Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Right now
A friend posted this on Facebook earlier today. I've read an email that circulated awhile back that was very similar, but this is worth a watch. It hits home right now, considering the situation we're facing with the cooperative I work for. The last month or so of my life have been filled with turmoil. I don't feel like I can share right now what all has gone on and is going on, but I would appreciate it if you kept me in your thoughts and prayers. The entire experience has left me feeling very much alone and as if I have little control over anything.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
1, 2, 3, 4….5…6, 7, 8, 9, 10….11…12…13!!!!
The other night when Heidi, Tim and Gustav came over I sang this to Heidi to see whether she could remember the song and where it came from. She did. Do you?
This past week I’ve been singing this song quite a bit. We’re counting down the days until state testing, and to help prepare have turned our little small groups into test prep groups. We’ve each taken a state standard and planned several days’ worth of activities for our groups, and then rotated the groups so that each child in the grade will have a session with that particular standard. Because of how few days we have left, one of our groups got combined with another group, and now instead of the 3 or 4 students that a small group normally consists of, my group was made up of 12 students…plus me (everyone shout now—13!!). I sang that song over and over this week as I gave questions to my “small” group, and each time a hand would raise with an answer, I would count them as I sang this song. The kids loved it…and I finally asked whether any of them knew this song. Nope. Guess I’m officially old. I explained that this was a song from one of my favorite shows growing up. “Teletubbies” they guessed. “Barney!” they shouted out… ok, maybe I’m getting younger? I explained it was a show that is around now, but would have also been around when I was a little girl… This stumped them until one of them guessed “Ben and Jerry”…well, I guess black and white cartoons are getting closer…or at least older… Finally one of them guessed Sesame Street, although none of them had heard this song when they watched. It’s too bad, since I loved watching the pinball machine knock around as the ball hit each peg and a number was sung… I remember looking forward to it each day as I watched, hoping that this would be the day that it would be shown again.
Heidi’s been begging for another blog (I truly think she’s the only one who reads this thing…and we talk often enough that she knows everything before I would write something down and post it) so here it is…
As I thought about what I wanted to write today, there are several things that popped into my head. There’s been a lot going on in my life, and while some of it I would like to share, I really can’t. I am bound my confidentiality responsibilities in my jobs, and I must honor them, even when those things are the things in my life that cause me the most sadness, that give me the most happiness, or those things that I just need to process through writing about it. I’ll just leave it to say that I’ve shed a lot of tears lately. The tears come at times that are understandable…they come at times when I can’t make them stop, no matter how hard I try…there are times that the tears come and there appears to be no good reason for them… a few will drop as I laugh… I don’t feel depressed (please don’t worry about that), there’s just a lot going on in all aspects of my life right now and it seems that tears are the way my body is dealing with it all.
One of the titles I considered today was “Small Successes”, but in reality I’ve got a lot of LARGE successes in my life right now.
1) I just got the letter that I was deemed eligible to take my National Massage Exam. This is a very difficult exam, and most do not pass it on the first try. Kansas law does not regulate massage therapists, but most states require the national test as one of the hurdles you need to jump to be able to practice massage. Not knowing what the future holds for me, I’d rather take (and hopefully pass!) the exam so that I can easily be able to practice in another state if/when I ever decide to move. That and the fact that it provides another aspect of credibility to me and my massage practice. Who knows when Kansas will finally become wise and start patrolling the field of Massage Therapy. Hopefully it will be soon (there are too many people out there practicing who don’t know what they are doing, and give us all a bad reputation!), and then I will be ready. I need to finalize my test date, but I’m hoping to take it sometime during Spring Break in March.
2) I also got my acceptance letter from Fort Hays State University. This fall I will be “heading back to” college to pursue a Master’s Degree in Special Education. This is completely online, so I won’t have to give up my teaching position or move. I’ll be busy between teaching, working at the clinic, and taking classes, but I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to juggle it all. The last weeks have been full of writing personal letters, asking friends and colleagues to write recommendations on my behalf and researching how to make it all happen. I’ve gotten my taxes completed (at least my portion!) and taken them to my tax guy. I am hoping they get done quickly so that I can then complete the FAFSA and start applying for scholarships.
3) Wine making experiment one is almost complete. After watching my science experiment for the last few weeks, I needed some man-power. I convinced Heidi, Tim and Gustav to come over for dinner and afterwards Tim and Gustav helped me bottle my Riesling. It’ll be another 3 months before there will be any to drink. Tim was a great help to me in the process, and Gustav was so cute trying to hold the bottles still for me as we filled them. Now that we’ve got one bottled, I better start on another…either mead or a red wine this time.
4) After several weekend attempts at baking sweet rolls, I’ve finally got a good result. A couple weeks ago I was browsing in Heidi’s bookstore and stumbled across another gluten free cookbook. Normally I’m pretty leery of gluten free recipes…there are too many people out there that are satisfied with mediocrity…either they are gluten intolerant people who never really had a taste of what GOOD baking is supposed to taste like, or they are “normal” people who think that those of us that are gluten intolerant should just be satisfied with whatever they come up with. There are so many products on the market (they are SOOOO expensive) that just taste like CRAP. I’m sick of buying products and throwing them away. I’ve narrowed it down to a few brands that I trust, and I’d really rather go hungry than try to eat some of what is on the market. Sorry, I’ve probably offended someone now, but sometimes I just need to rant. But, I digress… Anyway, I decided to buy the book at Heidi’s store because I feel like I need to help support the people I love and the places they work, and I’m always hoping that somehow this product/book/gadget will actually come through and help me make the foods I’ve loved to prepare and eat for so much of my life. In this case…I might have actually stumbled across something that lived up to my high expectations! Yippee!!!
Of course, this book also called for flours that aren’t readily available in my pantry, or at the health food store or grocery stores that I frequent. So, I turned to the internet (although Terri, if you’re reading this, I think that your health food store has this brand!) and ordered some of the flour that I needed. After last week’s flopped cinnamon rolls, I was reluctant to try again. After all, that batch went directly into the trash. I’m so glad that I tried again!
Cinnamon Rolls (adapted from “Gluten-Free Baking Classics” by Annalise G. Roberts)
Dough:
7 TBSP milk, heated to 110 degrees F (I ended up using more than this…the dough wouldn’t hold together and resembled pie crust. I just added milk until it looked like I thought it should. Sorry, I’ll try to measure better next time!)
1 TBSP yeast
¼ tsp. sweet rice flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 TBSP canola oil
1 ¾ cup Brown Rice Flour blend (see recipe after this one)
1 ¼ tsp. xanthan gum
½ tsp. salt
Rice flour (about 2 TBSP to use to flour the board)
1 TBSP melted butter
Combine warm milk, yeast, 1 TBSP of the sweet rice flour, and 1 TBSP of the sugar in a measuring cup; stir until well blended. Cover with a towel and set aside for 5-10 minutes until mixture becomes foamy. Mix eggs and canola oil together in a small bowl and set aside. Lightly grease a round cake pan with cooking spray. Mix brown rice flour mix, xanthan gum, salt, and remaining 3 TBSP sweet rice flour and 3 TBSP sugar in large bowl of electric mixer. Add warm milk/yeast mixture, egg and oil to the bowl; mix until blended. Scrape bowl and beaters and then beat at high speed for 3 minutes. Liberally spread rice flour over surface of a wooden board and lightly flour hands. (I spread saran wrap over a cutting board, and then sprinkled with the rice flour). Dough will be sticky. Roll dough around in the rice flour until it is lightly covered. Gently press into a 12x8 inch rectangle with your hands. (I was actually able to roll it with a rolling pin after covering it with the rice flour). Lightly brush the melted butter over the rolled dough. The recipe also has a mixture to put in the inside, but I just covered the butter with cinnamon and sugar the way I’ve always baked. Carefully roll dough, do not roll dough tightly; the individual rolls will rise better if they are more loosely rolled. Using a small, sharp knife cut roll of dough into eight 1-inch slices. Carefully arrange slices I prepared cake pan so that they do not touch. Cover with a light cloth and let rise in a warm place until rolls have doubled or more in size and have filled the pan. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake about 20 minutes.
