Easter 2013 - It's All About Bread!

This post has been 1.5 months in the making.  Well, that's how long it has taken to get it written and uploaded! ;o)  And now I'm so fed up with rearranging photos that they are staying as they are... all higgledy-piggledy.

I made the mistake of taking the boys with me when I shopped for Easter eggs this year.  Once J had seen them, it was all he could talk about, and he was bugging me to eat them.  Having let the incentive chart on our fridge for potty training lapse, he suddenly wanted a chart so he could 'earn' those eggs!  It didn't seem to make much difference to the nagging, but it helped keep us occupied.

Here's the last of the hot cross buns we made. We gifted some away, knowing there was more bread to come this weekend.

I found a cheap egg-dyeing kit so we tried this for the first time.  I'm not sure if we'll do it again.  Neither of the boys liked hard-boiled egg, and the dye scratched off far too easily.  They both had fun sticking Easter stickers on the eggs and standing them in a little cardboard 'cuff'.  I don't know how many times C dropped his ones on the floor.

On Saturday, both boys were keen to help in the kitchen.  J helped measure the ingredients.

C helped stir the dough (in the early stages)

Then I cut the dough into ropes, rolled them and twisted them into bunnies.  J rolled all the tails and stuck them in place.  (We've been playing with playdough lately.)  You may spot a poinsettia with raisins... J saw the Christmas picture in the book next to the bunnies.

Then they baked, and were drizzled with sugar glaze.  Yum!

On Easter morning the boys hunted for the Easter eggs and chicks we had hidden around the living area.  One had a clue to find a big bunny in their bedroom.

J found them all eventually.  The chick in the pot plant was the hardest to find.

C enjoyed the bunny after lunch.

And finally, a not-so-successful gift.  I can't remember if I've blogged about this yet.  I gave N 12 new types of bread for Christmas - one each month of 2013.  I'm a bit behind, but this was the the Easter offering - an Italian wreath with a nut praline on top.  A lot like pannettone, but a bit overcooked.  I made sweet breakfast strata (bread pudding-ish) for breakfast later in the week.

Book Review: One Thousand Gifts

In the hectic life of raising two boys I have set myself the goal of reading 13 books in 2013 that push my horizons a little beyond my standard fare of crime novels and recipe books.  This is my response to #7 on my list: One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp.

Source: amazon.com

I had read the first chapter of One Thousand Gifts online and was keen to read more.  Voskamp's faith journey, as she undertakes a dare to list one thousand gifts or blessings in her day to day life, is told in a humble and gentle way.  Her mantra - "eucharisteo" - is a Greek verb meaning "to give thanks."  Each chapter unfolds a new layer of understanding she finds while she keeps her list of one thousand gifts and beyond.  She quotes many notable Christians (throughout history) as she discovers the blessings of giving thanks, changes her perspective of her difficult life experiences, and grows closer to God.  And she as a busy, homeschooling mother of six, I could identify with some of her daily challenges quite easily.

I struggled a bit though, with her writing style.  Don't get me wrong! It is beautiful, poetic, and draws the reader in, layer by layer, through her journey of deepening her relationship with God.  The problem is more that the way I read at the moment is in snatches - five minutes here, ten minutes before nap time ends, at the tail end of the day when my brain is fuzzy...  This method does not lend itself to poetic appreciation on my part.  I just wished she'd get to the point more directly!  

Having said that, I believe this was a timely read for me.  As a pragmatist, I often am quick to critique situations, and find a more charitable, optimistic perspective hard to maintain.  Voskamp has caught my attention enough to prompt me to exercise more thanksgiving in my life, so since the season of Lent begins today, one of my Lenten disciplines this year will be to start my own list.  Maybe I'll keep it going after Easter; maybe not.  But I'm hoping the posture of gratitude will be more firmly established in my attitude come March 31st.  And I'll be back to read it again sometime, when I can more deeply savour the style along with the message.

