The Well Rounded Mama

The First Day of the New Normal

Yesterday was the first day.  The first full day of Jason being back at work and me being home with the kiddos with nothing on the to-do list (he was back on Friday and Monday as well, but I was out most of both those days!)  Although I was sad for the time to come, I was also looking forward to it.  I crave routine.  I crave quiet.  I crave not having to go anywhere.  After three weeks of non-stop going, going, going I was ready for a new kind of normal.

And so yesterday, I soaked it all in.  I soaked in the bliss of not having to go anywhere, of being able to just hold and feed my baby, read to my little ones, and just BE.  We had time...that glorious, amazing, and often-taken-advantage-of gift of TIME.  We had time for...

 

Playing with chalk...

 

 

Laying on the driveway and staring at the gorgeous sky and trees...

 

 

Baking banana bread (two kinds!)...

 

 

For letting little kitchen helpers make pizza dough...

 

For enjoying the end result of our cooking...pizza puffs...

For playing in the afternoon rain...

And for attempting to not get our dress wet by wearing rubber gloves (??!?)

 

I think I like the new normal...

Gingerbread + Peppermint

 

We haven't done a ton of Christmasy activities over here this year.  Sure, we've decorated the house, iced cookies, and watched a few Christmas videos, but we haven't done nearly as much as I would if I weren't baby-growing. I was feeling a little guilty so I decided that I wanted to do something fun last Friday.  So, we whipped up a batch of playdough...holiday style.

We actually made two batches.  We made one gingerbread batch and one peppermint batch. Had I planned ahead, I would have made sure that I actually had things like ginger and ground cloves.  But no, it was 100% spur of the moment so we had to make do with what we had.  I threw in some cinnamon, nutmeg, a little cocoa to darken the brown, and simmered some whole cloves with the liquid before adding the flour. The result was that our gingerbread playdough wasn't nearly as yummy smelling as I had hoped, but at least the kids still had fun.

The peppermint, on the other hand, was divine.  Red playdough + peppermint extract = totally yummy.  My hands smelled like peppermint all day! After playing for a while we added some gold glitter for even more holiday fun :)

Making playdough is so easy...I really don't know why I don't do it more often.  I've tried a number of recipes over the years.  Here is what we used on Friday:

 

HOMEMADE PLAYDOUGH

2 cups water
1 cup salt
4 teaspoons cream of tartar
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups flour

 

In a large pot add the water, coloring, oil, salt, and cream of tarter. Heat gently over mediul low.  When the mixture is warm, add the flour and mix well.  Keep stirring as the dough thickens. Remove the dough from the pot and let cool.  Once cool, knead for a minute or two and it is ready to play with!

Store in zip lock bags in when not in use.

 

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I wonder what other fun flavors/smells we could try??

Another Little Princess

Last Wednesday we had our ultrasound to see whether we would be adding another little girl or boy to the family.  I know that for most people, this is a huge and greatly anticipated event, but it really wasn't for me.  This is for two reasons:

1) Here in Indonesia, they do ultrasounds at ever visit so I had already seen the baby three times prior to this appointment

 

2) As sick as I have been, I would have bet a LOT on the little bean being a girl.  I honestly hadn't even given a boy much thought.  I brought back all of Katie's 0-3 clothes from the States and added a few new pink things to the pile a long time ago.

 

And, I was right.  It was very obvious from the ultrasound that a new little princess would be joining our family. We are all excited, of course, but I will say that the boys were really hoping for a boy.  Later that day, when I asked Caleb what he thought about having a girl, he said, "Oh well, maybe the next one will be a boy!"  Apparently, this kid has plans.

 

So even though "the big reveal" wasn't much of a surprise, it was still a delight and we decided to celebrate by making and decorating cookies.  The kids love to decorate cookies and get out every sprinkle known to man.  It is one of those times that I just let them do as they please and let them have fun (rather than trying to contain the mess).  Katie especially loved having a 3:1 sprinkle:cookie ratio.  They had a great time (and so did mom and dad!)

 

 

 Oh, and in case you are wondering about the name cookies...Jason added any names that the kids suggested for our new little gal.  But we are far from a decision in that area!

Chocolate Chip Scones

CHOCOLATE CHIP SCONES -- oh so yummy!

2 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 cup (or less, depending on taste) mini chocolate chips

lightly beaten egg

(I don't have buttermilk on hand so I usually just make my own.  1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice + 1 cup of milk = 1 cup buttermilk).

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Mix dry ingredients.  Cut in 6 tablespoons butter until mixture resembles course cornmeal.  Add chocolate chips.  Make a well in the center and pour in buttermilk.  Mix until dough clings together and is a bit sticky.  Do not overmix. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and shape into a 6-8 inch round about 1.5 inches thick.  Use a round biscuit cutter (or the mouth of a cup) to cut circles.  Do not handle the dough too much in order to keep them light and fluffy.  Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, making sure that the sides of the scones do not touch each other.  Brush each scone with the beaten egg.  Bake at 425 for 10 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

*Adapted from Basic Scone recipe from If Teacups Could Talk, by Emilie Barnes

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

 

Find three cute kids in aprons to help you

Make sure they all get a turn to stir

Convince them not to eat the dough or pick out the chocolate chips while you are rolling them out

Let one of the kids brush an egg over the top so they turn out nice and shiny

Since they look so yummy sitting there on a pretty plate, you might as well make it into a full-fledged affair...

complete with invitations...

and a pretty table and tea set.

Grab a plastic cup and spoon for the wee one

And watch the older ones have fun feeling all grown up with their tea and china

We Had a Pumpkin Party

You've got to do something while Daddy is gone for the weekend!

Eating... 

Cutting, cleaning, and carving...