Brown Rice Flour blend
2 parts brown rice flour (extra finely ground—available under the Authentic Foods label—the others aren’t ground finely enough to use without leaving a gritty feeling in the mouth)
2/3 part potato starch (NOT potato flour!)
1/3 part tapioca flour
**Today’s baking experiment was so successful that I’m going to fiddle with the dough some more and see if I can bake some bierocks with it tomorrow night. I’ve got the filling done, so I just will need to make the dough after church.
****UPDATE 2/28/10 I made the dough again today. I used about 14 TBSP of milk instead of the listed 7. I used the sugar to raise the yeast, but omitted the rest of it so that I could make savory Bierocks with the dough. Once the dough was mixed, I made small round balls with it, and rolled them in brown rice flour and then rolled them out. I filled them with a mixture of ground beef,onion, cabbage, salt, pepper and mustard. After baking them, I brushed them with melted butter. YUMMY. I've eaten way too many today! I'll have to put them in the freezer after I give a few more away! There are some things that I have missed so much...so happy to be able to eat them again!
5) Another gluten free baking success! This last week I saw a recipe like this online, and decided to see whether I would like it. I do! Very yummy. I left them without icing to cut out some fat and calories, but they would taste good with cream cheese frosting, chocolate frosting, or peanut butter frosting I think! Maybe next time….
Gluten Free Banana Muffins/cupcakes
1 box gluten free yellow cake mix (betty crocker brand)
3 bananas, mashed
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup water
3 eggs, beaten
2 tsp. vanilla
I melted the butter in a saucepan on the stove, adding the water and vanilla. I also freeze my bananas, so I took the peels off of them and put them in the mixture to warm up and then mash. After taking it off the stove, I put the yellow cake mix in and beat in the eggs. When everything was moist I put it in the muffin tins. Bake at 350 for about 18 min. or so. It would also be great in loaf form, or as banana cake.
I’ve also got an appointment tomorrow afternoon. One of the students at school just recently got diagnosed with Celiac and her mother needs ideas of what to do and how to alter recipes. I’m hopeful that I can be a resource to these people. If nothing else, I can at least introduce them to some good books, products to try…and be a listening ear!
And now for a few pictures...these are a mixture of the last two Huber visits. Newsworthy items: Popcorn is a big hit with Gustav and Heidi. Tim, Gustav and I spent time making wine. Gustav went poop for the first time at my house, bribed with M&Ms and Curious George.
This past week I’ve been singing this song quite a bit. We’re counting down the days until state testing, and to help prepare have turned our little small groups into test prep groups. We’ve each taken a state standard and planned several days’ worth of activities for our groups, and then rotated the groups so that each child in the grade will have a session with that particular standard. Because of how few days we have left, one of our groups got combined with another group, and now instead of the 3 or 4 students that a small group normally consists of, my group was made up of 12 students…plus me (everyone shout now—13!!). I sang that song over and over this week as I gave questions to my “small” group, and each time a hand would raise with an answer, I would count them as I sang this song. The kids loved it…and I finally asked whether any of them knew this song. Nope. Guess I’m officially old. I explained that this was a song from one of my favorite shows growing up. “Teletubbies” they guessed. “Barney!” they shouted out… ok, maybe I’m getting younger? I explained it was a show that is around now, but would have also been around when I was a little girl… This stumped them until one of them guessed “Ben and Jerry”…well, I guess black and white cartoons are getting closer…or at least older… Finally one of them guessed Sesame Street, although none of them had heard this song when they watched. It’s too bad, since I loved watching the pinball machine knock around as the ball hit each peg and a number was sung… I remember looking forward to it each day as I watched, hoping that this would be the day that it would be shown again.
Heidi’s been begging for another blog (I truly think she’s the only one who reads this thing…and we talk often enough that she knows everything before I would write something down and post it) so here it is…
As I thought about what I wanted to write today, there are several things that popped into my head. There’s been a lot going on in my life, and while some of it I would like to share, I really can’t. I am bound my confidentiality responsibilities in my jobs, and I must honor them, even when those things are the things in my life that cause me the most sadness, that give me the most happiness, or those things that I just need to process through writing about it. I’ll just leave it to say that I’ve shed a lot of tears lately. The tears come at times that are understandable…they come at times when I can’t make them stop, no matter how hard I try…there are times that the tears come and there appears to be no good reason for them… a few will drop as I laugh… I don’t feel depressed (please don’t worry about that), there’s just a lot going on in all aspects of my life right now and it seems that tears are the way my body is dealing with it all.
One of the titles I considered today was “Small Successes”, but in reality I’ve got a lot of LARGE successes in my life right now.
1) I just got the letter that I was deemed eligible to take my National Massage Exam. This is a very difficult exam, and most do not pass it on the first try. Kansas law does not regulate massage therapists, but most states require the national test as one of the hurdles you need to jump to be able to practice massage. Not knowing what the future holds for me, I’d rather take (and hopefully pass!) the exam so that I can easily be able to practice in another state if/when I ever decide to move. That and the fact that it provides another aspect of credibility to me and my massage practice. Who knows when Kansas will finally become wise and start patrolling the field of Massage Therapy. Hopefully it will be soon (there are too many people out there practicing who don’t know what they are doing, and give us all a bad reputation!), and then I will be ready. I need to finalize my test date, but I’m hoping to take it sometime during Spring Break in March.
2) I also got my acceptance letter from Fort Hays State University. This fall I will be “heading back to” college to pursue a Master’s Degree in Special Education. This is completely online, so I won’t have to give up my teaching position or move. I’ll be busy between teaching, working at the clinic, and taking classes, but I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to juggle it all. The last weeks have been full of writing personal letters, asking friends and colleagues to write recommendations on my behalf and researching how to make it all happen. I’ve gotten my taxes completed (at least my portion!) and taken them to my tax guy. I am hoping they get done quickly so that I can then complete the FAFSA and start applying for scholarships.
3) Wine making experiment one is almost complete. After watching my science experiment for the last few weeks, I needed some man-power. I convinced Heidi, Tim and Gustav to come over for dinner and afterwards Tim and Gustav helped me bottle my Riesling. It’ll be another 3 months before there will be any to drink. Tim was a great help to me in the process, and Gustav was so cute trying to hold the bottles still for me as we filled them. Now that we’ve got one bottled, I better start on another…either mead or a red wine this time.
4) After several weekend attempts at baking sweet rolls, I’ve finally got a good result. A couple weeks ago I was browsing in Heidi’s bookstore and stumbled across another gluten free cookbook. Normally I’m pretty leery of gluten free recipes…there are too many people out there that are satisfied with mediocrity…either they are gluten intolerant people who never really had a taste of what GOOD baking is supposed to taste like, or they are “normal” people who think that those of us that are gluten intolerant should just be satisfied with whatever they come up with. There are so many products on the market (they are SOOOO expensive) that just taste like CRAP. I’m sick of buying products and throwing them away. I’ve narrowed it down to a few brands that I trust, and I’d really rather go hungry than try to eat some of what is on the market. Sorry, I’ve probably offended someone now, but sometimes I just need to rant. But, I digress… Anyway, I decided to buy the book at Heidi’s store because I feel like I need to help support the people I love and the places they work, and I’m always hoping that somehow this product/book/gadget will actually come through and help me make the foods I’ve loved to prepare and eat for so much of my life. In this case…I might have actually stumbled across something that lived up to my high expectations! Yippee!!!
