What's new?

Not much. Life has continued here pretty much as normal. School is going fine for the kids although Ellie is learning her lesson about saying she isn't learning anything in math and English. She is now doing 2 lessons a day and will finish her current books soon. Hopefully the next levels will be a little more challenging for her. As for Kara, she is having a hard time grasping some English concepts so we've been looking at switching programs for her. She has a totally different learning style than Ellie.

In other news, we are expecting a baby come early to mid June. And it looks like I'm on track to gain 50 pounds with this one too. I put on 50 pounds with each pregnancy but it always comes off after thanks to Weight Watchers. I'm pretty sure my metabolism changes when I'm pregnant and any carbs I eat go straight to my hips and behind. I'm not one of those cute, skinny pregnant people who can post pictures of their bellies and look great. Don't expect any bare belly pics from me! :-)

Tomorrow is officially the first day of winter but for us that started quite awhile ago. We have plenty of snow and it snowed again today. Dan is outside right now playing with the neighbor's snowblower. He and his family left for Mexico for 3 1/2 weeks and asked if we wanted to borrow their snowblower while they were gone. Dan was thrilled although it won't convince him to buy one--he doesn't want to store it and two of our neighbors have offered to snowblow our driveway and sidewalk when necessary. I love having great neighbors!!

Ellie is currently taking tennis lessons and loving it although I can tell she isn't very competitive. She has fun with it and is learning a lot. Kara will start basketball in early January and she is really looking forward to it.

Hiking in the Smokies

Monday was a gorgeous day with lots of sunshine so we decided to do a little hiking in the Smokies. One of the great things about the Smoky Mountain National Park is that the entrance is free!!! For our first hike we chose a trail that ran right next to a river the whole way. It was beautiful!

Here is what the trail looked like the whole way. The river is just to the left of the path.

There were several waterfalls along the path. Here is one of them:

Stopping for a drink:

Stopping for lunch:

While we were stopped for lunch a nice couple riding horses came by. The kids jumped up to watch them and the woman wisely surmised that they might like to pet the horses. Not only did she let them pet them, she let them ride them!! The kids were so excited!

The next couple of pics Dan snapped while I was trying to get a pebble out of my shoe. I had stopped, taken off my shoe and was trying to put it back on allthewhile maintaining my balance and not getting my sock dirty. Well, what made it more difficult was that Natalie decided she'd try to "help" by lifting up my non-shoed foot. Ummmmm. Not really helpful. But it got us all laughing. Very hard. Now imagine trying to maintain your balance and put your shoe back on while you are laughing uncontrollably. :-)

Staying in tomorrow?

Seeing as how this is how my husband is looking tonight, it looks like we might be relaxing in the condo tomorrow. Now one thing you must understand--he is never cold, except when he is sick. Here he is lying in front of the fireplace trying to get warm. I did eventually find a spare blanket to put over him. And at least in this picture he doesn't have Kleenex sticking out of his nose as a dam to stop the snot runs. Not a great picture, I know. It drives me crazy when he does it. Oh well. At least he isn't running a fever. And no, he doesn't have H1N1--just a cold. Incidentally, neither one of us has had a cold since we went to Colorado two years ago. Hopefully he gets a good night of sleep tonight and feels better tomorrow (the NyQuil should help with the sleeping).

Our trip to Tennessee

We finally made it down here to Pigeon Forge on Saturday. We had planned to leave Rochester by 3:30 on Friday afternoon since we had a hotel reservation in Indianapolis, IN; however, Dan wasn't able to leave work as early as he planned since he was finishing some project. So we took the time while waiting for him to try to find Ellie some hiking shoes. She has grown like a weed and so, of course, none of her shoes fit anymore. We bought her some tennis shoes a couple weeks ago but they haven't even been worn yet and she didn't want to get them dirty. So first we went to Saver's and struck out, then on to the Salvation Army--again nothing there for her. Finally we went down to Goodwill and she found a pair of New Balance tennis shoes for cheap--and they even look decent. But they are a size 9!!!!! And they fit her! I wear a size 9. Of course, she does need bigger feet to support her incredibly long legs.