Drying and Roasting...

Crafting...

and baking .              

     

CAN I REALLY DO THIS?

This sign was at the entrance to my old neighborhood and it always made me smile.  I couldn't help but think of swiping it and hanging it on my front door as a warning to myself and to others. And in case you don't read Bahasa Indonesia, it says, "Be Careful, there are lots of kids."  Houses like ours really should come with a warning!

Having four kids age six and under is a serious task...homeschooling them...well, I sometimes think I am crazy.  Sometimes I KNOW I am crazy.  And every day, I wonder, "Can I really do this?"  I question it so much I even wrote an article about it.  You can see it HERE on Heart of the Matter Online.

A Happy Plan B {Bagel French Toast}

The other morning Jason and the kids wanted french toast.  The only problem was that we had no bread and no one felt like running out to the store.  And then I spotted a bag of cinnamon-raisin bagels and an idea was born :)

I cooked up a big batch of bagel french toast and it was SO good and SO fun!  Yummy!

 

First I sliced up some bagels (these bagels are homemade but of course any bagel would do!)

So I started making my mom's yummy french toast batter "recipe".  I use quotes because she is a total dump cook and for this recipe I usually just dump, too.  But Alaina wants to cook with me and she is learning about measuring and so I created a recipe for her.  Four eggs...

Then a little bit of flour mixed with cold water -- this thickens the batter and gives a great coating to the bread.

Then I add in some brown sugar (I sometimes use white sugar...just depends on my mood)

 

Then some cinnamon...Alaina is learning the difference between TEASPOONS and TABLESPOONS...obviously she got a little mixed up here :)  No worries, just a little extra cinnamony...

Some vanilla...

Give it a good whirl...

Add in some milk....

Dip quickly and then fry up

Flip, cook, and serve.  Very happy people are waiting :)

And what did I do with these two lonely little guys once the family had eaten their fill?

I brushed liberally with maple syrup, cooked for 20 seconds, flipped and repeated.

And then I set them aside for the perfect late morning second third cup of coffee maple flavored treat.

If You Ever Crave Chocolate

** Note:  this is a crossover post from my other site, THE DAILY DIGI

I never used to have a sweet tooth.  I never really actually understood when other women would say that just needed to have some chocolate.  It wasn't that I didn't like it -- it was fine.  But I can't say I ever craved it, or needed it.  And then I got pregnant with baby number four and all things changed.  Chocolate was a NEED.  A real give-it-to-me-or-you-die kind of need.  I didn't worry about it because I knew that once I had the baby all would back to normal and all Twix and Reece's would be safe once again.  Boy, was I wrong.

My baby is now 16 months old and I still crave chocolate.  It is better than it was (starving the craving does, admittedly, help a little.  But shhh...I didn't tell you that) but I sill crave it at times.  It just meets some instinctual female need, I guess.  Me + chocolate = happiness.

So, if you are like me and have ever craved chocolate -- I have a treat for you.  A few weeks ago I was blog hopping and came across something -- and they warned me -- VERY dangerous.  Very, very, dangerous.  Over at the Everyday Celebrating blog they had a recipe for 5-minute chocolate cake.  Yes, you read that right.  You are just five minutes away from amazingly yummy homemade chocolate cake.  You are five minutes away from this:

Oh yea...that's what I am talking about.  A little bit of chocolate heaven in a cup.  And it is totally easy!  Here is the recipe:

4 tablespoons of flour
4 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons of milk
3 tablespoons of oil
3 tablespoons of chocolate chips (optional)
A splash of vanilla extract
A coffee mug

1. Add dry ingredients to mug and mix well.

2. Add the egg and mix thoroughly.

3. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.

4. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract and mix again. (Now I realize that the recipe says that chocolate chips are optional, but I am telling you, the are not optional! Well, not for me anyway).

5.  Place the mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts.

Don't be alarmed if the cake rises over the top of the mug!

Now you can eat it as is (which is my 9 o'clock snack method) or you can wait for it to cool, slice in half, top with some whipped cream or ice cream and voila!, a perfect five-minute treat.  Won't your friends be impressed when they stop by unannounced and you serve them this!

Fresh Lemonade -- A Family First

I've never made homemade lemonade before...but I can assure you I will do it again.  Alaina and I had girls night part two last night (more on part one later) and we were at home.  We had already finished mommy/daughter mani and pedis, so we decided we wanted to get into the kitchen.  I had been dreaming about a really good glass of lemonade for a few days, so I figured, why not? 

I looked for a recipe online and found this one at elise.com/simplyrecipes.  Looked simple enough!

Fresh squeezed lemons (we used a hand juicer which is good for little ones to help with), a few ice cubes, a sprig of mint = a tiny bit of perfection on a Wednesday afternoon.

Throw in a gorgeous girl and that piece of perfection just got a whole lot bigger.

 

One of the easiest (and most delicious!) treats we make!

The problem is...they have no name.  I asked my six year old what she thought they should be named.  She said, "Um, why not 'chocolate covered Ritz peanut butter cracker cookies?'" 

Well, that would be a very descriptive name and make a recipe unnecessary, but it seems a bit long, doncha' think?  In any case, name or no name, we LOVE them and they have a way of disappearing within a few hours of making them.  At least they are super easy!

Some Ritz Crackers...

Some creamy peanut butter...

Eager little hands to help...

Spread the peanut butter between two crackers...

Melt some chocolate on a double boiler...

Beware of 16 month olds who swipe the peanut butter crackers...

Place chocolate dipped crackers on waxed paper...

After about 30 minutes in the fridge, decide on an appropriate amount of cookies for yourself and the kiddos (practice. self. control....)

See if they pass the taste test. And see how long they last at your house.