Of course, this book also called for flours that aren’t readily available in my pantry, or at the health food store or grocery stores that I frequent. So, I turned to the internet (although Terri, if you’re reading this, I think that your health food store has this brand!) and ordered some of the flour that I needed. After last week’s flopped cinnamon rolls, I was reluctant to try again. After all, that batch went directly into the trash. I’m so glad that I tried again!
Cinnamon Rolls (adapted from “Gluten-Free Baking Classics” by Annalise G. Roberts)
Dough:
7 TBSP milk, heated to 110 degrees F (I ended up using more than this…the dough wouldn’t hold together and resembled pie crust. I just added milk until it looked like I thought it should. Sorry, I’ll try to measure better next time!)
1 TBSP yeast
¼ tsp. sweet rice flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 TBSP canola oil
1 ¾ cup Brown Rice Flour blend (see recipe after this one)
1 ¼ tsp. xanthan gum
½ tsp. salt
Rice flour (about 2 TBSP to use to flour the board)
1 TBSP melted butter
Combine warm milk, yeast, 1 TBSP of the sweet rice flour, and 1 TBSP of the sugar in a measuring cup; stir until well blended. Cover with a towel and set aside for 5-10 minutes until mixture becomes foamy. Mix eggs and canola oil together in a small bowl and set aside. Lightly grease a round cake pan with cooking spray. Mix brown rice flour mix, xanthan gum, salt, and remaining 3 TBSP sweet rice flour and 3 TBSP sugar in large bowl of electric mixer. Add warm milk/yeast mixture, egg and oil to the bowl; mix until blended. Scrape bowl and beaters and then beat at high speed for 3 minutes. Liberally spread rice flour over surface of a wooden board and lightly flour hands. (I spread saran wrap over a cutting board, and then sprinkled with the rice flour). Dough will be sticky. Roll dough around in the rice flour until it is lightly covered. Gently press into a 12x8 inch rectangle with your hands. (I was actually able to roll it with a rolling pin after covering it with the rice flour). Lightly brush the melted butter over the rolled dough. The recipe also has a mixture to put in the inside, but I just covered the butter with cinnamon and sugar the way I’ve always baked. Carefully roll dough, do not roll dough tightly; the individual rolls will rise better if they are more loosely rolled. Using a small, sharp knife cut roll of dough into eight 1-inch slices. Carefully arrange slices I prepared cake pan so that they do not touch. Cover with a light cloth and let rise in a warm place until rolls have doubled or more in size and have filled the pan. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake about 20 minutes.
Brown Rice Flour blend
2 parts brown rice flour (extra finely ground—available under the Authentic Foods label—the others aren’t ground finely enough to use without leaving a gritty feeling in the mouth)
2/3 part potato starch (NOT potato flour!)
1/3 part tapioca flour
**Today’s baking experiment was so successful that I’m going to fiddle with the dough some more and see if I can bake some bierocks with it tomorrow night. I’ve got the filling done, so I just will need to make the dough after church.
****UPDATE 2/28/10 I made the dough again today. I used about 14 TBSP of milk instead of the listed 7. I used the sugar to raise the yeast, but omitted the rest of it so that I could make savory Bierocks with the dough. Once the dough was mixed, I made small round balls with it, and rolled them in brown rice flour and then rolled them out. I filled them with a mixture of ground beef,onion, cabbage, salt, pepper and mustard. After baking them, I brushed them with melted butter. YUMMY. I've eaten way too many today! I'll have to put them in the freezer after I give a few more away! There are some things that I have missed so much...so happy to be able to eat them again!
5) Another gluten free baking success! This last week I saw a recipe like this online, and decided to see whether I would like it. I do! Very yummy. I left them without icing to cut out some fat and calories, but they would taste good with cream cheese frosting, chocolate frosting, or peanut butter frosting I think! Maybe next time….
Gluten Free Banana Muffins/cupcakes
1 box gluten free yellow cake mix (betty crocker brand)
3 bananas, mashed
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup water
3 eggs, beaten
2 tsp. vanilla
I melted the butter in a saucepan on the stove, adding the water and vanilla. I also freeze my bananas, so I took the peels off of them and put them in the mixture to warm up and then mash. After taking it off the stove, I put the yellow cake mix in and beat in the eggs. When everything was moist I put it in the muffin tins. Bake at 350 for about 18 min. or so. It would also be great in loaf form, or as banana cake.
I’ve also got an appointment tomorrow afternoon. One of the students at school just recently got diagnosed with Celiac and her mother needs ideas of what to do and how to alter recipes. I’m hopeful that I can be a resource to these people. If nothing else, I can at least introduce them to some good books, products to try…and be a listening ear!
And now for a few pictures...these are a mixture of the last two Huber visits. Newsworthy items: Popcorn is a big hit with Gustav and Heidi. Tim, Gustav and I spent time making wine. Gustav went poop for the first time at my house, bribed with M&Ms and Curious George.
Saturday, January 09, 2010
Success!
I just completed my first (although it won't be the last!) batch of Gluten Free New Year's Cookies! They taste great, although not exactly like the MCC version. Thanks to my friend Julie from Mennonite Girls Can Cook. I altered her recipe just a bit simply because I didn't have any arrowroot. Instead I substituted cornstarch. It worked out just fine.
In a previous post I lamented the fact that I hate the taste of white bean flour. I was convinced to give it another shot by Julie who grinds her own flour. She sent me a little package of flour though the mail...wonder what people would have thought if they intercepted that and saw that it was full of some powdery white substance! :) As promised, Julie's flour had just a bit of the beany taste to it, but none when baked into things. Encouraged by this I bought a flour mill and decided to start grinding my own flour. Unfortunately, it didn't work out as well as I thought it would, and I only could get the flour to a "stone ground" consistency, which won't work with most of my baking. Discouraged, I tried to figure out what to do next. I finally decided that a coffee grinder would work, and so I bought a new one to only use with grinding flours. When I grind the beans at the espresso setting, and run them through 3 times, I finally get the consistency I want. Then I sifted that to get the bigger chunks out. The end product worked great in my recipe today!
Julie's Recipe for New Year's Cookies (Portzelke)
1/2 cup warm water
1 tsp. sugar
1 TBSP yeast
Mix first 3 ingredients and let proof in a warm spot.
Liquid Ingredients
1/2 cup warm milk
1 tsp melted butter
1 tsp. vinegar
2 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
Dry Ingredients
1/2 cup white bean flour
1/2 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup sorghum flour
1/4 cup potato starch
2 TBSP arrowroot flour (I used 3 TBSP corn starch)
1 rounded tsp. xanthan gum
1 tsp. bakingpowder
1/2 tsp. salt
3 slightly rounded TBSP sugar
1 cup raisins
In mixing bow put in liquid ingredients and beat. Add proofed yeast. Mix dry ingredients and add all at once to liquid. Beat on low until blended, then on high until dough is smooth. Add raisins and beat until mixed evenly. Scrape sides of bowl dw with spatula to form a ball of dough in bottom of bowl. Cover and let rise in warm spot for 30-40 minutes. Heat aout 3/4 inch of oil in a pot or small frying pan. When hot, drop by tsp. a dollop of dough into the ol and fry until golden. I glazed them when I was done, but I know that some people sprinkle sugar on theirs.
In a previous post I lamented the fact that I hate the taste of white bean flour. I was convinced to give it another shot by Julie who grinds her own flour. She sent me a little package of flour though the mail...wonder what people would have thought if they intercepted that and saw that it was full of some powdery white substance! :) As promised, Julie's flour had just a bit of the beany taste to it, but none when baked into things. Encouraged by this I bought a flour mill and decided to start grinding my own flour. Unfortunately, it didn't work out as well as I thought it would, and I only could get the flour to a "stone ground" consistency, which won't work with most of my baking. Discouraged, I tried to figure out what to do next. I finally decided that a coffee grinder would work, and so I bought a new one to only use with grinding flours. When I grind the beans at the espresso setting, and run them through 3 times, I finally get the consistency I want. Then I sifted that to get the bigger chunks out. The end product worked great in my recipe today!
