Halloween 2010

Captain Hook, Wendy, Peter Pan, John, and Michael.

yes. I did make those costumes . . . except for the pink michael jammies and Hubby MADE HIS OWN HAT.

And now you know what I would look like if I were to put on 100 pounds!

My Story

I am what I eat.

You’ve heard that before, but never before has it been so real to me. On the first day of school in 2010 I decided to change my life in a very dramatic way.

I was raised with food being the center of all. I think I realized it when I was first married. I was at work and having a bad day, my dad happened to come in to say “hi.” He and my mom were on their way to their Friday night dinner date, that week being across the street from my work. After they had eaten, they returned with food for me, “to help me with my bad day!” Food had nothing to do with my frustrations of the day, but it had everything to do with healing my frustrations.

On stressful days, I put the kids down to bed and I bust out the ice cream. On good days, I put the kids to bed and bust out the ice cream! When I am bored, I bake something. When I am feeling creative, I bake something! TO reach out and tell someone I love them, or was thinking of them, I make food for them! My greatest accomplishment of the day: the magical, creation of dinner.

Some people sew for a hobby, I can sew, but it’s not my greatest passion. Some people run, I don’t! Some people are crafty, I can do crafty things but once again, it’s not something I thrive for. I consider FOOD as my hobby. I shop for good deals, I create meals from scratch, and I bake amazing things and conjure up delicious flavors for dinner – just for the sake of tasting. I love food storage and creating from the shelf! Food is my hobby and my all!

When I am feeling anything, food is the comfort and the celebration of all things: I am what I eat.
I took my husband to Chicago, where I had lived for a couple of years; he wanted to see the sights of Chicago. Me? I wanted to eat and show him the foods of Chicago! It’s what my memories were based on. When we go places, it’s about the food! We go to the state fair and I top off the occasion with some certain “fair food” as a token memento. My husband says he wants to do something “different” or “special” for an occasion, to me that means RESTARAUNT! It’s all about the food.

It all changed in a way I never expected on the first day of school 2010. I decided that with my daily intake of sugar-based foods being near 2000 calories, I was addicted to sugar. I have no problem finishing a pan of brownies, cinnamon rolls, or a cake in only a few hours. I walk into the kitchen for lunch, and can’t decide what to eat so I “just have a brownie while I decide.” I can’t think of anything to eat for lunch, so I return in a half hour, perhaps then I something will sound good. I return in 30 minutes and while I think of something to make for lunch, I eat yet another brownie . . .or two. And then as the hours go on, I have eaten all of the brownies and have not decided what to eat for lunch, so I force myself to eat something “healthier” raising my calorie intake up and up for the reason of “balancing all of that sugar!”

SO, I recognized my addiction and I set out to overcome it. I thought it was simple, “just don’t eat sugar,” right? But I realized that by giving up sugar I have created an empty chasm in my life. I gave up my ONLY hobby: food.

With this void to fill, I find myself frustrated daily, bored daily, and struggling to fill the void with something of worth.

It may sound ridiculous to you, but to me, it is a true problem. I am as much of a recovering addict as anyone was an alcoholic or anorexic. This is my journey, this is my story.

Construction Birthday

"Tractor" cake. You can't tell very well from the photos but there is a gaping hole in the cake. It was fun!

New House: Best Parts

These are the peaches - 87 Quarts, to be exact! No more food storage UNDER the Bed!

Jam Time

Strawberries are $.75 a pound at Winco, so this is a good year to do freezer jam. This is one thing that I don't do every year, only every year or 2.

With Berries this size, it was a quick job!

Mosaic Tile Planter Box

I am so proud of the planter box I made for my brother this year for Christmas!

It weighs a jillion pounds!

Par-Tay!

Such attention to detail!

Don't praise me for this cuteness. My husband made this - such attention to detail!!!!

What Does 36 Quarts of Peaches in ONE Day Look Like?

