Large Family Logistics

Laundry Day

2008-05-12T15:47:00.005-05:00

While the girls folded copious amounts of laundry today, I read from Laundry by Cheryl Mendelson. I read expressively and dramatically, we had fun. I didn't read to the point that their eyes glazed over, I stopped a nice spot until the next "folding party". The goal is improving excellence in our laundry methods.

March-April-May Update

2008-05-06T10:06:00.001-05:00

*****

I was in the midst of a valiant effort to finish the LFL book by the end of March when *POOF* the computer bit the dust. I, tough old bird that I am, cried. All was not lost, everything in rough form was on the laptop, nicer drafts were on a flash drive, but two weeks of hard work were on the fried computer. The local computer repair shop was able to recover the work and put it on a new computer--Yeah! That ordeal ended March. April was a new month with a new menu plan, daily schedule and chore assignments. For two weeks we all put in extra effort every day. Bridgette made suppers, Annie made lunches, and I edited, organized, and filled gaps in the book. Then I sent it to the editor. Annie said that I looked like Charlotte after she gave birth (Charlotte's Web). I reassured the children that I was not going to die although I did feel like I must have looked. Exhausted. Since sending the book off, I have been rewriting, revising, editing, kicking myself, and more in my head over that book.

*****

What we've been doing lately

The kids think it's so cute to set Matthew in big boy poses. He rolls around the room now and is extremely nosy about what everyone is doing. I have to nurse him alone in a room now. He kicks the keyboard and my arm so the one handed typing days are over. He cranks his head around when I click to a new page. If anyone speaks to me, he has to involve himself in the conversation.

A recent picture of Matthew with a book.

He likes to practice piano with the kids.

This is an indoor tent made with blankets.

Does anyone else have children that love this activity?

This is Kitty Litter Cake that we had for a recent birthday party. It was disgusting to look at but tasted good. We made kitty poop with pudding frozen into globs, it became even grosser as it melted into the cake. Of course this was made by one of the boys. Our girly girls would have made something that looks like a wedding cake. The recipe for this is in the MOMYS cookbook. You can probably find it online also. Just in case you are so wowed by this that you want your very own kitty litter cake to serve your friends and family.

The boys pruned the orchard. We tilled a Kitchen Garden close to the house and planted potatoes, onions, garlic (yes it is supposed to be planted in the fall), beets, lettuce, and radishes. We transplanted perennials. The tulips and daffodils are blooming. The grass turned green. Brandt made a garden bench from a dead walnut tree that the boys pulled down last fall. The spinach I planted in a cold frame last fall came out of dormancy, grew like crazy and is beautiful! We have baby chicks growing, two bottle lambs, and ducks are sitting on hidden nests about the place.

Spinach planted last fall. Yum!

The new Kitchen Garden, a work in progress. Orchard in the background.

Rustic sitting place. A notch is cut into each prop for the sitting-log.

Bottle lambs.

Psalm the baby goat. His father's name is Job and his mother's name is Esther. You know, Esther, Job, Psalm. Next year we'll have Proverbs. Psalm is going to the sale barn asap. He ran up and butt Brielle. Billy goats do that.

This is Job. He doesn't get out anymore but he used to be an escape artist. It was not unusual to look out the deck window and see Job looking in at us.

A very faithful mama duck.

Over the winter I hatched this idea of studying pioneer days with the middle and younger set next year. I thought that we would do the Prairie Primer unit study, use old fashioned school books (I already had quite a few), make pioneer prairie dresses (the girls wanted to do this and instigated the project), turn a room into a One Room School, etc. The last few weeks I have been more fully researching the idea and read a very interesting book called The Old Country School, The Story of Rural Education in the Middle West by Wayne E. Fuller. It's probably been ten years since I read anything substantial on the history of education and it was a refresher in how we got to where we are. Then I got out my old set of Charlotte Mason books and started on them again. It was a good ten years ago that I read them and they are thoroughly marked up. I didn't realize how much I was influenced by those books until now. Another book I read this month just for anyhow--although it did help me understand pioneer days and the one room school--was The Children's Blizzard by David Laskin. It is a tragic story but along the way gives a science lesson about weather, the history of weather forecasting, and how hypothermia and frostbite happen in the body. I'm going to require the older children to read it next year.

Ellie has given clear signs all winter long that she was able to be potty trained but I didn't want to deal with it, plain and simple. A couple of weeks ago we ran out of disposable diapers and I said "That's it, we're not going to town just for diapers." We put underwear on her and cloth diapers at night and nap time. She has had just a few accidents and generally wakes up dry. Hooray!

Matthew is doing very well these days. He is 14 pounds 6 ounces and right on track for his corrected age. He is a miracle. I still get sick to the stomach when I think about last summer in the NICU, I can't look at the pictures of him then, I can't look at other preemie pictures or hear stories without getting sick--maybe time will cure that, maybe not. He had his last Synagis shot for the season yesterday (that's the shot of RSV antibodies). It will be nice to be out and about this summer but moms in the know tell me that I will still be nervous. He's very happy and loves attention from his siblings. If nobody is entertaining him he yells or gives a fake cough. He entertains us. : )

Impromptu-- taken minutes ago. He's ready for a nap, there's a bit of a smile behind that pacifier.