Julie's Recipe for New Year's Cookies (Portzelke)
1/2 cup warm water
1 tsp. sugar
1 TBSP yeast
Mix first 3 ingredients and let proof in a warm spot.
Liquid Ingredients
1/2 cup warm milk
1 tsp melted butter
1 tsp. vinegar
2 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
Dry Ingredients
1/2 cup white bean flour
1/2 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup sorghum flour
1/4 cup potato starch
2 TBSP arrowroot flour (I used 3 TBSP corn starch)
1 rounded tsp. xanthan gum
1 tsp. bakingpowder
1/2 tsp. salt
3 slightly rounded TBSP sugar
1 cup raisins
In mixing bow put in liquid ingredients and beat. Add proofed yeast. Mix dry ingredients and add all at once to liquid. Beat on low until blended, then on high until dough is smooth. Add raisins and beat until mixed evenly. Scrape sides of bowl dw with spatula to form a ball of dough in bottom of bowl. Cover and let rise in warm spot for 30-40 minutes. Heat aout 3/4 inch of oil in a pot or small frying pan. When hot, drop by tsp. a dollop of dough into the ol and fry until golden. I glazed them when I was done, but I know that some people sprinkle sugar on theirs.
Thursday, January 07, 2010
Joyous New Year!
School as started again, after a very quick break for Christmas and New Years. I spent most of my "at home" time (the time actually spent in Marion) going through closets and doing general house cleaning.
Christmas Eve I drove home to Hesston. The drive that normally takes 35 minutes or so was well over an hour of hard work driving in zero visibility conditions. It also involved getting stuck in a snow drift not even 2 blocks from my house. I am thankful for good friends and neighbors who help when I come knocking on the door! It took us about 5 minutes, but I was able to get the car out, and I was on my way again! :) I was so glad to finally reach Hesston, and that I made it there with no other mishaps. My nice warm bed at Mom and Dad's was also a blessing!
Christmas day was spent at Mom and Dad's and the rest of the crew showed up mid-morning. We had fun spending time together, giving and receiving presents, and eating the wonderful meal of Raclette that Mom prepared. Highlights of the day: watching Heidi open up her Kitchenaide Mixer; discovering that Gustav has a fear of B-U-Gs; watching Tim's eyes light up as he talked about his plans for his Christmas money and gift certificates; joking with Dad about his new GPS system; enjoying Mom's new tea pot as we played Scrabble and tried to gang up on Tim... I love to spend time with my family, and I realize how blessed I am to have them in my life.
The day after Christmas I spent my time preparing for a catering gig. I traipsed over the hill and through the woods (it felt like it!) carrying large, unwieldy items through the snow and into the Elgin for most of the day. One of my friends, Kym, had referred me to her son as a possible caterer for his wedding. Everything turned out wonderfully in the end (and there have been many nice things said in reference to the cooking), but it was a hectic day for me. Breakers blew, I had to serve out of a closet, warming food up all over the hotel without a proper kitchen, organizing serving help, and general mayhem governed my day. I was glad it went well, but I was also glad to crawl into bed that night. **I was happy to be able to provide a completely gluten free meal (except for the rolls) since his wife has celiac as well!
More time in the next few days was spent cleaning up my house from catering odds and ends, and taking down my tree and Christmas decorations. It seems that I have a lot more room in my house, and it was with a lot of sadness that I put everything in boxes. For some reason the Christmas season passed by more quickly than in other years. I realize that it was the same amount of days, but I'm saddened to realize that maybe I didn't spend enough time in ANTICIPATION during those days. Normally I am sick of the Christmas songs that are playing on the radio, in stores, etc...and in some ways have wished Christmas to come sooner in the past. That is also regrettable...maybe this "wanting more" feeling is better? Maybe I just won't put away all my Christmas music yet, and in that way prolong the Christmas season...after all, there IS snow on the ground...as long as I don't look at the calendar I should be ok!
New Year's Eve Mom, Dad and I drove up to NE to spend time with my mom's family. We didn't get off as early as anticipated that morning, due to a mechanical problem with their vehicle. Instead, we spent time trying to fix the problem--all solutions for the problem led to the term "Redneck"... I had fun teasing Dad about what all of his neighbors would think of this! We finally decided just to take my vehicle, so I've now broken in my new Mitsubishi on a longish road trip. Driving through NE was beautiful! The drifts were HUGE, and the sculpting of snow by wind amazes me. The farm is always a special place for me. I love to spend time with my family there. We spend a lot of time laughing and teasing, playing games with each other, reading and relaxing, curled up next to the wood stove or fire place, eating good food, and just being with each other. I know that we were all glad that Heidi, Tim and Gustav were able to join us this year after 3 years of not being together.
As always, the break seemed to slip by and I still have a list of things that I need to get accomplished. I'll just have to break it down and do one thing each night and get it done. Somehow I don't see that happening! :)
I am beginning the process of admittance to Grad School for FALL 2010. Last fall I had researched different options, and had narrowed it down to either Fort Hays State, or Wichita State. Both offer online masters programs, which would work best for me. I can continue teaching and still take my classes. This morning I sent in my application for FHSU, and have been busy asking my director and coworkers to submit letters of recommendation for me. I need to spend some time over the next few days writing a letter of personal statement. If any of you have done this yourself, I'd welcome a copy to look over. Once that it all in place I need to start the scholarship process. My list of things "to do" won't be getting any smaller anytime soon!
Happy New Year to all of you!
With love,
Erica
Christmas Eve I drove home to Hesston. The drive that normally takes 35 minutes or so was well over an hour of hard work driving in zero visibility conditions. It also involved getting stuck in a snow drift not even 2 blocks from my house. I am thankful for good friends and neighbors who help when I come knocking on the door! It took us about 5 minutes, but I was able to get the car out, and I was on my way again! :) I was so glad to finally reach Hesston, and that I made it there with no other mishaps. My nice warm bed at Mom and Dad's was also a blessing!
Christmas day was spent at Mom and Dad's and the rest of the crew showed up mid-morning. We had fun spending time together, giving and receiving presents, and eating the wonderful meal of Raclette that Mom prepared. Highlights of the day: watching Heidi open up her Kitchenaide Mixer; discovering that Gustav has a fear of B-U-Gs; watching Tim's eyes light up as he talked about his plans for his Christmas money and gift certificates; joking with Dad about his new GPS system; enjoying Mom's new tea pot as we played Scrabble and tried to gang up on Tim... I love to spend time with my family, and I realize how blessed I am to have them in my life.
The day after Christmas I spent my time preparing for a catering gig. I traipsed over the hill and through the woods (it felt like it!) carrying large, unwieldy items through the snow and into the Elgin for most of the day. One of my friends, Kym, had referred me to her son as a possible caterer for his wedding. Everything turned out wonderfully in the end (and there have been many nice things said in reference to the cooking), but it was a hectic day for me. Breakers blew, I had to serve out of a closet, warming food up all over the hotel without a proper kitchen, organizing serving help, and general mayhem governed my day. I was glad it went well, but I was also glad to crawl into bed that night. **I was happy to be able to provide a completely gluten free meal (except for the rolls) since his wife has celiac as well!
More time in the next few days was spent cleaning up my house from catering odds and ends, and taking down my tree and Christmas decorations. It seems that I have a lot more room in my house, and it was with a lot of sadness that I put everything in boxes. For some reason the Christmas season passed by more quickly than in other years. I realize that it was the same amount of days, but I'm saddened to realize that maybe I didn't spend enough time in ANTICIPATION during those days. Normally I am sick of the Christmas songs that are playing on the radio, in stores, etc...and in some ways have wished Christmas to come sooner in the past. That is also regrettable...maybe this "wanting more" feeling is better? Maybe I just won't put away all my Christmas music yet, and in that way prolong the Christmas season...after all, there IS snow on the ground...as long as I don't look at the calendar I should be ok!
