Random Thoughts From Home

Sorry it's been so long, but frankly I've been busy looking for the months of September, October and November! Where did they go? Take it from me, when people say time goes by faster the older you get, BELIEVE THEM!

I had a great birthday today. My dear, sweet husband had seminary security this morning and brought warm cider and bagels and cream cheese for my students to celebrate. My good friend Michelle who is my walking partner gave me an oversized mug with Starbuck's cocoa mixes. And Brady gave me a symphony chocolate bar. I had great phone calls from my wonderful children and we ended the day with Chinese food brought home by that sweetie of mine. I think life is great and I have truly enjoyed my amazing 53 years of life thus far. Here's to the next 53!

I am going to be trying a new dessert recipe tomorrow and I'll let you know how it goes. Love to all you and have a great day!

Random Thoughts from Home

Hard to believe that summer is gone and now Thanksgiving is right around the corner! I have so many things to be grateful for and they all happen to be about family! I am grateful for a wonderful summer memory full of fun, laughter and little ones who were just as perfect as can be. And I am grateful to have had those wonderful days when all our children were together. And to get to know Lindsay and Devin and Ginanne just a little bit better. That is joy!

I am also grateful for lessons learned over the years. One is which is perseverance. On the wall in the family room is a beautiful quilt hanging that I started but did not have the confidence to finish so a wonderful quilter friend named Jody finished it for me. It's beautiful but it always bothered me that I couldn't quilt. So I started on small projects for the home and then expanded to baby quilts and small doll quilts. But I still didn't feel capable of finishing a good sized baby quilt until now! Courtney will receive a baby quilt that says to me that my skills have grown! Not that I am bragging but I am just saying that I didn't give up and I kept trying and every time I look at this quilt I feel happy! So now I have selected materials for a bigger quilt for Emmi and then I'll move on to Nolan and Gerret. It's like my bread making. For the life of me I couldn't make bread that rose and tasted and actually looked like a decent loaf of bread until about two years ago. The point I'm trying to get across is that although there are some things I won't ever be able to do, like singing in the Tab choir there is nothing I can't do if I put my mind to it. And once Courtney is given the quilt then I will post a picture of it.

And speaking of bread, here's the no-fail recipe that I now use and it works every time! And the ingredients are the most basic. You will always have these in your home.

2 cups milk 1 Tbls salt 2 Tbls butter/margarine 1 Tbls yeast

1/2 cup warm water 2 Tbls sugar 6-7 cups wheat and white flour

Heat milk, salt and butter in saucepan until bubbles appear around edges, then let it cool. Sprinkle yeast over water in large bowl, add sugar and stir, set aside for 5-10 minutes. Stir in the cooled milk mixture . Add 3 cups flour and stir with wooden spoon for 2 minutes. Gradually add more flour with hands until dough leaves sides of bowl. Knead dough on floured surface for 10 mintues. Grease mixing bowl with 1 Tbls soft margarine and coat dought also so it won't dry our or crack. Cover with towel and let it rise for 1 1/2 hours. Punch dough down and knead for 2 minutes. Cut dough in half and let rest for 5 minutes. Roll each ball into 9x12 rectangle. Roll up and fold under ends. Put seam side down in greased bread pan and let rise for 1 hour. Bake 35-40 minutes in 4oo degree oven. It's wonderful!

Love you all

Mom

Random Thoughts from Home!

I'm at the computer waiting for my oatmeal-banana muffins to bake. I had leftover bananas and of course cannot let them go to waste. Hope they turn out. What a beautiful Fall day. Dad is up in the attic laying the insulation. Boy is he noisy! I know he wants to get done before we go to our 2:30 temple session. It's Stake temple day and we're excited to see many ward family members there.

I put Maran's picture here to highlight the fact that our baby girl is turning 21 this Monday! Whoo-Hoo!!! It was only yesterday she was a roly-poly bundle of love crawling everywhere and with the most beautiful brown eyes looking for trouble! Happy Birthday little sis!

We were deeply saddened by the passing of Patrick O'Brien. He put up a valiant fight and we know that now he is healthy and strong and watching over his family. We will miss him.

