing and tractor pulls. They always put on a really nice fireworks show two of the nights. This year's line-up so far consists of: Michael W. Smith, Kenny Rogers, Tracy Adkins and more to be announced as they are signed. The food is the best part of the fair and many of the stands have been there for over 40 years. If you don't know what the Bloomsburg Fair is like, find a map and head on over to the great Bloomsburg Fair September 24 through October 1, 2005. I'm sure you'll love it and want to come back every year.

Blocked by Bess

2005-04-02T12:22:00.000-05:00

I work for a school district in PA and recently alot of the students have been able to blog in school. Apparently the Network Administrator has picked up on it because any and all blogs including Yahoo photo's, Flickr, and a host of others are now blocked by Bess, our filter. I won't be able to update from work anymore which really bites. Now I will have to fight over the computer that is connected to my cable modem. Teenagers really suck! Anyway, not much to say at this time because we have to prepare for flooding by the Susquehanna River and Kinney's Run. Our flood stage is 19 feet and the projected level is 28 feet. Looks like Hurricane Ivan all over again.

What annoys you and why?

2005-03-31T11:27:00.000-05:00

I really have a desire to be creative and to be a freelance writer. Because of this, I have been researching creative writing and studying things pertaining to writing. I stumbled across a list of prompts to spark creativity and I decided to try and write something every day to see what happens. Today is day one.
"What annoys you and why?"
Today started out as every day does. My husband crawling over me and the dog to get up for work. You see, our king-sized waterbed barely fits in our room and in order for him to get out of bed he has to crawl over me every morning. Usually he ends up bruising my foot or my shin because he can't tell where I am laying in the bed. I know it isn't his fault that our room is so small, but there are several other larger rooms in our house. The problem is that the room that I wanted is at the front of the house and the road in front of our house is very noisy. I do like where we live but sometimes I just yearn for more... more money, more excitement, more friends, etcetera. Anyway, that is not the only thing that annoys me. My husband had a heart attack one year ago, and ever since then he drinks red wine every night to the point of utter drunkenness that is becoming very annoying and pathetic. My daughter who is a teenager doesn't like it and pushes his buttons until every night is a screaming match between them. I end up trying to stop all the yelling but there really is no point to stopping it since they both then turn on me. I am annoyed, frustrated, and disgusted with my life. Not necessarily the people in my life, but how my life has turned out. I thought that I would be successful and would work in a big city where there is a lot of excitement. The town that I live in has excitement but not the kind that I crave. Someday after my daughter is old enough to leave the house, I will be brave and move near a beach or to the city to fulfill my dreams.

Terri Schiavo Passes Away

2005-03-31T11:23:00.000-05:00

I am truly saddened by this news...I don't know what to say other than I send my condolences to the family who tried so hard to save their daughter.

Obligatory First Sucky Post

2005-03-29T13:26:00.001-05:00

Hello,
I have been lurking a reading some very good (and some very, very bad) blogs before starting my own. I have been noticing that a pattern has emerged and I am now going to do the obvious. This is my first sucky post. Blah, Blah, Blah. Anyway, now that I have my first post out of the way, it's time to figure out what I am to do next...Until Gabby Talks again.