L.S.N.E.D: I Don't Feel Like It

I am just not feeling the Learn Something New Every Day vibe today so I am just going to post some family stuff.  That is what this blog is really about.  Sometimes I get caught up in the "what can I post that will interest people" track when really this is about my family.  Cause they rock my world...a lot.

This was the night of the ill-fated camp oven.  Sophie is a little lady, Ben is a handsome dude and Miss Mariana has been a dear friend to Sophie since birth.  I have searched and searched for a picture I have of the two of them together in the stroller while Alana and I attended the temple and my dear sweet sister April watched them so we could attend.  I can't find it.  Maybe Alana has it?

Jacob has mentioned on more than one occasion that he wants to be a blacksmith when he grows up.  He gave it a try on pizza night.  There are some classes that a museum around here offers.  When Jacob is old enough we might just look into them.

Jacob has had these mardi gras beads for years.  His pillow pet Draggie wears them usually, but today Jacob is rocking the beads.

If a kid is't dirty at the end of the day, something is wrong. (This is what I tell myself to make me feel better about my grubby kids)

The grubbiness doesn't seem to bother the may fly that decided Noah was a good resting spot.

The kids made this awesome house for Noah.  Stained glass windows and door, covered deck...in today's market I think it could have sold for a good $50.

The kids played and played and played in it for weeks and they kept wanting to squish it, bring it outside, anything that would destroy it, but I kept saying, NO!  I need to take a picture.  This picture was taken 5/19 after a couple weeks of play, and the house went out to the recycling last week.

Reckless Recreation: When Daddy is Out of Town

I married a very logical, practical, linear man.  Aaron married a very live in the moment, learn from your mistakes, throw caution to the wind woman.  What ends up happening is a lot of, "I know!  Let's_________________(ride our bikes to the church, hike Mt. Mansfield, make cookies for 300, buy a hot tub, drive to D.C. next vacation, build a tree fort etc...)

 Followed by, "That isn't_____________" (Safe, possible, economical, rational etc...) along with a very logical reason why it isn't any one of those things (you are 8 months pregnant and haven't ridden a bike in 2 years).  True story folks.

So when Aaron chaperoned the senior class trip to Boston for four days, I was excited to proceed with life/plans, uninhibited.

"I know!  Let's build a camp oven and bake pizza over the campfire!  

We started the campfire so it could burn down to a nice bed of coals and I got the pizza dough rising.  Then we grabbed a cardboard box out of the barn and a roll of tin foil and set off to work.

Attempt one was unsuccessful but I thought, that's ok, we have nothing to lose but a free cardboard box and a few cents worth of tin foil.  After our second attempt we were ready to go.  Each of the kids shaped and topped their own individual pan pizza.  The fire still had flames, but I was certain it would burn down quickly.

We had even added a shelf to the oven so we got two pizzas cooking.  I noticed a flap of foil that had come loose so I used tongs to secure it.  The cheese that had fallen off the pizza was sizzling and I was preparing the , "HA!  You aren't always right! speech for Aaron, when I saw a wisp of smoke seeping out from between the foil.  But, I was sure it was fine.  

I reached in with the tongs to rotate the pizza and in that instant, whoomph, the cardboard box erupted into a mass of flames.  I was trying to move the pizzas out so we could save them when one slid off.  One of the kids attempted to save it, forgetting that it had just been removed from burning flames.  The pizza slid off into the grass.  I saved it then rolled it up into a quasi calzone, which as an added bonus now included fresh greens.  The other pizza looked like it was done.  The crust was grayish gold and the cheese was crispy, but it was all the exterior that had rapidly cooked leaving the innards gooey.

In the meantime the Sophie ran to get the hose to put out the box that continued to burn.  The spray of water hit the tin foil and with a sizzle and a whoomph of steam, and Sophie gleefully exclaimed, "Whoa!  I want to be a firefighter when I grow up!"

Undeterred, we set the pizzas on the griddle and flipped them over and over until they were cooked through.

They had a nice "smoked" flavor, but they all got snarfed down.

Now, here is where the real lesson about marriage comes in.  We meet in the middle.  Aaron has learned to throw caution to the wind occasionally and because I have been married to Aaron for almost 12 years I have learned to take heed to his wisdom.  In this particular instance I:

• Started the whole process really early in the afternoon, knowing there could be some set backs
• Reserved a portion of the dough in the house "just in case" things didn't work out

All of us ate our fill, we had a grand time, we learned a lot, and we made a memory, and we missed Aaron immensely.

Parenting Practices: This Kid Scares Me

Yesterday Jacob wanted to have a computer turn.  Our computers are password protected since some people in the family need help learning discipline when it comes to screens.  

Jacob asked me, "Mommy, will you wash your hands then type in the password?"

I could be excited for his sense of cleanliness, but I suspect that he had other motives behind his request.

How many words could be made out of these letters (which, by the way, are NOT the letters in my password)?

L.S.N.E.D.: I Can't Fight This Feeling Any More

Try as I might like, I can no longer deny that Sophie is becoming a beautiful young woman.  I knew she was beautiful, it is the young woman part I am struggling with.  This realization came as I watched her dance for he recital.  I was overcome with her beauty, her poise, her grace, her feminine curves.  I spent the evening after the dress rehearsal and the next evening after her performance, with my stomach in my throat, with my chest swelling, almost to bursting, with pride and amazement that she is my daughter.  That I am  so lucky to have been blessed with her.  It has most definitely been a proud mommy weekend.