In seminary this week my favorite chapter was 2 Nephi 31. WOW! So much doctrine packed into 21 verses. I strongly recommend all to read and feast and ponder and learn from this great chapter.

We of course are stocking up on Halloween sales and my treat bucket for seminary will never be empty. I love sales.

We would appreciate Christmas wish lists from all of you soon. Dad and I started shopping last night but Becky is the only one who's given us any ideas, so start thinking. Needless to say we started shopping for the grandbabies quite a while ago!

So here's a new recipe I found on one of my food storage websites. As you kids know a Halloween tradition in our family is the tossing of the pumpkins from the roof. It is always quite a sight and Emily enjoys it a lot! Well, I saved my jack-o-lantern and cooked it and now it's ready for

Jack-O-lantern pie.

3 1/2 cups pumpkin 3/4 c. sugar 1/2 tsp salt 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp giner, nutmeg and ground cloves 3 eggs 1 c. dry instant milk

Thoroughly combine all of the above. Pour into a pie crust and bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes or until a knife inserted halfway between center and outside comes out clean. Let it cool.

I cut my carved pumpkin into 4-inch squares and with 1 cup water put into a big pot and simmered for 40 mnutes until soft. Then I put it into the blender and pureed it. It's in the freezer waiting to be made into Jack-O-Lantern pies!

Love you all and have a great week!

Mom

Random Thoughts From Home

So this is what I did on Halloween! I love days that are so productive. We bought the apples at Greenbluff quite a few weeks ago and they were starting to go soft. So I decided today was the day to get it all done. I tried a new pie filling recipe that I got off one of my food storage blogs and the apple sauce and pie were from my standard recipes. I made the pie because I had extra pie filling left over and didn't want it to go to waste. We still have carrots to can but that will have to be sometime next week. The only thing missing were little ones with spoons ready to eat the sauce piping hot right out of the grinder!

Dad bought insulation from Lowe's for the attic and he spent hours getting the 15 inch rolls through the 14 1/2 inch hole. But next week he'll start laying up in the attic and hopefully we will see a declne in heating bills!

We're going to enjoy chili and cornbread for dinner. Chili just sounded perfect for a busy fall day. It's an easy recipe that I got from Marsha. I just mixed 1 qt canned tomatoes, 3-4 cans of chili and one onion. Easy, peasy! I'm trying a new cornbread recipe because I can't find Grace Z. recipe. Don't tell Dad, he loves that recipe.

We also went to the temple today. We've been able to go almost weekly and I definitely feel a stronger spirit in our home and in our marraige. It's amazing what the temple can do for you!

Apple Pie Filling:

Mix 10 cups water, 4 1/2 cups sugar, 2 tsp nutmeg, 2 T cinnamon and 1 cup cornstarch together in a large pan. When mixed turn heat to med/high and bring to boil. boil just until it gets thick and then take off heat. Immediately add 2 T lemon juice and 1 t almond. Now peel, core, and slice apples into quart jars and fill with pie mixture to within 1 inch from top of jars. Water bath for 40 minutes. Easy!

Well, it's time for dinner so I'll say I love you and hope you all have a great holiday!

Love Mom

Random Thoughts from Home

It's been a busy couple of weeks! We got to visit Courtney and her

parents this past weekend. What joy! Maran and Devin have the cutest house and they've done a wonderful job of painting and fixing it up. It's very nice. And of course I got to spend time with Becky and her friend Ali. And then there's Courtney. She is delightful and delicious and delectable. Just like your favorite dessert you just want to eat her up. She has such a happy personality and she's at that stage where everything she does is absolutely adorable. Do you get the idea I love being a grandma? Well I do! This is the frosting on the cake, the whip cream on the strawberries and the sprinkles on that cupcake! I love these amazing gifts we call grandchildren. What a great idea grandchildren are. Wished I'd thought of it.

I've been going out to Valley General to visit my mom. She's been there almost 3 weeks now and she's ready to go home. I can't blame her. She's had her gall bladder out, a stint put in to prevent unwanted draining from that surgery and then emergency surgery when the staples on the stint popped out from swellling. That's all taken place during these 3 weeks. I don't think I fully comprehended how strong a woman she truly is until these last few weeks. Now I know where I get my strong will! We're hoping she goes home this coming Monday or Tuesday. Keep her in your prayers. Love you Mom!

