Sneaking Sprinkles

Yesterday while I was busily working away in a different room I realized the girls were being suspiciously content out of sight...
I found them sitting on the kitchen counter eating sprinkles straight from the bottle.
I'm not always what I'd consider a 'good mom', I'm probably a 'lazy mom' if I'm honest. If I can make my children happy with little effort; I do, if I can make few rules and get around constant spankings for disobeying them; I do. So when I found them sneaking sprinkles I calmed my inner monster-mommy and instead of wailing "What on earth do you think you're doing?! You aren't allowed to eat the sprinkles." I said "Girls, you can't just eat the sprinkles, we have to make cookies with them, do you want to make cookies?" and instead of putting the sprinkles in the cabinet, spanking, and spanking them throughout the days to come until they gave up on getting the sprinkles (or more likely I gave up on saving them and they were eaten), I grabbed a stick of butter, a recipe, and set the girls up next to the kitchen-aid to help me make cookies, and use those sprinkles we did.
No more mommy-daughter battles over sprinkles I've had since two Christmas's past.
A batch of sugar cookies for all to enjoy.
Everyone wins.

So maybe I am a bad mom for catering to my children's sweet tooth, maybe I should have punished and battled it out but hey, I have a sweet tooth, too and I'd rather eat cookies together than pull my hair out saving a $2 two year old bottle of sprinkles.

When I said use the sprinkles up, I meat it ;)

This is the recipe I sort of followed. I only wanted a small batch so I made 1/3 of this, with a few extra tweaks because 4 eggs don't split into thirds very well ;)

A Rug (attempt) 3 YEARS In The Making

You may remember my mention of a t-shirt rug on a project to-do list, but, you also may not, because it was in a post way back when I hardly had any blog views. Also, you may not simply because it was a very long time ago.
If you happen to have clicked on the link to check out the post you will be disappointed in my life to know that that list of projects is still mostly unfinished.

• I never got more paint for the kitchen
•  I certainly haven't come close to finishing the scarf 
• BUT I did make that travel-map-board. I didn't paint or decorate it at all but, there is a map, there are pins, strings, pictures, and looking at it brings to mind lots and lots of memories.

The rug project hit a major slow down when my previous sewing machine became too weak to handle the bulk. I switched to sewing it by hand but it was tedious-time-consuming work which eventually fell to the way-side, rolled up in a box, awaiting an era where I had unlimited free time, maybe in 30 years or so.

However, back in July, for my birthday Wesley bought me this lovely heavy duty Singer Sewing machine. I was very excited to put it to use finishing this rug project but I had a few bridesmaid dress alterations that came first. And a couple quick start to finish projects so I could really feel like I was getting some use out of it. Eventually I settled in to my previous sewing pile and finally, finally, I have finished this rug.

Now, most disappointing of all though, this rug turned out to be, as one might say, a Pinterest Fail.
I'm not sure what variables could have caused mine to turn out so badly but badly it did. When I had finished it I immediately sent Wesley a text with a picture saying 'when I die this is the first thing your next wife is going to get rid of, she'll probably burn it' (yes, I know I'm oddly morbid). But really, that is how badly this turned out. The tension is as un uniform as it could get, creating waves and lumps throughout.
On the Pinterest examples no one seemed to have trouble sewing theirs on sewing machines, I'm not sure what varieties they have but even my brand spanking new, all metal, professional grade, heavy duty machine had trouble handling this rug's bulk. Maybe the t-shirts I used were thicker? Even though I cut them to the same specks as everyone recommended.

I'm not sure, but two things I am sure of;
1:The project is finally complete, hallelujah.
2:This rug will grace my bedroom floor as was its intended use for the three years it was in the making. And I will laugh continually for years to come as I see all the time and effort completed into such a sad excuse of a rug.

Pears!

Over the last few weeks I have been incredibly excited and blessed to have an unlimited amount of pears to work with.
Originally they were given to my family but as I go over there a couple times a week I noticed that no one was turning them into anything and slowly, but surely, they were beginning to rot. On my next trip to my mom's I took 10 pounds of sugar and as soon as I got there I headed to the cellar to rummage for pint jars, lids, and rings. I found everything I needed and turned most of a 5 gallon bucket of pears into Pear Syrup. I peeled, chopped, and boiled them for a little while in a pot of sugar, vanilla extract, and lemon juice. I'll admit I was going for jam but I had an issue of time constrain so when it had thickened to syrup state I put it into jars and water bathed it for 10 minutes.