Easy Homemade Tomato Soup

2008-03-18T10:41:00.002-05:00

Easy Homemade Tomato Soup
Chop an onion in the food processor, add celery and a carrot also if you want.
Heat half a stick of butter, or use olive oil, in a Dutch oven or large stock pot; add the chopped veggies and saute.
Mince a garlic clove or 2 into the pot.
Slowly add 1/4 c flour and blend.
Add 1 quart of any tomato product, canned or frozen, juice, whole tomatos, sauce, fresh tomatos -if you use puree or paste then use much less or add a lot of water. Diced tomatoes are the prettiest.
1 quart of chicken broth
pinch of baking soda
salt and pepper
1 t basil
Bring to a good rolling boil.
Add 3 c milk or cream and heat to almost boiling-do not boil. May use water instead of milk. We separate it at this point and make a small amount with goat milk for our girls that are allergic to cow milk.
Can make at 11:30 or so and serve or make early in the morning and put in crockpot to keep warm until noon.
Serve with cheese slices.

Ol' Settler's Beans

2008-03-14T09:59:00.002-05:00

My kids love this and scrape the pot clean.

Brown together and drain the fat off:
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. chopped bacon
1 onion

Add:
1/2 c catsup
1/2 c honey
1/2 c BBQ sauce
3 t dry mustard
1/2 t chili powder
1 t salt
1/4 t pepper
4 quarts of cooked beans (red, butter, navy, pinto, black, etc.)

Bake at 350 for 1 hour or in crockpot on low for 4 hours.

Winter Happenings 2007-08

2008-03-08T16:12:00.006-06:00

Baby Matthew is growing and doing great! He does not have to return to the cardiologist - woo hoo! His physical therapy and occupational therapy appointments are great, they tell me that he's right on track. I don't think I've watched a baby's development so closely since our first one. His eyes are fine, they track grwat, he's not nearsighted and the Retinopathy Of Prematurity has completely regressed. He is a miracle baby!

Mom and Matthew

We're having baby calves here left and right. Bridgette's goat had her kid and now we are in goat milk production!

Tiffany (our nanny), Annie, and Bridgette

Matthew is learning to read. Well, not really, but Annie (9) has really taken off in the last year. Brooke and Brian have learned how to read and are reading everything in print (Thank You Tiffany!).

So Studious!

We have had record snows here and the kids have had enormous amounts of fun in it. So much that they are tired of it and want it all to melt and "be spring".

King of the Mountain

It's not exactly calving weather is it? The pasture is under there somewhere...

We started a new weekly ritual. Every Thursday at 4pm we have a tea party. Sometimes we make a feast and lay out table clothes and sometimes we just have scones or biscotti but we always use our pretty tea cups. Aunt Heather often comes wearing one of her 11 bridesmaid dresses. We have also had Colonial dresses, Pioneer dresses, 1900 costumes, Regency dresses, princess dresses and more. We make our hair beautiful in twists, buns, curls, and more. Sometimes, depending on the crowd, we read a chapter out of Raising Maidens of Virtue and discuss it. Often we talk about current events. It's not uncommon to have one to four of the menfolk at our tea party. Supper on these nights is a really simple soup. Nobody is hungry and there's lots of hand washing to do. It is so worth it though! We all look forward to "Tea Party Day".

Aunty Heather wearing one of her eleven bridesmaid dresses.

Last fall, the girls went to an auction with Aunt Heather and bought an antique sewing machine for $25. It looked like it had sat in an attic for over fifty years. It had all the parts and even "grandma's" eyeglasses. We cleaned and oiled it. Tiffany took the girls to the Amish fabric store and bought a belt for it. Then they started sewing. They had two skirts done the third day after buying it.

Bridgette treadling away!

This is what we look like every morning. The boys do their work in their rooms. Tiffany sits between the 6 and 7 year old and assists everyone. I sit on the other side with Matthew or am off feeding Matthew. I spent the winter nursing Matthew. He was a slow sleepy eater. Now, though he's gotten stronger and is more efficient and fast. Just in time since Tiff is leaving us.

Here Tiffany has Ellie in the Ergo while she reads a lesson to someone.

The girls are getting older and more helpful.

Clean enough to eat off of - or kiss!

The boys wrestled from November through February and had a very hard time focusing on anything else! Their mother was not impressed with the amount of schoolwork they did over the winter. Grrr... But as soon as wrestling was over they have kicked it into high gear and are making up for it. I did not get to see them wrestle except for one night because of Matthew. I was there for all the weight cutting but none of the glory.

Brandt pinning some poor boy at districts. ouch!

We'll be coming up with a new routine now that Tiff is gone. Maybe it will include writing, maybe not. First things first.

