Autumn Things

Wow, the blogging community has really been embracing autumn! Me? Not so much.

You see, the reason why I dislike fall is because it leads to winter.

This may seem like a strange statement considering that my favorite season is summer, then winter, then spring, then fall. winter is boosted up to second place for several reasons, one being that my business really picks up in the winter (I sell heating pads and greeting cards). 

But the main reason is Christmas, which not only symbolized Jesus's birth, but also it just fills the air with joy and love and cheerfulness.  also, I looove Christmas carols. And Christmas movies. And Christmas lights. And Christmas trees. And egg nog. And Black Friday. 

Back on track. Besides, since winter doesn't start until December 20, most of those things happen in fall. so, maybe I do like it. Except for the weather. I live in the midwest, where we have HOT summers and COLD winters. I'm talking negative degrees, people. And that's in Fahrenheit.

So I decided that to convince myself that autumn is a good thing, I'd make a piece of art.

What you'll need:

Pen 

cardstock (white)

water colors

1) Using different calligraphies, write fill the page with things you love about fall.

2) Fill the spaces with doodles corresponding to the words

3) Using the watercolors, fill in illustrations or letters to create a busy, somewhat abstract masterpiece.

So, do you like fall?

<3 Danielle

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

Summer is most definitely my favorite season. No doubt about it. But every year a small part of me aches for cool winter temperatures. Why? One word: soup. I just don't understand why it's less acceptable to eat soup in summer than it is in winter? It tastes delicious year round! Sure, it's hot food, but then again, so are hotdogs, burgers, and baked beans, and those are traditional American summer foods. Hmmm...

Anyway, although I've never been a "rule breaker" when we had a few cooler days last week, I wasted no time. This cauliflower soup is so simple, yet so yum. There are no chunks, if that bothers you, add some extra steamed cauliflower after blending. 

{excuse my chipped nail polish}

So if your like to break rules, if you like soup, or if you get a blast of cooler weather, be sure to put this on your to do list. 

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

2 tbsp. butter

1 medium onion chopped

1/2 cup rice, uncooked

6 cups chicken broth

2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 head cauliflower, chopped

2 c. unsweetened milk of choice (I used cows' milk)

1. In a 3 or 4 quart saucepan, melt the butter, then add the onions, cooking them until they become translucent. Add rice and 4 cups of the broth and heat them until they boil. After reducing heat, simmer for 20 minutes. Add the salt and pepper before pureeing.
2. Steam the cauliflower in one inch of water until slightly tender. Remove the cauliflower, but leave the water to reduce to less than one cup.
3. Puree the cauliflower and the reduced cauliflower water, adding a little of the already pureed soup base, if necessary.
4. Mix the soup base and the pureed cauliflower in the saucepan. Then add the extra broth and milk. Heat through, adding any extra salt and pepper if needed.

This keeps about a week in the fridge.

optional: Add some larger chunks of  steamed cauliflower to the finished soup if the lack of chunks bothers you. I rarely do this.

Enjoy!

~Danielle



Tips for Homeschoolers Part One

Wow. School's starting already... where did the summer go?

For some kids, this means getting on the bus every weekday, and heading off to a building of learning, friends, lockers, and school lunches (blah)...

for others, this means heading to the kitchen table and opening a textbook to be taught by their parents.

I personally for my entire education was lucky enough to be in the latter category, so today I am going to be giving some tips for homeschool moms (or dads!).

(Although I do not have any children yet myself, I do hope to homeschool some day.)

1. Be firm. Make it to your children that school hours are school hours, and TV, extracurricular activities, and such need to be saved for after school hours. For some families, The parent will set a time at which school hours will start and end (such as 9 AM- 3PM), or some set a quota of what needs to be done that day (as in one unit of history, 30 math problems, and so on) and once the quota is met, then school hours end. I personally believe that the second one is more efficient for students who tend to get distracted and are not as dedicated to their work, because it helps them to stay motivated to finish their work.
2. Become connected with other homeschoolers. From the third grade on, I was involved with a homeschool co-op (attending classed taught by other homeschool parents. The one I attended met once a week), and it helped me to be able to work with others. As a parent, it will be a time to connect with other homeschool parents and receive suggestions on curriculums, techniques, and to receive support. Also, say math isn't your strong suit, as your children get older it will get more difficult to teach them math, so co-ops allow those parents who have math talent to teach your children instead.
3. Have fun. Yes, school can be fun, and the more your child enjoys it, the more likely he will thrive in school. See a science experiment that involves making a solar system out of marshmallows and gum balls? Go for it, make school fun!
4. Cirriculum suggestions: Different curriculums work differently for different people, but These are the ones that I love most:

Math: Saxon

Science: Apologia
History/ Geography: Alpha and Omega (Lifepacs)
Grammer: Easy Grammar

If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask!
~Danielle

Blueberry Lemon Poppyseed Baked Oatmeal

Well do I have a treat for you! I went into making this without high expectations, but as soon as the first forkful passed my lips, I was in foodie heaven.