Anyway, back to the trip. We finally left Rochester a little before 5pm. I packed supper since I didn't want to eat out and I knew it would just add to the time we were on the road. We finally arrived at the hotel at 2am (1am our time). I walked in and told the front desk guy that I wanted to check in, but he said our reservation wasn't in the system. So I had to go back out to the van to get the confirmation--thank goodness I actually printed it out!!!

We crawled into bed and slept for a few hours, then got back up again and hit the road. We had planned to go to the house of some of our friends that moved away last year to Lexington. We had a wonderful time (and delicious food) with them and then we were on our way again.

Here are some pics of our time with our friends:

We left their house and headed down to Tennessee. Now in this neck of the woods it has been raining A LOT!!!! Pretty much nonstop for the last week and a half. Saturday was no exception. It poured all the way from Lexington to Pigeon Forge. So it took us a little longer to get here. The roads were covered with water and we even saw several rollovers. Thankfully we arrived safely. We unpacked in the rain, ate a quick bite for supper, and went straight to bed.

Sunday we just chilled out and did a little swimming. Well, let me qualify that. The kids swam. It was too cold outside for Dan and I. They do have an indoor pool but the outdoor pool has a much better view.

Impromptu Science Lesson

After dinner one night this week the kids and I were sitting around on the deck talking about the frog they had caught earlier in the day. So we decided to dissect it. Yeah, I know, it's quite a leap going from talking about a frog to dissecting it. Don't worry, if we talk about your pet I won't immediately want to dissect it. :-)

Dan is quite squeamish so he stayed away the whole time--too bad cuz it was so much fun!! The kids got to see the frog's heart beating, his lungs, stomach, intestines, tongue, liver, etc. We even opened his stomach to see what was inside! We found several small sweat-bee-looking-bugs, a yellow jacket and parts of a beetle. One of the bugs was still moving slightly! That part was kind of gross but the kids (and I) thought that the rest of it was fascinating. I haven't pithed a frog since college and that was a long time ago.

Ice Cream Recipes

I recently got a book from the library with different ice cream, sorbet and granita recipes. I wrote a few down that I wanted to try and this week we made the combination below. They are two different recipes but after they were both made, I layered them in a container so that when they were scooped they were swirled. The combo was delicious!!!

Toasted Coconut Ice Cream (makes 1 quart)
1 c dried, shredded coconut, preferably unsweetened (I used regular since I didn't have any unsweetened)
1 c. whole milk (I didn't have any so I used 1/2 cup skim milk and 1/2 cup cream)
2 c. heavy cream
3/4 c. sugar
pinch salt
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
5 large egg yolks
1/2 tsp vanilla or 1 tsp rum

Preheat oven to 350. spread coconut on baking sheet and bake 5-8 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove when fragrant and golden brown.

In pan, warm milk, 1 cup cream, sugar, salt and add coconut. Scrape vanilla bean into warm milk, add the pod. Cover, remove from heat and let steep for 1 hour.

Rewarm the coconut mixture. Set mesh strainer over another saucepan and strain. Whisk egg yolks in a bowl. Slowly add the warmed mixture to the eggs and return to saucepan. Stir until thickened. Mix in remaining 1 cup cream. Add vanilla or rum. Chill and freeze according to your ice cream maker's directions.


Mango Sorbet (makes 1 quart)
2 large, ripe mangoes (about 2 pounds)
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup water
4 t. fresh lime juice
1 T dark rum
pinch salt

Peel mangoes. Cut the flesh into chunks and put them in a blender with remaining ingredients. Chill and freeze according to your ice cream maker's directions.

Breakfast Pizza

The other night I was reading a food blog and it linked to a website I had never heard of. Since it mentioned that it was a website that was specifically devoted to food photos and they had a certain criteria that needed to be met, I hopped on over there and was awed at all the wonderful photos. In fact, I planned my week's menu from the photos I saw. One of the first photos that caught my eye was for Breakfast Pizza. I had never thought of putting raw eggs on a pizza crust and then baking it, but it was amazing!! Dan even said I could make it once a week if I wanted. Of course it helps that I've finally figured out how to make a crust that has the right balance of crunch and chew.



My picture doesn't do it justice. But then, I'm not a food blogger. Nor do I aspire to be. So just click on the link to the recipe and you'll have the recipe, directions and some great photos!!