New Year's Eve Mom, Dad and I drove up to NE to spend time with my mom's family. We didn't get off as early as anticipated that morning, due to a mechanical problem with their vehicle. Instead, we spent time trying to fix the problem--all solutions for the problem led to the term "Redneck"... I had fun teasing Dad about what all of his neighbors would think of this! We finally decided just to take my vehicle, so I've now broken in my new Mitsubishi on a longish road trip. Driving through NE was beautiful! The drifts were HUGE, and the sculpting of snow by wind amazes me. The farm is always a special place for me. I love to spend time with my family there. We spend a lot of time laughing and teasing, playing games with each other, reading and relaxing, curled up next to the wood stove or fire place, eating good food, and just being with each other. I know that we were all glad that Heidi, Tim and Gustav were able to join us this year after 3 years of not being together.
As always, the break seemed to slip by and I still have a list of things that I need to get accomplished. I'll just have to break it down and do one thing each night and get it done. Somehow I don't see that happening! :)
I am beginning the process of admittance to Grad School for FALL 2010. Last fall I had researched different options, and had narrowed it down to either Fort Hays State, or Wichita State. Both offer online masters programs, which would work best for me. I can continue teaching and still take my classes. This morning I sent in my application for FHSU, and have been busy asking my director and coworkers to submit letters of recommendation for me. I need to spend some time over the next few days writing a letter of personal statement. If any of you have done this yourself, I'd welcome a copy to look over. Once that it all in place I need to start the scholarship process. My list of things "to do" won't be getting any smaller anytime soon!
Happy New Year to all of you!
With love,
Erica
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
"New" recipes
I've been baking again. This time I'm not really creating, but altering some well-loved recipes so that I can eat them.
With the Thanksgiving and Christmas season come many memories of tastes I love. As the years go by, I'm sure that I'll have the chance to recreate many of the things I miss. For now I've tackled peppernuts and dill bread.
My cousin Patrick, who was also recently diagnosed with celiac, called me about a month ago wondering about how to go about making peppernuts. Which flours should be used, etc... Peppernuts were not something that I had thought about yet, but when there is more than just me involved, I have more of a reason to start playing. Sometimes it seems like a waste to bake, since it is just me that will eat it all...so although it is something I love to do, it hasn't been a priority lately. Honestly, I'm thankful that Patrick has joined my "team" (and yes, I realize that is very selfish!)...I realize that it is probably a burden for him and for Abbe, but for me it means that there is someone I can call and talk to; someone I can brainstorm with and exchange thoughts and suggestions with; someone that misses the same things I do... It's actually very comforting for me.
When he first called I made some suggestions on where to start for flour mixes. He called his Grandma Schmidt and got the anise Recipe he grew up with, while I focused on the Buller family recipe. One of the people I've met up with on this journey and befriended is Julie from the website Mennonite Girls Can Cook. A fellow celiac, she shares her Mennonite recipes that have been altered to be gluten free. We've been teaming up to figure out a better version of zwiebach, but that has taken a backseat at this point. I figured that I should send an email off to Julie and see whether she had done anything with peppernuts before I tried reinventing the wheel. She hadn't, but was happy to help me as I tried to figure out what would work. She quickly came up with a recipe that would work, and sent it back to me. What followed was a wonderful experience! :) I tried making peppernuts with the flour mix that she suggested. As I mixed them up, I tasted between each addition to see how the dough changed. After the last addition I tasted again, and promptly threw the dough in the trash. While that sounds awful...the truth is that I've finally figured out what tastes so bad to me in gluten free baking and that makes me want to jump up and down and clap my hands. I've been baking for a year now, and I had never been able to determine what it was, but now I KNOW!!!! My mouth and stomach can not stand bean flours. I can not even describe what the taste does to me. I didn't want to completely abandon the idea though, so I tried to figure out what else I could use. What follows is my take on the original Buller recipe (with many thanks to Julie for her help! Her take on the recipe is on the MGCC website!). ***Disclaimer: I'm still fiddling with this recipe. When I baked them out, they became very flat, not the rounded ones I grew up with. The taste (which is most important!) is there though! :)
Gluten Free Peppernuts
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, creamed
1 egg
2 rounded tsp. sour cream or plain yogurt
Add:
1 cup sweet white sorghum flour
1/ cup teff flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1 rounded tsp. xanthan gum
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/8 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Today I'm preparing for our annual family Thanksgiving celebration. With such a large family, it isn't fair to expect one person to do all the cooking, so for as long as I can remember, each family has contributed to the feast. As the cousins have grown up we've also started being responsible for different aspects of the meal. Since I've always loved baking I started volunteering to bring the bread for the day when Grandma B was no longer able to. Even with my celiac diagnosis I've continued to make the breads. Today I made 2 loaves of white bread and one loaf of gluten free bread. Last year I brought only "regular" breads, figuring that I wouldn't miss it with so much other food on the table. I wish that had been the case. This year I'm bringing bread so that I don't feel like I'm missing out on something.
One of my favorite breads is Dill bread. When I was in college Carmen and Patrick's grandmother, Helen Schmidt, adopted me and invited me to all the family meals. This may sound strange to those of you who realize that I went to college less than 40 miles from where I grew up, but I've decided that a person can never have too many grandparents, too many cousins, too many family members.... At every meal I was invited to, Grandma Schmidt would have zwiebach and dill bread. I could never eat enough of the dill bread...slice after slice (and now I know just how bad that was for me!)... Grandma Schmidt is coming to our Buller Thanksgiving tomorrow. I can't wait to have her try my Gluten Free version of the bread she's made for so many meals! :)
Gluten Free Dill Bread (original recipe from the More-with-Less Cookbook)
Dissolve:
1 pkg. yeast (in the Pamela's Bread Mix)
1/4 cup warm water
Combine in Mixing Bowl:
1 pkg Pamela's Bread Mix
2 t. dill seed
1/2 T. minced onion (if using dried minced onion, rehydrate before putting in)
In measuring cup combine:
1 cup cottage cheese
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup oil
warm water to fill until 1 3/4 cup mark
Stir well to combine. Let rice in greased bowl to double in size. Punch down. Put into a bread pan. Let rise again. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Remove from pans and brush with melted margarine.
**I also make this in the bread machine on the dough cycle if I need to be doing other things.
With the Thanksgiving and Christmas season come many memories of tastes I love. As the years go by, I'm sure that I'll have the chance to recreate many of the things I miss. For now I've tackled peppernuts and dill bread.
My cousin Patrick, who was also recently diagnosed with celiac, called me about a month ago wondering about how to go about making peppernuts. Which flours should be used, etc... Peppernuts were not something that I had thought about yet, but when there is more than just me involved, I have more of a reason to start playing. Sometimes it seems like a waste to bake, since it is just me that will eat it all...so although it is something I love to do, it hasn't been a priority lately. Honestly, I'm thankful that Patrick has joined my "team" (and yes, I realize that is very selfish!)...I realize that it is probably a burden for him and for Abbe, but for me it means that there is someone I can call and talk to; someone I can brainstorm with and exchange thoughts and suggestions with; someone that misses the same things I do... It's actually very comforting for me.
