On New Year's Day, when we no longer had relatives' homes to eat at :), and I wanted something extra for supper but wanted to use what we had on hand, I spied blueberries in the freezer and remembered this recipe from my childhood. Jim, who doesn't even like many fruit pies, rated it a 9 (both hot and cold), so I think we'll be seeing it again!
1 cup sour cream
2 Tablespoons flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
Combine all above and beat 5 minutes.
Fold in 1 pint blueberries.
Pour into one pie shell.
Bake at 400*F for 25 minutes.
Combine:
3 Tablespoons flour
1 1/2 Tablespoons butter
3 Tablespoons chopped pecans
3 Tablespoons brown sugar
Sprinkle over pie and bake until top is brown.
I subbed Greek yogurt for the sour cream. And next time will sub white whole wheat flour for the flour and cane sugar for the sugar. I used a store-bought refrigerated pie crust, but am sure it would be good with a crushed nut crust or no crust at all. Perhaps if you are gluten-free, you could sub oatmeal for flour in the crumb topping, but I'm not sure what you'd do for the flour in the pie filling.
Monday, January 4, 2016
Saturday, January 2, 2016
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2015 version
Places where I spent one (or more) nights in 2015:
Williams Bay, WI
Chicago, IL
East Peoria, IL
Kingsport, TN
and home!
I think this is the shortest list ever ... definitely since I've started blogging it, and probably in all my memory. We stuck with the tried and true ... plus an extended family celebration trip and a 5th anniversary get-away.
Especially since we didn't go very many places, we were delighted when people came to see us!! Almost once a month, we had out-of-state (or out-of-country) visitors. We LOVE visitors!
Where did you go in 2015 for the first time?
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2009 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2010 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2011 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2012 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2013 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2014 version
Williams Bay, WI
Chicago, IL
East Peoria, IL
Kingsport, TN
and home!
I think this is the shortest list ever ... definitely since I've started blogging it, and probably in all my memory. We stuck with the tried and true ... plus an extended family celebration trip and a 5th anniversary get-away.
Especially since we didn't go very many places, we were delighted when people came to see us!! Almost once a month, we had out-of-state (or out-of-country) visitors. We LOVE visitors!
Where did you go in 2015 for the first time?
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2009 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2010 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2011 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2012 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2013 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2014 version
Friday, January 1, 2016
Being productive
Being a mom of a little one FEELS like I'm not being productive.
One of my Christmas gifts was Tim Challies' new book, Do More Better: A Practical Guide to Productivity.
I like his definition of productivity, especially because even a stay-at-home mom can hold onto it and pursue it:
Challies is kicking off the year with a 10 days of productivity email group. I think you can still sign up here.
What is your best productivity tip?
One of my Christmas gifts was Tim Challies' new book, Do More Better: A Practical Guide to Productivity.
I like his definition of productivity, especially because even a stay-at-home mom can hold onto it and pursue it:
"Therefore, productivity is effectively stewarding your gifts, talents, time, energy, and enthusiasm for the good of others and the glory of God. It is taking all you’ve got and directing it each day to the good of others, trusting that this, in turn, glorifies God."
Challies is kicking off the year with a 10 days of productivity email group. I think you can still sign up here.
What is your best productivity tip?
Transportation
It was a transportation-themed Christmas and birthday!
 |
| 2 trains, 3 dump trucks, a combine, a tractor & chisel plow, 2 garbage trucks, 2 fire trucks, and 3 bulldozers (it could be something else; I'm not the transportation expert in the family!) |
 |
| The combine birthday cake that his cousins made him (HT: Pinterest) |
 |
| The digger birthday cake that his Ana made him (HT: Aunt BJ) |
We definitely need to consider how to decrease the haul next year ... without decreasing others' joy in giving to the littlest on both sides of the extended family. I've heard of some people with a Christmas-time birthday celebrating half-birthdays instead, in order to spread out the gift-giving (and receiving).
Thursday, December 31, 2015
Nativity
After three Christmases in Japan without any nativities and not seeing any out and around or for sale, I started collecting miniature nativities during after-Christmas sales the next time I was in the States.
As collections tend to do, it quickly multiplied as word got out.
Other than candles and a tree, that was my only Christmas decor. And even the candle holder (below) was a nativity. And many (most?) of my tree ornaments were nativities.
It definitely was a conversation starter when friends came to my home around Christmas.
And sometimes when I received duplicates, we gave them away as doorprizes at Christmas parties, thus giving even our non-believing friends a reminder of the real reason we celebrate Christmas!
::pictures from 5-10 years ago::
As collections tend to do, it quickly multiplied as word got out.
Other than candles and a tree, that was my only Christmas decor. And even the candle holder (below) was a nativity. And many (most?) of my tree ornaments were nativities.
It definitely was a conversation starter when friends came to my home around Christmas.
