Sick Babies...How To Avoid Boredom

The Quarantine continues.  We are currently on day four of our family quarantine.  We shall see if the quarantine is called by Awana tonight.  The first casualty was our youngest.  Saturday night he was running a fever, but told me "I not feel good, but I not crying about it."  Five minutes later that changed when he emptied his stomach in the toilet.  Yesterday it was our oldest, waking up at 1:30 in the morning to calmly empty his stomach without any fan fare.  He not once cried at all yesterday.  Today we are praying for a cease fire.

It was not until my second son was born that we were faced with the reality of sick children.  Our oldest son never got sick.  In two and a half years he had managed only one tiny ear infection and maybe a sniffle hear and there.  Ironically, the day our second son was born that all changed.

We knew that our second son was going to be born with gall stones.  An ultra sound had caught the anomaly at 22 weeks, so we were prepared for a very needy child.  What we weren't prepared for is a perfectly healthy baby, and an extremely needy toddler.

That's right, on the day our second son was born, our oldest developed a fever.  It was a bad one.  It was the Swine Flu (H1N1).  That was our first quarantine.  During that quarantine both my husband and I both ended up in the hospital for one thing or another, and our baby remained happy, healthy and well adjusted.

That Thanksgiving our oldest fell ill again, except no one was ready with any answers.  In three weeks I took him to the doctor's office five times and all any one had to say was that he had a virus.  Except the virus was causing him to run extremely high fevers intermittently for a dangerously long time.  Finally his regular physician got back from vacation and diagnosed him with bronchitis, a diagnosis that was confirmed by a chest x-ray that showed that the bronchitis had developed into walking pneumonia.

Needless to say, I was furious.  Especially since this incident would lead to his having severe asthma.  This was the beginning of his constant medical issues.  Due to this he would also develop a severe ear infection that would lead to him being hearing impaired.

Now, every time anyone in our house gets sick we immediately go into lock down.  No one comes in, no one leaves.  This leads to some issues as far as keeping the kids entertained.  Over the past two years I have accumulated some great ideas.

• Save movies for sick days.  We have old classics by Doris Day as well as "Meet Me In St. Louis", "Wizard of Oz", "White Christmas", "Singing In the Rain", "Court Jester", etc.  My boys love these movies and me pull them out only during sick days.
• Board Games.  Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders, Memory, Yahtzee.  These are great time fillers.  Also, board games based on learning shows like PBS's Super Why and Veggie Tales, and Nick's Dora the Explorer and Go Diego Go.
• Puzzles.  We love puzzles!  Floor Puzzles, board puzzles, table puzzles.  Kids don't usually realize they are being quiet when they are engrossed in a puzzle.
• Dress up.  This isn't just for girls.  My sons love finding old clothes and trying them on.  They also love playing with old shoes and ribbons.
• Newspapers and Boxes.  You've heard the old adage.  "Why do we even buy babies gifts when they only play with the boxes?"  This is true for any age.  Get a bunch of empty boxes and crumpled paper in a room and they do berserk!
• Bean bag games.  My sister-in-law turned me on to this one.  She has a great CD with lots of bean bag games and songs to go with it.  Here is a great website that has a lot activities that you can do with homemade bean bags. 

Here's hoping that you can use these ideas as a rainy day idea, instead of a sick day, but it is always good to be prepared.

Ham and Cheese Rolls

Prior to my marriage, which also means WAY before I had kids, every Sunday I would stop by the local bakery on my way to church and buy a Ham and Cheese Croissant.  It was a tradition that I really enjoyed and can look back on longingly.  Hot ham and cheese just give off a sense of comfort to me.

That being said, another comfort to me is baking.  I love parties because then I can bake and not have to keep the food in the house.  Whenever my turn comes around to savories though, I am usually at a loss.  My appetizers run a be exotic (and expensive) so this year I was determined to find a savory finger food that everyone would enjoy and would match my current budget.

This idea came in a round about way from a friends post on Pinterest.  I saw a recipe for pizza roll-ups (which I will do as well some day) and thought that Ham and Cheese sounded better.

So off to the store I went to buy what ever was on sale!  Yeah, I am that cheap sometimes.

I cut the Ham in to quarter strips...

