A few bits...

Stock cooking on the stove... no recipe here, just the bones of a chicken with the liver, neck and heart thrown in. I then added water, salt, pepper, and other seasonings. I then cut up carrots, leeks, a shallot, an onion, garlic, and kale. It then simmered on the stove all day, I often would leave the house just to walk back in to deeply inhale the aroma! I like to pour the stock into ice cubes and freeze them, then pull them out as I need them.
this bubbly concoction is a gardeners soap. This is really lovely, Annie and I tried right away although our hands were not dirty, but it left a nice softness to them. I like the olive oil sugar moisturizer too...hmm I should stash this away for some potential christmas gifts!


This here is Annie's latest new love..a mailbox. She decided she wanted to write some letters to her dad and brother and when asked if she could put a stamp on them and mail them, I suggested we make a mailbox here for them to go in. I am not sure how that would work sending mail to your house from your house? Hmm? But the idea pleased her and she instantly filled it with mail for the boys who are gone during the day. She was so very excited when they came home today so she could give them their mail.

Stock, soap and mail. A good day!

Snow snow snow...

I feel like I'm back in New England again with these storms that we are having! The wind is whipping, the snow is flying. It started to snow sometime last night just around dark. This morning we woke and I think there's a foot and a half out there. It looks like there is about as much snow as we got total the last storm in Dec. I think it's supposed to snow all day too!

Of course a storm means lots of baking
First up Scones.
From Molly's book Homemade Life
It's the kind of book you read that makes you feel all warm and cozy.
Like your sitting next to her at the table sipping tea/coffee, while she tells you her story,
which is really quite nice. As are these scones!

Later today there will be some banana ginger bread from the book too
I'm quite partial to my mothers banana bread but hers sounds delicious!



Yesterday Annie and I made play dough hearts
the dough hardens so then we were able to paint them. Today we'll tie string around them and hang them up


She then went on to paint her arm!

A soup for my sick girl and a healthy breakfast for me...

This morning Jaden, Eliza and I found ourselves awake at around 5:30. We dozed on and off for the next 15min. Then just laid quietly in bed for a few more moments till Eliza fully woke and began laughing at Jaden, not wanting to wake Annie just yet we slipped out the door and down stairs. Jaden snuggled on the couch with Eliza, while I made coffee and spent some time on the computer. Then Jaden's lunch was made, Annie was woken up and we were out the door. None of this is truly exciting except that I find when I wake early, say before 7, I find the day starts off in a totally different direction I get moving earlier, I am not rushed, I don't drag the morning on and on and on. It' really quite nice. It also seems that when this happens I actually cook myself breakfast! A good breakfast at that.

and that what I did. With some potatoes that I was craving, some chard that needed some attention from the fridge and a left over sub from last night. I added in some eggs and then ate it all, actually I didn't eat it all... I sat down to eat it all and Annie took one look then one bite and insisted she needed her own bowl of it!! It's the most surefire way to get your little one's to eat, Make a meal sit down start eating and let them come to you and nibble and try and almost always they want their own bowl!!..





As for the soup well Annie woke with a stuffy drippy nose and I figured a soup would be just the thing for her this morning. Here are the veggies cooking in the pot. I sauted them lightly in butter and a bit of oil then added homemade chicken stock and a bit of water. The veggies are carrots, garlic, onions, chard, and a parsnip. I added a few peas and corn too after the stock went in. I season with salt and pepper. Its my standby sick soup. Just a basic sort of recipe sometimes I add baby pasta, like little stars or tubitini to it. Sometimes I add more seasonings if Jay or I are going to be having some too.


There is a snowstorm on the horizon so there will be more soup being made in the next few days. Soup and bread and hot chocolate plus lots of crafting!!

These hearts are on the schedule for today.

and these I think are going to be made for Jaden's valentine's for school, I just need to double check the food allergies in his classroom.