Yummy! Weekend Breakfast!

It's the weekend, and there is definitely one thing I look forward to...a yummy breakfast made at home with my family. We try to do this at least once every weekend, schedules permitting. So we do our best to sleep in a little, we slowly wake up and then I make a beeline to the coffee maker. Everyone else follows closely behind and then we start asking, "What would be good for breakfast?" There's always suggestions for the usual suspects:  Sausage Gravy with Biscuits, Coconut French Toast, Eggs Benedict (my personal all-time favorite), Pancakes and Bacon...and the list goes on. We decide what we want and most of the time my husband and/or I have to go to the store and pick up odds and ends. (Okay, it's usually my husband because I'm just not quite ready to go out anywhere...ever...when I first wake up.) That's alright. Breakfast may be a little later than usual, but hey. It's the weekend! So - I'm going to feature three of our favorite breakfasts ever:

A family favorite is definitely Sausage Gravy with Biscuits. It's a recipe we got from my mother-in-law. I remember the first time I had it was with my husband and his parents. I had never had it before, and I was a little leery. (I seem to recall my dad calling it sh..on a shingle...it didn't sound appetizing AT ALL) I was polite and I tried it. SO GOOD! The epitome of comfort food for breakfast, and extremely easy to make. Brown a tube of Jimmy Dean Hot sausage in a medium sauce pan (DON'T strain the grease) sprinkle 2 - 3
tablespoons of flower over the browned sausage; mix well. Add 2 - 3 cups of milk (if you add 2 tablespoons flour, use 2 cups of milk (smaller, concentrated batch); if you add 3 tablespoons, use 3 cups of milk (larger, less concentrated batch, both options are very good and flavorful)) Turn heat to medium, stir frequently, let boil and reduce heat. Keep stirring occasionally until desired thickness is achieved. Cook biscuits according to directions (we like Pillsbury Grands in the exploding tube) Place 2 biscuits on a plate, pour gravy on top, and DONE! Seriously, it's so easy and very good. Not the best breakfast for dieting; it's definitely a treat. Pair this with a nice, hearty bloody Mary for the adults, and a glass of apple juice for the kids!


Another family favorite is French Toast. I generally make the French toast for my family. My husband makes the pancakes, so this is my "specialty". I oftentimes make the traditional French toast recipe - milk, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon. The kids love it, and so does the hubby. Another very easy to make breakfast. And then I happened upon a recipe for French toast in Coastal Living magazine...Coconut French Toast. OMG yum. It's a little more of a high maintenance French toast, but worth the wait. I am attaching a link for the recipe from Coastal Living Magazine: 

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/coconut-french-toast-10000001589332/ Seriously - if you like coconut, and you like French toast, you'll love this. It's especially great on a nice, sunny summer morning. Pair this with a fresh cup of Kona coffee for the adults, and a glass of pineapple juice for the kids! Then after breakfast you send the kids to the park and start making some pina coladas. ;)

And now for my all-time favorite breakfast in the world...Eggs Benedict. There are so many variations of this breakfast, and I prefer the traditional version - Eggs on top of a piece of Canadian bacon (or ham for those who don't care for Canadian bacon - I don't get this at all. Canadian bacon rocks!) on top of a toasted English muffin, smothered in Hollandaise sauce and topped with some parsley. Granted, I have yet to try to make my own hollandaise sauce; it's on my list of things to try. We just buy the packet of powdered mix, and then I soup it up with some lemon juice and pepper. My husband and I have yet to perfect the art of poaching an egg, so we make sunnyside-up eggs instead. Still very tasty, and the kids love it! Pair this with a mimosa for the adults, and a glass of OJ for the kids.

So - there you have it. Three awesome weekend breakfast ideas. Are they diet-friendly? Probably not. Are they yummy? Yes. Are they worth the wait for the weekend? Absolutely. I think next time I will give some diet-friendly breakfast ideas. Those are good, too!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Heather Zappo
Id & Ego Creations

Fall Gardening

Fall Harvest

When most people think about gardens in the fall, they usually picture ripe, orange pumpkins ready to pick, apples being picked off the tree, and baskets overflowing with fresh vegetables. Fall is the time when the summer vegetables and fruits finish ripening and become ready to enjoy. For many people, this season marks the end of the year for their gardens, and they are busy cleaning out the old plants and covering their garden beds with plastic for the winter. This has always been one of my favorite times of the year. Not just because I get to pick all the apples I want and eat all the fresh vegetables I want, but also because it's time to plant my fall garden.