...unrolled the dough and sprinkled on some cheese.  I used the Triple Cheddar because, let's face it, Ham and Cheddar just go together.

I arranged the ham on the top to gain full coverage.  I started to use several strips of ham per roll, but in the end I realized that three strips in really all that is needed.

Roll the dough starting at the wide end.

It doesn't matter if some of the filling in hanging out.  That actually makes it look yummier.  Tuck the ends in a little to slightly curve the roll.

Arrange on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Serve these little babies hot or cold.  Both ways they are yummy!

M&M Sugar Cookies

I know I am not the only mom that runs into this issue.  You go to the grocery store and walk by the bakery section and you hear your kids start chanting "Cookies!  Cookies!  Cookies!".  If your kids are anything like my sons, when you finally relent and take them to pick out a cookie, their choice is usually whatever has the most candy on it.  The cookie of choice for my sons is hands down M&M Cookies.

In the past I have attempted to replicate these cookies to little success.  It wasn't until recently that my 4 year old actually gave me the idea on how to manage it.  I was making sugar cookies to decorate and my son looked at me and said "These would be really good with M&M's."  The light practically blinded me, it went on so fast.

Now, my advise to you is find your favorite sugar cookie recipe and use that.  As I was working on a limited time frame, I bought the Pillsbury Sugar Cookie dough.

After preheating the oven, roll the dough into 1-inch balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet 2 inches apart.

Bake cookies for 8 minutes.  This will allow the cookies to flatten slightly and give you more space to place the optimal amount of M&M's.  According to my son, M&M's are the whole point of this cookie.

Bake for an additional 5 minutes.  Let the cookies cool slightly on the tray before transferring to a wire rack.  Cool completely and store in an air tight container.

These cookies came out a little crispier than I would have liked, but using your favorite sugar cookie recipe will help you adjust for preference.

White Christmas Dream Drops

My husband is not a sweet eater.  I have known this since the first time we met.  Growing up he was not allowed to eat much candy, so as an adult he eschews candy for other "bad for you" vices...like bread and chips!

So, obviously, when my husband requests that I make a cookie I move heaven and earth to do it for him. I am being sarcastic, but this was almost my response when he texted me a picture of some cookies a co-worker had made with a request that I make them for Thanksgiving.  Had it not been the day before Thanksgiving - and there was NO WAY I was going back to the store that day - I would have gladly obliged.

So a week later, after all of the desserts from Thanksgiving had worn off, I pulled out the recipe and decided to give it a go.

First of all, like all meringues, the recipe starts with whipping egg whites and cream of tarter with an electric mixer.  I use my Kitchen aid to save my arm.  When soft peaks begin to form, you add vanilla and salt.  Turn the speed to high and start adding sugar one tablespoon at a time, waiting 15 seconds between additions.

After the last addition, scrape the bowl and beat for 15 seconds longer.  At this point the peaks should stand up straight when you lift the beater.  Using a flexible spatula, fold in white chocolate chips and crushed peppermint candies.

Now let me explain something very important here.  Crush the candies BEFORE you start the meringues.  I know this sounds like a no brainer, but I made this mistake and nearly ruined the meringues by letting condensation build up and soften the peaks.

Now, place several starlight mints in a plastic bag and, using a rolling pin, take out your frustrations.  Very therapeutic!

I do recommend taking them outside and beating them on the sidewalk.  Lay down some newspaper to keep the sidewalk from tearing the bag.

Once you have folded the chocolate and mints into the meringues, drop spoonfuls on to two parchment lined trays.  Sprinkle some more crushed peppermint onto the top of the drops.  Bake on 250 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Half way through the baking switch tray positions.  Once the meringues are completely dry on the outside, turn off the oven, open the door and let the drops sit for 10 minutes.  Let them cool completely on the trays.

These cookies are crispy on the outside, just like traditional meringues, but are delightfully chewy in the center.  Bon Appetite!