And sometimes when I received duplicates, we gave them away as doorprizes at Christmas parties, thus giving even our non-believing friends a reminder of the real reason we celebrate Christmas!
Saturday, December 5, 2015
If a toddler Mom wants to decorate for Christmas
If a toddler Mom wants to decorate for Christmas, she will want to put away her pumpkins and fall decor first.
If she tries to find time to put away her pumpkins, it will never happen.
If she goes to a concert with her in-laws the Saturday night after Thanksgiving, her husband will surprise her and put up the pre-lit tree (sans ornaments).
If the tree is up, she'll need to put on the ornaments. So, over the next 2-4 days, she will slowly add the ornaments.
If she enjoys the ambience of a tree-lit evening, she will want Christmas music. So she'll (show her technological antiquity and) bring her iPod speaker dock to the kitchen and put her Christmas playlist on shuffle for hours and hours.
If she listens to Christmas music all day, she'll bake a triple batch of cranberry bread in mini-loaves to give as gifts.
If she makes cranberry bread (six days after the tree was put up), she'll want to put them in treat bags.
If she looks through the (still-in-the-basement) Christmas boxes for treat bags, she will bring up a few candles and mini-nativities.
If she brings out some of the candles and mini-nativities, maybe someday she'll also put away her pumpkins.
With appreciation to "If you give a mouse a cookie" ... and thanks to the cousins who gave the book to Little Guy as a baby gift
If she tries to find time to put away her pumpkins, it will never happen.
If she goes to a concert with her in-laws the Saturday night after Thanksgiving, her husband will surprise her and put up the pre-lit tree (sans ornaments).
If the tree is up, she'll need to put on the ornaments. So, over the next 2-4 days, she will slowly add the ornaments.
If she enjoys the ambience of a tree-lit evening, she will want Christmas music. So she'll (show her technological antiquity and) bring her iPod speaker dock to the kitchen and put her Christmas playlist on shuffle for hours and hours.
If she listens to Christmas music all day, she'll bake a triple batch of cranberry bread in mini-loaves to give as gifts.
If she makes cranberry bread (six days after the tree was put up), she'll want to put them in treat bags.
If she looks through the (still-in-the-basement) Christmas boxes for treat bags, she will bring up a few candles and mini-nativities.
If she brings out some of the candles and mini-nativities, maybe someday she'll also put away her pumpkins.
With appreciation to "If you give a mouse a cookie" ... and thanks to the cousins who gave the book to Little Guy as a baby gift
Thursday, December 3, 2015
Moments in our day
Playing hide-and-seek with our cousin. Heard a commotion on the garage side of the laundry room door. Opened it, wondering why she would be hiding in such a cold spot. And found the UPS man and a stack of boxes. You know it's the week after Black Friday/Cyber Monday when ... ! :)
Cooking a REAL meal. Two 9x13s in the oven ... with loads of colorful vegetables ... make me feel like quite the happy homemaker today. (Of course, it's thanks to the cousin being here and keeping a certain little boy occupied.) :)
Bedtime routine ... open today's book in our 25 Days of Christmas Books,
sit on Daddy's lap and read it, bath (we aim for once a week), "play with the puppy" (aka - use the nebulizer), pray, (cry), and sleep.
My happy hour!!! Clothes dryer almost finished. Dishwasher finished. A little after-dinner banana bread.
Studying the different health insurance plans available to us next year and trying to decide what fits our health needs and our budget. Grrr.
Trying to ignore thoughts of how crowded the next few weeks are and wishing I had been proactive to get my colonoscopy scheduled in early November rather than mid-December (for that will take 1 1/2 days out of an already busy month).
Living with this scene on our kitchen island in between yesterday's baking session (double batch banana bread & double batch cranberry bread) and tomorrow's hopeful baking session (triple batch cranberry bread).
Cooking a REAL meal. Two 9x13s in the oven ... with loads of colorful vegetables ... make me feel like quite the happy homemaker today. (Of course, it's thanks to the cousin being here and keeping a certain little boy occupied.) :)
Bedtime routine ... open today's book in our 25 Days of Christmas Books,
sit on Daddy's lap and read it, bath (we aim for once a week), "play with the puppy" (aka - use the nebulizer), pray, (cry), and sleep.
My happy hour!!! Clothes dryer almost finished. Dishwasher finished. A little after-dinner banana bread.
Studying the different health insurance plans available to us next year and trying to decide what fits our health needs and our budget. Grrr.
Trying to ignore thoughts of how crowded the next few weeks are and wishing I had been proactive to get my colonoscopy scheduled in early November rather than mid-December (for that will take 1 1/2 days out of an already busy month).
Living with this scene on our kitchen island in between yesterday's baking session (double batch banana bread & double batch cranberry bread) and tomorrow's hopeful baking session (triple batch cranberry bread).
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