Even in places like my home in Seattle, where we end up getting frosty mornings so quickly come fall time, there are many vegetables that can be grown successfully and are fairly frost-hardy. These plants include leafy crops like kale, lettuce, spinach, and swiss chard. Root crops like beets, carrots, garlic, onions, potatoes, radishes, and turnips. As well as broccoli, cauliflower and peas. These frost-hardy plants also make the best choices for the very first plantings in early spring.

If you're lucky to have a longer autumn season before the mornings turn frosty, then you can have your choice of any cool season crops, including: arugula (rocket), beets, brussels sprouts, cabbage, collards, celery (mild winter climates), chard, fennel, kohlrabi, mizuna, mustard greens, onions (bulbing), onions (bunching--standard onions harvested before they form bulbs), Pak choi (Bok choy), and coriander (cilantro).

 As with any gardening adventure, it's always best to do your research. Find out what grows well in the climate you have. Plant nurserys and your local county extension office will usually be more than happy to help you learn what kinds of cool season crops can do well in your area. Also make sure to research what the different crops need in terms of light/shade, and water. During the fall, you won't need to water a garden as much as you would in the hot summer months, but it's still important to make sure your plants are getting the water they need. Also make sure to find out what fertilizing needs your garden will have. During the wetter months of autumn, plants will usually need more fertilizer to ensure adequate nutrients in the soil. Above all, remember to have fun!

 Enjoy your summer harvest, and get those cool season crops planted!

ENTERTAINMENT - what is entertainment exactly?

What Do You Find Entertaining?

My Webster’s dictionary describes entertainment as anything from a leisure activity, a pursuit of amusement, an enjoyable hobby, leisure time, a riveting distraction or simply a diversion. 

Entertainment can be a source of laughter, enjoyment, delight, fun and pleasure when the entertainment is geared towards being lighthearted.

Or it could be relaxing if you are being entertained by soft music and a soothing massage.

Entertainment could also be dramatic and possibly heart rending as in an entertaining but sad movie.

My pleasures are many and so varied and a good number of them are homey ones. 

Things like devouring a book nestled in the ‘sweet spot’ of a comfy chair, dancing in the kitchen as dinner simmers, enjoying the sedate excitements of domesticity.  Just the mere feeling of Milorne’s soft touch on the small of my back entertains me.  Really it doesn't take much...

I am easily entertained by rainbows, watching the sun rise or by reveling in the luxury of a good book while relaxing in bed with the enticing smell of coffee wafting in the air. 

I am also thoroughly entertained while meandering through the library entranced by the scent and symmetry of rows of orderly books.

I am often entertained while hiking with friends or kayaking early in the morning when the water is smooth as glass, or while biking along a tree lined trail where the boughs overlap and provide a canopy tunnel.

 My entertainment quota is as full as the first sip of wine on a sunny deck overlooking the shore. 

The kid’s performances, cartwheels on the grass, a fast paced live hockey game or just visiting and laughing with friends and playing bocce ball on the beach on a stormy day.

Recently we sat on the grass in Victoria in the Inner harbour and watched for hours a variety of acts put on by the Buskers at the annual Buskers Festival.  There were an amazing variety of acts some which involved quick intellect while others required team work,courage and strength.

All humble delights and yet greatly entertaining...

How are you entertained?

author:  Trish Repay (BlackCrowCurios)To learn more about the annual Buskers festival in Victoria BC click on the following link:

http://www.timescolonist.com/entertainment/guide-to-the-buskers-festival-in-downtown-victoria-1.542391

PANTRY RAID!

"Dinner Block", ever experience it?? Oh I have it allll the time. What should I make for dinner and I so don't want to go to the store. Time to Raid the Pantry!!!

Since I suffer from DBS (Dinner Block Syndrome) frequently, I have learned to come up with a few meals that I always seem to have the ingredients to make. Just normal stuff you are bound to have leftover in the fridge or pantry.

Vik's Tortilla Soup

I don't always have all these ingredients but what I always always have are a leftover store bought rotisserie chicken, because I also suffer from NETS (Not Enough Time Syndrome). Quinoa or some type of noodle, chicken broth or the little chicken bouillon cubes, sour cream, shredded cheese, rotel and tortilla chips. I raid the pantry for canned veggies and just about any will work!!

1-Boil, cover and simmer for 1-1.5 hrs-the leftover chicken in enough broth to cover chicken

2-Scoop out the falling apart chicken onto a baking sheet and use two forks to pull the remaining chicken off the bones. Skim the soup bottom and make sure all bones are accounted for!