Normally, no matter what anybody claims, "hidden" bananas in recipes can be detected from miles away, even if your name is not Sherlock Holmes. And unfortunately, it seems, the less one likes bananas, the better they are at tasting them. Me? I adore them in recipes, as you may have noticed, but I only tolerate them plain, as the flavor os just mediocre, in my opinion. Does anyone else find the aftertaste disgusting?

Anyway, the banana is barely detectable. I say barely because although I could faintly taste it, the flavor blended in so well with the lemon and blueberries that it definitely would have taken home a medal for hide and seek. Does anyone else think hide and seek should be an Olympic Sport? Gosh, that would be fun to watch!

Back on track, Danielle..... okay, so all that to say, seriously, make this. You will not be dissappointed. IT'S LITERALLY THE BEST!

Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Baked Oatmeal
1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/4 tsp. Baking powder
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Poppy seeds
Zest of one lemon
2 tsp. Lemon juice
1/3 cup almond milk (or milk of choice)
1/2 large ripe banana, mashed
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract
1/4 heaping cup blueberries

1) Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit
2) In a small bowl, stor together first five ingredients.
3) Gently mix in almond milk, banana, lemon juice, and extract, in that order
4) Fold in blue berries.
5) Bake in a greased single serving ramkin until the center is no longer wet, anywhere from 20-30 minutes.

~Danielle

Lyric Art

Have you seen this floating around Pinterest? Well it just so happens that it was created by yours truly last year. If you look on the far right towards the bottom, you'll notice my signature hidden within the floral crowd. 

The quote is from a Mumford and Sons song, and I think it is really an important snippet of wisdom to keep in mind as I invest time in my passions. 

Please do not make prints without permission.

<3 Danielle

The Right Way to Crack an Egg

I know, I know, you're thinking, "what on earth? Everyone knows how to crack an egg!)

Well, I always thought I did too:

1. Hit egg against rim of bowl.

2. Put fingers in crack and pull apart.

3. Let white and yolk fall into the bowl.

4. Fish out egg shell bits.

I guess the "right way" might be common knowledge, but I didn't discover it until a few days ago, so just pretend like you're interested.

What I was doing wrong:
    Cracking it on the rim of the bowl...
                                                                        ...it goes so. Much. Better. When you crack it on a flat surface. This make it have the perfect sized web of cracks to put your thumbs in before pulling the two halves of egg shell apart. Really.


You're bored? Oh... Sorry.... I thought it was pretty smart.... I'll try to keep my post a a bit more interesting in the future...

 Question of the day: was this news to you, or have you always done it this way?

5 Things I Look for in a Blog

Okay, I follow a TON of blogs. A TON. But even so, I have my standards. And now that I too am a blogger, I'm setting my goal to change these standard into personal goals for my blog. So I thought I'd share them with you all today.

«1» Consistency. Consistency to me is probably the most important thing a blog should have. I don't like to follow blogs that post something every daybfor a week, take three months off, and then post two more posts, take a week or two off, post five posts, and so on. After a while, I just stop checking in if there's no new content for a long time.

«2» Good photos. Yes, yes, I know, I need to work at this one. But it really is a draw when the photos are well taken.

«3» Variety. Some blogs are dedicated to one thing, such as varieties of oatmeal which is awsome, but if a desserts blog only posts a million different variations of, say, mud buddies (AKA puppy chow), it becomes rather monotonous.

«4» Good blogger-reader relationships. I'm not so sure how I am at this yet, but I really like it when bloggers can be personal with their readers.

«5» Easy to navigate. As you may have noticed, the format of my blog has been changing rather frequently. I want to have a site that's easy to use.  What do you think of the set-up I currently have? Should I change it?

Thanks for reading!
Danielle