QUICK COOKING QUESTION

When a can of fruit is weighed, do they count the juice? In other words I'm using fresh pineapple....recipe calls for 16 oz of pineapple (drain well).....16 oz of fresh pineapple is about 3 C - seems a bit much....Kristine - it's your curry chicken salad.....

BUTTER CREAM FROSTING (FROM KATE!)
*You know the drill - my adaptations in (*)

Has to cool after cooking so plan ahead.

1 C milk
1/4 c all purpose flour (WW)
1 C butter - room temp
1 C granulated sugar (rapadura)
2 tsp real vanilla

Combine milk and flour in small saucepan on medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. I used this as written and it was fine - could have been thicker - add more flour in this stage for thicker.

Cream butter and rapadura until very fluffy - 5 min in the Bosch for me.

Add vanilla and flour mixture and continue to beat until very fluffy and sugar is dissolved. Scrape bowl every couple of minutes. Take a tiny bit and rub between your fingers to see if sugar is dissolved.

This was WONDERFUL - the children liked it better than my honey frosting attempt. LOL It was off white because I didn't use bleached sugar - but it tasted like butter cream/vanilla frosting. Because of the rapadura it had a slight "coffee" taste according to my children...but they ate it all....I think it's a molasses taste that they are catching and not really mocha.

BEST CHOCOLATE CAKE
*Betty Crocker's Cookbook (My adaptations in (*), sorry Betty)

1 C all purpose flour (used WW)
1 C sugar (rapadura - sucanat would work)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 C plus 2 T buttermilk (used milk with Apple Cider Vinegar)
1/4 C shortening (coconut oil)
1 egg (2 eggs and a tad of gluten due to heavy KA flour)
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 ounces melted unsweetened chocolate (cool)

Preheat oven to 350* Grease and flour 8x8 or 9x9 pan. Beat all ingredients on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on high speed, 3 minutes. Pour into pan. Bake 30 - 35 minutes

Frosting to follow....

FRIDAY

3:00 - 4:15 up with Stacia

6:00 alarm goes off, shower

6:15 - 6:45 - Word

7:00 - 8:00 breakfast - french toast, smoothies, fruit plate, clean up, mop etc.

8:00 - 8:15 - hair, makeup

8:15 - 9:00 - speech

9:20 - 10:40 pick up produce, sort

10:40 - 11:00 - add final selections and amounts to co-op newsletter and print

11:00 - 12:00 - visit with friends as they pick up produce, take cash for next week etc.

12:00 - 1:30 lunch and clean up

1:30 - 2:00 begin preparing for tomorrow's tea by cleaning the littles bathroom (which is the main bathroom)

*Call from NARHS. They love TOG. They were thrilled with my records and how I figured a grade for Rosetta Stone. They have used my ideas with two families who called in for help this week. ::snort:: THEY were NOT impressed with my understanding that if you finished 90% of a text you could count it as a credit....so....Jamin has some tests to finish up and mail in. I guess in the rest of the homeschool world that works - but not with NARHS. We laughed about how we've had these charter schools through high school to keep me honest....but I am such a free spirit that I KNOW it is good the children wanted to go this route. LOL They told me that while they were impressed the boys made 100% in something, that colleges will look at it and go "Mommy grade" so they asked about changing the grade to 99...still an A. Yeah - whatever. Sort of seems STUPID to me (excuse the bad word) - If you make 100, you should get 100....but I do see their point about colleges. She also thought I needed to buy Rosetta and finish with it since we began with it. Something about teaching Dinosaurs in 9th grade and again in 1oth grade....I had trouble following the logic but I'm sure it will make sense at about mid-night. They changed the title of our history credit from TOG - fine by me.

1:45 - 2:30 couch school (will plan 4 day school week next week - leaving Fri for games, lapbooks and history quilt)

2:30 - 3:00 tried to get Stacia to take a nap

3:00 - 3:30 tea with Stacia while the youngers enjoy Play Station - a treat that Zander purchased for them by redeeming 60 tickets

3:30 - 4:30 read email and such while holding Stacia - finally goes to sleep, 4 more families want to join produce co-op since this a.m.

4:30 - 4:45 - search out the Curry Chicken Salad recipe....get side tracked...get back on track...I'm going to make cute little filo shells and fill them with chicken salad.

OK - I've seen several of you do this and I've decided my life is far too boring to do a daily log....ya'll (see I spelled it right - MIKE you are anonymous aren't you LOL) KNOW I'm busy if you've ever seen me with my crew. I'm done. ::snort::

Let's just say "typical day in my life..."