3-In a sauce pan take 1 cup of the broth and cook up 1 cup of Quinoa as directed. Super easy and doesn't take long! if you don't like quinoa, cook up some noodles and drain or minute rice!!


4-Return chicken to broth and add the Rotel with juice, drained veggies and cooked quinoa. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Viola!
Just add a dollop of sour cream, shredded cheese, tortilla chips and if you are feeling fancy, an avocado.

Vik's Turkey Meatballs and Cream Sauce

This one is quick and easy! And always always gets rave reviews from the family!

1-I am lazy when it comes to making meatballs, I don't like handling raw meat and I am not the type to add a bunch of ingredients to the meatball. Basically it is Just a meat ball with a little spice!

I don my plastic sandwich bags and mush them together and sprinkle with Cajun seasoning, or salt and pepper for you "you afraid of spice" folks.

Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, flip, cover and simmer for 10 more minutes. (Start step 3 simultaneously)

2-In a sauce pan make 2-3 cups of Minute rice, per directions, cover and set aside.

3-In an even smaller sauce pan add 1 cup of sour cream and 1 can of cream of mushroom. I use 2 of each for a family of 5 because we have sauce hounds!! Let this simmer on med/low, stirring occasionally so it doesn't splatter. Add Cajun seasoning (maybe a teaspoon or more) to cream sauce or salt and pepper.

Serve it up!!!

Add a canned veggie or salad on the side if you so feel inclined.

Okay that's it for now! Hope you enjoy!

Vikki

www.etsy.com/shop/BenderBuckles

Heroic Parenting Decisions

Parenting.  A blog about parenting.  It is something I feel strongly about.  Parenting that is…not necessarily blogging…although I am getting into blogging these days.  So far I’m just sharing opinions, not feelings.  When I get really good…I’ll start sharing all my feelings.  Then you’ll be in for a treat! (BAHAHAHA!)

What comes to mind when talking about parenting are some of the things learned while working at a non-profit.  For 9 years I counseled women in unplanned pregnancies.  When a woman finds herself in an unplanned pregnancy, there are only two choices – carry the pregnancy to term or end the pregnancy.

Should a woman choose to carry the pregnancy to term, she now has two additional choices – place the child for adoption or raise the child.  Let me just say…not every woman is ready to be (or capable of being) a good parent.  But every woman that ends up pregnant and chooses to carry to term has to make at least one parenting decision.

Do you realize what a heroic parenting decision adoption is?  HEROIC!  A child gets a loving home, a couple gets a beautiful baby to love and cherish. The first parenting decision made by a mom can be such a heroic one.

I would tend to believe that most of us think adoption is a good thing.  Yes we've all heard horror stories.  But how many wonderful stories have we all heard too?  How many childless adults got to be parents because a woman somewhere thought outside of herself and her needs - put a child’s need for a stable environment above herself and chose to place her child for adoption? How many children were raised in a great home because of adoption?  My good friend was.  She has an adopted brother and two wonderful parents because her biological mom realized she was not ready to be a mom and placed her baby girl for adoption.

But let’s think for a moment about how we TALK about adoption.  What do you think is the most often heard statement about adoption?  I hear it in your head even now…”I could never ‘give’ my child up for adoption.”  “I just don’t know how she could do that.”  “How could anyone ‘give’ their child up for adoption?”

First of all children are not possessions to be given…they are people to be cherished.  Secondly, what is being given is a chance at a complete home, a stable home, a loving home, a home where parents are WAITING for a child as opposed to (possibly) a broken home, a home of unemployment, drugs or abuse.

Let me say it again.  Adoption is a HEROIC parenting decision. 

Adoption is not easy for birth mothers.  Don’t think I don’t know that.  I've grieved beside women who have placed their children for adoption, and celebrated with the same mothers as they see the fruition of their selflessness.  And I've seen how much harder we as society have made choosing adoption for them by the words we speak.

If we truly think adoption is a positive action (and I think we do) we need to start using words that speak positively to adoption, words that edify a woman who is considering adoption (instead of vilifying her).  Words like “Adoption is such a selfless decision.” “I could only hope to be as strong as her, should I ever need to consider adoption.” 

You may or may not know that many women (particularly teenagers) will choose abortion over adoption because if she chooses abortion, many may never know she was pregnant, and any

shame that may be attached to that pregnancy is avoided.  If she chooses adoption everyone will know she was pregnant, and most will have comments. 

Having said all that, I know that some mothers choose single parenting and do a GREAT job.  But let’s just not make it harder for those who NEED to choose adoption, to feel free, accepted and heroic to do so.