2 large egg whites, at room temperature
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup white chocolate chips
1/3 cup plus 1 1/2 Tbsp coarsely crushed peppermint candies

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in a deep bowl with a mixer, using a whisk attachment, just until soft peaks form.  Add vanilla and salt.  While speed is set to high, pour in sugar 1 Tbsp at a time, waiting 15 seconds between each addition.  Scrape the bowl and beat for an additional 15 seconds.  At this point the meringue should form straight peaks when the beater is lifted.  Fold in chocolate and 1/3 cup candies with a flexible spatula.

2. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, using a bit of meringue at the corners to hold the paper down.  Using a couple spoons, drop meringues in rounded tablespoonfuls slightly apart onto the sheets.  Sprinkle with remaining candies.

3. Bake until meringues feel dry to the touch, but are still pale, 30-35 minutes.  Switch pan positions halfway through.  Turn off the oven, open the door, and let cookies stand for 10 minutes.  Let cool on pans.

Makes about 32 cookies.

Store air tight 2-3 days.

Paper Chain Garland

I know that every one in the world who ever went through Kindergarten has made a paper chain.  To me, they signify Christmas in a house that any child between 4-10 lives.  As I write this I am looking at the chain I made with my sons and I can't help but smile.  I think about the Christmas movie playing in the background (I'm pretty sure it was "The Year Without A Santa Claus") and the questions my oldest son would ask as he drew pictures of bugs and imaginary friends on his strips of paper.  It will be an indelible memory set in my mind by the magic of the Season.  I have been waiting for 4 years for the year that I could make Christmas decorations with my children.  I find that it was definitely worth the wait.

So how do you make a paper chain?  I know you only ask to be nice.  So I will reward your kindness with an answer.

First you pick out your choice colors of construction paper.  You don't have to stick with red, green, and white.  These are just my choice colors.  The beauty of the paper chain is that it is festive in all of it's many manifestations.

Second, you fold the paper (three at a time) in half width wise (landscape, for all of you artists our there), and you cut.

Third, you fold the paper, accordion style, in thirds.  You can fold it in fourths if you desire, I chose thirds for artistic reasons.

...and you cut.

Remove the white strips.  Here comes the artistic reasoning behind my previous decision.

Have your children color the white strips however they would choose.  I told my sons the more color the better.

Even my two year old got into the coloring.

When you are ready to assemble "fold" a strip in to a ring and staple it.  Then string another strip through the ring and staple that one too.  Continue until your chain reaches your desired length.

Lastly, find the perfect location and hang your creation for all the world to see (or at least those that you invite into your home).   

Advent Calendars

Advent Calendar using the windows of Town Hall in the city of Hünfeld, Germany.

One of my favorite Christmas Traditions is the Advent Calendar.  I cannot remember a Christmas while I was growing up that we did not have an Advent Calendar to count down the days in December leading up to Christmas.  Two years ago, when my oldest son was two, we decided it was time to start the tradition with him.  My mother bought him a store bought Advent Calendar with chocolate pieces in the shape of Christmas items.  It was quite a special event.

Now, before I go in to any more of my own family traditions, I want to explain a few things about Advent and Advent Calendars.  Seeing as I am a history buff, you guys had to see that one coming.

While no one can pin point an exact beginning to the celebration of Advent (which is derived from the Latin word Adventus meaning "coming") there are many clues that allow us to block in a time period.  We know that Advent was not celebrated before the feast of the Nativity of Our Lord was established in the late 4th century, which marks the end of the Liturgical Year for Western (Catholic) Churches.  It was not until 590 that a Synod established a series of Lenten rite days from November 11th until the Nativity feast.  It was under Pope Gregory the Great (590-604) that we see the first mention of Advent (a reference to the Second Sunday of the Advent) and by 650 the Spanish were celebrating Advent five Sundays at a time.  During the reign of Pope Gregory II (1073-1075) the number of days was officially reduced to the four Sundays prior to Christmas.* 

The Season of Advent is used to commemorate waiting and preparing.  Both the waiting of the Hebrews for their Messiah and the preparing of Christians for the Second Coming of Christ.