Healthy Hot Chocolate

2008-02-25T17:15:00.001-06:00

4 cups milk
4 T cocoa
4 T honey

Mix; Heat; Serve; Yum!

Basic Chili Soup

2008-02-19T10:47:00.002-06:00

2 lbs. ground beef browned
1 large onion, chopped and added to ground beef when browning
2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
salt and pepper
4 c cooked red kidney beans
2 quarts of tomato juice

Cook on low, the longer the better.

To add interest or for a "chili cook-off", add any of the following options:
jalapeños
a can of refried beans thickens and adds flavor
cayenne pepper
dash of cinnamon
black beans
white beans
diced tomatoes

Chicken and Corn Soup Dinner and Lunch Plan

2008-02-16T14:38:00.003-06:00

Day 1

Place in a large roaster:
2 whole chickens, defrosted
potatoes, quartered
carrots, sliced
celery, sliced
onions, quartered
1/2 head of garlic, whole cloves
mushrooms
parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme (go ahead and sing the song)
salt and pepper
4 cups of water

Cook all afternoon in the oven at 300 degrees.
Serve, save the bones in the frig.

Day 2

In the morning:
Put the chicken carcasses in a large stockpot, cover with water, add other chicken broth goodies and cook over low heat.
Set out 3 quart boxes of corn to defrost. (or whatever that transfers to if you buy your corn at the grocery store)

At noon:
In a large soup pot put leftover trimmings (all those yummy potatoes, garlic, mushrooms, etc) from last night's chicken dinner and corn. Cover with broth from your large stock pot and heat through.
If you are short on leftovers sauté some onions and garlic for the pot.
Add 3 cups of milk or cream.
Puree with an immersion blender.
For some chewing interest, save back some corn and add after blending.

Delicious!

Cream of Asparagus Soup

2008-02-16T14:21:00.002-06:00

First of all, when asparagus is in season, cut asparagus into pieces (a good use for thin shoots, woody stalks, etc.) that will fit nicely into a large pot, cover with water and cook until very tender. Then put in blender and puree until very smooth. Put in freezer boxes and freeze for use in soup throughout the year.

1. In large stock pot drizzle olive oil over the bottom.

2. In the large bowl of the food processor chop an onion, 4 stalks of celery, and half a head of garlic, sauté in hot oil until translucent.

3. In large food processor bowl chop 1 carrot and 4 potatoes. Add to stock pot with sautéed ingredients, cover with water or chicken broth and cook 15 minutes.

4. Add 1 t turmeric and 3 t curry powder.

5. Add 2 quart boxes of pureed asparagus and heat through.

6. Add 4 cups of milk or cream and use an immersion blender to make the soup very smooth and beautiful.

Enjoy!

How to Cook Rice

2008-02-15T14:14:00.000-06:00

Rice is 2 to 1.
2 cups liquid to 1 cup of rice.
If you want two cups of prepared rice then you will need to start with 1 cup of uncooked rice.

For white rice, bring your liquid to a boil.
Add rice and put a lid on.
Turn off heat and let sit for 15 minutes.

For brown rice, put your rice and liquid together and heat slowly over a low heat with a lid on for 40 minutes.

Easy German Skillet Dinner

2008-02-05T12:48:00.000-06:00

Easy German Skillet Dinner

4 pounds ground beef
2 onions, chopped
1 qt. saurkraut
1 qt. tomato sauce or tomatoes or spaghetti/pizza sauce
salt and pepper

Brown beef with onion. Add salt, pepper, saurkraut, tomatoes.
Serve with sour cream.

Hummus

2008-02-04T18:06:00.000-06:00

Hummus

garbanzo beans/chickpeas
tahini (sesame seed butter)
lemon
sea salt
garlic
cayenne pepper

Day 1, soak the beans:
Fill a crockpot insert 1/2 full of garbanzo beans (sometimes know as chickpeas) and fill the crockpot with water and 2 T of lemon juice.

Day 2:
Drain liquid from beans and rinse. Again, put the beans in the crockpot, cover with water and turn the crockpot to high for 3-4 hours.
Once the beans are cooked either use an immersion blender or put the beans and water in the food processor and blend until smooth.
Take half of this and put in the freezer for another batch another day.
To the remaining processed garbanzo beans add 2 cups tahini, the juice of one lemon, salt to taste, as much garlic as you want,and cayenne pepper to taste.
Serve with crackers, chips, tortilla shells, or whatever your heart desires.
Healthy and delicious!

Winter Fruit Salad

2008-02-01T13:20:00.000-06:00

Winter Fruit Salad

1 head of Romaine or other green leafy lettuce of your preference
1 apple cubed
1 pear cubed
1/2 c dried cranberries
1/2 c slivered almonds
1 c shredded Swiss cheese

Dressing:
1/2 c honey
1 lemon, juiced
1 T red onion, chopped
1 t Dijon mustard
1/2 t salt
Blend in blender or food processor, while blending slowly add
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil.
Add 1 T poppy seed.
Pour over salad.

Enjoy! This is yummy enough to eat for breakfast!