Be careful with your words…you never know who you may be influencing, and what her first parenting decision will be.

Debora

P.S.  Do you have a great adoption story?  Share with us in comments.

Fall Fashion Trends

This year is all about funky and cute!

A must have for this year is distressed skinny jeans!!!  All young girls need a pair of distressed skinnies.  Paired with another trend for fall, the ankle boot these are the go outfit for all young ladies. 

Wear your skinny jeans with a flowing blouse and a embossed bag!   Accessories.... you say?
Well... its back to the 90's!  Perfect circle shades!
Turquoise is a huge trend for jewelry this fall.  Pair your outfit with funky bangles and necklaces.

Hand painted anything is a huge trend!! 
All the celebrities are doing it.  They are all over the runways.
Painted dresses, painted shoes, painted handbags, painted jewelry!!  They are all a must.

Young ladies are trying to show their creativity through their clothes.  Getting a painted piece shows what their passion is as you can customize it to whatever you want!
So you can't afford a painted dress.... buy painted accessories.  There are plenty of great accessories that you can buy already painted or have custom made.

Finally plaid... lots of plaid!
Cute little blazers are also a huge trend... so wear two trends in one!  Buy a blazer in plaid and rock both trends!

If you love plaid... remember you can wear more than one plaid pattern, but they must either be the same colors with a different pattern or contrasting colors in the same pattern.

So take the the latest trends and mix and match!
Go rock it ladies!!

Jo,
www.Wasataylor.com

Good Reads: Of Cats and Creativity and Fear

So, a few weeks past I was "cat sitting" for a friend. I was more like house-sitting though, because otherwise these cats otherwise become neurotic. (Neurotic like hiding poo in the corners of the master bedroom. Three separate piles.) I've always liked my friend's house, and she has a full studio in her basement that I was able to use for the week, so I went in telling myself that it would be a mini vacation. "Mini" because I still had go to work during the day.

Isn't she cute? ...and in my chair.

 I was more productive at her house than I have been at home in the last 3 months combined. (It's sad, but I've been out of focus lately.) A change of location really can change your attitude, your rhythm, your actions! It also helps when the borrowed studio is plastered with witty sayings, encouraging notes from friends, and clips of philosophy on creativity. Also pictures of all sorts of weird things. And not just the studio-- you can find these notes all around the house. What I've realized during this stay is that I need a better way to sustain my creativity and keep it fun. Too often I find myself wanting to escape from and not to creative outlets. It's a bit of a problem when you're trying to be a jewelry maker for a living. I bet a lot of you have similar issues, regardless of your careers.

With that in mind, I thought I'd share this site with you: http://doodlealley.com/  I ran across this some weeks ago and I absolutely love it. The author, Stephen McCranie, explains it's purpose best himself:

"I started this project to encourage a dialogue between artists and creative types like myself [he's a cartoonist] about what the ideal creator looks like. I feel like sometimes we are myopically focused on perfecting our craft, and forget to build a healthy lifestyle to sustain ourselves and our creativity. This blog explores not just process, but principles."

Using the comic as his medium, Stephen is able to write incredibly clever, often humorous, and surprisingly deep discussions of what it means to be a creative person. I agree whole-heartedly when he says that no one teaches us how to be artists, they only teach how to make art, but the lifestyle is very, very, very important. And I think any type of person can glean something useful from him. His blog is inspiring and uplifting. This is where I go for a kick in the pants when I need some help figuring out why I'm stuck in life. Often I'm stuck because I run into my own fear and judgment. It feels like brick wall in the gut.

I need to get over myself, and that involves dealing with fear. Do you tackle fear, try to kill it, ignore it, deny its very existence? If you've tried this, you know it's not working. You are supposed to befriend fear. ("What? Woman, are you insane?" you may ask. Not this time around, I'm not. Stephen agrees with me.)

"Be Friends with Failure" is one of my favorite reads from Doodle Alley. I think I feel a kindred spirit in the freaky kid named Failure. We had the same problem at the lunch table growing up. See?

Good points such as: "Cool starry underwear, Failure!" He's free to be himself because, well, it can't get any worse than failure; so if you keep trying, something's bound to change for the better.  If you don't try, if you let the brick wall of fear knock the wind out of you and you decide not to try to take another breath, you're done. Toast. Swimming with the fishes. And that would suck. So don't do that. Go make friends with Failure, even though you think he might have some dark magical powers to curse you. If such a scary dude is your friend, nothing else will scare you :)

Except maybe the guys on the wall of my studio.