Sophie had two roles.  One as a firebird and the other as an ocean dancer.  The ocean dance was the hit of the show.  I heard many people remarking about it.  These characters come from the story of The Little Humpback Horse

The video is from the dress rehearsal and there were some major technical difficulties with the music.  I should have video taped the night of the performance, but I wanted to enjoy those scenes.

Deep Thoughts: A Christ Centered Home

Usually when I write posts like this I make an effort to demonstrate that my beliefs are not so different than the beliefs of others.  I think the world would be a better place if we all focused on unity rather than judgement, individual rights, and  fairness.  I can feel a whole post coming out of this, pinch me so I can stay on task!

As I sometimes do, this time I am going to leave the application up you as a reader with your own belief system.  Please know that I am not trying to exclude or coerce others to my way of thinking.  This is something I figured out this morning, and I feel I need to record it because my brain is about the size of a pea and my memory a grain of quinoa...uncooked.  

I was watching a video from a training meeting hosted by the leaders of my church entitled, "Bringing Up Children in Light and Truth and made some notes about things that stood out to me.  As much as possible I have tried to get the exact quote.

A young mother was talking about an experience she had when she was frustrated with her son.  After relating the experience she said, "We are the closest thing to Heavenly Father for them (our children) and we need to love and teach that way."

What a humbling and ennobling idea; as parents, we are walking in the footsteps of Heavenly Father.  That is HUGE!  Our children can learn about and feel the love of Heavenly Father based on how we love and teach.

Later the group was talking about establishing a house of order, learning and glory and the same young mother mentioned that if our homes are Christ centered then everything falls into place perfectly even though daily life is chaotic.  It isn't the chaos that dictates our family life, unless we allow it to, as long as we keep our focus on the Savior and the atonement.

Another woman said, "Our houses are next to temples as the most sacred places on Earth."  That gives me motivation to reign in the chaos a bit so that my home can fee like that sanctuary where peace can be felt and learning can occur.

Finally Ezra Taft Benson was quoted.  He said, "The most important teaching in the home is spiritual." He listed the most important obligations we have as teachers to our children.  I always love it when I am given a list because there are so many good things out there and it can be overwhelming to think of all we need to do.

• Prepare our children to receive the ordinances of the gospel
• Honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy
• Instill in them a desire for eternal life and to strive for that goal above all else

I'm on it (by which I mean I understand and I have goals to do better than I have.  Onward and upward!)

W.F.D.T.Recipes: Maple Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Look at the title.  If you are not drooling right now, walk away, this recipe is not for you.  This recipe came up after a search on making pie without out white sugar, and naturally a maple recipe should originate in Vermont.

STRAWBERRY RHUBARB MAPLE PIE

INGREDIENTS
Pastry for a double crust pie (homemade)
2 cup sliced rhubarb
3 cup fresh strawberries
3/4 cup maple syrup (Grade A Dark Amber)
1/3 cup butter
1 tsp. lemon zest
2 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg white, beaten
1 tsp. sugar

METHOD
Divide pie crust dough in half; roll out half and line a 9: pie plate with dough, leaving about 1 inch excess all around.

Place 2 cups of diced rhubarb evenly on the bottom; top with the strawberries and set aside.

In a saucepan over low heat, combine 3/4 cup maple syrup, 1/3 cup butter, 1 tsp. lemon zest, and 2 tbsp. cornstarch. Remove from heat and add 1 tsp. vanilla. Pour over the rhubarb and strawberries, and cover with the remaining shell dough. Seal the edges and vent the top. Lightly brush with beaten egg whites and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 45-60 minutes.

Deb Evans and Hadley Evans Nash, Middlebury

I did not have lemon zest so I left it out and I did not do the egg white and sugar topping.  Also I used frozen sliced strawberries and used more rhubarb and less strawberry.  The result...

Imagine the aroma of maple combined with buttery goodness. Then add the tang of rhubarb with just a hint of strawberry.  The best part...the maple flavor penetrated the flaky crust.  There really aren't word to describe it. I think I will call it a life affirming food experience.   SOOOOOO Good.  

And even though I am not eating desserts except creemees (specifically creemees from Hardwick House of Pizza), I will be making this again because pie is healthy.  It has fruit and vegetables in it, and maple syrup is natural and has minerals in it.  Maybe next time I will take pictures so I don't have to steal some random persons picture.  However, I will give credit where credit is due.

http://adventuresinshaw.wordpress.com/2008/05/04/strawberry-rhubarb-pie/

L.S.N.E.D: Brush Up

Classes have been out for a couple weeks now.  Graduation was on Saturday (I did not attend) and I should be receiving my certificate in the mail any day now.  I already feel the lack of educational stimuli so I thought I would write a technical description of something that happened to Aaron.

June 1, 2013
Patient: Aaron Cornelius
Age:34
Reason for visit:
Patient presented with a laceration on the palmar or anterior surface of the left hand resulting from broken glass in a garbage bad he was throwing into a garbage receptical.  Laceration began on the medial side of the secondary distal phalanx extending medially from the base of the second digital phalanx to the middle of the proximal phalanx.  The laceration protruded through the epidermis and dermis into the reticular layer cutting through the proper palmar digital nerve and digital vein.  Laceration was repaired with subcutaneous sutures and six superficial sutures.  Patient should return in 7-10 days for removal of sutures.  Residual nerve anesthesia should gradually cease within the next 6-12 months. 

These are arteries but veins pretty much follow the same path.