Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Friday, April 24, 2009

Oh the beautiful sunshine!

I seriously miss my Florida sunshine. So when we get it here in Ohio, I just soak it up! The 4th graders finished their state achievement tests today, so when my testing group finished early, I took them outside for a little "recess makeup" (some of them missed it due to taking the test ALL day long) Oh it was glorious! Bright blue sky, sun and a stiff breeze made for a wonderful 80 degree day!

Tonight we're going to a baseball game in the brand new baseball stadium. It's a lot smaller than usual, but it has that small, heritagey feel. (heritagey is a new word :0 )

Ahhhh, sunshine!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Dairy Queen

Last Friday was a beautiful sunny, mildy warm day. I needed to get my classroom ready for the achievement test and didn't want to tackle it by myself. It's easier to hang paper over all the posters and charts and things if I have help. So I asked one of my 4th graders if she wanted to stay and help me. Of course she wanted to, and we asked her mom at dismissal.

This girl is so sweet. She helped me for about 45 minutes and then I asked if she wanted to go to Dairy Queen. She was so excited! So we called her mom to make sure and then we went. We sat and talked and then i took her back home. It was fun, and the whole time I kept thinking..soon I will have a daughter.

Friday, April 17, 2009

So I'm trying...

not to count the days since we heard that our dossier was approved...really trying. But another week down, and nothing. Maybe next week? Next week will be the fifth week after.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Sneaky Chef Cookies

I finally decided to make this recipe with the "purple puree". I've held off since a whole year ago because I didn't want to take the time to make the puree first. But since it's spring break I decided to go for it!

Her recipe calls for 3 c fresh spinach, but since I only had frozen spinach, I used 1 c of that instead. I also added some of S's whey protein to the flour mix. (Since these cookies are for him anyway)

They turned out pretty good. They aren't something where I'd say, "Wow! These are delicious!" but they're nutrient-rich cookies that will be great for breakfast.

Power Breakfast Cookies
by Missy Chase Lapine

Makes 18 cookies
1 large egg
6 tablespoons walnut, almond, or canola oil
6 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3⁄4 cup Purple Puree (see Make-Ahead, below)
11⁄4 cup Flour Blend (see Make-Ahead Recipe, below)
1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons Ground Walnuts
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (or spray with oil).
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, oil, brown sugar, vanilla, and Purple Puree. In another large bowl, whisk together the Flour Blend, baking soda, salt, cocoa powder, ground walnuts, and cinnamon. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix just enough to moisten the dry ingredients. Drop large tablespoonfuls of batter onto the baking sheets, leaving about an inch between each cookie. Flatten the cookies with the back of a fork. Bake 12 to 14 minutes, until lightly browned around the edges.
Remove from the pan and let cool on a rack. Dust with a little powdered sugar and serve!


Flour Blend Make-Ahead Recipe
1 cup all-purpose, unbleached white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup wheat germ, unsweetened
Makes 3 cups of flour blend

Combine the flours and wheat germ in a large bowl.
This blend can be stored in a sealed, labeled plastic bag or container in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.


Purple Puree Make-Ahead Recipe
3 cups raw baby spinach leaves
11⁄2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries, no syrup or sugar added
1⁄2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 to 2 tablespoons water

Makes about 1 cup of puree
Thoroughly wash the spinach, even if the package says “prewashed.” If using frozen blueberries, quickly rinse them under cold water to thaw a little, and then drain.
Fill the bowl of your food processor with the spinach, blueberries, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of water; puree on high until as smooth as possible. Stop occasionally to push the contents to the bottom. If necessary, use another tablespoon of water to smooth-out the puree.
This recipe makes about 1 cup of puree; double it if you want to store another cup. It will keep in the refrigerator up to 3 days, or you can freeze 1⁄4-cup portions in sealed plastic bags or small plastic containers.


From
http://www.education.com/magazine/column/entry/Power_Breakfast_Cookies/

Friday, April 3, 2009

Spring Break!

Let the rest-of-the-school-year-planning and house-prep-for-children begin! I need to make a list of what needs to be accomplished this week:

1. closet organizer in "green" room
2. closet organizer in front hall closet
3. find dressers for the kids...I guess they do need somewhere to put their clothes
4. toy storage
5.plan for the rest of the year and plan plans for a sub...if I end up needing one (there's that planning for planning again. ;)
6. Maybe organize the basement (yuck...it has spideys)
7. plant some peas and spinach

So here's a funny tidbit. I was at Target the other day and saw those dollar bins. They had rubber squish balls there. I thought "Hey these would be great, packable, light toys to take"...and then I procedeed to only buy two. "Hello!! You're going to have four children!

Oh, and someone is coming to look at our Jeep for sale. Please pray that it sells soon!