Now, ironically, Advent Calendars have very little to do with Advent itself.  Traditional Advent Calendars begin on December 1, regardless of when the Season of Advent actually begins (which is the fourth Sunday prior to Christmas - as early as November 27th).  The origins of the Advent Calendar can be traced to German Lutherans, as far back as the early 19th century, physically marking the days of December until Christmas.  The first evidence of an actual Advent Calendar was a Handmade Calendar in 1851.  The first printed Advent Calendar was produced sometime between 1902-1908.**

Okay, that was as brief a history as you will ever get from me.  Much of the history of the Advent Calendar explains my own family's use of it.  My father was raised a Lutheran and many of my mother's ancestors are German Immigrants.

Now, let me tell you what I think of store bought Advent Calendars.  I can say this without fear of insulting my parents because they have known for years what I think about the store bought variety: the chocolate tastes like plastic!!

So last year I decided that if my children were going to participate in this Family Tradition, I was going to make sure they got good chocolate.  I also wanted to make sure they got a good sense of what the season was really about.

I made my own Wall Quilt Advent Calendar.  You can pretty much use anything.  I have a friend who bought 24 mini stockings and hangs them on the wall.  Then you can put what ever kind of candy you want in them.  (I of course use Hershey Kisses.)  

Now, some where in the celebration of Christmas, Christ has been taken out of it.  Most celebrations anymore are purely Secular, revolving more around Santa Claus than Christ.  Don't get me wrong, I love Santa Claus.  St. Nicholas was a real man, who loved the Lord very much and his deeds in the name of the Lord are known far and wide.  However, it was not St. Nicholas, a Greek monk, that gave us reason to celebrate this Season.

To help my children understand why we celebrate Christmas, I decided to incorporate the Nativity Story in our Advent Calendar.  

Starting with the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary and her visit to Elizabeth (Luke 1:26-55), we spend the first 12 days of December relating the Story of how Jesus' birth was foretold to Mary, who was a teenager and not yet married to her promised husband, Joseph.

We then jump to The Nativity Story (Luke 2:1-14) to spend the 12 days leading up to Christmas discussing the modesty that surrounded the Savior's birth.  Of all things we must never forget that the Hebrews were waiting for a King to come in and slaughter the Romans and reclaim the land for Israel.  They were not expecting a girl of modest means to birth their King in a stable.  We are presented a picture of true sacrifice from beginning to end.

We, as a family, make sure that the Advent Calendar is hung is a place of prominence in our house so that we will be reminded every day that it is up that we are learning of the true meaning of the Season.  The sacrifice of Mary and Joseph, the sacrifice of Jesus (the Man), and the sacrifice of God.  All of these sacrifices were for our redemption.

Kind of humbling, don't you think?

* http://www.aquinasandmore.com/catholic-articles/the-history-and-meaning-of-advent/article/173

**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advent_calendar

Finally...A New Post

Wow!  What a couple of weeks!  We had my FIL and BIL in town for Thanksgiving, which was extremely busy.  Of course, my husband just HAD to show his brother Mine Craft (his favorite obsession) on the computer.  This meant I was limited in my computer time, thus no new posts.

So, to catch you all up (unfortunately without pictures)...

The day before Thanksgiving was a very interesting day.  First of all I learned the valuable lesson that on a windy day one should NEVER leave one's hand on a car door unless it is closed.  My poor finger!  To go along with this lesson, I learned how to cut vegetables without using my right index finger (not an easy task).

The second thing that happened that day was my grandfather going in to the hospital with pneumonia.  This meant my mother was split between the hospital and her house for Thanksgiving.  To help out, my 4 year old and I headed over to her house early Thursday morning.  My son watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade for the first time (he tolerated it for about 30 minutes) and I helped my dad watch the dogs (theirs, my sister's and my grandfather's) and my niece while also prep dinner as much as I could.  Dinner was a smaller, quieter affair this year, but it was still yummy.

The next day was, of course, Black Friday.  I did NOT get up at midnight to hit up the stores.  I was not that desperate for anything.  I did go to K-Mart, Target, and JoAnn's for some of their deals, but my Christmas shopping was mostly confined to online and Costco this year.

That brings me up to today.  We are gonna start decorating for Christmas today, so expect some new posts coming on this experience.  YAY!

Kiddie Fun Badges

Today, while my sons and I were visiting my mom at her office, a co-worker gave each of the boys a little token gift...a retractable ID Badge holder.  You would have thought she handed them a gold nugget judging by how excited they were.  My boys love little do-hickeys like that.  When they saw that my mom had one too, but her's had an ID Badge on it, they also wanted an ID Badge.