The rest of the day will include pizza, movies, getting things out for tea...WHY did I mop the floor this morning BEFORE cases of produce entered my home???? OH YEAH, it's my routine. ::snort::

Dorothy, I agree that something always falls off when something new is added. I don't mind it being outdoor exercising at this point!!! It's far to cold to be outside anyway.

I had a fright this a.m. when I began the family inductive study and it had me a week behind...I was sure Advent began on the 2nd but they have it beginning in November. I checked everywhere else and I'm o.k. I still have a bizarre Advent countdown candle.....I've hugged it, shaped it, burned it non-stop.....it simply won't burn! Is that a sign that the world will end before Christmas, Liz? Chris? Maybe December?????

*Dinosaurs by Design by Duane T Gish* this is Zander's FAVORITE book. It's been around for 11 years....I really need to see if there are any other great new dino books written from a Christian/creationist perspective.

This is not a 4 year old book. This is not a story book. This is full of facts and he loves it. It's held togehter with packing tape.

He is ready for another few pages of it.....and now I have 37 minutes of the day left.

Thursday? Really????

*Today began with BREAKFAST! I USED to make breakfast for all the children every day. Then we began to drift. The older ones wanted up early to get a head start on tough subjects and I let the littles sleep in, I had baby #9 and I only wanted to sleep in all the time. NOW....I began to think this over this week. I got up this a.m. (duh) but instead of heading for either my Bible nook, the computer, or my bike...I headed for the kitchen. I made pancakes, smoothies, fruit platter and something else. All but Josiah got up for breakfast. I figure since he works so late at night - he needs his sleep more than breakfast. I've been thinking that if we are all in the habit of getting up and having breakfast at 7:00, we will be able to spend a few minutes with Mike in the mornings when he is back. We find it really HARD to have a meal with HIM when he is home....so maybe this will be a good thing. We'll see. Today the children were thanking me for breakfast. Tomorrow will be a challenge....and how I'll fit working out and study in remains to be seen. Several children thanked me for breakfast and asked if we are going to continue. One said, "it is sort of nice to know there will be a nice meal and a family to visit with". Ouch....sort of ouch - a good ouch. LOL Of course, they are all putting their orders in now. I reminded them that I have to be at speech therpy by 8:30 tomorrow...then co-op, so if I cook someone may well have to clean up. They agreed. Guess I'm cooking.

*School went WELL - really well today! I'm not sure why. ::snort::

*Arielle and I had a great time talking about different places I've lived while we worked on our "Merry Christmas Language" book.

*I made a huge pot of soup for lunch - it was AWESOME and used a lot veggies - my goal.

*While we were eating lunch, one of the boys asked "Who is driving us to House of Faith?" WHAT? Today is THURSDAY?

*Worked on produce co-op newsletter, order form, and price list. Today really IS Thursday?

*Stacia took her first nap of the week.

*Arielle wanted to go to the library. Josiah had 2 hours before having to leave for work. Arielle and I ran to buy things for Saturday's tea and then I took her to the library.

*Ran home, said goodbye to Cy, woke up Stacia, and headed to get the boys....

*I FORGOT where I was going, was lost in thought, and headed for SAN ANTONIO!!!!! Good GRIEF. I was late getting the boys. ::snort::

*We went to get gas on base and the gas pumps weren't working. THEN we got locked down on base. Nolan had brought "The Story of Little Babaji" and so we read. I was thankful I was NOT in the jeep ahead of us....totally open and it was in the 30's...I thought of Cindy and her jeep thing. LOL

*We ran to Sam's to get gas...and then to look at lights.

*9 p.m. and I settled down for our Tabitha Advent reading.

*Read a bit from the "Dinosaur Book" to Zander and Nolan.

*Read blogs while I tried to get Stacia down.

*Frustrated I've not had time in the Word today....but there are 40 minutes left in the day.

*Remember the story about the soda that spilled and the live enzyme product that cleaned it right up? It didn't. Dark splotches have appeared - I need to try to shampoo carpets before the tea on Saturday.

*Zander has been waiting for Stacia to go down so I can come read more dinosaurs to him....and she is finally down...just 3 minutes ago. Hope he falls asleep quick too. I'd like to get at least 10 minutes in the Word and then bed for myself...before the whole circus begins again.

*Choosing Joy and even hilarity through it all.

Christmas Book

I remembered this fold from the Live and Learn book. We made a booklet with the various ways of saying Merry Christmas around the world.

The insides list the country, open the flap to see the phrase

I did Nolan's writing so his cover features "Merry Christmas in TX" - which is as you may know "a whole other country".

If I could quit singing "Maligayang Pasko" the children would be happy!!!