Category Archives: Friends and Family

Mar6

Days ???: Comforting Myself

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Three weeks ago today, my grandmother died.

She was in the hospital for 6 days before that, and I spent a lot of time there with her and the extended family. If you have ever spent that kind of time in a hospital, you know it has a lot of down time. My cousins, my aunt, my mom, my brother, various friends and extended family–we all spent a lot of time in conversation, sharing our memories of my grandma, but there was still plenty of time to fill. And really, one of the things I like about crocheting is that I can do many projects while chatting with others. On top of that, crocheting seemed the perfect activity for comforting myself as we watched my grandmother die, since it is something I shared with her.

I made excellent progress on two blankets, including one that I have since finished and donated to the high school Parents Club auction that was held this past weekend. Here is a picture of the auction goodies in place:

auction stuffAfter I took this picture I noticed some ends that needed to be worked in and took care of that, but I think they mostly look good. The border on the blanket is one row of single crochet and one row of crab stitch. I really liked the effect of the crab stitch–it gave a definitely finished look without adding too much bulk. The lot did not sell for a very high amount, I don’t think, but there were multiple bids, and there were many items to bid on, so I am just happy to have contributed.

I have many other things that I worked on in the past month or so–I did not stop trying to make something every day for the most part, although the days of the visitation and funeral were pretty much a bust–but I am not going back to document everything. Almost everything I made was a work in progress, not counting a few new recipes I tried out, so a lot of the projects will come up in future posts.  Also, this focus on making things every day has really clarified my process for me–I don’t really like to complete something in one day. It is possible that at some future time I could come up with a specific project that involves concentrated making in one sitting, but for a lot of things I prefer the perspective I get from at least one night’s sleep during the process, if not several days when I am working on something else in between. So, I don’t plan to stop making time every day for creativity, but at this point I am expecting lots and lots of in progress days, and that is okay with me. I think it is very important to love the process anyway.

Jun10

Relaxing

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After a day of racquetball, coffee with a friend, cleaning, and a quick trip to the pool, we finished off the night with sangria (for my friend and me) and BBQ for everyone.  We sat on the back patio and watched the kids run through the yard while we picked boozy fruit out of our glasses and chatted. That seems like a good end to the weekend to me!

How was your weekend?

Jun9

Another Busy Saturday

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Shopping, lunch, more shopping, putting away the fruits of warehouse shopping, collapsing for just a bit, dinner with grandparents and an evening of crocheting, that’s how I spent my day. It is great to see family, and we needed a lot of stuff from Costco–these kids of mine eat all the time! I am hopeful that tomorrow will be a chance to get a bit more done around the house, especially with my lavender, but also cleaning and writing and cooking.

We are planning to have friends over tomorrow, and I have to admit, I put more thought into what kind of cocktails I want to make than I did in the menu, which will probably consist of grilled bratwurst and artichokes, along with broccoli salad and maybe goat cheese and olives or salsa or other snacks. It’s not even that I am that big a drinker, I just have a lot of pitcher-of-drinks type recipes I want to make, so I want to take advantage of having friends over to help me drink them. I will probably fall back on a simple white sangria with fruit and some orange liqueur, but I may still find something else that is fun.

I am thinking that this will be another weekend where I am glad to get back to the workweek for a break of sorts. At least tomorrow will be spent at home, mostly, even if it is a busy day.

Jan1

Happy New Year!

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I am not a big fan of resolutions, but I do like the clean slate promise of the new year. I plan to continue doing a lot of the same things I have been doing, only more so–a bit more writing, a bit more exercise, a bit more healthy home cooking, a lot more crafts, ;) .

I hope that everyone reading this has a great year with a minimum of drama and a maximum of happiness, accomplishment and time with friends and family!

Dec16

It’s the Most Craziest Time of the Year!

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Pity my poor children–I am forever changing song lyrics to match what is going on in my life at any given moment. Grammar doesn’t matter (!), the right number of syllables is what I am going for. I find it fun, and I think they do sometimes as well, but mostly they are glad I do most of my song re-writing at home, with no further audience than their captive selves. It sure does provide some stress relief, though, especially when I find that I have too many things to do.

I am far from the only one who is super busy this time of year. Work, home, kids’ school activities–all of these are full of holiday or end of year tasks that need to be done as soon as possible. My challenge, like everyone, is to fit in the things I want to do while still doing everything I think I should do.