When he first called I made some suggestions on where to start for flour mixes. He called his Grandma Schmidt and got the anise Recipe he grew up with, while I focused on the Buller family recipe. One of the people I've met up with on this journey and befriended is Julie from the website Mennonite Girls Can Cook. A fellow celiac, she shares her Mennonite recipes that have been altered to be gluten free. We've been teaming up to figure out a better version of zwiebach, but that has taken a backseat at this point. I figured that I should send an email off to Julie and see whether she had done anything with peppernuts before I tried reinventing the wheel. She hadn't, but was happy to help me as I tried to figure out what would work. She quickly came up with a recipe that would work, and sent it back to me. What followed was a wonderful experience! :) I tried making peppernuts with the flour mix that she suggested. As I mixed them up, I tasted between each addition to see how the dough changed. After the last addition I tasted again, and promptly threw the dough in the trash. While that sounds awful...the truth is that I've finally figured out what tastes so bad to me in gluten free baking and that makes me want to jump up and down and clap my hands. I've been baking for a year now, and I had never been able to determine what it was, but now I KNOW!!!! My mouth and stomach can not stand bean flours. I can not even describe what the taste does to me. I didn't want to completely abandon the idea though, so I tried to figure out what else I could use. What follows is my take on the original Buller recipe (with many thanks to Julie for her help! Her take on the recipe is on the MGCC website!). ***Disclaimer: I'm still fiddling with this recipe. When I baked them out, they became very flat, not the rounded ones I grew up with. The taste (which is most important!) is there though! :)
Gluten Free Peppernuts
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, creamed
1 egg
2 rounded tsp. sour cream or plain yogurt
Add:
1 cup sweet white sorghum flour
1/ cup teff flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1 rounded tsp. xanthan gum
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/8 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Today I'm preparing for our annual family Thanksgiving celebration. With such a large family, it isn't fair to expect one person to do all the cooking, so for as long as I can remember, each family has contributed to the feast. As the cousins have grown up we've also started being responsible for different aspects of the meal. Since I've always loved baking I started volunteering to bring the bread for the day when Grandma B was no longer able to. Even with my celiac diagnosis I've continued to make the breads. Today I made 2 loaves of white bread and one loaf of gluten free bread. Last year I brought only "regular" breads, figuring that I wouldn't miss it with so much other food on the table. I wish that had been the case. This year I'm bringing bread so that I don't feel like I'm missing out on something.
One of my favorite breads is Dill bread. When I was in college Carmen and Patrick's grandmother, Helen Schmidt, adopted me and invited me to all the family meals. This may sound strange to those of you who realize that I went to college less than 40 miles from where I grew up, but I've decided that a person can never have too many grandparents, too many cousins, too many family members.... At every meal I was invited to, Grandma Schmidt would have zwiebach and dill bread. I could never eat enough of the dill bread...slice after slice (and now I know just how bad that was for me!)... Grandma Schmidt is coming to our Buller Thanksgiving tomorrow. I can't wait to have her try my Gluten Free version of the bread she's made for so many meals! :)
Gluten Free Dill Bread (original recipe from the More-with-Less Cookbook)
Dissolve:
1 pkg. yeast (in the Pamela's Bread Mix)
1/4 cup warm water
Combine in Mixing Bowl:
1 pkg Pamela's Bread Mix
2 t. dill seed
1/2 T. minced onion (if using dried minced onion, rehydrate before putting in)
In measuring cup combine:
1 cup cottage cheese
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup oil
warm water to fill until 1 3/4 cup mark
Stir well to combine. Let rice in greased bowl to double in size. Punch down. Put into a bread pan. Let rise again. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Remove from pans and brush with melted margarine.
**I also make this in the bread machine on the dough cycle if I need to be doing other things.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
2 months flew by
Yes, yet again I have waited far too long to write a blog. It has been months between posts, and I’ve had many “friendly” reminders from several of you…
Highlights of the past 2 months: Oktoberfest celebrated with the Huber’s and their friends; a QUICK trip to Seattle to attend the wedding of my cousin Patrick to his beautiful bride, Abbe; Taste of Autumn (wine tasting event out in the boonies—beautiful art strewn on the Kansas prairie, with tasting stations of appetizers paired with wines—always a good time with the friends I go with!); two, yes TWO, trips to see the musical WICKED while it was in Wichita; a garage sale at my house; as well as a wonderful overnight visit from my dear sister, brother-in-law, and nephew.
There has been much more squeezed into days in between, but it consists of the activities that most would consider mundane.
My last weeks at school have been very eventful. I’ve had a new student that came, and then left within a week. He has found a new school home, one that is much better suited to his needs. I can’t really tell much information about this situation, and certainly not on this blog, but I should say that his needs consumed all of every single day of last week. There are times that people ask why I chose the profession I did, and then further question me as to why I stay. Last week was one of the times that I questioned myself about that. The answers I keep coming back to are that these students need me, that I make a difference in their lives, and that not many others will spend that time with them and believe in them. I AM needed, even if I feel unappreciated.
To top off my excellent week at school, I also made a large purchase. My car has slowly become less reliable (it’s served me so well!), and last week reached a point where a large sum of money would have to be paid to repair it. After many conversations with my father and others, I decided that I should probably start looking for a new car. On Saturday, Dad and I went to Wichita with the intentions of purchasing a new Suzuki. Our plans changed, and I ended up buying a used 09 Mitsubishi Galant. I was sad to say goodbye to my little Malibu (especially the sunroof!), but I have to admit I’m enjoying my new car.
I’ve been spending much of my time lately in the kitchen. Last night I started a batch of Gluten Free Buller peppernuts. The first batch tasted awful and went in the trash. The second batch is now in the fridge waiting to be rolled out and baked tonight. I’m hopeful that they will end up close to what I remember. I also baked a loaf of Gluten Free cinnamon raisin bread last night, which made the house smell wonderful. Tonight will consist of baking 4 loaves of “regular” bread (2 white, and 2 with raisins/cinnamon), as well as starting soup preparations for the big shindig this weekend. I need to also start thinking about pies, and getting those prepared.
In this time of preparation for Thanksgiving, and the Christmas season as well, I should say that I have much to be thankful for. Just a few days ago, the 1 year mark of when I had my thyroid surgery passed. It's hard to believe that it has been 1 year. It's been a year of major adjustments for me, but there has always been good that came from the changes in my life. I have SO much to be thankful for!
Hoping to update soon with a new Gluten Free Peppernut recipe to share, as well as a few pictures.
Love to all of you!
Highlights of the past 2 months: Oktoberfest celebrated with the Huber’s and their friends; a QUICK trip to Seattle to attend the wedding of my cousin Patrick to his beautiful bride, Abbe; Taste of Autumn (wine tasting event out in the boonies—beautiful art strewn on the Kansas prairie, with tasting stations of appetizers paired with wines—always a good time with the friends I go with!); two, yes TWO, trips to see the musical WICKED while it was in Wichita; a garage sale at my house; as well as a wonderful overnight visit from my dear sister, brother-in-law, and nephew.
There has been much more squeezed into days in between, but it consists of the activities that most would consider mundane.
My last weeks at school have been very eventful. I’ve had a new student that came, and then left within a week. He has found a new school home, one that is much better suited to his needs. I can’t really tell much information about this situation, and certainly not on this blog, but I should say that his needs consumed all of every single day of last week. There are times that people ask why I chose the profession I did, and then further question me as to why I stay. Last week was one of the times that I questioned myself about that. The answers I keep coming back to are that these students need me, that I make a difference in their lives, and that not many others will spend that time with them and believe in them. I AM needed, even if I feel unappreciated.
To top off my excellent week at school, I also made a large purchase. My car has slowly become less reliable (it’s served me so well!), and last week reached a point where a large sum of money would have to be paid to repair it. After many conversations with my father and others, I decided that I should probably start looking for a new car. On Saturday, Dad and I went to Wichita with the intentions of purchasing a new Suzuki. Our plans changed, and I ended up buying a used 09 Mitsubishi Galant. I was sad to say goodbye to my little Malibu (especially the sunroof!), but I have to admit I’m enjoying my new car.