With the left over pears I got a little more adventurous. I followed this recipe for Caramel Cardamom Pear Jam. In my opinion it is more of a butter than jam, it's texture is more mashed-fruity and not, well, jell like which comes to mind when I think of Jam. The cardamom amount gives it quite the kick, if I were to make it again I may cut back. I like it okay but I'm kind of afraid to gift it to anyone as it's such an unusual and strong flavor. What I did love about this jam though was the addition of brown sugar, the carameliness is just so rich and as beautiful a taste as this pregnant mama can imagine.

I had used up the buckets of pears by this point and was sad to see them go as I was in full jam making mode. I am not ever the most enthusiastic regular food preserver, tomatoes, green beans, salsa, pizza sauce, etc. putting those up are chores, it has to be done because we have to eat later. HOWEVER you tell me there is a berry patch ripe for the picking, I will be out there picking away, eating not a one single berry, as I dream up what jam to make. Tell me there is a cherry tree filled with those red sour beauties and I would pick every one and happily pit for the rest of the day in order to freeze them for pies and sauces to come. So when I hear of any fruit tree who's fruit is unused by any other I want them and I want them all.
I would turn every last pear from this, my brother's girl friends grandma's, (whom we all know as Nana) tree into syrup, jam, and butter.

So, once I had finished off that first batch of pears I asked Shay if her grandma wouldn't mind giving me more. Nana said I could come and get as many as I wanted. Well, I was baby/sibling sitting my family at the time so I didn't know when I'd get the chance. My brother however came home one afternoon with another load of pears that Nana had gathered and he picked up for me.

Those pears have now been turned into two batches of Caramel Pear Jam with a few saved out for a cobbler.

I have been thoroughly blessed by these pears and I'm starting to feel a little greedy as I wonder if there are any more ready for gathering... I just enjoy turning them into beautiful rows of shiny, sugary filled, canning jars. And not just for me, I look forward to handing a few out as I know if I don't I will be passing them onto my own great grandchildren when I die. I hoard jam. I can't help myself, it's precious and beautiful and must be saved for the perfect and special occasion, which I have yet to come across. ;) I still have Black Raspberry Jam and Pear Butter in my cabinet that I made when I was 16, way back in 2010. I am growing in this area though, I have already left a bunch of the syrup and jams at my family's (who's jars and lids I used...), and I for sure plan to send a jar up to Nana's as thank you for the bounty.

A selection of the quantities I have stored away.

{Foodie Post No. 12} Tomato Jam

Not all of my canning endeavors will make my "Foodie" series but this one is especially yummy and has so many uses so I felt like it deserved to be included.

The first time I had Tomato Jam was on a pizza night at my in-law's, although it was before I had actually married into the family...
At any rate, we were making pizzas but ran out of traditional sauce so someone opened a quart of 'Tomato Jam' and we started spreading it on pizza's. Don't let that fool you, this tomato jam is nothing like pizza sauce, it is however a spreadable tomato product that allowed for us to keep topping pizzas so we went with it. After we all enjoyed the pizza's we've decided to do it multiple times since. It really tastes like a spicy, earthy, katchup BBQ mix, maybe.

So a couple of weeks ago I texted my sil, Katie, who had made it to ask for her recipe, meanwhile I was browsing Pinterest looking for one in case I didn't hear back. In the end the one I chose from Pinterest was the same as the link she sent me!

Mine actually didn't turn out at all like the original jars I'd had of Katie's. I think she must have boiled hers down a lot more than I did, or maybe using different tomato varieties changes things, I'm not sure. I've made two batches and they both turned out the typical consistency of jam and not as paste like as Katie's.

Original recipe.

KATIE'S TOMATO JAM

• 5 pounds tomatoes, finely chopped (DO NOT PEEL, I promise, it adds to the texture
• 3 1/2 cups sugar
• 8 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (I substituted Allspice)
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon red chili flakes

1. Combine all ingredients in a large, non-reactive pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce temperature to a simmer. Stirring regularly, simmer the jam until it reduces to desired jam thickness/texture. This took about 3 hours for me, but it would vary depending on how high you keep your heat.
2. When the jam has cooked down sufficiently, remove from heat and fill jars, leaving 1/4 inch of head space. Wipe rims, apply lids and twist on rings. Process in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes.
3. When time is up, remove jars from water bath and allow them to cool. When jars are cool enough to handle, test seals. Store jars in a cool, dark place.

This Tomato Jam is delicious and it's uses really are endless. I've used it plain as a dipping sauce for Pita Chips. My family served it over cream cheese to be eaten with crackers. I've put it onto pulled pork. Like I mentioned earlier, it could substitute for pizza sauce, just top your pizza more like a BBQ kind; chicken, bacon, cheddar, etc. It is a little spicy (you could reduce or leave out the chili flakes) but I've also served it with butter on fresh biscuits.

