Friday Funny

 

Cooking Thursday

It's fresh tomato time!  Fresh tomatoes are so much better than the ones we get shipped to us in the winter.
I have a great recipe for those tomatoes.  I had this the other day for lunch.  It was quick to make and it was a special treat at lunchtime.

Baked Parmesan Tomatoes

Tomato
salt and pepper
oregano
grated parmesan cheese (I used shaved because that's what I had)
parsley

Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Slice your tomato and place on paper towel to drain for a few minutes.
Place tomato slices on parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
Sprinkle tomato slices with salt, pepper and oregano.
Sprinkle parmesan over top. 
Place in oven for 5-10 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Sprinkle with parsley and enjoy!

Wordless Wednesday

 

A little Cassie time

Heather and Andrew had a wedding to go to on Saturday afternoon, so Cassie came to spend some time with Grandma.  We had such fun!

She loves playing with our old Marbleworks toy

We went out for a walk and she thought collecting acorns was fun.

Kids find interest in things around them.  She was checking out sticks and leaves here.

Saying hi to the horse.  She didn't want to get too close!

She thought the donkey rolling around was pretty funny.

These guys came right up to greet us.

When we got home, we got to work making a "Squishy".  I had a kit that had envelopes you had to mix to make one.  She was hard at work stirring it.

Once it was all mixed, it went into this mold.  It had to dry for 60 minutes, so while we waited, we went back outside.

She had fun on the trike.

She couldn't wait to come back in and open that mold.  It turned into a pink hippo and it was squishy, just like it was supposed to be. It was a fun craft and she was proud of it.

Bob's week away

Bob spent the last week in Kentucky on a mission trip. Our church has sent a team to this area for several years.  There is a resale store that we send things down to. It helps fund some of the projects our team worked on. Quite a few people from the team helped there, sorting and stocking things.  Some people helped put on a Vacation Bible School, and a lot of people were there to help with construction and home repair.

This was where Bob and several others stayed during the week.  It's set up with several rooms with bunk beds to hold lots of volunteers when they come down.

Here's some of the team, gathering after breakfast where they would have devotions together before starting their day.

This old building which is near the bunk house Bob was in, is being repaired to be used as a Christian academy.

Other things near to them were cows...

barns...

and this beautiful pond.

Bob and his team started here.  An elderly woman who had rented a house for years was left homeless when someone bought that house and evicted her.  The ministry was able to get this for her, but it was an empty shell.

The guys put in walls, rafters and all the basic framing to get this place ready to live in.

(Bob and Ken working in the bathroom)

They spent the second half of the week in another home, a trailer that was in bad shape.  The floors were sagging, the plumbing didn't work well and the lady living here had no way to fix these things.  They replaced a toilet, put in new base flooring and retiled the kitchen and bathroom.  They put in a new ceiling, fixed the counter in the kitchen and repaired the plumbing.

Here's Bob, the 3 men he was working with and the lady that lived here.  He said they were able to get to know her quite well and they all enjoyed that.  He also enjoyed working with the young man on the left.  He's a high schooler from our church, and this was a great way to get to know him better.

There was another group of men putting an addition on to a house, which was something they worked on for 2 weeks, but they got it up and ready to be finished inside.

On Thursday evening, many of the group went to this beautiful waterfall.  Bob didn't go because his knees were very sore from being on them to lay tile all day, but I got these pictures from someone who did go.

They had fun jumping and swimming in this beautiful spot.

One thing I didn't mention was that our worship leader was heading up this team.  However, he ended up in the hospital on Tuesday and was found to have diverticulitis with a perforated bowel.  The rest of the team picked up his duties and things went ok, but they all felt terrible for him.

Most everyone left early Saturday morning and Bob was home shortly after 3pm.  I was happy to see him back after a week away!
Chad, who was in the hospital was discharged Sunday morning and should be back by Sunday evening.

They all said they had a wonderful week. They grew close as a group and really enjoyed meeting the people there and hearing their stories.

Friday Funny

 

(For the hosta lovers out there!)

Cooking Thursday

I made this yummy Queso dip last week.  We had a meal with friends, and they served pork tacos.  I saw this recipe and thought it was perfect to bring along.  It was so easy and was yummy!  I'll be making this one again!

White Queso Dip

1/2 pound White American Cheese or Monterey Jack Cheese
1/2 pound Pepper Jack Cheese
12 ounces evaporated milk

4.5 ounce can green chilies, drained

1 teaspoon ground cumin

Melt cheeses with evaporated milk in saucepan, or place in small crock pot on low for 1-2 hours.
When cheese is melted, stir until smooth.  Stir in the drained green chilies and the ground cumin.
Serve with scoop tortilla chips.