Seminary is going great. We just had the lesson on 2nd Nephi 9 last Wednesday and let me say that this chapter is incredible. The Atonement is such a precious gift and all He asks of us is that we live a life of obedience to His commandments. And if we do we will live happier and more joyous lives. I think we are making out like gangbusters on this deal, don't you? The Book of Mormon is a blessing in our lives and I express heartfelt gratitude for it.

I wish I had a new recipe for you but I've been so busy that all I've cooked are all the old standbys. Sorry! I am also appreciative for a husband who doesn't moan when once again he comes home to toasted cheese sandwiches. What a lucky woman I am to have met and married him.

Congrats to Jordan for passing the exam to get into the Education program at Eastern. Whoohoo! And congrats to Becky for passing the GRE and becoming eligible for the masters program. Yay And we want to say to Devin and Jordan that while working full time and going to school is not easy it will become worth it once you have that degree! Keep up the good work.

I want to let each of you know how much Dad and I love you and that each morning and evening we pray for each and every one of you. I hope you feel that each day!

Love

Mom

Random Thoughts from Home

Yes our boy hurt himself pretty bad. He had 9 top stitches and 2 under the brow. He also had himself quite the goose egg and when he awoke Saturday morning his eye wouldn't open. Thank goodness for health clinics and good insurance. Thanks, Dad!

It's been quite the freaky week. Last Wednesday both Sr. Lederer and I came up missing major parts of our seminary lesson. On the same day? Coincidence? We don't know and our missing papers have yet to show up. I also had the unpleasant occasion of someone trying to get in the front door. I'm grateful for the habit of locking the door at all times. I hope each of you do too!

Then there was the call on Friday from Zach saying that he had been injured and might need stitches. I am most grateful that that week came to a close. And then there was GENERAL CONFERENCE! What a grand event and I want to share two thoughts that came into my mind as I sat listening. First, you can want, desire, and yearn to have those you love live the life YOU think they should live when what you should want, desire, and yearn for is that YOU will live the life you should. I just felt impressed to make those changes in my life that will make me a better daughter of God and draw me closer to my Savior and Heavenly Father. Second thing is that I felt a very strong impression to make our home more like the temple. I want to read and study more about temples so that I may make our home more like them. They are such places of peace and serenity and if you can make your home like that then it becomes the sanctuary it should be. I love conference and I love going to listen with questions and having the very first talk include answers! Isn't that incredible! What a wonderful church we belong to and what amazing leaders we have. How wonderful that we have a Father in Heaven who heard my prayers and answered my questions through apostles and prophets. Wow!

Well, it's late and Brady's home from work so we can have scripture and prayer and I can go to bed. Love you all !
Mom

Random Thoughts from Home

So as you all know, Becky has loved the Little House books since she was itty-bitty! I now love them too and am looking forward to re-reading the series this winter as I cozy up with cocoa!

One of my favorite parts of this series is learning how they made use of everything. They were the ultimate re-cyclers! I think of that because I have just froze another 14 cups of broccoli and cauliflower that came from my friend Andrea. I refused to have it go to waste so I went on line and read how to blanche and freeze it. And we all know how expensive this frozen stuff is at the stores! This is certainly the time of harvest whether it came out of our gardens or from a friend.

Working at a school I know about waste. It breaks my heart to see all the fruits, veggies, breads and main dishes that goes into the trash. Tonight we are having leftovers for dinner because I don't want to waste the leftover soups, casseroles and veggies that are still in the fridge. Maybe if more people read the Little House series they wouldn't be so wasteful, but perhaps that's only wishful thinking

But as for me and my house, we will not waste!!!

Let me share this soup recipe that was delicious with a capital 'D'.