This weekend, my children will be at their dad’s house, which would normally mean a lot of time to get things done. However, this is also the weekend of the school production of Pirates of Penzance, where my daughter will be the best singing and dancing Daughter ever, and I am going to both shows. On the other hand, I am totally broke, so I won’t be able to go shopping, which leaves more time for Christmas crafts and housecleaning. Yay for the first one, not so much on the cleaning…

I did make some choices to minimize the amount of time I need to spend getting ready for the holidays. I like to start with a big goal and then adjust down to something sane. Here are some ways that I have tried to bring expectations in line with reality:

  • I decided that December 1st is to early to set a goal of crocheting hats for everyone on my Christmas list, and I am going to make some cute magnets instead. They are fun and take WAY less time to make.
  • I have (OBVIOUSLY) spent less time writing posts here. I hate to lose the momentum I gained with NaBloPoMo, but I just don’t have the same kind of time now. I will spend more time here after the holidays.
  • I started a list of all the things I wanted to do but just ran out of time to fit into my schedule. This mainly applies to handmade gifts. I will need to start earlier next year if I want to make a lot of gifts. If I am at least keeping a list so that I can make a plan for next year, I don’t feel guilty about not getting to everything this year.
  • I am limiting the indoor decorating. At least until I declutter a bit, it just looks like more clutter sitting out.
  • I am not doing Christmas baking or candy making. I think. I am off next week, so I may have a last minute change of plans on this one. (I have my eye on this gluten-free fruitcake!)

At the same time I am ratcheting back many of my expectations to a more reasonable level, I also managed to add a few things that I am very proud of:

  • I decorated outside this year! It isn’t a lot–a few oversized ornaments, a metal penguin stake, a Chistmas tree by the front door made of lights and an upside down tomato cage–but it is more than I have ever done, and it looks very festive. It makes me smile whenever I come home, or even look out the window.
  • I did make some gifts, and I will finish up a few more before Christmas actually hits. For the past few years, I have thought about how awesome it would be to make some presents, but beyond a bit of baking and some mint liqueur making, not actually made anything. I may be making less than I originally thought I would this year, but I am glad that I am making presents at all!
  • I have tentative plans to take the kids to the Winter Wonderland at a nearby park. At only $9, it won’t break the bank, but I think we will all enjoy it!

Overall, I feel that we are getting the important stuff done this year without too much craziness. I do need to plan a Christmas Eve meal and finish some making and wrapping, but I think it is manageable. How are you doing with holiday prep?

Dec8

Planning a Kids’ Crafting Party: Stations and Snacks

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Note: I am having a bunch of kids over this coming weekend to make Christmas gifts, and I have been trying to spread the planning out to make sure it goes well. Part 1 has possible projects I considered, and Part 2 has the supply lists for the crafts we chose and some ideas for what needs to be done ahead.

Now that we know what we are making at the party, we need to figure out how to set up the projects and what we will give these kids to eat. First, the food.

I want a combination of healthy and fun snacks, but I don’t need anything too substantial, since the party is from 1-5. Kids are always hungry, but they will have presumably had lunch and will be having dinner after they leave, so we don’t need a meal. Here are some things I am thinking about having:

Image from Family Fun

Holiday Pretzel Treats
Holiday Cucumber cups
Either White Chocolate Holiday Mix or Christmas Snack Mix
Red and green grapes
Holly Jolly Dip with veggies
Pine-Tree Fruit Kabobs
Gumdrop Tree

This may be too much, and we may not do the last two things, but I think my kids would enjoy doing those as a pre-party activity, so I am leaving them on the list for now. I am thinking of making a punch with cranberry juice, pineapple juice and lemon-lime soda or ginger ale for the kids, and this pomegranate champagne punch for the adults, too. I am not certain that we really need the champagne punch, but it does sound festive. I figure if I make it with a bit less rum and a bit more juice, it won’t be too much for the afternoon.

Next up, deciding how to set up the supplies so that kids can work on projects. I have a table for eight in my dining room that will be the main location for all things crafty, but I think we will need more space, too. We have a couple of different options.

We will need to do some spray painting outside, and I would love to set some stuff up out there, but the forecasted high for that day is only 36 degrees, so that won’t work. I do have a small table in the family room that could be used for something. I can either set up one project in there, or bring it into the dining room and place it at the end of the big table to expand the space. I like the idea of keeping everyone together, but it does make the dining room crowded. I think there will only be about 8 kids, though, so I think we’ll try that. We can always move the table back if it is too hectic.

I’d like to set up the coasters, magnets and dragonfly crafts near each other, because they will draw from the same pool of supplies (felt, magnets, buttons, beads, etc.) I also want to add one small craft–pipe cleaner ornaments. I have some pipe cleaners and we will have beads, so it should be pretty easy to make some beaded wreaths or candy canes. The felt coasters can be on the other side of the table.