I’ve been spending much of my time lately in the kitchen. Last night I started a batch of Gluten Free Buller peppernuts. The first batch tasted awful and went in the trash. The second batch is now in the fridge waiting to be rolled out and baked tonight. I’m hopeful that they will end up close to what I remember. I also baked a loaf of Gluten Free cinnamon raisin bread last night, which made the house smell wonderful. Tonight will consist of baking 4 loaves of “regular” bread (2 white, and 2 with raisins/cinnamon), as well as starting soup preparations for the big shindig this weekend. I need to also start thinking about pies, and getting those prepared.
In this time of preparation for Thanksgiving, and the Christmas season as well, I should say that I have much to be thankful for. Just a few days ago, the 1 year mark of when I had my thyroid surgery passed. It's hard to believe that it has been 1 year. It's been a year of major adjustments for me, but there has always been good that came from the changes in my life. I have SO much to be thankful for!
Hoping to update soon with a new Gluten Free Peppernut recipe to share, as well as a few pictures.
Love to all of you!
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
PTL
My sister makes fun of me for many things, but one of the things she has teased me about lately is my use of acronyms when chatting online with her. While my chatting and texting vocabulary is not as large as the average 8 year olds, it IS much larger than hers since she's been out of the country for 3 years now.. One of the latest I've learned is PTL, which a friend used on her facebook update. I had to ask to find out what she was actually saying, and since then I've seen it several more times, and the messages make so much more sense now! :)
PTL: The first week of school has passed. There were several bumps and bruises along the way, but I'm sure things will get ironed out in the next few weeks. This first week has left me very tired, and ready to go to bed at 4:00 when my day at school ends. I've also been doing several massages each Tues. and Thurs. evening, and on Saturdays. The juggling of the two jobs and my normal things around the house (mowing, laundry, dishes, etc...) have made me so tired that I haven't even attempted going to the pool. I'm still hopeful that I will be able to add that back in soon....
PTL: My Dell computer arrived and several days ahead of schedule. I'm slowly loading the programs I use onto it, and spending some time playing and discovering what all I've got.
PTL: Heidi and Tim have found a house, and will be moving their things in starting Thursday. This means the state wide storage rooms will be emptied, and all items will be happily joined together in Newton, not far from Shalom. I'm sure that much excitment and jubilation will be felt as Heidi and Tim unpack boxess and rediscover their long-lost belongings.
PTL: Sunday's special music at church turned out much better than the fiasco it could have been. I'm so thankful that most in the congregation have/had no idea what all transpired.
PTL: I've been blessed by my family who love and support me, who care about me, care for me when I need them, and laugh with me. I can't imagine a better family to be a part of.
PTL: Good friendships make my life so much better. I was able to share dinner with several friends last night at my home, and our laughter until 10:30 last night has caried me through the day today. I've been graced with more friends than I can count, I have many more than "my fair share".
Hopefully you've figured out what PTL stands for (or maybe you already knew!)...if not, try to use your context clues! :) I would love to hear what others come up with!
PTL: The first week of school has passed. There were several bumps and bruises along the way, but I'm sure things will get ironed out in the next few weeks. This first week has left me very tired, and ready to go to bed at 4:00 when my day at school ends. I've also been doing several massages each Tues. and Thurs. evening, and on Saturdays. The juggling of the two jobs and my normal things around the house (mowing, laundry, dishes, etc...) have made me so tired that I haven't even attempted going to the pool. I'm still hopeful that I will be able to add that back in soon....
PTL: My Dell computer arrived and several days ahead of schedule. I'm slowly loading the programs I use onto it, and spending some time playing and discovering what all I've got.
PTL: Heidi and Tim have found a house, and will be moving their things in starting Thursday. This means the state wide storage rooms will be emptied, and all items will be happily joined together in Newton, not far from Shalom. I'm sure that much excitment and jubilation will be felt as Heidi and Tim unpack boxess and rediscover their long-lost belongings.
PTL: Sunday's special music at church turned out much better than the fiasco it could have been. I'm so thankful that most in the congregation have/had no idea what all transpired.
PTL: I've been blessed by my family who love and support me, who care about me, care for me when I need them, and laugh with me. I can't imagine a better family to be a part of.
PTL: Good friendships make my life so much better. I was able to share dinner with several friends last night at my home, and our laughter until 10:30 last night has caried me through the day today. I've been graced with more friends than I can count, I have many more than "my fair share".
Hopefully you've figured out what PTL stands for (or maybe you already knew!)...if not, try to use your context clues! :) I would love to hear what others come up with!
Friday, August 14, 2009
The last few days
The new school year has begun. So far I've had 3 days of inservice, next Monday will be a work day, and then the children start rushing through the doors on Tuesday. In the space of a week's time, my caseload has grown by 3 students, which is good and bad. With those students come some new personalities, and much more juggling of schedules, whether my own or planning my paraprofessional's. My classroom still looks pretty messy, but I'm hoping that everything will be in place by Monday at 4:00 when I send my paras home.
We've also really begun to feel the economic stress of this year within our county and district. Budgets have been slashed, or are non-existent...we're all being lectured on money saving strategies and conserving resources...and we've been told to buckle down and prepare for the worst. Jobs (for this year at least) are protected...but we've been told to be thankful that we still have them. While things are bad for the special education cooperative that I work for, they are much worse in the district, and more specifically, for the regular education teacher. One of the smartest decisions I ever made was getting my special education degree. I am protected from so many things because of my SPED degree. I have no worries about ever losing my job, which is quite a relief! I also am assured of a quick hire if/when I go looking for a different job. The entire situation really hit home today when I was told by my principal that a para that we had already "hired" had really not been hired because they had decided not to fill the position. While I haven't talked to the director about this situation, I'm fairly certain that there simply is not enough money to hire to replace the para position. This is especially difficult, not only because of the loss of an additional set of hands and presence in the classroom, but because I consider the person that was "hired" to be a personal friend. This person had already gone to 2 days of inservice, and the principal then had to break the news that he really didn't have a job.
Another frustration this week was the death of my laptop. While it was 6 years old, and basically obsolete I was hoping that I could eke out a few more months of service. Thankfully I took some time back in May to clean it off, and so I only lost a few conversations and documents. It could have been so much worse! I was so thankful that cousin Patrick was available to talk to me, and counsel me on whether I should try to repair it or trash it and buy a new one. After determining it was most likely the hard-drive, I quickly came to the conclusion (and Patrick agreed!) that a new computer was in my future. I would have liked to wait until October when there will be a new operating system available, but...I do use my computer all the time at home for working from home for SPED and massage and communication with family, friends and school matters... I'm anxiously awaiting the delivery of my new Dell... I think I got a fairly good computer for not too much money--and I REALLY appreciate the Dell Educator Discount. Every little bit helps!
This past week I've been spending much of my time gathering vegetables from friends and their gardens. I've canned green beans, several batches of salsa, homemade italian sauce, and cantaloupe. Yes! I said I canned cantaloupe! :) It is amazing! Maybe if you're lucky you'll get some for Christmas! Tonight I've started some dough for Whole Wheat Pizza mini crusts that will be finished off tomorrow, and I've baked a cherry coffee cake.
Tomorrow brings two massages at the clinic, house cleaning, and the arrival of my Aunt Terri. Terri will be staying overnight with me, and then heading back to Nebraska after picking up a kitten for a friend. Mom, Dad, Heidi, Tim and Gustav will be joining Terri and me for supper tomorrow night, and I'm eager to spend time with all of them. My house desperately needs to be cleaned, and I'm hoping that it all gets done before Terri arrives!