Ellie's horse camp

If you've been reading my blog for awhile you may remember when I posted about Ellie earning money to pay for horse camp at a local camp. Well, she followed through on most of it (her laundry job got taken away from her) and was able to pay for her camp. She went a couple of weeks ago and had a great time. She and two of her friends went to the camp together. The pics I took aren't of that great of quality since it was rather dark inside the horse arena so you'll have to excuse the graininess of the photos. On the last day of the camp the kids were scheduled to swim in the pool, but because of the very cool temps that day (maybe a high of 62), they were able to help out in the arena with some clean-up duties and they designed the course that each rider would go through during the demonstration for the parents. I'm pretty sure they had more fun doing that than if they would have gone swimming.

Here she is waiting her turn to take her horse around the arena through the obstacle course.

July 4th

Yes, I realize that it is now almost August and I am just posting pics from our activities on the 4th. But hey, better late than never, right? Right?

We left for Dan's parents' house on Thursday evening since Dan had off on Friday. On Friday, we went in to Willmar where Ellie and I went to the fabric warehouse to get fabric to make me a few skirts. Then we went to Dunn Brothers for coffee. Well, I got coffee and Ellie got hot chocolate (she's a little young for coffee). Dan and his dad "had" to make a trip to Best Buy (Dan loves to spend other people's money) while Beth and the other kids went to the laundromat and the park (?--see, I shouldn't wait so long to post--my memory gets a little fuzzy). Afterwards we all met at Pizza Ranch for lunch. After lunch we went back to Prinsburg and Darin learned how to ride his bike without his training wheels. He was literally giggling with glee once he was biking without help. Unfortunately he hasn't had much of a chance to ride here.



On Friday evening friends of ours arrived to spend the weekend with us. Friday night the town had fireworks and on Saturday they have lots of activities starting off with an adult and a kids run.

Natalie ran her heart out.



Here is Kara with her friend O. O comes from a family of runners.



Look at these long legs. Pretty soon she is going to be taller than me.





In the afternoon they had a tractor pull and an area with several blow-up toys.











Darin desperately wanted to go on this activity but was having a hard time finding someone close to his size to agree to go on it with him. Finally, Ellie agreed to go on it with him even though she's much larger than he is. It was hilarious to watch. Darin couldn't stand up for more than a few seconds. All Ellie had to do was tap him and he'd fall over, giggling.





Here he is standing up!



Not any more!!



After all of the festivities of the day, they had a parade. The kids got to ride on the float that the street that Dan's parents live on designed. They had fun, but who thought it would be a good idea to have winter in July!?!? At least they didn't have to wear parkas and snowpants.

Homespun Pot Pie

Here is the recipe that I mentioned earlier that we made while on vacation in Vermont. The original recipe says that it feeds six, but good grief, they must be six really hungry people. I'd say it would feed probably twelve adults. We got 2 1/2 meals out of one recipe.

Homespun Pot Pie

Vegetables

1 T olive oil

1 cup chopped onions

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 t salt

1 t dried thyme leaves

1 t dried marjoram

4 cups sliced mushrooms

1 T Dijon mustard

2 cups peeled and chopped sweet potatoes

2 cups chopped potatoes

2 cups peeled and chopped parsnips (optional)

1/2 t ground black pepper

3 cups chicken broth or stock

3 T cornstarch dissolved in 1/2 cup cold water

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen peas

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen corn

1 T soy sauce

1/2 t salt

1 1/2 pound chicken, chopped

Biscuit topping

2 c white flour

1/2 t salt

1 T baking powder

1/2 t baking soda

6 T melted butter

1 c buttermilk or plain yogurt (I used buttermilk)

1 t dill weed

Warm the oil in a soup pot. Add the onions and garlic, cover and cook on medium heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the salt, thyme, marjoram, mushrooms and the mustard. Cook until the mushrooms start to release their juices, about 5 minutes.

Add the sweet potatoes, white potatoes, parsnips, black pepper, chicken and the broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the veggies are just tender and the chicken is cooked through. Stir the dissolved cornstarch mixture into the vegetables stirring constantly. When the liquid starts to thicken, mix in the peas, corn, soy sauce and the salt. Pour the vegetables into a greased 9x13 pan. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder, dill and baking soda. In a separate bowl, mix together the melted butter and buttermilk or yogurt. combine the wet and dry ingredients and stir until just moistened. Drop the biscuit batter over the vegetables.

Bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center of the biscuit topping comes out clean.

Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant New Classics.

Swimming

Friends of ours recently got a pool and we got to come over and use it! The weather was hot and perfect for swimming. Unfortunately Kara got a bit burned. But the kids all had fun and had no problems falling asleep that night since they were completely tuckered out.

Niagara Falls

On the last Friday of our vacation we woke up early and drove to Niagara Falls. We arrived about 2:30 and had just planned on looking at the falls for awhile and going on the Maid of the Mist. Instead we decided to have a tour bus take us around to several of the different attractions. They were only going to charge us for two adults and one child. Since we saved a bunch of money on our hotel for the night by getting one on Priceline, we decided to go for it. Plus it saved us from driving and walking all over, and we didn't even know about the whirlpool and the Daredevil museum (more on those later).

We first started by taking a little driving tour of some of the islands around the falls. We learned that Canada and the US share 18 gates that take water from the Niagara River and convert it to power. They don't use all 18 gates at once, but during the day they take about 50% of the water. At night (after midnight), they take closer to 75%. So imagine what the falls would look like if 100% of the water was going over it!

After the little driving tour we went to the Cave of the Winds. There they give you disposable raincoats and sandals. The Cave of the Winds isn't actually a cave. It is just a boardwalk that takes you to the bottom of the Bridal Veil Falls. Every winter they take down the boardwalk.

Here they are towards the beginning of the walk. Natalie is being a pill at this point and isn't interested in having her picture taken. Plus she wasn't too keen on having the water sprayed in her face.


We continued on the boardwalk and got much closer to the falls (hence, no pictures). Ellie, Kara, and Dan even went up to the hurricane deck where you are almost under the Bridal Veil Falls. There's a reason they call it the hurricane deck. They were all soaked, but Ellie and Kara thought it was great.

After this we went over to see the Horseshoe Falls. The best view of these falls is from Canada, but we didn't have passports so we didn't go over there.

Dan and the kids in front of the Horseshoe Falls:






When we were done here we went to the Maid of the Mist for a boat ride. They also give you disposable raincoats--they call them souvenir raincoats.




The American Falls:

In the early morning and late afternoon/early evening the sun is just right and will produce a rainbow in the mist.

Here we are at the end--soaked from the Horseshoe Falls!! They really get you right up into the Falls. They can't get you as close to the American Falls because there are just huge rocks at the bottom of those falls. The Horseshoe Falls is a 180 feet drop but at the bottom the water is 200 feet deep.

The American and Bridal Veil Falls:

After we were done at the falls the tour guide took us to the whirlpool. After the water travels over the falls it travels down the river through the gorge until it reaches the whirlpool. There it swirls counter-clockwise, dips under itself and travels out the other side to Lake Ontario. The kids were thinking that the whirlpool would be more of a tornado action, but the whirlpool motion isn't that fast.

Again, Natalie being a screwball.

At some point we also went to the Daredevil museum (can't quite remember the exact order). Here they have collected all sorts of things that have to do with people jumping over the falls. One guy went over the falls on a jet ski and had a parachute, but something happened with the chute and he died. They have the actual jet ski that he rode. They also had a huge barrel that two people rode in over the falls and survived.

By the time the tour was done it was around 6:30 or so. Shortly after the tour bus departed for the dispatch office, Dan realized that his cell phone must have fallen out of his pocket on the bus. So we eventually were able to contact our tour guide and she was able to drop it off after she dropped off the bus. We were very thankful that she found it and that she was willing to bring it back to us.

Now we were really hungry. We didn't want to eat in the main Niagara Falls area because it was not such great food and really overpriced. So we walked a little bit and found a place called Donatello's. It looked decent enough so we went in and ordered a pizza. They had a great patio out back and the weather was nice so we sat outside. It took a little bit to get our food since the place wasn't huge and they'd just had a softball team come in, but eventually it came. However, we had forgotten when we ordered to ask if the mushrooms they used were fresh or canned (I was going to say real or not, but I guess they are both real--just one is really gross!). Yep. They were canned. So we took them all off. The rest of the pizza was good. Then we walked back to the falls to see it lit up and to watch the fireworks. They have fireworks over the falls on Fridays and Sundays. The skyline in the background is Canada.