Now, for any one who hasn't met my oldest son, for months he has been telling more and more elaborate stories of his place of work (Down Below), its ever changing location (I think it currently is located in space), and what he does there (play games, create stuff, build stuff for Disneyland, etc).  I figured making ID Badges for them would be a fun and imaginative way to keep the stories coming.  I was right!

So the first thing I did was open up a file in Microsoft Publisher.  I love this program.  I make party invitations, cards, and all sorts of picture related stuff with this marvelous program.  I created a 3x5 document, inserted a head shot picture of whichever child, added a fake name, a funny title, and a funny company name.  I repeated this for the second child, then cut and pasted both to a 8-1/2x11 document.

I printed the document on card stock.

Next, I cut each of the badges out, save the slot at the top.

For laminating, I use clear packing tape.  It is cheap and works just as well as the more expensive, heartier laminating sleeves professionals use.  After all this is just for play.

Using an X-acto knife, cut out the top slot for hanging the badge.  Reinforce the top of the slot with tape across the outer edge.

Last, but not least, I attached the badge to the holder and pinned it to my son's shirt.  He was so excited it took me three minutes of picture taking to get one shot that he wasn't jumping up and down in.

Cranberry Sauce

Aside from pumpkins, few other fruits and vegetables can claim as much prominence during the Holiday Season in America as cranberries.  Cranberries are one of three fruits native to America that are grown commercially (the blueberry and the Concord grape being the other two).  The name is derived from "craneberry" which is what the Pilgrims dubbed these wild berries because of their springtime blossom, which resembles a Sandhill crane.

Native Americans used the cranberry for not only food, but also clothing dye and a healing agent.  The Pilgrims and settlers to follow quickly adopted them as a staple in their diet and found them to be a useful bartering tool.*

Today cranberries are one of the most popular fruits the world over.  Unless you've been living under a rock since the 1990's you'll have noticed that cranberries are in everything.  Juices, trail mixes, salads, cookies, marinades, etc.  Their versatility is made greater by their shelf-life.  Fresh cranberries can be kept sealed and chilled for up to 3 months!  That's nothing to how long they will last frozen (18-24 months).  And, just in case you aren't convinced about cranberries as the ultimate super fruit, their health benefits have been lauded for years.  Cranberries contain bacteria-blocking compounds that are believed to be helpful in preventing urinary tract infections, and scientists now think this same function may be useful in blocking the bacteria responsible for ulcers and certain oral bacteria that can lead to gum disease.**

Now let's get down to some really important business.  Cranberry sauce.  While some people are fine with buying cranberry sauce in a can, more and more people are turning to the do it yourself approach.  A couple years ago I made some homemade cranberry sauce, but was disappointed with the result.  The sauce contained too many other flavors that over powered the desired tang that cranberries provide.  I found myself asking why I couldn't make a sauce that tasted just like the stuff in a can.  Well this year the recipe practically slapped me in the face.

Yup, that's right.  Three ingredients.  Water, Sugar, Cranberries.  DUH!

After feeling foolish for bit I went out and bought the cranberries, came home and started the process of making what would turn out to be the perfect cranberry sauce.

First you mix 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar in a medium sauce pan.  I doubled the recipe because I made this batch for a pot luck.  Stir until the sugar is dissolved.  Bring to a boil.

Add a 12 oz package of fresh cranberries to the pan, bring to a boil, reduce heat and lightly boil for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat.  As you notice there is a film on top of the sauce.  Skim this immediately.  Trust me, the longer you wait, the harder it will be to skim the film.

Once the film has been skimmed, let the sauce sit until it is room temperature.  This process takes about 4-6 hours (longer if you made a double batch like I did).

Now that the sauce is room temperature, transfer to a serving dish, cover with plastic wrap and chill overnight.  Wow!  That was easy!

Hope you guys enjoy making (and eating) this sauce as much as I did!

*Cape Cod Cranberry Growers' Association (http://www.cranberries.org/cranberries/history.html)
**Cape Cod Cranberry Growers' Association (http://www.cranberries.org/cranberries/health.html)