About Like This This is after I've cleaned up!

Christmas Pickles

Been a crazy week! I canned

24 quarts of Tomatoes,

7 quarts of spaghetti sauce,

12 pints of pickles

(pickles for my brother's and sister's Christmas presents).

Then, I started peaches. After spending $50.00 on peaches at the farmer's market, I got home only to find the boxes were mealy peaches. You can't can mealy fruit, it turns to mush in the jars. So, I have a bunch of peaches that I can't do anything with and still have to spend $50.00 more to get good peaches! It was a week of great accomplishments, but it ended on a sour note.

ARRG! Speak Like a Pirate, Ye Can!

First we played a game to help them dress like pirates

Then we went on a pirate Scavenger Hunt,

Following the clues, and SPEAKING LIKE PIRATES,

"ARRRG!"

Then when we found the X that marked the spot,

we digged for treasures and put them in their own little treasure boxes.

Mar designed her own cake.

She walked me through the process as I made it.

Specifics:

BLUE CAKE (on the inside)

Blue frosting all over, even on the sides for the water.

An Island along this edge,

And then the playmobil pirate things on top.

It needs to have a wave coming up onto the island

(look closely at the second picture to find the wave!)

Note to self: Blue food coloring makes the cake taste bitter!

Warning! I Could Be Better Prepared

2 Week ends ago, I went out to the garage to get something from the freezer . . .

As I opened the door I noticed there was a light on in the garage . . . .

Then to my HORROR - The freezer door was open and had been left open for at least 12 hours.

My freezer does have an alarm that sounds if the internal temperature reaches a dangerously low level. . . .

The switch was turned OFF.

Thankfully everything was still solid - except for the freezer jams and the 2 cartons of peppermint ice cream on the door . . . which had dripped down everything and puddled on the floor.

NO MORE ICE CREAM SANDWICHES FOR MY KIDS!

At least not keeping them in the outside freezer - They are going to have to be inside where I can supervise the getting!

This inspired me to be better prepared.

So this week, when hamburger went on sale, I canned 40 lbs of ground beef.

If the freezer does go out, at least I'll still have some meat!

It looks disgusting, but it works for everything except meatloaf and hamburgers!

Got Milk?

Yesterday we took our annual adventure to Logan for a food storage item. At Gossner Dairy, they make all sorts of cheese and boxed, shelf stable milk. I get about 6 gallons a year too have on hand for when we are out of milk and can't get to the store. It's better than powdered milk.

We love Logan and if we could we would live there. When you go to the cheese store they have a table set up with a bunch of cheese samples and milk samples, you just grab a tooth pick and poke a cube of cheese. It's delightful.

Well, the milk comes in quarts or in tiny 8 oz boxes. They look like Juice Boxes, but it's milk. They have 1%, 2%, Whole, Chocolate, banana, mango, strawberry, vanilla, root beer. . . Anyway-

I stood there contemplating what kind to get and how many. I kept telling ManZ to get off the pallets, and stop hiding behind the cooler cases and then I heard it. I little poke. Then another poke, and I turned around to see Grant poking a toothpick into the plastic that holds the cases of milk together.

Now Moms are a bit psychic. They can read the worst case scenario before it even happens, that's what we do, it's part of good parenting and preventing disaster! I though instantly, "I hope he just poked the plastic and not the little metallic circle where the straws are supposed to go in cause then we would have to buy all that milk since it would officially be open and unlike a juice box, the Milk won't last for weeks and weeks in the fridge and give us time to drink it all."

I walked over to ManZ and quickly stopped him and took his tooth pick away. And then we purchased 32 Banana milks that have to be drunk soon.

And, NO - they can't be frozen . . .they expand and seep right out of that toothpick hole as they freeze!

Lovely 2 year olds. Just Lovely.

Halloween 2008

We spent the day today sewing our Halloween costumes for a party tonight. We had a great time - and I think we coordinated just superbly!