Priceless Playtime

1 Wooden Box – $1.99

Some leftover paint – $0

Homemade fashion jewelry and gems – $1.99

Red X to mark the spot – $0

Playing “Treasure Hunting” for hours with PaPa – Priceless

Record Breaking Snow

They say history repeats itself.  This winter has repeated itself but it took approximately 30 years to do so.  That’s right, before I was even born.  This winter in the little town I live in hit records of around 191 inches of snow fallen so far.  We have even received more snow than parts of the Upper Peninsula.  Here are a couple of pictures of when we had the most snow when we had around 2 feet dumped on us in only a few days time.  The positive thinking with this is that there is hopes that I won’t have to experience another winter like this for another 30 years.

Old Fashioned 7 Grain Cookies

I forgot to post this so here it is for some delicious 7 Grain Cookies.

First Felt Softie

I have been wanting to make a felt softie for quite some time now and I finally did it.  I don’t sew very well so I think I did an okay job.  I used this pattern and made a couple modifications.  One main thing I did differently is that I doubled the tail for more durability because Katelyn is rough on her toys.  Now I have a jealous little boy so I will try to get his mouse completed over my lunch break to surprise him when I come home.

Old-fashioned Cough Medicine

This medicine was given to me when I was younger for colds/coughs.  Since it is now recommended to not give your young children medicine, I am trusting the old-fashioned method.

Ingredients:
Equal parts of the following:
Lemon Juice
Whiskey
Water
Honey

I used a quarter cup each. Mix all ingredients in a small pot. Heat on low until the honey dissolves. Cool and store in refrigerator. Children should take about 1 tsp. every 4-6 hours. Adults can take 2 Tbsp. every 4-6 hours. Use with caution if taking other medications that might be affected by alcohol.

Why the turtle?

A turtle has many symbolic features because it is a creature of diversity in itself.  It is powerfully protective represented by it’s shell to assist in self-defense from it’s predators.   Ironically or perhaps as a result, the turtle has very few predators in which portrays a harmless strength among most reptiles.  As a result, the turtle holds the symbolic meaning for longevity in many cultures.

As everyone knows the turtle moves at slow and steady pace which gives it the symbolic implication of patience, stability and endurance.  The turtle is known to be very wise in the animal kingdom because of it being wide-eyed, long-lived and having a carefree attitude.  The turtle accepts it’s wisdom with modesty and persists with it’s natural methods of life.

I have always enjoyed the presence of turtles in my life long before I knew the symbolic meanings.  I feel like I need to live my life more like the expressive value of the turtle and perhaps wisdom and patience will shine through to a more positive outlook on life.

Slow Cooker BBQ Baby Back Ribs

These ribs are the most delicious ribs I have ever tasted.  Even if you are not a fan of ribs (which I was not a fan of them until I ate these) trying them is a must!

Ingredients:
1 rack of baby back ribs
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups ketchup
1 cup sweet chili sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 Tbsp. vinegar
2 tsp. dried oregano
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Season ribs with salt and pepper on both sides.  Place in shallow baking pan or cookie sheet.  Brown in oven for 15 minutes.  Turn over and brown another 15 minutes.

Ribs seasoned

3. In a large slow cooker, mix together the ketchup, chili sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, oregano and Worcestershire sauce.  Place ribs in the slow cooker.  Use a ladle to coat the ribs with the sauce.  (I’d rather wash a ladle than a bowl – if you were to mix the sauce in a bowl and pour over the ribs.)

Sauce ingredients

I try to use mostly organic ingredients however, this time I was using the last of my regular brown sugar.  The sweet chili sauce is not organic either and that’s because I don’t think there is an alternative.  I just love the Maggi sauce that is made in Thailand.  Where I live it is hard to find too.  It is a very sweet sauce but with just the right amount of heat.

Finished sauce

Coated ribs

4. Cover and cook on Low 6 to 8 hours, or until desired tenderness.

End result - so tender the meat falls off the bones

Tame or Smart?

These pictures were just taken today (11-18-08) roughly around noon.  Since it is hunting season, are these deer just really tame or down right smart to stay away from hunters?  Honestly, I think I am going to say both.

Between my house and the neighbor

Walking in a Winterwonderland…

Like most recent years, I had assumed we would not get an ample amount of snow until December.  Mother Nature surprised northern Michigan on Sunday (11-16-08) with snow flurries up until early Monday morning.  Monday also brought an additional several inches of snow for a total of 8 inches.

As usual I am scrambling for gloves/mittens, hats and boots.  I was up a snow bank without a shovel (literally) since our shovels are still in the basement.  I had to make a path by swinging my feet back and forth.  Let’s just say by the time I got in the house that evening, my feet were like ice cubes.  We almost had a binky casualty Monday morning, but luckily Katelyn’s big brother was there to save the day or else it would have went on to binky heaven by getting buried in all the snow.  On the contrary, my son was all in his glory that snow had finally arrived.  In other words, in his mind it is one step closer to Christmas.  Nevertheless, he was still ecstatic to start making a snowman and snow angels.

Part of deck where snow was not shoveled off

Back deck.

Someday I would like to decorate this tree for Christmas.

Conserving Energy with Light Bulbs

The State of Michigan received a grant to allow compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs be purchased for as little as .99 a piece.  (State grant makes fluorescent bulbs cheap.)

Over the weekend, Geoff and I decided to purchase a stockpile of CFL’s in order to replace current incandescent bulbs and still have some extras on hand.  Since the CFL’s last an average of 9 years hopefully I won’t have to buy anymore light bulbs for a long time.  I am also hoping that I will see a change in my electric bill.  Just in my living room ceiling fan light fixture I will be cutting back 132 watts.  The difference in wattage is truely amazing.  I do notice that the lights are not as bright when you first turn them on.  The longer they “warm up” the brighter they become.  It is not detrimental, just more of something we will have to get used to.