The days I'll remember...

These are the days I will look back on with fondness & say "remember when"

It's only 11:00 am... Forts have been made & played in.

 The choice of cereal today was Honeycomb. I know this because, as I walk through my house, I feel the crunch of the Honeycomb beneath my feet.

The little boys have tired of fort-making, & are snuggled in to watch Despicable Me.

The school kids have about half an hour left to finish their schooling for the day. 

Gracie is humming quietly as she works on her schoolwork. The same song I've had in my heart & on my lips this morning...& my canners are filled with quart jars full of Taco soup.

I won't remember this day because the house was a disaster zone, or that the morning was full of things to do... I'll remember the sound of happy children...the scent of comfort food simmering on the stove top... The crispness of the air as Autumn settles in....Thank you, Jesus for days like this. where my spirit is renewed & my heart is filled with hope.

A Birthday Party for Mama

A Birthday Party for Mom...

My sister has the most beautiful, rustic farmhouse table. Perfect for large groups to gather around & it was decked out beautifully for Mom's 63rd Birthday Party.

The Menu

• Grilled, Italian Chicken
• Italian sausage sandwiches, topped with peppers & onions
• Buttery, Baked Rosemary Potatoes
• Salad
• Birthday cake, topped with a cream cheese filling & fresh peaches in a glaze

The food was delicious!

Back porch sittin'

The "tree-house" is always a big hit...Funny story; The 4 yr old came home after the party, exclaiming about all the fun that was had playing in the tree-house, then says,"And Mama, it's a tree-house, but it doesn't have a TREE!"

Watching the kickball game...

All the grandchildren, playing against the adults that wanted to play...

It was a beautiful 90' evening...filled with lots of catching up on each others lives.

Mama, may you be blessed richly, with many more Birthdays-I love you!

Today we took school to the park. 

Yesterday was a super long day, with extra science projects & it felt like we were stuck inside all day.

Today we did our morning work, then headed to the park for a break & finished the school day there.

Crazy hair-Don't care.

Yes, he's about to take a flop :(...He feels the need to try everything his older siblings do.

Going into our 2nd week of school, I feel as if everything is flowing a little more smoothly. We've figured out a schedule that works for us & so far it's been pretty great. 

I could tell the 1st day, that it wasn't going to work, to try & do all subjects, every day....So instead, we work on 2 subjects every day, for longer periods of time.

For example: Mondays is Math & English.

We start the school day at 8:30 with a prayer & our verse for the week(they are required to memorize a new Bible verse each week).

Then we get right into Math & they work on Math till 10:00.

From 10:00-10:15 they take a short break & grab a snack.

From 10:15-11:30 they work on English.

At 11:30 we break for lunch, then it's free time till the little boys go down for their naps at 2:00.

At this time the kiddos get out their Bibles & journals for "quiet time" while I grade their schoolwork for the day...they correct their work if there are any mistakes & then we are done for the day!

And that is how we spend our days lately...:)

Apple pie filling

Apple Pie Filling(for canning)

• 1/2 bushel apples(I used Summer Rambo)
• 27 cups cold water
• 12 cups brown sugar
• 10 cups white sugar
• 1 TBS cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp salt 
• 6 cups perma flo
• 2 tsp vanilla extract 

-In a large, 20 quart stock pot, combine all ingredients except apples.

-cook on medium heat till it begins to thicken. Stirring constantly.

-peel, core & slice apples. Add to the sauce & mix well.

-pour into jars. Fill to about 2 inches from the top(the filling will expand & fill the jar as it processes)...I learned this the hard way & had filling oozing from my jars when I took them out of the canner.

-cold pack for 30 minutes

I know it seems like an obscene amount of sugar, but that is what gives you that  delicious, caramel flavor. The filling will become nice & translucent as it processes...I had Gracie taste it & she said,"Mama! It tastes just like caramel apples!"

I used an apple peeler-corer-slicer to do the apples. I like the fact that they are all the same thickness & will cook evenly & it saved me so much time.

The recipe yields 22 quarts.

I use the filling for apple crisp, apple pie tarts, & apple pie .

School is in Session!

We are a week & a day ahead of schedule.

The kiddos have been itching to get started in their school books.

They see the buses going past our house, every morning & evening, & they know that it's that time of year & want to get started....

when I put little man down for his nap this afternoon, I had the big kids get out their schoolwork for an hour of Math, just to get a feel for it :)

Tomorrow morning, school will start For Reals!

The sound of pencils, scratching numbers, letters & words to paper, makes me a happy Mama!

Heres to a good, successful, 2015-2016 school year!

Lifting my glass of ice-cold Pepsi...Cheers!

Easy Peasy pasta/pizza sauce

This recipe has 5 ingredients. That's it. My kind of recipe & it's delicious & versatile. 

It's mild enough to use as a pasta sauce & just enough zip to be good as a pizza or marinara sauce...

Easy Peasy Pizza/Pasta Sauce

1. 11.5 quarts tomato juice
2. 1 gallon of your favorite pre-made pasta sauce
3. 10-6oz cans of tomato paste
4. 5 pkgs Mrs. Wages Pizza sauce mix
5. 1 1/4 c. organic cane sugar

First I cook, then juice my tomatoes through a Victorio strainer. In a 20 qt. stock pot I measure out my 11.5 quarts of tomato juice. Add the one gallon pre-made gallon of pasta sauce, tomato paste & cane sugar. Lastly, add the 5 pkgs Mrs. Wages pizza sauce mix -slowly, whisking as you pour it in. Let  it come to a slow boil & let simmer for 45 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour into jars & cold pack for 45 minutes. This makes approximately 19 quart sauce.

Tips

1. When using a canner, pour 1 cup white vinegar into the water bath-your jars will come out shiny & clean.
2. When using a large stock pot for cooking down sauces & soups, a long handled, metal spatula works much better at scraping the bottom of the pot than a spoon will. Theres much less chance of it burning when it cooks down if the bottom gets scraped clean when stirring.
3. I use quarts & pints when canning this recipe. The quart jars work great to use for pasta recipes & the pint jars are a perfect amount to cover 2 large pizza crusts.

Celebrating our Birthday Girl!

Gracie & I celebrated with a girls night out on her Birthday but we also wanted to have a small party that included the Grandmas, Grandpas & a  close friend. 

This past Sunday evening happened to be open so a quick little party was planned.

The Menu:

Neapolitan Ice cream pops

Pink Velvet Cupcakes

Chips & Pretzels

"Take a picture of my hand stand, Mom!"

There was swimming, ball playing, marshmallow roasting & kitten holding...

Last, but certainly not least, there were presents to open :)