Creamy Corn and Potato Chowder:

Melt 2 Tbls margarine in a large saucepan and stir in 1 lg. onion and 1 rib celery. Partially cover the pan and cook veggies over medium heat for 9 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 5 1/2 c. chicken stock (I used 5 1/2 c water with 5 tsp chicken bouillon), 1/2 c frozen corn (I used the corn I froze from grandma Joyce), 1 large diced potato and 1/2 tsp salt and bring to low boil. Lower heat, cover pot and simmer for about 7 minutes. In a small bowl whisk together 1 cup heavy cream (I substituted 3/4 cup milk and 1/3 c melted margarine which I mixed and cooled) and 3 Tbls flour. Stir into the soup and add pepper to taste. Bring soup to low boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 8 minutes. I was afraid of what it would taste like with all the substitutions but it was wonderful! And considering I used ingredients that I had at home it was also very, very cheap! Hooray for cheap!

Love ya

Mom

Random Thoughts from Home

So the baby of the family will turn 17 this Thursday! How did this happen? Happy birthday Brady! He's at Silverwood today, having run a x-country race and then spending the rest of the day at the theme park.

We got a huge watermelon from Br. Thomas and since Dad had just bought a watermelon I had to go to the internet for ideas on how to preserve one of them. So I quick froze chunks of watermelon and then put the frozen chunks in container that went back into the fridge. Now when I want watermelon I just pull some out and serve it with ice crystals still on it. I'll let you know how it works. I also got about 4 cups of mushrooms from my friend Andrea at work that I quick froze and put into containers. I will blend them into sauces and casseroles where they will not be detected by picky eaters.

I have been preparing for the first day of seminary this Monday. Hooray! I have missed this spiritual boost and being with the students keeps me young! And teaching Book of Mormon again is just icing on the cake!!! We have our seminary kick-off fireside tomorrow night as well.

So we have Stake/Regional conference this weekend. Dad is at priesthood leadership meeting and then he'll come home, grab a bite and we'll be off to the adult session. Tomorrow at 10:00am we will meet in our building and have a satellite broadcast from Salt Lake. I'm excited because they're always so uplifting and motivating.

I have so enjoyed your blogs with pictures and comments. They are all wonderful and keep us all connected which is great. Keep up the good work and I will do my best not to forget to post and keep you up to date on what's going on back home.

Here's a recipe I found from a new favorite site that I'm making for a quick meal tonight.

Super Easy Chicken & Noodles

2 cans chicken breasts 1 Tbls oil

1 can cream of chicken soup 1/2 c. milk

dash pepper 3 c. medium cooked egg noodles

1/3 c grated parmesan cheese

In skillet over medium heat cook chicken in oil for 10-15 minutes or until golden. Stir in remaining ingredients, heat through. Serves 4. I'll let you know how it tastes.

Love you all!

Random Thoughts from Home

It's a quiet Sunday morning and Dad is at a meeting and Brady just got up. On Fast Sunday he sleeps as long as possible! I'm listening to the Rat Pack Christmas CD which I got from Jordan and Ginanne and now I'm listening to Natalie Cole's Christmas CD which I think I got from Dad. It is only going to get up to 64 degrees today. Fall has arrived along with the wind!

We've been canning everything that comes our way and I wanted to share an idea I found on the web to get rid of fruit flies which we have had in abundance. Take 1 cup of apple cider vinegar and put it in a small container and add a drop of dishwashing detergent. The flies are attracted by the vinegar and the soap somehow pulls them down into the container. I don't pretend to understand it but believe me it works and you have a little container of many dead flies. It's better than smacking them with your hands!

Tomorrow we're going to Grandma's to take her some more Beverly Lewis books and get more corn to freeze and she has pears which I am going to turn into pear butter. Yum! Last night we went to Mary Graessars reception. Very nice and they served dinner food which meant we started our fast with BBQ sandwiches and salads instead of fried potatoes and veggies which I was going to make. Thanks Marsha!

Jordan and Ginanne and Emmy are coming to dinner and I made a wonderful crockpot lasagna, the recipe I found on line and had in a crockpot cookbook.

8 lasagna noodles, uncooked (I love this part)

1 lb. ground beef

1 tsp Italien seasoning

28-oz jar of spaghetti sauce ( I can my own)

1/4 c water

15 -oz cottage or ricotta cheese

2 c shredded mozzarella cheese

Break noodles. Place 1/2 in bottom of greased crockpot. Brown gr. beef, drain, and stir in seasoning. Spread 1/2 over noodles. Layer 1/2 of sauce and water, 1/2 cottage cheese and 1/2 mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Cover and cook 5 hrs on low.