I believe the last time I wrote I mentioned that I would be getting an MRI to see whether there was a tumor on my pituitary gland. I went back to the doctor this week, and was happy to hear that there is no tumor! :) While I still don't have as much energy as I would like, I'm coming to the realization that this may just be something I have to live with. I am happy that most of my other side effects have been clearing up with the help of the medications that she has prescribed. I am hopeful that that continues. The real test will be next week when I head back to the pool in the mornings (or at least that is my intention!). I may have to ease into it. I know that I'll want to (and expect myself!) to be able to swim several miles at one time, and then head to school like I was doing last year, plus go back in the evenings and swim some more. I'll have to sit down and try to figure out a schedule of when I go, allowing for rest time, and easing into the longer amounts of swimming. I guess I'd rather do that than crash and burn...although I think I'll end up being very frustrated with myself.
Love to all of you!
We've also really begun to feel the economic stress of this year within our county and district. Budgets have been slashed, or are non-existent...we're all being lectured on money saving strategies and conserving resources...and we've been told to buckle down and prepare for the worst. Jobs (for this year at least) are protected...but we've been told to be thankful that we still have them. While things are bad for the special education cooperative that I work for, they are much worse in the district, and more specifically, for the regular education teacher. One of the smartest decisions I ever made was getting my special education degree. I am protected from so many things because of my SPED degree. I have no worries about ever losing my job, which is quite a relief! I also am assured of a quick hire if/when I go looking for a different job. The entire situation really hit home today when I was told by my principal that a para that we had already "hired" had really not been hired because they had decided not to fill the position. While I haven't talked to the director about this situation, I'm fairly certain that there simply is not enough money to hire to replace the para position. This is especially difficult, not only because of the loss of an additional set of hands and presence in the classroom, but because I consider the person that was "hired" to be a personal friend. This person had already gone to 2 days of inservice, and the principal then had to break the news that he really didn't have a job.
Another frustration this week was the death of my laptop. While it was 6 years old, and basically obsolete I was hoping that I could eke out a few more months of service. Thankfully I took some time back in May to clean it off, and so I only lost a few conversations and documents. It could have been so much worse! I was so thankful that cousin Patrick was available to talk to me, and counsel me on whether I should try to repair it or trash it and buy a new one. After determining it was most likely the hard-drive, I quickly came to the conclusion (and Patrick agreed!) that a new computer was in my future. I would have liked to wait until October when there will be a new operating system available, but...I do use my computer all the time at home for working from home for SPED and massage and communication with family, friends and school matters... I'm anxiously awaiting the delivery of my new Dell... I think I got a fairly good computer for not too much money--and I REALLY appreciate the Dell Educator Discount. Every little bit helps!
This past week I've been spending much of my time gathering vegetables from friends and their gardens. I've canned green beans, several batches of salsa, homemade italian sauce, and cantaloupe. Yes! I said I canned cantaloupe! :) It is amazing! Maybe if you're lucky you'll get some for Christmas! Tonight I've started some dough for Whole Wheat Pizza mini crusts that will be finished off tomorrow, and I've baked a cherry coffee cake.
Tomorrow brings two massages at the clinic, house cleaning, and the arrival of my Aunt Terri. Terri will be staying overnight with me, and then heading back to Nebraska after picking up a kitten for a friend. Mom, Dad, Heidi, Tim and Gustav will be joining Terri and me for supper tomorrow night, and I'm eager to spend time with all of them. My house desperately needs to be cleaned, and I'm hoping that it all gets done before Terri arrives!
I believe the last time I wrote I mentioned that I would be getting an MRI to see whether there was a tumor on my pituitary gland. I went back to the doctor this week, and was happy to hear that there is no tumor! :) While I still don't have as much energy as I would like, I'm coming to the realization that this may just be something I have to live with. I am happy that most of my other side effects have been clearing up with the help of the medications that she has prescribed. I am hopeful that that continues. The real test will be next week when I head back to the pool in the mornings (or at least that is my intention!). I may have to ease into it. I know that I'll want to (and expect myself!) to be able to swim several miles at one time, and then head to school like I was doing last year, plus go back in the evenings and swim some more. I'll have to sit down and try to figure out a schedule of when I go, allowing for rest time, and easing into the longer amounts of swimming. I guess I'd rather do that than crash and burn...although I think I'll end up being very frustrated with myself.
Love to all of you!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Europe Pictures--in random order, sorry!
Gustav enjoys nutella and peanut butter sandwiches on picnics. I think he really just enjoys licking the filling out. But then again, who wouldn't? :)
Gustav loved splashing in the cool, clean lake!
Heidi, Tim and Gustav
Sister time.
Beautiful!
Evening at the lake our greatgreat grandfather fished in.
Kerstin, Gulvi and Willi
Tim and Gustav relaxing in the shade--Sweden was very warm while we were there!
Cousin Gulvi
The cottage--it has no running water, so Willi and Gulvi have to lug it with them all the time.
Willi got a workout pulling Gustav all over. They were very good friends!
Exploring the property.
Cousins Gulvi and Willi's land and cottage.
Oversized and undersized--we had lots of fun climbing on these at Astrid Lindgren World.
Gustav's throne.
Playing in the rock fountains.
It took Gustav awhile to figure out what was happening, but once he did, he didn't want to leave.
Heidi and Tim discussing the very "American" never ending drinks with your meals at Astrid Lindgren World--this included lingonberry juice and BEER! What a great place!
Drinking Lingonberry juice with dinner. Yum! :)
Our Swedish family at the cottage.
Gustav rearranging the furniture at the little houses at Astrid Lindgren World--he loved to move the tables and chairs around.
Playing at Astrid Lindgren World--the houses were more Gustav sized than Erica sized.
Exploring the area around the fish smoker.
Sampling the finished product--Gustav was a big fan.
Finished product--salmon, eel and trout.
Talking about spices used to flavor the fish and how to package it.
Fish smoker describing the history of the place and the smoking process.
Raw fish getting ready for the smoker.
Cousin Anders, our tour leader.
On the sea at the fish smoker. Cousin Kerstin, Heidi and Gustav.
Partially packed vehicle--no where near done, and so much more to find places for.
Gustav and Heidi relaxing.
My baby "sister" Eliane.
Goodbye gifts from the Hausgemeinshaft.
Fun in the kitchen while cleaning up the party.
Kristin and Eliane--so glad I got to see both of them, and I really wish they lived closer to us!
Laughing at some story Heidi and Kristin were telling.
The church sending and farewell service for Heidi, Tim and Gustav.
Gustav loves taco salad, enough so that he grabbed a chair and hoisted himself up to the table to eat out of the bowl at the farewell party. Either that, or we weren't feeding him enough.
Kristin and Heidi making caramel corn. Very sticky, and much discussion over which is the best way to eat caramel corn--crunchy bits or sticky balls? We all have our favorites! :)
Tim was in charge of beverages for the party, and this is only a portion of what was purchased. I think he did an excellent job of calculating how much to buy. I would have loved to try the beers he bought, they certainly looked and smelled good!
Gustav loves to observe from his window and watch the people who reside in the Hausgemeinshaft. And, of course, everything is much better if you're doing it naked, right?!? :)
Gustav "helping" Kristin roll out cinnamon roll dough. I'm not sure who ate more dough...Kristin or Gustav. :)
Eating the dough...not sure she did this before meeting Heidi and picking up a "bad" habit.
Bedtime stories for Gustav and Kristin.
Cooking with Gustav, he's always very eager to help and sample.
Gustav's bathtime. He loves playing in the water, and has changed quite a bit from that first bath I witnessed so long ago. No more screaming! :)
Kristin and I relaxing in the shade, enjoying fresh strawberries and currants while watching Gustav run naked in the sun!
Gustav waving "Tschuss" before heading to bed.
Setting up the grill for the big farewell party.
Eliane at the farewell party.
Heidi "sleeping" in Gustav's bed...I think this was an attempt to quiet a tantrum. :)
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