Preserving Tomatoes

I have four Brandywine Tomato plants. I started them from seed in a pot early this spring. Once they were growing well I transplanted them to a plot of soil right out our back door that I had turned over, broken up, and kept some grass clippings on in hopes of repressing weeds and maybe improving the soil. The plants grew and stayed healthy and well, I was pretty surprised. I'm not known for keeping plants healthy. I never constructed cages of any sort so my four tomato plants ended up as one massive vine/bush. It took over the entire area I had prepared and little by little as summer wore on it encroached into the yard and my brothers, who mow for me, had to mow less and less. :P Sometime in June, I think, I harvested my first tomato. It was delicious. Very meaty, sweet, and the perfect taste of summer. 

Growing up we grew Roma varieties for canning as stewed tomatoes, turning into sauces, and salsa. I'm not sure if they are actually better for it but as I soon had more ripe Brandywines to give away than I had friends and family to give them to I decided to start stewing them. I've done four batches so far and will probably get to do a lot more if I chose to. 

My cute harvesting helpers :)

Eowyn is always so eager to carry them to a pile

The harvest rinsed

Cored then blanched (not sure how that big guy missed the coring...)

I peel straight into doubled grocery sacks which I then tie up before throwing in the trash; fruit fly control.
I chop them on a cutting board placed in a sheet pan to avoid getting juice everywhere; mess control.

Excited to "help" pack the jars.
I did some in quarters and chopped some others.

1 tsp. Salt and 1TBSP. Lemon Juice in case you worry about the acidity content of tomatoes not being high enough.
Process in boiling water bath canner for 40 minutes.

I don't have a water bath canner but this large pot works. I use a rack in the bottom to keep the jars off the direct heat, I've read a washcloth will work, too.

Coming up: I turned 10 pounds of my tomato harvest, so far, into Tomato Jam. 

Do you have a garden? Or just a few plants like me? What have you done with your harvest(s)?

~Haley

He's Got The Whole World In His Hands

Some days you live, you love, you easily see God's handiwork around you. 

Some days you survive. 

But on those days, if you take a little extra time, bow a little lower in seek of help, raise your hands a little higher in worship of Him and not your own accomplishments, you will find that surviving is just as beautiful as all of the other days because God is still good. 

I survived today. A lot of it was in part to two beautiful and seemingly insignificant things. 

These beautiful yellow flowers. 

Last weekend Wesley came Home from the gym and having grabbed a few groceries for me with these. I'm not sure what he was going through but when he gave them to me he said "I was irritated and I knew picking something out for you would make me feel better." So I'm not sure if he was irritated at me, or something else all together, but, he chose loving me to improve himself. I've looked at those flowers multiple times everyday this week and thought of him, and especially today. I looked at them, I sniffed them, I was reminded of Wesley's love and more deeply, of Christ's. And that lovely bright yellow has brought the song "Sunshine In My Soul Today" to mind every time I've looked upon them. Truly I do have sunshine in my soul. Even today. 

The second thing that kept helping me through the day was this WeeSing Bible songbook filled with songs built on the simple pure faith of a child. 

Singing them forces me to go back, to remember who God is and how amazing my life is under His care. 

So, today, from the basic, topical glance back at my day, everything went wrong. 

Éowyn drug me out of bed by 7.

My brilliant "easy" breakfast took nearly three times the time I thought it would take. 

I didn't have any butter to make the cookies I'd planned. 

The girls spilt bubble solution multiple times as I tried to be a good "fun" mom. 

My afternoon plans shifted when my friend wasn't able to come visit as we'd planned. 

My phone spontaneously crashed and died.. again. 

Éowyn got into the cookie jar and crumbled and smeared chocolate chip cookies all over her and the counter top. 

Some keys on my piano refuse to play. 

BUT 

Now that the disasters have subsided and I take time to truly reflect, today was good, today was beautiful. 

My mom brought me butter immediately when I called to ask if she had any extra. 

The bubble solution cleaned up and the girls had a lot of fun. 

My house is unusually clean and organized since I had the hope of a visitor..

My phone came back alive. 

We enjoyed lots of cookies. 

I walked 3 miles to the walking video since Jerusha chose that as entertainment. 

Jerusha constantly came and gave me hugs telling me to "be happy mommy, you happy?" when she saw tears in my eyes. 

We sang through the WeeSing Bible Song book as I searched for help. 

I was forced to my knees, forced to try for the sake of my girls, forced to find help where it is to be found. 

I remembered who He is and worshiped when all around me my day was crumbling. 

And He, my God, my Savior, showed me that today was beautiful and today was planned by Him. 

So I hope if you've had a bad day, one that you've just barely survived, that you might find some encouragement here to go back, to remember, it's a wonderful life. 

Love and blessings, Haley