This is great to return home to after fasting! Hope you enjoy.

Love to you all.

Enjoying the Day!
Outside my window is our newly mowed lawn and a bright sunny day. It's going to be beautiful before the change to Fall arrives tomorrow.
I am thinking about the tomatoes I still need to can and the beans that are in the fridge that also need to be canned.
I am thankful for this harvest and the gardens that it came from. I am also grateful to Mom and Dale who share the bounties of their incredible garden with all their children. And I am grateful for my friend who shares the leftover veggies from school that would otherwise go in the garbage. What a waste!
From my kitchen I am contemplating having fried potatoes and leftover hotdogs for dinner. Not glamourous or gourmet but it will prevent waste.
I am creating a photo album of vacation pictures to look at often. I will put it in the basket of other photo albums which are fun to peruse through on quiet evenings when nothing is on TV which is every night. And I am finishing up a quilt for our youngest grandchild. Hope she likes pink!
I am wearing a pair of jeans which are joyfully getting too big and t-shirt from good old Girls Camp days. I also still have wheels in my hair! That's for you Nolan!!!
I am reading a book by Ray Blackston called Flabbergasted. I found it recommended by a Christian blogger that I came across. It's a great read and no offensive language or behavior. How rare!
I am hoping that we will be able to go to Mt. Spokane for Labor Day. Remember kids when we would go hike and cook lunch or dinner? Although I hate the drive I love the views!
I am hearing the sprinkler on the newly mown lawn and my dryer working hard. It's so pleasant to hear appliances work. That's a blessing.
Around the house I am going to clean Dad's and my closet. This means some serious throwing out and yes, I am going to let Dad pick out what needs to get tossed.
One of my favorite things is to talk to my children and to see my grandchildren, whether by phone, in person or skype. I love technology!
The idea for the above views came from The Simple Womans Daybook which can be found at
http://the simplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com. Check it out and enjoy!!!

I've been musing on how little the world values the role of mother and wife, especially a stay-at-home wife and mother! I have loved being a stay-at-home wife and mother and I am grateful for a daughter and 2 daughters-in-law who value their role also. And for sons and a son-in-law who support their spouses in their roles! To these wonderful mothers-in-Zion I want to share a website that is amazing, 50shousewife.blogspot.com. I think all stay-at-home moms should read this and laugh and enjoy! Love to all!

So we are still working on saving our $1000! Trouble is most of our income is already budgeted so I had to go back to Dave Ramsey's book and get inspired. He talks about the power of focus and I realize that we need to FOCUS with a capital 'F'. So here's the plan, Dad gives me $110 every two weeks for groceries. My mission and 'I do choose to accept it' is to whittle that down to $60 every two weeks with the extra going into our savings. I'll let you know how it goes!!!

Congratulations to
Brady for making
Eagle and thanks
to Dad for helping
all 4 boys make
Eagle.

Happy Happy Happy 3rd Birthday

to our wonderful Nolan Mitchell!

What a great and amazing young

boy and we send lots of love and

birthday wishes to you.

We love you so much and send

hugs and kisses!!!

Grandma and Grandpa Mitchell

What beautiful children! And what a great reunion! It did get me thinking thought as each of you are at different points in your lives, obtaining an education, saving for homes, buying a home and saving for school. I just want to share with you the great ideas on getting out of debt in the book, The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey that Jordan and Ginanne gave us. Dad and I are doing the first baby step, that is we are saving $1000 for our emergency fund. I would encourage each of you to do whatever it takes to make sure you have this fund. It just takes one car repair, one medical issue, one broken appliance to set you back. If you have this emergency fund you don't have to worry about where the money will come from. So I challenge each of you to take this baby step. It may take weeks or months. But you won't regreat it. I'll keep you updated on how we're doing!