Christmas 2012

What is the point of Advent without Christmas?

We celebrated Christ's birth in a quiet way at home.  Here are some pictures:

 Stocking time

 (Meanwhile, our new Christmas tradition - breakfast casserole - quietly baked in the oven.  Mmm.)

 Presents galore!

 C's lion was definitely a hit! 

He got a kiss straight away (and is now affectionately known as Ra - as in the sound a lion makes.  The lion lovey/blankie is a cue for nap time for both of us.  C will go get it if he wants to nap!)

 Maybe Grandma's hat will stay on longer when we're outside in the cold?

 Yay! Puzzles must be done immediately.

 Daddy got some beautiful wool.

 Grannie and Poppie's books were a well-deserved quiet time.

 ...before the music started

 Just who got the drums?!

A feast for four...

 No, they didn't eat everything on their (new) plates.

And to top it off, we had just a bit of snow!

Which just goes to show that the real reason for Christmas isn't easily captured by a camera! ;o)

P.S. This post is #100!  Amazing how fast they have accumulated.

Advent 2012: Week 4

Week 4 of Advent is very short this year!  Here's how we prepared in the couple of days before Christmas.

December 22: Originally, I planned to make marshmallows to have in hot chocolate, but after a playgroup friend gave us this snowman

 I decided not to make work for myself!  We went for a family walk around the 'park' area of our apartment complex and then came back and made minty hot chocolate.  I took the picture after I'd made the drinks so just in case you can't tell, his head contains tiny (hard) marshmallows, his middle contains hot chocolate powder, and his base contains peppermint candy which was heated with the milk.  (I couldn't be bothered crushing it, as instructed, but it seemed to infuse fine.)  J thought this was a fantastic treat.

December 23: We lit the fourth candle on our Advent wreath, symbolizing love.

December 24: Today we retold the Christmas story with a kid-friendly nativity.  In the afternoon we attended the Children's Christmas service at church.  Then in the evening we skyped with family in NZ, where it was already Christmas Day.  After both boys were finally in bed, we nestled presents under the tree since they'd been out of sight to avoid prodding and poking!

 December 25: Christmas Day!  Among our other activities for the day we lit the final candle at the centre of our Advent wreath: the Christ candle.  After all, Christ's coming is the reason we have the preparation time of Advent and the reason we celebrate Christmas in the first place.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Advent 2012: Week 3

Well, Christmas has arrived, but here's our update on Advent activities.  They have helped me focus more on the season of preparation this year.  I felt surprisingly calm and organised - I hope it lasts!  Here's what we got up to in Week 3...

December 15: Due to a short ban on DVDs for a young man, we postponed watching a Christmas movie until a few days later!  Instead we opened our piggy banks and helped him divvy up some money to give to the Salvation Army bell-ringer at Walmart.  He has been fascinated with the bell each time we shop there, so he was keen to give - even if it was more for the bell than the need we explained to him simply.  Near disaster - the bell-ringer wasn't in place as we entered the shop but (phew!) was cheerily ringing as we exited.

December 16: We lit the third candle on our Advent wreath.  J can now tell me as I light each candle during breakfast, "That's the hope candle. That's peace. That's joy!"  He likes trying to blow them out too.

December 17: This morning we hosted our playgroup friends.  Only a couple of families were able to make it but we still expended some energy!  We watched "Jacob's Gift" as our Christmas movie and some relaxation in the afternoon.  It is based on a book by Max Lucado of the same name, telling the Christmas story from the perspective of a carpenter's apprentice whose family runs the inn by the infamous stable.  It has a wonderful message about gift giving.  We have watched and read the book MULTIPLE times during the week since.