Wordless Wednesday

 

This is celery, growing on a farm I worked on when I was in high school.  I drive by it every time I go to work.
I love seeing the bright green, straight rows as it comes up.

Egress Window

Last week I showed you the hole that was dug to get ready for the egress window to be placed in a downstairs bedroom. We were praying that the weather would stay clear so it could be put in, and it did.
Here's how it went.

Early Wednesday morning several trucks arrived.

One man was downstairs preparing to hang plastic and protect the room while the hole was cut.

Two men were outside getting this cement saw in place to prepare to cut the hole.

Starting the cut

The hole is done

This is the shell that is ready to put into the ground, around the new opening.

And here it is, in place.  There is a grate on top and when done it will also have clear cover to protect it from leaves and small animals getting in.

This lets lots more light into the room.

The window opens completely and there is a ladder, so if there was ever a fire, people could get out safely. The window can also be opened normally to let in fresh air.
Bob will be doing more work down here. The window needs to be trimmed out and then we will be painting the room. 

Here's the finished product outside.  A little more dirt needs to be moved and grass needs to be planted.  After all this, Bob says he's sick of dirt.  :)  
I'm thankful for all the work he did, and am happy to have a safe, legal bedroom downstairs!

Making Window Clings

Last weekend when we had the girls over, we made window clings for them to put on their bedroom windows. They were made from glue, dish soap and food coloring. 

First we made this glue mix:

3 tablespoons white school glue
4 drops dish soap
I made a triple batch and then divided it up in paper cups.
I let the girls add food coloring to make the colors they wanted and this is our finished product.

Then, they used paint brushes to paint designs onto sheet protectors.  We found out that glue isn't easy to paint with.  Also, we had to make sure the designs we painted were thick enough to peel off and put on a window.

Goofing off for the camera.

Here's some of their work.  They loved mixing colors, coming up with designs and painting these.

Ruby with one of her sheets of designs.

Alaina with some of hers.

When we brought them home, some of the thicker ones weren't dry and one had something fall on it.  Hopefully the others dried and made it onto the windows.  It was a fun project.

Friday Funny

 

Cooking Thursday

Last week I made these cute hedgehog cookies with Cassie.  Shaping the bodies before baking them took a little time, but finishing them when they were baked was quick.  They have a nice hint of almond flavor and are a fun treat.

Hedgehog Cookies

1 1/3 cup flour
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
8 tablespoons butter, softened
pinch of salt
1 cup chocolate chips
1 tablespoon oil
chocolate sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl beat together butter, egg and sugar.  Stir in flour, cornstarch, salt, vanilla and almond extracts. Dough should be soft to touch but not sticking to your fingers.

Form small pieces of dough in a ball.  Stretch one side of the ball to make a pear shape, slightly flatten the point to create a muzzle for the hedgehog.
Place on cookie sheet and bake 15-20 minutes. Cooking time varies, keep an eye on them so the little muzzles don't burn.
Allow the cookies to cool.
Melt the chocolate chips and oil together.
Dip each cookie into chocolate, about 2/3 of the way up, holding it by the muzzle. Shake excess chocolate off and place on waxed paper.  Shake chocolate sprinkles over the melted chocolate.
Use a toothpick dipped in the chocolate to place 3 chocolate dots on the face for eyes and nose.
Allow to cool.  I placed mine in the refrigerator to let the chocolate harden.
Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.

Wordless Wednesday

 

Weekend Fun

It was a nice weekend here with some unusual activities going on!
Here's a few photos of what we did.

First I have to show you this cute little pillow that came in the mail Friday.  It came from my friend Janice who blogs at Prims By The Water. Janice shares lots of primitive decorating things and beautiful counted cross stitch projects.  She has a store where she sells items, many of which she makes, like this flag.  I was thrilled to get this and am proud to display it! Things like this are extra special because every time I see it, I will think of Janice.

Shortly after I got home Friday, Laura, Aaron and girls came over for supper.  The girls were spending the night, and Laura and Aaron were helping Bob with a big dig!

We're having an egress window installed in a bedroom downstairs.  A 5 foot hole had to be dug in preparation. Bob had started this earlier, and Laura and Aaron had come another night to dig.  At this point, it was about 3 1/2 feet deep. Here's Bob and Aaron getting started on this night.

At some point, Laura changed placed with Bob and starting digging too.

The girls were having fun playing in the backyard and occasionally checking on the progress.

They agreed to pose for a picture on the bench.

The hole is getting deeper!

And after lots of hard work, it's 5 feet deep!  Now we are praying we don't get any big rain storms before the company comes to install the window on Wednesday, so the dirt doesn't wash back in.

When we were done, we found the girls playing a game on the porch.
Laura and Aaron went home to shower after all that hot work.  We were so appreciative of all their help!
We took Alaina and Ruby out for ice cream and had a fun night and more fun on Saturday.