I thought I'd share some information about the church cannery. Prices have been lowered 30% on many cannery items. For us the best deal is powdered milk. We paid almost $35 for a 25 lb bag and now that same bag is $24! Whoo hoo! Your weekly recipe is for pancakes and waffles from scratch. For waffles: mix 2 cups flour, 1 Tb.s baking powder, 1 Tbls sugar, dash of salt, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup oil, 2 Tbls powdered milk and 1 1/2 cup water. Enjoy. We also make pancakes: Mix 1 egg, 1 cup flour, 3/4 cup milk, 2 Tbls oil, 1 Tbls sugar, 3 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt. You all know that we don't buy our syrup. We mix 2 parts brown sugar to 1 part water and bring to a boil. That's it. I knew our syrup was a hit when years ago Brady complained that the store bought syrup that was left over from an activity wouldn't go into every crevice of the waffle like our syrup does. Sweet Success!!!

I have the privilege of sharing food storage ideas with the sisters in our Relief Society. I've decided to share with my sweet family some of these ideas. Let's start with leftover bread. When I think of all the heels of bread I've tossed I could scream! Now I take the heels and cut them into cubes and put them into a bowl to dry out. After I have about 10 heels worth I put them into a larger bowl and add 4 Tbls Parmesan cheese, 1/2 tsp oregano, celery salt and garlic salt. After I mix this into the cubes I then add 4 Tbls salad oil. Now I toss it all together and pour the cubes onto a cookie sheet and cook for about 15 minutes in a 300 degree oven. TaDa! You now have great croutons! They are so good!!! Store them in a clear container in the cupboard. I also put leftover bread into a big ziploc bag and beat with a rolling pin to get my own bread crumbs. It's so much better to make your own food items whenever possible!

What are little girls made of? I think they're

made of major amounts of cuteness and

sweetness! Who could disagree?

We had Maran and Devin and of course beauteous Courtney up to visit for the 4th of July! We spent the day at Zimmer's lake cabin which is a family tradition. It's a great place to relax and enjoy the beautiful lake, friends and great food. We didn't get home until 9:30 that night. We loved having this new, little family visiting and I know I am biased but Courtney is a gorgeous brunette and has the most stunning brown eyes! Emily, Ginanne and Jordan also were there and it was a little bit of heaven to have our two lovely granddaughters with us. Life just keeps getting better and better. I'd post pictures but I can't find the cord for the camera. Maybe when Dad gets home from the combined activity I'll have him put some pictures up. We are so excited to have everyone here in a few weeks and I'm sure I will just sit on the grass and hold grandchildren and bask in the glow of eternal families!!!

Brady spent 4 days in San Francisco and he was able to visit

Alcatraz! He had a great time and visited a lot of cool places.

They went to Golden Gate Bridge, Chinatown and Fisherman's

Wharf. Yeah Band!

Brady's first date!

So much has happened in a matter of weeks. Patrick got a promotion, Jordan made the Dean's List again, Zach is doing amazing in his math class, Becky will be the team leader for the second grade next year, Brady got invited to Sadie's, Dad and I survived a white out and our precious little Courtney Lynn was born on March 18th. Wow!!!

So this has been a wild few weeks for our family! Zach is home on Spring break. I forget what a great sense of humor this kid has, it's wonderful having him home. Patrick got a promotion at work! He's amazing! Brady got his driver's license this morning! Yes, we are finally done with driving school, driving practices and the big test! Let me add that without Dad the majority of you would never have got in your 50 hours of practice driving! I am grateful for his calm, sweet spirit and unlimited patience as you should be! And finally but certainly not least in the news department, Maran and Devin have a new member of the family, Courtney Lynn! We are so excited to visit and hug and kiss this beautiful baby. Excitement galore! And we love it all!!!

Baby Shower Presents

How many years ago was this? Let's see, two daughters-in-law, one son-in-law, four and 3/4 grandchildren and a number of college degrees ago. How wonderful that our family continues to grow and expand and love fills all the spaces! Life keeps getting better and better and this cute little family keeps getting better and better. Love to each and every one of you!!!

May I take a moment and express gratitude for the example of faith and trust shown by this young couple as they go through a trial many of us could not endure. They have never asked, 'why us' nor expressed anger as they continue this pregnancy knowing that soon this little angel will be called home. May each of us learn from their example and totally lean upon the Lord and upon family. I am so grateful that they are a part of our family.