Source: Amazon.com

December 18: We bundled the boys up in pyjamas and drove over to Highland Park (a swanky Dallas suburb) to see the Christmas light displays.  Many have been installed by professionals and they can be spectacular. (Not that you can tell from my evidence!  The blurry photos don't do the displays justice.  Props to anyone who can identify what is shown in the third photo.)  J could identify snowmen, Santa Claus, trees and houses that looked like "gingerbread house[s]".  I was disappointed that (here in the Bible Belt) there were hardly any nativity scenes.  I think I only saw one in half an hour's driving!

December 19: We made an early start and made Peanut Butter Squares before we went to the local library's story time and shared Christmas stories and cookies.  This is one of the recipes my mum makes around Christmas time, and is the reason I love Reese's Peanut Butter Cups so much!  Apart from the essence, they are pretty alike.  The boys helped crush the graham crackers to smithereens (since wine biscuits are hard to come by here) and I was amazed they didn't even attempt to hit each other. :o)  I think the recipe was originally from an Alison Holst cookbook but I can't be sure.

December 20: Today we made gift tags for presents.  I traced some shapes onto paper (stars for J and circles for C) and wrote in the to/from details.  The boys went crazy with the crayons and I doctored them up afterward and cut them out.

December 21: The boys helped me wrap the presents they are giving to each other and Dad.  We made sure to stick on the gift tags. At the moment the presents are stashed away because little prying fingers have no mercy and I don't have shares in wrapping paper companies.  They'll come out under the tree closer to Christmas Day.

Advent 2012: Week 2

This has been an unusual week.  A few days before this picture was taken we were still wearing shorts and getting too hot outside.  When we woke up on this day snow had fallen!  It's Texan snow, so it didn't stick around for long - but here's the proof it existed. :o)

We continued to enjoy our Advent activities this week.

December 8: We couldn't find any books about St Nicholas at the library so we watched a series of short clips on Youtube instead.  I'm not sure J understood it, but he sure listened.

December 9: We lit the second candle in our Advent wreath.

December 10: We made gingerbread men.  We didn't ice them, but J loved cutting out the smallest ones (about an inch tall) and C thought they tasted the best!  (He was only really interested in eating that size.)

December 11:  We made paper snowflakes since the overnight snow wasn't going to stick around.  At first I tried sticking them to the window with just water, but as they dried they peeled off, so eventually I used tape.  You can see them in the window in this picture.

December 12: We made 'gingerbread' houses out of graham crackers, some Halloween candy I had stashed, and some mints I bought last week (for their authenticity factor in gingerbread decorating).

They came together well.

J soon worked out he could eat more sweets than he stuck on!

It was cute hearing him count them as he stuck them on.

And here's C's one (well, that's what I'm telling J because he stripped his of its candy within 5 minutes of finishing!)

December 13: We had a cleaning day, to beautify the house for Christmas.  Now there is less dust, the nativity is out, Daddy's desk is orderly and some furniture has been moved.


December 14: We made some 'Chex mix'.  I ended up adapting the recipe on the back of the generic cereal I bought (see below).  It was dubbed our "treat snack mix" and doled out in small quantities.

The boys loved it, but it sure was 'melt on your face not in your hand'.

(Yes, for some reason J wanted to sit on the book to eat.  It wasn't worth a fight!)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chex Mix

1/4 c butter or margarine
1/4 c peanut butter
1 c chocolate chips

3 c corn Chex (or corn squares cereal)

1 c Cheerios (we had multigrain)

1/2 c icing sugar
1/2 c mini marshmallows

Melt the butter, peanut butter and chocolate in the microwave 30 seconds.  Stir and continue to zap and stir in 10 second increments until melted.  Add the cereals.  (I also had the end of a bag of sliced almonds which I threw in too.)  Stir until evenly coated with the chocolate mixture.  Spread in a single layer on a lined tray and refrigerate 20 minutes or until set.  Break into small chunks and place in a sealable bag with the icing sugar.  Shake to evenly coat the cereal.  Add marshmallows (or any other treats - M&Ms would add colour) and shake to distribute.  Store in the fridge in the bag.