We will set up the tables early Saturday morning so we can check on flow through the room, so the moms can help as needed. I will also need to clear off my desk and the buffet to lay out the snacks for easy access without messes on the supplies.

I am starting to feel like this is something we can do fairly successfully! I still haven’t done any practice crafts, but we have a bit of time for that, still. I think we will need to run out for a few supplies as well, but we are definitely close to having what we need, and the plan feels good. Next up: the party report, hopefully with pictures of actual crafts.

Dec2

Planning a Kid’s Crafting Party: Choosing Crafts and Making Supply Lists

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I am going to have a bunch of kids in my house in just over a week, and they will be expecting to do fun craft projects tomake presents for their friends and families. I guess that means it is time to choose crafts and make sure we have supplies, huh? I will need to consult the other mom that is helping with the planning, but I have some tentative plans.

Craft: Salt Dough Ornaments 

Supplies

salt
flour
water
skewer for making a hole in top
yarn for hanging
acrylics paints
paint brushes
paint markers

Do Ahead

Make the dough and bake the ornaments

Do at the Party

Paint the ornaments
Add yarn hangers when dry

I have the link above solely for the recipe; we will make other, simpler-to-paint shapes like candy canes and stockings. I think this will be popular because it will be quick and easy and fun to do.

Craft: Mod Felt Coasters 

Supplies

Ruler
White pencil
Assorted colors of wool felt
Scissors
White felt
Spray adhesive

Do Ahead

Maybe make an example?
Cut the colored rectangles ahead?

Do at the Party

Let the kids cut the rectangles?
Spray the adhesive on the white felt and place the rectangles
Let dry and cut into coasters

I need to decide whether or not to cut out the rectangles ahead of the party. I think it would make the craft go more quickly, but then it seems like we aren’t letting them do a big part of making it. I will need to do a trial run and see how long it takes, and then decide, but I am kind of leaning to cutting ahead and just letting them assemble and cut into individual coasters.

Craft: Scrap-Supply Magnets

Supplies

Small round magnets
Buttons
Ribbon
Fabric
Decals
Glue Gun

Do Ahead

Make some samples
Sort supplies

Do at the Party

Let the kids’ imaginations run wild!

I think this is another fun one that the kids will have a good time doing. There are so many different ways to make these that they will really be able to make some unique magnets.

Craft: Dragonfly 

Supplies

18 gauge wire
Wire cutters
Fabric window screening
Scissors
Hot glue gun and glue sticks
Gold spray paint
Gold bead trim
Gold glitter glue
Sharpened pencil
Florist tape
Large wooden bead for the head
Small flat bottomed jewels for decorating the body and wings

Do Ahead

Print templates and directions

Do at the Party

Let the teenagers do all the work

This is the craft that I picked for the more independent teenagers. I don’t anticipate having to do much with this, 14 year old girls should be able to handle it on their own.

I need to talk to the other moms coming to the party and see if they want to do something different. I also want to try all of the projects once without kids, so we can help them better. And, I need to figure out how to set up the stations for each craft. But, I think this is coming together!

Dec1

Success With a Picky Eater!

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Every Wednesday, my friend Dana comes over for dinner with her family. She is a single mom, too, and she is trying to juggle all the running that comes with being the only adult in the household. Her kids are younger–her oldest, J, is one of my 9 year old son’s best friends, and her daughter, E, is 7–so she doesn’t have the advantage of being able to leave kids at home like I do with my 14 year old. So on Wednesday, when her daughter has gymnastics, her son comes here to play with my son while I cook dinner, and we all eat dinner together after gymnastics is over.

Her daughter reminds me so much of my daughter in many wonderful ways. She is smart and funny and into fashion and self-confident. Unfortunately, she is also a really picky eater. When I say we all eat dinner together, I really mean that E might eat some plain rice, or she might just watch us eat, or go watch TV. But last night, she tried the black beans and rice I made and declared them to be delicious! She asked me if I could make them again sometime in exactly the same way. I doubt I could do that, because this is something I just throw together, but I thought I had better write down what I did as best as I could remember so that I have a better chance of making it the same way next time.

Black Beans and Rice

I made a big pot of food, because the boys are starting to eat more and more all the time. I wanted to make sure there was enough leftover for a couple of lunches, too. If you are not feeding boys with hollow legs, you may want to cut this in half, but leftovers freeze well, too. I am estimating the spices, since I don’t usually measure, so I would recommend using a small amount and tasting to adjust. In particular, the thyme is important–I find it really makes the dish, and I like to add a lot. I have a lot of thyme growing in my garden, but if you are using dried thyme, you will want to start with half the amount you would use of the fresh. I also use whatever veggies I have on hand–the bell pepper doesn’t have to be orange, and I often add carrots, or other veggies I want to use before they go bad.

3 Italian sausage links, removed from casings and crumbled into small bite-size pieces (3/4 pound)
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 orange bell pepper, diced
1 pound tomatillos, diced
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce cayenne pepper, to taste (I used a very small amount, maybe ¼ tsp, due to kids that like bland food)
fresh thyme, about 1 – 2 TBSP
fresh ground black pepper–I don’t measure this, but I use a fair amount
cooked brown rice

Saute the sausage, onion, garlic, bell peppers and tomatilloes in the olive oil until the sausage is cooked through and the veggies are softened. Add the spices, stir to combine, then add the beans, tomatoes with their juice, and the tomato sauce; mix well. Bring to a boil, then turn down to simmer. Taste a small amount and adjust seasonings as necessary. We really like garlic, so I ended up adding a bit of garlic powder here–next time I will add more garlic to start. Then, it is just a matter of simmering while you make the rice, stirring occasionally. I added a bit of black pepper several times, as you don’t get that much for all the grinding, at least not with my old grinder.

Serve over rice, with a bottle of Frank’s Red Hot for those that like a bit more kick!

Nov29

Good Habits and Routines (Or, the Importance of Family Dinners)

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Lately, my family has developed a terrible habit. More nights than not, we sit in front of the TV to eat our dinner. Interestingly, we still seem to see the dining room table as the default eating place in many ways–we often eat breakfast or lunch at the table–but dinner has gotten much more TV-oriented than I would like.On the one hand, this is not totally terrible. I mean,  know the many benefits of family meals; according to a study published in the June issue of Pediatrics, summarized in the article linked above, “teens who eat at least 5 meals a week with their families are 35 percent less likely to engage in disordered eating” and with just 3 shared meals per week they “were also 12 percent less likely to be overweight…[and] 4 percent more likely to eat healthy foods and have healthy eating habits than those who didn’t share three meals with their families.” But we eat five meals per week at the table between breakfasts, weekend lunches and the occasional dinner, so I am not too worried about missing those benefits.

On the other hand eating dinner at the table provides another set of benefits. Of course, we watch less TV when we don’t turn it on until after dinner, but there is so much more to it.

  • We talk more. We talk about upcoming school activities, inviting friends over, and family events. The kids like to play word games or 20 questions, too, which is also fun.
  • The dining room is cleaner. The table needs to be ready for those meals, and even though we are using the table more, it is easier to keep clean. If we don’t eat at the table for a few days, stuff seems to collect there–mail, school papers, an unfinished game, piles of books, all kinds of stuff. When we eat at the table every night, it gets cleared off every evening, and it is easy to clear after dinner, too.
  • Kitchen cleanup gets done more quickly. We aren’t sucked into a tv show, we just head into the kitchen and clean things up quickly.
  • We plan ahead for the next day. We make lunches while we put the leftovers away.We make sure homework is done and backpacks are packed. Then our mornings are better, which means the whole next day is better for everyone.

I have managed to get a good menu planning routine down this past month or so, which has really helped us to eat more healthy foods, but I think we need to get back to the table at dinner and save dinner in front of the TV for pizza nights only. Too many other things seem to be riding on this one habit.

Nov26

A Second Thanksgiving Meal

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This year, we are having far less people over for our after-Thanksgiving feast than we normally do. I didn’t plan ahead as far as I generally do, and people are out of town or sick, so it is a small group, but I am still excited! This meal will use up some of the leftovers from the big day in (I hope) interesting ways, plus a couple new things. Also, I am not going quite as crazy on the number of dishes.

Turkey and kale frittata–I still have kale growing in the garden, so that will be good. I may slice up one of my late tomatoes that we picked while they were still green a couple of weeks ago for the top; they are nice and red now.
Pumpkin risotto
Cranberry sauce
Crustless chocolate pecan pie

The frittata and pie are new recipes, but I am sure they will be fine. The cranberry sauce is leftover from Thursday, and I made the risotto a couple of weeks ago, so that should be good. Really, the only thing I am worried about is the pie–I am using maple syrup instead of corn syrup, because that is what I have, and after spending over $400 getting the brakes on my van fixed this morning, I can’t bear to spend any more money. I am hoping the eggs will keep it together even though the maple syrup is thinner than corn syrup. I am also going to make up some Blue Moon cocktails to start the meal, so the adults at least should be in good spirits for the meal!